Thank you, Mother Jones.

I came across this image via Tumblr. It was posted without further explanation.

 

What a rip-off, right? How dare those rich people take advantage of the rest of us like that? That dirty, evil Bush stuck it to us again. Horrible, terrible idea. Of course, you know- if you're a Lib.

If you think for yourself, you pretty quickly realize how misleading this graphic is. When you look at the actual numbers, the "bottom 20%" don't pay any taxes at all. From the fourth 20% to the top 1.1%, you'll find that the percentage of tax cuts is favored toward the poorer of the lot and that the actual amount is very close to being the same. Once you get to the top 0.1%, you're actually looking at a much smaller percentage of their income as a cut of their actual income.

In other words, the richer you are, the less you benefited in a meaningful way from Bush's tax cuts. Of course, this graphic is much easier to understand... and to remember... than the truth. The fact that it helps advance the idea that the rich are evil, the republicans are evil and that socialism is the answer is purely coincidental.

Ok. Call me bitter.

I never got to do this kind of cool shit because I was cursed by being born to poor parents. Now that that's out of the way, watch this video and then hear me grouse.




So it starts out that this guy breaks his back exceeding his abilities on skis and then decides that in spite of that, he still wants to ski. I can't imagine who pays for the sit-ski he's using but it's a good guess that it's someone else's money. Maybe inheritance, parents, or insurance. Maybe even "sponsors" in the classic sense who use the scenes to sell their wares to paying customers (who likely pay with their own inheritance, parents' money, or insurance).



Anyway, skiing isn't enough he wants to go upside down again so off they go with all the time in the world. Again, who's paying for all this time off and travel? They start out training in the foam pit at Woodward's at Copper and then the airbag at Blackcomb terrain park. Cuz, you know- EVERYBODY has access to these things. What? You don't? Sucks, dude.


So then he goes to Powder mountain for the actual jump and "Powder Mountain snowcats decided to build me this big old back country booter". Decided to build? Hmmmm. That sounds like lib speak to me cuz you know how it is-  all these resources fall from the sky. It's free... doesn't cost anything.


Oh and then the closing credits "let love lift us higher... thank you Sarah Burke.. 1982-2012".  Clearly, he runs with a crowd of slow-learners. Sarah Burke was a freeskier who died when she crashed on a halfpipe during a training session.

Keller's

Obviously not broadcast on PBS radio or NBC radio (or any of its affiliates.)

See, this is what Im talking about

A South Bend mother returned home Monday night with her son and discovered Keith Davis, 46, had broken in and cleaned her apartment in the 4600-block of Lance Court.

"I seen my living room light on and the bedroom light on, so once we came up the stairs I figured my brother was home. I turned the knob and it was locked, so I seen my screen open and I pushed my window open and it was some random guy in my kitchen," said tenant Ashley Murray.

Murray then walked away from the window with her son and called police before yelling at Davis to leave her home.

"I'm like 'the police are on their way' and he told me 'the police already been here', closed my window, locked it back up and closed my door and sat in a chair in front of the window until the police came.

Once I finally got a chance to get in I then notice he cooked some chicken and onions in a pan, folded my clothes up and swept my floor," said Murray. "The police said it looked like he was a good chef. it looked like he had broth and everything in it." 

Davis told police he had woken up in the apartment and a woman told him to get a set of keys from a closet. Murray said Davis had a set of her keys in his pocket when he was arrested and suspects Davis had been watching her and saw when she placed a set of keys in a storage unit for her brother to use when he arrived later that night from Indianapolis. 

When officers asked Davis where he lived he gave officers an address on Lance Court that didn't exist.

Davis was arrested despite adamantly stating he was in his own home and charged with breaking and entering, a Class D felony. 

"Me and the police think he was on some type of drug. He really seemed to think this was his home," said Murray. "How could you not look at the pictures and none of that and realize you don't know nobody? I don't think no drug can do that once you come in and see there's nothing in here that you know. The apartments are alike, but you knew this wasn't your house." 

Murray said her son later recognized Davis as a neighbor from across the complex who he had seen staring at him and his friends as they played outside. 

Despite breaking into the apartment, Davis didn't steal anything beyond the food.

"He drunk up my orange juice, but it's cool because he swept up my floor and folded my clothes," said Murray. 

Prosecutors requested a $5,000 bond because Murray was concerned he may return, however the judge lowered it to $1,000.

Sure judge, lower it to $1,000, good job.  No way this psychopath is going to blame the woman for turning him into police, right?  Now that just wouldn't be logical to a sane person, right?  Hey judge, I hope whatever happens to that lady and her son (or her property) also happens to you and your family, asshole.

Hey, we're not trying to hide it anymore, we're coming for you

A privacy advocacy group has swayed Congress to hold a hearing next week into the Department of Homeland Security’s practice of monitoring social networks such as Twitter and Facebook, as well as media reports and organizations, including The Drudge Report. 

The Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) recently obtained close to 300 pages of documents, as a result of a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit, detailing the federal agency’s “intelligence gathering” practices on the web.

Among the documents were guidelines from DHS instructing outside contractors to monitor the web for media reports and comments that “reflect adversely” on the agency or the federal government. More here:

LMAO.  You see that lay in the pic above?  She's not joking around, jackass.

The Obama administration is the most counter-constitutional administration I've EVER seen ... by like a factor of 100.  And guess what, they do this kind of thing all the time and then deny it's against the law.  That's right you idiot, it's right there in the enumerated powers in the constitution "The Dept of Homeland Security shall employ any means necessary to spy on citizens who have posted 'comments that reflect negatively on the government.'"

Do you feel your freedom being squeezed out of you like a tube of toothpaste?  Are you still bleating like a Democratic?  Do you see it in front of your face yet?  If not, go ahead and post a negative comment about the government.  Oh, that was silly of me, if you're a Democatic you're probably in favor of tracking and punishing these malcontents.

late Fri pins

Gotta love this mindset

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — An American Indian tribe is suing some of the world’s largest beer makers, claiming they knowingly contributed to alcohol-related problems on South Dakota’s Pine Ridge Indian Reservation.

The Oglala Sioux Tribe of South Dakota filed a federal lawsuit Thursday demanding $500 million from five international beer manufacturers for the cost of health care, social services and child rehabilitation caused by chronic alcoholism on the reservation.

The lawsuit also targets four off-site beer stores in Whiteclay, a Nebraska town with a population of about a dozen people on the South Dakota border that sells nearly 5 million cans of beer annually.

The Connecticut-sized reservation has struggled with alcoholism and poverty for generations, despite an alcohol ban since 1832. Pine Ridge legalized alcohol in 1970, but restored the ban two months later. From here:

Yes, it's all someone else's fault so get a lawyer and sioux, sioux, sioux.  You know, I wonder where they get the money to fund all these alcohol purchases, don't you?  Of course, SD unemployment rate is 4.1% so it's prolly tough to get jobs in that economy.

The thing is, this whole Native American/alcoholism thing is tragic ... horrible.  But, it is not necessary to drink ... or smoke ... or use drugs, etc, period.  It's nobody else's fault.  Pretending it is is just part of the mindset that perpetuates the problem.  Trying to steal money off legitimate businesses just makes you look like a parasite.

IRS welfare, helping illegal aliens get your money

WASHINGTON –  Republicans are pushing a proposal that would halt what amounts to an IRS-administered entitlement that provides "free-funds" to low-income illegal immigrant filers who take advantage of a child tax credit to receive government payments that average about $1,800. 

The proposal would require people filing tax returns to prove they're legal workers. The effort has roused anger among Hispanics and some Democratic lawmakers. But it's being offered as a way to help pay for extending the payroll tax cut and is projected to trim federal spending by about $10 billion over a decade. The IRS checks average about $1,800. 

The debate addresses a quirk in U.S. law. Even people who are not authorized to work in the U.S. are supposed to file returns with the IRS. Many of those people cannot obtain a Social Security number, so to facilitate this the IRS hands out what are known as Individual Taxpayer Identification Numbers -- so illegal workers can file returns. 

However, in doing so many of those workers are claiming tax benefits. For some, it's a way of making even more money. The IRS pays the tax filers, which for some amounts to an IRS-administered welfare program. 

Really?  My own representatives taking money from me and giving it to illegal aliens who are breaking the gd law? At $1,800 for the average check?  Nice.  I'd like to have $1,800 ... but guess what, not a happener.

 

And the Republicans have to argue with the Democratics to put a stop to it?  And people still vote for Democratics?  How does that make sense? Later in the article it appears some agree with me:

On the other side, Republicans and some Democrats say what's crazy is even having a debate over whether the government should be cutting checks to people who have sneaked into the country illegally. It's hard to imagine there isn't a healthy majority, even in the Democratic-controlled Senate, to stop the practice -- if it's actually brought to a vote. More here:

 

LOL @ "If it's actually brought to a vote."  Right, because how can we concentrate on this when we're busy driving up the cost of food and fuel by blocking drilling.

It's free - its ALL free

Last year, a federal program paid out $1.6 billion to cover free cell phones and the monthly bills of 12.5 million wireless accounts. The program, overseen by the FCC and intended to help low-income Americans, is popular for obvious reasons, with participation rising steeply since 2008, when the government paid $772 million for phones and monthly bills. But observers complain that the program suffers from poor oversight, in which phones go to people who don't qualify, and hundreds of thousands of those who do qualify have more than one phone. More here:

Ha ha ha ha -- oooooo, ha ha ha ha ... hey, in your FACE, jackasses.  I can't believe the article says "free cell phones."  Because, if they're free, why are we paying 1.6 BILLION curp?

