Category: News

Black Democrats and Obama

Will the black community support Barack Obama no matter what? History says “Duh”. Even though the hits to the economy under Obama’s policies are hitting black communities disproportionally worse – the biggest possible defection from Obama’s 96% he got of black votes in 2008 is likely to be, as the video says “Goodbye 96%, hello 94”.

I’ve heard several black friends in different areas of the country since 2004 talk about the peer pressure of voting “the right way”. It’s unfortunate that people have bought into this, not because they should all be voting Republican, but because voting in a lock step like that hurts you by making you not matter. Black liberals shouldn’t be voting against their views just to shake things up obviously, but most blacks arent liberals. Most blacks have conservative positions on social issues and are a mixed bag on taxes, immigration and foreign policy – yet they do not vote that way. They vote one way only, every time.

Those are the people who’s ideology makes them a swing voter but since they do not ever swing their vote, it has no bargaining value. Just like if Libertarians never vote Republican, then their votes are already discounted and their ideology not argued by Republicans seeking their vote because they know they can’t get it. If a Libertarian alternates between sitting out/voting 3rd party and voting for the candidate closest to their ideology in the 2 major parties then they have some bargaining power because it shows in the election results.

Black Democrats arent open to this because of the old “Danger on the Right” meme that doesn’t even allow a voter to consider the ideas of the right-of-center side because it is immediately demonized as racist, sexist, bigoted, homophobic, islamophobic, xenophobic and in service to corporate greedheads.

Jon Stewart and his “Senior black correspondant” took a look at the economy, its effect on the black community and said voters likely reaction to it.

PS: Even though I have never heard of Godfathers Pizza chai, pizza is pizza and I too will vote for Hermain Cain if he hooks me up with free pizzas

Apple Mothership Proposal

Steve Jobs is going to bulldoze a giant lot in Cupertino with ugly buildings and make it his new donut spaceship Headquarters with 80% landscape, including apricot orchards (i guess growing apples would have been too obvious/cliche?) and underground parking. Check it out.


I like that Apple is often called a cult and now they are building their new HQ to look like a Mothership that landed in the forest.

Weiner’s Worst Crime is lying to his friends

The latest poll from his district has 56 percent of his constituents saying he shouldn’t resign.

Democratic analyst at Fox News Kirsten Powers was lied to by her ex-boyfriend, Anthony Weiner, about being hacked and defended him publicly on Fox and in text with that false info.

Full disclosure: I briefly dated Anthony almost a decade ago after meeting him at a postcampaign party for the 2002 New York gubernatorial race, during which I had worked as Andrew Cuomo’s press secretary. The relationship didn’t last, but we stayed friends. While we were dating, he traveled with my family to Costa Rica for Christmas, and years later I spent Thanksgiving with his when I was stranded in New York City because of work. He was a strong support when my father died suddenly from a heart attack seven years ago. When a relationship I had been hopeful about ended in 2006, he cleared his calendar to spend a Saturday with me and reassure me about my decision. We only dated for three months, and he was for the most part a doting boyfriend and my family was very fond of him.

In the past few years, we didn’t see each other or communicate much, though when my husband’s parents were recently trapped in Egypt during the revolution, he helped to connect me to his wife, Huma, an aide to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, to facilitate their getting out.

That’s the nice part. The rest of the column is devastating…

Citizens are arrested and prosecuted when they lie to the government, even if it was over something personal. Why is there no penalty for when the government lies to the citizens? no matter what he reason.

It’s his ticket to prestige and women, after all; it’s his conduit to the media, for whom he loves serving up soundbites; and realistically, it’s his only route to becoming mayor. They’ll have to drag him from the House chamber kicking and screaming. Watch what she says too about what distinguishes Weiner’s scandal from other sex scandals. It’s not that he lied about it to try to cover it up. It’s that he lied to everyone, from his wife to his friends to his aides to his colleagues to his donors to the president. And of course, to himself: If this guy seriously thought he could run New York City while texting photos of his schwanz to random female acquaintances online without anyone finding out, his egomania and self-delusion are so severe as to require medical attention. It’s seriously crazy. And not only did he lie, he did it in one of the cheapest, most demagogic ways possible by trying to pawn the whole thing off on the “vast right-wing conspiracy.” As sleazy as Clinton’s, Vitter’s, and Spitzer’s scandals each were, I never thought it defined each man’s entire character; with Weiner, I do. I think KP agrees, which is why she seems so palpably distressed when talking and writing about this.

The Politician ShameFace

The names change but the faces stay the same….


The New York Times called Dan Hill, the president of Sensory Logic, a market-research firm in Minneapolis that uses facial expressions to quantify emotional response to explain the face that every politician makes when confessing they lied about something naughty. He explained:

Lips pursed and pulled tight is a sign of anger. Anger as an emotion typically means you feel like you’re not in control of circumstances. It arises from lack of progress, confusion, feelings that one’s being dealt with unfairly, i.e. resentment. These are powerful men used to being in charge. So it likely signifies feeling vulnerable (not in control).

The chin raiser, where the chin boss pushes upward, causing the lower lip to push upward, could also be called an upside-down smile. It’s a muscle movement implicated in expressions of anger, disgust and sadness.

Disgust is an emotion that relates back, in evolutionary terms, to “bad taste” or “bad smell.” The bad-taste version is as if to protect the mouth from taking in something that is poisonous. Clearly, these scandals are (sometimes fatally) poisonous to the politicians’ careers. It’s as if the whiff of scandal tastes bad to them.

Eyes and head down both correspond to sadness, i.e., disappointment in oneself. Regret. Like disgust, it’s a sign of withdrawal, as if to remove oneself from what has caused shame or embarrassment.

The basic package you’ve got here is anger, disgust and sadness.

Palin was right about Revere. Still flubbed it. Still shouldn’t and will not run for President

Sarah Palin said that Paul Revere “warned the British that they weren’t gonna be taking away our arms, by ringing those bells and making sure, as he’s riding his horse through town, to send those warning shots and bells that we were gonna be secure and we were gonna be free.”

Revere’s story is famous for warning the colonists and that is why Palins summary was a flub: because it would have been like describing Superbowl Sunday as “the time Coach whatever picked his nose on camera” – even if that really happened, thats not what the day is best known for so its poor media relations and spontaneous talking to phrase it that way.

Palin was accurate. Revere did warn the troops of exactly what she said. Scroll to page 4 in this 1789 letter maintained by the Massachusetts Historical Society, written by Revere talking about his encounter with a British soldier.

“He demanded what time I left Boston? I told him; and aded, that their troops had catched aground in passing the River, and that There would be five hundred Americans there in a short time, for I had alarmed the Country all the way up.”

The people accusing Palin of silly ignorance are themselves committing the crime even though it was still a legit flub – and hell – i’m not even convinced that it wasn’t a flub due to ignorance that she just happened to be factually accurate on by coincidence.

UPDATE: I know I shouldn’t be the least bit shocked at the “conservative female is a moron” meme but I still have to admit that I’m fascinated at seeing this scenario play out again.

Rep. Michele Bachmann kicked off her presidential campaign on Monday in Waterloo, Iowa, and in one interview surrounding the official event she promised to mimic the spirit of Waterloo’s own John Wayne.

The only problem, as one eagle-eyed reader notes: Waterloo’s John Wayne was not the beloved movie star, but rather John Wayne Gacy, the serial killer.

That quote quickly circulated around the internet and cable news but it turns out not to be true. Of course it wont stop anyone from using false info to attack someone they hate, but it’s worth pointing out the ignorance at the base of this.

Mrs. Bachmann grew up in Waterloo, and used the town as the backdrop for her campaign announcement, where she told Fox News: “Well what I want them to know is just like, John Wayne was from Waterloo, Iowa. That’s the kind of spirit that I have, too.” (Someone has already posted the clip to YouTube under the name BachmannLovesGacy)

The Bachmann campaign sent this explanation: “John Wayne is from Iowa, his parents lived in Waterloo.”

So then wtf does Gacy have to do with anything? Is there any evidence that she cited a source thinking it was the actor and it turned out to be the killer? none. Of  all the things to criticize these women for – you manufacture controversies? for what gain?

And indeed his parents did in fact live briefly in Waterloo — in fact, according to “Duke: The Life and Image of John Wayne,” it’s where they met. But soon after their marriage they moved to Winterset, where Wayne was born.

It’s also worth noting that Mrs. Bachmann herself is no stranger to the actor. In the run-up to her campaign announcement she gave an interview to NewsMax.com in which she talked about him as a symbol of a good time in the country’s history.

“We’re seeing the nation move into decline. I’m not willing to do that. I’m not satisfied. I grew up with John Wayne’s America. I was proud that you grew up in John Wayne’s America: Proud to be an American, thrilled to be a patriot,” she said.

Gacy isn’t from Waterloo Iowa. He lived there briefly just like John Waynes parents. So to recap: Both John Wayne the movie actor and John Wayne Gacy the serial killer have roots in Iowa, but Michelle Bachmann is a fool for citing one because…I already forgot why. Cuz someone else lived there? Or is it really allegedly a big deal that the actors parents lived there and not him? This is stupid.

 

Weiner Confesses

Like Jon Stewart, who has been friends with Congressman Weiner for years and relayed his reluctance on making jokes about this Weinergate scandal, I was disappointed at todays news when a press conference was called to admit that he did in fact send the picture of his Member of sexual Congress.



I thought his speech and confession and answers to the reporters questions afterward went as perfect as a situation like this could have gone. “I was trying to protect my wife. I was trying to protect myself” and he apologizes. Perfect response to me. and no excuses, even. He says he wasn’t on drugs, wasn’t drinking – it’s all him and his fault. bra-vo, dude. This press conference only makes me like him more.

The only creepy thing that brakes my heart is re-watching footage from, what I thought were kickass “throwin it right back in your face” exercises in Awesome and now are revealed to be really scuzzy politician Clintonian weaseling.

They’re reminiscent of Clinton to their performance core: attacking the people reporting on the story, ridiculing the media for covering the story at all, then getting angry at reporters with more brash ridicule paired with firm “I. Did. Not” super accusatory defenses. I know we’re all taught that all politicians are like that but I don’t like that “they’re all evil” kind of cynicism. This certainly is a win for the cynics though.

An important thing to note though is that the “it was just about sex” line used so often to defend Clinton’s in-your-face denial/lying about one of his affairs was an inaccurate soundbyte that was spread because it sounds persuasive. The reason there was a drawn out battle over something that started as sex was because Clinton was accused of something and lied under oath in denying it.

The truth is that if both Weiner and Clinton had given quick “i’ve sinned and i’m sorry. gonna deal with it on my own time and get back to working for my constituents, thanks” response right away, both their poll and press would be high. However, Clinton comitted perjury as President of the United states and Weiner actually really did just “lie about sex”. There will be an ethics probe (see pic below and lul)

Heres some other stuff:





The most painful one though is this re-posting of a 1996 Cosmo article touting Weiner as a possible future president, which I think would have been difficult given his name and nothing else. He would have been an excellent VP if not for this…

It’s Good to Celebrate the Death of Evil People

How is it that a month later I’m still hearing people wag their fingers (its a big woosh sound) over celebrating the death of Bin Laden? Where does this notion that every human life is precious no matter what? and how many of these people feel the same way about a developing fetus? That’s human life. Then of course you get into the split of how conservatives are pro-death penalty but pro-life on abortion, making people ask “if all life is so precious then then why do you want to kill people who kill people?” – and the reverse of liberals who have to answer why it’s okay to kill an innocent human life cuz you don’t feel like shitting out a kid at the moment, but it’s not okay to kill a murderous human life. Why is everyone but me stupid?

If you are one of these people who think it is shameful to celebrate the death of a man who dedicated his life to murdering completely random innocent civilians – explain yourself. I’m hungry for answers and never get any on this.

Bill Maher joined this claiming you’re not a Christian if you celebrated Bin Ladens death saying “Capping thine enemy is not exactly what Jesus would do — it’s what Suge Knight would do.” It’s only “not exactly” what Jesus would do because Jesus wasn’t an agent of the government. If you’re a Christian however and you honestly think that Jesus would be pissed at you if you celebrated the end of a person who murdered in the name of God, then your version of Jesus sucks. Maher also said “Martin Luther King gets to call himself a Christian because he actually practiced loving his enemies, and Gandhi was so fucking Christian he was Hindu” which are funny lines, but not good satire on the serious point he’s trying to make.

Dennis Prager on Celebrating the Death of Evil People:

When she saw images of Americans celebrating, “My first reaction was, ‘I wish I was with them.’ … My second reaction was, ‘This is disgusting. We shouldn’t be celebrating the death of anybody.’ It felt gross.”

Likewise, many Jews, including rabbis, have cited traditional — though seemingly conflicting — Jewish attitudes regarding how to react to the death of evildoers.

One frequently cited source is a famous one from the Talmud: “When the Egyptians were drowning in the Sea of Reeds, the angels wanted to sing. But God said to them, ‘The work of my hands is drowning in the sea, and you want to sing?'”

Also cited is the biblical Book of Proverbs: “When your enemy falls, do not rejoice, and when he stumbles, let your heart not exult.”

On the other hand, the Talmud also states, “When the wicked perish from the world, good comes to the world.” And the Book of Proverbs also states, “When the wicked perish, there is joyful song.”

So what is one to make of this mixture of sentiments?

I do not see them as contradictory. God may chastise angels for singing at the drowning of the Egyptian army. But God does not chastise Moses and the Children of Israel for singing at the Egyptians’ drowning. People may do so; angels may not.

Secondly, it is one thing to celebrate the fall of one’s personal enemy; it is quite another to celebrate the fall of evil individuals. The two Proverbs citations are not contradictory. The vast majority of our personal “enemies” are not evil people. Therefore, we should not exult at their downfall. And the vast majority of the truly evil are not our personal enemies. Bin Laden was not my personal enemy. He was the enemy of all that is good on earth.

It seems to me that if one does not celebrate the death of a truly evil person, one is not celebrating the triumph of good over evil. I do not see how one can honestly say, “I am thrilled that bin Laden can no longer murder men, women, and children, but I do not celebrate his death.”

Awkward Fox News Interview

I’ve seen this lady on CNN, MSNBC and Fox before, but never like this…what IS this? and is she in front of a green screen? Or is she just glowing? The host, Martha MaCallum is front of a screen – it looks like a giant window but it’s actually a giant moniter – and she’s never glowy. wtf is going on here? Did she do this at a home studio? That would explain the green screen, poor lighting, phone ringing in the background and whatever is responsible for the moments at 2:40 and at 5:35…

Mediaite describes:

Radio talk show host Nancy Skinner sparked an entertaining–and at times somewhat bizarre–discussion on Fox News Thursday afternoon, as host Martha MacCallum attempted to lead a discussion of Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign announcement. Skinner, who has a show on Detroit radio and has served as a political commentator for Fox, MSNBC and CNN, quickly shifted from Romney to Bush. She suggested that Romney’s speech was about “laying out the case of how badly President Bush screwed up our economy” before beginning a disjointed defense of President Obama that led to an argument over poll results.