I guess that's ONE way to describe the GOP's presidential aspirants

Via.

This explains a lot, doesn't it?

Via.

Poll: 54% of Republicans say that, "deep down," they are idiots.

Kidding! Actually, the poll found that 54% of Republicans say that, "deep down," President Barack Obama is a Muslim.

So it works out about the same either way.

Today's Losers: ExxonMobil, James Inhofe, and Wei-Hock Soon

By now, you may have heard that leading climate change denier Wei-Hock Soon was paid more than $1.2 million by oil and gas companies like ExxonMobil, the New York Times reports.

And no, Wei-Hock Soon never revealed these ties.

According to the Times, Soon “has often appeared on conservative news programs, testified before Congress and in state capitals, and starred at conferences of people who deny the risks of global warming.”

As for climate-change denying Senator James Inhofe (R-OK) (chair of the Senate's Environment and Public Works committee), he’s continually cited Soon's work over the years. In reference to him, Inhofe said, "These are scientists that cannot be challenged."

Really, now?

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/22/us/ties-to-corporate-cash-for-climate-change-researcher-Wei-Hock-Soon.html

Science Fact Check: Rand

SciCheck is a service of Fact.Check.org. Much respect!

Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker doesn't have a college degree?!

I did not know that. Here's what Walker said about those who'd criticize his impoverished academic background:

“That’s the kid of elitist, government-knows-best, top-down approach we’ve had for years. I’d rather have a fighter who’s proven he can take on the big government interests and win…"

Ha! Yes, that's what we need more of in government—undereducated people spoiling for a fight.

Thanks for clearing that up, Boyd Thomas

From here. The original letter to the Lexington Dispatch (North Carolina) here.

Where do the GOP presidential nominees stand on evolution?

Jeb Bush: It should not be taught in schools. Former Gov. Mike Huckabee: Doesn’t buy it.
Ted Cruz: Won’t talk about it.
Chris Christie: “None of your business.”
Scott Walker: “I’m going to punt on that one . . . I love the evolution of trade in Wisconsin.”

Regarding that last one, Walker said that in London where his interviewer, Justin Webb of the BBC, said: “Any British politician, right or left wing, would laugh and say, ‘Yes, of course evolution is true.’”

Sister Ilia Delio (Georgetown) explains why the American religious right and the politicians who pander to them are so uniquely idiotic: “A lot of people just don’t know science. They don’t even know basic science. They don’t read anything from science, not even popular science magazines . . . it’s a half-brained understanding of things.”

Ladies and Gentlemen—Rick Perry!

“Texas has been criticized for having a large number of uninsured but that’s what Texans wanted.”

—Rick Perry

More on this story as it evolves

Wisconsin governor Scott Walker was asked if he believed in evolution.

He didn't answer. (So that's a "yes", right?)

Anecdote of the Day

A few years back, I went on a junket to Switzerland on which I met a bunch of Swiss businesspeople including, naturally, several Swiss bankers. Over dinner one of them told me that he was saddened by the negative stereotypes of Swiss banking secrecy that prevailed in the United States. People, he told me, think of Swiss banks as helping drug smugglers or terrorists launder money. The truth is simpler. "There are many wealthy people in the world," he told me, "and they prefer not to pay taxes."

—Matthew Yglesias, writing at Vox on the HSBC scandal.