Wednesday Stuff

The next time you hear someone say that Islam is nothing but a “gutter religion” or whatever – well, ask them to watch this video (here)…



…and by the way, how hilarious is this? TPM put together a reel of clips showing Repugs telling Todd Akin to GET THE HELL OUT of the Missouri Senate race, but apparently based on this, all is forgiven (and God, how pathetic is Dennis Miller anymore?)…



…and I give you yet another Repug acting just a bit too candid in front of a camera and a microphone here (and to help Tammy Baldwin, click here)…



…and happy birthday to Bryan Ferry, formerly of Roxy Music.

Tuesday Stuff

I really hadn’t planned to say anything about what apparently was the blown call in the Green Bay Packers/Seattle Seahawks football game last night, but I thought this was an interesting piece of “world” news from Yahoo.

In addition to the fact that the replacement refs are scabs, the games shouldn’t be watched because the NFL is thus marketing an inferior product.

The only things Roger Goodell and the owners understand are asses in the seats at the home games and eyeballs watching the TV screens. Until that changes, nothing else will.

Now, to switch subjects – this is a quick video, but a meaningful one...



...and enigmatic Canadian pianist Glenn Gould would have been 80 today (time for a bit of culture).

Monday Stuff

I guess you can call this a bit of humor echoing a serious message (here)…

Guide to Voter ID Laws - watch more funny videos

…and I know I gave it to Kathy Boockvar yesterday for her wishy-washy sort-of endorsement of the Affordable Care Law, but apparently, she gave an interview recently with the oh-so-august-in-their-imaginations editorial board of the Bucks County Courier Times, and she said things that were a lot more in line with what a Dem is supposed to think and feel and believe, IMHO (no oil company subsidies; get our military out of Afghanistan – depending on what the brass has to say...conditional, I know, but pragmatic; and raising the top-tier tax rate to 39 percent – here, and to help Boockvar, click here).

And of course, since we’re talking about Gary Weckselblatt and Mikey the Beloved’s PR factory, they pointed out moments when they asked her questions and she didn’t know the answers (honestly can’t recall our Longtime Bucks Resident Good Catholic Father And Former Eagle Scout PA-08 rep getting that kind of treatment). They also pointed out how many times Boockvar has run for office and lost.

Now why does that sound familiar...



…and here is a message to Willard Mitt from one of the “47 percent” (here)…

…and what the hell is wrong with that man anyway (here – h/t to Jed Lewison for the pic).

Sunday Stuff

Yes, I know we’ve beaten the “Mitt Romney screwing the proverbial pooch at the Boca Raton fundraiser” thing to death, but I still thought Chris Hayes had some interesting comments about it here (probably the best argument for the moment for public financing only of campaigns)…



…and happy 60th birthday to Richard Nixon’s “Checkers” speech, probably the first bit of political theater for the TV age…keep in mind that it worked…



…and I don’t know about you, but I need a laugh (though Tricky Dick was kind of humorous in that speech…hat tips to Time and Buzzfeed), so…



…and happy 63rd birthday to Bruce Springsteen (and I give you one of the best expressions of populist rage set to music I’ve ever heard).

Some Saturday Health Care Hijinks From Mikey The Liar (update)

There’s a reason why I frequently refer to the Bucks County Courier Times as Mike Fitzpatrick’s PR operation. It’s because that’s exactly what that newspaper is, and they proved it again yesterday.

They ran a headline with a look of consternation on Fitzpatrick’s face (supposedly from fighting for his constituents again, I guess, or so they’d have us believe), and the “news story” at the top of the front page had to do with the supposed revelations of the latest Congressional Budget Office report on the health care law.

And of course, this “story” served up the usual demagoguery from Mikey The Beloved…congressional Democrats in the prior congress supposedly railroaded the bill to the White House…etc. (some of which was also refuted here)…

The (CBO) revision, 50 percent higher than a previous projection of 4 million in 2010, amounts to a broken promise, Fitzpatrick said.

In his first campaign for the White House, Obama pledged not to raise taxes on individuals making less than $200,000 a year and couples making less than $250,000.

