Patterico's Pontifications

10/13/2009

Olympia Snowe: “When History Calls, History Calls.”

Filed under: General — Patterico @ 10:48 pm



That’s her reasoning for voting the Baucus thingie out of conference without the benefit of that legislative language that nobody reads anyway:

Personally, I don’t get calls from History, because I’m on the Do Not Call list. I have no previous business relationship with History, so legally he must leave me alone. But if History did call, I would probably want to mess with it. Kinda like this:

By the way, Senator, when you’re quoting Longfellow in explaining why you’re voting the way you are, you’re establishing that you are a gasbag. Just some unsolicited advice for ya there.

Sudden Live Chat

Filed under: General — Patterico @ 9:55 pm



Every so often I spontaneously decide to do a live chat. This is one of those times.

If you haven’t done this yet, here’s how it works. You see the chat window below? Look at the bottom. Enter your name or pseudonym in the top window. Enter your comment in the second window, and hit send. I will have to approve your comment before it appears, but I’m online right now, and will approve most comments within a minute. Usually within seconds.

IMPORTANT: Note the buttons at the bottom. You will probably want to turn off “autoscroll.” It bothers a lot of people.

Rush Limbaugh, Plantation Owner

Filed under: Politics,Sports — DRJ @ 9:16 pm



[Guest post by DRJ]

On MSNBC, Pulitzer Prize-winner and journalism professor Karen Hunter explained why the NFL should not let Rush Limbaugh purchase a minority interest in the St. Louis Rams football team — because he’s kind of like a plantation-owning racist:

Hunter: “I can just see the visions of plantation grandeur dancing in his head as we speak. Yeah, it doesn’t make you a racist to want to own a team. But, it does kind of with all his history question his power position over these players who make millions of dollars and his ability to be able to move them around, deny them contracts and do whatever he wants willy-nilly. It’s the ultimate power position to be an owner of an NFL team.”

Hunter also referred to and quoted racist statements Limbaugh allegedly made that Limbaugh denied saying and that appear to be fabricated. Nevertheless, Hunter says it’s “lunacy” to let Limbaugh even be considered as an NFL owner.

Is this the kind of reasoning it takes to win a Pulitzer Prize in today’s world?

— DRJ

Caption Contest

Filed under: General — Patterico @ 8:30 pm



Olbermann in Ecstasy

For background, see here.

Reportedly Impotent and Sexually Frustrated Man Lashes Out at Attractive Conservative Commentator

Filed under: General — Patterico @ 7:51 pm



I refer, of course, to Keith Olbermann’s latest rant against Michelle Malkin:

She received death threats and hate-filled voice mails all thanks to the total mindless, morally bankrupt, knee-jerk, fascistic hatred, without which Michelle Malkin would just be a big mashed-up bag of meat with lipstick on it.

Mashed-up bag of meat indeed:

michelle-malkin

But you know, without his spittle-flecked, laughably over the top rants against conservatives, this reincarnation of Edward R. Murrow would just be another “dud in bed”:

A BROWN-haired beauty who claims she had an unsatisfying one-night stand with Keith Olbermann is getting her sweet revenge – she’s launched a blog to warn other women about the acerbic MSNBC commentator’s boorish bedroom habits.

. . . .

A 30-something office worker of Caribbean descent, KarmaBites1 said she struck up an e-mail friendship with Olbermann, whom she admired, and agreed to fly to New York to meet him last May. She says he came to her hotel room and opened a bottle of Merlot which he “spilled all over.” Then, when “sexual activity began [in] less than an hour,” Olbermann had difficulty. “I pretended he knew what he was doing,” the embittered blogger writes. “I adored the guy. I didn’t want him to think he was a dud in bed,” so she faked experiencing ecstasy.

Hahahahahahaha. It’s an oldie, but it still makes me laugh.

And it’s worth remembering now, as it may explain the frustrations that seethe beneath Olbermann’s surface.

UPDATE: Here’s the video:

P.S. Did Senor Soft-Stick there pronounce “fascistic” as “fasheestick”? Just checkin’.

