Saturday, June 25, 2011

COME ON, COME THROUGH NEW YORK, NEW YORK!

Congratulations New York for becoming the LARGEST state in the union to legalize marriage equality! And congratulations to New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, who said he would make this a top priority of his administration, and actually followed through on his promise. What a concept! And to the New York State legislators for the courage to vote their conscience in a dignified display, for the entire nation to see, of what public service can be at its ideal best: to promote justice and extend the boundaries of equality and opportunity for all citizens.

With Governor Cuomo's signature, New York State formalized marriage equality for all, regardless of color, creed, gender, or sexual orientation. The law takes effect in 30 days, which means a lot of same-sex couples can start making their mark in state marriage registers as early as late July.


Here's to the LGBT community for its never-say-never struggle down a long, often tortuous road toward the most basic of human rights, the right of a person to marry and enjoy the full privileges of marriage under the law. And to those stone-hearted fools who protested the vote with chants of "USA, USA" I am reminded of a song by the great Chilean poet Violeta Parra when her country was in the grip of a brutal dictatorship. She sang despairingly that it stood "at the center of injustice." After last night's vote, "USA, USA" no longer stands at the center of injustice for millions more of its citizens.

New York's Empire State Building, below, was shining brightly in the colors of the LGBT rainbow last night.  


Are you taking notes, President Obama? 

When does "evolve" become never having to say you're sorry?

Friday, June 24, 2011

IS TEXAS GOVERNOR AND ERSTWHILE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE, RICK PERRY, GAY?

IMAGINE the headline: FIRST GAY PRESIDENT A REPUBLICAN GOVERNOR FROM TEXAS

NO NO. NOT THAT GOVERNOR! Perry. RICK PERRY.

Paul (EDDIE MUNSTER) Ryan: People HATE ME ... THEY REALLY, REALLY HATE ME!

A shocking poll to wingnut idolaters of GOP budget MUNSTER Paul Ryan shows he is the THIRD MOST DISLIKED REPUBLICAN BEHIND NEWT GINGRICH AND SARAH PALIN. This despite Ryan's compelling, widely publicized workout routine — as it's SOOO important to the republic — and Randian self-identification as the second coming of John Galt, all of which are designed to tweak the homo-erotic synapses of the male wingnut brain. Unfortunately for Ryan and the GOP, most Americans never heard of Ayn Rand and would probably view her as a weirdo if they did, and are largely unimpressed by Ryan's abs.

CHARTVIEW: Republican Govs TANK In The Polls As They RAM THRU RADICAL AGENDA

Sometimes when you see it in chart format the macro picture becomes much clearer than words on a screen can express. The first thing that should come to mind for any casual observer is that there is a theme and cohesion to the unpopularity of these thugs that is illuminating.

Their sliding numbers escape regional boundaries. Their radical schemes are remarkably similar for the so-called 'states rights' (i.e., 'independent') party, with a top-down agenda that includes, first, an all-out assault on public employee unions with a focus on destroying collective bargaining, slashing pension and retirement benefits, layoffs of teachers, firefighters, nurses, and police officers — in short, vilifying government employees based on an ideological conviction that these public servants are as unpopular with the American people as they are among right wing Republicans.

Second, passing tax breaks for donor corporations and businesses, giving lie to the claim that state budgets are in such dire straits that the sacrifice must be "equally shared" (a common campaign theme, and A LIE). Third, privatization of EVERYTHING from schools to prisons to mental health facilities ; fourth, a war on the poor and vulnerable populations with cruel and draconian cuts to Medicaid, unemployment benefits, food programs for children; and fifth, all of it dovetailing onto a war against women, with a compulsive, male-obsessive focus on defunding essential health services for women, AND MOSTLY WOMEN, provided by Planned Parenthood, as an ideologically driven culture war backdoor assault on LEGAL abortions.

Abortions are an infinitesimal part of what Planned Parenthood does — only about 3 percent of its women's health services — while the vast majority of its services are the essential medical screenings for breast cancer, pap smears, testing for sexually transmitted diseases, birth control pills, etc. All of which contribute to healthy communities and prevent the very things these extremist Republicans claim to be against: unwanted pregnancies that lead to more abortions, and increased incidences of disease from sexually transmitted illnesses to cancer. The ultimate result of the GOP's ideological war on women is to place an enormous strain on those health care providers that must necessarily pick up the slack, and taxpayers, as always, who must pick up the costs passed along by their own health providers.

