Last Week in Stupidity 25 Apr 2009
Posted by Jessa in Money, Politics, This Week in Stupidity, Wacky.1 comment so far
Today’s edition: Teabaggers.
The whole “teabag movement” was doomed to be fodder for epic lulz the second they decided to use “teabag” as a verb. Apparently, none of the organizers thought to maybe check the Intertubes to see if maybe “teabag” had some sort of alternate meaning that would render their movement unintentionally hilarious.
But that was just the beginning.
I’ll give the organizers the benefit of the doubt. I’ll assume that they had genuine concerns about what they saw as excessive government spending. Economics is not exactly an easy-to-understand topic for the layperson, and many people have the natural tendency to mistrust something that they find confusing. So I can see where they might be suspicious.
Then there’s the unwritten rule that, as protest movements gain popularity, they tend to descend into bizarro-world as the lunatic fringe uses it to air an increasingly wacky list of perceived grievances. So what starts out as a demonstration of unease about government spending ends up with things like this:
Hyperbole, anyone?
Of course! The stimulus package is just like being bought and sold like property, being forced to work and live in horrible conditions, and being regularly beaten with a whip:
A pictorial illustration of the Obama Plan. Just switch races.
Then there’s this:
You keep using that word. I don't think it means what you think it means.
Yes, another True Patriot who doesn’t understand the definition of “socialism”, and probably honestly thinks that he/she (I can’t tell) has never ever benefited from government spending. How cute! I personally like roads and brudges, FDIC insurance, water and sewer services, parks, sidewalks, and many other services that the government provides, but maybe that’s just me.
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“There’s Obviously a Difference in Opinion” 21 Feb 2009
Posted by Jessa in Humor, Money.1 comment so far
It looks like a few Verizon employees need a remedial lesson in math:
I found it amusing (and also a bit pathetic) that the manager didn’t even get it when the guy tried to explain it step-by-step:
Caller: Do you recognize there’s a difference between one dollar and one cent?
Manager: Definitely.
Caller: Do you recognize there’s a difference between half a dollar and half a cent?
Manager: Definitely.
Caller: Do you therefore recognize that there’s a difference between .002 dollars and .002 cents?
Manager: …No.
Wow. I also loved how the manager stated, “There’s obviously a difference in opinion.” Um, no. It’s math. It’s not subject to opinion. It’s not like 2+2=4, except on alternate Thursdays. A value in dollars is not the same as the identical value in cents. Case closed.
I wonder if Verizon would appreciate it if their customers made the same mistake in reverse.
Fleecing the Flock 07 Oct 2008
Posted by Jessa in Money, Religion.Tags: foreclosure, prosperity gospel
1 comment so far
Time magazine has an interesting take on the “prosperity gospel” and how it may have lured its adherents into becoming victims of the current foreclosure crisis.
Has the so-called Prosperity gospel turned its followers into some of the most willing participants — and hence, victims — of the current financial crisis? That’s what a scholar of the fast-growing brand of Pentecostal Christianity believes. While researching a book on black televangelism, says Jonathan Walton, a religion professor at the University of California at Riverside, he realized that Prosperity’s central promise — that God will “make a way” for poor people to enjoy the better things in life — had developed an additional, dangerous expression during the subprime-lending boom. Walton says that this encouraged congregants who got dicey mortgages to believe “God caused the bank to ignore my credit score and blessed me with my first house.” The results, he says, “were disastrous, because they pretty much turned parishioners into prey for greedy brokers.”
The hypothesis is certainly worthy of further investigation. If you believe that an opportunity that seems too good to be true is the result of divine providence rather than unsavory banking policy, it’s easy to fall into the foreclosure trap.
Impolite Conversation 