July 03, 2008
New Huffington Post Essay
Posted By Bob Cesca
My extended take on Senator Obama's so-called "move to the center". Enjoy.
July 3, 2008 02:15 PM | Comments (4) | DIGG THIS
CNN Smells Like Barbeque
Posted By Bob Cesca
CNN:
With the dust having finally settled after the prolonged Democratic presidential primary, a new CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll shows Sens. John McCain and Barack Obama locked in a statistical dead heat in the race for the White House.
Oh look! Senators Obama and McBush are in a dead heat. In other words, tied. Wow. Senator McBush must be surging or something. Or maybe Senator Obama is slipping. So, just for shits and giggles, how close is it?
...the new survey out Tuesday indicates Obama holds a narrow 5-point advantage among registered voters nationwide over the Arizona senator, 50 percent to 45 percent.
50 to 45?! That's a statistical dead heat? What the hell is wrong with you, CNN? Wipe the barbeque off your mouths and tell us how 50-45 is a dead heat.
(h/t Kos)
July 3, 2008 11:57 AM | Comments (2) | DIGG THIS
Montana
Posted By Bob Cesca
Obama (D) 48% McCain (R) 43%
Pat Buchanan's head just exploded.
July 3, 2008 10:51 AM | Comments (2) | DIGG THIS
Morning Joe
Posted By Bob Cesca
Picking up on Paddy's post about Morning Joe, here are a couple of observations:
1) Mika seriously asked Morgan Spurlock, "Where did you get your name?!" If I were Morgan, I would've answered, "Oh it's not my real name. My real name is Gonads Van Rapist."
2) Pat Buchanan, who is a known race-baiter but yet is still taken seriously by MSNBC, said something to the effect of (paraphrasing), "Last week Obama was leading by 15 in the Newsweek poll and today he leads by 2 in the Gallup daily tracking poll. He always starts out strong and then he can't close the deal." The Gallup poll has always been close, Pat. What the hell is wrong with you?
July 3, 2008 09:04 AM | Comments (7) | DIGG THIS
Where's the Outrage?
Posted By Bob Cesca
By midday in Europe, light, sweet crude for August delivery rose $2.28 to a record $145.85 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. [...] The latest spike means a barrel of crude has gone up by more than 50 percent since the end of last year, when oil was going for $96 a barrel.
This is making everything more expensive and therefore negatively impacting all of us -- everyone. Terrorists aren't negatively effecting all of us. Neither are tainted tomatoes or Colombian hostage-takers. But I don't hear any outrage from the corporate media over the Wall Street oil speculators who are forcing you and I to pay exponentially more for everything.
July 3, 2008 08:48 AM | Comments (2) | DIGG THIS
Morning Awesome
Posted By Bob Cesca
From Wet Hot American Summer.
July 3, 2008 08:34 AM | Comments (0) | DIGG THIS
July 02, 2008
Fox News Is A Douchebag
Posted By Bob Cesca
Not only did they Photoshop the pictures of two NY Times reporters to make the reporters look really deformed and freakish, but also... Fox News sucks at Photoshop.
July 2, 2008 06:01 PM | Comments (1) | DIGG THIS
Enjoy Your Holiday Vacation!
Posted By Bob Cesca
July 2, 2008 05:57 PM | Comments (0) | DIGG THIS
Open Thread! Go!
Posted By Bob Cesca
How much more thread could this be, and the answer is none. None more thread.
July 2, 2008 05:53 PM | Comments (2) | DIGG THIS
Oy
Posted By Bob Cesca
Let me off this thing.
(h/t Betsy)
July 2, 2008 12:14 PM | Comments (14) | DIGG THIS
Gettysburg, Day Two
Posted By Bob Cesca
145 years ago today, my great-great grandfather, Corporal Richard B. "R.B." Davis of the 155th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry helped to defend the extreme left flank of the Union line at Little Round Top. It never ceases to amaze me that, to this day, I can walk down to the spot where the 155th was positioned on Little Round Top and put my hands on the rock wall they constructed during the evening of July 2, 1863.
