Bottled Science

Dang ol' science with its figure out stuff and the like.

We don't needs us no science. We'ze gots Jeebus and 2000 year old desert mythology to guide us!

Vast majority of scientists say Bush Administration suppressed research findings:

"A new Pew Research Poll released Thursday found that a vast majority of scientists -- some 77 percent -- say that claims the Bush Administration suppressed research reports that didn't align with Administration's point of view are true.

The survey polled more than 2,500 scientists in collaboration with the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

'Most scientists had heard at least a little about claims that government scientists were not allowed to report research findings that conflicted with the Bush administration’s point of view,' Pew wrote. 'And the vast majority (77%) says that these claims are true. By contrast, these claims barely registered with the public – more than half heard nothing at all about this issue. Only about a quarter of the public (28%) said they thought the claims were true.'"

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Not surprising. The battle isn't 'taxes' it is 'intelligence'.

And conservatives are just not that into thinking. Too hard.

Poll: Just six percent of scientists are Republican:

"A full 87 percent of American scientists see their political alignment as Democrat or Independent, according to a new Pew Research poll.

Surprisingly or not, just six percent declared themselves Republican, and only nine percent overall expressed support of conservative ideology."

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And I don't know if Jeb Bush likes to fuck little boys. I simply do not know.

Jeb Bush: ‘I don’t know’ if Obama is a socialist.

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Good! I've held the position for quite some time that bottled water is the stupidest fucking thing on the planet.

Australians Ban Bottled Water:

"SYDNEY — Residents of a rural Australian town hoping to protect the earth and their wallets have voted to ban the sale of bottled water, the first community in the country _ and possibly the world _ to take such a drastic step in the growing backlash against the industry."

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Pretty amazing. When I lived really close to the beach, on a clear day, you could see the Farallones. Maybe all of the socialist environmental concern we San Francisco Commies like to practice is paying off. Well, a blind squirrel, I guess.....

I knew we had big ass white sharks out there, but didn't know that the orcas hang out too.

A whale of a day near the Farallones:

"Six orcas, two humpback whales, one gray whale, 500 Northern right whale dolphins, 100 Risso's dolphins, 50 Pacific White-sided dolphins, 50 harbor porpoises, along with California sea lions and Northern fur seal and many birds sightings: 15 albatross, a rare Xantus' murrelet, along with murres, guillemots, fulmars, shearwaters, puffins, oystercatchers, grebes, gulls, terns, auklets, cormorants and pelicans."

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If we tried that over here, we could explode half the fundies' heads in one fell swoop.

Anyone (ladies?) want to help me get in great cardio shape?

"Orgasm A Day" Campaign Directed At British Schoolchildren Sparks Controversy:

"The National Health Service of Britain has sparked controversy with their controversial sex education campaign promoting an orgasm a day:

A National Health Service leaflet is advising school pupils that they have a 'right' to an enjoyable sex life and that regular intercourse can be good for their cardiovascular health...

...Alongside the slogan 'an orgasm a day keeps the doctor away', it says: 'Health promotion experts advocate five portions of fruit and veg a day and 30 minutes' physical activity three times a week. What about sex or masturbation twice a week?'"

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DBT Week in Review - 7/10/09

Patterson Hood/DBT

Pics from the Screwtopians San Francisco show will be posted early next week.

Meanwhile....

FADER TV: Open Bar With Patterson Hood � The FADER:

"Drive By Trucker’s Patterson Hood stopped in at Heathers Bar on the day after the release of his latest album, Murdering Oscar. We consumed a few beers, kept the doors open, and tried to pay him the same Southern hospitality that he is probably used to. Patterson graced us with a ridiculously sweet song called “Grandaddy” that he wrote for his daughter."

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Murdering Oscar (And Other Love Songs):

"This long-in-coming sophomore set from the prolific Drive-By Truckers frontman hopscotches across time in a way that would make J.J. Abrams happy."

