B’Man’s Hypocrite Watch: Rep Marsha Blackburn

She is my rep and I am flabbergasted that she can go on TV and lie and obfuscate the poignant issues Rick Sanchez brings up. (Please see the C-Span Junkie video here)

Also note the Header for his post:

Congresswoman Blackwoman Where Was the GOP When Bush Was Spending?

LOLOL

This woman needs to go, but there are so many gullible and foolish SW Tennesseans that I am not surprised that she won her re-election.

I live among idiots.

Please try to justify her comments in the comment section below. I’d love to “discuss” it with you…

(PS: Video Added for easy viewing)

“Hoping” For More “Change” You Can “Believe In”?

I have been visiting several friends blogs lately and must lay out the truth as I know it. I have been saying over and over again that Mr Obama is pretty much the same as the previous 6 or 7 presidents when it comes to the most prescient issues.

I keep saying that the Dem Party and the reTHUG Party are basically one and the same on those issues and that the only perceived differences are on issues that, in comparison, make virtually no difference (or are simply wedge issues of little consequence).

If Change is what you expect from Mr Obama, it will only be on the outlying issues. To prove my case, I simply need to quote the man or simply look into his idea of what “change” represents in his choices for cabinet positions.

I wonder if “change” will be found in Mr Obama’s choice for Deputy Defense Secretary, William Lynn? Do you? I wonder if hiring lobbyists is ok, just as long as it is Mr Obama and no one has the audacity to call Mr Obama on his pledge NOT to appoint lobbyists?

UNDERNEWS seems to think not so much of Mr Lynn (and it appears he is just another Big Money crony, who may be corrupt and a thief, at that):

OBAMA APPOINTEE WAS PENTAGON CFO WHEN $3.4 TRILLION WENT MISSING

Andrew Hughes, Global Research - Former Raytheon lobbyist, William Lynn, was appointed deputy defense secretary after a contentious Senate confirmation hearing that led Republican Senator for Iowa, Charles Grassley, to forcefully object to the appointment on the basis of Mr. Lynn’s “very questionable accounting practices that were obviously not in the public interest” while in the position of Pentagon Comptroller during the Clinton administration. The Senator’s objection did not go far enough in exploring the “very questionable accounting practices” that Lynn engaged in during his tenure at the Defense Department from 1997 to 2001. The relevant question that should have been asked is “Where did the $3.4 Trillion go?”

In fiscal year 1999, the Department of Defense reported that it was missing $2.3 trillion. In fiscal year 2000 the Department reported a missing $1.1 trillion. Total: $3.4 trillion “missing” taxpayer money. This happened under the watchful eye of the same William Lynn that now passes through the revolving door between the Department of Defense and the Defense industry.

Lynn was the Defense Department’s chief financial officer and as such was responsible for all budgetary administration and reporting. He was also responsible for the publication of audited financial statements which he failed to do during his tenure and which have not been published since.

Lynn was nominated by Obama-Biden because “Lynn brings decades of experience and expertise in reforming government spending and making the tough choices necessary to ensure that American tax dollars are spent wisely.”

UmHmm: It is obvious that his work is well known and prolific in DC, right? All the change he has brought the past decades is a “good thing”, right? All our tax dollars have been spent wisely because this man was involved?

Jeezus Crimmini and A Whole Bunch of “By God’s”… Does Mr Obama think we are all fucking idiots?

Apparently, we are.

Sherrif Lott: Still A Pointed Headed Penis Top

So the bogus, tank-riding media clown decided he didn’t have enough evidence to prosecute Phelps for his horrific crime against humanity? That the bong had been used to often since the picture to use it as evidence?

Yeah. Right.

You suck, Mister, and everyone in the country knows it now (including those in your county that hopefully will remember your clownish embarrassment and vote you OUT next election: if there is a soul in your county with a brain, it shall be done). You took another shot at the limelight and it cost you, you stupid hick.

From Jonathon Turley:

Lott Backs On From Criminal Charges Against Phelps

After launching a controversial investigation involving dozens of people for marijuana use in the Phelps bong incident, South Carolina’s Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott said he couldn’t ignore the photo but defended has suddenly announced that he would not charge Phelps, though he did charge others.
Lott released a statement that “Michael Phelps is truly an American hero … but even with his star status, he is still obligated to obey the laws of our state,” Lott said.

