Michael Moore and proof of deity’s existence

Posted on 08/31/2008 by SnoopyTheGoon

According to this, the world-famous creator of post-documentary documentaries found a new proof of existence of deity and His/Her attention to political affairs in US of A:

During an appearance Friday on MSNBC, Moore noted the coincidental timing of Gustav, which threatened the Gulf Coast on the third anniversary of Hurricane Katrina as the Republican Party planned to hold its convention in St. Paul, Minn.

“I was just thinking, this Gustav is proof that there is a God in heaven,” the Oscar-winning director of “Fahrenheit 911” said. “To just have it planned at the same time, that it would actually be on its way to New Orleans for Day One of the Republican convention, up in the Twin Cities, at the top of the Mississippi River.”

I was just thinking after reading the above that:

  1. This mug is another proof that the deity exists and that He/She has been unusually cruel toward the mug’s parents. On the other hand, the parents might have sinned mightily – who knows?
  2. Michael Moore must have been paid by Republicans to sabotage the Democrats’ cause.
  3. Krispy Kreme donuts definitely cause brain damage in the long run, especially if a person who is a walking cemetery of these donuts wasn’t a genius to start with.
  4. Being an ugly, fat and lying jerk is not an excuse for moral debauchery. Or for idiocy.
  5. Who is hating America more – Osama or Michael Moore?
  6. Re item 1: Since we have established the existence of the deity, there is a five words message the deity should have passed to the parents (probably mislaid it due to extreme busyness): “Contraception, contraception, contraception!”.
  7. More miscellaneous items that could not be published.

As you might have noticed, the items are not arranged in a particular order. Just thinking, you know…

More on the slobbo here.

Cross-posted on SimplyJews.

Posted in Miscellaneous | 8 Comments

Palestinians creating a child army

Posted on 08/31/2008 by Meryl Yourish

Despicable. Worse than despicable.

In this framework dozens of children have undergone training in the past few days by gunmen from the Salah al-Din Brigades, the armed wing of the Popular Resistance Committees. The training included firing pistols and rifles.

“I am learning how to fight the Jews and kill Jewish children,” 11-year-old Muhammad told Ynet, “the parents of the Jewish children are the soldiers and officers who kill us here. I want these parents to get a taste of what it’s like to have your children killed, just as the Palestinians experience every day.

“I would rather die fighting the occupation than die at home from a missile, which is what happened to hundreds of Palestinian children,” he said.

But of course, it’s anti-Zionism, not anti-Semitism. Religion doesn’t enter into this conflict at all, right?

Plus, it’s been a while since we heard an open-the-gates-of-hell statement, so here you go:

The Palestinian militant group Islamic Jihad on Saturday threatened to unleash “the fires of hell” on Israel, as it staged a military parade in the south of the Islamist-ruled Gaza Strip.

“We will unleash the fires of hell if the Zionist enemy continues its crimes,” said the group’s military chief Abu Hamzeh after the parade by around 800 Islamic Jihad members, an AFP journalist reported.

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

But the gates of hell will be opened. If those children fight in battle and are killed, watch for the AP to blame the Israelis—not the Palestinians, for putting them in harm’s way to begin with.

Posted in Gaza, Israel, Terrorism | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Palestinians creating a child army

What women think: Sexism is sexism

Posted on 08/31/2008 by Meryl Yourish

This is the sentiment, exactly, on what many women feel about Obama not choosing Hillary for VP:

“If 18 million votes is not enough, what does it take in the Democratic Party to get a woman on the ticket?”

Time was, when the two top candidates were in a statistical tie, no one was “anointed.” They fought it out on the floor of the convention, and then the loser became the VP candidate.

Then again, this is also the fault of the arcane rules the Dems chose so that they could take the choice away from the voters and put it back into career politicians’ hands (read: Superdelegates). One person, one vote? Not for them.

What people don’t understand when they fling around the easy label of “identity politics” is that like it or not, identity politics exist. When we see the sexist and misogynist comments on blogs and online news sites, we tend to get angry. It’s something that comes up every single time. I have never seen a discussion on any kind of women’s issue that doesn’t devolve into sexism and/or misogyny. Or, worst of all, the pretense that white males are being discriminated against as much as, if not more than, women and minorities. Shyeah. How many white male Senators are there again? How many female and minority candidates for VP and president have there been again?

