Happy Hour Discurso

Today's opining on the public discourse.

These dumbshits just don't know when to stop, do they?

This past weekend, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano warned against allowing “anti-Muslim sentiment” to emanate from the shooting at Fort Hood by Major Nidal Malik Hasan. But that is exactly what some conservatives are doing. Dave Gaubatz, the controversial author of the controversial Muslim Mafia, called yesterday for “a professional and legal backlash against the Muslim community and their leaders.” On his 700 Club TV show yesterday, Pat Robertson claimed that Islam is “not a religion,” but “a violent political system bent on the overthrow of the governments of the world and world domination”:

ROBERTSON: That is the ultimate aim. And they talk about infidels and all this, but the truth is that’s what the game is. So you are dealing with not a religion. You’re dealing with a political system. And I think we should treat it as such and treat its adherences as such as we would members of the Communist Party or members of some fascist group. Well, it’s a tragedy. Our hearts go out to the families who suffered. But those in the Army should be held on account for the fact they let this man loose.

Gee.  Not a religion.  That'll come as quite the shock to the folks who wrote my comparative religion textbook, not to mention the - lessee - 1.57 billion people who are under the impression that they are, in fact, practicing a religion rather than "a political system."

As for Pat claiming we should treat them like we do Communists or fascists, I don't know what country he's living in - last I checked, they were treated about the same way as Muslims - as widely despised minorities that nevertheless has the same First Amendment freedoms as the rest of us.  Indeed, the same freedoms as Pat "Ginormous Fucktard" Robertson himself has.  And I'm here to tell you, atheist that I am, that I'd take a Muslim over a lot of the frothing fundies and fascists, any damned day of the week. 

But I guess I'm missing the point.  Pat Robertson is a frothing fundie fucktard whose ignorance and bigotry knows no bounds.  Always has been, always will be.  So why waste time spanking him when I could be spanking Cons in Congress instead?

Yesterday, the conservative author of the new book Muslim Mafia, the foreword of which was penned by Rep. Sue Myrick (R-NC), explicitly called for a "professional and legal backlash against the Muslim community and their leaders" in response to the Fort Hood shootings.

So last night, we called Myrick's office to see if she had a response to Dave Gaubatz's remarks, given that his book, with her foreword, was released just last month. Since then, Myrick and three other House Republicans have cited the book as the source of their calls for a probe of Muslim intern "spies" in Congress.

Here's Myrick's statement, which does not denounce, or even address, Gaubatz's call for a backlash:

While I will continue to challenge radical Islamists and point out their ties to terrorism, I have been and will continue to work with mainstream moderate Muslim leaders because the only way to stop radicalization, and prevent the spread of this radical ideology, is to support these Muslim leaders in engaging their own community.

That's not a condemnation, Rep. Myrick.  That's not even decent spin.  All it proves is that you're still manifestly unfit for public office.  Alas, voters can all too often be absolute idiots.  See: Teabaggers.

I mean, seriously.  Even the frothing fundie fucktards behind Muslim Mafia were ashamed enough to do a half-hearted scrub of their site:

We don't know if this is reason for hope, or just low comedy. But the right-wing think tank that published conservative author Dave Gaubatz's call for a backlash against the "Muslim community" has now scrubbed the line and replaced it with a call for a backlash against the "Muslim Brotherhood."

Click the link if you want to see what a piss-poor job they did of it, but still, at least they tried.  Is it too much to ask Cons in Congress to at least make that much effort?

While we're on the subject of bigoted fucktards, let's talk about Ralph Murdoch, who's apparently done having a truce with the White House and didn't get the memo 81 advertisers sent him by canceling their ads on Beck's show:

And just a few days after Wallace's love-fest with Limbaugh, Fox News owner Rupert Murdoch told Sky News Australia that Glenn Beck's infamous anti-Obama tirade -- Beck called the president a "racist" with "a deep-seated hatred for white people or white culture" -- was accurate.

SKY NEWS: The Glenn Beck, who you mentioned, has called Barack Obama a racist and he helped organize a protest against him. Others on Fox have likened him to Stalin. Is that defensible?

MURDOCH: No, no, no, not Stalin, I don't think. I don't know who that, not one of our people. On the racist thing, that caused a grilling. But he did make a very racist comment. Ahhh ... about, you know, blacks and whites and so on, and which he said in his campaign he would be completely above. And um, that was something which perhaps shouldn't have been said about the President, but if you actually assess what [Beck] was talking about, [Beck] was right.

A few things. First, Murdoch may not watch Fox News, but on-air efforts to equate Obama with Stalin are fairly common.

Second, Beck was "right" when he called the president a "racist" with "a deep-seated hatred for white people or white culture"? Murdoch isn't even willing to distance himself from obvious insanity -- which just so happens to have displeased 81 advertisers?

And third, within seven days of a reported "truce" between the Republican network and the Democratic White House, this is what we're seeing. I guess the "truce" is over?

