Riverdaughter

I know, we all have this problem. Seems to happen all the time. Under completely unexpected circumstances, and in a nightmarish election… you meet an internet blogger whom you deeply respect. Yet your political views are so disparate that your names might as well be Felix Unger and Oscar Madison, or Mary Matalin and James Carville. What do you do? If you’re a poet, you write a poem. At least I did.

Not long ago, in a faraway land,

Which King Markos ruled with his iron hand,

A blogger was found who dared to dissent,

And the king’s views would not represent.

Against her the banner of hatred unfurled,

At her were insults with cruelty hurled,

Though more decent folk, angry at the disgrace,

Rose to the defense of the chemistry ace.

While the king’s minions ranted and railed,

She took to the internet’s high seas and sailed,

And at the Confluence where the two rivers meet,

New interlocutors made ready to greet.

Yourself I could hardly gainsay or blame,

If, from her red hair resembling a flame,

You’d think, as I do, that in her is consigned

A fire that burns in her heart and her mind.

If beauty and brilliance you could behold,

In a scientist, but her name you’d withhold,

And you said her hair were as bright as a flame,

I think I’d know her– Riverdaughter’s her name.

Now from a man standing well to her right,

Whose heart once compassion felt at her plight,

This panegyric be well on its way,

To her, to make it uniquely her day.

The Lions Share Returns

And the Lions are not sleeping tonight.  We’ll be discussing Obama reneging on his oil company windfall profits tax idea (I know you are all shocked by that), Ed Rendell apologizing for a sexist remark, and Bill Richardson’s lack of a beard.  Can lack of facial hair improve the looks of a back stabbing, weasling traitor?

Join us tonight at 8PM EST on the Lions Share on PUMA United Radio (PURrrr)

But Hillary Voted For The Warrrrrr!

Hillary The Devil!!!111!!!

Bloody hands. Warmonger. NeoCon DLC AIPAC hack. These were all words used by “progressives” to describe Hillary Clinton during the primaries. It was the excuse they all gave for claiming that Obama was a progressive and ever so far to the left of Hillary on foreign policy. Now what for the Obamasphere, as their progressive hero has appointed many Clintonites, including Hillary herself, to be Cabinet members and close advisors? (More schadenfreude: As of today, we can add one more Clintonite to the column – Bill Richardson as Commerce Secretary. Expect more impotent howling from Blogosphere 1.0.)

Let me spell it out for you, Obamans: Obama. Was. Lying.

Obama successfully used his speech against invading Iraq in 2002 to cover the fact that he and Hillary are virtually identical in terms of foreign policy. I have always thought this, and have maintained that Hillary will always be too hawkish for me because I’m more in the Dennis Kucinich mold when it comes to war and peace. For me, the reason to prefer her over him was never that she was to the left or right of him regarding Iraq; it was the fact that she had served on the Senate Armed Services Committee, had always been a friend to our troops in need, and had a long list of accomplishments and contacts in the world outside of America. In other words, EXPERIENCE. And frankly, seeing that Obama has kept Robert Gates on as SecDef, and seeing how Hillary dissed him completely during the press conference (she was supposed to introduce him, but did not do so or even look at him), I wonder if she is a little more dovish than he. But I suppose we will never know the answer to that question.

In any case, Barack Obama sure squeezed a lot of mileage out of that speech, didn’t he? He used it to bamboozle and okie-doke the Obamasphere, which was all too willing to buy his baloney because of the fact that he wasn’t a Clinton or a scary female-type-person. He thundered on and on about his superior judgment because of that speech, and when Bill Clinton tried to expose his true position on the war, Obama was quick to brand him a racist in order to prevent inconvenient facts like this from oozing out to the CDS-possessed, factually-challenged, Obama-worshiping “progressives:”

The former president had been complaining the news media paid too little attention to Obama’s record on the war. Then, he pointed an accusing finger at Obama.

“You said in 2004 there was no difference between you and George Bush on the war, and you took that speech you’re now running on off your Web site in 2004. There’s no difference in your voting record and Hillary’s ever since. Give me a break. This whole thing is the biggest fairy tale I’ve ever seen,” he said.

