Last week shock jock Michael Savage lived up to his name and his occupation by saying that autism was a "fraud" and a "racket" and that 99% of autistic children were actually just brats.
Here's what he said
Archive for the ‘Idiots’ Category
Michelle Malkin insists on continuing the silly argument that a piece of cloth worn around the neck is a symbol of Palestinian terrorism.
A commenter to my last post suggested that there was a specific "the color and pattern associated with the Palestinian terrorists." Malkin doesn't seem to agree. In her latest silliness she points out that "…Colin Farrell, Sienna Miller, and Kirsten Dunst, and rapper Kanye West have all been photographed in endless variations on the distinctive hate couture."
To read her any of these "endless variations" are leading to the "mainstreaming of violence."
Hmmm, I wonder if she'll include herself in the ranks of those leading to the "mainstreaming of violence."
So, Michelle, is that a keffiyeh, the essence of "hate couture" you're in possession of in that picture? Or is it just a piece of cloth?
Picture found by Brad.
File this one under "Idiots."
Some well known members of the right wing blogosphere are in a tizzy over a black and white scarf that Rachel Ray is wearing in a Dunkin Donuts ad.
Michelle Malkin is calling the scarf "hate couture" and wonders if people should start calling for a boycott of Dunkin Donuts.
Charles Johnson over at Little Green Footballs claims that Dunkin Donuts "…is the latest American firm to casually promote the symbol of Palestinian terrorism and the intifada, the kaffiyeh, via Rachael Ray."
Malkin does, at least, give DD and Ray some wiggle room in saying that they might not realize just what Ray is wearing. Johnson doesn't give them that any forgiveness promoting an "acknowledge, well-know symbol of terrorism." But does at least back peddle enough to say that he wasn't accusing them of having "terrorist ties."
Personally, it looks like an ugly, black and white scarf. It doesn't look like the head wear that Arafat always wore.
Now, this whole silly fuss did teach me one thing: a scarf can also be called a kaffiyeh and wearing it makes you in league with the terrorists. At least by those who see terrorist hiding in every nook and corner.
The kaffiyeh has been around for centuries. They've even been worn by British troops in the deserts of Africa during World War II. They've also been worn my U.S. troops in the Middle East to keep sand out of their nose and mouths.
Are these right wing bloggers going to fuss at our troops?
For that matter, are they going to fuss at Meghan McCain? It looks to me like she's wearing what Malkin calls a "jihadi chic kaffiyeh." Or is it that if Meghan McCain wears it then it's just a scarf?
Personally, no matter who is wearing it, it's just a scarf.
I can honestly say that I never liked the Home Alone movies. Okay, I only saw the first one but I felt that the basic premise was insipid so I just couldn't get into the "fun" of the movie.
In case you've never heard of the film, the basic premise is that the main character (then 10 year old Macaulay Culkin playing an 8 year old) is "forgotten" by his parents and the rest of his family as they head out of the country by plane. They don't notice he's not there in the car on the way to the airport. They don't notice he's not there at the airport when they get the tickets and wait for the plane. They don't notice he's not there when they get on the plane. They don't notice he's not there until their plane has already left for France.
I don't care how dysfunctional a family is, leaving a child behind for that long a period of time is criminal and not in the least bit funny.
It can also be deadly.
Two Orange County parents were arrested on child-abuse charges after telling authorities they accidentally left their 3-year-old daughter in a stroller while they rode Pirates of the Caribbean at Walt Disney World.
A Magic Kingdom patron alerted park management about 4:45 p.m. Saturday after spotting the girl in a stroller parked in the sun, according to a report released Monday by the Orange County Sheriff's Office.
The girl was hot, turning red, covered in sweat and appeared to be "lifeless," the report states.
A paramedic touched and shook her, but she failed to respond.
Saturday's highs were in the low 90s with no rain, and deputies estimate the child was in the sun for 45 minutes to an hour.
Paramedics revived the girl by taking her indoors and giving her water.
Deputies said the heat might have become deadly.
"[A paramedic] advised that if medical intervention had not been administered the female child was nearing signs of heat exhaustion with unknown results up to and including death," the report states.
Parents Juan Carlos, 35, and Danette Rodriguez, 32, approached park workers, seeking their daughter, about 50 minutes later.
The couple said the girl was asleep inside a double stroller and got lost in the shuffle as their group of two adults and four children approached the ride, they told investigators.
When they entered the attraction, the father said he thought his wife had their daughter, while she thought her husband had her.
Shortly afterward, the father went back outside to move the stroller to a designated area but failed to see the little girl, he told deputies.
The parents realized their daughter was missing only after they left the ride.
The couple, of Cypress Trail Drive, were arrested on one count each of child abuse and released from the Orange County Jail on Sunday on $2,500 bail each.
They could not be reached for comment Monday night.
The children were turned over to relatives while the Department of Children & Families investigates.
Based on this story in the Orlando Sentinel, those parents had to have been clueless about the whereabouts of their child for at least 90 minutes. Apparently, neither parent looked at the other one or looked over their children for 90 minutes.
Having lived in Orlando since I was 4, and having worked at both Walt Disney World and Universal Studios, I can honestly say that if the parents story is true then they are criminally negligent people who should not be allowed to have kids. Ever.
During the summer lines are long at the theme parks. You can easily wait 60 to 90 minutes or longer to ride just one ride. And if it doesn't rain it is extremely hot. The heat radiates off the concrete and if you aren't careful it is easy for anyone to get heat stroke.
I've dealt with crying children who were separated from their parents in the crowds. I've dealt with parents who couldn't find their kids. In only one case was the child "missing" for more than about 5 minutes. The one case involved a 12 year old boy who was still playing games in the attraction I worked in after his parents had left for another ride. The kid didn't know he was "missing" and his father noticed he wasn't with them as soon as they got in line. In all he was "missing" for no more than 15 minutes.
As an adult I have taken kids to the theme parks. I didn't keep an extra close eye on them because they weren't my children. I kept an extra close eye on them because they were my responsibility and I wasn't about to lose them.
If the young girl had just been separated from her parents for a short time or the parents had at least been looking for her for much of the time she was missing I wouldn't have too much of a problem with these parents. It is very easy for people to get separated from each other at the theme parks. Especially during the summer or if there are kids involved. That's why we've always had a meet up spot just in case. When young kids were involved there were always specific adults assigned to keep an eye on specific kids. It just made things easier for all involved.
I used to hate the leashes for kids that I saw some people with until I worked in a theme park. Then I realized they were a great way to keep from losing a young child.
I also used to hate seeing families in identical clothing. Then one parent mentioned that if she ever lost one of her 5 boys that all she had to do was say "He looks just like this one but bigger/smaller." It made a great deal of sense.
Ninety minutes is too long not to realize that a 3 year old child is no longer with you. Not when you are supposed to be the responsible adult caring for a child at a crowded theme park.
There are teachers, schools, and school districts out there that give all of us in the field of education a black eye. This post is about one of those schools.
Kilmer Middle School in Virginia has a no touching policy. By no touching I don't just mean no hitting, pushing, or groping, I mean no touching…at all.
Want to celebrate the school team's victory over your rival? Better not give your classmate a high five or you'll end up in the office. Want to hold hands with your girl/boy friend? Not at Kilmer. Need to tap someone on the shoulder to get there attention? Oh no you don't!
Kilmer Middle School is located in Fairfax county in Virginia. This is not a district wide policy. A Fairfax representative has said that there are other middle schools and some elementary schools with a "keep your hands to yourself" policy, but the article doesn't say if those policies are as extreme as the one at Kilmer.
The principal of the school, Deborah Hernandez, thinks that the rule "makes sense" because the school is over crowded. According to Hernandez the policy allows students to have their "personal space" protected. She also claims that many of her students "lack the maturity to understand what is acceptable or welcome."
Oh please!
This woman doesn't seem to understand middle school age children. I have worked with and talked to enough 5th graders to know that the vast majority of them do know what is acceptable or welcome when touching another person. That doesn't mean they always follow it, but they do know.
For the sake of this argument, though, let's say that they don't know. How does having them not touch anyone at all teach them what is and isn't appropriate/welcome? All this policy does is teach that human contact in any form is bad.
It also gives one more rock for someone to hurl at education.
There were a couple of . . . oh, let's call them insane suggestions for how to protect students in the schools after the outbreak of killings in schools earlier this year. Nevada senator Bob Beers wants to arm teachers to act as a 'deterrent' for violence. Bill Crozier, who was running for school superintendent at the time, claimed that school books could be used to protect students, especially if you add Kevlar to the covers.
I didn't write about these things when I first read about them because they were nuts. On Monday night, though, Jon Stewart and the Daily Show featured both ideas in a hilarious bit featuring Jason Jones as the "Senor Corespondent."
Back in August I wrote about Troy Lee Gentry being accused killing a tame bear in Minnesota.
Gentry avoided having to go to trial by pleading guilty to falsely registering a captive bear as being killed in the wild. The crime he plead guilty to is a misdemeanor.
According to USA Today
Under the plea, the 39-year-old country singer agreed to pay a $15,000 fine, give up hunting, fishing and trapping in Minnesota for five years, and forfeit both the bear's hide and the bow he used to shoot the animal in 2004. The bear, named "Cubby," was killed in a 3-acre private enclosure.
Gentry's hunting "guide," Lee Marvin Greenly, plead guilty to 2 felony charges involving helping others illegally shoot bears at baiting stations inside a national wildlife refuge. Greenly could spend up to 5 years in prison for each charge.
I categorized this post under Idiots and Rants for specific reason which are intertwined.
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Let me first say that this is not a sentiment I hold toward most bikers. I only hold this sentiment towards three bikers and the idiot women on the back of their motorcycles.
Not too long ago I left my house to go pick up a prescription at the pharmacy. After doing that I decided to drive for a few minutes before heading home. I've been having problems with either a pinched nerve or a strained muscle in my back and headaches for most of the week and I was feeling a bit better and just wanted to be away from the house with no errands to run for a bit.
I nearly ran into these bikers on my way home. Actually, one of them nearly ran into me.
I know that many if not most accidents between cars and bikes (any kind) are caused by the car driver not looking out for the other vehicles. I've always tried to watch out not only for other cars but also for bikes (motorized and pedeled), people, and animals when I drive. It's kept me from being in an accident more than once. Today was no exception.
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