Ramblings & Replies

[pacman]

If another Bush gets into the White House I think the rest of the world will turn off completely. Of course they will stay polite & act like he's welcome but it would drive a wedge between America & the rest that would take years to repair. 

 

However, if he came out with some brilliant policy & proved to be the complete opposite of his half-witted brother who insisted on saying prayers before every meeting, he could do well. The look of complete scorn & hatred of the man by Cheney & Rumsfeld & all of them was captured brilliantly in Oliver Stone's movie W. And it wasn't some figment of Stone's imagination, it was exactly as reported by those who attended such meetings. 

 

I posted before I thought Hillary would be too old to run after Obama's term but JaiDee replied she wouldn't be. I am sure she has a very strong chance of being the Democratic candidate but if a real bright spark arose as the GOP challenger who was young & dynamic, Hillary's age would play right into his or her hands.

 

And if I was to bet on the next Presidency, I would go for someone out of left field. Someone whose name isn't being mentioned as a candidate but who can give a powerful speech & who can grab the attention of the media. I don't have any suggestions but of those jockeying for position, none of them strike me as Presidential material.

 

By the way, President Obama has just delivered a very strong speech at the Queensland University & was given a rock star reception. And his new deal with China & their plans to lower their carbon emissions has really caught the world offside. Before the announcement Australia was proceeding very slowly with its CO2 program. I am sure that has just been thrown out the window by this announcement & new plans are being prepared as I type. 

 

Barack has just moved the climate debate forward by a decade. It may prove to be his greatest legacy. I don't know how it is being received in the USA but it is huge here in Australia. 

[pdogg]

I'll bet the Clinton people right now are vetting a lot of moderate conservative southern white male Dems for veep, are there any governors that fit this profile left? Maybe someone from the west also, there was a governor from Montana recently....  Also a fair amount of nominally red but non ideological women may cross over just to put in the first woman pres ever.  My money is on Hill right now...

 

I agree.

 

We guys can forget that many women will vote for a woman.

 

I suppose that Obama and H aren't that different as far as policies go.

 

But I like Obama.  But find H boring. Same as Gore and Kerry.

 

With hindsight we can look at mistakes H may have made in '08 but I think she lost because Obama was a very strong candidate

[Hefe]

 As for your southern Governor;  how do you feel about Charlie Crist? Used to be an {R} but now runs as an independent, just lost a close race in Florida so should be available and as you know pulling Florida is super-important.

 

Nah.. wouldn't  be him, not only does he have recent "loser stink" on him but he's a closeted gay which is a real big deal. A lot of people think Hill is a dyke anyway because she isn't a traditional first lady type. 

[Torurot]

Working on the lam in Thailand. One expats tale

Sarong it's right: Coining it in Thailand without a visa

Top money, cheap rent and food ... and fear of a late-night knock

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/11/16/working_in_thailand_wthout_a_visa/

By Simon Sharwood, 16 Nov 2014

[Torurot]

California Tells Court It Can’t Release Inmates Early Because It Would Lose Cheap Prison Labor

http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2014/11/17/3592964/how-californias-program-to-have-inmates-fight-wildfires-could-be-keeping-people-behind-bars/

by Nicole Flatow Posted on November 17, 2014

Another potential obstacle to addressing the U.S. epidemic of mass incarceration has emerged: The utility of cheap prison labor.

[JaiDee]

Let's not forget that the USA is one of the few countries in the world who runs for-profit prisons as well. Companies like Correction Corporations of America and others are listed on the NYSE and their owners and stockholders have a vested interest in keeping those prisons full.

 

But the tide is turning against these A-holes.......and legalizing weed is the first step. Less marijuana laws = less young black kids filling the jails; it's a great thing to see.

[seven]

Rightwing christian:

 

 

 

This lady staying busy sending  Gods message:

 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/05/12/anti-gay-slushie-mothers-day-protester_n_5309323.html

[JaiDee]

I wonder if that lady would still love her son or daughter if they turned out to be gay?

[seven]

I wonder if that lady would still love her son or daughter if they turned out to be gay?

...or drank energy drinks?

[JaiDee]

This ad from GE in the 50's would never fly today

 

Imagine trying to sell these things in Georgia, or Alabama?

 

 

[seven]

I agree except for Kings of Leon.

 

 

20 of the Most Overrated Bands and Musicians of All Time 

 

'The British people would like to apologize to the rest of the world for Coldplay.'  

 

http://www.clevescene.com/cleveland/20-of-the-most-overrated-bands-and-musicians-of-all-time/Slideshow?oid=3793025&slide=20

[JaiDee]

Interesting list......2 bands I think should NOT be on that list are The Doors and The Smiths; both highly influential and have a decent body of work behind them.  Green Day; if going by just their first 2 records they were excellent, since then they have made a lot of garbage.

 

 My biggest head nod??  Even more than Coldplay? Fucking OASIS!!!

 

 

Fuck them and their preening, posing lead singer, whichever asshole Gallagher brother that is!  Two-hit wonders who have the audacity to name themselves the most important band ever  grrrrrrrrrrr

 

I was really hoping they'd be on that list before I opened it, was not disappointed. 

