Saturday, March 13, 2010

Thomas Jefferson, Author of the Greatest Political Document in History, Cut by the Texan Fascists

That’s right, the author of the Declaration of Independence, Virginia’s Constitution, and America’s transcendent Renaissance man was simply too un-Christian for the dentist McLeroy and the religious extremists on the Texas Board of Re-Education. The violence committed against our nation’s glorious history and some of our enduring historical icons by these Nazi bastards is so immense that one doesn’t even know where to begin. This must NOT be allowed to stand. Educated people throughout this land must rise up against the Medievalist Religious Right and say ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!

Quotable: Adolf Hitler’s Ghost Gives Texas Board of Education the Nazi Salute

"Through clever and constant application of propaganda, people can be made to see paradise as hell, and also the other way round."
Mein Kampf, by Adolf Hitler-- p. 376

What Makes America Any Better Than a Totalitarian State

. . . when this is allowed to happen:
AUSTIN, Texas — A far-right faction of the Texas State Board of Education succeeded Friday in injecting conservative ideals into social studies, history and economics lessons that will be taught to millions of students for the next decade.
These right wing bastards do not know the FIRST or LAST thing about their nation’s history, run their mouths about the “tyranny” of the state, and then use the FASCIST STATE OF TEXAS to ram this religious fundamentalist garbage masquerading as history and social studies down the throats of our kids, parents, and teachers for decades to come. And then we ask ourselves why OLDER generations of Americans are generally better educated than YOUNGER generations.

This should NOT EVER be about left or right, or any political agendas. It should be about HISTORY and FACTS and WHAT REALLY HAPPENED. What can be more utterly despicable and undemocratic than that a right wing dentist, who is not a teacher or historian or academic, and who was defeated for reelection because he is an ignorant extremist, should DECIDE a FANTASTICAL social studies CURRICULUM FILLED WITH LIES for the rest of the country.

Exposing Teabagger Racism

Teabaggers are playing a shell game in their recruitment efforts by sidestepping social issues such as abortion and gay marriage because, as one Teabagger leader said, “focusing on economic issues lures Democrats.” First, it isn’t working. Second, it’s like being “a little pregnant” or Hitler trading his Nazi Party swastika for a coat and tie while embracing Hindenburg to appear mainstream to the German people. (Hitler made it happen.)

There’s no “Tea Party” here, as these low-information rank-and-file voters prefer to be called. They’re Teabaggers today, tomorrow, and forever. There’s nothing more vile, obscene, and pornographic than unvarnished racism. Whether it’s manifested by the corporate tools of Dick Armey’s FreedomWorks or xenophobic “Tea Party Patriots,” racism is on full display at Teabagger rallies and demonstrations. (And for those who say the RNC’s use of the Teabagger poster of President Obama isn’t racist, consider this: What would you call portraying our African American president with a painted WHITE face? If you can’t see the connection, then you need to revisit your own attitudes about race.)

This is the face of Teabagger racism, as documented by a Latino watchdog group, Cuéntame, which literally means “Tell me.” Click at the top of video 2 to see part 3 and so on:






Thursday, March 11, 2010

Setting the Record Straight: Sean Penn on the U.S. Military's Role in Haiti

“I believe this was a strictly HUMANITARIAN action on the part of the United States military, and an incredible one.”

Actor Sean Penn on the U.S. military’s role in Haiti, giving credit where credit is due while discussing Venezuelan president Hugo Chávez on the Bill Maher show. (Neither Penn nor Maher could pronounce the man’s name properly, as would be expected.)

While in Haiti, Penn gave an interview to Geraldo Rivera of Fox “News” in which he said: “People are suffering and a lot of people are doing their best –- the U.S. military and human aid groups –- to help them.” Penn continued, “the military is doing the most extraordinary job” and the “positive reporting, reporting of positive actions by the United States ... I can say has been unbelievable, unbelievable -- and meant and felt.”

I only post this because you wouldn’t know it from reading the far left blogs; it would clash with the narrative promoted by Chávez and Fidel (not all Cuban media) of the U.S. military as an “invasion” force, setting President Obama up as some sort of de facto ruler of Haiti backed by U.S. military might.

This particular fantasy has roots in the checkered history of the U.S. relationship with Latin America, but it’s simply not true, except to those who believe every anti-American declaration coming from the usual suspects.

Sean Penn has been generous with his time and consistent in the interviews he grants, whether he is speaking to Cuban or Venezuelan media or to Fox News. He has recognized the “incredible” humanitarian role played by the U.S. military. But he cannot control how his interviews are edited by Fox or Venezuelan and Cuban media. Nor can he control the selective way the far left uses his words to attack the United States. At least Bill Maher’s interview was LIVE.

If anything, as Haiti president René Préval came to Washington seeking a renewal of direct U.S. aid to Haiti, the relief efforts have been decentralized. Of the $2 billion in assistance, mostly to aid groups, the UN and development agencies, fully half of it has come from Americans. Ironically, Penn opposes the U.S. scaling back its military presence in Haiti from a peak of 20,000 on February 1 to about 8,000 in the coming days, which puts him at odds with the purveyors of the military “invasion” fantasy.

Tuesday, March 09, 2010

Quotable: Eric Massa on Rham Emanuel

“I went into the showers...I'm sitting there showering, naked as a jaybird and here comes Rahm Emanuel not even with a towel wrapped around his tush, poking his finger in my chest, yelling at me because I wasn't going to vote for the president's budget. Do you know how awkward it is to have a political argument with a naked man?”
Resigning ex-Congressman Eric Massa, slamming Rham Emanuel, as “an individual who would sell his mother to get a vote. He would strap his children to the front end of a steam locomotive.”

I don’t know about you, but the image of Rhambo getting naked with Eric Massa, trying to browbeat him into voting with the President seems admirable in a strange and funny kind of way . . . well beyond the call of duty. I’m warming to Rham already. And I can’t wait to see what SNL does with this material!

As for Eric Massa’s long goodbye: It’s sad and pathetic. Even Glenn Beck apologized to his audience for giving Massa the entire hour of his show. Beck got nothing except Massa’s admission of inappropriate behavior, and a lot of irrelevant weirdness inbetween.

Updating the New Political Lexicon


This was posted by Steve Benen as part of an ongoing update of our current political dictionaries. Fell free to add your own entries:
Obstructionism, for example, only refers to Democratic minorities opposing Republican proposals.

Tyranny is found when an elected Democratic majority passes legislation that Republicans don't like.

Reconciliation describes a Senate process that Republicans are allowed to use to overcome Democratic “obstructionism.”

Terrorism refers to acts of political violence committed by people who aren't white guys.

Bipartisanship is found when Democrats agree to pass Republican legislation.

Big government describes a dangerous phenomenon to be avoided, except in cases relating to reproductive rights or gays.

Treason refers to Democrats criticizing a Republican administration during a war.

Patriotism refers to Republicans criticizing a Democratic administration during a war.

Fiscal responsibility is a national priority related to keeping our deficit in check, which only applies when Republicans are in the minority.

Parliamentarian
is a seemingly independent official on the Hill who Senate Republicans are allowed to fire when the GOP disapproves of his/her rulings.

Government-run healthcare doesn't refer to popular government-run health care programs like Medicare.

The heartland is the most wonderful place in America, even if no conservative pundit would be caught dead living there.

Serving your country is honorable if you're a Republican, but a subject of derision when Democrats do it.
My contributions:
Congressional Budget Office (CBO) is a seemingly independent agency that is called "god" by Republicans when it scores their bills favorably and "partisan" when it says Democratic bills will reduce the deficit.

Start over
means scrapping the healthcare bills passed by the House and Senate, including Republican obstruction of any efforts to restart healthcare reform before, and after, the 2010 elections.

Medicare is government-run healthcare for angry white seniors at town hall meetings and Tea Party rallies, and no one else.

Socialist is any Democrat who supports healthcare reform and regulation of the worst abuses of insurance companies, including a ban on preexisting conditions and lifetime benefit caps, requiring insurers to spend at least 80 cents on the dollar delivering healthcare, and covering 31 million instead of 3 million uninsured Americans.

Al Quaeda terrorist is any one of seven Justice Department attorneys who have in the past provided legal representation for individuals accused of terrorism.

Fear is what Republicans sow when they want to kill bills or raise money.

Reactionary is what the RNC calls a member of its donor base who contributes less than $30,000.

The Evil Empire is a term Republicans use for President Obama’s Democratic Party, a.k.a “democrat party” within GOP leadership circles.

Nuclear option is what a Republican minority calls democratic majority rule.

Limited government means exploding the debt with tax cuts for the super-rich, privatizing Social Security to the devices of Wall Street, killing Medicare and throwing seniors under the bus with a token voucher, and doubling the Pentagon budget while waging perpetual wars (three) that are unpaid for.

George Orwell is author of the Republican political manifesto, "1984."
Now you!

Monday, March 08, 2010

Sarah Palin Compares Self to G-O-D

Writing notes on palm . . . GoddoneIt TOO! says Sister Sarah:
“But then somebody sent me the other day, Isaiah 49:16, and you need to go home and look it up. Before you look it up, I'll tell you what it says though. It says, hey, if it was good enough for God, scribbling on the palm of his hand, it's good enough for me, for us. He says, in that passage, ‘I wrote your name on the palm of my hand to remember you,’ and I'm like, ‘Okay, I’m in good company.’”


Clinically termed the “narcissistic personality,” in non-psychiatric language this is called the “God Complex.”
“A god complex is a colloquial term used to portray a perceived character flaw as if it were a ‘psychological complex.’ The person who is said to have a ‘God complex’ can act so arrogantly that she might as well believe she is a god or appointed to act by a god. It is also often called the Messianic complex.”
Source: Wikipedia

Quotable: Sarah Palin on Canadian Healthcare

“ We used to hustle over the border for health care we received in Canada. And I think now, isn't that ironic? ”
Sarah Palin, viralizer of the “Death Panels” myth, confessing her staggering, unashamed hypocrisy during her first Canadian appearance.

Unlike the Palins, who are despicable freeloaders, the reality of it is that Americans desperate for healthcare who do not have the millions the Palins do, “hustle” across both borders to get critical healthcare. Americans make frequent trips to Canada to purchase the same maintenance medications (hypertension, cholesterol, you name it), and go to Mexico for high quality surgeries such as hip replacement, at a fraction of their U.S. cost.

Sarah Palin is such an evil woman (in the Biblical sense), that if she truly believes in God she’s got an express ticket punched straight to Hell.

Sunday, March 07, 2010

Quotable: Dan Rather

“This will be the history of the Bush-Cheney Administration as told to Hans Christian Andersen”

Dan Rather, on the yet to be released George W. Bush and Dick Cheney memoirs