It’s been a while since a participated in the Daily Prompt. Although I’m sure you’ve all had withdrawals, I commend you for your perseverance for, uh, persevering through those tough times. But I’m back, and I’m here to alleviate your pain. Or add to it, depending on your point of view. Eh, fuck it.
Here goes nothing.
Well, we made it. Against all odds. It’s the final day of 2012. It will be 2013 in a matter of hours.
Query: Will every Friday in 2013 be Friday the 13th?
Answer: It better fucking not be!
So now that the year is pretty much finished, let’s recap what we learned in 2012:
“I felt a great disturbance in the Force, as if millions of voices suddenly cried out in terror, and were suddenly silenced. I fear something terrible has happened.”
Hello. My name is Inigo Montoya. You are wearing a hoodie. Prepare to die.
Deep fry me? Aw, shit.
Well, there you have it. We have become a much more intelligent species in the past year, as the above bullet points prove.
On a more serious note, I would like to thank all of you following me for, you know, following me and reading the crap I publish on an almost daily basis. I’d also like to thank those bloggers who offered words of encouragement when I shared my personal struggles, specifically Elyse, Nikki, and Life With the Top Down.
I’d like to wish you all a very happy and safe New Year.
Happy New Year, bitches!
Man. I haven’t done one of these posts in forever, mainly because they take so long to do. Someone once told me she loved these posts and liked to see my opinion on all the different things in the news, so here goes:
This is Robert Griffin III. He sure looks black to me. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Really? Aren’t skinny jeans bad enough?
It’s Jodi, not Lodi. Good thing it’s the thought that counts, huh? Or is that only for presents?
What the hell is this? It looks like she’s wearing a clear plastic bag over a 1940′s era bikini.
And there you have it. That’s all the randomness I can handle today. My head is spinning and my stomach is yelling at me because I should’ve eaten lunch a couple of hours ago. Hope you enjoyed it!
Bob Costas. He just looks like an arrogant prick. (Photo courtesy of LA Times)
Jovan Belcher (Photo courtesy of LA Times)
I’ve been trying not to bring this up because I just wrote a post about the 2nd amendment, but I just can’t NOT talk about it anymore.
I’m sure, by now, that most everyone has heard something about Bob Costas and his anti-gun speech during his halftime segment on Sunday Night Football.
For those of you in the dark, let me start from the beginning. This past Saturday, Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Jovan Belcher shot and killed his girlfriend, and baby momma, Kasandra Perkins Saturday morning. He then drove to the Chiefs’ facility where he committed suicide in front of team officials by shooting himself in the head.
Before I start in on Costas, I’ll be up front and let you know that I’ve never really cared for him. I don’t like his commentating style, or the way he always seems so effin’ smug. I just don’t like him. Now? I can’t effin’ stand him.
So here’s what Costas had to say, courtesy of the LA Times:
“You knew it was coming. In the aftermath of the nearly unfathomable events in Kansas City, that most mindless of sports clichés was heard yet again, ‘Something like this really puts it all in perspective.’ Well if so, that sort of perspective has a very short shelf life since we will inevitably hear about the perspective we have supposedly again regained the next time ugly reality intrudes upon our games. Please. Those who need tragedies to continually recalibrate their sense of proportion about sports, would seem to have little hope of ever truly achieving perspective.
“You want some actual perspective on this? Well a bit of it comes from the Kansas City-based writer Jason Whitlock, with whom I do not always agree but who today, said it so well that we may as well just quote or paraphrase from the end of his article. “Our current gun culture,” Whitlock wrote, “ensures that more and more domestic disputes will end in the ultimate tragedy, and that more convenience store confrontations over loud music coming from a car will leave more teenage boys bloodied and dead. Handguns do not enhance our safety. They exacerbate our flaws, tempt us to escalate arguments, and bait us into embracing confrontation rather than avoiding it. In the coming days, Jovan Belcher’s actions, and its possible connection to football, will be analyzed. Who knows? But here is what I believe, If Jovan Belcher didn’t possess a gun, he and Kasandra Perkins would both be alive today.”