I am not sure how launching a ridiculous investigation into everyone associated with the party at University of South Carolina proved anything other than a desire to pursue a sports celebrity. Since the investigation showed such violations, it is unclear what the purpose of the investigation was. What is most disturbing are the other people who have been arrested in the Phelps case and other cases by Sheriff Lott.

While Lott has suggested that there is a lack of evidence, it seems like more of a convenient excuse. Phelps is on the television admitting to drug use at the party and there are witnesses. Lott insists: “We had a photo, and we had him saying he was sorry for his inappropriate behavior. That behavior could have been going to a party. … He never said, ‘I smoked marijuana.’ He never confessed to that. We didn’t have physical evidence. We didn’t have enough where we could go arrest him.” Really? The question of the meaning of those statements can be resolved at trial and Phelps would never have denied the meaning after insisting that he had come clean with his fans and sponsors. Likewise, it is clear that some of these people would likely cooperate in such a charge.

None of this is meant to say that Phelps should have been charged. None of these people should have been charged. It simply seems that Sheriff Lott jumped at the chance to investigate a celebrity and then found himself being portrayed around the world as some type of unhinged hick.

For the full story, click here.

My “I Coulda Hadda V8″ Moment

Mr Turley is so timely (and the most excellent legal eagle blog on the net, btw). I just received my RSS feed on the following story and bam, slap myself in the forehead, there it is.

To get the government to relegalize marijuana, the smartest thing to do is tax it and control it like alcohol and tobacco. Therefore it becomes a positive cash generating crop AND eliminates the prison money required to house all those people in their for marijuana offenses. Cash is generated both ways.

But how do we get them to do it? By allowing them to start ultra-taxing alcohol, like they have tobacco. Bubba ain’t gonna stand for a 1900% jump in his Bud price without a bitch. I Guarantee that. Us rednecks will demand they find the money and use that ole wacky weed, if they have to.

The Bitters: Oregon Proposes a 1900% Tax Increase in Beer

This would be enough to get reach for a stiff drink . . . if it weren’t prohibitively expensive. Oregon legislators are proposing a 1900% tax increase so voters not only have to face the economic crisis but do it without beer.

Oregon House Bill 2461, which would impose a $49.61 tax on each barrel of beer produced by Oregon brewers.

The money would go to fund prevention, treatment and recovery programs for those addicted to alcohol and other substances. The increase is meant to fill a $4.15 billion shortfall — the equivalent of roughly four days that we spend on the war effort.

Legislators trying to fill budget gaps across the country can also rely on recent studies showing a correlation between tax increases and sobriety.
. Yet, there has been no study on the political impact of when people finally sober up and realize how legislators in Congress and the states have fouled up the economy. Fortunately, scientists are now working on a pill to erase bad memories.

For now, you will at least know the answer to what ales you in Oregon and other states.

For the full story, click here.

B’Man’s Patriot Watch: Rep. Alan Grayson

h/t wordgeezer at Suzie-Q

Please visit the site and watch the video. I know I am as snarky as anyone, but this guy pisses in the Big Banker’s drinks and they were left crying and afraid to bitch about the taste.

Rep. Alan Grayson asked Citigroup CEO Vikram Pandit about the terms of the government assistance his firm received, and read comments from several angry constituents. He is one of the more Progressive Democrats on the Obama team and should prove to be a real asset, especially on issues of accountability.

Grayson also has a record of combatting war protiteering and waste concerning the Defence Industries, as he points out, “the money we have thrown away on war profiteers could go a long way on the domestic front”.

Because of his track record suing defense contractors‘>, Grayson is completely uninterested and unintimidated by ridiculous arguments about secrecy and national security. He thinks that war crimes have been committed, that people need to be put in prison, and that we absolutely cannot let bygones be bygones with the 2000-2008 era.

We need more reps that will stand up and say what needs to be said. Moreover, we need reps to finish the rhetoric and push through changes that will stop these men, who have the audacity to think that this shit is acceptable.

