Can We NOT Normalize George W. Bush?

BigTy1968

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Friday October 20, 2017 · 2:45 AM PDT

2017/10/20 · 02:45

There are a lot of things going on with the wretched administration of Dolt 45. He's vile, petty, vindictive, and completely unfit to serve. He may have legitimate psychological problems. He's a racist, and he previously had a propaganda chieftain for white supremacists serving as his chief adviser.

Some Republicans have completely distanced themselves from Trump, and others have different lines of demarcation that determine when they've had enough. Some of their "come to Jesus" moments arrive when they realize that Dolt 45's plans, mindset, policies, and the like affect them PERSONALLY. People like Joe Scarborough are some of the Doctors Frankenstein that helped to legitimize Trump. And to this day, while Joe rails on about the monster that's ransacking the village, he still has not offered a mea culpa for HIS role in creating monster.

And speaking of monsters, this brings us to the 43rd President of the United States, George W. Bush. Donald Trump is so awful that people are longing for the bumbling idiocy of Bush. Today, a former President who was so reviled that he couldn't even campaign for his successor delivered a speech that some are saying makes him one of the "faces of the resistance."

NO.

Awwww… Michelle cuddles with a bumbling idiot…

Um... NO. That's not cute. Never forget.

Do you see this picture? It's one of the many that is helping to sanitize George Bush's image, and make him palatable and respectable. And before we go about longing for the carefree days of Uncurious George And The Administration That Couldn't, we need to remember his real track record and "accomplishments."

(Note: I'm not angry at Michelle Obama for snuggling with that dopey moron of a POTUS, I'm bothered by the memes that this picture generated which helped to normalize him. So there.)

HURRICANE KATRINA: Under his watch, New Orleans suffered catastrophic losses in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. His appointed Director of FEMA, Michael Brown, had absolutely no experience in emergency management. As Rachel Maddow put it, Brown's appointment was seen more as a patronage hire than one to bring the best man on for the job. As American citizens suffered, Bush applauded Brown by infamously stating that Brown was doing "a heckuva job."

IRAQ AND AFGHANISTAN: In the aftermath of 9/11, America had a ton of global capital. The whole world was pretty much with this country. And what did Bush do? He created a propaganda machine that led us into war with Iraq who -- and this is important -- HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH 9/11. We went to war against a regime that had done nothing to us, against a leader that, by all objective measures, was secular and kept sectarian violence down. Taking Saddam Hussein out created a power vacuum, and since nature abhors a vacuum, that vacuum was filled by extremists.

As for Afghanistan, it was almost an afterthought that turned into a quagmire. There's a reason why Afghanistan is called "The Graveyard Of Empires."

On the 10th anniversary of 9/11, I wrote this to express my disgust at what 9/11 has become, most of which happened during the Bush Administration. I also wrote this to express my disgust at the Republican Party's ~~snuff film~~ tribute to 9/11 during the RNC Convention in 2008. And for God's sake, how can you forget THIS?

I could go on, including how he got elected in the FIRST place. And don't get me started on the fact that his two Supreme Court appointees, Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Samuel Alito, voted to support Citizens United.

I understand the need for Republican allies. There are some good ones in the form of Anna Navarro, Steve Schmidt, and others. But we shouldn't be so bereft of allies that we have to depend on one of history's greatest monsters as an ally, simply because he's a Rhodes Scholar and Elder Statesman in comparison to his Republican successor. A 16-minute speech does not a real ally make.

If I Ruled The World -- How I would Have NFL Players Respond To Roger Goodell And Dolt 45

BigTy1968

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Tuesday October 10, 2017 · 6:33 PM PDT

2017/10/10 · 18:33

The "take a knee" protests continue. They were started by Colin Kaepernick, who protested by sitting out the playing of the National Anthem when the San Francisco 49'ers played. Since then, players have been taking a knee across the league, and Kaepernick has been "de facto" blackballed by the NFL owners. Oh, you can SAY that there is no collusion between the owners, and you'd be partially right. There is no WRITTEN policy that says that the NFL owners have agreed to keep Colin Kaepernick from a job. But that doesn't automatically exonerate the owners.

After all, the Miami Dolphins decided to beg Jay Cutler to come out of retirement to play, and he did so reluctantly. You can't convince me that under different circumstances, Kaepernick would have at least been given a first or second look. Then again, the world just found out what may have contributed to the decision to bring in Cutler, at least partially. Via video. Heh.

But I digress, as I am wont to do.

Afterwards, a bunch of owners (and players, reluctantly) usurped the protest message to turn it into a message of "unity", where the owner locks arms with the players. In one case, the Dallas Cowboys showed just how a league owner can change the narrative of a protest. They took a knee BEFORE the playing of the National Anthem, and then stood up during its play. Owner Jerry Jones took it a step further and said that "anyone who disrespects the flag will not be allowed to play."

Enter NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell. Goodell, caving to pressure from on high by the prince of darkness himself (aka Dolt 45 and his burgeoning kleptocracy) stated in a letter that everyone should stand for the National Anthem. He says that this is an effort to "move past the controversy." That "controversy" being pro football players silently protesting against police brutality, in case anyone forgot. In other words, "Alright you uppity nigras, you did your thing long enough... time to shut up and do what we tell you do to... BOY."

How will the players respond? Will players in Dallas risk taking a knee? Will other owners follow Jerry Jones' lead and bench players who decide to protest? The players here have the power in numbers, and if they use it, they can create a seismic shift in protests for social justice. And how would I do it?

Here's how.

On a given Sunday afternoon or night, or Monday night, the players take the field as usual. The coin is flipped, and the kicking team kicks to the receiving team. At the first play from the line of scrimmage, the center snaps the ball.

The defense instantly takes a knee.

The offense then takes a knee.

And since the play isn't considered "dead" until the player with the ball (in this case, the QB) is tackled, takes a knee, or runs out of bounds, he remains motionless. The quarterback holds the ball in one hand. And with the other hand, he slowly raises a fist to the air. Then, after about a minute, in front of worldwide sponsors with advertisers throwing a conniption fit, he slowly descends to take a knee.

The play is then whistled dead, and the rest of the game continues, as if nothing ever happened.

When asked why they did this, a spokesman for either team can say that they will not be threatened into silence by their owners or by a sitting President of the United States. And if the owners don't like it, what are they going to do? Bench both teams? Fine them? Suspend them? Any negative consequences will mushroom far beyond what the owners had intended. The players have strength in numbers.

Will they do this? It's doubtful. But hey, a guy can dream, can't he?

Name-Checking And Concern-Trolling Chicago -- When Does It Stop?

BigTy1968

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Tuesday October 03, 2017 · 6:25 PM PDT

2017/10/03 · 18:25

Here we are, in the wake of another mass shooting. The shooting on the Las Vegas Strip at a Country Music Festival is going down in U.S. history as the worst ever. As of now, 59 people are dead, and hundreds are injured, and recovering from their injuries.

Of course, this means that conservatives take their lead from the blood-soaked terrorist organization disguised as a lobbying group, the National Rifle Association, or NAMB... er, NRA. We have seen the usual talking points, including the "thoughts and prayers" comments from the Republicans. As a side note, let me add this:

THOUGHTS AND PRAYERS FROM REPUBLICANS ARE USELESS. They have blood on their hands, as well. The NRA has bought them, lock, stock and barrel. To hear them talk about "thoughts and prayers" is beyond infuriating. As a Christian, and especially as a minister, I'm not dismissing the power of prayer. My faith tells me that there is supernatural power in prayer. But my teachings ALSO inform me that "faith without works is dead." That's Scripture, according to James 2:26. And the website "GotQuestions" elucidates on this point by stating "Faith without works is dead because it reveals a heart that has not been transformed by God." Don't tell me about any conservative "thoughts and prayers" when they continue to accept NRA blood money and parrot the same NRA talking points, especially in the wake of tragedies involving guns, and propagate obscene lies about President Obama planning a massive gun grab, because screw the Constitution.

But I digress.

My point here is that, as usual, Chicago has become the favorite talking point to deflect from any legitimate conversations. It started in earnest with President Obama, with GOP idiots (and some "woke" folks -- but that's a point for another time) saying that President Obama didn't magically fix Chicago since he became President of the United States. It's become a classic Battle Cry of the Stupid Conservative:

REASONABLE PERSON: We need to do something about crime.

Conservative: OH YEAH? Well what about Chicago? Crime is skyrocketing, and President Blackie McBlackenbush did nothing to fix it!

