Notes from a FEMA camp

Many dedicated, non-readers of this space know that I make something resembling a living as a painter. As a student of both life and the painting game, I like to face up to the fact that I don't know everything, even when I'm pretty sure that I do. So, if I have any questions about a project or an event, I google. I don't know why though....

I painted a cast iron bath tub this past week. It wasn't my first but it was the first one that wasn't going to be filled with dirt and annuals and put in neighbor Bill's back yard. So, yeah, I knew to sand the bejeezus out of it and hit it with two coats of Rustoleum. This bathtub was going into my brother's to-be-remodeled bathroom and I was slightly curious as to any techniques I might not know about.

Turns out, according to the 'net, there were a few I hadn't considered. A couple of sites recommended latex paint because it's "flexible".

Huh what?? Latex paint on cast iron? Well, if you want to promote rust and inhibit adhesion, I guess that would be the way to go....

The next link recommended automotive engine paint because, well, you'll be putting HOT WATER in that tub and.....

If you're putting water hot enough to worry about melting the paint in your tub, it'll be the last bath you take before going to the burn unit for skin grafts.

I quit reading after that and went with what I already knew. Beau coup sanding and at least two coats of Rustoleum.

To me, it's like fucking. You already know how to do it. What can the internet tell you about fucking if you've already done it rather successfully? It usually starts with a man and a woman. That's doable. But then it's FIVE guys and a woman! Another click and it might be just two GUYS! What the? Jeez, they can even complicate sex! Where did these midgets come from???

So, yeah, there is a ton of misinformation on the internet. People complain about Wiki but I think it's always been a good starting point for reference work. Most of life is common sense and thinking for yourself. You could use engine paint on a tub. But, you don't NEED to. You could use latex paint.... after priming with a rust-inhibiting, alkyd based product.... so, just fucking use Rustoleum and get it over with. It's not that hard.

Now, how does FEMA DEATH CAMPS figure into this? This week I saw a clip of a Charlie Rose interview with Dana Millbanks who has written a book about Glenn Beck and the teabagging of America. I've read a thousand references to FEMA camps in various threads and I assumed it was bullshit the reich was selling as a PROBABILITY with the Obama administrations evil agenda. Fear is their business and they have a dedicated sales staff. But it turned out that the talk of FEMA concentration/death camps was, at the time, a REALITY that Glenn Beck just couldn't confirm or deny. That meant in Beck-speak that liberal/communist/socialist Obamaites mightcould have been imprisoning republicans and, of course, torturing, executing and- worse- RE-EDUCATING them! Or, not. He debunked that myth ever-so-quietly a month later, according to Millbanks.

Thing is, stupid people still cling to that notion of existing FEMA death camps. Maybe they missed the debunking episode. Maybe he did it during commercial.

Ah- what are ya gonna do? If you can't think for yourself, there's always Glenn Beck and rusty bathtubs.

Be careful what you link for, you might get it.