Stars and scars.

Man these right-wingnuts needed this confederate flag flap like they needed a hole in their heads.

It's been interesting to see all the twisting and "pretzel-logic" going on as they try to avoid calling that despicable symbol of hatred for fear of turning off their base. I mean Mitt, bless his Wonder Bread heart, came out against the flag. But then he is no longer running for president. The others...well, not so much. Although Nikki Haley played the good party soldier by finally coming out against the flag and giving the republican candidates for president some cover.

And before we start treating what Haley did as if it was some profile in courage, let's not forget where she stood on this subject not too long ago. I guess there is nothing like a little pressure from the business community to make some of these governors all of a sudden find moral clarity.

"Today we are here in a moment of unity in our state without ill will to say it is time to remove the flag from our capitol grounds," Haley, the state's first non-white governor, said. "This flag, while an integral part of our past, does not represent the future of our great state."'

 

Why just a little over a year ago the governor said this:

 

"What I can tell you is over the last three and a half years, I spent a lot of my days on the phones with CEOs and recruiting jobs to this state,” Haley said. “I can honestly say I have not had one conversation with a single CEO about the Confederate flag.”

 

Maybe it took a conversation with a CEO or two to help her see the light.   

 

 

This is all very interesting. It's not only governor Haley. Republican politicians have been all trying to prove to the rest of us that many their supporters are not racist. (Good luck with that.)

 

We learned today that Rand Paul, Ted Cruz, and Rick Santorum gave back money that was given to them by the same racist organization that inspired Roof to kill those nine innocent people last Wednesday night.  

 

"The campaigns of Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., and Rick Santorum said they would donate the money received from Holt to a fund set up by Charleston's mayor to assist the victims' families.

"I abhor the sentiments Mr. Holt has expressed," Santorum said in a statement. "These statements and sentiments are unacceptable. Period. End of sentence"

 

Let me translate that for you: Now that the rest of America knows what I  have suspected all along, that this man and his organization are racists, I cannot take this money from him without being exposed as a possible racist myself.

 

It's been funny to see George Will and the folks over at FOX VIEWS throw themselves into a tizzy over the president saying Nigger (whoops, sorry, I meant n-word) in a candid moment while doing a popular podcast.

 

You have to wonder why some folks get  upset when folks who have a license to use that word do just that. It's almost as if they are angry that they can't say it  themselves.

"George Will was troubled by Obama’s comment about how the legacy of slavery and racism is “still part of our DNA that’s passed on; we’re not cured of it.”  

Will said race relations can’t possibly be getting better if that’s the case, calling it a “most unfortunate rhetorical reach” by Obama.

And if his point is, Will concluded, that America is “by nature racist,” “'it’s an unfortunate indictment of the nation and he should take it back.'”

What the president really said:

"I always tell young people, in particular, do not say that nothing has changed when it comes to race in America, unless you've lived through being a black man in the 1950s or '60s or '70s. It is incontrovertible that race relations have improved significantly during my lifetime and yours," Obama said."

You know what's worse than being a racist? Being a liar and a racist.

*Pic from theatlantic.com








 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The revolution is brought to you by cable news.

Something about the wall to wall coverage of this uprising in Baltimore seems a little unseemly to me.

As if a community suffering is something to pontificate about 24/7 from a cozy  temperature controlled news studio.  

Gil Scott Heron, may his soul rest in peace, was wrong. The revolution will be televised.

CNN has sent their Negro du jour, Don Lemon, to the streets, to interview troll protesters in order to give that network a much needed ratings boost.

MSNBC is calling back every black host and guest that ever appeared on their network in order to help white America understand the "riots" from the Negro perspective.

Meanwhile, over at FOX VIEWS, it's just more of the same: Scare old white people
into thinking that the black bogeyman is right around the next corner.

And on and on it goes. Each network hoping to capture that moment that sparks conversation at water coolers in cozy temperature controlled offices all across the country.

"Wow! Did you see that mother smack the hell out of that kid of hers and drag him away from the rest of those thugs?" Good for her. Give that woman a medal." 

Under different circumstances that same black woman would  have child welfare services called on her by some white woman in the grocery store. Now she is a hero.

Yes, get over here right away! I saw it with my own eyes! The woman just hit her son in the back of the head repeatedly. Yes, I will wait. 

I tried to say something but she told me to mind my own f*****g business. Please hurry. I fear for the child's safety.....   

Let me stop.

"You will not be able to stay home, brother
You will not be able to plug in, turn on and cop out
You will not be able to lose yourself on skag
And skip out for beer during commercials
Because the revolution will not be televised"

Yes it will, Gil.

But enjoy the riot while it is in limited release.

*Pic from mashable.com

FOX NEWS is a "no-go zone".

Over at FOX VIEWS there is a new catch phrase being used to scare their very pale and very old viewers: "No-go zone". (h/t to my twitter fam, Mcbiff)

According to FOX these "zones" are now all over Europe, and they are places where Muslims have taken over and are terrorizing all those who dare enter. FOX went on for an entire week with this foolishness and it got so bad that the French and the British had to jump in and tell the world how clueless these so-called journalists really are.

FOX went as far as to declare that an entire British city was being overrun by Muslims, and that Sharia law was now being officially practiced there.

"And in Britain, it’s not just no-go zones, there are actual cities like Birmingham that are totally Muslim where non-Muslims just simply don’t go in,”.... “And parts of London, there are actually Muslim religious police that actually beat and actually wound seriously anyone who doesn’t dress according to Muslim, religious Muslim attire. So there’s a situation that Western Europe is not dealing with.”'

Lord have mercy!  Where do they get these people?

Honestly, if we are going to be real with ourselves, the FOX VIEWS folks might be on to something.

There are actually "no- go zones" right here in America. They are called ghettos.  Or, let me rephrase that: "urban areas". *laughing*

One of the beautiful things of living in cities such as Philadelphia is being able to use "no-go zones" to your advantage. The easiest way to avoid traffic in and around the city is to drive through "no-go zones" in order to get from point A to point B by avoiding the major highways.

These "no-go" zone streets will be empty because "suburban" commuters will not drive through these urban "no-go zones", even if it will cut substantial time off of their commute.

Anyway, I am glad to announce that there might be a positive end to this story, as FOX VIEWS has finally apologized for lying about "no-go zones" in Europe.

"The network specifically corrected terror expert Steve Emerson's claim that there are "no-go zones" in Europe "where non-Muslims just simply don't go in."

"Over the course of this last week, we have made some regrettable errors on-air regarding the Muslim population in Europe — particularly with regard to England and France," Fox News anchor Julie Banderas said on Saturday. "Now, this applies especially to discussions of so-called 'no-go zones,' areas where non-Muslims allegedly aren't allowed in and police supposedly won't go. To be clear, there is no formal designation of these zones in either country, and no credible information to support the assertion that there are specific areas in these countries that exclude individuals based solely on their religion."

"There are certainly areas of high crime in Europe, as there are in the United States and other countries where police and visitors enter with caution," she continued. "We deeply regret the errors and apologize to any and all who may have taken offense, including the people of France and England."

Of course they will not apologize to their faithful viewers who the have already scared.

But, as we all know, this was the plan all along.

 

  

Wrongdoing in New York but not with Benghazi.

And now this from the news you will never hear on FOX VIEWS department:




"The House Intelligence Committee, led by Republicans, has concluded that there was no deliberate wrongdoing by the Obama administration in the 2012 attack on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, Libya, that killed Ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans, said Rep. Mike Thompson of St. Helena, the second-ranking Democrat on the committee.


The panel voted Thursday to declassify the report, the result of two years of investigation by the committee. U.S. intelligence agencies will have to approve making the report public.


Thompson said the report "confirms that no one was deliberately misled, no military assets were withheld and no stand-down order (to U.S. forces) was given."


That conflicts with accusations of administration wrongdoing voiced by Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Vista (San Diego County), whose House Government Oversight and Reform Committee has held hearings on the Benghazi attack."


Oh my! What is the "car thief" going to do now? He wasted millions of dollars on his investigation witch-hunt to score political brownie points, and, as it turns out, he hid the truth from the country for over a year.




He went from stealing cars to stealing from the American people.




Now on to New York, where the videotaped chokehold killing of Eric Garner has spurred a new debate about police brutality and police misconduct.




The killing has been ruled a homicide by the New York City Medical Examiner's office, and the minority residence of the country's largest city are demanding justice.




I would like to say that justice will be forthcoming, but sadly, I am not that optimistic. Already we are learning that the citizen who bravely filmed the tragic incident has been arrested. (Mr. Orta, it might be time to leave New York)




Now, to add insult to death, the police union in New York has declared that the officer who murdered Mr. Garner was following proper police practices, and that the ME report was politically motivated. I have to give it to you boys in blue; you sure know how to get each other's back no matter what.




But this is the environment in which New Yorkers are seeking justice. Good luck with that.




Finally, did you hear the one about some dude who was trying to take a selfie with his gun and shot himself to death?  That's crazy, right? 




Well, you know what's really crazy?  Here in this country the NRA is advocating letting blind people own guns. Yep. As if it's not bad enough that children get their hands on guns with tragic results. Now we have to add blind people to the mix.




I bet Darrell Issa is a card carrying member of the NRA. They both deserve each other.

Is Scott Walker going to Washington or to jail ?

I guess republicans can strike another potential opponent to Hillary Clinton off the list.


It seems like some slick stuff has been going on up in cheese country.


"Documents unsealed by a federal judge Thursday revealed prosecutors’ allegations against Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker (R), whom they called the center of a “criminal scheme” to coordinate funds during the 2011-12 recall elections.


Prosecutors accuse Walker and two deputies, R.J. Johnson and Deborah Jordahl, of circumventing election law by machinating fundraising efforts among various GOP candidates and conservative groups. The apparent smoking gun is an email from Walker to Republican strategist Karl Rove outlining the coordination and naming Johnson, also chief adviser to Wisconsin Club for Growth, as the conductor.


The documents were unsealed due to a lawsuit by the Club for Growth, which has temporarily halted the investigation." [Source]


There is that Karl Rove guy again. ("Romney by a landslide") He is hurting more than helping candidates at this point.


But Walker has no one to blame but himself for his latest issues. Like his larger than life cohort and political soul-mate in New Jersey, Scott Walker started to read and believe all those flattering press clippings about Scott Walker.


Still, as is to be expected, the Governor is blaming his problems on others.


"Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker responded on Twitter earlier tonight about prosecutors’ allegations over his involvement in a “criminal scheme” to coordinate fundraising efforts.


Walker dismissed it as a partisan witch hunt and cites rulings from two judges that have already vindicated his innocence.


Here’s what Walker had to say on Twitter:


✔ @ScottWalker Follow

The accusation of any wrongdoing written in the complaint by the office of a partisan Dem DA by me or by my campaign is categorically false.

6:52 PM - 19 Jun 2014 "

We will see Governor, we will see.

Finally, I saw Dick (if I only had a heart) Cheney and his daughter on television the other night ripping Obama a new one for botching the war in Iraq. Let me repeat that: DICK CHENEY WAS ON NATIONAL TELEVISION CRITICIZING THE PRESIDENT'S IRAQI POLITICS!  Now that, my friends, is called chutzpah.

It's so bad that one of the hosts on the republican news network had to check him on it.  If you are a republican that's when you know that you have officially gone over the top. When a FOX Views host confronts you about something.

 

Honestly, I have seen some pretty good and constructive criticism of the president over the past few days, but what Cheney did and said was baffling; even for him.

I bet W is somewhere in Texas just wishing that he would shut up and just go away.

But we all know that he can't. Not until that heart of his stops ticking.

*Pic from Brad Blog.