Terrible Editorials, Opinion Pieces and Letters to the Editor

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Debate & Discussion > Terrible Editorials, Opinion Pieces and Letters to the Editor

«‹›106 »

sexpig by night: Sep 8, 2011; by Azathoth

Baronjutter posted:

So a really important and effective charity org was utterly destroyed based on rumours and outright deception and when later proven to have been undone by lies, republicans still hold it up as not only a past scandal but an ongoing evil organization continuing to do what it was proven not to have done?

What a country!!

But you see, poors and minorities...

So you can understand why we had to destroy them.

# ? Jul 5, 2012 21:11

Adbot: ADBOT LOVES YOU

# ? Apr 23, 2024 19:19

Orange Devil: Oct 1, 2010; Wullie's reign cannae smother the flames o' equality!

The whole ACORN affair is straight up class warfare, but it went the right way for republicans so it's never framed as such.

# ? Jul 5, 2012 21:15

A Fancy 400 lbs: Jul 24, 2008

It's even better. The employee in the video actually called the cops with the fake information OKeefe had given him while pretending to be a pimp.

# ? Jul 5, 2012 22:08

Kro-Bar: Jul 24, 2004; USPOL May

Ytlaya posted:

Haha, this reminds me of a full page ad that was taken out yesterday (4th of July) in Memphis, TN's local newspaper, the Commercial Appeal (I'm pretty sure it was the Appeal). It had a bunch of quotes talking about America being a Christian nation and how religion should be taught in public schools, etc.

Apparently the ad was bought by Hobby Lobby.

They do this nationwide every year (or at least in regions where they operate), for a handful of holidays. Hobby Lobby is a Christian-run company that likes to flout that fact at every opportunity.

Hobby Lobby is actually a pretty decent company to work for, though. A buddy of mine had a job there for awhile: as an entry level grunt/cashier he made $10 an hour (in an area where minimum wage at the time was $6.25) and received vacation time and limited health coverage.

They also open each team meeting with a prayer by the manager, but at least they're closed on Sundays!

Kro-Bar fucked around with this message at 22:40 on Jul 5, 2012

# ? Jul 5, 2012 22:15

musclecoder: Oct 23, 2006; I'm all about meeting girls. I'm all about meeting guys.

Glitterbomber posted:

The combo of VOTER FRAUD and ACORN LOVES CHILD PROSTITUTION was an overwhelming drone from the right, leading to them to sever multiple federal grants to ACORN in housing and such, which crippled the organization and eventually lead to them totally breaking.

How rampant is voter fraud in America you ask? Surely it happens all the time. Nope, it's happened 13 total times in 649 million votes between 2000 and 2010.

Also, no instances of voter fraud were found after a federal investigation into ACORN.

# ? Jul 5, 2012 22:46

Ytlaya: Nov 13, 2005

Commissar Canuck posted:

Saw this from a newspaper website I used to work for in southern Minnesota:

It's like a fountain of right wing talking points, both old and new!

I like this part:

"* There are now only 58.1% of the population working, lowest since 1983."

And who was president in 1983? Hmmmmm

# ? Jul 6, 2012 00:18

Bubbacub: Apr 17, 2001

Glitterbomber posted:

During the 08 election ACORN did their job of collecting voter registration cards. Under federal law they can never, at any point, refuse, destroy, or demand alterations to the cards because that's disenfranchisement.

While doing this, some people made a joke of putting Donald Duck or the like as their info.

People working for ACORN were paid based on the number of registration forms they returned, which is why some obviously fake forms were collected. ACORN turned them in as required by law. No actual fake voters were registered. Somehow we never hear about how the Republican equivalent to ACORN actually committed voter registration fraud, which is the reason for the laws existing in the first place. The Republicans were registering voters, and tossing out the forms of the people who were registering as Democrats.

# ? Jul 6, 2012 01:05

Bruce Leroy: Jun 10, 2010

Bubbacub posted:

People working for ACORN were paid based on the number of registration forms they returned, which is why some obviously fake forms were collected. ACORN turned them in as required by law. No actual fake voters were registered. Somehow we never hear about how the Republican equivalent to ACORN actually committed voter registration fraud, which is the reason for the laws existing in the first place. The Republicans were registering voters, and tossing out the forms of the people who were registering as Democrats.

This has been my favorite part of the ACORN "controversy" and the perfect microcosm of the right wing. They bitch, complain, and yell about all these injustices from their political enemies when they have done these things to a far greater degree and their accusations against these people are frequently unfounded.

# ? Jul 6, 2012 02:39

VanSandman: Feb 16, 2011; SWAP.AVI EXCHANGER

Bruce Leroy posted:

This has been my favorite part of the ACORN "controversy" and the perfect microcosm of the right wing. They bitch, complain, and yell about all these injustices from their political enemies when they have done these things to a far greater degree and their accusations against these people are frequently unfounded.

I may be mistaken, but I believe it is similar in cases of infidelity, where a cheater will accuse and suspect their partner of cheating because it is what they are doing so surely the other person must be doing it too.

Ceterum censeo GOP delendam esse

# ? Jul 7, 2012 04:16

Orange Devil: Oct 1, 2010; Wullie's reign cannae smother the flames o' equality!