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Patterson Hood talks tunes -- chicagotribune.com:

"Nestled in the Taste of Chicago's musical lineup, tucked behind an acronym, is the great Southern roots-rock band the Drive-By Truckers and their gravel-voiced leader Patterson Hood. But on Taste programs, you'll find them listed as the 'DBTs,' backing Booker T., the legendary soul performer. That said, nestled within that show is another story -- Hood just released a solo disc, 'Murdering Oscar (And Other Love Songs),' which grew out of songs he wrote 15 years ago, when he was a bohemian from Alabama."

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'Freebird' ultimately unforgettable -- chicagotribune.com:

"Patterson Hood, leader of Southern rock band Drive-By Truckers -- which released a 2-CD exploration of Skynyrd's legacy, 'Southern Rock Opera' -- said he grew up in a small town in Alabama in the 1970s and that song was 'deadly serious, and still is. But I feel like I could write you a dissertation in defense of it as being one of the most underrated songs in rock history and I could write about its utter banality, and in both papers I would be sincere. To be truthful, it didn't even occur to me there might be irony in 'Freebird' until I moved from my small town to a city.'"

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Drive-By Truckers | Southern Rock Bands | Puresouthernrock.com

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� 06-03-2009 – Drive By Truckers at MoemoePhoto - Concert Photography

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Will Johnson

Will Johnson at Salt Creek Country Screening:

"July 25 – Oakford, IL
Hill Prairie Winery

Will Johnson and Thamus Rhounds will be performing songs in a unique and remote environment. This will be a multi-media event including a screening of the final cut of “Salt Creek County”. Many of the cast and crew will be on hand. Activities begin around 7pm. $10.00 suggested donation.

Further information, directions, etc. here:
www.hillprairiewinery.com
www.downstateproductions.com"

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Music

United Breaks Guitars | Video Cafe:

"A heart-wrenching tale for any musician or anyone who loves guitars. What happens when an airline company destroys your instrument and won't own up to their own negligence? You write a song (or 3) and post them on YouTube where they go viral of course."

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Casey Kasem Counts Down Final Radio Show After 39 Years:

"LOS ANGELES — Casey Kasem has done his final countdown.

The 77-year-old DJ told 'American Top 20' listeners across the country Saturday that the program would be his last."

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I'll be the laziest SOB.....

Patterson Hood and the Screwtopians killed in SF last night. Pics coming early next week.

Nice too meet some old and new internet friends.

Travel day, so blog is on the light side.

Instead of a bunch of articles, I'm bringing you "The Cute" today.

Can a brotha get an 'Awwww' for the roller skating hip-hop babies?

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Ball Sprouts

This is the exact case for a Public Option:

A public option would give contract workers (such as me) the flexibility to not have to take some bullshit corporate job in order to obtain health care. This, in turn, could entice corporations to, you know, actually give a shit about their employees.

It would also give workers the ability to tell corporations to go fuck themselves and leave their positions without fear off losing their health care.

In short, the PO would create a much more vibrant business environment in the U.S.

As it is right now, if you work for a Corp, you are basically a slave.

Eschaton:

"Paul Waldman makes more explicit a real advantage of the public option, the fact that it'll always be there. No more staying with a job because you can't lose coverage, the ability to consider engaging in some entrepreneurial endeavor or just having a resume gap for whatever reason, and of course no more fears of going to the doctor and getting diagnosed at an inconvenient time and being stuck in pre-existing condition hell until the end of time.

Employer-based system is deeply flawed, and individual market just can't work."

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It didn't even take a day for all hell to rain down on Rahm from the progressive front:

Lee Stranahan: Memo To Rahm: Do You Think We're MotherF#@kin' Stupid?

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And looky, looky what some hell raising for your cause can do:

Think Progress � Emanuel assures House Democrats that he won’t compromise on public plan.:

"After initially indicating his support for a public plan “trigger,” White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel reassured House Democrats tonight that he strongly backs a public plan. Progressive Caucus Co-Chairwoman Lynn Woolsey (D-CA) said she told Emanuel that support for a “trigger” would cause health reform to lose Democratic votes:

“We have compromised enough, and we are not going to compromise on any kind of trigger game,” Woolsey said she told Emanuel. “People clapped all over the place. We mean it, and not just progressives.”

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And, holy shit, is the Progressive movement encouraging ball growth for Dems in Congress?

