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Top 10 Conservative Idiots #7: The Wolf Of Pharma Street Edition
Top 10 Conservative Idiots #7: The Wolf Of Pharma Street Edition
Welcome back to the Top 10 Conservative Idiots! We'll have one more Top 10 before the new Year and then we'll be back January 6th and will be diving head first into the forthcoming election year where I'm sure there will be more conservative idiocy than one can shake a stick at! Because conservative idiocy doesn't take a holiday and neither do we. But first off it's December 23rd which means it's Festivus! And a happy Festivus to all you fine supporters of the Frank Costanza created Seinfeld holiday! Time to get the metal pole out of the crawl space! Very high strength to weight ratio! And this will be my airing of grievances! But first Human Fund cards for everybody:
To recap last week – it seems that the FBI gave “Pharma Bro” Martin Shkreli an early Christmas present by hauling his ass off to Supermax! They also proved that by doing this, somewhere, God might exist. Because when an asshole like this gets hauled off to prison, it really is a beautiful thing isn't it?
That's Martin Shkreli getting handed the walk of shame by the FBI. So to start with we're going to explore just how corrupt Shkreli (1) and Turing Pharmaceuticals (2) are. In other news, Magic Johnson and Rahm Emanuel (3) are, to put it succinctly, and also literally, knee deep in shit. Next, we go to Augusta, Virginia (4) where a seemingly innocent assignment about Arabic calligraphy turned into an all out shit storm involving school closures and a terrorist investigation by the FBI. Meanwhile, Mike Huckabee (5) joins the GOP's youth outreach program (spoiler alert: no handouts allowed!). Everyone's favorite sociopathic presidential candiate (6) gets a certified endorsement from a real sociopathic president. Can you say “BFF”? Meanwhile, Marcus Cinema Group (7) revises its' policy on what weapons can be allowed in theaters showing Star Wars Episode VII (spoiler alert: fake ones aren't!). Finally rounding out this edition since it's Christmas Eve Eve, we'll take a look at some Christmas idiots including a school's decision to censor A Charlie Brown Christmas (8), the PC Police (9) cancelling a San Jose elementary school's trip to Santa's workshop, and a zombie nativity scene (10) in Ohio. Finally we'll close off this edition with another trip to the TTCI video vault. There's an absolutely brilliant mash up of "You're A Mean One, Mr. Grinch" starring, yup, you guessed it - Donald Trump! Yayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy! So let's get right down to it shall we? Enjoy! And as always don't forget the key!
[font size="8"]Martin Shkreli[/font]
So “Pharma Bro” Martin Shkreli got his ass handed to him by the FBI for committing pharmaceutical fraud. You know it's not in my nature to kick a man when he's down, but when you consider that this fucking douchebag made a fortune off the pain and suffering of others, there's always exceptions to the rule, isn't there? Fraud definitely isn't something to take lightly. And tanking a billion dollar pharmaceutical company definitely isn't either.
Turing Pharmaceuticals on Friday appointed a new interim chief executive to replace the controversial Martin Shkreli, who resigned a day after he was arrested by the FBI amid a federal investigation involving his former hedge fund and a pharmaceutical company he previously headed.
Shkreli, who is still CEO of KaloBios Pharmaceuticals, was charged Thursday in a federal indictment related to his time managing hedge fund MSMB Capital Management and as CEO of biopharmaceutical company Retrophin. The 32-year-old entrepreneur this year became a lightning rod for controversy over soaring drug prices at Turing.
Ron Tilles will take over as Turing's interim CEO, and will remain chairman of the company's board, a position he has held since its founding last year. In a statement, Turing said that leadership changes would not affect its business, and "no patient needing Daraprim" — the drug hiked to $750 a tablet from $13.50 this year — would be denied access.
On Thursday, the U.S. attorney's office in Brooklyn, New York, unsealed an indictment against Shkreli, charging him with seven counts including conspiracy to commit securities fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud. U.S. Attorney Robert Capers alleged Shkreli used Retrophin to cover personal debts.
http://www.cnbc.com/2015/12/17/turing-pharmaceuticals-ceo-shkreli-arrested-by-fbi-reuters.html
Shkreli, who is still CEO of KaloBios Pharmaceuticals, was charged Thursday in a federal indictment related to his time managing hedge fund MSMB Capital Management and as CEO of biopharmaceutical company Retrophin. The 32-year-old entrepreneur this year became a lightning rod for controversy over soaring drug prices at Turing.
