I've been keeping up with Bob Jones's letter to the president, the one the Josh Marshall keeps coming back to.
My own take on this, besides the scary thought that Bush might actually think like this rather than just be playing the role of someone who thinks like this, is that the whole Red-Blue divide is increasingly an aesthetic and linguistic choice.
As I read Bob Jones's [Jones', if you prefer] letter, I can help but to keep coming back to the language:
Dear Prez:
The media tells us that you have received the largest number of popular votes of any president in America's history. Congratulations!
In your re-election, God has graciously granted America—though she doesn't deserve it—a reprieve from the agenda of paganism. You have been given a mandate. We the people expect your voice to be like the clear and certain sound of a trumpet. Because you seek the Lord daily, we who know the Lord will follow that kind of voice eagerly.
Don't equivocate. Put your agenda on the front burner and let it boil. You owe the liberals nothing. They despise you because they despise your Christ. Honor the Lord, and He will honor you.
Had your opponent won, I would have still given thanks, because the Bible says I must (I Thessalonians 5:18). It would have been hard, but because the Lord lifts up whom He will and pulls down whom He will, I would have done it. It is easy to rejoice today, because Christ has allowed you to be His servant in this nation for another presidential term. Undoubtedly, you will have opportunity to appoint many conservative judges and exercise forceful leadership with the Congress in passing legislation that is defined by biblical norm regarding the family, sexuality, sanctity of life, religious freedom, freedom of speech, and limited government. You have four years—a brief time only—to leave an imprint for righteousness upon this nation that brings with it the blessings of Almighty God.
Christ said, “If any man serve me, let him follow me; and where I am, there shall also my servant be: if any man serve me, him will my father honour” (John 12:26).
The student body, faculty, and staff at Bob Jones University commit ourselves to pray for you—that you would do right and honor the Savior. Pull out all the stops and make a difference. If you have weaklings around you who do not share your biblical values, shed yourself of them. Conservative Americans would love to see one president who doesn't care whether he is liked, but cares infinitely that he does right.
Best wishes. Sincerely your friend,
Bob Jones III
President
This whole "king-james" speak reeks of the Old Testament to me.
What's funny, is that the evangelicals that I know, use this phraseology all the time in their normal speaking. Last year we had a family of missionaries staying in our house. I spare you the whole story: very nice people, 26 years old, 4 young boys, living in beat-up RV until they moved to Madgascar to setup a charity school to teach english AS IT IS SPOKEN IN THE KING JAMES VERSION of the bible. Yes, they actually consciously or unconsciously adopted the same rhetorical figures. On some level, it sounded absurd. It was absurd. On the other, it was chilling.
The problem is not that we're going back linguistically to the late Middle Ages/Early-Modern period--I don't beleive in linguistic progress, only linguistic change. The problem is that we're going back to the the same friggin' mentalities of that enlightened time. The linguistic codes mirror this and seem to be a trait of recognition among the "beleivers."
The world is getting stranger. Teaching King James's English is both a symptom of these groups' subjugation (mental, linguistic...) to thier cause and a trope for recognizing the knowing.
Amen.
Andy
Friday, November 12, 2004
Wednesday, November 10, 2004
Ivory Coast...
La Côte d'Ivoire is going to hell in a handbasket. Not many resources, but a vital rail line into Burkina Faso's gold and magnesium. I don't think this will make the administration's radar, so the French will maintain a foothold.
Tuesday, November 09, 2004
Oh, Thank you, mighty Howler
The Daily Howler
It is time for some class "warfare" of the reality-based type.... From The Daily Howler.
CONTEMPTUOUS VALUES: Many readers—many readers—sent us the Tax Foundation tables which show which states are federal free-loaders. And yes, the “red states”—the states whose denizens love to preach that bracing self-reliance—routinely take in more federal money than they submit in taxes. Meanwhile, who subsidizes these free-loading states? Who else? “Contemptuous” “elitists” from northeastern blue states, whose troubling values red-staters love to ponder! In 2003, for example, blue-state New Jersey received only 57 cents in federal spending for every dollar submitted in taxes. But then, the top ten states whose pockets are picked include eight which are nominally blue:
1) New Jersey: 57 cents
2) New Hampshire: 64 cents
3) Connecticut: 65 cents
4) Minnesota: 70 cents
5) Nevada: 70 cents
6) Illinois: 73 cents
7) California: 78 cents
8) Massachusetts: 78 cents
9) New York: 80 cents
10) Colorado: 80 cents
Eight of the ten donor states are “blue,” including Massachusetts, New York, California and Illinois—home base to the contemptuous elitists whom red-states denizens love to scold. Throughout the campaign, George Bush mocked the troubling values of liberal Massachusetts voters—people who send big bags of money to support Bush’s red-state supporters.
Is this a silly, pointless critique? In some ways, yes, as one e-mailer claimed in a semi-spot-on analysis:
E-MAIL: Here is the source of those tax numbers. I have to say that, while I generally agree with you and am also a bit tired of the whining, your prejudices are showing here. Most of the "red states" (other than those in the Midwest) have extractive economies and many are in effect internal colonies. Their current poverty is historically constructed by these facts and the relative prosperity of the “blue states” has created and
is dependent on their continued poverty (the existing economic development of the blue states in effect inhibits the red states from developing). The relationship here is essentially the same as the relations between the first world and the third world. There is a general correlation here between relative prosperity (even within red and blue states) and voting patterns. I think what the red states have in common is economic deprivation and a sense (justified) of a lack of control over their future. Unfortunately, they have wrongly identified "liberals" as the cause of their problems—in part because, as Thomas Franks points out, we have stopped talking about economic and class issues while still pushing for minority and gender enfranchisement.
Keep up the good work, but try to have a little sympathy for the unlovely lot of those red staters (if not for their infernal and unseemly whining).
But the mailer misconstrues our incomparable fairness. It’s that infernal whining we have specifically criticized—and the bogus attempt to blame “elitist liberals” as the source of red-staters’ problems. We’re not economists, and the e-mailer surely knows more than we do about red-state status as internal colonies. But, as Michael Lind discusses in Made In Texas, Southern red states became “internal colonies” with “extractive economies” because of the choices and values of Southern elites—the same Southern elites who feed their boo-hooing red-state voters their phony grievances against “contemptuous eastern liberals.” Historically, Texas elites helped make Texas an “extractive economy,” and blubbering Texans need to be told that, even as they stick their hands deep into northeastern pockets.
It is time for some class "warfare" of the reality-based type.... From The Daily Howler.
CONTEMPTUOUS VALUES: Many readers—many readers—sent us the Tax Foundation tables which show which states are federal free-loaders. And yes, the “red states”—the states whose denizens love to preach that bracing self-reliance—routinely take in more federal money than they submit in taxes. Meanwhile, who subsidizes these free-loading states? Who else? “Contemptuous” “elitists” from northeastern blue states, whose troubling values red-staters love to ponder! In 2003, for example, blue-state New Jersey received only 57 cents in federal spending for every dollar submitted in taxes. But then, the top ten states whose pockets are picked include eight which are nominally blue:
1) New Jersey: 57 cents
2) New Hampshire: 64 cents
3) Connecticut: 65 cents
4) Minnesota: 70 cents
5) Nevada: 70 cents
6) Illinois: 73 cents
7) California: 78 cents
8) Massachusetts: 78 cents
9) New York: 80 cents
10) Colorado: 80 cents
Eight of the ten donor states are “blue,” including Massachusetts, New York, California and Illinois—home base to the contemptuous elitists whom red-states denizens love to scold. Throughout the campaign, George Bush mocked the troubling values of liberal Massachusetts voters—people who send big bags of money to support Bush’s red-state supporters.
Is this a silly, pointless critique? In some ways, yes, as one e-mailer claimed in a semi-spot-on analysis:
E-MAIL: Here is the source of those tax numbers. I have to say that, while I generally agree with you and am also a bit tired of the whining, your prejudices are showing here. Most of the "red states" (other than those in the Midwest) have extractive economies and many are in effect internal colonies. Their current poverty is historically constructed by these facts and the relative prosperity of the “blue states” has created and
is dependent on their continued poverty (the existing economic development of the blue states in effect inhibits the red states from developing). The relationship here is essentially the same as the relations between the first world and the third world. There is a general correlation here between relative prosperity (even within red and blue states) and voting patterns. I think what the red states have in common is economic deprivation and a sense (justified) of a lack of control over their future. Unfortunately, they have wrongly identified "liberals" as the cause of their problems—in part because, as Thomas Franks points out, we have stopped talking about economic and class issues while still pushing for minority and gender enfranchisement.
Keep up the good work, but try to have a little sympathy for the unlovely lot of those red staters (if not for their infernal and unseemly whining).
But the mailer misconstrues our incomparable fairness. It’s that infernal whining we have specifically criticized—and the bogus attempt to blame “elitist liberals” as the source of red-staters’ problems. We’re not economists, and the e-mailer surely knows more than we do about red-state status as internal colonies. But, as Michael Lind discusses in Made In Texas, Southern red states became “internal colonies” with “extractive economies” because of the choices and values of Southern elites—the same Southern elites who feed their boo-hooing red-state voters their phony grievances against “contemptuous eastern liberals.” Historically, Texas elites helped make Texas an “extractive economy,” and blubbering Texans need to be told that, even as they stick their hands deep into northeastern pockets.
Eschaton
Atrios puts up some interesting Ohio numbers....
