03.30.07
Posted in General, Not Really Sure at 4:44 pm by JB
Sometimes the one offering it is no longer able to function, and live a happy life.
I have flown to Memphis today with the express purpose of doing something I have dreaded for the better part of my life. My puppy, the sweet and wonderful Burnadette Prometheus Blazer, has had a wonderful 14-1/2 years, but she has gotten very feeble, and in the last two weeks has had seizures and now is basically immobile and frail.
She spent a few days at the vet and all her other organs are working fine, it seems, but she has some serious neuro control problems. So….
Tomorrow morning I will be standing in a clean room, with a metal table, and saying goodbye to the best friend I have ever had.
I know most people don’t care to hear things like that, and honestly neither do I…. but I needed to share.
I’ll post some pics and stuff in the coming days so you can know who I’m talking about. And I know it’s a silly request, but… keep my sisters and the rest in your prayers, if you would. I don’t think any of us realized how hard this was going to be. The upside is now Burney can go see my Pop and Grandmother, and my Jo, who she knew and loved dearly, and her Fee, who died very early, and all the other puppies in history who were loved and left us too early.
All dogs go to heaven, after all.
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03.28.07
Posted in Politics at 6:11 am by JB
Term limits, term limits, term limits.
For the House, 6 years in, 4 years out. 6 in, 4 out.
For the Senate, 12 years in, 6 years out. 12 in, 6 out.
Serve the public, and then go do something with your damn life. For the House, 3 terms in, 2 terms out. You can do that forever. Same with the Senate. 2 terms in, one term out. Or, I’d even go along with after 2 or 4 you can run against your State comrade.
Go get on a few boards of companies. Go teach. Go start a business.
Professional politicians know almost nothing at all about real life in America. Give them some time to serve, and then send them packing for a few years. They can come back if they choose, but it should be from desire of service, not from the professional politician mindset.
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Posted in Politics, Media Morons at 5:56 am by JB
I don’t check the Puffy-Ho often, and I admit it. Life is too damn short. But does it bother anyone else that it is basically occupied by mindless celebrities and no-name, know-nothing scribes ? I don’t see any real debate. I see a buncha over-paid morons spouting. But it’s a lotta liberals, so I suppose that is redundant.
I read this thing a few minutes ago. I must warn you… it’s profanity laced, but in the cute “Hollywood” way. It makes no sense at all. And if you are allergic to metaphors, you will be in shock in the first paragraph.
I found it hilarious and very sad all at the same time. Here’s an actor who was awful terrible horrifically bad on one show, and has done exactly nothing else but hire someone to write blog posts for him. That must be a really sad existence, but he and his minions need something to do until the get the call from NBC that their show sucks donkey balls, is canceled, and Aaron Sorkin needs to get off the ’shrooms and get a real job.
Here’s a taste of the self-important Mr. Weber:
The Bush administration checklist of disgrace lengthens faster than the penis of a minister on crystal meth. I won’t go into my Cranky Liberal rant, moving down the list with a grease pencil, ticking off each egregious offense against the gullible, too-trusting American people. Instead I will offer my Cranky Liberal response to those who have said “Yeah, you’re mad.
Big deal. What do we do?” And keep in mind I have just finished a cool glass of white wine, so make of that what you will. Fuggit. It’s five o’clock here. I’m an adult, dammit. Here goes:
So what to do? First, triangulate your news sources. Since most of the news services are owned by Thomas Nast-like caricatures of swollen carpet baggers and cigar-sucking plutocrats, one must sift through the news like a grizzled miner panning for the bleak glitter that, once refined, can be turned into an ornate broach on the freckled bust of an aging dowager. Check and double check.
You really have to read the whole thing to appreciate the absolute and blithering idiocy. And I especially like the fact that he keeps having to mention the white wine he has consumed. Is that supposed to be an excuse for being a moron, or some sort of hat-tip to Hollywood chic ?