Ron Tilles will take over as Turing's interim CEO, and will remain chairman of the company's board, a position he has held since its founding last year. In a statement, Turing said that leadership changes would not affect its business, and "no patient needing Daraprim" — the drug hiked to $750 a tablet from $13.50 this year — would be denied access.
On Thursday, the U.S. attorney's office in Brooklyn, New York, unsealed an indictment against Shkreli, charging him with seven counts including conspiracy to commit securities fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud. U.S. Attorney Robert Capers alleged Shkreli used Retrophin to cover personal debts.
http://www.cnbc.com/2015/12/17/turing-pharmaceuticals-ceo-shkreli-arrested-by-fbi-reuters.html
Somehow I don't think a new CEO is going to solve Turing Pharmaceuticals' problems. But I have nothing further to say except for:
By the way, if you want to read the full text of Shkreli's indictment, here ya go!
[font size="8"]Turing Pharmaceuticals[/font]
But how corrupt is Turing Pharmaceuticals? Like I said a new CEO won't cure their ills, or their ill gotten gains. So let's take a look at what Turing is doing to hospitals – where they refused to cut the price of the drug Daraprim to something that the hospitals could actually afford. It didn't affect the price of what the patients pay for the drug, but it affected hospitals – especially large ones that serve thousands of patients, like Cedars-Sinai in Los Angeles.
TRENTON, N.J. — After weeks of criticism from patients, doctors and other drugmakers for hiking a life-saving medicine’s price more than fifty-fold, Turing Pharmaceuticals is reneging on its pledge to cut the $750-per-pill price.
Instead, the small biotech company is reducing what it charges hospitals, by up to 50 per cent, for its parasitic infection treatment, Daraprim. Most patients’ co-payments will be capped at $10 or less a month. But insurers will be stuck with the bulk of the $750 tab. That drives up future treatment and insurance costs.
Daraprim is a 62-year-old pill whose patent expired decades ago. It’s the preferred treatment for a rare parasitic infection, toxoplasmosis, which mainly threatens people with weak immune systems, such as HIV and organ transplant patients, and pregnant women, because it can kill their baby.
http://business.financialpost.com/investing/market-moves/turing-pharmaceuticals-reneges-on-cutting-750-a-pill-drugs-price-but-rivals-new-99-cent-version-is-selling-well?__lsa=d2c7-e42d
Instead, the small biotech company is reducing what it charges hospitals, by up to 50 per cent, for its parasitic infection treatment, Daraprim. Most patients’ co-payments will be capped at $10 or less a month. But insurers will be stuck with the bulk of the $750 tab. That drives up future treatment and insurance costs.
Daraprim is a 62-year-old pill whose patent expired decades ago. It’s the preferred treatment for a rare parasitic infection, toxoplasmosis, which mainly threatens people with weak immune systems, such as HIV and organ transplant patients, and pregnant women, because it can kill their baby.
http://business.financialpost.com/investing/market-moves/turing-pharmaceuticals-reneges-on-cutting-750-a-pill-drugs-price-but-rivals-new-99-cent-version-is-selling-well?__lsa=d2c7-e42d
So Daraprim's patent expired decades ago which means that it's public domain, and anyone can purchase the formula. But Martin Shkreli did. And how exactly did he become the most hated man in America? Simply put here's how:
Martin Shkreli is a 32-year-old Wall Street whiz kid who likes sunglasses, golf shirts, the hip-hop artist Eminem, a bottle of 1982 Lafite-Rothschild, and jacking up by more than 5,000 per cent the price of a pill used by people who suffer from HIV.
Shkreli became the poster child for greed and insensitivity in America this week, after news broke that his company, New York-based Turing Pharmaceuticals, had raised the price of the drug Daraprim, which has been on the market for 62 years, from US$13.50 to US$750 — for a single pill.
But even that might not have turned him into a national pariah. It was Shkreli’s reaction to the outrage over the price hike that, in the words of the Daily Beast, caused him to “unthrone the dentist who killed Cecil the Lion as the most hated man in America.”
When one reporter asked him, via Twitter, how he justified the jaw-dropping price hike, Shkreli noted, “It’s a great business decision
that also benefits all of our stakeholders. I don’t expect the likes of you to process that.” He added, “You are such a moron.”
http://business.financialpost.com/executive/the-most-hated-ceo-in-america-martin-shkreli-who-raised-price-of-a-single-daraprim-pill-to-us735?__lsa=5eae-e984
Shkreli became the poster child for greed and insensitivity in America this week, after news broke that his company, New York-based Turing Pharmaceuticals, had raised the price of the drug Daraprim, which has been on the market for 62 years, from US$13.50 to US$750 — for a single pill.
