Believe It Or Not It's Election Day...

...kind of, sort of, well it is but, it's just not nearly as sexy as say the last time we had the polls open last November. There are some Texas contitutional amendments up for consideration and, if you live in Dallas, Texas like me, some Dallas Independent School District board seats up for election, namely seats 1, 3 and 9.

I'll be honest, I've been busy and dropped the ball on getting on top of the issues related to the constitutional amendments or informing myself about the candidates for the school board seats. However, below are some helpful links:

Want to know where to vote (in Dallas County)? Click here.

Also, League of Womens Voters of Dallas has a site with links to pages related to today's election/vote.

The Dallas Morning News, of course, weighed in on the constitutional amendments up for consideration as well as the DISD District Seats up for grabs.

And Pegasus News went down the amendments also.

Happy voting!

Those (Fox News) In Glass Houses...

...those in glass houses, like Fox News, maybe, just maybe, shouldn't throw stones. Or if they are going to throw stones maybe, just maybe, they shouldn't act surprised when stones are lobbed back in their direction. In case you haven't heard Fox News appears to be confused as to why the White House has been critical of their organization.

Happy Halloween

(the below is from a little while ago but, Halloween appropriate in my opinion...)

What can I say, I saw the movie Zombieland and came up with the above.

Link to My Radio Appearance

Here's the link to my appearance on the Jeff Bolton Show, a political talk show on KLIF 570 here in Dallas last Friday morning regarding Hispanics in America in case you wanted to hear it (fyi-part 5 cuts off mid sentence, I spoke to Clint, the producer of the show, and he said he'd upload part 6 at some point). Never mind, the link's good if you go to KLIF's blogspot page, you can hear all of the panel discussion there.

Who's Slick Rick Gonna Fire Next?

Gov. Perry talking strategy with his campaign team:

In case you missed it Gov. Perry essentially fired some committee members that were investigating a death penalty case he signed off on. The committee was about to hear from an expert that was likely to say the person executed was innocent. Now the committee's investigation into the death penalty  case has been delayed indefinitely.

What are the things in Perry's hair above? Click here and here for the background of the "Hair Aliens."

Click here for part 4 of the ongoing saga of the Hair Aliens.

NPTN (Non-Political Thoughts Now)...

...sometimes a little non-political levity is a good thing. I give you "Wife Forces Husband to Dance":

Post Game: Thoughts After Being on The Jeff Bolton Show

Bottom line, it was awesome. I really enjoyed it. Jeff Bolton is a political radio talk show host and I knew that going in (I looked at his show's page on KLIF's website). I think Jeff was asking questions based on his own opinions and based on his typical listeners' opinions on certain topics related to Hispanics in the USA (immigration, English only, protests, healthcare, Hispanics being Democrats versus Republicans, etc.). I just answered his questions honestly and spoke sincerely about the topics he brought up . I really have to thank Jeff and his producer Clint for having me on the show. I also have to thank Shawn Williams of DallasSouthBlog.com and DallasSouthNews.org for putting the radio show in touch with me.
They're going to send me a CD of the broadcast and they're going to post the show on itunes. I'll look for the podcast and try to post that here somehow if I can. Friends that listened seemed to think I did OK. I'll wait until I listen to the audio to tell you exactly what I thought but, it was a lot of fun and again, I really enjoyed it.

(fyi - Andrew asked in a comment how the radio show went this morning, the above is, for the most part, the same response I originally posted as a comment reply.)

Cheney Under a Blood Red Sky...

In case you missed it Cheney had more to say about President Obama and Afghanistan. Of course, the White House responded.

Check out past thoughts on "Hi I'm a Dem and I'm a GOP" or "Cheney's International Center is Like..." if you'd like.

Yours Truly Will Be On the Radio...

I'll be on the radio tomorrow morning on the local radio show of Jeff Bolton on 570 KLIF here in Dallas from about 7am-9am discussing being Hispanic if DFW. I'll let you know how it goes. Or you can tune in for yourself.

Best of Sarah Palin...

...to date. Did you hear? She's going to appear on the all powerful Oprah's show the day before her book comes out. Didn't Oprah support the other ticket? Yeah, I'm pretty much mailing it in this week, I've had a busy couple of weeks. But, it really, really, really, really, really, really kills me that she has a following of any sort-as you should be able to tell by the number of times I typed, "really" in this sentence. Here's a SMALL sampling of why she is incompetent at best and dangerous at worst:



And if you think I'm being weird about my Palin-phobia she has her own PAC and is very popular among the PRR's(Pat Roberston Republicans).

And don't forget about the Palin-turkey-getting its-head-cut-off-in-the-background-video.

GOP Launched a New Website (Straight Into a Dumb Brick Wall)

This is somewhat old news but, I'll explain below why I'm posting this now after all the coverage it's already received. As you may have heard from numerous news outlets, on Oct. 13, 2009 the GOP launched a new website, namely, GOP.com that had some problems.

