"Weak Constitution": Jon Stewart reviews Fox Noisemakers'
post-Boston gang rape of the defenseless U.S. Constitution
As the living-dead Noisemakers wonder, for example, whether dastardly terrorists should be read their Miranda rights, Jon Stewart is left to point out: "First of all, not reading someone their Miranda rights doesn't mean they don't have Miranda rights." (The link again.)
by Ken
I pointed out recently that one unorthodox way of measuring the time I was out of commission for planned-surgical reasons was by Nurse Jackie episodes. The season premiere happened the night before I set out the A and L trains for my adventure, knowing that, barring unforeseen developments, I would be back home in time for Episode 2.
Fate provided another measuring tool. As the anesthesia wore off Monday afternoon, one of the first things I hear was someone in the recovery area asking someone else if they'd heard about what happened in Boston, then proceeding to fill in the blanks. By Friday night, the night before I returned home, I was spending the second of two nights in a hotel room (being watched over by a compassionate friend), glued to the TV through the exceedingly strange man hunt that ended almost inadvertently in the capture of the surviving bomber, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev.
Along the way two always-interesting questions had been raised. During the early part of the week, with clues to the identity and nature of the perpetrators seemingly beyond reach, and the net being cast wider for possibly informative video footage, there was occasional mention of the increasingly pointed question of how much privacy and personal freedom we're prepared to give up in the interest of enhanced security. And as the week wore on, with so little news to report but a gapingly gigantic news hole to fill, there was the increasingly pointed question of how the 24/7 news media are supposed to handle such a situation, when there's a screaming demand for news and little or no news to feed it.
The good news is that at least under these harrowing circumstances these questions get raised, because there sure aren't any other circumstances under which this is likely to happen. The bad news is that such circumstances are singularly unconducive to sensible discussion.
For example, at such times the media are going to respond to the demand for information now by putting out most any factoid they don't actually know to be false. You like to think the infotainment noozers have gotten a shade more sophisticated about filtering some of the more arrantly unsourced bilge that always circulates in such circumstances. I think they really have gotten better about it, but even so, an awful lot of awful nonsense found its way into circulation.
As for the delicate balance between rights and security, in such a climate of fear and anger large numbers of Americans don't even want to hear about "rights," and we're assuredly better off not having any discussion than having the kind we're apt to get. Which is why I've had it in mind to make sure everyone has seen this dazzling Daily Show clip showcasing a passle of Fox Noise mental defectives who really ought to be under institutional care.
And while we're on this territory, I want to be sure everyone has seen the ThinkProgress War Room's ProgressReport on The Week in Right-Wing Craziness (links onsite).
post-Boston gang rape of the defenseless U.S. Constitution
by Ken
I pointed out recently that one unorthodox way of measuring the time I was out of commission for planned-surgical reasons was by Nurse Jackie episodes. The season premiere happened the night before I set out the A and L trains for my adventure, knowing that, barring unforeseen developments, I would be back home in time for Episode 2.
Fate provided another measuring tool. As the anesthesia wore off Monday afternoon, one of the first things I hear was someone in the recovery area asking someone else if they'd heard about what happened in Boston, then proceeding to fill in the blanks. By Friday night, the night before I returned home, I was spending the second of two nights in a hotel room (being watched over by a compassionate friend), glued to the TV through the exceedingly strange man hunt that ended almost inadvertently in the capture of the surviving bomber, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev.
Along the way two always-interesting questions had been raised. During the early part of the week, with clues to the identity and nature of the perpetrators seemingly beyond reach, and the net being cast wider for possibly informative video footage, there was occasional mention of the increasingly pointed question of how much privacy and personal freedom we're prepared to give up in the interest of enhanced security. And as the week wore on, with so little news to report but a gapingly gigantic news hole to fill, there was the increasingly pointed question of how the 24/7 news media are supposed to handle such a situation, when there's a screaming demand for news and little or no news to feed it.
The good news is that at least under these harrowing circumstances these questions get raised, because there sure aren't any other circumstances under which this is likely to happen. The bad news is that such circumstances are singularly unconducive to sensible discussion.
For example, at such times the media are going to respond to the demand for information now by putting out most any factoid they don't actually know to be false. You like to think the infotainment noozers have gotten a shade more sophisticated about filtering some of the more arrantly unsourced bilge that always circulates in such circumstances. I think they really have gotten better about it, but even so, an awful lot of awful nonsense found its way into circulation.
As for the delicate balance between rights and security, in such a climate of fear and anger large numbers of Americans don't even want to hear about "rights," and we're assuredly better off not having any discussion than having the kind we're apt to get. Which is why I've had it in mind to make sure everyone has seen this dazzling Daily Show clip showcasing a passle of Fox Noise mental defectives who really ought to be under institutional care.
And while we're on this territory, I want to be sure everyone has seen the ThinkProgress War Room's ProgressReport on The Week in Right-Wing Craziness (links onsite).
That Happened: 10 Crazy Things the Right Did This Week
May 3, 2013 | By ThinkProgress War Room
The right wing rarely rests and this week has been no exception. Here's ten stories from just this week illustrating just how extreme, out of touch, and just plain offensive that conservatives can be.
1. The incoming NRA president refers to the Civil War as the "War of Northern Aggression." He also called President Obama a "fake president" and said Attorney General Eric Holder is "rabidly un-American."
2. Sen. Kelly Ayotte (R-NH) said she voted against equal pay for women because we already have enough laws. The embattled Granite Stater said the laws we already have are sufficient even though women still only make 77 cents on the dollar.
3. Retired Supreme Court Justice now regrets Bush v. Gore. Former Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, who herself cast the deciding vote to install George W. Bush as president, said this week that she regrets that the High Court even took up the case in the first place.
4. Former Bush press secretary praises the Nazis' respect for the laws of war. Former Bush flack Ari Fleischer defended keeping the prison at Guantanamo Bay open by praising the Nazis' respect for the laws of war compared to the terrorists we are fighting today.
5. State legislator attacks hero victim of Boston bombing in order to advance conspiracy theory. New Hampshire State Rep. Stella Tremblay (R-NH) said that Jeff Bauman, who lost both his legs and heroically identified the bombers after he awoke in the hospital, looked too calm to be in shock, which she claims is proof that the government is behind the bombing. You can take a look at this photo of Bauman and see if you think he's part of a government conspiracy (warning: it's extremely gruesome).
6. Wisconsin church cancels speech by former NFL player because he is too supportive of gay people. A Wisconsin church this week canceled a speech by LeRoy Butler, a former Green Bay Packers safety, simply because he tweeted his support for NBA player Jason Collins, who became the first male major league athlete to come out.
7. Ohio Republicans want to punish colleges for helping students vote. Ohio Republicans floated a plan to punish any state university that helps students register to vote in Ohio (simply by providing a form) by refusing to allow them to charge those students out-of-state tuition. This comes despite the fact that a 1979 Supreme Court case reaffirmed the right of students to register and vote where they attend school.
8. Mysterious conservative group launches dirty tricks in South Carolina special election. A mysterious outside group launched a push poll targeting Elizbeth Colbert Busch, the Democrat running against former Gov. Mark Sanford in next Tuesday's special election for South Carolina's first Congressional district. The push poll calls suggested that she had had an abortion, been in jail, and racked up massive debts, among other things.
9. Tea Party Congressman says the Attorney General is on the side of the Boston bombers. Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-TX) said Attorney General Eric Holder "spent more of his legal career helping terrorists than defending the country" and was thus biased toward the bombers. He also remarked that "political correctness" had stopped the FBI from preventing the bombings.
10. Governor blames unemployment rate on drugs. Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett (R), one of the most unpopular governors in the country, blamed his poor job creation record on drugs by claiming that most unemployed people are on drugs.
BONUS: A group founded and funded by Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg used both its left-wing and right-wing subsidiaries to launch ads in favor of the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline and drilling in Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. In an introductory column launching the group, Zuckerberg said that the group would be dedicated to "building the knowledge economy," which he contrasts to "the economy of the last century… primarily based on natural resources." Zuckerberg added, "there are only so many oil fields, and there is only so much wealth that can be created from them for society."
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