Browsing all posts in "politics".
What’s the French Word for “Entrepreneur?”
Although this does seem to be unconfirmed – and has been labeled an urban legend, it really is fun to see it as something Bush might say…
“The problem with the French, is that they don’t have a word for entrepreneur.”
Which brings me to a joke going around these days:
One of Bush’s advisors comes in to update him on deaths in Iraq.
“Sir, four Brazilian people died there today.”
Bush blanches, absolutely horrified. “Oh no, oh no…that is so horrible.”
Then, with a perplexed expression, asks the advisor: “How many is a bazillion?”
Operation Yellow Elephant Keeps Up the Pressure on Chickenhawks
Chickenhawks everywhere are coming up with desperate responses to the obvious discordance between what they say about war and what they are willing to do about it. Continue reading →
Having Faith in the Reality-Based Community
As we all know, Bush is part of the faith-based community. Although I’ve written earlier that it’s more about his faith that anything that serves the personal interests of his clan is good enough for the rest of us.
Now there are more folks promoting the reality-based community.
I’ve chatted quite a bit with my friends Frank and George at the Conservatory for Coffee & Tea (which we jokingly refer to as the “conservative for coffee & tea” based on the owners decidedly rightish leanings) about this idea – what I’ve seen as the Americans Against Science movement. Not sure it is simply intellectual laziness or a lack of curiousity, but there are quite a few people who seem to want to be told what is right, and they want their world to be easily understood and even more easily digested with such gems as:
That one is evil.
That one is good.
That is right.
This is wrong.
No grey area, seemingly not even between the ears.
Should we really expect much more these days – life is stressful enough without having to think about complex issues and, godhelpus, not have an absolute answer.
People don’t like doubt. They don’t like conundrums. They like simplistic paradigms to explain their world.
In fact, this human characteristic – the need for things to be dumbed down – is probably the greatest argument against evolution. I mean, really, this long after the Scopes trial we are arguing about teaching evolution in schools AGAIN? We are getting dumber, not smarter. Devolution more like it.
OK, I don’t want to get too negative, cynical, pessimistic, cranky…
I do think these things are cyclical – but unfortunately, the zeitgeist today is resembles the zeitgeist of, oh, say, the Middle Ages.
The most distressing part is not that people who are supposed to run this country are substituting faith for facts, it’s that they are so agile at manipulating the willing to vote themselves into a lower standard of living while a few of the chosen people profit.
I have faith too – faith in people’s ability to AT SOME POINT figure out reality, while not always pretty, must be faced. You can’t close your eyes and say “all good all good all good” and have it be true.
You can have faith and accept facts too. Denying facts makes you the fool, not the faithful.
Bush Bashing Republican Style
Katrina let the flood gates open…in more ways than one.
Lots of interesting discussions on Shrillblog…particularly this analysis on National Review Online’s “economics”
Must Read – TNR’s Swimming with Sharks
From the October 3, 2005 issue of The New Republic…
Rove, Abramoff, Delay…they didn’t pop from Zeus’ head. The Young Republicans get early training in sabotage, manipulation, and deception to influence and control elections. Some tactics: Continue reading →
Birds of a Feather
You may have noticed Drier seemed to distance himself a bit from the goings-on in the Republican Party today. Early rumors were that he would be made the temporary majority leader, but it went to Delay’s pal Blunt.
Blunt is not much different from Delay so clearly they wanted to maintain some nice continuity in the GOP’s attitudes toward ethics 
Don’t Delay – Send the Hammer to the Slammer
Anyone really surprised by this? I mean, Texas is Rove country. Continue reading →
Blame It on the French, Why Doncha
Michael Brown certainly isn’t a politician. He doesn’t know how to dance around a subject without actually addressing the question with finesse. Today he pretty much blamed everyone for the Katrina fiasco except himself – his only criticism of himself was that he didn’t more forcefully push those who were really to blame (love that logic). Continue reading →
Santorum Sanctimonious
In an interview Senator Santorum said: “I mean, you have people who don’t heed those warnings and then put people at risk as a result of not heeding those warnings. There may be a need to look at tougher penalties on those who decide to ride it out and understand that there are consequences to not leaving.”
Maybe he should have continued with some ideas on how to penalize them: “For example, we could make them wait three or four days for life-sustaining supplies such as water and food. Let me tell you, when a person gets that thirsty and their babies start dying, next time around, they are going to think twice about not evacuating.”
FYI – many people who tried to leave NO by bus as soon as the evacuation orders were issued found the bus station CLOSED. Here is a quote from a tourist who ended up in the Superdome.
“On Sun. 8/28 I was awaiting word from the New Orleans Mayor to see if the city was to be evacuated. The moment he gave the order I hopped in a cab to go to Amtrak and Greyhound. The cabbie said it looks like they’re closed. I said no way and had him drop me off. Sure enough both were. (I later learned that both had closed on Saturday, 2 days before the hurricane. I also learned that people were flown in to the airport on Saturday but not informed that there would not be flights for them to leave after Saturday.) All rental cars were gone and no hotels or motels seemed to be open.”
Essentially, Escape from New Orleans was impossible unless you had a car.