Hell No, Fox doesn't require its hosts to base a story on facts, don't be ridiculous!

This is for bloggers like Linda, Silverfiddle, Pam Geller, Maggies Notebook, Malcontent, and trolls like lisa etc.,etc. These people defend Fox news, calling it truthful and factual.

Media Matters: Conservatives' perpetual dishonesty machine
Glenn Beck and Rush Limbaugh regularly tout their supposed accuracy and often claim their critics never prove them wrong. Fittingly, this in itself is a complete falsehood. Limbaugh and Beck are wrong for a living, but have been rewarded for their perpetual wrongness by assuming the role of the two most important cogs in the conservative media.
Every day, the conservative noise machine -- Fox News, Beck, Limbaugh, and other prominent conservative talk radio hosts and bloggers -- hurl false accusations with the hopes of damaging the Obama administration, Democrats, and progressives politically. Make no mistake: this is the primary motivation for the majority of the stories they promote. Pesky things like "facts" and "reality" are, at best, a trivial concern.
Often, these attacks are baseless, easily debunked, and laughably absurd -- yet conservative media outlets rarely (if ever) offer corrections when they are proven wrong. Instead they either double down on their attacks or simply ignore that they were wrong in the first place and move on to the next overhyped bit of nonsense.
While it may seem like a minor story in the grand scheme of things, one example from this week perfectly exemplifies the utter lack of journalistic standards endemic to conservative media.
Early this week, conservatives were in their usual panic mode over what they claimed was evidence that the Obama administration "backed" or "preferred" the release of Abdel Baset al-Megrahi, the terrorist better known as the Lockerbie bomber. As we pointed out, reports -- often the same reports these conservatives were linking to in order to make their arguments -- indicated that the administration wanted Megrahi to remain imprisoned, with the stipulation that if he were to be released, he should remain in Scotland rather than risk him receiving an "extremely inappropriate" "welcoming reception" upon being transferred to Libya.
Fox News twisted reality to claim that the "U.S. Backed Freedom, Not Prison, for Bomber." Matt Drudge splashed a huge headline across his website announcing that the "White House Backed Release Of Lockerbie Bomber." Pam Geller -- whose deranged rantings have earned her frequent appearances on Fox News and bylines on Andrew Breitbart's "Big" websites, Tucker Carlson's Daily Caller, and the American Thinker -- called for a "special investigation" and a "charge of treason" for Obama.
Rush Limbaugh -- while bragging, as he often does, that he was "executing assigned host duties flawlessly" with "zero mistakes" --claimed that Obama "backed the release" of the Lockerbie bomber because he wanted to "make nice with the Muslim world."
Late Monday, when the State Department released the administration's correspondence with the Scottish Ministry of Justice, it confirmed in unambiguous terms that the administration was "not prepared to support Megrahi's release on compassionate release or bail," and that "it would be most appropriate for Megrahi to remain imprisoned for the entirety of his sentence."
So, after this story completely fell apart, did conservative media figures correct the record and let their readers/listeners/viewers know that the administration did not "support" or "prefer" the release of the Lockerbie bomber?
Of course not.
Conservative blogger Jim Hoft -- whose ongoing popularity and influence in conservative media says a lot about their complete indifference to accuracy and credibility -- linked to the letter and proclaimed that the administration "preferred" his release. This was akin to pointing at the ground and saying "this is the sky."
Fox Nation, almost 48 hours after the story had completely fallen apart, still had the following headline and image on their front page:

And you can be sure that in a few months, whenever Sean Hannity or anyone else in the noise machine decides to twist a news story to claim that the Obama administration is "weak on terror," they'll point to the time the administration supposedly "preferred the release of the Lockerbie bomber" in order to buttress their point.
It's a perpetual dishonesty machine.
If this were an isolated incident, perhaps it would be possible to (partially) excuse conservative media outlets for their shameless performance "covering" this story. But as we detailed this week, the right-wing media routinely promote fake stories (for example, the epic freak-out over the imaginary Obama proposal to "ban sport fishing.")
For another good example of how the perpetual dishonesty machine works, have a look at this segment from Tuesday's Fox & Friends. In it, Glenn Beck, Steve Doocy, and Peter Johnson Jr. seized on reports of the U.K. supposedly "admit[ting] its socialized health care is a mess" in order to attack health care reform. They rehashed some old favorites from conservatives' misinformation campaign about health care reform, claiming that we "modeled" reform on the British system and fear mongered about imaginary "death panels." Neither of these attacks were true when they appeared last year, they weren't true this week, and they won't be true the next time Fox's hosts bring them up.
This pattern is undeniable, and at this point is just expected behavior for the conservative media. The larger problem is that "mainstream" outlets still frequently treat garbage from conservative media figures as newsworthy, and ombudsmen at major newspapers like The Washington Post regularly chastise their colleagues for not seizing on conservative nonsense faster.
It says a lot about the state of the media when Fox News, Rush Limbaugh, Matt Drudge, and other prominent media conservatives can be caught pushing a blatantly false story, offer no correction, and have their behavior met with a collective shrug. Conservative media outlets retain their unfortunate power and influence over the public discourse because they are able to lie largely without consequence.
They did it all this week, they did it all last week, and they'll do it again next week.

Pam Geller is imploring her readers to listen to Sean Hannity! LOL. This pieceofshitwannabejournalistHannity on his July 30th show....

Hannity and panel pin recession that started in 2007 on Obama

Nothing has changed, the GOP are still obstructing assholes!

This post was born out of my frustration with our mealy mouthed Democrats not forcefully speaking out, but I'm editing to add this.....

WASHINGTON — A bill that would have provided up to $7.4 billion in aid to people sickened by World Trade Center dust fell short in the House on Thursday, raising the possibility that the bulk of compensation for the ill will come from a legal settlement hammered out in the federal courts.

The bill would have provided free health care and compensation payments to 9/11 rescue and recovery workers who fell ill after working in the trade center ruins.

House Republicans late Thursday were able to corral enough votes to defeat the bill.

Anthony Weiner goes ballistic....


and this...

Republicans blocked a bill Thursday that would have opened up lending for small businesses. The fund would have been available to community banks with less than 10 billion in assets to help with lending and also it would have provided 12 billion in small business tax breaks. But of course its political games playing as usual. Republicans are saying the bill is too much like the huge bailout of the financial industry. What a joke! The Dems are saying the banks should be able to use the lending fund to leverage up to 300 billion in loans which will help loosen the tight credit markets. But NO, these idiots in Washington care more about their standing in the polls and what they THINK voters want them to do, in the meantime Americans must suffer more.....

Democrats had wanted to pass the bill before Congress leaves town for summer vacation, but that won't happen with the House scheduled to adjourn Friday. The Senate is in session for another week, but Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said there would be no more votes until Monday. Crybaby Mitch McConnell said Dems were blocking GOP amendments and Reid said the GOP demands kept changing. Changing to slow things down is more like it. The usual obstructing to hurt democrats but in the end they are hurting the country. Do they care? Hell NO! The back and forth childs play is sickening!

Now back to my original posting. This is what I want to see more of from our elected leaders. I want to see fighting for us, not fighting between them!

One of the greatest voices in Americas history. I believe this was from '07, Senator Ted Kennedy bellowing on the Senate floor. We have no voice today like the voice of Ted Kennedy, we don't seem to have the passion and determination in the party like we did back then. If you want to get fired up and fight the obstructing do nothing republican party then listen to this video. Damn, I miss this man so much...




I found this comment while reading the news stories last night. I loved what this woman said...

