January 22, 2012

"With surprising candor, Chris Dodd tells Obama that the Hollywood purse strings are about to get tight."

A Metafilter post, linking to this Fox News piece, and continuing:
Angry over the Obama administration's siding against SOPA and PIPA, Dodd says openly that the money the Democratic party regularly counts on Hollywood for might not be there this election cycle. One view is that Hollywood considers that it bought something very specific with it's money, and it's angry it's not getting it. Should Obama be worried about this? Perhaps not. The guys from Freakanomics say that our assumption that money is the most important factor in deciding elections is a fallacy.
The 3d comment says:
We petition the Obama administration to: Investigate Chris Dodd and the MPAA for bribery after he publicly admited to bribing politicans to pass legislation.

(currently 7,312 signatures out of 25,000 needed for response)
It's up to 10,378 as I write this. Christopher Dodd has learned something in the last few weeks about how the internet works in a democracy. I suspect he's about to learn a whole lot more.

108 comments:

Sydney said...

Whitehouse.gov has a petition page?

Tully said...

Hollywood only thinks they bought passage of the bill. But the legislators are using Hollywood accounting, and it's pretty obvious that SOPA and PIPA as bills are a looooong way from showing a net political profit ...

Ritmo Re-Animated said...

Thank Gawd.

Something I can finally agree with the FOX News people on.

I thought all the anti-Dodd rhetoric of the last few years was overheated. But this is some booolshit.

Roast the bastard! (I'm speaking strictly in terms of legal metaphor, here).

Ritmo Re-Animated said...

I'm seriously thinking of signing that thing.

Can we do it as a group-blog activity, or would it violate some "cruelly neutral" standard?

Palladian said...

Yes, but you have to "create an account" to sign the petition. I thought my "account" to petition the Government for a redress of grievances was created in 1791.

Dodd richly deserves to suffer for his corruption, but I don't put much faith in the Obama Administration to get anything right, especially investigating a fellow Democrat.

Ann Althouse said...

Yeah, check them out.

"Overturn the 'Python Ban'" seems to have legs.

Known Unknown said...

Does Obama need their money?

I just saw an Obama re-election spot on the NFC Championship game. In January.

This is going to be exhausting.

YoungHegelian said...

Christopher Dodd has learned something in the last few weeks about how the internet works in a democracy.

This will not be the last time that the big-mouth at the top learns about the immediate recall, never forgetting power of the Internet.

Remember that Dodd is of the generation that grew up thinking "Real men don't type". He has his minions to handle all that internet shit for him, just like all the rest of that back office piddly stuff. He's the "big concept -- big execution" guy.

So, yes, I'll bet you dollars to donuts that Chris Dodd had no idea what hit, nor what to do about it.

Known Unknown said...

"Actually take these petitions seriously instead of just using them as an excuse to pretend you are listening"

This is the leading vote-getter on the page. Ha.

edutcher said...

Like Biden, Dodd went from law school to Congress.

Nice to see Hollywood hasn't changed him.

He's the same liar and hypocrite he always was.

But, then, he fills the role of errand boy as if he were made for it.

Synova said...

I suppose I understand the need to create an account but it still gives me a squicky feeling that I don't like.

Sydney said...

Yeah, I'm reluctant to give them my information, too. I would sign the petition any where else but the Whitehouse website. I'd also sign the petition to "Adhere to the Constitution of the United States."

Ritmo Re-Animated said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Ritmo Re-Animated said...

Point of empirical inquiry: How much more intrusive/"worse" could these petition requirements be than the same darn voting registration requirements that the rabid right wingers are saying we must implement lest dead people vote?

chuck b. said...

Well, at least account creation does not require another fracking password. It's just an email and home address. They already have those things (of mine).

Toad Trend said...

Dodd's never been the same since 'ole Kennedy passed into his river in the afterlife.

Waitress sandwiches are hard to come by. Candor is all that is left, apparently.

Wince said...

Is Dodd lobbying illegally yet?

Paddy O said...

I signed it.

Ritmo Re-Animated said...

Obviously taking on the government or an organization lobbying it is not possible unless one relinquishes all bravery, first.

Carol_Herman said...

Chris Dodd's not a senator, anymore.

Yes. Hollywood paid him a million dollars to be the CEO of some movie outfit. And, actually, ALL he did was toss a bomb to his "colleagues" in Congress. Who stampeded towards him for what they thought was "free money."

