Seldom right, never in doubt
Greetings, fellow Dot Calm Readers, Freedom Fighters, and Truth Crusaders!
There are some things about my Tea Party Christian friend that drive me nuts.
He is what my dad calls "seldom right but never in doubt."
You can't talk with someone like him because he doesn't listen to a word you say--heck, he doesn't even listen to a word he says!
(I'm sure he really does hear what he himself says, but he denies so much of it that you really would swear that he can't hear himself speak.)
Like Mike Pence in the video in todaze m00bies, my Tea Party Christian friend completely misunderstands the world around him, but that doesn't stop him from being completely smug that he's the expert.
Doesn't he realize that so many of his beliefs are falsifiable?
For example, he pretends to believe the Bible literally.
He doesn't believe the Bible literally, of course--who with more than one firing brain cell could? In particular, my Tea Party Christian friend is an old earth creationist, which already means that he couldn't get through Chapter 1 of Genesis and believe it literally any more than I could.
I wonder if he believes the story of Jacob's goat-breeding escapades in Genesis 30:25 literally. Go ahead and read the story now...I'll wait.
Then Jacob took fresh sticks of poplar and almond and plane trees, and peeled white streaks in them, exposing the white of the sticks. He set the sticks that he had peeled in front of the flocks in the troughs, that is, the watering places, where the flocks came to drink. And since they bred when they came to drink, the flocks bred in front of the sticks and so the flocks brought forth striped, speckled, and spotted. (ESV)
Did you see it? Jacob whittles stripes into some branches and arranges them around the water trough so that the goats without markings will see the stripey scenery while they mate, producing offspring that are marked...spotted, striped, and (in the King James Version) ringstraked (what the hell is a ringstrake, anyway? Let me check teh Google...oh! Ringstraked means having circular stripes. I guess like a bullseye. Now I know!).
It doesn't matter that Jacob was able to breed the solid goats to get marked ones--perhaps markings are a recessive trait in that type of goat. What matters is that, when God wrote His book--as my friend claims is what happened--God made a point of including this...odd...breeding mechanism. God doesn't use the opportunity to speak something profound, like teaching His children about genetics...genes and chromosomes that are invisible to the naked eye...something they had no way of knowing...something that would have truly shown the Bible to be divine...indisputably for all people in all places and all times.
No...God makes it clear in His book that He believes that offspring's appearance is determined by scenery, not genetics.
Friends, this is a testable hypothesis (and you thought I was going to say "detestable hypothesis").
Just find yourself an animal breeder and see for yourself whether the offspring look like their families or whether they look like where they were bred.
If God were speaking the literal truth in this story, then we would expect to see breeding pairs of dogs that are placed in rooms with striped wallpaper producing striped puppies.
But you know what? That's exactly what we don't see. Why? Because that's not how the world works.
Just try convincing people like Mike Pence and my Tea Party Christian friend of that, though.
They are sooooo convinced they're right...AND THEY VOTE.
Be afraid, my friends--be VERY afraid.
Don't forget to read Dot Calm's shadow's favorite independent sources of news and information:
Daily Kos
AlterNet
Peas, friends. Take care of yourselves for me...and don't forget to live a little. Trust me--you're worth it! Hugz!!
- Dot Calm's shadow
Consider the preemptive Blogger phuqued-up phormatting disclaimer to be in effect. Grrr.
-- Dot Calm's shadow
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Democrats really might have a shot at taking the House. Here's the math.
Trump's modeling agency encouraged models to work illegally on tourist visas
...but that's ok because those models are white and European. Trumpkins couldn't care less that Trump and the models broke our immigration laws. I'm sure they also don't care that Trump's modeling agency and others like it charge those women most of their earnings for shitty "dorms."
What do black people like me have to lose if Trump wins? Everything.
...As in, EVERYTHING.
9 days, 11 positions: Donald Trump's spectacular immigration flameout
A new poll shows most Republicans appear to regret nominating Donald Trump
...Sad!
Donald Trump is flying to Mexico because he's losing
...Very insightful article into the head of Trump-the-ersatz-"deal-maker"
Donald Trump started to describe his education policy. Then he never finished his sentence.
Stephen Colbert on Trump's changing immigration stance: It isn't up or down. It's "a firm up-down."
...Hehe!
The bogus claims of the NRA's favorite social scientist, debunked
...Well worth reading and passing along to your favorite ammosexuals. Yep, friends--it turns out that mass shooters do NOT target gun-free zones and are NOT afraid of civilian ammosexuals. Turns out they're much more concerned about the po-po. Also, suicide risk goes up when there's a gun in the house, and children accidentally shoot themselves and each other more than this John Lott, Jr., ammosexual claims.
