La la links

Oscar the Grouch trashes Fox News.


Funny, but is it really necessary on a children’s show?

This might only be of interest to language geeks – particularly those who’ve studied Arabic. It certainly makes sense and goes along with what I’ve been saying – that “Arabic” is not a language. It’s a series of languages and the only reason that “Lebanese,” “Egyptian,” “Jordanian,” etc. do not exist as a language is because of the Arab nationalism idea leftover from the Nasser age.

Last week’s massacre at Fort Hood was not the first time it happened there. In 1991, George Hennard killed 23 people before killing himself. Wait – George Hennard? That doesn’t sound like a Muslim name!

A cause liberals and conservatives can get (and are getting) together on. Break down the banks!

Republicans hate women? Who knew?

Shouldn’t this be headlines? 124 people are dead, and it’s buried in the Twitterverse?

I found it odd that an English newspaper would write so much about US health care reform, as it’s one issue that has no direct bearing on the rest of the world. Indirectly, maybe. Because liberals are going to do their best to fight against those Democrats who voted against the bill. I’ll be one of them. It will be stupakendous to see them go down to defeat in the primaries.

That being said, the Stupak amendment doesn’t matter as much as it’s outspoken critics think it does. We need this reform to pass, and it won’t happen without compromise.

I mean, why would so-called progressives prefer no health care reform to a compromise bill with no federal funding for abortion language? Pass the bill, work to change the bad parts later.

Or does it matter?

Flailin' Palin sees US coin design conspiracy. Where does she get this stuff?

Speaking of nutjobs.

Why does rightwing hatred still stun me?

Westboro Baptists used to be so extreme. Now they seem no different than teabaggers.

Support the Troops!™

The Liberal Media™

Really tired of the Che/Lenin/Satan rhetoric from the right while St. Ronnie and St. W get a free pass.

Too big to fail, too big to exist. Awesome. And from a socialist, nonetheless.

Larkin belongs in the Hall.

Paul Krugman is the most sane man in America.

If the woman had told the man that his fascist religion was wrong, he would have been pissed off and Faux News would not touch the story about her being fired.

Another reason liberals are better.

Jesus wept.

Jesus smiled.

Can we help them out?

Socialism!

Ich bin ein jelly donut

Freedom is indivisible, and when one man is enslaved, all are not free. When all are free, then we can look forward to that day when this city will be joined as one and this country and this great Continent of Europe in a peaceful and hopeful globe. When that day finally comes, as it will, the people of West Berlin can take sober satisfaction in the fact that they were in the front lines for almost two decades.

All free men, wherever they may live, are citizens of Berlin, and, therefore, as a free man, I take pride in the words "Ich bin ein Berliner."

-John F. Kennedy, June 26, 1963

I remember it vividly. It was 11/9/89. 11/9, a reverse of 9/11, and what had happened on that day was the reverse, too.

I first stepped into the city of Berlin on the eighth anniversary of that day, and it seemed like the celebration had never stopped. In 1997, Berlin held the promise of the future in its cranes and crania. The city looked much like Beirut does today and sounded much the same, too, a symphony of jackhammers and big yellow machines and clanging steel. Most of all, though, I remember the energy - it felt like the future, like possibility, like...Hope.

I was 12 years old when I watched people with sledgehammers breaking up a wall that had symbolized a global division and had been responsible for so many ruined lives, so many heartbreaks, so many deaths. In 1989 I saw that wall fall down through the miracle of television, a wall that had kept prosperity and humanity out, a prison wall, a tragedy. The wall fell and the cranes went up, cranes that would not leave a picture frame, cranes that would start the rebuilding process, that would give back Berlin its heart.

I remember it all even if I didn't understand it at the time. In school we had this good thing called democracy and this other, evil thing called communism, and that was the world and there was no other way to look at it. Then suddenly the definition of the world no longer defined it and people were proclaiming the "End of History" and other ridiculous notions and a lot of peacocks ruffled their feathers and couldn't keep their beaks shut about triumph and victory and blah, blah, blah. What was a kid to do except either ignore it or try to find out about the world and what was going to happen to it now that all the world's problems had been solved?

