December 16, 2011

Getting It Off My Chest


Does Tim Tebow win football games because his team has better Christians? What about the Christians on the other team? Do we really think a God would care about a football game? Have we heard enough of the whining from the flock about how the "media" is crucifying him because of his faith? He's made a big play about having been a virgin and so proud of it and I'd just like to know why nobody ever thinks about the flip side of that? Or is the thought of Tim Tebow wanking himself off in the shower sort of turn people off? Inquiring minds want to know.

Yesterday I heard an interview with an elderly couple. They were being asked about the end of the Iraq War. She said that she's sure it's only happening so that "Obama" can use it during the coming election, and he said "I come from a time when men were men," and then he explained how he hates to see our soldiers come running home with their tails between their legs. That they should stay until they finish the job. This was a husband and wife team. Obviously made for one another. There'd be no point in telling her this date was established by President Bush for the draw down. There would also be no point in explaining to him that we don't play set-piece battles anymore, that warfare is asymmetrical now, and that somehow we managed to do pretty much what we intended to do in Iraq... except of course find the weapons of mass destruction that didn't exist but hey... who is counting? We need to just line them up and shoot them. Then we come home, have a parade, and some hot dogs. And go to church. And I'm proud to be an American where at least I know I'm free.



Someone I used to know on Facebook put up a post about the Occupy movement and ended their comment with the jab "why don't they just go out and get a job?" And it made me think for a second, you know, like, where? What jobs? Because I have been meaning to ask; you know, those tax reductions that President Bush (the "Bush tax cuts") made that exacerbated the oncoming debt crisis were defended on the grounds that this is the kind of thing that creates jobs. You reduce the tax rates on rich people and you get jobs. Only the thing that happened was that we reduced the tax rates on rich people and we lost jobs. The job market, and the economy, shrunk. And we still don't want to use the money that rich people make today because if we did that would be "job killing." And people buy this. It seems counter-intuitive to me to say we should never "up" the taxes on wealthy people or we'll end up stifling job growth when the last time we gave those people more money they didn't. What?

In fact the #1 criticism from the Tea Party against the Occupy Movement is that all they are protesting for is to get entitlements. But the critiques never finish the thought. It should be "all they are protesting for is to get MY entitlements." We need to be honest.

A few of my friends around the blogosphere have been giving a running critique of the GOp debates as they go forward. And some of the comments are pretty funny. Even lifelong Conservatives are having to scratch their heads about this GOP crew. I've decided to finally give my view a complete airing. As follows... Quite generally the GOP has fielded a list of potential candidates for the presidency who would fulfill all the desires of the GOP rank and file. The nominees have so far proven to be everything Conservatives admire. Pandering liars with the combined IQ of a hint of a shadow. Perfect for Ma and Pa up there in the second paragraph... pathological idiots. Just what the country needs. President Obama is unquestionably one of the most pointless office holders we've had in Washington for some time. He is a "cultural marker" - and as is said "the first one through the wall always gets bloodied." But his meandering, self-serving positions are still a thousand times better than the hateful, mean-spirited, know-best coming out of their mouths.

I think there are a lot of morans in this country. Cough...

8 comments:

Verdant Earl said...

The NFL and the media love Tebow because he's polarizing. For some reason. If I were a fan of the NFL or the Broncos (I'm not), I wouldn't give a crap if he were Buddhist, Jewish, Hindi, Muslim, Christian, Bahá'í, an atheist or whatever. Wouldn't matter to me. An athlete's faith is as insignificant to me as a complete stranger's faith. Because, well, they ARE complete strangers. And, really, all the fans have to do is watch him perform and occasionally take a knee when something good/God happens. Is there really a problem with that? You don't want to hear his holy roller schtick during post-game interviews? Don't watch that part. Simple.

I stopped being a fan of the sport when my favorite team hired a dude who liked to kill dogs for fun.

Ashamed to say, I'm still a fan of the TV show Survivor. I still get a kick out of it. This season has been all "God told me to do this" and "I need to pray on that for the answer". I wonder if the producers picked those people on purpose. Trying to cash in on some of the heat that comes with such polarizing "characters". Eh...of course they are. Only difference between them and Tebow is that their game is audible. Eh...

Gino said...

let's see how well 'Tebow' does in Iowa.

too many morans in America. I blame cromwell.

sybil law said...

You pretty much spoke my mind, minus a shit ton of expletives. The trickle down theory hasn't worked in about 20 years, maybe more. Companies saw the recession as an excuse to lay off people and force the workers left to take over the fired workers' jobs with no pay increase. Who's gonna complain? Then you lose your job.
I'm gonna shut up before I go all Tourette's.

Brian said...

"Only the thing that happened was that we reduced the tax rates on rich people and we lost jobs. The job market, and the economy, shrunk. And we still don't want to use the money that rich people make today because if we did that would be "job killing."

In a word: yup.

I used to believe that letting rich people keep more of their own money was good for the economy generally, and for innovation, entrepreneurship, and job creation specifically. I'd love to still believe that, the same way I'd love to believe that a jolly man in a red suit is going to leave me a whole bunch of sweet chef's knives and a stack of graphic novels next Saturday night.

But there is the problem of it having been recently and definitively shown not to be the case. It is empirically false.

I think it is a fair (and unresolved) question whether the tax cuts themselves caused the economic downturn. But believing that they would have the opposite effect requires you to completely ignore everything that has happened in the last 11 years.

It's one thing to believe in something you can't verify. That's faith. I have a fairly low opinion of faith per se as a virtue, but it is unquestionably a pretty normal human impulse, and one that we all manifest in one way or another.

It is another thing entirely to cling stubbornly to that which is demonstrably false. That's just being a fucking idiot.

Gino said...

my problem with the 'tax the rich' idea is that the rich who end up paying are generally the ones who are growing the economy: sucessful entrepreneurs, NFL players, rock stars...

people named Buffet, Bush, Gore, Rockefeller... they have ways and resources to avoid it. and these are the ones who manipulate the wealth that others create in order to expand there own.

i'm speaking in generalizations, of course.
its seems unfair to punish the guy who's trying to accumulate wealth through its creation (with a 50% rate) and give the idle already wealthy an easier ride (cause dividends are a cheaper rate).

thats the way i understand it, anyway...

either/or... just like any other issue, the solution isnt in the soundbites the partisans are throwing around.

RW said...

Simply put, the idea that we need to protect the incomes of people who are millionaires so that we don't stop them from "making jobs" has proved to be a false concept. The specifics of who protects what isn't really the point.

Gino said...

Simply put, the idea that we need to protect the incomes of people who are millionaires so that we don't stop them from "making jobs" has proved to be a false concept.

as if the arguement about job creation was that simple.

the 'tax the rich' slogan is intended to play on peoples emotions and provinding the illusion that finally 'Buffet' is gonna have to pay his share.
but it dont work that way. its part of the con that is election politics.

Candy's daily Dandy said...

who is this Tebow and where did he come from?

Inquiring minds want to hero worship and he fits the bill quite neatly. Handsome, yourng, jacked, rich and talented, Tebow is now what Brady was ten years ago.

Because he kneels before God at every game, we decide he's someone to worship, but I'm sure the truth is really quite different. If it hasn't happened already, he will give in to temptation, take drugs to enhance his performance and be lured into the den of inequity where his saintly image will be tested.

that's what happens when athletes are given carte Blanche in the world. because Jesus is Tebow's homeboy really makes no difference.

Call me cynical