Friday night open thread
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must need the traffic
More like time with the kids I’d wager – especially since she was out of town this week.
A column, 8 posts, and TV appearances seem like more than enough work for one day!
Hope you all have a great weekend. We are having a terrible blast of global warming up here in Northern MN. Its all the way up to -17f here.
I think the Obamessiah has begun working his miracles…..
Today, my husband and I scored big on the perfect ceramic tile for our new kitchen floor….
My daughter’s team won their basketball game tonight….
And, I got a great deal on this Lucky Brand bag I had my eye on for a few days…
All hail the Obamessiah!!! LOL
Have a great weekend, everyone!
Doo2, I guess your global warming is supposed to be working its way east over the weekend.
I think I’ll make some “Gorsicles” for the kids this weekend…
Bingo. Thanks for understanding my priorities.
Not to mention he must have stopped Global warming and I believe it because I live in the south of Florida where it was 28 degrees yesterday morning. 28! I didn’t move to Florida for 28 degrees, Darn you Obama, darn you!
I don’t know if the cold this year is because Ollama has reversed global warming back to the Little Ice Age of if its those darn Canadians, but I’m really sick of being below zero.
I hate cold weather. That said, I’m not complaining if it takes the air out of the “global warming” sails.
The weather guy said he other day, “Only 57 days to Spring.” I could have wrung his neck I got so depressed!
Never use a countdown clock for things you want. It makes the time just crawl.
The latest Obama flip-flop is a doozy.
That’s not popcorn you hear popping, it’s the nutroots heads exploding.
Link.
I was tickled that Obama said that the GOP needs to not listen to Rush if they want to get things done. The NY Post had an article on it, and is it just me, or does The One sound like a brat, saying he won, he trumps teh Repubs, and will get his way? I paraphrase, of course, but the intent is clear.
I hope the GOP takes this to heart, and stands strong. We will lose some of the RINOs, to be sure, and McCain is leading some astray, but IMHO, let them show their true colors, and fail in the next elections. We need to have be strong and principled, not just reactionary and always negative.
genso…… Totally agree! Then there is the annoying countdown to digital TV only broadcasts. How long have we been subjected to those?
LOL, “must need the traffic”, me thinks Missus Malkin does just fine…
now I on the other hand could use some
Flyoverman – Well, see, that’s one that I’m not looking forward to, so its coming like a bullet train.
I honestly do not think it will happen for the most part. It’s okay when it’s their guy. Clinton bombed and launched really dubious missle-strikes with no consultation. The Left and the MSM yawned. 500 FBI files in the White House….crickets chirped.
Look at Obama’s cabinet picks….pass after pass.
If a Leftist has power, it is acceptable.
It’s going to be a mess.
I only use DTV in my basement and the garage, I have satellite elsewhere. I have converters on both, and am still trying to get effective antennae. The expensive ones work about as well as the cheapies. My 9-yr old son is still up, and thinks this is the neatest thing.
BTW, Flyoverman, are you in flyover country?
tpro1,
Yes, I am…. Iowan by birth, Hawkeye by the Grace of God. +3 F tonight.
Can BO even form an original thought? He had to steal Colin Powell’s, “Don’t listen to Rush” line. Only 4 days post-coronation and we see what really worries the new adminicastration.
I’ve been surfing tonight and discovered there’s a preparation network setting up chapters all over the country. Very interesting!
AH!
Another weekend with no snow in northern Idaho.
We’ve been inside for two months and I’ve fixed everything in the house
What do I do with free time?
Could you fix me a sandwich?
MM and crew, did you see that the Air Force was trying to use coal to fly our planes? Of course the usual suspects were trying to stifle it, but it may have gotten off the ground last year. I’ll look into it tomorrow. Gotta go to bed!
G’night.
Any New Yorkers in here breathing something of a sigh of relief tonight?
Gillibrand isn’t perfect… she is after all still a Democrat. Still, reflecting on how the situation looked last week, it is refreshing to have somebody who can at least occasionally think for herself in the Senate. We’ve had 8 years of someone just working from an overinflated sense of entitlement and we came all to close with replacing her with more of the same.
