Finally, and from Politico of all places:
Eight years ago, a terrorist bomber’s attempt to blow up a transatlantic airliner was thwarted by a group of passengers, an incident that revealed some gaping holes in airline security just a few months after the attacks of September 11. But it was six days before President George W. Bush, then on vacation, made any public remarks about the so-called “shoe bomber,” Richard Reid, and there were virtually no complaints from the press or any opposition Democrats that his response was sluggish or inadequate.
That stands in sharp contrast to the withering criticism President Barack Obama has received for his reaction to Friday’s incident on a Northwest Airlines flight heading for Detroit.
[….]Democrats do not appear to have criticized Bush over the delay. Many were wary of publicly clashing with the commander-in-chief, who was getting lofty approval ratings after what appeared to be a successful military campaign in Afghanistan. The media also seemed to have little interes in pressing Bush about the bombing, or the fact that the incident had revealed a previously unknown vulnerability in airplane security – that shoes could be used to hide chemicals or explosive devices.
I have to be honest: I disliked and distrusted Bush from quite early on and it would never have even occurred to me to criticize him for taking a few days to address a failed terrorist attempt. I just don’t get the mindset of going ballistic because the president isn’t wetting his pants about something like this.
beltane
Maybe the Democrats should have pushed the issue back then, even though they would have had their patriotism questioned for it. In any case, I don’t recall having any interest in hearing what Bush had to say about Richard Reid.
bayville
That’s because you’re a rational person who doesn’t shit his pants everytime a dog barks.
Unfortunately, we, the rational, are in the minority – a shrinking minority – with each passing day.
AhabTRuler
OK, so I gave Politico the clicks it so cravenly pursues, and I never click through to ya’lls Politico links.
DougJ
In any case, I don’t recall having any interest in hearing what Bush had to say about Richard Reid.
Yes, exactly.
El Cid
As a citizen I would feel it important for the President to have said something about Richard Reid if there was something particularly substantive in what the President would say that we were not already aware of or which was not in the prerogative of whatever other officials regularly briefed the public, or if there was some change of orders which seemed to require his public announcement of it.
General Winfield Stuck
Same here. I was open minded until the second or third debate with Gore, I forget which, and Bush answered a question about the death penalty and it wasn’t his worded answer that i expected he was pro death penalty, but his body language that set me off.
It was liked getting shocked by an electrical current and was what got me into politics.
As for the crazy from the RW. I think it is mostly pure desperation from a political party on the ropes that has washed away any impulse control it once had. And coupled with a press that is insatiable for conflict for political conflict sake. From their own struggles for survival, which now days means ratings and profit with many competitors.
Wasn’t always that way in the days where the gentlemans agreement to use public airwaves came with a promise to put profit second to truthful and balanced information per the 4 estate thingy.
danimal
The right can not survive without an ever expanding sense of outrage. Obviously there will come a point at which most people just tune out their howls of anger and angst (peak wingnut?).
Until that time, the right will vacillate between macho warrior talk and pissing their beds in fear.
Cat Lady
arguingwithsignposts
I just mentioned this in the last thread, but the ESPN360.com producers should really cut the mics of the announcing team after they’re done. I just heard one of them say he was “stealing some cookies” and call John Clay “The Johnnymon”
jwb
I really think the response to this particular event has seemed so crazy because so few people are paying attention with the holiday and all. Insofar as people are tuning in it is only to figure out how it might affect travel plans– which I think they are pissed about (this would also explain why TSA seems to be walking back some of the more onerous changes). This just makes the screaming heads on TV seem all the crazier. That’s my sense anyway.
NovShmozKaPop
There’s no logic to any of what we’ll ever hear from Republicans concerning Mr. Obama. It is and will be forever more constant meaningless attack, for acting too late, acting too soon, driving the country to Socialism, choosing the wrong salad dressing.
kwAwk
I think pissing our pants only serves to make terrorism more effective. Terror is the objective. Being terrified only achieves the objective.
