1/ The crisis at the border with immigrant children is bringing out the most unpleasant elements of the right wing and the extreme "Christians". I highlight this word because everything they are doing contradicts the basics of Christianity, which I am sure didn't include bigots yelling at chariots full of children..
Anyway, a great article from the Guardian with some facts, which you Fox News watchers won't believe.....facts, sort of like science.
Illegals and gangsters and Ebola, oh my! 5 conservative immigration myths of the moment, made sane
As lawmakers seek a solution to the border crisis, the hysterics have reached a new level. We separate punditry from reality.
An anti-Immigration activist at a Tuesday protest in Oracle, Arizona, where ther were reportedly more signs welcoming migrants than sending them home on a bus. Photograph: Sandy Huffaker / Getty
Just when you thought Washington was out to do something, the yellers pull you back in. Bipartisan legislation from Texas lawmakers is set to be introduced any moment now, in an effort (albeit a broad one) to answer President Obama's call for "an urgent humanitarian situation" to the migrant crisis on the US border with Central America, and Republicans are reportedly interested in providing half of the emergency funding he has requested.
Yet this seems like the moment when so many immigration conspiracies – pumped for weeks by conservative websites, talk-radio hosts and Fox News – are just now ratcheting up. Somewhere (hint: national television), Dick Cheney is talking about "integrity" on the border.
From secret plots and diseases to the truth about Tuesday's new protests and life back in El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala, here is some sanity – with charts.
Theory No1: Obama is 'secretly dispersing illegal immigrants around the country'
The source: Who else but former one-term Florida congressman Allen West, who took a break from accusing the president of drinking and smoking pot on the job while raising money off impeachment threats to rise above "all the pundits" on his website. "Hmm," he wrote in a Monday blog post, "let's analyze this."
2/ Jon Stewart on the same theme - the refugee crisis - he rips into right wing politicians and Fox for the hysterical coverage of "the invasion!".....eight pretty good minutes.....
Jon Stewart took on the border crisis tonight, mocking the anti-immigration protestors for yelling at children “in a language they don’t understand” and explaining that America’s reluctance to embrace immigrants has long historical roots.
Stewart laughed at Republican exaggerations over the immigration “kidsplosion” and pointed out that maybe the reason immigrant children want to come to this country is because people, namely Republicans, keep talking about how great America is.
And Stewart went down a list of historical examples showing how America’s been less than welcoming to immigrants, concluding that “we’ve always been a nation of immigrants who hate the newer immigrants.”
3/ John Oliver is becoming the best cutting edge comedian on TV, taking on the serious subjects and in addition to making it hilarious, gets some serious points across as well. Watch this excellent 14 minute segment on income inequality, and how Americans are programmed to be insanely optimistic....
John Oliver delivered another one of his epic segments last night on a massive, complicated issue. But this time, instead of turning his focus abroad to something like the Indian election or zeroing in on a relatively arcane issue like net neutrality, Oliver took on an issue that directly affects every American: income inequality.
As Oliver explained at the top of the 14-minute segment, President Barack Obama indicated that he would make income inequality a central focus of his second term, but has since backed off due to divisions within the Democratic Party on how to talk about it without being accused of “class warfare.”
As the gap between the wealthy and the poor continues to widen, “the rich are just running up the score,” Oliver said. “If our economy was a Little League game, someone would have called it by now.” So why haven’t the vast majority of people in the U.S. who’s incomes have stagnated risen up to try to change things? Because of “America’s greatest quality: optimism.”
While a recent a poll showed that 65% of Americans think the wealth gap is increasing, “sixty percent also believe that most people who work hard enough, can make it,” Oliver explained. “Or, in other words, ‘Yup, I can clearly see this game is rigged, which is what is going to make so sweet when I win this thing.’”
4/ If you wonder how the Tea party Republicans have become so extreme, this could be the explanation why they are impervious to facts, persuasion or logic - their beliefs are a religion.
A very interesting story, which you will appreciate if you have [or ever tried to have] a discussion with a Teabagger.....
The Tea Party Isn’t a Political Movement, It’s a Religious One
Obama is the Antichrist, Republicans are heretics, and compromise is unholy. Politics can’t explain how the right acts.
America has long been the incubator of many spiritual creeds going back to the Great Awakening and even earlier. Only one of them, Mormonism, has taken root and flourished as a true religion sprung from our own native ground. Today, however, we have a new faith growing from this nation’s soil: the Tea Party. Despite its secular trappings and “taxed enough already” motto, it is a religious movement, one grounded in the traditions of American spiritual revival. This religiosity explains the Tea Party’s political zealotry.
The mark of a national political party in a democracy is its pluralistic quality, i.e. the ability to be inclusive enough to appeal to the broadest number of voters who may have differing interests on a variety of issues. While it may stand for certain basic principles, a party is often flexible in applying them, as are its representatives in fulfilling them. Despite the heated rhetoric of elections and the bombast of elected representatives, they generally seek consensus with the minority in order to achieve their legislative goals.
But when religion is thrown into the mix, all that is lost. Religion here doesn’t mean theology but a distinct belief system which, in totality, provides basic answers regarding how to live one’s life, how society should function, how to deal with social and political issues, what is right and wrong, who should lead us, and who should not. It does so in ways that fulfill deep-seated emotional needs that, at their profoundest level, are devotional. Given the confusions of a secular world being rapidly transformed by technology, demography, and globalization, this movement has assumed a spiritual aspect whose adepts have undergone a religious experience which, if not in name, then in virtually every other aspect, can be considered a faith.
5/ A great one minute skit from the SNL archives - "Turlington's Lower Back Tattoo Remover".......funny, with a kicker at the end....one minute.....
6/ This has gone viral, and rightly so. It's a recording of a call made by a Comcast customer trying to disconnect his service.....if you make a call to Comcast trying to get something done, you get indifference, incompetence and sometimes hostility - understandably so, because if you were answering the phone and dealing with problems caused by your company's stupidity, and getting $8 an hour, you wouldn't give a shit either.
But try and cancel the service? You get the pit bull.....six minutes.....
Former tech journalist Ryan Block recently tried to get his Comcast service disconnected, but he ended up on the phone with what has to be one of the most persistent customer service representatives of all-time. This Comcast rep repeatedly asked Block why he’s canceling his service, and Block refused to tell him, because frankly, it’s none of their business.
The audio Block recorded started after his wife and he had already been on the maddening call for about ten minutes. The Comcast rep trotted out company stats, somewhat dryly asking why you wouldn’t want to stick with a company with the fastest internet and TV service. (This persistence may be why Comcast, along with Time Warner Cable, ranks at the bottom in a survey of customer satisfaction in a number of companies.)
In fact, Block said, “This phone call is a really––actually perfect representative example of why I don’t want to stay with Comcast.” The Comcast rep kept being really, annoyingly
OK - time for a double downer......Global and American.....
7/ A good story from "The Guardian" on how climate change is already making the world more unstable, and how expensive the damage is.
Eight ways climate change is making the world more dangerous
Disasters including storms, floods and heatwaves have increased fivefold since the 1970s, UN finds.
A National Guard humvee travels through high water after Hurricane Sandy Photograph: Alex Brandon/AP
Forget the future. The world already is nearly five times as dangerous and disaster prone as it was in the 1970s, because of the increasing risks brought by climate change, according to a new report from the World Meteorological Organisation.
The first decade of the 21st century saw 3,496 natural disasters from floods, storms, droughts and heat waves. That was nearly five times as many disasters as the 743 catastrophes reported during the 1970s – and all of those weather events are influenced by climate change.
The bottom line: natural disasters are occurring nearly five times as often as they were in the 1970s. But some disasters – such as floods and storms – pose a bigger threat than others. Flooding and storms are also taking a bigger bite out of the economy. But heat waves are an emerging killer.
1) We're going to need a bigger boat – or flood defences
Key: Dark blue = floods. Light blue = mass movement wet. Green = storms. Yellow = drought. Magenta = extreme temperature. Orange = Wildfires Photograph: /WMO
Flooding and mega-storms were by far the leading cause of disaster from 2000-2010. About 80% of the 3,496 disasters of the last decade were due to flooding and storms. Seas are rising because of climate change. So are extreme rain storms. There is growing evidence that warming temperatures are increasing the destructive force of hurricanes
8/ A very good Bill Maher "New Rules", where he asks why local police forces around the country are getting military grade weapons. Good question, and another one is why aren't right wingers protesting this? Isn't this the gub'mint coming for their guns?
Five minutes of common sense.....
It’s a topic on which this writer has spilled plenty of ink, but one that goes largely ignored by mainstream media: The troubling militarization of local American police forces.
During his closing monologue of Friday’s Real Time, HBO’s Bill Maher aimed squarely at what has become a largely-unspoken civil liberties threat at home.
