Marketing Failure

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After releasing an old article HOW MUCH HEAD SHOULD A GIRL GIVE IN A DAY? and telling my story of how I couldn't get it published in any magazine. I received feedback about what I did wrong.

I made a major marketing mistake.

I just used my standard bio:

Darrell B. Nelson is a former Securities Broker and Insurance Agent who has decided to use the total meltdown of his former industry, and the total destruction of any illusions of personal financial security the meltdown caused, as an opportunity to pursue a writing career.

It works fine as bio for fiction. But this was a non-fiction article. For non-fiction, the writer needs to show their knowledge of the subject matter. So my bio for HOW MUCH HEAD SHOULD A GIRL GIVE IN A DAY? should have been:

America's universally renowned International Fellatio Expert, Darrell B. Nelson, has over 30 years experience in receiving Fellatio. His interest in Fellatio started in teen years and he has been active in receiving Fellatio ever since.

With a bio like that the media would take notice and I'd be called on to do interviews:

Fame and Fortune would soon follow.

But I didn't think to change my bio. You might say I blew it. Oh well. Easy come, easy go.

By Darrell B. Nelson author of I KILLED THE MAN THAT WASN'T THERE

Shut-up Stupid Sunday: Poor Word Choice

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Last night was the Annual National White House Correspondents Dinner. The mainstream media always hypes this up to much, but this year they really should have thought about the headline:

OBAMA KILLS AT CORRESPONDENTS DINNER

I haven't watched it but I'm sure the President was funny. He is probably the most gifted stand up comic we've ever had for a President. But the time he really killed at the Correspondent's dinner was last year. The final stages of the raid that killed Bin Laden were being carried out while he was at the dinner.

So to the MSM editors, I say, “Shut-up Stupid, With this President when you say, 'OBAMA KILLS AT...' their had better be a body.”

By Darrell B. Nelson author of I KILLED THE MAN THAT WASN'T THERE

Learnin' Poll

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I messed up the poll last week. When I noticed blogger wouldn't let me change it. I hate the new blogger interface. For me just writing code is easier.

So I don't know how people think Ted Nugent should be remembered. I will just remember him as a revolting pants crapping draft dodger, pedophile rapist, who threatened to shoot the president. He could do a service to society by taking one of the guns he is so proud of, putting it to his head, and blowing whatever brains he has out.

I've gotten flack in the past about joking about death. So let me assure everyone, I'm not joking. If Ted Nugent blew his brains out I wouldn't shed one tear. The guy is a waste of life.

On to my next poll,

I ran out of checks and had to pay cash. I was $1.99 short. I had the wrong credit card with me so I had to put something back. What I put back cost $3.98. The clerk credited it and was baffled that her register said, “-$1.99”. A whole army of clerks had to come over to figure out my change, $1.99.

That got me thinking about education. I support local public schools even though I don't have kids. When I run into a public school teacher who is feeling down I try to cheer them up. I like the fact that they keep me from having to wade through beggars everywhere I go.

Besides knowing that no matter what happens, your child will get a minimum education, public schools make everyday life a lot easier for people.

Today's question: What benefit do you most enjoy about Public Schools?

Fewer Beggars in the street

Getting correct change at a store.

Leaving notes, knowing 99% of people can read.

Public School kids don't piss themselves in public very often.

As always vote on the upper left hand corner of the page.

By Darrell B. Nelson author of I KILLED THE MAN THAT WASN'T THERE

Shut-Up Stupid Sunday: Anti-Education Movement

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Romney was Governor of Massachusetts during the tech boom. Massachusetts had a huge built in advantage during the boom. The little state has over 100 colleges and universities. Harvard, Cambridge, MIT and a few others are known throughout the world.

With an education base like that it would be natural for tech companies to open up in Massachusetts. So Romney cut funding to education by 60%, more than an other state in the union. Massachusetts came in 47th in job growth during the tech boom.

Romney might be a flip-flopper on most issues, but he has been as constant as the northern star on denying the middle class an opportunity to improve themselves.

For the last 30 years the GOP has been nibbling away at the education system in the United States, and the Democrats have let them. The Republicans argue that because the Department of Education budget has grown from over $100 billion in 2006 to its current $68 billion with no improvement in education, it should be cut. Notice how the people who are against education don't know 100 is bigger than 68.

The assault on education reflects the views of Don McLeroy, former Chairman of the Texas State Board of Education who has said, “Someone has to stand up to the Experts!” with all their facts and figures and data and stuff. Why should we teach kids about the world when it is so much easier to believe in whatever reality we care to make.

It's time to change direction and put education as a top priority in this country. Back when education was considered important, and thanks to the GI bill, millions of young people got free educations. We went to the Moon. Now our nation is struggling to make cars that can get people to work without spending their paycheck on gas.

The cost of ignorance is high. The most successful civilization in history was the Roman Empire. At its height the Romans were called a civilization of engineers. They identified problems, transportation, clean water systems, ect and built solutions. They declined as they turned their backs on education. So when the barbarians came as they had for thousands of years, instead of turning to engineers to find ways to get the vast military to fight them, they turned to prayer and prayed God would destroy their enemies. Christianity swept over Europe in what is known as the Dark Age.

So to everyone out there who is against education, I say, “Shut-up Stupid, If you think the cost of education is too high, look at the cost of ignorance. The most successful civilizations in history have one thing in common, they have educated people to identify problems and find solutions. The world's industrial base isn't moving to China and India because of cheap unskilled labor, its moving their because of the huge amounts of skilled labor available. A highly educated workforce is the key to a productive civilization. Cutting education is the quickest way back to the Dark Age.”

By Darrell B. Nelson author of I KILLED THE MAN THAT WASN'T THERE

Creepy Lyrics

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My last poll surprised me a little. Like all kids when I was young I built some little forts. Like a 12' by 8' log cabin. To do that I needed basic math skills. I've always thought math was important. But thinking about it, having a portion of the population that doesn't know any math won't doom society. But other things kids learn in public schools would.

Work skills – The number of unskilled jobs is shrinking, even most minimum wage jobs need the employees to read. So it got a vote.

Reading – The time when civilization could get by without communicating through reading and writing is long passed. The way people text these days, verbal communication might be dead first.

Social Skills – The home-schoolers who end up pissing themselves because they've never been taught ask where the bathroom is, are very annoying. But homeschooled adults lack social skills as well. I've had to train people and not knowing their skill level I cover everything. Public school education teaches people when being trained something stupid to say, “Okay... I see... I think I can handle that.” I learned in public school that this is a polite way of saying, “Hurry it up, stupid.”

The home-schoolers I've trained never learned these skills and have the attitude that if I know the basics I can get the advanced stuff. Fail miserably and then have to be shown again.

I've known more than my share of people with Asperger's Syndrome, a mental condition where the person can't understand non-verbal language making them seem anti-social. I'd rather deal with them than most home schoolers.

On to the next poll:

I was listening to “Hey, Hey We're the Monkeys” the other day and heard this line:

Anytime, or Anywhere...
Just look over your shoulder...
And we'll be standing there.

I've been paranoid ever since.

I was just getting to the point where I didn't worry Davy Jones was stalking me when Gloria Estefan told me that:

The Rhythm is going to get you.

What did I ever do to it?

Switching over to a more Juliet feel I turned to Garbage #1 Crush:

Violate all The love that I'm missing
Throw away all the pain that I'm living
You will believe in me
And I can never be ignored

Not trying to ignore you, just checking you for weapons.

Maybe I should think more international so I tried a song about Wild Roses, what could be more romantic than that?

Where the Wild Roses Grow:

On the last day I took her where the wild roses grow 
And she lay on the bank, the wind light as a thief 
As I kissed her goodbye, I said, 'All beauty must die' 
And lent down and planted a rose between her teeth 

Which is creepiest?

As always vote on the upper left hand side of the page.

By Darrell B. Nelson author of I KILLED THE MAN THAT WASN'T THERE

Dumb Answers to S**t people say to writers

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Lev Rephael wrote, S**t People Say to writers I thought I'd respond.

Have you been published?

This is when Karen Allen of Raiders of the Lost Ark would shout out, “Indie!”


What do you write?

I mostly take the same 26 letters combine them with punctuation and rearrange them. Sometimes I throw numbers and stuff in as well.


Do you have, like, a real job?

I don't spend a lot of time in the real world.


I don't read much.

That's okay, I use the word, “Much” sparingly.


Do you know Stephen King? What's he like?

Yeah, we hang out all the time.


You should write a book about my life, it's a bestseller for sure.

Really, I was on the FBI's watchlist from the day I was born because Bobby Kennedy brought my dad before the “committee on un-American activities”. Eleven of my last Fourteen Employers went to jail, including one of America's “Top Psychics” who never saw that coming. But I'm sure your life is interesting too.


I'm gonna write someday, when I have free time.

I get my time when it's on sale.


My sister likes to read. Have you written anything she would know?

Just the note I left with the money on her nightstand.


You write novels? I only read stuff that's real.

Next time I'm in reality I'll write about it.


I read your book. It was... interesting.

Disturbing is the word I usually get.


My mother loves your books.

Thanks, Sis.


I've got a great story for you!

Does it involve a time traveling pirate, who has to save the world from the unholy kitten army?

I thought books were dead.

I try to bring my scenes to life.


You should write a screenplay! That's where all the money is.

All of it? Not a cent anywhere else?

By Darrell B. Nelson author of I KILLED THE MAN THAT WASN'T THERE

Fun with Shorts

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I'm going to try and start a new feature on Project Savior, who knows how well it will go.

One of the quotes that really inspires me is this:

Here’s to the crazy ones. The rebels. The troublemakers. The ones who see things differently. While some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius. Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are the ones who do. - Apple's 1984 commercial "Think Different"

I'm going to start reviewing the works of the crazy ones. The ones who see things differently.

To start off, I'll look at the works of Josh Way.

If you're a MST3K fan, you will love his work. If you aren't you'll look at this short and go, “huh?”

MST3K (Mystery Science Theater 3000) riffed really bad movies. Later the team started rifftrax and make sound tracks that pick on popular movies.

Josh Way is a fan who started doing his own riffing of Public Domain Shorts. I find them super funny. So I will review them.

Fun With Shorts: Tomorrow’s Drivers, Narrated by Jimmy Stewart!

The short itself:

The big thing about this Jam Handy production is Jimmy Stewart must have owed someone a favor because he does the voice over. A big win for Jam Handy and whatever students and teachers that had to watch this thing. A bit of a loss for people making fun of it. Stewart does manage to bring what would be a horrible short up to mediocre.

Josh's riff:

Josh has fun with this, but the short isn't as bad as most Jam Handy Productions. So he has less to work with. My favorite line was:

Stewart: The club gives the older boys a place to release their youthful energy.

Josh: Eewww!

Overall:

Josh makes this short funny, but since the short is mediocre instead of dreadful it's not the best Fun with Shorts. Still it's entertaining.

In the coming weeks I'll review some of the ones that were a lot funnier.

By Darrell B. Nelson author of I KILLED THE MAN THAT WASN'T THERE

Shut-up Stupid Sunday: Gay haters are closet homosexuals

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There is an old study that surfaces on progressive web sites from time to time that “proves” people who hate gays are really closet homosexuals. The problem with this is it was a flawed study. In reality not all the haters are sexually repressed. Some of them are just assholes and some are ignorant. I bet they are glad I'm defending them.

The study was done in the 60s and monitored men, who said they were anti-gay, as they watched a gay porno. Researchers found that the subjects heart rates increased, and their scrotum hardened just like if they were aroused. However that is the same reaction that a person gets when angry.

To make the study even more flawed, it was done in the sixties. Film costs were high, $100,000 for a cheap film. Distribution was limited. Gay pornos of the time needed to all out hardcore to get guys in the theater. The subjects were showing disgust, not arousal.

Most of the gay pornos of the time only still exist in college psych departments. A recent study that used these old films “showed” self-identified bisexuals preferred straight sex. Then they looked at what they were comparing. Modern DVD's from Vivid vs. the old stock they had from the sixties. They found even gay men didn't like films of two ugly dudes humping away without even saying, “hi” to each other. Go figure.

When comparing modern gay pornos to modern straight pornos they found bisexuals had similar responses. All the old study found out was that gay films, that most gays found disgusting, were disgusting to people who are anti-gay.

Looking at speeches by Focus on the Family's Bryan Fischer saying, “Gays have an average of 500 partners... (That's an average some are slackers and only have 200, some go all out and have 800)...and have sex in public bathrooms and parks...(so do hetros)...” you have to wonder if he is giving an anti-gay speech or pitching his latest slash-fic story. I'd seriously hate to be in the front row of one of his speeches. If he gets too excited about the horrors of “the gays” it would be like a Gallagher concert. Everyone hiding behind plastic sheets.

Guys like that really do have to worry that gay marriage will threaten their straight marriage. You know this dude can't get it up unless he is complaining about all the imagined things that “the gays” are doing in the bedroom. I just really hope his wife is into slash-fic as he describes all the things “the gays” are doing while he boffs her.

But a lot of the haters aren't closeted homosexuals like Fischer or Marcus Bachmann who believes all you have to do to get rid of “the gay” is get on your knees and take the body of a man in your mouth. A lot of them are just assholes.

The same people who are bullies in school take that attitude with them into adult life. They think as long as they have someone to look down on it builds them up. They are wrong, but that's the thinking.

Most anti-gay people aren't haters at all, just ignorant. I mean that in the nicest possible way.

The same people that will vote against gay marriage have no idea that gay people don't have the minimum civil protections in this country. Most of them simply don't know that in most of the country a person can be fired or evicted from an apartment, just for being gay. That is why the gay rights movement gained ground so quickly, the majority of people didn't know this and once they started learning about it they were shocked.

So to all progressive friends who stumble on the old studies from the sixties “showing” that gay haters are repressed homosexuals, I say (with all respect), “Shut up Stupid, that study is seriously flawed. The people who publicly hate gays are a combination of sexually repressed people and assholes that want to be bullies. You aren't going to reach these people pointing out a flawed study. The vast majority of people, even those in the anti-gay movement, simply don't know that gays aren't given the minimum civil protections granted to everyone else. Once the supporters of anti-gay legislation learn about that, they stop supporting the mental cases who either read their slash-fic publicly or are just bullies. Once those people see no one stands behind them they can go get the mental health help they need.”

By Darrell B. Nelson author of I KILLED THE MAN THAT WASN'T THERE

The Chicago Code

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Randy gets a couple lines on the new cop show being filmed in Chicago, The Chicago Code. He plays a disgruntled supply truck driver who gets a ticket. Formerly known as Ride Along, The Chicago Code seems to take some cues from HBO's The Wire, focusing on the political relationships of cops within the department and the influence of corrupt local government officials. What? Corruption in Chicago?

Of course, according to this Chicagoan, authenticity will be judged by how they pronounce the name Chicago: shi-CAW-go (like it should be) or shi-CAH-go (like an outsider). The show premiers February 2011 on Fox.

Randy G. Craig on Fox's Chicago Code

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Randy lands a small role as a supply truck driver for the new FOX TV cop show, The Chicago Code which airs Monday, February 21. 2011, 8pm CST, episode #3: "Gillis, Chase and Babyface". Don't blink because Randy only has a couple of lines (ha ha). In this episode a crooked (what? in Chicago?) alderman Ronin Gibbons (Delroy Lindo) is linked to a construction company (patronage? not here!). A few cops are sent over to a building site to issue petty tickets (never!).

It was a terribly cold and windy day despite the sunshine when his scene was shot back on 10/28/11 in a hidden little park (no. 546 to be exact) at the corner of N. Park Dr. and E. Benton Pl. nestled between Grant Park and the Chicago river. Luckily, he got to sit in a warm truck while his scene partner Todd Williams (officer Isaac Joiner) froze without a coat "acting" like it was much warmer. The exciting show is set and filmed in Chicago where local viewers play "name that neighborhood" during the chase scenes. It also stars home grown actress, the fabulous Jennifer Beals. Special thanks to Simon Casting and Lily's Talent Agency.

See Randy on Chicago's Untouchable Tours

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To be a full-time actor in Chicago one must have several sources of income. Fortunately for Randy, aka "Shoulders", The Untouchable Tours has provided him steady work for over 20 years. Despite the bad economy tourism is still going strong. It seems that despite all the great things Chicago is known for, amazing food, deep dish pizza, the blues, sports teams, Oprah Winfrey, Michael Jordan, Barack Obama, treasure filled museums, theatre, Lake Michigan, the El, the Blues Brothers, Frank Lloyd Wright, and some of the tallest buildings in the world, out-of-towners inevitably ask about Al Capone and then make the pretend machine gun sound.
Described as "Theater on Wheels" the black Untouchable Tours school bus takes you on an almost 2 hour tour of Chicago's prohibition past. Call (773) 881-1195 for reservations and tell 'em you wanna see "Shoulders". Incidentally, the nickname "Shoulders" is an homage to a character from the 1976 comedy, "The Big Bus" .

See Randy G. Craig Perform Live! (yeah, like that's so great)

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Come see Randy in The Comedy Shrine's Whose Line? (much like the tv show, Whose Line is it Anyway?) featuring short form improv games on the following upcoming dates:


Fri. May 11 - 8pm & 10pm*Fri. May 18 - 8pm & 10pm*Sat. May 19 - 8pm & 10pm*Fri. May 25 - 8pm & 10pm*


*10pm shows are Whose Line?: The Naughty Show - R-rated language -18 years and older only.



The Comedy Shrine is now in Aurora, IL at 4034 Fox Valley Center Drive on the west side of Westfield Fox Valley Mall by the Toys R Us.

"Shoulders" with Diamond Jim
Colosimo's great granddaughter

You can also see Randy regularly on the Untouchable Tours, as the gangster tour guide, "Shoulders", who leads you on a comedic, yet historical, 2 hour bus tour through Chicago's prohibition past. Call (773) 881-1195 and ask when "Shoulders" is on next. BTW, the nickname "Shoulders" is an homage to a character from the 1976 comedy, "The Big Bus".

Songs to Fight the Plutocracy By: "House of the Rising SUn"

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Leadbelly's original

Uploaded by sessionsinthedesert on Mar 8, 2008

there is a house in new orleans
they call the rising sun
it's been the ruin of a many a poor girl
and me, oh god are one

if i had listened like momma said
i would not be here today
but being so young and foolish too
that a gambler lead me astray

come tell my baby sisters
dont do what i have done
please shun that house in new orleans
they call the rising sun

i'm goin back to new orleans
my race is almost run
i'm goin back to new orleans
beneath the rising sun

KFTC Voter Guide Now Online

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From Kentuckians for the Commonwealth:

With this year's primary election coming up in just over 2 weeks on Tuesday, May 22nd, we've been working hard to compile responses from a variety of candidates in federal, state, and local races. Soon, we'll mail our Voter Guides to all of our members and begin to hand them out at tabling events around the state, but we've also put them online for anyone to read. You can find all of the responses we've received at www.KentuckyElection.org.

For the last few election cycles, KFTC has made an effort to contact the candidates in many chapter areas and ask them questions about the issues that are important to us. We want to move the debate about candidates beyond their superficial differences and instead focus on the issues that affect us in our daily lives. We've asked questions about mountaintop removal mining, energy issues, immigration, poverty, and more. Hopefully these surveys will educate and empower our members and friends to make informed choices at the polls.

So please take some time to familiarize yourself with the candidates. After that, please share the website with your family and friends through email, Facebook, and more. We want to be able to contact as many Kentucky voters as possible before election day, and with your help we will be able to greatly expand our reach.

Now you have no excuse to not know where your candidates stand and no excuse not to vote.

And no excuse not to show a little gratitude to an organization that does so much to make Kentucky a better place.

How People Power Will Win Wisconsin

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Regardless of the outcome of today's primary election in Wisconsin, and even the recall election to remove Scott Walker in June, people power has already won in Wisconsin.

John Nichols at The Nation:

Politicians charged with resolving various and sundry challenges often claim to be “putting out fires.” But Mahlon Mitchell goes them one better. The Democratic candidate for lieutenant governor of Wisconsin regularly steers off the campaign trail to put out actual fires.

Mitchell, president of the Professional Fire Fighters of Wisconsin union, pulls twenty-four-hour shifts as a lieutenant in a Madison firehouse. “I’m still on the truck, still going to house fires, car crashes, EMT runs,” says the 35-year-old first-time candidate. “I was called to public service, and I always thought I would do that public service as a firefighter. But now the emergency is in the Capitol.”

One of the most remarkable manifestations of the mass movement sparked by Governor Scott Walker’s anti-labor austerity agenda has been the flourishing of a new, more engaged electoral politics in Wisconsin. The protests that drew hundreds of thousands to the streets in February 2011 have evolved into a powerful movement whose petitions for recall elections removed two GOP state senators and have forced Walker, Lieutenant Governor Rebecca Kleefisch, State Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald and three other Republican legislators to face unprecedented electoral contests on June 5. If Walker, Kleefisch and at least one of the state senators are defeated, Wisconsin will be the first state in history to shift control of the executive branch and the most powerful chamber of the legislative branch from one party to the other in same-day recall eleesters—union members fighting assaults on collective bargaining and the farmers, small-business owners, retirees and students who supported them—are not just forcing new elections. They are forcing their way into the political process as candidates, elbowing aside traditional politicians and old approaches to campaigning. It’s not that the newcomers aren’t raising money, crafting smart messages or buying thirty-second spots. They’re serious contenders. But they are running on the terms of a movement they have built, mounting campaigns that are people-centered, high-spirited and unapologetic in their support of labor rights and economic justice.

And they are starting to win. In addition to Mitchell, the leading contender in the May 8 Democratic primary for lieutenant governor, numerous activists from last year’s protests have entered recall races and regularly scheduled elections. Several of them won county board, city council and school board races when Wisconsin held local elections on April 3. In Ohio, where union activists and their allies overturned anti-labor measures enacted by GOP legislators and Governor John Kasich with a fall veto referendum that won by a 61-39 margin, more than twenty union members have mounted 2012 election campaigns. And national unions like the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) and the Service Employees have established programs to recruit, train and support members to run for local and state posts from Arizona to Maine. Labor unions have always encouraged members to get involved politically, but union leaders have seen a dramatic uptick in interest from public employees infuriated by the anti-labor and austerity initiatives of the Republican governors and legislators swept into office in 2010.

“We’ve got people all over the country who have been energized by the fights over collective bargaining, union rules and budget cuts at the state and local levels in 2011,” says IAFF general president Harold Schaitberger, whose union has taken a lead in recruiting and electing candidates with labor ties and values. “Most of them never thought of running for city council or the legislature. But now they are thinking about it. And doing it.”

Read the whole thing.

You can't change the way things have always been by electing the same people who have always run things.

The Corporations Still Supporting ALEC

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Sooner or later, the corporations that publicly rejected shoot-first, voter-suppression promoter ALEC will go quietly sneaking back, because ALEC helps them more than it hurts them.

But some corporations are shamelessly refusing to even pretend to reject ALEC, and now we know who they are.

Think Progress:

The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) has been under fire lately after the 15 major corporations and organizations pulled their support for the conservative organization, which helps quietly implement corporate-backed legislation in statehouses across the country.

Now, the watchdog advocacy group group Common Cause has released a complete list of corporations on ALEC’s task forces.

Not surprisingly, four of the five major oil companies are members, as are many other energy companies. Some houshold names on the list include Johnson & Johson, State Farm insurance, and AT&T. There are lots of major online businesses, including AOL (the parent company of the Huffington Post), eBay, Amazon.com, Yahoo, and Time Warner.

See the full list here.

Words versus Actions

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That President Obama has announced he is personally in favor of marriage equality means far less to me than the actual, concrete actions he has taken to alleviate discrimination against LGBT Americans: ending DADT, extending domestic partner rights to federal employees, refusing to defend DOMA.

But far too many of this administration's actions are sickeningly cowardly - and cowardly in a way that harms the nation far more than the president's personal support of gay marriage helps it.

George Zornick at The Nation:

WHO’S AFRAID OF REGULATION? In April, Senator James Inhofe released an old tape of EPA administrator Al Armendariz describing how the Romans once invaded villages and crucified people at random to make an example of them. “That town was really easy to manage for the next few years,” he quipped. Right-wing pundits and industry allies had a field day, suggesting that Armendariz was calling to “crucify” oil companies and selectively quoting him without further context. “Find people who are not compliant with the law,” Armendariz had continued, “and you hit them as hard as you can and you make examples out of them, and there is a deterrent effect there.” This is the definition of how regulatory action works.

Yet almost immediately, the Obama administration threw Armendariz under the bus. Press secretary Jay Carney called his comments “inaccurate as a representation of…the way that the EPA has operated under President Obama.” On April 29, Armendariz submitted his resignation letter, which was immediately accepted.

The administration may have wanted to avoid a distraction as it heads into the election, but in failing to defend Armendariz it failed to defend the basic principles of regulation. All he was saying was that without vigorous enforcement, regulation becomes an empty gesture. But it’s the sort of mistake Democrats love to make: prematurely bowing in the face of a manufactured mini-firestorm simply to take the talking point off the table. And it is symptomatic of an administration that has been consistently afraid of its own shadow when it comes to regulation.

Yes, words have power and consequences, but more so when they reinforce rather than contradict actions.

Number 108

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Kentucky's 108th sacrifice to the insatiable maw of Permanent War is 19-year-old Dustin Gross.

Tom Kenny at WTVQ:

Officials said Dustin Gross, 19, was killed by a roadside bomb.

He graduated last year from Montgomery County High School in Mount Sterling.

Once the school was notified, counselors were brought in to the high school.

The soldier's family released this statement to ABC 36 News:

"We love and are very proud of Dustin, this is very hard for us. We appreciate all the prayers, love and support from our family, friends and the community. We just need to mourn our loss in private at this time."

Alan Grayson, via email:

To little fanfare, President Obama announced last week that he signed an agreement to extend the U.S. military occupation of Afghanistan for twelve more years. No one noted the irony of this, since under our Constitution, President Obama can be President for no more than another 41/2 years.

Also under our Constitution, a treaty requires the concurrence of two-thirds of the Senate. (Article II, Section 2, Clause 2). No one in the Obama Administration even took a stab at explaining why this agreement with a foreign power was not being submitted to the Senate for concurrence. But the reason is obvious: the Senate would not concur.

Also under our Constitution, you will search in vain for any provision that authorizes a lengthy military occupation of a foreign country. In fact, the Constitution does not authorize a standing army, much less an army standing in Kabul. In the Bizarro world in which we live, we have 27 Attorneys General challenging the constitutionality of 35 million Americans getting health coverage, but no one challenges the constitutionality of an undeclared war (see Article I, Section 8 on that) that has now entered its second decade.

Presidential candidates Obama and Clinton obviously were separated by race and gender, but one of the few things that separated them on policy was Clinton's vote in favor of the war in Iraq, contrasted with Obama's 2002 statement that the war in Iraq was "dumb." This is what State Senator Barack Obama said, in October 2002, in the Federal Plaza in Chicago:

I don't oppose all wars. What I am opposed to is a dumb war. What I am opposed to is a rash war. What I am opposed to is the cynical attempt by Richard Perle and Paul Wolfowitz and other armchair, weekend warriors in this administration to shove their own ideological agendas down our throats, irrespective of the costs in lives lost and in hardships borne.

What I am opposed to is the attempt by political hacks like Karl Rove to distract us from a rise in the uninsured, a rise in the poverty rate, a drop in the median income, to distract us from corporate scandals and a stock market that has just gone through the worst month since the Great Depression.

That's what I'm opposed to. A dumb war. A rash war. A war based not on reason but on passion, not on principle but on politics.

Barack Obama was talking about the war in Iraq. But let's be honest. At this point, after 11 years of pointless, fruitless, endless war, doesn't all of that apply equally to the war in Afghanistan?

Songs to Fight the Plutocracy By: "La Marseilles"

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Celebrating a Socialist Victory over plutocratic austerity in the place where the 99 percents of the 18th century released political prisoners, singing an anthem that gloats over the execution of aristocrats - what more could you ask?

Published on May 6, 2012 by rcook1148

Place de la Bastille, May 6, 2012. Crowd singing the French National Anthem as François Hollande prepares to take the stage.

Still Time to Save the Post Office

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My tiny rural town has one huge drawback and one huge advantage.

The drawback is that we are outside the service areas of the surrounding towns' cable systems and thus have no access to highspeed broadband internet.

The huge advantage is that we still have a post office. A post office that could easily erase that drawback, if only Congress would let it.

John Nichols at The Nation:

But even this progress is threatened as the postal debate heads to the less friendly House. Under pressure to act by May 15, when a moratorium on closures ends, the House could enact a worse measure. And much could be lost in the reconciliation process.

So this is the time to turn up the volume in defense of the PO, pressuring not just Democratic Congressional leaders but farm-state Republicans. Those Republicans need to feel the heat before their small-town constituents face the devastation caused by closures, which will further cut rural communities off from the rest of the country. There’s a large constituency for the USPS; more than 1 million Americans have signed “Save America’s Postal Service” petitions, and have held rallies across the country to resist cuts and closures. Americans “get” that the cuts are as unnecessary as they are unwise.

SNIP

The campaign message should not be one of mere defense, however. It must echo the call of Senator Patrick Leahy, who says, “The Postal Service needs a plan not only to survive but to thrive. To do that the Postal Service must listen to its customers, understand its market and play to its strengths.” Along with easing the prefunding burden, that plan should erase onerous regulations that have prevented the USPS from raising revenue.

But the USPS must do more than just compete with private delivery services. It should embrace the digital age by using post offices to help communities tap into broadband wireless communication. It should turn post offices into help centers offering a broad array of public services. And it should consider re-establishing the postal banking system the United States maintained until 1967, bringing basic financial services to underserved communities.

The USPS can continue to be what the founders intended when they established it in the Constitution: a vital public service that connects Americans and links America to the world. This is not a budget or regulatory question; it is a political one. Even Republicans are beginning to realize that the PO is popular; embracing and enhancing that popularity by making the future of the service a 2012 campaign issue would create the political will needed to prevent this treasure from being squandered in the name of austerity and privatization.

Michiganders on Mitt's Mendacity

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Current's The War Room with Jennifer Granholm won't ever be Rachel or Keith, but it's improving slowly but steadily. Although at least once an episode I have to yell at the former governor of Michigan to stop scheduling evil repugs like Bay Buchanan and that horrible California state chair, she makes up for it with superb segments like these.

It's cable, Jen - you can say "lying motherfucker."



Is this man running for governor of Michigan and if not why not?

"People Died for the Right to Vote"

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And don't you ever fucking forget it.

Via Steve Benen:



Down with Tyranny describes it as Lewis "shaming" Broun into withdrawing, and that's the biggest takeaway here: What repugs are doing - not just on gay rights, but on women's rights, on global warming, on the budget, on helping the poor, on saving the middle class, on growing the economy - everything, repugs are shameful.

Lewis shows that it is not just possible but easy to shame them into backing down and backing off if you are not afraid to stand up and argue passionately for human and civil rights.

Repugs are bullies. And bullies are cowards. And cowards always back down when confronted by righteous courage.

What Happens When You Elect Blue Dogs Like Ben Chandler

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First, they feel free and safe to pull inexcusable shit like this:

Down with Tyranny:

While Obama's support for LGBT equality was being widely hailed as a courageous act setting an important international precedent, the Republican House took another tact-- a typical display of vicious homophobia. The House passed a gratuitously anti-gay amendment by Kansas' fanatic hate-monger Tim Huelskamp, who is so hung up on gay issues that psychologists just assume he's either gay himself or spending a great deal of time repressing his homosexual desires. His amendment would prohibit the Justice Department from actively opposing DOMA in the courts. Nancy Pelosi led almost all Democrats in opposition to the GOP ploy. “On an historic day and in the dark of night, House Republicans have voted to tie the hands of the Obama administration with respect to their efforts to end discrimination against America’s families. House Republicans continue to plant their feet firmly on the wrong side of history.” But, depending on how you define "Democrat," not every "Democrat" agreed with her. The viciously homophobic Blue Dog caucus-- and a few of their fellow travelers-- hid behind Cantor's skirts and voted with the Republicans. The amendment passed 245-171, all but 7 Republicans vote with the hatemongers. Sixteen anti-LGBT "Democrats" voted with the Republicans:

John Barrow (Blue Dog-GA)
Sanford Bishop (Blue Dog-GA)
Dan Boren (Blue Dog-OK)
Ben Chandler (Blue Dog-KY)
Jerry Costello (IL)
Mark Critz (PA)
Henry Cuellar (Blue Dog-TX)
Tim Holden (Blue Dog-PA)
Larry Kissell (Blue Dog-NC)
Dan Lipinski (IL)
Jim Matheson (Blue Dog-UT)
Mike McIntyre (Blue Dog-NC)
Colin Peterson (Blue Dog-MN)
Nick Rahall (WV)
Mike Ross (Blue Dog-AR)
Heath Shuler (Blue Dog-NC)

But that's just the beginning. Eventually, you get this:

Throckmorton County is a tiny rural affair in north central Texas. There's no city and the population was 1,641 as of the 2010 census. There are two African-Americans, 152 Latinos, 7 Asians and a Native American living among all the white folks there. Throckmorton, with a long history of lynchings, was considered a "no-go zone" for black Americans. Doesn't look like that's changed much. The population has been steadily dropping. Yesterday the county switched from faux Democrat-- it was a Blue Doggie haven-- to Republican.

In 2008, the state of Texas voted 55% for McCain and 44% for Obama. Throckmorton County only gave Obama 20% of its vote, the identical percentage that voted against the deranged far right incumbent Republican congressman, Mac Thornberry. (Thornberry was reelected with 77% of the vote district-wide, so Throckmorton was even 3 points crazier than the rest of the 13th congressional district. Two years ago the Democrats didn't even manage to nominate an opponent for Thornberry-- and when Rick Perry was beating conservative Democrat Bill White 55-42% statewide in the governor's race, Throckmorton gave Perry a far more generous 74%.

Yesterday evening, at a staged event at the county courthouse-- not as exciting as a lynching, no doubt but people in Throckmorton are grateful for whatever entertainment they get these days-- all the county officials officially switched to the Republican Party. County Judge Trey Carrington, Sheriff John Riley, Treasurer Brenda Rankin, County Clerk Susie Walraven, Justice of the Peace Billy Ray Fowler, County commissioners Casey Wells, Wilton Cantrell and Johnny Jones all drank the koolaid. The featured speakers were Texas Agriculture Commissioner Todd Staples and Texas Republican Party Chairman Steve Munisteri. The event was spoiled when God showed his disapproval with sudden thunderstorms.

Commissioner Cantrell said there isn't a Democratic Party in the county anymore. Munisteri said it was the first time in Texas history that a county has gone from having only a Democratic primary to having only a Republican primary. Brad Bellah, the Republican Party county chairman, said that "the significance is that Throckmorton County is still a one-party county, but now it's a Republican county. With the current administration (in Washington), the county didn't want to be identified as a Democratic county." He noted that none of the county officials had to switch their political philosophy when they jumped the fence. That pretty much holds true for almost every Blue Dog, especially the southern ones.

The end of the Democratic Party in Throckmorton County is exactly where Steve Israel, Steny Hoyer, Joe Crowley and the rest of the corrupt DC Dems are taking the national Democratic Party. Blue Dogs are Republicans in all but name. That's the significance of what happened in Throckmorton County last night. And that's why Blue America works so hard to defeat Blue Dogs and their fellow travelers, the way we did in PA-17 (Tim Holden) last month and the way we are now in Albuquerque and Grand Rapids, where we are trying to help Eric Griego and Trevor Thomas win the Democratic nomination against right-wing faux Dems who will one day stand in front of a county courthouse and take off their blue tee-shirts and put on red ones.

Voting in Blue Dogs is political suicide. Period.

Summer at Kentucky State Parks

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Summer's already here in Kentucky, and the parks are easy, fun and fantastic.

• Adventure Tourism "Spring is a great time to be outdoors in Kentucky, especially if you’re looking for adventure. During May and June, there are many outdoor events for families across the Commonwealth, according to the Kentucky Office of Adventure Tourism. For all of the exciting events scheduled during May and June, visit www.getoutky.com."

• Family Fun Archaeology Day "Family-friendly, hands-on activities related to archaeology, prehistoric technology and park history will be presented at Wickliffe Mounds State Historic Site during its annual Family Fun Day on Saturday, June 9, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Visitors can walk around the mounds, take a tour of the archaeological museum and experience what life was like for the Mississippian people. Explore the wildlife and flora on the Woods Walk Trail. Try your skills with Native American tools such as pump drills, blow gun, spears and atlatls."

• Tractor Show at Greenbo "Greenup Old Tractors, Engines, & Machinery (G.O.T.E.M.) will be having its annual Tractor Show at Greenbo Lake State Resort Park on May 19."

• Cumberland Falls Beautification "Cumberland Falls State Resort Park will host its Cumberland Falls Beautification Day on May 19. Every year when the spring rains cause flooding, the Cumberland River becomes contaminated with trash. Unfortunately, this has a devastating impact on the beauty of Cumberland Falls and the river bank. The park needs help from volunteers to restore Cumberland Falls back to its natural beauty."

• 150th Battle of Perryville "Guests planning to attend the 150th commemoration of the Battle of Perryville, Oct. 6-7, can save money and avoid long lines by purchasing advance tickets online. The Kentucky Department of Parks is offering advance tickets for the first time, with savings of between $5 and $7.50 on the ticket price. Advance sales will be available through Sept. 28."

• Summer Author Series "The Waveland Summer Author Series will begin May 17 at Waveland State Historic Site in Lexington. This free series, sponsored by Waveland, the University Press of Kentucky, Friends of Waveland and The Morris Book Shop, will feature University Press of Kentucky authors speaking about their works in the context of Kentucky’s rich history. For its inaugural event May 17, the series will feature author James C. Nicholson and his book “The Kentucky Derby: How the Run for the Roses Became America’s Premier Sporting Event.” Nicholson provides an intriguing and thorough history of the Kentucky Derby, examining the tradition, spectacle, culture, and evolution of the Kentucky Derby – the brightest jewel of the Triple Crown. This event will give visitors a chance to interact with the author and hear firsthand how the most exciting two minutes in sports earned its title."

• Equine Camping "Greenbo Lake State Resort Park officially opened its equine campground today, thanks to assistance from Greenup County. The nine primitive sites for campers with horses were built with help from Greenup County Fiscal Court and Judge-Executive Bobby Carpenter. The county provided the equipment and crew to prepare the sites."

• Special Rate for Heritage Trail "Rough River Dam State Resort Park is offering a special lodging rate to celebrate the opening of the Rough River Lake Heritage Trail. The heritage trail is a driving trail that allows guests to visit historical or cultural sites in Grayson and Breckinridge counties. The trail kickoff is May 19."

• Spring Hoot 5K "Barren River Lake State Resort Park wants to know: Who…who…who… will fly past the competition in the park’s Spring Hoot 5K race on May 12? This is the second race in the Kentucky State Park Race Series. Run or walk this challenging course that takes you through the beautiful scenery of the park. Awards will be presented for each division and overall male and female winners for the 5K run. Prizes will also be given and all participants are eligible."

• Buffet Specials "Need a night off from the kitchen? Then make your way out to Lake Barkley State Resort Park’s Windows on the Water Restaurant for one of the park’s special buffets starting in May. The first Friday of the month will feature a seafood buffet with crab legs, frog legs, shrimp, and fried oysters – all for $22.95 for adults and $7.99 for children. The third Saturday of the month will feature a whole hog roast, barbecue chicken and assorted sides for $18.95 for adults and $6.99 for children."

Making Sure Obama Loses Even After He Wins

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From Zandar, who always sees through the mothefuckers:

So in the world of Big Moron, Obama game a speech to an "empty arena". There's no downside to the lie, of course. It's not like our liberal media will call them on it. In fact, it's more likely they will repeat the lie until it becomes fact, then a trend consisting of facts, then a President locked in a tight race for his political survival (when the opposite its true.) It may demoralize voters. It will give observers the illusion of a close race, and of course the opinion-makers of the Village must be heeded in a situation like that. A boring, lop-sided competition becomes a razor-thin slugfest. You know, just like 2008 wasn't.

When he wins, it will be "How could he possibly have won when he gave campaign" rallies at empty arenas? He couldn't possibly have won without his Chicago thuggery! It must be VOTER FRAUD ON AN UNPRECEDENTED SCALE! IMPEACH! IMPEEEEEEEACH!"

And let's be honest: The next six months of this aren't really about helping Romney win. He can't and they know it. It's all about pre-emptively delegitimizing Obama's second term now. The plan really is simple. Six months of "empty arenas" and "unspectacular attendance" will prove that the polls showing the President ahead are all "suspect". When he wins, it will be "hard for the country to accept how it happened when nobody came to the President's rallies".

And that of course, Republican in Congress will have to investigate because the "people will be clamoring to know". The people lied to by Breitbart, and FOX, and Drudge, and the rest.

Really is that simple. How well it will work? For tens of millions who only get their info from FOX and still believe the President's birth certificate isn't real? For tens of millions more who get their news from the Villagers who insist only they have the power to see the future of this race that's "too close to call"?

No matter what happens, no matter what he accomplishes, Barack Obama will always be "that ni**er in the White House" to a certain segment of the population. The question is whether the rest of us will fight to keep the polite version of that from becoming conventional wisdom.

The Voter ID Con in Kentucky

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Lists of states with "voter ID" requirements omit Kentucky because the Commonwealth allows you to vote without ID as long as you are personally acquainted with one of the precinct officers, who can vouch for your identity. It also technically allows multiple forms of identification, including social security and credit cards.

This is bullshit. The practical fact is that if you are poor or elderly and thus lack a current driver's license, you cannot vote in Kentucky.

Here's the law, according to the Kentucky Board of Elections:

Do I have to produce Identification to vote?

All voters must produce identification or be known by a precinct officer prior to voting. KRS117.227 and 31 KAR 4:010 provide the types of ID that can be used by the voter such as: Personal acquaintance of precinct officer, Driver’s license, Social Security card, credit card, or another form of ID containing both picture and signature.

"containing both picture and signature."

Everyone who has a social security card, credit card, library card, insurance card or any other card that contains both your signature and your photograph, stand on your head.

My credit cards have my signature, but no picture. My warehouse discount cards have my picture but no signature. Ditto my employee ID card. My health insurance, library, AAA, gym membership, frequent flyer club and ACLU cards have neither.

So, unless you have a current driver's license or you are a personal friend of the precinct officer, you can't vote in Kentucky. I've been voting at the same precinct - with the same three superannuated precinct officers - for more than a decade. But I don't know their names, and doubt they know mine.

On May 22, I'm seriously considering parking a half-mile away, walking to the polling place, claiming I don't have my driver's license with me, and seeing if they let me vote anyway.

Justice For the RIch, But Not On Them

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If a homeless person cut down just one of those trees to build a lean-to and make a small fire, that person would be in prison for the rest of his life.

Why is Washington Redskins owner Dan Snyder walking free?

Erik Loomis at Lawyers, Guns and Money:

Rain makes trees grow, but only if they're planted. This new book asserts that after chopping down public-easement trees to improve his mansion's view of the Potomac River, Chainsaw Dan Snyder tried to ruin the career of the National Park Service ranger who blew the whistle. Click "media kit" for a summary of the allegations. Your columnist has no way of knowing whether the book's charges are true. It is known that a 2006 federal report found Snyder had "undue influence" at the Park Service.

The clear-cutting happened in 2004. After being caught, Chainsaw Dan promised to replant. Seven years later, no new trees. Since saplings take a decade to acquire height, years of putting off the replanting assured Chainsaw Dan of a long period of unobstructed view. If an average person cut down Park Service trees, there would be immediate retribution. When a wealthy person does the same, the government goes lapdog.

If you want to know how we got to this point, read Glenn Greenwald's "With Liberty and Justice for Some."

Songs to Fight the Plutocracy By: "A Man's A Man For a' That"

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Uploaded by taragolden on Aug 9, 2007

Lionel McClellend of Moffat performs his own version of the famous Robert Burns ode to humanity.

A man is one who stops to help another without a second thought. A man is one who works for his family and friends without a care in his heart. A man is one gives to all and fights for what is right. A man looks upon many things in this life with a faith that burns deep in the soul. The trick in this life is learning what a man should be not what society has made them become. And with all this a man is an honest man who's word is always enough.

Is there for honest poverty
That hangs his head, an' a' that
The coward slave, we pass him by
We dare be poor for a' that
For a' that, an' a' that
The rank is but the guinea's stamp
The man's the gowd(gold) for a' that
What though on hamely(homely) fare we dine
Wear hoddin grey(course wollen cloth), an' a' that
Gie(give) fools their silks, and knaves their wine
A man's a man, for a' that
For a' that, an' a' that
Their tinsel show an' a' that
The honest man, though e'er sae poor
Is king o' men for a' that
Ye see yon birkie(fellow) ca'd a lord
Wha struts an' stares an' a' that
Tho' hundreds worship at his word
He's but a coof(fool) for a' that
For a' that, an' a' that
The man o' independent mind
He looks an' laughs at a' that
A prince can mak'(make) a belted knight
A marquise, duke, an' a' that
But an honest man's aboon( above) his might
Gude(good) faith, he maunna( must not) fa' that
For a' that an' a' that
Their dignities an' a' that
The pith o' sense an' pride o' worth
Are higher rank that a' that
Then let us pray that come it may
(as come it will for a' that)
That Sense and Worth, o'er a' the earth
Shall bear the gree( have priority) an' a' that
For a' that an' a' that
It's coming yet for a' that
That man to man, the world o'er
Shall brithers( brothers) be for a' that

A Moratorium on "Believe"

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The problem with this billboard is not its equation of terrorists with people who understand the fact of global warming. The problem is the use of the word "believe" in reference to a scientific fact.

I don't "believe" in global warming because it's a non-sequitur. You can't "believe" in a fact. The fact exists in reality regardless of your "belief."

I know global warming is caused by human activity and is already drastically and perhaps irreversibly damaging the planet's ability to maintain a human-friendly climate. I know this because science - the same science that figured out the earth revolves around the sun - tells me so.

Do you "believe" in gravity? No? Tough shit. Gravity happens anyway. A zillion screaming prayers won't let you float off the surface of the earth.

The sun is going to rise in the east and set in the west no matter how fervently you "believe" the opposite.

Yet we nod or say nothing when people who know better say inexcusably stupid shit like "I believe in evolution." Guess what? Evolution doesn't "believe" in you. In fact, evolution doesn't give a flying fuck what you believe, or that you don't know the difference between believing and thinking.

This error is pervasive. A hundred times a day I read or hear people use the word "believe" when they really mean "think" or "know."

"I believe it's going to rain." Really? Shut up. You may think it's going to rain, but you don't "believe" any such thing.

Constantly substituting "believe" for "think" or "know" debases the meaning of thought and knowledge and reduces facts to the level of beliefs.

It gives an entirely unwarranted credibility to myths, superstitions, lies and other stupidity referenced by the verb "believe."

Even people who say "I believe in god" are lying. No, they don't "believe in god." They think an invisible wizard in the sky tells them what to do. Calling it religion doesn't make it any less a mental illness.

Stop "believing." Start thinking and knowing. You know better.