Religion and Politics

That's What I'm Talking About!

2009-10-15T23:08:00.000-07:00

Here is the heroic Rachel Maddow taking on the slimy Tim Phillips of Americans for Prosperity, a supposedly grass roots organization. This is why the ratings of Meet the Press have been so high the two times Rachel appeared on the panel.

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

It's refreshing to see a smart person on TV; especially a smart woman, who has the facts on her side, and is not afraid to take down the corporate shills. These are the same con men, who used to be run out of town on a rail. They have been running this country into the ground for years now, and yet they claim to be the true patriots. The real Americans. There is a lot of raping and pillaging in America's history and the Republicans are your poster boys for carrying on that tradition.

Let Them Eat Advil®

2009-09-22T23:19:00.000-07:00

Protect Insurance Companies PSA from Will Ferrell

At last Hollywood is standing up for a real American value: profit. Why should rich CEOs give up their weekend retreat in the Cayman islands, or hire actual Americans to clean their houses, rather than a slew of illegal immigrants? It's just not fair!

Message for the Day

2009-09-17T13:10:00.000-07:00

Fight ignorance: Don't go to church. Don't vote Republican, and turn off your 42" Plasma TV.

Sometimes It's Hard

2009-09-09T00:42:00.001-07:00

Sometimes it's hard to comment on the insanity of the lunatic fringe. What is even more maddening is the coverage this psychotic minority gets from our mainstream media. Their exposure gives the impression that a.) there are more of them than than us. And b.) that they have legitimate complaints. Is there anyone beside the frothing few that believe that somehow President Obama was intending to indoctrinate schoolchildren by urging them to pay attention and stay in school? And yet the "news" media give the vocal few -- who have an unusual fear of black people, and liberals -- equal time to spew their demented views. Actually, these folks on the lunatic fringe seem to get a larger share of the "news" time. I cannot recall the critics of the Bush regime getting as much airtime. Anti-war protests were consistently ignored by the corporate media, and the attempt to prosecute war crimes (that were without a doubt committed by the previous administration) are labeled as efforts by radical leftists.

And now a post-rant music video. Please enjoy, and remember to tip your waitresses.

FFRF Convention 2009

2009-08-24T10:05:00.000-07:00

I'm excited to announce that I am registered to attend this year's Freedom From Religion convention, which is taking place in Seattle. I started attending two years ago, and vowed that I would make it a yearly ritual. The first convention was in Madison, Wisconsin, where FFRF has their headquarters. Last year it was held in Chicago. Thankfully, due to economics and my personal transitions of late, I'm glad it's being held in my hometown this year. A few of this year's featured speakers include Ron Reagan, a self-described "unabashed atheist" and resident of Seattle; Jennifer Michael Hecht, author of Doubt: A History; and former Los Angeles Times religion reporter William Lobdell, whose new memoir is entitled Losing My Religion. Lobdell will be receiving this year's “Emperor Has No Clothes” Award. Also appearing will be the science fiction and fantasy legend Ursula Le Guin, who will also receive an “Emperor Has No Clothes” Award. I have hardcover copies of the books by Hecht and Lobdell that I plan on getting signed, and I'm hoping that I can get my copy of Le Guin's translation of the Tao te Ching signed.

Religious folks claim to be inspired by the fantasies they are told while in church, but I can state that I have been greatly inspired by being in a crowd of people, who are able to think for themselves and place reason above superstition. We're not a bunch of haters either, because FFRF has honored people of faith who have worked to keep church and state separate. The biggest haters I have witness are those who claim to be children of God (their capitalization), when they urge the stoning of heretics, gays, adulterers, and many others. It's their way or the highway to hell.

Ignorance is Piss

2009-08-23T19:58:00.000-07:00

All of these loud ignorant buffoons that are out there protesting government takeover of health care are not the majority. They are just the proverbial squeaky wheel. I have a revision to that old saying though: The squeaky wheel should be immediately removed and thrown into the nearest ditch. I saw a group of these pseudo-patriots over the weekend, standing on a corner with their flags waving. I'm assuming that the flags indicate that they believe that they are the real and true Americans. If you believe in a corporate controlled America, and want to do all you can to protect those capitalist pigs, who have been destroying our country, then maybe you can call yourself a true American®. I prefer to think of myself as an individual and a freethinker. Let the masses follow their corporate leaders right into the sea like the lemmings they are. (Of course, this is an insult to actual lemmings.)

Where Have I Been?

2009-07-11T23:14:00.001-07:00

Anyone who checks in on this blog may notice that I've been absent for a while. This blog was much busier during the presidential election, but once the smoke had cleared from that event I was a little burnt-out on politics. I still have a lot to say about politics and religion, but since my time is somewhat limited these days (no...I'm not one of those pyjama-clad bloggers, who still lives in his mother's basement.) when I do have a free half-hour or so I tend to update my destined for banality blog. That was my original blog that kind of grew out of my old web site with the same name. I always have good intentions, including posting movie and book reviews, but most of the time I just blog about mundane everyday aspects of my life. If I was blessed with a 48-hour day I would certainly post my rant-like thoughts on subjects like Sarah Palin, John Ensign and his connection with "The Family" Christian fellowship in D.C., Governor Sanford's "hiking the Appalachian Trail" story, and so forth. There is always a abundance of material when it comes to the wacky world of politics and religion, but I have found myself quite busy with my own summer of transitions. I'm not ready to give up on this blog yet though. I'll be back with my venomous rantings at some point in the future.

The Inerrant Word?

2009-02-13T00:38:00.000-08:00

Oh that YouTube! Look what I found there: Penn & Teller on the "Bible." This video features Michael Shermer of the Skeptic. Would you like some cheese with your sacrilege?

Are You a Hardcore Atheist?

2009-02-11T13:36:00.000-08:00

Are You a Hardcore Atheist?

I found this on one of my favorite blogs, Stupid Evil Bastard, and he found it at Friendly Atheist. It has taken me a couple of months to actually complete the list and post it, but here are my results.
How serious do you take your atheism?
Let’s find out.
Copy and paste the list below on your own site, boldfacing the things you’ve done. (Feel free to add your own elaboration and commentary to each item!)

1. Participated in the Blasphemy Challenge.
2. Met at least one of the “Four Horsemen” (Richard Dawkins, Daniel Dennett, Christopher Hitchens, Sam Harris,) in person. - I have met both Daniel Dennett and Christopher Hitchens at the last two FFRF conventions that I attended.
3. Created an atheist blog. - I am going to count my blog taboo-topics as an “atheist blog,” since I created it specifically to rant against religion & politics.
4. Used the Flying Spaghetti Monster in a religious debate with someone.
5. Gotten offended when someone called you an agnostic. - I actually prefer the term agnostic over atheist, but “freethinker” is my favorite term for our ilk.
6. Been unable to watch Growing Pains reruns because of Kirk Cameron. - I never watched Growing Pains, because it just seemed like another ridiculous family sit-com. Even if Kirk Cameron was a Satanist I wouldn’t watch it.
7. Own more Bibles than most Christians you know. - This is true. And I do not know many Christians that actually read the bible either. I think that they prefer to have it interpreted for them.
8. Have at least one Bible with your personal annotations regarding contradictions, disturbing parts, etc.
9. Have come out as an atheist to your family. - I’ve told my parents after attending two Freedom From Religion conventions. If my family actually took the time to read my blog then it would be obvious to them.
10. Attended a campus or off-campus atheist gathering. - I have periodically attended the popular Seattle Atheists Meetup.
11. Are a member of an organized atheist/Humanist/etc. organization. - I am a proud member of the Freedom From Religion Foundation.
12. Had a Humanist wedding ceremony. - Our ceremony was performed by a local justice of the peace, and there were no religious elements. It was also attended by my atheist in-laws.
13. Donated money to an atheist organization. - Besides being a member of FFRF I have donated money to their legal efforts.
14. Have a bookshelf dedicated solely to Richard Dawkins. - I cannot say that Dawkins has his own shelf in my library, but I do have a couple of shelves dedicated to his and other atheist writings.
15. Lost the friendship of someone you know because of your non-theism.
16. Tried to argue or have a discussion with someone who stopped you on the street to proselytize.
17. Had to hide your atheist beliefs on a first date because you didn’t want to scare him/her away. - Actually, my first date with my wife was at a religious themed restaurant (I mistakenly thought it was vegetarian), where she proudly announced that she was an atheist (besides being a vegetarian.) At the time I hadn’t quite rid myself of Christian beliefs.
18. Own a stockpile of atheist paraphernalia (bumper stickers, buttons, shirts, etc). - I wouldn’t say that I own a “stockpile,” but I have a few items.
19. Attended a protest that involved religion.
20. Attended an atheist conference. - I have attended the annual FFRF conference for the last two years, and I plan to make it an annual event. This year it will be in Seattle, so I can save on travel costs.
21. Subscribe to Pat Condell’s YouTube channel. - I have heard the name, but have yet to check out his work.
22. Started an atheist group in your area or school.
23. Successfully “de-converted” someone to atheism.
24. Have already made plans to donate your body to science after you die. - I have been entertaining the idea. Recently our county decided to charge an extra fee for folks who choose to be cremated. That’s just wrong. I was planning on giving any surviving family member the pleasure of scattering my ashes illegally in some state park, so I’m still thinking about the “donating the body” idea.
25. Told someone you’re an atheist only because you wanted to see the person’s reaction.
26. Had to think twice before screaming “Oh God!” during sex. Or you said something else in its place.
27. Lost a job because of your atheism.
28. Formed a bond with someone specifically because of your mutual atheism (meeting this person at a local gathering or conference doesn’t count).
29. Have crossed “In God We Trust” off of — or put a pro-church-state-separation stamp on — dollar bills.
30. Refused to recite the Pledge of Allegiance.
31. Said “Gesundheit!” (or nothing at all) after someone sneezed because you didn’t want to say “Bless you!”
32. Have ever chosen not to clasp your hands together out of fear someone might think you’re praying.
33. Have turned on Christian TV because you needed something entertaining to watch. - I don’t watch Christian TV as much as I used to, but once in a while I still tune it in for the entertainment. I used to love watching Kathryn Kuhlman, while getting “baked” with friends. She seemed to be on heavier drugs than we were. Now that was entertainment!
34. Are a 2nd or 3rd (or more) generation atheist.
35. Have “atheism” listed on your Facebook or dating profile — and not a euphemistic variant.
36. Attended an atheist’s funeral (i.e. a non-religious service).
37. Subscribe to an freethought magazine (e.g. Free Inquiry, Skeptic) - I haven’t subscribed yet, but I buy Free Inquiry, Skeptic, and Skeptical Inquirer Religiously(?!), so I’m going to say yes.
38. Have been interviewed by a reporter because of your atheism.
39. Written a letter-to-the-editor about an issue related to your non-belief in God.
40. Gave a friend or acquaintance a New Atheist book as a gift.
41. Wear pro-atheist clothing in public. - I have an atheist shirt with the logo in the style of the Oakland Athletics, which I wear periodically. But I am conscious of where I will be wearing it on that day.
42. Have invited Mormons/Jehovah’s Witnesses into your house specifically because you wanted to argue with them. - I haven’t wanted to argue, but I’m planning on buying some nontracts from FFRF to give them when they arrive with their brochures.
43. Have been physically threatened (or beaten up) because you didn’t believe in God.
44. Receive Google Alerts on “atheism” (or variants).
45. Received fewer Christmas presents than expected because people assumed you didn’t celebrate it. - My wife and her atheist parents are always very generous at Christmastime.
46. Visited The Creation Museum or saw Ben Stein’s Expelled just so you could keep tabs on the “enemy.” - I would like to visit the Creation Museum just for the laughs, but I don’t think I could stomach watching Expelled.
47. Refuse to tell anyone what your “sign” is… because it doesn’t matter at all.
48. Are on a mailing list for a Christian organization just so you can see what they’re up to…
49. Have kept your eyes open while you watched others around you pray.
50. Avoid even Unitarian churches because they’re too close to religion for you. - I still do not understand attendance of Unitarian churches among freethinkers. I think maybe they miss the rituals and social aspects of churchgoing. To me it is still a church, and I relate churches to religiosity, so I’ll abstain.

I scored 12 out of 50, which I guess means that I am not a "hardcore atheist." I'm okay with that. About the only thing I'm hardcore about these days is parenting. Everything else takes second place.

