Archive for April, 2009
President Obama: 100 Days, 100 Failures
Per Rupert Murdoch’s Fox “News,” his New York Post and the likes of Joe Scarborough of that liberal outpost, MSNBC: Obama has screwed up every s-i-n-g-l-e day of the first 100 days of his term.
Stay tuned. If the pesky Swine flu doesn’t get in the way you’ll near more — 24 hours of it, at least — come Wednesday.
I know. I can’t wait either.
Five Days Since Sean Hannity Agreed to Be Waterboarded
Still waiting for the details…
Why I Cancelled My Subscription to the New York Times
Because of insanity like this: Cheney for President.
Keith Olbermann Sans Suit Coat
Keith Olbermann is doing his show without a suit coat tonight. It looks good. Friendly.
CNN’s Lisa Sylvester Provides Cover for the GOP
Minutes ago (7:41 p.m. ET) Lisa Sylvester filed a report on CNN’s “Lou Dobbs Tonight” captioned, “Swine Flu: Are we Prepared?” In it, Sylvester implied that the Obama administration isn’t prepared to handle the Swine flu situation because it hasn’t fully staffed key health and human services positions. She noted that Kathleen Sebelius is still awaiting confirmation by the Senate, but she failed to note that Sebelius’ confirmation has been stalled by Republicans.
When Sylvester tossed back to Dobbs, he, of course, didn’t fill in the blank either.
Another example of just how “liberal” the media is, huh?
Fox News Won’t Air Obama’s Wednesday Night Press Conference
(Upated below.)
From the AP: Fox sticking with schedule instead of Obama.
Wonder if they refused to air any of Bush’s press conferences. (Are you kidding! They went live to him when he was picking his nose, much less holding a press conference.) Stupid question but for those of you who blindly and ignorantly believe that Fox is “fair and balanced,” here’s what I got when I asked:
This for web pages:
And this for news pages:
Gee. Seems to me that a presidential news conference fits into the definition of “news,” and I though (though I know something else) Fox was a “news” station.
Ultimately this is a complement to Obama. His poll numbers are too high and he’s too compelling when he speaks in public, at least as far as the wingers are conserned. So the less visibility Fox can give him, the better (in their small minds). They’re scared some of the 27%-ers might, just might, start to find him attractive.
Not only that, if Fox’s audience sees the presser live, Fox (the cable version that is) might not be able to lie to them about what Obama said.
Updated: Apparently, Fox didn’t carry a prime-time “Bush speech” in November, 2001.
Cheney – Suddenly Mr. Sunshine
We’ll release the memos you claim will “prove” that torture worked (which wouldn’t absolve you and your cohort of breaking national and international laws against it) if you’ll releases notes and memos (and info as to who participated) surrounding your “energy task force.”
Deal?
The Republican Version of We the People
Here’s a quick summary of what the economic layout of the United States would look like if the GOP got, or gets its way on its proposed “reforms.”
Another Bush-era Illusion Goes Poof
Remember during the last eight years when we heard, over and over again, that the economy and the country were doing just great, thank you very much, because so many people were buying and living in their own homes? (I heard it at least weekly from Neil Cavuto.)
Well — poof. That’s all gone. Another house of cards built on winger sand.
Susan Collins (R-ME) Removes Incriminating Article from Website
(Updated below.)
Roughly 90 minutes ago (11:00 a.m. ET), the following article appeared on Susan Collin’s website. In it, she is praised for, “expressing concern about a number of spending provisions, including $780 million for pandemic-flu preparedness”:
Collins ended up being instrumental in killing that provision.
Now (12:29 p.m. ET) the article is gone:
Hey Susan, don’t you have the guts to stand up for what you appearently believe in — or were you just pandering to “the base?” (And by hiding this information, who are you pandering to now?)
Update 4-28 / 5:01 p.m ET: Some of my commenters are finding the article on Collins’ site now. I don’t know whether it was put back up, moved, or what, but appearently it’s there.
Republicans: You’re On Your Own If There’s a Pandemic
GOP Know-Nothings Fought Pandemic Preparedness.
But when the shit hits the fan, they turn into “socialists“.
Swine Flu Updates
Here’s a good place to keep track of the latest.
Roll Call’s Emily Heil Fails Journalism 1.0
Emily Heil of Roll Call’s “Heard on the Hill” should take a refresher course in journalism. She appeared on MSNBC this morning and participated in a discussion about Dick Cheney urging the Obama administration to release classified CIA reports re “enhanced interrogation.” Heil said it was Cheney’s prerogative to do so because it,
goes to the heart of this debate, and that is, does torture work and does that matter?
Whether torture works, or not, is precisely the spin Cheney hopes “journalists” like Heil will buy.
Fact is, per U.S. and international law — (Google it) — torture, as in the kind of “enhanced interrogation” the Bush administration used, and is trying to justify — was and is illegal – and has been for decades. The world community hashed that out long ago. The question is, did George and Dick violate those pre-existing laws. Period. Torture, whether it works, and “does that matter,” has nothing to do with it.
It’s Hot, Already
It was 89º in Albany, New York today. What’s normal? 62º.
David Duke Kicked out of the Czech Republic
David Duke, the former leader of the KKK,
must leave the Czech Republic by midnight Saturday after he was detained on suspicion of denying the Holocaust.
Undoubtedly we’ll hear the wingers screaming about Duke just like they scream about Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad who is also alleged to have denied the Holocaust. Then again, I wouldn’t hold my breath, hypocritical, two-faced opportunists that they are.
American Exceptionalism Seeps Into CNN Report on Swine Flu
(Updated below.)
At roughly 2:00 p.m. ET this afternoon, CNN’s senior medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen was on to report “the latest” on the Swine flu situation. She suggested that there might be a difference between the flu found in Mexico, with 1,000 victims and 60 deaths, and the flu found in the United States, with 8 victims – that would be 8 victims – and no deaths. She speculated that the U.S. strain might be milder because of the difference in the death rate between the two countries.
Tell me, how does comparing the death rate from 1,000 cases to the death rate from 8 cases lead to such a dramatic conclusion? Hey, maybe we will find that there are two (or more) strains but to suggest so at this point, based on such disparate circumstances, seems to me to be totally irresponsible and nothing but wild speculation.
One would hope we would get nothing but the facts during a situation like this. The last thing we need is for the media to start glossing things over, especially this early on. Just because we’re in the United States doesn’t mean that we’re special and the bugs that infect us are nicer than the bugs out there in the rest of the world, so let’s get rid of that notion ASAP.
Predatory Television
Check out this little ditty that QVC is seducing its audience into buying as we speak (10:27 p.m. ET). Note the price and the option to “Speed Buy.”
Imagine waking up tomorrow and coming to the realization that you spent $3,500+ on a watch you didn’t know you “needed” the day before. Is it any wonder we’re in debt up to our eyeballs? And don’t tell me it’s all the fault of the little people.
UPDATE: Oooh. Now they’re pushing the “ultimate status piece.”
Does Not Compute: News Corp. Owns The National Geographic Channel
I was looking into a show I thought I might watch this weekend on the National Geographic Channel — Waking the Baby Mammoth — when I remembered that Fox — well, not Fox per see but Fox’s parent company, News Corp. – owns it.
Now I don’t know if I’ll watch. Don’t want to give Rupert any hits, so to speak.
BTW, Rupie owns MySpace too. (Here’s more on News Corp.’s media hegemony.)
Where Have All the Flag Pins Gone?
The people who were screaming the loudest about “patriotism” — where are their flag pins?
Hannity this week:
Glenn Beck this week:
BillO, in a shot from his website:
And last but not least, Neil Cavuto last Wednesday. Cavuto wore a flag pin for as long as I can remember (I monitored him at the News Hounds for almost five years):
Prostitutes.
These Iraqis Can’t Get a Break
Saddam Hussein tried to destroy the ancient marsh Arabs of southern Iraq but they struggled to make a comeback, only to encounter what appear to be insurmountable difficulties. These poor people just can’t get a break
Credit Unions Aren’t Immune
A Florida credit union, chartered in 1937, was seized today by the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA).
From the Department of: What Were They Thinking?
Company Pulls Baby Shaking App for iPhone.
I guess it was supposed to be funny, huh?
Boycott J.Jill For Supporting Fox News and Bill O’Reilly
J.Jill supports Bill O’Reilly and Fox “News”?! Ugh; so antithetical to the image it projects.
Here’s a screen shot from a few hours ago:
Boycott J.Jill.
The I-Didn’t-Mean-It-Rush, Please-Forgive-Me Clock Starts Ticking on Larry Murphy
A Republican Who’s Not Afraid of Limbaugh?
How long will it take Murphy to cave? 4, 6, 20 hours?
I Pledge $100.00 Per Second to Sean Hannity’s Charity Waterboarding Event
Keith Olbermann just pledged to pay $1,000 per second to the charity of Sean Hannity’s choice when Hannity submits to the waterboarding he agreed to last night. I’m on board. I’m pledging — here, publicly — $100.00 per second. Enough already with the winger’s false bravado.
I’ve had enough of this crap. (More as to why I’ve had enough is here.)
UPDATE: This offer expires on May 4, 2009.
