Here’s your brain. Here’s your brain on celebrity.
Researchers are using functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging, or fMRIs, to probe the recesses of the brain and pinpoint structures linked to the whole range of human emotions and functions, from lust to anger to the craving for food or drugs.
Researchers at Columbia, for example, found that exposure to media violence shrinks activity in those parts of the brain that regulate personal aggressive behavior. Marketers are beginning to use fMRI technology to determine how consumers make buying decisions and how those choices might be manipulated.
So I’m curious: What would cognitive scientists find if they studied the brains of, say, Richard and Mayumi Heene, the parents of six-year-old Falcon? What parts of the brain light up when you conceive the crazy idea of casting your child in a hoax designed to satisfy your craving for fame and celebrity? Does that craving for fame mirror the craving for nicotine, cocaine and other addictive substances? (The Heenes’ behavior does seem to echo that of drug addicts desperate for another fix.)
What changes occurred in the brain of, say, Samuel Joseph Wurzelbacher, after an accidental encounter with candidate Barack Obama transformed him from a nobody plumber into Joe the Plumber, Media Star? Does that Warholian 15 minutes of fame permanently alter the structure of the brain? What makes reclusive authors such as Thomas Pynchon, J.D. Salinger and Harper Lee immune to its siren call, while Jon and Kate Gosselin chase it like crack whores?
So scientists, here’s a whole new field of inquiry for you — the neurobiology of fame. What a contribution that would be, helping to illuminate one of the central mysteries of the human condition here in the 21st century. And imagine the face time you’ll get on Entertainment Tonight and Good Morning America!
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181 comments Add your comment
Bob from Dahlonega
October 19th, 2009
8:34 am
Richard Henne is a true American hero. He manipulated the media like you libs do, only he taught everyone a lesson.
stands for decibels
October 19th, 2009
8:39 am
Jay, did you really mean to use the term “crack wh0res?”
Paul
October 19th, 2009
8:46 am
[[What would cognitive scientists find if they studied the brains of, say, Richard and Mayumi Heene, the parents of six-year-old Falcon?]]
Well, first the scientists would have to find it…
[[Researchers at Columbia, for example, found that exposure to media violence shrinks activity in those parts of the brain that regulate personal aggressive behavior.]]
I seem to recall one of my earliest discussions here was with people who dismissed the idea that exposure to outside stimuli such as violent or degrading images or sound could in any way affect behavior as people ‘know’ it’s not real.
Apparently not.
In other words, environment matters. And on a political level, so does the choices one makes.
But now marketers want to attempt to manipulate us further. Great….
And as far as how different people respond to different situations: welcome to the wonderful variability of the human race.
Some people try to be decent. Some don’t.
TnGelding
October 19th, 2009
8:48 am
I’m proud to say I didn’t even know the guy’s name.
In the case of Joe the Plumber’s Apprentice, I think he just went along with those that pursued him to make their political statements.
I guess there’s that yearning for fame in a lot of us, but in the past it was in recognition for something truly exceptional.
Lisa Thomason
October 19th, 2009
8:50 am
I just sent an email to Sheriff Alderden, pointing out that in the case of poor families, holding a child prisoner in a box for hours would no doubt be “enough” to launch a child protection services investigation. If anyone else would like to write him, here’s the link: http://www.co.larimer.co.us/common/mailform.cfm?to=alderdja
#1 Foxy Lady
October 19th, 2009
8:50 am
That Balloon Boy prank was a the best. He had all ya’ll watching. It was nearly as good as the OJ chase. Ya’ll are suckers for beliefing it.
And Thomas Pychon was a crack whore. I use to get high with hi and JD Salinger while we was doing orgies and reciting from the footnotes in Gravity’s Rain Bowe.
Scooter
October 19th, 2009
8:51 am
Henne will be famous with Bubba in that jail cell! Ouch!
USinUK
October 19th, 2009
8:54 am
good gravy, they’d have a heyday with some of the numpties we have in the UK – while we don’t have idiots like Jon and Kate (plus their godforsaken offspring), we do have the show Big Brother which has gone on for too flippin many years and spawned “Celebrity Big Brother” (full of used-ta-bees), “I’m a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here” (full of never-really-wases), and a host of weekly tabloid magazines that celebrates Page 3 girls and the WAG* “lifestyle” (if you can call shopping and bar-hopping in the hopes of getting snapped by the paps a lifestyle)
*WAG = wives and girlfriends of footballers … of which Posh Becks is the reigning queen
I echo Paul’s sentiment … I think the MIR machine would be hard-pressed to find anything other than a functioning brain stem that keeps them breathing …
Mrs. Godzilla
October 19th, 2009
8:55 am
Richard and Mayumi plus 8 to 10? With time off for good behavior…
USinUK
October 19th, 2009
8:58 am
Mrs G –
“With time off for good behavior…”
would good behavior = not going on YouTube, reality shows or doing interviews???
jconservative
October 19th, 2009
8:59 am
A lot of folks watch too much TV.
It is easy to make a conscious effort not to be influenced by behaviorist.
Taxpayer
October 19th, 2009
9:02 am
For some folks, I suspect that the thrill comes in the form of the positive — as in, monetary — feedback.
david wayne osedach
October 19th, 2009
9:03 am
Richard Heene and his wife are true American scammers. And not too bright ones at that. Before this is over they will have to pay restitution for the rescue effort and spend time in jail.
Donovan
October 19th, 2009
9:05 am
Bookman needs to get out of bed with Tucker. They both are writing the same stuff. Hmmm…what would a liberal’s mind look like on an MRI? Most probably, it would be blank.
Mrs. Godzilla
October 19th, 2009
9:14 am
it is being reported that a media outlet may have been involved…..
Redneck Convert (R--and proud of it)
October 19th, 2009
9:16 am
Well, I reckon the stunt of the Heenes ain’t quite as good as the one pulled by the guy in LA ten years ago where he hooked alot of balloons to his lawn chair and found hisself up there with the air traffic at the LA airport. That guy won some kind of genius award named after some guy by the name of Darwin.
Anyhow, a few years in the slammer will take care of the Heenes for awhile. They should of knowed better than to trust a kid to keep a secret. He blurted right out that he done it for the “show.” See, kids got a defect. They ain’t learned how to lie good yet the way us grownups do.
I sure wish Bookman had of carryed this brain thing further. Like what part of the brain leads a bunch of idiots to trust a man born in Kenya to lead them? And what part of USinUK’s brain gets her hung up on the word numpties like a busted record. Has she been over there so long she’s forgot how to speak American?
Have a good day everybody.
Joan
October 19th, 2009
9:18 am
I wouldn’t doubt at all that this fellow had lined up some media outlet in advance of pulling this stunt. As far as his paying restitution–give me a break. He will just plead poor. People who do idiot stuff, and most reality shows (same thing) should simply be ignored and we might return to a bit of sanity.
Brad Steel
October 19th, 2009
9:18 am
The Henne’s definitely have Palin Syndrome. You win the “interview” competition in Miss Alaska, and you feel you are entitled and qualified to be a statesman.
Solipsistic losers.
Bosch
October 19th, 2009
9:20 am
Hey! I saw pictures of our wingnut buddies protesting outside the AJC this weekend! Good job nuts!
As for celebrities? To be honest, it’s the media that makes these people celebrities. They tell us they are famous, so they are famous. I totally missed the balloon boy saga on Thursday, thank the Force.
As for these Gosslin crack whores, and this Octomom nightmare, someone needs to step in and tell these freaks to get their lives together or their children will be living in different homes.
USinUK
October 19th, 2009
9:20 am
“As far as his paying restitution–give me a break. He will just plead poor”
that gets you nowhere these days … they’ll still come after you.
Mrs. Godzilla
October 19th, 2009
9:20 am
solipsistic…..great word Brad…..thanks
Nothing Is Free
October 19th, 2009
9:21 am
I guess we are all just nobodies
We all can’t be really important people like you, Jay.
USinUK
October 19th, 2009
9:21 am
“Hey! I saw pictures of our wingnut buddies protesting outside the AJC this weekend! Good job nuts!”
??? as much as it pains me to ask … what happened??
Gale
October 19th, 2009
9:27 am
The picture took me to the recent episode of “Dollhouse”. Brain mapping is critical to the plot, for anyone who has not seen the show. In the episode, they are “helping” an accident victem and discover that he is a psychopath; the areas of his brain that govern empathy, for example, are completely unused.
#1 Foxy Lady
October 19th, 2009
9:27 am
What’s the big deal? It was a world-class prank at the expense of the sinsation-seeking media. He got ya’ll. And he used no more police than a typical Saturday in da hood.
Paul
October 19th, 2009
9:29 am
Off Topic
[[Federal drug agents won't pursue pot-smoking patients or their sanctioned suppliers in states that allow medical marijuana, under new legal guidelines to be issued Monday by the Obama administration.
Two Justice Department officials described the new policy to The Associated Press, saying prosecutors will be told it is not a good use of their time to arrest people who use or provide medical marijuana in strict compliance with state law.]]
But AG Holder (and the President agrees) he has ‘no choice’ but to strictly follow the law and see if there ‘might’ be a violation in the case of the CIA personnel cleared a year before -
USinUK
October 19th, 2009
9:30 am
“the areas of his brain that govern empathy, for example, are completely unused”
must … not … insert … Cheney … joke … must … refrain …
Gale
October 19th, 2009
9:31 am
Good point, USinUK. Maybe brain mapping should be required for candidates for important offices?
Bosch
October 19th, 2009
9:32 am
USinUK,
I have no idea – there was a photo gallery of the big bad protesters outside CNN and the AJC – all 200 of them.
I Report :-) You Whine :-( Am I A Racist Too, NFL?
October 19th, 2009
9:33 am
I’d like to know what causes people to be liberals.
ewww.
Bosch
October 19th, 2009
9:34 am
AND WOW!! How about that Falcons game! I was excited, don’t know if anybody else was.
Taxpayer
October 19th, 2009
9:34 am
I’m just thankful that the whiners are in the minority.
Paul
October 19th, 2009
9:35 am
USinUK
You mean like the parts of his brain that compelled him to donate 75% of his income to charity one year?
(insert VP Gore comparison here… $200?)
USinUK
October 19th, 2009
9:36 am
“I’d like to know what causes people to be liberals”
an education + empathy
Brad Steel
October 19th, 2009
9:36 am
You’re welcome Mrs. G’. And thank you for all your posts. You are one of the few whose post effectively use and stick to the essence of wit: brevity.
The blowhards lamely drivel for ever trying to support a weak idea. They don’t have the wit or intelligence for brevity.
Paul
October 19th, 2009
9:36 am
Hi Bosch
I was excited V starts in 15 days –
And I was excited over a real football game: Texas vs OU.
And the better team won.
USinUK
October 19th, 2009
9:39 am
Paul –
“You mean like the parts of his brain that compelled him to donate 75% of his income to charity one year?”
hahahaha … so donating to charity automatically makes you a good person??? for some people, that’s just atonement (or a need for a tax break) … so, no … I don’t think so.
no, I mean the parts of his brain that have no problem lying us into a war (and continuing to repeat the lie despite it being debunked) and causing the death of thousands of Americans as well as tens of thousands of Iraqis … then, advocating a “wash-rinse-repeat” strategy on Iran …
Mrs. Godzilla
October 19th, 2009
9:40 am
Cheney’s shady charitable contributions net $2 million refund
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2006/4/18/115445/192
Taxpayer
October 19th, 2009
9:44 am
Mrs. Godzilla
October 19th, 2009
9:40 am
Thanks, Mrs. G. I was about to post that one myself.
USinUK
October 19th, 2009
9:44 am
Bosch –
your man-u news of the day
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/leagues/premierleague/manutd/6372948/Manchester-Uniteds-Sir-Alex-Ferguson-charged-by-FA-over-referee-attack.html
Paul
October 19th, 2009
9:44 am
USinUK
LOL! I had a comment “a response will have to do with atonement” put aside.
What part of the brain automatically discredits good things done by a conservative?
What lie did VP Cheney keep repeating? (OMG, I hope it’s not “Iraq was involved in 9-11. Tell me it isn’t so…).
As far as Iran: it’s our SecState who threatened to obliterate Iran…. and our President who implied the same…. and as far as a real meatgrinder that’s not speculation, we have the Pres and Afghanistan. Here’s what Sen Byrd had to say:
“Senator Robert Byrd, at 91 a Democratic institution, was so incensed that he dragged himself from his hospital bed last week to make a 13-minute speech. “Does it really take 100,000 troops to find Osama Bin Laden?” he wondered. “And how much will this cost? How much in terms of more dollars? How much in terms of American blood?”
Hey! I just did, what, four diversions and two “well what about is?” lines.
Does that get me my “Argue like a lalaLeftie certification?”
Nothing Is Free
October 19th, 2009
9:48 am
Gale
**Good point, USinUK. Maybe brain mapping should be required for candidates for important offices?**
Why would you want Washington to be a ghost town?
Paul
October 19th, 2009
9:48 am
Mrs. Godzilla
Sigh.
Charitable deductions are, to a certain extent, tax deductible.
But it cost the person out of pocket the amount above the deductible savings.
Sigh…..
Or is DailyKos now taking the position people shouldn’t avail themselves of the law?
Sighhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
Back to Gore’s example….
Paul
October 19th, 2009
9:49 am
Mrs. Godzilla
Oh, and a question, not about what you posted from another source, but something you wrote:
Why is a legal transaction, recognized and sanctioned by the IRS, following the law
shady?
USinUK
October 19th, 2009
9:49 am
Paul –
“What part of the brain automatically discredits good things done by a conservative?”
it depends on the conservative.
and as far as atonement, I was raised Catholic – it’s hardwired.
“(OMG, I hope it’s not “Iraq was involved in 9-11. Tell me it isn’t so…)”
well, there were so many lies, but, yes, that is the most egregious.
“Does that get me my “Argue like a lalaLeftie certification?””
no, but it does get a recommendation for decaf.
Nothing Is Free
October 19th, 2009
9:50 am
USinUK
**an education + empathy**
And an amazing tendency to strap on presidential knee pads.
Bosch
October 19th, 2009
9:52 am
Paul,
A REAL football game? Pshaw.
Speaking of real football:
USinUK,
Tell your neighbor congrats on Sunderland’s victory over Liverpool.
Paul
October 19th, 2009
9:52 am
USinUK
[[and as far as atonement, I was raised Catholic – it’s hardwired.]]
LOL!
And for the nonCatholics… our Puritan guilt heritage runs deep!
Seriously, what items some held as more likely than not that have since been discredited has VP Cheney continued to assert?
USinUK
October 19th, 2009
9:52 am
NiF –
“Why would you want Washington to be a ghost town?”
why are you limiting it to just DC??? heck, I would like to see brain mapping on the suburban Mussolinis who are on their neighborhood planning committees (you know the ones – they have a fit if you plant the wrong flowers in your front garden or build a treehouse in your back yard for your kid)
Nothing Is Free
October 19th, 2009
9:52 am
USinUK
**no, I mean the parts of his brain that have no problem lying us into a war **
All those educated Democrats that voted to go to war were just dumb suckers?
Cheney MUST be smarter than all of them, wouldn’t you say?
Paul
October 19th, 2009
9:54 am
Bosch
I was using “football” in the majority American sense, not the majority World sense -
Mrs. Godzilla
October 19th, 2009
9:54 am
Paul
I posted it with no comment.
It’s simply interesting reading.
USinUK
October 19th, 2009
9:56 am
Bosch –
he was so happy, he was levitating …
NiF –
“And an amazing tendency to strap on presidential knee pads”
I think you’re confusing us with Bush Apologists (which is really more of an ability to bend and twist and stretch to find excuses for bad leadership)
Paul –
“And for the nonCatholics… our Puritan guilt heritage runs deep!”
yeah, but you guys have that whole “not by works are you saved” thing going on … Catholics believe in works, lighting candles, making donations and then … maaaayyyyybe … if St. Peter’s in a good mood, you MIGHT get through the pearly gates …
(if, however, you had a ham sammich on a lenten Friday, you are sooooo stuffed)
Paul
October 19th, 2009
9:56 am
Bosch
A lead-in from Mrs. Godzilla’s ’shady’ tax dealings post:
Didja hear?
Rangel’s a crook!
Marsh
October 19th, 2009
9:56 am
NIF,
Good morning to you. Slept in, huh? How’s about reading my 8:41 am on the last topic.
USinUK
October 19th, 2009
9:57 am
NiF –
“All those educated Democrats that voted to go to war were just dumb suckers?”
incomplete pre-war intelligence /= dumb suckers
Nothing Is Free
October 19th, 2009
9:58 am
Paul
Gore donates $200, after he had once again made a fool out of every lib that believed his global warming BS. They have had to once again, change the name of it all to save face, and yet they still defend them.
How do all these empathetic and educated liberals become such pushovers for these criminals that they elect? Are they just so pig headed that they just don’y have the ability to realize what suckers they have been?
Man this global warming, er global cooling, er, global warming, er, global cooling . . . climate change is chilly this morning.
Bosch
October 19th, 2009
9:58 am
USinUK,
Thanks for the link – Sir Alex….what a hoot.
Paul
October 19th, 2009
9:59 am
Mrs. Godzilla
I missed the “Shady” in the headline. It wasn’t in the body of the article.
Typical DailyKos –
Apologies.
USinUK
“yeah, but you guys have that whole “not by works are you saved” thing going on …”
A bit of an overgeneralization when it comes to nonCatholic Christians.
Ham sandwich not good?!!? Honoring Christendom’s Jewish roots, eh?
Nothing Is Free
October 19th, 2009
9:59 am
USinUK
**I think you’re confusing us with Bush Apologists**
Now that’s funny. LOL!!! Have you read this forum at all over the past nine months?
USinUK
October 19th, 2009
9:59 am
Bosch –
http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2009/oct/19/beach-ball-referee-demoted-sunderland-liverpool
geezloueeeez, I didn’t realize that this happened in the game!
Mrs. Godzilla
October 19th, 2009
10:00 am
USinUK
shouldn’t “”incomplete pre-war intelligence”" actually be
manufactured and manipulated?
danjonglee
October 19th, 2009
10:00 am
Join the cause…..
“Obama senior adviser David Axelrod went further by calling on media outlets to join the administration in declaring that Fox is “not a news organization.”
Fight the anti revolutionaries…..
Paul
October 19th, 2009
10:02 am
Nothing is Free
[[They have had to once again, change the name of it all to save face, and yet they still defend them. ]]
Heresy! It’s only the evil Republicans who employ manipulators like Frank Luntz who change words to resonate with the electorate.
Wait… that change was attributed to Luntz… and Democrats adopted it….
Nevermind.
USinUK
October 19th, 2009
10:02 am
NiF –
“Now that’s funny. LOL!!! Have you read this forum at all over the past nine months?”
yes. I have read the people (like me) who are ticked about DADT, I have read Normal’s daily “bring the troops home”, I have read a number of us who have criticized the president.
I’ve read a helluva lot more Democratic criticism of Obama in the past 8 months than I EVER heard from a Republican about Bush in all of his 8 years.
Nothing Is Free
October 19th, 2009
10:04 am
Marsh
**Good morning to you. Slept in, huh? How’s about reading my 8:41 am on the last topic.**
I just got to the office. I slept in until my usual 6 AM.
So you want a link to prove that you don’t need to be afraid anymore? I don’t think that there is such a link. Therapy might help.
USinUK
October 19th, 2009
10:04 am
Mrs G –
“shouldn’t “”incomplete pre-war intelligence”” actually be
manufactured and manipulated?”
well, the yellowcake story was definitely manufactured, but the cherry-picked intel presented to Congress is what I was referring to …
USinUK
October 19th, 2009
10:04 am
” I slept in until my usual 6 AM”
slacker
Paul
October 19th, 2009
10:05 am
danjonglee
[[“Obama senior adviser David Axelrod went further by calling on media outlets to join the administration in declaring that Fox is “not a news organization.”]]
Is President Obama old enough to be a reincarnated President Nixon?
USinUK
October 19th, 2009
10:06 am
Paul –
“A bit of an overgeneralization when it comes to nonCatholic Christians.”
I went to a SoBap elementary school for 5 years … that was drum-drum-DRUMMED into my head (along with weekly altar calls at chapel)
Marsh
October 19th, 2009
10:07 am
NIF @ 10:04,
Touchy, ain’t ya? You’re too intelligent to have misunderstood. Ha!
NIF @ 10:49 pm on 10/18/09,
>liberals have participated on a vast amount more violence than conservatives.<
Nothing Is Free
October 19th, 2009
10:07 am
USinUK
**I’ve read a helluva lot more Democratic criticism of Obama in the past 8 months than I EVER heard from a Republican about Bush in all of his 8 years.**
Well duh? That’s because you have made a huge mistake. He is the empty suit that we all said that he would be. If Bush would have destroyed the economy and broke almost every campaign promise he had made in the first nine months, we would have been complaining, too. ,
Paul
October 19th, 2009
10:08 am
USinUK
[[I’ve read a helluva lot more Democratic criticism of Obama in the past 8 months than I EVER heard from a Republican about Bush in all of his 8 years.]]
An excellent point.
And the crumbling support from Independents… criticism by Democrats… 43% who say they’d vote for him…
well, it’s a long time to 2012 -
Fly-On-The-Wall
October 19th, 2009
10:08 am
Did someone hijack Paul? This doesn’t sound like the Paul I’m use to reading.
Paul
October 19th, 2009
10:10 am
USinUk
Well, Baptists do like to emphasize that. A lot.
But if it works for them, that’s fine, too.
stands for decibels
October 19th, 2009
10:10 am
Is President Obama old enough to be a reincarnated President Nixon?
Given that both were but 47 when first seeking the Presidency, sure, why not.
Nothing Is Free
October 19th, 2009
10:12 am
Marsh
So I need to spend the morning listing the riots that liberals participated in for the past eight years? If you didn’t watch the RNC convention in New York in 08, I can’t help you.
And where are your links proving that you need to be scared of Republicans? AmVet listed 7 instances over the past 16 years where conservatives (very little proof that they were even conservatives) killed people. As I told him, considering the number of murders that happen daily in this country, that’s a pretty small number.
Kamchak
October 19th, 2009
10:12 am
Bosch
Combining two topics of discussion today
USinUK
October 19th, 2009
10:12 am
NiF –
“Well duh? That’s because you have made a huge mistake.”
no – just wish he could do everything at once: DADT, the healthcare bill, Iraq, Guantanamo, etc … (not to mention fix the economy).
“He is the empty suit that we all said that he would be.”
your version of an “empty suit” still has more substance and character than the previous tenant.
“If Bush would have destroyed the economy and broke almost every campaign promise he had made in the first nine months, we would have been complaining, too.”
first of all, Bush didn’t break the economy personally, but he sure didn’t do much to help it. secondly, you may want to take a second look – the economy is recovering quite nicely, thanks to the measures you guys have fought tooth and nail.
Paul
October 19th, 2009
10:12 am
Fly on the wall
Yeah, it’s me.
I’m in one of ‘those’ moods this morning. But I’m trying very much to keep it kinda light and respectful.
If it’s ever not that way (as with the other blogger who occasionally signs “Paul”) then it’s probably not me.
PS – some of these cracks go back a lonnnng time with some of the others. Kinda strollin’ down memory lane this morning.
(and USinUK DID have a point – time for decaf!).
Gale
October 19th, 2009
10:14 am
Speaking of religious sects, I wonder if there is any difference in functional brain mapping -empathy-wise- for different religious types? The ones that are “true believers” I mean; not the folks that attend services on habit or for social interaction. And then, is there a difference when we get to the “fundies” of any religion? What does that brain look like for the suicide bomber (prior to explosion) and does it compare to the abortion clinic killer?
Paul
October 19th, 2009
10:15 am
Clarification: the Nixon-Obama crack has to do with enemies’ lists, paybacks, going after those in the media who question you.
Historically, it may make the Administration feel good, but it’s not a very good idea when it comes to results.
Taxpayer
October 19th, 2009
10:15 am
So, in other words, Dick took advantage of a law, intended to give folks that lost out due to Katrina, to give money to charities that had nothing whatsoever to do with Katrina in order to cash in on Halliburton stock, a company that he should have had no financial ties with, and claim millions in tax cuts that he otherwise would not have received. Further, he only gave out of the kindness of his heart this one time when the law was there to conveniently make it less painful to be charitable. Now, there’s more of that charitable giving as long as there’s a tax advantage associated with it that the GOP is so famous for. hehehe
Gale
October 19th, 2009
10:15 am
You know, following that thought about brain mapping, I wonder what we would see in Gitmo detainees? Are they innocent and just got swept up or are they true militants? Would brain mapping show it?
Nothing Is Free
October 19th, 2009
10:16 am
USinUK
**Slacker*
I lied. I watched the Falcons last night so I slept in to almost 7.
I need to get to work. Big week.
Have a good day, All.
Paul
October 19th, 2009
10:17 am
NiF
““He is the empty suit that we all said that he would be.””
I think the problem many people have is Pres Obama is doing pretty much what he said he’d do.
I think some of his supporters seriously misread some of what he said.
As did some of his detractors.
And both have difficulty accepting campaign statements vs reality as President.
USinUK
October 19th, 2009
10:19 am
you, too, NiF
Paul
October 19th, 2009
10:20 am
Taxpayer
Just another example of an area where Democrats like to complain to score political points, but when it comes to writing legislation to ‘fix’ it
they don’t do anything.
Like with CIA identity disclosure, rendition, wiretaps, etc etc etc etc.
Marsh
October 19th, 2009
10:21 am
NIF @ 10:12,
You said, >liberals have participated on a vast amount more violence than conservatives.< I merely asked for a link.
I never said I was skeered of Republicans.
Kamchak
October 19th, 2009
10:22 am
Man this global warming, er global cooling, er, global warming, er, global cooling . . . climate change is chilly this morning
Perhaps you should be in Denver CO. High today 76.
Bosch
October 19th, 2009
10:26 am
Kamchak,
Yeah, I’ve seen that t-shirt before. In fact, I think my daughter has one.
USinUK,
I did not actually see the Liverpool/Sunderland game Saturday – I just noticed the score. That ref should be fired.
Bosch
October 19th, 2009
10:27 am
So did any of you wingnuts participate in the riots this past weekend outside the AJC and CNN?
Taxpayer
October 19th, 2009
10:27 am
Paul
October 19th, 2009
10:20 am
Taxpayer
Just another example of an area where Democrats like to complain to score political points, but when it comes to writing legislation to ‘fix’ it
they don’t do anything.
Like with CIA identity disclosure, rendition, wiretaps, etc etc etc etc.
So much to do and so little time to do it. As I recall, when Obama mentioned charitable tax deductions as one area to target in order to raise tax revenues, it was the Republicans raising the stink. After all, what would a charitable contribution be without its tax deduction — charity!
Bosch
October 19th, 2009
10:27 am
Going back to these balloon freaks, have they been arrested yet?
USinUK
October 19th, 2009
10:28 am
Kam –
how funny – my sister’s flight back to Atlanta was delayed last weekend because of snow in Denver …
Taxpayer
October 19th, 2009
10:29 am
I’m glad those publicity hounds did not actually put the boy in that balloon. At least they are not that far gone.
Paul
October 19th, 2009
10:29 am
Back to Jay’s thread…
Question: why do I hear people say these ‘celebrities’ should be ignored, yet when magazines put them on the cover sales go up? Or ‘reality’ shows have such a following?
Is it because the mass of people aren’t commenting, or are not admitting their true feelings? Or maybe because watching some peoples’ train wreck of a life makes them feel better in these lousy times?
Paul
October 19th, 2009
10:32 am
Taxpayer
Just a theme I’ve followed for years. I get real, real suspicious and tired when complainers who have the power to fix something, don’t.
I don’t doubt for a minute you are correct regarding Pres Obama’s charitable deduction proposal. But the fact of the matter is, if Democrats wanted to pass changes, they could. They can. With anything.
But they don’t.
And I don’t think I’m the only one who’s frustrated.
Bosch
October 19th, 2009
10:32 am
Paul,
Yeah, maybe watching someone else’s train wreck of a life makes them feel better about their own train wreck? Ha! Your’s is sooo much worse than mine!
How’s Mrs. Paul? Home yet?
Paul
October 19th, 2009
10:36 am
Bosch
You are so right about mine! LOL!
She’s back and recovering, thank you. Suspected lesion on spine turned out not to be (problematic for cancer survivors, if it was). Pancreas produced stones which blocked a tube and caused pancreas and liver problem. Operation appears successful.
She’s still not into really spicy food, though. When she is I’ll know the healing’s complete!
Thanks.