Oh, GOP, you're like that elderly person from the early 1990's who tries over and over again to set the time on your VCR to no avail. After every failed attempt the VCR continually flashes "12:00" in what you believe is a mocking, condescending manner. Or GOP, you're like the 90's elderly person trying to look cool as you show off your new, hip cassette tapes to your younger friends, friends who wonder if you've heard of CD's.

One of the most covered aspects of the new GOP site was RNC chairperson Steele's blog titled, "What Up?". One day after launch they changed the name of the blog. I wonder why.

Another heavily covered snafu at GOP.com was the "future leaders" section of the site which displayed an error message or was blank part of the day it was launched.

Oh irony, you are a cruel, cruel mistress.

They've supposedly fixed the "future leaders" problem. They "fixed" the "future leaders" page by adding some prose that still does not list any future leaders of the GOP. I'm serious. And that's why I went ahead and wrote about the GOP's new site more than a week after its horrendous launch. GOP.com's "future leaders" section, as of this post on Oct. 21, 2009, still lists no one more than a week after the site's launch. Now, irony has evolved into plain, old stupid. Why even have a "future leaders" section? Sure, invite folks to give their 2 cents but, maybe, just maybe, you should list some up and comers in your party. Otherwise, it makes your party look lost. Just a thought.

To quote a famous GOP'er, "fool me once, shame on-shame on you. Fool me, you can't get fooled again." Apparently, the GOP can be fooled again(original GOP.com launch) and again(Steele's "What Up?" blog) and again(error on "future leaders" page) and again(fixed "future leaders" page still lists no one). Now if only the GOP could figure out how to set the time on its darn VCR...

About 1 Year Later: A Not So Subtle Reminder...

... of how far we've come and and the road left to travel.

I dare you to watch all the videos below. I double-dog dare you.

The below was posted here about a year ago by yours truly. I'm posting it again. I don't think that those persons featured below have changed their viewpoints, beliefs or convictions about what they believe is real/true. It's scary. It should be. Folks that hear this crap from friends or family should tell them they're morons or, at the very least wrong. Moreover, maybe, at the very least, we should be aware and worried about people like this, I know I am...

from the original post from about a year ago:
Mindy Green (featured in the first clip) is going to vote, does that scare anyone else besides me? It shouldn't matter if you are a Democrat or Republican or Independent, the type of ignorance displayed by some the people in the below clips should be combated at every turn by everyone.

Yes We Can, Probably, Maybe...

No(t W.?)bel Peace Prize...

And if he won it for essentially being the exact opposite of W....
and re-establishing the USA as a leader in and of the international community is that such a bad thing?

Pot, Let Me Introduce You to Kettle...

Join Twitter (If You Haven't Already) Follow Drew Carey and "Make Him" Donate 1 Million Dollars

As explained on CNN, Drew Carey has pledged to donate one million dollars to LiveStrong(Lance Armstrong's cancer foundation) if he reaches one million twitter followers by Dec. 31. How and why did he decide to do that?

Drew Olanoff, who has cancer, has the twitter handle "twitter.com/drew" and put it up for auction to raise money for LiveStrong. Drew Carey caught wind of it and decided to make his bid tied to the number of followers he can get at his twitter handle "twitter.com/DrewFromTV". He's going to make a minimum bid of $100,000.00 and will prorate his bid if he doesn't reach the one million follower mark. For example, 250,000 followers at "DrewFromTV" by Dec. 31 equals a bid/donation of $250,000.00 from Drew Carey to LiveStrong. PTN is already following DrewFromTV, you should too, it doesn't cost anything. If you're not on twitter already what better reason to join and follow someone?

Think this is a good cause? Pass it along to others.

Yeah, Sure, You Should Trust What the Insurance Industry Says...

and while you're at it I have some lovely, wooded, spacious ocean front property you might be interested in buying from me in Arizona.

In case you didn't hear, the insurance industry issued a "report". That "report" "revealed" that insurance rates would actually go up if Congress passed and President Obama signed insurance reform legislation. I don't find it surprising that a report written by the insurance industry would describe the terrible consequences of passing health insurance reform. I'll be honest, I didn't read the report, I don't think I need to, and I'll explain why through other examples, I also don't read/listen to the following:
1) movie reviews by the studios that produced the movies. 
2) book reviews by the author of a the book.
3) Glenn Beck raving about how great the 9/12 project is/was and how great the Tea Party is since he helped found and promote both and has profited financially from both.
4) anything Dick Cheney has to say about foreign policy, national security, torture, terrorism or Gitmo (because he and the previous administration did such a swell job on all of those issues).
5) anything Liz Cheney has to say about what her father Dick Cheney has said about foreign policy, national security, torture, terrorism or Gitmo (because her father and the previous administration did such a swell job on all of those issues).

but I digress...

