@Snowbunny: Glad to hear the state of your house is more important to you than the pain your cat experienced as a part of its body was being ripped from it forever. Declawing is a brutal practice. Pretty sure you wouldn't want anyone removing your fingernails, hm? Why should it be any different for an animal?
Is there a UK Jezie around who can explain this law to me? Being eligible for your partner's estate seems like a good thing, so why is Baroness Deech saying it sets women back? Am I misunderstanding the Law Commission's statement or is she commenting on an old law?
@jemandtheholograms: Ruth Deech is a very well respected expert on family law. Her views on divorce are interesting in that she does not believe that women who are otherwise able to work should be awarded any maintenance in a divorce [business.timesonline.co.uk] (this does not affect child support) and her views on cohabitation are similarly esoteric. [headoflegal.blogspot.com]
Basically, my understanding of her position is that she thinks that people ought to be encouraged to ideally (a) make wills, so that their estates are awarded according to their express wishes, or, failing that (b) get married or form a civil partnership, which has benefits for society. Just cohabiting with someone ought not be enough to have the estate awarded to that person, as opposed to their children, siblings or parents, absent their express wishes as set out in a will.
The lesson here is for everyone to please, please please make a will. Your assets will need to be divided no matter how small your estate is, and the legal bills will be more if you do not have a will.
Congratulations to Shane Ryan! You've just earned yourself a special spot in the brand new 1,000th circle of hell where you'll find accommodations like:
-Reliving your horrible life on earth!
-Being reminded of how pathetic you are!
-Seeing the consequences of your actions firsthand!
-Thinking about what you did!
-Ultimately realizing that your existence was a sad and pitiful one!
And that's not all! If you continue to behave in such a way, you'll get all of these wonderful accommodations for... ETERNITY!
@bluebears: The absolute worst part of this line is that every time I read it, in my head it sounds like the American Girl Books (of the dolls) gone terribly terribly wrong.
Let's take a few minutes and think of all the things that would be used against her in a 2012 presidential run... Here's my favorite: She quit her job as governor of Alaska because the job got boring so she could write a book about a grudge she has against Katie Couric.
[...]why should the media only compare ambitious women to impressive men, when so many ambitious but underwhelming men get so far in this world?
Ok, so, we should have an idiot female president because we just had an idiot male president? Ykno, to even things out.
It's like what Foreman in House said about the high rate of black men on death row: "Doesn't mean we should let black men go. Just means we should kill more white people."
Sarah Palin makes me sad. How quickly I went from "Woo-hoo! Female VP nominee from a major party! A first for the GOP!" to awkwardly trying to defend her ("She didn't say that; Tina Fey said that." "Cheap shot! You wouldn't say that about her if she was a dude!" "Shut up about the Bridge to Nowhere - my brother lives in that nowhere town and he needs a damn bridge!") to silently shaking my head in embarrassment, to banging my head against my desk, to weeping for the future of women in politics. I just want to... I just want to shake her!
@femme-bot: Exactly. We're talking about a woman who winked and flirted her way through a number of major campaign events and participated in beauty pageants. She clearly revels in the attention she gets for her appearance and general over-the-top girly image, but is loathe to support women's issues. On top of that, whenever something does not go her way, she screams sexism. I will not being losing sleep over her plight any time soon.
I know I'm a little late to this party, but I think I can understand why the Newsweek used that picture. She is posing in what looks like a red-carpet pose while leaning on a wrinkled flag that has carelessly thrown on the chair. It seems like a pretty good analogy to her time in office-- she does what will help her status, not what is good for the people. I don't know if that makes sense-- it makes sense in my head, I swear.
That being said, I also understand the charges of sexism.
I think she's proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that she can't stand the heat in a political kitchen - no matter how good she is at never actually answering questions - anyone else see that bunch of softballs lobbed by Oprah (who really should learn how to prepare questions for her subject BY NOW)?
She quit the governorship of Alaska for Christ's sake. She hasn't the ovaries to handle a management position at McDonalds.
Romney. I'd put money on it. The economy will still be so-so, or at least lacking many of the same employment opportunities that used to be out there for blue collar work. John McCain told auto workers the truth in 2008 when he said their jobs weren't coming back, and they consciously decided to believe Mr. Bain capital's dubious claim to the contrary.
Palin will be a Huckabee--unelectable in November. I seriously think entertaining nightmares of Palin presidency is advanced pee-pee-pantsism. Come game time, the party establishment will get its shit together and support Mittens.
@BearDownCBears: I am completely with you on both counts - viability of Romney and unelectability of Palin. That said, she can cause at least 6 category 5 shitstorms between now and then that Actual Political Players will have to weigh in on/support/debunk.
@BearDownCBears: Oh yes. I totally agree and I really fear Romney, both as a candidate who has a good chance of giving Obama a run for his money (particularly if the economy is still in the tank) and because he just makes my skin crawl.
@bluebears: I'm from Mass and he was a terrible governor. He said whatever he needed to get elected, and then threw us under the bus as soon as he decided to run for national office. The man is not a civil servant. He's a con man.
@Sputnik_Sweetheart: have you heard about how he owns (or owned) all those like, scared straight type of prison camps parents would send their troubled kids to? Like kids died at some of those places he owned. Then he was all, "oh its just an investment I had nothing to do with how they were run"
@bluebears: Also, strapping his dog to the roof of the car for a nice ten-hour road trip. Not as bad as dead kids, but there's no way he can disavow that bullshit.
@BearDownCBears: Not so fast, the land of Republicans down south won't necessarily go for Romney. Many of them see Mormonism as more cultish than Scientology. Wrong, I know, but that's what many voters believe, regardless. I attended a large southern church as a kid. Thousands of worshippers listened to sermons that Mormons were to be AFEARED OF and were OF THE DEVIL. Not everyone came away with the conclusion that the sermon was crap. My money is on Huckabee. Their base, ultraconservative evangelicals, can relate to him more and he doesn't ooze batshit so blatantly like SP. Or at least a Romney/Huckabee ticket would work to balance out the DREADED MORMON.
@BearDownCBears: Interesting points. More interesting, though is your diagnosis of the political hysteria as advanced pee-pee-pantsism. I find you to be hilarious in the first degree and hereby do summarily appropriate this term for my own purposes forever in perpetuity throughout the universe, just as soon as I can stop laughing.
@BearDownCBears: It is super, I won't lie. For months I had Falcon 7 as my wallpaper with the caption "Ha ha ha! Computers." Is there anything Stephen Colbert has done that is not awesome?
@msmoneypenny: Also, he has the terrifying magical Mormon underwear, and southerners, in my experience, don't wear underwear. "Course, neither did Jesus.
11/19/09
11/19/09
11/18/09
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11/18/09
Basically, my understanding of her position is that she thinks that people ought to be encouraged to ideally (a) make wills, so that their estates are awarded according to their express wishes, or, failing that (b) get married or form a civil partnership, which has benefits for society. Just cohabiting with someone ought not be enough to have the estate awarded to that person, as opposed to their children, siblings or parents, absent their express wishes as set out in a will.
The lesson here is for everyone to please, please please make a will. Your assets will need to be divided no matter how small your estate is, and the legal bills will be more if you do not have a will.
11/18/09
11/18/09
-Reliving your horrible life on earth!
-Being reminded of how pathetic you are!
-Seeing the consequences of your actions firsthand!
-Thinking about what you did!
-Ultimately realizing that your existence was a sad and pitiful one!
And that's not all! If you continue to behave in such a way, you'll get all of these wonderful accommodations for... ETERNITY!
11/18/09
A palate cleanser is needed after reading that.
11/18/09
@token_illiterate_commenter: Agreed.
11/18/09
11/18/09
Really. Really? Really. Ok! Well Shane Ryan, whoever the hell you are, you are a horrible person.
11/18/09
11/18/09
11/18/09
11/18/09
What else, ladies?
11/18/09
Ok, so, we should have an idiot female president because we just had an idiot male president? Ykno, to even things out.
It's like what Foreman in House said about the high rate of black men on death row: "Doesn't mean we should let black men go. Just means we should kill more white people."
11/18/09
11/18/09
11/18/09
11/18/09
That being said, I also understand the charges of sexism.
11/18/09
She quit the governorship of Alaska for Christ's sake. She hasn't the ovaries to handle a management position at McDonalds.
11/18/09
Palin will be a Huckabee--unelectable in November. I seriously think entertaining nightmares of Palin presidency is advanced pee-pee-pantsism. Come game time, the party establishment will get its shit together and support Mittens.
11/18/09
11/18/09
11/18/09
11/18/09
11/18/09
11/18/09
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11/18/09
Best show ever.
#tips
11/18/09
11/18/09
#tips
11/19/09