Keep Your Goddam Gummit Hands Off My Medicare!

Seriously...

This used to be a joke, but now the Rethugs have come up with a plan to pay for the Trade Adjustment Act benefits available to people whose jobs have been lost and offshored due to "trade practices" -- and caused by the TPP (which according to the Chamber of Commerce will increase American jobs) by tapping into Medicare.

???!!!

Tell Congress to keep their goddam gummit hands off our Medicare! Sign the petition that is being jointly promoted by The Daily Kos and CREDO.

Tell Congress that we won't put up with it. I was talking with my own congressman just last night, and he said that they do listen to their constituents' concerns. He also brought up this very topic and said that while he was already leaning towards a "No" vote on the so-called Fast Track, this particularly piece, if true, would put him solidly in the "No" camp.

Let Congress know how you feel! Sign the petition today!

Jane Fonda. Again.

You got to hand it to the Rethugs -- give them a pile of shit, they will make shitmuffins with it. And you get a muffin. And you get a muffin. And YOU get a muffin!

There's this Republican governor of Iowa named Terry Branstad, who was in the Military Police at Fort Bragg a long time ago, when Jane Fonda got arrested -- kind of -- for coming onto the post to hand out leaflets, without permission. In a USA Today story we learn that Rep Peter King (R-Moron) introduced Branstad at the so-called Iowa Freedom Summit by saying he was a hero -- the one who slapped the handcuffs on Hanoi Jane.

Wait for applause.

What apparently was never told to the red-meat-devouring GOP at that meeting, what with all that celebratin' freedom by castrating them some hogs and all, was that Branstad was not the one who actually arrested her. By his own admission to a reporter after the Big Event, "I was the provost marshal's driver."

He did say that he put together a dossier for his boss and that was the basis for denying her permission to come on post. So I guess to Peter King that's the exact the same thing as actually clamping those 100% American steel bracelets on the "red" wrists of that Commie-lovin' Traitor.

I tried to find a contemporary account of this arrest, but I was unable to find anything (if anyone knows of one, please post a link in the comments). But I am pretty sure that she was not actually put into handcuffs. This incident occurred in 1970, before she injudiciously went to Hanoi to become "Hanoi Jane", and she was at that time seen as just another rich and famous dilettante dabbler in the peace movement. She would have been handcuffed only if she tried to resist arrest and fight back. If she had done that, the big story would have been, and would continue to be, about that and not about just her "arrest".

I am willing to bet money ("my next paycheck") that she was just given some kind of a citation and then she left peacefully.

Presumably to catch the next plane  to Hanoi where where she had some POWs to torture, stopping by the San Francisco airport on the way to spit on some Vietnam veterans...

But I digress. As we all know, when it comes to the Rethugs, facts and them are complete strangers -- jeez, they've never even had as much as a One Night Stand. Plus, all you really have to to do is throw out a "Jane Fonda!" to the swarming mouthbreathers on the right and they start salivating like Pavlov's dogs, willing to eat the shit right out of your hand.

As you know, I've posted stuff on Hanoi Jane a few times before and, according to my stats, one of my posts, The Return of Hanoi Jane from November 2010, is still in the monthly top five page views.

Joni Ernst's Fact-Free Response to the SOTU Speech

Jesus, you don't know whether to laugh or to cry. Joni "Nutcutter" Ernst, the earnest junior senator from Iowa, had the hearts thumping and the dicks jumping over at Faux News after her maiden speech (full text here) to the nation following Obama's State of the Union address last night (which, as an aside, William Rivers Pitt described as twenty pounds of shit in a ten pound bag. But never mind that; we kind of expect that in our SOTU speeches. Dubya was famous for it.).

She kinda-sorta-but-not-really pissed and moaned about her hardscrabble life on the farm, where she had to plow the fields (in an air-conditioned tractor, no doubt, but never mind those nitpicky kind of details), her family couldn't afford but one pair of shoes for her, and her mother had to wrap her little farmer-girl tootsies in bread bags to keep her feet dry. No word as to whether she actually had to use a privy for her personal ablutions, or walk to school ten miles in the snow, uphill -- both ways! and we were glad to do it! -- because in those deep dark years of her childhood, when Ronald Reagan was president from the time when was 10, life was hard. And it's still all hard and stuff, and Obama just doesn't get it. So there.

But there was no indication from her that the "hardscrabble farmers" who comprised Ernst's family actually received over $460,000 in Federal farm subsidies over a ten-year period. You also won't find out that fact from the major media. Not Faux News, of course, but none of the others are seeing fit to talk about it.

Oh, and she never used the accepted term "Islamic terrorism" in her speech, either. But still, Faux News loves them some Joni Ernst -- she is a Republican, she is a rare female Republican, and especially she's proud of the fact that she cut her some hog nuts once upon a time. That in itself was enough to make Faux News totally fall in love with her.

Oh, that and her shoes.

Will There Be a Revolt?

Assuming that Nate Silver is correct and Obama wins re-election, then what are the Rethugs likely to do? Given that this is likely their last hurrah -- the demographics are simply not with them -- will they simply fold their tents and slip gently into that good night?


If the past is any indication, that's not likely. They are hoping for another very close election, and they would not be above staging another astroturf Brooks Brothers riot, the way they did in Florida in 2000, but this time in battleground state Ohio.

The SCLM* is acting as their handmaidens, playing it up as a statistical dead heat when in reality it is already a done deal for Obama (according to Nate Silver, anyway). In the old days we would have said that it sells more papers. We can't say that any more, since paper is going the way of the Dodo Bird, and it's all electronic. Which means that they want to gin up more viewers; more viewers = more advertising revenue; it's simple Econ 101 stuff, people.

But the average member of the Moron-American Voting Bloc has no way to know that, which is why they are willing to buy into the "dead heat" meme, and the more people that buy into that, the less shocked they will be when the Rethugs start that revolt.

I agree wholeheartedly with one thing: They are revolting.

May you live in interesting times...

---

[* SCLM = So Called Liberal Media]

The Mendacity of Mitt

Poor Mittens. The guy can't, it seems, even open his fucking mouth without the lies pouring forth.

Over at The Maddow Blog, Steve Benen keeps a running total of the Romney Lies, entitled Chronicling Mitt's Mendacity.

It's worth the read, even though it seems like it goes on forever. As do the Lies of Mitt...

Meanwhile, Back on the Boston Plantation...

How fucked up is this? The Massachusetts Rethugs are paying unemployed black people to campaign for Scott Brown.

They are getting a "per diem" payment of about 8 bucks an hour to walk around in predominately black neighborhoods wearing t-shirts that say "Obama Supporters for Brown". While I guess that it is technically legal, it is fucked up in so many ways that I can't think about it without my head wanting to explode.

Exploitation? Hell, yes. Who wouldn't take that eight bucks if they were homeless and unemployed?

And maybe when the election is over, Scott Brown, if he manages to win, can find a job for all those lazy shiftless newly-unemployed "Negroes" on one of the plantations down south. I hear that Alabama, since they made being a Mexican illegal, can't find enough people to harvest the crops...

Rethugs to Veterans: We've Got Your Back -- NOT!!!

Still think that Republicans have the backs of American veterans? See this and remember in November: Veterans’ Jobs Bill Blocked in the Senate.

My own senator, Patty Murray, has been an outspoken advocate for America's veterans. Her party affiliation? Democrat, of course.

We Don't Need No Stinkin' First Amendment!

One more step closer to Fascism. Let's call it what it is.

Today a documentary film crew was not just ejected from a House of Representatives committee hearing on so-called "fracking", but were actually arrested on orders from House Rethugs.

Josh Fox, director of the Academy Award-nominated exposé of the gas industry, Gasland, along with his crew was taken in custody because the Rethugs on the House Subcommittee on Energy and Environment didn't want them filming the hearing.

This is a shocking break, not only with congressional precedent but also the First Amendment to the US Constitution:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. [Emphasis added]

In the immortal words of Gold Hat, the bandido in the classic The Treasure of Sierra Madre, "Badges? We ain't got no badges. We don't need no badges! I don't have to show you any stinkin' badges!" [See Stinking Badges for more.]

Fascism exists where you find it. Suppression and control of the media is one of the hallmarks of Fascism.

I report, you decide.

The Uninformed Voter: The Biggest Threat to Democracy

It happens every election. Uninformed voters cast their votes at the last minute for the candidate whose last ridiculously-expensive television commercial they saw, cast their votes against candidates based on gut-level emotional attacks – monumental lies, mostly – by their opponents, without ever taking the time to really examine the candidates, what they say they stand for versus what they really stand for, and what it really means for their own economic and social well-being if Candidate X wins the election.

In Washington State, we also have a cumbersome initiative process that over the last few elections has managed to confuse the public and bog down the electoral process. Unfortunately, many of these initiatives, while they are skillfully titled and worded to appear benign, cynically manipulate those who are not really paying attention to vote against their own best interests.

For example, to us progressives, pretty much any initiative proposed by our own Republican political gadfly and pseudo-Populist Tim Eyman is automatically suspect. Every one of his initiatives, despite whatever innocuous-sounding name he slaps on it ("Initiative Measure No. 1132 concerns state expenditures on transportation"), is aimed at crippling government and destroying the public's faith in it. His centerpiece, of course, was 1999's infamous I-695, which, even though it was subsequently declared unconstitutional, had – and is still having – a tremendously devastating effect on this state. His many subsequent attempts were never quite as successful, but that hasn't stopped him from becoming a master media manipulator and successful wingman for the Republican right wing. He's become such a "media darling" to a complaisant press in this state that they always know that he can be counted on to say something so borderline outrageous that, even if it makes for bad public policy, makes for good television.

Progressives, sadly, really don't really have anyone with Eyman's skills and abilities. He might be selling snake oil to the voting public, but he also makes them want to buy it. It may well be that the truth will set you free, but first you need to know the truth.

So what can be done? How about a massive educational drive designed to make voters understand what they can do to avoid these manipulations by a select corps of Grover Norquist "starve the beast" acolytes?

Sidebar: Norquist, you may recall, is a Republican operative whose most famous line was that he wanted to reduce government to a size where he could "drag it into the bathroom and drown it in the tub".

Beyond that, it is up to each and every one of us to educate ourselves on the candidates and the issues for which we are expected to cast a thoughtful ballot in November. It's also up to each and every one of us to talk to our friends, relatives, co-workers, even that stranger on the bus, and educate them on the candidates and issues. This is true over the entire country, not just in Washington State. And don't drop your guard. This year's election is only the warm-up round for next year's Battle Royal.

This is where we progressives have it over the so-called "conservatives". They won't do that because they can't. Most of them cannot successfully articulate their positions because they are among the very worst when it comes to uninformed voting. On the other hand, they have a follow-the-herd mentality which means that they don't have to think about things. We do, and we will.

Seven Dwarfs and One Mental Midget

I just watched the Rethug "debate". I'll leave it up to you to guess who the "mental midget" is. I guess it doesn't really matter who you choose, it'll still be the right one.

All I brought away from it was some notable quotes: "Blah blah blah Obama bad blah blah blah Republicans good blah blah blah Obamacare bad blah blah blah..."

Jesus Christ, is this the best that they can do? The scary thing is, barring some unforeseen circumstance, one of these fuckers is going to be the Rethug nominee next year.

And, as I've often said, we're just one "October Surprise" away from having that person become the next president.

As Badtux the Snarky Penguin is given to saying, WASF...

Sucking Koch

Okay, I will admit that the headline caught my attention, not only for its prurient-interest value but also because I am such a lifelong devotee to word play.

Nevertheless, it just goes to show ya ("just shows to go ya") that the rethugs are capable of pretty much anything tha the Koch Brothers are willing to whip out...

Check out "Republican Governors Caught Sucking Koch" for the down-and-dirty (nyuk nyuk) on this.

Jeez, I oughta be sorry for this, but I'm not. After all, they started it...

Thank You Paul Ryan

Here, from the Don't Tea on Me website, is the full text of a letter to US Rep Paul Ryan (R-Idiot) from Dr. Quentin Young, of Physicians for a National Health Program:

Representative Paul Ryan
1233 Longworth HOB
Washington, D.C. 20515

May 25, 2011

Dear Rep. Paul Ryan,

Our organization, Physicians for a National Health Program, is strongly supportive of Medicare, recognizing it as one of the premier legislative achievements in the history of the United States. Therefore, I am writing to express our gratitude for your role in eliciting the overwhelming support that the people of our country extend to this important social justice program.

Since you succeeded in securing virtual unanimous support from the Republican majority in the House of Representatives for your voucher program, the rejection of your plan has been demonstrated nationwide. The spectacular defeat of Ms. Corwin in the 26th district of New York on May 24, 2011, is clearly the earliest expression of the vital importance our nation attaches to a single-payer comprehensive health plan for the elderly, Medicare.

I can think of no other political act that could match your voucher program “reform” in mobilizing public support for Medicare going forward. The collateral damage to the Republican aspirations for power is immeasurable.

Thank you very much,

Quentin Young, M.D., M.A.C.P
National Coordinator
Physicians for a National Health Program

Who am I to argue with this guy? Here's hoping he's right and this was the Waterloo of the Rethuglicon Party. It certainly has every opportunity to be the end of the GOP as we know it.

Malignancy, the GOP & Lance Armstrong

I see from The News that Iowa's own Steven King (not related to the famous author) has likened the health care reform act to a "malignant tumor" that must be yanked from the body for the patient (i.e., the US) to survive.

It's no secret that I am a cancer survivor myself, and it's good to see that a fellow cancer survivor, famous cyclist and record Tour de France seven-time-winner Lance Armstrong is calling King out on his bullshit:

"That is certainly a poor choice of words, I think. Certainly he would admit that. … I hope? ...Maybe he should use a sports analogy, or something, for his own sake."
Armstrong is in Washington to urge Congress not to cut funding for the National Institutes of Health, which faces a 5.1 percent cut over the next six months as part of a House-passed spending bill.

You go, Lance!

Okay, so who the fuck is Steve King? For the novices, King is a Rethug asshole (but I repeat myself) from Iowa who thinks that he's "all that", much more than he really is, and I guess he thinks that he can play "kingmaker" in the Iowa caucuses next year.

Fuck him. And the hose horse he rode in on.