Wonderings

LinkedIn is a mystery to me

2012-02-17T10:08:00.001-06:00

This guy is invested in lots of big ticket companies, but he looks kinda like a dork. Guess that's what it takes?

Moving mop wins Westminster top honors

2012-02-15T18:14:00.002-06:00

Take a gander: 'Oh so 20th century'

2012-02-14T06:08:00.001-06:00

This doofus is irritating a lot of people

2012-02-13T15:35:00.001-06:00

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Not what journalism students trained for

2012-02-11T10:04:00.002-06:00

Riz Khan - The Role of Media in the USA - These bloopers are hilarious

Words on the condition of our world

2012-02-11T05:33:00.003-06:00

That's what I call really rich

2012-02-09T09:05:00.002-06:00

Thanks to Dan Cook for the expression

2012-02-06T14:21:00.001-06:00

A merger made on Wall Street -- SIGH!

2012-02-04T09:33:00.001-06:00

And continued blather from all sides

2012-02-03T13:36:00.001-06:00

Why is Facebook worth so much?

2012-02-02T21:02:00.001-06:00

Go to the moon now, Newt. Don't wait.

2012-01-30T14:56:00.002-06:00

Repubs blasting Obama despite incest

2012-01-29T08:13:00.001-06:00

Gov.Oops gives us another giggle or two

2012-01-23T10:29:00.002-06:00

Ben Sargent's keen eye strikes again

2012-01-15T09:20:00.001-06:00

Required viewing by progressive politicos

2011-12-23T14:46:00.001-06:00

I still think this creepy guy is dangerous

2011-11-27T10:26:00.001-06:00

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Right on, Family Guy, and adieu to Brits

2011-11-26T10:28:00.001-06:00

What a difference 70 years make

2011-11-21T09:11:00.001-06:00

It's a good thing Jill Abramson, editor of the New York Times, did not see this vintage newsreel.

Ben Sargent hits another home run

2011-11-19T23:14:00.001-06:00

Silly ad campaign pulled after criticism

2011-11-17T13:55:00.001-06:00

The media exposure this has gotten is priceless. After the Pope complained, that was it. Immediate publicity -- worldwide. Maybe not so silly?

Herman Cain clipped by editorial board

2011-11-15T08:48:00.001-06:00

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

I'm not aware of what the ground rules were in this little ambush, but it seems to me that a meeting with an editorial board would be off-the-record. I'm no Herman Cain fan, but. . .

Now, other politicians will think twice before undergoing interrogation by editorial boards.

Choices are getting slimmer for GOP

2011-11-09T13:02:00.001-06:00

Love this cartoon, sent to me by a good liberal friend in Houston. Thanks, Jim.

Cain, Gingrich have a congenial tea party

2011-11-06T14:50:00.001-06:00

But Citizen Cain thinks the media should not expose actions unbecoming a president and passes out Codes of Ethics to reporters. Aren't there ethics codes for politicians as well?

Finally, real people talk about occupy

2011-11-06T08:59:00.001-06:00

Perry getting ready for the next big debate

2011-11-03T05:45:00.000-06:00

Couldn't pass this video of Gov. Good Hair

2011-11-01T09:28:00.001-06:00

Humor? This is an Aggie joke?

Cain sings; GOP group shows no class

2011-11-01T08:32:00.002-06:00

Tea Party creep with a past works for Cain

2011-10-28T11:01:00.001-06:00

A false message from the Perry campaign

2011-10-26T11:57:00.000-06:00

In Texas, Perry stole jobs from other states; thus, these jobs weren't created, they were replaced. And he did this with state funding.

Snake oil salesman that he is, he continues with the same story while people's health will suffer from lack of regulations.

What a deal!

2011-10-23T12:08:00.001-06:00

Religion rears its ugly head for Republicans

2011-10-09T08:35:00.001-06:00

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Here's a treasure trove of Perry background

2011-10-06T08:18:00.000-06:00

from the Austin Chronicle

Liberal pundit lays in on Gov. Good Hair

2011-09-23T08:24:00.000-06:00

In this article in The Daily Beast, Michelle Goldberg shows Tea Party critics how to shove it to someone in a creative, even entertaining, way.

Goldberg is a senior contributing writer for Newsweek/The Daily Beast. She is the author of the New York Timesbestseller Kingdom Coming: The Rise of Christian Nationalism and The Means of Reproduction: Sex, Power and the Future of the World, winner of the 2008 J. Anthony Lukas Work-in-Progress Award and the Ernesta Drinker Ballard Book Prize. Goldberg's work has appeared in Glamour, Rolling Stone, The Nation, New York magazine, The Guardian,and The New Republic.

And then there's Texas toast? Perry worries GOP

Here's a little 'rainy day' humor for today.

2011-09-16T08:53:00.002-06:00

Click to enlarge BORN LOSER cartoon strip.

In this article by Meghan McCain -- a Republican columnist -- read what she says about Gov. Rick Barnes as a presidential aspirant.

You may be surprised.

"Republicans who fall for the arch-conservative Texas governor don’t seem to understand that supporting Perry is the surest way to reelect Obama," she argues.

Can't believe I''m agreeing with a Republican; guess there are still a few who don't have Tea Party Fever.

Hope none of her voters heed her wise words -- for Obama's sake.

This column from The Washington Post:

Interestingly, while Republicans themselves aren’t fazed by his views or even agree with them, a high number of Republicans — 37 percent — have come to believe Perry’s Social Security positions will hurt his chances against Obama. So perhaps Romney’s strategy — positioning himself as the rational, cool-headed defender of the popular program while arguing to Republican voters that Perry’s irrational, hot-headed hostility towards it renders him unelectable — has a chance of gaining traction.

Now, that's hilarious!

Finally, Gov. Perry gets confused about what "government" is. He says "government" doesn't create jobs, but he did -- as "governor." C'mon, Ricky, you are "government" in Texas.

Can we look for quid pro quo from GOP?

2011-09-05T09:15:00.000-06:00

Obama scraps stricter smog regulation, bowing to business, GOP but angering liberal backers

If this continues to be give and take, what will the Tea Party and other GOP folks offer in return?

Don't hold your breath.

Most of these pseudo-patriots have signed multiple pledges that they won't budge a bit to any of Obama's ideas.

The No-Nothings are adhering to Sen. McClellan's No. 1 aim as a lawmaker: Make Obama a one-term president.

The President must learn to stand on principle.

What's the truth about Rick Perry's Texas?

2011-09-05T05:25:00.001-06:00

Governor Rick Perry's 'economic miracle' could take him to the White House. But for many, his state is a land of hunger and poverty – even for some of those who have a job

Money will buy donors political power

2011-09-04T10:01:00.002-06:00

The Washington Post looked at Perry’s top 50 donors, who collectively gave more than $21 million, and found that 34 received some benefit from Perry’s administration or the state, including grants, contracts and appointments.

The donor list was compiled by the nonprofit Texans for Public Justice.

Twenty-three donors won Perry’s appointment to state boards, often the boards of regents at the University of Texas or Texas A&M.Roughly one in three of the top Perry donors had business interests that secured grants, tax subsidies or project approvals under his administration, the Post review found.

Five donors gained both an appointment and a state boost to their specific company or interests.

Tricky Ricky has been a busy boy twanging his way across the way from Iowa to Texas and now New Hampshire, kind of foreign territory for the Texas governor.

Ben hits a home run here about Perry.

2011-08-28T13:38:00.001-06:00

Click on cartoon to enlarge.

Another week on the political trail

2011-08-22T05:39:00.002-06:00

Some critics don’t have a specific gripe with Rick Perry so much as a general sense that he’s overrated and will collapse under close examination.

But, they're conservatives, not liberals, so call off the dog.

“I felt a need to put on the record my instinctive sense that there’s something fundamentally wrong about the Perry campaign,” wrote conservative blogger Robert Stacy McCain a couple days before the Iowa straw poll. “Some kind of catastrophe will result, one way or another.”

“His stands on immigration, public health issues, and spending will offend Tea Partiers, and his over-the-top rhetoric and religion-soaked patois will unnerve party moderates and donors,” wrote American Conservative contributor Michael Brendan Dougherty.

ARF!

Mr. Secretary, don't feel badly, feel bad

2011-08-19T09:22:00.001-06:00

U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan earns an F in grammar for this:

‘I feel very, very badly for the children there.’ …’You have seen massive increases in class size,’ Duncan said of the Texas public school system during Rick Perry’s terms as governor since December 2000.

This speaks badly of the secretary, and I feel bad for him.

Perry on federal aid -- now against

2011-08-18T07:10:00.003-06:00

In his campaign kickoff last Saturday, Texas Gov. Rick Perry burnished his conservative credentials by attacking the idea of deficit stimulus spending."Washington's insatiable desire to spend our children's inheritance on failed stimulus plans and other misguided economic theories have given us record debt and left us with far too many unemployed," he said.But it was not always so for Perry. Back in 2003, lobbyists under Perry's direction went to Capitol Hill to lobby the Republican Congress for more than a billion dollars in federal deficit spending on "stimulus." And they won.