Some potential problems/questions I have with the insurance industry's report that rates would go up if there is, in fact, reform passed:
1) Which version of the bill are they talking about? Remember there are at least 5 Senate versions in various Senate committees as well as whatever comes out of the House.
2) What if the legislation prohibits insurance companies from raising rates? Are they just going to break the law and raise rates anyway?
3) What if there is indeed a public option? Would the insurance industry put themselves out of business and raise rates while there is a more inexpensive public option? Would that be a bad thing?
4) What if there is a "trigger" for a public option in a reform bill that is passed. Is the insurance industry promising that they will raise rates and bring about a public option? Given this scenario, I say, "raise rates!"
5) What if people realized that the insurance industry wrote a report critical of health insurance reform?

And surprise, surprise, at least one former insurance industry insider has already declared that this report is "bogus." Are you really surprised?

Maybe the insurance industry fat cats are getting seriously worried that a bill will actually make it to President Obama's desk and the release of this "report" is the first sign of desperation. What else can the big insurance companies do? They've already used their record profits to line the pockets of any politician that will take their money and utter nonsense like, "death panels." Maybe they're grasping at straws.

Who would just blindly believe what these insurance industry yahoos have to say about health insurance reform? Again, if you do believe their report I have some lovely ocean front property in Arizona you might like to purchase from me...

Party of...

Congress-Land

What can I say, I saw the movie Zombieland and came up with the above.

How 'Bout Them Cowboys

Putting People In Their Place

I came up with the above after reading this story, this other story and this older editorial.

Palin's Memoir Finished Early

So Palin Finished Her Memoir Early...  if she's going to keep on putting out the same old crap [real 'America', mavericky, joe 6-pack], can you blame me for using an old cartoon?)

...I guess she had bunches of good old 'real American' mavericky free time on her hands since she quit her job. And again, let me get this straight, she quit her job as chief executive of her state in the middle of the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression right? So again, why do people care what she has to say or "write"("write" is in parentheses because, come on, she, like any politician, has ghost writers)

Some past thoughts on Ms. Palin include but, are not limited to...

- Palin on Health Insurance Reform

- Palin's farewell speech (that I'm pretty sure she wrote all by her mavericky self)

- Shatner's spoken word version of Palin's farewell speech

- Cartoon about Palin's resignation speech (again, I'm pretty sure she also wrote this one all by her mavericky self)

- Letterman vs. Palin regarding the joke about her daughter

- Chapter titles in Palin's memoir

Side note: If you want to view older posts just scroll down, under the last post there should be a link that reads, "older posts." Just click on it and see the previous five posts. Also, on the right side there's a "cloud" of some of the common topics here on ole PTN. Just click one of them to see posts associated with that topic. Lastly, blogger is having a problem with their embedded search engines. So the "search ptn" gadget on the right side only works for more recent posts. Weird huh? Especially since Google owns blogger. They're working on it though. There's also the "archive", located at the bottom left of the page, where you can click on different months to see the titles of older posts. If you enjoy what you see here please pass it along to others. Or just tell them to Google "Political Thoughts Now" or even "ptn jg" (without the quotation marks) and they should stumble upon PTN. As always, any comments, suggestions, criticisms are welcome regarding content or design. Although, to be honest, my skills at tweaking the overall design are limited at best-I can barely turn on my computer and check email but, if you have a good suggestion I'll do my best.

NPTN (Non-Political Thoughts Now)...

Every once in a while I'll share NPTN's (Non-Political Thoughts Now), this is one of those instances.
If the score for 2001: A Space Odyssey had been performed by a bad high school band it might have sounded something like this, somehow I don't think any of those performing got into Julliard (you'll need your volume turned up):

Coup de Dumb...

I came up with the above after reading about this awful, and I think treasonous, editorial...

Side note: Here's the full column. Newsmax, who originally posted the editorial, has pulled it down.

A Facebook Poll That's No Laughing Matter...

I came up with the above after reading this story...

Perry Paranoia!!!!!!!

Inspired by this story...


Click here for part 3 of the ongoing saga of the Hair Aliens.

The Sky Is Falling...

...when it comes to the public option being included in the new health insurance reform legislation.

Maybe, kinda.

The Senate Finance Committee voted against the inclusion of a public option in it's version of the health insurance reform bill.

The Senate Finance Committee bill is not the only version. The Senate Health Committee bill apparently has the public option in its version and the different Senate versions have to merged. Then, the Senate bill would have to be reconciled with whatever comes out of the House, which is sure to have a public option in it. It's all up to supposed Blue Dog Democrats(conservative Dems) in the Senate. Will there be a vote in the full Senate on a bill that includes a public option? Or would the Blue Dogs join a GOP fillibuster to stop a full vote on a public option bill?