(Stevie, baby, real men don’t drink white wine except at dinner… if you were dining with Selma Hayek and had some chicken enchilada’s, I’d forgive you…. I bet you were swigging 75 dollar bottles of Pinot Grigio straight out of the ice bucket….. not something to brag about)
Ya gotta cool off the metaphors, buddy. I know you are getting almost painful pats on the back now that you have joined the stable of Arianna’s studs, but really…. there are two kinds of people who read that dreck, and I’ll give you a run-down on both.
There are people who have seen you act, and think you are great, and love every single word of it…. those people will finish reading your archives as soon as they get back from kindergarten or get the curtains put out from the unexpected bong fire.
Then there are those who have seen you act and are having a very serious internal struggle as to whether the character Lowell (Thomas Hayden Church) or the engine to the plane from Wings is smarter than you. To call your acting abilities untalented is an insult to the untalented, to call your pseudo-success unfathomable is an insult to the fathoms… To put your abilities from the pilot of Wings against your performance on the last episode of Studio 60 is to watch a career and ability growth that can only be matched by a mosquito. From .2 mm to about 2 mm, and over in a day.
Sorry- I read your dreck and I went metaphor happy. But at least I didn’t insult 80% of the nation with a cheap and disgusting “minister” crack.
Please let the rest of us know what your next show will be after the Studio 60 thing crashes and burns, so we know when we can schedule to be away from the TV. Although, personally, I’d like to see you on an 8pm eastern show, so I can see O’Reilley kick your ass directly. And I don’t like him either, but…. lesser of two evils.
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Posted in Politics, Media Morons at 5:25 am by JB
I don’t know why the WaPo thinks the government, which deals with millions of more important issues than Marion Barry’s latest escapades, thinks the accuracy should be better than this:
Headline: White House Spokesman’s Colon Cancer Has Returned
Later in the story: “‘Seventeen days after the diagnosis, we go in and take the whole colon out and throw it in a garbage bag,’ he told Cincinnati Gentleman, a magazine in his home town. He also received six months of chemotherapy.”
I know, it’s a small thing, but it’s a sign of a bias…. it’s a sign of poor writing and even more poor editing. So lemme get this right…. Tony Snow had his colon removed 2 years ago, and now has colon cancer ? Does that mean I need to start looking for cervical cancer ? Or maybe ovarian cancer ?
All of those are terrible and dreadful diseases. I wish only the best, and long and happy lives for any woman suffering and living with those afflictions. But…. I’m not gonna check, because I have neither a cervix, nor ovaries. Tony doesn’t have a colon anymore. I’m pretty sure he doesn’t have colon cancer.
He has cancerous cells that have metasticized to his liver. And yet, in typical media fashion, the story is about everything BUT Tony. It’s about Dana Perino and Elizabeth Edwards. It is really ok, guys, to sometimes just tell the story, and not try to twist it into your worldview.
Overall it’s not a bad story, but at the same time it stinks. It smacks of the liberal bias that the WaPo is famous for, and has lost so much ground in- the NYT eats your lunch every day in silly liberal bias.
Just write the facts.
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Posted in Politics at 3:43 am by JB
The Senate is famous for having self-aggrandizing schmucks- they all want to be president, and for a simple example, just look at how the 100 (almost in toto) want to micromanage the war.
Now, some are making their decisions based on their own political futures. But let’s be honest- there isn’t a single member of congress, house or senate, that has a chance of being president right now. And that is even more pointed on the GOP side.
If these people, men and women, want to direct the war, they should resign their posts in congress and run for the presidency. All 535 of them.
The Constitution is very clear on who is the Commander in Chief. And it is very clear on what powers the Congress has. This is a political….
I really try to be nice and civil on this site, but it’s time for some brutal truth. This vote, in the House and the Senate, is almost entirely party-line, and it is a political blow-job that the Dems are giving to the Code Pink, the Cindy Sheehan, the DailyKos wing of their constituency.
I am sick and tired of people that wake up in the morning, and go to bed at night, thinking that America is wrong. Always, all the time. America is always wrong. I don’t know why these people continue to think this way. It’s sad, and it’s…. look- I have a good life, but there are many many things that I don’t like about it. I do not wake up and lay down in misery. It would drive me nuts, which is what it has done, on the left. These friggin people are crazy.
The good thing for the left is that I didn’t pursue a career in politics. A few youthful indescressions made that impossible, and I’m not sure I’d want to do it anyway, now.
But I would not be a nice and cute as this administration is.
If you protest on The Mall, that’s fine. If you protest at congressional offices, that’s fine too. I am a firm believer in the freedom of speech, and the first amendment (unlike McCain and Feingold).
As has happened lately- if you attack a military recruitment office… well buddy, guess what. You aren’t a protester anymore. You are an insurgent in the US. You have committed treason against your country, and I’d ship your dumb ass off to Gitmo as soon as I could find you. You have, from within, attacked a military installation. Time for you to join Akbar and Muhammed in the glorious climes of Cuba.
This country is, thanks to the ridiculous media, talked itself into a suicide pact. And I just won’t stand for it. Most of the people of this country are so, to-the-bone stupid, that a normal conversation can’t even occur anymore. The lack of critical thinking has been so dumbed down, thanks to liberal schools and liberal media, that it’s impossible for most morons in this country to have a good discussion of issues.
The very idea. THE VERY IDEA !!! The very idea that Tom Tancredo or Hillary Clinton think they can run for president is just scary. The very idea that Ross Perot hurt two elections… the very idea that Pat Buchanan thought he could. Or Pat Robertson. Or Barack Obama. Or…
Where are the serious minds ? Where are the serious thinkers, who have examined these issues, and have knowledge, experience, and history of both fore- and hindsight gone ?
One of the reasons I like Fred Thompson is because he’s actually done something.
Chuck Schumer wants to be the first Jewish president. Chuckie ran for the NY house when he was 22. He’s been a politician his entire….. HIS…. ENTIRE…. DAMN…. LIFE !!!!
Hillary has never done anything at all, besides be married to a scumbag.
Pat Leahy- what scourge of humanity- talks about how… “When I was a prosecutor back in the 60’s, I did…” That was 1/2 a century ago. So we really need to listen to his ideas of modern America ?
Ted Kennedy. Robert Byrd. These guys, together, have served almost 100 years in the Senate. Do they not have any new ideas ? I know we have some of that on the GOP side also, but at least I smell a whiff of integrity and polity there. I don’t see that on the Dem side.
Jay Rockefeller has been a Senator for 25 years. And he’s the junior senator to a former Klan member. That’s just a stain on the now-almost-completely-paved West Virginia.
I do not always vote Democrat. When I lived in Arkansas, as I recall, I often voted for Democrats for the House. Not so much for the Senate, but I’d have to think harder about it.
And I have often been disappointed with my choices. My first presidential vote was for GHW Bush. Not thrilled about that. I voted for Tim Hutchinson. Not pleased with that either.
More later.
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03.23.07
Posted in Politics at 11:16 pm by JEG
“Gore” in the horror movie sense, that is.
The Nation does it again. Another incredulous rant.
This piece takes exception to “Powerpoint Politicans” who pledge action against the following:
The war against cancer
• The war against terrorism
•The war against sexual exploitation of children
• The war for medical insurance coverage for all
• The war against poverty
• The war against the war against the middle class
•The war against drugs
•The war for family values
•The war for God
•The war for diversity
All battles worth fighting, in my view.
But here’s something REALLY important:
Gore would end the era of the incandescent light bulb. They burn too much electricity. He would fix a date about ten years from now after which their manufacture would be illegal. From then on, instead of bulbs, our bright ideas will come in the form of those high-intensity, low-power squiggly bulbs which, Gore says, are getting better.
Now we’re saved. I’m glad we’ve picked our battles so wisely.
I’m hoping this was satire.
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Posted in Politics at 5:47 pm by JB
So that whacko nut in Iran takes a few Brit sailors hostage, and then is shocked- SHOCKED I TELL YOU- that the US denies his entry into the country to bitch and moan in front of the UN.
I try to be all nice and sweet and diplomatic, but how friggin’ stupid do these people have to get for the rest of the world to realize that they are a threat ?!?!?!
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Posted in Politics at 5:44 pm by JB
Let the record show that I said it first. Of all the sources I’ve found I was the leader in the “cowbell” reference. If you have other proof to contradict, please offer.
I even tried to give Goldberg the line for NRO, but he didn’t respond in time.
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Posted in Politics at 5:43 pm by JB
If Congress holds a meeting to discuss issues relating to deaf people, is it insensitive to still call it a “hearing” ?
Just curious.
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Posted in Politics at 5:41 pm by JB
So….. shit this gets old after a while, trying to make sense of liberal ideology….
So all the scientists that kiss Gore’s ass have agreed that the planet will warm by a degree or two in the next 100 years, and because of that we have to re-tool every aspect of human activity. This is all projections, of course, and there are plenty of disagreements. For this, we need more taxes and higher prices….
Now, one thing we DO know, for a fact, is that Social Security is gonna go belly-up in the next decade or two, but none of the Democrats want to discuss “drastic” (which I would call sensible) changes in that. And that is an absolute fact. There is no dispute about whether SS is gonna crash, it’s just a discussion of if it’s 2022 or 2037 or 2055. And that is real, hard, earned money that the Democrats (and now the Republicans) have wasted on bullshit midnight basketball and farm subsidies for three generations.
How about we let Gore spout his horse-shit for a while and ignore him, and take a few minutes to actually explore options on how to correct the gross ans looming problems with Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, AFDC… Those are real, and pressing problems.
For every clown that says the earth is gonna melt I can tell you of one that says it won’t.
Let’s deal with real problems, get up off our knees at the Alter of Albert, and do something that really, actually matters.
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03.21.07
Posted in Politics at 1:02 pm by JB
(from Al Gore’s testimony)
excuse me, but it has to be said….
And the only prescription is…. MORE COWBELL !
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Posted in Politics at 12:57 pm by JB
I haven’t picked a dog in the ‘08 fight yet, but am studying the racebook pretty closely. I have a question about what some see (especially the Club for Growth) as a major knock against his conservative cred.
McCain voted against the tax cuts of 2001 and 2003, and his line is that they didn’t include what he considered requisite spending reductions. Now, I don’t have time now to find the relevant quotes from him at the time, but for the sake of discussion I’ll take him at his word on that.
If he voted against those tax cuts for the stated reason, knowing full well they were going to pass anyway, why is that such a bad thing ? Protest votes are made in the legislative bodies all the time. The GOP is arguing strongly against the House Iraq supplemental because it has 20% more spending than the president asked for.
Is that not, essentially, a protest vote ? The Dems have the votes to pass it, and the president may or may not veto it, but all things being equal, isn’t it really just a vote to voice displeasure in the face of the inevitable ?
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03.18.07
Posted in Supreme Court at 3:29 pm by JEG
A favorite line from one of my favorite movies: Parenthood.
I know that folks have passionate views. That’s what makes this country great. So I have a hard time getting all worked up about a butthead college student who decides to hang a banner extolling the virtues of “Bong Hits 4 Jesus.”
After he unfurled his 14-foot “Bong Hits 4 Jesus” banner on a Juneau, Alaska, street one winter morning in 2002, Mr. Frederick got a 10-day school suspension. He has a date tomorrow at the Supreme Court in what is shaping up as an important test of constitutional rights
Truth be told, Jesus is probably laughing to himself thinking, “My goodness, what a quack this kid is.” Even Jesus recognizes that college kids do stupid things. I did ‘em, and you all did too, regardless of how perfect you think you might be.
Is it offensive to Christians? Probably, but it’s not even close to some of the “art” that has been protected over the years! Here’s a perfect example:
The New York Performance Works presented twelve performances of the play “’Tis a Pity She’s a Whore.” The postcard that was sent to prospective theater-goers showed an illustration of the Virgin Mary with the Immaculate Heart. The inscription “’Tis a Pit She’s a Whore” was written across her. The New York Performance Works said the play was not about Catholicism.
Christian-bashing is nothing new, particularly in a day and age where it’s glorified by the media, academia, and the “artistic” community. Does it bother me that someone has enough hostility toward Jesus that he would hang a banner dedicating his pot-smoking habit to the Lord? Yeah, but it’s not a battle worth fighting. Ignoring this type of nonsense is the best course to take. Let’s focus instead on the big battles.