Perry has been on a Bernanke-bashing binge this week, demanding on Wednesday that the Federal Reserve "open their books up."But what books exactly does Perry want opened? The Federal Reserve already publishes its balance sheet online every Thursday for the entire world to see. Not only that, it is audited regularly. Every year, an external accounting firm audits the financial statements of the Federal Reserve and all 12 of its regional banks.Last year, that firm was Deloitte and Touche, but PricewaterhouseCoopers and KPMG have also done it over the years. Those financial statements are also posted online.Governor, your ignorance is showing.

Why's Perry bragging about jobs in Texas?

2011-08-16T16:15:00.000-06:00

The Stink-o-Meter

PERRY'S CLAIM: Texas has created more jobs than all the other states combined.

• Some 550,000 workers last year were paid at or below the federal minimum wage of $7.25, more than double the number making those wages in 2008, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That's 9.5% of Texas' hourly workforce, which gives it the highest percentage of minimum-wage hourly workers in the nation -- a dubious title it shares with Mississippi.

• Texas Enterprise Fund has awarded companies $440 million to relocate since it was created in 2003.

• The state's rapidly expanding population has been both a blessing and a curse. While it has spurred the creation of jobs to service the new residents, it has also kept the state's unemployment rate higher than one would expect for a place that's adding so many positions. Texas' unemployment rate is 8.2% -- lower than the nation's, but higher than 25 other states.

WE'RE NO. 26! EVEN AN AGGIE YELL LEADER SHOULD CRINGE.

THAT STINKS!

Here's President Clinton's assessment of Perry.

What others are saying about Perry

2011-08-15T08:22:00.002-06:00

While Tea Party sippers and other GOP conservatives salivate over Gov. Good Hair slinging his Stetson into the presidential race, I found these comments on various stories on the web about Perry.

Texan Jim Hightower wrote: “. . . Perry-jobs are really 'jobettes,' offering low pay, no benefits and no upward mobility. In fact, under Rickonomics, Texas has added more minimum wage jobs than all other states combined! After 10 years in office, Gov. Perry presides over a state that has more people in poverty and more without health coverage than any other.”

PERRY ALLOWED THE EXECUTION OF A LIKELY INNOCENT MAN, THEN IMPEDED AN INVESTIGATION INTO THE MATTER: In 2004, Cameron Todd Willingham was executed in Huntsville, Texas after being convicted of arson and the murder of his three children. Even after significant evidence emerged showing that arson had not caused the fire (thus exonerating Willingham), Perry refused to grant a stay of execution. Five years after Willingham was executed, a report from a Texas Forensic Science Commission investigator found that the fire could not have been arson. As the commission prepared to hear testimony from the investigator in October 2009, Perry quickly fired and replaced three of its members, forcing an indefinite delay in the hearing.
There are mixed opinions on this matter, but the replacement of commission members is a fact.

Rick Perry, what we Texans like to call "all hat and no cattle". Criticizes big government spending, yet he more than doubled the size of our state budget deficit. If your going to talk the big talk, you'd best walk the big walk, otherwise you just look plain foolish . . .

Rick Perry, corrupt and in the pocket of special interests. He deregulated our utility industry claiming that Texans would enjoy lower utility bills due to increased competition. Texans now have the highest utility bills in the nation. The Texas utility lobby/industry, a big campaign contributor to Perry, is laughing all the way to the bank.

Hmmm... "Texas leads the nation in [below] minimum-wage jobs with no health benefits... Texas has awarded companies $440 million to relocate... lured by low taxes, predictable [almost no] regulation" Is anybody really surprised? Gov. Perry's "Two Step" Political Strategy: 1) Tax Evasion for the Rich &amp; Powerful and 2) Endorsement of the Evangelical Christian Agenda provides him with Unlimited Financial Resources... plus, support from the Most Politically Active "Pulpits" in the Nation!

So there. I wish I'd said all that stuff.

Let the questioning begin for Rick Perry

2011-08-14T07:30:00.012-06:00

Now that Gov. Rick Perry has made it official, let's look at the guy as a potential President of the United States rather than as the bully governor of Texas. Meet Rick Perry

This stood out to me: Jack Schumacher, a recently retired Texas-based DEA agent, told New York Magazine that at least half the drug shipments coming from Mexico stop and offload in Texas, where it is repackaged for sale elsewhere.

That means the money that comes with the drug trade also flows through Texas, driving consumption and investment in the state and possibly contributing substantially to the state’s economy.

“If you have a few million,” Schumacher said in the article, “would you invest in a war zone or a bank in San Antonio?”How much does all of this add to Texas’s economy? It’s hard to come up with an exact number, especially when it’s so easy to look the other way.

“Our politicians don’t want to acknowledge the pivotal and central role Texas plays in drug trafficking,” says Tony Payan, a political-science professor at the University of Texas at El Paso. “Those are not comfortable questions to ask.”

Though he has run many times for both district and statewide office in Texas, Perry has never been fully vetted by the media. He underwent some scrutiny in his races for governor, but has never endured the full court press that happens in a presidential race.

Will the general public (read independents) buy his familiar responses that these accusations are a political vendetta from the liberal "mainstream media"?

Who will ask the hard questions of Gov. Good Hair?

Waiting for rain, thinking crazy thoughts

2011-08-11T14:04:00.010-06:00

STUPID WASTE OF MONEY: A rocket carried the Falcon Hypersonic Technology Vehicle-2 to the edge of space, where it separated from the booster to maneuver through the atmosphere at 13,000 mph. Minutes into the flight, the agency said the mission was on track in its glide phase. The mission will end with a plunge into the ocean. How much did this freaking dunking cost?

LATE BREAKING NEWS: The damned thing disappeared after launch. The Falcon "has an autonomous flight termination capability," which likely means it ditched itself into the Pacific, officials said.
Perry near the top of the pack in new poll, according to CNN. James Moore, a Texas-based Emmy award-winning former national TV news correspondent and co-author of the best-seller, "Bush's Brain," predicts Perry will win. OMG!

GOP DEBATE: I won't be a viewer, but I'll be interested in the results. Pundits say little about who will win because they really don't know. Will the born-agains go after the Mormon? Will Ron Paul's personality glitter and be gay? Will Bachmann burst into prayer or speak in tongues?

I'll check the Express-News tomorrow.

Part Four on The Response: Lou Engle, False Prophet

2011-08-03T10:34:00.003-06:00

Lou Engle contends that gays and lesbians only have the right to “repent” for their homosexuality and compares the state of America to Nazi Germany.

And here's a follower of this fruitcake, another fruitcake.

Note toward the end of this amazing piece of political rhetoric disguised as a prayer, the supplicants in the background start mumbling in tongues. Scary.

Part Three on The Response: James Dobson, Tom Delay's buddy

2011-08-02T08:41:00.005-06:00

James Dobson is a political force. Here is what he believes: “God has called us to be His representatives in our nation and in our world. Select candidates who represent your views and work for their
election.”

On Marriage:
“My observation is that women are merely waiting for their husbands to assume leadership.”

On sex education:
“One of the problems with sex education... is that it also strips kids - especially girls - of their modesty to have every detail of anatomy, physiology and condom usage made explicit.”

On homosexuals:
"[The homosexual] agenda includes teaching pro-homosexual [sic] concepts in the public schools, redefining the family to represent "any circle of people who love each other," approval of homosexual adoption, legitimizing same-sex marriage, and securing special rights for those who identify themselves as gay. Those ideas must be opposed, even though to do so is to expose oneself to the charge of being "homophobic."
“Homosexual are not monogamous. They want to destroy the institution of marriage. It will destroy marriage. It will destroy the Earth.”

Today, his behemoth ministry, based at the foot of the Rockies, reaches more than 220 million people around the globe through its radio and television programs, magazines, books, videos, audio recordings, and a powerful website that offers webzines, podcasts, music and even movie reviews.

Tom Delay credits him with "walking him back to Jesus." Republicans generally are in his debt: In the 2004 election, Dobson's political arm, Focus on the Family Action, was instrumental in turning out the conservative vote that gave Bush a second term and ushered in U.S. senators with socially conservative agendas. Having reached the pinnacle of evangelical Christendom, these should be halcyon days for Dobson.

Here is a Dobson website called truetolerance to counteract "biased information" on subjects such as "bullying."

Religious political activity should be banned or they should lose their tax exemptions.

Part Two on The Response:Mike Bickle of IHOP

2011-08-01T08:51:00.003-06:00

Mike Bickle is the CEO of the International House of Prayer (IHOP), and his wife, Julie, is the CEO of a realty company and Mike is the VP.

Charisma did an article on her and her company a few years ago … it’s online and you can look it up. She finds property, IHOP buys it. She gets paid a commission. Then at the end of the year she gives all her profits back to IHOP, their tax exempt organization and then they do it all over again.

Now come along all the interns who have to pay almost 5K for six months to live there and PRAY there. Do the math … 100 interns at $4,900 each comes to almost $1/2 a million a year. Do that twice and you have a million.

Please show me in the Bible where you have to PAY to PRAY?

Here is something shocking about the interns.

Something about this isn't quite on the up and up.

