How's this for a little truth?

Ok I tried, I really did. I went on a search today to see if I could find something positive the Republican party has done or is doing for US citizens.  The bad far outweighed the good (of which I found none). 

Yesterday the GOP, sold us out once again to the big oil companies. Not just a little sell out a $53 BILLION dollar sellout. Shortly after proposing draconian cuts to services and programs that Americans depend on every single day, the GOB voted UNANIMOUSLY to protect big oil subsidies. It doesn't matter if former Shell CEO John Hoffmeister recently said big oil doesn't need subsidies, the GOP did it anyway. SCREW the American people! Big oil companies NEED their protection! 


I noticed Fox News didn't broadcast this story. It might taint the image of those the viewers worship. I understand why they don't broadcast these things now. It's easier to keep their loyal fan base in the dark even if it means they are hurting them in the process. NOW THAT'S HONORABLE! I can see why so many people trust them! Ignorance surely is bliss. 


Back to the big oil companies. 


Democrats offered a motion to recommit, because after all, it's in the best interest of the people. Nope, no go. ALL Republicans along with a dozen or so Democrats voted in favor of protecting the oil companies. The $485 Billion in profits they've made from 2005-2009 just isn't enough, they need more. A similar vote two weeks ago to recoup $53 billion in tax payer dollars from big oil companies was turned down by republicans. 


Thanks GOP, I really believe you care for me. 


Usually when I present an article like this, the silence becomes deafening. Although many republicans will fight like cats to get their point across about how great their party is. When an indisputable FACT like this is revealed, they all go silent. Why? The party you've chosen to place your faith and loyalty in might REALLY be screwing you!  


You know what, I DARE you to give me ONE thing republicans are doing to help the people the same way they are helping their big oil, corporate friends. DO you have something comparable that they are doing "for the people"? I'd like to know what it is, because the argument that they are moral, want smaller government,  blah, blah, blah, and care just isn't cutting it. This party is going to be the death of America and those of you who support them had better wake up and take a GOOD, DEEP, LOOK at what is really happening within the GOP. STOP BEING PAWNS and promoting and supporting these thugs!!


Now.....who will accept my challenge? 





**Crickets chirping**

Why I don't care for Fox News....

Let me start by saying that I had a little revelation today. I realized that in the process of venting my anger I was lumping ALL conservatives together into one big ugly ball. It was after I got into a discussion on my Facebook wall (my wall is sooo rowdy some days) I realized that I was defeating my whole purpose which is really to try and defeat the evil politicians who've basically screwed all of us democrats, republicans and everyone in between.  I let the heat of the moment take over and although most of the conservatives I come in contact with leave little to be desired... not all of them are as bad as I painted them in my last post. 


I was proved wrong by a fellow Facebook'er and conservative. Now granted this person who I'll call "A" isn't as bad as some of the conservatives I come in contact with. What made me stop and apologize for my hateful attitude was the fact that "A" actually asked a question that deserved an honest answer. 

His question was: "Why is Fox (news) so unpopular?" He didn't get nasty back, although I could tell he was aggravated with me and as harsh as I was, he was justified. That's really not who I am. Emotions, personality, and things like that rarely come across in type and very often they come across the wrong way. 


I've never actually had anyone ask me WHY I don't care for Fox News, they just get pissed because I don't and begin vehemently defending the network (usually with insults) not really giving a damn why some of us don't like them. There were a few other things that A said in response to my post that made me realize that maybe, just maybe, some of us who don't agree might be coming across to them the way some of them are coming across to us. Now, if everyone realized this...maybe we could actually accomplish something.  I'm going to give it my best shot. 


The main reason why I don't care for Fox news is Glenn Beck.  In my opinion, Mr. Beck has made his living from enciting violence, fear, and hate in his viewers. He peppers his statements with just enough truth to be believable and many of his viewers never fact check. Let me give you a few examples. I'll start with more recent statements:  I refer to a non-biased website called Politifact.com to check my facts. They don't take sides, they just check the facts. 


1. On February 4, 2011 Mr. Beck after several days of basically terrorizing his viewers regarding the Egypt crisis, he stated that  The Muslim Brotherhood has "openly stated they want to declare war on Israel." 


Mr. Becks statements were completely FALSE. As someone who has influence over a large number of people, and is supposed to be reporting news events accurately, it's his RESPONSIBILITY to check the facts. Click here for the truth.


2. During his June 28, 2010 radio programming where he promoted his upcoming rally, Mr. Beck claimed:

"The government is trying to now close the Lincoln Memorial for any kind of large gatherings." 

What better way to get people worked up then to make them think the government is restricting them from gathering peacefully and especially gathering peacefully at national sites. Click here for the truth

3. Hate the president, but if you're going to make others hate him at least get your facts straight and stop using misleading statements. The following statement is only true if you eliminate the LAST THIRD of FDR's presidency. Beck didn't tell his viewers that. 

Franklin Roosevelt never allocated more than 12 percent of GDP to federal spending, while the percentage for Barack Obama is not projected to drop below 22.8 percent.