VanSandman posted:

I may be mistaken, but I believe it is similar in cases of infidelity, where a cheater will accuse and suspect their partner of cheating because it is what they are doing so surely the other person must be doing it too.

I've found this to be a pretty general truth. If someone accuses someone else of doing something really off the wall or ridiculous and doesn't have overwhelming evidence, it's really likely that it is something the accuser him/herself does or has done.

# ? Jul 7, 2012 13:06

My Q-Face: Jul 8, 2002; A dumb racist who need to kill themselves

Goatman Sacks posted:

Technically he didn't since he never existed.

Technically, it's very likely that he did, just based on the fabrications that had to be constructed to make Jesus of Nazareth fit the messianic prophecies of having been born in Bethlehem.

# ? Jul 7, 2012 15:31

A Fancy 400 lbs: Jul 24, 2008

Let's get this over before it begins. Did Jesus exist as described in the gospels if you take all of it literally? No. Did "Jesus" exist as a figure that inspired the stories told in the gospels with similar teachings to those recorded? Most likely yes.

# ? Jul 7, 2012 20:45

Pope Guilty: Nov 6, 2006; The human animal is a beautiful and terrible creature, capable of limitless compassion and unfathomable cruelty.

I think it's most likely that of all the various self-proclaimed messiahs of the time (one thing that Life of Brian gets very right, historically), one of them might have called himself Jesus, but most likely what we have today is a bunch of stories about a bunch of different self-proclaimed messiahs that have been blurred into being about a single figure, and which some people try to organize into something approaching a coherent narrative. "Jesus" is the name that's got attached to these stories.

# ? Jul 8, 2012 18:47

Mo_Steel: Mar 7, 2008; Let's Clock Into The Sunset Together; Fun Shoe

Glitterbomber posted:

The right pretends they still exist, in the shadows, like COBRA, working for Obama personally.

Which is why we need more stringent voter ID laws. The very idea that fraud in whatever insignificant amount could possibly occur means it's better to disenfranchise some voters just in case. :smithicide:

# ? Jul 9, 2012 00:56

ThePlague-Daemon: Apr 16, 2008; ~Neck Angels~

A Fancy 400 lbs posted:

It's even better. The employee in the video actually called the cops with the fake information OKeefe had given him while pretending to be a pimp.

It's actually even better than that. In the unedited videos, he claimed to be a law student. He only pretended to pretend to be a pimp.

# ? Jul 9, 2012 02:44

Bruce Leroy: Jun 10, 2010

ThePlague-Daemon posted:

It's actually even better than that. In the unedited videos, he claimed to be a law student. He only pretended to pretend to be a pimp.

Also, they were claiming to want housing assistance to get underage prostitutes out of prostitution, not trying to facilitate underage prostitution, as O'Keefe and his cronies claimed using the deceptively edited video.

# ? Jul 9, 2012 09:13

Guilty Spork: Feb 26, 2011; Thunder rolled. It rolled a six.

Sometimes I forget how much of a piece of poo poo O'Keefe is, and then I discover some new dimension of shittiness about him.

# ? Jul 9, 2012 22:23

Saint Sputnik: Apr 1, 2007; Tyrannosaurs in P-51 Volkswagens!

Indiana doesn't deserve democracy.

This is the story. I'll spare you the Facebook posts but they're poo poo too.

# ? Jul 9, 2012 22:57

Pope Guilty: Nov 6, 2006; The human animal is a beautiful and terrible creature, capable of limitless compassion and unfathomable cruelty.

Saint Sputnik posted:

Indiana doesn't deserve democracy.

This is the story. I'll spare you the Facebook posts but they're poo poo too.

Burn this awful state to the ground, god will know his own.

If you'd told me when I was 18 that I'd still be here at 30, I probably would've cried.

# ? Jul 10, 2012 00:49

Celot: Jan 14, 2007

Man, I kinda used to think like that. I started in Oklahoma and moved to Tejas, and it's all right. The culture is really different. It's a lot more homophobic, but there's a coast nearby, which is cool. People eat breakfast tacos, which are good. Sometimes people complain that a restaurant or pool hall is too sketchy bc there are poor people there or whatever.

# ? Jul 10, 2012 05:22

MacGowans Teeth: Aug 13, 2003

Celot posted:

Man, I kinda used to think like that. I started in Oklahoma and moved to Tejas, and it's all right. The culture is really different. It's a lot more homophobic, but there's a coast nearby, which is cool. People eat breakfast tacos, which are good. Sometimes people complain that a restaurant or pool hall is too sketchy bc there are poor people there or whatever.

Well, Oklahoma -> Texas is going to be an improvement, I'm sure. California -> Ohio was not, in my personal experience. Ohio sucks (thanks, Kasich!

) and Indiana is a shithole. In my area I get a lot of commercials trying to depict Indianapolis as some kind of fun, romantic getaway, which is absolutely hilarious.

# ? Jul 10, 2012 12:30

bairfanx: Jan 20, 2006; I look like this IRL,
but, you know,
more Greg Land-y.

Saint Sputnik posted:

Indiana doesn't deserve democracy.

