2010...Republicans modify "Axis of Evil" list

Just because Republicans were overwhelmingly and passionately voted out of office by reality-based voters in November of 2008 does not mean that the Hate Train gets a rest. On the contrary. The Hate Train has added several more cars to its haul and thousands more lost, mindless souls. Fox News incessantly provides the coal as Republicans continue to scour America for more Sarah Palins and Joe the Plumbers: people who could not care any less for facts or truth and who must cling to at least one good conspiracy theory about Obama or they will be forever labeled as, "dang libral".

New elections called for new things to hate. No reason necessary. In fact, having a reason actually gets in the way as it requires some sort of brain power and critical thinking: both of which are abhorred by the Republican base.

I will try to include the entire 2010 Republican Axis of Evil List. It is quite the challenge as the list grows sporadically and unpredictably; on any given occasion it could add 3 items in one day and other times go a month with the same, tired hate targets. Personalities like Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity certainly have been busy little bees in order to keep this list freshly-stocked and always cloaked in "Christian values".

Here's what I've come up with:

1. Marxism, or any derivative of the word. Karl Marx, the Marx brothers, Richard Marx, or any older man with a long beard that has some shades of grey in it. This is a term that gets thrown around a lot. It was on the 2008 and 2009 list as well. There are to my knowledge 2 Republicans in the world who understand Marxism and its complex nature. Both of those individuals are in a witness-protection program and their whereabouts are secret. Dick Cheney knows where they are and you can bet they're being tortured right now.

Be careful here: if you ask one of your Republican neighbors or a Tea Bagger to discuss Marxism, you better be ready for some violence. When you stump a Republican or Tea Bagger, their response is usually to intimidate you by yelling or threatening violence. That right there has more to do with Marxism than any other issue in the debate. Funny how that works.

2. Chicago. Anyone or anything from Chicago. Yes, even the Cubs. Damn, even the Cubs. Those Lovable Losers are now part of the Chicago Political Machine that Obama founded in 19...err...whatever. Upon being elected president, little did Obama know that he put Chicago on the Axis of Evil. Apparently between being born in Kenya and coming out of his mother's womb in Honolulu, the infant found time to start the corrupt Chicago political scene. Was this kid destined for great things or what??

When Chicago lost in its bid to land the 2016 Summer Olympics, Republicans cheered with the same fervor as when we brought Apollo 13 safely back to Earth. Amazing that in this economy that many fellow Americans would cheer for same number of fellow Americans to stay unemployed. Patriotism to the maximum.

3. Leftist Agenda. Hell, I don't even know what this means. But it's on the list and it doesn't matter how it got there. Ask any Republican what this is and they just may kick you right in the choda for even asking them that. Especially if you ask them that while they are away from the TV or Hannity radio program. They are like cornered dobermans: scared, confused and angry.

4. Socialism. Again the Repubicans struggle with all of the -isms except racism, sexism and warism. Along with socialism comes socialized medicine. To Republicans this means that if we pass a comprehensive health insurance bill that will cover uninsured Americans, instead of providing health insurance coverage to those who have none, we would simply change our country's name to France, begin speaking French and ship all of our medical devices from every single medical facility to Iceland. Then all of the doctors would grow beards like Karl Marx and send you to death camps in Stalingrad. What's so funny? Sarah Palin said it's true.

5. Global Warming/Al Gore. "We're still havin' them change of seasons so how can we be havin' global warmins'?" The most uneducated voting base on the planet has now ventured into the world of science. God help us.

By global warming being on the Axis of Evil the Republicans are now determined to pollute the planet even further and thereby destroying it. Then they will all sit back and laugh and point fingers saying, "Hahahaha....told ya there was no such thing...dadgum kool-aid drinkers!"

6. Taxes. Apparently giving the middle-class tax breaks and lifting them on the wealthy have really angered some middle-class blue collar Republicans. Who would have ever thought that the middle-class would literally die to protect the wealthy? Germany 1936...cough...cough.

Karl Marx would certainly be upset but what did he know, friggin' Marxist/Socialist?

This was the glue that brought all of the Tea Baggers together. The same ones who said, "Tell government to keep their hands of my Medicare!" Nothing like showing off your intellect in a room lacking intellect.

7. Czars. Bush had them in his administration but when Bush would pronounce the word "Czar" it had a southern twang to it and therefore it reaked of America. (almost like, "Las' night I went to duh drive in and I czar a Clint Eastwood movie.") Obama has them and somehow we are reminded of the Gulag and the hammer and sickle...and Ivan Drago, of course..."I vill crush you."

Glenn Beck has made it his life's purpose to rid the Obama administration of anyone who has a last name whose letters can be rearranged to spell "Commie", "Russian", "Red", "Sickle", "Drago" (from Rocky IV), "Gorbachev", "Putin" or "Vodka".

8. Hawaii. Paradise to some but absolute Hell to Republicans. This is the "apparent" birthplace of Barack Hussein Obama. Birth certificate...check. Article in paper....check. Official birth records...check. Placenta?.....HA ! Where is it MR. PRESIDENT??? Kenya??

Many Republicans are now boycotting Hawaii for fear of brushing up against the birth certificate. They would rather catch cholera in the Amazon than have to look at that piece of paper.

9. Haiti. This one was just added as Obama promised to help Haiti in the wake of one of the world's greatest tragedies in the last 120 years. If Obama promises to help you, you are immediately and firmly placed on the Axis of Evil (poor people, gay people, minorities have all been on the Axis of Evil at some point in time). Because, as Pat Robertson would argue, natural disasters are brought on by people and their choices. Mother Nature? Meteological phenomena? Those weren't around when Jesus was drivin' his Expedition...were they?

Fox News ran an Op-Ed piece where the author questioned whether America should help Haiti or not and tied it criticism of Obama. Nothing like selective compassion by people who claim to follow the most UNSELECTIVELY compassionate person in the history of the world.

10. Teleprompters. Who would have thought this great invention would meet such a terrible fate? Bush used them. Clinton used them. Mostly Bush read from text on paper but still needed assistance. So has nearly every president and every high school speech class student for the last 200 years.

But...for some, Obama has a skin color problem. Republicans have no choice but to tie that to intelligence ("I have many black friends who are very articulate"). Obama needs the teleprompter whereas Bush just had it laying around and decided to use it.

11. Jimmy Carter. Yep. Old Peanuts has found himself on the Axis of Evil for probably the last 5-6 years. When Republicans have whipping post fever, old JC is the only cure. I don't see Jimmy getting off of the list even post-mortem.

12. Education. This one is HUGE ! If there's one thing Sarah Palin and Joe the Plumber have in common it's the lack of education. And that my friends, gets Republicans more turned on than Donald Rumsfeld attending the International Convention of Torturous Devices. Being educated means you care about facts, data and truth. Who needs that crap when you have a gun, a Cabela's hat and a goatee?

Speaking in sound bites, leaving the -ing off of -ing words (such as "hatin' librals"), claiming to not know how Washington works, refusing to read books with facts, exhibiting a stunning display of ignorant hypocrisy, not believing in dinosaurs or the Roman Empire...are all very attractive to the Republican base. Dare I say.,..erotic?

When Sarah Palin was asked by Glenn Beck which of our country's Founding Fathers were her favorite, Sarah calmly and confidently replied: "Oh...I don't know...all of them!" You nailed it, sister. You dropped that gem and a thousand Republicans watching just lit a cigarette and gave a deep sigh, moaning..."Now THAT was good!"

Do your best to derail the train, truth seekers and remember, we don't shoot our wounded.

"Hello Officer Timson, how are ya? Going bowling this evening?"

Men in authority will always think that criticism of their policies is dangerous. They will always equate their policies with patriotism, and find criticism subversive.

---Henry Steele Commager

There are two things all police officers hate: 1) having to chase anyone, and 2) having their authority questioned by a black person.

The length and energy exerted by the police when chasing a suspect is directly proportionate to the severity of the beat down the suspect will suffer upon being apprehended. Everyone knows this. Just do a google search of police chases and thousands of examples are sure to come up where you will see an overweight, out-of-breath officer with a mustache beat the living hell out of an unconcious suspect who was thrown from his car at the end of the chase. What is rarely seen on a google search are the instances when a police officer has his authority (almost always a male officer) questioned by a black person. In these instances, the black man (almost always involves a black male) is described by any of the following adjectives: angry, combative, violent, belligerent, unruly, threatening, out of control, suspicious, insulting, disrespectful, dishonest, arrogant, condascending, and everyone's favorite excuse for police brutality, resisting arrest.

