Come On Sense

“If your party can run the nation for eight years, and then have a national convention and not invite Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld, Colin Powell, Karl Rove, or Tom DeLay, you’re not a political movement, you’re the witness protection program.”

 

And finally, New Rule: Republicans don’t have to accept evolution, economics, climatology, or human sexuality, but I just watched a week of their national convention, and I need them to admit the historical existence of George W. Bush. (audience applause)

If your party can run the nation for eight years, and then have a national convention and not invite Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld, Colin Powell, Karl Rove, or Tom DeLay… (audience applause) you’re not a political movement, you’re the witness protection program.

In fact, Republicans, next time, instead of holding a convention without your most recent President, your most recent Vice-President, your most recent Vice-Presidential nominee, and most of the runners-up from your most recent primary, why not just wave one of those Men in Black memory eraser wands in our face, and make us forget everything we know about you? (audience applause)

Now, I’m sure Sarah Palin would’ve been uncomfortable at the convention — much of it was held indoors — but isn’t it traditional to invite the last nominee for VP? Even if conceiving her was a mistake, aren’t you morally obliged to bring her to term? (wild audience applause)

Cuz if you went by what they said this week, here’s how the history of America went down. OK, first the Founding Fathers — you know, the original teabaggers — they got the Constitution directly from Jesus. Then the first Republican President, Abraham Lincoln, freed the slaves. And the Republican Party to this very day has never stopped fighting for the black man.

Except that Romney and Ryan are now polling at zero. Zero percent among blacks. They couldn’t get a black guy to vote for them if they gave him a Lincoln! (audience applause) And Mitt Romney may yet try that.

And then came, of course, St. Reagan, who was the innovator of the Republican Party’s greatest power, the ability to completely forget. So I’m just asking, how can we trust Republicans with the future, when as far as I can tell from Tampa, the world ended the year Reagan left office? Like in 1988, we all just fell into a deep sleep listening to “Pour Some Sugar on Me”, and when we woke up on Monday morning, Obama and his Negro army had wrecked the joint. (wild audience applause)

I mean, come on! George Bush was President just 3 ½ years ago! They talk about him like he’s some vague pop culture reference from way back, like the Snapple lady, or that rap duo who wore their pants on backwards. He was President for two terms! It’s like holding a Star Trek convention, and not inviting Shatner.

Because, let’s be real. If you’re trying to sell what the Republican Party can do for you, it’s best not to remind people of what its recent fuck-ups actually did to you. (audience applause) Especially during hurricane season!

The past accomplishments of the team that tanked the economy, legalized torture, and made the surplus disappear, is not the best advertisement for the future, for the same reason you never hear the words, “from the director of Corky Romano….”

A recent piece on NBC news left me so disgusted that I had to stop and take several deep breaths. The title of the article was “Social Security surplus dwarfed by future deficit”. As usual, the reporters who produced the story missed entirely the real issues. They, instead, produced a fluffy piece of crap akin to what we have all come to expect from these so-called journalists. Continue reading “Leaving You No Choice” »

Americans heard from the Justice Department today. Of course, what they heard they already knew. In an article in the Washington Post, we were able to sing along to the tired old refrain. The lyrics may differ, but the melody is always the same. Continue reading “What We Already Knew” »

It seems that every day brings a new demonstration of how subhuman those associated with politics have become. A recent ad by the Obama team has been shown to be a cascade of falsehoods. The so-called media, shallow water, fetid swamp that they are, is righteousness on parade. The very people who pretend to be reporters are outraged by the very people who pretend to be human.

Of course, as someone who has been watching from outside the cesspool, there is no surprise at discovering that everyone associated with the political process is the mammalian equivalent of a cow pie. Surprise surprise. Politicians lie. Surprise surprise. The media is populated by naïve children. Continue reading “Pathetic Political Posturing” »

A recent article in the Washington Post demonstrated for all to see that the privileges of the top 1% of American society is not limited to red states or blue states. The article, Surge in D.C. tax office settlements reduces commercial property owners’ bills, detailed how the government of the District of Columbia doled out massive reductions in tax bills to the wealthiest real estate developers. As a result of a process called “settlement”, these wealthy people saw the taxable value of the real estate reduced by $2.6 billion. The settlements consistently went against the recommendations of the professional appraisers employed by the district government. The stench got so bad that the FBI has now begun an investigation. Continue reading “The 1% In Washington DC” »

Today there are two Americas standing before us. The first is the amazing vision of what thousands of Americans can accomplish when they work together for a common purpose. Early this morning East Coast time a rover the size of a small SUV landed on Mars. The NASA team shepherded this research vehicle over millions of miles. Then came the seven minutes of terror. Using what can only be described as a Rube Goldberg landing system, the rover was deposited safely on the surface of the red planet. With the entire world watching, these Americans proved yet again that humans are capable of truly amazing things and that American humans can stand out as beacons to the rest of the world. These thousands showed humanity what can be accomplished when goodhearted people work together to achieve a common purpose. Continue reading “A Day of Contrasts” »

I read with great sadness the description of the atrocity committed at the Sikh Temple in Milwaukee. That sadness quickly changed the outrage. I’m not particularly interested in understanding the motivation of the individual who committed this abomination. Nothing in this person’s mind could justify what has been done. Reflecting on what happened in the central part of the United States of American, I think it is important for all Americans to think long and carefully.

These are not Americans

Such actions are so far from what it means to be an American that it is impossible to frame them within any concept of what it means to be an American. Throughout the world we stand as a beacon, we are a society which believes in the rule of law and that actions outside of such a rule are abhorrent to the fundamental ideas that rest at the foundation of our Republic.

Unless you are willing to deny allegiance to the fundamental rule of law, there is nothing left but the inescapable conclusion that the person who perpetrated this abomination cannot, under any terms, qualify as an American. To do otherwise is to abandon the foundation of the social compact which unites us as a nation. No matter what other legal remedies our society should seek (and I hope those remedies are sought to the fullest extent), we can’t in good conscious stand up and pledge allegiance to the flag while still considering such people as Americans.

The challenge to leaders

We should all pay careful attention to the responses of those who are either leading or our striving to lead this nation. None of them have any option but a complete and utter condemnation of what this individual has done. None of them have any option but a complete and utter condemnation of those people who would consider doing what has been done. None of them have any option but a complete and utter condemnation of those who support, either directly or indirectly, what has been done.

What is at stake is nothing short of our soul as a nation. If we do anything other than completely condemn the action and those who committed, we will become nothing more than criminals ourselves. We will be opening the door to becoming a lawless nation and suffer the consequences. Our test as citizens is how we respond to such events and to such people. In each utterance, we define ourselves and either embrace the fundamental ideas that underpin the United States of America or deny them.

These are Americans

The criminal who perpetrated this atrocity has no right to the claim of being an American citizen. In my view, such a privilege ought to be revoked. In addition to the legal process which will follow, he should be stripped of his citizenship and deported. There is no room in this country for individuals who believe that they have the right to take the law into their own hands and serve as judge, jury and executioner.

But the people who were killed do deserve the title American citizen. They deserve to be treated as casualties of a criminal act. Their families deserve our compassion and support. They are entitled to be treated with courtesy and dignity as Americans. Nothing short of that will do. Nothing short of that will keep us from being consigned as citizens of yet another lawless nation. Nothing short of that will honor this nation’s founders and the men and women who have given the last full measure in defense of what they had established.

The challenge to American citizens

If you are willing to support, either directly or passively, what this individual has done, you are as guilty as that person who murdered those people. But beyond that, you have lost the right to be considered an American. It is impossible to read the founding documents (the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution of the United States and the Bill of Rights) and come to any other conclusion. It is true that the legal system will deal with this perversion of humanity. But the clarion call to all American citizens is to reflect on whether or not such behavior is coincident with being an American. Personally, I think it is not.

In a recent issue of The Fact Checker, Glenn Kessler gave a “fully accurate” rating to a recent campaign ad from the Obama administration. The ad contended that the tax policy position being taken by the presumptive Republican nominee for president would reduce his taxes while increasing the taxes on virtually all Americans. Kessler reviewed the contentions in the head and found them completely accurate. Continue reading “Advocating For Yourself” »

I recently received the latest issue of the monthly newsletter that an old friend produces. Reading it was a sobering, uncomfortable experience. To set the stage, this individual in earlier years built a company. He was forward looking and independent. The company he crafted was based upon a determination to succeed. His mission, as he once told me, was to move obstacles out of the way and prevail. The newsletter I received was not written by such a person. The author was a hollow, whining old man who, instead of seeing opportunities and pursuing them, was seeking places to put the blame. Continue reading “The carping, whining old man” »

It’s no wonder that politicians as a group have an approval rating somewhere south of syphilitic whores. As if we needed any more evidence, today’s Washington Post contains the latest addition of Fact Checker. The authors make the following statement: “the Romney campaign clearly ripped these words out of context, leaving them untethered from their original meaning — in order to score political points in a highly misleading way.” Continue reading “Four Pinocchios” »