Sparky decides to try out for Capt. Spaulding's stunt double
I’m boycotting the news. It’s too darn depressing and unfortunately T Pyxidis is still several million years away from ending my misery. Therefore, this morning’s links are a potpourri of “stuff.” Yep, just “stuff.” Interesting stuff, funny stuff, odd stuff, sciency stuff, but no newsy stuff. You guys are all the bomb, so I hope you find the following a great way to start your Sunday.
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OK all you rollercoaster fanatics. Those twisty-turny, high-speed, rattletraps *can* shake your brain matter loose – according to The NeuroCritic. So, board at your own risk and please remain seated until the ride comes to a complete stop.
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Superheroes rejoice! Now you can make your own liquid invisibility cloak.
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Scientists have discovered that flies can chug the booze with the best of ‘em: Flies Offered Unlimited Alcohol Behave a Lot Like Human Alcoholics. Umkay…we’re serving alcohol to flies now.
However, I think that the flies have good reason to drink. Apparently some other scientists are engaged in research that involves shaving their genitals with lasers. Damn. I’d drink myself silly too. And it looks like there may be some unintended consequences. A group of ants in Texas have gotten wind of all of this and are swearing off sex. One was heard to proclaim “You’re not getting anywhere near *my* genitals! Now pass the Tequila!”
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In this week’s stupid sicko crook story, peeping Tom photographs himself while installing a hidden camera in a women’s dressing room leaving police solid evidence of his culpability. Doh! Police hunt Asda changing room peeping Tom.
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Oh no they di ‘ent — Cops wrongly arrest granny for prostitution.
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Time for teh cute
It’s the Puppy Wars! Frame after frame of cuddly cute for you to engage in a hour or so of “hmmm….who’s cuter? puppy 1 or puppy 2?” let the games begin! Actually, this may be just what the doctor ordered, since a recent study notes that looking at pictures of puppies can be beneficial to your brain health.
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This is a very serious public service announcement. I’m sure there are Conflucians out there who have had “bad goat” experiences and continue to suffer with the traumatic emotional after effects. Well, your suffering days are numbered, now that there is a support group website where you can turn during your darkest hours of PZPTSS (Petting Zoo Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome). The Childhood Goat Trauma Foundation.
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This one’s for Dandy Tiger: Democracy on the High Seas: How Pirates Rocked the Vote.
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And this one’s for Dakinikat: Ingested foreign bodies and societal wealth: three year observational study of swallowed coins.* In other words, is there a correlation between the amount of coinage swallowed each year and the trending of the Dow Jones Industrial Average?*
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Did you know that doodling can boost your memory and concentration? Well, what are you waiting for? Get thee over to FlockDraw!
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Looking for some new aspirations? How about Ultimate Couch Potato?
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But if all of these still don’t satisfy your desire to know everything about the human mind, here are 10 Psychological Studies from 2009 Worth Knowing About.
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Last week we had the story about the man who walked into the diner with a knife in his back who ordered coffee before calling 911. This week, UPI is reporting on a Man who crashed into a cafe, and then orders breakfast. Dude…about that 10′ hole in my wall…
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That’s my story for today and I’m sticking to it. Have a great day Conflucians and don’t let the fact that the world isn’t going to end soon ruin your day too.
SoD
*BMJ Research yearly spoof article.
Filed under: General
Thanks, SoD. I already looked at some depressing headlines, so your post is welcome. I’m going to check out the “Ten Psychology Studies” before checking on any “Childhood Goat Trauma.” I did talk to a man who had been traumatized by a rooster in childhood. He kept telling his dad what a nasty piece of work the rooster was and getting no sympathy. But when the rooster went after the father one day, the rooster became lunch!
Political implications?
#7 of the 10 Psychological Studies
pf: I think that says something about the people on this blog and why we never did the O thing. I think we must be among the nonmimickers.
Could be. The odd thing is that O doesn’t seem to have an affect. What’s to mimic? Maybe mimickers made up an emotion for him just like so many made up political stances for him.
Or maybe they weren’t mimickers at all, but fill in the blank types.
jangles, you may have it! The only strong positive emotion O shows is a love of himself! Mimickers would be in thrall also. Have we discovered the source of free Koolaid?
Bingo! That is always when the O is animated, excited, effervescent and appears to speak from his heart and soul with passion.