Having seen most of the footage, there was a remarkable amount of snootiness in some cases… a seeming inability to acknowledge that they were the culprits, not the victims of this fiasco. I would say that it is just rich people, yet, I know a few rich people and they aren’t like this. Of course, I don’t know “Big Money“. Big Money is in a totally different league.

“Rich” is such a relative term.

I may be rich to some, when in my mind and situation I am hurting financially and certainly am NOT “rich”. Then I think about starving children in Ethiopia, or maimed and wounded families in Iraq, or even the back roads (off Interstate all over Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee and anywhere else, for that matter) and the dirt poor of America. To them, I am “rich”.

I see these truly rich people that caused this financial situation, with a complicit congress and an ignorant population oblivious to what is happening under our noses, and it just pisses me off to no end. How dare they? HOW DARE WE bail them out?

We must get rid of every kowtowing representative and government official… post haste. We must change the laws to stop corporate ownership of these cronies and sycophants, so that this country is actually FOR the people. We must give praise and honor to those like Rep Grayson, who DO stand up for us (there are so few of them in congress).

The least I can do is give him the B’Man Patriot Watch post of the day.

If Life Isn’t Worth Living, Don’t Just Kill Yourself… Kill A Bunch of Liberals, Too

Gene’O is on a stump (and rightfully so). He quotes a portion of the crazy asshole’s manifesto (the Knoxville Shooter known as Jim David Adkisson***) and has a thing or two to say about it:

If decent patriotic Americans could vote 3 times in every election we couldn’t stem this tide of liberalism that’s destroying America. Liberals are a pest like termites. Millions of them. Each little bite contributes to the downfall of this great Nation. The only way we can rid ourselves of this evil is Kill them in the streets. Kill them where they gather.

I’d like to encourage other like minded people to do what I’ve done. If life aint worth living anymore don’t just Kill yourself, do something for your country before you go. Go Kill Liberals.

You should read the entire post at Left in Alabama.

It is quite well known that I am a liberal and that I believe that people such as Neiwart are radical freaks who follow the likes of O’Reilley and Hannity, as if they are Gods. Yet, in virtually each and every instance, the views of these people are so easily broken down and shown for their idiocy, I find it almost unbelievable that people are still falling for it.

Nevertheless, I once wrote:

And don’t give me any conservative lip. You have been wrong and you sidled up with a movement that destroyed the real conservatives and their ideology. What you have become, Mr Conservative, is a joke that isn’t funny. Circling your wagons to defend against the most stupid rationale in every aspect of government and world aggression. Doing anything to stop progressive policies from taking place. Trying, desperately, to prove that your failed and ignorant ideology is still meaningful and pertinent.

It isn’t. Get over it and move on to the soup lines, you worthless pieces of shit.

The fact is that today’s “conservatives” are blind, lemming-like, fools. Following their leaders over the cliff and screaming all the way down. If you can’t see that your objects of wonder and worship are evil idiots, it is too late for you, as well. Please jump the cliff, so we won’t have to deal with your stupidity, anymore, either.

I laugh at your folly and spit on your demise.

Good riddance and I hope that the Newts, Bushes, Cheney’s, et al, drop dead as soon as humanly possible and that those who step into their places have some semblance of a thought process going on (in this, I know not to hold my breath).

Notice the difference. Neiwart wants to kill us all, while I want the people like him to die off or kill themselves. We aren’t too far apart on this issue, as for wanting someone dead, but it is the way in which he wants it done, as opposed to me that makes all the difference in the world.

If David Neiwart wanted to kill himself, then by all means, let him (and the rest like him) do it. But, as any sane human being, I don’t want Liberals going around killing the Neiwarts of the world, even though their demise would be beneficial for us all.

You see, there just seems to be something wrong with that picture. But it proves the point of how radical the Right can be and how little responsibility is owned by the Right’s “Leaders” such as Rush, Hannity, mAnn, etc. There is no accountability for what they spew, nor is there any comparison between their rhetoric and the very worst that a “Lefty” can come up with.

Seriously, if you can find anyone on the left in America who uses such harsh and vile propaganda to raise the hackles of its followers, I’d like to see it.

