Friday, November 12, 2010

Stink. Stank. Stunk.

It has been postulated that leftist idealism is a mental disorder.  It has been asserted that leftist idealism is partly genetic.  I tend not to put much stock in that kind of quack science/quack psychology.  That is, until I read something like this.
The New York Times has just reported on a new trend towards what's sometimes known as soap-dodging. Among those who have cut down on daily showers, baths or hair-washing were a woman who swipes a sliced lemon under her armpits instead of deodorant, another who uses baby wipes to freshen up after her lunchtime runs, and a salesman who shampoos only once a month and gave up anti-perspirant for three years.
Why in the name of sanity is this happening? It's partly as an extension of the "save the planet" mentality we're badgered with relentlessly by leftards.
There are, of course, environmental benefits. In a bid to reduce his carbon footprint to the absolute minimum, environmentalist Donnachadh McCarthy, 51, limits his showers to about twice a week.
Apparently it's not enough for leftards to offend us with their demands on our wealth and freedoms. Now we have to put up with BO in the name of Save the Earth.

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Tuesday, November 9, 2010

The reality of campus police work

I know that I have been very hard on Sgt. Gregory Prickett (hereinafter referred to as The Prickette).  I poked fun at him for pretending to be a legal expert when he is not even a lawyer.  I also poked fun at him for working in a law enforcement capacity I deemed as roughly the equivalent of a mall cop.  I have since seen the error of my ways.

It turns out that campus police have real, uh, police responsibilities.  Not only that, but they have state-of-the-art police equipment at their disposal!

Take, for example, the campus police squad car.


This is one fine piece of machinery here!  Campus criminals have no doubt when they see this vehicle that they're in the presence of an elite police officer.

But it's not just the squad cars that are state-of-the-art awesome.  Check out the unmarked vehicles they utilize.


Criminals seeking to commit crime in the campus environment will never know what hit them when one of these beauties comes screaming up behind them.

I saved the best for last.  This is the latest in high-tech SWAT support vehicles available to campus police.

You get the idea.

Greggie, you shouldn't be so sensitive when people call you a mall cop.  A mall cop wouldn't be caught dead in one of those things.

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Sunday, November 7, 2010

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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Wrap up - a complete game

(In case you think I've lost my mind, this entry is one week late.  The 49ers are on a bye week this week.)

San Francisco finally played a complete game, where both the offense and the defense were in sync for 60 minutes.  The 49ers beat Denver 24-16. 

Smith had a solid if not spectacular game at QB.  Uh, that would be TROY Smith.  And, yes, we officially have a quarterback controversy.

Where Troy Smith really distinguished himself over Alex Smith was in the area of dealing with defensive pressure.  Troy Smith successfully bought time with his feet and kept plays alive.  This was particularly true on his spectacular scramble-and-pass to Delaney Walker in the 3rd quarter that essentially changed the momentum of the game.  Alex Smith has amazing physical tools.  But Alex Smith doesn't make that play, because Alex Smith panics.

At 2-6, why WOULDN'T the Niners give Troy Smith a chance as the starter to see if he is the guy who can get it done? 

I never understood why Troy Smith was so disrespected as an NFL QB prospect.  Oh, wait, yes I DO understand it -- it's that league-wide prejudice.  "Because he's black?"  Hell no!  It's because he's SHORT.  If a QB is under 6'1" (Smith is listed as 6'0", but, trust me, he's standing on tip-toe to register that), he's summarily dismissed by the NFL "brains". 

Short QBs get no respect.  As a short person, I personally resent that a great deal. 

Marc Wilson was 6'6".  He couldn't have sucked more.  Dan McGwire was 6'8".  He couldn't have sucked more.  Derick Anderson is 6'6".  You get the idea.

Joe Theissman was listed at 6'0" (meaning he was maybe 5'10"), and he was the starting QB in 2 Super Bowls.

Other QB's listed at 6'0" (meaning they're maybe 5'10"): Drew Brees, Jeff Garcia, Mike Vick, Fran Tarkenton, Sonny Jorgenson. 

Joe Montana was listed at 6'2".  Someone who knew him at Notre Dame told me that he wasn't anywhere near that tall.  Steve Young was listed at 6'1", and there were insinuations that he was definitely shy of that height.

C'mon, Niners!  Give a Shorty a chance! 

The first half of the season is, mercifully, over.  Here's hoping for something to build on in the second half.

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Wednesday, November 3, 2010

Vulture Droppings: Electoral Defeat

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.


Some of you are going to read the title of this point and come to the conclusion that I've finally gone around the bend.  You're going to assume that I've completely LOST IT.  While you may, in fact, be right about my failing sanity (until you've lived a workload like I've had for the past 4 months, you have NO IDEA what insanity really feels like), I am speaking from the heart here.

This edition of Vulture Droppings deals with my analysis of the 2010 elections, which are, thankfully, finally over.  If I had to watch one more ad for Candidate A in which Candidate B was painted as Hitler's more evil twin, followed apace by an ad for Candidate B in which Candidate A was painted as worse than Stalin, I think I would have stuck a pencil in my eye.

It is said that a pessimist views the glass as half full, while the optimist sees it as half empty.  So what does that make me?  I see the glass as nearly empty, leaking, and what little water remains in it is polluted.

What most so-called conservatives are touting as a major electoral victory is nothing of the sort.  Team Elephant won the House - hey, how 'bout that?  "Oh come on, Vulture!  Even you have to concede that the historic taking of the House is a major victory!"

No.  No I don't.

The House will make for a nice, boisterous legislative soap opera for the next two years.  But the Senate is still under the control of Harry Reid (more on that later), and the White House is still in the clutches of Il Duce.  Good luck getting anything constructive done in the next two years.

What constitutes victory? What defines defeat?  Let me take a stab at it.
  • Victory would have included a major purge of Team Donkey leadership.  
See Harry Reid?  Still standing.  See Nancy Pelosi?  Sure, she's no longer the Screecher of the House...but she's still standing.  See Barney (Elmer Fudd's evil twin) Frank?  Still standing. Team Elephant might not have had a legitimate chance at taking down "Air Force 3".  But that senile old fool Harry Reid was ripe for the taking.  And Barney Frank was extremely vulnerable, given his cozy relationship with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.  But the elitist snobs that run Team Elephant (into the ground, I might say) weren't about to lend any material support to a commoner like Sharon Angle.  She wouldn't fit in at a Washington cocktail party at all!  Neither was there any real effort on the part of the Elephants to take down Frank.  You leave Harry Reid and Barney Frank standing -- that's not victory.
  • Victory would have included a change in the kind of candidates elected by the Elephants.  
Set aside for a moment Rand Paul's win in Tennessee.  See anyone else "different" winning anywhere?   I don't.  And, no, Marco Rubio doesn't count.  I think he's every bit the faux conservative that John Boehner is.

Sharon Angle?  Joe Miller?  Christine O'Donnell?  They were undermined at every turn by the Elephant elites.  Face facts, conservatives: your side threw the game.  They were happier with losing those races than with dealing with commoners in their midst.

But don't worry.  John McCommie won reelection.  Yeah....
  • Victory would have set the stage for the dismantling of Obamacare.
You can't roll back Obamacare with just the House.  Face facts -- we're stuck with it.  In 2 years, even if the Elephants win the House, the Senate, and the Presidency, they'll throw up their hands and say that Obamacare can't be rolled back because too many people are dependent on it.  That's Washington DC Realpolitik.

You're going to think I've lost my mind, but I'm actually sorry that Russ Feingold lost his Senate seat in Wisconsin.  Yeah, he's a big Lefty.  But he's an HONEST big Lefty.  And he was one of the few in Washington willing to stand up to the abuses of the DHSS (you can't spell Schutzstaffel without the double S).

One final observation on the election.  No matter the political climate.  No matter the economic parameters.  Even if the very survival of the human race were at stake, it just wouldn't matter.  The People's Republic of Maryland will vote Democrat.

The Elephants didn't even bother to field a candidate against Senator-since-Reconstruction Barbara Mikulski.  Yeah, there was some guy's name with an 'R' next to it on the ballot.  But I wouldn't recognize him if he was standing in my kitchen carving the turkey at Thanksgiving wearing a sweater with his name embroidered on it.

6 of 8 Congressional districts went Donkey.  The 2 that didn't?  Frederick County and points west, and the Eastern Shore, both heavily agricultural.

Martin O'Malley, quite possibly the worst governor in the State's history, won in a crushing landslide against former governor (and RINO) Bob Erlich.

Yeah, I'm ready to move.  You can't live in Libtardia for 20-plus years and not have it affect you.

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Monday, November 1, 2010

Vulture Droppings: Most Importantist Election Ever Edition

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.


There's an election tomorrow.  Hey, how 'bout that? [/sarcasm]

"Shame on you, Vulture!  It's the most importantist election ever!"  Uh huh.

"Vulture!  It's all different this year!  The Tea Party is gonna change everything!"  Really?  How so?  The Tea Parties have been completely co-opted by Team Elephant.  Why would I say that?  What evidence do I have of such a thing?  A sampling:

Some traditional Republican consultants are advising — with a straight face — that newly elected Republican members of Congress "reach across the aisle…and "work with the Democrats."

John Boehner "rallies the troops" with empty (and limp) words "backing" Tea Party principles.  He swears spending will be rolled back to "pre-bailouts levels".  Seriously?  Going from $1.5 trillion deficits to $1 trillion deficits?  Oooooh!  I'm SOOOOOOOOOOOOOO impressed!

And worst of all, the Queen of Inside the Beltway faux conservatism "celebrates" the Tea Party as having "saved" Team Elephant from King George the Dim.  Ms. Noonan, for those of you who weren't paying attention, was one of King George's biggest apologists during his 8 year reign of error.

"Vulture! Even YOU have to admit that we're better off with Republican-co-opted Tea Party candidates than with the Dhimmi-crats who have rammed a 50-year wish-list of Progressivism down our throats the past 4 years!"

Better?  Better HOW?  BETTER would have been for the Tea Parties to have come together as a third party or under the umbrella of one of the existing third parties (Libertarian or Constitution, for example).  BETTER would be for those candidates to be able to enter Mordor on the Potomac (hat tip: Mike Church) with a clean slate and a fresh canvas than to walk into the clutches of Mitch McCommie and John BaneTurd.

Here's the big reason I'm so unenthusiastic.  I'll lay it out in a single sentence.  The co-opting of the Tea Parties by Team Elephant guarantees the failure of the principles that brought those people together.  Guaran.  Effing.  Tees it.

There is no principle that Republicans will not run from, no compromise they will not accept, no stand crucial enough for them to make.

What happens to the Tea Parties after their "champions" are relegated to the Congressional equivalent of the Back Bench, and the John Boehner Business-as-Usual express continues propping up Crony Capitalism?  What happens after Mitch McConnell compromises for the umpteenth time on a point of principle that just SCREAMS for men of courage and conviction to just say "NO!"?

You kill this once-in-a-political lifetime awakening of the sheeple, and you kill any chance we ever have of wresting power away from the looters.

But that's the idea really, isn't it?  That's why the GOP has co-opted the Tea Parties.  They like the gravy train that is "public service" in Washington every bit as much as Team Donkey does.

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