Jon Stewart declares Fox News the lupus of news as he drops about 100 F bombs on them. The war between Jon Stewart and Bernie Goldberg just went up to nuclear level. Oddly enough, O’Reilly and Stewart seem to have respect for each other. UFB. I roared. Forget howled. This brought out the roars.
| The Daily Show With Jon Stewart | Mon – Thurs 11p / 10c | |||
| Bernie Goldberg Fires Back | ||||
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John McCain has been all over the talk shows on cable this week. He is a shadow of his former self. John McCain used to seem fair-minded. He co-sponsored the Immigration Reform Bill of 2007 along with Edward Kennedy, for Pete’s sake.
I heard him on TV today calling illegal immigrants ‘illegals’ and calling for our military along our borders. I was disappointed to hear him use the term ‘illegals.’ He is an educated man. He knows that illegal is an adjective. But I heard him on Fox News so maybe he was just trying to fit in. Most of those anchors say ‘illegals.’
McCain is fighting a tough primary to be held in August. His opponent is J. D. Hayworth whose political stomping grounds are the suburbs of Phoenix. Hayworth is sort of a Tancredo on steroids. He continues to try to paint McCain as the Uber RINO. According to the Washington Post:
Hayworth’s 12 years representing parts of the Phoenix suburbs have been described by his former colleague Dick Armey as a “fairly short, undistinguished congressional career.” But Hayworth attracted national attention after an epiphany of sorts in 2005. Though he had previously sponsored legislation to create a guest-worker program, Hayworth became a militant foe of Mexican immigration. Not just illegal immigration. Hayworth proposed a moratorium on legal immigration from Mexico. He declared an intention not merely to secure the border but also to “stand up for our culture” — which implies that Mexicans adulterate American culture. Hayworth warned of activists who would create an Aztec state on the ruins of American sovereignty in the Southwest. He voted against an anti-immigrant measure — which, among other provisions, prohibited religious charities from aiding illegal immigrants — because he thought the legislation was too soft.
From 2004 to 2006, Hayworth’s share of the vote in some Hispanic-influenced precincts dropped by more than 20 points, and he was carried away in the national anti-Republican deluge. Hayworth now presses his anti-immigration message in a primary challenge to McCain — contesting for the right to run for the Senate in a state that is about 18 percent Hispanic. To this appeal, Hayworth has added a “birther” message accusing President Obama of “identity theft.” Here he is on legalizing gay marriage: “I guess that would mean if you really had affection for your horse, I guess you could marry your horse.”
The Tea Party also plays an important role in this primary. Some pundits are speculating that the future of the Tea Party might very well be defined by this primary election. Some Tea Party People supposedly like Hayworth but want to distance themselves from his less ‘mainstream’ persona. Michael Gerson of the Washington Post also added:
Tea Party leaders have been understandably reluctant to endorse a candidate likely to embarrass any movement elastic enough to include Hayworth. Both Rep. Michele Bachmann and Sen. Jim DeMint have declared themselves officially neutral in the Arizona Republican primary. Sarah Palin has campaigned for McCain.
So we are all kept in suspense by these politicians from Arizona. Many people expect this race to dominate the election cycle. McCain and Palin still seem very much like the odd couple to me. Does he pay her to appear or does she appear free of charge as a thank you gesture to him for bringing her down to the lower 48?
J. D. Hayworth gives his opinion of the gay marriage court case in Massachusetts:
Jon Stewart thinks people are always trying to make others feel guilty. Mother Earth apparently is no different.
He is also very disappointed in the lack of truly good descriptors for the volcano and its unpronounceable name. He names it Kevin. He can say that name. He attempts to help out the lack-luster coverage of the Icelandic volcano.
| The Daily Show With Jon Stewart | Mon – Thurs 11p / 10c | |||
| Volcanolypse 2010 | ||||
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Monday, April 19, Jenna Bush Hager interviewed none other than Bill Clinton. The 2 shared playful moments as Ms. Hager laughed about her grandfather talking more about Bill Clinton than he did the others. He quipped back that every family has their ‘black sheep.’ They also discussed Chelsea’s upcoming wedding in a tender father moment.
According to Yahoo News:
Hager – a teacher by trade whom NBC hired last year as an occasional “Today” contributor – thanked Clinton for engaging in the “rarity” of “a Bush interviewing a Clinton.” Clinton joked in response: “I was thinking, you know, if your family fed in questions I’d be cooked.”
