Showing posts with label conservative. Show all posts
Showing posts with label conservative. Show all posts

Thursday, November 28, 2013

The Best Policy?. . .


(from No One Left To Lie To; The Values of the Worst Family by Christopher Hitchens)

"The impression has been allowed to solidify that there was no price to be paid for all this; that the very definition of political skill was an ability to act without conscience.  Appalled by the sheer raw ruthlessness of the President and his defenders, the Republicans and the conservative churches decided to call it a day.  Marvin Olasky, the born-again Rightist who had originated the idea of "welfare reform" and been at Newt Gingrich's elbow, wrote a book on Presidential morality in which he said that if only Clinton had been a more regular churchgoer, and would even now ask for God's mercy, all might be well.  It was no only liberals who failed the test set by Clintonism: the world of the "prayer breakfast" was his ally as surely as were the boardrooms and the Dow Jones.  But millions of Americans still realized that something had been lost in the eight years of reptilian rule.  The embarrassing emptiness of the 2000 election, especially the loss by the Democratic Party of even the slightest claim to any moral or ethical advantage, is one small symptom of what has been so casually thrown away.  Meanwhile, the warm-blooded and the thin-blooded could only discuss the scaly and the remorseless in hushed tones, as the ensuing chapter will demonstrate.  Perhaps one day the hot-blooded will have their revenge. . . "






What do you think?
Tell me at
http://www.rayjozwiak.com/guestbook.html

My latest release, Black & White Then Back,
can be downloaded digitally at:
Ray Jozwiak: Black & White Then Back

(or you can copy-and-paste this URL directly to
your browser:  http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/rayjozwiak3)

Also, be sure to visit:
http://www.rayjozwiak.com

PIANOGONZOLOGY - Blogged My 
Zimbio
blog search directory Blog Directory











Tuesday, November 19, 2013

Kwazy Wabbit? . . .


(by codetaco on http://askville.amazon.com/NOELLE-NIKPOUR-LIVING/AnswerViewer.do?requestId=16018793)
Noelle Nikpour is the die-hard-Tea-Party conservatives'  go-to gal for consultation and strategy. Not surprising.

Noelle Nikpour is a woman from Little Rock, AR who gets paid to do "Republican political consulting"; the qualifications for such a position are unknown. According to her IMDB profile, her television appearances are limited to Sean Hannity's "Hannity" show (where she has dutifully towed the party line) and "The Daily Show" (where Jon Stewart has poked fun at her the same).

During and interview with Aasiv Mandvi On the October 26, 2011 show she claimed that "scientists are scamming the American people [...] for their own financial gain." When Aasiv asked if she had any evidence or data for such a claim, she responded that "Every American [...] would have a gut feeling that some of these numbers that scientists are putting out are not right."

She complained that "Scientists are the only people qualified to comment on scientific theories"; apparently she saw no contradiction in the fact that she and others on Hannity have incessantly commented on scientific theories (such as climate change) without any qualification to do so. Some theories (such as evolution), require only the application of logic (such as examining the fossil record or observing bacteria in a petri dish). When Aasiv facetiously stated "it should be up to the American people to decide what's true", she wholeheartedly agreed by saying "absolutely!! Doesn't it make common sense?"










What do you think?
Tell me at
http://www.rayjozwiak.com/guestbook.html

My latest release, Black & White Then Back,
can be downloaded digitally at:
Ray Jozwiak: Black & White Then Back

(or you can copy-and-paste this URL directly to
your browser:  http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/rayjozwiak3)

Also, be sure to visit:
http://www.rayjozwiak.com

PIANOGONZOLOGY - Blogged My 
Zimbio
blog search directory Blog Directory











Monday, May 27, 2013

Humor. . .

. . . and truth. . .
. . . from John Kenneth Galbraith

"The modern conservative is engaged in one of man's oldest exercises in moral philosophy; that is, the search for a superior moral justification for selfishness.
"

"Under capitalism, man exploits man. Under communism, it's just the opposite."