Warren Terra
This is off topic, but Charlie Savage, who’s been known to rip Obama on civil liberties when he deserves it, has an encouraging piece on Obama moving to address classification creep in the Times.
gizmo
The Right jumps all over a story like the underwear bomber because they got nothin’ else.
DonBelacquaDelPurgatorio
Well, are we going to start mistaking these righty noisemakers for sane and reasonable people? And trying to understand their motives?
They are children. They are just petulant brats who will make farting noises no matter what is happening. They have no rational agenda or need to be reasonable. They are just looking for attention.
So, why give it to them?
Comrade Luke
@General Winfield Stuck:
Was that the time he was kind of just slouching into his chair, trying almost to disappear?
That’s the image I remember most, though I can’t remember which question he was answering at the time.
El Cruzado
Uhm…
What skin tone did the shoe bomber have?
What skin tone did the crotch bomber have?
Uhm…
Yutsano
@arguingwithsignposts: @General Winfield Stuck: Just out of curiosity, is this the thread I’m gonna end up hijacking when I get home from work? Or will Anne have another late nighter open by then?
General Winfield Stuck
@Comrade Luke:
No, they were standing up. And when he answered, he clenched his fists at his sides and kind of puffed out his chest and raised himself like a bully would.
jeffro
Off topic: Redstate hilarity
The comments on this thread, are priceless… especially if you have the slightest idea how the tubes work..
http://www.redstate.com/aarongardner/2009/12/29/google-hates-biggovernment/
Midnight Marauder
@General Winfield Stuck:
This is one of the reasons why I don’t get too worried when I hear all the dire predictions about Democrats losing seats in 2010. The Republicans have unloaded absolutely every clip they have so far into ruining this administration–and look at all the good it has done them. In the grand scheme of things, they may have scored a few lancing blows here and there, but no major wounds have been struck. And more importantly, Obama is just getting his footing in this wild new frontier.
I think the White House is going to come out swinging in 2010 and I would imagine they lay out the groundwork for that in the State of the Union. But in the interim, I think they can do a lot of things to grease the skids with some positive momentum. A constructive resolution to HCR is a no-brainer, of course, but more things like this certainly would go a long way towards soothing the constant burning sensation that has been nagging those poor ol’ firebaggers as of late:
Obama Moves To Curb Federal Secrets, Encourage Declassification
I think we can expect a lot more moves like this in the new year. A slow, but steady, tide of competency is washing through Washington DC.
Edit: But I guess all of this is just the O-Bot in me. Obviously.
/obligatory
Cat Lady
So many people are travelling now that another nutbomber is the least of their worries compared to weather. They just want to get home, and stoking anger isn’t going to endear anyone to the fearmongers. I just wish Grayson or Franken or Whitehouse would commandeer the mic from Dana Bash and shiv Demint and the Al Quaeda Republicans. While Jon Stewart is on vacation, Franken needs to step up. The jokes aren’t writing themselves.
The Republic of Stupidity
@DougJ:
Funny, that… the first time I saw Bush on the teevee machine back in 2000 when he had just started campaigning, and listened to that voice, I instinctively flinched. A very, very visceral reaction on my part. I DID NOT want that man to be the POTUS, period.
Anyways… there was an episode of The King of the Hill, that rather intelligent Mike Judge animated series, on around the same time.
In the episode, Hank was all excited about his upcoming opportunity to meet Junior at a campaign stop. It was an ongoing gag on the show – how much Hank had enjoyed voting for Poppy TWICE – and he was all atwitter at the chance to meet Bush II… until he actually Met. Him. And Hank flinched too, when he shook hands w/ Junior.
At the end of the episode, Hank was sitting in his recliner, replaying a videotape of that moment, over and over, wondering what the flinch meant.
Kinda prophetic on Judge’s part, and Judge was a kinda conservative person at that time.
Just sayin’.
jwb
@gizmo: It’s also got heads I win tails you lose framing built in. Don’t think for a moment that had Obama reacted by rushing back to Washington that the same crew that is criticizing him now for being inattentive would be hollering up a storm about how he was overreacting.