But even that might not have turned him into a national pariah. It was Shkreli’s reaction to the outrage over the price hike that, in the words of the Daily Beast, caused him to “unthrone the dentist who killed Cecil the Lion as the most hated man in America.”
When one reporter asked him, via Twitter, how he justified the jaw-dropping price hike, Shkreli noted, “It’s a great business decision
that also benefits all of our stakeholders. I don’t expect the likes of you to process that.” He added, “You are such a moron.”
http://business.financialpost.com/executive/the-most-hated-ceo-in-america-martin-shkreli-who-raised-price-of-a-single-daraprim-pill-to-us735?__lsa=5eae-e984
So this is what we're supposed to put up with – this douchebag who is worse than Walter Palmer, the dentist who killed Cecil The Lion. But overcharging for a drug is pretty much the poster child for American greed. And this is the picture of the douchebag on his Facebook profile:
Which I'm pretty sure is the same as the profile on Rick Ross' homepage:
[font size="8"]Rahm Emanuel and Magic Johnson[/font]
If you read these regularly, you know I am from Southern California. I live pretty close to San Bernardino. And I love the Lakers. I bleed purple and gold. I grew up with the Dream Team of Magic, Kareem, and Scott. I lived through the Shaq and Kobe Threepeat years and loved every minute of it. And I am a huge Magic Johnson fan – at least his baskeball. But when it comes to business, boy is Magic Johnson a conservative idiot. He tanked otherwise healthy restaurant chains like Fatburger and movie theater chains. He kind of sort of turned around the Dodgers but that is going to take a lot to get the smell of that stupid out of the room. And now he's invested in charter schools, and well, nobody likes cleaning bathrooms. Especially ones this disgusting at that. And a for profit school should at least have a janitorial department, or one would think.
In light of Chicago Public Schools' financial challenges, parents expect to be asked to pitch in more at their children's schools. But janitorial work usually isn’t on the list of volunteer opportunities.
On Saturday, a handful of parents of pre-kindergarten students packed yellow rubber gloves and spray bottles of vinegar and
baking soda solution and headed to Suder Montessori Elementary Magnet School, 2022 W. Washington Blvd., on the Near West Side, where they spent the morning cleaning their children's washrooms.
The parents felt they didn't have a choice: Upon entering the bathrooms, they found pools of day-old urine on the floor, feces smeared on the walls and clogged, stinking toilet bowls. In the past few weeks, the school had an E. coli outbreak, and more than half of the kindergarten students missed school because of various illnesses, including a stomach bug, diarrhea or vomiting, said Michelle Burgess, head of the school’s parent-teacher association.
"These are preschoolers. They go to the bathroom and miss. The boys play in the urinals. And sometimes can't get to the toilet fast enough. It's understandable," said Angela Morales, the parent of two children who attend the school. "But they need to clean. We can't have our kids be in this filth."
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/ct-parents-clean-west-side-school-20151219-story.html
On Saturday, a handful of parents of pre-kindergarten students packed yellow rubber gloves and spray bottles of vinegar and
baking soda solution and headed to Suder Montessori Elementary Magnet School, 2022 W. Washington Blvd., on the Near West Side, where they spent the morning cleaning their children's washrooms.
The parents felt they didn't have a choice: Upon entering the bathrooms, they found pools of day-old urine on the floor, feces smeared on the walls and clogged, stinking toilet bowls. In the past few weeks, the school had an E. coli outbreak, and more than half of the kindergarten students missed school because of various illnesses, including a stomach bug, diarrhea or vomiting, said Michelle Burgess, head of the school’s parent-teacher association.
"These are preschoolers. They go to the bathroom and miss. The boys play in the urinals. And sometimes can't get to the toilet fast enough. It's understandable," said Angela Morales, the parent of two children who attend the school. "But they need to clean. We can't have our kids be in this filth."
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/ct-parents-clean-west-side-school-20151219-story.html
Gross. Simply, truly fucking gross. The only person who should be cleaning up this shit is Rahm Emanuel. Excuse me a minute...
OK I feel better. And how does Magic Johnson fit into this story? Well his company made a cool $80 million off the privatization deal.
The head of a Chicago Public Schools principals' group again condemned privatized school custodian contracts Thursday, including an $80 million deal connected to NBA Hall of Famer Earvin "Magic" Johnson, another of whose firms has since donated $250,000 to Mayor Rahm Emanuel's campaign.
"The schools are filthy, the principals have said over and over again. The management is chaotic," said Clarice Berry, president of the Chicago Principals and Administrators Association.
The comments came as Emanuel allies held a made-for-TV news conference to continue hitting the theme that Garcia hasn't provided enough specifics on city finances and Garcia headed to Southern California for campaign fundraisers.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/politics/ct-chicago-mayors-race-met-0320-20150319-story.html
"The schools are filthy, the principals have said over and over again. The management is chaotic," said Clarice Berry, president of the Chicago Principals and Administrators Association.
The comments came as Emanuel allies held a made-for-TV news conference to continue hitting the theme that Garcia hasn't provided enough specifics on city finances and Garcia headed to Southern California for campaign fundraisers.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/politics/ct-chicago-mayors-race-met-0320-20150319-story.html
Privitazation. It's a disease and it's going to kill us all. It's the circle of greed and it fucks us all!
[font size="8"]Augusta County School Board[/font]
So if you're a teacher wanting to educate your students about being multicultural, perhaps the place to *NOT* do this is in Augusta, Virginia. Earlier this week in Los Angeles, the entire LAUSD closed because of a perceived terrorist threat which turned out to be a massive hoax. Well if you want your kids to learn about all religions and cultures, perhaps don't put your kids in this district. And the school board this week committed what is an epic fail so stupid, that the kid who eats paste and frequently gets sent to timeouts in the corner, now looks smarter than the people who run the school board, because this is truly, in every sense of the term, an epic fucking fail.
(CNN)After a teacher at a Virginia school handed out a standard homework assignment on Islam, such an angry backlash flooded in that it prompted officials to close every single county school as a safety precaution.
"While there has been no specific threat of harm to students, schools and school offices will be closed Friday, December 18, 2015," Augusta County Schools said. Extracurricular activities were shut down Thursday afternoon.
And social media exploded over the school lesson -- a simple drawing assignment -- into a caustic discussion about religion and education.
When the world geography class at Riverheads High School in Staunton rolled around to the subject of major world religions, homework on Islam asked students to copy religious calligraphy.
http://www.cnn.com/2015/12/18/us/virginia-school-shut-islam-homework/index.html
"While there has been no specific threat of harm to students, schools and school offices will be closed Friday, December 18, 2015," Augusta County Schools said. Extracurricular activities were shut down Thursday afternoon.
And social media exploded over the school lesson -- a simple drawing assignment -- into a caustic discussion about religion and education.
When the world geography class at Riverheads High School in Staunton rolled around to the subject of major world religions, homework on Islam asked students to copy religious calligraphy.
http://www.cnn.com/2015/12/18/us/virginia-school-shut-islam-homework/index.html
Yes the simple act of copying religious calligraphy is now an act of terrorism. But they might as well ban anything relating to Islam or Arabic culture. Like the Arabic system that our numbers system is based on? And of course math is a terrorist subject. Why else do you think they call it Al'Gebra?
[font size="8"]Mike Huckabee[/font]
Poll after poll after poll has shown that if the GOP wants to win in 2016, they need to capture two key markets: (1) the youth vote, and the Latino vote. So far Donald Trump is doing his best to alienate Latino voters, where he is polling at a paltry -53%. That is an astonishingly low number. Trump's polling numbers among Latino voters are somewhere between Hitler, the Google Maps robo dialer, and Martin Shkreli. Seriously, crusted phlegm and smelly dog poop have higher polling numbers. And how great would that morning drive time show be? But now Mike Huckabee might be doing his best to alienate the youth vote, especially after this (I love Wonkette, by the way - they do good work) :
As we all know from his heartless reactions to Syrian refugees and the way he covered up his son’s dog-murder, Mike Huckabee is #FordTough. He ain’t got time to listen to all you liberals saying, “I would like a college education but college is too expensive for average people to afford,” or “I have cancer and medical marijuana is one of the only things that gives me pain relief.”
In Tuesday night’s loser undercard debate for people who are actually less popular than Carly Fiorina (WHO EATS MILKBONES), Huckabee explained his alternative plan for all you whiny babies:
All over America I hear young people say, “Would you tell me what you’re gonna do? Would you get me free college? Would you make sure that I can have medical marijuana?”
You know what I think we oughta tell young people, “We aren’t gonna give you anything! We’re gonna give you the opportunity to get off your butt and go serve your country and secure your freedom because if you don’t, nobody else is.”
Hahaha, Mike Huckabee, you are such a gas! (And we don’t mean the kind that happens when you eat bad squirrel giblets.) Those dumb kids with their Bernie Sanders and their rap-hop music, thinking, “Oh maybe someday going to college might be possible without coming out with crippling debt,” fuck them, right? Why don’t they act like REAL MEN and serve America in one of our endless wars? Why don’t they make like a Huckabee and fight for our freedom in Vietnam or Iraq or any number of other stupid wars the United States has lost?
