Thursday, October 23, 2014

#9, Martha Roby (AL-02)

(This is for my 2014 U.S. House voting guide.)

With the departure of “Moon Unit” Bachmann, the Teahadists are looking for a new “lightning rod” to congregate around and practice their faux indignation every chance they get. And had Marsha Blackburn been named to the BENGHAZI!! "cluster" instead of Roby, then she would have solidified her own wingnut bona fides. But she wasn’t.

And Roby brings her own brand of “crazy, to wit…
  • She didn’t push back against a “birther” calling Obama a “communist despot” here.
  • “Stockholm Syndrome” Roby voted against the Violence Against Women Act here.
  • She introduced bill to eliminate overtime pay here.
  • And as we all know, more gun laws won’t solve the problem (here - removing my tongue from my cheek).
  • Here is more zaniness from Roby (fourth bullet).
  • For the 2014 election cycle, Roby is facing Dem challenger Erick Wright - to help Wright, click here.

    Wednesday, October 22, 2014

    Wednesday Stuff

    I thought this bit from John Oliver on The Supremes was hilarious and inspired (here)...



    ...oh, and remember the time Mikey the Beloved accused President Obama of treason, as he did in this clip between 4:16 and 4:20? If you want him to return to private life in a few days, click here...



    ..and that goes for PA Guv Tom “Space Cadet” Corbett too; the “fun” in this clip starts at about :50 – to make a difference, click here...



    ...and based on this, I guess Toys R Us won't be selling any Walter White dolls (from “Breaking Bad” for the uninitiated) for the holidays – c'est dommage (made me felt like hearing this song).

    />

    #22, Peter Roskam (IL-06)

    (This is for my 2014 U.S. House voting guide.)
  • Here, Roskam basically lied about whether or not he knew former House Speaker Tom DeLay, aka, The Bugman (not a crime I realize, but I think it sends a message).
  • As of 2008, he’s received over $100 grand in oil money and has fought against clean energy, of course (here).
  • Roskam was under investigation for a $750,000 (!) trip to Taiwan in 2011 (also noted here that he failed to report about $103,000 in fundraising expenditures in ’05).
  • Here, Roskam co-introduced a bill to block federal funding of universities “engaging in a boycott of Israeli academic institutions or scholars.” (um, let me see here, where is that dictionary? “Free speech”…what exactly is that definition again?). And yes, Dan Lipinski definitely should know better.
  • Roskam is defending his seat against Dem Michael Mason - to help Mason, click here.

    Tuesday, October 21, 2014

    Tuesday Stuff

    Alex Wagner tells us about Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's dissent, joined by Kagan and Sotomayor, on the Supremes' decision to allow Texas's awful voter ID ruling to stand (yep, there goes Hangin' Judge JR "calling balls and strikes" again, huh? And it looks like Alex Wagner got cut off a bit)...



    ...and Ed Schultz and Sen. Bernie Sanders give us the latest on the Repugs and their efforts to kill the postal service (yep, if they had their way, the “party of Lincoln” would have us pining for the day when all we had to complain about was the price of “forever” stamps)…



    ...and RIP Ben Bradlee...



    ...and I had this tune in mind when considering the Ed Schultz piece above.

    Monday, October 20, 2014

    Monday Stuff

    Melissa Harris-Perry gives South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley a lesson on what the Confederate Flag really means (here)…



    …and I know I shouldn’t waste time with anything to do with Sean Inanity, but I can’t help it because this Stephen Colbert bit is just way too damn funny (here)…


    …and to help out Kevin Strouse in the closing days of the campaign, please click here…



    ...and happy 64th birthday to Tom Petty.

    Friday, October 17, 2014

    Friday Stuff

    (I also posted here.)

    I give you Stephen Colbert on the supposed WMD revelations in Iraq...


    …also, this tells us about gun-related threats to Anita Sarkeesian, who backed out of a speech about women and online gaming at Utah State (I don’t know what else to say either, Cenk...more here)…



    ...and I give you the latest installment of FAIR TV (and by the way, how somebody votes is nobody else's damn business, regardless of your political party)...



    ...and this is a truly depressing item; not really the way I'd like to wrap up the week, so here is a bit of an upbeat musical response.

    Thursday, October 16, 2014

    Thursday Stuff

    I wish Shep Smith would go off-script more often because he makes so much damn sense, as he does here ("Obama" fever, huh? Freudian slip for that bunch, wouldn't you say?)...



    …and I cannot believe that we’re still talking about that stupid embargo in the Caribbean, but kudos to Lawrence O’Donnell for doing so…



    ..and it looks like the mistake of Tennesee's 7th congressional district struck again here...



    ...and sorry, but this is the only response that I think is appropriate.

    Wednesday, October 15, 2014

    Wednesday Stuff

    Did you hear the one about the infectious disease outbreak that occurred in the U.S. while we did not have a surgeon general on the job? As Rachel Maddow explains, this, sadly, is no joke…



    …and I had a bit of a problem with the very end of this Ebola-related commentary, but otherwise I’m absolutely fine with this TYT (and NSFW) takedown of Keith A-Blow of Fix Noise (yep, that 30 percent just won’t budge, will they?)…



    …and I give you another triumph of red state America, in time for the season (and yeah, the bit at the end with the local news reporter is particularly silly)…



    …and I’ve been meaning to work this in for a little while now, so here it is (and yeah, if anything I can think of lately deserves an encore, this would qualify).

