A Sad Day for Intelligent Republicanism

Hello Papamoka Readers! Did you happen to notice the crowd sizes at most of yesterday's "Tea Parties?" The largest crowd was supposedly in Denver, and it was under 5,000 people. They got smaller and smaller, with most having only a few dozen people. It was pretty embarrassing for the organizers.

Did you also happen to notice how FOX "News" seemed to forget their wide angle lenses yesterday? They kept shooting close-ups giving the illusion the crowds were massive. They had their mics turned way up giving the illusion the crowd noise was much louder too. It was media manipulation at its best.

To think, some people actually consider them a news network. Where were they when tens of thousands were protesting the war? Let's face it, they're a media joke.

There were technical glitches too. Neil Cavuto and Sean Hannity were caught estimating their crowds to be low, and later multiplying them on camera. It was very embarrassing for the "news" network that really can't afford to look any less fair and balanced. Every FOX correspondent was caught overstating their crowd sizes. Their estimates were overturned by local police at day's end.

Did you also happen to notice the composition of the crowds? It was incredible! The majority of the "Tea Baggers" were over 50 and all seemed to be very white. Yes, our senior citizens - the Medicare and Medicaid crowd - were out there holding signs calling President Obama and the Democrats socialists. It was all too much. Some of the events looked like senior citizen Klan rallies - quite anachronistic in the 21st century.

The whole day was embarrassing and outrageous for most of us who watched from the side lines. It showed us just how many Americans (thousands nationally) will actually respond to a call by extreme right-wing groups and media, no matter how wrong the message. It showed the thin edge of the Republican wedge - of people who like to vote against their own best interest. Yesterday was a sad day for American political intellect. It was a sad day in America for intelligent political protest and discourse.

Anyway, in the end the "Tea Parties" were the disaster, the spectacle of stupidity we all thought they would be. The ridiculous concept was ridiculous in the end. The idiots who organized them will hopefully slink away into the shadows where they came from. The weirdos and the wackos who attended will do the same.

The Republican party was the big loser. They now appear more marginalized, more radical, and more out-of-touch than ever. Joining the loser fest are the right-wing media die-hards: Cavuto, Hannity, Limbaugh, Beck and O'Reilly. They now look even more crazy. Do you think they regret it? I doubt it, since I'm sure they got their ratings. They're also all too insane to care.

Michael Boh

Papamoka's Left Coast Contributor

from Our Rants & Raves Blog

Who Are the Republicans Talking To?

Hello Papamoka Readers! As any regular visitor to my blog knows, every now and then I feel compelled to write about the Republican/conservative talking machine. Did you guys watch some of the political talk shows yesterday? I don't know about you, but the ones I looked at were filled with Republican hyperbole and obfuscation.

The "repetitive monkeys" as I like to call them - because they're "intellectually challenged" - are at full volume these days. They are constantly beating on us at the moment about spending, and none of the talk show hosts challenge them on the facts. Not one host asked for alternatives. Not one challenged the GOP's spending habits. Their lies and deceit went completely unchallenged yesterday. It was disgusting!

The fact that they spent tens of billions to successfully spend us out of a serious recession after 9/11 is never questioned. The fact they are responsible for 90% of ALL FEDERAL DEBT, much of it caused by their tax cuts, thus leaving future generations with few options, is never discussed. They get away with painting themselves as fiscal conservatives, which is maddening when you know the facts.

Most of the Republicans this weekend danced around the serious issues and never offered specifics. They were throwing around absurd, unsupportable accusations. The media did little to help with fairness, since they were too busy enjoying the foaming and the frothing. Right-wingers kept saying how they were "intellectually honest with the American people." What a joke! I only hope the American people know better, because the facts certainly don't support it.

Since we're on the subject, allow me to say the worst, of course, is FOX "News" and that triumvirate of media MORONS Glenn Beck, Bill O'Reilly and Sean Hannity. Listen to any one of them and you walk away with more crap than a public toilet. They are a boil on America's bottom. They would have been great working at Pravda during the worst years of the USSR. They are selfish, disgusting propagandists using issues like morality and patriotism to line their own greedy pockets. They are the truly UGLY side of America's modern media.

I hear their crap often during dinner party debates. Defending against them is like trying to get out of a brier patch. No matter what you do, you're going to get scratched up. They train their sheep to always change the subject when seriously challenged. In my opinion, after debating many of their flock, I've decided there must be some kind of brainwashing involved. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to figure out if the hosts are brainwashing, or if their flock is just more susceptible to being brainwashed. That is the question.

Btw, there is good news. It's true they attract millions every night, but what they never tell you about their ratings is how they rarely attract over 25% of the American audience. In other words, almost every conservative watches FOX "Noise," while the rest of us watch a multitude of other news sources. It's clear Republicans love to hear themselves talk. The rest of us, our ratings, are spread out across multiple media. If it cheers you up, the FOX "Nitwits" primarily talk to the same people every night. They are the special interest media, which goes a long way to limiting their power.

