Conan O'Brien Officiates Same-sex Marriage on His Show

I struggled with the headline, because I just want to call it a marriage, not a "gay" or "same-sex" one, but then, that wouldn't seem particularly newsworthy, would it? One day--after the current crop of religious-nut candidates and elected officials retire or die--two men getting married won't be either newsworthy or noteworthy. It will just be.

Product Placement: Larry the Cable Guy's Hamburger Helper Knockoff

I can't in a million years figure out why this product is being offloaded at Big Lots, can you?

Business Insider: 2012 GOP Field a Joke

There are times when blogs, news sites, and cable news channels mistake a parody for the real thing. So it is possible that "Business Insider" is a big ol' load of crap. But in this case? It really doesn't matter, because they are right.

[Excerpt]

IT'S OFFICIAL! The Republican Presidential Race Is Now A Total Joke 

The escalating controversy surrounding Herman Cain's alleged sexual harassment of women in the 1990s has officially taken on a life of its own, turning the already absurd Republican presidential race into an all-out farce. . .

Read more at: Business Insider

Julia Louis-Dreyfus Talks to President Obama About Keystone XL Pipeline Project

Conservatives really hate celebrities mouthing off about politics. When it was the Dixie Chicks rightly expressing embarrassment about Dubya, the right said, "shut up and sing!" when they weren't destroying their CDs. When it was Sean Penn, they said "shut up and act!" Entertainers shouldn't have political opinions. Unless they're Arnold Schwarzenegger. Or John Voit. Or Janene Turner. Or Patricia Heaton. Or Kelsey Grammer. Or Ted Nugent. Or Ronald Reagan.

But here we have a celebrity not making a general-audiences pronouncement, but one directly at President Obama (conservatives would dig that). But it's against big oil (conservatives dig big oil: drill, baby, drill!). But Dreyfus is so adorable, even at 50!  How could anybody not love our Elaine/Christine?

Birther Queen Orly Taitz Running for Senate

Oh goddamn it, we're just done as a country! C'mon! We've got this roster of GOP cartoon characters in an endless debate reality show. Real reality stars take on the status of American Royalty. Creeps like Mitch McConnell and John Boner Boehner can be transparently trying to sink the economy, and seemingly not lose any support. "Birtherism" keeps rearing it's aggressively stupid head.


And now, the queen of the birthers, Zsa Zsa Gabor impersonator Orly Taitz is running for the U.S. Senate. The only thing that will cheer me up is if her opponent makes very public and successful mincemeat of her.


[Excerpt]

Orly and her ridiculous "proof" that Obama is not
American. Image from Huffington Post

Orly Taitz Senate Campaign: 'Birther Queen' Running As GOP Candidate For U.S. Senate Seat In California  

Orly Taitz is running for U.S. Senate. Taitz, who made a name for herself questioning the veracity of President Obama's birth certificate, will run as a GOP candidate in an effort to unseat Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.). . .

Read more at: Huffington Post

Tea Bagger Calls Elizabeth Warren a Socialist Whore

It goes without saying that Warren's response was far
more elequant and gracious than the guy deserved.
Image from Addicting Info

Yeah, really classy there dude. I know that some tea party people might say that you can't blame the whole group for the actions of one guy, but you know what? I've read quite a few right-wing comments on Elizabeth Warren (I'm a huge fan of hers, by the way), and this wasn't far off. But here's a tip for our tea bagger friend: Whores are capitalists.

[Excerpt]

Tea Party Supporter Heckles Elizabeth Warren, Calls Her A ‘Socialist Whore’

During a speech in front of a crowded VFW Hall in Massachusetts on Wednesday evening, Elizabeth Warren was heckled by a supporter of the Tea Party.

As Warren spoke to the audience, a man interrupted and complained about her support of the Occupy Wall Street movement. When the crowd attempted to shout him down, Warren intervened and asked them to let him speak. He said that he was unemployed and that the Tea Party has been protesting Wall Street longer than OWS. Warren then addressed his statements. . .

Read more at: Addicting Info

 

New GOP Elephant Logo Sucks

Yeah, so for some reason I'm on Reince Priebus' mailing list. And he sent me an urgent dispatch today, holding his oh-so-clever "No-Bama" bumper sticker. But I hardly noticed that, because of the logo at the top. The old GOP elephant has had its satanic upside-down stars for ten years or so, but this one is more demonic. As a graphic artist, I just have to say it's an epic fail. It looks like a first draft idea for one of several logo ideas. You're supposed to throw that one away, if you ever saved it in the first place. Terrible.

Captain Obvious: Pat Buchanan is Offensive

There is currently a drive on the left to get Patrick J. Buchanan--or as Rachel Maddow used to call him, "Uncle Pat"--booted off of MSNBC, where he is a contributor. My question is, what took so long? Pat Buchanan has always been offensive. He's a xenophobic, homophobic, racist, and he demonstrates those traits almost every time he opines about something.

My own personal story about Pat Buchanan is set in 1992. Previously in my voting career, I'd voted for Ronald Reagan in 1984, and George H.W. Bush in 1988.  But not in '92. That year, one of the main speeches at the Republican National Convention was Buchanan. He gave a nasty, negative, anti-gay speech that turned me off, and it was not denounced by the party or by Bush. Add to that having seen Bush on Pat Robetson's The 700 Club, yukking it up with the other offensive Pat, and the deal was sealed. I voted for Bill Clinton. Lots of other people did too.


I don't understand why Buchanan manages to secure regular employment at MSNBC any more than I understand why anyone listens to what he has to say. But I could say that about a list of pundits and commentators that would take me the rest of the day to type.


[Excerpt]

Buchanan Has Repeatedly Made Offensive Comments On MSNBC's Airwaves

MSNBC political analyst Pat Buchanan has a long history of bigoted commentary in his books, columns, speeches, memos, and media appearances. Here are a few of his worst moments on MSNBC.



Read more at: Media Matters

You don't often hear what Herman Cain used to do for a living. Yes, he's been a motivational speaker, and everyone knows he's the ex-CEO of Godfather's Pizza. But that was a long time ago. What about that he left Godfather's for? You know, as the CEO of The National Restaurant Association. That sounds like a nice little group, right? It's an unassuming name. If you weren't paying attention, you could even have been forgiven for thinking it was the other NRA. But Herman's NRA is a lobbying group. And Herman was lord-god-king lobbyist.

This is rarely mentioned, as far as I know, maybe because "lobbyist" ranks somewhere around lawyer or Congressman in the lower levels of respected occupations.  Anyway, here's a little more about the NRA of (mostly fast) food.

SIDEBAR: It should also be often said that Herman Cain also has an unfortunate tendency to lie, as an impulse, sometimes when it is not necessary. Track his sexual harassment interview answers for proof.

[Excerpt]

Who is the National Restaurant Association?

The anti-minimum wage lobbying operation that calls itself the National Restaurant Association now finds itself in a pickle. They are holding Herman Cain's secrets and tomorrow they will decide whether to release them.

The National Restaurant Association lives on the funding of its giant corporate sponsors. In accordance with the federal Lobbying Disclosure Act, the National Restaurant Association puts out a quarterly list of its national corporate members. Here is a sample of who used to pay Herman Cain's salary. . .

Read more at: The Last Word

Woman Burns Down Friend's House for Defriending on Facebook

Let me show you something! Image from Gawker

America. We are lost. We are gone. We are done. We are over. (Okay, exaggerating for effect, but seriously.)

[Excerpt]

Woman Burns Down Friend’s House For Defriending Her on Facebook

. . .A police report says that when an officer asked Nikki Rasmussen about Jen Harris, Rasmussen said "… the two are no longer friends due to a dispute over Facebook. According to Nikki, Jen is angry with her because she ended their friendship on Facebook. . ."

Read more at: Gawker

Keith Olbermann and Bernie Sanders Discuss Money in Politics

The Citizens United case has been discussed on this blog before, and will probably continue to be, because I think that money in politics is one of the biggest problems we have in this country. And ironically, in the biggest economic slump since the Great Depression, there has never been more money spent getting people elected. The revolving door of politicians and lobbyists, lobbying groups effectively writing laws, politicians beholden to the big money givers. . .it's just a gigantic mess. Politicians these days spend more time fundraising and dialing for dollars than they do legislating.


And before I get a comment saying, "Yeah, well Obama's spending a billion dollars to get re-elected!", yes, I'm aware of that. But what is his option? With the campaign laws as they are, neither side has a choice at present. The solution is a constitutional amendment to get the money out of politics.

Rick Perry Attempts to Explain Bizarre Speech

Oh, my word, and we called Bush a chimp. Image from Huffington Post

Did you watch Rick Perry's oh-so-very odd speech the other day? Well, go do it, I'll wait. Dum de dummmm. . .

So, what do you think? Was he high? Drunk? Did his inner Marcus Bachmann somehow come out? Maybe he just really likes syrup? Most people were at a loss of how to even describe it, which is why I just asked you to go watch it. You just have to see it.

Well, finally, Mr. Perry is trying to explain himself. He says he wasn't drunk or taking drugs. So he was basically being himself then? Isn't that worse?

[Excerpt]
  
Rick Perry New Hampshire Speech: GOP Candidate Denies Drinking, Using Painkillers

"I've probably given 1,000 speeches. There are some that have been probably boring, some that have been animated, some that have been in between," he said to the Chronicle before two Silicon Valley fundraisers. He also called the speech "pretty typical for me. . ."

Read more at: Huffington Post

What the Frack? Fracking Linked to Earthquake in England

Image from NaturalGasWatch

After the unusual earthquake in Virginia earlier this year, there was some speculation about whether or not natural gas "fracking" might have had something to do with it. The natural gas spokespeople and the GOP mouthpieces (or is that redundant?) rolled their eyes and denied the possibility, usually in disparaging terms. How outrageous! The moonbat libs are saying that pumping fluid deep into the earth might cause trouble? Preposterous!

Yeah. Not so much.

[Excerpt]


UK firm says shale fracking caused earthquakes

Shale gas exploration triggered small earthquakes near Blackpool in northwest England earlier this year, UK firm Cuadrilla Resources said, adding to concerns about the safety of a technology that is transforming U.S. energy markets. . .

Read more at: Reuters, found at AmericaBlog

Science is Cool: Why Everyone is Looking at Uranus

Image from source, Huffington Post

C'mon. Could I pass up that headline, really?

[Excerpt]

Uranus Bright Spot Intrigues Scientists, Leads Astronomers To Ignored Region

Uranus rarely gets any love. The typically ignored planet, recently highlighted for orbiting the sun on its side, has just gained itself some atypical attention, according to Universe Today. It seems astronomers have detected that an enormous bright spot may be an unprecedented eruption of methane ice high in the atmosphere. . .

Read more at: Huffington Post

"The Herman Cain" by Mike in Raleigh

More funny stuff from Mike in Raleigh of The Stephanie Miller Show.

The Herman Cain by Mike In Raleigh

Yep. Personhood Law Outlaws Birth Control Pills

Yep. Those little pills are murder!
Image from Think Progress.

You know, I've always said that abortion is not my issue. I will personally never be impacted by it, and it's just way out of my orbit. And birth control? As a gay person in a long-term relationship, contraceptives are just about the furthest thing from my mind. But I've gotta think that The Pill is pretty popular, and not particularly just by liberals.

Can we get an "aye" to the statement, "personhood laws are stupid?" Thank you.

[Excerpt]


Personhood USA Confirms That Mississippi Abortion Ban Would Outlaw Birth Control Pills 

 Next Tuesday, Mississippians will go to the polls to decide on Initiative 26, a personhood amendment to the state constitution that defines a person as “every human being from the moment of fertilization, cloning, or the functional equivalent thereof.” Personhood amendments represent an extreme reach into a family’s privacy, essentially criminalizing abortion and potentially outlawing common forms of birth control. . .

Read more at: Think Progress

Apple's Siri Gets Stoned

Senators Propose Amendment to Undo Citizens United

It's a start. Image from source, Raw Story

If you don't know what the Citizens United case did to American Politics, please look it up.  The main result of that case--though it doesn't seem that the Citizens United organization involved in the case intended it--was an opening of the money floodgates into elections. Some of that money could be from just about anybody, and differs from money laundering in no significant way.

Until it is understood in this country that corporations are not people, and money is not speech, we're going to have to tolerate bought-and-paid-for politicians, and relentless, irritating Karl Rove commercials.

[Excerpt]


Sens. Udall, Bennet propose amendment to overturn Citizens United ruling


Democratic Sens. Tom Udall of New Mexico and Michael Bennet of Colorado introduced a constitutional amendment on Tuesday that would overturn the U.S. Supreme Court’s controversial 2010 decision in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission. . .

Read more at: Raw Story

Rick Perry Melts Down

Rick Perry has had a hard time of it, as a GOP candidate. He entered the race with a leg up, and was instantly a rock star. But he quickly hit a middling note, and has now dropped to near insignificance. He's trying mightily at the moment to bring his star a little higher than the never-will-bes, Rick Santorum Michele Bachmann, Jon Huntsman, and Newt Gingrich. But he's kind of a handsome lummox. He can't quite get there. And when he tries to be amiable, affable,  likable? He comes off like a freakish loon. Take a look.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Big Oil's Big Haul: $102+ Billion in First 3 Quarters of 2011

Graphic from ThinkProgress

Conservatives shrug off income inequality, even though it is at all-time American highs. They aren't concerned about giant executive bonuses, even if it's being done in taxpayer-bailed-out corporations. And huge government subsidies to big oil, to the tune of billions? For some reason, with all the slash and burn they want to do to government spending, they don't mind shoveling the money to corporations.

So, besides all that, we Americans are paying north of $3.50 per gallon for gasoline. That's a damned site better than the getting-close-to $5 we were once heading for. But it is also quite a bit higher than it was, say three years ago.  If the costs were legitimate, if it really cost that much to make a gallon of gas, and make a little profit, that would be fine. But the big oil companies aren't making a little profit. They aren't making a moderate profit. They aren't even making huge profits. They're making obscene profits, higher profits than any other entity ever made in profit in the history of the world. Where do those multi-billions go, anyway? I'd love to see an accounting of it.

[Excerpt]


Big Oil’s Scary Haul: $100 Billion And Counting 

The combined profits of the Big Five oil companies — ExxonMobil, Shell, BP, ConocoPhillips, and Chevron — has already exceeded $100 billion this year. . .

Read more at: Think Progress