    Tuesday, October 14, 2014

    Tuesday Stuff

    Kudos to Melissa Harris-Perry for giving Hosni Mubarak Walker the following dose of reality (here)…



    …and nice work by Frankie Goes to the Vatican here – though you knew the inevitable push back would follow; all of which made me recall this evergreen item from Stephen Colbert…


    ...and I give you the latest installment of FAIR TV (I'm so old that I can remember when Judy Woodruff actually didn't have a problem asking hard-hitting questions, but I guess those days are done – what a pity)...



    …and I’m going to save you from wasting your time reading this corporate media garbage and cut right to the proverbial chase instead.

    Here is the message: the economy isn’t sunshine, lollipops and rainbows every day. Why? Because Magical Prince Obama in the White House hasn’t made everything all peachy keen, of course.

    How could this be? He has such obliging public servants ready to work with him, doesn’t he? And so popular too!

    And as we know, Obama has been surpassed on job creation by every other president, hasn’t he?

    Oh well, I guess this means that those silly voters will barely show up to the polls in November, ensuring that the Republicans will strengthen their hold on one chamber of Capitol Hill and completely take over the other.

    And maybe it will also mean the economy will be better. Or maybe it won’t. Either way, it will all be the fault of those silly voters. And Magical Prince Obama, of course.

    And oh, it’s 5:00 – time for the whores of the Beltway media/political/industrial complex to belly up to the bar (make sure to pass the sweet and sour shrimp, along with the plate of nachos).

    …

    All of this absolutely SCREAMS for us to go out and vote for Democrats in a few weeks, to say nothing of supporting them as our means allow. Yes, our corporate media will keep concocting conservative-friendly nonsense like this regardless, and It’s true that the Dems are definitely not perfect, but do you honestly think any of the issues we face will get better if you don’t?

    Which brings me back to this video – I think it’s time to dust this off. I did well with it in ’06, ’08 also, not so much in ’10, and a little better in ’12. Let’s see if it can manage to do the trick again.

    Monday, October 13, 2014

    Monday Stuff

    (I also posted here.)

    Joy Reid brings us what I thought was an interesting perspective on Columbus Day (and Dan Snyder continues to be an utter tool)…



    …and John Oliver recognizes the holiday as only he can…



    …oh, and you know that Ebola stuff that has been in the news lately? You know, the thing that we’ve known about for about oh, say, the last 40 YEARS BUT HAVEN’T COME UP WITH A VACCINE FOR YET BECAUSE OF BUDGET CUTS TO SCIENCE BY REPUBLICAN CONGRESSES??!!...

    (Oh, and please spare the whole, “Hey libtard, you Dems were in charge from 2008 to 2010” nonsense. As if anyone could undo a decade of Republican Congressional f*ckups in 2 years…)…



    …and once again, what say you on all this, Mikey the Beloved? And once more, cue the sound of crickets (and to do something about that, click here)…

    ...and while I'm on the subject, please click here to help keep this ad for Kevin Strouse on the air; to help out the campaign in the closing days, please click here (like to see something like this about all of Mikey's votes in favor of the shut down last year)…



    ...and don't blink, or you'll miss the ending of this one (not bad for an "unofficial" video).

    Sunday, October 12, 2014

    Sunday Stuff

    I cannot possibly imagine why anyone who claims to be a Democrat (or even an independent, for that matter) wouldn't realize how important it is to vote in the November election, but in case somehow anyone needed any additional motivation, I think Lawrence O'Donnell provides it here...



    ..and sticking with O'Donnell, he interviews Dale Ho, director of the ACLU's Voting Rights Project, about the video Ho filmed with Lewis Black (great stuff)...



    ...and usually I find that Steve Kornacki is a poor substitute for Rachel Maddow, but I think this was a good report on all the latest Ebola stuff (“field hearings” - what a joke)...



    ...and to me, just about anything that encourages higher voter turnout can't be bad (here).

    Thursday, October 09, 2014

    Thursday Stuff

    RIP Jan Hooks - I always thought she was a highly underrated comedy talent...



    ...and Rachel Maddow gives us another “Debunktion Junction” over more Repug idiocy, this time from Rep. Duncan Hunter (which was also debunked by the Mexican government, for the record)...



    ...and here are two commemorative birthday tunes - one for this guy...



    ...and one for this guy (NSFW).

    Wednesday, October 08, 2014

    Wednesday Stuff

    I have to admit that I was pretty much done with the whole “Bill Maher/Ben Affleck radical Muslim argument thing” almost as soon as it happened, but in response, I thought this was a good commentary from Chris Hayes…



    …and drat those Chinese again, as Jon Stewart explains here (I thought the stuff on North Korea’s “Lil’ Kim” was great)…


    …and fortunately, we have Stephen Colbert to put the usual Fix Noise suspects in their place over Ebola here (“What’s that? You’re all lying, stupid and irresponsibly trying to create a panic? Because too many people are getting wise to your act that all you do is propagate BS Republican Party talking points while pretending to be an actual news network? What’s that again??”)…


    ...and I thought this was kind of a mellow "hump day" selection, so here it is.

