winsor

Thank goodness i'm vaxxed all to hell. I'd worry otherwise. https://summit.news/2021/11/19/official-public-health-england-data-says-covid-infection-rates-higher-in-vaxxed-then-unvaxxed/

I have only one firm belief about the American political system, and that is this: God is a Republican and Santa Claus is a Democrat.God is an elderly or, at any rate, middle aged male, a stern fellow, patriarchal rather than paternal and a great believer in rules and regulations. He holds men accountable for their actions. He has little apparent concern for the material well being of the disadvantaged. He is politically connected, socially powerful and holds the mortgage on literally everything in the world. God is difficult. God is unsentimental. It is very hard to get into God's heavenly country club.Santa Claus is another matter. He's cute. He's nonthreatening. He's always cheerful. And he loves animals. He may know who's been naughty and who's been nice, but he never does anything about it. He gives everyone everything they want without the thought of quid pro quo. He works hard for charities, and he's famously generous to the poor. Santa Claus is preferable to God in every way but one: There is no such thing as Santa ClausParliament of Whores: A Lone Humorist Attempts to Explain the Entire U. S. Government | 1991 | P. J. O'Rourke

Read the article. Particularly well done.

Listening to NPR this morning, I was struck by the fact that our CIC is committed to ritual cannibalism, which is strictly not Kosher. The specific inclusion of blood makes it doubly so. I know it's only make believe, but I'm not sure that improves things by much. BSBD, Winsor

Pretty much.

Thanks for elaborating on the background. I find sanctimonious assholes trying to inflict their standards on others to be repellent, whether it's Joe McCarthy or the Woke who have taken up the torch. BSBD, Winsor

I recall an interview with the cartoonist behind the original Wonder Woman comics, and he acknowledged the lesbian and kinky themes therein. I can't recall anyone getting all worked up about it. "Drawn Together" took it to another level, but it lost my interest by virtue of its focus on toilet humor - not my bag. I figure if something does not get the attention of censors on one side or another, it isn't trying hard enough. BSBD, Winsor

It's a disbelief system. H. L. Mencken responded to letters agreeing with him wholeheartedly or disputing him line and verse with the same observation - "you might be right." I am not so generous. When people keep doing the same thing while expecting different results, I have no qualms pointing out that they meet the definition of insanity. If someone proposes something that can be tested affordably, I say check it out - even if it appears implausible. Cold fusion comes to mind. The drivel spewed by Social Justice Warriors does not withstand scrutiny. The vast majority of the 'solutions' proposed have been tried and met failure at every turn, and the 'problems' postulated involve more hand-waving and redefinition than I'm willing to abide. As far as religions go, I'm with Hitchens in that what is put forth without evidence can be rejected without evidence. The Hebrew Scriptures are akin to the Greek Myths in that SOME of what is covered has a superficial historical basis, but the intervention of Zeus, Athena or the lonely God of Israel can be attributed to literary style. BSBD, Winsor

"Belief system?" I'm an Atheist - I have none.

Ah, the voice of malevolent ignorance! The patriarchs of the Hebrews were, to a man, Mr. Bad Example. Name one who wasn't a fuck up, I challenge you. However, we're stuck with them because they're family. If we had to pick more honorable types, we could have done better. Also, the bulk of our Bronze Age traditions are scrupulously avoided these days, since we long ago swore off genocide, slavery and the like. Someone who went along with these vile practices would be incarcerated and treated as a pariah. 'Belief' in the religious sense is mental illness pure and simple. Yasir Arafat was rumored to note that religious wars are contests to determine who has the best invisible friend. Most of the current versions of the Cult of the Magic Jewish Zombie have sworn off the evil basics of its origins (when Messianic Judaism was co-opted by the Roman Empire), though still retaining as their symbol the means by which Rome executed Judeans et al.. The Vatican did underwrite Italian Fascists and the Third Reich, and kept war criminals out of trouble thereafter, but that's in keeping with their tradition of shielding pervert priests. The modern traditions of Islam include such charming actions as 'honor killing' one's daughter if she is raped, killing gays (though it's halal to rape nonbelievers of either sex), Far from being a 'Prince of Peace," Muhammad (may he rot in hell) was a certified pervert and heavily documented as a murderous psychopath. Following that sick bastard is OPTIONAL, being of the Children of Israel is a TRIBAL IDENTITY and requires no particular belief system. Whoosh. BSBD, Winsor

FIFY.

From this guy's standpoint, Woke is a particularly unfunny joke: I guess he has a point. BSBD, Winsor

This guy makes a pretty good case: https://michaelshellenberger.substack.com/p/why-wokeism-is-a-religion I know religions are touted as having all kinds of wonderful societal benefits, but their track record throughout the historical record is checkered at best. Typically religions wax psychotic. You have Europeans wearing a symbol of the European means of executing Jews, supposedly following a particular Jew - who they label with a name he couldn't necessarily pronounce - basing their literature largely on the Jewish family history, and continuing to ostracize and kill the family members of the dead individual they claim to idolize. The Jewish family history itself is no better, claiming divine authority for acts of genocide, genital mutilation, slavery, misogamy and general weirdness. The more recently concocted religions are no improvement on their predecessors. Islam, Mormon, Communism and Scientology are as completely off the wall as the earlier isms. Given the track record of Western religions, Woke is every bit as fucked up as any of its predecessors. Well done! BSBD, Winsor

It is said that perversion is anything you won't do. GLAAD and Gay Pride historically distance themselves from NAMBLA, as an example. Having said that, LGBTQRST... no longer seems to be so stuffy: https://summit.news/2021/11/12/non-binary-assistant-professor-calls-for-pedophilia-to-be-delegitimized/ Oscar Wilde would be proud. BSBD, Winsor

Peggy Noonan puts it well: https://www.wsj.com/articles/democrats-face-the-woke-elections-socialists-critical-race-theory-schools-aoc-virginia-11636669165?mod=flipboard Woke is a truly detrimental ideology. BSBD, Winsor

I got pretty good at 'duck and cover.'

I was in a '68 Mustang where the point of impact was the door against which I was leaning, and my pelvis would have been crushed if there had been a seatbelt (I would have worn it if available). I'm with you, I wear a seatbelt if the car is moving and a really good helmet when on motorcycles.

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33795896/

I am in complete agreement with every point made in this post. Thank you.

I'm sure you have manufactured veterinary pharmaceuticals and thus have some idea of what you're talking about. I defer to the Master.

These data: https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2021/11/09/beyond-red-vs-blue-the-political-typology-2/ show the truly Woke to be a statistical outlier. Their influence is amplified by their toxicity. One doesn't agree with a mob intent upon burning down anything owned by someone who opposes them on the basis of the merits of their position. BSBD, Winsor

That would be 'fasces.' Are you somehow referring to Fascism?

Okay, so you prefer these guys: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvss/vsrg/vsrg03-508.pdf I'd have to dig through the archives, but they did a rethink along the way that changed the whole 'of' COVID to 'with' COVID, but standards evolve with experience. I am still concerned by much of the 'information' that has been put forth by the Powers that Be. Even if, say, Hydroxychloroquine or Ivermectin had no better therapeutic efficacy than Yellow Skittles, when medical talking heads come on and say how dangerous these medications are it raises the odd eyebrow. These meds are poster children for Safe and Effective (where indicated), and are used prophylactically by huge numbers of people over vast swaths of the globe with zip for ill effects over billions of doses. If the Medical Expert came on and said that, on the basis of specific studies they found no improvement in results, but if you want to take it in amounts that keep Malaria or River Blindness at bay knock yourself out, that would make sense. Hearing a Big Government Doctor on the tube (I guess flat screens aren't tubes, but what the hell) saying how toxic these drugs are, what a danger they present and that they "believe" them to be counterproductive, I am left scratching my head and asking WTF? Taking drugs significantly safer than aspirin, even for a placebo effect (btw, Remdesivir is MORE dangerous and has the same improvement in outcome as a good placebo), can hardly be a bad idea. Like chicken soup for the recently deceased, it couldn't hurt. I do not attribute these positions to conspiracy, since that would give the responsible parties too much credit. Claiming it is due to stupidity is similarly unlikely, since I am sure these people test well. The only thing that comes to mind is craziness, which I attribute to their being overwhelmed. The various vaccines are all well and good, but none of them rise to Silver Bullet status. I know as many people who have become symptomatic after being fully vaccinated as those who were unvaccinated. Their likelihood of being crippled by microthrombi (think The Bends where, instead of Nitrogen bubbles, you have cute little blood clots that aren't amenable to resolution in a hyperbaric chamber, but plug capillaries permanently) or dying may be greatly reduced, but they shed the virus at a rate identical to any other COVID patient according to recent reports. Also, the spike protein, whose production is critical to the effect of the mRNA vaccines, is by any account cytotoxic. This falls under the category of 'side effects,' which are a given in any therapy - even placebo sugar pills can make you fat. In the end, the risk/benefit analysis says that taking the vaccine is likely the best course, but hardly puts you in the clear. There was the case of the Swiss plane where the pilot bailed and had a total mal and the plane then landed itself, but the odds favor parachuting instead of trying to land an uncontrollable aircraft. One thing that concerns me more than the disease itself is the Bad Craziness that comes with the pandemic. There are still ripples of the insanity that took hold during the Black Death from 1348 onward, and I am unimpressed with the mental health of our society at the outset. "May you live in interesting times" is reputedly and old Chinese curse, and interesting times are these. BSBD, Winsor

Any totalitarian system worth its salt is based on the claim of moral high ground, which justifies the imposition of their will on others. Excuses for evil include Manifest Destiny, the Dictatorship of the Proletariat, bringing Freedom to the Oppressed and what have you. I do not presume to force people to think as do I, and I begrudge those who presume to do my thinking for me (be advised, I don't necessarily agree with everything I link - sometimes it is for counterpoint). For reasons that don't interest me, you have responded to me with vitriol throughout the years. That's your prerogative. I can't imagine that your point was to sway my opinion ('gee, he thinks I'm a poopyhead - maybe he's right!'), any more than I expect to sway yours. If you actually killfile me, fine. What am I possibly losing - your measured and insightful responses? BSBD. Winsor

You'll note that the original point is that Woke is largely comprised of humorless assholes. youtube.com/watch?v=3Ip1irYWXck