Stone Age Chronicles

stfuconservatives: quickhits: Republicans love free...

letfreedomlulz — Thu, 16 May 2013 20:45:46 -0400

quickhits:

Republicans love free enterprise, the entrepreneurial spirit — right up until they hate it.

Slate: From the state that brought you the nation’s first ban on climate science comes another legislative gem: a bill that would prohibit automakers from selling their cars in the state.

The proposal, which the Raleigh News & Observer reports was unanimously approved by the state’s Senate Commerce Committee on Thursday, would apply to all car manufacturers, but the intended target is clear. It’s aimed at Tesla, the only U.S. automaker whose business model relies on selling cars directly to consumers, rather than through a network of third-party dealerships.

The bill is being pushed by the North Carolina Automobile Dealers Association, a trade group representing the state’s franchised dealerships. Its sponsor is state Sen. Tom Apodaca, a Republican from Henderson, who has said the goal is to prevent unfair competition between manufacturers and dealers. What makes it “unfair competition” as opposed to plain-old “competition”—something Republicans are typically inclined to favor—is not entirely clear. After all, North Carolina doesn’t seem to have a problem with Apple selling its computers online or via its own Apple Stores.

Still, it’s easy to understand why some car dealers might feel a little threatened: Tesla’s Model S outsold the Mercedes S-Class, BMW 7 Series, and Audi A8 last quarter without any help from them. If its business model were to catch on, consumers might find that they don’t need the middle-men as much as they thought.

According to the report, “Apodaca received $8,000 in campaign contributions from the North Carolina Automobile Dealers Association last year, the maximum amount allowed by state law.” He has not responded to a request for comment.

Ironically, this sort of thing is almost exactly what Ayn Rand complained about in her novel Atlas Shrugged — a business group and the government were forcing an industrialist to share his process for producing a new alloy, using “unfair competition” as their reasoning. I suppose it hadn’t occurred to her that they could ban it for the same reason.

The GOP has taken to praising Rand in recent years — especially post-Tea Party. Like so much else Republicans say, that praise is obviously horseshit.

Free markets, amirite?

Republican Gabriel Gomez claimed a $281,500 tax deduction under what the IRS called a "tax scam"

letfreedomlulz — Sat, 11 May 2013 19:37:06 -0400

Republican Gabriel Gomez claimed a $281,500 tax deduction under what the IRS called a "tax scam" :

bvsed-socialist:

Vote, and vote Ed Markey!

We don’t need another Republican thug in the United States Senate.

In case ANYONE in Massachusetts mistakes Gabriel Gomez for a decent human being.

"It does not have a state fire code, and it prohibits smaller counties from having such codes. Some..."

letfreedomlulz — Sat, 11 May 2013 19:27:55 -0400

“

It does not have a state fire code, and it prohibits smaller counties from having such codes. Some Texas counties even cite the lack of local fire codes as a reason for companies to move there. But Texas has also had the nation’s highest number of workplace fatalities — more than 400 annually — for much of the past decade. Fires and explosions at Texas’ more than 1,300 chemical and industrial plants have cost as much in property damage as those in all the other states combined for the five years ending in May 2012. Compared with Illinois, which has the nation’s second-largest number of high-risk sites, more than 950, but tighter fire and safety rules, Texas had more than three times the number of accidents, four times the number of injuries and deaths, and 300 times the property damage costs….

It is impossible to know whether tougher regulations would have prevented the disaster near West, especially since investigators remain unsure what sparked the fire that caused the fertilizer to explode. McLennan is among the counties without a fire code.

But federal officials and fire safety experts contend that fire codes and other requirements would probably have made a difference. A fire code would have required frequent inspections by fire marshals who might have prohibited the plant’s owner from storing the fertilizer just hundreds of feet from a school, a hospital, a railroad and other public buildings, they say. A fire code also would probably have mandated sprinklers and forbidden the storage of ammonium nitrate near combustible materials. (Investigators say the fertilizer was stored in a largely wooden building near piles of seed, one possible factor in the fire.)

