Why did he say this? Because I was having a discussion about socialism and capitalism with a classmate who is an avowed socialist – we were debating the merits of each system but apparently that kind of exchange of ideas is “closed minded” and telling someone who you disagree with to shut up is “open minded”.

I thanked him for explaining that to me and pointing out how closed minded I was by actually listening to someone else’s point of view and so to make sure that I was open minded enough for him I asked him kindly to STFU.

And then I get home and come across this piece of crap from another so-called ‘journalist’.

You can read the rest below the fold.

Tea Party movement aims to inspire revolution

Write that date down; people- it could very well mark the beginning of the end. With the notoriously conservative Tea Party movement gaining steam, is it time to take the ‘United’ out of ‘United States’?

Yes, everyone, dissent is bad. While eight years of calling Bush a fascist, warmonger, evil man and protests were good, now that Obama is in office any sort of protest against something the government is doing is now bad.

The Tea (Taxed Enough Already) Party-people consider themselves a coherent and diverse network of Americans from every conceivable walk of life. They are cultural warriors fighting against the tax-happy, spend-happy ways of the evil Obama cabal, real American patriots, and staunch defenders against the creeping evils of Socialism.

In reality, their ‘movement’ is incredibly divisive, a mindset that stands in sharp contrast to Obama’s calls for bipartisanship in this time of great national need. Their arguments have the potential to divide the country along titanic lines not seen since the bloody days of the Civil War.

Wow, because we have a different point of view we are going to shatter the country. I guess that would be because we are to closed minded to involve the other side in discussions about budgets, bailouts and being disenfranchised.  You know, like having closed door sessions and locking out the other political party from them.  Or doing something like looking at the opposition and when they raise concerns about one of your ideas responding with “I won” as an argument.  No, that’s not divisive at all!

The Tea Party movement is an incredibly dangerous concept, fuelled by the usual gushes of sycophantic support from the conservative news media (here’s looking at you, Fox). Consider a recent poll posted on Sean Hannity’s website, asking his loyal followers if they thought America was ripe for ‘revolution’. Or perhaps you’ve heard some of the vitriolic treasonous crap spewing forth from the mouth of Fox’s resident white-haired lunatic, He Who Shall Go Unnamed.

‘He Who Shall Go Unnamed”. Nice thinly veiled reference to Glenn Beck, who has said numerous times on his show that we can PEACEFULLY protest what we are against in our government and NOT resort to violence, but I don’t expect that Wyatt Shev ever really watches Beck’s show, just like most of the people who scream about Rush Limbaugh never listen to his show either. They have their (closed) minds made up  so don’t confuse them with any facts.

Treasonous?? The legal definition of treason is this: “The Constitution of the United States, Art. III, defines treason against the United States to consist only in levying war against them, or in adhering to their enemies, giving them aid or comfort. This offence is punished with death. By the same article of the Constitution, no person shall be convicted of treason, unless on the testimony of two witnesses to the same overt act, or on confession in open court.”

Now, I would love to have Mr. Shev explain how someone saying that our government has overstepped its bounds as defined by the constitution is treason, but I’m sure that Mr. Shev doesn’t believe that in the first place, he just grabbed it as a handy club to use against anyone who doesn’t agree with his point of view. Once again, open minded means that anyone who disagrees with you needs to STFU.

And how exactly is peaceful protests, as our Founding Fathers guaranteed us under the First Amendment a ‘dangerous concept’? Is it because we are disagreeing with someone else’s idea, or because you don’t want to hear it? My guess, again, is number two.

The Tea Party Movement is basically a flag for Republicans disenfranchised by last year’s election results to rally behind. Give it up, guys. You lost fair and square. Obama and his policies have the mandate of the people- unlike a certain Bush I could mention.

Gee, I didn’t realize that having a win of 52% (Obama) over 51% (Bush) constituted a ‘mandate’. I would think a real mandate would require more than barely half the people who voted supporting you.

Can you imagine the potential for chaos if some of these ‘protesters’ decide to exercise the Second Amendment and bring their weapons to these rallies? There’s a thin line between peaceful protest and bloodthirsty patriotic fervor, especially if those protesting are used to being on the side of the mighty status quo.

Actually, shithead, those ‘protesters’ you are so scared of have already been carrying their sidearms – legally – to these protest and, what do you know! Blood hasn’t been running in the streets.  Unlike some of the ‘peaceful’ protests of the left where Project:Code Pink bimbos attacked counter protesters outside the USMC recruiting station in Berkley.  Yea, such a peaceful protest the left always holds.  So peaceful that when another group holds a different viewpoint they have to cross the street and physically assault them.

I also love how he tries to turn it into Bush vs. Obama; Republican vs. Democrat. It’s not ANY of that, the Republicans are just as much at fault as the Democrats are in this thing. BOTH sides are responsible for bloating the size of our government to unsustainable levels, for giving us the bailouts that should have NEVER been done and saddling me, my children and quite possibly my grandchildren with the bill, and for taking away our rights one at a time and bundling them all under federal control.

What part of the constitution gives the government the right to control education? Where do they have the right to fire heads of companies because the President decides he wants to? What article or amendment says that they can determine how much money you make at your job?

None of these are powers that the federal government was EVER supposed to have, but they gave the power to themselves by voting it to themselves, which is something that was never supposed to be done. They have ignored the fact that the Constitution clearly dictates that the only powers they have are what are given to them by the Constitution, and nothing else. Everything else that is not DIRECTLY given to them is remanded to the states to oversee. There’s no ambiguity here and that is what the tea parties are about, our government has been overstepping its authority for not just years, but for GENERATIONS and it’s time we took our power back.

The Founding Fathers established this Republic we live in so that WE THE PEOPLE would have control of our lives and our fortunes, not so that the government could determine if we earned too much, were to successful, or if we weren’t donating enough to whatever causes the government wants to support and not doing enough volunteer work so now the government will make it mandatory. Not of this was their intent or desire. But, it’s happening and it gone too far. So, we the people will peacefully protest the infringement of our rights by the very government that swore a solemn oath to protect them.

And no, we won’t STFU.

**UPDATE**

Just saw this over at House of Eratosthenes so I’m swiping it for here

And here is yet one more reason to leave the state of Kalifornia behind.  Not only do we have almost 10% taxes in some areas (in my neck of the woods the tax is 8.75%) but now, the governor – a 100%$ RINO who has forgotten everything about being a conservative that he once spouted off about – has gotten behind a proposal to triple the car tax for registration.

Under the agreement, GOP lawmakers — most of whom have signed anti-tax pledges — would vote to triple the vehicle tax in exchange for a ballot measure that would impose rigid limits on future state spending. Democrats and advocates for the poor say such limits would cripple government services.

Motorists’ annual fees would rise from 0.65% of the value of their vehicles to 2%. For a car or truck valued at $25,000, the increase would be $336.

Right now my wife and I have a 2005 Saturn Vue, we bought it new and have taken very good care of it, but it’s almost five years old right? Most people seem to start thinking of a new car when it gets to that age (we aren’t, we like this one just fine).  I just got the registration notice for it that says with all the fees (registration fee, licence fee, county fee, smog fee…) the total for me to renew my plates is $179 bucks

$179 dollars to register a car that’s five years old.  That means that if they triple it like they want to, my fee will go up to about $340 which is money I can’t afford.

I’m tired of the “Let’s help the poor” in this state when they won’t do anything about the illegals.  Right now, illegal immigrants cost this state about $10.5 BILLION a year - well there’s a way to close the budget gap!  As for the ‘poor’ they can have the jobs that the illegals won’t be filling.  The Octomom can actually get out and do something for a change instead of her current hobby of invitrofertilzation.

California’s belief that they can tax themselves into prosperity has never worked and WILL NEVER WORK!  All they have done is driven more and more companies out of the state and then raised the taxes on the ones that remained to make up the difference.  This is liberalism at it’s finest and I can’t wait to leave it behind me.