Click here for the truth

Of the 21 statements I looked at that were made by Glenn Beck this is how he averaged as far as truth goes:

Totally True Statements:   2

Mostly True Statements:   1

Half True Statements:       4

Barely True Statements:   4

Totally False Statements: 6

Absolute Bullshit:              4

NINETEEN of TWENTY ONE STATEMENTS Contained half-truths, barely the truth, or flat out lies. How is this credible? And if you have evidence that this is the case, WHY would you continue listening to this guy?  When I try to discuss this with my conservative friends they insist the data is flawed.  So I have come to the conclusion, based on their refusal to accept anything but a glowing report about Mr. Beck that they are just happy with being lied too and would rather base their opinions on distorted or false facts. THUS the reason why I feel like they are sheeple. 

If you'd like to see more about Glenn Becks track record please visit the Politifact website. Again, this is an UNBIASED website. You can even see the lies Obama told. 

SO that's the NUMBER ONE reason why I dislike Fox News. One bad apple can spoil a bunch. If they allow someone to lie on one show, what's to say they aren't doing it on all of them?

The second reason...Let's switch over to Sean Hannity, another Fox favorite. Of the 54 stories or statements by Mr. Hannity:

Totally True Statements:   6

Mostly True Statements:   6

Half True Statements:        8

Totally False Statements:  8

Absolute Bullshit:                4

Totally made up:                 1

So Sean told the truth or ALMOST the truth 12 times out of the 54 stories listed which were all pretty significant. 

And so as not to bore anyone here is the link to fact check Bill OReilly. 

These are people who lead their most popular programs. They are telling LITTLE or NO truth or distorting facts to keep people in fear and or hating the opposing party which EVERYONE knows is Democrats. Because an organization is rated "most watched' doesn't mean they are "most honest".

There are some who will fight to the death about these figures and I'm sure we can find similar results with other news organizations, but right now our focus is Fox News. If their two main news programs are barely telling the truth, how can anyone with common sense believe them to be a reliable source for the "truth"?  If you read this and STILL believe they are the best, well, what can I say?  All the power to you but at least understand WHY others have no respect for them. 

I haven't included the statements from former employees who were told to flat out spin the stories and in some cases change them altogether. I'll do that on another day. But with this item behind us, now you know why I detest Fox News and do not believe them to be credible. They use the faith people have in them to make them fear and hate. I have no use for any organization that does that. 

If you're reading this and you have VERIFIABLE, CREDIBLE evidence that anything I've posted here is false, please send me the resources and I'll stand corrected. 

My question to those who swear by this media outlet is this: IF these things are true, do you keep watching and believing? And if so, Why? 

They Can't ALL Be That Dumb...Or Can They?

I recently posted a link on my Facebook wall which attracted quite a discussion. The article I linked to was: 

The Wisconsin Lie Exposed - Taxpayers Actually Contribute Nothing To Public Employee Pensions

I used to keep my opinions about these matters to myself because I didn't want to offend anyone, but every day, my republican "friends" had no problem posting things that offended me, so I figured..."what the hell?". You can only keep those kinds of frustrations bottled up for so long. Being that I live in a small southern town that is basically all republican, except for about 14 of us, I figured Facebook would be a good place to have a good debate and meet other "like minded" people. 


Back to the link above. SO there was the link I posted and everything started out pretty good. We were having a pretty civil discussion when the first republican popped up and said: 


"According to what I've heard, President Obama rallied the protesters and more are from other states than from here in Wisconsin."


OK, fair enough, if that's what you heard great... I responded with a request for a link to any resource that could confirm that statement...guess what she sent me? A Link to a Fox YouTube video.  GIVE ME A FRIGGING BREAK!!!  How can ANYONE listen to the utter bullshit they spew on Fox News and actually BELIEVE IT? Apparently they do and there are a lot of them! 


Not to sound biased, but I probably will, the Democrats and independents that were participating in this discussion had their act together. They made statements, intelligent ones, backed them up with resources and basically came across as intelligent and well informed. 


Enter Bill. I'll just call him Bill because I don't want to embarrass him any more than he embarrassed himself in front of my 4237+ Facebook friends. No matter what you said to Bill, he just kept repeating the same distorted, unfounded facts that were literally being repeated on Fox News! I even brought this to his attention and several other participants, one of them a Harvard Law Student, presented him with some good facts and back up. Bill was/is like a programmed Robot. He never took his focus off of the Fox News information and kept repeating, (albeit with a few insults thrown in for good measure here and there) what he'd been programmed to repeat. 


I came to the conclusion that people like Bill, Fox News Robots, and most republicans, are not informed...they are conditioned. Don't take my word for it. Discuss any controversial issue with one of these people then click on Fox News' website and you're sure to get the same answer, almost verbatim. 


I have yet to meet a republican that #1 doesn't hate the president (They don't know why they hate him, and the reasons they give are usually so far-fetched it's comical, but the conservative base hates knowing there is a black man in the White House.)  #2 That actually thinks for themselves. The people in this party are the reason why the term "sheeple" was coined. Seriously! They are really and truly like robots. They RARELY if ever give you an educated, well researched, thoughtful opinion. It's almost ALWAYS a repeat of Glenn Beck or Hannity. It's no wonder that allowing people like this to vote has resulted in the mess we've got today i.e. Wisconsin, financial crisis, etc. 


They've been so brainwashed to hate the other side all the while believing they are "god-fearing" christians that they have totally missed the points and don't even see the total conflict in their religious facade vs. the facts. They believe that capitalism is god's gift even though it keeps "his" people in total bondage to the elite, they vote politicians in because they SAY they are religious (Sarah Palin) and they have never even ONCE verified if what's being said is true. Sheeple. 


The one good thing that is beginning to result from this is the fact that people are starting to realize that something is amiss with the right. Most people I talk to have either left the republican party or they think they are a joke. This is good. More people are opening their eyes and that's what we need to overcome these zombies. 


So to all of my Democrat and Independent and NON republican friends... keep on keeping on people, keep exposing their stupidity,  mentally unstable people shouldn't be allowed to vote! Not only that, it's fun to make asses of their pious, arrogant, brainwashed, selves. :) 


Talk to you again soon! 

Taking a Stand

It's been a while since I've posted to this blog. I thought I could reasonably post all of my thoughts plus my Under the Willow content to my other blog, but that isn't working out too well. I'm a little to angry with the state of  our nation and the flat ignorance of my countrymen to reasonably separate the two and the last thing I want to do is offend my readers. So this will be my new platform for my thoughts and feelings on what's going on in our world.

I don't mind if you disagree, I believe a lot can come from a respectful debate and people can learn from each other when they come together is disagreement, so long as they do it with an open mind. If you come here dead set on telling me what Fox News says, then save your time and energy and just keep going. I have no respect for a media source who uses fear, hate, and violent rhetoric to control people, and I have no respect for people who allow it. Sorry, but that's how I feel.

Give me reasonable and verifiable resources from reputable sources, but don't insult my or my readers intelligence with poison from Fox News. With that being said... we can all play nice together.

Stay tuned for my next post which will most likely focus on the issues in Wisconsin. I'll be back shortly!

Lucy

Vampire Novelist Anne Rice Quits Christianity, but Not Christ

Vampire Novelist Anne Rice Quits Christianity, but Not Christ

http://www.politicsdaily.com/2010/07/29/vampire-novelist-anne-rice-quits-christianity-but-not-christ/

Excellent article on Politics Daily about best selling author Anne Rice quitting Christianity.

I have a TREMENDOUS amount of respect for Anne and it is her courage to "come out" that inspired me, and from what I can see, THOUSANDS of others, to do the same! START THINKING FOR YOURSELF PEOPLE!!  WAY TO GO!!!

Of all the articles written about Anne over the past week or so, this writer maintained the integrity of Anne's true feelings as well as her statements.

There are good reporters out there after all!


Kudos to David Gibson for an excellent article. 

The Republican war on the Constitution

The Republican war on the Constitution - The Week

http://theweek.com/article/index/205792/the-republican-war-on-the-constitution 

The article above just infuriates me...

Stop Messing with my Rights!!


I have the right to remain silent...or NOT!
I have the right to not want to read the Holy Bible.
I have the right to believe or not believe whatever I want with regards to religion or lack thereof.
I have the right to choose to have an abortion, it's my body. 
I have the right to say what I feel and think.
I have the right to post messages on my blog accusing republicans of being anti-American. 


I have a lot more rights but these are just a few that the right-wing fanatical Republicans of this country wish to strip from me.  How are they any different than the Taliban? They want their religion and their religion ONLY to be acceptable. Even though they have numerous sects and each of them deny the other is correct they want to force their "conservative" bullshit agenda down my throat and then scream and yell when someone tries to push the opposite. None of them can agree on who is right and who is wrong and who worships the right way and who is going to hell. And I'm going to be happy about this bunch of freaks choosing what I should believe and follow??? Not just NO, but HELL NO! 


What the hell is going on here? This is AMERICA! Since when do we let a group of Bible banging, fear-mongering, hypocrites, tell us what we can or can't do?!?  These people are nuts! 


For a party to who claims to be SOOOOO American they are attempting to SHRED the constitution to fit their screwed up agenda. Not because it is best for the people, but because it is best for THEM the politicians. AND THEN WHAT? WIll they follow to the "T" the laws and rules they so feverently want to push on the rest of us? I highly doubt it. I'm CERTAIN they won't! 


Enough of this political correct shit, get these crazy fuckers out of office before we're all forced to listen to and obey the Glenn Beck god. 

Debating a Christian Fanatic...

I am a member of a website called www.ExChristian.net  - It's filled with people like myself who once believed in the Christian religion but for whatever reason, no longer do. It has been a great source of comfort and "fellowship" for me during my deconversion process.  Many of the people there are going through the same thing as an Xtian.  Today I read a most fascinating article from a recently deconverted Xtian. It is his conversation with a Christian who is trying to "bring him back to the cross". I was pretty impressed with how the Xtian handled his end but the believer just kept rambling on and on about his god, never addressing the questions....no doubt brainwashed.


Here is a link to the post: http://networkedblogs.com/6w7ES