The Bigger the GOP, the Bigger the Hypocrisy

Okay, so, the GOP passed a House Rule that states a requirement to cite the constitution as specifically as possible that empowers congress to enact the bill.

“SECTION 2. CHANGES TO THE STANDING RULES.

(a) CITING AUTHORITY UNDER THE CONSTITUTION.

January 4, 2011 (10:18 p.m.)

(1) In clause 7 of rule XII, add the following new paragraph:

 ‘‘(c)(1) A bill or joint resolution may not be introduced unless the sponsor submits for printing in the Congressional Record a statement citing as specifically as practicable the power or powers granted to Congress in the Constitution to enact the bill or joint resolution. The statement shall appear in a portion of the Record designated for that purpose and be made publicly available in electronic form by the Clerk.

 ‘‘(2) Before consideration of a Senate bill or joint resolution, the chair of a committee of jurisdiction may submit the statement required under subparagraph (1) as though the chair were the sponsor of the Senate bill or joint resolution.’

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And the memo warned that any bill that is filed without the requisite “constitutional authority statement” will not be accepted by the House clerk and will be returned to the sponsor.

Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1210/46565.html#ixzz1DwZpeANn

 So, on the first day of the new Congress, they violated the Constitution by having two members who did not take the oath of office overseeing subcommittees and voting.

Then, after that was resolved in a GOP-promise-and-rules-violating way, they went about their business of ruining the country.  A little while later, they have shown their own disdain for the rule they passed.  They "Forgot" to follow their own "cite the Constitution" rule for introducing Bills.

For one, when Weiner is citing the rule and reading the attachment provided, it is clear that the citation is non-existent.  They failed to follow their own rule.  The GOP tries to start arguing that the law the bill is seeking to repeal is unconstitutional.  Not the point.  Your rule was not followed, start over.  Then, a GOP Rep starts citing Article 1, Section 1 :

"All legislative Powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States, which shall consist of a Senate and House of Representatives."

 Okay, fine, you want to weasel around your own rules, cite Article 1, Section 1 in the bill - which has not been done.  Start over! The House Clerk should have, according to the GOP memo, rejected the bill and returned it to the sponsor.  Instead, they are just pushing it through.

I like that Rep. Frank Pallone then proposed the real reason they did not include the citation - they can't.

Seriously - even though it is very long, watch the video!

>>>>> LOL Moments <<<<<<
You know, maybe the reason the Male GOP want to prevent abortions so bad is so that they can marry little girls...

Fired to Work?

We want to get people back to work, so we are going to fire a lot of people

“The level of cuts here have not taken place in Congress since World War II,” Cantor said. “That’s how big these cuts are, OK? So we have now produced a working document, again a bill that will be brought to the floor that will make history again. Since World War II, this place has not seen a cut like this. These are not easy cuts. But we understand our country is on a path to fiscal ruin and if we want to get the economy going, we want to get people back to work, this is one of the first steps we need to take.”

Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0211/49295.html#ixzz1DekVqqS0

Yeah.  So the Republican plan to put people back to work is to slash federal spending - and federal jobs, putting thousands of people into the job market.  ... I will let that logic speak for itself.

On the budget, McCarthy says it’s just the beginning.
“As many have said we didn’t get into this problem overnight, it takes some time to turn it around,” he told reporters. “But this will be the first step forward.”

Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0211/49295.html#ixzz1Del0A0zJ 

It has been said before, but it bears repeating - The Minds who got us into this mess, are NOT the ones to get us out of it.

.... and on a TOTALLY unrelated note, a Song!

Global Warming

"It got cold - so much for global warming"  ... yeah, Simple much?  There is a reason "Simple" is equated with "Stupid" and the first quote is a prime example.

Let me see if I can break down Global Warming for the people who can no longer comprehend more than a short soundbite or catchphrase.  Or maybe the problem is the ever-shrinking attention span.

There are many articles stating that scientists agree that global warming is real and at least contributed to by human activity - and those that seek to convince you otherwise.  Then there are those who say Climate Change has already started affecting us.

I noticed throughout both the positive and negative articles that the most heated diatribes against "Global Warming" were not saying that the earth is not getting warmer - they were all saying that Humans do not contribute to it, most emphatically stating that oil and petroleum have no effect.  In other words, scientists whose jobs and livelihood depend on continuing to use oil are the ones making the claims that "global warming" does not exist.

It is not just some "hey, the weather is going to get warmer" kind of silliness.  It has MUCH greater impact than that.

In the Gulf of Mexico, Alexandra Cousteau said, the runoff down the Mississippi River from farms in the Midwest has created a dead zone the size of New Jersey where few species can survive. Wetlands in Louisiana are disappearing at the rate of 33 football fields a day as hurricanes grow in strength and frequency because of climate change, she said.

Read more: http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2009/06/09/69751/scientists-global-warming-has.html#ixzz1DZQ5xOav

So, a little acid kills off some shrimp - so what?  Well, the salmon and other game fish that WE eat, starve out and we loose our food supply.  Its all connected whether you comprehend it or not.  We are killing ourselves here.  The "Scientists" that claim carbon dioxide being pumped into the atmosphere is "healthy" are morons!  For one thing, the forests that they cite as benefiting from CO2 are being clear-cut - so we don't have as much of the air filter forests as we used to.  Those forests do 'breathe' in CO2 and 'exhale' Oxygen - they give us life... and we are clear-cutting them out of existence.

I suppose the only time some people will acknowledge that we are going down an unsustainable road of self-destruction is when they are laying on the ground gasping for oxygen beside their revving SUV.

There is snow in 49 states, and Alaska is complaining their snow is melting - a lot of melting - and it is not limited to Alaska.

Many say that 1934 was the hottest year on record in the United States, so we are not getting warmer.  Well, yeah, 1934 was the hottest year - in the United States.  Globally speaking, the 10 average hottest years have all occurred since 1998.  You can't compare "US" temps to "Global" temps in the argument - despite the size of the U.S. National ego.  Another thing about the 1934 argument is that it cooled off quickly... we are not cooling off now.  Now, a statement to point to how SMALL of a change we are talking about :

The "Global climate has warmed about a third of a degree Fahrenheit per decade since the late 1970s"

Also in the article quoted and linked to above, the scientists have said what I have been telling people :

However, many scientists project that extreme weather of all kinds will increase with global warming. Lately, some have begun to consider whether unusual cold last year in some places, including Europe, was, paradoxically, driven by dramatic warming in the arctic. They say that melting of sea ice may have shifted wind patterns, sending frigid polar air into the populated mid-latitudes during winter. 

So, YES, "Global Warming" is causing the "Extreme Winter" weather we are getting now. 

Health Reform News you should ALL Read

"Wendell Potter, former head of corporate communications for Cigna"

Read more: Health care reform's biggest con | Bankrate.com http://www.bankrate.com/financing/insurance/health-care-reforms-biggest-con/#ixzz1D0k0Htwr


This guy is spilling the beans and revealing what is going on behind the real Death Panels known as Insurance Companies.


Please, pay attention.

Also, on a mildly related note, a proud moment for Mississippi as a Republican Appointed Judge throws out another stupid challenge to Health Insurance Reform Law. (another report, this Daring Minds article rips Vinson)

ADDENDUM :
I was going to stop there... but!  The idea of calling the new Health Insurance Reform Law "Obamacare" is silly.  For one thing, Mitt Romney (Republican, Massachusetts) created and got passed the State basis for the National plan.  So, it really should be called "Romneycare."  So, if the (Republican idea) Mandate is ruled Unconstitutional, then Massachusetts should also face the same challenge.  If that happens, I expect to see (or institute myself), challenges to Mandatory Auto Insurance, Mandatory Seat Belt use, Vaccinations even - using the same "government can not regulate LACK of participation" argument.  Any "you have to do this" requirement will be up for challenge.  Sure, you can make manufacturers install seat belts, but government can't force me to use them!

It is becoming more and more clear that Republicans are trying to destroy all of our Civil Rights and strip us of any means of self-protection then deliver us, our lives and livelihood to Corporate Interests, where we will all be but slaves to the CEO and Board of Directors.

For you Health Reform Critics

Okay, so what would you think if a Doctor - a Physician - who has worked for several decades (tens of years) in Medical Schools (teaching hospitals - hospitals where they teach new doctors and nurses) told you the Health Insurance Reform you call "Obamacare" was really a good law (more positives than negatives)?  Forget about Fox!!

"I also believe that many of the statements currently used to denigrate this bill are flawed or totally in error." - Dr. Jay H. Stein

I'll quote parts of the article - because most people who "hate Obamacare" are not interested in the facts, so probably won't read the article behind the link above.

The United States has many outstanding medical centers that deliver superb care for complex medical problems. Yet the U.S. ranks well down the list of developed countries based on health care costs and parameters such as infant mortality and life expectancy.

******** 

 The undisputed point is that health care costs in the United States have been out of control for decades and the current trend must be curtailed. The rates for 2011 have nothing to do with the ACA.

 ******** 

In addition, the ACA law still relies on the free market. Employers will continue to pick insurance through private companies. There will be no change in ownership of hospitals, and physicians will not become government employees.

