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Edited by Mrph1 on Nov 30th 2023 at 11:03:59 AM

Medinoc from France (Before Recorded History)
#101901: Sep 25th 2015 at 12:10:20 PM

...Isn't there already one in whatever office makes the welfare work in the first place?

Edit: Ah, "public" database in that sense. Wow, that's fucked up.

edited 25th Sep '15 12:11:11 PM by Medinoc

"And as long as a sack of shit is not a good thing to be, chivalry will never die."
BonsaiForest Since: Jan, 2001
#101902: Sep 25th 2015 at 12:33:38 PM

Well fuck. Let's dox every person in the country then. Every time a person gets hated for anything, that person will have to fear for their life.

Of course that's fucked up. Well, tons of people are on welfare, so what the hell.

Meanwhile,

 Meanwhile, in the courts, conservative think tanks like the Washington Legal Foundation and their Pharma allies are pushing the free speech rights of drug companies, which would allow them to make claims about their products without sufficient evidence to prove that they are true, as long as the claims are not proven false or misleading.

Fucking corrupt sacks of shit. I'm getting increasingly disgusted with this country. How realistic is it to expect studies to be done on every claim made of every drug to see if the claim is true or not, so it can be proven false? It's the positives that have to be proven. The burden of proof that anything the company claims is true is on the company.

The "conservatives", or should I say, reactionaries, are taking this country and running with it off a cliff.

Keybreak (Long Runner)
#101903: Sep 25th 2015 at 12:46:22 PM

The Internet sure has made me liberal. I thought I was more of a centrist, but everything I read these days just keeps pushing me more and more to the left.

Well at least I'm still staunch on some things, like drinking, drugs, and public vulgar speech.

And agnosticism over hardcore atheism.

You gotta believe me when I scare you away, all that I wish for is that you would stay
carbon-mantis Collector Of Fine Oddities from Trumpland Since: Mar, 2010 Relationship Status: Married to my murderer
Collector Of Fine Oddities
#101904: Sep 25th 2015 at 12:52:11 PM

[up][up]Hell, the homeopathic and natropathic industry has been getting away with that for years. Every time the FTC tries to crack down on it the FDA and the supplement lobby rushes to their defense in the name of FREEDOM.

Fighteer Lost in Space from The Time Vortex (Time Abyss) Relationship Status: TV Tropes ruined my love life
Lost in Space
#101905: Sep 25th 2015 at 12:53:40 PM

Which, in turn, allows Mehmet Oz and his ilk to get away with the most outlandish paid product shilling that I have ever seen on TV.

"It's Occam's Shuriken! If the answer is elusive, never rule out ninjas!"
ironballs16 Since: Jul, 2009 Relationship Status: Owner of a lonely heart
#101906: Sep 25th 2015 at 1:54:30 PM

[up][up]

No, not the FDA, the Congressional lobbyists (Nevada and NH Senators, iirc) are the ones that really push back against the idea.

"Why would I inflict myself on somebody else?"
Mopman43 Since: Nov, 2013
#101907: Sep 25th 2015 at 1:58:49 PM

The FDA tried to put the reins on the health industry in the 90s. The companies turned to their market, with a message of, tell the government to leave my pills alone. This was in an ad campaign spearheaded by Mel Gibson. Worse, it worked.

Deadbeatloser22 from Disappeared by Space Magic (Great Old One) Relationship Status: Tsundere'ing
3of4 Just a harmless giant from a foreign land. from Five Seconds in the Future. Since: Jan, 2010 Relationship Status: GAR for Archer
Just a harmless giant from a foreign land.
#101909: Sep 25th 2015 at 2:44:10 PM

I have a feeling we are seeing the next main topic of Last Week Tonight.

"You can reply to this Message!"
Woodywoo01 Lets Lurk! Since: May, 2013 Relationship Status: Love blinded me (with science!)
SeptimusHeap from Switzerland (Edited uphill both ways) Relationship Status: Mu
#101911: Sep 25th 2015 at 3:39:19 PM

Retiring in a middle of a coup, as it may be?

"For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for Nature cannot be fooled." - Richard Feynman
FFShinra Since: Jan, 2001
#101912: Sep 25th 2015 at 3:40:12 PM

Stay Orange, Boehner. Stay Orange.

Artificius from about a foot and a half away from a monitor. Since: Jun, 2010 Relationship Status: Norwegian Wood
#101913: Sep 25th 2015 at 3:43:26 PM

"What's new?" "John Boehner is retiring. I wasn't really expecting that." "Who's John Boehner?" "Orange guy who runs congress and can always be seen scowling behind Obama when he gives them a speech." "Oh yeah!"

"I have no fear, for fear is the little death that kills me over and over. Without fear, I die but once."
SeptimusHeap from Switzerland (Edited uphill both ways) Relationship Status: Mu
#101914: Sep 25th 2015 at 3:44:22 PM

"Stay Orange"?

"For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for Nature cannot be fooled." - Richard Feynman
PotatoesRock Since: Oct, 2012
#101915: Sep 25th 2015 at 4:02:17 PM

His skin looks like he wears an absurd amount of spray-tan on it, which looks orange.

Anyways, can't blame him for going. He wanted to leave last year and hand the job over to Cantor, but Cantor got Primary'd. He probably doesn't want to get caught in the hurricane shitstorm of 2016.

edited 25th Sep '15 4:03:17 PM by PotatoesRock

LeGarcon Blowout soon fellow Stalker from Skadovsk Since: Aug, 2013 Relationship Status: Gay for Big Boss
Blowout soon fellow Stalker
#101916: Sep 25th 2015 at 4:04:36 PM

I still say we need him now more than ever. This is a bad year for him to leave.

