Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Optimism opens the door to great things.

rich, arrogant assholes who equate luck with genius

Insiders who complain to politico: please report to the white house office of shut the fuck up.

The truth is, these are not very bright guys, and things got out of hand.

It’s easier to kill a dangerous animal than a man who just happens to have different thoughts/values than one’s own.

The worst democrat is better than the best republican.

This country desperately needs a functioning Fourth Estate.

Take hopelessness and turn it into resilience.

“The defense has a certain level of trust in defendant that the government does not.”

He wakes up lying, and he lies all day.

It’s all just conspiracy shit beamed down from the mothership.

How can republicans represent us when they don’t trust women?

Black Jesus loves a paper trail.

Teach a man to fish, and he’ll sit in a boat all day drinking beer.

Too often we hand the biggest microphones to the cynics and the critics who delight in declaring failure.

Give the craziest people you know everything they want and hope they don’t ask for more? Great plan.

They fucked up the fucking up of the fuckup!

The next time the wall street journal editorial board speaks the truth will be the first.

Russian mouthpiece, go fuck yourself.

Their boy Ron is an empty plastic cup that will never know pudding.

Some judge needs to shut this circus down soon.

I’ve spoken to my cat about this, but it doesn’t seem to do any good.

It’s time for the GOP to dust off that post-2012 autopsy, completely ignore it, and light the party on fire again.

You can’t attract Republican voters. You can only out organize them.

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Reader Interactions

126Comments

  1. 1.

    AA+ Bonds

    Well, it does make the hypocrisy about “tone” stand out a little more. Not that it usually helps, but . . .

  2. 2.

    C.J.

    I don’t even. . .what? Is this supposed to be pro liberal or pro Palin? Whatever, it’s CNN, just ask twitter.

  3. 3.

    AA+ Bonds

    @C.J.:

    It’s everything you want it to be. The Palin people can feel mad about her, since she’s taken a stand, and the liberals can feel mad about Palin and glad the Republicans dropped the ball. And you’re right – that makes it CNN all over.

  4. 4.

    agrippa

    Journalism – which was never outstanding – has gotten worse. “Mediocre” is putting a sugar coating on it.

    That ‘joke” is an example of how vulgar and fatuous ( an amusing combination, worthy of Seinfeld) the political speech in the USA has gotten.

    This comedy known as US politics will get more amusing as Nov 2012 gets closer.

  6. 6.

    James E. Powell

    But what about the half-term governor’s bold speech?

    We need to know this because our country can’t afford more trillion dollar thank-you notes to campaign backers,” she said. “Like you, I’m not for sale.

    After her speech, Palin said her comments weren’t directed at Texas Governor Rick Perry, the frontrunner in the Republican field. He has been the subject of stories in recent days by news organizations examining potential links between actions in Texas and campaign contributions he has received.

    I want all of our GOP candidates to take the opportunity to kill corporate capitalism that is leading to this cronyism that is killing our economy,” she told reporters. “They all have an opportunity to speak out against it.

    I am all for killing corporate capitalism, but not if it means I have to vote for Sarah Palin.

  8. 8.

    Akadad

    What’s funny is that special needs children make more sense than Obama’s critics. That includes those on left and the right.

  9. 9.

    middlewest

    The article misses the real story: he actually called Trigg “defective” in one of his “jokes”. It was rather shocking. It was something like: “Sarah Palin has such respect for life, she had a baby even though doctors told her it would be as defective as Nancy Pelosi.”

  10. 10.

    SIA

    Palin:

    We need to know this because our country can’t afford more trillion dollar thank-you notes to campaign backers,” she said. “Like you, I’m not for sale”.

    You are too, dumbass.

  12. 12.

    Odie Hugh Manatee

    Are conservative comedians supposed to be funny? I never thought so. Their audiences doesn’t have a sense of humor, that’s for sure.

    @middlewest:

    Trigg isn’t “defective”, his mother is.

  13. 13.

    Roger Moore

    @middlewest:

    “Sarah Palin has such respect for life, she had a baby even though doctors told her it would be as defective as Nancy Pelosi.”

    I’d love it if one of my (hypothetical) children grew up to be as “defective” as Nancy Pelosi. We could use a few more like her.

  14. 14.

    John Puma

    @James E. Powell:

    I would say that it was very bold for Palin to admonish her GOP colleagues “to take the opportunity to kill corporate capitalism … ”

    It would be bold for Bernie Sanders to say it.

    Were there hallucinogenic drugs in the corn dogs?

    Whatever will RushBo and KKKarl Rove say?!?

  15. 15.

    Roger Moore

    “Like you, I’m not for sale”

    No, Sarah is not for sale. She might let people think she’s for sale in order to grift some money out of them, though.

  16. 16.

    Odie Hugh Manatee

    @SIA:

    If she wasn’t for sale to the highest bidder, she wouldn’t be there. She’s a highly paid political call girl.

    They call, they pay and she comes and delivers.

  18. 18.

    Roger Moore

    @John Puma:

    I would say that it was very bold for Palin to admonish her GOP colleagues “to take the opportunity to kill corporate capitalism … ”

    No. It would be bold for Sarah Palin to mean that we should kill corporate capitalism, but not for her to say it. The Republicans are allowed to say whatever they think will convince the rubes, even if it’s Mitt Romney style talking out of both sides of their mouth. Their Galtian Overlords know they don’t mean it, and will enforce their wishes though their campaign donations.

  19. 19.

    Tom Parmenter

    You know, the jokes were rude and stupid, uncalled for. CNN is drawing the line on civility and bad manners. This ought to be the end of Eric Golub, jokes so dumb and tasteless he committed suicide in front of his natural audience. I’m assuming the audience objected, the article doesn’t say. Let’s hope so. Leave Sarah Palin out of it, making fun of retarded children in an ostensibly “civic” context really ought to be considered out of line by everyone. Charles deGaulle had a Downs Syndrome child whom he doted on. Is that funny simply because you don’t “like” deGaulle?

    Look, it is even possible that Sarah Palin chose to have Trig as a bullet point for electability, but she is still his mother. Come on! Use your irony somewhere else. I’m with the network here.

    I don’t know whether the retarded are more likely to be Dems or Reps, but I’m pretty sure which party has a better idea.

  20. 20.

    PurpleGirl

    Gee, she really showed up for the speech. Did they not pay her until she came off the stage? Just a thought…

  21. 21.

    Villago Delenda Est

    @agrippa:

    At some point, someone on the right is going to lose it and actually say “Obama is a ni*CLANG*.”

    I’m wondering how much longer Rush Limbaugh can keep himself under control, myself.

  22. 22.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @Keith G: Please provide a list of acceptable topics for blog posts then. I am sure the FPers will be happy to accept your guidance.

  23. 23.

    MikeJ

    @Tom Parmenter:

    CNN is drawing the line on civility and bad manners.

    MEanwhile Republicans in Gabby Giffords district are raffling off a Glock like the one used to attack her and murder people at her speech.

    Tell me again about where CNN draws the line?

  24. 24.

    devtob

    According to the rest of the CNN story, Golub has told similar “jokes” before.

    And yet he got a gig at a Palin event, which cost the teabagger organizers some four figures.

    So, in this instance anyway, the corporate media did not suck as much as usual.

    IMHO, a faux pas like this is “actual news,” especially on a holiday weekend.

  25. 25.

    Dennis SGMM

    You were expecting maybe Lenny Bruce? Golub is a schmuck who was opening for Palin’s latest Grift-o-Rama tour so he likely cleared as much as fifty bucks and bus fare for the night’s work.

  27. 27.

    General Stuck

    The country is getting tired of this clown. And her polling shows it with her approval at just north of Quadaffy. She is in something of a grifter pickle though. As any long con person will tell you, there are points along the way you have to reinvent the deception some, to keep it fresh from prying questions, and paying off.

    My guess is she is mulling a POTUS run, pros and especially the cons, with the dilemma being — if she runs, she can keep the grift up for another 6 to 8 months, and up her take from the rubes, especially with the CU case making donations completely anonymous, and impossible to audit, for that reason. Or, she can stick with being the wingnut Orb, taunting Obama with the stupid, that the media has loved, but will fade as people get more tired of it.

    The problem with going big, and running for POTUS, it could well lead to a high climb, but then a long fall into parody, with her Heather campaign style.

  29. 29.

    Quarks

    Not to mention the mediocrity of our copyediting. Los Angeles – not that difficult to spell or correct.

  30. 30.

    gnomedad

    @middlewest:

    “Sarah Palin has such respect for life, she had a baby even though doctors told her it would be as defective as Nancy Pelosi.”

    Just wow. I think when these morons violate what they see as librul “political correctness”, they get drunk on their own naughtiness and go completely off the rails. He probably “thought” (I use the word loosely) that it was OK because Pelosi was the nominal target.

    Keep digging, guys.

  31. 31.

    Villago Delenda Est

    One of the dangers of the “running but not running for President” grift is that you may discover, as Newt Gingrich has, that actually running, instead of talking of running, can kill the entire operation, as far as a money making venture is concerned.

  33. 33.

    eemom

    as I have mentioned before, let us not lose sight of the fact that Moosilla is secretly dyyyyyying with fury over Bachmann stealing her show. The jealous rage is devouring whatever fragment of a soul exists behind that rapidly aging face.

    By next year’s republican conviction, her lapse into has-been obscurity will be complete.

    Let us take thought of these things, and comfort ourselves.

  36. 36.

    Villago Delenda Est

    @middlewest:

    “Sarah Palin has such respect for life, she had a baby even though doctors told her it would be as defective as Nancy Pelosi.”

    Change “Nancy Pelosi” to “George W. Bush” and prepare for the howls of outrage from the wingnutosphere.

  37. 37.

    cathyx

    Republicans just aren’t funny. Dennis Miller anyone?

    In order to be funny, you need to be able to make fun of yourself. They just can’t do it.

  40. 40.

    LT

    A pro-Palin conservative comedian telling a “retard” joke? At a Palin event? Right before her appearance? Come on. That’s fucking funny. You’d normally be all over something like this for the content, the CNN thing notwithstanding. (And this is definitely TBogg bait.)

  41. 41.

    Villago Delenda Est

    @SIA:

    Link is broken, but if it’s to a Fox site, well, then, that’s pretty much to be expected, I suppose…

  42. 42.

    Villago Delenda Est

    @devtob:

    Yeah, but the thing with our Sarah is, we KNOW it’s not in her economic self interest to run. But there’s this little voice in her head telling her that it’s her density to be President…

  43. 43.

    Southern Beale

    The only reason this is newsworthy is because the Palinistas had a huge hissy fit when someone (Rahm? Can’t remember who) used the word “retarded.” Suddenly it was ZOMG THEY’RE MAKING FUN OF TRIG ZOMG THE HORRAH THE HORRAH.

    So, it kinda shows a mite bit of hypocrisy and IOKIYAR here.

    But yeah the whole thing is stupid.

  44. 44.

    cathyx

    @LT: It’s only funny to us in a sad, sick, embarrassing, kind of way. And I agree about TBogg writing about it. Look for it tonight.

  46. 46.

    Southern Beale

    Ah yes, from the memory hole:

    On Facebook, Sarah Palin launched today an unusual, personal attack on the chief of staff in response to a report that he’d dismissed progressives’ attempts to pressure Senate centrists as “retarded.”
    __
    Her heading: “Are You Capable of Decency, Rahm Emanuel?”
    __

    I would ask the president to show decency in this process by eliminating one member of that inner circle, Mr. Rahm Emanuel, and not allow Rahm’s continued indecent tactics to cloud efforts. Yes, Rahm is known for his caustic, crude references about those with whom he disagrees, but his recent tirade against participants in a strategy session was such a strong slap in many American faces that our president is doing himself a disservice by seeming to condone Rahm’s recent sick and offensive tactic.

    And now a comedian opens her appearance with a “retard” joke?

    I agree it’s a sad state of affairs that our discourse is ruled by such inanity, but that’s the way it is I don’t see anything changing any time soon.

  47. 47.

    Jay

    @Tom Parmenter: “I’m pretty sure which party has a better idea.”

    Are you suggesting that the Republicans alone are on the side of the disabled community? If so, this is a crock of crap. The Americans With Disabilities Act had major BIPARTISAN support, remember, and Palin slashed Special Olympics funding while governor of Alaska. I’d add that it is conservative-leaning courts that tend to interpret the ADA narrowly. Granted, the disabled have had a few champions on the right, chiefly Bob Dole, Lowell Weicker, and the first President Bush. But when it comes to disability rights, people like Tom Harkin, Max Cleland, and the late Ted Kennedy are really the only people willing to take the ball from the three Republicans I mentioned and carry it forward into this century.

    Yes, I know POTUS made a Special Olympics-related “joke” on some late – night talk show, and as someone with Cerebral Palsy, that is one of the few times I’ve been really, truly angry with him. I don’t think it’s forgivable, but I don’t think the President’s some kind of bigot. Rather, there is a bit of the sheltered, upper middle-class hipster to him (you see this in little things like his love of PBR, Star Trek nerdiness, and the casual, tossed-off way in which he dismissed Kanye West), and there is an underbelly of hipster culture that takes it as an absolute riot to yuck it up about the handicapped (“That’s so retarded!” has popped up in the otherwise “cool” young folks I’ve been around). President Obama has spoken movingly about his late father-in-law Fraser Robinson, who died of Multiple Sclerosis. I have no doubt that President Obama loved Mr. Robinson, but I worry that, beyond his immediate family, POTUS has had few close connections to severely handicapped people (I know he’s honored disabled war veterans, but forming friendships with them is another matter; however, I don’t think that’s really part of his job.). Still, do I count the President as an advocate? Sure. HCR was a big, necessary step. On balance, Republicans may sometimes speak soothingly about the disabled, but Democrats usually deliver the sound policy solutions.

    Having written all this, I doubt Palin will condemn her little “comedian” Eric Golub. She’ll celebrate him, just as she celebrated Rush Limbaugh’s R-word based pseudo-satire (after condemning Rahm Emanuel for using the same word). Really, the Limbaugh double-standard should’ve provided Americans all the proof they need to establish the fact that Palin has about as much affection for her son, Trigg as she does for residents of blue states: absolutely none.

  48. 48.

    Anne Laurie

    @John Puma:

    I would say that it was very bold for Palin to admonish her GOP colleagues “to take the opportunity to kill corporate capitalism … ”

    In Wingnut-Speak, ‘corporate capitalism’ translates as ‘George Soros/Warren Buffett/Wall Street/union thugs donating to Obama’. Donating money to decent, right-wing Republican candidates, on the other hand, is ‘free market free speech’. Just ask Chief Justice John Roberts!

  49. 49.

    piratedan

    @MikeJ: It is a Glock, but a different model… still many suspect its so they can bait Dems into being labelled as anti-gun. Yes, its classless and vile but not illegal. Giffords herself is a gun owner and its just another case of shaking your head at the other side that they’ve resorted to these kinds of tactics.. then again, on CNN I watched them spend 30 minutes on the Dancing with the stars “controversy”, yet never seen the same done with the debt ceiling “issues”.

  52. 52.

    Southern Beale

    @Jay:

    the Limbaugh double-standard should’ve provided Americans all the proof they need to establish the fact that Palin has about as much affection for her son, Trigg …

    You sure he’s HER son? Jury’s still out … as is the long-form birth certificate showing his real birth parents!

    { ducks }

    :-)

  56. 56.

    hilts

    Palin: “Like you, I’m not for sale”

    This line ranks right up there with War is Peace and Freedom is Slavery.

    Palin is a pestilence who wants to dumb the rest of the country down to her level.

    Fortunately, enough people realize she’s too fucking stupid to be President and would never vote for her. The problem for Democrats is that she will continue receiving wall to wall coverage from the cable news asswipes even after it’s clear she has no intention of getting into the race. After the conventions are held, it will be 2 against 3, with Obama and Biden vs the Republican ticket plus Palin.

