Monday, January 18, 2016

MLK Monday Moobies


Greetings, gentle Dot Calm readers!

Before we break out the popcorn for Martin Luther King, Jr., Day moobies, let me ask: did you watch the Democratic debate last night?

We did, and, boy, were we impressed with all three candidates. Any one of them would make a great president in general, let alone compared to even the best of the Republicans...any idea who that would be? Twit Romney, perhaps? Can I write in David Brooks?

I liked Martin O'Malley's message of building on the positive and finding unity--you won't hear that from Money Boo Boo. I appreciated Hillary for bringing up the longest laundry list of issues, proving that she has her finger on the nation's  pulse and its recent history. I applauded Bernie's truth-telling regarding the root causes of why the country is in the mess it's in today--namely, Big Money...Big Money in business and Big Money in politics. And I was glad Martin and Bernie called Hillary out when she lied. I also appreciated the times the candidates agreed with one another.

What I did not like is the fact that Hillary did and does lie to promote herself. If she had a strong enough candidacy, she would not need to be dishonest. She has been a shameless self-promoter for so long that she probably can't turn that ship around at this point. I wish someone she trusted would tell her that she's not helping herself by solidifying her reputation as a liar. I did not like how little air time NBC gave Martin O'Malley. He had a lot of good talking points that Hillary and Bernie did not bring up. I was also disappointed in parts of Bernie's presentation: even though he is absolutely right about the issues, he wasted more than one opportunity to explain himself in some depth. His greatest lost opportunity--a wonderful gimme handed to him by the moderators--was the request to explain democratic socialism. He had a chance to defang the fear Americans quake under whenever they hear the "s"-word, but he blew it by talking instead about Big Money. It was the one question he completely sidestepped, and it would have been the one answer to allay fear and suspicion among American voters: explaining creates familiarity, and familiarity defuses fear. I guess he thinks that it's obvious what democratic socialism is because we already have it: Social Security, Medicaid and Medicare, federally-maintained interstates, the military, etc. Does he not know that FOX is drumming up fear by equating socialism with communism and all the notorious communist regimes that ever existed (oh, and evil ATHEISM for good measure)? Frankly, I was also disappointed that Hillary received the most applause--Bernie has a stronger platform across the board. Nobody understands fundamental cause and effect like he does, and nobody else has the integrity or the balls to pull out the malignant tumors by the roots.

In my last post, I said, "Bernie Sanders is not some radical trying for some crazy socialist revolution." Well, he did speak of revolution last night--and a Sanders presidency would indeed see a revolutionary redistribution of money and power back to the hands of the producers of wealth--us workers--rather than its takers (the idle rich). So I stand corrected in that regard; however, I agree with the first part of the statement that Bernie is not a radical. He isn't. It's just that, as I posted in a star banner on Wednesday, FOX and the Republicans have hauled everything so far to the right that anything even remotely reasonable now sounds extremely liberal. Ah well.

It was a good debate on serious issues, and the candidates were able to address the issues and each other (when they let Martin speak, that is). I also greatly appreciated that the debate was founded in reality...unlike the Republican debates, where history and facts are made up and science and evidence don't matter.

And now, it's time to pull out the popcorn!

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Here comes Money Boo Boo
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Hillary Clinton LIES about Bernie Sanders--it's not her attacks but the content (hint: it's one of the health care whoppers she told last night, which she backs up using Republican attack numbers not based in fact; the truth is that Bernie would cut our deductibles by cutting out the for-profit middleman). For-profit has NO place in insurance, health care, or education because, when you're driven by profit in these industries, it drives you NOT to provide services.

 
The big winner of the 2016 Republican debate? Bernie Sanders! I like The Young Turks because they call it when either side screws up. In a separate video, they proclaim Ted Cruz the biggest loser (of the debate, that is).

FOX hires Black people to trash Black people:

Chemical lobbies stop the Fed/EPA from regulating toxic chemicals, and they want to undo states' regulations on toxic chemicals. So, Republicans--you really think your beloved Godly corporations can really be trusted to keep your best interests at heart? Democrats, do you really think your representatives represent you? This is why we need Bernie Sanders!

The Young Turks on FOX News, the torture report, and a major difference between conservatives and liberals:

Instead of being outraged at taxpayer-funded torture, Glenn Beck gets his panties in a wad over a cartoon:

Aww, mean old Dr. Phil pops poor FOX's bubble by speaking reasonably. Meanwhile, where is the character, and where are the parents, of those white cops gunning down unarmed black kids?

Atheist trolls play Glenn Beck like a fiddle:

Too funny--FOX wants Affirmative Action? Yes, but only for conservative professors!

FOX News: say NO to Reason; the Scientific Enlightenment was evil! Hmmm, they must be listening to televangelist Joyce Meyer. You remember her--the one with the $30,000.00 toilet.

Secular Talk on ridiculous Bible verses:

Biblical absurdities and Jesus myths with AronRa:

How much do you know about Jehovah's Witnesses? I had no idea of all the abuse, but it makes sense when your mentality comes from the Bible or the Quran. The minute you legislate that one class of human being is above the other, abuse is the natural fallout.

Remembering Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.:
I Have a Dream.