Part One on The Response:John Benefiel, an Oklahoma blowhard

2011-07-31T09:10:00.008-06:00

Here is John Benefiel's take on the Statue of Liberty:

This is just one of the hypocritical "Christians" who are taking over the nation.

In the same sermon, John Benefiel claims that homosexuality is a plot by the Illuminati to “control the population.”

He says that the Illuminati intend to reduce the world population to just 500 million people and that, along with the recently passed health care reform law, the secretive group will use homosexuality as a “perverted way” to bring about “a death culture” and population control.

Benefiel also insists that homosexuality is a “stronghold” of the “demon god” Baal.

How can anyone with a brain believe what this creep has to say?

My Methodist upbringing did not include this definition of Christianity, and I hope regular folks, Christian and non-Christian alike will see this for what it is: bigotry.

Next: Mike Bickle, who talks of Oprah as one of the main pastors of the Harlot movement.

Republicans' infighting is downright hilarious

2011-07-28T12:53:00.004-06:00

Republicans seem to have a death wish

Several conservative groups that have pressured House members to reject House Speaker John Boehner's debt ceiling plan examined the new bill and, despite the changes, still refuse to lend their support.

The Club for Growth, a free-market group that demands a Balanced Budget Amendment to the Constitution in return for a raise in the borrowing limit, reaffirmed Thursday morning that they will put a black mark on any Republican House member who votes for the plan on their annual "Congressional Scorecard."

Heritage Action, the activist arm of the Heritage Foundation, the nation's largest conservative think-tank with more than 700,000 members, also opposed Boehner's new plan, and issued a similar threat.

FreedomWorks, one of the nation's largest tea party groups, is sending activists on a literal door-to-door campaign of House GOP offices on Capitol Hill to remind them of their continued opposition.

If, as promised, Senate Democrats defeat Boehner's plan, they will offer up a separate proposal by Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid. Reid's plan would increase the debt ceiling for a period for two years, but include fewer cuts.

The House vote is scheduled for about 6 p.m. today.

The ever-vocal whiner, king of no Rep. Eric Cantor has sounded his alarm that if the Democrats don't approve the House bill in the Senate and the United States defaults it will be the Democrats' fault.

My sides hurt from the hilarity of his unmitigated brass.

What would Jesus Christ really say?

2011-07-25T17:51:00.011-06:00

The Norwegian man charged July 23 with a pair of attacks in Oslo that killed more than 80 people left behind a detailed manifesto outlining his preparations and calling for a Christian war to defend Europe against the threat of Muslim domination, according to Norwegian and American officials familiar with the investigation.

Christian extremism is a poorly understood and often neglected phenomenon. Although we are constantly hearing about Muslim extremists, America is plagued with a Christian extremist movement which we ignore at our peril. Christian extremism includes the components of Christian fundamentalism (i.e., biblical inerrancy, evangelism, premillenialism, separatism/sense of persecution and biblical literalism with regard to creation) and adds some additional components (e.g., exclusivity, anti-intellectualism, social conservatism/anti-liberalism, intolerance, theocratic strivings and militant opposition to modernism).

Here are examples: Shirley Phelps Roper, hate-spouting spokesperson for the Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, KS in an interview on Fox News, (the creep carrying the sign above is the "church" leader Fred Phelps) and a group of hecklers disrupting an ecumenical invocation in the state legislature in Nevada.

There has been a complete unwillingness to brand what a significant portion of Americans identify with as dangerous or extremist. But for American democracy to thrive as it was envisioned — equitable, just and secular — the growing force of Christian radicalism must be confronted in American society.

Read about Christian extremism in the world.

No one I know cares about this crap

2011-07-23T08:43:00.008-06:00

Taking a break from politics and such.

This breathless BS appeared in The Times of India website, of all places.

Kim Kardashian and her sisters are flying to Las Vegas to celebrate the reality star's upcoming bachelorette party "The Hangover" style. Kim is engaged to marry her basketball player boyfriend Kris Humphries on Aug 20.

So, her sisters and close friends are planning to celebrate with a bridal shower in Los Angeles and a wild night out in Las Vegas, reports dailystar. "We are going to do whatever we can to embarrass Kim, just to bring her such embarrassment. That's our job. We're going to do it all. We have so many tricks up our sleeves that she won't even know what is happening," gushed Kim's sister Kourtney, preening at the cameras.

I have asked the question before: Who cares what these overexposed women are doing? These unabashed publicity seekers take up valuable space with their comings and goings trumpeted by so-called journalists.

Do TV viewers really care? Guess the reality show watchers -- bless their hearts -- must.

Heaven help us.

Churches, preachers get rich, no taxes.

2011-07-14T19:05:00.013-06:00

In 1970 the value of U.S. church and synagogue property was an estimated $102 billion -- all of it tax exempt.

Watch this video and then we'll have a more current look at two San Antonio religious entities and one family of evangelical bigshots.

The land valuation for Alamo Heights United Methodist Church at 825 E. Basse Road is $5,108,280, Cornerstone Church (Global Evangelism) is $10,673,900 and these are only two examples of huge tax exemptions -- affecting city, county and school districts needing additional funding.

Cornerstone's the Rev. John Hagee and his wife, Diana Hagee, founded Global Evangelism TV 33 years ago, the organization has gone from a back-room operation broadcasting Sunday sermons to San Antonio area viewers to a 50,000-square-foot multimedia studio broadcasting to 127 television stations and 82 radio stations nationwide, according to Analisa Nazareno in a June 20, 2003, San Antonio Express-News article.

The nonprofit organization drew $18.3 million in revenue in 2001. That year, Hagee's total compensation package amounted to more than $1.25 million. No personal taxes and no property taxes. And this doesn't include the palatial edifices of both churches and other properties.

Maybe this would not be so disturbing if Hagee were not so politically connected to conservative evangelical candidates -- including Newt Gingrich -- and their causes, such as opposition in the pulpit to pro-choice and gay issues. Hagee is once more involved in Republican presidential politics.

Faced with questions about his personal finances and the profitability of GETV, Hagee raised his voice and said: "We are hiding absolutely nothing from nobody. I'm not afraid of you. I'm not afraid of the
government, but I am afraid of God. And I'm not going to lie to God and go to Hell over this."

Hagee would have little reason to fear the federal government. Other than disclosing their 990 forms, nonprofit organizations have little federal government oversight. Each year, the IRS may examine the tax returns of 1 percent of the 1 million nonprofit organizations that disclose income, according to an IRS spokesman.

So, while the IRS has stringent rules about the disclosure of profits and investments, as well as income requirements for officers, most nonprofit organizations such as GETV will operate virtually tax-free with little scrutiny, if any.

Meanwhile, city budgets are cut, school districts are laying off teachers and packing classrooms and other vulnerable folks are going to suffer.

Is this what God would want?

For more information about these tax scams -- er, exemptions -- from The Rick A. Ross Institute, click here.

Palin hanging around, playing coy

2011-07-13T11:24:00.008-06:00

Sarah Palin graced the cover of Newsweek this week with the blurb "I Can Win."

C'mon, Sarah. Don't be so undecided, irresolute, dithering, equivocating, vacillating, wishy-washy or in a quandary.

The article blathered on about how she has a national following, etc., yada yada ad nauseam.

Will this woman and her publicity-seeking family ever go away?

Luck of birth?

2011-07-09T08:09:00.002-06:00

The saddest sight in this morning's San Antonio Express-News -- the irony of photo placement on page 3 of the newspaper.

Cutline on the left: Royals in America: Just in from Canada, Britain's Prince William and Kate, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, visit with a Hewlett-Packard representative at a venture capital and new media summit in Beverly Hills on Friday. FRANCINE ORR/ASSOCIATED PRESS

Cutline on the right: For want of Food: A malnourished child lies on a table at a hospital in Mogadishu on Friday. Thousands of people are flocking to the capital seeking food and water to survive the severe drought across the Horn of Africa, which has sparked a crisis affecting more than 10 million. FARAH ABDI WARSAMEH/ASSOCIATED PRESS

God help us.

Amazing video of musical performance

2011-07-06T14:43:00.002-06:00

Perry's job creation hype is a big lie

2011-07-05T12:42:00.003-06:00

Cheri Jacobus, Republican strategist, chirped on and on today on msnbc about how Gov. Rick Perry has brought Texas 265,000 new jobs and that's somehow a miracle of job creation.

Wait until the lost jobs among education workers are added into the numbers and we'll see what a miracle worker Perry really is.

Plus, many of the Perry-created jobs have been "bought" with taxpayer money in a series of tax breaks and other Perry shenanigans. Is that any different than President Obama's stimulus jobs, which are the butt of many GOP jokes?

Will Gov. Good Hair decide he doesn't want to participate in debates or go before editorial boards as a presidential candidate.

He can raise a lot of money in Texas from his millionaire cronies, but he probably won't be able to do that as a national candidate.

If he would have to resign to run, I'd say, "Go for it, Big Rick! Don't let the door knob hit you in the ass."

Bachmann joins the race in home state

2011-06-27T12:09:00.006-06:00

How will Rep. Michelle Bachmann position herself?

