Daily Topics - Tuesday January 11th, 2011
By shawnt56
Truthout is proud to bring you an exclusive series from America's No. 1 progressive radio host, Thom Hartmann. We'll be publishing weekly installments, "Rebooting the American Dream."
Hour Two: In light of the Arizona tragedy, is it time for tougher gun control laws? John Valleca, Director of Federal Affairs - Gun Owners of America will be here - www.gunowners.org
Hour Three: Do conservatives suffer from "right wing authoritarianism?" John Dean, author/former Nixon White House counsel will be here - www.findlaw.com
Comments
#2
IMHO I think requiring a mental evaluation, a police background check and a drug test prior to issuing a gun permit is reasonable. Besides I'd love to see what Palin would score on that mental test.
Heck I'm confident I could pass all the above... though I don't have any interest in owning a gun... that's probably just a coincidence though.
N
#3
Time to hire a pride of cats for LA City Hall.
Does Higgins have any peer recommendations?
N
#4
Here is a brief assessment to use as a guideline to note a mental disorder in a person, such as a politician. The definitive name is not given but the guideline can help you sense a crazy a person.
I watched Television Ontario (TVO). The program title was “The Corporation – The Pathology of Commerce”. The program mentioned that the Supreme Court ruled that a corporation is a person than surely a person is a person. The program highlighted a checklist for mental disorders. Since a corporation can be considered a person, the mental disorder checklist can be applied to people as well.
Here is the checklist.
1. Callousness toward people
2. Impersonal relationships with people
3. Disregard for the safety of others
4. Deceitfulness
5. Incapacity to experience guilt
6. Failure to comply toward social norms to benefit people
From the checklist corporations displayed a psychopathic mental disorder. If we use the same checklist for our two highest leaders, then we would have to conclude that George W. Bush and Dick Cheney display a mental disorder. It would be my perception that the above two men are unfit to be president and vice-president, respectively. They hold too much power for men who have a possible mental disorder.
#5
A prayer for greatness of heartby Queen Mary Stuart
Keep us, O God, from all pettiness;
let us be large in thought, in word, in deed.
Let us be done with fault-finding
and leave off all self-seeking.
May we put away all pretense
and meet each other face-to-face,
without self-pity and without prejudice.
May we never be hasty in judgment,
and always generous.
Let us always take time for all things,
and make us grow calm, serene, and gentle.
Teach us to put into action our better impulses,
to be straightforward and unafraid.
Grant that we may realize
that it is the little things of life that create differences,
that in the big things of life, we are as one.
And, O God, let us not forget to be kind!
#6
Gerald your checklist doesn't ID an insane person, just tells you if the person is an a-hole or not. Being one isn't a crime, its just someone you wouldn't want to hang out with... nice try though.
N
#7
The NRA and lots of other folks have pointed to a lack of enforcement of laws violated when Form 4473s are falsified. The NRA calls it "catch and release."
The NRA might be right once in a while, even if they are crazy.
The link below is allegedly a press release from John Dingell's office:
"Dingell Questions Reno on Prosecution Rate of Federal Firearm Felons"
#8
Great, how about instead of limiting guns and gun clip capacity, we just demand that all ammunition must be of the less leathal type? How about we all carry guns with rubber bullets, and if someone try's pulling out a gun on a crowd, they're probably not going to kill anyone, but the hoards of rubber bullets raining back down on the perp will probably kill him (or her). Win win for everyone.
N
#9
Maxrot, I have given you a starting point for assessing someone to avoid being with and for voting for someone who can do great damage to human beings. I am not a psychiatrist but this guideline can help me to look at politicians like Demented and Boner or a talk show hosts like Limbaugh and Beck.
#10
Thanks for the input gerald, but I already have such things figured out.
N
#11
When Reagan emptied the mental hospitals, the buildings were not vacant for long. East Monline State Hospital (Illinois) was converted from a mental facility to a prison. Then, the former patients were brought back in.
The up side? Prison employees are much cheaper than medical staff. The savings go to the stock holders.
Of course, the patients are not treated or cured, and are eventually tossed back out the door.
#12
Time for everyone to re-watch Bowling For Columbine. Moore had some great clips in that one about how news here in America is focused on "If it bleeds it leads" and so forth.
N
#13
I've finally seen Jared Loughner's face on TV. He looks like a shaven-headed Glenn Beck. He especially has Beck's Crazy Eyes. And no I don't mean that the other way around.
#14
Bachmanns Crazy Eyes are even crazier.
