A new “book” by radio talker Charlie Sykes has inspired Wisconsin’s lefty bloggers – and we are legion – to collaborate on this post. We are so technologically advanced that we were able to do it via the Internet, without even having an all-day meeting to try to reach consensus. Contributors include:
- Jim Rowen of The Political Enivronment
- Michael and Anne Mathias, of Pundit Nation
- Cory Liebman and Scot Ross of One Wisconsin Now
- Bill Christofferson and Steve Hanson of Uppity Wisconsin
- Jay Bullock of Folkbum's Rambles and Rants
- Joel McNally 1290 WMCS Radio
- Gretchen Schuldt of Milwaukee Rising
- and, of course, Waxing America.
Quite a distinguished group. Perhaps the most blog brainpower assembled since Thomas Jefferson blogged alone.
Sykes repackaged and expanded on a little schtick he started more than 10 years ago, with what was then called, Rules of Life for Teenagers. It ran as an The Urban Legends op ed column in 1996 with 14 rules, and now has grown to 50 – and a book, “50 Rules Kids Won’t Learn in School.”
Sykes’ rules, which will make you either groan or say “Duh!,” are getting predictably good reviews from Sykes’ fellow wingnut bloggers, for such “insightful” sayings as “Life isn’t fair; get used to it.” (Did he steal that one from Jimmy Carter?) (Soglin actually agreed with some of them in one of his posts. That tells you how good they are.)
If you must, here’s a website where you can find more of the 50 Rules. But you can stay right here and read 50+ Things You Won’t Hear on Talk Radio. You are welcome – nay, more than welcome, invited even – to add your own, in the comments section or by email.
1. Might does not make right.
2. Repetition doesn’t make anything right.
3. Ditto wishful thinking.
4. Ditto the size of your IQ.
5. Size only matters if you’re insecure.
6. Guns do kill people.
7. The rich get rich and the poor get poorer; it’s the Republican way.
8. You are your brother’s and sister’s keeper.
9. People don't choose to be poor, any more than they choose to be gay.
10. The Fairness Doctrine is not an “Equal Time” rule.
11. The economy is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the environment, not the other way around. – Gaylord Nelson.
12. When you go to war, God is not on anyone’s side.
13. Reagan raised taxes.
14. I'm sorry.
15. I was wrong.
16. I shouldn't have interrupted you.
17. Bill Clinton isn't still President.
18. George Bush made a mistake.
19. Gays are human beings.
20. The American public turned against the Vietnam war before the press did.
21. There were no weapons of mass destruction found in Iraq.
22. Saddam Hussein was not behind 9/11.
23. Abstinence programs don't stop teens from having sex.
24. Abortion is a choice best left to a woman and her doctor, not the government.
25. Prayer doesn't improve test scores.
26. You are not entitled to your own facts.
27. Joe Wilson didn't lie. Valerie Plame was covert.
28. Bill Clinton was incredibly popular.
29. Al Gore didn't say all those things you think he said.
30. Climate change is real.
31. Tax cuts don't increase revenue.
32. The Clinton Administration employed more women and minorities in top positions than the Bush administration.
33. Illegal immigrants commit fewer crimes than American citizens.
34. Universal health care is cheaper and of better quality in most Western nations than our "free market" approach in the US.
35. Compassionate Conservatism is neither.
36. When a poor person dies of hunger, it has not happened because God did not take care of him or her. It has happened because neither you nor I wanted to give that person what he or she needed. – Mother Teresa.
37. Blaming parents for their out of control teenagers may feel good but it does not lower homicide rates.
38. Iraq was not a breeding ground for Al Qaeda terrorists until the United States invaded.
39. No Democrat was ever caught fondling a FEMA director and saying, "You are doing a heckofa job Brownie."
40. Politicians should leave the science to the scientists.
41. Political scientists should learn that politics is not a science.
42. Medical decisions should be between doctors and patients, not between big insurance companies and their accountants.
43. Even people that I disagree with are innocent until proven guilty.
44. Being poor is not a character defect.
45. You didn’t grow up rich in the suburbs because you’re so smart. (You were born on third base; that doesn’t mean you hit a triple.)
46. Radio airwaves belong to the public; broadcasting on them is a privilege, not a right.
47. The greatest tragedy in mankind's history may be the hijacking of morality by fundamentalists.
48. The poor go to heaven, too.
49. In fact, it has been said that “it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”
50. Taxes are not inherently evil.
51. The US health care system really isn't the best in the world.
52. Dick Cheney is not omniscient.
53. The president really can't just do anything he damn well pleases. Even if he's a Republican.
54. The whole problem with the world is that fools and fanatics are always so certain of themselves, and wiser people so full of doubts. -- Bertrand Russell.
55. Gay marriage won't hurt your marriage.
56. Poverty causes social problems.
57. The Constitution mandates a separation between church and state.
58. The right to privacy is a constitutional guarantee.
59. Justice Scalia has expressly repudiated strict constructionism.
60. The U.S was founded not on Christian but on Enlightenment principles.
61. Bill Clinton was, at worst, slightly right of center.
62. It is not the critic who counts, not the man who points out how the strong man stumbled or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena… attributed to Theodore Roosevelt.
63. The United States is the only country in the world to have dropped nuclear bombs on a civilian population--twice.
64. Be a class act. Class seems to be inextricably related to kindness, consideration, and a general recognition of human worth. -- Roy Beers.
65. Being black in America is hard. It doesn’t just give you special privileges.
66. Being gay could not possibly be a choice since no child who ever heard the hatred tossed around playgrounds would ever choose it.
67. Living in poverty is hard work. It’s not for the lazy.
68. The truly conservative position on gay marriage would be to insist upon it.
69. We’re going to need all the immigrants we can get here to pay into Social Security to support the Baby Boomers in retirement.
70. Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
71. Blessed are the meek, for they shall possess the earth.
72. Blessed are they who mourn, for they shall be comforted.
73. Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after justice, for they shall be satisfied.
74. Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.
75. Blessed are the pure of heart, for they shall see God.
76. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God.
77. Blessed are they that suffer persecution for justice' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
78. Whatever you do to the least of my brethren, you do it to me.
79. If we really want to love, we must learn how to forgive.
And finally, a few of local interest to Sykes & Company:
80. Really -- hair is supposed to move!
81. Jessica McBride is not a journalist.
82. Midnight fireworks can backfire.
83. Paul Bucher has never been a judge, not even for one day.
84. There isn't an endless supply of petroleum hidden beneath the Earth's crust in Alaska to fuel automobiles for 5,000 years.
85. Civilization will still be around in 5,000 years (unless we all hitch a ride to some distant solar system) and require transportation (unless we devolve).
Posted by: Dan Sebald | August 13, 2007 at 11:05 PM
Straw dogs should only be used as topiary.
Posted by: montreal | August 16, 2007 at 10:55 AM