I…
I don’t know why…
But, it’s Glenn Beck as a chloroplast, and if that doesn’t meet the inclusion factors for a biodork blog (sarcastic liberal humor + plant biology = NERD WIN), I don’t know what else would.
Seen on Comments from Left Field
And just for fun, and comparison, a real chloroplast:
Pick out the image that depicts the more beneficial of the two things on this great green Earth. And…GO!
From the NYTimes at 06:00 Wednesday 11th, 2010
MN Governor: Looks like Dayton is currently squeeking ahead of Margaret Anderson Kelliher by about 4,000 votes.
MN 5th District: See, no contest. It’s good to know that the DFLs in 5th district saw right through BDW’s DFL-sheep’s clothing.
MN 6th District: Looks like Tarryl Clark beat out Maureen Reed for the 6th District. Maureen Reed has very classily announced the suspension of her campaign for the 6th District, and is uniting behind Tarryl Clark to work toward their shared goal of kicking Michelle Bachmann to the curb in November.
I arrived about 30 minutes later than I like to arrive to work today. But I received a pretty red sticker that says “I Voted” for my efforts, so that’s all good.
American primary elections – they don’t really matter, right? As long as you vote in the “real elections” on November 2nd you’ve done your patriotic duty, right?
Insert loud, annoying, internationally-recognized buzzer sound for “YOU’RE WRONG!” here.
It’s easy to understand why people miss the primary elections – all the states hold them on different days and even different months so it can be hard to keep track of when you’re supposed to show up to vote. Also, one must choose between the different candidates running in your political party, not just the one pair or person running for your party against the “other guy”.
Wikipedia defines a primary election as “…an election in which voters in a jurisdiction select candidates for a subsequent election. Primary elections are one means by which a political party nominates candidates for the following general election.”
There are different types of primaries, and it actually does take a little involvement and self-education to contribute effectively when casting one’s votes (as should be the case in all instances of vote-casting). But there are some pretty important choices on the line today in Minnesota, especially if you plan on voting for a DFL govenor in November. Do you have a preference between Matt Entenza, Mark Dayton, Margaret Anderson Kelliher, and Peter Idusogie? Better get to the polls, today.
Tom Emmer pretty much has the Republican nomination buttoned up, but you may be one of Ole Savior’s perennial supporters and want to make that known. Or, go vote for your Independence party rep.
What offices are on the ballot?
*US Representative
*Governor and Lt. Governor
*Secretary of State
*Attorney General
*Various local offices (like school board directors in Minneapolis) may be on your jurisdiction’s ballot.
See…BIG stuff!
Here’s one reason I’m voting today: Barb Davis White
This woman does NOT support my interests, or those of the people I love and care for. Barb Davis White is a Tea Party Supporter, an anti-GLBT proponent, and an avowed conservative. That she is running on the DFL platform is horrifying to me. This is a direct quote from her website:
As a straightforward, no-nonsense conservative that believes in limited government and the U.S. Constitution, Barb Davis White is working hard to unseat the left-wing liberals currently violating the conservative Minnesotan’s and American’s way of life.
Barb Davis White is running against Keith Ellison, the incumbent 5th District US Representative. Mr. Ellison has a *slightly* different perspective from BDW. From his website:
Representative Ellison’s philosophy is one of “generosity and inclusiveness.” His roots as a community activist and his message of inclusivity through democratic participation resonates throughout the Fifth District. His priorities in Congress are: promoting peace, prosperity for working families, environmental sustainability, and civil and human rights.
Can we say, no contest???? Oh, but wait…IT IS!
So get out and vote, because these two people are going to conduct business in Washington in two very different ways. Whichever one you agree with more, get to your polling place and cast your vote!
Sorry, no time for a personal post right now – I plan on posting a write-up and fun pictures from the Minneapolis May Day parade later tonight. For now, I leave you with this cringe – inducing political statement that I found at Cafe Witteveen:
I’m off to the gym (mmm…hot tub…), then brunch with some friends at the Independent in Uptown, followed by a shift at the bookstore.
Two outta three ain’t bad.
Today, I bring you the satirical stylings of Edward Currant. WARNING: This video is mean, a little rude, and dare I say vicious and relentless? But, gently readers, know that none of these things are done idly! The attitude of the video helps drive home it’s underlying message: Evangelical religious right wing politics are very, very scary…and funny in their ridiculousness…funny in a make-you-want-to-cry kind of way.
Edward Currant is well known for his no-holds-barred videos lambasting religious silliness and right-wing extremism. However, if you like that kind of stuff, enjoy! Oh, and make sure to watch for the hand-reading glance ala Sarah Palin!
I’m off to the gym (mmm…hot tub…), then brunch with some friends at the Independent in Uptown, followed by a shift at the bookstore.
Two outta three ain’t bad.
Today, I bring you the satirical stylings of Edward Currant. WARNING: This video is mean, a little rude, and dare I say vicious and relentless? But, gently readers, know that none of these things are done idly! The attitude of the video helps drive home it’s underlying message: Evangelical religious right wing politics are very, very scary…and funny in their ridiculousness…funny in a make-you-want-to-cry kind of way.
Edward Currant is well known for his no-holds-barred videos lambasting religious silliness and right-wing extremism. However, if you like that kind of stuff, enjoy! Oh, and make sure to watch for the hand-reading glance ala Sarah Palin!
Simon Singh has won his defense against the British Chiropractic Association’s libel lawsuit.
Rebecca Watson from Skepchick breaks the story ——-> here.
And someone has already been kind enough to update Simon Singh’s Wikipedia page:
In 2008, Singh was sued for libel by the British Chiropractic Association for criticising their activities in a column in The Guardian. A “furious backlash” to the ongoing lawsuit has resulted in the filing of formal complaints of false advertising against more than 500 individual chiropractors within one 24 hour period, one national chiropractic organization ordering its members to take down their websites, and Nature Medicine noting that the case has gathered wide support for Singh, as well as prompting calls for the reform of English libel laws. On 1 April 2010, Simon Singh won his court appeal for the right to rely on the defence of fair comment. On 15 April 2010, the BCA officially withdrew its lawsuit, ending the case.
The legal fight took a LOT of money on Simon Singh’s part, and I would like to thank him for his dedication, effort and willingness to see this court battle to its end. Also a giant thank you to him and to all of his supporters (here, here and here) for sparking the larger issue of UK Libel Reform, which has affected – and continues to be able to affect – people world-wide.
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References are available on the wikipedia website for the claims and assertations made in the wiki post above.
The writer of the blog Toward a Moral Life did an interesting piece on a poll about Americans’ views and, in part, the Tea Party political movement. Here are some results from those who identified as supporters of the Tea Party (copied from Toward a Moral Life and the piece linked above):
Tea Partiers have a concept – the less government the better – but they still want government or other oversight bodies to make sure they’re safe and have access to…stuff.
I’m very optimistic – I believe that people want to love and support their neighbors and they *think* they want to support their fellow human beings. If we see a guy bleeding on the side of the road, we want to help him. We’ll go out of our way to help him! Need money? Need a ride? Need food? I can do that!
But when people are asked to “blindly” support the weak, poor, sick, etc., they are reluctant to do so. If they don’t have immediate, measurable evidence that their sacrifice is being appreciated, they’re less likely to help. If we can’t see that extra taxes are providing food, education or medicine to unfortunate people who can’t help themselves, we don’t want to help.
With welfare, universal health care, education, police, and other “socialist” endeavors, we’re ultimately agreeing (or being forced – whichever you believe) to let go of the power to play god. We don’t get to *choose* who we help…we don’t get to decide if individuals are *worthy* enough to get our help. We don’t get to hold back our assistance to those who don’t share our beliefs or values…and this really irks some of us.
Really, “socialism” seems to be a way to scale up our altruistic efforts at local, national and global levels. Individual efforts may be wasteful and help only a few, while (socialist) taxes have the potential to help provide more efficient vehicles for support for more people. But it requires trust in our fellow man…or at least in the regulatory bodies that keep an eye on our fellow man. Crap. I certainly don’t trust all of my fellow man. But maybe I can trust oversight committees? But who’s watching them??? Who’s watching the Watchmen?
I think that liberals and socialists have more trust in our fellow men, while conservatives and Tea Party supports have less trust. Hmmm…is this the basic difference between our two groups?
Biology nerdiness and political humor beautifully melded to produce witty sarcasm – well played, sir! (Seen in the Minneapolis Star Tribune by Sack)
Also, I have a new God Pamphlet! It’s been a while since I’ve seen one, so this was kind of exciting. This one wasn’t found at the bookstore, but was given to my friend’s daughter Tuesday by Jehovah’s Witnesses when she made the mistake of opening the door to the kindly-looking men in suits standing on the doorstep.
All day yesterday I kept tags on the liveblogging of the House Health Care Vote. And then at 9 or 10pm-ish (I’m getting the EST-CST zones mixed up), I watched the House vote on CNN.com Live. It was incredibly terrifying to watch the numbers come in, but finally we achieved the 216 votes needed to pass. The numbers on the screen were about 5 seconds behind the actual tallies, so at 215 we started to hear clapping, and by 216 the chanting of “Yes We Can!” was being taken up by the Democratic majority. The final vote was 219-212 for the Senate health care bill, and 220-211 for the revisions package (Do you wonder what was going on in the head of the lone democrat who came on board for the revision package after voting against the health care bill?)
All in all, being the geek I am, I would say that was at least as exciting as the final minutes of some silly superbowl! Of course, at the end of the superbowl, the winner is the winner and you move on with your life. You don’t have to follow up with a bunch of people who challenge the win, and there’s no messy paperwork – except maybe with the bookies. Although, maybe there are some parallels between the total amount of money spent because of the superbowl and the cost of providing health care for 32 million Americans?
Finally, the following is an exclusive interview conducted by yours truly with the Senate Health care bill last evening:
Me: You just won the majority vote in the US House of Representatives. What are you going to do now?
HR3590: I’m going to the White House!
Me: You mean, after the Senate approves the revision package. Then on to the White House, right?
HR3590: Biodork, quit harshin’ my buzz. The Senate’s just a quick stop before I get to go see the Prez.
Me: Of course, Health Care, you’re quite right. Congratulations on your win. And ours.
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Update 3/22/10 12:17pm CST:
Cafe Witteveen has a cool post from Reuters that lists the year-by-year health insurance reform events that will rollout starting this year through 2018.
