So much has happened in the past week in the presidential race, I don't even know where to start. I guess the event that made me saddest was Rick Perry dropping out of the race. Ironically, Rick dropped out the day after I wrote my last column, which was a scathing critique of his stand on the marine urination scandal. I really don't think it is a coincidence that immediately following the publication of my column, Perry withdrew, do you? Still, Rick was the last true buffoon in the race and I'll miss mocking him every single day.
It is interesting that Rick Perry, with his strong Tea party credentials, chose to throw his support to Newt Gingrich, instead of the more logical choice of Rick Santorum. I would really like to know what Newt gave Perry in order to get that endorsement, right before the South Carolina primary. Perhaps an expense account at Tiffany's??
It looks like the Republican nomination is down to Mitt Romney, who seems like a pretty decent guy, and Gingrich, who is (to paraphrase George Bush) a major league asshole. I really wouldn't care about Newt's personal life or whether he asked his wife to join him in an open marriage IF (and it's a big if) he hadn't led the charge against Bill Clinton during the Monica Lewinski scandal. A candidate's personal life is either fair game or it isn't--one way or the other--Mr. Former Speaker--you can't have it both ways. If it is okay for you to bring Bill Clinton's personal life into the public view, it is the utmost hypocrisy for you to complain when people do the same to you. You can't rant and rave and demand answers about the blue dress and then yell at a reporter who dares ask about your ex-wife's interview. You just can't! Well, apparently you can (because Newt did), but you really shouldn't.
Same thing with ethics; a man who was kicked out of the House for ethics violations really shouldn't be questioning ANYONE'S ethics. You know: the whole "people who live in glass houses" and "pot calling the kettle black" stuff. If I were Mitt Romney, every time Newt brought up Bain Capital, I'd bring up the $300,000 fine levied on him by the House due to his ethics violations. Mitt doesn't do this--probably because he's a decent guy--but he might have to in order to beat Gingrich.
Newt's biggest problem is one never knows when he's gonna just lose it and go off. He might scream at the reporter; he might call an opponent a liar; he might insinuate that Barack Obama is from Kenya--ya just never know.
And this is why I think all you Republicans out there in Republicanville should VOTE FOR NEWT! Seriously, I would LOVE Newt to be the one to oppose Obama. Why pick someone serious and normal--someone who can take the pressure and has a history of being reliable and thoughtful? Pick the firecracker; the philanderer; the potential felon. Pick the guy with the temper and the pinkie ring and the long, long history of blowing up and saying absolutely stupid things. PLEASE????
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
Another week, another Republican bites the dust. This time around it is Jon Huntsman, the Republican who dared believe in science. The former ambassador to China said: “I put my faith and trust in science. So you have 99 of 100 climate scientists who have come out and talked about climate change in certain terms, what is responsible for it. I tend to say this is a discussion that should not be in the political lane but should be in the scientific lane.” So-yeah--he could never get the Republican nod after that. Republicans don't believe in science. Heck, even Republican science teachers don't believe in science.
Huntsman's such a non-issue, I don't think I'll spend any more time on him. I want to talk about another candidate--Rick Perry--and his reaction to the news that American marines urinated on enemy corpses. The White House and Pentagon (naturally) were furious when they saw the video, which was posted on youtube--and they had a right to be. Defense secretary Leon Panetta said their behavior was "utterly deplorable" and the offenders would be punished. Timothy Kudo, a former marine captain who served in Helmand, was quoted in The Sunday Times saying: "For me the affront is personal. In a 42-second video, these marines undid everything that my unit spent seven months working to accomplish."
By the way, desecrating corpses is against the Geneva Convention. And it's disgusting.
Rick Perry, who served in the air force, called the offenders "kids" and said it was "just a mistake." Okay . . . umm . . . maybe. But then he went further and lost all apparent touch with reality. First he compared giving golden showers to corpses to a picture of Army General George Patton urinating in the Rhine River in Germany near the end of World War Two. He then added that “Although there’s not a picture,” British Prime Minister Winston “Churchill did the same thing on the Siegfried line.” The obvious difference is that Patton and Churchill were not pissing on the corpses of dead German soldiers--but maybe that's just me.