Do I think the final bill will have a public option? I'd say it's 50-50 or worse. If there's no public option in the final bill then I think it's more than likely that the final bill will have a "trigger" provision (if rates don't come down then public option occurs), a health coop provision and a provision that mandates that all people have health insurance. If the final bill does indeed have a "trigger" provision then it'll be interesting to see if rates actually come down. If health insurance rates don't fall then it'll be interesting to see how difficult it will be to pull the "trigger" and actually put a public option into action.

Would Reid and the non-Blue Dog Senate Dems force a show down on the public option and dare the Blue Dog Dems to support a filibuster against their own party?

There's also what's known as the "nuclear" option. The Senate would need to procedurally do away with the filibuster by suspending the rules and allowing a simple 50 vote majority to call for a vote on a final bill that included a public option. Currently, 41 Senators can "filibuster" and block a vote on a bill or other matter by the full Senate. But, it's unlikely. The Senate GOP'ers threatened to use the "nuclear" option when they were in the majority and Dems in the Senate were blocking some W. Bush appointments. However, it's unlikely that Reid and the non-Blue Dog Senate Dems would go that far in my opinion. But, it is an ultimate, last option.

Governor Patterson, Comedian?

The real Governor David Patterson, who is legally blind, of New York issued a pretty good line regarding pressure from his own party not to run in the 2010 gubernatorial race on one of the Sunday morning political talking heads shows. The real Gov. Patterson is not to be confused with the fake Gov. Patterson...
...as featured on SNL (the below is wrong on many levels but it still cracks me up, I'm sorry):


Side Note: A couple new original political cartoons will be forthcoming later on in the week.

Census Worker Killed

Have you seen this story covered on CNN or ABC or CBS or NBC?


A part-time federal census worker was apparently hanged to death in Kentucky with the word, "Fed," scrawled across his chest. So much for the liberal media bias. I don't have many thoughts about this other than this story is scary and so much for the liberal media bias, at least in reference to this story, because I haven't heard or read much about this anywhere. You tell me. Was I out of the loop? Has this gotten the coverage it deserves?

And again, Rep. Cantor may have been wrong about what he said...

A Public Service Announcement...

...On Behalf of Insurance Company Executives

Protect Insurance Companies PSA from Will Ferrell

The above made me think of the funny BillionairesForWealthCare.com at the 9/12 protest in DC.                                                          

Invasion of the Hair Aliens!

The above is at best absurd and at worst (probably) just plain dumb. It is what it is.

Want to know more about how/why my brain came up with the above? 
OK, you've read so far... It was inspired, in part by the twitter feed I read about (and now follow) a while back GovPerrysHair. Essentially, according to the twitter feed, Perry's hair has a mind of its own. That, for some reason made me wonder about who or what might control Perry's hair. Thus, the "Hair Aliens". Next, I thought of the quote from Dune, "he who controls the spice controls the universe." And that's how I came up with the cartoon. At least in reference to the Hair Aliens. Otherwise, Perry just looks like he takes too much time on his hair, thus the endorsement at the bottom. And yeah, I'm still trying to figure out how I got to the Hair Aliens and Dune quote.

More or less from the Hair Aliens in the future?

Click here for more of the ongoing saga of the Hair Aliens.

"Thank You Fox News For Keeping Us Infromed" *

*taken from one of my favorite protest signs.

I'm always a fan of the ecards from SomeECards.com.

Unfortunately, Cantor Was Wrong...

...kinda, maybe...
In an interview reported on 9/23 Rep. Cantor said that Speaker Pelosi was, "in another world," because she
feared violence in this politically hyperbolic atmosphere. He essentially said it was a misguided fear and wouldn't happen. Then, about 24 hours later a census worker was found dead, hanging from a tree with the work, "Fed," scrawled across his chest in Kentucky. Did the fear-mongering of some on the right cause it? Who's to say. But, violence and death did occur and apparently the violence was motivated by a dislike of the federal government and know one can say if there was "cause and effect" or just coincidence. But, quick question: what party's wingnuts is it again that's been demonizing the federal government, declaring it essentially the source of all evil?  Maybe Rep. Cantor wants a re-do on his interview.

The More Things Change...

...the more I can't let this blog stay the same. Don't worry, you're at the correct site and the site is not moving, it's still here at old politicalthoughtsnow.com. I just decided to change the layout of the blog. Here's another thing,
google "political thoughts now" or "ptn jg", without the quotes and see what comes up...Ha!
And thanks to the good folks at OurBloggerTemplates.com. The new template for PTN was absolutely gratis, easy to use(even for a non-computer guys like me) and easy to customize.
Please, let me know what you think...seriously... I'm needy... I need feedback...please...no seriously, I need like 4-5 comments to stop the voices...

