As in the last fundraiser, this post isn’t pre-approved by Goldy. I’m proud to write here, and I’m proud to give money every fundraiser (and last year when he said there would be a fundraiser that never materialized). It isn’t the only blog I’ve donated money to, but it’s by far the one I’ve donated the most to. Here’s why:
Even with my poor contribution bringing the quality down, HA is one of the best written blogs around. It’s fearless, fun, wonkish and whimsical. Sometimes all in the same day. Sometimes all in the same post. That’s a lot of work for just about every non open thread post, and there’s work keeping up the quality of the blog over several years. We’ve seen plenty of bloggers on the left and on the right bow out in the years that Goldy has been writing here. I value good writing, and contribute accordingly.
And while it’s true that there is good writing elsewhere on the web, another thing I value about HA is the impact it has here in Washington and in the Seattle/King County area. From Brownie to scaring the AG’s office and the proposed Chihuly museum, Goldy has been moving the narrative nationally — but mostly locally — for years. Sometimes he wins and sometimes he doesn’t. This blog has helped push the dialogue and frame the issues better than most elected officials and pundits in the area.
And having seen only a fraction of the work involved, I know that doesn’t come easily. As a poster here, I’ve been privy to various conversations and email exchanges about how to improve the site. And the back end is a lot of work: Despite being one of the least policed comment threads among blogs, just adhering to the minimum standards takes a good deal of work. There’s a whole host of coding and back end work that you (hopefully) never see, but that keep the blog running well.
Finally, we need an alternative to the mainstream media in general. There are things that the Seattle Times does well, including investigative reporting and, um, being on paper. But their editorials are biased toward the powerful, their print edition is tiny, and their online presence is a joke. The rest of the daily papers and TV news in the state are generally worse. While Goldy and the rest of the crew here do a pretty good job holding the Times’ feet to the fire, the best is when we cover stories where the Times and others drop the ball.
This kind of new media, even done right, may not be as expensive as the old was to create, but it’s by no means free. So please join me in giving to Goldy and keeping HA running.
Agreed with Carl. Some additional reasons why I contributed:
– I’ve read this blog for something like 3 years, and would like to continue.
– I enjoy the humor, and occasional ridicule of uSP.
– The always entertaining Drinking Liberally podcast.
– Sheriff Dave must lose in the next election.
Bwah-hah-hah. “moving the narrative” => Lying and spinning the facts to fit his distorted world view.
Wingnut Court Approves Animal Torture
There’s no open thread in sight, it’s all fundraising stuff, so this thread is as good as any:
“WASHINGTON (April 20) — The Supreme Court struck down a federal law Tuesday aimed at banning videos that show graphic violence against animals, saying it violates the right to free speech.”
Bullshit. Only a sick, twisted, Republican-dominated Supreme Court could possible think torturing animals in order to make profit by selling the videotape to people with Ted Bundy-type sexual fetishes is “free speech.” Even in America, which has more free speech than any country on earth, that isn’t free speech. It’s sick. We need to get those sick, twisted Republicans off the court and replace them with PETA activists!
“And while it’s true that there is good writing elsewhere on the web …”
Maybe. But some HA content simply isn’t available on other blogs. For example, I thought my comment yesterday on sex dolls was pretty good. Stefan doesn’t have anything like that on his pukey little blog.
@4: Me too (I thought your robot comment was a hoot!). I’m not so sure that it’s the end of the human species, but I bet some rich humans will never have to touch another dirty, filthy person again to get off!
I do enjoy reading the comment threads here.
Having said that, the trolls are just pathetic, huh? I’d almost feel sorry for them, except that I keep getting shit on my shoe… definitely an unwanted smell!
@2 “Lying and spinning the facts to fit his distorted world view.”
Get real! The likes of Koch, Scaife, Murdoch, Moon, et al., spend billions creating a noise machine that lies and spins and distorts — and dupes like you fall for it. We’re laughing at you.
@5 Now how did I overlook that aspect? I accept the amendment to my comment! You’re almost as good at this as me. (Blush)
@7: No amendment necessary, just an alternate, more near term outcome. Believe me, some of us humans are demonstrably too dumb to live.
Just ran across this prime example (via TPM/Atlanta Journal) in the context of Georgia cracker legislators trying pass a bill to prohibit implantation of chips in humans:
http://blogs.ajc.com/political.....microchip/
CARL LEAVE THE DOPE ALONE
I thought the last line was most telling, Zotz,
“And who in the federal government implanted it?” Willard asked.
A beeper chip up the wingnut ass! A DOD implant, no less. Wingnuts!! Hmm, I wonder if a DOD ass-beeper is how Klynical receives notice that the latest Rasmussen poll is out?
Fucking loons!
