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Science v. Capitalism

Jen Sorensen
© Jen Sorensen

I am an unapologetic capitalist, but even I understand that there are some things that capitalism is not the best way to handle.

Like, once upon a time, we tried having a free market for fire extinguishing companies, and we ended up with people who hadn’t bought any fire protection having their houses burn down while competing companies stood by in case sparks ignited their customer’s houses. Of course, sparks did fly and entire cities were reduced to ashes.

Likewise, when money becomes free speech, then truth and facts become whatever the highest bidder says it is. Which is why universities were created, along with public museums. It is a system that has worked a very long time (ironically, longer than the “institution” of traditional marriage). It isn’t broken, so why are some people trying to fix it? Well, other than for profit?

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Late Night Political Humor

“Hillary Clinton wrote an op-ed for a paper in Iowa about her plans to help the middle class. Middle-class Americans said, ‘Why didn’t you just say that in a speech?’ and she said, ‘Because I charge $200,000 for a speech.'” – Jimmy Fallon

“Hillary Clinton has temporarily changed her campaign logo to rainbow colors in support of marriage equality. Of course, her idea of marriage equality is both of you should get to be president.” – Seth Meyers

“Due to civil unrest in Baltimore, tomorrow’s game between the Orioles and the White Sox will be played to an empty stadium. When asked for comments, players on the Milwaukee Brewers said, ‘You get used to it.'” – Conan O’Brien

“To save energy, New York City is now dimming the lights of the skyscrapers and the skyline at night. There’s a bad side to this. If you need Batman, you have to text him.” – David Letterman

“A new study reveals that one-third of babies in the U.S. have used a smartphone. Yeah, and one-third of babies in China have MADE a smartphone.” – Conan O’Brien

“Prince William’s pregnant wife, Kate Middleton, is past her due date. Doctors may have to induce labor. To speed up the birth, doctors have been telling the baby, ‘Come on out. You will never have to work a day in your life.'” – Conan O’Brien

“During a recent press conference, former President Jimmy Carter said he could never run for president today because he doesn’t have a lot of money. Well, that and the fact that he’s the famously bad president Jimmy Carter.” – Jimmy Fallon

[coincidentally, I was having a discussion the other day with someone and we were trying to figure out why Jimmy Carter is widely mocked as being a “famously bad president”. The only thing we could think of was the Iranian hostage crisis, where the American hostages, who had been held in Iran for 444 days, were released 20 minutes after Ronald Reagan was sworn in as president. However, several people, including a former Iranian president, a former Prime Minister of Israel, a former Naval intelligence officer and member of the National Security Council, and a former staffer of the Reagan campaign and administration, claim that the Reagan campaign conspired with Iran to delay the release of the hostages until after the election in order to keep Carter from being reelected.]

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Straining Credulity

[from satirist Andy Borowitz]

Scientists: Earth Endangered by New Strain of Fact-Resistant Humans

Scientists have discovered a powerful new strain of fact-resistant humans who are threatening the ability of Earth to sustain life, a sobering new study reports.

The research, conducted by the University of Minnesota, identifies a virulent strain of humans who are virtually immune to any form of verifiable knowledge, leaving scientists at a loss as to how to combat them.

But scientists did provide one hope: “Our research is very preliminary, but it’s possible that they will become more receptive to facts once they are in an environment without food, water, or oxygen.”

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Not So Secret Anymore

The Second Circuit US Court of appeals has ruled that the NSA cannot perform mass surveillance of telephone records anymore. The legal analysis by the EFF is a short read and definitely worth it. But if you are too lazy to read that, here is the tl;dr version from BoingBoing:

1. When Congress gave the NSA the power to gather “relevant” information and do so for an “investigation,” they didn’t mean “gather everything and store it forever in case it becomes relevant later.”

2. Having your data collected by the NSA gives you the right to sue them — even if the NSA never looked at that data.

3. Metadata is sensitive information, and the NSA can’t argue that its mass-spying is harmless because it’s collecting metadata instead of data (the fact that you called a suicide hotline is every bit as compromising as what you said while you were talking to them).

4. The judges have “concerns” about the constitutionality of mass spying (though they didn’t go so far as to say that it is unconstitutional, partly because the ACLU had already won on the statutory language alone).

5. One judge added: The government shouldn’t have secret laws. The government argued that its interpretation of surveillance laws was a secret, and the court spanked them for it, saying that a law that’s “shrouded in secrecy” lacked legitimacy.

This is a breakthrough ruling against mass spying performed on ordinary, law-abiding Americans, and the ACLU deserves massive kudos for bringing and winning this lawsuit. Also kudos to whistleblower Edward Snowden, who released the secret documents that made this suit possible.

Adam Zyglis
© Adam Zyglis

Jim Morin
© Jim Morin

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Responding to Protests

Tom Tomorrow
© Tom Tomorrow

I think if nothing else, Obama’s presidency has been worth it to highlight both how far we have come, but even more importantly how far we still have to go to end racism.

I remember when it first became unfashionable to be racist. When people started using code words instead of being blatantly racist. The racism was always just barely under the surface, but it surprised even me at how quickly it came out into the open again. All using code words of course.

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Late Night Political Humor

“In a two-hour interview last Friday, Bruce Jenner told ABC’s Diane Sawyer, ‘For all intents and purposes, I’m a woman.’ At which point, Joe Biden ran in and started giving Bruce a shoulder rub.” – Jimmy Fallon

“The big story is Bruce Jenner. In last week’s interview, Jenner said he’s a woman who is transitioning his body from male to female, and he’s also a conservative Republican. Bruce said he looks forward to bashing Obamacare as soon as he finishes using it.” – Conan O’Brien

“Bruce Jenner declared he is a woman and a Republican. In other words, the GOP finally found someone who might be able to beat Hillary.” – Jimmy Fallon

“Jenner also identified himself as a conservative Republican. He said he believes that John Boehner and Mitch McConnell will support him and advocate for transgender issues. Yeah, of course they will. They’re probably having the buttons printed as we speak.” – Jimmy Kimmel

“Donald Trump may be running for president. He said he is sick and tired of the rest of the world laughing at the United States. Well, President Trump will certainly put an end to that.” – David Letterman

“Many believe that Hillary Clinton was channeling President Obama during her recent speech in New York City. She focused on equality, justice, and how hard it was for her growing up as a young black man in Hawaii.” – Jimmy Fallon

“Mayor de Blasio said that whenever he goes to a Yankee game he gets sick and tired of people booing and giving him the finger. Hey, what do you want? You’re the mayor of New York City. It comes with the gig, pal.” – David Letterman

“A U.N. study claims the happiest country in the world is Switzerland. When asked why they’re so happy, Swiss people couldn’t answer because their hands were counting money and their mouths were full of chocolate.” – Conan O’Brien

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Crowdfunding for Assholes


© Alex Salsberg

This reminds me of the Chick-fil-A scandal in 2012 when the founders of the company said they supported the biblical definition of marriage and contributed to anti-gay organizations. LGBT organizations boycotted the business, but religious conservatives flocked to the chain to show their support. So who knows, maybe some people would contribute to people and organizations that discriminate.

Of course, in the Chick-fil-A case, the owners did a complete about face and admitted that their anti-equality stance had been a mistake, and quietly went back to making chicken.

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Late Night Political Humor

“At the White House yesterday, a little girl actually asked first lady Michelle Obama how old she is. Michelle answered, ‘Old enough to put you on the No Fly List, sweetheart.'” – Jimmy Fallon

“At the White House, they caught another fence jumper earlier today. It was Obama trying to get out.” – David Letterman

“They’re talking about putting a woman on the $20 bill. And Hillary said, ‘I’m available’.” – David Letterman

“New York Mayor Bill de Blasio has been positioning himself to challenge Hillary Clinton for the Democratic nomination. Hillary once developed a program to deliver rural healthcare, while de Blasio once dropped a groundhog on its head.” – Jimmy Fallon

“Mayor de Blasio wants to eliminate garbage. He believes New York City produces way too much garbage. Well, heck, forget about producing too much garbage. What about late-night talk shows?” – David Letterman

“It’s being reported that Google spent over $5 million on lobbying just during the first quarter of this year. You’d think Google wouldn’t really need to lobby politicians. All they have to say is, ‘We have your search history. Do what we tell you.'” – Jimmy Fallon

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Ted Cruz, Hypocrite

My favorite thing that Jon Stewart does on the Daily Show is expose people being hypocritical using nothing more than their own words from broadcast video footage of them. Who better to indict Ted Cruz than Ted Cruz himself?

Unfortunately, I suspect this will not be enough to get rid of Ted Cruz (although I would love it if it did). Instead, I’m really going to miss Stewart, and sincerely hope he finds another way to keep up the good fight against blatant hypocrites like Cruz.

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Late Night Political Humor

“Today is Earth Day. Environmentalists spent the day drawing attention to the Earth, while the Earth just spent the day checking Facebook to see which planets wished it a happy Earth Day.” – Jimmy Fallon

“Today is Earth Day. So this year I’m finally gonna do it. I’m gonna find out what the blue trash cans are for.” – Seth Meyers

“The first Earth Day took place in 1970. At the rate we are going, the last one should be soon.” – Jimmy Kimmel

“Shouldn’t every day be Earth Day? I mean, what are our options?” – Jimmy Fallon

“Today is Earth Day. The way I see it, as humans the very least we can do is recycle. A lot of recycling is going on this year. For example, Bushes and Clintons.” – David Letterman

“Jeb Bush has to distance himself from what they call the Bush brand. So he keeps saying, ‘I am my own man.’ But when Governor Chris Christie is out on the campaign trail, he’s always saying, ‘I’m my own man, plus another guy.'” – David Letterman

“Recently a guy was having trouble with his computer. So he unplugs it, takes it out in the alley, pulls out a gun, and shoots it eight times. Coincidentally, that’s how Hillary got rid of her emails.” – David Letterman

“Marco Rubio’s presidential campaign has raised $40 million in the last week. When he heard that, Rubio said, ‘Hey, any chance I can drop out of the race and just keep the 40 million?'” – Jimmy Fallon

“There are reports that Kim Jong Un climbed North Korea’s highest mountain. Kim Jong Un said all it took to climb that mountain was hard work, determination, and lying about climbing that mountain.” – Jimmy Fallon

“The city of San Francisco announced that on January 1 tobacco of any kind will be illegal. So you’ll finally be able to say to a police officer, ‘No, no, this is just weed.'” – Seth Meyers

“A company has come out with a line of medical marijuana dog treats. Finally a medicine that will help my dog lie on the couch all day.” – Seth Meyers

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Jade Helm

Jen Sorensen
© Jen Sorensen

Apparently the entire state of Texas, all the way up to the governor, has gone completely ape shit crazy.

Who better to explain what is going on than Jon Stewart? Note that (if you are in a big hurry) the part specifically about Jade Helm starts around the 5 minute mark.

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Unimpeachable Logic

So what has the new Republican majority in Congress done so far? Well, first they were distracted for months by the confirmation of Loretta Lynch. Even though many Republicans actually liked her, the powerful GOP need to not do anything that Obama wants was strong enough for them to delay her confirmation longer than any attorney general nominee in three decades. And this despite the fact that Republicans absolutely hate Eric Holder, who continued to serve until his replacement could be confirmed.

Now that the confirmation fight is over, what’s next on the agenda for the GOP?

Would you believe they are talking about impeachment again? As usual, they are doubling down, saying that impeachment isn’t enough. They also want Obama to face jail time for his crimes.

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Late Night Political Humor

“Tomorrow President Obama will host NASCAR racing champion Kevin Harvick at the White House. They both said they look forward to spending an hour or two not having the slightest interest in what the other is saying.” – Jimmy Fallon

“They arrested another fence jumper at the White House last night. Why are so many people suddenly trying to jump the White House fence? Is this the new ice bucket challenge or something?” – Jimmy Kimmel

“An intruder was arrested at the White House last night after trying to jump the fence. Authorities aren’t releasing the fence jumper’s identity, but they did say that she tore her pantsuit.” – Seth Meyers

“Because of all the jumpers, they are thinking of putting steel spikes on top of the fence, which is crazy. The White House fence doesn’t already have spikes? Garbage dumps have spikes on the fence. There are abandoned Blockbuster video store fences that have spikes.” – Jimmy Kimmel

“Tim Tebow may be back in the NFL with the Philadelphia Eagles. As you remember, he was thrown out of the league when he landed his gyrocopter on the White House lawn.” – David Letterman

“Tim Tebow has been on the bench longer than Ruth Bader Ginsburg.” – David Letterman

“In North Korea, real-life superhero Kim Jong Un is said to have achieved something that is literally incredible. According to their state-run media, over the weekend Kim Jong Un climbed the highest mountain in the country, which is 9,000 feet high and takes days to climb. This was reportedly no problem for a man built like Roseanne Barr.” – Jimmy Kimmel

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Historical Context of Protests

The Birmingham News

This comic was originally published in The Birmingham News (Alabama). Some unknown critic took exception.

Yes, we have come a long way, but we still have a long way to go.

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Late Night Political Humor

“Hillary Clinton is campaigning in Iowa, virtually going door to door to every home in Iowa. Jehovah’s Witnesses finally got fed up and said, ‘Get lost. Get out of here!'” – David Letterman

“Hillary went to a Chipotle in a tortilla pantsuit.” – David Letterman

“Hillary is in Iowa to listen to what the people are saying — because if you want her to speak, that will cost you $200,000. So she’s there listening.” – David Letterman

“Hillary Clinton is driving across Iowa in a van. It’s to get to know the people she’ll never, ever see again in her life.” – David Letterman

“The Hillary team is driving around in a van. Sometimes people get those gag bumper stickers put on their van. Hillary has one on her van, and it says, ‘If this van’s rockin’, I’m deleting emails.'” – David Letterman

“Hillary Clinton is making income inequality a central theme in her campaign. Yeah, for example, today she pointed out that her husband makes $300 million a year. She has to get by on $200 million a year, and that’s not fair.” – Conan O’Brien

“According to a new poll, 57 percent of the people believe Hillary Clinton will be the next president. Now 43 percent of the people in that poll believe Hillary Clinton is already president. – David Letterman

“Tax day was yesterday. And marijuana growers are complaining that they can’t write off a single expense thanks to federal laws. Well, apparently someone tried to claim the Phish tour as his home office and that’s not going to happen.” – Conan O’Brien

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