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Tuesday, December 31, 2013

Long-Term Cartoon of the Day

(click to enlarge) Appropriately, that could also be the Rethuglican's alternative health care "answer."

One can only hope that at some point in their miserable, selfish lives, they experience not only the loss of income, but the loss of self-esteem that comes with losing a job, and perhaps a home and family.   F*ck 'em.

BONUS:  Read Eugene Robinson's op/ed for more.

(cartoon:  Tom Toles, via Gocomics.com)
Posted by Hackwhackers at 1:40 PM No comments: Links to this post Labels: cartoon of the day, Republicans block extension of unemployment benefits

Lying Liars Still Lying, Cont'd. Neocon hack Charles Kraphammer is having a fit over the recent New York Times investigation which destroys the Benghazi! BENGHAZI!! story fraud that the right wing has been pushing for over a year.  The four month long Times investigation said there is no evidence that al Qaeda played a role in the September 2012 attack, and that the attack was indeed prompted by an inflammatory anti-Islamic video produced by American wing nuts.

Kraphammer reveals his hand when he claims that the Times is "protecting Hillary Clinton," and not, interestingly, President Obama, who still has a second term to complete.  Why the specific focus on Clinton?  Easy:  after the 2012 election, with Secretary Clinton in a commanding lead to win the Democratic nomination in 2016,  Benghazi! BENGHAZI!! became the "issue" for the Rethugs to try to take their likely opponent down.  First the 60 Minutes Benghazi "story" was exposed as a fraud, and now the Times' dismantlement of the right wing's case.  What's a hack propagandist like Charles Kraphammer to do but attack the messenger?

BONUS:  Here's yesterday's New York Times editorial commenting on the reaction to its investigation's findings (our emphasis):

The report concluded that the attack was led by fighters who had benefited directly from NATO’s air power and other support during the uprising against Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi and that it was fueled, in large part, by anger at an American-made video denigrating Islam.

In a rational world, that would settle the dispute over Benghazi, which has further poisoned the poisonous political discourse in Washington and kept Republicans and Democrats from working cooperatively on myriad challenges, including how best to help Libyans stabilize their country and build a democracy. But Republicans long ago abandoned common sense and good judgment in pursuit of conspiracy-mongering and an obsessive effort to discredit President Obama and former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, who may run for president in 2016.

(photo:  Playtime's over, Chuck)
Posted by Hackwhackers at 11:59 AM No comments: Links to this post Labels: right wing pushes back on New York Times' Benghazi report of no al Qaeda link


Today's Dispatches From The Stupid Party - Year End Edition Starting on the West Coast, if you're a Republican/Stupid Party congressman, even having a safely gerrymandered district doesn't guarantee that you'll know what that district is (that would imply having a discernable IQ):

Rep. Ed Royce (R-CA) is seeking reelection. And after a brief slip last week, he's doing so in the right district.

Royce's statement of candidacy for his re-election filed last week listed California's 40th Congressional District instead of the 39th, according to The Sacramento Bee.

Sad to say, the numerically- and geographically-challenged "Rolls" Royce is chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

Turning to the "rebranding" efforts by the Republican Party, someone at the Republican National Committee put out a "Happy Kwanzaa" greeting on Facebook.  The blowback from the knuckle-dragging base demonstrates the difficulty of "rebranding" when you have to rely on moron crackers*  to get elected.

Staying with "rebranding" and the Republican National Committee, Salon has the "10 Biggest GOP Rebranding Fails of 2013". We picked #5 as representative:

5. The Republican National Committee tweets: “Today we remember Rosa Parks’ bold stand and her role in ending racism.”
This one was fun for a couple reasons. First, it was the most high-profile example yet of the GOP’s asinine “post-racial” meme, a defense used to dismiss or deny that any criticisms of the president or his agenda are influenced by racial thinking. Second, it led Twitter user @FeministaJones to come up with the wildly popular #racismendedwhen hashtag. When your best attempt to show you’re racially sensitive results in widespread mockery, it’s fair to guess that the whole outreach thing isn’t going so well.

As ever, we despair of your "rebranding" efforts, Stupid Party!  Also, Happy Kwanzaa!

*To wit, there's this.  Damn apes!
Posted by W. Hackwhacker at 11:47 AM No comments: Links to this post Labels: Kwanzaa, Rep. Ed Royce, Republican National Committee, republican rebranding, Stupid Party

Canada's Gain Is Our Loss Texas Senator and Joe McCarthy doppelgänger Ted "Tailgunner Ted" Cruz has decided to renounce his Canadian citizenship, according to reports.  Tailgunner Ted was born in Calgary to an American mother and a flaming Cuban nut job father who is still fighting the Fidelistas in his imagination.  While it would have been good for America for the Cruz family to have remained in Canada, sadly it was not meant to be.

Cruz also took a break from sorting out his citizenship to claim that he wasn't responsible for the Government shutdown in October, despite the fact that numerous people in his own party (McCain, Boehner, among them) laid the blame on him.  Revising history has become a specialty of the wing nut world.
Posted by Hackwhackers at 8:47 AM No comments: Links to this post Labels: Ted Cruz to renounce Canadian citizenship

Sunday, December 29, 2013

"The Immutable Law of American Politics"

BooMan has the immutable law of American politics right here:

The lesson is, the GOP will go crazy anytime a Democrat is in the Oval Office, and they will not be properly punished for it by the electorate. This is a seemingly immutable law of American politics, somewhat akin to the law that says that Republican presidents will run up huge deficits and then the party will turn into deficit scolds the moment they are out of the White House.  [our emphasis]

As BooMan points out, it was true when Bill Clinton was in office, and would be true if Sen. Joe Manchin (from the Republican wing of the Democratic Party) were President (shudder). There's a strong ethos of entitlement with Republicans, as you would expect from people used to "rank- has- its-  privilege" (through race, economic status, gender, etc.).  The fact that they're not punished for their trying to sabotage the economy, de-legitimatize a twice-elected President, obstruct anything and everything in Congress, stymie efforts to address climate change and immigration reform, roll back women's rights, roll back voting rights, and much more, says to us that the forces of reaction in this country have not weakened, despite setbacks.  Progressives need to continue to push, to advocate, to educate and to vote, because this is a struggle that has gone on since the first governments were formed, and it will go on for as long as we're walking on the Earth.
Posted by W. Hackwhacker at 3:39 PM No comments: Links to this post Labels: Republican extremism

Lying Liars Still Lying

Yesterday, we linked to a New York Times investigation of the 2012 Benghazi attack, which concluded after months of research and interviews with numerous Libyan and other sources that the September 2012 attack was 1) not an attack by al Qaeda or another international terrorist organization, and 2) the attack was indeed a response to an American wingnut video on Islam.

On cue, the pushback from the usual lying suspects has begun.  First, Congressional Rethuglican scandal monger and suspected arsonist Rep. Darryl "Grand Theft Auto" Issa claims on today's Press the Meat that al Qaeda was behind the attack, and besides, "who are you going to believe, me or your lying eyes?"  Next up, there's the fact free zone of Fux, which has been leading the Benghazi! BENGHAZI!! disinformation campaign.  Now that the New York Times report has debunked their favorite story, they have no alternative but to attack the source and resume the mantra they've been chanting for the past year.  Reality and facts have caught up with them, but that won't stop liars from lying.
Posted by Hackwhackers at 11:52 AM No comments: Links to this post 

Today's Cartoon - The Ghost of Christmas Present, Cont.
 (Rob Rogers, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

Here's more on the impact on families  who are losing unemployment benefits (because...FREEDUMB!  Also, INCENTIVES!).
Posted by W. Hackwhacker at 10:51 AM No comments: Links to this post Labels: Republican values, Rethugs fight unemployment benefits

Saturday, December 28, 2013

Benghazi! BENGHAZI!! BEN…huh? No?

