Patterico's Pontifications

8/29/2009

Words Fail

Filed under: General — Patterico @ 4:34 pm



Unbelievable:

As Allahpundit says:

Enter this poor little boy, charged with politicizing a prayer because the gutless pols around him didn’t have the balls to do it themselves.

. . . .

Exit question: Anyone have any young’uns at home they’d be willing to volunteer to lead prayers at the next big GOP funeral? We might as well make use of the camera time while we have it. “Dear god, please grant us the strength to privatize social security and construct a robust missile defense shield. We pray to the Lord.”

I would really like to know who came up with this idea.

167 Responses to “Words Fail”

  1. Seems like child abuse to me.

    Eric Blair (0b61b2)

  2. That second kid didn’t fall far from the Teddy tree size wise…I pray he doesn’t fall on me!

    Gazzer (6d46a4)

  3. DIS-PICK-A-BULL!

    PatriotRider (37b91c)

  4. It’s a tradition at all the best liberal Democrat funerals; remember Paul Wellstone’s?

    Why should Teddy’s funeral be any different?

    Mike Myers (674050)

  5. Why should Teddy’s funeral be any different?

    Heck, Ted is probably the one who wrote the speech.

    Another Chris (f29ad3)

  6. I never want to hear even one word about Trig being held by his mother ever again. Misery pimps, the Left is.

    JD (c87796)

  7. Yah that seems just a little desperate.

    charles (eb6028)

  8. I do remember that picture of little Jon Jon saluting at his daddy’s funeral procession, standing there in front of Jackie. That was innocent and spontaneous. They are still trying to relive the Camelot moments. Moments now corrupted by the progressive Kennedys in today’s shameless spectacle.

    jbinnout (3a754a)

  9. Lice come from nits.

    nk (b17d90)

  10. Maybe Eric Holder can borrow the kid and do a spot with him saying he wants Bush and Cheney and the evil CIA torturers brought to justice next. I think Pelosi and the fringe lefty losers would like that.

    daleyrocks (718861)

  11. Don’t you remember the little girls singing the Obama song during the campaign last year ? These people are experienced in this sort of child abuse.

    Mike K (2cf494)

  12. It’s not like your people have never pimped a high-profile funeral before – drop the self-righteous BS. Yes, it’s despicable to use a kid like this – but it’s a symptom of a broken political system, and it cuts both ways.

    Leviticus (f565c1)

  13. I never want to hear even one word about Trig being held by his mother ever again. Misery pimps, the Left is.

    And as I recall, Trig didn’t utter one word about any political issue either.

    I will await the left to condemn this crass whoring.

    Dana (0f0b2e)

  14. Leviticus,

    Which funeral on the right was used to showcase a specific political hot potato issue that was on the cusp of a vote?

    “Your people”?
    Seriously?

    Dana (0f0b2e)

  15. Heh! Leviticus may have a point that we should not complain too much about Ted Kennedy’s funeral because the best part is … it was Ted Kennedy’s funeral!

    nk (b17d90)

  16. No doubt San Fran Nan and Skelator were behind this – after all, when you’ve already labeled opponents as thugs, Nazis and of course wacists, what’s a little child abuse among friends?

    Dmac (e6d1c2)

  17. Pander Watch = KennedyCare

    John (3a8f46)

  18. I’ve asked Leviticus a couple of times over the past few weeks to document his “your side does it too!” rants, but so far all I receive is the following:

    “F-ck that!”

    Dmac (e6d1c2)

  19. JFK Jr.’s salute to his father was not “spontaneous”. Jackie Kennedy admitted later that he was coached to do this as the caisson rode by. One can only wonder what Ted’s children and grandchildren have been taught about Chappaquiddick and other of his abominable behaviors. Using children to further a political ideology at a funeral is disgusting, but not at all surprising, given the one who is being mourned. I mourn only that he is being buried at Arlington Cemetery, and that our flag has been lowered to half-staff for someone I think is totally undeserving. I don’t care how long he “served” in the Senate.

    Beth in Texas (47ec7a)

  20. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/08/28/conservatives-warning-aga_n_271332.html

    Cry more, Dmac.

    “Four years before he accused Democrats of using Kennedy’s death “as a sympathy ploy to advance a health care bill,” Limbaugh was drawing direct lines between Reagan’s legacy fighting communism and the need for further U.S. engagement in the war in Iraq.

    “Back then,” the conservative radio host said, following Reagan’s death on June 5, 2004. “[Strategic Defense Initiative] was regarded much as the whole war in Iraq is today. SDI was treated was treated as a joke; SDI was dangerous; SDI was going to blow up the world; SDI was impossible. It was typical liberalism: greatness couldn’t be done. Greatness can’t happen.”

    “Reagan was right just as George W. Bush is today,” Limbaugh concluded, “and I really believe that if Reagan had been able he would have put his hand on Bush’s shoulder and say to him, ‘Stay the course, George.’ I really believe that.”

    Reagan’s death was also used as a campaign tool for conservative pushing for Bush’s re-election.

    “[N]o one wants to politicize the death of a recent president,” the Weekly Standard’s Bill Kristol, bluntly declared during a July 13, 2004, appearance on Fox News Sunday. “But you know what? The Bush campaign should. And, in my view, they should go out with an ad next week, a very respectful ad about President Reagan and say, We have a disagreement. George W. Bush is a Reaganite. John Kerry thought the Reagan presidency was a period of moral darkness.”

    Leviticus (f565c1)

  21. Leviticus, this did not take place during the middle of his funeral. And it was not a grandchild being put in the position of pimping it. This is just in very bad taste and considering, as has been pointed out, how Palin was treated when she very naturally her children join her on stage and carrying Trig, you must admit the double standard is quite obvious.

    Dana (0f0b2e)

  22. Leviticus,

    Your examples are no different than liberal commentators who are using Kennedy’s death to make political points, but I think the question is whether the participants at Reagan’s funeral — especially his family — used his death to push political goals. Wouldn’t that be the more apt comparison?

    DRJ (3f5471)

  23. Cry more, Dmac

    ^Try more, Leviticus.

    Dmac (e6d1c2)

  24. Um. I don’t want to get into this. Dmac is more than able to support his own position.

    But Leviticus—with respect—you are comparing apples to Studebakers.

    Using children to support a bill—I remind you, a bill that the folks voting on it have not read?

    Again: using children? At a funeral?

    Like I said before, it is possible to distinguish between disliking the person and liking their politics. But it seems like, to the Left, if you like socialized health care, you have to like Ted Kennedy. And vice versa.

    Fact is, Ted Kennedy was a repugnant human being, particularly in his long term treatment of women. I have many Left of center female friends who, just as they did with that horndog assaulter Clinton, feel that their “D” trumps everything else. I don’t see it that way, and neither should they.

    All of us should run the ethical pygmies out of Congress. I didn’t like Mark Foley’s antics, and thought he should have been run out of town on a rail. But my friends on the Left are very, very quiet about Charlie Rangel…because they like how he votes. I care more about him breaking the law.

    Getting back to the point, the Left has carried on about how infantile it is to deify Ronald Reagan (and they are right to do so). But deifying Edward freakin’ Kennedy?

    Wellstone was a genuinely nice man espousing policies with which I did not agree. This is completely different. And shameful.

    Eric Blair (0b61b2)

  25. Leviticus – You just compared apples to eskimos.

    JD (c1b316)

  26. …and The Huffington Post as your example? What’s next, something from Man/Bear/Pig?

    Dmac (e6d1c2)

  27. Dana, your post will result in a response that we will hear more and more during the coming years (and which I have written before; apologies):

    that’s different™!

    Or….

    everyone does it™!

    Sigh.