Most of my shtick has been a counter to the Right Wing idiocy. I try to go over the top in several ways, but one thing I could not do (its not in my make-up), is call for others to kill “Rightys”. (Although I have no problem, whatsoever, with them sticking guns to their own heads and pulling the trigger… just so we are clear). The sooner the maniac Sheople are stopped the better, whatever tactic they decide to use.

Also note that I have always deferentiated between a real conservative and what is now the caricature of the movement. At this point in time, the “conservative” movement is hijacked and those who consider themselves part of that movement don’t even know the plane is off the ground, much less that it is hijacked.

Somehow, stuff like this is “funny”, a “joke”, etc. There is no self-accountability, nor accountability from any agency or entity. They egg it on and when it is done, they wash their hands of it.

As Gene’O puts it:

The reason I feel the need to write this here is because mass political violence is the outcome of a process that takes years to unfold. This hate-speech that people like O’Reilly and Goldberg are engaging in, whether by design or not, is a good way of encouraging outliers in the conservative movement that violence against us is a rational and necessary thing to do. When that violence erupts, because of the way our legal system works, they can wash their hands of it and say that what they’re doing is for entertainment purposes only.

There is no accountability for them and their actions or words.

Again, show me a “Lefty” who tries this shit.

Just one.

Rednecks, please wake up to this shit!

*** Name corrected… I misread the post… very sorry to David Neiwert, who is probably a very nice guy.

Film: Run From The Cure – The Rick Simpson Story

A story about how one man (Rick Simpson) , who after a serious head injury in 1997, sought relief from his medical condition through the use of medicinal hemp oil. When Rick discovered that the hemp oil (with its high concentration of T.H.C.) cured cancers and other illnesses, he tried to share it with as many people as he could free of charge. When the story went public, the long arm of the law snatched the medicine leaving potentially thousands of people without their cancer treatments and leaving Rick with unconstitutional charges of possessing and trafficking marijuana.

Film: September 11th Revisited – Were explosives used? « Dprogram.net

Nothing to see here. Please go back to whatever is occupying your feeble mind.

more about “Film: September 11th Revisited – Were…“, posted with vodpod

Poverty and Recession = “Draft” for the Neocon Imperial Police Force

Tomgram: William Astore, Whose Military Is It Anyway?

from AfterDowningStreet.org – Impeach Bush and Cheney Now! by Chip

Tomgram: William Astore, Whose Military Is It Anyway? | TomDispatch.com

With startlingly few exceptions, America’s sons and daughters dodging bullets remain the progeny of rural America, of immigrant America, of the working and lower middle classes….Instead of collective patriotic sacrifice, however, it’s clear that the military will now be running the equivalent of a poverty and recession “draft” to fill the “all-volunteer” military. Those without jobs or down on their luck in terrible times will have the singular honor of fighting our future wars….Caught in the shock and awe of 9/11, we allowed our military to be transformed into a neocon imperial police force.

read more

(Presented exactly the way my RSS Feed sent it to me)

Why I Don’t Trust Islam

Sorry, my Muslim friends, but I don’t trust your religion or the “idea” that Islam is a “peaceful” religion. No more than I trust Christianity or its “peacefulness”. It’s all lies. One government uses the idiocy of one religion against the idiocy of another religion. Same old shit, different day.

Remember B’Man’s favorite saying, “Actions speak louder than words!”

When a guy “DOES” this kind of shit, after “saying” to the world how peaceful Islam is… well… There is no credibility.

When Saudis can fly planes into buildings in the guise of religion, or others can murder and rape while clinging to their religious banner, or Americans can indiscriminately bomb and kill thousands while the religious following says nothing… to the contrary, are the loudest supporters of the murder… there is NO credibility.

Hypocrites are really a stupid bunch if they can’t grasp this simple notion.

US Muslim TV boss arrested for beheading wife

Shocked friend says murder damages Islam’s image

(Ed Note: No Shit?)

The founder of an American Muslim television channel, launched to counter the negative stereotypes of Muslims after 9/11, was arrested in New York late Thursday for beheading his estranged wife.

Muzzammil Hassan, 44, was charged with second-degree murder hours after he went to the police and told them his wife’s dead body was at the Bridges TV office in Buffalo, New York, local papers reported.

Police, who are still searching for the murder weapon, identified the victim as Aasiya Hassan, 37, and said she had recently filed for divorce from Hassan and sought a restraining order barring him from the family home, Buffalo News reported.

“Obviously this is the worst form of domestic violence possible,” the paper quoted District Attorney Frank A. Sedita III as saying.

Totally stunned

Police said there had been problems before and prior incidents of physical abuse but friends said they were horrified and shocked by the news and said they could not understand how this had happened.

“I am totally stunned. They were really more than married they encouraged each other in everything,” friend of the couple, Samira Khatib, told Buffalo News.

“He was worried about the station’s future…He was stressed, but this has left me absolutely shocked. I still cannot believe it,” Dr. Khalid Qazi, a friend of the couple and president of the Muslim Public Affairs Council of Western New York, told the New York Post.

Hassan and Aasiya have two children aged four and six. Hassan has two older children aged 17 and 18 from a previous marriage.

Against Islam

Qazi also said the killings were totally against the teachings of Islam and damaged the image that Hassan worked to promote.

“Domestic violence is despicable, and Islam condones it in no way whatever,” Qazi told the Post, adding murders are committed every day in the U.S. by people of all faiths

“There is no place for domestic violence in our religion — none,” Qazi told Buffalo News, adding “Islam would 100 percent condemn it.”

Bridges TV was launched in 2004 after it was founded by Hassan in an effort to portray Muslims in a positive light and counter the media’s negative stereotypes.

“There should be a Muslim media so that Muslim children growing up in America grow up with the self confidence and high self esteem about their identity both as Americans and as Muslims,” Hassan told Voice of America when he launched the channel.

Nobody at Bridges TV answered calls from AlArabiya.net and and the station’s website said it was “closed for maintenance.”

B’Man’s Sabbath Watch: How An Exorcist Governor Doomed Louisiana

This Jindal guy is a piece of work. Creationist to the core, either by self or public demand, is going to cause Louisiana to lose in the long run. Any time you sacrifice a child’s education for bogus religious rationale, it causes nothing but trouble (that was the entire sense of “The Dark Ages”).

Religious people who refuse to acknowledge and evaluate scientific study, then use the Bible to base their entire relationship to life, are setting themselves and the rest around them up for trouble and turmoil. There are far too many irreconcilable issues. To allow blind “faith” in the Bible (fraught with inconsistencies, conflict, turmoil and hypocrisy) to be the basis for education of children simply means a total dumbing down of a population.

Believe me… I live in SW TN… I know what I’m talking about. The Bible Belt is full of literalists that cannot have a logical thought pattern available to them, at least it seems. Maybe its the engineer in me, but better yet, it is likely the simple common sense “God gave me” that tells me when two things don’t add up, trust my instinct… not the contradictions found in an ancient, re-re-re-translated document.

(For you so-called “Christians” out there: this is commonly referred to being “led by the Spirit”. You see, Mr “Christian”, that book isn’t “The Spirit”, for “The Spirit” is not found in pages of a book. If I trust that inner voice, then don’t tell me to listen to you or your perceived notion about your preferred translation being my guide. To me, that is idiotic.)

I, for one, do NOT want creationism taught in school. Nor do I want anything, whatsoever about the Bible (other than the historical fact that it exists) to be taught in school. If I did, I would send my child to a religiously affiliated school. Whatever belief system my child has is between she and I right now… a school or state has nothing whatsoever to do with it.

From Discover Magazine:

Jindal dooms Louisiana

I just received a distressing email from Barbara Forrest, a tireless fighter against creationism in Louisiana. It’s distressing because it shows that the actions of the increasingly antiscience government of Louisiana are having repercussions.

The Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology (SICB), a scientific society with over 2000 members, has chosen to boycott Louisiana for their annual conference because, basically, their creationist governor and legislature want to make sure kids in their state grow up without a basic scientific education.

Last year, the Louisiana government overwhelmingly voted to allow creationist materials to be used in the classroom, a clear violation of the First Amendment and an incredibly foolish decision with regards to children’s education. I wrote about it quite a bit at the time (here is when it was signed into law, as well as here, here, and most recently here).

Well, their chickens are starting to come back to roost. At the time, Governor (and amateur exorcist) Jindal was warned that putting a jack-booted heel to the neck of science would not be without ramifications. And now the SICB won’t have their conference in New Orleans, and they have specifically cited the actions of Jindal and the Legislature as the key part of their decision. They have even gone as far as to say that the conference — with nearly 2000 attending — will be in Utah instead, where science is held in higher regard.

That can’t have been an easy decision for the society; New Orleans is a city that needs money, and holding a fair-sized conference there would help. But I understand their decision. Jindal and the creationists in the Louisiana government are essentially holding the educations of their students hostage, so scientists and everyone in the reality-based community need to take action. It’s one thing to make your voice heard, but it’s another to speak with your wallet. Holding the conference in Louisiana would be tacitly acquiescing to the fundamentalists running the state.

I think this was the right decision, and I urge anyone who is considering running a science-based event to seriously consider states that hold science in higher regard. I hope that Louisiana teachers, parents, and students rise up and let their representatives know how they feel about science. I would hate to see the students suffer because of this, but the politicians in that state have already guaranteed that will happen.

The LA Coalition for Science has released a statement to the press about this as well. It makes me physically ill that the science education of these children has been put into this position by the creationists, forcing the hand of the SICB. But the larger issue at stake here is the future of science itself in Louisiana as well as other states, a future Jindal and the other creationists are trying to choke out of existence.

Happy Valentine’s Day

Hint… hint…

h/t The Onion

Sebastians Voodoo

aniBoom Awards winner… 2008 cartoons (h/t Neatorama)

more about “Sebastians Voodoo at aniBoom – aniBoo…“, posted with vodpod

B’Man’s Patriot Watch: Rep Barney Frank

Anyone who reads here (or takes the time to speak with me about the subject) knows that I feel like I’m slamming my head against the wall by telling everyone that we need to cut the over-bloated and unnecessary military budget. You will also hear me bitch about the lack of leadership in Congress to even bring the subject up (since most are erroneously convinced that their speaking out against waste and bloat and unnecessary wars will make them appear weak to their constituency). All this tells me is how out of touch they are with their own voters.

Very few people will argue with me about the hypocrisy or the facts. But even fewer will join me in my outrage and speaking up.

I don’t understand this.

Now we have another congressman who is speaking up (for a hint to the only other two congressional patriots I believe we have is Dennis Kucinich and Ron Paul). Barney Frank is speaking up and it is high time. From AfterDowningStreet (originally published at The Nation)

There are many other avenues of money for the military that are hidden from plain view, so the chart over there is not perfectly representative. Nukes get a good deal of money from Energy. It is a hodge-podge of money holes, but just use the numbers assigned in the chart. Much of that number are dollars that are unnecessarily spent for old Cold War shenanigans and missile defense systems we don’t need.

But what really gets my goat is that poor people will argue with me about government “give-aways” and “welfare queens” when they don’t have a pot to piss in themselves. Just how gullible to the money talk are you people? Isn’t your own situation enough to tell you that something is amiss? That they are fucking with your head?

Do I HAVE to explain to you what the intent of your tax dollar is for? Why do you allow them to fool you into believing that so MUCH is needed for military, all the while you are losing your job, making less money and we are far less safe than we were before.

The bloating is causing us to be viewed as aggressors.

And not to belabor a point, but if 9/11 were an American thing or participatory, anyway, then all this money we are pouring in Afghanistan and Iraq is due to lies and deceit. THIS is the very reason why we need to know the truth. It IS all linked and disregarding it only proves to me that there is a cover-up.

When Bubba said,

Bubba is saying shut up and don’t question us.

I like Bill, but it was due to this very comment and attitude that I am now convinced that someone in America’s leadership was in on it.

Shame on you, Bubba.

Now to a REAL Patriot:

Cut the Military Budget–II

By Barney Frank, The Nation

I am a great believer in freedom of expression and am proud of those times when I have been one of a few members of Congress to oppose censorship. I still hold close to an absolutist position, but I have been tempted recently to make an exception, not by banning speech but by requiring it. I would be very happy if there was some way to make it a misdemeanor for people to talk about reducing the budget deficit without including a recommendation that we substantially cut military spending.