"The entire country is being played with, just like a cat with a mouse, by the republicans and the corporate sponsors.

It's a mean little game for them, to show the country "who is boss." They want nothing to be gained by this administration so that history will reflect an ineffective administration, and they will destroy people's lives in order to attain their goal.

The United States will soon become an evil empire thanks to the ill-informed people who believe that the republicans have any regard for the people in Middle America."

Rethugs are poised for war........again

I saw this on a rightwing blog and had to bring it to you word for hideous word. WTF is the rightwing of our country trying to do?? This should be enough to turn your stomach and NEVER ever allow the thugs to have power in our country, EVER AGAIN!

House Republican Resolution will give green light to Israel for a military strike on Iran.

Put that in your coke pipe and smoke it Obama. When Republicans take back the House in November your Muslim-Marxist agenda is so over.

Nearly one third of the Republican congressmen in the U.S. House of Representatives have introduced a resolution that would support Israel’s right to use “all means necessary to confront and eliminate nuclear threats posed by Iran”, including military force. The resolution was introduced by Rep. Louie Gohmert [R-Texas] and 46 co-sponsors.
House Resolution 1553 “condemns the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran for its threats of ‘annihilating’ the United States and the State of Israel, for its continued support of international terrorism, and for its incitement of genocide of the Israeli people.”
It “supports using all means of persuading the Government of Iran to stop building and acquiring nuclear weapons” and pledges that the U.S. will ensure that Israel “continues to receive critical economic and military assistance, including missile defense capabilities, needed to address the threat of Iran.”


In addition, it “expresses support for Israel’s right to use all means necessary to confront and eliminate nuclear threats posed by Iran, defend Israeli sovereignty, and protect the lives and safety of the Israeli people, including the use of military force if no other peaceful solution can be found within a reasonable time.”
Iran lobby alarmed The National Iranian American Council (NIAC), a pro-Iranian lobby group, is up in arms over the proposed resolution.
“Obviously we are reaching silly season in Washington with the elections in November,” NIAC’s founder-president Trita Parsi told RN, a news venue that focuses on Russian issues. He added that “there have already been some signs that Israel is going to be a major element that some Republicans will use to get both voters as well as finance, donations to campaigns, away from the Democrats.” (Silly season, indeed. You guys are peeing your pants)


However, Parsi said, “even silly season has real repercussions on the real world.” The resolution would send “a dangerous signal” to Israel, that some in congress would welcome military action by it against Iran, while the White House and U.S. military oppose such a strike, he argued. (‘Dangerous signal’ to Israel? Don’t dream)
NIAC’s website warned that the “game plan” behind HR 1553 was spelled out earlier this month by former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton in the Wall Street Journal, when he wrote: “Having visible congressional support in place at the outset [of an attack] will reassure the Israeli government, which is legitimately concerned about Mr. Obama’s likely negative reaction to such an attack.”


“The Obama Administration quietly resisted Congressional efforts to pass unilateral economic sanctions for over a year, before ultimately giving in to Congressional pressure,” NIAC wrote. “Now that  (hardly)‘crippling’ sanctions have been put in place, the far-right wing and Iran-hawks have begun openly advocating for what has always been their ultimate objective: war with Iran.”


NIAC warned that an attack on Iran would ignite a regional war that would put the lives of “innocent Americans, Iranians, and Israelis” in harm’s way, as well as risking the pro-democracy movement in Iran, U.S. national security and the stability of Iraq and Afghanistan and the global economy, which relies on oil from the Persian Gulf.
NIAC denies allegations that it is used as a tool by the Iranian regime, citing its condemnations of human rights abuses in Iran. (Talk is cheap) Israel National News

are you horrified, terrified?? The warmongering rightwing is on the march.... will it ever end?

Can we stomach another impeachment trial??

Bachmann: If GOP wins the House, 'all we should do is issue subpoenas'. 

Yesterday, Rep. Michelle Bachmann (R-MN) spoke to the GOP Youth Convention in Washington. One attendee asked Bachmann about what the Republicans will do if they win back the House:

QUESTION: I might be putting the cart before the horse here, but assuming the Republicans win the House back this next cycle, how do you feel about the chances for a little oversight and a little accountability now that the Republicans would have the subpoena power? How aggressive do you think?
BACHMANN: Well I think that’s all we should do. I think all we should do is issue subpoenas and have one hearing after another and expose all the nonsense that has gone on. And it’s very important when we come back that we have constitutional conservative leadership, because the American people’s patience is about this big. [...]
And this is the year, this is it. All of our chips are on November. If we don’t get it back and then starve the beast, the House – we have the power of the purse – so we can starve Obamacare, we don’t have to fund any of these programs. And that’s exactly what we need to do: defund all of this nonsense and then unwind it.

 Steve Benen, Political Animal: July 23, 2010

INVESTIGATING IS EASIER THAN GOVERNING.... The political world may not fully appreciate just how ugly it might be next year.

To be sure, it was farcical on the Hill in the mid- to late-'90s. Rep. Dan Burton (R) of Indiana and his House committee on administrative oversight launched pointless investigations into every wild-eyed Clinton-related accusation unhinged activists could manufacture.

And I mean "every" quite literally. In one instance, Burton held hearings -- for 10 days -- on the Clintons' Christmas card list. In another, Burton fired a bullet into a "head-like object" -- reportedly a melon -- in his backyard to test his conspiracy theories about Vince Foster. Over the last six years of Bill Clinton's presidency, Burton's committee unilaterally issued 1,052 subpoenas -- that's not a typo -- to investigate baseless allegations of misconduct. That translates to an average of a politically-inspired subpoena every other day for six consecutive years, including weekends, holidays, and congressional recesses.
A Republican House majority in the next Congress would likely take this even further. Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) has already made clear that he intends to make Burton look like a meek, submissive toady, leaving "corporate America" alone, so he can attack the White House relentlessly.
For that matter, let's also not forget that some Republicans, including two members of Congress, have raised the specter of presidential impeachment once there's a GOP majority. One of them is Bachmann -- who thinks "all" Republicans should do in the next Congress is launch witch hunts.
As Paul Krugman noted recently, "[W]e'll be having hearings over accusations of corruption on the part of Michelle Obama's hairdresser, janitors at the Treasury, and Larry Summers's doctor's dog."
If this seems like a joke, now would be a good time to adjust your expectations.

 Are you ready for it? Let's pray the GOP loses in 2010 because it will be a circus, you can bet your bippy it will! Bachmann is not pulling any punches, there will be subpoenas flying around Washington like we have never seen before. It'll make the Clinton impeachment look like a schoolyard prank! We can only hope the republican party destroys itself or we are doomed to repeat the past. There really is no stopping the evil train wreck called the republican party...

Paycheck Fairness Act

 Have you read about this bill, the Paycheck Fairness Act?
This is what the fuss coming from the right is all about....

The National Committee on Pay Equity supports two bills in Congress aimed at curbing wage discrimination. The bills work on different aspects of wage discrimination, and both are needed to fully close the wage gap.

The Fair Pay Act (S. 904, H.R. 2151) is sponsored by Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) and Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC). It seeks to end wage discrimination against those who work in female-dominated or minority-dominated jobs by establishing equal pay for equivalent work. For example, within individual companies, employers could not pay jobs that are held predominately by women less than jobs held predominately by men if those jobs are equivalent in value to the employer. The bill also protects workers on the basis of race or national origin. The Fair Pay Act makes exceptions for different wage rates based on seniority, merit, or quantity or quality of work. It also contains a small business exemption.

