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Franken's list of Democratic beliefs, slightly modified
Apparently Al Franken has compiled a list of Democratic/"liberal" beliefs, and they're reprinted here.Let's see if we can make them a bit more realistic:
* We stand for clean water, clean air, reduced emissions, alternative fuels - we don’t cater to the special interest groups that claim there is no global warming, groups that pay no windfall taxes on shameful oil profits or refuse to pay their fair share of royalty taxes on land owned by you and me. We do, however, cater to special interest groups, especially if they're "of color". We fully support racial power groups, just as long as they're of the right races...
* We stand for a free and unbiased media - not one controlled by the Far Right and big business; not a public media that calls for balance or bias rather than truth. We also can't stand lies. And, since what we say is the truth, if someone disagrees they're lying and they need to be silenced.
* We stand for quality public education from early childhood through college - not vouchers to support private schools and the ultimate destruction of Head Start and public education, as well as reductions in grants, loans, and federal funding for all levels of education. We also support taking discounted college educations away from U.S. citizens and giving them to illegal aliens...
* We stand for cooperation among nations - not isolationism; not "either agree with us or you’re our enemy". Some might even call us "transnational progressives" and useful idiots for anti-American forces like Hugo Chavez or like the globalists. Guilty as charged.
* We stand for helping the poor, the underprivileged, the handicapped, the sick, the disabled - not cutting off funds to eliminate important programs for those who cannot help themselves. Especially if they're "of color".
* We stand for a safe nation with safe borders and ports - not a nation that sells our ports to other countries, scapegoats entire ethnic group, and spies on its own people. Of course, we also support millions of illegal aliens coming over our borders, but we'd rather not discuss that issue...
* We stand for the rights of women, minorities, gays, lesbians, ethnic, racial, and religious groups, all of whom contribute to the great diversity of this country - not censorship, restrictions, uniformity, and conformity. Sure, some might say we believe in corporate pluralism, group identity, and destroying the cultural adhesion that binds Americans together. Once again, guilty as charged.
* We stand for fairness in the labor market - not corporate profits by reducing jobs and cutting benefits; not corporate pay that is 400% higher than the average worker. Of course, if serf labor employers want to bring in millions of illegal aliens to drive down American wages, that's OK with us.
Posted in StuartSmalley at 09:48 PM | Comments (6)
Chuck D wants you to be aware
From "Chuck D urges awareness":On Thursday night, Chuck D, a founding member of celebrated rap group Public Enemy, delivered a free-wheeling talk at Union College, where he touched on subjects such as history, sociology and musicology, to name a few.If I hadn't impulsively created a Chuck D category several months ago, this entry wouldn't be here.
About 200 people attended the talk, called "Race, Rap, Reality and Technology."
The rap star was energized by his surroundings, the ornate, 16-sided Nott Memorial, and told students they should be proud of the history surrounding them...
Posted in ChuckD at 11:27 AM | Comments (1)
Cindy Sheehan, Janeane Garofalo at far-left concert
It's been quite a while since we featured formerly-cute formerly-slightly-funny comic Janeane Garofalo here, and we're reaching a bit low in the barrel to announce that she'll be broadcasting her show (she still has a show?) live from a "peace" concert which will also feature Cindy Sheehan. The concert will coincide with the three-year anniversary of the Iraq war.
Those providing the music include Michael Stipe out of REM, Bright Eyes, Rufus Wainwright, Fischerspooner, Public Enemy's Chuck D, Devendra Banhart and Peaches.
The "Bring 'Em Home" concert may also feature a special-guest appearance by Hugo Chavez, although my sources were a bit sketchy on that.
Posted in Janeane at 12:21 AM | Comments (2)
Meet Senator Al Franken's daughter
Thomasin Franken is the daughter of Al Franken. The latter is - still! - considering running for Senator from Minnesota. Normally we wouldn't discuss the daughters of a politician. Unless, of course, she brings it on herself.
What subject matter do you think young Thomasin choose for a posting at the Huffington Post? World peace? The Kyoto Accords? Global warming's effects on the golden sturgeon of far northern Minnesota?
No, she choose peeing. Yes, that's right: urination.
Yes, that's right, she's got a column with bathroom tips. Now, I have to admit, I find it oddly stimulating, but it's hardly the type of column we'd expect from the daughter of a Senatorial candidate, and be assured that it will be used against him by his opponents.
UPDATE: As Scott points out in the comments, she is indeed stepping into Randi Rhodes territory. Maybe she's trying to send a message to Al Franken's rival.
