Your Chukar Cherries this week:
Game 1: led 4-0 after 2, lost 8-4
Game 2: led 5-0 after 2, won 6-5 in 10 innings
Game 3: led 5-1 after 2 1/2, lost 7-6
Tuesday, May 6, 2008
your Scum-Slimes for Tuesday
Blow-up doll in Sox clubhouse: page 1 (two-thirds of page), page 5 (full page), page 61 (two columns)
10,000+ dead in Burma: page 20 (one paragraph) (figure is off by more than half)
10,000+ dead in Burma: page 20 (one paragraph) (figure is off by more than half)
Monday, May 5, 2008
A History of Pandering
This doesn't include the last 3 weeks, so add at least another half dozen...
The master of his flip-flopping domain
Here’s the updated list:
* McCain pledged in February 2008 that he would not, under any circumstances, raise taxes. Specifically, McCain was asked if he is a “‘read my lips’ candidate, no new taxes, no matter what?” referring to George H.W. Bush’s 1988 pledge. “No new taxes,” McCain responded. Two weeks later, McCain said, “I’m not making a ‘read my lips’ statement, in that I will not raise taxes.”
* McCain claims to have considered and not considered joining John Kerry’s Democratic ticket in 2004.
* In 1998, he championed raising cigarette taxes to fund programs to cut underage smoking, insisting that it would prevent illnesses and provide resources for public health programs. Now, McCain opposes a $0.61-per-pack tax increase, won’t commit to supporting a regulation bill he’s co-sponsoring, and has hired Philip Morris’ former lobbyist as his senior campaign adviser.
* McCain’s first mortgage plan was premised on the notion that homeowners facing foreclosure shouldn’t be “rewarded” for acting “irresponsibly.” His second mortgage plan took largely the opposite position.
* McCain vowed, if elected, to balance the federal budget by the end of his first term. Soon after, he decided he would no longer even try to reach that goal.
* McCain’s campaign unveiled a Social Security policy that the senator would implement if elected, which did not include a Bush-like privatization scheme. In March 2008, McCain denounced his own campaign’s policy.
* In February 2008, McCain reversed course on prohibiting waterboarding.
* In November 2007, McCain reversed his previous position on a long-term presence for U.S. troops in Iraq, arguing that the “nature of the society in Iraq” and the “religious aspects” of the country make it inevitable that the United States “eventually withdraws.” Two months later, McCain reversed back, saying he’s prepared to leave U.S. troops in Iraq for 100 years.
* McCain used to champion the Law of the Sea convention, even volunteering to testify on the treaty’s behalf before a Senate committee. Now he opposes it.
* McCain was a co-sponsor of the DREAM Act, which would grant legal status to illegal immigrants’ kids who graduate from high school. Now he’s against it.
* On immigration policy in general, McCain announced in February 2008 that he would vote against his own legislation.
* In 2006, McCain sponsored legislation to require grassroots lobbying coalitions to reveal their financial donors. In 2007, after receiving “feedback” on the proposal, McCain told far-right activist groups that he opposes his own measure.
* McCain said before the war in Iraq, “We will win this conflict. We will win it easily.” Four years later, McCain said he knew all along that the war in Iraq war was “probably going to be long and hard and tough.”
* McCain said he was the “greatest critic” of Rumsfeld’s failed Iraq policy. In December 2003, McCain praised the same strategy as “a mission accomplished.” In March 2004, he said, “I’m confident we’re on the right course.” In December 2005, he said, “Overall, I think a year from now, we will have made a fair amount of progress if we stay the course.”
* McCain went from saying he would not support repeal of Roe v. Wade to saying the exact opposite.
* McCain went from saying gay marriage should be allowed, to saying gay marriage shouldn’t be allowed.
* McCain criticized TV preacher Jerry Falwell as “an agent of intolerance” in 2002, but then decided to cozy up to the man who said Americans “deserved” the 9/11 attacks.
* McCain used to oppose Bush’s tax cuts for the very wealthy, but he reversed course in February.
* On a related note, he said 2005 that he opposed the tax cuts because they were “too tilted to the wealthy.” By 2007, he denied ever having said this, and insisted he opposed the cuts because of increased government spending.
* In 2000, McCain accused Texas businessmen Sam and Charles Wyly of being corrupt, spending “dirty money” to help finance Bush’s presidential campaign. McCain not only filed a complaint against the Wylys for allegedly violating campaign finance law, he also lashed out at them publicly. In April, McCain reached out to the Wylys for support.