My first problem with this is bringing in a hot political topic into sports. Is the fact that Belcher killed Perkins and himself sports-related news? Yes, but the editorial on gun control is not needed. That’s what CNN or MSNBC is for. Or Fox News, if that’s your cup of tea. Football Night in America is NOT where expect to find any sort of political commentary. Nor should I.
Secondly, Costas agrees with, and quotes, Jason Whitlock, who is normally as level-headed a sports reporter as there is. However, this time Jason, and thus Bob Costas, are both dead wrong. Our current gun culture, as Whitlock refers to it, is NOT ensuring that more and more domestic disputes end in the ultimate tragedy. If any culture ensures that I would venture to say it’s the hip-hop culture, a culture that advocates the thug life and solving things with guns and violence. I know many gun-owners and they are not violent people and don’t have criminal records and wouldn’t hurt a soul without provocation. There are a plethora of reasons these people own guns. Some collect them. Some enjoy shooting. Some have them for protection. Others have them for hunting. And some have them for all of the reasons listed above. But they don’t just randomly kill people because of some imagined gun culture or just because they have one.
Then, Whitlock, and Costas by quoting him, contend that “handguns do not enhance our safety. They exacerbate our flaws, tempt us to escalate arguments, and bait us into embracing confrontation rather than avoiding it.” This is an idiotic statement if I’ve ever heard one. Handguns in the hands of law-abiding citizens enhance the safety of said law-abiding citizen by providing a means of protection from those who don’t abide by our laws. And let’s face it, there are a lot of criminals out there preying on unsuspecting citizens. Moreover, owning a gun exacerbates no one’s flaws and does not tempt anyone to escalate arguments. Violent people are going to be violent no matter if they possess a gun or not. Peruse YouTube for a bit and do a search for fighting. You’ll find thousands, if not millions, of videos of all kinds of idiots fighting for inane reasons. And you’ll find that guns are not the reason those situations escalated. Most of the time you’ll find that it’s stupid people arguing over stupid shit. Embracing confrontation, Jason? No, people don’t back down or avoid confrontation today because they are more afraid of being called a pussy than of getting their ass kicked. Peer pressure is a bitch, isn’t it?
Then Whitlock, and Costas by extension, say the dumbest thing yet. That if Belcher didn’t have a gun that he and Perkins would still be alive. Really? I mean, really? How could you possible know that with absolute certainty? You both were speaking without the facts. Since you both weighed in on this topic without getting the facts first, consider this; since you both opined on this incident it has been reported that Belcher and Perkins were having a pretty intense argument prior to the shooting. Are you two both positive that the only reason Belcher grew angry enough to kill Perkins is because he had a gun? Or could it possibly be that Perkins had so enraged Belcher (rightly or wrongly) that he would have used anything at his disposal to kill her?
I find it both naive and stupid to blame an inanimate object for a person’s actions. Blaming Belcher’s gun for Belcher’s actions is like blaming my fork for me eating too much. A gun cannot think. It cannot speak. It certainly doesn’t have its own agenda. It most certainly didn’t say to Belcher, “You know what? I’m tired of this shit. Shoot her. Nine times.” A gun is like a computer or a TV. It only does what you tell it to. The trigger doesn’t pull itself. Somebody has to make a conscious decision to do so.
Instead of attacking our “gun culture,” why don’t you attack our violent culture instead? A culture that embraces and glorifies violence. MMA. UFC. Boxing. Hollywood blockbusters from which most of the entertainment is derived from violent encounters. Or why don’t you attack parenting? Most violent people are raised to embrace violence by their parents. The finger could be pointed in a multitude of directions, but is instead being pointed at the one thing that can’t possibly be faulted. The gun. I’m not going to make any absolute statements like Costas or Whitlock, but I don’t feel like I’m going out on a limb by saying that if Belcher had a Louisville Slugger instead of a gun he would’ve murdered her with that. Once he was to the point where murder was his intent he would’ve used whatever was within his grasp to carry it out. It just so happened that he had a gun.
