Republican Policies would Kill Child Rape Victims.

As it was before, it is again today. In a place where all abortions are forbidden, a 10-year-old girl is being forced to bear her rapist’s child. The same laws that “Republicans” support may very well kill this child:

Human rights organizations are calling on Paraguayan officials to allow a 10-year-old rape victim to end her pregnancy, arguing that the country’s harsh abortion ban is comparable to torture.

Authorities say that the girl, whose name is being withheld, became pregnant after she was sexually assaulted by her stepfather. Her pregnancy was not discovered until she was about 20 weeks along and started complaining of a stomachache. Now, she isn’t being permitted to have an abortion

Data collected by the World Healthm Organization confirms that girls in Latin America who give birth before they turn 16 years old are four times more likely to die during childbirth than young women in their twenties. In Paraguay specifically, 28 minors died last year due to complications stemming from giving birth.

This is what the GOP wants for America, Gentle Reader: a Dominionist theocracy in which all abortions are forbidden, no matter what. A country that consigns children to death for being victims of a horrible crime: indeed, the children will suffer more harsh punishment than the rapist criminals who forcibly impregnated them.

Here’s putting it plain: while rapists are rarely prosecuted and even more rarely punished, Teapublicans would pronounce an effective death sentence upon child rape victims. Does that disturb you? It damned well should.

This is, unfortunately, not an exaggeration. Repubs want to force women to carry fetuses to full term, even if it kills them. Even if the babies are already dead. Teapublicans go so far as to imprison women who have miscarriages. They think that God wants women to be raped so they can be “gifted” with babies from rapists.

Repubs even want rapists to have visitation rights for children born of their criminal actions. Over and over again, the GOP puts the rights of rapists over the rights of their victims. Even if the victim is a child.

Even it kills the child, the “Republicans” stand up for the rights of the rapist. And against the rights of the female rape victims.

Why, exactly, do so many people support this inhuman lunatic hatred with their votes?

Mr. Blunt and Cranky

When Ignorance and Authoritarianism Combine:Today’s GOP

Scary stuff, Gentle Reader, scary stuff. The party that controls most of our country prides itself on being a load of scientifically illiterate, math-challenged yahoos who want to monitor each and every intimate detail of your life.

If that doesn’t scare you, you aren’t paying attention. We heard a prominent member of the Senate Repubs call for a miltary coup, forcing the government at gunpoint to starve the poor and feed the MIC.

We have a plethora of elected and appointed Teapublicans who loudly proclaim their willful ignorance on matters such as climate, rape, and even basic arithmetic, ferchrissakes.

So the same people who want to shoot anyone who disagrees with them are also those who take pride in their lack of knowledge about pretty much anything except for about 10% of the Bible. They are running things. And they are running things because they got the most votes.

Which means that stupid voters are in the majority. That is even scarier.

Mr. Blunt and Cranky

Any Politician who Bases their Position on “Faith” needs Kicked out of Office.

We hear it all the time: no matter the issue, be it climate change, contraception, or even basic mathematics, far too many Politicos act as though their “faith” somehow equates to facts. Bull-f***ing-s***.

All the faith in the world does not make the Pill an abortion-inducing drug. It isn’t, and there is good science to prove that it isn’t. All the misapplied scriptural citations do not make climate change a hoax: again, science proves it isn’t.

And all the voodoo in America cannot make supply-side economics valid. It isn’t, wasn’t, and won’t be. All the data says it doesn’t f***ing work.

The Establishment Clause specifically rules out religion in our government. Period. So using “faith” as a policy tool isn’t just idiotic: it’s illegal.

So let’s make the penalty for the crime be de-election. Kick those fools out of their cushy jobs and let ’em try that faith scam in the real world once or twice. See how their “faith” is rewarded.

Mr. Blunt and Cranky

(Note: Faith is a wonderful thing when used where appropriate. Church, for instance.)

Repubs Impose the Nation’s First “Uterus Tax”. Most Eligible Michigan Voters are Responsible.

Yes, you read that correctly. In Michigan, women who are raped may not have an abortion if their rapist impregnates them. UNLESS they purchased what is being called “rape insurance” ahead of time. Result: women need to plan for being raped, and pay out of pocket in case they are someday raped. Your humble correspondent feels that “rape Insurance” is the wrong term. Really, it’s a tax on people who can become pregnant.

