(no subject)

Got some much needed chores and errands done last night by cutting out of work a tiny bit early. It feels very nice to be caught up on at least laundry at this point, especially as this weekend is booked rather solid. Nice solid, but still solid.

Had a chance to finally watch "The Constant Gardener" which was every bit as good as I'd been led to believe. Ralph Fiennes was superb in an understated, gut wrenching performance. I was a basketcase by the end, sobbing so hard Pye actually came over to sit on top of the futon and mew at me all concerned. He didn't let me out of his sight for the rest of the evening, it was adorable.

Also watched Lost which was...interesting. I don't think I've quite finished digesting what's been revealed about the Others yet. Although, once more I really found myself wanting to smack Claire a lot. She really gets on my nerves quickly when they focus on her for too long. She's just such an immature brat sometimes, and I don't tend to find that terribly appealing. And Locke, daddy issues ahoy! Again, comments may be spoilerific so avoid if you haven't seen it yet.

Throw your hands in the air

And wave 'em like you just don't care! Ride that ratings freight train straight down into the bowels of the earth:

As we all know, the media is rampant with sycophantic, corporate shills and can't be trusted to deliver a pizza. But an intersting trend is developing that ought to shake their confidence in the suck-up school of journalism.

The just released February ratings (pdf) for cable news networks tell a tale that is decidedly downbeat for Fox News, the leader in propaganda programming. In a comparison with February 2005, the numbers for every network are up except for Fox.

And a falafel-loving gas bag shall lead them...Heh, it must just eat him alive to know that Olbermann's ratings keep going up and up while his head for the shit can.

Hey give 'em a few points for honesty

TBogg points to this piece straight out of that bastion of morality, Utah:

Incest is no exception to a father's right to know what's going on in his daughter's life.
That was the message from Utah lawmakers who refused Monday to make an exception for incest victims in a proposed law that would require parental consent and notification before a girl's abortion.

"There is a life inside of this life. And how that life is taken care of is very important to me," said Sen. Darin Peterson, R-Nephi.

Current Utah law - which was adopted in 1974 - requires doctors to notify a girl's parents before ending her pregnancy. HB85, sponsored by Ogden Republican Rep. Kerry Gibson and Peterson, would change state code to require doctors to get at least one parent's permission 24 hours before the procedure. Doctors could proceed without consent in medical emergencies or to protect the health of the mother.

The bill would allow girls to ask a judge to bypass the parental consent requirement if she fears abuse or is pregnant as a result of incest. At the same time, the legislation still would require a doctor to notify a girl's parents of the abortion, effectively nullifying the judicial bypass.

[...]

Conservative senators said the legislation is a test of their morals.

West Jordan Republican Sen. Chris Buttars scoffed at McCoy's suggestion that the legislation might force teens to other states for abortions or into their bathrooms to attempt the procedure on themselves.

"Abortion isn't about women's rights. The rights they had were when they made the decision to have sex," Buttars said. "This is the consequences. The consequence is they should have to talk to their parents."

Yes you read that correctly, flat, straight out, no holds barred pregnancy is a punishment for being a dirty, dirty whore. And there, gentle readers, is the entire crux of the pro-life movement. Even if that sex was forced upon her by her father, the girl still needs to be punished...presumably for tempting the old guy into it with her filthy feminine wiles. Remind me again how these assholes differ from the Taliban?

Oh, speaking of which, check out this charming little story about a merry bunch of thugs calling themselves the Christians Lovingly Advocating Decency [CLAD] (the hypocrisy, it burns!). And check out how they "lovingly" harassed, vandalized and terrorized some women whose only crime was to not consider their own bodies steaming cesspits of sin and depravity.