No, we're NOT stopping stealing your money for ludicrous reasons.  That's right, we're not slowing down either.  In fact,. we're speeding up as fast as we can ... now pipe down and give us your cash, there's nothing you can do about it.

Also, I like how the government uses some of the money to advertise the program ... like "hey -- come and get your free money!!" Or are those advertisements by the companies themselves, trying to drive revenue/profit? 

Squander, squander, squander - don't worry, we have plenty of money

Thousands of students, several well-known athletes and a number of politicians are expected to join Michelle Obama for an event in Des Moines that will promote exercise and healthy eating.

Besides the first lady, participants at the Thursday event include Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad, gymnast Shawn Johnson, figure skater Michelle Kwan and NASCAR champion Carl Edwards.

 About 10,000 children will be bused to the event from 45 schools in the Des Moines area. More here:

Right.  Let me guess, the private sector is donating money so this isn't costing the taxpayers a cent.

Also, what tells me the Des Moines area governments and teacher's unions push for every tax increase and  fight every tax cut that might affect education because they are just so financially strapped.

Did you know about this?

That's right, bananas grow "up" toward the sky instead of hanging down like you might expect.  Found it while perusaling cockeyed.

It's worth mentioning that the pic you used doesn't tell the whole story. While the bananas themselves grow "up", the stalk from which they extend hangs "down" from the rest of the banana plant. This image more clearly depicts the whole story.

(Courtesy of Helper WOMBAT).

Is this "research" necessary?

MOSCOW (AP) — After more than two decades of drilling in Antarctica, Russian scientists have reached the surface of a gigantic freshwater lake hidden under miles of ice for some 20 million years — a lake that may hold life from the distant past and clues to the search for life on other planets. 

Reaching Lake Vostok is a major discovery avidly anticipated by scientists around the world hoping that it may allow a glimpse into microbial life forms, not visible to the naked eye, that existed before the Ice Age. More here:

My original intent was to blog this and bitch like crazy about how you can never find out who is squandering this money.  Even in their wikipedia article, they find no reason to tell you where the money comes from. 

Hey, these "scientists" are making damn good money and I want to know who is paying them for all this "desperately needed" research.  Do they ever tell you how much money they make?

Anyway, I started doing some research into it and I'd have to put more time into it than I care to do at this time ... but as I was scratching the surface, I noticed something while looking at pics of the ice station.  First of all, It's supposed to be one of the coldest places on earth.

Vostok is the World Pole of Cold. During the long winter, temperatures average about −65 °C (−85 °F) in the brief summer, about −30 °C (−22 °F).

The pic at the top is kind of a panoramic view of the station -- and the pic below is a close-up of the building on the left.   As I was perusaling it, I noticed something ... is that a dog house in the lower right?  Good grief.  You can click on the pic to embiggen.

Oh, and one more thing.

The project, however, has drawn strong fears that 60 metric tons (66 tons) of lubricants and antifreeze used in the drilling may contaminate the pristine lake. The Russian researchers have insisted the bore would only slightly touch the lake's surface and that a surge in pressure will send the water rushing up the shaft where it will freeze, immediately sealing out the toxic chemicals.

Lukin said about 1.5 cubic meters (50 cubic feet) of kerosene and freon poured up to the surface from the boreshaft, proof that the lake water streamed up from beneath, froze, and blocked the hole.

Right, because "scientists" never pollute.  Perish the thought, everything is fine.   Meanwhile, libs are only interested in blocking filthy capitalists from polluting, ever notice?

Stupid jourrrrnalist leaves out important part of news story

Two sisters have been charged in St. Croix County Court with sexually assaulting a man with a pliers and giving him urine to drink.

Valerie M. Bartkey, 24, and Amanda L. Johnson, 17, both of Somerset are each charged with a felony count of second-degree sexual assault by force and misdemeanor counts of battery and criminal damage to property. Johnson is also charged with a misdemeanor count of intimidating a victim.

The felony has a maximum penalty of 25 years in prison. They each are scheduled to make their initial court appearances April 12.

According to court records:

An 18-year-old man told police he was at a Somerset residence Oct. 1 when the sisters punched and kicked him, and later put one of the man's shoes in the toilet and soaked the other in a sink.

The man said the sisters later brought him a cup of liquid that they said was lemonade and forced him to drink it. It was urine from the sisters.

The man said the sisters later forced him to undress, saying one wanted to have sex with him. Bartkey reportedly pulled and twisted the man's penis with pliers while Johnson threatened him with a belt.

The man said, on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 the most pain he'd ever experienced, that the incident was 10. Johnson later ripped the man's shirt to the point at which it would not stay on his body.

