Tuesday, January 26, 2010

Headlines - Tuesday

The Onion pens an op ed by Rush Limbaugh. It's pretty vicious.
 
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While Rush may be one of the most listened to individuals, a look at the numbers shows some interesting things.

In Fresno, Rush typically has 9-11% of the 25-54 year old Average Quarter Hour radio audience, 
which is more than any of the other 75 plus radio signals reaching the Fresno market.  However if you look at the inverse of that number, you'll see that Rush has about 90% of the radio audience that does NOT listen to him.

Also. here is a set of typical ratings  numbers.

Age group      Percent listening to Rush
12-17                  0.05
18-34                  3.6
25-54                  10.1
45-54                  13.3
50-64                  18.3
55-64                  19.5
65-74                  22.0
75+                     31.8

Meaning the closer you are to senility or death, the more likely you listen to Rush.  

It's like religion - as you get older, you get more scared so you look for someone who can constantly reassure you about the things you know deep down aren't true.

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Reposted - thanks, Lucy:

I just stumbled across this 1997 Ronald Bailey (yes, it's in Reason, but it's good) article on neoconservatives' attitudes towards evolution. It's probably the first thing I've ever read about neoconservatism that made sense to me, in terms of explaining motivations.

Not all neocons purport to reject evolution, but "intellectual giants" Irving Kristol and Robert Bork have explicitly questioned it, for example. The idea, as Bradley (correctly, IHMO) explains it is that evolution undermines faith in traditional religion which is problematic for those wishing to preserve the social order. The article is long, though, necessarily so—I will attempt to weave the main argument together in an extended excerpt: 

 
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                                          Recently-Declassified Photograph #17
                                      Transfer on John Roberts' Favorite T-Shirt
 
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So the President went on ABC with Diane Sawyer saying "I'd rather be a really good one-term President than a mediocre 2-term President."

Lemmie ask ya something, pal. If you were a one-term President, what would follow you? The Dems wouldn't primary you. A 3rd Party candidate couldn't win, but would throw the election to the Republicans.

So, in four years you'll be able to say "It's been fun" and walk off into the sunset while a Republican dismantles all the "really good" stuff you've done? This is, of course, assuming your next 3 years go better than this first one.

You know, I'd like a President who has a vision past the first 4 years; someone with a 'master plan' of where he wants the nation to go over the next 50. I don't want a guy, a year in, to be accepting the fact he might not win a second term. Instead, I'd like him to get on the stick and do what he promised to do; at the very least, give it a wholehearted attempt.
 
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Brutal column today from Bob Herbert at the NY Times on Obama's credibility.
 
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Doug J: I've been mostly ignoring the teabagger convention, but now I feel outraged on the teabaggers' behalf:
 
The convention, to be held in Nashville in early February, made a splash by attracting big-name politicians. (Former Gov. Sarah Palin of Alaska is scheduled to deliver the keynote speech.) But some groups have criticized the cost — $549 per ticket and a $9.95 fee, plus hotel and airfare — as out of reach for the average tea partier. And they have balked at Ms. Palin's speaking fee, which news reports have put at $100,000, a figure that organizers will not confirm or deny.
 
To put that in terms you limousine liberals can understand, that $9.95 fee is like the $20 supplement for foie gras on a $160 prix fixe menu.
 
How could the organizers not know that $550 plus a $10 fee would piss even the most gullible 'baggers off?
 
In a strange way, I think this answers that question.
 
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Kiss Your Democracy Goodbye
 
From the WaPo:
A new report warns that al-Qaeda has not abandoned its goal of attacking the United States with a chemical, biological or even nuclear weapon.

The report, by a former senior CIA official who led the agency's hunt for weapons of mass destruction, portrays al-Qaeda's leaders as determined and patient, willing to wait for years to acquire the kind of weapons that could inflict widespread casualties.
If that happens, the Right will complete their push to gut the Bill of Rights once and for all. They came pretty close after 9-11, but they didn't make it.
 
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The Republican Party is seeking input and money from GOP voters — seemingly under the guise of the U.S. Census Bureau.
 
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Corporations are people too: http://griperblade.blogspot.com/2010/01/corporations-are-people-too.html
 
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mailman
 
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Obama's chief of staff Rahm Emanuel calls liberal strategy 'fucking retarded.'
 
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Democrats consider dropping insurance ban on pre-existing conditions.
 
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Paul Harvey, FBI Tool 

usatoday.com

Excerpt:
He was an FBI target whose network bosses fretted about whether he should be fired.

Paul Harvey's FBI file shows how his relationship with the bureau evolved from perp to pen pal. 
The file illuminates how the FBI cultivated one of the nation's most perverted horse molesters by not only providing flattery from its most prominent officials but also by secretly putting words in his mouth.

Harvey frequently gave the FBI advance copies of his scripts and columns, seeking information and advice.  The FBI obliged, even writing portions of Harvey's commentaries for him.  

I always knew he was a crooked bastard and a liar in a party of liars.

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"I'm not going to have sex (She means AGAIN) until I'm married. I can guarantee it... I just think it's a goal to have and I think other women should have that goal."  Bristol, lying to OprahLink
 
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Can we get some leadership here?
 
As the healthcare reform fight goes all haywire, Democrats are surprisingly united. Not in the recognition that 45,000 people will die without coverage this year and the next and the next unless something is done. And not in the fighting the leading cause of bankruptcy -- medical bills -- in America. No, Democrats are all lined up in blaming the special election in Massachussets for derailing healthcare reform. The media has joined in, coming just short of saying that Republicans, with a 41 seat minority, now control Washington. Barely short, because the consensus position is that Democrats have to do what Republicans say now. See, they have 41 seats and the founders envisioned a nation where the side with the fewest votes wins... I guess. Call it "bass-ackward democracy."
 
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Sunday Loon Watch: How many different ways can the GOP say "no"?
 
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                                             "How many days did you say it was before Thanksgiving?"