    Eric Blair (0b61b2)

  28. What a good little speaker.

    I think he’s got a future in politics.

    Sunburn (5d93e3)

  29. Has a more vile, venal or vicious crowd ever so thoroughly infected the reaches of American government and power? And I don’t think they know how not to be. My sense is that soon Americans are going to be vomiting in their mouths a little every time one of them — Obama, Pelosi or one their many pious and splenetic drones — steps in front of a camera. There has to be a collective threshold for such obvious, concerted falsity and ugliness.

    rrpjr (617290)

  30. The amusing part about #28 is that it has nothing to do with the kid. He is just delivering the speech, and that is all that is important.

    Hmm. Who else does that sound like?

    Eric Blair (0b61b2)

  31. Well, Eric Blair, the truth is, it’s not different and everyone doesn’t do it.

    For godsake, we’re not high schoolers getting caught hiding pot in our bedroom and guiltily whining at our parents, but everyone does it. No, everyone doesn’t do it!

    Assuming responsibility of part of growing up. Again, I await the liberal media to condemn this crass whoring. And using a child to do it, no less.

    And once again, Trig never uttered one word!

    Dana (0f0b2e)

  32. He is just delivering the speech, and that is all that is important.

    Let’s face it, this little kid came off as far more articulate and mature that Booby Jindal, Sarah Palin, or any of the other “rising stars” of the Republican party.

    That’s why you fear him.

    Smear what you fear…just like Lee Atwater taught you.

    Sunburn (5d93e3)

  33. #8 jbinnout….I read once, and I’ll try to find a link, that Jackie or one of her advisers told Jon-Jon to salute when the funeral carriage went by…..it was a staged moment, not spontaneous….

    reff (502473)

  34. Leviticus – Limbaugh and Kristol are not elected officials. Their pimping is not equivalent to that of Pelosi and others or a relative. Sorry.

    daleyrocks (718861)

  35. Lee Atwater was a saint compared to Ted Kennedy. Do your homework, sunburn.

    Beth in Texas (47ec7a)

  36. “That’s why you fear him.”

    sunburn – Tell us more about that Chinese economic system you want to impose on this country. Heh!

    daleyrocks (718861)

  37. “Your examples are no different than liberal commentators who are using Kennedy’s death to make political points, but I think the question is whether the participants at Reagan’s funeral — especially his family — used his death to push political goals. Wouldn’t that be the more apt comparison.”

    – DRJ

    First of all, that’s my entire point – that both – parties wallow in this bullshit, and to accuse either one of having a monopoly on it (as it seems everyone here is trying to do) is disingenuous. But in answer to your question, it would be the more apt comparison, if so many here weren’t trying to make this out to be some generalized sin/tactic of the Democratic Party. If they were laying the blame solely at the feet of the Kennedy family, I might think that your argument had legs. But in light of

    “Misery pimps, the Left is.”

    and

    “Maybe Eric Holder can borrow the kid and do a spot with him saying he wants Bush and Cheney and the evil CIA torturers brought to justice next. I think Pelosi and the fringe lefty losers would like that.”

    and

    “No doubt San Fran Nan and Skelator were behind this – after all, when you’ve already labeled opponents as thugs, Nazis and of course wacists, what’s a little child abuse among friends?”

    I’m not inclined to buy the idea that blame is directed solely at the Kennedys.

    Dana,

    You asked me “which funeral on the right was used to showcase a specific political hot potato issue that was on the cusp of a vote?” I answered, essentially, “the Reagan funeral”. You responded, essentially, that “that’s different” – which makes Eric Blair’s half-assed accusation (sorry, man – I respect you, but c’mon) all the more hilarious. And no, it’s not comparing apples to eskimos or Studdebakers or whatever other wacky nouns you guys can pull out of your… hats. It’s comparing one despicably politicized funeral to another – apples to apples if ever I saw it.

    Dmac,

    I knew you’d cry more, but does the fact that the Huffington Post reported Limbaugh’s words make them any less pertinent? Or are you arguing that Limbaugh never used Reagan’s death to pimp the invasion of Iraq, or that Bill Kristol never explicity argued for the politicization of the death of a major political figure?

    It’s not like I’m making reference to some Huffpo op-ed. I’m making reference to the actual words of two conservative pundits. What more do you want of me?

    And to all:

    Yes, the use of a child in pushing a political agenda is a particularly vile and ham-handed touch in this particular politicization (which I said right off the bat – read my actual comments). But my overall point was that this sort of politicization happens on both sides.

    Leviticus (f565c1)

  38. What a good little speaker.

    I think he’s got a future in politics.

    Comment by Sunburn — 8/29/2009 @ 6:04 pm

    Considering his genetics, a more likely future as an adulterous, alcoholic, rapist.

    nk (b17d90)

  39. Tell you what, Sunburn. List every good thing a Kennedy did for America.

    nk (b17d90)

  40. Let’s face it, this little kid came off as far more articulate and mature that Booby Jindal, Sarah Palin, or any of the other “rising stars” of the Republican party.

    Wow. Sunburn thinks the kid came up with that shit on his own.

    Sunburn is even stupider than I thought.

    Patterico (cc3b34)

  41. sunburn has proven to be as worthless a commenter as snuffy, i like amerikka, jharp and the like.

    daleyrocks (718861)

  42. Sunbeam is really a pretty dim bulb.

    JD (c1b316)

  43. Wow. Sunburn thinks the kid came up with that shit on his own.

    Haha, wow, do you guys think Palin actually writes the stuff that appears on her Facebook page?

    Sunburn (5d93e3)

  44. Hey, Patterico. My guess is that Sunburn is a familiar poster under a different name. I sure hope he is a college sophomore. If he is all grown up and resorts to this kind of reasoning, well…

    Heck, I think Leviticus is an undergraduate (sorry if I am wrong about that), and he isn’t a snarking Keyboard Kommando trying to score points. He tries to be fairminded.

    On the other hand, IMP is in his early 50s, and does much the same thing as Sunburn. Oh well.

    And in any event, look at Sunburn’s posts. They aren’t serious. He is just speaking Troof to Powder.

    Eric Blair (0b61b2)

  45. daley, it is just some weird “point game,” like beer pong, to these characters.

    Eric Blair (0b61b2)

  46. Patterico:

    “…Wow. Sunburn thinks the kid came up with that shit on his own….”

    You should ask Sunburn his opinion on TOTUS.

    Eric Blair (0b61b2)

  47. Two observations:

    1. I like that Dick Cheney didn’t bother to attend. Say what you will, Cheney is not a hypocrite. He probably didn’t think much of Kennedy, and he wasn’t going to pretend otherwise just because the rest of Washington did.

    2. When Obama says that Kennedy was “a champion for those who had none” isn’t that something of a slight to other liberal Senators? Sorry Sens. Harkin, Feingold, Boxer, et al. — you didn’t measure up as a “champion” to the poor.

    It’s fitting that Kennedy was buried with a bunch of platitudes that have become the intellectual underpinning of the left.

    JVW (d1215a)

  48. Hey, I just caught this one:

    “…Smear what you fear..”

    That is the single best example of Left of Center projection I have seen yet. I mean, right after snarking about Palin and Jindal?

    Patterico, it goes on the Wall of Trollish Projective Fame!

    Eric Blair (0b61b2)

  49. Leviticus…#20…

    The question was “which funeral” not “which death”…

    Your points in reply are not on this…

    Limbaugh spoke on his radio show, Kristol on Fox News…

    Neither spoke in the church….

    I know, this might be, to you, splitting hairs, but, the point of many here is that the funeral/memorial should not be about pushing a political agenda, but for honoring the life….there may be a fine line between the two, but, even you know that the Reagan Funeral didn’t cross that line, and both Wellstone and now Kennedy simply do….

    I’ll have to agree with Dmac, and tell you that you’re comparing apples to some other pile of crap….

    reff (502473)

  50. Comment by nk — 8/29/2009 @ 6:23 pm

    SO he’s gonna be a great Kennedy Politician, is what you’re saying…

    Scott Jacobs (d027b8)

  51. Typical troll. Nothing more. Rather than take an actual position on the topic, it plays “Look! Something shiny!”, while projecting its fears and behaviors onto others. Like IMP and its ilk, it is devoid of substance and basic humanity.

    JD (c1b316)

  52. That is the single best example of Left of Center projection I have seen yet.

    My hat’s off to John McCain for speaking with class and grace at Teddy’s funeral.

    There really are two Republican parties now.

    Sunburn (5d93e3)

  53. I am coming to the conclusion that most of these trolls have not evolved since the age of 5. When they got caught with their hand in the cookie jar and said “but mooooommmmmmm, Timmy took one too!” their mom must have said, “wow that is a good point go ahead take that cookie.”

    Mr. Pink (7841a9)

  54. Sunburn, Carville is the godfather of smear politics.

    kinlaw (67216c)

  55. Anyone who is on Twitter, @jimgeraghty has a hilarious alternate eulogy for Teddy K. Here are some snippets:

    “Senator Kennedy loved to laugh, no matter the circumstance. He roared with laughter at jokes, stories, life’s ironies, and consequences. . . .

    He knew that the beauty of our coasts belonged to the common man in his yacht, not some greedy wind turbine executive. . . .

    Before Kennedy, Supreme Court fights were dry recitations of facts. He invented the vividly imaginative speculation of a nominee’s views.”

    JVW (d1215a)

  56. Sunburn, you are a previously banned commenter, are you not?

    Patterico (cc3b34)

  57. […] and current events | by SEK I ignore those who insist that there’s something untoward about discussing the life’s work of a man at his own funeral—they can begin with his 1970 […]

    Next week, George Nash will bemoan the fact that we’ve never had a white President. « The Edge of the American West (725c82)

  58. How freaking Damian can you get?

    Me I would be avoiding large dogs and keeping a respectful distance from open windows if I were this one’s mum.

    happyfeet (6b707a)

  59. “There really are two Republican parties now.”

    Yeah the ones who lose elections and get along with DegeneratCrats.

    The ones who win elections and rip DegeneratCrats a-holes.

    HeavenSent (01a566)

  60. It’s not like your people have never pimped a high-profile funeral before – drop the self-righteous BS.

    But politics — ie, leftism or “progressivsim” — is treated much more like a religion by liberals than conservatives. That along with a shameless, flaky, do-your-own-thang mentality that seems to be embraced by a large percentage of “leftys” makes inappropriate behavior by liberals at, for example, funerals even more likely to occur.

    I still recall the only political comment or moment at Reagan’s funeral came from — surprise, surprise! — his leftwing (“progressive”) son, Ron Jr.

    Mark (411533)

  61. “But politics — ie, leftism or “progressivsim” — is treated much more like a religion by liberals than conservatives. That along with a shameless, flaky, do-your-own-thang mentality that seems to be embraced by a large percentage of “leftys” makes inappropriate behavior by liberals at, for example, funerals even more likely to occur.”

    – Mark

    Great point, Mark – really great – but I’m disappointed that you didn’t point out that conservatives give more money to charity than liberals. Step up your game, Mark.

    Leviticus (f565c1)

  62. Patterico – Which banned troll has reincarnated itself?

    JD (c1b316)

  63. Sunburn, Carville is the godfather of smear politics.

    Wrong.

    James Carville started his national political career after Atwater was already dead, from a brain tumor, no less.

    Sunburn (5d93e3)

  64. Levi – Have you found that example of Republicans pimping out a grandchild to read a political statement during a prayer at a funeral mass yet?

    JD (c1b316)

  65. JD – have you seen me concede that point several times yet? You have? Then why don’t you stop using it as an excuse to avoid the underlying issue?

    Leviticus (f565c1)

  66. You poor, poor babies. You’ve lost the American people at every turn, you’ve lost three wars, you’ve lost the White House and Congress, and now you’ve lost any pretense of self-respect. What a bunch of crybabies and losers you are. No wonder the American electorate wants nothing to do with you.

    ronjazz (95cdd5)

  67. So Dick Cheney calls the Senate Office Building. The operator answers and he says, “This is Dick Cheney, may I speak to Senator Kennedy?” The operator says, “I’m sorry Mr. Vice-President, Senator Kennedy is dead.” Cheney says, “Thank you”, and hangs up.

    A little while later, Cheney calls again. The same operator answers. He says, “This is Dick Cheney, may I speak to Senator Kennedy?” The operator is a little bemused but again she says, “I’m sorry Mr. Vice-President, Senator Kennedy is dead.” Cheney says, “Thank you”, and hangs up.

    A little while later, Cheney calls one more time. It’s the same operator. He says, “This is Dick Cheney, may I speak to Senator Kennedy?” This time the operator says, “Mr. Vice-President, I have already told you, twice, that Senator Kennedy is dead.” Cheney says, “I know, I just like hearing it.”

    nk (b17d90)

  68. “There really are two Republican parties now.”

    And they both are in the minority, where they belong.

    ronjazz (95cdd5)

  69. And here comes ronjizz to bring the stupid.

    JVW (d1215a)

  70. This kid was being used and didn’t even realize it.

    That’s the very definition of child abuse, from blatant political exploitation which the Democrats have refined into an art form, all the way to outright pedophilia.

    What? That’s an outrageous remark? Au contraire.

    The common thread is that an innocent, unknowing child is being exploited for the personal benefit of an adult or group of adults.

    And that’s what Democrats do as a matter of policy and tactics.

    Tailgunner (46884f)

  71. Levi – Have you found that example of Republicans pimping out a grandchild to read a political statement during a prayer at a funeral mass yet?

    Wasn’t the 5-day Reaganfest exactly that? Absolutely cheap and disgusting, unlike the heartfelt tribute from a grandchild. You people have lost your humanity, along with everything else.

    ronjazz (95cdd5)

  72. _____________________________________________

    Great point, Mark – really great – but I’m disappointed that you didn’t point out that conservatives give more money to charity than liberals. Step up your game, Mark.

    Okay, Leviticus, in your honor — and as a fitting tribute to the late Ted Kennedy — I hereby repost the following:

    Peter Schweizer, spectator.org, June 2008

    Samuel Johnson once reported on a man who was privately stingy but publicly touted the merits of sharing. Dr. Johnson said sarcastically that the man was a “friend of goodness.” What he meant was that flesh-and-blood goodness is very different from supporting “Goodness” in the abstract.

    Many modern liberals like to openly discuss their altruism. Garrison Keillor explains that “I am liberal and liberalism is the politics of kindness.” But it rarely seems to turn into acts of kindness, especially when it comes to making charitable donations.

    Consider the case of Andrew Cuomo, current New York Attorney General and advocate for the homeless. He has, according to his website, “compassion toward the most vulnerable of us.” And this is how the New York Times described the courtship of Kerry Kennedy (of guess which family): “Ms. Kennedy-Cuomo, 43, said she fell in love with Mr. Cuomo, 45, when he took her on a tour of a homeless shelter on their first date and agreed to fast for the labor leader Cesar Chavez.”

    But that advocacy should not be confused with actually giving to the less fortunate. Cuomo was a homeless advocate throughout the 1990s, but according to his own tax returns he made no charitable contributions between 1996 and 1999. In 2000 he donated a whopping $2,750. In 2004 and 2005, Cuomo had more than $1.5 million in adjusted gross income but gave a paltry $2,000 to charity.

    Cuomo made no charitable contributions in 2003, when his income was a bit less than $300,000.

    CUOMO IS NOT alone in this Scroogery of course. Barack Obama has a rather poor track record when it comes to charitable contributions. He consistently gave 1 percent of his income to charity. In his most charitable year, 2005, he earned $1.7 million (two and a half times what George W. Bush earned) but gave about the same dollar amount as the President.

    The last two Democratic Party nominees for President have come up short on the charity scale. Al Gore has been famously stingy when it comes to actually giving his own money to charities. In 1998 he was embarrassed when his tax returns revealed that he gave just $353 to charity.

    Gore’s office initially defended the action, claiming that the Gores had often given “food and clothing to the homeless.” But when no one showed up in cast-off clothes, Gore’s spokesman Chris Lehane offered a typical “friend of Goodness” response saying that you could only “truly judge a person’s commitment to helping others” you needed to see “what they have done with their lives.” In other words, politics was charity work.

    Senator John Kerry likewise has a poor record. In 1995 he gave zero to charity, but did spend $500,000 to buy a half stake in a seventeenth century painting. In 1993, he gave $175 to the needy. Later, of course, Kerry married the rich widow Theresa Heinz, and today is active in charitable causes using the Heinz foundation as his vehicle.

    Senator Ted Kennedy has clearly relished his role over the years as a liberal Robin Hood. He once told Al Hunt of the Wall Street Journal, “I come from an advantaged life, and I’ll be goddamned if I’m going to get re-elected to the U.S. Senate by taking food out of the mouths of needy children.” But this should not be confused with Senator Kennedy actually giving much money to needy children.

    Kennedy’s tax returns are obviously a closely guarded secret. But when he chose to run for President in the 1970s, he released some of them. With a net worth of more than $8 million in the early 1970s and an income of $461,444 from a series of family trusts, Senator Robin Hood gave barely 1 percent of his income to charity. The sum is about as much as Kennedy claimed as a write-off on his fifty-foot sailing sloop Curragh.

    Robert Reich, once Bill Clinton’s Secretary of Labor and now a professor at Berkeley, has been outspoken about how greedy conservatives are. Conservatives believe in “reviving social Darwinism” and because of conservatives, “America has placed too high a value on selfishness.”

    But when he ran for governor of Massachusetts in 2002, he was all but forced to release his tax returns. It’s not a pretty picture. Reich’s 1040 reveals an income of more than $1 million, much of it giving speeches to corporations and universities for up to $40,000 a pop. He contributed just $2,714 to charity, or .2 percent of his income — note the decimal — and not all of that was cash. Part of it was the value of a donation of a used drum set to an organization called City of Peace.

    Jesse Jackson has often claimed that he operates from a “liberal spirit of compassion and love” while conservatives are “heartless and uncaring toward the silent poor.” But according to his publicly-released tax returns, he regularly donates less than 1 percent to charity.

    Jackson and his family have also established a charitable foundation called the Jackson Foundation to support the underprivileged. According to tax records, the foundation board is controlled by family members and they receive large contributions from corporations. In 2004, for example, they collected $964,000 from corporations like McDonald’s, Anheuser-Busch, and GMAC.

    When asked on the tax form to described “direct charitable activities,” the foundation responded: “none.” From the close to million dollars collected, they gave away only $46,000 to a couple of colleges. The Jackson Foundation spent nearly twice that amount — $84,172 — on a “gala celebration” in honor of — you guessed it — Jesse Jackson.

    NOR IS THIS liberal tightfistedness anything new. The greatest liberal icon of the 20th Century is Franklin Delano Roosevelt. He is regarded by many on the left as the personification of charity and compassion, but FDR actually has a slim record when it comes to giving to charity.

    Roosevelt had an average income of $93,000 ($1.3 million in today’s dollars) but gave away about 3 percent of his income to charity. In 1935, during the height of the Great Depression, when people really could have used it, he donated just 2 percent.

    This evidence of liberal hypocrisy is damning enough, but what really amazes is how poorly these liberals do in comparison to so-called “heartless conservatives.” President Ronald Reagan, for instance, was often called heartless and callous by liberals. Unlike Roosevelt or JFK, Reagan was not a wealthy man when he became president. He had no family trust or investment portfolio to fall back on.

    And yet, according to his tax returns, Reagan donated more than four times more to charity — both in terms of actual money and on a percentage basis — than Senator Ted Kennedy. And he gave more to charities with less income than FDR did. In 1985, for example, he gave away 6 percent of his income.

    George W. Bush and Dick Cheney have continued this Reagan record. During the early 1990s, George W. Bush regularly gave away more than 10 percent of his income. In 2005, Vice President Dick Cheney gave away 77 percent of his income to charity. He was actually criticized by some liberal bloggers for this, who claimed he was getting too much of a tax deduction.

    The main point of liberal compassion appears to be making liberals feel good about their superior virtue. Such are the rewards of being a “friend of goodness.”

    _____________________________________________

    Mark (411533)

  73. The common thread is that an innocent, unknowing child is being exploited for the personal benefit of an adult or group of adults.

    And that’s what Democrats do as a matter of policy and tactics.

    It’s what Republicans do as a matter of lifestyle. Do keep on lying, though, it will surely drive your numbers further into the ground.

    ronjazz (95cdd5)

  74. 66:

    Ah, the “we won” taunt, created by the classy Obama.

    Very effective

    kinlaw (67216c)

  75. “The main point of liberal compassion appears to be making liberals feel good about their superior virtue. Such are the rewards of being a “friend of goodness.”

    Of course, the main point of conservative giving is, and always has been, about the tax breaks. conservative legislation, which has always sought to starve and kill the poor, infirm and old, is the true measure of their complete lack of compassion and their embrace of greed.

    ronjazz (95cdd5)

  76. Sunburn, I know who died and when.

    Atwater wouldn’t have made apprentice under Carville.

    Not vicious enough.

    NO, for completely subordinating all humanity to political wins, Carville’s the man.

    You must be so proud.

    kinlaw (67216c)

  77. Tell us more about that Chinese economic system you want to impose on this country. Heh!

    Comment by daleyrocks — 8/29/2009 @ 6:20 pm

    funny, your conservative traitors have already given the USA to the Chinese. You should open your eyes.

    ronjazz (95cdd5)

  78. ronjazz, will you ever, ever understand what an ignorant, disgusting (an incorrect) statement that is?

    Yeah guy, we write legislation for killing old people and children.

    I wonder if you will ever find your humanity again.

    I wonder if even now you understand that you have lost it.

    kinlaw (67216c)

  79. Ah, the “we won” taunt, created by the classy Obama.

    Very effective

    Comment by kinlaw — 8/29/2009 @ 7:51 pm

    Actually, created by the Vice-Traitor Cheney, to justify the theft of millions of taxpayer dollars. He did love you gullible boobs, though.

    ronjazz (95cdd5)

  80. I wonder if even now you understand that you have lost it.

    Comment by kinlaw — 8/29/2009 @ 7:57 pm

    I’m not the one fighting health care for all Americans, you are. I’m not the one cheering mass-murder of innocents, you are. You may not have lost your humanity, because it’s unlikely you had any to begin with. I put people above profits; that’s humanity.

    ronjazz (95cdd5)

  81. Of course, the main point of conservative giving is, and always has been, about the tax breaks.

    LOL! Certainly in light of all the people associated with the current White House (a “progressive” one, I might add) who have a history of dodging the IRS.

    Again, a big loud LOL.

    You remind me of this “lefty” I know who manages a medium-sized business and gives hugs and kisses to Obama and liberals/Democrats in general. Moreover, he can’t even accept the politics and party affiliation of a big-squish RINO like Arnold Schwarzenegger. So it was hardly surprising that he mentioned today about Kennedy’s funeral and how touching it was.

    This “lefty” does a contortionist routine on a regular basis to avoid paying payroll taxes, sales taxes, income taxes, etc.

    Mark (411533)

  82. “Vice-Traitor Cheney”

    Honestly, how do you you come up with this stuff?

    Why should we even bother trying against that level of discourse.

    PS Tell me how again a VP steals money?

    I hope, for your sake, that you are still very young.

    kinlaw (67216c)

  83. NO, for completely subordinating all humanity to political wins, Carville’s the man.

    You must be so proud.

    Comment by kinlaw — 8/29/2009 @ 7:53 pm

    I guess you missed Atwater’s deathbed confession that he was a vile, despicable liar and regretted his life. He knew full well that he had poisoned American politics, and Republicans have followed suit since.

    ronjazz (95cdd5)

  84. Ronjism buggers goats.

    JD (1b1b1b)

  85. Ronjism buggers goats.

    Comment by JD — 8/29/2009 @ 8:10 pm

    Lifesize inflatable Obama doll, is my guess.

    nk (b17d90)

  86. Interesting. Patterico asks Sunburn if he is a previously banned commenter. Sunburn vanishes, and a very confrontational Ronjazz appears immediately.

    You don’t suppose a troll would be that dumb….

    Eric Blair (2a16e6)

  87. Ronjazz,

    Of course Democrats cheer death and slavery. See Obama’s alliance with Chavez against the lawful Honduran response to yet another lefty seeking total dictatorial power. How can you impose death and slavery if you don’t have power over your fellow citizens?

    red (620d6d)

  88. “…Atwater’s deathbed confession that he was a vile, despicable liar and regretted his life.”

    Yup, just exactly what he said.

    What’s that, Daily Kos, or Huffpo?

    kinlaw (67216c)

  89. So long, Sunburn, I mean alphie, snuffles, poon, etc.

    Patterico (cc3b34)

  90. You all cheerlead the murder of hundreds of thousands of innocents. Oh, nevermind. This is a full-on BDS I hate conservatives asshat. Racist, sexist, homophobe, imperialist, xenophobic war mongers is soon to follow. Pimping out grandkids is cool in service of Teh Narrative, especially when it is for Sen. Swimmer.

    JD (1b1b1b)

  91. Clear thinking adults understand that Carville took it to the next level, and the next, etc.

    kinlaw (67216c)

  92. I think the troll hammer just fell.

    Gazzer (6d46a4)

  93. I think Carville looks like Gollum\Smeagol.

    Thanks for ejecting The Troll Previously Known as Snuffles. Why come back and act like the same old asshat, if that asshattery got you banned in the first place?

    And is Ronjazz the same fella?

    Eric Blair (2a16e6)

  94. “I think the troll hammer just fell.”

    Dang. Shoulda got my shots in while I had the chance. 🙂

    Darth Venomous (98ca48)

  95. Absolutely pathetic and I wonder if when he said anyone in that audience groaned. If anyone of them had a clarity of thought they certainly would have. The Democrat party is just a disgusting and nauseating party. I look forward to KILLING this bill and then 2010 being a blowout to make the history books.

    Jaded (2dcf17)

  96. […] crap from The Western Experience, Flopping Aces, Sister Toldjah, theblogprof, and Patterico’s Pontifications. They won’t be the last. Note the sudden proliferation of Chappaquiddick references, as well. […]

    Of Course, the Privileged Should Fight for the Rich « American Commie (26ab4b)

  97. unlike the heartfelt tribute from a grandchild.

    I actually heard such a tribute today from one of the children who talked about her great uncle Ted who would take them sailing. As a sailor for 50 years, I respect such true and poignant comments from kids. Had that been the statement from the child, I would have had no objection. Probably the one aspect of Ted’s life that was sincere and honorable was his sailing. As he was dying last winter, he had his 50 foot sailboat trucked to Florida so he could get one last season in. That is sincere. The political stuff was from adults using the child for their own purposes. It was not sincere and not appropriate from a child to an older relative.

    I am not surprised that trolls know nothing about such things.

    Mike K (2cf494)

  98. That American Commie is a real piece of caca as well.

    JD (1b1b1b)

  99. Leviticus:

    Yes, the use of a child in pushing a political agenda is a particularly vile and ham-handed touch in this particular politicization (which I said right off the bat – read my actual comments). But my overall point was that this sort of politicization happens on both sides.

    Really? When have Republicans manipulated a child to make a political statement in support of a conservative agenda, let alone done so at a funeral?

    DRJ (3f5471)

  100. Re: Levi, #65…

    You did not verify/show/prove your underlying point from your #12 post, that this happens on both sides, pimping a high profile funeral, as happened today, or with Wellstone, for example…

    The discussion centers around actions at the funeral, which you imply has happened the same way on the conservative side. That has been disputed….

    Please give your evidence that this has happened on “both sides” by showing the one side we don’t see….

    You’ve avoided showing that, so, I am hoping you will back your statement with some reasonable fact….

    reff (502473)

  101. Saturday night cartoons. Those trolls are amazing. Rock ‘n Roll High School.

    Pass the popcorn.

    daleyrocks (718861)

  102. Not to worry. The usual suspects will show up tonight, after a six pack of Mickey’s is consumed.

    Eric Blair (a88004)

  103. So long, Sunburn, I mean alphie, snuffles, poon, etc.

    Yup, I knew Sunburn was Staunch Brayer.

    Paul (creator of "Staunch Brayer") (a98ec3)

  104. reff,

    No, I’ll rescind #12 for lack of a satisfactory example. Since you’re technically right – conservatives only pimped Reagan’s death, not his funeral – I was hasty in my assessment. My apologies. Here’s Leviticus’ #12 2.0:

    “It’s not like your people people on the Right have never pimped a high profile funeral death before – drop the self-righteous BS.”

    I guess I’d admit there’s a difference, albeit slight, and that the Democrats come out on the sleazier end of things – not that I care. I’ve got absolutely no allegiance to and no respect for the Democratic Party. Now: who’s up for admitting that the Right pimped the death of Ronald Reagan in similar fashion to the current pimping of the death of Ted Kennedy?

    “Really? When have Republicans manipulated a child to make a political statement in support of a conservative agenda, let alone done so at a funeral?”

    – DRJ

    Here are a few examples (albeit not at funerals, but you can probably intuit how much sway I place in that particular distinction):

    http://img.wonkette.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/nhtownhall.jpg

    http://media3.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/photo/gallery/090730/GAL-09Jul30-2387/media/PHO-09Jul30-171954.jpg

    and, just for Dmac:

    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/08/17/the-funniest-signs-from-t_n_260838.html (the first picture)

    Leviticus (f565c1)

  105. Wow, womkette, WP, and Huffpo for PROOF POSITIVE.

    Awesome.

    kinlaw (8de4b3)

  106. Leviticus – That’s some lameass child pimpage.

    daleyrocks (718861)

  107. oops, “woNkette”

    kinlaw (8de4b3)

  108. I keep wondering who ronjazz is…

    Scott Jacobs (d027b8)

  109. Leviticus, I pointed out that the pimping on the right did not take place during Reagan’s funeral,

    From #21, “Leviticus, this did not take place during the middle of his funeral. And it was not a grandchild being put in the position of pimping it.”

    And you responded in #37,

    You asked me “which funeral on the right was used to showcase a specific political hot potato issue that was on the cusp of a vote?” I answered, essentially, “the Reagan funeral”. You responded, essentially, that “that’s different” – which makes Eric Blair’s half-assed accusation (sorry, man – I respect you, but c’mon) all the more hilarious. And no, it’s not comparing apples to eskimos or Studdebakers or whatever other wacky nouns you guys can pull out of your… hats. It’s comparing one despicably politicized funeral to another – apples to apples if ever I saw it.

    It is different and the difference is important to me because while I completely concur that the politicization of any big pol’s death, whether left or right, is SOP, having it occur *during* the funeral is really lowering the bar. Using a grandchild to do the actual politicking is even more remarkable.

    Dana (0f0b2e)

  110. Thanks Levi, for clearing up your point…

    Now, I’ll attack it anyway….and just with an opinion…

    EVERYONE WHO IS ANYONE WHO DIES GETS PRAISED FOR THE GOOD IN THEIR LIFE….

    Does Michael Jackson ring a bell???

    The problem when you use a “President Reagan” as YOUR example is that he had a great life, with very little that could be considered vile, wrong, evil, etc….

    For example, MAYBE he said something bad about AIDS, maybe he didn’t…..

    Kennedy KILLED A WOMAN, and for that, he gets his grandchildren pimping for him IN THE CHURCH about health care….

    Reagan got Limbaugh speaking of him on his radio show, or Kristol on Fox News….

    I believe you have “character”…that you are a good person, well meaning, with beliefs/opinions that I may or may not disagree with…..but, I’ll assume for this discussion that you have not committed manslaughter….so, at your funeral, I would be willing to say you were a good person, and I’d keep your politics out of it, because THAT DOESN’T BELONG THERE….

    Then, on Rush’s radio show, or on Fox News, I’d talk about your politics, because, right after I’d say you were a decent person, I’d talk about our disagreements, and how you seemed to want to listen to others, but not change your mind….

    Not a bad thing….

    You failed in your attempt to compare the “funeral” response with the “media” response….simply because you came into it with an agenda….

    If you would just use some logic….

    reff (502473)

  111. P.S…

    The “children” examples you gave….wow….children of parents who are fighting to keep their children from paying for “your” healthcare….as well as from having to pay about 70% or so of their future income to cover the debts of “your” party’s failed policies….Medicare, S/S, Cash for Clunkers, Stimulus….

    Of course, that’s wrong on those parents’ part…it’s OK to use your grandchildren, whose parents would never use the single-payer plan, to force “my” children to pay for both the single payer plan AND the healthcare of the Senator….

    reff (502473)

  112. Hey, Scott, I’m guessing but a strong possibility:

    1. Sunburn stirs the pot.
    2. Patterico asks if Sunburn is a previously banned commenter.
    3. Sunburn does not post again, but Ronjazz does.
    4. Ronjazz hasn’t been seen since the Ban Hammer fell again.

    So…a case of hypergleenism?

    Eric Blair (a88004)

  113. Dana,

    You’re right. It is lowering the bar. And I should’ve chosen my words more carefully: I was mistaken in claiming that the Reagan funeral was politicized in the same way as the Kennedy funeral.

    reff,

    Really? I know plenty of people who believe that Reagan did a lot of bad things – an uncle who was in El Salvador in the late Eighties, for example.

    And Reagan didn’t just get Limbaugh or Kristol “speaking for him”; he got them pimping his death to support a political cause they happened to favor at the time. Say what you will about the difference between pimping a death and pimping a death at a funeral – Limbaugh’s logic in invoking Reagan for the sake of the war was the same logic running through the head of whoever put that kid up there to invoke Kennedy for the sake of healthcare.

    You accuse me of failing to use logic because I have an agenda, yet while I have acknowledged that I was hasty in my choice of words and subsequently overreached you refuse to admit the obvious parallels between the two cases.

    And you fail to see that the people who have their kids holding signs at townhall protests are pimping their children for a political cause just like the Kennedys (albeit in an admittedly more acceptable venue)… unless you think that there’s an element of understanding in those kids’ opposition to healthcare reform that young Kennedy’s support for healthcare reform lacks.

    Leviticus (f565c1)

  114. And I have to laugh at kinlaw’s bitching about the source of those protest photos. Their photos, dude – they speak for themselves.

    Leviticus (f565c1)

  115. I’m glad daleyrocks and I see eye to eye on those photos, though.

    Leviticus (f565c1)

  116. I didn’t fail to see those parents pimping their children….you simply fail to see the meaning in what I wrote….”OF COURSE IT’S WRONG ON THOSE PARENTS’ PART”…

    But, I digress….

    Oh, yeah, it’s bad to help democracy in El Salvador…you’re correct about that….so much worse than…well….digressing again….

    As for “equating” the logic in your post, you are completely wrong…it is completely different to argue political points on a political talk show when compared to arguing political points in a FUNERAL….there is nothing equal about the two….How can you say that????

    Had you used some logic, you would not have posted what you did….so, yes, my accusation is correct….there is, however, no parallel between a political discussion on Limbaugh’s radio show and the political discussion coming out of a funeral carried by the media….the first is completely acceptable, the second is crass, disrespectful to not only the memory of the deceased, but to all those who battled him daily on a political, yet respectful, manner…..

    And, I thank you for this discussion….

    reff (502473)

  117. I misquoted myself…

    “Of course that’s wrong on those parents’ part”..

    Sorry…

    reff (502473)

  118. “I’m glad daleyrocks and I see eye to eye on those photos, though.”

    Leviticus – Wanna see some kids holding Bush is Hitler signs?

    daleyrocks (718861)

  119. Leviticus, in your #20.

    Seriously? Rush Limbaugh? Other talking heads? Yet, nobody actually elected as a republican? LOL.

    G (58c282)

  120. Leviticus,

    Those are good links that show conservative parents using their kids to make a political point. I should have been more precise in my statement because, again, I don’t think it’s the same thing. The Kennedys are high profile Democrats. I can’t think of any high profile Republicans who’ve done something similar to today’s health care prayer.

    DRJ (3f5471)

  121. Don’t worry, DRJ. Our Left of center friends will soon start claiming that Sarah Palin having her Downs baby present was political speech, too.

    Sigh.

    Moral and cultural relativism is supposed to put everything on the same level playing field. But I still see partisan games.

    Eric Blair (a88004)

  122. Kennedys are tacky.

    happyfeet (6b707a)

  123. DRJ, I think Leviticus agrees with your point in #120….I also think that he thinks that those pictures of conservative kids is equal to the kid’s prayer in the church….

    I believe that he considers it is a moral equivalence….I disagree completely….

    That is why I told him I thought he came to the discussion with an agenda, and he respectfully disagreed….

    reff (502473)

  124. Kiki Kennedy.

    LOLS and also LOLS I think.

    happyfeet (6b707a)

  125. I was mistaken in claiming that the Reagan funeral was politicized in the same way as the Kennedy funeral.

    No, Reagan’s funeral actually was politicized in way similar to what occurred today at Kennedy’s. Namely, by idiotic, phony-baloney liberal sentiment.

    In one case, a young kid spouting off some “progressive” rhetoric either of his own making or fed to him by the people around him (probably a mix of both). In the case of Reagan’s funeral, by another “lefty” at the pulpit, although one who was a bit older:

    indcjournal.com:

    What kind of twisted ass views the nationally televised funeral of his celebrated father as an opportunity to make a divisive political statement? Ron Reagan, that’s who:

    “Dad was also a deeply, unabashedly religious man,” he told mourners gathered at sunset at the Reagan presidential library. “But he never made the fatal mistake of so many politicians – wearing his faith on his sleeve to gain political advantage. True, after he was shot and nearly killed early in his presidency he came to believe that God had spared him in order that he might do good. But he accepted that as a responsibility, not a mandate. And there is a profound difference.”

    The way that he paused, the way that he set his jaw, it was completely obvious; he seemed like a little boy triumphantly seizing what he viewed as his own special “Reagan moment.” The obvious problem was that this was a funeral designed to honor Ronald Reagan, not a pulpit to launch personal political attacks. The inability to make this distinction smacks of disturbing narcissism.

    And if you weren’t positive that it was intended as a pointed political attack, take into account what Ron said about Bush during the 2000 Republican National Convention:

    “What’s his accomplishment?” Mr. Reagan asked then. “That he’s no longer an obnoxious drunk?”

    Mark (411533)

  126. reff,

    Pimping is pimping, regardless of the venue. Pimping a death is pimping a death, whether the deceased is Ronald Reagan or Ted Kennedy. Pimping a death (or anything else) at a funeral is a particularly crass touch (which I’ve said numerous times), but how can you not call a spade a spade when it comes to Limbaugh and Kristol’s comments in re: Reagan?

    Leviticus (f565c1)

  127. They pimped Reagan Funeral for what?

    I can not remember one issue with which Reagan’s name was invoke at death to get policy movement on.

    Either they get the facts all wrong or simply distort them. Sheesh.

    HeavenSent (01a566)

  128. I just saw it. What disgusting perverted people.

    Yo, bi-ches, your grandfather was a drunken, misogynist, murder.

    The Kennedy curse need to live a few years till they are an obscure relic like the Roosevelt family.

    Take you money and leave us the f* alone.

    HeavenSent (01a566)

  129. “And as I recall, Trig didn’t utter one word about any political issue either.”

    That’s what makes trig so useful.

    imdw (f41ee5)

  130. Is 14 Year Old CPAC Star The Future Of The GOP?
    http://www.cbsnews.com/blogs/2009/03/13/politics/politicalhotsheet/entry4863887.shtml

    He’s got a book out too and he’s being yapping on stage for the GOP since he was 12. Pure pimping.

    But then if on of ML King’s kids had come out at the funeral and said keep up the fight you’d be howling too.

    Lee Atwater

    “My illness helped me to see that what was missing in society is what was missing in me: a little heart, a lot of brotherhood. The ’80s were about acquiring — acquiring wealth, power, prestige. I know. I acquired more wealth, power, and prestige than most. But you can acquire all you want and still feel empty. What power wouldn’t I trade for a little more time with my family? What price wouldn’t I pay for an evening with friends? It took a deadly illness to put me eye to eye with that truth, but it is a truth that the country, caught up in its ruthless ambitions and moral decay, can learn on my dime. I don’t know who will lead us through the ’90s, but they must be made to speak to this spiritual vacuum at the heart of American society, this tumor of the soul.”

    Carville is a schmuck, and he’s not even a left wing schmuck, he’s a Clintonite, but Atwater was far worse, and you know it, so stop lying. And the kid at the funeral was a stunt but so what? Hatch and McCain have been lying since before Kennedy was cold about whether he he would have wanted this bill. Pure lies.
    On Chappaquiddick go right ahead. Kennedy was a member of our “royal family” and I’m not a fan of royalty. But you dream of another dynasty to the point of backing an addled former coke-head. And then you embarrass yourselves even more with Palin.
    It’s sad, really. Kennedy voted better than he acted, but votes are the point, not worship.
    “Death panels”
    Pure lies. Go to hell

    jW Democrat (e7f8ca)

  131. The only way I can get around Supercache now is to comment, reboot, and pray.

    JD (19728f)

  132. Atwater
    http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C04E6DF1E30F935A35753C1A9639C8B63
    ”You start out in 1954 by saying, ‘Nigger, nigger, nigger.’ By 1968 you can’t say ‘nigger’ — that hurts you. Backfires. So you say stuff like forced busing, states’ rights and all that stuff. You’re getting so abstract now [that] you’re talking about cutting taxes, and all these things you’re talking about are totally economic things and a byproduct of them is [that] blacks get hurt worse than whites.

    ”And subconsciously maybe that is part of it. I’m not saying that. But I’m saying that if it is getting that abstract, and that coded, that we are doing away with the racial problem one way or the other. You follow me — because obviously sitting around saying, ‘We want to cut this,’ is much more abstract than even the busing thing, and a hell of a lot more abstract than ‘Nigger, nigger.”’

    Words fail.

    jW Democrat (1e4a3b)

  133. And JW is a disgusting vile liar what loves his dirty little socialism but is otherwise full of hate hate hate.

    JD (19728f)

  134. Um, you’re politicizing his prayer! He was speaking about a relative. You are trying to condemn liberals.

    Also, where was all of the conservative outrage when Nancy Reagan, Trent Lott, Orrin Hatch, Arlen Specter and other conservatives made a blatant run for more liberal stem cell policies following Reagan’s death? I guess that was ok because they were conservatives — even though the policy they advocated was liberal. At least we know how Kennedy felt about healthcare reform. We do not know what Ronnie thought about stem cells.

    Selective Outrage: Conservatives Invoked Reagan’s Death to Promote Liberal Stem Cell Policies

    Tony Smith (623abe)

  135. Tony Smith / ronjazz, show us where this was done at Reagan’s funeral. Oh, you can’t? Then learn some basic logic and quit making lame attempts of “tu quoque” that are failures.

    Sheesh, the trolls are getting lower quality every week.

    SPQR (26be8b)

  136. “Death panels” Pure lies. Go to hell”

    Thanks for the reminder. “Death Panels” — the most devastating and deeply truthful political coinage of our time. The entire Leftist movement is a death panel. Look at how the Left has decreed by osmosis consensus that Kopechne’s death was necessary for the greater good of the sybaritic senator’s “career.” Just another death panel, ex post facto.

    By the way, I’m happy to be “embarrassed” by Palin. Anytime.

    rrpjr (f0915b)

  137. Pimping is pimping, regardless of the venue.

    IYOW – F-ck that. You obviously were not brought up in a religious or spiritual environment, and/or are an avowed atheist. I do not belong to any religion, but consider myself spiritual – and let me tell you, THE VENUE IS ALL – IMPORTANT. And if you don’t believe that, then there’s not enough time in the world or space in this thread to explain it any further. Either you get that or you don’t – and if you don’t, then please don’t make any additional lame – ass moral equivalency examples.

    And yeah, your additional examples were laughable – please, let’s see some more selective editing from those paragons of truth and virtue, Eva Gabor’s lost sister, HuffPuff.

    Dmac (e6d1c2)

  138. Rush used Reagan’s ideas to push for Bush’s election. Dead or alive Rush would have used the same argument. It had nothing to do with Reagan having passed away.

    Jeff (faa0ee)

  139. I do truly regret Teddy passing away so soon. I was hoping he would continue to suffer on for several more years. He deserved every moment of pain, twice over.

    Jeff (faa0ee)

  140. Abd Mr Smith reminds me of someone, as does jW…

    Cleanup, aisle 133 and 134…

    Scott Jacobs (d027b8)

  141. Add Tony Smith to the list of people that cannot distinguish between a spouse and an 11 year old, or the difference between a political position advocated during an interview or speech and during the Prayers for the Faithful at a Mass.

    JD (33d9a9)

  142. So you say stuff like forced busing, states’ rights and all that stuff. You’re getting so abstract now [that] you’re talking about cutting taxes, and all these things you’re talking about are totally economic things and a byproduct of them is [that] blacks get hurt worse than whites.

    That kind of thinking is what happens when your ideology is so squishy (or “centrist,” or actually so closeted–to the left) that you can’t see the forest for the trees. You can’t observe the philosophy of people — of what makes them tick — because you’re so busy obsessing on their superficial qualities (eg, their skin color).

