I Hope You're Happy

Doing a little article housecleaning here, and the holidays are keeping me very busy.  Whatever your holidays, have a celebration this year, and let’s make this thing better next year, OK? Oh, and can we vote out Lieberman now instead of 2012? That’s my Christmas wish.

Speaking of which, here he is confused as to what party to run with in 2012

Um, the Aetna Lobby party? Oh, no wait, the satanist party?

Living the stereotype

White supremacist wanted for murder in Texas, nickname is Bubba, drives a pickup, Nazi tattoos, Republican party sticker in the window. You can’t write it any better than this folks.

White house changes F-22 at press conference with F-15

Well, since the F-22 is such an engineering failure, I can hardly blame them.

Pranksters use GOP URL shortener for mischief, bring down the site

So the GOP has GOP.am as a device to share links between followers. More savvy members of the public at large used it to link to porn sites and liberal sites, and the GOP had to take it down less than 24 hours after it launched. Good work, everyone. If you want to put some of these articles through that and spread it to the Republican end of the spectrum, feel free.

Republican Filibuster use this year is unprecedented

They’ve used the F-word on every major piece of legislation. Hm, “party of no” anyone? I’ll be highlighting this idea a bit more in the new year, I think.

Orrin Hatch: Republican Standard operating procedure under Bush was to no pay for things

Hence the GOP belief that the deficit doesn’t matter, except when the Democrats are in office. Hypocrisy and political credibility don’t go well together, my friends.

When pressed, they can’t even admit to their hypocrisy

Just the usual talk around and blather.

Blackwater founder was a CIA operative?

I’m not sure this ever actually played out, but I’m not surprised. The line between Blackwater and CIA did blur greatly as the war in Iraq wore on, and it played a nice trick by renaming itself Z industries, making it practically impossible to track in defense spending reports.

Just goes to show, don’t rely on God for anything

GOP Prayer leader believes gays are possessed by demons, really

Author of “Cure the Gays” B.S. gets a tongue lashing on Rachel Maddow

Worth the view.

Minnesota could lose a congressional seat in census

Hm, if only the redistriciting could cost Michele Bachmann her seat, our long national embarrassment would be over.

Al Franken beginning to use his satirical side in the Senate

My question is, if our politicians are the best at what they do, successful in such a large national intellectual sport as politics, why can’t they match wits with a comedian with no training in doing this? The flip side, of course, is can Franken control his tongue enough to be able to do business in Washington? This will get interesting.

What? TARP Profits at $16bn so far?

Well, until it’s all repaid, there isn’t really a profit in my book, but this is looking a bit better than we had hoped. There is a light at the end of the tunnel. and it isn’t a freight train.

The al Qaeda leader behind the underoo bomber was released by the U.S. from Gitmo in November 2007.

Thanks, for keeping us safe, George!

Illinois Republican Senate Primary challenger runs ad claiming opponent is gay

Keep it classy guys. Really, isn’t this the slum of elections? The Republicans in my home state of Illinois (motto: Politics, we like ours dirty) are resorting to dirty tactics early.

Karl Rove granted a divorce

I think we should demand proof he was married in the first place.

2,000 years on, an impoverished itinerant preacher has been made into a rich man

And just a little more perversion to that fun institution we call religion. I can’t wait until somebody comes up with a ministry of the rich Buddha.

The world is ending in 2011 if you’re a Christian who makes shit up about the bible

AIG’s emails as the company crashed and burned

And an exec at AIG quit over pay limits

To be fair, she handled HR, Corporate Communications and the like, not SubPrime loans. I’d rather she got paid a comparably fair wage, and the morons who got us into this got paid even less than the Federally mandated maximum.

Iraq

Obama hints at Iraq/Al Qaeda link

Hard to deny since we did a lot of leading them there.

Afghanistan

Karl Rove says Obama can win in Afghanistan

It’s a nice thought, but Rove doesn’t exactly have a great track record in being right, if you know what I mean. Didn’t he also say Iraq would be a breeze?

Gen. McChrystle: Hey, how about we go for Bin Laden?

Yes, that would be a welcome change to the war strategies of the last 8 years.

Switching Sides

Why Little Green Footballs is leaving the Republicans behind

Charles Johnson doesn’t like being associated with conspiracy theory wingnuts and haters, for some reason.

Andrew Sullivan in rather more words and eloquence

Maine politician leaves GOP over Health Care Reform

Maine State Rep. Jim Campbell leaves his party because his party left him behind.

Parker Griffith, Democrat from Alabama switches to Republicans because of Pelosi

He’s fed up with the deficit spending, but he specifically named Pelosi.

Anti-socialist Michele Bachmann took $250K in Federal farming subsidies.

Fun with Climate Change

Al Gore can’t get the facts straight

While I admire his dedication to the political aspects of this, because of the position he has put himself in, he needs to have bulletproof facts.  Otherwise, he opens himself to mockery.

Another

Proof he’s going to get pushed harder than anyone else on this.

James Inhofe: Climate change denier denied

As theatrically as a Republican with his panties in a bunch, he flies to Copenhagen to give an interview to one reporter. Message received, Jim.

DOE: Windfarms don’t hurt property values

So what else you got? And don’t give me any Wind Turbine Syndrome Bullshit.

Skepticism is not the bane of science, despite what the press will tell you

This is a major story that many lay people who oppose many issues are trying to create. Don’t believe any of it. Science likes skepticism. It’s just a shame the American education doesn’t teach the scientific method well enough for people to get it.

Diane Feinstein wants to kill 13 solar and wind power projects to protect Mojave Desert

Yet another reason not to like her. There’s no reason why we can’t build an ecologically sensitive green energy plant, figure it out.

Iran

Note to Obama: the diplomacy didn’t work

Iranian document says they tested a bomb component. They’re using the North Korean school of diplomacy where they pretend to give a concession then stall and never do. How much line will we give them before we try something else?

Revolution is imminent

Opposition forces taking control of police weapons and vehicles.

Fox News: Give me a poorly forged Iran nuclear document and I’ll give you a war

You guessed it, that document proving Iran is making warhead components was a fake.

Ayatollah Kadivar is putting his money on revolution because the people know the government is Bullshit

Republicans take note.

Alan Grayson

Well, somebody had to tell Cheney to STFU

Not too into this one Alan. This is America and we have free speech

The unfunny Palin

Media guidelines for a Palin book tour appearance

No foreign journalists, no taping, no interviews. Maybe the Canadian chick got to her.

Going birther

Leave no lunatic stone unturned.

She got an award! Biggest lie of the year

Death panels wins her the honor.

Blogger on her banned list

And he’s rightfully proud. I would be, too.

The logic is perfect

Bachmann: A year ago, 100% of the private economy was private

Um, yes, it sure was.

Lou Dobbs: NOW I’m for Amnesty for illegal immigrants

Hm, I’m smelling a sellout to an election demographic that isn’t going to vote for him anyway.

Fox News: We know this is a lie, so we no longer will officially follow our official no tolerance truth policy

Apparently rules and journalistic ethics are only for amateurs.

Another Republican politician can’t accept modern societal sensitivity

The quote was, “Really, your son is a homo?” This continued insensitivity to those who aren’t “like them” further distances the Republicans from modern reality. This time it was Mecklenburg County South Carolina commissioner Bill James.

Republicans in Indiana are kicking out people who aren’t conservative enough

Yeah, that makes perfect sense, kick out the majority middle folks. I like the quote that people are inherently conservative. That’s a pretty big assumption, there buddy, and what do you have to back that statement up? Huh buddy? People aren’t inherently anything, there’s no conservative political gene, and this assumption is part of what is wrong with the Republican party, too much assuming they are right, and not enough actually going out and finding out if they are.

Hi, I’m Marty, I’m a recovering Republican

A good article about how a one time Liberal hugely over corrected and became a conservative looney.

Children’s Stories

Help Mommy! The Radicals are Ruining my Country!

Looks like the Republicans, who are against the Liberal indoctrination of their children want to indoctrinate their children on paranoia, fear and stupidity. While it is against Nancy Pelosi, so I don’t mind it too much, it is just another bit of Republican hypocrisy. (worth the click just for the image)

You have to read this about “Coraline”

Now, Coraline is my 3 yr old’s favorite movie. It was written by one of my favorite authors, Neil Gaiman, and was done by the Directors of Nightmare Before Christmas (my daughter’s second favorite movie). When Neil was still writing it, I met him, and he told us about a story that kids love, but scares the living shit out of adults. That was Coraline. Now, check out these quotes:

To others, “Mother Hulda” is a reflection of the soul-life of the people who carried the story down through the ages, an embodiment of their outlook on the world. The story extols the beauty of nature, encourages diligence and industry, and praises kindness towards people and all living things. In Goldmarie’s parallel world, each created being, whether an apple tree by the road or a bluebird singing in a rose bush, is worthy of love and respect.

