Orac is the nom de blog of a humble surgeon/scientist who has an ego just big enough to delude himself that someone, somewhere might actually give a rodent's posterior about his copious verbal meanderings, but just barely small enough to admit to himself that few probably will. That surgeon is otherwise known as David Gorski.
That this particular surgeon has chosen his nom de blog based on a rather cranky and arrogant computer shaped like a clear box of blinking lights that he originally encountered when he became a fan of a 35 year old British SF television show whose special effects were renowned for their BBC/Doctor Who-style low budget look, but whose stories nonetheless resulted in some of the best, most innovative science fiction ever televised, should tell you nearly all that you need to know about Orac. (That, and the length of the preceding sentence.)
DISCLAIMER:: The various written meanderings here are the opinions of Orac and Orac alone, written on his own time. They should never be construed as representing the opinions of any other person or entity, especially Orac's cancer center, department of surgery, medical school, or university. Also note that Orac is nonpartisan; he is more than willing to criticize the statements of anyone, regardless of of political leanings, if that anyone advocates pseudoscience or quackery. Finally, medical commentary is not to be construed in any way as medical advice.
To contact Orac: [email protected]
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33 replies on “Hmmm. Maybe I fell for Obama’s liberofascist plot to poison me…”
Of course! It all fits!
Sorry, I just finished my jigsaw puzzle. What were we talking about?
You mean B Hussein Obama. Who Might Not Be an Uh-murricun!
show us his Real Birf Certificate!
(does it break your irony meter to note that the queen of the birfers is named ORLY ? )
A Liberofascist or a socialist plot?
Paul Krugman correctly informs us there aren’t commies left in the US:
http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/11/09/what-ever-happened-to-commie/
Orac, you should quickly get some chelation therapy for that. (/sarcasm)
I guess you are going to turn into a Canadian, too.
Great – someone (Holtorf) acceptable to Fox News and the Huffington Post. Woo for everyone.
Is the level of science literacy among journalists really that bad?
Er, Liberofascist? Surely a contradiction here…It seems your American media needs political (re)education
Oh, BLAST! I fell for it, too! Damn, that’s what I get for believing the science and not the hype…
Given the Rubegoldberg nature of this supposed plot, it has a lot in common with the CIA’s anti-Castro activities of the 1960s and 70s.
I’m almost entirely convinced that the average human being is in fact slightly unhinged, if history is any indication.
Or the average political leader is slightly unhinged.
Iâm not saying that Orac is a liberofascist that eats babies and punches puppies. Iâm just putting that question out there so we can have a dialogue.
andrew,
Fascism is a liberal, left-wing movement, not qualitatively different in means or motive than Maoism or Stalinism. Why do you think they called it ‘National Socialism‘?
Brb, lolling at Mad Pighead’s lack of knowledge of basic political science and his refusal to look at what political scientists actually say about this.
Man, the Obama liberal-fascist group are stupid. No one is dropping dead yet.
Indeed. Do I really need to post a bunch of links showing Jonah Goldberg’s historical ignorance in constructing his “liberal fascism” argument in his book? To mad the swine I say:
Fascism. You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.
People, people, don’t you see? Don’t you get it?
Who’s getting the vaccinations here? The rich and powerful bankers! You know, the people who Secretly Run The Government. And who’s getting told not to vaccinate? The ignorant, Oprah watching masses!
So, what do you think will happen when They unleash the really killer epidemic that They’ve secretly been manufacturing? That’s right-all the anti-vaccine loons will be the first to die or be turned into mindless slaves!
I think we really know who Jenny and Glen and Dr. Jay are working for here….
Uh-oh, I hear the nurse coming. Gotta run…
Anecdote not equal to data. Personal experience, also not equal to data. However, I’m noticing a trend towards my conservative Republican-voting friends, family members, and fellow health care workers getting the H1N1 vaccine, whereas the liberal Democrat-voting ones are the ones declining it, saying “it’s not adequately tested, mercury, squalene, yada-yada-yada.”
@ andrew
Fascism is an ultra- right wing movement. Hitler deliberately called it National Socialism in an attempt to fool the citizens of Germany. Of course it WAS similar to Stalinism in the sense that it was a murderous and repressive regime.
