All purpose news and politics thread part VI: This Is Not The Time For Posing

[WestPhillyPunisher]

Should we lay odds that they want to put a raccoon into space?

If I lived in Great Britain, chances are there's already odds of that up in one of their seemingly limitless gambling sites.

[worstblogever]

On this date in 2014, 2015, 2016, as well as 2017, “Crazy/Stupid Republican of the Day posted profiles of Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam, who has expressed a desire to pass anti-immigrant laws in his state similar to Arizona’s controversial SB1070, tried to prevent a single Syrian refugee from being resettled into his state, and has signed a myriad of insane bills that have hit his desk from Republicans in the Tennessee state legislature, including ones to legalize firearms being carried in state and local parks (because we need headlines about playgrounds being turned into battlegrounds), prevent sex education teachers from discussing “gateway sexual activities” like touching of the thigh or buttocks, ordering welfare recipients to be drug tested (which proved again to be a failed policy where they only found 1 person out of 812 until a judge overturned the law), and legalizing the use of the electric chair for executions in his state again. Gov. Haslam also spent some time arguing with a federal judge that same-sex marriage should be allowed in his state, filing an appeal because the decision was “frustrating the will of the people of Tennessee”. It has been a mostly quiet year for Gov. Haslam, as he has gone into full lame duck mode now that he’s term-limited as governor… and the federal fraud scandal surrounding his family’s trucking company made him think twice about running for U.S. Senate to replace the retiring Sen. Bob Corker in 2018. So this very well will be our last entry about Bill Haslam, who we hope will spend his future trying to hide from federal investigators, and watching his brother’s NFL team, the Cleveland Browns, continue to be the laughing stock of football.

On this date in 2018, “Crazy/Stupid Republican of the Day” profiled Everett Corley, a four time loser in trying to gain political office, failing to win the GOP nomination for Kentucky’s 3rd Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives in 2016, losing in the primary for District 43 of the Kentucky House of Representatives in 2012 and 2014, and losing in the general election for that same seat in the 2018 elections after coming up far short with only 21% of the vote. We have must also note in our article that Everett Corley was born Corley Everett, but changed his name a couple years ago for unexplained “family reasons”. Those reasons may or may have not had something to do with the fact that Corley Everett was endorsed by the white supremacist American Freedom Party along side Neo-Nazi candidate Robert Ransdell back in 2014. Among the things known about Corley or Everett or… this guy… he had a Facebook page that frequently defended the Confederacy (including calling a Louisville professor a “damn dirty black bastard” for supporting the removal of Confederate monuments), supported Donald Trump’s stupid idea for a border wall on the U.S./Mexico border, or shared the sort white nationalist rhetoric (i.e. lies) about white farmers in Rhodesia being run off by black ones. The “campaign themes” that were on Corley’s 2016 campaign websiteincluded his desire wants to interpret the 2nd Amendment as having zero restrictions (which is still insane), what’s probably far more heinous to see Corley referring to immigration as “cultural suicide” and that allowing birthright citizenship affects the “cultural integrity” of the United States. Corley also called for eliminating the Department of Education and creating “personal accounts” for Social Security, which sounds like he doesn’t understand how it even works. But changing his name and pretending like his views weren’t explicitly racist was a harder strategy for Everett Corley to continue while just hoping that no one noticed. Because man, did his past catch up to him in a big way. In 2014, around the time the American Freedom Party was endorsing him, Corley Everett (who is still the same guy) appeared on the Youtube show “The EthnoState” back in 2014 with avowed white nationalist William Johnson, and aired several racial grievances during the hour long broadcast, including (but not limited to):

• His belief that white voters in western Louisville's Portland neighborhood are "completely surrounded" because of a Democratic plot where "It's a bunch of white liberals and minorities who've conspired together to cut the white working class out of power."
• His quote about the white nationalist group endorsing him that, “One thing that struck me about the American Freedom Party, if you’re a minority you can belong to all these groups that champion your ethno background but you certainly have very little to do as a European or a Caucasian America."
• His anecdotal story about black on white bullying in schools (that likely wasn’t happening because conveniently had no names or details to corroborate it).
• An extended rant about Sen. Mitch McConnell’s marriage to Secretary Elaine Chao:
  

  "I certainly feel that we should maintain our people and our culture as much as anyone else, and that's a post, and I’m not saying this in a bad way, but that’s a post, shall we say marriage that has not borne any children or anything. That’s simply a marriage of companionship, you understand what I’m saying? I don’t think he’s trying to make a statement about children on that marriage, I just simply think that that’s someone he relates to on an interpersonal relationship. But be that as it may, that primarily is not what I’m, his marriage is not my problem, you know what I’m saying?"

Once the 2014 interview resurfaced, Everett Corley had the balls to try to claim he didn’t understand what kind of show the “EthnoState” was, or what Johnson’s aims were (which, it’s pretty easy to call bulls***, considering the interview’s content), saying, "If I made any mistake it wasn't doing my homework. I engaged in some hyperbole, but that was all due to my anger over redistricting. If he said he was a racist, a neo-Nazi or a member of the Klan, I would have hung up." If there was only one part of the interview that really damned Everett Corley in the eyes of the Kentucky GOP, and that was that he and Johnson discussed the marriage between Mitch McConnell and Elaine Chao. Up until that point, mind you, they had nothing to say about all the white nationalist things he was up to. Speaking ill of McConnell or his wife is as close to political suicide as a Republican can make in Kentucky, in any event, so even though he’s only 52, we’re thinking that he might give up on trying to win political office and just spend his weekends out at cross burnings to pass the time instead.

[worstblogever]

Joseph Silk

On this date one year ago, “Crazy/Stupid Republican of the Day” first profiled Oklahoma State Senator Joseph Silk, who was first elected to the Oklahoma State Senate back in 2014, specifically to represent District 5 in that body. Silkwas of particular concern to us because of his aspirations for higher office, seeking to be the next U.S. House Representative for Oklahoma’s 2nd Congressoinal District, challenging CSGOPOTD Markwayne Mullin.

Joseph Silk first came to our attention a few years ago in January of 2017 when he submitted legislation to make it possible for Oklahoma to secede from the union. No, really, this numbnuts was ready to go full Antebellum South Carolina and have Oklahoma secede from the union, because it’s not like we know how that would go after having had a Civil War at one point, you know? Maybe folks shouldn’t be so surprised, considering he campaigned for office on nullifying federal law.

We also have to consider the time when he submitted legislation in the Oklahoma state legislature that specifically would classify any attempt at terminating a pregnancy as criminal murder, and he was very clear that he didn’t care if the procedure was being performed to save a mother’s life. The doctor performing the procedure would be charged with murder, and there was no indication in the writing of the bill if the mother or other medical staff would also be charged as an accessory or not. And in case you were wondering… this would, under Oklahoma law, mean the doctor performing the procedure would be charged with a capitol offense, and face the death penalty.

Facing criticism, a jaded Silk responded:

“We either protect life as a state, or we don’. A 4-week-old fetus in the womb is no different than a 1-year-old child.”

So zygotes and toddlers. Same difference. Let’s execute any doctor who disagrees with that in the interest of saving a woman’s life.

As you might expect from a Fundamentalist lunatic who argues that not only is there no separation of church and state, but that the two are inherently intertwined, and was the co-sponsor of Oklahoma’s attempts to legalize putting monuments of the Ten Commandments on state property, Silk has also submitted bills to make it legal to discriminate against LGBTQ citizens (called the Right of Conscience Act), for adoption agencies to refuse to allow LGBTQ couples from adopting children (Heaven forbid they end up finding a child a loving home!), and supported legislation to discriminate against transgender citizens using public bathrooms. And wouldn’t you know it? He has ties to the anti-gay hate group, the Family Research Council.

But Silk’s weirdness isn’t limited to just God-fearing ideas. Back in 2016, he submitted a bill to study the effects of “EMP Pulse Attacks” upon the electrical grid, even though such a weapon is not believed to exist.

We’re going to wrap up by pointing out that Joseph Silk is running for Congress because he feels the GOP leadership in the Oklahoma state legislature is “too liberal”, which blows our minds considering some of the profiles we’ve run on Oklahoma state legislators over the past six years. But yes, that’s his reason. At this point, even his attendance record is pathetic, as he’s missed almost a third, literally almost a third of the votes in the Oklahoma State Senate this session. And… he wants to go to Congress, based on his performance record, by running to the right of Markwayne Mullin. Mercifully, he lost, only getting 12% of the vote.

We are hoping this is the last time we end up profiling him and he does not re-emerge in Oklahoma state politics.

[Tendrin]

Should we lay odds that they want to put a raccoon into space?

I like that they managed to make it a Nazi thing too, with the words 'heritage, culture, mission' appearing. I guess it's Blood and Moon Soil now.

[Mister Mets]

On Cable News it was mentioned that Trump is talking up the possibility of bringing the Apprentice back. Half-joking someone suggested that it would be to select Trump's next Vice-President.

It could be a way for him to pick new lawyers.

[PaulBullion]

It could be a way for him to pick new lawyers.

Or pipe bomb sending white supremacists.

[DrNewGod]

I've seen many argue that Republicans fear Trump, and the damage he can do with one Twitter post against them.

...

What if Jack Dorsey does ban him on Twitter for all the conspiracy theory posts the minute he leaves office?

Effectively, Trump is neutered, save to people on Parler, OANN, and Newsmax. Because I think with Paul Ryan running Fox News, if Twitter shuts him down, Fox News will also cut bait. Mostly because Trump cut on them first.

Like WestPhilly says, I'll believe Twitter's going to ban Trump about the time I see the rest of both news and social media absolutely explode with the word. Even so the outlets you mentioned now have enough of his crazy cakes on them to make any Republicans primary a nightmare.

[Tami]

Space Force Troops Get a Name: ‘Guardians’



Yes, boys and girls, this is serious. Predictably, snarkmeisters on Twitter are having a field day. Hopefully, Joe Biden will kill this nonsense after he takes office next month.

Honestly, it's not a bad idea [I hate to say], it was just created by a bad president who has a tendency of corrupting or diminishing everything he come sin contact with. It reminds me of Operation Warp Speed. Conceptually, I can see any President, including Biden, creating an Operation Warp Speed to help speed up the development of vaccines and slow down the progress of COVID. However, under Trump, it's become something of a joke. Mainly because of mismanagement, confusion, and inaction where action was needed most.


I would rename Space Force, call it something more sane like the US Interplanetary Strategic and Defense Force.

[Mister Mets]

That's not quite correct. Republicans have 196 seats in the House. Democrats have 233. The rest are independents, a few of whom caucus with the Democratic Caucus. So it's a lot more than just four seats.

I think the numbers were based on the House of Representatives that Biden will be working with.

The Republicans will have at least 212, and the Democrats might have as few as 232, with one still being argued over.

With the nominations of Fudge, Richmond and Halaand for various offices within the Biden administration, the Democrats might briefly end up with just 219 members. 218 is the majority.

It's spelled "Cathy-Redhead-Boob-Job"...you are censoring my free speech! Joking, joking...

More seriously though, I brought her up cuz none of these supposed conservatives were sticking up for her free speech when she got cancelled for mocking Trump...

To be fair, what she did (posing with a mock severed head of a political figure she despises) was rather extreme. There are other factors, including how she handled the situation backtracking from her initial apology.

A lot of the argument really isn't about whether censorship is ever merited (IE- we all probably agree that there are some situations under which CNN should cut ties with a media personality) but whether it is merited in a particular case. I suppose it isn't framed that way often enough.

In the current climate, the left does have outsized power, in terms of dominating academia and the media, so a lot of the arguments about censorship are going to focus on that.

[Mister Mets]

No shit. I mean, the giveaway is right there in the name.

Jokes aside, deciding to censor something yourself, that you own, is a far different thing than being censored against your will by a controlling body. It's simple math.
And the argument was "the left" calling for censorship. But all dude could muster up for his point was self censorship. Which really isn't the same thing, and we all know it.

The discussions on censorship get a little messy since no one is really talking about government censorship, and most of us would agree that some forms of censorship are good (IE- I assume we don't want to see hard-core pornography aired on network TV on Saturday Morning.)

There are examples of corporate censorship. A data analysis at a polling firm was fired for retweeting an African American professor's analysis of 1968 election results which suggested a correlation between riots and Nixon overperformance.

https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/ar...nocent/613615/

James Damore, a Google engineer was asked for feedback from a diversity program he attended, and got fired for it.

There are efforts in academia to make sure that people with controversial conservative views are not allowed to speak at universities. This has gotten broader.

As for how big a problem self-censorship is, that does depend on the effects. If it encourages people to do a little bit more research to get the facts correct, or to hide repulsive views, that's not a bad thing. If it discourages people from saying objective facts, from discussing the potential consequences of policies, or results in institutions developing major blind spots, that will have bad effects.

Yes, just because I post a Maher video doesn't mean I agree with everything he says or how he says it. But he was simply making a point, in this case, that if the Democratic party just continues on this path, they are, in the words of that congresswoman, going to find themselves royally f'd in 2022.

Yes, we got the presidency back but that was votes against Trump more than for Biden. We lost seats in the House. We didn't overturn anything else to speak of. We may get the Senate, which would be fantastic, but we can likely thank Trump for that if we do.

I think his point was that Jane and Joe Average see the Democrats and the Republicans as both being crazy but, Trump aside, they trust the Democrats even less.

Does that make any sense? Not to me. But it's hard to deny that more than half the country has that perception. Again, aside from the Trump factor.

All of this may be moot if the Democrats take the Senate and if Joe Biden throws off the Centrist attitude and takes advantage of having all three branches to make real and lasting changes that will benefit the vast majority and drag them kicking and screaming into a better system.

Back to Maher. He's a jerk and an opportunist. But he is correct that the Democrats, overall, don't do a great job of selling themselves.

I do want to make it clear that I don't think posting a video is an endorsement of everything Maher said outside the video. Or even every specific thing in the video. I was curious about WBE's argument, which dismissed the video because of what Maher has said elsewhere.

There are some warning signs for Democrats right now. Trump was a mediocre President, and almost won reelection against a Democrat who had a lot of electoral advantages (born in a key swing state, African American support from serving as Obama's VP, high name recognition which makes it difficult for Republicans to define him.)

[Joker]

To me, the news out of China this morning is censorship. That's government censorship. It's suppression of valuable/important information by a controlling body.

That episode of Community (while maybe a step too far) isn't really censorship. No one is getting hurt from that being taken off streaming.

So "the left" self censoring what they think are harmful portrayals in media, not a thing I'm getting worked up over. Actual censorship from controlling bodies to suppress information the public should have? That's a problem. And they're very different things.

[Tami]

Legal experts roar with laughter as Trump attorney submits declaration 'under plenty of perjury'

This week, Trump campaign lawyer Lin Wood, who helped kicked off the outgoing president's volley of unsuccessful legal challenges to the election results and has aggravated Republicans with calls to boycott the Georgia Senate runoff, submitted a new election lawsuit apparently representing himself.

Legal experts on social media couldn't help but notice an incredibly unfortunate typo near the end of his filing. Instead of writing, "Under penalty of perjury," he wrote "I declare and verify under plenty of perjury" that the facts on election irregularities described in his filing are correct.

[Tami]

Honestly, it's not a bad idea [I hate to say], it was just created by a bad president who has a tendency of corrupting or diminishing everything he come sin contact with. It reminds me of Operation Warp Speed. Conceptually, I can see any President, including Biden, creating an Operation Warp Speed to help speed up the development of vaccines and slow down the progress of COVID. However, under Trump, it's become something of a joke. Mainly because of mismanagement, confusion, and inaction where action was needed most.


I would rename Space Force, call it something more sane like the US Interplanetary Strategic and Defense Force.

Trump either has Space on the brain, or space in his brain, or both.

[Joker]

So they've discovered a new Covid strain in England that may be more transmissible.

Woop! Happy Holidays!

[Malvolio]

To me, the news out of China this morning is censorship. That's government censorship. It's suppression of valuable/important information by a controlling body.

That episode of Community (while maybe a step too far) isn't really censorship. No one is getting hurt from that being taken off streaming.

So "the left" self censoring what they think are harmful portrayals in media, not a thing I'm getting worked up over. Actual censorship from controlling bodies to suppress information the public should have? That's a problem. And they're very different things.

Well, yeah, but young Black people will find out about those blackface episodes of Community and 30 Rock sooner or later. Do you think they'll see the self-censorship in the manner it was intended or see it as a cover-up?