Nice Planet 5: Insert Catchy Title Here

[FlagDUDE08]

Re: Nice Planet 5: Insert Catchy Title Here

Maybe I missed something. Is the government shut down or not?

Are you saying that this goes beyond the shutdown and is being done out of spite?

My understanding is that the shutdown is the reason that these places are closed. Do I have that wrong?


How is Obama "hassling" these guys?

Park Rangers are being told to harass people. They've even admitted that they were ordered to do so.

 

[Old Pio]

Re: Nice Planet 5: Insert Catchy Title Here

While the whole "War on Christmas" hyperbole on Faux makes me point and laugh, this ticks me off...


http://www.channel3000.com/news/Choir-halts-practices-following-music-directive/-/1648/22315526/-/13rve67/-/index.html


I grew up a singer and was in chorus all through grade school. I was a really good singer and our program was excellent - had a great director. Same with the band - which my sister was in and was also excellent. Both went to local and national competitions and placed.


Each year we had a Christmas concert and a Spring concert. At the Christmas concert we performed -GASP- Christmas and other holiday/winter songs.

These concerts were part of the fabric that made up the holiday season, and not just for me or my family. Hundreds of people would be at them. We would take trips into Chicago to perform for holiday travelers/shoppers at places such as the Drake Hotel on the Magnificent Mile.

Listen to children's choirs doing Christmas songs and tell me that it doesn't feel right... pure, even.


My son was in chorus in 6th grade and we were treated to a December concert featuring Michael Jackson songs, poorly executed. Apparently, the director was a huge fan and didn't see any irony in children performing his songs.

Instead of being a pleasant part of the holiday season, this concert was awful and only reminded me of what's been lost in the 30 or so years since I was that age.


I may be liberal leaning, but I ****ing hate political correctness.



/rant

Ronnie Baer and Sue Gottlieb (to name two) who sang in our school's choir would doubtless agree. Political correctness is an effort to avoid giving offense. In the abstract, not a bad idea. But it tends to empower the most easily offended. Do we really want the most easily offended in our midst to call the shots? Many "officials" appear to be responding preemptively to complaints that haven't even been submitted. In just about any of these situations, the PC types will say "if even one (fill in the blank from the list of approved "victims") is offended, then we've got to stop this." Really? Just one? A silly child at DU made that argument verbatim just last week about "Denver Boone."

Back in the day, we trooped across the street to a Lutheran church once a week for what we would now call a comparative religion class. Looking back, it must have been a volunteer deal, with parental approval. Anyway, we sat there making construction paper mezuzzahs. And learning about Passover. And Hanukkah. H*ll we may have even ripped through a chorus of "Dreidel, Dreidel, Dreidel." Seems we all survived.

 

[Old Pio]

Re: Nice Planet 5: Insert Catchy Title Here

Park Rangers are being told to harass people. They've even admitted that they were ordered to do so.

Some visitors to the Vietnam Wall have been threatened with arrest! Charming.

 

[FlagDUDE08]

Re: Nice Planet 5: Insert Catchy Title Here

Some visitors to the Vietnam Wall have been threatened with arrest! Charming.

Even better, the Catholic community is reporting that chaplains can be arrested for VOLUNTEERING THEIR TIME to grieving servicepeople during the shutdown. Say a prayer, get arrested. Wouldn't surprise me if they let one of the five a day with Islam slide, though.

 

[Old Pio]

Re: Nice Planet 5: Insert Catchy Title Here

Even better, the Catholic community is reporting that chaplains can be arrested for VOLUNTEERING THEIR TIME to grieving servicepeople during the shutdown. Say a prayer, get arrested. Wouldn't surprise me if they let one of the five a day with Islam slide, though.

There are a lot of people in "flyover country" who won't appreciate that sh*t one bit. For sure, Neville's behavior here shows he learned well all of those Chicago lessons.

One begins to wonder if the Honor Flight people didn't give them the inspiration. "Oh, snap, we hadn't thought of that."

 

[UncleRay]

Re: Nice Planet 5: Insert Catchy Title Here

Maybe I missed something. Is the government shut down or not?

Are you saying that this goes beyond the shutdown and is being done out of spite?

My understanding is that the shutdown is the reason that these places are closed. Do I have that wrong?


How is Obama "hassling" these guys?

These memorials are open spaces on the Mall. It takes more government action - more government dollars - to patrol and close them than it would to just not harass the people who want to visit them.

Same thing with the Pisgah Inn on the Blue Ridge Parkway. The road is open, but the Inn is being forced to close even though it receives no services and no federal employees work there. What I mean is that, until the shutdown, no federal employees worked there since it is run by a concessionaire. Now that it is shut, there are government employees working there to make sure that it is shut. Doesn't make sense to me. Fact of the matter is that it provides a service to people driving through as a rest stop. Blame for the shutdown can certainly be debated. But this idiocy rests squarely on the shoulders of the Administration. Hey, Barack, c'mon man.

 

[Priceless]

Re: Nice Planet 5: Insert Catchy Title Here

Are these the same people that said Obama would outlaw Christianity and turn us into a Muslin nation?

 

[Old Pio]

Re: Nice Planet 5: Insert Catchy Title Here

These memorials are open spaces on the Mall. It takes more government action - more government dollars - to patrol and close them than it would to just not harass the people who want to visit them.

Same thing with the Pisgah Inn on the Blue Ridge Parkway. The road is open, but the Inn is being forced to close even though it receives no services and no federal employees work there. What I mean is that, until the shutdown, no federal employees worked there since it is run by a concessionaire. Now that it is shut, there are government employees working there to make sure that it is shut. Doesn't make sense to me. Fact of the matter is that it provides a service to people driving through as a rest stop. Blame for the shutdown can certainly be debated. But this idiocy rests squarely on the shoulders of the Administration. Hey, Barack, c'mon man.

The right thing to do here, assuming there is some requirement to "close" these facilities (which there isn't) is to publicly exempt these ancient warriors. But that would require a perspective beyond the narrowly partisan.

 

[Old Pio]

Re: Nice Planet 5: Insert Catchy Title Here

Are these the same people that said Obama would outlaw Christianity and turn us into a Muslin nation?

More exceptions to the First Amendment?

 

[Gurtholfin]

Re: Nice Planet 5: Insert Catchy Title Here

The right thing to do here, assuming there is some requirement to "close" these facilities (which there isn't) is to publicly exempt these ancient warriors. But that would require a perspective beyond the narrowly partisan.

It would require common sense, which is in short supply all over D.C.

I'm with you guys, this is a disgrace - assuming that I understand the situation correctly.

 

[Slap Shot]

Re: Nice Planet 5: Insert Catchy Title Here

So when the government isn't shut down these locales have zero protection of any kind? Not even by roaming rent-a-cops? I honestly don't know.

 

[Old Pio]

Re: Nice Planet 5: Insert Catchy Title Here

One GI is dead. Fatally stabbed by other GI's. Not a hate crime they say. Well, that's a relief. Could have been a tragedy otherwise.


http://www.cnn.com/2013/10/07/justice/washington-soldier-killed/index.html?hpt=hp_t3

 

[Old Pio]

Re: Nice Planet 5: Insert Catchy Title Here

So when the government isn't shut down these locales have zero protection of any kind? Not even by roaming rent-a-cops? I honestly don't know.

What these facilities don't ever have (including during previous "shutdowns") is barricades, manned by armed rangers, threatening arrest. But you keep shoveling the manure, there may still be a pony in there.

 

[Old Pio]

Re: Nice Planet 5: Insert Catchy Title Here

It would require common sense, which is in short supply all over D.C.

I'm with you guys, this is a disgrace - assuming that I understand the situation correctly.

It's wise to be very cautious. You wouldn't want to be caught red handed criticizing Neville without ontological proof. Like H. V. Kaltenborn, you seem to be waiting for the "country votes to come in."

 

[goldy_331]

Re: Nice Planet 5: Insert Catchy Title Here

So when the government isn't shut down these locales have zero protection of any kind? Not even by roaming rent-a-cops? I honestly don't know.

The ones on the mall, like the Vietnam and WWII memorials are patrolled by park rangers, just as they are now during the shutdown. But normally it takes fewer rangers and therefore costs less since they are just there to make sure no one damages these open air memorials. Now, it takes more rangers to set up barricades and make sure no one crosses those barricades. Makes perfect sense if your intention is to play politics and maximize the pain to the taxpayers, otherwise not so much.

Some of the other places had little, or no, staffing, i.e. the Mount Vernon parking lots. They are now staffing the parking lots to make sure no one uses them to visit the privately owned and maintained memorial of Mount Vernon. The lots are owned by the Park Service.

 

[joecct]

Re: Nice Planet 5: Insert Catchy Title Here

So when the government isn't shut down these locales have zero protection of any kind? Not even by roaming rent-a-cops? I honestly don't know.

83% of the government is still operating as usual.

 

[Old Pio]

Re: Nice Planet 5: Insert Catchy Title Here

The ones on the mall, like the Vietnam and WWII memorials are patrolled by park rangers, just as they are now during the shutdown. But normally it takes fewer rangers and therefore costs less since they are just there to make sure no one damages these open air memorials. Now, it takes more rangers to set up barricades and make sure no one crosses those barricades. Makes perfect sense if your intention is to play politics and maximize the pain to the taxpayers, otherwise not so much.

Some of the other places had little, or no, staffing, i.e. the Mount Vernon parking lots. They are now staffing the parking lots to make sure no one uses them to visit the privately owned and maintained memorial of Mount Vernon. The lots are owned by the Park Service.

Candidly, I don't believe anyone who posts here is so ignorant as to be unable to differentiate between the customary level of "protection" provided on the Mall and the ramped up "protections" provided during the "shutdown." It takes real determination not to see the difference.

 

[Gurtholfin]

Re: Nice Planet 5: Insert Catchy Title Here

It would require common sense, which is in short supply all over D.C.

I'm with you guys, this is a disgrace - assuming that I understand the situation correctly.

It's wise to be very cautious. You wouldn't want to be caught red handed criticizing Neville without ontological proof. Like H. V. Kaltenborn, you seem to be waiting for the "country votes to come in."

Candidly, I don't believe anyone who posts here is so ignorant as to be unable to differentiate between the customary level of "protection" provided on the Mall and the ramped up "protections" provided during the "shutdown." It takes real determination not to see the difference.

If you can clear the spittle for a moment you'd see that I was agreeing with you.

It takes real determination to miss that.

 

[Old Pio]

Re: Nice Planet 5: Insert Catchy Title Here

If you can clear the spittle for a moment you'd see that I was agreeing with you.

It takes real determination to miss that.

But with all the qualifying of a Beaumont clap doctor.

 

[Gurtholfin]

Re: Nice Planet 5: Insert Catchy Title Here

But with all the qualifying of a Beaumont clap doctor.

Exactly as I've learned not to automatically trust what people who may have an agenda tell me.

Don't worry, I apply that same skepticism to lefties, righties and everyone else.