Sanity From Seth

2009-02-09T21:38:00.000-08:00

There were some wonderful moments from our president today, which I just don't have time to write about tonight. But I just had to pass on this video, which I saw on the Political Carnival today. This opinion piece speaks to the recent admission by Michael Phelps that, yes, he had smoked pot last fall at a party.

It is high time (no pun intended) for this country to enact sensible laws when it comes to marijuana usage. The results have long been in that tobacco and alcohol are fast more dangerous to one's personal health, and the public, than marijuana. Prohibition did not work when it came to alcohol, and it has not worked with marijuana usage. Let us end the senseless "drug war" and put those resources towards more important issues.

Define "Soul"

2009-01-29T21:59:00.000-08:00

The drug addled persona known as Rush Limbaugh has gotten a lot of publicity lately, and I'm guessing that is just what his colossal ego craves. I hate to add to that publicity, but I was struck by one of many asinine comments he makes. This one was from his radio show a few years back, and it was brought to my attention today by digby's blog. Here it is:

LIMBAUGH: I mean, if there is a party that's soulless, it's the Democratic Party. If there are people by definition who are soulless, it is liberals -- by definition. You know, souls come from God. You know? No. No. You can't go there.

So Rush says that souls come from God. I do not think he has any idea what he is spewing. Rush dropped out of college. He avoided the draft during the Vietnam war due to an anal cyst. I think I could surmise by his above comments that his anal cyst is alive and well, and does most of his pontificating for him. Rush does not have a degree in Philosophy, so he is in no way an authority on "the soul." Some have said that the soul and the mind are the same thing: the collection of life experiences and memories that make us who we are. Our memories and past deeds comprise our personality. If this is a better definition of soul than I would state without hesitation that Limbaugh's soul is what kept him out of the Vietnam war. Call it an anal cyst, or his soul, it still amounts to a festering pustule. For more evidence that this radio personality has a soul that reeks, here are some links I gleaned from Bob Cesca's blog today:

Rush Limbaugh Arrested On Drug Charges

Rush Limbaugh Detained With Viagra

Limbaugh Mocks Parkinson's

Rush Limbaugh Mocks a 12-Year-Old Accident Victim

And he is calling who soulless? But never mind the soul. Its very existence is debatable. What is known to exist in most human beings is a backbone, but that element of the anatomy seems to be in short supply with the Republicans lately when they are taking their marching orders from a drug addled, overweight festering pustule, who still thinks that radio is hip.

Zero Wimp Factor

2009-01-24T11:09:00.000-08:00

If anyone wonders whether President Obama will be pushed around by the cranky repugs, then take a look at this interview from the campaign trail. I love how he says it with a smile.

This is for those who may have been taken aback by quote from Obama the other day when he responded to whiny Republicans with the simple declarative sentence, "I won."

h/t bob cesca

A Long Overdue Political Rant

2009-01-23T14:50:00.000-08:00

Earlier in the week I was greeting with this headline on the NY Times online edition: More Americans Joining Military as Jobs Dwindle. The second paragraph: The last fiscal year was a banner one for the military, with all active-duty and reserve forces meeting or exceeding their recruitment goals for the first time since 2004, the year that violence in Iraq intensified drastically, Pentagon officials said. BushCo almost couldn't have planned it better. Sink the economy into the toilet and we'll get all the volunteers we need for our War on Terror. I can hear them now: "Draft? We don't need no stinkin' draft!" I was probably one of those lone liberals, who thought a draft was a good idea. I get tired of all these (mainly) right-wing goobers exhorting war from the sidelines, and never having to put their own lives on the line. I joined the US Air Force when I was seventeen, and once in the military system I was able to gain a more educated view on the reality of the chain of command, nuclear weapons and so forth. I realized very quickly that most young people join, because their job, or educational prospects at home are slim to none. Most folks re-enlist, because it means healthcare and housing for their family. I have complete sympathy and support for the men and women of the armed services, because I am a veteran. I can also state unequivocally that there are plenty of liberally minded, sane people in the military, and that they are ecstatic that Barack Obama is now their commander in chief. He has already shown more empathy and support for active duty and military personnel than Bush ever did.

****
I guess we are in for at least four years of intense whining from the conservative side of the political map now. A conservative friend of mine stated early in the campaign that he hoped the Democrats would win, so that he would have a chance to complain. But it's not like they ever stop complaining, even when they are in power. They complain about affirmative action, access to healthcare for all, liberal media bias (even though most of the media is owned by a mere few corporations), the threat to gun ownership and on and on. We have drug-addled Rush Limbaugh hoping Obama will fail. We have Sean Hannity blaming the recent encounter between a flock of Canadian Geese and a US Airways flight on Sen. Chuck Schumer. And we have Laura Ingraham stating that we are now less safe than we were on January 19th thanks to Barack Obama's executive orders to close down Guantanamo and to cease all torture tactics. I almost feel a little sympathy for these folks . . . almost. Either they are delusional and believe that the show 24 is a documentary; or they are going to fight to their dying breath to maintain their lavish lifestyles that they have acquired by duping the public for so long, using code words like "small business" and "tax cuts." Every time some Republican hack mentions the need to protect small businesses I actually throw up a little into my mouth. You know those burps that remind you how easy it would be to blow lunch spontaneously? The powerful elite of the right wing had their way for the last eight years and look at the position they have left our country in. Now they are trying to rewrite history, claiming that George W. Bush inherited a recession (a lie), and that no one could have foreseen the attacks of 9/11, or the levee breeches in New Orleans, or the recent economic meltdown on Wall Street. They had control of the wheel, but now they want to claim that they were actually in the back seat sleeping while the world went to shit. One recent whack job on Fox actually claimed that Bush inherited the 9/11 attacks! To call them delusional is being kind.
****
Today I was prompted to write a letter to the National Right to Life Committee. I caught part of their news conference at the National Press Club yesterday, on the 36th anniversary of Roe v. Wade. More than a few times members of this committee referred to Barack Obama as "pro abortion." I just had write them a letter and call them out for that lie and insult to our 44th president. Barack Obama has specifically stated during his campaign that he would work to reduce the number of abortions and unwanted pregnancies in our country, so calling him "pro abortion" is just more right-wing nuttery. I do not know of any sane person, who is "pro abortion." But I side with those rational people, who believe that a woman has a right to choose what to do with her own body. Hell, even Sarah Palin believes in the right to choose! Remember during the campaign when she proudly exclaimed how her daughter Bristol chose to keep her baby? How do these right-to-lifers expect to ever have a reasonable dialogue about these important issues when they are too willing to hurl insults and lies? How do they expect us to believe that they value life when they drive an SUV into a women's clinic? If they really value life I want to see them protesting the death penalty, and the attacks on innocent children hiding in UN refuges in Gaza. I want to see them vociferously denounce the US attack on Iraq that has resulted in the deaths of hundreds of thousands of innocent civilians. If they really believe that abortion is murder than I would like to see them take their god out of the equation. If you can prove to me that the six week old fetus is a sentient being than I will start to listen to your arguments. Otherwise, you just come off as religious nuts trying to push your antiquated beliefs on a sane and rational public.
****
And now a few facts about George W. Bush's legacy:

It's a New Day in America

2009-01-20T20:49:00.000-08:00

Yes, it's still sinking in. My fellow citizens, nearly 70 million of them, finally voted for an intelligent leader with genuine compassion and concern for his country. I turned on MSNBC this morning just in time to see Barack Obama being sworn in as the 44th President of the United States of America. It was a beautiful moment. Everything else that followed -- the parade and various balls -- were just icing on the cake. I am so happy that my son with grow up looking to Barack Obama as our country's leader. My son happens to be of mixed race heritage, which makes this momentous occasion that much more special. Our country, after 8 dark years, can once again (or maybe finally) start living up to its values; walking the walk, so to speak.

One of my favorite moments from the election was the announcement on Comedy Central's Indecision 2008, when Stephen Colbert momentarily broke character to wipe the tears of joy from his eyes.

The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10c

Indecision 2008: Barack Obama Wins

Barack Obama Interview
John McCain Interview

Sarah Palin Video
Funny Election Video

It is heartening to see the pundits and miscellaneous talking heads also being caught up in the joy of this historic moment in our collective history. Even the irascible right-winger Pat Buchanan was quoting Barack Obama's speech at length today and gushing. Another highlight today was Al Roker's reaction when the President and the First Lady walked past him at the head of the inaugural parade. Take a look at this:

I was tearing up again just now, as I watched the ebullient weatherman from NBC as he reacted to Obama's recognition of him during the parade.

Let us carry this joy and sense of purpose forward as we remake America with a sense of justice and true compassion for all, at home and abroad. After having a president rule by spreading fear for the last 8 years, it will be refreshing to have a president who is so adept at inspiring hope, and motivating us to enact true change for the better.

In Your Face "Joe"

2009-01-16T09:30:00.000-08:00

Even mainstream news hacks like Rick Sanchez are tired of the spectacle known as "Joe the Plumber." If you hadn't heard: "Joe" is now a war correspondent covering the Gaza crisis for some web site known as "pajama TV." (My guess would be that the "pajama TV" refers to all those slovenly right wing bloggers living in their parents' basement, who are still in their pajamas.) Here is Rick Sanchez given "Joe" what for, based on Wurzelbacher's recent "reporting" from Israel.

Hall and Oates?

2008-12-12T21:52:00.001-08:00

I've been a closet Hall & Oates fan for years, but now with their recent surprise appearance on the "hip and irreverent" Daily Show with Jon Stewart, maybe I can finally come out of the pop music closet. Here is their appearance paying tribute to the lone liberal on Fox News.

The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10c

Hall & Oates Pay Tribute to Alan Colmes

Barack Obama Interview
John McCain Interview

Sarah Palin Video
Funny Election Video

FFRF in the News

2008-12-09T01:11:00.000-08:00

FFRF (the Freedom From Religion Foundation) has created quite a stir recently in my state. They installed an engraved sign at the state capitol that reads:

"At this season of the Winter Solstice, may reason prevail.
There are no gods, no devils, no angels, no heaven or hell.
There is only our natural world.
Religion is but myth and superstition that hardens hearts
and enslaves minds."

Somehow these words have deeply offending the "silent majority" (as a reporter on Fox referred to our Christian residents.)Isn't it funny how their faith is never quite strong enough to withstand a little criticism. The reason that the sign is on display is because of a legal decision that declares that the state cannot favor one religion over any other with displays on capitol grounds. That great defender of Christian morality, Bill O'Reilly, has been quite vociferous in his condemnation of the sign and called for protests (what a surprise!) Maybe the whole story of the Crucifixion has given the Christians a perpetual persecution complex, even though they are the majority in this country, and not exactly a silent one. They have said that the sign equals hate speech. I guess they would know about hate speech. Witness the recent passage of prop. 8 in California. The sign may offend these normally loving Christians ("love thine enemy as thyself" and all that), but we still have a thing called "free speech" in this country. Bush and his cohorts haven't done away with that yet (not for the lack of trying.) Nonbelievers need a voice too, and I'm glad that FFRF (of which I am a proud member) is there to lead the way.

Speaking of Christmas: a lovely (and reasonable) gift to give friends and family this season has just been released on DVD. Julia Sweeney's latest monologue Letting Go of God is available on DVD from Amazon.com. I was lucky enough to see Julia perform this live last year, and I saw the film at this year's Seattle International Film Festival. It's brilliant, funny and poignant. Yes, I laughed. I cried. It inspires me when I feel like the "lonely atheist." Here is the trailer from "Letting Go of God."

Reality . . . What a Concept!

2008-11-17T20:37:00.000-08:00

The big election is over. I’ve still been watching Keith Olbermann and Rachel Maddow, but they don’t really merit my full attention anymore. The election isn’t quite over in Alaska, Minnesota and Georgia, but I’m not holding my breath to see if the Dems reach their much sought after 60 votes. I’m certainly not willing to support keeping Joe Lieberman onboard to try and reach that magic number. The man should have his epaulets stripped from his uniform and be banished from the process. I wasn’t a fan of his when he was Al Gore’s running mate and now that he has betrayed his fellow democrats it’s time to say so long.

I am currently about halfway through Kluge by Gary Marcus, in which he cites numerous examples to show that our brain has evolved in a haphazard manner that doesn’t allow for the most efficient use of our minds. Prior to Kluge I read The Making of a Philosopher by Colin McGinn. After these two books I’ll be convinced that reality is just not discernable with our inaccurate and biased human brains.

A Pee Wee Break

2008-11-07T23:16:00.000-08:00

Now that the heavy tone of the presidential elections are over it's time for some well earned jocularity. Watch for the cameo by Elvira, Mistress of the Dark (AKA Cassandra Peterson.)

