Sigh. McCain vs. Clark day four:
"Three things have prolonged this story. First, Wes Clark's decision to not only not apologize but to keep appearing on TV to discuss the matter, which he did yesterday. Then, Obama's decision to not only not urge Clark to stand down but to say that the portion of his patriotism speech Monday in which he said no veteran should have his service questioned wasn't actually intended as a rebuke to Clark. And finally McCain's decision last night to shift gears from his "I want to talk about the issues" posture."I think it's up to Sen. Obama now to not only repudiate him, but to cut him loose," McCain told reporters aboard his plane en route to Colombia."
Do I think Clark should have said what he said? No. Do I think what he said was outrageous? No. Do I think the media should give McCain a pulpit for his 'outrage'? Hell no.
Could we just push up the election already?
Wednesday, July 02, 2008
Me On Yglesias On Steele
If I'm hearing MY right then I think Steele's an ass. Here's just as few of the things MY heard Steele say that irritate me like a nude walk through Poison Ivy:
"Says on a panel "white Americans have made more moral progress in the last forty years than any people in the history of the human conditions.""
"Continuing with my Shelby Steele blogging, he went into what I thought was a really unfair attack on Barack Obama, drawing an invidious comparison between Obama and John McCain and Hillary Clinton on the grounds that we don't really know who he is. Instead, says Steele, Obama is running on a vague sense that he's a talented politician and a black guy. At first I thought he was going to take this in an unverifiably airy direction, but then he specifically said of McCain that if he's elected "we know what road that guy’s going to go down" whereas we don't know the same for Obama."
I thought about writing something to counter that, but time is too short to respond to BS.
"Says on a panel "white Americans have made more moral progress in the last forty years than any people in the history of the human conditions.""
"Continuing with my Shelby Steele blogging, he went into what I thought was a really unfair attack on Barack Obama, drawing an invidious comparison between Obama and John McCain and Hillary Clinton on the grounds that we don't really know who he is. Instead, says Steele, Obama is running on a vague sense that he's a talented politician and a black guy. At first I thought he was going to take this in an unverifiably airy direction, but then he specifically said of McCain that if he's elected "we know what road that guy’s going to go down" whereas we don't know the same for Obama."
I thought about writing something to counter that, but time is too short to respond to BS.
Questions and Answers
Sully and others are confused by Obama's stance on gay marriage. On one hand he opposes it (but contends they should have civil unions) but on the other hand he defends California's ruling for gay marriage. Sanchez has a solution that makes perfect sense to me:
"As a very loose analogy, you can consider the position I think a fair number of people take on something like flag burning: They don’t like it, and they might be perfectly happy to have statutes banning it. However, given that the Supreme Court has determined that flag burning is a form of expression protected by the First Amendment, amending the Constitution to create exceptions in the First Amendment seems like a bad idea to them. Now, this isn’t quite my own position, since I think flag burning, like any number of other forms of offensive expression, ought to be protected. That said, if the Supreme Court had decided, on fairly narrow grounds, that flag burning fell into some recognized category of non-protected speech, I don’t know that I’d consider this an intolerable and crippling blow to our expressive rights, even though I’d disagree with the outcome. I would find it far more disturbing if we set a precedent that when the Court rules to protect speech that enough Americans find outrageous, we’ll have a big partisan push to change the Constitution. The underlying idea here is that, important as the case by case determination of the scope of certain fundamental rights is, what’s even more important is the structural principle that these determinations should not be a popularity contest, and ought to be isolated from cyclical politics to a great extent.
"I think that’s probably the reasoning that best accounts for the language Obama used, though I can think of a slightly different route to a similar conclusion. That is, you might think we shouldn’t grant marriage rights to gay couples where they don’t exist, but oppose taking those rights away in places where they’ve already been granted, and especially where gay couples have already begun to marry."
I mentioned before that Obama seems to have a nuanced and subtle view of legal issues, and this seems to fall in line with that. Ultimately though it seems that he has enough respect for the law as to honor it even when it doesn't coincide with his POV. That's enough reason for me to vote for him.