UPDATE: Hey, at least it’s better than Chris Matthews daydreaming about Rush Limbaugh’s violent murder and saying, “we’ll be there to watch”:

UPDATE x2: Caption contest!

Tammy Bruce Confesses Her Racism!

Filed under: General — Patterico @ 7:02 pm



Tammy Bruce confesses the racism in her post with the raccoon searching for the prize in the box of Cracker Jacks:

I will now admit: both Cracker Jack posts were meant as smears–of southern whites. I mean, come on now, how many posts does a girl need to make with the word “Cracker” in it to get noticed?!

I knew it!

Lefty Bloggers: OMIGOD THE REPUBLICANS SAID HITLER LIKES PELOSI!!!!!!!!!11!!!1!

Filed under: General — Patterico @ 6:30 pm



With the release of this admittedly not-so-clever clip from the RNCC, humorless liberals are tut-tutting:

Across the blogosphere, Serious Leftists are knitting their eyebrows together and clucking their tongues.

There are dozens of these mock-Hitler clips out there, all using the same scene with different themes and translations. (Many far funnier than this one, but that’s a different issue.)

I thought the left was aware of all internet traditions.

If the criticism is that the clip isn’t funny, then it’s a fair cop.

But if the criticism is that OMIGOD THEY SAID HITLER LIKES DEMOCRATS!!!!!11!!!1!! . . . then please. Get over it.

UPDATE: This one is a little better:

ObamaCare: Shot Across the Bow

Filed under: General — Karl @ 9:10 am



[Posted by Karl]

I am following up on yesterday’s story about the health insurers’ revolt against the Baucus vapor bill because I — like a lot of people — may have undersold it.

The White House may attack the America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP) study, which predicts the healthcare bills pending congressional approval could cost the typical family up to $4,000 more in monthly premiums each year. Liberal bloggers like Steve Benen may bring out the lazy sarcasm, claiming that “[p]rivate health insurers haven’t exactly played a constructive and supportive role on health care reform this year.” In reality, AHIP’s decisions to promote healthcare reform and not run negative ads were important factors in ObamaCare’s survival over the summer.

Smarter analysts like Jonathan Cohn (on the Left) and Keith Hennessey (on the Right) can criticize the study on its merits, though Hennessey ultimately agrees that the Baucus vapor bill would make health insurance more expensive.

But Hennessey is about the only pundit on the right track, because he goes further to ask about the politics of the study — asking why AHIP waited until now to attack. Part of the answer is because the Baucus bill undoes the Faustian bargain insurers struck with the Democrats — “guaranteed issue” and “community rating” for mandates and fines. When AHIP president Karen Ignagni says, “You really have to have a coverage level in the high 90s to make this work,” she means “to make this work for health insurers.”

Another part of the answer is that since ObamaCare survived the August recess, the six largest publicly-traded health insurance companies have taken it in the shorts:

Weighted for market capitalization, these insurance stocks have lost 11 percent of their value since Labor Day, wiping out about $10 billion in value. And that’s understating the case since the major indices have gained 5-8 percent over the same period — the insurance industry stocks are underperforming the market by just shy of 20 percent.

AHIP’s Ignagni is a Democrat and former labor apparatchik who wants to work with Democrats, but after losing $10 billion of market cap in a few short weeks, the membership may be rethinking the collaboration strategy.

Accordingly, the pundits’ analyses of the merits of the AHIP study likely miss the point. Frankly, would anyone be shocked if AHIP does not care about the merits of the study? No. The entire point of the study is political. It is a message to the politicians that the insurers are not going to simply complain if Reid sends a bill to the Senate floor that is not to their liking. They will take action. They will drive news cycles. They may launch an air war.

So let’s look at AHIP and its war chest:

AHIP spent $3.9 million in lobbying activities in the first six months of 2009, according to lobbying disclosure forms. In the first half of 2008, they spent $3.7 million on lobbying activities.

