RADAMISTO

THIS IS GREAT

2009-11-08T18:44:00.002-07:00

Jon Stewart mocks nutbag Glenn Beck and Saturday Night Live does the same to FAUX News. IF we can get the "wingers are hilariously krazy" meme into the American meme pool, we'll have taken a huge step toward neutralizing the Noise Machine.

I DIDN'T CHERRY-PICK THE VON MISES QUOTE

2009-11-08T17:35:00.003-07:00

Near the end of his book SOCIALISM, von Mises re-iterates his position on property and theft:

2 Violence and Authority
The attitude of mind which sees in private property a privilege of the owners is an echo from former periods in the history of property. All property ownership began with appropriation of ownerless things. The history of property passed through a period in which forcible dispossession of the owners was the rule. It is safe to say that the ownership of any piece of ground property can be traced back to seizure by violence.

I WONDER WHAT HAPPENED

2009-11-08T17:09:00.002-07:00

The GOP health care reform plan is a bad joke and I'm a little surprised at one omission: there's no requirement for insurance companies to take people with pre-existing conditions. Steve Benen points out that GOP heavyweights, such as Kyl and Boehner, were behind this mandate until a couple of days ago.

THE MEDIA WINGERS ARE LOUSY AT ELECTION PREDICTIONS

2009-11-08T13:40:00.004-07:00

(h/t Frank Rich)

On election day last November, I recall the radio gasbags urging the rubes to go vote because a GOP victory was in sight. They were terribly wrong then and haven't gotten much better.

Sean Hannity was pushing the meme that extremist Doug Hoffman was going win big in NY-23¹:

SEAN HANNITY, HOST: All right, it is election eve all across the country, and here in New York conservatives are preparing to take back the Republican Party. Now all eyes are focused on New York's 23rd District with the departure of liberal Republican candidate, Dede Scozzafava, has opened the door for conservative party candidate Doug Hoffman to ride a tidal wave of support, all the way to Washington, D.C.

Scozzafava's exit now leaves Hoffman to face Democrat Bill Owens, and Scozzafava was so liberal that she quickly endorsed the Democrat Owens and is reportedly making robocalls on his behalf.

But that is not stopping Hoffman. After racking up endorsements from former Alaska governor Sarah Palin, Minnesota governor Tim Pawlenty, and Fred and Jeri Thompson and many others, the latest Siena polls shows him leading Owens by five points ahead of tomorrow's election.

William "The Bloody" Kristol also thought Hoffman was going to win²:

BILL KRISTOL, EDITOR, "THE WEEKLY STANDARD": Well, this is a district that President Obama, candidate Obama carried by five points last year, exactly a year ago.

People forget this is a traditional Republican district. It has been going Democratic. Obama carried it. That's why they made John McHugh the incumbent secretary of the army.

This was an incredibly clever move by Rahm Emanuel to pluck a popular incumbent Republican out of the House and give him enough of an important job in the executive branch, and win this special election and get an extra Democratic Congressman.

Then we have the chaos of the Republican side, Scozzafava has to pull out. She then endorsed the Democrat. The real Republican, Hoffman, is running on the conservative line. And the absentee ballots that have already been cast for Scozzafava won't be counted for Hoffman. Nonetheless, Hoffman is likely to win.

It is really amazing. This is plus five Obama district, chaos on the Republican side, a respectable Democratic nominee, and the Democrat is going to lose, probably.

¹Fox News Network
November 2, 2009 Monday
SHOW: FOX HANNITY 9:00 PM EST
Conservatives Taking the GOP; Interview with Dick Morris
BYLINE: Sean Hannity
GUESTS: Jeri Thompson, Doug Hoffman, Fred Thompson, Dick Morris
SECTION: NEWS; Domestic
LENGTH: 3971 words

²Fox News Network
November 2, 2009 Monday
SHOW: FOX SPECIAL REPORT WITH BRET BAIER 6:40 PM EST
Fox News All-Stars
BYLINE: Charles Krauthammer, Juan Williams, Bill Kristol, Bret Baier
SECTION: NEWS; Domestic
LENGTH: 2534 words

WE NEED MORE THAN AWARD CAPS

2009-11-08T11:28:00.001-07:00

The entire malpractice system needs a thorough overhaul because it's NOT serving to improve medical practices. David Leonhardt in the NYT provides a couple of interesting numbers to back up this claim:

After reviewing thousands of patient records, medical researchers have estimated that only 2 to 3 percent of cases of medical negligence lead to a malpractice claim.

Medical errors happen more frequently here than in other rich countries, as the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation recently found.

THIS WAS A GIMME...