OH WAIT, hold on, we are getting a page from Mike Huckabee’s biographer that says his lily-white meat-farting ass did NOT actually serve in America’s military, but rather that he married his wife Janet during college, graduated and then went to drop out of seminary like a common gadabout.
Read more at http://wonkette.com/597063/mike-huckabee-youth-outreach-yelling-at-stoners-to-go-die-in-a-war#eugxgeqjbhyvx40z.99
In Tuesday night’s loser undercard debate for people who are actually less popular than Carly Fiorina (WHO EATS MILKBONES), Huckabee explained his alternative plan for all you whiny babies:
All over America I hear young people say, “Would you tell me what you’re gonna do? Would you get me free college? Would you make sure that I can have medical marijuana?”
You know what I think we oughta tell young people, “We aren’t gonna give you anything! We’re gonna give you the opportunity to get off your butt and go serve your country and secure your freedom because if you don’t, nobody else is.”
Hahaha, Mike Huckabee, you are such a gas! (And we don’t mean the kind that happens when you eat bad squirrel giblets.) Those dumb kids with their Bernie Sanders and their rap-hop music, thinking, “Oh maybe someday going to college might be possible without coming out with crippling debt,” fuck them, right? Why don’t they act like REAL MEN and serve America in one of our endless wars? Why don’t they make like a Huckabee and fight for our freedom in Vietnam or Iraq or any number of other stupid wars the United States has lost?
OH WAIT, hold on, we are getting a page from Mike Huckabee’s biographer that says his lily-white meat-farting ass did NOT actually serve in America’s military, but rather that he married his wife Janet during college, graduated and then went to drop out of seminary like a common gadabout.
Read more at http://wonkette.com/597063/mike-huckabee-youth-outreach-yelling-at-stoners-to-go-die-in-a-war#eugxgeqjbhyvx40z.99
You know Mike, if you want to be president, it'd probably be best not to piss off young voters by treating them like children who want free handouts, while you yourself enjoy all the benefits provided to you by being a rich white Christian male. It's what Ayn Rand would do, after all!
[font size="8"]Donald Trump[/font]
Why does this next story remind me of the "Old Spice" Best Friends commercial with Terry Crews? Donald Trump picked up a huge endorsement this week from one of the world's most notorious wannabe dictators, and shirtless horse rider Vladimir Putin? Terry Crews is awesome, he was the president in Idiocracy, and he is hilarious in Brooklyn Nine Nine, and he can go shirtless any time he pleases. Vladimir Putin, shirtless, on the other hand, looks like a shaved bear:
You're welcome for that image, by the way. And *do not* do a Google search for "Shirtless Putin" with the safe search turned off.
(CNN)Donald Trump has said that he would "get along very well" with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The feeling is apparently mutual.
Putin offered high praise for the billionaire businessman-turned-Republican presidential front-runner on Thursday during an annual news conference with reporters.
"He is a bright and talented person without any doubt," Putin said, adding that Trump is "an outstanding and talented personality."
And in remarks closely mirroring Trump's assessment of the campaign, the Russian leader called Trump "the absolute leader of the presidential race," according to the Russian TASS news agency.
Later Thursday, Trump returned the warm words.
"It is always a great honor to be so nicely complimented by a man so highly respected within his own country and beyond," Trump said in a statement released by campaign spokeswoman Hope Hicks. "I have always felt that Russia and the United States should be able to work well with each other towards defeating terrorism and restoring world peace, not to mention trade and all of the other benefits derived from mutual respect."
http://www.cnn.com/2015/12/17/politics/russia-putin-trump/
The feeling is apparently mutual.
Putin offered high praise for the billionaire businessman-turned-Republican presidential front-runner on Thursday during an annual news conference with reporters.
"He is a bright and talented person without any doubt," Putin said, adding that Trump is "an outstanding and talented personality."
And in remarks closely mirroring Trump's assessment of the campaign, the Russian leader called Trump "the absolute leader of the presidential race," according to the Russian TASS news agency.
Later Thursday, Trump returned the warm words.
"It is always a great honor to be so nicely complimented by a man so highly respected within his own country and beyond," Trump said in a statement released by campaign spokeswoman Hope Hicks. "I have always felt that Russia and the United States should be able to work well with each other towards defeating terrorism and restoring world peace, not to mention trade and all of the other benefits derived from mutual respect."
http://www.cnn.com/2015/12/17/politics/russia-putin-trump/
So while Bernie Sanders picked up endorsements from CWA, DFA, and MSNBC, Donald Trump picked up endorsements from America's White Supremacists, and a guy who's against free speech and pro human rights violations. Telling, isn't it?