Posted in StuartSmalley at 08:02 PM | Comments (8)
Al Franken standing up to lies and stuff
Al Franken paid a brief visit to Lane Community College in Eugene Oregon yesterday, and the local KVAL offers a stock report much like we've read over and over when Stuart comes to town. However, it contains some interesting comments:1. "It's democracy in action, actually, I think... People coming out, able to speak their mind, maybe getting a different opinion than the predominant maybe right-wing echo chamber that's out there."Then, KVAL reporter Andy Peterson cornered Al Franken and forced him to admit his role in the Air America Radio scandal, obtaining a full and complete confession.
2. "He's the only one who's stood up to Rush Limbaugh and all those folks on the right... And with all the lies and stuff, it's good that somebody is calling it like it is."
3. "One of the things that Al Franken does, is he puts a little humor in some of these stories that are, you know what, they're pretty heavy day after day after day... And I think with some humor and some action we can really make change."
Just kidding! Andy Peterson is a real "reporter".
Posted in StuartSmalley at 06:57 AM | Comments (0)
New York Times on Katherine Lanpher
Stephen P. Williams of the NY Times offers a portrait of former Al Franken co-host Katherine Lanpher that has to be read to be believed: "Celebrity From the Midwest Finds a New Life in New York".I think at least three thoughts were uppermost in the writer's mind:
1. Diss the Midwest and Midwesterners.
2. Provide yet another free advertisement for Air America.
3. Diss Lanpher for abandoning Al Franken.
The first part of the article consists of the writer briefly visiting the provinces (in spirit only), reporting that Lanpher "wasn't bothered that her ambitions would have to be fulfilled along the banks of the Mississippi." However, she wasn't like all those other... people... in the Midwest: she visited Paris often. Despite that, it "seemed that life would unfold with predictable comfort, season by season".
All that changed when Stuart Smalley asked her to join his program.
The article mentions her age at least three times, then offers a strange mix of admission and doublespeak:
But about the time she started to feel as if she might just become a real New Yorker, she faced a new quandary: Air America was floundering and Mr. Franken decided to move the show to Minnesota. Having faced down her Manhattan crisis, she wasn't quite ready to face midlife back in the Midwest. Emboldened by her book contract, and facing a looming deadline, she quit her job at Air America and started hitting the keyboard.It's good to find the NYT admitting that AAR was "floundering", but I'm going to guess that the details of her departure were a bit more complicated.
Then, they report on a wonderful party... to which Lanpher wasn't invited and which she watched from her balcony.
And, they even diss her decorator's skills, informing us that her "apartment is not nearly that glamorous" finishing with this:
But decorating this apartment would be almost superfluous. The whole point of the place is the view, the light, the Village spread below.
On a late winter afternoon the living room is overwhelmed by light that can be described only as blinding. As the minutes pass into dusk, the apartment is suffused with pink. Out the window, the Hudson turns deep slate before the setting sun.
On a recent afternoon Ms. Lanpher doffed a dowdy apron to cook chicken with 40 cloves of garlic — "the garlic was billed as both purple and French," she said, "so, foodie that I am, I had to buy it" — that would be her contribution to a going-away party for one of her doormen. This perfect use of Midwestern manners in a Manhattan context shows how she's adapted — to a new city, a new job and, now, life in Manhattan without a job.
The second half of her life is unfolding in mysterious ways. And she's letting it happen from a really nice perch.
Posted in AlsoRans at 11:39 PM | Comments (0)
Air America Radio podcasts not going smoothly
Air America's last desperate attempt to squeeze the last remaining shekels out of their last remaining listeners appears to be having a bit of a problem. Earlier this month they started a "premium" podcasting service, and the screenshot to the right is from their support forum.
The podcast pricing starts at $2 for a "day pass" and quickly mounts to $7 for a month of just one show or $11 for a month of all the shows they put out that way. You get a break if you choose a longer term; there's no word on whether they've gotten a bond in case they aren't around for another six months.
Two additional funny things to note:
Air America Associates have special discount options available that will be detailed in a special email sent to them.
Recall that their "Associates" donate to AAR and receive tote bags in return. I'm just surprised that they aren't charging them more since they've already proven to be suckers.
As for the reason why they're charging:
Podcasting is expensive, and we are a business.
That will certainly come as a surprise to those who think in more "public ownership" terms.
Posted in Meta at 10:21 PM | Comments (0)
Al Franken reflects on the left's lack of class
Fresh from the HuffPost comes "Al Franken: Reflections on the Wellstone Memorial and the King Funeral". Even though there are already 172 comments at post time, none have so far included a link to this site, nor do any of them have the word 'club', as in Gloria Wise Boys and Girls Club. Feel free to rectify that.In his slight defense, it includes the following:
Four presidents spoke. One of them, Jimmy Carter, made a passing reference to the fact that Martin and Coretta King had been the victims of domestic wiretapping by the government. Was it a shot at President George W. Bush, who was sitting right behind Carter? Probably. Was that inappropriate? Maybe.
