News Shots 11/16/09
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
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.
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.