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gulopartisan

Recent comments by this user

Obama Issues Response To RNC Attack Ad

I'm sorry. A starving man has a choice between sour grapes and stale bread, and he won't eat either because they aren't cupcakes? What kind of logic is that?

Obama's $1,000 fund isn't going to buy everybody tickets to Hawaii, and it can't pay my mortgage. But so what? It's still better than getting raped one more time by the Repugs. What wouldn't be? posted 07/08/2008 at 16:22:38

Former Secretaries Of State: Scrap War Powers Resolution

There is an excellent book on the Constitution and war, To Chain the Dogs of War, by Constitutional lawyer Ed Firmage, that makes it painstakingly clear that Congress has abrogated its obligation to engage with the Executive on war. The artery began bleeding with the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, and we are bleeding out while Congress sits on its hands. posted 07/08/2008 at 10:50:32

McCain's New Ad: "Beautiful" Words Won't Improve Your Life

Guttermouth
Misogynist
Freeloader
Opportunist... posted 07/08/2008 at 10:40:18

He Changed His Mind? Release The Hounds!!!!

I'm truly tired of being told that I should be disappointed because Obama is not the Messiah I thought he was. I didn't think he was, Ok? I'm one of those grownups who knows that life is full of compromises and making the best of what you have. I stopped thinking, "Well, if I can't have pudding, then I won't eat ANYTHING" in my teens, and I don't look back longingly to those days. Obama is a breath of fresh air, not the cure for greenhouse gases. And I'm going to campaign for him and vote for him. There aren't very many groups I have greater contempt for than the pouting "liberals" who are as dogmatic in their own litmus tests as the "my way or the highway" Right to Life brats. You are supposed to be educated adults who know better.

Time for a time out, kiddies. posted 07/08/2008 at 11:47:32

"He will stop the my way or the highway brand of politics" --
Which irriates both the fundy Left and the fundy Right. Witness this thread. As George Lakoff insists, the election is about character, not policy. And it should be. I trust Obama -- not to agree with me but to do the best he can. posted 07/08/2008 at 11:01:58

If you review the facts rather than your wishful thinking, you will find that Obama's position has not changed. What has changed is that the media is shifting the emphasis. They couldn't beat him by making him an anti-war Leftist, so now they are playing the flip-flop card. And with people like you, it's working. Here, salivate when I ring this bell. posted 07/08/2008 at 11:00:15

Obama's position on Iraq always included the caveat that he would listen to the experts. There is no flip-flop. And yes, Nader is welcome to run, as well as Rush Limbaugh and anyone else who wants to. But anyone who votes for him is increasing the chances that McC*n will win, while not in any remote hypothesis increasing the chance that Nader will. posted 07/08/2008 at 10:57:41

Eva Mendes Opens Up On Substance Abuse And Being Latin In Hollywood

On second thought, someone please explain to Mr. Colman about Ramon Novarro, Lupe Valdez, Cesare Romero, Ricardo Montalban, Fernando Lamas, Katy Jurado.... More of those people who couldn't make it because of their Latin names. posted 07/07/2008 at 18:07:55

Colman is a certified GBFA, not because he was "tough on her" but because he's clearly an insensitive, self-important media wimp. Based on the excerpt, I won't be spending any money on an issue of Interview for the rest. Eva comes across as adult, mature, and a celebrity. Nice combination. I'll save my money for her movies. posted 07/07/2008 at 18:03:07

McCain Flips At Legit Question

I was with you until you started frothing about Clark. Clark said being shot down and captured does not qualify you for the Presidency. That isn't minimizing anything of McCain's experience, and if it's criticizing anyone, it's criticizing the wet-pantied hero worshippers who don't get it. McCain's military record raises all sorts of questions about his maturity, character, and experience. Being a POW doesn't qualify him to be President any more than it qualifies him to be a brain surgeon. And his tacky use of that piece of his career is a slap in the face to every service member who does not toot his own horn for personal gain. posted 07/03/2008 at 16:21:12

Rush Limbaugh On His New Deal: "I'm Not Retiring Until Every American Agrees With Me"

or a Santo Domingo orphan boy.... posted 07/03/2008 at 11:42:46

The Rapture Party

I'm as vehemently anti-Church as it is possible to be without going rabid, and I readily concede that the best of religious motives are an essential prop for the world's poor. Secular thinking creates bureaucracies, which I find more loathsome than any religious dogma. The paradox of religion is that it channels the best and the worst of our souls. We need to resist the worst, but not throw the baby out with the bath water. posted 07/03/2008 at 11:56:05