It's Starting to Sink In

2008-11-07T22:25:00.000-08:00

It's been two days since the election. Two days since it was announced to the world that Barack Obama would be the next president of these United States. He gave his first press conference today after meeting with his group of economic advisers. The press jumped to their feet when he entered the room. He was presidential -- as he always is -- and even cracked a few jokes. The atmosphere was refreshing. No more do we have to watch the smirking chimp bumbling his way through this job that he was never qualified for (or elected to) in the first place. The chimp is still president for another 74 days and, believe me, he is busy trying to rape and pillage right up until the last day. Today he was trying to enable mining companies to dig for uranium up to three miles from the Grand Canyon. Never mind what Obama will do when he enters office. It's what he is going to have to undo. Close Guantánamo Bay. Ban Torture. Save the constitution. I believe that Barack Obama is the president that can start to get this country back on track. When I travel to Europe in three years I will be representing a different America. An America that is finally starting to walk the walk.

The bad news from Election Day is the fact that Prop. 8 passed in California, banning gay marriage. The Mormon Church spent at least $25 million funding the proposition to take away basic civil rights of gays and lesbians. It's a tad ironic that the Mormon Church, with their history of polygamy, is touting "traditional marriage." What planet are they from again? I still have never heard a viable reason why gay marriage threatens heterosexual marriage. Trent Lott once likened homosexuality to kleptomania, and Rick Santorum compared it to bestiality. Yet the number of rich, white Republicans, who have traded in previous wives in exchange for trophy wives (Gingrich, Thompson, Giuliani)is staggering. And where are Mark Foley and Ted Haggard these days? Snorting meth and attending the local hypocrites meet-up?

With the election of Barack Obama I want to believe that the tide is turning. No matter how much evangelicals and Mormons stomp their feet gays and lesbians are not going away. And the younger generation that helped put Obama in the White House is not so hung up about same sex marriage.

That's my son Justin, wearing his Super Obama t-shirt that I picked up for him when I was in Chicago last month. Today he spontaneously said "President Barack Obama." I think that getting him out of bed on election night to witness Obama's speech, and then lighting sparklers in the backyard made an impression. In fact, he tried to use the "Watch Barack Obama" excuse tonight to get out of bed. I had to use the "Barack Obama is sleeping" ploy to get him back into bed.

Tears of Joy

2008-11-04T20:48:00.001-08:00

The networks announced at 8 p.m. PST that Barack Obama would be the 44th President of the United States. It took a minute to sink in and then I couldn't hold back the tears. I got my two-and-a-half year old son out of bed to share the moment. To see the seas of joyous faces across this country, who have helped to change the face of America. Most pundits are at a loss for words. Let's just savor the moment.

h/t bob cesca

Election Day

2008-11-04T06:24:00.000-08:00

Today is the big day. It's the day we've all been waiting for. As the saying goes: Vote Early and Vote Often. First I'm off to fulfill another civic duty: jury duty. I'm secretly hoping that they will let all those who have yet to vote out of court early to stand at the polls and enable CHANGE!! First a word from the children:

After jury duty I will vote at my local community center and then sit glued to the TV for the rest of the evening. I'm hoping the race will be decided by midnight west coast time. Maybe even tenish. Let's do this thing!

One Week to Go

2008-10-28T22:10:00.001-07:00

Only one week until election day. In the meantime I have a doctor's appointment tomorrow. A recheck for my recent surgery (see my other blog.)Tomorrow is also the fifteenth anniversary of the first date that Jen and I went on. That was all thanks to a personal ad I placed in The Stranger. We're suffering from a dearth of babysitters lately, so our plan is to have dinner at Marie Callender's with Justin in tow. Once he goes to bed we'll curl up and watch a movie at home. Ah domesticity! On Monday I have jury duty, which usually wouldn't stress me out, but I have to be in Kent at 8 a.m. and that part feeds my anxiety. Other than the drive I'm sure I'll get a lot of reading done while I'm simultaneously fulfilling my civic duty. Tuesday is the much awaited Election Day and I'm thinking that will be an all-nighter. On Wednesday I have a dentist appointment (cavity to be filled) and a doctor's appointment to check my blood pressure and whether my new medication is having the desired effect.

Today the AP published tips for relieving stress about the upcoming election. A little late aren't they? With one week to go I don't see how changing my eating habits at this point will lessen my pre-election anxiety. I have managed to refrain from talking to my parents about political issues lately and that's a big help. Otherwise I'm in the nearing the end of a really good book (José Saramago's Blindness) and I'm getting as much rest as I can to deal with the residual pain from my recent surgery. The pain of Obama losing the election on Tuesday may be a little more difficult to deal with.

And now an important message from BarackObama.com

h/t aarynbelfer.com

Pathetic Little Man

2008-10-21T21:51:00.000-07:00

Oh jeez! Two weeks until election day and the Repugs just keep getting uglier and uglier. Thanks to Michelle Bachmann, a representative from Minnesota, who proposed that the media start investigating congress to sort the pro-American from the anti-Americans, Elwyn Tinklenberg, her previously unknown opponent, has now raised more than a quarter of a million dollars since her appearance on Hardball last Friday. Then I believe it was Saturday when Nancy Puff'n'Huff stated that the Democrats situated in Northern Virginia didn't represent "real Virginia." Today it was Mel Martinez of Florida comparing Obama's tax plan to Castro's Cuba, virtually calling Obama a Communist. It's disgusting and insulting to state that if you disagree with the Republican mindset than you must be anti-American. Look at the smears that have been hurled at Colin Powell since he endorsed Barack Obama on Meet the Press. Rush Limbaugh, Pat Buchanan, and George Will have all claimed that the endorsement was all about race. So I guess when McCain claims that he wants to reach across party lines and unite the country he's talking out his old wrinkly ass. Speaking of asses: Here is John McCain today trying so hard to be righteous and just looking downright foolish.

Even after he pries his expensively clad foot from his mouth the crowd still manages to cheer. What a sad, pathetic little man.

Colin Powell's Endorsement

2008-10-19T09:46:00.000-07:00

I am not a fan of Colin Powell. His stature helped legitimize Bush's false claims of WMD's in Iraq, and the subsequent invasion that has taken thousands of lives. It has been rumored for quite some time now that he would endorse Barack Obama for president and the moment came today on NBC's Meet the Press. I may not agree with Powell's overall politics, but his endorsement this morning nailed it right on the head, even covering the injection of fear and anti-Muslim sentiment that has been stirred up by McCain and his cohorts. Here is his endorsement:

Campaign of Hatred

2008-10-18T22:36:00.000-07:00

There are less than three weeks until the presidential election on November 4th. If McCain ever was an honorable man he is no longer. I find myself thinking, With a blond trophy wife worth $300 million, why is he so persistent in his desire for the presidency? Well, I think the keyword is ambition. He admitted it himself in one of his memoirs. He calls himself a “maverick,” because he has sometimes opposed those in his own party, but the truth of the matter is: that opposition has only come when it was politically advantageous to McCain. He brags about the fact that Sarah Palin ran against an incumbent from her own party to become the governor of Alaska, but if your ambition is to become governor of Alaska then it makes sense to challenge anyone who gets in your way. Now it seems that the same ethics violations that she charged the incumbent with, she herself has been practicing as governor. The same holds true for McCain. All of the smear tactics and attacks below the belt attacks that he denounced in the 2000 campaign for the presidency — for the most part orchestrated by Karl Rove — are now being used to the utmost by the McCain campaign.

I’m a little tired of pundits like Chris Matthews, saying that he basically believes that McCain is a decent and honorable man being swayed by a horribly managed campaign staff. There’s a reason that candidates must state they approve all messages run by their campaign. Is he asleep at the wheel? I doubt it. Just witness his direct answers about the recent use of the 60’s radical Bill Ayers, or the accusation that ACORN (The Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now) is trying to destroy the “fabric of our democracy.” He actually states with a straight face that these are serious issues that have to be explained by Barack Obama. And even when Barack Obama explains whatever tenuous ties there may be he still isn’t believed, because that wouldn’t serve the purpose of the smear campaign against him. The desperate tactics of McCain would be pathetic and laughable if there still wasn’t a sizable population of ignorant voters (like my parents), who believe whatever right wing propaganda that they are fed.

As Obama’s lead in the polls widens the ugly displays of racism and downright stupidity by McCain and his supporters seems to be increasing at a rapid pace. These folks are sore losers and the votes haven’t even been counted yet. The whole ACORN thing is such a non controversy. As if anyone is going to show up at the polls on Nov. 4th, claiming to be Mickey Mouse. This isn’t voter fraud. It’s voter registration fraud. Lackadaisical people independently hired by ACORN to register voters sometimes fill in fictional names themselves, because they get paid based on the number of voters they register. There is not anyone with those fictional identities to show up and vote. Now it seems that the Justice department, which has been highly politicized by the Bush administration, may have been working with McCain to press this non issue in order to stir up doubt and fear among voters. These power hungry Republicans will stoop to subterranean depths to hold onto their power.

Last week John McCain appeared on David Letterman’s show in an attempt at mea culpa for his last minute cancellation amidst the economic meltdown a few weeks back. He claimed to Dave that he had to rush back to Washington to try and help sort out the crisis on Wall Street, but instead he took the time to appear on television with Katie Couric. Plus the next morning he appeared at some Global Initiative conference run by Bill Clinton. Obviously he wasn’t in much of a rush. When he appeared on Letterman last Thursday Dave asked what happened, and his response was “I screwed up.” I’d say. He also screwed up when he decided to run the most dishonest and negative campaign in recent memory. He also screwed up when he picked a dim-witted former beauty contestant to be his running mate. If anything will be written about as being his ultimate downfall this election season it will be his pick of Sarah Palin. It shows a severe lack of judgment and a willingness to cater to one particular brand of Republican (right wing evangelical wackos) in an effort to “shore up the base.” McCain used to take pride in appealing to independents and even some right leaning Democrats, but by caving into the interests of the extreme right he wrote off a sizable chunk of voters. Probably enough to ensure his loss this November.

One thing I’m sure of is that Sarah Palin will come out of this alright. She may currently be ridiculed on the national level of politics and her career as governor of Alaska may be ending soon; but she will have a career as a paid speaker, making the circuit of the right wing think tanks and the venues of toxic Christianity. Leaders of right wing propaganda have put her on a rickety pedestal and revealed their hypocrisy for all to see. They accuse the “liberal media” of sexism, while they rate her attractiveness as one of her greatest assets. They tout her nomination as a triumph for women, while she is against abortion even in the cases of rape or incest. She even had the gall to institute legislation to force victims of rape to pay for their own evidence kits, while serving as mayor of Wasilla. The fact that John McCain mentions her participation in the PTA as one of her qualifications to be vice president is ridiculous.

I could go on and on, but there are only 16 days left until the election and I need to control my stress level. I was recently diagnosed with high blood pressure and prescribed some unpronounceable medication to treat it. This coming Wednesday I have surgery scheduled (I’m finally getting that much lauded “soul enhancement” operation.) On the bright side: I may be in a Vicodin haze for a couple of days, in which case I probably won’t give a shit about the latest antics by McCain’s campaign of hatred. I’ve been to the doctor more in the past two months than I had in the previous decade. I guess it’s all part of aging. I’ll be fifty in less than three years and I feel like my warranty in running out. A win by Barack Obama would be a big boost to my morale, and may even put a little skip in my step. I’ll continue to watch Keith Olbermann and Rachel Maddow over the next few weeks; and I’ll keep reading my favorite political blogs on a daily basis; but I will not let the hatred being fueled by the desperation of a faltering Republican party darken my skies.

Here are a couple of videos that give me hope and inspiration in my hour of need:

Thanks to Bob Cesca for putting together the bottom video, and for having a blog that I feel compelled to check at least a half dozen times a day.

Daily Show Laughs

2008-10-14T01:56:00.000-07:00

I used to watch the Daily Show quite regularly -- almost daily -- but these days I tend to catch the important bits online. Recently I caught the episode with Michelle Obama as the guest and it had one of the funniest moments I've seen in a long time. Stewart does a long bit about the second presidential debate, but the part I guffawed at is when McCain is shown wandering the stage and we get to hear what he is mumbling through the "isolated microphone." If you don't feel like watching the entire clip, the part I'm referring to happens right around 7:25.

A Righteous Moment

2008-10-13T22:48:00.000-07:00

Ever since I put my "Obama for President" sign in my front yard I have been a little paranoid that someone would steal it, but -- as the saying goes -- just because you're paranoid doesn't mean that someone is not out to get you. Last week, while I was feeding my son lunch, I saw a battered mini-van drive north by my house and the drive immediately slowed and craned his neck to peer back towards my driveway. I immediately thought, "He's coveting my Obama sign." He turned around and pulled up just between our house and our neighbor to the south. I surreptitiously stepped outside and stood by our cars just about six feet from the campaign sign. The battered mini-van was spattered with gray primer and Seahawks stickers. The driver got out and walked over to end of my driveway and the second that his hands grasped the sides of Obama sign I exclaimed "Don't take that sign!" He popped his head up with its rooster like coif and wrap-around shades, obviously surprised at my presence. He tried to quickly regain his composure and asked, "Oh, are these easy to get?" I replied, "I don't know, but don't take that one." He slinked back towards his mini-van and I called after him, "We watch out for our neighbors around here." I didn't picture him as an embittered Republican looking to take out the oppositions campaign signs. He had the demeanor of a druggie looking to sell the sign for a few bucks. His vehicle wasn't sporting any McCain, or even Dino Rossi stickers, just football fan proclamations. I went back inside our house to give my son some company while he finished his lunch, and to brag about my little victory. My righteous moment for the day.

* * *

Republican hypocrites love to label liberals as wussies and wimps unable to understand the inherent dangers in the world, but, speaking for myself, I'm a veteran and I own guns. I also think that right wingers with the loudest exhortations about the necessity of war should be the first ones drafted. No more lame excuses like having a boil on your ass preventing you from serving in the military (hello Rush Limbaugh.) No more daddies procuring cushy stateside posts for you, while your classmates volunteer for active duty (hello George W. Bush.) The list of right wing chicken hawks that send working class Americans to their death in foreign lands, but have managed to avoid service themselves, is nearly endless (Dick Cheney, Newt Gingrich, Fred Thompson, Mitt Romney, Rudy "9/11" Giuliani...) Somehow the Republicans have always managed to paint veterans on the left (Michael Dukakis, John Kerry) as wimps. If there really was a hell there would be a very hot room reserved for these hypocritical cowards in the Republican party, but since there is not a righteous god to sort out the wheat from the chaff, it's up to conscientious citizens to hold them responsible for their lies and the harm those lies have caused.

This election the Republicans have actually nominated a real veteran and former POW, but he doesn't have a very good record of supporting the troops on veteran's issues. McCain gets a D rating from the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, while Barack Obama gets a B. The Disabled Veterans of America gave John McCain a 20 percent rating, while Barack Obama earned 86 percent. The most glaring recent example of McCain's non support was last year when he verbally opposed the recent G.I. Bill to stay in agreement with the Bush Administration. The when the bill was brought to the senate floor he did not even have the balls to show up. Instead he was at a fund-raiser in San Diego.

Video Politics

2008-10-06T23:16:00.000-07:00

I don't have time tonight to seriously address the shit storm we are now in the midst of in America, but I wanted to post a couple of videos that I think are important to watch. The first one below is a moving and straightforward speech by the AFL-CIO's Richard Trunka on Racism and Obama.

The next video is the 13 minute documentary about John McCain's involvement in the "Keating Five" scandal produced by the Obama campaign and posted on the site Keating Economics. This is the scandal that Steve Doofy on Fox claims should only be covered on the History Channel, because it's somehow not relevant to our current economic meltdown. The release of this video is an action I would label "fighting fire with fire." If the so-called team of Mavericks want to throw stones they shouldn't live in those (very expensive) glass houses.

I Just Go Berserk!

2008-09-29T22:50:00.000-07:00

So let me get this straight. On September 11th, 2001, Osama Bin Laden directed his minions to fly planes into the Twin Towers in part to destroy the financial infrastructure at the center of New York City. It didn’t work. Now here we are just over seven years later and the financial market is being destroyed by the same greedy bastards that have been reaping all the rewards from unregulated capitalism gone wild. There is a small voice inside of me who actually cheers on these plummeting stock market numbers; and then I remember that we have a 401K plan for our retirement that is taking some awfully big hits these days. Also, my bank — Washington Mutual — was seized by federal regulators last week. I kind of knew this was coming. Supposedly all of my money (a big $40.07) is safe, because J.P. Morgan is buying up the assets or something. It will pay $1.9 billion to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and lay claim to $307 billion of assets and $265 billion of deposits. So the bigger banks are buying up the smaller banks that are in trouble.

The big bailout vote was today and guess what? It didn’t pass. Everybody’s pointing fingers. The Republicans claim that they were ready to pass it, but then they got insulted by Nancy Pelosi’s partisan speech. Now I understand why John Boehner is always breaking down in tears: The Republicans are actually ESP’s (Extra Sensitive People.) They had their widdle feelings hurt. Too bad, so sad.

Meanwhile, back on the campaign trail, John McCain found time to blame Barack Obama for the failure of the bill to pass. McCain’s strategy is obvious now. In addition to a constant stream of lies he has added mocking and sneering to his repertoire. This is the same guy, who a week ago claimed that the fundamentals of the economy are strong. He then wanted to fire SEC Chairman Chris Cox. Then there was some nonsense about creating a 9/11 type committee to figure out how we got into this mess. The next thing you know he announced that he was “suspending his campaign,” so that he could fly back to Washington and straighten the whole thing out. All of a sudden it seemed that things were good enough for him to attend the debate. This morning his surrogates, including the ever dapper Mitt Romney, praised McCain’s leadership for the ability to get this important economy-saving legislation passed. And then it didn’t pass. It was similar to last week when early Friday morning the McCain people posted a web ad exclaiming his victory in the debate that hadn’t taken place yet. When I actually start to think about this all this crap I just go berserk!

The First Debate . . . First Impressions

2008-09-26T19:53:00.000-07:00

Well, I made it through the first presidential debate between Barack Obama and John McCain without my head exploding. I thought Obama did a decent job of tying McCain to the failed record of George (the "W" stands for War Criminal) Bush. I cheered when Obama brought up McCain's recent gaffe concerning a meeting with the president of Spain, a NATO ally of ours. It is tough though when Obama has to debate a pathological liar, whose sole ambition is to be president before he kicks. If I had been drinking milk it would have shot out my nose when McCain mentioned how proud he was a maverick as a partner (running mate.) With Palin's recent media exposure, and subsequent falling in the polls, I'm surprised that McCain mentioned her at all. He didn't actually say her name though. I was also happy when, in response to McCain's story of his bracelet from a dead soldier, that Obama said "I have a bracelet too." I'm so tired of Republicans being able to claim that they alone are the standard bearers of patriotism in this country. I am a veteran myself (U.S. Air Force, 1978 to 1982) and I think McCain's record on veteran's issues is abysmal. He likes to mention his backing of veteran's groups, but he leaves out all of the veteran's group in which he has very low ratings. He certainly doesn't have a very good reputation among the very important group Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America. I don't know how he can say that he "loves" the veterans when he was against the recent G.I. Bill and didn't even have the balls to come to Washington to vote on it. (Instead he opted to attend a fundraiser in California.)I do think that the McCain campaign was a tad presumptuous to post a web ad this morning declaring that McCain had already won the debate when he hadn't even committed to attending it yet.

No that it's over and I've gotten Justin to bed it's time for me to watch the pundit's reactions and eat some comfort food (whole wheat spiral noodles slathered with blue cheese dressing. Yum!)

The Definition of "Suspend"

2008-09-26T00:43:00.000-07:00

The always bright and intelligent Rachel Maddow was commenting on John McCain's kind of, sort of suspending his campaign as of yesterday. She briefly quoted The Princess Bride, which made me chuckle in the midst of all this madness. Does John McCain actually know what the word "suspend" means when he still has ads up across the country; his surrogates are still huffing and puffing on talk shows; and most of his campaign offices in key battle states have not stopped their standard day to day tasks.

Never mind the fact that he pissed off David Letterman. Dave's continuous rant last night about McCain's phony claims of having to cancel his appearance, so that he could rush back to Washington, is biting and funny.

Evidentally this is not the first time that John McCain has cancelled a debate when his polls were starting to slide. Back in February of 2000 McCain pulled out of a debate with George W. Bush.

With new polls showing his campaign dead in the water among California Republicans, Arizona Sen. John McCain has pulled out of a long-scheduled debate with Texas Gov. George Bush, set for Thursday in Los Angeles.

McCain campaign officials tried desperately yesterday to put the best face on their withdrawal, even as a new Field Poll showed Bush far ahead among likely Republican voters in the winner-take-all race for the state's 162 GOP delegates. [...]

The bait and switch on the debate left the Arizona senator -- whose favorite campaign line is "I'll always tell you the truth'' -- wide open to blistering criticism from his rivals.

"Clearly, this is more double-talk from the McCain campaign,'' said Alixe Mattingly, a spokeswoman for Bush. "Pulling out of this debate at the last minute is an indication that they're pulling out of California, where McCain's antagonistic message clearly isn't working.''

Thanks to BarbinMD at Daily KOs for this story.

Something's Fishy

2008-09-24T12:21:00.000-07:00

John McCain just announced that he was suspending his campaign after his appearance at the Clinton Global Initiative meeting tomorrow until this economic crisis is solved. He also stated that he wants to delay the presidential debate scheduled for Friday for the same reason. For some reason I'm just not inclined to believe Mr. McCain these days. I smell political gamesmanship afoot. He's acting the part of the nonpartisan when he and the lobbyists that surround him are thinking of one thing: power.

Oh, and on another note: Sarah "In what respect Charlie?" Palin will meet another five world leaders today. She's out to set a record. She's also scheduled to meet Bono today, which doesn't impress me, because U2 started off as a Christian rock band when they were young. I think he may just have a little too much in common with her "world view."

Righteous Rage

2008-09-24T01:57:00.000-07:00

Representative Nancy Kaptur (D-OH) shows some backbone, which is a little unusual for Democrats these days. Tell it sister!

h/t: Bob Cesca

What a Week!

2008-09-19T22:47:00.000-07:00

Earlier this week I was downright giddy with the apparent crumbling of the McCain-Palin campaign (or is it Palin-McCain?) But there are quite a few days left before election day, and McCain’s operatives are some of the most deft at the black arts. Witness Karl Rove, who still maintains that he’s not working directly for the McCain campaign, so that he can continue to spout his pearls before swine on the Faux News Channel. Today, after the disastrous week on Wall Street, McCain actually had the nerve to blame Barack Obama for the crisis. He claimed that Obama has been in the center of Washington, caving to the pressure of lobbyists. This coming from the guy whose campaign is run by lobbyists! It was just yesterday that he didn’t seem sure where Spain was. It’s mind-boggling at this point that any sane individual could cast a vote for the John McCain, but for decades the Republican party has depended on the fact that most Americans are more concerned about the latest missing child reports, and whether O.J. will actually go to jail for his latest act of stupidity. They think we’re dumb enough not to realize what party has had it’s hand on the tiller for the last 8 years. I switched on C-SPAN today just in time to see Senator John Cornyn (another fake cowboy from Texas) still endorsing tax cuts for corporations, because those corporations would then choose to stay in the country creating jobs here rather than going overseas to rape and pillage. The rich are still touting that "trickle down" theory of economics. The poor get the crumbs that fall from the table. When he asked for another three minutes to continue his bullshit I turned it off.

The first presidential debate is a week from tonight and I am waiting with bated breath. I am hoping that Barack Obama will kick some serious political ass. The topic of the debate will be foreign policy and national security, supposedly McCain’s strong suit. The first question: can you locate Spain on a map? Maybe John McCain will skip his meds that night and will demonstrate that infamous temperament of his.

New Site to Check Out

2008-09-14T22:43:00.001-07:00

The Obama campaign has an excellent new web site up called McLobbyist.com. Take a gander at that line-up of moneygrubbers. Again, the reasonable question is: who does McCain and Palin plan to reform when their campaign is run by lobbyists?

Obama Sets New Fundraising Record for August

2008-09-14T09:44:00.000-07:00

I'm so happy that my $50 donation last month helped make Obama's fundraising in August such a success. His campaign raised more than $66 million dollars last month, and has more than $77 million in the bank. There were $500,000 new donors last month, bringing the total of individual donors to more than 2.5 million. Sarah Palin may have woken up the bible-thumping creationists, but she also woke up a lot of independents and other sane folks, who shudder at the thought of this self-professed "hockey mom" being a "heartbeat away from the presidency."

The Inevitable SNL Skit

2008-09-14T09:36:00.000-07:00

Once we took a gander at SP with her Tina Fey glasses we knew that this skit was just around the corner.

SPHC
by Hishighness

McCain the Feminist?

2008-09-12T23:06:00.000-07:00

How does the mainstream media actually decide on it's news stories? How is it that we don't hear much about Cindy McCain's drug past? And what about John McCain's language? He recently lambasted Barack Obama for using the phrase "when you put lipstick on a pig, it's still a pig." The McCain camp claimed that Obama was obviously referring to Sarah Palin. John McCain has used that same metaphor numerous times himself. What would the press do if John McCain ever demeaned women . . . or insulted his wife in front of the press? Hmmm...

Incidentally, the comment attributed to John McCain in this video has been reported as fact by various sources. You can use "the Google" to find more on his use of the "C" word.

And the Lies Just Keep on Coming

2008-09-12T13:06:00.000-07:00

Being a veteran myself it still galls me that McCain claims to have help pass the most recent G.I. Bill when in actuality he was opposed to the bill. He agreed with the Bush administration's cockamamie reasoning that offering soldiers an education after they got out of the service would cause a depletion in forces. The reality (always different from the Republican viewpoint) is that the attraction of the new benefits would attract enough new volunteers that there would not be any depletion caused by soldiers wanting to get out and get educated. I wasn't lucky enough to get the G.I. Bill when I was in the air force. It ended the year before I joined. We had a crappy program called VEAP. For every dollar I put the government would put in two...up to a total of $8,100. That didn't even pay for two years of electronics school. I still had to take out student loans to make up the difference.

Here is a piece I found on Andrew Sullivan's blog at the Atlantic Monthly, exposing the lies of John McCain.

John McCain the Whiner

2008-09-12T12:13:00.000-07:00

I am really tired of John McCain claiming the negative and deceptive ads recently put up by his campaign are only used because Barack Obama refused to accept McCain's offer of a series of town hall type debates. So in other words, if Obama had just agreed to do things McCain's way, then his campaign wouldn't have been forced to release lie after preposterous lie about Barack Obama. I've even heard McCain stick to his guns about the "lipstick on a pig" comment, which no sane person believes that Obama was in any way referring to S. Palin. John McCain himself has used that phrase at least three times in the last year, and once specifically referring to Hillary Clinton's health care plan.

I find it hard to write about politics lately, because just the thought that enough ignorant Americans could elect the party of ultimate hypocrisy into office again, after being screwed by the Bush/Cheney regime for the last seven years, fills me with sadness. Why can't people learn to sift through the bullshit that makes up American culture and learn the facts for themselves? The right wing has managed to get their views included in any debate even when they are categorically wrong. Do we really need to listen to the other side on evolution and global warming when the scientific data is clear? And if you don't think that the data is conclusive why not read up on these very important issues that concern the globe? When you live life with blinders on you'll never discover the reality that surrounds you.

The Republicans are constantly saying that they want to keep the government out of our lives and yet they want to impose the morals on the rest of us. If they really want to stay out of our lives then what is the problem with women having choice? When Sarah Palin says she is against abortion even in the case of rape or incest (Alaska having the highest incidences of rape in the country) she says it's because she "chooses life." But she somehow thinks it's okay to take that power of choice away from the rest of the women in this country. Banning books at your local library is another instance of the government interfering with my intellectual well-being.

It's just more hypocrisy from the masters of deceit. They don't want the government out of lives completely. They just don't want the government to be a helping hand for those in need. They want everyone to pull themselves up by their own bootstraps even if one doesn't have any boots!

Be Afraid . . . Be Very Afraid

2008-09-06T12:49:00.000-07:00

So first John McCain seeks out Rev. John Hagee's endorsement, but then he has to distance himself from the pastor's nutty pronouncements. He also had to break his public ties with Rod Parsely, because of Parsely's anti-Muslim statements. Back before the 2000 election he called Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson "agents of intolerance" and now he has someone with a similar mindset as his vice presidential running mate. This warped theology they push worships the affluent and leaves the poor to fend for themselves. If you don't think that Sarah Palin should be lumped in with these extremists then take a gander at the videos below and be schooled in the language of the fundamentalists. I do not plan to sit on the sidelines while the crazed Christians do their best to warp this country into their own vision.

Sarah Palin was not Miss Congenialty

2008-09-05T16:56:00.000-07:00

Where to begin. George W. Bush in drag? Like everyone else I have had my fill of the moose-eating mom from Alaska over the past week. Ever since John McCain pulled the rabbit out of the hat others have covered the phenomenon known as Sarah Palin better than I could, but I’ll step into the foray anyway.

Once at the convention the hypocrites were in overdrive, trying to con the public into somehow believing that the Republican party wasn’t in charge over the last 7 and a half years (forget the Democrats being in charge of congress for the last two years when the Repugs can use rules they created to basically kill any decent legislation.) It all comes down to making the tax cuts for the richest among us permanent and stirring up the culture wars to get the ignorant blue-collar bible thumpers out to the voting booths this November. It was the same old same old, except they had a feisty “hockey mom” from nowhere to fire up the conservative base. (Not that Wasilla, Alaska is nowhere. On the contrary. I’m sure it’s a beautiful spot. I’m mean symbolically that Sarah Palin is from nowhere. She has no significant political background. She is being used as a political tool to engage a certain voter: anti-choice, book burning creationists. The same lunatic fringe that elected George W. Bush . . . twice. (Of course the results of the 2000 election show that George W. Bush was selected not elected; and the results of the 2004 election should probably be examined a little more closely. (Hello Ohio.) )These voters have never been crazy about John McCain, who once (accurately) called Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson “agents of intolerance.”

The ploy at this week’s convention was obvious. Sarah Palin was there on Wednesday night to (literally and metaphorically) give the conservative base a hard-on. While John McCain’s job on Thursday night was to appeal to the independents and those dissatisfied with the way things have been run for the last 7 and a half years. His choice of Palin was such a obvious political hail Mary pass. A desperate overture to the fundamentalists in the extreme right wing of the Republican party. If you are John McCain — a self-professed maverick — you don’t go from considering Joe Lieberman and Tom Ridge for the V. P. spot one week to suddenly picking the radical mother/governor, who is already embroiled in a bit of controversy. Now she is thrust onto the national stage, along with her political and familial baggage (and they seemed to be tied together in this case) to rev up the base before hightailing it back to Alaska to sort out her affairs (no pun intended) and bone up on foreign policy. I’ve heard that she is being quickly schooled in the ways of the world by the ever stalwart (hack!) Joe Lieberman. It seems that Joe has nothing better to do than lick the boots of Republicans since being re-elected back in 2004.

All in all I’m not worried by this recent turn of events. The idea that Hillary supporters are going to flock to McCain now that he has a vagina on the ticket is preposterous and insulting to thinking women everywhere. As has been pointed out, there were much more qualified women on the right to fill that position, such as Kay Bailey Hutchinson and Susan Collins. If people are not riled up enough to get out in force and elect Barack Obama in an attempt to overturn what has been done to this country for the past seven years then we, as a country, will get what we deserve. When I mention to my conservative parents the things that repel me about Bush’s control of our government: legalizing torture, systematically stripping away fundamental constitutional rights, consistently rewarding his corporate buddies. They blithely respond, “well, we don’t know about that.” Exactly, and that’ just how the powers-that-be want it. The public is being dumbed down by a corporate culture run amok, so that they cannot get off their lazy asses one day out of the year to vote the bastards out of office.

It’s a nation of flag-waving hypocrites exhorting a war that they do not actually have to fight. When ever anybody utters the word “draft” they are immediately hushed. I support the draft, because then, if more citizens were forced to serve militarily, they might be more apt to oppose a senseless illegal war. When your ass is literally on the line then you might be more likely to say, “hey wait a minute!” Two of the Republican party’s most aggressive chicken hawks warmed up the crowd for Sarah Palin on Wednesday night: Fred Thompson and Rudy Giuliani. Thompson was deferred from the draft during the Vietnam era, because he had children. Rudy Giuliani, who was fresh out of law school, had influential judges in New York excuse him from duty, by declaring him vital to their staff. I’ve only seen bits and pieces of these speeches, including the highlight of the evening Gov. Palin. I find that I hearing lies and propaganda continuously for a few hours damaging to my health, mental and otherwise.

McCain and Palin were stumping in Wisconsin today, repeating some of the same lies that they introduced during the RNC. For sixty days we will be subjected to some of the basest and most vile attacks on Barack Obama, Joe Biden and on roughly half the country in disagreement with right wing ideologues. If we question their ginned up war we’re labeled unpatriotic (even those of us who have served in the military.) If we urge diplomacy over military aggression than we’re called appeasers. If we want a fair wage and decent affordable health care we socialists! And what’s wrong with socialism anyway? Our capitalist democracy seems to favor the wealthy few over the masses. Why would any sensible working individual fall for the scam called “trickle down economics?” As Dennis Kucinich shouted at the most recent Democratic convention: Wake up America!

The flag waving half of the country drink the Kool Aid by watching Faux News, and getting stirred up about gays and immigrants while their jobs are being sucked away by the corporate elite. I’m sure the oil execs were creaming their jeans when they heard the crowd at the Republican convention start chanting “Drill Baby, Drill!” Election after election common working people hand the richest few in the country everything they want and desire. Before Bush & Co. leave office they are determined to get drilling approved for ANWAR, contraception declared abortion, and they are gutting the endangered species act among other things. The right wing thugs have raped and pillaged this country for the last seven and a half years. Enough!

As for Sarah Palin: the idea of a Dominionist, who believes that God has a plan for Iraq being the vice president to a president, who is a seventy-two year old cancer survivor, sends chills down my spine. The warped ideology of those who would urge on the apocalypse, because they believe that they are going to rise up into welcoming heaven at that moment, is just as dangerous as the Jihadists, who believe that they have 77 virgins awaiting them after their martyrdom. And as for Ms. Palin being once voted Miss Congeniality during a beauty pageant?

Now that I've got that out of my system. Let's take a break for a little cooking instruction.

A Breath of Progressive Fresh Air

2008-09-03T12:07:00.000-07:00

Mark your calendars folks! This Monday, September 8th, marks the debut of the Rachel Maddow show. Her show will immediately follow Countdown with Keith Olbermann in an attempt to keep those MSNBC ratings high. I've have been hoping for months that the powers-that-be at the network would see the value in giving Rachel her own show, and low and behold, they must have agreed with me. Below is an interview Rachel gave with Think Progress about the format and so forth:

Rachel Maddon on her new MSNBC show
by faizshakir

Also, last Friday marked the beginning of the fall season of Real Time with Bill Maher on HBO. We had added HBO to our cable package just as the last season of Real Time was ending. Now, with Keith, Rachel and Bill Maher on each week, it's starting to feel like there are at least, well, three voices of reason on mainstream television. It's downright refreshing and will help me keep my sanity as the country fumbles toward it's next presidential election. Will reason win out this time around? It certainly seems to have a louder voice than in the previous two presidential elections.

No Shows at the RNC

2008-08-31T09:44:00.000-07:00

It has been announced today that Satan himself and his little minion named George will not be attending the Republican National Convention. That's right: it seems that a certain tropical storm named Gustav is going to rain on their parade. I was kind of looking forward to the all the bluster and fear spewing forth from the gaping holes of George W. Bush and the dick they call Dick. The list of Republican no-shows is getting longer and longer. (No Susan Collins, no Gordon Smith, no Larry Craig (it seems he doesn't want to have to visit the Minneapolis airport again,) no Chuck Hagel (who recently praised Obama' running mate Joe Biden,) but you can count on Joe Lieberman being there. He's the new Zell Miller. Remembering the slavering, sputtering traitor?

On another note about the improbable closeness of this presidential race: Obama easily filled Mile High Stadium (I refuse to call it by its corporate name) with 80,000 supporters, while John McCain was having trouble giving away 10,000 tickets for his event announcing his running mate. Oh, and what a running mate! Lock up your pet moose, she's got a gun and a taste for wild game.

Back-to-Back Conventions

2008-08-29T19:51:00.000-07:00

The Democratic Convention finished up last night with a stellar speech by the nominee Barack Obama. I wish I had the energy and free time that some bloggers have, so that I could have given a play-by-play of the various speeches during the week. It was quite an inspirational convention. The speech highlights that I saw were Michelle Obama, Hillary Clinton, and Dennis Kucinich in addition to the acceptance speech by Barack Obama. I don't know if I'm even-tempered enough to watch any of the Republican Convention, which starts Monday. It will certainly be a summit of deceivers and incompetents. Rudy -9/11- Giuliani will be giving the key note address. You can be sure that they will do their best to try and instill fear into the hearts of millions, while trying to assure us that they are the only ones able to placate our fears with their big brass balls and weapons of mass deception. I'm still sickened by the last Republican convention when they mocked John Kerry's service by wearing their stupid purple band-aids. Meanwhile neo-cons like Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld never served, and we all know that George's daddy got him into the National Guard, which kept him stateside during the Vietnam War. I don't know how these hypocrites sleep at night. I know how their voters sleep, because ignorance is bliss and that ignorance would most likely lead to a blissful sleep. Meanwhile torture has been legalized, people have been kept under lock and key in Guantanamo for years without charges, the government can now tap my phone, open my mail and even enter my home without my knowledge. And my Republican parents just sigh when I rant about these things and say, "Well, we don't know much about that."

John McCain turned 72 years old today and announced Sarah Palin as his running mate. Palin should satisfy the raving lunatics on the evangelical right, because she is against abortion even in cases of rape or incest; she opposes gay marriage and health care benefits for same sex partners; she believes that creationism should be taught alongside evolution in the classroom. She a hardcore right-winger when it comes to Alaska too, endorsing the practice of shooting wolves from helicopters (to preserve moose and caribou populations for hunters); not believing that polar bears should be placed on the endangered species list; and she an avid supporter of drilling in ANWAR. These positions are really not too surprising for the Republicans, but I'm a little surprised that McCain (in his proverbial first executive decision) picked someone with so little experience when they are other perfectly qualified female Republicans available like Elizabeth Dole, Olympia Snowe, or Susan Collins. Instead McCain shows his true colors by picking the former beauty pageant contestant. Were you aware that his first wife and current wife Cindy were also beauty queens? And John was ready to enter his wife in the Miss Buffalo Chip contest at the most recent Sturgis bike rally.

Again I reiterate: This presidential race shouldn't even be close. The fact that it is is partly due to the corporate controlled media, but it's also due to the large portion of Americans that are sub intelligent beasts. Most of these bloodthirsty bastards also call themselves Christians. I'm realizing more and more that when someone declares themselves to be a Christian they are basically giving themselves permission to lie, cheat, murder with the promise of everlasting life in the clouds somewhere, as long ask they as for forgiveness and accept Jesus as their personal savior before their last breath. With this pious attitude they declare themselves unassailable. They don't need proof. They have faith. If one takes the time to examine these concepts they fall apart immediately.

I just need to slow my breathing and stop letting the fascist Republicans rain on my parade every day.

Post-Rational

2008-08-26T11:28:00.000-07:00

The first ad at the bottom (appropriately) is a McCain ad featuring a Clinton supporter, who claims that she will now vote for John McCain. Above that we have Chris Matthews trying to make some sense out of couple of loonies that also supposedly Clinton supporters that are now backing McCain. Matthews (for a change) actually calls them on their bullshit. A few nights ago Rachel Maddow referred to these people as "post rational." In other words, they are insane. Firstly, I have a hard time believing that any of these fools ever seriously considered themselves Democrats. More likely they are just shills for the Republican party, spreading disinformation.

Rachel Maddow Kicks Ass!!

2008-08-26T10:24:00.000-07:00

Rachel Maddow's new show debuts on September 8th on MSNBC immediately following Countdown with Keith Olbermann. Now all MSNBC has to do is fire Joe Scarborough and Tucker Carlson and send Pat Buchanan back to his senile slumber in the old racist's home and I'll be a happy progressive. (Take note of the enthusiastic applause every time Rachel scores her points.)

Seattle Atheists/Agnostics Meetup

2008-08-21T21:59:00.000-07:00

Tonight I attended my second meet-up of the Seattle Atheists and Agnostics. We met at Hale’s Brewery, which is over in the Ballard area of Seattle. We had a room to ourselves, which was more like the foyer in-between the restaurant and the room containing the brew vats. The turnout for our meet-up was around 50 or 60. From what I’ve heard the size of our membership rivals that of New York city, so evidently Seattle is a city full of heretics. I’m proud to call myself a happy member of that community. As always I got to the meeting place about an hour early, but somehow that helps allay any nervousness I have going in. A few others started arriving around 6:30, so I didn’t feel out of place being there so early (the meeting starts at 7 p.m.) Meet-ups are pretty informal gatherings. Once one is at the meeting it’s up to the individual to make introductions and keep conversations going. There are no official topics, or anything. It’s just an excuse for like-minded people to hang out together. Christers have their churches and freethinkers have their brewpubs. I wouldn’t want it any other way. Being the introvert that I am it will probably take me a year of meetings to actually make some acquaintances, but I think my continued attendance is a worthwhile thing. I need to learn to circulate among the other attendees. Instead I tend to stay ensconced at my table and let the conversations come to me. That method of socialization is not the most reliable.

Lucky Seven?

2008-08-21T10:06:00.001-07:00

It seems that everyone is trying to guess how many houses John McCain owns. Even John McCain has to have his staff get back to reporters to answer that question, because he's not sure. The Obama campaign has finally realized that owning seven houses worth over 13 million dollars makes John McCain the true elitist outsider. How much did those shoes cost again John?

How Many Mansions Does John McCain Own?

2008-08-13T09:42:00.001-07:00

It seems that I was wrong in my last post when I numbered the McCain residences at 5 or 6. It seems the number is closer to 8 0r 9. If you're interested in checking out the luxurious residences of this non elitist then you should look here. All this from parasitically latching on to the beer heiress and dumping his first wife after her disabling car accident. What a classy guy! And to think that Barack Obama and his wife only finished paying off their student loans a few years ago.

Er...Umm...My Friends

2008-08-12T22:10:00.000-07:00

Okay, raise your hands if you're voting for the feeble-minded, flip-flopping old guy. We've all seen the verbal blunders of G.W. Bush over the last 7 years (has it only been 7 years? Seems like 7 friggin' decades!), but do Americans really want another barely coherent rich guy running our country for the next four years? Sure, he wears $500 shoes, owns 5 or 6 houses (I lose track, as the McCains do too, since they forgot to pay the last four years of taxes on their beachfront property in Malibu.) and the McCains spend over $200,000 a year on domestic help, but are those enough qualifications to be president? Oh John. You once had us all fooled into believing that you were some type of "maverick," but now we can all see that you're just a corporate whore, who changes positions with the political wind (sometimes during commercial breaks!) to keep that pot o'gold you crave so much within your sights.

Edwards' Wandering Penis a Problem for Obama?

2008-08-12T19:18:00.001-07:00

You just knew it was going to happen. The mainstream media (AKA the barbecue media) just had to somehow connect John Edwards straying penis with the entire Democratic party and Barack Obama in particular. It just never seems to come up that John McCain divorced his first wife, while she was recovering from a serious car accident, to marry the rich beer heiress known as Cindy to parlay his good fortune into a political career. This is the same guy, who was born in Panama and yet is trying (with the aid and abetting of the BBQ media) to portray Barack Obama as "exotic." Watch David Gregory spout his nonsense and cringe.

* * *

Kudos to Bob Cesca for the term "barbecue media." His excellent blog is the first place I saw the term being used. I visit his Goddamn Awesome Blog every day. It helps to keep me sane.

Greasy Dino Rossi

2008-08-12T12:18:00.000-07:00

So Dino Rossi and his ardent uniformed supporters showed their true colors when a press conference was labeled a private event, so that they could roughly kick out a cameraman, who they said represented the campaign of Christine Gregoire. It seems that the Rossi campaign has a policy of kicking known democratic press people out of his events. All of you folks who have been enjoying the transition from a free America to a police state ruled by paranoia and fear during the two terms under president-select Bush, here is your perfect candidate for Governor of Washington. I have to admit that during the last election I voted for the lesbian Libertarian for Governor. I think this time I'll vote for Gregoire just because Dino Rossi (and his supporters) is such a creep.

Oh, yes...it's public park, but see...we can just call the police and have you to beaten into submission. Resistance is futile.

Breaking the Spell

2008-08-09T00:53:00.000-07:00

Daniel C. Dennett speaks about religion as a natural phenomenon and calls for its vigorous examination through the eyes of science. This talk followed a talk by Pastor Rick Warren, bestselling author of A Purpose Driven Life.

Bring on November 4th!

2008-08-09T00:34:00.000-07:00

Oh boy. I've been sidelined recently with a parental visit that lasted over two weeks! Meanwhile the political news has been reduced to Paris Hilton, tire pressure gages and breaking news from the National Enquirer that John Edwards had an affair behind the back of his cancerous wife. In the meantime more and more nonsense is spouting forth from anal fissures with names like Ben Stein and Newt Gingrich. Even though I've been quite busy with familial responsibilities lately, I've kept up with my favorite blogs and watched the Countdown show with Keith Olbermann daily. I still don't consider Barack Obama to be the Messiah, but I do think of John McCain as a doddering, wealthy white guy, who will say anything to get elected. I look at him and his trophy wife with her beer fortune and the thought of those two in the White House sends shivers down my spine (to paraphrase Republican Senator Thad Cochran of Mississippi.)

More to come as my life shifts back to normal (whatever that is) and I'm able to try and make some sense out of the wackiness known as Religion and Politics.

The Few, The Proud . . . The Ignorant

2008-07-17T21:13:00.000-07:00

Watch this and ask yourself this question: should we really allow morons to vote for the leader of our country?

I can almost hear strains of Lee Greenwood's patriotic anthem "Proud to be an American" as this bozo, er . . . I mean citizen mumbles his way through his diatribe. The moment when his spit hits the cup . . . Priceless!

Liars and the Fools Who Vote for Them

2008-07-11T13:43:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I’m amazed at the general stupidity that seems to be pervasive in our culture. I realize that there are many books about reasons behind the Republican votes of working-class citizens and how they seem to constantly vote against their own self-interest by siding with the right wing of American politics. I look at the headlines from the last couple of weeks and wonder why anyone with a speck of conscience, and who works for a living would support these fat white hypocrites on the right. Just today we seeing reverberations from Sen. Phil Gramm’s comment that the United States is a “nation of whiners” and that we were merely suffering from a “mental recession.” This is the same guy who, while he was a corporate whore in the senate, created the loopholes that allowed the banks to practice their predatory lending schemes. Of course these rich white fools are claiming that the working poor are just whiners. The McCains have so many properties that they actually forgot to pay the taxes on some beachfront property in Malibu for the last four years.

Now if you’ve been happy being hand-fed lies by the rich ruling class for the last seven and a half years, then you go right into that voting booth and vote for the most obvious liar on the ticket. Hell, John McCain, along with the criminal-in-charge known as G.W. Bush, were vociferously against the most recent G.I. Bill introduced by Senator Jim Webb (McCain didn’t even have the courage to show up for the vote), but now they’re both taking credit for getting it through the senate. Bush actually mentioned John McCain as one of the people who helped work on this important bill to get it passed. HELLO!! How big of a lie does it have to be before someone says, “Hey! That emperor has no clothes on!” The media keeps these liars cloaked with some type of media protection that dupes most of the people most of the time.

Just the other day John McCain was called on his lies by an actual Vietnam Veteran. McCain saw the man’s baseball cap with a declaration of his service embroidered on it and made a show of calling on him first. The man brought up McCain’s nonsupport of the recent G.I. bill, and his otherwise spotty record on veteran’s issues. McCain totally ignored the part of the question about the G.I. bill and then went on to claim that he had the endorsement of every veterans’ group. The actual veteran called him on that lie too. McCain’s response? Well, just watch the lying hypocrite in action:

I am so Serious

2008-07-05T22:07:00.000-07:00

It's a big holiday weekend! Flags are flying! Citizens are stumbling through verses of The Star Spangled Banner. Fireworks are driving pets crazy. Below are a couple of videos that exemplify America.

And thanks to ONN for the following clip.

Bush Tours America To Survey Damage Caused By His Disastrous Presidency

Meanwhile back on the campaign trail: Barack Obama keeps playing the centrist, making his supporters on the left feel a little nervous. Of course I could never vote for a nutjob like John McCain. I could always throw all of my enormous voting power behind Ralph Nader. Or Bob Barr? I think not.

Imbecilic is Putting it Mildly

2008-06-24T22:01:00.000-07:00

At this point calling the right wing fringe imbeciles is being kind. Take a gander at these quotes below. No commentary is even necessary. The idiocy is downright glaring.

"Even if you never met him, you know this guy. He's the guy at the country club with the beautiful date, holding a martini and a cigarette that stands against the wall and makes snide comments about everyone who passes by."

-- Karl Rove, quoted by ABC News, describing Sen. Barack Obama to Republicans at the Capitol Hill Club.

Filipino President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo was visiting the White House today. Before beginning a meeting that would include the topic of a recent typhoon that caused much damage in her country — including flipping a ferry killing all 800 passengers — President Bush, in his fashion, couldn’t resist starting off in a light mood.

PRESIDENT BUSH: Madam President, it is a pleasure to welcome you back to the Oval Office. We have just had a very constructive dialogue. First, I want to tell you how proud I am to be the President of a nation that -- in which there's a lot of Philippine-Americans. They love America and they love their heritage. And I reminded the President that I am reminded of the great talent of the -- of our Philippine-Americans when I eat dinner at the White House. (Laughter.)
PRESIDENT ARROYO: Yes.
PRESIDENT BUSH: And the chef is a great person and a really good cook, by the way, Madam President.
PRESIDENT ARROYO: Thank you.

Goodbye George Carlin

2008-06-23T08:26:00.001-07:00

George Carlin, legendary comedian and witty observer of social mores, died Sunday at the age of 71. Below is a clip of his legendary "Seven Words" act. Enjoy.

You Weren't Really Using Those Civil Liberties, Were You?

2008-06-20T21:54:00.000-07:00

Wow, my disdain for the lame Democratic party has been renewed. The one time that they stood up to the fascist regime known as Bush, Inc. since they took the majority in 2006 was the moment they refused to pass retroactive immunity for the telecom companies. But those of us citizens with any brains left in our cynical brains knew deep down that the Democrats would end up caving. Oops, I mean compromise. How many times do we have to take this president and his boy-who-cried-wolf act seriously? This dork-in-charge actually wants to take credit for the fact that since September 11th, 2001 there has not been another terrorist attack on U.S. soil, although the number of terrorist attacks globally has certainly increased since our invasion and subsequent occupation of Iraq. He might as well take credit for the fact that the earth hasn’t been destroyed by a meteor on his watch either.

I wish I had more time to write about this gang rape of our constitution, but it’s nearly ten o’clock and this morning my son Justin arose at 5, so I feel like I need to get some sleep in order to be prepared for tomorrow’s parenting duties. Besides, there are much more erudite bloggers than I that have been analyzing the Democrats official position of caving-in to the lame-duck president with the lowest approval rating since they starting gauging approval ratings. Here are a few bloggers to check out on this and other issues:

Bob Cesca's Goddamn Awesome Blog! Go!

Glenn Greenwald - Salon.com

The Political Carnival

That last link (Political Carnival) is actually Cliff Schecter's blog. Cliff recently wrote a book called The Real McCain, which documents the long history of flip-flopping of John McCain and proves that the word "Maverick" is merely a product label. Cliff also knows how to school the Republican blowhards when he's matched up on the talking head shows. Here's a clip below with Cliff doing a little truth-telling about the scandalous Republicans.

Our Infamous Reading President

2008-06-16T23:18:00.000-07:00

From yesterday’s N.Y. Times:

Bush also said he never saw the award-winning network television show "The West Wing" about a fictitious U.S. president, preferring instead to watch sports and read books.
"I seriously don't watch TV. You know, I watch sports, but I'd much rather read books. And I do. I read a lot," he said according to a transcript released by the White House.

This president seems to feel the need to proclaim his reading prowess whenever possible. Remember a summer or so back when he and Karl Rove were having some kind of reading competition? It was during an interview with Brian Williams when he claimed to have read Camus and “three Shakespeares . . . I got an eclectic reading list,” he said. I can recommend the book I just read last week: All Quiet on the Western Front. It might give him a better idea of the brutality of war, since he spent his term of duty during the Vietnam War in Alabama. And then he didn't even show up for duty as required. Maybe if he knew the true human cost of this war he concocted then he wouldn't suggest that if only he were younger he might join those boys over in Afghanistan, because it seemed like a "romantic" adventure. This is a guy that grew up with the proverbial silver spoon in his mouth (before starting to insert his foot there regularly.) He got his guaranteed spot in Yale just like his daddy. He was given the presidency in 2000 by a corrupt government, and not elected by the people -- although enough Americans actually did vote for him to make one question the collective sanity of this overfed nation of ours.

But enough about our infamous reading president. Below is a recent ad with a number of citizens proclaiming their reasons for voting Republican this fall. Be careful . . . you may just be swayed by their rationale.

The Choice is Clear

2008-06-13T22:50:00.000-07:00

The presidential race this fall shouldn’t even be close. One only needs to watch a speech by Barack Obama back-to-back with a speech by John McCain to see the glaring gap between intelligence and ignorance; between compassion and heartlessness; between hope and warmongering. John McCain sees nothing wrong with keeping U.S. troops in Iraq for 100 years. His reasoning is that we have kept troops in South Korea, Japan and Germany for “peacekeeping” purposes, so we should be prepared to keep forces in Iraq for the same reasons. Part of their impetus for invading Iraq in the first place was to establish a permanent U.S. military presence right in the center of the Middle East. There are now “negotiations” going on between the U.S. and Iraqi government to lay out the military plan for years to come. Basically what this means is that the U.S. is pressuring Iraq to agree to military terms favoring an U.S. presence in their country for the unforeseen future. This includes the building of 58 permanent military bases. Just last week on the Today Show John McCain was being interviewed by that intrepid journalist Matt Lauer. Lauer asked that, since he McCain supports the notion that the surge is working, can he reasonably start to predict when U.S. troops might come home. McCain’s response: “No, but that’s not too important.” Not too important?!! He went on to say that what is important is the safety of our men and women there on the ground in Iraq. Well John, what could be safer than bringing them home? Below is a clip from YouTube with John’s cold-hearted answer. If your right-wing response is: “Context!” then find the rest of the interview online. The rest of his answer is even more appalling, because he makes clear that his Iraq policy is a permanent U.S. military presence. When we these old fools stop killing innocent people in the name of fossil fuels? We got a veteran who is practically a fossil himself — who admitted the other day that he doesn’t know how to use the computer, and has almost proudly admitted that he doesn’t know anything about the economy — promising to continue to run our country into the ground.

Have you noticed how creepy John McCain's smile has become since he sold his soul?

I finally bit the bullet and ordered some Obama paraphernalia. In fact, right now to my right there is a 24x36 poster of Barack Obama adorning my wall. I also got a few bumper stickers (Independents for Obama), a few buttons (Veterans for Obama), and I a yard sign that I need to get up before my right-wing father comes out for a visit next month. I’m now officially a “hopemonger.” I even upped my donation when I ordered the merchandise and if I can stop buying books for a couple of weeks I’ll probably donate again.

Speaking of books, I finished reading All Quiet on the Western Front this evening. It’s novel about the front lines of World War I as told by a young German soldier just out of high school. At times the scenes felt quite familiar to me, because of seeing films like A Very Long Engagement, and reading books like By a Slow River by Philippe Claudel. I’ve learned from various blurbs and reviews that All Quiet on the Western Front is considered a great anti-war novel. (It doesn’t say that anywhere on the book itself, although in several places it exclaims that it’s one of the great war novels of all time.) It can be easily viewed as anti-war, because the realities of war would make any sane human be against ever having to fight another war. The bonds that grow between the classmates as they mature under fire is quite poignant. In the end it’s heart wrenching as young boys are treated as meat in a grinder in order to fulfill the military maneuvers dreamed up by some chicken hawk ensconced in comfort miles from the front. It’s the way wars have always been fought and are still fought today. Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld never served in the military. George W. Bush was given a cushy stateside position in the National Guard through his daddy’s connections. Yet these militaristic cheerleaders have no compunction sending off soldiers to die, because of their schemes and lies. They are against the new G.I. Bill, because they don’t want to treat soldiers like humans. They would rather treat them like cannon fodder. It’s the only way they can send thousands to their deaths and still cash their oil company checks.

It’s nearing midnight and I’d like to spend a little time trying to chose the next book that I’ll read before I go to sleep. Justin is currently sleeping soundly. We’ve been having sleep issues with him lately. Now that he’s in his “big boy bed” bedtime has become quite a chore. But that’s a topic for my other blog.

Dream Ticket

2008-06-07T00:01:00.000-07:00

I’m so sick of hearing about the “dream ticket” and having the pundits hammer home again and again the idea of Hillary Clinton as Barack Obama’s running mate. This is an insane idea and just another example of media driven politics. Just because it would be great fodder for the news industry for the next five months doesn’t mean it’s a good idea. In fact, if the mainstream media are talking an idea up the vice presidential dream ticket, then it’s probably an idea which should by resisted with all your might. Hillary Clinton has run a campaign based on ego, power and greed and putting her on the ticket with Barack Obama would be self-defeating, and frankly and insult to the extraordinary campaign that Obama has run. My own guesses are far as his VP choice are just a few: Sen. Jim Webb and Sen. Chuck Hagel. Yes, Hagel is a republican, but he is against the war and therefore on the outs with the lockstep Republicans in his party. Choosing Hagel would also be a shining example of bi-partisanship and would attract a lot of those disgruntled Republicans that used to ride John McCain's Straight Talk Express until it derailed, as McCain reveals himself to be just an older more addled version of George W. Bush.

Here's Your Republican Viewpoint...

2008-05-26T10:21:00.000-07:00

The fact that hate speech, and now the advocated assassination of an African-American candidate for president, is what passes for political analysis from the right wing is enough to repulse anyone with an ounce of humanity in them. When Fox contributor Liz Trotta verbally spewed forth the vile thoughts that usually reside inside her dank mind a new low was reached. It was bad enough that Hillary Clinton brought in the topic of RFK's assassination as somehow being part of the reason she is staying in the race. Now we have a right wing pundit (AKA infected hemorrhoid) actually advocating and wishing for the assassination of Barack Obama. Watch this horrendous snippet and have your barf bag handy. This beast needs to reside on the island of the succubi with Coultergeist and the rest of the insane clown posse.

Tim Russert's Folksy Stupidity

2008-05-18T08:48:00.001-07:00

During the Bush regime certain commentators have shown their true colors, whether by wearing flag lapel pins (made in China), or through their questioning of opposition candidates. Of course we’ve always known where Faux News stands, but there are those who have admired people like Tim Russert with his folksy manner and his dad, “Big Russ.” But I’ve learned to disdain Tim over the last few years. Just this morning I was surfing by the news channels when I caught Ted Sorenson and Doris Kearns Goodwin as guests on Tim Russert’s show. They were in the midst of a conversation about Joe McCarthy and there was Tim, politely playing the devil’s advocate: “What about those who say that Joe McCarthy was right?” What is it with the lunatic fringe always wanting to rewrite history? Joe McCarthy was an insane alcoholic, whose finger pointing and the subsequent blacklists that resulted are still one of the darkest moments in our government long history of dark moments. How anyone could somehow still revere Joe McCarthy and his warped cause is beyond me. I guess these are the same people who scoff at the notion that humans may be related to apes, or that the earth is actually spherical in shape.

Appease This MoFo!

2008-05-17T21:10:00.000-07:00

How much more of America’s reputation can George W. Bush manage to shred before he heads back to his “ranch” in Crawford next year permanently? Just in the past week he has opened mouth and inserted foot a number of times. To begin with, America’s favorite liar in chief stated that he gave up playing golf in 2003 as a show of solidarity with the troops that he was putting in harms way. He didn’t want the mother of some boy fighting in Iraq to turn on the TV and see him playing golf. I guess it’s okay to keep mountain biking though, and joking about those darn WMD’s. And then Mr. Goofball goes to Israel to speak on the celebration of their 60th anniversary and, during a speech on the floor of the Knesset, he non too subtly criticizes the leading democratic candidate (Obama) for daring to suggest that he would speak to countries like Iran and Syria in an effort at diplomacy. Here’s the quote: "Some seem to believe that we should negotiate with the terrorists and radicals, as if some ingenious argument will persuade them they have been wrong all along. We have heard this foolish delusion before. As Nazi tanks crossed into Poland in 1939, an American senator declared: 'Lord, if I could only have talked to Hitler, all this might have been avoided.' We have an obligation to call this what it is—the false comfort of appeasement, which has been repeatedly discredited by history." Amazingly, he forgets to mention that the American senator he quotes in his speech as wishing he could have talked to Hitler was a Republican, but why bother with facts when you’re throwing mud. Never mind that the actual definition of “appeasement” is an attempt to reduce difficulties by making concessions. These goobers, including McCain, like to talk about “peace through strength” as if dropping bombs on wedding parties and hospitals will somehow make the world more peaceful. Okay, I realize that the intelligence of quite a few Americans is sub par, but how stupid does one have to be to think that killing brings about peace. I still remember the motto on the sign above the entry to Grand Forks air base: Peace is our Profession. I was only 17 when I joined the military, but even I was wise enough to recognize the stupidity in that statement.

