Bill Maher On Rachel Maddow

Bill talks about Mormonism and how it stacks up to the other fantasies called religions.

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Matt Damon speaks before SOS March

Matt Damon gives a brilliant speech in favor of teachers and attempting to peel back the years of false propaganda from the right.

The Ledge

This is a new movie coming out that actually has an atheist as the good guy. From one of my favorite blogs, Atheist Revolution:

When was the last time you saw an atheist character depicted positively in a feature film? Yeah, it has been awhile for me too.

Atheist characters have been included in many films, but aside from documentaries, we tend to be depicted either as villains or as overcoming our skepticism and embracing some for of superstition. This latter role has become so overused in horror films that I feel like I can spot it a mile away. Wouldn't it be nice to have a feature film with an atheist main character who got to remain an atheist and didn't have to be a villain?

It sounds like we may finally have such a film, coming in the form of The Ledge. This upcoming film from Matthew Chapman stars Liv Tyler, Patrick Wilson, Charlie Hunnam, and Terrence Howard. It has been nominated for Best U.S. Drama at Sundance, and it could help to launch atheism into public awareness if it does well.

Follow the link to the blog because he has a trailer for the movie there. It looks like it might be pretty good.

A Pineapple Under the Sea

Rachel gets schooled by 6 year olds. I knew she was wrong because I have a granddaughter.

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Why do celebs think they can govern?

Lawrence O'Donnell tells the truth about Donald Trump and Arnold Schwarzenegger, both tricked people into thinking they knew something about politics, Lawrence shows that neither knew anything. It's a cautionary tale to the rest of us if we ever feel like electing a celebrity to public office again.

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It Gets Better

Ed Schultz

Ed had a great segment on tonight's show, all about how the stimulus really did work despite the lies the Republicans have been saying. He lays it out nice an clearly about who has done what and who you should trust with the economy. And he's got a chart! I love charts!

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Unions in Ohio

It's about time that the police and firefighters stopped voting Republican.

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Rachel Maddow

Rachel states it very clearly: most Americans are Democrats even if they don't know it. the problem is that the Democrats have no idea how to communicate to anybody what they are all about. They are FOR all of us, the bottom 99% of the US population, while the Republicans are for that very rich 1% of Americans and for corporations. But they have managed to trick large portions of the populations into voting Republican.

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A New Dawn

Image by Yutaka Tsutano via FlickrWhile everyone else is looking at the dire disaster happening in Egypt these days I am focused on what is really important: I ordered my Verizon iPhone yesterday!

Yes, that's right, yesterday, even though ordering is supposed to only be available today.

Well, the official start time for the pre-orders was 3am EST, Feb 3 - today. 3am is midnight here in California. I signed in about 15 minutes early, suddenly, after only 5 minutes of waiting, the screen came alive and said I could now order. I completed the the whole thing before midnight which means I ordered on Feb 2. People in Hawaii are probably saying "What's the big deal." But I must have been one of the very first to order.

What really annoyed me is the site said it would ship on Feb 10, when it goes on sell for everyone in the retail stores. How annoying that I will get mine the same time as everyone else, a whole week from now. Checked my order today and it said "Already Shipped." I was amazed, what does it mean? No company was named and no tracking number so I'm thinking it hasn't really shipped, but it would be great if it did - it would mean I'd get the phone tomorrow since I got free next day shipping.

I'll just have to wait and see if it shows up tomorrow. Fingers crossed!!

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The Verizon iPhone

Image via CrunchBaseAs a Mac guy I've wanted an iPhone ever since they first came out, but I was also a Verizon man and the iP{hone was only available with AT&T. The reception for Verizon here in Orange County is fantastic, AT&T, not so much. We had AT&T and hated them, ever since switching to Verizon many years ago I've had no thought at all of ever switching from them.

But the iPhone tempted me. I really considered switching to AT&T but I did a mini survey among my iPhone-possessing friends and the consensus was that AT&T really, REALLY sucked. 2 people even said they would suffer the cancellation fees at AT&T just to get a Verizon iPhone.

