Bitten!

It's not hard to fall in love with Paris. It's been 4 years since the Mrs. and I visited. Too long.

Dick Cheney rolls in his grave

Yeah, it got my hopes up too, damn you Morford! A 'recommended read'. Belay that. A 'must read'.

Of course, he's not actually dead. He just wishes you were

(Author note: From here on out, the phrase "Dick Cheney" shall hereby refer not merely to the former vice-president himself, but also to the sour, clenched worldview he so perfectly encapsulated and still so lovingly represents.

Dick Cheney is a lexical wonder. He can be a violent action verb: "Dude I just Dick Cheney'd that squirrel with my F-150." He is a dark intention: "Let's pull a Dick Cheney on that queer kid in the locker room." He is, most of all, a state of being, a mindset, a fixed position of general disgust. "Sorry lady, I can't save you from this burning building. I'm far too Dick Cheney to give a damn." Clear? Excellent. Let's continue).

Who the hell wants to be known for demonstrating peaceful, effective humanitarianism and calm diplomacy, and saving human lives if it makes us look like a bunch of weak-kneed pansies? Where is the glory? Where's the firepower? Image is everything. Strut the plumage. Carry the biggest stick. In Cheneyland, sneering intimidation is not only useful, it's vital. There is nothing else.

Or maybe not. Maybe the Obama Way is already turning out to be far more effective, more subtle and intriguing, and much more in America's favor, as tyrannical psychopaths like Kim Jong Il are stupefied into compliance by even the pretense of being taken seriously by the Great Satan, and sane world leaders across the globe finally see a country they can deal with intelligently on pressing matters instead of merely joining them at the gun range to blast stuff to hell.

You might say Dick is not pleased. In fact, Dick Cheney -- and the entire hawkish, antagonistic worldview he embodies -- is downright furious at this country's dangerous new direction. Which, in its way, just might be the best news I've heard all year.

Yep.

Saturday Emmylou Blogging

An old favorite from more years ago than I care to remember.

Emmylou Harris ~ Making Believe

Thanks to benbruch, Netherlands.

Go away, kid ...

Kids generally annoy me until they get into their later teen years. Then I can be a bad influence without having too much guilt. Heh ... This kid is great.

Let's keep the Death Panels simple

From: Death Panel Czar Gordon

To: All employees

Hi Gang,

Let's keep this simple. I propose two rules:

1) We'll only euthanize old right wingers, and

2) We'll sterilize the rest of 'em.

A simple phrase to remember the rules: "Off the old and cut off the rest!"

Be happy in your work!

There may be a program to convince the 'tards that there is, in fact, an all-seeing, all-knowing, omnipotent Progressive God, as opposed to the Asshole they have long professed belief in, who will let them live if they confess their sins, repent, and STFU. I'm still ponderin' that one. Might be too much trouble for too little gain.

Update:

Due to the inescapable fact that the best ideas sometimes come hours after the post, the merciful (to us) euthanization/sterilization program will henceforth be known as "Operation Snuff 'n Snip".

Republican Death Trip

Paul Krugman

Some of us were skeptical. A couple of months after Mr. Obama gave that speech, I warned that his vision of a “different kind of politics” was a vain hope, that any Democrat who made it to the White House would face “an unending procession of wild charges and fake scandals, dutifully given credence by major media organizations that somehow can’t bring themselves to declare the accusations unequivocally false.”

So, how’s it going?

Sure enough, President Obama is now facing the same kind of opposition that President Bill Clinton had to deal with: an enraged right that denies the legitimacy of his presidency, that eagerly seizes on every wild rumor manufactured by the right-wing media complex.

This opposition cannot be appeased. Some pundits claim that Mr. Obama has polarized the country by following too liberal an agenda. But the truth is that the attacks on the president have no relationship to anything he is actually doing or proposing.

So much, then, for Mr. Obama’s dream of moving beyond divisive politics. The truth is that the factors that made politics so ugly in the Clinton years — the paranoia of a significant minority of Americans and the cynical willingness of leading Republicans to cater to that paranoia — are as strong as ever. In fact, the situation may be even worse than it was in the 1990s because the collapse of the Bush administration has left the G.O.P. with no real leaders other than Rush Limbaugh.

The question now is how Mr. Obama will deal with the death of his postpartisan dream.

What’s still missing, however, is a sense of passion and outrage — passion for the goal of ensuring that every American gets the health care he or she needs, outrage at the lies and fear-mongering that are being used to block that goal.

He's right. Barry, if you're ever going to get fist-shakin', preacher-shoutin', stack-blowin', cringe-inducin' angry about anything, now's the time. Go find a Marine Gunny to show you how to do it.

Re the title of Mr. Krugman's article and this post: I hope it's a short trip. We could all use some peace and quiet.

The main difference between...

...lefties and conservatards.

The Truth Will Not Out, on Its Own

Robert Parry has today's 'must read' about massive right-wing fearmongering and lies.

The right-wing fury at town hall meetings over health care and the Republican obstruction of any serious reform in Washington are not just symptoms of a complex debate on an issue packed with powerful special interests; it is a test of whether reality matters in the United States.