AHIP’s PAC has contributed $189,000 to committees and federal candidates during the 2010 election cycle, according to Federal Election Commission records. Recipients this year have included the Blue Dog PAC; Congressional Black Caucus PAC; Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee; National Republican Congressional and Senatorial committees; Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev.; House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.; Senate Finance ranking member Charles Grassley, R-Iowa; and House Minority Whip Eric Cantor, R-Va. During the 2008 election cycle, AHIP’s PAC donated $591,000 to committees and candidates.

AHIP has run television ads promoting health care reform, but it has not disclosed the amount of money spent on the ads.

The group’s total revenue for 2007 was $75.9 million, according to IRS forms.

In short, with the industry’s future on the line, AHIP did not spend much more in the first half of 2009 than it did in the first half of 2008. AHIP’s pro-reform ad buy was reportedly seven figures, which suggests it has tens of millions of dollars to spend. That money could be spent on anti-ObamaCare ads — and for comparison, consider that the famous “Harry and Louise” ad buy was only $14 million in 1993-94. AHIP could spend two or three times that much and still have tens of millions that could be withheld from old allies, and donated to new ones.

You do not have to read the AHIP study to understand it. It’s a threat, and now the Democrats also have to start worrying about other special interests leaving their coalition of the bought-off.

Update: The AHIP study has put Democratic noses out of joint, with anonymous rumors of retaliation. That sounds imprudent, but if the Dems respond to the shot across their bow by launching a war against the insurers, I will bring the popcorn.

Update x2: Surprise, surprise, surprise — AHIP has made a multi-state (Pennsylvania, Colorado, New Mexico, Missouri, Louisiana and Nevada), million-dollar ad purchase claiming that seniors will see their care cut under Democrat-crafted legislation.

–Karl

Sadly, No! Sees the RACISMS!! in Tammy Bruce’s Photo of Her Pet (UPDATED)

Filed under: General — Patterico @ 1:21 am



Some fringe leftists enjoy nothing better than to accuse conservatives of racism. It makes them feel very tingly with self-righteousness, and that is a great feeling to many a fringe leftist. The presidency of Barack Obama has been a banner time for such folk. Here’s one example from our old friends at the Sadly, No blog.

Before we get to it, let’s check in with our friend Tammy Bruce. Don’t worry, we’ll connect this up with Sadly, No soon enough.

If you don’t know Tammy Bruce, you should. She’s a woman of varied and interesting political positions:

Tammy Bruce is an openly gay, pro-choice, gun owning, pro-death penalty, voted-for-President Bush authentic feminist. A lifelong Democrat, in the 1990s she worked to help elect Senators Feinstein and Boxer, and aided the Clinton for President campaign. Before we knew he was a sexual compulsive and “did not have sexual relations with that woman.”

I know other lifelong Democrats like her: people who abhor political correctness, have many sensible positions, and are fiercely independent. One thing about someone who holds such positions: you wouldn’t normally expect them to be unabashed racists. One other thing you should know about Tammy: she has a pet raccoon.

A native of Los Angeles, Ms. Bruce holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science from the University of Southern California. She also notes her interest in politics and individual liberty was sparked during her childhood in part because of the work of authors Ray Bradbury and George Orwell, both of whom remain her favorite writers. Ms. Bruce lives in Los Angeles with Snoopy the Cat, Snoopy’s best friend Sydney the Dog, and puts up with a raccoon she has named Rocky, who refuses to leave her outside patio.

This information is freely available, by the way, right there on the Internets. That becomes important; you’ll see why.

Like many other people on both sides of the political fence, Tammy was put off by Barack Obama’s undeserved receipt of the Nobel Peace Prize, and she posted a blog post about it titled: I Just Opened a Box of Cracker Jack. Guess What the Prize Was? The answer, of course, was:

The Nobel Peace Prize! . . . [T]he new prize in the box of Cracker Jack is, that’s right, the Nobel Peace Prize! I have one now, too. In addition to the million or so dollars he’ll receive (perhaps he should he should donate that to the US Treasury) I bet he’ll get a Mood Ring with the prize. He can keep that for himself.

In other words, it’s now a meaningless joke. It really got that way when Jimmah Carter got it, but this take the cake.

Following up on that sentiment, Tammy posted another item with a picture of her pet raccoon Rocky digging into . . . a box of Cracker Jacks.