* McCain supported a major campaign-finance reform measure that bore his name. In June 2007, he abandoned his own legislation.
* McCain opposed a holiday to honor Martin Luther King, Jr., before he supported it.
* McCain was against presidential candidates campaigning at Bob Jones University before he was for it.
* McCain was anti-ethanol. Now he’s pro-ethanol.
* McCain was both for and against state promotion of the Confederate flag.
* McCain decided in 2000 that he didn’t want anything to do with former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, believing he “would taint the image of the ‘Straight Talk Express.’” Kissinger is now the Honorary Co-Chair for his presidential campaign in New York.
And:
McCain in DNC Ad: I think we’re better off overall.
Viera: So, Senator, you do not believe we’re better off by any means than we were eight years ago?
McCain: Oh, no. No.
The master of his flip-flopping domain
Here’s the updated list:
* McCain pledged in February 2008 that he would not, under any circumstances, raise taxes. Specifically, McCain was asked if he is a “‘read my lips’ candidate, no new taxes, no matter what?” referring to George H.W. Bush’s 1988 pledge. “No new taxes,” McCain responded. Two weeks later, McCain said, “I’m not making a ‘read my lips’ statement, in that I will not raise taxes.”
* McCain claims to have considered and not considered joining John Kerry’s Democratic ticket in 2004.
* In 1998, he championed raising cigarette taxes to fund programs to cut underage smoking, insisting that it would prevent illnesses and provide resources for public health programs. Now, McCain opposes a $0.61-per-pack tax increase, won’t commit to supporting a regulation bill he’s co-sponsoring, and has hired Philip Morris’ former lobbyist as his senior campaign adviser.
* McCain’s first mortgage plan was premised on the notion that homeowners facing foreclosure shouldn’t be “rewarded” for acting “irresponsibly.” His second mortgage plan took largely the opposite position.
* McCain vowed, if elected, to balance the federal budget by the end of his first term. Soon after, he decided he would no longer even try to reach that goal.
* McCain’s campaign unveiled a Social Security policy that the senator would implement if elected, which did not include a Bush-like privatization scheme. In March 2008, McCain denounced his own campaign’s policy.
* In February 2008, McCain reversed course on prohibiting waterboarding.
* In November 2007, McCain reversed his previous position on a long-term presence for U.S. troops in Iraq, arguing that the “nature of the society in Iraq” and the “religious aspects” of the country make it inevitable that the United States “eventually withdraws.” Two months later, McCain reversed back, saying he’s prepared to leave U.S. troops in Iraq for 100 years.
* McCain used to champion the Law of the Sea convention, even volunteering to testify on the treaty’s behalf before a Senate committee. Now he opposes it.
* McCain was a co-sponsor of the DREAM Act, which would grant legal status to illegal immigrants’ kids who graduate from high school. Now he’s against it.
* On immigration policy in general, McCain announced in February 2008 that he would vote against his own legislation.
* In 2006, McCain sponsored legislation to require grassroots lobbying coalitions to reveal their financial donors. In 2007, after receiving “feedback” on the proposal, McCain told far-right activist groups that he opposes his own measure.
* McCain said before the war in Iraq, “We will win this conflict. We will win it easily.” Four years later, McCain said he knew all along that the war in Iraq war was “probably going to be long and hard and tough.”
* McCain said he was the “greatest critic” of Rumsfeld’s failed Iraq policy. In December 2003, McCain praised the same strategy as “a mission accomplished.” In March 2004, he said, “I’m confident we’re on the right course.” In December 2005, he said, “Overall, I think a year from now, we will have made a fair amount of progress if we stay the course.”
* McCain went from saying he would not support repeal of Roe v. Wade to saying the exact opposite.
* McCain went from saying gay marriage should be allowed, to saying gay marriage shouldn’t be allowed.
* McCain criticized TV preacher Jerry Falwell as “an agent of intolerance” in 2002, but then decided to cozy up to the man who said Americans “deserved” the 9/11 attacks.
* McCain used to oppose Bush’s tax cuts for the very wealthy, but he reversed course in February.
* On a related note, he said 2005 that he opposed the tax cuts because they were “too tilted to the wealthy.” By 2007, he denied ever having said this, and insisted he opposed the cuts because of increased government spending.
* In 2000, McCain accused Texas businessmen Sam and Charles Wyly of being corrupt, spending “dirty money” to help finance Bush’s presidential campaign. McCain not only filed a complaint against the Wylys for allegedly violating campaign finance law, he also lashed out at them publicly. In April, McCain reached out to the Wylys for support.
* McCain supported a major campaign-finance reform measure that bore his name. In June 2007, he abandoned his own legislation.
* McCain opposed a holiday to honor Martin Luther King, Jr., before he supported it.
* McCain was against presidential candidates campaigning at Bob Jones University before he was for it.
* McCain was anti-ethanol. Now he’s pro-ethanol.
* McCain was both for and against state promotion of the Confederate flag.
* McCain decided in 2000 that he didn’t want anything to do with former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, believing he “would taint the image of the ‘Straight Talk Express.’” Kissinger is now the Honorary Co-Chair for his presidential campaign in New York.
And:
McCain in DNC Ad: I think we’re better off overall.
Viera: So, Senator, you do not believe we’re better off by any means than we were eight years ago?
McCain: Oh, no. No.
THIS explains the beer-drinking
In the United States, Cinco de Mayo has taken on a significance beyond that in Mexico. The date is perhaps best recognized in the United States as a date to celebrate the culture and experiences of Americans of Mexican ancestry, much as St. Patrick's Day, Oktoberfest, and the Chinese New Year are used to celebrate those of Irish, German, and Chinese ancestry, respectively.
nitpicking...
"Behold the double standard: John McCain sought out the endorsement of John Hagee, the war-mongering, Catholic- bashing Texas preacher, who said the people of New Orleans got what they deserved for their sins.
But no one suggests McCain shares Hagee's delusions or thinks AIDS is God's punishment for homosexuality. Pat Robertson called for the assassination of a foreign head of state and asked God to remove Supreme Court justices, yet he remains a force in the Republican religious right.
After 9/11, Jerry Falwell said the attack was God's judgment on America for having been driven out of our schools and the public square, but when McCain goes after the endorsement of the preacher he once condemned as an agent of intolerance, the press gives him a pass.
Jon Stewart recently played tape from the Nixon White House in which Billy Graham talks in the Oval Office about how he has friends who are Jewish, but he knows in his heart that they are undermining America."
But no one suggests McCain shares Hagee's delusions or thinks AIDS is God's punishment for homosexuality. Pat Robertson called for the assassination of a foreign head of state and asked God to remove Supreme Court justices, yet he remains a force in the Republican religious right.
After 9/11, Jerry Falwell said the attack was God's judgment on America for having been driven out of our schools and the public square, but when McCain goes after the endorsement of the preacher he once condemned as an agent of intolerance, the press gives him a pass.
Jon Stewart recently played tape from the Nixon White House in which Billy Graham talks in the Oval Office about how he has friends who are Jewish, but he knows in his heart that they are undermining America."
So easy even a caveman could do it...
"Well, there's big money in that, in the expansion of cable TV, the opportunities to branch off into other areas of media are certainly there. When you consider what meteorology has done to a few guys in our society--like David Letterman--it was probably an opportunity I didn't take advantage of."--Tigers coach Andy Van Slyke, on passing up the chance to be a television weatherman.
Don't Come Around Here No More
Tigers designated outfielder Jacque Jones for assignment.
Jones was hitting just .165/.244/.253 in 79 at-bats, so it's hard to blame the Tigers from being frustrated with him. Still, there's a good chance he'll bounce back and be an adequate platoon outfielder for another team, perhaps the Padres or the Marlins. Mike Joyce seems poised to replace him versus right-handers for now, but the Tigers also have Marcus Thames, Brandon Inge and Ryan Raburn as alternatives in left field. Plus, Barry Bonds is still out there awaiting a phone call. May. 5 - 4:16 pm et
Jones was hitting just .165/.244/.253 in 79 at-bats, so it's hard to blame the Tigers from being frustrated with him. Still, there's a good chance he'll bounce back and be an adequate platoon outfielder for another team, perhaps the Padres or the Marlins. Mike Joyce seems poised to replace him versus right-handers for now, but the Tigers also have Marcus Thames, Brandon Inge and Ryan Raburn as alternatives in left field. Plus, Barry Bonds is still out there awaiting a phone call. May. 5 - 4:16 pm et
I think if there were knots and strings above my head, I could see them...and how does this fit with hating on the gays?