Apparently so.  Then again, when could one ever trust Faux News, right?

The White House is apparently bored with the whole thing, because they're ignoring Murdoch's shot across their bows.  I think that's a good call.  Histrionic narcissists like that can't stand being ignored.  It should prod Murdoch to ever-greater heights of stupidity, and then we'll see if Faux News gets sucked into a deep black hole of same.

Should be fun.

Speaking of racists.... seems Michael Steele might just be surrounded:

It's been a couple of weeks since the RNC's Michael Steele said something foolish and had to walk it back, so I suppose we were due for another gem.

Republican National Committee (RNC) chairman Michael Steele, who is known for making controversial statements, on Sunday said that white Republicans are afraid of him. [...]

The Republican chairman appeared on NewsOne's "Washington Watch" this weekend, a new Sunday political talk show aimed at a black audience. The host, Roland Martin, asked Steele how Republicans could reach out to black voters.

Roland Martin noted that he's long believed that white Republicans "have been scared of black folks."

Steele replied, "You're absolutely right. I mean I've been in the room and they've been scared of me."

From Steele's perspective, if he walks into a room of his fellow Republicans, and they're afraid of him, shouldn't that tell him a little something about his party's approach to diversity?

Probably, but he seems a little slow on the uptake.  Either that, or this is some elaborate prank at the GOP's expense, in which case he'll have to go down as one of the most brilliant pranksters in history.

Let's return to media assclowns for a moment.  Raise your hand if you're shocked that the New York Post has it in for Obama:

The Huffington Post’s Sam Stein reports today that a fired New York Post employee, Sandra Guzman, has filed a complaint against the Post, the paper’s parent company News Corp., and Post editor-in-chief Col Allan “alleging harassment as well as ‘unlawful employment practices and retaliation.’” Stein reports that Guzman “paints the Post newsroom as a male-dominated frat house and Allan in particular as sexist, offensive and domineering. Guzman alleges that she and others were routinely subjected to misogynistic behavior.” But in addition to horrible workplace conditions, the Post’s news division is operating with a clear partisan bias, according to Guzman. She said the Post’s Washington D.C. bureau chief vowed to bring down President Obama:

She says that hiring practices at the paper — as well as her firing — were driven by racial prejudices rather than merit.

And she recounts the paper’s D.C. bureau chief stating that the publication’s goal was to “destroy [President] Barack Obama.”

My goodness, what a bombshell- a paper owned by the same shitheels that own Faux News want to bring down the President?  Never!  Wait a second - what color was the sky this morning?  Gray?  And we're where - Seattle?  Oh.  Yeah.  Right.  We're not in Bizarroworld and it's perfectly normal for a major media outlet owned by News Corp to go after the elected President of the United States for the crime of being a black Democrat.

On to Cons, then.  My darlings, Steve Benen found a perfect gem, and I will share it with you - but first, you must ensure you have nothing in your mouths that could cause you to choke or spray delicate electronics.

Ready?

Here ye go:

From Sen. David Vitter (R-LA) ...

Met with FDA today to make case for LA oysters - will keep pushing to protect these LA jobs and our ability to enjoy raw Gulf oysters.

As Steve said, "Note to Sen. David Vitter (R-La.): Given your sex scandals, it's best not to talk too much about your efforts to protect raw oysters."  Too fucking right.

Do you know how desperate Cons are for attacks?  Carly Fiorna's going after Sen. Barbara Boxer for wanting to be called Senator instead of ma'am.  Seriously.

What else can you expect from a bunch of fucktards still stuck in the 90s?

John Cole said it best when he said:

The funny thing about all of this is that no matter how bad all their ideas are, no matter how disastrous their governance has been, no matter how many horrible things they have done to the economy and this country, what really is killing the Republican party is that deep down, they are just complete assholes. You see it in the way they treat women, you see it in the way they treat minorities, you see it in the way they treat homosexuals, you see it in the way they treat anyone who is not a white Christian, and you see it in the way they treat anyone who disagrees with them slightly about anything. They just have no respect for anyone, and it shows. People don’t like to be treated like crap, and grown-ups don’t want to be associated with people who yell “You lie” or scream “socialism” or “Hitler” or accuse you of being a terrorist whenever they don’t get their way.

If you read the Corner or the Weekly Standard, or listen to any talk radio or any of the mouth breathers on Fox, or read any right-wing blogs, you will instantly know what I am talking about. You can’t help but notice that they are just loudmouthed jerks, stubborn bully boys, and insensitive and insecure cads. James Wolcott once wrote that Eric Cantor looked like the “pricky proprietor of the Jerk Store,” and that could be applied to the majority of the prominent Republicans out there. I guess that should be suspected from a movement in which the only thoughts are “Fuck you, I got mine.”

Ladies and gentlemen, the above two paragraphs are the only things you shall ever need to know about the Con party.  Clip them.  Save them.  Keep them handy for when we go forth to conquer come next election.