The Dem Debate Charade
January 16, 2008 | 4 Comments
How pathetic. The Dem debate last night, that is. The three blind mice – Clinton, Obama and Edwards – sat pontificating about change and justice for two hours while ignoring the fact that their Dem colleague, Dennis Kucinich, had just hours before lost an absurd court challenge to have his voice included in the debate. And not one peep from the “change agents” about the injustice happening right under their noses. Typical.
NBC “won” their efforts to exclude Kucinich from the debates by filing a true last-minute appeal to the Nevada Supreme Court seeking to overturn a ruling by a lower court judge that Kucinich must be included or the debates must be cancelled. But – get this – NBC declared in its brief to the higher court that its First Amendment rights were being violated by the ruling that forced them to include Kucinich.
And therein lies the problem, my friends: Corporations declaring Constitutional rights. Sorry, but that thumping sound you’re now hearing is Thomas Jefferson rolling around in his grave. Poor guy, he thought it was clear that Constitutional rights were for humans.
Indeed, NBC won because, according to a hundred years of court rulings, corporations are considered to have Constitutional rights. Thus, this nation has created thousands upon thousands of economic Frankenstein’s that have the same rights as humans but none of the responsibilities of citizenship or, for that matter, the moral compass of living, breathing beings. A corporation can, for example, assert its rights to produce a toxin but it will not go to jail – or feel sorrow – for the health and environmental mayhem that toxin causes. Like I said, economic Frankenstein’s.
Worse, we’ve become so accustomed to this absurd inequity of power between people and corporations today that few would find the sad irony in the fact that NBC’s First Amendment rights trumped the rights of a candidate to speak to the nation about his views. And don’t forget that NBC is operating on what is historically considered the “people’s airwaves.”
And so the doors were locked on Kucinich and the silence commenced. NBC certainly didn’t mention it. Worse, nor did the candidates. But they all carried on about change and the evils of special interests and the enormous power of corporations (Edwards) and the memories of MLK and the promise to fight for the little guy and girl. All without even a hint of a smile that should have acknowledged the absurdity of it all. These accomplices to the injustice of locking Kucinich out are going to “fight the power” and “change” America? Yeah right.
Good morning, America.
The State of the Day (updated)
January 15, 2008 | 2 Comments
Ladies and gentlemen, I have reviewed the day and I am pleased to report that the State of the Day is confused. A little of this. A little of that. But not much cohesion in purpose and/or goals. Therefore, a couple random bits:
I had this weird dream that a major media corporation was fighting in the courts to prevent a presidential candidate from appearing on its station’s debates. Oh wait, that’s no dream. Good morning, America.
Yep, MSNBC and its parent corporation, NBC, and the parent of that corporation, General Electric, are in a fast and furious legal battle with Dennis Kucinich over his involvement – or lack thereof – in the Nevada-based Democratic presidential debate. The network (a.k.a.: The Corporate Goliath) first ruled that Kucinich could, indeed, participate. But it quickly reversed itself and literally dis-invited Kucinich. He responded with a trip to the courts and won a ruling that ordered his involvement. And now The Corporate Goliath in control of what was in the good-old-days considered the “public’s airwaves” is now frantically trying to appeal the ruling in every legal venue it can think of.
This is just ugly. It’s repulsive enough that the NBC’s, CNN’s, Fox’s and the like routinely stifle true public debate on the public’s airwaves. But NBC has taken the exclusion of opinions to a new low by actually fighting court orders that are aimed at expanding public discourse.
There was a time, you know, when this nation’s founders feared just such a power grab and subsequent subversion of our democratic ideals. That’s why corporations were originally looked on very suspiciously. The original corporations were only granted a charter for specific time frames in order to complete specific functions deemed in the public’s interest (building a road, for example). When the task was done, the charter was gone.
There was an understandable concern that corporations – when left unchecked – could accumulate too much power and seek to monopolize not only the markets and the business environment but our democratic institutions as well. And here we are, in 2008, with a Goliath of a corporation that owns and controls everything from nuke plants to dishwashers to television and radio stations seeking to unilaterally decide which presidential candidates we should hear from. Like I said, it’s ugly.
This battle for inclusion in the debates could be Kucinich’s shining moment. Well, if you want to ignore his feisty insistence that we end the war now, provide health care for everyone and put an end to the corporate stranglehold over our political and cultural institutions. But Kucinich’s battle for inclusion should put a spotlight on just how rotten the system has become – from the corporate ownership of the media right down to how the votes are being counted. And, if people are listening, it should inspire the pursuit of redress.
But I’m guessing we’re not going to read or hear much about Kucinich’s Sisyphean battle with the corporate Goliath. Most likely because the other corporately-controlled media outlets aren’t going to be too interested in undermining the systemic control they are all enjoying. In other words, it’s their ball. Their ballpark. And their referees.
Good morning, America.
[Tuesday afternoon update: As of 5:00 p.m., the matter of Kucinich v. NBC is still in the courts. The debate is supposed to start in 4 hours and the lawyers are currently giving oral arguments to a judge about -- get this -- whether a candidate who is running a national campaign should be included in the debate. But we should all notice how Kucinich's Democratic opponents are handling the situation. In case you missed it, they're ignoring it and him. If they had a political justice bone in their bodies, Clinton, Obama and Edwards would be joining together and speaking out about it. Better yet, they'd be releasing a statement declaring that if one of the them is excluded, all of them are refusing to participate. But don't hold your breath. Oh baby, feel the change...]
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Hillary on Meet the Press: Yikes. I saw it. We can’t possibly be looking for four more years of that bullshit, can we? The Clintons are robots. And they’re wired for only one thing: self-power. Worse, they think they are completely entitled to it. That’s why it’s so easy for them to slip and slide all over the political landscape in search of the most advantageous place to be. They can’t speak from their hearts because they are robots. I’m convinced of it.
During her Sunday appearance with Tim Russert, she was given one opportunity after another to look human and/or humble. But she refused. And, instead, talked in not-so-nice verbal circles that said this over and over: me, me, me, me. Worse, she wouldn’t let Russert talk on his own show. I am Hillary, hear me roar. And roar. And roar.
Until we change the channel. Click.
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Rinse Your Media Brain.
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Do Not Think Bad Thoughts.
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Do Not Stick Your Finger in the Plum.
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Wash Your Hands.
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And Get Back to Work.
Suffering Through the Dem Debate
November 16, 2007 | 2 Comments
I did it. I watched my first presidential debate last night. And, boy, do I ever feel stupid. What a mess. What a spectacle of nothingness. What an intellectual cesspool. I should have followed the advice of a friend who upon hearing that I was going to watch the debates said that he’d rather “spend two hours making sculptures with the cat litter.” Indeed.
As we all know by now, it was the Dems’ turn to take the stage last night and bicker, posture and pretend that they had a plan to clean up the White House after Bush has trashed it better than any Frat-boy party could have dreamed of. “Oh fuck, it’s morning, dude.” Yes, indeed, it’s morning in America, as Reagan would say. But this time we’ve got one hell of a political and economic hangover.
First, I’ll play the game of punditry and announce the winner as I saw it: Dennis Kucinich. Hands down. The poor guy was the only one who apparently understood they were at a debate with serious issues on the table and serious citizens looking for some answers and some truth. And so he said he’d end the war now, he’d vote to impeach Bush now and he’d roll back the terrible trade policies that are crippling the working class. But before he could get too far into his substantive answers, the moderator of the silly affair, Wolf Blitzer (is that really his name?), would cut him off and give him the kind of brush off that the crazy uncles at next week’s Thanksgiving meals will be getting all across the nation.
Blitzer and the other so-called journalists at the event, Donner and Dasher – or whatever the hell their names were, did their best to keep the riff-raff like Kucinich out of the debate from the very beginning. The media had already billed this as a not-so-kinky threesome between Hillary “Will She Recover?” Clinton, Barack “I’m So Smooth I Don’t Have Opinions” Obama and John “The More I Lose the Closer to the Truth I get” Edwards. The rest of them were basically treated like speed bumps to slow down the pseudo-fighting between the big three.
Kucinich, for example, didn’t even get to respond to a question until almost 30 minutes into the two-hour debate. And that was when Blitzer asked each one to declare – yes or no! – if they’d be willing to support the eventual Dem nominee. Like little yes-only bobble-head dolls, every one of them quickly and enthusiastically answered yes – with the exception of Kucinich. His reply? “Only if they oppose war as an instrument of policy.” Oh my goodness, did someone fart? Get him out of the room! Or at least remind him that this is about posturing and preening, not principles, you fool.
I was just happy that Peter Welch wasn’t there. Imagine the melee he would have caused by stirring up the hundreds in attendance by huffing and puffing over the agenda and the waterboarding-like insistence that politicians answer a question with either “yes or no.” Perhaps he could learn a little something from Kucinich who dutifully played along but – gasp! – answered the “yes or no” question with a little creativity.
Kucinich also mentioned the “impeachment” word, too. It came while the rest of the dawdling Dems were splitting hairs and putting the audience to sleep over their various long-winded plans for stopping Bush & Cheney from going to war with Iran. But Kucinich cut to the chase: “Impeach them now!” Oh no, another fart in the room! Don’t worry, though, Blitzer cut him off, but not before the audience roared with approval. And then the rest of the candidates dutifully doused the passion in the room by carrying on as if the mention of impeachment never even came up. Never mind.
But I guess I’m breaking all the rules by not spending all my time mentioning Clinton, Obama and Edwards. Okay, here you go: Clinton is awful and the Dems are total and complete fools for thinking they are going to get anywhere with her. If she wins the nomination, the Clinton fatigue will be so high that inspiring the base will be a near-impossible task – especially without the Bush-man around to knock around. Sorry, but when you put Hillary against a fresh little Republican prick, she’s going to start sounding, looking and acting really, really old and tired. Well, unless the Republicans imitate the Dems by nominating the Fred Thompson corpse.
Enough with the Clintons. Enough with the Bushes. They’ve had a family member in the White House continuously since 1980. And if Hillary gets the Dem nod, the aristocratic repulsion coupled with her hawkish distaste to the liberal base will make it really hard to counter the right-wing pummeling she’ll be facing. Let’s face it, Hillary’s soooo yesterday. And the more she pulls Bill out to flack for her the more yesterday her campaign looks.
And then there’s Obama. Poor Obama. The guy entered this race with so much hope but now has that pathetic look about him that says one thing: I forgot who I am and what I believe. Sure, he’s got the poise and the stature but he’s been so manhandled by his DC-elite-handlers in the last year that he’s basically morphed into a robot. And when you’re knocked so far out of your own political orbit and the handlers, pollsters and consultants have so clearly taken over, you never know what to say or believe. The result? A passionless puddle of confusion. Thanks, handlers.
Finally, we’ve got the pretty boy, John Edwards. Ain’t he pretty? Wasn’t that a good idea to get that growth removed from his lip? It makes him even prettier. Oh, issues? Sorry, but Edwards seems to have one policy when it comes to the issues: move to the left every time he loses. And the more he loses, the more he moves to the left. Remember Edwards in 2004? He was the typical centrist southern Dem. You know, kind of like Lieberman with a drawl. But then he lost and then he moved to the left. And now he’s losing and he’s moving more to the left. And while I’ve obviously got no problem with his tippy-toeing to the left, he makes it look so trial lawyerish (read: contrived). Whatever it takes to sway that jury, huh? No thanks, I prefer a little authenticity with my political meal.
Oh yeah, the debate. I almost forgot. Or maybe I was trying to forget. Kucinich won. The American people lost. And Blitzer, Donner and Dasher need to check in with Santa.
Happy Friday.
Presidential Campaigns: The Modern Opiates
October 9, 2007 | 2 Comments
Karl Marx wasn’t completely correct in declaring that religion was the opiate of the people. But, then again, he didn’t live in our times so there’s no way he could have possibly imagined the even more powerful opiates in our midst. Imagine, for example, what old Karl would have thought of the mainstream media and the Internet?
But nothing dumbs down the American people more than two-party politics – especially when it comes to their little game of presidential elections. And its only getting worse as the once-every-four-year event seems to be oozing into a nearly continuous affair. Ugh.
Currently, for example, the political landscape is full of landmines – a plethora of issues and outrageous happenings that should have a fully alert populace salivating for action. Just look at today’s headlines: war, torture, health care cuts for kids, mercenary madness, global warming denial by our government, economic malaise for most of us, and on and on it goes. Enough – one would think – to wake the sleepers. Not quite.
Instead of taking it to the streets, the increasingly shrinking percentage of the public who seem to care about any of this are themselves yawning. And when they’re not yawning, they’re telling you which candidate in the 2008 presidential campaign they’re thinking about supporting. You know, kind of like fretting about what to wear to your execution.
If you don’t believe me, just ask yourself when’s the last time you were inspired by political activism or – better yet – the successful actions of a politician. Even the mainstream media has been wondering of late where the anti-war activism has gone . Think about it, we’re a nation at war, polls show more than 70% of the public disapprove of the war, and the mainstream media is wondering why no one is protesting. This clearly ain’t the 1960’s, my friends.
And the answer, my friends, is blowing in the wind. The wind, that is, blowing from the lips of the presidential candidates and their many minions and true believers who have thrown a collective wet blanket on the world of political activism with these words of pure inertia: Wait until after the election and Bush is gone.
Stop the war? Wait. Stop the torture? Wait. Health care for kids? Wait. Stop the illegal wire-tapping? Wait. Yep, just wait until the election that’s still thirteen months away and the changing of the administration that’s nearly sixteen months away to deal with it all. And whatever you do: Do not wake the sleepers. Ah, the luxury of time…well, as long as you don’t mind all that blood on your hands.
Of course, the ultimate irony in this little game of “wait until after the election” and everything will be fine is that it rather perversely requires us all to not only stop thinking and acting in the name of democracy but also to stop remembering. For your political slumber to be really restful, for example, you have to forget that this little waiting game has never worked. Remember John Kerry? Al Gore? Michael Dukakis? Or, better yet, remember Bill Clinton? Yeah, he and his wife were going to give us all health care in – oh – 1992. But you don’t want to think about that, it might give you nightmares while you sleep.
So line up, America. Stick your tongues out and take the little pill from Hillary or Barack or Edwards or Rudy or Mitt. It’ll clear your mind. It’ll relieve that anxiety of having to think about ugly little things like genocide, torture, injustice, ecocide and the like. It’ll make you sleep. And the next thing you know, you’ll wake up in January 2009 and you’ll have that warm feeling of change around you. But it will probably be even better this time because you’ll be awaking to that familiar feeling of a Bush family member handing over the reins to a Clinton family member.
Sorry, but there’s no way around it my friends: Presidential campaigns are the opiates of the people.
Columbus & Blackwater
October 8, 2007 | Leave a Comment
Sorry, but it’s Columbus Day and I can’t stop thinking about Blackwater. And I finally figured out why: They’re one in the same. Columbus was the original rogue mercenary and Blackwater is simply the modern perfection of what he started: bullies running roughshod on foreign soil in the pursuit of obscene profits and the complete subjugation of the native people. So, Happy Blackwater Day!
But, don’t worry, the Bush administration has got the whole Blackwater thing under control. With a straight face and all the confidence in the world that the American public remains in a deep slumber, the Bush team announced on Saturday that they would be sending members of the State Department to monitor the activities of the Blackwater thugs. And the mainstream media ran with the story – sans laugh track – as if it really was a solution.
What the Bush team – and the media — forgot to tell you was that the State Department and Blackwater are about as synchronized and connected as your right hand is to your left hand. And boy do they love to clap together: Go team, go!
Blackwater receives, for example, most of its nearly billion dollar governmental income from…drum roll please…the State Department. So, when Bush announces that the State Deparment will be monitoring Blackwater, he’s basically announcing that the fox will be guarding the chicken coop.
It’s also not surprising that the Democrats don’t have much of a solution for the Blackwater mess, either. The best they’ve got so far is to propose that the total legal amnesty these Rambo-wannabes are acting under while in Iraq should be lifted. Well, duh. But the Democratic proposals for lifting the amnesty remain mired in a Columbus-like mercenary haze, whereby the Blackwater thugs would be subject to U.S. law while serving in Iraq. Sorry, but that’s nothing but yet another slap to the face of the Iraqi people and the so-called sovereignty the U.S. government is pretending to give them.
Sure, lifting the legal amnesty for all mercenaries in Iraq is a must. It should be done today – if not yesterday. But if the Democratic-controlled Congress isn’t going to completely do away with the mercenaries all together, they need to make sure that these hired loose cannons are subject to IRAQI laws. That way, if they want to do the Iraqi crime, they can do the Iraqi crime. And I’ll bet the thought of sitting before an Iraqi judge and jury and the threat of a Baghdad prison will do a lot more to rein these folks in than the current so-called solutions to the Blackwater mess.
If, as the Bush administration and the Democratic enablers claim, things in Iraq are getting better, why not prove it by either letting the U.S. visitors being guarded by Blackwater security agents go unguarded or let the law-breaking mercenaries be among the first to test Iraq’s new judicial system?
Imagine if one of those Democratic presidential candidates would come out with something like that on Columbus Day? It would almost be like they were opponents to this war and the Bush administration’s nonsense. Imagine that.
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