The budget office analysis, however, found that nearly 80 percent of those who’ll face the penalty would be making up to or less than five times the federal poverty level. Currently that would work out to $55,850 or less for an individual and $115,250 or less for a family of four.

The average penalty in 2016 will be $1,200, according to the CBO.

(By the way, I assume that, outside of the CBO notation, all of this comes from Mikey himself, since there really is no other attribution implied.)

OK, so let’s back up here – what’s 50 percent higher than 4 million, boys and girls?

Yes, 6 million, that’s right!

Which is 2 percent of the total population of this country.

Yep, 2 percent, people.

Think Progress tells us that and much more here, including the following...

…the revised 6 million figure does not mean the health care law puts a strain on the middle class. In fact, Obamacare will provide millions of families with large tax credits to help make health care more affordable for them, and the penalty will only be leveled against those Americans who choose not to purchase insurance even though they are able to afford it.

It should be noted that the Courier Times “story” does indeed include a quote from the Obama Administration that corroborates the 6 million, 2 percent figure. Of course, it’s noted in PARAGRAPH 14 after the reader gets a heaping helping of Mikey’s partisan whining first (talk about burying the lede!).

Also, as noted here, part of the reason for the CBO adjustment is because of cuts to Medicaid that the Affordable Care Law may or may not make up (And the governors of which political party are primarily responsible for those cuts? The answer is here). Also, here is more on the Repugs' years-long effort to kill health care reform.

The Courier Times piece also notes that the Kathy Boockvar campaign was contacted over this, and here is the response…

Fitzpatrick’s opponent in the November election, Democrat Kathy Boockvar, was unavailable for comment Thursday.

Now it’s possible that there could have been a scheduling conflict of some type, and that might have been the reason why there was no official response from the PA-08 Dem challenger. However, the Courier Times also tells us the following…

Following the GOP’s summer repeal vote, (Boockvar) said rather than repeal the measure, “let’s fix the law we have. Let’s make sure it’s affordable for individuals and small businesses alike. Let’s make sure that this law best carries out its purpose, making sure the most Americans have health care coverage as soon as possible so our children and our neighbors never have to rely on emergency rooms for their health care.”

That’s not exactly the full-throated defense that the Affordable Care Law deserves, Ms. Boockvar. As far as I’m concerned, it isn’t even close.

Basically, why am I the one communicating the utter absurdity of the latest fit of pique from Fitzpatrick and his willing accomplices at the Courier Times instead of you (oh, and in another tricky move by Mikey’s PR service, they perpetrated this fraud on a Friday, and since the paper doesn’t publish on a Saturday, this was the running headline for two days on the news stand copies all over Bucks, not just one).

Of course, I’m talking about the same alleged newspaper that ran full-page Fitzpatrick ads for weeks two years ago and ended up giving two candidate endorsements, one for Fitzpatrick and former rep Patrick Murphy, as opposed to a single one that reputable print publications do…wonder if they’ll extend Boockvar the same favor? Do I need to ask?

This is a picture of Gary Weckselblatt, the author of this utter dreck.

Here is a link to job postings at Pottery Barn (Williams-Sonoma is the parent company).

Weckselblatt knows how to do the rest (and for more of the reality point of view here, Ezra Klein tells us the following - more here)…



…and here is a tune for the occasion (haven’t featured anything from the ‘80s for a little while – about time).



Update 9/23/12: I may be putting on my tin foil hat here, but I’m wondering if there isn’t something much more organized at work than I first suspected.

You see, being a Roman Catholic, I attended services today, and of course today is “Respect Life Sunday.” So the priest celebrating Mass tells us about the importance of the election coming up, and naming President Obama by name, criticizes him for supporting abortion, gay marriage and forced sterilization (the latter of which, by the way, is an urban legend, as noted here).

Oh, and after the homily ends, half of the congregation applauds (registered Republicans, I’m sure).

And to put the cherry on the icing on the proverbial cake, tables were set up in front of the church so congregants could fill in voter registration forms when they left Mass.

I realize there is quite probably no illegality whatsoever in what I just described. But given that the Church enjoys tax-exempt status and really isn’t allowed to “officially” (wink, wink) endorse one political party over another (again, on the heels of the Courier Times doing their part with Mikey)…

Well, let me put it this way; no incense was used today in church because it wasn’t a high holy day (which happens for Easter services, among other occasions), but to give out the proper amount of it to purify the premises from the rankness of its political cronyism, they would have had to turn the entire grounds into a fog bank.

Update 10/4/12: Oh, and by the way, about a week after this took place in church, we received a solicitation from our parish saying more money was needed for building repairs, and $500 was listed as a "suggested family contribution." I was tempted to tear up the letter and send it back with a 2012 Obama bumper sticker included - I may yet do that.

Friday Stuff

(I also posted here.)

Yeah, I gotta do it again over The Mittster – comedy gold from Jon Stewart, and speaking truth to stoo-pid too…



…and nothing wrong with Fox Entertainment, I should add, as opposed to Fox “News” (art imitates life again)…



…by the way, Troy Davis was murdered by the state of Georgia a year ago today (here)…



…and this is probably a little chatty for a “relationship” song (more than one, actually), but it rocks.

Thursday Stuff

As Willard Mitt Romney continues to desperately search for an Obama “scandal” (here), I give you this…



…and here is the latest with the groups that Romney has no shot of winning, at least in the numbers he needs (and speaking of babies)…

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

…oh, and speaking also of faux Repug scandals, I give you this (here, something to keep in mind while reading this)…

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

…and after watching this video, why do I have an impulse to watch Frank, Dino, Sammy and Liza at the Sands (or Bobby Darin, better yet)?

Wednesday Stuff

The Bucks County Courier Times allowed Mikey the Beloved (that upstanding Catholic former Eagle scout and supposed paragon of integrity, let's not forget) to whine some more today about how he supposedly is a protector of Social Security and Medicare (here); in response, I give you this video...and as far as Mikey supposedly being a “protector” of Romney-RyanCare (or, to be more precise, Romney-Ryan-MikeyCare), I give you this…



…and sure, why not let Jon Stewart have a whack at the Romney presidential campaign piñata…

The Daily Show
Get More: Daily Show Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire Blog,The Daily Show on Facebook

…and changing the mood more than a little bit, this is so disgusting that it's hard for me to talk about it, so I'll just put up the video instead (it features that Murphy guy again, and "No Corporate Tax Pat" Toomey being typically slimy)…

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

…and this is one of the best songs about a building that I've ever heard (sorry, no video).

Tuesday Stuff

(I also posted here.)

Awww, too bad Rep. Turzai, you creep (here)…



…and I give you a member of the “47 percent” with a message for Willard Mitt…



Update 9/19/12: Oh, so now the "47 percent" are "parasites" (h/t Atrios). Awesome indeed!

…and I’ve tried to stay away from Jon Stewart not because he isn’t great, which he is, but because I don’t find most of what’s going on to be particularly funny, though it rocks that he basically rips “Baghdad Dan” Senor a new one here…

The Daily Show
Get More: Daily Show Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire Blog,The Daily Show on Facebook

…and since the Phils were rained out, here is today’s baseball action (what meanies!).

Monday Stuff

Another day, another insert-foot-in-mouth-and-turn moment from Willard Mitt Romney (hat tip to Atrios for this, the latest from Think Progress is here, and here is more about the individual hosting the event where Romney told us what truly lurks in his coal-black heart)…



…all of which makes what he has to say in this video even more unintentionally hilarious (more here)…



…and from the ridiculous (but still important) to the sublime, I give you this; happy 225th birthday to the U.S. Constitution…



…and Ethan Clay is my new hero for this (figures that the “suits” are mad at him) – here is a song in his honor (sorry, no video, only Tom’s mug).

Saturday Stuff

Yep, Willard Mitt Romney sure keeps interesting company (more here)…



…and good luck trying to woo women voters (here)…



…and this should drive the proverbial stake through the heart of another stupid Repug/corporate media talking point…



…and ain’t love grand?

Friday Stuff

(I also posted here.)

I thought Ezra Klein produced some interesting historical context here on how diplomacy in the Muslim world really is a bipartisan issue…and yes, you may be shocked to learn that Dubya deserves credit for actually doing something right (here, and I thought this was interesting also on this issue – I continue to be impressed by Rep. Keith Ellison)…

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

…and I’m bringing back this report from Memorial Day 2010 or thereabouts as a reminder that, while the U.S. House Repug “leadership” can take a two-month vacation, as noted here (oh, but that time will really be devoted to “constituent service,” wink, wink), they’ll trip all over each other to try and deny that benefit to the rest of us (something else to keep in mind on November 6th… - and by the way, this report is another reason to support this guy)…



…and this clip goes out not just to Todd Akin, but Paul “Rape Is ‘Another Method Of Contraception’” Ryan (here)…

"Legitimate Rape" Pharmaceutical Ad (TW) - watch more funny videos

…and I guess this is a tongue-in-cheek selection – no line that Akin and his disgusting pals including Mikey the Beloved won’t cross (haven’t heard a word of reproach towards Akin from our wet noodle PA-08 rep…love to be wrong, but I haven’t seen it).

Thursday Stuff

Leave it to America’s Finest News Source to get the lowdown on the latest Willard Mitt Romney campaign strategy (hey, CNN, you got “scooped”! :- )...


GOP Trying To Keep Elderly Voting Base Alive Until November

...and switching gears big time, this video starts out pretty rough, but please stick with it – it gets better, as they say.

Wednesday Stuff

Let’s “set the wayback” for the benefit of Willard Mitt Romney, OK (answering this); here is his response to the British burning Washington during the War of 1812...

“Well, this is what happens when President Jefferson and Secretary of War Madison apologize to the British and let them 'impress' members of our Navy for their own.” (Read this to find out that Jefferson and Madison did no such thing).

Here is Romney’s response to the commencement of The Civil War in 1861...

“I’m shocked that a Republican president would allow the Army of the Potomac to commence fire in a southern state in an effort to illegally seize federal property.” (Read here to learn that the South fired first at Fort Sumter).

Here is Romney’s response to the assassination of President James Garfield in 1881...

“This is a sad day for our country, but it’s not hard to see how passions can be inflamed when a president fails to reach out to formerly secessionist elements, to the point where someone acts lawlessly.” (Read here to learn, among other things, that Garfield’s assassin, Charles Guiteau, wanted an ambassadorship from Garfield, believing that he was responsible for the election of our 20th president, with Guiteau not giving a damn about the South in the Civil War, though the state of Guiteau’s mental faculties was definitely an open question).

And finally, here is Romney responding to the World War I veterans of the Bonus March of 1932...

“It sickens me that insurgent, liberal elements have led some in our military to seek a government handout when we can least afford it.” (Read here to learn that the World War I veterans marching on Washington sought compensation due to them since they could not find work during the Great Depression; in accordance with a 1924 law, they were not due to receive their money until 1945...the law was eventually changed in 1936 so they could receive their payments early).

No, I don’t suppose all of this is particularly clever on my part. However, I’m trying to come up with new ways to express my disgust with Romney, having exhausted all the old ones, so please bear with me on this (maybe he was better off actually ignoring foreign policy, and kudos to Chuck Todd and Lawrence O’Donnell for holding him accountable – there is indeed a historical context in which presidents have to act, a fact that utterly escapes the former Massachusetts governor)...



Update 9/13/12: And speaking of history lessons (here)...

...and Steve Biko died 35 years ago today (for more info on Amnesty International, click here...the rest is indeed up to us).

Tuesday Stuff

Offered without comment – I don’t believe any is necessary…



(Also, sorry to profane the memory of this day with media/political crap, but in response to this, I give you this, particularly egregious on Cheney’s part when you consider this…more in the spirit of this day, I give you this.)

…and consider this my way of saying “F.U.” to those who attacked us, scratchy vinyl and all (from the Columbia years…I read people who were actually upset that bin Laden was supposedly unarmed when he was killed – I seem to recall about 3,000 people who were also mostly unarmed about 11 years ago today).

Monday Stuff

Damn skippy with this, Willard Mitt…



…and here is a bit of an homage to “the city that doesn’t sleep” in advance of tomorrow.

Sunday Stuff

To me, this was easily the highlight of the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte last week – a highly unoriginal observation, I realize...here is all of former President Clinton’s speech...



...and Slash and Myles Kennedy keep cranking out rockin’ little numbers like these.

An Addendum To My 2012 U.S. House Voting Guide

I have to admit that I was feeling a bit pleased with myself for this recent post in response to the 31 (at a minimum) votes to repeal the Affordable Care Law, in which, in response, I highlighted 31 U.S. House Republicans (and two Democrats) who I thought were most at fault for this utter waste of time and taxpayer money. And putting all the posts together, while a time-consuming and sometimes exhausting exercise, was something that I thought was beneficial.

However, it recently occurred to me that that’s not really going to do much in pursuit of what I believe is a bigger goal, and that is to return the U.S. House to the Democrats (or short of that, to cut into the Republican majority…besides, is Hal Rogers actually going to lose?).

So I did a bit of looking around and came up with this list of races in which control of the House could be decided, and I did the same thing I did with the 31, only with a bigger and broader group. I tried to put the Republican candidates in what I believed was an appropriate light on one hand, while including web site or other contact information for their Democratic challengers on the other.

Now I can imagine the response of “there you go again, Doomsy, trying to smear Republicans any way possible.” Well, it may shock you to know that I included complimentary information on three of them; Robert Dold for standing up for Planned Parenthood, Scott Tipton for standing up for wind power, and Richard Hanna for standing up to the Teahadists. But don’t worry – there’s plenty of other stuff to use against the rest of the list (including Hanna and Tipton, though I must say that Tipton’s challenger Sal Pace doesn’t exactly “light it up” in his interview with Ed Schultz…it should also be noted that I really couldn’t find anything on David Rosa in Texas or David Hernandez in California – I’ll admit that this list may be a bit inexact). Also, it’s likely that there are races on this list where the Repug incumbent is actually better qualified that the Democratic challenger.

The issue that matters, though, is control of the House, and if sending some less deserving Dems to Washington helps return us to the majority, so be it, as a certain Speaker said in another context (besides, who’s to say that some of these folks won’t grow into the job, in the name of the “greater good”?).

So, with that somewhat windy pretext out of the way, here is my list of the DCCC-targeted Repug U.S. House candidates and their challengers (Note: Some Republicans are challengers also in races where an incumbent isn't running or redistricting has taken place):

District	Repug Incumbent	Dem Challenger
AR-01	Rick Crawford	Scott Ellington
AZ-01	Paul Gosar	Ann Kirkpatrick
AZ-09	Vernon Parker	Krysten Sinema
CA-02	Wally Herger	Jared Huffman
CA-07	Dan Lungren	Ami Bera
CA-10	Jeff Denham	Jose Hernandez
CA-29	*David Hernandez	Tony Cardenas
CA-36	Mattie Fein	Raul Ruiz
CA-41	John Tavaglione	Mark Takano
CA-47	Gary DeLong	Alan Lowenthal
CA-51	Michael Crimmins	Juan Vargas
CA-52	Brian Bilbray	Scott Peters
CO-03	Scott Tipton (and here)	Sal Pace
CO-06	Mike Coffman	Joe Miklosi
CT-05	Andrew Roraback	Elizabeth Esty
FL-02	Steve Southerland	Al Lawson
FL-09	Todd Long	Alan Grayson
FL-10	Daniel Webster	Val Demings
FL-13	Bill Young	Jessica Ehrlich
FL-16	Vern Buchanan	Keith Fitzgerald
FL-22	Adam Hasner	Lois Frankel
FL-26	David Rivera	Joe Garcia
IL-08	Joe Walsh	Tammy Duckworth
IL-10	Robert Dold	Brad Schneider
IL-11	Judy Biggert	Bill Foster
IL-12	Jason Plummer	Bill Enyart
IL-13	Rodney Davis	David Gill
IL-17	Bobby Schilling	Cheri Bustos
IN-02	Jackie Walorski	Brendan Mullen
IN-08	Larry Buchson	David Crooks
MD-06	Roscoe Bartlett (and here)	John Delaney
MI-01	Dan Benishek	Gary McDowell
MI-03	Justin Amash	Steve Pestka
MI-05	Jim Slezak	Dan Kildee
MI-11	Kerry Bentivolio	Syed Taj
MN-02	John Kline	Mike Obermueller
MN-08	Chip Cravaack	Rick Nolan
MO-04	Vicky Hartzler	Teresa Hensley
MT-AL	Steve Daines	Kim Gillan
NC-11	Mark Meadows	Hayden Rogers
ND-AL	Kevin Cramer	Pam Gulleson
NH-01	Frank Guinta (and here)	Carol Shea-Porter
NH-02	Charlie Bass	Annie Kuster
NJ-03	Jon Runyan	Shelley Adler
NJ-07	Leonard Lance	Upendra Chivukula
NM-01	Janice Arnold-Jones	Michelle Lujan Grisham
NV-01	Chris Edwards	Dina Titus
NV-03	Joe Heck	John Oceguera
NV-04	Danny Tarkanian	Steven Horsford
NY-08	Allan Bellone	Hakeem Jeffries
NY-11	Michael Grimm	Mark Murphy
NY-18	Nan Hayworth	Sean Patrick Maloney
NY-19	Chris Gibson	Julian Schreibman
NY-22	Richard Hanna (and here)	Dan Lamb
NY-23	Tom Reed	Nate Shinagawa
NY-24	Ann Marie Buerkle	Dan Maffei
OH-03	Chris Long	Joyce Beatty
OH-06	Bill Johnson	Charlie Wilson
OH-07	Bob Gibbs	Joyce Healy-Abrams
OH-10	Mike Turner	Sharen Neuhardt
OK-02	Markwayne Mullin	Rob Wallace
PA-07	Patrick Meehan (and here)	George Badey
PA-17	Laureen Cummings	Matt Cartwright
PA-18	Tim Murphy	Larry Maggi
TN-04	Scott Desjarlais	Eric Stewart
TX-14	Randy Weber	Nick Lampson
TX-20	David Rosa	Joaquin Castro
TX-23	Francisco Canseco	Pete Gallego
VA-02	Scott Rigell	Paul Hirschbiel
VA-05	Robert Hurt	John Douglass
WA-01	John Koster	Suzan DelBene
WA-10	Richard Muri	Denny Heck
WI-02	Chad Lee	Mark Pocan
WI-06	Tom Petri	Joe Kallas
WI-07	Sean Duffy (and here)	Pat Kreitlow
WI-08	Reid Ribble	Jamie Wall

* - No party preference

Update 9/19/12: God, is Todd Long a mess (here)...though the Hopefully Next Congresssman With Guts may have gone a bit too far, as noted here.

Update 9/25/12: And Mike Grimm definitely earns a Dishonorable Mention for this, especially the part about Gabby Giffords.

Update 10/10/12: Some "do as I say, not as I do" stuff from Scott DesJarlais here...

Friday Stuff

Today, we fight the corrupting influence of ALEC, the Koch Brothers, Sheldon Adelson, and on and on, but in an earlier day, the primo right-wing sugar daddy was this guy, and the Repugs (and probably some Dems too) paid homage to him…not saying this as a tribute to Moon by any means, but just acknowledging the history…



…and remember when the Repugs used to be the “daddy party” according to our corporate media? Funny, but I’m not hearing that any more (Rachel Maddow should get an Emmy, a Cable Ace award or something for the last minute and a half in particular)…

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

…and this actually isn’t a bad report on the American Jobs Act until the “White Ho” starts editorializing at about 1:42; as noted here, the report is a year old…just like the American Jobs Act is a year old, while “Man Tan” Boehner and Eric Cantor continue to sit on it and let it gather dust…I’ll remember that the next time I hear wingnut caterwauling about how one of their pet causes or personages “deserves an up-and-down vote”…



…oh, and speaking of jobs, Mikey The Beloved’s PR factory allowed him more room to peddle his garbage here (“the threat of high taxes creates uncertainty for job creators, along with the Supreme Court’s ruling on ‘Obamacare’ that creates a burden for middle-class families, blah blah blah”…we’ve heard it from you a hundred times before, Mikey – it was bullshit then, and it’s bullshit now – try sucking on this...and to help Kathy Boockvar, click here)…

…and that’s probably an appropriate transition to this tune – RIP Joe South.

Thursday Stuff

“The Choice,” indeed…



…and I suppose it’s time to put up a video from this decade for a change, so here it is.

Wednesday Stuff

Rachel Maddow and Chris Matthews (who has been kicking butt lately, for anyone who’s noticed) bring us a depressing, but important, history lesson concerning the awful 112th Congress (and something neither mentioned, which is just as bad, are the stalled judicial appointments)...

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

...and I don’t know how many other people besides me are going to say it today, so please allow me – happy birthday to Al Stewart.

Tuesday Stuff

Gee, I wonder what position Willard Mitt (Etch-A-Sketch, Weather Vane) Romney was taking here (great stuff, included in a film tribute to Ted Kennedy at the convention tonight)...



...and I heard be “proved it all night,” as the song goes, again in these parts (here...this is loud!).

Monday Stuff

Looks like that sleazy weasel Eric Cantor needs to pay a trip to the Karl Rove-Frank Luntz GOP Messaging Factory (‘humuna humuna humuna” – and speaking of Virginia’s congressional mistake, I give you this)...

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

...and here’s another tune for the holiday (sorry, no video).

Sunday Stuff

As we know, Willard Mitt Romney promises nothing except “the ownership society” on steroids (here).

However, I want to digress for a minute and focus on That Upstanding “Catholic” man Paul Ryan for a second.

This, to me, was a hell of a catch by Paul Slansky at HuffPo; did you know that rape is a “method of conception” according to Mr.-Puppy-Dog-Eyes-With-The-Shiv-In-His-Pocket?

And, by the way, that supposedly is "an improvement over what we have now" according to Ryan? WHAAAA????!!!

Actually, the exact quote when asked by the brainless corporate media stenographer about rape and conception (and DEAR GOD, CAN THE REPUGS PLEASE JUST ALL SHUT UP ABOUT THIS??!!) is “the method of conception doesn’t change the definition of life” (witness the vile, right-wing conservative framing in response to a question about a horrific attack of sexual violence, as if the woman is nothing more than a vessel to incubate the embryo until it forms as a fetus and the woman conceives).

I believe no other conservative politician since The Sainted Ronnie R has managed to make a career out of making the most despicable misstatements of fact and/or opinion besides Ryan. The faux earnestness of his expression while he utters this contemptible garbage is a nauseating travesty unto itself…

Update 9/4/12: And speaking of Romney/Ryan, insert your own caption for this one, comrades!

Update 9/5/12: That "fine, Christian man" strikes again (here).

…and changing topics, I guess this is appropriate for the holiday (Prog Rock lives! I just wish that damn screen would stop flipping! And yes, I also thought of Spinal Tap as listened to this.)

More Saturday Stuff

Oh, and by the way, while one political circus packs up and leaves Tampa and a new one makes its way to Charlotte, I think we should all keep in mind the fact that the planet is still melting, and we still need to do something about that, assuming it is still possible (and leave it to al Jazeera to do the reporting that actually matters)...



...and RIP Hal David.

Saturday Stuff

Hey, if the Repugs are going to twist that “you didn’t build that” quote, then the Dems should be able to take advantage also (and for more, Matt Taibbi, in typical fashion, delivers here)...



...and I was kind of in the mood for this, so here it is (just felt like changing things up again a bit).

Friday Stuff

(I also posted here.)

“The Man From Bloomfield Hills” – nice job by Moveon.org…



…and more avoidance by Willard Mitt is on display here (though I must say that, though I support Number 44, it takes more than a bit of chutzpah to try and tether Romney to Afghanistan, which Obama owns exclusively at this point)…



…and by the way, how did Iraq war cheerleader William Kristol, of all people, end up as the corporate media arbiter of political etiquette when it comes to all people, places and things related to the military (here)…



…and I probably shouldn’t like this because Bob’s voice is almost completely gone, but I do – are you looking for a good old fashioned “boy meets girl then loses girl then finds girl and they end up happily ever after” video? Well, this ain’t it.

Thursday Stuff

Welcome to the Republican Party, Clint (here…very “non-PC” language follows)…



Update 9/20/12: And in a case of life imitating art, I guess the chair is as empty as this idiot's head; the same goes for that loser in Virginia also (here).

…and gee, THANKS, GOVERNOR BREWER (here - maybe she should have a talk with Michael Moore)…



…and time to rebut that “good Christian” Paul Ryan again…



…and this goes out to the Wisconsin U.S. House rep.

My 2012 U.S. House Voting Guide

It’s been a few days since I finished compiling the list of the 31 U.S. House Republicans opposed to health care reform, and I wondered what the next step should be. I mean, pointing out that these people fundamentally are frauds and charlatans is a nice, therapeutic exercise I know, even if it ended up being waaay more time consuming than I thought it would.

But how do we actually get rid of them, I wondered?

With that in mind, I did a bit of research and came up with a list of Democratic challengers for not quite all of the 31 that, as far as I know, is as firm as can be expected at the moment (I think there’s a question about William Smith, and the Dem primary won by Harold Whitfield was being recounted the last I checked). Also, I say “not quite all” because Boehner, Broun and Gohmert don’t have Democratic challengers (I couldn’t find any – if there are brave souls out there taking them on that I don’t know about, please leave a comment to that effect). I also hacked around with some HTML a bit and came up with the table format; the incumbent names are linked to the prior posts the same way they were during the countdown, and the challengers are linked mainly to their web sites, but also a Twitter page and a blogspot home page also.

I wish to emphasize that I know nothing about almost all of the challengers, but maybe (if you’re “represented” by any of the 31) it might be a good idea to learn more about these folks (and, if you’re so inclined, to chip in with some coin to help them out). And I’m not going to pretend that trying to knock off the incumbents isn’t going to be a mammoth exercise in some (maybe even most) cases. But that journey of a mile begins with a single step, as they say (or something).

Anyway, here’s the incumbent/Dem challenger list…

No.	Repug Incumbent	Dem Challenger
1	Steve King	Christie Vilsack
2	Mike Fitzpatrick	Kathy Boockvar
3	John Boehner	Unopposed
4	Eric Cantor	Wayne Powell
5	Michele Bachmann	Jim Graves
6	Paul Ryan	Rob Zerban
7	Louie Gohmert	Unopposed
8	Allen West	Patrick Murphy
9	Joe Pitts	Aryanna Strader
10	Jack Kingston	Lesli Messinger
11	Patrick McHenry	Patsy Keever
12	Spencer Bachus	Penny Bailey
13	Jim Gerlach	Manan Trivedi
14	Cliff Stearns	Heather Beaven
15	Jean Schmidt	William Smith
16	Phil Gingrey	Patrick Thompson
17	David Schweikert	Matt Jette
18	Virginia Foxx	Elisabeth Motsinger
19	Pete Sessions	Katherine S. McGovern
20	Charlie Dent	Rick Daugherty
21	Cathy McMorris Rodgers	Rich Cowan
22	Chris Smith	Brian Froelich
23	Todd Akin	Harold Whitfield
24	Buck McKeon	Lee Rogers
25	Kristi Noem	Matt Varilek
26	Hal Rogers	Kenneth Stepp
27	Lou Barletta	Gene Stilp
28	Paul Broun	Unopposed
29	Mary Bono Mack	Sukhee Kang
30	David Dreier	Julia Brownley
31	Marsha Blackburn	Credo Amouzouvik

Wednesday Stuff

John Fugelsang gives us a dose of reality for the corporate media BS currently oozing out of our flat screens (hat tip to one of my senior correspondents for this one)…



Update 8/30/12: And I'm sure this made "the baby Jesus" cry too.

…and I think this song has a lot more to do with the reality we know than the nonsense currently playing out in “the state of Lex Luthor Scott.”