“No, no. They love you,” said Hager. “In fact, they joke that you’re my grandfather’s stepson … because he talks about you more than he talks about anyone else in the family.”
This, Clinton noted, would probably make him the “black sheep” in the Bush family.
Ecuadorean immigrant, Marcelo Lucero
Long Island teen Jeffrey Conroy was convicted of man-slaughter as a racially motivated hate crime Monday. After 4 days of deliberations, Conroy was also found guilty of assault on 3 other hispanics. Marcelo Lucero, age 37 was killed by a gang of 6 whites and 1 hispanic. The defense rested on they didn’t intend to kill him. The trial has been fraught with irregularities. This trial has also been watched carefully by immigrants’ rights groups.
He was acquitted of the most serious of the 20 charges against him which was second-degree murder as a hate crime. Had he been convicted he could have received life in prison as a sentence. Conroy, 19, now faces a minimum of eight years and a maximum of 25 years in prison. He is to be sentenced on May 26.
Lucero died of stab wounds to his chest. I expect no one is satisfied with this verdict. 8 years doesn’t seem like a lot of time for stabbing someone in the chest until they are dead.
With the 15th anniversary of the Oklahoma City bombing approaching, former President Bill Clinton on Thursday drew parallels between the antigovernment tone that preceded that devastating attack and the political tumult of today, saying government critics must be mindful that angry words can stir violent actions.
WASHINGTON
In advance of a symposium on Friday about the attack on the Oklahoma City federal building and its current relevance, Mr. Clinton, who was in his first term at the time of the bombing, warned that attempts to incite opposition by demonizing the government can provoke responses beyond what political figures intend.
There can be real consequences when what you say animates people who do things you would never do,” Mr. Clinton said in an interview, saying that Timothy McVeigh, who carried out the Oklahoma City bombing, and those who assisted him, “were profoundly alienated, disconnected people who bought into this militant antigovernment line.”
The former president said the potential for stirring a violent response might be even greater now with the reach of the Internet and other common ways of communication that did not exist on April 19, 1995, when the building was struck.
In the period before the Oklahoma City bombing, there was a growing antigovernment sentiment being expressed through a militia movement and anger at government officials, some of it in the wake of the assault on the Branch Davidian Compound in Waco, Tex., on April 19, 1993. Mr. Clinton recalls that he and his wife, Hillary Rodham Clinton, were characterized by Newt Gingrich, then the Republican Congressional leader, as the enemies of ordinary Americans.
In a May 1995 commencement speech at Michigan State University, Mr. Clinton talked about the bombing and the role he believed efforts to portray the government and its workers as a threat played in the attack.
“It is one thing to believe we are over-regulated and to work to lessen the burden of regulation,” he said at the time. “It is quite another to slander our dedicated public servants, our brave police officers, even our rescue workers, who have been called a hostile army of occupation.”
Mr. Clinton said the impact of political attacks could be dangerously amplified at the moment because of the economic upheaval that had left many Americans frightened and suffering. “A lot of people are just raw,” he said.
He called America a nation born out of protests, and said that he had no interest in reducing productive civic dialogue.
“This is about holding our country together and having these debates,” he said. “The Republicans will have their chance in November.”
How can a militia forming in Oklahoma to defend the State AGAINST the Federal Government NOT sound frightening?
OKLAHOMA CITY — Frustrated by recent political setbacks, tea party leaders and some conservative members of the Oklahoma Legislature say they would like to create a new volunteer militia to help defend against what they believe are improper federal infringements on state sovereignty.
Tea party movement leaders say they’ve discussed the idea with several supportive lawmakers and hope to get legislation next year to recognize a new volunteer force. They say the unit would not resemble militia groups that have been raided for allegedly plotting attacks on law enforcement officers.
“Is it scary? It sure is,” said tea party leader Al Gerhart of Oklahoma City, who heads an umbrella group of tea party factions called the Oklahoma Constitutional Alliance. “But when do the states stop rolling over for the federal government?”
April 19, 1995 at 9:02 am there was an awful explosion at the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City. 168 people, some of them children, were killed and more than 600 others were wounded. Many survivors and family members will gather today for a ceremony. Secretary of State Janet Napolitano will speak.
