Ghost of Gipper's Past: Ronnie's RNC Verdict ...

The AWESOME Duchess St. Rollins' Daily Affirmation: A Letter To Ann Romney

A letter to Ann Romney…
— AUGUST 30, 2012

If I hear Ann Romney talk about how she and Mitt lived in a “basement apartment” and “ate lots of pasta and tuna” because he’s a self-made man and “nobody handed him his success,” I might fucking implode…or worse.  The thing about these people that scares the shit out of me is that they are so detached from reality they can’t even understand WHY us “common people” are annoyed.  Maybe a letter is in order.

Dear Ann Romney,

No one really gives a shit that you are rich.  No one begrudges you a good life or is insinuating that Mitt didn’t work hard to earn your money.  Granted, “working hard” may have a vastly different meaning than taking over companies, loading them with debt, gutting them and then collecting huge fees to anyone with a modicum of conscience and decency, but we’ll get into that, as well as the tax havens and loopholes he milks for every last dime, some other time.

What you don’t seem to be able to get through your pretty little blond cranium is that, while you may have had to live in an apartment sans multiple Cadillacs and dancing horses in your college days, you always knew that there was a familial safety net there to catch you if you fell.  You didn’t have to live with the terrorizing realization that your lights might get turned off at any moment because you chose to buy food or medicine for your kids instead of paying your overdue utility bill.  You weren’t working two jobs while going to college, and STILL living in constant fear of eviction. You never had to apply for Food Stamps because your spouse died and then cower in embarrassment at the grocery store checkout counter, aware of the judgmental faces all around you glaring at the nice cake you put in your cart because it was the ONLY thing you could get your son for his 5th birthday.

In other words, you living like many of us live our entire lives for a couple of years isn’t reality…it’s a cute story, an anecdote to chuckle over at Thanksgiving dinner in one of your many mansions.  It’s bullshit.  You don’t know what it’s like to be a regular American any more than I know what it’s like to be a Sudanese orphan or a fucking amoeba.  I think it would make us all feel slightly better if you would just conjure up a little goddamned humility and admit that.

What is even more perplexing and infuriating is that the political party you endorse begrudges a social safety net to those not fortunate enough to be born into a supportive family.  You don’t seem to grasp the fact that a stroke of PURE LUCK afforded you a start in life that most of us can only dream about.  I’m not saying that your family didn’t have problems, as I’m sure they did, but regardless, they were able to care for you in a way that gave you huge educational and financial advantages.  And, good for you!  I’m happy for you and any other person that is raised in a stable environment.  The difference between us is that I realize that when some poor soul is born into a situation with, say, a meth-addicted mother and an absent father, it is our job as society to make sure they have at least a chance in life.

We’re not all envious, Ann.  We don’t want to take what you have or villainize you because you are able to live a luxurious lifestyle.  We just want you to show some respect and compassion for all those not as blessed as you have been and confess that you have no idea what their lives are  really like.  In short, we want you to stop being such a self-deluded, egocentric daft cunt.

Love,

Us People

MEANWHILE, BACK AT THE OLD ACTORS' HOME ...

CLINT EASTWOOD CELEBRATES HIS TRIUMPHANT RNC
appearance, with best buddy 'MITT THE TWIT':

NEW YORK TIMES EDITORIAL: TWO PLUS TWO MAKES FIVE

THE TIMES TODAY DELIVERED ITS BLISTERING VERDICT OF MITT ROMNEY'S ORWELLIAN speech. Favorite line: "Mr. Romney’s big [banal] speech, delivered in a treacly tone with a strange misty smile on his face suggesting he was always about to burst into tears ... As I've been saying, this dude is weird; really REALLY WEIRD. Here's the Editorial (Emphasis mine):

Mr. Romney Reinvents History

Mitt Romney wrapped the most important speech of his life, for Thursday night’s session of his convention, around an extraordinary reinvention of history — that his party rallied behind President Obama when he won in 2008, hoping that he would succeed. “That president was not the choice of our party,” he said. “We are a good and generous people who are united by so much more than divides us.”

The truth, rarely heard this week in Tampa, Fla., is that the Republicans charted a course of denial and obstruction from the day Mr. Obama was inaugurated, determined to deny him a second term by denying him any achievement, no matter the cost to the economy or American security — even if it meant holding the nation’s credit rating hostage to a narrow partisan agenda.

Mr. Romney’s big speech, delivered in a treacly tone with a strange misty smile on his face suggesting he was always about to burst into tears, was of a piece with the rest of the convention. Republicans have offered precious little of substance but a lot of bromides (“A free world is a more peaceful world!”) meant to convey profundity and take passive-aggressive digs at President Obama. But no subjects have received less attention, or been treated with less honesty, than foreign affairs and national security — and Mr. Romney’s banal speech was no exception.

It’s easy to understand why the Republicans have steered clear of these areas. While President Obama is vulnerable on some domestic issues, the Republicans have no purchase on foreign and security policy. In a television interview on Wednesday, Condoleezza Rice, the former secretary of state, could not name an area in which Mr. Obama had failed on foreign policy.

For decades, the Republicans were able to present themselves as the tougher party on foreign and military policy. Mr. Obama has robbed them of that by being aggressive on counterterrorism and by flexing military and diplomatic muscle repeatedly and effectively.

Mitt Romney has tried to sound tough, but it’s hard to see how he would act differently from Mr. Obama except in ways that are scary — like attacking Iran, or overspending on defense in ways that would not provide extra safety but would hurt the economy.

Before Thursday night, the big foreign policy speeches were delivered by Senator John McCain and Ms. Rice. Mr. McCain was specific on one thing: Mr. Obama’s plan to start pulling out of Afghanistan at the end of 2014 is too rapid. While he does not speak for Mr. Romney, his other ideas were unnerving, like suggesting that the United States should intervene in Syria.

Mr. Romney reportedly considered Ms. Rice as a running mate, and she seems to have real influence. But Ms. Rice is a reminder of the colossal errors and deceptions of George W. Bush’s administration. She was a central player in the decision to invade Iraq and the peddling of fantasies about weapons of mass destruction. She barely mentioned Iraq in her speech and spoke not at all about Afghanistan. She was particularly ludicrous when she talked about keeping America strong at home so it could be strong globally, since she was part of the team that fought two wars off the books and entirely on borrowed money.

Ms. Rice said the United States has lost its “exceptionalism,” but she never gave the slightest clue what she meant by that — a return to President Bush’s policy of preventive and unnecessary war?

She and Mr. McCain both invoked the idea of “peace through strength,” but one of the few concrete proposals Mr. Romney has made — spending 4 percent of G.D.P. on defense — would weaken the economy severely. Mr. McCain was not telling the truth when he said Mr. Obama wants to cut another $500 billion from military spending. That amount was imposed by the Republicans as part of the extortion they demanded to raise the debt ceiling.

Ms. Rice said American allies need to know where the United States stands and that alliances are vitally important. But the truth is that Mr. Obama has repaired those alliances and restored allies’ confidence in America’s position after Mr. Bush and Ms. Rice spent years tearing them apart and ruining America’s reputation in the world.

The one alliance on which there is real debate between Mr. Romney and Mr. Obama is with Israel. But it is not, as Mr. Romney and his supporters want Americans to believe, about whether Mr. Obama is a supporter of Israel. Every modern president has been, including Mr. Obama. Apart from outsourcing his policy to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on settlements, it’s not clear what Mr. Romney would do differently.

But after watching the Republicans for three days in Florida, that comes as no surprise.

CLINT EASTWOOD, ONE WORD:

PATHETIC.

Quotable, Stephanie Cutter: Break Out The Smelling Salts For Andrea Mitchell!

"Well, you know, Andrea, there's no delicate way to put this, but [Paul Ryan] LIED. He blatantly lied. And brazenly. A number of different things have been fact checked by members of the media, independent fact checkers." ~ Stephanie Cutter, Deputy Campaign Manager for the Obama Campaign, trying to give MSNBC's Beltway Queen Bee Andrea Mitchell palpitations, as Andrea stammers clutching a Marbles Mouth memo.

:59 SECOND POST-SPEECH VIEW: CONDI RICE, PAUL RYAN

POLITICS STOPS AT THE WATER'S EDGE: CONDI. SMOKE AND MIRRORS: PAUL RYAN. It still amazes me how seasoned professionals fall prey to the pack media mentality/narrative. Big Eddie and Lawrence made a beeline straight for the Beltway KOOL-AID dispenser. Eddie with his "a star is born" shit, as if citing Ryan's reference to his i-POD playlist, from AC-DC to Zep, is somehow going to resonate with the youth vote. Even "I" think that's taking GenExers much too shallowly. Then Howard went over the top trying to find deeper generational meaning in Ryan's presentation. And of course, their resident political hack and bullshit artist, Michael Steele, was nodding agreeably and soaking it all in. Even the earnest Steve Schmidt seemed relieved not to be called on to justify the lies, so much, as the Reverend Al trained anti-Ryan fire and brimstone on him.

Of everyone present at the MSNBC roundtable, only the Rev and Chris (who is chanelling his inner progressive more and more, finding truth and liberation there), and to some extent Rachel (I heard a different speech from that Hispanic lady; Rachel thought it was "stunning", I thought it was trite) acquitted themselves with their skeptical political radars somewhat intact. Most of the time Rachel is right on, but then she takes to weird flights of fancy — her continuous irritating Ron Paul flirtation, it was a ripple and not the wave Rachel thought; they shut that hemorrhoid down, except for his obnoxious son, so crybaby runs back home to sulk — perhaps a cultural blind spot; as far as that Latina goes, they might vote for her over an Anglo and split their ticket, voting for Obama at the top. So what? Do y'all think Latinos are that stupid?! Quite the contrary, the Latino vote is solid for Obama; Latino voters are much, MUCH smarter than the whitebread Republican base.

As for Condi Rice, what Chris said. Mostly. I think Condi is an exemplary diplomat, who, unlike her ratbastard Republican brethren, would never do anything to undermine America's standing in the world. And that's as it should be. As Condi said, tellingly, "we only have one president at a time." Even though I disagree with her on almost every issue, she won me over for good with that hilarious skit on 30 Rock blowing off her "boyfriend" Alec Baldwin as he grovelled before her. Condoleeza Rice is that rarity among today's Republicans: A class act.