From a months-long New York Times investigation:

This turns everything upside down that the Rethugs and their right wing media allies have been pushing in order to score points against presumed Presidential candidate Secretary Hillary Clinton.  Let's see if this investigation gets the same mileage as some of the trash written and broadcast on the subject.

Posted by Hackwhackers at 6:54 PM No comments: Links to this post Labels: Investigation turns up no evidence of al Qaeda involvement in Benghazi

If It Quacks Like A Duck...

The A & E Network has announced that its "indefinite suspension" of Duck Dynasty head redneck Phil "Ducked Up" Robertson has ended, and that he will be rejoining the show when it resumes taping in January.  So what that means is Ducked Up won't be missed in a single episode, since the show was on hiatus when he shot his mouth off and was "suspended."  While he's taken considerable heat for his vulgar homophobic remarks, less has been said on his belief that African Americans were so happy in the good ol' days of Jim Crow segregation.  You know, before the Civil Rights movement came along and made them sing the blues.

Fifty-two years ago, when then-Federal Communications Commission chair Newton Minow coined the phrase "vast wasteland" in describing TV at its worst, he had no idea how much further it would descend.  The fact that bigotry and ignorance is proudly celebrated in some corners of TV-land is a blight on us all.
Posted by Hackwhackers at 11:54 AM No comments: Links to this post Labels: Duck Dynasty

Today's Cartoon - The Ghost of Christmas Present
 (Drew Sheneman, via gocomics.com)

As they left Washington, Social Darwinist / Ayn Rand Republicans in the House of Representatives made sure to not extend unemployment benefits for 1.3 million long-term unemployed.  Because INCENTIVES!  Also FREEDUMB!  (To be honest, once again Democrats did not cover themselves in glory on this =cough=spineless=cough=.)  God bless help us, everyone.
Posted by W. Hackwhacker at 10:40 AM No comments: Links to this post Labels: Democrats acting badly, Republican values, Rethugs fight unemployment benefits

Friday, December 27, 2013

Weekend Songs

Since we've been doing holiday stuff with family, you might have noticed a paucity of bloggin'.  So, here's a musical twofer to make amends.  Cate LeBon is a Welsh singer-songwriter now living in California, and these are songs from her recent album "Mug Museum."  Enjoy.

(h/t San Francisco bureau chief Shauna)
Posted by W. Hackwhacker at 5:52 PM No comments: Links to this post Labels: Cate LeBon

HealthCare.gov Breakthrough?

After the disastrous roll out of the Affordable Care Act's website on October 1, the Administration has scrambled to fix its numerous glitches, and it appears they've succeeded.  On December 23, a flood of about 2 million applicants successfully accessed the website in order to purchase insurance that would take effect on January 1, 2014.

The more uninsured people -- especially young people -- that acquire health insurance through HealthCare.gov or State health care exchanges established under the ACA, the more difficult it will be for Rethuglican obstructionists to dismantle it and to force a return to the good old days of capricious denial of benefits, no insurance for preexisting conditions, and lifetime caps on coverage.

P.S. After the dust settles later, accept Secretary Sebelius' "resignation" and fire those on the White House staff that almost tanked the President's signature achievement through their incompetence.
Posted by Hackwhackers at 5:48 PM No comments: Links to this post Labels: Health care website

Thursday, December 26, 2013

Quote Of The Day - Setting Yourself Up To Fail Dept.

“Our No. 1 focus is to make sure, when it comes to the Senate, that we have no loser candidates,” said Scott Reed, the top political strategist for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, told the Wall Street Journal. “That will be our mantra: No fools on our [Republican] ticket.”  [our emphasis]

(h/t The Raw Story)
Posted by W. Hackwhacker at 10:43 AM No comments: Links to this post Labels: Stupid Party, U.S. Chamber of Commerce

Wednesday, December 25, 2013


May your day be merry and brightened with this selection, "Divertissement" from Tchaikovsky's "The Nutcracker."

Posted by W. Hackwhacker at 7:42 AM No comments: Links to this post Labels: Christmas 2013

Tuesday, December 24, 2013

Today's Cartoons - 1 % Twofer
 (Mike Luckovich, Atlanta Journal-Constitution) (Jim Morin, Miami Herald)
Posted by W. Hackwhacker at 12:24 PM No comments: Links to this post Labels: income inequality, Pope Francis stands with unemployed over corporate greed

The Perfect Gift For Sully Fans

Is it just us, or could this holiday gift idea be called the "Andrew Sullivan face warmer?" Posted by W. Hackwhacker at 11:40 AM No comments: Links to this post Labels: Andrew Sullivan, humor

Amnesty For (Some) Russian Activists Russian Czar President Vladimir Putin granted amnesty to former oil tycoon and political rival Mikhail Khodorkovsky and to Nadezhda Tolokonnikova and Maria Alyokhina of Pussy Riot, in moves generally interpreted as "please to get off my case about human rights violations prior to the Sochi Winter Olympics."  Khodorkovsky has already pledged to stay involved in human rights issues in Russia and, as for the two Pussy Rioters:

Pussy Riot member Nadezhda Tolokonnikova was freed from prison on Monday under an amnesty that allowed for her early release from a two-year sentence for a protest in a church against President Vladimir Putin.

Tolokonnikova shouted "Russia without Putin" after she was freed from a prison in the Siberian city of Krasnoyarsk. Bandmate Maria Alyokhina was released from a different jail hours earlier and dismissed the amnesty as a propaganda stunt.

Meanwhile, on-going repression of environmental activists and recently-passed homophobic laws make it clear that, as Ms. Alyokhina noted, the amnesty for the "star" prisoners was a propaganda stunt - and a futile, ham-fisted one at that.
Posted by W. Hackwhacker at 10:31 AM No comments: Links to this post Labels: human rights, Pussy Riot, Russia, Russian repression, Vladimir Putin

Lump of Coal Quote of the Day

"The Congress of the United States left town this week very proud of itself. It had reached an accommodation by which the Republicans agreed that they would allow the government to function in a minimal capacity over the next two years and the Democrats agreed that they would be grateful to the Republicans for doing that. And then they all wished themselves well and went home, many of them, the ones proclaiming themselves most loudly to be the followers of the Jesus Christ of the Gospels, looking forward to being able to say 'Merry Christmas' freely again, free from the liberals who have placed imaginary shackles upon their fictional freedom to keep the day in their own way."  -- Esquire.com's Charles Pierce.

No extension of unemployment benefits.  No restoration of food stamp funding.  Meanwhile, the stock market is soaring and the income gap between the wealthiest and everyone else is widening.  Once again, the right wing has succeeded in moving the goal posts when it comes to government's role "to promote the general welfare" as stated in the Constitution.

BONUS:  Blood not boiling yet?  Read this article by Jimmy Williams at US News.  Here's a sample:

According to the Cato Institute, we the American people subsidize corporate America to the tune of more than $90 billion annually, while individual people on welfare only pull down around $59 billion. I like simple math. It's easy for me to understand. Corporations are getting the better end of that bargain but I don't hear Sen. Mitch McConnell and Reps. Jack Kingston and Bill Cassidy – the latest decriers of welfare – declaring a war on the corporate CEOs (who are actually driving real Cadillacs). The hypocrisy is staggering.

