And then it came to pass that the searching hordes, hungry and thirsty for words of wisdom and knowledge, made their desperate way to the land of Twitter. Finding Kanye, they gathered around him. Seeing them, and discerning their need for guidance, he looked to them and he said-
If you ever go to a townhall hosted by Republican Florida Congressman Allen West, a word to the wise. Don't confront him while holding a Koran, because not only will West not back down, he might give you a history lesson you might not want to hear. That is what happened anyway to Nezar Hamze. Who is he, you ask? Why, he's only the executive director of CAIR.
This video is a pretty good description of my mood and attitudes lately. I used it as kind of an introductory post on my new Posterous blog. Then, all of a sudden, this blog returns from no-blogs land, as unexpectedly and mysteriously as it disappeared. And this is the second time this happened. So I figure, why not use the video here as well, to mark my third coming? I mean, not that I'm bragging, but Jesus Christ only come back from the dead once. Do I have nine lives? I hope I don't have to find out, but I definitely feel like some kind of alley cat of bloggers.
I don't know what happened, but The Pagan Temple was shut down by Blogger, a second time, this time for a period of about three days. During that time I started a bunch of other blogs, including one on Blogger, and all but one of which is also named The Pagan Temple. The one exception is a Wordpress blog I named Chapter Twelve. I was using that one originally as private blog on which to write Chapter Twelve of a horror novel I was working on at one time. It's a very long, novella length chapter in its own right.
Anyway, I'm back, but I'm taking nothing for granted anymore. There are going to be Pagan Temple blogs eventually all over the blogosphere, on every free blogging platform in existence, but they are all going to be the same. Same name, same exact posts. And really, it won't take up one second more of my time. How is this possible, you ask? Well, I've discovered a blog platform called Posterous, which you should check out. When you post to Posterous, you also post simultaneously to any other blog you set up on your Posterous account.
In other words, most if not all future posts you read on this blog (or any other of my blogs you might happen across) will have been sent here by way of Posterous.
As for why my blog disappeared, that's just the problem. I can guess, but I don't know. I was gone for awhile, removed, and then just as suddenly, I'm back. Who knows when or if it will happen again? Who cares, besides me. The point being, since I've discovered Posterous, I feel more secure. It's not likely every single blog I start will be taken down, is it?
UPDATE-Death threats against Governor Walker, and his administration, in the midst of a public outpouring of vile and hateful discourse.
Here's some of the highlights of Wisconsion Governor Scott Walker's Budget Repair Bill-
(1) Collective bargaining rights, except for salary, will be eliminated for 175,000 public employees;
(2) Any salary increase greater than inflation will have to be approved by a referendum;
(3) University of Wisconsin system employees will be denied the right to collectively bargain at all;
(4) Union dues will now be optional for state workers.
In other words, just to simplify, Wisconsin state employees are not beleaguered Egyptians being denied access to economic opportunity or any kind of hope, and despite all the crazy rhetoric, Scott Walker is not Hosni Mubarak. He's not even Hosni Lite. Granted, I wouldn't be surprised at this juncture if Iranian warships didn't end up in the Great Lakes, no doubt preparing to dock in Chicago, but Walker is simply an elected official who recognizes his state is broke. Guess what? He's going to do something about it.
And if the Green Bay Packers don't like it, well, that's just tough fucking shit, ain't it now?
Will Walker call out the National Guard in the face of threatened continued strikes? He says he will only if necessary, which it might well be. God I hope he doesn't back down. While he's at it, he should declare the fourteen Senate Democrats wanted fugitives and send somebody to track them down. I'd love to see those fuckers physically dragged into the state Senate just so they could watch in agony and frustration when the Senate Republicans vote for the bill. The next thing they should have to sit and watch is many of their House Democrat colleagues getting gerrymandered out of existence. Now that would call for some gourmet Reddenbacher.
Chicago is so far gone even the Tea Party doesn't want to step into the mess. Denying a recent report by the Huffington Post, the leaders of the movement possibly show their average ages by declaring that "Chico Is Not The Man".
