Daddy Fight & '08

Daddy Fight & ‘08

Like the angry father who can’t or won’t admit that a younger man will eventually replace him, John McOedipus exhibited nothing but disdain and disregard toward Barack Obama during Friday’s debate.  It was stunning and pathetically obvious from the initial handshake that McCain thought:  “how dare HE be on this stage with ME!”  Furthermore, it was horrifically reminiscent of the early debates between Judas Joe Lieberman and Ned Lamont in the summer ’06, as grumpy Joe, then Oedipus Lieberman, adopted the hubris that afflicts so many tragic figures.  Perhaps McCain should spend less time with narcissistic Joe and more time with dignified Republicans like Richard Lugar to treat his current psychological disorder.  In the cults of personality and orbits of psycho-dynamics, there is a personality factor here that’s quite legible even to the most naïve of eyes.  And no one likes a b@stard of a father. 

But this Freudian family subtext extends way beyond McCain.  Just look at the pundit class, who can’t or won’t admit that Obama won because he had the right temperament and gravitas that Americans unequivocally desire in our leaders.  Hell, it’s obvious that Obama was the winner in poll after poll.  But despite that, the pundit class, like a group of obnoxious sons and daughters in one, f*cked-up, dysfunctional family, SO want a daddy fight in a major way. 

It was laughable to read mean-girl Maureen Dowd—who STILL has Catholic gossip-girl cafeteria disorder—on Sunday again miss the mark in her dreadful analogy to a A Few Good Men.  Mika Brzezinski, whom I normally like, followed this morning on Morning Smoe claiming that Obama should’ve and could’ve been meaner.  Et tu, Mika? 

We DEFINITELY need therapy for this Freudian family disorder, and maybe when Chimpy, who has HUGE daddy-issues that will be on full display in Oliver Stone’s W., leaves office we will alas be free from this mass political psychosis.  

JJ a.k.a. Judas Joe

JJ
a.k.a.
Judas Joe

Cheers to The Day paper for smacking down Judas Joe whose recent cameos with Bomb, Bomb McCainy are getting increasingly nauseating—sorry, but there’s something admittedly gross when one old man whispers ever closely in another old man’s ear. And huge cheers to The Huffington Post for covering this smack down coming from little ol’ southeastern Connecticut.

But Judas Joe’s relationship with let’s-spend another-100-years-in-Iraq McCainy is NOT NEW information, nor should it come as a surprise that JJ –that’s Judas Joe for short, will support McCain for president as if he were the second coming. In fact, Judas Joe and McCainy are regulars at the American Enterprise Institute, the neocon death star of policy making.

JJ, formerly Captain Lieberman, formerly Oedipus Lieberman, formerly Senator Joe Lieberman, Democrat from CT, is, alas, who he is. Many of us in Connecticut already know this; such a pity it’s taking so many others to catch on.

Joe & Where We Live

Joe & Where We Live

Did anyone in CT catch Judas Joe on NPR’s Where We Live this morning, doing his “Islamist Terrorism” thing?

Yeah, in commenting on Benazir Bhutto’s tragic death, tragic Joe couldn’t resist spewing his “Islamist terrorism,” I-told-you-so rhetoric. After all, the show's feature wasn’t about the unfortunate passing of a world leader; it was about “me and my world view,” sayeth Judas Joe.

Thankfully, there was a round-table guest who did point out the OBVIOUS problem with Joe’s rhetoric: focusing on terrorism in general rather than seemingly assigning it to one particular group or religion is more beneficial in the long run. But, alas, Judas Joe is soooooo independent minded.

Off the Wagon

Off the Wagon

My name is sptmck, a part-time blogger, and I AM “off the wagon.” After spending months of de-toxing and painfully abstaining from “going negative” on Judas Joe, formerly Captain Lieberman, formerly Oedipus Lieberman, formerly Joe Lieberman, Democrat from CT, I thought for sure that I twelve-stepped my way to a new found serenity. Unfortunately for me, and many CT Bloggers, God neither granted me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change nor the wisdom to know the difference.

It’s official: Judas Joe is back and more heinous than ever. Talk about a “double-birdie” to us Ned Lamont supporters, and, more surprisingly, to the Democratic Establishment that should’ve seen shameless Joe for what he was before they granted him those committee assignments. Media-blitzing on his endorsement of Senator John McCain, Captain LIEberman just did a spot earlier tonight on Furball in which he stated to Chris Matthews—brace yourselves—that in his heart he IS a TRUE Democrat and that because Senator McCain ASKED HIM for his support, he said…yes. “Vengeance is mine,” sayeth Judas Joe.

Things are getting interesting in Presidential Politics, aren’t they? One can’t help ponder how Judas Joe’s latest move affects Billaryworld. Remember, it was ol’ Billy who came to CT in the summer of’06 to stump for then-known Oedipus Lieberman. Remember, it was Hillary to whom Oedipus appealed to get Billy out there to do his thing. And remember it was Hillary who remained on the quiet side when it came to her support of Ned Lamont. Much more can’t be said about Barack who, in the summer/fall ’06, during his book tour, slided around CT to AVOID a public appearance with Lamont, Oedipus’s nemesis at the time.

Maybe we should revisit John Edwards’ analysis of Washington insiders and how their actions have consequences. Maybe Mr. Edwards, who proudly supported Ned Lamont and true change, can offer a viable, sobering alternative to establishment politicians and the betraying bedfellows they keep.

Cheerleader Joe

CHEERLEADER JOE

In the American tradition of re-naming, like Jay Gatz who reinvents himself as Gatsby, like Marshall Mathers who calls himself Eminem, like Hillary Rodham Clinton who has triangulated herself for ’08 as Hillary Clinton, Joe Lieberman should re-name himself. Senator Joe Lieberman, I-CT, also known as Captain Lieberman, formerly Oedipus Lieberman, formerly Joe Lieberman, Democrat from CT, can now be known as Cheerleader Joe…from hell.

Picture this: a sort of dark and dreary scene with those pom-pom extras from Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” video and Joe shouting “bomb, bomb Iran,” “let’s go n-u-c-l-e-a-r in India,” or his latest geopolitical ditty, “hip, hop, ho, the road to Damascus,” which pays partial tribute to General Petreaus’s efforts. But does Cheerleader Joe ever stop? Maybe he's stopped reading because even some of the staunchest supporters of invasion Iraq have recently forecast that Petreaus’s efforts are likely to yield little in the big scheme of things.

I kid you not: as Think Progress reports today, Joe composed yet another manifesto for victory for none other than The Wall Street Journal, the same publication that announced last week that George Bush lost his brain. Many of us folks in CT know that Cheerleader Joe—or whatever you want to call him—lost his mind a long time ago.

It's about 2008

It’s about 2008

As Captain LIEberman, formerly Oedipus Lieberman, formerly Joe Lieberman, Republicrat from CT, fantasizes about going nuclear in India, George Bush loses his brain. Who knows what will happen next, especially considering that Bush’s brain is also known as a turd?

But Rove’s departure should come as no surprise. It’s real simple: what do you with your party’s best campaign strategist when you have a president whose approval ratings—ooh…ah—hover in the high 20s to mid 30s and there’s no “clear” frontrunner emerging, despite rumors that troll-looking Fred Thompson can work some Hogwarts magic? Send in Rove, Karl Rove.

Sure, the media can fixate on and speculate about Rove’s departure. Pundits can and will buy into the lame excuse that blossom wants to spend time with his family—and I’m a staffer at The National Review. But the obvious reason for Rove’s timely exit stage to Texas is to get ready for 2008. That became abundantly evident in his interview for The Wall Street Journal and during his guest spot on the Rush Limbaugh show. And what better way to ceremoniously yet symbolically reveal his plans than to call Hillary a “fatally flawed candidate.” I have to admit: I do like it that Hillary is channeling her inner Pat Benatar and hitting back.

It’s about 2008, stupid! No doubt, like the hand at the end of Carrie, Karl Rove will be back.

9.15.07

9.15.07

As the days of Alberto Goneliar run short, we creep closer to a deadline in September: September 15, the day when General David Petraeus reportedly delivers his assessment on the surge to Chimpy, or better yet, he delivers Chimpy’s assessment to the American people. As Frank Rich has beautifully noted in today’s column, “Who Really Took Over During That Colonoscopy,” Chimpy’s War of Error’s latest missionary man, Petraeus, is not the savior Chimpy and the hawks would like him to be, regardless of their rock star mantra of Petraeus, Petraeus, please SAVE US!!!! You can almost imagine Senators Lindsey Graham and Captain LIEberman clapping their hands, doing a jig and singing a song, cheering Chimpy & Petraeus along.

One would think that the Chimpletons would pick a day different than the 15th and a month different than September. We all know that 15 recalls the tragic end of Shakespeare’s obdurate, isolated character Caesar, and we Americans certainly know that September reverberates with the haunting reminders of 9/11 and the wake of Katrina, two events that rate rather high on the index of recent tragedies. But in Bush’s world, in Bush’s brain, neither fact nor fiction matter; only what the decider says does. Beware of the "ides"* of September.

*Note: Yes, I'm well aware that "ides" refers to the 15th of March, May, July and October; it is actually the 13th in other months. I just "decided" to exercise some creativity to "catapult the propaganda."

Coin Toss Politics

The November ‘06 elections were exciting for most Dems across the country. In Connecticut, there was a certain anxious electricity in the air in the months preceding the elections. I remember pounding the pavement in New London for Joe Courtney on a hot summer day; in the meeting room prior to the Walk for Labor, there was a sense that something was imminent, that this was a good year for the Dems. November ‘06 was a safe topic to discuss; however, the August primary had many Dems on eggshells for a variety of reasons. While many were vocal in their support of Courtney over Simmons, sometimes people were much less likely to conjure up a conversation about Ned Lamont and Captain Lieberman. On this subject, feelings were militant on both sides with friends and family members sharply divided in their opinions. Here was an ugly Dem vs. Dem confrontation.

On the local level, another huge Dem vs. Dem showdown occurred in the town of Groton. Elissa Wright and Rita Schmidt were the front runners for the state representative seat in district 41. The race was tight; both women were political heavy hitters. The tallied results showed a one vote discrepancy in favor of Schmidt, and the recount ensued. The recount resulted in a tie due to an absentee ballot. Wright won the primary in the coin toss and currently serves as the district 41 representative.

This morning's New London Day paper reveals some key information about this absentee ballot. A summer resident of Groton Long Point from Weston, MA cast the absentee ballot in the Groton primary. She also votes in her other town of residence. The details can be found in The Day’s article, but in short, they do seem to suggest that the ballot was not rightly cast in the first place.

I voted for another candidate in that primary, but I do recall the outrage of the locals over the whole coin toss idea. While it was the rule, it seemed arbitrary and ridiculous. It even made national headlines and the candidates had their 5 minutes of fame in the national spotlight on some cable news networks. At best, our elections are flawed. This is just one example of an “irregularity” that swayed results in a final, definitive way.

FREAKS

FREAKS

America has a fascination with freaks. Why, hell, we have a freak for a president, a DARTH freak for a vice president, and a bunch of freaks, including under-qualified freak Maggie Spellings, in the president’s cabinet. Our political system is overwhelmed with freaks and this is telling. One could say: a government for the freaks by the freaks. But not really. For we folks in CT have a super-freak for a Senator, the ever freaky Captain Lieberman, formerly Oedipus Lieberman, formerly Joe Lieberman, Democrat from CT—a freak who now wants to go to war with Iran. A freak whom I and many others didn’t vote for. Sure, there are countless other freaks. But the least said about the freaks roaming our streets, occupying high-paying positions, and dominating the entertainment industry the better. Suffice it to say, we are a freak nation.

Maybe it’s the recent summer solstice. Perhaps it’s that all the cherubs are out of school. It might be the weather. Whatever the reason, America has a freak fetish and it certainly seems to escalate with the temperature. The hotter it gets, the more humid it gets, the more uncomfortable it gets, the more the freaks come out and get freaky.

This brings me to Mann Coulter, a Rocky Horror Freak of all freaks. Yes, she’s well educated. Yes, she could reasonably (if she tried) advocate for conservative politics. Yes, she could legitimately bring something to the table aside from verbal arsenic and poisoned lace. But she’s a FREAK. A freak who appears on most shows in a...cocktail dress. A freak that can’t even be tolerated by her own side; the National Review did fire her after all. A freak who is given a mainstream venue from which to spew her venom. A freak that remains freaky by making fun of everyone, especially anyone who is a Democrat. A freak, whom Chris Matthews, a closet freak himself, invited on his show yesterday so that he could get his summer freak on. A freak who sells a lot books, who touches upon—like it or not—the American freak vibe, those deep-seated feelings that many Americans feel inside, and a freak who unequivocally perpetuates the American freak fetish. Which brings me to my freaky question: if we all know we have a freak problem, a freak addiction, and we can bring ourselves to admit to it, how do we ever set ourselves on a path of freak recovery?

The Week in Rear View: I See Crazy People

THE WEEK IN REAR VIEW: I SEE CRAZY PEOPLE

In M. Night’s The Sixth Sense, “I see dead people” became the film’s most popular line. In the dreadful foreign policy of the Neocon loons and Bush apologists, “I see progress” has become their most pathetic excuse. In The Sixth Sense, the child actually sees dead people. In the world of loons and apologists, they see progress mostly in their fantasies. From my infinitesimal corner of the universe, I see a bunch of crazy people.

Let’s start with none other than Crazy Captain Lieberman, formerly Oedipus Lieberman, formerly Senator Joe Lieberman, Democrat from Connecticut. Doing John McPretend better than John McPretend, crazy Joe went on a walk “through the park” of the streets of Baghdad, surrounded by the best protection our taxpayers’ money can buy. He said that he saw “progress.” In contrast, our troops continue to see dead people while chanting The Animals’ “we gotta out of this place…if it’s the last thing we ever do…” Crazy—I know.

What wasn’t crazy was that May was the third deadliest month in Iraq for our troops since we invaded in 2003. One would hope that on some level Crazy Captain Lieberman did, in fact, see dead people and if not in Iraq then certainly at home. For those of us living in the 2nd Congressional District in CT, earlier this week we read about the unfortunate, sad death of Lt. Keith Heidtman, who was 24 and had a bright future ahead of him. Not so crazy—I know.

What remains incredibly crazy is that there’s a third of America that still approves of Chimpy’s handling of Iraq. What will it take for them to recognize that there are many, many dead people, every day, theirs and ours, and that things aren’t getting any better? No surge, escalation or new strategy seems to work. And the other two thirds who disapprove of the war need to reassess things as well. With Cindy Sheehan’s official departure from the anti-war movement, she reaffirms that both Republicans and Democrats are responsible mostly to their corporate donors, and, moreover, for this prolonged “we are in our last throes” war. Really crazy—I know.

Back to The Sixth Sense. In the film, the ghost psychiatrist, played by Bruce Willis, helps the young boy Cole to deal with his fear of seeing dead people. In America, let’s hope that the ghosts of our country will let us see that the mounting dead in Iraq is cause enough to begin ending this war. Hopefully crazy—maybe so.

PARALLEL UNIVERSE

Parallel Universe

My wife and I are big fans of Lost. Two of our colleagues, the bloggers—ballsy femme fatale and conservative & proud kindel, got us hooked last fall. And we are addicted. So are countless others—pun intended.

My “magnum” brother-in-law, a quasi-conservative whom I had to practically bang over the head with a drumstick last Thanksgiving—he was trying to defend narcissistic Oedipus Lieberman, shortly before Oedipus morphed into Captain Lieberman—tells us that there’s a “parallel universe” theory circulating the blogsophere, which would partly explain the events and phenomena of Lost; I’ve got nothin’ but “penny” love for you, JT. My “Lost” experts, though, insist that that’s not the case.

The jury might still be out on the parallel universe theory on Lost; however, the jury is in on the parallel universe in America: there are TWO AMERICAS. While some of us yearn to remain grounded in reality, OTHERS are being sucked via a wormhole into a fake-news universe, including most of the GOP Presidential contenders and the Republican Party.

Thursday night’s debate was a freak show and an utter disgrace to the dignity and statesmanship of what President Ronald Reagan represented—appreciate him or not. It’s too bad that these contenders desperately invoked his name countless times, a subliminal admission, a haunting refrain conveying that the Republican Party has LOST its way and much of America. Aside from the good Congressman Ron Paul, who was the only rational one of the bunch and the only Republican on-stage sincerely attempting to evoke the spirits of Reagan and conservative patriarch Senator Barry Goldwater, these contenders insulted—directly or indirectly—most Americans, including fellow Republicans.

From Nosferatu Giuliani’s flip-flopping on everything from abortion to national security, to porn-star named Mitt Romney’s Aldous Huxley segue into science-fiction and cloning, masking his own flip-flopping on issues and his latent contempt for Hillary Clinton’s hair colorist, from McCain’s pathetic, Viagra-induced charge that he would follow Osama-Bin-Gone to the “gates of hell,” to the non-log cabin homophobia and vehement contempt towards science (didn’t they look to see Nancy Reagan and Governor Terminator in the front row?), these candidates—with the exception of Paul—have boldly shown that the GOP has LOST its way.

This is not the party of my maternal grandmother—bless her soul. This is not the party of many conservatives and Republicans whom I know and respect, who believe in fiscal responsibility, limited government, PRIVACY, morals and values, and dignity. This is not the party of Reagan and Goldwater, conservative torchbearers with some sort of conscience and vision.

In this parallel universe of no real news, no conscience, no dignity—that many of them blatantly insulted a living, out-of-office president—President Clinton—was pathetic, no acknowledgment of reality here, there, or any where—in Iraq, in the middle class, or in the 21st Century for that matter, no clear understanding of what it means to be a conservative, Republican, Democrat—yes, we have our pull-down menu of identity problems, liberal, moderate, it’s obvious that as a nation we are certainly LOST. The question is, though: how do we jettison ourselves out of this parallel universe without getting stuck in a…wormhole?

SEX AS A WEAPON

SEX AS A WEAPON

Medea, Medusa, Cleopatra, Hedda Gabler, Margaret Thatcher, Camille Paglia—women from literature, history, and popular culture who know how to play hardball with men, who know how to attack, and, in some instances, who know how to win. In Thursday night’s first debate of Democratic presidential contenders, Hillary Clinton boldly showed that she can be one of these women.

Like her or hate her—I myself was none too pleased with the misleading “If I knew then what I know now” line of crap, Senator Clinton presented herself confidently, decisively, and with a sense of command. Sorry progressives and fellow bloggers on the left: our favorites, Obama and Edwards, didn’t do too well.

Obama stuttered and flopped his way through and Edwards truly seemed dazed and confused; that last response on morality was one momentary lapse too long; Edwards’ narrative of poor, Huckleberry me was re-used, 2004 rhetoric that should be gone.

Yes, Brian Williams channeled Maureen Dowd’s cattiness with the $400 haircut topic; the real “yes” moment went to Joe Biden for being laconic.

As Bill Richardson talked like Joe Biden better than Joe Biden, Kucinich and Gravel terrorized the rest with candor while being “frightened.”

Clinton and Dodd possessed the statesmanship, calm and reason to manage the storm. In this Ship of Fools of Chimpy, Cheney, Captain Lieberman, and “bomb, bomb, bomb Iran” McCainy, we desperately need a sane Commander-in-Chief to right some wrongs.

As we move closer to 2008, the American mainstream media does what it likes best: fake news on the debate, Alec Baldwin, and the rest. Meanwhile, Chris Matthews, Tucker Carlson, and several men drool: “what do we do now if America does NOT think she’s a shrew?” “We’ll use her sex as weapon to pick apart her clothes, to point out she’s too shrill, and to remind us of Rick Lazio.”

Funny, outside the U.S. they called the debate for Hillary. Thankfully, they are not as hung up on sex and gender and think Americans are far too silly.

CAPTAIN LIEBERMAN STRIKES AGAIN

CAPTAIN LIEBERMAN STRIKES AGAIN

If you thought Captain Lieberman was getting some sort of reality check about his leviathan Iraq, think again. Apparently, Captain Lieberman is partaking in the Pelosi bitch-hunt because obviously she closely read the report by the Iraq Study Group, which calls for engaging other Middle East countries, and he didn't; there's a shocker. In this clip provided by Crooks & Liars, it's Arlen Specter, a Republican, who defends Pelosi; it's Captain Lieberman who trashes her efforts of diplomacy in yet another transparent plug to promote the Bush doctrine.