Today's edition of quick hits:
* Another shooting: "A gunman killed three people Friday in central Pennsylvania, including a woman in a church, before police shot him dead, authorities said. Three state troopers were injured, including one who was shot twice in the chest but survived thanks to his bulletproof vest."
* President Obama eulogized Daniel Inouye today at a memorial service at the National Cathedral, calling the Hawaiian hero his "earliest political inspiration." Obama added, "May God bless Daniel Inouye and may God grant us more souls like his."
* Syria's Assad regime has begun using cluster bombs, punishing rebels and civilians alike.
* Republican opposition to a pending farm bill is likely to cause a sharp spike in milk prices in January.
* John Kerry's Secretary of State nomination is already generating Republican support, reinforcing the perception that he'll be confirmed easily.
* Chuck Hagel's prospective nomination as Defense Secretary isn't going as well. Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) is the latest Republican senator to condemn his former Republican colleague, saying Hagel's views are "outside the mainstream."
* In related news, Hagel today retracted "insensitive" anti-gay comments he made in 1998 about James Hormel's nomination to be ambassador to Luxembourg, adding, "I apologize to Ambassador Hormel and any LGBT Americans who may question my commitment to their civil rights." For his part, Hormel found Hagel's apology underwhelming and opportunistic.
* A long-shot lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of Senate filibuster rules was dismissed by a federal judge yesterday on procedural grounds.
* Someone probably ought to let the NRA know that Columbine had an armed guard.
* Add Sen. Bob Casey (D-Penn.) to the list of centrist Democrats who've changed their perspective on guns laws in the wake of the Sandy Hook Elementary massacre.
* And Rush Limbaugh briefly argued today that mass shooters "are all liberals," before taking it back. Classy.
Anything to add? Consider this an open thread.
Leave a Comment:
Milk price supports. I work in the food ingredients industry.
The "farm bill" costs this country close to a TRILLION dollars.
People in the midwest end up supporting milk prices for the rest of the country. Milk is priced on how far away from Madison, WI they are.
The farm bill also includes subsidies for Campbell's to grow tomatoes and for ADM and Cargill to produce ethanol. Can anyone tell me WHY any one of those three need the government giving them money for their products.
Sounds like 'Big Oil' too,,,, subsidies for those who need it the least!
They don't, but they can afford lobbyists. I need to get me one of them. (Just kidding.)
Not Madison, it is how far from Eau Claire, WI. Which means dairy farmers here in the Dairy State get screwed.
But if 1949 rules go into effect, the government would be required to buy dairy products at around $40 per hundredweight — roughly twice the current market price — to drive up the price of milk to cover dairy producers’ cost.
Really? Is this how inflexible our government is? Forced by a 53 year old "rule". It seems we can run our government without any real budget, but it the farm bill isn't approved the government will be FORCED to spike the milk prices. Here's an idea - have the government buy any milk at the current rate they used today and yesterday and last week until a new bill is passed - unless that new bill is as stupid as this "rule". Hilarious. Reminds me of a comedy skit I saw years ago.There was an ice cream store with 2 windows - one for ordering and one for picking up your order. It was a slow day and a man walks up to order from the only employee at the stand. He happened to order from the pick up window though so the employee told him to walk 3 feet over to the oder window before telling him what he wanted since that was the "rule".
In 1949 farming was far different then it is today, 1949 family farms were the norm today its big agri businesses that grow the nations food and the reason laws like this are still in place is because agri corps have lobbyists to pressure congress to keep old family farm laws in place. Farming isn't the only corporation that get out dated benefits, there are still tax dollars used to put phone lines in rural area's, they phone companies finished that task in the early 60's yet the phone companies still get the benefits for the program.
Sen. John Cornyn's views are "outside the mainstream."
"Chuck Grassley's prospective nomination as Defense Secretary...."
Hope you mean Chuck HAGEL...
Sometimes errors just fly by the editors - Steve, you need to fix this one ;-)
Yes, we don't need to be thinking about a Defense Secretary who thinks suicide is "the honorable thing".
I can understand the NRA wanting to deflect the blame for mass shootings. They have a lot to lose if they're seen as promoting gun violence. And in truth, the visual media (TV and mainstream movies) are saturated with darkness and gore. No argument there. I avoid those at all cost, and I don't doubt that they glorify guns and make it seem socially acceptable to be armed at all times.
But the paranoia that's being fostered by the gun lobby/Tea Party/NRA has to be right up there at the top of the list. From the outside looking in, it's shocking to hear people (some of whom are posting on the MaddowBlog site) talk about their fear of home invasion, robbery, shooters in schools or malls or theaters where they think an armed civilian would be the answer. That's just crazy talk and it comes from somewhere. Where do they get those half-truths that they cite as supporting their position, anyhow?
After learning what Wayne LaPierre espoused today, it's clear that the NRA is a primary source of it and he didn't even think to disguise it. Talk about living on another planet.
Well let's see: let's unpack your idiotic statement piece by piece, KKKliff:
1. you automatically ASSume that those "home invaders" would be black. This shows that you are not only an idiot, but a racist one as well.
2. you must be on meth all ready, so it would be noting to offer it to those "home invaders."
3. your statement about your daughter seems like a mean case of projection coupled with the fear of a black man.
4. And if these "home invaders" enter your house they will use guns and good luck defending yourself from them because this is not a chuck norris movie, troll. In real life they would be able to kill you first, but in all likely hood that daughter that you speak so disgustingly of would most likely harm herself or anyone else in your f'ed up house with that gun of yours before any "home invaders" entering your home.
5. and finally: there is something called karma. good luck with THAT too.
There. I just wasted my time on a useless troll.
@Donna J. Edmond: I just put him on Ignore. Serenity reigns. . . . ;-)
LOL JL!
These right wing trolls are so fun! They are such bitter trolls, so angry that their guy lost that it is quite amusing to me. Trolls are a good thing: the remind everyone why Obama won, that the right wing media continues to keep them uneducated and uninformed and just all around bigoted troll individuals.
Not Chuck Grassley, Chuck Hagel.
I hope Rachel does a segment on Wayne's speech today.
The NRA is useful. They can shoot their way out of the protective bubble their side lives in...
Charles Pierce's description of the modern Republican Party is spot-on (as usual)
"There is no possible definition by which the Republicans can be considered an actual political party any more. They can be defined as a loose universe of inchoate hatreds, or a sprawling confederation of collected resentments, or an unwieldy conglomeration of self-negating orthodoxies, or an atonal choir of rabid complaint, or a cargo cult of quasi-religious politics and quasi-political religion, or simply the deafening abandoned YAWP of our bitter national Id. But they are not a political party because they have rendered themselves incapable of politics"
WOW, best description of GOP I've heard. Andrew Sullivan, The Daily Beast, has a great article today too, "Enough, GOP".
http://andrewsullivan.thedailybeast.com/2012/12/enough.html
for those who had trouble finding the article like I did at first....
EXCELLENT piece!!!
I'm glad it's not REALLY Charles Grassley nominated for defense...that guy has gone koo koo for cocoa puffs.
Protect our schools...what about using pepper spray set in ceiling nozzles like sprinkler systems at the entrance ways.. Controlled by a button in the office and possibly other locations in the school. It would incapicate the intruder quickly without exposing children or staff to bullets.
No offense but that's a really fracking stupid idea. I know you mean well however what you're proposing is..in a word impossible.....not with the technology and political climate we have today. Furthermore it would likely be entirely ineffective not even mentioning the costs. Pepper spray is only effective at a short distance and can be easily countered. If you had glasses/googles or a bandana covering your face you probably would be only mildly irritated not really down for the count.
The costs would be gigantic. Many of our schools can not afford enough text books, computers, or teachers right now. Our schools are already broke as it is. Installing such a system would require a lot pepper spray reservoir tank which I imagine would be pretty big, not sure they make containers for it at the amount you'd probably need. Then you have to put in cameras, many schools have it but a ton of them really don't, that requires whirring to be put in place as well.