"Stop chasing Republican votes...". That statement makes me moist.

Hullabaloo:

"Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) on Tuesday ordered Finance Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.) to drop a proposal to tax health benefits and stop chasing Republican votes on a massive health care reform bill."

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Public Option or Bust

Slow and low this week.

You best go out and buy a copy of this today. It will most assuredly ROCK!

Drive-By Truckers�Pre-Order Live From Austin, TX CD/DVD�|�Shop the Drive-By Truckers Official Store

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A. Who the fuck are they having to cut a deal with? We are in solid control.

B. There is no health care reform without a public option. Period.

C. I hope this is horse shit, because if they cut the P.O. or add some bullshit 'trigger' to it, then I'm done with the Obama administration. Done. They have the power to twist some fucking arms off. If they don't twist... done.

If they can't shove pure progressive policy down the conservatives throats at this point and time in history, they'll never pass pure progressive policy.

Why, oh why, are a good portion of my party a bunch of fucking pussies.

White House Open to Deal on Public Health Plan - WSJ.com

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Whew. Need to cool off after that one.

No better way than with some SF Fog.

Fog Week!

San Francisco's famous fog:

"Iconic as the Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco's world-famous fog is both predictable and unpredictable - one of the ethereal pillars of the city's myth and beauty."

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Fillmore Slim Pickin's

I have very little in the que to write/snark about today. Traveling and some sort of recent holiday that celebrates gunpowder have kept me off line more that usual. Did you guys know that you can actual go do stuff and not just read about or write about doing stuff? Crazy... but fun!

Prediction for the week: Celebrities will die. Most assuredly.

I caught a performance by Fillmore Slim this weekend. First time seeing Fillmore perform after learning about him several years ago from the Hughes Brothers film American Pimp. He can rocks some blues, y'all.

Cell phone camera pic, but proof :

So, anyway....

No more VPILF to kick around anymore... we'll, I'm sure she'll still be plenty kickable again, soon enough.

Alaskans say Palin had gone fishin’ on the job

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Due to a very recent personal work change (and not a good one) I can attest to the validity of this article:

Even 'Recession Proof' Schoolteachers Feel Pinch of Employment Downturn - WSJ.com

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At least there's some cool tech news:

Tiny New Battery Is Printable - Yahoo! News:

"A new battery, small and thin, weighs almost nothing and can be printed in a process similar to silk-screening shirts."

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Going to see Mr. Hood and the Screwtopians on Wed. Be on the look out for some pics.

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DBT Week in Review - 7/3/09

Patterson/DBT

It sounded like a train, y'all:

Get your tickets soon for the 2 Buttholeville performances on July 23rd and 24th.

They be selling like hot pancakes, so you best act soon if you want to go.

Go on over to J.D.'s place and purchase:

Cork Industries

Drive-By Truckers playing two shows at Shoals Theater | TimesDaily.com | The Times Daily | Florence, AL:

"FLORENCE - Emma Lucas frequently leaves the Shoals to see one of her favorite rock bands, the Drive-By Truckers, but in July, she and other fans won't have to drive far.

The popular rock band has scheduled two shows at the Shoals Theater in downtown Florence on July 23 and 24.

'I've seen the Drive-By Truckers dozens of times over the past few years in venues and festivals across the country,' Lucas said. 'It's always surreal to be hundreds or thousands of miles from the Shoals and listening to musicians and songs deeply rooted in this area.'"

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The rest of this post is going to be down and dirty. Traveling always screws me up.

It sucks when the dude sitting next to you on the plane smells like the cabby that brought you to the airport. Cab ride = 15 minutes. Plane ride = 2 hours.

Patterson Hood: Drive-By Boss Does 'Murder' : NPR Music:

Patterson Hood: 'Murdering Oscar (and Other Love Songs) - AZ Republic'

Murdering Oscar (and other love songs) by Patterson Hood on Blurt Online

Patterson Hood: Live Last Night - Post Rock

Mayer’s Playlist for June 2009 - Twangville

Drive-By Truckers:

"Pre-Order Now: Drive-By Truckers: Live From Austin City Limits CD/DVD
Pre-Order NOW (available in stores July 7, 2009)

SEE THE TRAILER

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Jambands.com | Features |My Bonnaroo Day: Booker T. Jones | 2009-06-28

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Jackson influenced music produced in Muscle Shoals' heyday | TimesDaily.com | The Times Daily | Florence, AL:

"Michael Jackson's musical genius was never directly linked to the renowned Muscle Shoals music and he never recorded a song here, but he still had an influence.

Many involved locally in the industry say Jackson influenced the music being produced in the Shoals during the 1960s and '70s.

Jackson died Thursday at age 50. His death was viewed as a huge loss by many involved in the local music industry.

'A great talent is gone,' said Jimmy Johnson, an original member of the Swampers, a collection of local musicians who helped make dozens of top hits."

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But They Can't Take our Free Markets!

A to the men, Bernie. Now, if you can just get all of these fake-ass Democrats to sign on.

This is the route, though.

Republicans in charge = 51 votes. Democrats in charge = 60 votes?

I'm gonna blame the gays on this one too.

I said it's hard out here for a (D)imp.

Congress Matters :::

"'I think that with Al Franken coming on board, you have effectively 60 Democrats in the caucus, 58 and two Independents,' Sanders said in an interview with the Huffington Post. 'I think the strategy should be to say, it doesn't take 60 votes to pass a piece of legislation. It takes 60 votes to stop a filibuster. I think the strategy should be that every Democrat, no matter whether or not they ultimately end up voting for the final bill, is to say we are going to vote together to stop a Republican filibuster. And if somebody who votes for that ends up saying, 'I'm not gonna vote for this bill, it's too radical, blah, blah, blah, that's fine.''

'I think the idea of going to conservative Republicans, who are essentially representing the insurance companies and the drug companies, and watering down this bill substantially, rather than demanding we get 60 votes to stop the filibuster, I think that is a very wrong political strategy,' Sanders added."

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Freeeeee Maaaaarkets! Oh, wait...

Health-Care Market Characterized By Consolidation, Not Competition | TPMMuckraker:

"The problem is most acute in small rural states, according to the report. In Shelby's own state of Alabama, the biggest insurer, Blue Cross Blue Shield, controls 83 percent of the statewide market. There, and in nine other states -- Hawaii, Rhode Island, Alaska, Vermont, Maine, Montana, Wyoming, Arkansas and Iowa -- the two largest health insurers control at least 80 percent of the market. So much for Shelby's 'marketplace for health care.'"

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And you wanna know why it's important to have the public option active on day one...

They didn't make the new credit card/consumer laws active on day one, and now looky-looky:

Citi raises rates on millions of credit cards: report | Reuters

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My beans crawled into my tummy a bit when seeing this.

I went up to the top of the Sears Towers a few months after 9/11. Scary. No 'up high' fan am I.

Sears Tower unveils 103rd floor glass balconies - Yahoo! News:

"CHICAGO – Visitors to the Sears Tower's new glass balconies all seem to agree: The first step is the hardest.

The balconies are suspended 1,353 feet in the air and jut out four feet from the building's 103rd floor Skydeck. Their transparent walls, floor and ceiling leave visitors with the impression they're floating over the city.

'It's like walking on ice,' said Margaret Kemp, of Bishop, Calif., who said her heart was still pounding even after stepping away from the balcony. 'That first step you take — 'am I going down?''"

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Gimme Back My Dog

He's good enough, he's smart enough, and doggone it, people like him.

Freakin' finally.

Lies and Lying Liars was a HUGE influence on my early political activism and a definite catalyst in the creation of this blog.

The Senate just go a whole lot more fun.

Minnesota Supreme Court affirms: Franken won US Senate seat:

"It’s finally prime time for former Saturday Night Live writer Al Franken.

The Minnesota Supreme Court affirmed early Tuesday afternoon that Franken won the state’s senate seat from former Republican Senator Norm Coleman in a razor-thin election."

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Nothing more I can add other than to reiterate 'FUCKING D'UH'.

OK, I can add a bit more.

100% of the Republicans and a good 60-70% of Democrats are so deep in the pockets of Big-Pharma they can't see straight enough to make a cogent argument against the Public Plan.

Open Left:: The Problem With The Public Option Is That It Lowers The Cost Of Health Insurance:

"The main goal of health care reform is to lower the cost of health insurance. Apropos, Olympia Snowe thinks that the problem with a public health insurance option is that a public option would... wait for it... lower the cost of health insurance:

In an Associated Press interview in Portland, Snowe said it would be unfair to include a government-run health insurance option that would take effect immediately.

'If you establish a public option at the forefront that goes head-to-head and competes with the private health insurance market ... the public option will have significant price advantages,' she said.

Well, duh. That is the whole point. You can't lower the price of health insurance unless you start offering lower-priced health insurance. It's a tautology."

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And there is no 'medical free market' to save, here, folks. It is a goddamn myth.

Free market health care competition simply doesn't exist.

Time to bust them up.

This Is Why Insurance Companies Fear The Public Option(Updated)

Over the last 13 years there have been 400 mergers of health insurance companies. This means there are now at least 200 less companies offering insurance than there were in 1996. Less competition means less pressure to keep costs down.

This is why the big companies are so freaked out by the idea of the public option. They can not buy out a government competitor. Since a public option will not be for profit with shareholders who will take a very sweet deal to leave a market, they will not be able to use their deep pockets to buy market share. Worse from their point of view, they will not be able to collude with a public plan to keep rates artificially high, under the premise everyone wins, well everyone except the consumer who only needs health care to stay alive and healthy and happy.

The argument has been pitched the Insurance companies are afraid for their existence if there is a public option, and long term the Dog thinks that is true, but it is really all about short term returns the Insurance companies are worried about. The profits they have been able to reap through consolidation have been enourmous. Between 2000 and 2007 the top ten publically traded insurance companies saw profits increase 428%! Let that sink in, in a little over seven years they saw a 428% increase in profit, all the while passing on double digit increases in premiums to their customers!

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Is it any wonder that an economy left in the hands of Repubs is sure to implode.

And, porn, I might add, is probably one of the few industries that's propping up our shitty economy at the moment.

You take away the porn market and we're looking like Somalia.

Oklahoma Rep’s ‘proclamation’ blames gays, porn, abortion for economic woes:

"Oklahoma State Representative Sally Kern, probably best known for her comparison of homosexuality to toe cancer, has ignited controversy once again with her “Oklahoma Citizen’s Proclamation for Morality,” a document that blames America’s current economic crisis on “our greater national moral crisis.”

The document (PDF) blames “abortion, pornography, same sex marriage, sex trafficking, divorce, illegitimate births, child abuse and many other forms of debauchery” for the country’s economic woes."

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West Side Rulz!

Oregon legalizes hemp cultivation:

"Oregon’s House of Representatives voted Monday night to legalize the cultivation of hemp, becoming the sixth state to do so just this year.

Oregon’s Senate voted 27 to 2 in favor of the new law last week. Monday’s 46 to 11 House vote means that the measure will become law, barring an unlikely veto by Governor Ted Kulongoski."

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Gimme back my dog?

Worst Slobberbone reference ever.

Man allegedly demands sex to return lost dog:

"Los Angeles County prosecutors allege that a convicted sex offender tried to extort a teenager by demanding cash or sex for the return of her lost dog."

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Giant Effing Q

Watch the trailer for the DBT: Live from ACL DVD coming out next week!

DBT: Live from ACL Trailer!

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Real or fake, this is a thing of beauty:

Daily Kos: Saturday hate mail-apalooza:

"Not a bad week, but this stuff starts getting repetitive after a while. But there was one piece of hate mail so brilliant, I almost wept at its beauty. So I decided it deserved the day to itself and a poll. Check it out below the fold."

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"Don't let the door hit you...."

Fair enough.

Fireworks over Baghdad as Iraqis take over cities - Yahoo! News

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Not Nyquil! Not the 13th step in a 12 step program!

As Dennis Leary once joked "Are you drunk? No, I have a cold. The same cold I've had for the past 3 months. My teeth are green and I'm high as a kite".

FDA poised to ban sales of Nyquil

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Slow day today. That's all I'z gots.

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