This past weekend the feds conducted raids in three states targeting the Hutaree militia group. These guys are Christian survivalist extremists, "Preparing for the end time battles to keep the testimony of Jesus Christ alive". They believe the Anti-Christ walks among us, that kind of thing. Nevermind that as I understand it, if the Anti-Christ is walking among us, that means the rapture has already happened, which means "You Lose".

Other militia groups want nothing to do with these guys apparently, so they've definitely at least won the Nutjob Arms Race.

Anyway, I found their site and they had a training video posted on the front page:

That's right, they're Sisters of Mercy fans! Of course, they think it's "weird 80's music from Germany", but still, that's the greatest thing I've seen. I wish it was Pet Shop Boys, or Erasure, but this will definitely do nicely.

I'm sure that video won't be sticking around YouTube for too long, but I did download it locally, so if it goes away, I can always put it back.

This is the DUMBEST argument against "public option" healthcare I've ever heard, and I've been hearing it more and more, even in such Lieburul Hotspots as NPR:

"CNSNews.com
With 50 Million New Patients Possible, Nation Needs More Primary Care Doctors"

On the one hand, these mouthbreathing fucking cretins challenge us to show them "a SINGLE American who ever went bankrupt because of medical bills", well, that was easily disproved, hell, I personally know a couple of people who came close to losing it all. People are denied care all. the. time, and many who get treatment are denied payment for the care they receive.

Now they're saying that since there are 50MM uninsured, if we suddenly insure these people it will be disastrous for the country because we'll run out of doctors. Right now, if these people get sick with an acute illness, they can go to an emergency room at their local "hospital of last resort". They must be treated for serious illnesses, then the hospitals chalk it up as "money someone should pay us sometime". The money that gets paid is generally in the form of the taxpayers paying the hospital. That system works great for "gunshot wound", but does not work for "colon cancer" or "congratulations, you've got diabetes". What it does do is encourage people to use ERs as PCPs. This stretches ERs limits.

What they're really saying is "These people are too poor/stupid to have medical insurance, therefore they don't deserve medical treatment, and should die". That is not "oversimplified" or "out of context". What they're saying is, "If you can't afford or are denied medical insurance on the basis of 'pre-existing conditions', you should not see a doctor, and you may die". After all, the claim is that if these unwashed masses suddenly had insurance, the healthcare system as we know it would collapse, because suddenly poor people and sick people can visit doctors for free.

Assholes. Staying alive is not a privilege. Where's your "right to life" now? What about the right-to-life of the worker who loses his job and can't afford COBRA, or COBRA runs out before he gets a new job? What's that? Fuck him? Ok, thought so, thanks for clearing that up.

This is the saddest thing I saw all day. I really can't think of a more appropriate way for things to play out though. Dying to protect his tiny piece of rock, protecting it from someone who really loved him, but wanted to take his rock away.

I remember very little about that book because I never really read it when I was a little kid. I was way too damaged, and I probably still am. But that story sums up a lot about warring over politics.

Also, if the German had held up, it could have easily been "95 year old French author shoots down superfan".