Trump's the rump of the GOP field

 Ah, Donald Trump consistently shows what a hypocritical dumb-ass he is (via Alternet):

The Donald's going to have a hard time doubling down on this one.  

Politico is reporting that Trump, while speaking at a Family Leadership Summit in Ames, Iowa Saturday, told the crowd, "[Sen John McCain] was a war hero because he was captured. I like people who weren't captured." The two men had been engaged in a media war over the past few days. 

Trump's slight was reportedly met with a scattering of boos from the crowd. 

McCain was held captive in a North Vietnamese prison camp for five-and-a-half years, while Trump received four military deferments between 1964 to 1968.

"Ya big baby!"

I have no trouble that Trump avoided Viet Nam---I won the draft lottery myself, and avoided that awful and illegal conflict, but for someone who utilized his wealth and connections to stay out of the fight to then critcise someone who did wind up in the fray (many of whom had no choice in the matter because they weren't as fortunate as The Donald) is inexcusable. Trump never seems to have any trouble finding a lower pit to bark his bilious statements from. He is a worthless waste of the air he breathes, and that he is taken seriously says more about the quality of our corporate-loving media and the depths the GOP has sunk to that it does about his sorry ass.

Biggest Asshole of the Week: Donald Trump

Ebola patient will be brought to the U.S. in a few days - now I know for sure that our leaders are incompetent. KEEP THEM OUT OF HERE!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 1, 2014

If only we could keep this asshole out of the United States---but can we at least keep him out of the media?

Quote for the Day (Gone But Not Forgotten Division)

"The dumbing down of America is most evident in the slow decay of substantive content in the enormously influential media, the 30 second sound bites (now down to 10 seconds or less), lowest common denominator programming, credulous presentations on pseudoscience and superstition, but especially a kind of celebration of ignorance."
 - Carl Sagan

Black Friday? No, thank you!

Today was the corporate media created feeding frenzy known as "Black Friday", and I spent the day with my grand daughter avoiding the consumer bullshit. I definitely avoided WalMart and Target (greedy corporate bastards), and we went on a walk this evening. She wanted to check out the nearby Ace Hardware store, where besides the two of us there were four employees and no one else. I remarked to one of the employees as he leaned on his register "Black Friday rush, huh?", which elicited a chuckle.

The insanity of our money grubbing culture and the way people are manipulated by the cheerleaders in the MSM is nowhere more evident than in this manufactured event. Take a break, folks, and remember what is really important about these holidays.

And to the bosses at WalMart and the other retailers forcing underpaid employees to leave their families at this time of year (and then who call the extra hours their employees are compelled to work "bonuses"), I say: fuck you very much. You got none of my money today, and while it may not have hurt you very much, it made me feel great.

Romney keeps things fuzzy 'cause the devil is in the details

The "very serious people" who report the news seem to want to believe that Mittens is a "details" guy. Yet he plays the cards close to his chest . . . . 

Robert Reich (Romney the Detail Man?)

The so-called “mainstream media” (aka The New York Times) is constantly being assailed by Republicans and the right for their supposedly liberal slant. Yet another convenient right-wing lie.

Take, for example, Saturday’s above-the-fold NY Times story, entitled (in the print edition that arrived at my home this morning):  “Romney Recalled as Leader Who Savors Details.”

What?

It’s mainly a puff piece, aglow with Romney’s supposed managerial prowess. Coming just a bit more than three weeks before Election Day, it attempts to confirm Romney’s central selling point – that he can run the government better than Obama.

Nowhere does the Times bother to mention that Romney’s campaign has been devoid of  any detail at all — details about his economic plan, his budget plan, his plan for what to replace Obamacare with, his plan to replace Dodd-Frank, or even details about the taxes he’s paid.
When he was governor of Massachusetts, the citizens of the Commonwealth had no idea what he was doing (I can attest because I was there, and as much in the dark as most people). He kept the details of his governing to himself and his staff. And he spent most of his last two years in office laying the groundwork for his run for the presidency.

Romney has always savored details when it helps him make money. But when it comes to running or holding office he’s been a standout for avoiding all details and keeping the public in the dark.

Romney reveals so little because it does not compute, and people won't like the bill of goods he is selling.

The difference is one of perception:

How the media views different demonstrators:

Weird, unfocused hippie.

Serious challenger of the status quo.

Justice in America

I didn't follow the Casey Anthony trial, as I find such media frenzies too gruelingly disgusting over the length of time they cover. But what Chris Hayes says here rises above that storm to cut through to the truth:

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Our media will focus on this type of trial, which has so little to do with most people except for their purient interest, and ignore cases that are much more relevant and pertinent to what is important in this country. It says more about what is wrong with our country that we focus so closely on this kind of sensationalism than what the verdict was.

And then there's this: In jury trials like this, the jury is presented with weeks of evidence, and is given the task of gleaning through that to make a decision. Why is it then that so many people who are not privy to any more than what they digest through the media filter think they are better qualified to say what should happen here? I feel sorry for Ms. Anthony when she is released, in that not only must she deal with the loss of her her child, but the judgements of the self righteous folks who would condemn her mostly to feel better about themselves.

Corporate news flexes its muscle

I just found out that Keith Olbermann's Countdown was canceled tonight, apparently just before going on the air. With two years remaining of a four year contract, the new MSNBC/Comcast corporate masters abruptly terminated their top rated commentator.

People are batting back and forth about whether Keith was a pompous jerk or the great left hope, but I will say this: I have one less reason to turn on the tube with him absent from the airwaves. He was always an interesting guy, never shy about speaking truth to power, and I appreciated his willingness to use his bully pulpit to rail about injustice and unfairness.

I loved his commentaries during his father's health problems leading to his death. Olbermann showed a truly human side of himself, and more than once brought tears to my eyes. His sharing during that time was classic television. He stood up for the victims of bush's Katrina policy, against our insane wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, for the people savaged by Arizona's transplant debacle, against the Republican (and Democratic) obstructionists, and for the gays and lesbians in the military. He called 'em like he saw 'em, and he took the idiots who are selling our country down the river to task for their greed and hypocrisy.

I hope the future holds more for this master of the righteous rant. I will miss his voice. We'll see in the next few days just what the rationale for this was, but to my way of thinking, as long as money controls the airwaves, voices for truth and reason will have a difficult time being heard.

It's funny because it's true:

(Via Oliver Willis)

Is using a minotaur to gore detainees a form of torture?

(Via The Onion)
Is Using A Minotaur To Gore Detainees A Form Of Torture?

Finally! Having this debate is proof that we are a democracy.

That we have to have it at all is proof that we are an empire in decline . . . .

Say good night, Sarah!

(Via Talking Points Memo)

Palin To Media: Honor Our Troops -- Stop Making Things Up About Me

In her farewell address yesterday, former Gov. Sarah Palin (R-AK) gave this memorable statement about the media -- essentially declaring that her critics don't respect our troops.

"Democracy depends on you. That is why our troops are willing to die for you," said Palin. "So how about in honor of the American soldier, ya' quit makin' things up?

Because Sarah and the troops are the same thing, ya know.

And not that Sarah would ever make shit up about Obama, or global warming, or health care reform, or . . . .

Ignorance is a choice, Sarah, but you don't have to be so proud of it!

Hunks of thinking meat

Something that is becoming more and more clear in the heath care struggle and the other economic upheaval we are going through: people only count insofar as they vote for politicians and give money to the corporations (by buying goods and services) or the government (through taxes). The people who are in government and corporate America don't really care about us, the citizens who make less than enough to be considered rich, except as hunks of thinking meat to manipulate through the media or exploit through fear and advertising in all its forms.

That sounds so simple, yet runs so counter to the idea that we live in a representative democracy. And, by the way, from what I can see there is no difference---or so small a difference as to be irrelevant---between the Democrats and the Republicans on this.

The majority of the populace wants single payer health care similar to Canada's current system, and it is not ever part of the discussion. How much does this contradict the idea that we have a say it the issues by which we are most affected? That one of the elements of the current health care bill is a mandate REQUIRING that citizens buy health care from private insurers is a clear indication of who is really important in this country, and it ain't the ones who will be footing the bill for the stupid wreck of a "reform" bill that will fail miserably. We will jack up the profits of the insurances companies, but how much do you wan to bet we will still be denied insurance when we need it?

"We the people" are no more to these oligarchs than a natural resource to be strip mined and used up like any other.

The REAL reason for torture?

As I listen to all the brouhaha about torture (Was it legal? Was it effective? Were there other alternatives?), something occurs to me that hasn't been brought up. Is it possible that the principals in this situation (Cheney, Bush, Rumsfeld, etc.) tortured for the reason that they WANTED to do it? These guys were (and are) power hungry, and they felt they could do anything, so my thought is they are really sick, warped individuals who like having the power of life and death over people. They brought a sense of hierarchical entitlement from their years in the corporate business world, ordering employees under their command to do as they were told or hit the bricks, and here they were, at the pinnacle of power in our world.

In the medieval times, kings would have the people they captured in battle tortured for their amusement and gratification. These are men and women who seem to me to be about on that level. Maybe they didn't care if they got information. It's just so COOL to be able to make someone else water board someone. Add to this the fact that they never had the chance to prove their manhood on the battlefield, having, as Cheney has said, "other priorities," and you have a group of individuals who needed to show just how tough they are.

And as I watch and hear Dick Cheney in the media arrogantly beating his chest and saying "these things worked," my thought is that maybe he's not talking about stopping attacks really. Maybe he means he got his rocks off, and that's what it was all about.

A rant:

Looking for a job right now is like buying a lottery ticket. ANY job, even very minimal part time jobs, have 40 applicants. And I'm talking about where I live, which is a pretty small, rural location. I've been looking now for quite a while, and it is just getting worse.

So what's a fella to do? I just keep looking, sending off resumes and making calls. But, here's the deal: they keep saying on the various punditry shows that things MAY get worse. Dudes, things are already worse, they are going to get DIRE. It is so indicative of how isolated the commentating class is from what life is like out here in the real world. The bubble that surrounds the political animals of this nation (we know THEY haven't got a clue) has grown to encompass the various mass media types who shovel the manure on TV, in the papers, and in magazines.

And ya know, except for the times around elections, they really don't even pretend to listen to the general citizenry any more. Be they "journalists" or "elected officials", they are all the same. And we don't matter.

If I sound a bit bitter here, I am. I think these lyrics from the Rolling Stones' Salt of the Earth still apply:

Raise your glass to the hard working people
Let's drink to the uncounted heads
Let's think of the wavering millions
Who need leaders but get gamblers instead

Spare a thought for the stay-at-home voter
His empty eyes gaze at strange beauty shows
And a parade of the gray suited grafters
A choice of cancer or polio

Faux News presents a documentary on Obama

(Via 236.com)

It would be funnier if it weren't so true . . . .

Satire is not a pretty business

Okay, I thought the area of Northern California that I live in was the most irony-challenged place in the world, but give me a freaking break! Is it possible so many people really didn't get the joke in this New Yorker cover? I mean, Mad Magazine was doing this level of joke in the 1960s, and there wasn't a lot of ruckus about it then.

Alright folks, listen closely now. When a cartoon incorporates so many ludicrous and obvious stereotypes, culled from the worst of the bullshit that Fox News and the like put out, it is making a point, albeit a very heavy-handed one. Of course this is over the top, BUT THAT'S THE POINT!!!!! I'm stunned this has become controversial, even among lefty media types. It is irony, and it uses the inflation of ridiculous imagery to make the case for how ridiculous it is.

Now, get back to watching reruns of "Two and a Half Men", and leave humor to the professionals, please.

That is all.

Adding: Maybe one of the reasons some people don't find this funny is that they BELIEVE the Obamas are terrorists, so there is no humor in mocking that belief? Or is it that we are afraid to take on stupid beliefs by mocking them for being as stupid as they truly are?

What did I really expect?

(Via Huffington Post)

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

PRESIDENT ARROYO: Yes.

PRESIDENT BUSH: And the chef is a great person and a really good cook, by the way, Madam President.

PRESIDENT ARROYO: Thank you

Um . . . what can you say anymore. Our Chief Exec is a man so utterly out of touch with the protocols of his office---hell, of what is essentially a RACIST comment---that he blithely says this kind of crap to someone who is coming to him to ask for assistance after a natural disaster.

"Gee, Mr. Mugabe, your people sure do dance good. And your folks's teeth're mighty white, too!"

The saddest thing to me is that this will get nowhere near the attention from the media that Obama's remark about "bitter" Americans (which was, by the way, a TRUE statement) got. Bush gets a free pass from the media, and anything the opposition to him says goes under the microscope. The MSM: lap dogs to our Asshole-In- Chief.

What is wrong with this picture?

My friend Harvey pointed me to this post by Glenn Greenwald at Salon:

Why the Jeremiah Wright story deserves more attention

I think the most important thing to note about the Jeremiah Wright Story is that we're a Nation plagued by exceedingly few significant problems; blessed with a quite healthy political culture and very trusted political and media institutions; composed of a citizenry that is peacefully content with its Government and secure and confident about their future; endowed with a supremely sturdy economic foundation free of debt and other grave economic afflictions; vested with the ability to command great respect and admiration from the other nations of the world; emancipated from the burdens of war and intractable conflicts which have toppled and destroyed so many other great nations of the past; and, most of all, we're becoming freer and more prosperous by the minute.

Not only that, but we have an extremely impressive, serious and honor-bound ruling imperial class devoted to the preservation of all of these blessings.

So it isn't as though we really have anything else to talk about besides Jeremiah Wright. There are some countries in the world -- probably most -- which have so many big problems that they could ill-afford to devote much time and energy to a matter of this sort. Thankfully, the United States isn't one of them. I believe it's critical that we keep that in mind as we discuss him for the next seven months.

The thick layer of irony over the message here is a coating on a bitter pill. As our country slides deeper into a morass created by a indulgence of arrogance, hubris, and denial, we look at what is important through shit colored glasses. Greenwald is dead on right here, and yet the media and minions of the ruling class point away from the naked emperor, emphasising the minutia and trivia of irrelevance. But that's what the American people want, right?

Unbelievable!

The whole flap over what Obama said in Pennsylvania is so ridiculous. The worst part is seeing Hillary yapping like a Wingnut over the supposed "meaning" of what Obama said. Here's the quote given a little context (Via truthout.org):

"Here's how it is. In a lot of these communities in big industrial states like Ohio and Pennsylvania, people have been beaten down so long, they feel so betrayed by government that when they hear a pitch that is premised on not being cynical about government, then a part of them just doesn't buy it.

"... Our challenge is to get people persuaded that we can make progress when there's not evidence of that in their daily lives. You go into some of these small towns in Pennsylvania, and like a lot of small towns in the Midwest, the jobs have been gone now for 25 years and nothing's replaced them. And they fell through the Clinton administration, and the Bush administration, and each successive administration has said that somehow these communities are gonna regenerate and they have not. And it's not surprising then they get bitter, they cling to guns or religion or antipathy to people who aren't like them or anti-immigrant sentiment or anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their frustrations."

I see nothing demeaning in these words. In fact, the demeaning thing is Clinton and McCain trying to say that this is not true. That there is nothing wrong here, that these people haven't been exploited and discarded by the establishment. That they aren't pissed off. As Bob Shurm said in the Huffington Post:

"Ironically, Obama's the one raised by a single mother. He's the one who only recently finished paying off his student loans. He doesn't know what it's like to have $100 million. The opponents who are attacking him are the ones who inhabit that financial neighborhood."

Clinton or McCain calling Obama elitist is the pot calling the kettle a pot. Come on, this is so transparent as to be laughable. Clinton just keeps declining in my estimation, while Obama keeps rising.

Tim Robbins speaks to the National Association of Broadcasters

(Via FAIR)

A few years ago, they told America that because I had different opinions on the wisdom of going to war, that I was a traitor, a Saddam lover, a terrorist supporter, undermining the troops.

I was appealing at the time for the inspectors to have more time to find those Weapons of Mass Destruction. I was a naive dupe of left-wing appeasement.

And how right they were. If I had known then what I know now, if I had seen the festive and appreciative faces on the streets of Baghdad today, if I had known then what a robust economy we would be in -- the unity of our people, the wildfire of democracy that has spread across the Mideast -- I would never have said those traitorous, unfounded and irresponsible things.

I stand chastened in the face of the wisdom of the talk radio geniuses, and I apologize for standing in the way of freedom.