"The kids would actually do work, they would have cash, they would have pride in the schools, they’d begin the process of rising."
—
To be fair, read his whole argument.
Newt Gingrich: Child Labor Laws Are ‘Stupid’
Here’s me being fair: The whole quote reads,
“It is tragic what we do in the poorest neighborhoods, entrapping children in, first of all, child laws, which are truly stupid,” said the former House speaker, according to CNN. “Most of these schools ought to get rid of the unionized janitors, have one master janitor and pay local students to take care of the school. The kids would actually do work, they would have cash, they would have pride in the schools, they’d begin the process of rising.”
“You’re going to see from me extraordinarily radical proposals to fundamentally change the culture of poverty in America,” he added.
So this walking/talking scrotum of a man is suggesting that we not only lay off hundreds of janitorial/custodial workers, but also use part-time child labor to replace them?!?!
This isn’t a ‘radical’ idea—it’s something we outlawed almost 100 years ago for good fucking reasons. In what world does it make sense to structure labor laws so that poor and working class families are relying on their children for income?
(via huffingtonpost)
One thing I found interesting when a bunch of right wingers ganged up on me on Twitter, screeching incoherent nonsense at me in response to this bit of satire, was how most of them assumed that I don’t pay federal income taxes. They coughed up the same crap about how those of us who support Occupy Wall St. are lazy parasites who don’t want to work, and are playing victim. And that we hate people who do work and pay taxes.
But of course I pay federal income taxes. I’m a 34-year-old woman who makes a middle class living. That I don’t throw a fit about it and act like it’s the greatest injustice in the world doesn’t mean I don’t pay federal income taxes. That’s because I’m a fucking grown-up. The ready assumption that everyone who pays federal income taxes is a big, screaming toddler about it is what probably galls me more than anything about the “53%” nonsense. Screeching about your taxes just makes me assume you are in a constant tantrum because of other things in life that are less than pleasant: that you have to work for a living, that food has calories, that not everyone you want will have sex with you….
But it is interesting how much [conservatives] project onto the left. Liberals are protesting real problems: unemployment, the foreclosure crisis, the war. And conservatives respond by saying, “Quit whining about real problems and listen to me whine about having to be a fucking grown-up. Wah!” And then say that liberals are “playing the victim”. It’s just one of the worst cases of projection I’ve seen in all the years I’ve spent observing right wing projection.
(My emphasis.) Feeling unjustifiably aggrieved for doing what you’re supposed to do anyway sums up the whole 53% thing pretty well.
Putting aside the fact that dressing up as a marginalized group contributes to their marginalization, I’m also deeply annoyed by White people who complain that there are no non-offensive costumes they can wear for Halloween. This is wrong and stupid for the following reasons:
WHITE PEOPLE AND CHARACTERS DOMINATE POP CULTURE!
MOST HISTORY BOOKS ARE WRITTEN TO SHOWCASE WHITE ACHIEVEMENT!
That means, when you, a White dude, dresses up as Spider-man, you’re the ‘real’ Spider-man. When you, a White girl, dresses up as Marie Antoinette, you’re the ‘real’ Marie Antoinette.
Unlike the rest of us, you Whites have the luxury of being able to dress up as nearly every well-known pop and historical figure—and many contemporary famous people—for Halloween. If I dress up as Leia from Star Wars, I’m ‘Asian Leia’. If my Black friend dresses up as George Washington, he’s ‘Black George Washington’…or worse, ‘Black Guy Wearing A Powdered Wig For Some Reason (Possibly A Black One)’.
That’s why I find complaints about not being able to dress up as ‘an Eskimo’ or ‘a Mexican’ to be not only obnoxious and ignorant, but indicative of your deep lack of creativity, White people!
It is pretty damned shitty of you to complain about not being able to dress up as an ethnic stereotype for Halloween when you have a wealth of other choices.
ETA: I know the current Spider-Man is not White. But I feel safe in assuming that most people are unaware of Miles Morales and still think of Spider-Man as Peter Parker.
FYI, British/European assholes: having a somewhat more liberal political culture does not give you a free pass to dress up in blackface. Having freed slaves a bit earlier than Americans did does not mean British people can’t be racist against Blacks!
White Europeans seem to have developed a bit of selective amnesia toward their own history. They forget that inventing and exporting racism was their number one occupation for most of modern history.
desperatelyseekingvalentino asked: You're costume campaign post is slightly ridiculous, firstly because it's not like there isn't a plethora of costumes making fun of white people (take the blow-up tourist or the plumber outfits that come with plastic WHITE butts). For the most part I love reading your blog, but I don't think that you can honestly play the race card here. It's just silly. It makes the instances when the race issue is applicable weak. I think your heart is in the right place, but you didn't think this one out.
It’s a beautiful Saturday and I’m not in the mood to deal with your bullshit with anything more than a gif:
He thinks Dexter is better than The Wire. And Entourage is one of his favorite programs.
I feel less bad about not liking his books.
(Source: The A.V. Club)