It is a tax on fertile women, levied upon their functioning uteri. A “Uterus Tax”.This is a 100% “republican” idea, pushed only by repubs, voted for only by repubs. Repubs have successfully imposed it upon women in Michigan, and plan to spread it across the nation.

America, you just voted to give the party behind such obscene ideas even more power than they already had. You voted for it, and you are getting what you deserve. Almost all eligible voters are to blame for such travesties as these.

Perhaps you didn’t vote? By not voting against the GOPee, you helped Repubs to win.

Perhaps you voted third-party? See above.

Perhaps you voted “Republican”? You stupid f***, you truly do DESERVE this. Hope it hurts, motherf***er.

The only people who are blameless are those who voted for the candidate with the best mathematical chance to beat a Teapubbie. Every other eligible voter within the locale involved in a Repub outrage bears some measure of responsibility for the outrage in question.

This is just the first example of what America asked for during this week’s election. Look forward to years more of such revolting results. And as you are subjected to these manifold obscenities over time, remember: America voted for this. America asked for this. America demanded this. AMERICA’S VOTERS MADE THIS HAPPEN. As the Politicos like to say, “elections have conesquences”.

Maybe we’ll learn our lesson. Maybe after we get f***ed so brutally, so often, so painfully, the country will learn to ignore the propaganda, respect the facts, and get out to vote in our best interests for a damned change. Maybe.

But for the foreseeable future, we will all pay, as a nation, for the sins of the majority of actual voters.

Mr. Blunt and Cranky

“Republicans” Can Only Win with Democrats’ Help.

According to a recent poll, Ohio’s GOPee Guv John Kasich has a large number of Democrats voting for him. The percentage of such idiot voters is sufficient to provide a comfortable margin of victory. Thousands of Dems have said that they will vote for a thieving, lying, union-busting, woman-hating Wall Street motherf***ing “Republican”.

By so doing, those Dems will enable thievery, lying, starvation, forced births, pollution, contract violations, voter suppression, and income inequality to not only continue, but become even more prevalent. Think about that for a second, Gentle Reader. These are Teapublican values and policies, being supported by alleged Dem Voters.

This is the story of the 2014 midterms, friends: in spite of every evil deed, every crime against humanity, GOP candidates are projected to win. Why? Because a s***load of voters who should know better will make some truly stupid choices.

Stupid choices like voting for Teapubbies, casting protest votes in close races, or just not voting at all. That is how “Republicans” win. It ain’t just vote-rigging, corruption and bribery that enables the Repub Reign of Error: some Democrats are partially culpable.

Please do your part: vote smart. If enough people do so, we can pull off an upset. Smart rarely triumphs over stupid, but it can happen, if enough smart people take the time to vote smart.

Mr. Blunt and Cranky

Uh, You DO Know that Obama’s Not on the Ballot, Right?

Just checking, because lots and LOTS of people are yammering on about him during this year’s campaign. Which is pretty f***ing stupid, because OBAMA CAN’T BE F***ING RE-ELECTED. The pundits and “news” types are all ratchet-jawing about the man, but in truth he matters not one bit for next Tuesday’s contests.

The Senatorial candidates matter. The Gubernatorial candidates matter. The House candidates matter. So too do the other state and local ballot options. They matter, and they matter a LOT. (For example, McConnell, Boehner, and a host of other politicos are up for re-election or de-election.)

By your actions you can help turn this country into a Red Hell or a Purple Patchwork (It’ll take a Helluva lot more than one election to turn America Blue). You can take away our rights, or give them back to us. You can enable us to: feed the kids or starve them; fight or cower; fix or ignore; pay or go broke; function or fall apart; all of these vitally important matters are in the hands of voters on November 4th, 2014.

But Obama is NOT on the ballot. We kinda need to ignore him when we hit the voting booth, because the people for whom we DO cast ballots can actually make our lives better or worse.At the very least, we need to focus on the people and issues that are on the table this coming Tuesday.

The media moguls and bribe artists would love nothing better than to have us focus on a lame-duck President: that enables them to play their sleazy shell games via distraction and misdirection, f***ing us over royally in the process. We The People need to see past the sleight of hand and focus on the task at hand.

Like Obama or loathe him, as you choose: but you can’t vote for him this year. Concentrate on the people you CAN vote for instead.

