Try again.

Lottery prizes are paid as an annuity, so you have to discount the cash flows. Roughly, this means taking about half of the prize in a lump sum.

NOW you take into account Federal and state taxes, which as you point out would be roughly 50%.

So you’re talking about 50% + (50%*50%) which would leave only 25% to live off the interest on.

A cash prize net of taxes of $125 million, in other words, would be $500 million as a nominal prize and only the MegaMillions has a capped prize that large.

C’mon, ol’ John is talking about the hardworkin’ CEOs and ball players and such who work for their wealth. You know, the ones barely scrapin’ above middle class.

Well, of COURSE winning a fat lottery doesn’t make you rich. You have to make your money the old-fashioned way in order to be rich.

That means you have to either marry it or inherit it.

The idea that Joe Averages seems to have–treat the rich well, ‘cuz I might be rich one day–owes much to the philosophy behind Penthouse Letters.

Men who plan their social lives around the inevitable arrival of busty nymphomaniacs probably get laid about as often as working-class Republicans become rich.

So actor, McCain says contra me, that you’d have to win a $500 million jackpot to be rich?

Going further with this idea…

Say you have $1 billion. You gotta keep it somewhere. So let’s say you’ve got it in that high-yield savings account at 4%.

You’ll make $40 million per year.

Now let’s say that you have extravagant spending habits–$100,000 per day.

You’ll spend $36.5 million per year ($36.6 in a leap year).

Using this admittedly oversimplified math, you reach the following conclusion: a person with a billion dollars in the bank will net $3.5 million per year for doing nothing except spending $100,000 per day.

Talk about nice work if you can get it!

The idea that Joe Averages seems to have–treat the rich well, ‘cuz I might be rich one day–owes much to the philosophy behind Penthouse Letters.

These guys are all over the place. It isn’t just that they might get rich, they somehow fully expect to get rich and join their fellow republicans in the country club.

“Men who plan their social lives around the inevitable arrival of busty nymphomaniacs probably get laid about as often as working-class Republicans become rich.”

Thank you, God!

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0077975/quotes

The problem with the working-class GOPer is that they think that true wealth is merely earning a couple $100K annually.

They simply have no concept about just how rich these people are and just how much of these rich people’s money was stolen directly out of their hands.

Instead, they’ll keep on voting for anti-choice’ers and anti-Adam-and-Steve’ers while their wages and jobs head to China or Mexico.

Nobody ever said these people were intelligent.

So actor, McCain says contra me, that you’d have to win a $500 million jackpot to be rich?

Yup.

Here’s the math:

Present value of $500M, assuming a 20 year payout ~ $250 million lump sum

Federal and state income taxes = 50% = $125 million

$125 million x 4% = $5,000,000.

Now let’s say that you have extravagant spending habits–$100,000 per day.

I know a certain beer heiress who’s Clonopin bill is higher.

Oh, holy crap.

So, I tried to watch the McThusela speech last night. After the fact, as a Cspan rerun. Didn’t get very far. I did, however, last long enough to be puzzled by the choice of background. The tight shots looked like a green screen, and we here know as well as anybody how well that worked for him last time. The wider view showed a building with a lawn.

Was it the White house?

No.

Was it some other important, recognizable and relevant government building?

Not so much.

Maybe one of his houses?

I wouldn’t think so. No.

What was it?

Over at the GOS they tell us.

It was Walter Reed.

Not Walter Reed Hospital, though, Walter Reed Middle School in North Hollywood.

Good Lord. They can’t even vet the backdrop for their biggest convention speech. They want us to let them run the country.

Fucktards.

How many $300,000 outfits can you buy with that?

“So, I tried to watch the McThusela speech last night.”

Wow. McTheusalah. That’s fantastic.

Combine that with TBogg’s Caribou Barbie and I think we have a winnah.

McTheusalah/Caribou Barbie ’08: The Bridge To Nowhere.

There’s more math involved: if someone makes X a year they usually don’t mean “clearing” X a year.

A pal of mine pointed out last night that high-yield savings account interest rates top out at about 4%. That means you’d need about $125 million in the bank to get back $5 million a year.

And since the FDIC limit is $100k per person per bank, you’d need to find 625 banks paying that rate for joint accounts, 1250 for single account holders. Good luck!

Hrrm. Sorry. That’ll teach me to read Fark last.

5 million bucks a year, is about $13, 700 dollars a day. For a man with an ordinary, 40 hour a week job, that would be an hourly wage of $2400.

For many Americans, I imagine $24 an hour would be riches. But no. Add a couple of zeros.

“There’s more math involved: if someone makes X a year they usually don’t mean “clearing” X a year.”

I know. That’s why I admitted to oversimplification. I still think it starkly illuminates just how much money a billion dollars is.

And since your average billionaire is probably going to have that billion dollars in the Caymans or Netherlands Antilles, they would indeed “clear” that whole $40 million without Uncle Sam getting his grubby fists on it..

McTheusela was previously posted here. I forget by whom. Caribou Barbie makes me chuckle uncontrollably. Was it originally Tbogg? I saw it here in someone’s post but didn’t know where it came from.

“And since the FDIC limit is $100k per person per bank, you’d need to find 625 banks paying that rate for joint accounts, 1250 for single account holders. Good luck!”

I suspect the McCain’s do not park their funds in dirty, grubby failure-prone US banks. Sparkling-pretty Swiss instutitions, preferably those run by gnomes, sounds more their speed.

There’s more math involved: if someone makes X a year they usually don’t mean “clearing” X a year.

Based on his context, talking about taxes, I assumed he meant pre-tax.

But if you want to make it $5 million per year after tax income, then simply double it. You’d need a billion dollar lump sum.

And since your average billionaire is probably going to have that billion dollars in the Caymans or Netherlands Antilles, they would indeed “clear” that whole $40 million without Uncle Sam getting his grubby fists on it..

That’s the easy part. If you never earn the money here, it’s not taxable to you until you repatriate the money. You leave it offshore and visit it often.

Tax? it isn’t income, it is capital gains tax.. Just a flat 15% to pay!

Also, I think the $100K limit is just how much they’ll insure. You can put all you want in there, as long as you don’t mind it disappearing when they go all Silverado on you.

I’m reasonably certain few people of considerable wealth have much of their dough in something as plebeian as a savings account. There are far better things to do with your millions.

And since the FDIC limit is $100k per person per bank, you’d need to find 625 banks paying that rate for joint accounts, 1250 for single account holders. Good luck!

You think with that much dough I keep it in U.S. banks?

*chuckles churlishly, then joins Phil Gramm at the baccarat table*

OMFG. Report that Palin said, upon learning of Obama’s victory over Hillary,

“So Sambo beat the bitch!”

http://www.laprogressive.com/2008/09/05/alaskans-speak-in-a-frightened-whisper-palin-is-%E2%80%9Cracist-sexist-vindictive-and-mean%E2%80%9D/

You’re trying too hard:

McPOW couldn’t give a flaming crap about anyone but the rich if you gave him a jet fuel enema and set his pants on fire.

My grandfather, a young man during the Great Depression and a devout Roosevelt fan, used to rage about all the family farmers who voted Republican. I can hear Gramps now, shouting, “The goddamned Republicans never did a goddamned thing for farmers!” His theory was that these farmers had been convinced to think of themselves as “businessmen.” They were encouraged to put themselves in the same category as bankers and industry heads. As a result, they thought they were actually voting their “interests” when they voted Republican. Well, now that family farms and farmers have mostly gone the way of the saddle shoe, farms – or perhaps, Farms – are big ugly corporate holes of suckitude with workers suffering and the product frequently unhealthy and even dangerous.

comsympinko said, September 5, 2008 at 22:23

“So, I tried to watch the McThusela speech last night.”

