Republicans! If You're In It to Win It - GTFO of the Bedroom!

I love Rudy Giuliani.

To me Rudy will always be da Man. In my humble opinion he is the reason NYC is what it is today and not the cesspool haven of crime I remember from my youth. Yeah, he was tough; he pissed a lot of people off, but when is the last time you heard someone say they were “afraid” to go to NYC? Now, it is a shining beacon for the world to enjoy and indeed they do. Of course, Mikey Bloomberg has made the place completely unavailable for normal people to live there – but – that’s another entire blog post.

Back to Rudy.

When I saw the headline last week about Rudy advising the Republican Party to drop the Gay Marriage issue I was completely psyched, and not just because it’s something that drives me nuts personally, but because people tend to listen to Rudy. I thought: “Awesome. Maybe now at least one of the tired old philosophies that 90% of R’s don’t agree with anyway, will be taken off the table.” Then I read the freakin’ article.

Rudy disappoints with his stance on Gay Marriage. It’s not enough to just say it should be taken off the table for discussion and that the topic should be left up to the individual states. R’s have to drop it all together. The Democratic Platform is SO ludicrous on its own; they don’t need this kind of ammunition to bandy about and bash the R’s into oblivion election after election. Imagine the votes that could be picked up if only this one plank was left off the platform. Drop the antiquated stance on abortion and the R’s could rock both the White House and Congress with ease.

It’s not like it would be hard to do either. I honestly don’t know a Republican in my circle of political friends who subscribes to the points of views the Demo-rats accuse us of. So why hang on to this age-old horseshit? I realize the answer lies in campaign funding from far right organizations, but think about how dropping the argument would bring in other revenue streams. Hell, that’s part and parcel of being a Republican right there – forward momentum towards success. Change it up – make money from other sources.

The Democrats use this issue to muddy the waters. They have to. Their philosophy is so desperately flawed they must demonize us on attributes other than our basic philosophy. Who can argue with personal freedom, individual’s rights, justice and the belief that nobody should be taxed differently than anyone else? When did prosperity take a back seat to “just getting along and letting the Government (taxpayers) pick up the slack”?

The opposition to Gay Marriage goes against our strong belief in individual’s rights. It’s counterintuitive to our main belief system. As Republicans we want Government to stay the hell out of our life as much as possible. How do we justify that with statements and campaign promises about keeping marriage only between a man and a woman…and legislating it? Moral superiority? We certainly already hold the monopoly on that over Democrats just with our love of this Nation and enforcing the ideals the founding fathers set forth for it. So, why are we mucking around in it? It baffles the mind to be honest.

If you’re a Republican and you come out supporting gay marriage there is no need to worry about the Liberal label. No one is going to accuse you of being a socialist, supporter of entitlements, a progressive taxation fan, or a champion of minimum wage. In fact, when boiled down to the basics, amongst people who use more than a 1/10^th of a percent of their brain power, you would actually be seen as more genuine in your support of the Republican Party. Our party is about empowering the people – all the people. We can’t nurture that ideal if we keep trying to tell people who they should invite into their bedrooms or who they can spend their lives with.

I guess beginning with dropping the issue as a political strategy move is a start – but it’s a weak one. Weak is one thing Republicans are not. We leave that to the other party.

Winning in 2012 is essential to keeping our country from tumbling over the precipice to ruin Lord Falderal has led us to. No mistakes can be made. Republicans need only look to the basic platform in order to win. This administration is going to take itself out with their sophomoric missteps and blind leading the blind initiatives. But, let’s not take any chances. Drop the gay marriage issue and believe in it; don’t do it because Rudy said to.

Lord Falderal Ruins Another Wonderful Institution

Worst President Ever

I look forward to the White House Correspondent’s dinner coverage every year with anticipation and glee no matter who is President. It’s the one time during the year I can honestly say I’m capable of tossing aside my political vehemence and just enjoy a little fun. Actually, that is what the whole deal is supposed to be about. Historically, it’s been a kind of Presidential roast with even the President being involved in self-deprecating humor about himself and his job performance since the prior year’s dinner. It’s a time for making fun of poor poll numbers, accentuating verbal flubs, ragging on the VP and other top advisors and taking some shots at reporters. It’s not a campaign stop, never has been and never should be.

I have been following the WHC since the Reagan years and can’t think of a time I didn’t enjoy the President’s portion where typically they lambaste themselves fairly well. Reagan was the master of that dinner year after year. Even Clinton’s WCH participation never disappointed during his tenure in office. Almost nothing was as much fun as W’s 2006 speech though. That one is classic! Check it out here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wq7sRkg_2Ss

Well, I guess my feelings this year show how truly disgusted I am with this non-President as the arrogant douche bag did what he does so well – be arrogant.

Instead of going along with history and making himself his own target, Falderal instead chose to go after those he has been too weak to speak out against in real time. He used this lighthearted event to take some pointed and sometimes very un-funny shots at his adversaries. I know the comments I’m going to get on this: sour grapes because of the whole Republican thing. But, if you really sit and think about it and what the event is all about you’ll start to understand why this President sucks so bad on a larger scale. In essence – he has no clue whether navigating through international crises, domestic disasters or realizing he is being thrown an opportunity to atone for his foibles.

What he and his advisors did was take this opportunity to hit back at detractors and wrongly thought it would score some points with the public. It’s a mistake that could cost him dearly. While it may have endeared him to a sympathetic media who has been dying to hear some retaliation towards Donald Trump et al; it makes him look all the more wimpy and opportunistic to the voters by taking an event where he could have poked fun at himself and appear humble, but instead made it a campaign speech. The voters are not stupid (except the ones who may vote for him again) and would not have taken some well-placed jokes at his own expense as admission of a job poorly done. What it would have done is shown he is capable of self-realization and could make fun of his legion of mistakes and perhaps move on. That kind of thing can go a long way in repairing the damage he has done with his disillusioned base.

This was not the time to start campaigning. This was a time to have a little fun and show some mettle. The Trump stuff was funny, let’s face it, and I think it should have stayed. But, going after Bachman and Pawlenty just showed he was using this as a platform for revenge; a revenge he doesn’t have the balls to initiate in a regular news cycle or in an appropriate forum. I mean, he’s on TV all the time, why not take his time with Oprah to cry about his possible opponents, why screw up what is a revered traditional event loved by people from every political persuasion imaginable. And all he did was piss off Trump even more. Falderal better hope there isn’t anything in his skeleton collection Trump can get a grip on.