Side Note: I was thinking that the post (in some form or fashion) directly below/previous to this post could someday become a t-shirt. If only I knew someone that was in the t-shirt biz...oh wait...maybe I do... 

Side Side Note: The advertising has been an issue for me. As far as I see it, google/blogger is letting me put up this blog essentially for free. And there's a free speech/advertising thing I will not begin to get into, albeit to say, I'm OK with it, you got money and want to spend it advertising here, OK. Needless to say, if I can try to re-coup some scratch for the domain cost from the ads so be it. Fundamentally though, this is for sh!ts & giggles. 

And, it is hilarious to see some of the ads that their bots put up here.

"You're A Great Crowd!..."

"...I'll Be Here Until You Vote Me Out!" -

fake quote from Governor / comedian Rick Perry

In case you didn't hear, Gov. Perry made a joke about the recession.

Apparently, according to Gov. Perry it's OK to joke about the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression. The recession is no laughing matter to Texans and Americans suffering the affects of the the economic downturn. People have lost their jobs. Companies have gone out business. And, yes, that is happening in Texas too. Perry again demonstrated his remarkable ability to discount, marginalize and make jokes at the expense ordinary people and voters.

Side Note / Question: Are we looking at a "the lesser of two evils" decision for governor in Texas between Perry and Sen. Hutchison? And is Sen. Hutchison really the lesser? At least she's against toll roads everywhere, all the time. That's about all I know regarding the differences between the two, otherwise I need to educate myself on where Hutchison stands on different issues.

And I am just now educating myself on the Democrats running for the nomination. Any insight into the Dem candidates would be appreciated. Is there already a "front runner"? Are they going to be another sacrificial lamb put up for the slaughter?

A Little Levity...

...in an Otherwise Serious Situation Can Be a Good Thing...

From HuffPo, some really hilarious signs at some of the recent protests. I know which one I thought was the funniest. Which do you think is the best?

Some housekeeping: There have been some issues with readers posting comments. I ask that you please keep on attempting to comment on posts. If after you hit "post comment" it doesn't read "your comment has been published" or you don't see you comment please, try again. And please let me know if your comment still doesn't appear by emailing me a jg@politicalthoughtsnow.com and include what post you were trying to comment on and what web browser and version you're using.

Lastly, believe it or not I do read the comments and respond to them. I also like to hear opposing views and criticism, so long as your comments are cordial. Do you not like something? Would you like to see something. More of something? Less of something? Your feedback is appreciated.

fyi: I've posted some "test" comments both anonymously and as JG but not logged in. The comments have posted. Hopefully your comments will post going forward.

"Always Two There Are, a Master and an Apprentice"*

*Yoda - Episode I: The Phantom Menace
Both HSB and Andrew had good, but not quite correct, guesses about the Star Wars themed cartoon about Limbaugh and Beck. So they each get half a star and an honorable mention. By the way, keep the ideas coming, I may use them here in the near future.
An article on Politico.com titled Glenn Beck vs. Rush Limbaugh inspired the above cartoons. I couldn't decide which one to go with so I drew and posted both, although I think I like the Darth Maul one best, what do you think?
What made me think of the Star Wars theme cartoon idea regarding Limbaugh and Beck after I read the Politico.com article? Answer: Limbaugh and Beck are two peas in a pod, with Beck copying and learning from the master of fear mongering, Limbaugh. Beck's modus operandi is almost a step by step recreation of Limbaugh's early ventures after Bill Clinton was elected. For example:
1) TV and radio show? Check. (I remember when Rush had a TV show in the early 90's)
2) Write some books? Check.
3) Criticize a new Democratic president's every move? Check.
4) Pander to the least common denominator through lies and fear mongering? Check.
5) Laugh all the way to the bank? Check.
And that's the thing, both Limbaugh and Beck are experts at fear mongering. The Politico.com piece quotes a GOP strategist that says that Dems and Limbaugh should be afraid of Beck. I think not.

Quick thoughts on why Dems are not/should not fear Beck is that he, like Limbaugh, thankfully appeals only to the hardcore GOP base. And Limbaugh shouldn't be afraid because, let's face it, he's Limbaugh and is still in a league all his own when it comes to inspiring fear.

One last thing that the above cartoons made me think of given both Limbaugh and Beck's use of fear as their stock in trade:

“Fear is the path to the dark side. Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to suffering.”
-Yoda, Episode I: The Phantom Menace
Side Note: I've noticed on the comments sections of many articles folks expressing their worries and fears at the tone of some protesters.

Then, the response from some is that "liberals" don't believe in free speech when people are criticizing a Democratic president. That's not quite correct.

Let me point out the fact that those extreme, wingnut protesters can freely express themselves, albeit in vulgar and hateful ways, demonstrates that the freedom of speech is alive and well in the USA. Protesters can actually compare Obama to Hitler, for example. It's actually protected free speech. I get that. "Liberals" get that it's protected speech. But, folks can also express their thoughts about that type of hateful, extreme speech. You see, it's a two way street.

Some don't seem to understand that if they are going to express an extreme or false or hateful sentiment others also have the right to express their thoughts about those who would express extreme or false or hateful sentiments. It's called the marketplace of ideas. In fact, I really believe the more some people, like wingnuts, express themselves, the more they are revealed to be extremists, alarmists, delusional and hateful for hate's sake and therefore hurt their "cause" or "causes". By the way, some of those extremists seem to follow fear mongering talking heads like Limbaugh and Beck (there's the tie in to the above cartoons).

Here's another example, wingnuts can express their belief that Obama was born in Kenya. And I can express the view that those "birther" wingnuts are sad, delusional morons. The wingnuts have the right to express themselves freely and so do folks, like me, that want to criticize them. Ain't it great?

The Opening of the Cheney Center for International Students is Like the Hypothetical Opening of...(part 5)

The above image of Opus (drawn by me) is used without permission. I sure hope it's OK. Apologies and thanks to Berkeley Breathed (for creating Opus).


Click here to begin the next toon series Dick Cheney: Soul Reaper.

The Opening of the Cheney Center for International Students is Like the Hypothetical Opening of...(part 4)

Click here for part 5.

The above image of Garfield (drawn by me) is used without permission but I sure hope it's OK. Apologies and thanks to Jim Davis (for creating Garfield).

Some Thoughts Before the Weekend On: Racist Witch Doctor Posters; Tea "Party" ; Beck vs. Limbaugh; O'Reilly Shocks; Dems Push Back

Some things that got me thinking that you may be interested in checking out before the weekend:

First, a CNN piece discussed posters depicting Obama as a witch doctor seen at the 9/12 protest in D.C. with some discussion as to whether the posters(and those holding them) are racist. This is not the first time this poster has made news. I made my thoughts known regarding this racist poster here on PTN way back in July. Think of it this way, what kind of posters would they be carrying if the president were Mexican-American? Jewish American? Asian-American? Or, gasp, of Middle Eastern descent? Sure, using stereotypes for a race or ethnic group happened often to Irish and Italian Americans(see below), for example. But, that was during the late 1800's and early 1900's for the most part.

(anti Irish propaganda titled The Usual Irish Way of Doing Things, from Harpers Weekly)

(anti Italian propaganda from The Mascot newspaper)

Moving on, Time did an article about Glenn Beck (I still don't understand how people can take him seriously). Time! How much more mainstream media (or "MSM", that's what some conservatives call "mainstream media" even though "mainstream" is one word so it should be MM, jeesh, they can't even get initials right) can you get? Remember, Beck trumpets the Tea Party. Beck was behind the 9/12 protests. Look at Beck's site the912project.com, if you scroll to the bottom it's owned by Mercury Radio Arts, Inc., Beck's company (by the way, and I'm sure someone's already called him out on this but, really classy on Beck's part using the terrorist attacks on 9/11 to help promote his 9/12 protest attended by at least some wingnuts). Here's a thought, if the Tea Party is going to continue to call itself a "Party" that means it should put up its own candidates. Would a real third party in the form of the Tea Party be a bad thing? I would think it would be a good thing for the Dems and a bad thing for GOP'ers. Why? Do you think Dems would lose votes to a new Tea Party political party and its candidates? Or would GOP'ers? Or if GOP'ers embrace Tea Party ideas how many independent voters do you think they'll get? Remember, only about 30-35% of Americans consider themselves Republicans. Also, recall if you can the Independent Party when Ross Perot ran for prez in 1992. How did that work out for H.W. Bush? OK, I'm done ranting about this.

Next topic, Politico.com has a piece about Beck vs. Limbaugh (oh, don't worry, there's a cartoon forthcoming about that, it'll be Star Wars themed, if you guess the general idea of the cartoon you get a gold star from yours truly and a mention when I post the cartoon). In the piece a GOP strategist says that Dems and Limbaugh should be worried about Beck. I disagree, see my thoughts above regarding what an actual Tea Party as a political party would mean for the Dems. And not that I care one way or the other but, Limbaugh has nothing to worry about regarding Beck's popularity.

Also, Bill O'Reilly is for the public option?!?!?! (spit take, shake head, rub eyes, pinch self) OK. Kinda. Maybe. HuffPo has the actual conversation O'Reilly had regarding the public option on its site.

And lastly, the Dems are actually pushing back against some of the outlandish assertions being made about health insurance reform through a new site. Well, would you look at that? The Dems finally got hit enough in the nose on this (death panels for example) that they finally decided to stand up for themselves. This is what it must feel like for a parent when their kid stands up to a bully.