@10 Just think. These people ran our country for 8 years. And now they’re so mad they’re not running it anymore, they’re talking about armed overthrow. Liberals must arm!
Hmm, I see that there’s a seven point improvement in the Rasmussen daily tracking poll for our president over the last four days. No wonder the KLOWN is absent of late. Oh well. Live by Rasmussen, die by Rasmussen.
A civil war would be bad for the stock market. Don’t put it past these retards to screw everything up just when things are going well. I’m personally all the way back from the Big Meltdown; my portfolio has been setting new highs the last few trading days. It’s worth more right now, this minute, than ever before.
Stocks are the best long-term investment by far. Nothing else even comes close. Not bonds, not real estate, not art or antiques, and certainly not gold. Nothing can touch stocks for rate of return over a long period of time. That’s why I invest in stocks, and only in stocks.
But you’ve got to stay in the market, because the big gains come on only a few days over a long period of time — say 10 years — and nobody knows when those will be, so if you’re out of the market, you’re likely to miss them. Sure, it was unsettling to see my portfolio lose 60% of its value, but I wisely stayed in the market through the bear, and today I’ve recovered 100% of my paper loss and moved ahead to new highs.
Capitalism is a terrific system — for owners of capital. For workers, it sucks. Millions are unemployed, yet the market is going gangbusters. Our economic system — not to mention our tax system — definitely needs more tweaking in favor of workers. Meanwhile, Republicans love to bitch about taxes that businesses, investors, and the wealthy don’t have to pay. Could anyone be less relevant or constructive than that crowd? Why the hell does anyone vote Republican?
@11 No problem, Roger. We just have to activate those DOD ass-beepers and the wingnuts are done for. No wonder Obama didn’t round up wingnuts to put them in concentration camps*. All he has to do is push the DOD ass-beeper button and wingnuts will march to the camps all on their own!
*Hey, just joking. Like Coulter, if you wingnuts know what I mean.
Yeah, I donated. It just makes sense. Hell, I wouldn’t have known about wingnut ass-beeper chip implants if it weren’t for this blog.
who the fuck would want a microchip implanted in them? thats just fucking twisted…
So …
We should ask our trolls ,,,
WWJD?
Can there be any question that Jesus would gladly give of his small purse to fund Goldy.
Can you imagine this:
Jesus “Nahh!!! … this guy won’t worship ME, so why should I give Goldy money?”
Or maybe you need to ask who did provide the funds to support Jesus’ travels and fancy meals like the last supper? Don’t you imagine that he was helped with a sheckel or two from devotees who wanted to hear his message? Is Goldy less generous with his time than Jesus was?
I am certain that some Trolls would gladly pay to help crucify this guy, but is that what Jesus would want?
8 and 10
Unfuckingbelievable. A claim of the federal government’s having implanted some device in the body (and women often claim implantation in the vagina), and wanting to sue about it, is telltale evidence of schizophrenia. Really. And these wingnuts in Georgia treat her like she’s serious.
SJ, I’m trying to squeeze in a reference to rendering unto Caesar, but haven’t figured out a good angle on it.
Let’s face it, Jesus would most certainly contribute a shekel or three to his landsman.
@18 “And these wingnuts in Georgia treat her like she’s serious.”
Hell, they probably think they’ve found themselves a suitable vice presidential candidate for the 2012 Palin ticket.
20
You’re probably right. A curious thing about these women who have been implanted–they often say that whomever controls the device zaps it and causes orgasms at inappropriate times. (I’m not making this up. I had one woman tell me the controller was Bill Clinton, who is really Ross Perot. And, the Georgia GOP takes this gal seriously.) Not sure I’ve ever had an orgasm at an inappropriate time. I suppose I’m open to finding out what that they’re talking about.
@Roger and 18, 20, 21: I think we’ve just gotten a new running joke for our troll friends:
And so on…
They make it too easy, don’t they?
BTW, they passed the bill out of committee.
@3
The vote was 8-1 and it looks like they’ll have the law fixed and back on the books in a form that passes constitutional muster in no time.
Today’s story starts with a mentally ill guy (who just happened to think that doctors implanted a chip in him) with a gun. Any guesses on how it ends?
http://tinyurl.com/y4h278o
And for the billionth time, I’m not trying to take guns away from anyone that isn’t a nut job or a criminal. As a matter of fact, Rossi is making a copy of the old Winchester lever actions that look mighty tempting…
I always like those old 30-30 lever action Winchesters…
22
They passed it out of committee, though they all secretly want the feds to implant chips in them to cause orgasms at inappropriate–or even appropriate–moments, given that none of them have had an orgasm in years. The trouble with Republicans is that, even with Viagra or Cialis, they are incapable of orgasm, or even an erection. And, their women? What kind of woman would side with them? (Not to hit this subject too hard, but I really think there’s something to it.)