He then went on to say that the truly deplorable behavior is that of the Taliban, who videoed the beheading of Daniel Pearl and committed scores of other atrocities. I agree. However, what Perry seems to be missing is that they are BOTH deplorable acts and shouldn't the United States strive to be better than the Taliban?? Actually, that's what a lot of people tend to miss. We--the United States--need to behave better than our terrorist opponents because we ARE better. Rick Perry doesn't get it--but then he doesn't get a lot of things.
Those "kids" need to be court martialed for their "mistake"--no doubt about it.
Huntsman's such a non-issue, I don't think I'll spend any more time on him. I want to talk about another candidate--Rick Perry--and his reaction to the news that American marines urinated on enemy corpses. The White House and Pentagon (naturally) were furious when they saw the video, which was posted on youtube--and they had a right to be. Defense secretary Leon Panetta said their behavior was "utterly deplorable" and the offenders would be punished. Timothy Kudo, a former marine captain who served in Helmand, was quoted in The Sunday Times saying: "For me the affront is personal. In a 42-second video, these marines undid everything that my unit spent seven months working to accomplish."
By the way, desecrating corpses is against the Geneva Convention. And it's disgusting.
Rick Perry, who served in the air force, called the offenders "kids" and said it was "just a mistake." Okay . . . umm . . . maybe. But then he went further and lost all apparent touch with reality. First he compared giving golden showers to corpses to a picture of Army General George Patton urinating in the Rhine River in Germany near the end of World War Two. He then added that “Although there’s not a picture,” British Prime Minister Winston “Churchill did the same thing on the Siegfried line.” The obvious difference is that Patton and Churchill were not pissing on the corpses of dead German soldiers--but maybe that's just me.
He then went on to say that the truly deplorable behavior is that of the Taliban, who videoed the beheading of Daniel Pearl and committed scores of other atrocities. I agree. However, what Perry seems to be missing is that they are BOTH deplorable acts and shouldn't the United States strive to be better than the Taliban?? Actually, that's what a lot of people tend to miss. We--the United States--need to behave better than our terrorist opponents because we ARE better. Rick Perry doesn't get it--but then he doesn't get a lot of things.
Those "kids" need to be court martialed for their "mistake"--no doubt about it.
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
Watching Republicans Eat their Young!
So, now it's Mitt. After victories in Iowa and New Hampshire, Mr. Romney has emerged as the man to beat in the race for the Republican presidential nomination. And the attack dogs are out in full force. Many of the anti-Romney ads are downright vicious.
Newt Gingrich is behind a lot of these "Willie Hortonesque" ads. Apparently, some companies taken over by Romney's investment firm Bain Capital went bankrupt and left workers "high and dry." That's a grave sin, according to Newt Gingrich, who has no chance of winning the nomination, but apparently just likes to be a horse's ass when it comes to Romney. A Gingrich backer recently gave Newt $5 million to keep on attacking the front runner. Newt's newest ad calls Romney "pro abortion"--which to a Republican is pretty awful indeed. It's like saying they believe in science or something.
Rick Perry--another also-ran with no chance of winning--has jumped on the name-calling bandwagon, calling Romney a "vulture capitalist." I'm thinking calling a Republican businessman a vulture capitalist is an oxymoron, but that's just me. I guess his attack ads make about as much sense as his "positive" ads, where he vows to send Congress home, a power which does not rest in the executive branch. Three words, Rick: Separation of Powers. I'm predicting Rick will drop out after South Carolina and go back to Texas, where people don't think he's dumber than a box of rocks.
But, before we get all teary-eyed about poor little Mitt, he has some pretty nasty ads of his own, mostly attacking Gingrich for his "mistakes," including agreeing with Nancy Pelosi one time (that BITCH!).
However, my favorite political ad of this campaign wasn't generated by one of the candidates still in the race, but by Michele Bachman's PAC. This is the ad that compares Michele to Tim Tebow. Seems kind of a stretch for me, but it apparently worked in Iowa, driving hoards of football fans out to caucus. Oh wait . . .
Ron Paul, who finished 2nd in New Hampshire, has been running some pretty nasty ads himself, mostly attacking Rick Santorum. Santorum was the big "winner" in Iowa, finishing second to Mitty-poo. In New Hampshire he finished a disappointing fifth, behind Romney, Paul, Huntsman, and Gingrich. Iowans may not know much of Jon Huntsman because he basically skipped our caucus. He doesn't have much a chance because he believes in evolution and we just can't have that kind of madness in the Republican party.