Not so with Hollywood’s horrifying “Coraline” a children’s movie which Christians should have boycotted. The movie was directed by Henry Selick who made “Nightmare before Christmas” with Tim Burton. The images are disturbing enough to do permanent damage to a young soul. Let us just say in passing that the mother in the story blinds her children, replacing their eyes with buttons, a metaphorical action symbolizing the destruction of the soul in hell.

A good friend made the remarkable observation that “Coraline” is really a mirror image of Goldmarie’s story, a dark counterpart to the bright world of Mother Hulda. Indeed, this terrifying tale reverses almost every aspect of “Mother Hulda.” Coraline passes down a tunnel into a parallel universe filled with loathsome creatures. As bright as Goldmarie’s world is, and filled with love, Coraline’s world is filled with terror, darkness, and hate.

That America has fallen so far to allow such a movie to be shown to children is another matter. But what is the political significance of these two stories? Precisely this: many in Hollywood have a vision of the world terrifyingly unlike our own. Those who made “Coraline” are also likely to endorse the evils of abortion and homosexual marriage, and given a chance, could easily change America into a Soviet-style hell on earth. That is – if you will – Mother Hulda shows the soul of the Right, and Coraline, the tormented soul of the Left.

A side-by-side comparison of the two stories reveals that ours is much more than a political struggle. Ours is truly “a battle against principalities, powers, the rulers of the darkness of this world, and spiritual wickedness in high places.”

Now, as an author I can tell you a few things. 1) Stories are about conflict. Stories without conflict, and hence danger and scary things, are really bad stories. 2) children’s lit, and especially young adult, is subversive by nature. It’s about gaining independence by facing something challenging or frightening on one’s own. 3) It’s my own personal belief that someone who hasn’t seen some conflict and violence because they’ve been sheltered are completely unable to handle it when they are confronted with it in their real lives.

Young conservatives ashamed of the GOP

At least they eventually learn to think for themselves.

Republican Blowhards

Glenn Beck’s lawsuit against parody site dismissed because he’s a moron

This is actually a really interesting case. After an offhand comment in a Fark.com forum, Isaac Eiland-Hall registered the domain GlennBeckrapedandmurderedayounggirlin1990.com and set up a parody site where he uses Glenn Beck’s rhetorical devices against him. Glenn Beck sues him in the International Trademark court over commercial use of his brand of crazy, or maybe just his name. Yes, that’s right he didn’t sue for libel, he sued for trademark infringement, in INTERNATIONAL court, making me wonder if he can prove he didn’t rape and murder a girl in 1990. I hope he has an alibi for that year. But the judge sided against him, saying the owner of the site is making a legitimate political statement, and Glenn Beck cannot overstep the constitution and limit the owner’s freedom of speech. Nice to see the constitution enforced.

Remember when V was anti-Obama and a Republican buzzword?

Turns out the creator of the new series is a homosexual who is a huge Obama supporter, and it really is against fascism after all. Hmmmm…..Gays in Hollywood who’d have thought?

Lou Dobbs quits CNN, Runs for Pres in 2012?

Now that’s a recipe for a Roland Emmerich film….

Or he could be facing this guy

Gary Johnson of New Mexico.

Scozzafava is now a verb

To Scozzafava is to be the more moderate Republican in a race which divides the base and allows a Democrat to win.

Turns out, conservative states are not too good at family values

A lot of Red States are at the top of divorce rates.

The coming senatorial election in Florida is shaping up to be a doozy

Crist vs. Rubio. They agree on everything, except the Obama stimulus money. Looks like it’s going to be a good old fashioned feud.

They’re coming after Orly Taitz, queen bee birther

All for filing frivolous lawsuits about birth certificates. Imagine that.

Upcoming Election Outlook

Olympia Snowe, one of the few good Republicans is in electoral trouble

Polls show her losing the primary to a hypothetical conservative candidate in a landslide. Looks like it’s time for her to pull the Arlen Spector.

Deficit Spending

White House spends 787 billion, now is looking for restraint

Actually, I think this is exactly the right course, stimulus spending now, and closer to balancing the budget each year in office. Its better than this:

George W Bush increased federal spending by $1 trillion a year

Hmm, fiscal conservative my ass… and now he’s criticizing Obama.

The FDA is considering regulating on-line claims about pharmaceuticals

Because we all know nobody makes false claims on the internet. What they are very concerned about is social networking sites that put patients in contact with other patients, and the claims they could make. I could see a bot or a paid shill causing some trouble on these sites.

Economy

For Most of us, the Glass Steagull is half empty

Ten years after Glass-Steagull was repealed, how’s it look now?

One of the leading voices of dissent was Senator Byron L. Dorgan, Democrat of North Dakota. He warned that reversing Glass-Steagall and implementing the Republican-backed Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act was a mistake whose repercussions would be felt in the future.