In short it wouldn't work. In order to incapacitate the person before they would expose the people inside that building to gun fire you'd need a massive cone or some large nozzle. Next the guns could be shot out. If the doors are unlocked a shooter would have little trouble getting through with minimal exposure to the spray very easily. We'd need automatic locks aka more gargantuan spending to make that happen. Plus if you have a high powered rifle you don't need to be close to a target to hit it, the range of those weapons is long. The only way that could be mitigated is buy cracking down more on these high powered weapons till then we're still going to be outgunned no matter what we do.
And while we're on the subject pepper spray reduces the effectiveness of an enemy to fight but they can still do plenty of swinging, they just won't be able to clearly make out what they're striking at.
Most importantly we don't need to take such drastic tremendous spending actions because school shootings are rare. Schools that feel they need armed security or metal detectors have them. Many schools don't because they do not have a need for it so forcing them to do it would be stupid spending. We don't need weapons to stop shootings. Honestly the very idea that people in the media suggest that we need more of these guns or those guys in our schools to prevent columbine-style assaults is disturbing. You are not supposed to have to worry about a school massacre like it's just a common part of everyday life. What kind of country are we in if we are seeing these things as something that's just ordinary? It's a terrifying notion that normalizes these abnormal deeds. The primary idea in addressing gun deaths is largely about street crime not these awful, but very rare, events. It's the inner cities which it would do the most good in, that's why folks want it.
ok,what I suggested might not work, but my thoughts are what is called "brainstorming" in hopes that it might bring on outside the box thinking instead of this fracking more guns crap...toss out any and all ideas and see where it leads...fracking stupid or not, at least I am trying to widen the discussion....
Well perhaps but we don't need to protect our schools with any massive projects. Our schools are not actually that unsafe so we don't need to brainstorm, that's what the "more guns" people want. Security isn't the issue, as you know there were guards at Columbine and Virginia Tech, it's access to high powered guns is the issue. Solve that and a lot of our restrictions would probably go away
Didn't Hagel get into office via election fraud when a hacker first showed him how to flip votes on the tabulators...then Hagel disappeared with the information and suddenly won in districts who voted entirely democratic before hand.
Next time a con refers to the dem party as democrat party then we should refer to the repub party as the Publicon party.
The NRA wants every citizen everywhere to be armed and buying large capacity ammo clips (using more bullets) solely to enrich arms dealers and themselves. Real low life scum look at these murdered children and all they can say is "too bad"...too bad there weren't more guns available...too bad???
Through the filibuster the will of the voters has been thwarted. Reduced to being dominated by the minority which is anti democratic anyway you look at it. Of course the judiciary throws it out for 'procedural' problems and a dysfunctional senate continues to be blackmailed by this same minority. Unconstitutional, dysfunctional and obsolete...just what the republicans wanted.
And once again, your sources and links would be where?
Let me get this straight. More guns = fewer shootings...The NRA is full of Oscar Meyers finest!
The repub support for Kerry has a lot to do with whosis who lost big time to Dr. Warren getting another shot at being senator. The Democratic party needs to come up with someone on Dr. Warren's level to compete with whosis who is assured of the knucklehead vote.
Yeah, it's called politics. Just like states gerrymandering districts to make sure the party in control of the state at that time can get their party's candidate elected. Both sides do it and will continue to do so. Anything that will give them an advantage whether it is logical or for the best of the country. No surpise here
Skip...I agree with you completely. Both parties are guilty. Gerrymandering should be completely illegal. Congressional districts should be drawn along county lines based on population. I don't care which party, race or sex it benefits....
here is an article about the subject...it talks primarily about how the Republicans used it to their advantage, but a few key lines in the article talk about how Democrats do the same thing when they can. the recent problem for the Democrats is that they have forgotten how important control of the state houses is.
http://www.southernstudies.org/2012/12/how-dark-money-helped-republicans-hold-the-house-and-hurt-voters.html
just saying...
ABSOLUTELY!
Just that: the republicans have done it MORE and in MORE states, but hey, the "both sides do it" meme has been quite effective in letting the repubs do so much gerrymandering!
Which is a good thing: The GOP has pretty much exhausted the ability to gerrymander to their advantage. There are limits to how many vote sinks you can make.
Any close districts can easily flip with only minor demographic changes. And the GOP is doing themselves no favor by becoming so extreme. They easily could shoot themselves in the foot and lose the majority from 2014 onwards, and post 2020 they'll basically be history barring another debacle like 2010.
I am glad that the repubs are such dirty rotten cheaters!
BLAM!!! and look what happened:
Robme/????: who's he? Oh! he's the dude that got 47% of the vote!
LOL!!!!!
As usual Donna comes in without anything substantive to add to the discussion. Her response is to say..."they did it first"...instead of presenting solutions.
just saying...
Good afternoon KKKliff.
Nobody mentioned racist inbred redneck trolls but you are all ready here.
btw: you are wrong again. robme recieved 47.1% of thee 47 vote, so you might bother to look at other sources besides your right wing ones.
I guess the 47% of people robme was talking about includes numb nuts like yourself. LOL!
As usual stormfront posts nothing but right wing bull@!$%# talking points and is a right wing troll.
And I just stated the facts and you just can't stand that I am correct.
just sayin...
Why does every news report about gun control show someone shooting &/or a gun store? Rarely is that balanced with headlines about shootings/suicides/statistics on gun deaths. People whose loved ones were killed probably are traumatized seeing guns, even if just on t.v. Has a reporter ever asked someone who does target shooting with a gun why they enjoy it? I liked archery when younger but that requires a bit more effort than a trigger squeeze & I had retrieved the arrows from the target.
Why do tv reports on gun control always show someone shooting at a target &/or a gun store? Where are the headlines on killings, suicides & death rates? People who had a loved one killed are probably traumatized seeing guns on t.v. reports. When will a reporter ask a gun target shooter what is so enjoyable about squeezing a trigger? Archery at least requires some effort & retrieving the arrows.
Kerry is a rich, dishonest, self-serving ass hole. He'll be a disgrace to this country and will never be as good as Hillary.
1) I tried to find information about Wayne LaPierre's "history" on-line, like when he graduated from high school. He graduated in 1967, making him of prime draft age for the Vietnam War. He then went on to Sienna and then Boston College. Did he get a college deferment? Multiple deferments? What was his draft number? Did he pull a "Dick Cheney"? Maybe even 4F due to some disability? IOW, is Wayne LaPierre just another war-mongering right-wing chickenhawk, like Dick Cheney, someone who never served in the U.S. military (like all of today's House Republicans), with a gun fetish, subverting our democracy and sinking safety in our society?
2) Several years ago, "News of the Weird" noticed a pattern involving police crime reports (murders, thefts, etc) in which perpetrators kept popping up with the same middle name, "Wayne." For instance, John "Wayne" Gacy. "News of the Weird" posted columns of the name "Wayne" showing up in crime reports from around the country. Is the "Wayne" in Wayne LaPierre, therefore, his first (and only) first name or is it maybe his middle name (because many Americans have two names before their family's name, but often only use one)? I couldn't find out on-line, whether LaPierre's full name might be John Wayne LaPierre (like John Wayne Gacy). Does anyone know? I'm not saying necessarily that Wayne LaPierre is similar to John Wayne Gacy, but only that "News of the Weird" just noticed a pattern involving the name "Wayne" in people's names on police crime blotters. But after hearing Wayne LaPierre's NRA talk, he does come across as a psychopath, sociopath like John Wayne Gacy, so maybe "News of the Weird" was onto something.
You posted your troll response in the wrong spot, trollie.
So you were walking around the trailer park that you live in, and came to a fellow inbred redneck troll that asked you for some money. Hardly surprising for someone who lives where you do.
So no, I wouldn't call it a coincidence at all.
And you can post that 49.4% voted against Obama all you'd like but it doesn't make it true, racist inbred redneck troll.
And you are the one who needs to take some remedial math courses to even be able to talk to me about numbers, inbred redneck troll.
And here's a test: If an inbred redneck troll marries his sister, f--ks her, and has 3 kids with her, do they get more money from the welfare check that they accuse others of collecting?
Further: does it get that inbred redneck sister off the block turning tricks by having sex with her brother? Or does the sister's trick turning continue because the redneck inbred troll has the IQ of 70 and have never finished Highschool? Whose kids would those little redneck b@stards belong to? See: that is not needed to solve the math equation(I gave you a hint there, inbred redneck troll: you're welcome) but never the less, is relevant to the overall situation.
And: their trailer has one bedroom but the inbred rednecks have 3 kids, so how many more bedrooms would they need to house their little retarded offspring?
I will actually give you the answer, since you are the product of inbreeding:
None. Because you will just raise them to sleep with each other and have more inbred offspring.
I consider it my duty to help inbred redneck trolls like you.
You're welcome.
I am glad that you do, inbred redneck troll. I feel sorry for "people" like you and all of those inbred retarded redneck children that have to live in that trailer park you live in.
Don't I know it. Educated people support uneducated inbred redneck conservatards like you and your little inbred retarded children.
Educated uptown people have the ablity to be compassionate and care for the less fortunate people including inbred redneck conservatards, who technically are not considered to be human.
inbred redneck conservatards like yourself are incapable of feeling compassion. Inbred redneck conservatards like yourself are only capable of feeling primitive emotions: fear and hate.
And I am sure that inbred redneck conservatards will "make it" because they depend upon the educated to take care of them. Unfortunately, inbred redneck conservatards are too ignorant to acknowledge that fact and are ungreatful little retarded and backwards thinking creatures.
And that response is typical for inbred redneck conservatards like yourself: you identify with the wealthy in hopes of being them someday. When in reality you sit in your trailer park and depend on the government for your well being.
Being firmly removed from reality is typical for ignorant inbred redneck conservatards like yourself.
And unfortunately for you there is nothing funny about it.
I am sure sitting in your inbred redneck trailer park, depending on the government while posting ignorant bull@!$%# on this thread is quite funny to you.
The thing is: it is not funny to the educated people who support your ignorant inbred redneck ass and the ignorant inbred bastard children of yours who are on this thread.
So keep laughing, ignorant inbred redneck troll.
While others either laugh at you while others find you unfunny see you as the ignorant inbred redneck conservatard that you are.
And again your post shows that you are in inbred redneck conservatard that obviously doesn't know what the words "support" "liberals" or "poor decision making" means.
So go back to your trailer park and your inbred bastards and your government handout and go @!$%# yourself.
Happy Holidays.
Here's another possible reason (other than guns) for why Columbine happened. After all, there are 89 million gun owners in this country. If 99.97% of them don't use their guns to kill other people, then maybe it's not the guns.
http://psychiatricfraud.org/2011/04/the-real-lesson-of-columbine-psychiatric-drugs-induce-violence/
Thanks for the link.
ABSOLUTELY right!
Those two boys were trippin on bad drugs. And then they went off and picked up two knives and a baseball bat and went to the school...
No, wait, they armed themselves with automatic weapons and bullets because that is what was READILY AVAILABLE to them.
What was your point?
Yes. All those kids those two killed were bullying them. Sure. That explains it and justifies the horrendous act.
Boy, you are one sick troll.
And again: another stellar answer from an incredibly ignorant redneck troll!
BRAVO!!!
So KKKlif what does an inbred redneck conservatard do on a Sat night. Maybe burn a cross on someone's lawn? Or maybe a sing along at the trailer park with the song to "Hillbilly Deluxe?"
Most interesting, indeed, Alva- thanks for the link.
Perhaps this needs to be re-posted, when the masses are awake and eager to be astonished. I know i was.
While I have never been a proponent of a complete gun ban, people like Alva Goldbook could change my mind!
Maybe he should keep posting his nonsense - cause if everyone sees its utter fools like him that have guns, more people will be convinced that it is time to just get rid of all guns!!
Typical ignorant response from an ignorant redneck troll.
Nothing more to see here, folks.... just another idiot troll posting.
I really hope we don't over look mental illness in these tragedies. When I was in my early 20's (about 10 years ago) I used to volunteer at homeless shelters and a few food banks. I noticed that a lot of the people who came through there didn't seem all that sane. So I began studying psychology and really focused on abnormal psychology (the study of mental illness). It really was quite startling to see just how many of these wide ranging social issues overlapped with other social issues.
People get born into poverty and income inequality. This leads them to never achieving in school, much less have the option for college. Crime becomes one of the best economic opportunities. Those who don't turn to crime eventually get beat down by having their economic backs against the wall their whole lives. This leads them to go insane.
So many of these things are interconnected. And people pretend that putting a band aid on the problem will fix it, when they're not putting together the pieces of what caused the problem in the first place.
Refusing to see the larger picture can often lead to cruel and callus policy decisions. You'll hear Black America getting blamed for having broken families and children with absent fathers. Yet it was the draconian drug laws that put them behind bars for life when the same drug in powder form in the hands of a corporate executive in a 3 piece suit gets ignored.
Broken families lead to ever more poverty, which leads to more insanity, more inequality, more crime just to get by.
It's absurd.
Then you see people blame these mass shootings on bullying or violent video games and movies or some other nonsense. Doctors and nurses in emergency rooms see a ton of violence, but for some reason they never go on shooting sprees. Then they act like it's bullying.
Anyone ever think that maybe it's because human beings didn't evolve to spend 8-9 hours sitting behind a desk? That perhaps bullying is an immature form of male bonding? That maybe ADHD isn't a mental disorder, but rather a skill that allows someone to focus on many things at once?
There's so many things about modern human civilization that is just unnatural. I believe we're beginning to push the limits of what we can naturally endure. We're continually plugged into social media instead of being plugged into each other. Our families, our friends, our loved ones, our communities.
We can talk to other people all over the world just sitting behind a keyboard, but it's a poor substitute to cracking open a couple brewskies with your friends.
We have become disconnected from nature. The nature out there and the nature of ourselves. And I think that this, probably more than anything, is making us all insane.
Ny City has 31000 gun permits for 9 million residents Florida as a whole a million permits for 19 million people Are you 150 times more likely to get shot in Miami than New York? The "gun violence" statistic includes over 50 percent suicides so I'd imagine in the more restrictive states people find other ways to off themselves.
Re James Hormel's statement about Hagel:
An "opportunistic" apology by a politician? Good heavens! Get me some smelling salts!
Rush Limbaugh is a classless act and always has been. He doesn't care about anyone unless they can contribute to his ratings. He's a media whore.
There is power in the gun – great power: The power to take life, human life, precious loving and caring life. With great power there is even greater responsibility: We gun owners must face up to that responsibility. Many gun owners feel that the threat on our gun rights is a threat on freedom itself – and it is. Precious freedom has already been taken from us - and we must whole-heartedly work to restore that freedom: the freedom to send our children out into our community without fear and intimidation. This is not rocket science. No one solution is enough but many and all should be part of this conversation. It is time for us gun owners to be more than "bumper sticker" clichés. It is time for the NRA to represent responsible gun owner. The responsible gun owner is indeed the solution but I don’t think it is in packing and arming more of the populace, is it really? I truly feel that solution is simpler, safer, and so self evident but this is a conversation for us all. We can find solutions. How do we get guns out of the hands of crazies and criminals? If we are not a part of the solution then our right to own a gun needs threatened. In my own humble opinion, as we do our vehicles, we need to license guns and perhaps testing before a license, would ensure more responsible gun ownership practices, also we should mandate insurance on the gun and gun owner. Let the insurance companies face the responsibility for who they insure: Perhaps it won’t take a big payout before they implement psychiatric testing. We need to get the guns out of the hands of crazies and the irresponsible if we really want to keep our rights…Just sayin’