Notes on the Vegas Democratic Debate

Here we go again. Without further adieu, those pesky notes:

• If anyone missed it, Campbell Brown's husband is an adviser to Mitt Romney. Would you like a side of conflict of interest with that?


• Without the spelling of the Pavillion right in front of us, it's just funny to hear Wolf Blitzer say "Cox."


• Starts with "fireworks," and Biden nicely shuts it down with what everyone was thinking, although not necessarily as well-focused: Shut up and talk about the actual issues.


• Did Edwards just call the ticker at the bottom of the screen a "troll?"


• Did Richardson just say Give peace a chance?


• Did Edwards just allude to the controversy of Hillary Clinton's planted question with a smug chuckle? Dick.


• Dear Kucinich: I love you; don't waste your breath arguing the semantics of "illegal immigrants" when your message is so much stronger. Then again, I think PTSD should still be called "shell shock."


• Kucinich gets shut down "That's why I'm up -". The only noticed mic cut.


• Biden brilliantly answered the Pakistan question, wrapping by poking at Wolf for letting everyone else not answer the question.


• Edwards suggests that the only way to secure peace is to rid the world of nuclear weapons. By throwing them into the sun. Lettering-writing initiative to secure Superman for the task to begin tomorrow.


• Kucinich was skipped over for the "down the line" Pakistan question ("Hello? Hello? You skipped me.") and is subsequently ignored when he calls everyone to task, to take responsibility for their voting record.


• Speaking of which, I sadly shook my head as almost every other candidate sanctimoniously blubbered about how what China is doing is not what was expected. Stop pretending; we know it's not on you top 25 list.


• Campbell quaintly asks Hillary what she meant by the "boys club." I would venture to go as far as mention that the first 43 leaders of the United States had penises. Perhaps Campbell should spend some time on Wikipedia. Studying gender inequality. And penises.
  


• 
  
  
  Best eyebrow image I could find: I spent the first third of the debate wondering how she got the two-tiered "Comet" look to the eyebrows, the second third wondering why she would do that (and why, oh why the gray fitted jacket?), and the last third wondering about Botox because the lower brow is actually pronounced eyelid crease.
  
  (Image note: I must've been in the bathroom when she actually explained to Campbell about the Boy's Club.)


• Edwards? Boo! Obama? Hiss!


• The mother of a 3-tour Iraq veteran had legitimate concerns over the war drums and Iran. Wolf bastardized the question, ruining it for the mother, and Hillary sounded like a heartless monster: Your "fear is unfounded." No, it is not; anyone who can turn on a television or read a newspaper knows that.


• The Kucinich Hat-trick: voted against the Patriot Act "Because I read it," asked us to imagine having a president "who's right the first time," and ended with the delicious "Impeach them now!" Hells yeah.

Conclusions:

• No surprise, but Clinton, Obama, and Edwards ended up with the most questions and the most leeway when it came not only to avoiding directly answering the question, but the time Wolf gave them to do it.


• I've said it before and I'll say it again: With a name like Wolf Blitzer, you'd think he'd be cooler. And sexier.


• Hillary handled herself well, Obama bumbled where he should'nt've (although coming along nicely avoiding "um"s), Kucinich managed to get in a couple pops (although generally ignored), and I though Biden was the most entertaining and well-spoken for the time he did get to speak.


• Final note to Democrats: You've got less than two months to the primary, but are still spending a great deal of time talking about the one man who is not going to be on the ballot next November. Stop attacking Bush and start hitting Romney, Giuliani, and McCain. You don't have to tell us why you'd be better than Bush; at this point we realize that a sloppy drunk Jar Jar Binks with a light saber would do less damage to our national identity.


• Rush Limbaugh decided to spread lies on Friday.

Thanks for your time.

Crossposted on ATD.

Rush Limbaugh Rapes Accuracy on Debate

I've mentioned in posts before that while I get frustrated by the false sense of humanity that exudes from the timbre and tenor of Sean Hannity's voice, Rush Limbaugh absolutely makes my skin crawl with his errant hypocrisies in claiming the Democrats are misinforming the public while violently and egregiously altering the facts to fit his drug-addled sense of reality.

I listened today. And I was enraged, but not disappointed.

In reference to Thursday night's debate, in his Friday, November 11th radio show, we had the following lies:

1. In a spoof of Bill Clinton leaving a message for Wolf Blitzer to the Godfather theme, "Bill" mentioned not following up with Hillary about the illegal immigrant driver license issue. But it was a noted point in the debate, specifically notable because Barack Obama flubbered all over his answer to the question.


2. Rush proclaimed that the audience was "stacked" with liberals after saying repeatedly that the audience was comprised of "registered independents." As noted by Wolf Blitzer at the beginning of the debate, the audience was, in fact, comprised of "undecided Democrats."


3. Later, with a significantly agitated - almost unstable - caller, Rush feigned outrage at the question in the debate that asked what was more important: national security or "the civil rights of terrorists." He then asked for confirmation from the infirm caller, who apparently also watched the debate, and he agreed that that was "exactly" the question. The question in question was actually in relation to the complicated situation in Pakistan, with Wolf making the assumption that making nice with Pakistan is necessary for "national security" and that arguing for the civil rights being withheld from Pakistani citizens would be in direct opposition to our national security. It was a poorly contrived question that cannot be answered in one word any more than "Did you stop beating your spouse?"

Rush Limbaugh fires me up, not because of intellectual stimulation and opposition to the beliefs I hold strong, but because he purposefully misinterprets or plain lies about basic facts that the average listener, holding him as scripture-esque, will never know the truth about. But I guess it doesn't matter how he rapes the truth every day, as long as his mindless followers hate liberals as much as he does.

A Noun, a Verb, and September 11th

As we prep this afternoon and evening for the Democratic debate, here's a reminder of what, exactly, we're up against.



No clips were repeated in the making of this film.

Dad. Kid. Coke. Mentos.

I spent too much time watching videos today. Yes, I would probably do this too.


Dad Puts Mentos In Coke Bottle - Watch more free videos

Paris Hilton News Release

From The AP:

GAUHATI, India (AP) - In a Nov. 13 story, The Associated Press incorrectly reported that Paris Hilton was praised by conservationists for highlighting the problem of binge-drinking elephants in northeastern India. Lori Berk, a publicist for Hilton, said she never made any comments about helping drunken elephants in India.

I don't believe this needs further commentary.

SNL Christmas Box Special

SNL A Special Christmas Box - Watch more free videos

Classic. Because I thought we needed a little pick-me-up this morning.

Name That Drug Video: LSD

Check out the Name That Drug site. Fun, yes, but more interestingly, accurate without being preachy. The included video is frighteningly accurate. Granted, your own personal mental mindstate paired with the quality of the acid, environment, and support will more accurately reflect the positive/negative morphs and general experience; here is LSD:



Obviously the personal experience is subjective, but this is a nicely generalized, realistic version of what happens with a mirror (although the audio is a little stretchy).

Pray for Rain

The governor of Georgia, Sonny Perdue, is worried about the drought in his state.

As Georgia descends deeper into drought, Gov. Sonny Perdue has ordered water restrictions, launched a legal battle and asked President Bush for help. On Tuesday, the governor will call on a higher power.

He will join lawmakers and ministers on the steps of the state Capitol to pray for rain.

The governor also has an extensive letter-writing campaign planned for the day after Thanksgiving to petition Santa Claus on behalf of all the needy children in his state.

One day we're running a modern, civilized state. The next: appeasing the thunder gods and dancing for caribou.

I guess it's one way to avert a riot.

Democratic Debate: Vegas, Baby!

As I mentioned in my last coverage piece on the Democratic Debates, I really don't know how excited I am to sit down and do this again. The claws are getting sharper, but the candidates are getting caught up in the nuance of attack, of fixation on the minutiae, and the message is getting lost. And the variations of the message, those calling for the most change, are beginning to be silenced; Mike Gravel is being excluded from this debate as well.

But pining for enthusiasm aside, take your gander Thursday, November 15th, at 8pm on CNN. As Wolf Blitzer so uninspiringly and unoriginally spouts during the promo: "What happens in Vegas ...will not stay in Vegas." (No, you asshat, it won't because it's being internationally televised.) It was quickly followed with "Stop chewin' my shorts and let's go to the rave music fest!"

At least it's a reason to sit on the couch, drink a bottle of wine, and be clever. Cheers!

Fleetwood, Kucinich, DiFranco, Oh My!

Videos to pimp! A new video from the 35 Percenters, a message to Iowa:



And as I previously posted about Davis Fleetwood, our ascended video blogger, here is his premiere, introducing Kucinich and transitioning into Ani DiFranco who was there to discuss Dennis and perform in Boston.



I give him the time here because he won't get it Thursday.

Right to Bear Arms All Over

Busted Tees

Early this morning I read about the buzz surrounding a court case quickly climbing the ladder to the Supreme Court. And it's about the 2nd Amendment.

Specifically, The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit said D.C.'s 31-year ban on handguns violates the Constitution. And now it SCOTUS will announce, possibly Tuesday, whether or not it will hear the case.

If the Court hears the case, they will set precedent: does the 2nd Amendment specifically allow for the right of individuals to bear arms or is its only designation to allow for the formation of state militias. It's an iffy one, and I'll be keeping a close eye on it. As liberal as I can be at times, I don't like the government being able to say that I, as a law-abiding citizen, am not able to own a handgun at a time that the government - because of the lackadaisical enforcement of accountability of weapons dealers - has allowed our country to be overrun by criminals with handguns.

Should I decide I need to protect myself, I should be able to do so. Do I need an automatic weapon to hunt elk? No. That's about where that line should be drawn.

And in related news, an Oregon teacher has lost her fight to carry a handgun to school.

For the most part, I agree with this. See, I first heard about this story on the Sean Hannity radio show. It was brought up many times, mostly in relation to the whack right thought that gun-toting teachers would be able to stop school shootings. It was often to the effect of "She's got a license, she wants to protect herself." He never mentioned that she was trying to protect herself from her ex-husband. Of course.

That added a small kink, but what's the other side? Allow any teacher to tote a gun to school? Just in case? That doesn't sound sane on any level.

The whole idea, on both issues, is very interesting and should generate a lot of debate. Have at it.