In a way, that might be a sign that things haven't yet gotten so bad in the Windy City, compared to places like California and New Jersey. But they're definitely on the way, with more than a billion dollars of unfunded pension liabilities. I guess things have to completely fall apart before people get the message and demand change. And even then, there will be more than a few taking to the streets to demand the status quo.
But for now, Chicago is still living in that old New Deal style American dream world where you just do things because its the right thing to do, dammit, and everything will eventually work out because, you know, its the economics of prosperity where you give the citizens what they want, because a happy citizenry is a productive one.
Of course, eventually the bill comes due, and then-and only then-the citizenry takes to the streets, and then the parties realize they have to retool their political apparatus to accommodate the outrage, only nothing really changes. The Democrats blame the rich and demand higher taxes, while the Republicans blame the entitlements and demand spending cuts. Or, if they are in a really blue area, like Chicago, they just demand marginal spending cuts and well, a slightly lower increase in taxes. That seems to be the case with Gery Chico, and the Tea Party isn't going along.
Most of the time, the people go along with the Republicans in these cases, until they start to feel the pinch, then they vote for the Democrats. Its hard to fault the Republicans in Chicago for wanting to cut their losses at the polls, and its impossible to blame the Tea Party for not wanting to play the game. The only people you can really blame, in the long term, is the people. Well, and maybe Andrew Jackson. Let's face it, most people are pretty fucking simple minded at best, and downright stupid at worse, so when you give the masses the right to vote, and give the political parties the power to control the electoral process, you can expect nothing if not skulduggery.
So these two practitioners of the religion of peace are in a hooka lounge enjoying a bowl of apple cinnamon…
One says to the other: “Fayaz, have you ever noticed that after having sex with a Western infidel woman, your eyes burn and your nose gets scratchy, and you get all teary-eyed?”
Rafiq: “Yes, I notice that too, all the time, why? What do you think that is?”
Fayaz: “I think it must be the pepper spray.”
Lara Logan probably wouldn't appreciate the whimsy of that little joke I lifted from the comments page of Debbie Schluessels blog, but what the hell.
I don't agree with Schluessel in the sense that Logan deserved it or asked for it, and I certainly take no sadistic pleasure that it happened to her, but on the other hand, it does reinforce what I've always known. These people are fucking animals. Bottom line. They also threatened Katie Couric, and beat up Anderson Cooper of CNN. But the rape of Logan, who might have been killed but for the intervention of some Arab women and some Egyptian soldiers, was the penultimate outbreak of hatred and rage yet against a western journalist. Logan is now in a hospital recovering and for now wants privacy, understandably so.
Here is a picture of Logan
And here is a picture of Logan immediately following her rape-
Oh, I'm sorry, this was not Logan, it was a Muslim woman who was purposely mutilated after she ran away from her family when they tried to force her into a marriage. This is an act that is sanctioned by Islamic law and you can probably count the number of times such crimes against women and girls have been prosecuted by even secular authorities on the fingers of one hand. The perpetrators are never looked down upon by their societies unless it is for having a wayward daughter for whom such punishment is deemed appropriate.
I could go on and on with such examples, some from right here in America, such as the case of the man who murdered his own daughter for being too westernized, or the cable television network owner who beheaded his wife after she sued him for divorce-again, here in America, like the Somalian man who murdered his wife and children in Louisville Kentucky once she also filed for divorce because he was a brutal ass hat.
And now a western journalist, a woman, has come face to face with a brutal example of Islamic tradition. And the worse part of it for the rest of us is, her employers, CBS, and the American political establishment-Republican as well as Democrat-will try to portray this as just an example of a fringe element of Islamic society, by no means representative of a majority, or even of a large minority.
And in a sense, they might be right. But the most important part will never be addressed, but will be avoided-the fact the it is representative of the misogyny which is an inherent and integral part of an Islamic culture which at worse, outright encourages acts such as this, and at best, turns a blind eye to them.
They have to turn a blind eye, though. They, especially the women, have been browbeaten from birth into acquiescence. It's like Stockholm Syndrome. But we should know better than to swallow the line of shit we've been spoon fed for decades, including by Republicans, that Islam is a religion of peace. We've had chance after chance, been given warning on top of warning. It's time now to eschew the political correctness and say howdy to reality.