The rising favorite of the Tea Party movement, Bachmann, launched her presidential campaign Monday with a pledge to give Americans "independence from government" so they can go back to relying on God and their neighbors.

The Republican member of Congress kicked off her race for her party's nomination in Waterloo, Iowa, where she was born 55 years ago, with a significant opinion poll showing her tied with the front runner, Mitt Romney, in the state which is seen as a key battleground.

Let the critiques begin.

The Pulitzer Prize-winning web site PolitiFact has fact-checked 23 Bachmann statements. The result: one statement is rated as “true” (regarding Obama and the debt ceiling), two are judged to be “half true,” four “barely true,” nine “false,” and seven “pants on fire!” – including Bachmann’s assertion that then Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi had a “$100,000 bar tab for alcohol on the military jets that she's flying.”

It's this kind of off-the-cuff ad libs that will get her in trouble.

Even Fox News Sunday host Chris Wallace, who might have been expected to be friendlier (or at least more polite), asked Bachmann: “Are you a flake?” He has since apologized.

But aside from the questions meant to provoke, there are more serious ones as well.

In its Sunday edition, the Los Angeles Times reported that “the Minnesota Republican and her family have benefited personally from government aid, an examination of her record and finances shows” – not exactly the kind of news to warm a tea partyer’s heart.

“A counseling clinic run by her husband has received nearly $30,000 from the state of Minnesota in the last five years, money that in part came from the federal government,” the LA Times reported. “A family farm in Wisconsin, in which the congresswoman is a partner, received nearly $260,000 in federal farm subsidies.”

Asked about the farm subsidy payments on Fox News, Bachmann said that her family never directly profited from the farm subsidies. "It's not my husband and my farm. It's my father-in-law's farm. And my husband and I have never gotten a penny of money from the farm."

Then there are those millions of dollars in earmarks she won representing Minnesota in Congress. (She’s since pledged not to take any more earmarks.)

This glam politico has all the answers -- if she can just remember when and where to say them and to whom.

Formula One for Austin questioned

2011-06-26T13:04:00.008-06:00

I posted about this last year when the proposal first became public and I received a couple of comments like "You don't know what you're talking about" and "This is a stupid argument."

So here's what was happening in Austin last year.

Now, Austin American-Statesman reporter Eric Dexheimer takes a look today at a recent study, released last week by organizers of the proposed Formula One race in Austin, that asserts the four-day event will generate nearly $300 million in economic benefit to the metropolitan area next June. That's based on the spending of an estimated 94,700 out-of-state fans, or about 20,000 more non-Texans than flocked to Dallas five months ago for the Super Bowl, according to the report, released Monday.

The Statesman has run more than five dozen stories about plans to bring Formula One racing to Austin since initial reports in May 2010. We've taken in-depth looks at the proposal, key figures behind it, the financing and the debate. We've reported from Montreal and Abu Dhabi to introduce readers to the sport and its impact on host cities. See statesman.com/sports/formula1.

It pays to have good public relations flacks churning out positive blathering to persuade the local yokels to fork over a few million a year.

Here's hoping the Austin American-Statesman keeps looking into the "facts" and "figures" of the proposed project before it is too late.

Another Palin literary effort

2011-06-21T09:27:00.005-06:00

Bristol Palin trashes the McCain clan in her new upcoming memoir, "Not Afraid of Life: My Journey So Far" to be released Friday, according to Holly Bailey on The Ticket.

A memoir? Give me a break!

It's unclear whether the 20-year-old Palin daughter specifically mentions her mother's running mate, but her book does slam McCain's wife, Cindy, for acting like "royalty" and accuses the senator's 26-year-old daughter, Meghan, of being a "snobby whiner."

It's unclear to me who puts out good cash to buy this stuff. A memoir by a 20-year-old publicity seeking brat?

Palin’s book will be “an inside look at her life, her world, and the things that matter most, including her family and the faith that keeps her centered,” a William Morrow spokesman said in a statement Tuesday.

William Morrow is an imprint of HarperCollins, the publisher of Sarah Palin's books, “Going Rogue” and “America By Heart,” two other literary masterpieces from the Alaskan family.

HarperCollins should be ashamed.

Has Lady Gaga gone gaga?

2011-06-20T15:47:00.007-06:00

Taking a break from politics.

Lady Gaga can really make herself unattractive -- even ugly.

Gaga is known for her colorful collection of wild and wacky wigs, but for a recent performance on Britain's "The Paul O'Grady Show"-- ironically of her "Born This Way" track "Hair"-- she went hairless, startling fans by sporting a boldly bald new look.

Perhaps after rocking every outrageous hair style and color imaginable since her hair-raising rise to fame in 2008, Gaga felt there was nothing left to do that could shock her fan base except wearing no hair at all. This according to Lyndsey Parker in "Stop The Presses" on Yahoo Music.

And the stunt worked. The spectacle of seeing a glam icon (Parker's words) so associated with crazy hairdos belting out "I'm as free as my hair" while appearing totally hair-free was a shocker, and it wasn't long before "Bald Gaga" was a top trending topic on Twitter.

Isn't that exciting? Uh huh, uh huh. Click to watch on YouTube and read some of the comments following the video. They're a hoot.

Preacher for Perry in Houston?

2011-06-19T15:38:00.016-06:00

In "Preacher has shown his character; now Perry must show his" a commentary by Ken Herman, we learn:

In a Fort Worth tea party rally in June 2009. A YouTube video shows Broden preaching and politicking (you hope the latter isn't subsidized by tax exemptions for the former). Godless things are happening, he said.

Here the pastor is spreading his venom:

"We are experiencing with (the Obama) administration a rapid-fire attempt to implement a socialist philosophy that first seeks to dispossess and replace our Judeo-Christian heritage with a philosophy shaped in secular humanism, framed in atheistic godlessness and birthed of a Darwinist Marxism," said Broden, accusing the administration of cooking up economic crises, "all of it is contrived, all of it is a setup ... designed to blow your mind."

"These people are moving with such rapidity and speed that it is absolutely incredible to me to watch the Americans as we watch them move. It is almost that we are stunned in amazement at what they are doing.

"Let me tell you that is something that happened in Germany when the Jews were walking into the furnaces and they walked in there and didn't even try to stop or fight their way. They walked in because they did not believe that this was happening. They didn't believe that humanity could be so evil, so downright ugly and they just walked into the furnaces believing that the people would do right. I'm submitting to you tonight that that's where America is right now. We are believing that they will do right.

They will not do right. ... They are our enemies. And we must resist them."

Skilled politicians like Perry know the hazards. And that's why he, as the "initiator" of the Houston prayerpalooza, "The Response," should reject Broden's endorsement of the event.

On the other hand, I'm kind of hoping Broden gets to speak at the event. It would be interesting to hear what he says, and what he later says about what he said.

We shall see.

Rock 'n' roll politics with Ted Nugent

2011-06-15T12:26:00.004-06:00

Ted Nugent is an American rock ‘n’ roll, sporting and political activist icon. He is the author of “Ted, White and Blue: The “Nugent Manifesto” and “God, Guns & Rock ‘N’ Roll.”

That's the description given Nugent in The Washington Times for his op-ed piece: "Run, Rick, run."

Obviously, Nugent is Perry's coyote-shooting buddy, but does that qualify him to make political judgments? Hey, everyone has opinions and I don't begrudge the high-spitting "rock 'n' roll icon" his.

"It would be morning in America once again with Rick Perry running for president," Nugent enthused.

Oh brother.

To get a clearer picture of this joker, read this about the dude.

Bachmann shines in New Hampshire

2011-06-14T11:23:00.007-06:00

U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann is a Tea Party cover girl.

But from 1995 to 2006, the Bachmann family glommed $251,000 off the farm program, according to the Environmental Working Group. Fiscal conservatives call these government handouts by their rightful name, corporate welfare.

But that little bit of corporate welfare information did not make it last night to the GOP powder puff debate in New Hampshire.

Look at this: Election 101: Ten facts about Michele Bachmann and her presidential bid from The Christian Science Monitor, a middle-of-the-road source.

And this, from The Washington Post by Chris Cillizza and Aaron Blake:

Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann came into Monday night’s presidential debate in the Queen City as an unknown commodity. She left it as the most talked-about candidate in the 2012 GOP field.

Bachmann stole headlines at the start by announcing that she had filed to run for president — skipping the exploratory phase entirely — and then proceeding to command the stage in the first hour of the CNN-sponsored debate with quotable answers on every question asked of her.

The crowd assembled at Saint Anselm College broke into spontaneous applause after several of Bachmann’s answers.

“She knows what she believes and why she believes it,” Bachmann pollster Ed Goeas said in the post-debate spin room. “She is a very good communicator.”

Maybe Bachmann's shine was because her stage buddies were so dull.

What could diminish some of the shine?

Bachmann has made some misstatements and gaffes – from misplacing the battles of Lexington and Concord (she and Sarah Palin must read the same history book) to stating that the (slave-owning) Founding Fathers “worked tirelessly” to end slavery – that have led some commentators to characterize her as an intellectual lightweight. She has gone through five chiefs of staff in 4-1/2 years – and one former chief of staff said publicly he doesn’t think she’s ready to be president. She has no executive experience and a fairly light legislative record.