Red tape at the FDA doesn't explain America's high drug prices
...Turns out it's a combination of too much regulation in some situations, like allowing generics into the market, and not enough in others, like letting drug companies set their own prices.
Insurers are quitting Obamacare — and rural America will pay the price
...Bottom line? We need single payer NOW!
Teen births are plummeting — and the reason is incredibly simple
...It's called easy access to good birth control. You know--the kind Republicans want to take away.
Anthony Weiner and the rise of dick pics, explained
President Obama just extended the "state of emergency" that's existed for 15 years
...as in, why not just call it "permanent" instead of pretending it-snot?
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I'm still getting myself
back into the groove
after my trip out of town
or I'd spend more time on this sad news.
The amazing and funny
Gene Wilder
deserved so much more from me
than a plagiarized meme on this blawg.
Rest in Peace, dear one!
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Mailbag
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| Enterprise Rent-A-Car must stop funding the American Legislative Exchange Council | |
| The petition to Enterprise Rent-A-Car reads:
“The American Legislative Exchange Council’s opposition to clean energy directly contradicts your stated commitment to sustainability. Stop funding climate change denial and immediately end your membership in ALEC.”
Add your name:
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From UltraViolet--Stop Google from misinforming pregnant women
Google is putting vulnerable women in danger.
Two years ago, under pressure from our allies at NARAL, Google agreed to take down a slew of ads from "crisis pregnancy centers" (CPCs) -- fraudulent medical centers that lure women in to harass them out of seeking an abortion.1
But like these centers themselves, Google lied. UltraViolet members and staff just uncovered more of these ads across four states -- and two million women a month who search "abortion" or "abortion clinic" are seeing them.2
Google is helping trick women in vulnerable positions who end up wasting their time and money to be lured into false clinics where they are harassed, yelled at, and lied to. But public pressure has led Google to enforce its honest advertising policies before -- we can make them do it again. Can you sign the petition?
Tell Google: "Keep your word. Take down ads that intentionally lie to women seeking information about abortion."
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If a woman clicks through on one of these misleading ads and makes an appointment, she might think she'll see a real medical provider, and she won’t know what she’s gotten into until she spends time and money--perhaps even finding child care--to get to a CPC in person. Once there, she’ll likely face manipulation, misinformation, and even shame. Examples include:
- Giving misleading and dangerous medical advice. In one case, a CPC lured women in by offering a free ultrasound and told them, "You should realize you may not need an abortion! About 1 in 4 pregnancies ends naturally, in what is called a miscarriage or spontaneous abortion," going on to encourage visitors to "come in today to see if you are a candidate for natural pregnancy termination."
- Counseling women to stay in an unsafe environment. In another case, a CPC counselor spoke with a young mother of two who was considering an abortion because her boyfriend was abusive, and she needed to do what was best for her children. The counselor argued for her to stay in the abusive relationship, telling her, "for all you know, the baby changes him."
- Telling women that abortion causes cancer, sterility, and psychological damage, all of which are blatant lies.3
The problem is that these anti-choice ads look harmless--and are designed to trick women. Medical fraud centers need to play by the same advertising rules as everyone else. A woman using the search terms "abortion clinic" likely is seeking abortion care, which CPCs do not provide. Women deserve medically accurate, unbiased information, not lies and deception. UltraViolet members have no tolerance for ads that seek to deceive women, and neither should Google.
Sign the petition demanding Google keep its word, and take down ads that intentionally lie to women seeking abortion information.
Thanks for speaking out.
--Nita, Shaunna, Kat, Karin, Adam, Holly, Kaili, Kathy, Onyi, Susan, Anathea, Audine, Shannon, Megan, Libby, and Emma, the UltraViolet team
Sources:
1. Google removes "deceptive" pregnancy center ads, Washington Post, April 28, 2014
2. Source of CPC Ad 1, UltraViolet
Source of CPC Ad 2, UltraViolet
Source of CPC Ad 3, UltraViolet
Source of CPC Ad 4, UltraViolet
Reproductive Rights Groups Pressure Yahoo To Drop Deceptive ‘Crisis Pregnancy Center’ Ads, ThinkProgress, May 8, 2014
3. The Truth about Crisis Pregnancy Centers, NARAL Pro-Choice America, January 1, 2014
Want to support our work? UltraViolet is funded by members like you, and our tiny staff ensures small contributions go a long way. Chip in here.