[Guest JustSumGai]

This ad from GE in the 50's would never fly today

 

Imagine trying to sell these things in Georgia, or Alabama?

 

they might at that price :)

do you not remember before homosexuals co-opted the word when it meant cheerful, happy, etc. ?

[williethepimp]

Interesting list......2 bands I think should NOT be on that list are The Doors and The Smiths; both highly influential and have a decent body of work behind them.  Green Day; if going by just their first 2 records they were excellent, since then they have made a lot of garbage.

 

 My biggest head nod??  Even more than Coldplay? Fucking OASIS!!!

 

 

Fuck them and their preening, posing lead singer, whichever asshole Gallagher brother that is!  Two-hit wonders who have the audacity to name themselves the most important band ever  grrrrrrrrrrr

 

I was really hoping they'd be on that list before I opened it, was not disappointed. 

a lot of the bands ive never even heard of....so how can they be overated...? Sacrilege to have the smiths on that list,and the doors....genuinely original both of those bands ,their music and influence will live forever....ii never got the grateful dead tho......or a lot of american bands for that matter.....bruce springsteen would be on my list......and aKiss...how shit were they!

[SiamSam]

Shouldn't this stuff be on the "band names" thread?

 

Just sayin' 

[seven]

 to have the smiths on that list,and the doors....

i agree. The list isn't 100% imo. Police shouldn't be there. Creed and Nickelback should most definitely be on it. 

 

Shouldn't this stuff be on the "band names" thread?

 

Just sayin' 

Yes!

[JaiDee]

Yeah, Nickelback, I was looking for them.

 

Creed sucked pretty badly as well.

[Hefe]

 

Barack has just moved the climate debate forward by a decade. It may prove to be his greatest legacy. I don't know how it is being received in the USA but it is huge here in Australia. 

 

Well Zach Galafinakis interviewed him on "Between 2 Ferns" & the opening question was "How does it feel to be the last black US president?"      (It's a very funny web series if you aren't familiar with it.)

[JaiDee]

I thought this was very interesting, a young 'lady' from Maine [transgendered] was named one of the top 50 most influential women by a popular women's magazine;

 

  http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/11/18/nicole-maines-glamour_n_6177720.html?ncid=fcbklnkushpmg00000023&ir=Good+News

 

 

''On Monday, Glamour posted its list of "50 Phenomenal Women of the Year," which included Nicole in the Maine spot.

"It's an honor to be recognized with this title," Nicole wrote to The Huffington Post on Tuesday. "I'm so glad that all the work that my family and I are doing is yielding positive results and making actual change! I hope that this will lead other youth to speak up in their communities and advocate for themselves and what they believe in."

[seven]

 "Between 2 Ferns"    (It's a very funny web series if you aren't familiar with it.)

If you haven't yet, check out this brilliant show.

 

The Sean Penn episode is one of the best

[pdogg]

 

 

The Australia and US-based Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP) has ranked Thailand on the 10th out of 162 countries on the  Global Terrorism Index (GTI).

 

In a report published this week, by the IEP, it gave Thailand a score of 7.19 out of 10.

 

Thailand trailed behind the Philippines which was ranked 9th with the score of 7.29, while Indonesia which is among the ASEAN came in 30th place with 4.67 scores.

 

Leading the list of the 162 countries is Iraq with the score of 10, followed by Afghanistan (9.39), Pakistan (9.37), Nigeria (8.58), Syria (8.12), India (7.86), Somalia (7.41),  and Yemen (7.31).

Russia was placed at 11th rank after Thailand with 6.76 scores. 

 

80 percent of the lives lost to terrorist attacks in 2013 occurred in just five countries – Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Nigeria and Syria. 

 

http://englishnews.thaipbs.or.th/thailand-ranked-10th-among-162-countries-global-terrorism-index

 

 

[JaiDee]

America's Smartest Cities   {from Forbes}

 

http://www.forbes.com/sites/joelkotkin/2014/11/17/americas-smartest-cities/

 

No. 1: Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH

Share Of Population That Is College-Educated, 2013: 44.8%
Increase In Share Since 2000: 7.8 percentage points
Increase In College-Educated Population Since 2000: 32.2%

[seven]

I thought they were in Kentucky.

[Torurot]

House Republicans Sue To Raise Health Care Costs For Poor Americans

http://thinkprogress.org/health/2014/11/21/3595823/obamacare-lawsuit-cost-sharing/

Jeb Bush’s Reverse Midas Touch

http://thinkprogress.org/election/2014/11/21/3591619/jeb-bush-business-failures/

Posted on November 21, 2014

Jeb Bush’s Four Mysterious Companies Share The Same Address And Have Never Done Any Known Business

http://thinkprogress.org/election/2014/11/21/3594461/jeb-bush-mysterious-businesses/

[JaiDee]

What happened in 1972 which started the unprecedented rise in the US prison population?

 

   The "war on drugs", of course!  How's that working out for ya'?