Huffington Post Comments, 12/3/2012

Good news!

Its time once again to see what the friendly commenters at the Huffington Post have said in response to your sweet, lovable, warm, and fuzzy blog author!

oneblessedman

All true. It was the party's far right ball and chain tied to Romney's foot. But, old Mitt didn't help by picking lyin Ryan, the tax thing, or his constant flip flops. He seemed all to scripted and out of touch. 

Me:

Can you name one "lie" Paul Ryan has told? Just because you don't like a politician does not mean that he/she lies.

Patty Flaherty 

Washing clean pots and pans wearing a pristine apron in a homeless shelter for the photo-op comes to mind. 

Me:

How is a photo-op a lie?

A lie would be me saying that I am 6'4".

Being misleading would be standing on a box next to a ruler that shows I'm 6'4".

Photo-ops, all of them, are misleading, not lies.

Cool name though.

***

Me:

Can you name one "lie" Paul Ryan has told? Just because you don't like a politician does not mean that he/she lies.

Katrin55

He lied about his marathon times and was caught out and had to back-pedal. He also perpetuated the whole Medicaid/medicare lie (Obama's stealing $700 billion, etc.) that even Fox News finally admitted wasn't true. He said publicly that "rape is rape" yet supported the "legitimate rape" idea privately in a bill outlawing all abortions and creating personhood for fetuses. He also perpetuated the "Obama's ending work requirements to receive welfare" lie. Oh, and he's bad at math, which isn't a lie, but should be a disqualifier for working on fiscal reform.

Me:

I'm afraid that I did not follow him close enough to know that he even ran marathons. Could you give a source for how he lied about specific marathon times? Isn't it possible that what he claimed for one marathon time was true, but he had a different time for a different marathon?

It seems to me that the $716 billion that we are talking about comes from two sides arguing over projections of money spent. Obama's interpretation of Obamacare is that Medicare spending will go down. The republican's interpretation is that Obamacare will take some spending that would have otherwise gone to medicare. I don't see a lie here, more of a debate over what will happen with the 2000+ pages of Obamacare. Its so big and complex there are different interpretations.

Claiming "rape is rape" and opposing abortion is not lying. At worst it is being inconsistent. It seems that Ryan thinks "rape is rape" and abortion is bad. Where's the "lie"?

The welfare work requirements could be a lie, I have not researched it.

How is he bad at math? If it were up to me, I'd remove the president and everyone in congress in the past 3 years because they did not pass any budget and are therefore incompetent.

 ***

Me:

Can you name one "lie" Paul Ryan has told? Just because you don't like a politician does not mean that he/she lies.

girlwild

Don't let the facts hit you in the rear.  

Me:

Thanks for all of the facts that you posted in your comment.

A claim was made that a person was a lair.

I asked when did he lie?

How is your claim enlightening, or interesting, or useful in determining weather or not the person in question has lied?

 ***

Me:

Can you name one "lie" Paul Ryan has told? Just because you don't like a politician does not mean that he/she lies.

strothersgirl03

If you tried watching something besides Fox "news",

you wouldn't have needed to ask. 

Me:

Here we have a situation where someone who did NOT vote for Romney/ Ryan asked a reasonable question: where has Ryan lied? And instead of listing places that he lied, or arguing that what he says is misleading, you have decided to insult me.

If your goal was to convince someone, me or someone reading these comments, that your opinions are correct do you think that your insult presents a good argument for your side?

BTW, I have not turned on a tv since November of 2011.

 ***
Me:

Can you name one "lie" Paul Ryan has told? Just because you don't like a politician does not mean that he/she lies.

oneblessedman

I do you better and name 3 lies.   Ryan said #1The Affordable Care Act is a government takeover of healthcare. #2 President Obama promised unemployment below 8 percent #3 President Obama disrespected Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu....all proven falsehoods and there are many more. Question for you...Why couldn't he win his own state?

Me:

#1 How is a law that interferes with preventative care, requires government run insurance exchanges, creates rules for pre-existing conditions, etc... not government interfering (otherwise known as taking over) the decisions made in healthcare?

#2 A report from the Obama administration projected that unemployment would be much below 8% so long as we passed the stimulus.

http://otrans.3cdn.net/ee40602f9a7d8172b8_ozm6bt5oi.pdf

We have seen our unemployment, just barely below 8%. And that is only if you ignore all of the people who have dropped out of the workforce because they cannot find a job.

#3 Could you be more specific?

If you are wondering why Wisconsin voted for the democrat in this past election (just like every election for more than the last 25 years) despite Paul Ryan being on the ticket, then I'll give you my perspective. I, a Wisconsinite, did not vote for Romney because I did not want to vote for someone who signed socialized healthcare into law and who favors gun control.

Romney is moderate on the issues and many of us on the right did not want to vote for someone who would have been only marginally better than Obama. (As hard as that is to believe possible.)

http://spootville.blogspot.com/2012/11/lets-look-at-good-news.html

***

js58

I disagree. Huntsman was by far the better candidate. Perhaps not to the lunacy of the Republican Party. 

Me:

By "better candidate" do you mean most democrat-like candidate? If so then you are correct.

Shauni Waterdragon

No, by "better candidate" js58 means, "not crazy" and "not sketchy". Means a Republican an Independent like myself could consider voting for. 

Me:

Are you saying that all of the potential republican candidates, excepting Huntsman, are "crazy" and/ or "sketchy"?

Forgive me for asking this, have you ever voted for a republican for president? 

***

Me:

By "better candidate" do you mean most democrat-like candidate? If so then you are correct.

traffic

If, by "most democrat-like canidate" you mean sane, then YOU are correct.

Me:

Why would you suggest that all of the other potential republican nominees are insane?

I dislike Obama and, it seems, all of the democrats but I don't think that any of them are insane. Some of them are quite a bit dim:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zNZczIgVXjg

But not insane. You would have to be a bit odd to run for public office.

Thanks for the compliment. I'm always correct.

http://spootville.blogspot.com/

Gun Free Zones

The Best American President

Many people list Washington, Lincoln, FDR, and Regan as our best presidents ever.  I disagree.  My favorite president did not let states secede when it was their right to (Lincoln), they did not add all sorts of new taxes and government spending (FDR) and they did not run up huge budget deficits (Regan).

Despite being all around awesome, this president is rarely remembered.

William Henry Harrison

You probably don't remember him.  He was president in the early 1800s, and isn't known for much.  But that is what made him great!

He did not:

• Add entitlements
• Increase our debt
• Add government departments
• Start "wars on poverty" or "drugs"
• Add restrictive workplace rules, like OSHA
• Pass minimum wage laws
• Get us involved in foreign wars
• Create the federal reserve
• Support women's suffrage
• Raise taxes
• Increase spending
• Ban 16oz sodas
• Encourage class envy
• and many more!

He was responsible for none of the awful policies were have come to expect from our national government.  When our government does something, we know that no good will come of it.

Harrison was different.  He died thirty-two days into his term...before he could do any of the awful stuff all other presidents seem to do.

Three cheers for William Henry Harrison!

Had he signed a balanced budget into law, he would have been perfect.

Twits

Hey! I'm on twitter!

@eltim164

Do I ever say anything interesting/ amusing there?

Occasionally.

Watermelon in Easter Hay

A TV Challenge

I challenge those of you who read this to not turn on a tv for a month.  I've now gone 13 months without turning one on.  Not watching tv means you'll have more free time, you won't be wasting hours of your day, you'll need to entertain yourself in more productive ways, and you'll save $50, or so, dollars a month on your cable or satellite bill.

After a month, or two, of not watching tv I bet that you'll not even miss watching it.

Join me and stop watching until the new year.

There's no time like the present to start good habits and end bad ones.

Survival Guns

I'm not a great expert on guns.  But I am quite capable with whichever one you throw at me.  And I've been thinking about the guns I should have in case of emergency.

1. .22 pistol

This should go without saying.  A .22 pistol is good for practice and lots of other uses.  A .22 would be your utility pistol for all small jobs, and would probably get more use than any of your other guns.  They can be small and concealable.  They are good for hunting squirrels and rabbits.  They are capable, though not recommended, for defending yourself from other people.  The ammunition is very plentiful and cheap as well.

Either a revolver or semi-automatic is fine.

A .17 HMR pistol would be fine as well, but you would need to store a lot more rounds because they are not as readily available as are .22s.

2. A Big Revolver

When the world goes to heck, a reliable handgun would be very useful.  A semiautomatic pistol has many more moving parts, and is therefore much more likely to break.

A good revolver, in at least a .40 caliber,  could be your primary source of defense.

3. A Shotgun

Hunting small game and birds is often easier with a shotgun rather than a rifle.  A semi-automatic, or pump, shotgun would be an excellent choice for defending yourself from lots of people, or animals.  A double barreled shotgun is simpler and less likely to break however.

A 12 gauge is what you'll want in any case.

4. A Bolt Action Rifle

A hunting rifle, it should have a scope and open sights in a survival situation, is the perfect tool for killing at a distance.  .308 Winchester is all the cartridge you need, plus its much lighter and smaller than the ballisticly comparable options.

5. A Semi-Automatic Rifle

If you really need to defend yourself from a lot of enemies a semi-automatic rifle is a fine choice.  Although most of them seem to be chambered in .223, which is what the military uses, but its a bit small for my taste.

If you have lots, and lots, of enemies then you'll need a semi-automatic.  But I'm more fond of a large calibered (.45-70 government) lever action.  If you really need more than a big lever gun, it may be too late for you anyway.

6. A .22 Rifle

For more utility work, and most hunting is survival situations you'll want a good .22 rifle.  A semi-automatic, bolt, or lever action .22 may become your primary hunting tool.

***

In a survival scenario you'll want to remember to have enough ammunition for your weapons.   Without bullets all these guns are nothing more than awkward clubs.  The more guns you have with different ammunition the more complicated finding the right one will be.  Buying several guns that shoot the same ammunition will simplify your arrangements.

Don't forget to have lots of cleaning equipment as well.  A fouled gun will be more dangerous than helpful.

No matter how many guns you have, it is the skill with them that will make the difference in a survival situation.  You could have a dozen of each of the six guns that I listed and you'd be less dangerous than the guy who's skilled with any one of them.

Beware the man with one gun.