Government

Good For You

My opinion on the voting for Speaker of the House? Don’t keep voting for the same RINO assholes that have been selling us out for years and expect to get anything different. I’m sick and tired of voting for candidates who promise to protect gun rights and support Conservatives, only to watch them vote to go along with Democrats and increase their own power.

Of course sellouts Mark Levin and Sean Hannity are pissed that the party doesn’t come first because the important business of the people isn’t getting done. I call bullshit. What business of the people is getting ignored? Do these RINOs really think that they are going to impeach Biden? If they do, do they really think it will get past the Senate? What is it that you expect to accomplish, other than cutting more deals with the Democrats?

I don’t give a hairy rat’s ass if you never select a Speaker of the House, because until you do, the House won’t be able to do anything else. That’s fine by me, because the best that Americans can hope for at this point is gridlock.

Those 20 Republicans don’t have to pack it in, Hannity, you fucking sellout. The Republican party is now faced with a choice- you can either acknowledge the freedom loving wing of your party and give them a seat at the table, or you can show your true, power seeking RINO colors and cut a deal with Democrats. At least then we will know that you only pay lip service to conservative principles. How many of those 200 Republicans were OK with Trump being impeached? How many of them stood up and called the rigged election of 2020 for what it was? Not you, you pussy.

By Divemedic, ago

Licensed Vs. Certified

We began a conversation the other day about licensure being a grift. There is a difference between licensure and certification.

A license is a permit, issued by the government, that allows a person to carry out a certain activity. In order for licensure to exist, the government must first make it illegal to perform the activity, then issue licenses that permit those possessing those licenses to perform the activity.

Certification is where an entity certifies that a person meets certain standards. The entity issuing the certification can be a private business or a government. The value of the certification lies with the reputation of the entity that issues it. A certification can be issued without license- for example, UL laboratories. The government even issues licenseless certification- high school diplomas.

The issuance of a license can involve certification by the same agency that issues it- an example of this is a driver’s license. The DMV both ensures that the applicant for the license meets certain criteria and issues the license.

Alternatively, a government may require that another, outside entity certify that the applicant meets licensing criteria prior to issuing the license. Examples of this include lawyers and nurses. Passing the Bar exam or the NCLEX is a precursor to receiving a license to practice those professions.

A license can be issued without certification at all. Fishing licenses, for example. No one cares if you know how to fish- FWC just wants your license fees.

The only real reason for licensure is so that the state can control who can and cannot perform certain activities. The state always uses safety and quality control as the reason for requiring licenses, but this is the government we are talking about here. This means that politics eventually carry more weight than competence or safety.

This becomes a problem when the certification required to obtain a license is different for one group than it is for another. Say an American doctor or nurse has to pass certain hurdles while foreign doctors and nurses have different, lower standards. The oft quoted problem of a barber requiring more hours of training than a paramedic in Florida. (it’s true- Florida requires 1,200 hours of training in order to take the exam to be a licensed barber, but 1,112 hours of training and clinical time to be a licensed Paramedic)

Nursing is a great example of colleges grifting the system. In order to sit for the registered nursing exam, you must have at least a 2 year degree. That means 72 credit hours, but 30 of those 72 hours (42%) are courses like US History, English Composition, and Humanities that have absolutely nothing to do with nursing.

The reason that this happens is the people who are already practicing in that field want to make sure that there is a restricted supply of their skillset, so that pay remains high, or in some cases it is because colleges want to make lots of money. This is why Physician assistant programs also lobby so hard to have the degree requirements increased. There are a few colleges that teach PA as a 2 year associates degree, a couple that make it a 4 years Bachelor’s degree, while most schools make it a Master’s degree. In each of the preceeding cases, the PA applicant is still eligible to sit for the licensing exam. Making it a more rigorous educational requirements doesn’t make for better PA’s, but it does make for fewer PA’s, meaning that PA’s make more money.

So yes, licensing is nearly always a grift. In fact, I can’t think of a single time when it isn’t.

By Divemedic, ago

On the ATF 80% handgun ban

The ATF recently released a statement that polymer 80% frames for handguns are all “readily convertible” into functional firearms, and thus have to be treated like firearms.

That isn’t exactly true. 80 percent arms is reporting that their 80% handgun frames are unaffected by the letter because a Texas judge has placed an injunction on the ATF enforcing any bans on their products. If you want an 80% handgun frame, you can still get them here.