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – California will not pay state tax refunds for individuals and business that overpaid 2008 taxes, in order to conserve dwindling cash for priority payments including school spending and debt repayment required by state law, the state’s controller office said on Friday.

Other state checks to be postponed for 30 days include payments for vendors who provide services and products to the state government and state checks to a million aged, blind and disabled Californians to cover rent and utilities bills, State Controller John Chiang’s office said in a statement.

See, you pay your taxes like you are supposed to and then they just say “Gee, we are going to change the rules now and keep it all.” and yet they wonder why no one likes, trusts, or even wants to have a business here.  I know that when I graduate I am looking for a job as far away from this den of snakes as I can find, why would I want to stay in a state whose answer to everything is more taxes?

California jumped the shark a long time ago by making the state a sanctuary for illegals, then they went with the legalized marijuana, and now they are going with the robber baron attitude.  Hell I wish I could tell the power company, the phone company and my landlord that I’m not going to give them the money I owe them because I want to “conserve dwindling cash for priority payments”.  I’m sure they would get a big fucking laugh if I tried that one.

Well, all I can say is that since I doubt Zorro is going to rise up and fight the evil powers then I am just going to give Kalifornia a big FUCK YOU and move ASAP.

Yea, really feel like getting out of this place

Well, since it passed the fecal matter has been striking the air flow enhancing oscillation device.  Protests, lawsuits, statements about how churches should be burned down… you know, the normal stuff that happens when liberals lose, they throw a major league temper tantrum. Hell, we even have state lawmakers filing a suit saying that Proposition 8 should be overturned because “voters did not have the authority to make such a dramatic change in state law”.   EXCUSE ME???  Where the hell does it say in the California Constitution that the people can’t vote on amendments to it?  It’s been done before.

Gay rights activists are trying to portray this as civil rights case, which it isn’t.  They are claiming that they are discriminated against because straight people can get married and they can’t.  But here’s the problem, in California they can have civil unions which confer the SAME RIGHTS as marriage.

As Bob Parks puts it, this isn’t a civil rights issue by any stretch of the imagination:

Gays routinely equate their modern-day inconveniences with “civil rights” which is code for the black Civil Rights Movement. Roseanne, unlike gays, blacks couldn’t avoid discrimination by staying in the closet. Blacks couldn’t shed the color of their skin.

Oh, but it’s not marriage you say?  Course it’s not.  Marriage is something that is performed by a church and a priest.  It is a RELIGIOUS ceremony, not a legally binding contract under the states view.  You can have a priest stand up, do his thing, and if you don’t have that marriage license, which is a legal contract issued by the state and is – in all ways – a civil union, it’s just pretty words in the states eyes.

When my wife and I got married the pastor gave us a nice little marriage certificate suitable for framing that says the date we were married, the pastor signed it and it has a nice, official looking seal on it.   But as far as being legal – it’s about as legal as Monopoly money. The real legal document is the one issued by the state.

So, what is the difference between a civil union and marriage?  One is performed by the state (civil unions), and the other is acknowledged by the state (marriage).  Otherwise, the rights granted are the same.  But the gays aren’t happy with a civil union, they seem to want to force the religious institutions to bend to their will and marry them by threat of law. I always thought there was ’separation between church and state’?  Isn’t that what liberals like to carry on about??  So, if there is to be a separation, how can they back a law that would essentially stick it’s nose into the church’s business?

Do I have a problem with gays wanting to get married?  Nope, not at all.  What I have a problem with is that when the votes are cast and everything is over with, if the liberals win they go on about how ‘the system worked’ and if they lose then it’s all about ‘Those evil bastards must have cheated.”  I have a problem with a minority group DEMANDING not that we tolerate them, but that we accept them.  Acceptance is different than tolerance.  Tolerance means that I may not agree with you but I TOLERATE it because it’s the civilized thing to do, acceptance means that I am just happy as a warm turd that you are doing what your doing.

I have a few friends who are gay.  If some priest wants to give them a ceremony to go with a civil union, there is no law stopping them, they still have all the benefits of marriage and the ceremony, it’s just legally called a civil union. I will just never agree with a law that intrudes on areas that are part of the churches prerogative.

Here’s a wonderful quote from a poster on the San Francisco Chronicles site

Marriage licenses are issued by governments, not religious institutions. Religious institutions can opt to perform or not perform marriage ceremonies. The only solution to this issue is to abolish marriage as we now understand it and to consider it just another contract between 2 individuals 18 years and older. There is nothing sacred about marriage – heterosexuals have been trashing the institution via divorce, bigamy, affairs, murdering spouses and children and abortion since its inception. Grow up YES ON 8 folks – your marriages are nothing more than an unholy union of one prostitute and one pimp.

Ah yes, the enlightened left “abolish marriage as we know it”.  Um, if it is such a horrible institution then why do you want to be a part of it?

Zanne and her Code Pink friends like to travel around trying to bring “peace” by protesting anything that even looks like it might be able to protect American interests in a time of crisis.  Their success, to be kind, has been limited.  I have a humble suggestion for the crones of Code Pink.  Why don’t you pack up your shit and go cast spells and do rituals to end war in the front yards of the people who actually start this shit?  Seriously, get the kids, tell your life partner to take off a few weeks from work, get in the truck, and head on over to Gaza, Mosul, Tehran, or Beirut and cast spells on the jihadi assholes who are, as we speak, training kids to hate Jews and kill Americans.  Maybe then your dumb, shriveled ass could have some chance of ending the need for the best and brightest of American society to travel over there and get shot at.

And also

Let’s get one thing fucking straight, you crusty nutjob, if the goddamn Japanese Army couldn’t run the Marines off of Iwo-fucking-Jima, your gang of shriveled shrews not going to run them out of Berkely-goddamn-California.  I can’t speak for the mental state of every Marine in that office obviously, but I will bet every damn dime I have to my name that not one of them is fucking scared of you.

No, I don’t think there is one Marine alive or dead that would be scared of these psycho harpies, if anything the only reason the Marines are avoiding them is because they didn’t want to start laughing in these idiots faces.

My dad told me something long ago that is very true here:  “If it weren’t for all the stupid people out here, the rest of us wouldn’t look so smart”

Standing next to these wackos, I would look like Albert Einstein

AB2062 is scheduled to be heard on Wednesday, May 7 in the Assembly Appropriations Committee.  Sponsored by State Assembly Member Kevin De Leon (D-45), AB2062 would require that law-abiding gun owners obtain a permit to buy handgun ammunition and would impose severe restrictions on the private transfers of handgun ammunition.  Applicants for a “permit-to-purchase” would be required to submit to a background check, pay a $35 fee, and wait as long as 30 days to receive the permit. 

Not only does Kalifornia law make in nearly impossible to obtain a Concealed Carry permit for the average person, now the liberals want to make sure aren’t able to buy any ammo either.   Course, they are following the lead of the biggest hypocrite and liberal of them all from here (next to Nancy Pelosi) Dianne Feinstein.

Dianne Feinstein seems to think that while the rest of us shouldn’t be able to protect ourselves, she should have that option available for herself 

“I know the urge to arm yourself because that’s what I did. I was trained in firearms. I’d walk to the hospital when my husband was sick. I carried a concealed weapon. I made the determination that if somebody was going to try to take me out, I was going to take them with me.”

Thanks for deciding that I don’t need to protect myself or my wife.  I have been trained in firearms as well, much better than Mrs. Gun Control here because I know never to put my finger on the trigger unless I intend to shoot.  I also know not to EVER point a firearm at someone at ANY TIME unless you intend to shoot them.

I urge anyone who reads this to go and write to your state senator and protest this unwarranted intrusion into our ability to defend ourselves against the criminals.  Remember, if you take all the guns away then only the criminals will have guns – just they way they want it.

For the short version of it all, Move America Forward, a pro-military group, was given a permit to hold a counter protest to Code:Pink.  The two side were suppose to stay on opposite sided of the street but guess which side violated those rules and attacked the other?  Yep, those peace-loving wackos crossed the street and assaulted the MAF group. 