When I read that section I thought exactly the same thing! In this case, I believe mimicry is when you act a certain way in order to gain approval or be liked, such as being bubbly at a party, or acting intelligent when speaking to someone “educated,” etc.
In the obot case, it would make sense that young people who do not have a hard and fast sense of identity or who are still trying to find a way to fit in would be easily duped by campaign slogans. It also explains the herd mentality of the obots. Popularity is far more important than integrity.
But what is most revealing is that it shows that bitter knitters, those who don’t care who likes them, who have a strong sense of personal identity, are the ones who are able to spot liars and snake oil salesmen. It also helps to explain how some of us felt like we were in the Twilight Zone, as O was being praised for winning debates he didn’t come close to winning and giving robotic speeches that were labeled ‘soaring’ and ‘historic’ we were looking around going, “Am I crazy?”
I wish I had joined in your boycott earlier but unfortunately……big big trouble is coming … Brown is ahead in the PPP poll, the new book on Reid -Schumer about Hillary is a death nail for him and the big penis tent Party even before all their other stupid acts………… IMHO Timothy Geithner appointment has brought down this Administration and we will all be lucky if there isn’t a rising against wall street along with a march on Washington for the Dem Obama’s election payoff to the fat cats …. I believe an anti Congress anti incumbent tsunami is coming… ……starting with that goof Reid, shadow Dem President Ted Kennedy and Pelosi and their Progressive Puppets who wanted an incompenet in the oval office so they could retain their unelected executive powers….
me thinks we are headed for a severe crisis a majoirty of the People’s no longer have any faith is our elected representatives and now judge that they are imperiling our prosperity both parties so no ones buying it’s the other guy now the politicans whatever color blue or red……not good
…also notice even the Press dosen’t believe Obama or his words any more
peep! stay away from that nasty news stuff. It’s toxic! Now FlockDraw, that’s where its at.
. Just think, you can be in a polka-do creating trance when T Pyxidis explodes.
The PPP poll is questionable though. Apparently, they are unfamiliar with MA politics, and the Globe poll has Coakley up by 15 points. It’s going to be very interesting…
ok will do but go read Rich NYT today….I’m not a fan, but IMO of course this is the time bomb…..
–snip —
• A transcript of the conversation has Clinton saying she was “convinced” the Obama campaign cheated in the Iowa caucuses by importing people to the state. She also said the country faced “a terrible choice” between Obama and Republican nominee John McCain.
–from journalists Mark Halperin and John Heilemann’s “Game Change: Obama and the Clintons, McCain and Palin, and the Race of a Lifetime,” based on interviews with more than 200 people …. sources were granted anonymity.
–snip –
Hillary was spot-on, as usual.
How can you believe a word written in that book? It’s all hearsay and written like a tabloid.
I wish I could believe that, but everything in this book is ridiculous.
I was just cruising a few Red blogs, and found some comments from a guy who was at an event for Scott Brown in MA. His district is 7 to 1 Democrat.
He says they got huge response, people honking like crazy, and tons of Dems walking up saying they planned to vote for Brown. Why? Because they are angry at Coakley’s flip-flop on HCR, and the high-handed cluelessness of the D party. He says there were union guys there supporting Brown, because they are FURIOUS that Obama plans to tax their hard-won healthcare. He was amazed at that. Lots of older Democrat women there supporting Brown, he says.
The Democrats had better wake up. They are destroying the party, and the feeling is growing that they just need to be tossed out and stomped on HARD for the crap they’ve pulled, by any means necessary.
If it’s even close in MA, then the Dems have a huge problem. Huge.
I agree with this post – Coakley needs to, “… come out against the Obama health scam as she did during the primaries and mean it this time. Coakley must vow to abide by the election results and make sure the winner is immediately seated.” Although it will be awfully hard to do with Kerry coming to campaign for her.
http://www.hillaryis44.org/2010/01/10/victory-in-massachusetts-brown-versus-coakley/
Do you think she will be punished for such a stance by the Dems and by campaign funders?
Of course she will be. Harshly punished. I have no doubt they’ve made that very clear to her – which is why she backed down in the first place.
I am not a master political strategist but I do not see how anyone could walk that flip flop back and survive in a close race. Not only that but I think Coakley sold her soul because she was told that she had to if she wanted Dem party funds. She would be the Dem vote that would sink the health care bill and in the mind of the party, sink the party. That is a huge thing to ask of a freshman Senator—but she would have been my hero and I think MA Dems would have supported her all the way. But saying no to the Kennedy legacy clan—-a Gordian Knot. You will notice there are no other Democratic heroes standing up for real health care reform and for women’s reproductive rights all major principles in the Dem party platform. Just words.
