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filthy
SFN Die Hard
USA
14408 Posts |
 Posted - 01/02/2008 : 06:40:52
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Really, has there ever been such an asshole administration? This is the sort of thing you might expect from some tin-pot dictatorship like Pinochet‘s Chile. But we have it right here & now. This time last year, I offered up a top 10 list of the most appalling civil-liberties violations by the Bush administration in 2006. The grim truth is, not much has changed. The Bush administration continues to limit our basic freedoms, conceal its own worst behavior, and insist that it does all this in order to make us more free. In that spirit, it seemed an opportune moment to commemorate the administration's worst legal justifications and arguments of the year. And so I humbly offer this new year's roundup: The Bush Administration's Top 10 Stupidest Legal Arguments of 2007.
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But on the other hand, in spite of the pigfucker Bush and his slimy syncophants, there have been a few good things to happen in ‘07: As we close this year on the low of Congress giving Bush more billions for war, and the assassination of Benazir Bhutto in Pakistan, let's remember some of the year's gains that can revive our spirits for the New Year. Here are just ten.
1. With the exception of the White House, this has been a banner year for environmental consciousness and action. Al Gore and the scientists of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change won the Nobel Peace Prize. Green building and renewable energy have exploded. Congress passed the Green Jobs Act of 2007, authorizing $125 million for green job training. Over 700 U.S. mayors, representing 25 percent of the U.S. population, have signed a pledge to reduce greenhouse gases by 2012. Illinois became the 26th state to require that some of the state's electricity come from renewable sources and Kansas became the first state to refuse a permit for a new coal-fired power plant for health and environmental reasons. That's progress!
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We can only hope that this soon-to-come election will go through the government like a nuclear physic, that is: two Ex-Lax, mineral oil, & a dose of salts.
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"What luck for rulers that men do not think." -- Adolf Hitler (1889 - 1945)
"If only we could impeach on the basis of criminal stupidity, 90% of the Rethuglicans and half of the Democrats would be thrown out of office." ~~ P.Z. Myres
"The default position of human nature is to punch the other guy in the face and take his stuff." ~~ Dude
Brother Boot Knife of Warm Humanitarianism,
and Crypto-Communist! 
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Edited by - filthy on 01/02/2008 08:04:43
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bngbuck
SFN Addict
USA
2437 Posts |
Posted - 01/02/2008 : 12:24:57 [Permalink]
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Filthy, what is that adorable little creature, a baby armadillo?
God, I want one, that is the cutest thing with scales that ever lived! Cingulata Dasypodidae! (if that's what it is!) |
| Edited by - bngbuck on 01/02/2008 12:54:02 |
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H. Humbert
SFN Die Hard
USA
4574 Posts |
Posted - 01/02/2008 : 12:39:42 [Permalink]
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Originally posted by bngbuck
Filthy, what is that adorable little creature, a baby armadillo?
God, I want one, that is the cutest thing with scales that ever lived!
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It's a Pangolin.
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"A man is his own easiest dupe, for what he wishes to be true he generally believes to be true." --Demosthenes
"The first principle is that you must not fool yourself - and you are the easiest person to fool." --Richard P. Feynman
"Face facts with dignity." --found inside a fortune cookie |
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bngbuck
SFN Addict
USA
2437 Posts |
Posted - 01/02/2008 : 13:04:11 [Permalink]
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An anteater! Pholidata manidae Manis! Species?
Kind of a first cousin to armadillos? Got to know those guys pretty well in my back yard when I lived in Florida. They dig holes like a trenching machine! I'd find 'em in the swimming pool! Some of the crazys down in the swamp state eat the fuckers! Mad dogs, Englishmen, and Floridians go out in the noonday sun! |
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filthy
SFN Die Hard
USA
14408 Posts |
Posted - 01/02/2008 : 13:09:49 [Permalink]
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Originally posted by H. Humbert
Originally posted by bngbuck
Filthy, what is that adorable little creature, a baby armadillo?
God, I want one, that is the cutest thing with scales that ever lived!
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It's a Pangolin.
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Exactly; a Scaley Anteater. This one is a rescued juvenile that had been mauled, as can be seen by the missing scales.
They're pretty neat, aren't they? Unfortunatly, throughout their range they are also very popular as 'bush meat.'
