Glenn Beck & Dwight Schrute

Youtube elevates the discourse:

In Defense Of Rush Limbaugh. Sort Of…

I was all set to post a defense of Rush Limbaugh’s attempt to purchase the St. Louis Rams.  And on that issue alone, I stand by that.  After all, this is America.  If Rush wants to own a team, it’s his right to put forth an offer or be part of an ownership group.  Similarly, Rush has the right to spew from his pulpit as long as there are enough ignorant bigots that want his hate-filled ideology spoon-fed to them. 

While ironic, the fact that an unapologetic racist wants to own a team in a sport that’s 70% black fits into Rush’s whole self-loathing pathology.   Good for him. 

But Jesus Christ, his “woe is me, i’m so oppressed, liberals conspired against me…” sour grapes routine, following being dropped from the ownership group is comically childish.

When he’s not being a culture warrior, Rush extols the virtues of unbridled, free-market capitalism.  Of course, he has reaped the benefits of American corporatism and capitalism for years.  While despising every fiber of his disgusting being, I don’t begrudge him his success.  After all, it’s America…

However, the fact that Dave Checketts dropped Rush from the purchasing group is purely capitalist. Purely American.

 A few points first: I don’t think that NFL commissioner Roger Goodell and Colts owner Jim Irsay needed to go public with their “airing of grievances” regarding the prospects of a Limbaugh ownership group.  (Goodell said Limbaugh had made “polarizing” comments and Irsay vowed to vote against him.)

 But isn’t this America? If Limbaugh can equate liberals to terrorists and equate the president to Hitler, what’s wrong with these guys (and many players) expressing their reservations about Limbaugh being part of the NFL.

Irsay has a business to protect.  If he thinks Rush is bad for the NFL, that means Rush is bad for his team – his business.  He should vote against him.  And regardless what Rush says, it’s not baseless speculation.  If Rush purchased the Bears from the sleep-walking McCaskey family, I would cease to be a Bears fan and subsequently be much less engaged in the NFL.  For instance, through Week 5 of the NFL season, I have attended one Bears’ game and watched every minute of the rest on TV.  There’s no liberal witch-hunt by the NFL.  It’s pure business. 

Rush has made millions as a conservative shock-jock.  He thrives on

Favre likes you.

polarization.  Polarizing forces are not good for the NFL .  After all, they already have destructive assholes like Jerry Jones and Daniel Snyder.  Thus, from a business standpoint, Checketts + co. did the right thing by dropping Limbaugh from their prospective ownership group. As Checketts said:

“It has become clear that his involvement in our group has become a complication and a distraction to our intentions; endangering our bid to keep the team in St. Louis,” Checketts said. “As such, we have decided to move forward without him and hope it will eventually lead us to a successful conclusion.”

Rush’s response:

“This is not about the NFL, it’s not about the St. Louis Rams, it’s not about me,” Limbaugh said. “This is about the ongoing effort by the left in this country, wherever you find them, in the media, the Democrat Party, or wherever, to destroy conservatism, to prevent the mainstreaming of anyone who is prominent as a conservative.

“Therefore, this is about the future of the United States of America and what kind of country we’re going to have.”

What happened to personal responsibility, Rush?  Like Falwell and Robertson blaming gays and liberals for 9/11, Limbaugh can’t resist interpreting his rejection as a historic victimization at the hands of evil lefties. 

And you really don’t understand why they dropped you? 

Just as a point of reference, George Soros, liberal billionaire and boogeyman of many conservative conspiracy-thories,  was part of a group that attempted to buy MLB’s Washington Nationals in 2005.  I’m sure he was welcomed with open arms by Conservatives.  You know – free market and all that shit.

Major League Baseball hasn’t narrowed the list of the eight bidders seeking to buy the Washington Nationals and some Republicans on Capitol Hill already are hinting at revoking the league’s antitrust exemption if billionaire financier George Soros , an ardent critic of President Bush and supporter of liberal causes, buys the team.

“It’s not necessarily smart business sense to have anybody who is so polarizing in the political world,” Rep. John E. Sweeney (R-N.Y.) said. “That goes for anybody, but especially as it relates to Major League Baseball because it’s one of the few businesses that get incredibly special treatment from Congress and the federal government.”

I can’t beliiiieeeve a government official would try to interfere with this. I mean, in America??

This is not about the NFL. This is not about the Rams. It’s not about liberals.  It’s about an occasion on which the free market failed Rush Limbaugh.  Instead of living with the consequences of his chosen path, profession, and own words, he wants to blame someone else, and go kicking and screaming all the way home until he pops an Oxy, lights a cigar with a hundo, turns on a gay porn, and falls asleep on a bed of cash. 

Poor guy.

And Then They Came For The Sane, And I Did Not Speak Out

Glenn Beck drops the obvious Holocaust victim/FOX News comparison:

BECK: When they’re done with Fox, and you decide to speak out on something. The old, “first they came for the Jews, and I wasn’t Jewish.” When you have a question, and you believe that something should be asked, they’re a — totally fine with you right now; they have no problem with you.

When they’re done with Fox and talk radio, do you really think they’re going to leave you alone if you want to ask a tough question? Do you really think that a man who has never had to stand against tough questions and has as much power as he does — do you really believe after he takes out the number one news network, do you really think that this man is then not going to turn on you? That you and your little organization is going to cause him any hesitation at all not to take you out?

If you believe that, you should open up a history book, because you’ve missed the point of many brutal dictators. You missed the point on how they always start.

I love the strawman argument.  Who the fuck are “they,” and what questions are they preventing you from asking? 

I’ll open up some history for you:  First they came for the guy spewing nonsense out of his ass, and they gave him a syndicated radio show. 

Then they came for the nutjob ratcheting up his hate-filled rhetoric, and they gave him his own tv show. 

And then they came for the douchebag who was spreading more hate and nonsensical conspiracy theories, and they gave him a fucking book deal which allowed the poor, oppressed victim to pull in $20 Million last year. 

It’s possible this is pretty insulting to some in the Jewish community, particularly on the back of Beck’s  attempt to politicize Yom Kippur.  But I’m sure they they can speak for themselves.

“First they came …” is a popular poem attributed to Pastor Martin Niemöller (1892–1984) about the inactivity of German intellectuals following the Nazi rise to power and the purging of their chosen targets, group after group. Although the precise origin of the poem is not known, Niemoller stated he prefers the version as:

First they came for the communists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a communist;
Then they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a socialist;
Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a trade unionist;
Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—because I was not a Jew;
Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak out for me.

I Fell Asleep While Watching This: X-Men Origins – Wolverine

it won't die

 

As a fan of the first couple X-Men movies, I guess I was disappointed.  But only disappointed like getting a cold pizza from Domino’s.

Grade: D.

Great Quote:

Chris Bradley: I’m not afraid of you, Victor. I’m afraid of dying. 

Victor Creed: How do you know? You’ve never tried it before.

CNN Doesn’t Think People Care? Are They Correct?

Imagine the outrage and indignation this story would cause:

At least 128 people were killed when Iranian troops opened fire on opposition protesters on Monday, rights groups and opposition figures claim.

Earlier police said 87 people had died, but local activists say hospital sources confirmed a much higher toll.

Human rights groups say they have had reports of soldiers bayoneting people and women being stripped and raped in the streets during the protest.

Iranian Revolutionary Guard head Yahya Rahim Safavi denied knowledge of sexual assaults.

But he admitted that some of his security forces had lost control.

French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner said France was suspending economic ties with Iran after the “savage and bloody” crackdown on opposition protesters, the French news agency AFP reported.

About 50,000 people were protesting over the results of Iran’s 2009 presidential election. 

But soldiers moved in to quell the rally using tear gas and baton charges and firing live ammunition into the crowds.

The Iranian Organisation for Defence of Human Rights put the toll at 157 people killed and more than 1,200 wounded, although this has not been corroborated.

Human rights groups said there were widespread reports of rape.

“The military is going into districts, looting goods and raping women,”  the head of the Iranian branch of the Encounter for the Defence of Human Rights (EDDHO), told AFP.

An eyewitness told Human Rights Watch: “I saw several women stripped and then put inside the military trucks and taken away. I don’t know what happened to them.”

“They were raping women publicly,” an opposition activist  said in an interview with French radio station RFI, adding that he had witnessed soldiers raping women with rifle butts during Monday’s protests.

Iranian human rights activists told Reuters news agency that people trying to escape from the shooting were “caught and finished off with bayonets”.

A doctor at a government hospital in Tehran said his wards looked like “a butchery”.

American pundits and politicians would be outraged.  Calls for military involvement to protect the democratic process would surely be forthcoming.  

Unfortunately, this story is not fiction. It’s just not taking place in Iran, North Korea, or any of the number places deemed “of concern” to American interests.  It is happening in Guinea, and apparently CNN doesn’t think anyone gives a shit (and they may be right). 

On cnn.com, there is no article (even in the hard to find “Africa” section) and only a small video clip.  I’m not sure if the network covered it, but if they did I’m sure it’s sandwiched between a Polanski story and some bullshit about some fat lady who lost a lot of weight on an “all green onion” diet .

If anyone is watching CNN (or MSNBC/Fox), and thinks the media is treating this story with the appropriate coverage, please let me know.  My guess is it’s filed in the voluminous “African Indifference” archive.

Small Non-Profit Destroying America!

This ACORN shit baffles me.  Here are some excerpts from Greenwald’s excellent article on the subject:

Earlier this week, I wrote about how the Fox-News/Glenn-Beck/Rush-Limbaugh leadership trains its protesting followers to focus the vast bulk of their resentment and anxieties on largely powerless and downtrodden factions, while ignoring, and even revering, the outright pillaging by virtually omnipotent corporate interests that own and control their Government (and, not coincidentally, Fox News).  It’s hard to imagine a more perfectly illustrative example of all of that than the hysterical furor over ACORN.

ACORN has received a grand total of $53 million in federal funds over the last 15 years — an average of $3.5 million per year.  Meanwhile, not millions, not billions, but trillions of dollars of public funds have been, in the last year alone, transferred to or otherwise used for the benefit of Wall Street.  Billions of dollars in American taxpayer money vanished into thin air, eaten by private contractors in Iraq and Afghanistan, led by Halliburton subsidiary KBR.  All of those corporate interests employ armies of lobbyists and bottomless donor activities that ensure they dominate our legislative and regulatory processes, and to be extra certain, the revolving door between industry and government is more prolific than ever, with key corporate officials constantly ending up occupying the government positions with the most influence over those industries…

So with this massive pillaging of America’s economic security and its control of American government by its richest and most powerful factions growing by the day, to whom is America’s intense economic anxiety being directed?  To a non-profit group that devotes itself to providing minute benefits to people who live under America’s poverty line, and which is so powerless in Washington that virtually the entire U.S. Senate just voted to cut off its funding at the first sign of real controversy — could anyone imagine that happening to a key player in the banking or defense industry? 

Apparently, the problem for middle-class and lower-middle-class Americans is not that their taxpayer dollars are going to prop up billionaires, oligarchs and their corrupt industries.  It’s that America’s impoverished — a group that is growing rapidly — is getting too much, has too much power and too little accountability.  Anonymous Liberal has a superb post on the manipulative inanity of the Fox-generated ACORN ”scandal” (h/t D-day):

Let’s take a step back and consider just what ACORN is. It is a non-profit organization whose mission is to empower and improve the lives of poor people. As with many other organizations, ACORN has a number of legally distinct parts, each of which has different sources of funding and engages in different kinds of activities (ACORN’s conservative enemies routinely conflate these various parts to imply that ACORN is using federal money for improper political purposes). Since its founding the 70s, ACORN and its employees and volunteers have fought successfully to, among other things, increase minimum wages across the country, increase the quality of public education in poor areas, and protect people from predatory lending practices. In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, ACORN helped rebuild thousands of homes and assisted victims in relocating and finding housing outside of New Orleans. The ACORN activity that has drawn the most conservative ire is its voter registration efforts which, consistent with ACORN’s mission, are primarily aimed at low-income voters (who tend to vote Democratic). . . .

But even if you take these film-makers at face value and assume the worst, the reality is that ACORN has thousands of employees and the vast majority of them spend their days trying to help poor people through perfectly legal means (and receive very little compensation for doing so). Even before yesterday’s Senate vote, the amount of federal money that went to ACORN was very small. This is a relatively insignificant organization in the grand scheme of things, but it’s an organization that has unquestionably fought over the years to improve the lives of the less fortunate in this country.

That the GOP and its conservative supporters would single out this particular organization for such intense demonization is telling. In September of last year, the entire world came perilously close to complete financial catastrophe. We’re still not out of the woods and we’re deep within one of the worst recessions in U.S. history. This situation was brought about by the recklessness and greed of our banks and financial institutions, most of which had to be bailed out at enormous cost to the American taxpayer (exponentially more than all of the tax dollars given to ACORN over the years). The people who brought about this near catastrophe, for the most, profited immensely from it. These very same institutions, propped up by the American taxpayer, are once again raking in large profits.

But rather than focus their anger on these folks, conservatives choose to go after an organization composed almost entirely of low-paid community organizers, an organization that could never hope to have even a small fraction of the clout or the ability to affect the overall direction of the country that Wall Street bankers have. ACORN’s relative lack of political influence was on full display yesterday, when the U.S. Senate (in which Democrats have a supermajority) not only entertained a vote to defund ACORN, but approved it by a huge margin (with only seven Democrats opposing).

If one were to watch Fox News or listen to Rush Limbaugh — as millions do — one would believe that the burden of the ordinary American taxpayer, and the unfair plight of America’s rich, is that their money is being stolen by the poorest and most powerless sectors of the society.  An organization whose constituencies are often-unregistered inner-city minorities, the homeless and the dispossesed is depicted as though it’s Goldman Sachs, Blackwater, Halliburton and combined, as though Washington officials are in thrall to those living in poverty rather than those who fund their campaigns.  It’s not the nice men in the suits doing the stealing but the very people, often minorities or illegal immigrants, with no political or financial power who nonetheless somehow dominate the government and get everything for themselves.  The poorer and weaker one is, the more one is demonized in right-wing mythology as all-powerful recipients of ill-gotten gains; conversely, the stronger and more powerful one is, the more one is depicted as an oppressed and put-upon victim (that same dynamic applies to foreign affairs as well).

It’s such an obvious falsehood — so counter-intuitive and irrational — yet it resonates due to powerful cultural manipulations.  Most of all, what’s so pernicious about all of this is that the same interests who are stealing, pillaging and wallowing in corruption are scapegoating the poorest and most vulnerable in order to ensure that the victims of their behavior are furious with everyone except for them.

I don’t care if ACORN gets a dime of federal money.  Some other non-profit will likely take the reins, the money, and perform similar services. So why the big obsession? I don’t understand the conservative outrage over a decentralized organization that operates on a shoestring budget and has absolutely NO power (as can be seen by Congress’ vote). 

And when the Federal government builds inadequate levies, destroys the wetlands naturally protecting the area, and then sits on its hands while an American city is destroyed by a storm, it’s groups like ACORN that help the displaced and marginalized pick up the pieces while the government turns its head and the rest of us sit on our asses watching reality TV and eating KFC gravy bowls. So why the outrage? Why, my friends, why? Is it a case of “providing assistance while colored?”  Who knows? Only the indignant. Crazy times.

Science Haters & Hollywood To Deprive U.S. Of Jennifer Connelly

Unreal.  Actually, not unreal. I believe it. You may say I’m a true believer. 

Creation, starring Paul Bettany, details Darwin’s “struggle between faith and reason” as he wrote On The Origin of Species. It depicts him as a man who loses faith in God following the death of his beloved 10-year-old daughter, Annie.

The film was chosen to open the Toronto Film Festival and has its British premiere on Sunday. It has been sold in almost every territory around the world, from Australia to Scandinavia.

However, US distributors have resolutely passed on a film which will prove hugely divisive in a country where, according to a Gallup poll conducted in February, only 39 per cent of Americans believe in the theory of evolution.

Movieguide.org, an influential site which reviews films from a Christian perspective, described Darwin as the father of eugenics and denounced him as “a racist, a bigot and an 1800s naturalist whose legacy is mass murder”. His “half-baked theory” directly influenced Adolf Hitler and led to “atrocities, crimes against humanity, cloning and genetic engineering”, the site stated.

The film has sparked fierce debate on US Christian websites, with a typical comment dismissing evolution as “a silly theory with a serious lack of evidence to support it despite over a century of trying“.

Yes – that silly theory with incomparable genetic evidence. So unlike the totally realistic theory with the Invisble Bearded Man, the Magic Tree, and the Sassy Talking Snake.

What’s going on here? The Jesus Freaks have been out-to-lunch for years.  They can’t be blamed.  It’s possible no distributor thinks it will make any money.  Although 21st  Century Hollywood only produces spin-offs and sequels, I doubt this is the case.  If it gets enough publicity, it will eventually get released here.

This falls on the pathetic Hollywood ”liberals.”  No one wants to piss off the bored, letter-writing Creationists. They might miss out on a chance to distribute Home School Musical II.  Zing.

On the Origin of MY Species. Hey-o!

_______________________________________________________________________________________

If You Can’t Trust A Former Cokehead, Top 40 DJ, And College Dropout, Who Can You Trust?

So the President is set to address school children about staying in school, studying, and all that shit.  Exciting for the children? Maybe. Constructive use of time? I don’t know.  Seemingly mundane exercise likely to ignite the furor of wingnuts? Oh, you betcha.

Nevermind that both Bush and Reagan addressed school children during their presidencies.  This must be different because, as we all know – Obama was born a Kenyan-Muslim-Antichrist.  He’s the biggest threat to school kids since Halloween candy and Father Reacharound.

To the out-of-power Right, everything is a life-and-death issue. Everything is suddenly a conspiracy.  President Obama must be trying to indoctrinate impressionable youth. Here’s the e-mail floating around. Maybe your crazy aunt has forwarded it to you.

NOTE TO OBAMA :

th due to the beginning of Socialist Indoctrination of Americas children.Keep your kids home September 8th and twitter, the choice is clear : No school for kids on September 8bloggers, between internetWord is traveling fast on the

LEAVE OUR KIDS ALONE !!!!

 2009 September 1
by DanaLoesch
Take a day of vacation. Go to the zoo. Anything that would save your offspring from what I will bluntly say is just the quasi-fellating the executive branch. That cackling over a bubbling cauldron you hear is the NEA rejoicing.
Picture 4
President Obama’s Address to Students Across America September 8, 2009
I wouldn’t have such a problem with the Department of Education were this presented in a non-Orwellian fashion. Oh yes, it is, as the lesson plan directs, to listen to what t he president, the mayor, et al. says, to respect their “authoritah” </Cartman>, but there is no emphasis in here on why the president and other elected officials should listen to US. The focus is solely on authority. There is no consideration given to the authority of the American people. That’s what concerns me.
There is this mindset that those in Washington are the “elite,” that we should mind our Ps and Qs and blindly follow their directives. That’s not the manner of governance upon which this country was founded – it is quite the opposite; even the hobbyist Constitutional aficionado appreciates this.
So yes, keep your kids home on September 8th and teach them that the power of America rests in the hands of its people, no one else.

And guess who has picked up the torch, pitchfork and kool-aid for this cause? Glenn Beck! What a surprise!

Beck had this to say today:

We have a special 1 hour broadcast, on Tuesday…on the Indoctrination of your children. And we put it on that Tuesday because of Barack Obama speaking on that Tuesday.  Gang, you have a system that is wildly, wildly out-of-control…Stand guard America! You’re Republic is under attack!

Well, I have a pretty good idea what most home-schoolers are going to get to listen to on September 8. If anyone should speak on education, it should definitely be the chemically imbalanced, high school (equivalency) graduate, and surely not the democratically elected President with 2 Ivy League degrees. Beck continues…

Something wicked this way comes. I pray every night for more time…An event is coming and they will use this event to seize power. You are looking at the administration of Chavez…

What the fuck does this even mean?  Of course, this is nothing new for Beck.  He spews the alarmist, fear-mongering, apocalyptic, nonsensical rhetoric for hours a day.  Though the subject may change, the crazy hater basically spoon-feeds other delusional haters.  Actually, it’s quite disturbing.  Dan Savage calls it like it is:

 

Dan Savage:     I really do think the Michelle Bachmanns of the world and the Glenn Becks of the world are actively and, consciously or subconsciously, trying to get, I’m just gonna say it, trying to get the President killed.  That’s why they’re setting this up as kill or be killed arguments. He’s gonna kill you grandma, pull the plug on grandma, death panels children have to go in front of. This kind of rhetoric, this paranoid style on the religious right, from the birchers to the birthers doesn’t usually end well, and we, somebody’s gotta put the brakes on it, and unfortunately, in the Republican party, there are no adults left in the room, there are only the Michele Bachmann’s and the Glenn Beck’s and the Rush Limbaugh’s running the show.”

Amen.  There is no way around it.  Beck can add all the qualifiers he wants, but his repetition of “Obama is killing this country,” speaks to this point.  He’s mobilizing his viewers through any possible threat:  Obama’s indoctrinated 3rd-grade minions will take your guns, queer up your son, and bite your ankles.  So why is it only grassroots organizations that will call him on this?

 The majority of the country wants health insurance reform, but there sending the birchers and birthers to these meeting to scream and yell and create the appearance of controversy and the media, which is capped by it’s uh, allegiance to always describing every debate as a 50/50 either or, they create the impression that there is a deadlock when there is not,and it is a very conscious working around strategy on the part of Republican strategists.”

If you haven’t contacted Beck’s advertisers to tell them he’s a bigoted douchebag, please look here.  Play Beck’s game and let the free-market sort it out.

Undead Democrat

Chalk up another derogatory label for liberals. This time it’s supernatural!  Dobbs on Howard Dean:

“I thought we had gotten rid of this left-wing pest for a while,” Dobbs said. “But I guess he is just resurgent. He is a blood-sucking leftist. You have got to put a stake through his heart to stop this guy. So you have to give him credit for resilience even if he is a lefty.”

We are the fascist, nazi, socialist, gay, baby-killing vampires within. Boo!

Last Week’s Least Surprising Headline

Autopsy: Cocaine contributed to Billy Mays’ death

8-ball, 8-Ball, 8-BALL!!!!

TAMPA, Fla. – An official autopsy report released Friday found that cocaine use contributed to the heart disease that suddenly killed TV pitchman Billy Mays in June, but his family called the finding “speculative” and considered getting an independent look at the results.

The Hillsborough County medical examiner’s office previously determined that the bearded, boisterous TV spokesman had a heart attack in his sleep. His wife found him unresponsive in bed in their Tampa condo June 28.

Question calling for baseless speculation:  Mays’ coke use fueled by (1) Need for over-the-top, teeth-grinding energy typical of infomercial genre, OR (2) Compensation for self-loathing about having to feign excitement over cleaning supplies? Let’s talk about it.

 

America Loves Lists! – Top 5 John Hughes Movies

Many suburban kids growing up in the 80s + 90s gravitated to John Hughes’ movies. I am no exception. Hughes’ untimely death allows us an opportunity to reflect on his amazing resume. 

My top 5:

5.  Sixteen Candles – My babysitter Amy would watch this on repeat when I was about 8-9 years old. If I remember correctly, she liked the part when Ringwald’s sister was looped out on painkillers at the wedding. I concur.

Quote:  By night’s end, I predict me and her will interface.

4.  Uncle Buck – Candy was an underrated leading man + the king of the heart-felt, sentimental monologue.  Like most of Hughes’ movies, great cast – kids included.

Quote:  Maisy’s Teacher: Does anybody have a special story to tell the class about something that happened this week?
[Maisy raises her hand]
Maisy’s Teacher: Maisy?
Maisy Russell: My Uncle was micro waving our socks and the dog threw up on the couch for an hour.
Maisy’s Teacher: Honest?
Maisy Russell: Mm-Hmm.
Maisy’s Teacher: Why was your Uncle micro waving your socks?
Maisy Russell: He can’t get the goddamn washing machine to work.
Maisy’s Teacher: BLASPHEMER!

3.  Planes, Trains & Automobiles – I always wondered why there aren’t more Thanksgiving movies.  When Steve Martin leaves us, this will rank right behind The Jerk on his resume.

Quote:  Del: [sitting outside the motel cafe after finding out they've been robbed] You know I’ve been thinking. What we’re dealing with here is a small-time crook. He didn’t take the credit cards, right? So we charge our way home. What kind of plastic do you carry?
Neal: I have a Visa and a gasoline card. Oh, and I have a Neiman Marcus card in case you want to send someone a gift. What do you have?
Del: Chalmer’s Big and Tall men’s shop. It’s a seven outlet chain in the pacific northwest. Great stuff. Unfortunately, it does us no good here.

2.  Ferris Bueller’s Day Off - No movie showcases Chicago better that this.  I almost always got caught when I was in high school.  Doesn’t really matter what it was. I got caught.  To this day, watching Rooney gets his comeuppance makes me smile.  It’s a one of a kind movie and writing this makes me realize it has been a while since I checked out The Art Institute.

Quote:  I do have a test today, that wasn’t bullshit. It’s on European socialism. I mean, really, what’s the point? I’m not European. I don’t plan on being European. So who gives a crap if they’re socialists? They could be fascist anarchists, it still doesn’t change the fact that I don’t own a car.

1.  The Breakfast Club – Coming of age comes of age. I wore out this VHS  for a solid decade.  Hands down, my favorite Hughes movie.  About a month ago, I visited Niagra Falls for the first time.  After sexy-time with my lady, I was excited that in the future, if someone questions my manly prowess, I can honestly retort:  ”I’ve laid, lotsa times!” (Name one!) / “She [was] in Canada, met her at Niagara Falls. You wouldn’t know her.” 

I think I will watch this tonight. It’s been awhile.

Quote:  John Bender: Well, Brian, this is a very nutritious lunch. All the food groups are represented. Did your mom marry Mr. Rogers? 
Brian Johnson: Uh, no. Mr. Johnson. 

I Fell Asleep While Watching This: Taken

This movie has a very particular set of skills. Like Ambien.

A minute-and-a-half into this movie, any veteran viewer of formulaic Hollywood entertainment knows how this film will resolve itself.

The first 20 minutes are mildly entertaining.  After that, turn off your brain and watch this over-the-hill Irishman beat ass for an hour or so.  Enjoy.  Grade: D+

 

 

Great Quote:

Jean Claude: Graham, you can’t just run around tearing down Paris…

Bryan: [cuts him off abruptly] Jean Claude, I’ll tear down the Eiffel Tower if I have to!

Conservatives Demand To See Obama’s Birthmark

WASHINGTON, D.C. –  The controversy over President Barack Obama’s birthmark continues to be a hot topic in the nation’s capital, thanks to new allegations from prominent Conservatives.

On Friday, reiterating information first reported in an e-mail forwarded from some guy in Shreveport,  Alan Keyes appeared on Fox News to discuss this incendiary issue.

“We have received, from a reliable source, startling information regarding President Obama’s birthmark,” clamored Keyes.  ”It turns out the President doesn’t have an old-fashioned American birthmark at all.  He has a mark commonly known as a ‘cafe’ au lait spot‘.”

The increasingly agitated Keyes continued, “Cafe’ au lait! That’s French. The President is a Frenchman!”

The birthmark has been an issue since President Obama disclosed the blemish during his 2008 Primary campaign.  In an interview following an Iowa City campaign stop, Obama addressed the issue stating, “Yes, I have a birthmark. It’s about the size of a, uh, quarter, and it’s about 2 inches above my right hip.”

Since this time, the blogosphere and conservative media have simmered with theories and rumors concerning the birthmark.  Viral e-mails have circulated, claiming the birthmark resembles, among other things, the “mark of the beast,” Lesotho’s national flag, and Stalin’s mustache.  

Evansville, IN resident Betty Hathaway says she has been skeptical about the president’s place of birth for months, “Well, I was kind of surprised this mark means he’s French. I heard that it looked like Castro.”  

Continued Hathaway, “But I just knew that man was not from this country.”

Keyes was not alone among conservative activists. Attorney/Dentist Orly Taitz claims this “spot” demonstrates Obama is not a natural born American Citizen, but instead, a Frenchman. ”This mark proves the President is not only a Communist, but a French Communist.”

Taitz demanded the President ” ‘Drop trou’ in front of the American People and end this controversy once and for all.”

Taitz promised to present more evidence on Monday’s Lou Dobbs’ Show.

Dixie’s Alternative Reality

From today’s kos poll:

Here’s another amazing finding from our poll showing that less than half of Republicans and southerners believe Barack Obama was born in the United States: 7 in 10 Americans who don’t believe Barack Obama was born in the U.S. live in the south, which has 30% of the U.S. population. Nearly 6 in 10 are Republicans, who compromise just 22% of the population.

This is incredibly discouraging, yet not real surprising.  The Conservatives have come a long way since William Buckley.  This manufactured story has been ongoing for well over a year.  The facts are right there for anyone who wants them. 

The reality? These fucking idiots choose to believe this.  No amount of logic or evidence will change their minds.  This speaks to the success of such media outlets as Fox News, Rush Limbaugh, etc.  The truth doesn’t matter. People like the ”Birthers” only want to hear rhetoric that reinforces their ideology – bigotry and xenophobia included.  Facts are often inconvenient and subsequently dismissed, or used selectively.  Thus, constructive debate concerning important issues is impossible.  Well done.

This Erin Andrews Thing Will Help Me Calibrate My Creepiness Level

Erin Andrews has been a favorite of mine for the last few years. I’m talking Top 5 Favorite and common attendee in my “photo album.”  Not only is she the typical hot, leggy blonde, but she can also talk “swing offense” with Bo Ryan. 

I know it’s not just me. I expect even Tebow would put down a Filipino orphan and unbuckle his chastity belt for a chance to bed her.

So I was very curious when I read someone videotaped naked Erin through her hotel room peephole in Omaha.  I took a couple deep breaths, and waited it out until I was only “semi”-curious. 

At this point, I have not searched this out on-line. Why? Well, while my phallic compass is pointing due north (towards viewing this tape), my moral compass has not allowed me to take a look.  I don’t judge people who seek out this video, but I can’t do it.  The only question that keeps running through my head is, “How would you come across on a hotel room hidden camera?”  The Answer? Creepy, skinny, slothful and stained.

Examples of things I’ve done while naked in hotel rooms: (1) air-guitar w/ headphones on; (2) eaten pasta with my hands; (3) blown my nose in a hand-towel; (4) watched the live Lotto numbers while holding my tickets; (5) passed out on the floor (bathroom + bedroom).  These are the PG examples.  Feel free to be inspired, Pixar. These are on the house.

The argument that she “brings this upon herself” because she is a sexy public figure is bullshit.  She is not posing for Playboy. She is not at some Omaha meth party with no underwear.  She is not out on the town, wearing a slutty dress when someone snaps a photo as one of her titties pops out.  She was not stupid enough to make a sex video with a guy who “promised not to show it to any of his friends.” 

Don't despair. I still admire you as the sideline-reporting professional you are.

 

Public figures deserve privacy in private areas such as hotel rooms. Maybe not Marion Berry’s hotel room, but certainly in private rooms where no illegal activity is occurring.

On a related note, reports yesterday indicated an ESPN employee is suspected of shooting this videotape. Let’s take a look at some usual suspects:

1.  Chris Berman:  This stale windbag has been referring to her as Erin “Go-Bra-Less” Andrews for the last couple days.  I cringe thinking of him “rumblin’ bumblin’ stumblin’ ” down the hotel hall after taking the video. Gross human.

2.  Dick Vitale: Dickie V always talks about how he has only one “good-eye.” That’s all you need for a peephole. “Are you serious?  That Ass is Awesome with a capital A!!” Fuck you, Vitale.

3.  Linda Cohn:  The female Sportscenter mainstay might resent Andrews. I don’t blame her, though. I heard menopause can be a rough time. Keep your chin up, Linda!

 

4.  Scott VanPelt:  Until now, the sensitive anchor had the best net-wide tape among the ESPN crowd (particularly after Berman had ESPN scrub the Web of his O’Reilly-esque tirade). Perhaps it was too much being known as the “painfully long, heartfelt voice-mail guy.”

 

5.  Stuart Scott:  Not the primary suspect only because I don’t think he could stay quiet for the couple minutes necessary to execute the covert taping. “Check out those cans! Boo-ya!” This dated asshead exudes creepiness. Stu, I know your contrived lingo is an attempt to come across as being from the bad-side of Bristol, but you’re as transparent as Rich Eisen’s soul.                                                                                                                                                                             

Chuck Todd’s Perfect World

During the (2007-present?) Presidential campaign, my old lady expressed serious contempt for NBC’s ineffectual Chuck Todd.  I often found myself defending him – mostly because I never liked Tim Russert, the Beltway’s quintessential, go-along “journalist.” 

But last night, Colbert nailed it.

From Greenwald’s article today, a reader makes a great point regarding the dangerous precedent of refusing to investigate and prosecute the architects of Bush’s torture program:

The huge problem here is precedent. In specifically directing an investigation of those who exceeded Bush’s torture authorization, our Justice Department is actually giving legal credence to Yoo, Bybee, and the Bush gang who sought to legalize these clearly illegal methods. Investigating only those who went beyond Yoo’s memos affirms, as legal basis, Bush’s detention and torture policies as the backdrop to be measured against; in effect establishing those practices listed in the memo as the legal standard.

It is less damaging to investigate no one at all than to use the Bush standard to measure those few who exceeded even those most grotesque of practices against. All we’ll end up with is a few more Charles Graners in prison, everyone above middle management getting away without so much as public acknowledgment of having done something wrong, and a de facto Justice Department affirmation that not only will Bush’s team not be investigated for having done something wrong, but that they never did anything wrong at all as those same standards become accepted baseline to measure future prosecutions against.

This is far worse than Obama’s previous “look forward, not backward” stance. This is looking backward and establishing crimes and indignities against humanity as solid legal footing.

Ms. California has an opinion!

 

The liberal outrage over Ms. California’s opposition to gay marriage is absolutely ridiculous.  This is exactly the kind of  manufactured controversy “the right” constantly uses in order to obfuscate and deter substantive debate on real issues (see Obama re: arugula, bowling, condiments…).  Who the fuck cares what some Barbie thinks about “opposite marriage?”  Also, now she’s getting chastised for this tasty photo she took back in the day:

 

evangelicious

 

So this photo is supposed to make her some sort of hypocrite?  The hypocrisy lies with that pageant. 50 waifs with fake tits dance around in slutty outfits and bikinis (not a bad thing) for 2 hours glorifying female objectification and then you’re going to sandbag them with questions about Prop 8 and Iraq like they’re running for fucking office?  

Perez Hilton and all the other douchebags who won’t let this go need a fucking reality check.  I don’t agree with her opinion either.  Who cares. Let it go.

Glenn Beck: Where Fiction Is Reality

Conservatives love to use works of fiction as the bases and rationalization of their beliefs.  Whether it be “24,” Atlas Shrugged, The Manchurian Candidate, or pseudo-fictional works such as “The Passion” and  ”The Bible,”  facts are almost always universally subordinate to sensational and justifying fiction.  We can add a new one:  The X-Files.

Apparently, Glenn Beck’s ratings are through the roof after his move to Fox News.  It’s not surprising considering his core  audience tunes in for reinforcement of their fear, bigotry and outright looniness.  And boy, the looniness has flowed from Beck’s mouth like vomit from a drunk Irishman (Happy St. Pats!).  

The two clips below are as follows:

Glenn Beck promoting his show and his segment on the FEMA “concentration camps” where Obama is going to round up all the dissenters when he establishes his brand of socialist-totalitarianism-with-a-splash of baby-killing-fascist-marxism.

Beck states, “If you have any fear that we might be heading toward a totalitarian state, look out.  There is something happening in our country and it ain’t good.”  

And here is the 1998 movie, The X-Files:

 

While I don’t expect a delusional asshole who barely graduated high school to grasp the theoretical and practical differences of the scary words he constantly throws around at liberals, such as “socialism,” “fascism,” “totalitarianism,” and “anarchy,” I think he owes it to his viewers to keep his outlandish conspiracy theories as fresh as possible.  Maybe he can use the following on his next show:

“High School Musical:  A liberal conspiracy to queer up our kids?”

“Kung Fu Panda:  What can we do to prevent animated Chinese aggression?”

“Activia Yogurt:  Is the government keeping us close to the toilet for a reason?”

“Isn’t Carlos Mencia enough evidence that all Latinos should be deported?” 

“Subway’s $5 Foot-Long Ad Campaign:  Is the liberal fast-food establishment making us gay socialists?”

Arrested Development Movie: No Need For A Stand-In

According to Eonline, Michael Cera is no longer a holdout for the movie adaptation of Arrested Development.  Previous reports indicated Cera had been the only holdout from the ensemble cast.  I’m not sure if that means  Bob Loblaw or not.

It’s a shame it took this long, but I’m hoping it will be worth the wait.  In fairness to George Michael Bluth, he has clearly had the most success following the show’s cancellation.  And Pop-Pop will probably be happy that his voice has dropped.  

Expect the movie about a year from now.

The Shield – Holy Shit.

I am still digesting the best series finale ever made.  I won’t detail the plot in case someone wants to watch, but oh my God, what a way to go out.  It’s certainly better to burn out than fade away.  David Chase & Co. could have learned a lot from the last season of The Shield. 

1.   Walton Goggins is awesome.  I don’t know who wins tv awards, but he certainly deserves some.  Basic cable has never seen such a well-crafted, dynamic character. Shane (a/k/a Cletus VanDamme) was certainly a fuck-up.  However, you couldn’t help but root for him + Mara.  Their scenes together over the last 3 episodes were something to behold.  “Family meeting” - Are you fucking serious?!!  I’m still reeling.

2.  The show is so well written, but I also think Shawn Ryan + staff do an excellent job in editing and creating the proper pace to the show.  Just when a grueling storyline becomes too unbearable, they’ll cut to a (relatively) easier to digest scene.  I liked the closure with Dutch, Claudette and the teen-killer.

3.  Vic – Chiklis may be 5′2, but for 7 seasons he was as bad-ass as it gets.  Last episode, his facade

he will shake you up, shake you down, shake your hand, rule the town. He's Vic. That's poetry.

crumbled and he was exposed for the despicable asshole he really is.  Yet, like Shane, even knowing all this, part of you can’t help but root for him.  Like other great tv shows, over time so much gets invested in the characters that sometimes the viewer doesn’t want to see them for who they are.

4.  Poor, poor Ronnie.  You take a stove-burn to the face and this is what you get?  Can’t go any further than that.  Too soon.

5.  CCH was on fire last night.  Let’s hear it for The Shield’s moral authority.

And so ends a great era of tv dramas: The Sopranos, 6 Feet Under, The Wire, The Shield.  Rest in peace.  What’s left? nothing for me.  I guess there’s always a Law & Order on somewhere.  Maybe The Shield could produce a couple spin-offs:

The Shield II – Acevado v. Predator:  Acevado is mayor.  But with so many skeletons, how long will this honeymoon last?  And could there be something supernatural in the mix?  Find out after the season premiere of “Dirt” on Fx.

The Shield II – The Early Years:  Lem is back, the team is together, and everyone is happy shaking down eastern europeans and such. Dutchman loses his virginity. 

And so it goes. I will really miss the “Barn.”  So long, Shield. So long.

Kanye the New Pepsi

Are you between the ages of 24-35?  Do you feel isolated and alone, like no one looks out for you?  Have you ever been frustrated by your failure to reach people, no matter how much you use your MacBook Air?  Do standard musicians (that just play music) really get you down?  It’s ok, children. Kanye is here for you. 

“I realize that my place and position in history is that I will go down as the voice of this generation, of this decade, I will be the loudest voice,” he said in an interview on Wednesday. “It’s me settling into that position of just really accepting that it’s one thing to say you want to do it and it’s another thing to really end up being like Michael Jordan.”

Kanye West: post-concert, pre-lazer tag

 

You might be the “loudest voice.”  Absolutely.  Your volume is quite high. And playing the MJ-card?  Wow, I like it – quite bold.  However, for the sake of argument, I don’t know if that’s something MJ would say.  I mean, MJ would be more likely to put up 38 points in game 5 of the ‘97 finals while suffering crippling effects of the flu, and not really say a thing about.  He didn’t really proclaim he was great. He was just great. 

Kanye, on the other hand, you are more likely to spew a rage-filled rant (by typing in all CAPS) because a few trust-fund hippies were upset they actually stayed up until 4 a.m. to see the new voice of their generation who wouldn’t go on stage because his light-set-up wasn’t “strong” enough.  WWMJD? 

But let’s let Kanye plead his case:

The Grammy-winning rapper-producer said Justin Timberlake had a chance to be music’s MVP, but hasn’t put out enough material. (Timberlake’s last album was in 2006, while West released a CD last year and is releasing his latest “808s and Heartbreak” on Nov. 24.)

“There were people who had the potential to do it but they went on vacation, so when Justin went on vacation I made albums,” he said. “And it just came out to be that.”

It’s really up in the air, but Kanye has the edge because he stepped up with the bold proclamation.  Personally, whichever one appears in the most commercials and hosts the most award shows is the one I want speaking for me.  Good luck, gentlemen.

TV & Social Decay – A Bipartisan Effort

First viewed at avclub.com, I was thoroughly intrigued by a recent study  done by Nielsen Corp. concerning the partisan divide of American (cable) television shows.  Below are the most partisan shows listed with (a) their titles, and (b) why they appeal to the demographic.  I will also note the (clearly partisan) GW ratings of these shows.

SHOWS WITH HIGHEST REPUBLICAN ENGAGEMENT:

1.  South Park – Why?  “They Took er Jobs!.” Also, Cartman may be the hero of the conservative youth movement.  GW Rating:  Usually pretty solid when viewed.

2.  Cash Cab – Why?  Appreciate a cab driver who speaks good English.  GW Rating:  Probably the best game show on TV since Barker left the Price is Right.  Red Light Challenge!

3.  Damages – Why? Tightly-wound, frigid, cut-throat bitches? The type of girl you want to bring home to mother’s dinner-party.   GW Rating: Never viewed, but Glenn Close?  She’s good.

4.  Battle 360 – Why? I don’t know. Small phalluses? GW Rating: Never viewed, but if it’s on the History Channel I am pretty sure it has something to do with WWII and guns.

5.  Doctor Who? – Why? Affirms their belief in the aliens they saw after drinking a handle of moonshine and getting lost in the woods while trying to take a piss.  GW Rating: Never viewed.  As a youth, I was a fan of MST 3000.  Same ballpark?

Engvall: Making domestic violence funny one black-eye at a time.

6.  Bill Engvall Show – Why? Can relate to the latent yet unexpressed sexual taboos the show uncomfortably alludes to, but doesn’t really address; such as pedophilia, incest, adultery, and probably pegging. GW Rating:  From previews alone, have seen enough to want to scrub myself clean with S.O.S. pads. 

7.  Rock of Love with Brett Michaels - Why?  Because in 2008, if there are still Poison fans out there, they’re voting Republican. May also give hope to those anxiously anticipating the Apocalypse. GW Rating:  I’ve seen bits + pieces. *hangs head in shame* 

 SHOWS WITH HIGHEST DEMOCRATIC ENGAGEMENT:

1.   The Colbert Report – Why? Snark and Sarcasm levels through the roof.  GW Rating:  Best talk-show on television.  Nielsen knows so much about me!

2.   Deadliest Catch – Why? Like to sit on the couch and say, “Holy shit! I would never do that. Pass the bong.”  GW Rating: Fairly impressive, but all the episodes seem identical.

3.    Ax Men – Why? Like to sit on the couch and say, “Holy shit! I could totally do that. Pass the hummus.” GW Rating: Never seen it, but pretty sure it’s like Deadliest Catch, but in a forest. With axes.  And no women.

4.  It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia – Why? Four assholes in a bar make them feel better about

It's always sophisticated humor for liberal elites!

being assholes who frequent bars.  GW  Rating:  Crass and tasteless.  So I love it.  Most laugh-out-loud moments since Arrested Development (R.I.P.).

5.  Tin Man – Why?  While other kids were playing sports and feeling-up girls, they were trying on their mothers’ footwear and clicking their heels.  GW Rating:  Never viewed, but big fan of Oz-related media – from the classic originals, to the show with prison-rape.

6.  My Boys – Why? Like the thought of hanging around with a cool girl with shared interests without having to get up the courage to make a move.  GW Rating: Not frequently viewed.  A little off, though quite fond of the “D-bag Intervention” episode.  We also like the shots of Chicago via an LA studio.

7.  I Love New York – Why? Went to the website, but couldn’t really figure out the point of show.  Is this a Tyler Perry presentation?  GW Rating:  Never viewed, yet still vaguely horrified. Ultimately incomplete.

Somewhat interesting? I think so.  Let’s check out the shows with the Highest Bipartisan Engagement:

1.  The Cleaner  2. Real Housewives of Orange County   3. The Next Food Network Star  4.  HGTV Design Star   5. Army Wives   6. The Hills   7.  What not to Wear   8.  Saving Grace    9. In Plain Sight

 I don’t even know what most of these shows are, but one thing appears clear:  Nothing seems able to unite the nation like bad, basic-cable reality television.  Kudos to all of you: the housewives, wannabe Food Network stars, and privileged, vapid, SoCal teenagers.  You are not just the Real Housewives, but the real patriots. You teach us that this nation consists of not just “blue” TV-shows and “red” TV-shows, but “awful” TV-shows, that enable the masses to be free from the burdens of quality entertainment, reading, and human interaction.  Cheers to you all! The 21st century heroes.

Omar’s Comin!

Hurricane Omar, that is. 

You come at the king, you best not miss.

Omar formed Tuesday in the eastern Caribbean and dumped heavy rain on the islands of Aruba, Bonaire and Curacao off the coast of Venezuela. At 11 p.m. ET, its center was about 315 miles (505 km) south-southwest of San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Like Michael K. Williams classic character from HBO’s The Wire, Hurricane Omar seems to be taking it relatively easy on the poor, marginalized, and innocent; so for once, most of Haiti should be fine.

However, as Caribbean inhabitants should know, tropical storms are “all in the game.” Get those windows boarded up and seek shelter because “it’s either play or get played.”

A strong tropical cyclone will harbor an area of sinking air at the center of circulation. If this area is strong enough, it can develop into an eye. Weather in the eye is normally calm and free of clouds, although the sea may be extremely violent...Indeed.

I’m no meteorologist – I didn’t have time for the 4-week course – but if I’m living on the Atlantic coast, I’m keeping one eye on this storm, wary that it might take a quick right turn.  Hear that B’more? 

Mike Royko Knew. A 1990s Perspective on Ayers.

No Chicago Columnist in modern times is more iconic than Mike Royko.  Royko passed away in 1997.  Though he passed way too early, his “ghost” hovers over Chicago’s journalistic community.  He worked for the (now defunct) Daily News, then the Suntimes, until Rupert Murdoch purchased the paper, at which point Royko had the prescient inclination to say the following:

“No self-respecting fish would be wrapped in a Murdoch paper,” and that, “His goal is not quality journalism. His goal is vast power for Rupert Murdoch, political power.”

Thus, in 1984 Royko moved to the Chicago Tribune.  On the Tribune’s website today, columnist Eric Zorn rehashes a 1990 Royko column on Ayers.

18 years later, some still need a little bit of perspective.

It’s very clear Royko had considerable contempt for the action of William Ayers and the Weather Underground’s actions.  He essentially dismissed their actions as juvenile and inconsequential:

Anyway, the Weathermen went “underground,” as they liked to put it for dramatic effect. Some later blew themselves up while trying to build a bomb. Apparently they had dozed through their college chemistry classes. A couple of others became robbers, but most universities don’t teach bank heists, or even remedial heisting, so they didn’t have much of a flair for it and wound up in prison…

So in the 1980s, they began drifting out of the “underground” and gave themselves up. The problem was finding someone to give themselves up to. The authorities figured that prosecuting them wasn’t worth the bother.

Albeit tinged with snark, Royko continues and displays much more “Christian” spirit than the current “crusaders” who maintain the righteous indignation over 40-year old Vietnam protests.

With all forgiven, they’ve rejoined society. Some have even used their prominent family connections – clout they once condemned as evil – to land better jobs than the mopes they hoped to lead to revolution have been able to land.

And one of those who has now become a useful citizen is Bill Ayers, now 45, a parent and an assistant professor of education at the University of Illinois at Chicago. You may have read all about him in a recent issue of the weekly Reader.

One thing about Royko is that he didn’t hide his personal feelings behind generalities or ideologies.  He was an investigator, but he wasn’t an alarmist. He spoke his mind. I mean, this guy wrote Boss while Richard J. Daley was still mayor. The article continues:

Back when he was a young radical, I thought he was kind of a jerk. I wanted to see if there was reason to change this opinion. But, no, I still think he’s a jerk.
As the story noted, he was wearing a T-shirt that read: “America is like a melting pot: the people at the bottom get burned and the scum floats to the top.”

That confirms something I’ve always believed about people like Ayers and his fellow well-born, well-bred suburban revolutionaries. Despite all their fine talk about helping the down-trodden, they had nothing but contempt for those at the bottom. They assumed that those who were born poor couldn’t achieve anything without the leadership and teachings of bright people such as Bill Ayers. So it stands to reason, as the T-shirt implies, that those who managed to accomplish something without Ayers’ help must have used sneaky, low-down methods. Thus, they are “scum.”

…In fairness to him, he’s now working for a good cause, improving public education. He’s become a leader in the so-called school reform program. (However, he does send his own kids to private schools. No sense in letting your own offspring get scorched at the bottom of that melting pot.)

But what struck me most about the story was that there was nothing in there about the Persian Gulf. Nothing about Ayers revving up his old anti-war sentiments, now that there are a few hundred thousand American youths in the Mideast desert. Not one word about our being on the brink of a questionable war from someone who made Vietnam protest the reason for his existence. And for having a whoopee time breaking other people’s windows…

Royko gets it. He doesn’t like the guy. He says so.  But as much as he doesn’t like him, he recognizes the passage of time and Ayers’ accomplishments. It’s kind of cough “fair and balanced.”

In today’s column, Zorn points out some other interesting details regarding pre-08 campaign coverage of Ayers:

These are only two of  60 references to Ayers in the 1990s I found in local news archives available on Nexis. Twenty one of them make reference to his unseemly past—it was no secret—but 39 do not.

He was publishing books on education, helping lead a charge to get grant money for school reform and being honored as Chicago’s Citizen of the Year in 1997.

Aside from Royko’s “I still think he’s a jerk” column in 1990, I found only two objections to Ayers’ civic rehabilitation in the decade’s news archives: a 1993 letter to the Tribune and a 1999 guest commentary.

If there were protests or organized efforts opposing Ayers, the papers didn’t cover them.

If any of Mayor Richard M. Daley’s feckless opponents tried to use his approval of Ayers as an issue in the 1990s, I can find no evidence of it.

In the 1990s, William Ayers was not considered a terrorist. Obama did not associate with “terrorist” Bill Ayers because I’m pretty sure all of the WU were out of grade school during the Vietnam-era.  If Royko was alive today, he may criticize Obama for having poor taste in acquaintances, but I doubt the descriptor “terrorist” would even cross his mind except to chastise those in his profession who choose to perpetuate this bullshit storyline.  To think that John Kassessentially occupies Royko’s space in the Tribune is enough to make me vomit.  

I understand Ayers is only an issue because the Republicans have nothing else to offer.  I understand increased sensitivities about terrorism after 9/11. I understand the Internet essentially gives anyone a platform from which to preach. I understand the psychos yelling “terrorist” and “kill him” at McPalin rallies are so wrapped in hatred and detached from reality, that the a sensible comment from a journalist, politician, or circus freak won’t mean shit.

In some respect, this is less about Ayers, and more about the state of the Media and electorate in 2008. And damn, was Royko right about Rupert Murdoch.

Illegal Spying – Media Hibernation

ABC finally reports on the NSA’s 6 years (incl. pre-9/11) of illegal spying on Americans:

Despite pledges by President George W. Bush and American intelligence officials to the contrary, hundreds of US citizens overseas have been eavesdropped on as they called friends and family back home, according to two former military intercept operators who worked at the giant National Security Agency (NSA) center in Fort Gordon, Georgia.

“These were just really everyday, average, ordinary Americans who happened to be in the Middle East, in our area of intercept and happened to be making these phone calls on satellite phones,” said Adrienne Kinne, a 31-year old US Army Reserves Arab linguist assigned to a special military program at the NSA’s Back Hall at Fort Gordon from November 2001 to 2003.

Kinne described the contents of the calls as “personal, private things with Americans who are not in any way, shape or form associated with anything to do with terrorism.”

She said US military officers, American journalists and American aid workers were routinely intercepted and “collected on” as they called their offices or homes in the United States….

NSA awarded Adrienne Kinne a NSA Joint Service Achievement Medal in 2003 at the same time she says she was listening to hundreds of private conversations between Americans, including many from the International Red Cross and Doctors without Borders….

“By casting the net so wide and continuing to collect on Americans and aid organizations, it’s almost like they’re making the haystack bigger and it’s harder to find that piece of information that might actually be useful to somebody,” she said. “You’re actually hurting our ability to effectively protect our national security.”

In 2005, the NYT felt the duty to break the story they had been sitting on for a year, and let Americans know their government was continuously committing felonies by illegally spying on its  own citizens.

For the next two years, I vented much frustration to my stuffed animals, unlucky bi-standers, and random inanimate objects regarding the pillaging of our beloved Constitution.  And while the “right to privacy” is not explicitly included in the U.S.C. (like the “right to maintain an Air Force” or the “right to imbibe in a frosty beverage while watching football”), the Supreme Court long ago found it to guarantee Americans against intrusions by the government, and Congress encoded these rights in the Privacy Act of 1974. 

For 6 years the Bush Administration violated these laws.  For 6 years, the Mainstream Media ignored the issue.  All of a sudden this is a “breaking story?”  Too late assholes. File it next to tomorrow’s breaking report on steroid use in baseball.

For an in-depth look at this story, go to Greenwald’s article posted today.  I highlighted the paragraph posted above for a reason.  Personally, the right to privacy is very important to me.  To others, not so much. Some would sacrifice privacy rights in order to ensure “safety.” First of all, policy shouldn’t dictate one or the other.  We can preserve our Constitutional Rights while fighting terrorists at the same time.  In fact, this is not only possible, but essential to upholding the laws and values of this country.  But from a purely logical standpoint, if you are going to stretch resources to spy on pretty much anybody, the overwhelming majority of gathered intelligence will inherently be garbage.

A couple months ago, Congress, led by asshat J. Rockefeller (D-WV), and along with the capitulation of both presidential candidates, basically absolved the government (and the accessory Telecom companies) of any wrong-doing for their past acts, and ensured Americans will never know the depth or breadth of Bush’s felonious conduct.  The Mainstream Media’s failure to show a semblance of consideration to the story, and their failure to make even the slightest effort to explain the importance of these issues to the public, helped ensure we will waste our intelligence resources, and learn the lessons of Nixon and Watergate all over again.