I remember reading the Fantastic Four comic where The Thing, Human Torch and Reed Richards were first confronted with Malice, a sexy super villianess who was really working them over. In one scene, Daredevil shows up to help and mentions that they are fighting an “amorphous” blob. Ben Grimm then says something to the effect of, “I’ve been around Reed long enough to know that amorphous means shapeless, but that lady ain’t shapeless.”

That’s where I learned the word amorphous. I learned quite a few words from reading comic books. Which is why this study didn’t surprise me:

Professor Carol Tilley, from the department of library and information science, said that comics are just as sophisticated as other forms of reading, and children benefit from reading them at least as much as they do from reading other kinds of books.

She said there was evidence that they increased their vocabulary and instilled a love of reading.

She said: “A lot of the criticism of comics and comic books come from people who think that kids are just looking at the pictures and not putting them together with the words.

“Some kids, yes. But you could easily make some of the same criticisms of picture books – that kids are just looking at pictures, and not at the words.”

She added: “Although they’ve long embraced picture books as appropriate children’s literature, many adults – even teachers and librarians who willingly add comics to their collections – are too quick to dismiss the suitability of comics as texts for young readers.

“Any book can be good and any book can be bad, to some extent. It’s up to the reader’s personality and intellect. As a whole, comics are just another medium, another genre.

“If reading is to lead to any meaningful knowledge or comprehension, readers must approach a text with an understanding of the relevant social, linguistic and cultural conventions.

“And if you really consider how the pictures and words work together to tell a story, you can make the case that comics are just as complex as any other kind of literature.”

I currently have about 10,000 comic books in my basement. I look forward to sharing them with my children.

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3. Dad Rewrites Kids’ Mathbooks Following Poor Grades

CNS News has been asking a simple question to anyone in Congress they can get a minute with to ask. It’s simple. “Federally, if you look at it from a federal standpoint, what area, specifically of the Constitution, would give Congress the power to mandate an individual to have health insurance?”

When they asked Nancy Pelosi, she was aghast. All she could muster was a stunned, “Are you kidding?”

Then comes Roland Burris, the stupendous Senator from Illinois. He just rewrites the Constitution:

It’s a stunning display of Constitutional ignorance.

As CNS notes, the word “health” doesn’t appear anywhere in the Constitution:

James O’Connor, Burris’s communications director, later told CNSNews.com that although the word “health” does not appear anywhere in the Constitution, the senator was referring to the Preamble of the Constitution which says the following: “We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.”

…

Burris’s comment “indicates his belief that the term ‘general welfare’ can be interpreted to include the health and well-being of American citizens, and health care in general,” said O’Connor.

That’s a typical response from a leftist. We’ve squashed that position here, here and here.

Then I get to hear Rep. John Boehner quote the Preamble of the Constitution. The only thing is, he’s quoting the Declaration of Independence.

The only thing worse than Boehner’s gaffe is Sanchez’s smug face reporting it. The liberal bias from him here is palpable.

Rachel Maddow also covered the Boehner gaffe, only she did something even more bizzare. She actually made the claim that there was no Preamble to the Constitution:

Of course there is a Preamble to the Constitution. How many of you remember memorizing the thing in grade school? Weasel Zippers has the School House Rock video you probably used to remember it:

Remember that next time someone tries to tell you how intelligent Maddow is.

Look at all these videos and then look at the mess the country is in. I know correlation isn’t causation, but I think there is a lot of evidence here to justify the thought.

Cross posted at Right Wing News.

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Allahpundit first brought this to my attention with a tweet that simply read:

Is this a joke? http://bit.ly/1RxvKK

The link went to a Weekly Standard post by the lovely Mary Katherine Ham, detailing White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs’ lamentation concerning the rhetoric of those who protest Dear Leader:

“I will continue to say what I’ve said before. You hear in this debate, you hear analogies, you hear references to, you see pictures about and depictions of individuals that are truly stunning, and you hear it all the time. People — imagine five years ago somebody comparing health care reform to 9/11. Imagine just a few years ago had somebody walked around with images of Hitler.