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Posted in Politics at 11:46 am by JB
Still watching Fox News Sunday…. they are discussing the Plame/Wilson/Libby/whatever bull-hockey.
Juan Williams needs to get some bodyguards. And Brit Hume needs to get some good lawyers. Because I think Brit just might kill Juan.
Is it a hate crime if you massacre a silly journalist who is constantly wrong just because his name is Juan ? I’m not advocating such actions, just asking the question.
I’m…. ya know…. a conservative Helen Thomas, asking dumb-ass questions, but cuter and with a bigger rack.
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Posted in Politics at 11:26 am by JB
He just made some idiotic comment on FNS, and the summary is this….
No, it’s a bad idea to fire all of these attorneys, and it is not a good idea to have them making political decisions under political pressure. That’s why we have separate branches of government. I’ll find the actual quote later.
Has anyone explained to Sen. Kerry that the Justice Department is not, in fact, a branch of government ? It is, in fact, a part of the executive branch, and is an adversarial partner with the real judicial branch ?
This guy is a moron. He has the talking points down pat, and like all other Democrat talking points they make little or no sense.
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03.17.07
Posted in Politics, Media Morons at 2:35 pm by JEG
The Washington Times engaged in some poor editing on this one.
I was interested in the event itself, not the wardrobe of the individual providing testimony. This segment is crappy journalism:
The 90-minute testimony took on the atmosphere of a circus trial; two dozen photographers scrummed and elbowed to snap shots of the petite bleached blonde, clad in a low-cut white blouse, beige herringbone jacket and snug brown slacks.
The fact that Ms. Plame is a “bleached blonde,” and wore a “low-cut white blouse” is so completely immaterial that its inclusion in a NEWS story (not an editorial or opinion piece) is inconceivable to me. And describing her “snug” brown slacks??? The reporter may as well have just said she had a nice ass and wore a shirt to show her boobs to the panel! This type of shabby, petty writing does nothing but give ammunition to those who view the Washington Times as a wacky, far-right, amateur rag. It does nothing but discredit a paper that has some extremely talented and saavy reporters and columnists (like Bill Gertz, for instance).
In a news story, you stick to the facts. The Washington Times isn’t unique - most major newspapers have lost sight of the idea that the news pages ought to be dispassionate and objective. Without question, they ought not to include references to fashion - particularly in the subtle-yet-obvious way that the Times portrayed Ms. Plame as a bimbo wearing tight pants. Absolutely disgraceful journalism.
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Posted in Politics at 2:08 pm by JEG
In my view, this is a legitimate thing to debate, and having lived there (well, just across the Potomac in Virginia) for a number of years, I’m not sure where I stand. On the one hand, I can understand the reasoning behind the opposition to giving DC seats in the Congress, based on Constitutional interpretation.
On the other hand, residents of the District ARE citizens, entitled to full participation in our Republic. On a purely practical level, I have a hard time arguing that DC residents shouldn’t have a voice in the political process.
TheTalkArena has been blasted in the past for being “conservative” or even “extreme.” So this may shock the multitude (ha!) of readers out there, but I found a particular segment of the above-linked article to be telling:
The bill seeks to increase the House permanently to 437 seats, from 435. In a bipartisan compromise, one seat would go to the overwhelmingly Democratic District, which has a nonvoting delegate in the House. The other would go to the next state in line to pick up a seat based on the 2000 Census: Utah, which leans Republican.
The Washington Post certainly leans to the left, so I’m not certain whether or not the implication of DC being “overwhelmingly Democratic” is the complete story behind the White House’s opposition. But I can easily entertain the notion, and can’t dismiss it. Yet if the bill offers another seat to Utah, then it’s a wash, given Utah’s Republican persuasion. So I can’t fully accept the idea that the White House’s opposition is based on partisanship.
The other practical aspect to consider is that the residents of DC tend to elect idiots. DC’s track record is pretty poor - even laughable - considering some of the choices its residents have made in the recent past. Case in point. (Hat tip to www.dcist.com).
