I’m proud to be an American every day—but today, I’m especially proud.*
****
If you have time today, take John Cole’s challenge. For instance, were you to be clicking around the blogs and come across something like this
You know, I really wish Iraq were having an honest, safe, real election. But that isn’t happening, and that’s a shame. Even if you were and are opposed to this war, as I am, you would wish the Bush people would do things right just for the simple reason that it would help our standing in the world. But they can’ even do that.
Instead, we get a made for the media moment, then the cameras will go away and it will be 9/10 all over again, ripe for the next Bin Laden and ready for another Republican president idling his time away on vacation
…point it out, and follow it up with some “analysis” of your own. To wit:
Oliver Willis’ hatred for the Bush Administration has now so completely permeated his flabby, pock-mottled mass that he refuses even today, after a 60% Iraqi voter turnout under the most threatening of conditions, to take time off from trying to delegitimize the push toward democracy in Iraq—preferring instead to begin publicizing his latest conspiracy theory, which (not at all surprisingly) posits that these widely-covered, heavily media-scrutinized elections are nothing more than a sophisticated “made-for-TV” bit of propaganda dreamed up by Karl Rove and the rest of the Republican Illuminati and pulled off by a technically savvy faction of rogue CIA agents who blindly worship Bill Kristol.
That’s right. Once again the ubiquitously evil and stupendously stupid Bushco regime has managed to pull off an election that on the surface looks legitimate, but is of course not legitimate at all. In fact, what we’ve all just witnessed is really nothing more than a sophisticated, high-tech hoax intended to dupe those Red State sheep too busy with church and Jeff Foxworthy DVDs to see through the fabricated weave of neocon lies that threaten the world more than any so-called terrorist violence ever could.
Left unanswered, as always, is not only HOW such a stupid regime could pull this off—but of course WHY, if they have such world-controlling superpowers, they wouldn’t just put those powers to work to ensure that the elections actually were “real” and fair.
But then, who can explain the motivations of pure evil?
Also left unanswered, of course, is what in the world might be going through Oliver’s corndog-addled brain at that moment he decides it’s a good idea to post his next reprehensible glut of grammatically-challenged and intellectually bankrupt puffery. One wonders, for instance, why he doesn’t just cut his losses for a day and hole up in the bathroom with some supersize nachos, his stash of Jennifer Garner pics, a big bottle of lotion, and crate of Mallow Pies.
It’s a mystery to me. Honestly it is.
Anyway, be on the lookout for such nonsense, and highlight it. Meantime, I’m gonna drop Fareed Zakaria (who I really do respect) an email and tell him to stop pissing in the PUNCH BOWL OF FREEDOM.
****
update:
“But Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., sounded a note of caution in an interview on NBC’s “Meet The Press.”
“It is hard to say that something is legitimate when whole portions of the country can’t vote and doesn’t vote,” Kerry said.”*
Well, the Dems still don’t think our elections are legitimate, so take what Senator Kerry says with a grain of salt. And of course, imagine it in Teresa’s voice. For accuracy.
I’M JOHN KERRY AND I QUESTION THE TIMING OF THIS SUCCESSFUL ELECTION!
(h/t Darleen)
****
update 2: Looks like the Wizbangers have found Oli’s maunderings, too.
****
update 3: Matt Yglesias adds his thoughts:
Looks reasonably successful so far, no mass casualties, turnout low only in a few trouble spots. It’s time to prepare for three weeks of gloating from the hawks before they realize that nothing has really changed and they return to previous hawk practice of not mentioning Iraq.
And by “nothing has really changed,” Matt of course means besides Iraq having successfully pulled off its first democratic elections in history with a minimum of violence, thus landing a huge body blow to the increasingly scattershot insurgency.
In Matt’s defense, thought, they do remain Mesopotamian.
****
update 4: Bill INDC and PoliBlog have nice reaction roundups. And Michelle Malkin has a great roundup of stories on women voting.
****
update 5: An emailer tips me off that Oliver Willis, who spends every waking moment he’s not neck-deep in a vat of chocolate fondue calling members of the Bush Administration (and those who support its foreign policy) liars, frauds, racists, morons, or inauthentic racial turncoats, calls me ”idiotic and childish,” and points out the “vitriol” in my post (without addressing its points, naturally)—yet another indication that Oliver’s irony meter has been gummed into a permanent state of ineffectiveness by more than a few mishaps with melted cheese and s’mores.
****
update 6: UNPOPULIST looks to Kevin Drum for liberal coherence, but alas, he finds something else entirely.
****
update 7: Heh.
Just saw a sound bite from Kerry, and I’m still shaking my head. It was something along the lines of, “Well the real test isn’t the election, the real test is what happens next, and going forward, how can we blah, blah, blah.
Yeah, that’s right you pustulent pimple on Dubya’s ass, because now that the election is a success, you want to move the goalposts again, for the eight millionth time!
Asshole.
Congratulations to the Iraqi people for their determination.
And piss off, to those who are willfully and intentionally on the side of the islamic fascists – yes, Willis this means you and the rest of your bile-filled ilk.
CraigC
Yep… read about Sen.Doom&Gloom’s pronouncements on the “legitimacy” of the Iraqi election …commented on them here.
Jeff
I give you lots of credit for intestinal fortitude in going to OW’s site … I always feel like my head is going to explode after reading just a few bits.
Oliver has Jennifer Garner pics? Naked ones?
Do you think he’ll share? I mean, could he send me a digitized version or something, ‘cause I’m not sure I’ve got the stomach to clean up the originals.
Andy, could you stand a little farther away from me? Thanks. Really. Thanks.
I sincerely hope Kerry is planning on ending up in an urn on someone’s mantel, else,
let the entire nation of Iraq beat a path to his grave
for the express purpose of shitting on it
Oliver’s weblog can’t be Kryptonite to stupid, otherwise it’d kill him.
Oliver Willis didn’t REALLY write that, did he?
Jesus Christ, he actually did.
“What can man do against such reckless hate?”
Also, Jeff – lots of timeout errors on your server for trackbacks and e-mail (couldn’t trackback and got an e-mail bounce from the server as well for timeout). Just a heads-up.
I was doing my best to stick with IT over at Smirky’s site, when I noticed the most horrible, vile, disgusting thing of all: He’s a Redskins fan.
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!
NNNNNNNNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!
It’s ok, it’s ok, it’s ok….he lives in D.C., it’s only natural….nnnnnnooooooooo……calm down, it doesn’t reflect badly on every single person who has ever bled Burgundy and Gold, and every single guy who ever played for the Skins, the cheerleaders, the ticket takers, the concessionnaires, every single person who is related in any way to all of those people…
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!
Nice. Can we call him “Baghdad Blob”?
they return to previous hawk practice of not mentioning Iraq.
Whaaa…? BDS must be like meth addiction…
Nice. Can we call him “Baghdad Blob�
You have just gained instant immortality for this.
Which is nice.
Let’s face it folks, to the Left the glass is ALWAYS half empty. That’s if they even see the glass at all.
None of the Left’s predictions about Iraq have come true, yet it is still a disaster, still a quagmire, still an evil right-wing/neo-con/CIA plot, etc. They accomplish this neat trick of logic by moving the goal posts. That should be their new motto “The Left, moving the goal posts since… forever.”
As any reader of Superman comics can tell you, Kryptonite has no effect on stupid.
Which pretty much sums up O-Dub; he has no effect on anything.
Can we please, PLEASE stop talking about OW? He’s basically the internet’s biggest troll. The less attention you pay him the better.
Ollie’s theory is plausible. The moon landing never happened, either. Nixon plot.
(keyword: “doubt”)
Oh..it looks like some of the Atrios addlepated commentators have finally taken notice of the election … consensus a “chimpy” “sham”
Entertaining read in a sick sort of way.
Say what you will about America, she has a long history of opposing tyranny & standing up for liberty, which is more than you can say for Old Europe. As an indie, I can’t for the life of me figure out why the Dems would choose to sit this one out, or worse, root for slavery.
As a homo, I know what Ollie needs, & I think I’m the man to give it to him.
Ollie has been watching too many reruns of Capricorn One.
Oliver doesn’t need a source for bizarre conspiracy theories and overt falsehoods. He pulls them out of his ass in such a surplus that he sells them on eBay under a pseudonym.
Ollie must be too young to remember when black Americans were jailed, beaten, set upon by fire hoses and police dogs for trying to vote. Iraqis risked death and dismemberment to vote for their future and he sneers.
