Soo, If You Are A Republican Cheerleader, On The Radio And Wealthy

[♦ nivek ♦]

For anybodies record keeping, I don't smoke anything but weld sheilding. No tobacco, no green, no white, and the fruitloops only by the burning sugar..

(Ref: G. Carlin, Napalm and Silly Putty)

 

Anyway, our bigassed and mouthed buddy of the republican airwaves, Rush, has consistantly called for the deep, long incarceration for ANYONE commiting "drug crimes".

 

Listen well folks. A n y o n e. No exceptions, lock them up, toss away key, keep those bastards locked AWAY.

 

Read story as follows, make up own mind on this:

 

 

 

 

 

People who live in glass houses

CounterPunch

by Anthony Papa

 

"Less than two weeks ago, Limbaugh weighed in on the Food and Drug

Administration's (FDA) announcement that there were no 'sound

scientific studies' supporting the medicinal use of marijuana. His

diatribe was characteristically callous and harsh toward sick and

dying people who use medical marijuana as Limbaugh blathered 'the FDA

says there's no -- zilch, zero, nada -- shred of medicinal value to

the evil weed marijuana. This is going to be a setback to the

long-haired, maggot-infested, dope-smoking crowd.' This distain for

medical marijuana patients is not the first time Rush showed a lack of

compassion to people who use drugs or suffer from addiction. Limbaugh

is the man who scoffed at the idea that African Americans are

disproportionately arrested on drug charges, and suggested that the

solution was to arrest more white people. Interestingly enough, Mr.

Limbaugh sang a different tune when he was the white person who could

have easily ended up behind bars if he was not the famous radio

personality that he is." (05/02/06)

 

http://www.counterpunch.org/papa05022006.html

[Curtdude]

Hey Kevin,

 

Yeah, I've watched ol' Rushy make a complete idiot of himself over the years. I wish I could blame the dope on his years of insensitive rants, but I'm sure it's just a case of, yeah you guessed it, America's love affair with loud mouthed morons who love to blame everyone who isn't white and wannabe-nouveau-riche for all of society's woes.

 

Of course, all my pot-smokin' friends show much more normal behavior than Rush and his co-horts on the Extreme And Annoying Right. They know how to mind their own damned business.

 

The author of the article has a bigger store of sympathy than I...I'd love to see Rush tar-n-feathered by a group of pot-smokin' ex-BlackPanthers from Oakland, but I guess it's the dreams that keep me goin'!

 

[Caretaker]

Soo, If You Are A Republican Cheerleader, On The Radio And Wealthy, one gets a *pass* on drug charges?

 

Yep, that's pretty much the way it works here.

 

I wish I were kidding.

[Lycorth]

To play devil's advocate for a moment, Rush never advocated racism of any sort. The American conservative movement is very much about color-blindness and anti-racism, and I know from nearly 10 years of involvement with it. When I was a Nazi, it was one of my criticisms of the Republicans, that they never spoke up for White people unless there was some welfare issue at stake, and even then they really only cared about getting one over on the Democrats. As much as I dislike the Republicans and the ridiculous notion of Conservatism, I do give them credit for fostering a genuine attitude of tolerance about racial matters. Just becuase Group X doesn't blame Whites for everything doesn't mean they blame non-Whites for everything.

 

But enough of playing devil's advocate. I feel like a lawyer Rush is now in trouble for doing basically what he condemned so viciously all these years, and still condemns. And of course he's got plenty of excuses as to why he's innocent as the wind-driven snow. Gods forbid he actually admits he had an addiction and went about sneakily to feed it. That would tarnish his image as Mr. Law-and-Order Conservative Poster Boy. Basically, he can't admit guilt because it would go against his ethics, and make him look bad. That compromises his war against the liberals.

 

That, and anyone with enough money can usually get away with anything. Mammon makes the world go 'round.

 

Politics. Gods, I feel dirty just talking about this crap.

[Dhampir]

When I was a Nazi...

Maybe this statement makes sense in the context of other posts that I might be unaware of, but --?

[Lycorth]

When I was a Nazi...

Maybe this statement makes sense in the context of other posts that I might be unaware of, but --?

 

I was a Nazi for about six years or so, and a White Supremacist off and on for maybe ten. I've referred to it in a bunch of other threads, but not lately.