Sadly, self-described centrist and even liberal organizations often talk about the need to curtail deficits by cutting Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and other programs that have a benign social purpose, but they fail to talk about one area where substantial budget reductions would have the doubly beneficial effect of cutting the deficit and diminishing expenditures that often do more harm than good. Obviously people should be concerned about the $700 billion Congress voted for this past fall to deal with the credit crisis. But even if none of that money were to be paid back–and most of it will be–it would involve a smaller drain on taxpayer dollars than the Iraq War will have cost us by the time it is concluded, and it is roughly equivalent to the $651 billion we will spend on all defense in this fiscal year.

When I am challenged by people–not all of them conservative–who tell me that they agree, for example, that we should enact comprehensive universal healthcare but wonder how to pay for it, my answer is that I do not know immediately where to get the funding but I know whom I should ask. I was in Congress on September 10, 2001, and I know there was no money in the budget at that time for a war in Iraq. So my answer is that I will go to the people who found the money for that war and ask them if they could find some for healthcare.

It is particularly inexplicable that so many self-styled moderates ignore the extraordinary increase in military spending. After all, George W. Bush himself has acknowledged its importance. As the December 20 Wall Street Journal notes, “The president remains adamant his budget troubles were the result of a ramp-up in defense spending.” Bush then ends this rare burst of intellectual honesty by blaming all this “ramp-up” on the need to fight the war in Iraq.

Current plans call for us not only to spend hundreds of billions more in Iraq but to continue to spend even more over the next few years producing new weapons that might have been useful against the Soviet Union. Many of these weapons are technological marvels, but they have a central flaw: no conceivable enemy. It ought to be a requirement in spending all this money for a weapon that there be some need for it. In some cases we are developing weapons–in part because of nothing more than momentum–that lack not only a current military need but even a plausible use in any foreseeable future.

It is possible to debate how strong America should be militarily in relation to the rest of the world. But that is not a debate that needs to be entered into to reduce the military budget by a large amount. If, beginning one year from now, we were to cut military spending by 25 percent from its projected levels, we would still be immeasurably stronger than any combination of nations with whom we might be engaged.

Implicitly, some advocates of continued largesse for the Pentagon concede that the case cannot be made fully in terms of our need to be safe from physical attack. Ironically–even hypocritically, since many of those who make the case are in other contexts anti-government spending conservatives–they argue for a kind of weaponized Keynesianism that says military spending is important because it provides jobs and boosts the economy. Spending on military hardware does produce some jobs, but it is one of the most inefficient ways to deploy public funds to stimulate the economy. When I asked him years ago what he thought about military spending as stimulus, Alan Greenspan, to his credit, noted that from an economic standpoint military spending was like insurance: if necessary to meet its primary need, it had to be done, but it was not good for the economy; and to the extent that it could be reduced, the economy would benefit.

The math is compelling: if we do not make reductions approximating 25 percent of the military budget starting fairly soon, it will be impossible to continue to fund an adequate level of domestic activity even with a repeal of Bush’s tax cuts for the very wealthy.

I am working with a variety of thoughtful analysts to show how we can make very substantial cuts in the military budget without in any way diminishing the security we need. I do not think it will be hard to make it clear to Americans that their well-being is far more endangered by a proposal for substantial reductions in Medicare, Social Security or other important domestic areas than it would be by canceling weapons systems that have no justification from any threat we are likely to face.

So those organizations, editorial boards and individuals who talk about the need for fiscal responsibility should be challenged to begin with the area where our spending has been the most irresponsible and has produced the least good for the dollars expended–our military budget. Both parties have for too long indulged the implicit notion that military spending is somehow irrelevant to reducing the deficit and have resisted applying to military spending the standards of efficiency that are applied to other programs. If we do not reduce the military budget, either we accustom ourselves to unending and increasing budget deficits, or we do severe harm to our ability to improve the quality of our lives through sensible public policy.

Let’s Keep Elephants The Same Way They Are

That’s funny, but you gotta read the comments at the original site (memParty!). I laughed so damned hard… till I cried.

Hi, Jason.

BTW: You never know what you might StumbleUpon…