Let's hope that's enough.

Perry popping up all over

2011-06-12T14:16:00.052-06:00

Gov. Rick Perry seems to be causing a real stir in Republican circles -- a pretty good sign that they are running out of credible candidates for the presidency.

Perry was featured in two articles in today's San Antonio Express-News. One talked about his lack of charitable giving despite his millionaire status. The other was about his national spotlight appearances to talk to Tea Party and Neocon acolytes in Hollywood, New York and New Orleans.

In the "giving" article, I learned that his wife, Anita, is employed as a "consultant" by Texas Association Against Sexual Assault with a salary of $65,000 annually. One of the governor's gifts in 2008 was $9,996 to that group.

One amazing statement in the article attributed to his loyal mouthpiece and chief B.S. provider Mark Miner, was this: "He never talks about his faith." This was in response to a request for an interview by the Express-News to discuss his views on prayer, personal religious observations and charitable giving.

Never mind that he is listed as an "initiator" of the Aug. 6 national day of prayer and fasting at Reliant Stadium in Houston, sponsored by the American Family Association and described by Perry as an "apolitical Christian prayer service" to provide "spiritual solutions to the many challenges we face in our communities, states and nation." The rally has adopted the group's statement of faith, "including the infallibility of the Bible, the centrality of Jesus Christ and the eternal damnation that awaits nonbelievers."

Another comment in the article, from the Rev. William K. McElvaney, retired Dallas-area United Methodist minister and professor emeritus of preaching and worship at Southern Methodist University, was more relevant, perhaps:

"I can forgive him for that (not giving according to his income) if he were really strong on public policy from a faith standpoint. If his public policy really showed care and support for our children and single mothers and aging people and all the most vulnerable people . . . that Jesus Christ was most concerned about. If he would encourage public policy in that direction, then I would be less interested in how much he gives."

Amen, Rev. McElvaney.

Niemöller speaks for us all

2011-06-11T09:43:00.011-06:00

First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out --
Because I was not a Socialist.

Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out --
Because I was not a Trade Unionist.

Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out --
Because I was not a Jew.

Then they came for me -- and there was no one left to speak for me.

Martin Niemöller

Martin Niemöller, a prominent Protestant pastor who opposed the Nazi regime, spent the last 7 years of Nazi rule in concentration camps. Germany, 1937.

Charles C. Haynes, senior scholar at the Freedom Forum First Amendment Center, director of the Religious Freedom Education Project at the Newseum in Washington, had this to say in The Washington Post:
Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s call to prayer may not be unconstitutional, but it raises serious questions about the governor’s commitment to represent all Texans. Unlike most “prayer proclamations” by government officials – a staple of political pandering in many parts of the country – Perry’s prayer plan includes co-hosting a major Christian worship event to be held in a Houston stadium on August 6.
Described by organizers as a “non-denominational, apolitical, Christian prayer meeting,” the gathering is being organized and funded by the American Family Association (AFA), a controversial conservative Christian advocacy group.
The governor is doing more than merely participating in the day-long prayer rally: He is described by organizers as “the initiator” – and listed first on the roster of “leaders.”
In his official prayer proclamation, the governor invites his “fellow Texans” to join him at the stadium to pray for “unity and righteousness.” But on the event’s Web site, he makes it clear that only those who pray in the name of Jesus (and accept the AFA statement of faith) are welcome:
“As a nation, we must come together and call upon Jesus to guide us through unprecedented struggles, and thank Him for the blessings of freedom,” reads a statement from Perry.

Robertson's is the voice of born-again bigotry -- shrill, unrelenting in its anger and hate. Is this a Christian attitude? Perry's support -- nay, initiation -- of the American Family Association "Prayer fest" in Houston is another example.

Does he represent all Texans or just the ones he ordains into Heaven?

A cartoonist's view of changing media

2011-05-27T14:03:00.004-06:00

Sticks and stones . . .

2011-05-26T11:28:00.005-06:00

Is this a détente in the name-calling media? Wouldn't that be loverly.

Trailer trash literary efforts again

2011-05-19T10:04:00.001-06:00

Bristol Palin will be back on TV by the end of the year, starring in a reality series for the Bio Channel. The as-yet-untitled series will follow her move from Alaska to Los Angeles with her son, Tripp, to work at a small charity. She will live with actor brothers Kyle and Christopher Massey.

Kyle Massey is a fellow "Dancing" contestant and Palin's good friend, the network said.

Palin can also soon add author to her résumé. Be still my beating heart!

She signed with William Morrow to publish "Not Afraid of Life," to come out this summer. Morrow, an imprint of HarperCollins, has said the memoir would provide "an inside look at her life."

Oh brother! Publishing has hit bottom.

Levi Johnston, the father of her child, also is planning a tell-all book about his tumultuous relationship with the Palin family. Touchstone Publishing has a fall publication date for Johnston's book, "Deer in the Headlights: My Life in Sarah Palin's Crosshairs."

When will these dreary opportunists be out of the public's eye?

Good economic news for the future?

2011-05-12T12:17:00.000-06:00

U.S. exports hit a record $173 billion in March, up 15 percent from a year-ago and 37 percent from 2009. The good times for "Made in America" are just getting started, according to a new study from The Boston Consulting Group.

In fact, BCG predicts 2015 will be a tipping point of sorts, when global manufacturers will view the U.S. as equal to if not better-than China, senior partner Harold Sirkin said.

So, this sounds good, but what about gasoline prices, inflation and other downers?

We'll have to wait and see.

Pat Robertson has lost it.

2011-04-27T09:08:00.003-06:00

Now, isn't that clear? All us lefties want to kill babies so lesbians can have more control.

How can this "man of God" be so ignorant, dense, foolish, dull-witted, slow, simpleminded, vacuous, vapid, idiotic, imbecilic, imbecile, obtuse, doltish; informal thick, dim, dimwitted, dumb, dopey, dozy, moronic, cretinous, pea-brained, halfwitted, soft in the head, brain-dead, boneheaded, thickheaded and wooden-headed?

Don't preacher-bigots retire?

Trump hogs the media headlines

2011-04-24T11:03:00.003-06:00

Running for president may cost nearly $1 billion, but merely mulling a White House run can be awfully profitable, according to Matt Egan, a reporter for FOXBusiness.

As the political and business worlds collectively weigh the seriousness of what many see as a publicity stunt, Donald Trump’s larger-than-life brand is only growing larger.

If he opts to drop out of the running to be the GOP standardbearer, Trump will have pulled off a brilliant use of free advertising. He’s made at least 24 appearances on national and cable TV networks since February, according to Politico. It appears to be paying off, as U.S. Internet searches for “Donald Trump” have surged 332% in the past five weeks and “Donald Trump for president” was the fourth most popular search with his name in it. Trump is garnering far more search volume than legitimate GOP candidates.

GOP bigwigs should begin to worry. This publicity hog may have name recognition and has been all over the media, but he's short on substance. So, bring him on in 2012 and prepare for the big-time loss. When push comes to shove, Americans don't really like this buffoon.

GOP leader caught in email embroglio

2011-04-21T08:13:00.007-06:00

The head of Orange County's Republican Party is vowing to keep up the pressure on Fullerton, CA, GOP official Marilyn Davenport to resign for sending an offensive email about President Barack Obama.

You be the judge.

Combs screwed up - won't admit it

2011-04-20T10:23:00.003-06:00

This Dallas Morning News editorial expresses my feelings about Comptroller Susan Combs' monumental snafu.

What Comptroller Susan Combs should do about security breach -- now

I am one of the 3.5 million Texans put at risk by sloppy work in the Comptroller's office. While Combs spends time hobnobbing with the wealthy and endorsing the Formula 1 racing fiasco in Austin, we have been exposed to criminals - for more than a year.

Combs' response through a spokesperson: "This won't happen again."

Geez, once is enough. This is the dumbest response I've heard from a lot of dumb Republicans in state office. The buck doesn't seem to stop with Combs, who didn't even have the cajones to stand in front of an affected Texas constituency and say she is sorry about what happened in HER office.

How can this woman be allowed to get away without any consequences?

Cartoonists get the idea across quickly

2011-04-19T08:26:00.010-06:00

A picture is worth a lot, we all agree. And editorial cartoonists understand that when they encapsulate their opinions into an image or series of images. These are three of my recent favorites about three of my most "unfavorite" people.

Introducing the charming Ayn Rand

2011-04-16T18:30:00.015-06:00

"Atlas Shrugged" has been called one of the most influential novels ever written. Now, in this era of Tea Party politics and a Congress hell-bent on cutting spending, it has been made into a movie. Here is a trailer for the movie.

Read an interesting article in Money magazine about the novel.

Here is a movie review by Cole Abaius on April 16, 2011.

There’s a quote about sound, fury and nothing being signified that comes to mind here, but "Atlas Shrugged" doesn’t even have the sound or fury. It is a few passable acting turns surrounded by flaccid, inept filmmaking and a story as compelling as an old sock.

The Upside: It looks great, the cameras were clearly professional, both Taylor Schilling and Grant Bowler are fun actors to watch who would do great with a real story, and there are several character actors that bring their usual gusto to the proceedings (like Patrick Fischler and Michael Lerner)

The Downside: One giant exercise in telling instead of showing wrapped up by a constant stream of meaningless exposition and a non-story told with the nuance of a typewriter to the forehead.

On the side: Everyone knows that this project was in development hell for years and saw the likes of Farah Fawcett and Angelina Jolie attached as Dagny, but it’s also important to note that it was done completely independently (and even with failure, there’s virtue in that).

Another view from Libertarian-leaning current events funnyman P.J. O'Rourke in the Wall Street Journal:

"Atlas shrugged." And so did I. The movie version of Ayn Rand's novel treats its source material with such formal, reverent ceremoniousness that the uninitiated will feel they've wandered without a guide into the midst of the elaborate and interminable rituals of some obscure exotic tribe.

In "Atlas Shrugged–Part I" a drink is tossed, strong words are bandied, legal papers are served, more strong words are further bandied and, finally, near the end, an oil field is set on fire, although we don't get to see this up close. There are many beautiful panoramas of the Rocky Mountains for no particular reason. And the movie's title carries the explicit threat of a sequel.

But I will not pan "Atlas Shrugged." I don't have the guts. If you associate with Randians—and I do—saying anything critical about Ayn Rand is almost as scary as saying anything critical to Ayn Rand. What's more, given how protective Randians are of Rand, I'm not sure she's dead.

The woman is a force. But, let us not forget, she's a force for good.

I have not seen the movie, but it's downright scary that this unattractive, unfeeling woman can be the force behind the Tea Party Movement, filled with Rand "followers" who have no notion of what Rand espoused.

Her credo has morphed into the idea that greed should replace altruism and love for one's fellow man and those in power should lower taxes for the wealthy and corporations and do away with social programs for the weak and vulnerable.

That ideology erases years of work by many brave Americans who have fought for equality and justice for all and made this nation a beacon of hope for the world.

Bristol's back with a six-figure bang

2011-04-06T16:55:00.004-06:00

Pardon me, while I upchuck.

'60 Minutes' brought me to tears

2011-04-03T18:00:00.013-06:00

It's been a while since I wept at a television story. But, tonight on "60 Minutes" I broke down without shame.
Could this be something someone on San Antonio's East Side could do?

A main theme in the program was that the kids needed to be proud of who they are and where they are from - something I have seen lacking in my years teaching at San Antonio College. Many students seemed to be ashamed of their high school when we were getting to know each other at the beginning of each semester.

When I read their journals, I made sure they knew that I appreciated SOMETHING about each high school and that they should be proud.

This young woman is a product of this heartwarming musical program - "Gospel for Teens" - run by an amazing woman.

Stuff that I couldn't make up

2011-03-31T16:28:00.003-06:00

These guys have too much time on their hands.

Good-looking people are generally happier than their plain looking or unattractive counterparts, largely because of the higher salaries, other economic benefits and more successful spouses that come with beauty, according to new research from economists at The University of Texas at Austin.

Read Beautiful people are happier, economists find

Bad manners cost some jerk $319 million.

The seven state workers from the Albany, N.Y. area who won last week's $319 million Mega Millions jackpot may have gotten some extra luck from the patience and appetite of the man delegated to buy the winning ticket.

Mike Barth was at a newsstand in downtown Albany to buy the random Quick Pick ticket for the group when he decided to pick up a candy bar.

"I was at the counter. It was my turn to buy a ticket when I reached down to grab a Snickers bar from the candy display and someone reached over me, actually cut in front of me to buy a ticket," the 63-year-old from suburban Bethlehem said Thursday.

"I thought about saying something but decided to just let it slide. I bought the next ticket."

Way to go, Mike! And I hope the jerk who pushed ahead of you thinks about his bad manners 319 million times a day.

Read about The winners

BCS could be in BIG trouble.

2011-03-30T13:13:00.004-06:00

The Bowl Championship Series is so troubled by the graft exposed in Tuesday’s Fiesta Bowl corruption report that it appointed a special “task force.” Among the members is an athletics director who accepted a free Caribbean cruise from the Orange Bowl just last summer.

Yes, there’s nothing like having a guy – in this case, Southern Mississippi’s Richard Giannini – who takes lavish gifts from one bowl game to judge another bowl game for giving out lavish gifts.

The obvious news from Tuesday’s 276-page Fiesta Bowl report is that longtime CEO John Junker (above right) was fired and is in major legal trouble, in part because of the eye-popping way his bowl game was run – $1,200 strip-joint bills tend to generate news interest.

The real issue is that the BCS is doing what the Fiesta Bowl originally tried to do: conduct a shallow investigation and hope the party is allowed to rage on.

Read the full story here.

Here's Sports Illustrated's take on the topic.

In 2007, the West Virginia Mountaineers won the Big East football title. That earned them a spot in the Fiesta Bowl. West Virginia fans, disappointed that a loss to Pittsburgh had cost the team a chance to play for the national title, purchased only 7,981 of the 17,500 tickets the Fiesta Bowl requires participating schools to buy.

The school had to eat the cost of the tickets as well as pay a considerable amount to bring the football team, band, cheerleaders and various assorted muckety-mucks to Phoenix for a week.

The Mountaineers beat Oklahoma on Jan. 2, 2008, but West Virginia's athletic department lost more than $1 million on the trip.

Whoa, Nelly. This is a big-time scam, and it raises questions about the other bowls in the BCS arrangement. But, who will be investigating? Athletic directors? Bowl executives? C'mon!

This besmirches college athletics and the athletes - who deserve more money for their hard work and dedication - not some crooked joker who spends thousands on strippers and payola.

A political pioneer passes

2011-03-26T11:44:00.000-06:00

Geraldine Ferraro, who in 1984 became the first woman to run for vice president on a major party ticket, only to lose in a landslide, died Saturday. She was 75.

Ferraro died at Massachusetts General Hospital, where she was being treated for blood cancer. She died just before 10 a.m., said Amanda Fuchs Miller, a family friend who worked for Ferraro in her 1998 Senate bid and was acting as a spokeswoman for the family, according to the Associated Press.

Gov. Good Hair's buddies rule the roost

2011-03-21T21:28:00.004-06:00

Hiring a conservative think tank analyst as a $200,000-a-year “special adviser” could undermine UT Chancellor Francisco Cigarroa and impair Texas higher education research initiatives.

State Sen. Judith Zaffirini, D-Laredo, questioned the need for recently hire Rick O'Donnell's position.

“The hiring process was completely flawed,” she said. “There was no vote of the board, no approval by the chancellor. With a $200,000 salary at a time when there is a hiring freeze at UT, how in the world can you justify this?”

Stay tuned for the latest high jinks of Tea Party conservatives and their magnanimous benefactor Gov. Rick Perry, who seems to be able to find money in the strained Texas budget for his friends and donors.

Debbie Riddle is a hypocritical racist

2011-03-14T12:15:00.002-06:00

Debbie Riddle complains about "hiring illegals, rewarding their disregard of our immigration procedures and willful violation of our laws, and creating an incentive for others to do the same" - unless they are hiring a maid, a lawn caretaker or another houseworker.

She probably would be in favor of slavery.

What a nincompoop. This Republican Legislature is full of them.

Rep. Leo Berman, R-Tyler, spoke out against a law against "bullying" because it supports the "gay agenda." The seven-term, 75-year old Berman said in his distinctive New York accent, “I’m very unusual for a legislator.”

Last session, his bills — like the one restricting illegal immigrants to certain geographical regions or another denying them access to higher education — failed to gain traction in the roughly evenly divided House. But with this session’s Republican supermajority, it could very well be the session of Leo and Debbie.

Heaven help us.

Michele, my belle, you're way off

2011-03-13T15:56:00.004-06:00

MANCHESTER, N.H. – Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann kicked off her first swing through the Granite State with an unfortunate gaffe.

"You're the state where the shot was heard around the world at Lexington and Concord," she said Saturday morning at an event organized by the Republican Liberty Caucus of New Hampshire. "And you put a marker in the ground and paid with the blood of your ancestors.

Good, patriotic stuff … only the “Shot Heard ‘Round the World” was fired about 70 miles to the south in Concord, Massachusetts.

Her comment wasn’t just an off-hand reference that she inserted in her remarks. At a fundraiser Friday night on the New Hampshire Seacoast, Bachmann said almost the exact same thing, according to the Minnesota Post.

For a candidate already known for her gaffes in public remarks, this is not a good start for her New Hampshire debut.

Bachmann's family farm received $251,973 in federal subsidies between 1995 and 2006. The farm had been managed by Bachmann's deceased father-in-law and took in roughly $20,000 in 2006 and $28,000 in 2005, with the bulk of the subsidies going to dairy and corn. Both dairy and corn are heavily subsidized — or "socialized" — businesses in America (in 2005 alone, Washington spent $4.8 billion propping up corn prices) and are subject to strict government price controls.

She needs to stay in Minnesota and take care of her government-supported - thus, socialist - enterprises.