    If anything, Atwater merely was projecting his own bigotry onto others. Probably a combination of stereotypical bigotry (eg, “a black family has moved in next door to us. They may be conservative and honorable, but bleech nonetheless!!”) and the soft bigotry of low expectations, which so many on the left are guilty of.

    Mark (411533)

  143. That’s what makes trig so useful.
    Comment by imdw — 8/30/2009 @ 7:27 am

    How interesting you choose to see him in such a cold light. I suspect that one sees Trig as *useful* if one sees him as a tool, a weapon, or a device – void of worth or meaning other than what can be wrought or manipulated by or with him. This speaks volumes.

    (Pre-emptive strike: Do not backpedal that your comment was about Palin).

    Dana (d7c445)

  144. Dana, I know this sounds repetitive, but it bears repeating: notice the psychological projection of the Left?

    It seems that they sneer at traits in Republicans that they possess themselves. Heck, the sneer at those traits in Republicans when Republicans do not display those traits!

    Eric Blair (a88004)

  145. “I suspect that one sees Trig as *useful* if one sees him as a tool, a weapon, or a device – void of worth or meaning other than what can be wrought or manipulated by or with him.”

    I think trig brings a lot of meaning to his family. Would sarah palin so champion special needs without him?

    [note: fished from spam filter]

    imdw (711f74)

  146. Sheesh, the trolls are getting lower quality every week.

    Agreed, SPQR. They used to be fun to bat around; now they are so lame they bore me.

    Paul (creator of "Staunch Brayer") (a98ec3)

  147. JW Democrat – The Bob Herbert column you linked in #132 is absolutely amazing for the number of malignant lies packed into one column. The man is an idiot. From distorting Bennett’s comments on the radio to the standard liberal mythology about conservative racism the man is a full tilt boogy loon, sort of like you. Since it’s an opinion piece, who cares?

    daleyrocks (718861)

  148. Leviticus #126…

    So, when Demos compare BHO with FDR, they’re pimping FDR???

    And, his funeral was 65 years ago….

    That post was simply bullshit….try again please….

    You’re better than that one….

    No, it’s not pimping to talk up Reagan now…

    It is pimping to use children at the funeral to promote a political agenda….

    That you don’t see a clear difference is disappointing….you really are better than that….

    reff (502473)

  149. P.S…I don’t have a problem with those speaking at the funeral to tell of the “greatness” of EMK…

    I have a problem with political speech….I hope you realize the difference…..

    The only person who politicized President Reagan’s funeral was the narcissistic liberal son who embarassed his family by speaking at all….

    I can only hope that one day, those two grandchildren will look back at their actions and punch out the idiot adults who put them up to it….

    reff (502473)

  150. […] I read the article as saying that Kennedy thought that, once we were in the war, we needed to stay in and win. And so, with that in mind, let us pray: […]

    Patterico’s Pontifications » Ted Kennedy Thanked Aznar for Showing Solidarity with U.S. on Iraq (e4ab32)

  151. “You obviously were not brought up in a religious or spiritual environment, and/or are an avowed atheist. I do not belong to any religion, but consider myself spiritual – and let me tell you, THE VENUE IS ALL – IMPORTANT.”

    – Dmac

    Yes, obviously – another omniscient conservative telling me what my upbringing was or was not like, or what I must be (in lieu of absolute agreement with the conservative’s half-baked bullshit). But thanks for “telling me” what it’s all about – and in ALL CAPS no less: guess you win.

    I’m a born-again Christian. I just got home from church. Living in a way that is pleasing and honorable to God is my first and foremost goal, and my constant prayer. And I say with confidence that a church, absent believers, is a building and nothing more. And a church full of Washington politicians is a cesspool. So no – the venue is not “all important”. The intent is all important. And the intent in both cases was pimping.

    reff,

    If you’re going to draw an equivalence between pundits comparing Obama to FDR (who died 60 some-odd years ago) and Rush Limbaugh stating that a freshly dead Reagan would put his hand on Bush’s shoulder and urge him to fight the good fight, then I’m going to laugh in your face. But don’t bother trying again, because we’re not going to get anywhere with this.

    Leviticus (f565c1)

  152. I’m afraid Leviticus that you’ve failed to make the case that the pimping of a political issue at a funeral ( ala Wellstone and Kennedy ) is equivalent to someone making reference to a deceased leader in a secular radio show.

    Its still a pathetic attempt to wish away the crass behavior of Democrats.

    SPQR (26be8b)

  153. The only person who politicized President Reagan’s funeral was the narcissistic liberal son who embarrassed his family by speaking at all….

    Who is now peddling prostate remedies. I didn’t know he had one. Ironically, the prostate remedies contain plant sterols which have weak female hormone effects. Maybe that’s why Ron Jr likes them.

    MIke K (2cf494)

  154. I forgot about Trig.
    what a joke.
    Not him, none of this is his responsibility.

    apple (ede69b)

  155. I’m a born-again Christian.

    Really? Sounds like you need some more remedial training, son.

    Dmac (e6d1c2)

  156. Really? Why don’t you explain how, Mr. I’m-Spiritual-But-Not-Religious?

    And don’t call me “son”. It insults my father.

    Leviticus (f565c1)

  157. What kind of a Born – Again uses the “F” word in continual conversation? Is that part of your services as well?

    Dmac (e6d1c2)

  158. Comment by Dmac — 8/30/2009 @ 2:51 pm

    HEY!

    I had to tell a troll to stop this “you don’t act religious enough” crap. Don’t make me explain why you need to stfu too, Dmac…

    Scott Jacobs (d027b8)

  159. An imperfect one, Dmac – the only kind.

    Leviticus (f565c1)

  160. Don’t make me explain why you need to stfu too, Dmac…

    And don’t make me explain again what my main point was…mmmkay? And you can take that sneering condescension and self – appointed policeman of the blog outside as well.

    Dmac (e6d1c2)

  161. An imperfect one, Dmac – the only kind.

    No sh-t.

    Dmac (e6d1c2)

  162. No shit.

    Leviticus (f565c1)

  163. Looks like we at least have similar senses of humor – ironic, no?

    Dmac (e6d1c2)

  164. The dems sure missed the boat on this one. They forgot to play the victim card. Hasn’t Ann Coulter schooled them on this over and over? Ted’s grandkid should’ve used a sob story, not a talking points cue card. There was no warmth, no faux empathy, not the kind we’ve come to know and love from this crowd. The poor little moppet delivered a stone cold power statement. Even old Joe knew: when you lobotomize someone make sure you appear moral, caring and ethical.

    Vermont Neighbor (a11954)

  165. Leviticus…you are the one that said pimping is pimping is pimping…not me….I fully understand the difference between pimping at a funeral and on a talk show….You however were the one who drew the equivalence between pimping the funeral and pimping the radio show….I simply disagree….but, now, you try to kill my example of what YOU say is equivalent….*

    *(oh, you did put some type of time reference on it this time, didn’t you?…so did I and you rejected the time reference)

    Thanks for making my point for me….they aren’t equivalent….

    reff (502473)

  166. Ironically, the prostate remedies contain plant sterols which have weak female hormone effects. Maybe that’s why Ron Jr likes them.

    Comment by MIke K — 8/30/2009 @ 1:49 pm

    I was hoping my doctor would prescribe me the one that regrows hair but instead he told me to cut out the booze and coffee and take ibuprofen every day. Doctors!

    nk (ce533b)

  167. […] 31, 2009 in history and current events | by SEK After I linked to his post about Ted Kennedy’s funeral, Patrick asked what I’d think were the grandchild of a […]

    The content of a eulogy is a function of the life being eulogized. « The Edge of the American West (d9a4c0)


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