The ghosts of Medger Evers and Dr King must weep.
Pure evil is that photo of Willis’ head on Bagdad Bob’s body. The little beret is a nice touch, though.
Actually, Matt Yglesias is right. Nothing has changed. But he’s wrong about exactly what it is that hasn’t changed. The election shows that the plan (that plan that the Administration didn’t actually have – you know the one) for Iraq is on track. If nobody had turned out to vote, then a serious reassessment would have been in order. But that didn’t happen. Yglesias also overestimates his importance in the scheme of things. There are deeds to be accomplished – why waste time and effort gloating over someone who’s so obviously perched on the rubbish heap of history?
And those who drone that democracy isn’t a cure-all are also right. Consider Oliver, “Like Superglue to Stupid,” a living troll if there ever was one – but that doesn’t disqualify him from voting here in the USA. Think of the most benevolent, educated, and truly progressive person you know. Despite the qualifications of this paragon, his vote counts for no more than that droid Oliver’s. That’s an obvious weakpoint of democracy. Shits, perverts, and jerks have the same votes as real people. Another weakpoint is the cankers on the body politic who can actually get elected to office. Like Kerry. I expect the Iraqis will elect a few real losers too. In the US we’ve had centuries of practice and we still can’t get it right sometimes – so give the Iraqis a break.
Wingnuts,
Everyway you cut it, an extractive economy is a sure route to oligarchy if not dictatorship. Always has been, always will be.
Natural resource wealth inspires plunder. Always has. Always will.
What’s the most successful democracy in Central America? Costa Rica. Why? No oil, no mineral wealth therefore no history of an oligarchy applying the boot on everyone else.
Texas is another example. Oil wealth has generally been a disaster for the state.
Iraq will be no different. When the Brittish left way back, they put in place a reliable elite. That elite led by hook and crook to Saddam’s Baathists. History will repeat itself again for the US, but you guys will be sure to call it something other than what it really is. It’s your MO.
This clown has the audacity to suggest that the Iraqi elections exist only to relieve conservatives of their guilt over the war.
As far as I am concerned, Operation Iraqi Freedom has been a campaign of pride for me and for my country from day one.
Assholes like these should be arrested, drawn and quartered for talking like this in a time of war.
I’m still stuck on “Baghdad Blob.” That’s such a perfect name I can’t believe it hasn’t been used before.
Strange, John, but before 1776 you could have described the colonies as an “extractive economy.” We seemed to go on being a rather successful constitutional republic.
Oh! I get it. The Iraqis are brown! They are racially incapable of democracy.
Nevermind.
Summing up John Doe:
“NOTHING CAN EVER CHANGE—EVER—AND MY JAUNDICED VIEW OF SO-CALLED INTERNATIONAL “PROGRESS” MARKS ME AS ONE OF THOSE WORLD-WEARY, DEEP-THINKING SKEPTICS THAT I’VE SOOOOOOO WANTED TO BE EVER SINCE I LEARNED THAT CONTRARIAN POSTURING WOULD GARNER ME A GOOD LOOK AT SOME SARAH LAWRENCE-GIRL TITTIES!
Oh. And WINGNUTS SUCK!”
Jeff,
It is comments like your 2:20PM one that keep me a staunch reader. Had I neighbors, they would complain of the laughing.
And how is that, exactly?
I am a proud BLUE STATE CITIZEN, Jeff.
Which is why its so sad that the bible-toting liar mr. bush is holding elections which he claims are free but infact the only candadites on the ballots are those he has already approved.
This reminds me of the last election that Adolph Hitler held in 1933. Only party approved candadites were on the ballot. Just like in Iraq today, except only those approved by the bible-toting liar mr. bush are on the ballot.
Can we say, mr. bush, where are the weapons of mass destruction?
Seems the last time a “President” Lied he was impeached… I am still waiting for the republicans to impeach bush for lying.
John,
Last time I checked Canada was an “extractive economy” and although I think their priorities are a bit skewed they are and have been a democracy for the last 138 years. Man you’re an “ultra maroon”.
Mangnum Serpentine —
Why the scare quotes around “President”? Are you not convinced such a position exists?
Or are “you” simply the “kind” of pseudo-intellectual “moron” who likes to “parrot” back all the boilerplate he’s “heard” on his “favorite” lefty news sites, “but” is just “too” stupid to echo them “back” effectively when s/he “doesn’t” have his/her “Cliff’s Notes”?
