Mitt Watch: What Sandy Tells Us About The Candidate And His Party

Oct 31st, 2012

UPDATE 4pm CST 11/1/12: In this piece, I made mention of Gov. Christie's very public praise of the President's management of the disaster response. The GOP has begun to savage him for it. That didn't take long.

Hurricane Sandy and its aftermath are perfectly legitimate political issues. That anyone would argue otherwise is ridiculous.

Chait puts it best:

"What you are going to see over the next week is an overt effort by Democrats to politicize the issue of disaster response. They're right to do it. Conservatives are already complaining about this, but the attempt to wall disaster response off from politics in the aftermath of a disaster is an attempt to insulate Republicans from the consequences of their policies."

The GOP has directly targeted our national disaster response mechanisms, having gone so far as to threaten a total government shutdown last year while seeking a nearly forty percent cut to first responders. The outright elimination of FEMA has become a central position among the party's leadership.

Mitt Romney's Version Of Capitalism

Jan 13th, 2012
by F. Grey Parker

The GOP 's internal war over Mitt Romney's years at Bain Capital has gotten very interesting during the last few weeks. It is not merely because of the vendetta against the frontrunner being waged by, as David Corn put it, "Newt The Destroyer." The discussion has now gone much deeper than whether or not Romney ran the company properly. For the first time in recent memory, an intra-Republican Party debate has broken out over the moral responsibilities of the management and ownership class within the capitalist system.

The Newt Gingrich-allied SuperPAC, Winning The Future, is basically using the common sense language at the core of both the Occupy Movement and their Tea Party opposites to attack the Romney mythology of what constitutes good business.


The complete video is available HERE

Priorities and Politics Vs. Remembrance On 9/11

Sept, 21st, 2011
by F. Grey Parker

I am re-posting this very disturbing portion of my 9/11 round-up for a reason. That reason is outlined below the video. The video is not safe for work or children.



I am still going through reader correspondence from the last few weeks. My apologies. Some of the mail I am reading is actually quite startling. In particular, I have been taken aback by the sheer level of venom and vitriol directed at me regarding the choices I made while marking the 10th anniversary of 9/11. Apparently, a larger number of my readers than I am frankly comfortable with were disappointed that I didn't take that time to write some anti-militarist screed. More disturbing were the dozens who railed at me for not promoting outright "trutherism."

With all due respect, what the hell is wrong with you?

The legitimacy of these arguments and the veracity of conspiratorial claims were not on my mind that day. Nor should they have been. I have written, in excruciating detail, on these subjects. The only thing that mattered on that day was to remeber the human toll.

Period. End of story.

I am hoping that just one or two of the people who felt the need to condemn my "failure" to capitalize on such horror will watch this.

The Riots and Conservative Audacity

Aug 13th, 2011
by F. Grey Parker

As the meltdown of order overcame England last week, the reading public was simultaneously subjected to a riot online. There were absurd proclamations by the left that this was a desperate response to the "austerity" measures enacted by the Torys. There were equally vulgar rushes to judgment, a lot of them, from the right. In particular, there was an incredible smear from England's answer to Michelle Rhee, Katharine Birbalsingh, who wrote hastily about the "race" of the man who was killed by London's police in the incident that lit the fuse:

"I'd like to know what they’re angry about. Mark Duggan is dead. He was shot by the police in a shootout. Duggan was in a minicab and shots were fired from both the cab and the police elsewhere. A police officer was hurt in the incident and a bullet was found lodged in a police radio. Either Duggan was shooting at the police or the driver of the minicab was. Either Duggan was in the wrong place at the wrong time and his death is a terrible tragedy – he was caught in the crossfire – or he shot at the police and the police defended themselves. Whatever the explanation, the police did not kill this man in cold blood."

First of all, she exposes a viewpoint which is actually shocking... outside of American right wing circles. The casual acceptance of official violence against people "in the wrong place" has become so common here that we in the States no longer raise much more than an eyebrow. Second of all, this sputtering and angry little rant demonstrates again why no one, either on the left or right, should rush to make political hay before the facts are established.

Michele Bachmann Thinks The Jobs Report Is Great... For Her Campaign

July 8th, 2011

In spite of a few lapses in judgment already this morning, this one takes the prize. She just gave an interview with CNBC's Carl Quintanilla that included this exchange (via):

Quintanilla: "Does it strike you that as the unemployment rate goes up that your chances of winning office also go up?"

Bachmann: "Well, that could be. Again, I hope so."

Misdirected Outrage Follows Dubious Obsession

July 6th, 2011
by F. Grey Parker

In the wake of yesterday's verdict in the Casey Anthony trial, I have been stunned at some of the reactions and the wild pronouncements from America's armchair-jurists. I have heard blanket condemnations of our justice system. I've seen the jurors referred to as "gullible," "naive" and even as "stupid." All this in spite of the prosecution having seated a relatively well educated, pro-capital punishment jury.

Should I Say "Sorry" To Andy?

June 10th, 2011

I have been kind of rough with Andy lately. Last week, I noted that almost his entire machine was devoted to Weiner's weener. I then observed that Andy seemed to find Weiner's weener simply too throbbing to let go of. Today, I had the audacity to highlight the fact that his "Big Journalism" stooge, Ron Futrell, whose job it is to critique the failings of journalists, might have committed that little, bitty, oopsy-daisy error that traditional journalists call "LIBEL."

So... should I apologize to Andy? Ummm... I don't think so. But, it would be wrong if I didn't publish at least some of the kind words said in his defense. Right?

The Auschwitz Promotional Tour

Jun 9th, 2011

"I'm going to take you to Auschwitz, live... you can sign up now at GBTV.com"

Well, I guess there really is no limit to what the Crying Man-Baby will do for a buck. What better way for Glenn Beck to hype up enthusiasm for his new subscription-only service, GBTV, than to bring his unique brand of rabid conspiracy theories to...

Auschwitz?!?! 

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, the man who has called Holocaust survivor and Jewish-American George Soros a "spooky dude" and a "puppet master" plans to use the the memory of an exterminated people for media gain. The fact that it wasn't long ago everyone from ADL head Abraham Foxman to Michele Goldberg to Ron Chisud accused Beck of outright anti-Semitism seems to have escaped him altogether.

The full text of his remarks from 6/7/2011(via)
"BECK: I am going to take a tour, and I will announce who I am going on this tour with. But I think it is pretty stunning who's hopefully taking me on this tour. I have never wanted to go because I know the story. I - this is going to be a train wreck, an absolute train wreck. But I think it is important, it's an important part of the story of 8-24. I'm going to Poland in a few weeks and I'm going to take you to Auschwitz, live, as I am taken on a tour of Auschwitz, as I prepare mentally and prepare the story for 8-24. I don't even know what that's going to be like. I have no idea what that's going to be like.

But there are going to be things, live events, including 8-24, with behind the scenes access, documentaries that you won't see anywhere else, interviews and things with world leaders, right there as they happen. It's going to be quite a wild summer. And you can sign up now at GBTV.com."

Morality Vs Criminality

June 9th, 2011
by F. Grey Parker

ADMITTED FLIRT

Yes, this is another article about "Weinergate." What do we know? We know that Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-NY) was responsible for the cheesy underwear tweetpic that has so enthralled all-media. We know that he may have used a Blackberry associated with his official House accounts for flirtatious chat and that might have cost the taxpayers, gee, tens of dollars. We also know that he lied about it. That's it. There really isn't much of an actual story here. Face it. As political sex scandals of the last several decades go, nothing much happened.

Breitbart Can't Get Enough Weiner

June 1st, 2011
Not necessarily safe for work. HT to Jenni for humor support.

Since I pointed out yesterday that Breitbart is fixated on Weiner, Andy has gotten even more excited. He really loves Weiner. He is definitely behaving like a guy who has been waiting for this particular Weiner his whole life. Perhaps this Weiner completes him. One thing is certain, he is going to ride this Weiner as long as he can. After all, this Weiner thing is getting bigger and bigger.

And all this breathless excitement is over... this weener?

We still don't know if this is, in fact, Weiner's weener. All we know for sure is that it is somebody's weener. Let's say that, just maybe, this is Weiner's weener. Frankly, we all got a much better glimpse of Marky Mark's weener back in the day and it was on the side of a third of America's buses.

Maybe Stewart is right, and Weiner's "d**k is just not that big."

SO. How do we prove it? A lineup?

Sigh. I can't take all this spectacular salaciousness but I will say one more thing...

I am secretly longing for Dick Armey to come to the defense of Weiner. I think Andy's head would explode.

Time To Make A Buck Off Fukushima?

April 1st, 2011
Please donate to Japanese relief by clicking HERE

The crisis in Japan is already making some speculators very rich. The third paragraph in a Bloomberg article this morning detailing the ongoing irradiation of the area surrounding the Fukushima Dai-Ichi meltdown reads as follows:

"Cattle futures surged to a record in Chicago yesterday on speculation demand for U.S. beef would increase in Japan after radiation from the stricken nuclear plant contaminated food supplies. Tyson Foods Inc., the top U.S. meat processor, said the country may increase imports."

When most of us see tragedy unfolding, we think of the impact on the lives of those involved. But there are always those savvy players who see opportunity. Look at Larry Kudlow's shockingly honest off-the-cuff remarks about the human versus economic toll immediately following the tsunami:

"The human toll here looks to be much worse than the economic toll and we can be grateful for that."



For all the heat he took over this, what went largely unsaid is how widely held his world-view has become. Listen closely to his whole statement. It never occurred to him that what he had just said was in any way wrong. Frankly, I found his apology more offensive. Oh, he was sorry he said it, alright, but it is "normal" for many in the West to view markets in a moral vacuum. We should be discussing this. But we aren't. We move along after every outbreak of war, disaster or carnage to the next exploitive media frenzy. We rarely take time to shine a light upon those who stick around to make a killing after the killing.

I have complained before about the especially predatory potential of commodities trading. The fiscal right and Libertarians in particular bristle at the suggestion that this might be prevented via some form of regulation. They live in a bubble where there is an inherently benevolent outcome of allowing the "market" to run free. Those who dare to even suggest that there are moral imperatives that demand we limit some financial activity are met with accusations of dabbling with "socialism" or even outright "Communism." I am willing to take the heat from the "free market" zealots this time.

Exploiting Fukushima for financial gain is not just flat out wrong. It's pathological.

Most Obvious Study Result Award

Jan 31st, 2011

FOXNews' Megyn Kelly

Women are used as objects in broadcasting to sell men lousy beer, to sell one another little "massager" devices and according to a recent Indiana University study by Maria Elizabeth Grabe and Elizabeth Sampson, to essentially make male viewers less receptive to detail oriented news and complicated information structures. FOX... we're looking at you.

Last week, Miller McCune reported on the methodology of the Grabe/Sampson Study:

"They created two versions of their own short newscast, both of which featured the same 24-year-old female anchor.

For the first version, the broadcast journalist “was dressed in a tight-fitting dark blue jacket and skirt that accented her waist-to-hip ratio,” they write. “She also wore bright red lipstick and a necklace.” For the alternate version, she was dressed in “a shapeless and loose-fitting dark blue jacket and skirt,” and wore no lipstick or necklace.

“The anchorwoman was framed in a medium-long shot to reveal her upper body, including her upper thighs, waist and hips,” the researchers note. “The news stories were about local matters, including United Way fundraising, interest rate changes for federal loan programs” and the like.

The just under 400 participants were randomly assigned to watch one version or the other. All then filled out questionnaires summarizing their impressions of the reporter. They were also asked four multiple-choice questions about her physical appearance, and 10 multiple-choice questions about the content of the five stories she presented."

From their report in the magazine Communication Research:

"Male participants saw the sexualized version of the anchor as less suited for war and political reporting. They also encoded less news information presented by the sexualized than her unsexualized version. Conclusions were drawn in line with evolutionary psychology expectations of men’s cognitive susceptibility to visual sex cues. Women participants, on the other hand, did not vary across conditions in their assessments of the anchor’s competence to report on war and political news. Moreover, they encoded more news information presented by the sexualized than unsexualized anchor condition."

In an ironic turn of events, Tucker Carlson's increasingly low-rent rag, The Daily Caller, "reported" on the findings by confirming them:

"In the words of Antoine Dodson, “hide your wife,” at least if she happens to be a television anchor."

I will go out an limb here at the risk of alienating some of my female contributors and readers. When I look at the photo of FOXNews' Megyn Kelly (above left) I am NOT thinking about politics.