Laboring some Postpourri

-- The Billionaires for Wealthcare turned out at a town hall in California.

-- Have you seen the People of Wal-Mart? These are your neighbors; the ones who watch Glenn Beck, want Texas to secede, are holding their kids out of school next week.

-- This is what democratic freedom of speech looks like. Even for the teabaggers, birthers, deathers, and Tenthers. Especially for them.

Oh, and please stop scaring Joe Klein...

Could I just say that the intensity of this getting pretty scary... and dangerous? We are heading toward a cliff and the usual brakes of civil discourse are not working. Indeed, the Republicans have the pedal to the metal -- rushing us toward a tragedy far greater than the California health care forum finger-biting (incident). I'm usually not one to panic or be overly worried about the state of our country -- even when we do awful things like invade Iraq and torture people, we usually right our course before long -- but I have a sinking feeling about where we're headed now. I hope I'm wrong.

-- The race Pete Laney actually needs to be in is for lieutenant governor.

-- Lee Ermey of Full Metal Jacket is not a bug-fuck-crazy conservative:

Troops challenging the legitimacy of President Barack Obama as commander-in-chief -- including at least one who is fighting deployment -- should take heed: Gunnery Sgt. Hartman wants to know your "major malfunction."

R. Lee Ermey, the Marine-turned-actor whose role as drill instructor Gunny Hartman in the late Stanley Kubrick's "Full Metal Jacket" has all but placed the Vietnam veteran in the pantheon of Marine heroes alongside "Chesty" Puller, Smedley Butler and Dan Daly, isn't buying anyone's political objector status.

"I haven't heard about those guys," Ermey told Military.com during an Aug. 21 interview. "If I do run across them though, trust me, I'll square them away."

-- Bill Moyers is absolutely correct.

"The Democratic Party has become like the Republican Party; deeply influenced by corporate money. I think Rahm Emanuel, who's a clever politician, understands that the money for Obama's re-election will come primarily from the health industry, the drug industry and Wall Street. He is a corporate Democrat who is determined that there won't be something in this legislation -- if we get it -- that will turn off those powerful interests..."

"You really have, essentially-- except for the progressives on the left of the Democratic Party-- two corporate parties who, in their own way and in their own time, serving the interests of basically a narrow set of economic interests."

And nowhere is this more true than in Texas.

On the holiday weekend observed originally to honor working men and women, it would be nice to for everybody to acknowledge that most of the brainwashing being accomplished on the poor rubes who continually vote against their own economic self-interest is being practiced by the various denizens of FOX News.

To be fair to FOX, as well as all of the Republicans who have distinguished themselves with their words and actions this week, they do have a principled objection to healthcare reform based largely on the fact that a black man was elected president ten months ago.

If you happen not to be a bug-fuck-crazy conservative, then please stop watching those douchebags. Do it for your country.

Socialism is putting out fires in Los Angeles.

Why do we need socialism to put out wildfires in Los Angeles? Why not let the free market put out the fires? Why not let private companies hire the firefighters and charge the residents for putting out the fires that may destroy their homes?

As the flames race down the hill toward your home, a private firefighting company would be there to charge you a fee for evacuating you and putting out the fires. You would need to provide a credit card for the service.

What about the people who cannot afford firefighters? Well, they should "grow up" and pay up to keep themselves and their homes safe from the fires, and if their homes go up in flames, well, that's just the invisible hand of the free market.

And the corporate firefighters are not allowed to use taxpayer-funded roads to get to the fires or public water systems to put them out. You simply cannot expect private firefighters to compete with a public service. They have to make a profit.

Less government, lower taxes, more freedom.

This has been a public/private service announcement.

The Weekly Wrangle

It's the week before Labor Day, the weather is measurably more pleasant, and the Texas Progressive Alliance is hard at work bringing you the best of the Texas blogosphere. Here are this week's highlights.

The Texas Cloverleaf wonders why only one person showed up to a budget meeting where taxes are being increased in Denton County. No tea bags left?

Neil at Texas Liberal offered the fullest extension of the back of his hand to opponents of Houston's Ashby high-rise.

TXsharon at Bluedaze wonders what Governor Perry is thinking to appoint a global warming denier as the highest environmental official in Texas at a time when polling shows Americans support Obama on reducing greenhouse emissions and when the EPA has just confirmed water contaminated with hydraulic fracture fluid. Maybe the question should be: Does Perry think?

South Texas Chisme wants you to know that Medicare is a PUBLIC heath care option. Ciro, stand up. Henry, wise up.

Bay Area Houston has video of Republican Pete Olson punking himself at his own town hall meeting while trying to use a sick kid for political gain.

Lightseeker over at TexasKaos insists that we not hold health care reform hostage to solving the struggle for reproductive choice. See this and more in his posting: Abortion Wars, Health care and Private Enterprise.

Off the Kuff analyzed some policy papers from Houston's leading mayoral candidates, examining Gene Locke's crimefighting plan, Annise Parker's education plan, and Peter Brown's energy plan.

WCNews at Eye On Williamson posts about the good news health care reform would bring to TX-31 and Williamson County.

Setting a date for the eventual US Senate special election is all about the MoFo, according to PDiddie at Brains and Eggs.

This week, McBlogger asked a very good question... Why do we even care about Joe Lieberman?

At Texas Vox, Citizen Sarah reports on Houston mayor and Senate hopeful Bill White's energy security policy, per his panel at Netroots Nation. Video included.

Teddy at Left of College Station covers the Chet Edwards town hall on health reform live from the Brazos Center, and then shares his thoughts on it, and why a vocal minority is against health care reform. Left of College Station also covers the week in headlines: remembering Senator Ted Kennedy.