Tammy Bruce's Pet Raccoon

The headline of that post: “Breaking: Nobel Committee Announces Another Peace Prize Winner.”

Cute, huh?

Not to D. Aristophanes from Sadly, No, who encountered Tammy’s post during an evening troll through the conservative blogosphere, doing what fringe leftists do best — looking high and low for any and all evidence of racism by conservatives.

And look! He found a picture of a raccoon! And you know what happens when you shorten the word “raccoon”!!!!!

And so, damn the research! To hell with looking up the easily-found information cited above about Tammy’s pet raccoon. Why bother reading her previous post, in which she compares the Nobel Peace Prize to the prize in a box of Cracker Jacks? Aristophanes skips all that overrated Googling and heads straight to spittle-flecked howling cries of RACISM!!!!

Really? A coon? Is this where we’re at now? Because this sort of stuff isn’t coded speech, it’s not a dog whistle or faux-irony … it’s flat-out, no-apologies, bottom-of-the-barrel, peckerwood racism. Coming from a supposedly mainstream, ‘mugged-by-reality’ class of political commentator.

Well, no . . . actually, it’s a photo of Tammy’s little pet raccoon digging in a Cracker Jack box. Kind of cute, really — if you don’t have race on the brain every moment of every day.

In Sadly, No’s comment section, a commenter calling himself “EJ” gently tries to warn D. Aristophanes:

She does, I believe, have a pet raccoon that she mentions from time to time – so maybe, just maybe, she just grabbed what she thought was a cute picture out of her camera without thinking about the implications.

I realize that’s giving her a huge and probably undeserved level of benefit of the doubt.

Notice how “EJ” still completely leaves the door open to the possibility — nay, the likelihood — that Tammy really is an unconscious racist. See, maybe, just maybe, she thought that a picture of her pet raccoon was . . . just a picture of her pet raccoon. But we sophisticated leftists, who have race on the brain all the time, are able to realize that she’s just being insensitive to the obvious racial implications of posting a picture of a raccoon. Whether it’s your pet or not!

I think the people being wacky here are the lefties. See, D. Aristophanes and EJ, if we show you a “pet” and you see a “black man!!!!” . . . that may not be our problem. It just might be yours.

But no matter. It’s Blogosphere 101 that once you have committed to a position with spitting violence, you can’t back down just because you’re wrong. And so, D. Aristophanes responds to EJ’s suggestion that the photo might have been innocent and non-racist thusly:

Then she’s a total moron. Whatever … I’m sick of giving these things ‘the benefit of the doubt’ … and it’s been three days since she posted that without realizing ‘the implications’, so screw her.

Hahahahahahahahahaha.

Those guys at Sadly, No, in addition to being complete assholes most of the time, are actually clever and funny from time to time. D. Aristophanes included. Hopefully, once he sleeps on it and realizes how silly this makes him look, he’ll smile a sheepish smile, laugh at himself a bit, shrug his shoulders — and apologize to Tammy — and then move on.

But to be honest, I don’t think he will — and I kinda hope he doesn’t. I actually sorta hope D. Aristophanes continues to play the clueless buffoon.

It would be good of him to act decently, sure. But this is way funnier.

ZOMG IT’S REALLY RACISM UPDATE: After a commenter questioned whether that was really Tammy’s pad, I decided to search the Internets to see if the image was elsewhere — and it is. (The commenter also e-mailed me in the interim to say the same thing.) So my assumption that this was Tammy’s pet raccoon was wrong. The obvious, inescapable, and totally bullet-proof conclusion is: Tammy the lifelong Democrat, pro-choice feminist . . . is an unabashed RACIST!!!11!!1!

Also, she is racist against whites, too — COME ON!! Did you see the word “cracker”?? Do you think that was just an ACCIDENT???!!!

Oooooor . . . she was expanding on the Cracker Jacks joke from her previous post, and she thought the raccoon image was cute because she likes raccoons.

Naw, the answer is obvious: RACISM!!!!!1!

ZOMG IT’S REALLY RACISM UPDATE x2: Tammy confesses. Details here.


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