Dream Job

I wish I had Bill Kristol's job. I wish it were my lot to reap generous compensation for being demonstrably, abysmally wrong about everything all the time. I wish that my continuous wrongheadedness resulted in people soliciting my goofy and completely illogical opinions on television, so that my stupidity and arrogance could influence public debate on key issues. Imagine having a job where you never had to say anything accurate or wise! You could say painfully stupid and misguided things all the time and suffer absolutely no consequences. Man, that's my dream job.

Not only does Kristol get to spout whatever ridiculous nonsense pops into his head on television--but he gets to do so whilst surrounded by people who don't challenge him with inconvenient things like facts and data. Because other reasonably eloquent men capable of passionate rhetorical flourishes sit around and nod agreement at Kristol while utterly silly things roll from his tongue, Bill's ideas manage to have traction in Washington DC amongst powerful people. And consequently American soldiers and Iraqis continue to die because powerful people in DC still listen to him despite ending up in this quagmire after listening to Kristol's jackass bullshit in the first place.

In a sane Republic, Bill Kristol would be in a padded room wearing a foil crown. Each time he talked about the successful progression of Bush's Iraq venture a few thousand volts would be administered to sooth his restless ranting soul. I can see the campus of Shepard Pratt hospital from my office window. They have room for Kristol I'm sure--and Krauthammer, Brooks, Friedman, Klein, etc.

Legally Blind

Oh my God, I like so totally invoke my fifth commandment right to avoid saying stuff that may tend to incriminate my former boss the President.

Look Maw! I grew a pair.

I devote approximately 10 minutes a week to cable TV 'news' anymore. Last night's ten minutes happened to coincide with the growth of Tweety's testicles. He brutally smacked down Rep. Steve King (R-IOWA) for lying about the Scooter Libby case, and for logical and ethical inconsistency. When King suggested the media had never even explained why Scooter was charged Matthews condescendedly sneered: "If you were paying attention you'd know, because anyone who watches TV or reads the paper knows what he lied about, and the President even admitted he was guilty." Tweety told King that "you didn't care about underlying crimes when Clinton was impeached," and that lying to investigators was sufficient then to qualify as a high crime. Matthews told King that he only cared when the other team lied, and that he was turning a blind eye to illegal acts committed by members of his own party.

A cable news talking head actually bothering to refute RNC talking points? WTF? This isn't my country.

I was a wee bairn during Watergate but now I's gots that same feeling of imminent collapse I had back then. Of course I also had that feeling during Iran-Contra, but a colluding group of legislative and executive branch conspirators made just enough noise to allow the major players their escape. I'm looking at you GHWB. And now your demon-spawn rushes us all over the cliff.

Teflon Blond

I saw a good portion of that ghoulish Ann Coulter appearance on Hardball. While speaking about the immigration bill she opposed it on the basis that she did not support giving felons a free pass. Were Matthews a real journalist and not some fawning sycophant, he'd have asked Coulter about lying on her voter registration form in Florida, engaging in elections fraud, and how she herself got a free pass from a third-degree felony when an old boyfriend who happens to work for the FBI intervened to stop the investigation.

Coulter meant, presumably, that non-white, non-rich, non-Republican crooks don't deserve a free pass. Scooter Libby? Pass. Dick Cheney? Pass. Right-wing Barbie? Pass.

Reason for optimism

I actually enjoyed Bush's latest presser. One could wear out a copy of the DSM-IV flipping around to diagnose this guy's neurotic ticks: his defensiveness, his hypocrisy, his projection, his anti-social tendencies, his thinly veiled hostility, his martyr complex, his infantile regression, etc. I propose someone craft a Bush addendum to the manual's next edition.

Sure, W's latest performance introduces no character traits unfamiliar to Bush critics, but his approach is tinged with a new desperation. That smirking cowboy confidence is gone. He knows he's in deep shit, and when he contradicts himself (near the end he says that under his proposal his staff will answer questions "out there for everyone to see"--that's not true, as his proposal is that his staff will answer questions behind closed doors, with no transcript allowed) it's clear this is a flailing man adrift in a sea of unreality. W. is assured of only one thing--his place in history as one of the greatest buffoons ever to wield power of consequence.

How long must we wait for W's inevitable Nixonian moment, boarding Marine One a final time in utter disgrace? For the first time in six years I believe it might actually happen.

WTF?

Mr. Sanchez associates himself with a movement that would lock him away if it could.