Rosali
arguingwithsignposts
@Yutsano:
You’ll have to check because both JC and DJ have been posting at breakneck speed today after the obligatory “I won’t be around much today” from JC.
mcd410x
Many people in this country are deathly afraid … of something. I wish I knew what — perhaps I could figure out what to do about it. I guess there’s much to fear. But I don’t see where I can do much about most of it. Did many people get deluded that they were in control to begin with?
danimal
@Midnight Marauder:
I’m not nearly as pessimistic as the conventional wisdom either. If the Dems can hold back on the friendly fire, 2010 should be just fine.
arguingwithsignposts
Just now watching KO’s whackjob year in review, and Sarahcuda’s resignation speech is, even now, an amazing word salad.
inkadu
@El Cid: The government should brief the public and debrief air travellers.
The Republic of Stupidity
@kwAwk:
Well… seeing as the likelihood of teh al Kaidis killing all 300 million of us at once is exceedingly slim to none, scaring 99.999% of the survivors into pissing themselves would indeed seem to be the objective of a terrorist attack… so I say you’ve hit the proverbial nail right on the head.
Noonan
I think you’re paying too much attention to the merits. Those don’t matter. All that matters is a) something happened b) Obama did something and c) Republicans pretended that his response was an attack on real America. That’s pretty much the game plan the next three years.
Yutsano
@danimal:
I think you just identified the crux of the problem. Too many voices are saying Obama is teh suck (FYGN) which demoralizes those who voted for him and the Democrats, coupled with a motivated Republican base (which I predict splitting and collapsing if the teabaggers lose their favorite sons but I digress) and suddenly you have electoral catastrophe and a whole lotta fingerpointing. The answer of course is to get the Democratic machine in force to keep that from happening. I think HCR passing makes Obama look like a winner (truth be told he already is being touted as one although they’re trying to snatch that away) and that should give the Dems a boost. But it ain’t gonna last without a good jobs bill and a few other perks for the people out there.
cmorenc
@Rosali
Unfortunately, it took the eligible electorate of the United States nearly four more years (in particular, at least several months past the Nov 2004 election) for enough of them to even come to the realization that Bush IS a village idiot, and therefore if they had a do-over they would not have installed him as President.
The Republic of Stupidity
Noonan
There… better… no?
Mike Kay
I don’t think anyone is paying attention during this time period.
After all, “Countdown with keith olbermann” is in reruns.
Two years ago, today, we were on the eve of the Iowa caucus for both parties, and outside of 75% of political junkies, no one was paying attention, even iowans. Remember Pollster.com had a big article on why the tracking polls prior to new year’s eve were worthless, and they were right.
kay
I think it’s remarkable that Obama seems to actually intend to tell us what happened, as they piece it together, and tell him.
I have no idea how that plays politically, but it’s a very novel approach. It will take getting used to.
I also love that this Politico piece mentions that President Bush was asked about a tree he planted while he was on vacation, but got not one question on shoe bomber until he himself brought it up. That’s hysterical. It’s the press-Bush relationship in a nutshell.
SiubhanDuinne
@General Winfield Stuck: Yes, if I’m recalling the same episode, it seemed that Bush was taking an unholy glee in the whole idea of the death penalty. “Because I *can* , bitchez!”
Bret
The one thing I’ve learned about conservatives in the past couple years, Doug, is that they just attack everything. Everything they don’t believe. Everything and everyone they don’t understand. Everything that doesn’t exactly sit within the two sets of dashed white lines directly in front of them.
Healthcare for more people? Attack it. Global warming? Attack it. Unions? Attack them. Lindsey Graham thinks he can make a deal with Democrats on carbon legislation? Attack him. Charlie Crist doesn’t hate Obama enough? Call him gay, and attack him.
This behavior leads sort of to the pack mentality that the modern conservative thrives on. Some other people in near proximity, or across the country says, “Hey, I don’t believe in that either! I’ll yell as loudly as I can about it!” And it just sort of perpetuates.