    Tuesday, October 07, 2014

    Tuesday Stuff

    As noted here, Russian journalist Anna Politkovskaya was murdered eight years ago yesterday; before those ISIS monsters started beheading Americans and others, the fourth estate was becoming a more and more dangerous profession – not hard to figure out that she was ultimately killed because our ol’ buddy Vlad Putin was getting a little uncomfortable with her reporting on Chechnya; dots haven’t all been connected yet, but I have no doubt that that’s where there'll lead one day…



    …and I don’t mean to insult Politkovskaya by claiming that her courageous work bears any resemblance to anything by Chuck Todd, but he’s a charter member of our Beltway media-political-industrial complex so of course he ends up with Reince Priebus – luckily, Rachel Maddow interviewed Nancy Northrup of the Center for Reproductive Rights to obtain the reality perspective about the closing of clinics in the "yellow rose" state (as I've said, vote for a Dem as if your life depends on it, because it just might)...



    ..and here is Cenk Uygur telling us about the lady trying to organize a union at Burger King (sent home for a particularly laughable excuse also, if I may say so)...



    …and I think the preceding item makes this tune a timely selection ("rather feed pigs than humanity" indeed).

    Monday, October 06, 2014

    Monday Stuff

    I give you the latest installment of FAIR TV...



    ...and here is the latest economic news (I don't think this comes close to the whole story, but David Cay Johnston definitely gets this stuff)...



    …and John Oliver continues to bring us enlightening commentary that is also funny as hell here (NSFW, and he manages to work in Philly too)…



    ...and RIP Paul Revere (and yes, that was his real name, the guy in this band of course).

    Saturday, October 04, 2014

    Saturday Stuff

    I thought this was particularly NSFW spot-on commentary from Bill Maher about those wastes of space in charge of the U.S. House in particular (and to do something about that in PA-08, click here)...



    ...and I think Jon Stewart hit this one right out of the park, as it were (here)...


    ...and nice work by Chris Hayes to remind everyone how utterly wrong the wingnutosphere was on the Affordable Care Law (Hey Sean, how many stations dropped you this week – tee hee)...



    ...and here's a nice, rockin' non-message tune from this century (the guy with the face fungus managed to spook me out a bit, though).

    Friday, October 03, 2014

    Friday Stuff

    I thought this was a nice feature by Chris Hayes, timed for the one-year anniversary of the roll out of the Affordable Care Law...



    ...and yes, I know it's truly shocking to hear about this (removing my tongue from my cheek), which puts this “Young Turks” video with Cenk and Ana from a few years ago in the proper context (and once again, the captions are unintentionally hilarious – and to send PA's “Space Cadet” governor back to private life once and for all - he who apparently was asleep for this also - click here)...



    …and I get it that Leon Panetta is basically a Dem, though he does seem to sway with the prevailing wind, as it were, but I think he’s wrong to say that ISIS is Obama’s fault here, seeing as how he went along with the Status of Forces Agreement as well, which I think was the right thing to do.

    As Igor Volsky of Think Progress tells us...
    ...while Panetta’s book reinforces longstanding criticism of Obama’s Iraq policy, his assessment clashes mightily with his public statements about the administration’s efforts to secure a status of forces agreement (SOFA) with Iraq.

    For instance, during an Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on Iraq in November of 2011, Panetta specifically dismissed McCain’s claims that the Obama administration was committed (to) complete withdrawal and did not want to leave residual troops in Iraq, reminding the Arizona senator that Iraqi leaders must agree to American presence in the country and provide American soldiers with immunity from prosecution.

    “Senator McCain, that’s just simply not true,” Panetta began. “I guess you can believe that and I respect your beliefs…but that’s not how it happened. This is about negotiating with a sovereign country. An independent country, this was about their needs. This is not about us telling them what we’re going to do for them or what they’re going to have to do. … This is about their country making a decision as to what is necessary here.”

    He stressed that for American troops to remain in the country, “you absolutely have to have immunities and those immunities have to be granted by a SOFA agreement. I was not about to have our troops go there in place without those immunities.”
    Iraq told us to get out, which was their right, and Syria let the terrorist insurgents fester…not sure which president was supposed to be able to look into a crystal ball and figure that out…made me recall this Panetta-related clip (CYA 101 here as far as I’m concerned)…



    …and I suppose I’m putting a twist on this by including this tune; always a cautionary lesson for yours truly.

    Thursday, October 02, 2014

    Thursday Stuff

    Oh, and October 1st was also the first birthday of healthcare.gov - Joy Reid reports (and sorry, Dems, if you don't stand and fight over the ACA, then you deserve what you get)...



    …and it looks like the Repugs are up to their typical voter-caging garbage in North Carolina, among other places I’m sure, and as you might have guessed, Chucky and Dave Koch are behind it (more on this wretched duo here - oh, and one more thing...)…



    …and Melissa Harris-Perry gives us an open letter to Colorado school board member Julie Williams, who basically wants to see our history of protest taken out of our social studies textbooks (achtung, baby!)…



    ...and I have to tell you that I actually was having a pleasant evening until I saw this (I really wish this guy would go away. I really do).

    Oh, so we're supposed to have more patience with Mesopotamia, or something, you clueless meat sack? Well, at least he didn’t say we should give it six more months.

    I will say, though, that I thought it was a nice touch for Former President Highest Disapproval Rating In Gallup Poll History to be “interviewed” by Brian Kilmeade of Fix Noise, since I believe the two are intellectual equals.

    Wednesday, October 01, 2014

    Wednesday Stuff

    Happy 90th birthday to President Jimmy Carter – yeah, yeah, we get it, one term and he left with lower approval ratings, and he didn’t play the Beltway insider game the way he should have, but I defy anyone to go back and do a fair, independent analysis of the 1980 presidential campaign and try to catalog the wall-to-wall lies of The Sainted Ronnie R; it will be an eye-opener…wouldn’t have made a difference in the outcome, but imagine the howls of outrage if a Democrat had done anything like that (actually, Bill Clinton turned the tables a bit on that score in ’92 – you know what they say about paybacks; by the way, “The Unfinished Presidency” is a great book)…



    ...oh, and remember what happened a year ago today? Come on, let’s think really hard now…



    …and Jon Stewart gives us another lesson in Civics 101 here (NSFW…I’d be laughing if it weren’t so damn true)…


    …and to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the UC Berkeley Free Speech movement (here), I give you this (based on “Riot in Cell Block #9,” by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller).

    Tuesday, September 30, 2014

    Tuesday Stuff

    What’s going on in the Kansas U.S. Senate race is interesting, but what’s going on in the Kansas gubernatorial contest in intriguing also – I think we know what just about always happens when Repug “Tax Cuts Are Their Jesus” ideology collides with reality (and Kris Kobach is truly the very worst non-federal secretary of state in this country)…



    …and here is still more repulsive news on behalf of the “one percent” as well as the rest of us (NSFW - more here, and here)…



    …and the High Court of Hangin’ Judge JR is up to more nonsense (there goes Roberts “calling balls and strikes” again…and how ridiculous is this given what Iowa Repug Senate Candidate Joni Ernst said in the clip below? And maybe Cory Gardner is technically right about the so-called "personhood" bill not being introduced in Washington, but the next question should have been "Do you support a federal 'personhood' bill?" so we can watch him lie about that too)…



    ...and happy 50th birthday to Trey Anastasio.

    Monday, September 29, 2014

    Monday Stuff

    It's particularly galling to read Baby Newton Leroy and his hosanna to himself over the 20th anniversary of the “Contract on America” here – I thought Rick Perlstein provided a good response here (basically, the whole damn thing was a sap to anyone voting for Ross Perot - who? - in 1992), and the following video from K.O. definitely still fits…



    …and here’s the latest on the Repugs and their efforts to reach women voters; I think Celinda Lake made a great point when she said that the Repugs only care about not losing women more than they win men’s votes, and believe me when I tell you that that cold, hard fact doesn’t make me happy…



    ...oh, and by the way, here is a reminder that we do indeed have a campaign to unseat Mikey the Beloved in the PA-08 U.S. House race; this is the Dem candidate, Kevin Strouse (in case you hadn't heard) – to do what you can, click here...



    ..and yeah, “how is this still a thing” indeed (NSFW)...



    …and I know I already got into the whole “coffee cup salute” thing last Friday, but I think this borderline NSFW clip by Jon Stewart needs to be seen by as many people as possible (more here - I’m sure just about everyone already has viewed it by now, but here it is again for good measure)…


    ...and I thought this was a fun little video to enjoy while the days get shorter (sad).

    Friday, September 26, 2014

    Friday Stuff

    I thought Rev. Al had some really good words to say here about Eric Holder (he also paid tribute to Holder on "All In" last night; in the interview, Chris Hayes stuck in this comedy bit that, I thought, wasn't particularly appropriate at that moment, and I don't think Sharpton did either - Holder deserves a tribute, but like others in this administration, he didn't go after the "banksters" either)...



    ...and yeah, this is about what you would expect with the news of Holder's resignation, including commentary from Ana Kasparian and Ben Mankiewicz of "The Young Turks" - NSFW...



    ...and I can’t think of a single time when I’ve heard sportscaster Bob Costas opine on any subject and haven’t found him to be intelligent, engaging and persuasive; I don’t think I’ve ever found myself disagreeing with him either, but I would still feel the same way even if I didn’t see eye to eye on a particular subject – really intelligent commentary here IMHO…



    ...and I give you the latest from FAIR TV...



    …and for anyone who takes this latest wingnut flap seriously (not talking about Stephen Colbert of course), why dontcha just go grab a great big steaming cup of STFU…


    ...and yeah, I guess that makes me want to hear this tune.

    Thursday, September 25, 2014

    Thursday Stuff

    (I also posted here.)

    I can't think of a word that truly communicates my level of disgust with Hamid Karzai, who, as noted here, is stepping down as head (as much as anyone can be in charge of that country) of Afghanistan; for this monstrous ingrate to show no gratitude whatsoever – indeed, to heap ridicule on this country – is thoroughly repellent given the sacrifices of our military, particularly those killed and wounded...except for bin Laden, I've never advocated violence against anyone because it's wrong, but I might make another exception in Karzai's case; let the Taliban capture him and then find out how long it takes for Karzai to grovel to us asking for help – I thought this was a good report on him...



    ...and yes, it’s obvious, but good that Stephen Colbert pointed this out about “Chuckles” Krauthammer – something to remember while you ponder yet another corporate media absurdity, in that Krauthammer is one of the most widely-published columnists in syndication…


    …and as far as I’m concerned, Charles Rangel is a highly imperfect messenger on just about anything, but on this issue, he’s absolutely right (not about the goddamn draft though; I’ll admit that he’s consistent on that, but he’s consistently wrong - nice job on the "Water for the World Act" also)…



    …and here’s a bit of a Thursday treat – yum.

    Tuesday, September 23, 2014

    Tuesday Stuff

    "Why not now" indeed - as far as I'm concerned, this issue trumps all others (more here)...



    ...and yeah, you go Rev. Al - nothing like listening to rich white guys pontificate about the poor in this country, is there?...



    …and here’s some more spot-on comedy from John Oliver with a purpose (here)…



    ..and happy 65th (!) birthday to The Boss – not much of a celebratory song really, even though I'm in the mood for it, particularly since I think it was about The First Mrs. Bruce, with (ironically) The Second Mrs. Bruce singing backup vocal so well on it.

    Monday, September 22, 2014

    Monday Stuff

    Here's the latest climate news (yes, Alex, we get it that China and India aren't attending the climate summit, to their eternal folly – and in a related story, why am I definitely not surprised by this...more here)…



    ...and I give you the latest from Not Your Father's Republican Party (NSFW)...



    …and I have to admit that I was genuinely touched by this…



    …and 25 years ago today, legendary composer and lyricist Irving Berlin died; yeah, I think we all know about “White Christmas,” but he crafted many other legendary tunes also, including this one sung by that scrawny kid from Hoboken (changing things up again a bit here).

    Saturday, September 20, 2014

    Saturday Stuff

    Tough luck there, Scotland (here) - I'm sure you'll try again; all the best...



    ...at least most of those voting in that election knew what they were voting for or against, as opposed to this country...



    ...and I know that President Obama is carrying a heavy load with zero assistance from those majority clowns in the U.S. House in particular and not a lot from the Senate either (there's the legislative branch of government as well as the executive, after all), but he still needs to answer the question posed in this video...



    ...and I really need to go off a bit here.

    In these parts (Bucks County, PA, in particular the Neshaminy School District), there's a controversy brewing over the fact that Gillian McGoldrick, editor-in-chief of Neshaminy HS’s student newspaper The Playwickian, as well as faculty adviser Tara Huber, were both suspended by Neshaminy School District Superintendent Robert Copeland because McGoldrick and Huber were apparently the ones behind a decision not to publish the word “Redskin” in a Letter to the Editor after the two quite rightly IMHO had decided that the term was an “offensive racial slur” and it would no longer appear in the paper.

    Well, the oh-so-august-in-their-imaginations editorial board of the Bucks County Courier Times basically came down on the side of Copeland and the school administration yesterday, in part because the Courier Times believes that “it's just plain silly to expect people to debate an issue without mentioning the issue by name” (kind of mirrors this attitude as far as I'm concerned).

    I honestly don't know what there is to “debate” here. The paper decided that the term was offensive and wouldn't appear in the paper (of course, leave it to the Courier Times to side with the powers that be, apparently believing that it's more important for McGoldrick to be punished than rewarded for exercising a responsible journalistic instinct). The “issue” is that the term wouldn't appear any more – as noted in the Huffington Post link above, similar protests are going on elsewhere over that term...or don't the “news professionals” of the Courier Times editorial board realize that?

    Besides, I don't want to hear any high-minded claptrap from the Courier Times about how important it is not to favor one opinion on an issue over another (the “pro” and “anti” Redskin camps, if you will). On the same page that the Courier Times ran this editorial yesterday, they published one of their typically wingnutty letters with the title of “The 'Shameocrat Party'.” And believe me when I tell you that they would NEVER run a comparable headline against a Republican politician or talking point. They would NEVER condone anything like the language they allow against Democrats on a routine basis if that language were pointed at someone or something having to do with Not Your Father's Republican Party (there was an Op-Ed referring to Republicans as "godless," but that language barely appears at all on the Op-Ed page, nowhere near in proportion to anti-Democratic pejoratives).

    (Here's another example: a story appeared in the paper a couple of years ago about how “Mikey the Beloved” Fitzpatrick pre-screens his “Town Hall” questions and how they end up usually being “softball” self-flattering stuff. Faster than you can say Karl Rove, someone from the Fitzpatrick camp complained to the Courier Times and that story – shockingly, some sound journalism from the usually wretched Gary Weckselblatt – COMPLETELY DISAPPEARED online subsequent to publication.)

    So no, Courier Times, I don't want to hear any of your self-serving BS about supposedly sound journalistic ethics while you continues to slavishly kow tow to elderly white conservatives who never heard an anti-Obama talking point from the Roger Ailes BS Factory that they didn't wholeheartedly endorse (sorry I don't have links to the Courier Times Op-Ed stuff, but it's all behind their stupid pay wall by now anyway, which is a whole other rant).

    And since, again, we're talking about the Bucks County Courier Times, that means that it's time for this tune (tongue in cheek, of course).

    Friday, September 19, 2014

    Friday Stuff

    Oh, so those accused in the cowardly attack of a gay couple in Philadelphia may claim self-defense (here) – Really??...

    Apparently some of these life forms reside in Bucks County, humble abode of yours truly – more’s the pity…



    …and in more pleasant Philly news, kudos for this – Tweety and Mayor Michael Nutter bring us the details…



    …and yeah, I think Sean Inanity gave us a bit more of a look into his upbringing here than we ever wanted; as usual, Stephen Colbert has a response here (it rubs the lotion on its skin or else it gets the hose again, Sean)…


    ...and Rachel Maddow gives us more details on dereliction of duty by those meat sacks in Congress (more here, and something else to keep in mind on this is here - typical)…



    …and I give you the latest installment of FAIR TV…



    …and to me, those idiots on Capitol Hill have turned the meaning of this tune inside out; had it in my head all day today.

    Thursday, September 18, 2014

    Thursday Stuff

    Why do I have a feeling that the Darren Wilson whitewash is well underway (more here – MO governor Jay Nixon looks like even more of a chump for not appointing a special prosecutor)…



    …and last I checked, this creature named Eric Frein was still at large – yeah, a lot of the cops in Ferguson, MO look bad, but I still don’t believe that they represent the majority of law enforcement, which deserves our support, especially with stuff like this going on…



    …and yeah, it’s time for BENGHAZI! BENGHAZI! BENGHAZI! BENGHAZI!!!, whether we want it or not (and except for the Repug base, I think not – I also think John Stanton tried to sneak in a Repug talking point at the very end, but good work by Alex Wagner to shoot him down)…



    …and I hope you’re in the mood for some Thursday blues/funk, because here it comes (and with horns too – why of course, right?).

    Wednesday, September 17, 2014

    Wednesday Stuff

    Why anyone would think Joe Scar, armed with his ever-filled container of Starbucks, would know the first thing about how members of Willard Mitt's despised "47 percent" actually vote is something I cannot comprehend - nice work here by Cenk Uygur...



    ...and God, when are stories like this one going to end - will it take a federal grand jury for this also?...



    ...and John Oliver strikes again, this time on corporations abusing social media (NSFW)...



    …and I thought this was good news; never had even an iota of evidence that any proceeds whatsoever have gone to support terrorism – I think he’s a guy who wants to make a positive contribution with his great music (here is a sample from yesteryear).

    Tuesday, September 16, 2014

    Tuesday Stuff

    (I also posted here.)

    I give you the latest from the campaign of Kevin Strouse, running against Mikey the Beloved for the latter's U.S. House seat...

    KEVIN STROUSE CALLS ON CONGRESSMAN FITZPATRICK TO PLEDGE TO NOT SHUT DOWN THE GOVERNMENT WHILE RECEIVING THE ENDORSEMENT OF “SENIOR VOTES COUNT!”

    Jon “Bowzer” Bauman, “Senior Votes Count!” co-founder / star from legendary rock band Sha Na Na, endorses Kevin Strouse for Congress


    Bristol, PA - Today, Kevin Strouse received the endorsement of “Senior Votes Count!” as he called on Congressman Fitzpatrick to take a government shutdown off the table. As we quickly approach the October 1st start of the 2015 fiscal year, Strouse is urging Congressman Fitzpatrick to give voters certainty that he won’t allow a repeat of his disastrous Republican shutdown.

    In the district, Congressman Fitzpatrick claims that he worked tirelessly to stop the government shutdown. He’s even willing to mislead his constituents by claiming that he supported a clean continuing resolution. However, the facts show that Congressman Fitzpatrick voted 17 times against efforts to reopen the government throughout the shutdown.

    Strouse commented “8th district voters deserve a pledge from Congressman Fitzpatrick to not repeat the same shutdown disaster that he brought us through last year. Before the shutdown, Fitzpatrick said that “a shutdown of the federal government is the ultimate admission of failure to do your job.” Well, by his own measure, Congressman Fitzpatrick is a failure.”

    “Senior Votes Count!” co-founder / legendary rock and roll star Jon “Bowzer” Bauman threw his support behind Kevin as he slammed Congressman Fitzpatrick for his abysmal 16% lifetime rating from the Alliance for Retired Americans and for his vote to shut down the government.

    In September of 2013, Congressman Fitzpatrick claimed that shutting down the government is off the table for him. However, In October 2013, the Associated Press reported that Fitzpatrick sided with Republicans in a vote that led to the government shutdown.

    Strouse continued, “Congressman Fitzpatrick told us last year that he wouldn’t allow a government shutdown.. But then in a blaze of partisan glory, he ignored his constituents, shut down the federal government, and voted 17 times against efforts to reopen it. While it’s clear that a promise from Congressman Fitzpatrick doesn’t mean much, voters deserve to know his stance on the issues.”

    BACKGROUND:

    The Associated Press Reported that Mike Fitzpatrick Sided with Republicans in Vote that “Resulted in the Government Shutdown”“After weeks of trying to balance the wishes of his moderate district and House conservatives, he sided with most congressional Republicans in refusing to approve a measure that would have kept the government operating because it also would have continued to pay for the health care law. Democrats, who control the White House and the Senate, refused to delay or destroy the landmark health care law. The impasse resulted in the government shutdown.” [Associated Press, 10/10/13]

    Following the government shutdown, Fitzpatrick voted sixteen times against efforts to vote on a clean government funding resolution by allowing consideration of the Senate-passed continuing resolution: [H Res 370, Vote #509, 10/02/13; HJ Res 70, Vote #512, 10/02/13; HR 3230, Vote #515, 10/03/13; HJ Res 72, Vote #517, 10/03/13; H Res 371, Vote #519, 10/04/13; HJ Res 85, Vote #521, 10/04/13; HJ Res 75, Vote #523, 10/04/13; H J Res 77, Vote #527, 10/7/13; HJ Res 84, Vote #529, 10/08/13; H Res 373, Vote #531, 10/08/13; HR 3273, Vote #533, 10/08/13; HJ Res 90, Vote #536, 10/09/13; HJ Res 79, Vote #539, 10/10/13; HJ Res 76, Vote #541, 10/11/13; HJ Res 380, Vote #543, 10/11/13; HJ Res 80, Vote #547, 10/14/13]

    Fitzpatrick: “Shutting Down the Government is off the Table for me”“Fitzpatrick said ‘shutting down the government is off the table for me,’ hinting [though not explicitly saying] he won’t take the repeal fight so far that it drags the government over the edge.” [Philadelphia Inquirer, 9/20/13]

    Fitzpatrick: “None of us wanted this Shutdown. We Worked Tirelessly to Stop it” In October 2013, in a joint op-ed, Fitzpatrick claimed he has always opposed a shutdown.

    “None of us wanted this shutdown. We worked tirelessly to stop it and to keep the government funded. And that continues today. We have also worked to repeal, defund, delay, and dismantle Obamacare. And for good reason. It’s led to lost coverage, fewer jobs, and higher insurance costs for families.” [Philadelphia Inquirer, Congressmen Meehan, Dent, Barletta, Gerlach, Fitzpatrick, Runyan, and Lobiondo op-ed, 10/6/13]

    Congressman Fitzpatrick has a 16% Lifetime Rating from the Alliance for Retired Americans [Alliance for Retired Americans, Pennsylvania Delegation Voting Record]

    ###


    Kevin Strouse is a former Army Ranger, CIA counterterrorism analyst, and veteran of Iraq and Afghanistan who lives in Middletown, Pa., with his wife, Amy, and two young children, Walter and Charlotte. He is currently Program Director of Teach2Serve, a non-profit that teaches social entrepreneurship to regional high school students. He earned his BA from Columbia University and a Masters in Security Studies from Georgetown University, graduating with honors.


    ...and here is Kevin's latest ad (to help pay for it and to help his campaign overall, please click here)...



    …and speaking of Congress (#1), I thought this was an odd little bit of minutiae; “Press 1 if you want to hear a complete list of kickbacks accepted by your elected representative or senator, Press 2 if you want to hear a complete list of votes by your elected representative or senator on behalf of the “one percent,” Press 3 if you want to hear about the latest pointless piece of legislation supported by your public official that has zero chance of actually being signed into law,” etc...



    ...and speaking of Congress (#2), I think Huckleberry Graham should just go pick up his purse and call a cab here (borderline I know, but I'm only referring to him using language he has used himself towards others)...


    …and gosh, whaddaya know – I forgot about National Make a Hat Day yesterday (here…gives me an excuse for this tune :-) - vid is borderline NSFW I guess.

    Monday, September 15, 2014

    Monday Stuff

    I thought this was a pretty well thought-out analysis of the ISIS stuff with Ed Schultz, Joe Cirincione, and that Murphy guy...



    ...and it looks like, apart from racism in the shooting of Michael Brown, we also have it in deciding which eyewitnesses to take seriously – I've asked it before and I'll ask it again; this is CNN?...



    ...and I'm including this partly to extend a metaphorical middle-finger-raised-on-high to the You Tube commenters hating on this video...



    ...and here's a peppy little tune for the youngsters out there at home :-).

    Friday, September 12, 2014

    Friday Stuff

    I give you the latest installment of FAIR TV…



    …and Heaven forbid that “the blahs” are allowed to vote in November, huh (GA is a particularly important “battleground” state for the U.S. Senate – more here and here)…



    …and why am I not the least bit surprised by this; here once more is a reminder why this matters (more here and here)…



    ..and I definitely like this tune, but I think this video sets the record for the most photographs of chin stubble (and not too many bands with a harp also).

    Thursday, September 11, 2014

    Thursday Stuff

    Good to see "Wall Street Scott" Brown get the treatment he deserves here...


    …and yes, it’s true that this video isn’t 100 percent accurate – it is about a year old, after all – but for anyone needing more information on the Affordable Care Law, this is a good place to start (and something to keep in mind in response to this…attention all Democrats; vote in November as if your life depends on it, because it just might)…



    Update 9/12/14: As I said, it just might - see the dirty laundry list of what Sen. Mr. Elaine Chao and friends plan to do if they actually get back the Senate (here).

    …and Cenk Uygur tells us the tale of Andrew Sabin, charter member of the “one percent” (even less, actually…and here is more on another foul court ruling besides the accursed Citizens United that enables Sabin and characters like him)…



    ...and no, I haven't forgotten what this day is truly all about.

    Wednesday, September 10, 2014

    Wednesday Stuff

    Here's how to get it done, people...



    …and even though this clip is a little more than four years old, I think it’s still timely in light of this (oy...h/t Atrios)…



    …and it’s time for the latest installment of FAIR TV (it would probably be hilarious if they took a look at the hopelessly wingnutty Op-Ed page of the Bucks County Courier Times)…



    …and the clip above concludes with some stuff on “Governor Bully” that he uncharacteristically got right, even though the wingnuts clutched their pearls in response – here is some stuff that he very definitely got wrong…



    …and sticking with Rachel Maddow, this tells us about how those bozos in the Senate and the U.S. House (guess which party?) are hindering Number 44 on fighting ISIS (she had a good report last night also, but it concluded with an interview with Robert Costa, and I don’t trust a word Costa says)…



    ...and here's an upbeat little number that the kids hopefully won't have to hum while packing off to another quagmire in the Middle East (sad).

    Tuesday, September 09, 2014

    Tuesday Stuff

    With all of the stuff going on with Ray Rice and his family, I thought this was an uplifting football story from last week (see video)...