When it comes right down to it-the fringe groups on both the right and left have more in common with each other than they do with mainline liberalism or conservatism. They are both enemies of freedom. Interestingly enough–they both have a fondness for conspiracy theories.
andred: “Er, Liberofascist? Surely a contradiction here…It seems your American media needs political (re)education”
“Liberofascist” is an interesting if over-the-top description of the combined ideology of the Huffington Post and Fox News as they work to spread antivax nuttiness.
What is obvious to anyone who’s not a sheeple with blinders on is that the Wall St. bankers are being poisoned with squalene-antifreeze-monkey pus containing vaccine so that the alien lizards like the Queen and Kris Kristofferson can further infiltrate our financial establishment. With the rest of the population being decimated by vaccines, chemtrails, fluoride in our water and deadly toxic Big Pharma Drugs, the alien lizards will eventually hold illimitable dominion over all.
Have a nice weekend.
oops—my above post was meant for mad the swine not andrew. Sorry.
“Liberofascist” is an interesting if over-the-top description of the combined ideology of the Huffington Post and Fox News as they work to spread antivax nuttiness.
A hypothetical comment on a political website:
Well I don’t know why I came here tonight,
‘Cause I’m surrounded by the nutty far right,
And the far left leaves me gasping for air,
They’re taking time from the sane and the fair,
Commies to the far left,
Fascists to the right, here I am,
A liberal with a clue.
Yes I’m a liberal with a clue,
And I’m wondering what it is I should do,
It’s so hard to keep the rage off my face,
Watching threadshit all over the place,
Commies to the far left, fascists to the right,
Here I am, a liberal with a clue.
Well, they started out with nothing,
But they’re clogging up the airwaves today,
And the sane folk, we’re behind ’em,
Tappin’ ’em on the back and sayin’
Please…. Please…..
Trying to make some sense of it all,
But I can see that it makes no sense at all,
Is it cool to kick them all out the door,
‘Cause I don’t think that I can take anymore
Commies to the far left, fascists to the right,
Here I am, a liberal with a clue.
Well, they started out with nothing,
But they’re clogging up the airwaves today,
And the sane folk, we’re behind ’em,
Tappin’ ’em on the back and sayin’
Please…. Please…..
Well I don’t know why I came here tonight
To a loud ideological fight,
Between people who can’t hardly fight fair,
While the rest of us are gasping for air,
Commies to the far left,
Fascists to the right, here I am,
A liberal with a clue,
Yes I’m a liberal with a clue,
A liberal with a clue.
A striking lie is better remembered than a bland truth, and awareness of its nature as a falsehood seems to fade over time. And need I point out that the Nazis understood this concept of the “big lie” very well?
I knew it all along. That’s why I’ve been getting an envelope full of monopoly play money since I unleashed the H1N1 vaccine on the world by going to Formosa, eating street food, and not washing my hands until I landed in Mexico City and shook everyone’s hands. There, the truth is out.
Nothing like some spongiform encephalitic pork to liven up the discussion.
Katharine, change “liberal with a clue” to “centrist with a clue” and that would fit my feelings perfectly.
Major hat tip.
Dude. Read a history book.Preferably with a dictionary by your side.Fascism is inherently liberal?
@mad
If it prevents me from being stupid, then I guess I will rather be the liberofascist than a mainstream conservative, as oxymoronic the term is (and whatever it might mean).
just sayin’…
http://www.medpagetoday.com/Neurology/PainManagement/16988
Mad the Swine, Master of the poe, strikes again FtW.
You’re wrong… H1N1 vaccination is a conspiracy to sterilize Muslims. Or so Len Horowitz says.
This notion, which I’m sure is based on ancient witchcraft-related superstitions, is actually getting a lot of circulation. I’m thinking of writing a piece on it; headline: “The return of magical vanishing penises!”
David Brown: Is his name really “Len Horowitz?” Maybe he’s secretly a Likudnik and has his own plan, to start paranoid anti-vax rumors among the Muslims so their numbers will be thinned out by preventable diseases. (I really hope I’m kidding.)
Well, it doesn’t make any LESS sense…
Such is the moral depravity of the man that last month he addressed a crowd of some 6000 Christian fundamentalists—of the Armageddon-doomsday kind—at some event hosted by the John Hagee Ministries.
You think Hagee gave him his blessings?,yes