Simpsons did it

Happy 9/11 everyone!

I forgot about 9/11

America post 9/11

It's a metaphor.

9/11 lulz

I'm so over 911 I'll make no attempt at commentary. Instead, enjoy these gifs:

Subtle. Tasteful.

Classic.

Coda

And a NSFW... below the fold:

End of Empire

No Empire has ended by conquest. Rather, they all fall from within, their very institutions rotted and filled with poison. Knowing this and acting with such knowledge could prolong an empire a great deal, but even it would not be immune to institutional infection.

Knowing this, you can consult for the Empire and make a lot of money.

Never Forget IX - Cyber 9 Edition!

One's dedication to an ideal can be measured by the amount of flair one is prepared to engage. How much flair do you wear?

You can tell they love America by the masks. And guns.

No one ever thinks they are evil, right? It's always the Other guy.

All is forgiven, loser

I can't cast a stone - I don't know anyone who can. So who out there is throwing stones? Let's ask some questions!

Tower Truthers

Click for big, as always. Know the truth.

Learn to let go that which you fear to lose.

I forget

I'm too hip to watch TV, so I have no idea what the TV talked about today in regards 911. My sources on the Intertubes were remarkably muted. So muted I said to myself, "Redshirt, I think we're finally over 911 in some significant sense." Even the 911 jokes were kinda lame. As such!

A stylish 911 shirt.

Have some 911 candy! The nougat filling is made of irony.

Plenty of folks got 911 birthdays, and who could forget that? No one, never!

What I'll never forget is the way 911 was used by some in power to gain more power, and to engage in acts of empire. And get filthy rich. Never forget that, and the way the event is used to manipulate you. Laugh instead, even if you suffered tragedy. Because tragedy will always happen - it just happens, sometimes. It need not be a Kristallnacht. And so as I said before, I mock. I laugh. I post stupid jokes. Why not? The real terror is this reality.

To end with perhaps an actual funny joke, click below - but beware! Boobies.

My Sharia!

Ah, freedom. Of speech - of the right for stupid people to think and say horrid things.

Of course, there were dozens of Muslim victims of the 911 attacks, but let us forget that and instead worry about:

SHARIA! We don't know what the hell it means, but if the MOOSLIMS are a'for it, we're 'agin it! Fun fact! A few southern states have passed laws banning Sharia. Whatever that means.

Imagine not living in America, maybe say instead, for example, you are a Muslim living in Turkey. And you see these protests on your TV. You must think, "America! What a country! Truly, the land of the free and home of the brave."

Still Not Missing You

No matter how insane politics seem today, thanks to the Repuglicans, forget not the true horrors when they were in charge of everything, and given a nice big terrorist attack which allowed them run amok. Here's W. announcing our invasion of Iraq - I'm sure those WMD's will turn up any day now. But let us consider a younger Bush, before he was cruelly thrust into positions of power:

Jolly drinking Bush! I'm of the mind he continued to drink occasionally while in office, but perhaps the world would be a better place if he just stayed drunk and played the rich layabout, rather than letting his Dad make something of him. But, let us give praise for one thing W did that was sincerely good:

He terrified and puzzled Africans, but he also legitimately helped groups dedicated towards the prevention/treatment of AIDS in Africa.

Good for you, W.

A Polite Doom

Look how polite everyone was back in Olden Tymes! Also, I'm sure I've said this before, but I was a voracious reader of comic books as a lad, and I learned a ton of words from them - I'd go to the dictionary all the time as a ten year old. And so I say, parents! If your kid is reading comic books, be of good cheer, for they are reading. And reading is fundamental.

Also, just as a taste of how crazy we as a country got after 9/11, here's a panel showing Dr. Doom's response:

Sure, he's tried to take over the world multiple times and killed lots of innocents himself, but America got attacked that day! Even Super Villains cried.

Too Soon

I've been making 9-11 jokes for years, so how can I not drop a Boston terrorist joke? Here you are - it's mild. For it is too soon, but. BUT! Hear me!

While I have a lot of personal association with this event (from afar), and it is tragic for the people directly and a bit less directly affected (unlike you and me far away from this event, watching on TV, or reading on the Net), I refuse to EVER be terrorized. As we all should. And that's what this clearly was - an act of terrorism. As almost all bombings are. Cowardly stabs at the heart of decent society. Which is 97 or so % of us. Here's what I say to terrorism:

Fuck off!

The real power of terrorism, however, is not in the numbers of people killed and maimed in the terrorist attack, but in the reaction. The people who become afraid, distrustful, fearful. The powerful who use these emotions to become more powerful. The innocent caught up in waves of xenophobia. The Patriot Act. The invasion of Iraq. Color coded "TERROR ALERTS". Etc. This is the real damage of terrorism, and we directly control it, in a democracy.

It's psychological. The dramatics of it, the random suddeness of it, the cruelty of it, scars the mind/soul, and it takes far greater significance in people's minds. For example, fear of sharks. Very, very few people are actually killed/hurt by sharks in any given year, but the fear is palpable. And just so - relative to the total population of America, very, very few people are killed or injured in terrorist attacks in any given year. Compared to, oh say just for another example:

Gun deaths, whether by homicide, suicide, or accident. Fun fact! Your odds of dying by gun go up substantially the minute you buy/obtain your first gun. And yet just today in America our Congress voted down any attempt to strengthen the logical background check procedure for gun purchases. Why? Politics and power.


People are making money off gun sales - that's a big portion of the reason for our country's insanity. And it's not really that big money, but they've got a good lobby (NRA) and so, we die every day. Because it's the power behind the topic - the political power of divide and conquer - that ensures that for now, no sanity will be forthcoming. We will keep dying for reasons we could prevent/minimize, but won't. And the Right Wingers among us will in fact enflame.

