sick bastards - go the fuck away already!

May 20th, 2006 6:43 pm
Parents upset over gym class run by Marine Corps recruiter

Associated Press

MADISON, Wis. - A high school principal admitted erring in letting a Marine Corps recruiter conduct a physical education class, but some parents said they remain concerned about the move they called a backdoor effort to recruit students.

School officials shouldn't have let the recruiter and other corps members conduct the classes, which one student said featured an obstacle course and members "screaming" at students "totally Marine-style," said principal Alan Harris of Madison's East High School.

"We made an error. We're going to act to ensure that it doesn't happen again," Harris said, who said "a handful of parents" contacted him about the class.

The classes were arranged through the school's physical education department by Marine recruiting Sgt. Frederick Hutchinson. About 600 East students from grades 9 through 12 participated in the classes May 11.

Representatives from the military, as well as prospective employers and college representatives, can visit high schools three times a year, according to Madison School Board policy.

At East, military recruiters can only visit when college representatives are also present and parents are notified in advance, said guidance counselor David Hoppe. He coordinates visits by the military and said he didn't know about the gym classes until afterward.

Harris said he'd remind all staff members and military recruiters of the district policy.

Participation in East's gym classes was voluntary and about 30 percent of students declined to participate, Harris said.

Those who did participate had to sign a Marines liability waiver, and the form included a place for interested students to provide their addresses and phone numbers.

The waiver forms, which state that participants "have full knowledge of the rigors" of the activities, should have been sent home to parents before the class, said Sgt. Roman Yurek, spokesman for the Marine recruiting station in Milwaukee. He said the forms the students filled out will be returned to the school Monday.

The Marines have conducted gym classes in about 10 schools in the Madison area, with each class usually run by four or five Marines including recruiters, Yurek said.

The recruiters might encourage students, perhaps telling them they'd make good Marines and should consider enlisting, he said.

Junior Allysa Roedl, 16, chose not to participate in the class. She said the Marines had students line up and do exercises such as push-ups and jumping jacks.

"They were walking around kind of screaming at them," she said. "It was totally Marine-style."

Mary Kay Baum, a former Madison School Board member whose son was in one of the classes, said the strategy was worrisome.

"I am generally concerned about regular education classes being conducted by persons with an agenda for recruiting youth," she said.

Disturbing, yet true and important

As Seen on Rense.com - Complete Article Here

The 14 Defining Characteristics Of Fascism
Free Inquiry
Spring 2003
5-11-3

Dr. Lawrence Britt has examined the fascist regimes of Hitler (Germany), Mussolini (Italy), Franco (Spain), Suharto (Indonesia) and several Latin American regimes. Britt found 14 defining characteristics common to each:

1. Powerful and Continuing Nationalism - Fascist regimes tend to make constant use of patriotic mottos, slogans, symbols, songs, and other paraphernalia. Flags are seen everywhere, as are flag symbols on clothing and in public displays.

2. Disdain for the Recognition of Human Rights - Because of fear of enemies and the need for security, the people in fascist regimes are persuaded that human rights can be ignored in certain cases because of "need." The people tend to look the other way or even approve of torture, summary executions, assassinations, long incarcerations of prisoners, etc.

3. Identification of Enemies/Scapegoats as a Unifying Cause - The people are rallied into a unifying patriotic frenzy over the need to eliminate a perceived common threat or foe: racial , ethnic or religious minorities; liberals; communists; socialists, terrorists, etc.

4. Supremacy of the Military - Even when there are widespread domestic problems, the military is given a disproportionate amount of government funding, and the domestic agenda is neglected. Soldiers and military service are glamorized.

5. Rampant Sexism - The governments of fascist nations tend to be almost exclusively male-dominated. Under fascist regimes, traditional gender roles are made more rigid. Divorce, abortion and homosexuality are suppressed and the state is represented as the ultimate guardian of the family institution.

6. Controlled Mass Media - Sometimes to media is directly controlled by the government, but in other cases, the media is indirectly controlled by government regulation, or sympathetic media spokespeople and executives. Censorship, especially in war time, is very common.

7. Obsession with National Security - Fear is used as a motivational tool by the government over the masses.

8. Religion and Government are Intertwined - Governments in fascist nations tend to use the most common religion in the nation as a tool to manipulate public opinion. Religious rhetoric and terminology is common from government leaders, even when the major tenets of the religion are diametrically opposed
to the government's policies or actions.

9. Corporate Power is Protected - The industrial and business aristocracy of a fascist nation often are the ones who put the government leaders into power, creating a mutually beneficial business/government relationship and power elite.

10. Labor Power is Suppressed - Because the organizing power of labor is the only real threat to a fascist government, labor unions are either eliminated entirely, or are severely suppressed.

11. Disdain for Intellectuals and the Arts - Fascist nations tend to promote and tolerate open hostility to higher education, and academia. It is not uncommon for professors and other academics to be censored or even arrested. Free expression in the arts and letters is openly attacked.

12. Obsession with Crime and Punishment - Under fascist regimes, the police are given almost limitless power to enforce laws. The people are often willing to overlook police abuses and even forego civil liberties in the name of patriotism. There is often a national police force with virtually unlimited power in fascist nations.

13. Rampant Cronyism and Corruption - Fascist regimes almost always are governed by groups of friends and associates who appoint each other to government positions and use governmental power and authority to protect their friends from accountability. It is not uncommon in fascist regimes for national resources and even treasures to be appropriated or even outright stolen by government leaders.

14. Fraudulent Elections - Sometimes elections in fascist nations are a complete sham. Other times elections are manipulated by smear campaigns against or even assassination of opposition candidates, use of legislation to control voting numbers or political district boundaries, and manipulation of the media. Fascist nations also typically use their judiciaries to manipulate or control elections.

google - you rock.

Instant GoogleAds seen at the bottom of Gannon/Guckert's weblog:

Meet Democratic Singles!

Free Instant Ordination!

Bush is Listening! www.dontblamemeIvotedforkerry.com<

Dates for Democrats! Meet Liberal Singles!

Now if that isn't the funniest thing I've seen today, I don't know what is!

Dad, you actually listen to this??

Michael Savage is a piece of shit. How he still has any following is beyond my comprehension. And even further, my Dad is one of his faithful listeners. My Dad, who's mother was Jewish, listens to this piece of shit anti-semitic bastard.
When I went out to San Diego to visit my family, we were in the car and Dad had on some total bullshit-sounding radio host who was yelling about stupid crap. Well it turned out to be Michael Savage. Grrr. Then I was suddenly overtaken with an urge to accidentally change the radio station. See, I've seen the books by him at Borders. I've read the excerpts from his bullshit radio program. I hadn't heard him yet, though. I wish I still hadn't. Have I mentioned how much I HATE these people??

...grumble grumble piece of shit grumble grumble...

silly poem I found when packing

Cable Arrggghhh!!!!!

Do you know why
I have no cable guy?
I'd like to see Channel Discovery-
But reception just ain't automatic.
Perhaps with that box
provided by Charter or Cox
I might bring forth some Order and Law...
Probably an episode I already saw.
Now though in my living space
that while I have forgone some cable
You'll find indeed that it is the case
I love the shows and watch when able.
So why not be one of the herd and subscribe?
The cost to me - personally - I would fear
to myself to be one of that box-lovin' tribe
Would be too high for my wallet each year.

dumpster diving for fun and profit

so I went into Borders to get boxes and newspapers. Dave said not to take all the boxes because an ex-co-worker was coming later to pick up boxes too. He should not have said who was coming later because what...a...bitch! So I took all the boxes just for spite. I remembered after I'd already headed next door for packing tape and markers and a card for Linda that I needed some newspaper too. It had all been tossed into the wet dumpster already. I headed round back and jumped up into that special green metal box that may have been home to many in years past, and scored HUGE. The rain hadn't gotten to all the papers, and I was in luck. So boxes, tape, newspapers, and certain joyful evil glee at thwarting Destiny* are mine, all mine!

*the actual name of this person, and no, I'm not kidding. Her entire employment at Borders was spent making all the supervisors' lives Hell, and at the time I was one of said supervisors. Talk about a stupid cow. She was very VERY Catholic, and dumb as a brick. She would get upset that we would expect her to work, and once or twice started shouting at me on the sales floor. I have no idea what it was about anymore, but man! I sure remember dreading working with the beeyotch. Damn, I'm petty, but damn it feels a little good. ;-)

Penn & Teller do it again. Woot!

...just because they rock.