So, Obama took that 2002 speech, which he claimed represented the bestest judgment evah, off his own website in 2004 in order to push a more “moderate” line on the war once he became a U.S. Senator and would, you know, have to back up his words with actions. Lest you doubt Bill, Obama did exactly the same thing with his language on “the surge,” once he told Bill O’Reilly that it was a success: he changed his website, replacing his earlier, correct position with a more “moderate” (i.e., right-wing) position to reflect his ever-changing, yet oh-so-deeply-held, progressive principles.

Surprise surprise, Obots, Obama is a hawk.

 

Consolation Prize

It has been no secret to anyone who knows me personally, through family, work, friends and even sometimes complete strangers that I supported Hillary Clinton for President of the United States in 2008. It is also has never been a secret with any of them my complete outrage at the DNC’s for it’s treatment and the media’s sexist and misogynistic treatment of Hillary. Many times, both men and women looked down upon my truth telling. Sometimes, people got the point and understood. Mostly though, it was chalked up as politics. They wondered if I understood that. Which really pissed me off, because of course I understood it was politics. What they failed to recognize is that it wasn’t just politics as usual, it was sexist politics. I did my best to relate all the truth, through facts regarding the disparate treatment of Hillary and Sarah. I was looked at by many as a woman who was emotional and ready to blame all men for the ills of society. That I saw sexism lurking behind every corner and every comment and that I was reaching to make the point. Then I would get even more pissed because that denial by them of cold hard facts was sexist in itself. I haven’t given up on pointing it out where ever I can. I still argue, converse and try to get people to see it. They still think I am an over emotional, paranoid freak. A feminazi.

So it has been just about a month to the day of the election of Barack Obama as President of the United States. Now, most people want to know how I feel about Hillary being selected as Secretary of State. They seem very pleased with it and want to know if I am pleased as well. Like after all my bitching and moaning, Hillary finally got her due, her consolation prize, aren’t I finally happy? Wasn’t it wonderful of Obama to pick her? He put all that nastiness of the primary season behind him. Can’t I just forget what happened from January through August and be happy for Hillary and stop with all the sexist bullshit. This selection of Hillary should make me extremely happy. Well, not quite.

I am pleased that Hillary has an opportunity to do something she wants to do, and I am sure she will do a damn fine job as Secretary of State. I am pleased for the country because I know she can handle the position. That is politics. But that is no consolation for anything that happened during the primaries of 2008. Please make no mistake about it. I will not shut up about what happened this year because Hillary was picked as Secretary of State. I wish people would stop trying to make me accept the consolation prize. I reject it. I cringe when people ask me how I feel about it because they think I should feel great about it. That it makes everything else ok. In just asking the question of me they are pointing out to me that sexism isn’t as bad as I thought. They just don’t get it. It is no consolation. It addresses nothing that happened in the primaries. It is only used to try to help me forget what happened. Sorry to say, I won’t forget! Everyone will just have to listen to me point out sexism where it lurks, where it is in your face and when you can barely see it. I’m still pissed everyone. Sorry family, friends and co-workers and some strangers.

Wednesday: Obamalama-ding-dang

It looks like the media is settling in for some nice narratives.  Let’s take a look at what Obama and Mom-inChief have to look forward to in the next four years.

Ahhh, yes, well that didn’t take long.  Obama is reported to have ordered a $30,000 rhodium and diamond ring for Michelle.  Isn’t that sweet.

Rhodium? Who knew?!

(Note to BFF- I don’t like the shape.  It’s too bulky for my long skinny finger.  It would look like I’m wearing an olive.  Alexander Sepkus is more my style.  I mean, if you are running out of Christmas ideas.  {{snorg!}})

Or is he ordering this ring?  There have been some conflicting reports.  His spokespeople say “no”, the designer says “yes”.  No matter.  It isn’t really the point. The point is that Obama and Michelle are made to look like noveau riche social climbers with bad taste.  {{GASP!}}  What will Sally Quinn say?  Will she be obligated to invite them to her soirees?  Will The Village have to pretend that Michelle’s favorite drink is suddenly chic?  What if she orders a Grasshopper or tries to mix one of the single malts with creme de menthe?  Horrors!

The American People will surely be offended by such display of excess, especially when they’ve just been told that some of the decisions foisted on Obama by the wretched economy will not be popular.  But surely, SURELY they knew, as David Sirota and Chris Bowers have recently discovered, that what progressives and the common voting public wanted was totally irrelevent and has been since May 31, 2008.  Or they *should* have known that.  If they’re just piping up now, it can only mean one thing: They’re closet racists.

So, outrage is what the Rupert Murdoch types are going for here.  I have to admit that this little bit of bedeviling distraction coming on the heels of the $600,000,000 that Obama spent on the campaign does allow me to indulge in a bit of schadenfreude.  But what makes me really mad is the fact that Bill Clinton has to divulge every donor to his library while Obama is revealing… what, exactly, about where all his excess millions came from?

Come to think of it, the ring story is probably true.  Unnecessarily large, tasteless and expensive.  The kind of thing a Married to the Mob type would wear.  It will look perfect on Michelle.

Update: Apparently you troll type people don’t get the point of this post.  The point was not that there was a ring in the works.  The point was that this is the kind of story we should expect to see during the Obama administration.  It’s designed to make you take your eye off the ball.  And regular Americans are going to start paying attention when cold hard economic reality starts to set in.  Plus, the media eats this $%@% up.  Both Obama’s are stupidly courting the media and walking on eggshells and this will result in them pulling back on some of the stuff that needs to get done just at the time when it is most needed.  They are trying to avoid criticism but they should have taken a lesson from Hillary.  The media is going to hammer you no matter what.  Might as well do the right thing in spite of the media.  Right now, The Villagers have Obama by the short hairs.  Step out of line even a little, start getting all nostalgic for alphabet agencies, help out labor and homeowners and you will see a lot more of these stories.

But instead of flinging poo about a story that was incorrect, (btw, we never said it was accurate.  We just mused about the possibilities) why don’t you get on Obama’s case for not disclosing who gave him all that campaign cash.  Because if he doesn’t, he looks like a frickin’ hypocrite for making Bill Clinton reveal all of his donors.  Fair is fair.

In other news:

• Obama’s secret weapon to keep Hillary in check is supposed to be The Enforcer, General Jim Jones.  Mebbe.  Mebbe not.  I don’t have any doubt that Hillary will *not* be a Condi in this administration.  She will be visible and active- because she has to be.  But I would be very careful to not underestimate her.
• Caro found this little gem at Political Wire.  Sort of knocks the wind out of “the Lightbringer is going to save us all” meme and it’s probably the truest thing W has said in years: “I’m sure some people voted for Barack Obama because of me.”
  — President Bush, in an interview with CNN.
• Here’s another gem that Caro of Makethemaccountable.com has dug up: “Why Obama’s got Complete Confidence in Clinton” by John Nichols at The Nation.  I agree with Caro’s point that if there wasn’t a sliver of daylight between Obama and Clinton and if we’re all supposed to forget all about Change! ‘cos it’s Nah, Gah, Happen, then why the f^&* did we vote for the least experienced of the two to be the next president?  If Clinton was just as likely to act like Obama, then why not Clinton?  Ahh, grasshopper, but WAS she going to act just like Obama?  Hmmm…  I found an interesting thing the other day.  Do you know who this man is?  This man was Secretary of the Interior under FDR.  He was the guy responsible for administering the PWA and other alphabet agencies of The New Deal.  He also happens to have been the father of *this* man:    Funny how that works, inn’t?  It looks like the one thing the well connected fear more than anything else is a return to The New Deal era.  Well, I guess they won’t have to worry about that anymore, not with Obama in charge.  That $600,000,000 is looking like a pretty good investment to them, probably.  After all, it was a one time investment.  Not some icky tax that would only end up in the hands of the Forgotten Man.  (Sounds like Hillary’s “You’re not invisible to me” theme.  Damn, the wealthy dodged a bullet.  Whew!)

Tuesday Late Night Open Thread

Because the old one was full