Daily Blend: Sunday, August 01, 2010 – New record! (18)

Francis Hajosy [source: AOL News]

Just a little rant about taxes, in two points. First, I find it silly that people keep whining about how “their” money (when talking about public funds) is used to invest in or subsidize venues they don’t agree with. When your money is taken by the government in taxes, it becomes theirs, not yours, and they can do whatever they see fit with it whether you appreciate it or not. Don’t want the gov’t to spend your money in ways you don’t like? Make yourself heard in the polls and voting booths.

“But,” you may ask (particularly if you’re a diehard Libertarian or something), “how is this fair, for some overarching entity to force you to hand over a percentage of your money all the time under threat of legal punishment?” Well, if you care at all about having schools, hospitals, electricity, water, roads, highways, airports, various oversight departments to make sure you don’t get screwed or killed, and any other civic service in existence, then yes, it’s fair. It’s your duty as a citizen to help finance all that the government ensures is provided to you, so pay the relatively tiny price and deal with it.

• Just over a month after being kicked off the Washington Post when his private opinions came to light in leaked JournoList emails, Dave Weigel joins Slate – which is owned by the WaPo.
  (via Dispatches from the Culture Wars)

• On the censorship at The Huffington Post. I still follow and regularly link to its top-notch socio-political commentary, but that’s really pretty much it.

• So I’m an I-89% S-1% T-25% J-11%. What’s your Myers-Briggs typology?
  (via Blag Hag)

• Fairly troubling list of things best left unsaid during fornication.
  (via Forever in Hell)

• The only thing worse than this sort of a horrible worldview is the realization that it’s far, far more common than one would like to believe it is. It’s only too bad this sort of brainwashing isn’t yet legally recognized as a form of child abuse, because it fucking well should be. Stories like this make me very grateful to have grown up in a relatively open-minded and science-respecting family.
  (via Blag Hag)

• Headline of the Day: “Groping drunken porn doc is guilty”
  (via Fark)

• “"I just had a baby six months ago and I'm hoping she'll start to learn pole-dancing as soon as she can," says Tammy Morris, owner of Tantra Fitness.”
  (via Fark)

• CNN poll: Most Americans still think (legal) immigrants are lazy, crime-ridden, job-stealing freeloaders. Illegals must feel especially welcome.
  (via Fark)

• 3 blockheaded mayors show you how to turn a proposal to ban dangerous driving on beaches into bitching about “the guvrment’s taking away our freedoms!”. Bonus dumbass quote: “You are never going to get 100 percent of the cars off the beach.” Well, why bother doing anything, then?
  (via Fark)

• Man who spent 27 years behind bars for a rape he’s now been found innocent of has his release delayed out of fears that he would “freak out”. Delayed for one day, that is.
  (via Fark)

• Calgary, Oregon cops pick up a 10-year-old boy for biking without a helmet, do the right thing and return him home with a warning keep him in foster care up for two years, then demand his legally embattled mother pay for it.
  (via Fark)

• Pennsylvania teenagers’ attempt at film-making ends with being arrested and cops helping the guy they kidnapped out of the trunk of a car. YouTube: Ur doin it rong.
  (via Fark)

• Look, charge the teacher ^[pictured] with assault all you want for spanking a female high school student. But sexual assault? Come the fuck on. What constitutes sexual assault should be determined by intent, not where the “victim” is hit. He was trying to discipline her (in his own archaic, stupid and wrongful way), not molest her.
  (via Fark)

• A third of Australians apparently believe Walking with Dinosaurs was shot in live-action.
  (via Fark)

• I would apparently last 6 months on a gay pirate ship. Could you outperform me?
  (via Chris)

• Federal government passes new act that threatens to cut funding to universities that “fail to adequately monitor” students’ filesharing activities. Yeah, let’s see how well that works out.
  (via Fark)

• 19 (21) useful Google tricks you may want to know.
  (via Fark)

• Florida judge strikes down GOP-backed healthcare amendment from the November ballot for being “manifestly misleading”. Republicans being dishonest? Why, I never!
  (via Fark)

As always, if you have any story suggestions, feel free to send them in.

Tags: The Washington Post • Dave Weigel • Slate • The Huffington Post • censorship • Myers-Briggs test • sex • funny • anti-science • denialism • Ralph Vadas • pole-dancing • prostitots • immigrants • polls • beach driving • dumbass • Jack Hayman • Adam Barringer • Mike Thomas • Michael Green • false imprisonment • rape • police • cops • foster care • YouTube • kidnapping • sexual assault • spanking • Francis Hajosy • Australians • Australia • dinosaurs • pirates • filesharing • media piracy • universities • Google • Florida • Republicans • GOP • dishonesty