Who Does This? Babs Bush Does!

In his new book, "Decision Points" George W. Bush discloses that his anti-abortion view was formed because his mother, Barbara Bush showed him the remains of a human fetus in a jar when he was a teenager, the result of an earlier miscarriage by the elder Bush. A jar! It was in a jar! Who the hell in their right mind keeps a fetus in a jar?! And for how long? WTF!!! When I was a kid, my mom stuck to pickles and tomatos, maybe stringbeans on occasion. And while I don't really want to be mean, he also remarked, "There was a human life, a little brother or sister." [Insert your own joke here.] According to Bush, he didn't recount the story to explain the genesis of his anti-abortion views, but rather "to show how my mom and I developed a relationship." Ok, ok, one has to ask what kind of relationship they had besides creepy. If my mother had ever shown me something freaky like that in a jar, I'm pretty sure cocaine and excessive alcohol would follow...oh, wait.

Dubya made the admission during an interview with NBC’s Matt Lauer, to promote "Decision Points."

Dems Caving on DADT - Surprise!

Here we go again. Democrats and Republicans play the good cop, bad cop game to perfection. The good cops are cowards afraid to question the accused and the bad cops beat a confession out of the suspect even if he has an alibi. Either way, you don't get the just outcome. As usual, we have Democrats cowering in fear while Republicans kick sand in their face and laugh. Even though something like 70% of Americans want DADT (Don't Ask, Don't Tell) repealed, the Democrats have found yet another way of turning a win into a loss. Even the soon-to-be-released Defense Department study has found that U.S. servicemembers do not mind serving alongside gay soldiers, much to the chagrin of John McCain (R-AZ). President Barack Obama has repeatedly said he wants to overturn the policy, which bans gays from serving openly in the armed forces, yet every chance he gets he does something to undermine overturning it. Senators Carl Levin (D-MI) and McCain, the top Democrat and Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee, are in talks on stripping the proposed repeal and other controversial provisions from a broader defense bill, leaving the repeal with no legislative vehicle to carry it. I know there are people saying bring DADT up as a seperate vote, but that is not how it originated either. It got passed through the defense bill. And we know that all the cowards in DC are afraid to tackle this issue head-on and do the right thing so this is where the overturn will die. If Democrats can't use the brains they were born with and repeal a policy more than two thirds of the American people, including a majority of conservatives who want it gone, then they can't expect people to vote for them. It shows their inability to stand by their convictions. I am absolutely blown away that after the beatdown Democrats took last week, they think that going further right is the way to go. This is the shit they keep doing that is keeping the base home! Republicans actually captured 31 percent of gay voters this year, compared to 19 percent in 2008 largely due to the Log Cabin Republicans. GOP strategists seem perfectly capable of understanding that the vast majority of the American people want DADT repealed. They are certainly capable of understanding what 31 percent of the LGBT vote means. But Democrats think that they can keep stringing along the LGBT community with lip service. Things are changing within the GOP and Sarah Palin and her teabaggers aren't going to like it. Sadly, most other things that the Teapublicans stand for aren't palatable for liberal Americans either. We need an honest Progressive Party to rock the boat and make a difference that will actually help the majority, not for the fearful and wealthy.

Olbermann Will Be Back Tuesday!

Reported via Huffington Post:
First Posted: 11- 7-10 09:21 PM

Keith Olbermann will return to the air on Tuesday after being suspended for two shows (this past Friday and the upcoming episode on Monday).  The host of MSNBC's "Countdown" was given an indefinite suspension last week after his boss, network president Phil Griffin, discovered that Olbermann had made political contributions without seeking prior approval, as per company policy.
A network spokesman released the following statement via email:

STATEMENT REGARDING KEITH OLBERMANN - SUNDAY, NOV. 7

From Phil Griffin, President of MSNBC:
After several days of deliberation and discussion, I have determined that suspending Keith through and including Monday night's program is an appropriate punishment for his violation of our policy. We look forward to having him back on the air Tuesday night.

Earlier on Sunday, Olbermann broke his silence via Twitter, telling his followers "Greetings From Exile!" and thanking people for their support.


Over the past few days, Olbermann had received an outpouring of supportive words -- even from reporters and conservative pundits. CNN's Eliot Spitzer called the punishment "ridiculous." Another MSNBC host, Rachel Maddow, immediately called for his reinstatement and used the opportunity to illustrate that her network is bound by different ethics and "not a political operation" like Fox News.

While I wish Rachel hadn't bothered with that analogy since it wasn't all that important to the issue, her point was that MSNBC doesn't have candidates on the payroll and does attempt some transparency. To be honest, I saw this very smart woman showing a bit of media inexperience wanting to support her friend and not get fired by her employer.  This was clearly new territory for her.  She'll handle the next crisis with more ease.  It's MSNBC, there will be a next time.  Keith's fans are mad at her for not taking a firm stance and Fox fans claim that it shows she has no credibility.  I saw someone in a tight spot.  I have to believe she spoke with Keith who as an experienced guy knew what he was doing.  I doubt he wanted her to ruin her career since he was so influential in elevating it.

Over a quarter million people signed a petition to put him back on the air while Phil Griffin and his boss Jeremy Gaines probably got more emails than they've ever seen.  Many on the right are now calling it a publicity stunt, yesterday they were saying na na na na nana.  I don't care if it was a stunt or not, we don't have enough voices on the left and I don't want to lose the one's we have.  We'll see what Comcast does when the keys to NBC change hands.

It's Time To Stop Pretending There's A Liberal Media

Where to begin, where to begin...  On October 30 Comedy Central comedians Jon Stewart and Steven Colbert hosted a rally: Restore Sanity/Keep Fear Alive. It was a three hour event with over 250,000 in attendance far eclipsing the 87,000 who attended Mormon Glenn Beck's Beckevangelist Event on August 28. The 30th was a beautiful day, an awesome line-up of musicians were assembled to entertain the excited crowd. Lots of smiling faces, a lot of good humor and like I said a lot of good music. All in all, a wonderful day. As the event was concluding, Stewart spoke for about 15 minutes on how we can restore sanity and here is where my issue begins. In my heart of hearts I believe Mr. Stewart who I have very high regard for went overboard in trying to prove he's a middle-of-the-road guy. Yes, he said some incredibly powerful things that are applicable to all, "But we live now in hard times, not end times. And we can have animus and not be enemies." Yet he also wanted to equate equal blame to both sides and this is where I take issue. FNC has spent nearly 15 years dividing this country with loud personalities telling us that liberals are Marxists, communists, anti-American, etc... A montage played in the background of Fox's most egregious personalities alternating with snippets of MSNBC hosts. What Stewart failed to mention was that the Fox hosts are "keeping fear alive" and the MSNBC hosts are trying to "restore sanity," by debunking the myths perpetrated by the likes of Fox. While Stewart himself has portrayed the Tea Party as racists, and I believe a large portion of them are as we've all seen their signs; he took aim at Ed Schultz for doing the same thing and then claimed that it's an insult for people to not see the difference in the tea party and actual racism. Sorry Mr. Stewart, that was a total BS comment and something that you're also guilty of. As a matter of fact, Jon has actually told Fox to "f#%k off" on a few occasions. Does the MSNBC gang ever go over the top? Sure they do, but they remain grounded in the world of reality. I know, I know some will claim it's because I view the world from their viewpoint and while that may be true, they're not constantly being dinged for making stuff up and when they do get something wrong, they own up to it and apologize. At the end of the day I found myself wondering what the reactions from those on the montage would be and it was pretty much as I expected. Here goes:

• Keith Olbermann tweeted respectfully, what he does is not the same, but in a gesture toward “lowering the volume" in news coverage, suspended his "Worst Person in the World" segment.
• On Monday Bill O'Reilly claimed that after Tuesday nights election, all the MSNBC hosts were going to commit suicide.
• Rachel Maddow said well done to Jon Stewart (she was noticeably absent from the montage).
• Glenn Beck said it was the equivalent of a high-school play; it was not good and referring to much of the rally as nonsense.

Guess which side understood the message...the side not responsible for the insanity.