This is not a government takeover.

  ******** 

I've also read an article where the main attack on the PPACA was that it would greatly increase demand for medical care.  What happens in a capitalist country when demand increases? Somebody steps in to profit from the increased demand by supplying it.  So, increased demand = more jobs created.  What do these people have against creating jobs??

Also worth reading is a Kaiser Health News summary of  "Fact Checks" on the Reform.

Creating Jobs for the United States Citizens

Creating Jobs.  That is what we want - leave Health Reform alone (if for no other reason than it will create a lot of new jobs by itself), leave partisan politics behind, just create some jobs.

Woah, there! We have the same people that are screaming for smaller government asking government to step in and create jobs? Do they not even see the hypocrisy??

Anyway, when you are asking government to create jobs, you are asking for a New Deal - expanded government workforces, national parks, infrastructure and such things as government can actually do.

A recent article in Inc magazine hi-lighted Norway as a place where business is booming - and taxes are high.  It is worth a read.

The Tea Party nutjobs are screaming about Freedom and suggesting things that will ensure we don't have any left.  They fear the government taking our freedoms - despite those being protected by the Constitution.  I am with Thomas Jefferson - we fear the Aristocracy of Corporations - they will take our freedoms a lot faster than government will.

Here are some of my thoughts brought on by that article and the State of the Union address and responses to it, on creating jobs.

The first thing we need to do is re-capitalize the middle class.  For decades, our tax policy and fiscal regulations have been taking money from the middle class and shoveling it upward to the top wealth holders.  I say wealth holders because they HOLD the money, investing in fiscal entities that produce nothing but more profit for them.  They do not reinvest in the economy - at least not in any significant way.  If the wealthy created jobs, they would not keep 90% of the wealth of the nation in their hands.  If they created jobs, that money would recirculate - being paid to workers, office managers, sales people, marketing directors.  They Do Not create jobs.  Oh, they profit from the labor of others to be sure, but they don't create much of anything.

I think that I should be able to keep the earnings from my labor.  I am very much in favor of reducing taxes on Earned Income and increasing taxes on Unearned Income - dividends from stocks, interest from savings and CDs and such.  Exempt the first $20k of Unearned income per year so as not to hurt small investors.  Tax the heck out of business profits - encouraging businesses to pay workers better, reinvest in the business, offer better benefits - lower prices to the public even.

Norway has a booming entrepreneur class and I think it is mostly because of their socialized health care.  People with the spirit to be their own boss do not fear loosing their health coverage by leaving their employer. Right now in the United States, we are pretty much slaves to corporations that offer our health coverage.  We can't change jobs and be without health care for 90 days or more - not being sure we will be accepted because of pre-existing conditions.  We are, a large number of employees, stuck at our jobs because of Health Care costs and Insurance coverage.  So, people who would otherwise start their own business - just don't.

If we could get affordable coverage comparable to the benefits offered by corporate employment, then there would be more businesses started.  If we actually got paid well - we would be able to buy more, invest more and save more.  Of  course, there is also the possibility that many would just raise their debt load accordingly.

Free us from the phantom menace of "what if I get sick" and you will see the entrepreneurial spirit soar and lift the Nation out of the unemployment slump - and back into profitability.  Pay us well and we will be able to spend more.  The middle class are the ones who recirculate their money into the economy - the rich Hold it.

State of the Union

I watched the SOTU address and the twitter feed for the hashtag #SOTU.  What struck me was the overwhelming number of twits saying something like, "How is Obama giving the speech and tweeting at the same time?" - referring to the twitter account @BarackObama sending tweets during the speech.  That just shows how petty people can be - also that they were not even interested in listening and evaluating the speech, just attacking the President.

The speech itself was pretty great.  There were some points that I thought were a bit wonky, like the "americans will see their paycheck increase" - I tweeted "yeah, if you make over $20k a year!!"  Which may or may not be totally accurate as far as paychecks go, but end-of-year the poor get screwed.  All in all, the "tax holiday" is another "the rich get richer" scheme that screws those of us who can least afford it already.  Still, he was mostly truthful.

Then, I went to bed.  I was not interested in listening to the lies the right-wing, GOP, 'conservative' nutters were no doubt going to spew.  As it turns out - I was right.  Paul Ryan lied up a storm.  Michele Bachmann didn't do much better.  Media Matters already have their good fact-checking of Ryan and Bachmann up.  Politifact has a brief bit on Ryan and Bachmann.  Factcheck.org has not done anything on the SOTU yet.

Looking forward to opinions... :D