I rarely praise lefties, but I do respect Paterson for not succumbing to the pressure of the Cuomo name after being relieved of the pressure of the Kennedy name.
Also, her House seat may have a fair chance of going Republican if we can recruit a candidate.
I’d say this is off topic, but hey, it’s an open thread…
Responding to something I saw on Texas Darlin…
I agree with truthisgold.
Barack is the chosen “frontman” for the real power players.
Zbigniew Brzezinski is a founding member, along with Greenspan, Paul Volcker, and a few other people, of the Trilateral Commission.
I wrote the following post about this over 7 months ago:
We aim to please chappy
http://www.ottawaathome.ca/imgs/dynamique/articles/gros/giant_sandwich001b.jpg
Brian Roastbeef:
I’m with you there. I don’t know much about Gillibrand, but the fact she’s not Caroline Kennedy is all it takes to make me happy.
Hmmmm….FamilyMan,
Don’t mean to be fussy, but could you make it again, but this time without the tomatoes?
Also, white bread, not that multigrain crap.
Thanks.
Oh and grab me a beer while you’re up.
Soooo…
Told my boss today that the wife and me are packing it up and moving to DC.
The pull of all that hopiness is too much to resist.
Maybe I’ll take over whyihatedc.com from Rusty.
Too true. In fact Clinton was so enamored of “smart” weapons that they literally emptied the pipeline.
Chap.
That sandwich looks like a blue collar working class lunch.
I only provide rich, costly, capitalist food at my house. Why would you want a meal for the proletariat?
WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE???? Maybe you need to go spend more time in the Persian Gulf for a few years. Screw humidity that is not in the form of a raindrop, snowflake or wall of water
Give me snow, sleet, mud, rain, tornadoes, hurricanes…. anything but boring old everyday hot sun. A long distance run in falling snow at about 29 degress is perfect.
I used to work for an old VietNam LRRP. He only took his vacations to places where there was war, destruction and/or instability. He said he was ALWAYS guaranteed the full body cavity search everytime he returned to the states.
I cant believe snowboard season is already almost 1/2 over……
No way! PS – I dropped your sandwich…
Spent 40 years in the D.C. area, until I moved south, back in May. It has been a delight being away from illegals and all the traffic. No more big city for us; sparse suburbia for us. Besides, housing is almost through the roof there. Store clerks here actually speak English fluently, and I haven’t seen 1 parking lot full of “day laborers” since I’ve been here. Government is miles away, not “next door”. That may be good for first-timers there, but after awhile it gets boring. Here too, I actually had a “new” neighbor, moving in, 3 homes down, come over and introduce himself when I was outside. Good luck in D.C., Chap. I won’t miss it.
Coal Gasification is nothing new – we’ve had CG plants in North Dakota for years. The fact that Malfunction Junction (Malstrom AFB) is still open IS news.
A few ideological differences aside, Ms. Gillibrand reminds me quite a bit of another wife-and-new-mother political unknown, recently thrown into the spotlight.
Of course, being a Democrat means she won’t get put through the shredder like Sarah. The media hypocrites will see to that.
@Brian Roastbeef #28
Gillibrand’s primary reason for being a bad selection for a New York Senate Seat is that she is, in fact, a New Yorker.
Why couldn’t you just pull someone from Arkansas again? We all know how New York eggheads love Arkansans.
I just dropped my husband off at work, and was disgusted to hear on the news that our tax dollars now officially fund abortions overseas and aborted embryo stem cell ‘research’ here at home (the first FDA-approved human clinical trials involving the injection of murdered-embryo stem cells into paraplegics begin this summer). What a country!!!
Knowing that this was coming does not make the arrival of these policies any less sickening. I think I’m just going to go back to bed.
AlohaGuy said:
Shhh, just brush it off and he’ll never know the difference. If he asks, just say you put pepper and spices on it.
CantCureStupid said:
Not just to provide abortions, but also to promote abortions.
Well, Obama did promise to bring us all together. So now both the Pro-Choice & the Pro-Life are uniting their tax dollars for the cause of abortion.
President Obama is warning Republicans not to listen to Rush Limbaugh anymore. What’s he afraid will happen? Does he think exposure to Rush causes a dangerous condition? What might that be?
