Palin Quits
posted by J -SOM at
Friday, July 03, 2009
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| We knew Obama was a fraud before it was cool... |
ENDTIMES CHATTER: BLOG HEAVEN
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Friday, July 03, 2009
30 Days, 30 Obama deceptions - number 3 of 30
By 'Raindrop'
Earmarks
During a presidential campaign debate in Oxford, Miss., in September 2008, Obama said:
OBAMA: "And, absolutely, we need earmark reform. And when I am president, I will go line by line to make sure that we are not spending money unwisely."
On March 12, 2009-and in PRIVATE-Obama signed a $410-billion omnibus spending package filled with 8,570 earmarks.
While Obama delivered a public address about the omnibus bill and earmark reform, he signed the legislation in private. At the end of his remarks, Obama walked away and did not respond to a network news reporter's question about why he did not sign the bill in public.
Music: Vote dead in O-HI-O
Number 4 of "30 days, 30 Obama deceits" will be posted on July 6th.
Earmarks
During a presidential campaign debate in Oxford, Miss., in September 2008, Obama said:
OBAMA: "And, absolutely, we need earmark reform. And when I am president, I will go line by line to make sure that we are not spending money unwisely."
On March 12, 2009-and in PRIVATE-Obama signed a $410-billion omnibus spending package filled with 8,570 earmarks.
While Obama delivered a public address about the omnibus bill and earmark reform, he signed the legislation in private. At the end of his remarks, Obama walked away and did not respond to a network news reporter's question about why he did not sign the bill in public.
Music: Vote dead in O-HI-O
Number 4 of "30 days, 30 Obama deceits" will be posted on July 6th.
Labels: earmarks, obama deceits
posted by J -SOM at
Friday, July 03, 2009
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Thursday, July 02, 2009
Torn between two economic lovers.
In economic terms I consider Paul Krugman my wife. The steady and sure unapologetic liberal with the Nobel prize around his neck. He hails from my home country- The New Deal - and I trust his gut like I trust few others.
However, in my own midlife political crisis I have, of late, taken an economic mistress...one vibrant and cocksure bloke named Peter Schiff. A man utterly convinced that monstrous inflation is right around the corner. To hear Schiff is - it seems - to hear common sense. Of course all this dollar printing is going to cause inflation...
Then Krugman mentions in his steady, unpretentious way, that it looks like deflation is coming. I don't understand the details but Krugman does - and I trust him...too...
Inflation?
Deflation?
Which to pick?
However, in my own midlife political crisis I have, of late, taken an economic mistress...one vibrant and cocksure bloke named Peter Schiff. A man utterly convinced that monstrous inflation is right around the corner. To hear Schiff is - it seems - to hear common sense. Of course all this dollar printing is going to cause inflation...
Then Krugman mentions in his steady, unpretentious way, that it looks like deflation is coming. I don't understand the details but Krugman does - and I trust him...too...
Inflation?
Deflation?
Which to pick?
Labels: deflation, inflation, paul krugman, peter schiff
posted by J -SOM at
Thursday, July 02, 2009
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Rolling Stone Stunner
Update two: In the comment section Ducksoup gave us the Rolling Stone link that is now up!!! Go. Here. Now. Big Thanks to Ducksoup!
Update: The scanned version has been removed as well. I do recommend finding the article when and where you can.
Matt Taibbi's piece on Goldman Sachs in this week's Rolling Stone is a stunner. It is not on their website yet but a friend sent me this scanned version on line. Grab it while you can. It has already disappeared here at Seeking Alpha - though their overview is worth the read as well.
Suffice to say that the author pegs G.S. as being behind all the major bubbles in the last 70 years.
And let's not forget Goldman's enormous contributions to the Obama campaign.
They are all in bed together....
posted by J -SOM at
Thursday, July 02, 2009
PERMALINK
30 Days, 30 Obama deceptions - 2 of 30
By 'raindrop'
(2) Recognize the Armenian genocide
During the presidential campaign, Obama had said he would recognize the Armenian genocide, and as a U.S. senator, he criticized the State Department's aversion to the word "genocide."
"Two years ago, I criticized the Secretary of State for the firing of U.S. Ambassador to Armenia, John Evans, after he properly used the term 'genocide' to describe Turkey's slaughter of thousands of Armenians starting in 1915...as President I will recognize the Armenian Genocide."
But did he?
Obama traveled to Turkey but failed to use the word "genocide" when asked about the historical events....Obama did issue the statement on the 24th, in which he described the "heavy weight" of history and the "terrible events of 1915," adding "I have consistently stated my own view of what occurred in 1915, and my view of that history has not changed."
But he did not use the word "genocide."
Obama's promise, and his statements while a U.S. senator, indicate that he thought the word itself was important. In 2006, a U.S. ambassador was recalled after he used the word "genocide" in reference to Armenia, which spurred Obama to write a letter to then Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice saying that he thought the U.S. position on the issue was "untenable."
Big Hat, No Cattle:
(2) Recognize the Armenian genocide
During the presidential campaign, Obama had said he would recognize the Armenian genocide, and as a U.S. senator, he criticized the State Department's aversion to the word "genocide."
"Two years ago, I criticized the Secretary of State for the firing of U.S. Ambassador to Armenia, John Evans, after he properly used the term 'genocide' to describe Turkey's slaughter of thousands of Armenians starting in 1915...as President I will recognize the Armenian Genocide."
But did he?
Obama traveled to Turkey but failed to use the word "genocide" when asked about the historical events....Obama did issue the statement on the 24th, in which he described the "heavy weight" of history and the "terrible events of 1915," adding "I have consistently stated my own view of what occurred in 1915, and my view of that history has not changed."
But he did not use the word "genocide."
Obama's promise, and his statements while a U.S. senator, indicate that he thought the word itself was important. In 2006, a U.S. ambassador was recalled after he used the word "genocide" in reference to Armenia, which spurred Obama to write a letter to then Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice saying that he thought the U.S. position on the issue was "untenable."
Big Hat, No Cattle:
posted by J -SOM at
Thursday, July 02, 2009
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How will it end?
Tamerlane created a few polls so we could have a little biting fun. With a long weekend approaching let us take a moment to speculate on....
posted by J -SOM at
Thursday, July 02, 2009
PERMALINK
Wednesday, July 01, 2009
What Are the Real Problems with American Public Schools?
Part 2 Income Wealth and Inequality
The Resegregation of America's Schools
By Roberta.
Americans like to believe that their system of public schools provide equal opportunity for all children. But the fact is America's schools do not. Not by a long shot. There are three main sources of public school funding: local, state, and the federal governments.
At the local level funding is largely achieved through local property taxes. But the amount of dollars property taxes actually bring in varies greatly between the roughly 13,500 school districts in the United States. At rock bottom, funding for American public schools is tied to community affluence or the value of property in the district. Therefore, schools in wealthy suburbs generally have more money than schools in urban or low land value communities.
I could find no data bank that ranks every individual district's per pupil expenditures. I easily found state rankings. In school year 2004-05, New York had the highest average per pupil funding at $14,119; Utah had the least at $5,257. The national average was $8,701 per pupil. (Source: Census Bureau) But, if you remember from your statistic class, averages can be misleading since they are a measure of 'central tendency.' In 1992 Jonathan Kozol in his book, Savage Inequalities, reported that the difference in local, property tax funded per pupil expenditures in the just the New York City area ranged from a high of $11,000 per pupil to a low of $5,585 per pupil.
Each state also helps fund their public schools. But again, differences in state funding formulas create wide variances in the amounts of money that individual school districts receive. In their book, The Manufactured Crisis, David C. Berliner and Bruce J. Biddle publish a chart from the Educational Testing Service that shows the ratio of state education spending differences between high (rich) and low (poor) spending groups of school districts. Two states (Texas and Ohio) spend nearly three times as much on wealthy districts than on districts with poor property values in their respective states. (I live in Ohio. I can attest to the truth of this.) New York, Pennsylvania, Missouri, Michigan, Massachusetts, Indiana, and Georgia were not far behind Texas and Ohio in providing more money to wealthier districts than to poorer districts. Three states were nearly equal in the amount of state dollars and local dollars going to the state's local schools (Maryland, Nevada, and Delaware.) The rest of the states were in-between these two extremes.
In 2007 the federal share of funding K-12 schools was 8.3%. (Source Ed.gov) Most of that money by law must go towards two programs-Title I and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. (Source: Ed.gov) Therefore, these federal dollars do little to alleviate the unequal funding issues of local schools.
Exacerbating the funding problem even further, both Reagan and George W. Bush lowered corporate tax rates, as have many states. Additionally many communities give tax abatements to businesses. All this means less tax revenue for the schools. Worse yet, much of this loss of monies have been made up by simply shifting and increasing the taxes of the individual tax payer. (Source: America: What Went Wrong? Barlett and Steel)
Inequitable funding at both the local and the state levels creates tremendous problems for public schools in low wealth communities. In his book Savage Inequalities, Kozol reports on his travels across the nation. In poor school district after poor school district he chronicles appalling conditions: crumbling school buildings, dilapidated classrooms, overcrowding and rooms with no heat, lack of supplies and textbooks, science labs with no equipment or running water, sewer backups, toxic fumes, and more. Would you want your child to go to a school like this? And sadly, the most experienced, best educated, and often more competent teachers tend to migrate to the schools with high funding and therefore higher salaries.
Some people may prefer to ignore inequitable funding and poverty and blame the poor themselves for the situation. But the average child cannot escape the cycle of poverty if he or she doesn't have access to good quality schools and education.
Add into the mix of low funding in poor schools the societal problems I cited in Part 1 and we have an even direr situation before us. Children who come to school hungry or malnourished or in cast off and torn clothing, who lack basic health care and suffer from untreated medical conditions, and who come from homes without even basic amenities let alone books, learning toys, and games are more difficult to teach. So there is a double whammy on poor children in poor communities-bigger and more societal problems plus fewer dollars to buy needed resources to teach. The children who need the most and the best, far too often receive the least.
It is shortsighted for Americans to ignore poverty or to say, 'well, it does not affect me or my children.' It is one thing to blame the poor for their condition. It is quite another to condemn their children to substandard schools on the basis of their luck in not being born into the right race, the right class, or having the right address. The immorality of tolerating poverty and low funded public schools is both appalling and unconscionable.
Widespread poverty affects all Americans in countless ways. Higher health care costs for all is one way. Another is massive amounts of crime and violence and the subsequent creation of a huge and expensive social-service-punishment bureaucracy to contend with the increased crime and violence. Some states are spending more money building prisons and housing prisoners than they spend on education.
Consider:
-It costs $23,183.69 to house 1 prisoner in a federal jail for one year. Source: U.S. Courts, Office of Public Affairs
-It costs $19, 087.94 to house 1 prisoner in community correction centers for one year. Source: U.S. Courts, Office of Public Affairs
-It cost an average $8701 to educate 1 child in public schools in 2004-05. Source: Census Bureau
Seems like American public schools are the better bargain all the way round.
But the most egregious result of unequal funding of public schools is something far more pernicious than just lack of resources to teach. Today there is a resegregation of schools taking place in America. Schools are now segregated into poor schools and rich schools, instead of the old white schools and black schools.
This new resegregation is color blind. Poverty affects all skin colors. Therefore, this resegregation is worse and the effects exponentially greater and harsher than the old 'separate but equal' schools. Schools in affluent communities have. Schools in poor communities have not. The landmark 1954 Supreme Court decision in Brown Vs Topeka Kansas has been turned on its head.
Tragically, this is a new, more harmful Jim Crowe updated for the 21st century. Instead of being forced to go to the back of the bus, instead of being forced to drink at a different water fountain, instead of not being able to sit at the lunch counter, instead of being hung from a tree, today we deny a good education and a way out of poverty to millions of our children.
To our everlasting shame, this resegregation of children into rich schools and poor schools is the real and biggest problem in America's schools today.
The Resegregation of America's Schools
By Roberta.
Americans like to believe that their system of public schools provide equal opportunity for all children. But the fact is America's schools do not. Not by a long shot. There are three main sources of public school funding: local, state, and the federal governments.
At the local level funding is largely achieved through local property taxes. But the amount of dollars property taxes actually bring in varies greatly between the roughly 13,500 school districts in the United States. At rock bottom, funding for American public schools is tied to community affluence or the value of property in the district. Therefore, schools in wealthy suburbs generally have more money than schools in urban or low land value communities.
I could find no data bank that ranks every individual district's per pupil expenditures. I easily found state rankings. In school year 2004-05, New York had the highest average per pupil funding at $14,119; Utah had the least at $5,257. The national average was $8,701 per pupil. (Source: Census Bureau) But, if you remember from your statistic class, averages can be misleading since they are a measure of 'central tendency.' In 1992 Jonathan Kozol in his book, Savage Inequalities, reported that the difference in local, property tax funded per pupil expenditures in the just the New York City area ranged from a high of $11,000 per pupil to a low of $5,585 per pupil.
Each state also helps fund their public schools. But again, differences in state funding formulas create wide variances in the amounts of money that individual school districts receive. In their book, The Manufactured Crisis, David C. Berliner and Bruce J. Biddle publish a chart from the Educational Testing Service that shows the ratio of state education spending differences between high (rich) and low (poor) spending groups of school districts. Two states (Texas and Ohio) spend nearly three times as much on wealthy districts than on districts with poor property values in their respective states. (I live in Ohio. I can attest to the truth of this.) New York, Pennsylvania, Missouri, Michigan, Massachusetts, Indiana, and Georgia were not far behind Texas and Ohio in providing more money to wealthier districts than to poorer districts. Three states were nearly equal in the amount of state dollars and local dollars going to the state's local schools (Maryland, Nevada, and Delaware.) The rest of the states were in-between these two extremes.
In 2007 the federal share of funding K-12 schools was 8.3%. (Source Ed.gov) Most of that money by law must go towards two programs-Title I and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. (Source: Ed.gov) Therefore, these federal dollars do little to alleviate the unequal funding issues of local schools.
Exacerbating the funding problem even further, both Reagan and George W. Bush lowered corporate tax rates, as have many states. Additionally many communities give tax abatements to businesses. All this means less tax revenue for the schools. Worse yet, much of this loss of monies have been made up by simply shifting and increasing the taxes of the individual tax payer. (Source: America: What Went Wrong? Barlett and Steel)
Inequitable funding at both the local and the state levels creates tremendous problems for public schools in low wealth communities. In his book Savage Inequalities, Kozol reports on his travels across the nation. In poor school district after poor school district he chronicles appalling conditions: crumbling school buildings, dilapidated classrooms, overcrowding and rooms with no heat, lack of supplies and textbooks, science labs with no equipment or running water, sewer backups, toxic fumes, and more. Would you want your child to go to a school like this? And sadly, the most experienced, best educated, and often more competent teachers tend to migrate to the schools with high funding and therefore higher salaries.
Some people may prefer to ignore inequitable funding and poverty and blame the poor themselves for the situation. But the average child cannot escape the cycle of poverty if he or she doesn't have access to good quality schools and education.
Add into the mix of low funding in poor schools the societal problems I cited in Part 1 and we have an even direr situation before us. Children who come to school hungry or malnourished or in cast off and torn clothing, who lack basic health care and suffer from untreated medical conditions, and who come from homes without even basic amenities let alone books, learning toys, and games are more difficult to teach. So there is a double whammy on poor children in poor communities-bigger and more societal problems plus fewer dollars to buy needed resources to teach. The children who need the most and the best, far too often receive the least.
It is shortsighted for Americans to ignore poverty or to say, 'well, it does not affect me or my children.' It is one thing to blame the poor for their condition. It is quite another to condemn their children to substandard schools on the basis of their luck in not being born into the right race, the right class, or having the right address. The immorality of tolerating poverty and low funded public schools is both appalling and unconscionable.
Widespread poverty affects all Americans in countless ways. Higher health care costs for all is one way. Another is massive amounts of crime and violence and the subsequent creation of a huge and expensive social-service-punishment bureaucracy to contend with the increased crime and violence. Some states are spending more money building prisons and housing prisoners than they spend on education.
Consider:
-It costs $23,183.69 to house 1 prisoner in a federal jail for one year. Source: U.S. Courts, Office of Public Affairs
-It costs $19, 087.94 to house 1 prisoner in community correction centers for one year. Source: U.S. Courts, Office of Public Affairs
-It cost an average $8701 to educate 1 child in public schools in 2004-05. Source: Census Bureau
Seems like American public schools are the better bargain all the way round.
But the most egregious result of unequal funding of public schools is something far more pernicious than just lack of resources to teach. Today there is a resegregation of schools taking place in America. Schools are now segregated into poor schools and rich schools, instead of the old white schools and black schools.
This new resegregation is color blind. Poverty affects all skin colors. Therefore, this resegregation is worse and the effects exponentially greater and harsher than the old 'separate but equal' schools. Schools in affluent communities have. Schools in poor communities have not. The landmark 1954 Supreme Court decision in Brown Vs Topeka Kansas has been turned on its head.
Tragically, this is a new, more harmful Jim Crowe updated for the 21st century. Instead of being forced to go to the back of the bus, instead of being forced to drink at a different water fountain, instead of not being able to sit at the lunch counter, instead of being hung from a tree, today we deny a good education and a way out of poverty to millions of our children.
To our everlasting shame, this resegregation of children into rich schools and poor schools is the real and biggest problem in America's schools today.
Labels: American Education, poverty
posted by J -SOM at
Wednesday, July 01, 2009
PERMALINK
30 Days, 30 deceptions
All politicians are deceitful to one degree or another. But Obama has elevated the Bamboozle to heights rarely seen in American politics. His campaign of "Hope and Change" was possibly the largest and most expensive piece of political propaganda and misdirection ever.
A reader who goes by "raindrop" sent me a long, detailed list of Obama's deceptions as of June 2009...I am taking a break from the "Lunch Break" for July to post 1 piece of Obama bullshit a day for 30 days. I know L.R. could go on for 60 or 90 days with ease. Please email me with any of Barry's B.S. Bamboozles you want to see featured. John@liberalrapture.com
Contributed by our pal- "Raindrop"
Obama Deception #1
Obama would eliminate income taxes for Seniors making less than $50,000.
from Obama's 2008 campaign website:
"Barack Obama will eliminate all income taxation of seniors making less than $50,000 per year. This will eliminate taxes for 7 million seniors-saving them an average of $1,400 a year-and will also mean that 27 million seniors will not need to file an income tax return at all."
But, what has happened?
President Barack Obama's campaign pledge to end taxes for seniors making less than $50,000 has fallen off the radar. It wasn't part of the tax cuts in the economic stimulus bill, also known as the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. It wasn't in Obama's first budget outline, which was approved by Congress on April 2, 2009. And it's not part of any proposed legislation that we can find...the bold promise to end taxes for seniors if they make less than $50,000 seems to be forgotten.
A reader who goes by "raindrop" sent me a long, detailed list of Obama's deceptions as of June 2009...I am taking a break from the "Lunch Break" for July to post 1 piece of Obama bullshit a day for 30 days. I know L.R. could go on for 60 or 90 days with ease. Please email me with any of Barry's B.S. Bamboozles you want to see featured. John@liberalrapture.com
Contributed by our pal- "Raindrop"
Obama Deception #1
Obama would eliminate income taxes for Seniors making less than $50,000.
from Obama's 2008 campaign website:
"Barack Obama will eliminate all income taxation of seniors making less than $50,000 per year. This will eliminate taxes for 7 million seniors-saving them an average of $1,400 a year-and will also mean that 27 million seniors will not need to file an income tax return at all."
But, what has happened?
President Barack Obama's campaign pledge to end taxes for seniors making less than $50,000 has fallen off the radar. It wasn't part of the tax cuts in the economic stimulus bill, also known as the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. It wasn't in Obama's first budget outline, which was approved by Congress on April 2, 2009. And it's not part of any proposed legislation that we can find...the bold promise to end taxes for seniors if they make less than $50,000 seems to be forgotten.
Labels: bamboozle, Obama is a liar, the obama deception
posted by J -SOM at
Wednesday, July 01, 2009
PERMALINK
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
IT came from Vanity Fair:
The trashing of Palin goes on in Vanity Fair - what is fascinating about this freakish rant by Todd Purdum is that time and time again while attacking Palin he - I swear - is talking about Obama. No experience, narcissistic, prone to throwing anyone and everyone under the bus, using religion to get ahead in politics, interfering spouse....It's Obama practically to the letter.
Another hard to miss theme: Purdum has a mad crush on Palin. He thinks she is hot! Which leads to an almost demonic need to trash her. She can't be powerful...because her dark feminine ways will lead us/me astray...we must vanquish the dark lady from the North - is the subtext.
At one point he weirdly calls her "fertile" - the implication being that this is both suspect and jarring. To Purdum, maybe it is. Something very unnerving happens to people who formulate ideas about people without ever being with people. Real women - who have children and jobs - become oddities. Coming from Purdum fertile is almost tribal. Palin is a dangerous warrior princess with out-of-whack hormones.
There is also the usual "red neck otherness" that has become natural for these Upper West Side attacks on Palin. Purdum goes further though . He exiles Alaska from the United States. He does not refer to Alaska's political culture like one might discuss Obama and Chicago or Clinton and Arkansas. He outright implies that Alaska is another country and therefore Palin should, by rights, be seen as a foreigner. (Again, shades of some of the right wing attacks on Obama.) Palin is the other by virtue of being from Wasilla, Alaska, which is apparently akin to being from Irkutsk, Russia - or perhaps Mars. Yet, at one point he describes Wasilla in a manner that is painfully American: Home Depots, fast food joints, strips malls. Purdum ought to get in a car sometime and take a drive. Home Depots, fast food and strips malls are the American landscape of 2009. This is a "journalist" who's geographical outlook consists of the famous New Yorker map of the world - everything past the West Village is no man's land.
Other than the embarrassing exposure of the mommy issues that so many prominent American men carry around - the thing that is so maddening about the anti-Palin, Park Avenue liberal, jack off sessions - like the one in Vanity Fair - is that it is now damn near impossible to believe anything written about Palin. An honest assessment - one not soaked in right wing hagiography, or dripping with "feminist" Vassar girl repression, or the barely concealed sexual terror of the current "liberal male"- can't be found.
I have no doubt that there is much to criticize Sarah Palin for - and she ought to examined closely if she wants to remain on the national stage. 8 months on I, for one, do not see her taking on any issues outside her comfort zone. If she wants to run for President she needs to start expanding soon. She ain't Hillary, that's for sure.
(Update: Palin should be treated like any other potential President. Obama, as we know, was given a pass by the media throughout the campaign.)
Unfortunately the Vanity Fair article doesn't reveal much worth thinking about. Finally, it's a gossip piece. Of course, some McCain insiders dish the dirt. Operatives on losing campaigns always dish dirt soon after an election. Obama insiders will too - as soon as he goes below 50% for 2-3 months we'll hear some unflattering tales of Barry and Michelle from the inside. Watch.
Clear reporting on Palin just doesn't exist. Such is the tragedy of American "journalism".
Another hard to miss theme: Purdum has a mad crush on Palin. He thinks she is hot! Which leads to an almost demonic need to trash her. She can't be powerful...because her dark feminine ways will lead us/me astray...we must vanquish the dark lady from the North - is the subtext.
At one point he weirdly calls her "fertile" - the implication being that this is both suspect and jarring. To Purdum, maybe it is. Something very unnerving happens to people who formulate ideas about people without ever being with people. Real women - who have children and jobs - become oddities. Coming from Purdum fertile is almost tribal. Palin is a dangerous warrior princess with out-of-whack hormones.
There is also the usual "red neck otherness" that has become natural for these Upper West Side attacks on Palin. Purdum goes further though . He exiles Alaska from the United States. He does not refer to Alaska's political culture like one might discuss Obama and Chicago or Clinton and Arkansas. He outright implies that Alaska is another country and therefore Palin should, by rights, be seen as a foreigner. (Again, shades of some of the right wing attacks on Obama.) Palin is the other by virtue of being from Wasilla, Alaska, which is apparently akin to being from Irkutsk, Russia - or perhaps Mars. Yet, at one point he describes Wasilla in a manner that is painfully American: Home Depots, fast food joints, strips malls. Purdum ought to get in a car sometime and take a drive. Home Depots, fast food and strips malls are the American landscape of 2009. This is a "journalist" who's geographical outlook consists of the famous New Yorker map of the world - everything past the West Village is no man's land.
Other than the embarrassing exposure of the mommy issues that so many prominent American men carry around - the thing that is so maddening about the anti-Palin, Park Avenue liberal, jack off sessions - like the one in Vanity Fair - is that it is now damn near impossible to believe anything written about Palin. An honest assessment - one not soaked in right wing hagiography, or dripping with "feminist" Vassar girl repression, or the barely concealed sexual terror of the current "liberal male"- can't be found.
I have no doubt that there is much to criticize Sarah Palin for - and she ought to examined closely if she wants to remain on the national stage. 8 months on I, for one, do not see her taking on any issues outside her comfort zone. If she wants to run for President she needs to start expanding soon. She ain't Hillary, that's for sure.
(Update: Palin should be treated like any other potential President. Obama, as we know, was given a pass by the media throughout the campaign.)
Unfortunately the Vanity Fair article doesn't reveal much worth thinking about. Finally, it's a gossip piece. Of course, some McCain insiders dish the dirt. Operatives on losing campaigns always dish dirt soon after an election. Obama insiders will too - as soon as he goes below 50% for 2-3 months we'll hear some unflattering tales of Barry and Michelle from the inside. Watch.
Clear reporting on Palin just doesn't exist. Such is the tragedy of American "journalism".
Labels: Sarah Palin, todd purdum, vanity fair
posted by J -SOM at
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
PERMALINK
A Proud American
-by 'tamerlane'
I frequently write about what's wrong with America-and there's plenty. But in honor of the Fourth of July, and in no particular order, some things about our Nation that make me proud to be an American.
1. The Bill of Rights
In an Age when oppression and tyranny were the status quo, the first ten amendments to the Constitution established as inalienable rights, freedoms and liberties which had previously existed only as fortuitous privileges or not at all. The impact of this visionary concept cannot be over estimated.
Written almost as an afterthought, the Bill of Rights laid the groundwork for the American way of life we too often take for granted, and too often neglect to protect. Beyond the actual rights enshrined in the document, the Bill of Rights established the principle that Americans could, and must, ever amend our laws to adhere to the principle of Liberty.
2. The Rest of the Constitution
Yes it's imperfect, yes it's pathetically outdated, a patchwork of addenda crying out for a total rewrite. But, like my old, banging-up Chevy truck, the Constitution is still running and still gets the job done.
The beauty of the document is its exceptional flexibility, a gift from the stellar minds of its authors. Strict interpretation would have made the Constitution obsolete ages ago. It's the principles that inspired the Constitution, not the specific details, that have allowed us to operate under the same form of government, and to enjoy essentially the same type of society, for 222 years. Compare that streak with France. Their revolution occurred just after ours, and they're currently on their 5th Republic, with a few dictatorships and monarchies interspersed. We're still on Republic #1.
3. Rock 'n; Roll
This distinctly American art form truly "will never die". Evolving from a blend of folk, blues, and other native styles, Rock 'n' Roll is no simple diversion. The genre's birth in the mid-fifties saw it question authority and rebel against stultifying conformity. Ever since, rock music has helped inspire social progress-civil rights, peace, sexual freedom. Rock continues to embody and celebrate truly American virtues of independence, innovation and youthful optimism.
4. NASA
A recent string of embarrassing failures has tarnished the space agency's image. But Americans shouldn't forget how we boldly embarked on a quest for knowledge that has rivaled the grandeur of the pyramids and the audacity Columbus.
In the best tradition of Western civilization, the USA expended a ton of money and effort to simply learn about things, with no direct military or economic gain. To put men on the moon, NASA stretched 1960's technology to the limit, just because we dared ourselves to try it. No one doubted we Americans would succeed.
NASA built two tiny probes, the Voyagers, to explore a couple of planets, then ingeniously figured out a way extend their operational life and explore the rest of the solar system, and then even farther. The Hubble telescope, despite early teething pains, lets us gaze at the edge of time and has provided invaluable understanding of the origin of the universe.
Many believe mankind is destined to one day populate the stars. If we survive to fulfill that calling, Americans will be remembered as the ones who took the first steps on that journey.
5. The Melting Pot and Meritocracy
The blending of people from diverse cultural and ethnic backgrounds in America is truly unique, and we've pulled it off surprisingly well. Prejudice has always existed, but has never prevailed in the end. We succeeded, not by the bumper sticker platitude to 'celebrate diversity', but by extending the American principle of meritocracy to anyone who showed up.
No matter how funny you looked, how bad your accent, or how weird your religious practices, if you worked hard and embraced American culture, in a generation or two you'd be grudgingly accepted as part of the mainstream, with your cultural qualities enriching the American amalgam.
Too much remains unfair in America. The idle rich get richer simply for being rich. Tall men get promoted because they are tall and a man. Cops beat up young blacks, while letting pretty young blondes off with a warning. But we hold and affirm in principle that every one is equal, that everyone gets a fair chance, and everyone gets rewarded based on how they perform. We're not perfect, but at least our hearts are in the right place.
6. Separation of Church and State
A purely secular government was unheard of in 1787 and is still fairly uncommon today. The Founding Fathers looked back at two centuries of devastating religious wars in Europe, and vowed to spare their new nation that fate. Their foresight granted us levels of domestic tranquility and personal freedoms that most of mankind has never attained.
Separation of Church and State has stabilized our government, protected us from religious tyranny, while simultaneously allowing religious practice to thrive and diversify. We disrupt this cornerstone of American Liberty at our peril.
7. Natural Beauty
We just lucked into it, but our country possess some of the most dramatic, serene, and varied landscapes on Earth. Our pride comes from the sentiment, present since colonial days, that we have a special obligation to act as the stewards of our natural treasure. That spirit first took shape in the creation of national parks by Teddy Roosevelt. Today, our parks and preserves are the envy of the World-foreigners visit in droves and marvel at their expanse and beauty.
Our natural legacy is threatened more today than ever. Budget cuts, calls for privatization, a gluttonous lifestyle that demands more raw materials and new tract houses, could rapidly obliterate what we've carefully nurtured for so long. To abandon the traditional American principle of natural preservation would bring us immeasurable shame.
8. Hollywood
Yes, actually, hurray for Hollywood. The American film industry gets slammed for the vapidity of its product, its craven business practices, and often for its low morals. That criticism is in large part merited. Yet, while the rule in Hollywood seems to be 'the bigger the budget, the smaller the idea', great works of art do get made with regularity. Mindless movies predominate, but mindless audiences crave them. Sit down for just five minutes and make a list of great films. It will be a long list, and the films very great indeed. So why fret over the chaff of lousy movies soon forgotten? A thousand Taco Bells cannot diminish a Chez Panisse.
Cinema is a beneficial and vital aspect of modern civilization. At their best, movies are our sagas, the epic poems once delivered orally, now on a silver screen. Born in New Jersey, raised in California, "Hollywood" has fueled the dreams and inspired the aspirations of the entire world.
9. Baseball
Americans have invented three major sports-basketball, football, and baseball-now hugely popular across the globe. Of the three, baseball is, in my opinion, the sport that most encapsulates the American spirit.
Baseball hinges on individual performances, yet the nine players must work harmoniously to succeed. The prowess of one star player means nothing without the contributions of the other eight. Even the lowliest member of the team can sometimes become the hero.
In Baseball, anything is possible. The playing field extends in theory into infinity, and it's the only sport where outcome is determined not by the position of the ball, but by what the players do. Without a game clock, nothing is ever a foregone conclusion. Teams can and often do come back from far behind to prevail. During a season, a team with average players who play smart and 'as a team' can outdo a roster of high-paid, selfish stars.
True, the professional version of the game played today is diminished by the influence of capitalist greed and frenzied hype. But the game we played as kids taught us to rely on each other, to resolve disputes amicably, to create novel solutions-ground rules-for special situations, to laud the exceptional player and to encourage the mundane one.
In its purest form, the 'national pastime' that Americans perfected out of a lesser game inherited from England is masterpiece of form and symmetry. The dimensions of the playing field, the pace of the action, the yin & yang of offense & defense, the interplay of throwing, running and hitting, not to mention its sylvan charm, make baseball not just sport, but art.
10. Courage to Critique Ourselves
Americans practice self-criticism as a habit, albeit sometimes reluctantly. It stems from our freedom of speech. To pick on France again for comparison: the French still treat Napoleon as a hero, instead of the tyrannical, murderous, warmonger he was. They pretend that everyone was in the resistance during WWII, and neglect to explain how all that nice Italian art ended up in the Louvre.
Americans are tougher than that. We knew slavery was bad, and we fixed it. We acknowledge what we did to the Indians was inexcusable, and we don't try to hide it. After a few pendulum swings, we can now admit that our actions in Vietnam were in error, but we still commend the bravery, patriotism and sacrifice of the generation that fought there.
As Americans, we can lambaste our elected officials, and demand greatness of them. We can recognize flaws in our national character, and propose ways to remedy them, without losing faith in our inherent strengths. We can celebrate our achievements, without needing to sweep our failures under the rug. Indeed, our greatest moments have come after periods of frustration or ignominy. If we have a tendency to get lackadaisical at times, we still tackle our shortcomings with enthusiasm, optimism, and determination. We have a habit of dreaming the inconceivable, and a knack for achieving the unthinkable. We can be proud of all this.
(c) 2009 by 'tamerlane'. All rights reserved.
I frequently write about what's wrong with America-and there's plenty. But in honor of the Fourth of July, and in no particular order, some things about our Nation that make me proud to be an American.
1. The Bill of Rights
In an Age when oppression and tyranny were the status quo, the first ten amendments to the Constitution established as inalienable rights, freedoms and liberties which had previously existed only as fortuitous privileges or not at all. The impact of this visionary concept cannot be over estimated.
Written almost as an afterthought, the Bill of Rights laid the groundwork for the American way of life we too often take for granted, and too often neglect to protect. Beyond the actual rights enshrined in the document, the Bill of Rights established the principle that Americans could, and must, ever amend our laws to adhere to the principle of Liberty.
2. The Rest of the Constitution
Yes it's imperfect, yes it's pathetically outdated, a patchwork of addenda crying out for a total rewrite. But, like my old, banging-up Chevy truck, the Constitution is still running and still gets the job done.
The beauty of the document is its exceptional flexibility, a gift from the stellar minds of its authors. Strict interpretation would have made the Constitution obsolete ages ago. It's the principles that inspired the Constitution, not the specific details, that have allowed us to operate under the same form of government, and to enjoy essentially the same type of society, for 222 years. Compare that streak with France. Their revolution occurred just after ours, and they're currently on their 5th Republic, with a few dictatorships and monarchies interspersed. We're still on Republic #1.
3. Rock 'n; Roll
This distinctly American art form truly "will never die". Evolving from a blend of folk, blues, and other native styles, Rock 'n' Roll is no simple diversion. The genre's birth in the mid-fifties saw it question authority and rebel against stultifying conformity. Ever since, rock music has helped inspire social progress-civil rights, peace, sexual freedom. Rock continues to embody and celebrate truly American virtues of independence, innovation and youthful optimism.
4. NASA
A recent string of embarrassing failures has tarnished the space agency's image. But Americans shouldn't forget how we boldly embarked on a quest for knowledge that has rivaled the grandeur of the pyramids and the audacity Columbus.
In the best tradition of Western civilization, the USA expended a ton of money and effort to simply learn about things, with no direct military or economic gain. To put men on the moon, NASA stretched 1960's technology to the limit, just because we dared ourselves to try it. No one doubted we Americans would succeed.
NASA built two tiny probes, the Voyagers, to explore a couple of planets, then ingeniously figured out a way extend their operational life and explore the rest of the solar system, and then even farther. The Hubble telescope, despite early teething pains, lets us gaze at the edge of time and has provided invaluable understanding of the origin of the universe.
Many believe mankind is destined to one day populate the stars. If we survive to fulfill that calling, Americans will be remembered as the ones who took the first steps on that journey.
5. The Melting Pot and Meritocracy
The blending of people from diverse cultural and ethnic backgrounds in America is truly unique, and we've pulled it off surprisingly well. Prejudice has always existed, but has never prevailed in the end. We succeeded, not by the bumper sticker platitude to 'celebrate diversity', but by extending the American principle of meritocracy to anyone who showed up.
No matter how funny you looked, how bad your accent, or how weird your religious practices, if you worked hard and embraced American culture, in a generation or two you'd be grudgingly accepted as part of the mainstream, with your cultural qualities enriching the American amalgam.
Too much remains unfair in America. The idle rich get richer simply for being rich. Tall men get promoted because they are tall and a man. Cops beat up young blacks, while letting pretty young blondes off with a warning. But we hold and affirm in principle that every one is equal, that everyone gets a fair chance, and everyone gets rewarded based on how they perform. We're not perfect, but at least our hearts are in the right place.
6. Separation of Church and State
A purely secular government was unheard of in 1787 and is still fairly uncommon today. The Founding Fathers looked back at two centuries of devastating religious wars in Europe, and vowed to spare their new nation that fate. Their foresight granted us levels of domestic tranquility and personal freedoms that most of mankind has never attained.
Separation of Church and State has stabilized our government, protected us from religious tyranny, while simultaneously allowing religious practice to thrive and diversify. We disrupt this cornerstone of American Liberty at our peril.
7. Natural Beauty
We just lucked into it, but our country possess some of the most dramatic, serene, and varied landscapes on Earth. Our pride comes from the sentiment, present since colonial days, that we have a special obligation to act as the stewards of our natural treasure. That spirit first took shape in the creation of national parks by Teddy Roosevelt. Today, our parks and preserves are the envy of the World-foreigners visit in droves and marvel at their expanse and beauty.
Our natural legacy is threatened more today than ever. Budget cuts, calls for privatization, a gluttonous lifestyle that demands more raw materials and new tract houses, could rapidly obliterate what we've carefully nurtured for so long. To abandon the traditional American principle of natural preservation would bring us immeasurable shame.
8. Hollywood
Yes, actually, hurray for Hollywood. The American film industry gets slammed for the vapidity of its product, its craven business practices, and often for its low morals. That criticism is in large part merited. Yet, while the rule in Hollywood seems to be 'the bigger the budget, the smaller the idea', great works of art do get made with regularity. Mindless movies predominate, but mindless audiences crave them. Sit down for just five minutes and make a list of great films. It will be a long list, and the films very great indeed. So why fret over the chaff of lousy movies soon forgotten? A thousand Taco Bells cannot diminish a Chez Panisse.
Cinema is a beneficial and vital aspect of modern civilization. At their best, movies are our sagas, the epic poems once delivered orally, now on a silver screen. Born in New Jersey, raised in California, "Hollywood" has fueled the dreams and inspired the aspirations of the entire world.
9. Baseball
Americans have invented three major sports-basketball, football, and baseball-now hugely popular across the globe. Of the three, baseball is, in my opinion, the sport that most encapsulates the American spirit.
Baseball hinges on individual performances, yet the nine players must work harmoniously to succeed. The prowess of one star player means nothing without the contributions of the other eight. Even the lowliest member of the team can sometimes become the hero.
In Baseball, anything is possible. The playing field extends in theory into infinity, and it's the only sport where outcome is determined not by the position of the ball, but by what the players do. Without a game clock, nothing is ever a foregone conclusion. Teams can and often do come back from far behind to prevail. During a season, a team with average players who play smart and 'as a team' can outdo a roster of high-paid, selfish stars.
True, the professional version of the game played today is diminished by the influence of capitalist greed and frenzied hype. But the game we played as kids taught us to rely on each other, to resolve disputes amicably, to create novel solutions-ground rules-for special situations, to laud the exceptional player and to encourage the mundane one.
In its purest form, the 'national pastime' that Americans perfected out of a lesser game inherited from England is masterpiece of form and symmetry. The dimensions of the playing field, the pace of the action, the yin & yang of offense & defense, the interplay of throwing, running and hitting, not to mention its sylvan charm, make baseball not just sport, but art.
10. Courage to Critique Ourselves
Americans practice self-criticism as a habit, albeit sometimes reluctantly. It stems from our freedom of speech. To pick on France again for comparison: the French still treat Napoleon as a hero, instead of the tyrannical, murderous, warmonger he was. They pretend that everyone was in the resistance during WWII, and neglect to explain how all that nice Italian art ended up in the Louvre.
Americans are tougher than that. We knew slavery was bad, and we fixed it. We acknowledge what we did to the Indians was inexcusable, and we don't try to hide it. After a few pendulum swings, we can now admit that our actions in Vietnam were in error, but we still commend the bravery, patriotism and sacrifice of the generation that fought there.
As Americans, we can lambaste our elected officials, and demand greatness of them. We can recognize flaws in our national character, and propose ways to remedy them, without losing faith in our inherent strengths. We can celebrate our achievements, without needing to sweep our failures under the rug. Indeed, our greatest moments have come after periods of frustration or ignominy. If we have a tendency to get lackadaisical at times, we still tackle our shortcomings with enthusiasm, optimism, and determination. We have a habit of dreaming the inconceivable, and a knack for achieving the unthinkable. We can be proud of all this.
(c) 2009 by 'tamerlane'. All rights reserved.
Labels: american character, patriotism, things to be proud of
posted by J -SOM at
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
PERMALINK
Lunch Break - Hyperinflation Nation
These 3 clips should be watched. Gold bug stuff bugs me but that may be a blind spot of mine.
However, I will repeat - like 'em or not - the most interesting, engaged people out there right now are not conservatives, certainly not liberals. But libertarians.
Patriotic Music: SF Gay Men's Chorus sing the National Anthem at some ball park the evil ones call "home".
However, I will repeat - like 'em or not - the most interesting, engaged people out there right now are not conservatives, certainly not liberals. But libertarians.
Patriotic Music: SF Gay Men's Chorus sing the National Anthem at some ball park the evil ones call "home".
Labels: Barack Obama, hyperinflation, hyperinflation nation, inflation, peter schiff, ron paul
posted by J -SOM at
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
PERMALINK
Monday, June 29, 2009
Green shoots or denial?
Every time I look at the CNBC business site I see conflicting information. One day an economic recovery is coming this Fall - the next it may happen "well into 2010." Cramer takes a modest upturn in housing starts and yells that the recession is over. But then other "economists" predict far worse days ahead.
Nobody knows anything.
Evidence of the recession's creep is everywhere around Los Angeles. The one homeless guy outside the nearest subway station has become 8 - of both genders. I went to the Valley on business yesterday and had a moderate shock at the number of "for lease" signs on the exteriors of now defunct business.
Yet, if one goes to The Grove - a high end outdoor mall or the adjacent Farmer's Market activity is buzzing. Americans found a way to drop 200 millions dollars this weekend seeing Tranformers...Paramount Pictures - having lopped off 10% of its work force this year - thanks you. A commenter here mentioned a recent Disney World vacation in which she observed thousands dropping the long green without a care.
Are we in a last final bout of denial? Or is it really not all that bad?
Nobody knows anything.
Evidence of the recession's creep is everywhere around Los Angeles. The one homeless guy outside the nearest subway station has become 8 - of both genders. I went to the Valley on business yesterday and had a moderate shock at the number of "for lease" signs on the exteriors of now defunct business.
Yet, if one goes to The Grove - a high end outdoor mall or the adjacent Farmer's Market activity is buzzing. Americans found a way to drop 200 millions dollars this weekend seeing Tranformers...Paramount Pictures - having lopped off 10% of its work force this year - thanks you. A commenter here mentioned a recent Disney World vacation in which she observed thousands dropping the long green without a care.
Are we in a last final bout of denial? Or is it really not all that bad?
posted by J -SOM at
Monday, June 29, 2009
PERMALINK
What is one to think about the libertarians?
What is one to think about the libertarians? I ask this with some sincerity. The next big wave in American politics is not a return of conservatism - though that is coming - it is libertarian. A repulsion against government intervention is growing. This is both par for the course for the U.S. and also based in something relatively new: The belief that the Federal government and the banks that wrecked the economy are essentially the same entity. Should Obama's interventions botch things further - which now seems likely - this perception will grow.
I don't see either party as being able to fully engage the growing libertarian impulse.
The GOP has the advantage as it has a strong libertarian wing already. However, the power of the social conservatives repel many who might find a home there. Additionally, the GOP brand is damaged severely.
Let me be up front, I type this post as an observer not a cheerleader. Hard core libertarianism make me nervous - get too far into it and it appears to be anarchy. That said, I am essentially a pessimist now. The credit based economy is kaput. Obama's chance to re-vision a truly new basis for American strength - mostly by demanding sacrifice and speaking harsh truths - has been blown. Obama's problem has been that he talks in broad strokes but his actions, in the end, are cautious. He talks as if he got a mandate -which he did - but he governs as if he won a mere plurality.
So who has the animating ideas going forward? The only potential I see to galvanize a broad swatch of Americans lies with the libertarians.
Whether I like it or not.
I don't see either party as being able to fully engage the growing libertarian impulse.
The GOP has the advantage as it has a strong libertarian wing already. However, the power of the social conservatives repel many who might find a home there. Additionally, the GOP brand is damaged severely.
Let me be up front, I type this post as an observer not a cheerleader. Hard core libertarianism make me nervous - get too far into it and it appears to be anarchy. That said, I am essentially a pessimist now. The credit based economy is kaput. Obama's chance to re-vision a truly new basis for American strength - mostly by demanding sacrifice and speaking harsh truths - has been blown. Obama's problem has been that he talks in broad strokes but his actions, in the end, are cautious. He talks as if he got a mandate -which he did - but he governs as if he won a mere plurality.
So who has the animating ideas going forward? The only potential I see to galvanize a broad swatch of Americans lies with the libertarians.
Whether I like it or not.
posted by J -SOM at
Monday, June 29, 2009
PERMALINK
Lunch Break- things I read this weekend.
GayBee Boom - Jesse Levey is a Republican activist who says he believes in family values, small government and his lesbian mothers' right to marry.
(The GOP needs to ditch the social conservatives by the side of the road. ASAP. There is a libertarian streak out that that the GOP is missing out on...Why aren't the libertarians taking advantage either???)
History News Network: the hunger pangs of some liberals have caused them to hallucinate.
Crooks and Liars: British Rum maker got 2.7 Billion in TARP Cash - (that's our money FYI)
Good News or Bad News? Female politicians star in graphic novel.
Our Timid President : For President Obama to be following events rather than leading them is part of a pattern
Two dipshits, one DEM one GOP: Two state senators refuse to take pay cuts - and my favorite part - one state senator actually said this about his pay:"What I get paid is personal. I don't discuss what I do personally. I don't choose to make anything I do on my personal side public."
No dude - what you get paid as a state senator is PUBLIC because it is our money that pays you, numbnuts.
Music - this week my favorite Independence Day /patriotic themed songs:
(The GOP needs to ditch the social conservatives by the side of the road. ASAP. There is a libertarian streak out that that the GOP is missing out on...Why aren't the libertarians taking advantage either???)
History News Network: the hunger pangs of some liberals have caused them to hallucinate.
Crooks and Liars: British Rum maker got 2.7 Billion in TARP Cash - (that's our money FYI)
Good News or Bad News? Female politicians star in graphic novel.
Our Timid President : For President Obama to be following events rather than leading them is part of a pattern
Two dipshits, one DEM one GOP: Two state senators refuse to take pay cuts - and my favorite part - one state senator actually said this about his pay:"What I get paid is personal. I don't discuss what I do personally. I don't choose to make anything I do on my personal side public."
No dude - what you get paid as a state senator is PUBLIC because it is our money that pays you, numbnuts.
Music - this week my favorite Independence Day /patriotic themed songs:
Labels: budget crisis, California, delusions, Hillary Clinton, Obama the coward, roderick wright, Sarah Palin
posted by J -SOM at
Monday, June 29, 2009
PERMALINK
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Let's start the week with a big, hearty TOLD YA SO!
I feel I have not screamed: TOLD YA SO! in a while. I fully intend to keep on yelling it to, at, and toward any and all Obots for the duration. I was pretty sure I was right about Obama all along... though, of course, not 100% sure. He could have surprised everyone and been the great AMERICAN HOPE that was packaged and sold relentlessly and ruthlessly last year...
I girded my gut for some crow...even here on the outskirts. But I shall be eating none.
There is no need to rehash the list of his duplicity so far...it is already legion...The removal of 42 mountaintops in West Virgina and the defense of DOMA are the most disgusting and despicable. Yet, there is specific Obama bullshit galore. Not to mention the general creeping malaise setting in on the Left as they process and rationalize their own stupidity and denial.
The malaise is there too for those on the Right and in the middle who bought the crap. But it is not nearly as juicy as watching the the two-bit faux liberal Obama deadenders have the vice grip of THE ONE'S fraudulence slowly squeeze the air out of their lungs. The REALLY good news: It's still early! The "ohmigod, we were duped!" show has many acts yet to be seen...
"WE TOLD YOU SO!"
When they start admitting they were wrong in droves I may feel some compassion. But not much.
Immature? Probably. Sometime after the 50th email telling me I was a racist, the 60th use of the C word to describe Clinton, the 70th time I watched otherwise sane people lose their minds - quite literally - while discussing Obama and Olbermann threatening Clinton's life...I stopped giving a shit if I appear "immature." It was hard enough saying "Are you out of your fucking mind?" to people I thought were sane...What was harder? Realizing that the answer was nearly always "Yes." They were, in fact, out of their minds.
I intend to continue typing "WE TOLD YOU SO" here. The grapes are not sour at all - if fact they get sweeter by the day.
What we said was happening was happening. What we said would happen in an Obama presidency is happening.
As I wrote in January Obama can't violate my trust because I have none in him . Nor can he disappoint. Anyone who paid attention knew who he was/is. A con man revealed only disappoints the conned.
There is a similarity between those who lost their fortunes to Madoff and those who sold their principles off (for a song) to Obama. Neither group asked questions. Both groups were taken in by appearances. Both groups felt good about what they were doing.
So who is really immature here? The bloggers pointing out that Obama - the politician -is nothing like Obama - the commodity - and taking some rightful happiness in being right? Or the buffoons who trashed Clinton so they could feel good about voting for the shill who made them...feel good?
Get used to "WE TOLD YOU SO!" Obots. It is getting louder everyday.
Today brings us 2 fun examples -
Exhibit A: Obama's lies about transparency:
Exhibit B: Cheney Wins!
Obama forgets all his "moral urgency" regarding detainees.
Also for the MSM take read this.
George W. Obama has arrived.
I girded my gut for some crow...even here on the outskirts. But I shall be eating none.
There is no need to rehash the list of his duplicity so far...it is already legion...The removal of 42 mountaintops in West Virgina and the defense of DOMA are the most disgusting and despicable. Yet, there is specific Obama bullshit galore. Not to mention the general creeping malaise setting in on the Left as they process and rationalize their own stupidity and denial.
The malaise is there too for those on the Right and in the middle who bought the crap. But it is not nearly as juicy as watching the the two-bit faux liberal Obama deadenders have the vice grip of THE ONE'S fraudulence slowly squeeze the air out of their lungs. The REALLY good news: It's still early! The "ohmigod, we were duped!" show has many acts yet to be seen...
"WE TOLD YOU SO!"
When they start admitting they were wrong in droves I may feel some compassion. But not much.
Immature? Probably. Sometime after the 50th email telling me I was a racist, the 60th use of the C word to describe Clinton, the 70th time I watched otherwise sane people lose their minds - quite literally - while discussing Obama and Olbermann threatening Clinton's life...I stopped giving a shit if I appear "immature." It was hard enough saying "Are you out of your fucking mind?" to people I thought were sane...What was harder? Realizing that the answer was nearly always "Yes." They were, in fact, out of their minds.
I intend to continue typing "WE TOLD YOU SO" here. The grapes are not sour at all - if fact they get sweeter by the day.
What we said was happening was happening. What we said would happen in an Obama presidency is happening.
As I wrote in January Obama can't violate my trust because I have none in him . Nor can he disappoint. Anyone who paid attention knew who he was/is. A con man revealed only disappoints the conned.
There is a similarity between those who lost their fortunes to Madoff and those who sold their principles off (for a song) to Obama. Neither group asked questions. Both groups were taken in by appearances. Both groups felt good about what they were doing.
So who is really immature here? The bloggers pointing out that Obama - the politician -is nothing like Obama - the commodity - and taking some rightful happiness in being right? Or the buffoons who trashed Clinton so they could feel good about voting for the shill who made them...feel good?
Get used to "WE TOLD YOU SO!" Obots. It is getting louder everyday.
Today brings us 2 fun examples -
Exhibit A: Obama's lies about transparency:
| The Daily Show With Jon Stewart | Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c | |||
| Cheney Predacted | ||||
| ||||
Exhibit B: Cheney Wins!
Obama forgets all his "moral urgency" regarding detainees.
Also for the MSM take read this.
George W. Obama has arrived.
posted by J -SOM at
Saturday, June 27, 2009
PERMALINK
Leading demonstrators must be executed, Ayatollah Khatami demands
How long will Obama insist we must negotiate with a regime that says this?- Leading demonstrators must be executed, Ayatollah Khatami demands
Obviously the slow ramping up of rhetoric against the Iranian regime that took place in the Obama administration within the last few weeks - as Iran erupted, and domestic politics about Iran in the United States heated up - was seen for what it was: weakness.
I am hardly a hawk but playing footsie with Iran is never a good idea. Obama's hesitation to speak clearly about democratic values immediately and forcefully did little except buy the regime time for its current - and brutal - crackdown.
Obama has maintained a fantasy about Iran since saying during the campaign that he would engage in direct negotiations with the current regime. Now it looks like this obsessions with "giving Iran time" and "remaining open to negotiations" is rank inexperience.
Obama insisted that his reticence to speak up early was to avoid the prospect of the United States being used as a propaganda tool by the Iranian regime. This needs to be called out: Taking a principled stance takes precedence over fear of what an authoritarian regime might do internally. Standing clearly for the rights of the demonstrators early on should not have been optional - for any American President. Why was Obama initially more concerned about the Iranian regime than the demonstrators?
As the Iranian government strengthens its grip, Obama is in an even weaker postilion for not claiming the high ground immediately.
Obviously the slow ramping up of rhetoric against the Iranian regime that took place in the Obama administration within the last few weeks - as Iran erupted, and domestic politics about Iran in the United States heated up - was seen for what it was: weakness.
I am hardly a hawk but playing footsie with Iran is never a good idea. Obama's hesitation to speak clearly about democratic values immediately and forcefully did little except buy the regime time for its current - and brutal - crackdown.
Obama has maintained a fantasy about Iran since saying during the campaign that he would engage in direct negotiations with the current regime. Now it looks like this obsessions with "giving Iran time" and "remaining open to negotiations" is rank inexperience.
Obama insisted that his reticence to speak up early was to avoid the prospect of the United States being used as a propaganda tool by the Iranian regime. This needs to be called out: Taking a principled stance takes precedence over fear of what an authoritarian regime might do internally. Standing clearly for the rights of the demonstrators early on should not have been optional - for any American President. Why was Obama initially more concerned about the Iranian regime than the demonstrators?
As the Iranian government strengthens its grip, Obama is in an even weaker postilion for not claiming the high ground immediately.
posted by J -SOM at
Saturday, June 27, 2009
PERMALINK
Saturday Night Movie - The Future of Food - a horror story
Please do not watch this movie if you are in a happy place... However if your loins are girded and you care about food and farmers - The Future of Food is shocking and informative.
posted by J -SOM at
Saturday, June 27, 2009
PERMALINK
Friday, June 26, 2009
Saturday Stuff
What does Hillary know?
Stuff going on the background around the U.S. dollar is scary and getting scarier. What does it mean if this is true? Some U.S. embassies worldwide are being advised to purchase massive amounts of local currencies; enough to last them a year. Whoa. Remember Hillary's quote when she was asked in New Hampshire why she was running, "cried" and said "Because I see what's coming..." Also remember that her first official trip overseas as SoS was to China- not the customary Europe. China again called for a non dollar reserve currency on Friday. The devastation a run on the dollar would bring to all of us is impossible to calculate. But it would be devastating. Like the American economy itself, the Humpty Dumpty dollar is wobbling on the fence, hoping reality doesn't hop along and give it a shove. Brazil, Russia, India, and China appear ready to shove at any moment. And lest the tin foil crew feel left out, the Web Bot pegs the dollars decline and final "death" as occurring between Fall of 09 and March of '10. The dollar will be "rejected by all" within 6 months.
Damn You, web bots!!!
Are conservatives to soft on conservatives? The bible literalists who spend many a happy hour bashing gays because of a few bible verses are mighty forgiving of Conservative adulterers as Joe Conason points out here. The biblical punishment for adultery is death by stoning. I have yet to see a right winger pitch at stone at Newt, Sanford, Vitter, or Ensign. But lordy, lordy, say "Lewinsky" to one of them and watch them froth. I guess I don't have the translation of the bible that includes the phrase "Forgive the Republicans but keep on trashing the Democrats with all the invective at your command."
Speaking of men of "God", is anyone surprised that Jesse Jackson visits Jackson's Encino home?
If you build platforms for TV cameras Jesse will come. Like a fly to...
I actually have no opinion on Cap and Trade. Politically it is interesting that the House eked it through. If it survives the Senate, Rahm will be the man of the hour. Greenpeace has already condemned it as too weak from the Left and the GOP will throw all the firepower it has to kill it from the Right- and bring Barry own a notch in the process. Less principled GOPs, thinking in the long term, might want it to pass. Every bit of the sour economy that lasts until 2010 - and many, many bits will last, can be hung on this bill if the GOP so chooses.
We are leaving the "honeymoon" phase of Obama's term and - with this bill - entering the "Carter" phase. This is the type of bill that "Carterizes" a President. Everything about it just feels eggheady, over-thought, and birthed from the ivory tower. I sense the first phase of the Obama Presidency ended the moment the House passed the bill.
Stuff going on the background around the U.S. dollar is scary and getting scarier. What does it mean if this is true? Some U.S. embassies worldwide are being advised to purchase massive amounts of local currencies; enough to last them a year. Whoa. Remember Hillary's quote when she was asked in New Hampshire why she was running, "cried" and said "Because I see what's coming..." Also remember that her first official trip overseas as SoS was to China- not the customary Europe. China again called for a non dollar reserve currency on Friday. The devastation a run on the dollar would bring to all of us is impossible to calculate. But it would be devastating. Like the American economy itself, the Humpty Dumpty dollar is wobbling on the fence, hoping reality doesn't hop along and give it a shove. Brazil, Russia, India, and China appear ready to shove at any moment. And lest the tin foil crew feel left out, the Web Bot pegs the dollars decline and final "death" as occurring between Fall of 09 and March of '10. The dollar will be "rejected by all" within 6 months.
Damn You, web bots!!!
Are conservatives to soft on conservatives? The bible literalists who spend many a happy hour bashing gays because of a few bible verses are mighty forgiving of Conservative adulterers as Joe Conason points out here. The biblical punishment for adultery is death by stoning. I have yet to see a right winger pitch at stone at Newt, Sanford, Vitter, or Ensign. But lordy, lordy, say "Lewinsky" to one of them and watch them froth. I guess I don't have the translation of the bible that includes the phrase "Forgive the Republicans but keep on trashing the Democrats with all the invective at your command."
Speaking of men of "God", is anyone surprised that Jesse Jackson visits Jackson's Encino home?
If you build platforms for TV cameras Jesse will come. Like a fly to...
I actually have no opinion on Cap and Trade. Politically it is interesting that the House eked it through. If it survives the Senate, Rahm will be the man of the hour. Greenpeace has already condemned it as too weak from the Left and the GOP will throw all the firepower it has to kill it from the Right- and bring Barry own a notch in the process. Less principled GOPs, thinking in the long term, might want it to pass. Every bit of the sour economy that lasts until 2010 - and many, many bits will last, can be hung on this bill if the GOP so chooses.
We are leaving the "honeymoon" phase of Obama's term and - with this bill - entering the "Carter" phase. This is the type of bill that "Carterizes" a President. Everything about it just feels eggheady, over-thought, and birthed from the ivory tower. I sense the first phase of the Obama Presidency ended the moment the House passed the bill.
posted by J -SOM at
Friday, June 26, 2009
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Strong women
Okay she needs a better writer...but good on Palin for hitting back at Kerry. The latte liberal need to take cheap shots at Palin goes on.
Speaking of no bull women check out Mrs. Sanford:
Meanwhile, with unemployment at 10% I wonder how much the Obama's luah set us back?
Speaking of no bull women check out Mrs. Sanford:
Meanwhile, with unemployment at 10% I wonder how much the Obama's luah set us back?
posted by J -SOM at
Friday, June 26, 2009
PERMALINK
Lunch Break- dollar decline, weenie fight, Babs, beefcake...
Is this columnist reading L.R.? The Republican party platform should be one line long: We will stay out of your pocketbook and out of your private life.
He Touched Me! Waters and Obey fight over who is prissier and hissier.
Dollar Decline: Fading of the Dollar's Dominance
Not Scared yet? Start freakin now: "Some U.S. embassies worldwide are being advised to purchase massive amounts of local currencies; enough to last them a year. Some embassies are being sent enormous amounts of U.S. cash to purchase currencies from those governments, quietly. But not pound sterling. Inside the State Dept., there is a sense of sadness and foreboding that 'something' is about to happen...within 180 days, but could be 120-150 days." Read the rest here.
BeefCake for Nell: Yesterday 3 pics of scantily clad women were seen on L.R. I try to be egalitarian thru and thru...so here are 5 shirtless men - plus Rafa smiling. He's not playing at Wimbledon and well... it ain't the same.
Have a great weekend! Enjoy yourself. It's later than you think.
He Touched Me! Waters and Obey fight over who is prissier and hissier.
Dollar Decline: Fading of the Dollar's Dominance
Not Scared yet? Start freakin now: "Some U.S. embassies worldwide are being advised to purchase massive amounts of local currencies; enough to last them a year. Some embassies are being sent enormous amounts of U.S. cash to purchase currencies from those governments, quietly. But not pound sterling. Inside the State Dept., there is a sense of sadness and foreboding that 'something' is about to happen...within 180 days, but could be 120-150 days." Read the rest here.
BeefCake for Nell: Yesterday 3 pics of scantily clad women were seen on L.R. I try to be egalitarian thru and thru...so here are 5 shirtless men - plus Rafa smiling. He's not playing at Wimbledon and well... it ain't the same.
Have a great weekend! Enjoy yourself. It's later than you think.
Labels: beefcake pics, crash, dollar
posted by J -SOM at
Friday, June 26, 2009
PERMALINK