insert generic hell, handbasket quip

November 15, 2003 6:34 AM

As Texas Sen. Gonzalo Barrientos said of his Republican colleagues: "They don't want to govern. They want to rule."An apt quote regarding the sea change in American politics found in an enlightening article about the current state of pork barrel politics. I'm going to pinpoint that change as being the 1994 election when the Republicans gained control of Congress. Ever since then, it seems like the welfare of the American people wasn't only low on the politician's priority list, but it plain dropped off...and the PORK found in this batch of legislation has done nothing to disabuse me of that notion.

As an aside, I think I've found my new favorite texan (HA, like there's many), Molly Ivins. little bit of FARKfilter for ya, sorry.
posted by taumeson (15 comments total)

I really hope that MetaFilter is going to pull out of this phase as a platform for anyone who wanted to see their one paragraph political rant on the front page.

This is not a "sky is falling" post, and I am just a outsider here at MeFi. But it would really be nice if we could have some more of the hard to find links and a few less of the "political rant of the hour" links.
posted by soulhuntre at 6:45 AM on November 15, 2003

oy. i post nothing but conspiracy and bitchy posts. it's my thing.

i really hope metafilter is going to pull out of this phase of having people comment on how shitty metafilter is becoming.
posted by taumeson at 6:57 AM on November 15, 2003

metafilter: shitty than its ever been
posted by Stynxno at 7:14 AM on November 15, 2003

+more
posted by Stynxno at 7:16 AM on November 15, 2003

While I do appreciate Ivins, for "Favorite Authentic Texan" I'm going to nominate that "other Texan gal," Ann Willis Richards, former Governor and presenter of the keynote address of the 1988 Democractic National Convention, at which she said:

I am delighted to be here with you this evening because after listening to George Bush all these years, I figured you needed to know what a real Texas accent sounds like.

posted by JollyWanker at 7:29 AM on November 15, 2003

Metafilter: nothing but conspiracy and bitchy posts
posted by RylandDotNet at 7:38 AM on November 15, 2003

What disturbs me is that a MeFi member for more than two years has just 'discovered' Molly Ivins.
posted by wendell at 8:38 AM on November 15, 2003

I like metafilter now more than ever. It is the internet's voice of reason.
posted by wsg at 9:07 AM on November 15, 2003

Bug out before the election next year, that's fine by me.

good, glad it is "fine by her"

I suspect they do not like being occupied by a foreign power. They do not seem to think our intentions are benevolent.

stunning revelation.

This would be easier to diagnose if only we knew who was attacking us.

hundreds of Iraqis gather around the smoking results and cheer. Call me alarmist, but I think that's a bad sign.
ding-ding-ding molly. why not just snap their pictures and pay them a visit later, levy, say a fine so as not to look like a flying squad of roughs. No?

I have an answer, get a secret police and go kick in about 40,000 doors. Line a few Iraqi terrorists in front of Iraqi Tv and have an iraqi firing squad kill the the iraqi terrorist... sound fun Molly?

There was no nuclear weapons program
you mean now or a year ago or ever. well molly your wrong, saddam did have a nuclear program, how extensive remains the question.

There were no weapons of mass destruction
so, never?, last year, two days ago? PROVE IT MOLLY.

Since I keep trying to find helpful suggestions from any source, let's see if a fast political handover will help any
right, historically, that means iraq left in a weak state military will be "tempting pickin's" there molly, you trust Iran and Syria that much?

so why don't we try that bottom-up method of democratization I've been mentioning, with proportional representation for Sunnis, Kurds and Shiites mandatory as the elections move up. Anyone for grass-roots?

really Molly, let us mail you the nobel. WTF do you think they are trying to do over there Huh?

What disturbs me is that a MeFi member for more than two years has just 'discovered' Molly Ivins.

That comment disturbs me as it seems elitist and condescending.
posted by clavdivs at 9:14 AM on November 15, 2003

This is a good post. Why are some so offended by something that's political, or opinionated. Geez, just don't read it if it causes such problems for you.

From a long time lurker.
posted by jeff-o-matic at 9:42 AM on November 15, 2003

There were no weapons of mass destruction
so, never?, last year, two days ago? PROVE IT MOLLY.

Molly Ivins sits at a computer in the US and you want her to prove a negative. The US has troops and inspectors on the ground in Iraq and in 8 months they have found no WMD's. You do make a good point though. Iraq did have WMD's that they got from the US to gas the Kurds. That was 10 to 20 years ago but you are the one that asked about "never".
posted by whatever at 10:23 AM on November 15, 2003

One of my weaknesses is, as a native Texan, I tend to take the uninformed generalizations of troll posts such as this one to heart.

However, if I may, Let me 'disabuse' you of your well-worn generalization:

Before you tie causation for the state of American politics to the entire occupants of a state (one geographically larger and more politically diverse than France), I ask you to, using your existing logic, apply these strict rules of causation to your own state.

In other words, if you want to play this blame game, it would seem that Florida, with its own equally majestic state of 'pork barrel' politics, has much more to do with the current political environment than any other.
posted by jazzkat11 at 10:43 AM on November 15, 2003

has just 'discovered' Molly Ivins.

actually, i saw her on "politically incorrect" a while back, but didn't hear anything compelling, so i never got into her.

Before you tie causation for the state of American politics to the entire occupants of a state (one geographically larger and more politically diverse than France), I ask you to, using your existing logic, apply these strict rules of causation to your own state.

word. heh, actually, bush isn't the main reason i make fun of texas. i have ex-in-laws from texas that bear the brunt of my ire, and i've also been there enough times to know that other than in the big cities, i'm afraid i wouldn't get along with many folks. and as for my own state....well, you got me there.

In other words, if you want to play this blame game, it would seem that Florida, with its own equally majestic state of 'pork barrel' politics, has much more to do with the current political environment than any other.

i think you're right, although i'd blame it more on mismanagement and cronyism. florida, for all its vaunted "hands-off" style of government (low property taxes and no state income tax being the two that i can think of off the top of my head), seems to micromanage a lot (eminent domain abuses, senior citizen laws). in fact, i just googled for some more info, and here's a nice link for you.
posted by taumeson at 12:20 PM on November 15, 2003

But shouldn't we remember such pork-hungry luminaries from Texas as (US) Speaker of the House Jim Wright, and the infamous "Master of the Senate" President Lyndon Baines Johnson? Between just those two, tens or hundreds billions of dollars flowed to frivolous waste projects of the lowest order.
posted by kablam at 5:45 PM on November 15, 2003

That comment disturbs me as it seems elitist and condescending.

I would posit you were disturbed long before you read that line.

If anyone here knows elitist and condescending it would be you.

Go Molly go!!
posted by nofundy at 5:24 AM on November 17, 2003