FIRST DRAFT

Villagers Of The Damned, The Sequel

From Album4

In January the puke funnel was strictly partisan, but now the courtier (or if you prefer, courtesan) press is joining in. Sigh.

I noted in a comment to Adrastos' post on a similar article that the only thing missing is some high handed snobbery from Sally Quinn and the reanimated corpse of David Broder insisting that "the Obamas trashed the place, and it wasn't their place... [pause]...braaaaaaaains."

I also likened Vandehi and Smith to the kind of high school cliques portrayed in movies like Heathers, but that's really not fair to high school cliques, since most teenagers eventually do grow up. 

The Taco Bell Curve

From Album4

It's not very surprising to see The Heritage Foundation furiously waddling backwards as fast as they can after this (and this), but to me it's a classic political gaffe--they told us what they really think.

Tailgunner Ted

From Album4

Hmm, it sounds like Teahadist flavor-of-the-month Ted Cruz is one physical act of love away from endorsing Wing Attack Plan R because, you know, fluoridated water and children's ice cream.

And I'd really like to know who shouted at him for having the "courage" to tell people like the parents of the Sandy Hook school shooting victims to pound sand. I swear, bullies sure do love playing the victim as much or even more than they love bullying. 

Something in Bronze for the Bush Library

From Album4

Charles Pierce nails it -- The Great Mulligan -- and while at first I was going to bronze The Pet Goat event (when Dubya was actually holding a book), Katrina Guitar Hero seemed a little more fitting. If nothing else, he'd been presidentin' for a full term, and that kind of shallow callousness is something you'd expect all but the dimmest of bulbs to at least kind of, sort of, grow out of. But not George W. Bush, who didn't just have The Great Mulligan, but was given all sorts of second chances, right up to today when clods like Jennifer Rubin insist that it wasn't so bad. 

September 11th, Operation Gulf Coast Stumblebum, the Iraq debacle, the Great Recession...and elevating one Dick. Cheney. To the highest office he could conceivable slither into...Those are somehow good old days? 

Sure, the present occupant of the Oval Office isn't perfect, as liberals will regularly note. But when the alternative is a political faction that literally can't see what was wrong with the previous guy...well, to quote another Bush, I'm not questioning [their] patriotism, I'm questioning [their] judgment. Because you've got to be seriously whacked...

Just Plain (Gun) Nuts

From Album4

So, thanks to a minority of Senators who'd just as soon piss themselves in public than get on the wrong side of the NRA, an exceedingly modest background check requirement before purchasing a lethal weapon failed. This isn't even like requiring a driver's license before getting a car -- it's more like the dealer being allowed to make sure you're not habitually committing vehicular homicide.

Meanwhile, here in the Gret Stet, a ballot initiative passed last November (and endorsed by esteemed Gubnah PBJ) allows convicted felons to sue the State and demand...the return of any confiscated weapons. Go figure.

We now live in a country that, for the most part, considers a naturally growing plant -- weed -- enough of a threat to ban even mere possession with the threat of jail and confiscation of property, but which won't even pass the most modest of requirements -- proof that you're not a convicted felon -- before letting you buy a gun. Wow. Potheads are considered more dangerous than gun nuts. 

That said, potheads ARE smarter. After all, even with the State going apeshit over mere possession, it's not all that difficult to find some. Do gun nuts really think modest regulation would result in total confiscation? Geez. 

Rand Is Hip to What's Happenin' With Those Kidzz

From Album4

 

But the student body and faculty of Howard University politely disagreed. 

Come to think of it, the only real social spending supported by Republicans that's had a significant impact on African-Americans over the last generation or so has been...prisons. Which makes their "welfare is the plantation" argument even more ironic, given that at least in Louisiana, the major state prison once WAS a plantation. Just saying. 

 

Adding Insult to Injury

From Album4

Oh sure, Exxon claims they'll "cover all costs" resulting from their turning Mayflower, Arkansas into Muck City...but c'mon. At a certain point, they're going to take advantage of one of the most insane loopholes imaginable and probably cite something like "fiduciary responsibility to the shareholders" for walking away from this black eye...just like they walked away from Alaska after permanently fouling Prince William Sound.

The central Arkansas spill caused by Exxon’s aging Pegasus pipeline has reportedly unleashed 10,000 barrels of Canadian heavy crude - but a technicality says it's not oil, letting the energy giant off the hook from paying into a national cleanup fund.

Legally speaking, diluted bitumen like the heavy crude that's overrun Mayflower, Arkansas, is not classified as 'oil'. And it's that very distinction that exempts Exxon from contributing to the government's oil spillage cleanup fund.

All that's missing is Shrub in a flight-suit and a Mission Accomplished banner.

The Passion of St. Sebastian Fat Tony

From Album4

Times sure do change. When not installing Bush in the White House (and telling us to "get over it") Scalia would spew insults and hatred without much concern or thought...and it turns out that's the problem right there.

Not that his brand of hatred will ever die out, but it's nice to see it on the losing end for at least this week. 

Portrait of the Artist as a Dumbass

From Album4

So, just in time to mark the passage of ten years since the the triumph of the neo-con nitwits in Iraq, we have six new musings on canvas by El Shrubo.

OK, I lied -- there are only five paintings. One's a photo. 

But they're all his work. 

Dictionary Definition

From Album4

I would not be surprised if wingers either completely ignore Scott Prouty, or viciously attack him with pretty much any argument they can push through the puke funnel. On the one hand, Romney's political career is over and unlamented, on the other, destroying the life of anyone deemed sufficiently disloyal is how they roll.

That said, it's not like Mitt said anything that's not central to their movement, namely, their ridiculous and narcissistic belief that this country is full of takers and parasites, while they virtuously make and produce.

Fuck 'em if they can't take reality. 

Ever Get The Feeling You've Been Cheated?

From Album4

So it's officially a colossal fraud and financial boondoggle in addition to a horrible and needless tragedy. But I guess we already knew that -- with the exception of Walnuts having a kids-on-his-lawn moment re: The Surge® at the Hagel hearing, Iraq is as verboten a subject as...the Dick and the Shrub who put us there in the first place.

Coming up on a trillion dollars (by conservative estimate). And what did we get? Rubble and chaos. 

And now they're going to lecture us on fiscal profligacy? 

Christ on a cracker. 

Shorter Antonin Scalia

From Album4

"It's all those good white authorities in Shelby County and elsewhere who are the REAL victims."

Actually, and I've said this in comments here at First Draft and elsewhere, watching Tony waddle off into his dotage in a fizzle of petulance is a good thing. Whether deserved or not -- probably not -- Scalia was presumed to have at least some intellectual heft. But certainly since Bush v. Gore and possibly earlier, he's demonstrated clearly that he's just another wingnut hack. A dangerous one, to be sure, and damn if I wish he wasn't almost anywhere except the bench, but I'll take anything that drops him down a peg.

Meanwhile, out in the real world (from Ed Kilgore) here's what's actually happening in regions covered under Section Five.

So, How's That Tea Party "Alliance" Working Now?

From Album4

So, Johnny Cry-Boehner has a sad about the sequester, telling anyone who'll listen what a sorry idea it is. But aren't the Redumbs all about starving the beast, drowning it in the tub, shrinking it to irrelevance, etc., because, you know, "government BAD," as St. Ronaldus himself would say? Shouldn't Boehner et al embrace the sequester, and demand it be followed by more cuts?

Or...do they know, as anyone reading First Draft does, that "small government" has never been anything other than racist dog whistle, at Lee Atwater at least admitted before shaking loose his mortal coil. Dog whistle...

But some dogs are Border Collies, and others...aren't. And the ones who aren't are now the political equivalent of Dr. Frankenstein's monster on the loose. Their grand contribution to the national discourse, thus far, has been to force the United States to lurch from one manufactured economic crisis to the next (while still dealing with both a war AND a REAL economic crisis)...their idea of a political paradise is rooted in a simplistic understanding of the late 18th century -- a century that lacked, oh, I don't know, electricity, running water, modern finance, not to mention a regulatory regime that keeps hazardous and/or nuclear materials reasonably safe in use, storage, and transit.

No wonder they love guns so much: in their "paradise," that's about all you have besides farm labor...

Working Class Hero

From Album4

I guess trying to part with your working-class neighborhood house for the working class price of $675,000 can really build up a working class guy's thirst.

They sure do have strange ideas as to what "working class" is...

Sunshine State Prepares for Deluge

From Album4

It's almost enough to make me feel sorry for Floridians, or at least the ones who didn't vote for Governor Bat-Boy. One hundred million dollars will purchase quite the frontal assault on the senses...

Mom, Apple Pie...and AK-47s

From Album4

Whenever even the most modest of restrictions or regulations of guns is discussed you see counter arguments of this kind...yet, and sorry to be a bit ugly here, Nancy Lanza owned an assault rifle, but it did not assist at all in her personal defense.

While I don't own a gun myself, I'm more than willing to let people own guns...but when they start fetishizing and fantasizing about being ultimate vigilantes...then I have a problem. Movies like Dirty Harry or Death Wish are myths. But a significant segment of the public has taken these myths to heart. And THAT'S the problem: a stubborn belief that justice has been perverted by "librul" insistence on rights, due process, rule of law (not to mention therapy for terrorists), and that only cold steel dispensing hot lead will save us. But reality is far more complicated, as we unfortunately see almost every day... 

Villagers of the Damned

From Album4

I think on some level this speaks volumes about the state of yer modern Redumblican party -- after whining pitifully about the alleged "partisan" inaugural, they launch into the most craven of political stunts, going above and beyond to exploit human tragedy for political gain.

That said, and jeebus lets hope it's the case, this seemed to have all the punch of flat beer. John McCain as angry little leprechaun was stale and tired, and Teahadists like Ron Johnson and Rand Paul were less fresh blood and more like over-eager teenagers trying to prove they belonged in the band.

It also hurt that they were engaged in Clinton bashing, which, god help us, hopefully, at long last and with good riddance, has finally become unappealing to the Beltway elite. Or at least we can hope.

Watching The Crazy Go Up To Eleven

From Album4

Living in gun nut country -- but not owning a gun myself -- I'm occasionally surprised at how, well, common gun ownership is around here. That's partly because, even though it's definitely gun nut territory, people generally usually don't loudly screech about them, brandish them, or otherwise get in your face with their demands to fondle their firearms 24/7.

Which is something that strikes me about the latest up-to-eleven crazy reactions to the proposals for additional gun regulation, namely, the sheer volume and degree of shrill. To be blunt, what a bunch of wussies. 

Maybe it's just me, but you'd think people who were genuinely concerned about the jack-booted-thugs-from-the-big-mean-gubmit coming to take away their precious shooting irons would be a little less eager to call attention to themselves and their arsenals. But instead, they can't seem to stop blathering on, and on...and on. Which for me is revelatory -- all talk. 

In their paranoid, delusional dreams they see themselves as Dirty Harry...but their reality is a lot closer to Barney Fife. 

"A Pre-Enlightenment Attitude Toward Monetary And Fiscal Policy"

From Album4

Krugman:

...what we’re looking at here is a collision of worldviews, one might even say of epistemology.

For many people on the right, value is something handed down from on high It should be measured in terms of eternal standards, mainly gold; I have, for example, often seen people claiming that stocks are actually down, not up, over the past couple of generations because the Dow hasn’t kept up with the gold price, never mind what it buys in terms of the goods and services people actually consume.

And given that the laws of value are basically divine, not human, any human meddling in the process is not just foolish but immoral. Printing money that isn’t tied to gold is a kind of theft, not to mention blasphemy.

For people like me, on the other hand, the economy is a social system, created by and for people. Money is a social contrivance and convenience that makes this social system work better — and should be adjusted, both in quantity and in characteristics, whenever there is compelling evidence that this would lead to better outcomes. It often makes sense to put constraints on our actions, e.g. by pegging to another currency or granting the central bank a high degree of independence, but these are things done for operational convenience or to improve policy credibility, not moral commitments — and they are always up for reconsideration when circumstances change.

Now, the money morality types try to have it both ways; they want us to believe that monetary blasphemy will produce disastrous results in practical terms too. But events have proved them wrong.

And I do find myself thinking a lot about Keynes’s description of the gold standard as a “barbarous relic”; it applies perfectly to this discussion. The money morality people are basically adopting a pre-Enlightenment attitude toward monetary and fiscal policy — and why not? After all, they hate the Enlightenment on all fronts.

The bottom line is that we aren’t really having a rational argument here. Nor can we: rationality has a well-known liberal bias.

Oh, and if anyone's wondering, there's no special reason why I chose to put Paul Ryan in the picture, but he definitely fits on ideological grounds, even as he and his family benifited pretty heavily from enlightenment policies. 

The House Republican Caucus Meets

From Album4

Despite Cantor's recent efforts to castrate Boehner -- yeah, cheap pun intended -- the Speaker's expected to keep his position.

And, given Boehner's recent behavior, I'm starting to wonder if the refusal by Redumblicans to even mention the name "George W. Bush" is from fear they don't measure up to his...dignitude.

Hard to imagine, but they've actually sunk that low. 

He Once Cried a River of Tears...Actually, He Did That a Bunch of Times

From Album4

With the Fiscal Cliff countdown at T Minus 5 days and counting, here's Andy Borowitz channeling his inner Most Incompetent Speaker in the World:

Dear American People:

It’s Speaker Boehner here, writing my first and last ever holiday letter to you. Why am I doing this after all of these years, you might ask? Well, I won’t mince words. I’ve started drinking a little early this Christmas.

Yes, I’m sitting here in my man-cave, panelled in mahogany the color of me, doing a rack of Canadian Club shooters and smoking my way through a carton of Lucky Strikes as if they were the last Twinkies in creation. If my chief of staff knew that I was writing to you while I was this polluted, he’d shit a phone book. But guess what? I don’t fucking care anymore.

Otherwise, have a Happy New Year and thanks as always for giving me the chance to put in my .000002 cents worth here at First Draft. Cheers!

The National Review's "Analysis"

From Album4

Not enough men. Seriously.

I think we've officially reached the repeated-as-farce level when it comes to the wingnut reaction. 

Anyway, would add a bit more but my internet service seems pretty flakey today...

Chinless Mitch Wins By A Nose

From Album4

The title of least popular Senator, that is. The self-filibustering Bert-the-Turtle doppelganger is even disliked by his own constituents, though for some reason he gets far better treatment from the Washington press than, say, Tom Daschle.

For the life of me I can't figure out why.

Shorter John Sununu

From Album4

Obama supporters sure are lazy...uppity, too.

The Bloc Blah Vote

From Album4

Not exactly news, but if anyone had any doubts...

A new Florida law that contributed to long voter lines and caused some to abandon voting altogether was intentionally designed by Florida GOP staff and consultants to inhibit Democratic voters, former GOP officials and current GOP consultants have told The Palm Beach Post.

To add a personal note, when I lived in Wisconsin, I was usually part of the annual August 15th migration (you can google "Madison August 15" if you're not familiar)...I'm pretty sure I registered on-site for every election I voted in up there. It was very easy, very effective...and if Scott Walker has his way, no longer an option. 

Scientists Announce "Significant Discovery" By Curiosity Rover

From Album4

At first I thought maybe they'd actually found Mitt Romney's tax returns, but they said historic, not now-a-minor-footnote-to-a-historically-fraudulent-political campaign.

But speaking of Mitt, I see karma (or can we call it Karlma, for Rove?) has come full circle, leaving him with...47 percent of the vote. Fitting.

Have a happy and safe holiday.

A Visit From The Ghost Of Wingnut Past

From Album4

It's fitting that on the same day Mitt doubles-down -- and doubles-back -- to the "Obama's giving those people free stuff" excuse for why he lost, The Nation and James Carter IV offer definitive proof that Lee Atwater actally did utter the now infamous lines that are his sorry legacy:

You start out in 1954 by saying, “Nigger, nigger, nigger.” By 1968 you can’t say “nigger”—that hurts you, backfires. So you say stuff like, uh, forced busing, states’ rights, and all that stuff, and you’re getting so abstract. Now, you’re talking about cutting taxes, and all these things you’re talking about are totally economic things and a byproduct of them is, blacks get hurt worse than whites.… “We want to cut this,” is much more abstract than even the busing thing, uh, and a hell of a lot more abstract than “Nigger, nigger.”

The messenger might change, but the message remains the same.

They really do think they own the country, they assume they own or at least have purchased the government, and that anyone less wealthy is less worthy of the benefits of democracy if not civil society. 

Are there no prisons?  And the union workhouses -- are they still in operation? Is their actual position on how to deal with the rest of us...

 

Atlas Has a Pity Party

From Album4

The world's littlest violin might not be enough -- this guy needs a dose of sad trombones, too.

And if you have the chance, check out the other posts to see the full tantrum basking in all its rich glory. 

And when you look at his manly, Galtian "qualifications," you find them rife with government...that is, unless there's a private market in "missile technology" I'm unaware of.

His chosen school, Seattle University, is a Jesuit institution...which means a tax-free ride on everyone else's shoulders...though you can easily and conveniently apply for federal financial aid by visiting their website. And I'll bet S.U. vigorously participates in any of a number of local (Seattle, i.e., Boeing), State, and/or federal research grant programs.

I swear, one of the biggest problems I have with our modern Randian masters is that they're such weenies...like the I-built-it business guy at the Redumblican Convention whose paean to the private market was a cri du coeur about how the stimulus program cut into his lucrative trade making road signs...for the government.

It's like John Galt, but for not very gifted toddlers and morans [sic].

Mitt's Song and Dance Rang Depressingly Familiar

From Album4

Something about the sheer phoniness, the empty and ham-fisted photo op...and then it hit me -- this is straight from the Karl Rove playbook (for a while Rove actually ran federal hurricane relief efforts, which was a disaster in itself).

One difference, though, even as the aerial shots of flooded homes was eerily familiar: Bush didn't deliver his empty promises until almost three weeks after the flood. Geez.

Not that I'd ever think a genuine deity would deliberately kill, maim, or or otherwise harm thousands of innocent people just to 'send a message,' but two things -- one, the message could be, as much as anything, that global warming deniers are morons...and two, do we really want to return to the days of Heckuva Job?

"That Gift From God"

From Album4

I thought Sharron Angle's "made what was really a lemon situation into lemonade" was about as batshit insane as wingnuttery could get when it came to denying a woman's right to choose...but Indiana Senate candidate Richard Mourdock saw her batshittery and raised her one "gift from God," as you've probably read or seen.

And then, of course, there was the non-apology expression of regret that his words were "misinterpreted." But...Mourdock's position -- aside form being ignorant and cruel beyond belief -- are pretty much mainstream Redumblican these days. Mitt Romney, who, in typically cloddish style, endorsed and recently recorded a television commercial for Mourdock, is allegedly "moderate" by party standards in "allowing" rape and incest exceptions...if that can even be considerd moderate...but the party itself has gone off the cliff. When it comes to choice, they're more than willing to make government as big and intrusive as it can get. 

Then, as we all know, once the child is born, they couldn't care any less about "sanctity of life." Hell, they demand we spend hundreds of billions of dollars annually on stuff designed to kill them. 

"From Etch-A-Sketch To Sketchy"

From Album4

"I'm not a crook vulture capitalist."

E.J. Dionne puts the sketchy in Mitt's Etch-a-Sketch, while Krugman's "amazed" at Romney's insistence that he was just a small time Mom & Pop LBO specialist (well, Pop in the sense of Papa Doc, or his Central American oligarch equivalents).

As for me, maybe this is aging myself, but Mitt's performance kept reminding me off...former TV character and pitchman Joe Isuzu.

Your mileage may vary.

From Album4

What I Hope To See Tonight

From Album4

Not that I think a dazed and confused Paul Ryan would have much influence on the electorate, but if it amped down the hyper-punditry,good.

In the meantime, until tonight here are a couple of links from America's Finest News Source. Um, that second one is borderline NSFW. 

Spinshit

I dunno, and yeah, I'm biased, but I agree with Adrastos...I also think the punditocracy, particularly good old librul MSNBC, allowed themselves to get dragged under by an avalanche of bulllshit truly remarkable to behold.

As remarkable as Mitt's performance, which to me reeked of an amped-up-on-caffeine Eddie Haskell (even though Mitt's religion prohibits him from touching the stuff).

From Album4

Hello, Mrs. Cleaver. That's a lovely offshore bank account you have.

Mitt's "victory" rings hollow in my book -- while he managed to not saying anything jaw-droppingly cloddish for once -- he sure as hell didn't do anything to change the opinions of a mostly decided electorate. And watching the reactions of the chattering class was a tiresome exercise. Wingers, like lab rats self-administering cocaine, pressed every hot button they could think of in hopes liberals would press the panic button (because everyone knows "a librul is a wussy who won't even take their own side in an argument")...

Sad to say, at least a few libs took the bait. Sigh. 

I call bullshit, or, in this case, spinshit. Obama "won" this debate -- not that I particularly like the whole "winner, loser" nonsense -- but he won by not losing. Mitt's performance was the political equivalent of garbage time in a meaningless basketball game. To quote Bill Hicks, "we hope you enjoyed your fireworks show."

Meet the Poll Sample Truthers

From Album4

They'll never let reality get in the way of of a good wingnut fantasy...but if it does, well...that's what whining is for.

The Mittistry of Silly Walks

From Album4

 

Rachel Maddow noted Mitt's engaged in somewhat unusual tactics for this late stage of the presidential campaign, mostly avoiding big rallies in swing states in favor of fundraisers in safely red ones. 

I dunno, maybe they need the money (sarcasm)...or maybe that's just what makes them feel comfortable while avoiding any more embarrassing moments of Romney telling us what he really thinks. 

Looks Like the Romneybot Crashed Again

From Album4

It's one thing for the Rude Pundit to (correctly) point out your ocean-sized dickitude, but when your own side hangs their head in shame, I doubt even a cold reboot would do much good.

When Bill Clinton Talks...

From Album4

 

...people listen.

When even Faux News (warning -- Faux News link) talks about "chrisma and eloquence"  I guess it means one hell of a speech. And while I personally thought it ran a tad long...hey, what do I know? 

Clinton's a politician...but, as I mentioned a couple of days ago in the Crack Van, that's ok...in contrast, the Redumblicans sound like sociopaths. 

More reviews and comments here, here, and here. One last thing I'll note is that while Democrats can take pride in Bill Clinton, the Rethugs have to hide their last president in the attic, lest anyone be reminded...

More Like "Daddy Issues"Party

From Album4

About the only thing missing is Rich Lowry's little starbursts. Ugh.

Via. 

Shorter Paul Ryan

From Album4

Math is hard.

Give 'em Hell, Harry

From Album4

With the discussion about whether once amateur boxer Harry Reid landed a clean blow, made a decent feint -- or hit below the belt -- in full swing, no pun intended, here's my .00002 cents worth:

Why don’t the self proclaimed fact checkers, and insiders who work for newspapers, magazines, journals, etc., go out and, oh, I don’t know, practice some journalism?

Harry Reid said a source from Bain told him Mitt’s little (income) tax secret. Now, it might actually take some work, god forbid, but I doubt it’s impossible to determine if Reid has any relationships with Bain insiders. After making this determination (which could be reported), they could try to get these people on the record. If they won’t speak on the record, that can be reported, or perhaps these august fact-checkers and insiders could offer them anonymity as deep background sources. If I recall, a CNN reporter DID suggest Reid was credible.(note--it was Dana Bash.)

One thing that I’ve seen over my lifetime (I’m 47) that’s troubling is that the already rather cozy relationship between journalists and the people they’re assigned to cover has really gotten into dangerous territory. Maybe I’m naive, but it struck me and not in a good way when Tim Russert testified in the Scooter Libby trial that he assumed conversations with politician were off the record...because in the not so distant past I’m pretty sure the rule of thumb was the opposite.

One more thing. I posted comments saying pretty much the same thing at The Washington Monthly and The Reality Based Community, and at the latter, "Cardinal Fang" responded with a good point -- Rachel Maddow reported on August 3rd that Mitt has a history of being deceptive regarding his income tax filings...

What's the line? It would be irresponsible not to speculate, or something like that...

Cranking the Loony Meter Straight Up to Eleven

From Album4

Really? Really?

This is just plain stupid -- comparing an insurance mandate to cover contraception costs to Yamamoto's decision to attack Pearl Harbor -- and it should be reported as stupid, ridiculous, and insulting, and not just by the blogs or partisan media.

Family planning is basic to modern society, and contraception is basic to family planning. Additionally, insurance premiums aren't some sort of tribute paid to insurance companies as testament to their awesomeness.

Besides, insurance companies benefit as well, since covering pregnancies, and particularly unplanned pregnancies, cost more than covering birth control. 

Allowing mental midgets like Mike Kelly to hide behind a stupid and childish interpretation of some bizarro religious moral argument amounts to his own imposition of morality on all of us. He and the others making this asinine "argument" should be called out on this and ridiculed as not being fit to represent any element of modern society...

Gaffe - n. - When You Accidentally Say What You Think

From Album4

So Mitt's in full walkback/denial mode as to his adviser's cloddish phrasing...