“I think we will look back in 10 years’ time and say we should not have done this, but we did because we forgot the lessons of the past, and that that which is true in the 1930s is true in 2010,” Mr. Dorgan said 10 years ago. “We have now decided in the name of modernization to forget the lessons of the past, of safety and of soundness.”

Looks like everything wasn’t on the up and up in the BOA Merrill Lynch merger

Apparently, they said they needed a bunch of money to complete the deal when they really didn’t. They put the squeeze on us tax payers.

Newfound Freedom

The Return of the 10th Amendment

States are beginning to assert their own rights over the Federal Government. It’s giving us more freedom with guns, removing federal health care, and giving us easily accessed medical marijuana. I’m thinking in combination, guns, drugs and a lack of health care aren’t a very good idea.

Why getting high, gay marriage and going to Cuba will soon be legal

I’m not into weed, so I don’t really care, and I don’t picture myself as going to Cuba, but it’s about time it was all legal for many reasons.

We’ll start up with a Facebook status update from my friend Dermot, who does all sort of fun things for the NHS in the UK:

Dermot Is designing a backup psu to power a ventilator from the main power on a colleague’s wheelchair. Needs help to breathe all the time (has the same condition as Hawking)*, but his new wheelchair is amazing; unfolds and holds him upright in its embrace…think the exoskeleton that Ripley operates in Aliens. * Yes, contrary to what that wanker wrote in the IBD recently, the NHS does look after patients like Hawking.

Roger Ebert wrote the best thing I’ve heard on health care so far

Having read through some 600 comments about universal health care, I now realize I took the wrong approach in my previous blog entry. I discussed the Obama health plan in political, literal, logical terms. Most of my readers replied in the same vein. The comments, as always, have been helpful, informative and for the most part civil. My mistake was writing from the pragmatic side. I should have followed my heart and gone with a more emotional approach. I believe universal health care is, quite simply, right.

It is a moral imperative. I cannot enjoy health coverage and turn to my neighbor and tell him he doesn’t deserve it. A nation is a mutual undertaking. In a democracy, we set out together to do what we believe is good for the commonwealth. That means voluntarily subjecting ourselves to the rule of law, taxation, military service, the guaranteeing of rights to minorities, and so on. That is a cheap price to pay.

From the Facts and Figures Dept.

Premiums up 20 percent over last year for 10 person company

Sure, those gigantic health insurance companies are really looking out for each and every one of us, and want nothing but peace and happiness, health and every last penny we have. That non-profit public option is sure the most evil thing ever. Can’t have that. More importantly, this article really looks at the idea that the free market is competing to save us money. Turns out, there’s little competing, and plenty of profiteering.

Look folks, Obama is not a Nazi

How hard is Bipartisanship?

This hard.

Lou Dobbs tours single-payer systems and finds….they’re good

Yeah, Lou “Birtherboy” Dobbs is admitting they may not be as bad as the Republicans make them out to be.

Meet the Opposition

Sen. Tom Coburn’s hypocrisy at a town hall

Here’s the set-up. A weeping wife asks for help for her husband, who has had major brain trauma, was dumped by his insurance company, must leave the nursing home he’s at, and she can’t care for him on her own. His response: Come to my GOVERNMENT office an we’ll see what we can do, but don’t look for GOVERNMENT to be the answer. >insert crowd cheers<. For fuck’s sake, a man is incapacitated by a traumatic brain injury, the family is completely destroyed by health care problems that would be solved by the Democratic plan, and people are cheering that the system is completely broken for this woman, and they won’t help her. Some fucking human compassion here.

John McCain and the Death Panel Shuffle

Watch John McCain dance around the biggest mistake of his political career, by standing behind (very far behind) Sarah Palin and her death panels, only he doesn’t call them death panels. You got that?

John Boehner is pissed PHRMA caved to the White House

You want proof that the Republicans aren’t looking out for America? John Boehner is giving advice to PHRMA, namely that giving appeasements to the White House won’t help them win the war. THEM? What about us? What are you doing for us Boehner? Sure, you’ll defend big business to the bitter end, but when it comes to doing good for Americans?

Sen. Chuck Grassley’s recent town hall

Let’s see, Obama’s a Nazi, a threat on his life, yeah, looks about typical.

McCain booed for defending Obama

John, you courted this audience in the election, you’ve got to deal with them. Hint: shaming them back to reality might be a good idea.

Michael Steele: The VA is encouraging vets to commit suicide

This according to a memo that talks about end of life counseling like what Democrats wanted in the main health care bill. Michael, you’re the HNIC of the RNC. You won’t get any respect until you start telling the truth about this. You can rejoin the nation anytime you like.

Why are senior citizens the ones crying “Socialist” about health care debates

Funny considering Medicare is the most socialist health care program in America. Even funnier considering they are using twice as much as they’ve paid in. I’m guessing McCarthyism is part of it. And stupidity is the other part.

Republicans spreading fear of issues that don’t exist with Medicare

The Republicans won’t allow for rationing of care for seniors, which is just great because the Democrats won’t either. Finally, some common ground if we could just stop lying.

National Healthcare is a breeding ground for terrorism. Really.

How can they actually believe this shit?

These videos from the Daily Show are very interesting. There’s this cognitive dissonance in Betsy McCaughy who spouts Republican dogma despite her actual real world experience. It also seems that she isn’t interested in debating a point, but is only interested in scoring points. Look at her body language. Very strange.

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon – Thurs 11p / 10c
Exclusive – Betsy McCaughey Extended Interview Pt. 1
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Healthcare Protests

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon – Thurs 11p / 10c
Exclusive – Betsy McCaughey Extended Interview Pt. 2
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Healthcare Protests

Poll: Republicans believe Government should stay out of their Medicare

I think that about sums it up.

Tom DeLay shows his moron and joins the Birther movement, and why not? His legal issues means he doesn’t have to worry about re-election, so why not be a kook?

Fanning the flames of hate from conservative media

Let’s see, one week:

Limbaugh dismisses  global warming and cap and trade as just like the healthcare is broken myth.
Glenn Beck danced around committing violence as acts of civil disobedience
Glenn Beck Poisoned The Speaker of the House in effigy
Beck made up an “Obama enemies list” (I think we all know who you are)
Beck furthered the Obama Nazi rhetoric

They’ve been busy.

Then again more companies pulled their ads from the Glenn Beck show

And really, if a company as conservative as Wal-Mart pulls their ads, you know you’re way off the deep end.

Jon Voight: Is Obama Starting a new civil war?

No, but you are. I’m personally boycotting any movies Jon Voight is in just because of his political views.

No, really, tell us what you really feel

These have to be the best lines I’ve read about the relevancy of the current Republican party in ages:

Given the heinous dust that’s been raised, it seems likely that end-of-life counseling will be dropped from the health-reform legislation. But that’s a small point, compared with the larger issue that has clouded this summer: How can you sustain a democracy if one of the two major political parties has been overrun by nihilists? And another question: How can you maintain the illusion of journalistic impartiality when one of the political parties has jumped the shark?

Of course, when you’re wooing the youth vote with Henpcked Bruce Jenner and a beauty queen….

You pretty much know you’re done as a party. Really, Bruce Jenner won a gold medal before the target voters were born. The Beauty Queen? Prejean.

The Joker Obama image was made by a Kucinich supporter

Way to stand up for the team, dude. BTW, the Joker is an anarchist.

The economy isn’t as rosy as the White House thought and they’re prevaricating

As the expensive (but necessary) healthcare debate moves to the Senate, the White House is holding off on releasing economic reports until after Congress recesses because it isn’t as good as they said it was going to be. I thought one of the platforms was to not hold back on bad news. Hmmm……maybe this is why the poll numbers are going down, the whole honesty and integrity thing still isn’t in gov’t.

Official political pressure on the Supreme Leader continues to build

The doubts and pressure keesp mounting as Khamenei keeps making threats, but how long can he do this and still keep control?

Great commentary on the death of Walter Cronkite

This sentiment has been echoed across many media spheres, political cartoons, and news outlets.

I’d like to think I gave them the idea for this

Vanity Fair’s copy edit and fact check on Sarah Palin’s last speech. Quite a work.

Copies of 1984 and Animal Farm disappear from Kindles – You never bought that copy, citizen

Ok, this is ironic on many levels, not just that it was 1984 and Animal Farm, but there’s a wonderful added level to this article, where the lawyer commenting on it is named Kafka. I get the issue with the rights as laid out in this article, but the world set this one up as a practical joke. I fully believe this.

Wall Street learned nothing

They’re back top lobbying against policies that would have prevented the financial apocalypse, paying huge bonuses, and ignoring the rest of the world.

Proof that having a big radio show doesn’t give you brains

Lou Dobbs now demanding a birth certificate. Hey buddy, main stream belief system is over here.

At least our government isn’t this ineffective

Traffic light had a programming glitch that put opposing directions with simultaneous green lights – for 30 years.