Fox News and Leftists

The Beer:  It will be a time before I brew again.  Big changes may be coming.

The Bicycle:  Those same big changes may keep my cycling to a bare minimum.

The VRWC:  The Leftists have a very difficult time with Fox News.  It really doesn't matter what the news is, they feel a need to discredit Fox.  The "Faux News" meme and screams of FOX LIES! FOX LIES! FOX LIES! that ring out any time there is a political story critical of the Left have become neuroses.  The Leftists can't help themselves.  The claim that "Fox went to court to be able to lie" is demonstrably false.

Now, I am not a psychiatrist or anything of the sort (people become psychiatrists because they need one), so defining exactly what mental illness infects Leftists is something I am unable to do.  But I can give an example.  Everyone remembers the "cool kids lunch table" in junior high school.  Many wanted to be part of it and it did not matter what had to be done to get there.  They were the "smart", "cool" kids people wanted to hang with.  As many of us became older, we recognized them for what they were.  Self-centered, self-aggrandizing children who wanted "followers".   Sound familiar?  Today's Leftists are no different.  They make the claim of being smarter than everyone else with no evidence whatsoever.  Others buy into it because they want to be seen as "smart".  The Left is self-congratulatory, as evidenced by the plethora of "awards" presentations by the Left (especially the Hollywood "elite").   Anything that indicates the Left might not be as smart, all-knowing and all-seeing or otherwise all-wonderful must be countered because if one falls, they all fall.  This is why you no longer see "no blood for oil".  It is why Code Pink doesn't invade Obama press conferences.  Why excuses are made for continued Bush policies and failures to immediately end all war, fix the economy, close GITMO.  Here is where Fox comes in.  Fox doesn't cover up Obama's (or anyone else's) political failures.  They call the news like it is (not to be confused with their opinion shows).  It shows the Left in a negative light and they can't stand it.  Consider how you would feel if you knew you were only "smart" because you associate with the "smart" people.  When those "smart" people are shown to be not-so-smart, well....you see where I am going with this.  Can't counter the fact with fact, so just call it a lie.

Smart.

The Madness of Gun Control Legislation

The Beer:  As soon as I get my 15-gallon fermenter, I will be brewing my next batch.

The Bicycle:  Finally.  I have been out twice.  I am in shape, but that shape is round.  I need a heart rate monitor.

The VRWC:  Politicians play on emotions.  It has always been that way.  They understand the herd mentality of the citizenry.  So, "Never let a good crisis go to waste" is no surprise.  Neither is the current rush into undermining the Second Amendment to the Constitution of the United States.  The madness is evident in the polling.  Reading through the polls, it become clear that the questions are phrased such that one must choose between the right to own a gun and "public safety".  But this is a false choice.  There is no link between legal gun ownership and gun violence.  In fact, the opposite appears to be true true.

Call it what you will, but the current fervor for more gun laws is driven by emotion.  If you want conspiracy theory, try this.  During the Obama Administration:

• Rep. Giffords is shot during a public appearance on January 8, 2011.  The administration calls for gun control measures, but it gets no traction.
• On July 20, 2012, a man dressed in body armor shoots up a theater in Aurora, CO.    Again, there are calls for firearms restrictions, but no new legislation.
• December 14, 2012, Adam Lanza kills his mother, twenty children and six adult staff.  
• In between these, there is a thwarted mass shooting at a mall in the Portland, OR area. 

The administration and the media have continued to throw gasoline on the emotional fires.  The President continually exploits the victims for political gain.  

According to Mother Jones, mass shootings are up significantly since 2008.  Is it coincidental that these all happen under an administration hell-bent on "gun control"?  Each of the above shootings, more heinous than the previous.  Coincidence?  Or pattern?

The Facebook Time-Suck

The Beer:  If it ever warms up in these parts, I'm ready.  I also have a 15-gal food-grade poly tank coming to use as a fermentor.  Bigger batches,more beer.

The Bicycle:  Again, I am ready, but the weather isn't.

The VRWC:  Why would I put together a thoughtful post here when I can dump some one-liners onto Facebook?  To start with, 5 minutes turns into 2 hours.  I don't care about other peoples' drama and while there are good things on Facebook, the amount of time it takes from my other, value-added activities is substantial.

I have only suspended my account and can go back.  But why?