When your Mayor smokes crack and serves a prison term, you may forgive him, but you don’t elect the man again. And the residents of DC keep putting him in trusted positions of public service. True Civil Rights leaders don’t smoke crack and evade taxes for years. That’s the bottom line. A huge mass of voters with this kind of track record is kind of a scary thought.
In the end, however, I’d argue that DC residents should have a voice, and not just a non-voting figurehead. The more engaged they become in the process, the better.
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Posted in General at 1:30 pm by JEG
Happy St. Patrick’s Day from TheTalkArena! Hope you all enjoy the “drinkin’ o’ the green!”
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03.14.07
Posted in Politics at 4:41 pm by JB
This story just chaps my hide.
During the morning rush hour on Dec. 5, the 53-year-old driver of a blue Dodge Caravan was traveling north on Interstate 5 outside Seattle when he took his eyes off the road to scan an email on his BlackBerry, the State Patrol says. And that’s how he hit the white Mazda, which clipped the green Honda, which rammed the black Toyota SUV before spinning into the other lane and plowing into a city bus.
Ok. Fine. Make it illegal to use your Blackberry, or cellphone, or car radio…. whatever. Pass all these stupid laws all you want. But really, is that the issue ?
If you are sending a text message when you are driving down the road, you are a moron. Plain and simple. I’ve done it, sure, but I’ve never claimed to NOT be a moron, and more than a few times when I realized more than an “OK” was needed I stopped trying to type-while-driving.
Dammit, we are losing our freaking minds in this country. Do the states and cities not have more pressing issues than this ? Oh, of course. We have more resolutions to denounce the Iraq War and call for impeachment.
And of course the same ridiculous folks who push for this are the people who bitch and moan about criminals not getting speedy trials. Of course, while a terrorist or a cop-killer sits in his cell waiting for his turn at the courtroom, we have to determine is Mr. Smith was reading the instructions to his Treo while he was going 80 down a 50mph street.
The problem with people typing-while-driving is not a problem of legal issue. It’s a problem of self-important morons who always want to be important, and think that somehow this furthers their ambition.
It’s sad. And silly. And the governmental and law enforcement agencies should have better things to do.
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Posted in Crazy Academia at 12:59 am by JEG
I warn my good buddy JB in jest, although I’m a bit worried myself, even though I can’t claim to be a no-holds-barred Republican.
More follies from Academia!
OK, I’ll admit that this is most likely a frivolous (albeit lame) attempt at humor by another obviously left-wing Professor, but is it appropriate for a classroom setting? Of course not. When can we expect Academics to simply teach facts and impart knowledge? English Composition is such an important, straightforward discipline, applicable to writers of all political persuasions. Just teach the kids how to write!!!!
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Posted in General at 12:42 am by JEG
OK, I’m all in favor of “art.” I’ll admit, I’ve never been a big fan of museums, galleries, or sculpture gardens. But I have a healthy appreciation for the arts (music, in particular), and I’m generally a defender of artistic expression, even the otherwise blank pieces of canvass that have random splatterings of paint thrown at them from ten feet away. Not my thing, but who am I to decide what constitutes “art?”
Gotta draw the line somewhere, however. When a teacher decides to drop his trowsers and show his butt in the name of art, I have to strenuously object.
Aside from the intimacy of your marriage or your committed relationship (or your one-night-stand, if that’s your game), nobody wants to see your butt. It’s not a pretty thing. It’s not an artistic thing. Certainly, nobody wants to see your butt exposed to High-School kids in the name of “art.”
Yet here’s the latest outrage put forth by an educator:
A part-time Florida high school music teacher has run afoul of the school district because he is baring his bottom in a community theater production of “The Full Monty.”
I repeat, nobody wants to see your butt.
Like most weirdos, this teacher cites the inalienable right to bare all.
“For me it’s the principle of the thing, because I’m not letting anybody stifle my art (emphasis added),” said Brenner, a fledgling musical director, vocal coach and performer who teaches music and chorus at the high school.
Thanks, but PLEASE stifle!!!!
Some things are just barely offensive (pun definitely intended). Some are outright disgusting. Butts need to be covered. Hiding behind “art” doesn’t cover your butt!
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