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The treatise before you seeks to introduce the uninformed world to Hashlam, the faith of Hashers worldwide, and to dispel the myths and innuendo that have developed due to prejudices brought on, too often, from the practice of its rites in view of the general public, insh’Gispert (G-willing).  The religious aspects are regularly covered on individual hashing sites and on Wikipedia; this entry will try to deal with some of the societal implications.

Most of the misinformation comes from the ambiguity and subtlety between the various forms of practice of Hashlam. Many of you will have heard of the two major sects, the Shites and the Sotties, with the Shites adherents of the PreLay (paths to the True Trail that exist before the journey is taken) while the Sotties believe in Live trails (often a misnomer) that must be discerned from freshly given divine clues.  Subtleties in belief and practice all too often result in G-Had as in the one called by a hasher known as Ibn-Love FatWa of the fundamentalist Sottie group known as the Arizona Larrikins (aka, Mr Happy’s) against a less well established Sottie sect known as Bike Hashlam (whose cultish offshoot, the Cycletologists, boasts many celebrity members) culminating in the flour fueled carpet bombing of the Bike Hash’s first Red Dress Run (this rite is described on most Hashing websites and will not be explored here).

Results of the Bike Hash G-Had

It may come as a surprise to many of you that Hashlam has its antecedents in the other two great Western religions, ie, Brewdaism and Trackstianity (which itself developed from the Brewdaic tradition via a more fundamentalist form of the Beer Run). In fact, the path to Hashlam, known as the True Trail, very often involves dabbling in one or both of the older faiths with even observant members of Orthodox Brewdaism taking up running and very sober members of Trackstian sects finding solace in a Brewish Temple.

It is written and widely believed that, having taken up the Way of the True Trail, it is impossible for one to leave. Liberal adherents believe the prescribed death of an ex-Hasher is meant to be figurative, but support groups such as Apostacy Alcoholics, or AA, have taken on many a wayward Hasher and are considered heretical organisations even by the most broad-minded believers. There may even be time to explore the Seven-ish Pillars of Hashlam, most famous of which being the Interhaaj in which every hasher of nearly the financial means is expected to go make an ass of himself in a foreign land.

In future postings, we hope to shed light on how Hashlam has integrated with Eastern religions such as the Budhists (of both the Budweiser and Budvar varieties) and the exotic Tindu pantheon of tinned (and bottled!) beverages.

The Centre for Hashlamic Studies was founded in 2013 by Slowsama-bin-Riden with the mission to examine and explain Hashlam’s place in out increasingly interdependent world. Slowsama can be contacted by the faithful via Hashspace and by the rest of you infidel dogs at dr.slowride@yahoo.com .

Gispert aleichem…aleichem,on-on.

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I was having lunch when the first Thatcher joke hit my Twitter account and I thought I might do an obit detailing some weird Thatcher-related, fetishistic fantasy from my youth but I just couldn’t work up any enthusiasm for it (at least not the kind of enthusiasm the Brits, pro and con, seem capable of in their widely varied tributes).  I already did Betty this honour, anyway.

After all, I lived through Reagan and have listened for years to nonsense about him ending the Cold War, making America great again, saving capitalism, etc, etc.  Yet even though I have less direct experience than the locals do, my feelings for the Blue Lady are similarly visceral to those I have for Ronnie.  Lord Byron, felt much the same about Castlereagh…so, I might do no better than to paraphrase the one’s tribute to the other, here:

‘The end result we finally see
Of Mammon over me and you.
Here sits the urn of Mrs. T:
Squat, brothers, and poo.’

 

 

……………………..

Okay, for you Philistines out there who keep asking…Byron penned this out of his great respect for the late Castlereagh and all he did for the Irish:

‘Posterity will ne’er survey,
A nobler grave than this:
Here lie the bones of Castlereagh:
Stop, traveller, and piss.’ — Lord Byron

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There was little exercise and fuck-all going out for anything aside from bare necessities this week as fever, aches, and blinding congestive pressure took hold.  To have something new for the blog this week, I did what I always do when ill…I scanned the news.  Here are some highlights from the week.

The Crufts Dog Show started this week and will continue for much of the next 8 months.  I used to think that the BBC should dedicate a channel exclusively to darts, snooker, and Crufts but a friend pointed out that they already have one called BBC 2.  It is interesting to see the odd breeds that have developed over the years, though.

Rest in peace, brother Chavez.

Once, me and Hugo were out drinking and, boy, could he put it away!  I overdid it and puked all over myself, covering my shirt in filth.  ”What am I going to tell Jackie?  She hates when I embarrass myself in front of heads-of-state.”

Thinking quickly, Hugo stuffed a 20 peso note in my shirt pocket: “tell her a guy at the bar did this and gave you the note to pay for the cleaning.”

I got back to the hacienda and she hit the roof and I told her Hugo’s story at which point she calmed right down–Hugo was a genius of crisis control.

Then, Jackie said, “hey, Bun…why are there TWO twenties in your shirt?”

“Oh, that other one is from the guy that shit in my pants.”

North Korea severed musical relations with Seoul during the week.  Here we see evidence of Pyongyang’s development of prohibited Boy Band Technology.  Worrying though this may be, few experts believe that this is Da Bomb.

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I’ve always thought that if you pass your driving test you should be able to demand a blood test on the spot and then they would have to endorse the license with your passing Blood Alcohol Content and levels of any of a variety of narcotics and psychedelics found therein.  Thereafter, this would be your baseline.

A step toward this Better World has been boldly taken in Ireland:

 

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So, four years now (or, rather, next week it will be…here’s the annual reports for years Three, Two, and One for historical perspective).

We just received our new visas valid until 2016 but plan to take the next step toward citizenship in a year, Indefinite Leave to Remain…sort of the British Green Card.  There is an exam, first, but in general it is all downhill from here.

The view from Western Street near the new house…also all downhill

Additionally, we are in the process of moving house (which is why I rushed the annual report a week forward) from just north of the Oasis over to Old Town to a house situated close walks to either the Beehive or the Castle or the Globe (recently reopened!)—three locals instead of one and all three of high quality—and dozens of others a short walk. The new house has three bedrooms each larger than its counterpart in the old house, the two receptions are larger and made into more of an open-plan configuration, the bath is larger and has a tub (not just a shower), and there is a finished basement; on the down side, the kitchen is a little narrower and more primitive as is the small garden but everything we do and everywhere we normally go in Swindon (save for the butcher) is so close.

The only races I did this past year were the London Marathon (5 pubs plus a can of Carling on the last mile) and the Beerathon (5 miles with a pint and a hefty food item between each) and the mileage run for the year suffered from this lack of focus—1950 give or take about 25 (most estimates pretty good using gmap-pedometer), while the last several years (except for the year of the wreck) were in the 2200-2500 range.

On the runs, I visited  255 new pubs with a stunning 67 new ones (steep part of the graph) in September when I took two weeks off work and ran at least 10 miles per day in new territory each day. The 1000th wasn’t as big a thrill as I thought it would be, but I saw some really nice places and met some really fine folk. The September holiday found me visiting Gloucester, South Wales, Slough (exotic, I know) and Exeter along with some nearer-to-Swindon trips. The 100 Yellow Beer Challenge was responsible for a lot of second visits to pubs I might not otherwise have gone to after an initial stop and many of these seemed better the second time around. Oh, and my Workingman’s Club appears to have failed or at least hasn’t been open the last several times I’ve popped by (I have a grand one scoped out for the new neighbourhood, though).

Best pubs in Year Four (reverse order by First Visit write-up):
The Southgate Inn, Devizes
Byron’s, Swindon
The Hop Inn, Swindon
Dicey Reilly’s, Teignmouth
The Brass Monkey, Teignmouth
One Eyed Jack’s, Gloucester
Ye Olde Red Lion, Tredegar
The Rose of Denmark, Woolwich
The Volunteer Rifleman’s Arms
The Green Dragon, Marlborough
The British Lion, Devizes
The Blue Boar, Alsbourne (for the Dr. Who connections)

Favourite write-ups:
Postboxes
British Citizenship Exam Prep
Risk Assessment-Bins
Oxford Tourists
Assize Court, Bristol

Cock Flavour
Paul Simon in Hyde Park
Edie’s Lawn
The hunt
The Bremen Musicians (German children’s story)
Sex Tourism in Wiltshire
Modern Algebra for Omid
Burns’ Day Lunch

There are others search for ‘made me laugh.’  The blog may or may not have made some of the over 100,000 visitors laugh, but the damn fools keep checking in (that’s you, that is).

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My initial work visa for the UK.

I just turned in my Visa application and documents for our last year before I become eligible for what is known as Permanent Residency in the States and Indefinite Leave to Remain here   This is my first big step toward citizenship, and involves a test of my knowledge of British Culture (some of which is reproduced here).

Note: I haven’t actually started revising for the test.

Also, answer “b” is always chosen by an American, or a foreigner more suited to America.  It’s “B” for Bugger Off.

Answer “a” is always correct but “c” or “d,” when they appear, are always acceptable.

VOCABULARY

1. Pint:

a) 20 Imperial ounces (18.2 US ounces)
b) 16 US ounces
c) not enough, matey, not enough

2. Glass:
a) verb, defend oneself OR to attack someone (generally at drinking up time)
b) noun, vitrified sand
c) smallest acceptable unit of whiskey for a man

3. Pants:
a) knickers
b) trousers
c) nonsense

4. Pissed
a) adjective, drunk…badly drunk, y’know, like every weekend
b) verb, past tense, urinated

5. Sorry
a) equivalent to shrieking, “YOU FUCKING PILE OF STEAMING SHITE HOW DARE YOU FORCE ME TO ACKNOWLEDGE YOUR EXISTENCE.” But quietly and reflexively and it really doesn’t mean ANYTHING most of the time.
b) a notification to the recipient that you are culpable and remorseful for an action you are responsible for

GENERAL QUESTIONS

6. Your town is ___________.
a) “a bit shit, really.”
b) “the best town in the WORLD!”
c) “Are you looking for a slap, mate?”
d) a & c

7. As someone approaches they say, “alright?” You respond:
a) “Alright?”
b) “Yes, I’m fine thanks, how are you?”

8. It’s bleak ________.
a) up North
b) down South
c) on Albert Square

[This one actually happened in front of me and, yes, the correct answers are a & c.]
9. An old man is knocked off his bike by a lorrie in Olney. You offer _______.
a) a cup of tea
b) assistance
c) a large brandy

[This one involves actual top two answers from a poll of Brits.]
10. Aliens land from outer space. You ________.
a) offer to put the kettle on
b) alert the authorities, or fight the things, or run for cover abandoning family, friends and colleagues
c) ask, “alright?”

11. Walking on the pavement [sidewalk], you find yourself on a trajectory that will crash into an oncoming pedestrian. He clocks this and moves to the other side of the pavement to avoid confrontation. You respond by _____________.
a) readjusting your trajectory to crash into this sad bastard…fuck ‘im. Nance.
b) smiling and acknowledging their courtesy
c) a AND only using peripheral vision to navigate, thus gaining plausible deniability that this was intentional (see VOCABULARY question on “Sorry”)

12. Do you know who Vicky Pollard is?
a) yeahr but no but, yeahr but no but, yeahr but no but, yeahr but no but….
b) who?

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Who knew Castro was an avid golfer? Of course Che was…he was a doctor.

A more salient question today is: Will it be champagne or whiskey in the early hours of the morning?  Here’s the last payout plot for four years:

They are taking bets until 10:00 pm GMT, if you have an itch.

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Betting the last pound? Last hundred quid? The big money is on Romney and the smart money is….

 

Paddy Power has already cashed out for Obama, but it was only £400K (and at their odds, the advertising revenue equivalent makes this a bargain…they are still taking bets, by the way).  I hope the gamblers’ optimism is right but, except for Clinton, Obama is the only other Republican I have ever voted for (don’t give me that Official Party Affiliation bullshit, you purists, they are both right of Nixon).

Anyway, now that this is all done and dusted, keep in mind you can still bet on other politics, the X-Factor, Rugby (Union or League), and Religion.  That’s right.  Religion.

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What time is it? Too early for dynamic and passionate speakers, it seems.

“The Revolution Will Not Be Televised” because it would not make for compelling or, even, interesting viewing if the participants at the Saturday session of the meeting dubbed Socialism 2012 were any indication.  Perhaps we chose our sub-meeting unwisely, a discussion of whether or not environmentally friendly politics could or even should be sought while inequality is so rampant but neither of the panelists were good public speakers and, in fact, seemed almost addled.

The open discussion after their introductory remarks was a little more lively but, as I suspected/dreaded would happen, too many of the volunteers from the audience were cultists, peppering their diatribes with phrases such as, “Marx wrote,” or, “as Lenin said.”  We know all that, kids, we really do; don’t beg the question of whether or not the fundamentals of 19th Century political philosophies are appropriate to modern challenges OUTSIDE of this little family venue, please.

Several of the speakers really made some compelling points, though, most often on questions of the need for ‘growth’ of economies if you assume that the insatiable appetites of Capitalism are no longer an issue.  There were True Believers, too, who were scary not because of the fire-in-the-belly but more so because of the bats-in-the-belfry: in a country with easier access to deadly weapons these folks could pose a formidable threat.

The meeting itself had an amusing moment or two.  Besides the few dangerously mad cranks blathering on about taking to the ramparts and mobilising the masses, there were some very passionate old-school (and quite ancient) reds ready to lecture anyone they crossed on the why they aren’t following the true path (regardless of whether or not you agreed with them or had given them any indication at all of your beliefs).  By far the best thing I heard, bar none, was one of the staff outside the book stalls hawking wares thus, “Get your Socialist merchandise in here, folks.”  Without a hint of irony.

We skipped the rally in favour of some supper since we had an early train.  I thought it would be appropriate to get a drink at the Red Lion in Soho since this was Karl Marx’s local and where the lectures he gave upstairs with Engels eventually became the Communist Manifesto.  We walked and talked about the things we observed (more than in this post, certainly) and after about 20 minutes of dodging tourists found our bar, now no longer the Red Lion but a neon chain bar monstrosity serving 2-for-1 shooters to fucked up children (that’s how it appeared, anyway).  Appropriate, indeed (as well as the new chain’s name: “Beat One”).

We went to the Lyric at the opposite corner, instead.

Marx was not renowned for his sense of humour, but if that is unfair then he is probably having a good, otherworldly laugh at this.

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Update: Only a few hours after this post went up, Paddy Power called the race for Obama, paying out 2 days early.

The payout on a pound bet, above, has been a jagged ride at times.  The spreadsheet I have kept on this has ridiculous notes on it as you might expect.  Here were the dates I found significant:

Debates → October 3, 9, 16, and 22

Jon Stewart v. Bill O’Reilly → Oct. 6

Hurricane Sandy, Halloween, and Chris Christie → October 30-31

Socialism 2012 meeting in London → November 3 (I think I put that on as a reminder to attend)

The over/under looks good for Obama, right now, but the odds have an 8.3% house bias against random results which pushes the actual prediction down closer to 274 and 277 for Ladbrokes (top) and Paddy Power respectively.  William Hill has this interesting betting option for those of you in it for the long game:

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I’m taking Wednesday, the day after the election polls close up to 10 hours after the clock hits 7 pm here, off.  The first day at work here, I sat in the canteen at Cambridge and explained to one of my PIs that God Bless America and God Save the Queen were the same song while we watched Obama’s inauguration (and almost everyone EXCEPT us Americans) weeped in relief.  Now I have to explain really stupid shit like why Romney is still neck-and-neck (in the polls)…gamblers don’t fuck around, thus, which is why I trust the gambling odds more than opinion polls (when you are risking the rent and not something as trivial as the freedom of the world’s populace or–at a minum–the most powerful economy in the world during desperate times, you choose a real winner and not some fucking longshot with an enchanting name).

So, we see people who have nothing more or less than pounds Sterling riding on this election dropping quid for Obama.

Full disposition Sunday and Tuesday (then the voters decide who pays out).  If I buy one pound each today I lose 73 pence if Obama wins and win £3.07 if Romney wins.  I’m not a gambler, but I know a LOT of them….

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The weekly updates of the betting odds for President continue with the payouts on £1 bets (includes stake) tracked above (larger numbers mean less bookie confidence in your chances).

Recent events of interest include the 2nd Presidential Debate on 16 October where Mitt Romney showed more evidence of Tourette’s Syndrome and Obama acted as if he were engaged with the proceedings.  Last week’s episode of this gambling round-up is here.

Some of the items related to Romney’s “Binders for Women” phrase that were spotted within minutes of the debate’s end are shown here:

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Same drill, payout includes your £1 stake. All three betting shops tracking one another with Romney’s odds closing on Obama’s

The weekly report on the day after the Vice-Presidential Debate between Biden and Ryan, the odds look like this (compare to last Friday, here):

Also of note, the vast improvement of Romney’s fortunes after the first Presidential Debate on 03 October and the relative indifference of this sampling method to the Jon Stewart versus Bill O’Reilly Debate on 06 October:

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Payout on a £1 bet includes your stake (higher number means less confidence in the candidate from the gambling community)

With just under a month till the election, here are some of the recent odds:

When I started this last year, the primaries were still 10 months away.  In the last couple of months, Ladbrokes has been joined by Paddy Power and William Hill betting agents as odds makers.  Obama has been a little better than even money to win from the start, and it has been fun to watch the fortunes of, for instance, Rick Santorum rise and fall on the totes.  The most recent improvement in Romney’s situation has been the first, erm, we call it a “debate” (since that seems to be the term the Press has dubbed it) on 03 October.  Regular updates to appear from here on in to Election Day, I reckon.

Update: This is weekly through the Friday before Election Day then daily until the dust settles (remember 2000?).  Here’s the 12 October entry.

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Cola in bourbon?!?  I have spent many hours of my adult life fighting this abomination and even received cease-and-desist orders from my Congressman and Senators for letters sent to them demanding introduction of legislation that would require deportation (in the case of foreigners) or Passport revocation (for citizens) that mix fine distilled spirits with sweetened soft drinks. The good will, alone, that mature folks abroad would feel toward our land would be worth the effort.

Alas, Old Samuel is fine spirit, indeed, and ENCOURAGES this ridiculous behaviour right on the label (although it is spot on with the suggestion to try it neat or on the rocks).  I can also affirm that it is a fine accompaniment to strong, black coffee and is well suited to a splash of club soda.

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Santorum, answering the question, "As President, how would you deal with Christian extremists?"

A quick look at Ladbrokes Betting Odds today shows the effect of Santorum’s recent good showing since the last update (sorry Boog, no tna shots this time, just a bunch of boobs).  Hillary still has the best odds of the people not running at all for President.  Also interesting, Ron Paul has better odds of becoming the nominee AND of winning the Presidency than he does of becoming the Vice-Presidential nominee.  Steven Colbert and Glenn Beck still have a presence on the boards, as well:

Selection	Pres?	Nominee?	VP?
Barack Obama	4/7	xxx	xxx
Mitt Romney	7/4	1/6	25/1
Rick Santorum	16/1	6/1	7/1
Newt Gingrich	33/1	16/1	25/1
Ron Paul	40/1	25/1	50/1
Hillary Clinton	50/1	xxx	xxx
Donald Trump	100/1	xxx	100/1
Jeb Bush	200/1	100/1	xxx
Paul Ryan	200/1	100/1	12/1
Chris Christie	200/1	100/1	5/1
Mitch Daniels	200/1	100/1	25/1
Marco Rubio	xxx	xxx	5/2
Susana Martinez	xxx	xxx	10/1
Bob McDonnell	xxx	xxx	10/1
Jim DeMint	xxx	xxx	20/1
Tim Pawlenty	xxx	xxx	20/1
Nikki Haley	xxx	xxx	20/1
Kelly Ayote	xxx	xxx	20/1
Hayley Barbour	xxx	xxx	20/1
Jon Thune	xxx	xxx	20/1
Condoleeza Rice	xxx	xxx	25/1
Rob Portman	xxx	xxx	25/1
Brian Sandoval	xxx	xxx	25/1
Bobby Jindal	xxx	xxx	25/1
Jon Huntsman	xxx	xxx	25/1
Rick Snyder	xxx	xxx	33/1
Colin Powell	xxx	xxx	33/1
Meg Whitman	xxx	xxx	33/1
Lindsey Graham	xxx	xxx	33/1
Rick Perry	xxx	xxx	50/1
Sarah Palin	xxx	xxx	50/1
Michele Bachmann	xxx	xxx	50/1
Herman Cain	xxx	xxx	50/1
Mike Huckabee	xxx	xxx	50/1
Scott Walker	xxx	xxx	50/1
David Petraeus	xxx	xxx	50/1
Allen West	xxx	xxx	50/1
Scott Brown	xxx	xxx	50/1
Kay Bailey Hutchison	xxx	xxx	50/1
Rand Paul	xxx	xxx	50/1
John McCain	xxx	xxx	66/1
Steven Colbert	xxx	xxx	150/1
Glenn Beck	xxx	xxx	200/1

 

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Note: this seems to offend some.  Result!

• • 

    Paul WoodfordWondering why you posted that link. Was the fake photo the whole point?