2009-11-07T16:39:00.001-07:00

Anyone familiar with the right-wing Noise Machine could've predicted that the tragedy at Ft. Hood would be spun into an attack on "political correctness" and that's exactly what's been happening. Even a former LTC joined in.

PAID LINKS?

2009-11-07T14:00:00.003-07:00

I've wondered how the Drudge Report makes money because it doesn't carry many ads and now I may have the answer: sources pay Drudge for links. Greg Beato at Soundbitten writes that Reuters seems to have paid both Drudgereport.com and Breitbart.com for links to Reuters news stories.

A PERFECT DOPE FOR THE RUBES

2009-11-07T12:56:00.002-07:00

Sarah Palin addressed a gathering of the forced-birth movement in Wisconsin and shared this little gem of paranoia:

Noting that there had been a lot of “change” of late, Palin recalled a recent conversation with a friend about how the phrase “In God We Trust” had been moved to the edge of the new coins.

“Who calls a shot like that?” she demanded. “Who makes a decision like that?”

She added: “It’s a disturbing trend.”

The implication is that the godless liberals were behind this change and even POLITICO can admit that this is wingnut BS:

But the new coins – concerns over which apparently stemmed from an email chain letter widely circulated among conservatives – were commissioned by the Republican-led Congress in 2005 and approved by President Bush.

ANOTHER GOP CHICKENHAWK

2009-11-07T11:46:00.003-07:00

Markos Moulitsos calls out out krazy Tom Tancredo on his lack of military service in a war he supported and little Tommie can't take it and walks off the show. It's pretty amazing how many chickenhawks are in the GOP. For reference purposes, here's the source about little Tommie and Vietnam:

Firebrand Tancredo puts policy over party line
By Anne C. Mulkern
Denver Post Staff Writer
Posted: 11/27/2005 01:00:00 AM MST
Updated: 09/04/2006 12:34:55 AM MDT

Born in 1945, "Tommy" Tancredo grew up in an Italian neighborhood in north Denver. His parents, he says, were apolitical.

As a Republican student activist, Tancredo spoke out in favor of the Vietnam War. After graduating from the University of Northern Colorado in June 1969, he became eligible to serve in Vietnam. Tancredo said he went for his physical, telling doctors he'd been treated for depression, and eventually got a "1-Y" deferment.

IF CANTOR DOESN'T END UP APOLOGIZING TO LIMBAUGH

2009-11-07T10:36:00.003-07:00

UPDATE: Here's a list of previous grovelers.

That would make him the first GOP pol or official this year who hasn't recanted. This is a little more interesting because Cantor is a rising star in the GOP Establishment. Let's see what happens next week.

Cantor Calls for Inclusive Party, Criticizes Limbaugh Rhetoric
By Lorraine Woellert
Nov. 7 (Bloomberg) -- The second-ranking Republican in the U.S. House, Eric Cantor, criticized some comments by talk-show host Rush Limbaugh as inappropriate and said his party needs to be inclusive.

“The Republican Party in its roots is a party of inclusion and we ought to be promoting that and making sure that voices are heard,” Cantor, of Virginia, said in an interview on Bloomberg Television’s “Political Capital with Al Hunt,” airing this weekend.

Cantor, when asked about Limbaugh’s comments that “Adolf Hitler, like Barack Obama, also ruled by dictate,” and his comparison of the administration’s health-care logo to a swastika, said the comparisons were wrong.

“Do I condone the mention of Hitler in any discussion about politics?” Cantor said. “No, I don’t, because obviously that is something that conjures up images that frankly are not, I think, very helpful.”

Cantor was critical of Republicans such as Representative Virginia Foxx of North Carolina, who called the Democratic health-care plan a greater threat to America than terrorists, and Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty, who took fellow Republican Olympia Snowe to task for voting with Democrats. Pawlenty later said the Maine senator is “absolutely welcome” in the party.

Cantor defended Snowe, saying she “is talking to Democrats the way she does a lot, the way we all do.”

PAT CADDELL IS A USEFUL IDIOT

2009-11-07T10:27:00.003-07:00

UPDATE: The WH denies making any threats.

Caddell is a fossil who has turned into a cranky conservative and ALWAYS blasts liberals when he appears on FAUX News, so it's no wonder he objects to the WH telling another Dem strategist not to appear on the propaganda network.

White House: FOX off-limits -- strategist
Posted November 6, 2009 11:04 AM
by Peter Nicholas
The Swamp

But Patrick Caddell, a Fox News contributor and a former pollster for Democratic President Jimmy Carter, said he has spoken to Democratic consultants who have been told by the White House to avoid appearances on Fox. He declined to give their names.

Caddell said he had not gotten that message himself from the White House. "They know better than to tell me anything like that,'' he said.

Caddell added: "I have heard that they've done that to others in not too subtle ways. I find it appalling. When the White House gets in the business of suppressing dissent and comment, particularly from its own party, it hurts itself.''

They know better because Caddell has gone over the cliff.

I GUESS WE JUST CAN'T STOP KILLING THE WRONG PEOPLE

2009-11-07T10:15:00.001-07:00

We've been killing Afghan civilians for years and this is only the latest in a tragic series of blunders that has turned the population against us. Note the choice of words by the Afghan spokesman.

Afghans killed during search for missing U.S. troops
Sat Nov 7, 2009 9:06am EST

KABUL (Reuters) - NATO forces mistakenly killed seven Afghan soldiers and police in an air strike during a battle while searching for two missing American soldiers in Afghanistan, the Afghan Defense Ministry said on Saturday.

"Yesterday, in a NATO air strike, seven Afghan (soldiers and police) were martyred in Badghis province," Afghan Defense Ministry spokesman General Zaher Azimy said.

STILL STUCK IN THE 60S

2009-11-06T05:02:00.002-07:00

I've written before that conservatives of a certain age are still angry about the hippies of the 60s and yesterday's Bachmann protest in DC provided a little more evidence. (via Greg Sargent)

Large chunks of Bachmann’s base are still culturally stuck in the 1960s. Perhaps the most interesting speaker of the day — one that drew loud, emotional cheers and boos — sounded tones that were completely indistinguishable from the hippie-bashers of 50 years ago.

The speaker was John Ratzenberger, a.k.a. Cliff Clavin (sigh). He told a tale that dripped with still-fresh resentment about how he was a techie building the stage at Woodstock — Woodstock! — when the rains came and the National Guard had to be called in to save the day. Clavin, still visibly angry, excoriated all the love children for bashing the military even as they relied on the military to save their precious, America-hating festival.

Clavin then drew a direct line from the sixties longhairs right to Nancy Pelosi and Obama, saying that our current leadership is culturally akin to “Wavy Gravy.” Gives you a strong sense of the cultural roots of today’s strain of angry, resentful Bachmannalia and Tea Party-ism. Are we really still fighting this battle?

The conservatives even have a modern novel, Mr. Sammler's Planet, that describes their fear of the Dirty Fucking Hippies.

NOT EXACTLY "WORD OF MOUTH"

2009-11-06T04:06:00.004-07:00

A lot of Bachmann's Baggers chanted "Kill the Bill" yesterday and there's no chance at all that this was spontaneous. Think Progress pointed out that the new site Don'tKillGrandma, an offshoot of FreedomWorks, instructed attendees in what to chant:

(Click on for larger image)

UH OH, TWO MORE MARXIST GROUPS

2009-11-06T03:29:00.004-07:00

UPDATE: (h/t Steve Benen) Make that 3 more because the American Cancer Society also supports the House bill.

THEY'RE EVERYWHERE!!!

AMA, AARP back House health care bill
November 6, 2009 4:09 a.m. EST

Washington (CNN) -- The push to overhaul health care received a major boost Thursday as the American Medical Association and AARP endorsed legislation drafted by top House Democrats.

IS IT WINGNUT OR IS IT SPONTANEOUS?

2009-11-06T02:52:00.002-07:00

On his radio show yesterday, Mark Levin claimed that the Bachmann protests was "word of mouth" and I guess it was if you count Rep. Michelle Bachmann going on Hannity's TV show to promote it "word of mouth."

THE NY TIMES OMITS CRUCIAL FACT

2009-11-06T00:52:00.004-07:00

In this tendentious story - "Democrats Push Climate Bill Through Panel Without G.O.P. Debate" - John M. Broder of the NYT decided to downplay the fact that the GOP decided to boycott the committee meetings. Worse, this is all he tells us about the troglodyte Sen. Inhofe:

The senior Republican on the environment committee, Senator James M. Inhofe of Oklahoma, said the bill would harm the American economy and cost millions of jobs. He said the Democrats’ decision to ram the bill through “marked the death knell” of efforts to enact a comprehensive climate change bill.

Inhofe doesn't think there is global warming, man-made or otherwise, and therefore wouldn't pass any kind of global warming legislation.

THIS QUOTE DOESN'T MAKE SENSE

2009-11-05T23:32:00.003-07:00

Not because Bachmann isn't a loon but because it was attributed to a conservative Republican. I suspect POLITICO didn't check with Mark Levin to confirm that this person was a real conservative.

Bachmann aide no longer taking care of business
By JONATHAN ALLEN | 11/4/09 2:34 PM EST

The aide who helped turn Rep. Michele Bachmann into a controversial mainstay of cable news has informed colleagues that she’s quitting — just as the firebrand Republican congresswoman prepares for her biggest media moment yet.

Multiple sources have confirmed that Michelle Marston, a veteran Hill aide, is leaving Bachmann’s office.

A conservative Republican House member, speaking on the condition of anonymity, suggested that Bachmann’s views — and her willingness to state them — make it hard for her to keep staff.

“When your captain’s crazy, it’s time to find a new ship,” the lawmaker said.

MIKE MALLOY JUST SAID BACHMANN'S CROWD WAS ALL WHITE

2009-11-05T22:24:00.004-07:00

And from this picture I found at Gateway Pundit, he's pretty much correct.

RADIO GASBAG AUDIENCES

2009-11-05T21:58:00.003-07:00

Look like the wingers have slightly increased their audience size. Numbers are estimates done in Spring 2009 from TALKERS Magazine.

TWO GOOD POINTS

2009-11-05T21:26:00.003-07:00

Despite the wingers absurd attempts to turn the Nov. 3 Elections into a great conservative revival, the conservatives have done very poorly and even POLITICO has noticed.

GOP's special elections losing streak
By ERIKA LOVLEY | 11/5/09 8:47 PM EST

...Republicans have lost 20 of the past 29 House special elections, dating back to January 2003. And in perhaps the most worrisome aspect of the trend, the GOP lost its fifth consecutive competitive special election in Republican-friendly territory.

In New York’s historically Republican 23rd District, where Democrat Bill Owens prevailed Tuesday, the GOP squandered a 43 percent to 31 percent voter registration advantage over the Democratic Party. In New York’s 20th District, where Scott Murphy — like Owens, another unknown Democrat with no experience in elective office — won a March special election, the GOP blew a 65,000-voter registration edge.

In Foster’s March 2008 upset victory, Republicans found a way to lose the seat belonging to former Speaker Dennis Hastert — a district that Hastert had held for more than two decades and that twice voted for George W. Bush by comfortable margins.

Two more embarrassing losses followed in May of that year, when Democrats snatched GOP-held seats in Louisiana and Mississippi. In the Mississippi race, the Republican special election nominee managed to defy political gravity by losing a seat in an area where voters delivered 62 percent to Bush in 2004 — and where they gave 62 percent to John McCain a few months later, in November.

The second good point for liberals is the enormous decline of prominent elected officials from the South, first noted by Kevin Drum and given a little more exposure by Ezra Klein. Creeps like "Gingrich, Armey, Lott, Bush, Frist, and DeLay" who held power in the 90s are GONE.

NEWSMAX & CARIBOU BARBIE

2009-11-05T20:33:00.003-07:00

Newsmax has been running ads on wingnut radio shows promoting a joint offer: get Palin's book and a Newsmax subscription.

If you subscribe for a year ($49.95), you get her book for free. If you buy the book for $4.97 plus $5.95 shipping, you get a 4 month subscription.

WE NEED BETTER MOTU

2009-11-05T03:39:00.003-07:00

(h/t Digby)

And by "better" I mean both ethically and technically. Felix Salmon gives us some telling descriptions of a few former heads of Goldman Sachs, America's premier Ayn Rand company. Stephen Friedman went on to become head of the NY Fed and after helping to arrange a couple of sweet, non-market, deals for GS, he forgot his moral bearings and purchased thousands of shares of GS stock. Shortly after that, he resigned under a cloud.

Perhaps more interesting is the Hank Paulson story, the man who initially wanted to be Holy Roman Emperor for Wall Street Bailing Out. Let's reflect that Goldman Sachs, like most modern firms, relies heavily on computers and electronic communications in order function at all. Mr. Paulson? Not so much:

Similarly, he hobbled his ability to communicate by refusing to ever touch email: instead, any time he wanted to say anything to anybody he’d have to do so over the phone or in person.

WHY IS CRAMER STILL ON THE AIR?

2009-11-05T00:18:00.004-07:00

(h/t Mike Finnegan at Crooks & Liars)

Jon Stewart demolished Jim Cramer's pretence of being a stock market whiz and Nouriel Roubini piled on, calling Cramer a "buffoon." I have recently heard Cramer pitching membership into his investing practices on wingnut radio stations and I think I should send the station managers this tidbit:

Cramer Buy Recommendation CIT Goes Bankrupt

MEDVED THE IMMORALIST

2009-11-04T23:30:00.002-07:00

In a USA Today op-ed, Michael Medved offers a defense of Sarah Palin urging us to avoid personal attacks, ignore her resume and read her book. Medved has no problem ignoring this advice when he attacked Marty Peretz for marrying a rich woman and made personal attacks on John Edwards and Al Franken.