There is a story that Caligula had his horse Incitatus declared a member of the Roman Senate because Caligula was an insane tyrant with a deep, quite possibly perverse, affection for his favorite beast of burden. There is a competing story that Caligula was less interested in enobling his pet than in humiliating his Senate enemies, by forcing them to accept a dumb brute as their equal in mutual dependence upon the whims of a sociopath with a penchant for public displays.
The Tea Partiers have made themselves America’s collective Caligulas, voting a whole herd of dumb, dangerous brutes into the House of Representatives through some toxic psycho-social mixture of resentment, ignorance, superstition, and bone-deep stupidity. Sean Cunningham, at the Esquire Politics Blog, has a slideshow “Introducing Your Crooked New Republican Leadership“:
So 2011 is here, and on Wednesday morning, so are the Republicans, and they’re ready to get America rambling as they mount the perches of their new respective committee chairs after winning themselves a majority in the House of Representatives. Yet, a few of them make for curious fits, if “curious” is a euphemism for “unbelievably asinine” or “stunningly absurd.” If you thought former House Energy and Commerce Committee chair Joe Barton was bad — and that’s the guy who apologized to BP for their oil spill — his replacement’s even worse. And have you met Darrell “The Sledgehammer” Issa?…
Click over for the complete Rogues’ Gallery, which raises the possibility that Issa’s years pimping “the Viper” car alarm may yet become his second-worst assault upon American society.
Villago Delenda Est
Cantor and Issa are both outright thugs. Neither has any problem with wearing their outright hypocrisy on so many things on their sleeves…and their fan base eats it up.
But there are so many twits and dumbfucks amongst the Rs. Tons of them. Just list them all and call it a day.
I do hope the jeebofascists amongst them are paying attention when Article VI is read, especially towards the end…
NonyNony
@Villago Delenda Est:
They treat the Constitution the way they do their Bibles – they pick out the parts that validate their worldview and ignore the rest.
burnspbesq
Unsurprisingly, the Republicans continue to lie about nearly everything connected to health care.
http://www.tnr.com/blog/jonathan-cohn/80868/fda-avastin-rationing-health-reform
dmsilev
@Villago Delenda Est:
I wonder who gets to read the sections on taxation (especially once they get to the Amendment which says income taxes are OK), and whether that person will subsequently commit seppuku due to the shame of saying that taxation is in the Constitution.
dms
c u n d gulag
Yes, today’s the day that the new RepubliKlan bozo’s pile out of their clown car and run into the House to take their seats.
Hilarity should ensue, but these clowns are set to do some serious damage. So, tears my fall instead.
My hope is that they are soooooooooo crazy in their over-reach, that even the MSM notices and trickles down the insanity to the lemmings. Small chance of that happening, though…
Instead, they’ll point out how spirited the newcomers are in their quest for bipartisanship, and why oh why, won’t the Democrats play nice with them, and just capitulate.
Rinse and repeat…
Comrade Javamanphil
@c u n d gulag:
Predicted MSM response: Bernie Sanders has crazy hair so it’s safe to say both parties are nuts. Who are we to judge?
Villago Delenda Est
@burnspbesq:
From the article linked:
But that’s not REALLY rationing. That’s allocating health care on the basis of moral virtue!
The stupid of the idiots screaming about “rationing” burns.
patrick
I weep a little today, as for the first time IN MY LIFE, my hometown US congressional rep, James Oberstar, is no nonger a member of congress…(18 terms)
dumb question: suppose in ’12 he decides to run, and beats the teahadist hack that upset him. would he start over at ground 0 as far as seniority, or would his prior 36 YEARS in the congress count for something?
Villago Delenda Est
@dmsilev:
Ah, but every amendment after the 12th is “unconstitutional” according to the nutjobs. Especially all that post civil war stuff that talks about equal protection under the law for all “persons”, which of course if you’re Fat Tony Scalia, means only people with white dicks attached to them.
The Grand Panjandrum
@Villago Delenda Est:
Do strap-ons count?
Scott P.
Note that what Suetonius says about Caligula is “It is said that he even planned to award Incitatus a consulship.” Whether true or not, Caligula never did so.
The Republic of Stupidity
Geeeeeeez… it’s not that bad… they didn’t vote the whole horse, so to speak into office… just the back end…
artem1s
@patrick:
this bullshit is exactly why I loath term limits. They’ve ruined the actual profession of governing. Now you just need a pile of cash to buy a seat that has been term limited and no one is held accountable when the stupid ass legislation you passed ruins your state or community or country 12 or 20 years later. Our politicians attention span is only as long as a twitter feed now.
never ever will we see the likes of JQA defending his constituents right to petition the government year after year after year.
Jeebus wept.
Jeff Darcy
Cantor and Issa are thugs? That’s an insult to thugs.
ornery curmudgeon
Incitatus was a top winning chariot racing horse (Roman chariot racing was the first mass spectator sport) and therefore a favorite of Caligula … there’s a lot of other craziness associated with Caligula and this horse (palace built of marble, being fed squid and mice dipped in butter, manger made of precious metal, etc.)
Please don’t insult horses by comparing them with Conservative Republicans: horses would provide a much more peaceful governance than we are going to see from these truly dumb, dangerous brutes.
...now I try to be amused
@ornery curmudgeon:
So Jim Bunning was the United States’ first Incitatus? ;)
mclaren
Issa is the dangerous one. This sociopath can actually get things done. He masterminded the recall of the governor of California and he’s bound and determined to try a repeat performance, except this time with the president of the united states.