Music by robots, computers - special

2011-03-13T11:42:00.004-06:00

Don't return to McCarthyism in America

2011-03-10T12:59:00.007-06:00

Rep. Peter King opened congressional hearings into Islamic radicalization in America, dismissing what he called the 'rage and hysteria' surrounding the event.

King's opening remarks are an attempt to justify his and Tea Party efforts to radicalize an entire religion.

Can't we widen the hearing to include radicalization of Americans, not just Muslim Americans? American hate groups are organizing and arming across the nation. What about looking into those groups?

A person's religion should not mark him or her for suspicion. I lived through the McCarthy Era where people lost their jobs and careers because of hate-filled accusations and flimsy investigations.

Congressman Keith Ellison, Democrat, one of only two Muslims in Congress, broke down during his testimony at King's hearing. The Minnesota congressman shared an emotional story at the hearing about a New York Muslim who died a hero in the inferno during 9/11.

Congressman Andre Carson, Democrat, of Indiana's 7th District, which covers portions of Indianapolis, is the only other Muslim in Congress. He was first elected in 2008.

Read more: http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_many_Muslims_are_in_the_US_House_of_Reps#ixzz1GEKt3JM7

We should not return to those sad days.

Tom Brokaw may have hit upon an idea

2011-03-03T12:08:00.003-06:00

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Large crowds opposing these ghouls (ones supposed to rob graves and feed on dead bodies) would be a great idea. Also, if they have any tax exemptions as a religious group, that should be addressed. These misguided folks are obviously politically and philosophically motivated to do the outragious things they do.

Froma Harrop gets her point across

2011-02-25T09:47:00.003-06:00

I'll make a deal with you, Michelle Bachmann. We taxpayers don't have to subsidize breast pumps in return for not subsidizing your business.

From 1995 to 2006, the Bachmann family glommed $251,000 off the farm program, according to the Environmental Working Group. Fiscal conservatives call these government handouts by their rightful name, corporate welfare.

Are we getting through to you, Michele?

Can't tell. The Republican rep from Minnesota now purports to save money by ending the deduction for breast pumps, which Michelle Obama supports.

Noting that she had breast-fed her five children, Bachman said: “To think that the government has to go out and buy my breast pump ... You want to talk about the nanny state, I think we just got a new definition.”

Who needs a government nanny when you've got a sugar daddy?

Read the full Froma Harrop column here.

No. 1 Fat Head criticizes First Lady

2011-02-22T13:52:00.002-06:00

Radio host Rush Limbaugh poked fun at Michelle Obama's waistline Monday; the latest entry in a string of conservative attacks on the First Lady's anti-obesity campaign.

During his show yesterday, Limbaugh pounced on a report that the Obama family (minus the president) had dined on ribs while vacationing in Vail, Colo.:

The problem is -- and dare I say this -- it doesn't look like Michelle Obama follows her own nutritionary, dietary advice. And then we hear that she's out eating ribs at 1,500 calories a serving with 141 grams of fat per serving, yeah it does -- what do you mean, what do I mean? By Rachel Rose Hartman on Yahoo News

What a jerk!

Teacher tells it like it is.

2011-02-16T10:44:00.003-06:00

A high school English teacher in suburban Philadelphia who was suspended for a profanity-laced blog in which she called her young charges "disengaged, lazy whiners" is driving a sensation by daring to ask: Why are today's students unmotivated — and what's wrong with calling them out?

As she fights to keep her job at Central Bucks East High School, 30-year-old Natalie Munroe says she had no interest in becoming any sort of educational icon. The blog has been taken down, but its contents can still be found easily online.

"My students are out of control," Munroe, who has taught 10th, 11th and 12th grades, wrote in one post. "They are rude, disengaged, lazy whiners. They curse, discuss drugs, talk back, argue for grades, complain about everything, fancy themselves entitled to whatever they desire, and are just generally annoying."

And in another post, Munroe — who is more than eight months pregnant — writes: "Kids! They are disobedient, disrespectful oafs. Noisy, crazy, sloppy, lazy LOAFERS."

She speaks for my last year of teaching high school at Roosevelt High School where I had freshmen students, the majority of whom wanted nothing to do with learning and the remainder too timid or cowed to speak out against the loudmouths. One student in one class later apologized for her actions, saying "We were wrong and I now know it."

Learning cannot happen when students create bedlam in the classroom. I personally feel for this young woman teacher. She probably entered the profession with high expectations and equally high ideals. Now, she'll be tarnished instead of applauded for speaking the truth.

Parents of these rude, sloppy, lazy loafers should be made aware of their little darlings' actions away from home. Or, maybe that's the way they act at home as well.

'Harry's Law' appealing — to me at least

2011-02-14T10:24:00.003-06:00

I'm just waiting for the conservative loudmouths' wrath against "Harry's Law" with Kathy Bates, a new David E. Kelly series.

Anyone who can get away with calling Rush Limbaugh a "drug addict" in a courtroom diatribe against unfair drug law enforcement is a friend of mine.

"The New York Times" review says, "A hallmark of Mr. Kelley’s shows is often the thinnest application of logic or reason in depictions of a world dedicated to logic and reason. Here he invokes a fantasy liberalism in which the judicial system is a constant and magnanimous corrective for a social and economic structure that forces good people (impoverished 87-year-old grandmothers for instance) to do imprudent and felonious things (armed robbery for instance).

"Harry’s primary adversary in court is a jerk, not because of below-board tactics or slimy oratory but because of a bone-headed conservatism that reveals him not even to know that drug legalization has its roots as a right-wing initiative. Harry’s purpose on the show seems partly to enlighten him; partly to confirm for millions of people who don’t watch Fox News that they are correct not to do so; and partly to tell the Glenn Beck lovers out there that if they want serial drama that affirms their opinions, they had better go elsewhere."

Thus, my adulation.

This from "The Hollywood Reporter," Tim Goodman writes: "Harry’s Law is, first and foremost, a colossal waste of Bates’ talent.

"Beyond that, Harry’s Law is littered with bogus courtroom rambling on soap boxes so tall they are an insurance claim waiting to happen. Let’s legalize drugs, Harry goes off, and the next thing you know she’s talking about stupid Republicans and Rush Limbaugh. It’s all cheap, easy, predictable and not very clever."

He must be a conservative, right?

From "Variety" we get: "'Harry's Law' has the kind of light procedural touch that CBS aimed for, but didn't deliver as well, on "The Defenders." And while this show hardly establishes any precedent, it's pretty clear it doesn't intend to; Kelley simply had some things to get off his chest, and primetime is a better place than most to plead his case: His heroine may be an outsider, but at least Harry's no 'Outlaw.'

I like its quirkiness, and I haven't always liked Kelly's work — "Boston Legal," for example. Check it out for yourself.

Another mama grizzly making noises

2011-02-10T12:02:00.006-06:00

Another Fox News sweetheart rails on and on about something that is totally false. But no one seemed to want to check her out.

Here's Minnesota Public Radio's PoliGraph response. She didn't have her facts straight. Surprise, surprise for Fox News.

She's stepping into the spotlight, and she will be a thorn on the GOP Establishment's side in 2012. Between her and the first Mama Grizzly, this should be a roaring couple of years.

The National Anthem as it should be

2011-02-07T13:10:00.005-06:00

Christina Aguilera's unfortunate massacre of the National Anthem at Super Bowl 45 makes me yearn for a more patriotic and musical presentation at major sporting events.

A symphonic rendition would be good.

Or, a military band's version is thrilling.

Our nation's anthem should not be trivialized.

Ronald Reagan as a conservative hero?

2011-02-06T11:31:00.007-06:00

Politics is not a bad profession. If you succeed there are many rewards, if you disgrace yourself you can always write a book. Ronald Reagan

During President Ronald Reagan's presidency, he tripled the debt, grew the size of government, had a 35 percent job approval in Year 2 and the nation suffered 10 percent unemployment in Year 2.

Reagan raised taxes a grand total of four times just between 1982-84.

If the real Reagan were a first-term president today, the Tea Party would be clamoring for a right-wing challenger in the next round of primaries, somebody who might deny his renomination.

After all, in 1982 Reagan signed into law two tax increases — one of which was later characterized in a Treasury Department report as the heftiest peacetime tax hike in American history. All told, he gave back roughly one-third of the tax cuts enacted a year earlier.

Then, in 1983, breaking a campaign promise to go after entitlement programs, he saved Social Security with a $165 billion bailout by signing a hike in payroll taxes and ushering a new category of recipients into the program: newly hired federal workers. That year, he also hiked the federal gasoline tax. In 1984, he signed a deficit-reduction bill that mandated yet another tax increase.

That was just the first term. After his reelection, Reagan signed the Tax Reform Act of 1986, which imposed the largest corporate tax hike in history ($120 billion over five years), while closing $300 billion in corporate loopholes. In that same law, Reagan agreed to exempt millions of low-wage earners from paying any income tax.

In today's conservative parlance, such deeds would be assailed as "socialism."

And imagine how he would be attacked today for his tolerant immigration policy. In 1986, he signed the last major reform law, mandating a path to citizenship for agricultural and seasonal workers - and offering amnesty to illegal immigrants.

The Iran-Contra affair was a constitutional crisis that embroiled the Reagan administration in its last two years (1986-88), raised the prospect of Ronald Reagan’s impeachment, clouded the presidency of George H.W. Bush and contributed to keeping it from extending to a second term.

The scandal entailed illegal funding and arming of Nicaragua’s right-wing contras fighting the leftist Sandinista regime as well as illegally trading arms with Iran in exchange for the release of seven American hostages held by Iranian-sponsored militants in Lebanon. Profits from arms sales to Iran were to be used to buy weapons for the contras.

And consider this on taxes.

Tea Party hostess Sarah Palin really needs to dig into her hero's record a little more deeply before she meets her female hero Margaret Thatcher for tea — although in her early vetting for her spot on the Republican ticket, she knew very little about Thatcher.

You betcha!

Lest we forget. It happened in the U.S.

2011-02-01T12:22:00.006-06:00

As the nation celebrates Black History Month, we should pause and reflect.

Is this the beginning of much turmoil?

2011-01-30T16:07:00.006-06:00

The situation in Egypt is really scary. I know that sounds rather childish, but I don't know how else to put it. I remember the domino theory during the Vietnam Conflict was a reason the government gave for the conflict in the first place.

This is even scarier. Our No. 1 ally in the Mideast, Israel, is surrounded by governments bent on its destruction. If Egypt topples into an Islamic renegade government and Yemen goes as well as Tunisia, the problem escalates.

The stunning collapse of Tunisia's long-ruling president brought cheers from the streets and a flood of messages on Middle East websites Jan. 16 with one overriding question: Could it happen next in Egypt or other iron-fist regimes in the region?

There's little doubt that Tunisia's people-power uprising — a potent mix of economic gripes and demands for political freedoms — will embolden similar calls in a region dominated by authoritarian leaders and ruling monarchs. Protesters in Cairo have mocked Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and trade union activists in Jordan chanted: "Tunisia is teaching us a lesson."

On this map (click to enlarge), Israel is surrounded by mortal enemies Syria, Lebanon, Iran, Yemen and now Egypt if the country becomes a strict Islamic nation. Jordan and Saudi Arabia could be next?

America's dependence on oil will put us in the middle of this cauldron of discontent.

Cool heads must prevail.

Fame follows Bristol Palin; how sad

2011-01-27T09:28:00.002-06:00

Bristol Palin is apparently considering a radio gig co-hosting the morning show on Phoenix radio station Mix 96.9.

According to reports, the station approached Palin in early January, and she met with station management on Friday and showed interest in the gig.

Guess she'll be talking about sex education and making money off of her abstinence-only pregnancy and subsequent birth.

The former "Dancing with the Stars" contestant will have the opportunity to address a smaller audience when she heads to St. Louis Feb. 7 for Washington University's Sex Week. Palin will also be a speaker for the school's annual sex-education event, reports the Politico.

The fact that Palin will be the keynote speaker for the university's Sex Week in St. Louis hasn't gone down well with all students. While some students say that she as speaker will spark interest in the student body, others are outraged, reports the New York Daily News.

"One concern I do have is when we do fund someone like Bristol Palin, is what really are we supporting. And to me it's someone who is famous because they got pregnant at 18," said freshman Jacob Trunsky, chairman of the Budget Committee.

Especially since Palin's speaking fee, which ranges from $15,000 to $30,000, likely usurped the lion's share of the funding for the panel event: $20,000.

With the spoils of her new-found notoriety and fame, Palin has bought a five-bedroom home in Pinal County south of Phoenix.

Paperwork shows Palin is the sole purchaser of the house in the town of Maricopa. It's not clear if Bristol Palin will be a seasonal visitor or permanent resident at the home, in a development called Cobblestone Farms.

According to real estate websites, the residence is a two-level, brown stucco house with a tile roof, a landscaped front and back yard, and access to a community pool.

What a deal.

Rep. Broun on Twitter; others listening

2011-01-26T10:05:00.018-06:00

The State of Union address may have appeared to be a more civil affair to viewers at home, but at least one Republican congressman was launching some fiery rhetoric on Twitter as President Obama spoke.

Tweeting during the president's speech in the confines of his office, Georgia Rep. Paul Broun said at one point, "Mr. President, you don't believe in the Constitution. You believe in socialism."

The tweet was sent under the handle @RepPaulBrounMD, the account the congressman uses for his congressional duties. (Broun also has a separate account, @PaulBrounforGA, that he uses for political purposes.) The remark quickly circulated on Twitter, with some users comparing it to Rep. Joe Wilson's famous "You Lie" outburst two years ago.

So who is this Georgia hillbilly?

On Nov. 10, 2008, one week after the 2008 presidential election, Broun drew national attention when he criticized then-President-elect Barack Obama's call for a civilian national service corps, suggesting that Obama might use it to establish a Marxist dictatorship.

In an interview with the Associated Press, Broun (pictured at right, admiring his wall of dead animals) said, "That's exactly what Hitler did in Nazi Germany and it's exactly what the Soviet Union did. When he's proposing to have a national security force that's answering to him, that is as strong as the U.S. military, he's showing me signs of being Marxist."

Broun later clarified his statement by saying, "We can't be lulled into complacency. You have to remember that Adolf Hitler was elected in a democratic Germany. I'm not comparing him to Adolf Hitler. What I'm saying is there is the potential of going down that road."

Broun cited a July 2008 speech by Obama in which the then-Democratic presidential candidate had said, "We cannot continue to rely only on our military in order to achieve the national security objectives that we've set. We've got to have a civilian national security force that's just as powerful, just as strong, just as well-funded."

A spokesman for Obama indicated that he had been referring to a civilian reserve corps intended to handle postwar reconstruction efforts in foreign locations, such as rebuilding infrastructure. The Bush administration had endorsed that idea, and a Civilian Response Corps, described as similar to the one proposed by Obama, was formed in 2006 by the Bush Administration after a bipartisan Congressional vote.

The following day, Nov. 11, Broun seemingly backed away from his statements, saying on WGAC radio, "I regret putting it that way," and "I apologize to anyone who has taken offense at that."

Broun nevertheless asserted that Obama "is extremely liberal" and "has promoted a lot of socialistic ideas, and it just makes me concerned."

His remarks in the radio interview were at first interpreted in the press as an apology. However, Broun's office later said he was "not taking back anything he said" and a spokeswoman said, "We have not issued any official apology” for the remarks. The spokeswoman said Broun (above left, speaking against earmarks) stood by a written statement he had issued in which he criticized Obama for having "socialist views" and raised what the Atlanta Journal Constitution described as "ominous concerns" about the civilian force.

The news release read in part, "I firmly believe that we must not fall victim to the 'it can't happen here' mentality. I adhere to the adage 'eternal vigilance is the price of liberty.'" Broun also said that his comments had been sensationalized by the media.

Paranoia, thy name is Broun. Your statements did not need to be "sensationalized" by the media. They speak for themselves.

Is this patriot one of Broun's constituents? Maybe. Georgia crackers will believe almost anything about an "uppity" black man with a strange name and an elite education.

If Perry likes Las Vegas so much, move

2011-01-25T11:15:00.010-06:00

If only.

Peggy Fikac of the Houston Chronicle writes, "Word came from Las Vegas last week: Voter identification legislation is among the emergencies facing Texas lawmakers this session."

From Las Vega? Gov. Good Hair Perry has an affinity for Las Vegas it seems. He spent time last week selling his book "Fed Up!" at the SHOT — Shooting, Hunting, Outdoor Trade — show.

The governor even posted a photo on Twitter taken there with buddy “Uncle Ted” Nugent (left), asking people to stop by. Do all the good Born Again Tea Party folks approve of the governor's time spent with expectorating, potty-mouthed Ted?

Perry took a little time away from official state business this week to shoot a cameo for an upcoming independent film.

The Republican governor made the cameo Thursday for "Deep in the Heart."

The producers said the governor was so instrumental in bringing the film to Texas that they wrote him into the script. (With taxpayers' money, may I add.)

Back in October, he visited Vegas for his son's bachelor party. The Perry campaign confirmed that the governor made the trip to meet with a Republican gubernatorial candidate in Nevada and to attend a bachelor party dinner for his son, Griffin.

According to Perry’s office, the governor can use state funds to pay for state travel. The Nevada journey did not fit that bill, however, and Perry paid for it with a mix of campaign donations and money from the Republican Governors Association. (Is this anything like the Tom DeLay problem?)

It appears that the Perry campaign paid for the commercial flight that the governor took to Las Vegas. A campaign finance report filed last month said Perry took a Southwest Airlines flight to Las Vegas on Oct. 24 and showed a $137.60 payment to the airline on the same date.

But the fact that others paid for Perry's flight, hotel and meals doesn't mean that public funds weren't spent. Taxpayers pick up the tab for the security detail that accompanies the governor when he travels. And according to the Department of Public Safety, which staffs the detail, the Las Vegas trip cost taxpayers $12,321. That includes overtime, car rentals, hotel, airfare and meals.

If he likes the bright lights of Sin City so much (and time away from official business and his wife in Austin) perhaps he should move there.

If only.