"As a very loose analogy, you can consider the position I think a fair number of people take on something like flag burning: They don’t like it, and they might be perfectly happy to have statutes banning it. However, given that the Supreme Court has determined that flag burning is a form of expression protected by the First Amendment, amending the Constitution to create exceptions in the First Amendment seems like a bad idea to them. Now, this isn’t quite my own position, since I think flag burning, like any number of other forms of offensive expression, ought to be protected. That said, if the Supreme Court had decided, on fairly narrow grounds, that flag burning fell into some recognized category of non-protected speech, I don’t know that I’d consider this an intolerable and crippling blow to our expressive rights, even though I’d disagree with the outcome. I would find it far more disturbing if we set a precedent that when the Court rules to protect speech that enough Americans find outrageous, we’ll have a big partisan push to change the Constitution. The underlying idea here is that, important as the case by case determination of the scope of certain fundamental rights is, what’s even more important is the structural principle that these determinations should not be a popularity contest, and ought to be isolated from cyclical politics to a great extent.
"I think that’s probably the reasoning that best accounts for the language Obama used, though I can think of a slightly different route to a similar conclusion. That is, you might think we shouldn’t grant marriage rights to gay couples where they don’t exist, but oppose taking those rights away in places where they’ve already been granted, and especially where gay couples have already begun to marry."
I mentioned before that Obama seems to have a nuanced and subtle view of legal issues, and this seems to fall in line with that. Ultimately though it seems that he has enough respect for the law as to honor it even when it doesn't coincide with his POV. That's enough reason for me to vote for him.
Netflix Pick of the Week
Check this out. Usually I hate Colin Farrell, who I think is about as overrated as this guy, but he kills in this movie. Funny, sad, thought provoking, and entertaining, In Bruges was one of the best movies of the year.
And yeah, I was in Bruges, and yeah, it is a shit hole. A beautiful shit hole, but as dull as a bowling ball.
The Bag I'm In
I feel Atrios' pain:
"One thing about blogging during the campaign is that you end up pissing people off on all sides. There are those who, understandably, think it's vitally important that Barack Obama be elected and so important that asshole bloggers like me should refrain from any and all criticism lest my mighty blog powers cause Obama to fail. And there are those that get mad because I'm completely in the tank and don't criticize Obama enough. And everyone in between."
And if you heard my dad's opinion of me when I criticize Obama you'd think I was Sean Hannity. What can you do?
"One thing about blogging during the campaign is that you end up pissing people off on all sides. There are those who, understandably, think it's vitally important that Barack Obama be elected and so important that asshole bloggers like me should refrain from any and all criticism lest my mighty blog powers cause Obama to fail. And there are those that get mad because I'm completely in the tank and don't criticize Obama enough. And everyone in between."
And if you heard my dad's opinion of me when I criticize Obama you'd think I was Sean Hannity. What can you do?
As You Will
Here's an interesting stat about gun violence I didn't know. From Sully:
"Suicides accounted for 55% of the nation's nearly 31,000 firearm deaths in 2005, the most recent year for which statistics are available from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention."
Do with it as you will.
"Suicides accounted for 55% of the nation's nearly 31,000 firearm deaths in 2005, the most recent year for which statistics are available from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention."
Do with it as you will.
Tuesday, July 01, 2008
And About What Clark Said
Sully has his comments here, and Kiko takes the other side here. I left some comments under K's post, but basically I wasn't too down with Clark's tone, or even the fact of why he should bring it up in the first place. No, I don't think it's a 'swiftboat' but it's heading in that direction. Is this really where Obama wants to go?
I think Marc is right on this point:
"Critics of McCain have used the same verbiage before, and used it as an insult. Historians and journalists who study the events will first notice that McCain spent five years as a POW; surely, that is the relevant fact, not the way he became a POW. One focuses on the means of his condition only to degrade the subsequent five years, as if to say, yeah, five years of torture was bad, but it was kinda dumb of him to get shot down. Referring to the shoot down strips away the relevant context: McCain was shot down on a daring combat mission whose target, as I recall, was strategically relevant. It wasn’t as if he wandered into Viet Cong airspace and was hit by a stray piece of metal. (By the way – and this is important – McCain admits in both the books he wrote about his Vietnam experience that he wasn’t a great aviator. So why even make the point?)"
Friday, June 27, 2008
Was Obama Being Honest?
In the last week or so I've discussed Obama the politician, but over at Ezra I'm reminded that Obama can be rather sincere:
"Yesterday, I expressed frustration with Obama's criticism of the Supreme Court's decision to declare the death penalty unconstitutional as a punishment for child rape. Obama's position may be politically expedient, I argued, but it's wrong on the merits. Jeffrey Rosen, however, has a good catch from The Audacity of Hope suggesting that Obama's take is actually tethered to a fairly long-standing belief in the applicability of the death penalty to crimes beyond murder:
"Obama's support for the execution of child rapists wasn't invented for the presidential election; it dates back to The Audacity of Hope, where he wrote: "While the evidence tells me that the death penalty does little to deter crime, I believe there are some crimes--mass murder, the rape and murder of a child--so heinous, so beyond the pale, that the community is justified in expressing the full measure of its outrage by meting out the ultimate punishment."