Yoda: Always Two There Are...

"Always two there are, no more, no less: a master and an apprentice."

The Opening of the Cheney Center for International Students is Like the Hypothetical Opening of...(part 3)

Click here for part 4.

The Opening of the Cheney Center for International Students is Like the Hypothetical Opening of...(part 2)

Click here for part 3.

The Opening of the Cheney Center for International Students is Like the Hypothetical Opening of...(part 1)

The news story and my thoughts on it are a little old/untimely but, better late than never...In case you haven't heard Dick Cheney donated money to help open The Cheney Center for International Students at his alma mater, the University of Wyoming. This, of course, struck me as both funny and ironic since Cheney didn't exactly improve the USA's regard internationally much less with international students. It also inspired and prompted this 5 part series of cartoons by yours truly beginning with the above. The next 4 to follow.

Click here for part 2.

Update: Some Levity @ 9/12 Protest

UPDATE: A good friend forwarded me the below from BillionairesForWealthCare.com (check out their site) which is a group that goes to anti health insurance reform events dressed up like health insurance company executives. Great idea. Here's BillionairesForWealthCare.com at the 9/12 rally. Ha!:

Related Posts:

Sadly, this is not a new phenomenon, want to see some wingnuts from the 2008 prez campaign? Check them out here. Or what about the McCain supporter who told McCain Obama was a Muslim?

What about the birther wingnuts?

Wonder where these folks get their ideas? Besides from Glenn Beck & Rush Limbaugh? Sometimes it comes from elected officials like Rep. Bachmann (MN-R).

My past thoughts/cartoon on health insurance reform town hall meetings with legislators.

The more things change the more they stay the same.

Lies and Ugliness: the 9/12 Protest

The above is a fake picture of the 9/12 protest

held in DC that has been circulated by wingnuts lying to others and themselves about their "movement" being a grassroots one and a mainstream one.

It's not a grassroots movement in that it was called for and organized by Glenn Beck, the Glenn Beck who works for Fox News and is in the business of using crazy talk and fear mongering to promote books, ad time for his TV and radio show and himself generally in order to make a boat load of money.

It's not mainstream in that I genuinely don't believe most people believe what these folks believe (I believe it's a small percentage of the GOP/conservatives, but that's only my opinion). You had the usual wingnut communist, socialist, death panel, nazi and birther type signage, for example.

It's fake in that the pic is of a gathering from at least before 2004 because a building built in 2004 is missing from from the photo. Some wingnuts were/are claiming that over a million people showed. Actually, about 70,000 showed up.

They are protesters and they are exercising their right to free speech which is eye opening because it reveals their views as not mainstream and proves that at least some are wingnuts. Check out photos from the 9/12 protests to see what exactly some were saying. I have no problem with them exercising their right to free speech, at least now we know what some think/believe. Ugly. Ignorant. Sad. But, it's protected free speech (except some of the signs like this one that seem to threaten violence, that's not protected free speech if memory serves).

In fact, in order to "help" spread their "message" please feel free to pass this along to others so that these people's wingnut views are made clear and hopefully they become even more marginalized.

Lastly, tell me and others what you think. Please leave a comment. I generally leave the comments off posts but maybe some would like to express their thoughts on the above, especially the photos.

UPDATE: A good friend forwarded me the below from BillionairesForWealthCare.com (check out their site) which is a group that goes to anti health insurance reform events dressed up like health insurance company executives. Great idea. Here's BillionairesForWealthCare.com at the 9/12 rally. Ha!:

Related Posts:

Sadly, this is not a new phenomenon, want to see some wingnuts from the 2008 prez campaign?
Check them out here.
Or what about the McCain supporter who told McCain Obama was a Muslim?

What about the birther wingnuts?

Wonder where these folks get their ideas? Besides from Glenn Beck and Rush Limbaugh?
Sometimes it comes from elected officials like Rep. Bachmann (MN-R).

My past thoughts/cartoon on health insurance reform town hall meetings with legislators.

The more things change the more they stay the same.

Wingnuts Then & Now...

same song, different verse...

Related Posts:

Here's a video reminder of what the wingnuts were saying during the 2008 prez campaign.

Palin on Health Care...

Palin wrote an op-ed piece about health insurance reform. Given her history as a public figure why is anyone listening to her about anything? Here are some of my past thoughts on Palin:

Related Posts:

Palin vs. Letterman

Palin quits

Palin's upcoming memoir

Video of Palin with a turkey being killed in the background

Palin during the campaign

Palin get's pranked by a Candian radio DJ pretending to be the Prez of France

Obama's Health Insurance Reform Speech...

Here's the actual video of Representative (and moron wingnut) Joe Wilson (R-SC) heckling the President of the United States of America by yelling, "you lie."