Thus, here in America, the reaction to this:

The cold blooded murder of Kindergartners, is this:

Wingnut training squads, completely unlicensed and unregistered except of course by their own phony institutions and camps.

Whilst a large percentage of the country goes into a froth over a couple of high end pipe bombs.

I'm sorry if you're offended, but our priorities are fucked up.

Greater Wingnuttia

Billionaire Sheldon Adelson scooting out of Romney HQ on election night. So much money spent, for naught. But what does that matter to billionaires? Plenty more where that came from. And plenty of wingnuts to grift and be grifted from.

Jim Robinson, founder of FreeRepublic.com. Rumored to be very rich from his website. If you want a direct insight into the wingnut brain, spend a few hours on the site. You'll look into the darkest soul of man. Crazy as heck too. And dumb.

There's lots of talk of secession these days. Isn't that odd?

It's dudes like this who are the reason we can't have nice things. At least without some epic fight. But hey yeah everyone's got the right to have their say, dumb/paranoid as it might be.

LOL America!

9/11 2: Space Ship Terror

Ya always got to take it to the next level in the sequel. The crowd demands it.

But seriously, the retiring of the Shuttle was a historical moment in that it will be noted as "Signs of a declining country". The Republicans have strangled this nation over the last 30 years, and we'll be paying the price grievously for years to come. That said, the Shuttle was kind of a waste at this point though too. It cost waaay more to operate than ever forecast, and only got more expensive each year. It had little purpose other than satellite delivery/repair. The Shuttle was designed for operation with a space station, and so the last irony is when we finally have one, it's too fragile and expensive to run, given the climate of the day - SCIENCE MUST BE DESTROYED!

One party has become insanely anti-science - the Republican Party. A once proud group (Honest Abe) has turned into a monstrous ogre hellbent on killing all the Unfaithful. If you value science at all, if you value law and reason and respect, it's your DUTY to never vote for a Republican and make sure you give your all in defeating them at every step. DUTY!

I am 98% sure Obama will be re-elected this November, but FSM help us all if somehow the cravenly Mitt Romney wins. We'll be well and truly fucked then.

Vote Obama!

Gliding Forever

Imagine you're on the 108th floor of the WTC as it burns, blocking any escape. The windows are already shattered, and so you have a choice: Die of smoke inhalation, or fire, or falling from the 108th floor. I know what I'd choose. Do you?

Personal parachute. Never go into a skyscraper without one.

But seriously, we're all going to die, one day and one way or another. It was destined from the moment we were born - everything that lives, dies. If it be in tragic terrorist attack, or car accident, or stroke all alone, dying on the kitchen floor, we're all going to die. We must make peace with this fact for a successful life, as denial will only lead to delusions, and delusions lead to darkness. Tip for living: Avoid delusions.

If your day has come, and it will come, face it as bravely as you can, in acceptance - this was the price of living: Dying. Alas, I wish it were not so, as do we all, as do all things alive, be they ape, dog, snake, snail, fish or bird, or all the microscopic bacteria floating in pond scum, so dear. Life is dear, and a brief gift. Enjoy it while you can, as much as you can. For the afterlife is boring I hear - that is, nonexistent. We get one shot at this thing called "Consciousness", and this is it. Do Good.

Gallows Jape

9/11 is here again. I'd almost forgotten, which I think is a great sign. The sooner this tragic event fades into the mists of time, the better - ONLY so it can no longer be used as jingoistic fear bait by deplorable Republicans and other Fundamentalists. 9/11 was their best tool for many years, and we're all still paying the price for their wielding of it. Thankfully, that too is fading, as the fascist tide recedes.

As I've said before, I lament the loss of life on 9/11, but then I lament the loss of life in a Bangladeshi ferry crash, or an Iraqi market bombing, or some jungle skirmish in Africa. People are dying all the time for all the wrong reasons, and sadly they often go unremarked. Once we ALL understand that people are people and we all want the same things - peace, happiness, children, and a pleasant old age - then we'll have a chance for no more terrorism, no more wars, no more violence, especially in the name of some "movement".

That's a ways off, though. Alas! In the meantime, I will continue to mock the Authoritarians, any who would have you bend your knee out of fear. Fear is never the answer. Laughter often is. Here you go (by the by - the pic above "The Accidental Tourist" was one of the first internet hoaxes after 9/11, and lives to this day. It is a hoax - here's the backstory.)

A real, pirated product.

The death of OBL was a big step forward in sending 9/11 to the archives. Thanks Obama!

As I've been making fun of 9/11 for a while now, I've seen more and more 9/11 cakes each year. I've got dozens on the old hard drive, but this one will suffice for now. Funny!

An actual "memorial" product. How better to remember that tragic day than flicking on a novelty lighter and smoking a butt? Or blunt.

 

Smoke 'em if you got 'em.

Removal Fee

So you've touched the wire, and are, according to the sign, dead. Now they're gonna fine you $200? Who's going to pay that fine? Your estate?

Apropos, I had my sweet little Honda stolen right after 9/11, and once it was finally found, stripped, I ended up paying $300 - for a removal fee, a storage fee, and a disposal fee. I say to the guy taking the money, "My car got stolen and I have to pay $300. Does this seem fair to you?" He says, "Nope." I then paid him.

We're all just playing our parts, after all. What's your part?

Let me answer for you: Fodder. Make no mistake - you're here in service of someone else.

Rugs of War

Rugs made in Afghanistan, bought by US soldiers, shared with the world via the intertubes:

2011 - more war.

At least it's not poisoning a school full of girls, right? That's happened twice this year, by the way. The Taliban are among the most despicable groups on Earth.

A fitting tribute. I might use it again later this year.