Do these Republican RATBASTARDS care? Of course not. They're thugs and extremists. They have hoodwinked the so-called "message voters" into sending a message they never intended to BUT SHOULD HAVE ANTICIPATED HAD THEY BEEN PAYING ATTENTION. The 'American people', as the Republicans like to say, did NOT vote to destroy Medicare, kill collective bargaining and target public employee unions at the expense of fat cat corporations and donors (Koch brothers), raise taxes on the middle class to defund Planned Parenthood, close schools, lay off teachers, firefighters, and police officers, or grant their governments extraordinary powers to declare entire communities and townships bankrupt and assume state control over localities.


Is this what you stand for, Teabaggers? Dictatorial, strong-arm government? Crony capitalism and shafting the middle class, YOUR CLASS! Traitors. Even though the polls clearly show the people's paralyzing shock at what the extremists they elected are doing, the call to action is still reserved for the activists among us. While people are paralyzed by the radical extremist tsunami unleashed by these well funded Republicans, still they must GET OFF THEIR FUCKING ASSES AND FIGHT BACK TO RETAKE THEIR DEMOCRACY.

We've already learned that the Democratic Party cannot be counted on to carry this fight without the people pushing them. Despite his disapproval rating being higher than his approval (low 40 percentile) Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey, who is not on this chart, scored a major victory when the Democratic controlled state Assembly passed his union busting bill with the help of a handful of turncoat Democrats, including the Assembly Leader. In Washington, the Democrats are getting ready to make CRAVEN AND DESPICABLE CONCESSIONS OF TRILLIONS IN CUTS WHILE THE REPUBLICANS PLAY A HOSTAGE-TAKING GAME IN WHICH THEY ARE THREATENING TO TANK THE WORLD ECONOMY IF DEMOCRATS DO NOT AGREE TO THEIR TERMS.

Where's the outrage? PLEASE. Where.IS.the.OUTRAGE?!

Thursday, June 23, 2011

Idiotic Mutterings Of The Idiot Punditocracy: Chuck Todd

Overheard at the Cathedral of the Idiot Punditocracy, Meet The Press:
“I don’t think … in this environment, David Vitter would have survived — in this environment.”
~Chuck Todd, MSNBC ‘Political Director” and ‘Chief WH Correspondent’. 
Whaaat?! Excuse me …? Come again, Chuckie …Please to explain.

It's been said that Chuck goes into a cold sweat if asked to proffer any political opinion that may show his bias. Commendable, except he flippantly tosses out self-serving Beltway Media exculpatory statements (of the right wing) like this one. Pearls of wisdom from the Idiot Punditocracy. He’s also been observed asking inane questions at presidential pressers … which must be why the President so enjoys calling on him. It’s like getting a breather down the backstretch.

So what is different from when the Vitter Diaper & Hookers scandal broke in 2007,  just about four years ago, and now? Well, a couple of things. The President was a Republican. The House was Democratic but Vitter was (and IS) a senator. Also, the Senate was in Democratic hands, but by a wider margin.

Twitter and Facebook existed then, as did Fox, CNN, MSNBC, NBC, ABC, CBS, E! Tonight, yadayadayada. And so did the vaunted 24-hour news cycle. So what has changed in the “climate” from then to now for Chuckie to assert Vitter would not survive his scandal today?

Nothing of substance that I can see. Nothing, that is, unless it is Chuckie’s contention that Anthony Weiner wasn’t hounded out of office by a partisan coalition of hypocritical Republicans, timid Democrats, and a “media circus” that is no different today than it could be, say … in 2007.

Those same Republican hypocrites who backed Vitter in 2007 would do the same today, knowing full well the Democrats couldn’t do a thing to change the dynamics. So what has changed today? Nothing but Chuckie’s compulsion to find moral and partisan equivalence where there is none.

