Republicans are so convinced that spending our tax dollars on anything but bombs to drop on brown people and bonuses for rich people is socialist evil that they are now planning to cut funding for vaccinations.

That’s right, the GOP is going to succeed where Jenny McCarthy did not quite persevere. Our children are gonna catch whooping cough and die. But not before spreading the disease to anyone outside of a gated community.

Some police and firefighter unions are slowly realizing that Republicans are not their friends.

Gee, really? Welcome to the party you idiots. Better late than never I guess.

The title of this article really gets it wrong.

Many, not all, Republicans actually DO hate science and progress and critical thinking. They just want everyone to accept their narrowly defined version of reality as the be-all, end-all of everything. No discussion, no alternatives, no facts. Just believe.

I’m all for faith. Faith gets you through a lot of crap you probably otherwise couldn’t handle. But it is your backbone against a sea of troubles, not the driving force for what your mind and hands can otherwise do much better in handling the reality of life.

Oh look, more Tea Party “patriots” who hate America.

Someday, we should all hold the Republican Party accountable for not dealing with these racist, treasonous idiots. You know, by not voting for them ever again. I’m already way ahead of you….

I’ve been chastised recently for stating that many Tea Party types are racist bigots.

I *do* realize the following; some of those folks are not actually racist; they just quietly condone being lumped in with them. I also realize that not all racists are Tea Baggers: Hillary Clinton’s PUMA supporters proved that.

So, even with those two caveats, I would like the defenders of “free speech racism” to explain this.

I also have two points to make here.

One, if you aren’t racist, why do you compare humans to pigs and suggest slaughtering them is the only way to deal with any potential issues they cause? Also, yes, this is racist. You can’t check documentation from a helicopter so this guy is asking to hunt brown people from the air.

Two, why do these conservative cowards refuse to hunt fairly? Cheney and his box o’ birds (which he still couldn’t shot without hitting a “friend”) and Palin and this moron wanting to shoot things from a helicopter.

Come on down to ground level and make it at least somewhat equal.

Also, if you really want to shoot brown people from the air, join the Air Force. They’ll even let you have a drone so you don’t have to leave the U.S. to do it.

Some perspective, and truth, about the right wing hate-filled bleating against NPR.

Hell, I don’t even think they have an argument. It is just nice to see someone finally standing up for a relatively reasonable news source.

Look at it this way. I get more news off of a half hour of publicly funded BBC news aired on the local PBS station at 10 pm than I do from any other news source I read or listen to all day.

This isn’t a coincidence. Publicly funded news works for the people and does a great job of it.

Imagine if we treated our public media with the same funding and respect?

Now I’ve said this before, but Bradley Manning broke the law by releasing military documents. He probably deserves to be tried and found guilty of at least that.

That said, it behooves us as a nation to treat him, a fellow citizen with respect. Hell, as a nation we should treat everyone in our custody as we would a human being we honor and cherish. Not because we are soft, but because we are better. Better than anyone who considers us an enemy. Better than folks like Mr. Manning, who find us lacking in character at this moment in time.

Even when we are flawed, how we treat those in our custody should be irreproachable.

Which, frankly, in this case, does not appear to be true.

More on the situation .

Also, State Department spokesman P. J. Crowley was forced out of his job for calling this style of imprisonment “stupid”. Good for him for speaking out. Poor form by the President for letting this kind of thing still happen under the Stars and Stripes.

We don’t have to stoop to the level of our enemies to win. We don’t have to treat those who respect the truth over orders as the enemy. We don’t have to be stupid at a time when only our wits and advantages will win the day.

Check this out.

It is a story about anti-American terrorists plotting to kill police officers and a federal judge.

It is about the same “real Americans” that twit Palin spoke of during the 2008 elections. The folks she represents. In Alaska that means folks who collect thousands of dollars a year from the government, yet hate welfare. Who say they love America yet join a secessionist party.

There won’t be any hearings about this kind of “patriot”. They won’t be labelled as the enemy. They won’t be vilified. Their religion won’t be considered Satanist or in love of violence.

But they DO hate. They DO hate our country. They DO plan for violence assassination. Their houses of worship DO despise our nation. Because seriously, what the hell church should welcome assault weapons into the chapel?

But they are white, and Christian and we let it go.

Until when exactly?

Some interesting thoughts on the future of libraries in this nation.

Now, while I agree with some of the ideas, I completely disagree with the premise.

There is a lot of confusion about the public domain of late. Look, schools and libraries and police and fire departments are not supposed to turn a profit. They are supposed to provide a public service. Bashing libraries as failures because commercial bookstores are going out of business is irritatingly stupid.

I go to libraries. Everywhere I have ever lived I’ve managed to find the local one in the first week. Even here in Rochester where new books are either slow to come in or not at all apparently. I’d argue I’ve got a more complete collection in some topics than the library does. Pitiful, but not an argument for shutting the place down.

Now should the library expand to happen some future needs? Yes. But as an extension of what it already does, not to replace what someone sees as not working.

Let me put it this way. I went to pick up a book on reserve on Monday and took Gabriel to see some Dr Seuss movies and pick up some books on Saturday. If I have more reasons to go, I will, but I am already using the place quite well as it is, thank you.

Robert Reich gets heated up about a lot of things. I always approve of the energy if not always the conclusion. That said, his call for a People’s Party to channel the energy of those opposed to the anti-union halfwits struck me as a bit too wonky.

That said, it is growing on me. I don’t like the comparisons to the Tea Party, that’s just a bunch of racists taking over a pack of folks who want all the benefits and none of the tax responsibility. A mob overwhelming a “me first!” parlor movement isn’t exactly a model to follow.

That said, if you can do this while educating people, staying civil, and following the law, maybe it’s not so bad of an idea.

He follows up with a manifesto to follow that someone sent to him. Okay, fine, a “statement of principles” if you feel queasy about the other term. Whatever floats your boat.

We’ve got a president that truly bends over backwards to listen to his opponents. Even the ones who insult his family and besmirch his patriotism. That’s admirable, but someone needs to call them out for what they are, point out why they are doing what they are doing, and offer reasonable and factual counterpoints and an agenda that doesn’t call for enriching the rich and screwing everyone else.

This country isn’t broke, the money is just piled up in one place. And those folks don’t care about sharing the pain of patriotic responsibility with the rest of us. We fight their wars, pay for their gambling blunders and keep the trade lanes, stores, and networks safe for their profits.

And if a People’s Party can do a better job of getting that message out, then more power to them, please.