MacDailyNews - Where Mac news comes first

" "Hurricane Katrina,
Your Tax Cuts at Work !!!"

$50 to anyone who can make sense out of that statement. "

YEEEES, you would need at least two neurons in that right wing nut cluster of yours to fathom my statement. That poor lone neuron is WAY too occupied worrying about " MY money" this and "MY money" that, to even understand that while your Ri*** Wi** Fa***** Du** Fu** buddies keep cutting taxes like you always clamor for, the next time it just rains anywhere in the U.S. you and your ilk will thankfully ALL drown. Or burn or slip into the sea or whatever event your NOT prepared for, of course depending WHERE your tax cuts are best not being helpful. Ah, except for the rich egotists and greedy hoarders like yourself, your police-forces, military industrial complex, homeland insecurity department, jails, and concentration camps will be richly funded, .....sooooorrrrry.

What's the use ?

Great thread.I think the leading misspell is "loose" for lose. Let's work on that.

Road Wimp is back with his radical, left wing, conspiracy loving, freak-friends. You psychos are pathetic. I dare you a-holes to move into the projects and put your money where your mouths are! Let's see you try to really help these able bodied people that milk the system by looking for handouts and teaching their kids to look for hand outs. Try to educate them if you're so smart. Don't just let the elected democrats tax the hardworking people to death and give the money to these fat, lazy, bastards. Get in there and educate them. Get them to take care of themselves, work out, clean up their free living quarters. Good luck though. If you're all such do gooders get in there and really help these people besides. Don't try to redistribute wealth from the motivated, hard working people to the lazy hand out grabbing people. You liberals are 99.9 % hot air. You don't want to do a god damn thing except tax the people who have worked hard and made more money than you. You're jealous of success and use these welfare addicts as your excuse. If you really cared you'd be in the projects every day teaching these people (who don't want to be taught, just want to beat the system) to better themselves. We all want to help the people who are truly helpless but not the vast majority who take advantage of the system with you scum bag liberals backing them all the way.

Fuck you jermey and the bush you crawled out from under.

Jeremy : Fine Outstanding Republican Spin-doctor.
ZEIG HEIL.....this is where some fake Democrat tells me I've gone too far and tries to disown me. Save it.

I see your fat, drugged up, womanizing, blowhard boss, Runt Winbag sent you your spin-check. Your nauseating brand of ignorant right wing egotism created all you describe. The selfishness, neo-fascist racism, and just plain hate of the ordinary man down on his luck gives me hope that given enough media "Rope" you will all hang yourselves from your deceit and lies. Keep petting that Golden Calf you fatten up on a daily basis it will be "riding " you before you know it.

P.S. aren't YOU supposed to be in a green uniform getting shot at somewhere in the world instead of spinning your brand of fascist ideology that props up illegitimate and criminal governments like dumbya's.

Now you may go spin somewhere else.
Man you guys sure are organized.

The MDN hurricane take is very insensitive. Next time your home is completely flooded and you have to sleep on your roof with no food and water for DAYS awaiting rescue, or perhaps you were stuck in an elevator and eventually died then, etc. etc. then you can spout all you want about people over reacting at the slow response. Until then STFU. Clearly what your hurricane experience was small fries in comparison.

Dave Challender, fair enough. I respect our difference of opinion, and thanks for clarifying that you were just stating what you believe it looks like from the world's perspective.

Slyrobber, you almost got around to addressing Jeremy's actual point - of course Jeremy didn't make his point easy to get to, since he hid it behind a bunch of trolling crap (shame on you Jeremy). Course you did provoke him with one of the lamest trolls yet in this thread.

But to ask the question a little more nicely, what have you done to help the disadvantaged? Anything? Or again, are you just talk?