Firstly, it seems to me that some left-wing screwballs have signed up to comment, like Noneya at Hot Air. Would the Kos or HuffPo tolerate dissent? Nope. We do.
Secondly, Hussein’s first 100 days will be used to push his radical agenda. He’s done p*ssed off some in the media pool, what with his cronies limiting access, getting photos handed to them instead of being allowed to take them, and not getting straight answers to direct questions. He’ll lose favor, and he knows it after America wises up.
Thirdly, there is no more GOP leadership. I thought my senator, Cornyn, had a pair; but, like grapes, they shriveled up and became raisins.
Fourthly, if we don’t get rid of RINOs and un-American public officials (yes, people – elected officals are temporary employees, our employees) then we are screwing ourselves. Call, write, and vote. It is that simple.
Lastly, I still blame the penguins for all the ills of the world. Yes. If we had no more penguins, the world would be a better place.
Damn penguins.
Grayson,
I lived there five years and absolutely miss it. To each their own I guess.
But the real reason is my wife lined up a sweet new job there. So being the dutiful husband I am…
But I must admit the hopiness and changitude will be nice.
Yeah, check this out, from a FoxNews page:
Obama arrogantly said:
The thing is, I’m not even a fan of Rush. On matters of substance, we often agree, but his schtick is just too much, too full of himself for me to enjoy listening to him.
Now Obama is going to force me to go back to listening to Rush again. (I listened to Rush for awhile, back when Harry Reid slandered Rush and his support for our troops.)
madmonk,
Wow. That is so benevolent of you to tolerate us libs. I want to personally thank you for not banning me as I am sure is in your power.
Let’s talk more about counting, how about:
Day 5 of The Constitution Held Hostage.
Being the questioning type I am – I really wonder though if this has nothing to do with Americas enemies but rather Obama’s enemies.
FamilyMan if you are bored you can come down to Southern Idaho today and help me remove a couple of inches of global warming off my driveway and sidewalk.
Looks like we will be getting rain and/or snow all weekend long.
I also saw the article on Drudge last night before turning in on how the great divider told the GOP to not listen to Rush. If they did we wouldn’t have been stuck with the Juan McAmnesty, but at least his people were smart enough to pick Sara Palin as his running mate or it would have been a real landslide for Obama lama ding dong with even more conservatives staying home on Nov 4th. I consider this the opening salvo in the anything but fairness doctrine push to end conservative talk radio. We can’t have any of that pesky free speech that might wake up the sheeple to the threat of our brand new shinny light working (or is it light weight) dear leader.
ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒE (mo-lone lah-veh) Translation: “Come and Take Them!”
Not meaning to demean the sentiment of your comment – but how exactly is what has happened different than what has been happening for all of the 1900′s – and on into the 2000′s. My reading of the English language tells me the explicitly that those powers NOT enumerated in the constitution are reserved for the states. So exactly what is the basis for most of the federal government as it exists today?
That was my thought also.
FamilyWoman says shoveling snow keeps me buff.
ITookTheRedPill said:
I’ve long held that Obama is nothing more than a sock puppet for the brainiacs on the hard core left.
Too True.
We have to start somewhere.
I don’t want to believe it’s too late.
Antenna theory states (paraphrased)that “any piece of free metal in space will act as an antenna.” The ‘free metal in space’ part generally means that it isn’t grounded, unless designed to be.
I’ve always chuckled when those commercials for the converters come on and say “your antenna may stop working.” It’s against the laws of physics for a perfectly good antenna to stop working.
The main difference between cheap and expensive antennas is normally construction and wavelength design.
More expensive ones usually last longer because they are more sturdy and weather resistant.
Wavelength design has to do with the electrical length of a frequency versus the physical length of the antenna needed to effectively receive that frequency.
Due to the fact that the lower the frequency the longer the piece of metal is needed to effectively receive that frequency, then most antennas are designed on a fraction of the wavelength. Full wavelength antennas could be quite huge and take more material (metal) to build.
Therefore, most designs normally go in 5/8, 1/2, 1/4 wavelenghts. The closer you can get to 1/1 the better the antenna will receive a signal.