By Divemedic, ago

More Airline Problems

Southwest airlines cancelled flights over the Christmas holiday. The passengers in Nashville who were stranded at the gate by these cancelled flights were standing at the counter, wanting solutions. What they got was a cop threatening to arrest them. What happened was this:

The flight was cancelled. The ticket agent didn’t want to deal with irate customers, and instructed police to have the people removed. The theory that the cop is using is: The flight was cancelled, therefore your ticket has also been cancelled. Since you can’t be in the sterile area without a ticket, you are now trespassing.

The only problem is that this is a bullshit argument. The ticket represents a contract between the passenger and the airline. There was an offer, an acceptance of that offer, and valuable consideration changed hands. The fact that one party (the airline) failed to perform under the terms of that contract doesn’t mean that the contract no longer exists, nor does it mean that the person who is the victim of this nonperformance is a criminal. What is happening here is the cop is inserting himself into a civil matter to the benefit of the party that has breached the contract.

That ticket is still a valid contract. The fact that the airline has chosen not to perform (no matter if that is a good reason or not) doesn’t cause the ticket to cease to be a contract. A person who is merely standing in line and inquiring as to what the other party is going to do to remedy the situation is not a crime, nor is it evidence of a crime.

Why do airlines get special police protection? Can I call the cops if McDonald’s fails to include the fries in my combo meal? Can McDonald’s call the cops if I pay for food that they can’t deliver, but I am still standing there with a valid receipt, waiting for my food or at least a refund?

For years, airlines have overbooked, oversold, and failed to honor the terms of their contracts. It is long past time that people demand a change to these practices. What other industry would get away with selling more of a product than they are capable of delivering? Can a car dealer sell more cars than they have or can reasonably provide?

This cop is an asshole, but then again most of them are. The Nashville airport has issued an apology, but that doesn’t change the fact that police officers have no business inserting themselves into a contract dispute. Honestly, it is stuff like this that makes me think perhaps we WOULD be better off if the police were defunded.

By Divemedic, ago

What You Do Instead of Something

The government added sesame to its list of allergens as a the FASTER Act, which goes into effect on Jan. 1. This regulation triggers all sorts of complicated tests and requirements for consumer notification in order to prove that the food product you are selling don’t contain the allergen, in this case, sesame. The plants where your foods are handled and processed must be inspected, cleaned, and maintained in such a way as to ensure that there is no way that sesame could contaminate the foods handled there. It’s a costly process.

The costs of testing, certification, and other compliance costs were so high that some restaurants discovered that it was cheaper to simply add sesame to their food and then put a waring label on it, declaring that the food contains sesame. By adding sesame to products that didn’t previously contain it, companies may be able to skirt manufacturing processes that would ensure production facilities are clean enough to avoid cross-contact with the allergen.

So that is exactly what they did. Chick-Fil-A, Olive Garden, and other restaurants have added sesame to their products so that they can avoid the added expenses incurred in not having sesame in their food products, while still complying with the FASTER act. These establishments are now fully in compliance with the new law.

According to Jason Linde, the senior vice president of government and community affairs for FARE, a nonprofit working to increase food allergy awareness, the nonprofit is disappointed that companies seem to be defeating the purpose of the FASTER Act, potentially putting millions of people’s lives at risk.

The same is true of assault weapons bans. What the left says is an “assault weapon” is a semi-automatic rifle with certain cosmetic features (pistol grip, barrel shroud, collapsible stock, etc.) that don’t change its function. So when the last AWB went into effect, people complied with the law by using bullet buttons, fixed stocks, thumbhole stocks, eliminating bayonet lugs, etc. The left then accused them of “exploiting loopholes” when what they were really doing was complying with the law.

This is what happens when you demand that the government do something. They do something without regard for the unintended consequences of what it was that they did, then you wind up with sesame seed breadsticks or sesame flour on your chicken nuggets.

By Divemedic, ago

They Are All A Grift

As of Sunday, you won’t need a permit to carry a concealed weapon in Alabama and Georgia. That’s right- those two states have gone to Constitutional Carry. The cops are opposed to this, and many times they claim that they are opposed to it because it makes it more difficult to fight crime. However, in at least one case, the cops have let slip that the real reason for the opposition is that CWP fees are a major source of funding.

“And those fees that are generated by the permit go directly to law enforcement purpose only…For instance, here at the sheriff’s office in Lee County, we use that for training and education primarily,” Sheriff Jones adds.

With gun permit requirements out the window, Sheriff Jones says they’ve already seen a 30 to 40% decrease in revenue. While it has not put a dent in their budget, he says sheriffs in smaller counties throughout Alabama have expressed concerns about how they’re going to make up for the loss.

