Iowa Liberal

I was always a Home Depot guy anyway. But Lowe’s shying away from controversy is one thing. The people slithering out of their dank neocon caves to support Lowe’s are just straight up hating.

You’ll have to turn to Jon Stewart for the ultimate smackdown though.

-hw

I don’t want to play any games here. Everything I’ve heard tells me that Trig is Sarah Palin’s son. I think, given the way people are, no matter how terrified many Alaskans are of the Rage of Palin, somebody would have ruined the secret by now, and that there are enough testimonials out there to verify the most likely truth, that Trig is Sarah Palin’s son. I wouldn’t be bowled over in surprise if it actually turned out he wasn’t, but I’m not holding my breath.

But, yeah, she has never had a right to complain given the way she gleefully smeared Obama over the Ayers business. And now that she’s dabbled in birtherism and asked for a birth certificate (and apparently once demanded a marriage certificate from her Wasilla mayoral opponent), she’s gone and pointed three fingers back at herself. If she’s okay with asking for birth certificates, especially after one has already been produced, who is she to complain that people want Trig’s birth certificate?

I would drop the issue right now, and did a long time ago, and she pretty much had a win in her pocket. And the pot at the end of the rainbow isn’t a golden scoop, it’s just a story of a prideful mom taking a hit for her daughter. All Palin had to do was walk the high road. But she couldn’t stay out of the gutter, so she shouldn’t complain about the nest she built for herself with nasty muddy gutter twigs (no lisp intended).

-hw

And thus tribalists have problems with it. The same crowd that can’t handle gays or Scary Black People doesn’t want mosques. Anywhere.

Well, there’s this thing about religious freedom in this country, but that only matters when it benefits this crowd. They’re tribalists. If they don’t like the religion, religious liberty doesn’t matter. If atheists were protesting the building of a church or a synagogue, the same people would be falling out of their chairs in outrage and FOX would crank that shit up to 11.

Their attitude towards gays is much the same. Arguments that they wouldn’t dare apply toward themselves suddenly sound valid to them when it’s the dreaded “other.” David Boies dismantles Tony Perkins with reason in the following clip. By the end, Perkins can do nothing but sputter about tradition and the voters, two classic fallacious arguments.

As Ted Olson brilliantly puts it, how would Chris Wallace, who shamelessly argues the anti-gay side, like it if Fox News’ free speech rights were taken away by a majority vote?

Of course, voters repudiated Bush and the Republicans by tossing them out in two consecutive elections, and that didn’t seem to mean much to them. Democracy matters except when it doesn’t, the Constitution matters except when it doesn’t, and hell, the Bible matters except when it doesn’t. They’re tribalists. The Bible offers some verses that align with anti-gay bigotry, so those verses matter most. The verses that suggest deeper truths to those who see gays as a merit of Creation, as a feature not a bug, don’t matter. And gay Christians, fuggeddabouddit!

This is a free country, and it is not so just for Tony Perkins. There is no rational basis for denying gay Americans their right to marry. There is no Constitutional basis. Freedom means nothing if it’s the privilege of special groups. Love thy neighbor, Tony. It’s not just a political slogan.

-hw

Is Howie Kurtz a hack, or is the White House really acting like being gay is a bad thing? Both? Or is there simply no way to deny a rumor that somebody is gay without acting like gay = cooties?

To answer my third question, there is. You simply say, not that there’s anything wrong with being a big rug-munching lesbo, but Elena Kagan doesn’t happen to be one. Okay, try it like that without the rug-munching comments, else Republicans suddenly decide they’re going to be offended on behalf of lesbians.

If Elena Kagan is gay, it would behoove the WH to stand by her and stand by her sexuality and let the hate come out. Don’t add to it.

And yes, Howie Kurtz is a hack.

-hw

When I read this part of Joseph Stack’s rambling farewell letter the alarm bells went off:

Some friends introduced me to a group of people who were having ‘tax code’ readings and discussions. In particular, zeroed in on a section relating to the wonderful “exemptions” that make institutions like the vulgar, corrupt Catholic Church so incredibly wealthy. We carefully studied the law (with the help of some of the “best”, high-paid, experienced tax lawyers in the business), and then began to do exactly what the “big boys” were doing (except that we weren’t steeling from our congregation or lying to the government about our massive profits in the name of God). We took a great deal of care to make it all visible, following all of the rules, exactly the way the law said it was to be done.

