Republicans hate democracy.

No, really, they do. They refuse to admit the United States has any. Just ask them. “We are NOT a democracy,” they’ll tell you.

Democracy, you see, equals Democrats in their eyes. We are a “constitutional republic” they argue. Funny, I don’t remember Reagan or Bush or any earlier Republicans parsing over the concept of “exporting democracy” to other nations. Granted, that was mostly at the point of a gun but even they believed it.

To prove their point, Republicans are on the march, trying to restrict the right to vote across this land.

Get busted for a dime bag? Felony charge, lose your right to vote. Old? No special buses to the polls. You need an ID. Paper please basically?

Immigrant? Did you learn about this country, take a citizenship test to PROVE you are worthy of being an American instead of just accidentally being born here? Too bad, no help for instructions in your language. Speek Amurkan furriner!

Are you a college student from out of state spending extra to get an education here? Too bad, you have to go home to vote. Keep your potentially idealistically liberal hands off of the levers of power.

And so on, and so on…

More on the Republican effort to drag styrofoam into the 21st century.

Which makes sense for them really. They love coal. They adore the concept of finding new forms of poll taxes to stop minorities from voting. They can’t wait to ban abortion so they can tell women what to do with their bodies again.

Immigration reform in their eyes is just a great way to corral immigrants into better controlled work camps.

So the children will be down in the mines again. You know, after we defund the EPA and fire all the unionized socialist teachers they won’t have any reason NOT to work.

Bradley Manning committed a crime. He violated military law to release information that showed that this nation was in violation of war crimes laws. He did what he had to because he realized that the United States is capable of cruelty and barbarism just like any other.

So he’s in prison, and he probably deserves to be.

That said, dumping bogus charges on him and making him sleep naked is not helping anyone, except maybe Manning’s case.

How we treat our own is just as important as how we treat “enemy combatants”.

How we respond to news that we are in the wrong is just as important as obeying the law. ESPECIALLY when folks like John Yoo, et al. have twisted the law to say anything they need it to say.

Give Manning his boxers back. Charge him on crimes of releasing documents without permission. He’s no traitor. Hell, if anything, he’s more American for doing what he did than any of the bastards from Bush or Cheney or Rumsfeld on down who let this nation torture people and shoot civilians willy-nilly and whatever the hell else went on intentionally, with proper orders in our overseas wars.

“I have two teenagers and I tell them that nothing good happens after midnight. That’s even more true in politics.”

– Scott Walker, Dictator of Cheeselandia

At least we agree on something. Walker ran on a promise not to have bills passed after 10 pm because nothing good can come from legislation passed that late.

He’s right. The Wisconsin Assembly voted to take the rights from public workers in that state at 1:17 AM this morning. Dear Leader might be a lying snake, but he knows the truth about bad legislation when he sees it.

File this under Required Reading.

This is the best damned explanation of the conservative agenda I’ve read in quite awhile.

If you believe in freedom and democracy in the United States (and even if you are a Republican and don’t), give the following a listen. Abbreviated transcript here.

A liberal blogger recorded this on Skype. He swears it is true and David Korn over at Mother Jones says the governor’s office confirms it. More confirmation here.

Mother Jones has some more on the story and some background on Walker’s debt to the Koch Brothers.

One of the points by “Fake David Koch” was to get Walker to agree to infiltrating the union protesters with violent plants to cause trouble. Walker, who already thought of this and for the moment rejected it, demurs.

That said, Tea Baggers are already doing this<‘/a>.

In Georgia, Tea Bagging Traitors are planning to bring guns to a SEIU solidarity rally. Yeah, it isn’t enough to want to take your rights, conservatives want to start a gun battle.

Guess I was never wrong calling them Talibangelicals, was I?

In Indiana, a Deputy Attorney General there wants to use live ammunition on the protesters.

Such “compassionate” conservatives these are.

But let’s be honest here. These folks would NOT be in power if voters would pay attention to what they are voting for, and the programs the cretins running are to pass.

Well, I found ONE thing Republicans LOVE: censorship.

Only conservatives could want to censor a website that wants to Defend Wisconsin.

Granted, that site wants to defend the rights of Wisconsin public employees to not be steamrolled by pro-business Republican governors/dictats, but the sentiment is the same.

When those in power work to limit the speech of the ruled, particularly those they are hoping to oppress, you know what side justice is on.

Please sign this petition. Then contact your legislators, yeah, even the bigot Tea Bagging ones.

Apparently it isn’t enough to hate women, minorities, kids, Elmo, and teachers who want their rights. Now they are going after Americorps, which helps brings teachers and tutors to places folks normally don’t want to work in this nation. So basically, this is a plan to screw over kids in the urban cities as well as tribal kids in remote parts of America. Judge the motivation for that level of hatred however you will.

These guys keep finding new ways to screw over honest Americans while fighting for tax breaks for millionaires and oil companies. I know which group *I* side with.

On Texans and stupidity.

Was that redundant?

Mother Jones has released a pretty detailed investigation on the Tea Bagging Traitors.

Part One is called “They Use You and Abuse You”.

Part Two is “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”.

Part Three is “The Tax-Dodging Moneyman”.

While most Tea Baggers are racist Talibangelical bigoted asshats, the corporate fiends funding their hatred might even be worse. It isn’t pleasant but getting to know your enemies usually isn’t.

Want to know how good this coverage is? A rival Tea Bagging group agrees with the coverage.