This appears to be the week in which we ask politicians what they think of vaccines.
Just think about that a minute: We’re asking politicians what they think of vaccines. Was Dwight Eisenhower asked to weigh in on the polio vaccine? I bet not. I bet it was a more sensible world in which great medical advances were celebrated, not something to debate.
Maybe Mike Judge was right. Maybe this is “Idiocracy.”
Anyway, first Barack Obama (“Get your kids vaccinated”), then Chris Christie (“I also understand that parents need to have some measure of choice in things as well, so that’s the balance that the government has to decide.”), and then Rand Paul (“I’ve heard of many tragic cases of walking, talking, normal children who wound up with profound mental disorders after vaccines”). Rand Paul, I remind you, is a doctor.
So that was the start of the week. That, and a foot of snow, maybe an inch or two more. Kate got a rare snow day, and I worked at home, but! I got to the gym at 6:30 a.m. I had to do some crazy snow-surfing along the way, but that’s why God made big Swedish station wagons with all-wheel drive. That old sled did her home country proud.
I was the only one there. Respect.
OK, some bloggage:
You know I don’t link to BuzzFeed very often, or ever, but hell — Missy Elliott deserves to be better-known by you young’uns.
Whatever Huffington Post is, it ain’t journalism.
I’m exhausted. Have a good Tuesday, all.
MichaelG said on February 2, 2015 at 10:10 pm
Now the Repubs have become a public health menace. What’s next?
64 chars
Sherri said on February 2, 2015 at 10:37 pm
Bill Frist is a doctor, too, but he didn’t let that get in the way of diagnosing Terri Schiavo via a few video clips.
Missy Elliott came out and just owned the halftime show. Made Katy Perry seem especially pointless. I haven’t liked a halftime show since Prince, though.
This summed up the night, though: https://twitter.com/jaredwsmith/status/562083665694695426
369 chars
beb said on February 2, 2015 at 11:08 pm
Rand Paul is a self-certified Optometrist. He’s no more a doctor than chiropractor. People did’t need to told to get the polic vaccine, they had too many everyday encounters with people who developed polio. It was a horrible disease. Measles… not so much.
So happened to the open thread when the NN.C database was screwed?
328 chars
basset said on February 2, 2015 at 11:19 pm
Just clicked that Missy Elliott link with the sound off, I didn’t know who she was. Now, I don’t want to.
106 chars
Jolene said on February 2, 2015 at 11:36 pm
Beb, you are right about Rand Paul being self-certified, but he is a real doctor–an ophthalmologist, not an optometrist. He launched a new board for certifying physicians because he was annoyed with the rules for maintaining certification established by the existing board. I don’t think his new organization attracted many docs, but his rationale didn’t, as far as I know, stem from a lack of expertise. I haven’t read or heard anything that questioned his technical competence.
Obviously, though, he is an idiot with regard to the vaccination issue. I hope several reporters ask him to identify just one of the “walking, talking, normal children” who’ve been damaged by vaccines.
685 chars
Jolene said on February 2, 2015 at 11:48 pm
A good cartoon from The New Yorker re the measles outbreak.
http://www.newyorker.com/cartoons/daily-cartoon/daily-cartoon-monday-february-2nd-measles-disneyland
163 chars
Jolene said on February 3, 2015 at 12:27 am
James Robertson, the long-distance Walker, now has attracted $125,000 in donations. He’s going to be on the Today Show and the CBS Mirning Show tomorrow AM.
156 chars
Hattie said on February 3, 2015 at 12:53 am
The idea of parents’ rights superseding the rights of children and the public gags me. Children are NOT the property of their parents.
And I confess, the Missy Eliot charm eludes me, but I am a moldy fig.
Have a nice week, Nancy.
233 chars
Jolene said on February 3, 2015 at 1:50 am
Typo: walker, not Walker. Damn autocorrect (and my obliviousness).
66 chars
Dexter said on February 3, 2015 at 2:08 am
I guess it is where the focus is…I listen to music at least an hour and a half a day, and I had never heard of Missy Elliott and I asked myself “who is that old lady there with the hat pulled all the way down over her face to hide her age?”
I used to get that “never heard of him (her)” when I spoke of my jazz faves, so I kind of quit trying to spread the word. Musical tastes are a acquired from attraction, so it’s normal for old men not to give a damn about screeching pop stars. I felt that the Katy Perry halftime show was geared to entertain eight-year-old girls, who were sleeping by then and missed it anyway. Like Sherri, I revere the memory of the Prince halftime show…I think it was the year Indianapolis beat Da Bears in Florida, and when Prince kicked in with “Purple Rain” it started raining…it was so damn perfect.
I concur with the universe in assessing that the Nationwide ad with the dead kid makes me want to never ever consider buying from that creepy corporation. I don’t know for sure if it was made for unveiling at the SuperBowl or it had been released earlier, but the Frank’s Hot Sauce ad with the old lady saying “I put this shit on EVERYthing!” won the contest for me. Here’s one of the series: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LIeieHIcV5U
nance, up in Grosse Pointe Woods Dave Bergman passed away from bile duct cancer…just 61 years of age. He was a fan favorite for us who followed the Tigers in that great 1984 season.
This was called by Sparky Anderson, “the greatest at-bat in history.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xn44Rsn9WlY
1587 chars
Dexter said on February 3, 2015 at 2:08 am
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xn44Rsn9WlY
43 chars
adrianne said on February 3, 2015 at 6:31 am
So now we have one of the two major parties in America filled with science deniers, not just on the vaccine issue but on climate change, etc. Here’s a good NYT story on the phenomenon: http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/03/us/politics/measles-proves-delicate-issue-to-gop-field.html
278 chars
Suzanne said on February 3, 2015 at 7:30 am
I didn’t know Rand Paul weighed in on vaccines. It’s reminiscent of Michele Bachman’s statement that the Cervical cancer vaccine makes women mentally retarded. I knew Paul was an ophthalmologist, & tried to set up his own certification group which failed. So, he can’t run a small, certification organization with a membership of maybe 50 people, but we should put him in charge of a country of 300+ million. But wasn’t that Obama’s big flaw? He’d never successfully been in charge of anything much? I don’t even try to understand anymore.