So along came Tuesday's mid-terms, the Democrats were crushed in the House. We're now looking at having an angry, orange, alcoholic named John Boehner third in line for the presidency. I hope President Obama on VP Biden have the good sense to not be going out for hamburgers anymore. The crazy teabaggers won 34 seats I believe. I am so discouraged by our electorate who continue to vote against their own best interests. The Republican Party has a lower favorability than the Dems by 8 points, but they put Republicans back in power because they're mad the Dems who couldn't fix an 8 year disaster in 21 months. If they'd been paying attention they'd know the gridlock was the Republican senate filibustering everything congress passed. I guess the guy we lost in the senate who will be missed by liberals is Russ Feingold of Wisconsin. The man is a straight shooter who was outspent 4 to 1 by billionaire Ron Johnson as Feingold does not take special interest money. He was painted as a rubber stamp for Obama and Pelosi and nothing could be further from the truth. He said no to many bills because they did not go far enough and he'll always have my personal thanks for having the good sense to vote against The Patriot Act all those years ago. Then there's reduce the deficit idea Reps ran on, but they're ready to immediately add $700B to it by extending the Bush tax cuts for not just the middle class, but those struggling Top 2%ers. I know it's been suggested that this country goes through cycles, but we've never had a black president and his election has sent many people totally over the edge. I have true fear in what Republicans can and are willing to do with an unjustly terrified electorate. Sidenote, at the end of Tuesday evening all MSNBC commentators were accounted for and doing well.

Then Friday came along and brought forth another stake through the heart news for liberals. MSNBC suspended Keith Olbermann for making contributions of $2400 each to three to Democratic candidates without obtaining prior approval from his superiors. Keith told his bosses he didn't know he was barred from making campaign contributions. Now he and Phil Griffin are playing the who's is bigger game. Griffin wants him to apologize on-air for his mea culpa and he's resisting. My guess is part of Keith's hesitance is that Joe Scarborough donated $5000 to a Republican congressional candidate in April as well as taking place in a fund raiser for that candidate. Can't really blame the guy, seems like a double standard. Even Bill Kristol thinks this suspension is absurd. Rachel Maddow seemed to be in an uncomfortable position Friday as he is her mentor and friend.  She stated that it is NBC/MSNBC policy to get permission for donations first, but the point has been made, put Keith back on the air. She's getting slammed this weekend from Keith supporters for a milquetoast response, but she's really in a tight spot. I'm sure she would've liked to stand in solidarity and not do her show. I would've been proud of her for that as well, but folks need to understand she's still a "kid" in this arena. She doesn't have millions socked away where walking away is an actual option. This is her dream job. I get it when conservatives lack the empathy to put themselves in someone else's shoes, but it's one of the things I believed set us apart. When the dust settles, maybe Keith and Phil can go on the air together, issue a joint statement and donate a "fine" to a charity like the Free Health Clinics. I can't believe MSNBC really wants to lose it's biggest star unless this is a nod to Comcast in what the future holds after their acquisition, which I'm not at all happy about. Hopefully we'll see him reappear sooner than later. At around 3:30 today he tweeted, Greetings From Exile! A quick, overwhelmed, stunned THANK YOU for support that feels like a global hug & obviously left me tweetless XO

Also worth reading: MSNBC's Disgrace by Senator Bernie Sanders

And to wrap up my week of political downs, Friday night Bill Maher at least stood in agreement with my Restore Sanity Rally opinion. Here is the New Rule:

The View From The Deck - Week Ending 10/10/10

The "Bear Your Rapist's Baby Caucus" currently consists of five teabagging Republican nominees for the senate, but according to Raw Story, at least 78 GOP candidates for the House would qualify for this extreme voting bloc as well. The GOP has always pandered to the right-wing base by promising to strip women of the right to control their own bodies. In the interest of not alienating sane people though, many Republican lawmakers make an exception in cases of incest and rape, and when a mother's life is in danger. Here are five freedom lovers who think they should get to decide what a rape victim does with her body:

1. Rand Paul (Kentucky) - Believes the federal government should have the power and the duty to intrude on women's reproductive choices. I thought libertarians were supposed to be small government, fiscal conservatives, but socially liberal?

2. Christine O'Donnell (Delaware) - Too much nuttiness to list with this one.
3. Sharron Angle (Nevada) - A quote: "If dealt a lemon, make lemonade." WTF!!!
4. Ken Buck (Colorado) - Also supports a Colorado amendment that would bestow fertilized eggs with “personhood” status, essentially outlawing not just abortion but many contraceptives like the IUD and the birth control pill.  Because Colorado needs more unintended kids?
5. Joe Miller (Alaska) - Unequivocally pro-life, including cases of rape or incest, but supports death penalty.  How does that actually make any sense?
Bottom line, if you don't believe in abortion, don't get one. Let other women make that choice. This has been going on for at least 2010 years, but has only been allowed in a controlled environment in our country for 37 years. If a woman really needs to terminate the pregnancy, do you really want to see wire coat hangers come back in fashion?

Gene Cranick, a rural homeowner in Obion County, Tennessee who hadn’t paid the $75 for the subscription fire protection service offered to the county’s rural residents got to watch his local fire department watch his house burn to the ground...literally.  Firefighters came to the scene and just stood there, with their equipment on the trucks, while Cranick’s house with 3 dogs and a cat inside burned to the ground. According to the local NBC TV affiliate, Cranick said he offered to pay whatever it would take for firefighters to put out the flames, but was told no. They wouldn't do anything to stop his house from burning. Thanks to 30 years of right-wing demagoguery about the evils of “collectivism” and the treachery of “big government” we’re getting a peek at a grim nightmare that may be in our not-too-distant future if the teabaggers really get a foothold in our government.  It’s a picture of a society in which “rugged individualism” run amok means every man for himself. This law abiding, tax paying citizen should've been afforded the basics --- like fire and police protection with no questions asked. Is this really the America that our founders and sane-thinking individuals pictured for us?

MSNBC, which has become the favorite news channel of cable-loving lefty's thanks to Rachel Maddow and Keith Olbermann, is finally getting to declare itself the progressive antidote to Fox. With the new slogan, “Lean Forward” and new promotional videos directed by Spike Lee, the news network is branding itself as the spot for progressive, forward-thinking viewers. And by extension it’s branding its competition–Fox News–as being left in the dust, looking backwards. MSNBC has shot past CNN in key timeslots, but public awareness of the network is lagging behind its rivals. The new campaign is a “coming-out of sorts” following the example of Fox News, its ideological competition, by marketing to a specific niche. MSNBC’s left leaning niche began growing with viewers tuning in to hear discontent from Olbermann and to a lesser extent, Chris Matthews (who supported the invasion initially) over the war in Iraq, but was solidified when Maddow, a popular guest on the channel, got her own show in the fall of 2008. “It’s an umbrella that’s pretty wide, but that does have a progressive sensibility,” Phil Griffin, the president of MSNBC told the Times of his audience. “We’re confident. We’re strong. Let’s not live in the past, let’s not live by fear.” In addition to Maddow and Olbermann, MSNBC hosts Ed Schultz and Lawrence O’Donnell round up the progressive-friendly lineup.  In addition to the new TV ads which will run on other NBC Universal stations starting this week, the network will run a print campaign for buses, kiosks, and both web and online publications targeted towards potential viewers. All I can say is, it's about time!

Clinton Believes Obama Should Have Struck Back Sooner

Chris Matthews interviewed former President Bill Clinton in what I thought was an excellent interview...amazing that Matthews finally showed some respect and didn't continuously interrupt! I wish Obama would've asked the former president for advice at some point in the last 20 months instead of allowing the Republicans to control the dialogue. I just hope it isn't too late. Just thinking of the senate and congress full of teabaggers, John Boehner third in command with Mitch McConnell as majority leader makes me ill. Democrats, liberals and moderates, listen up --- maybe we've been disappointed in more than a few things that have not been done, but we can not go back to not just the GWB years, but mix in some Andrew Jackson!  On November 2nd, get out and vote!

Fair Representation? Not When Over 50% of Americans Live in 9 States!

Have you ever wondered why U.S. politics are so screwed up? Maybe it's because more than 50% of Americans Live in 9 States. What you're left with is just 18 of the 100 Senate seats representing 154.6 million Americans, while the other 82 Senators represent roughly 150.4 million (based on a U.S. population of 305 million)! Democracy in action, indeed. Conservadem Ben Nelson of Nebraska for example, can ruin any progressive bill. Nebraska's population is only 1.8 million, but he has just as much clout as California's Barbara Boxer (D) who represents 37 million people.  If ever a chart demonstrated the need for proportional representation, this is it. I've never believed the propaganda that we're a center-right country. I've always been of the opinion that the "right" had more land mass, but less people and this is crystal clear proof. We'll never have real progress in this country until we initiate some serious reforms to politics.


November 2009