But aside from the piss-poor choice of words -- dog whistle, even for wingnuts, calls for a bit more tact -- was anyone really surprised? Clift, not my favorite writer, gets it right this time -- there's been a sustained and ongoing effort to paint Obama as less-than-American...and, to paraphrase another not favorite writer, only a fool -- or a pundit -- would fail to see what's so "other" about the president. 

And you can bet if it had gotten some positive traction they'd be shouting Anglo-Saxon from the mountaintops. 

He's Baaaack!

From Album4

So Dick, still kind of fresh from his heart implant (transplant would imply a heart was there in the first place) brought his sulfurous essence to Capitol Hill this week.

But the only question for me is whether "escapted from Hell" is accurate. I wonder if Satan personally ordered the implant, either out of professional courtesy or fear that Cheney might take over the joint once consigned to his eternal fate...

Ali Jeebus Magic Underwear

From Album4

So, Vanilla Lite didn't exactly wow them in Houston -- though some people think that was a feature, not a bug.

Still, like Charles Pierce said, credit for showing up (Shrub snubbed the NAACP throughout his entire accidency), but that's all. 

Our Founding Commie Fathers

From Album4

You mean they weren't all Republicans?

Dr. Robert-s

From Album4

So it's D-Day and not quite minus two hours to go...yesterday I saw this article by Sean Trende. He mentioned something I commented on here a couple of days ago -- Scalia's tantrum/dissent in the Arizona immigration law case was particularly childish/churlish -- but then noted Tony has a history of writing petulant dissents if an important case doesn't go his way.

So perhaps there's some modest hope.

Trende is also pretty sure Roberts is writing the decision, hence this post's title...and optional soundtrack. Guess we'll see in just a bit.

Wingnut Zombie Lie of the Week

From Album4

Joe the actually Sam the not the plumber gets the trophy, but Rachel Maddow's opening to yesterday's show (video link) really hits the nail on the head. 

It's difficult enough to debate issues, but quite another thing trying to argue facts versus a bizarro world mythology...

Schoolgirl Crush

From Album4

Here's a partial transcript, and this is the video.

Doesn't Mean They're Any Less Wrong

From Album4

Ok, yeah, this is my own sour grapes reaction, but watching the election returns Tuesday, obviously disappointed, I took small comfort, but some comfort...history will judge wingnuts for what they are.

In 1972 Nixon beat George McGovern like a rented mule. But Nixon, as Hunter Thompson wrote (citing Robert Kennedy), still "represent[ed] the dark side of the American dream," and McGovern is still a genuine war hero and decent human being.

It's unfortunate but true that there will always be Scott Walkers representing the dark side, and plenty of cretins happily following along. But there will also be the hundreds of thousands of people like the citizens of Wisconsin who stood up for all the right reasons...and took to the streets when anyone who's lived through an Upper Midwest winter knows it's an effort to merely survive, much less demonstrate. History will judge them, too.

I grew up in a conservative family, not quite as full of spewing hatred as hillbilly-herion-addict Rush Limbaugh and Zombie-Ichabod-Crane impersonator Ann Coulter, but Republican to the core. I'm proud that instead I chose to be liberal, and watching the people of Wisconsin take on corporate greed makes me even more certain my decision was right. 

It's not going to be easy, but even with Walker, the Kochheads, etc., progress won't be stopped. And when future generations are asking what-the-fuck-were-they-thinking, ok, sure, I'll be in the grave, but my rotting corpse will rest a damn lot easier knowing at least some of us did the right thing...

Crunch Time

From Album4

So, a week to go and Norman Bates lookalike Scott Walker is in a dead heat... hanging on by the skin of...barely managing to stay even despite an absurd amount of mostly out-of-state money that might be able to purchase an election...but can't buy back Walker's credibility. 

Anyway, even though I hate having to settle for moral victories -- and literally bang my head on the table when "our" side doesn't even bother to show up, much less bring a knife to a gun fight -- the people of Wisconsin have scared them. Scared them enough to throw an ocean of money into...Scott Walker, who again, might well eke out a victory, but no amount of spin will make him anything other than  Norman Bates crossed with maybe a bit of Peewee Herman...an awful lot of ego but not much intellect...or street smarts. 

If he's the best they've got, I'll take my chances.