tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post8723924089695234433..comments2024-03-28T03:47:46.544-04:00Comments on The Elephant Bar: Beirut Lebanon: The Sunni-Shia Divide according to Robert FiskDeuce ☂http://www.blogger.com/profile/13472858446242700869noreply@blogger.comBlogger60125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-6404367050996913652013-12-23T09:06:43.796-05:002013-12-23T09:06:43.796-05:00When folks get married in China, the guys parents ...When folks get married in China, the guys parents are taken care of by the kids.<br /><br />The Girls parents are shit outta luck.<br /><br />That's why the Chi-Coms are better than us.Doughttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16770268554450465514noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-24595762677312310382013-12-23T04:34:08.461-05:002013-12-23T04:34:08.461-05:00It's done, put a fork in it.It's done, put a fork in it.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-10949930048089331062013-12-23T02:18:34.485-05:002013-12-23T02:18:34.485-05:00Approx. 8.4 Million Americans now have health cove...Approx. <b>8.4 Million Americans</b> now have health coverage as a result of Obamacare.<br /><br />Deal's done, folks.<br /><br /><a href="http://acasignups.net/" rel="nofollow">ACA Signups</a>Rufus IIhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05297231055991566183noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-18000648369633108792013-12-23T01:27:01.242-05:002013-12-23T01:27:01.242-05:00“And, with much of Europe occupied by Nazi Germany...<br />“And, with much of Europe occupied by Nazi Germany, <br />and Mussolini's armies in Albania, on the Greek frontier, <br />one wasn't sure what came next. So, don't trust the telephone. <br /><br />Or the newspapers. Or the radio. Or tomorrow.”<br /><br />― Alan Furst,<i> Spies of the Balkans </i><br /><br /><br />bob<br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-55548532742539218542013-12-23T01:26:34.694-05:002013-12-23T01:26:34.694-05:00This year I was on holiday in Corsica and happened...<i>This year I was on holiday in Corsica and happened to wander into the church of a tiny hamlet in the hills where I found a memorial to the dead from World War I. Out of a population that can have been no more than 150, eight young men, bearing among them only three last names, had died in that conflict.<br /><br />...<br /><br />The era just before World War I, with its gas lighting and its horse-drawn carriages, seems very far off and quaint, it is similar in many ways—often unsettlingly so—to ours, as a look below the surface reveals. The decades leading up to 1914 were, like our own time, a period of dramatic shifts and upheavals, which those who experienced them thought of as unprecedented in speed and scale.<br /><br />...<br /><br />We are witnessing, as much as the world of 1914, shifts in the international power structure, with emerging powers challenging the established ones. Just as national rivalries led to mutual suspicions between Britain and the newly ascendant Germany before 1914, the same is happening between the U.S. and China now, and also between China and Japan.</i><br /><br /><a href="http://www.brookings.edu/research/essays/2013/rhyme-of-history" rel="nofollow">Rhyme Of History</a>samhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11856051164644278989noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-60657873652197530472013-12-23T01:24:06.886-05:002013-12-23T01:24:06.886-05:00
“You ask, what is our aim?
I can answer in one w...<br />“You ask, what is our aim?<br /> I can answer in one word.<br /><br /> It is victory, victory at all costs, victory in spite of all terror, victory!<br />However long and hard the road may be; for without victory, there is no survival.” <br />Winston Churchillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-44570732528008616352013-12-23T01:19:13.331-05:002013-12-23T01:19:13.331-05:00.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama...<br /><br /><br /> .<br />WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama's healthcare law could have a "meltdown" and make it difficult for his Democratic Party to keep control of the U.S. Senate next year if ongoing problems with the program are not resolved, a Democratic senator said on Sunday.<br /><br />Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia, who has urged delaying a penalty for people who do not enroll for health insurance in 2014 under the law, told CNN that a transitional year was needed for the complex healthcare program, commonly known as Obamacare, to work.<br /><br />"If it's so much more expensive than what we anticipated and if the coverage is not as good as what we had, you've got a complete meltdown at that time," Manchin told CNN's "State of the Union" program.<br /><br />"It falls of its own weight, if basically the cost becomes more than we can absorb, absolutely."<br /><br />The White House has been scrambling for months to control the damage from the botched October 1 launch of the law, formally called the Affordable Care Act, which aimed at making sure that millions of Americans without health insurance are able to receive medical coverage.<br /><br />There have been complaints from consumers about higher premiums than they previously had to pay for health insurance after their old plans were canceled because of new standards under the law, as well as lingering problems with the main web portal used to sign up for insurance, HealthCare.gov.<br /><br />Manchin said Senate Democrats who are up for re-election next year are "feeling the weight" of the program's woes and could have trouble keeping their majority in the chamber.<br /><br />Republicans have been highlighting the healthcare law's difficulties as they seek to gain the six seats they would need to win control of the 100-member Senate.<br /><br />"It needs to turn around," Manchin said of Obamacare. "I'm not going to say that I think we will lose it (the Senate). It's going to be extremely challenging. We have some very good people who are truly there, I believe, for the right reason. They're going to be challenged for the wrong reason."<br /><br />Obama acknowledged on Friday that that the bungled launch of the healthcare law was his biggest mistake of 2013. His public approval numbers have dropped to historic lows over the law's debut.<br /><br />The president said more than 1 million people have signed up so far for new coverage under Obamacare through HealthCare.gov, which services 36 states, and 14 state-run marketplaces.<br /><br />A day earlier, Obama's administration said people whose insurance plans were canceled because of the law may claim a "hardship exemption" to the requirement that all Americans must have coverage by March 31 next year or face a penalty.<br /><br />Manchin, a conservative Democrat whose state of West Virginia has been increasingly trending Republican, has made no secret of his frustration over the program's fits and starts.<br /><br />Last month he introduced legislation to delay by a year the $95 penalty for failing to sign up for health insurance, saying Americans should not be penalized while Obamacare is going through its "transition period."<br /><br />Manchin does not face re-election next year, but some Democrats who do have also urged changes to the program, such as extending the open enrollment period beyond the March 31 deadline. One third of the Senate is re-elected every two years.<br /><br />(Reporting By Susan Cornwell; editing by Christopher Wilson<br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-90983720292257342292013-12-23T01:15:39.670-05:002013-12-23T01:15:39.670-05:00Thanks (I think). I followed play-by-play on seah...Thanks (I think). I followed play-by-play on seahawks.com. What a disaster.samhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11856051164644278989noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-65228540941869200352013-12-23T01:08:17.657-05:002013-12-23T01:08:17.657-05:00Sam I will try to remember to post a link for the ...Sam I will try to remember to post a link for the Seahawks next game before next Sunday.<br /><br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-59489299429060694872013-12-23T01:07:05.144-05:002013-12-23T01:07:05.144-05:00The reason for the lack of, until now at least, se...The reason for the lack of, until now at least, sex-selection abortion in the USA can be seen through history and cultural background.<br /><br />What the F is you point, bob?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-24744433024309024942013-12-23T01:04:17.060-05:002013-12-23T01:04:17.060-05:00Vered Lee Mon Dec 16, 11:34:00 AM EST
Age of chi...<br />Vered Lee Mon Dec 16, 11:34:00 AM EST<br /><br /><b>Age of child prostitutes in Israel dropping, report finds</b><br /><br />Knesset study cites cases of 11-year-olds used for commercial sex that are among the several thousands of teenagers involved in prostitution.<br />By Vered Lee <br /><br />http://www.haaretz.com/news/national/.premium-1.542420<br /><br /><b>"Spengler's Laws": "When a nation is reduced to selling its women, it's lost."</b><br />hat tip: allen<br /><br /><br />bobAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-20900299604908609632013-12-23T01:00:52.552-05:002013-12-23T01:00:52.552-05:00Sex-selective abortion - Wikipedia, the free encyc...<br /><b>Sex-selective abortion - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia<br /><br />The reason for intensifying sex-selection abortion in China and India can be seen through history and cultural background.</b><br /><br /><br />bobAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-41214220172230669952013-12-23T00:53:25.663-05:002013-12-23T00:53:25.663-05:00Finally, each new citizen was called up to receive...<i>Finally, each new citizen was called up to receive their certificate, to shake hands with the 10 earnest officials, all of whom looked everyone in the eye and said "well done" or "good job", and to receive a small American flag from a representative of the Daughters of the American Revolution. Clutching these cheap flags and our precious certificates of naturalization we filed back to our seats, or fled the room.<br /><br />In the corridor was a table with small plastic cups of what appeared to be urine, but was more likely apple juice, and a cardboard display of American symbols and the flags of many other countries. This seemed to be intended as a backdrop for photographs of the happy new US citizens, although it would have been more appropriate for a grade school educational presentation.<br /><br />Any sentiment I might have had about finally being a citizen, with the right to vote, access to benefits, and the ability to cross the border without suspicion, had been vapourised by the condescending tone of the whole event. My partner and I left the courthouse as fast as we could without arousing the suspicion that we had set a time bomb, and set off for the nearest bar.</i><br /><br /><a href="http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/dec/22/us-citizenship-naturalization-ceremony-bizarre" rel="nofollow">American Citizen</a>samhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11856051164644278989noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-77505613333394712282013-12-23T00:18:27.868-05:002013-12-23T00:18:27.868-05:00At least 42 people, including children, were kille...<i>At least 42 people, including children, were killed on Sunday when Syrian army helicopters dropped improvised "barrel bombs" in the northern province of Aleppo, a monitoring group said.<br /><br />...<br /><br />"They hit a convoy of cars on a road in Hanano, many cars were destroyed. There were civilians there," said the Observatory's Rami Abdelrahman.</i>samhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11856051164644278989noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-87794415233905572372013-12-22T23:52:50.903-05:002013-12-22T23:52:50.903-05:00Polly, honey, this does not seem true of the '...Polly, honey, this does not seem true of the 'primitive' hunter/gather/fisher religions in the Americas. <br /><br />And Jesus, who was Jewish through and through, doesn't seem disgusted with women's bodies. He hung out with enough of them. Was very conversational with them. <br /><br />In today's world it is only Islam that shows any great concern over women's bodies. And it is all faux concern.<br /><br />Mostly the men in Islam like to order them around. Make them march to their tune. I don't discern this tendency in Jews or Christians today. A little chastity might be preached, but then again there is no stoning.......Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-36905232687064273402013-12-22T23:46:09.198-05:002013-12-22T23:46:09.198-05:00An old formula, bob, is that the proclaimer became...An old formula, bob, is that the proclaimer became the Proclaimed. If this formula holds some truth, then the Proclaimed must contain some reflection of the proclaimer, so the idea runs.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-69004772159373875222013-12-22T23:42:33.586-05:002013-12-22T23:42:33.586-05:00Well Polly want a cracker?
I guess Polly knows as...Well Polly want a cracker?<br /><br />I guess Polly knows as much as a parrot...<br /><br />Israel is...<br /><br />Choke on it...What is "Occupation"https://www.blogger.com/profile/02054075097495500689noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-53320956515383400492013-12-22T23:41:28.991-05:002013-12-22T23:41:28.991-05:00I agree about the world not caring about you...
B...I agree about the world not caring about you...<br /><br />But Israel IS....<br /><br />Choke on it.What is "Occupation"https://www.blogger.com/profile/02054075097495500689noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-11113376188279305742013-12-22T23:40:15.747-05:002013-12-22T23:40:15.747-05:00And yet you post hundreds and hundreds of meaningl...And yet you post hundreds and hundreds of meaningless posts...<br /><br />Your actions speak louder that then the crap you post..<br /><br />israel IS....<br /><br />choke on it.What is "Occupation"https://www.blogger.com/profile/02054075097495500689noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-26441377192172506622013-12-22T23:26:28.358-05:002013-12-22T23:26:28.358-05:00Primitive Middle Eastern religions (and most other...<br />Primitive Middle Eastern religions (and most others) are much the same – Islam, Christianity and Judaism all define themselves through disgust for women's bodies.<br /><br />Polly Toynbeenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-66172215261168320252013-12-22T23:25:19.690-05:002013-12-22T23:25:19.690-05:00Exactly, "Christianity" is an amorphous ...<br />Exactly, "Christianity" is an amorphous term, just like "Judaism" and "Islam".<br /><br /><br />bobAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-40491415842842213862013-12-22T23:23:08.360-05:002013-12-22T23:23:08.360-05:00“I could try to care, but I ain't sure it'...<br />“I could try to care, but I ain't sure it's worth the bother.” <br /><br />― Anne Elisabeth Stengl, <b><i>Veiled Rose </i></b><br />Anne Elisabeth Stenglnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-88951399619602146432013-12-22T23:22:46.086-05:002013-12-22T23:22:46.086-05:00"There was only one Christian, and he died on..."There was only one Christian, and he died on the cross."<br /><br />Nietzsche<br /><br />Which is as much non sense as the statement above by bob.<br /><br />Which "Christianity", bob?<br /><br />The earliest traditions? Rome? Constantinople? Memphis? Hollywood? Salt Lake City?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-2070917116910200592013-12-22T23:13:32.432-05:002013-12-22T23:13:32.432-05:00Former Mossad Director Ephraim Halevy not only has...Former Mossad Director Ephraim Halevy not only has publicly opposed an Israeli attack on Iran as anything but a last resort;<br />he is a longstanding supporter of a diplomatic solution to the Iran nuclear issue. <br />In September of 2012, Halevy told Haaretz‘s Ari Shavit that Israel needed to understand the Iranian perspective:<br /><b><i><br />The basic feeling of that ancient nation is one of humiliation.<br />Both religious Iranians and secular Iranians feel that for 200 years the Western powers used them as their playthings. <br /><br />They do not forget for a moment that the British and the Americans intervened in their internal affairs and toppled the regime of Mohammad Mosaddeq in 1953. <br /><br />From their perspective, the reason why, to this day, there is no modern rail network and no modern oil refineries in Iran is that the West prevented that. <br /><br />Thus, the deep motive behind the Iranian nuclear project <br />− which was launched by the Shah −<br />is not the confrontation with Israel, <br />but the desire to restore to Iran the greatness of which it was long deprived. <br /><br />I believe that if the West could find a way to propose to Iran alternative methods to acquire that sense of greatness,<br />Iran would forsake the nuclear road. <br /><br />If Iran were offered trains and oil refineries and a place of honor in regional trade, it would consider this seriously.</i></b><br /><br />A month later, in an interview with al-Monitor‘s Laura Rozen just before the U.S. presidential election, <br />Halevy defended President Obama’s willingness to negotiate with Iran as ” very courageous.” <br /><br /><br />Pasted from <http://2164th.blogspot.com/2013/11/the-brutal-truth-our-president-got-his.html?showComment=1385263221963#c2669905476206837535<br /><br /><br />bobAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21297199.post-1163996215875208862013-12-22T23:12:33.336-05:002013-12-22T23:12:33.336-05:00“The world is very lovely, and it's very horri...<br />“The world is very lovely, and it's very horrible-<br />-and it doesn't care about your life or mine or anything else.”<br /><br />― Rudyard Kipling,<i> The Light That Failed </i>Rudyard Kiplingnoreply@blogger.com