Sunday, October 30, 2011
Site Added
This is to announce the addition of a new site under the "Right Ones" heading. It's called "Sifting Reality" and it's a great blog. Check it out.
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
Poor Girl
I just saw that "Chaz" Bono was voted off of Dancing With The Stars. I don't watch the show, so I don't know if she was any good. The few times curiosity has compelled me to check out YouTube clips of performances, I have been struck by how "un-natural" the celebrities seem regardless of the steps and moves they've mastered. (By comparison, I offer Steve Martin in "Pennies From Heaven". He made himself a dancer.) At the same time, I'm impressed that they've done as well as they have.
But this isn't really about the show. It's about "Chaz". She stated, after being bounced, that she was glad she had the opportunity to show the world a different kind of man. Like that's what the world needs. There's only one Man we need to emulate and one needn't be a man to do so.
Unfortunately, she isn't a man. She's a woman who went through incredible effort to appear to be a man, so that she can pretend to be a man, because she has the emotional/psychological dysfunction of thinking she is a man. She's not. She never was and never will be. It's a most elaborate disguise and nothing more.
Her mother, the idiotic Cher, of course supports her 100%. But not really. Is it really support for a parent to sit back while the child does something so goofy? Wouldn't it be a better sign of support if she urged and provided counseling to deal with the dysfunction? Libs today wouldn't agree, but that's why we are suffering from the moral decline now ongoing.
People like Chastity Bono need our prayers. They need so much more, but that's the best WE can do.
But this isn't really about the show. It's about "Chaz". She stated, after being bounced, that she was glad she had the opportunity to show the world a different kind of man. Like that's what the world needs. There's only one Man we need to emulate and one needn't be a man to do so.
Unfortunately, she isn't a man. She's a woman who went through incredible effort to appear to be a man, so that she can pretend to be a man, because she has the emotional/psychological dysfunction of thinking she is a man. She's not. She never was and never will be. It's a most elaborate disguise and nothing more.
Her mother, the idiotic Cher, of course supports her 100%. But not really. Is it really support for a parent to sit back while the child does something so goofy? Wouldn't it be a better sign of support if she urged and provided counseling to deal with the dysfunction? Libs today wouldn't agree, but that's why we are suffering from the moral decline now ongoing.
People like Chastity Bono need our prayers. They need so much more, but that's the best WE can do.
Thursday, October 13, 2011
More On The "Staffer"
In this installment, I’d like to focus on the, uh, “less than conservative” statements Lofren makes throughout his diatribe. Some of them were covered last time, and it is difficult to really know where to begin, considering just how many there are to find. But by highlighting them, one can easily see why I am suspicious of assuming this guy is a real conservative, as opposed to some guy just working for Republicans. Here we go:
”Ever since Republicans captured the majority in a number of state legislatures last November, they have systematically attempted to make it more difficult to vote: by onerous voter ID requirements (in Wisconsin, Republicans have legislated photo IDs while simultaneously shutting Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) offices in Democratic constituencies while at the same time lengthening the hours of operation of DMV offices in GOP constituencies); by narrowing registration periods; and by residency requirements that may disenfranchise university students.”
The key phrase used above is “onerous voter ID requirements”. Apparently, having an ID when voting is what is onerous to goofballs like Lofgren. But the Wisconsin law merely limits the requirements to a few forms of ID, while still considering one or two more. Presently, it requires forms of ID such as state driver’s license, state ID, military ID. I’m sorry. But anyone not carrying at least one of these into a polling place not only needs to be prevented from voting, but publicly ridiculed by all those who understand the gravity of the situation.
But to the left, this simple, common sense requirement is a slap in the face to every lazy, half-assed creature that doesn’t have the self-respect to comport himself like a responsible citizen when going to perform a most important civic duty. Boo-freakin’-hoo.
As to the devious and diabolical conspiracy of GOP chicanery, it’s not difficult to research a few details of the proposed DMV closings to find there’s no one that will be denied access to getting an ID well before the next election takes place (see Bloomberg Businessweek for 7/22/11---I couldn't get the link to work). They don’t happen every two days, ya know. If one can’t get an ID within two years before the next election, they simply don’t care. And only a lib would suggest the cost of a state ID is a burden. All this Lofgren calls a “legislative assault” which is ”moving in a diametrically opposed direction to 200 years of American history, when the arrow of progress pointed toward more political participation by more citizens.” Apparently, to Lofgren, like as to libs, enforcing standards is an assault on those who would prefer no standards whatsoever. This isn’t the talk of a conservative.
His true colors begin to show more brilliantly when he goes on to say this:
”But domestically, they don't want those people voting.”
OH, NO, MIKEY! DON’T GO THERE!!! But he does…
”You can probably guess who those people are. Above all, anyone not likely to vote Republican. As Sarah Palin would imply, the people who are not Real Americans. Racial minorities. Immigrants. Muslims. Gays. Intellectuals. Basically, anyone who doesn't look, think, or talk like the GOP base.”
No wonder the lefties are eating this stuff up! I wonder if Lofgren is aware, unlike the other lefties, that racial minorities, immigrants, muslims, homosexuals and even intellectuals are often called upon to show legal IDs for any one of hundreds of possible encounters in everyday life. They could all use those same legal IDs to vote! Isn’t that swell?
But of course the concern isn’t for the voting rights of any of those people. Uh, uh. This is a typical lefty use of the B&I card. The bigotry and intolerance card. Because it is easier to cast aspersions than it is to defend the notion that a responsible adult can’t obtain a legal picture ID for the purpose of proving his identity before punching a ballot. But Lofren’s not done with unsubstantiated accusations:
”This must account, at least to some degree, for their extraordinarily vitriolic hatred of President Obama. I have joked in the past that the main administration policy that Republicans object to is Obama's policy of being black.”
First of all, what accounted for the extraordinarily vitriolic hatred of GW Bush? There is no hatred for Obama that is common amongst the right-wing. This is a common lib lie. There is plenty in his policies and positions to hate, but that is not the same as hating the man. We just want him to be an ex-president at the earliest possible date so as to end the push for those damaging and incompetent policies and positions. BUT, that this low-life would joke that the main GOP objection to Obama is his color is probably the one main piece of evidence that this guy is not a conservative or a Republican. This crap screams out for names to substantiate the charge. HE apparently has a problem with the color of the president. But if this turd has any knowledge of any Republican of note wishing to unseat Obama purely on racial grounds, it demands Lofgren get a spine and call the guy out. Until he does, I’m calling this guy a lying liberal.
Here’s a final lie for today’s review of Lofgren’s drivel, and it’s one that Ronny really likes:
”Among the GOP base, there is constant harping about somebody else, some "other," who is deliberately, assiduously and with malice aforethought subverting the Good, the True and the Beautiful: Subversives. Commies. Socialists. Ragheads. Secular humanists. Blacks. Fags. Feminazis. The list may change with the political needs of the moment, but they always seem to need a scapegoat to hate and fear.”
This is a massive overstatement of the truth. While the right has its share of “out there” people, the base is pretty sharp as to what’s going on in the world and in our government. Most of the groups he listed in the above quote are really the same people. I have been bold in stating that what difference there is between a center-left individual and a total fascist is only a matter of degrees, where within those extremes we find the socialist and communist. And certainly we don’t normally find secular humanists and feminists anywhere right of center, with but a few exceptions if at all.
As to what this guy means by “ragheads” is anyone’s guess, but if he is implying that the right has concerns about islamofascism, they are indeed warranted and anyone not parking his head up his own hindquarters is well aware of the threat.
And the push by homosexuals and radical feminists has already harmed the culture and will continue to do so. This, too, is a legitimate and measurable threat, though of a different kind. Lefties won’t see it. It’s not that they can’t, they just refuse out of abject stupidity and moral bankruptcy.
As to holding up blacks as a source of our woes, it is clear that we are solidly opposed to the liberal and socialist types of “black leaders” who have done little to benefit the black community or the culture at large, but continue to annoy with their nonsense.
Thus far, we can plainly see that this Lofgren dude is no more than another liberal regardless of whatever job he worked during the past thirty years. He’s touched on all the same stupid accusations that have been debated here since the blog’s inception. But I’ve been way too detailed in my shredding of this character’s idiocy. With the next and final installment, I’ll get right to his final three highlighted points. This dude is no conservative.
”Ever since Republicans captured the majority in a number of state legislatures last November, they have systematically attempted to make it more difficult to vote: by onerous voter ID requirements (in Wisconsin, Republicans have legislated photo IDs while simultaneously shutting Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) offices in Democratic constituencies while at the same time lengthening the hours of operation of DMV offices in GOP constituencies); by narrowing registration periods; and by residency requirements that may disenfranchise university students.”
The key phrase used above is “onerous voter ID requirements”. Apparently, having an ID when voting is what is onerous to goofballs like Lofgren. But the Wisconsin law merely limits the requirements to a few forms of ID, while still considering one or two more. Presently, it requires forms of ID such as state driver’s license, state ID, military ID. I’m sorry. But anyone not carrying at least one of these into a polling place not only needs to be prevented from voting, but publicly ridiculed by all those who understand the gravity of the situation.
But to the left, this simple, common sense requirement is a slap in the face to every lazy, half-assed creature that doesn’t have the self-respect to comport himself like a responsible citizen when going to perform a most important civic duty. Boo-freakin’-hoo.
As to the devious and diabolical conspiracy of GOP chicanery, it’s not difficult to research a few details of the proposed DMV closings to find there’s no one that will be denied access to getting an ID well before the next election takes place (see Bloomberg Businessweek for 7/22/11---I couldn't get the link to work). They don’t happen every two days, ya know. If one can’t get an ID within two years before the next election, they simply don’t care. And only a lib would suggest the cost of a state ID is a burden. All this Lofgren calls a “legislative assault” which is ”moving in a diametrically opposed direction to 200 years of American history, when the arrow of progress pointed toward more political participation by more citizens.” Apparently, to Lofgren, like as to libs, enforcing standards is an assault on those who would prefer no standards whatsoever. This isn’t the talk of a conservative.
His true colors begin to show more brilliantly when he goes on to say this:
”But domestically, they don't want those people voting.”
OH, NO, MIKEY! DON’T GO THERE!!! But he does…
”You can probably guess who those people are. Above all, anyone not likely to vote Republican. As Sarah Palin would imply, the people who are not Real Americans. Racial minorities. Immigrants. Muslims. Gays. Intellectuals. Basically, anyone who doesn't look, think, or talk like the GOP base.”
No wonder the lefties are eating this stuff up! I wonder if Lofgren is aware, unlike the other lefties, that racial minorities, immigrants, muslims, homosexuals and even intellectuals are often called upon to show legal IDs for any one of hundreds of possible encounters in everyday life. They could all use those same legal IDs to vote! Isn’t that swell?
But of course the concern isn’t for the voting rights of any of those people. Uh, uh. This is a typical lefty use of the B&I card. The bigotry and intolerance card. Because it is easier to cast aspersions than it is to defend the notion that a responsible adult can’t obtain a legal picture ID for the purpose of proving his identity before punching a ballot. But Lofren’s not done with unsubstantiated accusations:
”This must account, at least to some degree, for their extraordinarily vitriolic hatred of President Obama. I have joked in the past that the main administration policy that Republicans object to is Obama's policy of being black.”
First of all, what accounted for the extraordinarily vitriolic hatred of GW Bush? There is no hatred for Obama that is common amongst the right-wing. This is a common lib lie. There is plenty in his policies and positions to hate, but that is not the same as hating the man. We just want him to be an ex-president at the earliest possible date so as to end the push for those damaging and incompetent policies and positions. BUT, that this low-life would joke that the main GOP objection to Obama is his color is probably the one main piece of evidence that this guy is not a conservative or a Republican. This crap screams out for names to substantiate the charge. HE apparently has a problem with the color of the president. But if this turd has any knowledge of any Republican of note wishing to unseat Obama purely on racial grounds, it demands Lofgren get a spine and call the guy out. Until he does, I’m calling this guy a lying liberal.
Here’s a final lie for today’s review of Lofgren’s drivel, and it’s one that Ronny really likes:
”Among the GOP base, there is constant harping about somebody else, some "other," who is deliberately, assiduously and with malice aforethought subverting the Good, the True and the Beautiful: Subversives. Commies. Socialists. Ragheads. Secular humanists. Blacks. Fags. Feminazis. The list may change with the political needs of the moment, but they always seem to need a scapegoat to hate and fear.”
This is a massive overstatement of the truth. While the right has its share of “out there” people, the base is pretty sharp as to what’s going on in the world and in our government. Most of the groups he listed in the above quote are really the same people. I have been bold in stating that what difference there is between a center-left individual and a total fascist is only a matter of degrees, where within those extremes we find the socialist and communist. And certainly we don’t normally find secular humanists and feminists anywhere right of center, with but a few exceptions if at all.
As to what this guy means by “ragheads” is anyone’s guess, but if he is implying that the right has concerns about islamofascism, they are indeed warranted and anyone not parking his head up his own hindquarters is well aware of the threat.
And the push by homosexuals and radical feminists has already harmed the culture and will continue to do so. This, too, is a legitimate and measurable threat, though of a different kind. Lefties won’t see it. It’s not that they can’t, they just refuse out of abject stupidity and moral bankruptcy.
As to holding up blacks as a source of our woes, it is clear that we are solidly opposed to the liberal and socialist types of “black leaders” who have done little to benefit the black community or the culture at large, but continue to annoy with their nonsense.
Thus far, we can plainly see that this Lofgren dude is no more than another liberal regardless of whatever job he worked during the past thirty years. He’s touched on all the same stupid accusations that have been debated here since the blog’s inception. But I’ve been way too detailed in my shredding of this character’s idiocy. With the next and final installment, I’ll get right to his final three highlighted points. This dude is no conservative.
Thursday, October 06, 2011
Still Bored
I am still quite amazed at the support for the Democratic Party by the majority of the black community. How big that majority is these days I have no idea, but it is still regarded as common knowledge that such a majority exists. The question is still, "Why?".
It is said, by some, that the GOP doesn't care about minorities. This is a blatant misconception, if not an outright lie. But as Andrew Klavan suggests in a recent discussion with Bill Whittle on PJTV, the right-wing is at a disadvantage. With the difference between the two ideologies being that one promises to do everything (the wacky left), and the other doesn't (the righteous right), it isn't hard to understand why one might be tempted to support the party making all the promises to do everything. After all, it's so much easier when someone else will do all the heavy lifting.
But the truth, as any honest person can plainly see, is that the right does not suggest it will do nothing, per se. It merely suggests that it will not interfere with each individual's attempts to find success. For those who are "self-starters", this is ideal and in fact, it is an ideal by which this country rose to greatness in the world.
But if one is raised to believe no effort is required, or that there is no possibility of success without the help or intervention of others, then it is easy to see why so many who are in need might be swayed by the promises made by those who are not in a position to keep them. But the promises are not kept yet the support continues.
As I did in the last post on this topic, I draw on black speakers for insights into this phenomena. I offer Thomas Sowell and Star Parker. These two are among the voices to whom black community should be listening. Best of all, the message they send is equally valid to all people regardless of race, as is true of the basic conservative philosophy, where dividing people along racial lines has never been common or even desired.
It is said, by some, that the GOP doesn't care about minorities. This is a blatant misconception, if not an outright lie. But as Andrew Klavan suggests in a recent discussion with Bill Whittle on PJTV, the right-wing is at a disadvantage. With the difference between the two ideologies being that one promises to do everything (the wacky left), and the other doesn't (the righteous right), it isn't hard to understand why one might be tempted to support the party making all the promises to do everything. After all, it's so much easier when someone else will do all the heavy lifting.
But the truth, as any honest person can plainly see, is that the right does not suggest it will do nothing, per se. It merely suggests that it will not interfere with each individual's attempts to find success. For those who are "self-starters", this is ideal and in fact, it is an ideal by which this country rose to greatness in the world.
But if one is raised to believe no effort is required, or that there is no possibility of success without the help or intervention of others, then it is easy to see why so many who are in need might be swayed by the promises made by those who are not in a position to keep them. But the promises are not kept yet the support continues.
As I did in the last post on this topic, I draw on black speakers for insights into this phenomena. I offer Thomas Sowell and Star Parker. These two are among the voices to whom black community should be listening. Best of all, the message they send is equally valid to all people regardless of race, as is true of the basic conservative philosophy, where dividing people along racial lines has never been common or even desired.
Monday, October 03, 2011
A COOL Electric Car?
This article shows a new Tesla electric car that is supposed to out perform a Porsche. The body design is better than decent, and if the performance is as advertised, perhaps what we've been waiting for has arrived. Unfortunately, at $50K, it won't show up in my garage any time soon.
Even more of a concern to me, and I've not yet seen this addressed at all, is how long such a vehicle maintains it's advertised performance before the charge runs down. To be sure, I'm only comparing this to electric devices with which I'm familiar, and it isn't uncommon for those to begin to lose power as it, well, loses power. With the typical internal combustion vehicle, it'll run the same way regardless of how much fuel is in the tank, as long as fuel IS in the tank.
But do electric cars run in this manner? That is, at the end of the day, will this Tesla still do 0-60 in under 5 seconds, or will it take 30 seconds to reach 45mph because it doesn't have the charge necessary to get to 60? I simply don't know as I have not heard this addressed. Maybe someone knows how this is supposed to work. If this is simply not an issue with these cars, then we may be seeing the dawn of a new era.
Another question is, how did this company find financing to create this vehicle? Are they gov't funded or private? There is a demand for such cars, and knowing that, venture capitalists would only need to see a good plan to kick in. I really hope this was done privately. And I really hope the cars will perform as advertised, as well as with the same expectations we now take for granted of our current vehicles.
Even more of a concern to me, and I've not yet seen this addressed at all, is how long such a vehicle maintains it's advertised performance before the charge runs down. To be sure, I'm only comparing this to electric devices with which I'm familiar, and it isn't uncommon for those to begin to lose power as it, well, loses power. With the typical internal combustion vehicle, it'll run the same way regardless of how much fuel is in the tank, as long as fuel IS in the tank.
But do electric cars run in this manner? That is, at the end of the day, will this Tesla still do 0-60 in under 5 seconds, or will it take 30 seconds to reach 45mph because it doesn't have the charge necessary to get to 60? I simply don't know as I have not heard this addressed. Maybe someone knows how this is supposed to work. If this is simply not an issue with these cars, then we may be seeing the dawn of a new era.
Another question is, how did this company find financing to create this vehicle? Are they gov't funded or private? There is a demand for such cars, and knowing that, venture capitalists would only need to see a good plan to kick in. I really hope this was done privately. And I really hope the cars will perform as advertised, as well as with the same expectations we now take for granted of our current vehicles.
Saturday, October 01, 2011
Republican Staffer? Sure.
As I visit the lefty blogs on my blogroll every now and then, I am often distracted from posting here, so involved as I might get with whatever topic is at hand, and having little time at the start. But once in a while such a visit provides a topic for me upon which to opine. Such is the case with today’s topic. I checked out “A Conscious Outpost” and found Ron all a twitter over an essay entitled “Goodbye To All That: Reflections of a GOP Operative Who Left The Cult” by some guy named, Mike Lofgren, a so-called congressional budget staffer for the GOP. I haven’t been able to find anything that spells out what his duties were exactly, and that could mean that he got coffee and donuts for those doing the real work, handed out towels in the bathroom or did some serious filing. Who knows? Perhaps someone can find that out. All I found on Google was a plethora of lib sites equally impressed with his essay as was Ron.
But as I read the piece, very little of what he wrote, sounded like a conservative wrote it. That’s not to say that a conservative couldn’t be fed up with the Republican Party. Indeed, most are. But the gripes sound so very…lib-like. So could this “Republican staffer” have actually been a liberal, or a supporter of Democrat policy?
Like a lib, I saw a lot of accusations, but very little in the way of documentation and evidence. Certainly no arguments as to why what he saw as problems were actually problems, or even real events.
But let’s look at a few, if I can hold it to that.
”Both parties are captives to corporate loot.”
This is a common charge, and a favorite of Ron’s. But like Ron, he really gives no solid examples of a party or politician really being controlled by any corporate entity or lobbyist. This is not to say that such examples can’t be found, as there have been stories of such catering to donor interests. It’s just that he doesn’t provide any.
But of course, the GOP is the worse of the two, which he then fails to truly demonstrate outside of charges that are almost cliché.
”But the crackpot outliers of two decades ago have become the vital center today: Steve King, Michele Bachman (now a leading presidential candidate as well), Paul Broun, Patrick McHenry, Virginia Foxx, Louie Gohmert, Allen West. The Congressional directory now reads like a casebook of lunacy.”
It would be nice if he would give an example of lunacy by any of them. Frankly, each of the GOP candidates have said one thing or another that I’d prefer to see clarified. But “lunacy”? Such rhetoric demands explanation.
”…but I could see as early as last November that the Republican Party would use the debt limit vote, an otherwise routine legislative procedure that has been used 87 times since the end of World War II, in order to concoct an entirely artificial fiscal crisis.”
Excuse me, but as I saw events unfold, it was the an artificial crisis being put forth to justify raising of the debt limit. Remember? Social security payments, soldiers pay, and other such things could not be guaranteed should that fateful date arrive without raising the limit in order to meet our obligations. The opposition party, the Republicans, insisted that no such crisis was at hand, that we could meet our obligations for at least several months and beyond with cuts to spending. The “crisis” was manufactured by the left.
”Then, they would use that fiscal crisis to get what they wanted, by literally holding the US and global economies as hostages.”
Funny how when the prez ain’t getting’ his way, it’s the right who are holding anyone hostage. What of their inflexibility?
”Far from being a rarity, virtually every bill, every nominee for Senate confirmation and every routine procedural motion is now subject to a Republican filibuster.”
Far from being a rarity, virtually every bill, every nominee for Senate confirmation, and just about everything else the left is pushing is worthy of a forceful blockade. This whining about what may be no more than elected representatives looking out for the best interests of their constituents and the country leads to a common lefty gripe that shows up in Lofgren’s footnotes.
”But already in 2009, Mitch McConnell, the Senate Republican leader, declared that his greatest legislative priority was - jobs for Americans? Rescuing the financial system? Solving the housing collapse? - no, none of those things. His top priority was to ensure that Obama should be a one-term president. Evidently Senator McConnell hates Obama more than he loves his country.”
I can’t speak for McConnell, but by insuring Obama is not re-elected, one can improve one’s chances of solving all those issues. The fear, and a legitimate fear at that, is that by a second Obama term, those problems will surely worsen. Obama is seen as the biggest impediment to improving that national situation. So, focusing on removing the biggest impediment is indeed the adult option.
Get a load of this:
” A couple of years ago, a Republican committee staff director told me candidly (and proudly) what the method was to all this obstruction and disruption. Should Republicans succeed in obstructing the Senate from doing its job, it would further lower Congress's generic favorability rating among the American people. By sabotaging the reputation of an institution of government, the party that is programmatically against government would come out the relative winner.”
This is hardly representative of honest reporting. Such anecdotal evidence adds little to the credibility of the author and screams for names in order to prove the allegation. As it stands, it is patent crap. He calls it a cynical tactic, but not as cynical as suggesting it happened at all, or that the tactic is actually one that is actually employed. It has all the tone of your basic conspiracy theory. A few lines later he says this:
” These voters' confusion over who did what allows them to form the conclusion that "they are all crooks," and that "government is no good," further leading them to think, "a plague on both your houses" and "the parties are like two kids in a school yard."”
…apparently forgetting that he said this:
”Both parties are captives to corporate loot.”
Pot, meet kettle.
This is getting lengthy and I’ve barely scratched the surface. I’ll have to hit this in at least one more post. But read the piece and you’ll see what I mean about Lofgren’s likely true political leanings.
But as I read the piece, very little of what he wrote, sounded like a conservative wrote it. That’s not to say that a conservative couldn’t be fed up with the Republican Party. Indeed, most are. But the gripes sound so very…lib-like. So could this “Republican staffer” have actually been a liberal, or a supporter of Democrat policy?
Like a lib, I saw a lot of accusations, but very little in the way of documentation and evidence. Certainly no arguments as to why what he saw as problems were actually problems, or even real events.
But let’s look at a few, if I can hold it to that.
”Both parties are captives to corporate loot.”
This is a common charge, and a favorite of Ron’s. But like Ron, he really gives no solid examples of a party or politician really being controlled by any corporate entity or lobbyist. This is not to say that such examples can’t be found, as there have been stories of such catering to donor interests. It’s just that he doesn’t provide any.
But of course, the GOP is the worse of the two, which he then fails to truly demonstrate outside of charges that are almost cliché.
”But the crackpot outliers of two decades ago have become the vital center today: Steve King, Michele Bachman (now a leading presidential candidate as well), Paul Broun, Patrick McHenry, Virginia Foxx, Louie Gohmert, Allen West. The Congressional directory now reads like a casebook of lunacy.”
It would be nice if he would give an example of lunacy by any of them. Frankly, each of the GOP candidates have said one thing or another that I’d prefer to see clarified. But “lunacy”? Such rhetoric demands explanation.
”…but I could see as early as last November that the Republican Party would use the debt limit vote, an otherwise routine legislative procedure that has been used 87 times since the end of World War II, in order to concoct an entirely artificial fiscal crisis.”
Excuse me, but as I saw events unfold, it was the an artificial crisis being put forth to justify raising of the debt limit. Remember? Social security payments, soldiers pay, and other such things could not be guaranteed should that fateful date arrive without raising the limit in order to meet our obligations. The opposition party, the Republicans, insisted that no such crisis was at hand, that we could meet our obligations for at least several months and beyond with cuts to spending. The “crisis” was manufactured by the left.
”Then, they would use that fiscal crisis to get what they wanted, by literally holding the US and global economies as hostages.”
Funny how when the prez ain’t getting’ his way, it’s the right who are holding anyone hostage. What of their inflexibility?
”Far from being a rarity, virtually every bill, every nominee for Senate confirmation and every routine procedural motion is now subject to a Republican filibuster.”
Far from being a rarity, virtually every bill, every nominee for Senate confirmation, and just about everything else the left is pushing is worthy of a forceful blockade. This whining about what may be no more than elected representatives looking out for the best interests of their constituents and the country leads to a common lefty gripe that shows up in Lofgren’s footnotes.
”But already in 2009, Mitch McConnell, the Senate Republican leader, declared that his greatest legislative priority was - jobs for Americans? Rescuing the financial system? Solving the housing collapse? - no, none of those things. His top priority was to ensure that Obama should be a one-term president. Evidently Senator McConnell hates Obama more than he loves his country.”
I can’t speak for McConnell, but by insuring Obama is not re-elected, one can improve one’s chances of solving all those issues. The fear, and a legitimate fear at that, is that by a second Obama term, those problems will surely worsen. Obama is seen as the biggest impediment to improving that national situation. So, focusing on removing the biggest impediment is indeed the adult option.
Get a load of this:
” A couple of years ago, a Republican committee staff director told me candidly (and proudly) what the method was to all this obstruction and disruption. Should Republicans succeed in obstructing the Senate from doing its job, it would further lower Congress's generic favorability rating among the American people. By sabotaging the reputation of an institution of government, the party that is programmatically against government would come out the relative winner.”
This is hardly representative of honest reporting. Such anecdotal evidence adds little to the credibility of the author and screams for names in order to prove the allegation. As it stands, it is patent crap. He calls it a cynical tactic, but not as cynical as suggesting it happened at all, or that the tactic is actually one that is actually employed. It has all the tone of your basic conspiracy theory. A few lines later he says this:
” These voters' confusion over who did what allows them to form the conclusion that "they are all crooks," and that "government is no good," further leading them to think, "a plague on both your houses" and "the parties are like two kids in a school yard."”
…apparently forgetting that he said this:
”Both parties are captives to corporate loot.”
Pot, meet kettle.
This is getting lengthy and I’ve barely scratched the surface. I’ll have to hit this in at least one more post. But read the piece and you’ll see what I mean about Lofgren’s likely true political leanings.
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