The Friday Blog Round-up

Here's a new feature that showcases the blogs I follow.

This section will ( hopefully ) be a continuous Friday feature that showcases both the Left and Right. Not in the spirit of "fairnessy and blancyness", but just to show you how completely off base the Modern American Right are and make you understand that the Mainstream Media aren't digging in like they should on the real issues - while favoring the framing of the Right.

- It's certain to be a Right Wing, GOP, Tea Bagger talking point that Anthony Weiner's seat ( oh wait, are we supposed to say it's "the poople's seat"? ) will tilt to the Republicans, but Nate Silver tells us why Rep's should be tepid in their insistence.

- John Cole how Republican/Conservative/Libertarian/Randian? posturing gets mixes in a pot and either comes out as Galt-Cultist goulash, or just idiocy disguised as important socio-political dialogue.

- My Twitter Pal ( @bluegal - you're "it" ) briefly talks about the different from "non-profit" charter schools and "for-profit" charter schools ( read: Tea Bagger Institutions Of "Learning" ).

- Occasional commenter Busted Knuckles over at "Ornery Bastard" has the greatest description of what it means to be a Republican and really break the law in reference to extra-marital exercises.

- Gryphen over at The Immoral Minority points out what Fox"News" and Fox"Nation" will attempt to spin before we can say "Paul Revere actually brewed that beer with Samuel Adams, donchaknow"

- Former "I'm really the intellectual guy" MTV anchor ( and that's fucking funny on it's own ) Kurt Loder takes to the Doughy Pantload path and ends up highlighting how "Fascism" is part of the Green Lantern movie storyline. Yeah, you knew it was coming.

- Breitbart's "Big Gov't" site continues to push their ignorance ( wait, is it really ignorance or just a veiled attempt to protect those businesses that are more than willing to shaft the consumer if they can have accountability removed? ) of Net Neutrality with another call for "defunding".

- The internet's Dumbest Man is more than eager to show his hatred for women's reproductive systems while stalking his employer Andrew Breitbart at the so called "Right Online" convention to attempt to tell people he knows that his decisions are more important than any woman's. Typical.

- Oh, so the Romney "hey, guys I'm unemployed too" bit was just an innocent joke?

- Once again, Brent Bozell's easily lead employee's equate low ratings with "Liberal Media Bias"

Got a link for me to use? You know where I am.............

Acceptance of Ignorance

I'm not one given to disagree with Nate Silver or those at Balloon Juice, but this is the primary difference between liberals/progressives and conservatives/libertarians.

( aside: I have discovered that those within the later ideological categories really get their knickers in a twist when they see their team names paired with one another )

My alternative stance with Nate and "Mistermix" has to do with Sarah "Caribou Barbie" Palin and her ultimately predictable run for President in 2012, who she will have as part of her staff, and how she will be looked upon.

Here's Nate:

....I would look toward whom Ms. Palin is hiring as her support staff. A presidential campaign is a huge endeavor, comparable to a medium-sized business. Perhaps, because of her facility in commanding attention, Ms. Palin requires less assistance than a typical candidate might. Perhaps, because she sometimes seems to have an impatience for details and has not run for president before, she requires more. But all presidential candidates need some help: those candidates, like the Republican Fred Thompson, who have become too enamored with the notion of running a “viral”, nontraditional campaign from the confines of their living rooms have usually failed miserably. Is she hiring good pollsters, media strategists, fundraisers, consultants, logisticians, and advertising gurus? If so, she may still be as likely as anyone to prevail from a large, but fairly weak, Republican field. If not, her campaign, if she decides to run one, is liable to be a bust.

And now from Balloon Juice's "Mistermix":

Palin’s fundamental problem is that she’s too proud of her ignorance, and too fractious, to build a competent staff and take their advice. I doubt that this will change....

Palin is going to run. Period. Case closed.

I will stake my seriously limited progressive "street cred" on it.

That being said, Nate and "Mix" are both wrong, as Palin's handlers know that she is ill equipped to make effective support staff hiring decisions on her own. Why do you think she's spoon fed answers from and continually engages in a game of "tee-ball" from everyone at Fox"News" from the morning hours with Carlson, Doocy, and Kilmeade until the prime time metaphorical finger-banging from Sean Hannity.

The woman can't exist as a stand-alone entity - she's had a continual and unflinching talking point support system since she was unable to answer a question my 2nd grade daughter could from Katie Couric.

She's in "the bubble", and won't come out of it so long as Roger Aisles in calling the shots on this one. She's in the employ of Fox"News" and everyone on their payroll is going to have to follow the "prime directive" if they want to keep their jobs from now until after election night November 2012.

Palin is going to have the most tech-savvy, debate schooled, Drudge-hyped staff that Rupert Murdock's money can buy. You can count on it. The only problem that Democrats are going to face is the fact that they are going to have to show - and accurately - that conservatives are likely to swallow this Wasilla flavoured Kool-Aid in one gulp and ask for seconds.

No Racially Motivated Reaction Here

John Cole posted this earlier, but I think it bares repeating an further analysis.



I don't think I've ever seen more conclusive proof that the modern conservative movement is, despite all statements to the contrary, made up by a fairly large population of whites that are more than willing to judge a person based solely on the color of their skin.

And to echo Cole's point that this man clearly states that he was not once asked his position on anything, I think it bares repeating that those that were acting in a threatening manner toward this man were met with the exact opposite. This man composed himself quite well as he was surrounded by people shouting at him simply because of the color of his skin.

The only question that I have is whom the man was that was obviously escorting him away from the crowd. He seemed to present himself as someone with a position of power enough to make decisions on who should and shouldn't be there. Not only that, but did you catch the exchange between the rather tall fellow and the two men standing next to him as the "interloper" was escorted away. It seems that they thought this was all some sort of set-up to make them look racist. Considering how they treated this man, not once allowing him to voice his opinion or make any sort of case for or against Park 51, singling him out based on nothing more than he was "not white", I'll let you be the judge as to how they really feel.