    (...And by the way, am I the only one who thinks it's a little crazy that the person who was wronged is lashing out not at her husband, but at the press? Have we gone a bit too far with all of the hidden camera video and social media stuff? Yes, punish Rice severely – the rest of the season at a minimum. However, if his wife doesn't press charges – and it looks like that won't happen – then let him be reinstated after the year is up.

    Are we looking for angels in the sports world? Is that the new standard? Really?

    I was reading about baseball great Ty Cobb today. Do you know what he did to a heckler, a guy whose hands were almost completely destroyed, during a game in 1912? He charged into the stands and kicked the guy to a pulp, and he wasn't banned for life from baseball; he ended up with a 10-game suspension. Wrong? Of course. All I'm asking for is a little perspective, that's all)...



    ..and I think the last 30 seconds of this video is particularly important (a bit of a profile in cowardice on the part of a major retailer IMHO, as opposed to this)...



    ...and I can't recall the date when Stephen Colbert will take over “Late Night” and probably shed this persona, so we might as well appreciate it even more while we still have it (more here)...


    ...and with this in mind a bit, I give you the following.

    Monday, September 08, 2014

    Monday Stuff

    This happened 40 years ago today – I continue to wrestle with whether or not it was the right thing to do, and I guess I always will (sorry about all the onscreen “reelinintheyears” stuff – yes, it’s your property; I get it)…



    …and here’s the latest on the Repugs and their “women’s outreach” efforts (not that our beloved commonwealth has anything to brag about on this either, as noted here, nor does the “Show Me” state)…



    ...and John Oliver is back with more spot-on commentary on student debt - who wins (the one percent) and who loses (everybody else - borderline NSFW)...



    ...and I give you the following to commemorate the debut of this, uh, TV show...what was it called again? :-).

    Friday, September 05, 2014

    Friday Stuff

    On the one hand, I was sorry to hear about the passing of Joan Rivers (here) because she mentored an entire generation of younger comedians on their way up in the business. She also made herself a career out of nothing except her own hard work as nearly as I can determine, to say nothing of holding a family together at the same time, particularly in the wake of her husband’s suicide. She also received the metaphorical “back of the hand” from Johnny Carson all because Rivers wanted to have her own show; if Carson had shown any class at that moment, he would have done all he could to encourage her (kind of like the way Linda Ronstadt did that for The Eagles when they were starting out - this should be noted also).

    On the other hand, Rivers was also responsible for stuff like this; I don’t know if her moments of bilious hate increased as she aged and her health declined (which still doesn’t excuse those moments), but I think that should be remembered also.

    Now back to the political stuff – I have to admit that the true scope of the awfulness of “Governor Ultrasound” wasn’t brought home to me until I saw this report from Rachel Maddow about Bob McDonnell’s conviction on 11 of 13 counts of corruption in office (here). Yes, the typical Republican “family values” hypocrisy is on display, but what does it tell you that he threw his wife under the proverbial bus during the trial too? He was also offered not too bad of a plea deal that he walked away from, and he’s now looking at significantly more jail time as a result…serves him right…



    …and good luck to the striking fast-food workers mentioned in this report (more here); yeah, the whole argument about how raising the poverty minimum wage of $7.25 an hour will lead to another economic downtown is pretty much BS, as noted here – and for the typically disgusting corporate media perspective (from other dank quarters anyway), I give you this…



    ...and somewhat as a follow-up to the prior video, I know we already observed Labor Day a few days ago, but I couldn't let the week come to a close without this item (IMHO, a tragic reminder of how far we have to go in the battle against income inequality)...



    ...and I guess it's easy to forget how long these folks have been around on the "indie rock" scene cranking out good tunes - here's another one.

    Thursday, September 04, 2014

    Thursday Stuff

    (I also posted here.)

    Joy Reid and NBC News’ Ayman Mohyeldin discuss what it will take to rebuild Gaza, someday (can’t imagine how many terrorists have been spawned as a result of Bibi’s temper tantrum)…



    ...and I'd be more amused by this ad parody here if it weren't for the fact that every stinking word of it is true...



    ...and yeah, for starters, this tells you a bit about Repug U.S. Senator Ron Freaking Johnson, people (in consideration of this, and let's not forget this too - first item)...



    ...and I don't really have a musical riposte to Johnson, but maybe in a way, this will suffice.

    Tuesday, September 02, 2014

    Tuesday Stuff

    I think Russell Brand gives us a “way forward,” if you will, on countering Fix Noise here (as an actor, I think he's a bit of an acquired taste, though he was really good in some parts of “Get Him To The Greek,” I thought)...



    ...and John Breaux always struck me as a “corpora-Dem,” but I'm not the least bit surprised by Trent Lott's involvement here; makes me recall this clip (and Lott apologized for the Strom Thurmond stuff, for the record, probably because he got caught)...



    ...and I would ask that you remember this the next time you come across something like this (I'll try to say more about the HuffPo piece later – by the way, referencing the Galloway clip towards the end, I should say that I'll never defend Hamas) ...



    ...and I'm glad to see Shawn Colvin talking about this – we all need to reach out if we have to.

    Monday, September 01, 2014

    Monday Stuff

    Here is the latest installment of FAIR TV...



    ...and I thought this was a good commentary by Melissa Harris-Perry about trying to make a "teachable moment" out of the events surrounding the killing of Michael Brown in Ferguson, MO...



    ..and here's a real Labor Day story about workers at “Mahket Bahsket” going on strike on behalf of their CEO – yes, I'm serious...



    ...and I realize that this is a "perennial" for Labor Day, but why mess up a good thing?