THE REDCOATS ARE COMING!

Politicians just learned that the kids, who seemed so disinterested in politics ... got a hold of them and shook them all awake! Both sides of the aisle.

If anything, Obama carries grudges like nobody's business!

You think hollywood wins?

I think they showed their cards.

And, what happens ahead? Fewer servers in virginia. While ALL sorts of governments are making grabs for wringing money out of the Internet.

Heck, during WW2, Germans had no access to radios. So, there were plays on Broadway, which showed radios getting hidden. And, people getting "informed of the real front" ... through ham radio operators.

What did hollywood just do? Made for a bigger piracy audience, if you want my opinion.

And, Obama? Those on his team who don't bow deep enough will be punished.

The million dollars a year to Chris Dodd? Short lived. Jon Corzine would have shown him better ways to "take a billion."

Carol_Herman said...

You know when the shooting commences; aimed towards Chris Dodd, I hope they don't stop even when the rubble bounces.

DADvocate said...

I signed the petition. Thought I'd take my chances to do the right thing. I guess checking an ID for petitions is more important than checking IDs for voting.

Uh oh. Black cars are coming down the driveway.

Alex said...

Ritmo - why do you think it's ok to engage in digital piracy? SOPA aims to end it once and for all. Don't you trust your beloved BIG government?

Synova said...

"Point of empirical inquiry: How much more intrusive/"worse" could these petition requirements be than the same darn voting registration requirements that the rabid right wingers are saying we must implement lest dead people vote?"

Ritmo... it's the context, mostly.

I give the government extremely detailed and personal information for any number of things, taxes, student aid applications, in fact, the government has my fingerprints on file somewhere, not to mention all the various reiterations of security clearance investigations and filings and job applications.

Voting is far more serious serious. Being concerned about voter fraud and the potential for fraud seems like a reasonable reaction to the profound power of votes. If you don't like the proposals offered by the right, offer alternatives that serve public confidence in the honesty and reliability of the process. "Republicans are mean racist haters," isn't offering an alternative.

As for this petition thing (and I'll probably go sign it)... we have a history of *this* White House attempting to collect names of dissenters. No, it wasn't (IIRC) the official White House website, but it was still incredibly creepy. I understand that registration eliminates spam-bot flooding of petitions, but that doesn't make it easier to shed the Creepy.

n.n said...

SOPA/PIPA are not comprehensive and they certainly do not address with policy and enforcement the greatest abusers of intellectual property. It would seem that there is another entity, perhaps even sovereign, which has outbid Hollywood. Very much like Brazil, Libya, etc, and the obstacles to, or prevention of, domestic resource recovery and energy production.

Well, we shall shortly learn what response if any will be offered by America's empowered interests. Since the problem afflicting America is comprehensive, and the different pieces of the puzzle are dependent and cannot be separated, I will guess that this is merely the latest check we will attempt to overcome in the global politics game.

Joe Schmoe said...

Waitress sandwiches are hard to come by.

Since Teddy's passing I hear Dodd's had to make do with the occasional open-faced variety.

I am not giving whitehouse.gov my info even though I wholeheartedly support this petition. I'm not a conspiracy theorist but I don't trust those guys.

Hollywood brass are like unions. They have no idea how to adapt to the times so they just stamp their feet and demand more of the same. Hollywood needs to figure out how to work with the 'Net, not antagonize the shit out of it.

I'm Full of Soup said...

If the economy does not improve bigtime soon, long-serving pols like Dodd and Specter and Kerry and Grassley will not feel it is safe for them to venture out in public.

YoungHegelian said...

@Joe,

Since Teddy's passing I hear Dodd's had to make do with the occasional open-faced variety.

I laughed so hard at that I nearly gagged. Thank you for that bit of humor.

Toad Trend said...

"...long-serving pols like Dodd and Specter and Kerry and Grassley will not feel it is safe for them to venture out in public."

What are the chances than any of these and other pol lifers would know how to weigh a bunch of bananas in a supermarket?

Joe Schmoe said...

I've never pirated a digital copy of a movie BUT if I could deprive Dodd of a few bucks and put his job in jeopardy, I might consider it. Hey, I'm just taking advantage of the rates that are available to everyone.

BJM said...

There's one redistributive idea I might get behind; an oversight board to set profit limits in the entertainment industry.

Disney gave a 2011 pay package valued at about $31.4 million to CEO Bob Iger, up 12 percent from a year earlier. How does the left not find this obscene?

