Why I don’t blog about politics much

Well, I haven’t been blogging about ANYTHING in the last year, so I guess it’s not surprising that I haven’t blogged about politics. But when I did start posting again it was all Mommy blogging. Do you know why?

Because politics are F***ING DEPRESSING, that’s why.

When I got back into blogging I spent some time reading the hits from my archive. You know, click on a post, read it, then click on the “related posts” linked at the bottom. It’s a great way to kill time while you’ve got an infant attached to your milk-makers 🙂

While some of my political posts still make for good reading, I got more enjoyment out of the personal recollections I’d captured for posterity. There are so many political bloggers, most of whom are smarter than me / work harder than me / have more time than me, etc. I don’t think I, or the world, is missing much if I don’t add my two cents. On the other hand, if no one writes about the digestive gymnastics of Little Gronk, no one will remember them a few weeks hence.

So that’s the personal aspect.

On the wider front . . . I’ve just gotten so damn cynical and disillusioned when it comes to politics. I still follow the news – Ace of Spades is my first and last read of the day – and every time I think things can’t sink lower . . . they do.

No politician of any stripe is an angel. Republicans have clearly earned and continue to deserve their moniker of The Stupid Party. But the crap that the White House pulls on a weekly basis boggles my mind. Here’s a quick recap from Jim Geraghty’s Morning Jolt email yesterday (the original includes hyperlinks, but they didn’t paste and I’m just too damn lazy to do it manually):

Similarly, I loved Pete Wehner’s post “New Obama Narrative: Epic Incompetence,” but I feel like it needed a bit of expansion. Because it’s not merely the competence that never arrived after all the hype of 2007 and 2008, but the entire gamut:

Bipartisanship: Obama doesn’t really respect anyone who disagrees with him; he prefers to adopt an “only adult in the room” pose, demagogue issues, and attack straw men. He’ll talk about the need for a “new tone” and then stand by as his allies attack opponents as “not one of us”, accuse them of committing felonies without evidence, and even of causing cancer. Far from the post-partisan healer he was sold as in 2007-2008, he’s a ruthless demagogue who urges his followers to “get in their face” and “punish our enemies.” “Don’t think we’re not keeping score, brother.”

Honesty and willingness to acknowledge inconvenient truths: He thinks nothing of saying something that isn’t true if it helps him at the political moment — “if you like your plan, you can keep your plan.” When the promise is broken, it’s everyone else’s fault but his .

Engagement with the world: The president is functionally an isolationist and not that interested in the world beyond our borders. Russia’s aggression doesn’t trouble him enough to move beyond routine sanctions. Whether it’s the territorial saber-rattling of China and Japan, the Iranian nuclear program, the Syrian Civil War, increasing violence in Iraq, the increasingly routine provocations of the North Koreans, or the prospect of leaving a bloody, Taliban-re-conquered mess in Afghanistan. . . it’s clear from his weak-tea proposals, sporadic public comments, tone, and body language that the president wishes it all would just go away.

Consistent Concern: He doesn’t give a rat’s tush about half the things he criticized in the Bush administration: the increasing national debt, a dysfunctional VA, domestic surveillance, concerns about Americans’ privacy, meeting with lobbyists in the White House, appointing lobbyists to high-level White House staff positions, rewarding big-time donors with ambassadorial appointments. . .

A Focus on What Matters Most: His own staffers have described him as “impatient and disengaged” in key meetings, and the intelligence community has wondered how closely he reads his briefings. With increasing frequency, he says he learns about problems within his own administration from media reports. (See the NRCC’s new “Obama Excuses” page.) He really enjoys the good life of the presidency and doesn’t see any reason why he should limit public expenditures on himself and his family during hard economic times. He recently laughed, “That’s the good thing about being president, I can do whatever I want.”

Accountability: Obama is perfectly fine with letting his subordinates investigate themselves and assess their own failures — the Justice Department’s investigation of itself in “Fast and Furious”, the U.S. State Department’s review of its own actions before, during and after the Benghazi attacks; he picks his own people to examine his own NSA policies on domestic surveillance, and now Eric Shinseki will get to the bottom of any wrongdoing at the Department of Veterans Affairs. He rarely if ever fires staffers; the rare cases, like General Stanley McChrystal or Jofi Joseph, involve cases where an underling criticized him. Even the most consequentially incompetent, like Kathleen Sebelius, are given a soft landing months after they’ve made crucial errors to avoid administration embarrassment.

Respect for the Constitution: He was sold to us as a Constitutional law professor; in office, Obama enacted policies that violated almost every amendment in the Bill of Rights.

I think everyone who cares or thinks seriously about politics, world events, government or the like should be in favor of Republican presidents. Not because they will be superior in any way to Democratic presidents, but solely because Republican presidents are pressured and held accountable by the press while Democratic presidents just aren’t.

Sorry to end the week on a bummer note, but I’ve been meaning to mention this. To make it up to you, here’s a picture of Bubber without his cervical vertebrae:

Failed Obama operation provides guns used to massacre Mexican teenagers*

First, let’s remind everyone that Fast and Furious is not a “botched” operation. To be merely “botched,” one would have to show how shuffling weapons over the border to Mexico without tracking devices or any attempt to keep an eye on them, and without informing the Mexican government, was going to have any kind of a useful or desirable result. Lacking grounds for “botched,” I’ve labeled the operation “failed.”

(Although some of my fellow gunbloggers are quite confident that the operation worked exactly as it was supposed to. I.e., American guns were used to kill Mexicans, so we obviously need to crack down on the sale of American guns. All that’s missing is the legislation to do so, and it’s only missing because the details of the mess came out. But I digress.)

Univision broke a story recently that guns from Fast and Furious were used in the massacre of teens at a party. Photographs of a body in the street and leftover pools of blood the next day provide the kind of gory attention-grabbing that news media *usually* love and would play every hour on the hour for the next week and a half.

Looking Glass News can’t cover this, because my imagination isn’t that good. How’s yours? Can YOU imagine how it would play out if President McCain’s administration started an operation that resulted in Mexican cartel members using American and American-provided guns to murder teenagers at a party in Mexico?

Somehow I do NOT think it would result in McCain going on The View to be eye candy. Nor do I think NBC News’ home page would include as its main article a story about rhinos in India.

Our mainstream media is an utterly biased disgrace.

*Note: This was my first try at Truthaganda

Thoughts on the Middle East situation

In no particular order. . .

– Christopher Stephens seemed like a good and decent man (see LawDog for some background). Keep his family in your thoughts and prayers.

– I thought of his family when I saw those terrible pictures of Stevens’ body being paraded/escorted through the streets. (If you’re not aware, what looks awfully like a triumphant displaying of the slain ambassador through the streets has been alternately presented as a crowd trying to carry him to the hospital. I fervently hope it’s the latter and think the pictures look much more like the former.) I came down on the side that the pictures are newsworthy, but I shrivel to think that his loved ones saw them and know that the world is seeing them.

– Our ambassador was slain when his poorly-defended and not-so-secret consulate in Libya was attacked. Our sovereign soil in Egypt was invaded. Our official Twitter feed from the Egyptian embassy was full of unbelievably f***ing stupid and craven apologies before and after the attack. And what’s shocking about all this is … that Mitt Romney commented harshly on it? Do we live in bizarro world??

– Also, it’s about as clear an example of press bias as I’ve seen in the last decade. You see, they had no problem with a certain Candidate of Hope of Change took to CNN to blast the current president and his opponent in 2008 directly after deaths of our servicemen. Needless to say, the story did not suddenly shift from the actual situation in the Middle East to What This Particular Candidate Said About It, How He Said It, and Doesn’t He Regret It.

– I think the proper response when asked about that infantile, badly-produced film about Islam that *supposedly* sparked the latest protest party is, “Yeah, it’s stupid and disrespectful. SO F***ING WHAT? We’re Americans! The right of private citizens to say stupid, infantile, offensive things is very well established. Sod off.”

– I say *supposedly* because I find it unlikely to the point of pure gullibility that spontaneous protests arose in two different countries on the anniversary of 9/11 due to a short film with clips on YouTube that practically no one had ever heard of before. Doesn’t it remind you of the Danish cartoon stuff? You know, the event where a Danish newspaper published cartoons of Mohammed. . . and not much happened. UNTIL some supposedly pious Muslims decided that the actual cartoons in the newspaper just weren’t all that bad (they weren’t) — so they added a few more that were FAR, FAR worse than anything published and went on a Middle East rage-grievance tour. As far I’ve heard, the imams haven’t had to go into hiding or been attacked by crazies, so I guess when THEY do it it’s okay, but if someone ELSE does it it’s time to burn flags and maybe kill people.

I’m not usually isolationist, but times like these make me want to wash my hands of the whole region. (Except any countries with a proven commitment to rule of law, democracy, free speech, women’s and homosexual’s rights, etc. I can only think of one country over there that fits that criteria but I’d be glad to hear of more.)

Looking Glass News: the Romney Gift Registry

I haven’t done this in a loooooong time, but let’s go back through the looking glass and pretend that the Republican candidate did this . . .

Governor and Republican Candidate Mitt Romney horrified people across the nation when he suggested that people donate to his campaign in lieu of birthday, wedding or anniversary presents.

“It’s creepy!” exclaimed Maureen Dowd. “What kind of weird, sick, religious cult does he belong to that he thinks we should give HIM money to mark important life events? Is THIS what the Mormon church calls normal?”

New York Times columnist Charles Blow was equally appalled. “Clearly, Governor Romney has no idea what is appropriate regarding private celebration and political panhandling. He should shove this idea in his magic underwear.”

Yale professor Harold Bloom wrote, “We have long been told to render unto Caesar what is Caesar’s — and ONLY that. Governor Romney must think that birthday parties and weddings fall into this category. I can be forgiven for dreading a strengthening of theocracy in our civil culture.”

There are those who say that Romney simply misjudged how this marketing campaign would make him and his campaign appear to the average voter. However, the rest of us are quite sure that this is an evil and scurrilous attempt to insert himself, his faith, his church and his filthy polygamist beliefs into the daily lives of innocent Americans. For shame.

*Thanks to Walter Russell Mead for collecting the examples
**Seriously. Wouldn’t all your liberal friends and family find it creepy as hell if Romney did this?

MSNBC caught deceptively editing Republican candidate

I know. You’re shocked, right? But remember, the MainStream Media is called that for a REASON – a lot of people still use it as their only news source. It’s therefore important to point out when that news source is DISHONESTLY EDITING.

Go over to SooperMexican to see how their attempt at creating a “supermarket scanner” moment for Mitch Romney is disproved by an unedited handheld video. (How do I know they wanted it to be his “supermarket scanner” moment? Because Andrea Mitchell asked her audience if this would count as such.)

Now. What have we learned?

1) MSNBC will edit video about Republican candidates (or “white Hispanics”) to make a point.
2) If that “point” is not accurate or true, well, whatever, f*** you.
3) ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS GET YOUR OWN VIDEO.

Yes, we smashed a Nikki Haley pinata, but don’t worry, it’s all in good fun!

I’ve had this open in my browser for a while but didn’t get around to sharing it. Did you know that the leader of the South Carolina AFL-CIO smashed a pinata with Nikki Haley’s face on it? Repeatedly?

But that’s not the part that made me giggle with hysterical glee. It was the reassurances that they weren’t MAD when they did it – so it’s all okay!! [emphasis mine]

“They made it and I would have played the game with them no matter it would have been pin the tail on the donkey with Nikki Haley’s face on it. I still would have played,” Dewitt told ABC News over the phone. “There was no ill intent. We were certainly have a good time. I’m not mad or angry.”

“We’ve been the brunt of her comments now for two years and that’s what the whole thing was. She’s been whacking at us over the last two years,” Dewitt, who has been president of the South Carolina AFL-CIO for the past 16 years and will retire at the end of June, continued. “Anyone that knows me knows there was no ill intent at all. Our folks don’t go to speeches with guns and things like that. We have very loving people in our unions who will take up money for people or a vet. We just heard these comments by the governor for over the two years. They were using a memoir of the last two years I’ve lived under her leadership.

NOW do you understand? It’s okay! They were happy shiny people when they smashed her face, not those evil gun-toting vet-hating wingnuts! So everything’s fine!!!

And one more dollop of humor for you: “Nikki Haley tries to capitalize off video of union leader.” Yes, really. That wily and evil Nikki Haley!!!

President Obama: “Polish Death Camp”

Oh FOR CRYING OUT LOUD. ARE YOU FREAKING KIDDING ME?!?!

WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House said President Barack Obama misspoke on Tuesday when he referred to a “Polish death camp” while honoring a Polish war hero.
The president’s remark had drawn immediate complaints from Poles who said Obama should have called it a “German death camp in Nazi-occupied Poland,” to distinguish the perpetrators from the location. Polish Foreign Minister Radek Sikorski called it a matter of “ignorance and incompetence.”

[SNIP]

The Polish Embassy in Washington, on its website, has a “how-to guide” on concentration camps that states that references to Polish death camps are “factually incorrect slurs” that should be corrected.
The Associated Press Stylebook states that when referring to “World War II camps in countries occupied by Nazi Germany, do not use phrases like Polish death camps that confuse the location and the perpetrators. Use instead, for example, death camps in Nazi-occupied Poland.”

No wonder they so rarely let our President go off teleprompter.

I would like you to close your eyes for a moment and imagine the reactions had a President McCain said those exact words. I’m thinking words like “senile” and “incompetent” and “gratuitously insulting.”

Anyone can have a slip of the tongue. This happens to be a pretty dumb one, and I can’t help but feel it’s going to be buried by the mainstream media as much as possible.

Hat tip: Ace of Spades

AMAZING sexism on the Food Network

I knew I didn’t like Alex Guarnaschelli. I’m sure her food is wonderful, but she came across as a real bitch on The Next Iron Chef – Masters. Regardless, I was AWED by what came out of her mouth on the Chopped: All-Stars episode we watched last night.

Chris Santos was talking about his chosen charity: a research foundation for Rett Syndrome. He explained that one of his relations (cousin, maybe?) had Rett Syndrome, this awful neurological disease that affects pretty much only girls. He showed the judges a picture of the girl and a tear dripped down Alex’s cheek. I was thinking, “Wow, she was really touched by that” when they cut to her interview and she said THIS (in a really thoughtful, emotional voice):

“I just learned *so much* about Chris Santos. I can’t believe he cares so much about this disease when he’s a man and it affects only girls.”*

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Did you know that you’re only allowed to care about diseases that YOU YOURSELF might someday contract? That’s right, women don’t care about testicular cancer or hemophilia and men can’t be affected by breast cancer or female genital mutilation.

This was all news to me, but hey! You learn something every day!

*paraphrased by memory

Boy howdy, this makes me want to subscribe to the local news rag

I pulled up behind this van the other day:

My absolute favorite part is where the “Orlando Sentinel” sticker has been covered up by the “Corporations Are Not The People” sticker. They’re not the people, they’re just how I make my livelihood . . . so down with ’em!

The one thing I agree with? He doesn’t seem to be picky about the Republican candidates. Although whereas he wants to pink slip all of them, I’d hire any one of then to replace our current president.

A political dig? Or am I being oversensitive?

I’ve mentioned before how much my Psych text irritates me. The discussions of Erikson, Piaget, Vigotsky etc. Are interesting, but it never misses a chance to show that the United States is really, really bad — worse than Romania and Japan and just about everywhere else — when it cones to life expectancy. Or ageist stereotypes. Or glass ceilings. It irks the hell out of me.

So, when I ran across this chart, I assumed it was another slap at my political viewpoint:

(sorry for the size, but it’s not readable otherwise)

I read it and thought, Yup, those stick-in-the-mud conservatives! They’re all scared of change and new experience and would never go traveling, or pet a turtle, or try riding a horse, or shooting a machine gun, or climb a mountain. Nope! Only liberals are cool and open!!

But maybe I’m jumping to conclusions. After all, a lot of folks who think like me don’t label themselves conservatives. Maybe they didn’t mean the political labels but were speaking generally of temperament and the attitude toward life.

What do you think?