“It’s tough to overstate the importance fire codes would have made,” said Scott Harris, a former emergency management coordinator in Texas for the Environmental Protection Agency, who is now with UL Workplace Health and Safety, a safety science company. “Texas just hasn’t wrapped its brain around this fact yet.”

”

- After Explosion, Texas Remains Wary of Regulation - NYTimes.com (via dendroica)

truth-has-a-liberal-bias: The first poll of the June special...

letfreedomlulz — Thu, 09 May 2013 23:55:53 -0400

truth-has-a-liberal-bias:

The first poll of the June special election for the open U.S. Senate seat in Massachusetts is not encouraging:

Ed Markey (D): 44
Gabriel Gomez (R): 40
Undecided: 16

Now, even though it’s Massachusetts, it’s not surprising this is a close race. Witness Scott Brown. And like Scott Brown, Republican Gabriel Gomez is selling himself as a guy who’s above the political fray, who says he sees “‘a lot of unproductive noise and bickering’ in Washington and thinks he can help fix problems.”

Gomez is anything but that.

He’s nothing more than a swift boater, the spokesman for a right-wing, secretly funded group called the Special Operations OPSEC Education Fund. That’s the group that spent nearly $500,000 attacking President Obama in the 2012 election over supposed leaks about the operation that killed Osama bin Laden. That’s apparently not “unproductive noise” in Gomez’s world.

Which perhaps makes Gomez less like Scott Brown than, say, Alan West. Whatever the comparison, that’s not what the Senate needs.

…..

Keep fighting,
Joan McCarter, Daily Kos

Ed Markey is a much stronger candidate by all accounts than Martha Coakley was, though. Not saying Massachusetts Democrats should be overconfident, or shouldn’t have a sense of urgency, but this isn’t quite comparable to the conditions that let Brown Noser get into office.

North Carolina bill requiring teens to get notarized parental permission for medical and mental health care including STD testing heads to house floor

letfreedomlulz — Thu, 09 May 2013 16:03:42 -0400

abaldwin360:

Raleigh, N.C. (WRAL) — North Carolina could be on the verge of implementing the nation’s strictest law on medical care for teenagers.

House Bill 693 would require notarized written approval from a parent before a doctor or other provider could diagnose, treat or even counsel anyone under 18 for mental health or substance abuse. Parental approval would also be required for contraception, pregnancy care and testing for sexually transmitted diseases.

North Carolina would be the only state in the nation to require parental consent for STD testing.

Sponsor Rep. Chris Whitmire, R-Transylvania, says the bill “strengthens parental rights in their determination of what’s appropriate in terms of their child’s medical needs.”

Whitmire said that, if a minor needs mental health, substance abuse, STD or contraceptive care, “it reflects a risky behavior that goes down a primrose path that yields these outcomes. It’s very behavioral related.”

read more

So, now teens who are at risk of or think they may have an STD won’t get tested, are these fucksticks TRYING to make North Carolina the STD capital of the US?

Because that’s what’s going to happen if this bill passes.

Children with abusive parents will have no safe way of seeking help with mental health issues related to that abuse.

This is so fucked up on so many levels, way to go North Carolina GOP, small government, huh?

Dystopianna: Further rage thoughts on Mark Sanford

letfreedomlulz — Tue, 07 May 2013 22:02:47 -0400

Dystopianna: Further rage thoughts on Mark Sanford:

utternutter:

My issue with him is not that he had an affair. I don’t presume to know what arrangements married folks might have.

It’s that he and the people who voted for him today — independents, Republicans, spineless Democrats — are such fucking hypocrites. When he was in Congress the first time, he voted to impeach Clinton for his extramarital activities. As Governor of South Carolina, he (like virtually every Republican politician here) wanted to be Mr Family Values. Small government! But big enough to be all up people’s uteruses to make sure abortion is difficult to access! And big enough to legislate people’s emotional, sexual and legal lives! I mean, a fucking amendment to the state constitution passed under his watch to ban marriage equality, to actively discriminate against a population of South Carolina taxpayers and citizens.

