Pork and [chat]

Carl Levin kicks ass

So, the Clinton representative goes on this diatribe about how Michigan Uncomitted delegates need to remain uncomitted because they are uncommitted. He completely ignores the fact that only Clinton had her name on the ballot and sings praises of the uncomitted delegate position.

Then Carl Levin speaks:

"You're calling for a fair reflection of a flawed primary."

"You can't say that a ballot where you have one candidate named and one not included is reflective."

WomenCount PAC: Sexist and Dishonest

At some point I will have to stop thinking about this. But in the meantime...

Women Count PAC, a political action committee, is a group created by five women "who had traveled together around the country to campaign for Hillary Clinton [and who] were feeling frustrated about calls for her to withdraw from the race." The purpose of the group, as explained on their website, is to "ensure that the 51 percent of American citizens who are women have their values and votes counted in the political process".

So, just to be clear, Women Count PAC is a group created by women who campaigned for Hillary Clinton whose purpose is to ensure that the votes of women are counted. Not "all of the vote" or "the vote of men and women". No, Women Count PAC is concerned only with the votes of women given what their site says.

Now, here is a quote from a Newsweek Interview with Rosemary Camposano:

Newsweek: Was this ever a matter of Hillary Clinton being the first woman to have real shot at the White House?

Rosemary Camposano: We didn't organize around that principle at all. Supporting Hillary was not about her being a woman, although we admire her as a woman. But the underlying gender discrimination has been shocking. I've been disturbed by it. It's so hard for me to understand how we can be so outraged about racism, then allow the same undercurrent of gender bias to happen.

So Women Count PAC is a group formed by women whose purpose is to ensure that the votes of women are counted. Women Count will be protesting the May 31st DNC Rules Committee saying, "Hillary needs YOU to stand up for HER just as she always stands up for you." (capitalization theirs) But according to Rosemary Camposano, "supporting Hillary was not about her being a woman".

ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME?!

Do you honestly expect people to believe you, Rosemary Camposano? A group of women form a group called "Women Count" whose purpose is to ensure that the votes of women are counted and who will protest a DNC rules committee meeting on behalf of a woman candidate...and you're telling me that the candidate's gender is not a factor, a motivating force, the primary reason that you all give a damn? Really?

When voters in West Virginia were interviewed about the Democratic Primary they were asked why they did not vote for Obama. And you know what some of them said? Some voters in West Virginia actually said to reporters, on camera, that they would not vote for Barack Obama because he was black. Knowing full well that they were being bigots and racists when asked a question they told the fucking truth.

Which is more than you can claim, Rosemary Camposano.

Makin' Prograaaams

Apparently some people noticed that I wasn't around much lately, so this seems like a good place to dump the things I've been working on.

First up is a project I started a couple of weeks ago to keep the old Japanese reading skill sharp (or, you know, sharpen it for the first time). As of right now, there are two modes, one is a review which provides a kanji, its reading(s) and a definition of sorts (all according to the Tuttle Kanji Cards). The second mode is a quiz, which right now just shows a definition and gives five options of which one is the correct answer. Please note that the screenshots in the links are cropped to eliminate the considerable black space that makes up most of the screen, and the "review" shot is actually three screens on top of each other to show the two different styles of romanization for readings, and that there is the option to have the readings displayed in Japanese.

You can try the review mode of this program by downloading this

The other thing I was working on, but not so much lately, is Lisa Green Teaches Texting.



This thing is designed to satisfy mankind's need to practice texting? If you're using DosBox to run this one, make sure your CPU cycles are set to MAX, or else this thing will take forever to load. Also, there are a couple of things that don't quite work right: the text input screen doesn't word wrap to match the prompt, the cursor acts a little funny, and there was at one time a results screen that would rate and comment on your performance, but the formula pretty much praised everyone, so the results screen just gives a few stats.

You can download the mostly functional version of this here

Enjoy!

Geraldine Ferraro: Democratic Sexism

When I read Healing the Wounds of Democratic Sexism I tried to give Geraldine Ferraro the benefit of the doubt. The problem is that the title alone is unsubstantiated rhetorical idiocy crafted to present a baseless, biased position and what follows is more of the same. The Op-Ed is full of delightful little tidbits of idiocy each of which could fuel a rant of their own:

"They see Obama's playing the race card throughout the campaign and no one calling him for it as frightening."
-How is it frightening and how is it less frightening that you are playing the gender card?

"It's not racism that is driving them, it's racial resentment."
-Who the fuck writes that sentence?

"They may lack a formal higher education, but they're not stupid."
-I love this sentence.

But the bigger problem and more significant grievance I have is that after reading the article seven times now I do not understand how the fuck someone like Geraldine Ferraro can write these things and believe them. Here's an example:

"They don't identify with someone who has gone to Columbia and Harvard Law School and is married to a Princeton-Harvard Law graduate."

Ok, Clinton supporters are unable to identify with Obama due to his schooling and spouse. But, wait, Clinton went to Yale...and Clinton married an adulterer. So Clinton supporters can identify with Yale, but not Harvard...and they identify with spousal infidelity moreso than spousal academic prowess? REALLY? You just said "they're not stupid", Geraldine. Come on!

And then she has to bring up her own part in this parade of comedy:

"Since March, when I was accused of being racist for a statement I made about the influence of blacks on Obama's historic campaign, people have been stopping me to express a common sentiment: If you're white you can't open your mouth without being accused of being racist."

Ok, Geraldine, you said, "If Obama was a white man, he would not be in this position. And if he was a woman (of any color) he would not be in this position. He happens to be very lucky to be who he is. And the country is caught up in the concept." How is that not racist? You said, effectively, that Obama is in this position because of his race. That's the fucking definition of racism you dolt!

And then we have the Pièce de résistance:

In response, a group of women - from corporate executives to academics to members of the media - have requested that the Shorenstein Center at Harvard University and others conduct a study, which we will pay for if necessary, to determine three things.

First, whether either the Clinton or Obama campaign engaged in sexism and racism; second, whether the media treated Clinton fairly or unfairly; and third whether certain members of the media crossed an ethical line when they changed the definition of journalist from reporter and commentator to strategist and promoter of a candidate.

Fuck damn it. Ok.

"whether either the Clinton or Obama campaign engaged in sexism and racism"

How do you define and determine sexist or racist behavior? What is the criteria? And, you know, if they use the criteria you've nonverbally laid out in this Op-Ed? I can already tell you what the results will be.

"whether the media treated Clinton fairly or unfairly"

I adore the notion that the media was unfair to Clinton. Ignoring the fact that no criteria by which "fair" can be assessed has been provided I heart the sandbox-esque mentality of the "you're being unfair!" argument. It's precious.

"whether certain members of the media crossed an ethical line when they changed the definition of journalist from reporter and commentator to strategist and promoter of a candidate"

Ok, um, Geraldine? If you are doing a study? Your question needs to be whether or not any members of the media actually did this rather than baselessly assume they did it and then try to figure out whether the unverified action was ethical or not.

And, by the way, at the moment I'm going to ignore the fact that a group of women financing a study to determine whether or not we all ought to have voted for Hillary Clinton is about as objective as Big Tobacco financing a study on lung cancer.

But what pisses me the fuck off most of all is that when people in West Virgina were interviewed about the election they said they were not voting for Obama because he is black. Yet I've never heard anyone say they were not voting for Clinton because she is a woman. My understanding is that people do not vote for Clinton because they do not like Clinton. Maybe it is based upon their views of her husband. Maybe it is based upon her being an opportunistic, unfeeling cretin clinging desperately to a contest she has already lost. I do not know.

But not liking a woman is not sexist. Not liking a black man is not racist. Liking or not liking an individual because of their gender, because of their race? THAT is sexist, racist.

And that is a fact Geraldine Ferraro has obviously missed.

Delegate Count

Here is the most resent updates to the superdelegate count



Name: Elected / SD / Total / Needed


Obama: 1,660.5 / 322.5 / 1,982 / 43

Clinton: 1,499.5 / 281.5 / 1,781 / 244

Remainine: 86 / 193 / 279

Based on The Huffington Post's reporting, the Democratic leadership are urging the uncommitted superdelegates to make up their minds by this time next week.

Chuck Todd Facts

ChuckToddFacts.com

"Chuck Todd understands that there is a difference between "half" and "50 percent"."