Here's how the defense of Little Round Top was dramatized in the movie Gettysburg -- in this case, the story of the 20th Maine and Colonel Chamberlain (Jeff Daniels). Meanwhile, the 155th and my great-great grandfather were on the other side of the hill -- the exposed, bare, boulder-strewn section (see photo below).
The 155th PA monument. Little Round Top, Gettysburg.
July 2, 2008 10:16 AM | Comments (1) | DIGG THIS
This Is Priceless
Posted By Bob Cesca
Steve Benen:
The American Family Association’s OneNewsNow website, for example, takes its AP articles and replaces the word “gay” with the word “homosexual.” I’m not entirely sure why, but it seems to make the AFA happy. The group is, after all, pretty far out there.
And guess what happened...?
July 2, 2008 10:13 AM | Comments (1) | DIGG THIS
Oh Crap
Posted By Bob Cesca
Disgusting... American interrogators were instructed in the ways of Chinese torture techniques.
Mr. Biderman’s 1957 article described “one form of torture” used by the Chinese as forcing American prisoners to stand “for exceedingly long periods,” sometimes in conditions of “extreme cold.” Such passive methods, he wrote, were more common than outright physical violence. Prolonged standing and exposure to cold have both been used by American military and C.I.A. interrogators against terrorist suspects.The chart also listed other techniques used by the Chinese, including “Semi-Starvation,” “Exploitation of Wounds,” and “Filthy, Infested Surroundings,” and with their effects: “Makes Victim Dependent on Interrogator,” “Weakens Mental and Physical Ability to Resist,” and “Reduces Prisoner to ‘Animal Level’ Concerns.”
"Exploitation of wounds." Even at the end, the Bush dark ride only seems to get darker.
UPDATE: For the record, Senator McCain supports allowing the CIA to use torture.
July 2, 2008 08:27 AM | Comments (1) | DIGG THIS
Nobody's Perfect, But Obama Is 'More' Perfect
Posted By Bob Cesca
In my December endorsement of Senator Obama on the Huffington Post, I made it clear that I didn't agree with him on every issue. This was another way of saying, "he's not as liberal as I am." What attracted me to supporting Senator Obama, however, wasn't that he was going to be this watershed liberal/progressive savior. Instead, supporting Senator Obama was always about, in the simplest terms possible, 1) having a president we could be proud of, 2) having a president who could inspire the necessary change we need to roll back the Bush darkness.
Don't be afraid of Senator Obama's political maneuvers here. He's in the midst of a campaign that hinges on a wide variety of familiar, but also brand new variables. And if we can keep our liberal eyeballs focussed on the big picture and hold on to the ideas that attracted us to the senator in the first place, he will make us proud next year.
Oliver Willis wrote a similar message here. And PsiFighter37 from Daily Kos reminds us:
Russ Feingold may have been the lone voice standing up to the first Patriot Act, but he voted for the confirmations of John Ashcroft and John Roberts.Paul Wellstone was a strong liberal voice in the Senate, yet he voted for DOMA and the Patriot Act.
Dennis Kucinich, aside from being on the political fringe, was a lifelong pro-lifer until he decided he wanted to run for president.
Chris Dodd may do quite well on constitutional matters, but he voted for the Iraqi war, the Patriot Act, and is too beholden to the big banks and the hedge funds which he oversees from the Senate Banking Committee.
Howard Dean may have generated the first Internet-powered campaign and spoke out forcefully against invading Iraq, but he was a centrist governor who reluctantly allowed for civil unions in Vermont (and only because by a court decision, he was forced to).
Sherrod Brown is widely liked for his populist pitch, but he voted for torture in 2006. [Bob adds: In my forthcoming book, I also note that Brown takes money from one of the nation's biggest polluters.]
I won't even bother to recount how many times Jim Webb or Jon Tester have disappointed us, despite getting substantial support from the local netroots scene to help them score upset victories in their respective primaries.