Ham unloads:

Let’s see if we can imagine that, Bob. Click here, and just keep scrolling.

Or, here. You will be scrolling for a solid five minutes to exhaust the Hitler images employed by the left for eight solid years against Bush, and that’s in just two blog posts. They were ubiquitous; far more prevalent that Nazi imagery in the Tea Party movement. Saying what Gibbs said, or repeating it credulously, requires an incredible amount of dishonesty.

Hmm, let’s try a search on Flickr, just so we’re sure I’m not cherry-picking.

It’s very telling that Gibbs can make such an outrageous statement. He must be very comfortable with these folks to say something so obviously false.

Of course there were Bush-Hitler signs five years ago. There were Bush-Hitler signs under construction for eight years straight. I’ll put money down that somewhere is a Bush-Hitler sign sweatshop still pumping out protest signs.

And finally, the Obama Hitler signs aren’t from the average conservative. They are from the LaRouchies. Click the link. They have it on their website.

And the LaRouchies are not right wingers. They’re just plain crazy:

The organization’s ideology is hard to pin down. The NCLC started in the late 1960s as a left-wing Marxist sect and then shifted to the far right in the mid-1970s. Its philosophy now is a thick stew of political ingredients. Some people have publicly expressed doubts that the shift to the right was authentic and believe LaRouche is secretly still a Marxist.

With the move from left to right, the group’s perceived enemies shifted as well. But one fear remained constant: that LaRouche is branded for assassination.

Supporters think they are acting defensively and appropriately when they telephone critics of the group and threaten them, or follow them on the street, published reports and former members said.

“There is some horrible psychological craziness in this group,” said one defector.

For eight years Bush tolerated the nastiest attacks, not only on him but on his wife and kids. To pretend everything was roses and sunshine is not only disingenuous, it’s outright insulting. Or, Gibbs could have meant it, which makes him an total idiot.

Either way is believable.

Related posts:

1. Andrew Min: We are NOT thugs. We are NOT an empire. We are NOT a class-based society. We are NOT Nazis. And Bush is NOT Hitler.
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3. Political Signs

When a mad man starts shooting, there are those who have the presence of mind to stay calm and the training to respond. Yesterday, Sgt. Kimberly Munley was that person. She was able to take down Army Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan with well placed shots in the upper torso. While doing so, she was shot as well, in the leg and the wrist.

The Hero of Fort Hood prevented Hasan from killing more.

The hero cop who ended the bloody rampage at Fort Hood by pumping four bullets into the crazed gunman even though she was wounded is known for her toughness, friends say

… Munley’s toughness and grace under pressure were on display Thursday when she and her partner responded within three minutes of reported gunfire, said Army Lt. Gen. Bob Cone.

Munley, who had been trained in active-response tactics, rushed into the building and confronted the shooter as he was turning a corner, Cone said.

“It was an amazing and an aggressive performance by this police officer,” Cone said.

Munley was only a few feet from Army psychiatrist Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan when she opened fire.

Wounded in the exchange of bullets, the 34-year-old Munley was reported in stable condition at a local hospital.

Without her, God only knows how high the body count would have been. God bless Sgt. Kimberly Munley.

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3. There’s Self Defense, and Then There’s Murder…This Looks Like Murder

The Congressional Hispanic Caucus visited the White House and apparently told the president that they weren’t going to vote for the health care bill if illegal immigrants weren’t allowed access to the program, because I guess only Hispanics are illegal immigrants:

Officially, the purpose of their meeting was to talk to the president about healthcare.

But CHC members, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said the group’s message was clear: Drop your insistence on preventing illegal immigrants from accessing the public exchange, even if their only option is to pay for insurance plans entirely out of their own pockets.

A public exchange is a nationwide pool of health insurance providers that would facilitate access to coverage for individuals and employers.

