Life Under Republicans: “That’s Crazy!”

[UPDATE]:

ACK informs me via e-mail that the saggy pants bill was a Democratic idea. Very well. But hey, that doesn't mean the Republicans have to take that ball and run with it.

------------------------------------------------

As we all know, Tennessee was one of the few states to take a huge step backwards last November and give Republicans control of our state legislature for the first time since Reconstruction.

While the national media spent a lot of time evaluating President Obama’s first 100 days, I’ve been looking at what our Republican legislature has given us in that time-frame. Check it out America. Look what you’re missing out on.

Since the new legislature was sworn in, Tennessee has seen a rash of new gun legislation (allowing guns in bars, restaurants, state parks, playgrounds, everywhere except the State Capitol.) We’ve closed handgun permit records, in an effort to protect handgun owners. Gosh, I thought that’s what the guns were for to begin with.

We have a ban on saggy pants, a bill that would bar federal funding of Planned Parenthood, and a ban on texting while driving. We have bills to change how state Supreme Court judges are appointed. We have decided not to allow sale of wine in grocery stores and we will probably not implement the Tennessee Voter Confidence Act, which would replace our electronic voting machines with paper ballots.

We have the infamous "Baby Daddy Bill”, which says a man doesn’t have to pay child support if DNA testing proves he is not a child’s biological father. I’m curious to see if this lets adoptive fathers off the hook, too; divorce lawyers must be chomping at the bit to make that argument.

We have a bill declaring the state's sovereignty.

And lastly, the heinous SJ127 is moving forward, which states that the Tennessee constitution does not protect a woman’s right to choose.

In short, we have a wingnut’s legislative wet dream. What we don’t have is anything that actually helps you find a job or put food on your table.

Hey, Tennessee legislators: in case you haven’t noticed, the latest figures show Tennessee unemployment nearing 10%. Perry County had unemployment of 25.4%. That’s staggering -- that’s one-fourth of the entire county unemployed.

You guys don’t think that’s a problem? You’re worried about saggy pants and putting guns on playgrounds?

Also, it seems to have escaped the legislature’s notice that as of 2007, 840,550 non-elderly people in Tennessee had no health insurance. Expect that number to be higher today, reflecting the increase in unemployment. Nearly 350,000 of those folks were women, by the way.

So what’s our Republican-led legislature’s solution to this issue? Cut off federal funds from non-profit women’s health centers, of course. Because all of 3% of the services they provide are abortion related.

I guess the Republican-led state legislature doesn’t care if women have access to pap smears, STD testing, birth control, pregnancy care, etc.

So this is life under a Republican government. A lot of focus on shit that doesn’t really matter to people struggling to get by. And a lot of denial about priorities:

Q: Would you respond to the criticism that while the economy's tanking, the new Republican majority in the legislature has been spending all its time debating abortion and gun bills?

Ramsey: That's crazy. I challenge you. I want you all to figure up how much time that we've been on the Senate floor and I want you to figure out the percentage of the time that we debated abortion on the Senate floor. Point 2 or 3 percent or whatever, guaranteed. That's driven by editorial boards in my opinion. I want y'all to figure how much time we've been on the Senate floor and how much time we've debated gun bills. Less than 1 percent, I'm sure of that. That's wrong. That's flat wrong. We've been here doing the people's business and because those are glamorous, selling-newspaper kind of issues, that's what gets reported. But I can assure you, I guarantee you less than 1 percent of our time on the Senate floor has been spent on those bills.

Q: Well, what exactly what you guys accomplished?

Ramsey: There's lots of bills that we've passed dealing with AT&T deregulation ... I'd have to have that in front of me to be sure. But if I had a list of stuff, I could pick those out what we've done. Lots of different things.

Q: Nothing springs to mind, though, does it?

Ramsey: Well. ... It's no different from any other year. The big issues get pushed off until the end of the year. But all I'm saying is that to say that our time has been consumed debating abortion and guns is 180 degrees wrong, period.

Okie dokie. AT&T deregulation. Guess I missed that one.

My bad.

The rest of the country must be feeling pretty smart right about now.

And Tennessee Democrats, you aren't off the hook, either. Why aren't you holding the Republicans feet to the fire on this? Where are your bold initiatives for jobs and healthcare? Do you have any ideas I haven't been reading about in the papers? All I see is a bunch of drama over who {hearts} whom. C'mon, you're passing up a golden opportunity here to make the Republicans look like fools.

Leave Judy Blume Alooooooone!

You have got to be kidding me. The anti-choice nutzos have attacked noted author Judy Blume.

Judy fucking Blume! You do NOT mess with Judy Blume! No. You. Do. Not.

If you were never a pre-teen girl then the name Judy Blume probably doesn’t resonate with you, but trust me: her books guided many a young girl through the awkwardness of adolescence. I can't tell you how much I loved reading "Deenie" and "Forever" and, of course, "Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret," so many years ago.

But according to the anti-choice crowd, Blume made the unforgivable mistake of sending this rather benign Mothers Day fundraising message for Planned Parenthood. She wrote:

There is no organization that I know of that supports motherhood and all that it means more than Planned Parenthood. That's why I'm honoring moms everywhere with my gift to Planned Parenthood today.

This promptly got the anti-choice activists in a tizzy falsely claiming Blume was "promoting abortion.” Blume’s office has since been flooded with hate mail and even death threats.

Let it be noted: the word abortion doesn’t appear anywhere in Blume’s Mother’s Day message. Let it also be noted: only a very tiny percent of the services Planned Parenthood offers are abortion-related. 97-percent of what Planned Parenthood does is regular gynecological care: pap smears, breast exams, STD testing and treatment, birth control, and the like.

But the anti-choice nutzos don’t give a damn about women’s healthcare. All they care about is intimidation and thuggery.

So, are you there Judy? It's me, Southern Beale. I want to say thanks for the books, and for supporting Planned Parenthood, and for taking the heat from the crazies. Don't let the bastards get you down.

Frivolous Lawsuits

Dear Wilson County School Board,

I just have one question about this recent lawsuit you lost: Do you folks not have a lawyer you could consult before making bone-headed decisions over school posters which result in expensive, made-for-primetime, totally manufactured legal battles??

K’thx’bai.

For my readers who live out of state, a school system outside of Nashville recently lost a lawsuit over posters for an extra-curricular school prayer event called Meet Me At The Pole. The posters contained the word “God” and some Bible verses and the school, fresh off a loss over another religion-related lawsuit brought by the ACLU, was being overly-cautious. The school said the posters were a no, the parents sued, the school lost.

The suit was brought by the Alliance Defense Fund, a sort of right-wing Christian ACLU founded by Donald Wildmon, James Dobson, Pat Robertson, and the late Jerry Falwell and James Kennedy, among others. They are funded by the usual suspects, such as the DeVos Family.

The ADF’s entire raison d’etre is to search the country for potential lawsuits involving separation of church and state issues in which they hope to reassert religion’s place in the public square. They are, in short, the Christian world’s “answer” to the ACLU.

Fine, more power to them. But here’s the thing: this strikes me as a legal vendetta completely manufactured by a well-funded out of state group with a specific agenda, a group of parents pissed off over losing their last case against the school board, and a school board director who frankly should have known better than to get dragged into the courts by these characters. I just have to wonder if there couldn’t have been a better, less expensive way to resolve the issue.

Some background: In 2006 the “Praying Parents” group lost a lawsuit over coercive religious activity they conducted at Lakewood Elementary School. Three years later, those same parents pushed the issue again.

Administrators at the Lakeview Elementary School testified in federal court Monday that they were walking a thin line when parents brought in posters last September advertising with Bible verses and references to God.

[...]

According to school officials, the parents took paper provided by the school and covered up the religious language.

The assistant principal testified that she believed the parents were going to make new signs without the language she was concerned about, not alter the old signs.

Yes, but you were wrong. Because you thought the issue was about posters advertising an extra-curricular prayer event, which is completely acceptable and not constitutionally suspect. What you didn’t realize was that this was not about posters. This was about winning lawsuits. This was about scoring a victory for the Alliance Defense Fund so it could have good news for its fundraising letters.

Bertie Alligood, assistant principal at Lakeview Elementary, said she told parents who brought posters to hang in the school that she "had concerns" about the content, which Alligood described as Bible verses. She was new to the school and the principal was out of town, so she called the director of schools for an opinion.

"I knew we'd been involved in another lawsuit, and I knew it cost the school system a lot of money, so I wanted to be very careful," Alligood said.

Alligood said she conferred with schools director Robert "Mike" Davis by cell phone, and he told her that posters with anything more than date, time, location and name of the event was not approved.

I have a lot of sympathy for Mike Davis and others in his position. He isn’t a constitutional law expert, and he was asked to make a decision on the fly by a new employee who rightfully had concerns, in light of the school’s previous legal battles.

Here’s the thing that Bertie Alligood and Mike Davis need to realize: you were set up. And other schools directors and school principals around the country are going to be set up in the same manner. That’s why they call this a culture “war,” you know? Well-funded Christian groups like the ADF are just looking for opportunities to score victories, even silly ones like this. And it’s going to cost you and your schools money.

So here’s a suggestion. Next time parents dangle a carrot in front of your nose, even something that looks as benign as a school poster, please check with a lawyer before stepping in the flaming pile of legal poo that they have left on your doorstep. You will save yourself a lot of money in the long run.

Scientology Protestors Accosted In Nashville

[UPDATE]:

Ooops. It appears laws were broken:

Public Works pulled all of the permits taken out for the Scientology event. The permits -- all of them for sidewalk closing and lane blocking -- are for the wrong day. They're for the day before the event and expire before the scuffle occurred.

In addition, three of the five security guards were off-duty Spring Hill police officers working in Nashville, which can only be done if local police are notified and officers are wearing uniforms clearly identifying them as off-duty police officers.

"The armed people from the other county are not identified police officers," said John M. L. Brown. "You're looking for a problem."

Brown, a Fraternal Order of Police attorney, has been defending police officers for 32 years. He said he finds the officers' actions hard to defend.

"Nashville's a capital city, and there are protests in Nashville with some frequency," he said. "I don't think that mentioning a bologna sandwich is a recognized law enforcement tactic."

-------------------------------------

Scientology reps say “we bought all of these sidewalks” around their new 8th Avenue building.

Uh, no, you didn’t. Public sidewalks = public right-of-way. Watch the video:



Tennessee Indy Media has more:

According to protesters present at the event there were no permits granted to close the sidewalk on the 1000 block of 8th avenue south on the day of the protest and organizers said they spoke with members of public works and notifications in the Tennessean to confirm that the street closure for 8th avenue south was on the 24th and not on the 25th which was the schedule day of the protest and vigil. The protesters, who refer to themselves as 'Nashville Anonymous' said that it was not clear where the security officers came from who confronted them on the day of their scheduled public protest and that in a year of previous peaceful protests they had never been the victims of aggressive behavior, threats or unlawful detainment on the part of metro police or Vanderbilt which has a security agreement with Metro for the area of Music Row where the Scientology Center used to be located.

You know, far be it from me to tell anyone what religion they want to follow. But here’s a tip: if you’re a controversial religious group trying to ingratiate yourself into a buckle-of-the-Bible Belt town, it might help if your security didn’t act like a bunch of goons.

Scientology’s entrance into Nashville is not off to an auspicious start.

Guns In Bars: What Could Possibly Go Wrong?

Way to go, Tennessee legislature! The guns-in-bars bill has cleared another hurdle.

I’m going to feel so much safer dining out in Tennessee establishments ... not. This is the part that I love the best:

"This has nothing to do with guns and bars, this has to do with individuals rights to protect themselves," said State Rep. Curry Todd.

Right. And the only way to do that is with guns. You know what they say, when all you have is a gun, everything looks like a target.

So thanks a lot, Curry Todd. I can’t see this ending any way but badly. You and your colleagues in the Tennessee legislature will surely have blood on your hands.

I love how these wingnuts are the hero of their own inner movie. Everyone gets to be Bruce Willis and come in to save the day. No stray bullets are ever fired, innocent people are protected, and good always triumphs over evil. Roll credits.

I find this terribly ironic, too: the state House also passed a bill that would make the names of people issued handgun carry permits secret. Why? Because

NewsChannel5 Chief Investigative reporter Phil Williams discovered gun permits had been given to convicted felons in the past.

Think one has something to do with the other? The media learns that gun laws are being broken and the Tennessee legislature’s response is to make gun records secret. Brilliant.