As Richard Pryor once said during one of his performances, "White people always say, 'what is this thing about police brutality, those black people are just resisting arrest', that's cuz the cops live in your neighborhood...and you know him as Officer Timson."

In the case of Henry Louis Gates, Jr. we have what is commonly known as, "The Irreverent Negro Who Forgot How Lucky He Is". Harvard University Professor Gates was returning home after a long trip to China. While attempting to enter his own home through the back door, a home which he has paid for with real money, he was forced to literally "break-in" because his front door tends to stick in the summer humidity. A neighbor spotted him doing this and most likely came to the logical conclusion that Professor Gates had reverted back to his old negro habits of home invasion and grand theft auto. The neighbor called the police quickly because in these instances black people tend to multiply rapidly.

When the police arrived with the information "multiple black males attempting to break into a home" the mindset is pretty clear. They are now searching for ANY black male and when they spot him he will be questioned more rigorously than if they were searching for a white male. Because, you see, when a black male is reported to be involved in a crime, the police search for ANY black male. When it involves a white male the description tends to be as precise as an E-Harmony.com single's profile and therefore, the need to stop every white male tends to be an unnecessary hassle for the common hard-working taxpayer.

During the arrest, as if there were going to be any other conclusion to this story but an arrest, the police discovered that Gates, despite being very black, did in fact own the home he was standing in. Despite several attempts to disprove that ridiculous achievement the police were set to leave Professor Gates' residence feeling rather dejected and disappointed. Gates added quite a bit of salt to their deeply wounded ego by voicing his frustration about how common this type of reaction is by the police. The evidence was overwhelmingly in his favor. There is not enough space on the internet to list all the cases of racial profiling, police brutality and false imprisonments of black people. So let's move past that, quickly.

What appears to have been the straw that broke the Man's back was that Gates continued his verbal frustration outside on his front porch, saying, "I'll talk to ya mama outside". At that point, there were several people gathered outside to observe the exchange. The police report reads, "These actions on the behalf of Gates served no legitimate purpose and caused citizens passing by this location to stop and take notice while appearing surprised and alarmed." I'm sure there were more than "several" people who were surprised and alarmed to find a black man in THAT kind of house and that he was a Harvard University professor. The officer was apparently concerned for the safety and serenity of the neighborhood and thereby justifying the arrest of Professor Gates with the charge of being "loud and tumultuous in a public place". Watch this video clip of a white male stopped by a state trooper. Notice the officer's tempered reaction to a white person being "loud and tumultuous."

Black people are often referred to as being "loud and tumultuous". It appears to be a necessary characteristic. Because history clearly indicates that if similar individuals tend to be unnecessarily arrested, unnecessarily beaten and sometimes tend to unnecessarily disappear then one can conclude that being loud and tumultuous may be a lifesaver.

Gates was not arrested entirely because of his blackness. I'm sure there have been black men questioned somewhere in America during the last 24 hours and were not arrested as a result. The REAL reason Professor Gates was arrested was simple. It's the same reason white conservative men dislike Supreme Court Nominee Judge Sonia Sotomayor: when minorities question authority they are ungrateful and unpatriotic. (When white people do it we call it "rebellion" or "revolution" because there must be a reason for it) Ungrateful because they appear to not know how lucky they are to have the opportunity to vote, to own property and to rule over or teach white people. In short, minorities fail to realize how lucky they are to have basic human rights. Unpatriotic because "only in America can a black man become professor or a Puerto Rican woman can become Supreme Court Justice. See how generous America is ?

Those who support the actions of the Cambridge Police cry out, "But this black man...why did he have to say anything to the police? Couldn't he just have kept his mouth shut and not be so...black?"

I suppose those same people, mainly right-wing conservatives, were saying 220 years ago to their fellow liberal, "Why did you have to talk back to that British soldier? Couldn't you just let him question you, steal your dignity and punch you a couple of times? Why are you so sensitive and feel the need to be so loud and tumultuous?"

Questioning authority is a founding principle of this country. It is a keystone for any free society. Loud and tumultuous are synonymous with freedom. Until everyone is free no one is.

"We pray for those who are sick in both body and spirit..." --Padre Pio

Occasionally I venture out into a world that is so terribly sick and twisted that it makes me fear for the human race. That world is Hannity.com. In the forum section you will find the most hateful, ignorant and arrogant people who, in my opinion, consume too many of the Earth's valuable resources. I was flirting with the Devil this morning when I hit paydirt on my first try with this post below by "Young_Republican":

Young_Republican3618
Man On The Street

Join Date: Jul 2009
Posts: 2

To all of you anti-war freaks

First of all isnt war what brought our country together. And think about it. As Albert Einstein said, "As long as there is man, there shall be war." The Iraq war was needed.You have to remember that terrorists attacked NY. Now i dont want to here all this theroys that th war was for oil or anything like that. Back in 1941 The Jappenese attacked the US and we went to war. If these terrorists were in lets say india. We would be fighting in india. But they came from Iraq so were in Iraq (now out, or in military bases) People dieing in any war is bad. But look at this. Only 7000 deaths of US troops. In what a.... 8 years. 7 years... In 1 day in our countrys past war. Over 10,000 americans died. D-Day, Iwo Jima, Gettysburgh, Market Garden. Our troops fight for us, to keep us safe. And Some people call all there hard work pointless. Wow just wow.

Yes, you just read that and no, I didn't make it up. I wouldn't know where to begin when trying to address this. This post, however illogical, nonsensical and completely devoid of rational thought, is a fairly common representation of the majority of current right-wing thought in America. The person who vomited this organic ignorance is an authentic and original product of Fox News. I've blogged about this before. By all appearances it would seem that I am obsessed with this type of individual. It's like visiting a haunted hotel where I continually go there to catch a glimpse of the legendary ghost.

This person was born out of the Fox News Crusade to demonize educated people. Educated people tend to be truth-seekers. Fox News wants truth-seekers like Sean Hannity wants to march in the San Francisco Gay Parade. But there may be more to this than Fox News simply trying to turn education into a disease.

Questioning the war in Iraq has always been prohibited on Hannity.com. Should you question ANYTHING about the war in Iraq it will almost certainly get you banned by one of Hannity's disciples (moderators). This is a place where the surreal is real and the real is surreal, where facts are "biased" and where members gather around a bonfire of absolutely fantastic lies, warming their hands, singing songs and drinking the same hot cocoa kool-aid while chanting, "Freedom ain't free".

I was a member on the Hannity.com forums until I was banned in 2007. During that brief sojourn of living on the darkside I discovered this demographic which I had completely underestimated in size and in depth of ignorance. I would have thought by now, given that nearly all Republican officials agree that Iraq had nothing to do with 9/11 and that Iraq DID NOT have weapons of mass destruction, that this movement would have lost some of its momentum. Sadly, I was wrong.

As I've written before, these individuals are so full of fear and shame that if they were to be enlightened it would be an emotionally crippling experience. Fox News has given their ego what it needs to stay alive and healthy: an identity. If this type of individual were to detach from their ego and that relative identity that it holds in its tight grasp, their ego would suffer a horrible death.

I can only conclude that this type of individual lives entirely on ego which is fueled by this identity that it must hate everything that Fox News propagandizes as evil. This individual has relinquished all logic and deferred all decision-making properties to its ego. And by doing so in such a collective manner in such a large community, their ego has a much higher probability of survival because it is constantly validated by others who are just as spiritually sick. In short, should one of these sheep stray from the flock it risks losing not only the identity for the ego but those fellow sheep who keep the identity strong. If such a person were to lose this community and the identity that feeds the ego, the ego then becomes vulnerable. The ego then becomes susceptible to actual reality in the present moment.

A moment in which we know that Iraq was and is not our enemy, a moment in which homosexuals are above all human beings and a moment in which a Puerto Rican woman CAN use the expression "wise latina" AND be taken seriously.

Updated Fox News Enemy List: education, Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid, Barack Obama, Barack Obama's birth certificate, Iran, North Korea, Mexico, polar bears, moose, proper English, Europe (Vatican City not included), Karl Marx, Cesar Chavez, Mexicans, Puerto Ricans (thanks Sonia!), humanities, art, children under the age of 18, minority children over the age of 6, health insurance for people who make less money than they do, Canadian health care system, Australian health care system, Islam, Muslim, Egypt, Palestine, Syria, Turkey (kind of), Yemen, Somalia, anything French, Earth, truth, facts, investigations, resigning from a job after a scandal, practicing Christian values, China, Russia, Putin, Stalin, Trotsky, Borat, Bruno, Jane Fonda, Phil Donahue, Patrick Duffy (not sure about this one, I'll double-check) Sean Penn, Tim Robbins, Susan Sarandon, Brittney Spears, Jamie Lynn Spears, equal rights, empowered minorities, "wise" minority people, the word "minority", journalism, secret documents that reveal secret programs no one knew about, the Constitution, the law, the word "tax" and any derivative of, Jimmy Carter, Chelsea Clinton, Obama's children, Michelle Obama, whatever clothing Michelle Obama has on right this very second, anything "organic"...

Please feel free to add to this list.

"4 yes votes and 1 'hell yeah' "...The Story of a Governor's Cabinet

Sarah Palin's press conference. Seriously? Was that not the most awkward 30 minutes of television you've ever watched? Forget O.J. and the white bronco. Forget Mark Sanford. This was the moment when even Larry the Cable Guy was scratching his head with hot barbeque tongs saying, "What in THEE hell did that woman jis say?"

There are times as a parent when you must teach your children a lesson. Friday July 3rd around noon Sarah Palin did your work for you. She taught all children that education is very important.

The most disturbing piece was this nugget:

"In fact, this decision comes after much consideration, and finally polling the most important people in my life - my children (where the count was unanimous... well, in response to asking:)

'Want me to make a positive difference and fight for ALL our children's future from OUTSIDE the Governor's office?' It was four "yes's" and one "hell yeah!" The "hell yeah" sealed it - and someday I'll talk about the details of that..."

So, just so I understand it, Palin "the average hockey mom" made the decision to resign as governor by polling the following think tank:

Todd Palin --- husband, commercial fisherman and snowmobile afficionado

Track Palin -- 20 yr old son, amateur hockey player

Bristol Palin ---18 yr old daughter, mother of infant born out of abstinence

Willow Palin --- 14 yr old daughter, unknown as no one has heard her speak

Piper Palin -- 8 yr old daughter, primary babysitter of Trig

Trig Palin --18 month old son who has Down's Syndrome

I'm not making this up. So...time for hypothetical scenario: Sarah Palin is President of the United States (I know but just play along anyway...) North Korea is set to test fire yet another missile and this time intelligence indicates that it could reach Hawaii. North Korea states if the missile is intercepted it will view it as a declaration of war. President Palin gets the 3am phone call. She's briefed on the situation and calmly hangs up the phone.

She then proceeds to wake up her advisors, cabinet members in whom she has unshakeable trust.

"TODD !!! TRACK !!!! BRISTOL !!!! WILLOW !!! PIPER!!! TRIG !!!! GET YER ARSES DOWN HERE WILL YA? WE GOT ONE OF THEM THERE SITUATIONS GOIN' ON !!!

AND IT AIN'T NO FULL COURT PRESS, YOU BETCHA!!!

Remember when Alaska was cool, abstract and rugged... before Sarah Palin painted it qwerky?

Alaska. I've never been there and I'll bet you haven't been there either. Still wanna go?

I don't. Send me a postcard if you go. Wait a second..., no, send me a photo of the Wasilla Town Hall so that I can make it into an epitaph for my vision of what I thought Alaska was.

It died the day the world discovered Sarah Palin.

Alaska used to be too cool for me to even talk about. If someone asked if I'd been there, I would have answered, "no...haven't had the chance to head up there...YET ! But as soon as I can, boy, I might even stay a couple years." What a lie! I was so terrified of Alaska I couldn't even watch Northern Exposure for more than 15 minutes at a time. I felt as though Alaska knew who was watching HER...as if it were the most rugged, exotic, land where only tough, artsy, nature guys could survive (like Emile Hirsch in "Into the Wild"). How in the hell was I going to make it in Alaska if I could not bring my Aveda shampoo and conditioner and my American Crew Pomade? Do grocery stores in Alaska even have Pellegrino?

Sarah Palin has turned Alaska into the equivalent of a Japanese game show: no one understands it, the host winks and laughs and everyone is embarrassed for the people in it. She took a land that was so mysterious and powerful that even the most intellectually elite were frozen in awe of its natural beauty upon arrival, to now a land where all intellectuals are terrified at its governor's ignorance, lack of intelligence and purposeful avoidance of reality. Alaska the Land has been overshadowed by a nasal voice that simply answers every question with a "you betcha" and a very obscure fishing metaphor. Palin took Alaska and melted it into a Flint, Michigan, a Decatur, Illinois, places where we EXPECT to find close-minded people who still have the Steve Perry/Bob Seger hairdo and think that Spain is a region in Mexico.

There's a reason why no one can name any other governor of Alaska prior to Palin: because they never talked! They didn't have to. Hello !!!??? Being governor of Alaska is all that needs to be said. Alaska the Land always spoke louder than its governor. That's how it's supposed to be.

My only solace now is "Ice Road Truckers". But even that is getting close to the cheesy press appearances Sarah Palin delivers every week free of charge. There's a girl trucker on that show (the only girl trucker) and she used to play basketball in high school in Alaska. Sound familiar?

How fitting was it today, the day that Sarah the Baracuda QUITS as governor, that the ducks on the pond and the owl in the tree behind her were louder than her voice, that the grass she was stepping on was a bit greener and the mountains looked taller... as if to say, "Behold...Alaska the Land has awoken again". To use a Palin metaphor, she "forfeited the game". A quitter in every sense of the word.

No more shooting polar bears from helicopters, no more footage of turkeys getting their throats slit and thrown into a defeathering machine, no more trendy square-rimmed spectacles and certainly no more "Alaska is just a microcosm of America". Because it's not. We in the lower 48 know it's not. That's why we thought Alaska was cool. That's why we wanted to visit Alaska the Land.

The Party of Family Values keeps on "thinking"...and keeps on sinking !

Oh, yeah. Promise Keepers. The Fellowship. Good ole Christian Right family values. The party of judgment and contempt, of exclusion and prejudice, the party that believes poverty, hunger, being black and homosexuality are all choices, shows once again why claiming to be morally superior is not only anti-Christian but is unrealistic and utterly prophetic. Every single time.

First of all, let's be clear. The Republican party must have been on their feet cheering like Notre Dame cheered for Rudy when John Ensign and Mark Sanford came out with their admissions of sexual, carnal, adulterous, naked, flesh-touching affairs.

At least these two cheaters had partners of the opposite sex (unlike Larry Craig, Mark Foley and Ted Haggard). So in a way the party offered their "conservative compassion" for at least not going all "log cabin-ish". Although I must say that Sanford's situation is a bit riskier as he chose an Argentine woman.

Fox News watchers have difficulty finding Argentina on the globe much less determining if it is on the Axis of Evil or if Argentina is "with us or against us." Too much culture and/or geographic distance can automatically get a country placed on Fox News' Enemy List and Argentina has both, i.e. tango, soccer, Vespas, chimichurri and empenadas.

Ensign and Sanford were both very prominent Republicans arguably in the top 5 of leaders of their leaderless party (if you don't count Rush Limbaugh and Newt Gingrich---another extramarital conservative). Both Ensign and Sanford belonged to a religious cult...errr...group known as "The Fellowship". Now this does not include Frodo or Gandolf but it does include a lot of white male Republicans. Here is the mission statement of The Fellowship:

To develop and maintain an informal association of people banded together, to go out as "ambassadors of reconciliation," modeling the principles of Jesus, based on loving God and loving others. To work with the leaders of other nations, and as their hearts are touched, the poor, the oppressed, the widows and the youth of their country will be impacted in a positive manner. It is said that youth groups will be developed under the thoughts of Jesus, including loving others as you want to be loved.

The mission statement seems harmless enough. Where did these two go wrong?

It shows once again how the body does not follow the mind, how one cannot think himself into right action. It is only by right action that right thinking can become automatic. A few years before Jesus pimped those sweet leather sandals in Palestine, Aristotle had several ideas that he expressed openly.