On to Paul Ryan. Smoke and mirrors. Deception and lies. Bland niceness keeping, for the most part, his extremism in check. He did that effectively. But as for how he played to a wider audience, he failed in one critical aspect. I was looking for the guy who could step in to the presidency the moment Mitt Romney has his inevitable psychotic, Nixonesque breakdown — and I didn't see it. I didn't see a guy who projected confidence, knowledge (particularly about foreign policy and national security) or that useful cliché, gravitas, at all.

I saw a guy reading his lines competently, telling poker-faced lies which should be slammed repeatedly in coming weeks, and reciting Orwellian propaganda with choppy, mild-mannered consistency. But for those of us watching outside the hall, the question that kept coming up, in the wake of the ongoing Mama Grizzly trainwreck, is whether this guy is ready to step into the breach in a crisis. And the answer to that question, for most viewers I think, is no. Couple that with the fact that even more serious doubts about temperament, foreign policy competence, trust and leadership afflict the top of the ticket — once the media-created Ryan deception (including by MSNBC's Idiot Punditocracy) blows over, reality will set in.

The most offensive lie of the many Paul Ryan shamelessly told, was his Objectivist, anti-Christian slap in the face of the Nuns and Catholic groups that have vociferously opposed his budget for decimating the meager lifeline and safety net extended to the poorest Americans:

We have responsibilities, one to another — we do not each face the world alone. And the greatest of all responsibilities, is that of the strong to protect the weak. The truest measure of any society is how it treats those who cannot defend or care for themselves.

The cynical brazenness of this arrogant, cruel, mean-spirited liar, gives us a glimpse of the real Paul Ryan: A cold Objectivist who, in effect, was saying to the Sisters, 'how dare you challenge my superior intellect, my deserving status against the inferior drug-addicted refuse of society', as he swooned and riffed in true hypocritical Objectivist mode on his so-called "path" and "journey" in which he raided (to use his word) Social Security survivor benefits to fund his college education and spent his entire career on the taxpayer's dime as a politician: "That's freedom, and I'll take it any day over the supervision and sanctimony of the central planners."

RIGHT. The selfsame "central planners" who jumpstarted Paul Ryan's career. Can anyone say, projection?

Whatever our views of John McCain and Joe Biden, both these politicians have the experience and gravitas to pass the test of assuming the highest office in the world. Neither Paul Ryan nor Mitt Romney do. As for President Obama, six words: Osama Bin Laden and auto bailout rescue. On the other hand, McCain's insane bellicosity, his simmering resentment toward the President, and his snarky aside to Rachel — who has written a book proving she knows more about our military policy than McCain does — that President Obama is "AWOL," a sarcastic reply to Rachel's question, "which means 'Absent Without Official Leave'," only reinforces the impression that McCain should retire to his Arizona ranch because he's been, himself, "AWOL" for many years now.

Steve Benen on Maddowblog referenced Paul Ryan's "breathtaking display of brazen dishonesty. Paul Ryan looked America in the eye and without a hint of shame, lied to our face."

Ryan lied about President Obama's auto-industry rescue, blaming the administration for a plant closing orchestrated by President Bush. Ryan lied about Medicare, falsely accusing Obama of undermining the system. Ryan lied about the debt downgrade, falsely blaming the president for a downgrade caused by Ryan and congressional Republicans.

Ryan lied about the Simpson-Bowles commission, falsely accusing Obama of walking away from debt reduction, and ignoring the fact that Ryan himself fought to ensure the Simpson-Bowles commission never even released a report. Ryan lied about his plans for the safety net, saying he intends to "protect the weak" when he budget plan intends to gut public investments that benefit the poor.

Ryan lied about the debt, saying Obama "has added more debt than any other president before him," when the truth is, that was George W. Bush — who added over $5 trillion to the debt thanks in large part to congressional votes cast by Paul Ryan.

Ryan lied about the Recovery Act, calling the stimulus "a case of political patronage, corporate welfare, and cronyism at their worst," when reality shows the exact opposite. Ryan lied about small businesses, accusing Obama of raising their taxes, when he actually cut their taxes.

Paul Ryan, the man the media and Republican celebrate as a bold truth-teller, told one lie after another, demonstrating a near-pathological disdain for honesty. His speech presented no substantive ideas, no policy solutions, and no bold positions on any key issue, but it included enough falsehoods to choke a fact-checker — all because he assumes you're a fool and journalists are too incompetent to separate fact from fiction.

Can he get away with it? Only if the Obama campaign doesn't respond in kind. If they don't systematically call Paul Ryan and Mitt Romney out, by name, on each and every one of their specific lies, they will be guilty of political malpractice equal to that of the opposite camp. You fight fire with fire. Are you listening, Davids Plouffe and Axelrod?

PREVIEW OF BUSH "TRIBUTE" VIDEO AT RNC TONIGHT

Quotable, Stephanie Miller: Whatever You Do, Don't Doze Off Watching The RNC ...

"I FELL ASLEEP, AND I WOKE UP WITH A BIG FAT ANGRY MAN YELLING AT ME!" ~ Stephanie Miller, America's progressive radio host sweetheart.

MINUTES :1, :2, :3, :4, :5 ... :15 (FEAR AND LOATHING), :16 MENTIONS MITT (MORE FEAR AND LOATHING).