You liberals are mostly a bunch of liars. You try to villainize Republicans and the majority of people see right through your BS. Step and Jeremy are correct to ask what exactly have most of you done besides try to raise taxes and vote in incompetent leaders? Nothing is the answer. Able bodied people who live in Hurricane regions should have the good sense to get the hell out when one is approaching and they've been told to leave. Here's a question to you liberal liars: What is your solution to get the able bodied welfare abusers off welfare????? Is that a goal or do you just keep giving them freebies and ask nothing of them in return. That is fantasy land. No wonder they train their kids to turn out just like them. Sit back and stick your hand out and a liberal will go tax the hard working to death and redistribute their hard earned money to the able bodied lazy people who know how to beat the system. Pathetic. Absolutely pathetic. There are never any free lunches in the real world. For the handicapped, crippled, children, fine we all agree they need help. Not the able bodied abusers though.

Antoine,

Who do YOU villainize? That's right. Democrats. Now that THAT playing field is leveled, just keep in mind that, though liberals have a tendency toward a socialist, welfare state, it is a tenet of the Conservative Agenda (throughout history and today) to neuter government as a business watchdog (allowing big business to operate with no restraints), eliminate the middle class, restore aristocracy (of wealth rather than lineage) and create a feudal state. Supporters of the Republican party (typically representatives of Conservatism) that are not part of the fabulously wealthy elite are simply used as a pawns (read: votes) to support the agenda of the elite (under the guise of protecting morality, family values, pro-life, the sanctity of marriage, etc.). The end result will be a triumph for the elite, with their supporters (read: Republican voters) being relegated to the poor working class without so much as a 'thank you.'

I think, rather than making blanket statements and classifying people into compartments, you might want to find some balance. It's our job, as non-wealthy Democrats, Republicans, Centrists, etc., to see that our country never becomes completely socialist or an aristocracy.

And by the way, "the majority of people see right through your BS" is BS. This country is polarized — split damned near 50/50. (See the last presidential election.) So, you could really only say, "half of people see right through your BS," because the other half see through the BS of conservatives.

MW: Perspective.

HEAR, HEAR, Balance !!!
I am of more socialist leanings but totally agree with you that the center is what one must attain. We socialist of good reasoning understand that you need reasonable capitalists to balance out a good democracy kind of like a pendulum back and forth between more government then less government. Unfortunately these honest and true "conservatives" have been co-opted by people that don't believe in a democratic government for the United States but rather an Empirical Right Wing "Fascist" regime to rule the world for their greed. A two party system is a sham and a farce. America needs to get back to what Jefferson wanted in the constitution.

I don't personally care for RAP or any of it's variants but to tell people what they can or cannot listen to because it doesn't fit your agenda smacks of what we are talking about here. Kind of like BlockBuster or Wall-Mart "versions of movies how 1984ish. And yes it was a social commentary about government FASCIST governments.

Long Live Ché !. Go !! Hugo Go !!

Both sides know that the majority of the people on welfare are free loaders who are perfectly capable of educating themselves and working hard to better themselves but choose not to because they know they will be handed freebies from the democrat-liberals that love to tax the hard working and give it to mostly people that don't deserve it. Why not try a new way, make the people recieving welfare do something to earn it. Like the hardworking tax payers that pay for their free ride have to do. They would probably realize that they were better off going it on their own. They'd make more money and feel better abou themselves in the process. I totally support helping the handicapped and children but not the lazy people, white or black. By the way I am black.

Honest Facts:

Consider this: someday, if you need some assistance, you'll be able to lean on some program that those democrat-liberals have put into place. Unfortunately, the majority of free loaders on welfare who are perfectly capable of educating themselves and working hard to better themselves will be there too, not because democrat-liberals have put a program into place for THEM, but because they've put a program into place for YOU because you've become in need of assistance. Democrat-liberals don't arbitrarily create programs for people to abuse. Actually, it's the other way around. Should I spell it out? People abuse programs. So don't be so cavalier in blaming liberal democrats for creating programs. Realize that the abusers are at fault.