Would Coretta Scott King have enjoyed the moment? I don't know. You know who would have a better idea than me? Jimmy Carter. He knew Mrs. King. Those who are currently complaining - most of whom claim to be offended on her behalf - didn't know her at all.
Posted in StuartSmalley at 03:11 PM | Comments (4) | TrackBack
The Al Franken / George Soros axis
Previous comments have commented on the lack of comments here (aka 'argumentem ad lackum commentum'). I would like to rectify that situation with a fun game.
Who can find the closest link between Al Franken and George Soros? Have they ever met? Has George donated money to Stuart's PAC? Does Al Franken do his radio show with the Soros-funded Media Matters feeding him lines through an earpiece?
Could this be an example of the latter? Franken grills Dickerson on Time-Rove scandal: "Why can't you just say they're big liars?" Was David Brock in the studio, furiously scribbling questions for Al to read?
Use the search function to the right as well as your favorite search engine and let's do some collaborative research.
Posted in StuartSmalley at 06:08 AM | Comments (2) | TrackBack
Buffalo to get diverse, spirited dialog
Air America Radio is coming to Buffalo, New York. In fact, that fine frozen city is going to get two "liberal" yakkers: a "moderate" version on WWKB featuring Bill Press, Stephanie Miller, Ed Schultz and others, as well as a more shrieking version of "liberalism" on WHLD.
The latter, of course, will feature Air America programming. Specifically, that from Al Franken, Randi Rhodes, and Laura Flanders. Plus, as if that wasn't enough, they're going to throw in Pacifica Radio shows such as Democracy Now.
Get out your Volvo and drive!
Posted in Meta at 12:58 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
Air America Radio sponsoring Pope-bashing "comic"
Kate Clinton (no relation to Bubba) is a famous lesbian comic who apparently bashes the Pope in her act:
"I've had to learn a whole new pope," laughed Clinton during an interview from her home in New York. "Anyway, it's the same-old, same-old, but this guy wears red shoes -- little red pumps. And then he gets upset about gay people?"
Now, for the not-unexpected connection to AAR:
Clinton says she's delighted that her tour is sponsored by the National Center of Lesbian Rights, with supporting sponsorships by PlanetOut Inc., Air America Radio and the Advocate.
Posted in Meta at 06:43 AM | Comments (5) | TrackBack
Al Franken "Midwest Values PAC" donates to "democratic socialist"
Al Franken has formed a Political Action Committee called the "Midwest Values PAC" (site), and he's already received almost $170,000:
Contributors to Franken's PAC include "Seinfeld" co-creator and "Curb Your Enthusiasm" star Larry David ($5,000); RealNetworks CEO Rob Glaser ($5,000); the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers PAC ($5,000), and the United Transportation Union PAC ($5,000)... His wife and two children also each contributed $5,000.
You can see the list of disbursements here.
After a long list of essentials such as catering, travel, office supplies, etc. etc. you see his disbursements as of the end of 2005. The PAC gave $1000 each to the following:
Coleen Rowley for Congress (details)
Francine Busby for Congress
Friends of Kent Conrad
Lampson for Congress
Sanders for Senate
Tim Walz for US Congress
Tinklenberg for Congress
Bernie Sanders is an "Independent" Rep. from Vermont who's running for Senate, with the help of other Democratic leaders. The word "Independent" is a bit misleading because in actual fact he is a self-described "democratic socialist". Here's a page attempting to spin that away. You see, Sanders isn't one of those Soviet-style socialists. In fact, he's quite in line with Al Franken's "midwest values".
Posted in StuartSmalley at 06:21 PM | Comments (1) | TrackBack
Al Franken called on Abramoff talking points
The "Mac Weekly" - a college newspaper - sat down for an interview with Al Franken and managed to do what all of his other interviewers have studiously avoided to do: ask him a tough question. You can practically see Stuart getting ready to throw a chair during this bit:MW: About that, why would they if so many Democrats are connected to Abramoff?They ended up emailing Stuart a couple articles showing Democratic links to the lobbyist.
AF: They aren't. Why do you assume that? Why do you say that?
MW: Because [Sen.] Byron Dorgan from North Dakota was found to have connections with the Indian tribes and he was advocating on their behalf with Abramoff.
AF: Yeah, but they live in North Dakota.
MW: It was an Indian tribe from Massachusetts.
AF: An Indian tribe from Massachusetts gave to Dorgan?
MW: Abramoff has been found to be pretty tightly connected with an Indian tribe from Massachusetts...
This interview highlights Al Franken's weak spot: he has trouble dealing with criticism. Simply ask him a few tough questions and he'll implode.
Posted in StuartSmalley at 12:54 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