Buck you really don't want one. As adults, they are extraordinarly strong and their claws are formidable. Also they have a musk gland that will make your eyes water!
"Love it for what it is and let it roam free," eh?
But if one were to turn up on my doorstep, it would not be turned away. Of the Edentata (anteaters, armadillos and sloths), pangolins are my favorite.
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"What luck for rulers that men do not think." -- Adolf Hitler (1889 - 1945)
"If only we could impeach on the basis of criminal stupidity, 90% of the Rethuglicans and half of the Democrats would be thrown out of office." ~~ P.Z. Myres
"The default position of human nature is to punch the other guy in the face and take his stuff." ~~ Dude
Brother Boot Knife of Warm Humanitarianism,
and Crypto-Communist!
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bngbuck
SFN Addict
USA
2437 Posts |
Posted - 01/02/2008 : 13:14:49 [Permalink]
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Thanks for the link. Changed my mind about getting a pangolin puppy!
Damn things fart acid and smell worse than you do! Don't like that bit about razor scales either, and as to the claws, I've got a problem with my dog's toenails!
You keep the little son of a bitch, but pet him now and then for me, Filth. Stay away from that anus, tho'! Remember what happened to Stinky! |
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Mycroft
Skeptic Friend
USA
427 Posts |
Posted - 01/02/2008 : 22:03:02 [Permalink]
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Interesting reading about the Pangolin.
About the anti-Bush screed...
Jeezus, haven't we had enough of this? I don't like him either, but the truth is his days are numbered. Someone else is going to be elected come November, then in January someone will be sworn in who is not George W Bush. Isn't campaigning against someone who cannot run a lot like running on a hamster wheel? Sure, maybe it feels good, but aren't there more productive ways to spend one's time? |
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H. Humbert
SFN Die Hard
USA
4574 Posts |
Posted - 01/02/2008 : 22:50:03 [Permalink]
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Originally posted by Mycroft
Jeezus, haven't we had enough of this? I don't like him either, but the truth is his days are numbered. Someone else is going to be elected come November, then in January someone will be sworn in who is not George W Bush. Isn't campaigning against someone who cannot run a lot like running on a hamster wheel? Sure, maybe it feels good, but aren't there more productive ways to spend one's time?
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Bush is the standing President. He is in power right now. He still has almost a year to further fuck up this country, and you're telling everyone they should move on and not talk about Bush's policies? Are you out of your mind?
Even if you feel Bush himself is largely neutralized (he isn't), shouldn't we all be pointing out the policies we want changed when the next President takes over? For instance, #6 is "Water-boarding may not be torture." Labeling that a bad policy is unproductive? Mycroft, not everyone shares your overwhelming impulse to turn a blind eye.
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"A man is his own easiest dupe, for what he wishes to be true he generally believes to be true." --Demosthenes
"The first principle is that you must not fool yourself - and you are the easiest person to fool." --Richard P. Feynman
"Face facts with dignity." --found inside a fortune cookie |
| Edited by - H. Humbert on 01/02/2008 23:09:28 |
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Dude
SFN Die Hard
USA
6891 Posts |
Posted - 01/03/2008 : 04:29:57 [Permalink]
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mycroft said:
About the anti-Bush screed...
Jeezus, haven't we had enough of this? |
No. The man and his administration are criminals. They have ignored law, the constitution, common sense, and basic human decency for 7 years AND they have more than one year (by a few days) from right now to keep on fucking us over and destroying the evidence of their crimes.
So right about now is the time I wish we had a democratic congress with a backbone.
Its certainly not a time to ignore it and hope it goes away quietly.
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Ignorance is preferable to error; and he is less remote from the truth who believes nothing, than he who believes what is wrong.
-- Thomas Jefferson
"god :: the last refuge of a man with no answers and no argument." - G. Carlin
Hope, n.
The handmaiden of desperation; the opiate of despair; the illegible signpost on the road to perdition. ~~ da filth |
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filthy
SFN Die Hard
USA
14408 Posts |
Posted - 01/03/2008 : 05:12:31 [Permalink]
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Originally posted by Dude
mycroft said:
About the anti-Bush screed...
Jeezus, haven't we had enough of this? |
No. The man and his administration are criminals. They have ignored law, the constitution, common sense, and basic human decency for 7 years AND they have more than one year (by a few days) from right now to keep on fucking us over and destroying the evidence of their crimes.
