People filter information based on their own belief system. For example, people who watch Faux News on a regular basis tend to be more conservative in their political beliefs. No problem (it is what it is).
However, despite it's political flavor (along with the countless number of daily editorial decisions supporting a specific agenda), should a media corporation (radio, television or print) be allowed to make direct campaign contributions? Could this sea of corporate money interfere with the political process? Do unlimited 527 campaign donations to a specific candidate endanger the foundations of a Free Society? Do you ever ask yourself, "why do I believe what I believe?" And yes, Karl Rove is on the payroll of Faux News.
YouTube has changed forever how a campaign manages the theme and messages of a candidate. Love it or hate it, in 2012, every recorded word a politician utters in front of voters becomes part of the digital public record. In an exclusive news release to Reuters in January, Google reported roughly '60 hours of video is now uploaded to YouTube every minute'. The theory that a candidate can use an 'etch-a-sketch' to change political direction in the middle of a campaign is dead. Campaigns are no longer a debate over ideas but about the actual use of words. And yes, this blogger believes a politician's use of words reveals something about the person. Read More...
Betty White endorses Obama for re-election? Read More...
"I have been thinking that I would make a proposition to my Republican friends - that if they will stop telling lies about the Democrats, we will stop telling the truth about them." ~ Adlai E. Stevenson
President George Bush never gave a 'Mission Accomplished' speech on the USS Abraham Lincoln on May 1, 2003? What if the Navy Seal mission into Abbottabad had failed? Would the Republican Party had made a repeat of a Desert One type failure a campaign issue in 2012?
Between the Eisenhower Administration and right up to the preemptive war in Iraq, the Republican Party was seen as the foreign policy leader on national security issues. This is no longer the case. While I have the deepest respect for John McCain, his recent statements about staying in Afghanistan forever completely lacks long term vision or insight.
Additionally, for as long as this blogger can remember, there has been an unwritten political rule NOT to attack or criticize the foreign policy efforts of a sitting President when he's not on American soil.
Update: Obama Needles Romney on Old Bin Laden Quotes? Read More...
IF this blogger hears another political pundit or radio talk show host mention the US Constitution without adding the line "AND the Bill of Rights", I'm going to start singing the theme song from the film Network.
The Bill of Rights were established as a checks and balances to protect an individual against government abuse and corruption.
In its original form, it was NOT a perfect document (see Article 1, Section 2, Paragraph 3 of the United States Constitution). Read More...
It's rather aggravating hearing political pundits ranting about the Founding Fathers Fantasy Island era in U.S. History. In 1789, Senators were appointed, blacks were only considered 3/5 human and a woman's place was barefoot and pregnant in the kitchen. The original BILL of RIGHTS gave our Constitution meaning and purpose. The roots of ALL real Democratic change and progress begins and ends with this document:
"A Bill of Rights is what the people are entitled to against every government, and what no just government should refuse, or rest on inference." ~ Thomas Jefferson
According to the latest CNN/ORC International survey, 72% of Americans favor enactment of the so-called 'Buffet Rule'. Despite its popularity among a majority of voters, the Republicans in Congress continue to block all legislation dealing with tax fairness and corporate welfare. Read More...
"Power is crack. Money buys crack." ~ Self
Congress approves wide-ranging
ethics rule? Read More...
Gingrich charges Fox News with pro-Romney bias? Really? Sean Hannity, Bill O'Reilly and Mike Huckabee are 'unfair and unbalanced'? Is there a vast right-wing media conspiracy against Gingrich?
Paul Revere, after updating his status on Facebook and Twitter, sat down and wrote the disco hits "Ring My Bell" & "Macho Man". When asked about his opinion regarding "The King", Mr. Revere said what made ELVIS a "Great American" is the fact "the dude" learned how to shoot beer cans off a fence BEFORE he joined the Army.
When he first set foot on the moon, George Washington is reported to have said, "The only thing we have to fear is fear itself."
In 50 years, how will future historians and political scientists judge the impact of social-networking and unlimited Super PAC money on the ideological battles being waged in 2012 and beyond?
"Few businessmen are capable of being in politics, they don't understand the democratic process, they have neither the tolerance or the depth it takes. Democracy isn't a business." ~ Malcolm Forbes
Last July, Sarah Palin's documentary The Undefeated opened to an empty theater in Orange County, California (Read More). While on the surface, the movie's box office failure was rather humorous, unfortunately, a majority of journalists missed the point on why the film was released in the first place. It's the same reason that Newt Gingrich, despite his low approval ratings in every national poll, is still campaigning for President. When this blogger lived and worked in the People's Republic of China, I discovered that cigarettes and alcohol were used to bribe local government officials. Indeed, the central government actually monitors the sell of expensive cigarettes to gauge the level of corruption in different cities. While the average price per pack was LESS than a dollar, several brands from Yunnan Province cost more than $110s a cartoon.
Why? Well, cigarettes are a form of hard currency which cannot be individually traced by the government. Thus, local officials accept cartoons of cigarettes, as bribes, without drawing the attention of the central government.
Economic crimes, such as tax fraud and corruption, routinely appear among the criminal dockets of those given the death penalty.Read More...
Intead of cigarettes, in the United States, special interest groups purchase books and DVDs (in bulk) to support candidates who support their specific agenda. Sarah Palin is a paid political commentator for Faux News. She earns more than six figures a year just giving speeches. As long as she remains a political celebrity, she'll continue selling SOAP. While I have the deepest respect for Senator John McCain, somebody spiked his Kool-Aid in 2008 when he picked Palin as his running mate.
Billionaire Sheldon Adelson Says He Might Give $100M To Newt Gingrich Or Other Republican? Read More...
Up to this point, this blogger has avoided writing anything of substance regarding this specific GOP hopeful. Why? To be honest, I've always considered the former Pennsylvania Senator a one-dimensional candidate.
Basically, his key political talking points are centered around three main social-conservative issues: abortion, same-sex marriage and birth control. On this last point, the candidate is on record as saying that states should have the right to ban all forms of birth control. Read more...
At a time when the 2012 election should be about jobs, jobs and jobs, this candidate continues to attract voters with a theocratic agenda regarding the role government in the private lives of its own citizens. Read More...
Limited government? Really? A woman who is raped should be denied the option of taking the morning after pill (a form of contraception)? A daughter, wife or mother must carry around her pain and shame for nine months to fulfill some religious, moral obligation to society? A zygote has more rights than a victim of rape or incest? Since when did an acorn dipped in water become a tree? Every Sperm is Sacred?
Morality? What morality? How is a product of rape a gift?
And condoms, which have helped turn the tide against the human tragedy of the AIDS pandemic, should be outlawed? Believe it or not, banning condoms will not stop people from having sex, so why even go back down this rather dangerous public health road? The Vatican and the Catholic Church?Humanae Vitae?
This whole political mythology that the Republican Party somehow holds a monopoly on so-called Family Values is completely absurd. Read More...
In 2009, by it's own published estimates, Catholic Charities received 67% of its funding from "Government Revenue". Read More...
If a so-called religious organization receives more than 50% of its funding from the government, should it still be allowed to call itself a religious charity? When did a hospital become a church? Why is the government giving taxpayer money to religious institutions in the first place?
In Florida, Mitt Romney destroyed Newt Gingrich with $15,000,000 worth of negative TV and radio ads. No matter what this blogger thinks or writes about Rick Santorum, it's clear that Romney's Restore Our Future Death Star is already preparing to put down The Alliance to Restore the Republic rebellion in Arizona and Michigan. While money "can't buy you love" (or votes), it sure helps when you're a Presidential hopeful battling all sides of the political Force.
Special Note to Dr. Ron Paul Supporters:
Speaking of liberty, Viagra is sold as an over-the-counter drug in China.
"Well, I thought you'd be interested in knowing, that running for President of the United States is really one series of humiliations after another. But it's also an educational experience. I learned three things when I was running for President. First of all, I learned where John Wayne was born. That's very important. And then second, I learned the day that Elvis Presley was born. These are vital issues to our Republic. And third I learned, never forget the three things that you learn. Very important when you're running for President."
~ Congresswoman Michelle Bachmann CPAC 2012 (February 9, 2012)
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
"I don't think Newt Gingrich got into this race, originally, thinking he was going to be President. I think he was doing it for personal publicity. Ron Paul is a message candidate. He's just out there to get his Libertarian message out there. I think he's quite sure that he's not going to become the President of the United States. Mitt Romney is the only one that ever had a real chance once Pawlenty dropped out and Rick Perry imploded. He's the only one with a real chance to win this thing." ~ Ron Reagan on MSNBC Live
February 6, 2012
Chuck Lorre & CBS in negotiations with Bachmann, Huntsman and Roemer for a new political sitcom? Rick Santorum slated to play the stalking neighbor and Herman Cain as the pizza delivery guy?
First Episode [Rough Draft]: Roemer helps Bachmann study for a test on the Founding Fathers. While delivering a pizza, Cain catches Santorum spying in Huntsman's bathroom window.
A day without a new public opinion poll is like the month of January in North Dakota without snow. It is what it is. All the media giants (to include Faux News) love analyzing the latest poll numbers. One political poll feeds into yet another poll.
Between December 7-11, 2011, the Pew Research Center asked voters the question, "is there too much power in the hands of a few rich people and large corporations?" 77% of those surveyed said YES, while 19% stated NO. While the #Occupy Wall Street Movement has lost its original momentum, it's clear the widespread demonstrations in September and October changed the language of the political landscape in 2012.