It is somewhat refreshing to see that the typical negative campaigning doesn’t seem to be working as well this time around. Oh sure, there are still folks like my parents, who believe what they are fed by the corporate media, but after over seven years of the rule by the worst president ever (come on, is there really any doubt about that anymore?) a large number of Americans have woken up and thankfully Barack Obama is running a different sort of campaign that taps into that new found consciousness. When Hillary went into a bar in Pennsylvania and threw back a shot and a beer, most folks saw it for what is was: pandering. When Bush took his jabs at Obama, while speaking in a foreign country, even the mainstream media cried foul.

And then we have governor/pastor Huckabee joking at a recent NRA event, after hearing some noise in the background, that it was Barack Obama ducking because someone had aimed a gun at him. This was Huckabee’s attempt at humor during an event meant to denigrate the democrat’s stand on owning firearms. I remember when Huckabee was still in the news as a semi-viable candidate my parents saying that he was a “good man.” A good man and a pastor who jokes at an NRA function about someone taking a shot at an African-American candidate for president. Hmmm.

But enough about the news items that make me fume. If you’re at all media savvy then you have probably seen the old footage of Bill O’Reilly blowing a gasket at stagehands when he was the host of Inside Edition. What you may not have seen is the uncut footage. Well here it is:

In Memoriam

2008-04-04T21:04:00.000-07:00

It was forty years ago today that Martin Luther King was assassinated by a sniper's bullet as he exited the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee. King is always remembered for his work in the civil rights movement, but (not surprisingly) the mainstream media tends to forget his fierce opposition to the Vietnam War. Below are a few quotes from Rev. King.

"Nothing in the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and
conscientious stupidity."
"The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort
and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy."
"A nation that continues year after year to spend more money on military
defense than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual doom."

We are now living in an America where the dead bodies, including many Iraqi women and children are shielded from us. The White House has even declared that photos of flag draped coffins of dead G.I.s returning home are off-limits. The government does not want us as citizens to know the maiming, killing and torture done in our name and with our tax dollars. They would rather that we spend our time watching Project Runway, or glued to our TV sets as Naomi Campbell is arrested yet again for being a flaming asshole. As far as the Defense Department (formerly known as the War Department, but truth in advertising is so out of fashion these days) is concerned, the actual on the ground results of Operation Iraqi Freedom are more palatable as "out of sight, out of mind." As far as the actual death toll of innocent Iraqi civilians? Well, I believe it was war criminal Donald Rumsfeld that said, "People say we hear about our death counts; we never hear about theirs. Why?" Rumsfeld's response echoed the famous remark in March 2002 by Gen. Tommy Franks, who ran the war in Afghanistan and later led the charge into Iraq. "We don't do body counts on other people."

Exactly one year before Martin Luther King was killed he gave a speech at a meeting of Clergy and Laity Concerned at Riverside Church in New York City entitled Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break Silence. Here is a link to that brave speech that you probably will not see referenced today, as the U.S. continues to occupy Iraq five years after the start of this illegal war. And if, out of mere curiosity, you might be interested to see how many innocent Iraqi civilians have been killed as the U.S. bravely gives them the gift of freedom, liberty & democracy (read: Wal-Mart, McDonalds & SUV's) go to iraqbodycount.org. The numbers may shock you, or at least they should. If on the other hand you think that this war is justified and you're also a big fan of Jack Bauer and the show 24 then go ahead and vote for John McCain this November. You should also get your fit lily-white ass down to your local recruiter and sign up to ship off to Baghdad if you're so gung-ho. Of course, it was folks like Dick Cheney who had better things to do during the Vietnam War. Surprise, surprise! Hell, it was only a couple of weeks ago when our president-select, the chimp-in-charge, speaking by video conference to military and civilian personal in Afghanistan, spewed these vile words:

I must say, I'm a little envious. If I were slightly younger and not employed here, I think it would be a fantastic experience to be on the front lines of helping this young democracy succeed. It must be exciting for you … in some ways romantic, in some ways, you know, confronting danger. You're really making history, and thanks.

If I'm not mistaken, this is the same drunken fool who got out of serving in Vietnam by using his rich daddy's connections to secure a post in the National Guard. And then he didn't even show up for that duty! (I heard it was something about his fear of passing the urine test..er, I mean physical.) Of course, now that he's president the rules have changed and the Guard and reservists are having their bodies and souls shipped overseas with the rest of the volunteer force.

Inspiration

2008-03-27T22:35:00.000-07:00

Sometimes we all just need a little inspiration. Thanks to Bob Cesca for creating this video using the song "The Tide is Turning" from the Roger Waters album Radio K.A.O.S.

Ignorance is Bliss

2008-03-25T19:00:00.000-07:00

Watch as Rusty Carter and Billy Jack (?) lead a group of home-schooled Christian children on a tour of the Denver Museum of Nature & Science. Watch as they feed the children lines and get them to parrot their insular world view. Watch as they state that evolution is itself a religion. That's the IDer's latest trick that they've pulled out of their sleeves, claiming that Evolution is a form of religion and that by teaching evolution in schools the government is injecting religion into the public school systems. The whole idea might be laughable if it weren't so sad. These are bright and inquisitive children whose intellect is being stifled by a religion that is by definition narrow minded.

This news piece reminds me of the film Jesus Camp and the sadness I felt watching those kids having their bright burgeoning minds blunted by the ridiculous notions of adult Christians. I agree with Richard Dawkins when he says that one of the biggest problems with religion is its abuse of children through indoctrination and mind control.

It was Martin Luther who said: “Reason is the greatest enemy that faith has; it never comes to the aid of spiritual things, but - more frequently than not - struggles against the divine Word, treating with contempt all that emanates from God”

Clintons Continue Down the Low Road

2008-03-21T22:32:00.000-07:00

Bill Clinton, today:

It'd be a great thing if we had an election where you had two people who love this country, who were devoted to the interest of the country and people could actually ask themselves who is right on these issues instead of all this other stuff which always seems to intrude on our politics.

The philandering ex-president was talking about a potential fall match up between his wife and John McCain. So, is he implying that Barack Obama doesn't love this country? What is it with the Clintons lately building up John McCain? It's this type of egotistical sense of entitlement that will swing the super delegates over to Obama. They even found time to tear down Gov. Bill Richardson's endorsement of Barack Obama today, saying that at this point in the race it didn't mean anything. I'm sure they would have felt differently if the endorsement had been for Sen. Clinton. I'm sure Bill is pissed, thinking to think I went down there and watched the Super Bowl with that guy!

Appropriate to this democratic infighting is Tim Egan's op-ed piece in today's New York Times. He likens the Democratic candidates' journey to the convention in Denver to the tragic Donner Party of 1846. They haven't quite resorted to cannibalism yet, but August is a ways off. Here is the link to the Egan piece.

Meanwhile, we have McSame acting like a doddering old fool on his "fact finding" mission to the middle east, confusing Shia and Sunni and calling the Jewish holiday Purim their version of Halloween. Luckily, he has turncoat Joe Lieberman along to whisper sweet nothings into his ear.

"A More Perfect Union"

2008-03-18T13:50:00.000-07:00

I continue to be inspired by Barack Obama and his wife Michelle whenever I hear them speak. Their honesty and compassion is such a breath of fresh air after the seven years of the swagger and buffoonery contained within the persona known as George W. Bush. Obama doesn't have the nomination sewn up yet, but if he manages withstand the assaults from both the right and the Clintonistas I believe he be a president that we can all be proud of. He already has the demeanor that I would want and expect from a president. Can you picture Barack Obama doing a soft shoe routine on the steps of the White House, or spending taking 452 days of vacation within seven years? It would certainly start to reaffirm my faith in America if we as a country can manage to rise above divisiveness and political rancor to elect someone as intelligent and forthright as Barack Obama. Today Barack Obama gave a speech in Philadelphia on the issue of race in politics. It was a speech that many felt he had to make to distance himself from controversial statements made by the pastor of his church last summer. An adage I often hear and have repeated myself is that our country gets the president we deserve. It would be nice to know that we as a diverse nation finally deserve someone as decent and honorable as Barack Obama as our president.

Introductory Post

2008-03-17T23:08:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I just don’t know where to begin when it comes to criticizing religion and politics. Every day another example of the madness of faith in an ancient book of tribal laws rears its ugly head. Take the fanatic known as Pastor John Hagee: He recently endorsed John McCain and the mainstream media — which is constantly accused of being a leftist tool — has not held McCain to the same standard as the Democratic candidates, especially Barack Obama. McCain said in a Feb. 29 statement: "Well I think it's important to note that pastor John Hagee who has supported and endorsed my candidacy supports what I stand for and believe in. When he endorses me, it does not mean that I embrace everything that he stands for and believes. And I am very proud of the Pastor John Hagee's spiritual leadership to thousands of people and I am proud of his commitment to the independence and the freedom of the state of Israel. That does not mean that I support or endorse or agree with some of the things that Pastor John Hagee might have said or positions that he may have taken on other issues." Talk about having your cake and eating it too! Barack Obama was cajoled to renounce and reject the statements of Louis Farrakhan. He is now having his feet held to the fire over the controversial statements by the pastor of the church he attends in Chicago. Meanwhile, McCain has not rejected the endorsement of a man who has made statements such as calling the Catholic church “the great whore of Babylon” and “a cult.” He also believes that Hurricane Katrina was punishment by God, because there was a Gay Pride parade scheduled for the day the storm hit. In 2006 on NPR's Fresh Air he said, "The newspaper carried the story in our local area that was not carried nationally that there was to be a homosexual parade there on the Monday that the Katrina came. And the promise of that parade was that it was going to reach a level of sexuality never demonstrated before in any of the other Gay Pride parades. So I believe that the judgment of God is a very real thing. I know that there are people who demur from that, but I believe that the Bible teaches that when you violate the law of God, that God brings punishment sometimes before the day of judgment." He also believes we should waste no time bombing Iran. Well, there’s something that he and John “Bomb, bomb, bomb…bomb, bomb Iran” McCain can agree on.

Tomorrow night I’ll be attending another in a series of lectures by Professor David Domke of the University of Washington entitled Playing the God Card: Religion and Politics in the 2008 Presidential Campaign. There never ceases to be something for David Domke to examine when it comes to the volatile mixing of religion and politics. It’s not as if David Domke was an atheist. He’s a believer and his wife is a pastor, but he has taken on this topic because he sincerely believes that it’s harmful to our democracy to allow religion to play such an influential role in our government and its policies. Maybe someday he’ll start to see that being a moderate Christian is just as dangerous as being a fundamentalist Christian. Allowing others to believe as they see fit may be a moderate outlook, but it lends credence to the wacky beliefs of those readers of the Left Behind series. Extremists like John Hagee are slobbering at the mouth with the prospect that when their god brings on the end times they will be lifted up into heaven with its streets paved of gold. I’m sure it’ll be like the scene in Monty Python’s Meaning of Life when all of the guests at a dinner party are felled by bad fish and they insist on taking their cars to the afterlife. What’s the use of having streets paved with gold if you cannot drive your Cadillacs and Humvees on them?

I received a couple of books today to add to my library on critical thinking: Why I Am Not a Muslim by Ibn Warraq and The Jefferson Bible by Thomas Jefferson. The Jefferson Bible is Thomas Jefferson’s attempt at excising the parts of the gospel of Jesus Christ that he felt were false and didn’t fit in with the teachings. Ibn Warraq is a pen name for a Pakistani ex-zealot, who left his faith behind during the Salmon Rushdie situation. If he hadn’t used a pen name he would have most likely have been stoned to death already.

I’ll end my first post with a couple of quotes from one of my literary heroes, Ed Abbey:

“Whatever we cannot easily understand we call God; this saves much wear and tear on the brain tissues…Belief in the supernatural reflects a failure of the imagination.”

“Fantastic doctrines (like Christianity or Islam or Marxism) require unanimity of belief. One dissenter casts doubt on the creed of millions. Thus the fear and hate; thus the torture chamber, the iron stake, the gallows, the labor camp, the psychiatric ward.”