Actually, Jeff, they’re not Mesopotamians. Arabs moved in and pushed out the original inhabitants a long time ago. (Sort of reminds me of the way a lot of Mexicans are “proud of their Aztec heritage.” Except they’re Spanish.)
So Matt doesn’t even have that going for him.
Wow, it took what, 34 comments?, for some lefty dickhead to compare Bush to Hitler.
Who wins the pool?
Jeff/BA–
There are some sacrifices we just won’t allow you to make, even for the noblest cause–like shutting Oliver up. Your fans just won’t allow it.
The capital-letter impaired MagSlurp says
the only candadites on the ballots are those he has already approved.
Yessireebob, he caught out old Bu$Hitler and his Rovian hoards as they gathered in the bunker, cackling maniacally over hundreds of picture ballots in Arabic and used their Halliburton no-bid produced Magic Markers to blackball the candidates that won’t aren’t on the double-super-secret Zionist-Neocon payroll.
Damn it. I bet this means my check from the Conspiracy will be delayed this week.
Oliver really ought to be boiled alive in a vat of his own urine.
What, you mean Oliver isn’t a playah?
Why, that’s just mean.
“Vitriol” must have been on his “Word of the Day” calendar this last week. Didn’t Mr. Willis send an email to Glenn Reynolds accusing him of “vitriol”?
To save anyone the check, yup.
Maybe he really is just some Turing trickery.
The spitting rage of folks like Oliver and the petty, hollow criticism of those like Sen. Kerry ring more and more hollow by the day.
They increasingly live in a state of deep psychological denial. As the reality of the situation becomes more and more obvious, their cries increasingly fall on deaf ears.
This is a political melt-down on a scale not seen in a century. The REALLY sad part is that the only hope of the Democratic party right now… is Hillary Clinton.
I think Serpentine is a parody. But I often have too much faith in people.
Gotta love that “extractive economy” theory, though. Not only is Texas now a drawlin’ version of Saudi Arabia, but no doubt Norway will be next to have an oligarchy. Or, perhaps that should be øligarchy.
Remember, “wingnuts,” you heard it here first.
One thing you forgot to say about “Magnum Serpentine,” Jeff. Based on his nom de guerre, he clearly has teenie-weenie issues. So sad. If he ever comes back, we can refer to him as “Needle-Dick the Bugfucker.”
Oh, and I’m with Jeff B. “Baghdad Blob?”
Sheer genius.
E. Nough:
Or, perhaps that should be øligarchy.
You see, it’s the little touches which make a laugh-out-loud post. Or maybe I have a weird sense of humor. Speaking of which…
CraigC:
Oh, and I’m with Jeff B. “Baghdad Blob?â€Â
Sheer genius.
There is no justice in the world if this doesn’t become a regular term of derision for O-Dub.
NO JUSTICE NO PEACE.
OK, I’m onboard. “Baghdad Blob” for the Willy from now on.
Magnum–
Yup. Dubya personally approved all one hundred and eleven parties on the ballot. Made each one of the nearly 11,000 candidates sign a loyalty oath to Amerikkka.
Got a lot of energy for a dolt, doesn’t he?
OK, I’m onboard. “Baghdad Blob†for the Willy from now on.
I may have to start noticing him for a change, just so I can refer to him that way.
Perhaps it will help us remain calm if we simply visualize Matt and Oliver as not so much pissing in the punchbowl of freedom—we’ll leave that to those with the capacity for evil actions that threaten and take life, rather than those who merely irritate—no, it seems to me that we must look upon these two lads at floaters in the punch bowl of freedom.
Ahhh, oil has been a disaster for Texas? Established an oligarchy?
Damn. Missed the IPO again. I mean, I’ve lived here most of my life, and I think I would have made a fair-to-middlin’ oligarch. But nooooo, I had to follow the wrong path. Same old story.
There was Speaker Sam and Landslide Lyndon. Lindley Beckworth was a neighbor, and Dad used to hand out campaign pamphlets for him. It’s not as if I didn’t have a chance.
Oh. Not the oligarchy you were talking about? Funny. It’s the only one we’ve ever had around here.
Regards,
Ric
Whenever I feel afraid, I just whistle a happy tune…
…and imagine O-Dub clutching David Brock on November 3, sobbing hot, greasy tears into his shoulder.
Damn, all these internets move fast.
http://www.giveterrorthefinger.com
A work in progress, to be sure. Nice idea. Hopefully more content to follow.
I knew it, I fucking knew it.
Here we have one of the most historic elections in the history of the world that might birth a nascent democracy and the fucking left wants to strangle it in its cradle.
The left in the western world has never given a fig about human rights or democracy. Never has, never will.
Well, I’ve done the shopping for the wife and kids and I’m back to see what you all have in store for me here.
but before 1776 you could have described the colonies as an “extractive economy.â€Â
Oh any history buff can tell you that our democracy has been anything but perfect. Our constitution was designed to prevent the rabble from turning on the elite or the various states from turning on one another. It was authored by men who distrusted the power of the state and each other as well. It worked until the civil war and it’s performance with a few notable exceptions has been rocky since.
Oh! I get it. The Iraqis are brown! They are racially incapable of democracy.
I don’t recall saying anything about the color of folks’ skin but from reading some of these comments it appears some folks here have a problem with Oliver’s skin and ethnicity.
Nevermind.
Heh. Indeed.
SARAH LAWRENCE-GIRL TITTIES! Oh. And WINGNUTS SUCK!â€Â
LMAO. Calm, calm, Jeff. Yes I will admit to being male, heterosexual and indeed, I love titties whether they’re on pc or non-pc girls.
And yes, nuts of all kinds suck especially when they take the reigns of power. Power has a tendency to make them even nuttier.
And how is that, exactly?
Texas has great disparities between the rich and poor and ranks very low in many measures like infant mortality and even hunger. Oil wealth has done very little to help this. A few folks however got obscenely rich.
Last time I checked Canada was an “extractive economyâ€Â
Yes there are fortunate exceptions to bad rules. However Canada is not innocent. The native population has had it’s share of suffering at the hands of plunderers as in our own country and perhaps the exploitation of the majority of it’s mineral wealth came later than our own after mitigating institutions had been put firmly in place.
no doubt Norway will be next to have an oligarchy.
I doubt it but anything’s possible. Again mitigating political institutions are in place.
There was Speaker Sam and Landslide Lyndon. Lindley Beckworth was a neighbor, and Dad used to hand out campaign pamphlets for him.
Oh yes, Texas does have a liberal tradition. The hill country in the center of the state where german immigrants settled is the heart of it. The germans were conservative but tolerant of free-thinkers as well unlike the scotts-irish plantation owners in the east or the folks in McClennan County where Dubya has his ranch. I don’t need to tell you what happened there do I?
Wow. You people really are insane.
People did get killed today, you are aware?
There was no independent oversight of this election. I grant it as much legitimacy as Saddam’s elections. Which is to say, none.
Here in the reality-based community, we see this for what it is: a P.R. stunt. A sham.
I can’t believe you fucktards actually believe that BushCo has any intention of letting Iraqis govern themselves.
John, your comments are incoherent. Frankly, that’s fine, we like incoherent here but we kinda like funny incoherent. So just blubbering droning unfunny incoherence just annoys us. Your silliness about an “extractive” economy being a freakin’ prime example.
And I like how you introduce Baghdad Blob’s frequent claim that all criticism of him is racists … it adds a certain smell to your incoherency.
Jeff, as for Baghdad Bob calling names – he’s always been the lead poster boy for projection.
dadahead, if your “community” is “reality-based” (I coulda sworn Jeff has already torn that stupid label to shreds elsewhere … ) then why is it that you post comments here that are not based on any reality at all? You have no evidence that the elections were not honest, and no evidence whatsoever about how the Bush administration is going to allow Iraq to govern itself. There has never been any reality in your community – its faux reality.
You are just pulling stuff from your ass – like the rest of your “reality-based” community.
You have no evidence that the elections were not honest, and no evidence whatsoever about how the Bush administration is going to allow Iraq to govern itself.
Burden of proof does not rest with me. I can’t prove a negative.
I can, however, point out that IMO it is foolish to take the Bush administration’s word for it. Really, you shouldn’t believe anything that comes from a head of state. They should be considered lying until proven otherwise.
This is an administration that has lied about this war from the very beginning; that violating international law by invading another country unprovoked; that has no history of supporting democracy in this country or any other.
You tell me why I should believe this admin. when they say “We want to bring democracy to Iraq.”
Nor when they say, “Trust us; we’ll count the votes”.
Known liars should not be trusted. Simply repeating Bush admin. rhetoric is not enough to establish the conclusion that the election is legitimate and that Bush is interested in Iraqi self-government.
violating=violated
Ah, search reminds me that here, j. scott barnard reminds us that:<quote>”Wasn’t the “reality-based community†the same one that still believes the Killian memos are real?”</quote>
your comments are incoherent
You mean you don’t understand them?
Baghdad Blob’s
Well I guess in your case Robin you have a problem with his weight.
“Burden of proof does not rest with me. I can’t prove a negative.”
Never has a leftist given a better description of his own place in the political universe.
All negatives, no proof.
Bye-bye, baby pusssy.
dadahead, your statements were not a “negative” that could not be proved. You made overt statements regarding the intent of the Bush administration. You do have the burden of proof. Except of course, in the “slander-based” community to which you belong.
John, frankly its obvious that you don’t understand your own comments. Much less anyone else.
Jeff/BA, Wow! I call that taking one for the team to the extreme, and we would NEVER allow it!
Oil hasn’t been good for Texas? Wow, tell that to the 5000 wealthy oilmen at the Wildcatters Ball I went to Sat. night. And I guess I just imagined all the money we have made personally in the oil business in the last 20 yrs.
dadahead, you were aware that freedom happened today, right? cuz these people have been knowing killing and torture and the like for a while now. The freedom to vote thing. Now THAT was new.
Riiiiight.
Jeff:
Prove to me that Bush does not intend to devour alive every firstborn Iraqi child under one year of age.
I await your answer.
Jeff, I love the repeated lie that the Bush administration somehow “violated” international law by invading Iraq. Alone it demonstrates such a hilarious combination of ignorance and a bold intent to demonstrate that ignorance.
Oil hasn’t been good for Texas? Wow, tell that to the 5000 wealthy oilmen at the Wildcatters Ball I went to Sat. night.
Good for them! Not so good for the people who go hungry, have a lousy education, piss-poor health or get put on death row due to a lousy public defender.
Was Dubya there? As I recall he didn’t do so well as an oilman despite all his advantages.
dadahead, you don’t even understand the logical fallacy you think you are invoking.
If you state that Bush is going to eat babies, you can’t win that debate by inverting it into what appears to be a negative statement and dare your opponent to disprove it.
Christ, look at me, trying to explain logic to someone whose IQ hasn’t ever exceeded room temperature in Celsius.
Dadahead —
You’re what—13, 14? Bed time. Go. And don’t forget to brush your teeth.
John, frankly its obvious that you don’t understand your own comments.
Gee Robin, I may be a little slow, but it seems to me you don’t want to engage. I understand, you must be a weary culture warrior. You have to save your strength.
There was no independent oversight of this election.
Actually, it was held and overseen by Iraqis, and administered by the Iraqi Election Commission, which was led by — your favorite! — representatives from the United Nations but heck, weren’t you just complaining on your weblog that the Iraqis weren’t allowed self-determination?
Uh, the elections won’t happen! Uh, they’ll happen but nobody’ll show! Uh, lots of people showed, but they were the same fifty people walking past the camera in a circle! And they were BushCo Nexus 6 replicants with a four-year lifespan incepted last August so they’ll be out of the way before ‘08! It’s a dream! Auntie Em! Auntie Em!
You guys are hilarious when you get mad.
John, I just watched you get confused over your own comments in this very thread. Look above and its plain to see you completely lost the narrative thread of this stupid “extractive economy forms oligarchy” nonsense. It was hilarious.
Robin,
Look everywhere where oil dominates. Don’t you see corruption? You don’t think Canada and the United States have been immune to corruption? I hope you don’t find corruption funny.
Let’s take another commodity like cotton. It hasn’t been all that good for the people who had to pick it in the South and East Texas. My mother was one of them.
Oil hasn’t been good for Texas? Wow, tell that to the 5000 wealthy oilmen at the Wildcatters Ball I went to Sat. night.
“Good for them! Not so good for the people who go hungry, have a lousy education, piss-poor health or get put on death row due to a lousy public defender.”
