I have a lot of respect for Larry Lessig of Harvard Law School and I agree with him completely when he tells Bill Moyers that Edward Snowden’s fear that his leaks about the NSA’s illegal data mining won’t really change anything. He’s right, they won’t.
Jun 18 2013
Lessig: NSA Revelations Won’t Change Anything
Jun 18 2013
Why I Love Patton Oswalt
I think Patton Oswalt is one of the five funniest comics working today. He’s one of those rare comedians who has a truly unique voice. Like Louis CK, he is capable of doing something that very few comics have ever been able to do, create an entirely new special/cd/dvd every year without the quality slipping. And that’s because his act isn’t really an act, it flows from who he is and from his particular way of looking at the world. And if you don’t already love him, I suggest reading this very long essay about stealing material, heckling and rape jokes. He tells this great story about a comedian stealing material:
Jun 18 2013
Maddow on the GOP’s Crazy Caucus
Rachel Maddow had an excellent segment on Thursday about some of the latest stories that show just how thoroughly the GOP has mainstreamed the crazy. This is especially true in Virginia at the moment, where they keep putting the looniest imaginable people in positions of authority. Seriously, they have a candidate who thinks yoga leads to Satanic possession and they just hired a guy who thinks voodoo causes earthquakes.
Jun 18 2013
Republicans Vote Down Atheist Chaplain Amendment
23% of American military personnel classify themselves as having no religious beliefs, but they have been deemed completely irrelevant by every single Republican in the House, which voted down an amendment to the defense appropriations bill to allow atheist/humanist chaplains in the military.
Jun 18 2013
Supreme Court Restricts Speech Again
On June 11, a federal district judge declared a law forbidding any protests on the grounds of the Supreme Court, overturning 40 U.S.C. § 6135. Two days later, the Supreme Court itself reasserted that same ban in a new regulation based on 40 U.S.C. § 6102, which says:
Jun 18 2013
WND Still on…Flag Burning? Really?
Of all the things to continue to be obsessed about, flag burning? Seriously? Yep. The Worldnutdaily apparently still thinks it matters and they’ve published an inane and inaccurate column by Maj. Gen. Patrick Brady to rail against the incredibly rare practice that was protected by the Supreme Court. Brady’s legal and historical arguments are about what one would expect from someone who knows nothing about either subject.
Jun 18 2013
VA GOP Names Loony as Black Outreach Person
Apparently the Virginia Republican Party doesn’t think they look quite crazy enough for nominating Ken Cuccinelli and E.W. Jackson for governor and lt. governor respectively, so they’ve now named Rev. Joe Ellison as their “Director of African-American Engagement.” Ellison is so crazy that he believes the big earthquake in Haiti a few years ago was caused by voodoo.
Jun 18 2013
Another False Beck Prediction
Jun 17 2013
Corsi: Gay Rights Lead to Snuff Films
The always irrational Jerome Corsi gave a speech recently in which he absurdly claimed that if we give equal rights to gay people, that will lead to pedophilia, bestiality and the legalization of snuff films. Because the Bible says so, or something. “What is to prevent us” from legalizing snuff films, he asks. Seriously? You can’t see the difference? You can’t see why we should treat gay people equally but not let people kill others to get off? Then you’re either stupid or crazy. Take your pick.
Jun 17 2013
Feder: The Concentration Camps are Coming
Always one to be calm and rational, wingnut Don Feder has a new column out declaring that Obama may soon begin rounding up conservatives and putting them into concentration camps. All because of the IRS scandal, because there’s obviously a direct connection between asking a few non-profit groups to answer some additional questions and creating the Fourth Reich.
Jun 17 2013
King Lies About Greenwald
Rep. Peter King, one of the most ridiculous blowhards ever to serve in Congress, is flat out lying about Glenn Greenwald. He says Greenwald should be prosecuted for his role in the recent NSA spying revelations and he is inventing out of thin air a seriously defamatory claim:
Jun 17 2013
GOP Rep Loves His ‘Man’s Brain’
I’ve long said that state legislatures are where you find some of the dumbest and craziest elected officials and here’s a perfect example. During a debate over the expansion of Medicaid, Maine state House Minority Leader Ken Fredette actually cites the book Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus and refers to how his “man brain” sees the whole thing differently from his political opponents, who apparently all have women brains.
Jun 17 2013
Islamophobia in Action
More video is coming out from that event held in Tennessee last week by a Muslim group, prompted by a local politician posting a meme on his Facebook page showing a shotgun pointed at the camera and saying “how to wink at a Muslim.” Pam Geller and hundreds of others showed up to protest it, including going inside and trying to drown out the speakers. At one point, a speaker pointed out that a mosque had been burned to the ground — and the protesters inside wildly cheered for it. Still think Islamophobia doesn’t exist?
Jun 17 2013
FFRF Files Suit Over Atheist Book Distribution
You may remember that a few weeks ago a number of atheist-themed books and pamphlets were passively distributed in public schools in Orange County, Florida. This was done because the school had allowed a Christian group to distribute Bibles in that same manner earlier and the school agreed that it was a limited public forum. But now the FFRF has filed suit because the school did not allow many of the books and pamphlets they wanted to distribute.
Jun 17 2013
‘Psychic’ to Pay Millions for Defamatory Statements
A “psychic” in Texas who went to law enforcement authorities and told them that she was sure a local couple had a mass grave full of dismembered bodies of people they’d killed has been ordered to pay nearly $7 million in damages to that couple. Insert the obvious “she should have seen this coming” joke here.
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