And the circumstances surrounding the infamous Appalachian Trail moment are particularly appalling: it’s not just that he visited his lover in Argentina. IT”S THAT HE ACTUALLY DISAPPEARED, WAS UNREACHABLE FOR DAYS. HE ABANDONED HIS CONSTITUTIONAL OBLIGATIONS AS GOVERNOR OF THIS STATE. His own staff had no idea where he was. Is there a gubernatorial equivalent of Dereliction of Duty? Because that’s what happened: no one knew that for several days, we had no acting head of state.

But hey! He’s a good guy, right?! I mean, he’s a Republican; he must be OK! I know the 1st SC congressional district hasn’t sent a Democrat to Congress in 30 years, but REALLY? You lot think this is the guy to represent you? That any Republican is better than no Republican?

I’ve raged myself into a headache. I just cannot with this state. It is geologically beautiful — beaches, mountains, all that jazz. But it is being socially and politically destroyed by the ultra-conservative Republicans who now own the Governor’s mansion and both houses of the State Assembly.

jillbiden: Side-eyeing the FUCK out of South Carolina rn.

letfreedomlulz — Tue, 07 May 2013 21:46:11 -0400

jillbiden:

Side-eyeing the FUCK out of South Carolina rn.

Photo

letfreedomlulz — Tue, 07 May 2013 21:21:52 -0400

#Breaking: CNN projects Mark Sanford has defeated Elizabeth Colbert Busch in the SC 1st District special Congressional election.

letfreedomlulz — Tue, 07 May 2013 20:36:21 -0400

thepoliticalfreakshow:

South Carolina’s 1st District House seat Special Election: 59% Reporting, Republican Sanford leads Democrat Colbert Busch 54.5% - 45.1%

That was quick. @Redistrict says “It’s over”. Sanford has won the special election in South Carolina. May it not be so. #Sanford

“PPP’s final poll of special election in South Carolina’s 1st Congressional Sanford leading Democrat Elizabeth Colbert Busch 47-46”

If @MarkSanford wins this election, I’ve lost all faith in #SouthCarolina

AP: 172 of 317 Precincts Reporting — @MarkSanford 55% and @ColbertBuschSC 45% http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/files/elections/2013/by_county/SC_US_House_0507.html?SITE=CSPANELN&SECTION=POLITICS …

Sanford 54.5%, Colbert Busch 45.1%, 59.0% Reporting http://politi.co/12eM8l2

South Carolina, you’re not allowed to vote again. Ever. Really??!!! RT @UnitedLiberals: Mark Sanford will win the SC-1 special election

Mark Sanford, former Governor of South Carolina, defeats Elizabeth Colbert-Busch, sister of comedian Stephen Colbert in the SC1 by-election.

Seriously, Sanford effing won the House election? Major #facepalm to South Carolina voters. Seriously!

BREAKING: Mark Sanford will fill the vacant U.S. House seat in South Carolina’s 1st Congressional District, @CNN projects (@cnnbrk)

My reaction to Sanford’s win:

Top North Carolina Democrat Says Republicans Are "Raping" The State

letfreedomlulz — Mon, 06 May 2013 00:46:01 -0400

Top North Carolina Democrat Says Republicans Are "Raping" The State:

thepoliticalfreakshow:

“I was not intending to offend anyone,” he said. “I’m sorry if they took it that way. That’s not what the metaphor means.”

The top Democratic Party official in North Carolina compared Republican actions in the state to rape Thursday. Randy Voller, the North Carolina Democratic Party chairman and mayor of Pittsboro reportedly said, “the GOP that’s leading us – we don’t know where they’re taking us, but they’re raping us along the way.”

Voller was speaking to the Democratic Women of Guilford County at their annual President’s Spring Banquet according to the News-Record.

The quote came out in a tweet from the Guliford County Democrats, who were live tweeting the event. Voller said the tweet, which was quickly deleted, was being taken out of context.

“I think it’s a complete misquote, or a redaction,” Voller told WRAL in North Carolina. “I did use the term contextually.”