Who's gonna stop the Tea Partiers now?

Oh really when?
FFShinra Since: Jan, 2001
#101917: Sep 25th 2015 at 4:07:00 PM

No one, but that might be okay. They can discredit themselves via madness.

Artificius from about a foot and a half away from a monitor. Since: Jun, 2010 Relationship Status: Norwegian Wood
#101918: Sep 25th 2015 at 4:08:14 PM

[up][up]The US Army, after the Tea Party congress and their newly elected Speaker inadvertently cede grotesque amounts of authority to the executive by throwing government shutdown temper tantrums until it looks like it's become the office of a dictator, which causes their supporters to run to the hills and begin insurrectin'. The irony will be lost on them.

edited 25th Sep '15 4:11:02 PM by Artificius

"I have no fear, for fear is the little death that kills me over and over. Without fear, I die but once."
Memers Since: Aug, 2013
#101919: Sep 25th 2015 at 4:17:17 PM

So much for the Only Sane Man... This is going to get real bad.

Quag15 Since: Mar, 2012
#101920: Sep 25th 2015 at 4:20:36 PM

What John Boehner told me the night before he said he was quitting:

Politico’s Jake Sherman and I stood there for an hour or so, steno pads in hand and trading stories, as we waited for Boehner to appear. We had heard rumors from several lawmakers that Boehner was mulling retirement and that, as a devout Catholic, he privately saw the pope’s congressional visit, which he had orchestrated, as a fitting denouement to his long political career.

(...)

“The pope, he comes up the steps right there. He comes right here,” Boehner said, pointing down at my feet.

“Right here?” I asked. “Right here!” Boehner said, smiling. “Right here. When he gets here, there are all of these kids he is going to bless. And you know how I get.”

“You start crying?” I asked.

Boehner shot me a look, as if that was obvious.

“So. So, the pope puts his arm around my left arm,” he said as he pulled my arm up to his shoulder. Boehner was now fully committed to acting it out. “Hold on, hold on,” he said as I pulled my arm away. “Let me finish. The pope says to me, ‘Please pray for me.’ ”

“Please pray for me,” Boehner repeated as he dipped his head. “He said, ‘Please pray for me.’ ”

(...)

About 14 hours later, in a Friday morning meeting, Boehner announced his coming retirement, stunning many of his colleagues.

If they had seen him Thursday at twilight, vividly remembering a pope’s simple request, maybe they wouldn’t have been that surprised. Here was a man strikingly at ease after months of tumult in his ranks, a man who said he felt blessed.

We didn’t get the scoop, but we sensed that something had changed. Boehner was at peace.

Ramidel Since: Jan, 2001
#101921: Sep 25th 2015 at 4:21:02 PM

@Fighteer: Unfortunately, any institution can be subverted because humanity does include selfish bastards...and a large number of idiots. Hence, yeah, you can't trust unlimited power to any institution. (Ignoring those who don't consider support for society to be a particularly important principle.)

Right now, we benefit from the checks and balances in our system having corroded and Congress being powerless before the Executive - in 2006, this was the opposite, and the inability of Congress to check the President allowed Bush and Cheney to keep right on doing what they were doing.

In other news, part of the reason behind Boehner's jumping ship appears to be that he's now able to openly flip the bird at his caucus and pass a budget with Democratic votes. In other words, another example of "lame duck" meaning "give no fucks."

edited 25th Sep '15 4:21:35 PM by Ramidel

tclittle Professional Forum Ninja from Somewhere Down in Texas Since: Apr, 2010
Professional Forum Ninja
#101922: Sep 25th 2015 at 6:20:50 PM

Peter King: Boener's exit is a win for the crazies.

My guess is that now with Boener gone, if the crazy members of the House institute a Speaker as crazy as them, the establishment Republicans may end up siding with the Democrats to keep them from doing anything too stupid.

"We're all paper, we're all scissors, we're all fightin' with our mirrors, scared we'll never find somebody to love."
Artificius from about a foot and a half away from a monitor. Since: Jun, 2010 Relationship Status: Norwegian Wood
#101923: Sep 25th 2015 at 6:51:28 PM

[up]Can we revive the "Going the way of the Whigs" wishful thinking and discussion? [lol] Because a party splitting over social and economic goals sounds very much like that.

http://tinyurl.com/plhb8l2

[down]I think that might require serious electoral reform. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duverger%27s_law

edited 25th Sep '15 7:49:49 PM by Artificius

"I have no fear, for fear is the little death that kills me over and over. Without fear, I die but once."
Skycobra51 A suitable case for treatment from The US of A Since: Nov, 2013 Relationship Status: Only knew I loved her when I let her go
A suitable case for treatment
#101924: Sep 25th 2015 at 7:31:11 PM

[up]I'm surprised it hasn't happened sooner given all the various factions in the party.

America really needs to ditch the two party system.

edited 25th Sep '15 7:42:28 PM by Skycobra51

Look upon my privilege ye mighty and despair.
Protagonist506 from Oregon Since: Dec, 2013 Relationship Status: Chocolate!
#101925: Sep 25th 2015 at 7:59:51 PM

[up]I don't think a 3 or 1 party system would be superior, though. Especially a 1 party system.

Leviticus 19:34

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