Yep, if she flip-flops again she just loses votes from more people. She’s in an untenable position of her own making. She’s just got to gamble that a Republican can’t win in MA.
I agree with your analysis 100%
For all the “I’m no longer a Democrat” folks, I’d think it would be a really good idea to believe what she said about herself. She’s a flip flop and will say anything to get elected.
Obama needs to get to work, and prove to the world he can do what he said over and over and over again during the campaign….”I can reach across the aisle and get bi-partisan support.”
Unfortunately, the toughness Coakley displays as the AG doesn’t seem to stick with her when she’s just one in a group.
What you say is true, but Obama is not a leader. He’s a brand.
Tabloids today – no, they didn’t catch up yet to THAT news – safe to open
http://edgeoforever.wordpress.com/2010/01/10/tabloids-do-the-news-4/
This is freaky.
@felixsalmon: Fox News is believed to make more money than CNN, MSNBC and the evening newscasts of NBC, ABC and CBS combined: http://bit.ly/6YnoLL
That does not surprise me but why do you call it freaky? If you look at how Fox news is structured and how they do their programming compared to the other cables and the MSM, it stands to reason that they would likely be making more money. I think a problem for the 3 networks is that they pay huge sums to their network anchors and underfund the surrounding crews. Fox plays its big names in repeats at strategic times to maximize the pay out on them and program to appeal to a broader spectrum. I think Fox has a bigger presence also in local news markets, especially smaller venues where they are the only presence.
hmmmm I’m thinking it’s not just Dems in trouble Obama has blurred the line between Dem and Repug, governance is in trouble… pissed off – rent paying Boomers who are beginning to brush off their Dem stupor will be a massive political andcash force once fully engaged ..as your friend saw at the Brown rally, MO this is just the beginning …
BTW, I just love that beautiful Flat Coated Retriever in the pic above. You can rescue your own Sparky here: http://www.fcrsainc.org/rescue/rescueme.html
“Ben” is apparently looking for a home.
Hmmm, I just want to know what kind of a life these guys have that they … are engaged in research that involves shaving their genitals with lasers.
Who would think of such a thing.
Sod – this is great fun – a wonderful distraction – Thanks!
I want one of those invisible coat thingies. Shoplifters must be drooling. Would that make airport security easier or not—could they find you with a body scanner?
I know! shaving fly genitals??? what the heck? How does one even find a fly genital?
Well, I had to weigh in the latest gossipy stories. Avoid if you’re not up to them
http://edgeoforever.wordpress.com/2010/01/10/the-ever-convenient-tired-race-card-and-lots-of-cds/
Guess who comes off best in the new piece of crap book Game Change? Hillary, as usual, is depicted as Lady MacBeth. So is Elizabeth Edwards & Sarah Palin—surprise, surprise. I’m so sick of this crap.
Game Change greatest hits
Jonathan Martin bullets many of the most interesting bits from Game Change, beginning with a previously unreported level of distrust between Biden and Obama campaign HQ.
Having dug into the book — which is quite good — a bit, one disparity was hard to miss. The Edwardses, Clintons, Giulianis and others are depicted as vastly different from their public images. John and Elizabeth are a vain empty suit and Lady Macbeth; Hillary is as calculating, hard-edged, maladroit, and ideological as her critics have always maintained.
The one character who appears in the book as he’d like you to see him: Obama. Which, one way or another, explains why he won: He was either untroubled by the deep contradictions that dogged his rivals; or he was better at concealing them. (He is also the only candidate whose staffers remain with him, deeply invested in his image and unwilling to dish, which helps.)
http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/0110/Game_Change_greatest_hits.html?showall
Americans love their gossip don’t they. If you look at 0s retinue, he has some long timers which might explain the no dish thing in part. And if you look at 0s inner circle, I don’t see these people as having any future on there own is 0 fails. I do not see them as leaders and independent competents in their own right. I think the authors did not print anything negative about 0 not because there was no dishing but because this book is aimed at one thing—saving the 0 political legacy. It is a replay of Chicago and getting rid of all the competition as the way to win.
