Got this from the Bob Barr 2008 campaign this morning:

Last Friday I wrote you with a clever message soliciting an $8 gift for the Bob Barr for President campaign._ It was, after all, 8-8-08 and I figured perhaps an appeal to your superstitious side may work.

But unless our computer is wrong, it didn’t._ I’ll admit it, my feelings were hurt - a little.

So today I write to tell you about how good fortune has fallen on several of our supporters who wrote to tell us what happened after giving their first $8 in support of Bob Barr.

__ _+ + +__ _Larry J. of Miami won the Florida Lottery and can now afford to give much more.

___ + + +__ _Karen T. of Seattle reports meeting the man of her dreams and thinks this could lead to a beautiful marriage and a lifetime of happiness.

__ _+ + + __ _John M. of San Antonio told us that his warts suddenly disappeared.

__ _+ + +__ _Kyle G. of Nashville writes that all of the weeds in his yard had disappeared.

__ _+ + +__ _Kevin B. of Akron says that after six months of unemployment, he’s got a job.

__ _+ + +__ _And Alan C. of Portland met the woman of his dreams…in Seattle.

Think of what you may have missed out on….

OK, I’ll admit it, I made all of this up._ But I’m not going to give up._ Shane Cory, our deputy campaign manager who has a cubicle next door to mine, suggested I sweeten the deal.

So here it is._ Five bucks from you today and I’ll send you a Bob Barr bumper sticker absolutely free._ (Shane wanted me to double the offer like that guy on TV selling cleaning products, but come on, this IS SERIOUS business.)

Come on, $5 is not much more than the cost of one of those fancy coffees from Starbucks._ In fact, $5 is less than lunch at McDonalds…and besides, do you really want those calories and fat grams?_ To donate, click here: https://www.bobbarr2008.com/donate/?c=bb0816

Please, $5 today - and I’ll never nag you again._ Thanks.

Sincerely,

Robert Stuber, the official Bob Barr beggar

This isn’t the only donation solictitation I’ve seen from the Barr campaign with this type of pathetic plea. He’s not alone though. McCain’s campaign has sent out a few emails that are almost as sad.

Barr is going to be in NYC this upcoming Monday. I’m not yet sure if I’ll be attending. I’ve been saying he still needs to convince me to vote for him… perhaps this is his chance. What I do know is he’s not getting the $250 VIP donation required so I may hang out for an hour before he mingles with the regular fokes.

http://wcbstv.com/…

NEWARK, N.J. (CBS) - The sputtering economy has caused an increase in prices of many staples including gasoline, rice, ice cream, even beer. Now some lawmakers in New Jersey are considering taking food taxes a step further and install a proverbial “sin” tax on fast food.

Yes, the idea of marking up your favorite fast food burger or pack of fries is actually being tossed around, and it’s not settling well with many residents.

“They’re taxing everything. Now you’re gonna tax fast food? That’s crazy,” said Newark resident Miriam Robertson.

Added Livingston resident Tina Abrahamian: “No one wants to be taxed. I mean, it’s a necessity to eat and people need to eat and with everything skyrocketing, that’s the last thing we want to tax.”

The thought of taxing a Big Mac or a Wendy’s burger came up at a New Jersey Hospital Association meeting where Gov. Jon S. Corzine was asked if it could be an option to help fund struggling hospitals. At the meeting, he reportedly called it a “constructive suggestion.”

A spokesperson for the governor, however, told CBS 2 on Wednesday:

“The governor is open to reasonable solutions to help solve our financing problems, but there are no plans for any fast food tax.”

State Sen. Richard Codey has been quoted as saying a tax on fast food “is a tax on the poor.” And plenty of residents agree.

“[It cost] $12.86 for [fries] and this little chicken wrap, and they want to tax that? You’re serious?” asked Newark resident Saladine Fuller. “If they raise it, I’ll stop buying it.”

Still, some say taxing fast food isn’t such a bad idea.

“I think this country has gone too much in the direction of fast and unhealthy food, and if people are taxed they may terminate that and turn toward more healthy foods,” said West Orange resident Maureen Felix.

For now, the fast food tax is just an idea. Detroit lawmakers once toyed with it, but it never passed into law.

Mental note… Maureen Felix of West Orange is an authoritarian.

This is so very retarded. Fast food is not cheap. It’s just easy. But so is the Qwiki Mart and Starbucks and DD. Will they tax that too? How about a progressive tax on the density of energy. That way we all are incentivized to eat cardboard and celery. They are simply looking for money and since fast food has been demonized its an easy target. If they need money why not they use some of it from their monopoly gambling ring or layoff some of those make work bureaucrats they have? Why not just stop fucking around and let the market decide where the money should flow? If a hospital is failing it should be left to fail. It’s a failed program and needs to be replaced.

http://www.engadget.com/…

Look, kiddie porn and terrorism are bad. Obvious. But what better way for a government to push through controversial legislation quickly than to harness their emotive properties? After all, what self-respecting member of the US House of Representatives would vote against legislation called Securing Adolescents From Exploitation-Online, or SAFE? Only 2 it turns out (Rep. Paul Broun from Georgia and Rep. presidential candidate, Ron Paul) with 409 members voting yesterday in favor. The new bill requires everyone (that includes you and Starbucks) offering an open WiFi connection to the public to be on the lookout for report known “illegal images” and “obscene” cartoons and drawings. The reporting requirement extends to cover social networking sites, ISPs, and email providers. Failing to dutifully report what you’ve seen (or haven’t seen but are unwittingly complicit in) could leave your data seized and in debt from fines of up to $300,000.

H.R.3791.EH can be found here.

The bill requires those who “obtains actual knowledge of any facts or circumstances described in paragraph (2)” report it to the CyberTipline. Paragraph 2 refers to Title 18, Part 1, Chapter 110, Sections “2251, 2251A, 2252, 2252A, 2252B, or 2260 that involves child pornography” and Chapter 71, Section 1446A. The Engadget article is a bit misleading in that it’s all in regard to children but the definitions are no less clear. Section 1446A reads: an offense is “Any person who, in a circumstance described in subsection (d), knowingly possesses a visual depiction of any kind, including a drawling, cartoon, sculpture, or painting, that — (1) (A) depicts a minor engaging in sexually explicit conduct; and (B) is obscene; or (2) (A) depicts an image that is, or appears to be, of a minor engaging in graphic bestiality, sadistic or masochistic abuse, or sexual intercourse, including genital-genital, oral-genital, anal-genital, or oral-anal, whether between persons of the same or opposite sex; and (B) lack serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value;” This is very vague and highly subjective. The fact it can be something not even related to an actual human makes this far worse. At this point what would be the difference between a cartoon and the image in your mind or a description on paper or spoken? It’s a victimless crime. A thought crime. The fact that they have now tacked on requiring others to nark on people adds a whole new level to this. Those affected have been drafted by the nanny state morality police. The fact it carries penalties also implies to me that they are considering not narking aiding and abetting.