February 22, 2015

"The narrative is we have a chance to elect the first woman as president of the United States, something I think we should have done a long time ago."

"I just don’t think it should be Hillary Clinton. There’s a lot of other women I can think of in the Republican Party who would be a much better alternative to that and some day will be. But if it’s a narrative like that, I think we run into trouble. If we shift the narrative, and I think, Hillary Clinton, you even saw with this story, with her book tour, the statements about her and Bill being broke when they came out of the White House. …You see the size of the fees she’s asking universities and colleges to pay, when you look at some of the other things, when she talks about not having driven a car in all those years, I get why that’s true, but it’s why I like to get on my Harley Davidson… every once in a while to drive myself and not have someone else do it for me. I just think those are all things that penetrate this out of touch persona. And to me to win I think the argument has got to be change it from a narrative of two personalities to Hillary Clinton represents Washington."

Said Scott Walker, on the important question of how the GOP candidate plans — or is willing to say he plans — to defeat the presumptive Democratic candidate, Hillary Clinton.

This quote comes from the same event where Walker refused to comment on the secret contents of Barack Obama's heart after Rudy Giuliani proclaimed that Obama doesn't "love America." The event — I'm just seeing this now — was supposedly intended to be off the record, but — per Politico — "that request wasn’t made to POLITICO and other reporters attending the dinner until after he’d already begun speaking."

Obviously, the candidates have to assume that anything said at a sizable event like this — a big dinner at the 21 Club — will leak out. In fact, the very thing that is most useful to your opponents is likely to come out and get even more attention because you seem to be speaking confidentially to a subgroup in terms suitable only for them. To illustrate my point in the previous sentence, I need only show you the tiniest shorthand: bitter clingers and 47%.

I'm pretty sure Scott Walker knows all that. He was annealed by that prank phone that — as he sees it — was a "stay humble" message from God. You know, some people believe that God is watching and listening to everything you do and say. For them, nothing is ever off the record. I don't know if Scott Walker believes that. Who knows what somebody else really believes? People are also talking about Walker's "I don't know" answer the question whether Obama is a Christian, and his answer is some evidence that he believes religion is what's on the inside of the human mind. I don't know if he really believes that. But I suspect that he's gone to church enough to have heard that Jesus was not impressed by outward appearances of religious belief.

I see I've gone off track. I'm not as doggedly on message as Scott Walker... perhaps because I have no message... and, also unlike Scott Walker, I don't think of myself as a receiver of messages, not from God — Psst, Althouse, please give some subtle assistance to My humble servant, Scott Walker — and not from the human beings in my real-world-Madison-Wisconsin context — Althouse, we will ruin your goddamn career, your comfort, your pocketbook, your sense of safety and wellbeing, and your life....

The subject is, among other things, how Scott Walker will oppose Hillary Clinton, how he will "penetrate this out of touch persona," as he put it, using a verb that's just asking for an attack from feminists who lurk in the alleyways of the internet, waiting for a Republican to utter a phallocratic word.

179 comments:

Troubled Voter said...

Scott Walker on a Harley Davidson is the least cool thing imaginable. It's even sadder that he thinks it's cool. The second-hand embarrassment is making me cringe.

Heartless Aztec said...

God bless Scott Walker - and I'm not even a Christian per se other than culturally.

Bob said...

Did you mean tempered instead of annealed? Annealing softens steel so it can be worked, tempering brings steel to the final hardness it needs to be an efficient tool.

PB said...

God help us from "breakthru" token candidates like Obama and Hillary.

I wish we didn't have to listen to candidates drone on for months, but voted based on their answer to 10 written questions where the identity of the candidate wasn't revealed until after we voted.

Ann Althouse said...

"Scott Walker on a Harley Davidson is the least cool thing imaginable. It's even sadder that he thinks it's cool. The second-hand embarrassment is making me cringe."

You are revealing something of what's in your head. Walker never asserted that riding a Harley Davidson is cool. You inferred that. What made you do that, your own insecurities about your masculinity or nerdiness?

Walker said he likes to ride his Harley as a way to stay in touch with the real world and real life, unlike Hillary Clinton who always rides in a car and it's a car that she doesn't even drive.

Do you really think people who spend hours and hours driving across the mostly underpopulated American landscapes are trying to show off that they are cool, or is it possible that these people love the feeling of freedom and the challenge of exposure to the elements and to danger?

ELC said...

Does anything ever "leak" from private Democratic functions?

Ann Althouse said...

"Did you mean tempered instead of annealed? Annealing softens steel so it can be worked, tempering brings steel to the final hardness it needs to be an efficient tool."

I like the word "anneal," perhaps because it begins with "Ann."

According to the OED, anneal means "To subject to the action of fire; to alter in any way with heat; as, to ‘fire’ or bake earthenware, fuse ores, vitrify or glaze a surface.... To toughen anything, made brittle from the action of fire, by exposure to continuous and slowly diminished heat, or by other equivalent process" and, figuratively, "To toughen, temper."

1813   Scott Rokeby i. xxxi. 46   To press the rights of truth, The mind to strengthen and anneal.
1842   B. Simmons in Blackwood's Mag. 52 401   Indomitable will Anneals those limbs to warrior purpose still.

Laslo Spatula said...

I believe Walker's people realize that combining "Hillary" in any context with a possibly sexualized word such as 'penetrate' causes many to reflexively recoil at the thought, and, by extension, at Hillary.

Other phrases that they may have tested:

'prick Hillary's conscience'

'ream Hillary's law career'

'fingering Hillary's body of work'

'attacking Hillary's truth through the back door'

'felching on Hillary's promises'

and

'gang-banging Hillary's inner circle'


I am Laslo.

Curious George said...

"Troubled Voter said...
Scott Walker on a Harley Davidson is the least cool thing imaginable. It's even sadder that he thinks it's cool. The second-hand embarrassment is making me cringe."

First, you have never seen garage hmahal in his I Tappa Kegga t-shirt. Second, why do you think Scott Walker on a Harley is so embarrassing?

I bet you can't make a good argument. Can you.

kzookitty said...

PB said...
God help us from "breakthru" token candidates like Obama and Hillary.


Here's my vote for a token candidate: Japanese Personal Attendant Robot.

kzookitty

rhhardin said...

Perfecting landings is the most interesting thing you can do with an airplane. Base at a small airport that won't be bothered by you doing it for hours at a time.

It isn't, however, cool. Just a coming-together of a lot of elements so that you always land at the same spot at the same speed in the same way.

The changing variable that you compensate for is wind.

I must have done 10,000 of them.

Cut the power on downwind and always hit the same spot.

If your fantasy, as it turns out to have been a lot, that your wife and kids will want to go places, you discover they won't. There's always landing practice.

tim in vermont said...

A complete recantation of all lies about #wiunion (not lies in leagalese – lies in the commonsense moral

It looks like that part got mangled, but it is refreshing finally to see them admit out loud, even if they did delete it, that their definition of "to lie" is "to disagree."


Harley Davidson is a Wisconsin company. FWIW

Rusty said...

Except that today "anneal" means to draw out the temper in steel and make it soft enough to work. Steel is "tempered" to a certain hardness.
Bob is correct.
The OED is a great source, but it doesn't do this for a living.

SomeoneHasToSayIt said...


I like Carly Fiorina quite a bit.

For her views and principles.

Couldn't care less that she is female.
Matters not.

rhhardin said...

The trouble with women Presidents is that they don't really like economics, and we have a huge economics problem.

No woman will do the right thing.

MadisonMan said...

Althouse needs an annual annealing anniversary announcement.

tim in vermont said...