Obama Vows To Expand Bush's Faith-Based Programs

Amen... well, sort of. When I look at real Christians like Jim Wallis, Jimmy Carter, and Martin Luther King, I have no trouble understanding Obama's position. I have never seen a government agency respond as effectively to disaster as The Salvation Army, a Baptist church that makes helping devastating communities its calling (they appeared in Windsor, CO, the day after the toronado), or even the dreaded LDS Church assisting, without asking to see your temple recommend, families threatened with flooding in Utah. If your house burned down, who would you rather have offer you coffee: A FEMA bureaucrat or the Salvation Army? It's no contest for me. posted 07/02/2008 at 17:27:33

Madonna Gets Late-Night Visits From Alex Rodriguez, Rep Denies Marital Problems

For the folks who think this is misogyny: If Madonna was a guy with her values, she'd be the poster child of macho privilege and male chauvinist piggery. For those who think it's about not letting women get old: At 70, Dietrich and Kate H had matured; they were beautiful, articulate, and interesting. Louise at 40 -- which was some time ago -- had just gotten older. posted 07/02/2008 at 19:09:18

I couldn't agree more, but there are disadvantages to parking a Porsche in a bus depot. posted 07/02/2008 at 19:02:18

This is fanzine sentimentality. Lots of celebrities haven't been "torn down eventually" -- Joel McCrae, Jimmy Stewart, Kate and Audrey Hepburn, for a random example. They weren't ethically impoverished, some of them; others were lucky. They did die eventually. Is that what you mean by "torn down"?

Madonna is the Jerry Lewis of sex: fine if you like that sort of thing, exciting to the unimaginative, and not nearly as talented as the French think. Ted Bundy had charisma and talent. It takes a bit more than that to make me dewy-eyed and agog. posted 07/02/2008 at 18:58:34

We're talking about someone who described losing her virginity as a career move and set one of the ugliest, most decadent trends in fashion history. Loathing her is not misogyny, it's good taste. Welcome to old age, Louise. posted 07/02/2008 at 18:49:13

Or a fan of really big Yankees. After all, there's probably lots of room at home. posted 07/02/2008 at 18:44:48

Wesley Clark Stands By McCain Criticism

Baloney. McCain was a pilot with no command role whatsoever. Want to see how that qualifies him for the Presidency? Watch Top Gun. posted 07/03/2008 at 16:49:37

Defending Wes Clark

We aren't electing a head general, we are electing a President. If McC*n was a brain surgeon, that wouldn't qualify him for President, even if Obama wasn't one. posted 07/02/2008 at 12:37:22

Oh I Get It, The Left Just Doesn't Want to Win This Year

The Left has always had a Quixotic notion that losing is more noble than winning. It got us Nixon and Bush. Anyone stupid enough to blackball their best hope because he fails some litmus test is suicidal. I have no patience with the "I'm to pure to vote" mentality. In a word, those people are no better than the other dipwads who can't be bothered to vote. They are just noisier. posted 06/27/2008 at 11:23:55

Republicans Taunt Obama As Spineless Over FISA Reversal

If Obama votes "against national security," the Repubilcan jackels will be on him like a wounded bull. It will become the central theme of the election, and his vote of "principle" might well result in a McC*n victory. This issue is very like the slavery issue that Lincoln agonized over. Either extreme position would have destroyed his chances of election without accomplishing any other tangible difference. The Left needs to grow up and stop preaching its version of fundamentalist politics. posted 06/27/2008 at 11:37:06

Obama: Dobson "Making Stuff Up"

What makes fundamentalism so dangerous is something not captured in the name. They are fundamentally antinomian; they do not believe in authority at all. A linguistic fundamentalist doesn't care if you can show him why it's "between you and me," because he "knows" otherwise. He doesn't care what the grammar books say, 'cause they are wrong. And so it goes. There is no recourse for discussion, diplomacy, and leverage with a fundamentalist because they do not accept the value or compulsion of anything: evidence, logic, anecdote, force. They are right because they are right -- about God, crayfish, the liberal elite, and the Dodgers, and that's that. posted 06/25/2008 at 08:41:20

James Dobson Accuses Obama Of 'Distorting' Bible

This is a guy who wants every fetus to be born and then, once the kid is two, beaten regularly. People like Dobson make me hope there is a Christian Heaven, because they won't even make it to the gate. posted 06/24/2008 at 11:46:37

NYT's Kristol Criticizes MoveOn 'Alex' Ad: Infant Will Be Too Young To Serve, Has Nothing To Worry About

Someone should gather the neocon chickenhawks on a plane, strip them naked, hand them clubs, and drop them in a developing country at war. If all goes well, they can start a barbeque business. posted 06/23/2008 at 17:03:48

It's Isolation Stupid! Why Pre-Election Plans to Attack Iran Will Only Backfire

Congratulations! America has a stellar record of condoning genocide; you've just popped us a notch by advocating it. posted 06/23/2008 at 16:55:58

The Science Of Bad Boys (POLL)

You passed on my main point, which is that The Iliad is jock lit; hardly a sensible resource for what women think. "Gay romp" was a joke, but based on the obvious relationship of Achilles and Pat. Since Ancient Greece was pretty unselfconsciously bi, that's hardly a literary fact.