The Lion King video was absurd. If ever there was evidence of my aforementioned assertion that this was merely an extension of Falderal’s immense ego, the presentation of that video clip was it. Of course, it was a cartoon – that kind of makes sense.

I’ve never tried to hide the fact I can’t stand the guy, and now that he’s ruined yet another of our great institutions in this country, I really can’t wait to see this ponce tossed out on his ass and push Carter out of the coveted worst President in History title.

The Problem With Sarah

I like Sarah Palin.

I can hear all the boos and hisses roaring through cyber space as both my Republican and Democrat friends are reading that line. But, it’s true and I don’t mind admitting it. Would I vote for her? Not today, maybe not in 2012. Do I think she would be a good candidate? Sure. Why not? Anything is better than the current occupant of 1600.

That “why not”, has become a fun phrase for me this Holiday Season on the precipice of what will surely be an announcement in the next couple of months. Mostly because I am not clear on the polarizing effect this woman has on people. I don’t see the reason there is so much hate directed towards her by both R’s and D’s. So, I have been asking everyone I can: “why not?” Frankly, I’m getting the answers I expected.

This week in New York City I posed the question to some of my favorite people. Folks I consider bastions of intelligence and fair mindedness. Except when it comes to Sarah.

This is how one conversation went, with the most vehement of Sarah haters in the group. I am leaving the person’s name out on purpose because I don’t want to embarrass them. Let’s call the person SPH.

Me: Tell me the real reasons why you don’t like Sarah Palin?

SPH: Because she’s so stupid.

Me: Really? Palin’s stupid? Did you make $30 million last year?

SPH: Stupid people are capable of making money too you know.

Me: Do you really think she is stupid? Tell the truth?

SPH: Ok, no, she’s not stupid but she has set women back 40 years?

Me: How?

SPH: Oh come on.

Me: Seriously, how? How has she set back women? I am assuming you mean equality wise.

SPH: It’s so obvious.

Me: OK. Then why am I missing it?

SPH: Mama Grizzlies?

Me: What about them? What’s the problem with being a strong woman? What is the problem with protecting your family, being loyal to your family? You’re a feminist, why can’t a woman embrace these things? Does every woman have to be Gertrude Stein?

SPH: Nothing is wrong with those things. That’s where she should stay, at home protecting and being loyal to her family. She has no experience.

Me: City council member, Mayor, Governor, Candidate for Vice President. Responsible for cutting the Gubernatorial budget by 80% in Alaska, bringing awareness to Alaska, teaching the State businesses that they need to form an economy not dependant on Federal spending. That’s just a short list and you call someone like this inexperienced? Have you met our current President?  He has never done any of that and certainly isn’t doing any of it now. So, let me ask again, do you honestly believe Palin to not have any experience? Oh, and also, are these things a stupid person is capable of accomplishing?

Silence.

Me: Come on? I’m listening. I want to know, why is Sarah Palin in your lexicon of hate?

SPH: She pisses me off.

Me: Why?

SPH: She’s a whiner. Always bitching about the media and how they portray her. Thinking they are out to get her.

Me: They’re not? Of course, they are out to get her and you’re swallowing it right up. For the amount of time Palin is out there pitching, the only thing the media ever focused on is piddly little mistakes everyone makes. Trust me, under the same microscope everyone would look like an idiot. They have absolutely targeted Palin.

SPH: See? She even has you believing it.

Me: Because it’s true! Sometimes things are what they are. They hate Palin, just like you do and for what reason? That’s what I am trying to figure out. I think Bush haters are kind of ridiculous too, but at least he had a record they could rightly or wrongly, draw upon. Sarah’s record is pretty damn impressive. Sarah’s dealt with a media induced smear campaign since day 1.

Well, I still haven’t figured it out. I had that very same conversation with different derivatives and no solid reasons were given.

I know what the problems with Sarah are on the political level. What I don’t get is the deeply personal issues people have with her.

I, for one see no reason why she wouldn’t make a good candidate. I don’t think she is stupid. I think she builds on her experience everyday and she learns something from all of her projects. Palin knows how to bring awareness. Her curb appeal is obvious to me. Whether or not she has the real substance behind it is what is bothersome. I think she has the basis to be a great leader. She’s cheap, understands the plight of the American family, realizes that an economy cannot rely on Federal spending to move it along, and knows how to protect those she loves. That is an American leader. Not some Johnny come lately jackass community organizer elected President merely because his predecessor conjured enough hatred amongst the American public that any change was considered acceptable. Talk about lowered expectations.

Sarah’s problem is what I refer to as the polarization of the Coasts. I’ve said it before and am sure I will say it throughout my life as I don’t see it changing. The East and West Coast doctor the spin in politics and they hate Sarah. The coasts lead the charge in any Presidential election and the middle of the country tends to just follow along. The Coasts love to intellectualize everything.

I love intellectualization. It’s fun. If I had the opportunity, I would do nothing but sit around all day and intellectualize everything in my life. I would live inside my own head and have great fun thinking about things like; what would happen if instead of teaching my son right from wrong, left from right, etc., I just sat here and observed the wonder of him trying to figure it all out on his own. What would happen? What if I didn’t go outside chop some wood and started a fire, or turned up the thermostat to keep warm. What would freezing be like? Would I be better intellectually for the experience? I mean I know from what others have taught me that my son would end up a ravaged dolt, we would die from exposure and so on and so forth. But, do I really know it? Maybe I should just sit here and think and let life go on about me.

Well, that’s a cheap example but it’s pretty much what the Coasts like to do. They seem to tarry to the sort of people who would rather sit around enjoying their own oblivion lost in thought rather than actually doing something about anything at all. And, anyone who speaks in plain and simple truths are just plain stupid. Sarah fits in that category to these people.

These people would rather hear a bunch of platitudes laid out in eloquent well-parsed oratory than hear the actual root of problems and their subsequent solutions. They would rather be sold a bill of goods aimed at making them feel better despite the fact that bill of goods will never be delivered.

Yeah, I cringe when I listen to some of her speeches too. Her style leaves me a little limp, but the foundation is there. She knows what a gallon of milk costs. She knows the value of a dollar, how to protect that value and how to communicate with the masses more than the intelligentsia. What the hell is wrong with that?

Oh, and did I mention, I think she’s hot?

Trifecta 11/2/2010

Wow. What a week.

Republicans prevail as expected, Nancy Pelosi flips all over the place and that scumbag Olberman gets the boot. Not bad. But, there are serious caveats to watch for and lessons to be taken from Tuesday’s historic victory.

First, let’s think about the Republican win and what it means for the next two years. There were certainly hopes that Lord Falderal would get the message and finally work with the R’s to try and get something productive through the legislature. Productive meaning, passing bills and laws that don’t bankrupt the Nation, or upset our Capitalist model.

Well, after Falderal’s speech and the Republican reaction to it, it’s clear that just ain’t going to happen. Why? For one thing, as should have been expected, Falderal did not feel one ounce of chastening for the lambasting his party received. Unlike Clinton when faced with the same dilemma in ’94, Falderal did not show any grace or leadership, and just flat out admit the message was received and he would play ball. He did say he is ultimately responsible. Big friggin’ deal. What does he think we are Kindergarteners? He gets zero points for making that assertion. Of course, Falderal is correct, he will indeed be judged in 2012.

So where does that leave things?

The only sad possibility now is that Congress basically does nothing for the next two years and the R’s focus on taking back the White House and aiming for a super-majority in the House and the Senate. The reality is, that will be the only way to break gridlock. I know it sucks and I would rather see people play well together in the sandbox and actually accomplish something. But, the poisoning in the well goes too deep and the whole thing needs to be dug out and replaced.

My prediction is Boehner will put up the Healthcare Bill for repeal as fast as possible. Falderal will veto and then the Republican Party will have the ammunition needed to take the White House and turn more blue seats red. The argument will be that the only way for repeal to go through and any action taken on future bills will be to take even more D positions. If things stay the same with the economy or only look slightly better that will be an easy sell.

Also, Nancy Pelosi has been cackling away about running for Minority Leadership. Could the R’s be given a bigger gift? In my opinion, she is one of the main reasons Tuesday went so well for the R’s. If she stays on…well…2012 is in the bag.

Probably the most important thing to come out of the election for the R’s is the addition of some great candidates for 2012. There is really good talent out there now and the R’s no longer have to worry about Palin, who really is an albatross that will have to be dealt with at some point. Even better is that the lineup going into 2016 is looking pretty great as well. Pawlenty, Rubio, and a slew of other possibilities will give voters some serious talent to ponder. The tired old guard will of course put their names into the ring, but now there will actually be some very serious young, diverse and brilliant contenders to take out Falderal.

The Tea Party Movement had an amazing showing on Tuesday although the lesson there is to pick some better candidates next time because the loss of Delaware, Utah and Alaska was completely avoidable. The GOP, Democrats and the country as a whole better start taking the Tea Party seriously. I am not a tea partier but I have spent the year defending them and I am gleeful they showed those smug fuck Democrats what they could do. I lost what respect I had for the D’s this year as I watched them demonize their fellow countrymen as incoherent racists. It was a truly disgusting display and showed the true colors of the party of hypocrisy. The downtrodden and hurting are apparently only legitimate if they belong to the D’s. Foul, just plain foul.

Finally, watching the fall of Olberman has got to be one of the most fabulous feelings ever. Unfortunately, it only amounts to a pissing match between the d-bag and his boss and lacks real substance, but what the hell; I’ll take what I can get. The truth is I enjoy watching that kind of demise as it showcases another hypocrisy, that of Liberals constantly hounding Fox about being political whilst defending the mainstream media as bastions of legitimacy and fact-finding. Uh huh.

I hope I never feel the need to say this again, but this year the Democrats really disgusted me on so many levels; something which has never happened to this extent before and what I have to say to the Democrats is this:

Fuck y’all. You just got schooled.

Revolution? Yes We Can!

This country, with its institutions, belongs to the people who inhabit it. Whenever they shall grow weary of the existing government, they can exercise their Constitutional right of amending it or their revolutionary right to dismember it or overthrow it.

--Abraham Lincoln

Not a huge fan of using quotes usually. I think it’s kind of hacky. If you are going to write something and can’t illustrate the point effectively yourself; don’t write at all! (Some of you just said…well then stop typing!)

Once in a while however, a good quote can really knock your thinking from one of myopic indoctrination to one of clarity.

Americans have become so influenced by the deluge of information and misinformation thrown down at us like so much offal over the last 150 years, that we have lost sight of who we are and how this country is supposed to work. The bulk of Americans no longer see themselves as We the People, but as Us the Powerless.

Think about it hard. The last time you got screwed by Bank of America, or the DMV or Wal-Mart, etc; what did you do? You probably screamed like hell up to a certain level of management and then gave up regardless of how truly pissed you were; chalking up whatever egregious indignation you suffered to the inability to fight such a behemoth of an organization. Of course, it’s true that for one individual it is virtually impossible to “fight City Hall” as it were.

But with a coalition, Americans can “fight City Hall”, or Bank of America, or Wal-Mart or whomever. That’s how our country was built. We are not powerless unless we make ourselves powerless and that is exactly what we have done.

This is why when I hear someone scoff at the idea of revolution my blood boils over.

Talk of revolution usually elicits two responses:

1. Abject revulsion; as the word Revolution to most liberals has become synonymous to drunken, inbred ramblings of racist redneck hicks propagated by a love of hell raising and hatred for authority in general. Liberals believe that anyone who even thinks of revolution to be clearly devoid of any semblance of intellect whatsoever. Revolutionists are in effect, dangerous ignorant extremists to most Liberals.
2. To conservatives and moderates, the idea seems fantastic, but impossible to achieve given the size and ingrained infrastructure of our current Government. The prospect just seems so damn daunting.

To the first group, my response would be: you are the truly ignorant amongst us.

Are you implying that Patrick Henry, Samuel Adams, George Washington, Ben Franklin et al, were extremist dolts? Is it because you have become so fat and happy given the liberties these revolutionists fought for that you couldn’t possibly fathom any other mode of operation? Are we now to be a country that merely opines rather than takes action towards the betterment of their own people’s destinies? Or, shall we allow the Government to do that for us?

Liberals are not patriots. Oh, not by a long shot. They have no problem taking and taking and bitching about how little they receive for doing nothing and how stupid everyone else is. They offer solutions in which they have no intention of helping to achieve. Their raison d’être is perpetuating cradle to grave government reliance.

These are the same people who have labeled the Tea Party folks an ignorant mob of predominantly white-faced miscreants looking to shore up their 2nd Amendment rights. Clear and utter bullshit. Tea Partiers are not the problem, they are doing what they can to showcase a growing viewpoint: American Government as we know it does not work!

To Conservatives and Moderates: I would beg look back to the beginning when Britain’s Goliath-like grip was broken by a rag tag, ill equipped group of patriots who were short on resources but long on belief in the power of regular people and the desire for a good quality of life unencumbered by Government. This should be the very inspiration we need to begin a real change, not the crap Lord Falderal sold the nation last year. The first American Revolution was a seemingly impossible undertaking: fighting the formidable British Empire. But they did it and so can we. Any nay saying on the subject is bilge.

The difference between now and Revolutionary times is there were real leaders then. Now, we have nothing but trained rhetoric specialists and lawyers with aspirations and personal agendas. Any idiot with a team of newly minted college English majors sporting laptops and a teleprompter can get into office regardless of their experience in real life.

There was also a more pure distribution of information; no Internet, or biased media poisoning the minds of voters into thinking things are not what they really are and that the citizenry are in essence controlled by the Government and not vice versa. Sure, there were fewer people to get the word out to, but at least the voting public could be confident that information looked something like the Truth.

Today, the well has been poisoned. I know very intelligent people who take the word of CNN, MSNBC and even FOX as gospel and vote accordingly. Mindless. There is no initiative to seek the real truth since it is just easier to take the word of whoever the flavor of the week media correspondent is and go with that.

Seldom will you find me agreeing with Sarah Palin, but she is right on point with the media. Amazing things can be done through editing and camera angles as well as selective choices of dialog to use in any media package be it audio or video. They have the power to make an idiot look like a genius and a genius look like an idiot. Ask John Stewart, that’s how he makes a living. We have become a sound bite society and we use these clever edits to choose our so-called leaders.

We have let this system run on autopilot for way too long and are paying the piper for it now. The United States Government and Capitalism as a whole is a rudderless ship careening towards the reefs of destruction. The near miss of Lord Falderal’s hapless healthcare reform is the perfect example. Despite an overwhelming amount of people who were against it, it would have passed both Houses because our leaders have no clue what their constituents really want. And, for those of you who see some sort of conspiracy by the right wing that claim Falderal is tinkering with Socialism; here’s a clue, he is and it is no conspiracy.

This collective legislative scum could care less about the people they represent. They care only about their own careers and their places in history.

Thankfully the people of Massachusetts spoke, sending a shot across the bow of rank and file legislators all over the Nation. Now the House healthcare plans will have to be scrapped and retooled. The message is clear; the people are angry and will not be pushed around any longer.

Massachusetts was indeed a game changer, and it should be used as an example of what can be accomplished when people get together, express how they are feeling and turn those feelings into action. If the aforementioned topics in addition to the Massachusetts election don’t get you fired up, how about this: the Supreme Court's latest ruling on Campaign Finance? It not only lets the foxes into the henhouse, it also filets and breads the chickens.

It’s time to find real leaders regardless of what party they come from; strong leaders that can speak directly to the people at their own levels. We haven’t had a real leader since Teddy Roosevelt was President. In short, we need a real revolution. Not the kind where we forcefully take over the government, but the kind with a long-term strategy devised to dump this President and the entire legislature. We the people must take over the government and get back to where we came from.

It is also important to realize that revolution is not about throwing out the party in control and replacing it with the other party. It’s about rethinking the whole structure. It’s about replacing the morons who are running things from the Executive Branch down. They no longer represent real people; they represent party hacks and special interest groups. If Massachusetts didn’t illustrate that point, I don’t know what else would.

Can we do it in the next three years? Yes, we can; only this time for real.

The price of freedom is eternal vigilance.
--Thomas Jefferson

Upside Down Flag? Appropriate for the Times?

Is the United States really in enough distress to fly the flag upside down?

Dr. Thomas Byrd an eye doctor from Downriver, MI chose to fly his flag upside down in front of his offices over the July 4^th weekend. As you can imagine the act caused a bit of a furor. Most people interpreted upside down Old Glory as a sign of disrespect to veterans, our current serving military personnel, and anyone else who loves this country.

The thing is Dr. Byrd did not flip the flag to express some kind of anti-American sentiment, quite the contrary. Dr. Byrd himself is a veteran and is aware that in accordance with the United States Flag Code, the inversion of the flag is a signal of distress. The flag in the upside down position is supposed to indicate that American citizens are in extreme danger to life and property.  Dr. Byrd believes this is the case of the country at this time and wanted to draw some attention to his concerns. He believes that awareness is what we need in this time of peril.

I couldn’t agree more and although it may be extreme, I think we should have a movement to get everyone who believes the country is going the way of Rome to fly their flags upside down until we take a 90 degree turn to the positive. It would be like the yellow ribbons or any of a number of the symbolic movements we have had in this country when trying to show solidarity.

We need to show these pig-fucking Government shills that it is still the people running this game and that the people are pissed.

It is time for everyone who voted for all of these jackasses (not just the one in the White House) to come together and reach a common ground. Ok, I got carried away there, we’ll never reach a common ground, but anything is better than this.

We need to act like this Presidency is the equivalent to 9/11 in that we need to come together as a country then throw the bums out and start over. This country needs an enema and it is the people who should deliver it. November is not going to be enough. We need to keep the momentum going. Obama is toast in 2012; that is a forgone conclusion, so it is now time to decide what we want in a leader as a country and get to work.

This little trick with the flag is just a symbol, but a lot of movements start with a symbol. It’s something to bring people together, no different than a slogan, like, oh I don’t know, Hope and Change, maybe?

Everyone is hurting and everyday there is more and more dissent. It is no longer productive. The dissent is not productive and the Government is not productive and something has to break. The American people need to rely on themselves and get cracking with some real candidates who have the country’s best interests in mind. Unlikely candidates. People who never even considered running for public office now need to step up to the plate.

I have argued with my Mother, a devout Lord Falderal supporter, that she could do a better job than this President. She thinks I am nuts and just gets pissed when I bring it up. But, you know what? She could. Just like millions of other Americans, she knows how to run a budget, she knows how to protect her family, she knows how to care for her loved ones and those less fortunate than herself. Mom knows what works and what doesn’t. She doesn’t have any airs; she is selfless and puts the needs of others in front of her own. As much as I love Mom, she is not unique, there are plenty of people just like her all over this country.

We don’t need anymore lawyers who do nothing but interpret and interpret laws until no one remembers what the hell they were for in the first place. We need people who act. We need to take chances again, be pioneers. It’s a whole new world and we are quickly going the way of Rome. This country has become so dependant on the Government that we have gotten fat, soft, and apathetic. And, what happens when you become fat, soft, and apathetic? You get fucked. And, THAT is what your Government is doing to you right now.

Cheers, Dr. Byrd.

Missed Opportunity: The Gulf

Just imagine if Lord Falderal had actually taken the reigns on the Gulf Disaster.

All that hyperbole during the election of creating jobs and becoming a new age de facto FDR, all that Hope and Change crap that the Obama-zombies bought hook, line and sinker could all be legitimized if only our feckless President had done his job and taken control.

Here we are still losing hundreds of thousands of jobs every week, yet we have an extraordinary opportunity to create thousands of jobs down in the Gulf. Yes, it’s jobs created out of tragedy, but its jobs all the same. The BP oil spill has been called the largest environmental disaster to ever come along in this country. Well, if I remember correctly, true capitalists can take the worst situations and create something great out of them. Think both World Wars and 9/11 for starters. Problem is our President is a complete idiot and apparently doesn’t recognize both the obvious pragmatic as well as political solutions to the problem.

Let’s think about the economics for a minute.

Last I checked there was still some of that outrageous stimulus money kicking around. (Which apparently we aren’t allowed to use to extend unemployment benefits.) Wouldn’t the remainder of that dough be best used trying to save all we possibly can of our Gulf ecosystem as well as salvage the remnants of the lives of the people effected by this horrific circumstance?

We are not talking about a one hit deal here either. Pouring money into the Gulf situation just makes good sound economic sense. It’s so obvious I can’t believe I just typed that line. Could there possibly be anyone out there who wouldn’t rather see their tax dollars going into saving our own countrymen’s livelihoods, our environment, and help give a kick start to the National economy as a whole, than pouring it into ridiculous social programs that have no long term positive effects? That supremely stupid Obamacare Legislation is a good example. Talk about many billions gone to waste when they finally realize they can’t administrate that abortion.

This is a national emergency, has been since day 1, and Lord Falderal has done everything in his power not to deal with it. This moron and his cadre of amateurs in knee pants haven’t got the memo that the election is over and it is time to GOVERN. Talk is cheap Falderal, and even your talk isn’t saving your ass now.

He wants to be FDR? Here was the perfect opportunity. Unlike a lot of the uselessness that went along with FDR’s job creation programs, Falderal was in the unique position of being able to create legitimate jobs for the actual good. You know, real, needed stuff that could have made him a hero. Hell, if he had jumped on this from the start, a second term would have been a non-issue.

Falderal didn’t even respond when the Ragin’ Cagin’ James Carville bitched him out.  Talk about a clear queue to take some action. When a guy like Carville says to jump to and you are a Democrat, well sir, jump to! Nope. Nothing.

That’s not fair though. Falderal has worked hard on the Gulf situation in between vacations, meeting with rock stars, and tossing the Israeli/Palestinian situation back into the dark ages. He has worked very hard placing blame and throwing stones. He has done the best he possibly could to make BP the ultimate evil empire, which is fine, but let’s do that later on after we fix the problem, eh?

There are fisherman, trades people, divers, and all manner of working folk being destroyed by this catastrophe. Why isn’t the government seeking the use of their specific knowledge of the area, their equipment, and their passion to help with the problem. How hard would that be? Assign tasks, pay per diems and I assure you this thing would disappear a lot faster than it ultimately will. Instead, our government sits around mentally masturbating every angle (mostly from a political stand point) instead of taking action. It’s despicable.

The psychological effect of tasking those worst hit and paying them for their contribution is huge as well. It brings everyone together and there is nothing this country can’t do when brought together. Think 9/11. Did you ever think New Yorkers could be cuddly before that date?

What really, really, REALLY kills me is that even if Falderal wanted to continue playing politics instead of actually dealing with the situation, he could have and still would have been a hero. All he had to do was say “we’re sending as many people down to the Gulf as needed, we will hire private contractors and work day and night until the leak is stopped and clean up is finished.” But, no. His way of dealing with it was to immediately declare there would be justice. BP would pay.

Well, BP didn’t bomb a building or take out an airplane or plant a dirty bomb in a subway. BP was drilling for oil to satisfy OUR greedy demands. Justice can wait. Falderal’s “just plug the damn hole” statement shows how out of touch he really was right from the start.

It’s sickening, disheartening, and just adds to the insults this President has brought this country.

But, you know, he isn’t worried because somehow this is George Bush’s fault anyway!

Check this out:

Falderal's Oil Slicked Waterloo

In 2008, the euphoria of the Obama campaign resembled the excitement one feels while being taken up into a cresting wave. That sucking down towards the ocean bottom and adrenaline inducing vertical pull, as you are uplifted to the precipice is in my mind a great metaphor for those who supported the anointed one from Chicago. Phrases like the title of Obama’s book; The Audacity of Hope, and campaign trifles like Hope and Change had a cross generational effect not seen in many, many years. They got caught up into his wave.

The problem with the excitement of being pulled up into a wave whether it is real or metaphorical, is the inevitable crash down into the sand, rock, and rubble that can leave one beaten and battered and questioning whether becoming one with the wave was really worth it. For those caught up into it accidentally, or out of some sort of desire to be part of the crowd, the fall is not quite as poignant as it is for those who came into it full steam with all faculties working.

I have waited long enough to comment on everything oil slick. But, I really wanted time to see what was happening before espousing on this ludicrous situation.

First of all, let me state I am someone who would love to get off the grid and live a total energy independent lifestyle.  But, let’s face it; that ain’t happening anytime too soon and like everyone else I must look at the energy situation with some common sense. We are going to be dependent on oil for a long time to come, especially if our retarded Government keeps delaying funding research and capital investment in clean energy infrastructure. Or using whatever is already there like nuclear energy for instance. They would rather fund failed and failing social programs instead of investing in the economy of the future.

The BP Deepwater Horizon Disaster pains everyone. The mistakes, PR problems and lack of leadership all over the board could be postulated on and analyzed until the end of time, and probably will be. But, there are some very common sense issues at stake here that go beyond the technological issues of plugging the leak.

As usual, the finger pointing has taken precedence over the actual solving of the problem. I have been waiting for Lord Falderal to blame the Bush Administration, since…well…hell…why not?

We are all to blame.

I drive a car, most likely you, dear reader drive a car or operate machinery that requires crude. We love our electric lights, conveniences, etc. We consume, consume, consume and expect companies like BP to provide the supply for our demand. Rightfully, so. The last time I checked (although it is waning) we are a capitalistic society and operate on the principles of supply and demand.

BP is a company beholden to stockholders looking to make a profit. In so doing they provide not only our insatiable desire for oil, but also a good living for many thousands of people in the Gulf area, just like ExxonMobil, Chevron, or any of the other companies we take our oil business to.

Like any other business, they are going to look for ways to save money and provide larger profits and dividends for their investors. I realize this is a concept the guy posing as President in the White House doesn’t quite grasp, but nonetheless, it is what it is.

BP fucked up hard. They cut the wrong corners. On a moral level it is indefensible, but on a business level it is a decision based on historical precedent. They calculated (incorrectly) the variables associated with the possibility of a huge event and decided their course of action in developing safety measures and the appropriate responses would be designed to save a little money. It ain’t right, but you can see how it could happen.

Now they are the demons. BP’s response has been lackluster, they have tossed out PR screw up after PR screw up and the nation wants their collective heads on a stick.

I believe they are doing what any company would do and this is what we have to deal with. So we deal with it. We do the best we can. We don’t have a choice. But, we need some leadership on our end and that is where we are truly screwed because we don’t have it.

Lord Falderal has behaved far worse than BP has in my opinion. I believe the die has been cast for good ol’ Falderal and this is indeed his Waterloo. There has been no leadership from the very beginning. All he has done is threaten and cajole BP with absolutely no constructive plan whatsoever. If I were Tony Hayward or any other executive at BP, I would have told Falderal to pound sand when they forced BP to set up the $20 billion Escrow account under threat of legal ramifications. I would write off the White House, Congress, and the Senate and say; You know what? Deal with this your own damn selves.

It is Falderal’s job to protect the American people and our environment, not to play sophomoric power games. Given his chance to step up to the plate and show some leadership potential he has failed miserably. On Day 1, there should have been made available the full force of the stateside military, Army Corps of Engineers, Coast Guard and every private contractor we could find regardless of who caused the spill and where the blame fell. I mean, wtf?

There are so many examples of Falderal’s lack of leadership and petty little power plays. Governor Jindal asks for help with sand burms…nothing. Why? Because it is coming from Jindal and we can’t let him overshadow Fadleral and actually come up with a feasible solution. It took him far longer to make a visit to the Gulf than it did Bush to tour the wreckage from Katrina. We won’t accept foreign help because it may violate the Jone’s Act, even though the countries willing to help have more expertise and success in cleaning up oil spills than we do. It goes on and on and on. But, again it doesn’t matter; just fix the goddamn situation already.

As usual, the media is absolutely no help in all of this. Their emotion stirring controversies that may or may not actually be valid only make the overall problem worse. I don’t give a rat’s ass that Tony Hayward was racing yachts while Obama was playing golf during the crisis. I REALLY don’t need to be looking at the oil plume 24/7. This is a tragedy. It’s like watching your Mom get hit by a train over and over again.

Speaking of tragedy. What about the people who died in the disaster? There has been scant coverage of their lives and the families they left behind. They are just as heroic as the victims of 9/11, so how about some respect?

There is no good to come out of this at any level. The only possible glimmer of something shiny and pink may be that people will start thinking about losing the crude addiction more seriously. And, we may finally be able to consider Falderal a pathetic one termer, but even that is hollow in light of this awful situation.

The wave is crashing into shore and it is covered in the death of an ecosystem and the ruining of countless lives.

Wrestling Government: Simmons vs. McMahon

I am a great lover of money.

Money is fabulous. Good cold hard cash gives the ability not only to survive, but also to thrive. In a way this country’s raison d’etre is currency and there is really nothing wrong with that. I am actually very lenient when it comes to the means with which money is accumulated with the exception of stealing. However, when it comes to an individuals’ ambition to be a public servant, I believe money should never be a factor, especially when it comes to campaigns.

Left up to me all facets of Government would follow the edict of a 10^th Century Monastic Priory; with the legislature as the priory monks, the President as the Bishop and the People as Pope. All levels of Government would operate from bare bones offices with little or no comforts and the sole purpose of serving the people. They would eat horse-bread softened with weak ale, and spend every waking moment of their term working. Their campaigns would be financed evenly through a very sparse fund made up of taxes. The system would be heavily enforced by the public and the second any legislator, or the President, were observed partaking in anything other than what is rationed, they would unceremoniously be dismissed back into private life.

This way anyone fool enough to run for office would do so with only the best of intentions; that is to serve and not be self-serving. We could avoid those egomaniacal people who feel they should somehow be able to buy their way into government, so they can feel loved, or because it is just the “next thing to do” on their life agenda. We could also avoid the sons and daughters of millionaires who devoid of any need to do anything, decide to run for public office because “they want to make a difference”. Yes, only those with a religious like zeal to serve would run for office.

Ok, my fantasies aside, this is what I really want to talk about. A few months ago I wrote a post about the Senate Race in Connecticut, and the feud between Republican candidates Rob Simmons and Linda McMahon. See it here:

http://blogofirreverence.blogspot.com/2010/02/rob-simmons-vs-linda-mcmahon-smackdown.html  

Linda McMahon is the perfect example of pure narcissistic foulness to be found in recent political history (with the exception of Lord Falderal, he’s the gold standard), while Rob Simmons is the perfect example of the aforementioned public servant.

McMahon is rich, seriously rich, and she doesn’t even try to hide the fact she is using her dough to try and buy her way into the Senate. Which is not incongruous to her character. This is a person who has made her fortune through morally reprehensible means. McMahon and her husband Vince are the owners of the WWE. That alone should give some perspective to the situation.

In other words, she has become rich by advocating violence, sexual depravity, drug use, and myriad other deplorable business undertakings the likes of which could make Larry Flynt blush.

Now McMahon is using that dough to change her persona into that of the ultimate Polly Anna, eschewing values, female empowerment, and appearing to be as boring as Barbara Boxer, or Nancy Pelosi. The question is will all that money be able to erase McMahon’s involvement in such antics as; kicking her husband in the nads in a wrestling ring after he cheated on her with a female wrestler (all scripted), allowing and in fact, supporting scenes in the ring simulating necrophilia, or one of my favs, defending wrestlers employed by the WWE who took part in such austere film renderings as: Girls Chloroform Girls, Tied, Gagged & Frightened, and who could forget, Dirty Soled Dolls.

She has also used her position to obstruct justice (she was never formerly charged of this, it is my opinion) by alerting a Doctor who prescribed steroids to her wrestlers of an impending Federal Investigation against him. This allegedly allowed said doctor to break company with certain pieces of evidence, which would have shed a poor light on McMahon, her husband and their company. The doctor was sentenced to time in a Federal prison and although McMahon’s husband was also brought up on charges he was not convicted. Here is a fun read:

http://www.theday.com/article/20100409/NWS12/100409727/1017

As part of her Polly Anna disguise, McMahon has claimed she is a DC outsider and is wildly against special interest groups. This despite the fact the WWE spent a cool million + bucks lobbying both houses as well as various Federal Agencies. Well, I guess in relative terms she is an outsider, a mil won’t buy you much at the Federal level these days. But, it does prove she is a huge liar; as does a vetting form she filled out for Governor M. Jodi Rell when she was being considered as an appointee to the Connecticut State Board of Education in 2009. Out of 29 questions, she answered five to the negative, when proving out found she may have had a lapse in memory. You can check it out here:

http://articles.courant.com/2010-04-04/news/hc-mcmahon-questionnaire-0404.artapr04_1_linda-mcmahon-answers-wrestling

To be fair, I did say in the beginning of this post I have no problem with a little leniency towards how the money is made. After all if there is a demand, I say go ahead and supply. Truth to be told, I would enjoy McMahon’s company say, at a bar, or cocktail party, or maybe an illegal cock fight, but not ever and I mean ever, would I want to see such a person in Government.

In Connecticut, everywhere you look Linda McMahon has an ad. She is trying to win the campaign based on market saturation. That’s dangerous. She realizes the only way she can possibly win is by a complete image overhaul and money tends to be pretty effective in achieving that end. Of course, it is an image overhaul, not a character overhaul. Nothing can change her character. She will always be someone who stood behind violence, drug abuse, and morally reprehensible behavior.

What voters need to do is take the initiative and look at the character of the person running and not the purse they are operating from. A guy like Rob Simmons isn’t in it for the money, the need to be admired, or some other sinister desire. He’s a guy who has done nothing but serve the public his entire career. Through his Military service, time spent in the CIA and Congress, plus his other achievements; Simmons has proven the people are what motivate his actions. THAT is a public servant. I am not sure what the hell Linda McMahon is.

I must admit she has given me a newfound respect for Jesse Ventura!

Super Power: Obama's Burden

"It is a vital national security interest of the United States to reduce these conflicts because whether we like it or not, we remain a dominant military superpower, and when conflicts break out, one way or another we get pulled into them," - Obama, Nuclear Summit - April 14, 2010

I finally have my answer.

For over a year now I have been pondering Lord Falderal’s foreign policy strategy; just dying to know what could possibly be on his mind. All this bowing and other associated weak gesture nonsense that he does with world leaders of questionable repute is enough to baffle even the most liberal of minds.

It has been so terribly hard to quantify the cuddling of dictators like Chavez and the sweet nothings whispered into the ear of Sarkozy (ohlala), whilst giving our strong allies like Netanyahu of Israel the proverbial ass shaft, and not in a good way. Oh and of course there is my favorite; the gifting to the Queen of England an iPod. The Queen had already purchased one in 2005 at the suggestion of her grandson Andrew. Wait, wait, there’s another favorite of mine; the bequest of 25 DVD’s of American Classic Movies to Prime Minister Gordon Brown. Classy. Of course, the DVD’s could not even be played on European DVD players, but hey, what the hell. Apparently, their isn't anyone on his staff who could have clued him into these little details. 

For all this time I thought it was just because Falderal was a little behind on protocol and hadn’t re-read any Sylvia Porter books lately. I mean after all, it’s not like he had a lot of experience in the International Political theatre. His tenure as part time Senator certainly didn’t lend to a ton of meetings with foreign Heads of State and his only actual job as a community organizer with ACORN couldn’t have put him in the company of many respectable sorts.

As it turns out, it wasn’t his lack of social graces and protocol at all. His end goal was to reduce the embarrassment of the United States from being a super power. Now it makes sense. Why else would he sleep with the enemy and push away our allies?

Falderal is not fond of the burden the United States has as a major world power. I am wondering if he had read the job description of President before he became a candidate; I am thinking...no.

Falderal has given me a great deal of material in which to express my disgust with his performance. However, this is a new low. I have increased my feelings of strong dislike for him to abject revulsion.

Falderal seems to care not that such statements hurt tens of millions of people not just in real time, but in history as well. All those men and women who died in combat, spent their lives in labs, sacrificed their lifestyles, and yes, represented us in Government for lo these past 234 years are made to look like they worked for nothing.

Security is everything and Falderal seems to not understand that. He is too busy pushing agendas that do nothing more than bankrupt this country not just economically, but respectably in the eyes of our foreign counterparts.

Should we want more conflicts? Of course not. But, we are a Super Power and we are a compassionate Super Power. Our forces are forces of good, not evil. We help the helpless while maintaining our own levels of security on American soil so we can continue to live the American Dream. The American Dream our own President is trying so hard to dissemble.

More powerful than our armaments are the words of our leaders. The old pen is mightier than the sword adage is so true. What are our enemies to think when the supposed Leader of the Free World makes such deplorable statements?

Let’s think about it. Think about any competitive situation where you have information about your competitor that you can use to your advantage. Are you going to do it? Of course. What if the leader of your team doesn’t believe in your team? Would you go to the other side to defeat him, or your team? Maybe, and maybe not. But, it’s those maybes we must worry about. Make no mistake, our enemies are taking note, and so are disenfranchised Americans.

We are at a time where the perfect example of why we need to be a Super Power should be blatantly obvious. Ironically, our strength is what keeps the peace. If the enemy thinks we are weak, there will be violence. And, we are walking that line right now thanks to our extremely inexperienced and extremely weak President.

I wish we could impeach based on patriotism, because were that the case, this jackass would be history so fast, Joe Biden’s comb over would spin.

Check this out. This just in from the Huckabee Show on Fox. Normally, I hate Hollywood types postulating on politics, but this is awesome.

Fox in the Hen House

My whole thing with the economic collapse is disappointment more than suffering. I believe in you get what you deserve and quite frankly, we deserved this recession.

I thought when Bush got elected we as capitalists could finally find our stride. You know, be unencumbered by Government and really let lose. Well, we certainly did and what did we prove? We proved given the keys to the candy store our greedy little mitts would steal everything off the shelves and then the shelves as well.

We screwed up large, and now we are paying for it with a Socialist moron of a President surrounded by an advisory group that makes the crew of F-Troop look like the advisory council for Mensa. The biggest idiot in this group is of course Geithner. Can you believe Falderal sent him to deal with the Chinese? I bet the holders of our biggest debt were laughing their asses off at that one. However, that’s a post of a different color.

The answer to Wall Street’s blatant disregard for doing the right thing should have been heavy regulation and a thinning of the herd from bankruptcies (of the banks) and mergers. No, our eminently stupid Government beginning under Bush and getting even more fucked up under Falderal decided TARP was a better answer.

On their face, TARP and all the various corollaries to it was the absolute most ridiculous government program to come along until Healthcare Reform.  We the taxpayers bailed out the guys who made us go broke. We rewarded the scumbag bankers for taking advantage of American taxpayers. And, it was Geithner who orchestrated the entire process and continues to do so.

As President of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, it was he who designed and implemented the Bailout of 2008. It is he who has dominion over the $700 billion being used to further bail out the big banks.

Why is he so into helping out the banks instead of punishing them?

Simple. The Falderal administration has been heavily supported by the banking community since Falderal announced his Presidential candidacy for the very simple reason that they knew his pack of morons could be manipulated into bailing them out instead of forcing costly regulation and possibly the collapse of the banking industry as it was known.

They knew they could sell voters on Falderal by seeming as if they were against heavy regulation unlike Democrats of the past. They branded themselves as a new kind of Democratic Party. A party that would be a friend to business, not a hindrance. Well, they are certainly friends to this particular business sector!

Falderal et al raised over a million bucks from Goldman Sachs and their employees in 2008, not to mention the other support they were able to whip up through customers and business associates. That’s more than any candidate had raised from one business entity since the McCain Feingold legislation went into effect. They owed banking and they owed it big.

One might reasonably assume TARP and the associated bailouts would have been enough to satisfy their banking buddies and special interest groups that went along with them. But, no. Falderal, Geithner and the Goldman alumni of; Rahm Emanuel, Larry Summers, and Mark Patterson who are now all a part of the administration, have decided to further protect their banking pals from future financial foibles.

Geithner through master thief Chris Dodd has orchestrated a 50 billion dollar emergency funding bill known as the Dodd Bill, to further help out the banks in times of crisis. They are calling it an Emergency Fund. Guess who is in charge of deciding when a bank is in trouble and what to fund them? That’s right, Geithner. Pretty convenient, huh?

So this all begs two questions, first: where is the incentive for banks to clean up their practices, and second, whose side is Falderal on anyway? The former is easy to answer; clearly Falderal could care less about the American taxpayer. The first is almost as easy; there is no incentive for banks to clean up, fly straight and provide a long-term solution to our economic crisis. They can keep playing fast and loose with their policies; taking advantage of their now desperate customers once again while furthering our demise in favor of their own profits, and the Government is facilitating it all for them. Nice, real nice Falderal.

Although it is Geithner masterminding these certain to fail policies, the buck stops with Falderal, which he is apparently very fond of saying. Let’s look at one of Falderal’s brilliant economic programs; short sells.

Falderal has been fond of offering short sell opportunities for people in over their heads with mortgages. Short sells are a fast track to foreclosures and are good for nobody. They do not help at all in solving the problem. Some would argue Short Sells are good because real estate investors can buy cheap properties and offer them for rent. Yeah, that’s great for investors and I am never against that, but the big picture here is what we need to be concerned with. It’s also great for banks and real estate types because it allows for all sorts of ancillary fees. Hmm, more property owned by fewer people; much of it by the government through the banks. What does that sound like? Oops, did I actually write that out loud?

The idea should be to keep people in their houses. What Falderal is saying is: “let’s further skull fuck the American Dream by booting people out of their homes; the homes whose mortgages were sold to them by predatory lenders, the people we like to protect, and cure the short term financial woes of the homeowner”. That is extremely faulty and dangerous policy.

What a smart president would do is force the banks to reduce the principle down to a manageable number so people can stay in their homes. The short term hit to banks, which really isn’t a hit at all, is softened by the fact that they have taken a non-performing asset and turned it into a performing one.

The bigger success in such a program would be the psychological aspect. When people feel like they are working towards something, they are more enthusiastic about everything in their life. This makes for good workers, which makes for a good economy. Offering short sell opportunities is not only an economic fool’s errand, it is also demoralizing.

Yeah, this is what happens when you elect a former community organizer for the largest thieving government funded shyster organization in America, whose only experience in Government is as a part time Senator. It’s pretty simple math when you get down to it.

2012 can’t come fast enough!