The other good news is beginning to unfold behind the scenes in back rooms, where serious Republicans are beginning to wonder whether they can continue being "helped" by FOX/Limbaugh-style echo-chambers. They are beginning to question whether stifling serious debate helps their party grow. They're starting to question their self-made Republican bubble.

What can they do though? The Republican sheep love their media. The conservative media love their sheep. Both love the biased reporting. They all seem to love the echo chamber. It's very sad. I've written about it before on this blog, we need to reinvigorate the great American political debate. We need to end the shouting matches. We need to shut down the propagandists. We need one set of facts. We need to care about this issue more.

Michael Boh
Papamoka's Left Coast Contributor
from Our Rants & Raves Blog

Patriotism GOP Style

Hello Papamoka Readers! I would like to point out again just how blind Republicans are to their own hypocrisy. We all know how Republicans refuse to acknowledge their own guilt in government, especially when it comes to lies, war profiteering, debt spending and ignoring the rule of law, but they also refuse to acknowledge their own anti-Americanism.

Democrats have endured being called unpatriotic and unAmerican for years. I call it the "patriot card," since it's kind of like the "race card." Republicans play it all the time, and have adopted the tactic as a specialty within the party. It's one of their favorite blunt instruments used to pummel everyone who's not Republican, including independents and the politically neutral-by-nature, into seeing the left-wing [or any non-Republican] as bad for America. It sounds crazy, but it's true.

The real irony is that Republicans are openly threatening to our government all the time, especially lately, and their methods are often blatantly unpatriotic, if not worse. I'm shocked the way Democrats ignore it. Why don't we learn from the Republicans and start calling those REPUBLICANS UNAMERICAN, or ANTI-AMERICAN, since they are, and it's effective. Allow me to start by saying that RUSH LIMBAUGH IS ANTI-AMERICAN and UNPATRIOTIC!

Republican leaders have been casual with their remarks lately about how they want President Obama to fail. Limbaugh has been their torch bearer. The Republicans have not only been unpatriotic, they've been downright treasonous. Yes, there have been many Republicans in the media suggesting treason. Sean Hannity even posted a poll on his website offering his viewers the opportunity to choose how they would start a new revolution, and every option included a violent overthrow of some kind. So let's say it together: SEAN HANNITY IS TREASONOUS!

Would they allow Democrats to get away with the same kind of unAmerican speech? NEVER!! They would have been screaming bloody murder by now. They would have used the "patriot card" to CRUSH and discredit the Democrats - both the media and the leadership. WAKE UP DEMS, for this is what Americans care about! This is how they create impressions about OUR leaders. We need to point out their hypocrisy and their evil intent. The Republicans have been talking trash so we need to TAKE OUT THE TRASH!

What can we do to help? Let's point out - whenever possible - just how unAmerican and unpatriotic the Republicans are these days. Let's start calling them out when they try to undermine the government and our elected leaders. Let's use the "patriot card" to discredit THEM. You never know, it may ultimately lose some of it power, like the "race card," and fade away. That would be a great day.

Michael Boh
Papamoka's Left Coast Contributor
from Our Rants & Raves Blog

Hannity's Paranoia is Getting Worse

Hello Papamoka Bloggers - I love it when decent Republicans point out the BS spewed by the idiots in the party - the repetitive MONKEY Sean Hannity in this case. The Huffington Post is reporting that Minnesota Governor Pawlenty defended his state AGAINST Hannity's insanity.

The monkey has been sounding VERY paranoid lately. His rants against ACORN, which most honest Republican Party observers have called delusional, have spread to him questioning the honesty and integrity of Minnesota's Secretary of State and the whole state vote recounting process.

It's all about the ongoing Minnesota Senate race between Al Franken and Norm Coleman. The repetitive MONKEY is saying that Secretary of State Mark Ritchie is "suspicious" and has "close ties to ACORN." He is even questioning why he attended the Democratic National Convention - you know, the convention HELD IN MINNESOTA!

He is also saying that Ritchie may have "radical connections." I see, kind of like Bill Ayers and Reverend Wright? WOW! I guess that's going to be their favorite new way to destroy people - talk about who they know.

What is going on with Hannity and O'Reilly these days? It seems their usual crazy is turning into put-them-away-now-so-they-don't-hurt-themselves CRAZY. They're PATHETIC!

Anyway, Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty defended Ritchie and the process on Hannity & Colmes - or as I like to call it, Monkey Man & Witless. The governor did not just go along with Hannity's crazy talk. Instead, Pawlenty said that accusations "should be backed up with actual evidence," and refused to go along with the notion that his Secretary of State is some kind of cheat.

He said, "I want to be clear about this. I know Mark Ritchie. He is a partisan on the other side of the aisle as I am as governor. He is trying his best to conduct this fairly." Wow, that should shut Hannity up, but we all know it won't. Anyway, THANK YOU Governor Pawlenty. We needed it.

Let's hope that more and more Republicans begin to counteract insane people like Hannity and O'Reilly. If that begins to happen, you'll see a LOT MORE COOPERATION between the parties. People like Hannity and O'Reilly need to be put down. We need to rid ourselves of their noise pollution.

Michael Boh
Papamoka's Left Coast Contributor
from Our Rants & Raves Blog

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