What your Homeric sources confirm is that men like to BE "bad boys." Homer's women do not spend a lot of time encouraging them. posted 06/25/2008 at 08:52:04

And girls who want bad boys better get it done before they hit 40, or have lots of money. Or low standards. posted 06/24/2008 at 19:03:20

No it's not. A "greater quantity of women" would boffing a different girl each week for a year. If my wife makes love with me twice a week, I have twice as many "sexual encounters." posted 06/24/2008 at 19:01:33

Not so, actually. The main girl often survived, but the body count of cock-notches was pretty high. How about Shirley Eaton, for starters? posted 06/24/2008 at 18:51:14

The study suggests a blasphemy I've uttered occasionally, but not in front of feminists: Women are just as venal and superficial as men. Earth Mother, meet Madonna. posted 06/24/2008 at 18:48:55

This made me chuckle ruefully. I've had a number of lovers drift away to the lure of "real men." About half of them turned up a few years later, wondering if I be interested in "being friends." No, dear, we were friends before you told me what you really thought. Retirement has its good points. posted 06/24/2008 at 18:46:53

The saddest thing about this whole conversation is that what women like you are saying is what men have been saying about their wives for years. So whose double standard do you want? You going to tickle Bond's thigh while I boff Carmen Electra, then we'll go check on the kids? I'll pass, and you're welcome. posted 06/24/2008 at 18:44:08

I dunno what "Homer" you are thinking of, but I suspect it's Oliver Stone's rather than Richard Lattimore's. The Iliad is a gay romp, with females serving as nothing more than receptacles for the occasional sexual excretion. The only person fussing over bad boy Achilles is Patroclus who, I bet, was as absent fro the movie Troy as the Persian Boy was from Alexander.

The Odyssey, on the other hand, is a hymn to learning to be a good boy. It's about coming home and appreciating it. Bad boy Odysseus chooses to abandon a goddess and immortality to go home to the bed of a woman he hasn't seen in 20 years. And she spends those 20 years resisting a glam pack of bad boys who raid the fridge, drink her wine, brag about their packages, and want to screw her and steal the silver. Bad boys that Odysseus slaughters -- one of my favorite scenes in barbarian lit -- to celebrate getting home.

Bad boy worship? Not so much. posted 06/23/2008 at 07:36:43

A great idea. But it's as likely to cost her a friend as save one. If a man did it to "save" another man, the rescued one would resent the other for poaching. posted 06/23/2008 at 07:22:33

As I was reading the essay, I was thinking that trolling for bad boys sounded very like the "play with whores, marry virgins" mentality of some men. Men I haven't much respect for. And when women decided to "come out" with their liberated "me too" sexual triviality, I was disappointed. I've been mistaken for a bad boy, by the way. There isn't much more stimulating to one's cynicism than having a woman you care about dump you because you turn out to be dependable, honest, and good with kids.

May the chain vested, merkin chested bad boys find the synthetic mammaries of their dreams, and vice versa. I'll stick with people I can care about. posted 06/23/2008 at 07:21:45

The Art Offends

I am not "repressing my appreciation" for crushed mice, thirty-foot cocks, or Jewskin lampshades. I have no appreciation for them. Art that operates on antinomian aesthetics is bad art, made by Puritans. posted 06/21/2008 at 08:54:58

According to the WaPo, he couldn't get any gallery to take the exhibit, so he created a fake gallery and then told people the exhibit had been closed by the authorities. If there is "art" somewhere in that scene, I hope it doesn't reach my neighborhood. posted 06/21/2008 at 08:49:54

Thank you for this point of view. I am a fiction writer and a teacher of writing. I've argued for years that if a person choses to write without regard for public response, that's fine, but it is like masturbation -- best not done in public. And if they choose to write with an eye to audience, they don't get to complain if the audience doesn't respond positively. Personally, I find even the descriptions of his art work repulsive, in the same way that I would not distinguish aesthetically, between real pictures of women crushing mice with spike heels and simulations of the same thing. The difference matters to the mice, but not to me. posted 06/20/2008 at 13:01:36

Bush Gives Dems STDs

I for one am tired of hearing about the "fear" in Congress. Fear, however lame, is an excuse. What this capitulation signals is not "fear" but complicity. Our Congress is corrupt. Somebody should tell them that some STDs are not curable, and the best thing to do is avoid them. Let's hope the Senate's few members with integrity will stand up when this crud hits their desks. posted 06/20/2008 at 16:01:26

MSNBC Pulls "Inappropriate" Michelle Obama "Hardball" Ad Depicting Silhouetted Female Dancers (VIDEO)

I was sympatetic until I saw this. Go to his web site and start clicking on the issues pages. I guarantee you will find more detail than you can digest, and it's not vague promises. Just one example: his specifics on rural America and agriculture are informed, intelligent, and progressive. posted 06/20/2008 at 15:01:08

For me the most conspicuous element of the Michelle Obama buzz is the silence of feminists. in its beginnings, many minority women identified at the center of feminism a narrowed white entitlement. It's still sexism when the woman is black; where are the feminists? Where are Erica Jong and Gloria Steinem when the woman is black? posted 06/20/2008 at 14:56:46

I don't watch television, so I had never even heard of Mathews before coming to HuffPo. And all I have heard about him is negative. So where are all those defenses I failed to pay attention to? Yes, he did some sexist stuff around HRC, but most of us simply filed that with the rest of his drivel. posted 06/20/2008 at 14:52:54

Amen. I distinguish precisely in my mind between "gutter politics" of lying, distortion, and deliberately misleading and the "ugly truth" politics that McC*n and his repug handlers deserve. Their glass house deserves every stone. posted 06/20/2008 at 14:49:45

It's only "code" in the sense that most of us would assume that "Irish Catholic" would mean "white with white roots." Just like "Zimbabwean-born" would lead most of us to assume the person was black.... posted 06/20/2008 at 14:44:55

The "news" is the overwhelming double standard of the media in their treatment of Cindy McC*n and Michelle Obama. Michelle is not a go-go party girl (or a trollope) trying to look respectable. A news outlet would not even consider treating CIndy McC*n with that kind of disrespect, much less the smug, elitist racism of calling her Obama's "baby mama."

Yes, it's racist AND sexist, because it is, fundamentally, elitist and entitled. Those of us who only appear to be in the club (old white men with money) get sniffed out by the "racists" and "sexists" quickly enough. The true elitism of America is not the stereotyped latte liberal but the tired old white men -- and their lackeys and catamites -- unable to even see their position of privilege, much less examine it. posted 06/20/2008 at 14:39:00

Somebody explain to the illiterates at MSNBC that an "outlook" is a "point of view," not a "look." Morons. posted 06/19/2008 at 20:12:21

"The Love Guru" Movie Reviews: One Of The Worst, Unfunny Movies Of The Year

I didn't even have to see the Austin Powers movies to know I wouldn't find them funny. Cheap, juvenile humor depending mainly on pretending to be parodying sexists, racists, and egotists? And yes, as it happens, I did "see" about ten minutes of one of the films in a computer store one afternoon. Golly and sure enough. Truly dumb and dummer. posted 06/23/2008 at 17:46:06

My Interview with Matt Taibbi on His Book, the Media, the Election and His Spat with Erica Jong

"I got caught up in that, I think unfairly because I'm not a misogynist, I'm a misanthrope! That was my point to Erica Jong. "

Sigh. Good luck with that. The last squalling vestige of Victoria in our culture is the assumption that women are better than men. If only I'd known that was where feminism was headed. I had a feminist snap at me, "What have you got against women, anyway?" I said, "They're human." No gain. posted 06/20/2008 at 12:50:31

Michelle Obama On "The View": Touched By Laura Bush

Political marriages may be the lingering vestige in our "democracy" of arranged alliance. As I sort through all the first ladies of my lifetime, few are clearly people who "should" be with their husbands. Specifically Eleanor Roosevelt, Mamie Doud Eisenhower, Lady BIrd Johnson, Betty Ford, Rosalynn Carter, Barbara Bush. The rest of them -- Jackie Kennedy, Pat Nixon, Hillary Clinton, Laura Bush, Cindy McCain -- are a mystery unless you accept the idea that a marriage is a political alliance not to be discarded lightly.

I'm not suggesting, by the way, that one list is "good" and other bad. That's a bit of the point, really. Barbara Bush is a creature of ferocious privilege -- CIndy McCain with power, if you like -- but her partnership with Grampa George doesn't seem blindered the way Jackie and Hillary seem to be. The second group is, essentially, women who could have done better than what they settled for. Most of them seem to have chosen loveless relationships, and I suppose why they did is incidental. posted 06/20/2008 at 12:46:28

Of all places, I would not expect The Huffington Post to be spreading the malicious edit of what Michelle said. There is a difference between "pretty" and "really pretty", "sleazy" and "really sleazy," but not, I think, between "lying" and "really lying." posted 06/20/2008 at 12:28:58

Obama's Veep Game: The Good, The Bad, and Bill Richardson

What's to figure out? She's a distinguished Kennedy. They aren't all men. posted 06/17/2008 at 18:33:23

I was putting up with the self-indulgence until I hit "cunt." Sorry, but using words like that in contexts like that is as childish as poo-poo jokes. posted 06/17/2008 at 18:28:29

McCain's Secret, Questionable Record

I agree that attacking McC*n's military record with falsifications and distortions is off-limits. Now because he's a poor ex-POW, but because lies and distortions have no place in the political process at all. I also think that if McC*n is going to position himself as the war hero/veteran, then an examination of that claim is very important. And what is emerging from that examination is another self-promoting fiction plaqued onto the least attractive sort of military character. McC*n flew a plane badly. That makes him the "military candidate"? He did not escape after being captured by a village of civilians in Viet Name, and that makes him a war hero? My war heroes -- Audie Murphy, Ernie Pyle, Wesley Clark, Colin Powell, Montgomery and Bradley -- have a bit more than that to show for their careers. posted 06/18/2008 at 14:02:55

Obama Hires Solis Doyle: A Bad Omen For VP Hillary

I'm sorry, did I read this right? The HRC campaign fired this woman and now they are "disappointed that she went to Obama"? What is it about firing and loyalty that they don't get? No, wait. Loyalty is that one-way street the Clintons live on. posted 06/16/2008 at 15:45:26

The Media Is Already Demonizing Obama as Being Different

I know there was sexism in the media commentary on HRC, but let's try to be real here.

What media member called her "bitch"? My recollection was that this comment was made by a little old lady at a McC*n rally. And frankly, it's no more sexist than calling McC*n a pr*ck, which I would happily do any time, anywhere.

What media member called her a "monster"? My recollection was that it was author Samantha Power, who let the term slip during an interview (and if you had read A Problem from Hell, I suspect you'd know why). What's more, she immediately apologized and resigned from her public position.

And I'm sorry, but what media outlet, anywhere on the planet, allowed the phrase "f-ing whore" to be uttered by an employee on the air? I'm willing to guess you wouldn't even have to provide the missing "uck" to get pulled off camera instantly.

Make your case. But not with fabrications. posted 06/16/2008 at 16:03:46

Patti Solis Doyle, Former Clinton Campaign Manager, Hired By Obama Camp

Why would he handle that any differently than anything else? posted 06/16/2008 at 16:55:50

It took me a minute to decide which of his lists you meant. Do you think he cuts notches? posted 06/16/2008 at 16:46:58

Obama And McCain Seeking Solace With Clinton Voters

It isn't a question of "need," it's a question of inclusion. Personally, I think the "I'm voting for McC*n" crowd is a noisy minority, and I'm sure the ones who will really do it are. I understand the emotions and hurt feelings and disappointment. But I have too much respect for women to believe they would, en masse, do something so foolish as electing Bush III. Anyone that irrational is unreachable. posted 06/16/2008 at 12:20:01

War Inc., Expands Thanks to Your Efforts...

MSNBC subliminal advert today. Under an interview with Cusack, they displayed the words "Cusack Cashes in on Iraq War." Look for this as the next MSM attack on the film. The irony? While the words (which Cusack could not see) were displayed, the MSNBC head talking to Cusack pointed out, rightly, that Iraq War films have consistently failed at the box office. "Cashes In"? Oh yeah, gonna get me some of that easy money. posted 06/13/2008 at 17:47:01

Do They Really Want To Play The Mi-chelle Game?

Lordy if that is not a good question. I think vocal feminism discredited itself pretty thoroughly in its canonization of HRC. How sad to see them validating the other complaint often raised about the feminist movement -- that is exclusively a club for white women. posted 06/14/2008 at 21:09:52

Is NBC Right About Obama's "Suburban Women" Problem? Experts Doubt It

This is such a blatant example of manufactured news, it's as stale as the "terrorist fist tap," if not as stinky. The MSM needs drama and controversy for the ratings, so if they can't find a fire, they burn something. That, by the way, is the surest sign of ethical bankruptcy in media that I know of. posted 06/12/2008 at 17:01:43

You made me feel young again! As an aging Alan Alda male (no interest in NASCAR or NRA, not afraid to wear pink, less interested in your bust than in your brain), it's been a treat seeing one of our yout' blossom. And a joy being reminded that there are American women who still get it. posted 06/12/2008 at 16:59:26

Katie Couric Is Rubber And Keith Olbermann Is Glue

It was not a stellar night for Olbermann. It would be fair to keep in mind that his "reason" for scolding her was her comments about Lee Cowan. But I have to say that it seems pretty obvious he was motivated by her sexism remarks. The comments about Cowan hardly merited a "worst person" award.

Sexism exists, and men get away with sexism when they don't dare show similar racism. But sexism did not bring HRC down. Her lies, her votes, and her ethics made her a distant alternative choice for some, more of the Bush/McC*n same for others. How ironic, that feminists are canonizing someone who brags about her balls, tolerates her partner's preying on young women, has accumulated vast wealth by sucking up to powerful men, and wants to obliterate another country. If only I'd known that was what they meant by equality. posted 06/12/2008 at 12:27:01

Fox News Calls Michelle "Obama's Baby Mama"... FOX: Producer Used Poor Judgment

It's simple. I can say I'm ugly, and I can call my daughter awkward, and you can't. Black people can say the N-word, and white folks can't. Indians can call each other 'skins, and other folks can't. The VIrginian puts it all in simple terms when Trampas calls him an "SOB": "Smile when you say that, pard. posted 06/13/2008 at 17:32:22

Carville Floats Gore As A VP Pick

If I ever want Carville's advice, I'll ram a hat pin into my ear. posted 06/11/2008 at 21:29:54

Dick Durbin: People Sliming Michelle Obama Deserve The "Hottest Ring In Hell"

The neocons will dig in the gutter gleefully. They've already managed to make their edited version of "I'm really proud of America" the accepted "quote." What I think they underestimate is how utterly fed up America is with gutter politics. Not entirely, in my case. I'd love to hear that a "terrorist fist tap" was shoved up the butt of every neocon in the country. Without lube. posted 06/11/2008 at 21:33:17

Cancer: Paul Newman's Friend Confirms Ill, Newman Turns Over $120 Million To Charity

Newman is an example of what movie stars could have been. A great body of professional work, a normal personal life, his wealth shared with his fellows. I salute him, and hope for a dignified end to a wonderful life. posted 06/11/2008 at 11:21:42

MediaMatters Offers A Pictoral History Of The Fist Bump

I suppose this is a silly question, but has anyone ever seen a "terrorist" doing a dap? Ever? Arafat? The Jackal? I mean if you did, it wouldn't mean much. On the order of "terrorists eat mashed potatoes, therefore anyone who eats mashed potatoes is a terrorist." But really? Ever? posted 06/10/2008 at 16:44:38

Playmates on Politics: Q&A with Politically Savvy Bunnies

This is silly logic, and Shannon's argument is not. A man who beats his dog is a man who believes in beating things; his children, his wife. That a man might beat his wife and not his dog is just circumstance. posted 06/11/2008 at 11:28:05

Tom DeLay: 'Unless Obama Proves Me Wrong, He's A Marxist'

Tricky to prove you wrong on that one.

DeLay wouldn't know a Marxist from a Marx Brother. posted 06/06/2008 at 15:32:14

Clint Eastwood: Spike Lee Should "Shut His Face", Lee Responds, "We're Not On A Plantation"

If I remember correctly, the "international juries" thought Jerry Lewis was our greatest comedian, and Edgar Allen Poe our greatest writer. Lee is a talented director, and Eastwood's films are national treasures. Liking Eastwood doesn't make you racist, nor does not being impressed with Lee. posted 06/06/2008 at 17:18:57

Clint Eastwood the person is not much. Clint Eastwood the director is a treasure. posted 06/06/2008 at 17:15:52

Oh perfect. First he should read how the radical chic crowd disemboweled Spielberg over The Color Purple. posted 06/06/2008 at 17:13:36

Last sentence did a good job on your moron index. Which is Morgan Freeman in Unforgiven? pimp, gangsta, or inept cop? Just asking. posted 06/06/2008 at 17:12:36

Have you actually seen the dang movie? Eastwood shows that the scene was faked, and also that "the flag" was not the one used. I have no idea how conscious the decision was to have no black soldiers in the film, but I do know that there was a lot more segregation in the WWII army than the kumbaya movies of the '40s and '50s pretend. Eastwood's politics are antithetical to mine, but his movies have been "affirmative action," USHS-approved, and fairly good on feminist issues. posted 06/06/2008 at 17:10:49

Let's See the VP Sausage Being Made

... see how they make sausage....