The Paycheck Fairness Act (H.R.12 and S.182) was introduced January 2009 by then-Senator Hillary Clinton and Rep. Rosa DeLauro to strengthen the Equal Pay Act of 1963. The bill expands damages under the Equal Pay Act and amends its very broad fourth affirmative defense. In addition, the Paycheck Fairness Act calls for a study of data collected by the EEOC and proposes voluntary guidelines to show employers how to evaluate jobs with the goal of eliminating unfair disparities. The bill was passed by the House of Representatives on January 9, 2009, ADD and action by the Senate is pending, under the lead sponsorship of Sen. Christopher Dodd.

Paycheck Fairness Act Fact Sheet (pdf)

Legislative Remedies to the Wage Gap (pdf)

President Obama has issued a statement endorsing a gender pay equity law,  covered in today's USA TODAY.
Here's the statement:

In America today, women make up half of the workforce, and two-thirds of American families with children rely on a woman's wages as a significant portion of their families' income.
Yet, even in 2010, women make only 77 cents for every dollar that men earn. The gap is even more significant for working women of color, and it affects women across all education levels. As Vice President Biden and the Middle Class Task Force will discuss today, this is not just a question of fairness for hard-working women. Paycheck discrimination hurts families who lose out on badly needed income. And with so many families depending on women's wages, it hurts the American economy as a whole. In difficult economic times like these, we simply cannot afford this discriminatory burden.

My Administration has already begun to address this problem. In my first week in office, I signed the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, which helps women who face wage discrimination recover their lost wages, and in my State of the Union Address, I promised to crack down on violations of equal pay laws. Today the Equal Pay Enforcement Task Force will present its recommendations, which include ways to better coordinate among enforcement agencies and inform employees about their rights. These steps support women, and they also support businesses that are doing the right thing and paying their employees what they deserve.
We cannot do this work alone. So today, I thank the House for its work on this issue and encourage the Senate to pass the Paycheck Fairness Act, a common-sense bill that will help ensure that men and women who do equal work receive the equal pay that they and their families deserve. Passing this bill is one of the Task Force's key recommendations, and I hope Congress will act swiftly so that I can sign it into law.

I'm really not sure why the right would defend inequality, John Boehner called the equity bill a cruel hoax. He is worried about trial lawyers clogging up the courts with junk lawsuits. He says these laws will make it hard for businesses to grow and hire! That is friggin laughable!   Don't you see Mr. Bonehead, if there was equality in the workplace there would not be lawsuits based on gender discrimination. Of course the righties want the companies to do as they please no matter who it hurts, no matter who is discriminated against. OH God-forbid the government steps in to help the helpless stand up to big crooked business practices!

This is the point of view from a conservative blogger...

The Obama administration demonstrates again that they have no clue as to how to conduct business, nor can they grasp common-sense concepts regarding how businesses operate and succeed in order to employ all those minorities, woman and others. This is frankly another political move to extract yet another fistful of power (and more than likely, substantial fees and fines) from small businesses. 
Things are not always as they appear to be on paper, so the opportunity for misunderstanding and error looms. Not all jobs are equal, nor are their responsibilities and stresses. This will limit the rewarding of excellence and reward possible mediocrity under the guise of equality. This is just one more decision taken away from the employer and placed with the Federal government...plain old garden variety "interference" under another name. No one supports discrimination anywhere, and blatant discrimination of any kind should be ended, but this is just so over the line of what the responsibilities of our government should be, This is big brother taking liberty away from private business owners and saddling them with business-destroying regulation and taxation. Will any area of our lives be left intact when the Obama crew finally (please God)packs it in and leaves Washington?


what you have here is a delusional Beck watching, Limbaugh quoting, Heritage Foundation worshipper. Sorry rightwing nut, progress marches forward, equality for ALL Americans FINALLY!!

 Thank God for our democratic president who understands the abuses we have endured for far too many generations. Thank you Mr. President!

The GOP.......LIARS when it comes to deficit worry

THE BUSH TAX CUTS DID NOTHING FOR THE ECONOMY!!

Right Wing Economist Laffer Bashes Greenspan For Calling For End Of Bush Tax Cuts

Last week, former Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan called for allowing the Bush tax cuts he championed in 2001 to fully expire, as scheduled, at the end of the year. His reversal dealt a blow to Republicans who are calling for an unpaid-for permanent extension of the cuts for the rich, even falsely claiming that they increase government revenues.
Unsurprisingly, Greenspan’s comments have irked some right-wing pundits. The strongly discredited economist and former member of President Reagan’s Economic Policy Advisory Board Arthur Laffer criticized Greenspan on the Fox Business network, questioning his patriotism and accusing him of practicing “bad economics.” Media Matters has the transcript:

HOST: Hey, Alan Greenspan says let [all the Bush tax cuts] expire. The former Fed Chairman. Let ‘em all expire.
LAFFER: Good for him. I mean there he goes. Well, I guess he’s out of power. He’s a little old. I don’t think he has any kids. Heck, what does he care? You know, I have six kids. I have eleven grandchildren. You know, I really care about the future of this country and I really don’t want to be taxed into poverty. I really don’t think it’s smart in this day and age, with this type of unemployment, to tax people who work more and to pay people who don’t work more. That just is silly. It’s bad economics.

Actually, Laffer’s recent suggestion to suspend all federal taxes should be called “bad economics,” not Greenspan’s recognition that his suggested policy didn’t work. As Media Matters’ Walid Zafar points out, “No serious economist on the left, center or right actually believes this stuff [Laffer is saying]. It’s quackonomics. It resonates well with the Tea Party crowd, but is without a foundation.”

In the past, Laffer held a different view of Greenspan and his policies. Laffer “supported Alan Greenspan being reappointed [as Fed Chairman] twice” and, in 2004, called Greenspan’s work “exquisite,” saying that he “ha[d] done one of the best jobs on monetary policy ever.” Yet, now that Greenspan is “out of power” and “a little old,” Laffer apparently thinks his economic prowess is gone.
The Wonk Room’s Pat Garofalo asked a prescient question last week: “Greenspan at least seems to be coming around to the notion that the conservative economic philosophy is a big sham that doesn’t work in practice. Will the rest of the GOP ever follow?” Apparently not.
–Charlie Eisenhood


 THE ONLY PLAN REPUBLICANS HAVE

TO GROW THE ECONOMY AND CREATE JOBS IS..............

TAX CUTS FOR THE RICH!!!!

TAX CUTS, TAX CUTS, TAX CUTS, THAT'S ALL THEY HAVE! DOES IT TRICKLE DOWN FOR YOU??  NOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!

Marco Rubio wants to make the Bush tax cuts for the wealthy permanent----at a cost of nearly 700 billion over the next ten years---with no offset. Rubio recently claimed the tax cuts would pay for themselves.....they won't

Top Senate Republican Jon Kyl insisted that Congress should extend the Bush tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans regardless of their impact on the deficit, even as he and other rethugs have consistently voted NO on unemployment extensions citing deficit concerns....

Republicans pretend to care about the deficit but they don't really. If the Bush tax cuts are allowed to expire it would mean a reduction in the deficit by about 4 trillion dollars over the next 10 years and more after that. So prove it GOP, prove you care about the rising debt by allowing the tax cuts to expire without a fight!

VOODOO economics

If you are an Independent and sitting on the fence trying to decide which way to go, left or right, please watch this clip of Rachel Maddow talking about the republicans belief in economics and tax cuts for ONLY the rich which they claim trickles down to the middle class and poor. I think Rachel read my last post on this subject! :-)

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

The GOP is demanding the tax cuts to the rich STAY as is!