A museum now stands where Murrah Federal Building once was. Resilience is the lesson it teaches. The Oklahoma City National Memorial and Museum has an excellent website.
Terrorism is terrorism, regardless of who carries it out. Somehow it seems even uglier when it is homegrown. We expect Americans to be so much better than this. Timothy McVeigh has been put to death for his role in this horrible act of violence. McVeigh had detonated explosives in a truck parked in front of the Murrah building. He deliberately chose a site where there were children since the federal building had a day care inside for its workers. He supposedly committed this act to avenge the deaths at Waco, Texas. MSNBC will have confessions from Timothy McVeigh previously unheard. Rachel Maddow hosts tonight at 9 pm on MSNBC,
Terry Nichols, another co-conspirator, is in prison for life with no patrole. The jury was deadlocked on the death penalty. The 2 met while serving in the army. Michael Fortier was also convicted of lesser charges. He served his time under an assumed name. He was released into the witness protection program so he now walks amongst us.
April 16, President Obama signed a proclamation declaring April 19 a National Day of Service and Remembrance for Victims and Survivors of Terrorism, 2010. In part, he said:
There is no greater evil than willful violence against innocents. On this National Day of Service and Remembrance for Victims and Survivors of Terrorism, we pause to remember victims of terrorism at home and abroad, we honor the heroes who have supported them, and we redouble our efforts to build the kind of world that is worthy of their legacy.
Fifteen years ago, terrorists bombed the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, killing over 160 men, women, and children, and injuring hundreds more. Even before the dust settled, heroes had emerged. First responders, medical professionals, clergy, relief organizations, local leaders, and everyday citizens stepped forward to help victims and their families. Again, when terrorists struck on September 11, 2001, and thousands of Americans –- and scores of foreign nationals — perished in New York City, at the Pentagon, and in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, Americans made a historic effort to assist all those affected. The dignity of those who were attacked — and the courage of those who came to their aid — reaffirmed the strength of our Nation, and the human spirit.
Video footage from that day:
There is all sorts of news–too much to choose from. There is an Open Carry Demonstration in a park and the are people stranded all over the globe because of the volcano. Daniel Gilbert of Manassas won a Pulitizer Prize for his work on mining. Brian Betts of Manassas lost his life.
The Democrats in NC are splintering into various factions over health care and the Taliban is recruiting new members to settle old family scores on our dime.
Pick a topic or make up your own.
Is anyone watching the HBO miniseries, The Pacific? If yes, I would like to know everyone’s opinion. I have the same old problem I have with every other HBO special involving young men in uniform. I can’t tell them apart. They all look alike. Other than that mild problem, what a terrific series it really is.
I am simply in awe of how this series has captured the fear of battle. To those of us who have been spared battle other than in books and movies, we really don’t know what its like. Girls are at a real serious disadvantage, especially us vintage girls. You just don’t know. The producters, directors and actors were somehow able to capture the essence of fear unlike any other war film I have seen.
I am very much against sanitized war movies. Those ones I saw growing up were too clean. Everyone was a hero and if they got killed in battle, it was generally all in one piece. War wasn’t dirty and filthy enough. This series sure is. One minute someone has legs and the next minute they don’t. Tonight I had to watch piecemeal. I couldn’t watch for long periods of time–too intense.
Which brings me to my point: How much we owe those 400,000 young men in the prime of their lives who gave the ultimate sacrifice. When I see a series like one, or Band of Brothers, or any of the shows that have come out in recent years I am just awe-struck by the bravery and the sacrifice of all of those who fought. They went to unknown lands because they were told to go. They didn’t sign up so they could further their education or get on-the-job training. They signed up because their country was invaded. They went because they were told to.
The Civil War brings out similar feelings in me. They went because they had to. I think Americans should have to watch films like The Pacific or Band of Brothers before we ever go to any war. I think we need to see if our cause is important enough. I think we need to see if we have the stomach for it. Regardless of whether its 1861 or 2010, its someone’s son (and now daughter), husband, father, sibling in harm’s way. Do we have the stomach for it? Those boys on that distant island in the Pacific tonight sure didn’t have the luxury of the pause button like I do when the action gets a little too intense. And we owe them such a debt of gratitude.
Actually, Texas has never done away with corporal punishment. A town outside of Fort Hood, Texas has brought back that weapon of choice, the paddle.