Watching the Republicans bad mouth each other is certainly interesting, but it begs the question: does it do ANYONE any good?? Does these vitriolic ads help the nation? the economy? the general welfare?? I'm thinking it doesn't even help the Democrats--because we do the same darn thing when it is our turn to fight it out in the primaries.
Does my smart-assy writing style do anything to make this world a better place--other than make fellow liberals chuckle occasionally? Probably not. Perhaps we should all raise the level of our rhetoric--starting with me.
Nah!
Newt Gingrich is behind a lot of these "Willie Hortonesque" ads. Apparently, some companies taken over by Romney's investment firm Bain Capital went bankrupt and left workers "high and dry." That's a grave sin, according to Newt Gingrich, who has no chance of winning the nomination, but apparently just likes to be a horse's ass when it comes to Romney. A Gingrich backer recently gave Newt $5 million to keep on attacking the front runner. Newt's newest ad calls Romney "pro abortion"--which to a Republican is pretty awful indeed. It's like saying they believe in science or something.
Rick Perry--another also-ran with no chance of winning--has jumped on the name-calling bandwagon, calling Romney a "vulture capitalist." I'm thinking calling a Republican businessman a vulture capitalist is an oxymoron, but that's just me. I guess his attack ads make about as much sense as his "positive" ads, where he vows to send Congress home, a power which does not rest in the executive branch. Three words, Rick: Separation of Powers. I'm predicting Rick will drop out after South Carolina and go back to Texas, where people don't think he's dumber than a box of rocks.
But, before we get all teary-eyed about poor little Mitt, he has some pretty nasty ads of his own, mostly attacking Gingrich for his "mistakes," including agreeing with Nancy Pelosi one time (that BITCH!).
However, my favorite political ad of this campaign wasn't generated by one of the candidates still in the race, but by Michele Bachman's PAC. This is the ad that compares Michele to Tim Tebow. Seems kind of a stretch for me, but it apparently worked in Iowa, driving hoards of football fans out to caucus. Oh wait . . .
Ron Paul, who finished 2nd in New Hampshire, has been running some pretty nasty ads himself, mostly attacking Rick Santorum. Santorum was the big "winner" in Iowa, finishing second to Mitty-poo. In New Hampshire he finished a disappointing fifth, behind Romney, Paul, Huntsman, and Gingrich. Iowans may not know much of Jon Huntsman because he basically skipped our caucus. He doesn't have much a chance because he believes in evolution and we just can't have that kind of madness in the Republican party.
Watching the Republicans bad mouth each other is certainly interesting, but it begs the question: does it do ANYONE any good?? Does these vitriolic ads help the nation? the economy? the general welfare?? I'm thinking it doesn't even help the Democrats--because we do the same darn thing when it is our turn to fight it out in the primaries.
Does my smart-assy writing style do anything to make this world a better place--other than make fellow liberals chuckle occasionally? Probably not. Perhaps we should all raise the level of our rhetoric--starting with me.
Nah!
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
With Michelle gone, whatever will I do for entertainment??
I just listened to Michelle Bachman tell the country that she will no longer be seeking the Republican nomination for President of the United States. I must admit--I teared up a little. Not really from sadness; more from mirth. I couldn't help, but remember all the unbelievable things she's said in the past few months --like the time she confused John Wayne the movie star from Winterset with John Wayne Gacy, the serial killer from Waterloo. Or how about when she explained she didn't really want to be a tax attorney, but her husband wanted her to be one and the Bible says for wives to be submissive--so what choice did she have? Or course there was also the time she explained that not one study said that carbon dioxide was in any way dangerous. And I'm not even going to get started on her whole "Pray away the Gay" theory.
Michelle also blamed the swine flu on Democrats, explained that not all cultures are equal, and warned the The Lion King is gay propoganda. Yeppers--I'm gonna miss that crazy lady.
Maybe I'll get lucky and the eventual nominee will pick her as the vice-presidential candidate. In the meantime, I'll have to make do laughing at Rick Perry, who may be the dumbest politician I have ever followed. "I'm gonna cut their (Congress') pay in half and send 'em home." Umm . . . Rick . .. ever heard of separation of powers?? Pretty sure your proposal isn't Constitutional. Of course, you could change the Constitution--bet Congress will support you on that one!
Perry also thinks Juarez is the most dangerous city in America (it's in Mexico) and described the BP oil spill as an act of God. I am thinking that as long as Perry keeps speaking, I will be able to fill in the humor gap that Michelle left when she quit the campaign.
The other candidates are less entertaining than Bachmann and Perry. I actually had a certain amount of respect for Rick Santorum--but that was before I realized he had Jim Bob Dugger of "19 and counting" fame out campaigning for him. I can't even figure out the logic behind that one. "You should vote for Rick because I am really fertile and have absolutely no regard for my wife's health." Is that what Jim Bob says to voters?? So, even if Santorum doesn't make me chuckle, I'm sure his supporters will give me a great deal of material.
Ron Paul is an intense little guy in a suit that is two sizes too big that isn't all that humorous. Except for that one time he did an imitation of a heroin addict during a debate. And that wasn't really funny as much as it was strange. His ideas are extreme, but intriguing. If I had to vote for a Republican, it would probably be him. I actually met him at the Latin King restaurant in Des Moines last week. I even posed for a photo with him--which was pretty cool. Ron Paul's supporters--many of whom seem to border on mental illness--would be pretty entertaining if they weren't so darn frightening. If you don't believe, listen to what some of them have to say when they call into talk radio shows. Makes you want to force them to mainline anti-psychotic meds for the good of all society.
Newt Gingrich is humorous, mainly because he takes himself so very seriously. I would really like someone to tell him that he's not nearly as smart as he thinks he is. "Historian" my ass. That's like me calling myself a Shakespearean Scholar; technically it is true, but not really and everyone knows it. His wife's hair makes me chuckle a little. And his pinkie ring. Other than that, he can't hold a candle to Michelle in the guffaw category.
I don't know much about John Huntsman, except he is a Republican that believes in evolution and therefore has been disowned by his own party. Well, I guess that is kind of funny. And then there is the heir apparent, Mitt Romney. He has a funny name at least.
Did I get all the candidates? I might have missed a couple--there are a bunch. Of course, some have dropped out (Herman Cain, who was probably the most humorous candidate not only of this election, but of all time) and some never really dropped in, but still threaten to from time-to-time (Sarah Palin and Donald Trump--both of who could keep me laughing for decades). Right now I am waiting patiently for Rick Perry to decide whether he will stay in the race after his dismal Iowa Caucus showing or if he should just go back home to Texas and shoot something. You think if I sent him a donation, he'd stay in the race just a little while longer? Methinks a few more weeks of watching him try to explain his own policies during a debate (OOPS!) would be worth a few bucks out of my pocket.
Michelle also blamed the swine flu on Democrats, explained that not all cultures are equal, and warned the The Lion King is gay propoganda. Yeppers--I'm gonna miss that crazy lady.
Maybe I'll get lucky and the eventual nominee will pick her as the vice-presidential candidate. In the meantime, I'll have to make do laughing at Rick Perry, who may be the dumbest politician I have ever followed. "I'm gonna cut their (Congress') pay in half and send 'em home." Umm . . . Rick . .. ever heard of separation of powers?? Pretty sure your proposal isn't Constitutional. Of course, you could change the Constitution--bet Congress will support you on that one!
Perry also thinks Juarez is the most dangerous city in America (it's in Mexico) and described the BP oil spill as an act of God. I am thinking that as long as Perry keeps speaking, I will be able to fill in the humor gap that Michelle left when she quit the campaign.
The other candidates are less entertaining than Bachmann and Perry. I actually had a certain amount of respect for Rick Santorum--but that was before I realized he had Jim Bob Dugger of "19 and counting" fame out campaigning for him. I can't even figure out the logic behind that one. "You should vote for Rick because I am really fertile and have absolutely no regard for my wife's health." Is that what Jim Bob says to voters?? So, even if Santorum doesn't make me chuckle, I'm sure his supporters will give me a great deal of material.
Ron Paul is an intense little guy in a suit that is two sizes too big that isn't all that humorous. Except for that one time he did an imitation of a heroin addict during a debate. And that wasn't really funny as much as it was strange. His ideas are extreme, but intriguing. If I had to vote for a Republican, it would probably be him. I actually met him at the Latin King restaurant in Des Moines last week. I even posed for a photo with him--which was pretty cool. Ron Paul's supporters--many of whom seem to border on mental illness--would be pretty entertaining if they weren't so darn frightening. If you don't believe, listen to what some of them have to say when they call into talk radio shows. Makes you want to force them to mainline anti-psychotic meds for the good of all society.
