The Best of Rocky Mountain Mike (2014)

I often feature the works of Rocky Mountain Mike on the blog, not because I have anything to do with making them--I don't--but because I'm a huge fan, and Mike posts handy-dandy embedding links! Also, I'm a huge fan of The Stephanie Miller Show, which is how I came to find Mike in the first place.

Through the year, as in previous ones, he's produced quite a few masterful song parodies, some Stephanie Miller in-joke specific, some brilliantly spot-on takedowns of whatever happens to be driving the news cycle, from Sarah Palin's latest drunken family brawl, to the Bundy Ranch, to the evil that is Dick Cheney. Here's a taste of several of them in this year end medly.

For more the complete tunes, go here. And buy his album, Politically Incoherent on Amazon!

 

How The Daily Show with Jon Stewart and The Colbert Report Kept Liberals Sane in 2014

I have a problem with virtually everything that emanates from Right Wing World these days, but there is one thing they are excellent at: messaging. It's their super power. Unfortunately, they are more on the Legion of Doom side of things, preferring to put their powers to evil use. But they--for all of the malarkey you hear about a "liberal media"--control the message, the narrative and the news cycle, by-and-large. Check out Meet the Press, Face the Nation, FOX "News" Sunday, This Week or any of the other political shows, and check out the ratio of conservatives to progressives. And check out the way they're unbound by worries about the truth. Truthiness is key.

And that's where Comedy Central's potent twosome of Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert came in. From completely different perspectives, they point out the cracks, flaws and falsiness behind the truthiness. While Stewart is still going strong (for now), Colbert has left for more networky (and less political) pastures, leaving us with the untested Larry Wilmore's The Nightly Show instead. Wilmore has some huge shoes to fill. And he'll have to decide if he's himself or a character! Because, while Stewart is a version of himself, Colbert's faux conservative persona went places that skewered the right in ways that are otherwise hard to reach.

I still hope that Col-bert doesn't completely kill off Col-bear. Hopefully, we'll still get glimpses, or even complete segments featuring Colbert the character, even if we don't get them right away. In any event, 2014 sure needed these guys.

[Excerpt]
 
These Daily Show And Colbert Report Segments Helped Cure A Year Of Right-Wing Lies

Nothing captures the absurdity and insincerity of conservative media quite like Comedy Central's The Daily Show and The Colbert Report. Media Matters takes a look back at Stewart and Colbert's best takedowns of 2014. . .

ABBA's Happy New Year

I can't let the countdown start without posting the classic ABBA's Happy New Year, can I? It's hard to believe this song was released at the end of the 1970s, with ponderings about what the 1980s would bring. There have been recent rumblings that ABBA might finally reunite, and all I can say is, they'd better hurry! Good grief, we're getting old waiting!

Bill Maher's New Rules for 2013

Image from Real Clear Politics

The worst thing about being a fan of Real Time with Bill Maher is the duration of the show's hiatuses. It used to be worse. A few seasons ago, they started spreading the off-time out a bit, but it's still long stretches without one of my favorite programs. I understand that Maher is a standup comedian, and needs to hone his craft, but it's not like the program is a Daily Show (A-HEM! Which takes shorter breaks. End of rant).

So, I'm glad in the down time, that Maher has some New Rules for us. Can't wait for the end of the break!

[Excerpt]

New Rules for the New Year

2012: I call it the year in “meh.” Not the worst we’ve ever experienced, but nothing particularly great to say about it either. Like being a socialite, but in Tampa. I am looking forward to 2013, however, because I love the odd-numbered years — they’re the ones without congressional elections, Olympics, World Cups or weird extra days tacked onto the calendar by so-called scientists. Odd-numbered years are chill. They’re the 3 p.m. of years — that small sliver of time when lunch is digested and it’s too early to think about dinner and you stand at least a fighting chance of getting something done. . .

Read more at: New York Times

2011's New Year's Resolutions: How'd You Do?