Now, it seems like it's just about here. Verizon has sent out invitations to selected press people for next Tuesday, which has the fun date of 1/11/11. This is weird because CES, the Consumer Electronics Show, is going on right now. Verizon made many announcements of new products, mostly Android phones, so why have another announcement 2 days after the show closes?

The iPhone is the only answer. There have been rumors over the last few days that Apple has restricted vacations for their Apple Store personnel for the end of January and the beginning of February. This was very recently narrowed down to Feb 3-6.

So something big was coming, some speculated that it could be the newest generation of iPad, but most thought it would be the Verizon iPhone. Now that the announcement is coming from Verizon that pretty much ensures it's the iPhone. If it was an iPad Steve Jobs would never let someone else present it to the world. The only reason he would let Verizon take the lead is with what is essentially a 6 month old product like the iPhone 4. So it can't be the iPhone 5 or one that could use LTE, that's big news that Apple would announce itself.

And the WSJ has definitively said it IS the iPhone, they apparently have a good source.

I'm going to pre-order the very second

Related articles

• Will Apple announce the Verizon iPhone on February 3rd? (zdnet.com)
• IT'S ON: Apple Will Sell At Least 10 Million Verizon iPhones This Year (AAPL, VZ) (businessinsider.com)
• AT&T's Answer to the Verizon iPhone: A $49 iPhone 3GS (nytimes.com)

What Christmas Is All About

Out to Sea

Mom’s funeral was yesterday. I did the same thing I did with Darcy, we went and scattered her ashes at sea. Although it is still raining throughout SoCal, down in Costa Mesa at the coast it was barely raining at all, so it wasn’t a problem.

However, the sea’s were pretty rough so we had to make it quick and hold tight to the railing. Bennet and Summer were the only ones there. I told them they were the only family I had left and Summer hugged me and said I wasn’t going to get rid of her, ever. Bennet agreed, said he wouldn’t even be here today if it wasn’t for me so anything I needed they would do.

All very emotional, especially when you consider that I’m not really related to them, Bennet is Darcy’s son so he is my stepson, and Summer is my step Daughter-in-law. Making Ally my step-granddaughter.

But I’ve always felt that family is the people you choose more than the accidents you were born with. My mom was not the best mom in the world but she wasn’t the worst either. She is the one person who knew me for the entire 57.5 years of my life - or the last one left, anyway. My sister did and so did my dad. But my dad died when I was 13 and my sister around 6 years ago of cancer.

I’m still stuck in a deep depression, hope it lifts soon.

Mom

My mom died yesterday. Actually she died Nov 16 but they didn't bother to tell me until yesterday. She was in pretty bad shape at 93, dementia had taken her mind away, to the point where she couldn't even speak but could only make animal noises. It was hard to watch. I didn't visit her much because she hadn't recognized me for 4 years now. I would stop by occasionally to make sure the nursing home was taking good care of her.

The picture is Darcy and Mom from about 15 years ago, it's not very good but it's the only one I can find. Darcy is only 5' 4" tall so you can see how short Mom was. The most startling thing over the last 4 years was her face. When no one was home any more her face underwent a dramatic change, very shocking to look at.

At one time all the women in my life were threatening to die on me; our cat Nikko (she was our baby), my sister, Darcy and my mom. My sister died of cancer one day before her 60th birthday, Darcy died one week before her 61st birthday, but my mom outlasted all of them at 93. She was always pretty tough, but I think even she felt it was time to go because she was barely eating. Food used to be her favorite thing, as a tiny, old woman she could put away quantities that would put a truck driver to shame.

Sen Bernie Sanders

There Is A WAR Being Waged Against The Working Families Of America!

New Logo

I got this off of Facebook but really like it, not for regular use but to look at once and laugh a bit.

Steve Martin: Atheists Don't Have No Songs

The title really says it all.

Arnold and Meg

Here is a great ad against Meg Whitman, who is trying to buy the election - outspending Jerry Brown 10 to 1. I sure hope she doesn't succeed.

Science vs Religion

Vote Democratic Part 3

Bill Maher says it best this week:

When it comes to voting, when we only have two choices, you got to grow up and realize there's a big difference between a disappointing friend and a deadly enemy.

I'm as disappointed with Obama as anyone and I had few expectations. Way back at the beginning I said I didn't think he would make a great president because he really isn't a progressive, that I'd be happy if I could get health insurance, which I am just about to sign up for.

But no matter how disappointed we are there is still a HUGE difference between the dems and the pubs. Bill continues:

The Democrats have a D because they barely pass but you know why the Republican symbol is R? Because it's the noise a pirate makes when he robs you and feeds you to a shark.

Here is his latest New Rules:

Scientific opinion on climate change

Here is an excellent Wikipedia article on global warming:

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) 2007

Main article: Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change

In February 2007, the IPCC released a summary of the forthcoming Fourth Assessment Report. According to this summary, the Fourth Assessment Report finds that human actions are "very likely" the cause of global warming, meaning a 90% or greater probability. Global warming in this case is indicated by an increase of 0.75 degrees in average global temperatures over the last 100 years.[5]

The New York Times reported that “the leading international network of climate scientists has concluded for the first time that global warming is 'unequivocal' and that human activity is the main driver, very likely' causing most of the rise in temperatures since 1950”.[6]

The New York Times retired journalist William K. Stevens wrote: “The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change said the likelihood was 90 percent to 99 percent that emissions of heat-trapping greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide, spewed from tailpipes and smokestacks, were the dominant cause of the observed warming of the last 50 years. In the panel’s parlance, this level of certainty is labeled 'very likely'. Only rarely does scientific odds-making provide a more definite answer than that, at least in this branch of science, and it describes the endpoint, so far, of a progression.”.[7]

The Associated Press summarized the position on sea level rise:

On sea levels, the report projects rises of 7-23 inches by the end of the century. That could be augmented by an additional 4-8 inches if recent polar ice sheet melt continues.[8]

The scary part is that each time the scientist have the chance to measure something it surprises them that it's far more advanced than they thought it was. No one is saying what they all know, it's already too late - and it's the American's fault.

Gandalf and Magneto

World's best T-shirt. You tell them, Ian!

Elizabeth Warren

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Bread and circuses

Image via Wikipedia

This phrase come from Roman times, from Wikipedia:

This phrase originates from Rome in Satire X of the Roman poet Juvenal (circa 100 AD ). In context, the Latin phrase panem et circenses (bread and circuses) is given as the only remaining cares of a Roman populace which has given up its birthright of political involvement. Here Juvenal displays his contempt for the declining heroism of his contemporary Romans.[1]: Roman politicians devised a plan in 140 B.C. to win the votes of the poor; By giving out cheap food and entertainment, politicians decided that this policy of "bread and circuses" would be the most effective way to rise to power.

In other words, give the masses food and crazy entertainment and they won’t question what the people in power are doing.

Ever wonder why we see Lindsay Lohan all over all the news channels all the time but NEVER hear about bills trying to pass in congress, or what bills have already passed. They want us fat and happy so they can do what they want without the masses rioting or doing any other unfortunate things.

The problem is they got greedy, they got so carried away with stealing the product of our labor that they have taken away a lot of bread, so the middle-class shrinks and the number of poor go up. And people get restless.

Even in their own economic structure they need people to make enough money to buy things or everyone - even them - gets hurt.

Who are “they” you might ask? Our corporate overlords and the politicians who they get elected so that tax laws can be made in their favor. It’s happened time and again throughout history. It really doesn’t take much to keep the masses feed well enough so they don’t riot, after all, rioting is hard work and you could get hurt.

The best example of this is the French Revolution and Marie Antoinette, who said “Let them eat cake!” That was the problem, no one had any cake, everyone was in financial distress and starving. All the French Royalty had to do was make some minor sacrifices (like eating cake only twice a week instead of every day) and give some of the bread to the poor so they would calm down.

Not quite the same these days because television is the best entertainment in history. But the powers that be forgot to include the bread so the system is collapsing and there might be rioting in the near future. If too many become homeless they won’t have TV to calm them down.

Of course, the Corporate Masters have an escape plan: All they need to do is move to China and let the Chinese become their new market while letting America descend into third world status.

Vote Democratic Part 2

I found out about that chart in the first post from Rachel Maddow, who got it from Ezra Klein's blog. One of her fans sent her a new chart. This shows the same thing, that when the dems are in charge our incomes rise a lot more than when pubs are in charge. But in this chart he lays it out when the dems are in charge of the House, or the Senate, or the Presidency, or have it all. Ezra's chart dealt only with the Presidency.

You see, the Republicans are lying to you, when they say the Democrats are tax and spend they mean the dems tax rich people and spend it on the other 95% of us. The taxes for us 95% don't change a whole lot, not a lot of room for change, but the top tax rate can change dramatically. All through the 40's and 50's the top tax rate was around 90% for all income over $400,000 - and what happened in the 50's? We had a strong growth that created a strong middle class for the first time, in fact, most of the country moved up from poverty to the middle class.

In 1980 Reagan dropped the rate down to around 25%, which made the rich very, very happy. Of course, the deficit and our debt grew faster than ever before in American history and he had to raise taxes. He's known for lowering taxes but a lot of people are surprised when they hear he then raised taxes 4 times during his 2 terms. His voodoo economics simply didn't work.

The big lie from the Republicans is that they got the middle class to think the raising or lowering of taxes was about them and not the rich. There are 2 ways a modern economy can function, the rich can be taxed at a high rate in order to supply the 95% of us with a variety of services, like roads, schools, police, military, welfare, medical care, etc. Or all the tax breaks can be for the rich which funnels all our money from us 95% upward to the rich, so they can get richer and richer. Since Reagan took office until today the top 1% saw their incomes increase by 250%, while the bottom 95% of us saw our income drop by 6%. Productivity increased quite a bit as well but the workers who are working harder and better don't get to reap the rewards, it all gets funneled up to the rich.

The end results of Republican economic policy is a total collapse. It happened once back in the 1930's and we had the Great Depression as a result, and happened again at the end of Bush's watch but we were saved from another depression by Obama's economic policies. So that instead of the Second Great Depression we got the first Great Recession. Semantics? No, it really does make a difference. When Bush left office and Obama took over we were losing 700,000 jobs per month - yes, PER MONTH!! Now, we have a net gain of jobs being added by about 40,000 per month.

Unfortunately people are still feeling it because we need to be adding 300,000 jobs every month just to keep pace with the population growth. In other words, 300,000 new workers enter the job market every month. Still, moving from a falling economy to one that is gaining is quite a grand feat and worth giving Obama much credit for.

Vote Democratic!!!

Why, you ask? Look at this chart below, this alone is more than enough reason:

The blue lines show how much more we will all make under Democrat rule. Unless you are in the top 5% - those making over $200,000 a year - you WANT the democrats in and should dread the idea of Republicans gaining power again. Look at how bad it’s been lately, that all came from Republican policies going back 30 years but topped off by 8 years of George Bush

And make no mistake, Obama’s stimulus worked, it kept the economy from going over the cliff. It’s hard to make the argument that it would have been much worse without the stimulus, but I’d like to think most human beings are capable of at least that much abstract thought. We would all be in the second great depression right now if it wasn't for Obama.

What will the Republicans do if back in power? Tax cuts for the wealthy and subpoenas for everyone, shutting the government down. If tax cuts created jobs we wouldn’t be in this mess now because the tax cuts have ALREADY been there for 10 years and fewer jobs were created under George Bush's watch than any other president.

