Cheney: I don’t think Iraq war hurt U.S. reputation – People http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/44325145/ns/today-today_people/t/cheney-i-dont-think-iraq-war-hurt-us-reputation/
The guy should be in jail. Obama’s (and Pelosi’s) biggest mistake after 2008 was not prosecuting these people for war crimes. Contrary to what this heartless asshole believes, the world would have cheered had we done so (as they did when we elected the guy that was actually competent enough to hunt down Bin Laden).
Freeman to POTUS: ‘Get pissed off’ | POLITICO 44 http://www.politico.com/politico44/perm/0811/sermon_on_the_green_17a363d0-4817-479e-8b75-d72de47387f8.html
“What I wanted to tell him is to get pissed off, get fighting mad,” the actor told the paper. “But I know he won’t because he doesn’t think it’s politically smart.
” On Obama’s chances for reelection, Freeman added, “If I could vote for him 1,000 times, I would.” “I think he’s been horribly sandbagged, and it makes me so angry,” he said.
I don’t know if theres a greater example of this than in Libya. Basically, amid all the other turmoil in the world, our President did pretty much exactly the right thing, from almost any angle.
The reason he can’t show any anger, is that if he does any, he’s going to show *a lot*. He’s done a pretty much amazing job, given the circumstances and knee-jerk, idiotic opposition, and gets crap for it every step of the way. The dude is pissed, rightly so, on some level.
The question is whether or not he can communicate that on a manner that can’t be sliced up and replayed endlessly in loops on certain news stations that like short, inflammatory, sound bites…you know….ALL OF THEM.
We’ll see how it plays out in the long term (and in Syria as well), but right now it look like we’re on to something with the whole ‘let people fight their own revolutions’ thing.
However, to be sure and honest, it’s not clear, nor will it ever be, on whether or not this could have happened in Iraq with an unmolested Saddam (as it is to Kwaddafi (sp), or if it was Saddam’s ouster that allowed for an environment to exist where the Arab Spring could take hold.
UPDATE:
Dr. Whoof:After this conversation on the golf course, the President and Mr. Freeman stopped by the garage, where the President asked about a large, hulking shape. “Oh, that? That’s the Tumbler. You wouldn’t be interested in THAT.”
Twenty minutes and a harrowing test drive around a well lit warehouse later, Obama leaned over to Mr. Freeman and asked, “Does it come in black?”
Libya Live Blog | Al Jazeera Blogs http://blogs.aljazeera.net/liveblog/Libya
Going down live.
CNN Political Ticker http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2011/08/19/huntsman-decries-debt-debate-lunacy/?hpt=hp_bn4
Considering the impact of the nation’s economy on world markets, the 2012 GOP presidential candidate said he couldn’t fathom how Republican colleagues discussed the possibility of defaulting on the country’s debt during the heated debate surrounding whether the borrowing limit should be increased.
“I thought it was the height of irresponsibility,” he said. “We’re 25 percent of the world’s GDP. The United States of America that has never defaulted before—just let it go over a cliff—you can imagine what the marketplace would have done in response,” Huntsman continued.
“The marketplace is trashing everybody right now, assets are underwater…you can only imagine what this country would look like today if we had defaulted. It was complete lunacy for people to even talk about that.”
Pretty soon he’s going to start doing math and showing people how political consensus can result is tangible results (hint: CHINA).
Then he’ll drop out and support his cousin and take his place in line.
So, Perry says Texas schools teach religion as scientific fact – Houston Chronicle http://www.chron.com/news/falkenberg/article/So-Perry-says-Texas-schools-teach-religion-as-2118933.php
I didn’t know what to make of them at first. I’m one of those who still overestimates Perry, still thinks he wouldn’t have gotten this far if he didn’t know more than he lets on.
But does he really believe that Texas science teachers instruct kids on creationism, a Christian-based belief that a divine being created the Earth? Does he know that teaching creationism was deemed unconstitutional decades ago by the U.S. Supreme Court?
And that that’s why the creationists came up with something called “Intelligent Design” -to get around the whole constitutional thing by passing their belief off as a “scientific theory”?
There’s just a consistent pattern of flat out rejecting reality and inserting a more palatable version that appeals to these folks. This is because reality has a liberal bias and some people hate that.
Our governor lied BTW, we don’t teach both things here, only science*. I wonder if the lame media at Fox is going to call him out on this.
*this might change if we continue to reward liars.
“I do believe that the issue of global warming has been politicized,” Perry answered. [It has to be, scientists don’t write policy] “I think there are a substantial number of scientists who have manipulated data so that they will have dollars rolling into their projects. [What are their names?] I think we’re seeing it almost weekly or even daily, scientists who are coming forward and questioning the original idea that man-made global warming is what is causing the climate to change. [Appeal to ignorance of what is actually happening.] Yes, our climates change. They’ve been changing ever since the earth was formed.” [Idiotic patronizing build on hyuck, hyuch, common wisdom.]