So right about now is the time I wish we had a democratic congress with a backbone.
Its certainly not a time to ignore it and hope it goes away quietly.
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Indeed. And really, these are merely a couple more of those tedious end-o'-year lists, plus pangolin, that proliforate around New Year's.
Hey Buck, in spite of their rather nasty potential, pangolins, like virtually all anteaters, have quite mild dispositions. I still don't reccommend one for a pet, though. If it get's loose in the house, it'll rip out the walls in search of ants/termites.
I had an article on them & related species. I'll see if I can find it & bump it.
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"What luck for rulers that men do not think." -- Adolf Hitler (1889 - 1945)
"If only we could impeach on the basis of criminal stupidity, 90% of the Rethuglicans and half of the Democrats would be thrown out of office." ~~ P.Z. Myres
"The default position of human nature is to punch the other guy in the face and take his stuff." ~~ Dude
Brother Boot Knife of Warm Humanitarianism,
and Crypto-Communist!
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filthy
SFN Die Hard
USA
14408 Posts |
Posted - 01/03/2008 : 05:29:06 [Permalink]
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Something's wrong; that was too easy. Usually searching for older stuff drives me to distraction. Anyhow, here it is: Possum on the Half Shell.
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"What luck for rulers that men do not think." -- Adolf Hitler (1889 - 1945)
"If only we could impeach on the basis of criminal stupidity, 90% of the Rethuglicans and half of the Democrats would be thrown out of office." ~~ P.Z. Myres
"The default position of human nature is to punch the other guy in the face and take his stuff." ~~ Dude
Brother Boot Knife of Warm Humanitarianism,
and Crypto-Communist!
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| Edited by - filthy on 01/03/2008 05:29:53 |
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bngbuck
SFN Addict
USA
2437 Posts |
Posted - 01/03/2008 : 12:22:59 [Permalink]
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Thanks so much for the link to your great article, Filthy. I take back my comparison reference to your deceased twin brother, Stinky!
That essay was fascinating! Especially to me, as I rapidly approach the status of Ancient Mammal!
Been thinking about that pangolin, though! I've got a nasty Cheneyesque neighbor who practices misanthropy as a hobby. I'm thinking of slipping a breeding pair into his vast back yard, replete with jungle rock gardens and putting greens. The critters would have plenty of places to hide and their claws and anal glands would be perfect companions to this bastard's Republican personality! I'll inject a handful of termite eggs into his basement, sit back and love them for what they are and let them roam free!
Thanks, Filth! |
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filthy
SFN Die Hard
USA
14408 Posts |
 Posted - 01/03/2008 : 18:31:44 [Permalink]
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Originally posted by bngbuck
Thanks so much for the link to your great article, Filthy. I take back my comparison reference to your deceased twin brother, Stinky!
That essay was fascinating! Especially to me, as I rapidly approach the status of Ancient Mammal!
Been thinking about that pangolin, though! I've got a nasty Cheneyesque neighbor who practices misanthropy as a hobby. I'm thinking of slipping a breeding pair into his vast back yard, replete with jungle rock gardens and putting greens. The critters would have plenty of places to hide and their claws and anal glands would be perfect companions to this bastard's Republican personality! I'll inject a handful of termite eggs into his basement, sit back and love them for what they are and let them roam free!
Thanks, Filth!
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My pleasure, but I fear that your plan, so cunning that you could put a tail on it and call it a weasel, has a fatal flaw: slow reproduction rate. They only have a single kit at a time and it requires a lot of parental care. If you really want to mess up this goober's shit, I might suggest an infestation of fire ants, then rent him a couple of pangolins to clean them out, at usurious rates. They hoover up spicey & delicious fire ants as fast as they can find them and within a few days, the yard will begin to take on the appearance of a battle field. And if they are disturbed in the carnage, it might well smell like one as well.
Fun & profit, eh? 
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"What luck for rulers that men do not think." -- Adolf Hitler (1889 - 1945)
"If only we could impeach on the basis of criminal stupidity, 90% of the Rethuglicans and half of the Democrats would be thrown out of office." ~~ P.Z. Myres
"The default position of human nature is to punch the other guy in the face and take his stuff." ~~ Dude
Brother Boot Knife of Warm Humanitarianism,
and Crypto-Communist!
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Bush's legal fictions