:59 SECOND POST-SPEECH VIEW: ANN ROMNEY, CHRIS CHRISTIE

ANN ROMNEY: SHE'S A NICE LADY, WHO DELIVERED A NICE SPEECH FILLED with bromides about women's struggles that she can only imagine, including catastrophic medical issues which have bankrupted and killed women prematurely who cannot afford the best medical care (dressage horses, servants etc.) that money can buy. So much for the "storybook" reality Ann Romney was trying to sell us.

But I was neutral until the very end, when Ann said, "YOU CAN TRUST MITT." That was LITERALLY chilling. Stepford wife chilling. There was something about how she said those words, a glint in the eye, followed by an almost Biblical blind faith in her husband, with her "solemn commitment" that "this man will not fail."

This goes to the TEMPERAMENT of the president. It's not about blind trust; it's about a comfort zone, a gut feeling. And it's also about openness and full disclosure, not secrecy. Incidentally, I'm with those who believe Mitt Romney is a sociopath. No kidding. The guy looked more than wooden; he was downright creepy. Or as Chris noted: He looked like Prince Charles in New Guinea.

CHRIS CHRISTIE: Chris Matthews is ALL WET about Christie: Rachel and the Rev were right (and Howard, too) and Chris was WRONG big-time. It's one of Chris's flaws; he's predisposed to like the combative bigger-than-life Jersey politician who looks as rotund as Churchill, so he calls it a Churchillian "barnburner."

NOPE. You're wrong, Chris, and Rachel, et al are right. Chris Christie bombed big-time. Here's another thing, though. While Chris was slobbering over the overreaction of some Cuban-born Lebanese over-the-hill political hack (John Sununu), no one remarked on the reaction of Mitt's fiercest advocate — his wife, Ann. She was sitting beside her inflated Mitt Conehead doll slowly clapping her hands, in a pantomine of the BRONX CHEER!

GIVE UP, CHRIS. MOVE ON FROM YOUR ABSURD "BARNBURNER." YOU LOSE. Angry fat guy; I can buy that, instead of the Churchillian thing.

On the substance of the speech, though, Christie was much more forthright than this crowd was clearly prepared to take. Christie also delivered lines for Democratic exploitation that got tepid, uncomfortable applause, as well as meaningless right wing slogans. For example:

"We're taking our country back." And I thought: from whom?

"Respect." And I thought: for whom? How about respect for the office of the president; for not demanding to see his papers because his father was African and because of the color of his skin? And HOW ABOUT RESPECT FOR THE LEADER WHO KILLED OSAMA BIN LADEN AND DECIMATED AL QAEDA?!

And then a moment of "truthtelling." Christie growled to a restive crowd: "It doesn't matter how we got here. There's enough blame to go around. What matters is what we do now."

(A) OH YES IT DOES MATTER HOW WE GOT HERE — AND THAT'S A WINNING ARGUMENT FOR DEMOCRATS. (B) Sure, there's enough blame to go around; yes, Democrats  supported the Bush tax cuts and voted to take us to war in Iraq; but the Republicans did it in lockstep; a lot of good Democrats, like Ted Kennedy and Robert Byrd (RIP) and Dennis Kucinich voted NO.

I like our team. Finally, (C) yes, it's TRUE: What matters is what we do now. Repeating and doubling down on the Bush-Cheney policies is the very definition of INSANITY. I like our chances, even with an electorate as ignorant and stupid as the American voter, misinformed by an utterly disgraceful media elite, exemplified by Massah Marbles Mouth and David Gregory, High Priest of the Idiot Punditocracy.

PARTING SHOT: One of my favorite exercises is playing spot the African American Republican in this really REALLY WEIRD crowd. But the lazy media didn't cooperate: They gave up early panning the crowd for the elusive black face in that pit of political iniquity.

Instead, they kept showing us close-ups of Condoleeza Rice, infamous among other things (Bush hand-holding Secretary of State) for being Moammar Ghaddafi's love interest. C'mon guys; Condi Rice is a big-time Repug celeb. That don't count!

Romney's NBC Corporate Ambassador Falsely Claims No RACISM From Romney Campaign

AS I'VE BEEN SAYING FOR QUITE A WHILE NOW: MARBLES MOUTH, aka Tom Brokaw, is the ultimate NBC enterprises corporate hack and meddler extraordinaire in shaping the NBC "news product" to the liking of its corporate masters, of which he is their Number One spokesman. His primary mission is to shape and steer the political discussion away from the reality of BLATANT RACISM, that includes spreading BLATANT RACIALLY-TINGED LIES about President Obama, as a strategy driver in the Romney campaign. It's cold, calculated, vile and totally obvious.

Except to Marbles Mouth. In short, as any good advocate and defense lawyer, Brokaw's mission is to drop seeds of doubt about Romney ('well, maybe he's not so bad') in persuadable voters' minds who are rightly repulsed by the man.