But I’m getting off the point. The point is, the choice of Sarah Palin as McCain’s VP underlines the perception that women were slighted, yet again, by the Democrats. And that isn’t really what the Democrats want.

As I said, I was going to vote for McCain anyway. The addition of Palin has made me want to pay attention for the rest of the campaign. And the reaction from the Democrats and progressives?

Despicable.

Posted in Feminism, Israel, Politics | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Why women Dems will vote for Palin

Posted on 08/30/2008 by Meryl Yourish

I received an email today from a disaffected Hillary fan who plans to vote for McCain come November.

I am a died-in-the-wool Democrat, but when Obama turned his ass to Hillary and called her “sweetie,” I didn’t know what to do. I thought that I would write Hillary’s name in.

But McCain has given me a choice. While I disagree with most all of their policies (except for the honesty and integrity part), I’m voting for Sarah.

Can you start a women for Sarah group? That I’d like to join and work for!

Really. You cannot overestimate the negative effect that the naked sexism and disrespect shown towards Hillary during this campaign has had on women. I expect to be getting more emails like this as the sexism lands on Sarah Palin as well (and of course, it already has). Witness the comments over at John Cole’s Balloon Juice, a site where the reading comprehension is so great that the commenter who linked me there called me a Hillary voter. (Shyeah.)

Ninerdave Says:

She looks like a stripper in teachers garb. I keep expecting her to rip off her glasses and grab a pole.

And then there’s this charmer:

r€nato Says:

this pick just REEKS of desperation. I can’t wait to see Biden wipe the floor with her in the Veep debates.

And yes it is creepy to see old man McCain standing next to a cute chick 30 years his junior.

Even creepier when you remember that McCain’s second wife, Cindy Hensley McCain, is 18 years his junior.

I think the Obama campaign should definitely consider pushing an undercover ‘McCain digs chicks young enough to be his daughter’ meme.

I mean, great for the old guy that he can get young chicks… everyone else pretty much thinks it’s creepy.

Or this.

AkaDad Says:

When I think of Palin, I’m thinking “Drill Here Drill Now.”

You stay classy, progressive Democrats. And try to wonder why women are unhappy with your party these days.

You know, I always hated Cole’s site. This garbage reminds me why.

Posted in Feminism, Politics | Tagged , | 16 Comments

Sarah Palin’s Battlestar Galactica ties

Posted on 08/30/2008 by Meryl Yourish

Jonathan Last points out the Battlestar Galactica angle on the Republican slate:

Watching Palin’s introduction it became immediately clear that she looks uncannily like a young Laura Roslin.* This can only bode well for Palin. But the parallels don’t stop at her looks. Like Roslin, Palin was basically a private citizen (Roslin was a teacher, Palin was a reporter) before being pulled into politics. Neither seems to have had any larger ambition, until events pulled them into prominence. And both were immediately discounted by outside observers as being unequal to the demands of their new positions.

Jonathan, you’re such a geek. (And I say that very fondly, as I have all of season four on my DVR and am going to use every wile I have to not let Comcast make me change DVRs when I move next week.)

Like Adama and Roslin, McCain and Palin should complement each other well. I eagerly await the moment in the VP debate when Palin is asked what she would do with Osama bin Laden if he were captured. One assumes her answer will be some variation of, “Put that thing out the airlock.”

It’s a slam-dunk.

I’m getting emails from Hillary supporters telling me they’re now going to vote for McCain. Now we can shoot for the SF fan base.

Hat tip: Chris H.

Posted in Politics, Pop Culture | Tagged | 5 Comments

Movable me

Posted on 08/30/2008 by Meryl Yourish

Rats. Just when I finally found the issue that gets people commenting (it is apparently politics, and not Israel or even—sigh—my enthralling cat and life posts), I have to do things like, gee, move.

I’m off for the entire next week, albeit not really, as I will be doing work in the evenings, probably. But I will be cleaning, packing, closing, painting, and moving into my new home. This is the last weekend I’ll be spending having to listen to noisy people in the parking lot at midnight, or cars coming by with their stereos literally shaking the walls to my apartment, or neighbors screaming at each other or partying.

I won’t be missing this place. Only its central location. But I’m not moving very far, just about ten miles west. It will add about 5-10 minutes to my trip to NorVA, but cut my time to just about everywhere else. Except going to Heidi and Sarah’s places. There are almost no direct routes between where I am and where they are. It’s slightly annoying.