“It’s as if barbarians are pillaging and plundering. I’m talking about the destruction that’s going on,” he said referring to Republican-controlled North Carolina legislature. “It’s no different than saying that fracking is raping the land.

Voller said he was “sorry” if people were offended.

“I was not intending to offend anyone,” he said. “I’m sorry if they took it that way. That’s not what the metaphor means.”

When a News-Record reporter told Voller there was a likely chance a woman at the event had been a victim of rape, Voller said he could have been a victim as well.

“I don’t know that,” Voller said. “Women and men are both victims of abusive power and violence. I personally could have been raped.”

Dude. Stop. Digging.

5-year-old Kentucky boy fatally shoots 2-year-old sister

letfreedomlulz — Sun, 05 May 2013 22:29:00 -0400

5-year-old Kentucky boy fatally shoots 2-year-old sister:

tolove1self:

forgotyou-not:

stfubelievers:

A Kentucky boy accidentally shot and killed his 2-year-old sister with the .22-caliber rifle he got for his birthday, state officials said.

“‘It was God’s will. It was her time to go, I guess,’ [the grandmother] told WLEX. ‘I just know she’s in heaven right now and I know she’s in good hands with the Lord.’”

are you fucking serious

This is my state. Save me.

Texas House approves measure allowing guns in the classroom

letfreedomlulz — Sun, 05 May 2013 16:21:36 -0400

Texas House approves measure allowing guns in the classroom:

sinidentidades:

House lawmakers passed a measure Saturday to allow armed school employees in school districts and charter schools, and they also passed another bill that would allow college students to carry a weapon in the classroom.

demnewswire: BROWNBACK TAX PLAN: WORST TAX BILL IN AMERICA From...

letfreedomlulz — Sun, 05 May 2013 10:06:00 -0400

demnewswire:

BROWNBACK TAX PLAN: WORST TAX BILL IN AMERICA

From day one, the Kansas Democratic Party, tax policy experts, and Kansas workers have decried Gov. Sam Brownback’s ill-conceived 2012 tax bill that threatens education funding and core services while blowing a projected $2.5 billion hole in state budget by 2018. This special interest giveaway to big business and the wealthiest Kansans deserves all the scorn that has been heaped upon its festering back, but even we were surprised to read this quote in Governing magazine’s article “What’s wrong with Kansas’ tax reform:

At a recent Urban Institute forum, two policy analysts who follow state and local finances were asked a simple question: What’s the worst and best tax bill a state passed this past year? Without hesitation, both Nick Johnson, an economist with the left-leaning Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, and Joseph Henchman, a lawyer with the right-leaning Tax Foundation, gave the same answer. Kansas, they said, was the worst.

Economists on the both sides of the aisle agree: Sam Brownback got it exactly wrong. That helps explain why over the past few weeks, Governor Brownback has made it a habit to lie about his policies and ignore the economic realities facing Kansas. Worst of all, Brownback is doubling down on the worst tax plan in America, arguing for bigger tax breaks for the richest Kansans while trying to raise our sales tax, kill tax relief for hard working Kansas homeowners, and slash the Earned Income Tax Credit, the best work promotion policy in Kansas.

Let Governor Brownback know he must stop balancing his budget on the backs of Kansas’s working families. Call 877-579-6757 or click here to email his office.

He blows a lot.

blackcyborgs: truth-has-a-liberal-bias: Dear Friend, Please...

letfreedomlulz — Sun, 05 May 2013 09:32:44 -0400

blackcyborgs:

truth-has-a-liberal-bias:

Dear Friend,

Please take a moment to send a message to Mississippi Governor Phil Bryant requesting that he allow DNA testing for Willie Manning before his MAY 7th execution date!

Last week the Mississippi Supreme Court in a 5-4 decision issued a ruling denying Willie Manning the ability to do DNA testing that could prove his innocence. Manning’s execution is scheduled for May 7th. Given that he has few options left, his lawyers have asked the governor to issue a stay and order the testing. Manning was convicted based on circumstantial evidence, and there is a rape kit, fingernail scraping and hair samples that could be tested that might prove innocence.

