Serious RL stuff (and a little FFXI at the end)

[thistlechaser]

I've sort of stayed out of this whole Katarina thing because I have nothing to say that hasn't been said a hundred times already. It's a horrible situation.

Like the vast majority of my flist, the actions of "our" president during this time make me sick to my stomach. Facts, links, and photos borrowed from stories and links in alchemia's, icarusancalion's, and other LJs: Where was Bush the night of the hurricane? At a Republican fundraiser (giving Medicare speeches to handpicked audiences), then had photo-op birthday cake with John McCain the next day. Look! Bush is fiddling while Rome burns playing the guitar during the storm!

While I never heard of him before this week, I find I really like Nagin (the mayor of former New Orleans). Bush said he needed "proper authorization" before he could send help. Nagin's reply:

Well, did the tsunami victims request? Did it go through a formal process to request?

You know, did the Iraqi people request that we go in there? Did they ask us to go in there? What is more important?

And I'll tell you, man, I'm probably going get in a whole bunch of trouble. I'm probably going to get in so much trouble it ain't even funny. You probably won't even want to deal with me after this interview is over.

But we authorized $8 billion to go to Iraq lickety-quick. After 9/11, we gave the president unprecedented powers lickety-quick to take care of New York and other places.

Now, you mean to tell me that a place where most of your oil is coming through, a place that is so unique when you mention New Orleans anywhere around the world, everybody's eyes light up -- you mean to tell me that a place where you probably have thousands of people that have died and thousands more that are dying every day, that we can't figure out a way to authorize the resources that we need? Come on, man.


The "funny" thing about all this is that I've found it's impossible for my opinion of Bush to fall any further. A while back there was a Sirius Black/George W. Bush post on ithurtsmybrain (story here), and while the story was done in humor, that's really the intelligence level I see Bush as having. I'm surprised his handlers don't keep someone standing next to him to wipe the drool off his chin.

---

FFXI: And since no LJ post of mine would be complete without a mention of FFXI, here's a little thing. Since I can't concentrate on anything (is it the long weekend yet?) I decided to sit down and figure out just how many NMs I've seen/battled. The list is surprisingly short! I think I must have forgotten some, but I combed through NM lists and I think maybe this is all of them...

Who, what, when, where, why...

Comments

[pomr.livejournal.com]

Bush is evil incarnate. :) 'Nuff said.

Well, no, not quite...read up on the 'Real ID' or the 'National ID' slated to go into effect in 2008. It specifically mandates that if your state doesn't comply with the standards that you won't be allowed to do ANYTHING that requires a federal ID. This would include: Air Travel, getting a passport, changing jobs, or ... Voting. Interesting fact: 2008 is an election year, another interesting fact: the states most likely to be unable to comply with the Real ID are the poorer states, yet another interesting fact: the poorer states are traditionally Democrats.

So...the Republican President and his various cronies/supporters have gotten the Real ID passed into law to go into effect...on the year of the next election that will if it has any deleterious effects at all, it will have them on Democratic regions. Thus: Another four years of Republican rule is made the more likely.

Sound like a conspiracy? Sure does, but it isn't! It is specifically spelled out in the act that mandates the ID. No abiguousity. Nothing veiled. It is all right there. Further, the agency that oversees these IDs has a blanket authorization to essentially change the requirements for the IDs whenever it wants to. That's a lot of power in one select group's hands. :)

Oh...and Stroper Chyme isn't a notorious monster. :) Remember? :)

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

read up on the 'Real ID' or the 'National ID' slated to go into effect in 2008.

*boggles endlessly* Gah! Makes me want to cry...

Oh...and Stroper Chyme isn't a notorious monster. :) Remember? :)

Ha ha, right. I suppose I should remove him... but he seems like a NM! He should be one! (See? I even call him "he" instead of "it"!)

[pomr.livejournal.com]

Me too. :) I think I'm going to vote all Democrat next election just to toss my puny little vote in the path of the Replublican Menace, say...isn't that the next Star Wars movie?

As to Stroper Chyme...I TOTALLY thought he was a NM myself. :) And I too refer to the slime as a 'he' too. I was shocked when Merlee and I kept running into him. :)

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

Me too. :) I think I'm going to vote all Democrat next election just to toss my puny little vote in the path of the Replublican Menace

Sounds like an outstanding plan to me!

[gbeans.livejournal.com]

I used to have a list like that too, of the NM :o Maybe I should revise it and put it up again. I should probably revise the "Beanie" page I made too... If I can remember HTML...

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

You should! A Beanie page would be interesting!

If I can remember HTML...

Heh, funny you said that. I used to be able to write HTML in my sleep, but this morning I had to copy source from an existing page... and even in copying forgot silly little tags like [HTML] and [BODY] and such.

[loneguardian.livejournal.com]

ZOMG unfriend me because I would never want to be friends with a tree-hugging left-wing homophiliac who thinks he knows EVARYTHING!!11!11one

*cackles and runs away*

(PS to Thistefriends who don't know me: This is a JOKE based on a comment I recieved earlier for voicing my opinion on government involvement in this thing. Thistle knows I don't agree, but I'm not gonna preach at her 'cause it's a free country, so nyaaaa! *flits away, trailing daisies*)

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

Hmmmm. *dresses loneguardian up like a tree, ready for huggin'!* It's nice how we can disagree on nearly everything, yet still be friends. I guess we must be, like, mature or something. :P

Ha ha ha. Me? Mature? *runs off to fondle people on LS*

[loneguardian.livejournal.com]

I may be going out on a limb here, but the root of the matter is we can just leaf each other alone... *ahems and stops with the tree jokes* Mature, or just not wanting to put forth the effort and stress of arguing when we both know we're not going to change each others' minds and only end up angry and frustrated. ;3 Besides, the day you start agreeing with me is the day the world is going to end and you know it! :E

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

That's true, too. I really, really don't like arguing with people, which is why posts like these are rare from me. Nearly all of my flist does agree with me, but there are a couple people who don't and I neither want to offend them nor fight with them.

Besides, the day you start agreeing with me is the day the world is going to end and you know it! :E

The world will either end or turn over a new leaf. ;)

[draymor.livejournal.com]

the day you start agreeing with me is the day the world is going to end and you know it! :E
...
That's true, too.

The sky is falling! The sky is falling! Better hide my porn stash lest I get looted >>;

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

*Homer drools* Mmm, porn.

[pomr.livejournal.com]

The day you both see eye to eye the world won't end, but it WILL change! A new golden age of peace and harmony will ensue, joy and love will abound, sakura blossoms will fill the candied air with their rare and potent beauty. :)

Yeah. That will be sweet. :)

[loneguardian.livejournal.com]

Yeah, when Jesus comes back maybe. XD *has zero faith in humanity, sorry*

[barahir-ffxi.livejournal.com]

No reason for me to create drama... there's enough going on right now...