Nolen
My Testimonials
Unsu...
December 1, 2008
Nolen stays calm. While I am a vociferous and, often strident, pacifist, Nolen is an inspiration of tranquility amid the chaos. He's a good egg.
December 2, 2006
Nolen is a dependable and knowledgeable voice of reason. He is a Democratic patriot who engages in political discourse with sincerity and an open mind. I always benefit from reading his posts.
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"They shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more." Isaiah 2:4
Thomas Jefferson 1801
The essential principles of our Government...should be the creed of our political faith...should we wander from them in moments of error or of alarm, let us hasten to retrace our steps and to regain the road which alone leads to peace, liberty and safety.
My BioGender
Male
Age
49
Location
about me
Favorite Quotes:
"No soul, it has been said, forfeits truth wilfully...Nothing needs to be kept in mind more constantly than this; it will help you to greater gentleness in all your dealings with people." -Meditations by Marcus Aurelius "America's health care system is second only to Japan ... Canada, Sweden, Great Britain ... well, all of Europe. But you can thank your lucky stars we don't live in Paraguay!" -Homer Simpson "If the events of September 11, 2001, have proven anything, it's that the terrorists can attack us, but they can't take away what makes us American - our freedom, our liberty, our civil rights. No, only Attorney General John Ashcroft can do that." -Jon Stewart "To a man with an empty stomach food is God." - Mahatma Gandhi "When before the beauty of a sunset or of a mountain you pause and excaim, 'Ah', you are participating in divinity." -Upanishads "As the deer pants for the water brooks, So pants my soul for You, O God. -Psalms 42:1 (NKJ) "Let your heart feel for the afflictions and distress of everyone, and let your hand give in proportion to your purse." -George Washington
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Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!
My Recent Activity
Re: Rep Dennis Kucinich blasts Operation Cast Doubt
(in **MIDEAST POLITICS**)
<<"the down is up, night is day, wrong is right resolution" >>
Pretty much sums it up. discussion post on Sat, November 7, 2009 - 8:35 AM
Re: No Two State Solution?
(in ! * POLITICS * !)
<<Ad hom>>
Don't worry about it, this is standard fare. I stopped reading his drivel months ago as he has a very poor grasp on the subject he pontificates on endlessly but thought it'd be amusing to see him squirm out of the "inadmissibility" ... read more discussion post on Sat, November 7, 2009 - 8:26 AM
Re: So, can we have a rational discussion about Tuesday's election?
(in ! * POLITICS * !)
<< If he was right, then a vote against Corzine was in part a vote against Obama and his policies, at least for the people who thought Obama's reasoning was persuasive.>>
Except the exit polls stated the opposite. Only 20% of the people said t... read more discussion post on Fri, November 6, 2009 - 1:39 PM
Re: No Two State Solution?
(in ! * POLITICS * !)
<<what do you think this "inadmissibility" principle is? How would you articulate it? >>
This promises to be positively acrobatic. discussion post on Fri, November 6, 2009 - 12:53 PM
Re: US House rejects Goldstone report
(in **MIDEAST POLITICS**)
<<Was there ever the time that people thought they DIDN'T condone Israel war crimes?? >>
I think you'd find that most Americans didn't think so. Even as recent of as the '06 war on Lebanon you'd be hard pressed to find as stark a condemnation ... read more discussion post on Fri, November 6, 2009 - 12:42 PM
Re: US House rejects Goldstone report
(in **MIDEAST POLITICS**)
<<HAMAS investigating itself is as ludicrous as the IDF doing so. >>
Certainly but that's hardly the point. When the congress of the United States condemns a report which condemns war crimes it leaves the impression that the congress of the Un... read more discussion post on Fri, November 6, 2009 - 12:22 PM
Mahmoud Vahidnia, Student, Stuns Iran By Criticizing Supreme Leader
(in **MIDEAST POLITICS**)
Sounds like a hoax but if true it's a slippery slope for the Iranian Leadership. A taste of democracy will only lead to a demand for more.
___________ Mahmoud Vahidnia, Student, Stuns Iran By Criticizing Supreme Leader SCHEHEREZADE FARAMARZI... read more discussion post on Thu, November 5, 2009 - 7:59 PM
US House rejects Goldstone report
(in **MIDEAST POLITICS**)
This ought to make the apologists happy. What I'm waiting for is Lieberman to trade his filibuster vote in the health care debate for an equally abhorrent resolution in the Senate.
__________ US House rejects Goldstone report November 04, ... read more discussion post on Thu, November 5, 2009 - 7:46 PM
Re: 27. They preach man who say that so soon as the penny jingles into the money-box, the soul flies out [of purgatory].