Using his undeserved exalted status, the pompous ass once again pushes back against the obvious and deliberate RACIST reference by Romney (who later claimed it was "a joke") before a star-crossed Larry-O: Please follow the Romney-Brokaw corporate narrative; it's more sophisticated than most. (In fact, it wouldn't surprise me if Marbles Mouth had passed on friendly "advice" to Mitt on the Popeye thing, to smooth down his authentic obnoxious public persona: "I am what I am, and that's all I am." Recall that when Marbles Mouth meddled in resolving, at the highest NBC-FOX corporate levels, the simmering feud between Keith Olbermann and Bill O'Reilly — which we, the viewers, LOVED, because O'Reilly was being exposed nightly for the lying clown and sophist he is — Marbles Mouth said of Keith: "He is what he is.")

Acting essentially as a corporate Romney agent, Brokaw homogenizes/whitewashes and tries to debunk the OBVIOUS RACISM, as a deliberate strategy of the Romney camp: "He had to become something that he wasn't naturally, as a political candidate, during the primaries, and people emerged from that process uncertain about just who Mitt Romney is." (How so disingenuous. One would think Brokaw is a gullible rookie who hasn't been around the block at all ... but his rhetoric really appeals to swaying so-called "swing" or "independent" voters toward Romney. And how convenient is Marbles Mouth's selective memory regarding Mr. Etch-A-Sketch who has literally taken every position under the sun on virtually every issue dating back to his initial foray into politics. How do you explain your short-term memory loss, eh, Tommy-boy?!)

When Lawrence correctly characterizes the Romney birther "joke" as one of the "most extreme messages we've heard this year," Brokaw quickly slaps him down, something he could not do to Chris, because Chris said "I'm not done yet" and kept on talking. Here's Marbles Mouth pulling the wool over Lawrence's head, but not Jonathan Capehart's who, as a gay black man, is not one to be pushed around:

"I have a contrary point of view about what he said, and nobody knows what's on his mind" (but we know what the campaign's stated strategy is) ... he's "awkward," he was "riffing" (BULLSHIT; that was a "test drive" line, as the Pigman correctly, for once, noted), "if that were part of a longer narrative from him, I would take it much more seriously" ... (C'mon Marbles Mouth, stop bullshitting us already with the selective memory thing; may I point out the KKK language used in a state among the top in number of Klan chapters; you [Steve Capus] forced Chris to read a bogus on-air apology, discrediting a "blog" which as this blog researched and documented it, was utterly factual; the despicable four-pinnochios ad stirring up the welfare "dog whistles" — can y'all say RACIST — followed by Romney saying the welfare-workfare flexibility exemption at the request of GOP governors was somehow Obama appealing to his "base;" finally, Touré SPEAKING THE TRUTH, then forced to genuflect and apologize to Marbles Mouth's corporate partners.) Watch Marbles Mouth trying to minimize the whole thing, saying "I honestly don't know whether we can pin this on Gov. Romney to exacerbate again the birthing question" ... predicting it will have the "half-life of an amoeba." 

RIGHT. Jonathan pushed back right away, although, strangely, the usually trenchant commentator Joy-Ann Reid, like the ass-kissing Larry-O, seemed to be in Brokaw's thrall. I hope she's not the next to sell out, aka become a "team player." Here's Jonathan: "The day after that 'joke' was aired the New York Times ran a front-page story talking about how the Romney campaign has made its decision: They're going for working class white voters and doing all sorts of things to appeal to them. So whether it's the welfare ad, intentional or not, it plays into that narrative." Jonathan, you should be more like Touré on Romney's new attack line (are you listening, Tommy-boy?) insinuating Barack Obama is an "angry black man" (a classic RACIST appeal to the white man's deepest ethnic fears): “This is what an angry and desperate presidency looks like.” And: “Mr. President, take your campaign of division and anger and hate back to Chicago.” Here's Touré's reply:

"I mean, that really bothered me. You notice he says anger twice. He’s really trying to use racial coding and access some really deep stereotypes about the angry black man. This is part of the playbook against Obama, the “otherization”; he’s not like us. I know it’s a heavy thing to say, I don’t say it lightly, but this is Niggerization. You are not one of use. You are like the scary black man we’ve been trained to fear."

So along comes Marbles Mouth to the rescue, fresh from a working round of golf, after the Romney campaign complained to NBC corporate executives. For the second time that we know of; and each time with the same result: NBC bows and genuflects rather than standing by their people and their reporting, as was customary for the press in days gone by, when it was truly independent and not corporate-owned. WaPo's Erik Wemple's white man sensibilities echoed the whitewash narrative. Touré and Jonathan Capehart know exactly what the Romney camp is up to. Still, Massah Marbles Mouth rules the roost. So much for the corporate media and the high art of propaganda.

In Memoriam: Neil Armstrong

REMEMBERING NEIL ARMSTRONG, FIRST MAN TO WALK ON THE MOON, AND AMERICA before the anti-science, anti-government Republican luddites hijacked our government to the detriment of all but 400 billionaires and plunged us into a modern Dark Ages. This is what your taxpayer dollars and your government at work looked like under two successive Democratic administrations. The fact that NASA is on Mars today with Curiosity is nothing short of pro-science, anti-luddite, anti-Republican tenacity bordering on the miraculous. Next up: A space race with the Chinese, which we'll win, hands down, if the Democrats are in power.

Thanks to Bina for posting this. I had to shamelessly use it.

CHRIS GOES ON EPIC RANT AGAINST RNC CHAIRMAN

CHRIS MATTHEWS IS ONE OF THE GOOD GUYS. THAT'S WHY WE PUT UP WITH HIM. For an idea of what he's up against in the Beltway narrative of conformity, just look at the elitist crapagandists with whom he was sharing a panel: From Marbles Mouth sporting a golf course tan — "I disagree with Chris" ... "to be fair" (oh SHUT UP, you fucking dinosaur) — to Mika the phony liberal backstabber (I'll bet your Katrina dog is eating gourmet dog food, Mika), to Moron Joe ... it's a collection of typical Beltway asswipes responsible for fomenting the Republican LIES Big Eddie is flummoxed about because "they're working." Hey Eddie, here's a newsflash; if you're wondering why the Republican message of LIES and RACISM is getting through, look to your own backyard. Chris cut through the bullshit, so he's not invited back often, and we love him for it. Watch:

Duchess St. Rollins' Daily Affirmation: WHAT SHE SAID ...

WINGNUTS ARE BASICALLY BULLIES. THEIR LOW SELF-ESTEEM requires that they trample on the weakest members of society. Women scare them, so they must keep women subservient and brutalized, one-on-one and through the repressive power of the state. They cling to their guns to compensate (putting it kindly) for their socialization limitations. They're cowards.

Yet they cling to the misguided notion that liberals are wimpy eggheads, never realizing that liberals defended the colors with honor in every war, that progressivism's guiding light led the charge up San Juan Hill, that liberals were the first to sign up and be counted to fight fascism and nazism in the Spanish Civil War, integrating the storied and valorous Lincoln Brigade, that liberals never shied from a fair fight, emphasis on fair, but liberals won't give up when the race is fixed, that we can take every last one of you and beat you down, that we know who we are, history's intellectual and progressive vanguard shouting ever "forward!" to Buckley's "stop!" toward a brighter future — that we are comfortable in our skin, with the truth on our side. Quite simply, we're the good guys and gals. Period. And we know that caring for the least among us with love and compassion isn't a sign of weakness. It's what Jesus Christ did.

HERE'S THE DUCHESS ("OH REALLY?"):

"Oh, is that so? Well, let me tell you something, teabilly jacknuts, there’s a new brand of liberal in town and we don’t take kindly to being pushed around. We also aren’t going to just lay down while you bullying bastards trample upon the weakest members of our society anymore. Did you hear what the president of Ireland had to say to you dimwitted twatrockets? Yeah, that’s pretty much how we all feel and we’re going to make sure you loud-mouthed asswipes hear every last fucking word we have to say.

We are the progressive future and you are the regressive past. Making sure that every single citizen of this great country has the basic necessities to lead a happy, healthy and productive life is the way forward and we’re not going to let you Koch-sucking fools control the narrative with your “welfare queen” lying bullshit anymore. Fuck Ayn Rand’s shallow “philosophy” which ridiculously asserts that selfishness is a virtue and altruism towards anyone who doesn’t “deserve” it is immoral. EVERYONE fucking deserves to be fed, housed, clothed, valued and loved.  EVERY child is inherently filled with potential and worth.

It’s pretty fucking evident to me and my fellow liberals that we’re not here on Earth to tear each other to pieces and hoard resources in some dog-eat-dog horror show. We’re here to learn how to be compassionate and cooperative.  Didn’t you daft fuckers learn anything in Sunday school?"

MUSICAL BREAK: Soundtrack of The GOP HORROR SHOW In Tampa

HERE'S THE INCOMPARABLE BOB DYLAN with one of the freakiest renditions of his apocalyptic A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall. A perfect soundtrack for those evil Republicans down in Hurricane Alley, aka Tampa, HELL-BENT on the TOTAL DESTRUCTION OF AMERICA inside of four years. When this many Republicans gather in one spot, trailing their evil, BLACK KARMA, bad destructive weather's bound to follow. (On the bright side, pole dancers and hookers should do brisk business.)

Duchess St. Rollins' Daily Affirmation: JUST IN TIME FOR THE REPUG CONVENTION!

SHE'S BAAAACK BY POPULAR DEMAND (HITS) ... MORE WORDS OF WISDOM SLEDGE-HAMMERIN' THE TEABILLIES from the Duchess, in her INIMITABLE style! Here the Duchess schools Repugnants and Teabillies with a sharp-edged ruler and a Tea-whackin' whip. (Come to think of it, she ought to turn some of her well-reasoned wrath on that nauseating cretin David Gregory, High Priest of the Beltway Media/Idiot Punditocracy.)

"I just found out a couple of days ago that the Republican National Convention’s theme this year is “We Built It” (I know, I’m shocked as shit too that it’s not “Old, Rich White Dudes Fucking America in the Ass by Convincing Ignorant Rednecks to Vote for Them, Even Though it’s Epically Stupid”), which they chose, no doubt, to fully take advantage of the unwarranted hoopla surrounding President Obama’s unfortunate choice of vocabulary while describing the fairly obvious and unexciting notion that we are supported by a strong public infrastructure. What’s super hilarious about all of this is that they are holding it in a Tampa stadium that’s construction was PUBLICLY funded to the tune of $86 million. Basically, they’re just proving what we already know; a strong public foundation makes successful private endeavors possible.

