Displaying 2,191 To 2,220 Of 19,504 Comments It’s kind of a guilt thing, I think. Since most Americans wouldn’t even think of joining the military, they assuage their guilt by calling everyone who was or is in the military, heroes. Even in the most generous description, McCain was a victim of war, held imprisoned and treated brutally for some of that time. That aside, he was a reckless jerk who showed little regard for anyone but himself. He’s not a hero though. Real heroes purposely make self-sacrifices for the benefit of others, they usually aren’t indifferent about having a hand in the deaths of over 100 comrades. » Posted By AdLib On August 7, 2014 @ 6:05 pm Nirek, I think one of the best exposes of McCain was the Rolling Stone article back in 2008 when he was running for President, titled, “Make-Believe Maverick”. McCain’s image of a maverick, which he famously denied he ever represented himself to be in his last re-election campaign because Repub voters wanted a conformist, was so phony. The truth is that McCain is and always has been an opportunist and that trait was camouflaged with the phony title of “Maverick”. Yes, of course his positions weren’t always lock step with core Republicans, when he thought it was to his advantage to promote himself (he always dreamed he would become President…maybe it’s more accurate to say he always felt entitled to be President). As we’ve seen before, during and since McCain ran for President, his “principled” stands on issues are easily thrown away and even denied they ever existed. One thing he has always been consistent on is wanting to kill people in foreign countries and kill members of our military at any and every opportunity. He is not a hero in my eyes, he is a traitor to our military who doesn’t care one bit about their lives. Here are a couple of tidbits from the RS article: Midway though his final year, McCain faced expulsion, about to “bilge out” because of excessive demerits. After his mother intervened, however, the academy’s commandant stepped in. Calling McCain “spoiled” to his face, he nonetheless issued a reprieve, scaling back the demerits. McCain dodged expulsion a second time by convincing another midshipman to take the fall after McCain was caught with contraband. ============== In his current campaign [2008], however, McCain has become the kind of politician he ran against in 2000. He has embraced those he once denounced as “agents of intolerance,” promised more drilling and deeper tax cuts, even compromised his vaunted opposition to torture. Intent on winning the presidency at all costs, he has reassembled the very team that so viciously smeared him and his family eight years ago, selecting as his running mate a born-again moose hunter whose only qualification for office is her ability to electrify Rove’s base. And he has engaged in a “practice of politics” so deceptive that even Rove himself has denounced it, saying that the outright lies in McCain’s campaign ads go “too far” and fail the “truth test.” ====================== In the cockpit, McCain was not a top gun, or even a middling gun. He took little interest in his flight manuals; he had other priorities. In the air, the hard-partying McCain had a knack for stalling out his planes in midflight. He was still in training, in Texas, when he crashed his first plane into Corpus Christi Bay during a routine practice landing. Flying over the south of Spain one day, he decided to deviate from his flight plan. Rocketing along mere feet above the ground, his plane sliced through a power line. His self-described “daredevil clowning” plunged much of the area into a blackout. That December, McCain crashed again. Flying back from Philadelphia, where he had joined in the reverie of the Army-Navy football game, McCain stalled while coming in for a refueling stop in Norfolk, Virginia. Preparing for his sixth bombing run over North Vietnam, the graying pilot’s dreams of combat glory were beginning to seem within his reach. McCain, who knew more than most pilots about bailing out of a crippled aircraft, leapt forward out of the cockpit, swung himself down from the refueling probe protruding from the nose cone, rolled through the flames and ran to safety across the flight deck. Just then, one of his bombs “cooked off,” blowing a crater in the deck and incinerating the sailors who had rushed past McCain with hoses and fire extinguishers. The explosion set off a chain reaction of bombs, creating a devastating inferno that would kill 134 of the carrier’s 5,000-man crew, injure 161 and threaten to sink the ship. ================== Soon after McCain hit the ground in Hanoi, the code went out the window. “I’ll give you military information if you will take me to the hospital,” he later admitted pleading with his captors. McCain now insists the offer was a