Dumb, dumb, dumb

It bears repeating-- the survival of the modern Republican party depends on the abject ignorance of a majority of the American people. The most recent proof of that is the Repub contention that the Democrats are responsible for our problems, all of which developed since January 2007. Things were fine until the Dems took over.

In the 2006 midterm elections, the Dems went from a 230-202 minority in the House to a 235-199 majority. In the Senate, they went from a 55-44 minority to a 49-49 tie (two independents aligning with them for organizational purposes). The point being, if everything was rocking along so perfectly and everybody was so happy and contented, how did the Dems manage to go from minority to majority status in the first place ?

The Republicans own this mess. Trying to unload the blame on the Democrats will only work with people who are too damned dumb to remember what things were like in November 2006, but fortunately for the GOP, there are lots of those.

Introducing The Hawk

There's a rumor going around that helps explain the anxiety of hardworkin' white folks over Barry's campaign: If he's elected, he'll change the name of our very best southern state to Al Obama.

Madame Clinton made her speech yesterday asking Dems to get on the stick and support Barry. I didn't see it, but from what I'm reading, some people thought it was a better-late-than-never effort but most consider it an effective speech overall. To be truthful about it, if I really believed Hillary could've won the votes of 98 percent of the women in this country, I'd have been behind her all the way despite my serious reservations about allowing her husband anywhere near the Oval Office again. The thing I most admire about her is the serious attitude she brings to the table. It's been too long since a Democrat running for prez could dish it out instead of curling up in the fetal position and taking it. I always sense that Hillary is constantly watching for the right opportunity to throw a crackback block that'll put her opponent on a gurney. In fact, I think I'll start referring to her as The Hawk. If Barry is lucky, The Hawk will be cruising the skies until November, riding the breeze and swooping down on every Republican rabbit she spots.

So just do it and shut up about it--

Things that are on my mind this fine Friday morning:

There's been a recent spike in conservative whining about ANWR drilling. According to them, high gasoline prices are all caused by Dem refusal to allow drilling in ANWR (conveniently ignoring the fact that Repubs ran the whole show for six years). My position is that we could begin ANWR drilling this afternoon and suck out every last drop of crude, and gasoline prices wouldn't budge much. It's been firmly established that the free market will tolerate gasoline at four dollars a gallon, so why should those who produce it ever drop the price back to, say, two dollars or less ? I'll gladly stand corrected by anyone who understands the petroleum industry better than I do. Go ahead and drill and STFU.

Something else I find tiresome are letters to newspapers by people claiming to be lifelong Democrats, announcing their intent to vote for Top Gun in November. Frankly, if I were that f-ing stupid, I'd try to keep it a secret. That's like a child hollering he'll hold his breath until he turns blue if he can't have that toy he wants. Vote for whoever you want to, but just STFU, okay ?

Finally, Tom DeLay was on some RWer radio show calling Obama a Marxist. Trust me on this: DeLay is the last guy on earth who needs to get into a name-calling contest with anybody. I read a priceless comment on one blog that said Tom should be getting passed around the cellblock like the collection plate at a Baptist church. Do us all a favor, Tom, and STFU.

Yellow Teeth, Crisco Hair

In the 36 hours or so since Barry was proclaimed winner of the Dem nomination, the political news has been fairly bland. I did see an item about Willard Romney's emerging status as Top Gun's likely running mate. Now, you talk about your Dynamic Duo. The main thing those two have in common today is their tendency to shapeshift, both of them trying to minimize or abandon the positions that made them attractive to moderate voters in years past. To put it politely, both of them are definitive Political Whores who'll willingly crawl for a few votes here and there.

I don't like Willard. I used to think he was tolerable as far as Republicans go, but his whoring in the GOP primary really turned me off. There's something oily about him that gives me the creeps, plus there's that Eddie Haskell quality I wrote about a few months back on one of the blogs. Since I see Top Gun as a one-and-done prospect, I don't really want Willard in position to slide over into the driver's seat in 2012. Of course, in all honesty, I can't think of any Repub that I want to see running the country, unless the Dems have veto-proof majorities in the House and Senate.

Do they ever think about what they're writing ?

Clinton aide: 'Zero' veep talk - On Politics - USATODAY.com:

Clinton should run 3d party if he does not select her. It would be the first time in history a 3rd party candidate was running from a position of strength and she would have an excellent chance of winning since half the democrats don't want obama and half the republicans don't want McCain. Draw on those two halves with no candidate and she could win.

The comment above was posted in response to a USA Today item about negotiations between Barry and Mrs C concerning the VP nomination. There's a problem with the logic, though: Half of Republicans may not want Top Gun, but it's because they see him as too liberal. They aren't likely to default to Mrs C. This is an example of the delusional thinking that drives many voters and keeps American politics all messed up.

More creepy stuff in Texas

I've been following the bold outlines, rather than the fine details, of the Yearning For Zion Ranch story, and as a former state bureaucrat I can relate to the criticism CPS has been getting. In Texas, if you work for the government you quickly learn it's almost impossible to satisfy anybody. In this particular situation my sympathies tend to lie with the agency, which chose to err on the side of caution.

The other thing the story confirms is that in Texas, most people will let you get away with just about any kind of bizarre shit if you stick a tag on it and call it religion.

Puerto Rico votes

Today is the important Democratic primary in Puerto Rico, and my internet browsing indicates that with most of the votes counted, Mrs. Clinton be kicking Barry's ass by about 68-32 percent. Hot damn, now we're getting somewhere. The picture above is a tribute to the fighting spirit Mrs. C is displaying in the face of overwhelming adversity. You go, girl.