 

You meet all sorts of interesting folks online, eh?

[pandora]

Off topic question: so do you still find old prejudices creeping into your daily thought life? Have you had to deprogram your mind from the cult of white supremacy just as you did with Christianity? Just curious. You should post some of your experiences on here sometime. I am glad you got out of it.

 

And now that you mention it, you love of Thor and ancestral religion makes a lot more sense...

[Lycorth]

Off topic question: so do you still find old prejudices creeping into your daily thought life? Have you had to deprogram your mind from the cult of white supremacy just as you did with Christianity?

 

Eh. Deprogramming from Nazism was a very different thing than deprogramming from Xianity. I dare say there was much more benefit in Nazism than Xianity; all I could get out of Xianity was the Golden Rule, whereas from Nazism I got a sense of racial/cultural pride, learning how to appreciate my own unique heritage - and in learning how to appreciate those things I learned how to appreciate other races and their cultures. Plus, being a political and social philosophy, Nazism was easier to drop than Xianity, since Xianity (being a religion) affects the deepest recesses of the human psyche. A political ideal is easy to get rid of - deprogramming from a dangerous religious idea is usually not an easy task.

 

It was easy to drop the hatreds both things fostered, but getting over dogmatism, Hell, and the like made escaping Nazism a breeze and escaping Xianity a tough task.

 

And now that you mention it, you love of Thor and ancestral religion makes a lot more sense...

 

Do tell...

[pandora]

Well, it's just that it makes sense given that I know white supremacists place a lot of emphasis on cultural heritage, that's all. You admitted it yourself.

 

So, are you saying you let go of racism that easily? It is my opinoin that racism is ingrained in much the same way that religions are... I mean, do you still find yourself generalizing about blacks in a negative way?

[Lycorth]

Well, it's just that it makes sense given that I know white supremacists place a lot of emphasis on cultural heritage, that's all. You admitted it yourself.

 

Ok - just was a hair concerned you'd equate Asatru with Nazism or suggest that it'd be no wonder that I have appreciation for my White heritage, since I was a Nazi. Not meaning to generalize you, of course, but I really can't stand that sort of thing.

 

So, are you saying you let go of racism that easily? It is my opinoin that racism is ingrained in much the same way that religions are... I mean, do you still find yourself generalizing about blacks in a negative way?

 

Yes, it was easier to let go of Nazism than Xianity. Of course, I did have to do a good deal of deprogramming, but it wasn't nearly as hard as deprogramming from Xianity. Up until almost a year ago, Xianity was still ingrained in me, whereas I was only a Nazi for a relatively small portion of my life; there was much off and on in regards to that previous to my time as a Nazi and I spent a lot of time as a very anti-racist person as well. Religiously, my life was rather homogenous till now; racially, I've had all sorts of views. Xianity had way more time to dig in.

 

Actually, when I do generalize, I tend to generalize about pretty much everyone, though I'm getting less caustic in my old age But that goes back to an older, severely anti-social streak, a problem which is almost as old as Xianity was in my life.

[Dhampir]

There's a difference between a generalization and a stereotype. I try not to stereotype, but I see reasons to generalize all the time. I merely drop it in th epresence of one who doesn't align with the generalization.

[Casey]

Listen well folks. A n y o n e. No exceptions, lock them up, toss away key, keep those bastards locked AWAY.

 

It's not just the prison sentence that is so damaging, it is the fact that when you are released from prison you have an indelible stain on your record. Many present US public figures smoked marijuana or did other drugs during the free-wheeling Sixties, I'm given to understand, but they weren't convicted of any offence, whether they inhaled or not. The same holds true today, I'd guess. It is a lottery, really. Either you are caught or you are not. If you are not caught, well and good, but if you are?

 

You can survive an addiction, but you won't survive a conviction.

 

You won't survive a drug-related conviction, at any rate. After such a conviction, it is very difficult to get a decent job. It is also impossible to get any sort of Government assistance for higher education, so I understand. It would seem then, that the ex-drug offender has three choices, viz:

 

They can accept things the way they are, and strive to make a living from one of the limited avenues allowed them. One can see that many won't do this, given the money they will make from such employment would barely keep a mangy dog alive.

