Cutting the cord

Rather than talk about how bizarre it is that Dick Lugar gets to stay on the Indiana ballot, even though he's lived in Virginia for 35 years.

I'm going to keep it light & ask if you keep a landline phone. Old school.  So many folks don't even bother, it's just duplicating the same service a cell phone provides. But a landline could potentially work in a storm when cell towers are down, but they only would work w a corded phone, because cordless phones require electricity to run.

So what's your deal? Still on the grid, or did you cut the cord?
I love the shiny new happening smart phone technology, just hate the
pricetag. Taxes, fees, upcharges, hell some carriers even ding you for overages on so- called "unlimited" plans.

I find product reviews, the no-holds-barred feedback- both helpful and amusing--check out these remarks about cell phones

•  I pretty much just hate this phone and want to smash it with a hammer. 

Cons: Glitchy

great phone for people not looking for performance.

“PROBLEM PHONE”

This is the worst phone I've ever had from Verizon, It's a piece of junk.


cant wait to get rid of this thing

“Worst phone ever”

I consider myself a mellow guy and at least once a day i consider inflicting physical violence upon this phone. it is not very user friendly and a lot of features like the swipe texting are frustratingly incapable. i've always been a big fan of lg, but they missed the mark on this one.

“Can you say Lemon?”

acts up randomly

“Hmm...”

 I HATE this phone and I often tell it that. 

 The worst phone I have ever owned

“Garbage, Garbage, Garbage”

 a cup and string would be better than using this thing probably have better working features too! Buy it only if you want to go bald and have gray hair.




sorry excuse for a "smartphone"

“One word: SLOW”

for being a smartphone it is very stupid!!! 




“If you buy this phone, you'll be sorry.”


trust me you will hate this phone.




 it infuriates me. But other than that... 


I'm starting to hate it. Other then that it was a nice phone when it worked.

 I am completely fed up with this phone. it is a love/hate relationshio at the moment.

“Dumbest Smartphone”

Counter (Re)productive Legislation

mi·sog·y·ny

Definition of MISOGYNY

a hatred of women

Origin of MISOGYNY

Greek misogynia, from misein to hate + gynē woman —First Known Use: circa 1656

With a spate of new legislative proposals to literally govern what choices a woman can make, and how they can make them, one can't help but feel there is a real trend that essentially makes women some kind of governmental punching bag for reproductive choices.

Several states have adopted "fetus is a person laws", as well as mandatory ultrasound prior to abortion, some requiring the patient to view the ultrasound image, others take it further with mandatory viewing and lecture- as well as a 24 hour waiting period. 

As the legislation gets more crazy, it has created "counter legislation" such as the following:

• State Senator Constance Johnson of Oklahoma City has served Oklahoma's 48th Senate District since 2005, but it was yesterday's introduction of Senate Bill 1433 that really pushed her over the edge. The bill sought to define human life as beginning at the moment of conception, before it's even implanted in the womb, and offers full legal protection to those tiny multicelled lumps. In the words of the bill, "the unborn child at every stage of development (has) all the rights, privileges, and immunities available to other persons, citizens, and residents of this state."

Johnson submitted an amendment of her own to the bill, which would have added the language,

However, any action in which a man ejaculates or otherwise deposits semen anywhere but in a woman's vagina shall be interpreted and construed as an action against an unborn child.

The State Senator later willingly withdrew the amendment, telling her colleagues that she had introduced it to highlight the ridiculous sexism inherent in a Personhood Law that would force women to be pregnant.
• Another pro-choice legislator, Democrat Jim Wilson, attempted to add an amendment to the bill that would require the father of the child to be financially responsible for the woman's health care, housing, transportation, and nourishment while she was pregnant. The amendment failed.

• "There's a new generation that's been electrified by what's going on in Virginia," said state Sen. Janet Howell, a Fairfax County Democrat.

She drew headlines last month when, to counter the ultrasound legislation, she offered an amendment to require men to have a rectal exam and a stress test before being prescribed erectile dysfunction medication. 

Senate Republicans rejected it.

Of course Senate Republicans rejected these measures. Because these creative amendments shed light on two things:

1- How ridiculous legislating reproduction is. 

2- How quickly amendments fail and are rejected when it addresses Men's role in reproduction. 

See? They are OK w basically harassing the woman about her choice, but it's hands off for the men. 

No mandatory lectures or probes about what their reproductive systems might do.....

because apparently, all the blame & lectures will fall on the individual who happens to have the childbearing components. 

But no. All the rules and regs, add ons and take aways are geared towards women with their evil lady parts. They & they alone are the gender who carries the baby, the stigma, the guilt, and the responsibility, who have the nerve to think they should have the right to be able to make these decisions for their own lives. 

Local Politicians can't even get it together to manage pot holes, do I really want to entrust them with my own personal  family planning decisions?

Just for a quick reality check:

A transvaginal ultrasound (the type needed in the first trimester of pregnancy)

Has a national average cost of $525. 

Obstetric ultrasound pricing is higher, and this fee does not include the radiologist fee. If you were to pay out-of-pocket for a traditional ultrasound in a medical setting, expect it to cost $700 to $1,200 or more. 

Since routine ultrasound is not considered medically necessary as a component of first-trimester abortion, the requirements appear to be a veiled attempt to personify the fetus and dissuade a woman from obtaining an abortion. Moreover, an ultrasound can add significantly to the cost of the procedure. 

HIGHLIGHTS:   

 11 states require verbal counseling or written materials to include information on accessing ultrasound services. 

 20 states regulate the provision of ultrasound by abortion providers. 

 7 states mandate that an abortion provider perform an ultrasound on each woman seeking an abortion, and 

require the provider to offer the woman the opportunity to view the image.  

 9 states require that a woman be provided with the opportunity to view an ultrasound image if her provider 

performs the procedure as part of the preparation for an abortion. 

 5 states require that a woman be provided with the opportunity to view an ultrasound image. 

CLICK HERE TO SEE THE CURRENT CHART OF STATE MANDATED ULTRASOUND PRE ABORTION REQUIREMENTS  SCROLL DOWN TO PAGE 2 FOR THE CHART.

While the republicans are touting their "less Government" agenda- get a load of the breakdown of different state Ultrasound requirements:

• Information on accessing ultrasound services- some states require verbal, others written, and some both verbal and written. 

• Required for each abortion: The Provider MUST display and describe the image

• Required for each abortion: The Provider MUST offer the woman the opportunity to view the image

Notice of all the various mandates for women, there is not one for men. Not one!
I hope the ACLU will step up when a woman with a $1000 utrasound bill decides the person or state that imposed the mandate, should in fact pay the bill. I'm talking to you Rick Perry (the pro life executioner of 234 people,  & all the Governors in the 7 states on this medically unnecessary & invasive bandwagon. 


One hopeful glisten in breaking news: The Governor in Virginia (poised to impose the mandatory transvaginal ultrasound prior to abortion), had so much pressure, he required an amendment in the 11th hour:

"Mandating an invasive procedure in order to give informed consent is not a proper role for the state," McDonnell said.

"I am requesting that the General Assembly amend this bill to explicitly state that no woman in Virginia will have to undergo a transvaginal ultrasound involuntarily."

The approved legislation would require a woman to undergo a non-invasive ultrasound, and she would have the option to choose or decline a more invasive probe if deemed necessary by a doctor. Under the original bill, a woman would have been compelled to have the more invasive probe.

After the governor's about-face, Democrats on the House floor sought to build on the momentum by calling for the bill to be killed entirely. (Abort the abortion laws!)

"You're mandating not only a completely unnecessary procedure, but a useless one," Democratic Delegate Jennifer McClellan said.

Six other states require mandatory ultrasound prior to abortion, most of those states allow women to decline to view the image, Texas, Oklahoma and North Carolina require women to hear the provider's verbal description of the ultrasound.

Democratic Delegate David Toscano said: "We need to be spending a bit of time on this bill." 

"We shouldn't be playing doctor on the House floor."

No, they should not. 

Why did the chicken cross the road?

Because they give a cluck?

Mitt: Because they are jealous

Mitt: Because the broker with the offshore tax evasion schemes office was on the other side

Newt: Hurry up Callista, or I'll have to find another wife!

Newt: That's all baloney & you know it

Santorum: To go protest @ the abortion clinic

Ron Paul: Because the government has no business building roads or telling them which side of the road to be on.

Obama: Our campaign will be crossing the road because all the other candidates are doing it too. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

And speaking of chicken s#@t~ check out this bold move:

As reported by the The (Norfolk) Virginian-Pilot-

The State of Virginia is dealing with GOP  bills that would declare a fertilized egg a person from the moment of conception, which has been labeled the "personhood bill," and eliminate state funding for abortions for poor women with severely medically troubled pregnancies. This bill would  also require women to undergo a (medically unnecessary) ultrasound exam before having an abortion.

"There's a new generation that's been electrified by what's going on in Virginia," said state Sen. Janet Howell, a Fairfax County Democrat.

She drew headlines last month when, to counter the ultrasound legislation, she offered an amendment to require men to have a rectal exam and a stress test before being prescribed erectile dysfunction medication. Senate Republicans rejected it.

Sadly, the appeal to overturn Rick Perry's mandatory sonogram & 24 hour waiting period pre abortion was denied

by the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. We disagree with the Fifth Circuit panel’s conclusion that physicians who provide abortions have fewer First Amendment protections than other citizens simply because they perform a service that some politicians don’t like. We’re asking the full court to rectify this unjustified curtailment of free speech rights and keep government out of conversations between Texas women and their doctors.” – Nancy Northup, president and CEO of the Center for Reproductive Rights.

That battle came to a screeching halt. The only recourse that could overturn the Texas sonogram law now is a Supreme Court ruling, and with the Supreme Court stacked with Right Wing men, the likelihood of this  being overturned is small. The likelihood the high court would even hear it is slim in itself - the proponents of this mandate, see it as  no rights are being violated by offering a woman informed consent. If the Supreme Court simply refuses to hear the case, then the Appeals Court decision stands.

Not only is this an unfunded Government mandate, but it violates Women's rights. 

Forget about chickens crossing the road, in 7 States, the mandatory ultrasound is already happening- so in Alabama, Arizona,  Florida, Louisiana, Kansas, Mississippi & Texas, they should cross the state line & never come back!

Flack Check

Bill Moyers addresses the toipc:

We’re saturated with deceptive political advertising — aided and abetted now with spending by citizens, corporations and super PACs that seems to know no bounds. Add to that relatively cheap “buys” on the media landscape including television, the web, print media and social networks, and there’s no place for the electorate to escape.

But help is on the way. This weekend on Moyers & Company, Bill asked political communication expert Kathleen Hall Jamieson to decode the political misinformation campaigns of 2012 thus far. Jamieson runs the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania, including the sites FactCheck.org and FlackCheck.org.

Sample: Could Lincoln Get Elected today?

Click here to see more- each item is a link to a video spoof re President Lincoln

Jamieson said the people can ask broadcast networks to prove the allegations in political ads are true, but the networks are making a ton of money off the ads, 

they do have the right to deny running an ad from a Super PAC, & PACs in general, but it is currently a no holds barred scenario.

A mockery so well deserved...

Have you been paying attention to Steven Colbert's Super PAC ? 

He's making a mockery of the system--so richly deserved

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, IF NOT SOONER 

Stephen Colbert Wins Democracy!
Kingmaker Pundit Regains Super PAC, Files Financial Report, Takes Nap
BASIC CABLE, NY – After a decades-long battle that spanned nearly two weeks, Stephen Colbert has wrested control of Colbert Super PAC from the clutches of his arch-nemesis and dear friend, Jon Stewart. Colbert then showed his deep commitment to transparency by disclosing the Super PAC's financial information several hours before being legally required to.

"Colbert Super PAC has brought in a staggering $1,023,121.24, which my accountant explains to me that is a number far above 'one,' 'two,' 'five,' or even 'many'" said Stephen Colbert, President and Returning Champion of Colbert Super PAC. "We raised it on my show and used it to materially influence the elections – in full accordance with the law. It's the way our founding fathers would have wanted it, if they had founded corporations instead of just a country." 
Colbert Super PAC sent their forms to the Federal Election Commission on Tuesday at 12:01 AM, making them the first to file on the last filing day. Copies of the form can be found on the internet by Asking Jeeves, or simply clicking here. 

Colbert Super PAC, temporarily known as The Definitely Not Coordinating With Stephen Colbert Super PAC, is officially registered as Americans For A Better Tomorrow, Tomorrow, and is considering changing it again to John Colbert Cougar Super MellenPAC.

January 31, 2012 

Federal Election Commission 

999 E Street, N.W. 

Washington, DC 20463 

Re: Supplemental Memo To Disclosure Report 

Dear Sirs and Sirettes, 

Americans for a Better Tomorrow, Tomorrow (ABTT) would like it entered into the record that as of January 30th, 2012, 

the sum total of our donations was $1,023,121.24. 

Stephen Colbert, President of ABTT, has asked that I quote him as saying, ''Yeah! How you like me now, F.E.C? I'm 

rolling seven digits deep! I got 99 problems but a non-connected independent-expenditure only committee ain't one!'' 

I would like it noted for the record that I advised Mr. Colbert against including that quote. 

Sincerely, 

Shauna Polk 

Treasurer 

Americans for a Better Tomorrow, Tomorrow, Inc.

As a super PAC the organization can raise unlimited sums of money from corporations, unions and other groups, as well as wealthy individuals. Speaking in character, Colbert said the money will be raised not only for political ads, but also "normal administrative expenses, including but not limited to, luxury hotel stays, private jet travel, and PAC mementos from Saks Fifth Avenue and Neiman Marcus." (Nice jab @ Palin)

Since the Federal Election Commission doesn't require full disclosure, Colbert likens his 501 (c)(4) to a "Campaign finance glory hole": "You stick your money in the hole, the other person accepts your donation, and because it's happening anonymously, no one feels dirty!" Colbert is currently looking for a billionaire donor, or in the language of Colbert, a "sugar daddy."

Colbert initially named his Delaware corporation and 501(c)(4) organization Anonymous Shell Corporation, however, according to the  Delaware Secretary of State's Office the official name was changed to "Colbert Super PAC SHH Institute" on the same day it was filed. According to experts, Colbert's actions are perfectly legal and shine a light on how the financing of elections has dramatically changed since the 2010 Supreme Court ruling that corporations have free-speech rights to spend unlimited amounts of money in political advertising to elect or defeat candidates for office.

Hat tip to Colbert for shedding light on just how ridiculous Super PACs really are.