Logic is such a nasty adversary. Our own BillinPortlandMaine wrote those words back in 2009, before the repeal of Don't Ask, Don't Tell, in response to an editorial from a group of retired generals who had published an op-ed decrying the proposed repeal. The generals wrote:
Some suggest that the United States must emulate Denmark, the Netherlands and Canada, which have incorporated homosexuals into their forces. But none of these countries has the institutional culture or worldwide responsibilities of our military. America's armed forces are models for our allies' militaries and the envy of our adversaries---not the other way around. As former senior commanders, we know that the reason for this long-standing envy is the unsurpassed discipline, morale and readiness of our military.
And Bill replied:
I'm sure the Danes, Dutch and Canadians will be thrilled to know that a bunch of bitter, aging American generals are calling their military servicemen and women disorganized, unprepared, uncultured losers. But I'm curious---why didn't they also mention the armed forces of Britain or Israel or Australia or Germany? They allow gays to serve openly and I dare anyone to question their effectiveness or morale. And this puzzles me: if we're the role models for the world's armies, shouldn't the number of countries allowing gays to serve openly be going down instead of up? Logic is such a nasty adversary, isn't it, Generals? If only you could invade it and make it surrender, everything would be peachy.
Please join me below the orange squiggle of logic...
Those words have stayed with me since I read them, and I've used them time and time again. Impeccable logic and pitch-perfect framing like that is worth the price of a morning coffee and pastry, isn't it? I'd say it's worth a whole lot more, and I want to keep Bill gainfully employed doing what he does best - skewering the powerful with wit and wisdom! This diary is part of an ongoing blogathon to keep Bill on the payroll and Cheers and Jeers on the front page here at DailyKos. Many Kossacks who supported Bill in the past have allowed their payments to lapse, if you can afford to do so, please help out.
Now, I love political poetry, and the limerick is my favorite form. For every limerick or other poetic piece I see in the comments, I'll be donating $0.05 to Bill's cause as a one-time donation, so have at it in the comments, folks! Here's a few limericks I've written over the years:
In 2000, Bush stole into office,
The Supremes gave it to him through artifice,
Now it's six years later,
And his ratings have crated,
Seems he governs with his head up his orifice!
In defense of his toe-tapping dance,
Larry Craig said he had a wide stance!
But it doesn't ring true,
That a man in the loo,
Could spread out after dropping his pants!
There once was a candidate named McCain,
He had the whole White House to gain,
To shore up his base,
His veep's a nut case!
Their election would surely bring pain...
Now his running mate, named Sarah Palin,
Used attack lines that seemed to be failin',
With issues the focus,
Not terrorist locus,
In the polls, they ended up trailin'!
Through it all rode my hero, Obama,
He kept cool and insisted, no drama!
The more they attacked,
The lower they racked,
One might think of a song - Instant Karma?
There once was a candidate named Mitt,
He was quite the notable twit,
His doggie, named Seamus,
Would later be famous,
For covering Mitt's wagon with shit!
Seamus Romney could only say "woof",
'Bout Mitt's cruelty, so callous and aloof,
But if he had speech,
He would surely beseech,
"Hey Dumb Ass, Luggage goes on the roof!!"
Now Mitt's handlers could only kvetch,
'Cuz his answers resembled a stretch,
Clear cut doggie neglect?
That's what you should expect,
When your candidate's an Etch-A-Sketch!
(For the record, the first one was written in 2006)
Also, here's my favorite haiku from the 2008 election cycle - I forget who wrote it, but I'll never forget the words:
Say something brilliant
Like, in what respect Charlie?
Four weeks later, lose
Here's a variety of handy ways you can help out, if you're so inclined:
First, you can recommend this diary, and the others when you see them - rec list exposure will help ensure that many eyeballs see the blogathon. If you can't afford to donate, we understand - rec the diary up and hopefully someone who can afford to donate will do so.
Share this diary on your Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, etc - invite some new folks to splash in the kiddie pool with us!
Pledge with me for each piece of poetry in the comments. I'll try to keep the pledge total updated, but I'll be playing darts in my dart league when this goes live, so I may be MIA at times.
Comment on this diary, and include a piece of poetry - each one is worth a nickle! Handy coincidence - "Ryan" rhymes with "Lyin'", just sayin'...
If you can afford to donate, here's some handy links:
One time contribution: click here.
$5 monthly contribution: click here
$10 monthly contribution: click here
$20 monthly contribution: click here
To send a check via snail mail, the address is: Bill Harnsberger, 16 Pitt Street, Portland, ME, 04103.
Please do what you can - Cheers and Jeers is an institution around here, and I'm looking forward to the day when "20 Years ago in Cheers and Jeers" becomes a regular part of the column!
This Blogathon is being presented by Kossacks like you - if you want to help out, please contact PoliSigh by Kosmail.
Be on the lookout for more diaries in this series - please rec them up when you see them! The remaining blogathon schedule looks like this:
Wednesday Sept 12
afternoon-Danno
evening-Sara R
Thursday Sept 13
afternoon-Meteor Blades
evening-post around 7:30 pm-Melanie in IA
evening-post around 10 pm--Cedwyn
Friday Sept 14
morning-Virgo Music
afternoon-Brillig
Saturday Sept 15
morning-nhox42
afternoon-post around 1pm-commonmass
afternoon-post around 4 pm-MsSpentyouth
evening-Nautical Knots
Sunday Sept 16
morning-blue jersey mom
afternoon- post around 1pm -Moody Loner
afternoon--post around 4pm-Debbie in ME
evening-triciawyse