Gun nuts love to say that if guns are outlawed, only outlaws will have guns. I actually don’t see why that’s a problem. It would certainly make it a lot easier to determine who the criminals are. If someone is walking around with a gun, and they aren’t a policeman, then they’re a criminal. Lock ‘em up.

If Housepets Were Libertarians

I can't remember which smart leftie blogger first posted this, or I'd give a hat-tip.

I admit I get far too much pleasure out of poking fun at Libertarians than I should. They mean well, they really do, and some of their ideas are appealing, but the most rabid of the bunch are completely devoid of any sense of humor or irony. It's as if all of history has conspired to prove the "free hand of the market" completely wrong, yet they happily march along clutching their copies of "Atlas Shrugged" as if a 50-year-old piece of fiction is somehow more real than the world around them.

Most of the Libertarians I know are just conservatives too embarassed by the GOP to call themselves Republicans these days, anyway. But I'm sure this will earn me plenty of angry comments, which is fine, since I am having my same ISP troubles and can't access them anyway.

So, flame away, dear Libertarians. And everyone else, enjoy:

The Man With The Plan

Dear Phil Valentine:

I am intrigued by your ideas and would like to subscribe to your newsletter:

First, there's the matter of Specter's motivation. If he was down by 15 points against his potential GOP primary rival, that alone speaks volumes about where Pennsylvania Republicans are heading.

Conservatism is dead? Hardly. Pennsylvania may be the proverbial canary in the coal mine. Specter didn't jump from the GOP ship. He was shoved overboard.

And Specter may not be the last moderate Republican to leave the party simply to keep his precious seat in Washington. Chris Simcox, founder of the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps, has cranked up his campaign to unseat John McCain next year in the Republican primary. Former congressman-turned-talk-show-host J.D. Hayworth may also jump in. If McCain sees himself coming in second or third in a Republican primary he may just pull a Specter in order to save face.

Shhh ..... don’t tell Phil Valentine that as the Republican Party gets ever more conservative, they also become less appealing to the majority of voters. Sure, Pennsylvania Republicans shoved Arlen Specter overboard. But this purge of moderates doesn't signify the GOPs strength, but rather it's self-destruction.

I hope they keep it up. If John McCain is too liberal for you, heck if George W. Bush is too liberal for you, then you’re about to go off a cliff. And if you’re going to launch fringe-right primary candidates against folks like John McCain, then you’re going to take the GOP over that cliff with you.

So I have just one question: where can I send a donation?

Florida Eliminates State Funding For Libraries

[UPDATE]:

Library funding saved!
-------------------------------
This makes no sense, unless you live in a right-wing wackadoodle fantasyland where things like reading and libraries are “elitist” and the free hand of the market is supposed to somehow come in and provide the services of a not-for-profit:

ALL STATE FUNDING FOR PUBLIC LIBRARIES IS ELIMINATED

Florida Library Association asks Floridians to voice their opposition

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (MAY 1, 2009) – On April 30, an appropriations conference committee for the House and Senate agreed to eliminate all funding for Florida’s State Aid to Public Libraries program. This devastating action will result in some Florida library branches closing and will seriously cripple libraries’ ability to serve Floridians. It will be especially damaging to libraries in Florida’s rural communities, as these libraries rely heavily on provisions in the program that help communities with lower tax bases.

The Florida Library Association (FLA) is calling on Governor Charlie Crist to use his influence and ask legislative leaders to find a way to fund this critical program, which has helped support public library service to Floridians since 1962.

This makes absolutely no sense. The loss of funds will mean some branches will close completely, others will have dramatically reduced hours, and loss of funding for technology such as internet access and computers. In this economy, it’s the most short-sighted plan I’ve ever heard of.

As the Tampa Bay Tribune reported:

In this tough economy, she said, more people are depending more heavily on the libraries for services, including Internet access for job searches and applications, assistance programs and education.

Uh, yeah. Talk about your class warfare, when the “haves” can access information and the “have nots” can’t, you're sowing the seeds of disaster.

Here’s another report from Suwannee River:

“We’re at our all-time high usage because of the economy,” Hales said. “We’re hearing things like, ‘I’ve cut off my Internet because we’re on food stamps.’”



Hales said hundreds of people come to the library’s Live Oak branch daily to search the Internet for job listings or inquire about state or federal aid or veterans’ benefits. Students who require Internet access for homework assignments have also been showing up in record numbers.

Way to go, Florida. Cut back an important service just when people need it the most. Even folks in Tennessee wouldn’t do anything this stupid, would we?

Would we?

Florida, you’re going to be laughingstocks of the nation. Yet another reason to keep boycotting Florida.

Take action here.

Supreme Court Hypocrisy Watch

This is gonna be fun!

Remembering when President Bush got his Supreme Court picks and the wailing and gnashing of teeth which ensued (not to mention a slew of partisan Justice Sunday events), I predict we are in for an exciting summer of wankery and wingnuttery.

Digging through the memory hole, there are piles and piles of false arguments, lame-ass excuses and just plain stupidity that the right wing trotted out to support their argument that Democrats should rubber-stamp Bush’s Supreme Court picks and if they didn’t, they were gonna go “nuclear.” I thought it would be interesting, now that the shoe is on the other foot, to see how many of these talking points the Republicans stand by today. I’m guessing .. none.

Without further ado, here are a few of the right wing’s greatest hits, Supreme Court edition:

• Bill Frist, "It’s Time For An Up Or Down Vote" -- That’s not just a talking point, it was the title of a USA Today Op-Ed written by the former Senate Majority Leader. He lamented:

These filibusters of judicial nominations injure the administration of justice and our nation's political culture. Some courthouses have sat empty for many years, even though a bipartisan majority of senators stands ready to fill the vacancies by confirming the president's nominees. And as every American knows, the political wrangling over this issue has become less and less civil with every passing day.

Wonder what the Republicans think of filibustering judicial nominees now?

• Fox News and Republican pundits, who said that asking tough questions during the confirmation process is "nasty,” “vicious” and "just horrific"--because a question a Republican asked made Mrs. Alito cwy.

• Marc Levin writing at Human Events Online said that because polls showed Bush won the 2004 election in response to voters’ “moral values” concerns, Bush had a moral mandate to appoint conservative judges. In that case, I’m sure we can dig up some polls from the 2008 presidential election showing Obama has a moral mandate to appoint liberal judges.

• The National Review’s Ed Whelan instructed readers of Senate tradition on the SCOTUS confirmation process:

The long-established practice in the Senate is for Supreme Court nominees to receive a full Senate vote, even if they don’t receive a favorable vote in the Judiciary Committee.  Americans will expect their senators to vote on the nominee, not to delegate a veto to the highly partisan Democrat membership of the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Good to know.

• President Bush said there would be no litmus test for SCOTUS nominees:

COPENHAGEN, Denmark —  President Bush, shadowed in Europe by a pressing concern back in Washington, said Wednesday he will not select a Supreme Court nominee based on his or her views on abortion or other hot-button political issues.

During the campaign, John McCain repeated this talking point. So, you guys should be fine if President Obama say no litmus test, right?

• On the other hand, Mike Thompson asserted at Human Events Online that it would be irresponsible not to employ a litmus test:

The truth is, a litmus test should be administered by the President for every candidate for every position in the executive branch. A lesser commitment to examine an applicant or recruit for high office is unconscionable, in view of the President's solemn oath to preserve, protect and defend the bedrock principles of our republic. In the Real World, a place decreasingly occupied by liberals, it is inconceivable that major decisions (governmental or personal) would be made without a litmus test. Would an intelligent man, for example, choose a wife without a litmus test for her suitability as a lifelong mate, as defined by that man? Would anyone select a doctor, everyday friends, housing location, job offer, car or family dog without a litmus test?

Heh, kinda funny that quip about the “Real World,” in retrospect. Regardless, should President Obama say he will employ a litmus test (which I doubt), I am sure Mr. Thompson will be fine with that. Yes?

• Conservative columnist Robert Novak informed us that financial disclosure requests from judicial nominees is a “nosy” “intelligence raid” that is possibly unprecedented and left judicial nominees feeling “violated.” Novak was pretty hard on Sen. Harry Reid and others involved in this background research. I’m sure the Republicans will be above any such thing. Right?

• Bill Kristol, who admittedly was wrong about everything, forever, called the 2006 and 2008 elections ”a referendum” on the Supreme Court.

Hmm... which party won those elections again?

I'm sure there will be more. I'm already hearing that President Obama must be "bi-partisan" and appoint a "moderate" to the bench because ... well, just because they want him to, I guess. I'm not sure why Bush had a mandate to appoint "strict constructionists" in the model of Justice Scalia but Obama has to be all bipartisan-y. Maybe doing otherwise will make Mrs. Alito cry again and lord knows we can't have that.

Play The Swine Flu Blame Game!

Folks on the far right, which appears to be the entire Republican Party these days, have turned the swine flu pandemic into an opportunity to vent their racist spleens:

“No contact anywhere with an illegal alien!” conservative talk show host Michael Savage advised his U.S. listeners this week on how to avoid the swine flu. “And that starts in the restaurants" where he said, you “don’t know if they wipe their behinds with their hands!”

And Thursday, Boston talk radio host Jay Severin was suspended after calling Mexican immigrants "criminalians" during a discussion of swine flu and saying that emergency rooms had become "essentially condos for Mexicans."

Meanwhile, Neal Boortz got all conspiracy-theory-ish:

"[W]hat better way to sneak a virus into this country than give it to Mexicans? Right? I mean, one out of every 10 people born in Mexico is already living up here, and the rest are trying to get here. So you give -- you give -- you let this virus just spread in Mexico, where they don't have a CDC."

Hmm, yeah, sure that makes a lot of sense.

There’s plenty more out there for anyone who wants to look. Blame the Mexicans! Blame the immigrants! And by all means, blame the Democrats!

Gosh y’all, this looks like fun! Can I play the Swine Flu Blame Game, too? How about blaming factory farms run by American corporations?

Is Smithfield Foods, the world’s largest pork packer and hog producer, linked to the outbreak? Smithfield operates massive hog-raising operations Perote, Mexico, in the state of Vera Cruz, where the outbreak originated. The operations, grouped under a Smithfield subsidiary called Granjas Carroll, raise 950,000 hogs per year, according to the company Web site.

On Friday, the U.S. disease-tracking blog Biosurveillance published a timeline of the outbreak containing this nugget, dated April 6: [...]

Residents [of Perote] believed the outbreak had been caused by contamination from pig breeding farms located in the area. They believed that the farms, operated by Granjas Carroll, polluted the atmosphere and local water bodies, which in turn led to the disease outbreak. According to residents, the company denied responsibility for the outbreak and attributed the cases to “flu.” However, a municipal health official stated that preliminary investigations indicated that the disease vector was a type of fly that reproduces in pig waste and that the outbreak was linked to the pig farms. It was unclear whether health officials had identified a suspected pathogen responsible for this outbreak.

Surprisingly, we've heard very little about this in the media. That may be changing; NPR reported this morning that Smithfield is half owner of the pig farm at the epicenter of the swine flu outbreak.

From their web story:

Townspeople blame their ills on pig waste from farms that lie upwind, five miles (8.5 kilometers) to the north. The toxins blow through other towns, only to get trapped by mountains in La Gloria, they say. They suspect their water and air has been contaminated by waste.

Granjas Carroll de Mexico, half-owned by Virginia-based Smithfield Foods, Inc., has 72 farms in the surrounding area. Smithfield spokeswoman Keira Ullrich said the company has found no clinical signs or symptoms of the presence of swine influenza in its herd or its employees working at its joint ventures anywhere in Mexico.

[...]

But residents say they have been bothered for years by the fetid smell of the farms. Local health workers intervened in early April, sealing off the town of La Gloria and spraying to kill flies people said were swarming around their homes.

Naturally, when the press arrived to tour the Granjas Carroll de Mexico pig farm, there wasn’t a fly in sight. But the locals say the farms were cleaned up for the media’s arrival.

I’m no scientist and I have no idea where swine flu comes from, but it’s clear to me that factory farms of all kinds are not healthy for people, animals or the environment. I’m convinced factory farming is to a large degree responsible for the rise in salmonella and E. coli contamination we’ve seen over the past 20 years. It’s the free hand of the market run amok in our food supply, where profits rule and people and animal welfare take a back seat to the almighty dollar.

So before we blame immigrants for the swine flu, maybe we should blame the emigrant: corporations like Smithfield Foods who have exported their toxic factory farming practices to countries like Mexico where the rules are lax and no one will complain except a few poor villagers.