Actually it IS good for the people who go hungry ect. since we are the ones GIVING TO THE CHARITIES THAT SUPPORT THE POOR….Check out reality dude.
John, wow now I get it.
Watch I can do it too!
Gee, have you seen all the corruption in the Silicon Valley? Software based economies lead to oligarchy. And Mexico! Yeah … chile-based economies lead to oligarchy … that’s the ticket.
That was fun. Inane. But fun.
Wow, a leftie blogger with the moniker, “doodoohead”. That’s way too easy.
Hey, doodoohead, “reality based” means not real if you apply linguistic analysis.
bedtime, and don’t forget to brush.
Actually it IS good for the people who go hungry ect. since we are the ones GIVING TO THE CHARITIES THAT SUPPORT THE POOR…
RWS, after all wealth that has been extracted from the ground, why is there still bad problems with poverty and other social ills in Texas?
Most rich people make a big show of charity. It’s good PR and a tax writeoff. However the overwhelming problems remain.
Bill Gates is a good example. He’s given more than anyone but only 2 percent of his wealth so far. Yet Argentina can’t undercut Big Pharma’s Aids drug exports to South Africa because of WTO trade restrictions that also benefits Gates’ Foundation
investments in those same companies – 200 million dollars worth. So instead Gates announces a big program for South Africa over ten years.
How many people are going to die over the next 10 years because of this?
LOL – John you are so confused, it is hilarious.
Gee, have you seen all the corruption in the Silicon Valley? Software based economies lead to oligarchy. And Mexico! Yeah … chile-based economies lead to oligarchy … that’s the ticket.
You’re engaging now Robin – barely though. You’re getting a tad incoherent as well.
I have few problems with Silicon Valley. They are among the last remaining capitalists. They do what they do through applying knowledge and patient effort – the opposite of what I’m talking about which is plundering the land to make a killing which sometimes doesn’t happen when the commodity involved is in oversupply.
And Mexico? A very troubled democracy that indeed has an oligarchy. Chile has problems of it’s own.
okay, John, no more food for you! quit plundering the land.
hmmm, my word is “story”
ROFL. Oh, stop. I’m laughing too hard. You are hurting me. My ribs. Must call 911 for paramedics.
Dadahead —
You’re whatâ€â€13, 14? Bed time. Go. And don’t forget to brush your teeth.
Actually I was created nearly 86 years ago.
Hey, doodoohead, “reality based†means not real if you apply linguistic analysis.
Reality-based means we actually base our beliefs on reality, not a fantasy land where GWB is the fairy of freedom, spreading democracy and hugs to all the world.
And if you think GWB didn’t violate international law, do some research. An unprovoked invasion of another country is pretty much the definition of a war crime.
And don’t call me doodoohead.
bedtime, and don’t forget to brush.
I don’t sleep and I have no teeth.
I don’t think he violited international law, and here’s a good place to start for research
Folks, I advise you to enjoy this rare efflorescence of hard-Left idiocy in Protein Wisdom’s comment section. Such flowers rarely bloom here, and never before in today’s bright, sassy, perverse shades of nihilistic inanity.
Keep in mind, for those who may be angered by the likes of “John” and “dadahead”: the former has called into question the success of American democracy (“Oh any history buff can tell you that our democracy has been anything but perfect…It worked until the civil war and it’s [sic] performance with a few notable exceptions has been rocky since.”), while the latter has not only deployed the time-honored “reality-based community” chestnut (a cliché based upon an intentional misreading of original intent) but also admitted by default that he doesn’t understand the most basic sort of formal logic. (You made the positive assertion, buddy – “Bush is a liar, all leaders are liars on all things until proven otherwise, this election is a lying lie – so the burden of proof lies with you. Yes, even though you’re a Leftist.
You cannot duplicate this sort of comedy gold. Does anyone else detect the palpable fear among these posters (and Baghdad Blob as well) that to admit that yeah, today was a pretty fucking swell day for history, would be to validate Chimpy McSmirk’s Zionist Oil War?
I do. And I’m lapping it up.
(N.B. for left-wing anti-war trolls: Jeff Goldstein is a bona-fide Jew. Who supports Israel. And the Iraq War. C’mon, admit it…you know that means he was probably part of the neocon cabal that started this whole thing. Rumor has it he was a draftsman on PNAC, working in the galleys.)