David Vitter would survive his sex scandal today as surely as the Republican logo contains Satanic symbology. It's true! The Republican logo (below) was redesigned around 2000 with the inverted Satanic pentagram star. Check it out:

Power Failure, A Nation Gone Medieval

This blog was off the grid for some 14 hours between late Tuesday evening and Thursday as a result of violent thunderstorms that rolled through Illinois cutting power for 280,000 utility company customers. It was a major disruption, but nothing compared to the depredations suffered by red state populations — because that’s just the way violent weather patterns roll in the U.S. — as a result of monster storms, tornados, flooding, hurricanes, and wildfires caused by climate change.

And yet those people, the Teabaggers, who insist as an article of faith that global warming does not exist, will continue to vote anti-science politicians into office and seek answers to scientific questions about the true nature of our planet in a book of fairy tales called the Bible. They build creationist theme parks glorifying anti-science with taxpayer dollars and construct scale models of Noah’s Ark — which may yet come in handy when sea levels rise to engulf coastal communities and cities — puzzling over where the dinosaurs were placed. It always comes down to a vision or a voice or a dream: When this dude's name is an anagram for you-know-who, are delusions of grandeur that far behind? It's downright scary, though, when politicians running for president stake their claim to reality on a vision or a voice in their head.

Here’s Chris Matthews being sane, for one segment of his schizoid show, when he stands against the worst of his colleagues in the Idiot Punditocracy:


On CNN, Wolf Blitzer speculated whether Gore would primary challenge President Obama. How stupid is that? If anything, Al Gore has not only refocused our attention on the critically important issue of climate change, but has reminded us that there is a progressive alternative to corporate-controlled media represented by CNN and MSNBC. And that is Gore’s CURRENT TV, now home to Keith Olbermann and Countdown. As Keith says in his signoff, “thank you for helping us preserve freedom of news.”

Here, in Worst Persons, the reborn segment of the show that was considered too (inconvenient? Edgy? Inflammatory?) whatever … intolerable for the MSNBC suits, Keith skewers Rick Santorum (whom idiot pundit Chuckie Todd calls a “social conservative”) for insane views that are widely held in the Republican/Tea Party.

Por otro ejemplo, John McCain typifies how totally insane the Republican/Tea Party has become. Gramps is a disgraceful caricature of his former self, back when he believed in science and actually proposed carbon tax legislation. But that was before he saw the light. The Gramps McCain of today panders shamelessly to the ignorant rabble, blaming illegal immigrants for starting the wildfires in Arizona, then doubling down when every state authority denied this was the case. In fact, wildfires are just another destructive by-product of climate change coming, as they do, on the heels of extreme periods of drought that wreak havoc with crop cycles and turn the arid land into a huge tinderbox.

The cycle of anti-science/history/civics ignorance is great for end-of-times Bible thumpers and Glenn Beck et al, who has made human-caused destruction of the planet a hugely profitable enterprise for himself. According to Beck, it’s all part of God’s plan, so the more chaos the merrier. Just keep sending him and your favorite preachers your Social Security checks to help them better insulate themselves from the consequences of what they are actively promoting when the shit hits the fan.

Never fear, Teabaggers. They have a plan for you, too. Once Beck and Limbaugh et al get their tax cut bonus distributions and your personal contributions, as Wall Street bankers hunger lustily over what’s left of the Social Security trust fund, you’ll get your very own ax cut — a trickle-down voucher to fatten the pockets of the health insurance companies and reward those that find ways to give you the least health coverage for the most poached Medicare paycheck contributions. (It's our money set aside to fund our health care and Social Security retirement; They are not entitlements. So why does the Idiot Punditocracy including that *%$@ Luke Russert insist on calling them "entitlement benefits"?!)

So much for your private health system at work over that evil socialist system — Medicare — one that has given seniors full, quality health care and a dignified life in retirement at much lower cost than the for-profit market ever could by any measure or metric.

Who would be insane enough to want something like that socialist Medicare, right?

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

DOUBLE DOWN — WELCOME BACK, KEITH!

LEANING FORWARD into the camera in his usual fighting trim. And I love the lack of slickster production values — they spell TRUST and AUTHENTICITY.

ABOVE THE LAW

They have an appointment for LIFE. They are not bound by the code of ethics that governs federal judges. They can rule on cases that directly impact their self-interest unfettered by the code of conduct that constrains the lower courts. Their decisions can affect the composition of the other two purportedly "co-equal" branches of government for generations. And the only thing stopping them from abusing their power is the "honor" system. They are the Supreme Court of the United States.

What happens when a Supreme Court Justice or Justices goes bad? For one, the Supreme Court no longer becomes the court of last resort where justice is served; but rather the place where justice for the least among us, but theoretically equal under the law, comes to die. Where the interests of the flesh-and-bone individual are no longer equally weighed against the interests of the corporate entity as generic representation of the individual.

Theoretically they can be impeached by the House of Representatives. But when impeachment is rendered quasi-impossible by a decision, Citizens United, that stacks the corporate oligarchs party in a commanding position against the wannabe corporate party, then the people lose. Republicans in the House, at least for now, are immune from the people's electoral wrath, having ascended to elective office on a mountain of well funded lies and unlimited corporate money laundered through myriad shady front organizations, thanks to the entrenched oligarchy, the kingdom within, that the Supreme Court has become.

Yesterday was a good day for the corporation and a blow to 1.6 million women seeking gender-neutral equality in the workplace. By a 5-4 decision, five Supreme Court men ruled against three women Justices to deny women employees of Wal-Mart such equality of opportunity, once again elevating the corporation (too big to sue) over the individual. It passed with nary a sniffle from a distracted and misinformed electorate as part of a wider and sinister conspiracy on multiple fronts to wrest democracy away from the people. If the states were once called the "laboratories of democracy" then today, under the yoke of one-party Republican control not seen since 1928 on the cusp of the Great Depression, states across this land from Florida and New Jersey to Michigan, Wisconsin, Ohio, Indiana, Arizona, have become the laboratories of tyranny.

The tyranny of the Supreme Court is exemplified by its most right wing and brazenly unethical member, Justice Clarence Thomas. His standard of misconduct and conflicts of interest would be grounds for immediate removal in any lower court in the land. Yet Clarence Thomas has immunized himself from the people's reach through self-serving decisions protected by the Court's impervious fortress against the storms of democratic self-rule and constitutional checks.


Thomas Jefferson, speaking in another context and another time, anticipated the Court's and Thomas's malfeasance with amazing clarity:

"You seem ... to consider the judges as the ultimate arbiters of all constitutional questions; a very dangerous doctrine indeed, and one which would place us under the despotism of an oligarchy. Our judges are as honest as other men, and not more so. They have, with others, the same passions for party, for power, and the privilege of their corps.... Their power [is] the more dangerous as they are in office for life, and not responsible, as the other functionaries are, to the elective control. The Constitution has erected no such single tribunal, knowing that to whatever hands confided, with the corruptions of time and party, its members would become despots. It has more wisely made all the departments co-equal and co-sovereign within themselves."

Jefferson also had a thing or two to say about revolution. When all else fails. (Look it up.) We're not there yet, but if the safety valve that is our electoral process is irretrievably corrupted WE, THE PEOPLE, may be compelled to adopt a Jeffersonian solution.

Monday, June 20, 2011

The Inside Dope On Keith: More Trash Talking From Griffin

It seems that MSNBC's SUIT NUMERO UNO, Phil Griffin, is so skeert Keith Olbermann and CURRENT TV will poach some of their contributors away that he's renegotiated contracts for several of the 'good guys' at MSNBC to keep them from straying. It seems silly, though. There should be room for everyone, especially now that MSNBC has decided to carry more DEAD WEIGHT like regular Dana Milbank and most recently, the disastrous signing of Michael Steele — the SINGLE STUPIDEST DECISION the network has made to drive away its viewers with a poke in our collective eye.

On the other hand, it's nice to see Keith's influence over MSNBC hasn't waned even from afar as he causes a "bidding war" for rising stars like Chris Hayes, Ezra Klein, and old stalwart Gene Robinson, among others I'm sure, to get more MSNBC money enticements to stay put. All the while striking FEAR AND LOATHING in MSNBC's REACTIVE boardroom.

