Sunday, March 1, 2009

WHAT A RUSH!

I’m writing this right after having watched the Rush Limbaugh speech at the C.P.A.C. on CNN.

It was amazing. It needs to be standard classroom material in Abnormal Psych class.

I’ve never seen so much projection in all my life. And I was an usher at Showcase. Apparently most of what is wrong with the Democrat (sic) party and Liberals in general is exactly, precisely, amazingly, and completely coincidentally what we Liberals think is wrong with Conservatives. Of course their side is right in all of this, because they base their entire lives on their immutable beliefs, so naturally they trump mere facts whenever they meet them.

Rush’s message to conservatives here seemed to me, basically, that it’s not only okay, but desirable to never change anything about yourselves, never be nice to your political “enemies,” not to seek real bipartisanship, that egotism is a virtue instead of the ultimate cause of all evil, that Barack Obama is out to destroy America and that you all need to wish him to fail too, that it’s optimal to not care if others dislike you, and to me most salient given my past conversations about it, that *belief* is far more important that *thought.* To Rush, beliefs are sacred, to be clung to at all costs, or you are a deficient human being.

(Update to above paragraph: The reader should know that this is not mere conjecture on my part; he either directly said or strongly implied all that I stated above.)

And he did all of this, and so much more, while being very eloquent and humorous. Lotsa of one-liners and good old-fashioned (read: 1820) zingers. Granted that the appalling insensitivity and distastefulness of his humor renders it very unfunny to me. However, he really *reached* his audience, no doubt about it. He literally lit a fire in their shorts.

Most of which audience is of course in the double-digits, IQ wise… And the ones that weren’t have no souls. Just like Rush.

He was so consistently and frequently wrong, and very often *diametrically* wrong, about everything, and so pompous and proud about all of that, that I was usually in the middle of yelling at the television about how incredibly stupid and even nauseatingly disgusting his last statement was when I would realize that he was now already on to something even more ignorant and reprehensible.

The combination of eloquence, disinformation, hatred, and sheer verbal fire reminded me of Hitler. No really. Not a hyperbole this time. If the country were still stultified enough to fall for it, he’d be dangerous not only to us, but to the entire world, because the right wing would elect him President on the basis of his communications skills and ability to creatively insult Liberals alone. Then he’d go for Poland. Morgen der welt. He’s a skilled manipulator of belief with no real morality whatsoever, and he’s incredibly (considering how evil he is) popular and thus a potential serious danger to us all.

And perhaps he reminded me, ironically enough, of the Antichrist as well. I’m talking about the fundamentalist’s description of him here.

Now I’m sounding like him, I know, but that’s his skill. To precisely reverse things so it seems to his mentally-limited audience that we fellow Americans who are Liberals, are trying to do to them precisely what, in reality, their Conservative leaders (now including Rush apparently) have always in the REAL WORLD been trying to do to us.

Fomenting paranoia, xenophobia, racism and hatred that effectively is a real skill, and Rush has a tenth-degree black belt in it, I must admit.

Plus, the right wing Christians actually seem now to believe that the antichrist will be a liberal atheist. What a joke. As if. Their very description of him fits a Christian far-right-wing conservative best (Father of Lies, The Deceiver, etc.) and we already “know” that he’ll believe in God. After all, it says so in the Bible. (Now be properly awed and believe it or go to hell. Makes no nevermind to us.)

Now here’s what I see as the Silver Lining to this atrocity that the media is nice enough to merely call a speech:

I think I want Rush to succeed. Oh, not in his wishes for the country, not ever that. I want him to successfully convince the most self-righteous right wing side of the right wing to NEVER CHANGE THEIR WAYS. I seriously doubt that he’ll be convincing anyone else but those people, so there’s not very much real danger and a lot of potential for backlash.

I want them to all start now having the confidence to parrot everything that Rush said today, to everyone with a brain. Because we’re now in the MAJORITY, those of us who came equipped with one. And if the Conservatives were paying attention to reality instead of living in their usual state of allowing belief to trump all thought, they’d have long ago realized that there is actual change in the wind here. A change to a more intelligent country.

(Egad, the Conservative Anathema! Nobody will just believe shit anymore!)

We’ve started to open our eyes. It’s no less than that. And I don’t think I’m being too hopeful here. More and more people are spurning the hatred now, and as the eyes open, they can see the old ways for just what they are. They just weren’t paying attention before. But now it’s in their face. And it’s about to be kicked up three notches.

The CPAC attendees literally sucked it up. This is what they knew that they needed to hear! That they were all right after all, that they have *always* been right, and will always *be* right in spite of losing the election and being so unpopular. To create a good idea all you have to do is believe in it, and thus insist that it's a good idea, and is one, no matter what. To counter all objections to it, you merely turn up the Belief Volume and insist more convincingly.

In fact, Rush has now programmed his dittoheads (now including all in attendance at the C.P.A.C.) to specifically *not care* if *anybody* complains or disagrees with them, and never let it bother you or even touch you in any way if anyone is offended by what you’re saying. So I literally can’t wait to start to see the Now Revitalized Core of the Conservative Movement start to shred their credibility *en masse* now that all restrictions have been removed, even their humanity.

I think that many of the real die-hard right-wingnuts with the tinfoil hats will now be coming out of the woodwork and really showing their true colors as never before. They will have new resolve, inspired by His Pomposity’s certainty and rhetoric and inflammatory comments to believe in themselves now as never before. Now they’ve been programmed by the Master Programmer Himself to be totally honest about themselves and their bigoted, stultifying, changeless beliefs regardless of what others think or say about them. They will have heretofore unheard-of vigor and renewed *faith* in their cause, and a new, deeper commitment to their *beliefs,* for the simple reason that they have now been so totally and effectively sold on them themselves. The Bloviating Bovine has convinced them beyond a shadow of a doubt that they’re absolutely correct about everything, regardless of such silliness as facts, and they’ve been now told that if they just insist on that with no fear, no caring who they insult, no caring what the Hated Evil Liberal Media says since they’re evil anyhow, that they will somehow regain popularity. So declareth the Rush. So believeth the sheeple. Amen.

Really???

They have a better chance with the armed revolution that is suggested on Hannity’s site. (No, really, he has a poll about which kind of revolution the real Americans want now that it’s obviously time for one what with the black guy in the White House)

More on this as it occurs.

I can’t even find a link to his speech yet. You all really need to see it, if you haven’t already. Its evil raised to the level of an artform. The more emotionally perceptive you are, the more it fucks you up. If you can watch it and not scream, you’re a better man than I.

I want all readers to eventually relate back to me on this blog what you thought the most horrifying statement was.

There were so many, I think Keith Olbermann will do a whole week on it at least. And Rachel Maddow will just snap like a dry twig. She’s probably dead already, poor girl.

***
UPDATE: Here's part one of the speech.

Part two

Part three

Part four

Part five

Part six

Part seven

Part eight

Part nine

Part ten

Ron Christie defends the valorous Rush

170 comments:

  1. It just shows you how desperate they are to gain control back. Jindal speaking after Obama trying to make it look as if he is some sort of "rising star". Straw polls to get their 2012 candidate out there.

    Then there is Ann Coulter. A woman, like Rush, whos sole contribution to society is that she makes fun of liberals and Democrats. Thats it. That is all Rush and Ann can do. They dont actually run for office, make policy decisions, nor do they have any real responsibility for the words they say. No one will be sent to war becaue of them, likewise, no one will be coming home from war because of them.

    they are mouthpieces, nothing more, nothing less, and the more that people pay attention to them, the more validation we give them. When the republicans are trying to manufacture buzz about their candidates. There is an artificial aura around them that Republicans are drawn to. Its like the girl whose boyfriend just kicked the shit out of them, but he said he's sorry so its alright. She heard exactly what she wanted to hear.

    Rush and Ann and the rest of them are just telling people what they already want to believe. That anyone not with them is an idiot and therefore must be gotten rid of.

    The worst part of it is, that eventually, they will get it back.

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  2. my grammer and sentence structure sucks tonight, i apologize

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  3. Great points, Stefan. Bobby Jindal was another nail in the coffin of republican success. Loved the New Orlesns reference. What a strange little man. He makes Kucinich look electable.

    Your grammar? I must have had to go back and edit this post six times.

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  4. First of all I detest Limbaugh. He is anathema to almost everything in which I believe. Having said that, what really saddens me about people like him is what it says about us. Rather than consider the root causes of why the neocon philosophy turned so many people away at the polls, all he seems to imagine is that it's just a failure of marketing or messaging rather than a core failure of belief. He will dig in his heels to prevent any other experiments in governance from having a fair trial because it's more important for him to be right, than it's critical for the country to be on the right track. And that pretty much has come to represent the state of political discourse in the country.

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  5. I think it's finally reaching critical mass though, Pliny.

    The nuts have escaped from the asylum. Rush let 'em out.

    The next few months might well look like that second scene from Halloween 1 where the doctor and nurse drive to the asylum and all the inmates are running around drooling...

    Hope so. I'd love to see the entire radical right completely marginalized. They're worse than dead weight... they're a destructive virus affecting our group consciousness.

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  6. Although I couldn't agree more with most of the points made here, Rush Limbaugh is much more dangerous than we seem to realize. Note that he repeatedly says he is not interested in poltical office, while continuing to refer to himself as the "leader" in Neocon thought and ultra right wing understanding. His ego is so huge that I have to believe that he would jump at the chance (if it were proferred) to be more than a "mouthpiece". To me, he is the poster child for the word demagogue.
    Remember the glee with which he originated "operation chaos", whereby he convinced himself and the rest of the right wing that he could destroy the Democratic party by stirring the pot between Hilary Clinton and Barack Obama. Remember his directions to republicans who could cross party lines to vote for Hilary in primaries, because it "would prolong the self destruction" of the Democrats during a contentious primary campaign, while the Republicans had already settled on McCain, who, he said, would easily defeat Obama. (However, I notice that he has had very little to say about his "strategy' since it not only backfired, but probably helped to galvanize the Democratic base).
    He likes to say that he is an "entertainer" in his capacity as the "Maharushi", but the only people he entertains are himself and those far right wingers who already agree with him.

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  7. Brian,

    That was a whole lot of rhetoric. He must've really ticked you off. If you find a link, I'd like to see it. To me he is nothing more than a blowhard.

    What carries the most weight with me is that both you and Harvey concur about this guy.

    Frankly I find Dinesh much more disturbing.

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  8. Nevermind Bri,

    I found it. I'm watching it now.

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  9. Joe the Plumber, Ann Coulter AND Rush?

    It's only surprising that Darth Sidious didn't show up to explain that NOW America ought to be getting ready to experience the FULL POWER of the Dark Side!

    I didn't see it but somebody MUST have mentioned, like a young Aniken Skywalker newly turned to Darth Vader that 'your'e either with him or against him!'?

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  10. "We love people."

    Umm...

    "We don't see groups, we don't see victims, we don't see people we want to exploit."

    Umm...

    "...like onerous taxes, regulation, and too much government."

    It's a lie because it's only half true.

    "We want every American to be the best, he or she chooses to be."

    Lie.

    "We recognize that we are all individuals."

    Are we?

    -----------------------------------

    Ok Bri,

    I see where you're coming from. I'm going to watch the rest now.

    His speech started after that ridiculous joke and ad nauseum cheering; and I, though more conservative than you guys, have found it sad, indoctrinating propoganda in the first few minutes.

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  11. Oneblood, all the links are now posted to the main page of this post in order, ten parts, with Ron Christie's Defense of the speech as well.

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  12. And yes Oneblood, I'd always thought of him as just a blowhard, albeit one that seems to influence a lot of people, but this speech has totally changed my view of him.

    He's a very dangerous man.

    Oh, and he pretends he's not the world's biggest egotist by making jokes in which he sounds like the world's biggest egotist, figuring people will just laugh it off and think he's employing irony instead of letting his ego run amok for his own pleasure.

    It actually works, too. With the sheeple.

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  13. Hey, I just *got* the rapture!!!

    Ya wanna know?

    It's not a false prophecy at all!

    It's just that, "being taken up to heaven" was simply a nice euphemism for dying. Losing one's life. Period.

    Makes sense.

    Rush is the antichrist and the World War that he will cause will be nonbelievers agaist believers.
    The believers will lose, apparently.

    Hey, it could happen.

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  14. Wouldn't it be funny if the rapture happened but only the atheists disappeared?

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  15. Well Bri,

    I have to disagree with you. I'll give my impression of the speech.

    "Hi I'm Rush Limbaugh the former all-star quarterback of John Smith College. The best college ever."

    "Yeah Rush! Go Rush! Woof woof woof!"

    "Anyway I'm here to talk about how Elm Tree University has tarnished our image. Our core values. Ready?"

    "Yeah John Smith rules! John Smith forever!"

    "Elm Tree U has accused us of being unfair, sneaky and underhanded...well Elm Tree, I've got two words for you. Tu quoque!"

    "Woo hoo! John Smith rocks!"

    "And in conclusion, John Smith College lost the playoffs but what we stand for is forever. In fact, John Smith is forever, eternity itself. And we know eternity can never truly be defeated."

    Fade to 'Glory Days' by Bruce Springsteen.

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  16. You can't see his utter lack of morality?

    I'm somewhat surprised.

    Opinion noted with due respect.

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  17. I'm not being paranoid about this. He's not the antichrist or Hitler of course, but he's the raw stock from which such are made.

    He wants you to think he's harmless, just a cheerleader. There's a lot more to it. I'm seeing it. For the first time.

    He's deadly serious, behind a mask of skillfully constructed humor and hyperbole. If he didn't look so harmless, he wouldn't be so dangerous. Potentially.

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  18. Incidentally, a college football team's coach's pep talk to his losing team is to me a terrible analogy. He was trying to get them to feel better about themselves, sure, however coaches do not incite people to hate the president of the United States. They incite them to hate, if anything, the winning team, and only if they're terrible coaches.

    A lot of people thought Hitler was silly. Never forget.

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  19. BREAKING NEWS:

    Here's an incredible piece of breaking news:

    Scientists' stem cell breakthrough ends ethical dilemma

    Experts in Britain and Canada find way to make stem cells without destroying embryos
    Digg it (7) Ian Sample, Science correspondent guardian.co.uk, Sunday 1 March 2009 18.22 GMT

    http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2009/mar/01/stem-cells-breakthrough

    read the article
    ***
    People, this looks real. Please do read the article and check it out. Tell me if it's an hallucination. I think I might just be dozing at the keyboard and dreaming this.

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  20. Pboy, that video... I wasn't prepared.... Oh God. My eyes are tearing still.

    That's gotta go in the gallery too.

    It was even a pretty good song...

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  21. Oneblood, Harvey seems to see the danger in Rush Limbaugh just as I do. I really don't think we're just paranoid here. I actually find myself hoping that I am though. I give it about an eightieth percentile that I'm right, and I'm frankly lowballing it for credibility here... lol.

    ***

    Nobody was afaid of the tiny little man with the tiny little mustache either. What a joke he was... In the early days that is. Everyone was laughing. But things changed, as they always do, and tides turned. For he was strong inside when his ego satisfaction, his dreams of power were the prize, and he was knowledgeable and clever and knew how to make himself popular through deception and propoganda and *religion* and other available avenues, taking advantage of anything that presented itself, and if nothing did he would cause it to. A fire for instance.

    Such a person knows how to hide his own guiltiness in such matters by throwing it onto his enemies before they can even think of a response to the actual event themselves. (Nowadays this is standard Conservative politics)

    Such a person prides themself on this. They pride themselves on everything they do or say. They are narcissists.

    The little man and the big round man both believe totally in their cause, and love the idea of being powerful so much that in both of them their sheer enthusiasm for personal power comes through (quite intentionally) to the people as enthusiasm for the people that love him, and their cause that he has convinced them that he shares... As he intended. Shrewd. The people are indeed seeing genuine enthusiasm... Just not for them. Oh, he "loves them," but more in the way a plantation owner loved his slaves. As assets. For they are his only way to more popularity, and thus more power. To demonstrate his abilities to himself he even got all of the people that love him most to call themselves a derogatory name. Dittoheads. He did that one for himself and nobody else. Pulled it off like a charm, as he does all such things. Imagine how amusing THAT is to such a person!!! Everytime he hears a fan proudly call themselves a dittohead I bet he, well, er, does the nasty thing in pboy's little film clip a few posts back.

    I'm just sayin, is all here...
    I know it sounds crazy and paranoid, but I see something in Rush that is completely different from a mere whacko football coach or a mere Christian Republican of any stripe, or really just about anyone I've ever seen speak who is still alive.

    The entire Bush Administration had no one this evil. All together they almost equal him perhaps. For he makes (the right type of) people love him so effectively, and uses it optimally. The fact that he knows how to entertain, is indeed a very talented entertainer, speaker, zinger-teller, has personality just bubbling out of him, are all more reasons why he's so scary. Considered together and with all his other abilities, these components comprise a very high ability to program others.

    Those stand-up rounds of applause on national television, and it all being seen all over the world by millions of people, all about him... Can you imagine him giving that up once he's tasted it?

    Plus, let me tell you, he has no heart. It's all fake. I can just tell. I don't sense his "aura" either. It positively drips off him like his perspiration. "It" being all of the tiny subtleties that he hasn't had to learn to hide because it's not necessary to hide them, since his target audience is not detail-oriented. They just never look that closely. And also they posess inaccurate intuitive abilities, or none at all.

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  22. I don't sense his "aura" either.
    ------------------
    WHOA, can that be TAKEN WRONG or what!!!

    I didn't see the obvious implication that I sense auras normally and can't find his so he's evil.

    Er, no. Or rather, NO!!!!!!!!!!!!
    (in horror)

    I do not see auras and do not think they are real. Let me PLEASE be perfectly clear on that point.

    The correct meaning that I was trying to convey was simply that I never sense auras in any way.

    A better way to say that perhaps would have been "And don't you dare think that I'm in any way saying that I see auras or anything flaky like that, either." That was why I put quotes around the word "aura."


    Just to be clear. Let the record show.

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  23. Say Brian!

    Funny, we had roughly the same visceral reaction to that drug addled gasbag Rush. I wanted to take a hot shower after just to wash the stench off. In a better worl, he'd be in jail for treason, but that would be un-American. Even if he and the Coultergeist would be happy to set up Liberal Corrective Campsites all over the USA.

    While I harbor no illusions that there will always be angry white guys (and let's not mince words, much of this is tainted with non-too-subtle racism about Obama's race), we ALL have to keep up the drumbeat that these fact-free clowns like Limbaugh, Alan Keyes and Alabama Senator Richard Shelby - who both AGAIN brought up the birth certificate urban legend - or even their little fadining star Bobby Jindahl. Jindahl, why doing his best Mr Rogers imitation once again brought up the mythical Las Vegas to Disneyland train, of which the only real life portion for Rebublicans seems to be that it originates in Fantasyland.

    We must, must, must, keep up the pounding rythms that these are a torent of lies. That Sean Hannity is a paid shill and Limbaugh is a draft dodoging pill popper whose toxic oxycotin blubber will be housed in a lead-lined containment vessel upon his death less his cigar stained rot contanimate precious soil...soil that Limbaugh and his minions would be OK with poisoning as long as someone in their circle got a contract and kickback from.

    It's up to us. And should you get the chance, watch Alexandra Pelosi's docu-film "Right America: Feeling Wronged -- Some Voices From the Campaign Trail," on HBO. It shows in no flattering terms how McCain/Palin deserately used fear tactics to whip the stupid into a frenzy that could do damage to both parties for the next 8 years.

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  24. If you ever get a chance, try and find a documentary done on the history channel a few years ago. It was on Hagenau, the place that essentially was the test bed for the Holocaust.

    What was particularly frightening was seeing the early Nazi propaganda films regarding 'mental defectives'. Over a period of a few years these films slowly began to direct people in more sinister ways. One of the things we forget is that we tend to view the Nazi's from the perspective of the end of the regime and its almost cartoonish evil. We forget how subtly it all began. And how all of it began with innocent smiles.

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  25. Also, please note that for the last several weeks Limbaugh and others of his ilk in the media have been beating their drums (and gums) against possible reinstitution of the "fairness doctrine". They quite correctly see it as making inroads on their ability to loudly oppose and denigrate (no pun intended) everything and anything the Obama administration does, while pointedly ignoring that it was a "conservative" adninstration that largely put us in the present economic fix, without any response from centrist and liberal sources. They try to imply that it will impinge upon freedom of speech, while constantly demeaning anything that appears in the mainstream media ("drivebys" according to Limbaugh) that supports efforts to succeed on the part of the current administration.
    Let there be no mistake; what Limbaugh and his cohorts are doing is pure propaganda, with only a passing nod to truth and fairness.

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  26. Tborough, Harvey, Pliny...

    It gratifies me that you can see this.

    Not that I thought I was wrong about it. It's way too obvious to me.

    NEVER FORGET!!!!!!!

    (Have we even forgotten now, what that means?)

    We aren't supposed to look for someone evil. They don't show that as much until they're in power. During their rise, they're funny, the butt of jokes, thought silly, ineffectual, impotent.

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  27. I posted this to the old blog (DD) and then decided it would be even more fun here...

    -------------------

    I think we're seeing the split of the Republican party into two parties. One will go on to weld a relationship with the Democrats, and retain the title of Republicans. The other will fuse with the KKK, the Neos, and all the other hate groups and form one huge party.

    They need a name...

    Any takers? On naming them, I mean, not joining them.

    Best one wins my fervent admiration.

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  28. Back to the Rush fiasco...

    Isn't it interesting how this is turning out? Did anyone see this coming?

    D.L. Hugley is one happy guy right now, I bet.

    Michael Steele has been effectively neutered. Wow.

    People are running in different directions...

    And Ann Coulter and Michelle Malkin are finally doing something useful. Bailing water *into* a sinking boat.

    Glub... glub... glub...

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  29. Gah! He's just a nuisance. Just keeps repeating his assumption that providing financial support for the impoverished makes them have no ambition for "succeeding". I am sure that that does happen, but it takes a special kind of person to assume that it is the ONLY possible outcome, and that everyone can "succeed" if left to their own devices. All it takes is to look at a country without welfare, and find some poor people to disprove that that is only factor at work, but I assume nothing will stop someone who has hangups about the mere act of taxation, let alone "redistribution", from continuing to be mortified about it.

    I don't see the Hitleresqueness. He reminds more of a plump, white and gruffer version of D'Souza. A guy with no credentials with opinions about everything, constantly distorting facts at his leisure, and given far too much respect by those who are on the same side of the opinion-fence. I assume that the level of his influence might be a factor, but he doesn't seem much worse than any other major face of the Republican party.

    Also: "tax cuts". LOL. Knew it would make an appearance eventually.

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  30. Lol...

    Asylum, he's definitely powerless to take over the world in this current paradigm, but I see him as the raw material from which such people are made. Self-made, usually. He's got the huge ambition, huge ego, zero morality, zero empathy, zero higher emotionality, all the lower emotions run rampant...

    He's fairly popular now but in a different political situation where authoritarianism and paranoia were in the ascendant, his fairly large following would be even larger, and his popularity could get him into a public office and from there who knows... That was what I'm imagining.

    And perhaps it is unrealistic at that. Perhaps I need to study him more.

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  31. Study him? You make him sound so interesting. I, fortunately, don't see him as anything but the court jester he very well should be. Although I do see the ambition, ego, zero empathy and morality part as well (and, the kicker is being able to manipulate people into agreeing with him when he says "I actually am empathetic, it's THOSE people who are really keeping everyone else down.") But, you see, I have no idea what his role in the conservative movement is presently. I can't help but feel that I am more afraid of Anne Coulter being the leader in conservative thought. That being said, this speech, as far I was able to bear watching (about half of it), seemed far less bad than the other things I have heard about him. Things like "Operation Chaos", and his recent, explicit approval of the idea that Republicans can and should undermine Obama. The pinnacle of douchebaggery. Hilarious how he says that the people who lose an election call for bipartisanship and that those pleas should be ignored by those who have won the votes and the election. Does he even understand his current position?

    Although he may in fact be the perfect clay from which to mold a fascist overlord, he shoots himself in the foot a little too much for me to think about it without giggling a little. He may be evil incarnate (or at very least, dickishness incarnate), but he is at least incompetent enough for us to deal with, if we dare to confront the Republican memescape which he feeds upon, and draws his power from.

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  32. Yeah, you're right about the foot-marksmanship. That is indeed a mitigating factor.

    Okay, so he's not a hitler then. He's a hitler wannabe.

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  33. A Hitler wannabe? Now that sounds like it's up Rush's alley! He obviously needs someone to be a fanboy for now that he has undergone a change of heart of whether or not patriotism is the same as unquestioning love for the President (or maybe that was Bill O'...hard to tell sometimes).

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  34. Did anyone notice that Limbaugh has been initially repudiated by the Chairman of the RNC, following which said Chairman was forced to recant (at least to some extent) and to recognize Limbaugh as "a leader" in Republican thought? I don't know about Limbaugh, but Hitler pulled a very similar ploy aginst Von Hindenburg, then the leader of the Weimar republic, during his runup to eventually be come Chancelor of Nazi Germany.

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  35. Really? He has that level of sway? Let's just hope that the Republican party fractures more so that his rabid base becomes less influential, otherwise it seems like they'll be able to bring the rest of their party to their knees (and thus, assure that it doesn't change at all, which may actually be a good thing...).

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  36. Rush is a loving, kind, caring person. He and I are on a committee together and we will judge you!

    After you are judged we will smile smugly to ourselves knowing that we did the right thing!

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  37. The Republican Party is disintegrating under their feet.

    It's simply evolution. Which is why they're not getting it. Their crowd doesn't wear genes.

    I thought you guys all knew already, I guess. About Steele and all. The mea pulpa.

    It seems like simple math, this situation that the GOP now finds themselves in. Kiss the Christian Base's Ass Proxy, Rush, and lose the middle (what little of it they have left) completely and utterly, and stay irrelevant for a very long time, or at least meet Obama halfway in a fair manner and survive to breed more bowties.

    So eventually they need to ditch the tinfoil hat set. Or die.

    I like it. It's just. They had us over a barrel for the last eight years, forcing neocon brand neofascism down our throats. Might be interesting to see how they like it.

    It's not revenge. It's a lesson. They don't get the subtle ones. Too dense.

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  38. Oh, and Steele is toast.

    One little visit to a talk show to promote that new Republican Ebonic agenda, and he's toast.

    He's a fool. We've no time to suffer fools anymore.

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  39. we will judge you!
    ---
    Wasn't that by Queen?

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  40. Name the Republican wing?

    Huh.... Rusharoos
    Limbaughloos
    Jindalettes
    Palinpuppets
    Coulteristas
    Malkinionettes
    Bachmanillas
    and
    Plumbers?
    I for one am happy to see Steele's balls firmly in the back pocket of Rush's pants. It's the best thing to happen to the RNC since Palin.
    Do Republican's read 1984? Rush is the playbook on doublespeak.
    word verification: bowell, how appropriate.
    I want the guy whos job it is to make them up!

    ReplyDelete
  41. I think my racist grandpa gets ALL of his talking points (if you can even classify them as that) from Rush... No, I don't think it, I know it. :)

    ReplyDelete
  42. It's like this Brian, what Rush says is true. What I say is true. And if you absolutely need to verify what we say is true, just ask us and we'll tell you.

    ReplyDelete
  43. Thanks, Harry! It's sure easy that way, isn't it? I don't know why I haven't thought of this before... Just take someone's word for it! It fels so good!!! No need to ponder, no need to fuss!

    Oh yeah wait, I did. When I was little.

    Who knew I was right way back then?

    Guess that means Santa's real too.

    ReplyDelete
  44. Maybe Rush will get another pimple on his backside and that'll take him out of the fight...

    ReplyDelete
  45. Has anyone watched the republicans today?

    They're REALLY trying to act as if Obama is breaking his campaign promise to put aside partisan politics. (by allowing the white house and the dems to keep characterizing Rush as the head of the party) They're calling him out on it! It's all Obama's fault apparently.

    Ari Fleischer is a real snake. He kept dodging direct questions as to whether he agrees that it's unamerican to wish that the president fails by saying that it's basically beneath him to answer because that somehow would be giving validity to the argument...

    They all looked terrified.

    What I saw was a bunch of people fighting for their very lives the only way that they know how to. Dirty.

    The party could go down forever if somehow this keeps up.

    They almost all refuse to say that it's wrong to wish that the president fails. And Ari refused to commit as to whether it's unamerican to say that you wish the president fails. Kept sidestepping like a matador.

    OF COURSE it's unamerican!!!

    These people need to go extinct now.

    ReplyDelete
  46. Maybe Rush will get another pimple on his backside and that'll take him out of the fight...
    ----------
    That happened when he was a baby, but the darn thing just kept getting bigger till it ate his head and replaced it. Hence the problem here.

    ReplyDelete
  47. The White House has sucessfully pitted a party of self-centered lying megalomaniacs that will do anything for personal gain, against the veritable King of self-centered lying megalomaniacs that will do anything for personal gain. They threw a wolverine into a catfight.

    It's out of their hands almost, now. Rush's ego won't let him shut up. And the Republicans can't look like they're telling him to.

    I know Obama and company were brilliant, but this is unbelievable. With that kind of savvy applied to our problems, we as a country may be allright after all.

    ReplyDelete
  48. Brian please visit my art installation when you have a sec ;)

    ReplyDelete
  49. Pliny, I shall, have no fear...

    Just got back. I left a couple of comments. :-) Tasty looking.

    ReplyDelete
  50. If anyone wants to see Cheney as he really is, there's a pic of him at the top right of Pliny's blog.

    ReplyDelete
  51. I can't believe it, making fun of Dick Cheney's beard. You're a saint Brian but this is beyond the pale! Next you'll be making fun of my beard, and it's holy!

    Judge you!

    ReplyDelete
  52. Dick Cheney's beard eats souls because the rest of him doesn't have one.

    ReplyDelete
  53. If anyone would like to be on my interesting email forward list, and be able to correspond, feel free to drop me an email.

    StBriantg@aol.com

    I've added a contact link on the main page too.

    Completely optional of course.

    ReplyDelete
  54. Judge me? Are you judging ME? JUDGE YOU! Judge you and the horse you rode in on. In fact, judge your mother. That's right. I said it. I said it and I'm proud I said it, and I'd say it again, too!

    (Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo)



    I may have lost my judgement.

    ReplyDelete
  55. You have lost your judgment...to me!

    I didn't ride in here on a horse. What am I, humble? I mean, of course I'm humble! I drove here in a BMW, it could've been a Benz. That's right, Harry knows from humble.

    I'm just a simple Lutheran from Frisco trying to make ends meet by judging people...even saints.

    When I judge women they love it. They say, "Oh, give us your judgement!" It's a gift from Zeus. I mean Yahweh. Wait, who's paying me?

    Judge you!

    ReplyDelete
  56. When I judge women they love it. They say, "Oh, give us your judgement!"
    ---
    Well, you are after all, extraordinarily well-endowed with judgement.


    It's a gift from Zeus. I mean Yahweh. Wait, who's paying me?
    ---
    Yaweh. Zeus is busy judging Leda. Besides, Yaweh has all the money, being Jewish.

    ReplyDelete
  57. I'm just a simple Lutheran from Frisco trying to make ends meet by judging people...even saints.
    -----------------
    Don't all Lutherans judge saints?

    As a Saint, I forgive you for all your judgements. Up to this second. I was told by the Higher Powers that it was permissible for me to do so because it will make no difference in the end. Not sure what that means. So go forever from this moment in peace, my son... Did my "Saintey Sense" just tingle? I could swear that someone just judged me.

    ReplyDelete
  58. That Harry is a decent guy.

    I remember Howard Stern talking about how Rush ripped all his act off from him. He called him a phony.

    I think the Republicans need to push him aside and grab a moderate from somewhere and have him start doing all the talking.

    Somebody who cares about the poor preferably.

    ReplyDelete
  59. Do you know why blondes in San Francisco don't wear short black mini-skirts?

    ReplyDelete
  60. "Zeus is busy judging Leda."

    -----------------------------------

    Well done by the way.

    ReplyDelete
  61. Meaning your comment and not Zeus' judging.

    ReplyDelete
  62. No hay de queso no mas hay de papa

    o simplemente...de nada

    ReplyDelete
  63. Pboy...

    I just watched the movie "Kill Bill" for the very first time. Had it recorded for months, never saw it in my life, just found the time tonight. I'd always known that I'd like it, but had like a mental block for some reason on actually watching it.

    Good flick, btw. I'll see the sequals, most likely.

    So I get's back to the Santelli blog on AOL where I was talking to CLif Kulpen, and he'd responded to my last post... Included was a random reference to the movie "Kill Bill."

    That's a pretty good one, no?

    ReplyDelete
  64. A lot of people are against Obama spending money now. They can't see how it will stimulate the economy.

    In WWII, we got out of the depression by having a war. What did the war do to us at home? What did we have to do to win it?

    Make bombs, bullets, guns, tanks, etc.

    Did we get them all back? What return on that investment did we get monetarily, as in profit? Did we sell them all at a profit?

    The war was necessary and just. But if it never happened, and the depression was still there, (here's the kicker, pay attention!) we could have simply have made all of those bombs, bullets, guns, tanks, etc., and dumped them all into the Marianas Trench. The important thing was that we spent money at home giving people jobs making stuff. Sure it would have worked even better if it were goods that we could have made money on or improvements to the infrastructure, but even just pissing it away works better thsn not spending, because THAT'S WHAT WE DID IN MAKING THE WEAPONS, from the point of view of the economy alone, and it worked.

    ReplyDelete
  65. And today I referenced the delayed death touch technique of chinese martial arts, Dim Mak, in a comment about the republicans, also to Clif, and tonight by sheer chance I put on another movie I hadn't seen before and the movie referenced it by name and used it as a plot element. Dim Mak. Now there's a common thing to hear. (Seagal Flick, terrible movie)

    Pboy? Talk me down.

    ReplyDelete
  66. Hi Brain,

    You made a point I had raised with friends during the Presidential Campaign and seems to be running headlong into becoming a reality. I have this feeeling that we're on the brink of a third party in America, one where the Rebublicans split in two. The moderates who aren't in office will try to take the party back, while the anti-intellectuals and theocrats will go apeshit trying to ressurect the 1950's.

    So while Newt Ginrich, Sarah Palin, Joe the Unliscenced tax dodging Plumber, John "where are the tarpits" McCain and Bobby Jihdahl kiss God Nazi ass and line up with Rush and his dittoheads, Arlen Specter, Snow, and others will try and chart a path back to power. One of these halves will be forced to break away (my guess is the Dittoheads) and will feild a candidate based on "What's Right!" while ignoring that 65% of the country finds them to be assclowns. Mark my words, there will be a Jindahl/Palin ticket.

    ReplyDelete
  67. Yesterday, Emma was being a smart-ass barraging me with 'shit-I-ought-to-be-doing'.

    I started calling her 'The puppet-master.'

    Late last night the movie was, 'The Puppet-master'.

    (Twilight Zone music.)

    ReplyDelete
  68. Hi Brian,
    I agree, this guy is scary. I immediately recognised him as the shock jock from the Simpsons (the episode where Sideshow Bob becomes Mayor). What more can you say?
    God Bless,
    Hari OM

    ReplyDelete
  69. This is incredibly interesting and pertinent to this post.

    link

    ReplyDelete
  70. Hi Jim...

    Yeah, Rush is pretty hateful, isn't he?

    He's the face of the party now.

    Interesting how that all happened, huh?

    I hear D.L. Hugley got cancelled. He said something about the reps all looking like nazis at the C.P.A.C.

    Figures. Just when he was getting interesting, too.

    ReplyDelete
  71. Hi Brian,
    I followed that link, did you read Deepak Chopra's piece on Rush? I have to agree with you that he has the makings of a Hitler, and the reaction of the CPAC crowd was even more disturbing. The arrogance and hatred just drip from him, yet he speaks of morality and God. Insane hypocricy!
    God Bless,
    Hari Om

    ReplyDelete
  72. Bri,

    Thanks for the link, I don't agree with him about the traitor business at all, but the rest of what he said was dead on.

    It's a bummer that Hughley was canceled. He wasn't the most adept talk show host, but that allowed his viewers to see non-polished opinions. Like if Fox were to have some average Joe Republican on, or if NPR actually had an old school Democrat on.

    But we won't get that from them because they're rhetoric masters;
    except for Terry Gross, she is soooo courteous and professional.

    That's mostly what I see from all this, the same two party tribalistic garbage, the same arguments, and the same spineless weasels who want to follow the status quo whoever is in charge.
    From my perspective one could just call the Democrats the Whigs and the Republicans the Tories.

    ReplyDelete
  73. "we could have simply have made all of those bombs, bullets, guns, tanks, etc., and dumped them all into the Marianas Trench."
    Reminded me of this Onion video.

    ReplyDelete
  74. Anyone know about that 14yo kid who's figuratively lighting a fire in republican pants lately? He's much better spoken than most conservative pundits -- but I still just want to shove him into a locker.

    ReplyDelete
  75. Brian,

    Warren Buffet had a good metaphor for what Washington's mentality should be until the economic crisis is over. Basically it was a subtle rebuke to both parties.

    The clip is long but interesting.

    Buffett.

    ReplyDelete
  76. I did read the Chopra article, Jim. I'd recommend it to everyone here as well.

    That 14 year old conservative kid is utterly nauseating. Totally brainwashed. And what a little egotist.

    ReplyDelete
  77. The arrogance and hatred just drip from him, yet he speaks of morality and God. Insane hypocricy!
    -------------
    Insane hypocrisy. A good term for it. That about covers it for me.

    ReplyDelete
  78. Hitlerchu, loved the Onion video clip there.

    It's true though. The spending alone would help. Of course, far better to be spending on things that actually added value to our society. Infrastructure, environmental, education... especially education. That would be helpful on so many levels.

    ReplyDelete
  79. Y'know, the kid ain't all that bad. The site for his book i here. He mentions the accurate but oft neglected idea that the Republican party as it exists in America today is not wholly synonymous with the "conservatism" (and Democratic party with "liberalism" for that matter).

    He defines conservatism (hence his book title) as "someone who believes in

    1. Life
    2. Personal Responsibility
    3. Less Government
    4. The Founding Principles"

    Strangely, though, I have no what idealized form conservatism is supposed to take. Are they supposed to oppose all taking of lives, or is merely opposing eugenics and abortion enough? Can you balance a demand for "personal responsibility" with acknowledgment of mitigating factors and potential influences on behavior and standing, or must you be absolutist about it? What should "less government" do in respects to the military and justice systems, and what is the ideal level of "less government" (are anarchists conservative)? And...who really in our country actually opposes the founding principles (in the Constitution, that is)?

    If you fudge the definitions enough, almost everyone could be considered conservative, since liberals value life, personal responsibility, and the founding principles just as much as anyone else, and would probably want "less government" at different points in time as well. Strangely, though, it may be harder to argue that the Republican party fits the bill, but I am sure you can do just that by actually limiting the definitions in just the right fashion. It actually might be that, in its most general form, American Democrats are more "conservative" than Republicans. But, I guess that's just because they haven't been in power for a while, and being at the head of an increasingly powerful military and government will tend to mess up your prioritization of small government and the value of life.

    Anyway, I have no beef with the child...just hope that he didn't catch some sort of demagoguery from the others who spoke there. Hate to see a bright and talented young speaker and writer be turned into an amoral shock-jock or air-headed polemicist due to the communicable nature of such diseased states.

    ReplyDelete
  80. This article is very interesting to me... Apparently Christianity is on the decline.

    We're finally growing up. (Sigh)

    ReplyDelete
  81. Interesting thoughts as usual, Oh Seeker of Asylum.

    By the power invested in my not-inconsiderable Saintly Vestments of which I have not yet divested myself, I hereby grant you the asylum that you seek. In other words, stop by anytime. :-)

    ReplyDelete
  82. I may have found an asylum or two, but I will always be a seeker. Partially because I can manage to lose things seconds after finding them. I really cannot wait to see what senility will look like for me...

    And, wow. 12% non-believers and a another 12% who are non-religious deists. Sad that only 1-2% are willing to label themselves atheists, but I guess that's to be expected. 24% of the U.S. are non-religious. Very comforting, in a way. I thought that my particular region of the country was just an aberration, and that other locations weren't as fortunate to have a good chunk of the population who were either apathetic about religion, or outright opposed to the idea of organized religion, regardless of their God-beliefs. Maybe we aren't so unique around here after all.
    Time...it might be on our side. As long as we don't have another Great Awakening or Red Scare on the horizon....

    ReplyDelete
  83. "Racism doesn't exist on our side. We want everybody to succeed."

    Are you kidding me? What a fat fuck Limbaugh is! And yes I continued to listen but there was just too much crap for me to list. This was the first thing to jump out at me, esp. when I watched Alexandra Pelosi's documentary. If conservative America isn't racist I don't know who is. And they seem right proud of that fact.

    ReplyDelete
  84. I think the Republicans need to push him aside and grab a moderate from somewhere and have him start doing all the talking.

    Somebody who cares about the poor preferably.

    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

    That would be a democrat. :$

    ReplyDelete
  85. Frank Schaeffer is right about the party. (The link I posted several responses back)

    He's big news now apparently, too. I just saw him on MSNBC talking about it.

    It's a big deal when one of the founders of the religious right calls it like he sees it.

    TJ, yes, they need a Democrat, ironically enough. That's the problem. That which they need to do in order to remain relevent, is anathema to them. It's like asking them to try being gay. They are dead set agtainst being good people, caring about the poor, etc. It's not a part of their belief system.

    ReplyDelete
  86. AGHHH! Rush! WTH?! He DOES realize, of course, that if this fails, we have almost NOTHING, right? If this fails, a WHOLE DAMN LOT of people are gonna---

    ...Waaaait a second. He won't be affected at all, will he??

    ...Slimy rich bastard.

    ReplyDelete
  87. Another interesting article this time detailing the 'coming evangelical collapse'...

    I'll bring the marshmallows.

    ReplyDelete
  88. "Racism doesn't exist on our side. We want everybody to succeed."
    -------------------
    Yeah, this is hard to take coming from Rush and the side of the KKK and the neonazis and fred phelps.

    He never shys away from hypocrisy, does he? Steers right into it head-on.

    ReplyDelete
  89. ...Waaaait a second. He won't be affected at all, will he??
    ---------------------
    By a collapse? Yes, he'll feel that much better about himself, seeing as how he'll be one of the only people with a car and a house. The more peons that he can lord it over, the better he'll feel.

    If I read him right, and I think that I do.

    He's got one seriously poisonous mind, that one.

    ReplyDelete
  90. Brian:

    Now that MIW has resurfaced on DD's old blog, perhaps you can entice him here. He obviously adds fuel to your "fire" and brings someone other than Observant for you to put down so eloquently. However, he is certainly not as hateful as Rush.

    ReplyDelete
  91. The phrase "put down so eloquently" bothers me for some reason.

    Is that what I'm about now? Putting people down?

    Guess that's it. I've become what I hate. Somebody shoot me.

    ReplyDelete
  92. Brian:
    Allow me to rephrase my last post. It is the illogical and poorly thought out pronouncements that you "put down so eloquently"; certainly you would never want to argue "ad hominem" (unless your level of self control and/ or restraint had been too sorely tried) to put Observant, or anyone else down.

    ReplyDelete
  93. Because I'm a nice guy, I'm going to help you out. It's not just your opinion about Rush that's wrong, which is just self-evident to somebody as holy as I am.

    The whole problem is that you think. No thinking, no opinion, no problem!

    It's ok this one's free.

    ReplyDelete
  94. Too late, somebody already shot me.

    Fortunately it went into a very unimportant part of my heart. So I live to offend again.

    Harry, I'm starting to like you more and more.

    If only I could stifle my annoying tendency to think. Then I would truly know peace.

    As if I'd take that trade-off. As if.

    I do not desire the bliss of the ignorant.

    I'd rather have the "angst of the knowing." No matter the price. No price is too high for the truth.

    ReplyDelete
  95. I think that MIW gives us focus.

    Just when some atheist bloggers were calling for some respect for theists up pops the 'MIW'S' of the world who would practice their brand of hocus pocus authoritarianism from the highest courts if they could.

    Not for themselves of course. They know the mind of God through the Scriptures AND because HE talks to them personally!

    Anyone 'up' for stoning blasphemers?

    Sure... it SOUNDS like a real hoot!

    ReplyDelete
  96. Hey, in a Holy Stoning-to-death, do they give one 'stoner' a styrofoam rock so that they can console themselves of having killed a human being by imagining that their rock wasn't 'loaded'?

    ReplyDelete
  97. No, in the Holy Stonings, everyone has a good time with it.

    See newsreel here.

    ReplyDelete
  98. Yea, that is hilarious.

    "No-one is to stone anyone, and I want to make this absolutely clear..until I blow this whistle."

    LOL

    ReplyDelete
  99. Ah, but this is where the Christians let a little light show through the seams.

    "That movie is mocking God!"

    No, it's not, it's mocking them, and they KNOW that!

    ReplyDelete
  100. That was one of my ancestors doing the judging! What a fine beard he had. That was back before we had to do freelance judging. Don't get me wrong I still love to be duplicitous, but at least then you could be a stable hypocrite. Now I have to travel and make a few bucks on the side.

    I sell the kind of fine baked goods Pliny has on his blog.

    Anybody want some doughnuts? They're holy!

    ReplyDelete
  101. Just when some atheist bloggers were calling for some respect for theists up pops the 'MIW'S' of the world who would practice their brand of hocus pocus authoritarianism from the highest courts if they could.
    ----------------------
    I know. It's interesting that you brought this up. I keep getting to the point where I decide that I absolutely want to be totally nice to them nomatter what, and then I start having a conversation with one of them, and it just becomes impossible. I generally feel bad about it afterwards. And then I do it again.

    It's just that, if we all just did things their way, it'd be end-of-the-world time in about ten weeks. And they can't see that, and that's what makes them so frustratingly dangerous when they insist on spreading their dogma around.

    The truth is, I wish I could like them as friends. That's the frustrating part. They keep saying appalling things that push me away from them as a friend. I want to reach out, but they are not capable of any compromise whatsoever. So where to draw the line? Do I lessen myself by allowing my frustration to just vent at them and hurt them, when it doesn't do any good for them whatsoever if I do so? But how to defuse my frustration when they insist on being all bronze-age about the world and reality in general? Nothing could possibly insult me more. Nothing could make me more ashamed to be in the same species. It's so difficult to deal with this problem. My anger lessens me, and I need to figure out how to stop that.

    ReplyDelete
  102. You're too hard on yourself Brian.

    ReplyDelete
  103. Brian:

    You understandably keep forgetting that whatever they preach, although as totally illogical and misguided as you point out, none of it is aimed at you! In the end, it is aimed at themselves and their already believing cohorts because:
    1) it is the only way they can reassure themselves that they "have it right".
    2)Making the effort to convince you by telling "the good news" raises their opinion of themselves and in the eyes of other "believers".
    3)We all remember being warned about our "bad" behavior as children (...or else!!). Doing the same thing to others helps us expiate the anger and resentment we may still feel against having been treated the same way by our parents/teachers/pastors/... while we were growing up.
    Try not to take it personally. They honestly neither expect you to eventually "see the light" nor to shake their own certainty in their beliefs. Rather, as has been pointed out before, most of this is "mental (spiritual?) masturbation". It relieves tension and makes them feel better.

    ReplyDelete
  104. A quick story.

    The gym I go to before work has a mens and womens locker room/spa in it. I decided to get into the hot tub to relax a little.

    These two gentlemen were talking to each other about the burning bush, god, and other related topics. I really didnt care because i had a knot in my back that the jets were hitting just right. Well, I happened to glance in their direction and one of them said to me, "See, hes listening too. Arent you? Do you believe in the word?" and I said "I'm not religious." and he replied "I knew you weren't. You got the word today whether you know it or not". (and to the other gentleman he stated) "The oats are sowed.

    When I took my shower and started to get changed, the man had the locker next to mine.

    "You got the word today. Thats very good for you. The word is everything". and then I left

    Was I converted and not conscience of it? Was a conversation that I barely heard enough to change the heart and mind.

    Not really.

    I wonder what he will say the next time I see him.

    ReplyDelete
  105. It's not just the locker room scenario; what happened to you makes me feel dirty.

    Wow. It was almost like he felt you up and told you how much you should like it.

    ReplyDelete
  106. Brian said,

    "...I need to figure out how to stop that."

    Here's what we should do:

    Step 1. Go to their churches every Sunday and listen, smile, and nod at everything they say.

    Step 2. After the service, go into the parish hall, and consume all the cookies and coffee you can, so they go bankrupt.

    Step 3. Stand outside in their parking lot laughing and pointing when the sheriff shows up to evict them from their foreclosed church building.

    Simple.

    ReplyDelete
  107. Gearhead, I meant stop my anger, not stop their worship.

    D'ya think we can pull it off though? I'm always up for cookies and coffee.

    Let's do this thing.

    ReplyDelete
  108. Hey Brian,

    Haven't been here in months, but decided to drop by to see if anyone's heard from Botts. His blog hasn't been updated since November.

    Anyone??

    Cheers
    Brandon

    ReplyDelete
  109. Botts is around, Brandon. He posts every now and then on the old DD board, which is still going strong without DD...

    Here's a link to the most recent page.

    ReplyDelete
  110. That locker room scenario was weird. Why did they assume that you'd never even heard "the word" just because you admit to being non-religious? It still boggles the mind that some people imagine everyone being instantly converted as soon as the first hear a quote or two from the Bible. Do they assume that the Koran and Upanishads work the same way, or is it only the Bible that alters your mind upon contact as if it were the literary equivalent of habit-forming hallucinogens? Is the fact that someone can be enthralled by Dianetics in the same fashion also a good thing or just reflective of human suggestibility? These questions need answers!

    ReplyDelete
  111. Well, the Bible is the Computer Virus for Brains, isn't it?

    So naturally they assume that even minimal exposure to it ensures infection.

    They never seem to expect a good virus-scan program to already be in place, though.

    ReplyDelete
  112. Computer virus for brains? Makes sense. It's why such a significant handful of them have, how should I say, "crashed". Of course, it is due to the fact that they didn't have updated antivirus software, and definitely wasn't helped by the fact that they were probably receiving other viruses via television, those in neighboring networks, or radio (hey, looks like we're back to talking about Rush!). A very multifaceted means of complete data corruption.

    ReplyDelete
  113. Yeah, I was quoting me from like two years ago:

    "Religion is most like a computer virus for brains. It comes complete with instructions for development and propagation of the virus, and code that prevents the person from deleting it or noticing that it doesn't conform to reality. It is orchestrated, organized, and officially sanctioned psychosis, made easily digestible and palatable to the masses."

    ReplyDelete
  114. Hey, I made up a joke recently...

    Ark ark!
    What's there?
    Just another proof that the Bible is ERRANT.


    I slay me.

    ReplyDelete
  115. If I were to define evil as a metaphysical reality as my Christian friends tend to, then I would still say that Rush and people like him are evil. I think I sort-of "came out" on the use of the word because Rush was so inspiring to me. Whatever else he may be, most assuredly he is evil, both in the Christian sense of 'Satanic' (if such existed, etc.) and also in my sense of being by nature damaging to others in pursuit of selfish goals, and not caring one whit about that.

    ReplyDelete
  116. Think about it...

    Besides Rush, who does Rush benefit in life? Is he doing anybody any real good?

    (Can't think of a single person)

    And then ask what harm he's doing. Is there anyone that he does not in some way hurt?

    Since the answers to both are an obvious "no" and he's not likely to ever change, I choose to call him evil rather than sick or demented or psychotic or narcissistic because of the revulsion I cannot help feel at the mere thought of him. He really makes my skin crawl. He almost makes me believe in the metaphysical kind of evil, so strong is my natural reaction to him.

    ReplyDelete
  117. Did anyone catch Lawrence O'Donnell grilling Eric Cantor on MSNBC's Morning Joe over the weekend?

    Chris Matthews is a total pussy compared to Lawrence O'Donnell! He's my new Interview God! Hardball? Think Titanium Testicles!

    He skewered Cantor so fast that it was like watching an Inuit spear a fish through the gills. And then he set the barbs and never let up the tension. Eric would squirm, and Larry would spank him unceremoniously back to the subject, again and again, and so eloquently and directly it made Cantor look like a child. It was so extreme, it almost looked illegal for some reason.

    Here's the clip. If you haven't seen this, watch and be amazed.

    I've never seen an interview quite like it.

    GIVE THAT MAN HIS OWN SHOW, MSNBC!

    ReplyDelete
  118. Looks like Joe came to the rescue by hitting the conversation with St. Patrick's Day jokes in order to make Cantor stop acting like a broken record (but it doesn't help much). Laurence was good; he argued tenaciously once he found a weak spot, and managed to make it so that even Joe couldn't divert attention. He's a good pundit, and should make more appearances if he can handle it. As for Cantor: apparently he voted for the bill in question (judging from a youtube comment...now that's bad form). Wonder if he only did it because he felt pressured to do so after it was brought up in the interview...

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  119. Brian,

    I was just in Vegas. Zoroaster blessed me with two girls and 10 grand!

    It's not so bad doing freelance fleecing. Krishna, Allah, there's even another cult of Apollo. That's two weeks from now. I'm selling the sanctified sunscreen.

    Then there's an atheist convention in Jersey City. I'm going to cause some strife between the Ayn Rand objectivists and any classic Marxist I can find. My book 'Atheism is the Way to a Toned Stomach' will suddenly appear, creating peace and prosperity...for me!

    Are you sure you want to keep being sincere Brian? There's no money or power in it.

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  120. Two interesting sites that relate to my Big Brain speculations...

    Link One

    Link Two

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  121. Are you sure you want to keep being sincere Brian? There's no money or power in it.
    ----------------
    Tell me about it!

    You're far wiser than I am. You've realized that the holy grail is made of gold and gemstones and that's why everone wanted it. Your vision truly penetrates into every thing solid or subtle. Or profitable. I abase myself in shame at the very idea that I once valued truth above money. What the fuck was I thinking?

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  122. Seeker, he did indeed vote for that bill later that day. And to hear the interview he wasn't going to, but just barely left the door open on it, the sleazeball.

    It could have been public pressure. I understand that many republicans voted against the bill at first and then as soon as it became apparent that it would pass regardless of how they voted, they switched their votes to being in favor of it.

    Or maybe Pelosi shamed him into it. Or Lawrence O'Donnell did with the interview. Dunno.

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  123. You guys should check out my newest photo link in my gallery. Check out the video its linked to, I mean of course.

    The one at the top showing jesus as the good shepherd.

    It's wild. My wife loved it. It is really pretty creative. I guess when you've got a lot of time on your hands, you can do something really different.

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  124. The Lite Brite Sheep are a gas. It made me wonder if Conservatives will somehow find a way to mock at as some hippie dippy environmental hijinks. I can hear Rush now - "Those Liberal sheep think they can just run roughshod all over - but I got news for them...."

    Oh and for a laugh, check out the war of wards I had with some putz over his movie blog.

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  125. Tbrough, what a putz that Rodney is, huh?

    Well, there's a lot of em like that.

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  126. And as to these Conservadems, these Blue Dogs that are seeking to block Obama's budget:

    Who the fuck put Republicans in my Democrats?

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  127. I don't know if this subject has run its course or not, but I thought I'd jump in after several months of not even lurking. I've missed a lot on the blog, but hopefully, I can at least lurk a little bit.

    I have to say that I could only stomach three of the Rush clips. I just can't bear to watch or listen to him. My wife thinks Rush is pure evil, and she is pretty moderate politically. I have to agree. I don't think he's just a harmless entertainer. He has started a movement of his own and fed into the larger conservative movement and is like the little fish swallowing the big fish.

    This is kind of personal for me as there are members of my extended family, one nephew in particular, who worships Limbaugh. I don't know if he still does, but at one point in his life he taped his radio program and his TV program (while it was on) to watch later.

    I love my nephew, and he really is a nice guy, but I wonder if he's like a sleeper, just waiting to come out. I don't know. It's despairing.

    I read the article about the waning of evangelicalism and I'm not sure I see that. I think it's going to grow or hold its own. Although, I can see the point he made about the charismatic movement growing. People want something to give meaning to their lives, to belong to something bigger than themselves. But, what happens is that they then give up any responsibility for anything in their lives. It's easier to do what you're told. They then elevate the church and the leaders to almost a higher level than God, if that makes sense. I've seen this as a Mormon my entire life.

    There was a statement in a Mormon lesson manual once that stated "when the prophet speaks, the thinking has been done." Never mind that the prophet (President of the LDS church) repudiated that comment, the idea is alive and well.

    Mormons have been moving more and more to the right politically the last 30-40 years, and particularly have been aligning more and more with evangelical Christianity (despite evangelicals distrust and animosity towards the Mormon faith). This is interesting, given the radical nature of the religion in the 1800's. At one point, Brigham Young famuously drew a line down the middle of a congregation at one of the general conference sessions and told the people on one side to vote democratic and the people on the other to vote republican, the message being that politics didn't matter that much and that he didn't want Utah to be beholden to one party or the other. But, guess what happened a couple of generations later...

    Lloyd the Lurker

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  128. Hi again Lloyd...

    Lurk anytime.

    Yeah, Rush is quite a piece of work.

    Interesting how the Republican Party is disintegrating, huh? The only voices left are the nutcases.

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  129. Yeah, on the issue of that article in which it describes atheism as on the upswing, and Christianity declining in some regions...assuming linearity would be a terrible thing to do. I am with Lloyd in not seeing that it evangelism is waning. All that is happening is that the more moderate Christians or those who would have only been nominal Christians by cultural pressure alone now feel less obliged to do so. This doesn't mean that the population, as a whole, is becoming more moderate in their religious belief, and it may just mean that only those who are the most diehard believers remain, and try to kick up their attempts at gaining influence in response to losing members. Ultimately, rather than an overall decrease in religious fervor (which is what we are after), it may just mean an increased polarization in our society as people who would have at least remained in the same religion as the more faithful previously hop on a previously abandoned side of the fence, leaving those who remain to become frenzied at the perceived slight. In other words, the strength of the evangelical movement may actually increase as the number of targets for the evangelism becomes proportionately higher, and the number of people who aren't evangelists decreases at a faster rate. And, even if the trend of more people becoming nonreligious continues, eventually we'll reach a point where a rebound towards religiosity will occur, just like always. The goal for us, to simply make sure that rebound brings us back to the original heights. A cyclical trend that still amounts to a net less of religious folks each rotation is a win. It's just a very, very long game, and it's why you can't expect these things to happen in the foreseeable future.

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  130. Asylum, agreed that it's a cyclical thing. I think the new influence of technology, particularly information technology, is the "magic sword" that secularity has always needed. I like to think that the cycles will trend more consistantly toward rationality now.

    One can hope, at any rate.

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  131. I mean, the Internet alone is a tremendous help in the eternal struggle between rationality and the tyranny of religion.

    It's true that the religious use it too, but not to as profound an effect. We're talking children in developing countries here, and the poor and ignorant everywhere being able to see more of the world and it's culture and broaden their horizons. When you know all about the world, your home town born-again religion sounds more and more provincial and ignorant.

    So, as the spread of knowledge continues the religions of the world will be losing their children to secular thought.

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  132. I guess I see a lot of potential in the Internet.

    To me it's as if we as a species were until now like a primitive organism with no central nervous system, like say a sponge or even more primitive, and with the advent of the Internet we just evolved a CNS. It's that big a deal.

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  133. Asylum Seeker said it way better than I could, and I agree that things are going to be more polarized. I think that the more pressure evangelicals and fundamentalists (of any religion) feel from increased secularization, the more fervent and retrenched they'll be. When the Mormons were heavily persecuted in the 1800s, the more they rallied to their cause.

    On one hand that strengthens the community quite effectively, but on the other hand it also leads to a hunkering down and retrenching to core beliefs, a metaphorical (and almost literal) circling of the wagons.

    Secularism is the banner that strengthens these groups. It's interesting that many religions have seemed to blame prosperity and wealth for weakening faith--there seemed to be a real concern (and I can certainly see, and even agree with it to a point) that increased wealth, especially on an individual level, was a precursor to sin and apostasy.

    Ironically, the message now is that wealth is a sign of godliness. The better off you are, the more obviously blessed you are, because of your righteousness. So, now there needs to be a new bogey man: hence the usefulness of secularism as a rallying cry for the faithful.

    I hope you don't mind me bringing up the Mormon angle too much, but that's the framework I'm most used to. And I see many of the pitfalls in modern evangelicalism (a movement that seems so far from the core messages of Jesus--something that Brian has mentioned before) occurring more and more in Mormonism, and I find that a sad thing.

    Ah well...

    Lloyd the Lurker

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  134. Agree with you about the internet and information in general. Not only is the internet rife with atheists, but it also gives unprecedented levels of access to any form of opinion that you wouldn't normally be exposed to. I always felt that the more you know about many different religions, the less likely you are to pidgeon-hole yourself into any given one. I know I personally couldn't choose between the Greek pantheon, Buddhism, and good ol' fashioned deism ;)

    ". When the Mormons were heavily persecuted in the 1800s, the more they rallied to their cause.

    On one hand that strengthens the community quite effectively, but on the other hand it also leads to a hunkering down and retrenching to core beliefs, a metaphorical (and almost literal) circling of the wagons."

    Excellent point. But now that you bring that up, I wonder...does making fun of Scientologists count as persecution, and will it make them stronger? We haven't actually persecuted them yet, but the almost universal mockery and scorn might make them stick to their guns. I mean, I don't like most religions, but a religion that charges thousands simply for exposure to their basic doctrines and sues everyone who questions them...that's like Vatican-level evil.

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  135. Asylum Seeker said: "Excellent point. But now that you bring that up, I wonder...does making fun of Scientologists count as persecution, and will it make them stronger? We haven't actually persecuted them yet, but the almost universal mockery and scorn might make them stick to their guns. I mean, I don't like most religions, but a religion that charges thousands simply for exposure to their basic doctrines and sues everyone who questions them...that's like Vatican-level evil."

    There is a fine line between making fun of a religious group and scorn or outright persecution, certainly in the mind of the receivers. There's nothing more unhumorous to a fundamentalist than to have his religion made fun of. So, they would call it persecution, and more importantly, a prooftext of their faith. Why would people make fun of us (the persecuted) if they (the persecutors) didn't think we were a threat, or even worse (to the persecutor), right.

    I use the example of growing up with one of my sisters. She was always ornery and just not nice much of the time. So, I would make fun of her to my friends and heap all kinds of abuse on her. But, when one of my friends started making fun, whoa, that's family. Don't go there, mate.

    I think it's the same with groups like this. They have an inside language and culture and allow a certain amount of levity and self-humor (can't think of the word I want), as long as it's from one of the faithful. But when it comes even from someone in the group who isn't quite orthodox, and certainly from anyone outside of the group, it's seen as persecution. Some groups thrive on that.

    It would almost be worth just ignoring them as otherwise they almost welcome it, IMHO.

    Lloyd the Lurker

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  136. We've never seen the Christian faith "hunker down" before, and it's a very public "hunkering down." It's reflected in the Republican party. They are caught between relevance and their beliefs, and while they crave relevance with all their greedy hearts, they just fucking can't ever even lose one belief. Their beliefs are sacrosanct. They're stuck with them even if they're the cause of their demise.

    Good.

    Because I want them to hunker down and get even more fanatical. I do. Let them circle the wagons and go to war! Let them do that. Let them show the world what they really are.

    This cancer won't fade away. It needs to be identified and excised. And it's identifying itself. To the rest of the country. Graphically, they are demonstrating their uselessness and their idiocy for all to see. And the excision will come at the next election. Or sooner; people are already noticing the lunacy more and more, the more the lunatics act out. All this hatred and idiocy... the people are getting sick of it. I know I am.

    I didn't even ralize how well, for the lack of a better word, evil the republican party was until Obama got in. I didn't think they'd make it this obvious. And keep in mind, I already thought of them are pretty evil people in general. But not the lunatic cabal that they are. It's like they're threatening to hold their breath until Obama gives them their power back or something, turning blue in the face from it.... Like really shallow self-centered children. It's all a game to them, they can't even SEE the country. Just the game. And they can't seem to believe that they've lost it. Because beliefs don't change with the facts, and they believed they'd be in power forever.

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  137. I wonder if it's possible that the christian right, the "base," will get so "hunkered down" and nutty that the remaining republicans in the house and senate will have to separate themselves from them...
    But then I remind myself, that those republicans are also mostly believers themselves. Blind believers. Just like the christian right. Maybe not so much believers in the faith as they claim, but definitely believers in their own infallibility.

    The sin of pride will bring them down. Or so I sincerely hope. They've been committing it for quite long enough, don't you think?

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  138. Obama is such an effective leader and imposing figure that all he has to do to humiliate the republicans is to let one of them give a speech right after he does on the same subject. No really. Who can follow him on the right and not look like that kid from deliverance by comparison?

    Twang twang twang twang twang twang twang twang twang....

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  139. I'm hoping that Obama isn't going to be a disappointment. He's already done a couple of things that I find objectionable. Nothing by comparison to Bush, but still...

    We should thank Bush and the neocons for Obama. No way would we have elected him if they hadn't screwed everything up so badly that the country started to wake up to reality. They pulled the pendulum waaaaay over to the right, and then lost their grip, so now...... Obama!

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  140. And Newt Gingrich is imagining laser weapons capable of stopping a missle launch in Korea. Which we don't have yet.

    And he's like, one of the more reasonable ones!!!

    They're looking like huge clowns.

    And that is what I hope eventually happens to fundamentalist christianity as well. Totally marginalized to the point of laughter. To the point where it is the constant butt of jokes everywhere. If they really stick to their beliefs, they just might eventually do it to themselves. After all, they can't CHANGE those beliefs, can they?

    If they ever manage to put themselves into the position where their beliefs are standing directly in the way of their relevance, they will become irrelavent in an instant. Like the moonies. No more likely to win an election than a moonie. Marginalized as the nuts they are.

    This is of course what I am hoping will happen to every fundamentalist religion that preaches the 'sin' of division and separation, not just our local stripe.

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  141. The pressure is mounting, people.

    Gay marriage is being legalized everywhere.

    Abortion will remain legal. And stem cells will be harvested.

    Other religions are being recognized as relevant. Including Islam.

    We are negotiating with our enemies.

    We are admitting our share of guilt in different matters to the world.

    They are reaching for guns as I type. It's INTOLERABLE to their BELIEF system. Something must be done!

    More innocents will die, but slowly the psychosis will show it's face more and more as it is forced out into the open.

    I hope Obama stays safe.

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  142. Ste Brian - please participate in my little contest - it is right up your alley! ;)

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  143. "I'm hoping that Obama isn't going to be a disappointment. He's already done a couple of things that I find objectionable. Nothing by comparison to Bush, but still...

    We should thank Bush and the neocons for Obama. No way would we have elected him if they hadn't screwed everything up so badly that the country started to wake up to reality."

    Agreed on all points. Still, Bush messed up fairly badly by his first term, enough that I have no idea why this didn't happen in 2004. I guess they were willing to give him the benefit of the doubt after a year and a half into his most catastrophic decision (wink wink nudge nudge for the people completely dismissing Obama's effectiveness after 2 and a half months...). Either that, or they let the fear seal their votes for them. Still, the buildup led us to Obama. And I just heard it mentioned how "the left" is being hypocritical by accepting Obama's decisions to continue occupying Iraq and Afghanistan for a good period of time.

    So...yeah...hopefully he won't be a disappointment. We could be absolutely fucked if that happens, and the Republicans successfully play "poor wittle minority opinion/ignored geniuses" during economic and military catastrophes. We'll be right back to rule by the GOP, in addition to having to deal with the problems caused by the relevant failures as a country.

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  144. Ste B - where are you doing battle with the forces of darkness these days?

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  145. Nowhere, Pliny. Well, a bit still on the old DD blog which is still going pretty strong for some reason.

    I've been unmotivated to wrote a post. Too many other things on my plate right now. And I am frankly a bit sick and tired of talking about the christians and their foibles lately. It overwhelms me and sickens me, what they're doing.

    I guess I needed a break.

    I'll be posting again very soon though.

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  146. Then I am just in time - download a copy of my Lifegorithm and your angst will melt away like marzipan in a nuclear reactor. The path my friend awaits you ;)

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  147. I like your lifegorithm, Pliny!

    Pretty funny.

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  148. Don't you laugh B - Tweenism is catching on rapidly. It is the fastest growing spiritual movement of the last 12 hours.

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  149. Rush in video linked: "I don't know of anybody who died from torture"

    Who else finds that statement hilarious? I'm not entirely sure, but I think he completely missed the point of why people object to torture. Which, may confirm the "zero empathy and conscience" hypothesis....

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  150. If it even needed any confirmation, that is.

    I did notice that phrase. It sticks out rather conspicuously if you happen to posess a conscience yourself, doesn't it?

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  151. Part of the problem is that we allow people like SoS to define the terms we use. They come up with all these innocuous sounding names like collateral damage in place of its synonym of innocent civilian blown into tiny bits. Or simulated drowning - makes it sound like VR instead of choking under water. Maybe if SoS tried it out on himself... I might believe him then

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  152. Since I am a rich man...la de da de la de da.

    You know Brian I wanted to give away some money the other day. But I realized that giving money away is against everything I believe in.

    By the way the Holy Water comes in mint for an extra 1.95 I know you're a Saint but don't you miss the refreshing ablutions? We have citrus, and passionless fruit as well.

    Just thought I'd offer.

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  153. I've actually come here to seek forgiveness St. Brian...I'm so wonderful and magnanimous in blessing people with myself it's become a sin. I'm too much of a good thing. Well, I can't ignore God's law, it's how I make my living.

    What do you say Brian, how about a beer and one of those cool hats I wear, in exchange for you interceding.

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  154. And if you'll forgive me for my punctuation, I'll take you to the Sands in Vegas for a Pharisee convention.

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  155. "I'm so wonderful and magnanimous in blessing people with myself it's become a sin."

    I am SO stealing that line.

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  156. HCP, love your last post there...

    LOL...

    Too funny.

    I've been very busy lately but a new post is in the works. This one is a bit ancient.

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  157. Are you there Brian? It's me,
    Harry C.

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  158. Hi Harry!!!

    I've been busy lately. baby on the way. You know...

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  159. "I'm so wonderful and magnanimous in blessing people with myself it's become a sin."
    ---------------
    That is frankly hysterical. I am stealing it too.

    Oh, new post is up finally. I think I was inspired by thinking about the baby coming soon...

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  160. I've actually come here to seek forgiveness St. Brian...
    ----------
    Ego te absolvo, in portis revolvo...

    (I've installed a revolving door on my confessional)

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