Posted by Hackwhackers at 9:26 AM No comments: Links to this post Labels: Charles P. Pierce, quote of the day

Monday, December 23, 2013

The Mole That Roared Paul Farhi, the once great Washington Post  Bezos Bugle's media critic, has a feature article today about whether the "media-briefing battles between [White House press secretary] Jay Carney and ABC's Jon Karl" are benefiting anyone.  Farhi catalogs some of the more noteworthy dust-ups between the two and concludes that the confrontations are emblematic of a format that sheds more heat than light on topics of the day.  Well, yeah.  But throughout his pearl-clutching, Farhi never gets to the reason why Karl is the biggest dick in a briefing room full of dicks.

All you need to know about Jonathan Karl is right here:

Karl came to mainstream journalism via the Collegiate Network, an organization primarily devoted to promoting and supporting right-leaning newspapers on college campuses (Extra!, 9-10/91)—such as the Rutgers paper launched by the infamous James O’Keefe (Political Correction, 1/27/10). The network, founded in 1979, is one of several projects of the Intercollegiate Studies Institute, which seeks to strengthen conservative ideology on college campuses. William F. Buckley was the ISI’s first president, and the current board chair is American Spectator publisher Alfred Regnery. Several leading right-wing pundits came out of Collegiate-affiliated papers, including Ann Coulter, Dinesh D'Souza, Michelle Malkin, Rich Lowry and Laura Ingraham (Washington Times, 11/28/04).

There's a lot more at that link that paints Karl as a fairly obvious Republican mole in the press corps.  He's notorious for being caught parroting Republican talking points during the Benghazi! phony e-mail flapdoodle.  So, are we shocked that someone in the media is a right-winger?  Hardly (see: Fox "News").  But, when the story's about someone who's essentially a political operative who happens to have a press badge, let's have his/ her professional pedigree at least be mentioned, ok?
Posted by W. Hackwhacker at 12:57 PM No comments: Links to this post Labels: Jonathan Karl, Paul Farhi, right-wing media, washington post

Big Money Behind Climate Change Deniers

Climate change denial is a big industry, so big that over $1 billion is being channeled in to "think tanks" and assorted "experts" by wealthy individuals and organizations through front organizations that aren't required to divulge the sources of their money.  Some major recipients of this plutocratic largess are the Heritage Foundation and American Enterprise Institute, who then dutifully prepare "studies" and dispatch "experts" to cast doubt on the overwhelming scientific evidence that human activity is causing a warming of the Earth's climate.

Money can always buy lies, but they can't buy facts, and the more that the funding behind this cynical and despicable effort is exposed, the better to counteract their efforts.  Our decendants' judgement of them will be harsh indeed.
Posted by Hackwhackers at 12:31 PM No comments: Links to this post Labels: climate change deniers


Paul Ryan, Quietly Loving The Poor Mirroring the cynical "heartfelt interest" our local football team owner, Li'l Danny Snyder, is suddenly showing toward Native Americans (see post below), we're also being informed (again and again) that Beltway media scrum fave Rep. Paul "Lyin'" Ryan (R- Galt's Gulch) has a quiet "heartfelt interest" in another forgotten segment of the population:

Ryan’s rebranding effort — sorry, his heartfelt interest — is inevitably described as “quiet.” Ryan “has spent the past year quietly touring impoverished communities across the country,” reports Coppins. A similar reported piece in National Review last June detailed “Ryan’s quiet pitch to the poor.” As did a Washington Post story last month(“Ryan … has been quietly visiting inner-city neighborhoods”). Coppin’s story quotes a skeptic, but adopts an almost perfect credulous tone.

It might seem odd that Ryan’s determination to keep his love of the poor quiet would nevertheless leak out in the media, over and over again. “Ryan has deliberately left the cameras behind during his excursions to poor neighborhoods this year in places like Indiana and New Jersey,” reports Coppins, “but the stories of his interactions with the poor somehow find a way of leaking into public view.” Somehow. The stories find a way. Because stories, far from being inanimate human creations, as you might think, actually have minds of their own and a willpower so fierce they can defy even the most secrecy-minded spinmeister.

Is there any politician who gets more undeserved attention than the "zombie-eyed granny-starver" from Wisconsin (o.k., but Grampypants McCain is at a whole different level of media obsequiousness)?  Is there any other politician who can get away with supporting cuts to the food stamp program and cutting off unemployment insurance and still be portrayed as having concern for the poor?  Is there more credulous a person than a reporter dutifully "exposing" the cynical "heartfelt interest" of an Ayn Rand acolyte in the plight of the poor?

(Photo:  Ryan washing already-washed soup kitchen dishes in a photo-op during the 2012 campaign.)
Posted by W. Hackwhacker at 11:19 AM No comments: Links to this post Labels: mainstream media, Rep. Paul Ryan, Rep. Paul Ryan's hypocrisy

Li'l Danny Snyder Would NEVER Do Anything Self-Serving! In the wake of the firestorm surrounding the use of a racial slur as the name of the Washington football team, team owner and marketing magnate Li'l Danny Snyder has apparently been making "secret" trips to Native American tribal areas.  Not that he wants that to be known, oh no!

First off:  Wait -- Li'l Danny Snyder has a friend?  Who knew?!

One thing is sure:  Li'l Danny and his p.r. ass-kissers know how to plant a story (and, by the way, we're getting a lot of satisfaction from reading this transparent hokum and knowing that it's exactly "for material reasons" he's had this leaked to the once great Washington Post Bezos Bugle).  Because of Li'l Danny's typically ham-handed mishandling of the issue of his football team's name (not to mention it's football operations), he's desperately trying to change the subject from his racial insensitivity to his heretofore well-hidden appreciation for the plight of Native Americans.  Is anyone who has the slightest knowledge about how Li'l Danny operates buying that?
Posted by W. Hackwhacker at 10:21 AM No comments: Links to this post Labels: Daniel Snyder

Friday, December 20, 2013

Today's Dispatch From The Stupid Party - Special "Duck!" Edition Could-be Civil War re-enactor (Gen. Jubilation T. Cornpone?) and wingnut martyr du jour  Phil "Ducked Up" Robertson has been getting a lot of atta boys from large segments of the petri dish that is the Republican right these days.  Illinois Republican candidate for Congress for the 11th District Ian Bayne thinks Robertson merits a place in the pantheon of civil rights heroes:

"In December 1955, Rosa Parks took a stand against an unjust societal persecution of black people, and in December 2013, Robertson took a stand against persecution of Christians," Bayne wrote in the email. "What Parks did was courageous."

Bayne added in the email that "what Robertson did was courageous too."

"...[A] stand against the persecution of Christians."  Funny, we thought Robertson "took a stand" against the "sin" of homosexuality (with lots of graphic detail and couching it in ersatz Biblical babble).  But when you're desperate and stone stupid like Bayne and his fellow frothing cretins are, a faux persecution complex might be your last refuge.  Oh, you might also want to stop trying to appropriate legitimate heroes to prop up your run- of- the- mill homophobes and racists.  (Also:  how's that Republican/ New Confederate/ Stupid Party rebranding coming along?)

