Birther Nonsense Addressed by Priebus

You have got to be kidding me. President Obama decides to finally tackle these morons who continue to claim his illegitmacy for being president. It's true that many Republicans have distanced themselves from this, but Reince Priebus' comment the other day in response to Obama's speech was priceless. He called the issue a distraction, but then had this to say:

"The president ought to spend his time getting serious about repairing our economy," he said.

Really?

Obama has been trying to engage the right and everyone on the serious issues, but Republican refusal to shut down the numbskulls in their party has been the cause of the real distraction and why we find our economy floundering yet.

What a fucking moron.

Boycott Letters Missing the Point

I have read where unions are asking businesses in southeast Wisconsin to support workers' rights by displaying signs in their windows. The problem is if a business decides not to post the sign, the letter says, the business might be boycotted.

This is not the way to win hearts and minds. It is wrong.

Walker and his cohorts will be out soon enough. However, the momentum they build with every stupid comment and/or act will be marginally negated with actions such as these by union members. Don't do it!

Lee A. (Taz) Rich

A friend of mine was buried Tuesday in West Bend. Lee Rich was killed when the motorcycle he was riding was hit by an inattentive driver who ran a stop sign while talking on her cell phone.

I met Lee back when I was in 7th grade, 42 years ago. I was friends with his younger brother, Russ, and so I would go to their home and listen to albums, especially the Beatles, which was Lee's favorite group.

Lee had a temper. Most of Russ' friends would walk softly around Lee to ensure they did not become targets of his wrath. Consequently I didn't get to know Lee very well during my youth.

I would see him at family get-togethers and camping trips, but not much else. But there was one thing that was apparent to me as the years went by ... Lee was changing.

Lee became sober 19 years ago. He joined A.R.M (Association Recovering Motorcyclists) thirteen years ago and was active in that group until the end of life.

How did I know this?

Well, first, I have to admit that I was stunned when I saw the huge turnout at the funeral home. Like I said, I did not know what Lee had been up to, but there were a lot of people, much more that I thought would appear, who obviously thought highly of Lee. Highly enough to come and honor his life on a sad, dreary day.

After speaking with members of Lee's family and other mutual friends of mine, I spoke to a number of members of his other family. I did not know that Lee was active in sponsoring those who were tring to get clean. One woman, in tears, said Lee was responsble for her son's five years of sobriety. That without Lee, her son might have died too young. This refrain was repeated over and over. I'm sad to say I did not know Lee at all.

Afterword, I was off by myself thinking of what I had heard and I realized that I hoped that someday when I pass on it might be said I had done much good, just like it was said of Lee.

My condolences to all Lee's family members. The world is a lesser place without Lee.

More Teabagger Racism

The Motley Cow is my favorite place to go for examples of teabagger racism. This guy on the Youtube is classic. Kind of reminds me of local homophobe, dad29.

???

Oh, well ... the YouTube stayed up for a while. Here's the link.

Teabagger Racists

via Motley Cow and Crooks and Liars ...

Those wacky Republican Teabaggers. Marilyn Davenport, a Southern California Tea Party activist thought it funny to pass on a picture of a family of chimps with President Obama's face superimposed over the baby chimp.

Davenport had this to say when contacted by phone, "Oh, come on! Everybody who knows me knows that I am not a racist. It was a joke. I have friends who are black. Besides, I only sent it to a few people--mostly people I didn't think would be upset with it."

Revealing. I like the line about sending it only to a few friends who wouldn't probably be upset. Presumably the racist friends.

A GOP official contacted by Crooks and Liars said it was unbelievable the email was passed along. "It's much more racist than the watermelon email," the official said.

Watermelon email?

Oh yeah, I remember that. It occurred not too long ago in our little SE Wisconsin backyard. Remember this?

"Got my stimulus package in the mail today. It contained watermelon seeds, cornbread mix, and ten coupons to KFC."

You're right. It was good old Fred Dooley, author of the humorously named blog Real Debate who was the guilty party. He passed that on and fortunately for us, Dan Bice of the Journal Sentinel caught his faux pas.

Dooley had this to say when contacted by Bice for comment. He explained he had recently had gall bladder surgery. "In that state I didn't notice any racial connotations. I'm from the deep South and to me that's not a racial thing, it is a Southern thing. If I had not been under the effects of anesthesia I would have likely noticed that could have been taken the wrong way and would have passed on it."

Really?

Dooley's explanation sounds suspiciously like Davenport's. Must be in the Teabagger Manual for dealing with the media when their racist underpinnings are exposed.

The Daily Double

Two things today. First, I heard Charlie Sykes speaking with Bob Spindel (hope I spelled your name correctly, Bob) about ... you guessed it ... voter fraud. Bob was huffing and puffing that he would not be silenced, and of course this was a "breathtaking" story in the mind of Sykes. There is more to the story, but the central, real fact is there is no f*cking voter fraud. In fact, if one were to take all the innocent voter mistakes made the last twenty years, along with the miscast votes of a couple of idiots, the total would not be enough to turn the election in Justice Prosser's favor (if the weird Brookfield vote thingy had not occurred).

***

I've been meaning to get to this for a while, but life got in the way. Anyway, just before the elction I received two voter guides from Americans for Piggishness Prosperity. I'm not sure how I got them ... it was probably just a mass mailer, but you never know, they might have been sent as a little jab. So, the Prosser mailer had these statements:

Justice Prosser has stood up for the Second Amendment, guaranteeing that Wisconsin citizens have the right to defend themselves against criminals.

Justice Prosser stood up against criminal defense lawyers.

Justice Prosser has time and time again protected our law enforcement against defense attorneys and criminals who make unreasonable demands that weaken the fight against crime.

What a load of crap. First of all, last I looked everyone had the right to defend themselves against criminals. The Second Amendment simply states that the right to own arms shall not be abridged. Secondly, unless the Constitution has been changed and I missed it, defense lawyers are pretty important seeing how every citizen has the right to council. Unlike Peter DiGaudio and most conservatives I know, I believe in the constitutional right of innocence before guilt.

I suspect Justice Prosser does too.

The Elderly Taste So Good

I just couldn't resist, especially since our very own wingnut, Paul Ryan, is featured. The latest Tom Tomorrow cartoon. Caution: For serious folks only. Click on toon to enlarge (I think).

Commenter at Illusory Tenant is ...

... frigging hilarious. And so true. Read on Jim Bouman's comment regarding Kathy Nickolaus and repugs in general.

Nickolaus is just a small cog in the Republican machine in Waukesha County. The County Executive, the DA, The Sheriff, the County Clerk, Clerk of Courts, Register of Deeds, and the County Treasurer control hundreds and hundreds of patronage jobs in the Courthouse.

They're Republicans, they're dull normal, devoid of imagination, cautious, clubby, (country clubby, to be sure) moss-backed, "You scratch my mossback, I'll scratch yours"; they're bad tippers; they're devoid of imagination; they have backyard shrines to the Gipper.

The boldest thing any of 'em do is to abandon their mainline congregations when they start having to listen to liberal female ministers preach about social justice, forcing them to find solace and affirmation at mega-churches that reinforce their small-mindedness.

They are not so schemingly evil that they would actually cook up a plan to steal an election.

They're dullards. Their greatest collective achievement is that they cover for each other. This time they slipped up. They'll ease Nickolaus out of the picture and replace her with a someone who will be a virtual clone, lacking only Kathy's "flub".

I'm still laughing.

Jeff Wagner Confuses Talking Points

Listening briefly to J-J-Jeff Wagner this afternoon, was struck by his inability to get his talking points right. He was speaking about the listening session and noted that working people were complaining they couldn't make it during the day (referring to unionists). Shortly afterword these same people were referred to as whiners.

I'm stunned that his opinion their being thugs didn't make it into the monoloque (though it might have, I turned off the radio).

Remember this talking point that never enters into anything Jeff says, "I lost to Jim Doyle!" It must be hard to take.

Peter DiGaudio ... Nutcase

I tried posting this at his website, but apparently I'm blocked (after over a year of not blogging). Anyway, he accuses my friend Chris Liebenthal of being the troll leaving nasty messages on his site. He says that if it is true that someone is posing as Chris, he will exonerate him.

So, in the wingnut world, one is guilty until proven innocent.