Tuesday? Seems more like a Monday, doesn’t it? Anyhow, I guess we know a little bit more about why dubya had to resort to violating the US Constitution to get his spying done.
The FISA court has approved at least 18,740 applications for electronic surveillance or physical searches from five presidential administrations since 1979. In the 22 pre-dubya years, FISA judges modified only two search warrant orders out of the 13,102 applications that were approved. But since 2001, the judges have modified 179 of the 5,645 requests for court-ordered surveillance by the Bush administration – 173 of those court-ordered “substantive modifications” took place in 2003 and 2004 (the most recent years for which public records are available).
The judges also rejected or deferred at least six requests for warrants during those two years — the first outright rejection of a wiretap request in the court’s history.
Bush wants to be big brother; the courts wouldn’t let him, so he blew off the courts.
For those of you who wonder why we should support Democrats when the don’t really represent us (and I’m with you there; I can’t begin to tell you how disgusted I am with my senators, Hillary Clinton Chuck Schumer), this is why: Bush needs to be impeached in the House, convicted in the Senate, and removed from office. This won’t happen with Republicans in control.
With Democrats in control here’s an example of who we’d have as committe chairmen:
Senate:
Judiciary: Pat Leahy
Armed Services: Carl Levin
Appropriations: Robert Byrd
Health, Education, Welfare & Pensions: Ted Kennedy
House:
Judiciary: John Conyers
Gov’t Reform: Henry Waxman
Ways & Means: Charlie Rangel
Intelligence: Jane Harman
Bush and Cheney must go. We can work on getting rid of the rest of these bastids – Republican or Republican-lite – after that.
Good Morning/evening all. Doesn’t look like anyone is around so I guess I’ll try to get the ball rolling. I downloaded everything from the snotgreensea, and I put up the last dispatch from The War on Brains over on my site The Era. I’ll try to put up a sound clip everyday…peace :peace:
philosopher kings and queens! :fire:
I’m trying to listen to the vacuum that is early morning AAR now. Riley just announced they’re going to be running “the best of AAR” all week.
What’s the first thing they run?
An incredibly lame live song segment that ran when maron was out of town on MS.
LAME!!:barf:
I heard that too. I’ve been listening to Morning Sedition…..the downloaded stuff….
Just can’t listen to the new show for too long. It all sounds the same.
Talking heads talking heads talking heads…..:doh:
I’m guessing the “best of AAR” will include minimal bits from MS, if any. Of course, we all know that they could do an entire week of “best of MS” and barely scratch the surface.
We need to come up with another name for Snoopgate. Every time Riley or someone else says it, I think of Snoop Dogg. Fo’ hizzle, ma shizzle, with the wiretizzle? :rofl2:
Memphis 38, Akron 31. Oh well, at least they kept it competitive. Maybe next year.
I watched Marc on Conan last night. Hilarious! What a treat to see him. Conan looked like he really enjoys Marc. You know, we were really treated to something special with Marc and Morning Sedition. What a gem it was. What a great way to start the day MS was!
GOOD MORNING, FELLOW BLOGGERILLUMINATI !!!!
Am I bored or is it really this time-filler program that’s truly boring? :doh: :banana: :fustrate: :billcat: :yawn: :barf:
I find a show titled The Best of AAR in 2005 insulting. And, the fact that Mark would preside over such a show unbelievable.
We need to come up with another name for Snoopgate. Every time Riley or someone else says it, I think of Snoop Dogg. Fo’ hizzle, ma shizzle, with the wiretizzle? :rofl2:
Comment by Kevin M — December 27, 2005 @ 6:58 am
——————————-
I like DubyaGate or NoseyGate or FISAgate :nixon: . But maybe this is a sign we need to get off the gate thing entirely. A completely new catchy paradigm is called for, like surveillapalooza or peekapalooza. :billcat:
Maron will never be mentioned again. Riley is tiptoing past the graveyard.The ghost of what was so good, so special……….sigh…………:cry::cry:
CRAP! I missed Conan. I guess I gotta set my cell phone alarm to remind me of everything now.:doh:
Morning:nixon:
Mickey Mantle. Wow!
How ’bout sneaky peeky. Maybe we all have to install video cameras in our houses from now on. I wonder if my dad still supports ole dubya. This kind of stuff usually makes him pretty mad.
Where have you gone, Mickey Mantle?
Belting Mick has left and gone away.:40:
I saw an old Cavett clip where he had the Rolling Stones during their 1972 tour. Great TV.:sheep:
Has anybody got a CD of venerable Morning Sedition clips ready to mass-produce (ala DIY) and pass out?:nixon::peace:
Hey, John Amatto from Crooks and Liars is on our local affiliate right now. http://www.1010kxxt.com/home.php
I don’t know how long he’s been on though.
Paul Simon loved Mickey Mantle. (Who gives a fuck?)
Why do we have to hear about the best selling records for 2005? Ridiculous topic for a political news program?
Circulate those tapes!:peace::peace:
:sdavid:(C)happy Chanukah!
Who cares about what sells the best, Riley? Is this something that DG wants you to promote?:sheep::doh:
I’m afraid the domestic surveilance issue is a looser for Democrats. I sort of agree with Jim Pinkerton on this. The sheeple have been indoctrinated for years (decades?) with the Hollywood image of the agent who has to bend the rules to catch the bad guys. It’s total crap – the 9/11 perps could and should have been caught using the laws and tools that existed at that time, but were not due to incompetence. Look at how Bush is handling this – on the offensive (ok, he’s offensive most of the time anyway).
Sadly, the issue is a winner for the Republicans: burning the constitution to save it . . .
This is lame. Good bye everybody. :nixon::sdavid:
Howard Stern on Letterman last night consisted of: Non-stop self promotion of Howard, his show, and his new radio operation.
Marc Maron on Conan last night consisted of: Non-stop discussion of The Funny.
Apparently, once you hit a certain level of celebrity you can be as crassly commercial as you want.
To be fair Web, Marc didn’t know about his new show when that was taped. I would hope that he would have promoted it but I don’t think Marc would have been as crass.
Unfortunately if you take what Pinkerton wrote to its ultimate conclusion, there is no need for a Patriot Act at all. They can just make it up as they go along.
Damn, I wish I would have known about Marc on Conan. Are those rebroadcast anywhere?
Actually I think the Orwell-Gate scandal is a winner for Democrats. Sure people have been indoctrinated for years, but I think there are a lot of people with a decidedly libertarian bent who have traditionally supported Republicans (lately) who HAVE to be seriously up-in-arms about this.
Yeah, the sheeple might not be as outraged as they ought, but this is a nice little chunk of the Republican base who is no being alienated.
Instead of just throwing up our hands and saying the Republican propaganda has been too effective, let’s get our own counter-propaganda machine fired up and wake these people up! The truth is on our side and liberty is on our side. It should be easier for us.
PJ,
Just read your comfortng words on yesterdays’ thread. Thanks. They meant alot.
Stayed up to watch Marc last night. Never having seen Marc in action before, his nonverbals intrigued me as much as the funny.
Off to the airport in a few hours — not looking forward to this trip at all.
we need to hold our noses, put aside our differences, and TAKE BACK POWER.
pj’s list of committee leaders is telling.
The republicans figured out how to work together with all their differences. They took power despite the fact that everything they wanted was contrary to what the american people really want.
we’re working WITH the best intentions of the american people, not against them. we don’t have to lie like the republicans do.
the democratic party might make me want to tear my hair out, but the republican party tears my heart out.
working with the democrats will be frustrating, but it’s do-able and necessary.
come on, this can’t be that hard. :yinyang:
Hey PJ,
Was that you that got the Save Morning Sedition petition going? I need to start a petition to save our local AAR affiliate. How does one start a petition online and does it cost anything? It’s gonna be a lot harder to get the info out because there is no blog or message board where people can gather for info. But it is crucial to have SOME kind of progressive talk on the air for the 2006 elections here. I knew it was gonna be like this if Bush got to be president again. Constant battles! Where fighting for our lives, here!
Well said, foggyblue!
I’m gonna be at the Franken blog. JAFO. :billcat:
Yeah, that was me that started the petition. It doesn’t cost anything to go through petitiononline and I think there are other ones out there that you can use, too.
One thing Pinkerton said that makes sense (not that I agree with all of his points), is that if the argument is “sure, we infringed on the law here and there, but we stopped the bad guys”, the Republicans win; the sheeple will accept that argument. Only if the Democrats can show, convincingly, that the illegal monitoring was used for some other purpose than the War on Errors, will people get excited. Otherwise, it’s just inside the beltway antics.
Also, there is a huge difference between the Republican party in 1973 and today. In 1973, party members cared about the principles more than they cared about power. I hate to say this about my friends and (former) colleagues, but that is no longer true: power has trumped principles almost every time. I just don’t think you will see Republicans turn on Bush and the NeoCons over this even if there was major abuse.
So what do the Dem’s do? I don’t think you win by saying “the other guys are evil-doers”, even if they are. The Sheeple don’t want to think the leaders they elected are bad. When you say “Bush and the R’s are evil/bad/incompetent”, you are in essense saying “you, the sheeple, are idiots for electing those guys”. Mush Windbag and his ilk (Hannity, etc.) make this point all the time – “the left think you are an idiot, but we on the right respect you”. Of course, all the while they are stealing the masses blind.
Better to take the high road and argue for more fairness in the economic system, develop and argue a rational foreign policy, etc., that constantly griping about the evil Bush does or playing the impeachment card.
Sorry about the long post. Bill Lives! :billcat:
Man, that experience was mind blowing, I feel like I lost half my brain. I am alive though, and getting better. I only thought I was going to die, maybe, three or four times. That’s good, right?
It turns out that I’m allergic to acetaminophen. I learned the hard way, by taking a lot and then throwing-up in the bathroom on x-mas. Yeah, I thought I was going to die.
Right now the pain is tolerable, for awhile anyway, and the tinnitus is making me crazy. It sounds like a fireworks show in my left ear and a million mice getting their nuts squeezed in the other. Yes, it’s that shrill. On that note, I would like to thank you guys for the support.
Okay, my head hurts, I can’t do this anymore.
I think you have to do both. Provide real alternatives, yes, but also get the truth out there. It’s one more thing on the list that has to be ignored or somehow explained away.
Ignoring the August 6th PDB.
Not getting bin Laden.
Breaking U.S. law against domestic spying and ignoring the Constitution.
Invading a country and killing 30,000 (or 100,000, whatever number you like) of its people claiming a threat that never, in fact, existed, and then admitting he would have invaded anyway.
Embracing torture as a legitimate tool of warfare.
Holding prisoners for years without charges.
Operating secret prisons overseas.
Outing a CIA agent as revenge against a critic
Defying a law against domestic propaganda by paying supposedly independent journalists and commentators.
Ridiculing a 37-year Marine Corps veteran for questioning U.S. military policy.
Record deficits, made worse by huge tax cuts for the uber-rich
Billions of dollars to the drug companies for a confusing medicare drug “benefit”
Attemptiung to destroy social security
The destruction of US credibility around the world
Hell, I’m sure I missed more than a few there. It isn’t about telling the people they’re stupid. It’s about showing them what the Republicans have been covering up for the past five years. We need real hearings into all of this stuff. As long as Republicans are in charge, they’ll never allow real investigation (into Socks the cat, sure, but not for a president who admits to committing a felony), and we know that the corporate media is next to useless.
Franken and his guest are talking about :nixon: NIXON!:bow:
Yes, we need to crank up the left propaganda machine. But what is needed is mass grassroots organizing. Most people know that the fuck/limpdick propaganda is garbage. It’s that there is no real liberal/progressive alternative they can get on board with.It becomes easier to kick back…Find candidates who will openly campaign for overturning the bankruptcy bill. Out of Iraq. Restore social programs. It is easy to come up with necessary changes.
Propagandize!
Agitate!
Organize!
Out in the Streets!:omg:
Start by circulating those tapes!:nixon:
iukkkkkkkk=]\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\333333333333333 (Message from Lulu the Cat) the fuck/limpdick propaganda. It’s that t :billcat:
Malloy on Randi Rhodes!:omg:
Love it!
Barron’s Capitalist Journal: Impeach the Jerk:nixon:
Chanukah!:sdavid::menorah:
I am the only goddamn person online here!
Get a life, fool.
I need to crank out some paintings for a Friday show!:omg:
:nixon:Circulate!:nixon:
http://www.thankasoldierweek.com/
It’s a right-wing site, but if we can flood it with progressives wishing the soldiers well and that they COME HOME, we can show that we don’t hate the troops.
Air America was supposed to be a place where liberal candidates could speak. But not so many took advantage of it. Why don’t candidates go on AAR shows so much? They seem to go on Ed Schultz’s show. I remember Marc complaining about that and ribbing Barbara Boxer about finally showing up at the studio during MS’s last days to promote a book. Is that why DG is getting rid of the funny? Maybe congress people and senators don’t like the possibility of being poked by a comic.
Damn, I wish I would have known about Marc on Conan. Are those rebroadcast anywhere?
Comment by Sufilizard — December 27, 2005 @ 9:37 am
CNBC used to rebroadcast the previous night’s Conan at 7 PM Eastern time, I think. Not sure whether or not they still do. Consult your local listings.
Krista, I taped it last night. Do you have VHS? I feel like I still owe you for Devotchka.
Bush is cindered!:omg: He broke the law. Felony! Barron’s Capitalist Journal: Impeach the Jerk!:omg::nixon:
:peace:
Hey WebHT — I replied to your post on the week-end thread.
Hey Kevin, no I don’t have a vcr but I have another tape here I want to see so I might just hold my nose and go into my friends’ stinky house to watch it. I can’t believe I forgot about it. I was probably reading Marc’s book as I missed it too!
DUDE!:bong:
Jeany,
I agree with what you wrote. To ditch what amounts to the audio equivalent of The Daily Show is mind-boggingly stupid.
kristapea, I knew it was a repeat, but Marc didn’t even come close to acknowledging his radio presence. Conan gave him his only radio nod during introductions.
Methaz,
For now, I will not take the suggested high road and, instead, stoop to continue my mocking of Bush and his imagined kingship. It’s funner that way.
I posted on my blog how I consider Bush making rules things up as goes along, much like kids dream up Queensberry rules when they stage boxing matches.
Marquess of Queensberry Rules (modified for King George)
1. To be a fair stand-up boxing match in a twenty-four foot ring or as near that size as practicable. However, since the GWOT changed everything, you can run but you cannot hide.
2. No wrestling or hugging allowed. Too gay.
3. The rounds to be of three minutes duration and one minute time between rounds. This will establish the cadence “Bring it on” followed by “Hey, not so fast!”.
4. If either man fall through weakness or otherwise (except for peanuts, mountain bike, Segway, etc), he must get up unassisted, ten seconds be allowed to do so, the other man meanwhile to return to his corner; and when the fallen man is on his legs the round is to be resumed and continued until the three minutes have expired. If one man fails to come to the scratch in the ten seconds allowed, it shall be in the power of the referee to give his award in favour of the other man.
5. A man hanging on the ropes in a helpless state, with his toes off the ground, shall be considered down. Because, We do not Torture.
6. No seconds or any other person to be allowed in the ring during the rounds. On the other hand, sloppy seconds and “do-overs” permitted, because, hey, Clinton did it.
7. Should the contest be stopped by any unavoidable interference, the referee (is) to name the time and place as soon as possible for finishing the contest, so that the match can be won and lost according to a computerized voting system, unless the backers of the men agree to draw the stakes (which will be overseen by one Wm. Bennett).
8. The gloves to be fair-sized boxing gloves of the best quality and newly purchased from Halliburton.
9. Should a glove burst, or come off, it must be replaced to the referee’s satisfaction. Otherwise, you go to war with the army you have.
10. A man on one knee is considered down, and if struck is entitled to the stakes. A man on two knees signifies the kissing of Lord Rove’s privates and gets a do-over, c.f. rule #6 — sloppy seconds covered by a “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy.
11. No shoes or boots with springs allowed. Lasers? Permitted, as the framers were strict constitutionalists.
12. The contest in all other respects to be governed by the revised rules of the London Prize Ring (TBD) and the No Child Left Behind Act (aka “voluntary” enlistment)
All other rules covered by “Bu-bu-but Clinton!”
This is way too ironic to pass up and shows the ridiculous state of the radio airwaves:
With his love of food and cooking, Maron could take that gig!
these moving icons throughout this blog are hilarious.
it’s hard to get back to work because i want to keep watching them.
what made them start up? something i did by accident? they haven’t been moving before today, have they?
I misspoke concerning daily repeats of Conan. It had been on Comedy Central, not CNBC. At any rate, it’s not on either of those channels now.
With his love of food and cooking, Maron could take that gig!
Comment by WebHubbleTelescope — December 27, 2005 @ 5:54 pm
I have a better idea. Bring back the reality show “The Restaurant,” but have Maron running the place. A laugh riot ensues as the daily operation of a fine restaurant wrecks havoc with Marc’s neuroses.:rofl2:
Good rules, but you forgot the most important one:
13. Bush has the power to say or do anything he wants, because Sept 11 changed everything forever. And if you don’t like it, the terrorists win. :no:
:nixon:Checking in!
:menorah::sdavid::sdavid::sdavid:
Don’t forget!
Circulate those tapes:nixon:
Back to the studio.:billcat::40:
I spent most of Sunday and all of yesterday curled up on the couch being sickly. (The kind of sickly one doesn’t discuss in mixed company.) But I did get to see a very funny bit with Anthony Bourdain talking trash on his own show (“No Reservations” on the Travel channel) about Rocco diSpirito. It was worth waking up for it.
Wherever Marc ends up, he needs to include restaurant commentary. It needn’t be formal reviews. It could be in the same vein as Dr. Maron’s movie reviews, where his dad reviewed movies without knowing he was doing it. Marc could just talk about any restaurant he’d eaten at recently, or invite callers to comment on restaurants in their own towns. It would detract some from THE ISSUES but would be worth it. And Jim Earl could comment on fast food joints in one segment.
PJ (which is also my initials, so you MUST be a cool guy) thanks for all the new icons. So many of them describe me at one time or another. Especially :omg: and :doh: and :fustrate: although :40: is sometimes appropriate and :rabbi: is some of my family, the part that looks at me and goes :no:
Gotta get back to doing work. Tough to get back here after a long weekend…
:pent:BB:pent:
Danny G. thinks Imus and that other guy (the one going to satellite) are cutting-edge radio.
It seems obvious to me that people with the talent of a Maron or an Earl are perceived as real threats to the Goldbergs, the Hillarys and the Republicans of the world.
Those people are all about getting to the top of the heap, and staying there–about maintaining control at any cost. Anything truly funny is also a bit out of control; that frightens them, as well it should. I believe most of the Democrats want first to keep their place at the trough. If that means “losing” to the Republicans again, so be it–God knows they won’t suffer any unless they lose their seats.
I see it as critical that we let the Democrats know we won’t support them in any way unless they grow some balls. I knmow I”m not going to hold my nose again and vote for some Republican-lite just because he or she carries the name Democrat.
JP
travis, good to hear from you even though you’re feeling exceedingly crummy. is the tinnitis supposed to go away when your ear heals? bummer you had to find out about the allergy to acetaminophen the hard way. are you through the worst of it?
i won’t attach any of these moving icons because they might make you feel nauseous.
get well soon. Vigilance!
audios aar,
it’s not so much a matter of holding our noses as it is retaking the democratic party.
where i live in a very unpopulated rural part of california, our local county democratic party looked like hilary clinton and joe lieberman a couple of years ago. folks got mad and went to meetings and now our county democratic party looks like barbara lee, john conyers, and dennis kucinich. :peace:
it didn’t take that long to transform the party into something really workable. i hate voting republican lite. we still have time to get something decent in place for the 2006 and 2008 elections.
what’s your alternative to the bush crime family and his cronies if you don’t vote democrat?
It’s not like it never happened before. The Smothers Brothers comes to mind as a “for instance”, if anyone here is old enough to remember their shows. Lenny Bruce, Richard Pryor…
If push comes to shove I will most likely vote dem. But in the mean time I will try to support the people who speak out and ask the tough questions like Barbara Boxer and John Conyers along with the Black Caucus, Harry Reid, Kucinich etc. Give them money, circulate petitions,whatever party they are from. Focus on the good ones as much as possible. That’s the best we can do.
PJ, thanks for posting that link re: the FISA scandal.
The fact that I no longer listen to AAR and have yet to find a suitable newsfeed has resulted in the sad state in which I now find myself, that of the uninformed. This is why I believe that DG is a progressive in name only (does he even claim to be progressive? or just a businessman): turning me off to AAR means that I don’t hear the progressive pov anywhere. The Nation doesn’t do it for me anymore; I follow this blog but rarely explore the links to others’ blogs (something I used to do regularly). The effect is that I am now, at least temporarily, ignorant of the issues as they unfold. How can that be good for “our side”? I echo the sentiments of whoever confessed here, last week, that they needed the funny to help the medicine go down (I’m paraphrasing). Marc & Mark kept things interesting and informative, and helped me digest it.
No big finish here, I’m petering out. G’night, geniuses!
Oops!
:doh:
Forgot to say, WELCOME BACK, TRAVIS!!! We missed you!
I won’t vote for any more “lesser of two evils” Democrats again, ever. They’ve will have had six freakin’ years to line up some candidates who aren’t weasels. If they haven’t done it by election time, I’ll just sit this one out thank you.
If we keep sending ’em back to those soft seats year after year, no matter what kind of anti-worker, pro-corporate votes they cast, why would they change?
JP
:40:yeah i was drunk for like a week straight that was a good way to deal with the loss of morning sedition ha a whole week of drunken stupor and sleeping during the 6 to 9 hours blah blah blah yeah then i got sick and threw up on christmas yay ok well im going to go back to work driving the semi-truck and staying sober untill friday because then im off for a week again yay drinks and drinks and drinks and drinks ha oh um what the hell is on in the morning now? i guess ill find out in two hours on my way to pittsburgh ok well uh yeah later people :40::40::40::40::40: