Listen to What I Say... But Not What I Said

Maybe that is what good ol' Rick wants everybody to do.  First he says "The issue in this race is not the economy.," but the real issue is "because we have a government that is oppressing its people and taking away their freedom."  And that is important now!  (HuffingtonPost.com)

So, he wants the government out of people's lives.  That makes sense.  Except... when it comes to certain 'social issues' that Mr. Santorum wants the government right in the middle of.  Things like abortion and birth control.  He wants people to be able to have their freedom, unless it comes at the cost of something he disagrees with.  The right to choose is a freedom.

He also wants to interrupt another 'freedom'. He wants an end to pornography.  He thinks the Obama Administration is 'soft' on porn.  He thinks the Justice Department under President Obama “seems to favor pornographers over children and families.”  So, let's get the government in on that!  That is important now!  (WashingtonPost.com)

But, it is what he says, not what he said.  He didn't think that Penn State was soft on pedophilia in the Sandusky case.  Nor does the devout Catholic think he has to "grade the Catholic Church" on the pedophilia there.  So, let's just stay out of those areas.  (LezGetReal)

The one thing Rick ought to watch out for though, is who he might be intruding on in the porn area.  From the NewScientist:  "Those states that do consume the most porn tend to be more conservative and religious than states with lower levels of consumption, the study finds."  (TheNewCivilRightsMovement.com) So, Rick's supporters are buying the stuff.

Wonder if they will still vote for him...

Will There Be Any Candidates?

The GOP in Laurens County South Carolina probably won't have too many.  "Last Tuesday, the LCGOP unanimously adopted a resolution that would ask all candidates who want to get on the primary ballot to sign a pledge with 28 principles" that include the usual opposition to abortion and upholding gun rights, and a "compassionate and moral approach to Teen Pregnancy", whatever that might mean.  (TPMMuckraker)


But the LCGOP may have gone a bit too far.  Also part of the 28 is "abstinence before marriage", being "faithful" to your spouse, no spouses of the same gender and a big no to civil unions for people of the same sex.  And the big one?  No more looking at pornography.

Not sure how well that bodes for Newt Gingrich.  He won the South Carolina Primary in January.  He beat good Ol' Mitt by 12 percentage points. (NYTimes.com)  But, makes one wonder how the Republicans in Laurens County think about his 3 wives - 2 of which he was unfaithful to with obvious no-abstinence before marriage to a few of them.

Good Ol' Republican Hypocrisy:  Do as I say, not as I do...  Wonder if Rick or Mitt look at Porn??

Well, What I Meant to Say...

In our current era of politics, we do get to hear a lot about what they "meant" to say.  But generally, the first thing out of someone's mouth is what they really mean and the second thing is said to smooth over and make everyone think that it's all going to be ok.  Rick Santorum is doing that today.
First, what came out of his mouth was:  "But I do have concerns about women in front-line combat, I think that could be a very compromising situation."  And in the same breath said it was because "emotions that are involved."  (HuffingtonPost.com)


What he meant to say... after NBC's Ann Curry suggested that some had interpreted his original remarks to be a commentary on "women being emotional," wasn't that he was blaming women for emotions but, rather, how "men would react to seeing women in harm's way, or potentially being injured or in a vulnerable position, and not being concerned about accomplishing the mission."  So, see, what he meant to say is that men wouldn't be able to handle women in combat...


Then, on another occasion, not trying to hurt women again, he said that the Affordable Care Act providing birth control was not "about contraception.  It's about government control of your lives and it's got to stop."  (Yahoo.com)  He probably meant to say that.  But, that doesn't follow what he has said before.


What he said at the beginning of the year has a lot to do with government control of lives.  He said that he would pass a nationwide law that would define marriage as that one man - one woman type and "any now-legal same-sex marriages would be invalid."  (HuffingtonPost.com)

So, what he meant to say is... whatever I believe is the only truth and I will do whatever I want when you elect me.   So There!

Everybody is Being Assaulted

Well, at least according the GOP candidates.  Well, not that they are talking much about the real victims of assault, however. In all of the GOP debates (all 1 million of them) "poverty and the poor has rarely come up."  (ParagouldDailyPress.com)  So, it really comes as a surprise that these guys would talk about the victims of any assault without mentioning the poor.  But then again, who are the victims here?


First there are the "Religious Groups."  With the Affordable Care Act's rule that "requires all employers to cover birth controls for their workers," the guys have the panties in a ruffle:

• MITT ROMNEY, GOP PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Remarkably, under this president's administration there is assault on religion
• NEWT GINGRICH, GOP PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Many of you may have noticed that the Obama administration has declared war on the Catholic Church

Rick Santorum wasn't so much thinking that religion was under attack as much as he was worried the "elitist" government was going to take away his freedoms.  (FoxNews.com)

And speaking of freedoms. Santorum, who said last week he doesn't believe gay couples "benefit society", was all worried that the 9th Circuit Court "ripping" away the 7M California voter's rights in finding Prop 8 unconstitutional.  Romney says this:  "Today, unelected judges cast aside the will of the people of California."  Newtie wants to "end judicial supremacy."  So, in this case 7M California homophobes are the victims.  And it is the supreme, unelected judges who are assaulting them.  (Gay.net)

Not sure exactly why these guys get to decided on birth control or proper marriage - especially Newtie on that one.  But gee, there are 9 more months of campaigning, and who knows how many million more debates, and we are stuck listening to these 3.