If you look at the chart you will notice that even the top 95% make more under Democrats, so why do the rich support Republicans? Because Republicans will lower tax rates. The majority of the money made by millionaires and billionaires comes from investments, which are taxed at a straight 15% rate. It used to be 20% under Clinton, so they have been making out like bandits over the past ten years. And instead of saying “OK, we’ve done really well for the past ten years, we should turn it around and help the lower 95% get a bigger cut of the pie, that’s only fair, after all.” What they really say is “KEEP YOUR HANDS OFF MY MONEY AAAARRRGGGGHHHH!!!!”

So vote Democratic if you want your income to go up, vote Republican if you want it to do down. And remember that while the tax breaks for everyone are over at the end of this year Obama wants to lock them in place permanently for everyone making under $200,000, but letting the tax breaks end for the top 95%. The Republicans want to continue with the tax breaks for the wealthy and are threatening to not vote for middle-class tax relief by itself. Those tax breaks for the wealthy mean an extra $100,000 per each million of income in the pocket of millionaires.

Michael Moore and the Mosque

Michael has a new blog where he intends to write every day. The one he wrote for today, 9/11, is:

If the 'Mosque' Isn't Built, This Is No Longer America

I've been talking about this for weeks, that we should be building a mosque right AT ground zero which would stick it in the face of oppressive Muslims world-wide. Mike says the same:

I am opposed to the building of the "mosque" two blocks from Ground Zero.

I want it built on Ground Zero.

Why? Because I believe in an America that protects those who are the victims of hate and prejudice. I believe in an America that says you have the right to worship whatever God you have, wherever you want to worship. And I believe in an America that says to the world that we are a loving and generous people and if a bunch of murderers steal your religion from you and use it as their excuse to kill 3,000 souls, then I want to help you get your religion back. And I want to put it at the spot where it was stolen from you.

You tell 'em, Mike! Much more at the blog and it's worth checking out, like this quote from George Washington:

"The citizens of the United States of America have a right to applaud themselves for having given to mankind examples of an enlarged and liberal policy -- a policy worthy of imitation. ...

"It is now no more that toleration is spoken of as if it were the indulgence of one class of people that another enjoyed the exercise of their inherent natural rights, for, happily, the Government of the United States, which gives to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance, requires only that they who live under its protection should demean themselves as good citizens ...

"May the children of the stock of Abraham who dwell in this land continue to merit and enjoy the good will of the other inhabitants -- while every one shall sit in safety under his own vine and fig tree and there shall be none to make him afraid."

Too bad America has seldom lived up to that ideal.

Chrome

Image via WikipediaGoogle Chrome has been my choice for a web browser for a few months now. Seems to work pretty good, much better than Safari, which I no longer touch. Firefox is good but Chrome is faster. The new Firefox 4 looks to be almost as fast as Chrome, but I haven't tested it much yet.

But - I just downloaded Chrome 6 and damned if this thing isn't even faster than the last version. Pretty soon it's going to be loading stuff while I'm just thinking about it.

Everything I do on the new Chrome seems to be very smooth and nearly instantaneous, I like it.

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Edward R. Murrow

‎"We will not walk in fear, one of another. We will not be driven into an age of unreason if we dig deep into our history and remember we are not descended from fearful men."

For those who don't know Murrow was a great reporter and commentator. Keith Olbermann uses his closing remark "Good night, and good luck" as an homage to him, not to claim he is the modern Murrow. That full speech can be seen here as an excerpt from the movie about him, it was his retirement speech.

Best Bush Poster

It really pisses me off that Obama is now taking the blame for Bush's crap.

Bush trashed the economy and bailed out the big banks. When Obama came into office he attached the caveat that the banks had to pay us back, Bush just gave them the money, no strings attached. But now everyone blames Obama for the bank bailout. It was already a law passed by Congress when Obama took office.

Obama kept the economy - and likely the entire world's economy - from going off the cliff. We'd be in the Greater Depression if McCain had been elected.