It Didn't Take Long for Representative Steve Russell to Figure it Out

In France the authorities are currently hunting down a couple of mad dogs. Here in the states at least one freshman congressman found out what it is like when you pander to the ultra right in order to get elected, then don't do exactly what they want.

In this morning's The Oklahoman, Chris Casteel reports it didn't take long for Steve Russell, the state's new fifth district congressman from Oklahoma City, to figure out just how nuts some of his constituency is. Casteel writes Russell's Facebook page was inundated with outraged messages after he voted to keep John Boehner as speaker of the house.

Yes, it would seem Mr. Boehner is, to the surprise of many of us, a sort of closet liberal. His ultimate crime isn't that he agrees with, or supports Barack Obama, but every now and then he is willing to compromise with the president. For that offense many living on the fringe believe he is a traitor to the cause--a fiendish apostate undermining the will of those who are awash in the true faith. The Oklahoman's Washington Bureau chief quoted one woman as telling Russell, "As a Christian we thought you would stand against evil, but with the first vote you have proven to be weak and one who is going to continue to cave to political pressure." Casteel says the woman also told the representative she was sorry her family had put one of his campaign signs in their yard.

According to the story, Russell was surprised by not only the number of messages, but the "uncivil" nature of some of the posts. Oh really, congressman? Exactly what type of wankers did you think were showing up at your rallies this past fall? They certainly weren't members of the Colin Powell fan club.

Just to prove he might be nearly as bats as the people he pissed off, Russell responded on Facebook with a rambling metaphor involving the old testament story of Daniel and Nebuchadnezzar.

It is safe to say the other three Oklahoma members of the house who voted for Boehner received the same sort of responses Russell did. Casteel says republican Tom Cole, who represents the fourth district, was in particular, the target of wild hysteria. After the vote on Tuesday he had called the opposition to Boehner, by members of the GOP," unprofessional."

In all, 25 house republicans, including Tulsa's Jim Bridenstine saved themselves some online grief by voting against the speaker. Being tea party hacks, none of them had a clue when it came to who they thought should actually be in charge of the lower chamber. All any of them knew was they didn't want it to be the old pinko appeaser, John Boehner. In the aftermath that particular posse can count on being stuck in the outback by Boehner who happens to be in charge of  handing out committee assignments. Bridenstine, himself, is most likely a candidate for the House Select Sub-Committee studying the energy potential of dung beetle farts.

Meanwhile the president has dusted off the veto stamp because he understands the GOP's idea of bi-partisanship is him doing everything they want, no matter how outlandish. He also knows the chances of a veto being overridden are next to nil.

So look for gridlock to continue. The only difference from this point until the next election cycle is the republicans will be blaming President Obama and democrats for the dysfunction, rather than the other way around.

In the middle of it all you can look for Steve Russell to kow tow to the tea party mob with an occasional histrionic address on the floor of the house, or possibly a vote along the lines of deporting everyone whose last name ends in a vowel. After all, you can cross those people only so many times before they find someone even crazier than you--then try to get him, or her elected to your seat.

sic vita est

1-8-15

Here They All Come for 2016

Here they all come. They aren't pushing or jostling yet, at least not in earnest, but they are out there, working those select crowds, looking for the big bucks it will take to win the 2016 republican nomination.

There is now no doubt Jeb Bush is in. The Washington Post's Mike Cillizza reported yesterday the former Florida governor and the third member of the Bush family to seek the presidency has not only formed what is being called a "Leadership PAC," but has resigned his spots on various corporate and non profit boards. You don't do those sorts of things unless you've already traded your Burberry suit in for a pair of running shoes and shorts.

In addition it appears former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee is ready to take the plunge. Cillizza writes he has quit his Fox News show because, in the words of the Huckster, "I cannot bring myself to rule out another presidential run." While Huckabee might be confusing television ratings with actual votes, he could be a force in the early primaries as a viable alternative to someone like Ted Cruz. The problem is he has been there before and failed miserably, so it will be interesting to see if people like Sheldon Adelson and the Koch brothers are willing to back a long shot.