Indeed, it did feel like a victory of sorts. Back then cable news reported news instead of balloon boys. Back then my twelve year old eyes and heart knew this was something that was changing history. I didn't know why or how, but you could just feel it. The joy and unity people felt in seeing those Berliners dancing on top of concrete and graffiti was shared by everyone (aside from those Soviet fat cats who benefited from imprisoning a city and much of the globe for all those years.) There was a certain energy in the air that made it feel like that illusion the English language called "peace" was possible across the rest of the world.

Eight years later, I found myself getting off a train at the Zoo Station, a twenty year old university student carrying that same optimism for the world that had been born all those years earlier. (Whether that optimism and idealism was inspired by divinity or insanity has not yet been determined.) I had yet to notice the world's optimism was slipping, and it was tough to feel anything but awe and amazement as a city was rebuilding itself.

Another twelve years have passed since the first time I set foot in Berlin. The world is a vastly different place, and ominous clouds have replaced the sunshine of hope that could be felt in the last days of the twentieth century. When once the promise of peace graced us with its presence, now, "times of uncertainty" has become a cliche phrase.

BBC posted images of separation walls that still exist in the world, walls built after we should have learned our lesson.

Curious, I asked Lebanese Twitterers if there were any walls in Lebanon which divided the different communities. A couple of interesting responses:

@MXML: plenty of psychological walls, that's for sure.

@srichani: imaginary walls btw different sects, political affiliations, social classes, ethnicities.

I imagine psychological walls are far more difficult to take down.

Today, a group of Palestinian youth knocked down a section of the Israel Wall.



Their retreat and the bullet trails were nothing like those iconic images of sledgehammers and dancing on top of graffiti covered concrete. Yet - there is a tiny victory in the defiance of these youth, a little of the spirit of Berlin, some of the hope.

That's enough to keep fighting for the future.

We are all Berliners. We are all Palestinians. We are all Earthians. Humans. And we all deserve the freedom that we watched unfold before our eyes on that blessed day in 1989 - 11/9, or as it's written outside of America, 9/11. That's the 9/11 that should shape our world.

This will be published on November 9 on Developing Lebanon.

Support the troops!™

Venture capitalists investing in green again.

Reverend Billy makes the news (and got a decent showing on election day).

Who cares what happens to a person after they’re born? Women shouldn’t be drinking the devil’s drink anyway, right?

There’s a special place in hell for teabaggers. And for the GOPs who have allowed them to take over their party.

Perspective on the shooting at Fort Hood. If more people would actually serve in the military, they'd understand how bad (and sometimes violent) harassment can be and how very little is done to stop it. They'd also know that psychological illness is still mostly treated as a "weakness" and there isn't much done to help those who need treatment, even if there are problems that are recognized. Often, psych patients are called liars by those who are supposed to treat them, because psych is viewed as a "way to get out" of the military.

The guy snapped. The fact that the wingnut media is making this out to be a Muslim thing is disgusting. Then again, the right rarely gets off their butts to serve their country, so how would they know what it's like?

Srsly, what is wrong with this country? Why do people think it’s ok to lie and involve emergency crews for attention?

I saw elephant in the title and thought it was a story from India, not Oklahoma.

A pro-net neutrality column in the Wall Street Journal. There have been a great number of pro-business, pro-net neutrality statements of late. Not, of course, from the US Chamber of Evil, because, you know, those who stand to benefit from controlling the internet – the telecoms – feed Tom Donohue’s bank account.

Make my sadness melt away

As if the Snows of Kilimanjaro wasn't depressing enough. The writer in the story realizes as he's dying from an infection that although he'd seen so much in his life, he never wrote about it. He lived for the moment, never thinking of his future.

And that's what many are doing right now as the snows melt from Kilimanjaro. What would Hemingway think?

Sigh...



Warren Buffet buys train company, Fox Business News fails to report.

Obama going to Copenhagen?

A new progressive era? I sure hope so. It’s about damn time.

The FCC is scary.

What competition?

Bush, Cheney, and the rest of them will burn in hell.

Everyone hates Obama, except more than half of the country.

Goddamn it US, enough with catering to the terrorists known as the Israel government.

Morocco’s going solar.

GOPs facing long-term decline. Because most people find racism appalling.

BIKE TO WORK!
__

Lots o'links

Did the stimulus work? A nut from Cato says no. Surprise, surprise.

The Exile of Satan from Heavy Metal Design. I'm not a metal fan, but I found this interesting from a sociological perspective.

Article on child brides. Too bad we can't can some of the pedophilia paranoia in the US and give it to the countries where pedophilia is acceptable.

McCain adviser who attacked Dems' HCR is losing his insurance and may have a pre-existing condition. Karma's a bitch.

Superman defeated the KKK. Cool story. Can we get him to infiltrate Faux News?

Support the Goldstone Report! Yes, Israel DOES commit warcrimes, quite frequently, too.

Slate's article on PTSD nutjob, Ayn Rand.

A foreigner tells us what the election of Obama meant to him.

Fox and MSNBC are NOT the same thing.

I thought it was a real headline, that's how ridiculous the GOPs are these days.

I still find the idea of space tourism odd. I can't wrap my head around the fact that it is happening, that it's not just a movie.

Can we get some perspective? Srsly?

Sorry, but your daughter is LAZY. If she is in school, there were people with clipboards EVERYWHERE registering people to vote. Get a clue.

THESE PEOPLE ARE NOT CHRISTIANS. BTW, the Army of God is a terrorist organization. The people who run this website should be arrested and convicted of terrorism. Can you be convicted of "terrorism?" It seems like it. These people are certainly terrorists. Can we say Oklahoma City Bombing, Olympic Bombing, Abortion Clinic Bombings, the murder of Dr. Tiller...where in the Bible does it say thou shalt commit murder in my name?

Not everything is black and white.

Obama's foreign trips in photos.

15 stupidest products. Oh so fun.

Get a straightjacket

Ayn Rand was one of the most terrible people to happen to America.

Lost on her followers (among many other things) is the fact that even though she was screaming that FDR was making America a fascist state, it did not become a fascist state. Funny how history continues to repeat itself and these people never get it.

Ayn Rand surely suffered from undiagnosed Post Traumatic Stress Disorder as a result of having to escape Lenin's Soviet Union. As a result, she saw the boogieman everywhere and convinced others to be afraid, be very afraid. She was a nutjob. The capitalists and the mentality of greed she glorified and preached are responsible for this economic mess, as well as too little government intervention.

Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice...uh...uh...you can't get fooled again.

Conversation in the key of Facebook

The status: Boo! I was going to go to a party dressed as Fox News (the scariest thing out there), but I'm not much in the mood to go out tonight. It would be a fun costume, though. Maybe next year, as it will be election time...

CN: Fox "News" will still be scary next year. Don't worry.

BSS: Sorry, but I am a Fox news fan and it is the left that scares me! Oh well, that is what makes the world go around! We are all entitled to our own opinions!

Me: Social justice, equality for all, helping those in need...all really scary concerns of the evil left!

BSS: Like I said... we are all entitled to our own opinions... that is what makes this country great!

YN: Well said BSS; consider dressing up as MSNBC.

BSS: Yeah, I thought about that! At least I am not an Anne Coultier or however the heck you spell it fan! I am open to all kinds of opinions without judging... liberal or conservative or in the middle!

Me: The other thing is that yeah, everyone is entitled to an opinion, but too often people spout off their opinions without bothering to inform themselves.

Half the time critics of MSNBC have never watched MSNBC. Meanwhile I'm puking my guts out watching Beck and Hannity bc to make a valid argument you have to understand the other side's view, otherwise you're just spitting out talking points (which is what most political discourse is in this country these days.)

As far as MSNBC is concerned, they make no effort to hide the fact that their business model was designed to counter Fox, & their slogan is not "Fair and Balanced." As far as commentators go, Olbermann may be an egotistical maniac, but at least he doesn't just make up stories to support his world view, doesn't spout off conspiracy theories (No birth certificate! Death Panels! They want to destroy America!), & doesn't start witch hunts (Beck: "I'm gonna take down this administration.") MSNBC also doesn't fire everyone who doesn't agree with them (see Colmes, Alan and Lamont-Hill, Marc - watch out Shep Smith - you're next!); in fact, their morning show is run by a flaming conservative piehole, Joe "I killed my intern after sleeping with her" Scarborough.

Beck, Hannity, and O'Reilly are quite a trio of angry white guys upset because America is no longer a place where you're better than everyone else just because you're white, and they can't handle that. Sadly, there are enough people who feel that way to make Fox the #1 news channel in the US.

I've said it a million times and I'll say it again: liberal mainstream media voices are funny guys Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert. Chris Matthews laughs and jokes a lot on his show. Rachel Maddow doesn't seem to have an angry bone in her body. Al Franken, a former writer for SNL, is a United States Senator. Cons main people are screaming nasty white guys - Beck, Hannity, O'Reilly, and Limbaugh - and a few screaming nasty women – Coulter, Bachman, Palin, and Malkin. Why is that? (I would love to delve into the psychological and sociological aspects of that here, but I have a book’s worth of notes on the topic and will save it for another day.)

Things to be angry at: 5,000 of your troops getting killed in two simultaneous (and unnecessary) wars; the torture of human beings in the name of your country; and nothing being done before a major city in your country gets wiped out. Things not to be angry about: a school choosing to not serve meat on Mondays to save money, Walmart greeters saying “Happy Holidays” instead of “Merry Christmas,” and your government using the same macroeconomic principles that it has successfully used to get out of every other recession since Keynes proposed the ideas. (& this econ crisis shows once again that Keynes was right.)

I still want to know where were these anti-government people when Bush was spending more and expanding government more than any other president in history?

UPDATE: OMFG: Is this satire? He forgot the pictures of the dead fetuses.

Liberals vs. Conservatives: Satire vs. Insane Ranting

Do you want to know the difference between a liberal and a conservative? Look no further than these two videos. Liberals use humor and smart satire to talk about politics.



Contrast that with the insane rants of the most popular conservative television show.



Onto the links:

Oh noes! Obama is gonna shut down the interwebs!

Is AARP the GOP ACORN?

Schwartzenegger really isn’t a bad GOP sometimes.

Joe LIEberman married into Big Pharm.

If he loses the fat vote, will he lose the election?

Grim, meet Recession. Recession, meet Grim. OMG THE EVIL SOCIALISM IS WORKING!!!!11!!1! QUICK, STOP BUYING STUFF SO OBAMA WILL FAIL!!!!1!!!!!11

Swiss cracking down on “suicide tourism.” Ominous sign of a changing view of centralized government in Switzerland? Are they succumbing to pressure from other European countries?

70% of Americans don’t think Flailin’ Palin is qualified to be POTUS. So WTF is wrong with the other 30% of you morons?

You would think the Christian Crackheads™ would welcome the ability to reproduce without sex, since, you know, sex is sinful and all.

Speaking of Christian Crackheads™, these loving Christians have started a “Burn in Hell Pelosi and Reid” contest. Because, you know, no reason to actually LIVE the word of Jesus Christ.

No, American teens aren’t affected by all of the violence that surrounds them.

10 million people watched the live U2 YouTube concert on Sunday. Me too!

Aren’t ALL rap lyrics ridiculous?

A fun story about a minor league pitcher whose living assignment put him in an assisted living home.

House hears testimony on how football is violence.

Real football in Gaza. Suck it, Hamas.

Democrats’ open Facebook letter to Flailin’ Palin. (I am getting an image of a Garbage Pail Kid with such a name. Oh, I should so try drawing that.)

Farming is popular in America? Sounds like a little niche nostalgia type of deal. Maybe smoking has something to do with it?

Crazy adults with no common sense ruining kindergarten.

Soldiers arriving in the dead of night.
Take these broken wings and learn to fly
All your life
You were only waiting for this moment to arise

Coffins arriving in the dead of night
Take these sunken eyes and learn to see
all your life
you were only waiting for this moment to be free

Soldier fly, Soldier fly
Into the light of the dark black night.

Karzai is a Bush crony. This is old news to anyone not oblivious to everything around them.

Rumors in an age of unreason.

Finally, an interesting old pro-capitalism cartoon:

Linkies

"Here we are, quadrillions of bytes deep into the Information Age. And yet information, it seems, has never mattered less." Couldn't have said it better.

http://rawstory.com/2009/10/gops-facebook-photos/

Yuppie 911. God, people are stupid.

Michael has not left the building. Latoya's building.

Trigger. Bang bang.

Marg bar dictator.

Next on the David Duke Network.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091026/ap_on_go_pr_wh/us_bc_obama_and_the_media_quotes_1

Faux News is beneath democracy.

Some sense about animals.

Hero.

Another hero.

Scum.

CNN sux and people know it.

Sick.

Liberal linkies

A live YouTube concert. 96,000 people attended. Another 2.5 million watched online. I did. I can't wait to get my tix for the Philly and NYC shows next year. I already ordered a ticket for one of the Paris shows (and hope to see another one there if I can find a ticket.)

More evidence that capitalism and fascism go hand in hand.

I'm gonna go with a wild conspiracy theory based on zero evidence that this crime was committed by a fringe lunatic group that calls itself "Christian." Because, you know, science is the devil's work.

Girls accept rape to get into gangs. I don't know if this is sad or just plain stupid. Gangs are stupid. And is it rape if it is willful? I repeat: gangs are stupid. If you think you need to be a part of a gang, you are showing your insecurity and your total lack of individuality. Oh, and that you're a scumbag.

Insurers poised to reap benefits from healthcare overhaul. These criminals can rot in Hell, and so can the Congressmen who wrote the bill.

Jane Hall quits Faux News because of slanted coverage. You know what? You CAN blame the entire network, because as long as it tolerates Beck and Hannity, as long as those shows are on the air, the entire network is poisonous.

Speaking of Faux News - the guy in the middle is a total douche. And no, I don't often use that word, but it just fits here.

DIPLOMACY WORKS, YOU NEO-CONSERVATIVE TWITS. If people would stop listening to Faux News - and really any American news outlet - and started learning about Iran and thinking about it for themselves, they would come to understand that it is not run by some maniacal spawn of satan intent on destroying the world but is very interested in NOT committing suicide by bombing something. Because if it bombed Israel, it knows it would be erased from the map. Ever heard of something called Mutual Assured Destruction? Guess you wouldn't think it applied to Iran since W. lumped all Muslims into one group and called them "terrorists."

Father of the year kills son over a video game. And people think Iran is the dangerous one?

Speaking of Shia extremists (or not), because Lebanon has solved all its problems, it's now making giant food.

Really cool clouds over Australia. Seriously worth taking a look.

Today's Out of Control Copyrights: Warner Brothers tells non-profit it can't have a Harry Potter themed dinner.

They SHOULD have been fired! Kudos to the library for standing up for free speech and not sheltering children from reality!

British pilot dies saving nine passengers. Sad how the plane was overweight because of corruption in luggage weighing. Hopefully the pilot's death will change things.

A chat with FCC Chief Genachowski. NET NEUTRALITY NOW! And while you're at it, can you do something about these stupid blackout rules sports have for watching games online? I mean, we have this amazing, amazing technology, and corporations do all they can to hinder it and block it and it just drives me CRAZY.

I am so happy to see that the threat climate change poses to international security has finally become mainstream. (It might be too late.) Archbishop Tutu writes about it here.

Why do people still consider Communism as a viable form of government? Do we NEVER learn?

Religion can be SOOO stupid.

What kind of freaks like to throw dead rabbits around?

Oh, and the Bankee$ still suck.

Linky linky

Conservatives can't get satire. It's amazing to me to think how many of them think Steven Colbert is a real conservative.

A four year old gets an $8000 tax credit? Those people are not fit to be parents.

