tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16778261340413739742024-03-13T03:13:00.597-05:00Liar! Liar!Pandering Politicians and Rational Public PolicyPanderbearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00185774806038118146noreply@blogger.comBlogger204125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1677826134041373974.post-26076498259439354352016-04-22T21:34:00.001-05:002016-04-23T09:00:07.923-05:00White Privilege
Pity the older conservative white heterosexual male in America who must face an existential identity crisis so shortly before His demise. Why couldn't 400 years of white male privilege have persisted just a few more years?
His demographic cohort is suffering increasing rates of stress-related illnesses and depression. Suicide rates among middle-aged men 45 to 64 increased by 43% over the lastPanderbearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00185774806038118146noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1677826134041373974.post-87631465170567539982012-12-24T08:32:00.001-06:002013-06-17T20:10:18.487-05:00School Prayer
School Prayer
Prayer is currently permitted in U.S. public schools, so long as it is not officially sponsored by the school and does not interfere with others doing their work.
The current state of the law is the result of numerous court cases dealing with the Establishment and Free Exercise Clauses in the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, "Congress shall make no law respecting Panderbearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00185774806038118146noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1677826134041373974.post-64406206449958059292012-12-19T22:25:00.000-06:002014-04-06T13:27:26.342-05:00Bloody Hell! A Review of the Holy Bible
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li.src = 'https://platform.stumbleupon.comPanderbearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00185774806038118146noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1677826134041373974.post-86325271629954437832012-10-13T22:13:00.000-05:002012-10-13T22:13:05.242-05:00Obama vs Romney Truth-Telling - Part IINow that the Presidential political campaigns are well underway, indeed only weeks remain until its conclusion, Panderbear decided it was time to review where the candidates, President Obama and Governor Romney, stand with regard to their respective Truth Quotients (TQ). Panderbear speculated in previous posts that as the contest proceeded the candidates would find it increasingly difficult to Panderbearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00185774806038118146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1677826134041373974.post-39048706281970170182012-06-15T07:30:00.000-05:002012-06-15T08:40:09.158-05:00Silence Encourages the Tormentor
Elie Wiesel
“I swore never to be silent whenever and wherever human beings endure suffering and humiliation. We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented.”
Panderbear is inspired by the truth and conviction of this statement by Elie Wiesel. When we remain silent in the face of wrong, we are culpable for the Panderbearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00185774806038118146noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1677826134041373974.post-5766355565063111462012-06-14T07:30:00.000-05:002012-06-14T07:30:00.642-05:00Small Government
Rachel Maddow
"Small government is a great political brand. It looks great on a bumper sticker. People who don’t want the government to help unemployed people, or the elderly, or people without health insurance, who don’t want the government to create jobs, they say it’s because government must be small. They also want the government to be monitoring every pregnancy in the country to make surePanderbearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00185774806038118146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1677826134041373974.post-3168578309383421322012-06-13T07:30:00.000-05:002015-09-01T18:47:04.053-05:00Presidential Warnings About Corporations
Abraham Lincoln on Corporations
“I see in the near future a crisis approaching that unnerves me and causes me to tremble for the safety of my country. Corporations have been enthroned, an era of corruption in high places will follow, and the money-power of the country will endeavor to prolong it's reign by working upon the prejudices of the people until the wealth is aggregated in a few hands Panderbearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00185774806038118146noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1677826134041373974.post-25312235709730610042012-06-12T07:30:00.000-05:002012-10-31T23:21:29.965-05:00Obama vs Romney Truth-Telling(See more recent data here: Obama vs Romney Truth-Telling - Part II)
Now that it is clear President Obama will be running for reelection against Mitt Romney, Panderbear decided it was time to directly compare the details of their statement truth ratings. Panderbear created the chart from statement ratings by PolitiFact.org.