(in ! * POLITICS * !)
<<Jesus Christ was a Communist. >>
Yeah, pretty much. discussion post on Thu, November 5, 2009 - 7:40 PM
Re: Never Mind
(in ! * POLITICS * !)
"State laws against bigamy, same-sex marriage, adult incest, prostitution, masturbation, adultery, fornication, bestiality, and obscenity are likewise sustainable only in light of Bowers’ validation of laws based on moral choices. Every single one...
read more
discussion post on Thu, November 5, 2009 - 10:39 AM
Re: Never Mind
(in ! * POLITICS * !)
<<in 2003 Scalia's dissent warned that if same sex relationships cannot be outlawed that laws against masturbation could also be struck down>>
Really? discussion post on Thu, November 5, 2009 - 9:57 AM
Re: No Two State Solution?
(in ! * POLITICS * !)
A little better than your last response, "possession is 9/10ths of the law" but even less insightful.
discussion post on Thu, November 5, 2009 - 9:52 AM
Re: No Two State Solution?
(in ! * POLITICS * !)
<<However, when the opposite is the case and they encroach deeper into the area designated for the Palestinian state then suddenly everything is an ambiguous gray area and the borders dont exist at all.>>
I don't thing being consistent or winni... read more discussion post on Thu, November 5, 2009 - 9:49 AM
Re: No Two State Solution?
(in ! * POLITICS * !)
<<from another legal scholar:>>
Not a legal scholar. He was a legal adviser to the Israeli Foreign minister who is lobbying to get Israel into various international bodies. Small wonder that he attempts to paper over Israel's land theft. "... read more discussion post on Thu, November 5, 2009 - 8:31 AM
Re: Islamic Military Jurisprudence
(in **MIDEAST POLITICS**)
<< Uh, 242 does not replace 181. That's not a fact, that's a lie. >>
This is Erik's unique contribution to this discussion on tribe. It's being adopted by the apologists at large because in their minds it, along with endless arguments about th... read more discussion post on Thu, November 5, 2009 - 8:04 AM
Re: Karadzic defiant during war crime trail
(in ! * POLITICS * !)
I'm an anti-serbite, I admit it.
discussion post on Wed, November 4, 2009 - 11:02 PM
Re: British plan breakup of bailed-out banks
(in ! * POLITICS * !)
Great song, you're no doubt right. Sometimes I let my patriotism get in the way of my cynicism.
discussion post on Wed, November 4, 2009 - 11:00 PM
Re: British plan breakup of bailed-out banks
(in ! * POLITICS * !)
<<The Glass-Steagall Act, which forced banks to choose between those businesses, was imposed during the Great Depression but largely repealed in 1999. >>
I continue to support the Clinton's administration's management of the economy, this clear... read more discussion post on Wed, November 4, 2009 - 11:30 AM
Re: Republicans Are Poised for Gains in Key Elections
(in ! * POLITICS * !)
<<The republicans NEED to eat their own because there are a bunch of wolves in sheeps clothing that have hijacked the party. If conservatives are successful at taking it back this will be a huge gain. >>
Odd political tactic thinking you're goi... read more discussion post on Wed, November 4, 2009 - 11:15 AM
Karadzic defiant during war crime trail
(in ! * POLITICS * !)
Karadzic defiant over boycott at first court appearance
Mariette le Roux Mariette Le Roux, AP Nov 3, 2009 news.yahoo.com/s/afp/2009...ctykaradzic THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AFP) – Bosnian Serb wartime lea... read more discussion post on Tue, November 3, 2009 - 2:36 PM
Another day, another eviction:
(in **MIDEAST POLITICS**)
"It's clear to me that this is another case of settlers taking the law into their own hands," said Rabbi Yehiel Grenimann of Rabbis for Human Rights, an Israeli group that opposes Palestinian home evictions and demolitions.
"It's just another s... read more discussion post on Tue, November 3, 2009 - 2:09 PM
Health "Insurance": A Criminal Enterprise
(in ! * POLITICS * !)
Health "Insurance": A Criminal Enterprise
Jacob M. Appel Bioethicist and medical historian November 1, 2009 www.huffingtonpost.com/jacob-...48.html Federal lawmakers have squandered much of the ... read more discussion post on Tue, November 3, 2009 - 4:47 AM
Re: So the Public Option will put Doctors out of business?
(in ! * POLITICS * !)
I didn't think MA had a Public Option, though I could be wrong. I know they mandate coverage and they put some control on pre-existing conditions but a Medicare like option wasn't included.
discussion post on Mon, November 2, 2009 - 10:39 PM
Re: Thomas L. Friedman: Don't build up in Afghanistan
(in ! * POLITICS * !)
