HorsesAss.Org

Open Thread 9/30

by — ,

– I love the short plays in WordPress.

– at least a few people who will stand outside of the right buildings and yell (h/t)

– Anyone have any idea if the display coming to the bus stop at 3rd and Pike is going to be a one off there, or if there are more planned around town?

– As someone who really likes cartoons on the web, this is a problem.

– All the other states are doing it.

– I’m not a fan of the wild card, but after the last day of the regular season, well I still don’t like it, but it did produce this year.

Comments

  1. 1

    Again, out of all due respect to YLB, WHICH IS NONE!, here is the poll that makes his pointy little noggin spin and his worthless, jobless existence shutter–

    Daily Presidential Tracking Poll
    Friday, September 30, 2011

    The Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Friday shows that 21% of the nation’s voters Strongly Approve of the way that Barack Obama is performing his role as president. Forty-three percent (43%) Strongly Disapprove, giving Obama a Presidential Approval Index rating of -22

    43% Strong Disapproval and horrible ratings with Independents…and making comments that alienated Independents daily. What a moron.

  2. 2

    Thank God for Joe Biden! He just gave Conservatives something to nail Obama with…again. Is Biden a “stealth” Republican? Or just plain stupid?

    Vice President Joe Biden said in a live interview with Miami public radio station WLRN Thursday that the Obama administration — not the Bush administration — now has ownership of the struggling U.S. economy…
    “Even though 50-some percent of the American people think the economy tanked because of the last administration, that’s not relevant,” said the vice president. “What’s relevant is we’re in charge.”…
    Biden said it is “totally legitimate” for the 2012 presidential election to be “a referendum on Obama and Biden and the nature and state of the economy.” He said Americans will need to make a choice between what the Obama administration is offering to address the problem and what is being offered by the eventual Republican nominee.

  4. 4

    You read some strange things. Yet you skip right over the SEIU idiot Steve Lerner videos some of posted where he foments standard DUMMOCRAPT anarchy and we see the outcome on Wall Street Sept 17th.

  7. 7

    Bwaaaaaaaaa haaaaaaaaa haaaaaaaaaa haaaaaaaa haaaaaaaa haaaaaaaaa

    CNBC: “Does that mean you disagree with the president’s new jobs proposal which would be paid for by raising taxes on households with incomes of over $250,000.”

    Buffett: “That’s another program that I won’t be discussing. My program is to have a tax on ultra-rich people who are very tax rates. Not just all rich people. It would probably apply to 50,000 people in a population of 300 million.

    PuddyCommentary: So it seems after Buffett thought about it he didn’t like it being called the Buffett Rule and didn’t agree with the consequences of it.

  9. 9

    6 – ooops I take that back!

    There’s a flicker in that fucked zombie skull after all..

    Must be the salubrious benefits of zombie time travel..

  10. 10

    Puddy @ # 7: Why do you insist on making sounds like a sheep in distress at the start of some of your posts? It raises all sorts of possibilities….

  12. 12

    Why do you insist on making sounds like a sheep in distress at the start of some of your posts? It raises all sorts of possibilities….

    That was the old GBS HA laugh or did your “mental disorder” cause you to forget this? Cass Sunstein pegged you perfectly!

    Also, cuz your HA leftists have been fawning all over Buffett lately!

  13. 13

    In the ad, a man is asked why “buying American” was important to him when choosing a Ford pickup.

    “I wasn’t going to buy another car that was bailed out by our government. I was going to buy from a manufacturer that’s standing on their own: win, lose or draw,” he responds. “That’s what America is about, taking the chance to succeed and understanding when you fail that you gotta’ pick yourself up and go back to work. Ford is that company for me.”

    So did the Barack ObamAA+ whitey house the cause Ford to pull this ad. Congress wants to know!

  14. 14

    Wow is now after Gibson Guitars. What’s next? The arschloch’s couch? Does Barack ObamAA+ only like Fender?

  15. 15

    Now I wonder which liberal American or European political party gave this moron that idea?

  18. 18

    Rachel Beckwith’s campaign has come to a close. She raised just shy of $1,270,000 for clean water.

    The last comment posted was one of the best.

    “Catholic Central High School $306 09.30.11 Our Jr. High heard about Rachel’s story from our teachers. We wanted to learn more about the organization and about Rachel’s project. The more we learned, the more we wanted to be a part of this and raise money to donate. Our hearts go out to you, Rachel, tell God we say “Hi.” Catholic Central Jr. High Springfield, OH 45503″

    Indeed. Say “Hi” to God.

    And from Rachel’s mother,

    “Wow! I still can’t believe what this campaign has become. We are so blessed to have the amazing amount of love and support from all of you around the world. I am excited to see where else this leads us. Thank you, thank you, thank you. Rachel, I can’t tell you enough how much I love you. I miss you every day but am so proud that everyone has been able to see what a special girl you are. You have always made me so proud to be your mom with your fun loving spirit and big heart. I love you Suga Bee! Love, Mamma Bee”

    Happy birthday, Rachel! Your birthday wish is coming true.

  19. 19

    18 – That’s an inspiring legacy indeed. I know it will inspire more generosity towards those who don’t have what we in this country are fortunate enough to take for granted every single day.

  20. 20

    18 – That’s an inspiring legacy indeed. I know it will inspire more generosity towards those who don’t have what we in this country are fortunate enough to take for granted every single day.

  21. 21

    On the cartoonist item: it’s also true for writers, photographers, and every other type of content provider. The web doesn’t pay (or pay much) unless you are very, very lucky. The number of people who can make a living doing creative work of these types is dropping, a lot.

  24. 24

    http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-50.....03544.html

    September 30, 2011 11:18 AM

    Democrats ask for investigation into Clarence Thomas

    By Stephanie Condon

    Twenty House Democrats on Thursday asked for a federal investigation into Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas’ failure to disclose his wife’s income, charging that he may have violated the court’s ethics rules.

    In a letter to the arm of the court system responsible for overseeing judicial practices, the lawmakers called into question Thomas’ impartiality toward President Obama’s health care overhaul, just as the landmark legislation is headed to the top court.

    Rep. Louise Slaughter of New York and her colleagues assert that Thomas has not complied with disclosure rules under the Ethics in Government Act and asks the Judicial Conference, a group comprised of judges that sets administrative policy for the courts, to refer the issue to the Justice Department for an investigation. The letter specifically charges Thomas failed to report nearly $700,000 of income earned by his wife, Virginia Thomas, for her work for the conservative Heritage Foundation from 2003 to 2007.

    About fucking time.

  26. 26

    Haha!

    Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich expounded upon his views on same-sex marriage today, calling it a “temporary aberration” that will one day go away because it defies convention.
    “I believe that marriage is between a man and woman,” Gingrich said in Fort Dodge, Iowa, today according to the Des Moines Register. “It has been for all of recorded history and I think this is a temporary aberration that will dissipate. I think that it is just fundamentally goes against everything we know.”

    Newt’s so full of shit. 2012’s probably the last presidential election someone will be able to win with an anti-gay platform.

  28. 28

    Hmmmm..so now all the leftnuts in the media are putting out hit peices claiming that nj gov christie is too fat to be be prez…citing health concerns.

    How come they don’t have the same concerns over lifelong smoker barry obama?

    More progressive hypocracy…….its what’s for dinner.

  30. 30

    It would be truly amazing if Christie would become a contestant on The Biggest Loser — with John Boehner as his coach.

    I can just see Boehner jogging beside Christie and shouting encouragement with a cigarette in one hand and a Gin Ricky in the other.

  31. 31

    @18 Actually, it’s not over … today is the last day … and she’s now at $1,270, 194.

  32. 32

    Dorky–
    Your man Obama is also a big smoker and drinks.
    Plus Obama is also an idiot.
    Here is the Job accounting for Solyndra..the company the Idiot salivated all over as the showpiece for Green jobs!!!
    http://www.foxnews.com/politic.....anent-job/

    $6.4 Million per job.
    What an idiot.
    This will be a HUGE election issue.
    Indefensible stupidity.
    And all those salivating Obama speeches about Solyndra.
    Now I see Pelosi’s Brother-in-law got $773 MILLION of Green Job stimulus.
    Hopefully that will play out as badly as Solyndra!

  33. 33

    And now we have goofball Joe Biden, the stealth Republican, laying down the gauntlet that Obama be held accountable??

    Vice President Joe Biden said in a live interview with Miami public radio station WLRN Thursday that the Obama administration — not the Bush administration — now has ownership of the struggling U.S. economy…
    “Even though 50-some percent of the American people think the economy tanked because of the last administration, that’s not relevant,” said the vice president. “What’s relevant is we’re in charge.”…
    Biden said it is “totally legitimate” for the 2012 presidential election to be “a referendum on Obama and Biden and the nature and state of the economy.” He said Americans will need to make a choice between what the Obama administration is offering to address the problem and what is being offered by the eventual Republican nominee.

    What a great day to be a Conservative!
    Obama is an idiot.

  34. 34

    GOP Austerity Dep’t

    Republicans believe in austerity — just not for themselves. Arnold Schwarzenegger, former GOP governor of California, one of the nation’s most fiscally troubled states, has commissioned seven 1.25:1 8-foot tall bronze statues of … himself. At least one of which is in a buff bodybuilder pose. This is so posterity will remember him as he wants to be remembered, and not as the groper and adulterer he actually is.

    http://latimesblogs.latimes.co.....atues.html

  35. 35

    Justice Thomas Target Of Ethics Probe

    Twenty Democratic congressmen have asked the Department of Justice to investigate SCOTUS justice Clarence Thomas’ failure to report more than $700,000 paid to his wife by the conservative Heritage Foundation.

  36. 36

    “What a great day to be a Conservative!”

    Hmm. What would make for a day great for a Konservative Kristian Klown? heh. I’d bet that he bought another goat to replace the one he fucked to death.

  37. 37

    Economic Data: Consumers Tapped Out

    This is a fucking surprise? After a generation of offshoring jobs, cutting wages, eliminating pensions and health care, raising prices, and peddling toxic debt to consumers, businesses still expect them to buy their stuff?

    Bank of America announced today it’s going to charge customers $5 a month for the privilege of getting their own money out of their own bank’s ATM machines. Personally, I think if banks that pay savers 1/10th of 1% for money they lend out to credit card customers for 15% to 30% can’t make a profit from a 20,000% markup without gouging their cash customers, too, then I think we should fire this bunch of bankers and get new bankers.

    And when I read stuff like this —

    “‘The American consumer is in a fragile state -– high debt, low wage growth, poor employment prospects and increasing prices,’ said Chris Christopher, an economist at IHS Global Insight. … America’s biggest companies, meanwhile, are weathering the recent slowdown relatively well: They’ve paid down debt and raised mountains of cash by cutting costs and keeping them low.”

    — I get the feeling workers and consumers are not just being used, they’re being abused.

    http://bottomline.msnbc.msn.co.....-with-them

  38. 38

    Trust and goodwill have totally disappeared from the U.S. marketplace. Nowadays, you’re having a good day if the cantalope or hamburger sold to you by America’s businesses doesn’t kill you. Every time I walk into a grocery store, I take it for granted they’re going to rip me off.

    Here’s a couple of examples. Do you ever eat fish sticks? That ubiquitous frozen-food staple labeled “breaded fish”? Okay. Well, have you noticed that fish sticks have gotten a lot smaller. Want to know why a food processor goes to the trouble of making a dozen fish sticks to fill a 20-oz. package instead of half a dozen? I mean, isn’t it easier to make six fish sticks than twelve fish sticks? Here’s why. The smaller fish sticks allow them to use a lot more breading, which costs almost nothing, and give you a lot less fish. This boosts their profits. And if they can make the package weigh less (but look the same size) and raise the price — well, they’re hitting you in the wallet three ways to Sunday!

    Here’s another example. Have you noticed that a “candy bar” is now often two little candy pieces instead of a candy “bar”? Have you wondered why they do that? Because it allows them to give you a lot less candy in the same size package. That air space between the two little candy pieces inside the wrapper makes the package look like it contains a normal-size candy bar instead of two quarter-bars. Voila, a 100% price increase!

    Recent years have seen a growing number of U.S. businesses resorting to clever marketing strategems like these that all have one purpose: To deceive and cheat their customers. I no longer trust ANY American business. I simply avoid consuming their dishonestly packaged and marketed products. Mrs. Rabbit and I live on fresh produce or park grass. We don’t buy fish sticks, candy bars, or half-empty cartons and cans. We don’t buy anything that’s been processed and packaged. If we can’t see with our own eyes what we’re getting for our hard-earned* money, we don’t want it.

    * This is, of course, bullshit. I don’t work or produce anything. I get money by flipping the stocks of crooked companies that pile up monstrous profits by ripping off gullible consumers. I figure someone’s going to get the money being stolen from consumers, so it might as well be me.

  39. 39

    One long-term tactic of big business is to make sure they get a cut of virtually every transaction, even when those transactions were typically free.

    TV used to be free, you just needed a good antenna to pick up the signal. But over time they got us accostomed to cable, and charge a monthly rate for access, “bundling” channels so you have to pay for several channels you don’t want to access the one you might wish to receive.

    Luggage used to be free aboard aicraft, subject to some reasonable restrictions. Now baggage fees are common.

    You used to be able to pay for anything with cash, which was legal tender. But the banks spent the past three decades weaning Americans off of cash and onto credit and debit cards. Some sellers won’t even take cash! Now they get a healthy cut from each transaction – 1 to 2% per transaction from the business, and now they want to charge the customers to use the cards as well.

  40. 40

    Due to high consumer debt load, everyone is afraid to spend money until (a) they pay down some debt, and (b) are sure they aren’t going to get laid off.

    Complicating matters further is the number of baby-boomers contemplating retirement over the next ten to fifteen years. Many were relying upon an average average return of 7 to 10% returns – per year – on their investment portfolios, which would have effectively doubled their retirement savings between 2000 and 2015. But the 2000’s were a “lost decade” which looks like it might continue for at least another couple of years.

    Some people I’ve been talking to are responding by planning to devote a significant portion of their income (upwards of 50%) toward paying down debt and increasing their retirement savings in anticipation that they may be “involuntarily retired” before their planned retirement date. While that’s not a bad personal investment strategy, it’s hell on the economy as a whole, since those people aren’t paying for new goods and services.

  41. 41

    @31 Apparently Rachel isn’t done bringing clean water to other boys and girls. She now has a new campaign, started by her Mom to keep Rachel’s last birthday wish alive. The goal? A modest $5,000. No problem.

    I am overwhelmed with gratitude and amazed by the outcome of Rachel’s campaign for clean drinking water. I could never have imagined she would raise over 1 million dollars, yet it has become so much more. Throughout each day I look forward to reading your comments and hearing how Rachel’s story has touched people all over the world. In this painful time, it has given me inspiration and comfort. Knowing that Rachel’s decision to give up her 9th birthday will now help save thousands of people brings me to tears. I cannot thank you enough for your kind words, stories, individual fund raising efforts and most of all your outpouring of love. I am so proud to be a part of this ongoing campaign. I’m excited to be a part of its future and look forward to continuing on this path Rachel has laid before us. Thank you.

    –Samantha

    http://mycharitywater.org/p/ca.....n_id=20153

  42. 42

    @37

    fuck Bank of America. they suck dog ass.

    with that said, paying down debt is the best thing people can do.

  43. 43

    If you don’t like B of A’s fees…
    TAKE YOUR BUSINESS ELSEWHERE!
    We really don’t need another group of useless bureaucrats sucking wealth out of the economy with useless regulations when the free market will take care of it.
    Morons.

  44. 44

    I watch The News Hour on occasion and tonight they had a short piece on Bank Of America’s new debit card fees, which you can see or read a transcript of here:
    http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb.....09-30.html
    I was most struck by two things that David Lazarus, of the LA Times, who I guess was supposed to be on people’s side said and how as one of those people I didn’t feel like he had my back.

    1. Well, my advice would be — contrary to what Richard says, it’s not easy to shop with your feet, because all of the big banks are probably going to follow suit.
    2. Your only alternative pretty much is probably going to be a credit union, and they are going to get away with the fee-free checking costs, the fee-free debit cards. The problem is, you’re going to give up a lot of convenience as a result for that. So you could say that these fees are a premium for convenience.

    OK, first off is it that much harder to go to the small bank or the credit union located across the street or across the parking lot from the big bank? I fail to see how it would be harder to go to a smaller bank or credit union. I don’t think I’ve been in my credit union since the day I set up my account there 3 years ago. It’s not like you have to go there every day.

    “And they are going to get away with the fee-free checking costs.” How is it that they are “getting away” with anything? To “get away” with something assumes that they’re doing something wrong. Small banks and credit unions are not doing anything wrong by offering free checking.

    I’m also left wondering what conveniences those of us that bank at credit unions are giving up? I certainly can’t think of anything that I’ve given up in the decade that I’ve been doing my banking with credit unions. Actually, I prefer my credit union to a bank

  46. 46

    @43
    See #45

    Credit unions are more heavily regulated than banks and they’re not going under. ;-)

    ‘Course, most of those regulations came from the credit unions themselves, not the bureaucrats. Credit unions are a good example of enlightened self interest.

    Banks are a good example of killing yourself though wanton greed. Congress wouldn’t have stepped in if the greedheads hadn’t run wild and wrecked the place.

  47. 47

    @42 Full Disclosure: Roger Rabbit does not own any Bank of America stock. Believe it or not, despite all their gouging, their stock is a lousy investment because those stupid fucking bankers don’t know how to make money even when it’s being shoveled through their doors from pickup trucks.

  48. 48

    One rogue trader on a bank’s Delta desk can cost the bank $10 million in 10 seconds. That’s a lot of $5 fees.

  50. 50

    @43 I say regulate the shit out of them. If you don’t like it, move to South America.

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