If you missed today's State of the Union with Candy Crowley on CNN you can read the transcript here. Her guest was the say-nothing-do-nothing Mitch McConnell. His attempts at justifying the Bush tax cuts to the wealthy and why they must not to be allowed to expire is just plain ridiculous. What have those tax cuts done to middle America and why do republicans think trickle down economics works when we can see clearly it does NOT.

This Donna Brazile article was in my small town paper today, she calls it "Cake for the rich and NO crumbs for the Poor". While GOP leaders like Jon Kyl and Mitch McConnell are championing extended tax breaks for big oil, big banks, and Wall St, "You never ever use taxes to offset spending" McConnell said, they were also working like crazy to obstruct Democrats from extending benefits to the unemployed.  Republicans say the jobless will become dependant on the UI benefits and stop looking for work.  America's jobless are the very same taxpayers whose personal paycheck taxes bailed out Wall St  and the banks. Those "handouts " didn't seem to stop those guys from recovering! The GOP economic philosophy helps the rich escape paying their due and puts the burden on the vast majority of hardworking Americans. Tax-dodging is right in line with what some repubs are now demanding. They do not want to bring back the fair share of taxes on the wealthy, it's un-American they say!

Think people, think! Clinton balanced the huge deficit repubs left for him and handed a multi-million dollar surplus to GW Bush, he also taxed Wall St, big oil and big business. Bush took those taxes off and what was the result?
 According to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities "two-thirds of the nations total income gains from 2002 to 2007 flowed to the top 1 percent of U.S. households and that 1 % held a larger share of income in 2007 than at any time since 1928. The taxes removed from the rich enabled the top 1% to corner two-thirds of the nations increased wealth. Ya know how the righties are always crying about redistribution of wealth? Well, during the Bush era, republicans undertook a massive redistribution of the nations wealth by robbing from the poor and giving to the rich! So now our president wants to level the playing field and the right is hysterical!
The Congressional Budget Office says the Bush era tax cuts increased the deficit by $539 billion just in 2005. Between 2011 and 2018 those tax cuts will cost the government $3.28 trillion in lost revenue. Just one-half a days worth of these taxes would likely pay for six months of jobless benefits. At the rate cited above these restored taxes would finance health reform for decades!  But alas, the GOP says "no worry", these tax cuts to the wealthy won't hurt government programs. They still argue the tax breaks for the wealthy are NECESSARY for the country to recover economically! The last time they tried that ended in 2008 when the economy nearly cratered for good!

Thanks to Donna Brazile and her insight into today's GOP idiocy.

You on the right who cry and complain about taxes, why aren't you looking at the big picture and demanding the top 1% pay their fair share? It makes no sense to me. Trickle down my ass!

okay, one at a time..

First up is TanMan Boehner. He is calling for a repeal of the finance reform bill yet to be signed by President Obama. Then today he is whining about a moratorium on the reform,"there should be a government moratoriumon on new regulations for a year with new regulations only coming if there is an emergency".
 He said the ban would send “a wonderful signal to the Private Sector that they're going to have some breathing room.”

 WTF did he just say??? This my friends is the rethug party in all its glory!

edit to add:   

65% said they wanted more regulation for the oil industry (versus 16% who want less); 57% want more regulation for Wall Street firms (compared with 15% who want less); 53% want more regulation for big corporations (versus 21% who want less); and 52% want more regulation for the health-care industry (compared with 27% who want less).

Boehner represents a disease that has infected American conservatism. The Republican Party-- and the Blue Dogs who vote with them-- don't recognize the legitimate role government plays in balancing the enormous power over us that wealthy corporations hold. That refusal to help ordinary families is the essence of today's GOP. And the idea of the Republicans gaining control of Congress and a man of John Boehner's miniscule stature becoming Speaker is just unthinkable.

Next we have Michelle Bachmann. She had a brainstorm of an idea, Rand Paul had the same idea but he has yet to be elected to implement it. Bachmann has filed the paperwork to start a House Tea Party Caucus! Doesn't that sound dandy? She wants to formalize the baggers movement within the federal government, this is her letter:

I would like to register the House Tea Party Caucus as a Congressional Member Organization for the 111th Congress. The House Tea Party Caucus will serve as an informal group of Members dedicated to promote American’s call for fiscal responsibility, adherence to the Constitution, and limited government. Presently, I will serve as the chair of the House Tea Party Caucus.

WTF did she just say??? 

 But I think Idiot of the Week has to go to Peter King. Yesterday while talking to radio host Bill Bennett he said the Republicans shouldn't lay out a complete agenda because then people would be able to scrutinize it and make it a campaign issue! What the Fuck???
For your amusement, some of the conversation.....

BENNETT: Is it enough for Republicans to say we are opposed to what [Obama's] doing — stimulus, health care, we don’t like what he’s doing with the government, and look at the job situation — or do we need to have meat on the bones? And say, this is what we are for? Do we have to have positive proposals? [...]

KING: So, It’s a combination of being against what Obama is for, and also giving certain specifics of what we are for. Having said that, I don’t think we have to lay out a complete agenda, from top to bottom, because then we would have the national mainstream media jumping on every point trying to make that a campaign issue.

.
And later in the interview, King offered a good example of why he probably shouldn’t be talking about policy. While saying that conservatives need to craft a “much more intelligent argument” to defend the Bush tax cuts, King argued that those tax cuts “saved our economy”:

KING: That’s where we have to make a much more intelligent argument and defend the Bush tax cuts. Because after all the years of the Bush tax cuts, after two wars, after September 11th, as of 2007, the deficit was down to $165 billion, which is almost chump change by today’s standard. No, the tax cuts is what saved our economy. People forget, they have this talk about how there was a $6.5 trillion surplus projected when President Bush come in. The fact is, he inherited a severe economic downturn — the third quarter of 2000, the first quarter of 2001, the economy was tanking. Then we had September 11th, then we did have two wars — both of which I’ve supported — and with all of that, the economy continued to add jobs, and by 2006, 2007 the deficit was being dramatically reduced.

King’s claim that the Bush tax cuts increased revenues reflects the “view of virtually every Republican on that subject,” according to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), but contradicts the facts and Bush’s own economic advisors, including former Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan.

the choice is clear, do you want to move forward with democrats and Pres. Obama or do you want idiot- moron- stupid- asshole- wingnuts running the country? You decide....

McConnell says the Groove word.......LMAO!

 Mitch McConnell says the GOP has found it's groove!! He says the Rethugs will take the House in November and reverse the "damage caused by democrats".  McConnell says the country is fed up with government AND DEMOCRATS, but actually Mr. McConnell the truth is, while the country is mad at both parties, the voters wrath is with the republican party.  A staggering 72% have little or NO trust in congressional republicans on the country's future! 

That's okay Mitch, you go right ahead and call the GOP a resurgent party, even when they have obstructed and voted NO on virtually every major reform offered by Pres. Obama. Your do nothing party has hurt Americans by voting NO on extending unemployment benefits, you voted against healthcare reform forcing a watered down bill to pass.  And BTW, watered down every major piece of legislation that came before you only to vote NO in the end. You, Mr. McConnell, are a fraud. You care not one bit about the American people, only your own cushy job...


Speaking at the 2010 Young Republican Leadership Conference in Washington, McConnell argued that the GOP is a resurgent party poised to combat what he portrayed as a year-and-a-half of federal excess and expansion.
"On issue after issue, the administration's solutions to our problems have only made our problems worse. And yet they still crave more power, more of your tax dollars, more responsibility," McConnell said. "Well, Americans are tired of politicians who promise one thing and deliver another."

