Hobby Lobby Wins

Ken AshfordSupreme Court, Women's IssuesLeave a Comment

In a not-very-suprising 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court decided in favor of Hobby Lobby in the recent case involving religious freedom and corporations.  As a result of the holding,  business owners with religious objections to birth control may defy federal rules requiring most employers to include contraceptive care in their health plans.  This is in direct contravention of what the Supreme Court … Read More

RIP Eli Wallach

Ken AshfordIn PassingLeave a Comment

On my dead pool list since forever (a mere 2 points at 98), but more than that, one of my favorite actors. Eli Wallach, who was one of his generation’s most prominent and prolific character actors in film, onstage and on television for more than 60 years, died on Tuesday. He was 98. His death was confirmed by his daughter … Read More

The Cantor Earthquake

Ken AshfordCongress, Election 2014, RepublicansLeave a Comment

The House Republican leadership, so solid in its opposition to President Obama, was torn apart yesterday by the defeat of its most influential conservative voice, Representative Eric Cantor, the House majority leader.  Cantor, with a 96% conservative rating, was defeated by a tea party candidate, David Brat. Brat spent a total of $200,000 on his campaign; Cantor spent that much just … Read More

Patriots

Ken AshfordGun Control, Rightwing Extremism/ViolenceLeave a Comment

So that Nevada couple who shot the police, a random bystander and then themselves declaring that "the revolution" had begun had been at the Bundy Ranch? What a surprise. It turns out they were right wing radicals.  Who'd a thiunk it?

Today’s Shooting Proves NRA Is, Well, Wrong

Ken AshfordGun ControlLeave a Comment

Wayne LaPierre, the NRA honcho, likes to spout this lame aphorism every chance he gets: "The only thing that can stop a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun" Au contraire, Monsieur LaPierre: Meis, who was working at the time as a monitor who sits at a desk in the lobby, near the Hall’s front door, … Read More

Story of The Day

Ken AshfordHistoryLeave a Comment

A salute to this guy:  An 89-year-old WW2 veteran who was banned by his nursing home from going to France for the D-Day commemorations sneaked out and went anyway. The pensioner left the Hove home at 10:30 BST on Thursday and was reported missing in the evening, police said. The nursing home received a call from a younger veteran later … Read More

Not Funny

Ken AshfordAfghanistan, Right Wing Punditry/IdiocyLeave a Comment

Mad Magzine goes full wingnut And when I say it is "not funny", I mean it lacks humor.  It's suypposed to be a spoof of Saving Private Ryan, but it's such a stretch (Ryan and Bergdahl sound nothing alike). I haven't really commented on the Bergdahl story, largely because its more bullshit right wingnut outrage.   First of all, we … Read More

Gun Nuts Go Too Far For The NRA

Ken AshfordGun ControlLeave a Comment

They created a monster.  But how to get the toothpaste back in the tube? In a remarkably frank statement issued on Friday, the National Rifle Association said that gun activists in Texas had "crossed the line from enthusiasm to downright foolishness" with their demonstrations at fast food restaurants. Activists, most notably those with a group called Open Carry Texas, have drawn … Read More

Whatever Happened To….?

Ken AshfordRight Wing and Inept Media, Right Wing Punditry/Idiocy1 Comment

… Sharyl Attkisson? Remember her? Attkisson left CBS because she "had grown frustrated with what she saw as the network's liberal bias," while some staffers characterized her work as "agenda-driven," leading "network executives to doubt the impartiality of her reporting." Attkisson had supported CBS' disastrous Benghazi reporting, which the network ultimately had to apologize for and retract, and CBSexecutives reportedly saw her as "wading dangerously … Read More