For more information, you can read this Atlantic article by Andrew Cohen or this article in the Clarion Ledger by Innocence Project Co-Directors Barry Scheck and Peter Neufled.

Thank you for taking action!
Anita

Anita Grabowski
Communications Director
National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty

Please sign and signal boost!

azspot: Nick Anderson: Outrageous

letfreedomlulz — Sat, 04 May 2013 23:10:08 -0400

azspot:

Nick Anderson: Outrageous

"A system that values obedience over curiosity isn’t education and it definitely isn’t science."

letfreedomlulz — Sat, 04 May 2013 22:54:49 -0400

“A system that values obedience over curiosity isn’t education and it definitely isn’t science.”

- Florida Teen Tried With Felony For Trying Science

A beautiful rant about misguided public science education and how the fear of punishment kills curiosity, especially for minorities because they tend to receive harsher punishments, and for the poor because punishments end up being harsher on them when something like bail ends up putting their families even farther in debt.

(via kindofamenace)

In regards to 16 year old Kiera Wilmot’s case, there is a petition going around to drop the charges against her:

http://www.change.org/petitions/the-bartow-police-and-bartow-high-school-drop-charges-against-kiera-wilmot

(via gender-and-science)

Georgia town allegedly diverting sewage to black...

letfreedomlulz — Sat, 04 May 2013 17:56:23 -0400

Georgia town allegedly diverting sewage to black neighborhood

Rochelle, Ga. made national headlines recently when Wilcox County high school held its first-ever integrated prom last weekend.

Now, nonprofit environmental law organization Earthjustice is targeting the town for another instance of racial discrimination: its sewage treatment.

According to Earthjustice, “White residents of Rochelle live on the south side of the city’s railroad track. African-Americans live on the other side.” The city maintains pipes in the predominantly white neighborhood, but not the African-American side. “As a result,” writes Earthjustice, “untreated sewage backs up and overflows into the streets and the yards of residents on the north side of the tracks.”

“Sewage overflows my pipes and flows under my house. It’s time somebody did something about it. They [the white community] live comfortably and I want to live comfortably, too,” said Rochelle resident Rufus Howard.

Howard is one of nine Rochelle residents represented by Earthjustice, who will file a lawsuit under the Clean Water Act if the city does not resolve the issue in 60 days.

Ohio Republicans Want To Punish Colleges That Enable Students To Vote

letfreedomlulz — Sat, 04 May 2013 15:57:00 -0400

Ohio Republicans Want To Punish Colleges That Enable Students To Vote:

abaldwin360:

think-progress:

Ohio Republicans now want to punish state universities that encourage students to cast a ballot. Under a budget amendment filed by Republicans in the Ohio House, state universities that provide documents enabling students to register to vote in their college town, rather than in the state where their parents reside, will be forbidden from charging those students out-of-state tuition. Thus, the amendment would effectively reduce the funding of state schools that assist their students in registering to vote.

More nefarious “if you can’t beat ‘em, cheat em” BS from the right.

“If your students do their civic duty, we’ll inhibit your ability to educate them!”

Fuck Republicans.

This is why we can't have nice things, Tennessee. THIS. IS. WHY.

letfreedomlulz — Wed, 01 May 2013 10:11:00 -0400

This is why we can't have nice things, Tennessee. THIS. IS. WHY.:

missgingerlee:

And the fact that because this dude said this on his ‘personal’ page as opposed to a work one, he won’t be held accountable is just…I can’t even…

nbcnews: Sandy Hook daughter confronts senator: Mom being...

letfreedomlulz — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 21:23:13 -0400

nbcnews:

Sandy Hook daughter confronts senator: Mom being gunned down isn’t enough?

(Photo: Frank Thorp / NBC News)

Sen. Kelly Ayotte, who voted against expanding background checks on gun sales, was confronted by the daughter of Sandy Hook Elementary’s slain principal at a rowdy town hall in New Hampshire.

Watch the exchange.