Here's one that underscores my point, taken from the Nicomachean Ethics:

II. The Good Character.

A. People have a natural capacity for good character, but it is developed through practice. The capacity does not come first--it's developed only through practice.

1. The vicious circle of which is preeminent--acts or dispositions--is broken by Aristotle's distinction between acts which create good dispositions and acts which flow from the good disposition once it has been created.
2. Arete is a disposition developed out of a capacity by the proper exercise of that capacity.
3. Habits are developed through acting; a person's character is the structure of habits and is formed by what we do.

Aha! This could explain why so many look to be saved without rowing the boat. God can calm the waters but He can't move the oars.

So, I wonder if Ensign and Sanford, as they lay atop their respective lovers in the moonlight like the scene in Top Gun with Tom Cruise and Kelly McGillis, even quite possibly listening to "Take my breath away" by pop legend Berlin, if both men were still trying to think themselves into right action.

The Quiet After The Storm...

What a gift from God it was to experience the evening of November 4, 2008 in America. My mind is still trying to wrap itself around the magnitude of what just happened. I will be able to tell this story a thousand times over and I am certain that it will never get old.

Ineffability is defined as: To say that something is "ineffable" means that it cannot or should not, for overwhelming reasons, be expressed in spoken words (as with the concept of true love). It is generally used to describe a feeling, concept or aspect of existence that is too great to be adequately described in words, or that inherently (due to its nature) cannot be conveyed in dualistic symbolic human language, but can only be known internally by individuals.
In Zen it is often said that (by analogy) the finger can point to the moon but is not the moon; likewise words and actions can point towards what is ineffable but cannot make another know it.


When I think of what happened yesterday, all I can do is cry. I thank God for giving me life and for allowing me to experience this moment in its fullness.

To anyone who has been made to feel an outsider, made to feel less than a full citizen, has been disrespected or accused of being guilty until proven innocent, who was told they could never succeed...today is YOUR day! Own it like it's always been yours. This is what the "other side of the mountain top" feels like. The possibilities are endless and every dream is a question of "when", and never "if".

But lest we forget those who've gone before us....

Gabriel Posser
Nat Turner
Harriet Tubman
Frederick Douglas
Marcus Garvey
The Scottsboro Nine
Medgar Evers
Emmitt Till
Ronald Madison (mentally handicapped man killed by N.O Police during Hurricane Katrina)
Bernie Mac
Jackie Robinson
Rosa Parks
Charles Steele
Denise McNair, Cynthia Wesley, Carole Robertson, and Addie Mae Collins
The Great Reverend Martin Luther King Jr.


And countless, and I do mean countless others...

With gratitude and humility...keep your torch lit

"Hey, I'm not racist...I'll have you know I have one black friend and he's very articulate..."

I published this post on July 4, 2009. I had started to write this post back in October of 2008. The hateful racist backlash had already begun as the writing was on the wall that Obama would win the presidency. I shelved this post mainly because the topic of racism is so broad and so far-reaching that I truly did not know how to begin to write about it much less find a conclusion. As far as we've come since the Civil Rights Movement is as far as we still need to go to truly say that, "All men are created equal." Perhaps having a black man as the most powerful man in the free world will unearth the last remaining seeds of racism and thereby begin a new field in which true love and tolerance will flourish.

The excitement that has been swirling since Sonia Sotomayor's nomination to the Supreme Court has been nothing short of a compelling anthropological study of white conservative America. Both Limbaugh and Gingrich, cross-cultural icons and open-minded drug and sex addicts respectively, labeled Sotomayor as a racist. Reverse racist to be exact. For those of you who are not racist and/or are not familiar with the term "reverse racist", allow me to enlighten you.


The term is usually heard on Fox News or on Hannity /Limbaugh radio shows. It is a pathetic attempt at self-pity by white men when any minority person exhibits any form of empowerment or shows pride in their ethnic background; or when a minority person accomplishes greatness or earns a position of power and refuses to honor the "white privilege", such person is viewed as ungrateful and is accused of being a "reverse racist". How blatant the double-standard is in America: when a white male achieves the office of Senator, President or Supreme Court Justice, he has done so through hard work, dedication and intellect. When a minority person accomplishes the exact same positions, that person has "obviously benefited from living in America and should be thankful he/she even had the opportunity." Note to minority person: this is why you're held to a different standard. Mark Sanford and John Ensign will still have careers after their respective scandals. Minorities don't.

The central issue that seems to generate the most discussion is Sotomayor's comment from 2001 during a speech at Berkeley (terrorist factory) where she said, "I would hope that a wise Latina woman, with the richness of her experiences, would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasn't lived that life."

So, is she saying that someone who has lived in a wider, broader and deeper spectrum of America, a latina woman who has been in the depths of poverty (usually reserved for minorities and typically where you find the most crime) and had not only been on welfare but eventually got to rub shoulders with white men at Princeton, would not have a better background to base decisions on than an affluent, white male who has never been within 10 miles of a (insert state) Department of Economic Security Office, who grew up in an all-white country club, who had never been in a car that wasn't made that same year (unless it was a vintage Mercedes) or who always thought the house in the Hamptons was "roughing it"?

Where could Sotomayor have gotten the juevos to say this? As Lindsey Graham so naively and racially put it, "And if I had said something like that--or someone with my background and profile--we wouldn't be talking about this nomination going forward." Ummm...yeah we would. Because white men have done that for centuries. They just never had to say it out loud. Our country was founded by white men, the laws were written by white men, white men were the only persons allowed to vote for the first 140 years of our country's existence, white men are 97% more likely to hail a cab in New York City.

So, yes, a Latina woman with an experience similar to Sotomayor's does come to a better decision than a white male who lacks that broad background of America's cultural landscape. We white males live in a fairly confined, narrow scope in America. When is the last time any of you took a stroll down the worst neighborhood in your city at night? Didn't keep the collar popped on the Polo, did ya? How about that liquor store on the corner in the ghetto...? Ever stop and ask for directions? No? Why not?

How many Fox News broadcasters are black? (Juan Williams doesn't count...Sheppard Smith is blacker than he is.) How many are Latino? Okay, Geraldo, but he's part-time.

But the right will respond that Michael Steele is the head of the Republican National Committee and I think I did see 3 or 4 persons of color at the Republican National Convention and they weren't just security guards...they were actually delegates. It appears as though they are making progress.

Sounds like they need a community organizer.

UPDATE: 7/14/09

The chairman of the Republican Party, house negro Michael Steele, just dropped this gem of a quote, watch the video in the link below:

Michael Steele decides he can "woo blacks to the GOP with fried chicken and potato salad"

Just when you think it couldn't get worse...the Republicans come through with a grand slam!

The NeoConned assault on Lady Justice: The frightening trend of proving false negatives

America. Land of the free, home of the brave. America. Home to the world's best example of equal justice. For centuries we have operated under the warm blanket of "innocent until proven guilty". Prosecutors are required to prove their case beyond a reasonable doubt to a jury of 12 fellow citizens who have been selected at random.

Have there been times when the guilty have gone free? Yes. Have there been times when the innocent were found guilty? Yes. The system is not perfect. It does walk in some faithful harmony with our Constitution and the Bill of Rights. Our Founding Fathers believed in humanity for all citizens of the world. This is why you will not find an indirect or direct reference to "U.S. citizens" in the Bill of Rights. For it is a document which outlines what the government can and cannot do against any people of any nation on earth (yes, even members of al-Qaeda!)

The American justice system is currently broken. It used to be that one was presumed innocent until proven guilty. In eight short years the Neoconned have abducted and assaulted our Lady of Justice. The result: if you are not a registered Republican, neoconservative and/or Fox News watcher, you are now presumed guilty until you are proven innocent. Yes, this has happened. Let's take a look back starting on September 12, 2001.

It is considered common knowledge at this point that the Iraq War was essentially planned prior to Bush's inauguration. 9/11 was simply a catalyst to be able to invade Iraq on ridiculously thin intelligence and the brilliant strategy of fear-mongering. When the U.S. were forced to comply to some set of rules laid out by the UN, they requested that Iraq provide intelligence and documentation on its weapons of mass destruction program. When Iraq complied and submitted a 19,000 page document, we conveniently erased the parts that stated that they did not have a WMD program and then asked Iraq again to come clean...or cleaner? Iraq clearly did not have WMD. However, when you send 150,000 troops to the Gulf to "negotiate diplomatically" it becomes increasingly difficult to continue to search (and be patient) for the truth.