Newt Gingrich is humorous, mainly because he takes himself so very seriously. I would really like someone to tell him that he's not nearly as smart as he thinks he is. "Historian" my ass. That's like me calling myself a Shakespearean Scholar; technically it is true, but not really and everyone knows it. His wife's hair makes me chuckle a little. And his pinkie ring. Other than that, he can't hold a candle to Michelle in the guffaw category.
I don't know much about John Huntsman, except he is a Republican that believes in evolution and therefore has been disowned by his own party. Well, I guess that is kind of funny. And then there is the heir apparent, Mitt Romney. He has a funny name at least.
Did I get all the candidates? I might have missed a couple--there are a bunch. Of course, some have dropped out (Herman Cain, who was probably the most humorous candidate not only of this election, but of all time) and some never really dropped in, but still threaten to from time-to-time (Sarah Palin and Donald Trump--both of who could keep me laughing for decades). Right now I am waiting patiently for Rick Perry to decide whether he will stay in the race after his dismal Iowa Caucus showing or if he should just go back home to Texas and shoot something. You think if I sent him a donation, he'd stay in the race just a little while longer? Methinks a few more weeks of watching him try to explain his own policies during a debate (OOPS!) would be worth a few bucks out of my pocket.
Monday, January 2, 2012
New Year's Resolutions
I feel a little lost since I'm not writing a weekly or bi-weekly column--like part of "me" is gone. It was actually my husband's idea to start writing on a regular basis again--but simply posting it to this blog. The good part about publishing this way is that it will be uncensored and I can say what I'm really thinking. That might be the bad part, too!
Anyway, New Year's Resolution #2 is officially done, as is this my first non-Dayton Review post to this blog. Resolution #1 was to use my twitter account to publish all my couponing advice. The address for that is @theatregoddess if anyone wants the latest news about shopping and saving in the Fort Dodge/Ames area. I had a great experience today at Walgreens (saved $56 bucks) and a terrible experience at Dollar General (pretty sure you are REQUIRED to sleep with a family member and drink moonshine to get an job there). I hooked the twitter account to my phone--so expect spelling errors in my tweets!
I have 8 other resolutions. "Lose weight" and "exercise daily" are, of course, two of them. Another is to do one thing a day in regards to Cody's senior year, so I don't get overwhelmed come May. For example, today I tried to buy spaghetti sauce at Dollar General for his graduation party. That went horribly wrong and I didn't buy any sauce--but I tried so I figure I kept the resolution in spirit at least. Right?? I also downloaded a scholarship for vegetarians he can fill out tomorrow. Who knew such a thing existed. Thank Heavens for the internet.
I'm gonna sign off and go play my new obsession: Words With Friends. The minute Alex Baldwin explained that smart people play it, I signed up. It is pretty addictive--but I don't think I'll be getting kicked off a plane because of it anytime soon.
Anyway, New Year's Resolution #2 is officially done, as is this my first non-Dayton Review post to this blog. Resolution #1 was to use my twitter account to publish all my couponing advice. The address for that is @theatregoddess if anyone wants the latest news about shopping and saving in the Fort Dodge/Ames area. I had a great experience today at Walgreens (saved $56 bucks) and a terrible experience at Dollar General (pretty sure you are REQUIRED to sleep with a family member and drink moonshine to get an job there). I hooked the twitter account to my phone--so expect spelling errors in my tweets!
I have 8 other resolutions. "Lose weight" and "exercise daily" are, of course, two of them. Another is to do one thing a day in regards to Cody's senior year, so I don't get overwhelmed come May. For example, today I tried to buy spaghetti sauce at Dollar General for his graduation party. That went horribly wrong and I didn't buy any sauce--but I tried so I figure I kept the resolution in spirit at least. Right?? I also downloaded a scholarship for vegetarians he can fill out tomorrow. Who knew such a thing existed. Thank Heavens for the internet.
I'm gonna sign off and go play my new obsession: Words With Friends. The minute Alex Baldwin explained that smart people play it, I signed up. It is pretty addictive--but I don't think I'll be getting kicked off a plane because of it anytime soon.
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