To summarize this: Sturdy large antennas with a wavelength design closer to 1/1 are generally more expensive.
That concludes today’s antenna theory lesson.
As far as what may have changed…
I would add that if we haven’t reached it yet, we are near the point where voters that don’t contribute to the system are receiving remuneration from the system. This increases the angle of ‘the slippery slope’.
A great article on the end of the New York Times:
Will This Be The Year For The Obituary Of ‘The New York Times’?
The Advocate
By Herb Denenberg, The Bulletin
Published: Friday, January 23, 2009
This may be one of the most important and happy years in the history of American journalism — this may be the year when we can write the obituary of The New York Times, one of the most dangerous enemies of America and American values and one of the best friends of terrorists, genocidists and Chinese communists. Read on for the full explanation of what may lead you to sing “Happy Days Are Here Again.”
The rest can be found at
http://www.thebulletin.us/articles/2009/01/23/herb_denenberg/doc497971f1052b1474296619.prt
A fascinating article….
Here’s something from my adopted hometown Ft. Walton.
Blagojevich Update Funny!
http://youhavetobethistalltogoonthisride.blogspot.com/2009/01/blagojevich-balls-adult-humor-language.html
I have long thought Rush Limbaugh either a complete idiot or something of a jerk or more likely both.
But suddenly I hear voices, and they say “Listen to Rush Limbaugh…Listen to Rush Limbaugh….” I wonder where that came from.
One night last week John Stewart played sound bites from Obama and Bush. The big O uses the same rhetoric as the little B. But now the
countryworld is full of hope and change?????Michelle has really hit the nail on the head with the various “derangement syndromes” over the past few years. It’s the only way to explain people being insane just on specific issues. Their reverence of everything Obama is just another example.
This administration sucks-
OK NestingHawk just for you
Bi-partisan? Then agree with me on all things and be quick about it-BHO.
“Listen to Rush Limbaugh…Listen to Rush Limbaugh”
—
ALCOHOL, TOBACCO AND FIREARMS
Should be a convenience store
NOT a Government Agency
Here is some change for you:
http://www.lincolnjournalstar.com/news/nebraska/doc497a5f7050af2073105935.txt
I’m not sure where the threat actually is, I only see that the man said he could make the shot. It looks like a far cry from the threats made against Bush over the last 8 years.
What Happened To John McCain where is he Now?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-rmwuh-ACqI&feature=channel_page
It depends what meaning could could be.
Chap, I can understand you missing D.C.; it being such a liberal town.
Here’s a few items from my blogs. For example, in Israel, the otherwise left-wing Kadima party loses a prominent member. They deserve it.
Marvel Comics, just like DC Comics, is continuing with the wholesale slaughter of “minor” characters. The latest protagonist they intend to kill off: Ms. Marvel. I shouldn’t have to tell you how disgusting and pointless this is getting by now.
Here’s a video I put on my game blog featuring a playthrough of a game called Zero Wing.
The Liberals still can not define “is”-there is no hope for them–put me on the Galarza jury, I promise to be fair.
256 yards? Younger eyes made better shots than that with iron sights; with a scope I can hit 400 yards routinely-sans strong winds.
I promise to be fair.
All your base are belong to us, eh Avi?
http://volokh.com/posts/1232821591.shtml
Mr. Hope’N Change whined about FOX News during the campaign and now, with all that the country is facing, he’s bring up Rush at his meetings. Although I am not a Rush fan, I would enjoy the show-down.
Me for one I am quite excited about Obama’s comments about Rush Limbaugh. It is a clear indication that Obama is cooked, done for, finished, over and out. YES, its way soon to say so. I understand. A comment like this from a President is more an indication of that person’s issues and powerlessness than Rush Limbaugh. Obama’s comment is an early, maybe the earliest on record, symptom of defeat. Obama is doomed and at this point probably doesn’t know it.
I found the comment very insulting. To me it suggests he thinks GOP folks are brain-dead zombies who need someone to tell them what to think. But if only they would listen to the Messiah, they would be saved. He will never get the Rush people (20 million) or the Sean Hannity people or any of us in mainstream, traditional America. I do think he knows that.
Hope you’re right. Yes, it sounds like an admission of defeat but only to win over what used to be the Moral Majority.
I know it’s Saturday but I was wondering if anybody has seen the latest “snow job” from Norman Lear of Archie Bunker and People For the American Way fame.
Born Again American
More smoke and mirrors from the Hollywood Left. How many religious conservaties do you think they can suck in with this BS?
flenser,
Did you actually bother to read the details of the link? The Obama administration is not endorsing warrentless wiretaps in that motion. It is taking a certain position that a claim of privilege based on state secret cannot statutorily preempted.
It is an important issue in that case, and an interesting one. But it is NOT saying Obama has fallen in line with warrantless wiretaps.
Thanks, ArizonaNeanderthal. That explains it
Worth quoting…
That is why I snort at best when people talk about “uniting the country.” That line is going to make me smile for awhile.
I think Obama just doesn’t want us to see Mr. Limbaugh’s electoral map.
http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/home/daily/site_111208/content/01125113.guest.html
It’s like an instruction manual for Republicans, or a campaign target paper. Load your pamphlets, ladies and gentlemen, and prepare to fire at the blue areas…Would Ms. Annie Oakley please come to the front of the line…
Seriously, look at the county-by-county there. Sheesh.
Yeah…now all you have to do is pass an amendment granting groundhogs and cattle the right to vote, and Republicans will be back in power in no time.
But alas, until that day comes to pass, our elections will still be decided by people, the majority of whom seem to like to squeeze themselves into those tiny little blue squares. Seems unfair, I know.
My point, Chapoutier, was that population centers are the places that Republicans are losing, and that therefore, it would be logical for Republicans to campaign there.
However, since you bring it up, what do you think of the phrase “tyranny of the majority?”
Or, put another way, if the rest of my family wants me to convert to Catholicism, and I don’t want to, should I be forced to do so because they outnumber me?
Unfettered majority rule is also called “mob rule” and can be a serious threat to individual rights.
I’m not saying that the system isn’t fair. I believe I mangle a quote from Winston Churchill when I say “Democracy is the worst form of government-except for all the others.”
However, it is not undemocratic to feel a little irritable and badly used when millions of other people who don’t even live in your county try to run every detail of your life for you.
The Constitution was constructed to put limits on that kind of thing and protect individual rights as much as possible, and when lawmakers abide by it in a strict interpretation it does an excellent job. However, when lawmakers interpret it to mean basically whatever they want it to, individual rights are threatened.
It all sounds good right now, but it ultimately means politicians taking your money and therefore your power, and using it in the way they think best without any regard for you, the productive person who earned it. This is not “power to the people.” This is “power to the politicians, because they think they know the best way to run YOUR life.” The higher the tax rate, the less power individuals have. The people giving money to the government are handing over their power, and the people taking money from the government are only means by which the government asserts power.
Drifted into constitutional interpretation and fiscal policy there for a minute. Bringing it back, the Constitution was designed, in part, to prevent mob rule and works well when lawmakers abide by it. It is one of the biggest reasons we don’t have mob rule. But do I reserve the right to be a little grumpy when the population distribution translates into my relatively rural area having lessened or even no self-government? Yes. Yes, I do.
At any rate, the map does reflect that population centers won it for Obama. So Republicans need to get in there with pamphlets and fliers and billboards and change as many hearts and minds as possible before the midterms.
So, is there any evidence yet of the planet healing itself – rising sea level, more Arctic ice, etc.?
The sea levels have risen over 300 feet in the past 10,000 years.
Yes. Arctic and Antarctic ice is thicker than has ever been recorded. The Antiarctic ice shelf has never been larger.
Falling in line with warrantless wiretaps is a Democratic tradition! Don’t forget it was Bobby Kennedy who ordered Hoover to wiretap Martin Luther King without a warrant. (And one wonders what miracle of Democratic soft heartedness forwarded those tapes to Coretta Scott King) Both President Clinton and President Carter authorized their administrations to undertake warrantless wiretaps, with President Clinton actually authorizing warrantless physical searches of property as well, for foreign intelligence gathering purposes. The very worst thing you can accuse President Bush of doing is of following a bad example.
Now what Zbignew Brzezinski is running the country it would be a good idea for all Republicans and conservatives to stop using their phones.
Ok, this is the second time I have seen his name brought up in the past day here.
The dude is a harmless, though slightly crusty and irritable old man. He is not the Illuminati.
You mean, of course, except for that huge-ass piece of it that is about to fall off into the ocean?
Just saw this on yahoo – all I can say is – I don’t think there is anything more dangerous to society than having an un-free press – and this press is un-free from it’s biases:
Can someone tell me what divisive stand he’s avoiding???????
We all love “water kittens”!!!!!!!!!
As a native Washingtonian who is conservative, we don’t need any more people moving here. The traffic has become horrible, and I would like a little time to enjoy the new Woodrow Wilson Bridge before the 7 mile backups start again.
However, our new President will attract a lot more lobbists (lawyers) and gov’t employees to cause the need to build the outer beltway.
Don’t worry. I’ll live in NOVA and take Metro.
Best of luck finding something affordable and nice near the Metro, Chapoutier.
And a heads up; the Metro gets very unnervingly crowded under and over the river during rush hour, if my experience was anything to go by. Still better than a car, in my opinion-just don’t get TOO attached to personal space.
One word for the last three commenters:
Texas.
Sorry you are all freezing. It is a balmy 40 above here in Bristol Bay, AK. I am all for global warming. I never understood what would be bad about a little warmer temps. Better that than a new ice age! Also, those stupid new light bulbs don’t work worth a damn in cold weather.
I’m not sure you or any other liberal (say LGM) really get it. Your comment is either off-hand casual or just obnoxiously indifferent to the fact that there are people who live in the rural regions of the US and they’re not all country bumpkins.
I’m sure you wouldn’t understand an example like, say New York state. I grew up in the upstate region and the implications of an indifferent state capitol (Albany) that seemed to have no problem with failing farms that could be so easily replaced with corporate farms or that much of the tax revenue was being funnelled to New York City.
What do you expect happens when the rural areas of this country get either inequal or hastily uninformed representation? Who do you think produces the food on your table or the milk you drink? I heard you have a relative (mother?) in the downstate region. Where do you think she gets her milk from?
This disparate dichotomy between rural and urban areas in states like New York is based on favoritism and cronyism that always puts big cities like New York first. They’re not the center of the universe but then, I’m sure, no one ever really thinks what would happen if all upstate New York farms went out of business. Then the tony downstaters would start complaining about the increase in their meat and milk prices. The horror.
Zbignew Brzezinski of the TriLateral Commission (co-founded with David rockerfeller-1973) a harmless old man?
Well Henry Kissinger, Bill and Hillary Clinton and both Bushes were TriLateral, not a soothing thought.
Zbignew Brzezinski may be old but he is far from harmless.
His words, not mine. Zbigniew Brzezinski is a true Globalist in the mold of Plato’s Republic. No, he is not a harmless old man. But you might want to get the book from a library or such–it goes from $165 up to $300.
chapoutier: are you Tri-Lateral?
Well besides the fact that I was born and raised on a dairy farm in Lowville New York, and then went to college in New York City, and did my senior honors thesis on applying E.E. Schattschneider’s theory of scope of conflict to explain New York state and local politics and why so many local issues in NYC end up getting decided in Albany.
But other than that, I don’t have a clue.
I also don’t have a clue about how anyone could look at that map linked to and state “this country is conservative” unless they think we vote by acre.
I grew up hearing and believing the same thing. The myth of the upstate tax funnel and how we get nothing from NYC in return except for prisoners. And then I went to NYC and listened to them complain about how a bunch of unwashed upstaters had dictated policy that only affected NYC. The issue that first got me started is rent control, a concept that exists only in NYC, yet for some reason was abolished by the NY State legislature, over the clear objections of the vast majority of NYCers.
And actually having lived in both places and studied the issues, more often than not, NYC has the better argument. Do you know how many state laws are on the books that apply only to cities with a population of one million or more? Who do you think that includes? Rochester? Buffalo? Syracuse? Do you know that so many of the Authorities that run various public works in NYC and NYC only are controlled by the state? Like Battery Park? Why should some upstate joe farmer cum legislator have any say whatsoever in Battery Park?
And do you know how much of the state’s revenue comes from NYC area (think about corporate taxes alone: the largest percentage of NYs corporate tax revenue comes from finance and insurance companies. Where are they located?) And do you know how much more it costs to provide services on a per person basis in a spread out, rural area than in a dense urban area?
You are kidding, right? How many senators does NY get? And how many again does Wyoming get? The fact of the matter is that for a number of reasons, rural representation in bodies politic are most often OVERREPRESENTED looking at it from a one man one vote basis. And were the cities getting the shaft when the more conservative rural and suburban vote won the previous 2 presidential elections?
But again, what do I know? I’ve just been living in my ivory tower and getting my opinions from the New York Times.
Shall I answer this as condescendingly as it was asked? There are thes big nasty beasties called “cows” who stand around and poop a lot. My paw would get up afore dawn and go out and put these sucky machines on the bottom of the cows where it looks like they have 4 pee-pees (even thought they’re girls). This is where the milk comes from. The sucky machines then take the milk through a series of tubes to a big shiny tank, where it sits until some strange guy comes at like 4 in the morning with an even BIGGER shiny tank on the back of a truck to take it away. I am a little hazy on what happens next, but my mom then can buy milk at the store.
Of course the small family farms in upstate like the one I grew up on have already been failing and/or taken over by corporate farm. Know why? Because small family farms are much less efficient and profitable. Capitalism rocks! Except when it doesn’t, hmmm?
Not to horn-in on two New Yorkers talking, but Chap, Emjem is right, all states unfairly favor their metro areas in divvying up tax revenues and these urban populations do outweigh the rest of the populace in state and national elections.
For example in KY, the “Golden Triangle” area of our state – consisting of Louisville, Frankfort and Lexington, home to national brands like Yum Foods and KY’s tobacco and horse industries – receives the lion’s share of state revenues, much of it derived from far away eastern KY’s coal severance taxes. This area of the state pretty much sets the agenda for our government, our taxes, and is first in line for infrastructure development and education “investments,” while the rest is state is left to work hard and make do.
It is an unfair system, prevalent in each state, and one which needs our attention.
Of course they do. There are more people there. What do you propose to do about that in a way that does not violate the Constitution?
Again, I studied this issue extensively and in the case of New York, it is the upstate areas that have traditionally controlled the legislatures and have exerted a lot more control over NYC issues than NYC has on upstate issues.
And as far as NY tax revenues, Upstate has nothing remotely equivalent to the natural resources that are apparently taxed so heavily in KY. We have marginal farm land, snow and a lot of dying industries like paper mills. The revenue driver in NY is NYC and its suburbs.
And the clock says it is time for NestingHawk to be accused of being a liberal again! Forgive me-I am an English major down to my heart and there are some things I can’t resist.
Chapoutier:
To be honest, I was just pointing at the pretty map and wasn’t worried about or necessarily endorsing the text. But it’s nice to know somebody followed the link. But now for my English major style fun…
It depends on how you take the meaning of the word “country.” If by country you mean the people populating it, then the country is about split, at least by voting block. Some years, Republicans win. Some years, Democrats win. This year, we know some conservatives were sitting home in disgust with McCain. Other years, we know some Democrats are sitting home for one reason or another. Completely disregarding the issue that Obama actually ran as a conservative, the fight, actual fight and not preordained conclusion, and the smaller issues that can affect the outcome each time, mean the country is about split.
However, country as dictated by land mass is not entirely invalid. You can go to one county and say, “This is an area that supports Obama” and another county and say, “This is an area that supports McCain.” If you throw a dart at the map, you are far more likely to wind up in an area that supports McCain than an area that supports Obama. So, on that basis, you could in one sense say, “The country is conservative.” After all, if you pick a random place to be, you will more likely be in a conservative area.
Assuming you feel McCain is conservative, Chapoutier.
Then, if we say, “City areas are liberal and country areas are…” But we knew that already.