The close is supposed to happen Tuesday morning at 11, but may be pushed back a few hours. I’m getting really excited. Moving into my own home. How cool is that?

Posted in Life | 2 Comments

Women and Sarah Palin

Posted on 08/29/2008 by Meryl Yourish

A word to the men who read this blog: While I don’t claim to speak for all women, I can claim to give you a woman’s point of view on what John McCain choosing Sarah Palin for his vice presidential candidate means to me. And remember that I voted for Al Gore in 2000. (W. in 2004.)

It tells me that the Republicans believe that a woman can do the job equally as well as a man.

It tells me that John McCain isn’t going to demean the women reporters around him by calling them “Sweetie” and brushing them off.

It tells me that the Republicans think that now is the time for women to step up to the podium they’ve been aiming for for decades.

It tells me that 18 million voters, who were essentially ignored by the Democratic party, are not being ignored by the Republicans.

It tells me that politics are forever changed in America, and love her or hate her, you have Hillary Clinton to thank for the choice of Sarah Palin.

I simply cannot describe to you what a difference the choice of Palin makes for us. I watched the McCain news conference, and as he walked onto the stage, I found myself thinking that this boring old man had managed to make me feel excited about his campaign. And I am someone who intended to vote for him since he was assured the nomination. Two of my closest female friends feel the same way. There is a groundswell of excitement for McCain now, and next week’s convention suddenly got a lot more watchable.

Sarah Palin has made me excited about politics again, so much so that I’m contributing to the McCain campaign. So much so that I’m going to try to get to any and all of her appearances in Virginia. So much so that I can ignore the issues that she and I disagree on—and there are many—because it’s about damned time that women had a shot at the Executive Suite to top all Executive Suites.

American history changed today every bit as much as it changed with Obama’s nomination—but this one means more to me, for obvious reasons.

Obama can go home and grow a little in November. He’s not ready to be president. But Sarah Palin is more than ready to be VP.

And if she and McCain win, four or eight years from now, there could be an all-female presidential race. Now how cool would that be?

Susie B. is smiling.

Posted in Feminism, Politics | Tagged , | 50 Comments

Israel to Europe: Shame about those Iranian investments

Posted on 08/29/2008 by Meryl Yourish

Israel has evidently decided that she is alone on the world stage. Actually, she’s always known it, but not it’s been codified:

Israel will not agree to allow Iran to achieve nuclear weapons and if the grains start running out in the proverbial egg timer, Jerusalem will not hesitate to take whatever means necessary to prevent Iran from achieving its nuclear goals, the government has recently decided in a special discussion.

According to the Israeli daily Ma’ariv, whether the United States and Western countries will succeed in toppling the ayatollah regime diplomatically, through sanctions, or whether an American strike on Iran will eventually be decided upon, Jerusalem has put preparations for a separate, independent military strike by Israel in high gear.

While this is the stuff that conspiracy nutjobs live on, and the fodder for the fever swamps that are the lefty blogs, it’s also the best thing I’ve read in quite some time:

Sneh also visited Switzerland and Austria last week in an attempt to lobby those two states. Both countries have announced massive long-term investments in Iranian gas and oil fields for the next decade.

“Talk of the Jewish Holocaust and Israel’s security doesn’t impress these guys,” Sneh said wryly.

Hearing his hosts speak of their future investments, Sneh replied quietly “it’s a shame, because Ido will light all this up.” He was referring to Maj. Gen. Ido Nehushtan, the recently appointed commander of the Israeli Air Force and the man most likely to be the one to orchestrate Israel’s attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities, should this become the necessity.

“Investing in Iran in 2008,” Sneh told his Austrian hosts, “is like investing in Krups Steelworks in 1938, it’s a high risk investment.” The Austrians, according to Sneh, turned pale.

There’s a lot more at the link. Recommendation: Read in full.

Posted in Iran, Israel, World | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

IT’S PALIN!!!

Posted on 08/29/2008 by Meryl Yourish

Fox News confirms that John McCain has chosen Alaska Governon Sarah Palin for his vice presidential pick.

This is the BEST pick possible. It shows that the Republicans are just as progressive as the Dems this time around, and I’m betting that a lot of angry Hillary voters will now give a lot more thought to voting for McCain.