“Actually I was created nearly 86 years ago.”
Good Christ! Well, if you haven’t gotten it by now —after WWII and the Cold War—I don’t think you’re going to. Who knows, maybe you’re one of those Emma Goldman anarchists who eventually settled on the hard left.
As for “international law.” Ha. Give me a fucking break. And why don’t YOU do some research. Begin with looking up the word “unprovoked”.
Think No Fly Zone.
Actually, dadahead, your claims about international law are irrational. Not merely wrong, but irrational. maggie’s link is just a start of demonstrating your departure from reality.
dadahead, you don’t even understand the logical fallacy you think you are invoking.
If you state that Bush is going to eat babies, you can’t win that debate by inverting it into what appears to be a negative statement and dare your opponent to disprove it.
THAT WAS EXACTLY MY FUCKING POINT, ASSHAT.
People here told me that Bush is going to bring democracy to Iraq.
They they inverted that proposition and dared me to disprove it.
They said: You don’t have any proof that Bush won’t allow Iraqi self-government.
Next time try not to jump into the middle of a conversation, or at least go back and read what came before.
Dingleberry.
Jeff, I think your age estimate was a little high.
today was a pretty fucking swell day for history
Was it a swell day for those who were killed?
What about for their families?
Everyday is a bad day when people die.
Curse you, Jesus!
would they have not been killed at some point? probably fewer people died today than did on a normal day under Sadaam.
Was it a swell day for those who were killed?
What about for their families?
It wasn’t a swell day when my friend was murdered at the Pentagon for the crime of showing up at work. Or, to choose a less politicized example, when someone else I knew was killed by a drunk driver. And what point does that make to the larger narrative?
I should think that those whose family and friends were murdered by the terrorist dead-enders and thugs would take pleasure in today’s election, through their tears. People are capable of complexity like that, dadahead.
admitted by default that he doesn’t understand the most basic sort of formal logic. (You made the positive assertion, buddy – “Bush is a liar, all leaders are liars on all things until proven otherwise, this election is a lying lie – so the burden of proof lies with you. Yes, even though you’re a Leftist.
You do not want to go toe to toe with me on formal logic. Trust me.
And if you’d read the post, you’d know that that was a separate argument. I was challenged to “prove” that Bush wasn’t going to allow Iraqi self-government; I admitted that I cannot do that.
However, I offered an inductive argument for why it would not be wise to take Bush at his word—viz., that he is a proven liar.
I also made the general point, which I would actually expect you all to agree with, that the rhetoric of heads of states ought to mean very very little when it comes to assessing their actions.
I mean, Saddam said he was looking out for the Iraqi people too, but you didn’t believe him, and rightly so.
It would display an extraordinary naivety if you were to simply accept at face value any thing that a politician said.
I may be a “leftist”, but I wouldn’t recommend trusting any leftist heads of state or politicians, either.
But especially don’t trust ones –like Bush– who are known liars.
would they have not been killed at some point?
Is this the new wingnut argument for Bush’s war machine?
“Hey, everybody’s gotta die sometime, right? We’re not murdering people; we’re just deciding where and when they’re going to die.”
Everyday is a bad day when people die.
Curse you, Jesus!
Yeah. What a bastard with his phoney promises of life after death, “do unto others” and all that propagandistic bullshit. Do you really think Jesus had any intention whatsoever of letting anybody into heaven? Hell no! He lied about the so-called “kingdom of heaven” being manifest on earth, he lied about being the son of God (oh yeah? Why’d ya die then, CHUMP?), and don’t even get me started on that psychotic “this bread is my body/this wine is my blood” folderol.
In fact, everything he ever said should a priori be assumed to be a filthy lie until proven otherwise by a panel of academics.
yeah, yeah, I speak for everyone!!!! even though i’m not a CITIZEN JOURNALIST!!!! bow before Maggie Katzen!!!!! uh, speaking of reading a whole comment.
dadahead, if someone didn’t want to go “toe to toe” with you on formal logic, it would be because explaining formal logic to you would be a never-ending waste of time. And your opponent would run a serious risk of heart failure from high blood pressure from your obvious inability to comprehend any logic system at all. You have already demonstrated that you flunked high school sophomore geometry with your performance.
You do not want to go toe to toe with me on formal logic. Trust me.
As a university-trained logician, I am harrowed with fear.