544 chars
beb said on February 3, 2015 at 8:01 am
This guy ought to have graphitti artists tag his office with “Warning: Doctor may be spreading childhood diseases.”
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/jack-wolfson-vaccines-doctor-measles
191 chars
alex said on February 3, 2015 at 8:17 am
I was down with Missy Elliott. Lenny Kravitz too. They were around when I was still listening to popular music. Now this Katy Perry, what the fuck is this shit?
160 chars
brian stouder said on February 3, 2015 at 8:42 am
Christie has a particularly crossed-up problem with issuing little “Thinking of you” notes to the anti-vax crowd, in that he’s the same clown who stuck that doctor in an isolation tent, just because he could.
He seems to want to say “I’m agin’ guh-mint tellin you what to do”
AND
“I’m da MAN, baby, and you’ll do as your told and SHUT THE *@&^% UP!!”
all at the same time!
397 chars
Pam said on February 3, 2015 at 9:11 am
This measles vaccine thing has me ANGRY! It’s another of those issues that idiots who follow the republicans against all of their own personal interests will own like it’s their gospel. Asking a politician about vaccinations is like asking a healthcare question of your insurance company. They are going to give the answer that most suits their personal agenda, but certainly is not in your child’s best interests. I hope these politicians (and the journalists who goad them) have enough backbone to let it go (like that will ever happen).
Katy Perry was perfect for the Super Bowl. She sings Anthems and that’s just what the occasion needed. Eye of the Tiger and You’re a Firework are peppy, fun songs that most people know all the words and can sing along. When the tiger roared, well, that was just splendid. At least we won’t be subject to months of discussing “wardrobe malfunctions.”
902 chars
Kirk said on February 3, 2015 at 9:20 am
I find Katy Perry’s music lame, but there’s no denying that she’s a natural entertainer. I get a kick out of her. She knows what she’s doing, and is riding it for all it’s worth. The humorously excessive nature of her halftime show was perfect for the Super Bowl, the most excessive circus of all.
I think it will be interesting to see what she’s up to in 10 years or so. Forgotten purveyor of pap for 10-year-old girls or someone who has the stuff to shift gears into making serious music?
493 chars
brian stouder said on February 3, 2015 at 9:31 am
Kirk – I’d predict option 2 comes true.
Our 10 year old (indeed!) dragooned me into watching a ‘behind the scenes’ movie/documentary about her a year or two ago, and it pulled me in.
And I think you’re right – that Ms Perry knows what her audience wants, and she’ll keep transitioning for them, as they grow up.
328 chars
coozledad said on February 3, 2015 at 9:38 am
If the Republicans succeeded in dragging us back to the use of calomel and leeches, they’d still be rah rahing The American Healthcare System is da Greatest in the World blah blah. It actually sucks pretty bad, it’s top heavy with scammers and administrative incompetents, salespeople have been incorporated into the treatment process, and it fails the people who need it most. It costs three or four times what it’s worth.
It was inevitable that third tier physicians would start preaching that new age bullshit, because it will pay for a car quicker than a couple of unnecessary surgeries.
595 chars
Peter said on February 3, 2015 at 9:42 am
You see? This is what you get when Communism collapses.
Nobody had to ask Ike if they should get the shot, because someone would have said if your kid doesn’t get the shot, they’ll die when the Rooskies drop measles germs from Sputnik.
Problem solved!
258 chars
Tim said on February 3, 2015 at 9:47 am
Back in the ’50s and ’60s, and even in subsequent decades, “scientific” denoted something that was modern, advanced and proven. We wanted all those attributes, and we respected scientists and people like them. We still respect scientists, I think, but there’s a lot more free-floating skepticism out there. There’s also a lot of misunderstanding of what science knows and proves.
379 chars
brian stouder said on February 3, 2015 at 9:54 am
…salespeople have been incorporated into the treatment process, and it fails the people who need it most. It costs three or four times what it’s worth.
Cooz – my point of view may be a bit skewed, as I have the tv on news a great deal – but take note of how many commercials you see, anymore, for prescription drugs. Can’t sleep?; too anxious?; aches and pains?; blood pressure too low or too high?; can’t get – or keep(!) an erection?; intercourse is painful?; have to whizz too often?…..
One wonders what doctors think about patients who specifically hound them to write prescriptions for this or that or the other little pill. I suppose what the doctors think is something like “pay me a commission, and I’ll write the prescription” – which should be a lot like ILLEGAL – but we digress
825 chars
coozledad said on February 3, 2015 at 9:54 am
I don’t know what Katy Perry sounds like, but I watched her visit the ESPN crew for an LSU game while I was at a brew pub in Raleigh.
She appeared to be engaged in self-parody, and fully conscious that she was supposed to appear to be making the old sportscasters’ peeners hard. It was a sort of Marylin Monroe act minus a shred of sophistication.
There are pop acts around today that are not only head and ears above Katy, but much better than most of the shit we were subjected to in the sixties seventies eighties etc.
It’s as though kids hear better than we did.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eMoW37gI66s
620 chars
Charlotte said on February 3, 2015 at 9:58 am
Roald Dahl’s letter from the 1980s about the daughter he lost to measles in the 1960s is floating around the intertubes again — not that it will help with these folks who just don’t believe in any kind of collective anything. I think my earlier comment about Eula Biss’s terrific new book On Immunity got eaten yesterday, but I do recommend it — she’s a lovely writer and believes in science.
I grew up with a sort of adopted grandmother who’d had polio, and while it was miraculous that she could walk at all, she lived in a lot of pain and was seriously compromised. And my beloved stepmother barely survived several rounds of HPV-caused cancers. So I do a lot of advocating for vaccines.
697 chars
Bitter Scribe said on February 3, 2015 at 10:33 am
I’m just waiting for the first anti-vaxxer idiots to have a child sustain hearing loss, or worse, from measles. Will they realize what fools they were? Or will they rationalize that it was chelated metals in drinking water or the will of God or something?
255 chars
Kirk said on February 3, 2015 at 11:09 am
Will of God, of course. What else could it be?
46 chars
Jolene said on February 3, 2015 at 11:37 am
Wow! I just followed a couple links from a comment on FB to the page of the Dr. Wolf son mentioned in beb’s post at #14. Of course, he has a substantial number of acolytes. It’s one thing to read a news report about percentages of unvaccinated children. Quite a different thing to read what the parents of those children are saying.
It’s terrifying, really, to think that I live in the same world as people who have such a limited grip on what constitutes evidence.
469 chars
brian stouder said on February 3, 2015 at 11:40 am
Grant, our resident university student, recently pushed me into picking up The Song of Roland, and now I’m half-way through it – and I must say, it has been enlightening.
All this ‘God’s will’ stuff (in between horrendous battles of annihilation) fits right in there. Plus – it is interesting to note the mutual spite and bloodlust between the armies of supposed Islamic and supposed Christian marauders. (lots of heavy ransoms and tributes change hands, in between all the blood-letting). Sort of puts today’s news (including Fox’s stupid “no-go zones’ fantasy) into its proper perspective
615 chars
brian stouder said on February 3, 2015 at 11:43 am
…and I forgot to say, thanks to my son pushing me into that book – I got a Final Jeopardy question last week – and impressed Pammy!
133 chars
brian stouder said on February 3, 2015 at 12:03 pm
And then this news popped up, as if on cue
http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/world/wp/2015/02/03/islamic-state-video-appears-to-show-burning-death-of-jordanian-pilot/?wpisrc=al_alert
186 chars
Jolene said on February 3, 2015 at 12:05 pm
Nice follow-up in the Free Press to the story re the long-distance walker.
206 chars
coozledad said on February 3, 2015 at 12:11 pm
Edward Shiteyhands:
http://forums.talkingpointsmemo.com/t/discussion-gop-senator-dont-force-employees-to-wash-their-hands-after-using-toilet/16290
147 chars
beb said on February 3, 2015 at 1:03 pm
Tillis is a moron. Someone seriously unclear on the meaning of things. He thinks businesses are too heavily regulated, So he’s OK with a restaurant not requirement their employees to wash their hands, because – freedom. But only if they are required to post a sign saying that they don’t require their employee to wash their hands. As if being required to put a sign is any less of an oppressive law then requiring employees to wash their hands.
Grosse Pointe Park – dickish, racist bastards.
http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/feb/03/detroit-apartheid-city-surburbs-grosse-pointe?CMP=share_btn_tw
I thought they had finally taken down the sheds that had closed off a major road running through Detroit and the Pointes. It appears they have installed new barriers. As Frank Zappa once sang, “I’m not black but there’s a whole lotta times I wish I could say I’m not white.”
885 chars
MarkH said on February 3, 2015 at 1:05 pm
Basset – Nice owl diversion yesterday @14, thanks. Owls populate our area, of course, but are rarely seen. One night a few years ago, my wife spotted a rather large one on the gate post as we approached our house. As we backed slowly up to get a close look, it obliged us with a 180 headturn (its body facing away from us), incredibly large eyes observing us for about 30 seconds. Curiosity satisfied, it displayed one of the largest wingspans I’d ever seen in its departure.
Kirk @18 – Word. I disagree with Brian and look for the former to prevail w/Ms. Perry.
567 chars
Dave said on February 3, 2015 at 1:23 pm
Since most pop stars have a shelf life of three to five years, if that, it remains to be seen how Katy Perry fares. I think that it’s hard to maintain the momentum, even harder than it was, with all the constant availability of all kinds of entertainment. It does seem like she’s been on the scene for a good while now. I mean, I know who she is and I doubt that I’ve ever listened to one of her songs all the way through.
I’m old, I didn’t know who Missy Elliott was and life was just as good without knowing. I’m sure I’m never going to be down with rap.
As for the Nationwide ad, they accomplished what they wanted to accomplish, and people being offended about every little thing gets to me sometimes. But, it’s not like I’m going to run out and buy some Nationwide insurance. Yes, it was a depressing ad but they wanted to get a message out and, what is it people say, if it saves one life, it was worth it.
926 chars
LAMary said on February 3, 2015 at 1:35 pm
I have seen owls in silhouette in the trees in my yard, but more often I hear them. I usually fall asleep listening to the owls talking at night. I find it very peaceful and reassuring.
185 chars
Bob (not Greene) said on February 3, 2015 at 2:14 pm
My brother, Chris, is in from NYC to do his mural installation at The Loft on Michigan Ave. today (should be in full swing now). Anyhow, he got a little face time on one of the local TV morning shows. http://www.wciu.com/videos/youandme/mag-mile-art-chris-uphues
262 chars
Dexter said on February 3, 2015 at 2:29 pm
LA Mary…you be careful there, very, very careful, because, you see…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mbi7rq-TSk8
116 chars
Dexter said on February 3, 2015 at 2:32 pm
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VCf-oiIbVnw
VERY careful, LA Mary
66 chars
Jolene said on February 3, 2015 at 3:10 pm
Came across this web site on the history of vaccines. An interesting place to poke around. The link above goes to a graph on the incidence of measles pre and post vaccine. Pretty dramatic difference.
292 chars
LAMary said on February 3, 2015 at 3:12 pm
The videos won’t work here on my office computer. I’ll have to check when I get home. I think the coyotes I see strolling down the street in front of my house worry me more. It used to be just at dusk and right before sunrise, but last night there were two of them sort of waiting me for me get out of my car when I got home. They sauntered away. Didn’t run. No hurry. I warned my neighbor who owns small dogs and I had a word with my two big dogs when I got inside.
468 chars
brian stouder said on February 3, 2015 at 3:19 pm
Very cool, Bob(ng).
So the emerging Official Oxy-Fox Axis line, on the vexing anti-vax stance arising on the right – is that it is ALL OBAMA’S FAULT, godmammit!
Afterall, who is letting all the dirty little unvaccinated children come across the border, huh? According to them, the people yearning to be free are all either drug-runners with cantaloupe-sized muscles, or else horribly sick little kids who spread disease – and to hell with all of them, eh?
467 chars
Connie said on February 3, 2015 at 4:16 pm
Seen on jimromenesko.com : neil Steinberg says kill me now I’ve become Bob Greene. I have learned how to copy and paste on the ipad except for urls.
149 chars
adrianne said on February 3, 2015 at 4:19 pm
NN.C’s pal Neil Steinberg at the Chicago Sun-Times is worried that he’s turning into Bob Greene:
http://jimromenesko.com/2015/02/03/chicago-sun-times-columnist-neil-steinberg-fears-hes-become-bob-greene/
206 chars
Kirk said on February 3, 2015 at 4:38 pm
Dave@36: The negative reaction to the Nationwide ad illustrates not only the perversity of the notion of commercials as entertainment but also the swinishness of Americans who just don’t want to see that kind of stuff while they’re wallowing in pizza, wings, beer, chips, dip and football.
289 chars
Dorothy said on February 3, 2015 at 5:21 pm
In case anyone is in the mood to do a little donating this time of year, my son is asking for donations to support Special Olympics. I’ll try to be there when he does this polar plunge to be sure he has one of my quilts at the ready to wrap him up in it! Thanks if you’re able to send a long a small donation.
http://www.kintera.org/faf/donorReg/donorPledge.asp?ievent=1123831&supId=418358458&extSiteType=1
422 chars
nancy said on February 3, 2015 at 6:07 pm
What body of water are they plunging into?
42 chars
Sherri said on February 3, 2015 at 6:52 pm
The state of Washington has recently started requiring that foster families licensed to take infants under age 2 get flu vaccines. This has some people upset: http://seattletimes.com/html/localnews/2025608082_fosterparentflushotxml.html
236 chars
beb said on February 3, 2015 at 7:41 pm
on polar bear plunges. If they’re planning to do it tonight on Lake St. Clair I predict there will be no survivors.
115 chars
Deborah said on February 3, 2015 at 9:53 pm
I had the measles as a very young child in the 50s. I vaguely remember it, mostly I remember people talking about there being two kinds called red measles and black measles, and tha another name for one or the other was German measles. Also the room had to be kept dark for fear of blindness. Does anyone else remember that or am I confusing it with something else?
365 chars
Suzanne said on February 3, 2015 at 10:10 pm
I think the German Measles were the 3 days measles, which I’m pretty sure I had. The others we always called the hard measles, and yes, those were the ones that I heard stories about being in a dark room to protect the eye.
The chicken pox vaccine came out a few years after my kids had the pox. The virus settled in the heart of one of the kids in on one of my son’s class & he still has health problem 20 years later. If I could have gotten my kids the vaccine, I sure would have!
488 chars
basset said on February 3, 2015 at 11:48 pm
And I will sleep more soundly tonight, knowing that the brave patriots of Texas are ever vigilant…
http://www.woai.com/articles/woai-local-news-sponsored-by-five-star-cleaners-119078/no-the-un-is-not-about-13214662
actually, I will sleep more soundly if I can go an hour without getting up to pee or hearing Mrs. B’s blood sugar meter going off, comes with the territory at this age though.
398 chars
Jolene said on February 4, 2015 at 12:09 am
Here’s a fact sheet from the NY State Department of Health that confirms what you say, Suzanne. That is, rubella, commonly known as German measles, is also called the three-day measles.
https://www.health.ny.gov/diseases/communicable/rubella/fact_sheet.htm
Rubeola or measles, also called measles, red measles, or hard measles is what’s going around now.
https://www.health.ny.gov/diseases/communicable/measles/fact_sheet.htm
Blindness isn’t mentioned as a complication of either illness in these fact sheets, but it is on some other web sites.
557 chars
Jolene said on February 4, 2015 at 12:20 am
Here is the World Health Organization’s fact sheet on measles. It does list blindness as a complication. Also has interesting statistics on the worldwide incidence of measles, including dramatic declines since 2000. Still, in 2013, 400 people died from measles every day.
http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs286/en/
Here is the WHO fact sheet on rubella, which is particularly dangerous in pregnant women, as it may cause blindness, deafness, mental retardation or other defects in the developing fetus.
http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs367/en/
573 chars
coozledad said on February 4, 2015 at 2:25 am
Hey, Republicans. The company sent you a robot. A racist robot.
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/this-should-go-well–5
White trash.
139 chars
alex said on February 4, 2015 at 8:07 am
And congrats to you, Mitt, for the great job you did getting the Southern Baptists to choose a Mormon over a Mocha Baby. No doubt they had to struggle mightily over it.
168 chars
Connie said on February 4, 2015 at 8:12 am
Well it’s official, i am on disability for at least one more month, probably more. Healing after foot surgery is long and slow.
I am thankful that my employer provides as a benefit both short and long term disability insurance.
My wound vac and I are sentenced to a living room chair, and may move ( carefully) to bathroom and bedroom.
I’m bored and all my library books are overdue. If you make it to west Oakland county feel free to visit. Must like dogs. Plural.
474 chars
brian stouder said on February 4, 2015 at 8:23 am
Connie – that sounds a lot like no fun at all.
On the brighter side, it sounds like you’ll be back in fighting trim at spring-time, so there’s that.
And regarding Mitt – isn’t it funny (odd) how some public people become more endearing when you hear what they say when they think there are no cameras….and some people become so much more off-putting?
Mitster’s public persona seems nice enough; the somewhat clueless Thirston Howell the 3rd (HT – Rachel Maddow); and the 47% video and this latest deal reveal him as basically a walking, talking pile of shit
582 chars
beb said on February 4, 2015 at 8:40 am
Mitt Romney, what a classy guy.
Another classy guy was Rand Paul who literally put his finger to his lips to shush a (woman) CNBC reporter who was asking him tough questions and interrupting his blathering replies. I wonder how he would respond to being interviewed by Chris Matthews, who terrible about interrupting interviewees. (But then Republicans keep saying we need to take a tougher stand against ISIS, as if 2000 airstrikes in the last half year never happened. There isn’t a one among them any smarter than Sarah Palin and they think they can lead the world?)
I always hate it when conservatives clip Pres. Obama’s speeches to make it sound like he was saying something that he wasn’t. I hate it when the press does the same thing to Republicans. Sen. Tillis didn’t just say food workers should not be required to wash they hands after using the bathroom. He said that restaurants that don’t require their employees to wash their hands should be required to post a notice to that effect and then let market forces decide the issue, implying that stores that don’t requires employees to wash their hands will fail. So he’s not blind to the effect his proposal would have. Of course he misses the point that requiring restaurants to post a sign is still a regulation, and since a “sign” can be printed in 6 point type and posted on the ceiling unless the law specifically defines size of type, size of sign, placement and so on. All of which makes the Senator’s alternative to mandated hand washing even more burdensome. He’s wrong in a not-clear-on-the-concept sort of way but he isn’t wrong in the just plain stupid sort of way.
1644 chars
brian stouder said on February 4, 2015 at 8:51 am
And when there’s an outbreak of Salmonella, and dozens of children and adults are sickened (or worse), citing the place will be limited to the offense that they didn’t have a sign up…and if the poopie-handed proprietor had enough brains to put a sign up AFTER he heard that his customers were all becoming sick, then the legal contest would be whether it can be proven WHEN the sign was posted.
400 chars
Deggjr said on February 4, 2015 at 9:21 am
Here’s an example of the market force decision process. http://www.marlerblog.com/legal-cases/a-salmonella-outbreak-to-remember-2003-vernon-hills-chilis/#.VNIpBZ3ruSo. Over 300 people became sick with salmonella. The restaurant closed. It’s very charitable to say this process isn’t stupid.
294 chars
4dbirds said on February 4, 2015 at 9:21 am
When I was stationed at Fort Benjamin Harrison in Indiana, I came down with German Measles as did several of my barrack-mates. They put us in the hospital right away and quarantined us. Communicable diseases are a readiness issue. We were marched en masse to get innoculated on a regular basis especially if our area of operation included Africa or the Middle-East. I’ve even had the vaccine for the plague.
412 chars
nancy said on February 4, 2015 at 9:30 am
A lot of the Amish in Indiana run restaurants out of their homes. Because they don’t have churches, services are held at people’s houses, rotating around the community from week to week. So all Amish houses are built with a large open room that can hold a few dozen people.
Hardly any of these places are legit; they use word-of-mouth and small-town papers to advertise.
So one year, no fewer than 57 people got food poisoning in one weekend. Testing the food turned up no salmonella or other obvious culprits, so the health department ruled that it was an unspecified viral agent, almost certainly transmitted by an employee who didn’t wash hands after using the outhouse. The next day — the next day! — TWO different legislators announced they’d be introducing bills to exempt the Amish from all health regulations for their restaurants.
That was an eye-opening moment, in a lot of ways.
903 chars
coozledad said on February 4, 2015 at 9:41 am
Tillis’ comments need to be taken in the context of what the Republicans are doing in North Carolina, and examined that way, they’re not so much a feeble joke as they are a trial balloon for more of the insane shit they’re pushing here.
Republicans have no support in cities, so they’re running this anti-urban, anti-education game to get their paste eaters on board. You’ll hear the phrase “common sense” deployed repeatedly, because if everyone says it a lot, it’s true.
The chair of the local Republican party, P.J. Gentry, is pushing for a new Constitutional Convention as part of some mutual compact the Roxboro party has with the fisting fundies up in Lynchburg, VA. She’s also been posting Brit fascist agitprop to the county party facebook page.
The incoming class of Republican county commissioners is pushing to expand the county landfill to accept regional waste, and one of Duke Energy’s biggest tools, tracey Kendrick, has written a letter to the state legislature requesting them to draft a law that exempts the landfill from disclosing the nature and volume of the toxic waste it accepts. This landfill drains into the Roanoke River basin, and the Kerr lake reservoir is just across the line in the next county.
They don’t give a shit about water or air or food, because they believe they are on that privilege train.
The joke is at least partly on them, because they’re subliterate white scum. I’ve looked into the faces of some of these people and there is nothing there. Not a goddamn thing. I wouldn’t hire one to rake leaves.
1560 chars
brian stouder said on February 4, 2015 at 10:10 am
Cooz – a guy from hereabouts, David Long, is a representative at the Indiana State House (and husband of a beautiful and vacuous local news reader, who is about to retire).
Back in the day, he was the lawyer for a (now deceased) local tycoon who owned all the Pizza Hut franchises, and he looks like he has a brain in his head (but he doesn’t); a sort of Kelsey Grammer vibe.
But, he thinks it would just be sooper-neat to have a Constitutional Convention, which tells me he has shit for brains and/or an “invisible hand” up his back, making it appear that he’s a living, thinking person, rather than a rag-doll for whoever bids the most
652 chars
Snarkworth said on February 4, 2015 at 10:22 am
Beb, that Rand Paul finger thing is going to come back to bite him. Talk about shushsplaining.
94 chars
derwood said on February 4, 2015 at 10:37 am
I’m in Detroit for the Billy Idol concert this weekend. Friends want to do the Sno Disco on Saturday. What am I getting myself in to?
Oh, had no clue who Missy Elliot was at the halftime show. Once I knew the name, it was familiar but I couldn’t name a single song she was famous for.
287 chars
coozledad said on February 4, 2015 at 10:38 am
For all that framers religion, the Republicans sure do have a bug up their ass about turning the US into Somalia via the Constitution. Everything they touch acquires that patina of neanderthal religiosity.
Fucking get raptured already, shitcakes.
249 chars
ROGirl said on February 4, 2015 at 10:42 am
This was on NPR this morning. I think it’s a pretty good take on how to deal with the anti-vaxxers. The comments are quite interesting, too.
http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2015/02/04/383567862/once-a-vaccine-skeptic-this-mom-changed-her-mind
245 chars
susan said on February 4, 2015 at 10:45 am
cooze- You are greatly maligning Neandertals.
45 chars
susan said on February 4, 2015 at 10:47 am
added- All you need to say is “Republican…” That is enough to give the proper shit-head gloss of stupidity and regression.
124 chars
coozledad said on February 4, 2015 at 10:56 am
You’re right. I need to strive for economy.
43 chars
susan said on February 4, 2015 at 11:01 am
Senatorette Miz Lindsey must be so jealous of Representativette Schlock! Oh, here’s a full shot of one of his rooms. Huh. And Rep-ette Schlock voted to defund PBS, from where his garnishing ideas emanate.
661 chars
susan said on February 4, 2015 at 11:12 am
Oh dear, the the hits keep coming!
165 chars
Peter said on February 4, 2015 at 11:52 am
I’ve designed a few restaurants over the past couple of years, and in the Chicago area there’s a couple of rules that they are real sticklers on – they make sense, but I would have never guessed that:
– the restaurant has to have a double bowl sink where each bowl is at least 2″ larger than the largest sheet pan or pot that is used in the restaurant (and they measure during every site visit!)
– hand washing sinks no farther than 20′ from any surface used for cutting or packaging food.
– food stored in refrigerators have to be in a certain pecking order where the items with the lowest cooked temperatures are at the top and the highest ones are at the bottom; that way if something leaks from raw food at the top, those germs would be killed off when the food at the bottom is cooked to a higher temperature.
– Instructions and notices are printed in English, Spanish, and any other native language that is used by employees (Thai, Polish, etc.) and the inspectors look at employee logs to check on employee ethnicity.
1036 chars
Jolene said on February 4, 2015 at 11:56 am
The road to a constitutional convention seems to have gotten a bit bumpy in Virginia.
307 chars
Deborah said on February 4, 2015 at 12:12 pm
Peter, I worked on the design of a restaurant once and Lordy did they have a lot of regulations. It was a rebranding of Boston Market, we only did the prototype store because the owners (at that time McDonalds) thought the rebrand went too far. I didn’t get involved in the food prep back of house area, just the dining room part and the serving line, and the facade outside. We tried to make it more like a Whole Foods prepared food area. I remember the ceiling above the serving line being a huge deal, it couldn’t have anything that would collect dirt and then drop on the food. I thought it turned out well, it was in River Forest, near the El stop on Harlem, but as I said they went right back to thier Mac and cheese and rotisserie chickens because they realized the big beefy guys who liked the comfort food were thier main customers.
841 chars
brian stouder said on February 4, 2015 at 12:29 pm
Some years ago, when the fellows and I went to lunch at a Chinese buffet, a funny little thing happened.
After eating (and eating and eating), we were exiting the place just when a Board of Health guy was affixing a bright orange “CLOSED” sign onto the entrance door!
Needless to say, in the days following we pursued the question – what was wrong?
And that was when I learned that the variety of foods that one normally expects in a Chinese restaurant are particularly hard to refrigerate properly, as Peter said (in 75, above).
Still, we’ve gone back.
586 chars
Scout said on February 4, 2015 at 1:05 pm
From a Facebook “friend”, who is a high school TEACHER:
“Yes I agree with y’all..I too am ALL in favor of worldwide vaccines, if they can make them without toxic chemicals. Yes, I support vaccines, but just give us HEALTHY ONES for our children without that toxic chemical cocktail of formaldehyde, anti freeze, pig blood, chicken embroyos, MSG, Phenol, monkey and dog kidneys, aluminum, aborted fetuses, sulfates, antibiotics, lead, cadmium, and synthetic mercury ETC!!!!”
Later in the comments:
“I am totally against vaccinations. There are too many poisonous ingredients that are not labeled. I get a lot of shit for it, but you do what you want for your child and I’ll do what I want. I don’t feel like arguing about it today. People get hysterical when I bring up this subject. Just read both sides, keep an open mind and make your own decision. I made my decision for my child in 1980. 49 vaccinations into a small child under 6 is too many. Don’t bother me today with a bunch of hysterical reactions. Plz. State your case and that’s it. I don’t want to fight about it.