If people who are "not cool" are not allowed to ride Harleys, we are going to have to confiscate a large number of them. My brother in law comes to mind immediately. But since he is a reliable Democrat vote in Florida, (Though he has said that he would vote for Jeb Bush based on the job he did there) I guess we will let him keep his.

Anonymous said...

Althouse, we will ruin your goddamn career, your comfort, your pocketbook, your sense of safety and wellbeing, and your life....

That was a disgusting and vile attack against you, especially coming from an organization.

Were you ever able to find out exactly which labor union it was that wrote that? (Being labeled "union" thuggery, obviously you traced it back to a group rather than just one person.)

tim in vermont said...

As a kid I remember that my dad had "annealed wire." It was soft and very bendable.

Anonymous said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
tim in vermont said...

Because of their extensive, lifelong, union freeloading ...

MADISON IS A #WIUNION CITY AND WE ARE MADISON.

Pay your damn dues, you Union Freeloading pieces of shit

madisonfella, you are probably right that this is not official union activity sanctioned in some open meeting by leadership and/or voted on by the members.

Just like the violent protesters in the capitol were *not part* of the capitol protests.

Good luck with that line of rhetoric. I am sure it will sell nationally.

tim in vermont said...

We have all read Alinsky now. This tactic of playing by one set of rules and holding the other side to another higher set of rules doesn't play anymore.

dreams said...

"I like Carly Fiorina quite a bit.

For her views and principles.

Couldn't care less that she is female.
Matters not."

She is a failed CEO. I like her political views too but she wouldn't get my vote. Meg Whitman is a successful CEO at two different companies but I'd only vote for her if she was the Republican nominee and she isn't running..

B said...

After the 47% mess, assuming nothing said in a speech is off the record.

rhhardin said...

Artificial annealing is a search technique for good solutions of some system or another.

You start with a high chance of accepting worse solutions than you have, and end with a low chance of accepting worse solutions than you already have, corresponding respectively to heating and slow cooling.

dreams said...

"After the 47% mess, assuming nothing said in a speech is off the record."

Got to be careful when speaking the truth.

Jane the Actuary said...

My pet theory is that, as with the UK and Germany, our "first woman" will come from the Republican Party, not the Democrats.

Second thought: if Walker has realized that there's never anything that's truly "off the record" or "closed to the press," good for him.

Third: oh, yes, the media will be hammering that Hillary is Goodness itself and any insinuation otherwise is just deranged Republican hate of her and her husband. They can't claim it's racism, and don't even seem to claim it's sexism, it's just inexplicably deranged.

I mean, come on, right and center-right blogs are reporting on the Clinton Foundation ties to Middle East donors who sure seem to think they'll get something for their investment, and all CNN can talk about is Rudy's statement?

lemondog said...

Scott Walker on a Harley

Hillary Clinton near a Harley

Well at least she is trying but at 67 years old if she ever gets on a Harley........,

Diogenes of Sinope said...

STEVE KROFT: You don’t believe that Senator Obama’s a Muslim?

HILLARY CLINTON: Of course not. I mean that’s, you know, that, there is no basis for that. You know, I take him on the basis of what he says, and, you know, there isn’t any reason to doubt that.

KROFT: You said you take Sen. Obama at his word that he’s not a Muslim…

CLINTON: Right, right..

KROFT: …you don’t believe that he’s a Muslim.

CLINTON: No! No! Why would I? There’s nothing to base that on. As far as I know.

"As far as I know"?

Ann Althouse said...

"Except that today "anneal" means to draw out the temper in steel and make it soft enough to work. Steel is "tempered" to a certain hardness. Bob is correct."

No, I am right. I've checked other dictionaries, such as my American Heritage Dictionary, and it's the same as the OED (but shorter).

You may be thinking of some special applied usage in steel manufacturing, but the term originates in pottery and the figurative use is to strengthen or toughen and "temper" is present in the dictionary definitions.

Sorry, "anneal" is a great word and I'm not going to let you push me back on that.

Ann Althouse said...

And "temper" is a worse word choice here because it can mean to made more moderate. Why don't you temper your remarks?

Michael K said...

"Meg Whitman is a successful CEO at two different companies but I'd only vote for her if she was the Republican nominee and she isn't running"

California had the same chance the US had with Romney when she was a candidate for governor. The Democrats managed to find a former maid that was illegal and had falsified her information to use as a club and the LIVs of California followed them off the cliff. Unlike Illinois, it is not yet obvious that California bankrupt.

"Troubled voter" is obviously an LIV looking for an excuse.

chickelit said...

@Bob: Don't be a fly in the annointment!

Bob Ellison said...

Glassworkers anneal finished pieces by cooling them deliberately slowly. This makes the glass more durable and less likely to shatter.

Bricap said...

Fiorina was a bad CEO for sure -

Spinning off Agilent

Overpaying for Compaq

Huge increase in HP stock price after she was canned.

But she sure did well for herself.

Laslo Spatula said...

Anneal before Zod.

I am Laslo.

SomeoneHasToSayIt said...

dreams said...

She is a failed CEO. I like her political views too but she wouldn't get my vote.


That harsh assessment assumes she 'failed' at HP primarily due to some inadequacies inherent in herself. I reject that. HP was in a near impossible economic situation. A sea change in technology. She did as well as anyone could.

She would have my vote and support.

A Walker/Fiorina ticket would also be quite nice. A potential 16 years of cleansing goodness.

Are we yet collectively smart enough to save the Republic? I wonder.

Anonymous said...

We have a chance to elect the first woman as president of the United States.
OK.
Hillary Clinton or Carly Fiorina or how about a former Democrat, a persecuting attorney, who converted to being Republican, who has won the Governorship of a DEEP BLUE state (New Mexico) and then won re-election by almost the same percentage of votes as she was originally elected in 2010, namely GOV. SUSANA MARTINEZ?
a relative and some friends who reside in NM have all told me that Gov. Martinez is one of the best things to happen to New Mexico - brought some fiscal sanity to a state which the Dems had overloaded with debt and taxes, opened up the market place to bid for government contract work and is not only a Woman, but an Hispanic-American Woman (born to LEGAL immigrants in El Paso Texas) so the GOP would get a two-fer: woman and Hispanic American.

chickelit said...

I saw Carly Fiorina the other day on C-span. She was engaging to the point of distraction. She got screwed by California in that 2008 Senate election. I predict she'll be back one day, perhaps soon.

SGT Ted said...

Scott Walker on a Harley Davidson is the least cool thing imaginable. It's even sadder that he thinks it's cool. The second-hand embarrassment is making me cringe.

This says more about you than Scott Walker.

s'opihjerdt said...

I have a dream that one day people will be judged by the content of their character, not the content of their underpants.

chickelit said...

@realwest: Yes, yes, and yes. But NM is still electorally very small compared to CA.

Laslo Spatula said...

"I have a dream that one day people will be judged by the content of their character, not the content of their underpants."

With Hillary it Depends.


I am Laslo.

cubanbob said...

Scott Walker on a Harley Davidson is the least cool thing imaginable. It's even sadder that he thinks it's cool. The second-hand embarrassment is making me cringe."

That anyone would vote for that grifter is making me cringe.

pm317 said...

Hillary's time was 2008 and the Democrats fucked it up royally. And they could have had both a female and a black president if they had done it right. But no, they are not that smart or maybe they knew Obama would not last that kind of long scrutiny.

pm317 said...

"simulated annealing" is a heuristic technique used for optimization.

mezzrow said...

"With Hillary it Depends."

Some of your best work, Laslo. Less is more. Thread winner, this.

tim in vermont said...

KROFT: …you don’t believe that he’s a Muslim.

CLINTON: No! No! Why would I? There’s nothing to base that on. As far as I know.


If anybody could find Hillary, we could badger her at every stop until she "explains" her comment? Was she in the room when she said it?

hombre said...

"You know, some people believe that God is watching and listening to everything you do and say. For them, nothing is ever off the record."

The Biblical God of the Christians and the Jews is omnipotent, omniscient and omnipresent.

The god of Dawkins, Hitchings, the Episcopalians and Congregationalists and, most likely, Barack Obama, is considerably smaller.

SGT Ted said...

The idea that we *must* elect a woman President, simply because she possesses a vag, is a moronic and sexist idea.

It presumes that the presidency should just yet another affirmative action hire to make people *feel* better about themselves, which is how we wound up with President Golfpants McBullshit the Incompetent.

If the first woman President comes from the Progressives Afffirmative Action Committtee, she will fail just as miserably.

It won't be Hillary. She is a horrid candidate that cannot hide her contempt for average Americans that don't vote based on genitalia.

Michael K said...

I just don't think of Fiorina as that appealing. Condi Rice may decide to run for the Boxer Senate seat and is, rather a surprise, leading California polls. She would be a good VP in doing what Biden was supposed to do. She would give some foreign policy gravitas although I was not that fond of her as Sec State.

Walker will get lots of advice and has a way to go yet before making such decisions.

lemondog said...

That anyone would vote for that grifter is making me cringe.

Hillary?

Meade said...

"corresponding respectively to heating and slow cooling"

Clinton has been doing a slow burn since 2008.
Walker has been slowly cooling since 2011.

dreams said...

"The US media have had a fit of the vapors over Rudy Giuliani's suggestion that Barack Obama does not love America. As the Instapundit says, their reaction suggests that Giuliani hit a nerve."

I agree and though I can't see inside Althouse's heart, I think she was also offended by Giuliani suggestion.

http://www.steynonline.com/6820/o-beautiful-for-specious-guys

SGT Ted said...

Unions have been freeloading off of the wages of their workers and the American taxpayer long enough. It's time to reduce their influence.

Unions have dug their own grave with their self serving labor monopoly bullshit, their violent bullying of dissenters and by financially destroying the companies that they organized.

If unions had done a better job at not alienating the average Joe with their thuggery and bullying ways, they'd be plenty strong.

I had a better view of unions when I was young and naïve. 30 years of observing vile union behavior has turned me against them 100%.

SGT Ted said...

If Obama ACTED like he loved his country, I would think that he DID love his country.

Anonymous said...

you are probably right that this is not official union activity

And yet Ann is trying to paint the picture as if it is.

As you said, obviously she is using Alinsky-style tactics and methods that are underhanded and dirty (b-b-b-because THEY did it first) but as long as the ends justify the means you'll continue to cheer her on.

Diogenes of Sinope said...

Who made the rule that questioning a candidates patriotism and or love of our country is off limits?

tim in vermont said...

madisonfella,

I will continue to cheer Scott Walker on as long as his enemies are as dishonest as you appear to be. Tru dat.

As for Althouse, I appreciate what she does, but I suspect our politics are far different. I could never have voted for Obama the first time.

lemondog said...

The Giuliani-Walker controversy has hit the Philadelphia area early morning local news.....

I assume this trifle has some legs to go.

Anonymous said...

30 years of observing vile union behavior has turned me against them 100%.

Some of my lefty friends feel the same way about the military. They observe the rapes and the murders and the torture and the bloated budget and the graft, making them think that is what makes up the entire organization.

Kind of sad when extremists, on both sides, start hating entire groups due to the actions of a few individuals. And yes, if you can't see even 1% good in a union and/or the military then you are an extremist.

dreams said...

"Clinton has been doing a slow burn since 2008.
Walker has been slowly cooling since 2011."

Then Walker as President might good for global warming, lets all vote for him, lets do it for our country, lets do it for the environment.

Anonymous said...

Annealing is a better fit here than temper. Annealing reduces defects.

@rhhardin - may be you mean simulated annealing (which reduces defects as well)

rhhardin said...

The fire that melts lead tempers steel.

Anonymous said...

I will continue to cheer Scott Walker on as long as his enemies are as dishonest as you appear to be

You keep making that accusation yet when asked for links to these alleged lies you refuse to provide any. Sounds like you're a follower of Alinksy yourself.

Is there anyone on this blog who is not in favor of Scott Walker that you don't find to be dishonest?

Gabriel said...

Exactly what effect annealing has on a material depends on what it is and what condition it's in. Annealing is a process, not a result; it can make materials harder or softer, durable or less so, brittle or soft.

The use I always made of it in my work was to get fewer defects in my crystals. In my hobbies it was to soften up brass and copper after working them had made them brittle.

Gabriel said...

@Diogenes:Who made the rule that questioning a candidates patriotism and or love of our country is off limits?

Democrats in the press made it for Republicans in politics.

rhhardin said...

@rhhardin - may be you mean simulated annealing (which reduces defects as well)

It has nothing with defects, just allows you go get from one hill to a better one while not giving up hill climbing entirely.

Temperature is analogized as allowing worse solutions to be tried, as a sort of energy surplus.

But if you keep that up, you don't get anywhere. You also need to settle down on the hill you wind up on.

hoyden said...

Contrast Walker on a Harley with Obama on a bicycle.

Paul said...

Well we elected the first 'black' president, a democrat, and you see how that turned out...

Yea, if you do elect a woman this time, PLEASE DON'T ELECT A DEMOCRAT.

Anne in Rockwall, TX said...

Having followed your threats tag from the original #wiunion post, I found the one about Chad Lee and Kyle Wood. Has anything ever come of that kerfluffle?

dreams said...


"Well we elected the first 'black' president, a democrat, and you see how that turned out...

Yea, if you do elect a woman this time, PLEASE DON'T ELECT A DEMOCRAT."

Yeah, that might be the coup de grâce.

chickelit said...

Paul said...

Yea, if you do elect a woman this time, PLEASE DON'T ELECT A DEMOCRAT.

That was precisely my point in a blog post called Towards Equality And Understanding

dreams said...

As to annealed, I think some of you are being too esoteric.

SGT Ted said...

They observe the rapes and the murders and the torture and the bloated budget and the graft, making them think that is what makes up the entire organization.

The fatal flaw in your sorry attempt at moral equivalence is that the Military prosecutes rapists and murderers and true torturers and their budget is what the Civilian leadership gives them.

The Unions deliberately bully and harass dissenter and are politically corrupt and reward those that do so.

Your lefty friends hate the Military because they hate the USA in a fundamental way and think only rednecks and bubbas love their country.

They say they "love the troops" but that's bullshit too and they reveal their true hearts when movies like American Sniper drive them into a frenzy of anti-American military bigotry for not portraying military service in a bad light.

I could give a shit about their poseur bullshit. Your lefty friends have never loved America; they love Europeans style soft fascism/socialist States and they vote for it every time they can.

wendybar said...

"After the 47% mess, assuming nothing said in a speech is off the record."

"Got to be careful when speaking the truth."

And Rudy Giuliani was speaking the truth.....Progressives just can't handle the truth.

SGT Ted said...

The good that unions provided was 100 years ago.

They aren't doing that anymore, but maintaining their corrupt political Empire and Monopoly.

Anonymous said...

