From Pine View Farm

June, 2023 archive

And Now for Some of My Daddy’s Music 0

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“Because I Said So, That’s Why!” 0

Dan Casey of The Roanoke Times notes that Bob Goode, a Roanoke-area Congressman, said in a televised interview, “I’ve not had one reporter ask to do an interview with me, or ask me on the Capitol steps, about the Biden Crime Family . . . .” So Casey sought an interview; a week later, he’s still waiting for a response.

Casey decided to track down some of the allegations Goode made in his interview and realized that (emphasis added)

. . . in 21st century America, evidence is no longer required. Under Trump-era rules, only accusations matter, provided they’re hurled by Republicans. When anyone asks for proof, the gossipmongers react as if the questioner has a third eye in his head.

Casey’s journey to that conclusion is a fascinating tale of uncovering half-truths, misrepresentations, and outright lies. It deserves a read.

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“An Armed Society Is a Polite Society” 0

Drive-by politeness.

We are a broken society.

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Vaccine Nation 0

Rebecca Watson finds the notion of anyone’s trying to have a serious debate with anti-vaxxer RFK Jr. to be–er–ludicrous.

Or you can read the transcript.

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A Picture Is Worth 0

Image One, captioned

Click for the original image.

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Selective Enforcement 0

It’s a thing.

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The Trojan Horse 0

LZ Granderson looks behind the curtain and concludes that

. . . the legislative attacks on drag are nothing but a Trojan horse.

Conservatives speak of protecting children, but laws aimed at drag are really about weaponizing homophobia and transphobia to score political points.

Go read the article for his reasoning.

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QOTD 0

Bob Newhart, in the voice of Bob Hartley:

Thomas Paine was wrong. These are the times that try men’s souls.

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The Rule of Flaw, Reprise 0

Thom suggests that the situation is much more subtle than is being suggested by the news coverage.

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The Rule of Flaw 0

Drawing of the Supreme Court.  The portico reads,

Click to view the original image and the artist’s commentary.

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Sunk 0

At Psychology Today Blogs, Pamela Rutledge looks at the reaction on “social” media to the sinking of the Titan submersible. She makes four main points (emphasis added):

  • Disasters capture attention but stories keep us coming back.
  • The Titan incident had all the elements of a blockbuster movie, it was too much for social media to resist.
  • Social media is attention-driven and rewards extreme content and conspiracy theories.
  • Continued speculation perpetuates the increasingly archetypal narrative, independent of actual facts.

Follow the link for a detailed exploration of each.

And, remember, “social” media isn’t.

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Stray Question 0

Instead of bulldozing homeless encampments, why not do something to house the homeless?

On second thought, that might promote the general welfare.

Why, that must most certainly be unconstitutional.

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The Disinformation Superhighway 0

Rat:  How would you define a news story?  Goat:  Facts gathered by a reporter who talks to witnesses and cross-checks sources before having it all reviewed by a seasoned editor who has the entire story fact-checked.  Rat:  And now you can just have hunch.  (Rat taps on phone.)  Rat:  Isn't progress amazing?  Goat:  Oh, it's amazing.  Pig:  Hey, you have 56,000 retweets!

Click for the original image.

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Swiftie Justice 0

Prospective juror makes a concerted effort to avoid jury duty.

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You Can Bet on It 0

Sportswriter extraoridnaire Bob Milinaro:

Hypocrisy alert: It’s really something how the NFL is so keen on restricting when, where and on what its players can gamble, while the league is joined at the hip with online betting sites.

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QOTD 0

Thiruvalluvar:

Anger kills both laughter and joy;
What greater foe is there than anger?

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Reality Check 0

Of course, the problem Jim Jordan is trying to deal with is that the facts lean left.

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Establishmentarians 0

At Above the Law, Thomas Mill argues that our current Supreme Supremacist Court has jeopardized the Founder’s concept of separation of church and state. A snippet; follow the link for the evidence.

. . . .the religious conservative majority is doing exactly what it says government cannot: differentiate or “discriminate” against entities based on their religious status in a way that is beneficial to one type and exclusionary to the other.

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“An Armed Society Is a Polite Society” 0

And another worshiper of weapons is driven to demonstrate politeness to a fellow traveler:

The shooting unfolded at about 2:10 p.m. on June 5, near the Layton Hills Mall in Davis County. According to a probable cause statement, the motorcyclist was seen brandishing a handgun as he chased after a car northbound on the interstate. The man then fired about four times at the car before speeding off, according to a witness, who provided Clearfield police with dash camera video of the shooting.

(snip)

Police did not state in arresting documents what the motive for the shooting may have been, but in a news release, the Utah Department of Public Safety referred to the shooting as a “road rage incident.”

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Unreality TV 0

Man watching RFK Jr. spew conspiracy theories on television says,

Click for the original image.

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