I loved this person’s reaction to that:
“Then this should not have been posted. You certainly have a right to your opinion but your science is flawed. More childhood illness has been prevented and horrible consequences averted by vaccination. Watch a child with whooping cough, a pubescent boy who finds out he cannot have children because he contracted measles. Not to mention the devastating effects of polio.”
BTW, she’s still at it, posting links to articles written by anti vaxxer true believers as if they are fact. She is, now that I have bitched about her here, officially blocked on my feed.
1691 chars
brian stouder said on February 4, 2015 at 1:19 pm
Scout, you are a stronger person than me, if you endure Facebook.
It seems to be like the knucklehead forum that follows news articles on many sites, only without the news.
It is just not for me.
201 chars
nancy said on February 4, 2015 at 1:24 pm
Derwood, I may be going to Sno Disco, too. If you’re there, text me at seven-three-four-five-four-eight-double-oh-three-three and we’ll throw another Christmas tree on the fire.
177 chars
Scout said on February 4, 2015 at 1:44 pm
I was just going to block her then thought, no, this one deserves the ultimate message – UNFRIEND!!! That’s how you survive Facebook.
133 chars
brian stouder said on February 4, 2015 at 2:03 pm
Sno Disco sounds fun! Or, it sounds like an affliction of the lower backbone (“Oh no! I have developed a case of acute sno-disco”)
Weather permitting this weekend – we’re probably headed to Danville, Indiana (which is definitely further!) for Shelby’s Winter Guard contest…
278 chars
Sherri said on February 4, 2015 at 2:27 pm
Scout, don’t tell those people about dihydrogen monoxide and how dangerous it is!
81 chars
Scout said on February 4, 2015 at 2:38 pm
Sherri – brilliant! Snopes thinks so too: http://www.snopes.com/science/dhmo.asp
80 chars
brian stouder said on February 4, 2015 at 2:41 pm
Gotta play it straight; don’t be watering down the facts
56 chars
Deborah said on February 4, 2015 at 4:04 pm
Susan, that photo of Schlock’s office is weird, especially the odd arrangement of portraits on the wall. It’s like someone trying very hard to be “artsy” and failing miserably.
Well, the couple upstairs got married this afternoon at the courthouse. They asked Little Bird to take photos of the event with thier phones. I wish I could say I have hope for this union for the sake of the groom’s 10 year old son who lives with them, he’s the sweetest kid. The dad and his now wife have been a couple for about 9 months, she was engaged to someone else before that. He’s unemployed, lost another waiter job recently after only working there a few months after being fired from a previous waiter job. The kid’s mother is apparently a heroin addict. Somehow this kid has turned out well. I hope he stays that way, but all the cards are probably stacked against him. We help him out whenever we can, pick him up from school, cook for him etc. The new wife seems nice and she’s crazy about the kid, and she’s employed so that’s good.
I have a serious case of medicine head from the cold and flu tablets I’m taking.
1113 chars
Dexter said on February 4, 2015 at 4:06 pm
It amazes me I never heard of Missy Elliott because I always watch news, my wife always has TV on cable stations where rap and pop artists are performing or talking or being talked about, I have satellite radio and I jump around to every form of music…wait a minute…I never listen to Shade 45 … so that must be her domain, as I read she is a rapper.
Peeps say “you know her, she’s the one who wore trash bags and ripped them off of herself…” Huh? WTF! I missed THAT! O fer crissakes. How could have I missed that gem.
If Jeb Bush grew a grey beard, would he remind you of Big Daddy Pollitt? http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YjB5vElIni8/Tm1pN7fiVsI/AAAAAAAADEw/D5EElzqsr40/s1600/Cat+On+Hot+Tin+Roof+4.jpg
717 chars
brian stouder said on February 4, 2015 at 4:08 pm
Deborah, it sounds like Saving Mr Banks
39 chars
Jolene said on February 4, 2015 at 4:17 pm
People, we may think the congressman’s decor is schlock, but his name is Schock. I give him credit, actually, for being willing to be different. Too bad he doesn’t seem to have the courage of his convictions.
208 chars
brian stouder said on February 4, 2015 at 4:26 pm
I love how he denied ever having even SEEN his office!
Now THAT’S a great public servant for ya!
“Office? What office?”
125 chars
Peter said on February 4, 2015 at 4:40 pm
Hi Deborah, the ceiling above the serving line is a big deal. I was involved with the restaurant at the Harley Davidson Museum in Milwaukee, and I lost count of the number of ideas they and their marketing team came up with that I said wouldn’t pass inspections. Their standard response was try it anyway, and it got to the point that when I showed up at the permit counter the examiners would start to laugh.
411 chars
Jeff (the mild-mannered one) said on February 4, 2015 at 4:44 pm
All this vaccine stuff reminds me of the fluoride debates when I was a kid; no one doubted in the 60s that vaccines were a gift from St. Salk et alia, but there was a general right/left split on whether or not fluoride in the public water system was a threat to the sanctity of our precious bodily fluids. When I ran into an elderly fellow in my second church as a minister in ’89 who was an anti-fluoride activist, it was with the realization that I hadn’t heard that brand of crazy for a long time, and I don’t believe I’ve heard it again in general usage (I’m sure it’s on the internet somewhere, but won’t look for it) since he kicked off in ’90.
But the vaccine, or rather anti-vax rhetoric feels like it’s the same stuff all over again, but without the John Birch Society stickers on their cars.
804 chars
Dexter said on February 4, 2015 at 5:04 pm
http://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/pox-parties-taken-to-the-next-illegal-level/
I was never exposed at a pox party, but I remember hearing of them when I was a kid. Of course back then in the 50s all kids were exposed to chicken pox, measles and mumps, and I had them all. I remember the measles were the worst for me…I was delirious and I remember being so sick I began hallucinating through the worst of it, it was pretty rough on me.
Of course we vaccinated all our kids, made sure all the boosters were followed up too.
I also remember I got nervous when I had to eat the Salk sugar cube and I ran out and got sick on the school lawn, so I never really knew if my polio vaccination really “took”. When I got the ugly-scarring smallpox shot it left no round scar and I had to get it done a second time…never figured that one out.
But…the plague vaccine in basic training and the plague booster before departure for army duty in Vietnam both left me very ill for a couple days..high fever, weakness, horrible malaise and a general feeling of wish-I-could-die. I will never take another goddam plague vaccine shot.
1135 chars
Deborah said on February 4, 2015 at 5:51 pm
Peter, did you work with Pentagram, the folks who did the exhibit design and signage for the Harley Davidson Museum? I really like the work of Pentagram, a friend of mine works for them in NY now.
Jolene, I knew that his name was Schock, but I like Schlock better.
268 chars
Deborah said on February 4, 2015 at 6:10 pm
Oh and more about the couple upstairs: Little Bird says the couple in line ahead of our neighbors at the courthouse were dressed as if it were laundry day. The bride was wearing an old shirt that didn’t cover her midsection and a pair of stained jeans and they had 2 very small children in tow. So what are the upstairs neighbors doing this afternoon to celebrate their wedding? Why going to the shooting range to do some shooting of course. Another “friend” of the upstairs bride was also taking pictures of the event at the courthouse and she admitted to Little Bird that she doesn’t like the guy she married at all, he showed her a picture of his penis at some point in the past and he also showed her a photo his bride’s boobs. Lovely people.
746 chars
Sherri said on February 4, 2015 at 7:02 pm
“I would not have chosen to make this mistake.” Does he think that’s the kind of response that’s likely to restore his credibility?
http://www.stripes.com/news/us/nbc-s-brian-williams-recants-iraq-story-after-soldiers-protest-1.327792
237 chars
alex said on February 4, 2015 at 8:47 pm
Schlock. Generally understood to mean something shoddy or substandard, but interchangeable with “shit,” “doo-doo” and “the trots” in Skokie and the Chicago north shore. I think it’s a fine name for our dapper dandy with the Downton Abbey digs and an R behind his name. In that getup, not only does he look gayer than the bachelor photo of John Roberts that everyone circulates on the internet, he looks gayer than the Roberts children on Roberts’ confirmation day.
464 chars
Judybusy said on February 4, 2015 at 9:00 pm
There is a hilarious thread on my FB page after I posted on Rand Paul talking about all those people who knows who got serious mental disorders after being vaccinated. Predictably my “libertarian” BIL posted stuff defending him–including that clip shushing the female journalist! I haven’t commented, but my friends and friends of friends have done an admirable job. MY BIL stated in his post of the rebuttal video “Rand has some media outlets scared by his appeal that goes beyond party lines.” Riiiight. He goes on to express concern about the gov’t forcing people to get their kids vaccinated. So, not against vaccines, but PRO FREEDOM! I do hide his posts because they are just too annoying. Otherwise, we have a nice relationship, and he lives locally, so I’m not unfriending him.
So, in a totally different line of thought, I was at the vet’s yesterday for routine dog care and naturally flipped through Cat Fancy. I found out there is a fairly new breed of cat called a toyger. Some crazy cat lady bred cats till they look like tiny tigers! And god, are they cute. Instead of doing yet another HTML link that won’t work, click this: http://tinyurl.com/toygers Thanks to whomever reminded us of tiny url a few weeks ago. Finally decided to give it a whirl.
1269 chars
Deborah said on February 4, 2015 at 9:17 pm
Judy Busy, my cats were a breed called bombay’s, they were bred to look like miniature black panthers. They were gorgeous, with coats that looked like patent leather and tiny muscular bodies, so elegant, they moved like dancers. I miss them they had such great personalities and were super attached to us which was our main reason for selecting that breed. We wanted cats that would bond to us and boy did we get what we wanted.
429 chars
Dexter said on February 5, 2015 at 2:02 am
http://nhpr.org/post/last-living-shakers-authorize-nh-craftsman-produce-iconic-chair#.VNKptrhjzLs.twitter
From left field and way off topic, I found this interesting…from my friend Sean in New Hampshire.
208 chars
Dorothy said on February 5, 2015 at 6:13 am
Sorry for the delay in answering your question, Nancy. Josh said they’re doing it at the Columbus zoo!
At my new job the woman I’m replacing is not leaving until the end of the month. So we’re side-by-side in her cubical. And I have no steady access to a computer. So I am unable to read this page regularly. When I get to a computer, it’s at a student worker’s desk and I log on to check my e-mail and then get right back to my training. At best I glance at this in the evening. I’ll try to keep up but it’s going to be tough! This entry has 101 comments already and that’s difficult to follow. But I’ll try!
622 chars
beb said on February 5, 2015 at 8:34 am
The link to the toygar cat breed looks more like an ordinary tabby with some orangish tint. Not enough like a tiger to my mind. We had a stray who must had a lot of bombay blood in him. He was very black and very muscular. And he loved to play fetch. He comparatively young from an intestinal blockage.
Did you know that the movie Frozen denigrates men? That came as a surprise to me, too, but it was on Fox News it must be true. You would think that in a world of Iron men, spider men, super men and bat men there would be room for one movie about girls. I wonder if the incredible success of Frozen might not have something to do with this being the first “Princess” movie where the princess has super-powers? Why should boys have all the fun, eh?
753 chars