We pretty much know the rest of the crowd who is busily groveling for cash. Rick Perry has tried to re-invent himself  by pretending he has a functioning brain. However, he might not even be able to win his home state's primary, because of the presence of  Senator Ted Cruz in the race. Cruz, who is, quite frankly, delusional has his own problems. He actually believes the tea party yokels who cheer so long and hard for him at town hall meetings and select gatherings of the faithful represent a majority of the American people. In addition he's a one note Johnny. His only clear idea is to shut down the government and he harps on it every chance he can get. When he got his way once the maneuver backfired terribly on him and his party, but the P.R. disaster which ensued hasn't even seemed to register with him. There isn't a single poll of republican voters out there right now which shows him leading among people who are to the left of--well--him.

Chris Christie is in, but won't be able to win a primary any where south of Pennsylvania and west of Illinois. Rand Paul is too, but his libertarian bent might be a bit hard to swallow for many in the GOP.

The rest are a bunch of losers who will be gone within three, or four primaries past Iowa. Bobby Jindal of Louisiana, Ohio governor John Kasich, Dr. Ben Carson, Marco Rubio and Rick Santorum are simply wasting every one's time and money, including their own. Let's face it, three years ago Santorum lasted only as long as he did because no one on the far right really wanted Mitt Romney. They just couldn't find anyone, to beat him. Of this batch, Wisconsin governor, Scott Walker might have a little more staying power, but that is simply a hunch. 

Cillizza reports it cost Mitt Romney $76.6 million to win the republican primary in 2012. That is a load of Benjamans. Especially when you consider the winner this time will end up facing Hillary Rodham Clinton who should need to spend about twenty-three dollars and change during her primary season, plus she'll have the backing of every major democratic donor on the planet earth.

The feeling here is Bush is the real player to watch. He will end up with the vast majority of the mainstream republican money and he plays well to the middle. Of course he has to get there and the tea party loons come out in force during the primaries.  And--as we all know--they will only vote for some lunatic who promises tanks on the Rio Grande and mass deportations at the point of a gun.

The major upsides for the republicans are their backers, with only a couple of exceptions, have far deeper pockets than the democrats and in most cases the nation is loathe to extend one party's control of the White House more than eight years in a row. It has happened only once since the day Franklin Delano Roosevelt died. The torch was passed from Ronald Reagan to George Herbert Walker Bush. Four years later he had his head handed to him by Mrs. Clinton's husband.

There is a long way to go and many will want to serve, but only one will be chosen. The early money is on Jeb Bush, but hey, early bets can lead to disaster. Just look where the University of Oklahoma's football team started out in the polls in late August and where they ended up at a few days ago.

Ladies and gentlemen, as always, the bar is open.


1-5-15

David Duke is a Racist? Hey, Who Knew?

David Duke emerged from the darkness back in the early 1970's. He showed up on a late night NBC television show hosted by Tom Snyder. You could tell from the very first he was a smarmy little Eddie Haskell type looking for attention. He was, in his own mind anyway, the new and improved face of the Ku Klux Klan.

On the program the young Grand Wizard talked about black racism, hinted that many of the white players on the LSU football team were a part of his Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, and bragged there were more Klan members in the north than the south. All of it seemingly shocked and appalled Snyder and amused David Duke to no end.

He graduated from Louisiana State and eventually got a "Doctorate," from something called the Ukrainian Inter-Regional Academy of Personnel Management. Wikipedia reports his doctoral thesis was titled, "Zionism as a Form of Ethnic Supremacism."

Later he served one term in the Louisiana state legislature. His time there was described by one person as being short and uninspired. He also ran for congress, then later for president, once as a democrat and a second time as a republican. Right before he went to jail for filing a false tax return and mail fraud, he founded a group called the European-American Unity and Rights Organization.

Given all that it is safe to say pretty much everyone knows who this vile clown is and what sort of people he associates with.

If you believe the new majority whip in congress, Steve Scalise, who also happens to be from Louisiana, he isn't one of them. Back in 2002 he spoke to Duke's group during his campaign for the house. Now that the revelation has gone public the congressman is taking heat from all sorts of people both republican and democrat.

His response has been he didn't know what sort of group Duke was running. He was quoted as saying, "I didn't know who all those groups were. I detest any kind of hate group."

If the representative is really telling the truth you might reasonably think he would have realized he was in the wrong sort of place after he saw all the confederate battle flags and white pride banners hanging in the room he was speaking in.

Scalise maintains he, "...spoke to a lot of groups during that period." He claims he was such an equal opportunity speaker he even delivered a talk to the League of Women voters, an organization he says is a, "pretty liberal group."

Well compared to Duke's outfit, pretty liberal is probably an apt description of the League, which has always been considered nonpartisan by everyone with a functioning brain.

The congressman is not to worry though. His old pal David Duke came to his defense during an interview with Fusion. The Huffington Post reports during the interview Duke said Scalise is a, "fine family man," and one he often agrees with.

Duke was also quoted in the article as saying, "If Scalise is going to be crucified--if republicans want to throw Steve Scalise to the wolves then a lot of them better be looking over their shoulders."

In other words I have a list of names of people, from both parties, who have cozied up to me in the past and if you ass holes keep hounding my main man I'll make them all public.

In certain quarters this is known as extortion. When it comes to Congressman Scalise, however, it could be the kiss of death. That's right, when you have David Duke, quite publicly, in your corner there are very few escape routes.

Speaker John Boehner and majority leader Kevin McCarthy both have Scalise's back, at least right now. They claim he simply screwed up and it is nothing to worry about, because the congressman from Louisiana is a decent guy who really does despise the people whose support he actively sought. Both of them  failed to mention Scalise voted against making Martin Luther King's birthday a state holiday when he was in the Louisiana house. It was a vote which took place nearly two decades after Ronald Reagan made it a national holiday.

Yes some skeletons are best left in the closet. Why roil the waters even more?

The hope here is Duke releases all sorts of names. Indeed, let's find out who these fuckers are and then we can work to rid ourselves of them.

Ultimately what it comes down to is this: Steve Scalise--a tea party sort of guy--is either a racist, wanted the help of racists, or is an idiot.

He is also the third ranking member in the majority party of the United States House of Representatives.

So much for an optimistic start to the year of our Lord, 2015.

If you wish to reach me I'll be at the far end of the bar.


1-2-15

New Year's Eve Dispatches: Not the Least Bit Irresponsible in Hayden, Leelah Alacorn Makes a Choice, and Flight QZ8501

The end of the year hasn't been particularly festive for many people. In fact it looks just as dreadful in some quarters as it has been in many others over the past 11 months.

On Tuesday morning Veronica J. Rutledge took her two year old son and three nieces shopping at the Hayden, Idaho Wal-Mart. They were there so they could cash in some gift cards they received on Christmas day.

Hayden is located in Kootenai County which has a population of 140,000 people. The AP reports 16,000 of those souls have permits to carry concealed weapons. Veronica Rutledge was one of them.

She was by all accounts highly intelligent. She graduated from the University of Idaho with a degree in chemistry and was working as a nuclear scientist at the Idaho National Laboratory. Her father-in-law, Terry Rutledge described her as, "Not the least bit irresponsible."

Right now his description of her is rather difficult to accept. The AP says Ms. Rutledge stepped away from her shopping cart that morning, leaving two things in it. One was her son and the other was her purse. Inside the purse was a small caliber hand gun. It didn't take long for the inevitable to happen. The boy got into the purse, pulled out the weapon, and it went off. The bullet struck his mother in the head and she died shortly afterward.

Two things are now certain. First the child will grow up without his mother. Second, he will have to live his entire life with the knowledge he killed her. Was it an accident? Of course it was. Was it preventable? Absolutely. But now a baby is going to spend decades visiting some psychiatrist because of people who think they can't leave home without a loaded weapon.

Tell me again how free we are because we can carry guns.

The next nightmare comes from Vox.com. It reports that on Sunday, 17 year old Leelah Alcorn was run over by a tractor trailer rig on some stretch of highway in Ohio. It wasn't an accident. Alcorn, who was transgender and had previously said she felt like a girl trapped in a boy's body since the age of four, committed suicide.

In a note left on Tumblr she wrote her parents insisted she be, "the perfect little straight Christian boy."

So much for all those conservative, born again, yahoos who believe gays and transgendered people choose to be the way they are. You don't choose a lifestyle which is not only repugnant to your parents, but leaves you feeling so utterly alone that killing yourself becomes your only option.

Finally, in the Java Sea the terrible process of recovering bodies has begun. Pieces of the wreckage of Air Asia flight QZ8501 have been located and Reuters is reporting at least seven bodies have been pulled out of the water.

There is no word on the cause of the crash, although, as always, there is speculation and reports which may, or may not be confirmed. According to one official the plane had requested to climb from 32,000 feet to 38,000. Air traffic controllers waited a few minutes, then finally gave the flight permission to go to an altitude of 34,000 feet. Right now the official says no response was received and there was no distress signal.

The same unnamed person said radar indicated the Airbus A320-200 had gone into a climb which was described as, "...very high, too high." There were also reports that not only was the rate of climb outside the capabilities of the aircraft, its air speed was too slow. All of that indicates an aerodynamic stall--the God awful moment when the plane's engines and design are no longer viable. Then, after a breathless pause, rather like the apex of a divers launch off the high board into a pool, the aircraft begins to plunge toward the water--trapped by the unforgiving law of gravity

By now we all should know there will be nothing more than educated guesses until the plane's black box is recovered, which may take weeks. Until then the conspiracy theorists will rail on about some proto-type tractor beam on the international space station which malfunctioned during a test. Think not? At least one of them currently claims the tragedy of QZ8501 was a "red flag" ops meant to distract every ones attention from the disappearance Malaysia Airlines flight MH370--which was either a black flag, false flag, or some other type of fucking flag operation.

Warhol said everyone will be famous for 15 minutes. The world wide web allows everyone, including myself, to be a journalist for about the same amount of time.

It is the nature of the 21st century.

2014 will be gone in a few hours and the new year is about to begin. Despite some fantasies of optimism my advice always remains the same. Stay low, keep moving, and for God's sake, don't bunch up. Hey, we don't want the bastards to get us all with one burst.



sic vita est


12-31-14

Air Asia Flight QZ8501

Rest assured your pilot is well prepared to ensure your plane will never get lost.

From an article published in Travel 3Sixty, the in flight magazine of Air Asia.




That bit of hubris created a public relations nightmare for the budget minded carrier when it first appeared in March of this year. That's because on the 8th of the same month Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 flew off into the twilight zone with 239 passengers and crew aboard. Even as they apologized for the article and pulled the magazine, Air Asia executives were claiming the magazine was printed before the Malaysian aircraft went missing.

Now the piece, written by a retired pilot, has come back to haunt them again, because despite the sunny promise, an Air Asia pilot has indeed lost a plane.

Early reports vary some, but all agree flight QZ8501 disappeared off radar screens Sunday morning at 6:24 am local time. A few say the flight crew requested to make a turn in order to avoid storms in the area, which ground controllers agreed to. Other accounts don't mention the turn at all. Shortly after the possible course change the pilot asked permission to climb from 32,000 feet to 38,000. Again, sources vary in detail about what happened next. At least one claims the decision to allow the Air Bus A320-200 to climb was put off for four minutes because another flight in the area was at that altitude. By the time air traffic controllers decided to allow the shift the plane was lost. Another says the pilot was given permission to go only to 34,000 feet which he presumably did. Then a few minutes later, just before controllers were going to let him go the extra 4,000 the flight was gone from the radar.There wasn't a distress call, or at least not one received.

Which ever is the case, the 155 passengers and seven crew are now presumed lost somewhere in the Java Sea. In the words of one Indonesian official flight QZ8501 is, "likely at the bottom of the sea." Search teams from Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and Australia are searching an area of ocean roughly the size of New Mexico, so far without success. One report claims, "suspicious," objects were been spotted floating around, but they are close to 700 miles from the aircraft's last reported position.

As with MH370 confusion and wild rumors seem to reign in the early stages of the search. It is a situation which will, no doubt, fuel the unhinged imaginations of conspiracy theorists everywhere. If the wreckage isn't found in a couple of days all sorts of wild stories about CIA black ops, particle rays, and American Death Stars will begin to infest places like You Tube.

The simple fact is there are major differences in the circumstances of the disappearances, but they probably won't squelch rumors of a computerized hijacking and secret landing strips in Vietnam.

MH370 appeared to deliberately hide from radar screens for hours on end, while the Air Asia flight was heading into turbulent weather and trying to get both around and above it. There wasn't an attempt by someone on board to turn off all the technology which allows it to be tracked.

In addition an NBC report noted the Java Sea is well traveled and averages a depth of anywhere from 130 to 160 feet. It is a far cry from the vast expanse of empty and extremely deep ocean most experts believe MH370 fell into. In other words, the odds of finding QZ8501 are much better.

None of that will be of comfort to family and friends of the passengers and crew who are now coming to grips with a terrible truth. Yes, this latest disaster probably won't have all the mystery and speculation, but their loved ones will still be dead and that is what matters the most. Then, in a few weeks, or months, when shock and grief turns to anger, we all know the next step will be massive litigation. Lawyers everywhere in southeast Asia are already lining up for a shot at the air line.

In the aftermath of the tragedy, Air Asia CEO, Tony Fernandes seems to have come down with a distinct case of reality. Yesterday he told the press, "Until today we have never lost a life, but I think any airline CEO who says he can guarantee that his airline is 100 percent safe is not accurate."

That's one way of putting it.

Another is human technology will never be perfect, or able to completely conquer the brute forces of nature. And--when our arrogance allows us to forget it--people have always perished.



sic vita est

12-29-14

"The Interview," Redux

So what happened next is Sony pictures grew tired of being called a bunch of cowards. The corporation reversed gears and released the film, "The Interview," on Christmas Day just like they originally planned. Well, sort of.

After some murky outfit calling itself The Guardians of Peace issued terrorist threats the large theater chains here and in Canada refused to show the movie. They still won't. However, Sony found just over 300 independent theater owners who know a golden opportunity when they see one. For the first time in decades they were able to get their hands on a hot property the mega chains wouldn't touch--you know--a feature which didn't happen to be epic pornography, or an abject dud starring people who made terrible career choices.

Yesterday they had lines of customers running down the sidewalks in front of their places in numbers they previously only dreamed about. In addition Sony released the movie on You Tube, Google Play, a dedicated web site run by the company, and the Microsoft Xbox gaming console.

Things didn't go completely without a hitch. Xbox and Sony's Play Station were hacked on Wednesday night and both were still encountering problems as late as yesterday. Another band of merry trouble makers calling themselves, the Lizard Squad took credit. What they have to do with The Democratic People's Republic of Korea and the Guardians of Peace, if anything, is unclear at this time.

A spokesperson for the DPRK called the film, "An unpardonable mockery to the dignity of our supreme leader." The Russians said the North Koreans anger was, "quite understandable." Earlier, among other things, the Chinese accused Seth Rogen and crew of, "cultural arrogance." At home it appears American television talk show hosts, who the film also skewers, haven't taken it so personally--at least not yet.

NBC interviewed a few movie goers who bragged about standing up for freedom of expression and doing, "The most American thing." From a Hawaiian golf course Barack Obama said he was glad the film was being released. Rogen took to a stage, beer in hand, at a midnight showing somewhere and thanked both the theater and audience for, "making this fucking thing happen."

Yes, but exactly how far can all this patriotic frenzy carry a film which cost between $42 and $44 million to make? According to reports the movie took in $1 million yesterday. The original estimate by Sony was that from Christmas Day through the weekend in wide release it would gross $20 million.

It is a number which, at this point, seems completely unattainable.  Those 300 plus screens represent less than 10% of the number of venues which Sony had originally planned on. Not to mention there is no telling how many deft keyboardists are out there at this moment watching it for free thanks to their nefarious computer skills.

Sony might talk about freedom of expression, but they are, after all, looking  to make a buck. Ultimately, if there is no profit in a motion picture they could give a rat's ass about freedom of expression.

As for the film itself, right now, Rotten Tomatoes gives "The Interview," a rating of 45%, meaning a majority of critics they've surveyed have panned it. MovieFone has it at 53%. In the NBC piece, after viewing the film, one patron told a reporter, "It was hilarious in a stupid way."

In other words it ranks right up there with the average American male's opinion of those old Three Stooges short films.

That's right, America can be accused of many things, but having a sophisticated sense of humor will never be one of them.

Technology may change, but we won't. We are constantly crude to the extreme. We always have been and always will be.

It was something I first realized during my freshman year at the University of Oklahoma in 1968. The sophomores who were mercilessly hazing us wore black tee shirts which said, "If you can't take a joke, fuck you."

Indeed. Nothing says America more than that.



12-26-14

James Woods and Pat Lynch Know Who to Blame

Well James Woods certainly knows how to defuse racial tensions. Following the murder of two New York City police officers on Saturday night the actor, who usually plays some sort of slimy villain in motion pictures, posted a short series of messages on twitter. The first, which was later deleted, read, "This disgusting pig is DIRECTLY responsible for the murder of two good policemen. No discussion." The text was accompanied by a photo of Reverend Al Sharpton.

In addition he tweeted, "I'm putting wings on pigs today--cop assassin Ismaaiyl Brinsley. Is race pimp Al Sharpton eating caviar this morning?"

In a third post he wrote, "Sony has hired race racketeer and tax cheat Al Sharpton for its board. Imagine this: #BoycottSony until he is ousted." This means Mr. Woods is on the Hate Sony Bandwagon with some highly questionable people, although for different reasons. Hey, just check out the latest news releases from North Korea if you think I'm in error.

The putting wings on pigs line was lifted from an instagram message from Brinsley who, shortly before he murdered the two officers wrote, "I'm putting wings on pigs. They take 1 of ours. Let's take 2 of theirs."

To say Mr. Brinsley didn't like the police is a bit of an understatement, but then he didn't seem to like anyone very much. Earlier in the day, down in the Baltimore area, he shot and critically wounded his ex-girl friend, Shaneka Nicole Thompson who isn't on a police force anywhere. There is no word if Jimmy Woods blames Sharpton for that act of violence too, although he seems on a roll and probably will somewhere down the line.

According to reports, the police had popped Brinsley at least 19 times in the past, mostly in Georgia for petty gangster wannabe stuff. New York City Police Commissioner Bill Bratton was quoted as saying he had also attempted suicide last year.

Of course not everyone blames the good reverend for the deaths of officers Wenjian Liu and Raphael Ramos. The president of the New York City police union, Patrick Lynch issued a statement which said, "There is blood on many hands tonight. That blood on the hands starts on the steps of city hall in the office of the mayor." His reasoning is the mayor has begun to rethink police training and procedures when it comes to minorities and His Honor also seemed to question a grand jury's finding.

All this began when a Staten Island panel refused to indict NYPD officers in the death of Eric Garner on December third, despite a ruling by the medical examiner which said his death was a homicide. Garner, a master criminal who committed the heinous crime of selling individual untaxed cigarettes on a street corner, died in July after police took him to the sidewalk in a choke hold. The decision came hard on the heels of a Missouri grand jury verdict which failed to indict Ferguson, MO policeman Darren Williams after he shot and killed an unarmed African American, Michael Brown.

Sharpton's National Action Network organized protests in Missouri and New York. In every instance Sharpton has called for peaceful and non-violent demonstrations. After the tragedy in Brooklyn he was quoted as saying, "Any use of the names of Eric Garner and Michael Brown in connection with violence, or killing of police is reprehensible and against the pursuit of justice in both cases."

There is no pleasing some people though. It looks as if Woods and Lynch believe if you exercise your constitutional right to actually question the actions of the police, you're actively telling members of the community to kill cops.

Yeah, yeah and those of us who protested the Vietnam conflict not only committed treason, but ultimately cost us the war.

In the end, there is no questioning the bravery and service of the overwhelming majority of police. On the other hand, however, there can be no questioning the anger and frustration felt by a portion of the population who are routinely rousted simply because of the color of their skin. Finally there can be no question those people and others have the right to peacefully speak their minds and demonstrate.

There are plenty of insane people in this country and practically every one of them has a loaded gun. All they need is an excuse.

Tragically, like too many Americans of every race, Ismaaiyl Brinsley finally found one and last Saturday he acted on it.



12-22-14