AustinCynic's Comments (29)

“Mr. Peyronnin, I suggest you watch the Babylon 5 episode entitled "The Illusion of Truth" (season 4, episode 8). It predicts, with painful accuracy, the approach Fox News would start continually taking only a few years after the episode originally aired in 1997.

Or, if you can't spare 42 minutes, just watch Jason Sudeikis's skewering of Glenn Beck on Saturday Night Live. It takes about six seconds.

Either will explain--far better than I can--about why President Obama was entirely correct to bypass Fixed News.”

“Unfortunately when believers in any age look to their sacred scripture to reinforce their own prejudices, we get things like the classic example of how the Garden of Eden story is used to subjegate women. I never figured out what my fellow males see that makes them think women are so evil, anyway, because if they are saying Eve (who actually needs quite a bit of convincing to disobey God) led Adam (who really needed no convincing) astray, then men are admitting that they are the weak-willed ones.”

“Thanks for summing up and articulating all the problems I had with Atlas Shrugged, and why I just couldn't make it through John Galt's interminable monologue at the end, after nearly getting there. The book crosses the line from being an interesting thought experiment to being an overly-long straw man argument.”

“However, given the arc of Barry Goldwater's life--and considering that his conservative philosophy led him to oppose things like "don't ask don't tell" at the end of his life, I'd guess that Goldwater, were he around today, would have a big problem with ASU's slight.

Which isn't to say Goldwater's legacy doesn't have problems when it comes to race. But it's unfortunate that many of his disciples didn't evolve the way the man himself did.”

“I grew up in South Bend (within walking distance of the campus during my high school years), and I know what kind of institution it is. I feel secure in saying that when it comes to academic exploration Notre Dame is anything but close-minded and that Barack Obama represents the values of the university more than Newt Gingrich does. And if memory serves, the student body might not even be majority-Catholic any more, or if they are it's by a slim margin.

Have fun with your speaking engagement, Cenk. Wish I still lived there so I could see you. If you like cars and have free time, the Studebaker Museum is well worth the visit and $7 admission.”

“First off, let's give Samuel "Shemp" Howard some love here--Curly replaced _him_ right before the Stooges left Ted Healy and began their storied career at Columbia. Shemp actually had a pretty good career as a supporting actor in his own right (he was in The Bank Dick with W.C. Fields as a bartender) and was only wooed reluctantly back into the family act when Curly suffered his stroke. Sadly, Shemp died 3 years later.

Second, I'm willing to give a Stooges biopic directed by the Farrellys a shot, especially with the intriguing casting of Del Toro, Penn and Jim Carrey as Moe, Larry and Curly. Sadly, no word on who would play Shemp.”

“I think where Obama goes from here will tell the tale as to whether this is a political master stroke, a failed attempt at appeasement, or something in between. I personally think the president's giving the Republicans enough rope to hang themselves with.

Yeah, no House Republicans voted for the stimulus. But I dispute that means Rush "won." I think Obama won because he invited them along, they refused, and Obama pretty much got what he wanted all along. He showed that Boehner et al. could fulminate all they want, but they can't do anything to oppose the Democrats. They had a chance to look good by working with Obama or look impotent by opposing them.

Boehner, goaded by Limbaugh, made the predictable choice.”

“John, I respect you a great deal and one of my best friends is constantly singing the praise of The Authority. And that comic series is exactly the sort of thing that Palin, in any version, would gladly ban from libraries if she felt she could get away with it.

Palin was never, and never can be, the Republican Barack Obama. Until the Republican Party finds someone who wants to truly serve this country and make it better, instead of just looking out for number one, they will never produce a Barack Obama. The last Republican President who was truly a public servant was Dwight Eisenhower, and that kind of Republican has no place in today's GOP.”

“The debate was the first time I'd heard about this joke and it didn't strike me as funny the first time. This is actually the kind of earmark I don't mind. Projects like this help manage resources like wildlife and may also advance basic knowledge as well.

There is, I have heard, a similar program to study crab DNA in Alaska with an eye toward better management of crab fisheries (we've got to keep The Deadliest Catch on the air, after all). Funny how THAT earmark didn't get mentioned by McCain.”

“You're going to get your wish. For all the amping up of the Obama-Clinton drama, from all accounts she's pissed at McCain's move and she'll be shadowing Palin on the campaign trail.”

“The main risk is infection to both mother and child, and Down syndrome babies can be especially infection-prone.

I've had a chance to ask two OB/GYN's what they think. The first said she would have gone so far as to put a note detailing her objection to her patient's actions in her file in the event harm came to mother or child; the other said he would have told her to "get her ass to a Texas hospital."”

“It also doesn't explain why a woman smart enough to get herself elected governor wasn't bright enough to take herself to anyone of a number of world class hospitals available in Dallas. I'm no fan of Rick Perry, but he's a decent enough human being to grease the wheels and see that a fellow governor, a colleague, got nothing but the best treatment while in his state.

And Lee, spare me argument you repeatedly tried to sell in your last blog entry about this flight being Palin's call to make and it being OK because nothing bad happened. I'll join the other commenters inviting you to make some phone calls. Why don't you call some OB's and some general practitioners? If you find even one who wouldn't jump on Gov. Palin with both feet for doing something so stupid and risky as board a flight with ruptured membranes, I will show you a doctor who will probably have their license revoked someday.”