“Now that violent crime is at a 40-year low, someone has to explain why your local police department has gone from this to this,” he demonstrated:
Maher ran through the gamut of American small towns (e.g. — Doraville, Ga., Nixon, Mo., Justice, Ill.) that somehow employ military-style tanks in their police departments. These tanks, often gifted by the Pentagon to police departments, come “fresh from our glorious victories in Iraq and Afghanistan,” and are used for unnecessarily over-militarized police exercises.
“Cops all know what it’s like when you get a new toy, you want to use it.” he continued. “I bought a glue gun once, and by the end of the weekend my dog’s face was stuck to the toilet rim. But in West Springfield, Mass., the police department’s new toy is two grenade launchers. Why? In case Boko Haram takes Connecticut?” he joked.
9/ And for this country, six ways climate change will make this summer a beastly time......starting with the heat. I don't know about you, but we avoid going outside on sunny days between 1pm and 5pm. We're behaving like the Spanish!
(Credit: Christin Gasner/Shutterstock)
Those of us living in North America made it through a confusing winter, during which some people had a hard time believing that global warming could actually lead to more snow. (Although it’s true. Really!) Now that it’s officially summertime, things get a lot simpler: The world is undergoing global warming. Ergo, it’s going to get warmer.
A lot warmer, even — to the point that Americans could start seeing from 45 to 96 days over 95 degrees Fahrenheit, two to three times as many as we experience now, by the end of the century. Climate change, the IPCC predicts, “is likely to be accompanied by an increase in the frequency and intensity of heat waves” (prolonged periods of abnormally hot weather) that, coupled with a concurrent rise in humidity, will pose a major health risk.
But we don’t only have to trust scientific modeling to know that summers are getting hotter: A trend of increasing high-humidity heat waves has already been documented over the past several decades. According to the National Climate Assessment, heat waves in the U.S. are already occurring at triple the historical average. Look back at the data, and it’s clear that summer temperatures have been rising since the 1970s, for a total average gain of 2 degrees Fahrenheit.
Can’t stand the heat? Well, too bad, because sweating it out in hotter temperatures is only the beginning of what a warmer planet will mean.
10/ OK some light relief after that climate news - Katy Perry is a wonderful singer, but she is also a frustrated actress as shown by her latest video "Birthday" - she plays five different characters, all goofy, working different events.....amusing, and the song is nice too......
11/ Rick Scott #1 - A one minute clip of the disgusting, robotic piece of shit you elected Governor ducking and weaving, and not answering questions .....
And look at his eyes......crazy springs to mind.
Nothing annoys reporters more than when someone repeats irrelevant statements in response to straightforward questions about wrongdoing, and that’s exactly what embattled Republican Governor Rick Scott did recently when asked about illegally coercing on-duty police officers to attend a recent campaign event in Tampa.
“Did you really think that all of those deputies were off duty?” a reporter asked him.
“I’m very proud that last week the police chiefs endorsed me, I’m very proud that sheriffs have endorsed me, I’m very proud of all the support from the law enforcement,” Scott said, initially dodging the question. “We have a 43 year low in our crime rate. We invite them to our campaign events and I’m very appreciative of the ones that came.”
“But did you think that was a problem to have on duty law enforcement there?” the reporter continued to press Scott.
“I’m very appreciative of both their support and those that come to my events,” Scott repeated.
“You didn’t answer that question,” another reporter called him out for so obviously evading the question.
12/ Rick Scott #2 - You know Rick Scott is awful when even a Fox affiliate out of Tampa does a four minute piece on how Scott will NOT answer questions, and hasn't for four years....
They use some of the same footage as the one minute clip above but from a different angle, and LOOK AT HIS EYES! He's insane!
This week, Governor Scott has been mocked and ridiculed by the national media for dodging simple questions. But Florida's Governor has been ducking important questions for years. This year, he even bragged about it in his State of the Union speech. So we assembled a collection of some of his recent dodges to take a closer look at how and why he does it.
13/ Stephen Colbert with an amusing look at politics, and the 2016 race. His pick? The new and improved Rick Perry.....five good minutes....
Stephen Colbert mocks Rick Perry (Credit: screenshot)
Last night on “The Colbert Report,” Stephen Colbert took a look at the different flavors, if you will, of 2016 candidate. For the Democrats, it looks like the option is Hillary Clinton. But on the Republican side, there’s a buffet of options. Curly fries, beef patty, mild salsa, milder salsa and leftovers. (I’ll let you piece together who is who.)
But Colbert’s favorite potential 2016 candidate? “Texas governor, and cartoon of a Texas governor, Rick Perry.” And he has more faith in the failed 2012 candidate because of his new look: glasses, and black loafers. Yes, the Texas man has given up his cowboy boots.
14/ Lauren Ritchie with a fine piece of professional journalism on how the campaign finance laws are being used to directly corrupt the legal system.
Read this folks - even if you don't live in Lake County, Florida, this kind of undermining one of our remaining institutions at the local level is probably happening in your town.....
And if you live in Lake, make sure it's a 'yes' vote for Judge Terry Neal.....
Races for county judge seats are typically dull affairs, but a group of personal-injury lawyers mostly from Orlando are poised to liven up the August election by dumping an unprecedented amount of cash into an effort to oust respected Lake County Judge Terry Neal.
Why would out-of-town lawyers with limited business in these parts want Neal gone? Their unofficial leader would have voters believe that his goal is simply to improve the judiciary — he said he's helping Lake voters get rid of a "bad judge."
Neal, a 59-year-old former secretary who put herself through law school, was appointed to the bench in December 2005 and has since earned a reputation as a steady jurist who is a stickler for detail.
Against her, these 15 to 20 attorneys are backing a Clermont lawyer whose financial condition is shaky and whose marketing strategy has been to grow a long beard and flowing hair to attract biker clients. Daniel Archer, who declared his net worth as $14,142 in the red, lost his Montrose Street office when his bank foreclosed and sold it in 2012.
15/ It's the summer - there is hardly any good TV and it's also bloody hot, so catch up on this wonderful show "Orphan Black"....it's really interesting.....we are four episodes in and hooked like a tarpon........
It's on Amazon Instant Video, and Netflix with discs....
Why the American TV Industry Will Never Understand the Glory That Is 'Orphan Black'Image Credit: MSN
Of all the Emmys oversights people have been gabbing about for the last 24 hours, the one garnering the most fan rage is the snub of Tatiana Maslany for her starring role on Orphan Black.
Apparently, playing an average of five lead characters on any given episode doesn't warrant a best lead actress nomination. Her omission from the list — for the second year running — has caused many to go down the hypothesis rabbit hole and conjecture why this knockout performance will never get the recognition it deserves. The answers are pretty clear.
Maslany plays Sarah Manning. And Alison Hendrix. And Cosima Niehaus. And Rachel Duncan. And Helena. Among others. And these aren't all garden-variety female characters: Sarah is a tough con-artist, Alison a soccer mom with an addictive personality, Cosima a bisexual science student, Rachel a cold researcher and Helena a crazy zealot who has carved wing patterns into her back.
Todays video - I love these "Honest Trailers" for the sarcasm and zingers galore - this one, for "Lord Of The Rings" is one of the best yet.....very amusing......pay attention when they list the cast of characters about 2/3 of the way through....
Todays Alzheimers joke
CHECK FOR ALZHEIMER'S - PRETTY AMAZINGThe following was developed as a mental age assessment by theSchool of Psychiatry at Harvard University . Take your time and see ifyou can read each line aloud without a mistake.The average person over 60 years of age cannot do it!1. This is this cat.2. This is is cat.3. This is how cat.4. This is to cat.5. This is keep cat.6. This is an cat.7. This is old cat.8. This is fart cat.9. This is busy cat.10. This is for cat.11. This is forty cat.12. This is seconds cat.Now go back and read the third word in each line from the top downand I bet you can't resist passing it on.........
Todays missionary joke
Teaching English:A Priest was about to finish his tour of duty, and was leaving his Mission in the jungle where he has spent years teaching the natives when he realizes that the one thing he never taught them was how to speak English. ...
So he takes the chief for a walk in the forest.
He points to a tree and says to the chief, "This is a tree."
The chief looks at the tree and grunts, "Tree."
The Priest is pleased with the response.They walk a little further and he points to a rock and says, "This is a rock."
Hearing this, the chief looks and grunts, "Rock."
The Priest was really getting enthusiastic about the results when he
hears a rustling in the bushes. As they peek over the top, he sees a couple of natives in the midst of heavy sexual activity.
The Priest is really flustered and quickly responds, "Man riding a bike."
The chief looks at the couple briefly, pulls out his blowgun and kills them both...
The Priest goes ballistic and yells at the chief that he has spent years
teaching the tribe how to be civilized and be kind to each other, so how
could he kill these people in cold blood that way?
The chief replied,
"My bike."
Todays cartoons
