Sunday Morning Bobblehead Thread
Graphic courtesy of BlueGal
Okay, I'm going to 'fess up that I'm extremely cranky this morning. On the advice of my doctors, I decided to start the new year with a two week detox--no caffeine, no alcohol, no meat, only whole grains and organic vegetables. Understand that coffee is one of my major food groups, so I've not quite stopped jonesing for that morning cuppa to feel the benefits of the detox yet. So maybe I'm not in the best frame of mind for the Sunday shows. It's clear that the Underpants Bomber is going to be the big topic of the day, but it's also clear that we're not really interested in discussing the subject honestly. As Media Matters notes:
Among the guests appearing tomorrow will be Senator Jim DeMint (R-SC) on CNN's State of the Union. Will guest host Gloria Borger ask DeMint about his vote against the FY 2010 Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act, which included $4,358,076,000 in funding for screening operations by TSA, $1,116,406,000 of which was specifically for explosives detection systems? [Senate Vote #323, 10/20/09]
Or how about his vote against the Improving America's Security Act of 2007, which implemented recommendations of the 9/11 Commission, including several provisions related to airline security? [Senate Vote #284, 7/26/07]
Of course those questions won't be asked. Jay Rosen came up with a fairly simple (yet completely maverick) solution for the Sunday shows: fact-check your guests:
I think the situation calls for cynicism. But I have to admit that is not much of a call. So instead I propose this modest little fix, first floated on Twitter in a post I sent out to Betsy Fischer, Executive Producer of Meet the Press, who never replies to anything I say. "Sadly, you're a one-way medium," I said to Fischer, "but here's an idea for ya: Fact check what your guests say on Sunday and run it online Wednesday."
Now I don't contend this would solve the problem of the Sunday shows, which is structural. But it might change the dynamic a little bit. Whoever was bullshitting us more could expect to hear about it from Meet the Press staff on Wednesday. The midweek fact check (in the spirit of Politifact.com, which could even be hired for the job...) might, over time, exert some influence on the speakers on Sunday. At the very least, it would guide the producers in their decisions about whom to invite back.
The midweek fact check would also give David Gregory a way out of his puppy game of gotcha. Instead of telling David Axelrod that his boss promised to change the tone in Washington so why aren't there any Republican votes for health care? ... which he thinks is getting "tough" with a guest, Gregory's job would simply be to ask the sort of questions, the answers to which could be fact checked later in the week. Easy, right?
The beauty of this idea is that it turns the biggest weakness of political television--the fact that time is expensive, and so complicated distortions, or simple distortions about complicated matters, are rational tactics for advantage-seeking pols---into a kind of strength. The format beckons them to evade, deny, elide, demagogue and confuse.... but then they pay for it later if they give into temptation and make that choice.
Fact-checking, what a novel concept.
ABC's "This Week" - John Brennan, assistant to the president for homeland security and counterterrorism; Sens. Joe Lieberman, Connecticut independent, and Susan Collins, R-Maine; Reps. Jane Harman, D-Calif., and Pete Hoekstra, R-Mich.
CBS' "Face the Nation" - Journalists' roundtable.
NBC's "Meet the Press" - Brennan; former Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff; former CIA director Michael Hayden; Doris Kearns Goodwin, presidential historian.
NBC's "The Chris Matthews Show" - Panel: Katty Kay, Dan Rather, John Harris, Helene Cooper. Topics: Which of Seven Tough Storylines Will Take Hold Against Obama in 2010? What Are the Big Political Predictions for 2010?
CNN's "State of the Union" - Brennan; former New Jersey Gov. Thomas Kean, chairman of 9/11 commission; Sens. Jim DeMint, R-S.C., and Claire McCaskill, D-Mo.; Fran Townsend, a former White House homeland security adviser for President George W. Bush; Richard Ben-Veniste, 9/11 commission member; former CIA official Michael Scheuer.
CNN's "Fareed Zakaria GPS" - As we approach the 1st anniversary of President Obama's inauguration, a look back at his first year in office. Did he meet the challenges? Plus, Fareed's conversation with Tom Ricks on the Battle of Wanat and what it means for the troops heading to Afghanistan. Finally, a new conversation with Asia expert Kishore Mahbubahni on whether China's economic and political strength will continue to grow and what that means for the rest of the world.
CNN's "Amanpour" - Women for sale; Afghan opium.
"Fox News Sunday" - Brennan; Sen. Kit Bond, R-Mo.
So while I shake off my coffee blues, what's catching your eye this morning?
by Edward Harrison here after Michael Arrington here
Just remember bloggers, you can be the first disappeared blogger by being declared an enemy combatant at the hands the latest American fascists.
----
I don't know but here is my list:
1 - The USA has a full blown Kleptocracy going on.
2 - The warmongers are still at it.
3 - The shadow employment numbers are worse than previously imagined.
4 - The housing situation is worst than previously imagined and prices continues to fall.
5 - The fake health care reform bill passes to much fanfare and ridicule.
6 - The specter of peak oil continues to raise its head.
7 - See #1-6, the American economic ponzi scheme should be nearing an end but the attempts at covering it up will continue to the last opportunity.
----
There is no need to give up coffee. Although in the future the dollar versus the Brazilian Real could make things tough in that account.
statusquObama, change you can only pretend in
You already know that the sunday morning conman shows will have nothing but lies and bullshit! So why waste the time?
I guess after all the years of hearing about the liberal media that does not exist you could all be as stupid as republicans.
I hope not!
I have not watched television in nearly ten years.
You keep saying the Republicans are stupid. They pray upon gullible working class people, and succeed at it.
The Democrats also pray on gullible working class people and succeed at it.
The two parties are two ends to the same snake.
The Great Kleptocracy.
The working class, which is between 62% and 80% of the population must awake to a commonality of purpose and put an end to the great snake.
It must oust both corrupt and venal parties.
statusquObama, change you can only pretend in
convince the common person-citizen in the US to dismantle that which preserves and protects them.
Truly diabolical. Too EASY!
> The two parties are two ends to the same snake.
I can't tolerate this ridiculous meme anymore.
If George Bush didn't prove to you that there is a SIGNIFICANT difference between the two Parties, nothing will.
* There are two types of Republicans: millionaires and suckers.
"Mugsy's Rap Sheet": Recording history for those who seek to rewrite it.
Do you honestly think Obama is much different than Bush?
Sure, he's smarter.
Sure, he's more eloquent (see point 1).
But he's pursuing the same foreign policy. His HCR is a giant give away to the insurance industry and a giant shaft to America. He hasn't repealed any tax cuts. He hasn't gotten rid of DADT. He's not doing anything to rein in the Kleptocrats and Oligarchs. He's not only not prosecuting the previous admins criminals, he's actively COVERING UP for them, etc..
I could go on, but it's pointless.
If you can't see that the two admins are far more similar than they are different, then you never will.
Do I wish the Obama Administration would be more Progressive? Of course. But two f'ed up things stand in his way: the 60-votes-for-everything requirement in the Senate, and an economy in ruins.
Can you honestly tell me you think Obama would have invaded Iraq, begin the use of warrantless wiretaps of American citizens, or any of the multitude of Constitutional violations Bush engaged in?
I blame "inertia" for the lack of change in as speedy a manner as we'd prefer. But to continue to suggest "there's no difference" invites a return to Republican rule and incalculable harm to this country.
* There are two types of Republicans: millionaires and suckers.
"Mugsy's Rap Sheet": Recording history for those who seek to rewrite it.
Clinton's policies against Iraq killed tens of thousands of children, to which Madelaine Albright said 'the cost was high but it was worth it'.
Clinton had Carnivore, the illegal surveillance program.
We are on a long downward spiral and both the Rs and the Ds have blood on their hands.
Lots of it.
I just make sure that I don't affiliate myself with warmongers or war criminals.
Et alia.
statusquObama, change you can only pretend in
• Bailout Nation, trillions for the Banksters. No investigations, no prosecutions of Wall Street Criminals
• Indefinite Detention, FISA, Patriot Act extended, Obama DOJ argues Bush doctrine of Dred Scott redux - no investigation or prosecution of war crimes
• MICC increases continue
• Perpetual War continues
• Fake Health Care reform reward for the health insurance and big Pharma gangsters
ETC ETC
statusquObama, change you can only pretend in
All the things you named are REPUBLICAN policies. They were instated by REPUBLICANS.
Complain all you want about the fact they haven't all been repealed yet (I'm right there with you), but don't try to tell me that DEMOCRATS would have pushed through those same policies in the first place because it's just not true. And that's what you are saying when you claim "there's NO difference between the two Parties."
* There are two types of Republicans: millionaires and suckers.
"Mugsy's Rap Sheet": Recording history for those who seek to rewrite it.
I said:
I did not say:
Even putting quotations marks does not change what I said.
If you wish to write about what I say, use the words that I use.
Same snake, two different ends.
Both bought and paid for by powerful people shielded behind their corporations.
The Republicans do not mince their words, the Democrats do.
That is a difference for what it is worth, which to me is very little.
As for substance the Democrats have been caving completely for twenty years. Do you want me to try to rewrite history?
statusquObama, change you can only pretend in
State of the Union Speech . . "Now I know everyone's shit is gittin' emotional . . were running out cheese burgers and big gulps, were runnin' out a shovels"
I feel your pain, kinda, Nicole. I woke up OK but then I logged onto my hometown blogging site and found a gratuitous slam at Media Matters. Since among my resolutions was to stop blogging there, I'm having a hard time. But I am finally convinced it's a waste of time and effort. Keep in mind that I (we) live in an area that is represented by the trifecta of SC political buffoonery: Sanford, DeMint, Wilson. And then there's also Graham, and not too far afield the sharp tack who said "Keep your government hands off my Medicare." Fact checks will not help here. But I like your idea anyway.
PS...those who would like to see Gov Sanford "in the flesh", so to speak, could go to Aunt Chilada's on Hilton Head Island tomorrow for the local Republican Club luncheon meeting where Sanford will be an honored guest. Ay-yi-yi!
Greetings from frigid Florida this morning.
Screw the talking heads today. We all know which way the slant will be in all the shows. It's just bullshit as usual. I would rather help Mr. Greenjeans clean his fish tank.
Say what you mean. Mean what you say. But don't say it mean.
Just finished the chore. And a Happy New Year to you and yours.
"Let's talk dirty to the animals"
Happy New Year to you and Mrs Green Jeans and any little Green Jeans you might have running around. Glad I didn't have to get my sleeves wet in dirty fish tank water. :)
Say what you mean. Mean what you say. But don't say it mean.
I haven't watched a full broadcast of any of the so called news shows since 2003. It became painfully clear that the corporate owned and operated media had put the fix in and could not be trusted.
I had watched Meet the press since the days of Spivac. But tim russert did that in for me.
The rest of the reich wing media can go to hell!
All of them and the republicans they rode in on!
You are getting very bad advice.
...I discovered this morning I have a nasty bit of adware hijacking my PC that is going to take a bit of work to remove, so I may end up shirking much of my posting duties this morn. :(
* There are two types of Republicans: millionaires and suckers.
"Mugsy's Rap Sheet": Recording history for those who seek to rewrite it.
Oh man.
I dunno if I could do that. It is a major food group.
Good luck Nicole.
This caught my eye this morning.
An Op Ed piece by Bono.
The return of the Mujaheddin to Afghanistan?
What is your conceptual, continuity?
Coffee has been in my blood since 1971 when Starbucks opened their first shop at the Pike Place Market in Seattle. Then Seattle's Best opened their shop nearby. Then in the 90's Costco put coffee rosters in all the Seattle stores. Ah the memories.
Now that we live in Vegas, I buy Costco brand beans or a blend that they carry from San Francisco Coffee at the Business Centers.
However, about two months ago I went to 1 cup per day, then last month I went to 1 cup on Sat and Sun.
I have a variety of tea and since I get up at 3am I have about 5 cups of the stuff by 7. I seem to have morphed into Captain Pickard from TNG as I really like Earl Gray, hot.
I hope I don't need therapy.
"Let's talk dirty to the animals"
I'm having to pretty much do the same thing, no black French Roast, minimum meat, no alcohol, no Gauloises
Maybe I should take up sex
Or prayer
Or praying for sex...
(It'll be just like I'm married).
Diabolus est Deus Inversus
I guess you can't use my excuse Nicole. I attrbute my crankiness to being a middle aged plus male with a shrinking brain. Had to limit myself to a one cup of coffee dose before work. I would try to give it up but I have to think fast and move fast at my job. A nurse friend of mine claims the body will adjust and provide it's own stimulants if coffee is given up.
This is true. My mom used to drink 4 to 5 cans of pop a day. When she decided to give up caffeine, she had headaches for about a week but nothing headache medicine couldn't relieve. She says she has more energy and better sleep cycles.
One cup a day before work sounds like you could kick coffee if you wanted to. Some people just enjoy coffee for the taste which is perfectly fine. whatever floats your boat.
i dont know which one would give me a bigger headache, no coffee, or watching the talking heads today.....
and this week in and on your TeeVee . .
Okay, while I'm waiting for my Adware Removal tool to download, here are some of my observations on FnS this morning:
Brennan did a "good" job of defending the Obama Administration this morning, mentioning several "terrists" the Bush Administration put on trial, but Wallace kept pushing him on why we would allow him to (quote) "lawyer up" and not "treat him as an enemy combatant?" Brennan insinuated that we are still getting good information by making deals with the Underwear Bomber, but never stated the obvious... the assumption that "enhanced interrogation gives you good information". Wallace never used the word "torture" (natch), but it is clear that is what he thinks we should be doing to him.
Later, the roundtable gave its predictions for 2010. Brit Hume's advice to Tiger Woods was that if he simply abandon his religion (Buhddist), America would accept him again.
Kristol condemned Brennan for "implying we are making deals" with the Underwear Bomber, rather than using "enhanced interrogation" (note, Kristol himself is "implying" the use of torture while refusing to say the word.)
Nina "Love Canal" Easton predicted that China's claimed economic recovery resulting from massive government spending will turn out to be a lie based upon "inflated figures".
* There are two types of Republicans: millionaires and suckers.
"Mugsy's Rap Sheet": Recording history for those who seek to rewrite it.
Is there no end to Hume's arrogance?
.
No need to answer.
I wouldn't accept him.
"Parachutes are allowed in checked or carry-on baggage, but may not be worn in flight."
---Southwest Airlines
is that by that time, the liars have already moved on to their next lie and know that they will never pay any real price for having lied. Liars need to be treated like puppies that piddle all over the place. Push the puppies nose in his piddle immediately or he will not understand what the problem is. The same is true of the liars; call them on their lies immediately or they won't care that they are called on them later.
I understand that not all lies can be discerned immediately and require research. That is what the liars are counting on. So, where you can, call them on it immediately or at least by the end of the show. Barring that, have a segment at the beginning of each show that debunks any lies from the previous week. Trouble with that is the next week's show will probably take all the time to debunk the previous week's lies and won't have any guests on. Which wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing.
The phrase "underpants bomber," makes me think of the Simpson's episode where Homer was Montgomery Burns prank monkey, lying on the sidewalk in the huge diapers, yelling, "Baby made a boom boom."
Diabolus est Deus Inversus
Good to see Joe Lieberman found time in his busy schedule to appear on "This Weak." I've been wondering what he's been thinking about things lately...
Great. I haven't had any coffee (or speed) for the last four days. So much for that trend...
"Parachutes are allowed in checked or carry-on baggage, but may not be worn in flight."
---Southwest Airlines
lies told on TV that day. It's about time they did some weekend programming again anyway. A team up of Politifact or Factcheck.com with the Countdown format would be cool. They'd have to have no favorites, watch out David Gregory, I'd watch it every week without fail. I'd bet NBC/Comcast are too afraid of that though.
Maybe make this a segment on Olbermann or Maddow every Monday or Tuesday. "The bullshit the bullshitters bullshitted on Sunday."
Republicans are on every Sunday because they make themselves available. I'll bet they call the producers and ask to be on every week. Why? Because they have no lives other than lying to get re-elected. They are always available christmas and holiday weekends without fail because they don't give a shit about anything else.
And I hear you on the caffine. For the last year I have been trying to reduce my coffee intake and to replace a couple cups with green tea. I have yet to exclaim "Man, that's a hellofa cup of tea", or "Thanks I needed that" to a cup of tea.
The media is so completely pointless and useless.
*
The press is a joke, when they let Reslug liars be liars on their shows and don't call them out on their obvious hypocrises.
Good luck with your coffee sabbatical, Nicole. But don't expect to overcome your grumps. I did this many years ago for two weeks, and never felt enthusiastic at all. It never got better. So I took ibuprofen for headaches and a nap every afternoon, and just did it. Glad I did, but I never really got in touch with my uncaffeinated child.
most notably when I got pregnant and was nursing. I did eventually feel better.
Sadly, ibuprofen does nothing for my headaches.
Seems to be stacked seriously to the right of center. What a way to start the new year......same as the old year.
Your suggestion for a mid-week fact check on the Sunday BS is a great one, and that's probably why it won't be adopted by the MSM. If the ego-inspired guests actually had to speak the truth to the public, the chances of them being re-elected is nil.
As Jack Nicholson said in "A Few Good Men": "You can't handle the truth!"
The MSM wouldn't like it 'cuz there goes their Sunday ratings if the guests won't show up for fear of being caught in their fertilizer-spreading. Personally, I gave up on them some time ago when it became apparent it was just a propaganda machine for the DC insiders . . . .
Listen to your body, Nicole.
Last January, after undergoing my usual tests my doctor told me that I was a level 2 diabetic. Against my will I was forced to inject myself twice a day with insulin. Of course diabetes affects your heart, pancreas, and liver. I also took prilosec for stomach acidity, every day for 8 years.
Well I decided to go on the offensive. I called my pal Joe Wessels a well known naturopath and made an appointment. Joe looked at my chart and said this:"Michael, you are an accident waiting to happen. I will never let my body get in the shape that yours is in". So I asked Joe what he suggested. He told me to run, RUN...not walk to my bookstore and get a copy of
Dean Ornish's "Eat More, Weigh Less", and follow it. This I did. I followed the instructions to the max. It is not an easy diet but it is not easy to get back a healthy body. No fish,chicken,meat,dairy,alcohol,sugar, fish or white flour. Sound like a foodies nightmare? Well it was...for the first week. Vegetables, fruit, legumes,grains and more vegetables, but that was only for the first week. And then a strange wonderful thing happened, my palate changed. Salads that I avoided became tasty, and thanks to my wife's versatility I actually began to enjoy my meals. After 3 months I lost 27 pounds, from 199 to 172.
Let me suggest for your new year, and our other friends this...take care of your body. I no longer need insulin..nor prilosec. My doctor told me I had performed a minor miracle on myself.
Now at least I can face the party of NO in good health.Hey! At least it's a start.
MBrillson
mbrillo1
Sorry, but these shows are obviously slanted, and directed to present a message. That message is not the one you and I will agree with, most of the time, but there is no intent, on any of the Sunday shows, to do anything outside of propaganda and/or misinformation.
Good luck with your suggestion. A solid 10 years of reading political blogs, which have generally been doing the fact-checking and breakdown after the fact, should give you a hint that the major TV corporations don't give a shit about what liberals think, and don't want the rest of the country to even have a clue. It works for them.
In a closed society where everybody's guilty, the only crime is getting caught. In a world of thieves, the only final sin is stupidity. - Hunter S. Thompson
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