Meanwhile, Stephen Colbert has his inimitable take on the "backwoods Louisiana bird-murderer:"

Posted by W. Hackwhacker at 5:13 PM No comments: Links to this post Labels: Duck Dynasty, Ian Bayne, Phil Robertson, republican rebranding, Stupid Party

Economy Showing Stronger Recovery in Third Quarter

Good news on the economy:

The upward revisions also extended to exports and suggested some underlying strength in the economy, even though growth in the quarter was largely driven by a buildup in inventories.

The report was supportive of the Federal Reserve's decision this week to reduce by $10 billion from January the $85 billion it is pumping into the economy each month through bond purchases.

"The underlying momentum in economic activity shifted up a gear in the third quarter," said Millan Mulraine, deputy chief U.S. economist at TD Securities in New York. "The strength in domestic consumption and investment activity points to a more constructive narrative on growth than previously thought."

Gross domestic product grew at a 4.1 percent annual rate instead of the 3.6 percent pace reported earlier this month, the Commerce Department said in its third estimate. [our emphasis]

We're sure this will be the lead story on all the network news tonight =crickets chirping=.
Posted by W. Hackwhacker at 3:12 PM No comments: Links to this post Labels: economic recovery

Weekend Song

We're coming back again to this Christmas classic by Nat King Cole, "The Christmas Song."  Even though we're expecting record warm temperatures for the upcoming weekend in the Middle Atlantic states, we're told the forecast for Christmas is a more seasonal 40 degrees F.   So, enjoy the song and the fire. Labels: Nat King Cole

Ducked Up Cartoon of the Day
 It looks like the right-wing's new "martyr", Duck Dynasty's Bible-pounding homophobe Phil "Ducked Up" Robertson, has a problem with today's uppity blacks, too.  Apparently, it's only since the Civil Rights movement that "the blacks" have been "singing the blues."  They were happier in good ol' Dixie of yesteryear, according to Ducked Up.   Anyone surprised?

(cartoon:  Jack Ohman, Sacramento Bee, via Gocomics.com) Labels: cartoon of the day, Duck Dynasty

State Health Exchange Enrollments Surge

State health insurance exchanges created under the Affordable Care Act are experiencing a surge in enrollments, according to reports.  Monday is the deadline for enrollment in a health plan for it to take effect on January 1, and many are rushing to sign up:  California reports 50,000 new enrollees in the first week of December, New York is averaging 4,500 enrollees per day, and overall States are reporting from 30 to 40 percent increases in enrollments.

This promising news comes at the same time that the Administration is responding to nervous Democratic Senators who asked for a temporary exemption to the individual mandate for those who lost their insurance because their plans did not meet the minimum standards under the ACA.  Some 500,000 people who had their policies cancelled will be able to get bare-bones coverage under a hardship provision.
Posted by Hackwhackers at 10:26 AM No comments: Links to this post Labels: State health insurance exchanges reporting upsurge in Dec. 2013


Hacks On Parade Despite the title of our blog, we defer to Salon's Alex Pareene in calling out and demolishing hacks with his annual hacktastic top ten "Hack List".  His top ten reads like a who's who of the courtier press:  Mark Halperin, David Brooks, and Peggy Noonan, among others. The most entertaining thing about Pareene's takedowns is that he writes them in the "voice" and style of the "honoree."  Take that!  Bwahaha.  It's definitely worth a read.

Grabbing the number one spot on this year's list is undoubtedly the most corrupt hack in the Beltway hackosphere:  Politico's Mike Allen.  Allen has been called out for essentially trading mentions in his "Playbook" for access to "insider" information and for fluffing his advertisers' causes (i.e., the corporate community) without any critical examination of their claims.  Then there's the symbiotic relationship Allen has with MSNBC's Joe "Joe Scar" Scarborough:  in return for frequent, inexplicable mentions of Joe Scar in "Playbook," Allen gets to appear frequently on the "Morning Joe" gossip fest.  Journalamism…it's what keeps our nation's politics crippled.

(photo: The "winner.")
Posted by Hackwhackers at 1:42 PM No comments: Links to this post Labels: Mike Allen of Politico, Salon's Alex Pareene's hack of the year 2013

Clueless Quote of the Day

"It is a messed up situation when Miley Cyrus gets a laugh, and Phil Robertson gets suspended." --  Louisiana Gov. Piyush "Bobby" Jindal (Stupid Party - LA), commenting on "Duck Dynasty" character Phil Robertson's ugly homophobic comments in a recent GQ magazine interview.  Robertson has been suspended from the program by the A&E network as a result.

Now, while Miley Cyrus' twerking of Robin Thicke and other age-inappropriate antics are cringeworthy, the only thing she may have offended (so far) are peoples' tastes.  Robertson's bigoted comments about an entire community could have been made by any thug out looking for a gay person to beat up.  "Bobby" Jindal should know the difference, and might want to consider that once he's out of hearing distance from people like the Robertsons, they probably have some choice slurs about him, too.
Posted by Hackwhackers at 11:36 AM No comments: Links to this post Labels: Gov. Bobby Jindal, quote of the day, Stupid Party

Wednesday, December 18, 2013

It's Official: Democrats Sweep Virginia

Virginia Republican Mark Obenshain conceded the race for Attorney General tonight, giving Democrats a sweep of the top three offices in the Commonwealth of Virginia for the first time since 1989.  Democrats Terry McAuliffe and Ralph Northam were elected as Governor and Lt. Governor, respectively, in November.   Democrat Mark Herring had led the vote count by 165 votes out of more than 2 million cast when Obenshain asked for the recount.  During the recount, which began this past Monday, Herring's lead over Obenshain increased to over 800.
Posted by W. Hackwhacker at 5:44 PM No comments: Links to this post Labels: Democrats sweep Virginia elections, republican rebranding

Are There No Workhouses? News item:

Also: how's that Republican rebranding coming along?
Posted by W. Hackwhacker at 5:26 PM No comments: Links to this post Labels: manual labor for low-income children at school, Rep. Jack Kingston, Republican values

Ding-Dong. Child Porn Vice Squad Calling

It no longer surprises:

A 46-year-old Michigan member of the group Tea Party Patriots was named Tuesday in a criminal complaint on charges of distributing and receiving illicit photos and video of children. According to The Smoking Gun, Brian Schwanke is accused of using the email account “email@example.com" to send and receive hundreds of provocative images of underage children.

TSG detailed how as recently as last week, Schwanke was ranting on his Facebook page about President Barack Obama’s behavior during a portion of the funeral for South Africa’s Nelson Mandela.  [snip]

Schwanke’s profile — which has now been either deleted or made private — proclaimed that the U.S. “WAS founded on a CHRISTIAN foundation, and the progressive, atheist left is running us into the ground to create a Socialist country that will fall like all the others.”  [our emphasis]

Too bad.  With his credentials, he would've been a natural as Republican Sen. Lamar Alexander's chief of staff.
Posted by W. Hackwhacker at 4:24 PM No comments: Links to this post Labels: Brian Schwanke, child pornography, sex predators, Tea Party

Mid-Week Song

Irish singer/songwriter Enya (born Enya Brennan) has won multiple Grammy awards for her blend of Celtic folk and new age styles.  With many parts of the country covered with a blanket of fresh snow, Enya's "Amid the Falling Snow" seems like a good mid-week, pre-Christmas song choice.  Enjoy. Labels: Enya, Mid-Week Song

And The Winner Is... The Poynter Institute, a non-profit school for journalism, has named the "60 Minutes" fairytale on Benghazi! BENGHAZI!! as journalism's "Error of the Year".  Reporter and home wrecker Lara Logan and her producer on the story were asked by CBS News to take an indefinite leave of absence over the debacle. ("Indefinite" for CBS means that she'll be back early next year, according to reports.  Maybe they'll assign her to stories about the evils of Obamacare).