    3 hours ago · Like

Updating the betting odds at the end of January 2012, we find a thinner pack at the top level but interesting things happening at the Republican Vice-Presidential table (although the fact that gamblers think Hilary Clinton, who isn’t even running, has a better shot than most Republicans is telling):

Election winner
Selection	Odds
Barack Obama	4:6
Mitt Romney	13:8
Newt Gingrich	14:1
Ron Paul	33:1
Hillary Clinton	50:1
Rick Santorum	66:1
Mitch Daniels	100:1
Donald Trump	100:1
Jeb Bush	200:1
Paul Ryan	200:1
Chris Christie	200:1
Republican Nominee
Selection	Odds
Mitt Romney	1:8
Newt Gingrich	6:1
Ron Paul	25:1
Rick Santorum	50:1
Mitch Daniels	66:1
Jeb Bush	100:1
Paul Ryan	100:1
Chris Christie	100:1
Winning Party
Selection	Odds
Democrats	13:20
Republicans	5:4
Independent	50:1
Republican Vice Presidential Nominee
Will be settled on nominee at 2012 Republican National Convention. Others on request.
Selection	Odds
Marco Rubio	5:2
Chris Christie	5:1
Susana Martinez	10:1
Paul Ryan	12:1
Bob McDonnell	14:1
Tim Pawlenty	16:1
Hayley Barbour	16:1
Newt Gingrich	16:1
Rick Santorum	16:1
Mitt Romney	20:1
Nikki Haley	20:1
Kelly Ayote	20:1
Jon Thune	20:1
Jim DeMint	20:1
Mitch Daniels	25:1
Rob Portman	25:1
Brian Sandoval	25:1
Bobby Jindal	25:1
Condoleeza Rice	25:1
Jon Huntsman	25:1
Rick Perry	33:1
Rick Snyder	33:1
Herman Cain	33:1
Colin Powell	33:1
Meg Whitman	33:1
Lindsey Graham	33:1
Ron Paul	40:1
Sarah Palin	50:1
Michele Bachmann	50:1
Mike Huckabee	50:1
David Petraeus	50:1
Allen West	50:1
Scott Brown	50:1
Kay Bailey Hutchison	50:1
Rand Paul	50:1
Scott Walker	50:1
John McCain	66:1
Donald Trump	100:1
Glenn Beck	200:1
Florida Republican Primary
Selection	Odds
Mitt Romney	1:25
Newt Gingrich	8:1
Rick Santorum	100:1
Ron Paul	100:1

odds from Ladbrokes.

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My 2nd day of work at Cambridge everyone took tea late in the afternoon and watched Obama’s inauguration ceremony.  He’s been a bit disappointing, overall.

Now it is another election year and it is time to air out my Kucinich for President gear, again, and start putting out my crude (and crudely rendered) political posters…like this one:

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The Republicans have an uncanny way of staying on message.  However, a wide spectrum of the media (liberal and Gawd-fearin’) have locked onto a particular phrase that should be a talking point:

“Disillusionment with Obama’s curiously frigid administration is a pervasive theme, but his rivals for the greatest office on earth look like competitors in a holiday camp freak show.” — Daily Mail (UK), http://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/article-2065500/Barack-Obama-weak-President-United-States-Paralysis.html?ito=feeds-newsxml

“My point is not the obvious one that the freak show is deplorable. It’s that the freak show is not going away.”  — CBS News (USA), http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162-20129026-503544/why-cains-story-isnt-like-clarence-thomas/

“It’s easy to laugh at the freak-show race for the Republican presidential nomination.”  — City Watch, LA (USA), http://www.citywatchla.com/8box-left/2518-the-republicans-not-funny-theyre-scary

“Those who say the debates are hurting the Republicans may be right. There is a freak-show element.” — Wall Street Journal (USA),  http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204224604577030192740119830.html

“…the Republican field of presidential candidates—the relatively normal Mitt Romney excepted—who collectively constitute the kind of freak show Americans are unaccustomed to seeing at the highest levels of national politics.”  — The American Prospect (USA), http://prospect.org/article/return-sanity

Of course, calling them freaks might backfire…the 2010 poster above should have been more effective but it really seemed to rally their pinhead voters. “One of us, one of us, we accept you one of us…” to quote the Tod Browning film, Freaks (1932):

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Lost on the west side of Swindon, Sunday, I had to admit that the sign speaks the truth: