…and this is a 
Reason #4 to vote for Pharyngula
Category: Humor • Weblogs
Posted on: December 9, 2006 9:00 PM, by PZ Myers
Phil is still playing the speciesist card, and now he wants to invoke the so-called superiority of bony internal skeletons. There's nothing wrong with a good hydrostatic skeleton, you know, it's one of those useful innovations that allows a soft tissue to extend and become rigid. I'm sure Phil's lovers have all wished he had one. (Perhaps that's the source of the telescope fixation over there, a little rigid tube envy).
And look at how far he's willing to go:
That is why I am promoting the "Defense of Vertebrates Act". This legislation, which I will submit to the National Academy of Higher Mammals, states that affection, care, and declarations of " Awwwww, isn't that cute!" can only be given to animals with bones (and to whatever animal goes into making McNuggets).
If he's going to do that, we're going to have to restrict all declarations of "Thou art AWESOME!" to organisms other than the bone-bags he's raving about. He can have the trivial "cute" adjective for all of gangly, clumsy concatenations of stick-like sprues he favors, and we'll reserve "terrifying", "slimy", "spiny", "oozing", "gelatinous", "tremendous", and other such inspiring adjectives for the non-vertebrate biota—the majority, as we all know.
Vote for Pharyngula (and remember, you can vote every day!). Unless you like flaccidity.
Comments
Your tentacles are grasping, but they are not clutching.
Posted by: Phil Plait | December 9, 2006 9:14 PM
I will vote for the one who offers the most graft and cooruption. Needless to say neither phil @ bad astronomy nor PZ @ pharyngula have yet offered inducements such as a position on their blog roll.
In the way of the "great capitalist ideal", my vote is available to the highest bidder. I never said that I couldn't be bought, I just claimed that I wasn't cheap. :)
Posted by: beepbeepitsme | December 9, 2006 9:23 PM
I can't vote for Panda's Thumb, because it was nearly inaccessible for about 4 months. I can't vote for Pharyngula because of the hateful things said here about Ed Brayton. So it looks like it's Good Math / Bad Math.
Posted by: steve s | December 9, 2006 9:26 PM
I'm sure Phil's lovers have all wished he had one.
Dude. Harsh!
Oh, and I second the calls for graft and corruption. Let the Republicanization of the Best Science Blog category begin!
Posted by: The Disgruntled Chemist | December 9, 2006 9:28 PM
"Republicanization"? You have obviously never lived in Chicago or New Jersey and been acquainted with the Democratic machines there. Now there's some serious graft and corruption.
Posted by: Orac | December 9, 2006 9:47 PM
Because both PZ and Phil have descended into mudslinging, I've decided to throw my support behind my blog child, Mark at Good Math, Bad Math. ;-)
Posted by: Orac | December 9, 2006 9:54 PM
You are mistaken! We began with the mudslinging, and we're working our way up to character assassination and dirty tricks.
I'm planning to end it by summoning my clone army of cyborg zombie squid-men out of the Pacific to overrun poor Phil. He won't know what hit him.
Posted by: PZ Myers | December 9, 2006 10:29 PM
Aww! Squid are adorable!
Posted by: Maronan | December 9, 2006 10:37 PM
PZ might get the prokaryote vote, but the Archaea are still on the fence. It's just that they don't have access to the internet because no one wants to give them service where they live (too hot/cold/salty, I guess). The S. aureus, S. epidermidis, et al that are all over my keyboard keep trying to make me vote for PZ.
*rah rah*
Yeah, guys, keep it up, but I'm still voting for Phil.
*bite us*
Lysol?
*back off, fascist!*
Great, they're unionizing. PZ's politics have led to bacterial colonies organizng and overthrowing my keyboard.
*power to the prokaryotes!*
...
Posted by: Mr. Coxiella's Lawyer | December 9, 2006 10:59 PM
Clearly Phil overplayed his card when he reserved cuteness to stiff-necked vertebrates.
Hah! Lot of good that will do him. The number of manipulative members are against him - and manipulate they do.
BTW, I'm confused about "hateful things said here about Ed Brayton". If it wasn't "hate the offense, love the offender" I must have missed the public inking.
Posted by: Torbjörn Larssona | December 9, 2006 11:32 PM
PZ, just for the record, MY army of undead creationist squirrel half-breeds cast THEIR votes for Pharyngula. Which is curious, given the backbone thing and all....SH
Posted by: Scott Hatfield | December 10, 2006 12:48 AM
PZ, making fun of a man's telescope is just........ WRONG!
And besides, with all of the bonelessness you support around here, I'd have thought your signoff would've been "Vote for Pharyngula (and remember, you can vote every day!). Because you like flaccidity!"
Posted by: minusRusty | December 10, 2006 1:00 AM
power to the prokaryotes!
Man, I tried to warn him about this. And jeez, the Hell's Archaea are a bad ass bunch.
Posted by: Jim in STL | December 10, 2006 1:02 AM
Re: chemist and orac:
Now. Now. I didn't equate graft and corruption with a specific party. Just because the republicans have taken the lead with nepotism, cronyism and corporate whoredom, it doesn't mean that the democrats can't fight to improve their graft and corruption status.
Posted by: beepbeepitsme | December 10, 2006 2:55 AM
I'll vote for whoever takes me serious on my request for a large, informative post about giant squid first. I am an inquiring mind, and I want to KNOW.
Then again, I might also settle for a pizza. Contact me for details.
Posted by: Daephex | December 10, 2006 4:23 AM
Well, with the anti-cephalopod hostility over there, I'll have to start voting for Pharyngula, despite some previous votes.
What would you like to know about architeuthis dux, Daephex?
Posted by: Evolving Squid | December 10, 2006 9:40 AM
Interesting this "debate" seems to be resolving around the matter of cephalopods. If you want to win, surely you've got to attack Phil's area of expertise and not just be constantly on the back foot defending your own!
Posted by: andy | December 10, 2006 10:01 AM
You have obviously never lived in Chicago or New Jersey and been acquainted with the Democratic machines there. Now there's some serious graft and corruption.
I know, I just went for the easy cheap shot. Believe me, in San Diego (where I used to live) politics, corruption knows know party lines. I was just too lazy to think up something clever to say - which won't surprise any regular readers of my blog.
If you want to win, surely you've got to attack Phil's area of expertise and not just be constantly on the back foot defending your own!
Agreed! It'll help you move out of the mudslinging phase and into the character assassination phase, too.
Posted by: The Disgruntled Chemist | December 10, 2006 10:35 AM
You've been getting our vote early and often. As it is Sunday, could it possibly be otherwise?
Posted by: EdWonk | December 10, 2006 1:30 PM
Clearly, Paul's sinister in his intent to insure that flowers are never remarked upon as beautiful.
Posted by: Tatarize | December 10, 2006 2:02 PM
"Cephalopods cuttle and run, but vertebrates never do."
Oh come on! That line alone would win my vote, if I hadn't already voted for PZ....
(BTW, what is this fixation with tentacled sea critters? I missed something way back, I guess....)
Posted by: Mau | December 13, 2006 3:30 AM