Runner up was the right-wing New York Post's cover picture of two innocent youths with the caption "Bag Men," stating that the FBI was looking for them in connection with the Boston Marathon bombing last spring.  The youths are suing the paper for libel, invasion of privacy, and negligent infliction of emotional distress.  We wish them great success.

(illustration:  Clay Bennett, Chattanooga Times Free Press)
Posted by Hackwhackers at 9:56 AM No comments: Links to this post Labels: Journalism's Errors of the Year 2013

They'll Have A Gay Old Time

The U.S. delegation to the Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia will include two openly gay athletes, tennis great Billie Jean King, and women's hockey star Caitlin Cahow.  Neither the President and First Lady, nor the Vice President will be attending the opening ceremonies, a clear rebuke to Russia's harsh, homophobic policies and laws, enthusiastically pushed by Russian President Vladimir Putin.  Instead, the U.S. delegation will be led by former Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano and other dignitaries.

It is uncertain whether hostile Russians or Russian security services will create an incident in Sochi with our athletes or athletes of other nations who may have gay or lesbian athletes representing them.  What is certain is that gay and lesbian athletes will win medals during the games, just not for Russia.  It's their loss in more ways than one.
Posted by Hackwhackers at 9:28 AM No comments: Links to this post Labels: Russian homophobia, Sochi winter olympics

Tuesday, December 17, 2013

War on Christmas, The Santa Skirmish, Cont.

As we noted a few days ago, if it's Christmas, Fox "News" is inventing a war on same.  This year, Megyn Kelly was among the first to step in it (and by "it" we mean the stuff on the floor in the manger).  After a nopology in which she asserted she was just kidding about Santa Claus being white (But Jesus definitely was!  It's a fact, Jack!), Jon Stewart had this in reply, after the ad: Labels: Fox's War on Christmas nonsense, Jon Stewart, Megyn Kelly

The "Gift" That Keeps On Giving

The war in Iraq, launched by the Bushies and their neocon cohort under false pretenses and cherry-picked "intelligence" about WMD and Saddam Hussein's supposed links to 9-11, is still haunting the region, even long after U.S. combat troops have withdrawn.  Al Qaeda has grown in power, while Sunni/Shia sectarian violence is on the upswing, and Iran's influence in Iraq and throughout the region has grown despite U.S./European Union sanctions.

Former Secretary of State Colin Powell warned Dumbya and The Dick before the ill-fated war in Iraq was launched that, "if you break it, you own it."  It's a shame that the "ownership" didn't end with Dumbya and his neocon cohort.  We -- and the Iraqi people -- are still owning it.
Posted by Hackwhackers at 1:58 PM No comments: Links to this post Labels: Aftermath of the Iraq War

Missy's Sagging Poll Numbers

A new poll indicates that Senate Minority Leader and human-turtle hybrid Sen. Mitch "Missy" McConnell is running neck-and--neck with President Obama in Kentucky as far as their approval.  While it's no surprise that the President's approval rating isn't great in conservative Kain-tuck, it's absolutely wonderful that Missy McConnell's are dropping like a sack of rocks in a lake.

Missy is facing a teabagger challenge in the Rethuglican primary this spring, so his Dem challenger, Kentucky Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes, is looking better and better as a real underdog possiblilty for unseating Missy as his "brand" is further diminished and as the wingnuts are divided.
Posted by Hackwhackers at 1:35 PM No comments: Links to this post Labels: McConnell's poll numbers dropping in Kentucky

Monday, December 16, 2013

Centerfold Folds In Massachusetts Massachusetts teabagger pinup former Sen. Scott "Centerfold" Brown is reported to be moving to New Hampshire, perhaps in order to establish residency to challenge Dem Sen. Jeanne Shaheen in the next election.  Centerfold Brown, who was unsuccessful in defending his Senate seat from Sen. Elizabeth Warren, apparently believes the voters of New Hampshire like carpetbaggers from Massachusetts over their own citizens.  Should Centerfold Brown actually run, it will be a challenge for him to keep the misogynist rhetoric under control;  he had several sexist statements in his campaign against Sen. Warren that cost him swing votes.

BONUS:  Even some wingnuts find Brown's running for office in New Hampshire, uh, revolting.

(photo:  New Hampshire dreamin')
Posted by Hackwhackers at 5:30 PM No comments: Links to this post Labels: Scott Brown moving to New Hampshire

Paul Ryan Haz A Idea In the days following the budget deal negotiated in the House, the usual Beltway lap dogs have been hailing Rep. Paul "Lyin'" Ryan as the man who stood up to the Tea Party.  One such tongue bath appeared in today's once great Washington Post Bezos Bugle, authored by Republican-wired Chris Cillizza, who is under the delusion that Idea Man Ryan is heir to Idea Man Newt Gingrich --  LOL -- though we would offer that Ryan is more the heir of Gingrich in the sense that both are "what a stupid man's idea of what a smart person sounds like" (credit: Paul Krugman).   But no sooner had Ryan established his creds as the man who stood up to the Tea Party than he promptly sat down to the Tea Party:

We as a caucus -- along with our Senate counterparts -- are going to meet and discuss what it is we're going to want out of the debt limit. We don't want nothing out of this debt limit. We're going to decide what it is we're going to accomplish out of this debt limit fight...We're going to meet in our retreats after the holidays and discuss exactly what it is we're going to try to get for this.  [our emphasis]

To which the great Charles P. Pierce responds:

It is helpful to remember that "getting something" out of allowing the government to pay its bills is not the way the Congress operated until Republicans like Paul Ryan got a hold of the House Of Representatives and turned it into a shakedown palace. The only thing to be "gotten" out of raising the debt ceiling was the fact that the world economy was not allowed to crash. This is our government and our bills to pay and our economy if it bellies up so, therefore, it is our debt limit. It is not the property of the Republican House, or of Paul Ryan, Serious Man Of Ideas, to turn into a ransom note every year. They might has well just barricade the House side of the Capitol and string C-4 in the halls.

So, the hostage-takers are coming at us again, led by the Idea Man, whose big idea is apparently to threaten to default on U.S. Government obligations in order to accomplish... what?

We all [Ryan and the Tea Party] believe the same thing with respect to our ultimate goal.  With the budget I passed in March, that's what I really want.  Balance the budget, pay off the debt, don't raise taxes.

Translation:  The rich get to keep their tax cuts, the poor and middle class get to keep their social safety net cuts.  See?!  Everyone has their cuts to bear!

Posted by W. Hackwhacker at 10:29 AM No comments: Links to this post Labels: Rep. Paul Ryan, Republican values

Today's Tomorrow Cartoon
 Maybe it was low-information voter Joe the (not a real) Plumber's modest success during the 2008 elections that sparked the imagination of the right-wing's money men to put a "populist" front on their 1% agenda.  They could certainly round up enough wingnuts, bigots and the like to form rallies, if there were the logistics provided to make it happen (money for organizing, buses, banners, loudspeakers, platforms, etc.).  It worked well enough to elect a tea bagger House in 2010, and to scare the shorts off of Rethuglican office holders.  But with the declining popularity of the teabaggers and multiple election losses recently, the magic is gone.