Oh man, you just ruined my lunch. No, nobody wants to see how they make sausage. Talk about arguments for vegetarianism. posted 06/06/2008 at 16:38:29

Cool. Right after Obama and Congress increase the sitting number to fifteen. posted 06/06/2008 at 16:34:26

As for the voters deciding, they used to. And the famous example of the result is Thomas Jefferson getting saddled with the opponent he beat for the Presidency, Aaron Burr. A disaster that echoed through the country for years. I don't want to pick his damn cabinet, either. If I hire a CEO, I expect that person to hire the rest of the staff. posted 06/06/2008 at 16:33:27

I don't feel "the American public," including myself, is in a position to join in the discussion of the VP choice. This strikes me as silly, just as voting on Supreme Court justices or pulling my own teeth would be. In a word, this is what I hired Obama for. If he comes up with an Eagleton, Quayle, or Lieberman, God help us, but there's no way my being involved would prevent that.

There is no argument I can imagine that outweighs the certainty that the only group engaged and empowered by public discussion would be the media, and that is about as bad a thing as I can imagine happening to the process. You can cry "not American Idol" all you want, but that won't stop it from happening.

Frankly, I don't even want to know who they are considering. I just want to know that it is being done by intelligent, careful people. Like my dentist. posted 06/06/2008 at 16:30:57

No thank you! I've been in enough "democratic" committee meetings, where the airhead who used to design prom invitations thinks she should pick the colors for the new letterhead and the sales guy who wears a bow tie want to be sure we end up with something "manly." Obama picks, we endorse. I'm fine with that. posted 06/06/2008 at 07:42:34

6 Other Things that Aren't "Change We Can Believe In"

Having been a "worker" if not in a factory, for forty years, I can say confidently that my forty years don't equal six months in combat. Our foot soldiers are paid so poorly their families live on welfare. Take your chickenhawk greed home to momma. posted 06/06/2008 at 07:07:49

Major Clinton Backers Rally Around Obama

Speaking of Rethug trolls trying to keep things stirred up....

How did HRC become all the qualified women in America? If Obama picks another woman for VP, isn't that exactly the opposite of sexism -- picking someone regardless of their gender. i have to say, the silliest argument I've seen broached by serious adults is the notion that it will be "sexist" to pick some other woman. posted 06/05/2008 at 17:01:14

Pick up a Civics book and learn how your government works, Ok? Being the majority (which caucusing with Lie makes the Dems) gives us procedural advantages that can be killer. The Dems have been tolerating Lie because we need him in order to control committee actions, assignments, etc., where the real work gets done. Add one Dem to the Senate, and Lie has a choice: He can switch to Rethug or he can hang in the wind all by himself while the Dems prepare to send him home in 2012.

Keep in mind that if Lie is kicked out of the Dem caucus AND he joins the Rethugs, that's a net loss of two for the Dems. We lose one AND they gain one. Bad thing. posted 06/05/2008 at 16:57:50

Obama's In Control: No More Lobbyist Contributions To Democratic Party

Contrary to the advocates of black and white, most of us do not feel that we must be enemies of either Jews or Arabs. I for one support the security of Israel and hope to see, someday, a peace there that benefits both Palestinians and Israelis. Hope, knowing that the excavated battlefields of Jericho are 8,000 years old. posted 06/05/2008 at 13:25:24

There is a huge difference between PACs that represent individual people and conglomerate their political clout, which is votes, not dollars, and corporate PACs that tap inexhaustible funds to buy what they want. Unfortunately, that difference is almost impossible to distill into legislation or rules. Fortunately, what Obama is rejecting is money from PACs, not support from PACs. The populist PACs have never been a huge financial resource for national elections. posted 06/05/2008 at 13:23:26

Did Hillary Clinton's Media Missteps Help Doom Her Campaign?

I think the folks nosing the roadkill need to look at "sexism" a bit more intelligently. Crap like "Iron my shirt" almost certainly gained HRC more support than cost her. Enough more that I entertained the notion that the guy yelling was planted. There is a difference between disrespect expressed in sexist terms and true sexism, which consists of stereotyping someone because she is female. The media did that, because (1) they are paid to hurt people and cause trouble and (2) they are, the men at least, insecure overcompensating Chihuahuas. But I never, in six months, mostly in the company of men, heard any actual human suggest that HRC was not a viable candidate for the Presidency because women are, you know.

The trap we have been struggling with for six months is that there is sexism in our culture, magnified in our media. But that IS NOT why we wouldn't vote for HRC, any more than it was "racism" to prosecute OJ. For me, the great moment in the spectacle was the state congressional candidate at my assembly meeting, passing out flyers and loudly declaring herself "the FEMALE candidate!" Talk about sexism. posted 06/06/2008 at 07:51:03

Clinton To Obama: If You Don't Want Me, You're Gonna Have To Tell Me

Good grief. If I dared to talk about women in this demeaning way, I'd lose all my female friends in a hurry. If women are really this foolish, maybe the vote was a bad idea.

