Politics: Onward from New Hampshire

[bilmore]

Originally posted by Tyrone_Slothrop
It's that famous footnote in United States v. Carolene Products, 304 U.S. 144 (1938). Oddly, Justice Stone said nothing specifically about dickheads, but we love you anyway, Hank.

Was that the one about discreet and insulated minorities? That was the first case protecting Canadians, right?

[Tyrone Slothrop]

Originally posted by bilmore
Was that the one about discreet and insulated minorities? That was the first case protecting Canadians, right?

Discrete, perhaps, but insular? No. They keep coming here to practice their comedy.

[Not Me]

Originally posted by Tyrone_Slothrop
Discrete, perhaps, but insular? No. They keep coming here to practice their comedy.

Bilmore is a Canadian?!?!?!

[Hank Chinaski]

Even the "good" part of Kerry's military record is turning smelly.

http://daily.nysun.com/Repository/ge.../27&ID=Ar00800

No one denies Mr. Kerry’s four bemedaled months in “Swiftboats” or his seven-months’ service as an electrical officer on board the USS Gridley, during its cruises back and forth to California, or even his months as an admiral’s aide in Brooklyn, before he was able get out of the Navy six months early to run for office.

Taking a look at Mr. Kerry’s much-promoted Vietnam service, his military record was, indeed, remarkable in many ways. Last week, the former assistant secretary of defense and Fletcher School of Diplomacy professor,W. Scott Thompson, recalled a conversation with the late Admiral Elmo R. Zumwalt Jr. that clearly had a slightly different take on Mr. Kerry’s recollection of their discussions:

“[T]he fabled and distinguished chief of naval operations,Admiral Elmo Zumwalt,told me — 30 years ago when he was still CNO —that during his own command of U.S. naval forces in Vietnam,just prior to his anointment as CNO, young Kerry had created great problems for him and the other top brass,by killing so many non-combatant civilians and going after other non-military targets.‘We had virtually to straitjacket him to keep him under control,’ the admiral said. ‘Bud’ Zumwalt got it right when he assessed Kerry as having large ambitions — but promised that his career in Vietnam would haunt him if he were ever on the national stage.” And this statement was made despite the fact Zumwalt had personally pinned a Silver Star on Mr. Kerry.

Mr. Kerry was assigned to Swiftboat 44 on December 1, 1968. Within 24 hours, he had his first Purple Heart. Mr. Kerry accumulated three Purple Hearts in four months with not even a day of duty lost from wounds, according to his training officer. It’s a pity one cannot read his Purple Heart medical treatment reports which have been withheld from the public. The only person preventing their release is Mr. Kerry.

By his own admission during those four months, Mr. Kerry continually kept ramming his Swiftboat onto an enemy-held shore on assorted occasions alone and with a few men, killing civilians and even a wounded enemy soldier. One can begin to appreciate Zumwalt’s problem with Mr. Kerry as commander of an unarmored craft dependent upon speed of maneuver to keep it and its crew from being shot to pieces.

Mr. Kerry now refers to those civilian deaths as “accidents of war.”And within four days of his third Purple Heart, Mr. Kerry applied to take advantage of a technicality which allowed him to request immediate transfer to a stateside post.

[Bad_Rich_Chic]

Originally posted by Not Me
It is not the province of a mayor to interpret the state or US constitution - that is the province of the judiciary. Those of you who are confused about this, see Marbury v. Madison for more information.

The California Supreme Court appears to disagree with you, and refused to enjoin Newsom or to nullify the marriages that have been conducted:

http://www.salon.com/news/wire/2004/...ngs/index.html

"In yet another setback to conservatives opposed to same-sex marriage, the California Supreme Court declined a request to immediately stop San Francisco from marrying gay couples and to nullify the weddings already performed.

Attorney General Bill Lockyer asked the justices Friday to intervene in the debate while they consider the legality of the marriages. More than 3,400 couples have tied the knot since San Francisco began issuing marriage licenses two weeks ago under the directive of Mayor Gavin Newsom.

Lockyer told the justices it was a matter for the courts, not the mayor, to decide. He did not take a position on whether same-sex marriages should be deemed constitutional.

"The genius of our legal system is in the orderly way our laws can be changed, by the Legislature or by a vote of the people through the initiative process, to reflect current wisdom or societal values," he wrote. " Hey, he's been reading our board!

More interesting, though:

"In another development related to the weddings, the Social Security Administration has told its offices nationwide not to accept marriage certificates from San Francisco as proof of identification for newlyweds looking to make name changes on Social Security cards. "

[sgtclub]

Originally posted by Tyrone_Slothrop
"Yesterday, the South Dakota legislature passed — and the governor is expected to sign — a bill that essentially outlaws abortion. It is quite clearly in defiance of settled constitutional law, something its authors pretty much admit. Conservatives, oddly enough, have not risen up in wrath at this act of legislative civil disobedience."

Kevin Drum

And it is exactly this kind of bullshit that I was speaking of last week.

[sgtclub]

http://apnews.myway.com/article/20040301/D811K9D81.html

[Gattigap]

Originally posted by Hank Chinaski
Even the "good" part of Kerry's military record is turning smelly.

http://daily.nysun.com/Repository/ge.../27&ID=Ar00800

".... [T]he fabled and distinguished chief of naval operations,Admiral Elmo Zumwalt,told me — 30 years ago when he was still CNO —that during his own command of U.S. naval forces in Vietnam,just prior to his anointment as CNO, young Kerry had created great problems for him and the other top brass,by killing so many non-combatant civilians and going after other non-military targets.‘We had virtually to straitjacket him to keep him under control,’ the admiral said. ‘Bud’ Zumwalt got it right when he assessed Kerry as having large ambitions — but promised that his career in Vietnam would haunt him if he were ever on the national stage."

Though we'll forgive the admiral, Zumwalt obviously has a poor sense of electoral strategy. The horrified liberals will have nowhere else to go, and this little blurb will tie up the much-pursued "Commando" vote. Rove's gonna be pissed.

[Hank Chinaski]

Originally posted by Gattigap
The horrified liberals will have nowhere else to go, and this little blurb will tie up the much-pursued "Commando" vote. Rove's gonna be pissed.

Kerry in '04
An expert in guerrilla warfare, a man who's the best, with guns, knives, with his bare hands. A man who's been trained to ignore pain, ignore weather, to live off land, to eat thing's that would make a billy-goat puke.

[Say_hello_for_me]

Originally posted by Hank Chinaski
Kerry in '04
An expert in guerrilla warfare, a man who's the best, with guns, knives, with his bare hands. A man who's been trained to ignore pain, ignore weather, to live off land, to eat thing's that would make a billy-goat puke.

All true about the guns, knives, bare hands, pain, weather and land. But, actually, one of the hallmarks of Ranger school is that people don't eat out in the phases. Well-muscled large people tend to lose lots of weight in training, and the pass rate is skewed in favor of males at the lower end of the height-range.

[bilmore]

Originally posted by Gattigap
The horrified liberals will have nowhere else to go, and this little blurb will tie up the much-pursued "Commando" vote.

I dunno - it's making him seem more and more like Milo Minderbinder.

[Sidd Finch]

Originally posted by bilmore
I dunno - it's making him seem more and more like Milo Minderbinder.

You're dating yourself, Bilmore.

[bilmore]

Originally posted by Sidd Finch
You're dating yourself, Bilmore.

Derivative of an old joke to Atticus, but, people who read and liked Catch-22 tend to be the type who can't get dates any other way.

[Sidd Finch]

Originally posted by bilmore
Derivative of an old joke to Atticus, but, people who read and liked Catch-22 tend to be the type who can't get dates any other way.

Tell me about it. I can't even count the number of times I've declared "Death to adjectives" only to be greeted by a blank stare in response.

[Tyrone Slothrop]

Originally posted by bilmore
Derivative of an old joke to Atticus, but, people who read and liked Catch-22 tend to be the type who can't get dates any other way.

Just so long as he's Milo and not Snowden.

Originally posted by Sidd
I can't even count the number of times I've declared "Death to adjectives" only to be greeted by a blank stare in response.

It's a long book, but people ought to be able to remember what happens in the first couple of pages.