Mr. Blunt and Cranky

Who Cares who Alison Lundergan Grimes Voted For?

Bitchy Mitchy McConnell tells a lot of lies. A LOT of lies. But a very subtle and sneaky one jumped out at this humble blogger during the lone debate with his Democratic challenger: he said Americans have no right to a secret ballot:

Grimes stuck to her days-long refusal to say if she voted for Obama in 2008 and 2012. She insisted that if she answered the question, it would “compromise a constitutional right” to cast a secret ballot.

McConnell quickly scoffed at that. “There’s no sacred right to not announce how you voted,” he said, seated next to Grimes for an hour-long debate hosted by KET, the state’s public television station.

There is indeed no explicit Constitutional right to a secret ballot: because Boards of Election need to track voters and ballots to prevent fraud. But that’s the only place where your right to voting privacy is limited.

But old Jerkle the Turtle goes a step further: not only does he not think you have a right to privacy in the voting booth, he thinks you can be forced to reveal your votes if any old yahoo asks you. This is some truly, scarily insidious, authoritarian, big-government s*** here, folks: “Republicans” think they can force you to tell them how you voted, and that you have no right to privacy.

It’s of a piece with GOP philosophy: they hates them some Fourth Amendment. Repubs think the government should be able to wiretap you, arrest you, torture you, dictate your medical care, and monitor your sex life. So voting rights are likewise non-starters for Big Brother Motherf***ers like McConnell and the rest of his party. Once again, Gentle Reader: Repubs think you have no right to privacy.

We should all of us applaud Ms. Grimes’ strong stand on privacy, and support her right to not say for whom she voted. This seems obvious, but even some Democrats are saying she should tell us all how she voted. Poppy-f***ing-cock. She has the same privacy rights as the rest of us, and we should all have her back on this issue – because we all are in the same boat. Want to be forced to tell your boss how you voted, or your parents, or a “news” organization? This writer does not, and you shouldn’t have to, either.

This election isn’t just about candidates, folks: it’s about our freedom from Big Government Repubs and their NSA-Patriot Act-Morals Police-Brute Squad vision of America. We all need to vote against any candidate who would take away our rights, and support any candidate who supports our rights.

Your humble correspondent doesn’t give a single turd from a tufted titmouse’s ass how Ms. Grimes voted. It’s her right to keep it private, and good on her for asserting that right.

Mr. Blunt and Cranky

Preacher with Man-Boobs wants to outlaw Woman-Boobs.

This skidmark on the underwear of Christianity clearly has a great rack:

But having a nice pair up there isn’t enough validation for this preacherman. Evidently, he has an issue with female chests-perhaps because he secretly envies them? A sort of competitive instinct at work?

Whatever the reasons, this Fundagelical nutbar hates female nudity, and makes no bones about it.

An Ohio pro-family anti-abortion activist wants to ban all public nudity, including public breastfeeding, not just because he has a problem with female nudity, but because he’s convinced that it leads to “gay pride.”

Patrick Johnson, who’s the director of Personhood Ohio, called for a ban on all public nudity after topless dancers from a gentleman’s club protested at his church in support of strip clubs. Johnson’s church has campaigned against strip clubs and harassed customers for years.

“I am sick that women can legally bare their breasts to children and to married men against their will in Ohio,” Johnson wrote on his Facebook page after the protest.  He then told ABC, “I think when we allow women to flaunt their sexuality to the public, flaunt their nudity to the public, it’s harmful to marriage.”

First of all, “skin” is not “sexuality”. Whether it’s ol’ Patty Johnson that is mowing the grass while shirtless, flaunting his C-cup Man-boobies, or a suburban housewife who mows her grass shirtless because it’s too hot to do otherwise doesn’t make the lawn mowing a sex act. It’s just people taking care of the yard.

Nor is breastfeeding a sex act: if it were, a lot of people would be guilty of incest. Nope, it’s just a cheap and healthy way to feed an infant.

Male skin is not inherently less sexual than female skin (ask any gay man if you don’t believe it). Female skin is not necessarily sexier than male skin, either. It’s just the stuff that keeps all of our internal organs from falling onto the floor at inopportune moments. Hiding it serves no purpose.

Now, in this cretin’s diseased, violent, paranoid little brain, perhaps skin is sexualized. But since the rest of us are fortunate enough to not live in his brain, its contents should not dictate our actions. If he hates women and/or their breasts, he should Just. Not. Look. At. Them.