It’s all a grift. I ask you this- why do you need a driver’s license? You say that it’s to make sure that each driver knows how to drive? Yeah? So why does it expire? What’s that you say? So they can make sure that you aren’t blind or otherwise have a disability that prevents them from being safe behind the wheel? So how can you make sure of that when a driver renews by mail? My guess is that collecting the fees is the real purpose there.

A Florida driver’s license costs $48 and is good for 8 years. So, $6 a year times the 18 million licensed Florida drivers equals $108 million.

A Florida concealed weapons permit costs $45 and is good for 7 years, or just about $6.50 a year. Multiply that by the 2.6 million Florida permit holders, and you see that the state gets another $17 million a year.

Permits are all a grift.

By Divemedic, ago

Puerto Rico Statehood

This issue comes up every decade or so, and here it is again. The Democrats passed a referendum to allow Puerto Ricans to select whether they want to be a state or be cut loose. It seems like the Democrats do this every few years to pander to the Hispanic vote, even though they know that there is no chance this will pass the Senate.

Puerto Rico is a socialist disaster of a state, and if we are being honest, the entire island more closely represents a third world shithole than it does the US. I’m talking politically and visually. The tax rates are high, with a corporate rate of 37.5%, a personal income tax at 33%, and 11.5% sales taxes. On top of all of that, residents also pay US Social Security taxes, but not Federal Income taxes. In exchange, the US pays about $40 billion a year to Puerto Rico. In all, the government of Puerto Rico takes in about $12 billion in taxes, plus the $40 billion in US Federal money for a population of about 3.6 million, or about $14,400 per capita.

There was a time when President Trump speculated on trading Puerto Rico for Greenland because the island is dirty and filled with poor people. Honestly, I don’t know of any country that would take that deal.

I would like to see the place get cut loose. I just don’t see the benefit that the island gives the US.

By Divemedic, ago

Not New

A parent is claiming that a new law (trying to be sneaky and make it seem new) is preventing her from teaching students about holidays by preventing her from talking about Hanukkah because supposedly a new law says that teachers can’t talk about Hanukkah, Christmas, or even that made up stupid one, Kwanzaa*.

No, this isn’t a new rule. You can’t espouse religion in school, but nothing prevents you from explaining that different people celebrate different holidays. The problem here is that a parent wanted to come in and talk about her religion. It’s always been a delicate balance, and I can understand a school not wanting parents on the warpath because someone is engaged in what is a political minefield.

*Kwanzaa was made up in 1966 by a black American asshole after the Watts riots as a black people’s holiday. It is also celebrated in Great Britain, Jamaica, France, Canada, and Brazil. Note that not one African country celebrates it. Why not? Because it isn’t a real fucking holiday. The stated goal was to give black people an alternative to Christmas (which the inventor of Kwanzaa called a “religion for white people”) so they could celebrate black culture, rather than simply assimilate into American culture. Anytime a black man is successful, he is called names like “Oreo” and made fun of for “acting white,” which is why so few blacks do well. As an aside, the asshole who invented it was a convicted felon. He held women against their will as his slaves and tortured them.

Reading this, now you know why I didn’t like being a teacher. It’s all bullshit.

By Divemedic, ago

Trades

For months, we have been seeing stories about Britney Griner, the Woman’s Basketball player who protested the US, taking a knee and complaining about the US and its supposed unfairness to women. She get caught smuggling weed into Russia and was sentenced to prison. The penal colony she was sent to was supposedly inhumane torture.

Contrast that with the treatment being received by Pete Schwartz, who was convicted of four counts of felony assaulting, resisting, or impeding law enforcement officers using a dangerous weapon; interfering with a law enforcement officer during a civil disorder; obstruction of an official proceeding, and related charges. for his supposed participation in the J6 riots, even though he claims he never entered the Capitol or even had pepper spray on him on January 6. Even if the allegations are true, the trial was a farce. He was tried alongside three other defendants and was denied a separate trial. Since when does that happen in a case where the defendant faces up to 40 years in prison? (I love how police claim he stole “a wooden tire thumper” and used it on other cops. Let’s call it what it is- a club for beating people. )

Contrast that with Griner. She was released from prison today in a deal that saw President Biden free a Russian Arms dealer who was sentenced to 25 years for terrorism charges in connection with selling handheld SAMs to FARC. Meanwhile, a US Marine convicted of espionage remains in Russia, rotting in jail for the next 16 years. You and I both know that this smells like a “if you get caught, we will disavow you” op from the CIA.

You can bet your ass that Griner will still run her mouth about how unfair the US is, even though she has both seen how other countries do business and had the US free a terrorist to get her out.

This country now has one of the most evil governments on the planet. Perhaps that’s been the case for decades, and now they just aren’t bothering to hide it any longer.

By Divemedic, ago