Personally, I prefer to think that women, just like men, can think things through, once the tempers cool. And they will begin to see Hillary as the person she was, not the symbol she made of herself. How ironic, that after all the talk about mindless "Obamabots," the Clinton muscle turns out to be women like Harriet Christian.

Once more, it was not about gender. It was not about race. We were picking the candidate we trusted and believed in. posted 06/04/2008 at 17:34:55

McCain's Campaign Manager Announces Contest In Disturbing Video

Dumb joke. Not as dumb as the video, though. talk about clueless. It reminds me of elderly teachers encouraging teenagers to "let themselves go and have fun" with the polka. posted 06/05/2008 at 14:26:22

Obama In Heated Conversation With Lieberman

He's campaigning for the Republicans and it "might jeopardize his Caucus status"?!?! Throw the fucking bum out. Strip him of his committee assignments and invite him to change parties. Maybe Hassert, Foley, Craig, or Graham can find a position for him. posted 06/04/2008 at 17:54:02

WSJ: Clinton Used Expletive In 'Unpleasant' Conversation With Clyburn

That's about as logical as "If you get angry when you are called a 'racist,' you are one." The Clintons are educated and sophisticated enough to know that we all have racist baggage. On the other hand, the Clintons are less racist than some. After all, they were just as willing to ignore genocide in Bosnia as in Rwanda. Oh wait, that was Muslims in Bosnia, not white folks. posted 06/04/2008 at 17:22:55

The point here is feelings, not history. I could very well argue that Christianity wouldn't have gotten anywhere without Paul of Tarsus and Constantine, but most Christians would feel that maybe Jesus was a little more important than the guys who "got it done."

I was there in the sixties, and I'll tell you what. LBJ pushed the legislation through, but without Martin Luther King, Jr., and the dozens of brave, determined black people who shamed us and our government, he wouldn't have. He would not have done a thing. The mule may pull the load, but the man drives. posted 06/04/2008 at 17:15:27

Excuse me, but failing to repeat the actual word doesn't have anything to do with "balls." Those of us who find hateful language hateful have to work hard to repeat it, even in our own defense. And the reaction is so subjective. For example, Cindy McCain apparently doesn't mind being called a "trollop" and one of the foulest-spirited four-letter words in contemporary American usage, but personally, I find the fact that McC*n would say that to his wife, in front of witnesses, unforgivably disgusting. posted 06/04/2008 at 17:07:38

I Am Not a Bargaining Chip, I Am a Democrat

I sympathize with your loss, and I wish HRC had the class that your concession shows. Unlike you, I decided a long time ago that she didn't. There is no pleasure in being proven right about something like that. posted 06/04/2008 at 12:11:56

George Lucas On Obama: "A Hero In The Making"

I thought to myself that George Lucas was a hero when someone said, in a Star Wars film, "This is the way democracy dies: not with grief but with applause." It was a butterfly moment, when things changed. posted 06/05/2008 at 13:46:40

"Hero" is not reserved for philanthropic defiance of death, your opinion notwithstanding. Hamlet is the "hero" of a play about a non-fireman. And Heracles was no philanthropist. posted 06/05/2008 at 13:44:18

Love Affair (McCain and the Press) Disgusts the Liberal Blogosphere

The "leftist tilt" of the media is caused by the unfortunate need, rapidly disappearing, to have brains and education to be in the news business. Not being interested in beating our clubs on logs with the neocons is not a political decision, it's just a nasty side effect of growing up.. posted 04/02/2008 at 07:02:59

Matthews Said Bush Showed "Guts" At Baseball Game

All presidents get booed? The booing was muted on Mathews clip, by the way, not "drowned out by applause." Someone explain to Mathews the difference between "brave" and "shameless."

And if Chris Mathews still has a tingle in his pants for man love with the president, why doesn't he just put on some rouge and camp out at the White House? posted 04/01/2008 at 18:36:49

Obama Is Right: Words Matter When You Want Your Opponent to Leave the Race

A moment of pedantry. "Can" means "is able." It categorically does not offer "permission," as every wild-eyed English teacher from my childhood repeatedly reminded me. "She may continue" is confusing (Does he mean "she might"?) but it bestows the partonizing "permission" you are determined to find fault with. "She can continue" simply stated the bald face that she is in a position to continue, and there is nothing anyone can do about it.

What will it be next? You hate him because of his tie? He brought the wrong color roses? posted 03/31/2008 at 11:28:34

Obama Girl Vs Hillary Girl: Geraldo Features A Sing Off

I'm looking at these comments and wondering, didn't anyone get it that the song has lesbian overtones (and undertones, and...). I mean, Hillary Girl is just not into men.

Not that I mind. But the satire here has got some interesting edges. posted 03/31/2008 at 16:02:15