If this do nothing party does win the House in November the first thing on their agenda is impeachment of our legitimately elected president. Talk about not listening to the voters!  If I had my wish, the much hated republican party will cease to exist if they even dare to go down that road..

The Godly ones...

We're all talking about them. We're highlighting the rightwing nuts and telling America what the GOP has done to America in the last 30 or more years. But more so what the GOP and those on the right are doing to Americans today. So why are they not hearing us? Why do they dismiss all the facts that are staring them in the face? I believe it's all based on religion. These rightwingers are trusting the party of NO, the party who cares not one bit about middle America, BECAUSE.... they claim to be the party of GOD!! Rightwingers care only that their politicians are "Christians", after that they are blind, deaf and dumb about the policies of the GOP. They claim to care, but how could they when they vote for people like....

Republican Sen. David Vitter, He told a group of supporters last week he is in favor of groups who may want to take President Obama to court over the belief he is not an American citizen.

Sen. Jon Kyl is very concerned about the deficit, he says Pres. Obama is spending trillions of dollars we don't have on things we don't need! BUT, when it comes to tax cuts, specifically the Bush tax cuts for the rich, Kyl says tax cuts never have to be paid for....

Where do I begin with batshit crazy Michelle Bachmann? Yes people adore her and vote for her even after she says things like this.. ....
Bachmann claimed the national health care reform package was implemented, in part, under the auspices of Rahm Emanuel's brother Ezekiel, whom Bachmann, appropriating the claims of Betsy McCaughey, said supported the rationing of medical care to only those who were useful to the federal treasury. Bachmann, extending that claim to the administration, said , "It is about being useful not to you, not to others, but to the United States Treasury.

And her latest... she believes America is turning into "a nation of slaves" because of Barack Obama, Democrats and the new health care law.

Now for the teabagger princess who is trying to unseat Harry Reid, Sharron Angle. She has a huge following, mostly religious fanatics I'm sure.
Over the weekend, Angle participated in an interview with Ralph Reed, the longtime conservative activist, founder of the Christian Coalition, and the man once deemed the "right hand of God" by Time Magazine. And in the course of answering a question about her rise from relative obscurity, the Nevada Republican made a rather bold declaration. Her path to victory, she said, was God's plan.

"I believe that God has been in this from the beginning and because of that when he has a plan and a purpose for your life and you fit into that, what he calls you to he always equipped you for," Angle replied.
She is devoutly pro-life, arguing against abortion in cases of rape and incest because "God has a plan." And she has argued in the past that: "the tenet of the separation of church and state is an unconstitutional doctrine."

There are many, MANY more examples of these rightwing religious candidates, they are running on a platform of God, Guns, and More God. As long as they have their followers and their church congregations bussed to the polls driven by their pastors and preachers, (ya know those tax exempt ones who really should not share their choice for political leaders in their sermons, yea those guys) they will win elections. Sadly the American people are being taken for fools by these wolves in sheeps clothing...

There's no denying it when we have the signs to prove it...

NAACP considers resolution condemning racism in Tea Party movement

At the organization’s national convention this week, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) will propose a resolution “condemning racism within the tea party movement.” The resolution calls upon “all people of good will to repudiate the racism of the Tea Parties, and to stand in opposition to its drive to push our country back to the pre-civil rights era.” NAACP leaders said the resolution was “necessary” to make people “seriously” consider what leaders “believe is a racist element within the tea party movement.” Tea Party leaders, however, vehemently deny allegations of racism and call the proposed resolution “unfair”:

Brendan Steinhauser, director of campaigns for FreedomWorks, claims there is no racism in the tea party movement. They are opposed to it he says....Then he goes on to say the NAACP has a political agenda and they (NAACP) should know the tea party movement has alot in common with the Civil Rights movement!

Steinhauser’s memory is conveniently short-term, ignoring the Tea Party’s well-documented history of racism and wrongful co-opting of the civil rights movement. Last year, Tea Party members analogized President Obama to a “monkey.” In March, Tea Party protesters hurled racist epithets at civil rights hero Rep. John Lewis (D-GA) and spat at Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D-MO). At a recent July 4 rally in Lexington, KY, Daily Kos documented Tea Party members selling shirts declaring “Yup, I’m a Racist!”

Look, even a child holding a racist sign! They teach them young don't they?!

Shameful GOP candidate..it's time to highlight!

Rand Paul: America’s Poor Are Lucky to Have it so Good!

Posted by Joshua Holland on @ 11:37 am

Article printed from speakeasy: http://blogs.alternet.org/speakeasy

URL to article: http://blogs.alternet.org/speakeasy/2010/07/10/rand-paul-americas-poor-are-lucky-duckies/

Here’s some authentic frontier gibberish from Rand Paul (via TPM):

“The poor in our country are enormously better off than the rest of the world,” Paul said. “Doesn’t mean we can’t do better, but we have to acknowledge and be proud of our system of capitalism, be proud of our American way.”

Here’s how he got to that conclusion:

One of the important lessons that came out of the Cold War — and this is an important description that I don’t think comes up enough — the Cold War was won by America because the engine of capitalism defeated the engine of socialism. The Soviets used to show a propaganda film — they wanted to show how horrible America was and how our poor were doing so poorly. They filmed a building in the poor section of New York with some broken windows and they said, ‘Oh this is how the poor in America lives.’ But it backfired on them because the Soviet citizens looked at that video closely and they saw flickering color television sets in all those windows.

Like the nonsensical claim that 50 percent of Americans pay no taxes, this is a zombie lie that will never rest. It can’t, because people like Rand Paul aren’t really defending American “capitalism” — they’re defending the great economic inequality that results from capitalism when its not balanced  by a real social safety net. It’s axiomatic that the poor have it better off in countries with less inequality and greater ‘transfer payments.’ But more to the point, greater inequality leads to more people living in poverty — and we lead the developed world.
That’s what their “populism” is supporting. Economies with a more equitable distribution of wealth produce fewer millionaires, yes, but many fewer poor folks. So, the Right simply argues that our poor folks have TVs! And dishwashers! They’re doing great!
Read the rest here 

While Paul Rand is calling poor Americans, even those who live under bridges in cardboard boxes or in their cars in Walmart parking lots, lucky you can read from Robert Reich his views on why the poor get poorer and the rich get richer....

Wall Street's banditry was the proximate cause of the Great Recession, not its underlying cause. Even if the Street is better controlled in the future (and I have my doubts), the structural reason for the Great Recession still haunts America. That reason is America's surging inequality.Consider: in 1928 the richest 1 percent of Americans received 23.9 percent of the nation's total income. After that, the share going to the richest 1 percent steadily declined. New Deal reforms, followed by World War II, the GI Bill and the Great Society expanded the circle of prosperity. By the late 1970s the top 1 percent raked in only 8 to 9 percent of America's total annual income. But after that, inequality began to widen again, and income reconcentrated at the top. By 2007 the richest 1 percent were back to where they were in 1928—with 23.5 percent of the total. Each of America's two biggest economic crashes occurred in the year immediately following these twin peaks—in 1929 and 2008. This is no mere coincidence. When most of the gains from economic growth go to a small sliver of Americans at the top, the rest don't have enough purchasing power to buy what the economy is capable of producing. America's median wage, adjusted for inflation, has barely budged for decades. Between 2000 and 2007 it actually dropped. Under these circumstances the only way the middle class can boost its purchasing power is to borrow, as it did with gusto. As housing prices rose, Americans turned their homes into ATMs. But such borrowing has its limits. When the debt bubble finally burst, vast numbers of people couldn't pay their bills, and banks couldn't collect.
China, Germany and Japan have surely contributed to the problem by failing to buy as much from us as we buy from them. But to believe that our continuing economic crisis stems mainly from the trade imbalance—we buy too much and save too little, while they do the reverse—is to miss the biggest imbalance of all. The problem isn't that typical Americans have spent beyond their means. It's that their means haven't kept up with what the growing economy could and should have been able to provide them.
A second parallel links 1929 with 2008: when earnings accumulate at the top, people at the top invest their wealth in whatever assets seem most likely to attract other big investors. This causes the prices of certain assets—commodities, stocks, dot-coms or real estate—to become wildly inflated. Such speculative bubbles eventually burst, leaving behind mountains of near-worthless collateral.
The crash of 2008 didn't turn into another Great Depression because the government learned the importance of flooding the market with cash, thereby temporarily rescuing some stranded consumers and most big bankers. But the financial rescue didn't change the economy's underlying structure. Median wages are continuing their downward slide, and those at the top continue to rake in the lion's share of income. That's why the middle class still doesn't have the purchasing power it needs to reboot the economy, and why the so-called recovery will be so tepid—maybe even leading to a double dip. It's also why America will be vulnerable to even larger speculative booms and deeper busts in the years to come.

This is for my friends who like to debate economics. If you want to read the whole article go here.

Enjoy! 

Teabaggers VS. Black Panthers

I found this on a rightwingers blog.....

Black Panthers- Have they been empowered?
The following video was aired today and its a calling by the Black Panthers for A RUMBLE WITH THE TEA PARTY, GLENN BECK AND ALL RIGHT OF CENTER PEOPLE ON AUGEST 27th AT THE NATIONAL MALL.
All right of center Americans: Be prepared to defend yourselves!
Is Eric Holder and Barack Obama emboldening, empowering, authorizing SOME in the African American community, or better yet the Black Panthers to have free rein over the law without repercussion? Without justice being served?
What is the next step?
If Obama looses his re-election bid in 2012 will there be trouble upon the nation in the form of backlash from some African Americans? Or worst yet, a rein of terror by this new Black Panthers?
I would be very vigilant on this situation over the course of the next 28 month!

This is not only fearmongering but actually very funny!  Are teabagger type rightwingers scared of the big, bad, black man?? Rein of terror on the horizon? Don't they WISH!!





Malik Zulu Shabazz says Fox News is trying to stir up racial fears and lying to the public. He tells Russian viewers that Fox News’ viewers are whites and “Confederates”. When whites say they want to “take their country back, we interpret that as meaning take our country back from this black man”.

Shabezz also challenged “Right-wingers” and the tea-party: “We’re ready to rumble”

Russia Today reported:

Members of the New Black Panther Party had allegedly intimidated voters who looked as if they may not vote for now US President Barack Obama, FOX News has been extensively covering the story.

Allegedly members of the New Black Panther Party positioned themselves outside of a polling station in Philadelphia with the intent to intimidate voters as they arrived to cast their votes during the 2008 presidential election.

“I have been predicting that the attack would increase as we go into the elections, because this whole so called voter intimidation controversy is just a tool by the Republicans,” said Dr. Malik Zulu Shabazz, the chairman of the New Black Panther Party.

Shabazz said he expects the attacks to increase and he expects to see ads featuring the New Black Panther Party as well as new allegations against them.

“They [Fox News] have no intention on being, as they say, fair and balanced. They want to paint us as extremists and they don’t want the truth to come out because they have political purposes,” said Shabazz.

He continued, later adding that “this is just part of the right wing paranoia in playing on racial fears, unfounded racial fears in every way. I say Fox News should be ashamed of themselves. We used to be on Fox for years, but now they won’t call us, but they like to talk about us but they are afraid to talk to me and us


Okay so what are the righties REALLY afraid of?? Teabaggers can go to rallies with guns strapped to their legs, they can intimidate disabled people in wheelchairs, they can call for the heads of our president and our elected democratic leaders, they can form militias and threaten our government with violence, and these are white Americans! If there is violence it will most likely be started by the white supremacist religious fanatical militias,they are the groups who have been inciting violence since the election of Barack Obama, not the Black Panthers. 

Scenes like this are why whites fear blacks and call them violent.....

Oakland, California (CNN) -- Police arrested dozens of people in downtown Oakland, California, Thursday night after hundreds protested the verdict in the trial of a white former police officer who fatally shot an unarmed black man, Oakland police officials told CNN.

But take the time to understand why blacks took to the streets in California. A black man was shot while he was laying on the floor, unarmed, by a white policeman. Do I think it was cold blooded murder? YES, I do. Do I understand the black mans rage, Yes I do....
 Do I think the blacks will rise up in violence against the whites??  Absolutely not......

Is Inglis one rightie we can call sane??

What should we make of today's GOP headlines? Is Bob Inglis being sincere in the criticism of his party's  influential leaders like Limbaugh, Beck, Palin? Or is the slamming of his fellow republicans just sour grapes? Does he truly believe his party is heading off a cliff because of their inability to speak against those radio and TV  hate and fearmongers? Will we see him on TV apologizing to the repub leader Limpy, taking back these statements of truth? Whatever his motives are, these words by him are the TRUTH about the republicans and their bowing down to idiots like Limpballs! And to think the righties have the nerve to make fun of Obamas "bowing", sheeeeesh....


GOP Rep. Bob Inglis slams Republicans for being led by hate radio, 'preying on fears.'

By Lee Fang at 9:45 am

Rep. Bob Inglis (R-SC), who lost recently in his primary run-off for the Republican nomination to keep his seat in Congress, is speaking out about the influence of hate radio and right-wing fear mongering in the Republican Party. In an interview with the AP, Inglis called out reactionaries like Sarah Palin and Glenn Beck for spreading “demagoguery” and hatred in society:

– Noting that Palin had spread the “death panel” smear, Inglis said, “there were no death panels in the bill…and to encourage that kind of fear is just the lowest form of political leadership.”
– Inglis slammed GOP leaders for following hate radio talkers, rather than leading on principle: “I think we have a lot of leaders that are following those (television and talk radio) personalities and not leading [...] What it takes to lead is to say, ‘You know, that’s just not right.”
– Inglis on the right-wing’s effort to divide America: “It’s a real concern, because I think what we’re doing is dividing the country into partisan camps that really look a lot like Shia and Sunni. It’s very difficult to come together to find solutions.”
– Although Inglis did not hear the racial slurs hurled at Rep. John Lewis (D-GA) at a tea party protest on Capitol Hill during the health reform vote, he did see threatening and abusive behavior. “I caught him at the door and said, ‘John, I guess you’ve been here before,’” said Inglis, referring to Lewis’ role in the Civil Rights movement.

Like Inglis, Sen. Bob Bennett (R-UT) lost his GOP primary, despite a similarly conservative voting record. Bennett later slammed the GOP for being held captive to far right-tea parties and Fox News, noting, “I find plenty of slogans on the Republican side, but not very many ideas.” Inglis, who stood out as one of the only Republican lawmakers to publicly criticize Glenn Beck, warned that voters eventually will discover that the GOP is “preying on their fears” and turn away.

Another rightwing nut....

I'm gonna highlight every rightwing nut from now til November!  Here is number ONE.....

From Think Progress, Pat Garofalo.....
Stephen Moore calls for raising taxes on the poor in order to pay for tax cuts for the rich.

