Wednesday Open Thread [2.4.15]

Wednesday Open Thread [2.4.15]

7 Comments
I am so fucking sick and tired of having the dumbest, most ignorant, most know nothing idiots drive our national conversation. Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) said that restaurants should be allowed to opt out of regulations requiring restaurant employees to wash their hands. What. The Actual. Fuck? And what the actual why? Is there now a RELIGIOUS FUCKING FREEDOM PRINCIPLE ABOUT WASHING HANDS???? I remember Jesus Fucking Christ washing the feet of his disciples, so I guess that means you only ever wash your feet, and never your hands! Tillis the Fecal Master's rationale is that washing your hands would be optional for employees so long as the establishment posts a sign warning the customers that their employees' hands are dripping with slimy brown diarrhea which recently escaped their asshole. And, under the Grand Ayn Rand Theory of the Free Market, that establishment would soon lose all business, and those employees would be out of a job, all so that an employee can have the freedom of not washing his hands. This is why Randians and Libertarians are idiots. You do not have the freedom to not wash your hands. It is not in the Constitution. It is not in the Bill of Rights. It is not in the Declaration of Independence. If you want to serve food and be paid for it, you wash your hands after you wipe your ass. Period. End of Discussion. If you don't like it, move to Russia and fellate Putin.
Did You Know That “firing a woman for breastfeeding isn’t sexist because men can lactate, too”

Did You Know That “firing a woman for breastfeeding isn’t sexist because men can lactate, too”

21 Comments
Every new mother is well aware of the benefits of breastfeeding and why they should breastfeed their baby. A pregnant woman and new mother are bombarded with research, flyers, books, advice, advice from strangers, etc. on why the breast is best.  It's everywhere... except, it seems, at Nationwide Insurance. Although I'm sure Nationwide would claim to be pro-breastfeeding in a "We 100% support breastfeeding... in the home" sorta way.
The Supreme Court has declined to overturn a lower court’s ruling that an insurance company was within bounds when it fired a breastfeeding mother. The woman’s suit was dismissed by the Eighth Circuit Court on the grounds that firing a woman for breastfeeding isn’t sexist because men can lactate, too. The ACLU’s Galen Sherwin wrote Monday that former Nationwide Insurance Company employee Angela Ames sued her employer when she returned from maternity leave to find that no allowances had been made to enable her to pump breast milk for her baby during the day. When Ames asked her supervisor for accommodations that would enable her to express milk and store it for her child, the supervisor reportedly responded that Ames should “go home and be with your babies” instead. That supervisor went on to dictate a letter of resignation to Ames that day, effectively forcing her to resign.
Men can lactate, too! They don't, but they can (or some can), so... hand that baby over to dad and get back to work, Ms. Ames! I breastfed both of my children, and while I sincerely enjoyed it I would have loved to hand off those 3am feedings to my husband. If only I had known at the time some men could lactate! I would have bought him his very own pump!
First climate change, now vaccine – what established science will the GOP reject next?

First climate change, now vaccine – what established science will the GOP reject next?

51 Comments
Both Chris Christie and Rand Paul have come down on the side of the lunatics by questioning the science behind vaccinations. What could possibly be the next so-called established scientific fact to be debunked by conservative conventional wisdom? How do fish breath? Does anyone really know? Is the moon really 238,900 miles away, or could we build a tall ladder and catch it in a net? People deserve to have some choice on these issues. This is America after all. If Wyle E Coyote can defy gravity by not looking down, why should anyone look down? Does looking down trigger the effects of gravity? We simply don't know, so the prudent thing to do is to teach the controversy. Anything else would be discrimination against parents who have made the anti-gravity choice for their children.
Proof – Salon’s Bill Curry reads DL

Proof – Salon’s Bill Curry reads DL

7 Comments
This is me on Jan 28th at 1:04pm:
I’m not voting for Democrats who can’t make a case for why they should win. Anyone who does is guilty of propping up the dead husk of the Democratic Party and pretending it is alive.
This is Salon on Sunday, Feb 1, 2015 07:00 AM EST:
We need our own Tea Party: The fight is much more than Hillary v. Warren. The Democratic Party's a corrupt, empty husk. But it offers a way forward if, like Maddow, we have the right debate Bill Curry

Sunday Open Thread [2.1.15]

5 Comments
If you, like the GOP Establishment, think marriage equality will be over as an wedge issue against the GOP once the Supreme Court rules for it this coming June, you are sadly mistaken. At Iowa Rep. Steve King’s Iowa summit last weekend, conservative activists revealed it to be the next litmus test for their candidates:
“If you dodge the question, then it’s the kiss of death,” said social conservative Sam Clovis, who finished second behind Joni Ernst in last year’s Iowa GOP Senate primary. “Candidates have got to be declarative about where they stand. Period.” “If you’re not vocally pro-life and pro-traditional marriage, I don’t think you can win here because you’re going to get hammered,” added Clovis.
So the GOP nominee will have to be violently anti-gay, anti-marriage equality, and anti-choice. Thus unelectable. I love it when wedge issues work for the good guys.
Friday Open Thread [1.30.15]—The Romney Free Edition

Friday Open Thread [1.30.15]—The Romney Free Edition

48 Comments
In a sense, our first Romney free open thread since 2007, since Mitt Romney began running for President. And by "Romney free," I mean, we, the citizens of this country, are free from the prospect of Willard Dillard Mittens Romney III ever being our President. If you thought "Romney free" meant this open thread was free of mentions to Romney, you are sadly mistaken.

The Matt Denn Dividend

32 Comments
By leaving the LT Gov's office empty, the state is saving $610,000. Pretty sweet.
Lt. Governor's Office -$610,3000
Knowing this cost $610,000 it is going to be pretty hard going forward for anyone to make the case that we need a Lt. Governor. Other than that, I don't see anything surprising in this Markell budget power-point. Unless I'm missing it, no tax increases. Only cuts to balance the budget. Elderly property tax subsidy cut -$12 million. (Suck it old fart New Jersey losers!), lower debt service -$11.7 million (thanks low interest rates), and presumably nobody is going to get sued this year, -$2 in legal fees.
Thursday Open Thread [1.29.15]

Thursday Open Thread [1.29.15]

4 Comments
A reader of Dish wrote in after watching Speaker Boner and Majority Leader Turtle's joint interview of 60 Minutes this past Sunday, and offered these observations.
They also acknowledged that the recovery has mostly only benefited the top income-earners while leaving the majority of Americans stuck in neutral. Boehner and McConnell want to “do something” to address income inequality and make sure those on the bottom of the economy have the opportunity to move up. They basically accused Obama of only helping the top 1% (which seems a complete reversal of the stories we’ve been hearing from them the last six years, but I digress). This all sounds good enough to me, since for so long, it seemed the GOP was unwilling to even acknowledge there was an issue with inequality. If they want to blame Obama, I don’t really care so long as they are willing to present solutions. So, the interviewer then asked if they would support raising taxes on top income earners. Answer: No. The interviewer asked if they would support raising the minimum wage. Answer: No. The interviewer asked if they would support Obama’s plan to provide free community college. Answer: No. The interviewer asked if they would support Obama’s plan to expand the Child Income Tax Credit for working families. Answer: Maybe (Boehner mumbles about wanting to help working families but says he needs to further study this idea).
The Republicans really do have an issue and agenda problem. My God, what will they do after Obama is gone? Well, I suppose screaming no to President Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton will suffice until 2025, but then what?