Interesting that Axelrove went from Edwards to O. The pages on Elizabeth Edwards are awful—knowing how distorted HRC has been portrayed I am not buying it. However, I did not know that EE came from big money. I also do not believe that the o campaign was not involved in the EE collapse in a much bigger way. And I do not think this book tells the real story of what was happening inside the Dem party to derail Clinton.
Go back and read some of Anglachel’s post about the deep split in the Dem party that she called the Stevensonian and FDR wings. I think she was right. Clinton was that FDR wing and the Kennedy’s picked up the Stevensonian banner. It is an ancient fault line.
An aside on Axelrove. There must be a public reckoning of the race baiting from 2008. Axelrod maybe Brazile and Clyburn need to be called out. Also specific individuals in the general media and political blogs.
Halperin, Meacham, Wolffe. Time and Newsweek are going over to the tabloid side to try and survive. At least the National Enquirer revealed the truth on Edwards. Strange time for media.
This is my favorite comment of the day (from L. Long who did a great post on HRC and the infamy of her treatment in the Dem primaries).
Women are our best citizens. They graduate from high school, college, medical school and law school in higher numbers than men. They are now a majority of the workforce and still do the majority of heavy lifting at home. They clean our homes, raise our children, care for our senior citizens, and nurture our country. And when fathers physically and/or financially abandon our children, it is primarily women who hold these families together and pick up the missing pieces. On the flip side, women are responsible for an insignificant number of violent crimes, terrorist attacks, hate crimes, rapes, sexual abuse and domestic violence cases.
Thanks. Where is it posted?
NQ
I’m po’d about the spin on Bill’s supposed raycist remarks to Kennedy. If Bill even made that remark, I don’t think in context it was “racially charged” at all, any more than his fairytale comment was. I’ll bet that what Bill actually said was a long comment on Obama’s total lack of experience or accomplishment, ending with something like, “This guy is hardly qualified to be an intern, much less POTUS. I have people bringing me coffee more experienced than him!”
I’m betting that something along those lines was what Bill actually said, and it wasn’t racial at all. But Axelrove and Big Media will pull it out and spin it that way, and race-bait it into something it never was.
I like your story best. Fits with my reality.
ITA.
fercrissake, the raycist spin is utter silliness
And why would that send Kennedy into a rage? Nothing hurts like the truth; and nothing upsets your apple cart more than having someone tell you the truth and know that you are all in even further than the guy thinks—knowing you TK have been lying to him–BC all along and very big—that you have been in fact in an inner circle cabal for the last 2 or 3 years to specifically make sure that BC’s wife gets dumped and derailed.
Ace of Spades on the sourcing for the Bill remarks.
In other words, it’s probably bullshit so who cares?
Critical thinking is the anti-dote and preventive therapy.
BTW Ralph, I saw it was your B-day the other day. Hope it was a happy one!
It was great. Spent a super day with my kids and grandchildren. It doesn’t get better!
I saw this over at Uppity Woman and it is a great little u tuber from a former o supporter/worker who has apparently seen the real light. Good compilation of a series of 0 sell outs now embedded in HCR:
Obama’s Health Care Lies And Reversals
I guess I did not capture the link but that is the title on utube—the guy’s name is Stranihan. On Uppity it is the Pants on Fire post.
I wonder—is the 0 camp love affair with the race card about their own projection? because they think that is going to click with the voters most? they actually believe this crap?
Way OT – I’m sick of Lautenberg running with the “terrorist” line at Liberty International Airport last Sunday – this is the guy who told Millicent Fenwick – “the Conscience of Congress” – that she was too old to run at 72 when he is now contemplating another run at 90. He’s done nothing for us here in NJ except rubber stamp everyting O has put forth.
The guy obviously isn’t a terrorist – yes, he should be fined for what he did – he wanted another kiss from his honey who was flying off to CA – but Lautenberg is going bonkers with it.
He’s always looking for photo ops or stories that won’t take too much effort to exploit.
Well it keeps the masses focused.
You’re right SOD – that was the first thing I thought of – “ah, another divergent opportunity”
If that is so, which it probably is, their level of desperation is way up.
In keeping with no-news Sunday, a creative political consultant should be able to do something with this pertaining to HCR.
BEAR GRYLLS & THE GUANO ENEMA
LOL! Bear Grylls giving himself an enema with animal feces. Words escape me!!
I’m making Vegetarian Moussaka and my house smells like the garlic festival in Gilroy! Oh lordy!