He has all the boobies he could ever want already, anyhow.

Mr. Blunt and Cranky

Reality, 2: Libertarianism, 0

In reality, Libertarianism NEVER works, because it is an overly simplistic theology, based on the erroneous assumption that we all have completely free choices at all times, free of any constraints. The ideas sometimes sound reasonable, but always fall apart when subjected to even the most cursory of examinations. Two examples today, since we haven’t time to write about them all:

Number A: cell phone usage on airplanes, currently not allowed. The policy is under review and in a public comments period (go here to weigh in with your opinion). A discussion erupted yesterday between those who are for and against, because, hey, Americans argue. The pro-loud-cellphone-user-everywhere Libertarians said, in brief, “tough s***, don’t fly. My right to dominate the space around me by bellowing into my Shoephone outweighs your right to sleep, concentrate, work, etc. ” When reasonable, rational adults attempted to point out that not everyone can just choose not to fly, the Libertarians kept saying “you chose this job, this family, this location to live, so AMFYOYO. Make different choices. Government should not be allowed to control my behavior.”

Letter 2: Libertarians think that men should not have to pay child support , since men have “no right to make reproductive choices”. This bit of twaddle is an offshoot of the “men’s rights” movement, which Libertarians love. They are demanding the ability to choose to default on their obligations because they assume that the women they impregnate have the free choice to raise or not raise the baby, get an abortion or not, etcetera. The idea that these are easy choices available to every woman, everywhere, at all times is obvious nitwittery, of course, but Libertarians hold onto it nonetheless. (They also ignore the fact that men DO have the right to make choices: we can wear condoms, get our tubes tied, or just not f*** with someone who can get pregnant.)

These are but two examples of the obvious bankruptcy of Libertarian theology (you can claim it’s not a religion, but is sure as Hell acts like one). There are many others, like certain Bitcoin adherents, regulatory opposition, preeves who want to be able to marry their daughters and so on. Their argument is always “freedom” and is predicated on the idea that we all have unlimited freedom of choice because we have no limitations placed upon us by external factors. That assumption is, of course, composed of very high-grade fertilizer (anyone here ever take Econ 101? Big takeaway: “resources are scarce”) and like all concentrated fertilizer, it blows up when subjected to pressure.

Real life for real people is fraught with resource scarcity and limited choices. That is why businesses exist, governments exist, houses and clothing exist, medicine exists, and so on. Hell, it’s why cellphones exist, ferchrissakes. We do not live in an ideal world, and our solutions to the imperfections that surround us are likewise imperfect and full of restrictions. That, Gentle Reader, is what we in the Reality-Based Community call “Life”. Real Life.

Libertarians can try all they want to make reality fit into their ideology, but they will fail; just like the Flat-Earthers, Birthers, Truthers, and Science Deniers. Reality will always win in the end, no matter how hard you fight against it.

Mr. Blunt and Cranky

Anti-Tax Zealots Almost Get Themselves Killed, then get Rescued by Tax-Funded Services.

And they STILL hate the United States and its taxes: http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/religious-family-leaves-us-lost-sea-19926919?page=2 Yes, even though several governments (including ours) saved their stupid, sorry, incompetent a**es, they still hate the country that gave them birth.

Hannah Gastonguay and her husband decided that it would be a spiffy idea to endanger themselves and their two preschool-aged daughters by setting sail for a Polynesian island, that presumably would not spend their tax money on anything they didn’t agree with. Amazingly stupid from the beginning, and they just got dumber as time went on.

As one of the tax-funded public servants who has been caring for their idiotic selves said, “”They were looking for a kind of adventure. They wanted to live on a Polynesian island but they didn’t have sufficient expertise to navigate adequately”. They ran out of food, got lost, and were saved by sailors, ships, and helicopters, at least partly paid for by the governments of Venezuela, Japan, Chile, and the United States.

And the family’s response to this demonstration of the positive impact of government and the taxes that find them?

“Hannah Gastonguay said the family will now “go back to Arizona” and “come up with a new plan.”

Yep, they haven’t changed their minds one bit. This is what happens when religion, parenting, and sailing are done by the blind, moronic, and willfully pig-ignorant.

Mr. Blunt and Cranky