Otherwise, the cultural and societal rape that our descendants will one day endure will be ongoing and permanent. And no one is going to step in to put a stop to it.
Bush has to be drinking again, and was probably drunk at the time he said this shit. What's even worse, since he allowed himself to be videotaped, on the video below, he can't deny it now, or play it off like he was misinterpreted or like his words were taken out of context.
Get ready for it, I have an idea this is all you're going to be fucking hearing about for days, and days, and fucking days on end.
The FDA might soon classify walnuts as a drug and regulate them as such based on the claims of one website that sells them. I know it sounds like a joke, but evidently its not. They have even threatened to impose some kind of fine on Diamond Nuts, due to the claims made on their website, which the FDA claims is in violation of FDA Guidelines. Why? Because the use and benefits to which Diamond Nuts ascribes their products, especially walnuts, make them a drug.
Walnuts.org goes into detail as to the health benefits of walnuts.
This is what happens when you allow government to grow too big and give its agencies too much regulatory power. Nothing good comes out of it in the long run. The FDA is one of the first government agencies that should be totally stripped of funding, along with the EPA.
Here is a pretty good article that describes the processes that surround most revolutions, and the unfortunate aftermath of far too many of them. Consider it must reading, preferably without the rose colored glasses far too many people try to read through. Thanks to Titan Uranus for the link.
These words, spoken in the aftermath of Mubarak's resignation as President of Egypt, did not come from the Muslim Brotherhood, but from a top opposition leader.
An influential Egyptian opposition figure and likely presidential candidate called Sunday for Cairo’s peace treaty with Israel to be reassessed, the first sign since former president Hosni Mubarak’s ouster Friday that the 32-year-old agreement may be in jeopardy.
Ayman Nour, a former lawmaker and chairman of the Ghad (Tomorrow) party, told an Egyptian radio station that the 1978 Camp David Accords were no longer relevant, and said the country’s leadership should at least rethink the terms of the framework agreements that led to a peace deal between the erstwhile enemies the following year...
“The Camp David Accords are finished,” Nour said. “Egypt has to at least conduct negotiations over conditions of the agreement.”
This does not bode well for Egypt or for Israel. One must assume this is a popular attitude among the Egyptians, for a top political leader to come out with it this quickly. If he makes good on his threat, and he has widespread support amongst the Egyptians, the Israelis will have no choice but to either renegotiate or hold firm and demand fealty to the old treaty. What choice do they have? If they renegotiate they will be obliged to consider new terms that are not favorable to them by comparison. Yet, if they refuse, they will be criticized as warmongers. The end result is dependent solely on who has, or gains, power in Israel over the next few months, to couple of years.
This might lead to the first real gains among the really ultra-Orthodox parties like the Kahanists, in the face of what might be seen as mounting and unreasonable pressure and aggressive rhetoric. And it will probably be only a matter of time now before there is another Intifada among the Palestinians, particularly if Hamas sees such a provocation as the only way to keep their people from giving them the same treatment the Egyptians gave to Mubarak. It's the old scapegoat the Jews strategy, an unfortunately time-tested and proven strategy that has proven effective from Spain, to Russia, to Germany, and beyond. What's worse, it might spread beyond the Hamas areas of influence to include the West Bank and Eastern Jerusalem. The Baca Valley of Southern Lebanon and the Golan Heights might similarly erupt as well. All of Israel's surrounding nations, not only Syria and Lebanon, but even Jordan and Saudi Arabia, all nations which have experienced their own threats to peace and public order and security, might experience their own upheavals. What better way to get their people off their backs than to encourage yet another round of Israel bashing. The Israelis have a perfectly reasonable right to be concerned, because this time, it might go farther than the leaders of these countries might intend and possibly herald a conflagration which no reasonable person, especially a national leader, wants to be involved with.
And it does bear asking-WWOD? It's a good thing for him he has a teleprompter. If the last couple of weeks is any guide, he's going to be far too busy wringing his hands to be able to read any scribbled notes on his palms.
I never read the novel, and I'm not a Libertarian, but there's no denying the impact of this book or it's author, Ayn Rand. As I understand it, the premise of the book is one in which all the productive members of society, or at least a substantial percentage of them, including captains of industry and skilled professionals, go on strike in protest against government regulations and high taxes. The original, working novel of the novel was, in fact, The Strike.
Now, somebody has finally made a movie out of it (I think for the first time), and in this day and age of the Tea Party, its going to be interesting to see what kind of impact it has. The trailer certainly looks compelling, and I'm sure it's going to be widely discussed over the weeks ahead until its release, and after. Will it have any impact on American political society and culture? We'll have to wait and see, but this seems to be the perfect time for it.
If it is true to the original novel, don't be surprised if it doesn't equal Mel Gibson's The Passion Of The Christ in terms of impact and influence. If I'm right this will be a much bigger deal than the typical big, hyped movies of late, such as Inception. Look for invitations from civic groups to view the movie for free, much like churches across the country screened Gibson's movie.
If it encourages critical thought and discussion throughout the country among those who ordinarily don't think past the days headlines and editorials, it will provide a valuable service.
I guess I should point out, this video is a joke, and I mean that in a good way. It's actually kind of a mean joke to pull on people, but oh well, what the hell.
Herman Cain is probably among the least known of the Republicans seemingly making plans for a run for the Republican presidential nomination in 2012. Some might know him simply as a conservative talk radio personality, or as the former CEO of Godfather's Pizza. He has an impressive conservative pedigree, however, being arguably the most significant player in the move to derail the Clinton Health Care proposal in the mid-nineties known colloquially as HillaryCare.
Watch the video, well worth the time at twenty eight minutes and forty six seconds, and you will see why so many Republican activists among the GOP base are so taken by him.
The following video reports a natural gas explosion that happened in Allentown Pennsylvania, last night being the latest in a string of such events that have happened, such as in Philadelphia just last month, as well as San Bruno, California where an entire neighborhood was destroyed. Yet this is what some proponents of alternative energy sources are urging us to use for to account for much of our energy needs. In fact, this kind of thing has been happening with increased frequency.
Natural gas is dangerously unstable, and it is worth noting that, in the case of the explosion in Allentown, a routine check of the lines in the neighborhood in just the previous week had revealed no leaks, or any other problems.
Bear in mind, we are not only going to be using more and more of this stuff in our business and residential neighborhoods, we might also be driving with it in our cars in place of gasoline.
I understand that there will probably come a time when we might not have much choice, but frankly, I'd prefer to drive a car powered by neutrons. I say that in all seriousness.
By the way, there was also a recent explosion of a gas line in Israel, the result of a terrorist act in the face of the recent unrest in Egypt, from where the line originated. Although its not quite as dramatic as the video below, the video of the terrorist act offers grim evidence of the dangers involved.
Yeah, this is the part where I say "Drill, Baby, Drill".
I don't think anybody can blame Obama or the federal government for seeming to come down a tad hard on Toyota when it looked like an electronics problem might have been causing sudden "acceleration syndrome", especially when it looked like it had cost lives, and continued to endanger others. It certainly didn't help that the company seemed to be in denial of its problems and obvious culpability.
Only it turns out they were not so culpable after all, and the problems with the giant auto-maker were not quite what they seemed to be at the time. In fact, a government report exonerated Toyota. The problem, when there really was one at all as opposed to mere driver error, was a problem with the floor mats.
This is according to a government report, mind you, but one which was not released until a few days ago, even though it has been available for months. Since, in fact, well before the election. It's almost as if the administration wanted to use this as a political issue, huh? Or it could be they were simply trying to engage in the tried and true tactic of destroy the competition, the point being the government is now part-owner of Toyota competitors GM and Chrysler. While this is a valid argument, I think it pales in significance to the fact that an even bigger owner, especially of GM, is the UAW, a staunch supporter and contributor to the Democratic Party.
But hey, its almost a relief that the Democrats might spend some of their time trying to wreck something besides the Constitution. But its also scary to contemplate whether or not this report would have ever seen the light of day if the Democrats had won the election.
