84 Comments
User's avatar
Zizzer-Zazzer-Zuzz's avatar

"Neither would a married couple with only a measly three kids. "

Three shalt be the number thou shalt birth, and the number of the birthing shall be three. Four shalt thou not birth, nor either birth thou two, excepting that thou then proceed to three. Five is right out.

Expand full comment
Black Hole and DM mourner's avatar

Three children is when you start to have large families benefits, married or not.

Expand full comment
Straw's avatar

Not in Norway. The support from the government is the same for each kid under 18. Single parents though, get support for one more child than what they actually have. If the other parent are dead or want have the kids every second week or something like that.

Expand full comment
jomicur's avatar

Socialism! Communism! Stinky-poo Marxist stuff! So there!

Expand full comment
NOGODZ20's avatar

"You're not making Christianity better, you're just making sex worse!"

Expand full comment
cdbunch's avatar

The last thing we need to be doing is encouraging more kids. There are nearly 8 billion people on the planet. Over 330 million in the US. How many more people do we need?

Expand full comment
Guerillasurgeon's avatar

They either don't think God will let anything bad happen or they think it won't matter because the rapture is coming soon – seriously.

Expand full comment
Zorginipsoundsor's avatar

You can never have too many white evilgelicals.

Expand full comment
Straw's avatar

If you have one, no matter the skin colour, you have too many.

Expand full comment
Black Hole and DM mourner's avatar

One, if they have access to a nuclear arsenal.

Expand full comment
jomicur's avatar

I learned to multiply in 3rd grade. Do I get a tax break?

Expand full comment
RegularJoe's avatar

Were you full of fruit at the time? Apparently that's part of the deal.

Expand full comment
jomicur's avatar

No, darling, all the fruits entered my life when I hit puberty. And bless their hearts, they've never gone away. 😛

Expand full comment
NOGODZ20's avatar

You waited until puberty? Slacker.

Expand full comment
larry parker's avatar

What happens if some of your kids are unruly? Do you lose your tax break if you have to stone a couple of them?

Expand full comment
Maltnothops's avatar

Good point. There ought to be an exception for biblically justified offspringicide.

Expand full comment
Len Koz's avatar

So long as you still have 4 living ones left after everybody gets stoned...

Expand full comment
JerryBier's avatar

If they keep this up, the Republican party is definitely going to have to change their logo to the one that was familiar in 1930s Germany -- which I shall not mention my name.

Expand full comment
Zorginipsoundsor's avatar

This one? 卐

G卐P

Expand full comment
Straw's avatar

You mean the logo Germany had when they burned my father's home in the North Cape County, he was 9? Or when they burned my mother's home a little south of that (70°N) when she was four? I think they would love that.

Expand full comment
Joan the Dork's avatar

Oh, good- I was worried for a minute that Texas was going to sit back and just 𝘭𝘦𝘵 Florida win the race to the bottom. Nice to see there's still some competition.

https://media.tenor.com/KDaZoE40xPUAAAAd/babylon5-b5.gif

Expand full comment
cdbunch's avatar

Well, remember NYC has entered a dark horse in the race.

Expand full comment
RegularJoe's avatar

Seems more an asinus than equus. 😏

Expand full comment
Black Hole and DM mourner's avatar

Don't lose hope, there is still alabama, montana and louisiana.

Expand full comment
wreck's avatar

"Hold my beer!" - Arkansas

Expand full comment
RegularJoe's avatar

Iowa: {setting down meth pipe}.....

Expand full comment
Meowsma's avatar

As a married homeowner in Texas with five kids, I wouldn't mind that sizeable chunk of change, but it ain't worth this Nazi bullshit.

Expand full comment
cdbunch's avatar

But if you ever get divorced, then you've still got 5 kids, *two* houses, and no tax break. If your spouse should die you would have to remain single to get those continued benefits. (Hemant didn't mention, but I would be surprised if there isn't a provision against shacking up)

Expand full comment
NOGODZ20's avatar

Quick OT

A plane fueled with hydrogen made a successful test flight over Moses Lake here.

Wait a minute. An aircraft filled with hydrogen and passengers like the Hindenburg? What could go wrong?

Fortunately, Moses Lake didn't equate to Lakehurst.

Expand full comment
Joan the Dork's avatar

Fortunately, "fueled by hydrogen" isn't quite the same thing as "filled with leaky hydrogen gas bags and covered in magnesium painted fabric, then flown through a couple storms to give it a nice strong electric charge, as though somebody were 𝘵𝘳𝘺𝘪𝘯𝘨 to make the stupid thing as flammable as humanly possible 𝘢𝘯𝘥 give it the ability to self-ignite the moment anyone tried to land it." Hydrogen is a perfectly serviceable fuel; it's when someone tries to use the stuff for anything 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 than combustion that it tends to get... uncooperative.

Expand full comment
wreck's avatar

"when someone tries to use the stuff for anything 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 than combustion"

Large electric generators are filled with hydrogen gas. It cools the rotor, it has excellent heat transfer properties, and because it's the lightest thing we have, it minimizes the energy needed to circulate it. You just have to make sure the hydrogen purity is > 98%.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydrogen-cooled_turbo_generator

Expand full comment
Marycat2021's avatar

I keep on telling people that this kind of big "idea" is always rooted in misogyny that lives cheek by jowl with religious fanaticism.

