1dogs2's Comments (4497)

“How old are you, Lion? 10? People were neither more nor less free before modern medical procedures, but they sure as hell died younger. Do you really believe that it's "God's plan" for the wealthy to survive medical emergencies and diseases and for those who cannot afford the same medical treatments to die? Regardless of age? CHILDREN? Or young adults with children to support?

I'm not worried about MORTALITY, especially my own; I'm worried about those whose sense of MORALITY and social justice is absent. They help perpetuate "wicked corporations" who profit from the suffering of others.”

“Do you understand how crazy the LIFE-robbing schemes of these corporations are? Do you understand that the federal government is the last best hope citizens have against the dishonesty and greed of these corporate monopolies? Do you understand that "liberty" means nothing to the dead and dying who are left to their own devices by companies that take their premiums but refuse to meet their contractual obligations to pay for treatment? Do you understand that inflated corporate profits at the cost of citizens' lives and health in IMMORAL? Do you understand that citizens have more to fear from the unbridled power of the health insurance cartel than they do from their elected officials who are accountable to their electorate?”

“Then you would do well to read the extensive report of the discussions leading to the President's decision at:

nytimes.com/2009/12/06/world/asia/06reconstruct.html?pagewanted=6&_r=1&ref=us”

“It's worse than that, Rat. It's a movement of mostly evangelicals who regard facts as an assault on their faith that must therefore to be rejected out-of-hand. There has always been a strong streak of anti-intel­lectualism in American politics, but this is something new and, as you say, dangerous.”

“It is appalling that a contributing editor of The Nation would parrot the deeply cynical conventional wisdom of the echo chamber in assigning the most momentous decision of the Obama presidency to a purely political motive. Parenti's single contribution to that meme is the offensiveness of his last line: Obama "is willing to kill to get reelected.­"

The testimony at the congressional hearings this week demonstrated that this administration consists of serious people with different points of view led by a President who understands that the weightiest decisions need to be made through a process that reviews all available information and encourages expression of different points of view, an examination of all the options and open discussion that leads to consensus. It is one of the gifts of this President to foster an atmosphere that permits this sort of decision-making -- a refreshing change from a President who asked his gut or his "higher father" what to do about the most serious issues facing the nation, and a Vice-President who regards such a process as "dithering­."

Does Parenti seriously believe that the 2012 election was a prominent, let alone the decisive, factor in the consensus reached in these discussions?”

“Ms Ryan needs to apologize to Mr. Gibbs for her childish rudeness and to the rest of the press corps for wasting their time.”

“Excellent post and good idea for the airlines. They won't adopt it though, because it will cost them money. They're perfectly happy with the present situation in which the people who have to sit next to obese persons and deal with their claustrophobia and personal discomfort are angry with the obese person rather than the airline for failing to make appropriate arrangements.”

“If Gregg were a serious student of history and observer of the present political reality, he would recognize that his behavior and that of his cohort threatens to destroy our noble experiment in democracy. The Founding Fathers certainly did not intend a minority of obstructionists to be able, through a procedural rule that has no foundation in the Constitution, to render the country ungovernable by the misuse of the filibuster in the Senate. While the House has been doing its work, more than 100 bills are held hostage in the Senate because the GOP minority has decided that NOTHING will be done about ANY of the pressing problems that this nation faces. They vote like robots against cloture even on those bills they approve. Their sole purpose is to bring this President down and frustrate the will of the electorate that was so clearly expressed in the last election.

Shame on Sen. Gregg and the rest of his destructive cohort.”

“Count on HuffPo and Sam to ask the utterly irrelevant question.”

“If the testimony at the congressional hearings over the past several days demonstrated anything, it is that we have an administration that consists of serious people with different points of view led by a President who understands that the weightiest decisions need to be made through an orderly process that encourages expression of different points of view, an examination of all the available options and open discussion that leads to consensus. It is one of the gifts of this President to foster an atmosphere that permits this sort of decision-making.

It is a refreshing change from a President who asks his gut or his "higher father" what to do about the most serious issues facing the nation, or a Vice-President who regards such a process as "dithering" while plunging the nation into conflicts whose consequences will affect the nation for years, and perhaps generations, to come.”

“Not unless eschewing asking for special favors for relatives = throwing someone under the bus.”

“So of course W. had to run up the deficits again, squandering the progress the Clinton administration had made, with tax cuts for those who didn't need them and running two wars without paying for them. Otherwise, how could the GOP demonstrate that our government doesn't work?”

“If you don't know that the Willie Horton ad run by the Republican National Committee against Dukakis was intentional race-baiting, there's probably no point is replying to you. The ad showed a menacing photo of a black, not a white, re-offender, and neglected to mention how FEW offenders had re-offended. The intent was not simply to paint Dukakis as weak on "lawn order," but more specifically, to raise the specter of marauding black criminals turned loose on the white community by Dukakis.”

“I would have more sympathy for Sen. Lugar's suggestion if he voted for cloture on any of the more than 100 bills passed by the House and sent to the Senate for action. His failure to do so indicates his support of the GOP strategy of bringing the work of Congress to a screeching halt and rendering the country ungovernable -- a very dangerous state of affairs in the midst of the greatest collection of crises facing the nation since the 1930s. Though cloaked in more rational language than the hysterical rhetoric of many in his GOP cohort, his suggestion is simply another effort to ensure that nothing gets done in Washington, and that none of the domestic crises facing the nation is dealt with.

History will not look kindly on the conduct of the 40 GOP Senators who have paralyzed the government, put party and ideology above country and thwarted the democratic process while the country continues its slide into mediocrity and chaos. It appears that not a single GOP Senator has the wisdom or the courage to put the long-term interests of the country above party loyalty.”

“Yup. The only issue is who's damning what.”

“You would neither recognize nor admit an Obama foreign policy success, or any other kind, for that matter, if it bit your nose.

In fact, through the diplomacy of his administration, there was a successful vote in the UN's IAEA condemning Iran's building of its recently discovered enrichment plant. Garnering the votes of China and Russia on that issue was indeed a foreign policy success. That Iran has chosen to respond in a manner that will lead to its utter isolation in the world is the result of the increasing power of the radical Revolutionary Guard, which is in turn due at least in part to the repeated and offensive stupidities of the Bush administration toward Iran.”

“I'm sorry for your loss.”

“If she wanted to avoid crowds, why did she announce her participation of Twitter?”

“It would have been a good idea for the administration's economic advisors to get serious about the foreclosure crisis the day they took office last January, before 3.2 million more Americans lost their homes, many of whom became homeless, thanks to insufficient action in Washington and the arrogant, selfish, unChristian "I've got mine, to hell with them" attitude of the self-righteous. Winter is here, and the number of families with children living on the streets is a national disgrace.”

“Where do you get your information about why this woman was arrested?

N.B.: This sheriff and his underlings are "screwing around with the law and judges," since there is an appellate decision on the books that makes it illegal to shackle a woman in childbirth -- and for very good reason. It endangers the lives of both mother and child and causes gratuitous pain and suffering. After you've given birth to a child, tell us about how it's perfectly okay to be shackled while doing so. You have a very strange set of values.”

“Five years is a "fast honeymoon" period? What's a long one in your opinion?”

“MSNBC doesn't pretend to be, or advertise its prime-time programs, as "news." Fox still pretends to be a "news outlet," when in fact it is a vehicle for neo-con propaganda. Its coverage of Rev. Wright, Van Jones and Acorn were overblown and biased (i.e., reported from a political point of view and devoid of the countervailing FACTS) and intended to be propaganda rather than news. And Beck is an ignorant rabble-rouser whose stock in trade is demagoguery. His "100 year plan" is more of the same.

News is what you see on PBS, the BBC, CBC and various other international news broadcasts, and occasionally on the network channels. You don't see it on cable channels.

Taking the attitude that "both parties are a farce" certainly saves you the trouble of informing yourself about facts and engaging in critical thinking. Bravo.”

“I've had nothing but contempt for CNN as a "news" outlet since the Paula Zahn cheerleading contingent reported on the invasion of Iraq.”

“"News telecast"? Give me a break.”

“Come on, Joe. Don't be so timid. Just say the American media are a disgrace to journalism and a danger to the country.

Where are the pundits who point out that we no longer have a functioning Congress because, while the House has been busy doing its job, 40 GOP Senators have paralyzed the Senate with the threat of filibuster. Over 100 bills passed by the House are being held hostage in the Senate through the use of a rule that was intended for use only in rare instances on matters of paramount importance. The GOP is using that rule to prevent ALL Senate business, including votes on bills that have almost unanimous support if and when there is a successful cloture vote.

The media are busy reporting cheap shots at the President while ignoring the central crisis of our democracy -- that a minority of Senators have rendered the country ungovernable. The single purpose of their "just-say-no" strategy is to bring this President down. That is the GOP's response to the overwhelming vote last year for a change in the tone of our politics and for bi-partisan cooperation in addressing the serious issues that have led to the diminishment of the wealth, reputation and stability of this country. Shame on them and shame on the media for abdicating their responsibilities.”