So a couple of remarkable things came out this weekend. Will the Democrats use it?

[still_one]

Greenspan and Hagel slamed the republicans and the bush administration, not only due to their handling of the economy, but that the only reason we went into Iraq was because of oil

Both of these criticisms were not mild ones either, but a strong indictment against the administration and the republican party.

[ossman]

1. by a couple of guys that dont matter anymore.

[uppityperson]

2. They don't matter anymore? Welcome to DU, why that avatar pick?

[ossman]

4. My avitar is a pic of BO whining like a little girl

Seemed like an easy choice to me.


Yeah, how do they matter? Hagel still votes in line. And if he joins the Dems on a vote... he cancells out Joe Leiberman

[uppityperson]

8. "whining like a littel girl"? "little girl"? um, what?

[ossman]

9. Huh?

[uppityperson]

10. "whining like a little girl" is a rather sexist thing to say, eh? How about "whining".

[glitch]

30. like a republican

Just finishing the thought.

[Prisoner_Number_Six]

13. There are a lot of P.C. language cops on this board.

Censorship on a democratic board is a gigantic oxymoron, but there it is. My advice is to ignore it.

Welcome to DU.

[uppityperson]

14. Sexism on a "progressive forum" is a bigger oxymoron.

[Prisoner_Number_Six]

16. I am what I am and I'll say what I say, HOW I want to say it.

I will not brook censorship, nor will I brook someone telling me what they think I should or should not have said for the sake of their delicate sensibilities.

EVER.

[uppityperson]

17. DU is a moderated forum, you knew that, right? If not, here are links to the rules.

You are free to follow the rules or not post.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/forums/rules.html
http://www.democraticunderground.com/forums/rules_detailed.html

[Prisoner_Number_Six]

21. I've been here six years and have almost ten thousand posts.

I haven't been banned yet. I have no plan to change my method OR my language for ANYONE.

Here's something for YOU to read.

‘It’s a beautiful thing, the destruction of words. Of course the great wastage is in the verbs and adjectives, but there are hundreds of nouns that can be got rid of as well. It isn’t only the synonyms; there are also the antonyms. After all, what justification is there for a word which is simply the opposite of some other word? A word contains its opposite in itself. Take “good”, for instance. If you have a word like “good”, what need is there for a word like “bad”? “Ungood” will do just as well—better, because it’s an exact opposite, which the other is not. Or again, if you want a stronger version of “good”, what sense is there in having a whole string of vague useless words like “excellent” and “splendid” and all the rest of them? “Plusgood” covers the meaning, or “doubleplusgood” if you want something stronger still. Of course we use those forms already. but in the final version of Newspeak there’ll be nothing else. In the end the whole notion of goodness and badness will be covered by only six words—in reality, only one word. Don’t you see the beauty of that, Winston? It was B.B.‘s idea originally, of course,’ he added as an afterthought.

A sort of vapid eagerness flitted across Winston’s face at the mention of Big Brother. Nevertheless Syme immediately detected a certain lack of enthusiasm.

‘You haven’t a real appreciation of Newspeak, Winston,’ he said almost sadly. ‘Even when you write it you’re still thinking in Oldspeak. I’ve read some of those pieces that you write in “The Times” occasionally. They’re good enough, but they’re translations. In your heart you’d prefer to stick to Oldspeak, with all its vagueness and its useless shades of meaning. You don’t grasp the beauty of the destruction of words. Do you know that Newspeak is the only language in the world whose vocabulary gets smaller every year?’

Winston did know that, of course. He smiled, sympathetically he hoped, not trusting himself to speak. Syme bit off another fragment of the dark-coloured bread, chewed it briefly, and went on:

‘Don’t you see that the whole aim of Newspeak is to narrow the range of thought? In the end we shall make thoughtcrime literally impossible, because there will be no words in which to express it. Every concept that can ever be needed, will be expressed by exactly one word, with its meaning rigidly defined and all its subsidiary meanings rubbed out and forgotten. Already, in the Eleventh Edition, we’re not far from that point. But the process will still be continuing long after you and I are dead. Every year fewer and fewer words, and the range of consciousness always a little smaller. Even now, of course, there’s no reason or excuse for committing thoughtcrime. It’s merely a question of self-discipline, reality-control. But in the end there won’t be any need even for that. The Revolution will be complete when the language is perfect. Newspeak is Ingsoc and Ingsoc is Newspeak,’ he added with a sort of mystical satisfaction. ‘Has it ever occurred to you, Winston, that by the year 2050, at the very latest, not a single human being will be alive who could understand such a conversation as we are having now?’

--George Orwell Nineteen - Eighty-four


http://etext.library.adelaide.edu.au/o/orwell/george/o79n/chap5.html

[uppityperson]

23. Your chocolate rations have been increased again.

notice my avatar.

[unblock]

22. thank you. of course, this frees you and me from enforcing the rules

sometimes it's best to let the moderators decide if, say, "whining like a little girl" is sexist, or perhaps if "why that avatar pick" is harassing someone with a low post count, or even if "uppity" in a username is comparably inappropriate.

i think there's nothing here and suggest you drop it and let the moderators do their job.

[uppityperson]

24. I've never seen that avatar. Asking why isn't harassing, neither is calling on sexism.

Harassing is giving a poster hell for an avatar, rather than asking why. Mods can do their jobs fine and sometimes pointing out something is easier, faster, etc than alerting and having the post disappear with no reason given. My job is to be a poster, and if you don't like me expressing interest over an avatar I haven't seen before, that is your problem. I didn't know we had an oreilly avatar even. And yes, I will continue to point out sexist remarks. criminy

[pansypoo53219]

26. i don't think i like 'little girl' either

i think SPOILED BRAT is better anyways.

[uppityperson]

27. Spoiled Brat works. eom

[Zhade]

28. So you admit you're sexist, and you're proud of that?

How bizarre.

[TheDoorbellRang]

29. Well, of course, say what you want

But it seemed to me that uppity was merely pointing out the illogic of the expression "whining like a little girl." It makes as much sense as saying "bawling like a little boy." It just makes it obvious that anyone who would use either expression has never been around small children.

[TwilightGardener]

18. Well, without him we have one less vote to cancel out Lieberman on

war legislation and get to the magic 60--you just said it. We need him, Gordon Smith, Susan Collins, Olympia Snowe, John Warner, and anyone else on the R side who is willing to vote with us. All are welcome to the light! Besides, Hagel has been carrying the Dems' water by speaking out--loudly and forcefully--and by questioning Petraeus the way he did.

[yurbud]

3. I would be pleasantly surprised if they did. Every time they have an opportunity like this they

tiptoe around it so as not to undermine the tard king.

[L. Coyote]

5. And, the guy who bribed Sen. Stevens testified under oath that he did so!

That mede the DEM weekend like nothing else!

Will Sen. Ted Stevens (R-AK) Resign This Week? He finally has his road to nowhere.
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x1816831

[ossman]

7. What is the sucsession rules in Alaska

Thats all that matters. I love all the MSM debates on the "hypocrisy" between Vitter and Craig. Why dont they demand Vitter resign, they ask. IMO its that LA has a Dem Gov that would choose a Dem and Idaho has a Repug Gov that will replace Craig with a Repug.


No?

[superkia]

6. Do you think the Dems are so stupid they didnt know this?

Many citizens felt it was for oil, the democrats were privileged to more information than we were and they still voted for war. Well except for Dennis Kucinich but most Americans think he doesn't count. I cant imagine that they are so cut off from reality and what our governments agendas are.

[bvar22]

25. The Democratic Party SUPPORTS the "Oil Law".

It was the first "Benchmark" in the Democratic version of the Iraq Appropriations Bill.
Hillary has openly criticized the Iraqis for NOT passing the Oil Law.

In case you don't know, the "Oil Law" benchmark is a DEMAND that the Iaqis privatize their oil resources and give 80% of THEIR oil resources to American Oil Corporations.
Naturally, the Iraqis don't really want to give their oil away, so the US is forcing it down their throats with a gun barrel.

Dennis Kucinich is the ONLY candidate who has the courage to stand against this obscinity.
It IS a War Crime.

[still_one]

32. Yes I know. In fact if Iraq was the only issue, neither democrat or republican would get my vote

however, the supreme court may have one last chance before the country goes down

[superkia]

33. Its amazing so many people ignore Kucinich like the media does?

[MatrixEscape]

11. I think that ....

it has become clear that the "democrats" will only use what they are allowed to by way of the corporate logos they really should have embroidered on their suit pockets so that we know who they represent and can at least vote by name brand.

I would like to formally propose a bill whereby We The People want to know the corporate alignment of our official, government representatives so that, if they are going to live long and prosper by that system, at least we can use our love or hatred of the cultural infestation of name brands as a marker in our voting, or lack thereof.

The announcer comes in: "Good evening viewers! Aren't you hungry and are you ready to obey your thirst? I see Senator Shillbig over there. He looks great in that soft gray, Gucci pinstripe suit. We can clearly see that he has a nice corporate coat of arms there. That is a man of style and I be Brittany is looking his way for fashion hints. Woah, look at that Micky Dee's emblem! Hey, Bob, have you ever seen one that large and bright? And notice the flashing lights in his Exxon logo. I think Senator Shillbig is making a real statement for the American people tonight, Bob!"

[JackRiddler]

12. Fat chance.

Even Greenspan and Hagel say this, yes, and it's the most obvious thing in the world.

But the Democrats are obediently on the war-as-folly line. Who has spoken of oil as a motive - or of anything other than good intentions gone wrong?

[The Traveler]

15. Yeah ... well how about

Hunt's oil deal with the Kurds ... very suspicious given that a) he contributed $35million or so bucks to Georgie boy's future presidential library b) has had access to top secret info for a long time c) probably influenced the decision to invade and d) this deal pretty much presents a death knell for any short term reconciliation of the Iraqi factions and thus obviates any rationale for maintaining our troops there.

Can anyone say "Conflict of interest?" How about "blood for oil"?

Sure. I knew you could.

This has me so pissed off I am nearly incoherent. Where are the mobs, the torches, the pitch forks?


:nuke: :nuke: :nuke:

[TwilightGardener]

19. I hope they do--hope they start saying things as bluntly. No time

to hold back and play safe politics now. People want to hear the truth.

[uppityperson]

20. I hope they keep repeating what they said and more join them.

[allalone]

31. I think I'm beginning to see what's wrong with Democrats

people on DU sure get off subject and sidetracked easily. oh, look over there, a shiny object!