Sunday, October 31, 2010

Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear - full videos!

The full videos (with sponsor's ads, of course) are up on Comedy Central here:

And I'll link to each below. The sponsor is the Axe "wash your balls" campaign - funny and probably NSFW (but what would you be doing watching these or reading this blog at work anyway? ha). I wish at least they didn't show the SAME commercial for every video, but oh well. The videos are great!

These may not necessarily be in the correct order of events. I'm also not sure if the musical guests are on any of these videos - I haven't watched them all yet! Anyway, ENJOY!


Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear
4TROOPS - National Anthem
www.comedycentral.com
Rally to Restore Sanity and/or FearThe Daily ShowThe Colbert Report



Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear
Jon and Stephen - Stephen’s Fearful Entrance
www.comedycentral.com
Rally to Restore Sanity and/or FearThe Daily ShowThe Colbert Report





Here is the music - Peace Train, Crazy Train, Love Train!









Saturday, October 30, 2010

Rally to Restore Sanity!

This was awesome.

So. Awesome.

Intro:

Crazy talk - Stewart thinks we are reasonable people who can say, "I disagree with you, but I'm pretty sure you're not Hitler"! :)

Colbert Brings the Fear!

Peace Train!! (or Crazy Train! Or wait... Love Train? :)



Final Speech:

"Most Americans don't live their lives solely as Democrats, Republicans, Liberals or Conservatives. Americans live their lives more as people that are just a little bit late for something they have to do. Often something they do not want to do. But they do it. Impossible things [are accomplished] every day that are only made possible through the little reasonable compromises we all make."



Tuesday, October 26, 2010

November 2010 Election Help

A friend, voting for the first time and bewildered by the choices (and more than the choices - frustrated by all the obfuscation from the media), got me thinking about where to find good advice on how to vote. First of all - ads can't be trusted. Of course, if an ad is spreading fear and lies about the opponent, it makes me think much less of the candidate! So pay attention to ads, but look into their claims. News can't be trusted. Pick your channel to have opposing perspectives and get thoroughly confused. Of course, generally if it is being endorsed by the far right, the "tea party," wing nuts, I would seriously question it!

So, how do you get good information? Well, start with reading the ballot information, pros and cons, and then pay close attention to who is supporting or opposing various measures and candidates. And look beyond the name! Some groups have very misleading names. Follow the money - who is funding it, and what do they have to gain or lose?

A simpler solution, after you've read the basics, is to go to organizations you trust and review their recommendations. Choose several organizations, and read their reasoning behind the endorsements and opposition. Try to find opposing viewpoints among organizations whose values you also share. Weigh the ideas presented. As always, think for yourself! If you really don't know (or care) about an issue or candidate, maybe you should leave that one blank - it's legal to do that! :)

Here are some resources I've found to help with unraveling the ballot this November:
  • California Choices - this one is a new one to me - it shares a whole list of organizations' recommendations and endorsements all on one page! You can then make it easier to compare by checking only the organizations and/or the measures you want to see. Very useful.
  • Calvoter.org has information about the propositions including the top 5 donors for each. AND it has "The Proposition Song"! :)
  • Ballotopedia is another new-to-me resource, and it's especially useful to see the donors for the various propositions - follow the money! This site would also be useful if you want to study the measures and don't have your voter information booklet.
  • Smart Voter is another non-partisan resource you may find helpful.
  • I always check the California League of Conservation Voters, Sierra Club, NRDC, and other environmental groups' recommendations. Most all of these are represented in the California Choices page, but you can get more in depth rationale behind the recommendations at their individual websites.
  • League of Women Voters and NOW are good to check
  • Other organizations like the ACLU, Equality California, or any other groups you like and respect are also good to check.
Once you've rounded up the opinions of others, have fun making up your own mind!!

And don't forget to vote!

Saturday, October 9, 2010

Immigration Problems

From The Manitoba Herald

The flood of American liberals sneaking across the border into Canada has intensified in the past week, sparking calls for increased patrols to stop the illegal immigration. The recent actions of the Tea Party are prompting an exodus among left-leaning citizens who fear they’ll soon be required to hunt, pray, and agree with Bill O’Reilly and Glenn Beck.

Canadian border farmers say it’s not uncommon to see dozens of sociology professors, news paper writers, animal-rights activists and Unitarians crossing their fields at night.

“I went out to milk the cows the other day, and there was a Hollywood producer huddled in the barn,” said Manitoba farmer Red Greenfield, whose acreage borders North Dakota . “The producer was cold, exhausted and hungry. He asked me if I could spare a latte and some free-range chicken. When I said I didn't have any, he left. Didn't even get a chance to show him my screenplay, eh?”

In an effort to stop the illegal aliens, Greenfield erected higher fences, but the liberals scaled them. He then installed loudspeakers that blared Rush Limbaugh across the fields. “Not real effective,” he said. “The liberals still got through and Rush annoyed the cows.”

Officials are particularly concerned about smugglers who meet liberals near the Canadian border, pack them into Subarus and drive them across the border where they are simply left to fend for themselves.

“A lot of these people are not prepared for our rugged conditions,” an Ontario border patrolman said. “I found one carload without a single bottle of imported drinking water They did have a nice little Napa Valley cabernet, though.”

When liberals are caught, they’re sent back across the border, often wailing loudly that they fear retribution from conservatives. Rumors have been circulating about plans being made to build re-education camps where liberals will be forced to drink domestic beer, watch NASCAR, deny evolution, and act out drills preparing them for the Rapture.

In recent days, liberals have turned to ingenious ways of crossing the border. Some have been disguised as senior citizens taking a bus trip to buy cheap Canadian prescription drugs. After catching a half- dozen young vegans in powdered wig disguises, Canadian immigration authorities began stopping buses and quizzing the supposed senior-citizens about Perry Como and Rosemary Clooney to prove that they were alive in the ‘50s. “If they can’t identify the accordion player on The Lawrence Welk Show, we become very suspicious about their age,” an official said.

Canadian citizens have complained that the illegal immigrants are creating an organic-broccoli shortage and are renting all the Susan Sarandon movies. “I really feel sorry for American liberals, but the Canadian economy just can’t support them,” an Ottawa resident said. “How many art-history, women's studies and, English majors does one country need?”


(I first saw a version of this in 2004 - it's still funny. We'll see how far the "Tea Party" GOP faction gets next election - please stick around at least until after you vote!)

Monday, September 27, 2010

People For the American Way: Palin-Beck 2012: Vote on the Best Campaign Slogan!

Palin-Beck 2012: It's a No-Brainer
People For the American Way: Palin-Beck 2012: Vote on the Best Campaign Slogan!

Vote for the best Palin-Beck 2012 slogans! These are awesome! Which one do YOU like best?

Click the link and vote for your favorite, and you'll get a bumper sticker of the winner!



Friday, September 24, 2010

Stephen Colbert's Testimony Before Congress

After spending a day as a migrant farmworker, through the Take Our Jobs campaign by United Farmworkers, as part of his series "Stephen Colbert's Fallback Position," Colbert testifies before congress. He does this in character, manages to be really funny, and yet make a powerful point at the same time. Watch it:




I found it on this blog post: Shit that Bugs Smart People: C-Span Entertainment (oh boy, a new blog to check out!)

Monday, September 13, 2010

Gross National Product

This is wonderful:
Our gross national product counts air pollution and cigarette advertising, and ambulances to clear our highways of carnage. It counts special locks for our doors, and the jails for the people who break them. It counts the destruction of the redwoods, and the loss of our natural wonder in chaotic sprawl. It counts napalm, nuclear warheads, and armored cars for the police to fight the riots in our cities. Yet the gross national product does not allow for the health of our children, the quality of their education, or the joy of their play. It does not include the beauty of our poetry or the strength of our marriages, the intelligence of our public debate or the integrity of our public officials. It measures neither our wit nor our courage, neither our wisdom nor our learning, neither our compassion nor our devotion to our country. It measures everything, in short, except that which makes life worthwhile.
~ Robert F. Kennedy

(from this article: http://www.yesmagazine.org/new-economy/what-is-real-wealth)

Food for thought.

Nation Once Again Comes Under Sway Of Pink-Faced Half-Wit | The Onion - America's Finest News Source

HAHAHA - Frothing, Shouting Dim-Bulbs: An American Tradition

I can't tell you how much I love The Onion. How much I need to laugh about the complete circus politics has become in this country. I am so grateful for Jon Stewart, Steven Colbert, Bill Maher, Lewis Black... sometimes it seems like the comedians are the only ones who see the situation clearly!

Oh, as another example of this, CRACKED published an article about the "Ground Zero Mosque" that was the most reasoned, rational thing I've seen on it. Cracked. It's like Mad Magazine for the Internet. WTF? Can I go live in a comediocracy? Seriously! The comedians are the only ones that get it these days.

The media is out of control. Just the way we like it in a free country, of course, but where is their sense of responsibility? It's all about creating controversy, sensationalism, self-righteous anger, and utter bullshit. I had a conversation at a party this weekend about the "Ground Zero Mosque" with a woman who, quite naturally based on how it's being reported, thought the mosque was being proposed literally ON TOP OF ground zero. I told her it was 3 blocks away, which in lower Manhattan, may as well be three miles. There are porn shops closer. She immediately switched to, "oh, well that's different" and saw that the MEDIA was the problem here, not the mosque. Ugh. So nice when people, shown some simple facts, can be so reasonable. Most people are, in person, one on one. But when you get a Pink-Faced Half-Wit that just makes shit up to get them riled up and indignant, using words they are supposed to fear or revere, like communism, socialism, fascism, god, country, freedom, etc, to manipulate them into believing just about anything, people become stupid sheep.

It makes me start to wonder... what was so bad about voter apathy? Stupid people shouldn't vote. Or breed. But that's another rant! Enough for now - enjoy the article!

Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.

Monday, March 22, 2010

That Hopey Changey Stuff May Just Work Out After All...

Passing Health Care (Insurance, at least) Reform is a huge accomplishment. Yes, the bill is not perfect, and doesn't have as much as some of us would like, has many compromises... but just passing it at all in this political climate is a huge accomplishment. Huge.

Some thoughts after watching the voting last night...

Bart Stupak.

I'm pro-choice, but I'm not pro-abortion - I'm pro-reproductive freedom. I don't think anyone likes abortions and wants them to increase! I think we would all like the numbers to go down - Planned Parenthood's motto is "Every Child a Wanted Child" and I believe in that. Education and empowerment of women, full access to and stigma removed from taking charge of contraception, and viable alternatives made readily and easily available and again, stigma removed... all of these things together will make abortion truly a last resort. But the anti-reproductive freedom camp (yeah, they call themselves pro-life, but only if it's still in the womb, apparently) wants to take away the option, even as a last resort. I'm all for abortion reduction, but not to the point of legal action. Women should be in full charge of their own wombs, NOT the government! Talk about government takeovers... sheesh.

But I liked Bart Stupak last night. Not just because he voted for the bill, but because of what he said - if you care about the unborn, give mothers pre-natal health care! Give babies health care! Duh! I understand people not wanting tax money to go toward abortions - I'd prefer my tax money not to go toward war. It bothers me that something that is legal and a woman's right (to control her womb, to choose whether or not to reproduce) would not be covered. It is inequitable. But I understand people not wanting it and it is something I am willing to compromise on to get health care passed. That and abortions are not that expensive.

Stupak has values, he stood up for them, and actually meant it - I know that because he accepted compromise instead of just changing what he was opposed to like so many who were just using their supposed "values" politically.

Over the Top Rhetoric and Hyperbole

omg. Devin Nunes. Government Takeover. Blah blah blah.

There are rational objections conservatives have - these are mostly fiscal. The ideological ones are mostly just hot air. And then there is Nunez.

I don't know how they can stand up there and LIE like that! They must believe their own lies. Socialism, Communism, Marxism, Totalitarianism, Ghosts of the failed Soviet State...

Flip-Floppers

I can't tell you how much I hate that this is considered an insult. How the HELL can we ever move forward and get anything at all done if our representatives decide ahead of time where they stand on issues, and never change their mind, no matter what arguments or compromises are made? We can't! If you, as Colbert famously described George W. Bush, think the same thing on Tuesday as you did on Sunday, no matter WHAT happens on Monday, then you are an IDIOT.

Monday, January 4, 2010

New Year, New Hope?

Well, they say hope does spring eternal.

After my last post I read a few things that made me feel better, although not much. The best was Paul Krugman's Tidings of Comfort, about the health care bill:
And for all its flaws and limitations, it’s a great achievement. It will provide real, concrete help to tens of millions of Americans and greater security to everyone. And it establishes the principle — even if it falls somewhat short in practice — that all Americans are entitled to essential health care.

But the economy... ugh.