Obama has promoted the concept as a key component of healthcare reform.

The House healthcare bill already bars illegal immigrants from enrolling in the public option and from receiving subsidies for health plans.

But if the final Senate healthcare bill contains the exchange-prohibition provision that’s in the Finance Committee bill, the provision could also be included in a conference report.

And CHC members have said publicly that they would have a very difficult time voting for any healthcare bill that contained such a provision.

Why is this group not considered racist? Why are none of the caucuses determined by race considered racist? It baffles me. But that’s beside the point here.

I want every Democrat who supports secure borders and is opposed to illegal immigration, and you know who I am talking about, to recognize that this is a group of Democrats who are doing this. It isn’t bad enough that they support this unconstitutional takeover of health care, but they want all the illegal aliens in the country to participate in it also.

Will that promote more illegal immigration or will is dissuade illegal immigration? You know the answer as well as I do.

This is the modern Democrat party. It’s far left, socialist and open borders. Is this the party you want to be a part of?

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3. Immigration Reform Is Not Racist

The graph was made by the House Republican Conference.

Hat Tip: Instapundit

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It’s suspected that two shooters are involved in an attack on Fort Hood. Seven are dead, 20 are wounded:

Army spokesman Lt. Col. Nathan Banks says the first shooting began at about 1:30 p.m. at a personnel and medical processing office. The facility, called a Soldier Rating and Processing center, handles administrative details for soldiers.

Banks says two shooters were apparently involved. There was no immediate word on who they were, nor on identities of the dead.

Banks says the second incident took place at a theater on the sprawling base.

Another Army official identified that site as the Howze Theater.

That official, who requested anonymity to discuss an evolving incident, said a graduation had been scheduled for 2 p.m. at the theater.

NBC is reporting that four SWAT officers are included in the wounded:

Greg Schannep, an aide to U.S. Rep. John Carter, told the Austin American-Statesman that he was on the Army post to attend a graduation service. He said that as he neared the entrance of a building where the service was being held, a soldier with blood on his uniform ran past him and said a man was shooting.

Schannep told the newspaper that the shootings appeared to have occurred in a complex near a theater where the service was scheduled. He was with the injured soldier, who he said appeared to have been struck in the shoulder but did not have life-threatening injuries.

The shooting happened “near the soldier readiness processing center, where soldiers cycle through as they prepare to deploy,” according to Sgt. Major Jamie Posten from the Fort Hood public affairs office.

He said this is where the soldiers go, up to 60 days before deployment, to begin the process of vaccinations and other preparation. That complex is on the West side of post, off Battalion Avenue.

For updates as they happen, follow the Twitter hashtag #fthood.

Update:

Twelve are now confirmed dead, 31 injured. Prayers to the families and the fallen.

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2. CCW Permit Holder Stops Mass Shooting…Again
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Despite the absence of Republican Senators, democrats passed Sens. Kerry and Boxer’s cap and trade bill out of committee today:

Democrats on the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee ignored a Republican boycott and used their majority to approve the legislation that would require U.S. industry to reduce emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases 20 percent by 2020, from 2005 levels.

“I think this is a great signal for Copenhagen that there’s a will to do what it takes to advance this issue,” committee Chairman Barbara Boxer told reporters after her panel voted.

The committee vote also came as international negotiators held a contentious climate change meeting in Barcelona, their final session before the Copenhagen summit starts December 7.

The bill’s goal is to cut carbon emissions by 20 percent by 2020, a move President Obama says will cause the prices of electricity to skyrocket:

The Democrats continue to pass legislation that hurts the Americans’ they supposedly fight for: the middle class and below.

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Heeding the call of Rep. Michelle Bachman, thousands of patriots from across the country attended a “House Call” in Washington D.C. today. Attendees listened to speeches and then visited their representatives to tell them what they thought of government run health care.

