Caught by Blogenfreude:
"There is no room in the Democratic party for people who are opposed to gay marriage, but there is room in the Republican party for people who are for gay marriage, and this is the reason we're in Iraq."
Caitlin Flanagan
The Brian Lehrer Show, WNYC
April 20, 2006
...who claim their stance has nothing to do with race or racism, I have one word for you:
Bullshit.
I look forward to Michelle "Hey, I'm the Victim Here" Malkin's condemnation of this. Just watch me hold my breath.
Update: August and Ezra have more on Malkin's ridiculous and pathetic whinging.
Christ, do I hate that woman.
“I think you’re an asshole.”
— The last sentence of a constituent letter sent by Rep. Jo Ann Emerson, R-Mo., who says she “can’t explain how the offensive language made it into the last line of the letter,” even though she personally signed the letter and “ included a handwritten personal message at the bottom: ‘PS - please forgive the delay in responding.’" (Via Political Wire.)
Hola, Shakers! Waveflux was notable by its absence over the last few days. Family-in-law business called; I spent some time with wife M in the great state of Wisconsin, wherein this overheard snippet of conversation -
In his heart, he knows what he wants to do.
It never occurred to me that one man could start to play with the faith of fifty million people.
The Guardian, one of my favorite papers for many years, has a great group blog called Comment is Free with an absolutely amazing collection of contributors from all over the world, including many names with which we’re all familiar—Eric Alterman, Sidney Blumenthal, Jimmy Carter, Noam Chomsky, Germaine Greer, Katrina vanden Heuvel, Arianna Huffington, Greg Palast, etc. It’s really an astounding collection of writers from across the political spectrum.
And, somehow, those nutty Brits made the mistake of thinking I ought to be among them, a decision, I feel, reminiscent of the questionable judgment exhibited by another Brit in 2002, when he made me his wife.
So, my first piece, The Hollywood Generals, is now up. Hope you enjoy it—along with all the other great stuff you'll find there!
Bullshit excuse to make each other laugh edition…
What inanimate object would you like to see replace the McClellatron and why? (E.g. A centrifuge, because all it does is spin.)
I think I’d have to go with a big pile of shit with a sign that says “Ongoing investigation” sticking out of it.
Atrios gets the response to Michael Tomasky’s Party in Search of a Notion (which is worth your time to read) just right:
One of Bush's biggest failures (and, yes, it's a very long list) both for country and for himself and his political party was to fail to genuinely tap into the uniting post-9/11 spirit. To use his lame expression, he decided to be a divider, not a uniter, and failed to transform American politics in a way which quite likely would've led to Republican domination for decades.Absolutely. The Dems’ limp “Together, America can do better,” though the most milquetoast attempt conceivable, is nonetheless a nod at this idea. It encapsulates the notion that America can be better, can move forward, and that it takes more than just policy initiatives to get us there. A Democrat who can win the presidency in 2008 is the one who is flatly willing to identify Bush’s entire tenure as a massive failure and propose leading America in an entirely new direction—someone who casts energy independence as the new space program, universal healthcare as the New Deal for a new generation, stem cell technology as a medical advancement as revolutionary as penicillin.
…Tomasky does a good job of fleshing out the potential pitfalls, as well as recognizing that it may just be his inner idealist talking. But I think many people do want to feel a part of something bigger than themselves, something they feel is a force for good.
The idiots are picking on poor Potter again. A Gwinnett County (GA) parent, Laura Mallory, wants the Potter series banned from the county's public school libraries. Says Mallory:
"There are so many problems facing our children today — drugs, alcohol, violence and the growth of the occult, too. These books are helping to mainstream witchcraft. These books are dangerous and harmful to our children."
I am a Christian. I feel that Christian rights are being abolished in this country. Everyone talks about our views being pushed on them. But what about our beliefs? Don't we have any rights at all?"
Mallory wrote on her appeal forms [for public meeting being held tomorrow] that she was objecting to the books because of their “evil themes, witchcraft, demonic activity, murder, evil blood sacrifice, spells and teaching children all of this.”
