COMMENT ON HEARING ONE IN FOUR MAMMALS RISKS EXTINCTION
Now if only the Republican Party was one of the things going extinct.
COMMENT ON HEARING THE BAILOUT WAS INCREASED AND THE STOCK MARKET STILL FELL
Remember when we thought Democrat Jimmy Carter was a disaster for the economy? Republican Bush makes Carter seem like a financial genius in comparison.
COMMENT ON HEARING REPUBLICAN COMPLAIN ABOUT THE BAILOUT, BUT STILL SUPPORTING MCCAIN
The campaign slogan for the Sado/Masochist Party is “Continue the Pain! Vote for McCain!”
COMMENT ON REPUBLICANS HAVING THE NERVE TO BLAME PELOSI FOR DEFEAT OF THEIR BAILOUT BILL
In what could only be called a partisan attack, Republicans vilified Nancy Pelosi for her comments about who was to blame for the latest Republican disaster to our economy. She simply pointed out the obvious prior to her holding her nose and voting the $700 Trillion Dollar “bailout” bill that had been first proposed by the Republican President and Republican Secretary of the Treasury. Yet, the Republicans had the audacity to instantly blame her for the bailout’s defeat in the House and alleged she was the reason America was facing deadly economic threat.
As usual, the partisan comments of the Republicans about Pelosi being partisan were widely reported in the Mainstream Media who ignored the partisan aspects of the Republicans bringing it up. The MSM also largely ignored that the bill would have passed if the Republicans had supported their own party leaders. Although the bill was labeled by the Republicans as necessary to save the country, it was Republicans who decided to spite the country by voting against it. More Democrats after all voted for it than Republicans, but somehow Pelosi, and Pelosi alone, was to blame for the defeat of what was a really questionable bailout in the first place.
Let’s see if I have the “Rules of Reporting” as practiced by the MSM correct. Over the past three decades, Republican through their control of the White House, the Bureaucracy and Congress, often all three, systematically eliminated almost all scrutiny and regulation of financial practices, put their own loyal zealots in charge, reduced or eliminated both the professional regulators and their funds and staff as well as their mission, contemptuously insisted that only Republicans knew and understood finances, conducted their finagling in secret and converted lobbying to almost an exclusively Republican perk. Pelosi says a couple of cruel words that hurt Republican feelings while she voting for the Republican bill and defeat is laid at her feet with the help of the MSM. Okay, got it now.
POEM INSPIRED BY THE VP DEBATE
I can’t help but note, we’re in a very leaky boat.
And, a vote for Palin sure won’t help with the bailin’.
A vote for McCain seems just more of the same.
But, a vote for Obama at least gives hope for mañana.
IS IT REALLY “ONLY” $700 BIG BILLS?
Why do so many reporters, pundits and politicians keep referring to the “700 Billion dollar bailout” when that was changed to 840 Billion? In fact, shouldn’t we really be referring to the 1,180 Billion dollars granted in just the past month or so counting the Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac, AIG, Bear Stearns, and Auto Industry funds and guarantees? Weren’t those also bailouts (or “rescues” as the Republicans wanting to continue in power would obviously prefer to have them called)? Worse yet, I don’t believe that $1,180,000,000,000.00 subtotal includes the FDIC bailout of several banks which has crashed. If not, then shouldn’t those be added as well?
If we also added in the 18 Billion dollars for the Airline Industry bailout in 2001 and the 293 Billion dollars in bailouts handed out for the Savings and Loan Industry collapse in 1989 (which by the way were also during Republican Administrations if I recall), that bumps the total of handouts by Republican White House occupants to mostly Republican run, owned and/or “regulated” entities in the last two decades up to about a Trillion and a Half dollars at the very least.
No wonder the Republicans sneer at Democrats. In comparison when it comes to raping the Treasury, the Democrats seem to be bush league players.
COMMENT ON GOD’S REAL WRATH
I wonder if the Republican Evangelists who insisted that Hurricane Katrina was God’s punishment of New Orleans for its sins are speculating that the current plagues of our country might have something to do with the sins of the Republicans and their President? Say, wasn’t there something mentioned in the Bible about that? Oh yeah. Wasn’t it Jesus who angrily drive the money lenders out of the temple? Maybe we wouldn’t be so bad off if he hadn’t waited two millennium to do it again.
COMMENT ON HEARING SEAN HANNITY’S VEILED RACISM ON FOX “NEWS”
Other than their use as workers in Republican owned factories and as domestics in Republican mansions, the last time a Republican as rich as McCain apparently really cared about a black man was in 1863 and that was only because that particular Republican was losing a war.
COMMENT ON HEARING HOW MUCH MORE IS GOING TO BE SPENT IN IRAQ
Given that we need to find every buck possible to pay for the bailout of Republican trashed financial institutions, isn’t it about time that those who wanted that other national disaster, the War, pay for it? How about a surtax on everyone who voted for the War, profited from it and didn’t earn a combat infantry badge serving in our military there?
Maybe give those chickenhawks a break and don’t force them to pay off the entire War debt all at once. We could take total cost of that equally large debacle, divide it by the number of those in favor of the War and treat each of their shares like a mortgage for them amortized over the next eight years with liens on all their mansions (except they shouldn’t get written off like the bad debts of the Republican owned banks being dumped on the rest of us). Make sure they pay their fair share of at least something they caused.
PUZZLEMENT ON HEARING THE REPUBLICANS DON’T KNOW WHO OBAMA IS
Palin and McCain keep insisting we can’t possibly vote for Obama because we allegedly have no idea who he is. Where have those two been for the last 20 months? I realize they would prefer us to concentrate on the difference in the amount of melanin in his skin compared to theirs. But, given the almost literal tidal wave of print, mail, broadcast and electronic data inundating us about Obama for nearly two years, it suggests those two never bother to read or listen to anything other than their outdated “talking points” and the Fox so-called News channel.
ON HEARING CBS’S REPORTER DEAN REYNOLDS COMPLAINING IN PRINT BECAUSE HE WASN’T TREATED LIKE ROYALTY BY THE OBAMA CAMPAIGN
Unbelievable. Where did CBS find this guy? The entire nation is suffering and the insufferable, pompous, entirely self centered, gigantic, demanding ego that is Dean Reynolds has the nerve to complain because the mean ol’ Democratic campaign did not spend enough on (read sufficiently “bribe”) him to make him happy. Shouldn’t he be covering Wall Street where Greed is a way of life?
No wonder most people despise reporters even more than used car salesmen. Thousand of genuine issues to be concerned about and report on and this self styled “reporter” wastes space to “report” on whether or not he gets the equivalent of a down pillow on the campaign plane? He makes the Disney (his ultimate boss by the way) pampered movie Chihuahua seem like a homeless person in comparison. Ahh, poor baby. Prince Reynolds apparently was cramped and the plane has an odor (probably the one he himself caused by raising a stink that he was not indulged enough).
Why do journalists these days think they are entitled to special treatment? Whatever happened to former war correspondents like Walter Cronkite who didn’t mind a little inconvenience when the nation was at war in Vietnam even when he was a media star? How far CBS has fallen from the days when we respected it as a new source.
CBS should get some real reporters who do real news. Better yet, it ought to divorce itself from Disney and start covering something other than entertainment.
REFLECTING ON THE BUSH LEGACY
Thank goodness the Supreme Court had the wisdom to overturn the 2000 popular vote and put an MBA in the White House. Imagine how terrible the economy’d be if they’d let the public decide.
MORE REFLECTION ON THE BUSH LEGACY
There is one thing for which we can be thankful that George Bush is such a complete incompetent. Otherwise, he might have been able to put all our social security funds in the stock market as he tried a couple of years ago.
ON HEARING MCCAIN WANTS TO REPLACE MEDICARE WITH AN INSURANCE COMPANY
Like AIG perhaps???
STILL MORE REFLECTION ON THE BUSH LEGACY
In light of the disasters, devastations, disgust, disease, and debacles they inflicted upon us, everyone who ever voted Republican in the 21st Century ought to be ashamed.
REGARDING HOW GORDON SMITH KEEPS TRYING TO SUGGEST HE IS VERY VERY DIFFERENT FROM BUSH
I agree. Bush blows, but Smith merely sucks.
REGARDING THE ONE AREA MCCAIN WAS STILL AHEAD IN THE POLLS WITH
If McCain has such a great record in foreign affairs, how come all our most trusted allies like Britain and Germany seem to want Obama to win? How come both the Jews in Israel and the Arabs in Iraq seem to favor Obama’s proposals? By the way, how come if McCain says he’ll follow bin Laden to the “Gates of Hell,” why hasn’t he already done so or made his party boss, Bush, do so?
It would be interesting to see if McCain could attract a tenth of the crowds overseas Obama does. Bet they wouldn’t be shouting racial and religious epitaphs either like the folks McCain chooses to surround himself with at rallies in this country.
COMMENT ON READING NOBEL WINNER PAUL KRUGMAN SUGGESTION THAT MCCAIN/PALIN MIGHT ACTUALLY BE WORSE THAN BUSH/CHENEY WHO NEVER GOT ANYTHING RIGHT EVER
What a horrifying thought. . . .Us looking back on the Bush’s Administration as the “Good Ol Days.”
COMMENT AFTER LISTENING TO THE SECOND TO LAST DEBATE
Senator McCain said we have to get rid of all the greed and corruption on Wall Street. Good idea, but won’t that gut his Republican Party?
COMMENT AFTER LISTENING TO THE LAST DEBATE
Frankly, I suspect all the loud noises by both candidates and their rabid followers about their promised new programs as well as their promised tax cuts is a lot of bull****. No matter who wins, thanks to the fiasco that has been building for the last 30 years with the economy, there cannot be any serious tax cuts any more than there can be serious spending increases. We have to pay for the trillion and a half in surprise off budget bailouts that have already been announced and I can’t help but think that it could easily be double or triple that amount.
Not only do we have the bailouts for the idiots who played roulette with investors’ money, the tax revenues to pay for things will be down dramatically. Sales taxes will drop as nervous shoppers start to save instead of spend. For example, they won’t buy new cars as often nor as expensive ones as before. The dealers selling the cars will have less income to report. So, less income taxes will be paid too. Property tax revenues likely will drop as house values across the country start to come more in line with reality.
But, there are a lot of critical expenditures we cannot afford not to make with our presently dwindling tax funds. For instance, we have to pay to re-outfit our tired military and we probably won’t be able to pull much of the used equipment out of Iraq. Plus, we have a lot of crumbling infrastructure that will cost us even more if we don’t pay to maintain it properly. So, for that and similar non-negotiable core needs, expect taxes to go up even if McCain is President due to the fact that there won’t be enough tax money without taxes going up. The foreign loans we have been living high on the hog with will likely dry up.
Of course, there are some occasional benefits from the financial meltdown. It might finally be realized we can no longer afford the indulgences of constant warring on people merely because we dislike them. And, if we can’t afford gasoline (even with dollars per gallon going down), there might finally be an opportunity to rethink wasteful living.
COMMENT ON HEARING IRAQ WANTS US OUT BY 2011
Since official Pentagon estimates were that it would take us a year to 18 months to move all our equipment out, shouldn’t we get started?
COMMENT ON HEARING COLIN POWELL BROKE WITH THE NEOCONS AND ENDORSED OBAMA
Think how different the world might have been if Colin Powell had possessed the courage, tenacity and wisdom to publicly stand up to Bush six years ago on instead of sucking up to him. Whatever Powell now does will always be tainted by his participation in selling the stinking BS manufactured to justify invading Iraq.
COMMENT ON SMALL TOWN PALIN ACTING SMALL TOWARD THE BIG CITY
Governor Palin says she’s mad because big city dwellers, according to her at least, look down their noses at “real” American’s in rural small towns. She says she doesn’t like the way they supposedly stereotype and act superior to her type of folks. So, apparently, rather than simply dismissing the whole thing as fundamentally silly or “turning the other cheek” as suggested in the book she frequently quotes, her way to deal with that “problem” is to launch into stereotypes herself and to look down upon city dwellers, claiming only those in small towns have any superiority. Yeah, that’s just what we need to bring this country back together. Add to the divisiveness.
COMMENT ON THINKING BACK ON THE BUSH LEGACY
There is a dangerous religious fanatic trying his best to destroy American freedoms and its economy. This zealot could not care less if innocent bystanders like the children or elderly are harmed. He believes he is on a mission from his God to destroy all unbelievers. Too bad he sits in the White House.
COMMENT ON THE THEORY THAT OBAMA DOES NOT HAVE ENOUGH “EXPERIENCE”
Some claim experience being governor automatically makes better potential presidents than being senator. Okay, then explain the disasters when we allowed a governor from Texas to plop boots on the Oval Office desk?
COMMENT ON PALIN CLAIMING ONLY SMALL TOWN RESIDENTS HAVE VALUES
Some claim only those from small towns have the supposedly superior values needed to be president. So, that must mean the Carter Administration was the best presidency of all time?
COMMENT ON THE SUPPOSED TERRORIST CONNECTIONS OF OBAMA
Some claim that terrorism is an infection that is spread merely by being in the same room, however briefly, with a terrorist. So, does that mean the years McCain spent with Vietnamese jailers infected him?
COMMENT ON THE TWO PARTY SYSTEM
The entire history, philosophy and platform of the two parties can be summed up in a sentence each. While the Democrats believe in the “Golden Rule,” the Republicans believe Gold Rules.
COMMENT ON LEARNING THE IRAQ PARLIAMENT IS OPPOSED TO LETTING THE US STAY LONGER
Apparently, Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki won’t sign the just-completed agreement on the status of U.S. forces in Iraq. That leaves the unsettling specter of us being told to just get out. Imagine a forced fighting withdrawal of US troops from Iraq with our military being killed by the same weapons and ammo we gave to the newly reconstituted Iraq army we trained. What a nasty irony for Bush, Cheney and the whole Neocon gang squatting in the White House. Let’s just hope we don’t another last helicopter on the embassy roof scene re-enacted in Baghdad.
COMMENT ON THE REPUBLICAN ATTACKS ON DEMOCRACY HERE
Saddam and Osama may be gone, but the “Axis of Evil” seemingly still most dedicated to destroying American’s democracy, civil rights and classless society heritage is the one linking our “Whites Only” House, “Injustice” Department, “Extreme” Court, House of “Non-Representatives” and the “US Senile.”
COMMENT ON HEARING GREENSPAN SAY HE WAS SURPRISED BY OUR MASSIVE FINANCIAL DISASTERS
Redundancy: A Republican Recession
COMMENT ON ELIMINATING REPUBLICAN INFLUENCE
Maybe we should let the Republicans win. Sure, it will probably result in a fiscal depression, wipe out quality of life for hundreds of millions, cost trillions of dollars, sacrifice needlessly tens of thousands of lives around the world, earn the undying enmity of almost the entire world, devastate the environment, suspend all the bill of rights except the 2nd amendment and devalue just about everything this country stands for, but maybe the current Neocon Republican leadership will finally be revealed once and for all to the rest of the population as the lying, malicious, destructive, self centered, greedily, thieving, predators they are. Maybe it will finally be seen as patriotic to despise anyone who labels himself as a Neocon.
COMMENT ON HEARING SOME STATES WANT TO HAVE TESTS AND IDS TO INSURE THE VOTERS ARE PROPER ONES
If there is a test for voters before they can vote, maybe there ought to be a test for politicians before they can be sworn into office. Can they write without a paid speech writer? Can they add a column of figures without a calculator? Can they describe the force/pounds impact from a steel jacketed 7.62 mm slug striking the largely liquid bag of protein which a soldier is? Have they ever visited a ghetto on foot at night? Have they opened their spare bedroom to an indigent for the night? Yeah, there are a lot of good tests politicians should be required to pass. Maybe there should be some for pundits too.
COMMENT ON THE NADER CANDIDACY
Nader has done some very good things. Over the decades, he has had some great ideas and concepts including suggestions even for today regarding the bailouts and financial crisis we are in. He should have been in all the debates along with the Libertarian Candidate and the Green Candidate. He is probably a good man personally.
But, he is the wrong man for today. And, by his helping Bush get elected in 2000 he inadvertently lead to the greatest series of international, national and financial disasters, military fiascoes, and Constitutional dangers this country has faced since World War II. Please do not vote for him.
COMMENT ON REVIEWING THE REPUBLICAN TRACK RECORD AND PLATFORM
I am starting to think that dramatic loss of jobs, plummeting dollar value, soaring oil price increases, spiraling budget deficits, unending erosion of constitutional rights and freedoms, emasculation of regulatory enforcement power and personnel, and increase in number of terrorists are actual goals of Republicans, rather than unfortunate events to be prevented. Combined with the utter contempt of any sort of compromise, conciliation, cooperation or consensus on anything with anyone who dares disagree and the promotion of the worst breed of confrontation, obfuscation and retaliation leads me to believe that the current Republican leadership genuinely wants such terrible things to continue happening. It is readily apparent such tragedies for most individuals work to benefit the Republican entrenchment of power by either economically weakening potential opposition, lining the pockets of Republican supporters, causing money to flow Republican coffers, pandering to base fears, and drowning out the voices of reason or investigation. As astonishing as it is to contemplate, the controlling philosophy of those now in charge of the once Grand Old Party has somehow become “Any Means Justifies the End so long as it is the End of Democrats, Independents, Libertarians, and Greens.”
COMMENT ON HEARING PROGRESSIVES WERE GOING TO WASTE THEIR VOTE
The supreme court appointment opportunity all by itself would be sufficient grounds to do absolutely everything possible to defeat the Republican candidate even if it meant holding your nose and voting for Obama. Otherwise, McCain could spread the Bush infection for another 30 YEARS by appointing at least two, maybe four new rabidly conservative justices to sit on the bench seeking to overturn every progressive advance since FDR.
The appointment power for the regulatory agencies is another absolutely critical reason to insure Obama wins even if you have to sell your soul to do it. How do you think we got into such enormous financial, constitutional and environmental disasters? The lack of oversight was a major reason.
Finally, if we elect Obama, the rest of the world might forgive us for the last 8 years. If not, we have probably lost them for all the foreseeable future. His melanin in his skin will also play a big role not only showing the rest of the world we actually mean what we say about equality, but might give us a lot of good will in those countries of Africa and Asia who are not Caucasian, much the same as Kennedy’s religion bought us a lot of friends in the parts of the world that were not Protestant.
Please, please, please, if you believe in progressive goals, Obama must win. He may not be the best progressive candidate, but come November 4, he is the only candidate that won’t make things even worse.
COMMENT ON LEARNING NEWS ORGANZATIONS CHASTIZED MSNBC FOR IT’S CHALLENGES OF THE REPUBLICAN CANDIDATES
It will probably take 80 years for future presidents to undo the damage that the present one has caused. The damage would not have been nearly so great if the main stream media had not failed utterly in its job to ferret out and report the truth. It could have done so. The information was there. Due to a cowardice, laziness, greediness, arrogance and/or incompetence (plus outright bias in the case of the Fox Noise channel), the media badly let us down. In fact, the media deserves to be “impeached” almost as much as Bush does.
COMMENT ON HEARING BUSH BOMBED SYRIA
Apparently in a fit of pique to remind everyone that he is not to be ignored and still capable of causing mischief in the few months left to him, Bush bombed Syria. What makes self described evangelical leaders like Bush and Bin Laden so eager to bomb and kill in the name of God and their particular religion? What makes anyone supposedly religious so eager to follow them?
COMMENT ON READING AN ARTICLE DISCUSSING WHETHER BUSH IS SANE
I wish someone besides George Armstrong Custer – I mean – George Bush, was leading us. You know what happens when ignorant, arrogant, impetuous, testosterone laden men are our leaders.
BUSH’S IMAGINARY ACCOMPLISHMENTS
He proved to be an imaginary warrior during the very real Vietnam War. He pocketed imaginary “profits” as imaginary CEO of a failing business before he got into politics. He got “elected” President by imaginary votes. He gathered imaginary allies to start a war against Iraq’s imaginary WMDs. He imagined that anyone who disagreed with him was an unAmerican traitor. He imagined that the Bill of Rights, Constitution restrictions and oath of office do not apply to him. He imagined that stock brokers and bankers who paid him to eliminate regulation would not need regulation. Imagine how much better off this country would have been without him.