It sounds like parents were the driving force behind bringing the paddle back to Temple. Those interviewed said that discipline has never been better. To date, only 1 student has been paddled but word must have gotten around.
According to USA Today:
There are times when maybe a good crack might not be a bad idea,” said Robert Pippin, a custom-home builder whose son graduated from Temple schools.
Parents didn’t want the rod spared at school because many paddle their kids at home and they wanted consistent discipline, said John Hancock, an assistant superintendent with more than 40 years as an educator.
“We’re rural central Texas. We’re very well educated, but still there are those core values. Churches are full on Sundays,” Hancock said. “This is a tool we’d like in the toolbox for responding to discipline issues.”
At least one student seems to see its value as a deterrent. “A lot of kids have tempers,” said Abby Jones, a junior at Temple High School. “Those kids that would be paddled would think of it as a threat . . . and maybe would be better.”
The Post cites the most recent figures available showing that about 225,000 students nationwide were at the receiving end of corporal punishment in 2006. About 25% were Texans.
Besides Texas, corporal punishment is still legal in 19 states, mostly in the South. It’s use is waning (Ohio stopped last year) and Congress may consider a federal ban.
How many parents have said ‘nobody touches my child?’ I would suggest that kids knowing it could happen is a huge deterrent. Knowing that the parents have high expectations for behavior is a big deterrent for disrespectful behavior. Why is congress trying to get in the act? Maybe some of them need a good paddling.
Seriously, should schools have paddling? Should it be limited to a principal or other designated disciplinarian? Should Congress outlaw paddling?
Just a warning, don’t go searching for corporal punishment pictures. I ran in to some very ‘interesting’ websites. Sisterspanksalot.com, redass.org were all out there. I forgot about that. Geeez!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The news this morning was filled with the story of a Washington, DC principal who had been shot to death in his home. It was a horrible story. The principal hadn’t shown up for work or meetings and a colleague went to the house to check on him…only to discover the worst. That principal’s name was Brian Betts and he was a hometown boy who grew up in Westgate, off of Lomond South. He went to Loch Lomond Elementary and graduated from Stonewall Jackson High School in 1985. He was popular, was in plays and musicals and served as student body president. Brian went on to the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, where he was on the cheerleading squad.
Brian was lured away from a Montgomery County to a troubled school in the District, Shaw Middle School at Garnet-Patterson. Chancellor Michelle A. Rhee spoke very highly of him tonight. He was wildly popular with students, faculty and parents according to sources. He brought an energy to his new job assignment and was often seen out on the street talking to his kids. According to the Washington Post:
Some, including Rhee, wondered how Betts’s school would carry on without him.
“With him, potentially more than any other principal in this city, these children are going to be devastated because they have such an intense relationship with him,” she said. “I never talked to Brian at any point where he didn’t have kids with him.”
Brian Betts is survived by his parents, Doris and Delbert Betts of Florida and his sister, Jennifer Betts Altomare. Many people from this area remember Brian as a decent, fun-loving young man. His students remembered him tonight as Mr. Betts, who made learning real and personal and most importantly, made them feel special. Westgate remembers Brian. Manassas remembers Brian. What a horrible shame!
UpDate: Chancellor Michelle Rhee’s statement on the death of Brian Betts
The unexpected death of Brian Betts is unspeakably tragic for his family, for the Shaw Middle School community, and for all of DC Public Schools.
Brian Betts had the courage to take on the leadership of a struggling, underachieving DCPS school. He came in the 2008-2009 school year and he brought enthusiasm, love and high expectations for the 300 students at Shaw Middle School at Garnet-Patterson.
He was an inspirational leader for the teachers and for the students, and that leadership was bringing results. He knew what the children under his care were capable of, and he was determined to show them how to get there.
Brian Betts’ death is an incredible loss of a young and dedicated school leader. I considered him a colleague and friend, and my own sense of loss is deep.
I want to extend my deepest sympathies to Brian’s family, and to the family he has built at Shaw
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/crime-scene/montgomery/sister-father-recall-slain-pri.html?sid=ST2010041602258
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/story/2010/04/16/ST2010041602258.html?sid=ST2010041602258
UPDATE:
The family will receive friends from 6:00-9:00 P.M. Wednesday, April 21, 2010 at Pierce Funeral Home, 9609 Center Street, Manassas, Virginia. Private services will be held Thursday, April 22, 2010 followed by burial at Stonewall Memory Gardens, Manassas.