30yearProf said...

I signed the petition.

Does that mean the IRS will be sent to audit me or an ICE swat team send to search my basement bedrooms?

Toad Trend said...

"How does the left not find this obscene?"

The left and hypocrisy are synonymous, that's why.

Joe Schmoe said...

Point of empirical inquiry: How much more intrusive/"worse" could these petition requirements be than the same darn voting registration requirements that the rabid right wingers are saying we must implement lest dead people vote?

I know what my town does with my voting information. They can use it to verify that I am who I say I am when I vote. I've no beef with that. They can also use it for jury duty. That's it. I'm okay with that.

I have no idea what whitehouse.gov will do with my info. Likely nothing, but since I don't know, why risk it. I don't mind petitioners verifying the legitimacy of their signatories, but I do mind registering with whitehouse.gov.

mariner said...

I suspect he's about to learn a whole lot more.

I suspect he already knows more about it than you do.

But I can dream, right?

Ralph L said...

When I was growing up, a neighbor (and fellow North Carolinian) was a lawyer/lobbyist for the MPAA. They have a small, posh theater with open bar in their office near the White House. They let employees bring friends to special showings, so we got to see ET and some other movies before the hype and the rest of the (non-Congressional) public.

I don't know how much money they threw around then, but our neighbor had been a senior staffer for Sens. Ervin and Jordan (by then retired and murdered, respectively), so it was possibly more about connections.

Ralph L said...

How does the left not find this obscene?
Eisner made several times that in his better years, and I don't remember any screetching.

BJM said...

@Ritmo

Point of empirical inquiry: How much more intrusive/"worse" could these petition requirements be than the same darn voting registration requirements that the rabid right wingers are saying we must implement lest dead people vote?

When you sign up for benefits or licenses of any sort you must show ID or personal documentation. When we last moved I had to show photo ID to get into the city hall water dept.

As of Jan 1st, you have to show photo ID to buy fucking over-the-counter cough syrup in CA.

Hells bells, you have to show photo ID and submit to a bag search and body screening to hear dumbass Holder speak on the unfairness of requiring ID.

Whom do they think they're fooling...the entire leftie Sturm und Drang over voter ID is but a stalking horse to issuing a national ID card. You know it's coming. How else will electronic health record access be verified?

Easy peasy, add a photo and a thumbprint to the SS card.

We're only a few steps away from:

"Halt unt show us your papers! Unt if you do not halt vee vill not give you zee blue pill!"

KCFleming said...

The most corrupt administration in history.

Ritmo Re-Animated said...

Sounds about right, Joe.

I guess the only answer to not knowing is either to revert back to the Articles of Confederation or just not allow the federal government to collect petitions. Right?

I mean, I'm being facetious here, but at what point does the paranoia backfire on you? If you think that America is some exceptional nation as decreed by God, then you have to accept that God must be ok with it covering 3.8 million square miles and consisting of 312,894,000 people (as of 2011). It's big, it is claimed by about 5% of the planet's population, and yet, if you want it to actually do (or not do) things, you're going to have to petition it at some point.

So, at what point does the paranoia become self-defeating? How do you complain about a federal government not doing what you want (or doing what you don't want) if you're too much of a chicken to let it know that you exist, a prerequisite for legitimating that claim.

This is SOP in any court of law or legal proceeding - regardless of the level of jurisdiction, mind you.

That's what I want to know.

Ritmo Re-Animated said...

Not the point, BJ. But thanks for doing your part to aid and abet the fictitious notion of armchair democracy.

BTW, the standard libertarian/inconsideraterian answer to your inquiries are: Don't rely on the government for your water, make your own cough syrup, watch your federal proceedings on CSPAN and, uh, outsource the voting process to a company that's just private enough to be beyond any regulation connected to the voting process. And it helps if they've donated enough to make the government beholden to them before receiving the exclusive rights to oversee said voting process. With faulty machines.

But you already knew that.

Ritmo Re-Animated said...

I remember something in the Bible about the fear of the Lord marking the beginning of wisdom.

It sounds like the inconsideraterians, in all their paranoia, have replaced the Lord with the Government.

Does anyone think all this fear, a by-product of years of bashing the same representative self-government that candidates ask us to hire for the purpose of destroying the organization they say they want to lead, becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy?

I've never been interested in having power over anyone else, but I imagine a would-be tyrant would have a much easier time pushing around a populace goaded into cowardice. Paranoia does not preclude cowardice; it actually encompasses it.

YoungHegelian said...

@Ritmo,

You forgot to call us Wiccan perps in those last two postings, guy. Otherwise, they were right out there in you-know-who land.

YoungHegelian said...

Ooops, too slow make that 3 postings.

Ritmo Re-Animated said...

Another hallmark of paranoia is the abdication of logic.

On what planet is a president more beholden to a former congressman than to the will of the people? On what planet is the growing economic power of technology companies less important to a president than the smaller economic power of the entertainment industry?

And yet, you expect Der White House to be collecting signatures so that it may do the bidding (which is what, exactly? Kidnap and capture while being forced to watch reality TV in a dark room under D.C.?) of the less powerful interest group.

I see.

Ritmo Re-Animated said...

Yep, you're too slow all right, Young One.

Also noted: Nonresponsive and devoid of specific criticism.

If that's the sort of scattershot you offer opponents in a debate, I'd not be surprised if you were as paranoid of the government, as well.

Hey, you guys are all about the torture thing. I guess I'd see why you harbor so much fear for a government that you decided, explicitly, to make more violent. More retributive. More smear-mongering when it comes to "enemies" all over the world.

It makes sense.

Bob Ellison said...

One of the problems in adopting an explained, theoretically structured comment-deletion policy is that occasionally you'll have people like me complaining about this guy with the green eye-makeup.

Ritmo, I like this blog and the comments. You're being obnoxious. Stop.

kimsch said...

I would sign it but I DO NOT want a "whitehouse.gov" account.

wv: faunbra (What Mrs. Tumnus wears)

David L. said...

The entertainment industry may tighten the purse strings. Entertainers, utterly besotted with the President, will continue to donate at their usual levels. (You do remember the singing Obama kids, right?)

Simon said...

Frankly, I appreciate the candor. Everyone with a brain knew that the money came with an implicit demand for quid pro quo; now everyone knows it.

Chip Ahoy said...

Oh wow, what a fun government we have! Glees.

I signed the one that says Provide the Public and Honest Explanation Into the 2008 sighting of an unknown arial object above Stephenville, Texas, because I've become very concerned about that just now that I read about it.

↑ contains a disqualifying lie.

↓ 100% of fact.

My favorite is the bottom: Actually take these petitions seriously instead of just using them as an excuse to pretend you are listening.

Peter said...

"Overturn the 'Python Ban'" seems to have legs.

I carried a Python early in my career. It was a very nicely finished, polished and blued revolver but it wasn't particularly robust for the price. After I had to pay to have it retimed I just kept carrying the Ruger Security Six I bought to wear while the Python was at the pistolsmith's.

What?

gt said...

I am not planning to wait for the white house to investigate Dodd. Can the readers of this blog suggest a good PI (or perhaps law firm, especially if pro bono) to investigate Dodd? About anything, but especially for compliance with the lobbying restrictions for ex-senators. Now, he'll probably turn up squeaky clean, but it would be worth checking into. Second question, if I find a PI, who should I go to first about raising the money to hire them?

JAL said...

search my basement bedrooms?

Ahhh... you have basement bedrooms, 30yearProf?? Mmmm??

eightcell said...

I think they mean "Investigate Chris Dodd and the MPAA for bribery after he publicly admitted to bribing politicians to pass legislation." NOT "Investigate Chris Dodd and the MPAA for bribery after he publicly admited to bribing politicans to pass legislation."

2 words misspelled in the title, really?

Kirk Parker said...

Peter,

No, apparently someone somewhere in the Executive Branch is a Perl fanboi.

Jonathan Card said...

Ritmo, you're being ridiculous. Your strawmen for libertarians and conservatives are completely non-sensical. When is "make your own cough syrup" anything related to a free market where you should be able to buy cough syrup from someone else? And are libertarians really the ones pushing voting machines? The libertarians I know are pushing for paper and pencil for all of the reasons you mentioned.

Think about this for just a second instead of being a jerk. The White House may very well be in control of Whitehouse.gov and in possession of the LDAP server or database that lists the users, and can link them back to comments that they find unfriendly. They don't have that control of databases of tax payers or of the census. There are rumors of Nixon holding an "enemies" list and certainly much of the left was convinced Bush was doing it. Clinton requisitioned files from the FBI on Republican operatives and got from A to G before they were recovered. This isn't unreasonable to fear from a Chicago politician, especially when Google OpenID and Facebook both provide ways of outsourcing authentication that would provide uniqueness without compromising integrity. I'm not signing up, either. It seems to me the real issue is, "people don't trust the President", not "Republicans are something something something". Even if I'm a Republican, I shouldn't fear a Democrat President.