And just as I posted elsewhere this week, the next item on the agenda for these wingnuts is divorce. Considering how many Catholics sit on the SC, you can count on it.

As if, for one thing, a woman will have any physical health left after giving birth to 10 kids. These men seem to think giving birth is a walk in the park.

Expand full comment
cdbunch's avatar

Divorce is 5th or 6th on the list. First they have to anull all those same-sex marriages. Make it illegal to have gax sex, take away birth control and make it illegal to update a birth certificate

Expand full comment
Zorginipsoundsor's avatar

What is "gax sex?" Is it fun?

Expand full comment
Zizzer-Zazzer-Zuzz's avatar

Fun? You'll have a gay old time!

Expand full comment
Len Koz's avatar

Yabba dabba doo!

Expand full comment
Black Hole and DM mourner's avatar

Gay sex with wax ? 🤔

Expand full comment
Zorginipsoundsor's avatar

Uhm . . . how do you determine the sex of the wax? Asking for a friend.

Expand full comment
Black Hole and DM mourner's avatar

Pink for male, blue for female or something like that 🤔

Expand full comment
Zorginipsoundsor's avatar

What if the is pink and blue swirled together?

Expand full comment
Len Koz's avatar

Hot wax? Ow!

Expand full comment
NOGODZ20's avatar

There's a product used on surfboards called "Sex Wax."

Expand full comment
Straw's avatar

Neither pregnancy nor birthing labour is good for health. But that is what they want isn't it? Crippling the mothers so they don't have energy left to leave.

Expand full comment
Zorginipsoundsor's avatar

Thomas and his first wife got a divorce so I don't think that one is going to happen.

Expand full comment
Marycat2021's avatar

Don't get your hopes up. Or think that the Thomases would worry for one second about their current partnership. It's not about them. It's about the people they're willing to give the country to.

Expand full comment
Len Koz's avatar

It is, for those men.

Expand full comment
NOGODZ20's avatar

Big Christian families like the Duggars and the Turpins, you mean?

Expand full comment
ericc's avatar

Yeah, 'tis the season for political theater. This bill is so laden with nonsensical discrimination that it has no hope of passing or surviving a legal challenge if it did. This is just for resume boosting.

𝐼𝑡 𝑎𝑙𝑠𝑜 𝑏𝑒𝑛𝑒𝑓𝑖𝑡𝑠 𝑤ℎ𝑖𝑡𝑒 𝑓𝑎𝑚𝑖𝑙𝑖𝑒𝑠 𝑚𝑜𝑟𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑛 𝑚𝑜𝑠𝑡...𝐴𝑔𝑎𝑖𝑛, 𝑆𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑜𝑛 𝑑𝑜𝑒𝑠𝑛’𝑡 𝑐𝑎𝑟𝑒. 𝑁𝑒𝑖𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟 𝑑𝑜 ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑅𝑒𝑝𝑢𝑏𝑙𝑖𝑐𝑎𝑛 𝑐𝑜𝑙𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑔𝑢𝑒𝑠.

I bet they do care. I bet he knows this disproportionally helps whites, and sees that as a feature not a bug. Now, Texas has no state income tax, so I'm not sure what other sort of personal tax break they could reasonably give. Arguably, property tax is the only big individual, state, tax pot to go after. But I would bet money that if some financial analysis showed that a property tax reduction would help blacks and hispancs more than whites, he'd withdraw this bill so fast Einstein would get upset his theory was broken.

Expand full comment
RegularJoe's avatar

Remember, SCOTUS isn't exactly fair, or balanced, or competent. Stare decisis is out the window, and if it weren't for Justice Three-Fifths they'd overturn Loving along with Obergefell.

Expand full comment
Zorginipsoundsor's avatar

I don't know if Texass is different, but property taxes are local, not state.

Expand full comment
Maltnothops's avatar

“ Slaton, who is a former minister…”

Um….why is he a “former” minister? That alone raises a great big red flag. Soviet-sized!

Expand full comment
XJC's avatar

Can anyone say "delusional?"

Expand full comment
NOGODZ20's avatar

Yes. It's spelled C-H-R-I-S-T-I-A-N.

Expand full comment
Whitney's avatar

Why can't we bar religious leaders from government positions again?

Maybe it's confirmation bias, but it seems all too often like we get the worst legislation out of politicians who were or are some sort of religious leader - as in, pastor, rabbi, elder, etc. I feel like this should be a violation of the separation of church and state, even if it's technically not one; it seems like too many of them just don't, won't, or can't see a difference between their religious ideals and the rule of law. Good governance requires the ability to compromise, being faithful to a religious ideology precludes that ability. In theory, at least, it seems to me that anyone good at being a religious leader is going to make a lousy politician and vice versa.

Of course, getting elected as a religious leader is usually easier from what I can tell, so I guess that's why it keeps happening. Pardon me, I'm going to go bang my head on my desk for a bit.

Expand full comment
NOGODZ20's avatar

Why can't we? "No religious test for public office."

Goddies in office are supposed to keep their personal beliefs out of their decision-making. Too bad that no one reminds them of that factoid, or that they swore an oath to support and defend the Constitution, not their faith.

Expand full comment