Johnson reportedly called the man Oct. 27 and threatened him, saying she would tell authorities he smoked marijuana Oct. 1. The man denied smoking marijuana but said Bartkey and Johnson did. From here:

Hmmm, I'm thinking that reporter must have left out the part where the girls handcuffed and hobbled him ... i.e. made him helpless so he couldn't go ahead and put his hand up their asses and snatch them inside out. 

Oh, wait, after reading the comments I am enlightened further.  Here's a sample:

Usually, if I want to be sexually humiliated and tortured, I gotta pay extra..

You can read more of the comments at the link above.

Man learns lesson the hard way

 

FORT LAUDERDALE —

A marital spat that began when a Plantation man didn’t wish his wife a happy birthday and then escalated into a domestic violence charge, resulted in an usual bond court ruling by a perceptive judge.

Instead of setting bond or keeping Joseph Bray locked up, he ordered him to treat his spouse to dinner, a bowling date and then to undergo marriage counseling.

“He’s going to stop by somewhere and he’s going to get some flowers,” Judge John “Jay” Hurley said during the first appearance hearing. “And then he’s going to go home, pick up his wife, get dressed, take her to Red Lobster. And then after they have Red Lobster, they’re going to go bowling.” More here and video here:

Gaaaaa, take his wife on a date?  This guy really knows how to dole out the torturous punishment.  Hey, Joseph Bray, perhaps you'll be thinking "day planner" from now on, eh?

By the way, did you notice the name of the judge?  No?    I figured ... but fear not.  That's one of the reasons I'm here.  

What if I mentioned the Federalist papers?  What if I asked you "Who was the first Chief Justice of the United States? Does that refresh your memory some? Yes, here's more:.

For The Finheads

From "Pearls Before Swine"

And on a similar note...


(courtesy of helper Wombat).

Give a man a fish and he eats for a day … Give a man a welfare check,a 40 ounce malt liquor,a crack pipe, & some Air Jordans ... and he votes Democrat for a lifetime.

Federal Appeals Court tells the government "Stop stealing people's freedom"

SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) — A three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday that Proposition 8, California’s voter-approved ban on same-sex marriage, is unconstitutional because it violates the 14th Amendment guarantee of equal protection under the law. More here: 

Yes, well, what can I say?  Let's start here ... STOP TRYING TO STEAL PEOPLE'S GOD-GIVEN FREEDOM ... JUST STOP IT.

Our founders knew there would always be people like this.  These people don't believe you are born on the earth with God-given freedom (or universe-given ... or wherever you think your freedom comes from.)  They think you are born on the earth with the freedom they "allow" you ... that's right, God/your humanity has nothing to do with it.

They want to make you live as they say ... even if you don't bother them ... even if you ask nothing from them ... they want to stick their nose in your business and THEY will be deciding what freedoms you may and may not enjoy .... after all, they are the MASTERMINDS.  Your life/freedom mean nothing to them, you are to do as you're told.  You may have the freedom they "allow" you to have and no more.  Think of a slave master "granting" freedom to his slave.

Just think of their mind set ... they like to use the word "allow."  As if they are your parents ... or the great masterminds of humanity.  And what should happen to them after they've stolen your freedom for your entire life ... and for what?  Under the guise of their "rules" and "definitions?"

Oh they will rail about "changing the definition of marriage."  Hey, jackasses, just because you want to call your slave a "valet" doesn't mean he's not a slave, now does it.  Yes, they are all into "definitions" ... because they want you to concentrate on the definitions instead of the fact they are stealing the freedom of others ... particularly the freedom/money of "witches."

Don't know what I mean?  Just get caught mooning somebody sometime and see how you like the "sex-offender/witch" label they attach to your ass.  That's right ... and you'll be giving plenty of your time and money to their lawyers and other buddies to facilitate your required "counseling & supervision" etc -- oh, and don't even THINK about living close to a school after that ... FOR LIFE!

So what IS freedom, anyway?  From my point of view, it is "allowing people to do what they want with their own lives, liberty and possessions, so long as they don’t infringe on the same rights of others." See, that's where my "freedom" stops.  But that's not how these tyrants think, is it

Bottom line?  I think these tyrants have gotten WAY out of hand.  I think they should be made to pay for their crimes.  In recent history (the last couple of hundred years) they've made long inroads.  They need to be stopped.  And by "stopped" I  mean punished in a court of law.

So what is the appropriate punishment for stealing the freedom of gay people (or any person/people) for their entire lives?

Oops ... well, tee hee, I won't say THAT again - GAAAaaaa

Hmmmm, a little mystery for you

In a certain town, 90 percent of the residents drink coffee, 80 percent drink tea, 70 percent drink whiskey, and 60 percent drink gin. No one drinks all four. What percent of the residents drink liquor?

Found it at The Futility Closet:

You can find the answer is in the comments:

Lost, please claim ... quick

Found it at Bits and Pieces: