Category Archives: 2012 Elections

Malloy’s Office Tells Rick Green – Oh, Yeah, About that Anti-union rally – He can’t make it.

Posted on by Kiersten Marek

Reblogged from Wait, What?:

Moments ago Rick Green posted the following to his blog; http://courantblogs.com/rick-green/gov-malloy-the-norwalk-stiff-arm-and-michelle-rhee/ “Gov. Malloy will not appear at a March education rally being organized by a coalition of parent groups. The parents hope to have Michelle Rhee, the former Washington D.C. Schools chancellor who enrages teacher unions with her reform ideas, at the event. Although the Connecticut Parents Union announced that Malloy had committed to the event, the governor’s office …

To alienate the ed reformers or to not alienate the ed reformers, that is the question…

Sarah Palin– Secret Democrat?

Posted on by ninjanurse

Grab the popcorn! Sarah Palin wants the show to go on…

Firebrand Sarah Palin told conservatives Saturday not to settle quickly on a Republican presidential nominee, but to let the candidates fight it out longer on the campaign trail.

Palin, in a speech at a three-day conference of conservatives, urged Republicans to ignore those who insist “we have to name our nominee right now. Wrap it up. No debate for you. Cut it off.”

“As if competition weakens our nominee. In America, we believe competition strengthens us. Competition elevates our game,” she said. “Competition will lead us to victory in 2012. I believe that the competition has to keep going.”

A few more weeks of Romney, Santorum and Gingrich hating each other only a little less than they all hate Barack Obama. I wish I could say that Ron Paul has stayed out of the mud, but he made about a million bucks palling around with white supremacists.

As much as he says he’s not with them, they continue to follow his campaign like they expect to take America back. Back to where, we well know. That’s why I worry more about Paul as a wild card than anyone else in this sad bunch.

I don’t think even Sarah Palin in her most grandiose dreams expects to be called as a running mate. She does know that her speaking fee will go down when the Tea gets cold.

I thought long and hard about what would be good for our country, and wished that Jon Huntsman had been able to stay in longer. No one else seems to have the nerve to stand up to their own ‘birthers’ and ‘Government, keep your hands off my Medicare’ crowd. All this disorganization helps the Democrats for the moment.

As far as Sarah Palin, her loyalty is to a party of one.

I’m Changing My Name

Posted on by ninjanurse

to ‘A Cast of Thousands’. Or maybe ‘Adored Supermodel Genius Green’. Reinventing oneself is a fine way of defining oneself to the world. It worked for Laurence Tureaud, When he changed his name to Mr.T…

I think about my father being called ‘boy’, my uncle being called ‘boy’, my brother, coming back from Vietnam and being called ‘boy’. So I questioned myself: ‘What does a black man have to do before he’s given the respect as a man?’ So when I was 18 years old, when I was old enough to fight and die for my country, old enough to drink, old enough to vote, I said I was old enough to be called a man. I self-ordained myself Mr. T so the first word out of everybody’s mouth is ‘Mr.’ That’s a sign of respect that my father didn’t get, that my brother didn’t get, that my mother didn’t get.

That’s kind of sublime. So let’s move on to the ridiculous.

One Million Moms are ganging up on Ellen DeGeneres. They are an online organization. Their website lacks piquancy or finesse. Maybe those qualities are too gay. If you follow that link, you will see that the first thing the Moms want to clarify is that they have nothing to do with the Million Mom March. For sure. That event, May 14, 2000, drew an estimated 750,000 to the White House–I mean physically riding buses to get there. I was in that crowd, and it was vast.

Maybe there really are One Million Moms ready to click a mouse to stop the threat of Ellen DeGeneres making gay look nice (because she is gay and she is nice).

And then again, maybe it’s the American Family Association, a handful of women, and a lot of spambots. How would we know? Ellen doesn’t seem too worried.

J.C.Penney doesn’t seem worried, either. I think they are showing class and confidence, but they probably also ran the numbers and concluded they were not going to lose a million customers for not throwing Ellen under the bus.

In related news, ‘Joe’ the ‘plumber’ is back in politics. God Bless America, land of opportunity.

Blues for Mitt Romney

Posted on by ninjanurse

It’s kind of weird. When we need the Olympics won or our brain operated on, we want elite. But when we pick the leader of the free world, we ask our candidates to hide their lights under a bushel. We have a bunch of rich, smart, privileged people running around in plaid shirts talking like hayseeds.

Barack Obama actually did grow up in a low-income home, but he’s unforgivably smart. And rich. Mitt Romney is really rich, and he looks silly when he tries to hide it. He should reach out and show the folks that rich people are just like you and me, no matter what F.Scott Fitzgerald said.

That great Rhode Islander, Martin Mull, put it into a song–

Middle Class Blues

I woke up this afternoon
And both of the cars was gone

I woke up this afternoon
And both of the cars was gone

I felt so sad and lowdown

I threw my drink
I threw my drink
I threw my drink

Across the lawn

Tough Guys

Posted on by ninjanurse

Newt Gingrich has not only won the South Carolina primary. He’s also won the coveted Chuck Norris endorsement.

Newt couldn’t kick his way out of a paper bag but he’s got a mean mouth on him. And both Newt and Norris are lady’s men—you need a flow chart to keep track of their marriages, affairs and divorces.

If a not-plumber, not named Joe, could represent the real honest working man in 2008, maybe Chuck Norris will lend Newt some of his charm. He really is nicer than Steven Seagal, and Newt hasn’t got a chance with Jackie Chan.

Inspired by Faith

Posted on by ninjanurse

While Megavanegelists like Pat Robertson have their own TV networks, including parallel universe news, religion in the US continues to speak in diverse voices.

Faith in Public Life appeals to Catholic candidates Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum to renounce the strategy of race-baiting and scapegoating the poor…

An Open Letter to Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum

As Catholic leaders who recognize that the moral scandals of racism and poverty remain a blemish on the American soul, we challenge our fellow Catholics Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum to stop perpetuating ugly racial stereotypes on the campaign trail. Mr. Gingrich has frequently attacked President Obama as a “food stamp president” and claimed that African Americans are content to collect welfare benefits rather than pursue employment. Campaigning in Iowa, Mr. Santorum remarked: “I don’t want to make black people’s lives better by giving them somebody else’s money.” Labeling our nation’s first African-American president with a title that evokes the past myth of “welfare queens” and inflaming other racist caricatures is irresponsible, immoral and unworthy of political leaders.

{read the rest here.}

Arlene Violet (formerly known as ‘Atilla the Nun’ before hanging up her veil and ruler) asks if some Christians missed catechism class…

I suspect that folks who were “out-Christianizing” each other by supporting “religion” haven’t seen the inside of a confessional for a long time. “Me thinks they doth protest too much” certainly flirted through my thoughts. Discussing people who have a different view from the majority often disintegrates, as it did in this case into an analysis of what is mentally wrong with them. Just as appalling is the total disregard of what the Constitution’s role is in defending a minority viewpoint.

That’s right. The forefathers in this great country often saw that the majority could fend for themselves. It is the person of the minority position who needs the protection of law to uphold their free exercise. Rather than be trampled by the position du jour, the Constitution will uphold the same freedoms for those who may disagree with the majority viewpoint.

Roger Williams said it bluntly–
“Forced worship stinks in God’s nostrils”.
Roger Williams was kicked out of Salem, Massachusetts for being Christian, but the wrong type of Christian. He got off easy.

My own church sent a message of support to Jessica Ahlquist, for upholding the principle that public schools should not officially endorse or show preference to a religion. Some people think they are defending God by threatening Jessica or scaring some florists, but I don’t think God needs that kind of help.

Newt Gingrich is getting plenty of help in S.Carolina. I often wonder why people look to politicians for an example of personal morality. There are people washing the floors of Newt’s office whose lives are shining examples of hard work, dedication and sacrifice, but they’ll never get elected to anything. I’ve lowered my expectations to simply wanting my politicians to lead for the public good. Even that’s a reach. Watching pundits tie themselves in knots explaining why Newt’s marital history is a non-issue, despite his relentless bragging about morality is just amazing. Why can’t they just say something like, ‘yeah Newt’s a lying horndog, but at his age he won’t be able to out-run Callista if she needs to pick up a frying pan. We like his politics and that’s why we’re voting for him.’

What’s my point? I don’t know. I’ve had a sinus cold for 3 weeks and it’s hard to tie it all together.

‘Faith’ is a lovely, inclusive, vague word. Our country is full of religion, and the most devout are not always the most self-promoting. Whatever you believe, you are equal in the eyes of the law. Halleluja.

Fantasy Prez Race

Posted on by ninjanurse

Jon Huntsman has dropped out of the Republican primaries.

While the Clown Car is amusing to watch, this kind of thing is bad for our country. Birther crazies doing the racist dirty work, candidates attacking each other for not being a ‘real Christian’, bellicose brags about who they’ll invade as soon as they get their finger on the button, millionaires wearing flannel shirts– it’s a comedy but the joke’s on us.

Huntsman threw his support to Mitt Romney, and we won’t be hearing anything mavericky from him anytime soon. I did not agree with his ‘tax cuts for the rich’ politics but I’ll miss the tone he brought to the debates…

Although he could be critical of his opponents on issues, Huntsman emphasized “civility, humanity and respect” in his campaign – even going out of his way to note that President Obama loved the United States just as much as he does. That was not necessarily the attitude displayed by party activists during the primary election season – certainly not by conservative talk show hosts for whom ridicule and derision is a primary means of political discourse.

Ironically, news of Huntsman’s withdrawal came on the same day The State, South Carolina’s largest newspaper, endorsed him for president. The endorsement said there were “two sensible, experienced grownups in the race,” referring to Romney and Huntsman. But it said Huntsman “is more principled, has a far more impressive resume, and offers a significantly more important message.”

(Read the rest here from the Christian Science Monitor.)

Two adults debating the issues would have been good for our country. A Republican candidate who stands for something besides ‘beating Obama’ would help get our politics out of tabloid territory, but I’m not holding my breath.

I think that Jon Huntsman would have been the strongest contender, if his own party hadn’t run him over.

Newt Would Understand

Posted on by ninjanurse

When I see a story like this I always say a little prayer, ‘Please God, let it not be a Democrat.’ More often than not, my prayers are answered.

An anti-gay, religious conservative Republican politician who ran for Governor of Alabama on a morality platform has expressed family values in a new and unexpected way. Pam, at
Pam’s House Blend put the link on Facebook. Pam has been accused of trying to re-invent marriage because she and her wife want legal equality even though they are interracial in the South. And they’re a same-sex couple.

But Bill Johnson’s approach to fatherhood, arguably, is far less traditional than two ladies setting up housekeeping. He seems to think he was working on a nice surprise for his wife, but she is not taking it well. I would not blame her if she takes it to a lawyer’s office, but that’s her decision.

Dear friends, take this as a reminder that when someone uses vague phrases like ‘family values’, you cannot take that to the bank, because it’s totally open to interpretation what those values are.

Bill Johnson doesn’t meet Kmareka’s standards of deportment, so I’ll post the link, straight outta Alabama, here.

I heard that Newt Gingrich is promising not to commit any more adultery. That’s nice. He would have broken promises to two women who married him, but those marriages were annulled so it doesn’t count.

Expecting politicians to have integrity in all areas of life is like trusting a dog to guard your lunch. I long ago learned to settle for ‘good enough’. But when a politician attacks his or her opponents on moral grounds, and then flamboyantly breaks rules and hearts as well– it’s just too hard to resist a few snarky words. Sorry.