Sunday, May 19, 2013

Captain Ahab and the GOP

Conservative pols are in a feeding frenzy. Due to the latest political scandal (Benghazi and IRS), they feel that they have The Big O  (Obama) on the ropes.. They are in a palpable state of glee -- walking with a renewed sense of vigor and confidence.

 Some have even dared to float the impeachment word.

The body language says it all: We have this brown man right where we want him. As the notorious captain Ahab obsessively pursued Moby Dick, the GOP has -- country be damned -- placed The Big O in their crossbow from the get-go.

You may remember of Ahab:

He was obsessed with the white whale : obsessed to the point he willingly and knowingly leads his ship and entire crew towards death, month after month pursuing his quarry.
\Refusing to help other mariners in need, refusing to pursue other whales and profits, obsessed unto the point of death.


The Big O has tormented their soul to the core; he has outwitted and out-maneuvered them at every crossroad -- and now -- "our chance for vindication." Their mantra: Revenge at any cost.

Eric Boehlert of Media Matters writes:

President Obama's most fevered critics have been waiting for a national "aha" moment since he was first inaugurated more than 50 months ago. Coming off an electoral landslide, Obama was instantly greeted by a mob-like movement on the far right that denounced him as a socialist and a communist. Excited conservatives quickly reached for Nazi rhetoric and imagery in an effort to convey the dark threat the Democrat posed to the country.

Amplified by Fox News and a well-funded right-wing media industry, the "grassroots" revolt was portrayed as a sweeping rebuke of Obama. But in truth, the raging critics occupied the loud fringes, a fact confirmed by Obama's easy re-election. source

AND

Conservatives continue their Groundhog Day charade, reassuring themselves that the hearing was a hit and that scandal "bombshells" exploded on Capitol Hill. (They did not.)
The larger, common sense question that lingers though is, why? Why keep pounding a story so far into the ground that most news consumers can't even make sense of the convoluted allegations anymore?

I think the explanation for the durability is that Benghazi serves as an all-purpose platform that allows the most hardened critics to project their anti-Obama madness. It allows them to spin their ugliest fantasies about the president and to depict him as a heartless traitor who chose to let Americans die at the hands of Islamic terrorists. It's a way to condemn Obama for having a "reflexive impulse to blame, rather than defend, America."

For the last eight months, Benghazi has served as a convenient vessel to ferry around the right wing's Capt. Ahab-like obsession. Most often docked at Fox News, which has referenced "Benghazi" thousands and thousands and thousands of times since last September, the terror attack represents a way to feed that sinister fixation about the president being a Manchurian Candidate who let Americans die in Benghazi and "sacrificed American lives for politics."

Benghazi mania is driven by a dark obsession with Obama that's built upon the assumption that he's capable of the very worst and incapable of anything good or decent. That the President of the United States does not deserve to sit in the Oval Office because his loyalties (not to mention his origins) are in doubt. Which is supposedly why he would abandon Americans to die in Benghazi. source

Thursday, May 16, 2013

GOP agenda: Benghazi and IRS Investigations

The GOP, with the panties in a bunch (yet again), continue to blow their horn about Benghazi and the recent IRS scandal.

 In the case of Benghazi -- which may be a salvo shot at Hillary 2016 -- it has failed to gain traction outside of FOX Nation.

It is a fitting coda to Fox's months-long scandal mongering over the tragedy in Benghazi. Jarrett is deceptively attacking the president over comments he made in the Rose Garden, the very spot where Obama first labeled the attack an act of terror, comments that have been decontextualized and parsed endlessly to help promote the entire pseudo-scandal. 

Fox's desperate attempt to breathe life back into the "scandal" comes days after the network's scandal machine began a campaign to call for a special prosecutor to investigate the president. This is how the voice of the opposition works. Turning Benghazi into Obama's Watergate is central to the Fox goal of bringing down the administration.

Which is why Fox is desperate to keep it going.  source

And to this IRS brouhaha..., I first want to say to the Tea Party folks: You are a faux (fake) grass-root organization financed by right-wing billionaires. These Billionaire Boys have declared war on labor, labor unions, civil servants, teachers; in other words the average American.

Functionally speaking, the Tea Party organization is nothing more than a front group for the American oligarchy. As such: What did you expect? Government scrutiny comes with the territory -- just ask Al Capone.

There is a war underway. I'm not talking about Washington's bloody misadventures in Afghanistan and Iraq, but a war within our own borders. It's a war fought on the airwaves, on television and radio and over the Internet, a war of words and images, of half-truth, innuendo, and raging lies. I'm talking about a political war, pitting liberals against conservatives, Democrats against Republicans. I'm talking about a spending war, fueled by stealthy front groups and deep-pocketed anonymous donors. It's a war that's poised to topple what's left of American democracy.

The right wing won the opening battle. In the 2010 midterm elections, shadowy outside organizations (who didn't have to disclose their donors until well after Election Day, if at all) backing Republican candidates doled out $190 million, outspending their adversaries by a more than two-to-one margin, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. American Action Network, operated by Republican consultant Fred Malek and former Republican Senator Norm Coleman, spent $26 million; the US Chamber of Commerce plunked down $33 million; and Karl Rove's American Crossroads and Crossroads GPS shelled out a combined $38.6 million. Their investments in conservative candidates across the country paid off: the 62 House seats and six Senate seats claimed by Republicans were the most in the postwar era—literally, a historic victory.

Like I said: What did you expect?

Wednesday, May 15, 2013

Michigan State strips local star's scholarship after explicit rap video

Jay Harris, one of the area’s top football recruits, was stripped of his scholarship by Michigan State earlier this month after he posted a series of profanity-laced rap videos on YouTube, a source said Tuesday.

Under the name “Jay DatBull,” the Downingtown East senior has uploaded nine videos to YouTube. Using explicit lyrics, Harris raps about drugs, women, and homosexuals.

His first single, “DatBull 4 Life,” surpassed 50,000 views over the weekend and appears to show Harris smoking marijuana while sitting behind the steering wheel of a car.

Sunday, May 12, 2013

Trailer: Afro-Cubans and Sierra Leoneans Bridge The Gap in Doc 'They Are We'

I just had to share this touching and amazing story. It is truly a great mothers day tale. Happy Mothers day to all the great moms and to my #1 mom: Barbara Harvey!

How mind-blowing and fascinating is this upcoming documentary? Talk about bridging the gap! I came across an article from The Atlantic (recommended reading), written beautifully by Emma Christopher, director of They Are We, a film which documents how a family of Afro-Cubans in a remote village of Perico, Cuba learn of and become acquainted with their ancestors in Sierra Leone, West Africa, and vice-versa.

Texas Fertilizer Explosion EMS Worker Charged With Owning Explosive Device

Arrested first responder

A first responder who helped treat victims of the fertilizer plant explosion in West, Texas, last month was arrested and charged today with possessing an explosive device.

The arrest came on the same day that Texas authorities opened a criminal investigation into the April 17 explosion.

Saturday, May 11, 2013

42: Jackie Robinson, Fritz Ostermueller and the Sanitizing of American History

For most people, racism is an ugly and abhorrent practice: it is a human sickness that should be eradicated from American society.

Unfortunately, racism is as American as apple pie. Truth be told, when looking at the legacy of racism in America it is hard not to wince.

As former Secretary of State, and conservative Republican, Condoleezza Rice noted: Racism/slavery is the birth defect of our country.

Friday, May 10, 2013

Grandson of Malcolm X killed in Mexico

With a heavy heart and great sadness, unfortunately, we report the death of Malcolm Shabazz, grandson of Malcolm X. The young man, only 29 years old, was beaten to death in Mexico City. The dispute: a bar tab.

Mr. Shabazz lived a very troubled and chaotic life. You may recall, he was found guilty -- at 12 years old -- of the arson that killed his grandmother and widow of Malcolm X, Betty Shabazz. Young Malcolm also served time as an adult for armed robbery.

Friday, May 3, 2013

Africa’s top three airports rank higher than any airports in the USA

Airport 200x240The World Airport Awards 2013 – recently released by Skytrax, a United Kingdom-based company specialising in airline and airport research – has ranked the top airports in the world, including those in Africa. The results show that South African airports take a considerable lead over other airports on the continent and, in some cases, the world.


According to Skytrax, over 12 million passengers from more than 160 countries were surveyed. The survey looked at traveller experiences across 39 different categories – from the check-in process to airport shopping – and covers just under 400 airports.

Only three African airports made the global top 100 list and these were all from South Africa. These airports were placed highly across a number of categories, and all three improved in their global ranking from the previous year.

South African airports dominate the African rankings  source

Wednesday, May 1, 2013

The Larry Bird Effect and The Obama Effect

The Larry Bird Effect

I remember, like it was yesterday (dating myself), the devastating psyche blow absorbed by many African-American males during the 1980's.

The event was the emergence of NBA Hall of Famer Larry Bird -- an unstoppable force of nature. Not only did Bird play basketball for the hated Boston Celtics, he was crushing the competition -- and he was doing it with swag.

Bird would bust your ass and talk ish at the same time -- he took no prisoners.

Tuesday, April 30, 2013

Sandra Day O'Connor Now Doubts Wisdom of Bush v. Gore

Ohhh, Sandy Dee: To much, To little, and Far Too Late.

The activism of the 2000 court regarding Bush v Gore will be a historical stain on the SCOTUS forever.

It gave us the most reckless executive administration -- Yea, ole Tricky Dick Nixon had nothing on Bush/Cheney -- in USA history.

We are still picking up the tab...