Insane Overreaction of the Day

Since the shootings in Connecticut last Friday, a lot of people have come up with ideas for making the country a safer place. Sadly, most of these ideas can be summed up in two words: MORE GUNS!

  

I know I feel safer!

But a police chief in Arkansas has come up with the most insane idea so far. (second-most-insane if you count Megan McArdle)

His idea? More cops on foot patrol.

That doesn't sound crazy, does it? Well, I kinda left part out.

"[Police are] going to be in SWAT gear and have AR-15s around their neck," [Police Chief Todd] Stovall said. "If you're out walking, we're going to stop you, ask why you're out walking, check for your ID."

Instead of "more cops on foot patrol," I should have said "going full Gestapo."

 

Stovall said while some people may be offended by the actions of his department, they should not be.

Oh. You're right, I shouldn't be offended. I should be horrified.

"To ask you for your ID, I have to have a reason," he said. "Well, I've got statistical reasons that say I've got a lot of crime right now, which gives me probable cause to ask what you're doing out. Then when I add that people are scared...then that gives us even more [reason] to ask why are you here and what are you doing in this area."

So, you get people all riled up about how much crime you have, then use the up-riling to justify turning your town into 1960's Leningrad?

 

Mayor Gaskill wholeheartedly endorsed the plan. . . "[Residents] may not be doing anything but walking their dog, but they're going to have to prove it," Gaskill said.

And when you can't prove that all you're doing is walking your dog, and honestly, how could you possibly prove that, then what? I'm going to assume shoot on sight because, well, this town seems to be run by horrible horrible people.

I wonder what the city's attorneys told the police chief and the mayor about this insane little plan?

Tellingly, Chief Stovall admitted that city officials did not consult any attorneys while drafting their draconian plan. Stovall even admitted that there isn't much, if any, difference between his plan and martial law. "I don't know that there's a difference," he confessed.

 

So, what reason could you possibly have for enacting a plan that you admit is basically martial law?

"This fear is what's given us the reason to do this," Stovall explained. "Once I have stats and people saying they're scared, we can do this."

 

Might want to steer clear of Arkansas for a while!

Meet Your Newest Senator

So South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley 


(maybe?)

has named a successor to teabagging nutbag Jim DeMint.
And it is not Stephen Colbert.

It's Congressman Tim Scott of SC's first district.

 

No?

Take two.

It's Tim Scott!

 

really? 

 

Okay then.

So I don't know anything about this Tim Scott, and I'm guessing many of you are in the same boat. So let's see what we can learn about him. Let's start with his website.

 In a way it's sorta admirable that he hasn't scrubbed his website of this:

The Constitution grants all law-abiding Americans the right to bear arms, regardless of what some would lead you to believe. Our Second Amendment right is a fundamental freedom and a cornerstone of our democracy. 

in the wake of recent tragedies. Well, not admirable, but at least he's consistently a gun-humping asshole.

Although, it's odd that if you click on the "2nd Amendment Rights" link (which is first on the list of issues)the one article that comes up is this:

2nd Amendment Rights

This Week in Washington

Apr 17, 2012 Blog

This week the House will take up the Small Business Tax Cut Act (HR 9), introduced by Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA). This bill will extend a 20 percent tax cut to American small businesses, which breaks down to more than 77,000 South Carolina...

View All on 2nd Amendment Rights »

Even if you click on this:

View All on 2nd Amendment Rights » 

All you get is the same article, also ending at the elipses, so we'll never know what's to become of 77,000 South Carolina something or others.

Congressman Tim Scott has "American Values." What are they? Let's let him explain:

American Values

Home » Legislative Work » Issues » American Values

Our nation was founded by those who believed in faith and freedom. Too often, Americans who are proud of their faith and the values it instills find themselves under attack. Government should be protecting our right to religious freedom, not assaulting it. 

He bravely stands up to non-existent threats to religious freedom. That's impressive.

I cosponsored two pro-life bills which have now passed the House of Representatives, the No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act and the Protect Life Act.

Boldly proposing legislation that does the same thing as the Hyde Amendment! Which is still in place, so this bill accomplishes nothing.

 I also supported legislation, the Respect for Rights of Conscience Act, to repeal part of the national health care reform law that violates the freedom of religion granted to us by the First Amendment.

Repealing the part that doesn't exist! Brilliant!

Government is already overreaching into our homes and businesses

 I also support traditional marriage, and spoke out against the President’s decision to no longer allow the Department of Justice to defend the Defense of Marriage Act in court.  I absolutely believe in keeping the institution of marriage as one solely between a man and woman.  

Government is already overreaching into our homes! We must get them to overreach into those people's homes instead!

I regard all life as sacred, and am proud of our values and traditions.  For this reason I will remain steadfast in my commitment to protect the unborn and continue to take a stand in defending traditional and religious values. 

He regards all life as sacred. Hmm, I wonder if that might end up seeming ironic at all. . .

Tim Scott also supported the GOP-dominated state legislature's proposal to slash the state's entire HIV/AIDS budget, including funding to the critical AIDS Drug Assistance Program. South Carolina has the 8th highest HIV rate in the nation.

Oh.

What else?

Voted NO on removing US armed forces from Afghanistan.

Of course he did. What better way to show your belief in the sanctity of all human life than to support the continuation of senseless death and carnage.

Maybe by co-sponsoring pro-gun accumulation legislation?

Official Summary

1/24/2012--Introduced.Prohibits the use of federal funds to require a person licensed to deal in firearms to report information to the Department of Justice (DOJ) regarding the sale of multiple rifles or shotguns to the same person. 

Sponsor

Representative
Justin Amash R-MI

Co-Sponsors

• Rep. Tim Scott [R, SC-1]
  Added February 03, 2012

Oh, dear.

So, meet the new nut. Same as the old nut.

Creepy Ads

Anyone else think this guy is marrying the mom to get at the daughter?

I'm pretty sure the "open-heart-surgery" necklace is meant to be a romantic type gift, even though it is a  butt-ugly tacky piece of costume jewelry. And he's giving the little girl the same one as the mom? And telling her about how glad he is that she came into his life? While sitting on the swingset? I think he's about to ask her to go steady!




The ad for "Dream Lites" seems designed to give me nightmares.






First of all, that is the spookiest song I've heard since the "One, Two Freddie's coming for you" song from A Nightmare on Elm Street. And then the animal projects some disembodied face onto the ceiling, grinning its hideous grin down at the child, just waiting for him to fall asleep.

Orange County is the Missouri of California

Todd Akin isn't the only asshole who thinks he knows things about womens' bodies and "legitimate rape."

Calif. judge says victims' body can prevent rape

"I'm not a gynecologist, but I can tell you something: If someone doesn't want to have sexual intercourse, the body shuts down. The body will not permit that to happen unless a lot of damage is inflicted, and we heard nothing about that in this case," Johnson said. 

Not a gynecologist. Or a halfway-decent human being, apparently.

I wonder if there's any way he could make this worse?

That tells me that the victim in this case, although she wasn't necessarily willing, she didn't put up a fight. And to treat this case like the rape cases that we all hear about is an insult to victims of rape. I think it's an insult. I think it trivializes a rape.

So, if the rapist holds a gun on his victim so that she has to not fight back in order to survive, that doesn't count?

Is that what happened in this case?

Johnson made the comments in the case of a man who threatened to mutilate the face and genitals of his ex-girlfriend with a heated screwdriver, beat her with a metal baton and made other violent threats before committing rape, forced oral copulation, and other crimes.

So, I assume that this horrible disgusting person has been removed from the bench? Disbarred? Tarred and feathered?

 The California Commission on Judicial Performance voted 10-0 to impose a public admonishment Thursday, saying Superior Court Judge Derek Johnson's comments were inappropriate and a breach of judicial ethics.

Oh, God Damn It! Seriously? An admonishment?
 Is it maybe that he made these disgusting comments but then threw the book at the rapist anyway? Please be that.

Johnson said he believed the prosecutor's request of a 16-year sentence was not authorized by law. Johnson sentenced the rapist to six years instead, saying that's what the case was "worth."

I give up.

Idiotic Quote of the Day (non-school-shooting-related)

Because I don't want to think about guns and kids getting killed anymore, a reminder that Steve King (R-Idiculous) is still the looniest idiot in Congress (Sorry, Ms Bachmann)

“I believe that it’s a lot bigger than Watergate, and if you link Watergate and Iran-Contra together and multiply it times maybe 10 or so, you’re going to get in the zone where Benghazi is,” Mr. King said. “I don’t think the public has any idea, and I tell you, I don’t either, of the chronology of the events — what took place, and who was where doing what and why. And all the way down through — we still haven’t seen an autopsy report on the ambassador yet. Simple questions that you would ask in the first 24 hours have not been asked yet.”

I don't have any idea what happened, but I know that it is 10 times worse than Watergate multiplied by Iran-Contra. Wow! Just stunning. Just let that sink in for a moment. Can you imagine a stupider thing anyone could possibly say on any subject?