Monday, March 29, 2004

Hannity is a twist-neck, dingledorf, forked-tongued, double-speak conservative with no moral fiber or rational argument when it comes to touting of the mystical glory that emanates from the GOP, as opposed to his description of the slimy, grimy Democrats he so loves to denigrate.

Sean Hannity talks out both sides of his neck! It's true! Today, in the same breath, he talked about how hard the Bush administration's cabinet works; the long hours they put in, the sacrifices they make for the safety of the nation, and the thankless job of protecting America's citizens that they do; then he berated Richard Clarke (sp?) for his 30-year tenure inside the Washington Beltway. For him, the long hours Clarke put in add up to 30 years of ineptitude and mishandling EVERYTHING while WASTING taxpayer dollars. Whereas, for the GOP's long hours indicate patriotic commitment to duty, God and country!

Hannity ought to take the nickname 'Hillary' Hannity, or Sean 'Clinton' since he now vigorously espouses a left-wing conspiracy is in play – the same thing Hillary claimed about the GOP/right-wing when the Clintons ruled the roost.

But, of course, his criticism and cynical jabs at Mrs. Clinton for her belief in a right-wing conspiracy go unmentioned as he blathers on and on about the liberal media's agenda, which, by Hannity's take, is to destroy Bush at all cost (pure crap!). Then he rants about the sneaky, Democratic plot to put ringers on the radio or TV or in print (the victims of 9-11, of course, were coached by the Dems to think and say the negative things they think and say about G.W. Bush).

And his viewpoint is the ONLY Fair and Balanced viewpoint – any who disagree are either misanthropes, liberals or just plain stupid!

I don't understand how anyone who listens to Hannity for more than 30 minutes can't see through the man's ideological juggling of facts, twisted inferences or irrational arguments in support of Bush's policies. To hear him tell it, every policy Bush has implemented is perfect, flawless and the only path to travel if we hope to have peace and prosperity in the world.

He actually suggested that all liberals favor al-Qaida and support the destruction of America and its people. I found that bit of drivel profoundly repugnant.

But then again, that's how the man makes his money – controversy is his stock-in-trade and nothing more. He is not a thinker, a patriot nor a leader. He's a talk show host with a blind allegiance to the GOP's right-wing ideologues.

And so it goes.
Sometimes when I listen to Hannity or Limbaugh or O'Reilly I get this foreboding feeling in the pit of my stomach because these guys sound a lot like the propagandists who promoted Sen. McCarthy's "Red Scare" campaign in the late '40s and early '50s. My hope is that the new Air America radio programming will have a balanced but vigorous retort for these wanna-be rednecks in Armani suits. I'm looking forward with great anticipation to the early broadcasts from the liberal talk show jocks. Maybe other voices on the airwaves can bring some semblance of balance to the garbage currently proliferated by the GOP's mouthpieces.

So Mr. Hannity, get that second mouth in your neck sewn shut, won't you? While it's befitting for a lizard like yourself to have a forked-tongue, it really proves the argument that you're full of s*&# when you use both of them together.

Thursday, March 18, 2004

My teeth hurt! Ouch! Aging sucks!
It's too early in the morning for me to be attempting to make sense out of this world but here goes anyway.
Another bomb exploded in Baghdad today and I'm sickened by the carnage. Why people think that killing others is a righteous way to get their point across I'll never understand. I'm no fool and I've seen much in this world that is grotesque and disgusting, but the latest cadre of terrorists is one of the most offensive bunch of lunatics in my memory of this planet's fomenting human societies.
I'm tired of hearing about American soldiers and foreign workers being blown to bits in Iraq by shadowy gangs of thugs that want to unravel the slowly coalescing government that's struggling to emerge from the post-Saddam nation. What is it that these killers are offering the people of Iraq in place of the vision of the future government - hazy though it be at this moment?
From what I can grasp, they offer nothing but subjugation by a perverted interpretation of Islamic law and Moslem tenets. They are, in word, nuts!
Sadly, the killing will continue, I'm sure. What purpose the U.S. military will ultimately serve is unclear, thanks to a policy by the Bush administration of obfuscation and quick-draw diplomacy, but it's sure as the sun rising in the east that many more of America's best will die in that hot, sandy, sad nation.
What will Kerry do if elected president? I haven't a clue. I know he cannot possibly pull the troops out of Iraq, not in good conscience, but I believe that's what he'd like to do, given the opportunity. Bush is stiff-necked about controlling the ground in that battered country so giving the U.N., which I think the administration views with disdain, at best, and with utter contempt at worst, is out of the question so long as the president and his 'crew' hold the reins of power. But I'll give Bush this - he's consistent. He consistently shows how inept and heavy-handed he is when it comes to world pollitics. I do not believe Bush is stupid, or even ignorant, but I do believe he's arrogant and given to fits of dictator-like ideas about how the world should work.
If Kerry doesn't make a strong, clearly stated argument about his policy toward Iraq, Afghanistan, Osama bin Laden and his ilk, and the relationships we, as a nation, maintain worldwide, I believe he'll have his ass handed to him in November. He must spell out his plan for the war on terror, the economy and the disasterous Social Security and Medicare issues and speak plainly about the direction he wants to take the nation. Attacking Bush will not get him elected!
Besides, there are plenty of plebians who'll give voice to opposing viewpoints when it comes to Bush '43, so Kerry should hone his focus on those several issues that most concern the voting public.
Not that my opinion counts for anything, but there it is.
Time to lay me down for a bit. I have to hassle with SBC telephone service later today (ergh!) about this damn bill they're trying to hang me with this month. Since they've transferred their operation to India the billing service has become a nightmare! I don't know from month to month what I'll be charged and when I try to get an explanation I cannot understand what the hell the person on the phone is saying, given that I'm not fluent in Urdu or whatever dialect the SBC rep uses.
"I am sorry sir, but you seem not to be wanting to hear what I'm saying to you. Do you not see that this is your bill and you owe this money for sure, honestly. We do not make error, no, no. This is true. We do not." Uh, yea. Sure. Got it.

Sunday, March 07, 2004

Bushworld and Rummyland create their own gravitational field
Yea, the administration continues to push forward with its seeding the Middle East via Iraq with democracy-bulbs, so to speak. And yet, the true power - Al-Sistani, the cleric, as well as his son who awaits his acension to power - almost showed his hand when he blocked the vote on the interim constitution last Thursday. Of course, now that the U.S.-appointed five leaders who've assumed control of the temporary governmental structure now forming in Iraq have proclaimed that the constitution will be signed tomorrow, all's well with the world, eh?

My guess would be that al-Sistani gave the nod to the constitution after realizing that his true vision for Iraq's future might have been revealed had he resisted the farce that the signing represents. Iraq will, my bet is, become another cleric-led, Middle East madhouse, a seedbed for violent factions bent on destroying the "infidel," eh, that's us folks.

Any government led by religious dogma is one that leads to suppression of human rights and demands complete control over social and personal choice. What nitwit in his/her wildest hallucinatory phase-craze came up with the notion that we could impose democracy on a nation that's never known such a system, or, might I add, sought it as an alternative to dictatorship should be hauled up in front of the world and made to explain his/her reasoning.

Ah well. Life goes on.

The really important issues are "The Passion of the Christ" is a huge financial hit; Martha Stewart was found guilty of lying to federal agents - a shock to the system, as they say; and Sydney and Vaughn ala "Alias" look as though they're bound to reunite once they eliminate that pesky little bitch of a wife Vaughn has tied to his tail.

Now that's the stuff that really matters to middle America - right?

Pundits are predicting the lowest voter turnout ever for the upcoming presidential election - a sad testament to the sense of powerlessness the nation's electorate is feeling, and I find it rather frightening because, given the history of governments going back to Egypt and Rome, proves that once the people abandon the leadership, lose all trust in their lawmakers and social manipulators, that government is bound for meltdown.

An article in the Atlantic Monthly circa 2003 predicted that America is going to go the way of the Roman empire. The signs are in place, the writer suggests. The European Consolidation is pulling further away from America's political and financial interests; even Great Britain is no longer the stalwart partner we once could depend upon for blind support; and with Germany, France, Spain and several smaller countries forming alliances that give them mounting influence in the world market, not to mention military strength, the U.S., the author predicts, will find itself isolated from the rest of the world. A world that no longer admires the United States for its even-handedness but despises it for its arrogant, bullying, arm-wrenching policy when it comes to the "war on terrorism." And who are we dealing with in this "war?"

Nobody, because even our allies aren't trustworthy (at least not to Bush and his team) and our intelligence seems to have wide gaps in its big-picture assembly capability.

Will it mean anything if Bush is deposed and Kerry is elevated to the presidency? I don't think so. I think the dice have rolled and the wheel has been spun and now, where it stops nobody knows.

Our global policies are, at best, on life support; our national policies - jobs, health care, Social Security, Medicare, et al, are even less healthy. Does anyone really believe that we're living in harmonyville? If so, send me some of what you're taking - PLEASE.

But for those who've lost their jobs and been unable to reestablish themselves in another paying position, my sympathies, for what it's worth.

And now I fade into the night. Amorphous, invisible and unformed in my current state.

Remember. Anything can happen and probably will.