Without public schools, libraries, parks, roads, bridges, police, firefighters et al, a brilliant business idea would amount to fuck on a bun. Why is that so hard to understand for these Objectivist Wing Nuts? What makes this simple idea so seemingly toxic to them? I’ll tell you what. Pure, unadulterated selfishness, hauteur, and a ridiculously inflated sense of importance. Their fragile little egos can’t take the suggestion that it’s not just their devastating brilliance or unyielding work ethic that made them successful.

Mittens Romney is now gallivanting all over the country saying that, “when a child makes the honor roll, I don’t credit the bus driver for that accomplishment.” That’s a thinly veiled way of saying, “fuck all the little people because they really don’t matter. They’re just stepping stones for us ‘movers and shakers.’” I bet if said bus driver pounded a fifth of Old Crow and drove the bus off of one of those publicly-funded bridges he’d start to think they mattered.

As if Mitt’s kids ever had to take the public fucking school bus, anyway. Pfft."

TEA PARTY REMEDIAL ED: IS HURRICANE ISAAC DIVINE RETRIBUTION? America Wants To Know ...

HEY TEABAGGERS, ESPECIALLY YOU FUNDAMENTALIST RELIGIOUS FREAKS, MALES MOSTLY, fascinated with getting the government's hands on women's private parts: Remember when Pat Robertson said then-Supreme Court nominee John Roberts "can be thankful" that the Hurricane Katrina tragedy "has brought him some good" by intimidating Democratic senators who might otherwise question Justice Roberts' views on abortion? Well then, it follows logically that the wrath and judgment of God as Robertson claims is manifested in natural disasters, must be Divine Retribution against Republicans for their mysoginistic, mean-spirited, anti-poor, anti-middle class policies ... given the timing of Hurricane Isaac with the Republican National Convention in its path; poor Tampa just happens to be the unlucky host. I'm just sayin'.

TEAM OBAMA TROTS OUT THE BIG DOG!

WATCH HIM TAKE A BITE OUT OF MITT'S MAGIC TIGHTASS. WATCH MITT GO skitter, pitter-patter
runnin' th'other way, yelping "YIP-YIP-YIP-YIP-YIP!!!"

 

NEW YORK TIMES EDITORIAL: TRUTH AND LIES ABOUT MEDICARE

THE STUNNING DISHONESTY OF THE REPUBLICANS, FROM RYAN-ROMNEY DOWN THE LINE, demagoguing the Medicare debate and lying repeatedly about the Affordable Care Act's savings aimed at preserving the program for future generations, is matched only by the IGNORANCE and STUPIDITY of sectors of the electorate, principally seniors, who, inexplicably identify with TEH STOOPID PARTY, which did not create Medicare and has historically done everything in its power to eviscerate and finally kill it. But the GOP LIARS and CRIMINALS and TRAITORS are counting on the fact that these are complicated issues that require thought and a higher than a 5th grade understanding — which is perfect for the sound bite LIES in Karl Rove's bag of dirty tricks.

The Republican Party is an anti-American, treasonous CRIME FAMILY whose sole, overriding motivation is the MASSIVE TRANSFER OF WEALTH from WE, THE PEOPLE to Wall Street criminals, corporate oligarchs running the insurance companies, and international investment bankers who are salivating to get their grubby little fingers on the LAST, GREAT CHUNK OF THE PEOPLE'S MONEY that has eluded their control — PRIVATIZATION is their ultimate goal: (1) Privatizing Medicare, vastly raising premiums on current and future retirees (see below, and links) ensures a BONANZA of seniors' income into the pockets of the private insurance corporations. It's the ULTIMATE senior citizens scam to drain them of their life-savings with ever increasing medical costs, and make them (not falsely dependent on the government, but) actually dependent on the soaring private cost of healthcare for survival. (2) Privatizing Social Security is the NEXT STEP in their craven plan (failed when GWB tried it in 2005). Assaulting the Social Security trust fund, solvent for the next 75 years, quite simply because it's the LAST, HUGE CHUNK of our wealth Wall Street hasn't yet stolen to gamble with and make their fortunes from more ill-gotten gains, thanks to the GOP, a la Romney, with overseas shelters and investments, further draining our treasury, as we become a warfaring, feed-the-Pentagon-beast oligarchy with a FEUDAL social structure: THE HAVES (1%) AND THE HAVE-NOTS (99%).

These are the stakes. The very SURVIVAL of the Middle Class, as the President correctly stated. And so, defeating greedy, treasonous oligarchs riding Citizens United toward the hijacking of our democracy, and stopping "Robin Hood in reverse" in its tracks, becomes our critical task in this election. Here is the Times' editorial of 8/18 with just the facts, ma'am. (Emphasis mine.)

THE ALLEGED “RAID ON MEDICARE” A Republican attack ad says that the reform law has “cut” $716 billion from Medicare, with the money used to expand coverage to low-income people who are currently uninsured. “So now the money you paid for your guaranteed health care is going to a massive new government program that’s not for you,” the ad warns.

What the Republicans fail to say is that the budget resolutions crafted by Paul Ryan and approved by the Republican-controlled House retained virtually the same cut in Medicare.

In reality, the $716 billion is not a “cut” in benefits but rather the savings in costs that the Congressional Budget Office projects over the next decade from wholly reasonable provisions in the reform law.