This little fellow is causing disruption to travel all over Europe. Many airports throughout Europe have closed through the weekend. Passengers are stranded from all over the world, including at Dulles.
Why is a simple little volcano causing such disruption? The massive cloud arising from the volcano is spewing all sorts of debris, fine particles, dust and ash into the atmosphere. There is danger of this ash annihilating a jet’s engines. So, most planes are grounded until things calm down over in Iceland. Meanwhile, there are some pretty irate passengers.
The molten lava is melting glaciers which is causing flooding in Iceland. Don’t they already have disasterous finacial problems? Do we risk the same danger in the United States? How about when Mt. St. Helen’s acts up?
UPDATE: No end in sight. The volcano is still errupting. Even after it stops it will take several days for the volcanic ash to dissipate.
Jon Stewart might just be the Tea Party’s new BFF.
| The Daily Show With Jon Stewart | Mon – Thurs 11p / 10c | |||
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Why is it ok to make sweeping generalizations about Liberals? Democrats? The Left? The FAR Left?
What is that about removing the plank from thy own eye?
And on to the Tea Party Rally….was Stewart’s coverage fair?
From the News & Messenger regarding the local Tea Party Rally yesterday:
Stewart, a Republican, said he will ask his colleagues to approve a resolution that would prevent county employees from implementing new Medicaid regulations when they take effect in 2014.
“That is a public option that increases Medicaid to beneficiaries by more than 40 percent,” Stewart said at a Prince William County TEA Party Patriots rally at the McCoart Administration Center on Thursday.
Stewart, who seemed confident that his resolution will pass, said the county would not provide the benefits until it is compelled to.
“We will not implement those regulations until we are required to do so through injunction, which can only be initiated by the attorney general of the Commonwealth of Virginia,” he told the crowd of about 100.
Additionally, Stewart said he believes the regulations will not bear legal scrutiny.
“I do not believe they are legal,” he said about 2 p.m., when the crowd had dwindled from a high of about 200 at noon when the rally started. “I do not believe they will serve anyone.”
He continued, “I do believe that they will hurt the current beneficiaries of Medicaid—the disabled, the poor children and others—who already have difficulty finding physicians who will treat them on the low reimbursement rate.”
Stewart said the regulations amount to “unfunded mandates” that will cost taxpayers money and divert resources from other areas.
“I don’t think the county should be responsible for administering a federal program,” he said.
Still, Stewart said he didn’t know how thing would shake out legally.
STOP! Stewart doesn’t know how things will ‘shake out legally? That might be a real good question to ask before everyone jumps on the bandwagon trying to get re-elected. Injunctions are orders by a court of law to do or not do something. When the feds are involved, ‘an injunction’ can also come along with some enforcement like the National Guard or US Marshalls. Is that what we want? Another University of Alamaba situation?
3 short years ago. Who will forget watching the events unfold on TV that left 32 people dead and 17 wounded at Virginia Tech? The killings at VT became the worst massacre ever in the United States. And that day we were all Hokies.
There has been plenty of criticism to go around. Tech was criticized for failure to notify students of the dangers of a marauding student killer on campus. The cops have been criticized for tracking down the wrong person while the real killer went on a rampage. Fairfax County Schools were criticized for not notifying Tech of Cho’s (the killer) anti-social behavior. Laws have been criticized, with everyone declaring ‘NEVER AGAIN.’
What has changed? Does Tech have a better notification system? Have the police come up with a better way of tracking crime on campus? Is it more difficult to obtain guns or is it easier? Are there better checks and balances in place so that people with mental illness are prevented from purchasing guns? Is student information more readily available? Do schools have to notify receiving schools of student mental illness?
Other than a better danger notification system, I am not sure that one thing has changed. The legislature spent the winter trying to relax hand gun laws. Student privacy laws still seem to be in place. I just don’t know how NEVER AGAIN is working out for us. Any ideas?
Meanwhile, a moment of silence for the fallen and a hopeful NEVER AGAIN.
Update:
April 16th is turning in to a real bad day for me. (See first thread)
I am not sure Virginians are ready to move on. I am not sure the mourning process is over. Maybe it won’t be for a long time. The last class to experience the massacre will graduate this spring. Maybe then. Maybe. University Distinguished Professor Nikki Giovanni speaks at the convocation on 4/17/07:
