Filed under: Barry 4 Prez, Go Sit Down, Grand Hu$tle, PoliTricks as Usual, What A DoucheBag
Ok, the media fast is over. I tried, but after I read this nonsense, I just couldn’t take it no more.
Seriously, can we go ahead and do away with the charade that Tina Fey Sarah Palin is somehow qualified to become President? The moment they let the Pitbull In Lipstick (her words, not mine) off the chain (aka: following a teleprompted speech written by Karl Rove), she comes out the yard (aka: media seclusion) and bites us with this stunner.
Gov. Sarah Palin linked the war in Iraq with the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, telling an Iraq-bound brigade of soldiers that included her son that they would “defend the innocent from the enemies who planned and carried out and rejoiced in the death of thousands of Americans.”The idea that the Iraqi government under Saddam Hussein helped al-Qaeda plan the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, a view once promoted by Bush administration officials, has since been rejected even by the president himself. But it is widely agreed that militants allied with al-Qaeda have taken root in Iraq since the U.S.-led invasion.
No, seriously. Even The President has since admitted that 9/11 and the Iraq war don’t have any real tangible connection. But Mrs. Palin, who lives so close the Russia that Nikita Koloff is her pilates partner, obviously is about 7 years late in receiving that message.
And this is who we want running the country in the unlikely event that a 72 year old with a history of battling cancer should meet his untimely demise?
Wigga please.
Let’s call this whole Palin/McCain 08′ candidacy (yeah, I said it!) what it is: a sham.
When pressed to name one substantial area where John McCain differs with George W. Bush on one of those Sunday morning news shows last weekend (yeah, I cheated), McCain Ace-Boon-Coon Ricky Davis couldn’t even fake it, and reverted back to that lazy “this campaign isn’t about issues” BS. And I for once happen to agree with Davis: of course this ain’t about issues, because if it were McCain would be getting his dusty clock cleaned.
But the GOP is so smart, they figured out a way to sidestep issues altogether, and make this campaign more about Palin than Obama in the process. Brilliant! Instead of being about gas prices, unemployment, the war, the housing market, education, crime, and vocoders, election 08′ has somehow morphed into an indictment of American sexism.
Never mind the fact that McCain used the same term himself describing Hillary Clinton just last Fall.
So, Palin can call herself a pitbull in lipstick, but when Obama merely hints at the fact that The McCain policies are tantamount to putting lipstick on a pig (a spot-on analogy), suddenly Obama’s a sexist who wants Palin barefoot, pregnant (again), and cooking Mooseburgers? Never mind that when the entire quote is listened to in context. Obama doesn’t even remotely mention Palin, unlike McCain, who mentioned Hillary in the same sentence. And perpetual victims (riiiight) that they are, white women (and some men) flock to her defense, as if white women somehow aren’t valued enough already in this country.
I’ll admit it, I thought McCain was on the edge of dementia when he chose Palin as his running mate. And if you look at her qualifications, it would be hard to disagree with my assertion. But the GOP is so wily, and knows how to prey on the ignorance of Middle America soooo well, that they successfully flipped the script and turned this into an actual contest. They pulled the ultimate sleight of hand and somehow made this about “Government Reform”, conveniently overlooking the fact that McCain’s been part of that very Government for nearly 3 decades. Kudos for them.
Let’s not get caught up in superficial nonsense. Just as in 04′ when the GOP Swiftboated a man who had valiantly served his country at war, in favor of a man who ducked the draft, they’re trying to run game on us yet again. I’ll admit, Obama’s milquetoast demeanor and lack of consistent fire is beginning to wear on me. He’s more concerned with not losing than he is with winning, and he needs to switch his game up quickly. But when you’re talking issues (and let’s not get it twisted, we are talking issues, not pigs) as much disdain as I hold for the Democratic Party, they’re on my side of the ledger more times than not where it matters.
Besides, what’s the alternative? Lipstick on a pig? I’ll pass.
Question: How will the GOP spin Palin’s 9/11-Iraq comment? How in the hamsammich can soooo many Americans be soooo stupid?
Palin Links Iraq to Sept. 11 In Talk to Troops in Alaska [WashPost]
Filed under: Go Sit Down, Grand Hu$tle, Judge Joe Brown Says : "DO BETTER.", Keep It In Your Pants, MLK is Crying Inside, Nigga Nonsense
Since I’m an equal opportunity offender, I couldn’t just pass along misinformation about the Palin family’s real life version of “Guess Who’s Coming To Dinner?”. Nope, I’m on a roll, so how about this Obama-related nugget of Negro Nonsense while I’m at it? Cause, you know, I’m just bipartisan like that.
He almost wrecked Barack Obama’s presidential dreams, and now firebrand pastor Jeremiah Wright has helped destroy a Dallas church worker’s marriage – and her job, The Post has learned.Elizabeth Payne, 37, said she had a steamy sexual affair with the controversial, racially divisive man of the cloth while she was an executive assistant at a church headed by a popular Wright protégé.
When word of the unholy alliance got out, Payne’s husband dumped her, and she was canned from the plum job at Friendship-West Baptist Church, she told The Post.
“I was involved with Rev. Wright, and that’s why I lost my job and why my husband divorced me,” Payne said.
She refused to reveal when the adulterous affair started or how she met Wright.
Payne’s husband, Fred Payne, 64, said he learned of the affair in late February, when he discovered e-mails between his wife and Wright.
“There must have been about 80 of them, back and forth,” he said. “Wright said things like he was going to leave his wife for Elizabeth.”
Wright has been married to his second wife, Ramah, for more than 20 years.
The preacher reportedly wooed Ramah away from her first husband in the 1980s, when the couple came to marriage counseling at Wright’s Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago. After discovering he had been cuckolded, Fred Payne, who had married Elizabeth in October 2006, headed straight for divorce court.
Something about all this just seems hella shady to me, but if you wanna revel in the nonsense, feel free to read the rest of the New York Post article. One note: I guess this dispels the myth of Wright being a racist. Payne, despite the broad nose and whatnot, is one hunned percent Caucasian. You can’t exactly talk black and sleep white in 08′, can you? That’s some 70′s idd’ish.
I guess Jeremiah’s chickens….. have come hooooommmmme. To rooooooooooooosst.
Oddly, I don’t really see the GOP using this as additional anti-Barry ammo, considering Cotton Hill’s well documented dalliances. That would just be wrong for lots of reasons.
Keep it in your pants, Rebb’n.
Question: What the hamsammich was Rebb’n Wright thinking?
OBAMA PASTOR IN SEX SCANDAL [NY Post]
Filed under: Go Sit Down, Grand Hu$tle, Judge Joe Brown Says : "DO BETTER.", Keep It In Your Pants, MLK is Crying Inside, Nigga Nonsense
Since I’m an equal opportunity offender, I couldn’t just pass along misinformation about the Palin family’s real life version of “Guess Who’s Coming To Dinner?”. Nope, I’m on a roll, so how about this Obama-related nugget of Negro Nonsense while I’m at it? Cause, you know, I’m just bipartisan like that.
He almost wrecked Barack Obama’s presidential dreams, and now firebrand pastor Jeremiah Wright has helped destroy a Dallas church worker’s marriage – and her job, The Post has learned.Elizabeth Payne, 37, said she had a steamy sexual affair with the controversial, racially divisive man of the cloth while she was an executive assistant at a church headed by a popular Wright protégé.
When word of the unholy alliance got out, Payne’s husband dumped her, and she was canned from the plum job at Friendship-West Baptist Church, she told The Post.
“I was involved with Rev. Wright, and that’s why I lost my job and why my husband divorced me,” Payne said.
She refused to reveal when the adulterous affair started or how she met Wright.
Payne’s husband, Fred Payne, 64, said he learned of the affair in late February, when he discovered e-mails between his wife and Wright.
“There must have been about 80 of them, back and forth,” he said. “Wright said things like he was going to leave his wife for Elizabeth.”
Wright has been married to his second wife, Ramah, for more than 20 years.
The preacher reportedly wooed Ramah away from her first husband in the 1980s, when the couple came to marriage counseling at Wright’s Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago. After discovering he had been cuckolded, Fred Payne, who had married Elizabeth in October 2006, headed straight for divorce court.
Something about all this just seems hella shady to me, but if you wanna revel in the nonsense, feel free to read the rest of the New York Post article. One note: I guess this dispels the myth of Wright being a racist. Payne, despite the broad nose and whatnot, is one hunned percent Caucasian. You can’t exactly talk black and sleep white in 08′, can you? That’s some 70′s idd’ish.
I guess Jeremiah’s chickens….. have come hooooommmmme. To rooooooooooooosst.
Oddly, I don’t really see the GOP using this as additional anti-Barry ammo, considering Cotton Hill’s well documented dalliances. That would just be wrong for lots of reasons.
Keep it in your pants, Rebb’n.
Question: What the hamsammich was Rebb’n Wright thinking?