And you could literally take this commercial, and replace the heads of Terry Crews and Isaiah Mustafa with Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin, and it would be exactly the same!
[font size="8"]Marcus Cinemas[/font]
While on the subject of "perceived terrorism", let's take a look at the Marcus Cinema Group, the owners of the theater chain AMC. And if you recall your recent history, you might remember that the Aurora, Colorado shooting took place at an AMC theater showing "The Dark Knight Rises". So with the release of arguably the biggest movie of the century - Alvin & The Chipmunks: Road Chip (ha! fooled you again!), er, Star Wars Episode VII, there is some light being shed on AMC's policies. Particularly that of weapons. In case you haven't been following the news closely, there's been a lot of shootings lately. And I mean a lot of shootings. But when the safety of your patrons is threatened with arguably the biggest movie of the century packing cinemas left and right, what exactly *IS* the company policy regarding weapons in the theater?
This is disturbing. At the Marcus Corporation theaters (NYSE:MCS) in Nebraska people with concealed carry permits can bring their real guns into the movies anytime they want. This includes the opening night of Star Wars: The Force Awakens. However, their costume policy says you can’t bring fake weapons or props that look like real weapons into the theater. Fictional props, like light sabers, are okay.
As crazy as it sounds, the Marcus Theaters’ fake gun policy is stronger than their real gun policy! I go into details below, but for now I think that Star Wars fans in Nebraska should know what they might be walking into.
Although I just spotted AMC’s weapon and costume policy last week, (photo), the Star Wars cosplay people have known about various costume restrictions since October. Big chains even put their costume policy info on their posters. The costume policies were created in the wake of the Aurora and Kentucky theater shootings, it’s very sad, but understandable.
But since I write about politics and gun violence, as well as science fiction, I wanted to confirm and compare the various movie chains’ costume gun policies and their real gun policies.
First I checked with Starplex Theaters because the guy with the concealed carry license who shot himself in the leg did so in Starplex’s Cinema 10 theater in Salina, Kansas. It turns out that AMC just acquired Starplex so AMCs policy of not permitting real weapons applies to Starplex.
http://www.spockosbrain.com/2015/12/18/star-wars-fans-can-bring-real-guns-into-marcus-theaters/
As crazy as it sounds, the Marcus Theaters’ fake gun policy is stronger than their real gun policy! I go into details below, but for now I think that Star Wars fans in Nebraska should know what they might be walking into.
Although I just spotted AMC’s weapon and costume policy last week, (photo), the Star Wars cosplay people have known about various costume restrictions since October. Big chains even put their costume policy info on their posters. The costume policies were created in the wake of the Aurora and Kentucky theater shootings, it’s very sad, but understandable.
But since I write about politics and gun violence, as well as science fiction, I wanted to confirm and compare the various movie chains’ costume gun policies and their real gun policies.
First I checked with Starplex Theaters because the guy with the concealed carry license who shot himself in the leg did so in Starplex’s Cinema 10 theater in Salina, Kansas. It turns out that AMC just acquired Starplex so AMCs policy of not permitting real weapons applies to Starplex.
http://www.spockosbrain.com/2015/12/18/star-wars-fans-can-bring-real-guns-into-marcus-theaters/
So to extrapolate - one of the biggest movie chains in the country - a chain that had a mass shooting at their theater that resulted in 12 dead and 23 wounded, says that fake guns are not allowed. But real guns and real ammunition? Why that's just fine and dandy! To quote Darth Vader - "I sense a great disturbance in the Force". Excuse me a minute...
[font size="8"]Johnson County Schools[/font]
Hypothetical situation time. So you're an elementary school director and you're looking to put on a Christmas play to entertain the parents at Christmas time. And come on, during the holiday season, what's better than A Charlie Brown Christmas? You know the sad Charlie Brown tree, Snoopy on ice, Linus teaching the true meaning of Christmas, Schroder's somber piano music... it's pretty much been a holiday institution since it first aired way back in 1965. But what should have been a simple act of putting on a play has since become a bureaucratic nightmare for one school district in Kentucky. And you'd think in the ultra religious part of the state, that parents would be acceptable to the religious aspect of the play, especially where Linus actually reads some Bible verses. Well... once again, the PC Police strike again, and here's what happened:
When students perform the play “A Charlie Brown Christmas” at W.R. Castle Elementary School in Johnson County on Thursday, the scene in which the character Linus quotes from the Bible is set to be deleted.