"It is a far, far better thing to have a firm anchor in nonsense than to put out on the troubled seas of thought." 

"The only function of economic forecasting is to make astrology look respectable.

as a form of employment for economists."

"The salary of the chief executive of a large corporation is not a market award for achievement. It is frequently in the nature of a warm personal gesture by the individual to himself." 

"Faced with the choice between changing one's mind and proving that there is no need to do so, almost everyone gets busy on the proof." 

"We all agree that pessimism is a mark of superior intellect.
"  

"Politics is the art of choosing between the disastrous and the unpalatable.
"  

"Liberalism is, I think, resurgent. One reason is that more and more people are so painfully aware of the alternative."    


"The conventional view serves to protect us from the painful job of thinking."  


"More die in the United States of too much food than of too little.
" 

"In economics, the majority is always wrong.
" 

"Few can believe that suffering, especially by others, is in vain. Anything that is disagreeable must surely have beneficial economic effects."   


"In all life one should comfort the afflicted, but verily, also, one should afflict the comfortable, and especially when they are comfortably, contentedly, even happily wrong."  


"Wealth, in even the most improbable cases, manages to convey the aspect of intelligence.
"  






What do you think?
Tell me at  
http://www.rayjozwiak.com/guestbook.html

My latest release, Black & White Then Back,
can be downloaded digitally at:
Ray Jozwiak: Black & White Then Back

(or you can copy-and-paste this URL directly to
your browser:  http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/rayjozwiak3)

Also, be sure to visit:
http://www.rayjozwiak.com

PIANOGONZOLOGY - Blogged My 
Zimbio
blog search directory Blog Directory





Thursday, May 23, 2013

Wrong tree? . . .

(Source:  http://www.cnn.com/2013/05/17/opinion/colinvaux-irs-taxes/index.html)
Roger Colinvaux, associate professor of law at Catholic University of America and former counsel to the U.S. Joint Committee on Taxation

The noise about IRS 'targeting' procedures should not be misinterpreted.  The real issue at hand is disclosure of donors, not tax-exempt status.  Something tells me that liberal and conservative groups are equally suspect when it comes to revealing donors, but that's just ME.

The IRS is actually in the 'targeting' business.  They are an enforcer and are supposed to go after scofflaws, cheaters and dodgers.  The guilt lies in the searching of tax returns for names like "tea party", which is clearly a specific group. What they should have done was searched for all such groups as a class, irrespective of political affiliation.

Roger Colinaux writes, ". . .  But the extra scrutiny here is less because of tax exemption and more because of other tax benefits that flow from tax-exempt status, such as the ability to receive tax-deductible contributions. Importantly, charitable organizations are not allowed to engage in any political activity, because Congress long ago decided that charity and politics are incompatible. . ."

It's campaign finance law and NOT tax law that dictates public disclosure of donors for political groups but not for social welfare organizations.  Mr. Colinaux again, ". . . After the Supreme Court's Citizens United decision, it became possible for a 501(c)(4) organization to engage in unlimited amounts of political spending. It thus also became possible for a political organization to use the tax law to hide the identity of donors. After Citizens United, the abuse the IRS is tasked with policing is whether an organization that claims to be a "social welfare" organization is in reality a political organization in disguise. . ."

So its yet another polarizing issue (guess there wouldn't be so much polarization if we weren't limited to only two poles.) and also again, an issue of many barking up the wrong tree.




What do you think?
Tell me at  
http://www.rayjozwiak.com/guestbook.html

My latest release, Black & White Then Back,
can be downloaded digitally at:
Ray Jozwiak: Black & White Then Back

(or you can copy-and-paste this URL directly to
your browser:  http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/rayjozwiak3)

Also, be sure to visit:
http://www.rayjozwiak.com

PIANOGONZOLOGY - Blogged My 
Zimbio
blog search directory Blog Directory


Thursday, April 25, 2013

Nostalgia. . .

Nostalgia brings back “compassionate conservatism”. What a crock that was.

GWB's presidential library in Dallas, Texas is now open.  Legacy? The controversies of the Bush administration from Iraq, the “global war on terror,” the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and the fallout from the 2008 financial crisis come to mind.  So do crimes against humanity.

Some legacy. And even his supporters think that he won’t win the kind of historical vindication THEY once thought inevitable.  Vindication??!!  Damned fools!

His presidency was based on deceit.  Or maybe it evolved into Meantime he and his buddies reaped tremendous financial gain on war accessories and oil.

Supporters describe the new library as a "blunt and forthright assessment of the Bush presidency". Visitors will experience a "frank discussion of what was done and why it was done. . . it doesn’t shy away from controversy. The museum takes on the biggest issues for which the president was criticized.”

Objective assessment?  I don't really care.  I won't be visiting.

I, among many others, have had, directly and indirectly, enough of the GWB fallout.  My only hope is that one day, he AND his accomplices are brought to justice.
(thanks to Michael O'Brien, Political Reporter, NBC News)








What do you think?
Tell me at  
http://www.rayjozwiak.com/guestbook.html

My latest release, Black & White Then Back,
can be downloaded digitally at:
Ray Jozwiak: Black & White Then Back

(or you can copy-and-paste this URL directly to
your browser:  http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/rayjozwiak3)

Also, be sure to visit:
http://www.rayjozwiak.com

PIANOGONZOLOGY - Blogged My 
Zimbio
blog search directory Blog Directory

Friday, January 27, 2012

Removal . . .



 A cleansing of sorts is in order . . .



Somebody's recent survey of voters concluded that 56% are ready to vote every member of Congress out if there were a place on the ballot to do so.  And each political spectrum surveyed agrees with liberals at 55%, moderates 55% and conservatives 58%.  Furthermore, the freshmen Republicans who took control of the House of Representatives in January on the premise of bringing CHANGE have even disappointed their supporters.






What do YOU think?

http://www.rayjozwiak.com/guestbook.html


Download your
very own copy of
ANOTHER SHOT
by Ray Jozwiak

Ray Jozwiak:         Another Shot


Please Visit
http://www.rayjozwiak.com

PIANOGONZOLOGY - Blogged My 
Zimbio
blog search directory Blog Directory








Thursday, December 1, 2011

What's in a word. . .

(from Merriam-Webster.com)
Conservative
a. tending or disposed to maintain existing views, conditions, or institutions : traditional
b. marked by moderation or caution (a conservative estimate)
c. marked by or relating to traditional norms of taste, elegance, style, or manners


(from AddictingInfo.org)
The Greatest Liberals In American History And What They Did For Our Country

(George Washington) The Father of Our Country was a liberal, as were most of the founding fathers. Washington became the first President to serve under the newly formed Constitution that gave more powers to the federal government. And contrary to what most conservatives believe of Washington today, he did not support war.

(John Adams) Adams, like Washington, also did not care for war. Adams signed into law the first health care mandate in American history. This health insurance was for sailors and it allowed them to get care provided by the federal government paid for through a tax.

(Thomas Jefferson) Jefferson believed in separation of church and state and purchased the Louisiana Territory even though the Constitution says nothing about buying land. He was also a big proponent of a free press. He believed in human rights and he did not try to repeal the mandatory health insurance mandate instituted by John Adams. Jefferson was also a big cheerleader for France and believed corporations should be restricted from having too much power. Jefferson also supported a system of national infrastructure, and approved funding of the National Road.

(James Madison) The Father of The Constitution was also a liberal. By conservative logic, anyone who grows government power is a liberal. Madison virtually wrote the Constitution himself, which by itself created a stronger more powerful federal government. Madison also believed in separation of church and state and kept the health mandate instituted by John Adams.

(Benjamin Franklin) Franklin was a journalist who believed in a free press, and he was a scientist. He also instituted the first public fire house in Philadelphia, and believed in a government run postal service.

