On America

Today is July 4th, the day the declaration of Independence was signed way way back in 1776. Because of this, it is often held to be the "birthday" of the United States of America. Of course the revolutionary war had been going on for roughly a year by this point, and the declaration itself was written on the 2nd, and the original government charter for the United States quickly became obsolete, so really I guess you could even say the nation wasn't born until the constitution was written many years later.

But really, I digress.

What is it to be American then?

Given the nature of our nation's birth, it is directly within our right to question authority. Given the nature of our nation's democratic elections, it is directly within our right to hold our elected officials accountable.

But there is a line, and I think we all know it.

It is most often crossed by those who are they themselves losing an argument, simply wishing to carry everyone down with them. Once this line is crossed, they cannot win. It is a simple matter of fact. Frankly it just sullies the entire system of argumentation and debate. It makes the actual idea of democracy seem unwanted, unfeasible, or even unnecessary.

The line is absurd comparisons. Most often it takes the form of Hitler comparisons, but really it could any force seemingly radical. And both sides (left and right wing nuts) are incredibly guilty of it.

Let me put it this way. Hitler was a human being (shocking, I know), and he ran a functioning government body (horrible, but functioning). Naturally, perhaps by mistake, his government and he were bound to do things right once in a while, naturally he might have had some human tendencies, being a human.

It is known he tried getting into art school as a painter. Does this make painters evil? Is the medium of painting forever tarnished by his youthful dream of becoming a painter?

That's really just one example, and it would really be a painstaking chore to try and redeem him anymore. Frankly, I don't think it should be done, but I was just trying to make a point.

You compare someone or something to Hitler and/or the Nazis, and you lose the argument. It shows you've lost respect for the argument itself.

Let's try it a different way, shall I?

George Washington was a butcher who was responsible for the deaths of many many lives, and was potentially a self-hating racist because a lot of them were British (Washington himself being of some sort of WASP heritage, as most of the founders were).

Of course all of these were during the course of war, both the Revolutionary and the French and Indian War. Facts can lie sometimes. They love to lie when you take them out of context.

The shocking thing is no one seems to bat an eye when this happens.

Being loud doesn't make your point right, and maybe if you listen to the other side you'll learn something. Insularity breeds ignorance.

Maybe we should compare our president to Hannah Montana.

I dunno, just spit-balling. Maybe it's less apt because Hannah Montana (despite her name) has never been involved with any sort of governing bodies.

-- Knuttel

The final moments of Uraguay v Ghana according to Knuttel

dude handballed it, and he was all "not in my house" and then the ref was all like, damn straight, not in my house, and he redcarded his ass. then the ghana dude came in for the pk and was all like "AFRIIIIICCAAAAA" but he kicked it too hard so the goalie was all like, "yessuah".

then it went to pk's and they both made the first two, then uraguay makes it and ghana misses, and uraguay's all like "hell yeah", then the next chump for uraguay misses it, and ghana's like, "haha, shit yeah, motherfucker." but then the dude kicks it straight at the goalie and the goalie's all like, "ill be taking that" so then the fifth uraguay dude comes up and he's all amped up to take the PK, and he charges the shit out of the ball, and ghana's goalie is all like "oh shit, what the hell is this motherfucker doing" and then uraguay's dude just chips it past the goalie as he's leaping across the line, and he's just standing there, cool as a cucumber

-- from an interwebs conversation, trying to put into words exactly how nuts it was.

-- Knuttel

The Greatest Scientific Discovery Known To Man

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science_and_environment/10461066.stm

Shit yeah

The largest whale has been discovered (at least so far as we know).

It is huge.

It is a toothed whale with more in common with the badass Orcas and Sperm Whales than the huge Blue Whales.

It is bigger than Megaladon, the largest Shark known.

Leviathan Melvillei and Megaladon were contemporaries.

I'm just gonna let this all sink in, and maybe read Moby Dick again.



epic song for an epic find

-- Knuttel