I’ve been hoping for this for a while. I don’t care that she’s more conservative than I’d like. What I like is that women have not been shut out yet again. I loathe Hillary, but I do agree with those who resent the rise of Obama, the far less qualified [male] candidate, over the woman who’s been around a lot longer, and working a lot harder.

I was already going to vote for McCain, but this would have locked it up for me.

Sarah Palin may become the nation’s first female vice president. Awesome.

Posted in Feminism, Politics | 7 Comments

Micheline Calmy-Rey and Osama Bin Laden

Posted on 08/29/2008 by SnoopyTheGoon

“Swiss FM would talk to bin Laden“, the headline says.
But don’t get your knickers twisted, there is a purpose to this:

Switzerland’s foreign minister told top diplomats on Monday she favours direct talks with Osama Bin Laden to tackle the threat of terrorism.

I can imaging the forthcoming meeting – somewhere in a cave near Pakistan – Afghanistan border:

M: Good morning, dear Mr Bin Laden…
O: Oh, just call me Sammy, please, let’s dispense with formalities!
M: OK, fine, but only of you call me Micheline.
O: So, Micheline, how do you do? You look younger than the last time I’ve seen you.

[Embarrassed silence for a minute or two, one of Osama’s bodyguards faints]

M: You too, Sammy, look quite good. I would say more attractive than ever…

[Osama faints. More embarrassed silence interrupted only by goat bleating]

O [recovering]: Do you know what, Micheline, let’s be done with the Oriental small talk. So what brings you here?
M [unperturbed]: Why, it’s that thing I always root for [Osama blanching]. I mean the threar of terrorism, of course. Er… eliminating it.
O [visibly perking up]: Oh, that… Sure, sure, why not? Do you want some goat cheese, figs and pita before you go?

Well, and more in that vein. Anyhow, I cannot even start guessing what the heck is there for Swiss FM to talk about with OBL. At least we know why she went out of her way to kiss and make up with this one:
(Even Mahmoud The Mad seems to be somewhat put off, but let’s write it off on cultural shock).

The aroma of natural gas permeated by a strong aftertaste of oil is surely a great stimulant. But what kind of gas does she expect to get from Osama?

Update: there is someone jealous of that Swiss one-upmanship.

Norway has joined Switzerland in opening up for talks with terrorist leader Osama bin Laden. That doesn’t mean Norway is going soft on the fight against terrorism, though, said the country’s deputy foreign minister.
…
He noted, though, that he has no illusions that bin Laden would sit down for negotiations. I don’t think Osama bin Laden or the forces around al-Qaida want dialogue,” Johansen said. “They prefer rather to take the lives of infidels.”

Go figure that diplomatic lingo. Does it mean “buzz off” from Norwegian FM to the Swiss FM?

But it’s hardly material. What is more intriguing still: what the heck these two would talk to Osama about, assuming he is available for such an eventuality?

Cross-posted on SimplyJews.

Posted in Iran, Terrorism | 2 Comments

Harry’s Place is back

Posted on 08/29/2008 by Meryl Yourish

The good guys win one for a change, and the woman who brought HP down has been banned from the UCU mailing list on which she linked to an article on convicted felon David Duke’s website.

Time for one of my universally popular interventions,” Waddup wrote. “I have received complaints from list members about the linking by another member to a Web site which contains highly offensive, racist material.

“I acted to suspend the posting rights of the list member as soon as the union became aware of the link, and having reviewed this and previous conduct; I have now suspended their list membership indefinitely,” he wrote.

Of course, the list is still full of anti-Semites masquerading as anti-Zionists, but it’s a start.

Still, it’s nice to actually win one once in a while.

Posted in Anti-Semitism | Tagged | Comments Off on Harry’s Place is back

It’s a cat house!

Posted on 08/29/2008 by Meryl Yourish

One of my readers forwarded me information on The Cat House, a no-kill shelter in California. So all my west coast readers can check it out and if you’re up for adopting a new kitty, well, look at these faces.

And there’s video.

And a contribution page. Kick in a couple of bucks. This woman is a saint.

Posted in Cats | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Phun with Phones

Posted on 08/28/2008 by Meryl Yourish

Verizon sucks.

Several months ago, I started having troubles with my phone line after a heavy rain. Verizon took a week to fix it the first time. I had no phone service for a week except for my cell. It happened again after another heavy rain. They told me it would take a week to get a repairman out. I told them to stick their service where the sun don’t shine and switched to Cavalier Telephone. Turns out they charge about half what Verizon was charging me, too.