The Bush tax cuts are scheduled to expire in January. President Obama has expressed a desire to preserve the cuts for the middle class while letting tax rates for the wealthy reset to where they were during the Clinton administration. Conservative lawmakers and pundits have been fearmongering that allowing the tax cuts for the wealthy to expire will kill job creation and small businesses (despite the fact that fewer than 2 percent of small business owners will be affected). Last night on CNBC, Wall Street Journal editorial board member Stephen Moore went so far as to say that he can’t “see the sense” of allowing cuts for the rich to expire, and then advocated that taxes be raised on the poorest Americans in order to finance more tax cuts for the rich:

I just don’t see the sense of this. In fact, if I could have my ‘druthers, I’d raise the ten percent tax rate to fifteen percent and lower the [top] rates.

Adopting such a plan would only exacerbate income inequality that is already the worst it has been since the 1920’s. According to the latest data, “the gaps in after-tax income between the richest 1 percent of Americans and the middle and poorest fifths of the country more than tripled between 1979 and 2007.” The top 1 percent of families now receive nearly 25 percent of the country’s income, after earning less than 10 percent in the 1970s. This year the Bush tax cuts will give millionaires more in tax breaks than 90 percent of Americans will make in total income.

President Obama and a second term?

Tonight's Ed Schultz show had guest Jonathan Alter who wrote the book about President Obama's first year, The Promise. Ed asked Alter if he thought Obama looked run down and tired, and if he thought he would even want a second term. Alter said NO, he doesn't look tired and yes he absolutely will run again,  plus added this which is also in his book.....'Around Thanksgiving '09 Obama told an old friend, "Who would really want this job for more than one term? But I have to run now, otherwise it'll mean letting someone like Mitt Romney step in and get credit for the good stuff that happens after we've been through all this crap."....

Wow, if that ain't the truth of who the GOP is I don't know what is! This is what the right does, they destroy with such ignorant incompetence then the Democrats MUST clean up their crap. But this time I hope it's different, I hope the country lets Democrats prove they can fix the disasters caused by the right and their policies. I have said this before, it's a vicious cycle and we have nobody to blame but ourselves when we get so impatient as to actually go full circle bringing back the GOP whether they deserve it or not.

Obama also said this one year after his election, "I don't think think people fully appreciated the degree to which, prior to healthcare, we had twelve straight victories in a row...these are pieces of legislation that in any normal year would be considered huge accomplishments."

I'm proud of you Mr. President.....

Another one for the GOP Hall of Shame...

 GOP candidate Tom Emmer is running for Minnesota governor and he just can't keep his big mouth shut! Damn, these GOP candidates are so friggin stupid how do they manage to attract some followers? Emmer has proposed cutting the minimum wage for service workers who receive tips such as bartenders and waiters. Yes you read that right.... he is actually justifying the cut by claiming these workers can earn over 100,000 a year, even more than the people who employ them!!  The guy feels bad for these employers, he would absolutely hate to see hard working Americans making a living wage, so damn the worker, take their measly little paycheck away from them! How dare they make anything more then a poverty rate! Can you believe this? He is whining about the worker making a living wage, He Is WHINING!!

Think Progress gives us this...

 Tom Emmer, the GOP-endorsed candidate for governor, told reporters at the Eagle Street Grille in St. Paul on Monday that the minimum wage for service workers who earn tips should be cut. Some waiters and bartenders, he noted, can earn as much as $100,000 a year, which he said is unfair to the employers that hire them.

“With the tips that they get to take home, they are some people earning over $100,000 a year. More than the very people providing the jobs and investing not only their life savings but their families’ future,” Emmer said.
Minnesota is one of few states that does not follow the federal minimum wage for tip-earners — $2.13 an hour. Instead, tip-earners make $5.25 to $7.25 an hour in addition to tips. Emmer says that hurts businesses’ bottom lines.
“Government can only inhibit business, can only keep it from growing, as opposed to creating jobs,” he said. “Right now, we have too much of it, guys. We’ve got to pull government back.”

In making his case for cutting the minimum wage for service employees, Emmer cites a figure that is wildly misrepresentative. While it may be true that “some” service workers can earn “over $100,000 a year,” most do not. According to the latest data available from the Bureau of Labor Services (BLS), Minnesota food and beverage service workers earned an average of $10.45 an hour in May 2010, a number that includes tips.
That means that the average full-time worker whose salary Emmer wants to cut likely earns less than a third of the dollar figure he cited in pushing for the cuts. Rather than trying to punish working class Minnesotans for for the sins of the financial elite that sent the economy into a tailspin, maybe Emmer should be working to stop the massive teacher layoffs and tuition hikes that his Republican colleague Gov. Tim Pawlenty has caused with his stubborn refusal to raise revenues by taxing the super wealthy.


 This Emmer guy is this weeks CRAZY CONSERVATIVE candidate. I hope the country is paying attention to people like him. Waiters, waitresses, and bartenders UNITE!!! Don't vote for those who want you to stay below the poverty line, who care only about the business owner and not the hard working American employees!


One of the comments at Think Progress has it exactly right!
 KayInMaine says:

---

A republican would never demand that a CEO of a large company making $10,000,000/year have his or her pay cut either! Scumbags.
The fact this teabagger is saying the waitstaff and other service people are making $100,000/year shows how out of touch he is with the working class of America. The fact he believes this is a normal wage is why he has no concern or even cares about the welfare of this level of society.

The Dalai Lama is 75 today

Today, 6 July 2010, is the Dalai Lama’s 75th birthday. For decades, he has been a purveyor of hope, setting a generous example of wisdom, non-violence and compassion for a better world.

I felt the need to highlight a bit of the Dalai Lama's wisdom after reading this disgusting bit of horse crap on Malcontents blog...

Yes, my good friends, NASA Administrator Charlie Bolden said that President Barack Obama has asked him to “find ways to reach out to dominantly Muslim countries.
There is absolutely nothing to support or justifying this insanity.
Now why on earth would the President of the United States want to sent the head of NASA, to be interviewed by Al Jazeera? Do we now want to sent the first Muzzie to the moon? If we do, then I suggest that we leave him there! And possibly take Obama with him!
I seriously think that we have to ask ourselves if this strange man sitting in the Oval Office is posing as President of the United States or not, or is he just a Marx-leaning anti-American, and really actually mentally ill. This sort of perverted thing has become a regular daily occurrence.
Or maybe he wants to teach the Muzzies to operate our space shuttles and then let them fly into buildings, now that airport security is too tight. And another thing! Wouldn’t this be considered “Racial Profiling? You can’t specifically pick on a Muslim in an airport security line, or stop them or a Mexican on the street to ask them if they are a citizen? So tell me why should you be able to give them special favors in NASA?
Why is the Magic Negro reaching out to Muslims to build up their self esteem? Why should we even give a crap about their self esteem? This is more evidence, as if we needed any more, of Obama's lack of interest in American achievement and American Greatness. Now he wants to spread America’s achievements and America’s Greatness, so that we could bring self esteem to the Muslim world!


 This post on the Dalai Lama is not about religion it's about tolerance for all religions, which the conservative right shows us in their ignorance they have none!


A few of the Dalai Lamas words from the New York Times.....

Many Faiths, One Truth

By TENZIN GYATSO

Though intolerance may be as old as religion itself, we still see vigorous signs of its virulence. In Europe, there are intense debates about newcomers wearing veils or wanting to erect minarets and episodes of violence against Muslim immigrants. Radical atheists issue blanket condemnations of those who hold to religious beliefs. In the Middle East, the flames of war are fanned by hatred of those who adhere to a different faith.

Such tensions are likely to increase as the world becomes more interconnected and cultures, peoples and religions become ever more entwined. The pressure this creates tests more than our tolerance — it demands that we promote peaceful coexistence and understanding across boundaries.

Granted, every religion has a sense of exclusivity as part of its core identity. Even so, I believe there is genuine potential for mutual understanding. While preserving faith toward one’s own tradition, one can  respect , admire and appreciate other traditions.


And I'll close with this from Huffington Post writer Bhuchung K. Tsering...

 During the Dalai Lama's May visit to the United States that included trips to Indiana, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa and New York, I was struck by his categorical assertion that the world is becoming more gentle and positive. This is quite contrary to popular feeling of the world becoming more violent and crisis-ridden. It has certainly provided much food for thought to students of the developing society.

His Holiness was adamantly clear during his lectures, his brief appearance on NBC's The Today Show, and during his meetings with the press in general that the world is becoming more positive. The indicators of his world view were the broader human concern for man-made or natural calamities worldwide (shown in the aftermath of the Asian tsunami and the earthquakes in Haiti, Chile and Tibet), the existence of peace movements throughout the world (which was visible prior to the United States' war in Iraq, for example); the emergence of an environmental movement (there was no such movement in the beginning of the previous century); and the increased interaction between science and religion (science is showing interest in not just external matters but also in the study of mind). In short, through a comparison between the 20th century and the 21st century so far, the Dalai Lama feels the world is becoming more positive.

The Dalai Lama feels that much of the blame for the popular view of the world becoming worse should be placed on the media, which tends to always highlight the negative (even though it involves only a miniscule amount of the world's total population) while taking the positive for granted.

I just stole this from MadMike....
Released today by France 24 and Radio France Inter­na­tionale, the Har­ris Inter­ac­tive Poll asked 6,135 adults between the ages of 16 and 64 who live in the United States, Britain, France, Italy, Ger­many or Spain to name their favorite world leaders.
Seventy-seven per­cent of those sur­veyed chose Obama, which is one per­cent­age point higher than when Har­ris Inter­ac­tive asked the same ques­tion in November.

Getty Images

Close on his heels is the Dalai Lama, Tibet’s spir­i­tual leader, who was men­tioned by 75 per­cent of those polled. U.S. Sec­re­tary of State Hillary Rod­ham Clin­ton came in third at 62 per­cent,

stick that where the sun don't shine Obama haters!

Thanks BJ for the post idea! ;)

UT OH, Look out you Mormons who love and cherish Sean Hannity!

This past week, Utah’s KSL Radio announced that it will be dropping Fox News host and radio personality Sean Hannity from its regular programming lineup. Although the company was tight-lipped about why it chose to end its relationship with Hannity, Utah’s ABC-4 speculates that Hannity’s uncivil behavior on air was behind the move:

SALT LAKE CITY (ABC 4 News) – KSL Radio announced that they will no longer air Sean Hannity’s syndicated national talk show.
The last KSL broadcast of the Sean Hannity show will air on October 1, 2010. The announcement comes after speculation that Hannity’s on-air style was not in line with Deseret Media Company’s mission statement that calls for civility and other ethical stances.
Deseret Media Companies (DMC) is a for-profit arm of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and manages KSL radio and other media outlets.The DMC “Mission Statement” calls for the dissemination of “light and knowledge” along with the promotion of “integrity, civility, morality, and respect for all people.”

In the past, Hannity has said that every Democrat in the U.S. Congress should be “tortured and killed” in the Guantanamo Bay prison camp and that anyone who believes homosexuality is a natural phenomenon is “brainwashed.” “At the end of the day, we simply feel our future success and competitive advantage reside in creating unique local content, and that is our objective for developing replacement programming,” KSL CEO Mark Wiles explained in a press release.


I keep seeing commercials for this Hannity special on a movie called Generation Zero and I'm not sure if they are replaying it tonight or this week, it first aired in February of this year and this is the first time I have heard of the movie. I guess it's the rightwingers version of a Michael Moore movie. The commercial says this....

• 
  
  
  

  A Hannity Exclusive: Generation Zero

   It's the film hailed at the last national tea party. This explosive documentary exposes how 40 years of liberal policies have led to America's financial collapse.
  
  
  Yes, that's what it says, 40 years of  LIBERAL policies  have caused Americas financial collapse.... sigh....
  
  
  Here's a bit of transcript from the Hannity show in February, 
  
  HANNITY: And welcome to a "Hannity" special: "Generation Zero" now the new documentary part of which you just saw examines not only the current economic crisis that our nation is in but also how we got here.
  Now the movie completely refutes the popular notion that massive deregulation caused the economic downturn and that, as liberals say, capitalism failed.
  So what actually happened? Now this ground breaking film reveals a frightening alliance between the Democratic Party and big business. Now it also turns to history for answers. Finding many of them within the baby boomer generation.
  Now for the entire hour we'll examine all of this. And we're now joined by the writer, director and producer of "Generation Zero," Steve Bannon, and the film's executive producer and the president of Citizens United Productions, Dave Bossie.
  Guys, welcome here. So you showed us — you guys at Tea Party Convention. You showed it at CPAC. A massive hit. Did you expect this kind of reaction?
  DAVID BOSSIE, "GENERATION ZERO" PRODUCER: I got to be honest, no. I'm really shocked and obviously very pleased.
  STEPHEN BANNON, "GENERATION ZERO" DIRECTOR: Two different audiences, too. I think the Tea Party audience was slightly older. The CPAC audience very young. They hit them exactly the way we wanted it to. I think that's the first time they've kind of been seeing all these facts put together in an 80-minute, 90-minute presentation.
  HANNITY: Let's go to one broad overview. We're going to be showing highlights of this film, you know, throughout this hour because this is really important. The myth is, is that capitalism failed. The myth is, is that the banks failed and the insurance companies failed. But there's something deeper to the story.
  BOSSIE: Certainly. It's hubris and greed at the same time that it's the cultural and social break down from the '60s that is really taken that 30, 40 years that led up to September 18th crisis.
  BANNON: On September 18th, at 2:00 in the afternoon the chairman of the Federal Reserve, the secretary of treasury went to the White House, then went up to Capitol Hill and told the leaders of our government that our economy was about to melt down, the world economy was about to melt down, and we would have complete social meltdown.
  How did that happen? I mean how did something that our enemies — the Kremlin, the Nazis, the Japanese — could never do? We look at all the forces —
  BOSSIE: We did it to ourselves.
  BANNON: Did it to ourselves and all the forces that came together over 40 years.
  HANNITY: Wasn't that always their goal? They're going to get America from within?
  BOSSIE: That's right.
  HANNITY: Right?
  (CROSSTALK)
  BANNON: That's exactly what happened.
  HANNITY: See, I always make the case that especially — and we're going to get into some specificity detail here. But the idea that the government would tell — first of all, they designed the car companies in the country. The government would tell banks and financial institutions that they've got to make risky loans that they know people are never going to pay back.
  BOSSIE: Sure. The greatest generation, the World War II generation — it would never dawn on them to take the type of risk that these people did. The people who were the '60s hippies. The people at Woodstock in the '60s who became the yuppies of the '80s really the barons of the 2000s and really are the leaders around the country that helped cause this. It really is a remarkable thing.
  
  So what do you think?? Check out my post from last week showing the conservative economics that started this collapse. I guess they have to blame it on someone....