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From Daily Kos--Stop Facebook from colluding with irresponsible police
on August 1, Baltimore County police killed Korryn Gaines and injured her 5-year-old son. Korryn was broadcasting videos of the police standoff on her Facebook account, but police requested that Facebook deactivate her account -- and Facebook complied, with no warrant or court injunction.
This sets a dangerous precedent. And it sends loud echoes of when Facebook temporarily removed Diamond Reynolds' live video of Philando Castile's murder in July.
Facebook's videos are powerful tools to document police brutality and misconduct. The public outcry against police misconduct has been greatly bolstered by civilian videos. We need all the tools we can to end the epidemic of police violence against Black people and other people of color.
Without video, the police accounts of these encounters stand unchallenged.
Facebook is not an arm of the police, and it should not enable the police to control public access to publicly shared information. By shielding police misbehavior and cutting people off from crucial support networks in the midst of police encounters, Facebook defeats the purpose of social media.
Facebook's CEO Mark Zuckerberg says he supports the Movement for Black Lives. Just last month, the company hung a massive #BlackLivesMatter banner on its campus. Words are not enough; actions count.
Facebook needs to show, unequivocally, that it supports people fighting against police abuses. They need to put the videos back up and strengthen support for legislation protecting the right to upload videos of police behavior.
Sign the petition now to Mark Zuckerberg: stand for Black lives and stop Facebook's censorship.
Keep fighting,
Irna Landrum, Daily Kos
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From UltraViolet--Fire Bill O'Reilly for sexual harassment
Fox News is unraveling. First, decades-long CEO Roger Ailes was ousted for sexual harassment. Now, host Bill O'Reilly is named in another lawsuit--and by fellow host Andrea Tantaros.3
The details of the lawsuit are nauseating. O'Reilly tried to lure Tantaros into his home and kept asking her to show him her "wild side."
There's more: Tantaros revealed that the brand new CEO, Bill Shine, knew that O'Reilly and Ailes harassed her but told her to shut up about it.
Fox News is once again dealing with a public relations nightmare. We can push them to get rid of O'Reilly and Shine--like we pushed them to fire Ailes--if enough of us speak out.4 Will you add your name?
Tell 21st Century
Fox: Clean up the disgusting culture of sexual abuse at Fox News. Start
by firing Bill O'Reilly and Bill Shine.
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Tantaros points out that Ailes did not act alone. She named several male Fox News contributors in addition to O'Reilly and Ailes and claimed executives helped cover the abuse up. Every top Fox News executive she came forward to ignored her complaints--and took her off the air.5
When former Fox News CEO Roger Ailes was slapped with a lawsuit, 50,000 UltraViolet members spoke out and successfully forced Fox to get rid of him. Now, with another lawsuit naming Bill O'Reilly, who hosts the most popular show on Fox News, and new CEO Bill Shine, who was very carefully chosen to replace Ailes following the scandal, Fox is once again dragged into the spotlight for endangering women in the workplace.
A few weeks back, UltraViolet members forced Ailes out of Fox News when it came to light he has harassed countless women while he was CEO. Getting rid of Ailes was a crucial step in stopping sexist abuse at Fox. But sexual harassment at Fox News won't stop until everyone who participated and covered it up is held accountable--and we can make sure of that if we all speak out again.
Can you demand Fox fix its sexual harassment problem?
--Nita, Shaunna, Kat, Karin, Adam, Holly, Kaili, Kathy, Onyi, Susan, Anathea, Audine, Shannon, Megan, Libby, and Emma, the UltraViolet team
Sources:
1. Fox News Slams Andrea Tantaros as 'Wannabe' Over Sexual Misconduct Claims, ABC News, August 29, 2016
2. Fox News chief Ailes resigns after sexual harassment claims, Reuters, July 22, 2016
3. The Explosive New Sexual Harassment Allegations Against Bill O'Reilly, Detailed, ThinkProgress, August 23, 2016
4. Fox News chief Ailes resigns after sexual harassment claims, Reuters, July 22, 2016
5. Andrea Tantaros of Fox News Claims Retaliation for Sex Harassment Complaints, New York Times, August 22, 2016
Want to support our work? UltraViolet is funded by members like you, and our tiny staff ensures small contributions go a long way. Chip in here.
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As a school nurse, I've seen the anguish on students’ faces as they realize they’re starting to have an allergic reaction. They’re terrified, as their tongues swell up, they break out in hives and their breathing becomes labored.
When this happens, I know I only have seconds to ensure that the child gets a dose of epinephrine, using an EpiPen. My school district doesn’t stock EpiPens. So we can only hope parents send their children to school with this lifesaving device.
You’ve probably read about the spike in EpiPen prices, but you might not have heard this: Hedge fund manager and top Donald Trump donor John Paulson, one of Mylan Pharmaceuticals’ biggest investors, may be profiting from the jump in prices.
Tell John Paulson and Mylan Pharmaceuticals to stop profiting from EpiPens.
In the United States, 3.6 million people have an EpiPen prescription to treat severe allergic reactions.
Paulson has invested $1 billion in Mylan Pharmaceuticals, the company that owns EpiPen, making him one of its biggest investors. Since Paulson’s firm began massive investment in Mylan, the price of this crucial drug has spiked—by 32 percent over the past year and by a whopping 450 percent since 2007. Hedge funds and private equity are closely linked to spiking drug costs. According to an analysis by Hedge Clippers, a national campaign exposing Wall Street’s greed-driven agenda, hedge funds or other private equity investments were involved in 20 of 25 recent drug-cost spikes.
Most families simply can’t afford to pay $600 for EpiPens. As a school nurse, it sickens me to see hedge fund profiteering as families and children lose access to this lifesaving medication.
The price gouging of EpiPens is a matter of life and death for millions of people, including my students. When a student shows signs of anaphylaxis, an EpiPen quickly halts the symptoms. But if the drug is no longer affordable, the only alternative is to call emergency medical services and hope they arrive in time.
Join us in telling John Paulson and Mylan Pharmaceuticals to put children and families before greed and profit.
In unity,
Patricia Forrai-Gunter
School Nurse, Cleveland
AFT Nurses and Health Professionals PPC
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“Aetna warned it would drop out of Obamacare exchanges if its merger was blocked”
-The Washington Post, 8/17/16
Friend -
There is simply no denying the positive impact the Affordable Care Act (ACA) has had for hardworking American families.
Uninsured rates remain at
historic lows, and millions of Americans are finally able to receive
the care they need because of President Obama and the ACA.
But it the wake of health
insurance giant Aetna’s abrupt departure from most state health care
exchanges this month -- a move that was likely motivated by retaliation
-- we need to talk about how we can better stabilize the market.
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Since we launched our petition calling on Congress to oppose any
legislation that would privatize veterans' health care, more than 30,000
people added their name. That number includes
* More than 10,000 veterans
* Hundreds of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans
* 13,000 military family members
Now it's important we take that message directly into the offices of your members of Congress.
Use our Contact Congress tool to tell your member of the House of Representatives and your U.S. Senators that you oppose any legislation that will privatize veterans' health care.
There are fewer members of Congress who have served in the military than at any point in decades.
So when we see the Koch Brothers putting their extraordinary wealth towards a campaign to privatize veterans' care just to pad the profits of large health care companies, we have to act.
That's why writing your members of Congress is so important.
Thanks for making your voice heard.
All my best,
Jon Soltz
Iraq War Veteran and Chairman
VoteVets
CONTRIBUTE
* More than 10,000 veterans
* Hundreds of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans
* 13,000 military family members
Now it's important we take that message directly into the offices of your members of Congress.
Use our Contact Congress tool to tell your member of the House of Representatives and your U.S. Senators that you oppose any legislation that will privatize veterans' health care.
There are fewer members of Congress who have served in the military than at any point in decades.
So when we see the Koch Brothers putting their extraordinary wealth towards a campaign to privatize veterans' care just to pad the profits of large health care companies, we have to act.
That's why writing your members of Congress is so important.
Thanks for making your voice heard.
All my best,
Jon Soltz
Iraq War Veteran and Chairman
VoteVets
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From Bernie Sanders--Let's win the Senate!
As a result of your activism, our political revolution is responsible
for the most progressive Democratic platform in the history of our
country. We were victorious in making it a clear priority of the
Democratic Party to fight for a $15 an hour federal minimum wage, expand
Social Security, abolish the death penalty, put a price on carbon,
enact major criminal justice reforms, end for-profit prisons and
detention facilities, break up too-big-to-fail banks and create a 21st
century Glass-Steagall Act, and so much more.
And just the other day, the Republican leadership in the Senate
announced that the TPP would not be coming to the floor this year.
Another major victory.
All of that is the direct result of the grassroots activism that you,
and millions of others, engaged in over the last 16 months. Now, we must
continue our efforts by electing progressive Democrats up and down the
ballot so that the policies we have fought for can advance and become
law.
For the future of our country, and our progressive agenda, it
is imperative that Democrats regain control of the Senate. My guess is
that will all come down to which party wins three or four hotly
contested races in states like Pennsylvania, New Hampshire, Ohio and
Nevada.
The Koch brothers know this. That is why they are spending tens of
millions of dollars to defeat these four candidates for Senate.
And that's why I'm asking you to support them: Katie McGinty in
Pennsylvania, Maggie Hassan in New Hampshire, Ted Strickland in Ohio,
and Catherine Cortez Masto in Nevada. If these four Democrats win the
tight elections they are currently in, the Democrats will almost
certainly take control of the Senate.
And what a world of difference that will make: real campaign finance
reform, raising the minimum wage, making public colleges and
universities tuition free, addressing the planetary crisis of climate
change, progressive taxation, reforming our broken criminal justice
system, comprehensive immigration reform and many other important
issues.
Split a contribution to help Katie McGinty, Maggie Hassan, Ted
Strickland, and Catherine Cortez Masto become senators and take back a
progressive majority in the Senate.
If you've saved payment info with ActBlue Express, your donation
will automatically be evenly split between Katie McGinty, Maggie Hassan,
Ted Strickland, and Catherine Cortez Masto:
I want to be clear: It is very important that our movement holds public officials accountable. The Democratic Party passed an extremely progressive agenda at the convention. Our job is to make sure that platform is implemented. That will not happen without Democratic control of the Senate.
- Katie McGinty was one of the first candidates to endorse a $15 minimum wage.
- Maggie Hassan, who is a strong supporter of campaign finance reform, increased transparency and disclosure of political contributions as Governor of New Hampshire.
- Ted Strickland is a fighter for Ohio’s working families who opposes the TPP and believes that we need to completely change the way we negotiate trade deals.
- Catherine Cortez Masto is committed to protecting the environment and knows it’s long past time that we ensure equal pay for women.
Perhaps the most important reason to win a progressive majority in the
Senate is because we must support nominees for the Supreme Court who
will vote to overturn Citizens United.
It is so important we do everything we can to help these four
candidates – Katie McGinty in Pennsylvania, Maggie Hassan in New
Hampshire, Ted Strickland in Ohio, and Catherine Cortez Masto in Nevada –
win their elections in November.
Thank you as always for everything you do for our political revolution.
In solidarity,
Senator Bernie Sanders
Contribute
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*****
SF 49er Colin Kaepernick
sat during the national anthem
to protest police killings of Blacks.
Republicans are up in arms...
but they are not upset about this:
sat during the national anthem
to protest police killings of Blacks.
Republicans are up in arms...
but they are not upset about this:
(I'm kidding...
I Snopes'ed it, and it's no more real
than the faked pix of Barack and Michelle
holding their left hands over their non-hearts)
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Democracy Now!
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Sorry for the repeat, guys 'n' gals,
but I had to see Buff vs Fluff one more time...!
...Yikes! Just look at Trump's lard-ass!!!
No wonder Melania squints...
she's trying to make his bubble butt look smaller!
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Daily Kos
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LOL...
Trump actually thinks
that Hillary scrubbed her e-mail server
*****
Regarding Trump's Mexico trip,
Rob Reiner said,
"Clearly, we’re not sending our best to Mexico.
"Clearly, we’re not sending our best to Mexico.
We’re sending liars.
We’re sending narcissists.
We’re sending sociopaths."
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AlterNet
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So!
Trump LIED
again
when he said
that he and Mexican President Pena Nieto
did not discuss payment
for Trump's border wall.
Apparently, Pena Nieto told Trump
Suck on that, Trump
...you stubby orange fucksicle!
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Movies!
Oh, holy phuque--Pence is every bit as ignorant as Trump, no matter how hard he tries to hide behind his arrogance. This is so phuquen' fuSStrating to watch...I can't believe we still have to keep having this conversation over and over and over...! GRRRRR!!!!! Every phuquen' politician in America needs to watch this phuquen video!!!!!
Ah, phuque. I needs me a laugh...
This should do it...
...Ah, MUCH better now!
'Til next time, check out these great channels:
...or, if you just want something mindless and fun, try Tested
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If we're going to build a wall,
the day Trump is in Mexico
would seem the best day to do it.
-- Mrs. Betty Bowers
posted by Dot Calm @ 6:37 PM
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