A nice tweet from a young Obot this morning.
Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.
Comparison of the PPP and Boston Globe numbers.
Ralph, see my post below. According to insider polling, it really is a dead heat, and GOP funds are coming in from all over the country to upend the race and set the tone for the fall election and 2012. Obama really is going to take the whole Party down with him.
p.s. Aren’t you a friend of Kat5′s? How is she doing–haven’t heard a thing.
Sorry to intrude but this really is a must read on the 2008 primary.
http://tiny.cc/9Gzoc
Why are you intruding? Links are always welcome
This book, however, is dubious at best. Full of anonymous gossip, I wonder about the accuracy of much of it.
http://www.maniacworld.com/snowman-with-a-problem.html
sod
Does this make you feel better?
WOMEN WITH INTELLIGENCE AND EXPERIENCE,MEN WHO SUPPORT THEM AND COUNTRY BEFORE PARTY ALWAYS
PUMAS,BUBBAS,EQUALISTS AND THOSE PEOPLE RULE
ROFLMAO!! Thanks.
I loved it.
NEWS FLASH: COAKLEY NEEDS FUNDS!
Though I would love to see this Dem Party & O get kicked in the teeth with a wake up call, I do not want to see it happen at the expense of a potential strong, intelligent woman Senator. I just got this email from a Dem Party operative re: the MA race. Anyone interested in getting another woman into Congress can contribute at the Emily’s List link:
I would like to share with you an urgent email from Ellen Malcolm—this race is a dead heat amongst likely voters and the Reps. are making an all-out attack on her. Martha Coakley is in big trouble and needs all our help (pls see my email below for a synopsis ). Essentiallly the race is tied–and every republican independent expenditure group you’ve ever heard of is spending money attacking her. She desperately needs more money so please drive contributions to http://www.emilyslist.org or her website.
I know you’re getting the clips but I want to highlight the most important fact to me: according to the Globe poll (and backed up by the less reliable PPP poll) Martha is tied with voters who are “very interested” in the race. Since this will be a very low turnout election, I think it’s fair to say that the race today is a dead heat.
Voters still like Martha so this isn’t about her. It’s about the extreme anger and frustration with conservative and independent voters and apathy on our side. There are three things, in my opinion, that need to be done in the next week. Voters need to see Brown for who he really is–a Bush-Cheney republican. They need to learn that the Kennedy legacy wl be destroyed if dems lose their 60th vote, especially in terms of healthcare reform. And women voters need to be fired up to turn out.
Again: http://www.emilyslist.org
Well, then, Martha shouldn’t have thrown them under the bus.
Wow. She has betrayed the voters with her flip flop. It’s still inside the campaign where you can actually show her what flip flops do to politicians. Giving her more money, and/or your vote is another “any D is better than an R, so I’m holding my nose and putting my check next to her say anything to get elected name.”
Learn from the mistakes of 2008.
I will support a strong intelligent woman in the Senate. I don’t need you preaching to me about 2008, thank you very much. That’s why I am an INDEPENDENT.
ie: if there’s anything I/we learned in 2008 it’s this:
I OWN MY VOTE, and I will use it as I see fit.
Funny coming from someone who just commanded people/mainly women to donate to Martha and get out there and vote for her!
I wouldn’t have responded if I didn’t feel I OWN MY VOTE.
Who the hell are you? I’ve been here since the day PUMA (Party Unite My Ass) started and poured my blood sweat and tears into 2008, so I don’t need you lecturing me. I “commanded people to donate to Marthat” Read what I wrote: this is a passage from a Dem Party operative, not from me. I was offering the information to the site, and people are free to donate or not. All I did was share the information. Your tone is very revealing. You used the same tantrum language on RD’s thread. You don’t want to pick a fight with regulars here.
Nice. You’re quite the asset to the site.
PLUS – weak spined Democrats are the LAST thing we need right now….unless you really are FOR Obama and want his policies pushed through with hardly a fight. How’s that been working for the working class so far?
We’re stuck with the POTUS for 3 more years, so our voices are needed in carefully selecting who is representing the people! Then, maybe you want that windfall for the insurance companies to go through.
What is it about the Kennedy legacy that will be destroyed if the Senate majority isn’t a full 60 votes?
Yuk.
I agree, though I think his behavior chipped away at the legacy for all his days in the Senate. In his prime, this HCR bill would NEVER EVER be something he would have supported.