July 2, 2008 07:56 AM | Comments (3) | DIGG THIS
Morning Awesome
Posted By Bob Cesca
The Battle of the Batmans. Batmans? Or Batmen? Either way, this is awesome.
July 2, 2008 06:05 AM | Comments (0) | DIGG THIS
July 01, 2008
Hey Look! Polls!
Posted By Bob Cesca
Florida - PPP
Obama (D) 46%
McCain (R) 44%
Nice bounce for Senator Obama in this state.
Gallup - Daily tracking
Obama (D) 47%
McCain (R) 42%
Outside the margin.
Rasmussen - Daily tracking
Obama (D) 49%
McCain (R) 44%
Also outside the margin.
July 1, 2008 03:08 PM | Comments (4) | DIGG THIS
Open Thread! Go!
Posted By Bob Cesca
I have to draw some funny pictures in order to pay my mortgage, so take it away threadnauts!
July 1, 2008 01:46 PM | Comments (10) | DIGG THIS
More Good News
Posted By Bob Cesca
Senator Obama snubs the DLC.
This made me happy. I did one of these:
July 1, 2008 01:33 PM | Comments (4) | DIGG THIS
This Helps... A Lot
Posted By Bob Cesca
"Now, make no mistake, as someone who used to teach constitutional law, I believe deeply in the separation of church and state, but I don't believe this partnership will endanger that idea - so long as we follow a few basic principles.First, if you get a federal grant, you can't use that grant money to proselytize to the people you help and you can't discriminate against them - or against the people you hire - on the basis of their religion.
Second, federal dollars that go directly to churches, temples, and mosques can only be used on secular programs. And we'll also ensure that taxpayer dollars only go to those programs that actually work."
I feel better. Anytime a leading politician says the word "secular" in a positive way makes me smile. It's definitely not the Bush faith-based crap.
UPDATE: The Politico via Huffington:
Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) slammed President Bush's faith-based program as "a photo-op" and a failure on Tuesday, and said he will scrap the office and create a new Council for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships that would be a "critical" part of his administration.
Blood pressure... slowly returning... to normal.
July 1, 2008 01:16 PM | Comments (9) | DIGG THIS
Gettysburg, Day One
Posted By Bob Cesca
Today is the 145th anniversary of the first day of the battle of Gettysburg. It was this day that, in my opinion, truly decided the course of the battle and the tide of the war. With the the entire Confederate army moving towards Gettysburg from Chambersburg and Carlisle, Union cavalry commander General John Buford orchestrated what's called a "defense in depth" in order to prevent Lee's army from seizing the all-important high ground positions around the town -- Confederates had exploited similar positions for bloody victories at Fredericksburg and Second Manassas.
So the defense in depth... Buford created defensive positions west and north of town knowing that his small division of dismounted and outnumbered horsemen would not be able to hold against two or more Confederate corps (a single corp is composed of at least three divisions -- much larger than Buford's forces). But the lines would hold long enough for more federal infantry to come up from Emmitsburg. And by the time reinforcements would arrive, the Union lines would have been pushed back to the very desirable high ground south and west of Gettysburg -- but with the entire Union army finally having arrived to defend the new positions.
And that's what happened. The Confederates overwhelmed Buford's troops along with the Union First Corp and they fell back at nightfall to the advantageous high ground. Meanwhile, the Second Corp and 12th Corp had arrived on the field to fortify the hills, with more federal troops flooding into position every hour and into Day Two (a day in which my great-great grandfather helped to defend Little Round Top).
These Union high ground positions on Culp's Hill, Cemetary Hilll and the high ridges to the south would be nearly impossible to break for the rest of the battle. For the first time in the eastern theater of the war, the Union had attained a key battlefield advantage against General Lee -- and this advantage was the factor that, to me, ultimately decided the battle. So it can be said that General John Buford from Kentucky, a soldier whose name is often forgotten, saved the Union and helped to free an entire race of Americans that day.