If we could find out some way of harnessing this energy of hatred and have it fuel cars or homes, we could retire rich men.
danimal
@Yutsano: I believe that discouraging Democrats is a large part of the Republican strategy. I’d be willing to bet that a number of bloggers and trolls are directly funded by right wing foundations.
And I’d bet it works more often than it should.
Bubblegum Tate
@arguingwithsignposts:
I feel like that speech will be studied for a while because it’s just so goddamn weird. Like it was free association (poorly) masquerading as “principle.”
The Republic of Stupidity
Soooooo… as opposed to ethanol, what you’re proposing is something akin to rageahol?
Bubblegum Tate
@kay:
Yes, but I’m sure something about it still pissed off Brent Bozell, so…you know…liberal media bias!
The Republic of Stupidity
I once caught two different trolls posting the identical comment months apart. It had to have been a script.
The comment was something to the effect, ‘the Dems are playing w/ you libs the way we play w/ our religious nuts’.
It was the EXACT same phrase – ‘the way we play with our religious nuts’. What are the odds of two different people choosing that combination of words by chance?
Very creepy…
Morbo
Just skimming this article in Newsweek at my parents’ house during a Scrabble game made me burst out with “Oh, blow it out your ass, Scarborough.” Money grafs are at the end of page 1, as Scarborough actually seems to believe that Republicans would rally around Obama in the event of a terrorist catastrophe. Or at least “they would for about as long as Democrats rallied around Bush before going after him.” To which, with some extra contrary evidence from current events, I again say: Blow it out your ass, Scarborough.
arguingwithsignposts
@The Republic of Stupidity:
in their emopants.
I LOLd. … religious nuts … played with.
SiubhanDuinne
Minor point, but Josh Gerstein in the Politico piece identifies Pete Hoekstra as R-NY. Surely he’s R-MI, yes?
General Winfield Stuck
@SiubhanDuinne:
Yes, apt description of it.
Corner Stone
@Bubblegum Tate: There are a few things I look back on in wonder, just argle-bargled at how a human can be actually doing what I’m watching.
One is where Favre’s dad passed and he goes out and puts on a display for the ages. How he left the house that day blows me away, much less the crazy that went down.
Another is Palin’s speech. Watching it I just couldn’t tear my eyes away. I’ve listened to it a few times and it never diminishes my sense of awe and wonder.
The Republic of Stupidity
@arguingwithsignposts:
An exact quote, I assure you.
Ailuridae
@SiubhanDuinne:
Yes. Dutch people from New York can’t be that combination of mean, dumb and ugly.
Mike Kay
I just clicked on Huff Po, which is usually pretty critical of anything obama does, and the mOST clicked on story is about Ivana trump,
even MSNBC’s redneck show, Morning Blow declined to return from their vacations.
Ailuridae
Its impossible to tell Obama from Bush these days.
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/44/2009/12/obama-orders-creation-of-decla.html?hpid=news-col-blog
Obama orders creation of declassification center
Bush-lite or Bush-with-a-tan? Which is it today, Jane?
MikeBoyScout
@Brett
You are thinking too positive for the dark side. They’ve harnessed the hate and are feeding it in to the war machine.
Example Preeminent – Darth Cheney.
Example Douche Bag – William (Goebbels) Kristol
Name Your Own –
Many of the best hate harnesser’s are wealthy Vampires
Mike Kay
@SiubhanDuinne:
he’s mixing him up with peter king who’s from new york.
gwangung
Hm. I think this is under-rated strategy as well. Figure out exactly what happened and then take steps to remedy the problems.
And, actually, whether or not they announce exactly what they do is optional to me.
Zach
The best WTF moment noted about this was at TPM:
You’d think a competent DC press corps would invite Ridge on one of the Sunday shows and then ambush him with back-to-back clips of this statement and his 2001-vintage press conferences as Homeland Security Coordinator (and later as DHS Secretary).
There was actually very little PR coming out of the Bush White House regarding the shoe bombing; I think they’d learned their lesson with overdoing it a bit during the anthrax attacks.
To me the craziest attack is against Napolitano for communicating that this isn’t part of a larger plot. It’s obvious that she meant there’s no indication of further imminent underwear bombings and not that it had nothing to do with Al Qaeda’s general aims at mayhem. If she’d said otherwise or said she wasn’t sure one way or the other, there’d be panic and canceled flight reservations and whatnot.
Mike Kay
@Ailuridae:
I tell ya, I don’t understand these PUMAs.
for example, I supported Dean in 2004, and yet I didn’t act like a baby because he lost and refused to support Kerry and bash Kerry everyday.
Ailuridae
@Mike Kay:
Sure I understand that. I’ll add Mike Kay to the list of “Bush-lite”
Mike Kay
@Zach:
I think that’s what Obama was also doing (ie don’t start a panic on busiest travel period of the year), much like he did early in the year when the merchant vessel was seized by Somali pirates.
Corner Stone
Chris Matthews’s wife is really pretty. Kathleen is it?
I find her to be a very attractive woman.
Just sayin’.
Brick Oven Bill
Also to make you feel good DougJ; Janet is very smart and competent.
Ailuridae
@Corner Stone:
Not as attractive as Chris thinks some prostitutes are …
Corner Stone
@Corner Stone: And I add to this the Olympics where Michael Johnson won the Men’s 200 and 400 in the same meet.
I was in Vegas at the time and the whole fucking poker room/card room stopped while we watched him do his thing. And as someone who’s never been able to run faster than your local librarian I love, love, love to watch people go fast. Then I saw Usain Bolt. Fuuuuccckkkkk.
Corner Stone
@Ailuridae: Well, no. Of course not.
Let’s not get carried away here.
Corner Stone
Plus I have a comment in mod that either the word Vega$ spiked the filter, or poak-her (aka card game).
Anyways.
mk3872
Holy Crap! That’s from Politico??
Well, guaranteed they’ll bury it on their overnight page and then put up a story on “Dems in Disarray” or “More Problems for Obama” by the morning …
BTW, to try and answer your question:
Isn’t that just classic Republican mentallity of politicizing ANYTHING and attacking Dems at any cost?
The next time that Bill Maher or Ralph Nader tries to convince you that Republicans and Democrats are exactly alike, try to think back to this particular episode.
Mike Kay
@Corner Stone:
So you’re saying you’re attracted 50ish milfs. I’ll stick with meagan fox.
Yutsano
@Mike Kay:
Okay, obvious I’m gay caveat, but I just don’t get the appeal of her.
Brick Oven Bill
Janet was the perfect person for Obama to place in charge of security as she is a single woman with no children.
Single women with no children know clock-work security when they see it, as they have short hair, and probably unshaved armpits.
Corner Stone
@Mike Kay: You are one of these jumpering to conclusions type peopleses, no?
And yeah, fwiw, I would absolutely have dinner and/or drinks with Ms. Matthews given the opportunity. Just to follow up on the silliness.
Corner Stone
@Yutsano: She’s hot yo. This can not be denied.
Mike Kay
@Yutsano:
How ’bout this photo
http://meganfoxfans.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/Megan-Fox-Berlin3.jpg
Yutsano
@Mike Kay: She has a decent dresser I’ll grant you that. Plus she has decent sized grapefruits. Not sure I get the Marilyn tat though.
Dee Loralei
@danimal:
Ya know, I read NoQ for a few years before the primaries and gained a bunch and learned much from Larry and the other posters and from the commentors. Susan started in on the “Obama bad” meme and for awhile Larry stayed above the fray. ( It was mostly between HRC and Edwards at that time, so Susan’s attacks on Obama where quite easy to ignore.) But then when Edwards dropped out Susan got really ugly, for a week or so Larry and the other commenters like me were basically ambiguous and held back. And then suddenly, Larry went full on PUMA. I had to leave that community when he started pushing the “whitey tape”. All I could think of was “Rat fucking”. And that Larry and the CIA had played us all well.
And since he has never once walked the “whitey” shit back, he’s playing a long game. And now I think he’s gotten to Hamsher and Aravoisis and a few other lefty Dem types.
And they are so glad to find a “known lefty with security credentials” who agrees with them they aren’t examining why that person ( Larry) is agreeing with them.
And that’s my experience at NoQ. And that’s why I refuse to re-act to anything the “news” tells me I must respond to.
Yutsano
@Brick Oven Bill: Say it with me very slowly:
l-e-s-b-y-t-e-r-i-a-n.
A good friend in Arizona who is politically connected said it was pretty much an open secret around Phoenix.
Corner Stone
@Mike Kay: That’s actually not a very flattering pic IMO. And I’m in favor of women who may or may not fall out of their dress at any moment.
Brick Oven Bill
Lesbians are tough Yutsano. I know lesbians. But this Janet just seems to be confused. I kind of feel bad for her though. Barack really pulled out the rug.
Janet, the Sacrificial Lesbian.
Mike in NC
Thus the bumper sticker: a village in Texas is missing its idiot.
Keith G
@Mike Kay: She looks like a cyborg with weirdly laterally pointing breasts, and a Marilyn tat?
But if that what’s moving you breeders these days.
Radon Chong
@Brick Oven Bill: MMMMMMM, pie.
GregB
Did I read right that someone is playing with religious nuts?
I’m next.
-Rev. Ted Haggard
Common Sense
@The Republic of Stupidity:
Was that the episode where Hank lost faith in Bush because he had a weak girly handshake?
Hilarious.
Mnemosyne
@Ailuridae:
No, see, the announcement is a cover for the fact that they’re really going to be secretly classifying even more information than Bush did and you’d know the truth if you would leave the veal pen.
/firebagger
The Republic of Stupidity
@Common Sense:
Yep… that be the one.
Very smart, funny show. Ever see the one where Bob Dylan played himself, and he and Boom Howard started talking to each other at the end?
MinneapolisPipe
Yet another gem from The Politico…
Defender of the “sanctity of marriage”, Karl Rove is getting is second divorce:
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1209/31036.html
Priceless.
The Republic of Stupidity
Brick Oven Bill
Hmmm…
I can see it now…
I have to admit… that’s one flick I might wanna see…
Ailuridae
@The Republic of Stupidity:
Err, Boomhauer
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boomhauer
FlipYrWhig
@Common Sense:
See, I remember it as the episode in which Hank lost faith in Bush’s _style_ but realized that his substance was more important than that, and supported him anyway. In my mind it’s a pro-Bush episode.
The Republic of Stupidity
Ooopsie… my bad… it’s been a while.
Very funny show at the time…
Truthfully… haven’t we ALL had at least one friend like Boomhauer… that no one else can understand what they’re saying, but you can, because you’ve been listening to them for so long that you just… understand…?
Ailuridae
@Mnemosyne:
OK. Mnemosyne goes into the Bush-with-a-tan column. This is easier than I thought.
DonBelacquaDelPurgatorio
@Yutsano:
He knows she is gay. We’ve talked about it here for years.
Midnight Marauder
@Mnemosyne:
There it is right there, he said it himself. HOW CAN YOU BELIEVE ANYTHING HE SAYS?! HE IS THE WORST EVER!
/firebagger
The Republic of Stupidity
Indeed… indeed…
Reality can be so… so… subjective… at times.
Yutsano
@DonBelacquaDelPurgatorio: Exploiting the obtuseness of BoB is one of my pure joys in life. Plus I can’t pie him, the incoherence and babbling about misunderstood humanities education amuses me too much. Not that I have anything against pie mind you.
FlipYrWhig
@The Republic of Stupidity: Only my interpretation is right, or ever could be right, no tagbacks, infinity. Disagreeing with me means you’re a corporatist. Sell-out!
RadioOne
Well after 9/11, Republicans became the gold standard for political bed-wetters, so you can’t fault them for pissing their own pants after receiving news of a serious attempt at a new terrorist attack.
DonBelacquaDelPurgatorio
@Yutsano:
You have inspired me. I am going to have pie now.
Mmmmmm. Pie.
The Republic of Stupidity
@FlipYrWhig:
Rick: I came to Casablanca for the waters.
Captain Renault: The waters? What waters? We’re in the desert.
Rick: I was misinformed. …
Mnemosyne
Since this thread is going in a weird direction anyway, I’d just like to bitch for a moment about how annoying it is when both you and your spouse/spouse equivalent are sick at the same time. G has bronchitis and is in the bedroom hacking up a lung. I’m on the couch in the living room so I can get some damn sleep without having to put in earplugs. I’m hacking up half a lung and blowing my nose every five minutes, but at least I’ve also lost my voice.
To make things worse, I got this whole week off from work and I get to spend it at home sick instead of out doing the things I’d planned to do. Feh.
Yutsano
@Mnemosyne: I feel for thee. It sucks when you other half goes down at the same time you do. Then all you can do is be miserable together, which really ain’t much fun.
Ailuridae
@Midnight Marauder:
Understood. This is difficult but I think Midnight Marauder falls into the Bush-Lite column
DougL (frmrly: Conservatively Liberal)
Obama FAIL!
I am not impressed. If Obama really believed that this was something serious he would have been wearing a flight suit with the Presidential Codpiece and he would have used a Harrier to get to the presser.
Now it’s just MISSION ACCOMPLISHED for the turrists. Time to vote Republican.
Question: How come every time I hear “Underpants Bomber” I keep thinking “Underpants Gnome”? There has to be something to this…
Ailuridae
@Yutsano:
Its not even like you are together when you are both sick. When you are caring for a sick partner or being cared for by your partner there is an undeniable closeness there. When you are both sick there is a testiness, a frustration about not being able to help the person you love, a feeling of being a burden and of course the inability to sleep. Its awful
Ailuridae
@DougL (frmrly: Conservatively Liberal):
Hrmm, I understand your sentiments. From what you write I think we can definitely place DougL (frmrly: Conservatively Liberal) in the Bush-with-a-tan column
David
“COURIC: Explain to me why that enhances your foreign policy credentials.
PALIN: Well, it certainly does because our . . . our next door neighbors are foreign countries. They’re in the state that I am the executive of. And there in Russia . . .”
Any party that would nominate Sarah Palin just doesn’t have foreign policy credibility.
Corner Stone
@Yutsano:
Ummm…errrmmm…mmmkay.
Comrade Luke
Anyone watch the Kennedy Center Honors? When did Melissa Etheridge turn into the cross-eyed albino witch of the west?
On the other hand: Eddie Vedder. City of Ruins. Wow. And Sting didn’t suck.
Obama is clearly a fan. He was rockin out :)
DonBelacquaDelPurgatorio
@DougL (frmrly: Conservatively Liberal):
I really don’t know. What I am hearing is Dangerous Underpants Negro.
Corner Stone
@Ailuridae: Agreed. I for one don’t trust MM. He’s one shifty sumbitch.
The Republic of Stupidity
@DonBelacquaDelPurgatorio:
Hmmm… sounds like a bad to-English translation of the title of a dubious Asian sex film… and definitely NOT a flick I’d be interested in seeing…
Ailuridae
@Corner Stone:
Agreed, Not that there was any doubt but this clearly puts Corner Stone in the Bush-with-a-tan column.
Yutsano
@The Republic of Stupidity: Engrish?
freelancer (itouch)
@Ailuridae:
Bush-lite tastes like shit. I can’t see MM in that column.
Yutsano
@freelancer (itouch): I suppose this means we’ll have to taste test him. Any volunteers?
Ailuridae
@freelancer (itouch):
Agreed on Bush-Lite tasting like shit. I think its safe to say that freelancer (itouch) can be placed in the Bush-with-a-tan camp.
freelancer (itouch)
@Ailuridae:
Also, WTF are you talking about?
Reminds me of that nerd joke:
There are are 10 kinds of ppl in the world, those who understand binary and those who don’t.
Ailuridae
@freelancer (itouch):
https://balloon-juice.com/?p=31929&cpage=3#comment-1509307
freelancer (itouch)
@Ailuridae:
We are all firebaggers now, I guess.
Mnemosyne
@Yutsano:
@Ailuridae:
On the plus side, it turns out that our hyperactive kitten will snuggle up with me on the couch and not spend the entire night biting my toes, so it’s not all bad.
(The cats don’t get to spend the night in the bedroom because the only time G is allergic to cats is when they sleep on his head, and unfortunately for him his head is a kitty magnet.)
mcd410x
They took our jobs! Ur jubs!
We’re all feeling the economy’s vengeance! Finger pointing get us nowhere … Steve!!!
DougL (frmrly: Conservatively Liberal)
@Ailuridae:
No way! That’s going easy on Obama. How about Cheney-with-a-tan?
Ok, that was just mean of me. How about Cheney-without-horns? ;)
@DonBelacquaDelPurgatorio:
Nope, doesn’t do anything for me. How about Underpants Bombing Gnome? ;)
I wonder who will be the first airline to dump all body searches by going nude? Have everyone fly naked and that immediately solves lots of problems. Oh yeah…
“Excuse me Ma’am, I need to do a hands-on inspection of your implants before you can board.”
mcd410x
@Mike in NC: I spent a good part of 2000 wandering around saying, “they tried to kill my daddah.” I still say that’s the reason we invaded Iraq. It was always personal.
Ailuridae
@freelancer (itouch):
Yep. The only reasonable responses are coming from those people in the Bush-Lite and Bush-with-a-tan crowd. Only a rube can’t see that Obama is the most deceptive actor in US Presidential history. Further, only a rube would look at him strongly fulfilling promises for greater transparency, less secrecy and ethical reform and not realize he’s just playing 11-D chess with his sheeple. Man, those stupid fucking sheeple.
I can’t decide which serious progressive camp I am in between Bush-Lite and Bush-with-a-tan and you all are making strong arguments on both sides. But, man, am I happy to have seen the light and to no longer be a sheeple O-bot. I know what Cole must have felt like when he finally had enough of the Schiavo mess.
Cole:Schiavo::Ailuridae:Obama’s declassification center executive order
I can see clearly now ….
Blue Raven
@Comrade Luke:
Chemotherapy is a bitch.
Midnight Marauder
@freelancer (itouch):
@Yutsano:
What is going on around here tonight?!
blahgblog
they are so far gone into their self amplifying echo chamber that they don’t realize how far off base they are with this line of attack.
along with their general obstructionism and the recently articulated absolutist opposition to hcr, they are painting themselves into a soon to be very untenable corner.
heh.
heh indeed.
bob h
Homeland Security is just another flawed organization inherited from Bush, evidently inadequately overseen by Congress (e.g. Joe Lieberman). Expecting every piece of crap Bush handed you to be fixed in one year is a bit much.
GReynoldsCT00
@arguingwithsignposts:
kind of like when the weatherman says “just flurries” and then POW!
bob h
Al Qaeda are smart enough to know that our media discourse is so idiotic, our country so full of demagogues like Cheney and Hoekstra, and our political system so fragile that a successful aircraft attack could well upend us, returning to power their natural long-term allies-The Republicans. These little bags of explosive could pay big dividends for them, even when the fail.
NovShmozKaPop
Look what $100,000 and nineteen lunatics (do I have those stats right? Something like that…) were able to do eight years ago. Incredibly efficient use of our own dysfunctional tendencies, tore the country apart and destroyed its economy with one blow.
Anonymous Coward
If there’s one thing we learned from the Bush years it’s this:
If you don’t wet your pants, the terrorists win.