The mother of four said she was opposed to the messages of the books, which describe a young wizard’s adventures in a school of magic. She said she had done much of her research online, reading a variety of Christian message boards and Harry Potter fan sites.
[...]
On her complaint form, she suggested they be replaced by C.S. Lewis’s “Chronicles of Narnia” series or Tim LaHaye’s “Left Behind: the Kids” series.
She admitted that she has not read the book series partially because “they’re really very long and I have four kids.”
But you knew that already!
Creature's Picture Irks Board of Ed Member
What creature, you ask? Why, the Flying Spaghetti Monster, of course. Holy creature to Pastafarians everywhere, and the bane of Fundies that take themselves too goddamned seriously.
State Board of Education member Connie Morris took exception Wednesday to a picture of a made-up creature that satirizes the state's new science standards hanging on a Stucky Middle School teacher's door.
Fellow board member Sue Gamble told The Eagle that Morris asked for the picture to be removed.
The creature, called the Flying Spaghetti Monster, is the creation of Bobby Henderson of Corvallis, Ore. It looks like a clump of spaghetti with two eyes sticking out of the top and two meatballs flanking the eyes.
Henderson created the entity and an accompanying mythology on the origin of mankind to make fun of Kansas' recent debate over the teaching of criticisms of evolution, including intelligent design.
In November, the board voted 6-4 to allow criticisms of evolution to be taught in Kansas schools.
Morris, who voted for the new science standards, saw the picture during the tour. She did not return phone calls for this report.
"When we went into that classroom, students were looking at rock formations," Gamble said. "Connie stopped to talk to a teacher and I moved on. That was when I was aware of the flyer. I thought 'she's probably going to say something to the teacher.' "
The monster's picture has hung on the door since September or October and was put up there as a joke, Mousley said.
"It's a parody," he said. "It's just making fun of anti-evolution."
Mousley said he doesn't teach students about the Flying Spaghetti Monster.
Gamble said she told the principal that it was his decision whether the monster could stick around.DUH. It's a FLYING SPAGHETTI MONSTER.
"I advised the principal that Morris has no authority," she said. "I told him to deal with his staff as he saw fit, not by what a state board member says."
Board chairman Steve Abrams, who voted for the new standards, didn't see the picture but said he thinks that the Flying Spaghetti Monster is silly.
"Personally, I think it's juvenile," he said.
The picture was still on the door at the end of the school day Wednesday.And hopefully it's still there. Jebus. Are these Fundies really so thin-skinned that they can't take the slightest joke? What a bunch of crybabies.
Historian Sean Wilentz takes on the question of whether Bush is, indeed, the worst president in history for Rolling Stone. Instead of really giving a definitive answer, he compares Bush to presidents gone before and examines how the past might instruct us on the likely legacy of the current White House occupant. I’ve got to say, the case doesn’t seem to bode well for Mr. History Will Prove Me a Genius.
Calamitous presidents, faced with enormous difficulties -- Buchanan, Andrew Johnson, Hoover and now Bush -- have divided the nation, governed erratically and left the nation worse off. In each case, different factors contributed to the failure: disastrous domestic policies, foreign-policy blunders and military setbacks, executive misconduct, crises of credibility and public trust. Bush, however, is one of the rarities in presidential history: He has not only stumbled badly in every one of these key areas, he has also displayed a weakness common among the greatest presidential failures -- an unswerving adherence to a simplistic ideology that abjures deviation from dogma as heresy, thus preventing any pragmatic adjustment to changing realities. Repeatedly, Bush has undone himself, a failing revealed in each major area of presidential performance.Go read the whole thing.
MissPenName emailed me the link to this AP article, which reports on a study that finds that “Sex is more satisfying in countries where women and men are considered equal, according to an international study of people between the ages of 40 and 80 by researchers at the University of Chicago.” What a fucking shocker!
"Male-centered cultures where sexual behavior is more oriented toward procreation tend to discount the importance of sexual pleasure for women," [lead researcher Edward Laumann] said.OMG! I never would have guessed. Who would have thought that men who don’t believe women should have sex for pleasure would, in fact, not care about pleasuring women?! The only thing that may help me get over this crazy mindfuck is the joy I’m given by the University of Chicago having conclusively proven that when we accuse anti-feminist conservative trollboys of being bad in bed, we’re not just being bitchy—we’re reporting the facts!
Bush Says Failure in Iraq 'Not an Option.' That’s all well and good, but perhaps we should start thinking about a contingency plan, oh I dunno, just in case.
Shaker Lori emailed me about Pink’s new song “Dear Mr. President,” thinking I might enjoy it. She was right—I certainly did. I also have the sneaking suspicion that a lot of other folks around here will, too, so check it out.
Actual Caption (emphasis mine): U.S. President George W. Bush (L) walks with U.S. state governors, who just returned from an Easter celebration trip to Iraq, at the White House in Washington, April 19, 2006. Gov. Mitch Daniels (R-IN) is in the middle and Gov. Joe Manchin III (D-WVA) is on the right.
(REUTERS/Larry Downing)
State of the Day: George Bush, meet chaos theory. Hilarious.
Josh Marshall: No new blood in the White House because they can’t get any. Sounds about right. It’s a rare rat indeed who jumps onto a sinking ship.
Zuzu at Feministe: “Panty-Sniffing” Kansas attorney general thwarted. Good.
Media Matters: Michael Savage is a disgusting piece of shit. Just click through, read his vile spewage, and consider that millions of people listen to him every day.
NewsHog: Fib challenge. Here’s mine:
I’m
not
at all
sad to see
the McClellatron
disassembled from dissembling.
The Blend: Pam catches up with Santorum, who gets a blowjob from Giuliani and a shout-out from Tony Soprano.
Ez: Father-daugher purity balls are some kind of creepy shit. I have spent almost 32 years on this planet not discussing my sexual escapades (or lack thereof) with my father, and I believe that’s a good thing. I’m reasonably certain it would make his head explode, and would render me permanently celibate—which, come to think of it, might be the point.
Excuse the Mess: Shayera just has the best commentary on Rummy ever. In 26 words.
This is great stuff.
In the Senate, we have long championed the Prevention First Act. This legislation would help to reduce the rates of unintended pregnancy in our nation, decrease abortions and improve access to women's health care.Right on. This is all exactly what reproductive rights advocates have been saying for years. Welcome to the party—and keep saying it, loudly.
Our proposal includes common- ground, common-sense policies.
It makes family-planning services more accessible to low-income women. It improves awareness and understanding of emergency contraception, a poorly understood yet highly effective form of contraception.
It ensures that government-funded sex education programs provide medically accurate information about contraception.
It also ends insurance discrimination against women. Right now, many policies cover Viagra, but not prescription contraceptives. That is wrong, and our legislation will change it.
Ironically, those advocating the loudest for an outright ban on abortion are too often the same people who oppose prevention initiatives and instead support making contraception less accessible, particularly for low-income women who are more likely to have unplanned pregnancies.
In addition to the McClellatron’s resignation, Karl Rove will also step down from his role as White House policy advisor. Unfortunately, it’s only so he can concentrate more on the November elections. Yippee.
Appearing with Bush on the White House South Lawn just before the president boarded a helicopter at the start a trip to Alabama, McClellan, who has parried especially fiercely with reporters on Iraq and on intelligence issues, told Bush: "I have given it my all sir and I have given you my all sir, and I will continue to do so as we transition to a new press secretary."This certainly isn’t the only thing on which the president and I have a disagreement, but his definitions of “class” and “integrity” are clearly very different than mine.
Bush said McClellan had "a challenging assignment."
"I thought he handled his assignment with class, integrity," the president said. "It's going to be hard to replace Scott, but nevertheless he made the decision and I accepted it. One of these days, he and I are going to be rocking in chairs in Texas and talking about the good old days."