Name Dropping

Generally in an election year, it is not too odd to have some candidate or another "drop names".  It usually shows how many folks are encouraging their run, or how many are monetarily supporting it.  But, when a candidate starts dropping the Big Guy's name, you just want to shout "STOP!"  Rick Santorum and his group have been doing that a lot lately.


First, his "honorary chairman" in the Florida campaign says gays "make God want to vomit."  That would be "the Rev. O'Neal Dozier, a firebrand social conservative" who also has said "that Mitt Romney was bound not for the White House, but for hell." (MotherJones.com)  Maybe he knows the way there, because he's headed there himself?


Now, another aide to Santorum has decided that a woman can't be president.  He asks the question “Is it God’s highest desire, that is, his biblically expressed will, … to have a woman rule the institutions of the family, the church, and the state?” (Care2.com)  This Iowa coalitions director, Jamie Johnson, would think it abhorrent and un-Biblical if the woman's place was in the "House" instead of in the "home".


But, then there is good ol' Ricky himself.  When asked why he opposes abortion even in cases of rape, he said that women should "make the best out of a bad situation."  He goes on (and on, and on, and on...) "accept this horribly created" baby, because it was still a gift from God, even if given in a "broken" way.  (HuffingtonPost.com)

So, don't make God throw up, don't let God catch some woman not doing her wifely duties and definitely bring God's "broken" baby into the world... because Rick Santorum said so.

Ok, Who is Spiking the Tea?

Well, that would be the tea of certain Tea Party groups out there.  It seems the Tennessee Tea Party wants to erase some 188 years of history.  You know, because it "tarnishes" the reputations of the founding fathers.  God Forbid that the children of today realize that the Fathers of yesterday were slave owners or intruded on the Indians.  (PamsHouseblend)


"A coalition of Tennessee Tea Party groups has formulated a list of 'demands'... to compel the teaching of students in Tennessee the truth regarding the history of our nation and the nature of its government." They want "no portrayal of minority experience" in history.  C'mon, the founders are just guys "who brought liberty into a world where it hadn't existed, to everybody -- not all equally instantly."  (HuffingtonPost.com)

Well, yeah, the US Civil Rights Act didn't happen until 1964.


Wonder if the tea guzzlers are going to want to erase any history of Santorum in the next 100 years if any non-discrimination laws for LGBTs get passed here soon?

Personal Lives

Today, FauxNews.com asked the all important question "Should voters consider a candidate's private life?"  This comes after the debate last night and the questions to Newt about his sanctified request for an "open marriage" with his second wife.  (FoxNews.com)  He even responded to the question “I am appalled that you would begin a presidential debate on a topic like that.”


But why not ask the questions about their personal lives?  All they want to do is run our personal lives.  They all tout their ideals on abortion, same-sex marriage, taxes, health care.  All of these things effect our personal lives.  So, ask a man, who declares his support for the sanctity of marriage between one man and one woman, why the hell he married three women?  Or, ask a man who says he is "Defending the Dignity of Every Human Life" (RickSantorum.com), why he is a homo-phobic gay basher?


The personal lives of America are at risk here.  Surprisingly, the voters on the Faux News poll want the questions asked.  Yes. A candidate's private life is relevant.  51.07%.  It should be 100%, but it is Faux News.

Procreation

And not just of the recreational variety.  It is one of the main arguments that people put out there as to why same-sex marriage should not be allowed.  During a 'conversation' in New Hampshire with some students, Rick Santorum said "God made men and woman to keep civilization and provide the best environment  to raise children.”  He doesn't necessarily care if people have relationships, “I have no problem if people want to have relationships, but marriage provides a good to society. It’s unique because it is the union that causes children to be raised.”  (ABCNews.com)

So, technically, he is not against gay sex.  He is just against gay marriage.  Now, the Hartford Archdiocese has a different view on the whole thing.  “The church is not against people with same-sex attraction, just their acting out sexually.”  (TowleRoad.com) They have launched a new program called 'Courage' which encourages gay Catholics to live a 'chaste' life by abstaining from having sex, whether they are legally married (as is possible in the state) or not.


Being gay is ok - as long as you don't have sex and don't get married. 


Santorum was booed when he left the conversation in New Hampshire.  Shall we throw out a boo to 'Courage' too?