Again, maybe gun control reform is needed. And maybe it isn’t. But one thing’s for sure: guns are not responsible for what they are used for. Violent people are going to be violent whether they have a gun or not. Murderers will find a way to murder without a gun if they can’t get one. This was indeed a terrible tragedy, but the fault for this lies with Belcher and Belcher alone. It’s not the gun’s fault.
And now, I’ll leave you with a few memes insired by Bob’s idiotic intrusion into the halftime show.
This one really drives the point home.
There has been much ado about the 2nd amendment in the past year or so. There has been much speculation that Obama, without fear of NOT getting re-elected, will use his second term to attempt to repeal the 2nd amendment. For those of you too slow to keep up, the 2nd amendment grants US citizens the right to bear arms.
Gun abolitionists use every killing spree as evidence that guns should be banned while supporters of the 2nd amendment stand by it as a constitutional right that cannot and should not be taken away. They also point towards the crime statistics of the UK, which skyrocketed after they abolished guns a few years ago. After all, guns don’t kill people. People with damaged brains and guns kill people.
Like this guy. He’s slightly deranged.
Our founding fathers originally added the second amendment to our constitution as a means to defend freedom from a tyrannical government. Namely ours. Many supporters of the 2nd amendment take this to heart. I personally know one person who is stocking up guns and ammunition in anticipation of the coming revolution. I don’t know what revolution is coming and if there is one brewing I hope it’s avoided. I’d hate for this country to suffer through another civil war. I’d hate it even more if it happens in my lifetime. Or my children’s lifetime.
We definitely don’t need to do this again.
I don’t wish for our right to bear arms to be used for a revolution, although I don’t disagree that drastic changes need to be made in the way our country operates.
But Twindaddy, you support the 2nd amendment. Why do you support it if you don’t agree with the founding fathers?
I’m glad you asked, dearest reader. This is why…
This is obviously a satirical video, but hopefully you understood it’s point. Unfortunately, there are evil people out there who would rob you, rape you, beat you, or kill you for their own nonsensical and deranged reasons. I believe the 2nd amendment provides you with a means to defend yourself and that means should not be taken away. Let’s face it. Anyone who believes that criminals won’t be able to obtain firearms if they are outlawed is foolish or naive. Or both. Abolition of alcohol certainly didn’t stop people from making and distributing it. The abolition of marijuana and other illegal drugs certainly doesn’t stop addicts and potheads from obtaining them. Make no mistake, if guns are outlawed criminals will still have them and you, the law-abiding citizen, will not. And how will you defend yourself when an armed robber fearlessly invades your home knowing you have no way to shoot back? His pistol has a longer reach than your Louisville Slugger I bet.
If a robber with a gun breaks into your home what would you rather have? This or your own gun?
Should there be stricter gun laws? Probably. In some states it’s all-too-easy to obtain a firearm legally. As my blogging buddy Elyse over at Fifty-Four and a Half has repeatedly declared, a psychiatric test should be administered in addition to a background check when you attempt to buy a firearm. I have to agree with her. Most of these people that go on killing sprees have some sort of mental illness.
I’ll admit that I don’t have all the answers when it comes to gun control. I don’t know how to solve the problem. But I do know that taking guns away from law-abiding citizens will make this country a more dangerous place to live. Especially since die-hard NRA and 2nd amendment supporters will likely NOT give up their firearms without a fight. And then we WILL have a civil war on our hands.
So, please, folks. Give up on abolishing guns. It is not the answer.
Illinois may grant driver’s licenses to illegal immigrants – Yahoo! News.
Okay, what the fuck? Is it not enough that people enter this country illegally? Now, we are going to offer them driver’s licenses because they account for over 80,000 uninsured crashes a year?
How about instead of rewarding these people for breaking the law we send them back to wherever the fuck they came from?
I don’t even know how you offer a driver’s license to an illegal immigrant undocumented worker. How does an illegal immigrant undocumented worker even prove they are who they say they are? When I initially got my driver’s license I had to provide my birth certificate and social security card. How is an illegal immigrant undocumented worker going to do this? They obviously won’t have a social security card and even if they have a birth certificate how can you verify its authenticity? These people can make up any name they want to. What’s to stop them from getting multiple driver’s licenses?
Furthermore, how do you verify their age? What’s to stop an 18-year-old illegal immigrant undocumented worker from telling the DMV that he or she is 21 so that he or she can buy alcohol? What’s to stop a 15-year-old illegal immigrant undocumented worker from saying he or she is 18 so he or she can buy cigarettes?
Where does the line get drawn? Does it ever get drawn?
I congratulate (term used loosely) Illinois for recognizing that there is a problem with illegal immigrants undocumented workers causing so many problems on their roads, but their solution is idiotic. Instead of enabling these illegal immigrants undocumented workers to continue breaking federal law, perhaps you should be finding these illegal immigrants undocumented workers and sending them back where they came from. Not only will that get them off of Illinois roads, but it will also keep them from costing our hospitals money they don’t have, taking jobs from legal citizens (documented workers?), and getting any other forms of government assistance that they are NOT entitled to as citizens of another country.
Quit pandering to these people just for a fucking vote!!
Fuck! Why am I not pissed off?!?! (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
As I mentioned in an earlier post, I’m now taking anti-depressant medication. Since I’ve started it I’ve noticed that I am not as angry a person as I used to be, which is good for me. However, it’s bad for my blog. My rants, which I think were some of my greatest posts, are hard to come by because hardly anything gets me worked up any more.
This was me prior to being medicated. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Even with all the stupid shit going on with the election, Bengazi, and the CIA director resigning because of an affair (who cares?) the anger which would have led to ranting blog posts on those subjects is no longer there. Because of that, I’m having a hard time finding things to write about.
Maybe I just need to get back into the writing practice, or maybe apathy (indifference?) is just something I’ll have to live with. Either way, I’m not really complaining. Just saying. I’m not really all that angry any more and it really doesn’t bother me.
I’ll try to get my creative juices flowing again to get some fictional and humor writing going, but my rants might be a thing of the past.
Oh well. Gotta take the good with the bad, I guess.
I know some people are going to come on here and scream about tougher gun laws, but no law can regulate stupid. Owning a gun comes with a lot of responsibility. The biggest of which is ensuring that the firearm is not within reach of a child. I’m a firm believer that every US citizen has the right to defend him or herself with a firearm against criminals who get their firearms by bypassing current gun laws, but those citizens should exercise some common sense.
I’m just glad it wasn’t the 3-year old who paid the ultimate price for his father’s stupidity.
Hey, I have an idea. Instead of searching for who’s to blame or where things went wrong why don’t we look for solutions instead?
Thomas Jefferson, the principal author of the Declaration (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
On this day 236 years ago, the second continental congress formally adopted the Declaration of Independence. The 13 British-American colonies had in essence put their proverbial middle fingers up in the air, and wagged them at that island across the pond.
Our founding fathers then created the United States of America, a nation founded upon the ideals of religious freedom, freedom of speech, the right to peaceably assemble, limited governmental power, armed citizens, unreasonable search and seizure, and states’ rights.
As great as this nation is, it seems to me our founding fathers are probably rolling over in their graves after seeing what they fought for has become.
Our founding fathers decreed that American citizens would be free to practice their own religions, and also to have its government separated from religion. However, our national motto is, “In God we Trust.” It appears on our currency and has done so since 1957. For the longest time prayer was allowed in our public schools. In 1954 the phrase “one nation under God” was added to the Pledge of Allegiance.
In today’s society we have right-wing Republicans proposing laws that would affect all citizens which have a background in their religious beliefs. Anti-abortion laws, birth control laws, and the ban on gay marriage all come to mind.
The right to peaceably assemble was infringed upon last year in multiple cities as police forces nation-wide descended on Occupy Wall Street protests and often times forcibly removed the protesters with excessive force.
