h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Och!... I've missed a lot of stupidity lately.

First and foremost was the anti-health reform wing-nuts saying that under a socialized medicine program like the NHS Stephen Hawking would be left to die.

But just now I saw this and I thought you folks might enjoy it.

http://uk.tv.yahoo.com/blog/article/234116/

Cuban Communist, Irish TV presenter... same difference.

The things people are saying at these meetings are so unbelievably unbelievable and out there where the birds turn round. I'm at a complete loss to understand how a) anyone can believe this stupidity and b) why they're not being held up to the ridicule they deserve.

I just heard Arlen Spector almost apologising for these people, trying to justify their feelings by saying that there's a lot of anger out there because of people losing their jobs and their houses and suchlike.

Good grief These people are nutters! Let's call a spade a spade for Bob's sake and put them in their place! One woman was saying how she thinks that America is going to turn into Russia.

Not going to happen!!!

Y'know, it's at times like this that I kinda wish I still had TV and could watch The Daily Show. Jon Stewart must be doing a lot of face-palming and head shaking.

You can watch full episodes on http://www.thedailyshow.com/ (although I was getting an error when I checked their pages.)

Arlen Specter has received more than any other on the hill from the medical/insurance special interests.

Arlen Specter (R-D- PA- $4,026,933)
Max Baucus (D- MT- $2,833,731)
Mitch McConnell (R-KY- $2,758,468)

And for those directly paid by insurance companies to make sure reform gets squashed:

Ben Nelson (DLC-NE- $1,196,799)
Max Baucus (DLC- MT- $1,184,113)
Joe Lieberman (DLC- CT- $1,036,302)
Arlen Specter (R-D- PA- $1,035,530)
Mitch McConnell (R-KY- $929,207)
Chuck Grassley (R-IA- $884,724)

Despite that, they were out in force at his meetings. Perhaps they weren't quite as disruptive as at meetings held by Democrats.

This is a couple of years old, but it's one of my favorites. This one is right up there with "extended daylight saving causes global warming."
http://donstuff.wordpress.com/2009/02/28/global-warming-is-caused-by-daylight-savings-time/

I gleefully present "What is in our water? The rainbow conspiracy:"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_c6HsiixFS8



"The Stupid, it BURNS!"

On a more worrying note, I heard this morning that activity among right wing militia groups is on the rise again after a lull of... oh, about eight years. I wouldn't put it past those nutters to blow up another government building like in Oklahoma City, or take a pop at the president.

Or anyone really.

I like this statement I read a earlier today:

"Liberals protest war, conservatives protest health care? OK, just wanted to be clear."

I did read that one of the astroturfers at a town hall meeting was arrested for carrying a sign that said "Death to Obama, and death to Michelle and their two stupid kids."

At least they arrested this person.

Speechless

OK, on U.S. morning TV there's the story of a kid who saw the youtube video of an idiot in a banana suit setting himself on fire and repeated it.

OK... the kid says he didn't want to do it, that his friends dowsed him with gasoline and tossed him the lighter. He does admit igniting the lighter but that he held his hand away thinking it wouldn't ignite him. (He gives a very telling smirk at the beginning of the interview that suggests to me otherwise.)

I've seen that video and at no point did I get any idea that the guy in the banana suit was anything other than a complete IDIOT!
The video shows him severely BURNT afterward.

Of course this kid's mother is pretty much calling for a shut down of the internet to protect little farkwits like her son from seeing things like this.

If you ask me, videos like this should be mandatory viewing. They teach an important lesson. FIRE BURNS!

This time it's literal. http://www.plognark.com/Art/Sketches/Blogsketches/2008/thestupiditburns.jpg

BTW... here's the interview if you're interested: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/32446241#32446241

I didn't hear any calls for shutting down the internet, just some of the usual 'It's not my job to teach my kids common sense, everybody else should take responsibility for my kids' safety' crap that always comes out when something like this happens.

I bet their phone hasn't stopped ringing this morning with calls from personal injury lawyers egging them on to sue anyone and everyone.

I was being a bit facetious. She wants to keep children like hers from seeing anything that might be dangerous (daft) to mimic. Well good luck with that.

Notice how it is NOT her fault and it is NOT the fault of her inane child nor even of the idiot friends he has. It's someone else's problem.

And you're probably correct and some ambulance chaser with ambition might try to take her case. I don't know who exactly they would sue. They'd probably sue google/youtube since they have deep pockets but I doubt it would get far.

I'd prefer that she sue god instead for making her son an eedjit. I'd pay to see that on CourtTV.

Many parents want to, and some successfully do, keep their kids from a lot of stuff on the interwebs, and I don't blame them in a lot of instances, for the same reason I wouldn't want any kid of mine watching something like Jackass or Punk'd on TV. In short, any of the currently fashionable multitude of TV shows that think it's good to do stupid stuff to yourself, or to make other people look stupid by putting them in awkward or embarrassing situations. Even something as supposedly innocuous as Three Non Blondes http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=358BeyaIZsU Bob, I'd like to slap anyone who thinks it's cool do that and make entertainment out of it. People are scared enough of losing their job as it is without that sort of crap

The fact is, kids don't have good judgement and they're highly prone to peer pressure. Hell, a lot of kids don't ever grow out of that and go through their adult life in exactly the same way. But let's face it - no-one accepts responsibility for anything these days. It's always someone else's fault, regardless.

Here's something that's been irritating me for a number of years: the term "Person of Interest". Where did this come from? I think it might have had something to do with the Atlanta Olympic bombing. Police and the press are afraid to call a suspect a suspect now so they invented this euphemism.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32854576/ns/us_news-crime_and_courts/

"New Haven Police Chief James Lewis described Clark as a person of interest, not a suspect, in the death of 24-year-old Annie Le, whose body was found stuffed behind a wall in a campus research building Sunday, the day she was to be married. He said police were hoping to compare DNA taken from Clark's hair, fingernails and saliva to more than 150 pieces of evidence collected from the crime scene. That evidence may also be compared at a state lab with DNA samples given voluntarily from other people with access to the crime scene."

Earlier in the article it says the police "led him away in handcuffs to the cheers of neighbors".

And he's not a "suspect"? WTF? BS!
He's a suspect. Is he guilty? Dunno! That's what suspect means.
But using the term "person of interest" isn't fooling anyone. Stop using it!

That one makes me smile, but so does the British equivalent - 'Helping police with their enquiries'. In the past, that was interpreted by some sections of society as accidentally walking into an officer's fist or other such mishaps which result in a black eye and similar injuries.

They call getting beat up or tazed "disorderly conduct" or "resisting arrest" and charge you for it here now.

Actually the increased violence in police forces in the U.S. and in Britain I find very troubling. I see it as inherent and not as isolated cases when you consider how much the use of S.W.A.T. teams to apprehend nonviolent drug offenders has become the norm rather than the exception and putting on full riot gear anytime a peaceful protest is held. It is now practically a terrorist act to use a camera!

So this morning they arrest their "person of interest - not a suspect".

And today "New Haven Police Chief James Lewis said there are no other suspects."

OK...

That reminds me of this article about how cops speak in courtrooms.
http://www.officer.com/web/online/Operations-and-Tactics/Cops-Talk-Funny/3$40630