Sarah Palin was ambushed by Charlie Gibson with a gotcha question about the Bush Doctrine. Well, maybe Palin isn’t an expert on the current president’s doctrine, but, as her hero Virginia Woolf would have it, the governator has a doctrine of one’s own, the Palin Doctrine, which strikes a balance between governmental largess and governmental neglect.
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In part two of Sarah Palin’s interview with ABC’s Charlie Gibson, she gives lipstick-y lip service to the notion that human beings may, in fact, be contributing to climate change. What a difference a month (and a nomination) makes! ‘Cause back in August, before John McCain singled Palin out as our nation’s foremost expert on energy, Alaska’s climate change denier-in-chief told Newsmax.com that “I'm not one though who would attribute [global warming] to being man-made.”
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For nearly two weeks now, I’ve been suffering from a newly-minted malady called Palin-paralysis–a nasty tv-transmitted virus I caught after watching Sarah Palin’s divisive and derisive acceptance speech. You know, that salute to “small town values” that lionized plucky, scrappy hockey moms and demonized yucky, crappy community organizers.
The primary symptoms are nausea, a perpetually clenched jaw, and a half-baked Alaska-induced brain freeze; can’t get out of bed, can’t blog, can’t even blog in bed. The surreal spectacle of the Palin pick, the depth of cynicism and carelessness that it demonstrated, and the embrace of this ludicrous choice for veep by so many folks is truly appalling. As Matt Damon told the AP:
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Over at 23/6, Lee Camp unearths a voicemail recording of McCain correcting a New York Times story.
It’s a sort of ironic twist of fate that just as Obama’s pushback seems to be getting flimsier and flimsier, the comedic takes on McCain we’re seeing throughout the internets seem to be getting sharper and sharper – as we’ve written before, comedy can be a great way to reframe the debate and redefine the perceptions of candidates and issues. Now, if only the campaign proper and campaign improper could get on the same page.
What if I told you there was a way you could ensure voting rights on election day?
You might say, “Sure I know about Election Protection and being a poll-watcher.”
What if I told you that you wouldn’t be a watcher — but could protect votes from the inside?
You might look at me funny.
What if I told you that you could get paid?
If we’ve got your interest, it’s time you become a Pollworker for Democracy.
Our friends at CREDO have done it again: taken a simple idea, created a straightforward program, and made it easy for people to make a difference.
You know those impossibly ancient people that populate polling sites across America? Well, thank god for them — because without pollworkers, we wouldn’t have elections. That said, let’s be kind to them — let them retire! And the only way to do that is to take their spot.
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In today’s New York Times, Bob Herbert — a favorite columnist of Living Liberally — laments:
Liberals have been so cowed by the pummeling they’ve taken from the right that they’ve tried to shed their own identity, calling themselves everything but liberal and hoping to pass conservative muster by presenting themselves as hyper-religious and lifelong lovers of rifles, handguns, whatever.
He goes on to articulate the proud liberal legacy in America: civil rights and women’s rights, environmental protection and food safety, Social Security and Medicare, concluding:
Without the many great and noble deeds of liberals over the past six or seven decades, America would hardly be recognizable to today’s young people.
Bob – have we got a video to show you.
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Adomian, master Bush impersonator (and contributor to Open Left from the very first day), lets us know how McCain has been prepping for the RNC Convention.
Tomorrow, John McCain will give his acceptance speech.
You want to watch.
You can only watch with a drink in hand.
You shouldn’t be drinking alone.
Therefore: it’s time for a watch party.
Drinking Liberally is working with People For the American Way on a national night of gatherings — fittingly called “McCain on the Rocks.” You can find a local get-together, or check with your area DL chapter to see if they are hosting something.
Check out the official Acceptance Speech Drinking Game. Additionally, Bill Nothstine from our exceptional Portland, Oregon chapter has created rules an alternative version you can play all night long (sip if a speaker references his POW experience; drink if McCain speaks of his POW experience; chug if anyone says how much McCain doesn’t like to mention his POW experience).
Now McCain will not talk to the press
They’re asking hard questions, I guess
And they’re kicked off the bus
Where they can’t cause a fuss
So much for the Straight Talk Express
When the RNC meets in St. Paul
It will kick off a most dismal fall
If their best hope is Palin
Their luck must be failin’
So they’ll come at a crawl if at all
Laughing Liberally’s Katie Halper and Spencer Ackerman discussed politics with some PUMAs yesterday in the streets of Denver, a few blocks from the Pepsi Center, trying to understand their point of view, and…hoo boy.
8:07p Having coffee in the Coffee Bean in Denver discussing blogging with a few nerds of tremendous proportions. Sadly enough, I fit right in.
8:09p Riot police shooting tear gas into small crowd of protesters. Cops are dressed like Storm Troopers. Protesters are dressed like a Salvation Army catalogue.
8:11p I join the protesters though I’m not yet sure what they’re protesting.
8:15p Learn that they’re protesting the corporate ownership of the Democratic party (and the Satan ownership of the Republican party).
8:16p Learn from a different protester that they’re protesting that Hillary wasn’t given the nomination.
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There’s no doubt about it: The Big Tent will be awesome. The folks out in Denver are pouring their souls into a remarkable hive of activity that will showcase the netroots and our partners during the Democratic Convention.
Lesser known is that there is a place for us after August 28th: The Twin Cities.
In 2004, it was the RNC week that brought bloggers, activists, protesters, performers together at The Tank. This year, a similar — but larger — operation will be in place in Saint Paul: a daytime work space for up to 170 bloggers hosted by The Uptake…and evening parties sponsored by the SEIU, hosted by Drinking Liberally and friends. (Details coming…stay tuned.)
I just had the chance to tour the space The Uptake is setting up — you can see the Excel Center from the windows. You are inside the security zone. The marches will u-turn at the corner outside the building. And there will be plenty of space to create content…and I wouldn’t be surprised if you could find yourself some delegates nearby.
Register now to get your spot in this center — and stay for the evening parties (did I mention complimentary drinks)…plus the Alliance for a Better Minnesota is hosting trainings and workshops as well.
Don’t forget the Twin Cities, where our progressive mark will stand out in sharper contrast. Also, these cities really can’t stand the GOP. Former Saint Paul Mayor Norm Coleman didn’t win a single precinct in his city when he ran for Senator. Sep 1st – 4th should be fun.
My parents kind of get what I do. They have a sense of what blogs are and how they interact with the larger world of politics, though they don’t read blogs (and definitely don’t have user accounts). They have a sense, gleaned from the occasional New York Times article or conversation with one of my peers, that technology is tearing down barriers. But they probably haven’t heard or used the term “gatekeeper” very often.
So Markos, thank you for writing a book for them.
Markos’s new work, Taking On the System, is an exploration of how all of us have just been handed power…if we decide to grab hold. We can change media narrative by becoming our own media through blogging. We can become our own campaigns with simple cameras and free video hosting sites.
And it’s not just in politics. Markos quite consciously weaves stories of other industries, most notably the music business, among his anecdotes from Senate campaigns, the anti-war movement, immigration rallies and other political efforts. In doing so, he creates an argument that doesn’t just appeal to the political junkie but to anyone who wants to understand entrepreneurship, idea-generation and anti-authoritarianism in the digital era. He also does it in a well-written, fun, and at-times inspirational style that is full of examples and lessons, which are helpfully broken down into “rules.”
My parents will understand the progressive movement — and these times — much better when they read it.
But it’s not only aimed at the newcomer to these discussions.
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Why are we all so excited about Rachel Maddow? News of her being tapped for own MSNBC program has excited the progressive grassroots/netroots, leading Living Liberally’s blog to be “All Maddow, All the Time” today in her honor.
So what’s the big deal?
Well, first of all, Maddow demonstrations that someone can graduate from the world of “progressive media” into a role in the “mainstream” media. People across the country know Maddow — if not from her stints on Air America, then from her confrontations with Pat Buchanan and take-down Joe Scarborough. She has become a brand, a recognizable name and face, and — according to that ultimate arbiter, the bottom-line of business-driven MSNBC — a bankable commodity.
This is a great success for progressive media, and the components of it that had promoted Maddow at different parts in her career. And it’s a signal to other smart, funny, liberal personalities that there is an avenue to advance their careers and their ideas.
Second, Maddow is a team player. She respects and engages the progressive movement. We, at Living Liberally, experienced that friendship when she wrote a guest post for Screening Liberally on her recommended weekend video rentals, and when she joined us for our 5th Anniversary party in May.
When we’ve asked her to participate, she’s participated. That’s a great quality.
And finally, it a strong, left-leaning voice will reach the homes of many more Americans. Yes, there are satiric news programs that do a great job challenging right-wing dominance, and some broadcasters like Keith Olbermann who challenge the administration, but we’re still short on proud progressive personalities in the spotlight. The right has them. Now we have one more too.
Part of building a progressive movement is ensuring there are structures that recognize and promote talent: whether candidates, organizers or commentators. Maddow’s next move shows that some of these structures are in place…we need to keep making them work.
And we need to tune in to MSNBC on Monday, September 8th at 9pm to help keep Maddow on the air.
Steak or salmon? Millions of menu-mulling diners ask themselves this question every day. Enjoy your dithering while you can, folks, because the day is coming when you may not have the luxury of choosing the lobster over the London broil. For those with a more populist palate, I’ve got some bad news, too; a future with no more fried clam strips or canned tuna, for you.
Why? Because fertilizer runoff from industrial agriculture and fossil-fuel use are causing catastrophic “dead zones” in our oceans, “killing large swaths of sea life and causing hundreds of millions of dollars in damage,” according to Scientific American.
It’s Agribiz vs. Aquabiz, and at the moment, the farmers are beating the waders off of the fishermen. Scientific American notes that “there are now 405 identified dead zones worldwide, up from 49 in the 1960s.” And once a marine habitat falls victim to hypoxia, i.e. oxygen deficiency, the outlook is grim:
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When Entertainment Weekly conducted a Woodward and Bernstein-like investigation of “all the presidential candidates'” pop culture favorites, I was shocked-and-awed to learn you are a Curb Your Enthusiasm fan.
Although I disagree with your policies, I must admit I share your taste in television, which, as they say, makes strange bedfellows. So, as a fellow fan, I beg you to “curb your enthusiasm” for the show. Since your endorsement, I’ve been unable to think of Curb without imagining this frightening image: You are in one of your nine houses in full relaxation mode, you’ve kicked off your $520 Ferregamo calf skin loafers and you’re curled up on the couch with Cindy (whom you just arm wrestled for the remote), snuggling under a polar-bear-fur blanket while a taxidermied bald eagle keeps vigil on the mantle with caribou heads and framed ABBA albums on the walls and you’re surrounded by good friends like John Hagee, Rod Parsley and Ralph Reed –your adopted child nowhere in sight (as usual)– everyone laughing away. I’m scared that this image will haunt me forever and prevent me from enjoying the next season, which I’ve been looking forward to with much excitement.
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(Mazhira Black is a Young People For Fellow finishing her final day interning with Living Liberally. Good luck back in Waco, Texas, this year!)
Are you concerned that your free-thinking tyke will forget his liberal roots this fall in the classroom? Why not equip her with all of the essential back to school items that a liberal pupil needs? When you’re bombarded with ads telling you what type of parent you are if you don’t shop at Walmart to buy your kid the newest Hannah Montana threads or what sugary fruit drink you should pack in their lunch it can be easy to get lost in the crowd.
Better World Shopper is a great resource for finding companies that are environmentally and socially responsible. They rank companies based on their involvement in human rights, the environment, animal protection, community involvement, and social justice. Their rankings are sure to help you find what you need for your kids’ back to school needs and beyond.
For a new back to school wardrobe be sure to head to Patagonia, a leader in environmental responsibility and an outspoken ally for environmental policy. Patagonia also has backpacks which are designed for your student’s busy schedule. Another clothing option that has more of a personal feel is Garden Kids Clothing, they offer organic options for kids.
For back to school kicks New Balance is committed to American assembled union made products free from child labor.
For you dorm dwellers out there you may want to consider bamboo sheets for your arrival on campus this fall, they not only come from a replenishable natural resource that doesn’t require pesticides, they are hypoallergenic, antibacterial, wick away moisture, AND they’re super soft! Bed Bath & Beyond offers a relatively cheap set of these sheets. Drawback: they don’t come in that extra long twin size the dorms love to stick you with. There are some small online places to get the same sheets, these tend to cost a lot more and you can’t feel the sheets before buying them.
If you’re worried about what to pack for your child’s lunch, it turns out that peanut butter and jelly, the classic mainstay, is pretty great for the environment, in addition to being delicious. Seth discusses the craze PB&J; Campaign that is sweeping the nation in a previous post.
More tips after the jump!
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Judd Apatow has done it again. He’s really done it. Pineapple Express is downright awesome.
I wouldn’t call it a game changer like say The 40 Year Old Virgin, it’s not going to spawn a whole new genre of films. But it’s a rock-solid movie, and a great combination of classic Apatowian comedy and some pretty great ashtray-flinging fight scenes, foot through-the-windshield car chases, and a great bromantic escape sequence. Everyone, the writers, actors, directors, special effects dudes, I mean everyone does a really excellent job.
In short, Pineapple Express is a strictly business kind of movie. No visionary new ideas. Just a get-in, get-out solid genre film.
This “strictly business” attitude is key issue that the film deals with. When we first meet Seth Rogen’s character Dale Denton, he is calling into a talk-radio show about how drugs should be legal because dealing with skeezy drug dealers is really really awkward. This awkwardness is exemplified in his relationship with his own dealer Saul Silver, played brilliantly by James Franco.
Dale is mildly entertained by Saul but for the most part wants to keep their relationship strictly business. As the movie goes on, and as their adventure escalates, they find that their relationship is more than just about a business deal. It’s about friendship, love and making sure they don’t get killed by vicious drug lords and their henchmen.
There are many places in our lives where we’d like to keep things strictly business. Whether it’s at the store, the office, or the world of politics. We like to keep these situations and the relationships developed within these situations out of our personal lives, but in reality, they can’t be separated.
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The New York Times giveth, and the New York Times taketh away. On the one hand, Nick Kristof’s eloquent plea to treat our farm animals more humanely moved me to tears. On the other hand, I’ve barely got enough digits to count the noxious “let’s not save the planet” columns that John Tierney, Stanley Fish, and Stephen J. Dubner have tossed off in recent weeks like rancid croutons.
John Tierney-the thinking man’s John Stossel–delivers his trademark contrarian drivel with 10 Things to Scratch From Your Worry List, in which he gleefully skewers a whole herd of sustainable sacred cows: plastic bags, plastic water bottles, food miles, the Arctic meltdown, and so on. Treehugger tackled half of his half-assed claims, noting that:
This may all be a joke to Tierney, but the truth is some of these issues are areas of real concern and because of this piece, his misinformation will be quoted back to us in comments every time we write about any of these subjects for the next two years, as the word from The authoritative New York Times.
Then Stanley Fish had to weigh in with a weary, Larry David-style kvetch in which his eco-freak wife sabotages his quality of life with recycled toilet paper, fluorescent bulbs, and grass-fed beef, of which he says:
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There’s been an enormous outpouring of energy on this blog recently about support for insurgent progressive candidates, which is wonderful. However, as we spend time in the next few months busting our humps for candidates like Darcy Burner, let’s not forget those insurgent candidates we’ve championed in the past, especially those who may not have made it to the promised land on first try, but can still be effective advocates, fighting the good fight.
Earlier in the summer, while we were busy launching The Liberal Card, a campaign to promote progressive businesses while spreading liberal pride, several of our Des Moines chapter hosts were busy at work supporting Ed Fallon, a progressive congressional candidate running against a Bush Dog Democrat, incumbent Leonard Boswell. One of those Des Moines supporters was long-time chapter host (and LC Program Director) Amanda Mittlestadt – and while the campaign didn’t turn out the way she might’ve hoped, Amanda didn’t forget her work for a candidate who just plain got it – who understood the role of a progressive elected official in building a larger progressive movement.
So, when it came time to reach out to local Iowa figures for regional Liberal Card outreach, Fallon was on the top of her (and our) list – which is why we were so overjoyed when Fallon cut this home-made video on our behalf, promoting not just The Liberal Card project, but Des Moines businesses that believe social responsibility is the other bottom line:
Ron Suskind just put out a new book claiming the CIA forged and post-dated a note between Iraqi Intelligence and Saddam Hussein in order to trump up the evidence for a war in Iraq. (See note below) Furthermore, the forgery was requested by the President himself. (The President’s request is also below)
Dubya’s note after the jump!
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Eating Liberally Food For Thought
by Kerry Trueman There’s an awful lot of b.s. being spread in this election year–thankfully, some of it’s actually being put to good use growing delicious, nutritious fruits and vegetables. The rising cost of food and gas is fueling a grassroots movement to uproot our grass and grow our own food instead. Once, throwing tomatoes was a form of protest. Now, growing tomatoes is the way to just say no to the status quo. Isn’t that a sad sign of the times?
If only we had a commander-in-chief who called on us to grow our own crops, instead of to shop! It sounds implausible now, but there was a time when our government actually encouraged us to get off our cans and get canning. The current administration is famously reluctant to encourage preserving of any kind, be it sweet or savory.
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I want to apologize for my unseemly behavior the other day. I know you interview a lot of people, so you may not remember me or you may have repressed the memory of me. I’m the comic who was on the viral video comedy panel at Netroots Nation whom you interviewed about, well, viral comedy videos. We talked over the phone, since I was in Austin, Texas. The end of our conversation went something like this…
[WARNING: DO NOT READ THE FOLLOWING IF YOU ARE EATING. IF YOU HAVE EATEN RECENTLY, MAKE SURE YOU HAVE WAITED AT LEAST A HALF AN HOUR TO DIGEST. IF NOT, STEP AWAY FROM THE COMPUTER IMMEDIATELY. YOU’LL UNDERSTAND WHY AFTER YOU READ THIS.]
Joe Mathieu: What are some of your favorite viral videos?
Katie Halper: Well, I really like this one videomade by the Public Service Administration on McCain and the C-Word*. It makes fun of the media for not mentioning the story because they can’t possibly say “the C word.”
Joe Mathieu: Well, you know, Katie. I’ve enjoyed talking with you, but it’s 12:30 out here on the East Coast and people are having lunch right now. And we can’t really be talking about this during lunch time. [click]
Katie Halper: Oh, sorry
Joe Mathieu: [post-click silence]
* I didn’t actually say the C word. In other words, I didn’t utter the word that begins with C. And ends with T. I actually said “the C word.”
Before apologizing, I want to thank you. While others could see your hang-up as rude and unprofessional, the response of an immature and unprepared “d-bag,” I know that you were helping me make my argument.
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Of the countless movies made since 9/11, this new Batman film might have the most accurate depiction of the political and social climate of the world as it is today. A world largely uncontrolled by law and order, instead run by criminals, who are in turn pursued by vigilante heroes who stand in for a largely ineffective law enforcement. This leads to feelings of great fear and insecurity among the people of Gotham.
In The Dark Knight, Gotham is faced with its most treacherous villain yet: The Joker. Heath Ledger’s brilliant and maniacal anarchist clown should be remembered one of the finest movie villain performances of all time. Ledger’s Joker eschews all order, whether it is the power of the state or the invisible hand of capitalism. He appeals to a side of humanity more disordered than even the basest most animalistic parts of our minds. His complete unpredictability becomes a power that he uses to control the population of Gotham, much like the specter of terrorism has dominated the American psyche since 9/11.
Batman, our hero, who, in the time between the first movie and this one, has fought to put most of Gotham’s big villains behind bars. He’s done so as a vigilante and without much support (and a little disdain) from the people of Gotham City. While much of the film focuses on Batman’s trying to reconcile the good that he’s doing with the hate he incurs from the public and it’s elected officials, the film’s true protagonist is the people of Gotham City, whose mood, almost like that of a Greek Chorus echoes throughout each scene.
The political side after the jump!
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(Written in satire. A literal translation for the tonally impaired is available upon request.)
This weekend I went to Austin, Texas, to attend the third annual Netroots [Aryan] Nation, the convention formerly known as Yearly Kos and recently called a “Klan gathering” by Bill O’Reilly.
I agree with O’Reilly that “including the Nazis and the Klan… there is not a more hateful group in the country than the Daily Kos People.” I too hate this hateful conference, which encourages democracy, open politics, participatory democracy, grass roots organizing and other Nazi-ish thing. But I attend each year, under the guise of a Laughing Liberally comic and Living Liberally leader, in order to counter the lies of the liberal media, who receive their talking points and marching orders directly from Subcomandante Markos [Moulitsas]. I go because somebody needs to document the atrocities that are ignored by the appeasement era press and distorted by the Netroots deniers. I go to show the world the truth. I go to say Never Again.
So, here are some of the things you won’t hear from the liberal media about the four-day gathering of over 2,000 progressive bloggers, journalists, politicians and activists.
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When Living Liberally went to Netroots Nation this year, we had, admittedly a bit of an ulterior motive. Sure we were excited about our third NN in a row, but we had an additional goal in mind: in the process of launching our Liberal Card project, we wanted to see how many NN attendees we could get to declare themselves proud, card-carrying liberals.
We expected a few in the bag for sure – like Baratunde Thurston and Liberal Card-holder Markos Moulitsas – but we didn’t expect figures like Larry Lessig, Howard Dean, and…well, just watch it for yourself. (Also note that Bob Barr was willing to call himself a liberal – kinda.)
A full list of proud, card-carrying liberals after the jump.
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Ever wonder how McCain got where he is? Why after all the flip-flops, the slip-ups, and the just flat-out-inappropriate jokes, McCain continues to credibly crawl toward the White House? If so, then Free Ride: John McCain and the Media proves to be indispensable reading (not to mention that it is one of the two books that will be discussed at next Tuesday’s first-ever meeting of Reading Liberally NYC!).
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Tomorrow, John McCain will give his acceptance speech.
Liberal Lifecycle Lesson