I'm not the only one feeling sick while riding Metro these days.

The ancient Egyptians held the first recorded workers strike.

Militant Atheists are just as bad as Crazy Christians.

Krauthammer repeats rightwing talking points and conspiracy theories. DIAF.

More proof this couldn't be a Christian Country (TM).

Congressman Grayson tidbit of the day.

Glenn Beck's ratings are a bit down, as are Faux News'.

And I wonder why I'm afraid of flying.

What is a fascist?

Some things to read

The world's stupidest inventions, including this cigarette holder. It holds a whole pack!

Excellent article on the enviro reporter Limbarf told to kill himself.

I can imagine many of Palin's followers - who are not quite bright - will mistakenly purchase the parody.

Shocking photos of the plastic found in dead albatrosses.

Very interesting article on Chernobyl.

Not news.

More evidence that people are stupid.

Alan Grayson is my favorite Congressman.

OMG GOP WTF?! LOL.

Wait, chickens have heads? OMG!!!!!!!!11!!11!! Seriously, people are so far removed from the process that goes into the food they eat that they find the head on an animal "disgusting?" How is it more disgusting than eating the rest of the bird? And why on earth did the store cater to the woman's disconnect? It's not like she couldn't eat the bird or it was rotten or something.

Lou Dobbs makes a mountain out of flat earth.

Americans who are doing something about torture. CLOSE GITMO ON TIME. The Navy can do it in ten days. Congress sux.

SPOILED BRAT.

I really wanted to go to Game 3.

OMG, Friedman writes a decent column?

Turn off Fox!

Follow me on Twitter @daedalus2.

Hmm...maybe the Mayan thing IS right...

THE HEADLINE: Folsom Walmart to start reusable bag trial.

I can imagine the outrage of the - how should I put it - average Walmart shopper in Iowa or somewhere with only pickup trucks in the parking lot. I mean, this Sacramento woman is upset because now she'll have to *gasp* BUY trash bags for her bins. Can you imagine what Billy Joe from Kansas is going to do when he finds out he has to PAY to get a bag for his gun ammo? I'm sure the librul hippies will be to blame and the wingnuts will have another sign that this country is turnin' Commnist.

It's not hard to bring your own bags, ESPECIALLY when you have to drive to the store. Just keep some in your car.

Kudos to Walmart for doing something right. For once.

Congressman Grayson rox!

Marg bar dictatorships

The cries rose up into the political sky spiced with dark clouds and sunshine. The uncertainty was there - would it rain? Would there be freedom? Their slogans were foreign, yet familiar, though they were wracked with anger and there was a chilling wrath to them that was not quite comfortable. Marg bar Khameneyi. Marg bar dictator. Death to Khameneyi. Death to the dictator.

A force was present in the park where Lincoln once took his walks on nights when he was plagued with insomnia. Something was tugging at the soul, something unnamed and fierce. While I wanted to show my solidarity with those seeking justice, I could not share in their thirst for death, for what will another death accomplish except more anger, more resentment, more death? It is not up to human beings to choose a person's death, no matter how repulsive his actions towards others. Why marg bar anyone? There is no justice in killing, there is no truth, no beauty. There is only more evil.

Of course I understand the significance, this Death to phrase, left over from the revolution that put this government system in place. It was "Death to America" that rang out then, a response to the fact that America had once killed democracy and installed a brutal dictator for oil and paranoia about Communism.

I thought it interesting that hippies and CATO folks alike were at the rally. Some people met up at Dupont Circle and walked down to the White House.

There is a real revolutionary feeling here, something I had only imagined before. I can only pray for the people of Iran, that they get their freedom, that they get their justice, that after centuries of being oppressed, they finally get their country back. This is not our fight, America. Let us lend our moral support and give them what they may ask for, but no interference. (I'm looking at you, neocons.) They have been dominated by foreigners for too long. They have discovered their voice now, and they are using it. Don't make it about you.

There are some slogans the whole world can shout together, however. Marg bar oppression. Marg bar injustice. Long live freedom.

Feel free to spread these photos and to repost at will.