I already mentioned how embarrassing it is to have this guy running around saying idiotic things to appeal to the Idiocrats, sorry the Tea Party.
It looks now, seriously that you have to be flat out against any kind of science to appeal to the nutjob right. Things really have metasticized now. Just for reference, here’s GWB back in 2002…
I also want to tell you one of my favourite moments was to go down to Crawford and turn on my NOAA radio to get the weather. I don’t know whether my guy is a computer or a person. But the forecast is always accurate, and I appreciate that. I also want to thank you for your hard work, on behalf of the American people.
Quick note: The Republicans have gone so far right, the service the NOAA provides that Bush praised is now part of that “wasteful government spending.”
America and the world share this common goal: we must foster economic growth in ways that protect our environment. We must encourage growth that will provide a better life for citizens, while protecting the land, the water, and the air that sustain life.
In pursuit of this goal, my government has set two priorities: we must clean our air, and we must address the issue of global climate change. We must also act in a serious and responsible way, given the scientific uncertainties. While these uncertainties remain, we can begin now to address the human factors that contribute to climate change. Wise action now is an insurance policy against future risks.
The sick thing about this….in the intervening 10 years since this speech, the scientific evidence for climate change just keeps getting stronger.
However, the conservative mindsets ability to deal with reality has continued to erode. Hence, even as the evidence gets stronger, the conservative mindset then much work that much harder to dismiss all the new information. Instead of having to dismiss each and every new piece that backs up the original, certain segments of conservatism (the Tea Party) have now just dismissed the dataset wholesale.
It’s sad, too, because when you track down all these “scientists who are coming forward and questioning the original idea”, it turns out it’s the same folks, saying the same debunked things. They’ve just now filtered out any real science, it’s all nutjobs now agreeing it’s all a conspiracy *even as more data piles up*. They just simply dismiss the new data as part of the conspiracy. Voila, anti-intellectualism in a nutshell.
Global Warming Causing Plants, Animals to Flee Upwards and Reshuffle – International Business Times http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/200556/20110819/global-warming-causing-plants-animals-to-flee-upwards-and-reshuffle-ecosystems-university-of-york-co.htm?cid=2
The study reveals that species have moved toward the poles where the conditions are cooler at almost three times the normal rate and also toward higher altitudes at twice the previous known rate.
A study of more than 1,300 different species of animals and plants by the research team has shown a specific trend of movement. On average, species have shifted to higher elevations at 12.2 meters per decade and, more dramatically, to higher latitudes at 17.6 kilometers per decade.
To Save The Economy, You Sometimes Need To Ignore Business | ThinkProgress http://thinkprogress.org/yglesias/2011/08/18/299356/to-save-the-economy-you-sometimes-need-to-ignore-business/
The fact of the matter is just that running an economy is not the same as running a nationwide network of big box retailers, or a diversified conglomerate, or a large bank, or an innovative electronics company, or any other successful business. People generally understand this in reverse. Nobody ever said “Bill Clinton was a good president, so he’d be a great replacement for Bill Gates when he steps down at Microsoft.” But it’s true the other way ’round as well. Businessmen have certain kinds of prejudices about economic management that neither reflect reality nor their own self-interest.
The way I tend to explain this is the two different systems have different operating paradigms. Businesses want to externalize risk and internalize profit. Government, to the contrary, works to *internalize* risk and *externalize* profit.
Running a business like a government is as much a recipe for disaster as the opposite.
CNN Political Ticker http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2011/08/18/perry-heckled-as-campaign-shifts-into-new-phase/
One woman who did not appear to be affiliated with the protesters ushered her son up to the governor and prompted him with questions for Perry like “do you believe in evolution?”
“It’s a theory that’s out there,” Perry told the child. “It’s got some gaps in it. In Texas we teach both Creationism and evolution.”
The mother then told her young son:
“Ask him why he doesn’t believe in science,” as Perry continued into the cafe.
Can someone *please do that*?
….this is going to be a long series, I would guess. Once you put yourself on an unsustainable path (and without new revenue, we’re on one), it’s just a matter of time until everything gets the ax.
First up…those guys that fought in that war we cut taxes on the wealthy to pay for (and then just borrowed a bunch of money from them to pay for it…at interest….Genius W. Bush…I’ll tell ya what…anyway…).
WASHINGTON – The military retirement system has long been considered untouchable – along with Social Security and Medicare. But in these days of soaring deficits, it seems everything is a potential target for budget cutters. A Pentagon-sponsored study says military pensions are no longer untouchable – they’re unaffordable.
CBS News investigative correspondent Sharyl Attkisson reports high-level, closely-held meetings are taking place at the Pentagon regarding a radical proposal to overhaul retirement for the nation’s 1.4 million service members – a bedrock guarantee of military service.
The proposal comes from an influential panel of military advisors called the Defense Business Board. Their plan, laid out in a 24-page presentation “Modernizing the Military Retirement System,” would eliminate the familiar system under which anyone who serves 20 years is eligible for retirement at half their salary. Instead, they’d get a 401k-style plan with government contributions.
They’d have to wait until normal retirement age. It would save $250 billion dollars over 20 years.
Douglas Holtz-Eakin,
I’m going to stop right there. Douglas Holtz-Eakin is a douchebag, so if you want to read what douchey things he said, click on the link. Note how he said this is more important than *ever* looking at a single cent in tax increases, because those are simply Un-American!! However, screwing over our military is “very important” to look at.
The proposal leaves a lot of blanks to be filled in, including whether to exempt current service members so their plans won’t change.
CBS News spoke to some active duty troops who agreed costs must be cut – but worry the number of experienced soldiers will dwindle with no incentive to stay enlisted for 20 years.
RobotPirateNinja has also spoken to an active duty troop near retirement who this directly affects. They agree that costs must be cut, but worry about the effects such action might have and to what degree contracts will be re-written.
RPN also has a number of friends who this will directly affect, but hasn’t pestered them yet with questions. While RPN does feel military spending is something that needs to be reduced as we go forward (AHEM!!!) , this talk of screwing over my friends makes me rather unobjective on this issue. This is bullshit, and is the first in a looong line of bullshit to come.
This is one of many ideas that will be “floated” in the media to see how strongly the public reacts. Let’s see what our readers think…
Ed note: As I too, gear up for the 2012 election (if you haven’t guessed yet, I do a lot of Presidential politics…I’ll be doing a LOT more…trust me), I’ve decided to cut off the talking points that the MSM puts out unless I’m planning on debunking them.
What I Learned in Two Years at the Tea Party | The Awl http://www.theawl.com/2011/08/what-i-learned-in-two-years-at-the-tea-party
Looks like we now know what this ‘movement’ has metastacized into. I’ve seen very little that contradicts this assessment, and one crazy-eyed lady that stands as strong evidence.
News from The Associated Press http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_TRUMP_2012?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2011-08-16-15-50-08
Trump also defended Perry’s suggestion Monday that Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke would be committing a “treasonous” act if he pumped more money into the economy. “It was a meaningless phrase, it was just rhetorical. He’s very emotional about how the country is doing,”
Trump said of Perry, pushing back on President George W. Bush’s former political director Karl Rove and other Republicans who have criticized Perry’s comment. “Karl Rove is an empty hat,” Trump said. “We ended up with Obama because of Karl Rove and George W. Bush.”
My apologies for even mentioning this asshat, but the whole “treasonous” thing is not meaningless*.
Calling the Fed Chairman a traitor for “printing money” is dumb on so many levels I can’t evem….words fail….I’m going to have to find a PhotoShop.
Regardless, what Perry is doing is VERY SMART politics. That stock market rally/dump last week? The main reason is wasn’t completely one-sided was that Bernanke left the door open to QE3. It probably won’t happen, but it brought some calm to some very dangerous waters.
What Perry is doing is pre-emptively attacking any move by *anyone* that may do *anything* to improve our economy before 2012 as a partisan political move. “He’s only helping you find work so it’ll help Obama, that bastard!”
The Republicans are playing a dangerous game here. Running on a “failed recovery” for 14 months can get tiresome, especially when there is some improvement. Constantly saying “it’s been raining all summer” when it’s been over 100 degrees for 48 of the last 50 days eventually wear’s thin, one would think.
But as the Idiot Billionaire notes, by that time everyone will have forgotten that it was Bush’s policies, not his personality, that led to financial collapse. And if they sell it hard enough, Republicans might even convince enough folks that TARP, and the Stimulus, and the bailouts actually *caused* the worst financial crisis in living memory.
You’d be surprised what a catchy slogan and a billion dollars can do to shape a culture’s perception. Heck, it can even re-write history.
* check that Constitution you love so much, Rick, for that thing you like to do to people so much you don’t really care if they turn out to be innocent after all. There’s a specific penalty mentioned for that thing you just accused the Fed Chairman of. You hoping to pull the switch yourself? Or just hire a buddy to do it on taxpayer dime?
Funny note: From the linked article…
Dozens of studies have shown that witnesses’ memories of events often change when they are supplied with new contextual information. Itiel Dror, a cognitive psychologist who has done extensive research on eyewitness and expert testimony in criminal investigations, told me, “The mind is not a passive machine. Once you believe in something—once you expect something—it changes the way you perceive information and the way your memory recalls it.”
Read more http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2009/09/07/090907fa_fact_grann#ixzz1VFBGPmVy
[ahem..although what one mind finds logical often has more to do with emotion, curiously enough]
Robot Pirate Ninja 