Gateway Pundit has some photos of the event, via Ed Schultz. This is my favorite:

The Politico puts the number of people attending at over 10,000:

A plan first hatched and heralded on FOX by iconic conservative Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) grew over the weekend as she e-mailed with a handful of colleagues. By the time activists started arriving at the foot of the Capitol around 8:30 a.m., it was clear no Republican leader could stay away.

…

“Oh come on, tell them how you really feel,” Bachmann yelled to the crowd from a temporary podium at the foot of the Capitol.

“Kill the bill! Kill the bill! Kill the bill!” the crowd replied.

“That’s exactly what you’re going to tell them,” said Bachmann, who was the clear favorite of the assembled masses.

“She has more cojones than a lot of guys,” said Barbara McGrath, who traveled from Troy, Ohio, to participate.

When she took the microphone, Rep. Jean Schmidt (R-Ohio) pointed to the three House office buildings across Independence Avenue from the rally.

“I invite you, when the rally’s over, to travel in those halls, look at the walls, find your (member) and walk in,” she said. “Let them know how you feel about this bill.”

Within an hour, activists were lined up down Independence Avenue to go through the magnetometers in the lobby of the Rayburn Office Building so they could confront members and staff. Bachman told them to each take a page – or a piece of a page – from one of two copies of the bill at the podium and ask a member to explain the text to them.

Bachmann’s office and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s district office were surrounded by the Tea Partiers shortly after the rally ended, and the floor outside Pelosi’s office was covered in pages of the bill.

Some protestors were arrested. The thing is, they were leftist protestors, not Tea Partiers:

First out of the gate – 9 Protesters backing a universal health care system briefly occupied Sen. Joe Lieberman’s office this morning.

Protesters were arrested, one by one, and dragged out of his office amid chants of “Everyone in and noone out, universal healthcare now!” and “Represent Connecticut, not AETNA!”

The whole affair, from occupation to final arrest, lasted 40 minutes.

Wish I could have been there.

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There are times when I want to play a video game, or watch a movie, or just hit the “Stumble” button over and over. When I find myself sitting down and loading up DDO, I have this nagging voice in my head telling me that I have so many other obligations that warrant my attention more than killing orcs, goblins and the occasional dragon and I should stop slacking and get to work on them.

My obligations have no worldwide repercussions. It’s simple stuff like organizing my desk or splitting wood for the furnace, but it needs to be done.

Which brings me to the point of this article. Last night was election night and Republicans swept the governor’s races in Virginia and New Jersey. It was a bit of a big deal, but Obama didn’t have time for that. He was on HBO:

During the 10AM ET hour of America’s Newsroom on Fox News Channel, fill-in co-host Martha Maccallum told viewers what President Obama watched on election night while Democrats suffered big losses in New Jersey and Virginia: “Robert Gibbs said, well, he was actually watching, you know, the HBO special about his year-long campaign and how it all went.”

On Tuesday night the White House had worked to downplay the Democratic gubernatorial defeats by claiming the President did not watch the election returns. Apparently Gibbs thought it would look better if the commander in chief was watching a self-indulgent fawning documentary about himself.

He was watching…himself. If that’s not narcissistic enough for you, perhaps this will change your mind: he’d already watched it:

White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs says Obama has already seen “By the People,” produced and directed by Alicia Sams and Amy Rice, and backed by actor Edward Norton.

Gibbs told TPMDC Obama’s review: “Thumbs up!”

Sams and Rice joined Obama adviser David Axelrod, reporters and administration staffers for the final screening Friday night at Chicago’s Cadillac Palace Theater. The 2,000 estimated attendees were treated to a red carpet and pre-screening remarks by Axelrod, one of the film’s many characters.

With all the problems facing America and with a decision that needs his attention in Afghanistan, he grabs a bowl of White House popcorn and sit down to watch a show about himself…again.

I guess I can cut myself some slack for playing Geodefense just a little bit longer. I mean, it’s not like tens of thousands of lives and the fate of a nation hangs in the balance.

Seems like a good time for All American Blogger’s Official Obama Theme Song:

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