  59. 59.

    hilts

    Texans for Palin blogger defends Palin and slams Perry

    Palin resigned from office because a paid cabal of leftist Obama operatives in Alaska filed over 20 bogus lawsuits and complaints against her (all of which were dismissed as without merit), leaving her with $600,000 in legal bills. While Rick Perry was taking money from Merck Corp. and promoting their Gardasil vaccine, Palin was busy trying to earn money to pay her attorneys by doing honest work in the private sector, giving commentaries on Fox News and filming a TV show which helped increase Alaska tourism. Has Perry ever held a job outside of government? Perry has clearly demonstrated that he is in the vest pocket of the good ol’ boys who profited from his Emerging Technology Fund and then made generous donations to his gubernatorial campaign. serious about governing. Perry has also clearly demonstrated he is soft on illegal immigration and private property rights with his Texas DREAM Act and the Trans Texas Corridor he tried to push on us Texans. These are NOT the actions of a “great credentials as a bona fide conservative.” In contrast to the ethically compromised Perry, Sarah Palin has fought corruption in her own party in Alaska… Every time a Democrat mocks Sarah Palin, an independent gets its wings.

  60. 60.

    Chris

    @Odie Hugh Manatee:

    Are conservative comedians supposed to be funny? I never thought so. Their audiences doesn’t have a sense of humor, that’s for sure.

    As someone once observed, conservative comedy is only funny if you consider bigotry or cruelty to be funny. This is a case in point.

  61. 61.

    Villago Delenda Est

    @hilts:

    If it wasn’t for the full bore, high performance doublethink of the Sarah Palin fan base, she’d never stand a chance.

  66. 66.

    Chris

    @Villago Delenda Est:

    Yeah, but the thing with our Sarah is, we KNOW it’s not in her economic self interest to run. But there’s this little voice in her head telling her that it’s her density to be President…

    Palin’s laziness versus Palin’s self-absorbtion? Could this in fact be the Unstoppable Force Versus Immovable Object duel so long anticipated?

    (My money’s on her laziness winning, by the way. Failing that, she’ll run to make it interesting and then drop out. But I don’t think it’ll even come to that).

  68. 68.

    Comrade Mary

    Water seeks its level. But I don’t think Trig or his siblings deserve this shit at all, and my one hope is that with the dimming of Palin’s political future, the poor kid gets to lead a private life again.

    Real-time reactions to the whole shebang in this Rumproast thread.

  71. 71.

    SIA

    @Villago Delenda Est: Might be my poor formatting skills on the new iPad.

    A large majority of tea party members want Sarah Palin to stay out of the 2012 presidential race, according to a Fox News poll released Friday.
    ___
    Among respondents who identified themselves as members of the tea party, a staggering 66 percent said that Palin should sit on the sidelines, while only 28 percent wanted to see her in the race.
    ___

    Even more Republicans — 71 percent — thought she would be making a mistake by declaring her candidacy. In all, 74 percent of voters hoped she would not be getting in.

    http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2011/09/02/fox-news-poll-71-of-republicans-dont-want-palin-to-run/

    ETA last paragraph part of the quote.

  72. 72.

    SensesFail

    TRENDING? Is that Twitter-speak?

    CNN is trying WAY too hard to be “social.” It seems like for every story they report on, they fucking bring up Twitter or Facebook and ask, “What are people saying about this story?”, and then they spend time reading tweets and FB messages that some uniformed morons sent off into the filter-less interwebs.

    Pretty soon, CNN is going to fire most of their “journalists” and just run a program that searches social media sites for “news” and “information”.

  74. 74.

    Chris

    @SIA:

    Among respondents who identified themselves as members of the tea party, a staggering 66 percent said that Palin should sit on the sidelines, while only 28 percent wanted to see her in the race.

    I wonder how much of this is them wanting to preserve a pure, pristine, inviolate image of Palin, without having it being soiled by her involvement in, y’know, the actual real world.

  75. 75.

    SIA

    Maybe, but I’m inclined to think it took the wingers almost two years to figure out what most of us knew the night of her big GOP Debut. She’s a mess. (as we say in the South.)

  76. 76.

    eemom

    @Undeadpundit:

    lemme tell ya something, derpdead — even with tokoloko’s frequent nym changes, and unmistakably, um, “signature” style, it usually takes people more than 10 seconds to catch on when she posts under a new name.

    You, not so much.

    It just doesn’t GET any sadder than that.

  77. 77.

    Chad N Freude

    @Omnes Omnibus: If you mean it’s stupid because it’s promoting the Greatest Alaskan Governor evah, I agree. On the other hand we need a lot more perry-bashing like this.

  80. 80.

    JGabriel

    @Undeadpundit:

    As I said before. Each time Captain Doom homo idiot voter Cole ‘tries’ to ban me it will only get worse.

    Why do you think homo is an insult? Do you think gay people are less human or less acceptable than you? Why do you think derogatorily assigning a minority sexual orientation to someone hurts them more than it characterizes you as a person with gender preference issues?

    .

  82. 82.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @SIA:

    Might be my poor formatting skills on the new iPad.

    Ooh ooh ooh you got one! How do you like it? What apps have you found so far that you really like?

  84. 84.

    JGabriel

    @Chris:

    I wonder how much of this is them wanting to preserve a pure, pristine, inviolate image of Palin, without having it being soiled by her involvement in, y’know, the actual real world.

    Are you saying the Tea Party wants to preserve Palin as the Immaculate Exception?

    .

  85. 85.

    cathyx

    @Chad N Freude: I ask in all honesty what does he get out of be antagonistic here. I think it would be interesting to find out. I hope he isn’t banned so that he can answer.

  86. 86.

    Bmaccnm

    @JGabriel:

    These questions violate the rule of informational interviewing. They are too pointed, too detailed. The interviewee can respond with a simple “Yes” or “No,” thereby closing the conversation. A more generalized “What the fuck is your problem?” seems more appropriate here.

  88. 88.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @Chad N Freude: We need writing that is good enough that I don’t want to stab myself while reading it. My god, I say this as someone who can read m_c’s work without that desire. I don’t know; maybe it communicates well with a different demographic.

  89. 89.

    Chad N Freude

    @cathyx: Why do you expect an answer? Why do you expect an honest answer if he answers? His motivation is nyah-nyah I can make fun of you. Juvenile is too flattering a word to describe it. I scroll past his comments and don’t respond to them. They’re like litter in the street.

  90. 90.

    Omnes Omnibus

    PBS is about to show the new Sherlock Holmes reworking, “Sherlock: a Study in Pink.” I haven’t seen it yet, so I think I will give it a go.

  91. 91.

    Chad N Freude

    @Omnes Omnibus: Different demo: Precisely. A style that resonates with people who don’t read the Atlantic, TNR, The New Yorker, or Harper’s and wouldn’t understand the articles if they did. [/liberal elitism]

  93. 93.

    nellcote

    @SIA:

    while only 28 percent wanted to see her in the race.
    …
    In all, 74 percent of voters hoped she would not be getting in.

    And the average of 28% and 100-74%= the magic 27%! Weird how that number keeps turning up.

  94. 94.

    Arundel

    Okay, just a fleeting crackpot conspiracy notion here, one that I am already disavowing: What if this comic’s “special needs” crack was arranged in advance, so Palin could have something to feel aggrieved about, and maybe possibly appear on David Gregory’s show to spend a half-hour decrying The Lack of Civility These Days or something? I have no idea who this “comedian” is, he could easily be a ringer. Probably not, but all I’m saying is that if the Sunday chat shows bring this up as a topic tomorrow, how mean and insensitive this was to Palin, I may nurse a few mild suspicions. And this is no doubt good news for John McCain.

  95. 95.

    Odie Hugh Manatee

    @cathyx:

    It’s the only way that he can get out his Mom’s basement?

    Because making friends is impossible for a recluse?

    The nursing home staff are out getting stoned?

    Because masturbating takes too much effort?

    I’m sure it’s one of the above, maybe even all.

    @JGabriel:

    Why do you think homo is an insult?

    Because he’s a self hater?

  99. 99.

    Dennis SGMM

    Banning people on a blog structured as this one is demonstrates good faith on the part of the blog’s owner. And that’s about it. Anyone can get right back in with a nym and email change.
    If you really want to avoid scrolling by someone’s comments then cleek’s estimable Pie Filter for Firefox or the port to Chrome here is the answer. Both are easy for non-techies to install and both are easily updated to keep pace with nym changes.
    I’m impressed by the number of knowledgeable and insightful commenters here. They have opened me up to books, music, movies and perspectives that I might never have found on my own. Filtering out the trolls and those with mental disorders just makes the good people easier for me to get to. I’m lazy that way.

  109. 109.

    Roy G

    Republicans are to Comedy what CNN is to Journalism.

    Frankly, to call either retarded is inaccurate, since that implies they are merely late in their development.

  112. 112.

    Jay

    Le sigh.

    So, on this here blog, I blew up at someone the other night for trying to bury Dan Choi over a misogynistic and (when coming from straight men, I think) homophobic slur against Harry Reid. The catch is that I think I went a bit harder on the President for a “joke” about the Special Olympics. To the woman with whom I clashed over the Choi comment: I’m not some crip with a soft spot for anti-woman, and/or anti-gay language, but here are a couple of things I do believe:

    1)The “reclamation of language” isn’t the worst thing in the world. If black rappers can use the n-word in their songs, I don’t think it’s earth shattering when a gay guy like Choi says “p-ssy” either.

    2)Thankfully, Dan Choi is not the President of The United States (sorry, Dan, I wouldn’t want Chris Barron or Jane Hamsher in the Lincoln Bedroom); Barack Obama is, which is why I expect far more from him than Special Olympics jokes.

  113. 113.

    Anya

    @Jay: Why must everything be about Barack Obama? Can we discuss anything without brining President Obama into the discussion?

  119. 119.

    El Cid

    I think it would be interesting to know if Palin’s being backed by someone to take down Perry — maybe even Romney too.

  120. 120.

    Arundel

    @Jay: I’m sympathizing, just it took a little untangling to see your point, or rather whatever drama queen chose to take offense at ..I guess Choi called Reid a pussy, or something? In some speech no one heard or was aware of? The other party thought that was misogynistic? Well that’s unfortunate, I think. A grinding literal-mindedness. Can we still say Rick Perry is a dick, then? Would that be misandrist? See, it escalates to absurdity, dancing about language.

    I’m a gay man who’s been called plenty of nasty names in my life, and oh, I could take it, and return it if necessary. I don’t believe in policing language, or limiting free speech. Lots of us on the progressive side really are though. That said, I take extreme care with my words, I try to be respectful. Calling someone a “pussy” doesn’t mean one has to get permission from everyone in the world who has one. Certain people are umbrage-queens, they look for reasons to be offended. Whatver Choi said, well it’s his right to say it. Hey! I have a vagina, so I’m offended! is just pathetic. It takes a willing pretended ignorance of vernacular, of slang, to take a word so literally and get the vapors. There are worse, you know!
    See you next Tuesday.

    (Jay, all that was addressed to the one who gave you a hard time, not you. )

  121. 121.

    AxelFoley

    @Jay:

    Difference is, President Obama made a bad joke, he knew it, and he apologized for it.

    I don’t believe Choi has apologized for using sexist language against Senate Majority Leader Reid.

    Yeah, we can all hold President Obama to a higher standard since he comes from a position of authority (and we should, from that perspective), but to say you haven’t forgiven him for admittedly tasteless joke he made and apologized for OVER TWO YEARS AGO?

    Dude, get the fuck over yourself.

  122. 122.

    Joey Maloney

    @Anya:

    Can we discuss anything without brining President Obama into the discussion?

    I’m going to salt this question away until I can give a more finely-granulated response. As it stands, I don’t think mine is kosher.

  123. 123.

    agrippa

    I think that’joke’ was vulgar, fatuous and insensitive. That man is no comedian.
    Does the USA have the dumbest politics in the world ? Our politics does get very silly and very funny ( in a black humor way), but the dumbest ? There is a long list of countries with dumb poltics.

    Journalism in the USA is poor; it has gotten worse. But, there are no ‘good old days’.

  124. 124.

    Bob

    We’re the Dumbest Country in the World

    Cole, I’m surprised at you buying into the idea of American Exceptionalism. America, fuck yeah!

  125. 125.

    Corner Stone

    @Joey Maloney:

    I’m going to salt this question away until I can give a more finely-granulated response. As it stands, I don’t think mine is kosher.

    This has been seen.

  126. 126.

    Not Sure

    That’s it! I have a new name. Steaming Pile is now Not Sure. I think I’ll have my real name legally changed to that, so I can have it on my driver’s license. I might even get me one of them there barcode tattoos.

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