RP: Black Lives Matter is holding a march to protest police brutality.

Con: OH YEAH? Why aren't they marching in Chicago against the killings?!

Even Dolt 45, aka the President, is no stranger to name-checking and concern-trolling Chicago. He made the "hellscape" of Chicago a cornerstone of his campaign, and he continues to mention Chicago in situations that don't call for it.

This brings us to the present day. Enter sentient colostomy bag, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, daughter of evangelical charlatan Mike Huckabee and Press Secretary to the President.

After this weapons-grade moron (who almost makes you long for the days of Sean Spicer hiding in a bush, dodging reporters) said that we shouldn't politicize the massacre, she said this in regards to a conversation about gun laws.

"I think if you look to Chicago, where you had over 4,000 victims of gun-related crimes. Last year they have the strictest gun laws in the country and that certainly hasn't helped there, so when that time comes for those conversations to take place, then I think we need to look at things that may actually have a real impact."

Then, she followed it up by saying this:

I think that the problem there is pretty clear that it’s a crime problem. I think that crime is probably driven more by morality than anything else...

If Huckabee is going to concern-troll and name-check, she should at least come close to getting her facts right. Yes, Chicago has strict laws. But guns still find their way here. Why? Because neighboring states have gun laws that are a lot more lax. For example, if someone wanted to, they could hop right across the border to ~~avoid the soda-pop tax~~ get a gun. Even as far back as 2012 - 2013, there were indicators that traffickers were using an informal Dixie Pipeline to transport guns from southern states (again, with very lax gun laws) to here. Thankfully, lots of people, including my Congressman Robin Kelly, pushed back with factual information.

I'm under no delusions that my fair city is a utopia where gun violence is a thing of the past. Chicago, like every major city, has its issues, and issues involving gun violence and the Black community cannot be resolved with simple slogans and finger-pointing. And it would be nice if we had a President of the United States who didn't feel the need to scapegoat and play the blame-game when things got hot. And we could have had that...

...but her emails.

Donald Trump, Right-Wing Evangelicals, And My Light-Bulb Moment.

BigTy1968

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Tuesday November 01, 2016 · 3:11 AM PDT

2016/11/01 · 03:11

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump pauses during his campaign speech to hug the American flag Saturday, June 11, 2016, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara) — ...suddenly, it all makes sense...

I always wondered why conservative Christians were so behind Trump. I've asked for months why this was the case, especially considering that Trump is the antithesis of the FAMILY VALUES that the Evangelical Right demands of its leadership. Conservatives gave the answer, but just now, I started putting the pieces together.

Conservatives responded that their acceptance of Trump was because they were electing a Commander-In-Chief, and not a Theologian-In-Chief. They were electing a President of the U.S., and not a Sunday School teacher. So, what was it that made Trump different than every FAMILY VALUES stump speech given at every conservative event from CPAC to Wisconsin's State Fair to every Republican Convention, ESPECIALLY in the wake of Bill Clinton's presidency?

Then a name hit me like a ton of bricks, and it all made sense. GROVER NORQUIST. You remember him, right? The unelected guy that MUST know where the bodies are buried, because he had Republican candidates for high office sign his "pledge"? He described the REAL reason that conservatives are embracing a thrice-married, twice-divorced man whose previous marriages ended in adultery. The real reason why they're accepting a man who did an introduction to a softcore porn video. The real reason why they continue to embrace a man who bragged about sexual abuse, called his daughter a nice piece of [REDACTED], a man who bragged about walking into the dressing room of his beauty pageant contestants to ogle at the (sometimes teenaged) naked bodies, and a man who praised foreign dictators.

Grover Norquist once said this:

All we have to do is replace Obama. ... We are not auditioning for fearless leader. We don't need a president to tell us in what direction to go. We know what direction to go. We want the Ryan budget. ... We just need a president to sign this stuff. We don't need someone to think it up or design it. The leadership now for the modern conservative movement for the next 20 years will be coming out of the House and the Senate.

And there it is.

To the evangelical Christian conservatives that support Trump, they're not supporting him because of his genius, or even his business acumen. To them, a President Trump is a means to an end. Everything that the conservatives want will come through a candidate who, by all accounts, wants to look at the Presidency as a figurehead position ANYWAY, leaving the real heavy lifting to his "true believing" conservative running mate, Gov. Mike Pence.

The conservative base may look at Trump as the solution to their problems, because he and he alone can fix them. But to the power-brokers supporting him, including the Evangelical conservatives, Trump is nothing more than a useful idiot. All they would need to do is put a pen and a law in Trump's hand, and Trump will sign it.

So what does this mean? Two things:

1) It forever exposes the hypocrisy of the Evangelical Right's "Family Values" platform, as they put their support behind an almost literal Golden Calf and idolizer of his own name. Just about everything Trump stands for (especially in his personal life) runs contradictory to the teachings of Jesus. Trump brags about his wealth, and he only defines how "good" people are in terms of how it benefits HIM. Trump has said that he doesn't really see the need for repentance. And don't get me started on the "Two Corinthians" thing.

2) Now that I have the answer to this question, it doesn't matter how conservatives convince themselves that Trump is "a newborn Christian", or claim that he can be baptized on national TV to convince people of his faith.

The Evangelical Right was looking for a useful idiot.

And in Donald Trump, they found him.

Vote accordingly.

We Need A Republican Extinction Level Event

BigTy1968

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Tuesday August 16, 2016 · 6:58 PM PDT

2016/08/16 · 18:58

A small herd of duck-billed hadrosaurs known as Parasaurolophus graze peacefully, unaware that the falling burning meteors that they can see along with its breakaway fragments will very soon bring all dinosaur life to a mass extinction. . — "I think I see a marking... T... R... U..."

Look, I am all for the utter destruction of the Republican Party as it stands now. Republican Presidential nominee Donald J. Trump represents a GOP Extinction Level Event, similar to the cataclysm that wiped out the dinosaurs.

In the wake of Frankenstein’s Monster wreaking havoc all over the GOP village, some high-profile Republicans have taken to endorsing Hillary Clinton for President. Each Republican has had his or her tipping point, from the criticism of Khizr Khan to thinly-veiled assassination threats …er, 2^nd Amendment Remedies to “save” the country from a mass gun confiscation under a Clinton Administration. Maybe the new President Clinton can store the confiscated guns in the same room where President Obama stored guns during his administration:

One of the biggest defections that made a social media splash was the open letter from the Harvard Republican Club. They cited concerns about Trump from a policy and temperament perspective. They cited his divisive campaign rhetoric and said that he is “poisoning (the) country and our children.” They even went on to say that he is an existential “threat to the survival of the Republic.”

Between this and other high-profile defections, including a letter from dozens of Republicans asking for Reince Priebus to defund Trump, and 50 former GOP security officials penning an open letter (insert hyperlink), it would appear that the GOP is a done deal. But not so fast.

Not only must Donald Trump be stopped, but the Republican Party as we know it must be relegated to the dustbin of history. The common (and problematic) theme with these defections is the belief that Donald Trump is some sort of anomaly, or that he came out of nowhere. Nothing could be further from the Truth. Donald Trump DID NOT HAPPEN IN A VACUUM. He is the living embodiment of every Tea Potty-er talking about taking their country back. Trump legitimized the Birther Movement. Former Presidential candidate Mitt Romney kissed Trump’s ring. Everything the Republicans have been doing, ESPECIALLY since 2008, has led to the creation and rise of Donald Trump, Republican Presidential Nominee. Every racist joke and meme, every comment about taking the country back (by force if necessary), every utterance by weapons-grade moron Sarah Palin, every comment about President Obama being "exotic", "other", or "uppity", every right-wing evangelical praying that Michelle Obama become a widow and the Obama children become fatherless, it was all part of a toxic, hate-filled stew. That stew became sentient in the form of Donald Trump.

In 2012, the GOP created a report known informally as their GOP Autopsy. They wanted to be introspective and look at what went wrong in the wake of their defeat in 2012. The purpose of this autopsy was to consider ideas like the acceptance of minorities, immigration reform, and expanding their so-called “Big Tent.” Then, Trump happened, and the Republican base basically said “F THE AUTOPSY, WHITE SUPREMACY FOR THE WIN.” But again, this did not happen in a vacuum. Mitch McConnell, Paul Ryan, John McCain, and other Republicans claim to be repulsed by Trump, but have not withdrawn their endorsements. This is despite Trump insulting McCain as a POW, and Ryan went so far as to denounce Trump's comments as "racist."

The GOP hasn’t learned their lessons from their autopsy. This paragraph from the Harvard Republicans confirms it.

“This fall, we will instead focus our efforts on reclaiming the Republican Party from those who have done it considerable harm, campaigning for candidates who will uphold the conservative principles that have defined the Republican Party for generations. We will work to ensure both chambers of Congress remain in Republican hands, continuing to protect against executive overreach regardless of who wins the election this November.

Donald Trump holds views that are antithetical to our values not only as Republicans, but as Americans.

We call on our party's elected leaders to renounce their support of Donald Trump, and urge our fellow College Republicans to join us in condemning and withholding their endorsement from this dangerous man. The conservative movement in America should not and will not go quietly into the night.”

They are planning on preserving the same down-ballot party members that created the cesspool known as today’s Republican Party. They are hoping that, at BEST, Trump will be soundly defeated for the Presidency, but the conservatives can preserve the House and the Senate (and subsequently, the Supreme Court), and then continue the obstruction, with the goal of making Secretary Clinton a one-term President. This is why they must be defeated up and down the ballot. Donald Trump is the standard-bearer, and everyone with an (R) attached to his or her name must suffer the electoral consequences.

Why? Because if the entire Republican Party isn’t obliterated, what will happen is that someone else will fill the void. And that person will be just as vile as Trump, but more politically polished and seasoned. What we’ll get is someone who is a perverse hybrid of Paul Ryan, Donald Trump, and David Duke. The only way to prevent that is to send the message that the era of the Republican Party of today is OVER. Anything less than total obliteration gives them leave to try again. And again. And again.

They didn’t learn the easy way, now it’s time for the party to learn the hard way. Just as meteors wiped out the dinosaurs, we are in a position to wipe out the Republican Party as we know it. It's up to us to push the button on Election Day that signals the Apocalypse, the Republican Extinction Level Event.

Progressives, Please STAY AWAY From The RNC Convention!

BigTy1968

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Thursday June 16, 2016 · 9:54 PM PDT

2016/06/16 · 21:54

This is Donald J. Trump.

“The mushroom clouds and apocalypse are gonna be YOOOOOOJ.

He is the presumptive Republican nominee for the Presidency of the United States. Later, we can discuss how we got here. But for now, let's focus on the near future. And the near future is the upcoming Republican National Committee Convention. This is the huge event where they officially nominate the candidate as their party's standard bearer.

Now, Trump campaign rallies have been rife with violence against protesters, so much so that a video superimposed Trump encouraging violence against protesters with footage of civil rights protesters being beaten and attacked by the police, and the result is truly horrifying and terribly accurate. Yes, we've been here before, and this is the America that Trump wants to take us back to.

I'm hoping that the protesters stay away from the RNC convention this year. Not because they may be subject to assault by Trump staffers, and harassed and attacked by Trump supporters.

No.

Protesters need to stay away from the RNC protest because it will be a cataclysmic disaster. Every day that passes presents a new opportunity for Trump to alienate a potential voter base. His most recent remarks put him square against the U.S. Army, when he accused "an" Army of stealing cash meant for Iraqi citizens.

Yep, Trump is attacking the troops.

Trump's campaign is a living, breathing dumpster fire. Or, as my friend who runs the Primarily Politics Facebook Page says, it's a Trumpster Fire.

Pictured: Donald Trump’s Campaign, coming to an alley near you

The reason why protesters should stay away is because the Republican Party is in the verge of collapse. Republicans everywhere are either trying to disavow Trump, or having regrets about endorsing him, or hint at some sort of palace coup at the convention. They will either nominate Trump, signaling Republican Armageddon, or they will work behind the scenes to nominate someone else, much to Trump's and his supporters' chagrin... which will also signal Republican Armageddon.
What we need is to let this entire cataclysm play itself out. The last thing any of these warring factions needs is a common enemy to unite them. We don't need to see Trump supporters distracted by things such as immigration reform, Trump's racism, Trump's sexism, Trump's failed businesses, Trump's comments about the military, or any of that. We need for them to focus on Trump, and whether or not Paul Ryan will stab Trump in the back.

This is a grand opportunity for anyone opposed to anything that the Tea Potty and the Republicans stand for. And when it comes time for the Convention to roll around, all we have to do sit back and watch it all unfold.

The RNC Convention concludes on a positive note.

But hey, if you must go, stay out of the blast radius and bring the hotdogs and marshmallows. S'mores for everybody.

Progressives, Democrats... lend me an ear. We Gon' Be Alright...

BigTy1968

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Wednesday June 08, 2016 · 3:48 PM PDT

2016/06/08 · 15:48

...to quote Kendrick Lamar. Here's why.

During the 2008 campaign...

...P.U.M.A. was so much of a thing that people thought that it would split the Democratic Party...

...then-Senator Clinton invoked Rev. Jeremiah Wright, stating that he would not be HER pastor (side note: People who never listened to the sermon don't know that during that "infamous" sermon, the oh-so-terrible Rev. Dr. Wright praised President Clinton as "an intelligent friend in the White House", as opposed to the "dumb Dixiecrat" that succeeded him).

...then-Senator Clinton stated that she wished the primaries were run like the Republican primaries...

...Bill Clinton showed his behind in dismissing then-Senator Obama's South Carolina victory...

...I was so concerned about then-Senator Clinton's upcoming speech, thinking that she was going to send the Democratic Party into chaos and give in to P.U.M.A. acolytes...

...then-Senator Clinton used the assassination of Robert Kennedy, and hinted that an assassination is still plausible (much to everyone's horror) as a reason to stay in the race and not concede...

...then-Senator Clinton was caught lying about being under sniper fire, to the point that comedian Sinbad fact-checked her...

...her campaign was run by Mark Penn, who proved to be completely outclassed by the Obama campaign in every area...

...then-Senator Clinton went to a Black church, talking about "I don't feel no ways tah'r'd..."

...lastly, Clinton gave, at that time, the most dynamic speech of her campaign, her concession speech which included a full-throated, unequivocal endorsement of then-Senator Obama. And gave an equally dynamic speech at the DNC Convention.

At times, the 2008 campaign was very nasty. It was a clash of sexism vs. racism. Then-Senator Clinton campaigned as if the Presidency was a foregone conclusion, and that campaigning was a mere formality. She took the Black vote for granted, and she paid dearly for it. She campaigned as if the "goodwill" generated by Bill Clinton's presidency would automatically be conferred upon her.

Then-Senator Clinton erased a lot of rancor and built bridges with her speeches congratulating and endorsing then-Senator Obama.

Now, the roles are switched, with Secretary Hillary Clinton as the presumptive nominee and Senator Bernie Sanders as the underdog candidate. This race has had its moments, with the rise of "Bernie Bros" playing the role that P.U.M.A. played last time around. And, the Democratic National Committee has a patently awful chairman in the person of Debbie Wasserman-Schultz, who makes RNC chief and useless tub of goo Reince Priebus look competent by comparison. Her obvious bias towards Sec. Clinton was the LEAST of Wasserman-Schultz's sins, as she oversaw tremendous congressional and gubernatorial losses for the Democrats in previous years.

But despite Wasserman-Schultz, and despite allegations of a "rigged" contest, we now have Madame Secretary Hillary R. Clinton as the presumptive nominee for the Presidency of the United States. And, love it or hate it, we gon' be alright.

Why?

Because after all of the venom and bile of the 2008 campaign, both sides came together, only leaving outliers to kvetch and moan about the results.

We gon' be alright because the Republicans have put up, without hyperbole, the WORST candidate in their party's history. This candidate is so bad that two living Presidents in HIS party won't endorse him, and Republican politicians are trying to jump ship to disconnect themselves from their party's standard-bearer. But it won't work. I'm looking at YOU, Senator Mark Kirk.

We gon' be alright because we were alright in 2008, when the candidate that didn't win lent her full support to the winner.

We gon' be alright if Bernie Sanders makes an equally dynamic speech, offering a full-throated endorsement of Secretary Clinton while still being a (better) advocate for progressive issues. I'm optimistic that despite it all, Sanders will "do the job" (to use a pro-wrestling fan term) and endorse the party's nominee unequivocally. The onus is now on him to help bridge the gap between his supporters and hers. If Sanders is the man of character that I believe him to be, then his concession speech will be graceful, eloquent, and positive.

Lastly, we gon' be alright because President Barack Obama, Vice President Joe Biden, Senator Elizabeth Warren, and others will all be unleashed (Sen. Warren has already been giving Trump the "Samsonite Luggage Test" treatment). Robert Reich said it best when he endorsed Senator Sanders: Secretary Clinton is the best candidate for the system we have now. And like it or not, we're here now. We gon' be alright if we coalesce behind Secretary Clinton while the GOP dumpster fire rages out of control.

We can do this. We can vote down-ballot, to get rid of the Tea Potty once and for all, relegating them to the dustbin of history.

WE GON' BE ALRIGHT.

A Brief Open Letter To The Baltimore Police Department Commissioner

BigTy1968

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Tuesday April 28, 2015 · 4:12 PM PDT

2015/04/28 · 16:12

By now, everyone has seen the video of the mother putting the goon hands on her son, during the Baltimore Uprising. In a surprise move, the Baltimore Police Commissioner responded. What follows is a snippet of his response, and my open letter to him.

BigTy1968

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Tuesday March 10, 2015 · 4:30 AM PDT

2015/03/10 · 04:30

This past MLK Day, Dinesh D'Souza (being the worthless slug that he is) attempted to co-opt the legacy of the good Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. I gave him the business on his FB page.

See more after the Great Squiggly.

Cross-posted here: http://shutchergobbigemowf.blogspot.com/...

BigTy1968

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Tuesday July 08, 2014 · 8:17 PM PDT

2014/07/08 · 20:17

Chicago has faced a particularly violent 4th of July weekend. 84 people were shot, and 14 people were killed. These numbers are truly terrible, regardless of the weekend. And as usual, there is a lot of grandstanding and hand-wringing. People across the country are calling for the National Guard to intervene, because "Chi-raq" (a term I loathe with every fiber of my being) is getting out of hand. But before Boss Rahm goes to the Governor or to the President to activate and mobilize the troops, please understand that this is a bad, awful, terrible, no-good idea. I'll elaborate on the other side of the Great Squiggly.

BigTy1968

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Wednesday July 02, 2014 · 5:19 PM PDT

2014/07/02 · 17:19

The United States Supreme Court decided that as a corporation, Hobby Lobby is entitled to religious beliefs. And as such, they have the "religious freedom" to pick and choose which medications they will cover though their insurance policies for their employees. This includes medication that THEY BELIEVE will cause abortions, despite scientific evidence to the contrary. Their supporters are celebrating this decision as a victory for religious freedom. Well, as the self-appointed Progressive Christian Prophet Of Rage, I will do my part to expose the hypocrisy of Hobby Lobby and its supporters. Join me 'round the bend.

BigTy1968

Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)

Monday June 23, 2014 · 5:42 PM PDT

2014/06/23 · 17:42

Note: I edited out the phrase that people found offensive.

Black conservative Rev. Jesse Lee Peterson is the High Priest of Racist Apologists for the Right. Whenever a white conservative says something patently offensive and racist, they trot out the good Reverend to co-sign whatever racist crap that was just spewed. And on cue, Jesse Lee Peterson will do his soft-shoe dance for the conservatives, telling the whole world "Naw, massah... what you said is perfectly fine! These nigras just don't know their place!" In case anyone thinks I am exaggerating, Jesse Lee Peterson has gone on record thanking God for the horrors of the Transatlantic Slave Trade. But this time, Peterson (who was Uncle Ruckus before Uncle Ruckus was Uncle Ruckus) isn't content with defending the racists who insult and denigrate Black people. This time, he's running to his masters' aid to defend them against the scourge that is the Native American. And as usual, he sings and dances for his supper. More after the jump.

Newer
Older

RSS

Can We NOT Normalize George W. Bush?

If I Ruled The World -- How I would Have NFL Players Respond To Roger Goodell And Dolt 45

Name-Checking And Concern-Trolling Chicago -- When Does It Stop?

Donald Trump, Right-Wing Evangelicals, And My Light-Bulb Moment.

We Need A Republican Extinction Level Event

Progressives, Please STAY AWAY From The RNC Convention!

Progressives, Democrats... lend me an ear. We Gon' Be Alright...

A Brief Open Letter To The Baltimore Police Department Commissioner

Happy MLK, Dinesh D'Souza

Chicago Is A War-Torn Hellscape! Call Out The National Guard! Wait... Not So Fast...

The Rank Hypocrisy Of Hobby Lobby - And Its Supporters

America's Favorite Racist Apologist Is At It Again! (Or... Dance, Boy! Dance!)