Category: Uncategorized

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Rick Perry thinks he can use executive order to kill Affordable Care Act

Gov. Rick Perry believes he can unilaterally wipe out the Affordable Care Act with an executive order.

Seventh grade civics classes teach kids that Congress passes laws, Presidents sign them into law. One branch of government can’t eliminate a law unilaterally.

Now, Perry goes on to say he would put people in positions who have the same mind set as he does to de-fund parts of the law, and thereby no implement what Congress passed.

This sounds a lot like what Republicans don’t like about the Obama administration not defend DOMA. You can’t have it both ways. If you believe a law passed by Congress and signed by a President is the law and has to be defended, then you have to hold onto that. If you don’t like the law, you go back to Congress and have them repeal it, like we did with DADT.

But you can’t criticize the current President for not defending DOMA (which is still being implemented btw) and then turn around and say you won’t implement ACA. It’s one or the other.

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What’s goin on…

Moving video by a bullied teen.

It was uploaded in August and I hope someone connected with him. It’s the only video this particular account uploaded.

Don’t bully; think about the words you use; if you see bullying in any form, stop it – or find someone who can.

If you are being bullied, talk to someone. One place is The Trevor Lifeline at 866-488-7386. There’s always someone there to talk to.

UPDATE: Jonah Mowry, the young guy in the video, posted a ‘thank you’ yesterday to viewers for their support.

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Andy Borowitz: A farewell from Herman Cain

Andy Borowitz is one of the funniest people you can read on the internet. Here’s just a snippet from his latest post that he wrote as “the first draft of Herman Cain’s speech:”

I mean, let’s get real. I never heard of Libya. I didn’t know whether that CNN dude’s name was Wolf or Blitz. And my only training for running the #1 nation in the world was running its #8 pizza chain. Yet none of that, I repeat, none of that disqualified me. In fact, I was the front-fucking-runner, as long as I kept my 9-9-9 in my pants. (I have no idea what I meant by that — I just like saying 9-9-9.)

But here’s the part that really kills me. You’re kicking me to the curb because I was messing around, and instead you’re going with… Newt Gingrich? I repeat: are you fucking kidding me? Oh, I know what you’re saying: you love Newt because he’s an “intellectual.” Well, Newt Gingrich is the intellectual of the Republican field the way Moe was the intellectual of the Stooges.

Read the entire “speech” here.

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Newt Gingrich: “Poor kids don’t know how to work”

The ironic thing about this “poor kids don’t know how to work” thing is: when I was growing up, the only kids I knew that didn’t know how to work came from families that were “well off” and had everything handed to them.

To listen to the Newt here, you’d think – by his logic – ALL wealthy kids are hard, diligent workers.

I don’t like the idea of generalizations most of the time. The fact is a rich kid can be lazy, a poor kid can kill himself to pull himself out of poverty. And vice versa.

To say poor kids don’t know how to work because no one around them works is terribly over-simplified.

One other thing: I think kids should have the time to study in the afternoons and play and be creative. Expanding your mind with education and creativity is the key to developing not only new ideas but social and communication skills.

I don’t think putting a poor kid to work at the age of 12 mopping floors is going to inspire the kid to grow, to reach, to dream, to succeed.

Nothing wrong with working. But everything has it’s season.

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Dancers vs Powerpoint

John Bohannon & Black Label Movement

Now, I would have learned so much more science if it had been explained to me like this.

“Perhaps by then, we will be able to afford the luxury of just sitting in an audience with no other purpose than to witness the human form in motion.”

Dancers: Jessica Elhert, Bryan Godbout, Stephanie Laager, Edward Bruno Oroyan
Nelle Hens, Camille Prieux, Mariel Blaise, Gabson Nenaks, David Zagari & Marcio Canabarro

This performance originally took place at TEDxBrussels on 22 November 2011

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Republicans finally find a tax cut they don’t like

This week every Republican senator except Susan Collins (ME) voted to protect the top 0.2 percent of taxpayers — just 345,532 millionaires – from paying a small surtax on their income over $ 1 MILLION in order to extend and expand the payroll tax cut for 160 MILLION working Americans.

This just goes to show how much harm the Republicans are willing to do to our economy and the 99 Percent in order to protect the top 1 Percent from paying one red cent more in taxes.

Who Does Your Senator Stand With: The 1 Percent or the 99 Percent?

With the 1 Percent:

Florida: Sen. Marco Rubio (R) sided with 15,846 millionaires making an average income of $4.5 MILLION instead of 9 MILLION hardworking Floridians.

Maine: Sen. Olympia Snowe (R) sided with just 375 millionaires making an average income of $3.6 MILLION instead of 800,000 hardworking Mainers.

Massachusetts: Sen. Scott Brown (R) sided with 17,807 millionaires making an average income of $2.2 MILLION instead of 3.5 MILLION hardworking Bay Staters.

Nevada: Sen. Dean Heller (R) sided with 2,672 millionaires making an average income of $4.5 MILLION instead of 1.2 MILLION hardworking Nevadans.

Pennsylvania: Sen. Pat Toomey (R) sided with 7,353 millionaires making an average income of $4 MILLION instead of 6.7 MILLION hardworking Pennsylvanians.

With the 99 Percent:

Colorado: Sens. Udall (D) and Bennet (D) sided with 2.5 MILLION hardworking Coloradans by voting to make 8,745 millionaires with an average income of $2.2 MILLION to pay their fair share.

Iowa: Sen. Tom Harkin (D) sided with 1.7 MILLION hardworking Iowans by voting to make 3,448 millionaires with an average income of $1.7 MILLION to pay their fair share.

Missouri: Sen. Claire McCaskill (D) sided with 3.1 MILLION hardworking Missourians by voting to make 3,992 millionaires with an average income of $2.9 MILLION to pay their fair share.

New Hampshire: Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D) sided with 800,000 hardworking Granite Staters by voting to make 1,045 millionaires with an average income of $3.5 MILLION to pay their fair share.

Pennsylvania: Sen. Bob Casey (D) sided with 6.7 MILLION hardworking Pennsylvanians by voting to make 7,353 millionaires with an average income of $4 MILLION to pay their fair share.

Here’s how each senator voted.

After voting down the president’s plan to extend and expand the payroll tax cut, Republicans then voted down their own plan to extend the payroll tax cut. That GOP plan — paid for not by asking millionaires to pay even a dime more, but instead by laying off more than 200,000 federal workers and freezing the pay of the rest — went down overwhelmingly on 20-78 vote.

The real truth appears to be that Republicans only care about cutting taxes for the wealthy and they’ll do nearly anything — including raising taxes on 160 MILLION working Americans — if that’s what it takes to keep taxes on the wealthiest Americans low.
(via ThinkProgress)