As we close out 2011, we leave a pretty crappy year behind us. But it wasn't all bad. In fact, last year's New Year's resolutions were my most successful ever. Last year, I resolved to

1) Quit smoking
2) Start exercising regularly
3) Lose weight

I quit smoking on January 3rd, the first day back to work. I haven't had a cigarette since.  My exercise plan was always to come later in the year, since January resolvers tend to pack the gym. I started in April. But, the no smoking led to weight gain, despite the regular exercise. My half-hearted low-carb diet plan needed revamping. So, in September, I kept on with my exercise, and hit the Atkins Diet full bore.

Prior to Christmas break, I weighed in at 149 lbs., a full 30+ pound loss from my highest weight. I'm still exercising 5-7 days per week, and even with a one-week "break" from the diet, I'm still at 154 lbs., and re-started the diet today.

So, for 2012, I resolve to

1) Remain a non-smoker
2) Continue to exercise regularly
3) Maintain my weight loss, to at worst below 160 lbs.
4) Use my MacBook Pro to learn Adobe CS5 to proficiency

I'll check in with you in a year to let you know how I did!

Happy New Year! For Realz!

Okay, another chance to use my (semi-lame) Las Vegas new year's graphic. Happy New Year everybody! Nobody's going to miss 2010 (except the previous Congress). We may not have (much) higher hopes for 2011, but could it be worse? Well, with the Weeping Orange Boner Boehner, maybe. But I hope not. Let's just cross our fingers and hope for the best, mmmkay?

ABBA's Happy New Year

I can't let the countdown start without posting the classic ABBA's Happy New Year, can I? And though it is the end of a decade, just pretend the "end of '89" line (not really the end of a decade) is "end of 2020." Mmkay?

Absolutely Fabulous: Bubble Explains the New Year

Happy New Year!

2010 is ending, and good riddance! It wasn't a particularly good year for a lot of people, your editor included. It wasn't all bad, as several good things did happen. Off the top of my head, some of the positive things were

- "Don't ask, don't tell" was repealed. Or at least pre-repealed. Definitely a positive step.
- The Walking Dead premiered, was good, got good ratings, and got renewed.
- My sister announced that she's going to have another baby.
- I got a new(ish) car.
- Even though Democrats lost big in November, the uber-crazies (Christine O'Donnell, Joe Miller and especially Sharron Angle) lost.
- Election 2010 was nothing if not entertaining.
- The stock market went up (even if my own meager stocks declined).
- I got my first Mac. And didn't get assimilated into the Cult of Mac collective.

Okay, so it's not much of a list. And I did no research. I may tomorrow, if the mood strikes. Hey, I'm on vacation, cut me some slack! Bad stuff doesn't seem like a good thing to dwell upon, though I may visit a little of that too. For now, I'll leave you for now with a couple of observations:

- 2010 is the last year that those goofy New Year's Eve glasses will be credible, being the last year with two zeros in it (without a giant number in the third slot, at least). I have no doubt that the trinket hustlers will try to make them with 2011 and beyond, but they'll look dumber than they already did.
- 2010 is the end of the first decade of the 2000s, but it is also the last decade-ending year of the century that will be viewed that way. 2020 will be the last year of the teens, but will be viewed as the start of the '20s, much as 2000 is included as the beginning of this decade, even though it was not. Which is why you're seeing decade retrospectives this year, rather than last year, and they start at 2001.
- We got through a whole decade without naming it. I suppose this is normal. I'll bet the "gay nineties" wasn't thought up for the 1890s until later (and wouldn't get a name like that today!). But what was it? The oos? The two-thousandsies? The aughts? The lost decade? Or is that to come?

Anyway, have a very happy (and safe) New Year's Eve, and a prosperous (or at least better) 2011 than we had in 2010.

Celebrities We Lost in 2010

In memoriam.



Found at: Joe.My.God.

2010's Gifts to Comedians

Image from source, Huffington Post

As you might have noticed, there have been few posts over the last few days. Oddly enough, when I'm on vacation--and actually have more time to post--I seem to get less done. Mostly, that is because I'm usually off during holidays, and the news world seems to just stop. Part of this is because second-stringers are delivering the news at those times, and part of it is because I'm not paying attention! Still, I like to get a little something posted every day, just to keep the blog fresh. So, here's a quickie for me that is also entertaining. Who were the people of 2010 that provided us with comedic fodder?

[Excerpt]

2010's People Who Made Comedy Possible (PHOTOS)



The year 2010 had a plethora of intensely funny people, but where would they be without their targets, who may be equally funny for altogether different (and unintentional) reasons? Midterm election years always make the stakes of politics and our culture more heightened than non-election years, and that sense of urgency only fuels the fire of comedians' wit. . .
 
Read more at: Huffington Post

Sarah Palin: Misinformer of the Year

Oh, you betcha!

Better Late Than Never: Jib-Jab's 2009 Year in Review

Because I forgot. . .

Never a Year Like 09' - JibJab
Uploaded by JibJab. - Click for more funny videos.

Welcome Back! Now What?

It's the first day back to work in the new year/decade, if you're like me. And it's the first day back on the blog in a way. I've been taking it very easy, posting just a couple of things a day. So, now what? The news hasn't spiked. Even yesterday's political shows were almost entirely rehashes of what they'd discussed the week before.

So, where do I go when I want to put something up to start the week, and there isn't much new to say? How 'bout a favorite topic like the dishonesty of FOX "News"? After all, they're still plugging away telling lies--it seems to be a perpetual thing. And while most of us who believe this to be true aren't going to change our minds, it is possible that a reader or two on the fence--hey, optimistically, maybe even a FOX fan can be converted over to our side. Here's hoping. And Happy New Year!

[Excerpt]

Fox closes out decade by pushing debunked falsehoods

Fox News and its website The Fox Nation closed out 2009 by advancing debunked attacks on President Obama. Specifically, Fox News hosted Ann Coulter, who repeatedly made the false claim that Obama attended "madrassas" as a child, while The Fox Nation continued to promote Andrew Breitbart's story that "ACORN CEO Visited Obama White House Week Before Scandal Broke" days after it was reported that the "Bertha Lewis" who visited the White House was not, in fact, the Bertha Lewis who is the CEO of ACORN. . .

Read more at: Media Matters

50 Best Protest Signs of 2009

Nothing will ever top "Get a Brain, Morans!" but a few do come close. . .

[Excerpt]

The 50 Best Protest Signs Of 2009

We saw some really great protest signs in 2009. Thanks to our President for being a socialist, gay people for being gay, and Kanye West for interrupting Taylor Swift. . .

See them all at: BuzzFeed

Ch-ch-ch-changes! What's Different This Decade?

(From OnlineEducation)

Endings and Beginnings

Christmas (and all its attendant festivities, not to mention competing festivals) has come and gone. The week of holiday limbo that follows has likewise been crossed off the calendars. New Year's Day marked the end and beginning of a year and (kinda) a decade. And now most of us have seen an unusual new year's treat--not having to go back to work until the fourth of the month--sneak up on us, even if we've had the previous 8-11 days off.

Personally, I've been off work since Christmas Eve. I've managed to accomplish at least as much as my cat in that time, and in fact have picked up a habit or two from her. Sunbeams do make fun napping places! But there is a counter-inutuitive bit of time perception that happens on stay-at-home weeks of from work. Usually, if you waste time by doing nothing, time crawls. Actually trying to waste time seems to make it go on and on. But when you do this at home--rather than at your desk at work--time actually seems to accelerate. Here I am on day 11 of my break, staring at returning to work tomorrow morning, and I'm thinking, "already?!?"

So, I'm making my last leisurely brunch/late breakfast. I'm on the last day of my waist-expanding project. I'll resume my low-carb diet tomorrow, along with a slightly-better-than-halfhearted attempt at regular exercise. And, I'll try to return the blog to more than a post a day. But that project could be difficult if this morning's Sunday political yack-fests are any indication.

I actually had to check my DVR to make sure that I wasn't watching last week's Meet the Press with David Gregory. Seriously, did nothing happen in the past week? Nearly the entire program was taken up with the Christmas Day attempted underwear bombing. There was absolutely nothing new to be heard, with Gregory (who is turning out to be a piss-poor substitute for Tim Russert) asking the same batch of loaded questions he asked last week. Pathetic.

FOX "News" Sunday with Chris Wallace was no better (as though it ever is). The vaguely creepy host continued to embarass his father by dragging the allegedly "hard news" segment of FOX "News" into the partisan gutter as he does every other week. Wallace also seems to think it is last week, with--as I watch this--nothing that would let you know an entire week has gone by since they talked about the exact same thing. That's 9 days since the non-event "happened."

I may have to zip through the rest of the program with the remote, especially when they haul out the ludicrously named "Power Panel," the rag-tag (surely skeleton crew) group of arch-conservatives and milquetoasty moderates that constitute "fair and balanced" on this stupid program. Then, unless it is preempted by tennis or golf or girls' field hockey, it'll be time for This Week with George Stephanopoulos. Unless they've replaced him. At least he has the "Sunday Funnies" segment, which usually proves amusing. Except all the comics have been on vacation, so good luck with that, George. Maybe my New Year's resolution should be to stop watching these increasingly lame shows? Maybe. But habits are hard to break.

Happy New Year!

If you've stopped by in the last 24 hours (or the last week, for that matter), you may have noticed a few less posts than usual. Sorry about that. I can't even claim to be busy. Here I am, with New Year's a little over an hour away, sitting at home watching the new year in on telly. Which is about as low as you can go, sweetie. (Thank you, Edina from Absolutely Fabulous)

I just wasn't in the mood this year for revelry, I can't really say why. Part of it is that The Other Half is working early tomorrow, and can't participate. Another is, I dunno, I guess I'm holidayed out. Maybe the February blahs came early to me this year. But I'm here on the blog, and I should have the thing up and running at normal speed in a couple of days. But my "vacation" still has three days left on it, so I might just continue to take advantage of that. But by Monday! Tuesday at the latest. . .

Meanwhile, Happy New Year!!!

Michael Musto's Decade in Review

Image from source, Village Voice

As a semi-gay activist (I'm not semi-gay, I'm a semi-activist), I find people like Michael Musto vaguely discomforting. I think it's great that he's out there, but he often makes me shift uncomfortably in my seat. I may have just a smidge of internalized homophobia. But I'm working on it. Anyway, Musto has been a frequent guest on Countdown with Keith Olbermann, most notably in the terminally stupid Carrie Prejean story. And while Musto often induces cringes in me, he also pushes my skewer that bitch impulse. So here is his year/decade in review article. In my effort at self improvement.

[Excerpt]

Michael Musto's Year (and Decade) in Review!

The Naughty Aughties are over, and I'm LMFAO. It will be remembered, if at all, as the decade of the TMI generation. The 15-second fame gang. The micromanaging maniacs. The attention-whoring-for-lunch bunch. The iPhone, iPod, iMac, IMAX, and eye-lift folks. The people who have already forgotten this paragraph. . .

Read more at: Village Voice

Dumbest Quotes of the Decade

“I think gay marriage is something that should be between a man and a woman.” --Arnold Schwarzenegger

The first quote mentioned in this list cracked me up so much, I had to post an excerpt.

[Excerpt]

The Dumbest Quotes Of The 2000s

The 2000s (or the 'naughties' as the kids are calling them) are coming to a close. And to celebrate, we've been counting down the funniest movies, sketches, and people of the past ten years. Next up, quotes. But not just funny quotes - DUMB quotes, which as we know are the best kind. . .

Read more at: Huffington Post