The Philippines was just getting over a typhoon when it got slammed by a 7+ earthquake.

If you look at the map you will see that the Southeast coast of Australia is on fire.

Asia has had an active and destructive typhoon season, with major storms hitting everywhere from Japan to India.

The rest of the world is dealing with natural disasters while the US is creating its own.

Charlie Pierce commented on the unusual behavior by an employee of the House of Representatives at last night’s vote on opening the government, using the article from USA Today, and then compares it to statements by Michele Bachmann and Ted Cruz.

Unlike USA Today, CNN has most of her remarks:

“Do not be deceived. God shall not be mocked. A House divided cannot stand,” she said, according to a House GOP aide. After a few seconds, she was escorted out by the Sergeant-at-Arms, but an audio recording by Todd Zwillich of Public Radio International captured the rest of her rant.

“He will not be mocked, He will not be mocked, (don’t touch me) He will not be mocked. The greatest deception here, is that this is not one nation under God. It never was. Had it been… it would not have been… No. it would not have been… the Constitution would not have been written by Free Masons… and go against God. You cannot serve two masters. You cannot serve two masters. Praise be to God, Lord Jesus Christ.”

They characterized it as a ‘rant’ and the Capitol Police turned her over to the medics for a psych eval because she was just an employee. If she had been elected it would be part of the Congressional Record, and in a fund-raising letter.

HR 2775 – Continuing Appropriations Act, 2014 [PDF], the final Government Printing Office copy.

The House roll call vote showing my Congresscritter, Jefferson Beauregard Miller of FL-1, voted against ending the stupidity.

The Senate roll call vote showing my junior Senator, Marco Rubio, voted against ending the stupidity.

McClatchy noted that on page 20 they included: “Notwithstanding any other provision of this joint resolution, there is appropriated for payment to Bonnie Englebardt Lautenberg, widow of Frank R. Lautenberg, late a Senator from New Jersey, $174,000”. This is a Congressional courtesy thing, sending a year’s pay to the surviving spouse of a member who dies in office, so what was it doing in a bill needed to avoid the destruction of the US credit rating? Frank Lautenberg had tens of millions of dollars in assets, so his wife wasn’t in desperate straits like the mothers and children who depend on programs like WIC. These people are really not connected to the world the rest of us live in.