Sam Elliot as General Buford in the movie Gettysburg waits for the First Corp to arrive.
July 1, 2008 10:16 AM | Comments (0) | DIGG THIS
GRRRR!
Posted By Bob Cesca
Reaching out to evangelical voters, Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama is announcing plans that would expand President Bush’s program steering federal social service dollars to religious groups and — in a move sure to cause controversy — support their ability to hire and fire based on faith.
Or how about this... "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion..."
But here we see the senator's pragmatism at work. Support for same-sex liberty (see below), balanced with a nod to the evangelicals. I don't like the faith-based crap, but if it helps to establish or restore civil liberties here, then okay. However, the gambit is, as Olbermann put it last night, that the senator risks being squeezed from both sides. Or as John Adams said, "The middle way is no way at all."
July 1, 2008 08:31 AM | Comments (11) | DIGG THIS
Keeping You Safe...Or Not
Posted By Bob Cesca
“The White House said Monday it agreed with an assessment by U.S. Sen. Joe Lieberman, who warns terrorists could test the next president with an attack.”
These fear mongers are the worst of the worst. Either all of their anti-terror blustery hooplah has been effective against preventing another attack... or it hasn't.
July 1, 2008 08:03 AM | Comments (5) | DIGG THIS
Obama Supports Gay Marriage In California
Posted By Bob Cesca
California Republicans are trying to amend the state's constitution in order to, once again, ban gay marriage there. Senator Obama unequivocally opposes this effort of course. This is what the senator wrote to Alice B. Toklas of the LGBT Democratic Club:
As the Democratic nominee for President, I am proud to join with and support the LGBT community in an effort to set our nation on a course that recognizes LGBT Americans with full equality under the law. That is why I support extending fully equal rights and benefits to same sex couples under both state and federal law. That is why I support repealing the Defense of Marriage Act and the "Don't Ask Don't Tell" policy, and the passage of laws to protect LGBT Americans from hate crimes and employment discrimination. And that is why I oppose the divisive and discriminatory efforts to amend the California Constitution, and similar efforts to amend the U.S. Constitution or those of other states.
That's pretty great. I repeat... We shouldn't worry about the extent of his liberalism.
July 1, 2008 06:21 AM | Comments (2) | DIGG THIS
Morning Awesome
Posted By Bob Cesca
The Lefortovo Tunnel in Russia -- it apparently runs under a river and when the temperature drops below zero, the road freezes.
July 1, 2008 06:02 AM | Comments (3) | DIGG THIS
June 30, 2008
War For Oil
Posted By Bob Cesca
A group of American advisers led by a small State Department team played an integral part in drawing up contracts between the Iraqi government and five major Western oil companies to develop some of the largest fields in Iraq, American officials say.
There you have it. After a long exile, Exxon Mobil, Shell, Total and BP are back in Iraq. And on the wings of no-bid contracts – that's right, sweetheart deals like those given Halliburton, KBR, Blackwater. The kind of deals you get only if you have friends in high places. And these war profiteers have friends in very high places.
And naturally everyone on the very serious cable news networks ignored this story and instead feigned outrage about General Clark's (truthful) remarks.
June 30, 2008 11:09 PM | Comments (0) | DIGG THIS
Go, General Clark!
Posted By Bob Cesca
General Clark is on MSNBC standing his ground.
"This is about requirements to be president."
Right on.
Goddamn, the Republicans and the McBushies are being cry-babies about this thing. General Clark didn't question Senator McCain's service, heroism or the veracity of the senator's record (like the Swift Boaters did to Senator Kerry -- one of those Swift Boaters is now part of the McCain campaign). He honored Senator McCain's service.
But you know, there are hundreds of thousands of military veterans and quite a few POWs -- not all of them are automatically presidential material. It has nothing to do with their service or their sacrifice -- it's just that the presidency requires certain other qualities beyond military experience. I thought that was obvious, but I suppose the former NATO Supreme Allied Commander is totally off base about the military.
UPDATE: General Clark... "I'm not backing away from anything I said." Good. This is a silly, made-up corporate media controversy.
June 30, 2008 08:41 PM | Comments (7) | DIGG THIS
Fail!
Posted By Bob Cesca
I know there are probably about 2 people on this blog (including me) who dig pro cycling, but -- breaking news -- Floyd Landis is done.
“Consequently, Floyd Landis is disqualified from the Tour de France 2006 and is suspended for a period of two years starting from 30 January 2007. Floyd Landis has been ordered to pay the sum of $100,000 to the United States Anti-doping Agency (USADA) as a contribution towards its costs in the CAS arbitration.”
He's from Ephrata, which is about 10 miles from here, so I really, really have been trying to root for the local guy -- but jeebus. According to anti-doping people, his testosterone/epitestosterone level was 11 to 1 -- triple the normal level after Stage 17 in 2006. That doesn't happen naturally.
UPDATE: Landis escapes from the authorities:
June 30, 2008 06:46 PM | Comments (3) | DIGG THIS
The Last George Carlin Interview
Posted By Bob Cesca
Dated June 23, 2008 and it's one of the best interviews with Carlin I've ever read.
Anyone who labeled him as "the comedian who said dirty words" really missed out on one of America's great treasures.
June 30, 2008 06:06 PM | Comments (1) | DIGG THIS
Run Away! Run Away!
Posted By Bob Cesca
Senator Lieberman is making as ass of himself. Again.
"Our enemies will test the new president early."
Seriously. How do you sleep at night, Joe-Joe?
June 30, 2008 01:08 PM | Comments (4) | DIGG THIS
Cool!
Posted By Bob Cesca
Overheard on MSNBC just now:
"Republicans that I know of are surprisingly cool."
Right on. Cool.
June 30, 2008 08:38 AM | Comments (3) | DIGG THIS
Note To Republicans
Posted By Bob Cesca
This is Swift Boating:
As we're entering a week of attacks on General Clark and the Obama campaign, I thought I'd set the baseline for Swift Boating here. Those purple heart bandages were about the worst thing ever.
June 30, 2008 08:33 AM | Comments (5) | DIGG THIS
Two Questions About General Clark
Posted By Bob Cesca
Does he suddenly work for the Obama campaign?
And regardless, is anything he said not true?
Just asking.
June 30, 2008 08:20 AM | Comments (0) | DIGG THIS
Morning Awesome
Posted By Bob Cesca
Born on this day... My brother Brian. Happy birthday, Kid.
June 30, 2008 08:17 AM | Comments (1) | DIGG THIS
June 29, 2008
Step Forward, You Coward
Posted By Bob Cesca
A freeper named "Andy Martin" is the culprit behind the "Who Is Barack Obama?" rumor e-mails according to investigator Dr. Danielle Allen.
So now we know.
I wonder when a very serious investigator will acknowledge that "Andy Martin" has been assisted by people like Ann Coulter, Rush Limbaugh, Mitt Romney and even TIME magazine's very serious Mark Halperin who once suggested that Senator McCain, "Emphasize Barack Hussein Obama’s unusual name and exotic background through a Manchurian Candidate prism."
June 29, 2008 10:51 AM | Comments (2) | DIGG THIS
Isn't He Cute
Posted By Bob Cesca
One thing I've noticed during the eulogizing of George Carlin on TV... Several times this week, I've seen a television pundit air a particularly biting clip containing some important social or political satire. Not one of Carlin's jokey jokes, but a really serious remark about religion or yuppies or voting. And then, when the clip ends, the pundit laughs out loud and reacts as if the clip contained a wacky, innocuous, jokey joke punchline.
It's a similar kind of condescension the very serious types show to bloggers. Aren't they cute with their outrage? Hoo-hoo! Then they throw to a story about a shark attack.
June 29, 2008 10:06 AM | Comments (1) | DIGG THIS
Morning Awesome
Posted By Bob Cesca
June 29, 2008 09:45 AM | Comments (0) | DIGG THIS
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