Iraq continued to deny that they possessed WMD (most likely due to the fact that they did not have any). We still refused to accept that claim. This is perhaps the first instance of forcing someone, in this case an entire country, to prove a false negative; that is to say, that Iraq was clearly presumed guilty and ultimately was unable to prove its innocence.

As we are discovering on almost a daily basis, the U.S. knew that Iraq did not have WMD. In fact, as early as February of 2001 both Colin Powell and Condi Rice stood before the American public and claimed beyond doubt that Iraq had ceased to produce WMD and that they currently DID NOT possess any operational WMD.

There have been thousands of cases, obviously on a smaller scale, where this fascist system of justice has been present. Wiretapping, torture, denying prisoners habeas corpus are all elements of this upended American ideal. Persons who have spoken out against the war are on the government No Fly List. Protesters have been arrested for no reason other than exercising their constitutional rights. This perversion of real justice is a small but significant step in the direction of transforming a democratic state into a fascist state.

But recently this evil ideology has permeated the presidential race. Because the Republican party is unable to run on any type of solution-based platform, they are now forced to run on personal attacks, rumors and fear-mongering. The Republicans have hugged tightly to the various associations that Barack Obama has had prior to his candidacy. William Ayers, Sal Olinsky, Reverend Wright, the Chicago Cubs and ACORN (okay, not the Cubs but hey, Fox News spares no one in their attempt to start rumors) are the top four words you will hear on Fox News. Forget Osama bin Laden...no, seriously, I mean, I know we're not looking for him and we've already forgotten about him but forget about him again.

You would think these individuals have been responsible for events such as but not limited to: 9/11, the economy, the No Billionaire Left Behind Education Program, the housing crisis, Jamie Lynn Spears getting pregnant, blocking off-shore drilling, gas prices, Larry Craig's bathroom sex sting operation and for giving reporters tricky questions to ask Sarah Palin; questions like, "What newspapers do you read on a daily basis?"

Because Obama has met these individuals on few occasions or has had some type of brief relationship with them, he is presumed guilty and now must prove his innocence.

Here's the predicament. He has explained the connections on numerous occasions. The facts show that he is telling the truth. But since he is being forced to prove a false negative, he is unable exonerate himself.

It is similar to someone accusing you of being in a certain place on a certain day. They didn't see you there but they report the incident as if it were factual. You are then forced to prove something that is false. You are forced to prove you were not there but perhaps you can't because you were home alone during the evening in question. Amazing, isn't it? Our whole system of justice turned upside down. Imagine how court cases would play out. Would anyone be innocent ever again??

What exacerbates this particular situation is when this is played out in the public court of opinion and when the situation involves the future of our country. We are faced with going backwards or moving forward out of the most miserable eight years of our country's existence. We are forced with moving closer to a fascist state of government where the Constitution will continue to be sodomized and civil liberties be stripped away or returning to our fundamental principles that are clearly outlined in the Constitution.

Democracy is an interactive exercise. Let's put the blindfold back on Lady Justice.

"Constitution first, Country second"

The New Right-Wing Guide to Profanity

Under the Bush Regime the right-wing lemming movement has not only hijacked country music, the Constitution, the right to cheer for the military and the goatee, but it appears as though they have begun an aggressive assault on the English vocabulary.

It is understood that here in Amirca (Bush pronunciation) we have a certain slang in our representation of the English language. From Texas to Arkansas and from Missouri to southeastern Georgia, you will find an infinite number of different accents coupled with regional expressions that violate nearly every grammatical rule. But they are undoubtedly OUR expressions.

We thought they would have been satisfied with this. Apparently they're not.



The right-wing and its Hall of Justice, Fox News, have cornered several meaningful words and have deemed them blasphemous. The very existence of these words is threatened! (Not sure which color the terror level meter would be...probably a burnt orange or scarlet red).

The following 10 words have been kidnapped by the right wing. The problem: they have no idea of their meaning but they use them in emergency situations like an eject button in a fighter plane right before impact.

If you see a right-wing lemming using these words, usually in the midst of a Sean Hannity talking point, call your local English teacher or librarian and report them immediately.



1.) Socialist

Actual meaning: Of or pertaining to a political and economic theory or system of social organization based on collective or state ownership of the means of production, distribution, and exchange. Like capitalism, it takes many and diverse forms.

Right-Wing meaning: "Means that you wanna give away all my stuff to somebody else and I have to pay more money for stuff I ain't got no more. All them librals is socialists. Like in Europe and stuff."

I will now use the word socialist in a sentence: Being unable to express individual thoughts and be recognized for them is indicative of a socialist intellectualism.

2.) Marxist

Actual meaning: Of or pertaining to the political and economic philosophy of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels in which the concept of class struggle plays a central role in understanding society's allegedly inevitable development from bourgeois oppression under capitalism to a socialist and ultimately classless society.

Right-Wing meaning: "It's that one guy with the long beard who wanted to everyone to get the same haircut and then share their meals together. What a crazy kook! This here is one of Obama's buddies. They drank that funky tea together in Chicago while they was talkin' 'bout bein' radical and stuff."

I will now use the word marxist in a sentence: Marxist natural process is clearly represented during the eight long years under the Bush Regime; the working class has experienced new depths of poverty while the wealthy have experienced incredible growth in their net worth.

3.) Communist

Actual meaning: Of or pertaining to a system of government in which the state plans and controls the economy and a single, often authoritarian party holds power, claiming to make progress toward a higher social order in which all goods are equally shared by the people.

Right-Wing meaning: "Soviet Union, vodka and Ivan Drago from Rocky IV. Far as I'm concerned, anybody who don't think Amirca is #1 in everything is a communist."

I will now use the word communist in a sentence: The federal financial rescue package passed by Congress is almost communist: we all share in the debt and risk but only Wall Street gets the rewards.

4.) Radical

Actual meaning: Departing markedly from the usual or customary; extreme: radical opinions on education. Favoring or effecting fundamental or revolutionary changes in current practices, conditions, or institutions: radical political views.

Right-Wing meaning: "Freak! Why you wanna go changin' everything around? Damn it! You librals bein' for peace and equality...y'all just a bunch of radical radicals and stuff."

I will now use the word radical in a sentence: To be for torture, wiretapping and eliminating habeas corpus is a radical shift from the fundamental principles of our Constitution.

5.) Liberal

Actual meaning: Not limited to or by established, traditional, orthodox, or authoritarian attitudes, views, or dogmas; free from bigotry.Favoring proposals for reform, open to new ideas for progress, and tolerant of the ideas and behavior of others; broad-minded. Of, relating to, or characteristic of liberalism.

Right-Wing meaning: "Sean Hannity and Bill O'Reilly told me that librals is just another word for traitor. You librals wantin' all that peace, freedom and equality. Well guess what...freedom ain't free and these colors don't run. I got yer tolerance for other people's ideas right here...!"

I will now use the word liberal in a sentence: Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, John Adams and John Hancock were all signatories of the Declaration of Independence and were all very liberal men.

6.) Global

Actual meaning: Of, relating to, or involving the entire earth; worldwide: global war; global monetary policies.

Right-Wing meaning: "Who cares about the rest of the global peoples? Only thing that matters is the Global War of Terror that Amirca is bringin' to other parts of globe. Hey, if you don't come to democracy then democracy is comin' to you! Yee-haw! We gotta figure out a way to get the globe to cooperate with us. We're Amirca, damn it!"

I will now use the word global in a sentence: In an effort to speed up global warming, Governor Sarah Palin pushes for more drilling in the Arctic Wildlife Natural Refuge and continues to push for the extinction of polar bears in order to achieve it.

7.) European

Actual meaning: A person, object or attribute of the continent of Europe, the European Union, or a descendent of a European ethnic group or of a European person.

Right-Wing meaning: "People who talk funny, don't take showers or shave, eat weird food and listen to classical music. Fox News calls 'em elitists!"

I will now use the word European in a sentence: My experience has been that an average European citizen has more geographical knowledge of the United States than do most Americans.

8.) Fair

Actual meaning: Having or exhibiting a disposition that is free of favoritism or bias; impartial: a fair mediator. Just to all parties; equitable: a compromise that is fair to both factions. Being in accordance with relative merit or significance: She wanted to receive her fair share of the proceeds. Consistent with rules, logic, or ethics: a fair tactic.

Right-Wing meaning: "Fox News is fair and balanced. Who' da thunk it that Obama was a Muslim AND he had a crazy Christian pastor at the same time?"

I will now use the word fair in a sentence: When a political party rigs voting machines and threatens potential voters of the rival candidate, one can say that an election of this sort would not be fair.

9.) Community Organizer

Actual meaning: Community organizers create social movements by building a base of concerned people, mobilizing these community members to act, and developing leadership from and relationships among the people involved.

Right-Wing meaning: "Community organizers are a bunch of radicals trying to help other people, kinda like a socialist, and these organizers try to get them off poverty and stuff, teach 'em how to get a skill or something. Not quite sure...I heard Sarah Palin make a joke about it at the convention and everyone get a kick out of it! I guess it's just a bunch of people who ain't got nuthin' better to do than to help other people."

I will now use the term community organizer in a sentence: Jesus Christ was a liberal community organizer.

10.) Feminist

Actual meaning: Belief in the social, political, and economic equality of the sexes; the radical notion that females are human beings and are equal to men.

Right-Wing meaning: "Kinda like when a female wants to become special; you know, like when you're in the finals of a competition, then you're a finalist. Same thing here: a female becomes a feminist. All it takes is nice pair o' legs, a uterus and the occasional wink at me here in the audience."

I will now use the word feminist in a sentence: To say that Sarah Palin is a feminist would be to say that Dick Cheney is a philanthropist.



To everyone: take back these words and their meaning, take back your democracy from those who threaten it and continue to be truth-seekers.

The "maverick" who got lost...

Arizona Senator John McCain calls himself a "maverick". I'm not entirely certain why he chooses that label, perhaps because he represents the state of Arizona and therefore he can be viewed as some type of mascot for the state which is famous for old western movies. Tombstone, Prescott and Jerome are all cities in Arizona that conjure up images of an old man on a horse, trudging through the desert while building fires and eating beans out of a can. Yes sir, the old west. Kill or be killed.

I became curious about the meaning of the word "maverick".
A very wise professor from graduate school always suggested to begin with the word itself. Often times there is a whole other world of meaning within the letters of a word that can reveal its true nature and unlock the truth surrounding it. So, I searched for the definition of "maverick" on google.com and this is what came up:

1. An unbranded range animal, especially a calf that has become separated from its mother, traditionally considered the property of the first person who brands it.
2. One that refuses to abide by the dictates of or resists adherence to a group; a dissenter

My best educated guess is that most uneducated and uninformed (and misinformed) people view John McCain as a "maverick" in the # 2 part of the definition; someone who doesn't follow the group just to follow but rather blazes his/her own trail and by default can be considered a leader (provided that others follow).

I could dissect that theory faster than my friend Claudio can dissect a veal shank and I could now jump into the 61 positions and counting in which John McCain has been anything BUT someone who goes his own way, or has his own personal convictions despite how others may view him. From the Iraq withdrawal timetable to Bush's tax cuts to off-shore drilling, John McCain changes his mind as quickly as a pregnant woman does when deciding what to have for lunch. Asking Senator McCain to stick to his position is like asking Dick Cheney to reveal his e-mail inbox. Simply put, it would be asking that the impossible become possible.

But let us examine the # 1 part of the definition within the scope of John McCain and the party to which he claims affiliation: Republican.

It is rarely argued that on September 11, 2001, the world changed forever. One of the major changes was within the Republican party of the United States of America. Prior to September 11, 2001, the Republican party was (in)famous for opposing gay marriage, opposing rights of women to have control over their own human bodies, labeling poverty and homosexuality as "choices", believing that Jesus Christ was both Republican and American, pro- big business/corporatism, pro-tobacco industry and pro-big oil, over-taxation of middle-class, etc. Basically, the Reagan agenda was their coat of arms. (trickle-down means pissed-on)

But it appears as though the Republican party encountered a fracture, a type of rupture in its structure, where certain individuals developed an entirely different agenda that was much more devastating on a global basis and the new agenda reeked of nationalistic and fascist ideologies.

This movement, the NeoConservative, or more affectionately called, "NeoConned", looked to gain complete control of the military, judicial, legislative and executive components (not to mention, state's rights) of our nation's government by instituting a propagandistic strategy not seen since that of Hitler's regime in Germany 1936.

From 2001 - 2007 I would have not classified John McCain as one of the NeoConned. In this sense, he could very well have been labeled a "maverick" for not joining in the NeoCon passion of torture, illegal war and the sodomy of the Constitution.

But 2007 is when the so-called "maverick" became a calf (naive and willing to do anything for love) that had become separated from its mother (his party's traditional ideologies), and thereby considered the property of the first person who brands it (the NeoCons branded him with this image, "$$"). John McCain decided to run for president in 2008, perhaps to erase that awful image of him hugging George Bush in that 2000 photo when he could not resist snuggling his nose in Bush's neck.

John McCain was a calf that had decided to stray from his traditional Reagan Republican herd. He stumbled upon the NeoConned who quickly put their brand on him and are now showing him off at the local 4-H fairs nationwide. He says what they want him to say: torture is fine sometimes, especially if you watch "24" and how Kiefer Sutherland handles those "ticking time bomb" scenarios, off-shore drilling makes perfect sense, tax cuts for the richest 3% of America are a good idea while the middle and lower classes are taking it in the poopenschaft and at a time when gas has hit the same price as a meal for two at Burger King, 100 years in Iraq is a fantastic idea and bombing Iran and starting ANOTHER ILLEGAL PREEMPTIVE WAR makes sense when we have no proof or evidence that the Iranians have violated any law whatsoever.

In conclusion, perhaps the title of "maverick" is wildly suitable for McCain. He has, in fact, strayed from his proverbial mother. But he accomplished that way back in 1973 when he returned from Vietnam after 5 1/2 grueling years as a P.O.W. He discovered his once attractive, swim wear model and first wife Carol had been in a terrible car accident 3 years prior to his return. The accident left her disfigured and not so "bikini-liscious".

The man of values and principles left his disfigured and debilitated wife Carol and began an affair with the Bud Light Girl, Cindy, who is his current wife. In fact, "maverick" applied for a marriage license to marry Cindy before he finalized his divorce to Carol. Holy Maverick, you say...here's the undisputed link.

At this point, both Ronald and Nancy Reagan lost a great deal of respect for John McCain and went as far as to provide financially for Carol for many years to follow. When Nancy Reagan was asked to endorse John "The Maverick" McCain, she was quoted, "Well, obviously, this is the nominee of the party." I would say that is an endorsement dripping with enthusiasm.

John, you are no maverick. The only thing you have in common is that you share three of the same letters of the alphabet. You are simply a calf who got lost and are now being raised by angry, violent wolves. You are doomed either way.

If you fail in your mission, they will eat you. If you succeed in your mission, they will eat your mother.

Rome was neither built nor conquered in one day...

Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.

---Martin Luther King Jr.

It's been a while since my last post. So much has happened over such a short amount of time. It's becoming increasingly evident that the right has truly kidnapped America and what she stands for. To speak out about America and to exhibit any trace of disappointment over the actions of our government is now classified as "hate speech"; that is, if you're black and living in America....

A great country rarely falls from foreign threats but rather from within. As Sinclair Lewis once wrote, "When fascism comes to America it will be wrapped in a flag and carrying a cross."
Here are some reflections on recent events.

1. Reverend Jeremiah Wright = With the right-wing lemmings being so appalled at his sermons, which take place daily in thousands of churches from coast to coast, it would then be only logical to say that these same people are then VERY PROUD of the following "accomplishments" of that same government Reverend Wright criticized: torture, illegal war, declining benefits for veterans, ill-equipped soldiers, genocide of Native-Americans, genocide of African-Americans, enslavement of Africans, lynching of African-Americans, sexism, racism, discrimination, religious intolerance, attempted destruction of labor unions, Japanese internment camps, fire hoses and German shepherds on African-American citizens in Alabama, segregation, agent-provocateurs who incite riots during peaceful protests, the use of military aircraft to transport heroin from southeast Asia into the United States...and the list can go on until the next Microsoft program comes out.