Marriage is NOT the Thing

So, in the U.S. less than half of those over the age of 18 are married.  Those getting married in 2010 were 5% less than those who got hitched in 2009.  And "the overall number of married couples has declined by more than 20 percentage points since 1960."   (HuffPost)


Now, Rick Santorum (go ahead, google his name) blames this marriage decline on allowing same-sex marriage and redefining marriage.  His tweet “Here is 1 effect of changing definition of marriage “@HuffingtonPost: Marriage rate in America drops to new low”. (LezGetReal


But good ol' Rick might just be wrong.  There has been a drop since 1960.  Well, then something else must have been going on between 1960 and 2004.  "Until 2004, same-sex couples couldn’t wed anywhere in the country." (StateLine) The definition of marriage didn't change until then.

ThinkProgress points out, the survey does not attribute the decline to same-sex marriage, but to a variety of other social factors: "other kinds of living arrangements that are socially acceptable: living on your own, or even living as a single parent; getting an education done and launching a career before marriage.”


But leave up to good ol' Frothy to blame teh gays.

Really, What is Bullying?

Well, Rick Santorum - or Frothy Mix as some call him - thinks that political satire is bullying.  In a sketch on Saturday Night Live, he was shown to be not a viable candidate in their debate setting - as only viable candidates were sitting at the table.  Where was Santorum? He was shown sitting on a bar stool at a gay bar.  (JoeMyGod)

Santorum is known for his strong anti-gay rhetoric.  The way he says it is "standing up for the traditional family".  Yet some of his words have been very harsh towards the LGBT community.  Which is why he is called Frothy Mix in the first place. Just google search his last name, and you will see why.


Dictionary.com defines bullying as being "habitually badgered and intimidated" and it is directed primarily to "smaller or weaker people."  Denying rights to a certain group of Americans sounds more like badgering and intimidating then a skit comedy show poking fun.


But, really what is bullying?  Perhaps it is feeling sadness and despair at being called a "fag" and finally getting to the point where you say you can't take it anymore.  That is what happened to a gay 15-year-old Ottawa, Canada teen Jamie Hubley.  He killed himself on Friday because he was bullied and just couldn't take it anymore. (TowleRoad.com)

So, Rick... go the gay bar and have yourself a drink.

If the Search Result Fits...

Then of course Google has to list it.  Now, some folks might complain about that.  But Google's PageRank is how it works.  Every time somebody adds a link to a web site, Google interprets this as a vote for that site. The more links to the site, the more votes it gets.(SwitchIt.com)

Then of course, there is the Google Bomb.  "Google's search-rank algorithm ranks pages higher for a particular search phrase if enough other pages linked to it using similar anchor text." (Wikipedia.org) Examples of such bombs would be like a search for "more evil than Satan himself" resulting in the Microsoft homepage.  Or "dumb motherf*cker" leading to a site selling George W. Bush-related merchandise.  Google has developed an algorithm to catch and remove these.


So, which is the case for "Santorum"? 


It all started when sex advice columnist, author and activist Dan Savage didn't like what Senator Rick Santorum had to say about homosexuality.  He equated it with bestiality and pedophilia.  So Savage asked his readers to come up with a new definition of "Santorum" and they picked:  The frothy mix of lube and fecal matter that is sometimes the byproduct of anal sex.  And it pops up on Google.  (HuffingtonPost.com)


Well, now Rick has asked Google to fix the problem, and they said "no."  Google does not “remove content from our search results, except in very limited cases such as illegal content and violations of our webmaster guidelines.” (PamsHouseblend) Dan Savage has re-defined Santorum and he has created a website that has lots of links to it that fit the PageRank guidelines, so it is the "frothy mix" that wins.


Looks like Rick is stuck - literally and figuratively.

Thanks For Making it Clear

It is so nice when you are unsure of what you are supposed to be and someone comes along and just clears it all up for you.  Thankfully there were two such "clearers" today.  Both of them must know exactly what it means, since they are so vocal with their opinions and stance on the issue.  What is it to be gay?  Well, let's find out.


Allen West is a Republican U.S. Representative who represents Florida's 22nd congressional district.  He says that being gay is like preferring chocolate chip ice cream.  Or it could be compared to riding a scooter. He chooses to ride a motorcycle, why should he choose to ride a scooter?  Now, he has also said that gay marriage will lead to the end of society (although last I looked Massachusetts and New York were still there).   OnTopMag.com

On a different tack, Rick Santorum, a lawyer and a former United States Senator from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania (not the frothy mix that pops up in some google results), wants to ensure that we all know that calling gay marriage a marriage is like calling a napkin a paper towel.  "You can call it whatever you want but it doesn't change the character of what it is to the metaphysical," he continued.  So, metaphysically, gay marriage is a paper towel... not a napkin. (MSNBC.com)

Allen West also said “Now everyone has the same basic rights, and no one is telling people in the gay community that they don't have the same basic rights that any American has." Not sure he actually meant that one.  And Rick Santorum also stated that "water is water and marriage is marriage."  He said you could try and call water beer, but it was still water.  Gay marriage is like a beer, got it.


Anybody want a beer?