One big chunk of money will be saved by reducing unjustifiably high subsidies to private Medicare Advantage plans that enroll many beneficiaries at a higher average cost than traditional Medicare. Another will come from reducing the annual increases in federal reimbursements to health care providers — like hospitals, nursing homes and home health agencies — to force the notoriously inefficient system to find ways to improve productivity.

And a further chunk will come from fees or taxes imposed on drug makers, device makers and insurers — fees that they can surely afford since expanded coverage for the uninsured will increase their markets and their revenues.

NO HARM TO SENIORS The Republicans imply that the $716 billion in cuts will harm older Americans, but almost none of the savings come from reducing the benefits available for people already on Medicare. But if Mr. Romney and Mr. Ryan were able to repeal the reform law, as they have pledged to do, that would drive up costs for many seniors — namely those with high prescription drug costs, who are already receiving subsidies under the reform law, and those who are receiving preventive services, like colonoscopies, mammograms and immunizations, with no cost sharing.

Mr. Romney argued on Friday that the $716 billion in cuts will harm beneficiaries because those who get discounts or extra benefits in the heavily subsidized Medicare Advantage plans will lose them and because reduced payments to hospitals and other providers could cause some providers to stop accepting Medicare patients.

If he thinks that will be a major problem, Mr. Romney should leave the reform law in place: it has many provisions designed to make the delivery of health care more efficient and cheaper, so that hospitals and others will be better able to survive on smaller payments.

NO BANKRUPTCY LOOMING The Republicans also argue that the reform law will weaken Medicare and that by preventing the cuts and ultimately turning to vouchers they will enhance the program’s solvency. But Medicare is not in danger of going “bankrupt”; the issue is whether the trust fund that pays hospital bills will run out of money in 2024, as now projected, and require the program to live on the annual payroll tax revenues it receives.

The Affordable Care Act helped push back the insolvency date by eight years, so repealing the act would actually bring the trust fund closer to insolvency, perhaps in 2016.

DEFICIT REDUCTION Mr. Romney and Mr. Ryan said last week that they would restore the entire $716 billion in cuts by repealing the law. The Congressional Budget Office concluded that repealing the law would raise the deficit by $109 billion over 10 years.

The Republicans gave no clue about how they would pay for restoring the Medicare cuts without increasing the deficit. It is hard to believe that, if faced with the necessity of fashioning a realistic budget, keeping Medicare spending high would be a top priority with a Romney-Ryan administration that also wants to spend very large sums on the military and on tax cuts for wealthy Americans.

Regardless of who wins the election, Medicare spending has to be reined in lest it squeeze out other priorities, like education. It is utterly irresponsible for the Republicans to promise not to trim Medicare spending in their desperate bid for votes.

THE DANGER IN MEDICARE VOUCHERS The reform law would help working-age people on modest incomes buy private policies with government subsidies on new insurance exchanges, starting in 2014. Federal oversight will ensure a reasonably comprehensive benefit package, and competition among the insurers could help keep costs down.

But it is one thing to provide these “premium support” subsidies for uninsured people who cannot get affordable coverage in the costly, dysfunctional markets that serve individuals and their families. It is quite another thing to use a similar strategy for older Americans who have generous coverage through Medicare and who might well end up worse off if their vouchers failed to keep pace with the cost of decent coverage.

Mr. Romney and Mr. Ryan would allow beneficiaries to use vouchers to buy a version of traditional Medicare instead of a private plan, but it seems likely that the Medicare plan would attract the sickest patients, driving up Medicare premiums so that they would be unaffordable for many who wanted traditional coverage. Before disrupting the current Medicare program, it would be wise to see how well premium support worked in the new exchanges.

THE CHOICE This will be an election about big problems, and it will provide a clear choice between contrasting approaches to solve them. In the Medicare arena, the choice is between a Democratic approach that wants to retain Medicare as a guaranteed set of benefits with the government paying its share of the costs even if costs rise, and a Republican approach that wants to limit the government’s spending to a defined level, relying on untested market forces to drive down insurance costs.

The reform law is starting pilot programs to test ways to reduce Medicare costs without cutting benefits. Many health care experts have identified additional ways to shave hundreds of billions of dollars from projected spending over the next decade without harming beneficiaries.

It is much less likely that the Republicans, who have long wanted to privatize Medicare, can achieve these goals.

TEH STOOPID: As I Was Saying ...

EVEN MORON JOE IS EMBARRASSED TO BE ASSOCIATED WITH "THE STUPID PARTY." Some right wing idiot sitting in a Rock Center, NYC, studio with his elitist "liberal" hostess and her rabbit food, country cottage outside NYC, Katrina "rescue" dog (more important than those dark people), expressing the flyover embarrassment of the GOP corporate elites. So fucking what?

The fact remains that out in the real world, getting rid of the Moron Joes and Bill Kristols and those of their ilk, up- and down-ballot, is an existential imperative for millions of Americans. TEH STOOPID Party has done untold damage and violence to this country over the course of 30 years. If the oligarchs, including the media elites of Moron Joe and Mika and Kristol win, history informs us there will be revolution. But Lawrence does a good job of finding humor in what his humorless buddy Joe says: