Friday, 17 April 2009
Credit where credit is due...
Via: A couple of people, most recently The Fat Guy
Name That Party Whoops! Dept.
Gov. Brian Schweitzer has signed into law a bill that aims to exempt Montana-made guns from federal regulation, adding firepower to a battery of legislative efforts to assert states’ rights across the nation.
“It’s a gun bill, but it’s another way of demonstrating the sovereignty of the state of Montana,†Democrat Schweitzer said. - Helena Independent-Record
Via: A couple of people, most recently The Fat Guy
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Clipfile - April 17, 2009
“Do not trust men who spend hours and hours pondering the intricate messaging and social cues their clothes are sending.†- Ace
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Annenberg School of (non) Communications comes out for freedom of the press
You know, you really can’t make this stuff up...
You know, you really can’t make this stuff up...
John Ziegler gets arrested by security guards outside USC’s Annenberg School of Journalism for committing … er … journalism.
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Thursday, 16 April 2009
Next Indy BlogMeet - April 26
Art by Roberta X, Demon of Picasa.
Art by Roberta X, Demon of Picasa.
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Go tell ’em
Over at Harry’s Place,[1] regular contributor Gene has put up a (rather unfortunately-titled) post Tea Party Day/Glenn Beck is scary, which asks:
Unfortunately, regular HP readers are about as likely to have been anywhere near a Tea Party protest as an Iranian Mullah. The amount of misinformation/misunderstanding in the replying comments (so far) by and large reflects this.
O.G. readers should be able to help: If you attended a Tea Party (whether “heavily promoted by Fox News†or not), why not drop by and (politely, please) give him a report?
Related:
Over at Harry’s Place,[1] regular contributor Gene has put up a (rather unfortunately-titled) post Tea Party Day/Glenn Beck is scary, which asks:
Did any of our American readers go to one of today’s “tea parties†heavily promoted by Fox News and conservative talk-radio hosts?It’s important to understand that Gene is in the U.K., and thus gets his information via the British press, the BBC, the New York Times, and the like. IMO his misunderstandings (especially his fascination with Glenn Beck[2]) are honestly come by. I also believe (based on past experience) that his question is honestly posed.
...
As far as I can tell, the focus of the protests isn’t so much anti-tax as anti-Obama-the-socialist-oops-fascist, a formulation propounded by Fox News’s crazed host Glenn Beck. (I’ve read lots of scary stuff about Beck, but this is the first time I’ve seen him for more than 10 consecutive seconds. He really is that horrifying...)
Unfortunately, regular HP readers are about as likely to have been anywhere near a Tea Party protest as an Iranian Mullah. The amount of misinformation/misunderstanding in the replying comments (so far) by and large reflects this.
O.G. readers should be able to help: If you attended a Tea Party (whether “heavily promoted by Fox News†or not), why not drop by and (politely, please) give him a report?
Related:
Tea Parties, Bedwetters, Protesters Generally
Charlottesville, Virginia Tea Party
San Francisco
Atlanta, Georgia
-----The local protest [Indianapolis - o.g.] was a good-sized crowd and very much the same sort of group as elsewhere reported: largely middle-class, with a smattering of students and retired folks but mostly ordinary workin’ Joes and Janes who had taken the afternoon off to remind our elected nitwits that a slim majority is not a mandate -- and that every misspent tax dollar, every kited check, every tax increase or expansion of Federal, State or local authority, weighs that much heavier on the electorate. It’s not a group much given to sign-waving; it takes a bit more to wake them up.
Charlottesville, Virginia Tea Party
Very little professional signage. Check it out. Real people spent real time making those signs.
It was a very regular crowd of people gathered in the island of blue that is Charlottesville. University town; very liberal all the way around. The Pavilion is a stone’s throw from City Hall, and folks were coming out of that building with worried looks on their faces to check us out.
No cops. Not a single one did I observe. I found that very interesting as well.
The only disturbance consisted of a group of 3 or 4 yahoos that screamed, “Obama!†3 or 4 times before running away. This provided some humorous ammunition to the MC. We just laughed at them.
Very nonpartisan, even though our local Repulican state delegate was there, as was the head of the Jefferson Area Libertarians. They all just gave some barnburning speeches without reference to their own parties. I think this was wise. (link)
San Francisco
I ran into a local photojournalist there, who told me that he’d offered pics to the local press, but was turned down cold, even though he sells them a lot of stuff otherwise. He said he’d probably end up posting them on Freep, since nobody in the MSM would pay him anything for them. (link)
...
Nobody I interviewed was willing to give their name, and few wanted to let me take a closeup. The fear is there - in SF, being marked a “conservative†(read “fascist, racist, enemy of the peopleâ€) is a good way to have job problems, car problems, vandalism problems, and assorted social problems.
The groupthink out here is frightening.
Which makes the turnout all the more praiseworthy.(link)
Atlanta, Georgia
...it was not a pro-Republican event even though we had some local Republican speakers. Some of the loudest cheers came when one of the organizers talked about how the RNC called her to “coordinate the message†and she, in so many words, told them to stick it. I can also report I only saw 3 signs that didn’t fit: one confederate flag, one “bow to the Muslim king†and one abortion sign. I did not see a single sign discussing immigration outside of one instance of snark about the DHS report (something like Terrorist = Wanting to enforce Immigration law). Lots of signs in reference to the DHS report.
[1] a site that I would characterize as one outpost of the Sensible British Left.
[2] who makes a lot of noise but, AFAICS, is of minimal importance, except as a megaphone, to the Tea Party movement in general.
[2] who makes a lot of noise but, AFAICS, is of minimal importance, except as a megaphone, to the Tea Party movement in general.
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Wednesday, 15 April 2009
UNC chancellor comes out for freedom of speech
Via Bill Quick, whose take is a bit saltier than mine.
LATER (090417 15:19):
...unless it should create a “difficult situation.â€
“We’re very sorry that former Congressman Tancredo wasn’t able to speak, [University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill] Chancellor Holden Thorp said in a prepared statement. “We pride ourselves on being a place where all points of view can be expressed and heard, so I’m disappointed that didn't happen tonight. I think our Public Safety officers appropriately handled a difficult situation.â€As story commenter[1] “Locomotive_Breath†remarked,
Police spokesman Randy Young said he couldn't recall student protesters shutting down another campus event. - “Protest Stops Tancredo’s UNC Speechâ€
Identify and expel the students involved. Either than or admit your university is run by mob action.My prediction? No action whatever on #1, deafening silence on #2.
Via Bill Quick, whose take is a bit saltier than mine.
LATER (090417 15:19):
Promises, promises...
-----“On behalf of our University community, I called Mr. Tancredo today to apologize for how he was treated. In addition, our Department of Public Safety is investigating this incident. They will pursue criminal charges if any are warranted. Our Division of Student Affairs is also investigating student involvement in the protest. If that investigation determines sufficient evidence, participating students could face Honor Court proceedings.â€Note the absence of “faculty.â€
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Tuesday, 14 April 2009
NCAA comes out for freedom of speech
Hahahahaha, just kidding!
College sports were a cesspool of corruption long before[1] Howard Cosell ranted about “Big Time College Football†(and yes, you could hear the caps rattle past when he spoke!), and the National Collegiate Athletic Association has been the primary enabler/monopolist in the whole sorry mess. Billions of untaxed dollars in revenue, multi-million dollar coaches’ contracts, unaccountable athletic “departments,†all balanced on the back of unpaid “student-athletes,†administered and defended by a bunch of faceless bureaucrats in Indianapolis.
Elsewhere:
-----
Hahahahaha, just kidding!
“We don't see it as a free speech issue. What we do see it as is a recruiting issue.†- Erik Christianson, NCAA spokesman
College sports were a cesspool of corruption long before[1] Howard Cosell ranted about “Big Time College Football†(and yes, you could hear the caps rattle past when he spoke!), and the National Collegiate Athletic Association has been the primary enabler/monopolist in the whole sorry mess. Billions of untaxed dollars in revenue, multi-million dollar coaches’ contracts, unaccountable athletic “departments,†all balanced on the back of unpaid “student-athletes,†administered and defended by a bunch of faceless bureaucrats in Indianapolis.
Elsewhere:
In the discussion at Volokh Conspiracy, commenter “Phil17†raises the key issue:
Can an institution [i.e., the NCAA - o.g.] impose rules that provide for sanctions in the event that a member institution fails to illegally abrogate the First Amendment Rights of a student?Lovers of liberty would say “no,†but as has been demonstrated many times Mr. Christianson’s organization is no lover of liberty when it might interfere with the cash flow.
-----
[1] From Horse Feathers, 1932:
Wagstaff: Where would this college be without football? Have we got a stadium?
Professor One: Yes.
Wagstaff: Have we got a college?
Professor One: Yes.
Wagstaff: Well, we can't support both. Tomorrow we start tearing down the college.
Both professors: But professor! Where will the students sleep?
Wagstaff: Where they always sleep. In the classroom.
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Monday, 13 April 2009
Following up
Was away from the internet Saturday night and all day Sunday, so a bit of catching up is in order.
Got ’em. Good. And I’ll add, good on ya, Mr. President, for finally making the right decision.
Now can we get some rules of engagement that don’t require 35 calls to Washington?
Oh well, it was fun while it lasted... Dept.:
Charles at LGF links (and quotes) a debunking of the Obama pizza story.[1] (Guess we’ll have to go back to hassling the Congressional Democrats.)
All caught up?
-----
Was away from the internet Saturday night and all day Sunday, so a bit of catching up is in order.
Got ’em. Good. And I’ll add, good on ya, Mr. President, for finally making the right decision.
Now can we get some rules of engagement that don’t require 35 calls to Washington?
Oh well, it was fun while it lasted... Dept.:
Charles at LGF links (and quotes) a debunking of the Obama pizza story.[1] (Guess we’ll have to go back to hassling the Congressional Democrats.)
All caught up?
-----
[1] UPDATE 090425 20:07: That’s OK, he more than made up for it on Earth Day. (And he was doing so well, too!)
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Happy anniversary, Turk
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Saturday, 11 April 2009
Hairy situation
(Found via... well, I started here.)
(LATER: Aha: This post explains how a linked to b, and why c could be interested in projects that a might be up to.)
This is just wrong!
(Found via... well, I started here.)
(LATER: Aha: This post explains how a linked to b, and why c could be interested in projects that a might be up to.)
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