How is it possible that it happened?
Congress was supposed to be is recess this past week but McCarthy called them back for … well … that was never really clear at all. So he basically has a room full of people whose starting point was being seriously ticked off for having their vacation ruined.
He had also, not too many days back, managed to get a clean Continuing Resolution through to avert the shutdown. That happened because he got support from the Democrats. Right after they bailed him out, he goes on TV and proceeds to verbally piss all over the Democrats for supposedly “trying to shut down the government.”. They just “loved” him for that crass bit of political theatre.
Once the motion to vacate the chair hit the floor he expected the by now rather pissed off Democrats to once again bail him out, so he was ready for the vote …
… but he offered them exactly nothing in return for their support. Having had enough of him and his political antics, they took a hard pass and simply stepped back from the splash zone.
In other words, you reap what you sow, and so here we are.
If you have doubts that not supporting him was the wrong play, then let’s remember that McCarthy voted to overturn the election, held the entire US economy hostage, launched a baseless impeachment inquiry without a vote, and also refused to honor his word in what is in the best interest of this country … so yes, not supporting him was the right thing to do.
When your voting margins are wafer thin, then going scorched earth with you opponents was a damn stupid play for him to make.
Oh, and this also rather neatly sums up the coverage of it all rather nicely …
Moving on, below you will once again find my usual selection of some truly bizarre and extreme claims that have popped up during the last 7 days. Each is laced with my snarky commentary.
With my usual hat tip to my various sources, let’s once again dive into this very murky pool of absurdity and stupidity.
Project 2025
I’m flagging this up because you really do need to read the following. To be brutally frank, while it is mostly political shitfuckery, it also contains nuggets of pure religious shitfuckery that is threatening to descend upon us all.
(Side note: Yes, “Shitfuckery” really is a word, I didn’t make that up)
The tweet below points to this linked article, within which Hemant pulls apart and reveals the new Heritage Foundation’s recently released 920-page document outlining their plans for what they hope will be a second Trump term. It’s dire and deeply scary stuff. I should also point out that this is not fear mongering, they have literally published their actual plans.
- A common quip often deployed is to suggest that some item of right-wing religious lunacy was inspired by The Handmaid’s Tale … in this case, we appear to be dealing with folks who saw that quip and thought “Gosh, what a great idea” and went for it.
Christian Nationalism
North Dakota state Rep. Brandon Prichard declares that “every conservative state should put into code that Jesus Christ is King and dedicate their state to Him”: “Force RINOs to say no to Jesus and then brutalize them in elections.”
- That knocking sound is the Constitution tapping on Rep Prichard’s closed door that he just slammed in its face.
- Meanwhile he also this past week declares that he has no qualms about being labeled a book-burner: “Let me be the first person to light the match!” … so yes, I’m thinking Fahrenheit 451 might have inspired this guy, but perhaps not, because religious extremists like him only read one book and so embrace ignorance as a virtue.
Liz Wheeler admits that all the right-wing outrage over public schools being “indoctrination centers” is fake and that conservatives are really just mad that students are not being indoctrinated with their preferred political and social agenda.
- She appears to be claiming that teaching reading and writing is “an indoctrination into Marxism“. I can only speculate that ignorance and illiteracy is her preferred option.
- For anybody with doubts regarding what really goes on, just talk to public school teachers. You will discover that they don’t have time to indoctrinate. They’re too busy preparing kids for exams.
Sen. Josh Hawley says that President Joe Biden is “totally wrong about America’s soul” because he doesn’t understand that “this nation was founded on the principles of the Bible.”
- Which “principles of the Bible” does he have in mind? … is he referencing the fact that it is a pro-slavery text, or that it lays out a leadership model of autocratic kings ruling over the nation?
- He does actually know that the Founding Fathers, who were not particularly religious, specifically rejected a Christian-based government. They looked at the religious wars in Europe and the excesses of the Anglican Church in England, and said “Nope, we can do far better“, and took a hard pass on all that. However, because Hawley is also a pandering, amoral opportunist, he promotes BS that he knows is a lie like this to pander to the religious mob.
The Cult of Trump
Jason Rapert laughably claims that when former President Donald Trump demanded that Georgia officials “find 11,780 votes” so he could win the state in the 2020, he was simply asking if maybe there were some absentee or mail-in ballots that might have been uncounted.
- Weird how Mr T thought there would be exactly 11,780 of them.
- Meanwhile the rest us us saw Trump, in his best Don Corleone accent, saying “That’s a nice job you have there counting ballots, it would be a real shame if something happened to it“
- For the curious, the full transcript and audio of the entire call is a matter of public record.
- What is bizarre about Mr Rapert’s latest rant here is that this the guy who has always been very hot on erecting monuments to the 10 commandments on state property, but is now giving you a real-time demonstration of how to totally obliterate the ninth commandment.
Congress Maths
Lies, Damn Lies, and Tim Barton
After lying about the Declaration of Independence, Tim Barton had the gall to declare that “the only way you can overcome a lie is by knowing the truth, and most of us don’t know what the truth is and so we don’t always even know we’re being lied to.”
- It is tempting to think that he sincerely believes this, but that conclusion is way too charitable. Instead, this is gaslighting 101 – he knows he is lying.
Christian “Love”
When she was 19, Christian missionary Renée Bach went to Uganda and decided to treat malnourished children. She had no formal medical training. 105 kids died. The compelling docuseries “Savior Complex” explores her actions—and those of her critics.
- Deeply religious 19 year old with zero medical training goes to Uganda to run a medical facility, and thinks God will tell her what to do … what could possibly go wrong? (Insert your facepalm here).
- HBO official link is here (No I’m not being paid to promote it)
- Meanwhile, if you ever have the urge to pray, a good place to start might be to pray to Jesus to save us from his followers.
Homophobia on Steroids
- This mom, who stands perpetually ready to be offended, has way too much time on her hands.
- Meanwhile its just a cartoon dog … and yet she is still offended.
- For those facing this challenge, then here is a deeply complex step-by-step guide on what to do when faced with a show you don’t like – Step 1: don’t watch it … that’s it, that’s the entire guide. Apparently even that is way too hard for some to follow. I do wonder if I need crayons to draw it for her, but I know I can’t because she would then be pissed by all the rainbow colours.
Weird
Perry Stone claims to have heard from “an extremely successful businessman” who reportedly heard from intelligence sources in a foreign nation that the Democrats plan to nominate Michelle Obama for president in 2024.
- Meanwhile I also heard via a friend of a friend … (insert any popular urban legend here) … but I was not stupid enough or gullible enough to actually believe it without any actual evidence for the claim.
- Oh, and yes, this is indeed the very same Pastor Stone who has been the subject of multiple sexual misconduct allegations. Nine of them were from women connected with his ministry. I guess he took the phrase “missionary position” a tad too literally … but all is OK now because he asked God to forgive him.
- … and yes, he ticks all the other usual boxes as well … homophobic, promoter of whacky conspiracies, supports Trump’s big lie, etc…
Dinesh D’Souza told Stew Peters that under President Joe Biden, the United States is “not too different” from “unfree societies” like North Korea, China, and the Soviet Union.
- If that was actually true then both of these guys would be either mysteriously falling out of a very high window or on their way to a gulag. Instead, in a free society they get to broadcast BS so that the gullible can donate to their cause, which is simply a stupidity tax, and the rest of us can ridicule and mock them all.
Jarrin Jackson declares that “‘Racist’ is a term invented by communists.”
- If only Jarrin knew how to use Google.
- It took me roughly 30 seconds, if even that, to find out that the word was actually coined by Richard Henry Pratt in 1902. He was not exactly a likable guy, nor was he communist. He is far more well-known for his Native American Indian policy of “Kill the Indian…save the man” – NPR has all the gory details here. If curious, it is also a fascinating insightful article and well worth a read.
Kari Lake has formally filed to run for the U.S. Senate in Arizona.
- Translation: Kari Lake really likes loosing elections and then running around telling everybody that she really won. She has turned that into her full-time professional career.
Stew Peters calls the Anti-Defamation League “terrorists” who “should be classified as enemy combatants and then treated accordingly.”
- Telling us that the Anti-Defamation League are the enemy tells us nothing about them and a great deal about Stew
- Meanwhile, the ADL are not exactly Stew Peters fans, they even have a webpage dedicated to him which exposes exactly who Stew is with evidence, which is most probably why Stew is seriously pissed with them.
Lara Logan says America is “a nation of potential collaborators” who will eagerly “be raising their hands to lead the killing squads to our doors” when the government starts to murder Trump supporters.
- Lara Logan is the CBS correspondent who fell so far down the conspiracy rabbit hole that not even Fox News will hire her anymore.
- She said the above while being interviewed by Stew Peters (the guy from the previous items above)
- Normal people: “It would be nice to have a government that believes in science, justice and aid for the weakest among us.” Nutters like Laure: “the government is going to hunt me for sport“
- To enable you to grasp just how nutty she now is, here are a few more examples – She has claimed that Charles Darwin was employed by the Rothschild family to create his theory of evolution. She has also claimed that the Rothschild family engineered the American Civil War and the assassinations of Abraham Lincoln and John F. Kennedy. Oh, and also the Russians latched on to her rather bizarre anti-Ukranian rants as useful propaganda.
Apparently it is now gay to have sex for pleasure with your wife …
Meanwhile, it all just goes on and on. Each and every week we find mountains of evidence that we have lots of people who have become untethered from reality…
- Media Matters: BlazeTV host Steve Deace claims he’s “disappointed” Trump “wasn’t more of an authoritarian when he was president.”
- John Fea @ Current: NBC News tackles Seven Mountain Dominionism.
- Angry White Men: Anna Perez Shares Content By Holocaust-Denying White Nationalist Nick Fuentes.
- Isaac Schorr @ Mediaite: The Irrational, Hypocritical, And Unbearable Nancy Mace.
- Hemant Mehta @ Friendly Atheist: North Dakota GOP lawmaker Brandon Prichard goes on theocratic, homophobic tirade.
- Matt Shuham @ HuffPost: The Right-Wing Internet Is Full Of Wild Theories About A Text Message From FEMA.
It is also not all bad news. Some really are facing the consequences of their batshit crazy actions …
- David Edwards @ Raw Story: Mike Lindell’s lawyers quit after he admits he can’t pay ‘millions’ in legal debts.
The False Profit$
MAGA Pastor Shane Vaughn assures his audience that “nothing will ever stick to Donald Trump” because Trump is “God’s anointed servant.”
- To help you grasp how truly fucked up Shane’s theology actually is, permit me to explain that the word Christ comes from the Greek word χριστός (chrīstós), meaning “anointed one”. Shane is literally claiming that Trump is a new Christ. Meanwhile, the word Antichrist refers to an individual who establishes themselves as an alternative Christ. It’s all just religious mythology of course and not real, but it’s still bizarre to find a supposed pastor openly promoting the antichrist. You would think his followers might grasp the meaning of what is being said by Shane, but apparently not. I guess they more or less self-select as the stupidest people around.
Self-proclaimed “prophet” Robin Bullock says that former President Donald Trump “needs a prophet around him” to “consult with in private” who will serve as a key adviser.
- Gee, who could he possibly have in mind?
- So yes, great advice because that worked out so well for Rasputin and those he advised. (Side Note: With his beard and long hair, Robin Bullock appears to be literally cosplaying being Rasputin … or perhaps a dollar store Boromir from Lord of The Rings)
- For the befuddled and gullible, “prophets” like this are “spiritual” and “mystics”. For the rest of us who can see clearly who they really are, the factually correct terms are “fraudsters” and “grifters”.
Evangelist Mario Murillo says Hollywood “stole” basic storytelling ideas from the Bible.
- Call me a tad picky if you like, but I’m fairly sure the bible is public domain and thus can’t actually be “stolen” from.
- Meanwhile, many of the stories in the bible were in turn “stolen” from elsewhere, for example the creation myths came from the Enuma Elis
- The real positive here is that he is telling us that the bible is all just stories
Now that’s Cool – One more small step …
Now here is a fun question. If you were required to take an oath, and could select any book, what book would you pick and why that one? (Drop you thoughts into the comments).
Troll of the week
“I brought with me today a book that is available to children of all ages in the school’s library…This book is filled with overt sexual acts of violence, it celebrates mass killings, and it’s being used to indoctrinate our children.” … I’ll give you just one guess which book he brought …
Meanwhile …
This next guy only follows the parts of the bible that enable his bigotry to be justified …
Firefighters beg to differ with the following guy …
There there is also bible Pro-Life …