OBAMA PASTOR IN SEX SCANDAL [NY Post]
Filed under: AvB Instant Classics, Go Sit Down, Grand Hu$tle, PoliTricks as Usual
So, the media (aka: Fox News) is all in a tizzy about how Tina Fey Sarah Palin and her daughter have been demonized by “Obama surrogates”. Never mind the fact that the “surrogates” they’re referring to also happen to be the media themselves, not anyone officially related to the Obama campaign.
I’ll admit, the now magically vanished DailyKos posts that asserted Palin’s youngest son were actually her grandson were loooowww. Period. All they had to do was some requisite math to figure out that there’s no way her daughter could be pregnant twice at the same time.[1] There’s no way you can defend that sort of “journalism”. Period.
It should be noted, however, that the Palin campaign only announced the daughter’s pregnancy after the DailyKos hit piece placed pressure on them. I still don’t think the kid’s pregnancy is any of our business, but perhaps this rabid speculation could have been squelched had the family simply admitted this up front. Again, I’m not in any way defending the DailyKos, but still. The Palins had to know this was coming.
Now, of course, the “media” (aka: Fox News) is making this election and Palin’s selection as Veep a referendum on sexism in America. As if this is the first time sexism has reared it’s ugly head this year. Of course, it’s easier to be so concerned about the plight of women and candidate’s families when you actually endorse said candidate. Fox was predictably mum as they (and other news outlets, but NOT the Obama campaign) slammed Hillary Clinton. And let’s not forget the constant hatchet job they did on Michelle Obama all Spring. But now, we’re supposed to believe they’re so concerned about sexism. These same folks who called a candidate’s wife a “Baby Mama”.
Wigga Please!
Anyone with a 3rd eye can see the obvious Grand Hu$tle here: the more they make Palin a victim, then less people focus on the sketchy job she did while in Alaska.
There’s the somewhat discussed Troopergate issue, that found Palin doing a Kwame Kilpatrick style revenge-firing of a the State Chief of Police. His problem? He wouldn’t fire Palin’s ex-brother in law. So, she fired him instead. This is actively under investigation.She eats a lot of pork. Despite how much the GOP wants to paint her as a “maverick”, reality is she’s been in cahoots with the very same folks (Senator Ted Stevens and Rep Don Young) she’s now so renowned about having railed against. When she was the mayor of
a tiny cul de sacWassila, she received a staggering $27M in federal earmarks from the very gentlemen listed above. Yes, $27M for a town the size of two Boston city blocks. The majority of that money went to build a train line connecting Stevens’ hometown with Wasilla. Some maverick.She gets more “maverick” street cred from challenging and defeating the $260M “bridge to nowhere”. Never mind the fact that she supported the very same project as recently as 2006. And the final nail in the coffin: while she rejected the money for the bridge, the state of Alaska still kept the $260M and used it for other projects. So, despite what was said, the money was still spent. Again, some maverick.
She is for teaching creationism in public schools.
She has her very own Rebb’n Wright. Pastor Ed Kalnins makes Wright look like a Disney character.
She is so adamantly pro-life that she doesn’t even believe in abortions, even in cases of rape and incest. I can’t see this hardline stance being very attractive to Clinton supporters.
Depending on where you look, she may or may not have been a member of Alaskan Independence Party, which favors the 49th state seceding from the US and becoming a country of it’s own.
She wasn’t even fully vetted for Veep until last Wednesday. McCain had only met her one in person before last Friday’s surprise announcement.
Please note that everything above is all a matter of public record, substantiated by “reliable” news sources linked to below. There’s no hearsay. This is fact.
Again, I don’t have anything personal against Palin. The whole “she needs to be home raising her kids” thing is ludicrous. Peoples’ minor daughters get pregnant by 18 year old d-bags named Levi all the time.[2] You can have both a career and a family. Men do it all the time, nobody complains.
But when you look at the facts, it’s hard for me to believe anybody thinks Palin is qualified to be POTUS in the unlikely event that John McCain meets an untimely demise. I’m sorry, I just don’t see it.
And on that note, what does this say about McCain’s judgement? He practically chose Palin is a kneejerk reaction to gain traction once Obama passed on Hillary. He didn’t vet her properly, and clearly didn’t bother seeing how her past contradicts the very issues he’s so strongly advocating. If he’s willing to make such a rash judgement on someone who could become The Leader Of The Free World, what does it say about his ability to choose cabinet members and make judicial appointments? I’m just sayin’.
So, I’ll peep the speech tonight, and marvel at the fact that Palin has been able to ascend to such heights in such a short period of time. Should the GOP win, her appointment as Vice President will be no doubt be historic.
It’s just not the sorta history I wanna live to see.
Question: Do you feel the Mainstream Media is paying enough attention to Sarah Palin’s actual record?
Palin’s Small Alaska Town Secured Big Federal Funds [WashPost]
‘Creation science’ enters the race [Alaska Daily News
Sarah Palin's ties to Alaskan Independence Party are played down [LA Times]
Long-Standing Feud in Alaska Embroils Palin [WashPost]
Palin Was for the ‘Bridge to Nowhere,’ Too [AOL News]
Palin’s Future Son-In-Law A “Redneck” [CBS Early Show]
Palin’s Church May Have Shaped Controversial Worldview [HuffPost]
[1] I know. Twins. I know.
[2] Uh, would this be statutory rape or is it just me?
I travel a lot with The Day Job, and this travel more times than not means flying. Personally, I actually enjoy flying far more than driving, and don’t even really mind the whole hustle and bustle of going through security. Have there been moments when I’ve wanted to pull a Sprewell on some smarmy flight attendant? Sure. But overall, flying is something I enjoy, and oddly enough, a part of the whole “travelling consultant” thing that I actually look forward to. I’m just weird like that.
That said, the current economic situation with most domestic airlines has been lost on me because when I travel (even for leisure), it’s typically on Southwest. My co-workers used to pick at me incessantly for flying on a budget airline when it’s not even my money being spent, but honestly, any flight that takes off and lands successfully is a good one. And who the heck cares if you get a free box lunch anyway? Boxed lunches are for middle schoolers and losers. So, SWA it is.
I didn’t even realize how much the other carriers were struggling until I recently flew some other airline (I forget which one) to Beantown, and was extorted into required to pay $25 (not my money, but still, it’s the principalities[1]) to merely check a bag. Not an extra bag, mind you, but merely a bag. $25! For a bag.
Turns out that’s just the tip of the iceberg.
Curse you, Jet Blue. That, at least, has been the flying public’s response to news that the airline has found another long-taken-for-granted amenity and started charging for it. Passengers who want to curl up with a blanket and pillow on their cross-country Jet Blue flight now have to pay $7.But it’s hardly a surprising move. All the airlines are struggling under soaring fuel costs (United alone says it will pay an extra $3.5 billion for gas this year) and looking for other places to make up the revenue, so they don’t have to raise fares any higher. Free meals have largely become a relic of flying’s more glamorous past; most of the airlines now charge for checked luggage; and many have, more quietly, raised the fees they charge for making a change to your nonrefundable ticket.
USAirways, which just last Friday became the first airline to start charging for soft drinks, says such fees will bring in $400 million to $500 million a year. “Customers understand the cost of doing business with these fuel prices,” says USAirways spokeswoman Michelle Mohr. “They don’t expect a free hot dog at the ballpark.”
“They don’t expect a free hot dog at the ballpark?” Is this Michelle Mohr chick serious? I’ve been known for bungling sports analogies myself, but they again, I’m not somebody’s paid spokes(wo)man either.
Get your mind right, Michelle.
Ya’ll might think I’m kidding here, but how long will it be before they start charging you to use the restroom? If you think that sounds absurd, then you obviously didn’t grow up in the South, where KMart and Roses discount stores used to regularly charge 25-75 cents to use a coin operated toilet stall. I so wish I was making this up.[2]
I guess this incessant price gouging is really just a sign of the times. America’s New Favorite Pastime is bitching about how overpriced things are. And yours truly, much to AverageSis’ chagrin, is no exception. Everywhere from the gym locker room, to the barbershop (more on that later), to church, the economy, specifically inflation, is all everyone talks about. Stuff costs more, but people aren’t necessarily making enough to compensate for stuff costing more, and as a result, stuff ends up costing even more.
I heard they’re even considering pulling the double cheeseburger from McDonald’s Dollar Menu because (get this) the two slices of cheese cost too much to make the sandwich profitable anymore. Of course this is complete crap. Anyone who’s read anything knows McDonalds makes it money from soft drinks, which have an insanely large profit margin. I guess this is some divine message that we shouldn’t be eating this crap anyway, but I digress.
If nothing else, this whole impending collapse (and inevitable gov’t bailout) is the airline industry has me wondering exactly why Southwest’s competitors can’t copy some of their business plan? Think about it, you have an industry where literally everyone else is hemorrhaging cash, yet Southwest continues to turn a profit. What exactly are they doing that the others can’t seem to figure out?
To the best of my knowledge, Southwest mainly succeeds by flying out of secondary airports (ie: Midway, not O’Hare), keeping their routes short, and their fares low. I’m at a total and complete lack of understanding why the CEOs of Delta, Northwest, Continental, et al can’t simply copy this same business model and get paid themselves. Seriously, how hard is it to succeed if you just copy those who are already successful?
Could one of my MBA wielding members of AverageNation™ break this one down for me?
Anyways, I wish the other airlines luck. They will prolly need it. And I guess in some very small way I feel vindicated for flying Southwest.
Question: Do you fly regularly? At what point does charging for nitpicky stuff like pillows and soda pop become a total and complete turnoff? If you’re business savvy, please explain why the other airlines can’t simply copy SWA’s recipe for success.
Airline Fees: Who’s the Stingiest? [Time]
McDonald’s may yank double cheeseburger from Dollar Menu over costs [NY Daily News]
[1] Name the infamous hood movie character who was all about “the principalities”.
[2] Please tell me I’m not the only one that remembers coin operated toilets.
I travel a lot with The Day Job, and this travel more times than not means flying. Personally, I actually enjoy flying far more than driving, and don’t even really mind the whole hustle and bustle of going through security. Have there been moments when I’ve wanted to pull a Sprewell on some smarmy flight attendant? Sure. But overall, flying is something I enjoy, and oddly enough, a part of the whole “travelling consultant” thing that I actually look forward to. I’m just weird like that.
That said, the current economic situation with most domestic airlines has been lost on me because when I travel (even for leisure), it’s typically on Southwest. My co-workers used to pick at me incessantly for flying on a budget airline when it’s not even my money being spent, but honestly, any flight that takes off and lands successfully is a good one. And who the heck cares if you get a free box lunch anyway? Boxed lunches are for middle schoolers and losers. So, SWA it is.
I didn’t even realize how much the other carriers were struggling until I recently flew some other airline (I forget which one) to Beantown, and was extorted into required to pay $25 (not my money, but still, it’s the principalities[1]) to merely check a bag. Not an extra bag, mind you, but merely a bag. $25! For a bag.
Turns out that’s just the tip of the iceberg.
Curse you, Jet Blue. That, at least, has been the flying public’s response to news that the airline has found another long-taken-for-granted amenity and started charging for it. Passengers who want to curl up with a blanket and pillow on their cross-country Jet Blue flight now have to pay $7.But it’s hardly a surprising move. All the airlines are struggling under soaring fuel costs (United alone says it will pay an extra $3.5 billion for gas this year) and looking for other places to make up the revenue, so they don’t have to raise fares any higher. Free meals have largely become a relic of flying’s more glamorous past; most of the airlines now charge for checked luggage; and many have, more quietly, raised the fees they charge for making a change to your nonrefundable ticket.
USAirways, which just last Friday became the first airline to start charging for soft drinks, says such fees will bring in $400 million to $500 million a year. “Customers understand the cost of doing business with these fuel prices,” says USAirways spokeswoman Michelle Mohr. “They don’t expect a free hot dog at the ballpark.”
“They don’t expect a free hot dog at the ballpark?” Is this Michelle Mohr chick serious? I’ve been known for bungling sports analogies myself, but they again, I’m not somebody’s paid spokes(wo)man either.
Get your mind right, Michelle.
Ya’ll might think I’m kidding here, but how long will it be before they start charging you to use the restroom? If you think that sounds absurd, then you obviously didn’t grow up in the South, where KMart and Roses discount stores used to regularly charge 25-75 cents to use a coin operated toilet stall. I so wish I was making this up.[2]
I guess this incessant price gouging is really just a sign of the times. America’s New Favorite Pastime is bitching about how overpriced things are. And yours truly, much to AverageSis’ chagrin, is no exception. Everywhere from the gym locker room, to the barbershop (more on that later), to church, the economy, specifically inflation, is all everyone talks about. Stuff costs more, but people aren’t necessarily making enough to compensate for stuff costing more, and as a result, stuff ends up costing even more.
I heard they’re even considering pulling the double cheeseburger from McDonald’s Dollar Menu because (get this) the two slices of cheese cost too much to make the sandwich profitable anymore. Of course this is complete crap. Anyone who’s read anything knows McDonalds makes it money from soft drinks, which have an insanely large profit margin. I guess this is some divine message that we shouldn’t be eating this crap anyway, but I digress.
If nothing else, this whole impending collapse (and inevitable gov’t bailout) is the airline industry has me wondering exactly why Southwest’s competitors can’t copy some of their business plan? Think about it, you have an industry where literally everyone else is hemorrhaging cash, yet Southwest continues to turn a profit. What exactly are they doing that the others can’t seem to figure out?
To the best of my knowledge, Southwest mainly succeeds by flying out of secondary airports (ie: Midway, not O’Hare), keeping their routes short, and their fares low. I’m at a total and complete lack of understanding why the CEOs of Delta, Northwest, Continental, et al can’t simply copy this same business model and get paid themselves. Seriously, how hard is it to succeed if you just copy those who are already successful?
Could one of my MBA wielding members of AverageNation™ break this one down for me?
Anyways, I wish the other airlines luck. They will prolly need it. And I guess in some very small way I feel vindicated for flying Southwest.
Question: Do you fly regularly? At what point does charging for nitpicky stuff like pillows and soda pop become a total and complete turnoff? If you’re business savvy, please explain why the other airlines can’t simply copy SWA’s recipe for success.
Airline Fees: Who’s the Stingiest? [Time]
McDonald’s may yank double cheeseburger from Dollar Menu over costs [NY Daily News]
[1] Name the infamous hood movie character who was all about “the principalities”.
[2] Please tell me I’m not the only one that remembers coin operated toilets.
Filed under: Barry 4 Prez, Grand Hu$tle, PoliTricks as Usual, White Men Gone Wild
Well, not exactly, but close enough.
Seriously, I am having a hard time keeping up with all these negative, and purposely distorted ads. Here’s the latest in what will surely be many by the time November rolls around.
Obama didn’t brush off the troops. The story is complex, but that’s definitely not how it went down.
“Why do you think he didn’t go?” Larry King asked Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., on Monday night, referring to Sen. Barack Obama’s scrubbed trip to visited wounded veterans at Landstuhl Hospital in Germany.“I have no idea except that I know that according to reports that he wanted to bring media people and cameras and his campaign staffers,” McCain said.
The part about wanting to bring the media is decidedly not true. There were never any plans for Obama to “bring media people and cameras.” Never.
The issue was, according to sources in both the Pentagon and the Obama campaign, whether Obama could bring Air Force Maj. Gen. Scott Gration (Ret.), an adviser to his campaign.
After the Pentagon told Gration he couldn’t come, since he was officially seen as a campaign staffer and not as a former military man, that’s when Obama scrubbed the trip.
Nor did he brush them off and “make time to go to the gym” as this ad infers. Notice the stereotypical image of a loafing black man shooting a basketball in the background. Because what could be more stereotypically black than shooting basketball?
He actually spoke to troops in a gym in Kuwait, not Berlin as this ad infers, before taking a quick moment to shoot a flatfooted three pointer, which he just happened to make on the first try.
No, really.
I wouldn’t exactly call that brushing someone off and “making time to go to the gym“.
Furthermore, if McCain cares sooo much about our troops, why did he vote down the GI Bill a few months back, and miss every hearing for the past two years of the Senate Armed Services Committee on Afghanistan? Obama can’t hold a hearing on Afghanistan, being that he’s on the Senate Foreign Relations subcommittee on Europe.
Afghanistan isn’t in Europe, last time I checked.
Maybe McCain should try doing as he says before he blames others for inaction.
Seriously, I knew the attack ads were coming sooner, rather than later. With the Olympics on the horizon, the race for the White House is about to take the backburner, so I guess this is Cotton Hill’s awkward grasp at gaining some belated momentum. But is this really the way to go about it?
I thought McCain himself said he’d be beyond this sort of politricks.
Then again, desperation makes people do some truly odd things.
Like this other new ad that links Obama to Paris Hilton and Britney Spears. No, seriously.
And they also made Barry throw rapper Ludacris under the bus for this recent freestyle. No, seriously.
Spool32 and Daedalus, please tell me ya’ll don’t approve of such gutter tactics.
John McCain is thisclose to ending up on a future edition of People I Strongly Dislike.
Question: Do you think the McCain campaign is making a mistake by going negative so early? Attack ads have proven to work in the past, but do you think the America public is truly fed up with them?
McCain Camp Continues Unsubstantiated Inconsistent Attacks on Obama Over Germany Trip [ABCNews]
McCain Ad Links Paris Hilton, Britney Spears To Obama [HuffPost]
Ludacris Obama Video Denounced [HuffPost]
Filed under: Barry 4 Prez, Grand Hu$tle, PoliTricks as Usual, White Men Gone Wild
Well, not exactly, but close enough.
Seriously, I am having a hard time keeping up with all these negative, and purposely distorted ads. Here’s the latest in what will surely be many by the time November rolls around.
Obama didn’t brush off the troops. The story is complex, but that’s definitely not how it went down.
“Why do you think he didn’t go?” Larry King asked Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., on Monday night, referring to Sen. Barack Obama’s scrubbed trip to visited wounded veterans at Landstuhl Hospital in Germany.“I have no idea except that I know that according to reports that he wanted to bring media people and cameras and his campaign staffers,” McCain said.
The part about wanting to bring the media is decidedly not true. There were never any plans for Obama to “bring media people and cameras.” Never.
The issue was, according to sources in both the Pentagon and the Obama campaign, whether Obama could bring Air Force Maj. Gen. Scott Gration (Ret.), an adviser to his campaign.
After the Pentagon told Gration he couldn’t come, since he was officially seen as a campaign staffer and not as a former military man, that’s when Obama scrubbed the trip.
Nor did he brush them off and “make time to go to the gym” as this ad infers. Notice the stereotypical image of a loafing black man shooting a basketball in the background. Because what could be more stereotypically black than shooting basketball?
He actually spoke to troops in a gym in Kuwait, not Berlin as this ad infers, before taking a quick moment to shoot a flatfooted three pointer, which he just happened to make on the first try.
No, really.
I wouldn’t exactly call that brushing someone off and “making time to go to the gym“.
Furthermore, if McCain cares sooo much about our troops, why did he vote down the GI Bill a few months back, and miss every hearing for the past two years of the Senate Armed Services Committee on Afghanistan? Obama can’t hold a hearing on Afghanistan, being that he’s on the Senate Foreign Relations subcommittee on Europe.
Afghanistan isn’t in Europe, last time I checked.
Maybe McCain should try doing as he says before he blames others for inaction.
Seriously, I knew the attack ads were coming sooner, rather than later. With the Olympics on the horizon, the race for the White House is about to take the backburner, so I guess this is Cotton Hill’s awkward grasp at gaining some belated momentum. But is this really the way to go about it?
I thought McCain himself said he’d be beyond this sort of politricks.
Then again, desperation makes people do some truly odd things.
Like this other new ad that links Obama to Paris Hilton and Britney Spears. No, seriously.
And they also made Barry throw rapper Ludacris under the bus for this recent freestyle. No, seriously.
Spool32 and Daedalus, please tell me ya’ll don’t approve of such gutter tactics.
John McCain is thisclose to ending up on a future edition of People I Strongly Dislike.
Question: Do you think the McCain campaign is making a mistake by going negative so early? Attack ads have proven to work in the past, but do you think the America public is truly fed up with them?
McCain Camp Continues Unsubstantiated Inconsistent Attacks on Obama Over Germany Trip [ABCNews]
McCain Ad Links Paris Hilton, Britney Spears To Obama [HuffPost]
Ludacris Obama Video Denounced [HuffPost]
Filed under: Get Money, Grand Hu$tle, People I Strongly Dislike, White Men Gone Wild
I’m not here to rub salt in anyone’s wounds, but just how funny is this recent news that bamas are petitioning Starbucks to keep stores open?
Now that Starbucks Corp. has disclosed the 600 locations it wants to shutter, a phenomenon is taking hold: the Save Our Starbucks campaign.In towns as small as Bloomfield, N.M., and metropolises as large as New York, customers and city officials are starting to write letters, place phone calls, circulate petitions and otherwise plead with the coffee company to change its mind.
“Now that it’s going away, we’re devastated,” said Kate Walker, a facilities manager for software company SunGard Financial Systems who recently learned of a store closing in New York City.
Online, several “Save Our Starbucks” petitions have popped up for stores across the country, including locations in San Diego, Dallas and New York City.
If I didn’t know any better, I’d swear these folks sounded like fiends. Seriously, are we gonna see a re-enactment of this classic scene[1] in burbs coast-to-coast? I sure hope not.
I mean, seriously folks, it’s just figgin’ coffee!!! It’s not “freedom”. It’s just a freakin’ cup of Joe, marked-up astronomically to pay for that John Legend background music and those cushy sofas. When you strip away the calm lighting and “baristas”, coffee is still just beans filtered with water. You can, and should, get the same thing at 7-11 for a fraction of the price.
I read a very good book a few months ago called Punching In by Alex Frankel. In addition to revealing the secrets to success for companies like The Gap, UPS, Home Depot, and The Container Store, the book talked about how Starbucks develops a cult-like following of customers by making their own employees cultlike. There’s the whole “large/small vs venti grande” thing, the ambient lighting, the mood music, the green vs black aprons, the never empty stores, etc. Given the fact that only about 8% of Starbucks’ revenue actually comes from straight-up coffee, it’s clear that folks are buying the overall experience moreso than the drink itself.
So much of the typical visit to Starbucks is so intricately planned out and analyzed, it’s amazing that the whole thing comes off as being even remotely “organic”. For anyone interested in this sorta M.B.A. 101 insider info, I’d strongly recommend peeping that book.
The ultimate irony here is that Starbucks used to be boycotted when they broke into a neighborhood. That familiar green, black, and white logo usually is the forebearer of gentrification, or at the very least, corporate greed spilling over to spoil people’s perceptions of true “Americana” (ie: Mom and Pops stores). So, while I understand why some folks are complete Stans for their mochafrappachinolatte with two shots of soy, I can’t feel too bad. I mean, come on, what’s next? Boycotting to keep Walmart afloat? Please.
Reality is, Starbucks is nothing more than another greedy corporation that grew too fast, too soon, and didn’t anticipate such a sharp economic downtown. Now they’re paying for that greed. Period.
I’m sorry Starbucks customers, but just maybe this is the sorta economic reality check you needed. Coffee is coffee. Save 3 bucks and cop yours at Wawa like the rest of us.
Question: Are you a Starbucks junkie? Is your local crackhouse closing? What’s your drug of choice?
Cities, Customers Launch ‘Save Our Starbucks’ Efforts [WSJ]
More People I Strongly Dislike [AB.com]
[1] Man, what a movie!
Filed under: Frivolous Lawsuits, Grand Hu$tle, That Sh*t Is Racist, The Evil That Men Do, White Men Gone Wild
You guys know how much I hate overly quoting a news source, but sometimes the story is so bewildering, I can’t help myself.
I’m trying to figure out who the biggest d-bag in this equation is: the moron who makes the shirts, or the moron who spends $70 on said shirt and catches a massive beatdown?
When a 25-year-old Manhattan graduate student who was assaulted Tuesday night got dressed that morning, she probably didn’t anticipate that her T-shirt would provoke four teens into shoving her, pulling out her earphones and spitting in her face.The ugly incident over the ugly shirt took place at 8:30 p.m. in Union Square, Braun told Metro, when four African-American female teenagers accosted the student, cursed at her for her shirt and pushed her. According to the designer, the student walked away, but the girls followed her, one pulling the earphones out of her ears, another spitting in her face.
Then again, with a shirt sporting the slogan, “Obama is my slave,” it may have been wise to consider the possibility.
Now she’s suing the $69 shirt’s designer, Apollo Braun, for “all he’s got,” the designer claims.
But the Israeli-born Braun — born Doron Braunshtein — says what allegedly happened to his now-disgruntled customer isn’t his fault — and that his outrageous design reflects not his views but those of “ordinary WASPs.”
“For a lot of people, when they see Obama, they see a slave. People think America is not ready for a black president,” Braun told Metro from his five-year-old Orchard Street boutique.
Braun claims that after the customer — who did not return repeated calls from Metro — threatened to sue, he contacted his own lawyer, who assured him he was shielded by the First Amendment from any legal action.
This isn’t Braun’s first sartorial criticism of the Democratic presidential presumptive nominee. He has also sold shirts with slogans such as “Jews Against Obama,” “Obama = Hitler” and “Who Killed Obama?” — which he claims was so popular, he moved 1,200 pieces.
“I can’t stand Obama,” Braun says, adding that it’s not because the Illinois senator is black. “That’s the only thing I like about him. He opens the door for other minorities.”
“He reminds me of Adolf Hitler,” Braun explained, adding he does not like Obama because “he is a Muslim” — a thoroughly debunked myth.
Braun is certainly entitled to his opinion, this being America and all. So is the student. That’s what the First Amendment is all about, the right to free speech.
On the flipside, just because you’ve got the right to say it (or wear it) doesn’t mean others can’t be offended, and exercise their right to whoop your ass in response. So I don’t feel bad for any of the involved parties. They should all know better.
How ironic.
The lawsuit is another story altogether. The student (whose name is curiously not mentioned in this story – I smell a Grand Hu$tle here) assumed all responsibility for the message conveyed by the shirt when she put it on. The fact that she caught a beatdown as a result is hardly the manufacturers fault.
It’s hardly an exact parallel, but if I wore a Polo shirt to a job interview and didn’t get the gig, could I sue Ralph Lauren? Unlikely.
Peddlers of ignorance like Braun deserve their comeuppance. But reality is, as long as there’s a market full of folks who’ll pay $70 for a t-shirt with a slogan as hateful as Obama = Hitler, Braun’s only a symptom, not the problem itself.
Question: Does the student have a valid lawsuit? Are you offended by this shirt? Do you smell a Grand Hu$tle here, or is it just me?
Obama ‘slave’ shirt sparks lawsuit threat [NY Metro]
[*] Hat tip to AnythingBlack.Net for the link.