(cartoon:  Tom Tomorrow)
Posted by Hackwhackers at 10:18 AM No comments: Links to this post Labels: Millionaires behind the Tea Party, tea party opposition to affordable care act

Joan Fontaine 1917-2013 One of the last remaining stars from Hollywood's Golden Age, Joan Fontaine, has died at the age of 96.  In 1941, Ms. Fontaine won an Academy Award for her role in Alfred Hitchcock's "Suspicion," co-starring with Cary Grant.  Her breakout role was in the 1939 movie "The Women," when she held her own amidst a cast including Joan Crawford, Norma Shearer, Paulette Goddard and Rosalind Russell.  Other notable films included 1940's "Rebecca,"  1943's "Jane Eyre," and 1952's "Ivanhoe."

In addition to her acting, Ms. Fontaine was a certified pilot and balloonist, as well as a Cordon Bleu chef and licensed interior decorator.  Unfortunately, she was involved in a nearly life-long feud with her famous surviving sister, Academy Award winner Olivia de Havilland (97) of whom she said, "I married first, won the Oscar before Olivia did, and if I die first, she'll undoubtedly be livid because I beat her to it!"
Posted by W. Hackwhacker at 9:08 AM No comments: Links to this post Labels: Joan Fontaine

Sunday, December 15, 2013

Peter O'Toole 1932-2013 The fine actor Peter O'Toole has died at the age of 81 after a long illness.  He was perhaps best known for his portrayal of  T.E. Lawrence in 1962's "Lawrence of Arabia."

O'Toole was nominated for eight Academy Awards for his roles in "Lawrence of Arabia," "Becket" (1964), "The Lion In Winter" (1968), "Goodbye, Mr. Chips" (1969), "The Ruling Class" (1972), "The Stunt Man" (1980), "My Favorite Year" (1982) and "Venus" (2006). He allegedly holds the record for the most Academy Award acting nominations without a win. O'Toole won four Golden Globes, a BAFTA and an Emmy, and was the recipient of an Honorary Academy Award in 2003.

O'Toole was in the vanguard of a breed of Irish and British actors that burst into stardom on stage and screen in the late 1950's and early 1960's, including friends Albert Finney, Alan Bates, Richard Burton and Richard Harris.

Posted by W. Hackwhacker at 6:51 PM No comments: Links to this post Labels: Peter O'Toole

Sunday Cartoons - Income Inequality
 (Ben Sargent, Austin American-Statesman) 
Also, please take a look at Paul Krugman's essay on income inequality today;  also, Joan Walsh on our low-wage economy.
Posted by W. Hackwhacker at 10:57 AM No comments: Links to this post Labels: income inequality

Saturday, December 14, 2013

War on Christmas, Cont.

Here's how Fox "News" would promote the classic "It's A Wonderful Life" (via Jimmy Kimmel Live and The Raw Story).  Hilarious.

Posted by W. Hackwhacker at 12:01 PM No comments: Links to this post Labels: Fox News, Fox peddles war on Christmas false controversy

War On Christmas, The Santa Skirmish The Fux Channel's expert on Santa Claus, Megyn Kelly, recently argued that, historically speaking, Santa Claus is decidedly white (so let's have no more black Santas taking the Christmas wishes of black kids, shall we!)  While we'd think that they'd have more important things to talk about on Fux, it does fit in with their War on Christmas canard.  So yes, Megyn, the modern version of Santa is white as snow, but the historical character he's modeled after was St. Nicholas of Myra from what is now a province of Turkey, so he was less Nordic and more Middle Eastern in appearance (see 13th century depiction above).

Kelly's whole racially-skewed comments drew the satire of Stephen Colbert and Jon Stewart, to wit:

Megyn Kelly: For all you kids watching at home, Santa just is white.
Stephen Colbert: Yes. Thank you. For all those kids watching Fox News at 9:40 at night, Santa is white. Besides, a black Santa is a terrible idea. If a home owner in Florida sees a black man coming down their chimney, he is going to get shot. 'Officer, I was only defending my milk and cookies!'" ---The Colbert Report

Jon Stewart:  Santa is just white? Who are you actually talking to? Children who are sophisticated enough to be watching a news channel at 10 o'clock at night, yet innocent enough to still believe Santa Claus is real, yet racist enough to be freaked out if he isn’t white. ---The Daily Show

Can't top that.

UPDATE:  Last night, Kelly claimed it was all an attempt at humor! Hee-haw!  Riiiiight!
Posted by Hackwhackers at 11:17 AM No comments: Links to this post Labels: Fox's War on Christmas nonsense, Megyn Kelly

Saturday Cartoon - The Hope and The Reality

The budget deal reached in the House this past week has led some to express hope that parts of the Obama Administration agenda (notably immigration reform) will be taken up next year.  Count us as skeptical.  Betraying its nativist base on an issue of the magnitude of immigration reform is likely a barrier too high to surmount for what passes as the Republican "leadership."
 Posted by W. Hackwhacker at 11:11 AM No comments: Links to this post Labels: immigration reform, immigration reform obstruction

Friday, December 13, 2013

A Year Later

With tomorrow being one year to the day after 20 school children and 6 school workers were killed at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, CT, we have this.   And it's not just tomorrow and its awful anniversary.  Here's what gun violence is doing to this nation's children while we go along with our daily routines:

- In the past year, there have been 27 school shootings.

- 194 children under the age of 12 were killed with a gun.

Think about that the next time you hear an N.R.A.-bought congressman or a pundit squawk about unfettered Second Amendment rights.  Gun control has to become the number one issue upon which the majority of Americans who favor restrictions cast their ballots, otherwise there will be no change.

Meanwhile, the gun nuts are fundraising off of the Sandy Hook tragedy.  There isn't a place in Hell hot enough for these parasites.
Posted by W. Hackwhacker at 4:41 PM No comments: Links to this post Labels: gun violence, Sandy Hook anniversary, shooting in Colorado school

Weekend Music

We featured this L.A.-based neo-soul/ alt rock group a few weeks ago.  Here's a song of theirs that's  more in the anthemic vein.  Hope you enjoy and enjoy your weekend.

Posted by W. Hackwhacker at 2:14 PM No comments: Links to this post Labels: Fitz and The Tantrums

Birthers Gone Wild An airplane crash in Hawaii last Wednesday took the life of Hawaii's Department of Health director Loretta Fuddy, who happened to be the official who authorized the release of President Obama's long form birth certificate.  Right on cue, the bugfuck crazy birther contingent sees a "conspiracy."   Of course, the nutty birther with the biggest megaphone, buffoon Donald "Rump" Trump was on it like stink on, well, Donald Trump.

We wish Ms. Fuddy would have died peacefully many years from now, but even then the birthers would see a "conspiracy" in her death.  They are obsessed to the point of monomania with President Obama's legitimacy because of -- let's be blunt -- his race, and this death of a public servant gives them yet another opportunity to wallow in their obsession, and to play the fools once again. Labels: Donald Trump's birtherism, Hawaii official's death renews birther craziness

Cartoon of the Day
 While many Congresscritters and Beltway pundits are cheering the budget deal, remember that 1.3 million Americans are about to lose their unemployment insurance.  Surely they could have found one gold-plated program or system to trim in order to afford a modest extension beyond Christmas, right?  Didn't happen.

(cartoon:  Stuart Carlson, via Gocomics.com)
Posted by Hackwhackers at 9:17 AM No comments: Links to this post Labels: cartoon of the day, long-term unemployed about to lose benefits

Thursday, December 12, 2013

The Republican War on Women - Wolverine! Edition From the great State of Michigan, the Great Republican White Fathers are back legislatin' on the women:

Michigan women will have to purchase a separate rider if they want their health insurance to pay for an abortion, after the state's Legislature on Wednesday banned most public and private plans from covering abortion as a medical procedure.

Women must buy the rider before they become pregnant in order to have abortion coverage, once the law goes into effect in March. Women who become pregnant through rape or incest must already have the rider in place for an abortion to be covered, leading some opponents to dub the riders, "rape insurance."[our emphasis]

The provision doesn't need the governor's signature to become law in March.  Opponents are mulling a petition to repeal the law.
Posted by W. Hackwhacker at 6:58 PM No comments: Links to this post Labels: Michigan "rape insurance", Republican war on women


"Embrace the suck."  -- House Democratic Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, reluctantly urging her Democratic House colleagues to support the Ryan/Murray budget proposal which has very little to offer in the way of Dem priorities, but is driving the tea bagger members of Congress off the deep end.

UPDATE:  The suck is embraced.  The measure passes the House by an overwhelming, bipartisan vote of 332 - 94.
Posted by Hackwhackers at 6:04 PM No comments: Links to this post Labels: Nancy Pelosi urges Dem support of 2014-2015 budget proposal

The Far-Right's Revolt Now that man-on-the-make Rep. Paul "Lyin'" Ryan has unveiled his "compromise" budget proposal -- which didn't go far enough to satisfy the far-right's blood lust for gutting the social safety net and programs for the working poor -- Ryan and the Congressional Rethuglican establishment is taking major heat from the wingnut Wurlitzer organizations.  When Weeper of the House John "Mr. Tangerine Man" Boehner snapped at the far-right organizations at his press conference yesterday (and again today), they weren't pleased.  They're not used to having their employees speak up.

Organizations like Heritage Action, Freedom Works, Americans for Prosperity and dozens like them exist to raise money off of the goobers that think America is going to hell in a hand basket because of the Marxist Fascist Monarchist Kenyan in the White House.   That money, plus the substantial funds provided by some of the Kochs and Adelsons of the world, then is used as campaign leverage to get the Rethug politicians to toe the far-right line:  deep tax cuts on upper income earners, gutting environmental and safety regulations, and laws that aim to roll back civil and voting rights.

The revolt of these influence groups couldn't come at a better time before the 2014 mid-term elections.  Already tea bagger candidates are challenging conservative Senators and Congressmen who aren't crazy right-wing enough, or have violated some purity test.  Let the games begin.
Posted by Hackwhackers at 2:26 PM No comments: Links to this post Labels: Right wing anger erupts at Paul Ryan's budget deal


"Neville Chamberlain Shook Hands With Hitler"

That was nasty old grump Sen. John McCain (R - Bitterland) commenting on President Obama's handshake with Cuban dictator Raul Castro at Nelson Mandela's memorial service yesterday.  Apparently missing Mandela's message of reconciling with your enemies, ol' Grumpypants would have snubbed the handshake for domestic political points had he been (heaven forbid) elected President, which he will forever believe was his destiny until that black man came along.

But wait, who's this grizzled old dude shaking the hand of and BOWING to the late, bloody dictator Muammar Qaddafi?  Why it's old Grumpypants himself!  Darn those newfangled picture-taking thingys!  Well, at least it's not Hitler, right? Posted by Hackwhackers at 5:33 PM No comments: Links to this post Labels: McCain criticizes Obama for shaking Raul Castro's hand when he shook Gaddafi's

Ding-Dong. Postal Inspectors' Child Porn Squad Calling!

You know us well enough to know any further comment on this news item would be superfluous (but if we did, it would go like this):

The home of the chief of staff to Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) was searched by law enforcement officials in connection with a child pornography investigation, the Tennessee Republican said Wednesday.

Ryan Loskarn, who was named Alexander's chief of staff in 2011, has been placed on administrative leave without pay, according to a statement from Alexander.

“I am stunned, surprised and disappointed by what I have learned," Alexander said. "The office is fully cooperating with the investigation."

Posted by W. Hackwhacker at 4:13 PM No comments: Links to this post Labels: Republican family values, Sen. Lamar Alexander's chief of staff investigated for child porn

Look Who's Enrolled In Obamacare!

Three of the 1.2 million (!) people who have enrolled themselves in Obamacare to date may surprise you:

Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Florida) signed his family up on the federal healthcare exchange and has opted to take a federal subsidy offered to lawmakers and staff, the Tampa Bay Times reports.

"Senator Rubio spent time looking at all the options and decided to enroll through the D.C. exchange for coverage for him and his family," Rubio's spokeswoman Brooke Sammon told the Times, adding that "Senator Rubio is following the law, even though he opposes it."

The Washington Post notes that Rubio's fellow 2016 GOP presidential prospects Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) and Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) have also joined the D.C. exchange.

But they don't want you to have it!
Posted by W. Hackwhacker at 4:02 PM No comments: Links to this post Labels: Rep. Paul Ryan, Sen. Marco Rubio, Sen. Rand Paul

Time's Person of the Year Not Time's Person of the Year:  Rhode Island Bishop Thomas Tobin, self-identified registered Republican and critic of Pope Francis' emphasis on socio-economic issues, etc. over contraception, women's reproductive rights, and marriage equality.

Sadly, there are many Thomas Tobins in the American Catholic hierarchy, appointed leftovers from the time of conservative Popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI.  As more people are drifting back to the Church as a result of Pope Francis' message of inclusion and humility, right-wing Bishops are stuck in the political narratives of the last century.
Posted by Hackwhackers at 3:18 PM No comments: Links to this post Labels: Pope Francis named Time's Person of the Year

The Budget "Deal"

Ezra Klein has a good wrap-up of the most important points of the budget deal announced yesterday.  It's a two-year deal covering FY 2014 -2015 that doesn't touch entitlement "reform" or raise general tax revenues.  It rearranges the sequestration cuts to be less painful to the Defense Department, and requires higher user fees on airline tickets and socks the Federal employees with higher contributions to their retirement.  Sadly, it doesn't resolve the issue of extending unemployment insurance for the long-term unemployed, who will get their lump of coal from the Rethuglican House right before Christmas.

The deal now goes to the Senate and House for a vote, so it remains to be seen whether the crazies on the right will accept a deal that doesn't shred the social safety net and shovel more tax cuts to their plutocrat patrons.

BONUS:  Weigel has some of the rumblings in the Republican caucus here, here, and here.
Posted by Hackwhackers at 10:01 AM No comments: Links to this post Labels: FY 2014-2015 budget deal announced

Mid-Week Madiba Song

South Africa's a cappella group Ladysmith Black Mambazo joins with London's Mint Juleps to sing "The Lion Sleeps Tonight (Mbube)," the classic Zulu folk song made popular in the U.S. in 1961 by The Tokens.  Rest in peace Nelson Mandela. Labels: Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Mid-Week Song

Tuesday, December 10, 2013

From The Music Desk…. We stumbled upon this item about a new Neil Young recording, "Live at the Cellar Door," which brings back memories for those who were in the D.C. area circa the late 1960s and 1970s.  The Cellar Door was a music club in Georgetown for, at first, folk acts, and then other acts who were comfortable playing in a room that barely seated 200 patrons.  Artists like Joni Mitchell, John Denver, The Byrds, Miles Davis and many others performed there, often for multiple nights.  Regulars Bill and Taffy Danoff (of the Starland Vocal Band) wrote "Take Me Home Country Roads" while working there, and let John Denver record it -- his most recognizable hit recording.  (The song was inspired, by the way, not by West Virginia's beauty, but by a drive along the side roads of western Montgomery County, Maryland).

Sadly, the Cellar Door closed back in 1981, but Neil Young's recording is a wonderful tribute by a great artist to a great, intimate venue for music.
Posted by Hackwhackers at 2:52 PM No comments: Links to this post Labels: Cellar Door, Neil Young

Talkin' To Wymmen - A "Republican Instructional Video"

Posted by W. Hackwhacker at 1:25 PM No comments: Links to this post Labels: republican rebranding, Republican values, Republican war on women

N.R.A. Stooge Stockman Challenging Establishment Stooge Cornyn Getting in just at the deadline, N.R.A. stooge Rep. Steve "My Gun Is My Manhood" Stockman (Tin Foil Hat - TX) filed papers to challenge Sen. John "All Hat, No Cattle" Cornyn in the Republican/ New Confederate/ Stupid Party primary next year.  Tea party hero Stockman will be running to the right (!) of Cornyn, which should mean we'll be treated to a "how insane can you get" primary.  Stockman, of course, is known for his stunts rather than for doing anything productive (the perfect tea party guy, in other words), such as inviting Ted "Crap Pants Fever" Nugent as his guest at the 2012 State of the Union address, and for seeing how much he could afflict and shame poor people receiving assistance from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).

Cornyn is well-known as a political weathervane and a weasel, so a change out from Cornyn to Stockman, which is unlikely at this point but not out of the question (this is Texas we're talking about here), would be tantamount to exchanging a coward for a crackpot.  (It's not like Cornyn didn't see this coming, but he chose to try to appease the furthest, most fetid swamps of the Republican base, which is looking like more and more a futile exercise for the "establishment wing" of the party.)

(Photo:  Three Stooges, minus one.)
Posted by W. Hackwhacker at 12:08 PM No comments: Links to this post Labels: Rep. Steve Stockman, Sen. John Cornyn, Texas primary

Today's Cartoon
 (Nick Anderson, Houston Chronicle)

We're not naming any names, of course (=cough= McDonald's =cough= Walmart =cough=).
Posted by W. Hackwhacker at 11:29 AM No comments: Links to this post Labels: living wage, minimum wage battle


“It took a man like Madiba to free not just the prisoner, but the jailor as well, to show that you must trust others so that they may trust you, to teach that reconciliation is not a matter of ignoring a cruel past, but a means of confronting it with inclusion, generosity and truth. He changed laws, but he also changed hearts.”  -- President Obama, speaking in South Africa at today's memorial for the late Nelson Mandela.  Leaders from around the world -- including former Presidents Bush, Clinton and Carter -- are paying tribute to the iconic liberator of South Africa.  Mandela's burial will be on December 15 in his family's village. Labels: Obama eulogizes Nelson Mandela, quote of the day

Monday, December 9, 2013

Hypocrite of the Day - Posthumous Grifter Edition Lots of Koreans in the news today.  Turns out the late Rev. Sun Myung Moon, "messiah," funder of right-wing causes, founder of the Unification Church and the "Wingnut Washington Times" has a 47-year-old love child.  Family values!

(Photo:   Messiah been messing!)
Posted by W. Hackwhacker at 4:50 PM No comments: Links to this post Labels: Rev. Sun Myung Moon, Unification Church, washington times

Pyongyang Family Values The boy-tyrant of North Korea, Kim Jong Un has sacked his own uncle (by marriage) from positions of leadership, including the North Korean Army and its Worker's Party.  The uncle, Jang Song Thaek, had been considered the mentor of the North Korean leader when he assumed control of North Korea after his father's death in 2011.  He was accused of corruption, womanizing, and numerous other charges, and yesterday was arrested and physically removed from a large assembly of the Worker's Party.  He's also been airbrushed out of official photos, and deleted from political documentaries in North Korea, "non-person status" which usually means that he'll be harvesting rocks for the rest of his life at best.

Along with his nuclear saber-rattling and unpredictable actions, Kim Jong Un has now demonstrated that immediate family aren't immune from his bizarre behavior.  Family gatherings must be tense to say the least.

(photo:  Jang Song Thaek being led away to more Spartan accommodations.  Courtesy Yonghap/Agence France-Presse)
Posted by Hackwhackers at 11:48 AM No comments: Links to this post Labels: Kim Jong Un sacks own uncle

Medicaid Expansion and "The Wingnut Hole"

The refusal of most Republican-led States to go along with Obamacare's Medicaid expansion will lead to citizens in those States losing in more ways than one:

Not expanding Medicaid is not a rational decision for any state. But there are some very big losers: Texas ($9.6 billion), Florida ($5 billion), Georgia ($2.9 billion), Virginia ($2.8 billion) and North Carolina ($2.6 billion). The citizens of those states will continue to "bear a significant share of the overall cost of the expansion through federal tax payments," the report says, while they will "not enjoy any of the benefits."

Bringing it down to the real world, where interest in Obamacare is growing:

...[T]hat robust interest has a downside: Navigators are forced to tell more and more people that they probably won't be able to get covered because their states, all of which had a GOP-controlled legislative chamber or governor, have refused to expand Medicaid. Lynne Thorp, who is overseeing the University of South Florida's navigator program in that state, told TPM that about one in four people who contact her team fall into that Medicaid gap.

"Those are hardest phone calls because it doesn't make any sense to them," Thorp said. "We have to explain that they fall into this gap where this program can't assist them."

It makes sense if you look at the numbers. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, 38 percent of the U.S. uninsured have an income that's below the poverty line -- the population that won't qualify for either Medicaid expansion or any financial help to purchase private coverage through the law in non-expanding states. About 5 million people fall in that gap in those states.  (our emphasis)

Democrats should be driving home the point to every one of those citizens caught in "the wingnut hole*" that the refusal to expand Medicaid in their State and, hence, their failing to qualify either for Medicaid or for financial help under Obamacare was a conscious political decision by the callous Social Darwinists and Ayn Rand disciples calling themselves the Republican Party these days.  We think it's yet more proof that the American right is determined to fight its nihilistic political battles (see posts below) no matter who gets injured in the process.   That makes it a potent political issue for Democrats going into 2014.

*Credit Ed Kilgore, Washington Monthly.
Posted by W. Hackwhacker at 11:09 AM No comments: Links to this post Labels: medicaid expansion opposition, Republican values
 "I do support unemployment benefits for the 26 weeks that they're paid for. If you extend it beyond that, you do a disservice to these workers.  When you allow people to be on unemployment insurance for 99 weeks, you're causing them to become part of this perpetual unemployed group in our economy."  -- Social Darwinist and son of a prosperous doctor/politician Sen. "Ayn" Rand Paul, on yesterday's -- what else? -- Fux News Sunday.

As noted in the post below, this, along with cutting food stamp funding, is an article of faith among right-wingers like Ayn Rand Paul.  But here are the facts, courtesy of Business Insider's Joe Weisenthal.  Bottom line is that assuming the unemployed need termination of unemployment insurance to get "incentivized" to get off their butts and get a job is ignorant and malicious.  It's about job creation, stupid.
Posted by Hackwhackers at 10:33 AM No comments: Links to this post Labels: quote of the day, Rand Paul opposes extension of unemployment benefits for long-term unemployed

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