“Is it "spouting off" when the Palins themselves put this story out there? Is it "spouting off" to point out what she did was monumentally stupid and dangerous, and "just because it turned out alright" to let it pass?

If Sarah Palin was someone I knew at church, or a neighbor down the street, then yes, I'd say it was her business. She is not, she wants to be my vice president. Thus her judgement in the area that is of utmost importance (her child's health) is abysmal. I don't want this woman a heartbeat away from the presidency and really Alaska doesn't even seem far enough from power for her.”

“Again, Lee you are being deliberately obtuse, bordering on dishonest.

My father-in-law is an OB-GYN, and recently he was successfully sued. Why? Because he sent a woman in premature labor (at, IIRC, 28 weeks) to a hospital 20 minutes away by ambulance that had a NICU that could care for babies born that early. The hospital where my FIL was at the time was only equipped to care for babies born at about 32 weeks. And this was in a city, by the way, roughly 5 times the size of Wasilla, AK. Unfortunately, tragically, the baby died en route.

If you don't believe that Sarah Palin is actually Trig's mother, then fine; I happen to think, absent more compelling evidence, that there are simpler explanations for the whole thing. But if you think that any doctor with a pregnant patient would advise them to delay nearly 9 hours after their water broke in getting to the hospital, you are either gullible or you are being deliberately obtuse.

And Lee, given your work on the Edwards story, you have proven you are not gullible.”

“I don't believe for a second that her doctor told her to fly back to Alaska. To do so would be to risk a huge lawsuit.”

“One possibility I could think of (and not that I believe Bristol Palin is actually Trig's mother) is that there is a relatively new test called nuchal lucency done by ultrasound. If a young mother had a nuchal lucency that indicated a high likelihood of Down Syndrome, perhaps an OB would want to do an amnio to confirm, as the nuchal lucency test is not 100% conclusive.”

“You're being deliberately obtuse, Lee. Every, and I mean every pregnancy book will tell you that you don't waste time if your water breaks. Those membranes protect the baby from infection, and once they're gone the risk to mother and baby skyrockets. And this was Palin's fifth child, not her first (and a high-risk pregnancy to boot). Labor times go down, not up--my mother was in labor over 12 hours with me, and barely 3 hours with my sister, her 3rd child, after her water broke. And I don't buy for a second Palin's doctor gave her the OK to fly back to Alaska from Dallas--any OB that would do so would open themselves up to a massive malpractice lawsuit.

I personally think that Gov. Palin and her husband got a little too cutesy with Trig's birth story and wanted to perpetuate the image of the rough and tumble pioneer woman. But if you take the governor at her word then it's proof that she lacks any sense of judgement and is manifestly unfit for office.”

“Right on, Cenk, and there is no other way to put it. If you truly supported Hillary Clinton, and you are now planning to vote for John McCain, you are casting a vote against everything Hillary Clinton stands for, everything she worked for as First Lady, everything she continues to work for as a United States Senator. And a note to those who believe Obama hasn't shown enough "respect": respect is earned; the hardcore Clinton holdouts have not earned that respect. Senator Clinton HAS earned that respect and she has been shown it at every turn despite idiots like James Carville and Lanny Davis undermining her at every turn.

To me, the people who plan to vote for Green Party candidate Cynthia McKinney or for Ralph Nader where he's on the ballot are more honest than PUMA and their ilk who claim they are going to McCain. At least they, viable or not, do not represent policies that will take this country further and further into the neocon wilderness.”

“Dunno about that. Mitch Daniels, Indiana's governor, isn't a lock for re-election. If Daniels loses, the new governor could appoint a Democrat.

If Daniels wins, it cancels out the unexpected bounty of taking Ted Stevens' seat in Alaska. It would be better to have one extra but it wouldn't be the end of the world to lose Bayh.

That said, I'm still not convinced.”

“All this reminds me of when it was a "lock" (at least according to the NY Post) that Dick Gephardt was going to be Kerry's VP nominee. I am just old enough to remember Ronald Reagan was definitely going to choose Richard Lugar as his running mate in 1980.

Obama, and McCain for that matter, will choose who they will choose and on their own timetable. I wouldn't be surprised if either one announces this week, given the Olympics, but who knows.

Given the two being talked about now, I personally prefer Chet Edwards. He's strong on constituent services and veterans issues, which has helped him survive in an increasingly red district. I grew up in Indiana and Bayh was governor when I was in high school; he's not my favorite Senator but he's a good fit for Hoosiers as a moderate conservative.s”

“Whatever support Giuliani would bring to the ticket would be far outweighed by the legions of Christian Conservatives who loathe Giuliani even more than they do McCain.

Without those voters McCain's not going to win, no matter how many independents go for him.”

“I haven't seen 300...as long as the script is good, Watchmen should be OK as long as the director sticks to directing and they have a good screenwriter.

I like the casting. Jackie Earle Haley as Rorschach was a masterstroke.”

“I can't believe there's no mention of Alan Moore's Watchmen, though it's a self-contained story universe rather than a treatment of the more familiar Marvel and DC worlds of Superman, Spider-Man, et. al. Part of the conceit was that "real" costumed heroes first came into being when Action Comics and Detective Comics launched a fad.

In the alternative world of Watchmen, the 22nd amendment has been repealed and Richard Nixon is serving his 5th term as president.

It's coming out as a movie next spring; based on the trailer I'm cautiously optimistic.”

“You won't regret it. It's utterly fantastic in all aspects.”

“Slim and none. And Slim just left town.”