Flotsam and jetsam

It's not a proper link post, but I have noticed some fun stuff around yonder internets recently. Come along and check it out, won't you?

Let's start off with the completely unbearable. Did you know that the House of Representatives passed a resolution commending Brett "Risen Christ" Favre? No? Well, they did. It's very nice to know that Congress has solved all the other problems in the world and can get around to commending someone because he threw more touchdown passes than anyone in NFL history. Oh, there's some crap about his charitable work, but come on - this is for throwing touchdown passes. We pay the salaries of these people, you know. You can read the text of the resolution at the link above, or at With Leather, where I first saw the story.

Speaking of idiotic things Congress is doing, I'm sure you've all heard of House Resolution 106. This is the one that calls the Armenian genocide a "genocide," and it has Turkey up in arms, because they're the ones who carried out the genocide in the first place. Why, you say, would Congress bring this up now, when the Armenian genocide happened between 1915 and 1923 ... in Armenia! Well, this is simply to embarrass George Bush. That's all it is. Listen, Bush is probably in the top ten of worst presidents we've ever had, but this is ridiculous. Congress has no business calling something a genocide, because that's not their job. If they didn't have anything to do with this resolution, it would still be genocide, no matter how much the Turks claimed otherwise. Turkey is our ally in the Middle East and is trying to join the European Union. They are a secular democracy that elected an Islamist party a few years ago ... and the party didn't immediately turn the country into a fundamentalist Islamist state. The genocide occurred, sure, but what's the point of it now, except to placate an Armenian-American lobby that wants nothing to do with Turkey. When Congress passes a resolution calling the destruction of the American Indians a "genocide," then they can cast stones. Shut up, politicians. Make policy. That's your freakin' job.

Still in the political realm, Thomas points out a pretty sad and disgusting story: right-wing radio and Internet people leading a charge against a child. What evil did this child commit? He is eligible for the SCHIP program, and several right-wingers, including Rush Limbaugh, think he's a rich kid trying to bilk the system. What assholes. This just makes me sick, especially because of Mia's situation. E. J. Dionne links to this post by Mark Steyn at The National Review. You can argue with Steyn's conclusions if you want, but what was most reprehensible was his statement that if the Democrats were desperate enough to send a boy to do a man's job (react to Bush's radio address, which is where this started), then the boy is "fair game." What an asshole. Excuse me. What a FUCKING asshole.

(In related news, Thomas used to come around here and say hello. Come back, Thomas. We miss you.)

Now that I'm all angry, I need some frivolity. Or at least something that doesn't piss me off so much. With Leather linked to a story from Down Under. Apparently, kids as young as 7 can now take ... pole dancing classes. It's all about the exercise, people! Of course, the kids love it - the story quotes an 11-year-old. Sure they do! I wouldn't have a problem with this if two things about it existed: boys were in the class as much as girls (I doubt it, especially in as "macho" a society as Australia), and the idea of pole dancing didn't have such connotations. No, that's not the girls' fault, but still. Doesn't this seem like stripper training?

Here's something that sounds cool, but makes me a bit uncomfortable. But that doesn't mean I'm not going to show women in bikinis! At Big Ten Tailgate, there's a link to a news story about a calendar of women. Sounds normal, right? Well, yes, but these women are school teachers. Holy cow! They're grade school teachers, too, so the boys they teach are a bit young. I just wonder how the kids will react. Of course, I'll make the obvious joke and say none of my teachers ever looked like this. What a weird world we live in! You can, of course, learn more about the calendar here.

Finally, why not sign an on-line petition? If you follow that link, you can read the petition that David Fleming of ESPN is planning to send to NFL commissioner Roger Goodell. He's trying to get Goodell to re-instate the Pottsville Maroons' 1925 NFL Championship, which was denied them rather controversially. He's written a book about the team that I'm dying to get. You can read about his experiences promoting the book in Pottsville here (although he does call Pottsville "vibrant," which it ain't - sorry, Pottsvillians!). You can read more about the Maroons at the Wikipedia entry. I was #818 to sign the petition a few days ago, and now it has over 5000 signatures. Do the right thing - get the Maroons recognized as NFL Champions!

See? You can do good things in a world gone to shit. It's a tiny thing, but at least you're not contributing to evil, like Rush Limbaugh. No one wants to be like Limbaugh!