Some "community." Here's a challenge for the MSNBC suits. Why don't you ASK US, the erstwhile loyal viewers, what we think of Milbank and Steele as regular FUCKING POLLUTANTS on our favorite shows?! I hit the mute button the minute they are on or check out CNN. The more Milbank and Steele steal time away from Ezra Klein, Chris Hayes, Sam Stein, Howard Fineman, Gene Robinson, David Corn, and Alex Wagner, THE MORE MSNBC's ratings will be depressed. Mark my words. It's like a slow erosion of viewer support. One thing Griffin doesn't seem to understand is, the RIGHT WING IS UBIQUITOUS ON CABLE. We're not interested in what the right OR ITS DERIVATIVES — so-called "libertarians" and "independents" — have to say AS PAID CONTRIBUTORS.

I have never seen anyone so successfully CON a network into paying him for his noxious 'yellow journalistic' views as Dana Milbank has. It's either REALLY poor judgment or simply spitefulness on Griffin's part, since Milbank was justifiably BANNED from Countdown for trashing President Obama during the 2008 campaign and refusing to retract or clarify his inaccurate statements, i.e., hit job. Recently, he wrote a hit job on the Progressive Caucus's alternative budget to Paul Ryan's and flirted with racism by mocking Latino Congressman Raul Grijalva's neckwear. Milbank's hit piece was ripped to shreds by the Huff Post's Jason Linkins, its best progressive columnist. Meanwhile, the clueless Cenk Uygur has had his "friend" Milbank on his show frequently without ONCE calling him on the carpet for his despicable hit job on the Progressive Caucus budget, which Cenk claims to "LOVE." Let's see if the "Aggressive Progressive" has the balls to put Milbank on opposite Rep. Grijalva to defend what he wrote about the Progressive Caucus budget — as well as Grijalva's choice of clothing apparel.

Or is it more Cenk The Meek, aka Dana Milbank's chump. But that's not all. I have NEVER seen a fellow columnist writing for the SAME newspaper, WaPo, publicly chastise Milbank for shoddy journalism as David Broder did a year before his death. The esteemed Broder was known as the "Dean" of the Washington press corps. As if that wasn't enough, from the viewer's standpoint, the worst SIN committed by Dana Milbank — this odious excuse for a 'journalist'— is an amazing narcissistic self-delusion that he has ANY comedic talent at all! The dude's attempts at humor are BEYOND lame; they're so off-color that they cause viewers to groan audibly and roll their eyes. And hit the MUTE button or flip the channel.

There's only so much an MSNBC viewer can tolerate. Griffin's "community" is beginning to fray as MSNBC post-Olbermann becomes more like CNN with Steele-as-Castellanos and Milbank-as-Howard Stern, and less like the innovative, STRONG liberal voice that distinguished it when Keith reigned supreme.

But wait ... Relief is on the way: Keith's back! So my advice to Phil Griffin and the rest of the Fear And Loathing suits is to tack back to the true Left where its loyal "community" resides. STAT.

PS - I forgot to add Eric Boehlert from Media Matters and Joan Walsh of Salon to the list of 'good guys' with less MSNBC air time.

PPS - Anti-lib plagiarist Mark Halperin as MSNBC "senior" political contributor is a JOKE.

Sunday, June 19, 2011

Monday Programming Reminder

I hope our friend Ruthie at our favorite wingnut rag, The Daily Caller, can curb her enthusiasm (and other embarassing emotions) sufficiently — stock up on the smelling salts, Ruthie! — to sharpen those wingnut zingers aimed at her not-so-secret lib obsession ...


And our buddy Treach might be inspired again to add some content to his minimalist blog other than a lot of C&P and non sequitur one-liners with snarky headline: "... Piqued Netroots Nation Freaks ...":


Huh?? What-EV-errrrrr!!

No worries. Keith's return is sure to pique our wingnut friends at the DC into more hilarious freakish reactions. Fun times!

Speaking Of Punking ... Obama Impersonator Makes GOPers Titter Nervously

The guy wasn't bad.

What I'm wondering is, what did he say, or was about say, of Michele Bachmann when his sound was cut off and he was escorted off the stage? I hope we can get an uncensored redo in friendlier territory, like the late night comedians or SNL.

Ya think maybe the joke was on the attendees of the Republican Leadership Conference? Watch: