And They Say There Is No God

Proof that He exists:

Belling worked himself into High Dudgeon when he connected the dots between a Pewaukee sewage-dumping and the subsequent E-Coli-caused beach closing on Pewaukee Lake.

Just as he got around to decrying the lack of media coverage of the dumping.....

his station went off the air.

Unfortunately, Satan let them back on the air.

Something tells me that this is one of Daddio's post that PaddyMac won't be showing the linky love for.

Battle of The Buzzing Blowhards

PaddyMac, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel's residential National Review echo chamber, decided that he was going to use the argument that there is no such thing as global climate change because there is a drop in malaria:

You may have heard it breathed, in a voice edged with panic, that our warming world vast hordes of us shall die of malaria unleashed by the sweltering weather.

Leave aside the fact that the global-warming trend halted some years ago and that the "hockey stick" chart of uncontrolled head has been utterly debunked. Even if you posit that man is heating the atmosphere, reports the New York Times' Andrew Revkin, new research suggests that won't increase malaria at all.

Quite the opposite: The disease has been in retreat, researchers point out, even as temperatures rose over the past century.

This might prove to be an unfortunate point for Paddy to make, since his flies in the face (get it, mosquitoes - flies?) of one of his BFFs Daddio29, who has this to say (technocoloring his):

It was so effective that it eradicated the disease entirely in Europe, the U.S. and some island nations such as Taiwan. In the West, Malaria was defeated as an endemic disease more than 50 years ago. Now, though, it's a re-emergent disease of the poor, ravaging populations in South America, Asia and across sub-Saharan Africa. Spread by mosquitoes, malaria kills almost 1 million people a year and inflicts suffering on hundreds of millions more. But it didn't have to be this way.

Don't you just hate it when the neocons can't even figure out whether up is down or down is up?

All I know is with all the rain and hot weather, it's skeeter season. Time to put on the armor.

Impeccable Resources

Patrick McIlheran says Mark Neumann is a dead duck in the race for governor.

His source of this wisdom? Well, none other than Dad29, who thinks Neumann is mentally ill-prepared:

Neumann's elevator doesn't go all the way to the top of the building any more. The lights are on, but nobody's home. He's a couple cans short of a 12-pack. His transmission doesn't have a 3rd gear. He's wacky, folks.

Yup, the same Dad29 who's "genetic response" to homosexuals (or common sense, for that matter) is to stock up on ammo.

So, how much do you think Tom Barrett will beat Neumann by in November?

Also see: The woman who took down the GOP

Whose ring is being kissed here?

Newly installed Archbishop Jerome Listecki is set to appear on the Charlie Sykes show this morning.

Why? Well, someone at the Archdiocese must have said "Oh, snap! We've got a problem."

Who says the church isn't "market-driven"? Follow the money, folks. Follow the money.

Cross posted at Pundit Nation.

Whallah's Newest Contributor?

In a moment that would make any Whallah! contributor, Dad29 comes up with this:

The ultimate moron pontificates, cutting off callers by the handful.

"I'm not saying send troops. But we have only 3 days until we have to send troops."

Uh-huh.

His proposal?

Stop buying stuff from Russia. Like, for example, steel.

So we'll make our military goods from used Kleenex, I suppose.

You know, I'd offer Dad an invitation to join Team Whallah!, but I'm afraid he would accept...

Dolt29

Dolt29 put up a post today about coathanger abortions. I'm sure he felt it was a strong argument against coat hangers or something, else he wouldn't post it. What he did do, whatever his intent may be, is prove himself to be capable of great insensitivity, and a general misunderstanding of women, and of mental health issues.

It's not the first time his insensitivity has shown through. He made the assertion that women in the military were being raped because they were women in the military. This the same miscreant that also seemed OK with a Christian cult in Texas to groom young girls to be sexually abused by much older men. Seems to be like a rationalization for misogyny, using the Church. But I digress.

He cites some site named "CosmoLiturgy" which makes the presumptuous claim that coathanger abortions are a myth, and the symbology of it was used by those dang liberals to justify abortion. I won't get into the whole abortion issue in this post, but it needs to be pointed out that the fabled folkbum proved that the assertion that coathanger abortions are a reality, whether or not the right wants to admit it.

What is equally as bad, if not worse, is the way he miscontstrues a serious psychiatric illness. He quotes the cited source:

Those who develop a Borderline Personality Disorder are predominately angry women (with histories of sexual abuse) who are consciously or subconsciously driven to deliver a hurtful revenge onto others. They typically have poor self images and are consequently highly sensitive to rejection and constantly haunted by the fear of being abandoned. As a result, they are willing to take drastic measures to avoid loneliness and solitude, which can often include self mutilation, suicide threats and attempts.

He then adds his own little quip:

It's a grown-up version of the 2-year-old's temper tantrum (albeit for
those who were abused, it is differently-caused.)

First of all, Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) is a serious illness, with its own set of diagnostic criteria set forth by the DSM-IV. It can be caused not only by being sexually abused, but also by genetics and natural chemical imbalances in the brain. It also has many symptoms besides self-mutilation. These can include:

• Impulsive and risky behavior, such as risky driving, unsafe sex, gambling sprees or taking illicit drugs
• Strong emotions that wax and wane frequently
• Intense but short episodes of anxiety or depression
• Inappropriate anger, sometimes escalating into physical confrontations
• Difficulty controlling emotions or impulses
• Suicidal behavior
• Fear of being alone

As you can see, nothing to be trifled with, and definitely more than a "temper tantrum". Most of the people with BPD that I've worked with did the cutting not only for attention, but to remind themselves that they are real, else they become too disconnected from the real world. Another reason was that they found the physical pain easier to deal with than the emotional suffering they are experiencing.

On a sidenote: I can find no indication that "Caenis Syndrome" is even a formally recognized psychiatric diagnosis.

As I said earlier, I am not going into the whole abortion issue. He thinks it's wrong, and I can respect that. I don't personally necessarily disagree with that view, but that's for another time, another place.

What I do resent, and will not allow to pass, is when someone feels the need to minimize people with mental illnesses, of any sort, to justify their inexplicable need to oppress women, children, or anyone else. No matter their ulterior motives may be.

Dad, I don't know what your issues are, or if it's just some part of the Catholic indoctrination, or what, but you really ought to knock the crap off, before someone calls you "Dipshit29".

Oops, too late.

Daddy Whallah!?

From Dad29:

A late-afternoon Milwaukee RadioMouth rants about J B Van Hollen's "security guard" noises for the Republican Convention.

Gee.

Maybe he should read the newspaper during "prep time"--instead of the Racing Form.

Best Wishes For Ted Kennedy And Family

Ted Kennedy has been diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor. I have seen too many loved ones that suffered from cancer and feel sympathy not only for Senator Kennedy, but for his family as well.

Unfortunately, when things like this happen, there are some that cannot get past their hatred, and have to kick a person when their done. Jay Bullock at folkbum points out a couple of examples of people's vitriol. Here is another. To be fair though, it should be emphasized that both Patrick Dorwin and Dad29 did put up respectful posts, as did my friend Bill.

Talk radio again shows itself to be full of classless idiots, as evidenced by Michael Savage, which is proudly aired by WTMJ-620 AM.

Politics can be a dirty business, but there should be limits for everyone on how far they will go.

It's Not OK, Even If Done In The Name Of God

I'm going to go off on a slight tangent here, but this ticks me off to no end.

Dad29 had put up a post the other day regarding the stuff going on in Texas with the polygamist cult in Texas. His general gist is that what was going on in that complex was just OK, because they were Christians. He also laments about what he figures thus:

Yes. This is, without a doubt, the most egregious example of Statism since Waco, and although less deadly (so far), it's just as portentous.

Even more disturbing are the comments put up by readers "Amy" and "Dan". They actually defend the cultists, because, you know, they are religious. They complain that the cultists' rights are being violated, that they are not given the benefit of presumed innocence, and that the kids weren't really being abused in any way.

I'm sorry but that is the biggest pile of cow manure this side of any twenty dairy farms.

I will not pretend to be familiar with the specifics of the Children's Code in Texas, but I cannot imagine it all that different from Wisconsin's laws, which I am rather familiar with, from working in the child welfare system for seven years.

First of all, cases of this sort are not criminal cases. There is no guilt or innocence. There is just cause. These cases had to be investigated by social workers, and the allegations had to be found to be substantiated that the children have been maltreated, or at great risk of being maltreated. I am sure that a case of this magnitude was closely supervised by supervisors, department heads and all the way up the chain before action was taken. Then it had to be reviewed by the District Attorney's office and found to be up to snuff before they would file the petitions for the children's removal. Finally, the judge would have to determine that the facts presented were sufficient before any orders would have been issued.

All of this apparently has occurred, or events wouldn't have unfolded in the way that they have. This is not the final step, but just the first. Each case will be reviewed by the court individually, to determine if further action would be needed, like a full order keeping the children out of the parents' home until certain conditions are met, or in home services would suffice, or that the children can be returned without any further action.

Given the fact that it is abnormal for a teenage girl to feel romantic attraction to someone old enough to be their father or grandfather, one could logically conclude that there was grooming going on, such as a sexual predator would use. And much like a local case, it would not be surprising to find out excessive use of corporal punishment was used on the children as well.

Dad29 and company also argue that the original source of the allegation is unreliable. So what? The fact is, referrals can even be made anonymously. If social services and investigates and finds a reasonable cause for concern, the referral source is irrelevant. Remember, criminal court standards don't apply to these sorts of cases.

And it really doesn't matter if these people worship God, Allah, the Great Spirit, Buddha or the Flying Spaghetti Monster. Child abuse is child abuse, and there is never justification for it, no matter what religion, if any, the people might practice.

It is equally disgusting to use said religion to not only justify this horrendous and inexcusable behavior, but to rationalize one's own conspiracy theories and paranoia of black helicopters.

In A Hole? Just Dig Deeper

Dad29 has put his foot into it. In a poorly thought out post, he basically accuses the high number of rapes in the armed services on the victims. Whether or not this is the way he meant it, this is the way it came out.

Jay at folkbum's and Grumps right here at Whallah! called him out on it.

Instead of apologizing, or trying to clarify, he defends his statements. Then things get uglier. In responding to a former military man, he writes (emphasis mine):

No, actually, Sancho, the post says what I said: Women do NOT belong in the military.

You can fantasize all you want about other "meanings," if you wish to make it clear that you cannot read.

Thanks for your service. Now learn to think.

Isn't that the kind of crap that got John Kerry into so much hot water in the last presidential election? And if that wasn't bad enough, he tries to defend his position at Jay's site. But not in a good way. Instead, he starts resorting to ad hominem attacks and in trying to distract from the point by expressing selective outrage.

He follows this up with blaming Bill Clinton for soldiers raping their comrades in arms. Remember that when the right tries to attack people for wanting tighter gun control, with their arguments about it being the shooter, not the gun. They can't have it both ways.

Now, I've had public and private conversations with Dad. He is a very intelligent man, and does have a fairly good sense of humor. However, he can also be quite block-headed at times (like all of us).

I've made my own fair share of blunders in the blogosphere (I know, it's hard to believe, isn't it?). Some big and some small. I have found that the best way to deal with them, as in real life, is to admit you screwed up, and to move on. Most people respect a person that can admit an error and apologize.

But when you are in a hole, it's never a good idea to just keep digging.