Twenty Bucks, Same as in Town

Blogwhoring. You do it, I do it, we all do it. What have you been up to?

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D r i f t g l a s s looked into his crystal ball, scanned and uploaded the results and then gave us what looks to be a pretty accurate picture of what the 2012 gop national convention will look like (Yes, I'm using lower case for a reason. That's about all the respect they deserve).

But before you centrists begin to bemoan the fact that the late, lamented GOP is no longer providing its invaluable services as the opposition party, think again. Time and again since the "Democrats" took over in Congress after the '06 midterms, the minority GOP, with the help of Specterian Democrats, defeated one important piece of legislation after another, including Sen. Dick Durbin's homeowner's relief bill on May 1st.

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Pam Spaulding at Pandagon turned up an interesting and unexpected consequence of the legalization of gay marriage in Iowa:

This is another example of why Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell is ridiculous and why Congress should repeal it. If a gay couple gets legally married in Iowa, and, let’s say, puts the announcement in the paper, if one of them is in the National Guard that’s all it takes to be discharged. This of course applies to any state where gay and lesbian couple can legally get hitched under state law.

Don't forget where Don't Ask, Don't Tell came from. This is one that we can't lay at Bush's doorstep in Dallas. All Don't Ask, Don't Tell did was force gay servicepeople to retreat further into the closet.

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Ema at The Well-Timed Period health blog makes a catch that only reminds us that we can't ever quite give the GOP and its Krazy Konservative Klan the ten count and have to be content with giving them the standing eight.

Sez Ema,

Missouri politicians just passed a law that strikes a serious blow to Communism on American soil.

The Missouri House on Tuesday voted 115-43 to approve HB 226, an amendment that [s]pecifies that no pharmacy can be required to perform, assist, recommend, refer to, or participate in any act or service resulting in an abortion and it will be immune from liability for refusing to do so.

Welcome back to the 19th century, folks, what kept you? (Tip o' the tinfoil hat to Bob at God is for Suckers.)

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Grumpy Old Man himself made a wonderful catch, linking to an Information Clearinghouse article from May 1st on a subject on which I haven't been completely ignorant, and that's the Bush administration's deliberate decision to jail and torture innocent children. Darryl (GOM) says,

To begin the day I want you first to go here and read this. And today I am not considering this an option! If you have even the slightest respect for yourself then read it! And once you have done so I would like you to shout out to the world, to everyone you know or communicate with in any way, just what this says. To not do so can only speak of your unsufferable cowardice. The volume of pathetic fear the Bush criminals have conditioned you with that would allow you to silently accept these atrocities done in your name as you are so stupid that you believe they will keep you and yours from harm.

And no more do I want to hear from any one of you that it is not "Expiedent" for the new President to bring these criminal thugs to justice as it could well prejudice his plans for shaping America's future. Well that is pure unadulterated bullshit my friends! Words of a fucking coward! A gutless wonder with a slick tounge and with nothing behind it but the usual politician slime. This man took an oath of office goddamnit! He has sworn to uphold the laws of this land. And when you have evidence of a huge, stinking vat of the most foul crimes that can be committed by mankind opened up right under your very nose you can't say, "Sure, I don't like the smell any better than you do but I have other work to do so don't bother me."

Nor can anyone of you who have even the slightest sense of decency left in you support such a view. How could you possibly, even by your silence, support the torture of children by these evil thugs! So now you must, it is imperative that you do speak out as loudly as possible against what has been done in your name with your silence as an indicator of your acceptance! And any further silence or dragging of feet will show to the whole world a people so sunken into the swamp of degradation as to not be fit for the company of men. Any where on the face of this earth!

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Rounding out the list, William Grigg has penned a lengthy but worthy-to-read screed of the downside of the swine flu pandemic: Militarization and other serious potentials for abuse during a health emergency.