Highland Heights: 1385
Mayfield Village: 1385
Seven Hills: 2147
Broadview Height: 2540
Berea: 3146
Olmstead Falls: 3146
North Royalton: 4009
Maple Heights: 4744
Brook Park: 5295
Oakwood Village: 5460
Euclid: 5724
South Euclid: 5724
Cleveland Heights: 6007
East Cleveland: 6007
Garfield Heights: 6170
Lakewood: 6226
Middlebury Heights:
Parma: 7284
Bedford: 8553
Bedford Heights: 8553
Warrensville Heights: 8553
Bay Village: 9948
Fairview Park: 9948
North Olmstead: 9948
Rocky River: 9948
Westlake: 9948
Cleveland: 49324
http://haloscan.com/tb/atrios/110003866197985353
Highland Heights: 1385
Mayfield Village: 1385
Seven Hills: 2147
Broadview Height: 2540
Berea: 3146
Olmstead Falls: 3146
North Royalton: 4009
Maple Heights: 4744
Brook Park: 5295
Oakwood Village: 5460
Euclid: 5724
South Euclid: 5724
Cleveland Heights: 6007
East Cleveland: 6007
Garfield Heights: 6170
Lakewood: 6226
Middlebury Heights:
Parma: 7284
Bedford: 8553
Bedford Heights: 8553
Warrensville Heights: 8553
Bay Village: 9948
Fairview Park: 9948
North Olmstead: 9948
Rocky River: 9948
Westlake: 9948
Cleveland: 49324
http://haloscan.com/tb/atrios/110003866197985353
Jeffersonians unite
If--and it's a big 'if'--we are going to really talk about injection religion even deeper into our PUBLIC lives, well, listen to
Gary Hart
"If we are to insert 'faith' into the public dialogue more directly and assertively, let's not be selective. Let's go all the way. Let's not just define 'faith' in terms of the law and judgment; let's define it also in terms of love, caring, forgiveness. Compassionate conservatives can believe social ills should be addressed by charity and the private sector; liberals can believe that the government has a role to play in correcting social injustice. But both can agree that human need, poverty, homelessness, illiteracy and sickness must be addressed. Liberals are not against religion. They are against hypocrisy, exclusion and judgmentalism. They resist the notion that one side or the other possesses 'the truth' to the exclusion of others. There is a great difference between Cotton Mather and John Wesley.
There is also the disturbing tendency to insert theocratic principles into the vision of America's role in the world. There is evil in the world. Nowhere in our Constitution or founding documents is there support for the proposition that the United States was given a special dispensation to eliminate it. Surely Saddam Hussein was an evil dictator. But there are quite a few of those still around and no one is advocating eliminating them. Neither Washington, Adams, Madison nor Jefferson saw America as the world's avenging angel. Any notion of going abroad seeking demons to destroy concerned them above all else. Mr. Bush's venture into crusaderism frightened not only Muslims, it also frightened a very large number of Americans with a sense of their own history."
Gary Hart
"If we are to insert 'faith' into the public dialogue more directly and assertively, let's not be selective. Let's go all the way. Let's not just define 'faith' in terms of the law and judgment; let's define it also in terms of love, caring, forgiveness. Compassionate conservatives can believe social ills should be addressed by charity and the private sector; liberals can believe that the government has a role to play in correcting social injustice. But both can agree that human need, poverty, homelessness, illiteracy and sickness must be addressed. Liberals are not against religion. They are against hypocrisy, exclusion and judgmentalism. They resist the notion that one side or the other possesses 'the truth' to the exclusion of others. There is a great difference between Cotton Mather and John Wesley.
There is also the disturbing tendency to insert theocratic principles into the vision of America's role in the world. There is evil in the world. Nowhere in our Constitution or founding documents is there support for the proposition that the United States was given a special dispensation to eliminate it. Surely Saddam Hussein was an evil dictator. But there are quite a few of those still around and no one is advocating eliminating them. Neither Washington, Adams, Madison nor Jefferson saw America as the world's avenging angel. Any notion of going abroad seeking demons to destroy concerned them above all else. Mr. Bush's venture into crusaderism frightened not only Muslims, it also frightened a very large number of Americans with a sense of their own history."
CIA, Inauguration
It was announced today that the security level for this year's inauguration is going to be the very highest possible. Read: we will do everything to exclude protesters from the scene. Of course, it is highly likely for the networks to oblige. What interest does GE have in curbing the president's enthusiasm?
None.
What are we going to do about this inauguration? Hopefully nothing since, in some ways, I don't think we should protest. It takes our eye off the ball--namely, the Senate and Congress, whose members will be attempting hijinks previously unseen in Washington now that they seem to beleive they have a "mandate."
None.
What are we going to do about this inauguration? Hopefully nothing since, in some ways, I don't think we should protest. It takes our eye off the ball--namely, the Senate and Congress, whose members will be attempting hijinks previously unseen in Washington now that they seem to beleive they have a "mandate."
Le Monde.fr : Mais o? sont pass?s les votes d?mocrates de Floride ?
Le Monde is asking about missing votes in FLA according to the GAO Heres the article...
Fallujah
1.
Well, we're attacking Fallujah, which is what we should have done a long time ago. Or, if the invasion had been done properly, perhaps we wouldn't have to be doing it at all... But, hey, it'll make for some exciting TV! Blood, explosions, RUmsfeld. It'll be great, I promise. Just watch your LOCAL news and see how much they talk about it.
Let's not be too coy. We're there and be have to do it now....
2.
I'm feeling a bit depressed today as I look across the Democratic board and see the same old actors doing the same old thing. We're not going to win unless there is a major shake up/shake down of the self-loving, pandering folks.
More later.
Well, we're attacking Fallujah, which is what we should have done a long time ago. Or, if the invasion had been done properly, perhaps we wouldn't have to be doing it at all... But, hey, it'll make for some exciting TV! Blood, explosions, RUmsfeld. It'll be great, I promise. Just watch your LOCAL news and see how much they talk about it.
Let's not be too coy. We're there and be have to do it now....
2.
I'm feeling a bit depressed today as I look across the Democratic board and see the same old actors doing the same old thing. We're not going to win unless there is a major shake up/shake down of the self-loving, pandering folks.
More later.
Sunday, November 07, 2004
As I thought on Wednesday without even
looking at the results. Things are not as bad as they may seem for Dems. Yes, the national party is, as it has been, in need of inspiration, new blood, etc. I firmly believe however that there is a liberal message and that it is getting out that the bottom of the ticket. The problem is the communication alleys between top and bottom. We have got to quit playing the Republican's game and create a coherent elevator message for the party. Unfortunately, I'm talking about branding it. We need persistent messages sent out, we need them starting yesterday. We must attack Frist and co.
MyDD (Chris Bowers) looks at all the stats and sums it up nicely:
"Democrats also made state legislature gains in Michigan and Ohio, and in both cases are now within only three seats of taking at least one of the two branches of the legislature. Vermont saw notable Democrats gains in the state legislature as well. Finally, Republicans wrested the Missouri and Indiana governorships from Demcorats, while Democrats wrested the Montana and New Hampshire governorships from Republicans.
Do I need to go on? The pattern is clear. We have been thoroughly routed out of the South, but are making significant gains in virtually every other part of the country. We are well on our way toward building a new post-Dixiecrat, and entirely post-New Deal majority coalition. If we cling to some foolish believe that our problems in the South can be fixed by nominating a conservative Southern governor who talks faith, we might as well fold up our tents right now. It has taken us twenty years to come close to building a national majority since the fracturing of the Democrat-Dixiecrat coalition in the early 1980's, but we are finally close. For a long time we were propped up by the false impression that the Southern wing of the Democratic Party was not completely dead, but after Tuesday it is time to put that false hope out to pasture. I'm not saying we should not keep trying in the south, as I believe we should keep trying everywhere. However, it is time to stop believing that just having a southerner on the ticket, or talking a little faith is somehow going to turn our fortunes around in the region. For that matter, we should not even believe that doing these things would even make us competitive in the region anytime soon. The Blue-Gary divide in the country is once again rearing its ugly head, and the Mike Easley's, Wesley Clark's, Mary Landrieu's and Phil Bredesen's of the party are not going prevent that from happening.
MyDD :: Due Diligence of Politics, Election Forecast & the World Today
This is essentially what I said the other day. This is about belief in the system, in progress. If the Republicans have gotten this far it is because they have a core base of believers integrated into a cynical political machine. The democrats have never been nor will they ever be as cynical or as manipulative as the Repubs. The Dems have realists. Now these folks must coordinate with the believers--who are very different from the glossy-eyed Republican ones.
There is a realignment going on and we must catch this wave with our own coherent ideology that is based neither on hate nor exclusion, but belief in a better, fairer America. Forget gay marriage--propose civil unions for everybody. Talk about debt-relief--this makes more sense to most folks than tax-relief. Talk about good, well-paying jobs. Talk about health care. Talk about family, food, property. Talk about MORALITY--There has b een an increase in abortions since the Bushite coup of 2000. What does that mean? What does that say about this administrations dedication to family? I say that we must learn to hear and speak of a moral truth that goes beyond us while not preaching or sounding haughty, which has been the case for so many righteous Dems in the past.
The Dems are well-positioned for this, but will the national party learn or will it be an eat-your-child-power-grabbing party? Folks, we need some vision.
Andy
MyDD (Chris Bowers) looks at all the stats and sums it up nicely:
"Democrats also made state legislature gains in Michigan and Ohio, and in both cases are now within only three seats of taking at least one of the two branches of the legislature. Vermont saw notable Democrats gains in the state legislature as well. Finally, Republicans wrested the Missouri and Indiana governorships from Demcorats, while Democrats wrested the Montana and New Hampshire governorships from Republicans.
Do I need to go on? The pattern is clear. We have been thoroughly routed out of the South, but are making significant gains in virtually every other part of the country. We are well on our way toward building a new post-Dixiecrat, and entirely post-New Deal majority coalition. If we cling to some foolish believe that our problems in the South can be fixed by nominating a conservative Southern governor who talks faith, we might as well fold up our tents right now. It has taken us twenty years to come close to building a national majority since the fracturing of the Democrat-Dixiecrat coalition in the early 1980's, but we are finally close. For a long time we were propped up by the false impression that the Southern wing of the Democratic Party was not completely dead, but after Tuesday it is time to put that false hope out to pasture. I'm not saying we should not keep trying in the south, as I believe we should keep trying everywhere. However, it is time to stop believing that just having a southerner on the ticket, or talking a little faith is somehow going to turn our fortunes around in the region. For that matter, we should not even believe that doing these things would even make us competitive in the region anytime soon. The Blue-Gary divide in the country is once again rearing its ugly head, and the Mike Easley's, Wesley Clark's, Mary Landrieu's and Phil Bredesen's of the party are not going prevent that from happening.
MyDD :: Due Diligence of Politics, Election Forecast & the World Today
This is essentially what I said the other day. This is about belief in the system, in progress. If the Republicans have gotten this far it is because they have a core base of believers integrated into a cynical political machine. The democrats have never been nor will they ever be as cynical or as manipulative as the Repubs. The Dems have realists. Now these folks must coordinate with the believers--who are very different from the glossy-eyed Republican ones.
There is a realignment going on and we must catch this wave with our own coherent ideology that is based neither on hate nor exclusion, but belief in a better, fairer America. Forget gay marriage--propose civil unions for everybody. Talk about debt-relief--this makes more sense to most folks than tax-relief. Talk about good, well-paying jobs. Talk about health care. Talk about family, food, property. Talk about MORALITY--There has b een an increase in abortions since the Bushite coup of 2000. What does that mean? What does that say about this administrations dedication to family? I say that we must learn to hear and speak of a moral truth that goes beyond us while not preaching or sounding haughty, which has been the case for so many righteous Dems in the past.
The Dems are well-positioned for this, but will the national party learn or will it be an eat-your-child-power-grabbing party? Folks, we need some vision.
Andy
Friday, November 05, 2004
Michael Moore gives me hope
You know, you can criticize him but you can't criticize his enthusiasm. He sent me a personal ;-) this morning:
1. It is against the law for George W. Bush to run for president again.
2. Bush's victory was the NARROWEST win for a sitting president since
Woodrow Wilson in 1916.
3. The only age group in which the majority voted for Kerry was young adults
(Kerry: 54%, Bush: 44%), proving once again that your parents are always
wrong and you should never listen to them.
4. In spite of Bush's win, the majority of Americans still think the
country is headed in the wrong direction (56%), think the war wasn't worth fighting (51%), and don't approve of the job George W. Bush is doing (52%). (Note to foreigners: Don't try to figure this one out. It's an American thing, like Pop Tarts.)
5. The Republicans will not have a filibuster-proof 60-seat majority in the
Senate. If the Democrats do their job, Bush won't be able to pack the
Supreme Court with right-wing ideologues. Did I say "if the Democrats do
their job?" Um, maybe better to scratch this one.
6. Michigan voted for Kerry! So did the entire Northeast, the birthplace of
our democracy. So did 6 of the 8 Great Lakes States. And the whole West
Coast! Plus Hawaii. Ok, that's a start. We've got most of the fresh water,
all of Broadway, and Mt. St. Helens. We can dehydrate them or bury them in
lava. And no more show tunes!
7. Once again we are reminded that the buckeye is a nut, and not just any
old nut -- a poisonous nut. A great nation was felled by a poisonous nut.
May Ohio State pay dearly this Saturday when it faces Michigan.
8. 88% of Bush's support came from white voters. In 50 years, America will
no longer have a white majority. Hey, 50 years isn't such a long time! If
you're ten years old and reading this, your golden years will be truly
golden and you will be well cared for in your old age.
9. Gays, thanks to the ballot measures passed on Tuesday, cannot get married
in 11 new states. Thank God. Just think of all those wedding gifts we won't
have to buy now.
10. Five more African Americans were elected as members of Congress,
including the return of Cynthia McKinney of Georgia. It's always good to
have more blacks in there fighting for us and doing the job our candidates
can't.
11. The CEO of Coors was defeated for Senate in Colorado. Drink up!
12. Admit it: We like the Bush twins and we don't want them to go away.
13. At the state legislative level, Democrats picked up a net of at least 3
chambers in Tuesday's elections. Of the 98 partisan-controlled state
legislative chambers (house/assembly and senate), Democrats went into the
2004 elections in control of 44 chambers, Republicans controlled 53
chambers, and 1 chamber was tied. After Tuesday, Democrats now control 47
chambers, Republicans control 49 chambers, 1 chamber is tied and 1 chamber
(Montana House) is still undecided.
14. Bush is now a lame duck president. He will have no greater moment than
the one he's having this week. It's all downhill for him from here on out --
and, more significantly, he's just not going to want to do all the hard work
that will be expected of him. It'll be like everyone's last month in 12th
grade -- you've already made it, so it's party time! Perhaps he'll treat the
next four years like a permanent Friday, spending even more time at the
ranch or in Kennebunkport. And why shouldn't he? He's already proved his
point, avenged his father and kicked our ass.
15. Should Bush decide to show up to work and take this country down a very
dark road, it is also just as likely that either of the following two
scenarios will happen: a) Now that he doesn't ever need to pander to the
Christian conservatives again to get elected, someone may whisper in his ear
that he should spend these last four years building "a legacy" so that
history will render a kinder verdict on him and thus he will not push for
too aggressive a right-wing agenda; or b) He will become so cocky and
arrogant -- and thus, reckless -- that he will commit a blunder of such
major proportions that even his own party will have to remove him from
office.
16. There are nearly 300 million Americans -- 200 million of them of voting
age. We only lost by three and a half million! That's not a landslide -- it
means we're almost there. Imagine losing by 20 million. If you had 58 yards
to go before you reached the goal line and then you barreled down 55 of
those yards, would you stop on the three yard line, pick up the ball and go
home crying -- especially when you get to start the next down on the three
yard line? Of course not! Buck up! Have hope! More sports analogies are
coming!!!
17. Finally and most importantly, over 55 million Americans voted for the
candidate dubbed "The #1 Liberal in the Senate." That's more than the total
number of voters who voted for either Reagan, Bush I, Clinton or Gore.
Again, more people voted for Kerry than Reagan. If the media are looking for
a trend it should be this -- that so many Americans were, for the first time
since Kennedy, willing to vote for an out-and-out liberal. The country has
always been filled with evangelicals -- that is not news. What IS news is
that so many people have shifted toward a Massachusetts liberal. In fact,
that's BIG news. Which means, don't expect the mainstream media, the ones
who brought you the Iraq War, to ever report the real truth about November
2, 2004. In fact, it's better that they don't. We'll need the element of
surprise in 2008.
Feeling better? I hope so. As my friend Mort wrote me yesterday, "My
Romanian grandfather used to say to me, 'Remember, Morton, this is such a
wonderful country -- it doesn't even need a president!'"
But it needs us. Rest up, I'll write you again tomorrow.
Yours,
Michael Moore
1. It is against the law for George W. Bush to run for president again.
2. Bush's victory was the NARROWEST win for a sitting president since
Woodrow Wilson in 1916.
3. The only age group in which the majority voted for Kerry was young adults
(Kerry: 54%, Bush: 44%), proving once again that your parents are always
wrong and you should never listen to them.
4. In spite of Bush's win, the majority of Americans still think the
country is headed in the wrong direction (56%), think the war wasn't worth fighting (51%), and don't approve of the job George W. Bush is doing (52%). (Note to foreigners: Don't try to figure this one out. It's an American thing, like Pop Tarts.)
5. The Republicans will not have a filibuster-proof 60-seat majority in the
Senate. If the Democrats do their job, Bush won't be able to pack the
Supreme Court with right-wing ideologues. Did I say "if the Democrats do
their job?" Um, maybe better to scratch this one.
6. Michigan voted for Kerry! So did the entire Northeast, the birthplace of
our democracy. So did 6 of the 8 Great Lakes States. And the whole West
Coast! Plus Hawaii. Ok, that's a start. We've got most of the fresh water,
all of Broadway, and Mt. St. Helens. We can dehydrate them or bury them in
lava. And no more show tunes!
7. Once again we are reminded that the buckeye is a nut, and not just any
old nut -- a poisonous nut. A great nation was felled by a poisonous nut.
May Ohio State pay dearly this Saturday when it faces Michigan.
8. 88% of Bush's support came from white voters. In 50 years, America will
no longer have a white majority. Hey, 50 years isn't such a long time! If
you're ten years old and reading this, your golden years will be truly
golden and you will be well cared for in your old age.
9. Gays, thanks to the ballot measures passed on Tuesday, cannot get married
in 11 new states. Thank God. Just think of all those wedding gifts we won't
have to buy now.
10. Five more African Americans were elected as members of Congress,
including the return of Cynthia McKinney of Georgia. It's always good to
have more blacks in there fighting for us and doing the job our candidates
can't.
11. The CEO of Coors was defeated for Senate in Colorado. Drink up!
12. Admit it: We like the Bush twins and we don't want them to go away.
13. At the state legislative level, Democrats picked up a net of at least 3
chambers in Tuesday's elections. Of the 98 partisan-controlled state
legislative chambers (house/assembly and senate), Democrats went into the
2004 elections in control of 44 chambers, Republicans controlled 53
chambers, and 1 chamber was tied. After Tuesday, Democrats now control 47
chambers, Republicans control 49 chambers, 1 chamber is tied and 1 chamber
(Montana House) is still undecided.
14. Bush is now a lame duck president. He will have no greater moment than
the one he's having this week. It's all downhill for him from here on out --
and, more significantly, he's just not going to want to do all the hard work
that will be expected of him. It'll be like everyone's last month in 12th
grade -- you've already made it, so it's party time! Perhaps he'll treat the
next four years like a permanent Friday, spending even more time at the
ranch or in Kennebunkport. And why shouldn't he? He's already proved his
point, avenged his father and kicked our ass.
15. Should Bush decide to show up to work and take this country down a very
dark road, it is also just as likely that either of the following two
scenarios will happen: a) Now that he doesn't ever need to pander to the
Christian conservatives again to get elected, someone may whisper in his ear
that he should spend these last four years building "a legacy" so that
history will render a kinder verdict on him and thus he will not push for
too aggressive a right-wing agenda; or b) He will become so cocky and
arrogant -- and thus, reckless -- that he will commit a blunder of such
major proportions that even his own party will have to remove him from
office.
16. There are nearly 300 million Americans -- 200 million of them of voting
age. We only lost by three and a half million! That's not a landslide -- it
means we're almost there. Imagine losing by 20 million. If you had 58 yards
to go before you reached the goal line and then you barreled down 55 of
those yards, would you stop on the three yard line, pick up the ball and go
home crying -- especially when you get to start the next down on the three
yard line? Of course not! Buck up! Have hope! More sports analogies are
coming!!!
17. Finally and most importantly, over 55 million Americans voted for the
candidate dubbed "The #1 Liberal in the Senate." That's more than the total
number of voters who voted for either Reagan, Bush I, Clinton or Gore.
Again, more people voted for Kerry than Reagan. If the media are looking for
a trend it should be this -- that so many Americans were, for the first time
since Kennedy, willing to vote for an out-and-out liberal. The country has
always been filled with evangelicals -- that is not news. What IS news is
that so many people have shifted toward a Massachusetts liberal. In fact,
that's BIG news. Which means, don't expect the mainstream media, the ones
who brought you the Iraq War, to ever report the real truth about November
2, 2004. In fact, it's better that they don't. We'll need the element of
surprise in 2008.
Feeling better? I hope so. As my friend Mort wrote me yesterday, "My
Romanian grandfather used to say to me, 'Remember, Morton, this is such a
wonderful country -- it doesn't even need a president!'"
But it needs us. Rest up, I'll write you again tomorrow.
Yours,
Michael Moore
Thursday, November 04, 2004
Stupid Dems
Here's another Dem who is a Dem-basher and who does NOT know his ass from a whole in the ground.
Politics News Article | Reuters.com: "For Democrats, Sen. John Kerry's White House loss and setbacks in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives created a mood of despair, jolted the potential field of 2008 candidates and set off a spirited round of second guessing.
Debate raged about whether the party needed a major overhaul or a little fine-tuning, with some Democrats warning against overreaction and others saying the reality of two consecutive lost elections required a change.
'If Democrats are going to be a national party, we have to fundamentally change our message and philosophy,' said Democratic consultant Doug Schoen, the pollster for former President Bill Clinton.
'We have to move to the center on fiscal issues, cultural issues and defense issues, and develop specific programs to balance the budget and recognize the importance of family,' he said. 'And if we don't, we'll lose again.'
Republicans savored the success of a strong voter turnout operation that trumped more publicized Democratic efforts and the victory of a values-based, conservative message. "
The Left Coaster gets it exactly right. See me email below. I am from the most red of red states, Georgia. I know the south. The way back to popularity is not becoming "more centrist" since that indicates we are way off the the left, which is totally false. "More centrist" refers to political games, not ideology or beliefs. "More centrist" means adopting the codes and implicit (and false) logic of the Right. We must believe in ourselves. We must kick ass. We must be proud. See my letter below....
Politics News Article | Reuters.com: "For Democrats, Sen. John Kerry's White House loss and setbacks in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives created a mood of despair, jolted the potential field of 2008 candidates and set off a spirited round of second guessing.
Debate raged about whether the party needed a major overhaul or a little fine-tuning, with some Democrats warning against overreaction and others saying the reality of two consecutive lost elections required a change.
'If Democrats are going to be a national party, we have to fundamentally change our message and philosophy,' said Democratic consultant Doug Schoen, the pollster for former President Bill Clinton.
'We have to move to the center on fiscal issues, cultural issues and defense issues, and develop specific programs to balance the budget and recognize the importance of family,' he said. 'And if we don't, we'll lose again.'
Republicans savored the success of a strong voter turnout operation that trumped more publicized Democratic efforts and the victory of a values-based, conservative message. "
The Left Coaster gets it exactly right. See me email below. I am from the most red of red states, Georgia. I know the south. The way back to popularity is not becoming "more centrist" since that indicates we are way off the the left, which is totally false. "More centrist" refers to political games, not ideology or beliefs. "More centrist" means adopting the codes and implicit (and false) logic of the Right. We must believe in ourselves. We must kick ass. We must be proud. See my letter below....
How I feel--post election excitement
here's an email I sent to a friend.
Dear Paul, just a quick email response because I could go on for hours.
The election was a real disappointment on many levels. Surprisingly, blame is not being cast that widely or that vociferously. The mood I am getting from most people in the world of Liberals is one of determination. It is believed that Kerry ran a good race, that there is little back-biting to be done. Many feel Dean should head the Democratic party. Voter turnout was VERY high, and, contrary to what is reported, the youth vote made it out in large numbers. That the latter’s effect was limited is due to high turnout of typical Republican non-voters: very poor white Christians. The gay-marriage ballots in Ohio and Michigan brought them out in droves to the point of smothering high turnout in Cleveland, Columbus, and, almost, Detroit, etc. Such a ballot still was not enough to get a Bush win in Michigan and Oregon. Pennsylvania, which did not have such an amendment, went overwhelmingly Kerry.
Yes, there was unfairness. Were votes electronically manipulated, however? Hard to say because in Florida and Ohio, such things are impossible to know because there is no paper trail. More importantly, the unfairness made this an uphill battle no matter what. Republican-controlled districts limited or cut back polling places and voting machines in traditionally democratic areas of Ohio and Florida. This resulted in five-hour or even six-hour lines in some pro-democratic areas. It was amazing to see lines of people in ponchos, with umbrellas in the cold rain who insisted on staying until their votes were cast. That high turnout seemed so good during the day. The exit polls seemed so positive. On the morning news, Bush looked like he had just swallowed a quart of Maalox and chased it with whisky sour. I was hoping, naively, for a 280+ kerry victory... But then there was voter intimidation too, such as people following Native Americans home from the voter-registration tables in South Dakota and taking their license plate numbers. The list is very, very long and only in America does this not make it to the surface because of our lazy media. To sum it up, Kerry nearly won Ohio with only 6 months to prepare. The Republicans have had a strategy and the political offices to fertilize and cultivate a Bush victory for the last four years. MoveOn and ACT did brilliant jobs—they turned a 58%-42% landslide into a 51-49% near victory. I know people in Florida, in Erie who did the work. Philly was a democratic madhouse slamming the Republicans into nothingness.
There are many people I know who are madder than ever, but they are not mad at Kerry. If anyone did not deliver, it is Edwards, who couldn’t bring in a single southern state. So people are mad and are already getting ready to fight for the supreme court. I am putting an American flag on my house and car because I am sick of pseudo-patriots claiming that real Americans only live in the Midwest, that Californians and New Yorkers are somehow less in touch, that patriotism is a solely Republican value. I’m doing it in homage to a former idea of America and democracy that seems to have disappeared. I’m doing it to water down the symbol they want to appropriate. Andrew Sullivan, whom you may know of, said Bush “deserves a fresh start, a chance to prove himself again, and the constructive criticism of those of us who decided to back his opponent. He needs our prayers and our support for the enormous tasks still ahead of him." Well, frankly, no fucking way. This is not about a fresh start, the next four years will be about holding these people accountable. Today the LA Times has the first interviews with soldiers who watched as looted dragged away those high-grade explosives from the al Qaqaa munitions complex. Responsibility for this cannot be passed off and many are motivated to keep the media on the ball. The L.A. Times has become a truly great paper this year, while the New York Times has become lazy. Today, in the NYT, there was something to the effect that the Dems were out of touch. Well, sorry, 49% is not out of touch and I’m prouder than I ever have been to be liberal.
That is my mood. I think it is shared by a lot of folks, at least nearly sixty million of us anyway.
I apologize for any grandiloquence or shrillness. Greetings to the family.
Andy
Tuesday, October 26, 2004
What a surprise.
I'm overwhelmed. I can't beleive it. Halliburton? Special interests? Favors? never... It's not possible.
The Army Corps of Engineers' top contracting official has demanded an investigation into contracts given to Halliburton , citing "improper action" that favored Vice President Dick Cheney's old company.
The Army Corps of Engineers' top contracting official has demanded an investigation into contracts given to Halliburton , citing "improper action" that favored Vice President Dick Cheney's old company.
Saturday, October 23, 2004
Friday, October 22, 2004
Thursday, October 21, 2004
Wednesday, October 20, 2004
The Washington Note Archives
Middle Ages vs. Enlightenment....That's Steve Clemmons' argument when whe quotes Suskind's work in the NYT magazine.
"Just in the past few months," Bartlett said, "I think a light has gone off for people who've spent time up close to Bush: that this instinct he's always talking about is this sort of weird, Messianic idea of what he thinks God has told him to do." Bartlett, a 53-year-old columnist and self-described libertarian Republican who has lately been a champion for traditional Republicans concerned about Bush's governance, went on to say: "This is why George W. Bush is so clear-eyed about Al Qaeda and the Islamic fundamentalist enemy. He believes you have to kill them all. They can't be persuaded, that they're extremists, driven by a dark vision. He understands them, because he's just like them. . . ".
Perhaps, though I think that oversimplifies things. Perhaps it is New Ageism, as William Gibson suggests over in his blog. I'm not sure. I am increasingly aware that our media is, as Gibson says, "narrowing the creativity gap" (or something to that effect). Indeed, dogmatic rulers are both a product and a user of our paralyzed media. As the audience cheers John Stewart, Fucker Carlson and Paul Begs-a-lot retained their veneer of "decency" while they spewed the pornography of their respective parties. This nation is addicted to junk food, junk politics, junk journalism, myself included. At least I know it and do something about it. Are there any watchdogs? Are there any standards. Just capitalism--wait--no, not even that. We are no longer a primarily capitalist society except at the local and small-scale level--the major players of the economy are post-capitalist marriages of state and economic empires that say "screw you, workers" more often than not. It's amazing to me that we've let democracy slide this low. Hello, 19th century, here we come... Seriously, somewhere in this mess is democracy and economic system, and they are SEPARATE entities. Maybe it's because I study France, maybe it's because I've lived overseas and seen how successful other models can be. The American economic-poliltical system no longer works for democracy or many of its citizens budgets, health or happiness. When are we going to start questioning ourselves.
I dunno. Fogive me for some of this incoherency.
Andy
"Just in the past few months," Bartlett said, "I think a light has gone off for people who've spent time up close to Bush: that this instinct he's always talking about is this sort of weird, Messianic idea of what he thinks God has told him to do." Bartlett, a 53-year-old columnist and self-described libertarian Republican who has lately been a champion for traditional Republicans concerned about Bush's governance, went on to say: "This is why George W. Bush is so clear-eyed about Al Qaeda and the Islamic fundamentalist enemy. He believes you have to kill them all. They can't be persuaded, that they're extremists, driven by a dark vision. He understands them, because he's just like them. . . ".
Perhaps, though I think that oversimplifies things. Perhaps it is New Ageism, as William Gibson suggests over in his blog. I'm not sure. I am increasingly aware that our media is, as Gibson says, "narrowing the creativity gap" (or something to that effect). Indeed, dogmatic rulers are both a product and a user of our paralyzed media. As the audience cheers John Stewart, Fucker Carlson and Paul Begs-a-lot retained their veneer of "decency" while they spewed the pornography of their respective parties. This nation is addicted to junk food, junk politics, junk journalism, myself included. At least I know it and do something about it. Are there any watchdogs? Are there any standards. Just capitalism--wait--no, not even that. We are no longer a primarily capitalist society except at the local and small-scale level--the major players of the economy are post-capitalist marriages of state and economic empires that say "screw you, workers" more often than not. It's amazing to me that we've let democracy slide this low. Hello, 19th century, here we come... Seriously, somewhere in this mess is democracy and economic system, and they are SEPARATE entities. Maybe it's because I study France, maybe it's because I've lived overseas and seen how successful other models can be. The American economic-poliltical system no longer works for democracy or many of its citizens budgets, health or happiness. When are we going to start questioning ourselves.
I dunno. Fogive me for some of this incoherency.
Andy
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