The alternative would be to kill all programs (because they all get abused in some way or another) and then NOBODY gets assistance, even those in great need.

Why don't you democratic-liberals do some policing of your programs and make the able bodied free loaders earn their free room and board????

Finaly! We have here some republicans with the balls to say what they really think instead of sitting around trying to pretend they are Christian. Poor people? Fuck 'em! Isn't that what Jesus said? Every one knows that there is no such thing as a lazy rich man, right? It'll be harder to fit a needle through the eye of camel than it'll be to get a poor man in to heaven. Up is down, black is white.
The majority of those who left New Orleans before Katrina did so because they had a car and available credit. That credit will soon run out, if it hasn't all ready. Then, with no credit, no job and no house, those in the middle class who escaped with their lives are gonna be just as screwed as those "lazy poor people". I assure you that there was plenty of looting (by poor white people) elseware in the affected region, it just wasn't on the news in part because those areas were harder for the media to reach. But thats the point. If the media could get to the suffering masses in New Orleans(with consumer SUVs) it makes thinking people, who actualy have a heart, wonder why the feds couldn't get them much needed supplies with military vehicles.
As far as Kanye West is concerned, love him or hate him, it took huge balls to stand there on national tv (all 3 NBC networks) and to speak of such an unpopular subject. I could hear his passion as his voice shook. The man was just speaking his mind. More power to him! Maybe you don't agree with him (I don't, I think its more about class than race) but I might see it his way, had I grown up on the south side of Chicago like he did.
Oh yea, and to those hard hearted republicans posting here....Why don't you go watch some more TV! I hear Fox is fare and ballanced.

Balance, on your response to Antoine: well put*. It's unfortunate that this is true. I think the best form of government is really a dictatorship, if only there was a perfect king somewhere. Democracy is the worst form, except for all the others... ;P

*Though I disagree with the implications of your statement "(under the guise of protecting morality...)". This is not a guise, though the elite may use it to achieve selfish gains the values you mentioned are essential to maintaining a long-lasting civilization. Once these values decay away, the country will head in a downward spiral to destruction. At least that's my firm belief.

T.S., I wonder how many supplies you think the military vehicles could have brought in, and didn't. Or how many media you think actually drove in in SUV's. From the reporter I listened to this morning that was embedded, he rode in with the military, not in a consumer SUV. Yes, I agree, thinking people wonder....here's some thinking instead of wondering:

Basically you're assuming that
1. there were plenty of supplies the feds could have grabbed off the shelf.
2. there were plenty of military vehicles sitting around unused, or not being used for supplies when they should have been (including drivers and loaders and all the necessary support that entails).
3. these resources were not in any way impacted by the need for rescue and evacuation.

Your statements bear more assumptions that need questioning, but I'll stop there. This is not so cut and dried, that we all know exactly how well we should have responded to a natural disaster bigger than we've seen in a century. Just keep in mind that none of this stuff appears out of the air. I know several people that are going / have gone down to the affected area, and that's how I think we should be approaching this problem right now. We need to take care of each other.

With respect to Kanye, huge balls or not, that doesn't make it right. Sure, I'll give you that he must be very passionate about it, but that doesn't mean he's not hurting the very cause he cares so much about. In fact, it doesn't even mean that b/c he's passionate about something, he's even passionate about the right thing. He could have felt so strongly b/c of politics, and just be USING the cause of race. I'm not saying he is, I'm just pointing out that he's got a huge responsibility with the privilege he's got of speaking to so many people. I think he's abusing that privilege right now to do more damage than good for the very cause he's professing. After all, he's turning it into a political thing when he's claiming it's a race thing. That's really a little sad, I think, and not respectable at all.

Step,

One of the most influential theories of government in the past two hundred years has been the social contract, on which modern democracy and most forms of socialism are founded. The social contract theory holds that governments are created by the people in order to provide for collective needs (such as safety from crime) that cannot be properly satisfied using purely individual means. Governments thus exist for the purpose of serving the needs and wishes of the people, and their relationship with the people is clearly stipulated in a "social contract" (a constitution and a set of laws) which both the government and the people must abide by. If a majority is unhappy, it may change the social contract. If a minority is unhappy, it may persuade the majority to change the contract, or it may opt out of it by emigration or secession.

A government cannot prescribe or dictate morality, as morality is subjective*. Only religionists and imperialists intend to police morality.

Of my post, the fabulously wealthy elite in America are likely not examples of morality, nor are they likely concerned about the morality of the middle class or the poor.

*Some generalities may apply. Issues such as murder, violence and robbery would be handled under "safety from crime" as mentioned above. But, as is quite obvious, conservatives are more likely to use issues of more personal matters, such as sexuality and what people do in the privacy of their bedrooms, to play their "morality card."

Balance, again well met.

To the extent you cover the topic, you are correct. However the last two hundred years are hardly a sufficient challenge to the principles and knowledge gained over the last few thousand years of governments and civilizations.

I disagree that morality is subjective, that is one of the more dangerous philosophies today. As you point out, some generalities may apply. But you can't reasonably apply some generalities and yet hold that morality is subjective. Throughout history, though man has disagreed on this or that detail of implementation, mankind has continuously upheld an amazingly constant threshold of morality.

My last point was that every civilization that has let this standard of morality decay has itself been destroyed. You could answer by saying that all civilizations have ended, but I would contend that it was part and parcel with their loss of respect for morals.

I presume the same thing about the fabulously wealthy elite, but I do not know any, so I am left to conjecture.

In one sense you are quite right, I do not like much of the republican stance on big business, but the morality issues are more important to me since I believe they are more important to the long-term health of our country. By the same token, I don't agree with most democratic platforms I've heard, either, so there's really nothing there to give me a chance to vote for them. So I cede your point, that some republicans play "their moral card" to gain votes while they do deals with big business. However, I don't think that it is really that simple, at least for some politicians (on both sides). I think many people in office do really believe what they're doing, and are trying to do their best for the country, although of course they compromise themselves sometimes.

Balance,

to clarify my statement, "As you point out, some generalities may apply. But you can't reasonably apply some generalities and yet hold that morality is subjective" I meant that I don't believe it's logical to say that morals are subjective, but we'll choose which ones should be applied to all people. A killer may well find that killing is within his scruples, just as a child molester or an unmarried couple may themselves find no problems with their actions in the bedroom. Mankind in general, though, has agreed throughout thousands of years on the morality (or immorality) of these events. It may not be government's role to try to enforce every morality, (certainly not), but it is even more so not the role of government to actively destroy such morality.

Hopefully I have explained what I mean a little clearer this time.

TJ,

Obviously the government should help the people who lost everything because of the hurricane you jack ass. You completely dodged the facts again that the majority of people on welfare are perfectly capable of trying harder in life. Getting an education, cleaning up after themselves, not eating Big Macs religously, etc. There needs to be some accountability and you liberal pussies never want any. Your completely happy constantly raising the working masses taxes to pay for these bums who know one thing and that's how to beat the system. Of course you have no solution and completely dodge the question. Great work A-Hole!

Amen, Brother.


THIS IS THE WAY I CALL IT.

In Katrina I Didn't See Racism, I Saw Brotherhood

by Rabbi Aryeh Spero
Posted Sep 7, 2005

In New Orleans, beginning Tuesday morning, August
30, I saw men in helicopters risking their lives to save stranded flood victims from rooftops. The rescuers were White, the stranded Black. I saw Caucasians navigating their small, private boats in violent, swirling, toxic floodwaters to find fellow citizens trapped in their houses. Those they saved were Black.

I saw Brotherhood. New York Congressman CharlieRangel saw Racism.
Yes, there are Two Americas. One is the real America, where virtually every White person I know sends money, food or clothes to those in need --now and in other crises -- regardless of color. This America is colorblind.

The other is the America fantasized and manufactured by Charlie Rangel, Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton, who constantly cry "racism!" even in situations where it does not exist, even when undeniable images illustrate love, compassion and concern. These three men, together with today's NAACP, want to continue the notion of Racist America. It
is their Mantra, their calling card. Their power, money, and continued media appearances depend on it.

Often, people caught up in accusing others of sin neglect to undergo their own personal introspection. They begin to think they alone inhabit the moral high ground. It is high time these men peered into their own hearts at the dark chamber that causes this unceasing labeling of their fellow Americans as "racist." They may find in that chamber their own racism -- against Whites.

There is only one real America. Beginning Friday morning in Houston, thousands of regular citizens poured into the Astrodome offering water, food, clean clothes, personal items, baby diapers and toys, love and even their homes to the evacuees who had been bused in from New Orleans. Most of the givers were White, most of those being helped were Black. But there was Jesse Jackson, busy on TV, accusing the countryof not putting Blacks--i.e., him -- on some type of Commission he is demanding. Where was he early in the week? Not sweating with others from around the country who had scraped their last dollar to come help. With Jesse, it's always about Jesse.

After decades of hearing accusations from Jesse, Al, Charlie, the NAACP and certain elitists about how racist America is, it would have been refreshing to hear them for once give thanks to those they for years have been maligning. These self-anointed spokesmen for the Black community lead only when it comes to foisting guilt and condemnation, and not when it comes to a cknowledging the good in those they have made a career in castigating.

As a Rabbi I have a message I wish to offer to my fellow members of the cloth, Reverends Jackson and Sharpton: It is time to do some soul searching. Your continued efforts to tear this country apart, even in light of the monumental goodness shown by your White brothers, is a sin.

There are no churches in the world like the American churches. And there are no better parishioners and members of churches anywhere in the world. These churches are saving the day. Their members --infused by the special and singular teachings of our unique American Judeo-Christian understanding of the Bible -- are, at this moment, writing an historic chapter in giving, initiative, and selflessness. They are opening their homes to strangers. They are doing what government is incapable ofdoing.America works because of its faith-based institutions. It always has. That is what makes it America.

So next time the ACLU tries to diminish and marginalize the churches, saying there is no role for religion in American public life, that an impenetrable wall must be erected separating the citizens from their faith, cry out "Katrina."

Next time the ACLU goes to court asking that U.S. soldiers not be allowed to say Grace in the Mess Hall and that communities be forbidden from setting up a nativity scene, ask yourself: without the motivation of Goodness sourced in Faith, would people offer such sacrifice? Where else does this Brotherhood come from but the Bible which teaches "Thou Shall Love Thy Neighbor as Yourself."

I saw brotherhood on Fox News, where 24/7 reporters used their perch as a clearing-house for search-and-rescue missions and communication between the stranded and those in position to save. In contrast, the Old-line networks continued with their usual foolish, brain-numbing programming. Those who always preach "compassion" chose profit over people.

The New York Times has utterly failed America. Its columnists could have used their talents and word skills to inspire andunite a nation. Columnists such as Frank Rich and Paul Krugman, however, revealed their true colors by evading their once-in-a-lifetime chance to help and instead chose to divide, condemn, and fuel the fires and poison the waters of Louisiana. In them, I saw no Brotherhood. The newspaper always preaching "compassion" verifies Shakespeare's "They protest too much."

Similar elitists here in the northeast and on the west coast have over the years expressed their view of the South as "unsophisticated" and Texans as "cowboys." Well, the South has come thro ugh, especially Houston and other parts of Texas, whereas, as I write this on Labor Day, the limousine moralizers are lying on east and west coast beaches thinking they're doing their part by reading Times' editorials and calling George Bush"racist." How sanctimonious life becomes when proving you are not a racist depends not on living in a truly integrated neighborhood, but by simply calling others racist.

Like so often in history, facts trump platitudes. Reality reigns. Those who always preach brotherhood, thus far have acted devoid of it. Those who for decades have been accused by elitists of not having compassion are the ones living it. They are: the churches, the military, and the sons and daughters of the South.

Well put Haans!

MacAnimal, being from Florida and seeing the insanity that went on in New Orleans has prompted me to draw up a list of reasons to evacuate and things to do before you go (like GAS UP EARLY -- when it's still a tropical storm!). I have eight pages of reasons and reminders. I am leaving IF ONLY to prevent my car from DROWNING and having no means of transportation. I DO feel for these people who, because of financial hardship , could not leave. Those buses should have been used and used EARLY. THEN the bus drivers might have still had time to tend to their own families and get themselves outta town. I'm sure I heard as early as early as Friday, the 26th that the hurricane would be headed to the Gulf states as a category four, so I don't get these leaders who are saying it was a surprise.

I think moving such a large group of evacuees to Houston was a bad idea. Imagine how tough it would be for native Houstonians who were having trouble getting jobs before. Now there'll be way more competition if a lot of these evacuees decide to stay in Houston. But what's the alternative? Spreading the evacuees out among more states? I'm not sure I'd want to have my new location selected by someone else. What if I don't want to live in Iowa, or Nebraska. Sure, my access to services might be better because there wouldn't be 200,000 trying to get those services.

This might wake some people up who are children of parents on assistance, and I mean white AND black. This isn't the 50's or 60's. I don't buy that the opportunity isn't there for all kids to get a good education. That is, if they don't drop out. It's like Walter Williams' suggestions on how not to be poor: Finish school, take any job you can get in the beginning, regardless of pay. Don't have kids until you get married. These are not options that are available only to white people. Otherwise, why would there be all these fine black colleges, like Howard, Bethune Cookman, Tuskeegee, and Florida A&M;? The products of these universities are not going to be depending on the government every first of the month! They're going to be kicking ass in their careers! And I challenge someone to tell those graduates who got a good education that they are "acting white". (There may be some "ass kicking" away from the job as well). No, they're acting responsibly! They want to be financially independent, have a home and adequately provide for the family they raise!

Those graduates will be evacuating if their area is threatened by a powerful hurricane! This misfortune that happened in New Orleans was not a race thing, it was a class thing, I'm sure that it wasn't only white people who evacuated New Orleans under their own power. If people who are evacuating under their own power feel comfortable bringing someone along who would otherwise be financially unable to do so, that's fine. Just make sure you know and trust this person. The race doesn't matter. There are people of ALL races you shouldn't let in your car, even to evacuate for a powerful hurricane. You don't want some seemingly innocent-looking white female man-killer along for the ride. You don't want some regular looking white guy evacuating with you who just happens to be a sex offender. You don't want some black female riding along who's been arrested for theft more times this year than you've driven to work in a month. You don't want some black male along for the ride who can hot wire a car in 10 seconds -- you'll be stranded at the location you evacuated to with no car. It's nice to help evacuate someone out of the area -- just know who you're dealing with and race shouldn't even be a factor. I mean, who'd invite Jeffrey Dahmer or the BTK Killer to come along for the ride? Most people would try to help their next door neighbors (who just happen to be black) evacuate if they know they had a car, but it's in the shop and will definitely not be ready in time to evacuate. Help people if you can, but don't put yourself at risk trying to help someone you're not sure of.

I just read through some of the comments on this story. While I agree many of the negative comments about West's performance, I don't think the performance should have been cut, at least not without an official statement by Apple or West's people. If Apple is gonna make money off one of it's top selling CDs, it should stick by the artists who are helping them make the bucks.

I've referenced and commented on this story in my blog if anyone cares to read it: http://blackmacusers.blogspot.com/2005/09/kayne-west-booted-from-apple-video.html