Some times Obama panders, but sometimes his mental complexity does lead to nuances in thinking that cross partisan lines. The question remains: Will he have the wisdom to know which to follow?
"Yesterday, I expressed frustration with Obama's criticism of the Supreme Court's decision to declare the death penalty unconstitutional as a punishment for child rape. Obama's position may be politically expedient, I argued, but it's wrong on the merits. Jeffrey Rosen, however, has a good catch from The Audacity of Hope suggesting that Obama's take is actually tethered to a fairly long-standing belief in the applicability of the death penalty to crimes beyond murder:
"Obama's support for the execution of child rapists wasn't invented for the presidential election; it dates back to The Audacity of Hope, where he wrote: "While the evidence tells me that the death penalty does little to deter crime, I believe there are some crimes--mass murder, the rape and murder of a child--so heinous, so beyond the pale, that the community is justified in expressing the full measure of its outrage by meting out the ultimate punishment."
Some times Obama panders, but sometimes his mental complexity does lead to nuances in thinking that cross partisan lines. The question remains: Will he have the wisdom to know which to follow?
Finally!
An explosion on CNN that wasn't caused by US bombs!:
Seriously though this is great, great news. But one thing, how is it that Bush can so seamlessly go from calling Obama to an appeaser for wanting to negotiate with our enemies to himself negotiating with our enemies without every news outlet calling him out for hypocrisy? Either Bush is a political genius or the news doesn't give a damn. Gee, I wonder which one it is?
Note: That Times link I posted does give a somewhat tepid acknowledgement of Bush's duplicity, but, in my opinion, that in no way balances their reporting of Bush's 'appeasement' remarks.
Seriously though this is great, great news. But one thing, how is it that Bush can so seamlessly go from calling Obama to an appeaser for wanting to negotiate with our enemies to himself negotiating with our enemies without every news outlet calling him out for hypocrisy? Either Bush is a political genius or the news doesn't give a damn. Gee, I wonder which one it is?
Note: That Times link I posted does give a somewhat tepid acknowledgement of Bush's duplicity, but, in my opinion, that in no way balances their reporting of Bush's 'appeasement' remarks.
Thursday, June 26, 2008
My Completely Amateur View on Today's Ruling
I'm not a lawyer or anything, but it seems to me that the Supreme Court got this one right. Sure, I can rail at conservative talking head hypocrites and how none of them seem to be whining right now about 'activist judges' usurping power from the state, but I won't. This one seemed to be a no brainer, and that's coming from some one who believes in outlawing guns. Whether I like it or not the Constitution allows people to own weapons, and unless we're going to amend the Constitution we'd all do better off thinking of ways to keep weapons out of criminal's hands rather than keeping them out of every one's. At least for now.
The best thing about the ruling? It allows me to link to the coolest widget ever:
DC v Heller - Free Legal Forms
The best thing about the ruling? It allows me to link to the coolest widget ever:
DC v Heller - Free Legal Forms
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Joke of the Day
Imus is at his funniest, when he's making excuses:
"On Tuesday he said he was following the spirit of that promise by calling attention to the unfair treatment of blacks - in this case the arrests of suspended Dallas Cowboys cornerback Adam Jones.
"What people should be outraged about is that they arrest blacks for no reason," Imus said. "I mean, there's no reason to arrest this kid six times. Maybe he did something once, but everyone does something once."
He called the flurry of criticism surrounding the comments "ridiculous" and said that his program's cast is now more diverse than ever - and includes a black producer and two black co-hosts.
"How insane would I have to be? What would I be thinking?" Imus wondered aloud.
Co-host Karith Foster - who is black - came to Imus' defense during Tuesday's broadcast, saying, "People who interpret what you said as racist clearly didn't hear the whole thing, and they don't know who you are and what the program is about - and they obviously haven't been listening."
The latest comments by Imus to come under scrutiny were aired on Monday's broadcast. During a conversation about Jones' run-ins with the law, Imus asked, "What color is he?" Sports announcer Warner Wolf said Jones - formerly known as Pacman - is "African-American." Imus responded: "There you go. Now we know."
I don't even know where to begin--the fact that Imus said something so blatantly racist to start with, or the fact that he chose this lame excuse to end. And then to say that Pac-Man Jones is an example of racism...Pac-Man Jones? Really? Really? He's an example of stupidity sure, but racism? Man this is so weak.
Imus seems like the kind of guy who'd burn a cross on your lawn and then tell you the next day that he did it to show you that racism is still alive. Or better yet, the thief who breaks into a bank, and when he gets caught says he did it to show how security is so lax.
But what do you expect? He's friggin Imus! What, you thought he'd 'changed'? Then I guess the joke's on you.
"On Tuesday he said he was following the spirit of that promise by calling attention to the unfair treatment of blacks - in this case the arrests of suspended Dallas Cowboys cornerback Adam Jones.
"What people should be outraged about is that they arrest blacks for no reason," Imus said. "I mean, there's no reason to arrest this kid six times. Maybe he did something once, but everyone does something once."
He called the flurry of criticism surrounding the comments "ridiculous" and said that his program's cast is now more diverse than ever - and includes a black producer and two black co-hosts.
"How insane would I have to be? What would I be thinking?" Imus wondered aloud.
Co-host Karith Foster - who is black - came to Imus' defense during Tuesday's broadcast, saying, "People who interpret what you said as racist clearly didn't hear the whole thing, and they don't know who you are and what the program is about - and they obviously haven't been listening."
The latest comments by Imus to come under scrutiny were aired on Monday's broadcast. During a conversation about Jones' run-ins with the law, Imus asked, "What color is he?" Sports announcer Warner Wolf said Jones - formerly known as Pacman - is "African-American." Imus responded: "There you go. Now we know."
I don't even know where to begin--the fact that Imus said something so blatantly racist to start with, or the fact that he chose this lame excuse to end. And then to say that Pac-Man Jones is an example of racism...Pac-Man Jones? Really? Really? He's an example of stupidity sure, but racism? Man this is so weak.
Imus seems like the kind of guy who'd burn a cross on your lawn and then tell you the next day that he did it to show you that racism is still alive. Or better yet, the thief who breaks into a bank, and when he gets caught says he did it to show how security is so lax.
But what do you expect? He's friggin Imus! What, you thought he'd 'changed'? Then I guess the joke's on you.
Whoops!
A couple of minutes ago there was gunfire at Tel Aviv airport during a visit by French honcho Sarkozy. First thought--terrorist attack. But it now looks like an Israeli soldier was just pulling a Bush:
"However, a conflicting report said the soldier apparently fell from a vantage point he was occupying on a high building, from where he was securing the event, and the bullet that killed him misfired from his gun."
Poor guy was probably just trying to get a better view of Sarkozy's wife.
"However, a conflicting report said the soldier apparently fell from a vantage point he was occupying on a high building, from where he was securing the event, and the bullet that killed him misfired from his gun."
Poor guy was probably just trying to get a better view of Sarkozy's wife.
Monday, June 23, 2008
Carlin's Wisdom--Nugget #2
From the Rude Pundit, Carlin on perspective:
"There are two ways to think about this existence we have. One of them is that it's Wednesday and it's three fifteen and we're talking here in my home, and at four o'clock I have to leave for another meeting. Now, that's a reality. But there's another reality. We're in the solar system of a second-rate star, three quarters of the way out on a spiral arm of an average galaxy in a thing called the Local Group. And ours is only one of billions of galaxies, each of which has billions of stars. Some star systems are binary, and there could be a planet that revolves around a center of gravity between two binary stars. So you'd have two sunrises and two sunsets every day. One could be a red giant, the other a white dwarf; two different-sized, -shaped, and -colored suns in the sky. And there might be other planets and comets. In other words, fuck Wednesday, fuck three fifteen, fuck four o'clock, fuck the United States, fuck the earth. It's all temporal bullshit. I like thinking about being out there and not thinking about the corporate structure, not worrying about freedom, and not worrying about guns. I chose a life of ideas. That entertains me. That nourishes me."
-George Carlin
"There are two ways to think about this existence we have. One of them is that it's Wednesday and it's three fifteen and we're talking here in my home, and at four o'clock I have to leave for another meeting. Now, that's a reality. But there's another reality. We're in the solar system of a second-rate star, three quarters of the way out on a spiral arm of an average galaxy in a thing called the Local Group. And ours is only one of billions of galaxies, each of which has billions of stars. Some star systems are binary, and there could be a planet that revolves around a center of gravity between two binary stars. So you'd have two sunrises and two sunsets every day. One could be a red giant, the other a white dwarf; two different-sized, -shaped, and -colored suns in the sky. And there might be other planets and comets. In other words, fuck Wednesday, fuck three fifteen, fuck four o'clock, fuck the United States, fuck the earth. It's all temporal bullshit. I like thinking about being out there and not thinking about the corporate structure, not worrying about freedom, and not worrying about guns. I chose a life of ideas. That entertains me. That nourishes me."
-George Carlin
Obviously, There's a Large Difference...
...but I'm having more and more trouble finding it:
"According to this eye-opening Washington Post op-ed, in Vladimir Putin's Russia it's possible for government officials and well-connected individuals to commit crimes with impunity. I'm glad I don't live in a country like that!
"Here if the government were to ask telecom firms to illegally cooperate with an illegal surveillance operation, we'd ensure the rule of law continues to operate by changing the law so that complying with such requests will be legal in the future and also bestowing retroactive immunity on the cooperating firms. And if the Vice President's top aide were convicted of a crime, the president would need to step in and commute his sentence. It's these kind of procedures that keep our country safe and free!"
But at least we don't torture! And everyone gets their day in cou...oh.
"According to this eye-opening Washington Post op-ed, in Vladimir Putin's Russia it's possible for government officials and well-connected individuals to commit crimes with impunity. I'm glad I don't live in a country like that!
"Here if the government were to ask telecom firms to illegally cooperate with an illegal surveillance operation, we'd ensure the rule of law continues to operate by changing the law so that complying with such requests will be legal in the future and also bestowing retroactive immunity on the cooperating firms. And if the Vice President's top aide were convicted of a crime, the president would need to step in and commute his sentence. It's these kind of procedures that keep our country safe and free!"
But at least we don't torture! And everyone gets their day in cou...oh.
The Way We Were
The Netherlands is going square:
"The Netherlands is poised to ban smoking tobacco in public places, but smoking marijuana will still be allowed in licensed "coffee shops" as long as it's not mixed with tobacco.
"I also note that I learned went I went to the Netherlands this past fall that there are fewer coffee shops around than there used to be, and that there have been a variety of measures put into place to make it more difficult to get a license. This is in part a consequence of the socially conservative smallish Christian Union Party joining the governing coalition."
Note to the hawks in Congress: Take heed, this is the slippery slope you've been looking for. Once smoking tobacco goes so goes pot, 'shrooms, and then it's just a hop-skip-and a jump to shutting down the red light district. Then they'll be as wack as US. Is this really what we want? It's time to invade. Let Operation Cheech and Chong commence.
"The Netherlands is poised to ban smoking tobacco in public places, but smoking marijuana will still be allowed in licensed "coffee shops" as long as it's not mixed with tobacco.
"I also note that I learned went I went to the Netherlands this past fall that there are fewer coffee shops around than there used to be, and that there have been a variety of measures put into place to make it more difficult to get a license. This is in part a consequence of the socially conservative smallish Christian Union Party joining the governing coalition."
Note to the hawks in Congress: Take heed, this is the slippery slope you've been looking for. Once smoking tobacco goes so goes pot, 'shrooms, and then it's just a hop-skip-and a jump to shutting down the red light district. Then they'll be as wack as US. Is this really what we want? It's time to invade. Let Operation Cheech and Chong commence.
Great, We All Suck
I think I know what MY is getting at with his PPT Presentation here about failing math rates in big cities vs. the national average, and I think his interpretation is correct. But what sorta irks me is the fact of how ambivalent he seems about the numbers on their own, an ambivalence he shows in his conclusion:
"So to make a long story short, when talking about this issue it helps to be precise. All across the United States we have a problem with kids from disadvantaged backgrounds doing poorly in school. We also see kids from disadvantaged backgrounds overrepresented in urban school systems. Consequently, average results from city school systems tend to be below average. But when you use appropriate demographic controls you see that there's huge city-to-city variation and also a huge amount being determined by the demographics.
"Some cities -- i.e., Washington DC -- really do have sub-standard school systems and would do well to implement reforms that made DCPS get results more like what you see in Boston or New York. But even if all cities did get the level of performance that you see from the best cities, there would still be a problem insofar as poor kids tend to do badly even in "good" schools in the United States. "
I feel like I guy listening to a joke right before the punchline, "so now what?" Is it enough to say well they suck, but not in the way you think they suck? And really has he done anything to change the idea that poor kids don't do well in schools?
Instead of blogging from this POV he'd do more of a service to his readers to tell us how we can change the stats rather than making excuses for the stats.
"So to make a long story short, when talking about this issue it helps to be precise. All across the United States we have a problem with kids from disadvantaged backgrounds doing poorly in school. We also see kids from disadvantaged backgrounds overrepresented in urban school systems. Consequently, average results from city school systems tend to be below average. But when you use appropriate demographic controls you see that there's huge city-to-city variation and also a huge amount being determined by the demographics.
"Some cities -- i.e., Washington DC -- really do have sub-standard school systems and would do well to implement reforms that made DCPS get results more like what you see in Boston or New York. But even if all cities did get the level of performance that you see from the best cities, there would still be a problem insofar as poor kids tend to do badly even in "good" schools in the United States. "
I feel like I guy listening to a joke right before the punchline, "so now what?" Is it enough to say well they suck, but not in the way you think they suck? And really has he done anything to change the idea that poor kids don't do well in schools?
Instead of blogging from this POV he'd do more of a service to his readers to tell us how we can change the stats rather than making excuses for the stats.
Levine on George Carlin
"We have lost a genius -- comic and otherwise. We have also lost our greatest Bullshit Detector."
Link here.
Link here.
Carlin's Wisdom--Nugget #1
I'm numbering these because I'm sure people will be posting up stuff like this in the days to come:
"I don’t like words that hide the truth. I don’t like words that conceal reality. I don’t like euphemisms, or euphemistic language.
"And American English is loaded with euphemisms. Cause Americans have a lot of trouble dealing with reality. Americans have trouble facing the truth, so they invent the kind of a soft language to protect themselves from it, and it gets worse with every generation.
"For some reason, it just keeps getting worse. I’ll give you an example of that. There’s a condition in combat. Most people know about it. It’s when a fighting person’s nervous system has been stressed to it’s absolute peak and maximum. Can’t take anymore input. The nervous system has either (click) snapped or is about to snap.
"In the first world war, that condition was called Shell Shock. Simple, honest, direct language. Two syllables, Shell Shock. Almost sounds like the guns themselves. That was seventy years ago.
"Then a whole generation went by and the second world war came along and very same combat condition was called Battle Fatigue. Four syllables now. Takes a little longer to say. Doesn’t seem to hurt as much. Fatigue is a nicer word than shock. Shell Shock! Battle Fatigue.
"Then we had the war in Korea, 1950. Madison avenue was riding high by that time, and the very same combat condition was called Operational Exhaustion. Hey, were up to eight syllables now! And the humanity has been squeezed completely out of the phrase. It’s totally sterile now. Operational exhaustion. Sounds like something that might happen to your car.
"Then of course, came the war in Viet Nam, which has only been over for about sixteen or seventeen years, and thanks to the lies and deceits surrounding that war, I guess it’s no surprise that the very same condition was called Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Still eight syllables, but we’ve added a hyphen! And the pain is completely buried under jargon. Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.
"I’ll bet you if we’d of still been calling it Shell Shock, some of those Viet Nam veterans might have gotten the attention they needed at the time. I’ll betcha. I’ll betcha.
-George Carlin
God bless that man.
"I don’t like words that hide the truth. I don’t like words that conceal reality. I don’t like euphemisms, or euphemistic language.
"And American English is loaded with euphemisms. Cause Americans have a lot of trouble dealing with reality. Americans have trouble facing the truth, so they invent the kind of a soft language to protect themselves from it, and it gets worse with every generation.
"For some reason, it just keeps getting worse. I’ll give you an example of that. There’s a condition in combat. Most people know about it. It’s when a fighting person’s nervous system has been stressed to it’s absolute peak and maximum. Can’t take anymore input. The nervous system has either (click) snapped or is about to snap.
"In the first world war, that condition was called Shell Shock. Simple, honest, direct language. Two syllables, Shell Shock. Almost sounds like the guns themselves. That was seventy years ago.
"Then a whole generation went by and the second world war came along and very same combat condition was called Battle Fatigue. Four syllables now. Takes a little longer to say. Doesn’t seem to hurt as much. Fatigue is a nicer word than shock. Shell Shock! Battle Fatigue.
"Then we had the war in Korea, 1950. Madison avenue was riding high by that time, and the very same combat condition was called Operational Exhaustion. Hey, were up to eight syllables now! And the humanity has been squeezed completely out of the phrase. It’s totally sterile now. Operational exhaustion. Sounds like something that might happen to your car.
"Then of course, came the war in Viet Nam, which has only been over for about sixteen or seventeen years, and thanks to the lies and deceits surrounding that war, I guess it’s no surprise that the very same condition was called Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Still eight syllables, but we’ve added a hyphen! And the pain is completely buried under jargon. Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.
"I’ll bet you if we’d of still been calling it Shell Shock, some of those Viet Nam veterans might have gotten the attention they needed at the time. I’ll betcha. I’ll betcha.
-George Carlin
God bless that man.
The Bottom Line on Mugabe
Cros nails it:
"Mugabe is placing a very simple bet. He is betting that nowhere in the UN or the African Union is there enough of a commitment to democracy, human rights, or anything decent that would compel them to do the hard work necessary to drive Mugabe from power. Thabo Mbeki doesn't want to get involved, and at the UN, China and Russia will claim that doing anything would violate Zimbabwe's "sovereignty."
"If anyone wanted to prove him wrong, now would be the time. Personally, I think this is the sort of thing that calls for Stone Cold John Bolton, but the multinationalists are convinced that quiet, less confrontational diplomacy is the way to go.
"Fine. Mugabe needs to go. Prove it."
Obviously I'm not exactly a John Bolton, "let's bomb Iran" fan, and I believe in multilateral negotiations. But we should be clear that what the US and alot of other countries consider to be negotiation are verbal circle jerks and they should be held accountable for their impotence. There is a line between outright invasion and futile rhetoric and we need to find it and hold it with the same intensity that the net roots can summon for FISA, and the Neo-cons can summon for military intervention. To do that you need dedication and resolve, two traits that are lost in the UN.
"Mugabe is placing a very simple bet. He is betting that nowhere in the UN or the African Union is there enough of a commitment to democracy, human rights, or anything decent that would compel them to do the hard work necessary to drive Mugabe from power. Thabo Mbeki doesn't want to get involved, and at the UN, China and Russia will claim that doing anything would violate Zimbabwe's "sovereignty."
"If anyone wanted to prove him wrong, now would be the time. Personally, I think this is the sort of thing that calls for Stone Cold John Bolton, but the multinationalists are convinced that quiet, less confrontational diplomacy is the way to go.
"Fine. Mugabe needs to go. Prove it."
Obviously I'm not exactly a John Bolton, "let's bomb Iran" fan, and I believe in multilateral negotiations. But we should be clear that what the US and alot of other countries consider to be negotiation are verbal circle jerks and they should be held accountable for their impotence. There is a line between outright invasion and futile rhetoric and we need to find it and hold it with the same intensity that the net roots can summon for FISA, and the Neo-cons can summon for military intervention. To do that you need dedication and resolve, two traits that are lost in the UN.
The Road To Iran
Hey kiddies, ready for another twisted sick tale brought to you by your friends at Neo-Con Inc? This one's called, "How Obama Made The US Attack Iran":
"A fascinating little moment on Fox News Sunday today. Bill Kristol airs the idea that if Obama looks as if he will win the election, Bush or Israel may be more likely to attack Iran before next January. Bush could say: Obama made me do it! Kristol also raises the prospect of Saudi Arabia and Egypt going nuclear in response to an Obama presidency. I think we'll see many more of these dire warnings if Obama looks like the next president - and he's increasingly the favorite."
Could it happen? Well that depends how you pivot on the question. If you think that GWB got us into Iraq for oil and greed, then probably not--they made their loot. But if you think that GWB is a true believer in the righteousness of bringing democracy to the Middle East and creating peace through war, then the situation becomes alot more plausible, but no less disastrous.
"A fascinating little moment on Fox News Sunday today. Bill Kristol airs the idea that if Obama looks as if he will win the election, Bush or Israel may be more likely to attack Iran before next January. Bush could say: Obama made me do it! Kristol also raises the prospect of Saudi Arabia and Egypt going nuclear in response to an Obama presidency. I think we'll see many more of these dire warnings if Obama looks like the next president - and he's increasingly the favorite."
Could it happen? Well that depends how you pivot on the question. If you think that GWB got us into Iraq for oil and greed, then probably not--they made their loot. But if you think that GWB is a true believer in the righteousness of bringing democracy to the Middle East and creating peace through war, then the situation becomes alot more plausible, but no less disastrous.
Should Obama Keep Gates?
Sully vs. Marshall on that question.
Personally I'm with Marshall. With stories like this popping up, and his wiffing of that FISA compromise, Obama now runs the risk of alienating his progressive base. It feels really nasty when you find out that McCain is probably right on something, "Mr. McCain advocates eliminating the multibillion-dollar annual government subsidies that domestic ethanol has long enjoyed...he also opposes the 54-cent-a-gallon tariff that the United States slaps on imports of ethanol made from sugar cane, which packs more of an energy punch than corn-based ethanol and is cheaper to produce." Especially when it's something that Obama should be for.
I understand that Obama isn't Jesus Christ, and that he does need to unite elements of the country such as Republicans and Clinton-Democrats, but considering that he has the most independent and powerful fundraising apparatus in the game today, he might consider tossing the progressive net roots a bone, because he does not want the Kos fanatics on his ass...
...or WOTP. Cause, you know, we know people too.
Personally I'm with Marshall. With stories like this popping up, and his wiffing of that FISA compromise, Obama now runs the risk of alienating his progressive base. It feels really nasty when you find out that McCain is probably right on something, "Mr. McCain advocates eliminating the multibillion-dollar annual government subsidies that domestic ethanol has long enjoyed...he also opposes the 54-cent-a-gallon tariff that the United States slaps on imports of ethanol made from sugar cane, which packs more of an energy punch than corn-based ethanol and is cheaper to produce." Especially when it's something that Obama should be for.
I understand that Obama isn't Jesus Christ, and that he does need to unite elements of the country such as Republicans and Clinton-Democrats, but considering that he has the most independent and powerful fundraising apparatus in the game today, he might consider tossing the progressive net roots a bone, because he does not want the Kos fanatics on his ass...
...or WOTP. Cause, you know, we know people too.
Pressure Builds in Zimbabwe
Opposition leader flees to Dutch Embassy to escape Mugabe police raid:
"Opposition spokesman Nqobizitha Mlilo refused to comment on the report and referred callers to The Hague.
"Another spokesman, Nelson Chamisa, told the Associated Press that about 60 people were arrested in the raid on the headquarters earlier on Monday and that most of the people taken away were women and children who had fled state-sponsored political violence. He did not immediately have further details.
"Attempts to reach the police spokesman were not immediately successful."
I can't help feeling like I've seen this before. Maybe in a movie that wasn't award winning and critically acclaimed. Yeah that must be it.
"Opposition spokesman Nqobizitha Mlilo refused to comment on the report and referred callers to The Hague.
"Another spokesman, Nelson Chamisa, told the Associated Press that about 60 people were arrested in the raid on the headquarters earlier on Monday and that most of the people taken away were women and children who had fled state-sponsored political violence. He did not immediately have further details.
"Attempts to reach the police spokesman were not immediately successful."
I can't help feeling like I've seen this before. Maybe in a movie that wasn't award winning and critically acclaimed. Yeah that must be it.
George Carlin Died Today
Comic master George Carlin died today at 71 years old. He will forever be known as an outspoken critic of religion, political hypocrisy and bad grammar and in his 50 odd year career he paved the way for modern comedians and personalities such as Chris Rock, Robert Klein, Howard Stern, Louis Black, Jon Stewart and many, many others. As a writer I owe the man a tremendous debt for having the courage and fortitude to speak truth to power at whatever the cost. There is a new headliner in heaven.
Saturday, June 21, 2008
Comparison of the Day
From Too Sense:
"He's not scary because he's old. He's scary. And, coincidentally, he's old. No disputing either fact.In fact, he [John McCain] kind of reminds me of this cat:"
"Actually, McCain and Col Tigh from BSG have a lot in common. Both have records of long military service, both spent time as a prisoner of war, both were tortured by the enemy. Except that Tigh, it turns out, was really a Cylon all along. See, that's why we can't vote for McCain. The dude's a Cylon sleeper agent.
"I kid, y'all. It's just jokes."
Rrrrrrrrright.
"He's not scary because he's old. He's scary. And, coincidentally, he's old. No disputing either fact.In fact, he [John McCain] kind of reminds me of this cat:"
"Actually, McCain and Col Tigh from BSG have a lot in common. Both have records of long military service, both spent time as a prisoner of war, both were tortured by the enemy. Except that Tigh, it turns out, was really a Cylon all along. See, that's why we can't vote for McCain. The dude's a Cylon sleeper agent.
"I kid, y'all. It's just jokes."
Rrrrrrrrright.
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