 

They can sink back into the drug culture, either as users and/or dealers. They have contacts there, or, if they were only experimenters or part-time users before they were busted, they will now most likely have got such contacts through the prison system. Let us not forget that despite all the punitive legislation, the sale of drugs as an illegal business is still booming. If they are very careful and save their money (which, as with most others who live outside the law, they probably won't) they can retire as quite wealthy citizens.

 

The last alternative they have is to acquire a new identity. Basically there are two ways to do this, one either re-invents oneself from scratch, or one steals another person's identity. As the first requires a detailed knowledge and a certain amount of what's called "tradecraft", most will resort to the second, which is easier. As a very last resort, one could enlist in the French Foreign Legion, but because Madame La Republique is far more stringent in vetting applicants than she used to be, ironically one would have to enter France under a false name, which in turn means a false passport. Back to square one, no?

 

I might add here that while the possession and use of false papers is regarded as fraud, (as it damn well is most of the time), there is under some circumstances a case for arguing that a document is either efficient or inefficient. A document is efficient if it allows one to attain one's desired results, if it isn't, then where needs must, the devil drives, eh?

 

I wonder if Mr Limbaugh, his dittoheads, and other Neocon non-thinkers even consider how much crime they support by their antediluvian ideas? They firstly ensure the continuance of the trade in illegal drugs by their prohibitionist attitude to the same; secondly because they demand that the rest of the world thinks as they do, they encourage the growing of opium, cocaine and marijuana as cash crops in various countries.

 

It doesn't matter how much of the US tax-payer's money they throw into destroying such crops and/or providing alternate crops, local farmers will still cultivate opium, cocaine, or marijuana. Why not? Is it any concern of theirs if a certain percentage of the American population is stupid enough to abuse the end products of these crops? (I intend no insult to Americans by saying this, I am merely stating what I believe to be a fact.)

 

I almost forgot the burgeoning backyard and backcountry native chemical industry, didn't I? Amphetamines aren't too difficult to manufacture provided one can obtain the necessary chemicals and know-how, the acquisition of neither of which is very difficult. A side effect of this last is the huge budgets required by law enforcement and the prison industry. Millions if not billions of dollars have to be spent in order to get the small "wins" they get from time to time. These "wins" are then blown out of all proportion so as to get yet more money to chase more will o' the wisps.

 

Then there are the erm cottage industries of false identities and identity theft, which I believe I have referred to in passing. Why bother counterfeiting money when making or obtaining bent papers for yourself or someone else is so much easier and in the end, likely to be at least as profitable?

 

In conclusion, one would suppose very few Neocons would waste their money on systems that supposedly allow one to make a killing at horse-racing. Why? Simply because it's very well known that no such system will beat betting limits, house/ track percentages and lower odds than one should be paid. In effect, "You can beat a race now and then but you won't beat the races!" Translation for those who still believe in The War On Drugs: "You can bust as many dealers and users as you like, but you won't bust the industry!" You might as well try to destroy an ant hill by destroying every single ant. That won't work. The only way is to attack the ant hill, and that can only be done by legalising and regulating the sale of drugs.

Casey

[Amethyst]

You won't survive a drug-related conviction, at any rate. After such a conviction, it is very difficult to get a decent job.

 

Very true. In the United States, this is especially true with all the background checks they do now. Any conviction on your record means you are not "perfect" and not the "best" choice for a lot of corporations. Drugs, more so than other convictions, although pretty much any type of felony will screw up your chances of getting a decent job.

 

hey can accept things the way they are, and strive to make a living from one of the limited avenues allowed them. One can see that many won't do this, given the money they will make from such employment would barely keep a mangy dog alive.

 

They can sink back into the drug culture, either as users and/or dealers. They have contacts there, or, if they were only experimenters or part-time users before they were busted, they will now most likely have got such contacts through the prison system. Let us not forget that despite all the punitive legislation, the sale of drugs as an illegal business is still booming. If they are very careful and save their money (which, as with most others who live outside the law, they probably won't) they can retire as quite wealthy citizens.

 

The last alternative they have is to acquire a new identity. Basically there are two ways to do this, one either re-invents oneself from scratch, or one steals another person's identity. As the first requires a detailed knowledge and a certain amount of what's called "tradecraft", most will resort to the second, which is easier. As a very last resort, one could enlist in the French Foreign Legion, but because Madame La Republique is far more stringent in vetting applicants than she used to be, ironically one would have to enter France under a false name, which in turn means a false passport. Back to square one, no?

 

I would say this is true for pretty much most people, but not for recognizable celebrities like Rush. If you happen to be wealthy in America, a little thing like a minor drug conviction doesn't mean a whole lot. Oh they might send you into rehab and slap you on the wrist, but soon you'll be back in a new gig.

 

OTOH, if you're poor, especially a member of a minority group, you can expect to be thrown in jail and probably work at minimum wage jobs for the rest of your life once you get out, unless you're either extremely lucky and/or extremely determined to make it any way you can.

[Merlinfmct87]

Off topic question: so do you still find old prejudices creeping into your daily thought life? Have you had to deprogram your mind from the cult of white supremacy just as you did with Christianity?

 

Eh. Deprogramming from Nazism was a very different thing than deprogramming from Xianity. I dare say there was much more benefit in Nazism than Xianity; all I could get out of Xianity was the Golden Rule, whereas from Nazism I got a sense of racial/cultural pride, learning how to appreciate my own unique heritage - and in learning how to appreciate those things I learned how to appreciate other races and their cultures. Plus, being a political and social philosophy, Nazism was easier to drop than Xianity, since Xianity (being a religion) affects the deepest recesses of the human psyche. A political ideal is easy to get rid of - deprogramming from a dangerous religious idea is usually not an easy task.

 

It was easy to drop the hatreds both things fostered, but getting over dogmatism, Hell, and the like made escaping Nazism a breeze and escaping Xianity a tough task.

You know, I'm dying to ask you a question. Did you ever find that the Nazi bigotry inherent in the philosophy(indeed, the very purpose of it) had an odd compatability to Christianity?

 

I ask you this because your own unique personal history makes you something of a goldmine. Most Christians love to thump the idea that hatred and bigotry is something utterly and totally alien and incompatable with faith... I'm wondering if your experience was the same?

 

Merlin

[Lycorth]

You know, I'm dying to ask you a question. Did you ever find that the Nazi bigotry inherent in the philosophy(indeed, the very purpose of it) had an odd compatability to Christianity?

 

If you mean a connection to anti-semitism, sure, there is one. Xianity is strange in that it can be interpreted in seemingly contradictory ways but with 100% textual support from the Babble. Both Zionism and anti-semitism can be backed up somewhere in the Holah Scripchahs™. Of course, most of the tradition of Xian (and post-Xian/pre WWII) Europe was to take the anti-semitic route. With little doubt I believe the Jew-hatred of Nazi Germany was nurtured by centuries of the same in pre-Nazi Germany.

 

(Of course, "anti-semitism" is an inaccurate term, since it implies hatred of all semitic peoples, of which the Jews are only a part, but that's another story.)

 

In general, Nazism and Xianity share a number of traits. They're exclusionist, elitist, and quick to take the victimization route. They are at odds about as often as they are similar.

 

I ask you this because your own unique personal history makes you something of a goldmine. Most Christians love to thump the idea that hatred and bigotry is something utterly and totally alien and incompatable with faith... I'm wondering if your experience was the same?

 

For a good deal of the time, it was like that - or at least so I thought. For all the criticisms levelled against the fundygelical Xian movement in this country as being this racist, White supremacist-tinged thing, I just don't see it. The fundies are no more racist than your average member of this board. When I did my little fundygelical thing, I was very anti-racist, but very pro-Zionist.

 

Of course, there are loads of fundies who are racist, and much like the Jews, one can find both support of racism and encouragements against racism in the Babble. It's a very contradictory book - on everything. You can easily have a racist Xian fundy - of any racial background - or a very anti-racist one. It's all got some sort of Babblical backup.

 

I was more racist during my Catholic years, but again, very anti-racist for a good part of them, too. Official Church™ position is that racism is sinful, but in the mid-90s edition of the Catholic Catechism, there is no specific condemnation against racial hatred found in it. A Catholic relies more on extra-Babblical and extra-Catechetical sources to support an anti-racist stance.