Chickelit is concerned that New Mexico doesn't have a large number of electoral votes and I do understand that. But I thought nominating Sen. Obama was dumb because, frankly, Blacks were going to vote Democrat virtually all the time.
The major point I was trying to make is that IF we are going to vote on a candidate's gender, then we put Hillary up and ask about what she has done for the USA during her career -"name one accomplishment" for which I have difficulty answering. But, again, IF we are going to have a Woman POTUS "because its time we did" then why not someone like Gov. Susana Martinez? She was a prosecuting attorney, then was elected Gov. of NM, and re-elected Gov. of NM by a 54% or so margin each time she was elected in a deep BLUE state. What has Susana Martinez done for the USA? Well, first she was a prosecuting attorney, then she actually GOVERNED A STATE - you know,had to prepare budgets, that sort of thing AND is intimately familiar with the immigration situation, Governor of a "Border State". And she did that as a Republican. She did that governing SO WELL that she was re-elected Governor in 2014. It would appear to me that, since we are talking about a Female as POTUS, Gov. Martinez has actual experience in governance, planning and budgeting.

Diogenes of Sinope said...

Democrats question, no not question, Democrats continuously state as a matter of fact, that Republicans have evil motives. Democrats state Republicans want to have people, women, children and minorities in particular paid less, abused, starved, uneducated, sexually abused and on and on and on.

tim in vermont said...

Is there anyone on this blog who is not in favor of Scott Walker that you don't find to be dishonest?

I don't think Robert Cook is dishonest. I think he is mightily misguided and maybe should spend a little time abroad in Venezuela and Cuba.

I don't think ARM is dishonest. I think he is more like the fish that doesn't know he is in water and is naturally protecting his rice bowl.

I don't think garage is dishonest. I think his technique has far more to do with non-sequiturs and conversation disruption and certainly defensive of his rice bowl.

You, on the other hand, are trying to split hairs in a vain attempt to mask a larger truth, which is that Walker is blessed by his enemies.

steve uhr said...

Am I the only one sick of the word "narrative?" Seems to be the word of choice for conservatives these days.

David said...

Lemon Dog, great photo of Hillary "near a Harley."

You can bet that orange jumpsuit has been retired now that ISIS has emerged.

Big Mike said...

I think that Scott Walker's on to something very important, and overlooked by most commentators on this thread. Living here in the Washington metropolitan area I meet way too many people whose attitudes about what's best for the people they regulate is in no way informed by exposure to said people. The only exposure to the folks whose lives they disrupt is purely theoretical. I'm talking about folks who want to regulate farmers, but who've never been closer to a farm than 6 miles above the rural areas in flyover country. I'm talking about people who want to regulate logging, but would cut themselves to smithereens if they ever picked up a chain saw. I think there's value in meeting the people you propose govern, to talk to them person to person instead of ex cathedra to the peasantry. It would be good if more politicians from both parties did a lot more of it. It would be good if any Democrat politicians did any of it.

Anonymous said...

I will continue to cheer Scott Walker on as long as his enemies are as dishonest as you appear to be

You keep making that accusation yet when asked for links to these alleged lies you refuse to provide any.

You just implied I'm the only dishonest person on this blog, so it should be pretty easy for you to find examples.

madAsHell said...

Well at least she is trying but at 67 years old if she ever gets on a Harley........

It would be the most exciting thing she's had between her legs in a long time.

dreams said...

"Am I the only one sick of the word "narrative?" Seems to be the word of choice for conservatives these days."

Because its the perfect word to describe the liberal media, they care about their preferred narrative not the facts.

mikesixes said...

Anneal, as technical jargon, does indeed have to do with softening metal. But the fact that manufacturing engineers and metallurgists have appropriated a word for technical use in their field doesn't mean the rest of the world has to cede the word to them.

bbkingfish said...

Sounds like Scotty might be considering surgery.

Anonymous said...

The good that unions provided was 100 years ago

All the issues that workers have to deal with were completely solved 100 years ago?

There are no longer any safety issues at any work sites? Everyone is being paid fairly? No company in America has cheated or abused any worker in the last 100 years?

This isn't just rhetorical speech for you, rather you really do believe that the only thing any union has done in the past 100 years is deliberately bully and harass others?

No doubt about it - you're just as much of an extremists as those who hate the military. (But they support the troops! Just like you hate the unions but support the workers, right?)

MathMom said...

"The trouble with women Presidents is that they don't really like economics, and we have a huge economics problem."

I disagree. Research the improvement in Alaska's economic health because of Palin's governorship.

Not all women go freaky when they get a credit card. Palin actually put Alaska in a very strong fiscal position because of her ability to resist spending like a drunken sailor. She actually bought her clothing at a resale shop in Anchorage, as a Governor. That says something about dealing with an econonics problem, IMHO.

Michael K said...

"when asked for links to these alleged lies"

Your comments, and those of garage would be a start.

I'm still chuckling at the obsession of the lefty media on whether Walker thinks Obama is a "Christian."

Fernandinande said...

Rusty said...
Except that today "anneal" means to draw out the temper in steel and make it soft enough to work.
The OED is a great source, but it doesn't do this for a living.


4 of 4 "regular" dictionaries agree with Ann and disagree with you, e.g.

1. To subject (glass or metal) to a process of heating and slow cooling in order to toughen and reduce brittleness.
2. To strengthen or harden.
v.intr.
To become strengthened or hardened.

(Metallurgy) to temper or toughen (something) by heat treatment

Michael K said...

"you really do believe that the only thing any union has done in the past 100 years is deliberately bully and harass others?"

First, we have to separate private sector and public sector employee unions. Second, police and firemen unions have more to do with safety these days, which is one reason why Walker exempted them.

The private sector unions, like craft unions, are still appropriate, especially if they have apprenticeship programs like the one my nephew completed (After his college graduation).

The industrial unions, like the Autoworkers who destroyed the US auto industry, are past their date of usefulness.

The public employee unions are experts at bullying and harassment.

Michael said...

Walker is looking like a hard man to lay a glove on. He manages to make his point and drive the Left bananas without really saying anything that the classic "reasonable person" will find objectionable. Sooner or later his critics start sounding like hysterics. If he can keep this up he may just continue to rise as everyone else peaks and drops away.

Scott said...

Carly Fiorina was a "bad CEO" only if you think that a CEO's responsibility is to make everybody happy and not lay anybody off. Yet what she did in the short time she was at HP enabled the company to survive and the shareholders to retain their equity. She was fired because she risked pissing people off to do what needed to be done. And sometimes when you take risks, you lose. But the company survived, and thrives.

Do you think anybody will compare Fiorina's "failure" at HP with Hillary's failure to make national healthcare happen?

Carly Fiorina is a hell of a lot smarter than Hillary Clinton, and would be a much better president.

donald said...

30 years of observing vile union behavior has turned me against them 100%.

Some of my lefty friends feel the same way about the military. They observe the rapes and the murders and the torture and the bloated budget and the graft, making them think that is what makes up the entire organization.

Kind of sad when extremists, on both sides, start hating entire groups due to the actions of a few individuals. And yes, if you can't see even 1% good in a union and/or the military then you are an extremist.

Please God, let this be a Democratic Party plank in the election.

jr565 said...

""Scott Walker on a Harley Davidson is the least cool thing imaginable."
Actually Obama biking around on a bike with his grandma pants paints an even less cool image.

jr565 said...

""The trouble with women Presidents is that they don't really like economics, and we have a huge economics problem."

Left women. Not all women.

MadisonMan said...

This thread has everything that appeals. A digression on the exact meaning of a word. A discussion of a sitting Governor, and of unions. A Discussion of different female candidates.

Curious George said...

"tim in vermont said...
I don't think garage is dishonest. I think his technique has far more to do with non-sequiturs and conversation disruption and certainly defensive of his rice bowl."

garage is certainly dishonest, and he has no rice bowl. He isn't a public employee.

SGT Ted said...

Unions aren't sacrosanct and we have OSHA and work legislation in place that make the unions obsolete.