#16
I like Norman Goldman's analysis. We have a cultural INFLUENZA of rightwing gun-nut hate put out by the 24/7 RW Hate radio and Fox. And the sick people like Loughner are the most susceptible to it. That means he wouldnt even have had to directly listen to Beck or Palin etc. Their RW hate influenza has spread to the internet as well and beyond. .
#17
Here are three good articles to read.
Nothing will ever change.
Government can create problems as well as hope.
A primer on Jared!
#18
Dick Armey's starting of the Tea Party attempts to give credibility to the spread of White Supremacists groups across our hatefilled nation.
#19
As we hold Representative Giffords and the other victims in prayer, we should also take a moment to reflect about where we are as a nation. Exactly one year ago, NETWORK published an issue of the Connection entitled “Civility and the Common Good.” It included an article by former Republican Representative Jim Leach in which he addressed the increasingly rancorous discourse on Capitol Hill and throughout the country. He wrote that if we are to truly govern for the common good, we need “thoughtfulness and decency of expression in the public square.” As he noted, “Civilization requires civility. Words matter.” Violence takes many forms, and it is time to pull back from the hyper-partisan, angry atmosphere in which people demonize those who disagree with them. Throughout our history, one of the strengths of our democracy has been the ability of Americans to “petition government” through public demonstrations and direct contact with elected officials. But many of us in Washington have noticed a more hostile tone in recent years. At demonstrations, violent anti-government images on too many signs have disturbed us, and angry rhetoric on the Hill has also increased. One need only read the online comments sections of reputable news media such as the Washington Post and New York Times to see how pervasive this trend has become across the U.S. Topics such as immigration and healthcare reform draw many comments that can only be considered hate speech. Meanwhile, public officials report receiving more and more death threats.
#20
If you want a body and mind without toxicity, you must add Kim Chee to your diet. My wife is giving me a big surprise today. She has prepared for me a Four Bean Salad. It is sad because I won't be at a social gathering filled with conservative crazies.
#21
I caught the tail end of the authoritarian segment with John Dean who has collaborated with Bob Altemeyer, Associate Professor, Department of Psychology, University of Manitoba in his writing. Maybe Altemeyer was referenced during the interview but in case he wasn't I'll post this. Altemeyer has authored a fine piece of work titled The Authoritarians estimating that 25% of the worlds population regardless of national or ethnic origin fit the profile of the "authoritarian follower" personality type. It is available as a book from book sellers but also free or charge in PDF format by clicking the link above.
I'll blather on no further because Altemeyer says it so much better than I.
#22
Health insurance of those injured. I'd like to know about the health insurance plans held by those injured in the shooting. How are those different individuals dealing with their recovery costs? Who will declare bankruptcy?
#23
In a previous post I said: "The link below is allegedly a press release from John Dingell's office: "Dingell Questions Reno on Prosecution Rate of Federal Firearm Felons""
The following link is the correct link to the article referenced in the "firing line" post.
http://dingell.house.gov/documents/press_releases/106th_Congress/08-02-0...
The basic problem is that the laws are not being enforced. We have thousands upon thousands of weapons laws on the books, but that doesn't mean there is any money provided to enforce them.
A glaring example (not a gun law) occurred in a recent District of Columbia election in which a referendum was offered on the subject of medical marijuana. A congressman managed to slip in a provision that eliminated any federal funding that would allow the votes to be counted.
Thom's Blog Is On the Move
By webmaster
Hello All
Thom's blog in this space and moving to a new home.
Please follow us across to hartmannreport.com - this will be the only place going forward to read Thom's blog posts and articles.
Images of Thom
At Mondragon - both the mountain and the cooperative city - in Spain (written about in "Threshold" book)
From The Thom Hartmann Reader:
"Through compelling personal stories, Hartmann presents a dramatic and deeply disturbing picture of humans as a profoundly troubled species. Hope lies in his inspiring vision of our enormous unrealized potential and his description of the path to its realization."
From The Thom Hartmann Reader:
"Thom Hartmann is a literary descendent of Ben Franklin and Tom Paine. His unflinching observations and deep passion inspire us to explore contemporary culture, politics, and economics; challenge us to face the facts of the societies we are creating; and empower us to demand a better world for our children and grandchildren."
From Unequal Protection, 2nd Edition:
"Hartmann combines a remarkable piece of historical research with a brilliant literary style to tell the grand story of corporate corruption and its consequences for society with the force and readability of a great novel."
Yeah, people on the right are trying to get some political gain out of the Giffirds shooting. People on the left, however, are trying to get a societal gain out of it.