New Tizona post

The G-8 has come to FredCo!

Frederick County, Maryland, USA. It’s a relatively normal place…normal being relative anywhere, I suppose. It’s home to about 235,000 souls, and is roughly 670 square miles in area. You can drive from one end of the county to another in under 30 minutes, whether it’s north-south or east-west.

I’ve call FredCo home for 13 years now. As with most who moved here in the 90′s, it was the only place in the Baltimore/Washington corridor where we could afford a larger house with a yard.

But FredCo has within its borders something that sets it apart from other mostly rural counties in Maryland. Just outside of Thurmont, a mere 15 minute drive from the city of Frederick, is a little place called Camp David. And, suddenly, this weekend Frederick County is on the map.

Read more at The Tizona Group.

Trial by Media

Deadeye watched the Casey Anthony trial with rapt fascination over the past six weeks. I would venture that there is no one out there as knowledgeable about that case (outside of the attorneys, that is) than Deadeye. When Casey Anthony was found not guilty on all charges except lying to police yesterday, Deadeye was dumbfounded. She has officially lost all confidence in the jury system.

While I would tend to agree with her the the cumulative evidence should have led to a verdict of guilty, I'm less concerned with the verdict and more concerned about a growing trend that became apparent during this trial. Call it what you will, it boils down to trail by media.

The worst offender was Nancy Grace, of course. Were it up to Ms. Grace, Casey Anthony would be dead already. Nancy Grace has spent the past three years proclaiming the guilt of "tot mom". I thought that the "not guilty" verdict might elicit some sort of contemplative pause from her. As if! She said in response to the verdict that "the devil is dancing tonight". On her show last night, she spent an entire segment excoriating the defense team for having the audacity to celebrate their victory. Claiming "I never did that as a prosecutor", she heaped derision on Casey's attorneys. Being ever cynical...and knowing Nancy's predilection for playing fast and loose with the law during her career as a prosecutor...I would guess that the reason she never celebrated was because she didn't want to draw too much attention to her tactics.

If it were just Nancy Grace acting this way on the airways, you could dismiss this is as one bitter crank amid a sea of babble. But it's not just Ms. Grace. It's Jane VOLUME-Mitchell. It's Vinnie Politan. It's the hosts of In Session on Tru TV. The babble from this Tower of Babel is not just harmless words. If you listen to the comments of people around the country, they are convinced that the jury flat out blew the case. They're convinced that Casey Anthony is GUILTY, GUILTY, GUILTY. And the reason they're so convinced is because they've been harangued for three solid years by people selling sensationalism for ratings.

Still not convinced it's all that dangerous, Vulture. Okay, indulge me for a second. What happens when a sizable segment of the populace is worked up into a frenzy about something or other? Answer: laws get passed. Bad laws. Laws that make us less free and more susceptible to unwarranted incarceration. THIS is what concerns me. THIS is what I see as the danger.

Here's hoping that the Casey Anthony verdict does NOT have the effect of giving politicians a premise for abolishing or negating trial by jury.

The rapture that wasn't

As a Christian, I find folk like Harold Camping.........challenging. Why in the name of all that is good do Camping and other deceivers like him troll about proclaiming that they have "secret knowledge" regarding the Second Coming, when scripture very clearly states, "No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father." (Mark 13:32)?

I get a little bent over it, because of the impact it has on the deceived and the opening it gives militant atheists to bash Christians. But don't worry -- old Hal Camping is going to have his own little taste of hell over the coming weeks and months. Getting in the first shot is Ed Stetzer.

Harold Camping needs to publicly apologize for being wrong about his doomsday prediction and leading people astray, said a Southern Baptist leader.

The California radio broadcaster’s wrong prediction about the rapture and the end of the world reflected poorly on Christians, said Ed Stetzer, president of the Southern Baptist Convention’s LifeWay Research and LifeWay’s missiologist in residence.

Stetzer issued a series of tweets about Camping’s eschatological prediction on Saturday, among which one noted that there was no earthquake in New Zealand after 6 p.m.

“Harold Camping, pls update www.family.radio.com w/your repentance statement & instructions to your now-broke followers,” Stetzer tweeted.

An hour later he tweeted again, “6pm here in Turkey. I’m standing at the Temple of Athena waiting for the Rapture. Nothing happened. ;-)”

Of course, given that Camping has made this self-same WRONG prediction before, in 1994, I wonder if he's capable of shame. Given that many of his followers blew their life's savings backing his lunatic assertion, I would say that anything short of donating every penny he has to his followers to make them whole again will fall far short of genuine repentance.

Or maybe he'll try again. Third time's the charm. [/sarcasm]

UPDATE: It seems my sarcasm was wasted: Camping IS going for a third time.

And, he decided to give it another go: on Monday night, in his first radio broadcast since his May 21 prophecy proved a bust, Harold Camping conceded he didn't plot his rapture prediction "as accurately as I could have." But, nevertheless, the elderly pastor rejiggered his apocalyptic calculations for five months from now: October 21st. So, look forward to rehashed Camping coverage beginning two weeks prior to the next non-event.

FFS.

Vulture Droppings: Budget negotiated, or theater of the absurd

Vulture Droppings is a semi-regular feature of this blog. It's a kind of "Random Thoughts" post in which I try to quickly summarize a particularly large event or series of events. Think of it being sort of like what a vulture leaves behind after devouring a horse. You don't get the whole horse, just highly processed leftovers.

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At one point in the budget negotiations, Il Duce said, "It's time for adults to take over the budget talks."

As if!

Sadly for We the People, there are no adults in Washington. It makes for a lousy government. But it also makes for great theater, if "theater of the absurd" is your preference.

This edition of Vulture Droppings looks at the absurdities of the past week's negotiations.

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First, a little history.

Normally a budget is proposed shortly after the State of the Union speech and approved well before the end of the current fiscal year in September. Last year was different. Even with a Donkey as president, a Donkey-controlled House (by a big margin), and a Donkey-controlled Senate (with a 60-40 supermajority), Congress was unable (or, more accurately, unwilling) to complete a budget prior to the end of FY10. They elected to punt. The government has run on "continuing resolutions" for this entire fiscal year.

Fast forward to March. NOW all of the sudden it's the end of the world if the budget doesn't get passed! Mark this down on your score card as Childish Act #1.

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But that was minor league compared with what would follow. Over the past two weeks we've been treated to juvenile behavior the likes of which is seldom seen in any government at any time.

First it was the Elephants, trying to slip in targeted cuts based on pure ideology. Oh, don't get me wrong: the government has no business giving tax dollars to Planned Parenthood, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (PBS), National Public Radio (NPR), or the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). Each and every one of those things need to have their funding cut. But, by playing the ideology card during a period in which the stated goal was to avert a shutdown (and the resultant boost to a wounded and vulnerable president: see Clinton, Bill), the Elephants proved yet again that they are the Stupid Party.

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Not ones to let an opening go to waste, the Donkeys used the de-funding of Planned Parenthood as the focus of their retrenchment strategy. Or as an excuse to come unhinged, depending on your viewpoint.

Sen. Charles Schumer roared, "The dangerous, ideological cuts to Planned Parenthood that passed the House are never, never, never going to pass the Senate.” Never mind that your dangerous, ideological spending on Planned Parenthood is part of our debt problem. Schumer also got in a cheap shot against the Tea Party, saying, “What we have here is a flea, wagging a tail, wagging a dog,”

Congresswoman Louise Slaughter said that Republicans are "here to kill women". Get hysterical much?

Nevada's curse on the country, Sen. Harry Reid, said, "Republicans want to shut down the government because they think there's nothing more important than keeping women from getting cancer screenings. This is indefensible and everyone should be outraged." Srsly, Harry? That was stupider and more hysterical than Congresswoman Slaughter. He also took a shot at the Tea Party, saying, "[T]he Tea Party...is trying to push its extreme social agenda, issues that have nothing to do with funding the bill." Extreme? Really, Harry? This from the guy selling "Republicans support cancer in women"?

And, as carefully choreographed as it always is, professional protesters appeared on the scene, complete with hysterical signs like, "Republicans! Stay away from my vagina!

You can't make this stuff up.

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The Elephants were more restrained, but still managed to underwhelm. House Majority Leader Boehner haughtily sniffed that the Donkeys weren't serious about cutting spending. Various members of Congress sniped at the idea of our troops not getting paid. Uh, whose fault would THAT be, exactly?

To the Elephants' credit, Sen. Paul Ryan presented a serious budget plan that would result in eliminating the debt. This plan, of course, was met with hysteria by none other than the former Air Force 3, Nancy Pelosi, who called the plan "a path to poverty for America's seniors [and] children and a road to riches for big oil". Damn, Nancy! You hit two hot button moonbat issues in one fell swoop.

For the record, Sen. Ryan's plan has a snowball's chance on the plains of Hell of passing.

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Bottom line, nothing real was accomplished. The Elephants and their sycophants at Fox News are trumpeting a GOP victory. Victory? Srsly? You reduced spending by $31 billion in a budget whose deficit alone is $1,500 billion! That's a victory?

No, that's sad.

Coming soon: the rematch, as the Elephants and the Donkeys renew their kabuki dance with the looming debt ceiling brawl. Hilarity will ensue. Sadly, hilarity will ensue.

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A pseudo-religion self-parodies

Okay, Tizona Group beat me to this item. But that doesn't mean I can't add my $0.02.

Hours after a massive earthquake rattled Japan, environmental advocates connected the natural disaster to global warming. The president of the European Economic and Social Committee, Staffan Nilsson, issued a statement calling for solidarity in tackling the global warming problem.

“Some islands affected by climate change have been hit,” said Nilsson. “Has not the time come to demonstrate on solidarity — not least solidarity in combating and adapting to climate change and global warming?”

“Mother Nature has again given us a sign that that is what we need to do,” he added.

Are you effing kidding me? Seriously? Do these imbeciles understand that earthquakes are caused by plate tectonics, NOT by the weather? Attributing an earthquake to climate makes about as much sense as attributing an asteroid collision with Earth to climate.

As if there was ever any doubt, this is the final proof that Global Warming has absolutely nothing to do with science and everything to do with religion. Just as a believer in the Almighty sees God in all things, so an AGW believer sees warming in everything. Drought = warming. Flooding = warming. Severe weather = warming. Balmy weather = warming. Heat = warming. Cold = warming.

These AGW fetishists are so caught up in their superstition that no amount of evidence can convince them that there are things that happen whose occurrence has absolutely nothing to do with climate.

I recommend checking out the Tizona post. It's got some good stuff in it. The best part for me was this quote.

Global warming alarmists are to natural disasters what the Westboro Baptist Church is to military funerals.

You got THAT right.

The circus is in town

The execrable Rep. Peter King (R-NY) is holding hearings ostensibly to discuss how the US can mitigate the terrorism threat emanating from radical Islam. This is the same Peter King who for decades was an open supporter of the terrorist organization, Sinn Fein.

A periodic perversion of America's ideals, regrettably witnessed at the U.S. Capitol, is an "investigation" in which Congress labels people as unAmerican because of ethnicity, religious belief or conviction.

Rep. Peter King, R-New York, used to defend the Irish Republican Army as a "legitimate force" and once declared: "The British government is a murder machine."

Now, as chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, King is staging hearings on ""Muslim radicalization" aimed at exposing what he calls a "violent enemy from overseas . . . which is recruiting people from a community living in our country."

William Grigg details King's hypocrisy much better than I can in this meager post (see here).

Let's put this whole thing in its proper perspective. King isn't seeking a solution to radical Islam. King is seeking to stoke the fires of intolerance in order to fuel the war machine.

In my opinion it is King who should be subjected to hearings and jailed for his support of a terrorist organization. Let us not forget that the IRA was blowing innocent men, women, and children to smithereens long before Al Qaeda existed. Peter King has the blood of those innocents on his hands. It is the height of absurdity that this terrorist-supporting thug can hold hearings of this nature.

And yet, so-called "conservatives" are all gung-ho for the hearings and stand foursquare behind King. Last night on the drive home, I heard Spencer Hughes of Fox News Radio defending the hearings. He actually uttered this ridiculous line, "If you're Islamic and you're not involved in terrorist activities, you have nothing to be afraid of." Uh huh. Just like the innocents in Waco who didn't shoot at the ATF had nothing to be afraid of.

I'm becoming more convinced every day that the vast majority of "conservatives" are complete morons dancing to whatever tune Fox News is currently playing. In that aspect, they're every bit as dangerous to the survival of this country as the radical Left they so despise.

And just as stupid.

So-called conservative comments on CPAC

In case you missed it, Ron Paul won the straw poll at CPAC, with Hairdo Healthcare finishing second. The indignity of this result was too much for one of Fox News' legion of Neocons to bear.

The top three winners of this weekend's CPAC straw poll will not win the 2012 presidential nomination. And if any of the top three do break through to prove that prediction wrong, none of them will go on to win the White House in 2012.

This year's top three placeholders in the poll were Ron Paul, Mitt Romney and Gary Johnson. Ron Paul and Mitt Romney repeat their standing from the 2010 poll as No. 1 and No. 2, respectively.

If the results of this straw poll do not sufficiently demonstrate the bizarre nature and overall oddity of this year's gathering of "conservatives," nothing else can.

Ron Paul, though technically still a Republican, has given up his GOP identity to embrace the chance to be the poster child for the more libertarian streak that has run rampant through CPAC, largely unabated for the past two years. Mitt Romney, the virtual author of Obamacare, and 2008's third-place finisher for the GOP nomination, is weighed down by the fact that his universal health care mandate in Massachusetts has largely failed – with the exception being the $50 state-subsidized abortions. Gary Johnson was only added to the lineup at the last minute, his presence stoking the flame of immoral libertarianism that actually advocated for legalized pot and the redefinition of marriage to include homosexual unions.

In other words, this year's CPAC wasn't about advancing conservatism. Rather, it exposed the radically disrespectful element of the libertine.

It has been the inclusion of the libertarian aspects of the past two years that has thrown the message of conservatism askew in a widely disproportional way.

It is the libertarian in attendance that produced the free pornographic calendar passed out to attendees in 2010. It is the libertarians in attendance who openly promote the inclusion of groups like GOProud, largely as an attempt to silence groups who would speak in strong support of traditional moral values. It is the libertarian in attendance who slandered President George Bush, by claiming his appreciation for the Constitution was best summed up as a "damn piece of paper." It is the libertarian in attendance that proclaimed the war to prevent terrorists from regathering strength and coming after our homeland as "illegal." And it is the libertarian in attendance that eschewed, booed, cajoled and screamed "war criminal" to Vice President Dick Cheney, a man who served his country with commitment and still attempts to help the world understand the threat of the radical Islamic element devising plans to eliminate us and our allies.

Now the libertarians stuffed the ballot box of the CPAC straw poll, and for the second year in a row made it the laughingstock poll in the eyes of the voters. (This year's voters are perhaps more engaged, more aware and more plugged in than ever before.)

In head-to-head polling going back a full year to last year's CPAC, neither Ron Paul nor Mitt Romney has consistently topped a head-to-head match-up against a greatly weakened President Obama. Romney has only topped the sitting president once in that 12-month period. Gov. Mike Huckabee, a no-show at CPAC for the past years, has beaten the president head-to-head in nearly every poll taken.

David Keene, the American Conservative Union’s outgoing president, gave a lengthy discounting of this year's poll in the lead up to it. That should serve as a very clear indicator that next year's CPAC needs some significant changes if it is to become the great conference it has been in past years.

Libertarians and Conservatives are as different as Libertarians and Liberals. The truth is libertarians are the worst form of political affiliation in the nation. Combining the desire of economic greed, with the amoral desire to promote any behavior regardless of its cost to our culture is a stark departure from the intent of the Founding Fathers.

And it is not consistent with the average conservative voter in America.

Libertine? Legalized pot? Advocating behaviors? Not consistent with the average conservative voter in America? How extraordinarily rich! But my favorite part of his meltdown was this.

Libertarians and Conservatives are as different as Libertarians and Liberals. The truth is libertarians are the worst form of political affiliation in the nation. Combining the desire of economic greed, with the amoral desire to promote any behavior regardless of its cost to our culture is a stark departure from the intent of the Founding Fathers.

Seriously? "Amoral desire to promote any behavior"? Where does this jerk get THAT from? No libertarian is actively promoting ANYTHING except freedom from government.

His whole article is an attack against liberty-loving people everywhere. His thesis is predictable, because it's the Team Elephant establishment and Neocommie platform: war without end, big government in our image, and "you're either with us or against us".

I've said it before, and I'll say it again: if you're a conservative, Team Elephant is NOT your friend. And Fox News is NOT conservative: it's nothing but the organ of propaganda for the Neocommies.

