Bottom of the Birdcage Awards for the Week of 04.23.07

by Jer

"Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former." - Albert Einstein

Welcome to the Bottom of the Birdcage Awards! (a.k.a. The BOBs). The Blogged Drain's bi-monthly award for those things - done or said - that fall under the category of the overwhelmingly annoying, despicably wrong, or galacticly stupid.

This week's winners...

3rd Place: Sheryl Crow

If you hadn't heard, singer and environmental activist Sheryl Crow has proposed a limitation on toilet paper use. From her website she recommended that "only one square per restroom visit, except, of course, on those pesky occasions where two to three could be required". She goes on to say, "I propose a limitation be put on how many squares of toilet paper can be used in any one sitting."

You propose a limitation?!? Two questions: First, how do you propose to enforce this limitation, and second, do you really expect us to believe that you get by with just one square?

2nd Place: Fred X

Blogger for men's rights, Fred X, made the following comments about Kiranjit Ahluwalia and the movie Provoked, which chronicles the 10 years of domestic abuse she suffered and her eventual decision to set her husband on fire. Of Ahluwalia, Fred X says, "Long time readers [of his blog] know exactly what I think of this bitch - who got out of prison due to yet another get-out-clause (Battered Woman Defence) that exists for women-only."

I am, by no means, suggesting that this woman should have gotten out of prison. She did, afterall, commit murder and in a particularly sadistic fashion; there are people incarcerated today for having done much less. However, Fred Flintstoned completely ignores that (1) Ahluwalia's husband brutally beat and raped her for a decade and (2) she is the recipient of the "get-out-clause" and not it's architect. The venom for this questionable piece of legislation should be directed at those to wrote it and passed it; not those who benefit from it.

1st Place: Bella's Former Owners

Chicago talk radio host and part-time animal rights activist, Mike North, featured the following Adopt-A-Pet story on his website: "Bella is a ten year old female Chocolate Lab. She was found wandering by the police, who tracked down her owners. When they took Bella home, her owners told them that they didn’t want her anymore and had turned her loose, hoping the coyotes would kill her off."

My guess is that these are some pretty poor folks. Not only didn't they have the means to keep the dog, drive it to the humane society or to put it down, they couldn't afford common decency, and that stuff's free, and if you can't afford free, well...