Any Rand’s mind is one that conservatives champion, rightly in my opinion, as the concepts that underpin modern day conservative politics can unlikely be articulated much better than through her writing. My leanings towards conservatism have a lot to do with her writing, and for that reason no one here can likely remember a time when I railed against free trade or capitalism as a detriment to mankind when put beside socialism, or that the primary root of evil lies within the system working within our lives today. Rather my philosophy today has much to do with incompetence and the looting of personal property for the benefit of individuals with political power - through the subsidized benefit of a business and therefore an individual using the tax revenue taken from you and I - allowing these individuals to realize success and an influx of wealth that otherwise they could not produce for themselves in the free market. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted by Al Swearengen as Words at 4:51 PM MDT
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Head full of thoughts so I come downstairs wondering if Cleo got outside again and thus I’m shaking a little bag of treats by a window in the basement I’ve had proped open for a couple days (hoping she’d notice it and come back in you see) of course forgetting to close it again come morning when she’s already awoken both Heather and I to the sight of virgin dull color splatter behind the clouds before curling up into a ball between us above the covers just like she did in mama’s belly somewhere in Baltimore before coming to live with us a couple of years ago, but instead of that doing the trick (shaking a bag of treats in the basement where she couldn’t hear it) I park my kiester down here at the screen to see what’s going on in the tubes and in a minute she comes in from the screened in porch right in front of me so relief trickles it’s way down to these fingers half occupied with Cleo now nestled on my lap purring and the other ones taping the button that brings the screen to life with words and images all crammed through the tubes up and shouting at me like starving dockworkers in the 1920s begging for the chance to afford dignity on rye bread, dry with lettuce and tomato when something in particular smacks me so hard across the face my teeth wiggle…
Uncensored ‘On the Road’ to be published Read the rest of this entry »
Posted by Al Swearengen as Words at 1:51 AM MDT
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A streetlight with no courage flickers insanity across sidewalk split all over with tufts of grass and dirt plump up and down so a bug with something to do maneuvers over one mountain then another without fear or even the memory of ever being late for anything besides that one time it all went bad during a burrow into soft soil already occupied by tens of tens of however many smaller bugs with enormous strength and blood-curdling shrieks yet not a wing among them so the mad hurl in reverse worked like a charm and a little bit of pain the only cost, though from that experience a reluctance to slow down or think carried nerves and appendages onward and upward often away from everything except food and moisture and artificial lighting.
Posted by Al Swearengen as Words at 11:55 PM MDT
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OK - I was dreaming that King (Sixers Prez) would be stupid enough to agree to such a deal. Truth be told, Telfair is valuable, but Allen and Wally on the other hand…I’d put the youngin’s in this order in terms of value {Delonte West, Ryan Gomes, Sebastian Telfair, Kendrick Perkins, Al Jefferson, Gerald Green, Rajon Rondo, Tony Allen…the rest}
Celtics Aquire- Allen Iverson, Future 2nd Round Pick, Cash Considerations
Phildelphia Aquires- Wally Z, Tony Allen, Sebastian Telfair, Cash Considerations
Source: Stephen A. Smith
Posted by Al Swearengen as Sports at 6:18 PM MDT
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A google ad on this site led me to a company that pays you money to take surveys. A google search of that company and the word ‘scam‘ next to it brought up pages of people who were burned. The dates of these testimonials go back to the begining of the month and probably even before that, yet the company is still stealing money. Investigating something like this is not impossible, as an account was paid out of to get the google ads posted, an account was paid into by schmucks who fell for the pitch. Right there you have two pieces of information. The web hosting company that houses the site, that bill has to be paid every month. When the site is updated by its owner, an IP address is used…is it a different IP whenever someone logs in to update the site or the same one? We can assume that many are set up outside of the country, yet if we’re freezing assets in the ‘war on terror’, couldn’t the same be done to a company like this?
I get the feeling that our government ‘could’ do something to make it more difficult for people to get ripped off, but to do so would require coordination and good police…are we all out of both right now? Is a criminal scumbag making money off of the internet just that much smarter than the federal government? Or - do the lobbyists for google and web hosts pay enough in campaign contributions to keep the feds off their case?
What would it take to start up an investigation team on my own? Would the government supply grant money if I were to get good at catching these people, or at least creating good leads and identifying patterns? If we had the evidence that an account was being used for criminal activity, would the Justice Department freeze assets and go after the owners of these accounts? If the account never leads to someone, couldn’t that money be funneled back into grants for people like me to hunt more of them down?
Posted by Al Swearengen as Words at 12:27 PM MDT
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henry
Posted by Al Swearengen as Words at 9:19 PM MDT
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I think it’s officially time for us to tool up and storm the capitol!
#1 - Halfway down this article in today’s paper I developed an ulcer - I.R.S. Cuts target lawyers who audit the richest
The Bush administration has successfully lobbied Congress to enact measures that reduce the number of Americans who are subject to the estate tax — which opponents refer to as the “death tax” — but has failed in its efforts to eliminate the tax entirely. Brown said Friday that he had ordered the staff cuts because far fewer people were obliged to pay estate taxes under President Bush’s legislation. But six IRS estate tax lawyers whose jobs are likely to be eliminated said in interviews that the cuts were just the latest moves behind the scenes at the IRS to shield people with political connections and complex tax-avoidance devices from thorough audits. Sharyn Phillips, a veteran IRS estate tax lawyer in Manhattan, called the cuts a “back-door way for the Bush administration to achieve what it cannot get from Congress, which is repeal of the estate tax.”
Posted by Al Swearengen as Words at 11:46 PM MDT
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This is what they were getting at with that slogan. US Army soldiers charged with murder are having their grand jury hearings in Tikrit. Lord knows there are plenty of defense attourneys willing to travel to Iraq…what the hell is going on here? The Abu Gharib crew was tried stateside, and maybe that’s the long and short of it. We need to gain political traction in Iraq, so from now on we’ll be offering these accused soldiers as sacrifices to Allah, and the people will view an American corpse killed by American justice…that will be the turning point. Start killing our own, and our sincerity will become obvious to every Iraqi, and the insurgency will give up all at once. Shit - - - all we had to do was REALLY embrace the ‘Army of One’ concept.
“All four soldiers charged are members of the Fort Campbell, Ky.-based 3rd Battalion, 187th Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division. They have been jailed in Kuwait since their June arrests. Their first hearing is Aug. 1 near Tikrit, Iraq.”
Source
Posted by Al Swearengen as Military at 7:56 PM MDT
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We’re not yet exusing soldiers from their responsiblities as human beings and professionals (the ones that coverups aren’t able to protect), so this case of euthanasia could in fact become a turning point, although the circumstances may determine that a criminal charge is not warranted. Personally, it really angers me to know that Army interrogators are in jail right now for following orders. Circumstances dove their bosses to extremes that fell outside of the law, and whoever didn’t obey orders…they were screwed in a different way than those now sitting in prison.
What authority did these people refer to when they adminstered the lethal doses? Barring plea-bargains, this trial will indicate where we’re at as a society, and the logic that leads the jury to its decision will equal an answer to whether or not those soldiers are where they belong. Stress, pressures none of us can understand…that’s what people like this are facing when they do what they do.
ASSIST from Van Helsing forwarding the following links:
Posted by Al Swearengen as Words at 4:45 PM MDT
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Posted by Al Swearengen as Words at 1:11 AM MDT
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The Iranian population is crying out for the US military, to liberate them from this evil government now draging a once proud Persian society through the muck. Clearly, once we drop bombs strategically throughout the country, our forces could then roll on in, most likely greeted as heros. Many people don’t know this, but Iran is a country rich in oil reserves. You might also be surprised to know that oil is being sold for about $75 dollars a barrel. So once we oust the democratic government and liberate all of Iranian society, the revenues from oil sales can fund the rebuilding effort that will be needed. Engineering projects are complicated and expensive, so America would certainly lend the resourses of it’s own economy to help out with this. Looking to their left and right at Iraqis and Afghanis alike, basking in the warm glow of Allah’s love, with the almighty’s loyal servant the United States of America keeping everyone safe, Iran cries out “What about us?” And this is the unfortunate plight of a savior. People hear of your good work and before long the number of outstretched hands prove to be overwhelming.
Posted by Al Swearengen as Military, Words at 5:54 PM MDT
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Brownback and Inhofe ran point for the opposition, yet during all of the debate on the Senate floor they failed to convince on the science. This is because they refered to science hardly at all in terms of citing expert opinions that backed their stance. Several times they read long stories of people whose lives were saved by adult stem cell therapies already in practice today, and by the time a vote took place, ’scientifically’ their only position was that adult stem cells provided great hope for the future of medicine. That point wasn’t argued against by those in favor of the bill, nor was it going to be effected by the outcome of the vote in any way. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted by Al Swearengen as Words at 11:25 PM MDT
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Boy do some of them want it! Bill Kristol is apparantly the cheerleader, again. Pick apart these arguments all you can, but first understand the upside of engaging Syria and Iran. If Israel launches the offensive, they can be fighting a war on four fronts instead of two. “Politically and militarily this would simplify things quite a bit”, Kristol reports having been told by his “extremely intelligent sources”. Air support from the US would simply be the icing on the cake. Combined, we could bring down thunderous peace in the Middle East and save the world from this terrorist element.
Posted by Al Swearengen as Words at 11:43 AM MDT
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Interesting program on baboons in communal settings, how they interact and communicate, express emotion, and how their impulsive behavior can be explained now thanks to this video research. The male baboon feels the need to blow off some steam, but being one of the weakest in the community, to engage another male is too risky. Observe…the female is quick to thwart this male’s advances and he scurries away, quite satisfied with himself.
More educational programing:
BEST STORY:
Public Schools Perform Near Private Ones - Study - NYTimes
Posted by Al Swearengen as Words at 12:44 AM MDT
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