After this moron Joe Wilson heckles President Obama make sure to notice the looks on VP Biden and Speaker Pelosi's faces. If someone makes Biden look down and shake his head in disgust then that person is truly an idiot. And apparently Wilson immediately called Rahm Emanuel after the president's speech to apologize. I would have loved to have listened to that conversation.

What if a Democrat had done what Wilson did during one of W.'s speeches when he was feeding us a pile of lies regarding Iraq? What would the GOP's reaction have been? The nation's?

Some hyperbolic, fanatical, fear mongering liars oppose health insurance reform. Apparently Joe Wilson is one of them. If you like the above cartoon and think it exposes some of those opposed to health insurance reform as lying wingnuts please email it along to others by clicking the envelope below.

(the above is featured at DallasSouthNews.org - check it out.)

Obama's Speech to School Children

This Is the Speech Some Folks Are Afraid Of?

The White House released a transcript of the speech President Obama is due to deliver to students across America, or at least to those students allowed to see and hear it by their parents and/or schools. Read the transcript of the speech, please. What are some afraid of?

Keep in mind that I believe past presidents have spoken students. Was there this type of outcry when they addressed students?

Maybe Obama's opponents should keep their eye on the ball. Why all the fuss about a speech written for kids and asking them tp try to do well in school? Maybe GOP'ers, and everyone else for that matter, would be better served discussing what exactly President Obama is going to say in his address to Congress regarding health insurance reform. Just a thought.

Break From Politics: Let Me Taste Your Tears Sooners

OU losing to BYU and their QB being knocked out of the game brought out the worst in me as a UT fan and my weird brain made me think of the below clip from Southpark. Cartman is the bad UT fan, me. Scott Tenorman is, of course, the Sooner fan. Tenorman's parents' fate is like Bradford being knocked out of the game. Making Scott Tenorman eat the "chili" is all the Sooners watching OU lose to BYU. Cartman tasting Scott Tenorman's tears is me enjoying the Sooners loss, way, way, waaaaaaaaaay too much. So let me taste your tears Sooners:

Old Man Farve at His First Vikings Practice

I know it's only preseason and Old Man Farve isn't even playing but go Cowboys tonight versus Vikings.

Turnaround is fair play. Here's Tony Romo's fake Facebook page (from before the breakup with Jessica Simpson).

From the Mouth of "Birther" Leader Orly Taitz...

I didn't have the above ready when I posted about Taitz, the "birther" leader, a while back.

More on birthers compared to other conspiracy theories...

Rep. Bachmann: Taxes, Slavery, Health Care & Wrist Cutting, Oh My!

*The sad thing is that I'm just paraphrasing from a speech Rep. Bachmann (MN) recently gave. And I'm only barely exaggerating what she said. I swear. I think she meant that people should make a covenant, slit their wrists and become blood brothers in the fight against health insurance reform. That's not much less crazy.

Usually the "blood brother" thing, if I remember my old cowboy movies correctly, meant cutting a finger or the palms of the hands and then shaking on it. If people do what she says and slit their wrists then, I sure hope they have some type of health care or they might be dead blood brothers.

Sidenote: Rep. Bachmann is the gift that keeps on giving, and giving, and giving, and giving.

More Soclialist Talk

Way back in October of 2008, during the presidential campaign, I expressed my thoughts about cries of "socialist" and "socialism" by McCain and other GOP'ers. The point being, if a public health insurance option is socialist so is social security, social security disability, unemployment benifits, police and fire departments, medicare, medicaid, etc...

- Mickey Mouse Meets Captain America

In case you didn't hear, Disney bought Marvel.

Let me be up front, the above is based on the persistent, ongoing rumor I've heard that Walt Disney was a Nazi sympathizer and/or anti-Semitic. The above is a joke and, is no way based in any facts I have.

- FYI: I'm Still Figuring This Thing Out

After much thought I am again going to attempt to consolidate all the stuff I write/cartoon/post in one place. This time it's going to be right here at PTN. It felt a little unstable for me to have all these different sites especially when I was the only one doing the writing/drawing. Stuff that would have been posted on OurPetsComicStrip.com and fyvpblog.com will be posted here and I've uploaded past posts from those sites here at PTN. I didn't post on those sites very often anway. So, keep in mind that there will be the occasional non-political cartoon, video and/or post. And those posts will likely involve cartoons about our pets, other random, non-political cartoons, stuff about sci-fi/comic books and things that generally make me smile/laugh. But, generally, and more often than not, the posts here will in some form or fashion relate to politics.

Feedback is always appreciated. Do you think this a good idea? Bad? Please let me know by emailing me at jg@politicalthoughtsnow.com.

Lastly, www.TheTexasRangersBlog.com will continue as an independent, separate site because I'm not the only one who writes on it.