Mullen It Over

Classless Simon & Schuster Pimps Out Victoria Gotti

2009-09-29T23:43:00.001-07:00

Within the last 30 years, at least, the journalistic standards and integrity of the once great publishing houses, like Simon & Schuster, have caved in for the quick buck to satisfy their profit-driven corporate parents; and how sad. So this week, instead of insightful biographies of the quintessential American characters and causes of our time, Simon & Schuster chose another crass tell-all, utterly insignificant fictional account of Victoria Gotti, [purported to be non-fictional] writing up her experiences as the daughter of the lowlife Mafia boss John Gotti in, This Family of Mine.

Our media culture has for a few years offered her up as cause célèbre (at least in the NY region, here in California average Joe's do not know who she is) and making her dad, John Gotti, out to be something larger than life when he was nothing more than an evil, two-bit thug. And this woman, who rarely worked a full-time job while bottled up in a 6 million dollar foreclosed mansion for two years on Long Island, is, I admit, a morbid fascination to me, albeit for about 15 seconds. Something that piques my interest is how she had the intestinal fortitude to live her life in such evilness and dysfunction, enabling her own fucked-up world without wanting to just escape.

Simon & Schuster thinks her story should sell. Forget standards of good taste and substance, this amounts to be just another example of our contemptuous mass media advancing the stories of the unearned and morbid trash even in the face of slight curiousity. Do they think because she is a celebrity in the NY region or to the New York Post that she is someone of substance to enlighten us to the ways of the mob?

Gotti and her ilk (family and associates) are nothing but reprehensible, gaudy, lying, uneducated, cash-hungry malcontents [the real reason she wrote this book] (to put it mildly)who flippantly play the "victim." Further, you would think Simon & Schuster would demand Gotti, whom they represent and represents them - to prove-up those alleged facts she represents in her story. Isn't it also true that S&S has a fact-checking department in order to avoid libel lawsuits? Yet, here is an example of Ms. Gotti's supposed piece of nonfiction:

“The day before his first foot ball practice, March 18, 1980, [when i was in school football practice NEVER commenced in March] my little brother Frankie, 12, was so excited he couldn't eat or sleep. He took a shower and came running into my room and asked if he could borrow my hair dryer. I, too, was in a rush. He was so impatient that he left the house with wet hair. Later that afternoon, after school, he met a few neighborhood friends and went out to play. He couldn't wait to tell them the news. He'd finally made the team. Coming out of a McDonald's near our house, I saw them on their bicycles. I stopped and said something to him like, "It's late and you know you have to be home for dinner at 5 or Mommy will be pissed." He nodded and took off down the avenue. Mom was in the kitchen, preparing dinner and feeding my baby brother, Peter, then 4 years old. I ran upstairs to quickly change and head back to the kitchen to do my usual chores. I also relieved Mom and finished feeding Peter. The phone rang four times before I was able to pick up the receiver. "Vicki, this is Marie Lucisano -- your brother's had an accident. Don't worry." She went on to add, "He's OK -- I think he just broke his leg." Just as I was frantically tying my shoes, my mother came flying down the stairs sensing something was wrong. "What's going on?" she screamed. "Frankie's been hit by a car. Marie Lucisano called. It happened in front of her house," I said. Before I could even stand up, Mom was running the four or so blocks to the Lucisanos' house on 87th Street. The ambulance was already on the scene and things were far worse than just a broken leg. My brother had borrowed another kid's minibike and was riding in a construction site near the side of the road. But that dreadful day, a drunken driver was speeding down the avenue and struck my brother. The driver dragged him some 200 feet before angry neighbors stopped the car, pounced on his hood, and stopped him from crossing the avenue….” According to the neighbor, the driver, John Favara, then stopped the car. Another neighbor reached in and grabbed his keys, shutting the ignition off and pointed to my brother's near-lifeless body under the front wheels. My brother's blood seemed to leave a trail down the entire block, leading up to the now-parked car. Favara jumped from the car and started yelling, "What the f- - - was he doing in the street?" According to the neighbor, "The driver of the car was angry, not remorseful." Ted Friedman later told me the guy was belligerent -- a real a- -hole until he realized the kid trapped under his wheels was John Gotti's son. Favara then appeared to be "dazed and confused," according to eyewitnesses.”

The official police and FBI reports at the time, and the vast stories written about this incident since the 1980’s have all been consistent up until now. How Simon & Schuster allowed this interpretation to be published unfettered in the face of obvious mistruths by Ms. Gotti, with the record clearly establishing this as a huge lie - really begs the question whether some goon held a gun to the publishers head for Victoria to write whatever she felt necessary to massage the script. The actual truth of this tragedy is simply this: a overly enthusiastic young kid darting haphardly into a busy street, and being hit accidentally by a neighbor, John Favara. John Favara was not drunk nor “unremorseful” – actually what occurred for a few months was just the opposite, he begged forgiveness from the Gotti family up until the “Dapper Don’s” ultimate retribution. of course it is a sad story, but also sad that Mr. Favara's kid(s) grew up without a father, or a place to memorialize his life, unlike young Frankie.

I am not sure which is more lurid. Victoria Gotti doing whatever it takes to obtain cash the easy way, while trying to maintain this patheic, self-serving public persona, or Simon Schuster closing the book on good taste and journalistic integrity simply to get another "mob" book in the bookstores, while eschewing from their obligation to sell us truthfulness in the nonfiction aisle at Barnes & Noble.

Jeff Halstead and his Ft Worth Brown Shirts Band

2009-07-01T23:39:00.001-07:00

Among the most unfortunate incidents over the last week, the most disturbing discussion item is certainly not and should not be, whether Michael Jackson overdosed on morphine. Yet, every major news channel is airing all aspects of his death, including discussions over the price of his chess set. What a shame, when in fact, at least morally, a bigger story is brewing in the so-called Yellow Rose of Texas, although I am not shocked. And it is enough to make you vomit.

As a nation, we ought to be outraged and repulsed at the official acts of the Fort Worth Police Department, who, I posit, acted on premeditated purpose and personal hatred of gays, when they raided the Rainbow Lounge last Saturday, a gay bar that was only 14 days new. The “raid” caused, aside from violating common civil liberties, a 26 year old kid in intensive care with brain injuries.

Sober eye witnesses indicated that these police (“Brown Shirts”) and members of the Texas Alcohol and Beverage Control abruptly entered the Lounge, went to various directions once inside, and started picking people at random, handcuffing and arresting patrons on alleged drunk-in-public and disorderly conduct charges. "They were hyped up. They were loaded….," said Todd Camp, a veteran journalist who was there celebrating his birthday with friends. "They were just randomly grabbing people, telling them they were drunk." In fact they tossed one patron right down to the ground who sustained brain injuries as a result.

To them, if they could lasso young Chad Gibson and tie him to a Chevy truck, that would have probably been a quicker and uplifting mode of punishment.

The only way you can view these acts is on the same plane as to the Nazi Brown Shirts, who went around parts of Germany intimidating Jews. I am serious. What is the difference? A 160 pound, 26 year old man is in intensive care because of the actions of these nefarious abusive cops. The only inference one can draw from this despicable episode is the fact that this was an unremarkable planned attack, stupidly planned and carried out by a government body itself, in violation of civil and human rights. Except for a little Madonna playing in the background, isn’t this a mini Kristallnacht?

Police chief Jeff Halstead said the officers' entered the bar during a scheduled inspection were touched inappropriately. Interestingly, who do you think Halstead identifies the guilty groper to be? Chad Gibson; a person unable to speak because he is laying indeterminably in Intensive Care. Isn’t that convenient?
That is an outrageous insinuation by Halstead in defending his Brown Shirts. Using the gay panic defense, Halstead suggests “You're touched and advanced in certain ways by people inside the bar, that's offensive," he said. "I'm happy with the restraint used when they were contacted like that." Meanwhile, here are actual witnesses:

Club Manager Randy Norman said Gibson didn’t seem drunk and was walking from the men’s room, holding a bottle of water, when an officer pushed him against a wall and then pushed him to the ground. Some patrons said they heard Gibson ask the officer a question, but that he didn’t fight back. At least three officers were involved in handcuffing him.

Kayla Lane, a visitor from California, has a slightly different memory of where he was handcuffed, but she also reports seeing someone pulled to the ground who wasn’t drunk:

After this, we saw the policemen go into the men’s restroom, pull out at least two guys from handcuffs from there, and pull one onto the ground before forcefully removing him. What were they doing in there? Raucously disposing of their waste?! There was no reason for ANY of those arrests, at all. These people were NOT drunk, or even overly happy or silly.

We do know however that he was forcefully slammed against a wall:

“The first question I heard was, ‘How much have you had to drink?’” said Shane Wells, a dancer at the club. Gibson “said, ‘I don’t have to answer that question’ and they grabbed him and ran him against that little wall.’”

And then, according to Chuck Potter, Chad was very brutally thrown to the ground:

Chuck reported that Chad Gibson (who ended up in the Intensive Care Unit at John Peter smith Hospital because of his treatment) was tapped on the shoulder and told he was under arrest. When he asked why he was slammed against the wall, his head was pulled back so far that Chuck was worried that his neck might break. When they released him for a second, Chad tried to catch his breath and staggered as he did so. The police then slammed him to the ground and 5 cops were on top of him. A friend who was at a higher vantage point in the bar saw one cop with his foot on Chad’s neck on the floor.

Justin McCarty was working security at the Rainbow Lounge that night and he also saw what happened:

McCarty said that he saw officers throw Chad Gibson to the floor, adding that, “There were people standing there watching it happen and crying. They were scared. It was just brutal.”

So did Alison Egert:

It was shortly after that conversation, Egert said, that she saw a patron in the bar “thrown against the wall” and then pushed to the floor. (That man was later identified as Chad Gibson.)

“Here you had this gay man who looked like he weighed about 100 pounds thrown to the floor with six cops on top of him,” she said. “That’s when I started noticing that they were only arresting men, and they seemed to be targeting the smaller men.”

Another witness, Chris Hightower, told WFAA-TV that he saw Chad hit his head against the concrete step into the men’s room:

They spun him around this way and laid him out on the ground, and that’s when he hit his head on this step and got the head injury.

____________________

Not the dumbest of the dumb would ever grope an identified officer in his official capacity. To me, who has been in tens of different gay bars, it’s beyond comprehension seeing someone 'grope' a cop because I know how common homophobia manifests within the force so in fact, there is a fear factor when a gay man is approached by a police officer. It is all too common.

It’s o.k. if Halstead and his men want to privately consider us as moral degenerates, since he and they are certainly entitled to have that opinion, no matter how ill-advised, but please don’t insult anyone’s intelligence with this insane excuse in order to validate these dipshits to commence the physical punishment aside from the nonverbal bulldog intimidation.

Clearly, what his statement suggests is he was in on the illegal conduct of his officers or is covering up the damage. Either way, delusional at best to think people (outside the Sarah Palin fan club) could believe this side of the story.

Lastly, who goes into a bar to charge people with public intoxication? Isn’t that a given? Is there a Texas law that says you cannot be intoxicated inside a bar, a private establishment? I could see that in Utah, but Texas? Couldn't they have done that anywhere? Shouldn't they be more concerned about drunk drivers and road patrol?

Some in our community are outraged because this horrible event occurred on the 40th anniversary of Stonewall. I say, who cares (unless it goes to the Police Department’s motive in choosing this bar). While at one time homosexual conduct was illegal, I still say despite pockets of extreme hatred, especially in Texas, we still have made tremendous progress. But at the same time, we cannot forget this sanctioned assault on human beings by a government entity. This is not Nazi Germany, and we have a duty to put our marriage signs down and expose these bastards for what and who they are!

The fight goes on.

Another Political Putz: Sarah Palin on the Holocaust Museum Shooting

2009-06-23T07:37:00.001-07:00

In response to the horrible shooting last week at the Holocaust Museum, Sarah Palin said:

"Our hearts and prayers go out to the shooting victims at the National Holocaust Museum. The museum itself remembers and honors the lives lost in one of the world's most horrific genocides. To have an act of intolerance further spread hatred at this place of reflection, further adds to the grief. My heart goes out to all those impacted, especially the brave guards who acted so selflessly to prevent further injury. May God Bless the Jewish community"

In her quest for the 2012 Republican nomination, Sarah Palin desperately seeks to remain relevant in the news. While she consistently misinterprets the First Amendment (something a third-grader knows better), uses her own family members to exploit for political gain, she now seemingly does not understand what this tragic act was about, nor comprehends the meaning and spirit behind the Holocaust Museum. Actually, she seemed to flow rightly in her political statement, up until the last sentence which just stood out as another Palinism: 'May God Bless the Jewish community'

When this deranged Neo-Nazi, James Von Brunn started shooting, he did so haphazardly - his agenda was not simply to kill a Jew or two, but anyone in his path. He despised what the Holocaust Musuem stood for. Tragically, he killed a security guard - who happened to be black but this idiosyncratic act caused by this one deranged racist had problems with anyone not like him, jewish/gentile, gay/straight, black/ white. This was not a premediated event to target Jewish people exclusively. So then, why does Palin say "may god bless the Jewish community"?

My guess is that she thinks Von Brunn's act was initially targeted against Jews and that the Museum serves as a province for Jews only (something Rabbi's consistently remind us that it is not). If I am correct, why does she think the Holocaust Museum serves exclusively as a tribute to Jews rather than what it really stands for (as promulgated primarliy by jew and non-jew alike) as a memorial and reminder against human atrocities, regardless of race, religion or creed, everywhere or anywhere it repeats itself. Doesn't she know that aside from the six million jews killed during the Holocaust, that this Museum stands boldly against hate inflicted anywhere, whether politically sanctioned or not? So why Ms. Christiandom, just bless the Jewish Community?

This woman is a national embarrassment.

Judge Sotomayor: Stereotyping Matters As It Should

2009-05-31T11:07:00.000-07:00

I'll take a stereotypical white straight male, perhaps 58 years old, or maybe 36, a man who righteously prides himself on his gender, color, social class, and maybe even his religion. He is from Carlsbad or La Jolla or even Long Island. He owns property, pays property taxes - and is less considerate of non-property owners, although he may not often voice his disapproval.He is a Republican at heart and by his intellect, and he knows that because as long as he is white and educated, he will succeed as long as big government doesn't tax him to death first. He is conscious of the fact that he has no empathy for people who are not just like him, people of the wrong color, gender, religion, or social class, perhaps even someone who was born in the wrong geographical region of the country, and takes it as a source of pride. The only people who he feels comfortable with are straight white males of similar social status and political persuasion.

He honestly believes he is a self-made man, even though he may have been born wealthy, gone to the finest schools, and gotten every job in his life through family connections. And he honestly believes that everyone else had the same opportunity, and having chosen not to be like him, therefore are victims of the misery that they themselves caused, of life's unfortunate roll of the dice because something they did wrong.

As far as he's concerned, the fact that he is rich or comfortable is the way it is supposed to be, just as much as that he is white or male. The reason that Hispanics or blacks or women or poor people are not like him is because they aren't supposed to be. They don't matter, and they aren't supposed to. The only folks who matter are the older rich white guys. He may not be an overtly vocal racist, sexist, or homophobe - but certainly he is an expressive proud white male, who simply identifies with other "successful" white male lives - because they're in power, and they're in power because they are supposed to be in power.

Guys like this do not have empathy. They don't believe in having empathy. To do so is a weakness. To even want to learn about anyone else's life experience is a character flaw, which could taint them. It could embarass them, too, to admit that everything they believed in is wrong.

They believe that the elite/rich/suburban or urban male experience is the only one that matters. It is the default, and it is the natural order of things. To fail to accept this is, well, racist. Not to vote for a rich white male is racist, or "reverse racist". To presume that a woman, a black man, or even (God forbid!) a non-white woman or gay or lesbian could be the best, or even good enough for a top position is absurd to their thinking. To them it is obvious that women and minorities who have achieved success would never have done it without affirmative action, by playing the 'race card', or by cheating. Their qualifications are empty, meaningless. If there is only one elite white male who wants the job, even if he is not as qualified on paper, he believes he automatically should have it, because he will perform better at it, naturally.

A man like this has no idea what happens to a poor woman who gets pregnant and realizes she can't afford to raise another child, or to a disabled person or minority who is discriminated against. He cares superficially, but actually doesn't care internally. He thinks gay men should simply go back into the closet. For sure, while women and minorities are intellectually inferior, gays are morally inferior.

An educated Latina like Judge Sotomayor, on the other hand, knows all about the rich white male experience, because she has run into it all her life. She has had it hammered into her all her life as the default experience, the only way to be, which is a lot more than Newt Gingrich can understand what women or minorities or gays experience. He has no idea what it is like to be a Latina, whether poor and struggling in and around the Yankee Stadium ghettos; or, even the flip side - highly educated, successful nominee to the Supreme Court with a stellar judicial record. He doesn't understand the latter because a smart latina on the Supreme Court deviates from the natural order of man and god. While he understands John Roberts, he can't figure out Ruth Bader Ginsburg. But as long as women like Ruth Bader Ginsburg or Sandra Day O’Connor kept their mouths shut like good girls, they have been tolerated.

But what it comes down to is the need for people on the Supreme Court who care about Americans. Obama said that the “quality of empathy, of understanding and identifying with people’s hopes and struggles” is “an essential ingredient for arriving at just decisions and outcomes.” In fact, the world actually does not evolve around the white straight male experience. Why do I, as a white male, think this way? It is because I was, at one time, that white straight male from Long Island.

_________________
I would like to thank Angela Quattrano of the Daily Kos for allowing me to re-print this with my own edits and ideas, while providing me the framework and words written herein. As a result, this piece is a co-author between the two of us.

Iowa Supreme Court: Theocrats Need Not Apply

2009-04-04T23:36:00.000-07:00

Suddenly, California’s outcry over Prop 8 seems like such a long time ago. Because where we least expected it, Iowa, a piece of the American heartland, has become the next state to grant equality to Gay and Lesbian Americans. Now three states require full marriage rights for gays, and Vermont is on the brink of becoming the first state where gay marriage would be made legal by lawmakers, rather than the courts — a significant milestone. The Vermont House passed a law allowing gay marriage on Friday, and the Senate is expected to follow suit on Monday. Gov. Jim Douglas has promised to veto it, but an override fight will quickly follow, probably by next week. Progress still.

When the Iowa Supreme Court ruled on Friday that gays can marry in the Hawkeye State, gay marriage became not just a coastal thing. Deep in the rural heartland, a straightforward opinion — written by a justice appointed by a conservative Republican governor — methodically eviscerates one argument after another that for decades has been used to keep marriage the sole preserve of straight couples. "This class of people asks a simple and direct question: How can a state premised on the constitutional principle of equal protection justify exclusion of a class of Iowans from civil marriage?" Justice Mark S. Cady asked. The answer? It can't.

While the Court certainly addressed core constitutional principles and equal protection analysis through strict scrutiny, (the Iowa decision cited the California case eight times and borrowed its reasoning again and again) it did something the California court did not do. Iowa went the extra mile and set aside a rebuke in their opinion to the Christian fundamentalists directly:

“State government can have no religious views, either directly or indirectly, expressed through its legislation. This proposition is the essence of the separation of church and state. As a result, civil marriage must be judged under our constitutional standards of equal protection and not under religious doctrines or the religious views of individuals. This approach does not disrespect or denigrate the religious views of many Iowans who may strongly believe in marriage as a dual-gender union, but considers, as we must, only the constitutional rights of all people, as expressed by the promise of equal protection for all.” [page 66]

As the United States Supreme Court did in Lawrence v. Texas, its seminal 2003 ruling striking down sodomy laws, the Iowa court said that mere moral opprobrium or deeply held values are not enough to warrant legal sanctions or the denial of legal rights.

After Proposition 8 was passed, my brothers and sisters in California were despondent. This courageous and learned Iowa Court keeps us buoyant. Last year's ruling by the California Supreme Court issued a broad new justification for gay marriage — the Republican-dominated court declared forcefully that California may not discriminate against gays in any way, giving the ruling more legal force and sweep than any decision of its kind ever has. Thousands of couples flocked to clerk's offices to be wed. But months later, in November, however, that jubilation turned sour, when Californians voted to change the constitution to forbid gay marriage.

We here in California certainly know how Christian, and particularly, Mormon fundamentalists, can strategize and organize successfully – even if it is just on a singular issue, in their never-ending quest to make America a total theocratic Christendom while lying, cheating, and obfuscating any issue to get to that goal.

Remember in 2004, with a generous wink wink from the Rove Administration, many activists mocked the Judiciary in general, and the Massachusetts Supreme Court in particular, when Mass. ruled that the state had no legislative rationale to exclude gays from civil marriage. Denigration of local, state, and federal judges by Conservatives who didn’t toe their line were quickly called “activist judges” and it soon became the political trend. It was another shameful practice started by Bush bullies to demonize gays through the courts, in order to galvanize political support by among perhaps the dumbest segment of the electorate – “cultural conservatives,” and too many in the evangelical movement. All along, these judges who did not side with cultural conservatives because they judiciously analyzed constitutional or human fairness issues in deciding cases – were publicly stoned.

So it is refreshing that the Iowa court, in its intellectual affirmation for civility and fairness, said enough is enough.

But how do we stand in Iowa post April 4. Iowan gays and lesbians can breathe easier because unlike California, the process of a constitutional amendment process is a lengthy one — the constitution can't be amended by a simple vote of the people. Both houses of the legislature must approve it, and most legal experts agree that the process could be put before voters no sooner than 2012. But as it stands the political support in the legislature is weak, at least for now.

Unfortunately, we know too well how Christian zealots work. Bur at least Iowa jurists told them in no short order, theocrats need not apply.

AIG: How We Nationalized A Mess!

2009-03-17T14:56:00.001-07:00

I would suggest that about 90% of the United States population really do not understand how we came to the latest brouhaha involving bonus payments, myself included. The facts are complex and honestly, uninteresting. But the genesis of the situation should be more alarming than the $130 Million in potential bonus payments. The whole process has been dysfunctional, and not only from the strict business minds of AIG executives, but from the President, the Congress, the Executive Branch, etc.

Since the first bailout package, the taxpayers have given AIG about $173 Billion, including an $85 Billion dollar Treasury credit line that since September was/is used to bailout NOT only AIG immediate liabilities , but also, a few entities such as: Goldman Sachs ($13 Bil), Deutsche Bank AG, Merrill Lynch, Societe Generale, Calyon, Barclays Plc, Rabobank, Danske, HSBC, Royal Bank of Scotland, Banco Santander, Morgan Stanley, Wachovia, Bank of America, and Lloyds Banking Group. Yes, American school teachers, paralegals and factory workers through their tax dollars, are now financing off-shore international financiers - apparently to cover AIG's negligent investments.

AIG insured the mortgage-back securities that the aforementioned banks invested in. Instead of filing a Chapter 11, which would have caused devastation apparently to their policy holders and an adverse effect on the already depleted economy according to AIG; the only recovery conduit would be from the United States Treasury, again, as posited from AIG. Whether this claim holds any credence is debatable and debated haphazardly by Congress when the first Bush package was put together.
Additionally, forget the fact that U.S. regulators failed to neither recognize nor manage AIG's risk undertaken by the sub-prime market - how obviously negligent such a risk would be to the company and the economy should have been foreseeable.

What is potential worse if I may posit, is how the Feds continual hiding the ball how the bailout money should be managed and spent is simply appalling. "That we find ourselves in this situation at all is ... quite frankly, sickening," said Senator Christopher Dodd, the Democrat who chairs the committee. "The lack of transparency and accountability in this process has been rather stunning." So the Feds gave AIG, in the absence of Chapter 11, a carte blanche to spend as it wished. This is how we came to the current news of the day. You give a company a billion dollars and as soon as it is delivered, they forget where the money comes from and goes right into their continued negligent business practices - without any regard to public relations or whose money the new capital belongs to. Look how one piece of the bailout money went to Chrysler, and as soon as the check cleared, were buying a full page Wall Street Journal Ads thanking the taxpayers for the support.

Personally, I don't want a 'thank-you', I want better management of the money and the business plan. Same goes to AIG.

Because AIG executives do not think like mom and pop, with trying to do more with less, essentially their business bureacratic mind says honor thy contracts first, regardless who supplied the cash flow. These employment retention contracts which would offer bonuses to "talented" managers, no matter how egregious and potentially out of step the bonus offering was, remains a valid contract. Now Senator Arlen Specter says that these contracts would be illegal and asserted the common affirmative defense that enforcing such a contract would be illegal, against public policy. I am not too sure if he is correct, depending when these contracts were executed. Also, Senator Dodd/Schumer's legislation to put a 90% tax rate on the benefits of these contracts is potentially unconstitutional aside from the fact it is a silly response to an issue that has exposed the negligent role the Congress has played out in this whole debacle so the Democratic bailout buddies are running for cover, or are they?

And so, the latest point as of 2:08 pm is that the Washington crowd wants to focus on these bonuses because it aims the public anger at AIG or private interests, and not the political class. But you ought to know, the political class is what really started this mess with bailing out a company that should have, or perhaps could have, filed Chapter 11 (similar to Lehman Bros.) and by the way, if they had done so, there is not one Trustee or Bankruptcy Court which would have honored the $130 million in bonus contracts. The Feds giving out money without attachments and oversight is completely disturbing to me, a result nothing short of nationalizing a company almost worth junk bonds and throwing money off a balcony.

So there you have it. If I am incorrect in my assessment I would appreciate hearing from you.

Kill The Lawyers?

2009-03-04T09:23:00.000-08:00

"The first thing we do," said the character in Shakespeare's Henry VI, is "kill all the lawyers." Contrary to popular belief, the proposal was not designed to restore sanity to commercial life. Rather, it was intended to eliminate those who might stand in the way of a contemplated revolution -- thus underscoring the important role that lawyers can play in society.

Well, kill the lawyers? Literally? You decide.

Nina Olsen
v.
Ritea; Kinko's FedEx; Dennys; McDonalds; Starbucks

Filed 3/3/2009 BC408750 Los Angeles Superior Court

This is a handwritten complaint and very difficult to read. It appears to be for property damage and/or attempted murder and asks for $200 billion. Pro per

Megan Hauserman
v.
Sharon Osbourne

Filed 3/2/2009 BC408730 Los Angeles Superior Court

Battery; negligence; infliction of emotional distress. Defendant allegedly "touched" plaintiff in an offensive manner while she was a guest on the VHI series "Rock of Love Charm School." Osbourne was the "headmistress" on the show for 14 women, teaching them etiquette and fashion. Defendant hit plaintiff, pulled her hair out of her head, and scratched her during a series reunion show that aired Jan 9.

Dave S. Perry
v.
VH Property Corp. dba Trump National Golf Club

Filed 3/5/2009 BC408999 Los Angeles Superior Court

Class action for Labor Code violations. The named plaintiff also claims he was fire for exercising his right under the Labor Code to take a meal period. "In short, Trump fired Perry because he went to lunch."

Here's Pepe Romero with Recurdos de la Alhambra

2009-02-27T08:51:00.000-08:00

The Rolling Stones.....Wild Horses

2009-02-21T22:05:00.000-08:00

Every once and while I steal from Chez because 1) I like him and 2) he know's his shit.....

but this is one song that is still available on YouTube before they block you too, again.

Favre is Gone!

2009-02-11T22:00:00.000-08:00

Not that I am a Jets fan, but thank goodness - now go shoot some rabbits.

What If (I got it right) Coldplay

2009-02-05T14:09:00.001-08:00

Right now, this song is so pertinent to my own life.

Jefferson Wisdom

2009-02-02T22:31:00.000-08:00

"The whole history of these books [the Gospels] is so defective and doubtful that it seems vain to attempt minute enquiry into it: and such tricks have been played with their text, and with the texts of other books relating to them, that we have a right, from that cause, to entertain much doubt what parts of them are genuine. In the New Testament there is internal evidence that parts of it have proceeded from an extraordinary man; and that other parts are of the fabric of very inferior minds. It is as easy to separate those parts, as to pick out diamonds from dunghills." -

Thomas Jefferson

Heroes

2009-02-02T20:11:00.000-08:00

I posted a little Bowie quite a while ago, but he's worth a repeat performance. Here's HEROES

Delusional Thursday.....

2009-01-29T23:58:00.000-08:00

Rod Blagojevich

... He got up in front of the cameras, The View yesterday, and more importantly, the Illinois legislature today, to not only deny any allegations of his wrongdoing but worse, to nuance it: "I was just doing what any one of you would do." So instead of being contrite, even if the most august improprieties of his wheeling and dealings would have acquitted him in any criminal proceeding as a matter of law, he nonetheless vented to the Legislature essentially that they were focusing on the wrong person. That is, his alleged ethical misdeeds shouldn't be the focus of an constitutional mandate to impeach him, but rather, assuaging the poor woman who has to take three subways and a train to work everyday to barely put food on her table - that, above all, should be the legislature's main concern. Some will say it was a masterful stroke to save his name among whatever supporters and other sheepish hacks too afraid to confront him, and join him in whatever pathologically insular island he ends up on. I, on the other hand, clearly see it as his continual delusional denial of zero political support, for the sake of appealing to a mordacious mass media that will aid him in whatever economic profits he now seeks to gain (i.e. book deals, etc). Its clear the guy never had a ethical bone to live by in the first place.

Ted Haggard (Compliments of Chez)

...Ted Haggard has spent most if not all of his existence living a lie, and he's done so for only one reason: because his unwavering belief in the literal teachings of a 2000-year-old book has taught him that he must. There's a distinct possibility that the reason Haggard found Christ to begin with was that he sincerely hoped that through him, all things were indeed possible -- the suppression of his true feelings and urges being the most pertinent of those things. There are thousands if not millions of Christians out there who hope for the same transformative power of religion. The enrollment in schools which the church claims can "straighten-out" homosexuals is proof of that hope; the success-rate of those schools is proof of its folly. Many claim that religion in general, and Christianity in particular, does more good than harm; it gives meaning to life and provides its believers a moral compass with which to navigate the world. Really? Ted Haggard is married, and has five children -- all of whom don't need to concern themselves with angry threats of an impending hell, because they're going through it right now. The person they love and admire the most has devastated them, simply because he could never admit who or what he truly was and is -- because Ted Haggard the fire-and-brimstone preacher has always believed that the true nature of Ted Haggard the man is "immoral, repulsive and dark," when in fact, it's nothing of the kind; it's only the dishonesty that's immoral. A man's relentless submission to superstition has destroyed himself, the family he loves, and more than likely a small part of those who have respected him and held him up as an example. The biggest tragedy however, might be that Ted Haggard has wasted the one life he was given. He's done it by lying to himself, and by trying to convince others that they should do likewise. .....

For these two men their delusional circus and drive is front and center. And yet, for the sake of the story, the Larry King's and The View's somehow placate the seriousness of both issues one which happens to be criminal, and the other, more sociological - but could really turn into a criminal indictment of the power of the Church.

Yet, Barbra Walters or Larry King refuses to ask the right questions. Why, because they are afraid.

I am suffering here folks...

2009-01-26T20:36:00.000-08:00

Is certain celeb(s) (Montel Williams) so desperate for work that he is now peddling commemorative presidential coin crap? I mean an Obama commemorative gold half dollar for $19.99?

Whether you’re a normal working stiff, or some white collar douchebag with endless disposable income, who would waste their money on this shit?

The Times of Harvey Milk

2009-01-26T16:02:00.000-08:00

Today I went to see "Milk" a second time to re-think my initial criticisms and dismay. Director Gus Van Sant's bio had too many fictional scenes and over-kill on Harvey's love interests that when you compare it to the 1984 Documentary that I am posting below, the movie, to me, was merely adequate.

I invite everyone, gay or straight (with open minds) to view the real Harvey Milk below, and think about gays rights in a human perspective. There was Gandhi, Martin Luther King, and Harvey Milk - yet of course, we are only taught two of the three. Most average citizens never heard of Harvey Milk - and what a shame.

Is there anything more stupid....

2008-12-30T09:59:00.001-08:00

We just "loaned" these hacks, what, a zillion dollars, and then they go buy a full page ad in the Wall Street Journal....

perhaps firing their money manager would be a good idea?

True Hero's

2008-12-24T12:38:00.001-08:00

The Life of Harvey Milk: In the Footsteps of Gandhi and King - video powered by Metacafe

Jesus Loves You...I think....

2008-12-23T10:17:00.000-08:00

So theocratic fascist, right-wing nutjobs, where is your Jesus in all of this?

Instead of taking away marriage rights, adoption possibilities, and the essential ingredient to human relationships - love, where is your moral outrage? How nice of you to cherry-pick your agenda. When will Focus on the Family focus on the Sudan?

How Sarah Palin Argues For Moral Values

2008-12-19T16:12:00.000-08:00

Levi Johnston's mother hit with drug charges

Arrested: her son was in the spotlight as father of Bristol Palin's baby.

WASILLA -- A 42-year-old Wasilla woman was arrested Thursday at her home by Alaska State Troopers with a search warrant in an undercover drug investigation. Sherry L. Johnston was charged with six felony counts of misconduct involving a controlled substance.

Johnston is the mother of Levi Johnston, the Wasilla 18-year-old who received international attention in September when Gov. Sarah Palin and her husband, Todd, announced their teenage daughter was pregnant and he was the father. Bristol Palin, 18, is due on Saturday, according to a recent interview with the governor's father, Chuck Heath.

Troopers served the warrant at Johnston's home at the "conclusion of an undercover narcotics investigation," said a statement issued Thursday by the troopers as part of the normal daily summary of activity around the state.

Troopers charged Johnston with second-degree misconduct involving a controlled substance -- generally manufacturing or delivering drugs -- as well as fourth-degree misconduct involving controlled substances, or possession.

Troopers released no other information, including the kind or amount of drugs, because details could jeopardize an ongoing investigation, spokeswoman Megan Peters said.

Asked how long the investigation had proceeded before Johnston's arrest, Peters would only say "a while."

The Palmer District Attorney's office had no comment.

Sherry Johnston was arrested around noon and booked at Mat-Su Pretrial Facility, according to a booking officer there. She was released on a $5,000 unsecured bond just after 2 p.m.

No charging documents had been filed at Palmer courthouse by the end of the day, a clerk said.

Levi Johnston sat with Bristol and the rest of the Palin family in St. Paul, Minn., during Gov. Palin's speech to the Republican National Convention, and he joined the family on the stage afterwards.

When asked about the arrest, Palin's spokesman, Bill McAllister, issued the following statement by e-mail: "This is not a state government matter. Therefore the governor's communications staff will not be providing comment or scheduling interview opportunities."

Johnston didn't come to the door of her home on Caribou Loop Road outside Wasilla on Thursday afternoon. A teenage boy who answered the door said he couldn't provide any information.

Governor: Your name does NOT end in a vowel and you're NOT Sicilian...

2008-12-12T16:08:00.000-08:00

Nonetheless, nice try.....

The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10c

A Telling Blagojevich Interview

Barack Obama Interview
John McCain Interview

Sarah Palin Video
Funny Election Video

Gay Without Pay?

2008-12-09T11:59:00.000-08:00

Now granted I don't mind some young hotties going gay for pay. But there are a host of reasons why I should not be paid because I am gay! Regarding tomorrow's call in sick day as a means of protest of Proposition 8 - there are a ton of stereotypical comments I can make among my own brothers and sisters in the gay community but I will reserve my silliness for another day. (i.e. I now have to wait until Thursday for a haircut.)

How do I feel about calling in sick as a means of protest against the Prop 8 verdict? Ridiculous and over the top. We are whining instead of being proactive. This is not productive - it's ludicrous and simply dumb.

"Hi Monica - please put me on the sick list today because I'm gay and I'm angry..
Thank you"

You know our anger should be internal too. We ran an incompetent campaign. Period!

Day Without a Gay is patterned after the Day Without An Immigrant protest in May 2006, which featured large marches in several major American cities, including San Diego. Numerous businesses, especially restaurants, were affected, with some forced to shut down for the day.

No major marches are planned for tomorrow. “We've already had marches,” Craig said. “We wanted to do something different.”

Representatives of several large San Diego-area workplaces said that they don't expect a lot of absences, but that anyone taking the day off would need to use personal time and clear it with a supervisor first.

The 800-member Greater San Diego Business Association, also known as the gay and lesbian chamber of commerce, has taken no official position on the boycott.

We gays are so GAY........

2008-12-04T14:44:00.000-08:00

See more Jack Black videos at Funny or Die

Somebody Buy This Guy a Spatan Beer!

2008-11-15T17:11:00.000-08:00

Although I think Keith Olbermann lost the Yes on 8 voter after the word "impertinence"...here you go, in case you missed it!

"Them Gays Certainly Like A Parade"

2008-11-15T14:09:00.000-08:00

At least We Gays Don't Have Sarah Palin To Deal With!

2008-11-05T17:32:00.000-08:00

From Newsweek 11/5/08

NEWSWEEK has also learned that Palin's shopping spree at high-end department stores was more extensive than previously reported. While publicly supporting Palin, McCain's top advisers privately fumed at what they regarded as her outrageous profligacy. One senior aide said that Nicolle Wallace had told Palin to buy three suits for the convention and hire a stylist. But instead, the vice presidential nominee began buying for herself and her family—clothes and accessories from top stores such as Saks Fifth Avenue and Neiman Marcus. According to two knowledgeable sources, a vast majority of the clothes were bought by a wealthy donor, who was shocked when he got the bill. Palin also used low-level staffers to buy some of the clothes on their credit cards. The McCain campaign found out last week when the aides sought reimbursement. One aide estimated that she spent "tens of thousands" more than the reported $150,000, and that $20,000 to $40,000 went to buy clothes for her husband. Some articles of clothing have apparently been lost. An angry aide characterized the shopping spree as "Wasilla hillbillies looting Neiman Marcus from coast to coast," and said the truth will eventually come out when the Republican Party audits its books.

A Palin aide said: "Governor Palin was not directing staffers to put anything on their personal credit cards, and anything that staffers put on their credit cards has been reimbursed, like an expense. Nasty and false accusations following a defeat say more about the person who made them than they do about Governor Palin."

McCain himself rarely spoke to Palin during the campaign, and aides kept him in the dark about the details of her spending on clothes because they were sure he would be offended. Palin asked to speak along with McCain at his Arizona concession speech Tuesday night, but campaign strategist Steve Schmidt vetoed the request.

Prop 8: The After Party

2008-11-05T09:29:00.000-08:00

I need a few days to analyze and digest. Please check back then to read my thoughts.

But in the meantime, the question of the day is:

What is the role of the California Supreme Court when it gets thumped by Joe the Truck Driver from Redlands? Who makes constitutional law; Pastor Jim or Judge George?

Hillcrest Fighting Back

2008-11-03T07:45:00.001-08:00

This video was shot for two reasons. One, to rebut the hordes of Evangelical Christians who showed up at Qualcomm Stadium on Saturday afternoon to support more ignorance, more hate, and more divisiveness; with a "pray" rally to energize their support on Yes on Prop 8.

The other reason to produce this video, and probably more important, is to let the Country know we will not tolerate their initiated "culture" war; their ignorance, their stupidity, their dangerous fundamentalism anymore, their inability to find a common ground. We will fight back, but with our hearts and our minds.

The following are MY people.

Please vote NO to the bat-shit crazies on Tuesday, November 4!

and another one; more poignant from Republican San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders:

And Here It Is Folks: The God-Damn Truth!

2008-10-30T13:41:00.000-07:00

If This Can't Change Your Heart....

2008-10-29T17:10:00.000-07:00

A genuine and compelling person, simply to make you think.

I like to pick fights with the Religious Looney Right

2008-10-29T12:09:00.000-07:00

A few days ago I was linked an article that was being presented to churches throughout Southern California regarding Proposition 8, and so, I decided to play tit for tat with the article's author (Tony Nassif) in an email exchange. Here is how it went:

The last email I sent him on Friday, that says "My comments below" was never refuted. As you can see below, in the first email, I simply told him how much of a fucking moron he is, and so he responded quite rightly that I engaged in personal attacks versus facts. So I took him to task, decided to apply some "facts" and made my points (in bold) on his article below:

***********************************************
My comments below

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
From: Tony Nassif [mailto:TNassifJr@cedarsfoundation.com]
Sent: Friday, October 24, 2008 8:33 AM
To: Mullen, Tom
Subject: Re: your article

Tom,

I noticed your email contained personal attacks without refutation based on facts. By the way I have dealt with the problem of trafficking for over a decade. It appears you loyalties are to a special interest group rather than reality.

Thanks for writing.

----- Original Message -----
From: Mullen, Tom
To: Tnassifjr@cedarsfoundation.org
Sent: Thursday, October 23, 2008 2:43 PM
Subject: your article

CALIFORNIA, October 23 /Christian Newswire/ -- Child prostitution in America is a major component of human Trafficking. One root is the break up of the central family of mother, father and children.

Agree

Many young girls fall victim to domestic trafficking by not having a loving father and mother and a secure family structure.

Agree

Prop 8 Marriage Protection Amendment will help hinder human trafficking of children by reinforcing the social structure of the traditional, nuclear family.

WHAT? How will preserving the same legal definition of marriage as current, hinder human trafficking, since as you note above there is and remains and always will be dysfunctional heterosexual marriages, drug induced families, etc. that have nothing to do with gay relationships. You start out above on a very simplistic general cause of child prostitution by arguing that there ARE problems in a Hetero relationship - and always will be regardless whether gay people are granted the rights they deserve.

Human trafficking occurs right here in America. Every year nearly 800,000 children are reported missing. Child prostitution is exponentially growing.

Ok, so? Specify your age range when you say "children". I propose to you that the majority of missing children are because of drug related issues.

Most hear of trafficking overseas. Now there is "reverse trafficking". Predators come to the United States to have sex with children.

Perhaps, but the stats are not as lurid as you make it out to be.

Prop 8 Impact: Child prostitutes predominantly come from broken homes where girls do not have a stable two parent family. Instead they are either thrown away, run away or lured. If these children had the balance of a mother and a father the chances of them falling into the hands of the predator are drastically reduced.

You are not logically following your own twisted facts. Establish the stats where child prostitutes are more prone to come out of same sex parenting because your 800,000 figure pretty much comes from broken families who are straight, numb-rod.

Reinforcing the natural, traditional family of a mother and father by Prop 8 will help build and maintain sound families protecting children. Much more will need to be done i.e. bringing moral integrity to the culture.

Reinforcing to whom? Child who are prone to run away. So your logic is that since a 12 year old whose messed up in the head has neighbors who are a gay couple, then somehow she is adversely effected. What evidence do you show that maintaining a male and female parenting will "further" sound families over same sex parenting? Where is your moral integrity to the culture that impact the 800,000 runaways that you turn the siren on?

Homosexual marriage sets forth an open door for confusion of what is normal. Homosexual acceptance takes away the stability of the societal standard of mother and father.

How? You babble with just plain stupid . Show me evidence where a same sex family is unstable, to make a casual connection between instability and same-sex parenting so at least you can make some fair inferences by comparing relationships. You can't, because statistics support just the opposite.

The mother and father (female and male) provide the emotional, psychological and spiritual needs unique to a father and mother as needed by a boy and girl. This helps provide a sanctuary for children.

Not supported by facts. If they do, why are there 800,000 runaways as you are so concerned about - and I will even dismiss my own thinking that its mostly drug related and put the blame on the parenting. Ok? The parents are hetro's, moron.

Normalizing homosexuality disintegrates standard paradigms of normal sexual behavior and interpersonal relationships between man and woman, boy and girl.

Homosexuality is NOT a behavior douchebag. You are venting in an area which you know nothing about. You are wrong on ALL counts, medically, psychologically, clinically, etc.

Prop 8 will re-establish the Logic and sanctity of traditional marriage and Family is the key to the protection of children from predators: Prop 8 will reestablish the image and standards of normal behavior and relationships which are key to the protection of children from predators. It will provide cultural safety, thereby reducing the likelihood of sexualizing children who have the secure home of a mother and father who embrace them with love.

What the hell are you taking about? ???? You cannot use the word logic when you're illogical.

Tony Nassif is also author of Jesus, Politics and the Church. and president/founder of the Cedars Cultural and Educational Foundation.

Like I said: ( and by the way don't insult my rebuttal with it being simple talking points from an interest group. What is an interest group? when facts are facts, and they prove your stupid comments WRONG and ILLOGICAL.
Sir:

What circus did you obtain your degree at??? Your stupid insidious demagoguery is the root cause of more hate and more dysfunctional families that you write about

*******************************************************

You can tell I have very little tolerance for stupidity with my aggressive emotional tone, huh? Trust me, I don't normally level vulgar comments during debate - but with these folk, how can you not?

I Rest My Case.....

2008-10-24T10:23:00.000-07:00

President Bush Endorses McCain/Palin

2008-10-24T08:57:00.001-07:00

"Hope is fine, but you can't live on hope."

2008-10-23T10:49:00.000-07:00

I have been pulling my hair relentlessly over the last six months concerning the direction of this campaign; No on 8 campaign - to rebut the religious fundamentalists Yes on 8 proposition which would illegalize gay marriage. This comes after our Supreme Court legitimately and rightly so decided the merits of gay marriage on civil terms - using constitutional analysis; mandating gay marriage in California. The religious fools went crazy yet, this year, they (and the GOP right-wing) couldn't call-out the judges who voted 4-3 as "activist judges" cause the majority were Republicans. Ironic, huh? Fuck you George Bush.

Nonetheless, the No on 8 folks were too soft. They managed the campaign with a coalition of gay-rights activists. They did not know how to define nor understand how dirty retail politics is. So now we are catching up. We are struggling to change the tide where once we led in the polls by 7% points, just month later it turned around giving us about a 7 point deficit - of course after the viral Yes on 8 media buys with all the lies and innuendo. No on 8 folks, quite naively, got blindsided and struggled to shift it back. Because of the soft swing vote, I am hopeful.

Now I don't mean to sound like a naysayer because the swing vote who eventually jumped from the No into the Yes column (which is about 10% of the electorate) is still very soft and volatile. Here, is why, I still remain slightly hopeful (of course in addition to the Obama turnout which we cannot underestimate) so there is a hope. But this is how the campaign should have started the media campaign:

Truth is, the new Mormon Yes on 8 contributions total is $19.15 million; contributed by over 59,000 Mormon families in just over 3 months. This Mormon power grab continues at approximately the same level — 77% of the $24.89 million raised by the Yes on 8 since July 1, 2008. Non-Mormon donations are now at $5.74 since July 1, which represents 23% of the total. (Figures from Mike)

No on 8 folks needed former D'Amato pollster, Jessie Helms consultant and gay married - Arthur Finklestein. Arthur, where are you?

Haute couture - Sarah "Coco" Palin

2008-10-21T17:19:00.001-07:00

Just when we thought the Gov dreaded the East Coast Elites and the Georgetown Party circuit.....

The Republican National Committee appears to have spent more than $150,000 to clothe and accessorize vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin and her family since her surprise pick by John McCain in late August.

According to financial disclosure records, the accessorizing began in early September and included bills from Saks Fifth Avenue in St. Louis and New York for a combined $49,425.74.

The records also document a couple of big-time shopping trips to Neiman Marcus in Minneapolis, including one $75,062.63 spree in early September.

(The Politico)

Note: The clothes above in the family portrait were purchased at the Wasilla Target - because she understands all the Joe the Plumber's and the thousands worrying about job losses and paying bills!

Wa Wa Wasilla....

2008-10-21T14:13:00.001-07:00

Sarah Palin's Audience........

2008-10-17T12:52:00.000-07:00

Dancing With The Stars

2008-10-17T12:46:00.001-07:00

More from Lil O'Reilly.....

2008-10-16T16:31:00.001-07:00

Market Tumbles Again....

2008-10-10T11:28:00.000-07:00

as Connecticut Ruling Overturns Ban on Same-Sex Marriage . We can't let activist judges affect your hard-earned 401K.....

says Sarah Palin

Sarah Palin's 'Breathtaking' grades and scores

2008-10-09T14:12:00.000-07:00

(Via RaginCajun)

A Despicable Man.....

2008-10-08T15:58:00.001-07:00

This douchebag also said last night, the only political commentator to do so - among both Reps and Dems, that McCain won Debate #2.

He is a complete waste of life!

Good Show President Obama.

2008-10-08T09:49:00.001-07:00

Its over. Congrats Obama - you survived two wars; one, Clintonian, and the other, just pure sleaze.

Barack Obama Wakes Up and Fights Back......

2008-10-06T14:13:00.000-07:00

"The McCain campaign pushed back hard against the new Obama attack over the Keating Five, arguing that the Arizona senator was treated unfairly by the Senate ethics investigation and asserting that John McCain had been much more open about his relationship with disgraced thrift executive Charles Keating than Obama has been about his connection with one-time radical William Ayers." (Washington Post)

'Stop the Bleeding' is the motto du jour muttered on the Straight Talk Express Bus. So therefore John McCain and his vicious bitch, the hockey-mom, commenced this weekend on another repackaged attempt, to smear Obama - by aligning Obama with Bill Ayers, a domestic "terrorist" 40 or so years ago. I guess when all else fails.....

Beyond the complete absurdity and silliness of this guilt by association tact, today the Democrats are finally playing the Rovian Card and instigated a replay of McCain's nightmare from the mid 80's - the Keating Five Scandal - as a response.

Truth be told that the Republicans been playing these pathetic games as long as I could remember. 1988 Bush Sr. - Willie Horton. 2000 Bush Jr. - South Carolina Primary against McCain. 2004 Bush - SwiftBoat Veterans. And if not for the official GOP campaigns doing so, leave it up to Sean Hannity and the sleazeball Fox News set to run an hour long program last night on all of Obama's alleged inappropriate associations. Shouldn't the FEC, by the way, demand FOX's in-kind contribution to McCain be recorded as such?

And so, this is what McCain shamelessly learned. Now it is going to blow-up in his face. Again. It is why a once decent citizen-legislator has embraced vile gutter politics with such bravado, first with his pick of Sarah Palin (who threw her own family under the bus for sheer opportunism) that I really can't stomach this election with 30 days out.

O'Reilly Jr. (pretty much sums up Sr. and FOX News)

2008-10-03T10:59:00.001-07:00

Who Lost The Debate? The McCain Surrogates!

2008-10-03T09:00:00.000-07:00

The truth is neither Joe Biden nor Sarah Palin caused their respective parties or candidacies any real damage last night, or in Palin's case, any further damage.

While Biden shot from the hip with policy, pragmatism and experience, it was, essentially, as we expected from the man. On the flip side, while Sarah Palin shot from hip with a wink, full of talking points without any serious substance and like a fake orgasm, that too, was as expected. (This debate format didn't provide an opportunity for the real Sarah Palin - and what a shame.)

And so, when I flick on Fox News Channel and watch such phony, biased analysis such as former Tennessee Senator Fred Thomapson calling Palin "breathless" in her performance, trying to be pithy - the real losers last night were the McCain Surrogates: (Rudy Giuliani; Pat and Bay Buchanan [whom I used to work very briefly for - and is smarter then that]; Fred Thompson; Joe Lieberman; Peggy Noonan (trying to get back into good graces with the McCain folks); et al. To them, as long as Palin didn't vaporize into Katie Couric moment(s), they assuredly claim victory. Sheer Lunacy!

Here is what a smart-ass blogger yet accurate to the core Chez Pazienza Chez Pazienza said:

Sarah Palin, on the other hand, strung two or three complete sentences together consecutively, which means that her performance will be roundly hailed as a success. The fact, however, is that no matter how much she said or how confidently she said it -- she really didn't say much of anything. The McCain campaign handlers -- and needless to say, that's whose hand was up Palin's ass the entire time -- pulled a really neat trick by having their girl essentially make it clear almost right off the bat that she wasn't going to answer any of those pesky questions being asked of her by moderator Gwen Ifill because, well, Ifill's part of the mainstream media and, well, Sarah Palin is a maverick. (I guess that's what mavericks do -- they don't play by the rules and answer questions, despite having agreed upon the debate format ahead of time.) What this did though was allow Palin to basically filibuster about anything she felt like at any given time. It allowed her to essentially give an extended speech divided into dozens of small parts rather face the danger of being tripped up by honest, unscripted interaction.

And really, the thing about Palin's performance tonight is that it was just that: a performance.

Nothing that came out of her mouth -- no inflection or movement of her body -- was unscripted.

Nothing.

Exactly. So as long as Palin was not that idiotic and stayed on performance both she and they won! What? Am I loosing my mind?

Perhaps their right in a sense, because Palin's choir is extremely gullible as long as you stick to the three G's - gays, guns, and gayabortions as my friend John Talaga insightfully observed.

But do the Buchanan's, Noonan's, and Lieberman's of the world have any integrity? Are they so rah-rah Republican that it doesn't matter what puff and fluff comes out of Ms. Palin's mouth, as long as the gibberish is hid somewhere?

They're the losers here because they know better. And folks, while I was so very impressed with Biden, he cleaned her clock - and on substance sure he won. But I just can't get over the losers of the night because it is so god-damn obvious that Palin is a deer in the headlights, to say the least, and intellectually vacant. They know it, we know it, and their rah-rah spirit is absurd.

And the Republicans claim victory?

Just For The Record...

2008-10-01T13:13:00.000-07:00

I couldn't get into a Georgetown cocktail party, unless I am the Valet....

but even Valets know Sarah Palin is a moron and egregiously unqualified.

I'll stop there.

While Sarah Palin Was Shooting Moose.....

2008-09-29T17:20:00.001-07:00

Sarah Palin Played Hookey During Earth Science

2008-09-29T15:09:00.000-07:00

From the L.A. Times:

Soon after Sarah Palin was elected mayor of the foothill town of Wasilla, Alaska, she startled a local music teacher by insisting in casual conversation that men and dinosaurs coexisted on an Earth created 6,000 years ago -- about 65 million years after scientists say most dinosaurs became extinct -- the teacher said.

After conducting a college band and watching Palin deliver a commencement address to a small group of home-schooled students in June 1997, Wasilla resident Philip Munger said, he asked the young mayor about her beliefs. Palin told him that 'dinosaurs and humans walked the Earth at the same time,' Munger said. When he asked her about prehistoric fossils and tracks dating back millions of years, Palin said 'she had seen pictures of human footprints inside the tracks.'"

2008-09-25T15:57:00.000-07:00

WHEN ATHEIST ATTACK

Sam Harris
NEWSWEEK
From the magazine issue dated Sep 29, 2008
Let me confess that I was genuinely unnerved by Sarah Palin's performance at the Republican convention. Given her audience and the needs of the moment, I believe Governor Palin's speech was the most effective political communication I have ever witnessed. Here, finally, was a performer who—being maternal, wounded, righteous and sexy—could stride past the frontal cortex of every American and plant a three-inch heel directly on that limbic circuit that ceaselessly intones "God and country." If anyone could make Christian theocracy smell like apple pie, Sarah Palin could.

Then came Palin's first television interview with Charles Gibson. I was relieved to discover, as many were, that Palin's luster can be much diminished by the absence of a teleprompter. Still, the problem she poses to our political process is now much bigger than she is. Her fans seem inclined to forgive her any indiscretion short of cannibalism. However badly she may stumble during the remaining weeks of this campaign, her supporters will focus their outrage upon the journalist who caused her to break stride, upon the camera operator who happened to capture her fall, upon the television network that broadcast the good lady's misfortune—and, above all, upon the "liberal elites" with their highfalutin assumption that, in the 21st century, only a reasonably well-educated person should be given command of our nuclear arsenal.

The point to be lamented is not that Sarah Palin comes from outside Washington, or that she has glimpsed so little of the earth's surface (she didn't have a passport until last year), or that she's never met a foreign head of state. The point is that she comes to us, seeking the second most important job in the world, without any intellectual training relevant to the challenges and responsibilities that await her. There is nothing to suggest that she even sees a role for careful analysis or a deep understanding of world events when it comes to deciding the fate of a nation. In her interview with Gibson, Palin managed to turn a joke about seeing Russia from her window into a straight-faced claim that Alaska's geographical proximity to Russia gave her some essential foreign-policy experience. Palin may be a perfectly wonderful person, a loving mother and a great American success story—but she is a beauty queen/sports reporter who stumbled into small-town politics, and who is now on the verge of stumbling into, or upon, world history.

The problem, as far as our political process is concerned, is that half the electorate revels in Palin's lack of intellectual qualifications. When it comes to politics, there is a mad love of mediocrity in this country. "They think they're better than you!" is the refrain that (highly competent and cynical) Republican strategists have set loose among the crowd, and the crowd has grown drunk on it once again. "Sarah Palin is an ordinary person!" Yes, all too ordinary.

We have all now witnessed apparently sentient human beings, once provoked by a reporter's microphone, saying things like, "I'm voting for Sarah because she's a mom. She knows what it's like to be a mom." Such sentiments suggest an uncanny (and, one fears, especially American) detachment from the real problems of today. The next administration must immediately confront issues like nuclear proliferation, ongoing wars in Iraq and Afghanistan (and covert wars elsewhere), global climate change, a convulsing economy, Russian belligerence, the rise of China, emerging epidemics, Islamism on a hundred fronts, a defunct United Nations, the deterioration of American schools, failures of energy, infrastructure and Internet security … the list is long, and Sarah Palin does not seem competent even to rank these items in order of importance, much less address any one of them.

Palin's most conspicuous gaffe in her interview with Gibson has been widely discussed. The truth is, I didn't much care that she did not know the meaning of the phrase "Bush doctrine." And I am quite sure that her supporters didn't care, either. Most people view such an ambush as a journalistic gimmick. What I do care about are all the other things Palin is guaranteed not to know—or will be glossing only under the frenzied tutelage of John McCain's advisers. What doesn't she know about financial markets, Islam, the history of the Middle East, the cold war, modern weapons systems, medical research, environmental science or emerging technology? Her relative ignorance is guaranteed on these fronts and most others, not because she was put on the spot, or got nervous, or just happened to miss the newspaper on any given morning. Sarah Palin's ignorance is guaranteed because of how she has spent the past 44 years on earth.

I care even more about the many things Palin thinks she knows but doesn't: like her conviction that the Biblical God consciously directs world events. Needless to say, she shares this belief with mil-lions of Americans—but we shouldn't be eager to give these people our nuclear codes, either. There is no question that if President McCain chokes on a spare rib and Palin becomes the first woman president, she and her supporters will believe that God, in all his majesty and wisdom, has brought it to pass. Why would God give Sarah Palin a job she isn't ready for? He wouldn't. Everything happens for a reason. Palin seems perfectly willing to stake the welfare of our country—even the welfare of our species—as collateral in her own personal journey of faith. Of course, McCain has made the same unconscionable wager on his personal journey to the White House.

In speaking before her church about her son going to war in Iraq, Palin urged the congregation to pray "that our national leaders are sending them out on a task that is from God; that's what we have to make sure we are praying for, that there is a plan, and that plan is God's plan." When asked about these remarks in her interview with Gibson, Palin successfully dodged the issue of her religious beliefs by claiming that she had been merely echoing the words of Abraham Lincoln. The New York Times later dubbed her response "absurd." It was worse than absurd; it was a lie calculated to conceal the true character of her religious infatuations. Every detail that has emerged about Palin's life in Alaska suggests that she is as devout and literal-minded in her Christian dogmatism as any man or woman in the land. Given her long affiliation with the Assemblies of God church, Palin very likely believes that Biblical prophecy is an infallible guide to future events and that we are living in the "end times." Which is to say she very likely thinks that human history will soon unravel in a foreordained cataclysm of war and bad weather. Undoubtedly Palin believes that this will be a good thing—as all true Christians will be lifted bodily into the sky to make merry with Jesus, while all nonbelievers, Jews, Methodists and other rabble will be punished for eternity in a lake of fire. Like many Pentecostals, Palin may even imagine that she and her fellow parishioners enjoy the power of prophecy themselves. Otherwise, what could she have meant when declaring to her congregation that "God's going to tell you what is going on, and what is going to go on, and you guys are going to have that within you"?

You can learn something about a person by the company she keeps. In the churches where Palin has worshiped for decades, parishioners enjoy "baptism in the Holy Spirit," "miraculous healings" and "the gift of tongues." Invariably, they offer astonishingly irrational accounts of this behavior and of its significance for the entire cosmos. Palin's spiritual colleagues describe themselves as part of "the final generation," engaged in "spiritual warfare" to purge the earth of "demonic strongholds." Palin has spent her entire adult life immersed in this apocalyptic hysteria. Ask yourself: Is it a good idea to place the most powerful military on earth at her disposal? Do we actually want our leaders thinking about the fulfillment of Biblical prophecy when it comes time to say to the Iranians, or to the North Koreans, or to the Pakistanis, or to the Russians or to the Chinese: "All options remain on the table"?

It is easy to see what many people, women especially, admire about Sarah Palin. Here is a mother of five who can see the bright side of having a child with Down syndrome and still find the time and energy to govern the state of Alaska. But we cannot ignore the fact that Palin's impressive family further testifies to her dogmatic religious beliefs. Many writers have noted the many shades of conservative hypocrisy on view here: when Jamie Lynn Spears gets pregnant, it is considered a symptom of liberal decadence and the breakdown of family values; in the case of one of Palin's daughters, however, teen pregnancy gets reinterpreted as a sign of immaculate, small-town fecundity. And just imagine if, instead of the Palins, the Obama family had a pregnant, underage daughter on display at their convention, flanked by her black boyfriend who "intends" to marry her. Who among conservatives would have resisted the temptation to speak of "the dysfunction in the black community"?

Teen pregnancy is a misfortune, plain and simple. At best, it represents bad luck (both for the mother and for the child); at worst, as in the Palins' case, it is a symptom of religious dogmatism. Governor Palin opposes sex education in schools on religious grounds. She has also fought vigorously for a "parental consent law" in the state of Alaska, seeking full parental dominion over the reproductive decisions of minors. We know, therefore, that Palin believes that she should be the one to decide whether her daughter carries her baby to term. Based on her stated position, we know that she would deny her daughter an abortion even if she had been raped. One can be forgiven for doubting whether Bristol Palin had all the advantages of 21st-century family planning—or, indeed, of the 21st century.

We have endured eight years of an administration that seemed touched by religious ideology. Bush's claim to Bob Woodward that he consulted a "higher Father" before going to war in Iraq got many of us sitting upright, before our attention wandered again to less ethereal signs of his incompetence. For all my concern about Bush's religious beliefs, and about his merely average grasp of terrestrial reality, I have never once thought that he was an over-the-brink, Rapture-ready extremist. Palin seems as though she might be the real McCoy. With the McCain team leading her around like a pet pony between now and Election Day, she can be expected to conceal her religious extremism until it is too late to do anything about it. Her supporters know that while she cannot afford to "talk the talk" between now and Nov. 4, if elected, she can be trusted to "walk the walk" until the Day of Judgment.

What is so unnerving about the candidacy of Sarah Palin is the degree to which she represents—and her supporters celebrate—the joyful marriage of confidence and ignorance. Watching her deny to Gibson that she had ever harbored the slightest doubt about her readiness to take command of the world's only superpower, one got the feeling that Palin would gladly assume any responsibility on earth:

"Governor Palin, are you ready at this moment to perform surgery on this child's brain?"

"Of course, Charlie. I have several boys of my own, and I'm an avid hunter."

"But governor, this is neurosurgery, and you have no training as a surgeon of any kind."

"That's just the point, Charlie. The American people want change in how we make medical decisions in this country. And when faced with a challenge, you cannot blink."

The prospects of a Palin administration are far more frightening, in fact, than those of a Palin Institute for Pediatric Neurosurgery. Ask yourself: how has "elitism" become a bad word in American politics? There is simply no other walk of life in which extraordinary talent and rigorous training are denigrated. We want elite pilots to fly our planes, elite troops to undertake our most critical missions, elite athletes to represent us in competition and elite scientists to devote the most productive years of their lives to curing our diseases. And yet, when it comes time to vest people with even greater responsibilities, we consider it a virtue to shun any and all standards of excellence. When it comes to choosing the people whose thoughts and actions will decide the fates of millions, then we suddenly want someone just like us, someone fit to have a beer with, someone down-to-earth—in fact, almost anyone, provided that he or she doesn't seem too intelligent or well educated.

I believe that with the nomination of Sarah Palin for the vice presidency, the silliness of our politics has finally put our nation at risk. The world is growing more complex—and dangerous—with each passing hour, and our position within it growing more precarious. Should she become president, Palin seems capable of enacting policies so detached from the common interests of humanity, and from empirical reality, as to unite the entire world against us. When asked why she is qualified to shoulder more responsibility than any person has held in human history, Palin cites her refusal to hesitate. "You can't blink," she told Gibson repeatedly, as though this were a primordial truth of wise governance. Let us hope that a President Palin would blink, again and again, while more thoughtful people decide the fate of civilization.

Harris is a founder of The Reason Project and author of The New York Times best sellers “The End of Faith” and “Letter to a Christian Nation.” His Web site is samharris.org.

The Shit Is Really Hitting The Fan...

2008-09-23T10:34:00.000-07:00

Meeting Karzai | 1 p.m. When Gov. Sarah Palin sat down with President Hamid Karzai of Afghanistan on Tuesday afternoon, the polite preliminaries to their conversation centered around children, as Mr. Karzai spoke of the birth of his first child last year.

“What is his name?” Ms. Palin was heard to ask, as she met with Mr. Karzai in the suite of a midtown hotel, according to a pool report.

“Mirwais,” Mr. Karzai replied. “Mirwais, which means, ‘The Light of the House.’”

“Oh nice,” Palin responded.

“He is the only one we have,” Mr. Karzai said.

Then the pool of journalists was escorted out, and the meeting began.

Once again, today, the McCain campaign put out a fatwa on the press (or at least certain select members), not to engage in a question and answer period with Ms. Palin, after her private meeting with Afghan Karzai and Henry Kissinger. Another imbroglio with the mainstream press to enjoin them in asking their candidate (Governor of A-LASKA) substantive questions; to just take photo-ops, nothing more, nothing less. Now we all know McCain want's this opportunity as another rube photo opportunity continuing their political trickery with the American public.....(as indicated by the complete bullshit above)

but come on!!! How can the Press let the McCain Campaign get away with this? Even FOX NEWS, do they have absolutely NO journalistic integrity? This is outrageous. I want to know as an American citizen WHAT SHE KNOWS AND WHAT COMMUNICATIONS WERE DISCUSSED. You see, I don't mind having to endure fifty-one stupid unusal remarks made by Joe Biden, at least I can assess his ability because I can actually hear what he is saying. What I want to know is Palin competent enough to carry on a political and non-political dialogue with a President of a country, we have a fucking gripe with?

How more outraged should the public be of this charade? In a very weird way, this is NOT DEMOCRACY!

Joke of the Day.,...

2008-09-17T11:24:00.000-07:00

Socialate, Estee Lauder Board member, and Democractic fundraiser - Lynn Forester De Rothschild (of course, it's "De Rothschild") has gone over to the Republican side to endorse John McCain today, a day after the 'Republican' collapse of Lehman Brothers and lame Merrill Lynch. Baroness De Rothschild said this: "I think Barack Obama is arrogant and has a problem connecting with average Americans."

...as she hops on her private plane to England, for lunch.

I think Barack would be smart to steer away from support from Baroness' anyway.

2008-09-12T12:46:00.001-07:00

More Sarah Palin Scary Thoughts......

2008-09-11T14:51:00.000-07:00

ABC News posted the following excerpts online (the Charlie Gibson interview):

GIBSON: Governor, let me start by asking you a question that I asked John McCain about you, and it is really the central question. Can you look the country in the eye and say “I have the experience and I have the ability to be not just vice president, but perhaps president of the United States of America?”

PALIN: I do, Charlie, and on January 20, when John McCain and I are sworn in, if we are so privileged to be elected to serve this country, we’ll be ready. I’m ready.

GIBSON: And you didn’t say to yourself, “Am I experienced enough? Am I ready? Do I know enough about international affairs? Do I — will I feel comfortable enough on the national stage to do this?”

PALIN: I didn’t hesitate, no.

GIBSON: Didn’t that take some hubris?

PALIN: I — I answered him yes because I have the confidence in that readiness and knowing that you can’t blink, you have to be wired in a way of being so committed to the mission, the mission that we’re on, reform of this country and victory in the war, you can’t blink. So I didn’t blink then even when asked to run as his running mate.

**********************************************************
Forget that only 6 mos. ago and way before this insane pick, she blinked in describing what a Vice-President's job entails!

More 2008 Election Lunancy.....

2008-09-09T17:51:00.000-07:00

I know, the purpose of FOX News Channel in 1996 was to be a conduit of television journalism for those with a Republican/Conservative agenda. But my god, "fair and balanced"? To whom? They have completely bottomed out. Greta Van Susteren, for instance, once a decent independent news source and investigator, has become an official hack of the McCain/Palin Party with this nauseating, biased - Sarah Palin -An American Woman.

The truth is they have hit a low point since their 1996 launch - with unfair and imbalanced journalism, to say the least. For example, they played snippets of Geraldine Ferraro's interview on Sarah Palin, took words out of context to make it appear that Ferraro was actually praising Palin as a candidate and a person in "An American Woman".

Allan Colmes is the token liberal, but that's it - where is the journalistic integrity? Objective reporting, investigation and analysis? In these days of sewer politics of John McCain and Sarah Palin, the third leg in the trifecta is FOX News. And I am nothing more then a independent voter who cannot listened to it for longer then 10 minutes before I puke.

This Democrat DOES Get it........

2008-09-09T11:32:00.000-07:00

From the Desk of - Ed Koch

Presidential Endorsement - September 9, 2008

Now, once again, I have to make a decision to either endorse the Democratic ticket of Obama and Biden or support the Republican ticket of McCain and Palin. I am 83 years old. If I am lucky, I may yet vote not only in this election, but in the presidential election of 2012 and perhaps, if luckier, even in that of 2016. I believe I must vote my conscience, and that means for the presidential candidate who in my estimation will best protect the U.S. over the next four years.

I personally know two of those running: Joe Biden and John McCain. I like and admire them both. John McCain is a genuine war hero and patriot. Joe Biden is a friend well versed in foreign and domestic affairs, who had made judgment calls on domestic and foreign policy and legislation that I agree with. I do not personally really know the Democratic presidential candidate, Barack Obama, having spoken to him only once and briefly, or the Republican vice presidential candidate, Sarah Palin.

One foreign policy issue that particularly concerned me in 2004 was the security of Israel. I thought in 2004 that issue was better left to President George W. Bush, and I believe I was right. President Bush understood the need to support the security of Israel and did so. I did not feel that way about Senator John Kerry.

That is not an issue in this election. Both parties and their candidates have made clear, before and during this election campaign their understanding of the need to support Israel and oppose acts of terrorism waged against it by Hamas and other Muslim supporters of terrorism.

So the issue for me is who will best protect and defend America.

I have concluded that the country is safer in the hands of Barack Obama, leader of the Democratic Party and protector of the philosophy of that party. Protecting and defending the U.S. means more than defending us from foreign attacks. It includes defending the public with respect to their civil rights, civil liberties and other needs, e.g., national health insurance, the right of abortion, the continuation of Social Security, gay rights, other rights of privacy, fair progressive taxation and a host of other needs and rights.

If the vice president were ever called on to lead the country, there is no question in my mind that the experience and demonstrated judgment of Joe Biden is superior to that of Sarah Palin. Sarah Palin is a plucky, exciting candidate, but when her record is examined, she fails miserably with respect to her views on the domestic issues that are so important to the people of the U.S., and to me. Frankly, it would scare me if she were to succeed John McCain in the presidency.

I reiterate the question each of us must answer in making our choice, who will best protect and defend America, domestically and with respect to the literal defense of the country? I hope I’ve made the right decision but only time will tell.

Whoever wins should and, I hope, will, following the election, receive the support of all Americans, no matter how they voted, especially in these perilous times. God Bless America and the next president and vice president of the U.S.

Why The Democrats Don't Get It..(So Far)

2008-09-08T13:12:00.000-07:00

Lanny Davis in today's HP:

"America should be proud of itself. When all is said and done and all the pundits are finished with their punditry, we have four pretty good candidates running for president and vice president in both parties.....But her speech Wednesday night, despite a few irritating cheap shots at Sen. Barack Obama, was impressive, well-delivered and, under the circumstances, a home run -- despite, shall we understate it, a bit of pressure on her to perform well in her very first nationally televised speech. It was, to put it simply, a helluva speech."

Let's revisit 1988. Mike Dukakis' Achilles heal was not George H.W. Bush, but rather his campaign's pitbull, Lee Atwater. They labeled Dukakis not simply a liberal, but a the wimpy, soft-spoken, head-in-the-sand liberal - one who America couldn't and shouldn't possibly accept - especially after parodying his ride in the tank. Once defined, even after being up in the polls, Dukasis took a nose dive he could not recover from.

Harken to 2004. John Kerry, in his very own nonchalant, egalitarian yet limpest ways, couldn't exploit the Bush Administration's handling of a war at its worst stage and even red-meaters were wondering its purpose; nor, couldn't comphrehend how rising oil prices in 2004 was impacting the middle class, but instead - Kerry became defined by the Swift Boat Ads. I recall foolishly sending an email to Bob Schrum at his D.C. office urging him to use oil and gas prices against the Administration. This was 2004 people.

And now, here we go again. The Republicans again from desperation are taking the offensive with a pitbull of a woman with narrow-minded religious views surely her own running mate can't stomach, a vacuous record, someone who inquired with her town librarian about burning books (i.e. censorship) and still, only 44 years old and when all is said, holding the hapless Dems voiceless. This is the Republican vice-presidential candidate who at best, and is so, when she only repeats attacks, political and personal against Barack Obama - a very accomplished, self-made man. Where is Michelle coming to the defense of her man?

Instead, we have Lanny Davis, supra, extolling Republican campaign virtues.

Mr. Obama continues to smile, and sheepishly in zen-like manner politely acknowledges her presence and defends his record as a "community organizer".

Now I am not that naive to think that you must handle your opposition carefully, especially when gender is an engaging attribute, but come on man - take off your gloves already. Do the Clinton-less Democrats seriously know how to play the game?

My impatience is obvious when only recent history has taught us that Democrats do not know how to throw a punch, in the face of bullying and abuse. It is why Obama is on the defensive. It is why the campaign better wake up and play hardball.

Memo to the Obama Campaign

2008-09-04T09:34:00.000-07:00

M E M O

To: David Axelrod

From: A Fretful Independent Voter (although only from a Blue State)

Date: Day 2 of Sarah Palin candidacy

Re: Campaign Business

Dear Mr. Axelrod:

Sarah Palin captivates her red-meat audience, she is articulate with a very attractive family (including the redneck about to marry into it) but truly, she is still untested before crowds like me, independent and intelligent. And I fear the Democrats sticking to the line of “does the American Public want another 4 years of Bush/Cheney?” question which seems this morning to be the optimal response to Ms. Palin’s ad hom attacks and vituperative insults, will be a message that will turn the Democrats into complacency and this hockey mom may win over some soccer moms.

What good came of Palin’s presence last night and her attacks? Because there was some that should not be overlooked. Please keep in mind that last night, Palin, as McCain’s pitbull with lipstick, provided the Obama campaign permission to attack her (back) without too much concern of a “Little Woman” backlash. I believe the American public understands that if you dish it out, you must be able to take it, regardless of gender. We have seen enough Jackie Joyner’s and less June Cleaver’s of late. Don’t let that Convention fool you. Go for it. Sure it’s nice to maintain the campaign theme of not another 4 year’s of Bush/Cheney. We all know that. This campaign must expose her. There is a plethora of information of how she wants to steer us back to the dark ages – please use it. Don’t wait to 2012.

Please, please, please – do not run a Kerry 2004 campaign. Beat these bastards using their own game plan.

Let me know if you need anything else from me.

Tom Mullen
949-235-4216

Will Mrs. Pat Buchanan Please Stand Up...

2008-09-04T08:48:00.000-07:00

Folks, 1988 all over again. Except this time, the bomb-thrower on behalf of the Religious Right is a well-spoken, enticing, articulate, white mother of a very cute family of five.

But it doesn't change who she really is and what she represents. Be afraid, be very afraid!

More Contrived Bullshit...

2008-09-03T11:27:00.001-07:00

These Republicans really know how to throw a Barnum Bailey Circus. Please tell me what is so original and genuine about any of this? Messianic Sarah Palin - gets outed by curious minds (as they have right to do) and is forced to admit - 'oh by the way, yes, my 17 year old is pregnant'. Rick Davis of the McCain campaign then immediately orders poor redneck Levi a seat behind Barbara Bush and a place in the cozy family values McCain/Palin portrait.

Just think, as of last weekend Levi was planning a Moose hunting trip with his hockey buds instead.

Last night provided some more nausea. Bush claimed he was occupied with post Stage-2 hurricane casualties as the reason he could not attend the gathering (all of them, by the way, I could have fit in my house for a good ol' bible study). Forget that the only place Bush would be welcome would be a Regent University Commencement Exercise. Following him, Fred Thompson, who apparently could not get enough of another un-Thompson-like rendition of John McCain's POW story, only months ago didn't think much of McCain's candidacy. And then of course, both Thompson and Lieberman had to go out of their way to praise Sarah Palin, the same women who pushed her own daughter and the young hockey stud, Levi, under a bus; attention both youngens certainly don't need nor want. Oh, family values!

But what kind of Republican convention is there without mention of RR. Yes, the long deceased Ronald Reagan, seemingly the only man in the last twenty years the GOP organization can depend on in bringing out the moderate and independent voters. Good luck with that one. They forget that after this week, the only person looking at Ronnie will be his frail wife Nancy, somewhere high above in Beverly Hills - and we are left with John II (oh, and yes, Rudy II) and like, fo' real, the hockey mom and AK-47 collector.

But of course, as Rick Davis laments, "this race is not about issues".

When will the god-damn fat lady sing?

Here on Lifetime: The Sarah Palin Story

2008-09-02T10:16:00.000-07:00

Ok folks. I cannot recall another time in recent history that I have been so mesmerized by the events surrounding John McCain's running mate, Sarah Palin. Because while I care about my political leaders having some sense of quality judgment (which is a huge attribute in deciding whom to vote for after 8 years of George W.) the John McCain I used to know ("John I") doesn't compare at all to John II. John I was a decent citizen-conscious legislator who called the Evanglicals for who they were and are - the most narrow-minded electoral block in this country - then went on with his reform agenda in the Senate. I mean you had to respect that, no matter how liberal or moderate one is.

Now we have seen the effects of John II, the opportunistic fella so desperate to be President that the only concern he had over the last week was how to appease his base - again, the biggest narrow-minded electoral block in this country. Without a scintilla of genuine vetting, he also tried to dissuade independent thinking soccer moms with this right-wing thinking hockey-mom, Sarah Palin - a member of the moral majority who, for example, believes abstinence-only should be taught not in school but at home.

Now as a American I also care deeply about who is next in line to the Presidency, especially when the President, in this case, is 72 and has had health issues. I am a man who believes vehmently in the separateness of church and state, and not someone who wants the President (or the President's lapdog the Vice-President) to advocate Creationism as a replacement to science in Biology class, rather then a where it belongs - as an Humanities elective. I am also a gay man who doesn't want to see his brothers and sisters scape-goated like George W. has so effectively done the last 8 years. I just can't fathom a book-burner being next in line to the Presidency. And so, with the selection of Sarah Palin - this is what John II has done. And forget about her lack of foreign policy experience, lets get to how she would dictate her narrow-minded views to Americans first!

Let's hope this two day whirlwind, which is gathering steam, will enlighten John II. Perhaps this desperate man and his ten-cent vetting groupies will ask the hockey mom to hand in her withdrawal - not for the sake of putting her family first (where it belongs)- but putting America first. Because after the last two days, it hasn't been very pretty.

And please, I am not happy for Bristol and Levi being the "perceived" focus here. The focus is NOT on a 17 year old getting knocked up. It is about all the hypocrisy and righteous nonsense the religious right have been advocting for much longer then the last eight years - starting with the zany bigots at Focus on the Family, Traditional Values Coalition, etc. Indeed, as a homo - I am truly giddy by it - which is what makes this so fascinating to me and a no better example to "in-your-face" douchebags!

I don't envy what poor, naive and impressionable Bristol Palin and that self-described "f*uckin redneck" Levi Johnson are going through and what they're forced to endure, all the gratuitous snickering, etc. But lets face it, it was Sarah Palin's naive, (contagious John II's) thoughtless and mean-spirited way in how this came about - no, not the liberal blogosphere. What was she thinking? Well, like all Rapture addicts - no critical thinking went into her decision, and as Jackie Schechner wisely points out below, threw her daughter under the bus. No, the Democrats don't need to touch this story. It has legs all of its own. Here's is Jackie's piece, courtesy of www.jackieschechner.com

"I'll admit it. I cannot get enough of this Sarah Palin story. I keep trying to figure out how in G-d's name this happened - that she got named to the Republican Party ticket with all this garbage in her closet. I'm also slightly annoyed at the tendency to tiptoe around the obvious. See, it is absolutely our right to go digging around. Sarah Palin made her family our business the minute she accepted the VP spot. She decided it was ok to thrust her loved ones into the spotlight. And you know what makes it even more egregious an error? She knew what people might discover...and she went for it anyway.

See, Bristol Palin is a 17-yr-old girl. A pregnant 17-yr-old girl whose mother threw her under the bus. Her personal business is now the nation's business. It became so the moment her abstinence-only, anti-choice mom put her own ambition above the privacy - and most likely the emotional stability - of her teenage child. I can only imagine how traumatic this must be for that young girl. And to say Sarah Palin didn't expect this to happen is to say Palin is beyond naive, and if that is the case, then she has no business playing in national politics.

For the record, no one's going after Bristol Palin. They're going after her mom who wants to be the nation's second in command. Fair game. Totally fair game.

And while we're at it, the liberal blogosphere didn't impregnate Sarah Palin's daughter. Any attempt to blame the discovery of the truth on the viciousness of the left wing is ridiculous. They did the background check the McCain camp seems to have dismissed as unnecessary. Sarah Palin wants to be Vice President under a 72-year-old man who's had several bouts with the deadliest form of skin cancer. Palin could be a heartbeat away from running your country. She could appoint judges who'd overturn a woman's right to choose. She could decide teaching safe sex is wrong and teaching creationism alongside evolution is right. She could send your kid to war.

Examining her track record at home is absolutely okay. She wants a say in my life? I get to take a long hard look at hers.

It's going to be fun to see how this shakes out over the next 48 hours. All I ask is that the media start working harder and the bloggers don't stop. Don't be afraid of what the pundits might say. Nevermind how it might look. There's a lot at stake. Stick to the facts, go easy on the wild speculation, and you'll be just fine.

How the Palin family fares on the tail end is another story.

Michael Strahan To Sign Pact & Return For 2008

2008-08-25T12:54:00.000-07:00

With Osi out, my sources tell me the Giants will make an offer Strahan won't refuse!!! Thanks Mike

What Do These Two Have In Common?

2008-08-13T13:16:00.000-07:00

1) They speak in southern drawl

2) They are incredibly rich

3) They are the purveyors of bullshit!

Two More Reasons (of Many) to hate George Bush

2008-08-12T11:59:00.000-07:00

1) Monica Goodling.

"What would Jesus do?" Goodling lamented when Attorney General Gonzales issued an Executive policy naming her and another political reject responsible over Department Personnel policy.

Would Jesus pass over disciple invites to the Last Supper if they were "presumed" gay or liberal democrats? "Certainly" this 1991 graduate of Messiah College thought -so why not follow Jesus' way.

This stupid fundamentalist christian, and star graduate of Regent University Law School (Pat Robertson's Regent) worked under Atty General Ashcroft and Gonzales. Because of her, career servants who worked hard for promotions based on merit were passed over because they were not Conservative enough, either presumed gay or presumed a liberal Democrat. She was responsible and had authority over interim United States attorneys (who are appointed by the Attorney General) and heads of the divisions that handle civil rights, public corruption, environmental crimes (see below).

It was also Goodling who ordered drapes to be placed over the partially nude Art Deco statues (Spirit of Justice) in the Justice Department's Great Hall during Ashcroft's tenure as Attorney General. At the time, the department spent $8,000 on blue drapes to hide the two giant, aluminum statues, according to spokesman Shane Hix.

Only under a George Bush Administration would you have a "Regent Law School" (those three words alone drive me nuts!) political appointee serving with such power in the Justice Department!

2) Intelligent Design Proponents

I wonder if it is by way of Intelligent Design, our Polar Bear's are dying off.

Global Warming is science this President just thinks of jokingly.

FUCK YOU BUSH!!! 6 more months left.

Douchebag of the Week

2008-07-21T14:46:00.000-07:00

Dude, you said "I'm retiring" now just fucking do so. Packers owe you shit. They paid you and granted you earned it, but just move on and give Aaron a break!

How I Fucking Loathe This Man!!!!

2008-06-24T12:45:00.000-07:00

"Dr." James Dobson, a so-called child/clinical psychologist who doesn't apply psychological standards like those governed by the American Psychological Association, but standards governed by the Nazarene Evangelical movement (actually I am not even sure if this guy actually counsels children other then at a bible-study), got his dander up today with Barack Obama. Dobson, a cancer of a man, who has the ear, wink and insignificant brain matter of George W., it disturbs me to no end how politicians embrace his ( and others like him) charlatan nature.

Barack Obama's answer to being a "christian country" that "even if we did have only Christians in our midst, if we expelled every non-Christian from the United States of America, whose Christianity would we teach in the schools? Would we go with James Dobson's or Al Sharpton's?" was a damn good hypothetical! And thank goodness a national candidate finally stood up to expose these fucking narrow minded moles.

While I am unsure whom I will vote for in November, Obama used his brains and charisma to blast Dobson publicly. Why the hell not - does Barack think he has a chance at capturing any evangelical voter among those with similar views of Dobson? Does he need them, like Bush needed them, to pull off Ohio in 2004?

Dobson accused Barack having a "fruitcake" understanding of the Constitution and dragging "biblical understanding through the gutter."

Now is the time to expose these zealots for everything wrong they stand for.

Does Obama have the political courage to do so, beyond his simple hypothetical above?

Would 'Deal or No Deal' been easier?

2008-06-16T15:35:00.000-07:00

2008-06-13T14:39:00.000-07:00

It just seems 2008 has been a hard year. We have lost some amazing people and now, Tim Russert. Tim Russert was the reason I watched Meet The Press.

Aside from the obvious, it is interesting how many "lay" people from my office or off the street are providing sorrow with the same feelings - that these people I am hearing from actually are lamenting substantive reasons why they liked Tim so much. Perhaps because we tune in to be somewhat informed, and Tim gave us that. But instead, for every one Tim Russert they're about 100 bumbling, narcisstic, arrogant, superficial, blond and brunette, men and women alike, - completely imbecilic. I wake up in the morning and flick CNN or FOX and get their pathetic morning shows where the topic for them is the newest hair style of Brittany Spears and what their co-anchor did at a company BBQ over the weekend.

Tim Russert R.I.P.

Harvey Korman R.I.P.

2008-05-30T15:34:00.000-07:00

A comic genius!

Something fresh is always brewin’ here!

2008-05-29T13:20:00.000-07:00

Am I having a fucking nightmare? That is, is Dunkin Donuts so afraid of loosing their fat-ass hillbilly, donut shoving, right-wing, march on christian soldier - lunatic customers, that they would actually THINK that Rachel Ray wearing a kaffiyeh look-alike, is supporting jihad?

Did they ever contemplate the fact that Rachel Ray wearing a kaffiyeh in itself, and associating it exclusively to terrorists would be a terrible stereotype among all middle eastern people who go about their days wearing kaffiyeh garments without desire to blow up some Israel nightclubs?

Michelle Malkin and her bigotry is enough shit to listen to, - now DD has become her donut heaven.

Great. It's a fucking scarf you imbeciles!

Allah Ahkbar Munckins!

Now, lets not screw this up!!!!

2008-05-28T10:49:00.000-07:00

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — More California voters now support allowing same-sex marriage than oppose it, according to a new poll released Wednesday.

The results mark the first time in over three decades of polling by the Field Poll that more California voters have approved of extending marriage to gay couples than have disapproved, said Field Poll director Mark DiCamillo. The survey of 1,052 registered voters was conducted over the phone.

"I would say this is a historic turning point or milestone," DiCamillo said. "We have speculated in the past there would be some time in the future when a majority would support same-sex marriage. Well, the lines have crossed."

The poll found that 51 percent of respondents backed legalizing same-sex marriage and 42 percent opposed it, DiCamillo said.

In 2006, when participants were asked, "Do you approve or disapprove of California allowing homosexuals to marry members of their own sex?" 44 percent said they approved and 50 percent objected. In 1977, the first year Field posted the question to voters, 28 percent approved and 59 percent were opposed.

The poll was conducted from May 17 to May 26 in the days after the California Supreme Court handed down its historic ruling legalizing same-sex marriage in the nation's most populous state. A smaller percentage of respondents_ 48 percent — said they agreed with the court's decision and 46 percent disagreed.

DiCamillo said the jump in support for same-sex marriage indicates that voters were "influenced in some way by the judgment of the high court."

"I am left to surmise that had some impact on voters who might have been on the fence or marginally opposed," he said.

Voters were similarly divided on the subject of a proposed ballot initiative that would overturn the court's ruling by putting a gay marriage ban in the state constitution. Field asked respondents about it two ways — once referencing the specific measure a group is seeking to get on the November ballot and once talking about a marriage amendment more generally.

Fifty-four percent opposed the amendment when presented with the issue generally, a figure that dropped to 51 percent when respondents were told they might have the chance to vote on a specific measure in November. Support for the amendment stood at 40 percent and 43 percent.

DiCamillo said the numbers could change once the amendment qualifies for the ballot, but the early results indicate "the concept itself is not widely embraced."

"We could acknowledge there has been increasing acceptance of the idea of gay relationships over the last 10 or 20 years, but we think when it comes to marriage there is still a solid majority who want to see it reserved for a man and a woman, and that is all this initiative is about," Pugno said.

___________________

You see, with any grassroots political organization (such as the soon to be announced coalition to fight this hateful religious based opposition to gay marriage) you need to worry about various factors that would cause the political organization to implode and become incompetent due to "too many chiefs" in the Tipee and a "loss of campaign message". Therefore, while the Court answered loudly that this issue IS a civil right, the people of California in this great democracy we have, still have a chance to nullify and abandon all reasoning of the Court, and
strike this opportunity away.

Just like, it seems, to be Obama's race for the nomination to lose, this November ballot initiative is our campaign to lose too.

1991 hit "Silent Lucidity"

2008-05-19T14:00:00.000-07:00

New York News

2008-05-13T14:21:00.000-07:00

At Least Right-Wingers are Colorful...

2008-05-07T11:42:00.000-07:00

From my former lover in my former life over at Somebody Told Me comes this gem...

The Belles Toll For Thee

2008-05-05T12:21:00.000-07:00

R.I.P.

The Best Hamburger Joint Anywhere, EVER!

2008-04-22T15:55:00.000-07:00

Family owned, like, since Thomas Jefferson's day. (jk)

The best Knishes too!

Green This Green That....

2008-04-22T09:49:00.001-07:00

I see green everywhere...except in my wallet

What a Jackass!

2008-04-21T09:27:00.000-07:00

Moshe Dayan extolled: "If you want to make peace, you don't talk to your friends. You talk to your enemies." That, apparently, is Jimmy Carter's creed too. While sure it makes sense, does it apply to Hamas?

How on earth can Jimmy boy deviate from U.S. foreign policy (no matter how he would love to excoriate Condi Rice and the other major idiot in the White House) and go broker a meeting with Syrian and Palestian terrorists? What is the purpose? Radical Islamists made a complete fool of Carter almost 30 years ago, now they consider him their 'useful idiot' which is the term du jour circulating the bloggery. Please tell me James Earl Carter was not sent on behalf of Barack Obama campaign?

"I'm not undermining anything. I'm not negotiating. ... I'm just here representing myself and the Carter Center. No one else," he said. "My decision was just to talk to people who must be involved in the final peace agreement. Syria and Hamas will have to be involved in the long term," he said. "And I thought I could at least talk to them and relay their opinions." Sure Jimmy. And by the way, Syria loves it how you think you need to include them.

Israel denounced the talks. "Former US president Jimmy Carter is detached from reality, on the one hand because his efforts are unilateral -- he only talks to one side -- on the other hand he doesn't take into account what happens on the ground," said Deputy Prime Minister Shaul Mofaz. "He talks to Khaled Meshaal and tries to reach an agreement, while the murderous attacks continue against the state of Israel," Mofaz told public radio.

Hamas is as organized as Al Qaeda. That is, loosely.

And you say you won't sit down with Al Qaeda because they have no "redeeming features".

And Hamas has?

His trip was last week. Perhaps I am not too late in commenting. Maybe Jimmy Carter is too late in attempting his peaceful ways...

The Creepy Cult: Texas Style

2008-04-18T10:13:00.000-07:00

I think I seriously need to update my blog TODAY. With so many stories (His Holy Shit visiting the U.N.), issues (the FCC trying to force its latest puritanical caveats), and current political affairs (oh...what will Hill do now?), someone, I beg you, someone please explain this:

Votar makes a good point. No, not how can you fuck a bunch of cafeteria moms...

How can anyone think this is acceptable, in the purest general terms?

Testifying Friday in the case of 416 children taken from a polygamous compound, an investigator from Texas' child protection agency said there was evidence that 20 or more under-age girls had given birth as a result of sexual contact with older men.

Angie Voss, who is with the state’s Division of Child Protection Services, said that “more than 20 girls, some of whom are now adults, have conceived or given birth under the age of 16 or 17. There is a culture of young girls being pregnant by old men.”

Where is the Family Research Council's press release urging these children (whomever is left impregnated) to bear more children, extolling the evils of abortions? Where are the protestations of the American Conservative Union, American Family Association, Traditional Values Coalition, Christian Coalition, and most of all - Concerned WOMEN of America. Where is their OUTRAGE!!!

When You Can Not Sleep....

2008-03-20T09:28:00.001-07:00

Forget this....

Watch this....

U2 and Pav - Happy Irish Day...

2008-03-17T10:04:00.001-07:00

Happy Friday -a lil Kate Bush

2008-03-14T09:02:00.000-07:00

Joe Francis Freed!

2008-03-12T14:37:00.000-07:00

"I cannot believe that I've been in jail and this was illegal," he said. "[Panama City] is a corrupt town, run by corrupt officials. This is just a whole crock...a sham with trumped-up charges.

"I am in a town of about 7,000 inbreds who are totally corrupt."

You got that right, Joe.

Little House In The Prairie (at The Hole)

2008-03-10T09:13:00.000-07:00

Last night I had the privilege of meeting and chatting with Alsion Arngrim (aka Nellie Oleson) who appeared at my local San Diego bar. She was at the The Hole to perform "Confessions of A Prairie Bitch."
Alsion is unique and she is a big fan of "us" so I give you... Nellie Oleson

The Chez Pazienza Tribune - Presidential Endorsement

2008-03-07T11:44:00.000-08:00

From Miami to the Upper East Side - all the news that isn't fit to print

As I dutifully ass-kiss Chez, his endorsement for now:

I don't consider myself a staunch supporter of Barack Obama. I admit that he's an inspiring political speaker and that his election, in and of itself, would do wonders for our wounded reputation around the world -- but I'm not naive enough to believe that he walks on water or exists on a plane far above the rest of America's political scoundrelry. What Obama does represent however, as trite as this may sound, is the future. His supposedly inexcusable lack of hands-on experience -- experience, it's worth noting, that Hillary Clinton is sorely lacking as well -- is actually his most appealing quality; I'm already well aware of what a Clinton presidency looks like (as well as 20 years of McCain senate votes for that matter) and I feel about it the way I feel about a movie from the first Clinton era -- Independence Day: Sure it was decent at the time, but do we really need a fucking sequel?

Hillary Clinton has already shown us what we can expect from a Clinton Redux White House, and it's all too familiar: opportunism, self-serving platitudes, dirty tricks and underhanded machinations, the reality that, to borrow her own phrase, "From Day 1" she'll work tirelessly toward getting re-elected.

We've had years and years of that way of thinking, and look where it's gotten us.

It's time for some new blood.

I can't say for sure what a Barack Obama presidency would be like.

But it's got to be better than the alternative -- either alternative.
______________________________

I, my friends, am waiting it out a little bit longer -

Will The Real Johnny Mac Please Stand Up

2008-03-07T09:38:00.000-08:00

McCain is in a pickle. While the Right Wing fanatical charlatans use their stupid pulpit to endorse the Republican nominee, every time that happens, whether its Pastor Hagee, Rev. Robertson, or Bob Jones lunatics, the Democrats seize on it and John McCain is either forced to play footsie around their endorsement or repudiating it outright - thus raising red flags among this important Republican voting bloc.

If he plays footsie, does that mean when John McCain is forced to pick up that red phone, will he be calling the end-timers - that toxic breed of profound stupidity for counsel and salvation?

2008 is John McCain's chance to be the principled Republican he claims to be.

How the Andy Griffith Show Flopped in the End

2008-03-04T09:43:00.000-08:00

One of my favorite sitcoms of all-time, The Andy Griffith Show. But only between 1960 through 1964 when the show was black and white. I mean it was fucking FUNNY!

When the show went color, lost Barney, lost Gomer, Floyd was stuck sitting because of a stroke, Opie grew up (slightly), and nerdy Howard Sprague came on - the show SUNK faster then you can say GOLLY.

But I noticed something more pertinent, Andy became angry. He went from the affable Barney sidekick to a strict disciplinarian and just no-fun sorts of guy. In some episodes he rarely cracked a smile. I wonder why?

Was it Aunt Bee? After all, her dislike of Andy Griffith was constant. Or, was it...

Helen Crump? Not giving it up?

WFB: 1925-2008 Requiescat In Pace

2008-02-27T11:10:00.001-08:00

A good man (I can only imagine by my brief meeting and his gregarious reception) whether you agreed with him or not, (yes, a bourgoeus fanatic!)William F. Buckley, an original conservative, a strict constructionist, and someone who abhorred the Religious Right's so-called credentials to be a spokesman for the national conservative movement the last twenty years.

I met him on two occassions. One, when he spoke at U.C. Irvine in 1988 and two, the following year while I labored for the Ron Lauder for Mayor campaign in New York. On a side note, tell you one thing for sure, when working on a billionaire's political race typically the fundraisers are fun-filled with great food, generous liquor and interesting people to chat with, people usually of national statute. Here he was in his seersucker suit. Now suffice to say, in the political world, for every 20 politico's there are 20 phonies. He was that rare exception.

Humble and personable, he will be missed. Check this out.

A Moral Indignation and the Death of Lawrence King

2008-02-26T17:34:00.000-08:00

15 year old, Lawrence King lived his final days at Casa Pacifica, a shelter for abused children. At Casa Pacifica,a shelter that existed because of hatred and intolerance - Lawrence found love and acceptance and the strength to survive the daily hurt of indignation.

Lawrence King did not enter a irrational world by lying and being disingenuous of who he really was. He naively but bravely entered a violent and homophobic arena - known as high school, with a moxie "in your face" attitude, dealt with the daily dose of brutal harassment simply for being true and genuine to himself.

But at 15 maybe he did not know better. That in a world where our own President does not see a need for national hate crime legislation, a President who is entirely bigoted in this regard (see video below), who scapegoats gay individuals by appealing to his base to incite the demagoguery - there would be haters so violent even among his peers - that perhaps Lawrence should have been more circumspect that his young and entirely innocent life would be dispensed with by the pull of a trigger.

As Tom Gregory writes, ..last Tuesday in first period English class at E.O. Green Junior High School in the Los Angeles suburb of Oxnard, an oppressor's loathing took the upper hand. Brandon McInerney raised his arm and shot Lawrence King directly in the back of his head -- not because he had a grudge with the victim, but because Lawrence King was gay. Later, McInerney's attorney, Brian Vogel, said, "Both Brandon and the family are terribly sad to learn (Lawrence King) is brain-dead." He went on to say that the killer and his family were hurting.

The bullying was chronic at E.O. Junior High. It was never dealt with directly. Jeff Dannenberg, the school superintendent, said the school's staff was aware that King had butted heads with bullying students, including the killer. The superintendent said, "They had been doing a lot of counseling and a lot of work with (King) to help him deal with some of his concerns and personal issues." The recognition that other students had problems with their hate for King is lost in his statement. Eighth-grader Michael Sweeney summed up the bigotry perfectly in his statement: "(King) would come to school in high-heeled boots, makeup, jewelry and painted nails -- the whole thing. That was freaking the guys out.

George W. Bush, indeed, has blood on his hands. For seven years he has spouted rhetoric and mantras across America that are vile, terrorizing, and ridiculous. He's vetoed bills, threatened the court, and spewed vitriolic immoral garbage against homosexuals. In his tense-faced proclamation for a "constitutional amendment protecting marriage," President Bush crashed the marriages of thousands in California and bashed the hope of millions of strong American families looking for hope, joy, and legal recognition. The president repeatedly states that he defends the "sanctity of marriage between a man and a woman" -- a euphemistic slur against gay people and their right to live life in equality with the rest of America.

The killer of Lawrence King - fifteen-year-old Brandon McInerney - has absorbed and internalized the slandering tongue of the president for half his life; it's no wonder he pulled the trigger -- he might think about naming President Bush, Pat Robertson, as co-conspirators." Throw in "Dr." James Dobson, and a perhaps a 1/5th of Congress too.

The United States has stalled on the Matthew Shepard Act that would make Brandon's hate a federal crime. In the decade since Shepard's Wyoming lynching, our nation has failed to enact the legislation that would make violence targeted against homosexuals illegal. The "hate crimes initiative" would make brutality motivated by a victim's gender, sexual orientation, sexual identity, or disability a federally punishable act. President Bush has said he will veto the bill if it ever crosses his desk. The president's intelligence vacuum has pulled down America. The President has dragged America backward into the devolution of our country by his prejudice and this national sanctioned hate.

Tom Lantos - 1928-2008, Rest In Peace

2008-02-15T11:35:00.000-08:00

The public endures Congressional Republican bat-shit crazies, right-wing religious zealouts - for the sake of posturing and beating the drum for the "Save Terri Shiavo" and ban homosexuals crowd. Then I flip on FOX and hear out of touch liberals try to tame O'Reilly for two-bit soundbites - and I think when will this craziness stop. ever?

We have lost touch with the people's business a long time ago - but you gotta think that there was hope in the few. Hope in having true character and principled leadership guide us in D.C. Knowing that someone in Washington understood there were human beings who happen to be gay or straight, muslim or jew, black or white - and treating all of us with dignity and respect. Our own President has not been that person but Tom Lantos was such a man. And he did so not because he was forced to endure prejudice himself, - but because his soul was gentle, kind, and considerate. I met Congressman Lantos on several occassions - and I felt it. He epitomized "YES WE CAN".

He died Monday. He was 80 and was the only member of Congress who interned in a Nazi Concentration Camp. He survived Aushwitz, and landed here to fight for human rights and truly became, the people's prince - not only in San Mateo - but throughout the world. He was a giant among mere career politicos. He did what he could and accomplished much.

Recently, in commenting on the outrage of the utter insanity and waste of time these past couple of days on the "Steroid Hearings" , my friend Tyler Hower said nicely:

"I don't care if Roger Clemens used steroids or HGH...I do wonder whether the House and Senate might perhaps have better things to worry about. I don't understand what drug use in professional sports has to do with government reform or the House Committee thereof. But I do know that we have a huge trade deficit, a huge budget deficit, a burgeoning national debt, are fighting war on two fronts and occasionally threatening another front or two, are (probably) torturing detainees—it's okay, Scalia assures the BBC—suffering through a mortgage crisis and the beginning of a recession, and lobbyists are writing most of our legislation in exchange for treating our Congressmen and Senators more or less the way that Larry Craig wanted to treat that nice policeman in the Minneapolis airport bathroom."

And here, my friends, is just another example of why we will miss Tom Lantos.

Rest In Peace, sir!

Great Dogs and Lovable Bitches

2008-02-13T09:43:00.000-08:00

Congrats to UNO..but I must say my bitch gets the same attention then you UNO - minus the cameras, but enjoy the spotlight!

My Bitch: Enya

Her Daddy: '93 Westminster Champ

Sarah Bettens - The Soldier Song

2008-02-12T17:11:00.001-08:00

One Lesbian I Can Live With.....

A Lunch In The Life of Me

2008-02-11T12:53:00.000-08:00

Proceed to the elevator. Crowded. Four stops before ground level. Stomach growling. Crowded elevators suck.

Exit Building. Enter on B Street. Stand at corner, wait for the cross walk sign to blink "Walk". As the street light turns red, a very large black man in '79 Cadallic, on the phone, with the entire car tilting to one side, on 18 inch tires and spinning rims enters - passes the cross walk, then decides to stop.

Visualize:

I am forced to walk around the car to cross the street.

Walk two blocks. I am solicited to learn Christ by an Awakenings offering. Before entering my eating establishment, a homeless man awkwardly lingers seeking contribution to fight homelessness in San Diego. Hmmm...

Order sandwhich. Wait in line at check-out. Consider buying a scooby pie. Eyeing it. Tell myself too many calories and suger, but fuck I deserve it!. Pass on it however. Guy in front of me, in line, offers me his two cents, literally. huh?

Proceed to walk back to office. Awakenings lady is taking a drink break. Scotch I think, maybe Colt 45.

See a hard to be located attorney in my office step into the cross walk. Bolt (without trying to be obvious) toward him since he is impossible to nail down. I need three seconds, important discussion I seek. Approach him in the elevator lobby. Fourteen people hop on one elevator, we stay behind and grab next one. Him and I, me and him, only. We start commenting about other office-mates who were among the 14 who got in another elevator and avoided us. We discuss avoidance. We both have avoidance issues.

Forgot what I wanted to talk about. I get off on 20, he continues to 21.

My sandwich sucked! I am so fucking narcissistic.

I'M BI CANDIDATE

2008-02-08T09:05:00.000-08:00

I am in the closet.

Not sexually of course, because anyone who knows me knows I am up for anything with anybody. I take all comers. I am an equal opportunity destroyer. So, I am not in that kind of closet. I am in the Democratic Primary closet. I know a lot of people in this closet. We can't talk about it. We are "undecided" in the polls. We are the ones everyone is fighting over. But I don't want to be in this closet, not anymore. I am outing myself.

I am bi-candidate. I like Hillary and Obama. I like Obama and Hillary. I think it is wonderful that we have not just one, but two great candidates to choose from. It is an embarrassment of riches really. Not just one amazing politician. But two! We have the incredibly exciting Barack Obama, who represents hope and change and who can get a whole generation of disillusioned voters excited about politics again, which I think I is a miracle in itself. Then we have the amazing Hillary Clinton, who has already proved herself to be a great leader, who can and will clean up after the Bush administration just like she did the last time she was president.

I can't decide. And so I don't want to tell anyone who I voted for because almost exactly half my friends are into Hillary and the other half are all about Obama, so no matter who I vote for, half my ass will get kicked, which should be ok, because at least I will have the other half of my ass to use for campaigning for my favorite candidate (even though it might look half-assed).

I voted last week, several days early, since I am a permanent absentee voter and have the luxury of voting in the privacy of my own home in my own time. I picked the candidate that I liked best, the one who I thought would do the best job. I filled in my bubble all the way, using blue ink to represent my blue state of mind and put my ballot in the mail. Then, I got worried I had made the wrong choice. I kept thinking about going back into the mailbox and fishing out my ballot and changing it. I really thought about doing this even though it is very illegal! I thought, hmm, maybe if I took a coathanger, stretched it out, secured a small flashlight with tape to the wire so I could find my ballot, put a piece of chewed gum on the end so I could somehow fish my ballot out, etc... I think I got all these ideas from an old episode of The Little Rascals. Then I realized that even if I broke the law and went to all this trouble to do this it probably wouldn't do me any good anyway because I had already filled in one bubble and I couldn't really erase it to fill in the other one. Then, what would happen if I changed my mind again? So I just left it.

The only way I could be happy is if Obama and Clinton were on the same ticket. Please God, let this happen.

-- margaret cho

p.s. i effin love this bitch...

Giants Ticker, TODAY!!!

2008-02-05T09:15:00.000-08:00

There's No Place Like Home. There's No Place Like Home. There's No Place Like Home...

Dorothy wake up..Dorothy!!!!

(I guess the Gay Rights Movement is gaining ground....)

Oh how I wish I was there today!

ENOUGH SAID!

2008-02-04T10:16:00.000-08:00

NO! THIS IS A TRAGEDY.....

2008-01-31T14:55:00.000-08:00

Starbucks, citing some bitches complaining about the "aroma" of the breakfast sandwiches, said it plans to discontinue service of my favorite Spinach Feta Wrap (185 calories) and other sandwiches.

“We have heard from our customers that the aroma of the sandwiches was interfering in their enjoyment of the coffeehouse experience. Customers will continue to enjoy warmed baked goods as our food team continues to add to our breakfast assortment. The highest priority for our food team is to develop the right offerings to complement our superior coffee and espresso beverages.”

The sandwiches will be out of stores by the end of the year.

I want to meet these douches who had nothing better to do with their day except to write Starbucks to tell them they didn't appreciate this blog writer waiting for his healthy breakfast sandwich, while they were in a hurry simply to satisfy their coffee fix.

I am livid, and so is my dog, who always got a piece of egg in a wrap. I am boycotting your coffee because I don't appreciate the assholes who shop there.

My Friends: McCain To Appoint Centrist Judges

2008-01-31T11:06:00.000-08:00

In a news story that broke recently, McCain was quoted as saying he would never support Alito, as he is "too conservative."

I congratulate Lazarus McCain for about to be the Republican Nominee, after a really dead-in-the-water start, and even I will eat crow now when I wrote back in July that Mccain was done. He's a winner not a whiner.

As for gays, abortion-keepers, secularists, etc..we can be thankful that 2008 will pit a moderate to liberal Republican against a very liberal Democrat.

The Supreme Court is safe for now. Although the death of Scalia and another appointment of a Ruth Bader Ginsburg would not hurt!

Pillsbury Doughboy 1965-2008

2008-01-30T10:45:00.000-08:00

Rest In Peace, Dough.

The Pillsbury Doughboy died yesterday of a yeast infection and trauma complications from repeated pokes in the belly. He was 43. Doughboy was buried in a lightly greased coffin.

Dozens of celebrities turned out to pay their respects, including Mrs. Butterworth, Hungry Jack, the California Raisins, Betty Crocker, the Hostess Twinkies, and Captain Crunch. Yankee Doodle gave a thoughtful farewell tune. The grave site was piled high with flour.

Aunt Jemima delivered the eulogy and lovingly described Doughboy as a man who never knew how much he was kneaded. Doughboy rose quickly in show business, but his later life was filled with turnovers. He was not considered a very smart cookie, wasting much of his dough on half-baked schemes. Jemina was particularly fond of how Doughboy brightened everyone's Thanksgiving, in the poorer communities. He was a Dough of character. He despised restaurant gatherings, and enjoyed home-cooked meals with his family.

Despite being a little flaky at times he still was a crusty old man and was considered a positive roll model for millions.

Doughboy is survived by his wife Play Dough, two children, John and Jane Dough.

Sadly, they were expecting one in the oven. He is also survived by his elderly father, Pop Tart.

His first wife Poppie Fresh (a.k.a Mrs. Poppin' Fresh) has been incarcerated for a number of years for the murder of Keebler. Apparently, Keebler was selling marijuana in his cookies. Poppie went from culinary art to rap music and unfortunately was influenced by Biggie Smalls, the Notorious B.I.G.

Poppie Fresh and Pillsbury Doughboy had one girl: Pillsbury Doughgirl who is currently being raised by GrandPopper.

The funeral was held at 350 for about 20 minutes.

John Gibson, FOX NEWS: An Ugly, Ugly Man

2008-01-25T15:10:00.000-08:00

The other day on Gibson's radio show he mocked the sad and unexpected death of Heath Ledger. As he announced the death, with a scene from Brokeback Mountain playing,"I wish I knew how to quit you Jack Twist" Gibson disdainfully quipped, "Well, he found out how to quit you."

Laughing, Gibson then played another clip from Brokeback Mountain in which Ledger said, 'We're dead,' followed by his own, mocking 'We're dead' before playing the clip again."

Gibson went on to call Ledger a "weirdo" with a "serious drug problem" and suggested that Ledger killed himself because he had "a serious position in the (stock) market" or perhaps "watched the Clinton-Obama debate last night. I think he was an Edwards guy, cause he saw his Edwards guy was just completely irrelevant."

Oy. How I loathe this douchebag. This is not the first time he opened his mouth and pure shit came flowing.

I guess when you are scene and heard daily in the national media, heard around the world, you think with some ill-advised reasoning that you have reached the pinnacle of your life therefore you're 'smarter' 'funnier' and simply 'better' then the next guy. Maybe in some ways that is true. But when you're NOT, such as John Gibson, and you make imbecilic, profane stupid insensitive remarks - that you are revealed as the god-dam douchebag that you are - someone needs to put him in his place.

For the life of me, how is it that FOX puts this sleepy-headed dolt on the air in the first place? At least O'Reilly with his white-trash imagery and his east-coast style of speaking, (harking back to the old movies of generation 'Great Depression' of the poor, uneducated and the irritating syntax of Irish immigrants) - can captivate an audience (whether in anger or enlightenment), John Gibson many times over just sits there and makes one dumb statement after another. And in such clueless fashion. He is loathsome.

Does FOX know how to evaluate talent? I mean it's fine to have a ultra conservative agenda, but please give us someone whose verbage makes sense.

I mean I don't disdain everyone with a right-wing edge. Here is what Joe Scarborough, feigning shock, said of his Republican co-hort:

"Is he laughing that Heath Ledger died because he made a movie about two gay men? Is that why this young father dying was? A punchline to John Gibson? If you make a movie about being gay, your death becomes a punchline? That is absolutely stunning, that John Gibson would be that mean-spirited and hateful."

One thing that gets under my skin too is how these media "personalities" copy-cat the success of the Howard Stern's of the world, by boldly instigating in similar radio shock jock shtick. While Howard Stern truly is a creative genius, and his writing and side-kicks are actually funny, all the other xerox copy-crumbs such as John Gibson are nothing more but wanna-be celebrities. How disgustingly vain he is, while smugly trying to entertain his audience with mocking a talented actor's death with his own vile guesses as to what caused Ledger's untimely demise simply because he doesn't like "Hollywood" and everything it represents. That's what truly motivated his comments.

On his Fox News Channel show Thursday, Gibson reluctantly apologized and said he was sorry if his comments offended anyone and also said he was sorry that Heath Ledger died and wasn't with us anymore.

Fuck you Gibson. Go crawl under your homophobic, right-wing rock. Or at least, get to a dentist.

How does it feel to be on the same page as the lunatics of the Westboro Baptist Church?