Unions made their own bed via political corruption and are unpopular because of it. Why does anyone defend it?

Madisonfella focusses on me and not the wreckage unions have done to themselves and their members, all due to their leftist politics. It's easier to hate on me than admit your precious unions are utterly fucked up.

If Military folk acted like union folk and harassed others like union workers harass others that disagree with them, like picketing their mom house when they don't get their way, I'd hate them too.

When unions stick to upholding professional standards, they are at their best, but that's not what is happening in this day and age.

Union rules reward loyalty and not competence. That's how the Teacher of the Year gets laid off while the lousy, burnt-out guy keeps his job.

Madisonfella will ignore the very real problems unions have to paint me as an "extremist".

It's not extremist to point out the ugly truth about the unions long history of violence and corruption.

Government Worker Unions should be outlawed. FDR was very prescient in foreseeing how it would turn out.

traditionalguy said...

The oldest human manufacturing process was pottery making. The hardening in kilns and new glazing techniques were the original methods of fire tempering for hardness.

New metal manufactures borrowed some terminology from pottery for new wrought iron and steel making from plain iron.

And soon all of the trees were gone in England and their quality tempered metals had to be imported from Sweden. That was probably why the British suddenly began to covet hands on ruling of the North American colonies that they had ignored for 120 years. Pre the invention of the coking of coal process, the British Navy and Armaments industry coveted our trees to fight their wars with France.

tim in vermont said...

You just implied I'm the only dishonest person on this blog, so it should be pretty easy for you to find examples.

Anybody can look at your comments and my comments on this thread and make their own judgement as to what I find dishonest and whether I am right or wrong.

As for convincing you, I am more likely to convince that guy with the bullhorn marching around the Wisconsin capitol building sharing his insights with all who can be made to listen. I don't believe that you could possibly be convinced, viewing life as you do through that pinhole camera of your obsession.

n.n said...

We should elect the first pro-choice woman who is a natural born killer. That is, she has aborted two or more wholly innocent human lives as she follows the secular profits of wealth, pleasure, leisure, and career. She will be the first Commander in Chief who will excel in empathizing and matching the most depraved threats to America posed by people with a similar mindset and who use similar tactics to remove inconvenient human lives.

Perhaps that's why liberals, progressives, and other pro-choice moralists did not want Palin to become the first female president and Commander in Chief... or their Abortionist in Chief. Obama was a decent compromise.

Anyway, the first Abortionist in Chief must be from the Democrat Party as a matter of principle. More wars. More conflicts. More toilets full of female genetic material. More blocked sewer lines.

Anonymous said...

we have OSHA and work legislation in place that make the unions obsolete

OSHA is reactive and after the fact, and many work places are exempt from OSHA oversight. Unions are proactive when it comes to safety and their contracts cover many items (such as meal breaks and training requirements) not covered by law.

That's how the Teacher of the Year gets laid off

If you're referring to Megan Sampson then you should know that Scott Walker didn't quite tell the truth on that one.

Madisonfella focusses on me

Not on you personally, rather on your opinion that unions are 100% bad. I also focusses on the other extremists that see no good with the military.

And yes, given your blind hatred towards millions and millions of people (some of whom are probably your neighbors and friends) you are obviously an extremist. That kind of mindset is not mainstream nor common, no matter how many people in this echo chamber may agree with you on it.

chillblaine said...

The legions of media swarming Scott Walker's "don't know" comments reminds me of the waywhite blood cells attack invaders.

This "woman president narrative" argument is brilliant, but is a persona "penetrated?" Perhaps a word like "reveal" or "illustrate" would be better choices going forward.

Anonymous said...

Anybody can look at your comments and my comments on this thread and make their own judgement as to what I find dishonest and whether I am right or wrong.

Anybody can see that I am dishonest yet you can't see any actual examples of dishonesty that can be linked to?

I'm sure that makes total sense to you, somehow. Thanks for giving it your best shot.

Anonymous said...

Government Worker Unions should be outlawed

just to clear it up - are your earlier comments directed towards all unions or just Government Worker Unions such as teachers, police, and firefighters?

Anonymous said...

like picketing their mom house

That's terrible. Picketing someone's mom's house it totally out of bounds.

Which union was it that organized such a thing? I want to express my displeasure towards them directly.

tim in vermont said...

It shouldn't be too hard to turn this into a madisonfella post generator.

Michael K said...

"their contracts cover many items (such as meal breaks"

Yes they do and I know of one case that killed a patient. Kaiser, as you may know, is 100% unionized. Some of that probably had to do with the fact that most of their early members were also union members.

Anyway, I used to review medical malpractice cases for both plaintiffs and defendants. Some of them were Kaiser cases. In one that I recall quite well, a man was having surgery for a pilonidal sinus, a minor surgery that takes 15 minutes and was done under spinal.

At Kaiser all anesthesia, except perhaps big open heart cases, is done by nurse anesthetists who are supposed to be supervised by an MD.

It doesn't happen but most are competent.

They are, however, all union members.

The patient had the spinal inserted by a nurse anesthetist and the surgery was to begin. At that moment, the lunch break for the nurse anesthetist arrived and she had to leave and be replaced by another. A half hour went by and the surgery was about finished, when the other anesthetist came back from lunch and replaced the replacement.

During this time, the spinal level crept up to a level that stopped the patient's breathing. When the just returned anesthetist checked his vital signs, he was dead. This is called a "High Spinal."

Death by union rules. There is no provision for a Kaiser union anesthetist to say, "I'll just finish this short case and then go to lunch."

Union rules.

Michael K said...

I like that madisonfella post generator but are you sure it isn't in use now ?

For example.

"Which union was it that organized such a thing? I want to express my displeasure towards them directly."


Probably easy to find out.

MayBee said...

It's so weird. I thought we were past this level of Obama mania.

tim in vermont said...

Ha ha ha ha!

The gift that keeps on giving.

They even 'signed' their work.

The above picture of a protest at Walker's parent's house proudly tweeted by MTEA@MTEAUnion.

You better get on the horn madisonfella.

Drago said...

Tim in Vermont: "You better get on the horn madisonfella."

madison-"Stephen Colbert"-fella will be all over that.

Guaranteed.

Bruce Hayden said...

Artificial annealing is a search technique for good solutions of some system or another.

You start with a high chance of accepting worse solutions than you have, and end with a low chance of accepting worse solutions than you already have, corresponding respectively to heating and slow cooling.


Did a patent application on applying this to optimizing semiconductor layout. Essentially, it involved swapping gates around, and slowly reducing a threshold. The beauty of synthetic annealing is that it can get you out of local minima. The solution space to a lot of problems do not have a smooth slope, esp. in multiple dimensions. One problem with solving them is that you can use straight forward techniques to optimize to the lowest point around, but that may not be the lowest point anywhere, just locally. Synthetic annealing, at least how it was applied there, gets you out of a local minimum, and lets you find a better solution.

Anonymous said...

Death by union rules

Sad part is that you really believe it was the union that killed the patient. You're not just trying to play politics or score cheap points in this blog's flame war against me rather you really and honestly believe that unions do no good whatsoever and they instead only result in (work towards?) death and harm for others.

This isn't a personal attack against you rather just an observation. And you obviously aren't the only one who feels as such - most of the commentators on this blog seem to agree with your opinion regarding workers who organize as a group in order to negotiate wages and conditions.

Peeking into the mindset of the far-right is always interesting. It's even worth putting up with all the childish taunts, slurs, and personal attacks that gets tossed my way for daring to question your opinions and stances.

Curious George said...

"madisonfella said...
we have OSHA and work legislation in place that make the unions obsolete

OSHA is reactive and after the fact, and many work places are exempt from OSHA oversight. Unions are proactive when it comes to safety and their contracts cover many items (such as meal breaks and training requirements) not covered by law."

This is why I know you are penquin.

Anonymous said...

The Milwaukee Teachers' Education Association was out of line to picket the Governor's house.

I'd say the proper place to protest is at the Capitol but many on here have mocked and ridiculed people for doing exactly that. So where should one go in order to express displeasure with an elected official? (I agree that proper place should not be a personal residence, especially a parent's home)

tim in vermont said...

It's a good thing that we now have clear proof that harassment of private individuals is completely out-of-bounds as a tactic and would **NEVER** be used as one by a real union.

That is excellent news!

tim in vermont said...

AND THE EXCUSE MAKING BEGINS....

YOu are a laugh a minute madisonfella.

Anonymous said...

This is why I know you are penquin.

Because I mentioned OSHA? I'm sure that makes sense to you, somehow, but others brought it up before I did.

And really -- who finally pointed out to you that you were spelling your ex-girlfriend's name wrong all this time? Because when it was pointed out to you that Meade tried to correct that for you a few months ago you were "absolutely sure" he had not.

Michael K said...

"you really and honestly believe that unions do no good whatsoever and they instead only result in (work towards?) death and harm for others."

No, I pointed out that craft unions provide good instruction and apprenticeships are far too scarce.

Union rules enforced without regard to sanity and common sense kill. I could probably get a couple examples from the Border Patrol union which has been protesting the crazy policies of Obama's DHS for years.

What you can't accept is that I am not "Far Right" in the sense of social conservative or conspiracy theories. I am mostly libertarian and differ from them chiefly in foreign policy which they have far too simplistic views on. Views they share with the political left.

I go to Huffington Post most days to read what the left is saying to itself. You echo that almost exactly.

I mock you because you show no real thought in your comments. They are reflexive leftism. I used to read and comment at Washington Monthly. I got a lot of personal abuse from other commenters some of which was quite personal as I make no secret of my life on my own blog. I was willing to debate some of them on issues like national health reform but they really got enraged that I did not agree on single payer. Then I was banned.

The left gets angry when debated. Not raging but just nasty. The current frenzy about Walker on the left is an example.

tim in vermont said...

I am trying to wrap my head around this... THE MTEA Union's free speech rights have been trampled upon by "mockery and ridicule" so they are forced to elder abuse!

I guess that makes sense, but if you want to see "mockery and ridicule" go on their twitter feed and see what the reaction to this thug tactic has been.

Anonymous said...

It's a good thing that we now have clear proof that harassment of private individuals is completely out-of-bounds as a tactic and would **NEVER** be used as one by a real union

Knowing that you truly and honestly believe I said such a thing makes it easier to understand why you believe the things you do.

chickelit said...

I guess that makes sense, but if you want to see "mockery and ridicule" go on their twitter feed and see what the reaction to this thug tactic has been.

I don't get this tactic either. Is the logic supposed to be that "we can't get to Walker directly, so we'll get to him through his family"?

How very thuggish indeed. It reinforces every negative stereotype of strong arm union tactics everywhere.

Anonymous said...

Union rules enforced without regard to sanity and common sense kill

Just union rules? Because I would say that about any and all rules. The fact that you focus on the union as the only factor in the patients death is why you come across as an extremist.

I used to read and comment at Washington Monthly. I got a lot of personal abuse from other commenters some of which was quite personal as I make no secret of my life on my own blog. I was willing to debate some of them on issues like national health reform but they really got enraged that I did not agree on single payer. Then I was banned.

I get it now. You've been forced to believe I'm a lefty and thus you're shifting your angry towards those lefties towards me. Since they made things ugly and personal with you, you will make things ugly and personal with those you disagree with.

Thanks for pointing that out. Your responses now make a lot more sense.

tim in vermont said...

Right, it is about belief.

Just like I believe that it is "dishonest" to harass the capitol policeman incessantly in the hopes of provoking a reaction, any reaction, then screaming bloody murder at the slightest response.

Yep, I believe that is dishonest.

One common definition of dishonest.

Dishonest: Intended to mislead.

Anonymous said...

I go to Huffington Post most days to read what the left is saying to itself. You echo that almost exactly

The lefties on Huffington Post are Pro Life and pro-second amendment? The lefties on Huffington Post are constantly calling out for Obama to be impeached?

That blog must have changed a lot, because that isn't how I remember it being before.

tim in vermont said...

You've been forced to believe I'm a lefty

Now there is something interesting. How about giving us one "non lefty" but sincerely held belief. Hint: A believe is not sincerely held if you quickly make excuses for it, like for example, your "condemnation" of the thugfest at Walker's parents' home.

tim in vermont said...

So why do you want Obama impeached? This is interesting.

Bruce Hayden said...

Partly, I suspect, that this is a class thing. Motorcycles are a middle to lower middle class thing, esp. popular in Red States. Except, of course, some very rich people. The poor can't afford them, and the upper middle class look down on them. Or did, until we had the phenomenon of RUBs (Rich Urban Bikers - doctors and lawyers out on their expensive bikes).

In any case, for much of America, and esp. Red State America, what matters is if it is authentic. Sarah Palin and her guns, and now Scott Walker on his Harley. But not John Kerry windsurfing, Dukakis in a tank, or Obama with a shotgun. There are tells, indications, when someone is used to something, like guns or motorcycles. For example, one thing you look for with guns is where their trigger finger is. If it is on the trigger, and they aren't actually pulling the trigger, then the gun is a most likely a prop (and, yes, you see this on TV a bit). This is one of those things that is beat into you on the range as a novice.

When I hear someone say that they need to get out on their Harley to clear their head, I find it fairly authentic. Esp. if they have been riding for awhile (I also know fakers - e.g. a good friend of mine has a bike, talks like a biker, but hasn't ridden in a decade or two).

In a lot of flyover country, esp. suburbia and smaller cities and towns, across the country, most of us know people who ride motorcycles. A lawyer here, an engineer there (one of my inventors/engineers rode a motorcycle to work for 40+ years in suburban Phoenix - when he got about 250k on one, he would park it in his backyard, and get a new one). They just don't work that well for many in dense urban environments like NYC, and now probably DC. The traffic density makes them less safe. We are talking Wisconsin here though, and I suspect there are plenty there who ride, though maybe not as many in Madison. Where we spend the warmer half the year in NW MT, bikers are one of the biggest sources of income to a lot of the businesses. It is prime biking country (though my partner almost took out pack of them a couple years ago on the pass by the house). Beautiful scenery, good roads, etc.

When it comes to the election, if Walker is the nominee, I suspect this will gain more votes than it will lose, because most of those who condemn him for such, wouldn't vote for him regardless. It shows that he is down to earth, and different from the career politicians that have so screwed up our country.

Anonymous said...

if you quickly make excuses for it, like for example, your "condemnation" of the thugfest at Walker's parents' home.

The fact that you honestly think I made an excuse for them helps explain why you are so wrong about so much.

I said they were out of line to protest at the house and that the proper place for such a thing is at the Capitol. How is that making an excuse?

tim in vermont said...

I'd say the proper place to protest is at the Capitol but many on here have mocked and ridiculed people for doing exactly that. So where should one go in order to express displeasure with an elected official? - madisonfella

Sure you went on to say it was wrong, but not without first excusing it as understandable, considering the "mockery" and "ridicule" to which they had been exposed.

n.n said...

Unions could serve a useful purpose as representatives for workers' rights. Instead, they have acted as a cartel to extort material benefits from businesses and taxpayers, to undermine the democratic process, and to protect underperforming or misbehaving men and women. In this respect, they are equivalent to the mafia, civil rights rackets, and monopoly or monopoly-like organizations. Unions should return to their original charter and represent workers, all workers, rather than their own corporate interests.

tim in vermont said...

Come on, why do you want Obama impeached? Same reason as Robert Cook? For his prosecution of the WOT?

Anonymous said...

Prof.

I like Walker - he represents Everyman and Everywoman. Note: Hillary does NOT represent Everywoman, must less Everyman.

Now, Walker must make sure that to defeat the Hillary Clinton's Take-Back-My-White-House campaign (supported by NYT, NPR, PBS, DailyKos, TPM, Slate, etc. etc.) he must be ready.

For starters, I hope his VP is one of the two:

1. Susana Martinez, Governor, New Mexico
2. Kelly Ayotte, Senator, New Hampshire

This is the only way - yes, only way - Walker can assume the presidency.

Divide the Democrats and their cheer leaders, like NYT, NPR, etc. etc.

Can someone close to Walker let him know this?

Drago said...

tim in vermont (to madisonfella): "Come on, why do you want Obama impeached?"

madisonfella has written (at least once" that he/she thinks obama should be impeached for lying and "dishonesty".

Part of his/her "I'm more conservative than you"-Colbert schtick.

SGT Ted said...

What n.n. said at 1:53. I agree with that.

Anonymous said...

Tim in Vermont intentionally did not include the first part of my post where I clearly stated that the protesters were out of line to rally at the house. The part he quotes is where I ask that since others have mentioned the teachers shouldn't protest at the Capitol then where should they go?

I used to think Tim was confused about what he reads but given the way he brags about following the tactics of Alinsky it is safe to assume he is being intentionally dishonest.

Anonymous said...

I think its that Colber schtick that gets her called a liar and dishonest.

She says she would like to put in a word with the union that would use such tactics as to go to Walkers grandparents house. But when confronted with the union doing this, she makes excuses for them.

Would anyone have guessed differently?

If Obama were to be impeached, I would expect her to have an issue with the reasons for the impeachment. For example, I want him to be impeached for A, but they are impeaching him for B, and there is no reason to impeach him for B.


But she can safely deny it, because there will be no impeachment of King Putt.

Anonymous said...

"I'm more conservative than you"

In another thread you made a huge deal about quote marks and "precise phrasing"

With that in mind, can you please show me where I ever said "I'm more conservative than you" to anybody on this blog?

Michael K said...

"The fact that you focus on the union as the only factor in the patients death is why you come across as an extremist."

Please explain what else caused those two nurse anesthetists to switch places twice with a patient under anesthesia in the space of 30 minutes ?

Michael K said...

"Your responses now make a lot more sense."

Now, you have me a little worried. Maybe you should call a suicide hotline.

Anonymous said...

Please explain what else caused those two nurse anesthetists to switch places twice with a patient under anesthesia in the space of 30 minutes ?

Since you phrased it that way, I can totally understand why you honestly think that the rules and procedures that the union and the management agreed upon during their negotiations was reason that patient died.

So how many lives do you suppose would be saved if we made unions illegal?

victoria said...

Tell me which Female Republican candidates can beat the juggernaut that is Hillary. I'm not voting for her, eventhough I am a liberal (an proud of it). But I cannot see one single female (or male for that matter) Republican candidate that can beat her. My vote is for Elizabeth Warren, just love her.

Give me a name, please.

Vicki from Pasadena

Anonymous said...

To Vicki:

Walker/Ayotte
OR
Walker/Martinez

would clean up the HRC.

Also, Vicki, HRC does NOT represent Everywoman or even Everyman, as much.
Walker represents Everyman and Everywoman.

It is time for GOP to divide the Demorats.

Michael K said...

madisonfella, I was kidding about the hotline but you really look more confused and befuddled than malignant in your leftism.

Craft unions still have a place but, for example, they have nearly been destroyed in California by illegal aliens who do 90% of the drywall installation in local construction.

A real push toward apprenticeships and skilled tradesmen would do a lot for their appeal among average Americans.

Under the impact of Obamacare. I expect most nurses to join unions. They are being pressed very hard by administrators who make $5 million salaries and plan to wring the amount out of professional employees. Doctors are less likely to unionize as they are quitting and going free market, John Galt if you will.

There is considerable resentment among upper middle class people about inflation and QE activity by the Fed. The interest in alternate currency, like Bitcoin, is a result. Gold is down but this may be the time to buy.

There is a lot of pessimism in the country and to see clueless lefties like you ignore it is amusing and infuriating at the same time.

Those of us who remember what it was like when the Dollar was as good as gold are sometimes tempted into conspiracy theories. As Mark Steyn has said about Obama, "What would he be doing differently, if he was on the other side ?"

I tend to the other opinion that, "Never attribute to malice that which can be explained by incompetence."

Hard to choose sometimes. Walker looks pretty good to me.

wildswan said...

"and their quality tempered metals had to be imported from Sweden"

Actually the iron ore in one part of Sweden was almost free of phosphates and included manganese so that it was very easy to make quality tempered steel from it. England didn't have even one such site but the ironmasters of Birmingham led by Francis Galton's great grandparents found one in the Chesapeake Bay near Havre de Grace. The site extended to Virginia but went underground most of the way once past Baltimore and surfaced again on land owned by George Washington's family. This was an important source of Washington's wealth since his family got cash for the ore and they built Mt. Vernon with it. Ultimately the shares in the iron mine left the Washington family and went to the Lee family as a dowry. So that Francis Galton, George Washington and Robert E Lee got family wealth from this special iron deposit. And the cannons of the US Navy were founded using that ore and the British were trying to fight their way into the iron forge/foundry using this special ore near Baltimore (which was protected by Fort McHenry) when Francis Scott Key observed the battle and wrote the Star Spangled banner.
And the iron ore was used in Birmingham to make special steel edged hoes and shovels used in the Carolina lowlands to create the rice plantations. Michele Obama's ancestors worked those plantations using those tools.

Anonymous said...

if Eric's first thought upon seeing the word "fella" in a name is that the person is a female then how much credibility does he really have? Shows a lack of basic reasoning skills.

Then again, if English isn't his native language then he could easily be confused by that. Which would also explain why he thinks excuses were being made for those protesters.

Anonymous said...

"Never attribute to malice that which can be explained by incompetence."

Hard to choose sometimes. Walker looks pretty good to me.


No need to choose - safe to say that Walker is probably both. :D


You do make some good points but it is hard to take you seriously when you are constantly trying to pigeonhole me as a "lefty". Those constant snarky attacks are simply untrue, which clouds everything else you are trying to say and make one wonder your true motives in the discussion.

Do you want to have a good faith discussion about the issues or do you want a whipping boy to take out all the frustrations you have against those lefty leftards? Pretty obvious that for most folks on this blog it is the latter, but I'm not quite sure about you yet. Sometimes you seem sincere and other times you sound as deluded as Curious Drago in Vermont.

deepelemblues said...

Oh, please, professor. You have no message on Scott Walker? God doesn't need to tell you to help Scott Walker?

You're right, God doesn't need to tell you that. You're happy to do it on your own because you have a huge political crush on Scott Walker. He impresses and attracts you with his mien. It's very obvious from the way you write about him. I'm not criticizing you for it even one bit but it is so obviously there and in operation.

The message coming out of nearly everything you've written about him recently is 'this guy is a really smart, really good politician and a really admirable person.' I won't go as far as to say that that is the only message you have ever tried to send about the man, but the way you compliment him and defend him from political attacks is pretty telling.

You do have a message on Scott Walker. You like him. A lot. It's okay to acknowledge it. Really. It is!

Michael K said...

"You do make some good points but it is hard to take you seriously when you are constantly trying to pigeonhole me as a "lefty". '

madisonfella, you are like a slow motion train wreck that one can't take his eyes from.

I don't need you to take me "seriously" as I don't believe there is enough gray matter to allow a conversation.

All I have seen from you are lefty knee jerk responses to any subject.

I'm just afraid there is no "there there."

As I have previously said, I mostly come by here for amusement. I do have some serious discussions on other blogs. I learned at Wash Monthly that serious discussions with lefties are an oxymoron. I tried.

I have given up on Ricochet because it seems to be the right's equivalent of HuffPo. Too bad but life is too short to reply to 200 angry creationists.

I would rather talk about business cycles or airplanes or almost anything else.

Even Calvin Coolidge.

tim in vermont said...

Curious Drago in Vermont.

HA HA HA HA HA!

God forbid anybody call crazy lady madisonfella a sockpuppet though!

tim in vermont said...

if Eric's first thought upon seeing the word "fella" in a name is that the person is a female then how much credibility does he really have? Shows a lack of basic reasoning skills.

Ummm no. Your hysterical rants read feminine to a lot of people. We all have crazy ex girlfriends who sound like you. I guess you could be a man though. You just don't sound like one.

Michael K said...

Another funny observation of the left's flop sweat about Walker.

This level of patent desperation would be sad if it weren’t being wielded by such despicable people. The political party that harbored massive numbers of 9/11 truthers – i.e., people who accused Bush of Cheney of being guilty of killing thousands of American people on purpose – does not get to lecture Republicans on confronting extremist rhetoric, not with a straight face. Especially not when the rhetoric in question isn’t “I think Obama killed thousands of Americans on purpose just so he could lead us into war,” but rather “I don’t think Obama was raised to love America as much as other people in this country were.”

madisonfella does sound like an ex-girlfriend.

Mad, have you ever read Women who love Too Much ?

It's about the girl who, after spending the night with you, starts arranging your closet. Sounds a little like you.

tim in vermont said...

If madisonfella is not a woman, it makes his remark that "men who wear beards have small dicks" even funnier.

Men say that kind of stuff all the time. Not a crazy ex girlfriend kind of thing to say at all. No-sirree.

Anonymous said...

I don't believe there is enough gray matter to allow a conversation

Oh, well that explains why you are behaving like a troll rather than trying to have an actual conversation.

Thanks for pointing out there is no need to take you seriously and that you're just playing games. Will keep that in mind moving forward.

n.n said...
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n.n said...

SGT Ted:

Workers and "The Children". They could start with American children and work their way out, if they wish.

Think of the children! From conception... Deny thy fairy tales. Deny thy rationalizations. Deny thy golden calves.

What other purported causes do unions [mis]represent on principle?

Anyway, the ball of yarns has been spun so tightly that perhaps it cannot be unwound without causing a lot of collateral damage. Perhaps even more than the number attributable to the abortion industry and its leading lobbyist, the Democrat Party, and not a few Republicans and miscellanea.

John Stodder said...

Ann Althouse said...
"Scott Walker on a Harley Davidson is the least cool thing imaginable. It's even sadder that he thinks it's cool. The second-hand embarrassment is making me cringe."

You are revealing something of what's in your head. Walker never asserted that riding a Harley Davidson is cool. You inferred that. What made you do that, your own insecurities about your masculinity or nerdiness?


Great comment Ann.

Moreover, Harley-Davidson is the local product. It's like Bob Kerrey eating corn, Rahm Emmanual downing a deep-dish pizza, or Richard Nixon walking on the beach. The idea isn't to be "cool" it's to be connected to something that engages constituents.

Unknown said...

…..union has done in the past 100 years is deliberately bully and harass others?…

First time my union steward saw me, he and Bruno grabbed me by my lapels and threw me against the wall.

richard mcenroe said...

Brass rifle cartridge cases are annealed around the neck to strengthen them for the pressures of firing, so annealed is an appropriate use here.

Unknown said...

---Unions are proactive when it comes to safety and their contracts cover many items (such as meal breaks and training requirements) not covered by law.---

Unions did nothing as illegal aliens took over all the construction jobs.

Anonymous said...

Victoria (Viki from Pasadena) asks for the name of someone who could beat the "Juggernaut" that is Hillary - please see my comment made at 10:03 - Gov. Susana Martinez (R, NM) first Republican to ever be elected Governor of New Mexico in 2010 and then re-elected in 2014; former prosecuting attorney, former Dem (as was Ronald Reagan) has done, what a relative and some friend of mine from NM a great job. What has Hillary ever done? Susana has GOVERNED a State, you know prepared budgets, allocated resources, all that sort of thing and did it all so well she was re-elected in 2014 with 54% of the vote. Seriously if you want a Republican woman, Sisama Martinez has the qualifications. But you are NOT a "liberal" if you think highly of Elizabeth Warren - who wound up being what......1/124th Cherokee or some such and what has SHE done to win your favor, hmmm? She is of the FAR Left, not a liberal

Unknown said...

----You've been forced to believe I'm a lefty ---

I remember this 'forced to believe meme' from a couple of weeks ago. Truly a junior high school meme

richard mcenroe said...

MayBee said...

It's so weird. I thought we were past this level of Obama mania.

It's all they have left.

richard mcenroe said...

Funny thing.

Authentic Harley riders don't give a rat's ass if people think they're cool or not. They just ride.

Inauthentic people worry about whether what they're doing is cool. Try to imagine Obama on a Harley. (or a Vespa. Or a Honda Trail 90.)If you can't imagine it, insert picture of him shooting a borrowed shotgun and pretending to shoot skeet.

richard mcenroe said...

Hillary, a juggernaut. More like a plastic Buddha sold to snow the yokel tourists.

dreams said...
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RecChief said...

Walker rides a harley? makes sense.

Hopefully it's not one of the pussy AMF bikes.

Joni Ernst rides a harley too.

Sprezzatura said...

Presumably somebody already noted the most awesome episode of South Park.

If not:

Poser

Sprezzatura said...
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Sprezzatura said...

I give up on the html tag:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zwH85gFOVVQ

Sprezzatura said...

Althouse would like that episode for another reason.

They discus dictionaries and how fag doesn't mean gay people. It actually means an 'inconsiderate douche bags like a Harley Riders.'

Presumably the OED is on board with South Park.

Sprezzatura said...

Also, wasn't it a few days ago that Althouse was praising Walkers formal use of his opponents' formal titles.

Now we have Hill and Bill, but Althouse doesn't seem so interested any more.

Rusty said...

richard mcenroe said...
Brass rifle cartridge cases are annealed around the neck to strengthen them for the pressures of firing, so annealed is an appropriate use here.


Brass cartridge necks are annealed to bring the brass back to it's original malleability. Brittleness occurs when the necks are formed. is called "work hardening".

Rusty said...

Bob Ellison said...
Glassworkers anneal finished pieces by cooling them deliberately slowly. This makes the glass more durable and less likely to shatter.


Sheffield England is where the first deliberate manufacture of steel occurred. Prior to that steel was always an accident in pouring iron. Before steel Sheffield was known as the glass capital of England. Since glass required an intense amount of heat to create the furnaces were used to create steel.

pdn said...

Madisonfella, my guess is that you are probably some flavor of Christian socialist --- that is how you can be pro life, pro second amendment, but incredibly progressive when discussing public works,welfare,government programs, etc. The Catholic church is very progressive when it comes to using government to achieve a socialist agenda, but they are pro life and think gay marriage is an oxymoron. So yes, it Is surmisable that you are politically on the left side of the spectrum.