This is the story. I'll spare you the Facebook posts but they're poo poo too.

Is there a link to that poll? I'm not seeing it in the AP article.

# ? Jul 10, 2012 15:15

Saint Sputnik: Apr 1, 2007; Tyrannosaurs in P-51 Volkswagens!

bairfanx posted:

Is there a link to that poll? I'm not seeing it in the AP article.

It's just at a smalltown newspaper website.

# ? Jul 10, 2012 17:40

Taerkar: Dec 7, 2002; kind of into it, really

Mo_Steel posted:

Which is why we need more stringent voter ID laws. The very idea that fraud in whatever insignificant amount could possibly occur means it's better to disenfranchise some voters just in case.

If we disenfranchise all of the voters then there will be no more fraud.

The only acceptable ID in the future is a stock portfolio.

# ? Jul 10, 2012 20:24

Internet Cliche: Oct 18, 2004; Ninja Robot Pirate Zombie

gently caress this place, gently caress this guy, gently caress this earth. This is from the local newspaper back home: this guy is a 'weekly columnist', which is code for 'my family has owned the newspaper for three generations, eat poo poo'. This paper is in central Appalachia, so plenty of people are on food stamps, but everyone loves his weekly right-wing talking point diarrhea.

quote:

CNN Money reported in April that �more than one in three Americans lived in households that received Medicaid, food stamps or other means-based government assistance in mid-2010,� citing a study by the Mercatus Center at George Mason University.

�Some 26 percent of Americans lived in households where someone received Medicaid, while the figure was 15 percent for food stamps,� the report continued. �Those programs were by far the largest of the safety net.�

And, when Social Security, Medicare and unemployment benefits are included, nearly half of the nation � more than 148 million Americans � lived in a household that received a government check, the CNN Money report continued.

It is shocking enough that so many of us get some form of government support � although Social Security and Medicare recipients are receiving money they paid into the system � but most stunning is that the price tag for all of that support hit the $2 trillion mark for fiscal 2010 and that the 2010 figure is nearly 75 percent higher than 10 years ago.

Government Gone Wild reports that 41 percent of all births and 60 percent of all elderly long-term care is paid for by government, and that one out of three Americans lives in a household that receives food stamps, subsidized housing, cash welfare or Medicaid.

The food stamp program has been given the stigma-free title �SNAP� (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) and the government now spends our tax money advertising food stamps to attract even more takers.

And, according to Judicial Watch, as part of the administrations� campaign to eradicate �food insecure households,� the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) awarded what the Oregon Department of Human Services (DHS) called a $5 million �performance bonus� for ensuring that Oregonians eligible for food benefits receive them and for its �swift processing of applications.�

It is the fifth consecutive year that Oregon has been recognized by the federal government for �exceptional administration� of the entitlement program, according to the DHS new release. One of every five Oregon residents receives food stamps, 780,000 in all, and that is 60 percent higher than in 2008.

And then there are unemployment benefits, at one point lasting up to 99 weeks � nearly two years. Even in times of high unemployment there are jobs available, but generous benefits provided for an extended period dulls the incentive for people to look for work, or even to start up their own business to earn a living.

The owner of a temporary staffing agency told a Florida newspaper that some prospects just aren�t interested in working; they�d rather pick up unemployment checks. Other sources say many of those out of work feel it would be silly to take a job that pays less than the unemployment benefit, while some are comfortable waiting until the �right� job comes along to go back to work or wait until benefits have almost run out to look for work.

Programs that are supposed to provide temporary assistance for people in poverty or out of work have turned into long-term welfare programs that are so generous that they remove the incentive to earn one�s own way from those they are intended to help and turn them into dependents.

President Barack Obama reminded a campaign audience recently, �We�re the country that built the Intercontinental Railroad [yes, that�s what he said], the Interstate Highway System. We built the Hoover Dam. We built the Grand Central Station.� He�s correct about that. Well, not about the Intercontinental Railroad. But America accomplished those great things through self-reliance and positive ambition; it wasn�t done with only about half of us paying taxes to support the federal government while one-third received support from the federal government.

Tax payers are the ones who fund these federal support programs, but Government Gone Wild reports that while the number receiving these benefits is on the rise, the number of tax payers is falling. During Ronald Reagan�s administration only 19 percent of households didn�t pay any federal income tax, under Bill Clinton it jumped to 25 percent, it rose to 30 percent under George W. Bush, and under Barack Obama it has jumped to 47 percent.

A warning about what results from providing too much help to people is making the rounds on the social medium Facebook. It appears in the form of a photo of a newspaper clipping that reads: �The Food Stamp Program, administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, is proud to be distributing the greatest amount of free meals and food stamps ever. Meanwhile, the National Park Service, administered by the U.S. Department of the Interior, asks us to �Please Do Not Feed the Animals.� Their stated reason is because the animals will grow dependent on handouts and will not learn to take care of themselves.�

America is fast becoming a nation of dependents, and that is dangerous for two reasons. First, we simply can�t afford the cost of supporting so many people. But perhaps more important, continuing to rob people of the incentive to provide for themselves through over-generous government benefits is weakening the strong spirit of individualism that made this nation great. We need more, not less, of that.