There is a direct lineage from the Iraq War hysteria to the current madness surrounding the health-care fight. In both cases, the hysteria was stoked by leading Republicans and their right-wing media allies. Both involved disseminating farfetched, nightmare scenarios to a gullible (if not paranoid) segment of the population, which was then whipped into a frenzy that spilled over into intimidation and silencing voices of disagreement.

Some rational Americans, it seems, have their own erroneous beliefs that justify inaction. Over the years, I’ve often heard the hopeful slogans that “the truth will out” or that “the pendulum will swing back,” when the reality is that there are no automatic mechanisms for stopping lies and distortions.

Truth is a battle, much as democracy is. Bringing truth to light requires resources and infrastructure, as well as personal honesty and courage. That is especially true when the other side in the battle has opted for a strategy of falsehoods and exaggerations – and has assembled both powerful artillery and well-trained mercenaries to carry out what it calls “information warfare.”

Every word could be a quote. Go.

A question ...

Can Dick Cheney's book be used as evidence against him? I mean, from what's leaked out already, he basically admits to usurping the power of the presidency, for the Chimp's first term at the least. Maru:

...

A bitter Dick Cheney still can’t believe Bunnypants found the stones to ignore his orders… uhhhh, advice during their second term in the White House, saying the little dumbass showed a "surprising independence" near the end, especially when he fired Rumsfeld, when he refused to pardon Cheney BFF Scooter Libby, and when he refused to bomb the bejeebus out of Iran and North Korea or torture Democrats.

...

I still can't believe we actually survived the past 8 years. Off to work ...

Just STFU ...

I'm so sick of this health care 'debate'. The people who yell loudest about the issues have no clue (or worse, are paid shills for the insurance industry) and yet they're given a forum and credibility. The seniors, those who will be affected least by any reform, allow themselves to be scared into apoplexy instead of finding the facts for themselves. Our pal PC has a good idea for those who want "government to keep their hands of my Medicare".

...

And various old farts who have been enjoying the Socialistic, Government-run and funded Medicare for a good part of their worthless lives, are out in force screaming and yelling and acting like idiots and making the rest of us old farts look bad.

Hey, lookit, you ignorami: If you're THAT het-up about Socialism, get off Medicare! Find someone willing to insure you and pay for it out of your own fucking pockets. The rest of us will take your place. I'd be happy for some government-run and funded Medicare. Die already, you worthless, oxygen-stealing sacks of shit, instead of embarrassing the rest of us who might be in your age demographic. Jesus fucking J.H. Christ, what a worthless lot of louts.

...

A cornucopia of links over there with a great Cheezburger pic too.

This whole 'controversy' has been an obvious ginned-up fake to begin with and it really surprised me (though after blogging for 5 years it shouldn't have) how many people swallowed the craziness, hook, line, and sinker. How many people allowed themselves to become terrified over rumor and outright lies? It's disgusting and ridiculous.

I don't have much hope for whatever ends up being called reform after all this horseshit being spread so deeply. The next time somebody wants to reform something, I suggest they try the campaign financing system or the news media. If it weren't for the corporate apologists in the media and the bought-and-paid-for politicians, this country might just have a chance. I have a bad feeling the corporate/political system is too entrenched to be changed by anything short of cataclysm.

Marijuana, gateway drug to Jesus

Mark Morford

Does pot lead to total enlightenment? Rehab? Scientology? Let's find out!

Just...go.

Update:

Link is fixed. Sorry 'bout that.

The Missed Opportunity

The Rude Pundit in a post about the town hall screamers:

Now, follow the bouncing ball: Another miscalculation by the Obama administration was in not seeing the political value of investigating and prosecuting Bush administration officials, including Dick Cheney. See, having the Justice Department under Eric Holder threatening to arrest and drag off the ex-VP and others would have been the perfect shiny object for the right wing. Who has time (or as much time) to argue about whether or not Obama wants to kill Granny if he's wanting to jail Alberto Gonzales? Let people protest and let Rush Limbaugh pop like a diseased pimple over it while Glenn Beck weeps that he's next. Hey, Obama has no control, really, if Justice wants to go ahead, right? And think of what it would have forced Republicans to do: state whether or not they support the actions of the Bush administration, the presidency they dare not speak of because it reminds people of what they're actually angry about. Yes, such action against the Bush White House would have been a distraction, but in a good way. The other thing it would have done is to ameliorate the rage of much of the nation, the gnawing sense that "they got away with it."

Exactly.

ZOMG!!!!!1!!!

The Obamas really are alien reptile human impostors!!!!11!!!1 That must mean the Vogons are going to destroy the Earth to make way for an interstellar bypass! I hope Captain Picard arrives in the nick of time to save us!!!!!!

The stupid really does burn ...

Sense ...

POP's got it:

I suggest they cancel these town hall meetings all together. They are nothing more than a stage for birthers, deathers, and tea baggers to grandstand.

Nothing of importance is happening at these meetings and a quick phone call to a representative or senator would probably garner more information on health care reform than spending three hours at one of these meetings.

...

They've turned into a fucking joke. If you want to see the equivalent, just watch one of the cable 'news' talking head shows. The 'town hall meetings' have turned into nothing but screechfests.

Update:

So does Res Ipsa:

If I were a member of Congress on August recess I wouldn't waste my time on this "Town Hall" nonsense. Who started the modern day version of town halls, anyway? I know they're part of our long and glorious history, but they don't work in an era of lunatics who think the government is going to ration their toilet paper after murdering their grandma at the behest of a "Death Panel comprised of Bill Ayers, the Reverend Wright, and the Black Panthers.

...

Death Panels ...

No money ... no life support.

Update:

More here.

Trust me, it would be better if government took over everything regarding health insurance/care.

So that's where 'batshit crazy' comes from...

Great illustration for Fixer's post!

Click to embiggen

Pakistan police book former President Musharraf

Apparently, 'book' doesn't mean the same thing there as it does here.

AFP via Raw Story

ISLAMABAD — Pakistan Tuesday registered a criminal case against Pervez Musharraf, a precursor to potentially putting the ex-president on trial over his 2007 detention of judges as he attempted to cling to power.

Musharraf imposed a state of emergency and sacked about 60 judges on November 3, 2007 when the supreme court appeared poised to declare him ineligible to contest a presidential election while in military uniform.

On a plea filed by lawyer Mohammad Aslam Ghuman, Islamabad district and sessions judge Mohammad Akmal directed police to register a case against Musharraf, who is currently in Europe.

Gee, why can't we do that here? Here's the paragraph I'd like to see:

"On a plea filed by law firm Gonif, Swindle, and Finagle, a federal judge directed police to register a case against Bush and Cheney, who are currently in Texas and Washington D.C."

Book 'em, Danno. Ah, to dream...

German Jews back campaign to reprint 'Mein Kampf'

Haaretz

German academics who have been engaged for years in a campaign calling
for the reprinting of an annotated version of Adolf Hitler's "Mein Kampf" ("My Struggle") received support from an unlikely source. The Central Council of Jews in Germany expressed its support for reissuing the book, whose production has been banned in the country since the end of World War II.

Stephan Kramer, the council's general secretary, called for publishing the book in an academic format so that the next generation of Germans could learn about the Nazi ideology. "A historically critical edition [of the book] needs to be prepared today to prevent neo-Nazis from profiting from it,"...[...]

German neo-Nazis can read? Imagine that! Ours barely know how to turn on their AM radios or F** Noise to get their marching orders.

Marines assault Taliban town in Afghanistan

Yahoo!News

DAHANEH, Afghanistan – Helicopter-borne U.S. Marines backed by Harrier jets stormed a Taliban-held town in southern Afghanistan before dawn Wednesday, the launch of a new operation to uproot Taliban fighters from a longtime base and provide security for next week's presidential election.

The Taliban put up such fierce resistance that Marines said they suspected the militants knew the assault was coming.

The Japanese knew they were coming at Iwo Jima too. In the end, it didn't help there either.

Other Marines met heavy resistance as they fought to seize control of the mountains surrounding Dahaneh in the southern province of Helmand. Another convoy of Marines rolled into the town despite roadside bomb attacks and gunfire.

Note to the AP correspondent - 'heavy resistance...Marines rolled into the town despite roadside bomb attacks and gunfire'

Jesus Christ, lady, just exactly what is it you think Marines do? If there's one thing Marines understand, it's that you gotta bring some to get some, and they bring a lot to any party they attend.

Go read, and click 'play video'. There are several.

The larger political picture be damned when my Marines are on the assault. Get some, lads. Bring some serious smoke on the Taliban's ass.

Semper Fi.

The Heart of the Matter: Racism

Mark Karlin

Ever since the Nixon Southern Strategy, race has been the seedy, reprehensible political card played by the GOP whenever they need to win in a tight spot.

So it is now, as they try to cripple the Obama presidency by crushing the common good of healthcare for all Americans so corporations can feast and grow fat with profit at the expense of our well being.

Race again is being used as the scapegoat to arouse the hordes that laid dormant through 8 years of Bush tyranny: they would be against anything Obama would do because he is black and represents a symbolic psychological flashpoint of anger to middle and lower class white Christian (males in particular) who thought that they owned America, and that democracy was just for whites.

But what the GOP and its media shills are igniting now may lead to violence in the streets (there have already been several mass shootings committed by wing nuts) or even, God forbid, an assassination. The purpose of the GOP is to castrate Obama's power, a gruesome but apt metaphor for what slave owners did to male blacks who were not obedient.

So the pawns -- the virulent racists are empowered by FOX and Limbaugh and the GOP leadership -- and they are on the loose, this time in Wal-Mart get ups instead of White Sheets.

Go read the rest and the comments.

I guess the best we can hope for is all this bullshit crazytalk blows up in their faces before too many people actually get hurt or killed. Some have already. Let's hope that, like in most instances, when all is said and done, more will have been said than done.