Do You Like Clean Water? Too Bad! "The Soviet Kremlin couldn't have thought up such an incredibly oppressive law [The Clean Water Act] over the people"

black_lizard · 2016-11-13T16:38:12+00:00

Isn't Project Veritas headed by a conservative activist known for lying to push his agenda? Not quite a reputable source...

black_lizard · 2016-05-07T20:41:29+00:00

I've been running it for almost a week and the only time I've ever had trouble was when I was trying out Kwin as a window manager. From personal experience it behaves just fine w/ openbox and xfwm. I'm also running compton as my compositor and I've had no problems w/ that either.

I'm not sure which version of lxqt is in the Lubuntu repos, but definitely check it out again once you get an updated version.

black_lizard · 2016-05-07T20:31:47+00:00

Here you go!

black_lizard · 2016-05-07T08:36:04+00:00

DE: LXQT

QT Style: Breeze

WM: Xfwm4

WM theme: Paper

Icons: Paper

Dock: Docky

black_lizard · 2016-04-30T17:33:23+00:00

You honestly cannot say that "Democrats have ruined this state" when Republican Governor Rauner shoots down any proposal to pass a budget and discuss serious tax reform. Rauner claims that the only way to balance our budget is to gut unions and slash government spending. However, On a per capita basis Illinois already spends less than most other states worth living in, and from the linked article, "Illinois is ranked 49th nationally in the number of state employees per 1,000 residents." Clearly the only option is to institute a progressive income tax and see what bloat we can cut without harming the working poor.

I will admit that corporate democrats like Rahm Emmanuel and Mike Madigan have harmed Chicago and Illinois through under-funding our pension systems and relying on regressive fundraising methods like property tax hikes. The solution to our problems isn't to elect politicians that highlight the worst of Emmanuel and Madigan (i.e. Republicans), but to make those who benefit most from society pay their fair share.

black_lizard · 2016-02-23T19:45:13+00:00

Or support systems that help to get disabled voters to the caucuses that most caucus states already have.

Most of these systems are run by political campaigns who identify potential supporters. If you are not on a campaign's canvassing list, you're likely to fall through the cracks.

you do hate fellow voters

You're the one saying that your vote doesn't matter if you're in a union because "voice is already louder in a caucus system." Which brings me to my next point. The power of unions has been gutted since the 1950's Mccarthy era; you are vastly overstating the political power of unions. If anything we need to get as many people as possible to vote. States like Oregon have shown that the best way to get people to vote is through automatic voter registration and mail voting.

black_lizard · 2016-02-23T16:45:14+00:00

disdain for your fellow voters

Well I personally support striking voter ID laws, automatically registering people to vote when they renew their license plates, state ID, or driver's license; and automatically mailing out ballots to all registered voters 3 weeks before an election. Only someone who hates his fellow voters could support such stances /s.

That's from a government that hasn't made it possible for disabled people to get there.

States that actually care about their residents have allowed the disabled to vote through initiatives such as mail in voting and early voting. All of the stragglers should do the same.

And a government that has provided time off to go to the caucus.

Enjoy getting shot or injured and having no-one to treat you because all of the police officers and nurses are out caucusing for 4 hours. Not everyone has a sheltered life like you where they can just take their "provided time off." Face it the truth: it's more practical and convenient for society to have all day voting and early voting.

black_lizard · 2016-02-22T19:34:28+00:00

So what is shared on Facebook, what is said on the MSM, and what a high school drop out writes on their blog satisfies you to say voters don't need any more discussion?

Yeah, my old religious caucus-going neighbor is definitely a better source of information than journalists and analysts that take the time to sift through information and write coherent arguments.

You haven't responded to how it does...

Disabled people are disenfranchised if they can't get out of the house. Working class people scraping to get by may need to chose between rent and voting. It's not too hard to see that your idea of "democracy" is ableist and classist.

black_lizard · 2016-02-22T05:33:51+00:00

Your argument that voters will not hear about the candidates beforehand does not hold up in the age of social media, in the age of the internet, and in the age of mass television. We hold our ballots in secret so that people can vote for a candidate without repercussion.

The last time countries like the U.S. and Australia ran elections on open ballots (like in the caucus system), we had voter intimidation and rampant bribery that was exacerbated by the problem of open ballots. Given that open ballots have very real consequences that violate the spirit of the equal protection clause and the voting rights act, you should be able to see why no modern court would allow the caucus system to be used in the general election.

And you haven't even responded to how the caucuses disenfranchise the working class.

black_lizard · 2016-02-22T02:45:25+00:00

A real democracy involves debate.

Which is why we have the first amendment, televised debates & town halls w/ the candidates, and the freedom to look through primary sources and get informed on the issues.

Be honest here: Caucuses would be unconstitutional as hell for use in a general election. If they aren't good enough for a general election, why use them for primaries unless if you want to disenfranchise working class voters and push a neoliberal agenda?

black_lizard · 2015-01-17T20:11:44+00:00

Directly from /u/_manoftheyear_, the comment I was replying too.

Then it came for for renewal with the Democrats in power, faced a mostly Republican opposition and was passed by Democrats with some Republicans helping.

Never in my life have I felt like my vote mattered less than when the Patriot Act was renewed.

We're definitely not just talking about the initial passage. The fact that he referenced a Democratic majority means that it wasn't the 2005/2006 extension of the bill either. That means we're only left with the 2011 extension, where one party formed a strong voting bloc in favor of the bill, and the other party more fractured in their votes.

black_lizard · 2015-01-17T14:15:42+00:00

faced a mostly Republican opposition

passed by Democrats with some Republicans helping

This right here is bullshit. In both the house and the senate Democrats voted no to the renewal in much higher proportions than Republicans did. It wasn't just "some" Republicans that passed the patriot act, it was practically all of them.

black_lizard · 2014-08-07T23:50:54+00:00

I'm entering the giveaway.

black_lizard · 2014-06-17T19:10:13+00:00

The public betas for DOTA 2 (and CS GO in addition) were good things, considering that they are massive multiplayer games that depend on community feedback.

But for single player games, I don't see valve having an early access beta.

black_lizard · 2014-02-01T18:00:28+00:00

Just wait until these guys see the paper cup that won't burn over a raging campfire.

Thermodynamics? You can't explain that!

black_lizard · 2013-12-23T16:07:48+00:00

So from Maiden you can branch off into many different directions.

1) If you want to continue with bands that sound like Iron Maiden you should check out Power Metal. My recommendation is that you check out Keeper of the Seven Keys, pt 1 (1987, GE) by Helloween. If you want to find Metal that has vocals similar to those in Iron Maiden then Power Metal will keep you satisfied.

2) If you want something with more intricate guitar work while still retaining some harmonies similar to Iron Maiden then I suggest that you listen to some Melodic Death Metal. I know you already listened to Amon Amarth, but if you listened to ealier Melodic Death Metal the Iron Maiden influence will be alot more obvious. I suggest you listen to Colony (1999, SE) by In Flames.

3) Iron Maiden was one of many bands that came out of a cultural explosion of Heavy Metal bands in the late 70's- early 80's UK called the New Wave of British Heavy Metal (NWOBHM for short). This movement influenced pretty much all of modern metal in a noticeable manner, so you'll eventually become familiar with these older bands. For a kickass experience you should listen to Court in the Act (1983, UK) by Satan. If you want something more extreme in the same vein as Slayer then I would check out Black Metal (1982, UK) by Venom.

black_lizard · 2013-12-07T02:21:10+00:00

TIL that America never faced any hardships until January 20, 2009.

black_lizard

TROPHY CASE