Got a crazy forwarded political email from your family? Post them here.

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Debate & Discussion > Got a crazy forwarded political email from your family? Post them here.

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chesh: Apr 19, 2004; That was terrible.

Asnorban posted:

A lot of my older conservative relatives (and the younger ones who work for the state) don't understand that I don't get time off. They think I am just making an excuse to not take a few days off every few months to do something with them. I actually just can't afford to take days off all the time. I don't get vacation days, so any day off that I take is at no pay and I can't afford that.

The older ones still think that people my age (just turned 28) are all working jobs with high ceilings, benefits, vacation time, etc similar to opportunities that they had when they were younger. In reality I know very, very few people who have any real benefits. A lot of us are contracted (I have been contracted for the past 5 years, 2 with one company, 3 with another) and don't have a single benefit. "Just go get another job" isn't the easiest drat thing to do right now, and if I could I doubt I would find much better.

My friend/neighbor works as a dispatcher for AAA. While he does accrue days off, he can not take a day off unless he finds someone else of the exact same level and skill set to take his shift. There are two other people in his dispatch that fit that bill, and since neither of them wants to do overtime taking his shift, he either has to switch days with them or... never take an unscheduled day off.

Why management makes him fill his own shift instead of, you know, MANAGING their staff, I don't know. There also seems to me something deeply wrong about having earned PTO's you are essentially barred from taking.

# ¿ Jan 11, 2012 01:35

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# ¿ May 11, 2024 21:00

chesh: Apr 19, 2004; That was terrible.

zeroprime posted:

There was a short segment on From Our Own Corespondent this last September that interviewed people, in I think France, who had to get their food at the government market/French equivalent of food stamps. Listening to the shame in their voices over just trying to feed their families was goddamn heartbreaking.

This also used to be done in America. I was raised on welfare and government cheese. It was the best tasting cheese.

I was little but I seem to recall my parents getting it at the welfare office. It wasn't in a normal store, at any rate.

And it as delicious.

# ¿ Jan 19, 2012 18:42

chesh: Apr 19, 2004; That was terrible.

BootStrap posted:

I can remember standing in line at the local National Guard Armory for surplus cheese, powdered milk and rice. At the time I didn't think anything of it as everyone in my little town in AR was just as poor and was in line as well.

The help was appreciated, but that nasty cheese was anything but delicious. I wish I had a sample now to check the sodium levels. It was USDA surplus which was preserved to last while shipping overseas and was the saltiest poo poo ever.

I knew there were two other staples, I just couldn't remember what they were. We can agree to disagree on the tastiness of the cheese.

# ¿ Jan 20, 2012 20:00

chesh: Apr 19, 2004; That was terrible.

Not GHost Reagan!

Only registered members can see post attachments!

# ¿ Feb 10, 2012 19:06

chesh: Apr 19, 2004; That was terrible.

Sarion posted:

Yes I am. Thanks for asking!

See, I don't often get these things. A friend shared it with me, along with this FB conversation:

FB convo goes posted:

[Friend]Oh Hell yes I am.
[OP]Good for you.
[OP]Since I know you're not one to brag.
[Friend]Brag? YOU ASKED.
[OP]you already have
[Friend]Um, What? Let's review: You posted a silly picture that doesn't make a lick of sense, and I responded playfully yet honestly. Seriously, Reagan left office 23 years ago, and died 7 years ago. What relevance does he have to 4 years ago? A more honest picture would have Dubya there, obviously. And yes, I am better off, especially personally, as you should know. I'm sorry if my personal happiness, as seen through Facebook, offends your sensitivities. But most of all, you most certainly did ask the question, and I answered it, so you have no right to call me a braggart.

For this, the OP unfriended my friend, and then deleted the thread, and then blocked him. I wish I got to play in that pool of stupidity once in a while.

# ¿ Feb 10, 2012 20:02

chesh: Apr 19, 2004; That was terrible.

Sarion posted:

Haha. Some of my wife's friends are like that, so every so often I get to dip my toe in the crazy pool.

I forgot to mention it earlier: The OP had bet my friend $100 last summer that Donald Trump would be the next president.

# ¿ Feb 10, 2012 21:00

chesh: Apr 19, 2004; That was terrible.

Choadmaster posted:

The funny thing is, she'll say "Well, they should get jobs that pay better than minimum wage!" How do they do that? By going to loving college. Edit: I just noticed that she did say something about "entry level" jobs, and people should work their way up.