COMMENT ON REPUBLICAN PRACTICES
Republicans apparently believe we cannot have rich unless there are poor. We cannot have power without pollution. We cannot have freedom from fear without giving up all freedoms. We cannot be right without exercising our might. We cannot have debate that doesn’t generate into hate. Wouldn’t our country be better off if we stopped listening to what Republicans believe?
COMMENT ON SHEEHAN RUNNING AGAINST PELOSI
Good for Sheehan! I’m sick of the current Democrat leadership masquerading as liberal or progressive. They should all be replaced with someone that is not lazy, complacent, cowered or incompetent when it comes to reinstalling the Golden Rule versus the existing law of the jungle that only Gold Rules. I would vote for her if I could because Pelosi lost my vote of confidence long ago when she stupidly said impeachment is “off the table.”
E-MAIL SENT TO FCC REGARDING ITS VOTE ON SO-CALLED “WHITE SPACE” REMAINING WHEN TV SWITCHES TO ALL DIGITAL
Dear Commissioners: Instead of giving away the public owned “white space” away to the few big company broadcasters, stop to recognize that their “claim” to it is essentially an adverse possession argument not allowable when public property is involved. Instead of thinking short term, stop to think for a second about the fact that the spectrum is public property much like a park or museum and it is your sole job to protect that public trust for all our futures. Instead of allowing political Conservatives to rule on this point, think about being genuinely conservative for once and actually conserve a scarce resource for future use. Instead of wastefully using up one of the last remaining public sections left in the airwaves spectrum for what we already have lots of mindless TV, think about how that portion of the airwaves is critical for increasing broadband access to millions and available for currently unknown future uses. Instead of thinking about minor increases in income promised by the big broadcaster lobbyists if your vote their way, think about whether your grandchildren and history will hate you for what you gave away.
COMMENT ON READING THAT THE DRUDGE REPORT THINKS AL QUEDA’S ATTACK ON BUSH IS A SECRET SUPPORT OF OBAMA
Why is anyone still reading the Drudge? For that matter, why is anyone still reading or listening to the idiots who consistently get it wrong like Kristol, Hannity, etc? If we stopped doing so, ratings for the ones who are wrong all the time would suffer and hopefully be cancelled due to lack of interest and irrelevancy. My new year’s resolution is to turn them all off permanently anyone with a track record of being proven wrong, misleading or incomplete. Make it your resolution too.
RESPONSE TO JOHN DEAN ARTICLE ENTITLED “THE EVIDENCE ESTABLISHES, WITHOUT QUESTION, THAT REPUBLICAN RULE IS DANGEROUS AND WHY IT IS HIGH TIME TO FIX THIS SITUATION, FOR THE GOOD OF THE NATION”
Since I am a licensed lawyer, the reproachable activities of Mr. Dean following the Watergate break in have always embarrassed my profession. He deserved the punishment and disbarment he received, but he not only has served his time, he has gone far toward morally redeeming himself, particularly with this commentary. Unfortunately, he could not be more right.
Say what you will about the laziness, cowardice, naivete or ineffective of Democrats, their leaders are merely lazy, cowardly, naive and/or ineffective. In contrast, Republicans are genuinely frightening. Since the days when folks like Nelson Rockefeller and Tom McCall were still allowed to be Republicans, the Republican Party has conducted their own vicious version of ethnic cleansing. As a result, the party’s previous propensities for authoritarianism has been distilled to an almost monomaniacal thirst for absolute power by any means. For the last few decades, their unstated but unwavering goal has seemed to be nothing less than a permanent Republican theocracy with anyone disagreeing demonized or worse.
I am not fond of the present leadership of Democrats, but the NeoCons must be stopped before they destroy everything this country once stood for.
COMMENT ON MCCAIN’S DRUMBEAT OF OBAMA WILL RAISE TAXES
What is the fanatical obsession of Republicans with no taxes? Why is a simplistic two word mantra driving all economic decision making? Is no one capable of intelligent analysis of problems anymore? Can’t any politician think beyond his next election?
