Heck, Mr. Moto thinks “leftists” who throw pies at conservative speakers deserve more outrage and scorn than conservatives who shoot doctors, threaten judges, or blow up federal buildings.
That remark is unfair and uncharacteristicly intemperate. Friend Moto has an unreasonably malign view of his political opposition, this much is demonstrably true. However, to suggest that he regards murder as an acceptable expression of political will is quite beyond the pale, he is wrong, not a gibbering madman.
Pit or no, you owe him an apology. More to the point, you owe it to yourself, this sort of thing is quite beneath you.
Sorry, luci; must be the Monday getting to me.
Though I still think Mr. Moto’s thread (linked to earlier) was just a hair’s breath short of rhymes-with-polling…
Not knowing anything about Senator Schumer, I’d have started this thread in Great Debates.
But Santorum is a special case for me because he’s as a grand-standing social conservative whose reputation I know even here on the other side of the country. I alluded to some of his assinine hijinks in my original post. This particular bill just put the cherry on top.
There you go.
If you did know anything about Schumer, you’d know how ridiculous a hypothetical MM has demanded a response to.
I wasn’t aware that there were no points in Senator Schumer’s record that a person could have a disagreement with, ElvisL1ves.
Heavens, the man must be a saint walking amongst us.
So you think your Schumer suggestion is realistic? Has he done anything comparable you’d like to tell us about? Or are you referring balefully to some secrets in his life that you’re aware of but can’t be made public, perhaps similar to the things you say Clinton really did require removal from office for but somehow we don’t know about? It sure would be nice to have you either put up or shut up in either case, but frankly we can’t expect either from you, can we now?
Here’s a chance to redeem yourself, though. Stand and deliver.
Not my point, though. My point is that if a sainted Democrat were to make a policy proposal on these boards, it would generally be treated as a policy proposal. Maybe it would be a wise policy proposal, maybe it would be an unwise one, but it would be debated as such.
Whereas here this policy proposal, even if it is unwise, is treated as yet another springboard into the “Santorum is evil” swimming pool. And we have an admission from the OP that this was so.
I picked Schumer’s name out of the air. I could have chosen anyone on the Democratic side. Because, really, questions of evil and avarice are only seriously entertained on these boards against members of one political party only.
I thank Polycarp and a few others for avoiding this temptation in this thread. You others - well, enjoy the dogpile.
And please note, I’m not saying here that Santorum is right, or that the Democrats are just as bad. I’m saying that this is stupid. Whatever hatred Santorum has generated on this message board hasn’t come from his position on the Weather Service, for crying out loud.
Getting back to the topic, does this bill have support in the Senate, or is Santorum pissing into the wind? Because I’ve not seen anything indicating this bill’s chances.
What’s really ludicrous is that NPOESS (the next-generation weather satellite) is going to launch by 2008, at which point any university with $10,000 or so bucks to spend can set up an NPOESS field terminal. Now, the main plan is for anyone who wants NPOESS data to get it from NWS who will get it from NOAA/NESDIS. NESDIS built a whole new building in Suitland MD to receive and process satellite data, so they will not take this lying down. However, even if Santorum gets his way,
- The data stream will be broadcast from the satellite “in the clear” so that anyone with the right equipment can receive it.
- Commercial vendors will be selling said equipment off-the-shelf
- The algorithms will all be published by NOAA.
- Open-source software to create imagery from the data will be made freely available.
- The constellation will pass overhead 6 times a day at most latitudes (more near the poles).
Once the data records are broadcast from the satellite, anyone can use them, and nobody can deny you access to them. All it takes is one university – preferably one in Norway or Australia – deciding to put the data in an RSS feed, and the cat’s out of the bag.
So sleep soundly, and vote that assclown out of office.
I wonder if the Poor Bastard has any idea how bad he’s going to get chewed up and spit out once the Rove Machine gets going in full gear. 
Nothing, that is, but being the son of a political legend in the state and winning three statewide elections in the last few years.
Bob Casey Jr. is hardly a political unknown in Pennsylvania, which you implied in your post.