(John Quincy Adams) As president, Adams proposed a program of modernization and educational advancement which was intended to achieve national greatness through economic growth and a strong federal government. He was able to enact part of his agenda, while paying off much of the national debt. Animated by his growing revulsion against slavery, Adams became a leading opponent of the Slave Power and argued that if a civil war ever broke out the president could abolish slavery by using his war powers, a correct prediction of Abraham Lincoln’s use of the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863. Adams strongly opposed American military intervention in independence movements but supported moral support for such movements as American policy. He took the oath of office on a book of laws, instead of the more traditional Bible, to preserve the separation of church and state. He also supported internal improvements (roads, ports and canals), a national university, and federal support for the arts and sciences.

(Abraham Lincoln) Lincoln, like most Republicans of his era, was a liberal. He was the first President to pass an income tax into law. He ended slavery. And he saved the Union from being destroyed by Civil War. He also signed the Homestead Act in 1862, making millions of acres of government-held land in the West available for purchase at very low cost. The Morrill Land-Grant Colleges Act, also signed in 1862, provided government grants for agricultural colleges in each state. The Pacific Railway Acts of 1862 and 1864 granted federal support for the construction of the United States’ First Transcontinental Railroad, which was completed in 1869. He also modernized America’s economic, communications, and financial infrastructure.

(Theodore Roosevelt) Theodore Roosevelt is considered the greatest progressive in American history. He supported the Meat Inspection Act, worker’s rights, breaking up corporate monopolies to spur competition and lower prices, and later on he was an advocate for national health care. In the social sphere his New Nationalism platform of 1912 called for a National Health Service to include all existing government medical agencies, social insurance, to provide for the elderly, the unemployed, and the disabled, limited injunctions in strikes, minimum wage law for women, an eight hour workday, a federal securities commission, farm relief, workers’ compensation for work-related injuries, an inheritance tax, and a Constitutional amendment to allow a Federal income tax. The political reforms proposed included women’s suffrage, direct election of Senators, and primary elections for state and federal nominations.

(Richard Nixon) Although hated by most liberals, Noam Chomsky (himself on Nixon’s enemies list) has called Nixon, “in many respects the last liberal president.” Nixon established the Environmental Protection Agency by executive order, expanded the national endowments for the arts and the humanities, began affirmative action policies, started the Strategic Arms Limitation Talks to reduce ballistic missile availability, and largely continued the programs of FDR, JFK, and LBJ.




What do YOU think?
http://www.rayjozwiak.com/guestbook.html


Download your
very own copy of
ANOTHER SHOT
by Ray Jozwiak
Ray Jozwiak: Another Shot



Please Visit
http://www.rayjozwiak.com




My Zimbio
Top Stories

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Rush to judgement. . .

I heard the tail-end of a conservative radio talk show the other day which both frightened and comforted me at the same time.
The topic of discussion was repeal of the Healthcare bill, a bill that conservatives and dittoheads like to call 'Obamacare'. (Clever, aren't they? No partisanship there.)

FRIGHTENING
----------
Anyway, a caller was voicing a 'constitutional' opinion which would have done any government employee worth his salt proud. He said that the cost of healthcare is rising because emergency rooms treat illegal aliens free of charge. He continued that if someone enters a hospital emergency room seeking treatment but has no insurance and no cash for which to pay for services, he should be turned away. TURNED AWAY! JUST LIKE THAT! No qualms, no conscience, no compassion. Simply turned out into the street. And this he said, is based upon the Constitution of the United States of America. Government should not be involved. (Human decency be hanged.)

COMFORTING
----------
To his credit, the conservative talk show host questioned, clarified and gave the guy every opportunity to concede some iota of compassion or consideration. But alas, all for nought. Finally, the host said something to the effect of, 'I hear you' and then proceeded to say that the caller was 'really hardcore' and hung up.

And no, the talkshow host was NOT Rush Limbaugh.



(Hear my music at http://www.rayjozwiak.com)