Constructive gadfly
stevendedalus's Articles » Page 24
December 27, 2005 by stevendedalus
When members of the Christian Right are put back in their pews. When the first barrel of oil flows from ANWR. When Democrats return to their FDR roots, and Dixiecrats put an end to their gross piety and put to rest honorably the confederate flag. When we return to the time-honored: fear is but fear itself. When Gov. Jennifer Greyholm is granted constitutional dispensation to run for the presidency. When scissors are again banned from flight, except for defens...
December 23, 2005 by stevendedalus
When the Iraqis tell us they are ready to stand up. When Bush declares we are ready to stand down. When every Iraqi child is well versed in the new constitution. When every Iraqi child is well versed in the Koran. When Iraqi men standup courageously. …well, like men. When Iraqis throw us out. When the American people throw out the neo-cons. When Zarqawi throws out the towel from his spider hole. When Saddam is finally sentenced to death....
December 23, 2005 by stevendedalus
The site overwhelmingly is on the side of Bush’s approach to spying at home. Echoing fear-mongers across the nation on the spy issue, there is little room for debate. If we don’t go along with the manner in which the CIA and NSA gather evidence the following is shouted out:              Listening in on terrorists will prevent another Sept. 11. [as though helter-skelter listening in on tens of thousands of citizens will defy th...
December 22, 2005 by stevendedalus
The little country Qater, thanks to 900 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, is the third wealthiest nation in the world in terms of per capita income, behind Luxembourg and Switzerland. I can understand Qater being up there, sitting on all that gas, but what’s number one Switzerland, and Luxembourg’s excuse? The US would love to know their secret to success.
December 22, 2005 by stevendedalus
What is the fate of the White House Christmas tree in the event there is a Jewish president? Is it the president who decides to continue the tradition because of his four to eight year residence there? Or is it the right of the landlord [us] not only to install a tree on the lawn, but also inside the great house? Many would argue that the White House is a provisional private residence of the first family, thus having the right to protect its privacy and personal beliefs. Others would counter t...
December 22, 2005 by stevendedalus
Although always a proud union man and believer in striking as a last defense, the ruthless TWU walk off is an intolerable abuse of power at which even the parent union shudders. When a local can extend its talons round eight million people trying to get to work and millions of consumers, particularly during the holiday season, whereby the strike raises havoc on the commercial infrastructure, causing hundreds of millions in loss to business, there is a need for a harsh counter force when the wa...
December 22, 2005 by stevendedalus
It is perplexing as to why there is this dichotomy between evolution and intelligent design when in reality it is a simple matter of splitting hairs of what is actually observed and what is transcendent. For Darwin deduced from the complexity of evolving life forms an inherent natural selection of intentionality. That is, from a cell there may be underlying it intentionality of inexistent or nebulous other forms which may indeed transcend itself into another material object and become existent...
December 20, 2005 by stevendedalus
Taking Control Alienation is a teleological principle of materialism: the presupposition that there is a world out there necessitates alienation of human endeavor — I intuit within I am a living, laboring thing with a minimal sense of purpose, therefore, I think about other things. Without a sense of perspective of matter in motion, even though our species may concede that it too is a part, though apart from, humanity loses its innate commanding position over the environment...
December 20, 2005 by stevendedalus
Boy:       Kinda nice having holiday music in the halls. Puts you in the spirit-- like you really want to do something nice for mankind. Girl:       Obviously not womankind! { she grunts, struggling with her books } Boy:       { Ignores her } Ah, less than six hours away-- and then freedom for two weeks! Girl:       You speak of C...
December 20, 2005 by stevendedalus
"NEW YORK - The New York Yankees grabbed center fielder Johnny Damon away from the rival Boston Red Sox, reaching a preliminary agreement Tuesday night on a $52 million, four-year contract. Damon fills a double void for the Yankees, giving them a speedy center fielder who can cover ground and a leadoff hitter to top a star-studded lineup. Bernie Williams' defense declined significantly over the past four seasons. And while Damon's arm is not much better, he does cover a lot of ground, wh...
December 19, 2005 by stevendedalus
Too often the difference between good and bad guys is that the latter are caught. We don’t know that it’s an indisputable fact that Clinton was the first President to get a blow-job in the White House. Abu Ghraib, perhaps not as dramatically and sadistically, goes on in prisons of any kind repeatedly — its simply a matter of publicity. While John McCain naively assumed that torture was the unique expertise of North Vietnamese, the same, though arguably milder, went on in US interrogation South...
December 19, 2005 by stevendedalus
Republicans are pro-business and anti-union — even those reaping the benefits as union members. Democrats barely tolerate business and are pro-union — even those reaping the benefits of business. Republicans perceive Democrats as Liberals only — despite Murtha and Lieberman. Democrats perceive Republicans as Religious Right only — despite Hagel and Snow. Republicans tend to cover themselves in the Flag. Democrats tend to cover themselves in the old glory of ...
December 18, 2005 by stevendedalus
The household echo then was to balance the budget in seven years. Why wait that long, or why not five, ten or twelve years? In the past, revenue enhancement was the strategy to reduce deficits. Washington D.C. over the Reagan years forgot this tactic because it meant whipping the hides of corporations and the wealthy. When Clinton revived the strategy in '93 by raising the marginal tax of the $200,000 income threshold in order to bring down the escalating deficits, the Republicans and most of ...
December 18, 2005 by stevendedalus
The previous two decades of soft but penetrating rock was dipped in acid in the 80s as the kids abandoned the Beach Boys, Elton John, Carol King, the Osmonds, the Fifth Dimension and the Jackson Five and looked to punk to override the horror of two hundred dead marines. Nevertheless, Springsteen hung in there and the movies created beautiful music. Gorbachev eradicated the fearful image of Big Brother and became "Man of the Year." Reagan grabbed credit for ending the "evil empire" ...
December 16, 2005 by stevendedalus
Holding its breath till this awful decade of the '60s ran its tragic course, the nation received comic relief in '69 when Ted Kennedy urged that the United States take steps toward alliance with China. The only one not laughing apparently was the President-elect Richard M. Nixon. The champion of the common man, Jesse Jackson, was jailed in Chicago for picketing the so-called liberal trade unions for their alleged discriminatory practices. It was a sound boom year: the SST Concord made its fi...