Now, I'm one of the few, perhaps, who believe that there is a stark difference between my government and my country. America is synonymous with freedom and equality. America is the Constitution, not the government. When the president of this country takes his/her oath, it is not to "protect the American people" but rather "...solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States."
What the right-wing jackasses are playing on the radio is actually helping Reverend Wright. As they continue to play only sound bites and snippets of his entire sermon, Reverend Wright continually refers to "the Government" and not to "America". But you won't hear that unless you look for the entire sermon on the internet somewhere. When a black man criticizes America he's considered a hateful ingrate and a traitor; when a white man does it they call it anger peppered with wisdom and conservatism.

2. Hillary = The person inside her body is a right-wing nut job dressed in a business suit and armed with the most annoying laugh in the history of mankind. From wanting to annihilate Iran and wipe it off the map to employing fear tactics to claiming that since Obama had a pacifier until the age of 2 she is better suited to be president on Day One, this woman has made Karl Rove look like Mr. Rogers. Her arithmetic is so much of a twisting fantasy that you would need at least 3 hits of acid and 1 bag of shrooms to partially grasp the hint of possibility that she may win the nomination. The damage that she has done is immeasurable and was totally unnecessary. She has distracted Obama enough to let McCain go untouched for at least 8 weeks now. Surprisingly though, despite the negativity and adolescent attacks by Hillary, McCain has a mere 3 point lead over either Democrat. I can't wait to see Obama destroy McCain in a debate. Maybe "my friend" will get so fired up that the red face will beautifully contrast the white hair...the fist will start pumping and that mechanical arm will go all crazy and start flapping and then...aaahhh...one can only hope.
Hillary's cult followers have now promised to vote for McCain over Obama should Obama get the nomination. Brilliant. Maybe that was the plan all along.
Her tactic is cunning. Attack mercilessly and childishly and when Barrack fires back then play the victim. This country still gets fired up when a black man speaks in a harsh tone to or about a white woman.

3. Rush Limbaugh= Definition: overweight, insecure megalomaniac drug-addict who encourages his lemming listeners to switch parties and vote for Hillary in the primary and then go to Denver and riot when Obama does not get the nomination.
There is no one on the radio who is more overtly racist, sexist and elitist than Rush Limbaugh. To so many who have removed the frontal lobe region of their brain, Rush (and Sean Hannity) is their source of reason. The right-wing lemmings have made Rush their cult leader. I mean, you'd have to call him that if he's encouraging people to go to Denver to riot in August and they are willing to get arrested to do it.
This is so tragic and this is part of the problem in America today; we rely on the media to interpret information that is so incredibly easy to comprehend. 9/11 took our breath away and the right-wing gave us an oxygen mask that pumped us full of fear gas. Some were able to wiggle out of the mask; others still have not and are now addicted and can't live without it.

4. Iran = If you want war bad enough, I'm sure it will happen. The Bush Crime Family has been itching to lob some missiles into Iran. McCain can't wait to bomb it and Hillary wants to obliterate it. Don't be surprised if you wake up one morning in the next 30 days and see Breaking News where Iran "provoked a U.S. carrier" --most likely we parked a battleship on one of their beaches in Akhtar and then say, "They threatened us"---or "the U.S. intercepted communication". More war, more money, more death, more oil, more troops, more torture, more rape, more murder, more military contracts for Carlyle Group, Haliburton and Boeing, more coffins, more grief, $4 a gallon gas....and less safe than ever. And don't forget: we're supposed to be looking for Bin Laden.


I never thought I'd be living in America and writing these types of thoughts I just put forth.
9/11 didn't unite us; it divided us and the Bush Crime Family made sure of it. When will people stand up and say they've had enough? At the sake of expanding an empire we are on the verge of losing the republic...

Stuff right-wingers like...

I recently stumbled across another blog entitled stuff white people like. The blog is genius and I laughed so hard my stomach hurt for the rest of the day. I check it frequently as, despite its clever humor, it delivers poignant observations about the Caucasian race in America.

With that in mind I wanted to do an entry on stuff right-wingers like.

This is going to be the most fun-filled post I've done since the inception of the blog.

Disclaimer: This list could grow or diminish in size. The list is not intended to capture all of the objects of pleasure of the right-wing lemmings but merely underscore the principal commonalities. Their condition, or dis-ease if you will, can only be cured by an icon who is a respected military authority, a champion driver on the NASCAR circuit or in the country music industry who would be willing to reveal the truth to them: that they have been duped and that the Bush Crime Family screwed them, too.

Let the fun begin...

Patriotic country music

This is perhaps the most common. Any song that speaks of America kickin' ass, that the "Red, white and blue are comin' fer you too" or of 9/11 (usually in the form of a ballad) is pretty mainstay for the average right-winger. They may have a compilation of this type of music on CD or multiple CD's. At any rate these CD's are readily available and easily accessible in their vehicles. You may have heard some of these songs as they tend to roll their windows down in their vehicle and play the music at a high volume when cruising. The music can evoke a wide array of emotions, from rage to sadness to grief. Bottom line: necessary for nutrition for the blindly patriotic.

Patriotic (allegedly) t-shirts

For the average right-winger the choice in apparel is paramount. Having the right t-shirt can make or break their night out. There are many choices. T-shirts with the following slogans/designs are generally considered chic: "These colors don't run", "Let the eagle soar", "Freedom ain't free", "Bin Laden we're comin' for your ass" (usually with Uncle Sam as the protagonist), "Unleash the military - Give war a chance", "I Love Waterboarding", "I love torturing terrorists", "Peace through superior firepower". These t-shirts come in many colors, too. It's important for the average right-winger to wear these classics by tucking them into their Wrangler BLUE jeans with either broken-in cowboy boots or a pair of tennis shoes (NOT running shoes...remember, "these colors don't run").

Trucks

Big. Loud. Ford. Dodge. These four words mean a lot to the average right-winger. They basically stand for, "I'm gonna kick yer ass whether you want me to or not". The choice in trucks says a lot about the average right-winger. They know that it takes $182.75 to fill up the gas tank but that is not a statement of their wealth but rather of their arrogance and disdain for anything environmental (how could you be an avid fan of war AND be an avid fan of the environment at the same time?)
The younger lemmings tend to choose a flashy, 25-foot high truck with flashy rims and an outrageous bumper sticker like, "I'd rather be in a CIA secret prison waterboarding a terrorist". The older, more sophisticated right-winger tends to have a Ford F150 extended cab with responsible tires and rims, no more than 2.5 feet from floorboard to the ground and a "W 04" sticker or a "Bush/Cheney 04" sticker. They may (and this is probable) have a front decorative license plate that is of the American flag or of a bald eagle or they may have an American flag windsock out of their back driver side window. Whether it is the young buck right-winger or the homophobic older type, they both keep their trucks 5 levels above operating-room cleanliness. Trucks are to right-wingers as Volvos are to liberals: a mutual sign of fraternal order.

American flag lapel pins

Who would have thought that those American flag lapel pins you can buy at Chevron, Circle K or 7-11 would become so incredibly popular and be considered so sacred and patriotic? Well, believe it. These little suckers can go anywhere, not only your lapel. You can put them on hats, scarves, vests, ties, backpacks and they go great on any apparel from Cabela's or Bass Pro Shops.

If you do not own one of these, and the average right-winger owns more than one, you are immediately classified as a terrorist and hateful towards America and anything American.
You can also be accused of communist tendencies and, although you may know nothing about the Muslim religion, a Muslim extremist who owns many sandals and plenty of curry at home.

The flag lapel pin is akin to Popeye's spinach. If you find yourself in a precarious situation and in need of displaying deep, meaningful patriotism, then bust it out and slap it on so everyone can see how sincere you truly are.

Bill O'Reilly and Sean Hannity

To the average right-winger these two propagandistic deities are in the realm of demagogues. If O'Reilly and/or Hannity were to advocate violence towards any Democrat we would find ourselves in a type of Armageddon previously only seen in movies. Both Hannity and O'Reilly have hypnotic power over the average right-winger. These men supply the weak, empty talking points to millions of right-wingers daily.
If you hear terms like "SP" or "selective moral outrage" then you know you have encountered one of these lemmings. Just know that any type of truth, data or factual evidence is virtually useless against these individuals. Their perspective is dependent on false accusations, fear-mongering, judgment, hate and ignorance. There is absolutely no room for truth in this world.
The average right-winger makes desperate daily attempts to convince others that their talking points were not gathered from Hannity or O'Reilly. They are usually confronted on this when debating with progressives but when they are in the company of other average right-wingers, both parties pretend not to know that the other is actually regurgitating verbatim what Hannity and O'Reilly said the day before.

More war (battleground TBD)

The only thing better than the Iraq war would be more war. The target country is rather unimportant. What is important for the average right-winger is that when there appears to be a lull in violence that the Bush Crime Family find another country, and quickly, that is not a threat and bomb it back to primitive times. The reason for more war could and will change according to facts and truth that are uncovered. Example: supposedly we went into Iraq because, according to intelligence, they had weapons of mass destruction and they were going to use them against us in the near future ("can't let the smoking gun be in the form of a mushroom cloud"). When it was discovered (proven) that Iraq DID NOT have WMD the mission changed to "removing a brutal dictator". When Saddam was executed, then it became, "spreading democracy".
Intelligence reports have concluded that Iran does not have a WMD program. You know what that means? Iran is next on the list.
There is an adolescent excitement that exists here, similar to Christmas Eve, and it most likely is very related to my previous blog entry and the average right-winger's obsession and love of the military.

NASCAR

I am convinced that there is not one NASCAR fan who is, or ever was, against any war---past, present or future. To watch identical cars go around in a circle and wait for them to crash can say a lot about someone's view of the world in general. The ultimate weekend for an average right-winger: going to a NASCAR race with your friends where all of the attendees have trucks, patriotic t-shirts, tight Wranglers, patriotic country music, lots of Busch beer and when overly-intoxicated, closet homosexual tendencies.
Being an average right-winger and being a NASCAR fan are nearly syllogistic in nature. Ultimate orgasmic moment: having your driver win the NASCAR race and do the victory lap with a gigantic American flag.

"Truthiness" and general disdain for facts and truth

Stephen Colbert coined the term truthiness a while back. Here's the definition according to wikipedia:
"a satirical term to describe things that a person claims to know intuitively or "from the gut" without regard to evidence, logic, intellectual examination, or facts."
This phenomenon has permeated nearly every aspect of the average right-winger's world. Real truth, to them, is simply abhorrent. When presented with evidence and facts, such as the fact that Iraq had no WMD or that the "surge" is really the U.S. government offering huge payments to al-Sadr's army to temporarily cease violence, the average right-winger will become enraged and offer his/her brand of "truthiness": "That's bullshit! Everyone knows that Saddam had WMD and that he smuggled them into Syria before the invasion, my neighbor's kid is in the Marines and he has satellite images of it. No one can see them yet because they're classified, but they will come out someday. And the surge is working because we've got more soldiers there then we ever had and we're killing more of them!!!" Facts: we have less soldiers there now then we did pre-surge, we are paying Muqtada al-Sadr large sums of money to remain idle and to this moment in time there have been no WMD found in Iraq. Those are facts. But the average right-winger cannot tolerate facts and therefore relies on what his/her truth is, which is "truthiness".
In all seriousness I believe this boils down to a psychological defense mechanism that prevents someone from having a nervous breakdown. If the average right-winger were to face the truth and facts regarding Iraq, let's say, the truth would be literally crippling: both psychologically as well as emotionally.
"Truthiness" can also be applied to the above topic of pretending to be or pretending to have been in the military. As Joseph Goebbels once said, "If you tell a big enough lie enough times people will come to believe it."

Submissive wives

No surprise here. The average right-winger male needs his wife to be submissive and thoughtless, but yet the ultimate caregiver for the children. As he engages in deep political, philosophical debates such as "What type of bomb would you drop on Baghdad, bunkerbuster or clusterbomb?" and "Do you think Al-Qaeda was kinda responsible for Hurricane Katrina, too?" the submissive wife is close by, listening attentively so that she may relay these illogical and nonsensical points to her girlfriends and to various radio talk-shows (Hannity or O'Reilly) when the husband is away at work during the day. Perhaps the submissive wife achieves the highest form of unconditional love: when she would be willing and competent enough to disable the part of her brain that allows her the ability to reason so that it will instead simply and automatically validate and affirm the husband with robot-like frequency.
During one of the philosophical discourses on the Iraq war and while in the presence of the husband the submissive wife is not allowed to change the subject, interrupt the husband or to offer too radical of an opinion. The expectation is simply that a head-nod or a "mmmmhuh" will be more than sufficient. Typically the submissive wife will don the same gear (only one size smaller) as the average right-winger husband: patriotic t-shirt, tennis shoes, tight Wranglers (stonewashed). Other necessary components include Wrigley's Xtra gum, Marlboro lights, heavy makeup, teased hair, perfume from 1993, manicured nails with American flag emblem on each fingernail, drinking beer from bottle sans glass.

Television show "24"

The television show "24" allows the average right-winger to engage in their fantasy at least once a week: the country is under attack and there is ticking-time bomb scenario and only Jack Bauer can torture the suspect enough to save America. This is what is feeding the average right-winger's view of the Global War of Terror. This is what validates their "shoot first, ask questions much later" mentality. To them al-Qaeda is in the process of procuring dozens of canoes in order to row to America, land somewhere in Maryland and begin their take over of America. I would argue that the average right-winger viewer actually HOPES to be involved in a "24" episode in real-life. The temptation to torture is too great to resist.
Since 9/11, torture has become almost a form of entertainment much like gladiator battles were to ancient Rome. There is a sense that the average right-winger could not care any less whether a suspected terrorist is innocent or not; the simple fact that they are of darker skin and speak Arabic is justification for a Spanish Inquisition-style torture. Our forefathers would shake their heads in disgust, shame and disbelief.
Bottom line: the average right-winger believes that "24" is reality. Which would beg the question: how in the heck did America stay safe while Kiefer Sutherland was doing time for his DUI arrest?


Believing al-Qaeda was always in Iraq

Although tens of thousands of pages of intelligence have been submitted, along with dozens of military intelligence analysts going on record to state it, the average right-winger believes, rather KNOWS, that al-Qaeda have been in Iraq for decades. How do they know this?
Because al-Zarqawi, the red-headed stepchild of al-Qaeda, got medical treatment from a hospital in Iraq one month before the Iraq invasion. Match point, I guess. This falls under that umbrella of "truthiness". The same people who told us that there were WMD in Iraq and that they knew where they were planted this gem of information into the right-wing world. It shot around like a super ball on crack and now every average right-winger holds on to that tidbit like a 5 year old girl hugs her teddy bear. Problem: Saddam would have killed Zarqawi had he known he was anywhere in Iraq. Saddam thought al-Qaeda to be much too radical and that they attracted too much attention. The ONLY agreement Saddam had with any organization was this: "if you come across any stray nuclear weapons, I'll buy them from you at any price and if you come into Iraq I'll cut your f#$%^& head off!"
Al-Qaeda is in Iraq because we took out Saddam. End of story.

Believing Saddam was involved in 9/11 (select few, usually in rural areas)

16% of average right-wingers still believe that Saddam was behind 9/11. This demographic usually falls into the rural areas of America in communities no larger than 2,000 inhabitants. There may be one or two people who have a computer in these towns but they refuse to tell the other 1,900 + people that Saddam had nothing to do with 9/11.

Believing that violating the Constitution is a fantastic way to fight terrorism

Perhaps the most frightening pleasure of the average right-winger. They are perfectly content with illegal wiretaps, the elimination of habeas corpus, torture, racial profiling, illegal detentions, denial of rights and the multiple executive orders that give Bush control of each state's National Guard and the power to accuse any American of being an "enemy combatant".

You will usually hear the average right-winger say, "Well, if you ain't got nuttin' to hide, whadda ya worried about?" Little do they know this is how Nazi Germany began its ascent to a totalitarian state. The average right-winger, as I've mentioned several times before, normally lacks an education for whatever circumstance. That is no judgment on them. They cannot see the dangerous correlation between "they hate us for our freedom" and the fact that the Bush Crime Family has taken away more of our freedoms than al-Qaeda could have ever done in a thousand years. One person losing their rights is everyone losing their rights.
Bush once said, "The Constitution is just a god-damned piece of paper". That statement could very well have transcended the population that believes he is more intelligent than they are.
When you have bludgeoned a population with the club of patriotism you can accomplish almost anything.

As Benjamin Franklin once said, "If we restrict liberty to attain security we will lose them both."