Political battles are made easier when at least some of your opponents are clueless, careless, and, well, frankly creepy. So this morning my thanks go out to Glenn Beck.
Over the weekend, a nonprofit organization I chair called American Family Voices put out an ad about an attempt by House Republicans to cut the heart out of enforcement funding for the Clean Air Act. We carefully documented everything in the ad, citing scientific research from multiple sources. The facts are indisputable: In 2010, the Clean Air Act prevented 160,000 early deaths, and kept 230 babies alive by keeping deadly poisons like arsenic and mercury out of the air.
Glenn Beck and his radio partner Pat Gray, who apparently don't believe in even the most basic fact checking, did one of the strangest six-minute riffs on this ad I have ever heard in my life. Starting with the rather obvious falsehood that the ad was paid for by the EPA (guys, the words "Paid for by American Family Voices" were on the screen in clear lettering for four seconds, and yes, we do have a website that any 18-year-old research intern could have checked out), they spent the next six minutes joking and laughing about the idea that kids might die of arsenic poisoning. In the creepiest section of all, they started naming the names of children (maybe their own, I was so horrified it was a little hard to track) who could die from arsenic poisoning.
Now I know they were just joshing around, their point being that government could never do anything as good as saving children's lives from poisoning (despite the science that demonstrates that it does just that). But seriously, guys: six minutes laughing about the idea that babies might die? Of course, this is the same Glenn Beck that enthusiastically told an audience, to cheers and laughter, that in nature, "the lions eat the weak." This is the same Glenn Beck who clearly takes much of his philosophical underpinnings from Ayn Rand, who described compassion and charity as moral weaknesses which were leeches on society, and celebrated the "virtue of selfishness."
But look, I'm not complaining. With appealing allies like Glenn Beck making their case, the oil and coal companies and the House Republicans trying to gut the Clean Air Act will be a lot easier to beat.
I believe we all know Becks track record in this regard.
Dayne
AFV reported to the IRS making zero political expenditures in 2000, 2001 and 2002.7 In effect, the group has represented claimed that none of its communications were intended to influence the outcomes of elections.8 That claim is hardly plausible in certain cases, particularly regarding ads in 2000 that AFV ran in Pennsylvania, Michigan and Missouri to criticize the health care policies of then-Texas Gov. George W. Bush.9 Bush was in no official position at the time to influence federal health care policies or the health care policies of the states in which the ads ran.
But hey--if Beck thinks heavy-metal toxicity is a hoot, by all means let him laugh; we'll hear him loud and clear.
Well, you see, therein lies the problem. They don't have any research interns and especially one that might be young enough to find anything that will contradict their "opinion/facts". At Fauz, they don't require or need facts. They have opinions and that's all that matters. Facts just get in the way.
But she did say: "My views on charity are very simple. I do not consider it a major virtue and, above all, I do not consider it a moral duty. There is nothing wrong in helping other people, if and when they are worthy of the help and you can afford to help them. I regard charity as a marginal issue. What I am fighting is the idea that charity is a moral duty and a primary virtue."
Please consider becoming Paul(ette) Revere. He needs to be stopped before America falls apart.
http://www.sharethisurlaboutglennbeck.com/2011/03/becoming-paul-revere.html
So even Democrats buy LIES like: That Republicans are into fiscal responsibility (As stated by Anthony Wiener (i.e. "we all know that republicans are into fiscal responsibility but what's
our message")
Or another highly intelligent person like Cenk Uygar letting Tea Partiers get away with TalkingPointLies like: "the republicans spent like Democrats by wracking up the debt")
When Reagan entered office the Annual Deficit was $-68B
When he Left office (after raising taxesSeveral time) Annual Deficit =$-279B
When Bush1 Left having raised taxes Annual Deficit: =$-389B
Upon Bill Clinton's **entry** he combed the budget line item by line item asking his cabinet "if I cut this who will it impact? Go find out"
VERSUS: HACK Jobs Republicans do and DESTROYing Americans' quality of Life!
ALGore implemented it &reported on it on Television programs.
Clinton's last 3 years he submitted BALANCED budgets. &Annual Deficit was == 0000
While beginning to pay off the debt at ***$250B a year
Bush2 Left Annual Budget Deficit== $-1.3Trillion
Having collected 1.5Ttillion in Social Security SURPLUS
NO OVERSIGHT by Republicans now blackmailed through Linbough/Fox LieMachines
And Trillion in Off Balance Sheet Accepting THAT OBAMA PUT BACK INTO THE BUDGET!
Totalitarians against WeThePeople, For Predatory Standards for Corporations!.
DEM=PAYGO, GOP=NO!