I’ve had my share of dodgy friends in the past so I’ve heard dozens of stories that start out with some sort of variation of “all I was trying to do was…” in defense of something that turned out to be at best unscrupulous behavior. At worst it was a recounting of an unhappy run-in with the law. Maybe I’m cynical but the above passage has the right amount of opacity and derision to indicate that there’s more to the story than just Stack getting hosed by the IRS for having innocent ambitions.

The GOP adores and loves Sarah Palin and sees her as their leading presidential candidate because Democrats constantly lampoon and make fun of how stupid she is because the GOP adores and loves Sarah Palin and sees her as their leading presidential candidate because Democrats constantly lampoon and make fun of how stupid she is because the GOP adores and loves Sarah Palin and sees her as their leading presidential candidate because Democrats constantly lampoon and make fun of how stupid she is because the GOP adores and loves Sarah Palin and sees her as their leading presidential candidate because Democrats constantly lampoon and make fun of how stupid she is because the GOP adores and loves Sarah Palin and sees her as their leading presidential candidate because Democrats constantly lampoon and make fun of how stupid she is because the GOP adores and loves Sarah Palin and sees her as their leading presidential candidate because Democrats constantly lampoon and make fun of how stupid she is because the GOP adores and loves Sarah Palin and sees her as their leading presidential candidate because Democrats constantly lampoon and make fun of how stupid she is because the GOP adores and loves Sarah Palin and sees her as their leading presidential candidate because Democrats constantly lampoon and make fun of how stupid she is because the GOP adores and loves Sarah Palin and sees her as their leading presidential candidate because Democrats constantly lampoon and make fun of how stupid she is because…

p.s. …the GOP adores and loves Sarah Palin and sees her as their leading presidential candidate because Democrats constantly lampoon and make fun of how stupid she is because the GOP adores and loves Sarah Palin and sees her as their leading presidential candidate because Democrats constantly lampoon and make fun of how stupid she is because the GOP adores and loves Sarah Palin and sees her as their leading presidential candidate because Democrats constantly lampoon and make fun of how stupid she is because the GOP adores and loves Sarah Palin and sees her as their leading presidential candidate because Democrats constantly lampoon and make fun of how stupid she is because the GOP adores and loves Sarah Palin and sees her as their leading presidential candidate because Democrats constantly lampoon and make fun of how stupid she is because…

Sullivan posts a picture of a guy who had the gay-hatin’ passage from Leviticus tattooed on his arm. A pastor offered a corrective citation:

Too bad the guy with the passage from Leviticus tattooed on his arm didn’t read the next chapter:

“You shall not make any gashes in your flesh for the dead or tattoo any marks upon you; I am the LORD”

Or in the King James Version:

“Ye shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor print any marks upon you: I am the LORD.”

Of course since when is the Bible applied to oneself. It is apparently only to be applied to others, as an excuse for abuse.

Nobody who cites the Bible to bash gays cares one whit what the rest of Leviticus says. They’ve thrown out everything but the hatred of gays. This guy just made a more obvious version of the mistake.

-jb

So I had a thought earlier that made me laugh:

What if Roberts deliberately screwed up the wording of the Oath of Office, so outraged wingnuts could say, “well, Obama’s not really President–he’s never completed a valid Oath!”

I mean, right? Ha ha ha.

-JJB Mpls

It’s hard to believe he’s this rich…he’s been playing a good game for some years, but there the facts are. Then again, it’s hard to believe his policies favor the rich as a matter of principle too. Here’s another good video on McCain’s mansions:

Well, voters, how about electing another rich guy who didn’t earn his own money who institutes policies to favor other spoiled babies like himself? Or are you going to be more offended by the fact that the guy trying to help you out has a few bucks he earned himself? It’s time to get serious, folks.

-jb

We already accept this as ordinary when done against our own citizens. Is there any wonder the Constitution hangs by a thread? Patti Davis, Ronald Reagan’s daughter, takes a look at the consequences of drug raids that target innocent people first and ask questions later.

Imagine being Georgia Porter, one minute cooking dinner, the next handcuffed on the kitchen floor, inches from the bloodied body of a dog who was part of her family. Imagine Cheye Calvo hearing the shots from upstairs, not knowing what was happening, and then finding himself handcuffed, helpless, forced to kneel in his underwear. Imagine Trinity Tomsic dealing with her defiled home–not only did the police slaughter their dogs, they tracked blood all over the house in a search that yielded nothing.

You need to imagine all these things because, in a way, we all live in that house. It’s called our country, and this is what’s starting to happen here.

Prince George’s official country Web site defines itself as “a county of livable communities.” That’s what we all wish for–a livable community, a home where we feel safe. We want to feel that if the bad guys come, we can call the police and they will be the good guys. We want to believe that if we’re innocent, armed men with government badges won’t handcuff us and shoot our pets and wave their weapons in our faces.

But more and more of us don’t believe that.

Politicians have been rendered impotent to advocate rationality in the face of things voters fear. If one stands up, they’re guaranteed an opponent who hammers them for not being “tough.” Under Bill Clinton the Drug War ratcheted up with almost no restraint, and under Bush all bets were off. Interestingly, the Bush administration went after marijuana with a special fervor (the case Davis cites was a marijuana raid). It seems that when a president smokes marijuana in his past, as Bush was recorded admitting, the country gets the lash even harder. Apparently, use of a drug doesn’t inspire empathy in a president, but rather overcompensation. Let’s pray that a President Obama breaks this pattern (abandon all hope if McCain gets in). Voters have grown tired of throwing people in jail and Gestapo-style home invasions destroying the lives of innocent people, especially over a recreational drug like marijuana which is exponentially safer than alcohol or tobacco. Those who take on the responsibility of voting need to responsibly address this issue.

Then again, they need to responsibly address a lot of issues. The human condition is not well.

-jb

Collecting a check publishing drivel is the way to go, apparently. One of the dumbest pieces of Beltway mendacious tedium evah:

If Obama offers only eat-your-arugula chiding and chilly earnestness, he becomes an otherworldly type, not the regular guy he needs to be.

He’s already in danger of seeming too prissy about food…

Yes! Hey, maybe the price of your steak, bread, milk, eggs, butter, tomatoes, potatoes, etc. went up, but at least we don’t face the grave danger of a president who shops at Whole Foods!

Because if Obama gets elected and there is nothing funny about him, it won’t be the economy that’s depressed. It will be the rest of us.

Yes, because we were so lucky to have eight years of having Alfred E. Neuman for president. When I go throw $75 in my gas tank today, I can think, “At least my president is an idiot!” Or something.

While the Obama campaign should have had the good sense to realize that the New Yorker cover was actually mocking the idiots who see Barack and Michelle that way, is this really that important? Shouldn’t we, oh, I don’t know, reward comedians that can craft witty jokes instead of presidential candidates who are walking jokes?

Then again, is anything Maureen Dowd says important, except to drag our democracy down into a Homecoming King & Queen contest; to assassinate importance?

-jb

p.s. This is pretty funny though:

5) A Christian, a Jew and Barack Obama are in a rowboat in the middle of the ocean. Barack Obama says, “This joke isn’t going to work because there’s no Muslim in this boat.”

Atrios reviews the facts:

Jan 20, 2001 Bush Inaugurated
Jan 25, 2001 Richard Clarke sends Condi Rice memo, warning about al Qaeda. Rice does nothing.
August 6, 2001 Bush gets memo titled “Bin Laden Determined to strike in US.” Bush responds by telling the briefer, “All right. You’ve covered your ass, now.” Then does nothing.
September 11, 2001 Bin Laden strikes in US.

I’m going to sit here now and wait for the next winger to tell us how it was Clinton’s fault. I wonder if they’ll agree that Obama gets his first year off without having to bother defending the country…

-jb

“He said he’d take public financing!” only has significance depending on the moral weight you apply to public financing…or, more accurately, the McCain-Feingold kind of campaign finance “reform” that rightwingers have been railing against for years…and which I’ve agreed with them about.

Let’s be clear here: We do not have publicly financed presidential campaigns. We have some paltry matching funds with spending caps, witch 527′s are immune to. Think “Swiftboat” to get an idea of how important that loophole is. George W. Bush was “publicly financed” according to the current laws, and never has a politician been so subservient to the wealthy.

So what did Barack Obama do? Turn down $84 million of taxpayer money and artificial government constraints and demand that people NOT fund 527′s and send the money to his campaign by way of millions of small contributors like myself ($75, with another $25 planned before November).

Dana Pico dearly wants to get some mileage out of this (do I even need to mention that the vile hack Sharon does?), David Brooks and some other Beltway morons try to laugh off Obama’s small donor campaign (because it threatens their control) but it’s a complete bust. Yes, Obama talked about doing it before, but he was raking in the dollars then also. It was stupid of him to be too emphatic about it, but it would have been even stupider to hold onto the broken politician-devised non-reform than moving forward with a cleaner, more democratic, more ethical system of campaign fundraising.

Once you realize that opting out of “public financing” is doing nothing other than eliminating the government and taxpayer money from the equation, and that this doesn’t mean Obama is going to become beholden to the wealthy and corporate interests, and that it frees him to spend his time actually campaigning instead of hustling the rich for money in exchange for favors, then the air completely deflates from the charges.

Dana and others are, as usual, betting that you’re an idiot, and will resist every single effort to get specific about what “public financing” actually means. I’ve been a diehard public financing fanatic for years, and when we get something resembling it, I’ll let you know. So far, Obama’s is the closest we’ve come in a presidential election in modern history. Yes, he changed positions, but to re-use my analogy, if I tell you I’m going to swim out to rescue you from drowning, but then I throw you a life preserver, accomplishing the same goal but in a safer and smarter way, how much are you going to begrudge me?

There is nothing here, and I welcome the bullshitters to try passing it off here. Especially the ones planning on voting for McCain who actually violated the campaign finance reform laws. Dana, Sharon and co. have absolutely zero principle at work here, and the absolute last thing in the world they care about is campaign finance reform.

-jb

John Cole yukkin’ it up…back story here (okay, maybe read that one first), and make sure you don’t miss this…

-jb

UPDATE: More goodies! I love it!!! If you find more, put them in the comment threads…I LOVE IT!!!

UPDATE II: Alright, I know I fucking blow, but I had to:

Eric Boehlert asks “when are GOP bloggers going to stop whining?“:

It’s all part of the bloggers’ attempt to create a parallel universe of sorts, where their own facts don’t have to collide with harsh reality. It’s a world where inquisitive Democrats who submit video questions to candidates are denounced as “plants,” part of an elaborate media scheme to derail Republicans. How, you ask? By posing legitimate, factual questions about the pressing issues of the day. That’s what produced last week’s shrieking, the-sky-is-falling hysteria across the right-wing blogosphere, with some even making childish demands of “A Do Over” and frantically waving petitions around, insisting that CNN executives be fired for their unpardonable sin.

So, apparently, the debates were secretly manipulated by CNN and various other shadowy librul media operatives because *gasp* Democratic candidates were asked questions by Democrats. I shit you not. Even worse, CNN didn’t reveal that the people asking questions were Dems! And why should they? What was so insidious about the nature of these questions? They were completely unremarkable and could have been asked by anybody.

How embarrassing it must be to be a Republican blogger these days when all you can do when faced with the reality of a failed administration and dismal electoral prospects is to regress back to repeating old librul media canards and stale-as-old-bread Clinton conspiracies. Especially after years upon years of staged, phony presidential town hall meetings. But it all makes total sense when you consider the Republican definitional standard of being a liberal or part of the left wing media conspiracy; if you’re not actively promoting the Republican agenda, well, that makes you a filthy liberal.

-mg

Let’s send advanced weaponry to the epicenter of radical Islam.

Needless to say, I think this is an illustrative example of how Republicans are completely devoid of seriousness when they express concern about the “War on Terror”.

Here’s a fun project for anyone interested; ask any die-hard Bush fan to differentiate between the Taliban and the Saudi regime.

-mg