McTheusalah/Caribou Barbie ‘08: The Bridge To Nowhere.

I like that — even better than Voldemort/Umbridge 2008!

Looking at it another way.. How big a company do you have to own, to take home 5 million a year?

Well, you can pay yourself whatever salary you like.. as long as you don’t cause the company to collapse. The turnover to profit ratio in “honest work” which doesn’t involve holding a monopoly, no bid government contracts, defence work, or importing cocaine, is 100:1, or within that order of magnitude.

So realistically, you need to own a company with a turnover of half a billion a year or so, to pay yourself 5 million a year. The value of a company that big? Billions.

So again we see that you need assets in the billions to have a take home pay of 5 million.

The only 9-5 job I can think of that may produce 5 million a year, would be hedge fund manager. Those people have no assets of their own, but get to play with billions of other peoples money. If they are good at it, they get big fat bonuses. 5 million a year is not unknown.

John McCain thinks that winning a $249 million lottery jackpot wouldn’t make you rich.

Well, you can’t win if you don’t play.

Me? I’m a bingo guy.

[…] McTheusalah/Caribou Barbie ‘08: The Bridge To Nowhere. […]

McThusela/Mooseburger
McThusela/Palien
McThusela/Caribou Barbie
Voldemort/Umbrage

All great bumper sticker ideas.

McThusela is undeniably great. I laughed out loud, despite having a backache that might induce me to crawl cravenly to Cindy McThusela to beg for a couple of her pills.

I can’t type, spell, or punctuate worth shit today. I think I’ll jsut lurk for a while. Or maybe I should just go do the dishes. My family needs me, dammit!

4 comment(s) could not be processed by Defensio.

That’s followed by a “Process Now” button. What would happen if I pressed it?

What would happen if I pressed it?

The Large Hadron Collider springs into action.

Y’uns have gotta chedck out TIDOS, he’s in rare form today.

Candy –

Re: the back pain… I feel ya. I’ve got some Cindy McCain-type meds (legally prescribed and purchased) that, combined with a beer (oops) and Caribou Barbie’s speech the other night, turned me into a raving depressed lunatic on one of the other threads.

Apologies to all S,N! reader for all that, BTW.

Hope your back feels better. Me, I’m about to take a muscle relaxer and I’m putting a sticky on my laptop’s screen that sez:

DO NOT POST ON ANY BLOGS AFTER YOU TAKE UR PILLZ

Candy – you might try this; it works for me:

Lay on the floor on your side, legs drawn up, with your butt as close to the base of a wall as possible. Next, roll onto your back and extend your legs up to rest against the wall.

I think this works because it’s like putting your lower back in traction – you get some separation between the lumbar vertebrae which allows any ruptured disc material to be pullled back into the area between the discs, and also, it releases pressure on nerves. Whenever I do this, I get immediate relief.

I think you may overstate; the folks with $125MM ain’t limited to 4% return savings accounts, boyo.

OMFG. Report that Palin said, upon learning of Obama’s victory over Hillary,

http://www.laprogressive.com/2008/09/05/alaskans-speak-in-a-frightened-whisper-palin-is-%E2%80%9Cracist-sexist-vindictive-and-mean%E2%80%9D/

Ohmygod — someone find that waitress before the RNC does!

Thanks, Jennifer. That might indeed help and I’ll give it a try, even though I think my backache is mostly due to this weird flu like illness I’ve had for the past few days. I’m having other muscle and bone pain as well. Ugh! I’m going to put a heating patch on in a minute. That seems to help.

RB, do you have any idea how Hadron looks to someone with mild dyslexia and a dirty mind?

Ohmygod — someone find that waitress before the RNC does!

I just read that article. If I were her, I would be halfway to Seattle by now.

I suspect the McCain’s do not park their funds in dirty, grubby failure-prone US banks. Sparkling-pretty Swiss instutitions, preferably those run by gnomes, sounds more their speed.

Nope. Swiss bank interest rates are shit, which is why I park my 5 million a year in a portfolio of exotic vintage cars, balanced with smaller holdings in American muscle cars. This yields an 18% per annum profit at swanky auctions from buyers who say “fuck the cost of gas (or climate chage, for that matter), I need a 5 million dollar Ferrari in my garage”. Their gain is my gain, if you see what I’m saying.

You can’t fool me. You’re a parking lot attendant, you are.

OT,
Would anyone know why a search* of sadlyno.com in Google would come up with nada, even using the broadest parameters (e.g., just the site URL alone)?

I finally got some of the hits I expected when I went to the search aggregator dogpile.com, but the whole google thing has me flummoxed.

No big thang, but I know some of you folks are gods/goddesses (or at least demigods) in the realm of computer geekdom, so thought I’d ask. TIA.

*[Dismissive taunts of a monosyllabic grunting troll on a lightly trafficked local political blog seem to have caused him/her/it to expand h/h/i’s vocabulary. Need to escalate accordingly; huntin’ for ammo.]

McTheusalah/Caribou Barbie ‘08: The Bridge To Nowhere

“McLame/Sarah-cuda ’08: Rapture Ready, My Friends!”

I think my backache is mostly due to this weird flu like illness I’ve had for the past few days. I’m having other muscle and bone pain as well. Ugh! I’m going to put a heating patch on in a minute. That seems to help.

If it’s a disk problem, you’d probably be better off icing it down to reduce inflammation. However (and I don’t mean to scare the shit out of you), given your other symptoms, you might want to press your doctor for an ultrasound. Odd things like bladder cancer can feel very much like back pain, so don’t mess around, hie ye to a physician.

You can’t fool me. You’re a parking lot attendant, you are.

Well, that and a trust fund baby.

Swiss bank interest rates are shit, which is why I park my 5 million a year in a portfolio of exotic vintage cars, balanced with smaller holdings in American muscle cars.

I think this was actually the financial plan of the attorney who taught my torts & litigation class. I swear the man bought a new foreign sports or luxury car or a vintage American muscle car on an almost weekly basis.

Would anyone know why a search* of sadlyno.com in Google would come up with nada

People have used the word nada before?

I think this was actually the financial plan of the attorney who taught my torts & litigation class.

Candy?? Is that you?? How did your torts turn out? Did you ever make that pear-pumpkin one I was teaching the class about in the late Fall?

Pale/Paliner 08

McSame/FAILin 08

Did you ever make that pear-pumpkin one I was teaching the class about in the late Fall?

Yes, I did, Orange Tom, but I failed to make my case. Sadly, the judge threw it out of the mall food court.

Me loose thred.

http://www.google.com/search?q=site:www.sadlyno.com+nada&ie=UTF-8

Orange Tom, I’m one of those Uninsured Americans one hears tell of during election years. No physicians for me unless I’m in death throes.

I think it’s just a virus. My kid’s had the same symptoms the past few days, although being young and spry he’s bounced back more quickly. thanks for the advice, though!

Now I get to drive downtown on the pothole filled city streets in a car that drives like a lumberwagon. That should be fun. Not a vicodin in the house, alas.

“Well, that and a trust fund baby.”

Outstanding. One wonders when John McCain will follow your example and get a job in the private sector. Wal-Mart greeter sounds about right for his skillset.

RglrLrkr: What exactly are you looking for on this site?

RSS feed wonky again.

This comment is missing: http://www.sadlyno.com/archives/11673.html#comment-680490

J— said,
September 6, 2008 at 0:19
RglrLrkr: What exactly are you looking for on this site?

I was looking for something I think Brad wrote on, “the spite voter”, as someone (e.g., stuck in middle management w/ a home in exurbia) who is frustrated at falling short of youthful expectations, and is looking for a scapegoat, which certain politicians will happily provide.

I didn’t find what I was looking for here (maybe I misremembered), but this will do nicely as a base article. But I’ll continue shopping here for better snark than my limited wit can supply.

It’s an indicator of how their minds work that “voting Republican will make them rich” is the most primitive sort of sympathetic magic.

Which doesn’t work, of course, but using the lizard brain, one would never realize it.

Some people deserve their lives of noisy desperation.

Spite: http://www.google.com/search?q=site:www.sadlyno.com+spite+works&ie=UTF-8

RglrLrkr : This post? I did a search very similar to Righteous Bubba’s (see his comment at 0:40), searching the site in the same way but with the terms “by brad” and “spite.”

Righteous Bubba said,
September 6, 2008 at 0:40

Thanks for that. Looks like it’s something goofy in my Firefox browser. I took your search terms and did what I should have done originally – opened up MSIE, where the search executes just fine. Must be one of those clogged cache thingies, or something…

Did you all see, hear, or read Biden today?

For what it’s worth I use Googlebar Lite in Firefox 3.

Now I get to drive downtown on the pothole filled city streets in a car that drives like a lumberwagon. That should be fun. Not a vicodin in the house, alas.

If we lived in the same time-zone I’d send my man-servant (Eric Blore) around in the “Silver Cloud” Rolls with a suitcase of it for you. I deeply regret, however, that we are “out-of-country” at the moment (damned money-laundering laws!).

Outstanding. One wonders when John McCain will follow your example and get a job in the private sector. Wal-Mart greeter sounds about right for his skillset.

Yeah,but first Cindy has to do a hostile leveraged buyout of Wal-Mart!

J— said,

Hanx for that link, J—

Hanx for that link, J—

Good lord! He was calling for the extermination of all white people!

reading Sadly No and thinking it is comprised of academics – now that is teh Funny.

Thanks, Sadly,No! The Truth!

justme said,

September 5, 2008 at 22:32

McTheusela was previously posted here. I forget by whom.

Ahem. http://www.sadlyno.com/archives/11374.html

Good lord! He was calling for the extermination of all white people!

No, no, no, RB.

Biden was merely calling for extirpation of white people in the lower 48 states. Surely, some acreage can be found to create preserves and such in other places.

Admiral

President

Mr. Cindy

Also this:

I was trying to imagine a scene of police brutality bad enough that it would still make it on television.

Post y00t00b, would a new Rodney King’s beating video make any headlines?

palin is situated in the “big fish @small pond”. all the little things that might be dismissed in her home town as ‘quirks’ are exposed to the world at large as ‘peccadillos’. she shot one of ’em crossing the road. the big fish will be forgiven by the locals, but not by the world. how great would ‘the adulterers’ ticket’ be? the casual race-baiting could be a trap, but I doubt it. and i still think the fake pregnancy has real potential.

Mr. Cindy

The tag on his Wal-Mart vest?

Kathleen: The only swear word Hypotruthical Left knows that’s worse than “liberal” is “academic.”

Orange Tom: “…manservant Eric Blore…” Dude, are you The Falcon, dude?

Senator McSame / Governor Mooselini 08!

Dude, are you The Falcon, dude?

Unfortunately, no. I’m Philo Vance.

Ohmygod — someone find that waitress before the RNC does!

Who do you think sent her to do the interview?

This just makes her more “like us” to the ignorant bigot crowd. Plays to the base. Of course, you’re not supposed to let everybody hear that shit. It’s supposed to be all dog-whistly, like “community organizer” for uppity nigger, instead of, well, just plain uppity, like the dipshit that doesn’t know his commandments.

That they are creeping so far out of their holes may just be a sign of desperation. It might just be carelessness, though.

Djur:

That book learnin’ just clogs up yer hayd.

Reading a bunch of academics trying to figure out what people earn and how they earn it – now that is teh Funny.

Listen, knothead, just because this bunch’s collective shits are smarter than you doesn’t make them “academics”. I know you wingnuts are proud of your stupidity – look at your candidates – but the rest of us might’ve cracked a book or two not written by Rush Limbaugh in our lifetimes.

Most wingnut welfare books remain uncracked.

This is central to their point.

Also, sadly, most wingnut cracks unbooked.

How much book would a wingnut crack, if a wingnut could crack books?

Speaking of wingnut welfare authors, wingnut welfare author Mark Noonan has promised to run for the Senate in 2010:

“I’m really going to run for Senate in 2010 against Harry Reid, following McCain’s injunction to those of us who want to change things to get directly involved.”

That is gonna be one comical campaign!

I love you guys, but this is bad politics, even from a blog perspective.

Yes, John McCain has no idea what it is like to live from check to check. And never has. Just like most of our plutocracy, left or right.

But it was clear he was being feces-ist when he cracked wise about the $5M.

One of my rules of life: Don’t feed the dragon.

Math is hard!

John O – I hear ya bro, but Obama’s campaign is using an actual quote from McCain. Unlike the McCain campaign flat out lying about taxes and pretty much everything else you can imagine. So fuck ’em, their candidate should think before he speaks.

“I’m really going to run for Senate in 2010 against Harry Reid, following McCain’s injunction to those of us who want to change things to get directly involved.”

Or Marky, “You are going to be the change you want to see.”?

Fucking moron…

I’m glad somebody heard John-O, because I can’t figure out what he wrote.

Translation plz?

So fuck ‘em, their candidate should think before he speaks.

I think stories like Cindy’s 300k outfit, McCain unable to keep track of how many houses (of course he was obfuscating, but what does it say that he was afraid to tell the truth?) and their outright worship of Mammon does us all good.

Just how well can they do the “just folks” thing when they have an unbearable urge to flaunt their wealth in people’s faces, in these economic times?

They want to sell fear? Let them get down with the real fear, the ones people talk to me about every day: the huge chunk groceries and gas are taking out of the budget, the precarious state of their jobs, the haunting fear that their now or later illnesses will put them on the street?

For a lot of people, they don’t have the luxury of fearing terrorism any more.

Let them eat fake.

I heard ‘Caribou Barbie’ first on Stephanie Miller. And ‘MILFy McMooseburger.’ And that it would be cooler if she’s serve as Huckabee’s VP, so state dinners would serve moose and squirrel.

I think McSame/Mooselini 08 is excellent.

thunder;

Wouldn’t that be,

How much crack would a wingnut book, depends on which men’s room he’s in.

she’s = she’d

Cote du Rhones + typing = sloppy

Sorry, ittdgy,

McCain (I don’t THINK) believes that “middle class” is $5M. I think he was joking. No, actually, I’m quite certain he was joking, by my own read of the context and viewing of the quote from my own perspective of McCain’s personality.

Heck, this line of attack may even work among the moron voters, and no one is more sensitive to how big a bloc they are.

I just think there’s plenty to go after w/r/t McCain that is real, and this one isn’t. McCain is a dick and a war-monger, but he’s no idiot.

Call me naive. And thank you, Jennifer, for understanding my post.

doesn’t make them “academics”.
I regard myself as more of an epidemic.

Just for the record, nobody wants McCain fucked more than I do. He’s a fraud and a liar and the worst kind of panderer. I want him fucked, literally.

He’s frankly unfit for office. I just don’t believe that he thinks $5M is “middle class,” and I thought that particular quote was tongue-in-cheek.

This, one of my favorite if not my #1 most awesomest favorite blog, is better than that.

I don’t care if he meant it or not. I think he did, but it’s possible it was yet another one of his mean-spirited jokes. Either way, it doesn’t look good for him.

Assume he wasn’t serious. It’s still a perfect stretch-the-truth moment that the Democrats can use against him, to fit into their out-of-touch narrative. Just the way the Republicans used the “I voted for it, before I voted against it” line to paint Kerry as a effete, elite flip-flopper, the Democrats have a perfect opportunity here to respond in kind without sacrificing principle.

McCain (I don’t THINK) believes that “middle class” is $5M. I think he was joking.

Rich white slave-owner walks into a bar, makes a joke about whipping people. My friends, OF COURSE I was joking!

Heck, this line of attack may even work among the moron voters, and no one is more sensitive to how big a bloc they are.

FSM knows we’re fucked if we don’t pander enough to the moron vote.

I just think there’s plenty to go after w/r/t McCain that is real, and this one isn’t. McCain is a dick and a war-monger, but he’s no idiot.

He’s a cynical old white guy who is showing plenty of signs of being an idiot, especially when it comes to economic affairs that concern most Americans.

Yes, John McCain has no idea what it is like to live from check to check. And never has. Just like most of our plutocracy, left or right.

Could you describe the silver spoon Barack Obama had in his mouth when he was born?

Seriously, John O. I’ve seen you around here, I don’t think you’re a bad guy at all. But this kind of advice, please provide to McCain and Moose.

Fear the Sword of Academocles.

That’s true, Simba, all of it, including that he may have meant it. I didn’t read it that way, but who knows?

And it represents the worst elements of American politics. So I think it is sacrificing principle at least a little.

I think Obama and the rest of us can win without going there.

Declaring again: I HATE, with passion that burns deep, the current version of the GOP. That being said, I don’t want to be like them.

Gotta agree with John O I don’t think the “$5 million” answer itself was meant to be taken seriously at all, nor was it mean-spirited. In fact I think he sounded a little uncomfortable saying it, in a “Oh dear God please don’t make me DEFINE how rich is too rich cuz there is no way I can win.” Even Obama dodged the question if I remember correctly.

But no matter, after the repubs went vicious by way of that disgusting double team of Rudy and Palin, I could care less about the “elevated discourse” bullcrap, at least for those of us not named Obama and Biden.

Going negative works, and the pukes know it. That’s why they go to it, and that’s why (I’m afraid) it’s going to work again.

Elitist academocrats.

ittdgy,

You’re damn right about Obama and his lack of silver spoon. And you’re right about pandering to the moron vote. That’s just good politics.

It’s just that my view of this campaign so far is that Obama has exhibited far more class and integrity when it comes to dirty, cheap politics. Practically, I have no problem with dirty, cheap politics, but I think we’re in a very unique position not to need them this time, and I’m trying to buy into Obama’s message in that respect.

Sure, he’s going to have to do a little mud-wrestling as this plays out, but as I said above, there are plenty of real things to go after when it comes to McCain. I just don’t view this as one of them.

Now, if someone in the Media (As if!) asks McCain if he was serious about it and he answers in the affirmative, all bets are off, and McCain can go fuck himself even more than needs to do already.

And don’t get me started on the pandering left plutocracy. I give you FISA, and the War on Drugs, in case you want to go there.

I think Obama and the rest of us can win without going there.

I don’t.

The Republicans pull shit because pulling shit works. Not with everybody, but with enough people that, added to their shit loving base, the election becomes close enough to steal.

Heck, just telling the truth about them is inflammatory enough. Let’s hear it.

And I don’t think McCain was joking. He didn’t laugh, didn’t follow it up with a disclaimer, he just sat there and owned it.

Imagining living on just $5 million a year.

The horror.

John O – hate to disagree, but I do. The McCain’s net worth is equal to the net worth of something on the order of 2,000 average families. Joking or not, this guy is 20,000 times more wealthy than the average American. Compared to low-income Americans, you can make that something like 100,000 times more wealthy. While he may not actually believe that anyone making less than $5 million per year is “middle class”, the plain fact is that this fucker has no inkling about how most of us live. How much more does a $2,000 tax cut means to us than a $200,000 tax cut means to a multi-millionaire? He either doesn’t know or doesn’t care. He’s every bit as much out-of-touch as his “tongue-in-cheek” comment suggests, whether he meant that particular comment to be taken as a joke or not.

Fair game, says I, particularly when the out-of-touch dude is a lying shitweasel with a running mate who openly sneers at people who try to help those who are 100,000 times less wealthy than the lying shitweasel.

There’s one!

You know, the GOP made a big mistake by not contracting Japanese super-group, The Boredoms, to play throughout the entire convention. I might’ve voted for McInsane, but not now:

I sure wish I could write as well as I think and talk.

The War on Drugs being a fully Democrat supported initial assault on the 4th Amendment, being eroded to this day on the very principles of the WOD.

Whoops, that first sentence should have read that the McCain’s net worth is equal to 20,000 average families’ net worth.

All right, Jennifer, I’ll concede. You’re right about McCain, and I won’t dispute any of what you said.

Even on the issue of class, I still think there are more effective ways to attack McCain, but this one may be OK, or even good.

Imagining living on just $5 million a year.

The horror.

Hey, it isn’t as easy as you might think, not if you’re a playboy-detective, parking lot attendant, trust fund baby, exotic car investing lawyer who gives pastry making classes. I’ve got a man-servant to support, you know, and that doesn’t come cheap.

John O – well, I wasn’t trying to beat you into submission 😉

But the reason it’s effective is A) he said it, in public, and B) it’s short and pithy. My mathematical deconstruction from above, while compelling, would make the brains of a lot of voters hurt. As they say, KISS.

RE: Alaskans Speak (In A Frightened Whisper): Palin Is “Racist, Sexist, Vindictive, And Mean”
Is this site (LA Progressive) known to anyone? OK, Palin bashing, but this site is kind of over-the-top. Aboriginals? Is that really how the indigenous people of the area like to refer to themselves? It sounds like something Bugs Bunny would say. Maybe I’m wrong and Arctic Barbie did say that about Obama, but when? There never was a clear moment when he won, it kind of dragged on and on and on. So, I wonder if this is a reliable source.

Give me $1M in one payment, and I’ll retire and leave everyone else alone, unless I can fund a campaign with it. 🙂

I have a bias. I hate most rich people.

the back pain… I feel ya. I’ve got some Cindy McCain-type meds (legally prescribed and purchased) that, combined with a beer (oops) and Caribou Barbie’s speech the other night, turned me into a raving depressed lunatic on one of the other threads.

Oregon Guy – I hope your muscles are relaxed now! 😉 And don’t worry, the occasional drunk/drugged/blogging/commenting thing is usually overlooked around these parts. Glass houses and all that . . .

How much book would a wingnut crack, if a wingnut could crack books?

Books and wingnuts don’t really go together, do they? Bookmaking on the other hand fits some wingnuts to a T. Hmmm . . . maybe someone should do some deep background and find out if the Mooseburger and Hensley “Families” are connected somewhere back along the line. They sure do sound like the same sort of folks, except the Hensleys were much more successful at it.

BTW, Biden is going to be here in Des Moines on Monday. I’m going to try to go, although Monday is a bad day for me schedule-wise.

Jennifer, I don’t get beat into submission. Ever. By anyone.

Not my style. Not my personality.

You, and others, made some good points about Moron-America, and I respected them, understand them, and can agree with their potential effectiveness. I hope you’re all right, and given the morons, suspect you are. Pardon my high-mindedness. 🙂

That’s all.

There never was a clear moment when he won, it kind of dragged on and on and on. So, I wonder if this is a reliable source.

That kinda bothered me too.

BTW, Biden is going to be here in Des Moines on Monday.

Hey, Candy, if you haven’t already seen this clip, check out Big Joe on the campaign trail, courtesy of teh Great Orange Satan.

All hail Dark Lord Kos.

Big Joe’s really digging his new gig. I think this is the job he was born to hold.

