Michele Bachmann - Always Good for a Laugh

Seriously now, Michele Bachmann, representing the ever-redder faced Minnesotans who elected her, is always good for a fun quote. Her latest wisdom is that while she is not "blaming [the swine flu] on President Obama" she finds it an interesting coincidence that the last swine flu outbreak in the US occurred under a Democratic president.

Apparently Michele, not being as old as some of us, doesn't remember the Swine Flu epidemic of 1976, when Gerald Ford (a Republican) was actually President. But then again, Michele isn't exactly known for her accuracy, as much as for her apparent willingness to say just about anything when faced with a camera. Keep it up kiddo - it's not a real Bachmann quote until milk is squirtting out of my nose.

Although I'm not sure I'm convinced as some in the Democratic party are, that Michele's words of unwisdom are worth their own website. Apparently the site has just started up, because they only have a handful of Bachmannisms, and not even the best ones! They focus on economic issues. How dull.

So for the uninitiated, I bring you -- Michele in all her glory!

Little children will be forced to learn that homosexuality is normal and natural and perhaps they should try it. - Interview with Jan Markell, Olive Tree Ministries.

Literally, if we took away the minimum wage—if conceivably it was gone—we could potentially virtually wipe out unemployment completely because we would be able to offer jobs at whatever level. . . . If we allow businesses to be prosperous and accrue capital, they’ll be giving their employees more than they can even begin to imagine. But when we continue to tie cement blocks on businesses (like the minimum wage) and constrain them, they can actually do less than their employees. . . . I was wondering, if most employers are already doing this anyway, isn’t minimum wage really just superfluous? Why do we even have one? — 1/26/05, Jobs, Energy and Community Development Committee, testifying against a bill to raise the MN minimum wage and advocating the elimination of the minimum wage altogether.

We’re in a state of crisis where our nation is literally ripping apart at the seams right now, and lawlessness is occurring from one ocean to the other. And we’re seeing the fulfillment of the Book of Judges here in our own time, where every man doing that which is right in his own eyes—in other words, anarchy. – as guest on “Prophetic Views Behind The News”, hosted by Jan Markell, KKMS 980-AM, March 6, 2004.

Spending comes just as natural to liberals in Minnesota and the Minnesota legislature as bashing decency comes to the editorial board of our major metropolitan newspapers. — EdWatch conference, October 10-11, 2003

It isn’t that some gay will get some rights. It’s that everyone else in our state will lose rights. For instance, parents will lose the right to protect and direct the upbringing of their children. Because our K-12 public school system, of which ninety per cent of all youth are in the public school system, they will be required to learn that homosexuality is normal, equal and perhaps you should try it. And that will occur immediately, that all schools will begin teaching homosexuality. -- guest on radio program “Prophetic Views Behind The News”, hosted by Jan Markell, KKMS 980-AM, March 6, 2004.

And of course, who could forget this nugget on Pelosi's work for legislation to deal with climate change:

[Pelosi] is committed to her global warming fanaticism to the point where she has said that she's just trying to save the planet. We all know that someone did that over 2,000 years ago, they saved the planet -- we didn't need Nancy Pelosi to do that.

Taking a Break from the Swine Flu Panic for a Moment

Not to worry, cable news will keep us informed on how quickly and horribly we're all soon about to die, so you can break away from taking your temperature and buying Purell stock to think about something else.

Republican Senator Arlen Specter (Pennsylvania) has switched to the Democratic Party. According to the Senator he has been increasingly "at odds with the Republican philosophy." Ok, I'll give him the switch, but isn't he arguing here that there actually IS a Republican philosophy? I am not sure that fear and intimidation actually counts as a philosophy, but whatever. Good to have you on board Sen. Specter. Now, if Still-Hoping-to-be-Senator Franken manages to keep the Minnesota Supreme Court on his side, the Democrats will have their 60-seat mark (the magic "filibuster-proof majority" that all seek in politics).

Kudos to the Dems. Although if they do have their magic majority, I'm expecting to see more spine in the future.

A little question...

I agree with Popessa, there's much better material for comment when you have such a rich assortment of kooks, jingos, militarists and bible-thumpers as we had not so long ago. But here's something I have been puzzled about: I've been hearing a lot out here in the wilds of Eastern Oregon, as well as from teabaggers and assorted other citizens of the alternative universe, about how Obama has moved on from terrorism: he's a socialist, or fascist, or crypto-fascist who is plotting as we speak to send conservatives to FEMA concentration camps, take everyone's guns and install permanent Obama rule. In other words, Obama is going to rule us as a dictator bent on cruelty and dreadfullness where avowed conservatives are concerned.

On the other hand, we've heard these same people telling us that Obama has endangered national security through his soft embrace of Hugo Chavez, and...that Obama has invited apocalyptic attack and disaster by(wait for it)REFUSING TO SANCTION TORTURE.

How in the heck do you have a gun-proscribing, conservative-persecuting, socialist/fascist dictatorship if you WON'T TORTURE PEOPLE?!! The Nazis wrote the book on mass ethnic murder and debilitating medical experiments, while the NKVD wrote the original 20th century torture techniques primer. Just read the first volume of the Gulag Archipelago--it's all there, including the alleged Novocherkassk fingernail extracting machine.

At least MY inquiring mind wants to know.

Bizarro World Republicans

Apparently it's hard being the party out of power. I would have warned the Republicans, but not having actually been a party IN power for as long as I can remember (ok, Clinton, but that was reluctant support for a guy not quite as far to the right as his opponents), I can only try to empathize with Cheney, Rush, Rove & Company as they flail around trying to find their minority voice. As I noted in a post below this, I find it all just so comical. And so I will share - here they are, the comedic stylings of the psycho right:

Cheney asks the government to release classified CIA reports
Rove complains that "senior White House staff meet to digest their latest polling and focus-group research."
Rush attacks President Obama for "killing three Muslim kids"
Fox news complains about the Obama-Chavez handshake with Chavez (and yes, its pundits were silent on the 2002 Bush-Karimov handshake (remember Uzbekistan President Karimov anyone? - let's just say that apparently Fox News doesn't consider his policies repressive or repulsive)

When up is down and down is up, it can only mean one thing. Republicans are desperately seeking a way back to relevancy.

Apologies

From myself and Bucky for not posting more regularly since Obama's inauguration. It appears that for me, at least, I am a much better poster in angry opposition than in support or moderate opposition. Even the title of this blog reflect my view of the world mired in the days of Bush & Co. Since the inauguration I have disagreed with the administration, but in such small and dare I even say petty ways in comparison with the daily indignation that fuled my moral outrage during W's time.

And as outraged as I'd love to be at the psycho right as they play the role of party out of power, they're just so utterly bad at it that I find them comedic and pitiful. As Cheney and Rove roar, or Palin tries to lead her right right wing crew to something useful, I just find them . . . funny. Not at all dangerous, just funny.

And do you know how hard it is to muster moral outrage for blogging when the enemy is merely laughable and impotent?

Teabagging in a Nutshell

You know, sometimes the right is just more entertaining than a barrel full of monkeys. Kudos to this guy for pulling off some of the best punning without laughing.

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