bluff, designed to fool the enemy into giving him medical treatment. In fact, his wounds were attended to only after the North Vietnamese discovered that his father was a Navy admiral. What has never been disclosed is the manner in which they found out: McCain told them. Only two weeks after his capture, the North Vietnamese press issued a report — picked up by The New York Times — in which McCain was quoted as saying that the war was “moving to the advantage of North Vietnam and the United States appears to be isolated.” He also provided the name of his ship, the number of raids he had flown, his squadron number and the target of his final raid. http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/make-believe-maverick-20081016 This RS article is mindblowing in revealing who McCain really is. How anyone can attribute principles to this self-centered, callous, conscience-less man is beyond me. » Posted By AdLib On August 7, 2014 @ 12:06 pm The Weekend Music Thread-Mini Themes Hey GC, so much terrible news, I’ve had enough: Had Enough – The Who » Posted By AdLib On August 2, 2014 @ 12:09 pm Then there was the earlier “Happy”: Don’t Worry, Be Happy – Bobby McFerrin » Posted By AdLib On August 2, 2014 @ 12:01 pm Dueling “Happy”s: Happy – Pharrell Williams Happy – Rolling Stones » Posted By AdLib On August 2, 2014 @ 11:43 am Shared this one with Beatlex last night on Vox: Live Life – The Kinks Aw, make it a Kinks double header: Sunny Afternoon – The Kinks » Posted By AdLib On August 2, 2014 @ 11:39 am Boehner Has Clung Desperately to His Gavel: That’s All He’s Got to Show for His Efforts Murph, I think that the key problem with the GOP is that they have now become a party completely devoid of principles but with only one driving instinct, to damage Democrats and gain more power for Republicans. That’s it. The policies they might want are secondary, doing whatever it takes to have power is everything. Consider that Republicans supported the Individual Mandate, cleaning up the tax system, immigration reform, infrastructure investment and so many other policies that they have blocked solely because it wouldn’t accomplish their current twin goals of trying to damage Obama and help them win more elections. With that in mind, I see Boehner as just as mercenary in being Speaker of the House. He wants that more than anything so I don’t believe that he would do anything that would have a whiff of principle if it doesn’t meet the approval of the Tea Partiers…who could prevent his re-election as Speaker. He has no vision, no sense of historical responsibility, Boehner is devoid of anything that would validate him being a Rep, let alone the Speaker of the House. As the saying goes, you can’t teach on old dog new tricks…and that includes Old Yeller sitting in that Speaker’s chair. » Posted By AdLib On August 7, 2014 @ 11:32 am AT LAST! The Sarah Palin Channel……You Betcha! Hey monicaangela, no one is moderated here on The Planet for expressing their POV, whatever it may be, on any issue (with the exception of trolls aiming to disrupt this site). To protect and encourage freedom of expression here, we do seek to keep conflicts centered on the issues instead of the people expressing them. I do think we’re in consensus here on Sarah Palin probably not being awarded a Nobel Prize or a Mensa membership in the foreseeable future (though her awareness campaign to encourage preparation across the U.S. for a real Sharknado is bringing her a great deal of attention). » Posted By AdLib On August 1, 2014 @ 11:52 am Putin’s Ukrainian Gambit is Really Starting to Hurt the Russian Economy Murph, what has to be kept in mind as the most powerful offensive force against Putin is the Russia public. He has been riding high in the polls because of the propaganda campaign he has been waging, making Russians believe that Russia is now on the path to return to imperial greatness. But if the Russian economy continues to tank and the Russian peoples’ dream of world power evaporates into massive unemployment and deprivation, the anger and pushback against Putin and his regime will be overwhelming. This has to be long game thinking and there will be losses especially for neighboring countries of Russia’s as time goes by but it would be insane and far more devastating to pursue any direct military or surrogate military approach. » Posted By AdLib On July 29, 2014 @ 1:29 pm The Weekend Music Thread-Heart And Soul Heart of Gold – Neil Young » Posted By AdLib On July 26, 2014 @ 10:42 am The Heart of the Matter – Don Henley » Posted By AdLib On July 26, 2014 @ 10:40 am Shape of My Heart – Sting » Posted By AdLib On July 26, 2014 @ 10:38 am Republicans to Pass Automatic Impeachment Bill For Future Democratic Presidents kevinbr38, sometimes I’ve seen my parodies outdone by Repubs in real life. One time I wrote a parody about Repubs in The House passing a law that required all Americans to carry guns ( https://planetpov.com/2013/04/01/house-republicans-ready-to-pass-must-carry-gun-laws-for-all-americans/ ) then literally, the following day came this story:
In Georgia, town requires gun ownership http://www.cnn.com/2013/04/02/us/georgia-gun-requirement/ So one day after I wrote a ridiculous satire, it was transformed into an actual news scoop! Gets harder each day to draw the difference between a parody of the GOP and the GOP. » Posted By AdLib On July 26, 2014 @ 11:06 am Thanks Kalima! Very funny but Boehner might be they type to Shrink and Drive! It would be fascinating to see secret video of the times Boehner has met with Obama, wonder if he’d just let down all the BS and say, “Hey, I’d like to help but you see what crazy nutbags I have to serve! I mean they are such absolute assholes! Anyway, sorry but I have to go back to being Head Asshole now and sue you, what are you gonna do?” » Posted By AdLib On July 26, 2014 @ 10:59 am ppo – Now that is what I call an exposed agenda of this imperial Kenyan President! Well done, PPO! This new slashing of spending of tax dollars seems so smart and in keeping with the Republican smart commitment to breaking open the safe in the Titanic after it’s hit the iceberg and is sinking. “We’re kings of the world…until the boat goes down and we sink to the bottom of the ocean and drown because of all the gold we stole and stuffed in all our pockets! Woo-hoo!” » Posted By AdLib On July 26, 2014 @ 10:54 am Thanks SLM, The American public is used to getting screwed by Republicans though! » Posted By AdLib On July 25, 2014 @ 3:56 pm KT, good point, Repubs would never want to do anything that pleases the American public. With Repubs, Americans always end up on the bottom and always with the short end of the stick (as if most Repubs had anything other than short ended sticks). » Posted By AdLib On July 25, 2014 @ 3:54 pm Cheers Nirek! Boehner does borrow the act of a 10 month old baby when he’s trying to appeal to the infantile-minded Tea party types…except with more crying. » Posted By AdLib On July 25, 2014 @ 3:50 pm The Brutal Politics of 10 Year Old Girls’ Softball Teams Beatlex, yes, it is unfortunately a common thing in most kids’ group sports. Soccer is especially notorious for that, one of the key reasons I steered clear of that sport for my daughter (it is a great sport though for kids but the parents can get outrageous). Your analysis is spot on, parents with a desperate emotional need to be “winners” and exceptional in their lives but aren’t, seek to get that feeling through their kids. It’s like adults going back into middle school, all the pettiness, backstabbing, cliques, howls about of having their feelings hurt…they are grown up 5 year old brats. I’m often in disbelief to see such people in glaring denials about reality just to validate their childish emotional needs. Their daughters can have an average of getting out 80% of the time when they bat but it is an outrage that they’re not batting first because no matter what the facts and numbers say, she’s the best hitter on the team…she just is and she doesn’t need a batting average to prove it. One can see the connect-the-dots to the Tea Partier way of thinking. You don’t observe reality then make conclusions, you come to a desired conclusion first (that satisfies your emotional needs) then attack and ignore reality and all the facts that might undermine it. Oh, and don’t forget to buy the “World’s Greatest Dad!” t-shirt after that. » Posted By AdLib On July 26, 2014 @ 11:25 am KT, absolutely, we’re only talking about the parents, the kids are almost always good kids. I think it’s a little optimistic to hope they would become nice but at least they might keep themselves busy chasing butterflies and scolding them. » Posted By AdLib On July 24, 2014 @ 11:37 am Kes, it is affirming to hear your experience of most people being similarly positive. I do think most people are kind and caring. What seems to be the case often in softball is that the parents who cause the most trouble don’t actually have the most talented girls, their daughters are often “conditionally good”. That is, they have some talent which is enough to allow the parent to delude themselves about their ability but substantial limitations that the parent has to ignore and steer around…which makes me think that the aggressiveness these types express is a way of bulling past reality and their daughter’s limitations so they can exclusively focus on what they believe to be their strengths. Just like Tea Party Republicans and their candidates! » Posted By AdLib On July 24, 2014 @ 8:40 am Nirek, absolutely! As I mentioned, most parents and grandparents are Democrats when it comes to softball, they are supportive and positive. And girls softball isn’t about only the most skilled players beating other teams, it’s about building self-confidence, pride and determination in all players, whatever their skill level. Tea Party Softball Parents see the sport as an extension of Ayn Rand selfishness, it’s only about the individual to them…coincidentally, their daughter, and the other players should be self-sufficient…meaning, they should sit by themselves on the bench while their daughter plays the position she wants. Too bad there’s not a kind of General Election for softball parents, the majority would vote these extremists out by a landslide. » Posted By AdLib On July 24, 2014 @ 8:25 am Kalima, there’s nothing more immature than emotionally insecure parents, not even their children. . It does add a ridiculous amount of stress to games and practices, for both the coaches and sometimes the girls but when they break their commitments and bail on the team (“What? I’m shocked, shocked to hear Tea Party Republican type softball parents have no principles!”), all of a sudden a tranquility returns to the team and games that seems almost ridiculously pleasant. I’ve actually considered whipping up a pan of my famous Prozac Brownies and passing them out to those parents but the idea of giving them anything, even Bird Flu, seems far too kind to do for them. » Posted By AdLib On July 24, 2014 @ 8:17 am Wow Kes, what a fantastic job of distilling down all the points I was making and adding in ones I missed. A real home run, Kes! What it boils down to for many of the Tea Party types is having the emotional need for their daughters to be seen as exceptional so they can live through their daughter and address their own feelings of insignificance. There are many parents though who are realistic about their daughters, some have very talented girls, others have daughters that work hard at skills that don’t come as easy to them. Again, as a whole, it is uplifting to see how most parents are so great at being supportive of the whole team and coaches. But those squeaky wheels keep demanding oil and it can make one want to use a hit and run play on them. » Posted By AdLib On July 23, 2014 @ 10:30 pm Hey Sue, really enjoyed the experiences you shared! Nowadays, The independents are texting on their phones or Instagramming on their iPads throughout the game, even missing their own daughter’s play. It’s not unusual for them to ask who’s winning when the Dem Parents are on the edge of their seats in a nail biter. Tea Party Parents try to infiltrate the dugout as coaches the way the political Tea Party types infiltrate school boards and local governments. They have a need to have control and if they ever get it, you can count on them displaying what anarchists they are. Umpires are often Tea Partiers, the need for control, the refusal to accept when they are mistaken and the lack of vision. It is a relief to hear how much better it gets in High School and quite cool to hear about how talented and successful your daughter became. A real inspiring story I’ve shared with my daughter. The parent coaching can be quite a conflict generator and distract from the girls getting the attention they need. Especially the parent coaches who push their daughters into key positions and in the top of the batting order when they are very weak at fielding and hitting. The degree of denial and delusion is fascinating and definitely at the level of Tea Partiers. The rest of the girls on such a team and their parents all see what’s going on but this type of parent coach just resists hearing what they don’t want to hear. And don’t get me started on the Machiavellian officers and board members in a softball league. If you want to see Lord of the Flies performed wearing softball hats, check it out! The conniving, power plays, secretive rigging of votes and favoritism shown to those that serve or pander to those “in power” is amazing to watch. Corruption always lurks around any organization of people, it is disappointing how often it succeeds in joining a group. » Posted By AdLib On July 23, 2014 @ 10:22 pm Monicaangela, I think communities are constructive while cliques aren’t for the reasons you describe. Once people build a fence around themselves, no matter how good that security makes them feel, they are fencing out others and themselves from the rest of the world. The deficit to that is losing objectivity, perspective and compassion for others. But cliques are so seductive, they make people feel better about themselves for being part of a close and exclusive group…but that sword cuts both ways. One can eventually find themselves on the other side of the fence. As a kind of hostile and exclusive clique, I don’t know that I could identify too many positive things about the Tea Party because it is what it is. Inclusive groups have much to appreciate, those built on prejudice and exclusivity seem less equipped to offer positive things to those they exclude. » Posted By AdLib On July 23, 2014 @ 10:00 pm Murph, a great breakdown of the various types of political personalities. What’s fascinating is how few categories are needed for so many people. There are the exceptions to these categories, some politicians who work hard for the people without serving themselves and their own emotional needs but it sure seems that they are a smaller minority. Maybe we could also apply football allegories to them? The quarterbacks, the running back, the center and of course, the cheerleaders. » Posted By AdLib On July 23, 2014 @ 9:52 pm Miles, I understand and appreciate the point you’re making. My perspective is that, though some people haven’t walked in the identical shoes of other people, as white people haven’t personally experienced what it’s like to have grown up as an African American in this country, there are many who are AA and can effectively express what they’ve experienced and many white people who are empathetic enough to be able to imagine themselves in those circumstances. Perhaps a woman will draw on her experience having to deal with chauvinism in her life to relate to someone else who grew up around prejudice, maybe someone who is Jewish and experienced antisemitism in their lives can use that to connect with such things. Human beings are capable of great empathy, not all human beings but many. Though they may not be able to put themselves 100% in the shoes of another, they can comprehend in a meaningful way, what another person has had to deal with. I do agree with you that some white people walk around thinking they know what black people think and will never accept that they are completely wrong. It’s like that invisible racism I mentioned in a previous comment, surrounded by like minded people can make prejudiced or racially ignorant people believe they “get” what black people have gone through or how they think and could never be convinced otherwise. All around them affirm they’re right, how could they be wrong? In any case, it is the case that we need to always keep ourselves open to accepting that no matter how much we think we know how other individuals think, we could be wrong and need to be as sensitive and empathetic as we can be if we truly seek to understand those people who have lived very different lives. » Posted By AdLib On July 23, 2014 @ 10:49 pm Russia’s Shooting Down of Malaysia Flight 17 – The New Lusitania? Misterbadexample, the Lusitania was coming from New York to Liverpool when it was attacked so if it was carrying munitions…they would have been loaded on and coming from America so it would be the case that the U.S. were covertly working with the UK as allies. Also, the Lusitania was attacked because Germany intentionally and unilaterally created a war zone around the UK. The Lusitania was torpedoed only 11 miles off of Liverpool, I don’t believe that makes it the UK’s fault for being attacked, it seems even worse than shooting down a plane over one’s own territory. I don’t know that I would agree that Churchill wanted the Lusitania sunk but I would agree that they were not going to respect the German’s declaration of a war zone around the UK. They couldn’t discount the possibility that the Germans may attack a ship but the alternative would have been to allow Germany to dictate to and de facto rule over the UK. It was a no win situation and seems now so inevitable to have led to the disaster that occurred. » Posted By AdLib On July 24, 2014 @ 11:32 am PPO, the only thing that I’d disagree about is that there was horror in the minds of these murderers when they discovered they had shot down a passenger jet. They were trying to murder Ukraine soldiers and/or pilots so I don’t think the deaths of innocent people bothered them. If anything, they might have been upset about the PR hit Russia could take but I doubt murderers like these would regret murder. We know the truth because the Russian military guy (sorry, forget his name) running the insurgency announced proudly the downing of the plane shortly after it happened (saying that it was a Ukraine military plane) and they’ve announced before and after, the shooting down of planes. Where are the EUs leaders? If they take no punitive action, they are permitting more deaths of their citizens. » Posted By AdLib On July 23, 2014 @ 4:48 pmComments Posted By AdLib
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y6Sxv-sUYtM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NxObOAGkL4A
Nelson, a small Georgia city north of Atlanta, is requiring the head of virtually every household to own a firearm, the city’s clerk told CNN Tuesday.
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