"The last two years in particular, I've really seen Todd's faith mature. I think it's greatly due to his increased desire to read and study the Word of God. Not that he didn't do that before, but he's had a greater passion for that in recent years."--Jeff Totten, Baseball Chapel leader to the Tigers, on closer Todd Jones.
"I had fallen from grace. I wasn't worthy. The ninth inning is pretty important to teams. I wasn't doing my job. I had to earn my way back into that."--Tigers closer Todd Jones
"I think humans are underneath a crochet piece of cloth. We're underneath and we see all the knots and the strings hanging loose, but God is looking from the top of it and sees the picture being knitted around you. We can't see it because we're underneath. God is making this big masterpiece in your life."--Jones
"I had fallen from grace. I wasn't worthy. The ninth inning is pretty important to teams. I wasn't doing my job. I had to earn my way back into that."--Tigers closer Todd Jones
"I think humans are underneath a crochet piece of cloth. We're underneath and we see all the knots and the strings hanging loose, but God is looking from the top of it and sees the picture being knitted around you. We can't see it because we're underneath. God is making this big masterpiece in your life."--Jones
History Lesson
Most people don't know that back in 1912 Hellmann's mayonnaise was manufactured in England. In fact, the Titanic was carrying 12,000 jars of the condiment scheduled for delivery in Vera Cruz, Mexico, which was to be the next port of call for the great ship after its stop in New York.
This would have been the largest single shipment of mayonnaise ever delivered to Mexico. But as we know, the great ship did not make it to New York. The ship hit an iceberg and sank, and the cargo was forever lost.
The people of Mexico, who were crazy about mayonnaise, and were eagerly awaiting its delivery, were disconsolate at the loss. Their anguish was so great, that they declared a National Day of Mourning, which they still observe to this day.
The National Day of Mourning occurs each year on May 5th and is known, of course, as Sinko de Mayo.
This would have been the largest single shipment of mayonnaise ever delivered to Mexico. But as we know, the great ship did not make it to New York. The ship hit an iceberg and sank, and the cargo was forever lost.
The people of Mexico, who were crazy about mayonnaise, and were eagerly awaiting its delivery, were disconsolate at the loss. Their anguish was so great, that they declared a National Day of Mourning, which they still observe to this day.
The National Day of Mourning occurs each year on May 5th and is known, of course, as Sinko de Mayo.
He is not a perfect man, he has made mistakes in his life. Also, he's a lying cheat and a HYOOOGE, GIGANTIC @$$HOLE.
Roger Clemens issued a statement Sunday night apologizing for mistakes in his personal life.
Clemens took the opportunity to once again deny his use of performance enhancing drugs, and also claimed that reports he dated a 15-year-old Mindy McCready were untrue. "I know that many people want to know what I have to say about the recent articles in the media. Even though these articles contain many false accusations and mistakes, I need to say that I have made mistakes in my personal life for which I am sorry. I have apologized to my family and apologize to my fans. Like everyone, I have flaws. I have sometimes made choices which have not been right," Clemens said.
''I believe my personal life has nothing to do with the accusations of steroid and HGH use,'' he said in the statement. ''I have already made clear that I did not use them.''
That settles it for me...
Also, on da plus side, none of mistresses are dead or missing (that we know of).
Clemens took the opportunity to once again deny his use of performance enhancing drugs, and also claimed that reports he dated a 15-year-old Mindy McCready were untrue. "I know that many people want to know what I have to say about the recent articles in the media. Even though these articles contain many false accusations and mistakes, I need to say that I have made mistakes in my personal life for which I am sorry. I have apologized to my family and apologize to my fans. Like everyone, I have flaws. I have sometimes made choices which have not been right," Clemens said.
''I believe my personal life has nothing to do with the accusations of steroid and HGH use,'' he said in the statement. ''I have already made clear that I did not use them.''
That settles it for me...
Also, on da plus side, none of mistresses are dead or missing (that we know of).
The System Works (cont'd)
The gap between rich and poor in the United States has widened exponentially over the past three decades. The Congressional Budget Office reports that since 1979, the average income for the bottom half of American households has grown by 6 percent. In contrast, the top 1 percent of earners have seen their incomes shoot up by a 229 percent during that same period. Under the Bush administration, the average income of most Americans has fallen, but the average income of top wage earners (those above the 95 percentile range) has increased from $324,427 in 2001 to $385,805 in 2006. Only one other year has seen a comparable income gap: 1928, the year before the Great Depression.
what about clowns?
Who should MDs let die in a pandemic? Report offers answers
By LINDSEY TANNER, AP Medical Writer
Monday, May 5, 2008
(05-05) 06:47 PDT Chicago (AP)
Doctors know some patients needing lifesaving care won't get it in a flu pandemic or other disaster. The gut-wrenching dilemma will be deciding who to let die.
Now, an influential group of physicians has drafted a grimly specific list of recommendations for which patients wouldn't be treated. They include the very elderly, seriously hurt trauma victims, severely burned patients and those with severe dementia.
By LINDSEY TANNER, AP Medical Writer
Monday, May 5, 2008
(05-05) 06:47 PDT Chicago (AP)
Doctors know some patients needing lifesaving care won't get it in a flu pandemic or other disaster. The gut-wrenching dilemma will be deciding who to let die.
Now, an influential group of physicians has drafted a grimly specific list of recommendations for which patients wouldn't be treated. They include the very elderly, seriously hurt trauma victims, severely burned patients and those with severe dementia.
Wouldn't somebody who doesn't believe in the First Amendment be an enemy of the Constitution?
Cal State Instructor Fired for Refusing to Sign Loyalty Oath
A lecturer at California State University at Fullerton has been fired because she refused to sign a loyalty oath to “defend” the U.S. and California Constitutions “against all enemies, foreign and domestic,” the Los Angeles Times reported today.
Wendy Gonaver, a Quaker and a lifelong pacifist, was set to teach American studies at the institution this academic year. She told the newspaper that she had offered to sign the oath if she could attach a short statement expressing her views, but Fullerton wouldn’t allow that.
In February another instructor at Cal State was fired because she altered the oath by inserting the word “nonviolently” before signing it. However, the news-media attention surrounding her dismissal resulted in her being rehired.
Voters added the oath to the state Constitution in 1952 to keep Communists from getting public jobs.
A lecturer at California State University at Fullerton has been fired because she refused to sign a loyalty oath to “defend” the U.S. and California Constitutions “against all enemies, foreign and domestic,” the Los Angeles Times reported today.
Wendy Gonaver, a Quaker and a lifelong pacifist, was set to teach American studies at the institution this academic year. She told the newspaper that she had offered to sign the oath if she could attach a short statement expressing her views, but Fullerton wouldn’t allow that.
In February another instructor at Cal State was fired because she altered the oath by inserting the word “nonviolently” before signing it. However, the news-media attention surrounding her dismissal resulted in her being rehired.
Voters added the oath to the state Constitution in 1952 to keep Communists from getting public jobs.
...cuz if those are the real Sox fans, they can kiss Ozzie's phokking @ss right downtown, and PRINT IT!
Tired of "all the managers in the press box and at home, watching the game on TV and spilling food on themselves," Guillen became the story after a 4-3 loss Sunday to the Toronto Blue Jays, making his feelings known about the perceived treatment he and his organization get in the Windy City.
"Right now, everyone in Chicago is making lineups, 'Call up this guy, call up that guy,'" Guillen said. "If we had 50 people allowed on the roster, we could do that. That's what ticks me off about Chicago fans and Chicago media -- they forget pretty quick. A couple of days ago, we were the [bleep]ing best [bleep] in town, now we're [bleep]."
Asked why that is, Guillen pulled no punches.
"Because maybe the manager is an ass[bleep]," he replied.
Guillen said that the only way the perception of the Sox ever would change is by winning, but even after they did in 2005, it hasn't taken long for it to wear off.
"We won it a couple years ago, and we're horse[bleep]," Guillen said. "The Cubs haven't won in 120 years, and they're the [bleep]ing best. [Bleep] it, we're good. [Bleep] everybody. We're horse[bleep], and we're going to be horse[bleep] the rest of our lives, no matter how many World Series we win. We are the bitch of Chicago. We're the Chicago bitch. We have the worst owner -- the guy's got seven [bleep]ing rings, and he's the [bleep]ing horse[bleep] owner..."
Even ex-Cubs manager Lee Elia wasn't safe from Guillen's wrath Sunday.
"How about the Cubs celebrating that Lee Elia bull[crap]?" Guillen said of the 25th anniversary of Elia's famous 1983 tirade. "How many times I curse people out, I will make a lot of money with my [crap]. I have to keep going because in the future Ozzie [Jr.] will need money and I can say, 'Here, give me money, here's the 10-year anniversary of the time I called [Sun-Times columnist Jay] Mariotti stuff and the time I went on the radio and cursed out Mike North last year.'
"Yeah, we have to celebrate all that [crap], too. But I won't be around for 10 years, believe me."
"Right now, everyone in Chicago is making lineups, 'Call up this guy, call up that guy,'" Guillen said. "If we had 50 people allowed on the roster, we could do that. That's what ticks me off about Chicago fans and Chicago media -- they forget pretty quick. A couple of days ago, we were the [bleep]ing best [bleep] in town, now we're [bleep]."
Asked why that is, Guillen pulled no punches.
"Because maybe the manager is an ass[bleep]," he replied.
Guillen said that the only way the perception of the Sox ever would change is by winning, but even after they did in 2005, it hasn't taken long for it to wear off.
"We won it a couple years ago, and we're horse[bleep]," Guillen said. "The Cubs haven't won in 120 years, and they're the [bleep]ing best. [Bleep] it, we're good. [Bleep] everybody. We're horse[bleep], and we're going to be horse[bleep] the rest of our lives, no matter how many World Series we win. We are the bitch of Chicago. We're the Chicago bitch. We have the worst owner -- the guy's got seven [bleep]ing rings, and he's the [bleep]ing horse[bleep] owner..."
Even ex-Cubs manager Lee Elia wasn't safe from Guillen's wrath Sunday.
"How about the Cubs celebrating that Lee Elia bull[crap]?" Guillen said of the 25th anniversary of Elia's famous 1983 tirade. "How many times I curse people out, I will make a lot of money with my [crap]. I have to keep going because in the future Ozzie [Jr.] will need money and I can say, 'Here, give me money, here's the 10-year anniversary of the time I called [Sun-Times columnist Jay] Mariotti stuff and the time I went on the radio and cursed out Mike North last year.'
"Yeah, we have to celebrate all that [crap], too. But I won't be around for 10 years, believe me."
How is K-Mad to blame?
He owns all 180 of these players...
Major League Baseball is on pace to set a another record for the number of players who spend time on the disabled list. The previous record was set last year with 404 players. As of April 30, there are 180 players who have spent time on the disabled list this season, a 6.6% increase over the same time last season. From 2002-2006, an average of 141 players landed on the DL from spring training through April 30 each year. This year's pace is 21.7% greater than the average during that period. This alarming statistic could increase even further in the coming days with retroactive disabled list moves.
Three teams, the New York Yankees, Texas Rangers and Atlanta Braves lead the Majors in injured players, having each already placed 11 players on the disabled list as of April 30.
Last year's record 404 players was a 12.2 % increase over the five-year average between 2002-2006. The current pace is for 416 players to spend time on the disabled list in 2008.
2008 Injury Facts
* Pitchers account for 66.7% of the players placed on the disabled list so far.
* 22.7 % of the injuries are elbow related (10.7% Tommy John surgery)
* 22.7% are shoulder related (3.4 % are labrum related)
* Pitchers account for 91.3% of elbow and shoulder injuries
* 100% are K-Mad related
Sunday, May 4, 2008
Without comment:
Cedric Benson arrested, pepper sprayed
Cedric Benson was arrested early Sunday in Texas for boating while intoxicated and resisting arrest. He is currently free on $14,500 bail.
Cedric Benson was arrested early Sunday in Texas for boating while intoxicated and resisting arrest. He is currently free on $14,500 bail.
Where logic "doesn't have no relevance"...
How is she pandering and slobbering today?
a) going on about elites
b) pretending she understands long commutes and pain of gas prices
c) not putting in her lot with so-called "experts"
d) talking about the little people she's meeting
e) all of the above
If you've guessed (e) then you've really got the measure of perhaps the most depressing and dispiriting descent into political opportunism since, oh, 2004.
From the Times:
Hillary Clinton, caring about the little people, because you know, the Clintons have always cared about the little people. I mean she was on the board at Wal-Mart, and everybody knows how well Wal-Mart has cared for its employees and in what high esteem they hold them. Hell, Sam Walton, that little person of little people, went so far as to call her "a great friend of ours." And by "ours" of course he meant little people everywhere, not those big nasty elites. And by elites, of course I'm not talking about somebody worth $109 million dollars or the dozens of billions of dollars the Waltons are worth. I'm talking about you and me, so Hillary, I believe you, and I invite you to come to my school and tell my students to their faces why as Senator you have put absolutely no pressure on the state of New York to make sure that our school gets just as much money per student as the schools in Great Neck and Chautauqua and then you can tell them about how you had no problem authorizing the insane president of the United States to use these same little people to go to Iraq seven or eight times each, some of them, to fight a war for the other little people like Haliburton and the various fellows of the Carlyle Fund. Maybe we can talk about what you did on your time at Wal-Mart to help the workers unionize or get higher pay or greater access to health care - after all, health care is so important to you and the little people are so important to you, I'm sure you have all kinds of things you can say. Or you can prattle on about the elites some more and we can all wonder at the inanity of this campaign being run in the middle of a moment when the only important things are the things we are not talking anything about.
a) going on about elites
b) pretending she understands long commutes and pain of gas prices
c) not putting in her lot with so-called "experts"
d) talking about the little people she's meeting
e) all of the above
If you've guessed (e) then you've really got the measure of perhaps the most depressing and dispiriting descent into political opportunism since, oh, 2004.
From the Times:
This morning, George Stephanopoulos began his televised interview with Senator Hillary Clinton by asking if she could name a single economist who supports her plan for a gas tax suspension.
She did not. “I’m not going to put in my lot with economists,” she said on ABC’s “This Week” program. A few moments later, she added, “Elite opinion is always on the side of doing things that really disadvantages the vast majority of Americans.”
Throughout the exchange, Mrs. Clinton argued that she trusted her own eyes and ears instead. “This gas tax issue to me is very real because I have been meeting people across Indiana and North Carolina who drive for a living, who commute long distances, who would save money,” she said.
Senator Barack Obama has derided the gas-tax suspension as a gimmick that would save consumers little and cost thousands of jobs, and Kara Glennon, a member of the audience at a town-hall meeting, seemed to agree. Gas prices are “not academic” for her, she told Mrs. Clinton, because she makes less than $25,000 a year—and then she accused Mrs. Clinton of pandering. “Call me crazy, but I listen to economists because I think I know what they studied,” she said.
However, in an interview afterward, Mark Moorman, another audience member and a firefighter, said he shared Mrs. Clinton’s mistrust of experts. Political candidates cite economists but they “never say anybody’s name, or where the study came from,” he said. “So as far as me, it doesn’t have no relevance.”
Hillary Clinton, caring about the little people, because you know, the Clintons have always cared about the little people. I mean she was on the board at Wal-Mart, and everybody knows how well Wal-Mart has cared for its employees and in what high esteem they hold them. Hell, Sam Walton, that little person of little people, went so far as to call her "a great friend of ours." And by "ours" of course he meant little people everywhere, not those big nasty elites. And by elites, of course I'm not talking about somebody worth $109 million dollars or the dozens of billions of dollars the Waltons are worth. I'm talking about you and me, so Hillary, I believe you, and I invite you to come to my school and tell my students to their faces why as Senator you have put absolutely no pressure on the state of New York to make sure that our school gets just as much money per student as the schools in Great Neck and Chautauqua and then you can tell them about how you had no problem authorizing the insane president of the United States to use these same little people to go to Iraq seven or eight times each, some of them, to fight a war for the other little people like Haliburton and the various fellows of the Carlyle Fund. Maybe we can talk about what you did on your time at Wal-Mart to help the workers unionize or get higher pay or greater access to health care - after all, health care is so important to you and the little people are so important to you, I'm sure you have all kinds of things you can say. Or you can prattle on about the elites some more and we can all wonder at the inanity of this campaign being run in the middle of a moment when the only important things are the things we are not talking anything about.
K-Mad Special: He's Fiery!
John Bale broke his hand Friday night after punching a door at the Royals' team hotel in Cleveland. Bale didn't tell the team until late Saturday. "I’m not pleased, obviously," manager Trey Hillman said Sunday. "Players have to think before they do things. "They’ve got to think about how it’s going to affect the rest of their team, how it’s going to affect their ability to perform and how it’s going to affect the whole group. I’m hopeful that there’s something salvageable for him." No word on why he punched the door, but the Kansas City Star speculates he was frustrated with his slow recovery from a fatigued shoulder. He'll likely be out a couple months now.
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