Our founding fathers vision of a federal government with limited power is succumbing to a government that is large, unwieldy, and out of control. The latest such example is Obamacare, which mandates that all citizens must purchase private health insurance. Other recent examples are corporate bail-outs of banks and car companies, cash-for-clunkers, ludicrous taxes on junk food, and forcing a school child to buy a school lunch when the lunch the child brought from home was deemed unhealthy by the school.
The government is meant to serve the people, not tell them how to live their lives. If a strict diet of Twinkies makes me happy, I shouldn’t be unreasonably taxed in my pursuit of happiness. The same goes for smoking cigarettes or drinking alcohol.
Our founding fathers also believed in armed citizens to not only protect themselves from threats from outside of the country but also within. Their belief was that citizens could use firearms to defend themselves against a government that had become too tyrannical, which our government is in danger of becoming. Instead, gun laws become stricter and more cumbersome by the day. Many believe Obama, if re-elected, will move to erase the 2nd amendment and thus make owning a firearm illegal. What’s the saying? If guns are outlawed only outlaws will have guns? I know that would make me sleep much better at night.
Illegal search and seizure was also a concern of our founding fathers and they made sure that our constitution addressed that and made it illegal. However, ever since the creation of Homeland Security that amendment has been tossed out the window. All Homeland Security has to do is declare you’re a suspected terrorist and they can do whatever they want to you. They can search your house, steal confiscate your belongings, or detain you indefinitely and there’s nothing you can do about it. You have no legal recourse, either.
I’ve gone off on a tangent on a day that we should be celebrating this great nation, but at present I fear the direction this country is going. I truly love this country and what it’s supposed to stand for, but the ideals this country was founded on are being threatened by extremists from the left and right.
My illogical rant is over now. Happy Independence Day, folks. I hope you had a good one.
Rep. Gutierrez rips Arizona immigration law | The Ticket – Yahoo! News.
I didn’t know who Luis V. Gutierrez was before I read this article (he’s a Democratic senator representative from Illinois), but in addition to now knowing who he is I know an additional fact about him: he’s stupid.
Per the linked article, Gutierrez is using idiotic commentary to voice his displeasure with the Arizona immigration law. He used Justin Bieber and Selena Gomez as his defense. Seriously. Here’s what he had to say:
“I’m sure Justin helped Gomez learn American customs and feel more at home in her adopted country. Oh, wait a minute, I’m sorry. Because I’m not a trained Arizona official, I somehow got that backwards. Actually, Ms. Gomez of Texas has helped Mr. Bieber of Canada learn about his adopted country. Justin, when you perform in Phoenix, remember to bring your papers.”
Yes, Justin, remember to bring your papers. Seriously. You’re required by Federal law, not state law, to do so.
Dear, Mr. Gutierrez, no one is training Arizona officials or police officers to be able to look at a person and tell whether or not they’re in this country illegally. That’s one of the dumbest rebuttals to this law I’ve heard to date. All they’ve been given is the ability to ask for proof of citizenship. That’s it. If you’re a citizen or legal immigrant this law will only inconvenience you for the two seconds it takes to whip out your wallet and pull out your ID or green card.
I’m baffled by all of the people who oppose this law that turn it into a racial profiling issue. Nowhere does it state that this law applies only to Latinos. The law gives police officers the right to ask anybody for proof of citizenship during routine police business. Routine being if you’re pulled over for speeding. Or you’re involved in a bar fight. Or the cops are called to your house for some reason or another. Or you’ve witnessed an accident. Or whatever other routine things cops do on a daily basis.
This does not give police carte blanche to just start pulling over Latinos and asking for papers. They must be there for some other legitimate reason first before they can ask for them.
This law does not specify that only Latinos can be asked for their papers, and I’m kind of tired of people, Latinos in particular, thinking that this law is directed at them. Plenty of people from plenty of other countries try to sneak into our country as well. Mostly using the same paths that immigrants from Mexico use.
Honestly, the only people that need to worry about this law are the people who are in this country illegally. Everybody else will just show the cop their ID, green card, or driver’s license and will have a nice rest of the afternoon.
Get real, people.