Those who have been reading Liar! Liar! regularly know that while Panderbearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00185774806038118146noreply@blogger.com50tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1677826134041373974.post-55993102000508135252012-06-11T07:30:00.000-05:002012-06-11T08:43:24.396-05:00Government by and for the Rich
Among the rich there will always be some, like the Koch brothers, willing to expend a portion of their fortune to influence public opinion in ways calculated to advance their own selfish interests at the expense of the public good. Few would deny that money has substantial influence in elections of members of state legislatures, governorships, members of Congress, the presidency, and Panderbearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00185774806038118146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1677826134041373974.post-66453658644213535772012-06-08T07:30:00.000-05:002012-06-08T08:26:03.923-05:00Republicans Culpable for Political Gridlock
If you are a chart whore like Panderbear, do yourself a favor and visit VoteView.com. Following up on studies of political polarization, Panderbear discovered the two following charts, among many others, on that website under the heading "Political Polarization."
Both charts give information regarding the polarization of members of Congress. The first chart illustrates that you have to go Panderbearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00185774806038118146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1677826134041373974.post-58857562320474106592012-06-07T07:30:00.000-05:002012-06-07T07:30:00.170-05:00Truth Quotient History - CandidatesPanderbear has shown mercy and deleted the sorry Truth Quotient (TQ) histories of the candidates for the Republican nomination that have officially dropped out. Ron Paul is still included because it's not clear that he has officially dropped out, even though Mitt Romney has clinched the nomination. Paul could yet be a disruptive force before or during the Republican Convention.
As usual the DNC,Panderbearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00185774806038118146noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1677826134041373974.post-31227466158691431632012-06-06T07:30:00.000-05:002012-06-06T08:21:09.517-05:00Rich Recover, 99% Not So Much
Great Recession vs Great Depression Recovery
There have been many comparisons of the Great Recession of this century with the Great Depression of the last. Indeed, some have referred to the Great Recession as the Lesser Depression. These two economic disasters have many characteristics in common. They do, however, differ radically in one important respect.
During the recovery from the Great Panderbearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00185774806038118146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1677826134041373974.post-78208540607465771792012-06-05T07:30:00.000-05:002012-06-05T07:30:04.222-05:00Socrates and the Republican Party
Socrates
According to Plato, ancient Greek philosopher Socrates claimed only the "examined" life is worth living. By an examined life Socrates means a life of seeking truth through reflection, and fact-based reasoning, honed by logical, fallacy-free argumentation. Saying that the unexamined life is not worth living requires considerable hubris. Nevertheless, Panderbear has some limited Panderbearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00185774806038118146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1677826134041373974.post-76734417260014468232012-06-04T07:30:00.000-05:002012-06-04T07:46:34.223-05:00Employment Panders Left and RightAs far as Panderbear knows the chart of Bureau of Labor Statistics data regarding cumulative change in employment appeared first on Think Progress and then subsequently on MoveOn.org. MoveOn.org's take is that the data refute, "The main gist of Romney’s campaign ... that there have been no jobs created during the Obama administration, except for the public sector (government).Panderbearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00185774806038118146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1677826134041373974.post-74291663075821939522012-06-01T07:30:00.000-05:002012-06-01T08:37:52.217-05:00Ignorance, Knowledge, Democracy
Isaac Asimov
Panderbear grew up reading a lot of science and science fiction, much of it written by the prolific author Isaac Asimov. His work, as much as any other single factor, was responsible for Panderbear's early interest in science and ultimately his career in physics and computer science.
Asimov said, “Anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our Panderbearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00185774806038118146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1677826134041373974.post-31769274042802575532012-05-31T07:30:00.000-05:002012-05-31T07:30:02.099-05:00Jon Stewart Pwns Fox News
Jon Stewart Pwns Fox News
In Fox News Worse Than No News Panderbear referenced two university studies regarding Fox News. "A study from the University of Maryland found that on a range political issues Fox News viewers were more likely to believe false information than others. Furthermore, the more they watched Fox News the more misinformed they were." "A recent poll from Fairleigh Dickinson Panderbearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00185774806038118146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1677826134041373974.post-15940032824986961192012-05-30T07:30:00.000-05:002012-05-30T08:55:26.683-05:00Gay Marriage and President Obama
President Obama Supports Gay Marriage
Panderbear voted for Barack Obama in 2008 in both the primary and the general election. He could have just as happily supported Hillary Clinton in the general had she won the Democratic nomination. The decision between the two was a close thing.
Though the two candidates for the nomination appeared to have similar policies, Panderbear considered Clinton Panderbearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00185774806038118146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1677826134041373974.post-25463593211932854172012-05-29T07:30:00.000-05:002012-05-29T08:40:08.819-05:00Segregation PrivatizedIn the South appearances can be deceiving. Exaggerated, superficial politeness, especially toward strangers and those of differing race, often masks xenophobic intolerance or outright contempt and hatred. It's a subtle thing. So subtle that only an outsider like Panderbear who lived in California most of his life would likely take notice. Southerners, at least those in Arkansas where Panderbear Panderbearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00185774806038118146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1677826134041373974.post-3160106067807288942012-05-25T07:30:00.000-05:002012-05-25T07:53:34.614-05:00GOP Favors Confederation Over Union
Articles of Confederation
Republicans seem to have confused the U.S. Constitution with the Articles of Confederation that preceded it. Republicans in Congress persist in interfering with the President's prerogative to conduct foreign policy, support states' rights over the central government, and attempt to reduce the federal government's ability to collect taxes sufficient to complete its Panderbearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00185774806038118146noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1677826134041373974.post-713341953427335972012-05-24T07:30:00.000-05:002012-05-24T07:30:01.074-05:00Jimmy Carter on Religious Misogyny
President Jimmy Carter
"The truth is that male religious leaders have had -- and still have -- an option to interpret holy teachings either to exalt or subjugate women. They have, for their own selfish ends, overwhelmingly chosen the latter. Their continuing choice provides the foundation or justification for much of the pervasive persecution and abuse of women throughout the world."
Jimmy Panderbearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00185774806038118146noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1677826134041373974.post-13950651335398963882012-05-23T07:30:00.000-05:002012-05-23T07:30:04.956-05:00Truth Quotient Ratings - PoliticosPanderbear hasn't posted the "Truth Quotient (TQ) Ratings - Politicos" table in quite awhile. In part that's because the relative ratings haven't changed much. Truth-tellers and panderers alike have been pretty consistent. Also, with the Republican primary getting all the headlines, the Congressional leadership hasn't been getting much attention from the fact-check websites.
A few trends have Panderbearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00185774806038118146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1677826134041373974.post-12262160448589135572012-05-22T07:30:00.001-05:002012-05-22T07:30:01.550-05:00Equal Opportunity is a MythOne of the great conservative panders is that liberals want equal outcomes while conservatives want equal opportunity. The problem with this statement is not just that it is false, but that equal opportunity is both a myth and a practical impossibility.
One need only contemplate the disparity in income between men and women, the higher unemployment rates among minorities, Republican opposition Panderbearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00185774806038118146noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1677826134041373974.post-66032846408557792332012-05-21T07:30:00.001-05:002012-05-21T08:37:28.258-05:00Same-Sex Marriage Is WinningNate Silver in his FiveThirtyEight blog recently posted a chart showing a steady trend in national polling toward greater support for same-sex marriage. Panderbear recommends you read the original PollingReport.com report which provides a wealth of information on this topic including the data for Nate's chart.
Panderbear was born in an era when essentially 100% of homosexuals werePanderbearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00185774806038118146noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1677826134041373974.post-53354111355148570892012-05-18T07:30:00.000-05:002012-05-18T07:30:03.882-05:00Corporate America Controls Supreme CourtIn Supreme Court Hypocrisy Panderbear presented evidence that 4 of the 5 most conservative justices since 1937 are currently on the Supreme Court, part of the devastating legacy of Presidents Bush I and II. A study by the Constitutional Accountability Center shows that Corporate America controls the U.S. Supreme Court through its five conservative justice majority. Panderbear recommendsPanderbearhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00185774806038118146noreply@blogger.com0