Marsha Blackburn: Liar, Idiot, Moron, Fool

Sometimes, you just have to wonder:
Are people born permanently stupid, or, are they made that way (over time)?

There’s no question that we’re all born stupid, but whether we stay that way, or not, is largely of our own choosing.

It’s the classic “Nature versus Nurture” argument.

And frankly, while there’s evidence both ways, there is at least ONE thing we are absolutely certain of, which is that education cures and eliminates ignorance. So, score one for the “Nurture” column.

And, if you’ll recall, there were at least two (and, perhaps more) hit comedy motion pictures which played upon that theme: One in 1983 called “Trading Places,” starring the inimitable clown-men Eddie Murphy, and Dan Akroyd, supported by Don Ameche, Ralph Bellamy, and the ever-lovely and talented Jamie Lee Curtis; then in 1985 a motion picture with an obliquely similar theme entitled “Brewster’s Millions,” starring late funnyman Richard Pyor, and John Candy, supported by Hume Cronyn, Jerry Orbach, and Yakov Smirnoff; and yet another, although somewhat-lesser-known — though certainly with no less star power — in the 2014 title “Breaking the Bank,” staring Kelsey Grammer, supported by Susan Fordham, Richard Cordery, and Pearce Quigley.

In all three motion pictures, the protagonist is placed in an unexpected predicament by either the sudden presence, or lack of, abundant wealth. What they do with their lives in those stories, is comedic – though no less authentic examples of – nurture, combined with a healthy dose of nature.

And we can certainly see real-life examples of such stories in those who win phenomenal sums in lottery. Late West Virginia businessman Andrew “Jack” Whittaker, Jr. (1947-2020) is perhaps the most notable real-life example of a tragic, everything-goes-wrong-after-winning-the-lottery life story. A self-made construction business millionaire worth at least $17 million, on Christmas night 2002, then-aged 55, he purchased a winning Powerball lottery ticket which at the time was the single-largest lump-sum payout in U.S. lottery history — $315 million, which after taxes was valued at $113.4 million. In later years, he was very public about his sorrow at winning, and in a 2007 interview, stated that he wished that he’d torn up the ticket, saying,

“I’m only going to be remembered as the lunatic who won the lottery. I’m not proud of that. I wanted to be remembered as someone who helped a lot of people. I’ve had to work for everything in my life. This is the first thing that’s ever been given to me. Since I won the lottery, I think there is no control for greed. I think if you have something, there’s always someone else that wants it. I wish I’d torn that ticket up.”

But more to the point — the point being, stupidity on very public display.

In an emailed communique recently, Tennessee Banana Republican Senator Marsha Blackburn wrote the following, and shared YouTube video of her ignorant remarks which she made from the U.S. Senate floor about the House, no less.

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From an email communique from Republican Marsha Blackburn, U.S. Senator for Tennessee:

MASK MANDATES ARE ABOUT POWER

Washington elitists are willing to do whatever it takes to keep the American people under their control. The new guidance from the CDC doesn’t follow the science and puts the wellbeing of children in K-12 schools at risk. There is no valid reason to require a vaccinated person to wear a mask. Mask mandates and lockdowns are all about power.

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What she DELIBERATELY does is couch “freedom” as being able to do any damned old thing that you want, WITHOUT regard for anyone else.

That is NOT “freedom.”

That is selfishness and stupidity.

Musician/singer/song-writer Eric Johnson, in his song “Sad Legacy” from his 2005 album entitled “Bloom,” wrote in part that,

“There’s no such thing as freedom
Without some responsibility.
All this shock and surprise…
But we’ve been throwing out a mean boomerang,
And now it’s coming back at us.”

As has oft been stated, “your right to swing your fist ends where my nose begins.”

Furthermore, in her remarks, she deliberately DENIES the scientific facts.

And to be certain, despite her claims otherwise, the former President did NOT

Graphic from Government Accountability Office report “Operation Warp Speed: Accelerated COVID-19 Vaccine Development Status and Efforts to Address Manufacturing Challenges“
GAO-21-319 Published: Feb 11, 2021. Publicly Released: Feb 11, 2021.

play the role of Mighty Mouse – the cartoon character known for his “Here I come to save the day!” line – by his so-called “Operation Warp Speed” which ostensibly was to help spur creation of COVID-19 vaccine. But, the fact is, the Moderna Therapeutics pharmaceutical company in Massachusetts….

“Moderna had completed development of their COVID-19 vaccine mRNA-1273 before the Chinese government had acknowledged the disease was transmitted by human-to-human means, and more than a week before the first confirmed coronavirus case in the United States – January 21.

“By the time the first American coronavirus death was reported a month later, on February 29, Moderna’s mRNA-1273 coronavirus vaccine had already been manufactured and shipped to the National Institutes of Health to begin its Phase I clinical trial.

“All of that was long before the President had made any announcement about his “Operation Warp Speed,” the public-private partnership to develop a coronavirus vaccine, and yet even 2 months before Bloomberg News reported on April 29 that such a plan was in the works.

See: A COVID-19 vaccine was ready January 13, 2020 – long before the pandemic began, posted Wednesday, December 9, 2020.

CDC Report Shows Vaccinated People Can Spread COVID-19
Experts urge Americans to get COVID-19 shots, say delta spreads as easily as chickenpox.
https://www.rollcall.com/2021/07/30/cdc-report-shows-vaccinated-people-can-spread-covid-19/
By Emily Kopp
Posted July 30, 2021 at 2:02pm

One of the most nagging questions about the COVID-19 pandemic for public health authorities, policymakers and the public was whether the vaccines stop transmission.

New Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data show that in breakthrough cases of the highly transmissible delta variant, the answer is no.

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The first report on the spread of COVID-19 in vaccinated people is based on an outbreak of 469 cases in Barnstable County, Massachusetts, where 74% of cases occurred among vaccinated people. Of those breakthrough cases, 79% were symptomatic. Over 100 of those cases were sequenced, and identified the delta variant in 90 percent of them.

Before the outbreak, the 14-day average of daily case rates in the area had plummeted to zero. But in just two weeks, the 14-day case average had shot up to 177 cases per 100,000 people.

Five COVID-19 patients were hospitalized, four of whom were fully vaccinated. None of them died.

The report shows that the highly infectious delta variant will likely continue to spread rapidly despite rising vaccination rates.

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CDC Shows Research Demonstrating Why Indoor Mask Mandates Necessary

Fully-Vaccinated People At Risk For Infection & Being Unknowing “Super-Spreaders”

Research answers question “Do vaccines prevent infection?”

The answer is “NO.”

CDC Shows Research: Fully Vaccinated People Can Spread COVID-19 Delta Variant

Outbreak of SARS-CoV-2 Infections, Including COVID-19 Vaccine Breakthrough Infections, Associated with Large Public Gatherings — Barnstable County, Massachusetts, July 2021

Earlier, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention was criticized for not citing data in updating its recommendation for fully-vaccinated individuals to wear masks indoors. Now, they have. In a study of a COVID-19 outbreak that started July 3 in Provincetown, Barnstable County, MA, which involved 469 cases, they found that 75% of all cases occurred in fully-vaccinated individuals. The state has about a 69% rate of fully-vaccinated people. The study found no significant difference in the viral load (amount of infectious particles present) in either fully-vaccinated and unvaccinated people.

During July 2021, 469 cases of COVID-19 associated with multiple summer events and large public gatherings in a town in Barnstable County, Massachusetts, were identified among Massachusetts residents; vaccination coverage among eligible Massachusetts residents was 69%. Approximately three quarters (346; 74%) of cases occurred in fully vaccinated persons (those who had completed a 2-dose course of mRNA vaccine [Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna] or had received a single dose of Janssen [Johnson & Johnson] vaccine ≥14 days before exposure).

 

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She also included this ignorant bit in her communique:

PROTECTING EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES FOR WOMEN IN SPORTS 

Female athletes deserve a fair chance to compete. Allowing males to participate in women’s sports denies female student athletes a level playing field to compete and achieve. This week, I met with athletes Cynthia Monteleone, Margaret Oneal, and Inga Thompson to discuss the work we’re doing on Capitol Hill to protect equal opportunity in sports.

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The hypocritical irony of the matter is, or, at least ought to be self-evident:

The Olympics committee — which strictly forbids use/consumption of “performance enhancing” substances, and demanding that all athletes perform “naturally,” i.e., WITHOUT the use of any such substances — demands that the all-natural, born-this-way female athlete Caster Semenya use anti-“performance enhancing” substances to make her into something she is not.

And then, to add insult to injury, Marsha Blackburn treads upon territory about which she knows utterly nothing, not even consulting with physicians or health scientists about the matter.

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Olympic Runner Caster Semenya Wants To Compete, Not Defend Her Womanhood
July 28, 20214:18 PM ET
Heard on All Things Considered
by Melissa Block
https://www.npr.org/sections/tokyo-olympics-live-updates/2021/07/28/1021503989/women-runners-testosterone-olympics

Two-time Olympic gold medalist Caster Semenya, age 30, of South Africa, the world’s fastest woman in the 800 meters, was born a female, raised as a female, identifies as female, is legally female, is still a female, has a vagina, and ovaries, and has not taken any “performance enhancing” substances, per the Olympic’s rules, and other rules governing track and field performances and athletes.

She has a genetic condition called hyperandrogenism – meaning she has elevated levels of testosterone – which is categorized as a Difference of Sexual Development (DSD); in essence, it describes a condition found in females who have XY chromosomes and naturally elevated testosterone levels.

“Hyperandrogenism or androgen excess is a common endocrine disorder of women of reproductive-age, with a prevalence of 5-10%. The majority of patients with hyperandrogenism will have polycystic ovary syndrome.” “Hyperandrogenism is a fundamental symptom of polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), the leading endocrine cause of female infertility. In hyperandrogenic women, there are elevated serum concentrations of androstenedione and testosterone and, in up to 50% of women, dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate. There are two principal sources of circulating androgens in women: the ovary and the adrenal gland.”

And despite the fact that she is a 100% natural, unadulterated, unchanged-in-any-way woman, the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF), created a new rule requiring that Caster Semenya and other female athletes like her with naturally high levels of testosterone, would be forced to take medication in order to lower their naturally-high level of hormones. A 3-person panel of the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) upheld that rule which required her to comply in order to compete in track and field events “as a woman.”