Incorrect Assumptions
Rush Limbaugh said this, in regard to free lunches at schools for poor children:
"God, this is just -- we can't escape these people. We just can't escape them. They live in the utter deniability of basic human nature. They actually have it in their heads somehow that parents are so rotten that they will let their kids go hungry and starve, unless the schools take care of it"
God, this is just--we can't escape these people. They live in the utter deniability of basic reality. They actually have it in their heads somehow that parents with no money, who have potentially been out of a job for two years because of rampant unemployment... who are too proud to do something practical like prostitution, theft or dealing drugs... who have run out of opportunities at the local food kitchens, because those places can't feed everyone who needs it more than once a month... They actually have it in their heads that these parents can magically make food pour out of an empty refrigerator when the electricity bill hasn't been paid in three months.
People like Rush Limbaugh, when they open their mouths wide enough, you can just see the scum in the back of their throats. The article I linked to itself links to an older article about a Missouri State Representative who actually said they should cancel the summer free lunch program, because "hunger can be a positive motivator for kids". Kids can rise above sexual abuse and become productive members of society, too, but it's a sick bastard that doesn't try to prevent it in the first place.
You just need to read a few paragraphs of this stuff before you realize why it can be so difficult for legislators to make compromises. Some politicians clearly live in a videogame world, where gold coins are hovering in the air for you to jump up and collect, and you can break open a trashcan and find a fully cooked chicken dinner on a plate, to eat and regain 50% of your health bar. Or God will come out of the top of the screen and lightning bolt you for being lazy... or homosexual...
And they think games make gamers violent and callous? Sometimes I think videogaming HELPS me to discern between fact and fiction. I mean, I eventually came to realize that not everything I am able to imagine actually works that way in the real world.
Listen, I'm a bleeding heart, but I know there are limits to what government can and should do:
Compare these statements:
"There's only so much money to go around." That's reasonable.
"Private charity is more efficient and less corrupt than government." That's debatable, but absolutely worth discussing.
"Kids can go dumpster diving." Which is something Rush actually said. We could also strap bombs to their backs and ship them to the Middle East to kill two birds with one stone, but rational, empathetic people don't think that way.
I understand that Rush Limbaugh is an entertainer. But jokes, when seriously delivered, leave you open to just as much criticism as a heartfelt belief. I don't care how much of a troll he is, there are some things that you just don't say outside of 4chan or WorldNetDaily.
Blegh.
Anyway, yesterday evening, while Steph was staying late at work, I went and got our car oiled and inspected. After that, when she finally escaped, we went to eat at a nice restaurant, had some wine, then went home and CRASHED at 7PM. And despite the fact that we slept through half the evening, we both agreed it was a really good day. Sometimes you just need to do that, especially when you've been getting more like six hours of sleep a night.
"God, this is just -- we can't escape these people. We just can't escape them. They live in the utter deniability of basic human nature. They actually have it in their heads somehow that parents are so rotten that they will let their kids go hungry and starve, unless the schools take care of it"
God, this is just--we can't escape these people. They live in the utter deniability of basic reality. They actually have it in their heads somehow that parents with no money, who have potentially been out of a job for two years because of rampant unemployment... who are too proud to do something practical like prostitution, theft or dealing drugs... who have run out of opportunities at the local food kitchens, because those places can't feed everyone who needs it more than once a month... They actually have it in their heads that these parents can magically make food pour out of an empty refrigerator when the electricity bill hasn't been paid in three months.
People like Rush Limbaugh, when they open their mouths wide enough, you can just see the scum in the back of their throats. The article I linked to itself links to an older article about a Missouri State Representative who actually said they should cancel the summer free lunch program, because "hunger can be a positive motivator for kids". Kids can rise above sexual abuse and become productive members of society, too, but it's a sick bastard that doesn't try to prevent it in the first place.
You just need to read a few paragraphs of this stuff before you realize why it can be so difficult for legislators to make compromises. Some politicians clearly live in a videogame world, where gold coins are hovering in the air for you to jump up and collect, and you can break open a trashcan and find a fully cooked chicken dinner on a plate, to eat and regain 50% of your health bar. Or God will come out of the top of the screen and lightning bolt you for being lazy... or homosexual...
And they think games make gamers violent and callous? Sometimes I think videogaming HELPS me to discern between fact and fiction. I mean, I eventually came to realize that not everything I am able to imagine actually works that way in the real world.
Listen, I'm a bleeding heart, but I know there are limits to what government can and should do:
Compare these statements:
"There's only so much money to go around." That's reasonable.
"Private charity is more efficient and less corrupt than government." That's debatable, but absolutely worth discussing.
"Kids can go dumpster diving." Which is something Rush actually said. We could also strap bombs to their backs and ship them to the Middle East to kill two birds with one stone, but rational, empathetic people don't think that way.
I understand that Rush Limbaugh is an entertainer. But jokes, when seriously delivered, leave you open to just as much criticism as a heartfelt belief. I don't care how much of a troll he is, there are some things that you just don't say outside of 4chan or WorldNetDaily.
Blegh.
Anyway, yesterday evening, while Steph was staying late at work, I went and got our car oiled and inspected. After that, when she finally escaped, we went to eat at a nice restaurant, had some wine, then went home and CRASHED at 7PM. And despite the fact that we slept through half the evening, we both agreed it was a really good day. Sometimes you just need to do that, especially when you've been getting more like six hours of sleep a night.