Sarah Palin and John McCain are Pumpkin and Honey Bunny from Pulp Fiction. Pumpkin’s done her little “If any of you community organizing moose move, I’ll execute every motherfucking last one of you” thing, which has the dining electorate a little het up and all.

Lucky for us, this isn’t the first time Obama and Biden have had a Bush speech aimed at them.

Only this time, they’re not going to let these two walk away with our money.

Go see Biden “The silence is deafening” on youtube. And no I don’t have time to link because I’m driving across town to a restaurant ten minutes away. I’ll be there in five.

Gotta agree with John O I don’t think the “$5 million” answer itself was meant to be taken seriously at all, nor was it mean-spirited.

Neither was “I voted for the $187 million before I voted against it

Burn the bastard with this.

Senator McSame / Governor Mooselini 08!

Heh heh heh.

Instructor Mooselini is not amused, however.

It’s good to be high-minded, John O, and maybe that McCain comment didn’t cut into your hide.

But it did mine.

Personally, I loathe John McCain because of his stance on torture. Especially considering his personal experience with it. But that’s a bit high-minded of me, and I don’t know if the electorate is going to get on board with that.

That’s the problem with the Democrats who say, “Let’s fight it out on the issues.” There’s huge bunches of voters who don’t know what that is.

But they understand callous rich people.

So let’s go with that.

Only this time, they’re not going to let these two walk away with our money.

Obama’s not going to let them get away with his wallet, either.

Obama has exhibited far more class and integrity when it comes to dirty, cheap politics.

Sure but that doesn’t mean we have to. I understand where you’re coming from John O. Like most liberals you’re a decent person. The question though is: – does always taking the high road win elections? For the past 30 years it seems to me the answer is no.

Biden – The silence is deafening.

the reason mcmansions pulled five million simoleons (per year, no less) out of his keester is that he had no idea of the actual number. he deals with rich people every day, all day long. the only time he deals with middle class (as equals) is when he’s campaigning. hence his gut-churning “my friends” that spews contempt visible on a nine inch emerson black and white. he’s running for six star general, not president.

WereBear,

Yes. Yes, yes, yes. I used to respect McCain, circa about 1999, but his new persona can keep sucking the dick of George Bush the Lesser until the results come in.

But let us consider Moron-America, who have yet to start paying attention. My prediction is that McCain will be sprinting to the center like “Lightening” Bolt in the Olympics. What then?

I’m a big fan of ratfucking, as The Editors and Brad put it, so I’m willing to go with it. I just hope it doesn’t provide McCain any political opportunities. This is a serious election, and the idealist in me is worried about ceding the high ground.

Thank FSM I’m a pragmatist, too. Ratfuck the motherfucker!

Still, I think the preternaturally calm Obama can make McCain blow a gasket on the merits, the “issues.” But we should indeed go for the double-play.

Damn, those debates are going to be wildly watched, and parsed.

My prediction is that McCain will be sprinting to the center like “Lightening” Bolt in the Olympics.

Nope. The stupid fucker painted himself into a corner.

Though be probably thought Miss Alaska would hold down the base while he tacked the other way, he didn’t account for the several large baskets of dirty laundry and fetid shit that she’s dragged along with her.

People are gonna notice the smell, and they’re gonna ask, “Who the fuck brought all that shit along? Her? Where the fuck did she come from? You brought her here? You? What the fuck, dude, that is some smelly shit. If that’s who you hang with, I’m really not interested.”

He’s being held prisoner by the wingnut fundie wackjobs. He’s being held prisoner again.

John McCain is one stupid ass motherfucker of a politician.

Handsom stud and chic magnet Mark Levin on the Dudley Doorite show today:

“It’s not the National Organization of Liberal Women. It’s the National Organization of Ugly Women.”

Yes, this Mark Levin. http://www.1170kfaq.com/personalities/levin8.jpg

But let us consider Moron-America, who have yet to start paying attention. My prediction is that McCain will be sprinting to the center like “Lightening” Bolt in the Olympics. What then?

What center? He’s running with the Poster Girl of pit bull politics, the darling of the rightiest of the right wingers, a walking, talking, Caribou Barbie* of hypocrisy.

His speech, if anyone stayed awake long enough to listen to it, made some conciliatory gestures to the moderates, none of which exist in his party. By accepting such a VP, he has said goodbye to any pretense of centrism and swing voters.

At this point, with this choice, they are just trying to not lose in a landslide.

That’s why I broke out the dark rum on Friday when it was announced. Ten minutes of googling, something the campaign is too inept to do, and I knew the fundies would love her. And that she would frighten the rest of us.

She’s got more scandals brewing than Wal-Mart has cheap sweat pants.

Heck, you can’t buy that cover on US weekly, and the Enquirer hasn’t stepped in yet!

Moron-America doesn’t grok economic theory, foreign policy, or humanitarian ideals.

But they all remember the mean girl in high school, who stole boyfriends, slept around, and lied about the less popular girls just for fun.

A chance at payback doesn’t come around too often in their lives. I predict women will swing this election.

And not the way McCain is hoping it will.

(*Not mine.)

May I just take this opportunity to say how much I all of a sudden love Joe Biden? Yes he’s capable of being a douchebag and so forth. But dammit, I totally love seeing a liberal getting PISSED OFF and sayin’ it. Kick ass Joe. He’s Obama’s perfect Other.

I think the preternaturally calm Obama can make McCain blow a gasket on the merits, the “issues.”

Oh absolutely he can. All it takes is to not buy his BS and insist he answer a direct question he doesn’t want to face. The media will not do this, they don’t want to get involved, but Obama reps should.

Rightwingsnarkle,

Yeah, McCain is a moron, but we elected George the Lesser twice. I’m not as confident as you are about teh stoopid, racist, bigoted, intolerant, ignorant, low-information voter as you are.

Which reminds me of a fun talking point among my (admittedly) fairly sensible right-wing friends and colleagues: “Without the ill informed, bigoted, homophobic, racist, sexist, ‘Christianist’ base, the GOP wouldn’t get 30%. You know it, I know it, and everyone else knows it. Be proud of your fellow voters.”

Every now and then I add, “You can be judged at least in part by the company you keep.”

Freezes them every time. LOL.

That’s why I broke out the dark rum on Friday when it was announced.

Details, please.

Noen,

I’m not sure the formats will allow for that, sadly. Why should America be subjected to candidates addressing each other directly?

Which is why I believe if this election is even close we are truly and inevitably fucked. Never has the choice been clearer.

WereBear,

He’s got plenty of time to remake himself as centrist Maverick. Remember, no one but us is paying attention until now.

It’s a true thing that no one ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the American public.

Sad, but true.

“McCain is a dick and a war-monger, but he’s no idiot.”

Bush Vote Correspondence: 90%

So he’s only 90% as stupid as Bush. That’s still pretty fucking stupid.

ABC News is the worst.
As evidence, consider this headline.
“Is Oprah Biased? Host Won’t Interview Palin ”
…and the story is even worse.

J-

Gosling’s Black, with a very good Splenda sweetened root beer, to avoid the sugar crash. I call it a Blackbeard.

Here’s a neat factoid:

In the 26 states and the District of Columbia where registration data were available, the total number of registered Democrats increased by 214,656, while the number of Republicans fell by 1,407,971.
newsobserver.com | Voters abandon GOP for Dems, 8/5/08

The Republicans have lost almost 1.5 million registered voters.

Sure, they call themselves Independent now. But they didn’t do that so they could vote for McCain.

And it sure wasn’t the fundies.

You want some math? Try the Federal Government bailing out Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae. It’s happening over the weekend, so as not to scare the markets too much.

