Let's talk about earmarks for a few minutes.
Republicans are going on and on about how evil earmarks are in bills coming out of Congress, with former presidential candidate Sen. John McCain twittering away gaily at how humorous some of them are. Of course the most famous earmark ever was former Sen. Ted Stevens' "bridge to nowhere" for Alaska, but not all earmarks are stupid and not all are pork.
Remember the Republican response to President Obama's speech last month, when Louisiana Gov. Piyush "Bobby" Jindal tried to ridicule the idea of volcano monitoring.
Bad move, Bobby. Governors who need monitoring for one kind of natural disaster shouldn't make fun of the other kinds. Volcanoes matter to the Pacific Northwest, hurricanes matter to the Gulf Coast.
The GOP had a lot of fun with an earmark that actually was cut out of the final stimulus bill; $150,000 for "honeybee insurance." Let's ignore the fact that $150,000 is chump change in a budget that measures in the trillions. It's probably less than the Pentagon budget for toilet tissue.
But let's think about those honeybees for a minute.
I know it's tough for Republicans, many of whom believe the Earth is only 10,000 years old and Jesus and his disciples used to ride dinosaurs to Sunday school, to comprehend real science. They seem to have no idea how crucial bees are to our ecosystem. Bees pollinate plants, making it possible for them to grow.
And plants ... food, right?
There seems to be a great debate over whether Albert Einstein actually said the famous quote that has been attributed to him, but a pamphlet distributed by the National Union of French Apiculture (a country that respects science) quoted him.
"If the bee disappears from the surface of the earth, man would have no more than four years to live. No more bees, no more pollination ... no more men!"
Whether you're aware of it or not, an amazing number of honeybee colonies have been dying for unfathomable reasons. Seems like spending about as much as Bernard Madoff would spend on a weekend in the Hamptons on studying the problem would be a pretty good idea.
If we spent one tenth as much on science as we do on tax breaks for people who don't need them, we'd be a lot better off than we are. As it is, we're stumbling along at a time when we ought to be racing ahead.
So yeah, there's pork in government bills. But just because somebody says something in a funny voice doesn't mean it's funny.
It just means they think you're stupid.
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2 comments:
Why do you -- a reasonable man -- continue to add moronic remarks and curt asides such as:"I know it's tough for Republicans, many of whom believe the Earth is only 10,000 years old and Jesus and his disciples used to ride dinosaurs to Sunday school, to comprehend real science. They seem to have no idea how crucial bees are to our ecosystem. Bees pollinate plants, making it possible for them to grow."
I'm not even a Republican, but I find that insulting and childish.
For all the complaints you have about rabid rightwing radio talk show hosts and their arrogant belittling of the "loyal opposition", you are just as guilty.
And yet, you complain ad nauseum about how stupid, petty, and shortsighted "they" are.
Can you not see that you're doing exactly the same thing?
My husband and I often discuss your blogs on the way to work -- it's better than listening to talk radio -- and we have come to a startling conclusion: you are the same as the people you despise.
That may account for the self-loathing that every so often creeps into your blogs.
I'm about your age, raised out here in California, a "progressive" when it comes to social and political issues, and even I find you embarassing simple-minded and childish at times.
Maybe you should step back and take a long hard look in the mirror.
How can you call for change in attitude, practices, and beliefs when you practice demagoguery yourself?
Yeah, well, pork this!
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