Johnson County Schools Superintendent Thomas Salyer told the Herald-Leader Tuesday that Christmas programs across the district were being reviewed for possible modifications of religious references. That news had led people to protest outside school district offices for a second day Tuesday.
Principal Jeff Cochran said all references to the Bible were removed from the Christmas play after he and others in the district received a message from Salyer on Dec. 11 that said in part:
“As superintendent of Johnson County Schools, I recognize the significance of Christmas and the traditions and beliefs associated with this holiday. Over the past few days, there have been several rumors indicating that there would be no Christmas plays this year at our elementary schools. I want to clarify that all programs will go on as scheduled. In accordance with federal laws, our programs will follow appropriate regulations. The U.S. Supreme Court and the 6th Circuit are very clear that public school staff may not endorse any religion when acting in their official capacities and during school activities. However, our district is fully committed to promote the spirit of giving and concern for our fellow citizens that help define the Christmas holiday. With core values such as service, integrity, leadership, and commitment, our staff and students will continue to proudly represent our district as recently demonstrated by our many student successes.”
Read more here: http://www.kentucky.com/news/local/education/article49895325.html#storylink=cpy
Johnson County Schools Superintendent Thomas Salyer told the Herald-Leader Tuesday that Christmas programs across the district were being reviewed for possible modifications of religious references. That news had led people to protest outside school district offices for a second day Tuesday.
Principal Jeff Cochran said all references to the Bible were removed from the Christmas play after he and others in the district received a message from Salyer on Dec. 11 that said in part:
“As superintendent of Johnson County Schools, I recognize the significance of Christmas and the traditions and beliefs associated with this holiday. Over the past few days, there have been several rumors indicating that there would be no Christmas plays this year at our elementary schools. I want to clarify that all programs will go on as scheduled. In accordance with federal laws, our programs will follow appropriate regulations. The U.S. Supreme Court and the 6th Circuit are very clear that public school staff may not endorse any religion when acting in their official capacities and during school activities. However, our district is fully committed to promote the spirit of giving and concern for our fellow citizens that help define the Christmas holiday. With core values such as service, integrity, leadership, and commitment, our staff and students will continue to proudly represent our district as recently demonstrated by our many student successes.”
Read more here: http://www.kentucky.com/news/local/education/article49895325.html#storylink=cpy
I know that SCOTUS said that you can't endorse religion in a public school, and it was a boneheaded move to put on a play that endorses religion, particularly in an ultra religious area. But censoring "A Charlie Brown Christmas"? Come on... why do they hate America?
[font size="8"]The PC Police[/font]
The PC police, they live inside of my head
The PC police, they come to me in my bed
The PC police, they're coming to arrest me, oh no
Got carried away there for a minute. Speaking of poorly thought out Christmas lessons, let's go from Kentucky to San Jose. These days the PC Police are everywhere, and they were especially alarmed this holiday season. Whether they're attacking Nordstrom, Target, or even Starbucks, there's no telling where they'll strike next. Well it's pretty much a given that you can't celebrate Christmas without Santa Claus, right? And what better way to show kids a good time at Christmas, than with a trip to Santa's Workshop? Well, the PC Police won't have any of it.
A planned kindergarten field trip to sit on Santa’s lap has evolved into a name-calling, less-than-jolly brouhaha and a parent walkout in a San Jose school district.
The uproar started when a parent questioned the annual Sartorette Elementary School trip to a cafe to see Santa and drink hot chocolate.
School officials suspended the outing, according to media reports, resulting in loud complaints from other parents who said the opinion of one mom shouldn’t have superseded the wishes of others who supported the trip.
Parents on both sides of the debate spoke at a Thursday meeting of the Cambrian School District board meeting, but since the issue wasn’t on the agenda, no action was taken.
http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Halted-kindergarten-trip-to-Santa-s-lap-ignites-6708108.php
The uproar started when a parent questioned the annual Sartorette Elementary School trip to a cafe to see Santa and drink hot chocolate.
School officials suspended the outing, according to media reports, resulting in loud complaints from other parents who said the opinion of one mom shouldn’t have superseded the wishes of others who supported the trip.
Parents on both sides of the debate spoke at a Thursday meeting of the Cambrian School District board meeting, but since the issue wasn’t on the agenda, no action was taken.
http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Halted-kindergarten-trip-to-Santa-s-lap-ignites-6708108.php
Yes it does fall under the category of "don't teach religion in public schools", but how are you going to educate kids about world culture without it in the globalization era? And come on, when in the entire Bible is Santa ever mentioned? I don't remember Jesus or any of the disciples hanging out in front of JC Penny at the mall to get their picture taken with Santa, do you? And every culture has some version of Santa Claus that they admire during the holiday season. How can you take Santa out of Christmas? That's like taking the rug off of Donald Trump's head! Come on sing it with me! "The PC police, they live inside of my head!"...
[font size="8"]Ohio Christian Protestors[/font]
Remember back in Idiots#4 when I said I had a different entry for #8 but it got bumped thanks to heartless UT Republicans? Well here it is. I love it when the majority religion in this country plays the persecution card. I love that shit. Look at AM hate radio and pick just about any host at random, and they'll play it until their vocal chords collapse, not to mention they will bring on guest after guest after guest who will go out of their way to prove their point. And it's especially entertaining when they cry to the government about how they're not being treated fairly because someone may have a different interpretation of their beliefs. Meet Ohioan Jasen Dixon. While most Ohioans are busy setting up their nativity scenes for Christmas, Jasen is setting his up with a different take, which would make Professor Farnsworth from Futurama scream "Sweet Zombie Jesus!!!!"
An Ohio man is under fire from local authorities for setting up a zombie nativity scene against town wishes, Fox 19 reports.
For the second year in a row, Jasen Dixon, who manages the “13 Rooms of Doom” haunted house, set up a manger featuring the undead honoring a zombie baby Jesus — despite being ordered to take it down last year.
According to Sycamore Township officials, Dixon needed a permit for the macabre display this year. But when he applied he was turned down, and now he faces a fine of $500 per day for every day he leaves it up.
Having gone through the same situation last year before dismantling it, Dixon began soliciting donations earlier this year to cover the expected financial sanctions.
http://www.rawstory.com/2015/12/war-on-christmas-zombie-nativity-scene-draws-500-a-day-fine-from-town-as-christian-protesters-descend/
While this might be one of the greatest things I've ever heard of, not playing by the rules is bad, but the fact that the city government won't give him the permit and is fining the guy $500 a day is even worse. Come on, everyone let's celebrate Zombie Christmas! I know I'm going to!
[font size="8"]And now this:[/font]
[font size="8"]The TTCI Video Vault[/font]
We can't let you get out of here without getting you in the holiday spirit, can we? Well here's an absolutely brilliant parody of "You're A Mean One, Mr. Grinch" mixed with our favorite, massive ego inducing, sociopathic presidential candidate and spokesperson for the Hair Club For Men, Donald Trump. Enjoy!
See you next week!
Ed. Note: Do you want to contribute to the Top 10? Do you have a suggestion for a conservative idiot or want to contribute to graphics, videos, & formatting? Drop me a line via PM! I welcome all suggestions, comments and hate mail!
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But after the new year I'll be posting these mainly on Wednesday until the conventions. 
Nope. Festivus was created by one Daniel O'Keefe, whose son Dan wrote for Seinfeld.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Festivus#History
Festivus was conceived by editor and author Daniel O'Keefe and was celebrated by his family as early as 1966. In the original O'Keefe tradition, the holiday would take place in response to family tension, "any time from December to May". The phrase, "a Festivus for the rest of us", also derived from an O'Keefe family event, the death of Daniel O'Keefe's mother.
In 1982, Daniel O'Keefe wrote a book, Stolen Lightning: The Social Theory of Magic, that deals with idiosyncratic ritual and its social significance, a theme relevant to Festivus tradition.
The word Festivus in this sense was coined by O'Keefe, and according to him the name "just popped into my head". The English word festive derives from Latin "festivus", which in turn derives from festus "joyous; holiday, feast day".
Although the first Festivus took place in February 1966, as a celebration of Daniel O'Keefe's first date with his future wife, Deborah, it is now celebrated on December 23, as depicted in a Seinfeld episode written by O'Keefe's son.
In 1982, Daniel O'Keefe wrote a book, Stolen Lightning: The Social Theory of Magic, that deals with idiosyncratic ritual and its social significance, a theme relevant to Festivus tradition.
The word Festivus in this sense was coined by O'Keefe, and according to him the name "just popped into my head". The English word festive derives from Latin "festivus", which in turn derives from festus "joyous; holiday, feast day".
Although the first Festivus took place in February 1966, as a celebration of Daniel O'Keefe's first date with his future wife, Deborah, it is now celebrated on December 23, as depicted in a Seinfeld episode written by O'Keefe's son.
And San Jose made the cut at No. 9! I couldn't be prouder!