But what Verizon didn’t do was send their repairman out a second time, so after the heavy rain from the remnants of Fay, I have no land line service. I am currently in live chat with Cavalier, which is taking an extremely long time for the rep to respond. Makes you wonder what the heck they’re doing on their end. Computer games? TV? Chatting with seven people at once? Really getting tired of seeing this:

JoannaD: Thank you for waiting. I’ll be with you in just a moment.

They’re scheduling a service call. 24 hours at the most. Well, that’s better than Verizon’s one-week service time, but I still have no phone until it dries out or they come and fix it.

I am so glad I’m leaving this craphole. The water comes into the front picture window when the gutters get full of pine needles. The gutters are full of pine needles, and my requests to have them cleaned have gone unanswered. I have towels in my windowsill to keep Tig from (sigh) drinking the water, or to keep it from getting into my living room. So far, it hasn’t done more than pool on the windowsill and rot out the wood under the picture window. Which, of course, doesn’t bother the management company.

Five days until the close. Eight days until I’m moved out of here.

I can’t wait.

Update: Something tells me CavTel shut my phone off several days early. I’m getting an out-of-service message now.

Well. I have a brand-new Blackberry that T-Mobile gave me for free. Don’t call me on the home phone, people. Try the cell.

Posted in Life | 4 Comments

Rites of passage, changing with the times

Posted on 08/28/2008 by Meryl Yourish

When I was their age, my relatives gave us pen sets.

Nowadays, children get their first email accounts.

Sarah and Larry’s two oldest children have their first email accounts. Being a dutiful aunt, I sent them emails at Larry’s request.

On Sunday, I had dinner with my family, and my nephew was texting and receiving texts throughout dinner. His phone never stopped buzzing.

It is absolutely a different generation.

I don’t feel old, though. I’m going to upgrade my cell phone this week and start texting my nephew. Who may be going to my alma mater next year.

The years are sure going fast. I could swear he was only four years old last week. Nine at the most.

On an completely different note, Sarah is the Chocolate Chip Cookie Champion of Chesterfield County. She won first place in the fair, and third place for the cake.

Posted in Life | Tagged | 2 Comments

But don’t call it anti-Semitism

Posted on 08/28/2008 by Meryl Yourish

Okay, so the Arab/Muslim conflict isn’t with Jews. It’s with Israel. Their proponents tell us so all the time, as do the media. So perhaps someone can explain to me how this relates to anti-Zionism:

Agents of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard and Hezbollah have allegedly set up a special force to attempt to kidnap Jewish businesspeople in Latin America and spirit them away to Lebanon, according to the Western anti-terrorism official. Iranian and Hezbollah operatives traveling in and out of Venezuela have recruited Venezuelan informants working at the Caracas airport to gather intelligence on Jewish travelers as potential targets for abduction, the Western anti-terrorism official said.

See, not “Israeli” businesspeople. Jewish businesspeople. Like, say, my relatives the bookstore owners who decide to visit their relatives in Buenos Aires.

And if the kidnapping does occur, will the world make a peep? No, there will only be shrugs, unless Israel refuses to ransom the kidnap victims from the terrorists that are now part of the legitimate government of Lebanon.

South American Jews are in the crosshairs. And all roads lead back to Tehran, and the Jew-haters there.

Hezbollah operatives based there participated, along with Iranian spies, in the car bombings in Buenos Aires of the Israeli Embassy in 1992 and a Jewish community center two years later that killed a total of 114 people, an Argentine indictment charges.

In the aftermath of that indictment, filed in 2006, Hezbollah and its Iranian sponsors, chiefly the Revolutionary Guard, decided to shift from the increasingly scrutinized tri-border area to other countries, including Venezuela, Western anti-terrorism officials say.

“It preserves the capability of Hezbollah and the Revolutionary Guard to mount attacks inside Latin America. . . . It is very, very important to Iran and Hezbollah right now.”

Don’t tell me that the Iranian people are friends to the Jews. Because their leaders haven’t shown such friendship. And I have personally experienced the bigotry of Iranian students in America. One of these days, I’ll have to write about those experiences from my twenties. Because there’s nothing in Iran to prove to me that country has changed, and the students I met in the early 80s are now the ruling political class in Iran. Their hatred never went anywhere. It seems only to have deepened.

Posted in Anti-Semitism, Iran | Tagged , , | 1 Comment