Thank you for saying "Something I can finally agree with the FOX News people on." I'm glad we agree on the actual issue.

Unknown said...

Who needs SOPA when you can get a Letter of Marque?

Pirates:_Kim Dotcom vs Corzine and Modern Day Letters of Marque

http://tinyurl.com/7jdleaw

bagoh20 said...

""Overturn the 'Python Ban'" seems to have legs"

At last, an honest-to-goodness penis joke. Unfortunately, "it's above my pay grade", but I know it's in there somewhere, and I'm betting it's both cleaver and sexy.

Herb said...

I just signed it. Mine was signature # 13,969.

walter said...

BJM wrote

"As of Jan 1st, you have to show photo ID to buy fucking over-the-counter cough syrup in CA."

Geez..everything takes turn to the perverse out there. Here we just get pedestrian Robitussin.

But yeah..all that trashing of Dodd was so unfair. I mean..he only played an integral part in the takedown of an entire economy.

Could Barney Frank be his new sandwich buddy? Might be an underserved genre.

kimsch said...

"As of Jan 1st, you have to show photo ID to buy fucking over-the-counter cough syrup in CA."

Here in Illinois we have to show ID to buy decongestants (for years) and now we can't buy drain cleaner without an ID.

It's because one or two people were mean and stupid and threw caustic drain cleaner on one or two women.

I'm sorry that the women got hurt. They didn't deserve that, no one does.

But now I have to jump through hoops if I get a clog in my drain.

But I don't have to show ID to vote, nosiree.

wv:vololoug

Kirk Parker said...

bago,

"both cleaver and sexy. "

No, not sexy, but at least sharp and cutting. Ouch!

Oliver Crangle said...

So outrageous and yet so normal Dodd doesn't even realize what an ass he is.

sdharms said...

Yeah, and the White House has stopped allowing signatures. Just takes your sign in/registration information and the "Sign the Petition" button will never light up. RUSE!

Carnifex said...

I'll give you stupid ID laws. I was in Illinois on a business trip. Went to the local Wal-mart and found ammunition on sale cheaper than I could get here (Kentucky). So I had to get the cashier to open the ammo cabinet, she did, and she pulled out a couple of boxes of ammo. She started to ring me up, and asked to see my license.
"What license?" I asked.
"Your license to buy ammo" she replied.
"You have to have a license to buy ammo in this state?" I inquired, incredulously.
"Why yes" she said, "Aren't you from here?"
"No. I'm from Kentucky." I told her.
"Oh! You can buy bullets then." she informed me.

So to sum up, If you were from Illinois, you had to have this stupid license, but since I lived out-of-state I could purchase the ammo without.

And this is the state our president is from.

PS. Ritmo...I trust people I know, I do not trust faceless bureaucrats. People that are unaccountable to being relieved for spite, or incompetence, or malfeasance. If you think that stupid, or paranoid, I give you Eric Holder. The man responsible for the death of at least 1 American Border Agent, and hundreds of Mexican civilians.

And you're gonna say "Bush did it too." or "He didn't know", and I'm gonna reply ...

"THE BUCK STOPS HERE!"

Joan said...

But now I have to jump through hoops if I get a clog in my drain.

kimsch - get a Magic Snake in the "as seen on TV section" of your local Walgreens. I've seen them for as low as $5, but they're worth $10 if you have to spend it. You won't need chemicals again.

Joan said...

And as for Dodd? I won't hold my breath waiting to see him get what he deserves.

Revenant said...

the same darn voting registration requirements that the rabid right wingers are saying we must implement lest dead people vote?

I wasn't aware that 63% of Democrats were rabid right-wingers. Good to know. :)

Bob_R said...

If Chris Dodd learns in a painful way that a lot of things he used to do in congress can get him thrown in jail in the real world it will mean a big dose of schadenfreude - hold the schaden.

Toad Trend said...

"If that's the sort of scattershot you offer opponents in a debate,..."

This! From the resident schizophrenic with the contrarian Oort cloud circling his dome.

Regulars know about the penchant for thread-spiking that Ritmo cherishes.

A regular argument clinic!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hnTmBjk-M0c

Anonymous said...

"...I trust people I know, I do not trust faceless bureaucrats. People that are unaccountable to being relieved for spite, or incompetence, or malfeasance. If you think that stupid, or paranoid, I give you Eric Holder."

You can also give him that faceless bureaucrat in Ohio who decided to release Joe the Plumber's private, confidential information from state records because he had the gall to stand up to Barack Obama in public. She thought nothing of violating her public trust if it gained her some political advantage. And, of course, there's the oh so mysterious release of private, sealed divorce records for one of Obama's opponents. If a paid-off faceless bureaucrat from Illinois didn't do that, who did?

Anonymous said...

Bribery becomes Dodd.

Anonymous said...

"There's one redistributive idea I might get behind; an oversight board to set profit limits in the entertainment industry."

An excellent idea. When a $30 million movie ends up making $800 million that's clearly excessive. It's way beyond any return on investment any oil company has ever earned. Those undeserved profits are an affront to hard-working Americans and should be relinquished for better social uses than buying bigger mansions and higher piles of drugs. Clearly. Right?

Michael Haz said...

Pay for play. That's how it works for the Obama administration.

Ia anyone surprised? How do you think the Obama campaign raised $1 billion dollars this election cycle?

How do you think people on both sides of the aisle turned a $175,000 annual salary into a multi-million dollar net worth in a few terms of Congress?

In our representative republic, money often counts more than votes.

Russ Feingold's legacy is that he 'fixed' the campaign finance system. And 'fixed' it is.

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

Gov. Chris Christie went on full attack-dog mode Sunday, calling Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich an "embarrassment for the party" on national television hours after the former House speaker defeated Mitt Romney in the South Carolina primary.

And you governor.. are being irresponsible with your comments to the people of NJ, by not leaving yourself any face saving margin of error should Newt get the nomination and ultimately the presidency.

You might have to work with that man someday!

If you thought Newt was so bad how come you are not jumping in to rescue us from the menace.

Remember you are the governor first.

dmoelling said...

I'm from CT and we do an absolutely awful job of electing our Senators. Dodd was a spoiled brat son of an ethically challenged father but was elected time after time.

His replacement, Dick Blumenthal is from a family that owns the Empire State Building. He was our perpetual AG and did nothing but bully people to get on the evening news. Now that he's a senator he can't figure out what to do. Even the leftist newspapers in the state admit he's a complete failure in his new job.

Joe Schmoe said...

Ritmo, in your zeal to perform some sort of rhetorical jiu-jitsu and prattle off some libertarian shibboleths, you make a very basic and incorrect assumption.

I don't have a problem with petitions. I have signed petitions. I will continue to sign petitions. I have a problem registering at whitehouse.gov. They make no claims what they will or will not do with my information, so I'm not giving it to them. End of story.

But please, do go on. And on. And on. As you do.

garage mahal said...

How do we know Hitler and Mickey Mouse aren't signing these petitions?

KCFleming said...

Well, we know for sure Mickey Mouse supports SOPA, so pretty sure he didn't sign.

KCFleming said...

Hitler'd be pro-SOPA, too.

Crony capitalism and all that.

garage mahal said...

Yes Pogo, crony capitalism is horrible. When a Democrat might be behind it. When the right does it, it's capitalism!

Chip S. said...

One (ex) politician states an obvious fact and a lynch mob forms.

Being outraged at Dodd for this is like being upset at Bernie Madoff for jaywalking.

Memphis Expat said...

So, where is the Occupy Hollywood camp?

KCFleming said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
KCFleming said...

"When the right does it, it's capitalism!"

Nope, still horrible, whether cronyism arises from right or left.

It's still anti-liberty.

garage mahal said...

Nope, still horrible, whether cronyism arises from right or left.

Good on you. And Chris Dodd can get effing bent. What ever made these people think they could get away with government censorship of websites, in broad daylight?

Known Unknown said...

"inconsideraterians"

Lame. You can do better.

Glibertarians!

Brian Brown said...

garage mahal said...
Yes Pogo, crony capitalism is horrible. When a Democrat might be behind it. When the right does it, it's capitalism!


You can't present any examples of "crony capitalism" on "the right"

Brian Brown said...

garage mahal said...

Good on you. And Chris Dodd can get effing bent


Comical.

If Chris Dodd were to move to your state and run against Sen Johnson, you'd vote for Dodd.

Dude.

KCFleming said...

I dunno, Jay.

Sometimes finding out that guys like Dodd are not in fact your friend and will screw you over if they can is the first step toward demanding a limited government.

garage mahal said...

Oh fuck off Jaytard.

Is there an internet commenter more annoying? Hard to imagine.

Brian Brown said...

garage mahal said...
Oh fuck off Jaytard.


Awwww. Are you all upset because I touched a nerve by revealing the truth?

garage mahal said...

Awwww. Are you all upset because I touched a nerve by revealing the truth?

No, you're just an annoying, dreadfully predictable, unthinking hyper partisan dickhead.

damikesc said...

So, if Dodd ran for Senate against Johnson...you would vote Johnson? Unlikely. If he ran for governor against Walker, you would absolutely be all for Dodd

damikesc said...

So, if Dodd ran for Senate against Johnson...you would vote Johnson? Unlikely. If he ran for governor against Walker, you would absolutely be all for Dodd

Brian Brown said...

garage mahal said...

No, you're just an annoying, dreadfully predictable, unthinking hyper partisan dickhead.


But of course what I said is true.

Which demonstrates you're just projecting.

kimsch said...

Joan,

We've got a set of those Magic Snakes. Came with a nice little clippy thingy for the inside of the cabinet door. Never lose them.

It's the principle of the thing. One or two people used drain cleaner as a weapon and now no one can buy it without showing ID. That makes me a suspect(at least initially) in every drain cleaner as a weapon crime committed in the state. So will everyone else who buys draincleaner be an initial suspect.

The really sad part is that this ID requirement will not stop anyone from using drain cleaner as a weapon. It certainly won't stop anyone from crossing the state line and purchasing their drain cleaner out of state.

BJM said...

@Ritmo

Deflect much?

BJM said...

@kimsch

Here in Illinois we have to show ID to buy decongestants (for years)...

Same here, and I get that, the restriction is to prevent teens from buying it and getting high on dextromethorphan, but I sure the hell can't be mistaken for a teen.

Why should I, an obvious adult, have to show ID and sign to buy a bottle of Robitussin? That I'm required to sign for it tells me they are monitoring usage for some future purpose, not simply controlling access.

I'm sure drain cleaners are on some CA nanny's list as I type.

CA is endlessly and futilelessly tilting at windmills, to wit:

California 594.1. Sale, Purchase or Possession of Aerosol Paint Container; Posting of Notice by Retailers

(a) (1) It shall be unlawful for any person, firm, or corporation, except a parent or legal guardian, to sell or give or in any way furnish to another person, who is in fact under the age of 18 years, any aerosol container of paint that is capable of defacing property without first obtaining bona fide evidence of majority and identity.

(b) It shall be unlawful for any person under the age of 18 years to purchase an aerosol container of paint that is capable of defacing property.

(c) Every retailer selling or offering for sale in this state aerosol containers of paint capable of defacing property shall post in a conspicuous place a sign in letters at least three-eighths of an inch high stating: "Any person who maliciously defaces real or personal property with paint is guilty of vandalism which is punishable by a fine, imprisonment, or both."

(d) It is unlawful for any person to carry on his or her person and in plain view to the public an aerosol container of paint while in any posted public facility, park, playground, swimming pool, beach, or recreational area, other than a highway, street, alley, or way, unless he or she has first received valid authorization from the governmental entity which has jurisdiction over the public area. As used in this subdivision, "posted" means a sign placed in a reasonable location or locations stating it is a misdemeanor to possess a spray can of paint in that public facility, park, playground, swimming pool, beach, or recreational area without valid authorization.

(e) (1) It is unlawful for any person under the age of 18 years to possess an aerosol container of paint for the purpose of defacing property while on any public highway, street, alley, or way, or other public place, regardless of whether that person is or is not in any automobile, vehicle, or other conveyance.


Yeah, that so stopped grafitti.

kimsch said...

@BJM,

Yeah, we have that spray paint stuff here too. But it's just checking age when getting carded for spray paint, like getting carded for liquor or cigarettes.

Robitussin, Sudafed, and now drain cleaner here in Illinois require that the merchant take your information off your ID and record it to be held somewhere for some indeterminate amount of time.

I can't buy more than one package of Sudafed (I usually buy Walgreens' house brand Walphed) at a time. I can't buy more than 96 tablets at a time. I can't buy more than three packages a month.

If I were to buy a package of, say 24 tablets, that counts as one of my packages for the month.

I don't mind showing ID to verify age. I don't like having to register my purchase with the government.

purplepenquin said...

Why should I, an obvious adult, have to show ID and sign to buy a bottle of Robitussin?

Why should you? That's easy...it is so you can get use to the idea of having an ID for anything/everything.

That way when they require gov't-issued IDs for basic Constitutional Rights it won't seem as big of a deal...folks will say "Hey! You need an ID to buy cough syrup, so why shouldn't you need an ID to vote/buy-a-gun/start-going-to-a-different-church/whatever-else-lawmakers-come-up-with?!"

Revenant said...

That way when they require gov't-issued IDs for basic Constitutional Rights it won't seem as big of a deal

Some rights, such as freedom of speech, are possessed by everyone. Other rights, such as the right to vote in American elections, are not (which is why, for example, Germans aren't allowed to vote for our President).

So you may say "I have the right to vote". My response: prove it. "Purple Penguin" may have the right to vote, but why should we believe you're him?

walter said...

"That way when they require gov't-issued IDs for basic Constitutional Rights it won't seem as big of a deal"

So..because it is a constitutional right, you feel that confirming residency or citizenry is an affront to that right? Whether it's an id card or documents that show where you live, it's better than a free for all where the voting process would be wide open to tremendous fraud...undermining the right itself.

Bruce Hayden said...

The most corrupt administration in history.

Yeh - you know something is rotten there, when the head of the criminal division of the U.S. Attorney's Office in Arizona pleads the 5th Amdt. in response to requests by Congress to testify about Fast and Furious.

I think that the expectation is that he will ask for immunity in order to testify, and I suspect that he will get it. We shall see.

Bruce Hayden said...

Dodd's problem here is that his egregious rent seeking was exposed. His company has an obsolete business model, that they were trying to perpetuate through legislation and access to federal guns.

Don't fall into their trap of believing that billions of dollars of IP were being stolen. What they intentionally ignore is that there is a supply and demand curve for movies, just as there is for pretty much every thing else. What they do to get those figures is multiply the number of illegal movie downloads by the retail price of the videos - intentionally ignoring that the marginal value for most of those doing the illegal downloads is near zero. Maybe a buck or so, which is where they probably should price them online. And, I think that this pricing model will ultimately prevail - my kid and their mother share a NetFlix account, and happily pay the monthly fees there to see a limited number of movies and TV shows a month. I think that is much more the wave of the future. And, indeed, I find that I prefer watching over the Internet than on TV, if I have fast enough bandwidth, because they either come w/o commercials, or the commercials are more easily bypassed.

I, for one, would willingly pay a dollar or two to see a movie one time, but steadfastly refuse to pay $20 or so for a DVD. Most often, I won't watch it again anyway, and if it is that good, I will go to the theater to see it, which is still cheaper than buying the DVD in many cases. I find DVD libraries of most movies and TV shows silly for most people.

The problem though is that we really don't know if PIPA in particular is dead. Dodd, et al., thought that they had successfully bought their politicians, and are finding that this may not be the case. But, despite all those (mostly Republican) Senators pulling their sponsorship of the legislation, keep in mind that only 1/3 of the Senate is up for election this year, and as a result, it seems far easier to buy Senators than House members, who have to stand for reelection every other year (except for safe districts, and, esp. minority-majority districts, where the incumbent can be a convicted felon, or, even an impeached federal judge, and still get easily reelected, regardless of their unpopular votes). We shall see how the cloture vote goes, but right now, I think that PIPA has a better chance in the Senate than does SOPA in the House. (And, yes, the fact that selling votes is considered hypocritical by Republicans, but normal politics by Democrats factors in here too).

Jack Reylan said...

The leftist media has gall to complain! They need to change their model to ad-based. Hypocite Google already censors plenty. They keep you from viewing politically incorrect passages from Google Books. They censor politically incorrect usenet posts (they banned me for attacking Caroline Kennedy but not others who did worse). They allow trial lawyers to spread panic and false information through their search engines. They allow marketers to block lower price competitors. Do you remember when Reagan used Foreign Agent Registration to ban Canadian anti-war films, then the multi-culturalists used the same law to ban evidence vindicating the Serbs? Do you remember when Obama tried to label the Tea Party as domestic terror, just like Janet Reno did to the Militias? This is why Bush was a fool to pass the Patriot Act, which Obama can use against real patriots.

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