I'm not singling you out, just using this bit to hopefully illustrate a point:

I wish we could have a serious discussion in this country about college, and about how not everyone needs it. It's nearly required for any job above fry cook, and shouldn't be. Anyone should be able to learn and apply a skill, and to change professions based upon skill level, determination, and interest, but we like to pretend that everyone in this country at 18 knows exactly what they want to do in life and then pay vast amounts of money in order to do that thing, but the sad fact is that I know a lot of people with english and philosophy degrees in the tech industry and more than a few unemployed computer scientists.

Resumes of qualified workers are routinely thrown in the trash because they don't have the graduation marks behind their name, and it's bullshit. I could list a bunch of andectodes, but I know someone here has the hard facts to back me up.

Additionally, I want to point out MIkeRoweWORKS where my favorite dirty boy advocates for an laments the fact that we have lost the working class education that keeps this country moving. A big part of that is the loss of practical classes in high school: shop class, car class, wood working, even home ec: classes that show you the importance of and how to FIX YOUR OWN poo poo.

# ¿ Feb 12, 2012 04:36

chesh: Apr 19, 2004; That was terrible.

Incorrect Username posted:

Really? The only time I've heard of it here (Australia) is in mining jobs.

I agree Loving Life Partner, it is bullshit that someone can get fired from their job for smoking a joint a few days ago. Unfortunatly it carries that whole stigma of "only the guilty should be against it".

Workplaces can easily say "we don't want anyone to come to work under the influence for safety reasons" and if you're caught for something in your system last week, they can come back with "well it's illegal so you shouldn't be doing it anyway".

I just decided to google "jobs that require a drug test" and the first link is an article from 2007 stating that 84% of all jobs require a drug test.

quote:

A 2006 survey by the Society for Human Resource Management found that 84 percent of employers required new hires to pass drug screenings, and 39 percent randomly tested employees after they were hired. In addition, 73 percent tested workers when drug use was suspected and 58 percent required testing after accidents on the job.

And this is why I recommend coke, meth, and heroin*, as they pass through the body quickly.

*Not intended to be a factual statement.

# ¿ Feb 14, 2012 02:35

chesh: Apr 19, 2004; That was terrible.

Sarion posted:

It is true, as long as you frame it correctly by saying "Nearly half of all people who file income tax returns end up paying no Federal Income Tax.

I wonder if it would help or hinder the argument by phrasing it as a loan. Taxes are taken out of your paycheck every week, and when you file your taxes you get them back, thus giving the government a 0% loan for one year.

Shasta Orange Soda posted:

I'm not much of a Support the Troops type of guy, but when one of your first suggestions for cutting our bloated military budget is reducing pay for the little guy instead of closing bases or cutting the corporate fat or not fighting pointless wars all the time, then yeah, that's a bit of a dick move.

I believe all of those are on the table, too, such as bringing home a ton of troops from Germany and downsizing or closing some bases there.

# ¿ Feb 19, 2012 15:06

chesh: Apr 19, 2004; That was terrible.

Gourd of Taste posted:

I can't even imagine how I would source this but Limbaugh used to push this in the nineties, maybe also in 'the way things ought to be'.

Well now I feel dirty.

# ¿ Feb 19, 2012 15:25

chesh: Apr 19, 2004; That was terrible.

Mr Ice Cream Glove posted:

This came with a picture of World Trade Center in flames

If this a woman "who knows how to write a letter," I shudder to think what they are teaching about comma use in school.

# ¿ Feb 28, 2012 14:58

chesh: Apr 19, 2004; That was terrible.

Wait, welfare folk who fail a drug test are required to get treatment? Who pays for that?

# ¿ Feb 29, 2012 03:55

chesh: Apr 19, 2004; That was terrible.

In case you wanna go the image rebuttal route:

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# ¿ Mar 2, 2012 04:42

chesh: Apr 19, 2004; That was terrible.

The larger issue with voter ID's is actually a simple record keeping error. NPR has been doing stories across the country on this for two years, and it's loving ridiculous the number of Americanss that simply do not have a birth certificate or a social security number. You're talking about primarily elderly or extremely rural people. Something as simple as a misspelling of a common name on "official" paperwork can literally gently caress you over for life.

It's late and my google-fu is weak, nut here's one report:

quote:

In most states with voter ID laws, citizens must present birth certificates to obtain new photo IDs. Seniors and those born in rural areas, in particular, face a difficult time meeting the requirement because birth certificates weren't regularly generated in the 1930s and earlier. And many of these people were delivered by midwives, who often improperly spelled babies' and parents' names on birth documents.

If a state does have a person's birth certificate, they often must present a photo ID to obtain a copy. That can put an individual back at square one.

"People are caught in a Catch-22: You need a birth certificate to get this ID, but to get a birth certificate you have to have an ID," says Elisabeth MacNamara, who heads the League of Women Voters.

MacNamara also notes that a birth certificate may not be sufficient documentation for women who changed their names after marrying. States require them to present their marriage licenses or divorce decrees.

....

When Thelma Mitchell, a retired state employee, learned that her old employee ID (which was issued by the state and included her photo) wouldn't meet Tennessee's new voter ID law, she went to a motor vehicle office to obtain a valid photo ID. The agency asked her for a birth certificate, but she didn't have one and was denied her request for a new ID.

Mitchell, 93, has never had a birth certificate. She wasn't born in a hospital and was delivered by a midwife, in Alabama in 1918. Birth certificates, particularly for African-Americans in the South, weren't regularly generated at the time. As a result, Mitchell may not be able to vote this year for the first time in decades.

...

Another obstacle for Tennessee seniors: The state doesn't put photos on the licenses of drivers over age 65. This practice affects some 30,000 people, according to voting rights advocates in the state.

...

Florence Hessing, Bayfield, Wis.

At age 96, Florence Hessing is disabled, rarely leaves her home and votes by absentee ballot. She has a driver's license that expired a few years ago. She wrote to the state asking the requirements for obtaining a new photo ID under the state's recently enacted voter ID law. The response she received outlined the requirements and included a $28 fee � which angered Hessing because she expected the ID to be free.

Hessing first had to come up with a birth certificate. She wrote to Iowa, where she was born, but the state had no official record.

"I think that's a shift if I can't vote," Hessing said in an interview. "It'd feel like I was thrown out."

Ruthelle Frank, Brokaw, Wis.

Like Hessing and Mitchell, Frank, 84, was denied in her application for a new voter ID because she lacked a birth certificate. She was born in Wisconsin, has lived in the same home for 83 years and never had need of the document.

"After I was married, we made several trips into Canada. I used my baptismal certificate to cross all the time," Frank said. "That's all I ever needed."

She called her county's registrar of deeds, to no avail. The state's vital records office managed to find her birth certificate, but there were other problems � both her parents' names were misspelled, rendering the document invalid.

"In order to get it corrected, I'd have to amend it. And it would cost $200," Frank said. "I decided I didn't want to spend $200 for the right to vote because I've always thought the right to vote was free. I don't think it's fair."

$200 to fix some bumfuck records is tantamount to a poll tax.

The figures I have seen range from 300,000 to 3.1 million Americans falling in to this gap.

chesh fucked around with this message at 06:39 on Mar 2, 2012

# ¿ Mar 2, 2012 06:36

chesh: Apr 19, 2004; That was terrible.

ThePeteEffect posted:

Holy poo poo.

Do you have sources for the 300k or 3.1m figures?

Sorry, I may have conflated or confused numbers. It was late! In the linked NPR article is states that 3.2 million Americans have no form of photo ID, based on this study:

http://www.brennancenter.org/content/resource/voting_law_changes_in_2012

Other articles discussing that study say that it's 5 million people who will be affected by the new voting laws. 5 million people who voted in 2008 will either have to jump through crazy hoops or be unable to vote in 2012.

The 300,000 figure was gleamed from this link:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x843658

But I can't find the original NPR link they are referring to.

# ¿ Mar 2, 2012 14:49

chesh: Apr 19, 2004; That was terrible.

Walter posted:

I'm not surprised how many of these fuckwits don't get that a lot of women are prescribed birth control pills for other reasons besides actual birth control.

I love my doctor. We usually spend 15 minutes talking about politics and literature before we even get to the reason for my visit. I literally went in for a prescription refill yesterday and as he was going over my list of prescriptions, we get to:

<Doc> Still taking the depo-provera?
<Me> Yep.
<Doc> Still getting it at Planned Parenthood?
<Me> Yep.
<Doc> Good. They haven't been legislated out of existence yet and need your insurance money. Ugh, how did they become a lightening rod for this poo poo? The Republican field would be hilarious if there wasn't a real possibility of one of them getting elected.

And on it went. Because he's awesome. But while we were on the subject, I asked him about birth control being prescribed for non-contraceptive uses, like hormone regulation and to prevent ovarian cysts. He acknowledged that yes, they have off-label uses, but that it was a fairly spurious argument because 99.99999% of women do not get birth control for that reason. Just like, technically, you could get Viagra to help with this one rare heart issue (I forget the name) but, seriously, no one is buying that cover story, dude.

# ¿ Mar 3, 2012 01:07

chesh: Apr 19, 2004; That was terrible.

Keshik posted:

Facebook:

My reply:

Too mean?

Rush has no children. Does he use contraception, or just not gently caress women?

Walter posted:

I must have hit the jackpot, then, because I've known three women in the last two years who were prescribed birth control as younger teenagers for reasons besides contraception.

It's anecdotal, and therefor worth the internet paper it's printed on. I'm not saying he's right, just relaying what he said.

# ¿ Mar 3, 2012 03:27

chesh: Apr 19, 2004; That was terrible.

Giant Goats posted:

Your doctor does sound awesome, but most of my friends are gay or otherwise engage in sex where procreation is unlikely to occur, and I'd say at least a quarter have been on birth control at some point in their lives for PCOS (which 1 out of 15 women get diagnosed with), to regularize or stop their periods, or to help with cystic acne. Anecdotal, yes, but I myself have been on Marvelon for ten years despite not being at high risk for pregnancy.

I'm in the same boat. I'm at a low "risk" of pregnancy but I originally chose and stuck with my form of hormonal birth control because it alleviated the horrible symptoms I experienced with menstruation.

But, you know, I'm a huge a slut and will be posting all my sex tapes on the interwebs tomorrow because Rush demanded I do so.

# ¿ Mar 3, 2012 04:36

chesh: Apr 19, 2004; That was terrible.

jojoinnit posted:

Will do when I get home from work. I thought we were done as he ignored me since my last post an hour ago, but he just came back to say "she didn't pay for it if she paid for a plan that does not offer birth control that's like going into a shop and buying item and demanding two".

I'd love to live in a world where I had the choice of health care plans so that I could choose the one that best suited my needs. Unfortunately, I live in America, and my employer makes that decision for me.

# ¿ Mar 7, 2012 00:19

chesh: Apr 19, 2004; That was terrible.

Oh, I finally got one! It was over almost before it started, though.

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# ¿ Mar 9, 2012 14:56

chesh: Apr 19, 2004; That was terrible.

Found on Facebook. Not racist.

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# ¿ Mar 15, 2012 23:44

chesh: Apr 19, 2004; That was terrible.

SmuglyDismissed posted:

I've been avoiding Aldi because of the stigma somewhat.

I've compared the ads I get to Kroger and it seems like a lot of canned stuff and such is cheaper but not hugely so. How does the the produce and meat fare? I try to make stuff from scratch with a little splash of canned assistance.

Honestly, I do the majority of my weekly shopping at Aldi. For canned/boxed/frozen you can't go wrong. I'll buy a lot of frozen ground beef, chicken breasts, and ground turkey at Aldi. Defrost as needed.

Beyond that, their produce selection sucks. Everything seems bruised or on the cusp of old, so I buy my produce at either Bottom Dollar (new, not sure how I like it yet) or the local chain (South East PA = Giant Eagle).

For the basic staples and condiments, you can't beat Aldi.

# ¿ Mar 24, 2012 05:07

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# ¿ May 11, 2024 21:00

chesh: Apr 19, 2004; That was terrible.

CroatianAlzheimers posted:

So, I just got this tour de force of craziness in my inbox. I have no idea who the person is that sent it to me, or how they came across my address. The link's not dangerous or anything, just...well...just look at it...
The Planned Re-Election of Obama, Revolutionary Style

Wow, I love everything about this!

Farrakhan is on the CIA payroll. Man, there's a name I haven't heard in a decade.

quote:

�The Obama administration is working closely with Bernanke, Geithner and others not to save our economy, but to outright destroy it. He is not the first or only one to try this, but the most effective and most vetted for that purpose. Do you actually think that the fact that Timothy Geithner�s father worked with Obama�s mother in Indonesia was coincidental,� stated my source rhetorically.

I need a source for this, because it's just way too awesome if true.

quote:

�There are file drawers full of papers, heavily guarded papers at the �TEC building� so I can only imagine what�s in them

UNICORNS!!

quote:

Does Obama look worried about the upcoming elections? Look at his lavish vacations, his limited work schedule, and those with whom he is working.

Seriously, he's spending way too much time in Crawford. How much loving brush is there to clear, anyway?

quote:

He is desperately seeking a way to remain in office, even if it means the surreal prospect of an indefinite postponement of elections � if it can be pulled off.

I'm thinking here... who was the only guy in my life time to try to postpone an election... some dude in New York?...

This author really hates Valerie Jarrett, and I couldn't figure out why until I Wikipedia'd her. Born in IRAN (to American parents who were obviously traitors shut up).

# ¿ May 10, 2012 03:02

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Debate & Discussion > Got a crazy forwarded political email from your family? Post them here.

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