So, one bankrupt corporation bailing out another. My friends, that’s some “community organizing” for you. My friends.

I’m taking Nov. 5 off, to either party like a Viking on a rampage, or curl up into a ball of shame and depression and self-interest-until-I-die, stay away from sharp objects funk that could last until I’m dead by my own hand. I’m 49.

I expect an ass-whupping of serious consequence. But being a Cubs fan, I just can’t bring myself to believe it.

It will be even weirder if the Cubs have won the Series by Nov. 4. The apocalypse could very well be upon us all.

Mixed Shrew Tears with Iced Rice wines

Ingredients:
4 jiggers intoxicating shrew tears
3 splashes rice wine, disheartenedly swirled
6 jiggers clenched coconut water, sugared

Stir all ingredients nearer with ice, strain contents unprofessionally into a bleeding chalice and serve.

In that $5 million answer at Saddleback, he goes on to say that the real issue over ‘the last few years wasn’t taxes, it was spending, spending got completely out of hand’ … and goes on to complain that ‘my friends, we spent $3 million to the DNA of bears in Montana!’

Never mind that we spent a trillion dollars on fucking Iraq … he’s worried about relatively minuscule amounts spent on science.

whenyouliveinaboxcountryfirstmuthafuckas!!!1!

William Proxmire was just an asshole.

…he’s worried about relatively minuscule amounts spent on science.

Well, sort of. He’s very cynically relying on the fact that a lot of people only hear the “illion” part of million, billion, and trillion and think they’re all the same.

People really need to learn that difference.

McCain has proven himself to be a whore of stupendous ability. It isn’t pretty.

But it still might work.

fivethirtyeight.com gives me a lot of hope. I need it. I will be scared until they call it on Nov. 5. If Media Man calls it on Nov. 4, it’s a blowout. If Media Man calls it early on Nov. 4, VA and IN are in Obama’s column, and all they talk about from that point forward is how they got it wrong.

Just kidding. Media Man would never call themselves wrong.

But they’ll call it “historic,” for sure, until we can’t stand it anymore. As if a half-white guy performed some sort of Jesus-miracle.

2 months. It’s going to seem like forever. Like pain in real time.

The shit-nosed ass-sucker McCain
Had run out of butt-holes to drain
“I note without cheer
The butt-licking stops here
And I’m just not a top,” he complained.

Big Joe’s really digging his new gig. I think this is the job he was born to hold.

Yes. I’m really pleased with Obama’s pick. Seems really shrewd. I thought Biden was one of the best who were in the running at the time but thought Bill Richardson would be the perfect Veep choice. It seems that Mr. Obama is smarter than I am. (Who woulda thunk it?) Biden was the very best choice he could have made. I suspect it was made a long time ago, too, maybe as long ago as Iowa. Biden always seemed to have Obama’s back. There were few if any rancorous exchanges between the two, IIRC. If so, they played it just right.

Biden won’t hold back on Palin. She’s called herself a pit bull. Let her proove it. I think she’ll turn out to be a poodle.

Proove. It’s the new loose. I’m a prooven looser! Yay!

I’m a prooven looser! Yay!

Nothing to be ashamed of. A prooven looser can still shot a mose.

Because I know you all just can’t get enough of Sarah Palin. Here she is prayin’ for a pipline.

Jesus give us a pipeline.

Yeah, McCain is a moron, but we elected George the Lesser twice.

Who’s this we, white man? Gore won 2000 and Kerry won 2004 (Google Ohio vote fraud, that shit is STILL being exposed). Bush was installed in office and kept there by completely illegal means, and anyone who’s stupid enough to think that the rich guys who run things in this country are going to let us have a legitimate election this time (why, because they’re weary of raiding the Treasury? Can’t lift another suitcase of hundred dollar bills because they’re exhausted from doing it so many times?) needs to have their head examined.

Frankly I’ll bow to his expertise. Given the tireless work the Republicans put forth on behalf of the wealthiest elites, I’m willing to accept they’ve a good grasp of who’s in the club and who isn’t.

the casual race-baiting could be a trap, but I doubt it. and i still think the fake pregnancy has real potential.

I’m holding out for the National Enquirer tell-all article: Todd’s Mistress Fights to Keep Their Love Child!

McMansion’s “joke” about 5M a year being rich was evading of the question, probably because he had no idea what Middle Class is, let alone poor. So his comment deserves heaps of scorn and derision.

if this election is close enough to steal, i’m gonna shoot some motherfucking pigs, cracker.

I beg thee, our S,N masters: you MUST snark this, Michael Reagan’s bugfuck insane post on how Sarah Palin is his daddy reincarnated.

osling’s Black, with a very good Splenda sweetened root beer, to avoid the sugar crash. I call it a Blackbeard.

In Bermuda, they serve Gosling’s with ginger beer and not the sweet crap you get here, but stuff that will make your tongue involuntarily curl.

Breaks the ice at parties! It’s called a “Dark and Stormy”.

Waiting for the hurricane
To hit New York City
Somebody said it’s hit the bay
This is the nitty gritty

And all you bagladies better put you acts together
We’re in the eye of the storm, this is really heavy weather

–Lost and Found, The Kinks

“Well I want to tell you in about nine months of traveling with John McCain and hearing hundreds of speeches I have never heard him talk in such great detail about his own personal story with respect to his time as a P.O.W. He has been resistant to do that over time.“

–MSNBCs Kelly O’Donnell

Can’t take it…losing control…what…the…FUCK?????????

Breaks the ice at parties! It’s called a “Dark and Stormy”.

I got into Gosling’s Black through Dark & Stormy, but can’t find a good ginger beer in my neck of the woods. And when one is celebrating the worst pick in the history of VP picks, volume counts!

Did anyone watch Rachel Maddow on Countdown last night? She announced that she wasn’t going to use euphemisms on her show. If someone lies, she’s going to call it “lying.” Then she laid out how many lies were told by Palin.

Downright marvy.

Biden won’t hold back on Palin. She’s called herself a pit bull. Let her proove it. I think she’ll turn out to be a poodle.

First she has to come out of hiding. The McCain campaign has said she needs two weeks prep time before she will be ready to talk to reporters.

I got into Gosling’s Black through Dark & Stormy, but can’t find a good ginger beer in my neck of the woods.

You might be able to get ginger beer shipped by an outfit like Beverages Direct or the Soda Pop Stop.

Oh, mah goodness. Seems somebody over at TPM is pointing out the meme that really ought to be following around McTheuselah like stink on shit. To wit…

You would never know it from the media coverage but John McCain is not one of America’s greatest war heroes. He is a former POW who survived, heroically. He deserves to be honored for that heroism.

But one thing distinguishes McCain from other war heroes, the kind whose heroism changes history rather than their life stories.

America’s two greatest war heroes were Ulysses Grant and Dwight Eisenhower. Grant saved the union. And Ike saved civilization.

And neither one ever bragged about their experience. (Can you imagine Ike smacking down Adlai Stevenson by saying that while Adlai ran a nice medium-sized state, he was the Supreme Allied Commander who ran D-Day, defeated Hitler, and liberated Europe?).

Impossible. Like Grant, Eisenhower did not brag.

Actually, modesty about military accomplishments is typical of war heroes and not just here. In Israel, it is unheard of for great military leaders to brag about their service.

Former Prime Minister Ehud Barak was the most decorated soldier in Israel’s history (he was a commando who, among other amazing feats, dressed as a woman — with a handful of soldiers — invaded a terrorist stronghold in Beirut, killed the terrorists, and then fled to a waiting dinghy and headed home). Yitzhak Rabin led the IDF in its Six Day War victory. Ariel Sharon saved Israel from destruction in 1973 when he snuck up behind the Egyptian army and encircled them in the Sinai.

None of these guys talked about it. McCain does. Continuously. His lack of modesty — about something war heroes tend to be modest about — does not become him.

Well, that kinda makes him look like an asshole, now doesn’t it. Okay, more of an asshole. To more people.

Sort of reminds me of a truism I’ve noticed in the music industry. The more real talent a performer has, the more likely they will be pleasant and efficient to work with, as they have nothing to prove. The wannabes, however, are the ones that crow about how great they are, and make a point of ensuring that everybody knows it. Until everybody wants to shove their fucking teeth down their throat with any and every weighty object near at hand.

McLame’s story is swiftly IDing him as not even an Yngwie, but an Yngwie wannabe. A wannabe’s wannabe, as it were.

Yeesh. WP is being a testy little thing this morning.

I’ll try it this way, then.

http://tpmcafe.talkingpointsmemo.com/2008/09/05/on_bragging_war_heroes/

Very good point, there.

I give up.

SamFromUtah said,
September 6, 2008 at 4:05

Senator McSame / Governor Mooselini 08!

Heh heh heh.

Instructor Mooselini is not amused, however.

.
Step on the gas.
Stop on the brake!
Step on the gas.
Step on the brake!

Instructor Mooselini’s Rap
Having mastered kung-fu, PaRappa takes Sunny Funny and the gang out to the burger joint, as usual. Joe Chin arrives in his stretch limousine, and everyone is stunned. Realizing that a car will impress Sunny, PaRappa heads to the driving instructor’s to learn how to drive.

The things you learn at S,N!

Has anyone checked to see the damage incurred to confederate-wankie’s grill after Hanna blew through town? I think he should install a grill cam.

oops, I meant to type “blowed” instead of blew.

The things you learn at S,N!

Hehindeed.

Mooselini also has a little rap in the game’s most psycho scene.

Somebody wanted a “McTheuselah/Caribou Barbie, Bridge to Nowhere” bumper sticker upthread.
Ask, and you shall receive.

http://img293.imageshack.us/img293/7002/mct1ey7.gif

Now we see how teh overactive spamulator treats me.

TIDOSY’s grill cam? I’d rather watch corn growing.

On second thought, it might be entertaining to see TIDOSY bursting into tears over the fate of his poor ol’ grill. Or to see him hosting a bbq attended only by himself, which would probably end in tears as well after Bob had a few Coors Lite.

I’ve become such a mean person.

justme, that bumper sticker is truly a thing of beauty!

The fact is, ha ha. Even Canadians see Palin for what she is: The next Margaret Thatcher. We can only hope.

http://www.davidwarrenonline.com/

Heh, whoopsie. I need a proofreader. Try this one.

http://img143.imageshack.us/img143/2272/mct2ho2.gif

Bettah.

Thanks, Candy. Even better spelled rite.

Grill-cam? Damn, I don’t wanna look at that sucka’s teeth.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Methuselah

No “eu” necessary: I suspect a misspelling based on yokelese, yew all.

My cockroach just died after almost 87 weeks – he was the love of my insufferable scurvy life. He took a tripod to the tongue and died some weeks thereafter. My question is to Vishnu… Why did it have to be my Rufio?

What would the yokel dialect be called by Linguists of teh Future?

Yokelese? Yokelonics? Redneckish?

“Let me help, stewardess, I speak Redneck.”

Concern about speling is elitist.

What would the yokel dialect be called by Linguists of teh Future?

Angleyish?

TIDOSY? Anyone here this a.m. who speaks acronym?

Also, RB: Condolences.

I don’t wanna look at that sucka’s teeth tooth.

Fixed

When someone’s beloved cockroach dies, it goes between the Rainbow Kitchen Cabinets.

Oh, yea, if you go to yokel’s bbq don’t eat the nana puddin. I hear he uses instant.*

*instant banana pudding, one of the greatest souther insults.

OK figured it out. TIDOSY = Treason-In-Defense-of-Slavery Yankee

http://lefarkins.blogspot.com/2007/08/advantage-blogosphere.html

RE: Alaskans Speak (In A Frightened Whisper): Palin Is “Racist, Sexist, Vindictive, And Mean”
Is this site (LA Progressive) known to anyone?

I don’t know anything about the LA Progressive, but the article seems weak.

But one source that he quotes is evidently good – the Anne Kilkenny letter, from a Wasilla resident who’s known Palin for many years, is authentic and strikes me as a pretty believable description of Palin’s personality.

Thanks cur. And yes indeedy, instant banana pudding is blasphemy.

(“Izzat chore culchun hay-tidge? Dat ain’t MY culchun hay-tidge!”)

He’s got plenty of time to remake himself as centrist Maverick. Remember, no one but us is paying attention until now.

That might be why she is being shuttled to hermetically sealed fundraisers whereas McCain, I presume, will campaign in town halls. She is the most extremely right wing politician to be on a major party presidential ticket in living memory, including people like Goldwater, Nixon, Reagan and Cheney. When her views become known (ban all abortions without exception, the Iraq War is literally a holy war, creationism belongs in the science class, man-made global warming is a hoax, etc.) she will have no utility outside of appeasing the base. If the Dems are any good at all her views will become known. She can’t just lie and deny that those are her views because that would disappoint the righties. I’m not even including her scandals and pathological lying in the equation. The fact that McCain had to waste his VP pick to win over his own party instead of picking someone who brings a valuable state or appeals to the mainstream or, god forbid, actually could aid in governing and be a realistic president-in-waiting, shows how weak is his position.

Unless the GOP can pull off some absolutely miraculous bamboozling, with Palin on the ticket McCain’s maverick image just doesn’t fly.

Speaking of blissfully awesome Southern desserts, here’s the key to the best damn banana pudding ever: Substitute almond extract for half of the vanilla extract. A recipe tip I picked up from my late mother-in-law, who was one of those back-country wimmin whose cooking made you weep with joy. The almond extract trick works well in chocolate chip cookies too, in fact in just about any sweet thing I’ve made except for butterscotch pie. Somehow didn’t really improve that.

Now I want pie.

Hurrrrrrrrr. Told ya I neededed a proof reader.

http://img237.imageshack.us/img237/4218/mct3fh0.gif

More better.

In other news, McT tells the NYT that, “Noooo, we meant to use a school. Really.” And they ate it up like fake banana pudding.

http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/09/05/walter-reede/

Hurrrrrrrrr. Told ya I neededed a proof reader.

http://img237.imageshack.us/img237/4218/mct3fh0.gif

More better.

okay, one link at a time.

In other news, McT tells the NYT that, noooo, we meant to use a school. Really. And they ate it up like fake banana pudding.

http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/09/05/walter-reede/

Dagon / Barracuda ’08!

<iI don’t know anything about the LA Progressive, but the article seems weak

I’ve seen that La Progessive article and from what I can tell much of it is taken verbatim from one of those anonymous chain emails going around. Not reliable.

maybe this link…

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/214219.php

McCain camp to NYT, “No, really. We meant to use a school.”
NYT, “Okay.”

Yes, and that Walter Reed Middle School fiasco shows that the legendary GOP PR machine is not on top of its game.

Boy howdy, here’s one for the whacky file:

The first comment on this editorial:

http://www.rockymountainnews.com/news/2008/sep/03/campos-alaska-uber-alles/

Reveals the conservative’s not-so-secret-anymore desire for secession!

Who wants to chip in for the “don’t let the door hit you on the way out?” fruit basket?

Country First. Alaska Firster?