Did the Berkley Police step in and stop it??  Oh, hell no, that might have infringed on some of Code:Pinks rights to be psychotic freaks of nature.

Code Pink was permitted for across the street. The two sides were to stay separated, according to rules laid down by the city. But the city has a history of giving Code Pink special preference. The City Council gave free parking permits and a free noise permit to the radical group, which has helped fund terrorist families in Iraq with a $600,000 gift. MAF Executive Director Catherine Moy attempted to get help from the Berkeley police as the mayhem unfolded, but an officer hung up on Moy. Moy asked the California Highway Patrol to help in the emergency, but the CHP refused. “I have never in my life experienced such inaction in the face of an emergency, “Moy said. “I will ask the Federal Government to investigate, as well as the State Attorney General. It is one thing to give free parking places to the City Council’s special interest anti-war groups, it is another to take sides and endanger the lives of others.”

Move America Forward and other pro-troop organizations will stand in support of the Marines all day Tuesday until they can enter the City Council chambers to address the City Council.

For a group that is all about peace, they sure are violent. 

Oh, and speaking of the Federal Government, Harry Reid is trying to block the bill that would cut off funding for Berkley by not allowing it to come up for a vote.  Guess he doesn’t want the embarrassment of actually having to choose sides, it’s so much easier to just spout platitudes that actually do anything.

 Once again – Berkley California, Code: Pink and the rest of them can kiss my ass!

“Hypocrisy: prejudice with a halo” - Ambrose Bierce

Berserkly, CA has now decided that maybe they should apologize for saying the Marines were not welcome in their fair city of ‘peace’. This, of course, happened shortly after Republican Senator Jim DeMint introduced a bill that would have scrapped all federal funding to the nut jobs just north of me.

The Mayor of Berserkly, Tom Bates, was stunned that they would lose federal money over this:

“There’s really no correlation between federal funds for schools, water ferries and police communications systems and the council’s actions, for God’s sake,” said Bates, a retired U.S. Army captain. “We apologize for any offense to any families of anyone who may serve in Iraq. We want them to come home and be safe at home.”

But you see, Tom, there is a connection. The Marines provide a vital service by protecting our country. The City Counsel of Berserkly has said that they essentially want no part of helping to defend this country. Ergo, you would like the benefits of living here (freedom, protection, and federal tax dollars) without any of the responsibilities of being an American (helping defend it). So, since we can’t just cut Berkley off of the rest of the country and set you free to drift about the Pacific like a giant turd in the toilet, we can at least cut off the money you love so well.

But of course, like true liberals, when they have to put their money where their mouth is and maybe stand up for what they say they believe in, they do what they are good at – caving in. As soon as someone said “Fine, you don’t want our military then you must not want our money either” they start backtracking and issuing apologies.

I find it very interesting though that no Democrats have stood up to support this bill, only Republicans. The Democrats, by and large, while very good at talking about supporting the troops and how much they admire and respect the military generally do nothing when it comes to more than talk. Well, they may bloviate for a while about how much our freedom should be respected and how other point of view are important, but that’s about it.

There is a Dick Blick’s Art Supply in Berzerkly that is the closest one to where we live. I plan on now ordering all my stuff online just so I never have to set foot inside their city again, but if I do have to go in for that emergency run, I’m going to wear either a Marine or Navy T-Shirt.

*Update – more things I wanted to say*

I also notice that they made sure to mention that the mayor is former military, as if that somehow makes what they are doing fine.

I also like this part:

At their Tuesday council meeting, leaders will discuss scrapping a letter that might be perceived as targeting the center or the Marines.

“might be perceived..”  Yea, when you say that the Marines recruiting center IS NOT WELCOME we MIGHT perceive that you are targeting the Marines and their recruiting center.

There is also this part:

Councilmembers have said they would replace the “intruder item” with words expressing their support for the troops but not the war in Iraq.

Sure, that’s like saying you support the police but don’t support them arresting criminals.  Or saying that you support a persons right to choose, but only if they make the choice you want them to.  It’s tap-dancing and bullshit but what do I expect from people who are so cowardly they will back down from a position because of money.  I wonder what it is like to have your beliefs and resolve dictated by cash.

 Oh, and you can add Toledo, Ohio’s Mayor to the list of spineless fucktards that populate the landscape:

NBC24 spoke to Jack Smith  who recalled that after the marines last visit, he and the mayor had a heated exchange about  the training.

“He told me he did not want them, as he put it, ‘playing war in Toledo,’” Smith recalled.  “I told him, as a former marine, that  if one young marine’s life is saved because of training he or she received in Toledo, Ohio, then it was worth the inconvenience.”

Smith said if the mayor objected, then he should have been the one to convey those feelings to police.  Smith took his run-in with the mayor as an objection to that last visit, and not future training in Toledo.

*UPDATE*

Michelle Malkin has more information on this jerk in Toledo

“Strange that cowards cannot see that their greatest safety lies in dauntless courage.”
      - Johann Kaspar Lavater (John Caspar Lavater)

Now, because they are such stupid fucking morons up there the city of Berkley not only has voted that they don’t want a Marine recruiting station in Berkley, but they have also openly supported an anti-war protest group and given Operation: Code Pink (otherwise know as Operation: Whiny Assholes) a free parking space near the recruiting station and also a free permit to protest.  Don’t believe me?  here it is.

The resolution telling the Marines they are unwelcome and directing the city attorney to explore issues of sexual orientation discrimination was brought to the council by the city’s Peace and Justice commission.

The recommendation to give Code Pink a parking space for protesting and a free sound permit was brought by council members Linda Maio and Max Anderson.

Code Pink on Wednesday started circulating petitions to put a measure on the November ballot in Berkeley that would make it more difficult to open military recruiting offices near homes, parks, schools, churches libraries or health clinics. The group needs 5,000 signatures to make the ballot.

Now, lets clarify a few things since OBVIOUSLY the city of Berkley and it inhabitants are too far down on the IQ scale to understand.  Freedom of speech, which all of them will scream about when you tell them to shut their hole, goes for everyone and not just the point of view you like.  That means that the Marines have just as much right to be there as you do as long as they are paying for the building space.

Also, the Marines, Navy, Air Force, Army and Coast Guard don’t have to follow your shitty little “Peace and Justice Commission” Rules.  They are exempt from that because they are the military.  When you join the military you give up most of your rights voluntarily – that’s part of what it means to serve, we GAVE UP some rights so you could KEEP ALL OF YOURS!  No one is keeping gays out of the military, they can join just like anyone else, the military just doesn’t want to know about your sex life.  Seems like a no brainer to me, I could care less about ANYONE’S sex life except my own.

Third, Do you morons up the coast think that by having your little love-ins and smoking your dope you will stop actions like the terrorists who want to kill us.  I hate to tell you this, but they have been trying to kill us for a long time now and no, the US isn’t the cause of all the worlds troubles.   The military is what has been making it possible for you to sit around and think your lofty thoughts while listening to your copy of the White Album and wishing you could go back to the 60’s where everything was awash in love.

There is one part of this article that they got something right, even if I have to interpret it differently that the speaker intended

“We are confronted with an organization that can spend billions of dollars on propaganda,” Anderson said. “This is not Okinawa here; we’re involved in a naked act of aggression. If we can provide a space for ordinary people to express themselves against this kind of barbarity, then we should be doing it.”

Yes, we are.  Al’ Qaeda spend quite a bit funding other terrorist groups and producing propaganda tapes, putting up terrorist websites and even paying people to blow themselves up and they are engaged in naked aggression against us.  The Marines are the ones providing a space for ordinary people to express themselves, it’s called the United States and it will also soon include Iraq.

We are expressing ourselves against the barbarians, we are killing them.

 So, to Berkley California, Operation: Code Pink, all the Cindy Sheehan and Ward Churchill’s of the world  -  FUCK YOU.