His weekly musings are enshrined on his blogspot for perpetuity also, in case you're trying to build up some rage.

# ? Jul 11, 2012 00:20

Celot: Jan 14, 2007

Sizzler Manager posted:

Well, Oklahoma -> Texas is going to be an improvement, I'm sure. California -> Ohio was not, in my personal experience. Ohio sucks (thanks, Kasich! ) and Indiana is a shithole. In my area I get a lot of commercials trying to depict Indianapolis as some kind of fun, romantic getaway, which is absolutely hilarious.

Oklahoma's actually probably the best state to live in. Rent is basically free. Low crime. Relatively cheap gas. Tulsa is beautiful and can even be navigated by bicycle. Good food everywhere. Cool weather phenomena. Outdoor festivals and poo poo. Low unemployment.

The poo poo you hear about homophobia and conservatism in the news is really puzzling because I've rarely seen it first hand in OK. TX has it everywhere though.

# ? Jul 11, 2012 00:47

MacGowans Teeth: Aug 13, 2003

Celot posted:

Oklahoma's actually probably the best state to live in. Rent is basically free. Low crime. Relatively cheap gas. Tulsa is beautiful and can even be navigated by bicycle. Good food everywhere. Cool weather phenomena. Outdoor festivals and poo poo. Low unemployment.

The poo poo you hear about homophobia and conservatism in the news is really puzzling because I've rarely seen it first hand in OK. TX has it everywhere though.

Wow, I'd always thought it was terrible, but come to think of it, Arizona, Florida, Texas, Wisconsin, etc. are way ahead of them in bad legislation and rear end in a top hat governors. I guess the state Woody Guthrie came from can't be too bad.

# ? Jul 11, 2012 02:17

Celot: Jan 14, 2007

Sizzler Manager posted:

Wow, I'd always thought it was terrible, but come to think of it, Arizona, Florida, Texas, Wisconsin, etc. are way ahead of them in bad legislation and rear end in a top hat governors. I guess the state Woody Guthrie came from can't be too bad.

Yeah. One of the things that people harp on for OK is the liquor laws. In OK, an individual may only own one liquor store. Liquor stores may only sell beverages >3.2 % ABW. Nothing above 3.2% ABW may be sold outside a liquor store. Liquor stores may open Mon-Sat, 10 AM - 9 PM only.

Other than the last thing, all of this is actually good. It all comes together so that there are no chain liquor stores, and each store has its own charm and market, kind of like a bar. Because they can only sell beverages >3.2% ABW, this means that they often give away corkscrews, bottle openers, tshirts, and tote bags for free. And really, why should anyone have to work after 9 PM anyway?

# ? Jul 11, 2012 03:24

Bruce Leroy: Jun 10, 2010

Internet Cliche posted:

gently caress this place, gently caress this guy, gently caress this earth. This is from the local newspaper back home: this guy is a 'weekly columnist', which is code for 'my family has owned the newspaper for three generations, eat poo poo'. This paper is in central Appalachia, so plenty of people are on food stamps, but everyone loves his weekly right-wing talking point diarrhea.

His weekly musings are enshrined on his blogspot for perpetuity also, in case you're trying to build up some rage.

What a shitheel.

quote:

President Barack Obama reminded a campaign audience recently, �We�re the country that built the Intercontinental Railroad [yes, that�s what he said], the Interstate Highway System. We built the Hoover Dam. We built the Grand Central Station.�

Really? He's complaining because Obama said intercontinental instead of transcontinental?

quote:

And, according to Judicial Watch, as part of the administrations� campaign to eradicate �food insecure households,� the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) awarded what the Oregon Department of Human Services (DHS) called a $5 million �performance bonus� for ensuring that Oregonians eligible for food benefits receive them and for its �swift processing of applications.�

If it was even in question (it wasn't) that this guy is an rear end in a top hat, citing Judicial Watch clinches it.

Wikipedia posted:

-"Digging into questions about Barack Obama's ... and his gang's efforts to steal the 2012 elections." [28]

-Initiating a request to the Naval Inspector General for an investigation into the "legitimacy and propriety" of the awards John Kerry received for his service in Vietnam.[29] The inspector general's office subsequently determined that Kerry's awards "were properly approved" and declined to take further action in the matter;[30] the office also responded to Judicial Watch's Freedom of Information Act request with documentation of its review.[31]

-Condemning as murder the death of Terri Schiavo, who lived for 15 years in a diagnosed persistent vegetative state and whose husband wished to allow to die. Her parents wished that she be kept on life support, and were joined in their pursuits by prominent Republicans.

-Launched an investigation into any White House's involvement in "branding" of the University of Arizona memorial for the victims of the 2011 mass shooting in Tucson, at which t-shirts bearing the slogan "Together We Thrive" were distributed. Judicial Watch demanded the university send them "any and all communications, contracts or correspondence between the University of Arizona and The White House concerning, regarding or relating to T-shirts bearing the logo 'Together We Thrive: Tucson & America,' distributed to attendees at the January 12, 2011, memorial service". The university replied that the White House had no involvement with the branding of the event, and that the slogan -- which Judicial Watch described as "an obvious play on a popular Obama presidential campaign theme" -- was devised by a university student.[37][38]

# ? Jul 11, 2012 03:49

Peepers: Mar 11, 2005; Well, I'm a ghost. I scare people. It's all very important, I assure you.

Saint Sputnik posted:

Indiana doesn't deserve democracy.

This is the story. I'll spare you the Facebook posts but they're poo poo too.

If I had to guess I'd say only 11 people responded to that poll (0-3-8 gives those exact percentages). Not exactly a statistically significant sample size.

# ? Jul 12, 2012 01:37

Dr. Tough: Oct 22, 2007

An editorial against Medicare (yes you read that correctly) that among other things claims it violates the 13th Amendment.

quote:

A prescient and profound 1966 letter about socialized medicine

I�m feeling inadequate and humbled.

The Journal of American Physicians and Surgeons has a commentary of mine in the Summer 2012 edition. It also has a reprint from the journal�s archives of one of the most prescient and profound pieces I�ve ever read about socialized medicine. Comparing my commentary to it is like comparing an article in People magazine to a Shakespearean play.

The archival piece is �A Letter to Mississippi Physicians,� written on May 1, 1966, by Mississippi physician Curtis W. Caine.

Remember the date: May 1, 1966.

The letter summarizes Dr. Caine�s thoughts to his fellow physicians about Medicare, which was signed into law on July 30, 1965, to go into effect on July 1, 1966.

Now, 46 years later, the Supreme Court has ruled to uphold the Pelosi-Reid-Obama plan to socialize the rest of medical care, although Medicare is unsustainable in its present form and will be insolvent in 20 years

Dr. Caine made 122 enumerated points in his letter. Below is a sampling. To see how relevant his points are to today�s situation, just replace the word �Medicare� with �ObamaCare.�

- Socialized medicine, stripped of its deceptive whitewash, is reactionary; it is the imposition of central power and control over America and Americans in the false guise of beneficence; it is the opposite of the American way.

- Medicare was drafted by politicians and bureaucrats. Official representatives of the medical profession were not consulted about the provisions of Medicare.

- Socialized medicine has always, in every era and in every location, arrested progress in medical science through restrictive, burdensome, suffocating regulation, leading to loss of incentive, stagnation, and decay.

- People almost never value anything that is free.

- Ponder this � would a patient be wise to place his life in the hands of doctor who has lost his self-respect for practicing government medicine? Then again, perhaps the patient would be even less wise if that physician were of the type who had not lost his self-respect for doing so.

- Under Medicare the good doctor will be equalized with the mediocre doctor. There will be less incentive to be the best doctor possible.

- Under socialized medicine, the Department of HEW [the former U.S. Dept. of Health, Education and Welfare that was subsequently split into separate bureaucracies] has patients and the Department of HEW has doctors. But doctors do not have patients; and patients do not have doctors.

- By participating in socialized medicine, physicians unilaterally become hired clerks � employees of appointed political bureaucrats.

- The 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution prohibits involuntary servitude.

- Government produces nothing; therefore it has nothing to �give� to anyone except what it has first taken from him or someone else (minus a sizeable brokerage fee).

- Medicare is legal plunder. It promises the possession of someone else (the doctor); it promises something the government does not possess (medical knowledge).

- It is a mark of moral bankruptcy for one group (legislators) to arbitrarily guarantee the professional ethic of a second group (doctors) to a third group (the citizens).

- Only doctors can practice medicine. No one else is equipped by training and experience to do so.

- All [people] over 65 (except certain criminals) are eligible to receive �benefits� under Part A of Title XVIII of PL 89-97 [the Medicare law]. This includes an estimated six million over 65 who have never been under Social Security and thus have paid no Social Security �taxes.� For this six million, Part A of Medicare is pure charity. [Today, most Medicare beneficiaries are getting more back in medical care than they paid in Medicare taxes over their working lives.]

- Under Title XIX, all recipients of welfare, regardless of age, will be eligible for Medicaid by 1970. There are in excess of 200,000 on welfare in Mississippi alone. It is estimated that Title XIS of the present law, without amendment, will cover forty million people by 1975. [There are now more than 50 million people on Medicaid, plus an additional 5.5 million on Supplemental Social Security Income, or SSI.]

- While money is squandered by the bureaucrats in administering Medicare, doctors participating in Medicare will be required to be economical. Cheap treatments and cheap prescriptions are to be given preference. HEW employed referees will set the standards � not the patient�s doctor.

- If you participate in Medicare, any praise or commendation will go to the bureaucrats, but its failures will be blamed on YOU. [Just as Obama lambasted doctors for unnecessarily removing body parts to make money.]

- HEW, the liberals, the bureaucrats, and other socialists will never admit the inherent fraud of socialism or their own guilt in perpetuating it, but will, instead, divert the blame to DOCTORS for the predictable shortcomings of socialized medicine.

- Medicare, though it is called such, is not insurance. There is no contract. There is no policy wherein the provisions are stated. It is whatever �the Secretary of (HEW) may direct� at any given moment.

- That Medicare will destroy private insurance and private medicine should come as no surprise to no one. It was planned and promoted for just those reasons. That is its purpose!

- By the end of 1965, 57 percent of those eligible for Part B of Medicare had not enrolled. The bureaucrats frantically put on an all-out propaganda drive of deceit. Threats of the deadline of March 31 were utilized. Most agencies of the government, entertainment stars, governors, and many others participated.

- On January 31, eight million people � that�s 46 percent of those eligible � had not enrolled; 1.1 million had actually signified they do not want to enroll � God bless �em. Efforts by the social planners were intensified.

- The politicians and bureaucrats desire the nationalization of medicine. The people are not demanding it.

- The socialization of medicine in the United States is not intended as an end in itself. It is planned as a means to an end � the total socialization of America.

- For the American miracle to continue we must have less government and more individual responsibility. [Federal debt per person was less than $2,500 in 1966, versus over $45,000 today.]

Mencken�s Ghost is the nom de plume of an Arizona writer who needs an ego lift and can be reached at ccan2@aol.com.

# ? Jul 12, 2012 03:14

Pope Guilty: Nov 6, 2006; The human animal is a beautiful and terrible creature, capable of limitless compassion and unfathomable cruelty.

Internet Cliche posted:

gently caress this place, gently caress this guy, gently caress this earth. This is from the local newspaper back home: this guy is a 'weekly columnist', which is code for 'my family has owned the newspaper for three generations, eat poo poo'. This paper is in central Appalachia, so plenty of people are on food stamps, but everyone loves his weekly right-wing talking point diarrhea.

His weekly musings are enshrined on his blogspot for perpetuity also, in case you're trying to build up some rage.

The "best" part is how horrifyingly poor you and generally some dependents have to be to get government assistance in the post-Clinton era; 1 in 3 Americans benefiting from it means that 1&3 Americans lives in grinding poverty.

# ? Jul 12, 2012 03:57

iajanus: Aug 17, 2004; NUMBER 1 QUEENSLAND SUPPORTER
MAROONS 2023 STATE OF ORIGIN CHAMPIONS FOR LIFE

Dr. Tough posted:

An editorial against Medicare (yes you read that correctly) that among other things claims it violates the 13th Amendment.

Coming from a country with socialised medicine, it's almost unbelievable that this article was written by anyone in the real world. It's mind-boggingly ignorant of reality.

# ? Jul 12, 2012 04:44

Bruce Leroy: Jun 10, 2010

iajanus posted:

Coming from a country with socialised medicine, it's almost unbelievable that this article was written by anyone in the real world. It's mind-boggingly ignorant of reality.

It's not unbelievable if you know where it comes from, namely the Journal of American Physicians and Surgeons.

Wikipedia on the Journal of American Physicians and Surgeons posted:

The Journal of American Physicians and Surgeons (JPandS), until 2003 named the Medical Sentinel,[36][37] is the journal of the association. Its mission statement includes "� a commitment to publishing scholarly articles in defense of the practice of private medicine, the pursuit of integrity in medical research � Political correctness, dogmatism and orthodoxy will be challenged with logical reasoning, valid data and the scientific method." The publication policy of the journal states that articles are subject to a double-blind peer-review process.[38]

The Journal of American Physicians and Surgeons is not listed in major academic literature databases such as MEDLINE/PubMed[39] nor the Web of Science.[40] The U.S. National Library of Medicine declined repeated requests from AAPS to index the journal, citing unspecified concerns.[1] Articles and commentaries published in the journal have argued a number of non-mainstream or scientifically discredited claims,[1] including:

-that human activity has not contributed to climate change, and that global warming will be beneficial and thus not a cause for concern;[41]

-that HIV does not cause AIDS;[42][43]

-that the "gay male lifestyle" shortens life expectancy by 20 years.[44]

A series of articles by pro-life authors published in the journal argued for a link between abortion and breast cancer.[45][46] Such a link has been rejected by the scientific community, including the U.S. National Cancer Institute,[47] the American Cancer Society,[48] and the World Health Organization,[49] among other major medical bodies.[50]

A 2003 paper published in the journal, claiming that vaccination was harmful, was criticized for poor methodology, lack of scientific rigor, and outright errors by the World Health Organization[51] and the American Academy of Pediatrics.[52] A National Public Radio piece mentioned inaccurate information published in the Journal and said: "The journal itself is not considered a leading publication, as it's put out by an advocacy group that opposes most government involvement in medical care."[53]

The Journal has also published articles advocating politically and socially conservative policy positions[citation needed], including:

-that the Food and Drug Administration and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services are unconstitutional;[54]

that "humanists" have conspired to replace the "creation religion of Jehovah" with evolution;[55]

that "anchor babies" are valuable to undocumented immigrants, particularly if the babies are disabled.[1]

Quackwatch lists JPandS as an untrustworthy, non-recommended periodical.[56] An editorial in Chemical & Engineering News described JPandS as a "purveyor of utter nonsense."[57] Investigative journalist Brian Deer wrote that the journal is the "house magazine of a right-wing American fringe group [AAPS]" and "is barely credible as an independent forum."[58]