Few people are tabbed as a “guru” of anything in life. But McCain’s ad man Fred Davis is one such person.
Based on this, it’s obvious the standards for that label have been lowered — evidenced by the hour-long big screen fuck-up during McCain’s speech & the constant griping from GOP speakers/analysts about “teleprompter problems” & such over the three days.
“Guru Fred Davis” was in charge of all that.
Three weeks ago, “Guru Fred” didn’t impress Academy Award actor Robert Duvall, either.
(Via KC Star) Word is that actor Robert Duvall was taping a voice-over for a video for the GOP convo when he profanely objected to direction from media guru Fred Davis.

“If Scorsese couldn’t give me direction, what the hell makes you think you can?” he flared.

Palin MIA from Sunday Shows

See? Instead of proudly showcasing her they have to hide her from the public.

Just checked… Palin isn’t even scheduled to be on Fox News Sunday.

She can stand up to Putin… but not Katie Couric.

Sarah Palin is… The Wingnut In Hiding.

Yes, and that Walter Reed Mondale Middle School fiasco shows that the legendary GOP PR machine is not on top of its game.

Yes, and that Walter Reed Mondale Middle School fiasco shows that the legendary GOP PR machine is not on top of its game.

Ah, hell, that means nothing. They don’t care. They aren’t even paying royalties to artists for the songs they used, the whole convention.

If it makes them look ridiculous, though, that’s a good thing.

Top McCain aide Rick Davis indicated the campaign isn’t in any hurry to slot Palin for a Sunday show appearance — and will do so only if he and other strategists determine it serves the ticket’s purposes … “I’d never commit to anything in the future. … Our strategy is in our hands, not the media’s. We’re going to do what’s in our best interests to try to win the election. If we think going on TV news shows are [sic] in our best interests, we’ll do it. If we don’t, we won’t.”

Translation: “If we think she might fuck up, we’ll pack her off to Juneau to ‘attend to her family.’ On the other hand, if we decide she’s safe enough, we’ll pimp her out to you swine faster than you can say ‘unqualified.’ It totally depends upon our mood. We’ll let you know if we need you. People’s right to know? Ha ha ha! Fuck you very much.”

I’ve seen that La Progessive article and from what I can tell much of it is taken verbatim from one of those anonymous chain emails going around. Not reliable.

Yeah, I agree that the LA Progressive article is untrustworthy. But the ‘anonymous chain e-mail’ you mention is probably the Kilkenny letter I linked to upthread. It’s not anonymous – the Anchorage Daily News has confirmed that the author really is Anne Kilkenny. She’s a longtime resident of Wasilla, has been involved in local politics, and a week ago sent the letter to some friends who had questions about Palin’s personality and background. One of the friends posted the letter online without Kilkenny’s permission. Again, I suspect Kilkenny’s description of Palin is probably accurate.

Palin’s “M” button looks like an up-side-down “W”. It’s creepy. Well, to me at least. I think the McMansion campaign is riddled with saboteurs.

I heard Anne Kilkenny being interviewed on NPR a day or two ago. Here’s the link

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=94332543

It sucks that Ms. Kilkenny got outed. By a friend.

I think the McMansion campaign is riddled with saboteurs.

Every event & tv professional who has commented on the convention are of the opinion that it had to be sabotaged. Or they hired professionals on the order of “my nephew has a Toaster.”

Every event & tv professional who has commented on the convention are of the opinion that it had to be sabotaged. Or they hired professionals on the order of “my nephew has a Toaster.”

Occam’s Razor requires selecting answer b).

The professional commenters are still stuck on ‘Karl Rove is god’ mode, and refuse to comprehend the fact that the Mayberry Machiavellis would never have gotten as far as they have without the outright complicity of the corporate media.

Excerpts from David Frum’s response to a reader.

We are talking about a particular set of decision-making skills – and there is NO EVIDENCE WHATSOEVER that Palin possesses them. Worse, from my point of view, is the assumption that because she is a conservative Christian that she therefore has intelligent conservative views on every other subject, from what to do with Fannie Mae to what to do about Iran. That’s a greater leap of faith than I can make.

[…]

George W. Bush had very slight executive experience before becoming president. His views were not well known. He won the nomination exactly in the same way that Palin has won the hearts of so many conservatives: by sending cultural cues to convince them that he was one of them, understood them, sympathized with them. So that made everything else irrelevant in 2000 – as it seems again to be doing in 2008.

[…]

I am not denying that Sarah Palin may have great skills. She may well. I am insisting that neither you, nor I, nor John McCain has any valid reason to believe that she does. This is not an argument about the attributes she lacks. It’s an argument about the information we lack. I am pleading with my fellow conservatives: Please demand more and better knowledge before you commit yourselves to a political leader. That’s all.

Sorry, David, but that’s not how your side plays the game, and it’s not going to change now. To paraphrase Bill Clinton, someone who did have proven executive experience before he ran for president, Democrats win when people think.

BREAKING!!11!

Sorry for the shout, but you seriously have to check out the real (and surreal) YouTube interview with Miss Alaska.

Check it out.

“No balls.” Heh, indeed.

Where did the choice for Palin come from? I’m not really clear on that. I’ve read that McCain wanted Lieberman, but that choice got nixed by a key adviser (Schmidt? Rove?). Does anyone know who within the McCain campaign pushed for Palin – was it Schmidt, or Rove, or someone else? Since McCain barely knew who she was, I’m assuming that he didn’t come up with the idea.

David Frum:

George W. Bush had very slight executive experience before becoming president. His views were not well known. He won the nomination exactly in the same way (as) Palin…

It sounds like they’re trying to use her to recreate the 2000 election. Bizarre.

Sorry, David, but that’s not how your side plays the game, and it’s not going to change now.

Sarah Palin: Axis of Idiots.

I don’t listen, but the scuttlebutt is that Rush Limp-bough has been backing Mme. Moosedroop all summer long. La Lipsticked Bulldog first came to my attention via one “K-Lo”, over a month ago. And this K-Lo person wouldn’t shut up about Miss Wasilla, either.

P. S.:
WARNING: Above is a blog-hooring trick!! Thanks for the click, suckers!!

Summary: Calling into Sean Hannity’s radio show, Mark Levin said of the National Organization for Women: “It’s not the National Organization of Liberal Women. It’s the National Organization of Ugly Women.” Moments later, after Hannity stated, “[a]pparently [Sen. Barack] Obama took a shot at me again,” Levin responded, “Obama’s obsessed with you. … Maybe he’s attracted to you.”

WHAT’S THAT? YOU’LL HAVE TO SHOUT LOUDER. I CAN’T HEAR YOU OVER THE SOUND OF MARK LEVIN PROTESTETHING TO MUCH!!!!11!1

Official Request for New Thread.

signed, MzNicky

People I trust are messaging me that the Kilkenny letter is legit.

It sounds like they’re trying to use her to recreate the 2000 election. Bizarre.

Well, it worked (by which I mean their guy got into the White House). It’s interesting, though. Back in 2000, Bush was presented as an outside-the-Beltway candidate whose minimal experience and aw-shucks plainspokenness were seen almost as advantages. The righties now claim (pretend?) to be highly dissatisfied with Bush. To counteract the problems caused by the election of this inexperienced governor with more folksy appeal than substance, the Right nominates as VP…an inexperienced governor with more folksy appeal than substance.

It’s basically the 2000 ticket flipped on its head. It’s bizarre…but then again, it did work.

Snopes claims that the Illinois Daily Journal contacted Kilkenny and verified it. Interesting.

So did NPR. h/t to whoever gave this link earlier.

People I trust are SMSing me that OMG, the Kilkenny, you bastards.

Actually, trust no one. Act casual. Or act normal, if casual doesn’t work for you. More later unless MdC returns.

John McCain thinks that winning a $249 million lottery jackpot wouldn’t make you rich.- What does he call it then? Poor??