The TSSA wants its monopoly back

In the wake of all of the hubbub regarding the TSSA*'s "gate rape" pat downs, a number of airports invoked a little-known provision in the enabling legislation that created the TSSA which allows for individual airports to "opt out" of having their security provided exclusively by the TSSA. Apparently, there were so many airports opting out that TSSA had to put the brakes on.

A program that allows airports to replace government screeners with private screeners is being brought to a standstill, just a month after the Transportation Security Administration said it was "neutral" on the program.

TSA chief John Pistole said Friday he has decided not to expand the program beyond the current 16 airports, saying he does not see any advantage to it.
[...]
But on Friday, the TSA denied an application by Springfield-Branson Airport in Missouri to privatize its checkpoint workforce, and in a statement, Pistole indicated other applications likewise will be denied.

The government HATES to cede its authority over anything to anybody. I believe that the original "permission" to the 16 airports was a diversion to take some of the heat off of the TSSA for the "grope down" tactics it was forcing on the public. There was never any intent to honor the opt-out provision. There was only the intent to divert our focus away from their abuses.

On the subject of the TSSA, a reader named Lauren sent me a link to this info-graphic. It is a highly informative look into how airline security progressed over time to the totalitarian nightmare we endure now. I highly recommend it to all

*You can't abbreviate Schutzstaffel without the double 'S'

Demagoging tragedy

Frankly, I don't know which sickens me more: the abhorrent mass murder committed by a sicko-psycho in Arizona that also left Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords critically wounded, or the reaction to her wounding in the media.

Big Media (the BM for short) -- the same BM that demanded that we "not rush to judgment" following the Ft. Hood mass murder by a sicko-psycho -- rushed to judgment bigtime this time.  "Right-wing rhetoric" was blamed by some, an ironic claim, it turns out.  The shooter was described as "quite liberal" and a "political radical" by classmates.

Turns out when it comes to hateful rhetoric, the left doesn't fare too poorly itself.  Caribou Barbie hung in effigy.  Il Duce quoted as saying, "If they bring a knife to the fight, we bring a gun". Ironic.

  Sarah Palin Caribou Barbie was blamed for "putting a bulls-eye on Rep. Giffords", an ironic claim, it turns out.  A Daily Kos blogger said that Giffords was "dead to me" just two days prior to the attack.  Not quite a bulls-eye, but ugly nonetheless.

Of course, Faux News came out all in defense of Caribou Barbie.  What?  You expected differently?  Regardless of where you get your news, children, you're gonna get spin.

Naturally, the Tea Party was blamed as well.  Yeah, all of that "hateful rhetoric" about sticking to the Constitution really makes folks want to kill their Congress-critter [/sarcasm].

Naturally, the Succubus of State had to weigh in, calling the shooter, "an extremist".  Takes one to know one, I suppose...

But the simple fact is that the shooter is mentally unbalanced.  How unbalanced?  Enough to where his college classmates were scared of him.

No one is blaming Caribou Barbie, or the Tea Party, or even Calvin Klein for this kook who castrated a journalist.  Not the right political angle, I suppose.

Look, it's no secret that I hate Team Donkey and Team Elephant equally.  Anyone who thinks that either of them is "the good guys" is drinking the Kool Aid.  But the partisan demagoguery on display the past two days has been nauseating.  And frankly, you have to ask, if the wounded Representative had an 'R' after her name, would there be all of this finger pointing and whining about "hateful political rhetoric"?

I think you know the answer to that question...

Neutral? Hardly.

The lame duck (with heavy emphasis on the "lame") Congress is trying to force through all manner of ill-conceived legislation.  Gays in the military.  The DREAM act.  The START treaty.

But that stuff is merely a distraction.  There's something more sinister afoot than any of that.  Matt Drudge is posting one, after another, after another, after another, link to stories that identify a threat far more dangerous to our freedoms than anything else in the news right now.

The Federal Communications Commission will vote on Dec. 21 on whether to adopt regulations that ban the blocking of lawful traffic but allow Internet service providers to ration Web traffic on their networks.

So? What's the big deal? This is.

The fixers here are pursuing something called "net neutrality," which will change the way certain Internet providers pay for privileged rights to the Web and charge their customers accordingly. "Net neutrality" sounds good to anyone not paying attention, but it must be accomplished by a seizure of authority to do so, a seizure not by Congress (which would be scary enough), but by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).

Here's the skinny. The Internet is currently the last bastion of freedom. It exists, for the most part, free from interference from government or regulators. It is the one place where an American citizen can still speak his or her mind unfiltered.

While the Internet is pooh-poohed as being frivolous and "experts" insist that it is not subject to the protections in place for Big Media (the BM for short), the fact is that a number of extremely important news stories, including Matt Drudge's breaking of the Monica Lewinsky story, have had as their mode of conveyance the "frivolous" Internet.

An authoritarian government seeks to restrict freedom of the press at all costs.  Ours is becoming increasingly authoritarian.  The BM is already working under the thumb of government regulation.  They are also tied to corporate masters whose survival hinges on government's selective picking of winners and losers.  The BM is no threat to the government.  The Internet is.

If you understand government, you'll understand that the FCC won't be content with setting "fairness" rules.  They'll also want to regulate content.  Politically charged speech would most surely be restricted ("We have to stamp out hate speech!").  The writings of this particular blogger, fond of referring to the past two Presidents as King George the Dim and Il Duce, would most certainly fall under their definition of hate speech.

But, hey.  You go right on sweating gays in the military, the DREAM act, and the START treaty.  Nothing to see here.  Move along now.

More TSSA fun and games

Last evening Toes alerted me to this amusing post by IowaHawk.  I liked it.  I've never followed IowaHawk, but I'm starting to think I should.  After all, a guy who suspends himself from his own blog has definite potential.

Seems all of the blogosphere opiners is taking their best shots at the TSSA (you can't spell Schutzstaffel without the double S) -- and why not?  The bastards just keep on giving us ammunition.  You thought that getting groped through your clothing was bad?  That ain't NOTHING!

The TSA’s invasive new screening measures include officers literally putting their hands down people’s pants if they are wearing baggy clothing in a shocking new elevation of groping procedures that have stoked a nationwide revolt against privacy-busting airport security measures.

Forget John Tyner’s “don’t touch my junk” experience at the hands of TSA goons in San Diego recently, another victim of Big Sis was told by TSA officials that it was now policy to go even further when dealing with people wearing loose pants or shorts.

This is sick. Read on, if you can.

Stone [noted] how the TSA thug directly patted down his testicles, penis and backside while his hand was inside Stone’s pants. Stone was initially embarrassed to reveal the full scope of the groping but related the details of what amounted to nothing less than outright sexual molestation.

A 54-year-old Missouri City man experienced similar treatment when he was going through security at Fort Lauderdale Airport.

Thomas Mollman was subject to a groping by a TSA officer that was tantamount to sexual molestation.

“I was wearing shorts at the time – between the underwear, right on the skin, all the way around the back, all the way around my front, 360 degrees, touched inappropriately,” he said.

“This was an assault. This was no different than a sexual assault,” said KTRK Legal Analyst Joel Androphy.

You got that right, Joel!

You would think that the TSSA goon squad would at least KISS you first before they go to third base with you.

Coercing "good"

Stop me if you've heard this before. 

DID I NOT TELL YOU?!?!?  DID I NOT TELL YOU?!?!?!?

First it was RFID chips hidden in the gigantic space-eating recycling bins foisted on us by Frederick County  "to prevent theft".  This was followed by reports of other counties using their RFID-chipped bins to monitor utilization and impose fines on those deemed to be non-compliant with the "voluntary" recycling.

Now allgoodmusic passes on this story, which categorically proves that, when it comes to predicting governmentmental (with heavy emphasis on the "mental") intentions, no one can touch the Vulture!

The Town Council unanimously approved an ordinance requiring residents to recycle their trash.

On Monday, Councilwoman Wendi Peters spoke for the Town's Sanitation and Recycling Commission, which recommended the town pass the ordinance.

The ordinance penalizes residents with a $100 fine for repeatedly or willfully not recycling, according to discussion among council members.

The "town council" in question is that of Mt. Airy, located in.......Frederick County, Maryland.

Beware of the do-gooder. They come to you draped in the vestiments of righteousness. They implore you to "do good". And when that isn't sufficient to accomplish their aims, they employ the power of government to MAKE YOU "do good".

Government, being in its very nature all about coercion, is more than happy to help the do-gooder. It's why we have so many regulations making our lives more difficult and less free.

But the do-gooders are happy. At least until the next opportunity to "do good" arises...

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Great idea enforced via coercion

Coercion.  It's the statist way.

First, let me back up and set the table for the topic of this post.  Anyone who has lived in California for an extended period of time -- like, say, the 20 years I lived there off and on from 1967-1987 -- knows that when it comes to rainfall, there are only two seasonal variations: drought, and OMG flooding.

Unfortunately, it seems that drought happens way to often, resulting in water rationing.

I've long thought that the way toilets are designed is inherently flawed.  One flush fits all.  But why does it have to be that way?  Couldn't you have a lesser flush for No. 1, and a greater flush for No. 2?  Wouldn't that make more sense?  Wouldn't that be a great way to conserve water in those drought years?

It turns out that some inventive type has come up with a commode that meets that exact criteria.  But in New York City, letting the market introduce this wonderful innovation into common use just won't do.  No, NYC is going to use government's favorite (only?) tool and force its use.

Under a law passed by the City Council today, new toilets will have to be high water efficient or "dual-flush," which allow users to choose between a high pressure flush for solid waste, and a low-pressure flush for liquid.

The law, which significantly changes the city plumbing code starting July 2012, applies the same strict water efficiency standards to plumbing fixtures like showerheads, urinals and sink faucets.

The package of water conservation bills also requires water fountains have separate spouts for drinking and for filling water containers; commercial buildings install alarms and sub-meters to detect water leaks; and limits the use of "once-through" cooling systems, such as those used to cool ice-making machines, walk-in coolers and older medical x-ray and laser equipment.

OMG. Is there anything else you want to throw in there? Like, how many gallons of urine an individual is allowed to produce per week?

Council member James Oddo sums up what should be every freedom loving American's reaction to this government overreach.

When does it stop? Does it stop when we micromanage every minute facet of our lives?

Great question.  When DOES it stop? At what point do the sheeple wake from their torpor and ask that question?

God only knows.

I'm not the only one...

...who thinks that NWA was right.

When the police are shooting military vets with MBAs in public and pregnant women in their own bedrooms, the war is not on drugs. It is on the American people.

Escallation

Ron in Houston has apparently LOST IT.  Check out the comments he made about my last post which, paradoxically, had absolutely NOTHING TO DO WITH HIM OR HIS VILE ILK.  It's even worse over at FLDS Texas.  Here is a sampling of what Ron wrote there.

Oh, no, no. None of you mess with me tonight. I’m not in the mood. If you want to mess with me, read this first.

Ron in Houston said this on September 19, 2010 at 11:39 PM
[...]

OMG

I know that apparently I “control” you guys.

You evil a$$hats are nothing more than my sycophants.

I’d love to claim your collective hatred for people that view sex with 14 year old girls as socially acceptable but unfortunately I cant.

My advice to you? Be active. When you see dickheads like Vulture, don’t be afraid to speak out. If the (deleted) tries to suppress your free speech rights then send an email to his employer an ask them if they support Michael Fulmer’s positions on sex with 12 year old girls.

These dickheads deserve it. Go for it.

Ron in Houston said this on September 20, 2010 at 12:10 AM
[...]

Hey Mike – where do you work? Want to play anymore with me?

Ron in Houston said this on September 20, 2010 at 12:41 AM
[...]

The greatest irony to this?

I’m a freaking pacifist.

However, there comes a point where you can even piss off a pacifist.

I will say this. Don’t be evil. However, sometimes the only way to stop evil is to meet it with evil of equal or stronger force.

Sometimes evil (deleted) -tards need to be smacked down. I’m must aaying….

Ron in Houston said this on September 20, 2010 at 1:01 AM
[...]

So, where I am now is willing to fight against the proxies. See, no one can fire me. I work for myself. However, if Michael Fulmer of Frederick Maryland wants to screw with me and call me an “asshole” well perhaps his employer needs to see how he’s spending his time at work.

See, I didn’t start this fight with these assholes. However, if they want to fight, then I’m more than willing to get it on with them.

In the end, all I want is to be left alone. I think another of Hugh’s proxies get’s that and actually respects it. I have no problem at all with him. After resolving our disputes, the guy has treated me with a fair degree of dignity and respect. I more than intent to repay that in kind.

The bottom line with Ron is that he doesn’t want to hurt anyone. You leave me alone, and I’ll be more than happy to leave you alone. I actually don’t necessarily agree with the 75 year sentence for Michael Emacks. I don’t disagree with it, but I do appreciate that 75 years is an awful long time. Really, is the guy that evil that he deserves to be locked away the rest of his life? Like I say, whether you agree or disagree, that is a very harsh sentence. The bottom line is that I don’t disagree with the premise of the guy being punished I’m just not sure that 75 years is really in the long term interests of society.

Obviously folks feel quite strongly on both sides of that issue, and I’ll let all you guys have at it. I’m just not certain that from a public policy standpoint it’s wise.

Ron in Houston said this on September 20, 2010 at 2:48 AM

Emphasis mine

Ron has threatened me. He has threatened my employment. He has slandered my good name by AGAIN accusing me of being pro-pedophilia (something I have NEVER supported and am on record as being FULLY AGAINST).

Do you have any further doubt about the kind of people we're dealing with here?  All I've ever done is bring up the Constitutional issues I see with regard to the raid on YFZ ranch.  And I've been called everything but a Child of God.  I've been called pedophile, pro-polygamy, and everything else you can think of.  These vile cowards threaten real people from a position of anonymity.  They are the worst.

I left every one of Ron's foul comments intact.  Yet EVERY LAST COMMENT I've made at the FLDS Texas site over the past few days has been summarily deleted, including this.

Mr. Lawyer,

I'm sure you'll delete this, like have all of my previous comments. But I wish to go on record as warning you that if you ever accuse me of wanting to marry 12-year-olds and threaten my employment again, I will retain a REAL lawyer and sue your sorry ass.

Put that in your culus and smoke it, palos.

Anonymity.  Threats.  Silencing opposing viewpoints.  Who's the bad guy here?  Me?  Or them?

If there are any real lawyers out there reading this (not wannabe almost high school teachers like Ron in Houston or the Mall Cop a Palos, please weigh in here.  I want to know if I have grounds to sue that asshole.

NO ONE threatens Michael Fullmer of Frederick, MD (yeah, asshole, I DON'T HIDE WHO I AM -- NEVER HAVE, NEVER WILL) and gets away with it.

UNMASKED!!!!!

The Modern Pharisee has done it!  He not only unmasked the execrable Ron in Houston but now he's hit the ultimate target - the Caput a Palos himself!

Via Free the FLDS Children, Bill Medvecky's excellent blog:

Hugh McBryde has flushed TBM out of the woodwork, the cockroach is a rent-a-cop for the University of North Texas (UNT).

His name is Greg Prickett (What a surprise), and he and Natalie have been running around erasing all the e-mails and incriminating evidence (Also illegal) they can locate to try to thwart the on-going investigation of their criminal State and Federal violations of Law.

I REALLY wanted to keep the knowledge of his discovery quiet until the investigations were complete, but sadly, he was called by an over-zealous investigator of ours prematurely. Since the cat is now out of the bag, he’ll be happy to know that we’ve already stockpiled all the e mails and correspondence between himself, Natalie, The Banana, Lover boy and Wisan needed, and those we don’t have, can’t be erased from the net anyway.

He reports that he walks around with a gun. Be careful Greg, you don’t want to shoot your Prickett off before we send your ass to prison.

I can hardly contain my joy at the thought that this flaming asshole has finally been outed!

THIS is the guy who called ME a wannabe lawyer?  Who mocked ME for being "just a programmer"?  Who accused ME of being a pedophile?  THIS hayseed POS?  This clown who put the "prick" in "Prickett"?

He's not only NOT a lawyer, he's not even a REAL law-enforcement officer.  His job is one step above Mall Cop.  Worse yet, he's the kind of nightmare cop Will Grigg writes about.

Wait.  It gets better.  From the comments of the referenced Medvecky post, an open letter to the Prick's employer:

Dear Mr. Price,

It is my understanding that you employ Mr. Prickett as your Chief of Security.

In view of the findings of the Appeals Court concerning his involvement in the assault of a student of the school a few years ago, I can honestly say I don’t understand the University’s continued support of this person, but that is not the main purpose of this letter.

I am here to address Mr. Prickett’s blatant use of the University’s name and his position with it, as well as his use of the Universities computers to repeatedly violate the Privacy Act with regards to HIPPA Laws, both State and Federal.

Mr. Prickett authors a site on the web entitled “Coram Non Judice”. He fancies himself a legal expert and, with the assistance of a rogue Attorney named Natalie Malonis, distributes the private, confidential Medical and Psychological Records of children and adults he opposes on his site as well as on a site entitled “FLDSTexas”.

Further, calling himself “Texas Blue’s Man” Mr. Prickett uses his position and the equipment of the University to disseminate on his and other websites what he pro-ports to be “Child porn”. They are un-redacted pictures of children which he claims are in sexually explicit poses. As you may know, presenting a picture of a child as a sexual object or in a sexual light is illegal and considered child porn even if the child is fully clothed.

In a recent letter of explanation to Wikipedia concerning his conduct, Mr. Prickett self reported that he has now taken to wearing a concealed weapon at all times.

Mr. Prickett is running around your campus and is, frankly, a lit fuse ready to explode at those he fears “Might kill me”.

What you do about Mr. Prickett is up to you, but you HAVE been advised that he is potentially a far greater liability for the University than he was in the case of the student he allowed to be assaulted by Campus Security.

We intend to bring charges against Mr. Prickett for the HIPPA violations and for attempting to portray the children of a religion he does not favor in a sexual light, as well as bringing charges against those who aid and abet him in his perverted goals.

Thank you,

W.J. Medvecky

Is this simply the greatest thing ever? If the 49ers had beaten the Seahawks 49-0 I wouldn't be as happy as I am right now.  Sweet, sweet, schadenfreude!

Check it out, bigots!  Your champion, your hero, your great legal mind, is nothing but a glorified Mall Cop with a bad attitude and a sociopathic need to throw his weight around.  At least Ron in Houston is almost a lawyer, almost a professor, almost SOMETHING.  The Caput a Palos is a gigantic fraud.  And a colossal pussy; once he caught wind that he had been outed, he marked his execrable blog "private".

Hey Prickett!  I got yer Coram Non Judice hangin' RIGHT HERE!

Asshole.

---

One more thing. I went over to FLDS Texas to see what the bigots had to say about their legal hero (and, let's be honest, to poke a stick through the bars and laugh at them). Apparently Ron in Houston (if that is, in fact, his site) is every bit the coward that the Mall Cop a Palos is: all of my attempts to post comments were deleted.

I told you so!

Some people think I'm a little over-the-top in my distrust and dislike of Das Überwachenden.  And yet the things I predict regarding seemingly innocent moves by various organs of government are proved accurate again and again.  The latest? A seemingly innocent article detailing Frederick County's move to quietly issue new recycling bins with built-in RFID.

If you think for one minute that the RFID data won't be used to persuade coerce people to recycle, you're out of your mind. Government only knows how to do two things: (1) get bigger, and (2) use force. Be on the lookout for a County-wide campaign in the very near future "urging" us to be more diligent in recycling. This will be followed later on by a campaign to assess fines against those who don't recycle.

Oh how right I was!

Beware the green police. They don't carry guns and there's no police academy to train them, but if you don't recycle your trash properly, they can walk up your driveway and give you a $100 ticket.

They know what's in your trash, they know what you eat, they know how often you bring your recycles to the curb -- and they may be coming to your town soon. That is, if they're not already there.

In a growing number of cities across the U.S., local governments are placing computer chips in recycling bins to collect data on refuse disposal, and then fining residents who don't participate in recycling efforts and forcing others into educational programs meant to instill respect for the environment.

Did I not tell you? DID I NOT TELL YOU?!?!?

Beware those who try to sell you altruism.  Because if you're not buying, they'll be back -- with bayonets. 

An appeal to my fair-mindedness

Hal (OC) writes:

We've gotten way too used to engaging pictures, whether of unicorns, polar bears on ice flows, as a substitute for thinking. I'm sure a lot of climate scientists by now wish Al Gore had never been born.

Yes, it's true, the IAC has critiqued the IPCC on some counts.

Another report of theirs, which can be accessed at www.interacademies.net/?id=9075 which makes, among other conclusions:

·At current emission rates models suggest that all coral reefs and polar ecosystems will be severely affected by 2050 or potentially even earlier;

·Marine food supplies are likely to be reduced with significant implications for food production and security in regions dependent on fish protein, and human health and well being;

·Ocean acidification is irreversible on time scales of at least tens of thousands of years;

·Even with stabilisation of atmospheric CO2 at 450ppm, ocean acidification will have profound impacts on many marine systems. Large and rapid reductions of global CO2 emissions are needed globally by at least 50% by 2050.

Counting on your fairmindednes, as I've gotten accustomed to doing.

I appreciate the OC's comments, as always. He and I can be described as being polar opposites politically.  Yet we are able to engage in meaningful discussion without rancor.  Would that all such discussions could be handled so amicably.

Okay, enough of the mutual admiration society.  Let me address the substance of your comment.

You post four "evidences" of the damage wreaked by mankind on our environment by our emissions of carbon dioxide.  Given that these "proofs" originate from the very people I cite as having bitch-slapped the scientists con men at the East Anglia University Propaganda Factory, one would think that I would give those "proofs" some weight.  One would be wrong.

It boils down, sadly, to a matter of faith.  Because, for every "proof" you or others produce, I can produce one (or more) contradicting or refuting that "proof".  Many more.  These links are just those accumulated prior to 2010; there are many, many more in the aftermath of the IPCC email-gate scandal.

As I wrote in my first post in the Death Knell series:

Never mind that ALL of the scientists working for alternate energy companies, for the government, or on projects that are government-funded are part of the 'consensus'.

Never mind? Let me take that back. It DOES matter that the 'consensus' emanates from those sources. Why? Like they say in all of the detective shows: follow the money.

ALL of the money going into grants to study warming comes from those with much to gain from that warming being "true".  All of it.  There is NO government or Quango (Quasi-governmental organization) money going into ANY study to try to falsify the findings of those claiming AGW is true.  Falsification - proving something is correct by first trying to prove that it isn't - is the bedrock of science and the scientific method.  Funding only studies that seek to PROVE warming and to identify its "effects" gives the impression that the science isn't serious.  It's the scientific equivalent of a Soviet show trial (Verdict first, then trial!).  

Approaching the issue from a common sense perspective, it's hard to get behind man-made carbon as a factor in warming when:

• The #1 cause of warming and cooling of the planet is.....solar activity.  Period.  Everything else is incidental.  There was high solar activity in the 90's: there were high temperatures in the 90's.  There has been extremely reduced solar activity in the 00's: there have been colder temperatures in the 00's.  These colder temperature have been noticed; the name change from "warming" to "climate change" is a lame attempt to address this.
  
  
• The #2 cause of warming of the planet is....carbon?  Nope.  Water vapor.  Yeah.  Water vapor.  From evaporation.
  
  
• The "unprecedented" warming of the 90's?  Can't even touch the Great Medieval Warming.  Not even close.  What has the receding ice in Iceland uncovered?  Farms.  From....wait for it....the Great Medieval Warming.  Warming that, so far as we know, wasn't caused by factories, internal combustion engines, or AGW.

I made mention earlier to faith. I have believed AGW to be a fraud and a scam from Kyoto on.  How can anyone take seriously a crisis whose answer is to demand that the developed world commit economic suicide while exempting mega-polluters China and India?

Those who "deny" AGW are bullied and shouted down.  They're call "flat earthers" and equated with Holocaust deniers.  Scientists whose studies "prove" the warming get fat funding.  Scientist who don't toe the line get bupkis.  

AGW is just another arrow in the quiver of scamming and bullying employed by governments to drag us back to the Good Olde Days of Feudalism.  They get to rule and control all of the wealth.  We get to work at the jobs they let us work at, live where they let us live, for as long as they choose to let us live, and we get to like it or lump it.

Royal Messiah Complex

I used to be amused by the Royals.  I mean, they were a harmless lot, weren't they?  The horse-faced old queen who probably hasn't smiled since 1948.  The jug-eared doofus err (no misspelling) to the throne.  The scandals. 

At worst they were an anachronism, a set of living tourist attractions, right?

But they're apparently not all so harmless after all.  The jug-eared doofus has decided he's the messiah.

The Prince of Wales says he believes he has been placed on Earth as future King ‘for a purpose’ - to save the world.

You can't make this stuff up.

Price Charles, I hate to burst your bubble, but your purpose on Earth is NOT to save the world.  Rather, it's to serve as a cautionary tale: this is what happens when first cousins marry.

Same shoe, different foot

In all of the hullabaloo about Shirley Sherrod being accused of racism, being forced to resign her government job at the prodding of the Duce administration, and then being exonerated and restored to a position at the USDA, one extraordinarily large question has remained unanswered: wither those who have worn the scarlet "R" prior to Ms. Sherrod?

Video taken out of context showed Ms. Sherrod expressing some extremely hateful sentiments ("let his own kind help him" was my favorite).  However, Ms. Sherrod, in the 24-year-old video, was using those hateful sentiments to make a point: that she came to the realization that her thoughts about the white farmer were bigoted and she vowed to change and never again let such thinking impact her decision making ever again.

I'm glad that Ms. Sherrod was able to return to her employment.  The haste with which she was "encouraged" to resign was beyond ridiculous.  Nice show of leadership, Duce.

But I return to the question I posited in the first paragraph: wither those who have worn the scarlet "R" prior to Ms. Sherrod?

Who will reclaim the reputation of Al Campanis?  Mr. Campanis was the general manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 1980's.  He was no racist; it could be argued that he provided more opportunities in Major League Baseball to minorities than any other GM of his era.  Yet one bad Nightline interview torpedoed his otherwise stellar career.  Paradoxically, the one opinion he expressed that drew major scorn upon him - that blacks weren't built for swimming - has been scientifically proven based on navel position!  Mr. Campanis is dead, but certainly his memory deserves to be expunged of the scarlet "R", does it not?

Who will reclaim the reputation of Jimmy the Greek?  He made off-hand comments to a TV reporter at a bar that ended up costing him his career.  His crime - stating that blacks had been bred to be big and strong during slavery - was insensitive and un-PC...but also historically accurate.  I mean, what slave owner wants a crop of Urkels in the fields?  He was fired by CBS Sports and never worked in TV again.  Mr. "Greek" is dead, but certainly his memory deserves to be expunged of the scarlet "R", does it not?

Who will reclaim the reputation of Trent Lott?  His comments in praise of Strom Thurmond - that the country would have been better off had he won election to the Presidency as a pro-segregation Dixiecrat in 1948 - were in reference to his political stances in general.  The fact that he had run as a pro-segregationist probably didn't even cross Lott's mind.  There are plenty of reasons to despise the big-government whore that is Trent Lott.  But what of the scarlet "R"?  Can his reputation be cleansed at last from that moronic smear?

The blathering heads of CNN were in high dudgeon on Tuesday about the whole Sherrod affair.  But....where were they when Messers Campanis, "Greek", and Lott were being pilloried?  If the sound you hear is that of crickets chirping, then you've comprehended my point.

It's time for the smear of "RACIST" name-calling to end.  Now.  It was bullshit 20 years ago when Al Campanis had his career ruined.  It's bullshit now when Shirley Sherrod nearly has her career ruined.  Stop it!  We're not little children.  You or I can have an opinion that is offensive; said opinion should NOT ruin our life!

It's time for the professional race baiters and racial ambulance chasers like Al Sharpton and Jessie Jackson to be shown the exit.  

It's time for America to grow up.