Leprosy errors

[/b]In a 2005 article published in the Journal, Madeleine Cosman argued that illegal immigrants were carriers of disease, and that immigrants and "anchor babies" were launching a "stealthy assault on [American] medicine."[/b][59] In the article, Cosman claimed that "Suddenly, in the past 3 years America has more than 7,000 cases of leprosy" because of illegal aliens.[59] The journal's leprosy claim was cited and repeated by Lou Dobbs as evidence of the dangers of illegal immigration.[53][60]

However, publicly available statistics show that the 7,000 cases of leprosy occurred during the past 30 years, not the past three as Cosman claimed.[61] James L. Krahenbuhl, director of the U.S. government's leprosy program, stated that there had been no significant increase in leprosy cases, and that "It [leprosy] is not a public health problem�that�s the bottom line."[60] National Public Radio reported that the Journal article "had footnotes that did not readily support allegations linking a recent rise in leprosy rates to illegal immigrants."[53] The article's erroneous leprosy claim was pointed out by 60 Minutes,[62] National Public Radio,[53] and the New York Times[60] but has not been corrected by the Journal.[citation needed]

It's a quack journal published by a quack, right-wing medical group.

Wikipedia on the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons posted:

Positions

While it describes itself as "non-partisan",[7] AAPS is generally recognized as politically conservative.[6][8][9][10] According to Mother Jones, "despite the lab coats and the official-sounding name, the docs of the AAPS are hardly part of mainstream medical society. Think Glenn Beck with an MD."[10]

The organization opposes mandatory vaccination,[11] universal health care[12] and government intervention in healthcare.[10][13] The AAPS has characterized the effects of the Social Security Act of 1965, which established Medicare and Medicaid, as "evil" and "immoral",[14] and encouraged member physicians to boycott Medicare and Medicaid.[15] AAPS argues that individuals should purchase medical care directly from doctors, and that there is no right to medical care.[16] The organization requires its members to sign a "declaration of independence" pledging that they will not work with Medicare, Medicaid, or even private insurance companies.[10]

AAPS opposes mandated evidence-based medicine and practice guidelines, criticizing them as a usurpation of physician autonomy and a fascist merger of state and corporate power where the biggest stakeholder is the pharmaceutical industry.[17] Other procedures that AAPS opposes include abortion[18] and over-the-counter access to emergency contraception.[19] AAPS also opposes electronic medical records[10] as well as any "direct or de facto supervision or control over the practice of medicine by federal officers or employees."[20]

On Oct 25, 2008 the AAPS website published an editorial implying that Barack Obama was using Neuro-linguistic Programming, "a covert form of hypnosis", in his presidential campaign.[21]

# ? Jul 12, 2012 05:59

Ani: Jun 15, 2001; illum non populi fasces, non purpura regum / flexit et infidos agitans discordia fratres

Apparently you can say just about anything in the New York Times if (a) you are a noted Chinese scholar and (b) you are talking about China. For proof, I present Tuesday's editorial by Jiang Qing, who notes that "After all, democracy is flawed as an ideal" and that one of the members of his ideal ruling triumvirate would be a direct descendant of Confucius.

Jiang Qing and Daniel A. Bell posted:

ON Monday, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton gave a speech in Mongolia denouncing Asian governments that seek �to restrict people�s access to ideas and information, to imprison them for expressing their views, to usurp the rights of citizens to choose their leaders.� It was a swipe at China�s authoritarian political system. The view that China should become more democratic is widely held in the West. But framing the debate in terms of democracy versus authoritarianism overlooks better possibilities.

The political future of China is far likelier to be determined by the longstanding Confucian tradition of �humane authority� than by Western-style multiparty elections. After all, democracy is flawed as an ideal. Political legitimacy is based solely on the sovereignty of the people � more specifically, a government that grants power to democratically elected representatives. But there is no compelling reason for a government to have only one source of legitimacy.

Democracy is also flawed in practice. Political choices come down to the desires and interests of the electorate. This leads to two problems. First, the will of the majority may not be moral: it may favor racism, imperialism or fascism. Second, when there is a clash between the short-term interests of the populace and the long-term interests of mankind, as is the case with global warming, the people�s short-term interests become the political priority. As a result, democratically elected governments in America and elsewhere are finding it nearly impossible to implement policies that curb energy usage in the interests of humanity and of future generations.

In China, political Confucians defend an alternative approach: the Way of the Humane Authority. The question of political legitimacy is central to their constitutional thought. Legitimacy is not simply what people think of their rulers; it is the deciding factor in determining whether a ruler has the right to rule. And unlike Western-style democracy, there is more than one source of legitimacy.

According to the Gongyang Zhuan, a commentary on a Confucian classic, political power can be justified through three sources: the legitimacy of heaven (a sacred, transcendent sense of natural morality), the legitimacy of earth (wisdom from history and culture), and the legitimacy of the human (political obedience through popular will).

In ancient times, Humane Authority was implemented by early Chinese monarchs. But changes in historical circumstances now necessitate changes in the form of rule. Today, the will of the people must be given an institutional form that was lacking in the past, though it should be constrained and balanced by institutional arrangements reflecting the other two forms of legitimacy.

In modern China, Humane Authority should be exercised by a tricameral legislature: a House of Exemplary Persons that represents sacred legitimacy; a House of the Nation that represents historical and cultural legitimacy; and a House of the People that represents popular legitimacy.

The leader of the House of Exemplary Persons should be a great scholar. Candidates for membership should be nominated by scholars and examined on their knowledge of the Confucian classics and then assessed through trial periods of progressively greater administrative responsibilities � similar to the examination and recommendation systems used to select scholar-officials in the imperial past. The leader of the House of the Nation should be a direct descendant of Confucius; other members would be selected from descendants of great sages and rulers, along with representatives of China�s major religions. Finally, members of the House of the People should be elected either by popular vote or as heads of occupational groups.

This system would have checks and balances. Each house would deliberate in its own way and not interfere in the affairs of the others. To avoid political gridlock arising from conflicts among the three houses, a bill would be required to pass at least two houses to become law. To protect the primacy of sacred legitimacy in Confucian tradition the House of Exemplary Persons would have a final, exclusive veto, but its power would be constrained by that of the other two houses: for example, if they propose a bill restricting religious freedom, the People and the Nation could oppose it, stopping it from becoming law.

Instead of judging political progress simply by asking whether China is becoming more democratic, Humane Authority provides a more comprehensive and culturally sensitive way of judging its political progress.

Jiang Qing is the founder of the Yangming Confucian Academy in Guiyang, China. He is the author, and Daniel A. Bell is an editor, of the forthcoming book �A Confucian Constitutional Order: How China�s Ancient Past Can Shape Its Political Future.�

link: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/11/opinion/a-confucian-constitution-in-china.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss

# ? Jul 12, 2012 06:45

My Q-Face: Jul 8, 2002; A dumb racist who need to kill themselves

Dr. Tough posted:

- For the American miracle to continue we must have less government and more individual responsibility. [Federal debt per person was less than $2,500 in 1966, versus over $45,000 today.]

Or, in 1966 dollars, approximately $6700 per person, a little more than two and a half times what it was then, noting that then was before they started raiding Social Security, Medicare and Civil Service and Military Pension funds (which account for $1750 per person in 1966 Dollars)

I hate this tactic. "Ooh, Poor people can buy Three TVs! Couldn't do that when I was a kid!" Yeah, cause when you were a kid a TV cost $500+, where as the today's TVs would be closer to the equivalent of $10-$20.

My Q-Face fucked around with this message at 09:05 on Jul 12, 2012

# ? Jul 12, 2012 09:02

Muscle Tracer: Feb 23, 2007; Medals only weigh one down.

Dr. Tough posted:

An editorial against Medicare (yes you read that correctly) that among other things claims it violates the 13th Amendment.

The best part of this is the email at the end that is still at aol.com. I honestly thought AOL had shut down by now.

# ? Jul 12, 2012 09:04

Bruce Leroy: Jun 10, 2010

Ani posted:

Apparently you can say just about anything in the New York Times if (a) you are a noted Chinese scholar and (b) you are talking about China. For proof, I present Tuesday's editorial by Jiang Qing, who notes that "After all, democracy is flawed as an ideal" and that one of the members of his ideal ruling triumvirate would be a direct descendant of Confucius.

link: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/11/opinion/a-confucian-constitution-in-china.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss

So, a government composed of three houses, one controlled by the clergy, one by the people, and one by those of proper noble birthright and which has exclusive veto power?

What a novel idea! Surely, this has never been tried before and certainly would never lead to any problems.

# ? Jul 12, 2012 09:18

swimgus: Oct 24, 2005; Camlin bought me this account because I'm a Jew!

A political scientist argues in the NYTimes that algebra should not be required in high school. http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/29/opinion/sunday/is-algebra-necessary.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1&ref=opinion
I'm guessing it's mostly because his high school algebra class was too hard for him.

quote:

A TYPICAL American school day finds some six million high school students and two million college freshmen struggling with algebra. In both high school and college, all too many students are expected to fail. Why do we subject American students to this ordeal? I�ve found myself moving toward the strong view that we shouldn�t.

Or maybe he had a lovely teacher that didn't explain it right.

quote:

Nor is it clear that the math we learn in the classroom has any relation to the quantitative reasoning we need on the job. John P. Smith III, an educational psychologist at Michigan State University who has studied math education, has found that �mathematical reasoning in workplaces differs markedly from the algorithms taught in school.�

I loving hate it when people who clearly don't understand what math is about make suggestions about how to teach it and what it's good for.

Math is about way more than proving things like (x� + y�)� = (x� - y�)� + (2xy)�.
It's an incredibly useful way of thinking and reasoning, and high school algebra is the structure that makes this guy's holy "quantitative reasoning" possible. I want to know how someone learns these statistical methods he holds so high without first grasping the concept of a variable and the kind of simple modelling that's done in high school algebra.

He makes a couple of digs at calculus too, not understanding that you need a certain amount of calculus to understand where statistical methods come from.

# ? Jul 30, 2012 04:16

Adbot: ADBOT LOVES YOU

# ? Apr 23, 2024 19:19

Nenonen: Oct 22, 2009; Mulla on aina kolkyt donaa taskussa

First they came for the cursive but nobody spoke...

# ? Jul 30, 2012 05:59

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Debate & Discussion > Terrible Editorials, Opinion Pieces and Letters to the Editor

«‹›106 »