<<I always wondered why their wasn't a more defined independence movement for a separate Pashtunistan >>
I read an article a couple of days ago (I'll be damned if I can remember where it was) which argued that some of the impetuous behind the c... read more discussion post on Mon, November 2, 2009 - 10:35 PM
Re: America...
(in **MIDEAST POLITICS**)
<<nolen,,,I see your adjectives to describe jews>>
I described nothing. I posted an article from an Israeli newspaper that I found interesting. I happen to agree with the point of view, hence I posted it. I'm not sure what you're going on ... read more discussion post on Mon, November 2, 2009 - 4:40 PM
Re: Thomas L. Friedman: Don't build up in Afghanistan
(in ! * POLITICS * !)
<<"Do you think that the Taliban still get some ISI support? I know that collaborators were deeply entrenched in the ISI. " >>
I doubt the underlying dynamics have changed enough to entirely separate them from each other. But I agree that the ... read more discussion post on Mon, November 2, 2009 - 3:55 PM
Re: Thomas L. Friedman: Don't build up in Afghanistan
(in ! * POLITICS * !)
Here's a couple of good journal articles on the rational behind the ISI's support of the Taliban. Essentially, they argue that after Pakistan lost Bangladesh in the early '70s the government and especially the military didn't want a nationalist g...
read more
discussion post on Mon, November 2, 2009 - 3:49 PM
America, stop sucking up to Israel
(in **MIDEAST POLITICS**)
01/11/2009
America, stop sucking up to Israel By Gideon Levy www.haaretz.com/hasen/spag...124928.html Barack Obama has been busy - offering the Jewish People blessings for Rosh Hashanah, and recording a flattering video for... read more discussion post on Mon, November 2, 2009 - 8:05 AM
Re: Jon Stewart Vs Bill Kristol on Health Care - absoultly nailed.
(in ! * POLITICS * !)
<<1. social security runs a surplus and has for years. >>
This is true, though it has a big caveat. The '86 social security committee did in fact change the payroll tax structure so that the system would be able to run a surplus, which it has ... read more discussion post on Mon, November 2, 2009 - 7:35 AM
Stewart crosses the Rubrican
(in **MIDEAST POLITICS**)
Interviews a Palestinian advocating nonviolence and equal justice and a leftist, Jewish peace activist on the Daily show.
www.thedailyshow.com/watch/w...ew-pt--1 discussion post on Fri, October 30, 2009 - 11:30 PM
Re: Thomas L. Friedman: Don't build up in Afghanistan
(in ! * POLITICS * !)
<<Actually, left to themselves the Taliban took over and ruled Afghanistan with an Iron fist.>>
There is a school of thought in foreign policy circles which suggests that the Taliban wouldn't have had a chance without the ISI supporting them. ... read more discussion post on Fri, October 30, 2009 - 10:21 PM
Re: Moderator elections - nominations please
(in ! * POLITICS * !)
<<I nominate Nolen.>>
Thanks Enrika, truly, but "if nominated, I will not accept; if elected, I will not serve". My vote, Ron then Peep when Ron tires of it. discussion post on Fri, October 30, 2009 - 10:14 PM
Re: San Francisco Mayor Drops Governor Bid
(in Political Junkies)
<<“With a young family and responsibilities at City Hall, I have found it impossible to commit the time required to complete this effort the way it needs to — and should — be done,”>>
Read; he didn't stand a chance in hell. discussion post on Fri, October 30, 2009 - 10:01 PM
Re: Thomas L. Friedman: Don't build up in Afghanistan
(in ! * POLITICS * !)
<<The only reason for the U.S. to be in Afghanistan in the first place was to hunt down the swine responsible for 9/11. We failed to do that. The swine have now moved on. Let's get the fuck out.>>
I think conventional wisdom holds that should t... read more discussion post on Fri, October 30, 2009 - 12:35 PM
Re: Wind power in Australia?
(in Renewable Energy and Solar Power)
Interesting design. It seems perfectly suited to be installed in the base of large scale wind towers. I wonder if there's any company trying to develop a wind turbine / flywheel system?
discussion post on Fri, October 30, 2009 - 9:46 AM
Re: Schwarzenegger apparently tells legislator, ‘fuck you’
(in Political Junkies)
<<I actually don't see Schwarzenegger as being any worse than any governor since Brown. >>
I see him as less political, that's a good thing. I also agreed with his reapportionment initiative as today seats are more safe than in the days of the... read more discussion post on Fri, October 30, 2009 - 8:04 AM
Thomas L. Friedman: Don't build up in Afghanistan
(in ! * POLITICS * !)
Interesting article. I'm not sure I agree with all of it but this point is spot on:
"The locals sense they have us over a barrel, so they exploit our naive good will and presence to loot their countries and to defeat their internal foes. Th... read more discussion post on Fri, October 30, 2009 - 7:44 AM
Re: Judge dismisses California eligibility challenge
(in ! * POLITICS * !)
<<Funny how these folks aren't willing to raise contributions to say, feed the hungry or house the homeless? >>
A large percentage of them are black as well. discussion post on Fri, October 30, 2009 - 6:29 AM
Re: So you want to Boycott Israel
(in **MIDEAST POLITICS**)
<<Actually I thought he was pointing out that making good products in no way has a bearing on weather a country is good. >>
Of course. If Thomas Edison or Henry Ford committed murder, rape, whatever, their inventions might make their downfall ... read more discussion post on Fri, October 30, 2009 - 6:24 AM
Re: Schwarzenegger apparently tells legislator, ‘fuck you’
(in Political Junkies)
Rank has it privileges.
discussion post on Thu, October 29, 2009 - 9:56 PM
Re: So you want to Boycott Israel
(in **MIDEAST POLITICS**)
I heard the early 20th century Germans made some pretty cool shit as well.
discussion post on Thu, October 29, 2009 - 9:44 PM
Re: Truth Emerges about the Public Option
(in ! * POLITICS * !)
Small business and uninsured individuals is a good start. If it works it will be expanded. Assuming that it actually pays for itself - it isn't subsidized - the industry will have a hard time arguing that their costs are reasonable when they sit...
read more
discussion post on Wed, October 28, 2009 - 12:52 PM
Re: Israel Risks US Wrath Over Palestinian Homes
(in ! * POLITICS * !)
Netanyahu and his right wing government are in a rush to change the facts on the ground. This is why prominent people in the region - Jordan's King Hussein and Kadima's Livni - see the prospects for a two state solution slipping away. Once they ...
read more
discussion post on Wed, October 28, 2009 - 11:50 AM
Re: thanks a lot Leiberman
(in ! * POLITICS * !)
The current Senate rule only requires the 41 to voice their intent to filibuster. It would take a 2/3rds vote to change that. There are some who say the super-majority is unconstitutional as it is not listed in the constitution which list severa...
read more
discussion post on Wed, October 28, 2009 - 11:13 AM
Re: thanks a lot Leiberman
(in ! * POLITICS * !)
It takes 60 votes to end debate - it use to be 2/3rds but Byrd changed the rule when he was majority leader. A bill isn't actually voted on until debate has ended. The filibuster is simply 41 or more Senators refusing to end debate. They use to...
read more
discussion post on Wed, October 28, 2009 - 10:45 AM
Re: thanks a lot Leiberman
(in ! * POLITICS * !)
I watched him give an interview on the subject. He's edging for position, I think. He'll likely cave after Reid throws him some bone. All the moderates have tremendous leverage right now. Unless Reid has made a colossal error, and tipped his h...
read more
discussion post on Wed, October 28, 2009 - 10:37 AM
Re: Keeping Natural Gas in Pipelines, Not Air
(in ! * Environmental Protection * !)
<<Don't forget hydropower and geothermal. >>
Of course you're right. On CNG vehicles, Honda's version has beat even the hybrids on carbon and smog emissions for years: "Greenest In the overall [ACEEE] rankings, the Honda Civic GX outsc... read more discussion post on Wed, October 28, 2009 - 10:03 AM
Netanyahu on Goldstone: "Looking Into" Doing the Right Thing, for the Wrong Reasons
(in **MIDEAST POLITICS**)
Hagai El-Ad
Executive director of the Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI) www.acri.org.il/eng/ Netanyahu on Goldstone: "Looking Into" Doing the Right Thing, for the Wrong Reasons October 26, 2009 www.huffingtonpost... read more discussion post on Tue, October 27, 2009 - 10:28 AM
Re: Official disclosure of extraterrestrial life is imminent
(in ! * POLITICS * !)
<<If extraterrestrial disclosure does occur at the end of 2009 or early 2010, President Obama will lead an unprecedented effort to promote global governance through the United Nations.>>
Oy. I kept looking for the punch line and then came on t... read more discussion post on Tue, October 27, 2009 - 8:43 AM
U.S. official resigns over Afghan war
(in ! * POLITICS * !)
A must read article on the Afghan war. Being generally supportive of NATO and US efforts there, I found several points troubling. Here's a few of those points:
<<Korengal and other areas, he said, taught him "how localized the insurgency was.... read more discussion post on Tue, October 27, 2009 - 7:29 AM
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