Well, two out of three isn’t bad. Obama got what he wanted – a phony dog and pony show displaying fake bi-partisanship. The GOP got what they needed – air time to articulate their positions to the American people. Unfortunately, it did not quite degenerate into the full on food fight I was hoping for – slightly diminishing the entertainment value for me.
The GOP was the winner of the debate by any measure.
First, the GOP side was infinitely more photogenic. I mean, you put Henry Waxman and John Dingell in the same room, and my mind instantly jumps to the Lord of the Rings cave scene – you know, the one where the good guys are desperately fighting the goblins and the giant troll. All together, the Democrat side looked every bit the decadent politburo of progressive elites they in fact are. The proof of this observation is their willingness to let an obvious tax cheat – Charlie Rangel – speak in favor of spending another trillion bucks of your money.
Second, Mitch McConnell and John Boehner completely out-classed Obama in the executive leadership department. Obama grandstanded and looked like he was making the process up on the fly. McConnell and Boehner were both efficient delegators calling on their designated experts at each turn. The measured speaking times are the proof of Obama’s grandstanding – the so-called moderator spoke for more minutes than either side in the alleged debate. (Obama 119 minutes, Democrats 114 minutes, GOP 110 minutes.) Obama also did himself a disfavor by putting himself in the chair of the impartial moderator, and acting every bit the arrogant partisan hack for the Democrat side.
Third, the GOP skewered the Democrats and Obama on the substance. The Democrats – as Lefties often do – told heart rending anecdotal stories that actually have no bearing on the macro-economic debate on the table. The GOP came armed with facts and printed legislative language. Each Democrat seemed to be speaking individually for his or her own electoral life. The GOP came to the table as a team with an effective game plan: old bulls take on Obama directly rhetorically, young Turks assigned to specific areas of detailed expertise. An added boon for the GOP: Obama was the only Democrat willing to debate details, often pitting him against the GOP’s much better prepared young Turks. It was like watching a modern multi-processor computer play chess against an old vacuum-tube uni-processor mainframe. No contest.
Fourth, all the laughable gaffes came from the Democrat side. Harry Reid stated as a “fact” that no one on the Democrat side was discussing the reconciliation procedure for passage – laughable on its face. Plus, he himself is on tape talking reconciliation on the Sunday talk shows. When it was time to wrap up with a phony show of bi-partisanship, Nanny Pelosi stated the bill being debated does not allow federal funding for abortions – a partisan hack thing to say. The only version of the bill that specifically denies federal funding for abortion is the one that has no chance of moving forward – H.R. 3962 with the Stupak Amendment. On the less substantial side, Joe Biden was overheard on an open mike saying he doesn’t do anything as VP. The blogosphere is having a lot of fun with this one right now. I’m also pretty sure I caught him taking a nap during the discussion (or maybe he was checking his watch for way too long). Last but not least, an elected donkey from Los Angeles gave us an awesome show of true stupidity - by going on for several minutes not getting Paul Ryan’s simple point that unrealistic assumptions yield bad estimates.
Legislatively - we now appear to be exactly where we were when I inaugurated this blog on December 30, 2009. The Democrats are pushing a completely partisan monstrosity the American people do not want. The Democrats seem willing to jam the monstrosity down the American peoples' throats. The smart money is on the monstrosity failing to gain the votes it needs for passage in the House – quite probably due to the defection of Blue Dogs in general, and the Stupak anti-abortion faction in particular. If Nanny Pelosi pulls a rabbit out of her hat and gets the monstrosity to the Senate, the Democrats will probably have the 51 votes they need to pass a fundamental change to 1/6 of our economy under the reconciliation procedure – which will be remembered as a monumental abuse of power. If it gets that far, Obama will undoubtedly sign it into law. Two things are then certain to occur. (1) The unconstitutional elements of the monstrosity, including the individual mandates, will be immediately challenged, tying the monstrosity up in court until November for sure. (2) The GOP is now an odds-on favorite to gain a majority in both the House and Senate in November – allowing them to withhold funding for the monstrosity until 2012.
The prospects for repeal before 2012 are unlikely – as that would require veto proof super-majorities in both houses of congress. Depending on the election results of 2012, the repeal process can then begin.
Welcome to the predictable outcome when Community Agitators (Organizers) are voted into the Oval Office.
Update
It has come to my attention the amazingly stupid elected donkey from Los Angeles is now on YouTube laughing off the Pledge of Allegiance. You can view it here.
Friday, February 26, 2010
Monday, February 22, 2010
Ron Paul a Conservative? (Part 1)
An unexpected thing happened at the annual Conservative Political Action Committee (CPAC) conference. Ron Paul won the CPAC straw poll for President. I can tell you for sure I didn’t expect it. My February 19 posting contained these words – “On February 18, the established Conservative Political Action Committee began its annual 3-day conference which brings social conservatives, fiscal conservatives, security conservatives, and Ron Paul devotees under the same roof…” I wrote these words after CPAC kicked off, but before the straw poll results were announced – because I heard an anecdotal report on the radio a large number of Ron Paul people were there, and frankly I found that report a bit odd. This is, after all, the conference that had previously chosen Mitt Romney three years running.
When the news of Ron Paul’s victory broke on February 20, I was participating in the hyper-democratic debate supported by the Internet comment boards. One of the comments stated only 2400 out 10,000 CPAC attendees voted. These numbers jive with something I just read in Politico – so I’m taking them as accurate enough.
Therefore, Ron Paul’s straw poll win could be dismissed purely on the grounds of statistical insignificance. A professionally conducted Gallup poll (see my January 11 post) shows 40% of Americans self-identify as "conservative." So, that equates to approximately 120 Million “conservative” citizens across the fruited plain of America. The 2400 out of 10,000 figure means only 00.008% of American “conservatives” even attended CPAC; and of this statistically insignificant sample, only 24% even bothered to vote. Of this doubly insignificant sample, Ron Paul took 31% - hardly resounding.
A couple of thoughts on these percentages….
First, a dedicated group of political operatives could easily engineer their desired result given such a small sample. IOW – this could easily have been an ACORN orchestrated ballot “surge” designed to sow divisions in the Conservative movement. One never knows who’s trying to fix what these days.
But, more to the point, I think the telling figure is the low percentage of attendees even bothering to vote. No one, not even the criminally biased MSM, can deny the TEA Parties are the animating force in the Conservative coalition for 2010. The TEA Party movement remains a ‘leaderless’ movement focused on principles, not personalities. TEA Party patriots are keeping their powder dry as far as deciding to whom they give their political allegiance. If there were a national TEA Party straw poll held today, "the first person listed in the phone book" is as likely to win as anyone with enough name recognition to be on CPAC's radar.
When the news broke, I found myself in the middle of this little Internet comment board dust-up. Expect my next post to be titled “Ron Paul a Conservative? (Part 2).” Therein I will attempt the deeper examination into Mr. Paul’s policy positions I promised the comment board devotees - and not just because I like to keep my promises. I give Ron Paul and his devotees credit for being sincere in their beliefs, and these beliefs seem to be rooted in a respect for the Constitution, so they deserve the courtesy of forthright debate.
When the news of Ron Paul’s victory broke on February 20, I was participating in the hyper-democratic debate supported by the Internet comment boards. One of the comments stated only 2400 out 10,000 CPAC attendees voted. These numbers jive with something I just read in Politico – so I’m taking them as accurate enough.
Therefore, Ron Paul’s straw poll win could be dismissed purely on the grounds of statistical insignificance. A professionally conducted Gallup poll (see my January 11 post) shows 40% of Americans self-identify as "conservative." So, that equates to approximately 120 Million “conservative” citizens across the fruited plain of America. The 2400 out of 10,000 figure means only 00.008% of American “conservatives” even attended CPAC; and of this statistically insignificant sample, only 24% even bothered to vote. Of this doubly insignificant sample, Ron Paul took 31% - hardly resounding.
A couple of thoughts on these percentages….
First, a dedicated group of political operatives could easily engineer their desired result given such a small sample. IOW – this could easily have been an ACORN orchestrated ballot “surge” designed to sow divisions in the Conservative movement. One never knows who’s trying to fix what these days.
But, more to the point, I think the telling figure is the low percentage of attendees even bothering to vote. No one, not even the criminally biased MSM, can deny the TEA Parties are the animating force in the Conservative coalition for 2010. The TEA Party movement remains a ‘leaderless’ movement focused on principles, not personalities. TEA Party patriots are keeping their powder dry as far as deciding to whom they give their political allegiance. If there were a national TEA Party straw poll held today, "the first person listed in the phone book" is as likely to win as anyone with enough name recognition to be on CPAC's radar.
When the news broke, I found myself in the middle of this little Internet comment board dust-up. Expect my next post to be titled “Ron Paul a Conservative? (Part 2).” Therein I will attempt the deeper examination into Mr. Paul’s policy positions I promised the comment board devotees - and not just because I like to keep my promises. I give Ron Paul and his devotees credit for being sincere in their beliefs, and these beliefs seem to be rooted in a respect for the Constitution, so they deserve the courtesy of forthright debate.
Friday, February 19, 2010
How’s a Poor Amateur Blogger Supposed To Keep Up?
It’s becoming difficult for this amateur blogger to update the Conservative Ascendancy Thermotron 2010 as often as I should. News arrives daily pushing one or more of the precisely calibrated meters upward. The bottom line is I now have no choice but to raise the probability for eventual impeachment of President Barack Hussein Obama to 15 percent. It now equals the recommended tip level for waitresses in the pre-Obama economy.
In the ‘Events’ category we must highlight the record setting snowfall that recently blanketed 49 states – all except for Hawaii, alleged birth place of your present President. The poster child simply has to be none other than the High Priest of Global Warming himself, Mr. Al Gore. The Goracle is symbolic of the complete collapse of the international Man-Made Global Warming fraud. The fraud’s inevitable collapse due to its own contradictions was given a huge push over the edge by the ever-so-unpredictable weather. Now, in the spirit of fairness and transparency, here’s the link to the Goracle’s blog. There you can find tons of trivia in support of the fraud. You can wade your way through all of it; or skip the dizzying read and take in this summary: “I am Al Gore and everything you observe in nature is caused by man-made Global Warming because I say so.” I do recommend taking a look at the photograph on the blog’s masthead. I just love how the photograph is staged to make the Goracle appear to be “The Most Learned Man on Earth.” My advice to Mr. Gore is hook up one of those giant monitors to e-trade; you’re going to need to trade out of that heavy concentration in green stocks real fast, before they completely tank.
And this is a good place to shamelessly plug my new poll. Click on the Polls ‘R Us picture and let me know which nominee for “Least Worthy Nobel Laureate” is most deserving of the (dis)honor. The Goracle is among the nominees.
The ‘Leftie Lunacy’ category heats up based on a recent NY Times / CBS News Poll showing only 6% of Americans believe the Stimulus bill has created any jobs. We know the NY Times and CBS News are in the tank for Obama, which only makes these numbers all the more startling. So, what is the administration doing about it? Why, they are treating us to an excellent demonstration of Leftie Lunacy, by sending out a phalanx of officials across the nation, including Obama himself, to convince the other 94% of us just how wrong we are.
The Looney Left often displays this peculiar mental disorder. Something in the Looney Left psyche instructs them they are capable of convincing the rest of us black is white, up is down, cold is hot, false is true – if only they explain it to us one more time a little more slowly. Team Obama was apparently nowhere nearby when the great Abraham Lincoln (R-IL) said “You can fool all the people some of the time, and some of the people all the time, but you cannot fool all the people all the time.” They fooled enough people to get elected. They will not fool enough people to change the perception of their Stimulus bill. This time they up against their record. A record growing worse and worse by the day.
One of my favorite morning radio talk shows – The Chris Plante Show (AM 630 WMAL in DC) – did a segment on this topic. The call-in audience was asked if the Obama Administration doesn’t know Stimulus has worked, or if they do know it and are lying to us. The better question is actually “why are they lying to us when they have to know Stimulus isn’t creating jobs.” Here’s my answer.
Stimulus is not and has never been about jobs. After interest payments are included, Stimulus will be more than a trillion of the American people’s dollars; and this gang of precinct hacks is using it as a slush fund to dispense political favor to projects of their choosing. It will go down as one of the monumental abuses of power in all of American history. The only good news is much of it has not even been spent yet (because it’s a slush fund!) – meaning perhaps we can recover some portion of the original robbery after taking Congress back in November.
Also on the brighter side, the failure of Stimulus furthers the ongoing Conservative Ascendancy. We conservatives have always said the only things a government can do to stimulate the economy is to cut taxes and reduce red tape. We have many examples through history demonstrating this, including recently the largest peace-time economic expansion in history that is credited to Ronald Reagan’s program. Governments cannot spend an economy into prosperity. Every dollar the government spends must first come out of the economy (Peter, meet Paul) or be printed as new money (which devalues everything Peter and Paul previously had). Seeing as there are zero historical examples of this approach ever working, and seeing as how Stimulus is such a monumental overreach; let’s hope this monumental disaster demonstrates indelibly and once and for all to the American public Keynsian Stimulus economics is a dead letter. When the public gets it, America’s politicians and America’s economists won’t be able to get away with foisting on the public any more of this top-down trillion dollar level central planning.
Their Thermotron poster child is Crazy Uncle Joe Biden, because, well, he’s just the funniest of the gang to watch when he says “The Stimuluuuus IS Werkinggg.” In unrelated Crazy Uncle Joe news, his motorcade actually impacted Peggy Fleming at the Vancouver Olympics. Really. Vancouver is the fourth instance of innocent civilians being struck by the sitting VP’s motorcade. Really. No calls yet for the appointment of an Independent Counsel to investigate.
The Thermotron poster child for GOP / TEA Party alignment is social media. Really.
There have recently been several gatherings of principled conservatives under various banners. No reports of food fights erupting at any of them. GOP Chairman Michael Steele met with 50 grass roots TEA Party organizers on February 16, and all emerged with clean suits and ties still neatly knotted. On February 17, Mr. Steele appeared on Fox and Friends. The transcripts seem to show comity between the RNC Chairman and TEA Party principles. On February 18, the established Conservative Political Action Committee began its annual 3-day conference which brings social conservatives, fiscal conservatives, security conservatives, and Ron Paul devotees under the same roof of a single hotel. There have even been reported sightings of “Don’t Tread On Me” flags, which can only mean TEA Party sympathizers are immediately in their midst. No reports of burning dumpsters or police in riot gear. And simultaneously in DC, the new TEA Party inspired Ensuring Liberty PAC is meeting. No sign of either CPAC or LPAC forming into an angry mob and marching on the other’s position. On February 17, a group of DC Conservative heavyweights signed something called the Mount Vernon Statement. This is a sure sign of the establishment catching up to the thought leadership now coming from TEA Party patriots.
No doubt the technology of social media has contributed mightily to the rapid sharing of ideas and coordination of agendas between these various aligned factions. More importantly, social media will continue to allow principled conservatives of all stripes to organize as a bloc behind selected candidates in individual races this November. To abuse an often abused political phrase – social media is a game changer.
I made this same point on an LA Times comment board here.
On the same day I was treated to a personal object lesson in the power of social media. A gentleman by the name of Jon Healy, self-identified as an ‘Editorial Writer’ at the LA Times, and I enjoyed a vigorous email exchange on the topic of comment board moderation – patterns and practices, policy, and technology. The most interesting portions of the dialogue are excerpted below. Perhaps some future technology historian will look back on our insights the same way we look back on the supposed statement from Thomas J. Watson in 1943 that the world might accommodate 5 mainframe computers.
*************
Your comments at latimes.com
13 messages
Liberty At'Stake
Healey, JonMon, Feb 15, 2010 at 8:36 PM
To: libertyatstake@gmail.com
Hey, I wanted to let you know that we have a policy against comments with URLs in them. It’s to guard
against spam and advertising bots, basically. Feel free to refer to your site, just avoid using the URL,
otherwise your comment may run afoul of the moderators. Thanks!
Jon Healey
Editorial writer
Los Angeles Times
LibertyAtStakeTue, Feb 16, 2010 at 9:08 AM
To: "Healey, Jon"
Thanks for the feedback, Jon.
I'll try to remember the exception.
I'm pretty sure you can deploy software that will automatically excludes comments with URLs. For example,
NY Post apparently does this. If I were in your position, and I believed in the policy, I would invest in a
software implementation. Then you wouldn't need to depend on every knucklehead like me to remember the
exception for themselves.
You probably need to have your lawyers update the LA Times Terms of Service for the sake of consistency. I found no mention of this policy. Maybe I'm looking in the wrong place?
Healey, JonTue, Feb 16, 2010 at 10:30 AM
To: LibertyAtStake
Hey, you're right about the TOS. The anti-URL dictum was a decree from the head of latimes.com, not the
Times' lawyer. :-)
At the risk of trying your patience, let me share a little bit of the internal debate at the Times about comments.
The big debate internally is over whether to moderate comments. The traditional news guys say yes, the more
online-oriented folks say no. There are, of course, exceptions to that blanket statement, but the reason the
traditionalists want moderation is because they would like the comments to add something to the debate. We
get a remarkable amount of stuff that blurs the line between sharply worded observation and hate speech,
and a goodly amount that clearly crosses that line. I'm one of the folks who wants us not to moderate
comments because I think it violates the spirit of the Net, but because I read a great deal of what comes in, I
am sympathetic to the concerns on the other side. And please don't mistake this for political correctness or,
as Jonah Goldberg likes to put it, liberal fascism. We get stuff from people on both political extremes that
would curl your hair.
Anyway, a few months ago the Times started enabling online comments on the stories published in the
newspaper, not just the blog posts. This was a major step forward, IMHO; prior to that, only those of us in
Opinion had been enabling comments on newspaper pieces, and even then only on the pieces published
Monday through Friday (we didn't have anyone to moderate comments over the weekend). But the move
opened the floodgates of comments to moderate, leading to what I think is an unacceptable delay between
when comments are submitted and when they are published. It also raised a bunch of tough questions about
the proper standards for moderators. "Defamatory" is a fairly easy thing to judge, but what, exactly, is
"abusive," "racist," "hateful" or "disparaging"? The TOS was written to allow us to block *anything* that made our lawyers uncomfortable, and that's not useful guidance for the folks trying to decide what really isn't fit to publish.
{Mr. Healy goes on to describe some additional details on the internal debate at the LA Times, which I’ve deleted for the sake of brevity}
LibertyAtStakeTue, Feb 16, 2010 at 12:19 PM
To: "Healey, Jon" Jon.Healey@latimes.com
My firm belief is it is a fool’s errand to attempt to censor anything beyond obviously abusive
content. Are you old enough to remember George Carlin’s “7 Words You Can’t Say on TV”
routine? The rules Carlin mocked were sort of the template for the only tenable model, both
practically and per the First Amendment (assuming for the sake of argument you consider only the
prohibited words and nothing else that was going on in TV censorship).
Your “traditional news guys” sound like the usual MSM suspects who wish to use their position to
direct the debate toward their own ideological ends (almost exclusively liberal). I have observed
the NY Times to be the most hilarious example of this model. It seems like comments are generally
closed within minutes of article publication. No matter, though, only ineffectual, effete pseudo-intellectuals
read the NY Times anyway.
Internet technology enables anyone to participate in the debate. Computer bytes are cheap and
there is no practical reason to censor anything that is reasonable (i.e. not obviously abusive). The
general population and the marketplace of ideas will sort things out much more efficiently than any
biased moderator could hope to. Some of the sites I’ve visited have voting mechanisms that help
the board participants democratically identify the favored (or disfavored) posters. But this
software product marketplace does seem to be in a crude state of maturity. Overall, maybe
productizing a superior comment board software solution could be the next Internet pot of gold for
some smart entrepreneur.
Of course, the organization that runs the site has all the rights of ownership and can configure the
supporting computer hardware and software however they choose. The free market will
determine how these choices affect participation in those sites. I have noticed many boards
already use software solutions that allow abusive comments to be reported by participants. If you
have an IT department even the least bit worthy of their salaries, they should be able identify and
implement this solution in no time at all.
I have no problem with anyone including URLs in any comments. A URL in itself is nothing more
than an index the reader can choose to follow, or not. If the index leads to abusive or
inappropriate content, it does not take much imagination to implement a solution allowing the
people to report it to the organization owning the board.
Footnote 1
On February 11 and February 12, I got into a public scuffle on this blog with the Daily Caller - concerning this very topic of comment moderation. I have since figured out for myself it is apparent the Daily Caller implements software that automatically throws into moderation anything with more than one URL embedded. I find this to be a reasonable anti-spamming measure. LibertyAtStake ceases mock hostilities with the Daily Caller.
In the ‘Events’ category we must highlight the record setting snowfall that recently blanketed 49 states – all except for Hawaii, alleged birth place of your present President. The poster child simply has to be none other than the High Priest of Global Warming himself, Mr. Al Gore. The Goracle is symbolic of the complete collapse of the international Man-Made Global Warming fraud. The fraud’s inevitable collapse due to its own contradictions was given a huge push over the edge by the ever-so-unpredictable weather. Now, in the spirit of fairness and transparency, here’s the link to the Goracle’s blog. There you can find tons of trivia in support of the fraud. You can wade your way through all of it; or skip the dizzying read and take in this summary: “I am Al Gore and everything you observe in nature is caused by man-made Global Warming because I say so.” I do recommend taking a look at the photograph on the blog’s masthead. I just love how the photograph is staged to make the Goracle appear to be “The Most Learned Man on Earth.” My advice to Mr. Gore is hook up one of those giant monitors to e-trade; you’re going to need to trade out of that heavy concentration in green stocks real fast, before they completely tank.
And this is a good place to shamelessly plug my new poll. Click on the Polls ‘R Us picture and let me know which nominee for “Least Worthy Nobel Laureate” is most deserving of the (dis)honor. The Goracle is among the nominees.
The ‘Leftie Lunacy’ category heats up based on a recent NY Times / CBS News Poll showing only 6% of Americans believe the Stimulus bill has created any jobs. We know the NY Times and CBS News are in the tank for Obama, which only makes these numbers all the more startling. So, what is the administration doing about it? Why, they are treating us to an excellent demonstration of Leftie Lunacy, by sending out a phalanx of officials across the nation, including Obama himself, to convince the other 94% of us just how wrong we are.
The Looney Left often displays this peculiar mental disorder. Something in the Looney Left psyche instructs them they are capable of convincing the rest of us black is white, up is down, cold is hot, false is true – if only they explain it to us one more time a little more slowly. Team Obama was apparently nowhere nearby when the great Abraham Lincoln (R-IL) said “You can fool all the people some of the time, and some of the people all the time, but you cannot fool all the people all the time.” They fooled enough people to get elected. They will not fool enough people to change the perception of their Stimulus bill. This time they up against their record. A record growing worse and worse by the day.
One of my favorite morning radio talk shows – The Chris Plante Show (AM 630 WMAL in DC) – did a segment on this topic. The call-in audience was asked if the Obama Administration doesn’t know Stimulus has worked, or if they do know it and are lying to us. The better question is actually “why are they lying to us when they have to know Stimulus isn’t creating jobs.” Here’s my answer.
Stimulus is not and has never been about jobs. After interest payments are included, Stimulus will be more than a trillion of the American people’s dollars; and this gang of precinct hacks is using it as a slush fund to dispense political favor to projects of their choosing. It will go down as one of the monumental abuses of power in all of American history. The only good news is much of it has not even been spent yet (because it’s a slush fund!) – meaning perhaps we can recover some portion of the original robbery after taking Congress back in November.
Also on the brighter side, the failure of Stimulus furthers the ongoing Conservative Ascendancy. We conservatives have always said the only things a government can do to stimulate the economy is to cut taxes and reduce red tape. We have many examples through history demonstrating this, including recently the largest peace-time economic expansion in history that is credited to Ronald Reagan’s program. Governments cannot spend an economy into prosperity. Every dollar the government spends must first come out of the economy (Peter, meet Paul) or be printed as new money (which devalues everything Peter and Paul previously had). Seeing as there are zero historical examples of this approach ever working, and seeing as how Stimulus is such a monumental overreach; let’s hope this monumental disaster demonstrates indelibly and once and for all to the American public Keynsian Stimulus economics is a dead letter. When the public gets it, America’s politicians and America’s economists won’t be able to get away with foisting on the public any more of this top-down trillion dollar level central planning.
Their Thermotron poster child is Crazy Uncle Joe Biden, because, well, he’s just the funniest of the gang to watch when he says “The Stimuluuuus IS Werkinggg.” In unrelated Crazy Uncle Joe news, his motorcade actually impacted Peggy Fleming at the Vancouver Olympics. Really. Vancouver is the fourth instance of innocent civilians being struck by the sitting VP’s motorcade. Really. No calls yet for the appointment of an Independent Counsel to investigate.
The Thermotron poster child for GOP / TEA Party alignment is social media. Really.
There have recently been several gatherings of principled conservatives under various banners. No reports of food fights erupting at any of them. GOP Chairman Michael Steele met with 50 grass roots TEA Party organizers on February 16, and all emerged with clean suits and ties still neatly knotted. On February 17, Mr. Steele appeared on Fox and Friends. The transcripts seem to show comity between the RNC Chairman and TEA Party principles. On February 18, the established Conservative Political Action Committee began its annual 3-day conference which brings social conservatives, fiscal conservatives, security conservatives, and Ron Paul devotees under the same roof of a single hotel. There have even been reported sightings of “Don’t Tread On Me” flags, which can only mean TEA Party sympathizers are immediately in their midst. No reports of burning dumpsters or police in riot gear. And simultaneously in DC, the new TEA Party inspired Ensuring Liberty PAC is meeting. No sign of either CPAC or LPAC forming into an angry mob and marching on the other’s position. On February 17, a group of DC Conservative heavyweights signed something called the Mount Vernon Statement. This is a sure sign of the establishment catching up to the thought leadership now coming from TEA Party patriots.
No doubt the technology of social media has contributed mightily to the rapid sharing of ideas and coordination of agendas between these various aligned factions. More importantly, social media will continue to allow principled conservatives of all stripes to organize as a bloc behind selected candidates in individual races this November. To abuse an often abused political phrase – social media is a game changer.
I made this same point on an LA Times comment board here.
On the same day I was treated to a personal object lesson in the power of social media. A gentleman by the name of Jon Healy, self-identified as an ‘Editorial Writer’ at the LA Times, and I enjoyed a vigorous email exchange on the topic of comment board moderation – patterns and practices, policy, and technology. The most interesting portions of the dialogue are excerpted below. Perhaps some future technology historian will look back on our insights the same way we look back on the supposed statement from Thomas J. Watson in 1943 that the world might accommodate 5 mainframe computers.
*************
Your comments at latimes.com
13 messages
Liberty At'Stake
Healey, Jon
To: libertyatstake@gmail.com
Hey, I wanted to let you know that we have a policy against comments with URLs in them. It’s to guard
against spam and advertising bots, basically. Feel free to refer to your site, just avoid using the URL,
otherwise your comment may run afoul of the moderators. Thanks!
Jon Healey
Editorial writer
Los Angeles Times
LibertyAtStake
To: "Healey, Jon"
Thanks for the feedback, Jon.
I'll try to remember the exception.
I'm pretty sure you can deploy software that will automatically excludes comments with URLs. For example,
NY Post apparently does this. If I were in your position, and I believed in the policy, I would invest in a
software implementation. Then you wouldn't need to depend on every knucklehead like me to remember the
exception for themselves.
You probably need to have your lawyers update the LA Times Terms of Service for the sake of consistency. I found no mention of this policy. Maybe I'm looking in the wrong place?
Healey, Jon
To: LibertyAtStake
Hey, you're right about the TOS. The anti-URL dictum was a decree from the head of latimes.com, not the
Times' lawyer. :-)
At the risk of trying your patience, let me share a little bit of the internal debate at the Times about comments.
The big debate internally is over whether to moderate comments. The traditional news guys say yes, the more
online-oriented folks say no. There are, of course, exceptions to that blanket statement, but the reason the
traditionalists want moderation is because they would like the comments to add something to the debate. We
get a remarkable amount of stuff that blurs the line between sharply worded observation and hate speech,
and a goodly amount that clearly crosses that line. I'm one of the folks who wants us not to moderate
comments because I think it violates the spirit of the Net, but because I read a great deal of what comes in, I
am sympathetic to the concerns on the other side. And please don't mistake this for political correctness or,
as Jonah Goldberg likes to put it, liberal fascism. We get stuff from people on both political extremes that
would curl your hair.
Anyway, a few months ago the Times started enabling online comments on the stories published in the
newspaper, not just the blog posts. This was a major step forward, IMHO; prior to that, only those of us in
Opinion had been enabling comments on newspaper pieces, and even then only on the pieces published
Monday through Friday (we didn't have anyone to moderate comments over the weekend). But the move
opened the floodgates of comments to moderate, leading to what I think is an unacceptable delay between
when comments are submitted and when they are published. It also raised a bunch of tough questions about
the proper standards for moderators. "Defamatory" is a fairly easy thing to judge, but what, exactly, is
"abusive," "racist," "hateful" or "disparaging"? The TOS was written to allow us to block *anything* that made our lawyers uncomfortable, and that's not useful guidance for the folks trying to decide what really isn't fit to publish.
{Mr. Healy goes on to describe some additional details on the internal debate at the LA Times, which I’ve deleted for the sake of brevity}
LibertyAtStake
To: "Healey, Jon" Jon.Healey@latimes.com
My firm belief is it is a fool’s errand to attempt to censor anything beyond obviously abusive
content. Are you old enough to remember George Carlin’s “7 Words You Can’t Say on TV”
routine? The rules Carlin mocked were sort of the template for the only tenable model, both
practically and per the First Amendment (assuming for the sake of argument you consider only the
prohibited words and nothing else that was going on in TV censorship).
Your “traditional news guys” sound like the usual MSM suspects who wish to use their position to
direct the debate toward their own ideological ends (almost exclusively liberal). I have observed
the NY Times to be the most hilarious example of this model. It seems like comments are generally
closed within minutes of article publication. No matter, though, only ineffectual, effete pseudo-intellectuals
read the NY Times anyway.
Internet technology enables anyone to participate in the debate. Computer bytes are cheap and
there is no practical reason to censor anything that is reasonable (i.e. not obviously abusive). The
general population and the marketplace of ideas will sort things out much more efficiently than any
biased moderator could hope to. Some of the sites I’ve visited have voting mechanisms that help
the board participants democratically identify the favored (or disfavored) posters. But this
software product marketplace does seem to be in a crude state of maturity. Overall, maybe
productizing a superior comment board software solution could be the next Internet pot of gold for
some smart entrepreneur.
Of course, the organization that runs the site has all the rights of ownership and can configure the
supporting computer hardware and software however they choose. The free market will
determine how these choices affect participation in those sites. I have noticed many boards
already use software solutions that allow abusive comments to be reported by participants. If you
have an IT department even the least bit worthy of their salaries, they should be able identify and
implement this solution in no time at all.
I have no problem with anyone including URLs in any comments. A URL in itself is nothing more
than an index the reader can choose to follow, or not. If the index leads to abusive or
inappropriate content, it does not take much imagination to implement a solution allowing the
people to report it to the organization owning the board.
Footnote 1
On February 11 and February 12, I got into a public scuffle on this blog with the Daily Caller - concerning this very topic of comment moderation. I have since figured out for myself it is apparent the Daily Caller implements software that automatically throws into moderation anything with more than one URL embedded. I find this to be a reasonable anti-spamming measure. LibertyAtStake ceases mock hostilities with the Daily Caller.
Sunday, February 14, 2010
Health Care Summit Theatre Productions: Completed Script
Earlier today, I found time to pepper a number of comment boards with several small variations on Footnote 1 to this posting. The footnote is my advice to the GOP how to handle the February 25 “Health Care Summit” President Obama has proposed.
(note: Some of the variations now floating freely on the Internet contain a factual error in the introductory sentence, which states the so-called “summit” will be held this Tuesday. Really, I don’t know what I was thinking. Oh well, perhaps my legion of followers can turn lemons into lemonade, by mounting a fun, and historic, treasure hunt for the flawed versions.)
While online, I also bumped into two other evidentiary findings leading to the finalization of this posting.
First, The GOP is apparently stepping up and playing hard-ball politics with Obama. This is both politically appropriate to the historic moment, and good for the long term prospects of the republic. For example, House Minority Leader John Boehner issued a tough statement making the simple point "START OVER means START OVER." This also indicates the GOP are pre-disposed to follow my advice provided here. Smart for them. Good for the republic.
Second, I believe I perceive an increase in comments from patriotic Americans across the Nation, on boards I previously thought of as cul-de-sacs for the DC elite; for example, thehill.com and politico.com. If my early perception of the trend is accurate, and the trend grows, the republic will be better off for it.
So, IMHO, the stage is now neatly set for the Obama administration to demonstrate to the Nation, live on camera, precisely why they are the leaders of the donkey party. The Obama administration has thrown down the gauntlet. To be honest, the GOP wins by simply ignoring it, because the American people already see through the unprecedented desperation maneuver. IMHO, the GOP wins bigger by embracing it, and giving the country a contrast to remember. I know there are commentators, such as the never-should-be-doubted Rush Limbaugh, advising the GOP to avoid a trap set by Obama. But I believe Obama has set a trap to be sprung on Obama, provided the GOP provides a little assist by simply adhering to conservative principles.
So, now that Health Care reform is settled, we can move on to more pressing matters; such as the global meltdown of the Global Warming fraud, and Crazy Uncle Joe vs. Czar of Homeland Justice Cheney in the VP Fight of the Century.
Footnote 1
Here's the GOP script for the so-called "summit" on Feb. 25 (if they even bother to go).
1) Only show up if Obama agrees to stay at the table the entire time. He needs you more than you need him. He is an Empty Suit off teleprompter.
2) Do *not* deviate from the START OVER message. The American people want incremental, common sense, reform. They do not want the 2700 page Dem monstrosity. They hate what they know is in it. They are even more worried about what could be hidden inside it.
3) Resist Obama's attempts to discuss the 2700 page monstrosity. The American people are smart enough to watch the bouncing ball.
4) Continuously remind Obama he created the current crisis with legislative overreach. Any discussion of the 2700 page monstrosity is a doubling down on the original overreach and flatly unacceptable.
5) Present your incremental, common sense, reforms as a highlight reel - over, and over, and over. If Obama offers anything that could make sense, add it to your highlight reel. Make your highlight reel the template for STARTING OVER when you go back to the Hill.
6) State plainly to the American people you will NOT support any legislation that does not come directly from the START OVER highlight reel.
7) If the Dems are willing to join you in passing the START OVER highlight reel, then fine. If not, take it into November as a plank in your platform. The American people are smart enough to know the republic will survive 9 more months without incremental reform; but lasting damage could be done by the 2700 page monstrosity.
(note: Some of the variations now floating freely on the Internet contain a factual error in the introductory sentence, which states the so-called “summit” will be held this Tuesday. Really, I don’t know what I was thinking. Oh well, perhaps my legion of followers can turn lemons into lemonade, by mounting a fun, and historic, treasure hunt for the flawed versions.)
While online, I also bumped into two other evidentiary findings leading to the finalization of this posting.
First, The GOP is apparently stepping up and playing hard-ball politics with Obama. This is both politically appropriate to the historic moment, and good for the long term prospects of the republic. For example, House Minority Leader John Boehner issued a tough statement making the simple point "START OVER means START OVER." This also indicates the GOP are pre-disposed to follow my advice provided here. Smart for them. Good for the republic.
Second, I believe I perceive an increase in comments from patriotic Americans across the Nation, on boards I previously thought of as cul-de-sacs for the DC elite; for example, thehill.com and politico.com. If my early perception of the trend is accurate, and the trend grows, the republic will be better off for it.
So, IMHO, the stage is now neatly set for the Obama administration to demonstrate to the Nation, live on camera, precisely why they are the leaders of the donkey party. The Obama administration has thrown down the gauntlet. To be honest, the GOP wins by simply ignoring it, because the American people already see through the unprecedented desperation maneuver. IMHO, the GOP wins bigger by embracing it, and giving the country a contrast to remember. I know there are commentators, such as the never-should-be-doubted Rush Limbaugh, advising the GOP to avoid a trap set by Obama. But I believe Obama has set a trap to be sprung on Obama, provided the GOP provides a little assist by simply adhering to conservative principles.
So, now that Health Care reform is settled, we can move on to more pressing matters; such as the global meltdown of the Global Warming fraud, and Crazy Uncle Joe vs. Czar of Homeland Justice Cheney in the VP Fight of the Century.
Footnote 1
Here's the GOP script for the so-called "summit" on Feb. 25 (if they even bother to go).
1) Only show up if Obama agrees to stay at the table the entire time. He needs you more than you need him. He is an Empty Suit off teleprompter.
2) Do *not* deviate from the START OVER message. The American people want incremental, common sense, reform. They do not want the 2700 page Dem monstrosity. They hate what they know is in it. They are even more worried about what could be hidden inside it.
3) Resist Obama's attempts to discuss the 2700 page monstrosity. The American people are smart enough to watch the bouncing ball.
4) Continuously remind Obama he created the current crisis with legislative overreach. Any discussion of the 2700 page monstrosity is a doubling down on the original overreach and flatly unacceptable.
5) Present your incremental, common sense, reforms as a highlight reel - over, and over, and over. If Obama offers anything that could make sense, add it to your highlight reel. Make your highlight reel the template for STARTING OVER when you go back to the Hill.
6) State plainly to the American people you will NOT support any legislation that does not come directly from the START OVER highlight reel.
7) If the Dems are willing to join you in passing the START OVER highlight reel, then fine. If not, take it into November as a plank in your platform. The American people are smart enough to know the republic will survive 9 more months without incremental reform; but lasting damage could be done by the 2700 page monstrosity.
Friday, February 12, 2010
The Daily Caller Does It Again!
Does the Daily Caller have a dedicated member of the Global Warming cult censoring everything with a Climate Change tag?
Since discovering the Daily Caller a couple of weeks ago I have generally acquired the impression the Daily Caller is a friend of the First Amendment. I even made an unusually quick decision to bestow upon the Daily Caller an honored place on my 'Sites That Make Sense to Me' Link list. I have liberally sprinkled their site with comments since the initial discovery, and precisely two have gone into some kind of "automatic" moderation queue. Both were in the Global Warming issue area. I reported the first yesterday on this blog. The second occurred today - screenshot below.
Now, I readily admit to a few typos (I am a terrible at typing in a rush). But, really, can anyone see anything in there that warrants review? Or anything that couldn't be adjudicated in less than a single minute's review?
The imagined slights are piling up and I may have stop actively participating on the Daily Caller's site; and we all know how sought after that honor is.
As an aside, in keeping with the First Amendment theme of this blog, I have updated the 'Sites That Make Sense to Me' Link list with http://climaterealists.com/about.php. The Warmists already have enough paid mouthpieces.
From: http://dailycaller.com/2010/02/12/record-snow-storm-sparks-back-and-forth-over-global-warming/
Since discovering the Daily Caller a couple of weeks ago I have generally acquired the impression the Daily Caller is a friend of the First Amendment. I even made an unusually quick decision to bestow upon the Daily Caller an honored place on my 'Sites That Make Sense to Me' Link list. I have liberally sprinkled their site with comments since the initial discovery, and precisely two have gone into some kind of "automatic" moderation queue. Both were in the Global Warming issue area. I reported the first yesterday on this blog. The second occurred today - screenshot below.
Now, I readily admit to a few typos (I am a terrible at typing in a rush). But, really, can anyone see anything in there that warrants review? Or anything that couldn't be adjudicated in less than a single minute's review?
The imagined slights are piling up and I may have stop actively participating on the Daily Caller's site; and we all know how sought after that honor is.
As an aside, in keeping with the First Amendment theme of this blog, I have updated the 'Sites That Make Sense to Me' Link list with http://climaterealists.com/about.php. The Warmists already have enough paid mouthpieces.
From: http://dailycaller.com/2010/02/12/record-snow-storm-sparks-back-and-forth-over-global-warming/
Update: 5:00 pm; 2010-02-12
The reference comments have been accepted. LibertyAtStake maintains a policy of cautious detente with the Daily Caller.
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Sparring in the Dark Alleys of Modern American Opinion
I’ve been having some fun sparring with Leftie Loonies in some of America's darker alleys of opinion. The experience makes me feel like Will Smith battling the ghouls in “I am Legend.” Or maybe Charleton Heston battling the ghouls in “Omega Man” (if you would appreciate discovering the original art that inspired the modern copy cat).
Last evening, I went into one the darkest alleys of all - a blog run by CBS news, mysterious domain of the pixie fairy Katie Couric, and perennially stuck in fourth or fifth placed in evening news ratings. I had a nice little dust up with a squad of Lefties over the Global Warming fraud. It is very instructive to understanding Leftie tactics, so I find it worth recounting here. Follow this link for the entire thread. Or try my “random droppings” link. Th CBS thread has floated to the top of the query result as of this posting.
I started things off by identifying a long standing petition from Lord Christopher Monckton (long dedicated to undermining the Global Warming fraud) to debate Al Gore. Go ahead – annoy a Liberal – sign the petition today. (http://www.petitiononline.com/agdgw/petition.html)
Some left-wing troll with the screen name ‘troutfishyman’ predictably jumped in to discredit any information contrary to his position. Notice his preferred debate tactics: selectively avoid answering specific questions, change the subject, and ad hominem attacks on the opponent’s motives, character, and/or credentials. Several other trolls also jumped in to try the Leftie tactic of overwhelming force in numbers (although not logic).
I'm not even sure what this is supposed to mean.
A troll brings Senator DeMint into the thread unaccountably.
Here I begin to isolate ‘troutfishyman’ as the most worthy troll to spar with.
He selectively (and deceptively) answers one of my two queries, ignoring the other, and includes an ad hominem attack. I stay with the one inquiry he has selected by doing exactly what he desperately wants to avoid – naming names that other people can now look up.
I announce I’m leaving the thread, but “secretly” hang around.
Another troll named ‘HGOODGUY’ can’t resist what he thinks is a free shot, and I put him in his place.
‘troutfishyman’ lays in wait another 40 minutes before deciding it’s safe to get in the last word.
The activity for the evening of February 10, for all intents and purposes, then stops. Early the next morning someone with the screen name ‘lakota2012’ joins the fray. He looks like a paid Leftie shock trooper to me. He starts things off with another incomplete answer and an ad-hominem attack. I am of course unaware - as I am fast asleep, since this is well past by bedtime. It does, however, look like a patriot named ‘HawkSpringsIsBack’ comes to my defense. Nice.
Leftie shock trooper ‘lakota2012’ has been very busy all day today taking over the board conversation. He makes many specific references to my morning posting, which I've chosen to ignore. The patriot ‘HawkSpringIsBack’ has been giving him a pretty good fight. Nice.
Footnote 1
I also submitted a similar comment to the Daily Caller's board. It is apparently hanging in moderation limbo as of this posting. My opinion of the Daily Caller’s commitment to the First Amendment hangs in the balance.
Update: 9:32 pm, 2010-02-11
The Daily Caller has accepted my comment. They will retain their honored place on the "Sites That Make Sense to Me" Linklist.
Footnote 2
I couldn't be more serious that anyone who purports to think for himself or herself should take a look at these two resources and follow the leads provided to the truth.
==
Here’s a recommendation for a great book that is a beginner’s introduction to the relevant science that puts the lie to the myth of man-made global warming:
http://www.reasontofreedom.com/unstoppable_global_warming_by_s_fred_singer_and_dennis_t_avery.html
Did you notice Dr. Singer is the individual the left-wing trolls avoided taking on directly in last night's dust up?
==
See also this Wikipedia entry for an even lighter read that still gets closer to the truth than algore’s slide show could ever hope to:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_scientists_opposing_global_warming_consensus
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Update: State of the Conservative Ascendancy Thermotron 2010
The 2010 Conservative Ascendancy continues apace. It is past time for a status report on the all-important Thermotron 2010. Since the initial introduction of this scientifically calibrated precision engineering device; events have unfolded that should give us great concern. If not for my mid-Atlantic neighborhood looking like Siberia, I would have made this update sooner. I’ve been busy emitting carbon dioxide like never before, yet the snow keeps coming.
The most concerning news of late is the Iranian regime has essentially announced it will soon be a nuclear military power. That’s the bad news. The really bad news is your President wasted the entire first year of his term extending an open hand to the world, and the Iranian regime has cut it off with a meat cleaver. The smart money is now on Iran achieving a nuclear weapons program within the year. The one thing I am certain of is this: the Israeli government will look after its own interests. That probably means a military strike of some kind, to at least put off the day of reckoning. Depending on where events go from there, Mr. Obama has deftly maneuvered himself into position to replace Neville Chamberlain as history’s greatest appeaser. It may not be too late to pursue the only possible US policy that has any chance of avoiding this outcome – regime change. And let’s be clear – regime change does not equate to invasion, it can be reduced to active support for the existing Green Movement protestors inside Iran. The problem is your current administration shows no inclination or acumen in this area. I refer you to the The Who’s “Won’t Get Fooled Again” for further meditation.
On the Leftie Lunacy front, it’s still all about reaction to the Republican coup in Massachusetts. Lefties are apparently still in shock over this one. The Leftie commentary trying to explain it away has been all over the board. Howard Dean, DNC Chairman and world record holder for shrillest screech in presidential campaign history, was actually caught on camera arguing Massachusetts voted for Scott Brown AND Obamacare! Economic hack and New York Times propagandist Paul Krugman actually put into print his opinion that the real problem is Obama hasn’t run up deficits large enough! Al Franken - senior Senator from ACORN, failed talk radio host, and formerly barely funny SNL comedian – was reportedly very animated and vocal while making no particular point after the President’s failed February 3rd pep talk to Democrat Senators. For their Thermotron poster child I have chosen MSNBC blow-hard Keith Olbermann; for the simple reason he seems the most likely to actually internally combust live on camera. It’s a shame hardly anyone will be watching live, given his pathetic ratings. Not to fear – the spectacle will surely be posted on the Fox Nation board within minutes.
The encouraging news for the future of the republic comes from the National Tea Party convention just completed in Nashville, TN. First of all, the consensus principles reported out of this gathering of patriots is intrinsically conservative and constitutionally sound. The top four seem to be smaller government, fiscal responsibility, upholding the constitution, and national security - a good start on recovering the general health of the republic. The best single concrete idea I heard out of Nashville, which would ensure continued fidelity to these principles, is a permanent TEA Party caucus on Capitol Hill open to both Republicans and Democrats (if any would come). Every meeting should start with the question “what would the Constitution tell us to do?”
And Sarah Palin’s performance as keynote speaker was simply bravura. She skillfully articulated to anyone willing to listen (which sadly still excludes the MSM) that the TEA Party is a principles-driven grass roots movement. She eloquently made the point TEA Party patriots do not seek to necessarily form an organized third party, but reserve the right to do so if the two existing parties continue to fail to get the message. I believe this is perfect positioning for the TEA party – let’s think of it as the association of citizen philosophers keeping the elected (i.e. hired by the people) politicians honest and in their proper place. If the TEA Party movement does coalesce around this concept, it will fill the vacuum left by the criminally negligent MSM.
The Obama administration seems to be digging in its heels on the unpopular agenda that created the current crisis. This gives me no choice but to upgrade the probability of eventual impeachment. Obama looks to be sticking to his guns on the economically ruinous and scientifically ridiculous Cap and Trade scheme. Illegal enemy combatants still receive constitutional rights. The latest news is a silly idea for a half-day “health care summit” at the White House. The Obama administration has already rejected the one condition that would make it a useful step – scrapping the current 2000 page monstrosity and starting over. It is therefore purely a political event. The talk on the morning AM radio shows has rightly been around whether or not the Republicans should even show up. I believe the Republicans should show up because it’s an opportunity to stick in the dagger and twist it (politically). The way to set the stage is to insist on the condition Obama stays at the table for the entire “summit.” This makes the Empty Suit the lead spokesman for the substance – and you spend the entire summit exposing him. The GOP can thank me for the great advice after the 2010 elections.
The most concerning news of late is the Iranian regime has essentially announced it will soon be a nuclear military power. That’s the bad news. The really bad news is your President wasted the entire first year of his term extending an open hand to the world, and the Iranian regime has cut it off with a meat cleaver. The smart money is now on Iran achieving a nuclear weapons program within the year. The one thing I am certain of is this: the Israeli government will look after its own interests. That probably means a military strike of some kind, to at least put off the day of reckoning. Depending on where events go from there, Mr. Obama has deftly maneuvered himself into position to replace Neville Chamberlain as history’s greatest appeaser. It may not be too late to pursue the only possible US policy that has any chance of avoiding this outcome – regime change. And let’s be clear – regime change does not equate to invasion, it can be reduced to active support for the existing Green Movement protestors inside Iran. The problem is your current administration shows no inclination or acumen in this area. I refer you to the The Who’s “Won’t Get Fooled Again” for further meditation.
On the Leftie Lunacy front, it’s still all about reaction to the Republican coup in Massachusetts. Lefties are apparently still in shock over this one. The Leftie commentary trying to explain it away has been all over the board. Howard Dean, DNC Chairman and world record holder for shrillest screech in presidential campaign history, was actually caught on camera arguing Massachusetts voted for Scott Brown AND Obamacare! Economic hack and New York Times propagandist Paul Krugman actually put into print his opinion that the real problem is Obama hasn’t run up deficits large enough! Al Franken - senior Senator from ACORN, failed talk radio host, and formerly barely funny SNL comedian – was reportedly very animated and vocal while making no particular point after the President’s failed February 3rd pep talk to Democrat Senators. For their Thermotron poster child I have chosen MSNBC blow-hard Keith Olbermann; for the simple reason he seems the most likely to actually internally combust live on camera. It’s a shame hardly anyone will be watching live, given his pathetic ratings. Not to fear – the spectacle will surely be posted on the Fox Nation board within minutes.
The encouraging news for the future of the republic comes from the National Tea Party convention just completed in Nashville, TN. First of all, the consensus principles reported out of this gathering of patriots is intrinsically conservative and constitutionally sound. The top four seem to be smaller government, fiscal responsibility, upholding the constitution, and national security - a good start on recovering the general health of the republic. The best single concrete idea I heard out of Nashville, which would ensure continued fidelity to these principles, is a permanent TEA Party caucus on Capitol Hill open to both Republicans and Democrats (if any would come). Every meeting should start with the question “what would the Constitution tell us to do?”
And Sarah Palin’s performance as keynote speaker was simply bravura. She skillfully articulated to anyone willing to listen (which sadly still excludes the MSM) that the TEA Party is a principles-driven grass roots movement. She eloquently made the point TEA Party patriots do not seek to necessarily form an organized third party, but reserve the right to do so if the two existing parties continue to fail to get the message. I believe this is perfect positioning for the TEA party – let’s think of it as the association of citizen philosophers keeping the elected (i.e. hired by the people) politicians honest and in their proper place. If the TEA Party movement does coalesce around this concept, it will fill the vacuum left by the criminally negligent MSM.
The Obama administration seems to be digging in its heels on the unpopular agenda that created the current crisis. This gives me no choice but to upgrade the probability of eventual impeachment. Obama looks to be sticking to his guns on the economically ruinous and scientifically ridiculous Cap and Trade scheme. Illegal enemy combatants still receive constitutional rights. The latest news is a silly idea for a half-day “health care summit” at the White House. The Obama administration has already rejected the one condition that would make it a useful step – scrapping the current 2000 page monstrosity and starting over. It is therefore purely a political event. The talk on the morning AM radio shows has rightly been around whether or not the Republicans should even show up. I believe the Republicans should show up because it’s an opportunity to stick in the dagger and twist it (politically). The way to set the stage is to insist on the condition Obama stays at the table for the entire “summit.” This makes the Empty Suit the lead spokesman for the substance – and you spend the entire summit exposing him. The GOP can thank me for the great advice after the 2010 elections.
Monday, February 8, 2010
Super Bowl Playlist for The Who: Closing Statement
Life has been turned upside down in the Metro DC area – what with 2 feet of snow on the ground, more apparently on the way, and widespread power outages generally caused by trees falling from the weight of the unprecedented snow fall. I have considered investing in a generator to keep the lights on, a snow blower to get out the front door, and maybe a snow mobile to get to the grocery store. Any more of this Global Warming and I could go broke.
Speaking of going broke, I have extended by one week the 2010 Special Election for Commander-in-Chief poll; which pits The Decider (2008 budget deficit $0.5 Trillion) against The Speechifier (2009 budget deficit $1.3 Trillion, projected 2010 budget deficit $1.6 Trillion). As of this writing, only 13 votes cast. I do know, however, there are more of you visiting my humble little blog. I have seen the pathetic phishing attacks from Looney Left front groups, and this can only mean we are getting under their skin. You can help further annoy them – to the general benefit of the republic – by pumping up the numbers on my humble little meaningless poll.
==
Now to the point of this posting - I would also like to extend to The Who my appreciation not only for a fantastic Super Bowl halftime show; but also for accepting my recommendation to close the show with “Won’t Get Fooled Again.”
I have chosen to reprint the complete lyrics here as a small meditation on the hopelessly failed Obama experiment. The chorus – which I’ve bolded – is for us conservatives and independents. The last two lines – also bolded – are for Looney Lefties disappointed in the inability of the messiah Obama to push forward most of their insane agenda. You can read the blog text or follow along with the embedded YouTube video from someone who likes to be called u8Lard.
We'll be fighting in the streets
With our children at our feet
And the morals that they worship will be gone
And the men who spurred us on
Sit in judgment of all wrong
They decide and the shotgun sings the song
I'll tip my hat to the new constitution
Take a bow for the new revolution
Smile and grin at the change all around
Pick up my guitar and play
Just like yesterday
Then I'll get on my knees and pray
We don't get fooled again
The change, it had to come
We knew it all along
We were liberated from the foe, that’s all
And the world looks just the same
And history ain’t changed
'Cause the banners, they were all
flown in the last war
I'll tip my hat to the new constitution
Take a bow for the new revolution
Smile and grin at the change all around
Pick up my guitar and play
Just like yesterday
Then I'll get on my knees and pray
We don't get fooled again
I'll move myself and my family aside
If we happen to be left half alive
I'll get all my papers and smile at the sky
For I know that the hypnotized never lie
Do ya?
There's nothing in the street
Looks any different to me
And the slogans are replaced, by-the-bye
And the parting on the left
Is now parting on the right
And the beards have all grown
Longer over night
I'll tip my hat to the new constitution
Take a bow for the new revolution
Smile and grin at the change all around
Pick up my guitar and play
Just like yesterday
Then I'll get on my knees and pray
We don't get fooled again
Meet the new boss
Same as the old boss
Speaking of going broke, I have extended by one week the 2010 Special Election for Commander-in-Chief poll; which pits The Decider (2008 budget deficit $0.5 Trillion) against The Speechifier (2009 budget deficit $1.3 Trillion, projected 2010 budget deficit $1.6 Trillion). As of this writing, only 13 votes cast. I do know, however, there are more of you visiting my humble little blog. I have seen the pathetic phishing attacks from Looney Left front groups, and this can only mean we are getting under their skin. You can help further annoy them – to the general benefit of the republic – by pumping up the numbers on my humble little meaningless poll.
==
Now to the point of this posting - I would also like to extend to The Who my appreciation not only for a fantastic Super Bowl halftime show; but also for accepting my recommendation to close the show with “Won’t Get Fooled Again.”
I have chosen to reprint the complete lyrics here as a small meditation on the hopelessly failed Obama experiment. The chorus – which I’ve bolded – is for us conservatives and independents. The last two lines – also bolded – are for Looney Lefties disappointed in the inability of the messiah Obama to push forward most of their insane agenda. You can read the blog text or follow along with the embedded YouTube video from someone who likes to be called u8Lard.
We'll be fighting in the streets
With our children at our feet
And the morals that they worship will be gone
And the men who spurred us on
Sit in judgment of all wrong
They decide and the shotgun sings the song
I'll tip my hat to the new constitution
Take a bow for the new revolution
Smile and grin at the change all around
Pick up my guitar and play
Just like yesterday
Then I'll get on my knees and pray
We don't get fooled again
The change, it had to come
We knew it all along
We were liberated from the foe, that’s all
And the world looks just the same
And history ain’t changed
'Cause the banners, they were all
flown in the last war
I'll tip my hat to the new constitution
Take a bow for the new revolution
Smile and grin at the change all around
Pick up my guitar and play
Just like yesterday
Then I'll get on my knees and pray
We don't get fooled again
I'll move myself and my family aside
If we happen to be left half alive
I'll get all my papers and smile at the sky
For I know that the hypnotized never lie
Do ya?
There's nothing in the street
Looks any different to me
And the slogans are replaced, by-the-bye
And the parting on the left
Is now parting on the right
And the beards have all grown
Longer over night
I'll tip my hat to the new constitution
Take a bow for the new revolution
Smile and grin at the change all around
Pick up my guitar and play
Just like yesterday
Then I'll get on my knees and pray
We don't get fooled again
Meet the new boss
Same as the old boss
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