Click image for a bigger bus.
Her book – fake – she had a Ghost Writer.
Her Rogue Bus – fake – she uses a private Jet.
Her concern for Alaska – fake – she quit her job.
Her connection to her fans – fake – she leaves them standing in the rain.
Click image for a bigger bus.
Her book – fake – she had a Ghost Writer.
Her Rogue Bus – fake – she uses a private Jet.
Her concern for Alaska – fake – she quit her job.
Her connection to her fans – fake – she leaves them standing in the rain.
So it works! Congratulations NASA – finally some good news. But I guess America has currently more important projects than to use these news rockets to fly to the moon and establish a base.
Alcoholism is still one of the biggest pests hurting our societies. Being drunk is accepted by most societies (don’t try it in Saudi Arabia), but being stoned isn’t. And thanks to binge drinking many kids die, become alcoholics or cause serious problems. Cheap booze is also affecting many adults. In Britain there a great worries about the huge unhealthy amount of alcohol that is consumed just while watching telly or sitting at home.
Alcohol is a serious drug (like nicotine), but it legal and accepted as a "social lubricant" and accepted "escape" from modern life.
A total ban is certainly a drastic step and certainly would help to a certain extend. But a smarter move would be making strong drinks very expensive or banning them altogether, including such products aimed at young people and teenagers like Alco pops (sweet juices mixed with strong drinks like Vodka or Whiskey).
Also we have to look closer why people want to knock themselves out so desperately – like misguided idea of a War on Drugs – a battle against alcoholism can only succeed if people are more content and less under pressure.
Banning poverty would be the best weapon against alcohol …
The Saga of three great brothers finally ended with Ted Kennedy’s death. Normally I am not a fan of political dynasties, but the Kennedys were a unique bunch. But I guess that era is now over …
Afghanistan never had a great democratic establishment it was always a tribal country. Whatever political structure there was – was destroyed by the Soviets and than the Taliban.
How can you expect a totally wrecked country to develop all the necessary basics for a "nice" Democracy within a few years?
But Afghanistan also shows the old problem the West has to bring Democracy to fledgling countries. Usually they support a pro-Western establishment or strongman. In Egypt it was Saddat now it’s Mubarak, in Saudi Arabia it’s the Sauds and in Iran it was the Shah …
These figures are usually the "best" the country has to offer at that stage: some strong, willing and connected people to run everything, because there is no established party system or even a basic bureaucracy to run things.
Without basic government services and an enforcement of low there can be no Democracy. And Iraq and Afghanistan shows how hard it is to convince the power players to be nice and adopt Democracy when they can have almost unlimited power instead (like Saddam).
And the common people often share the tribal or religious mindset of their Sheiks or Mullahs. Why share, when we are Gods chosen people?
Democracy is a long process of establishing new ideas and behaviours. It won’t come overnight or in a few years …
It is amazing that the US spends the most on – but ranks only 34th in international in health care.
Even more amazing is that so called pro-live and Jesus followers so vehemently fight against universal health care. Sure it’s only a small group – and it has been whipped into madness by corporate interest: first Fox News who needs that crowd and a few sleazy health care firms who see their HUGE profits slipping.
But most of all I am disappointed by so called blue collar Americans – they stay mostly silent. They should protest, roam the streets, disrupt Republican town hall meetings and call their Members of Congress. Instead they silently suffer and don’t fight for their health care. The huge numbers of uninsured people don’t stand up for their own interest. Sad.
But Obama and the Democrats also failed to deliver a smart campaign and show some balls pushing it all through. They haven’t learned anything from the Bush years.
So I am afraid that much potential for "change" will be squandered and thousands will suffer from lack of health care.
Click image for more moonlight.
Billions of years our faithful companion led a quiet life, but 40 years ago humanity invaded the moon.
This giant step for mankind was actual mostly symbolical and technological. The American Space Program resulted in many new technologies (ball pen etc.) that improved our daily lives.
I suspect it will take another century before humanity really gets a grip on the moon with permanent settlements and mining operations (yes, the moon has many rare elements that earth doesn’t have).
Click image for more Marilyn.
She didn’t have big breasts, she was not really exceptionally beautiful – but she had charm and charisma.
The shot is today a classic nude moment – back in 1953 is was simply sleaze. How times change …
If you can than watch this amazing video on HD on YouTube. I love space pr0n like this …
Since I have seen "Fog of War" I am a big admirer of Mr Namara. He was incredible smart and very philosophical person. He was lifted by John F. Kennedy into a position of power and was responsible to run the Vietnam war.
Certainly a job not many people would love to take on.
In his later days he tried to create good "realpolitik" to improve humanity and bring old foes together. He also wrote an excellent book about war, politics and warfare. He really faced many ugly questions and tried in his own technocratic and human way to find some answers.
He also reflected on his mistakes in old age and changed many of his opinions – something not many politicians are able to do.
Just a good American Citizen getting rid of some "evil" people …
Another deadly and politically motivated shooting in the US by a right wing "person". I am trying to avoid the usual expression "right wing nut", because it makes the murderer seem like "just a crazy person", who would have killed no matter what was his political affiliation.
But exactly the opposite is true!
Like the murder of a doctor George Tiller who performed highly controversial abortions and many other attacks motivated by racism, anti-semitism and religious reasons it is right-wing-hate has driven these killers.
For decades right-wing-propagandists like Rush Limbaugh, O’Reilly and "religious" leaders like Pat Robertson have used hate and extreme prejudice to drive their agenda. As masterful speakers they often used bloody and hateful attacks on their foes.
Lesser creatures in this pandemonium of so called protectors or "Life" and "Family Values" had no problem to call for the death of political opponents like the killed abortion doctor or foreign heads of state.
For example Dr. Tiller was shot in Church while praying.
So those "right-wing-nuts" have not been simply crazy people doing terrible things (therefore the right-wing could wash it’s hand in innocence), BUT it was the hate speech, the religious dogmas and disconnect from reality that drove them to do such insane stuff and call it "justice".
I only preach the word of the Lord …
Just like Timothey McVeigh there are many people in the US who more than willing to believe such propaganda and finally act upon the constant whispers of hate – by either bombing or shooting "their opponents" and "evil-doers".
Too many silently support such killings against "fags", "jews", "pinkos", "communists", "niggers", "socialists" and "Killers of Babies" – in their minds those hurt or killed by their compatriots had it coming anyway. They deserved the pain!
Their rationalisation is either based on their odd form of Christianity (it’s oke to wear weapons and execute people, but not to support health care and other social services to the poor) or their racist form of the American Dream (whites have to succeed, all other minorities are only tolerated and are disposable).
Jesus wasn’t into weapons, he was into healing the sick and connecting / touching the outcasts … or was he?!
This part of white American society is stuck in a 1950’s fantasy of it’s own history: in an Illusion of an Golden Era, when nobody talked about civil rights, minorities slaved away in the background, when Gays where invisible and apart from Commies there were no threats to the great American White Dominance.
The American Civil Right movement had to rip "justice" from White Americas hands. The US still is not an equally fair and just society too all sides. Programs like affirmative action did almost as much harm as good, but many measures like these were necessary to ENFORCE equality. Some parts of White America couldn’t handle the equal treatment of "niggers" and the quest for gay rights (see the still raging debate about Gay Marriage that as already been settled in most Western Nations).
Obama? Osama? It’s all the same to them …
One only needs to observe the effect Obama’s election had on this part of American society: they went nuts!
"The Slaves have become the Masters – run for your lifes!"
Obama hate is their favourite hobby, gun sales in their areas of America soared and the rhetoric’s of their hate preachers went off the scale.
Plus the bad economic situation didn’t help either. And since Wall Street is obviously money business which is traditionally associated with the Jews it was their fault once again that America was going down.
"Niggers, Jews and Fags want America to fail!"
How to deal with a thing called the "future" …
This part of White America simply has no true answers to a changed planet: the effects of globalization and multi-ethic societies.
They can’t cope with another strong religion in their own country and abroad (there are over a billion Muslims world wide to "tolerate").
They can’t cope with the coming success of gay rights movement as much as they couldn’t prevent black/civil rights movement.
Maybe fighting a war without Gay Arabic translators is a bad idea?
They can’t cope with the competition from "brown" countries like India and Mexico taking away their jobs (as an effect of so called "Free Markets" established by their Republican politicians).
They can’t cope with the flood of Latinos to their own country and that they will be just another minority in the USA.
They can’t cope with global organizations dedicated to our planets unification and peace like the UN and EU.
It’s all "evil" to them taking away their "Freedoms" and "American Values" …
Welcome to the 1950’s!
The pseudo-religious rage of the so called "True Americans" makes them unable to connect to real America that is happening right now.
It is their pathos of false morals that makes them unable to cope with ANY change and progress – just like it happened before to Christianity in medieval Europe, Muslim societies in India and the Middle East as well as China’s and Japan’s bureaucratic Imperialists.
Which Gun can you recommend for American fundamentalists?
When a former majority shrinks it’s leftovers are always in danger of radicalization, because they can’t connect to present situation.
If you look at the American conservative party you can see that effect. They very busy clinging to past ideas while their movement shrinks and shrinks. The more they dig into the past the more the greater the disconnect. The bigger distance creates more anger and estrangement.
The movement get boiled down to it’s hardcore followers who lack more and more exchange with less radical elements of society so soften them up and reconnect them. The disconnect makes them feel unable to influence society and alienates them even more.
Instead of political tool they resort to violence to make themselves heard and enforce their radical visions for society.
This is not terrorism born out of suppression – like it happened in Palestine. It is terrorism of the fundamentalism – trying to enforce "eternal truths" upon the people and destroy "unbelievers" and new "evil" ideas.
Where do you stand true American?
The Conservative movement as well as American Society has to recognize the split and correctly name the fundamentalist fringe what it is: a backward and orthodox part of itself.
I am wondering if the American Department of Homeland Security (a term that would have made Goebbels proud) is as eager fighting violent American fundamentalists as Islamic ones?
Just imagine if a Muslim American would have shot a Christian in his Church! The outrage would have been huge and there would have been violent revenge.
But when a good American shoots a Baby-Killer – that’s a different story …
Dear America look at yourself – whatever happened to fair and balanced?
Just like the toxic bank assets the Obama Government has to clean out the torture legacy of George W. Bush. On one side Obama has to please the "Change" crowd on the other side is pure Realpolitik.
Now Obama has purely work to please US interests, he is now longer just a candidate that can condemn bad policies. Now he has to deal with ugly realities and problems.
Many CIA agents who did the dirty work wanted to stop, a few brave soldiers and agents refused to torture. But most of them simply followed the orders coming from HQ or the White House. Following "the orders" was also always the excuse of torturers from many countries.
It is so to easy and simply to label American Torture just a Bush problem. American culture has a violent streak, that is why it’s prisons are overcrowded, they still have the death penalty, throw mentally sick people into prison instead of handing them to a non-existent health care system and it’s national murder rate is the highest in the western world.
And there is the obvious lust for unlimited military power: the US spends more on so called defence than most other nations combined (including China, Russia, all Nato Allies, India, Brazil, etc.).
As a so called Christian Nation they behave philosophically more like Jews: an Eye for an Eye. Forgiveness is not very high on it’s cultural agenda. This is most visible with the justice system, the death penalty and three-strikes-law (you commit three criminal offences and then you get locked away for a long time).
There is a large portion within American society that sees itself as "besieged" and under attack from follow Americans (those dangerous "Liberals") and the rest of the world (Cheese Eating Surrender Monkeys and Muslims). They despise peacemakers like Jimmy Carter and applaud fictional strong men like Jack Bauer (from "24") as real world solutions.
Such a mindset ignores or at least tolerates torture, wars and an inhuman justice system. It’s a mindset that still sees the world in black and white, sees "evil commies" everywhere and is unable to apply long term and complex soft-power solutions to problems.
The Chinese more and more consider Europe irrelevant in the global game. No surprise, since Europe doesn’t speak with one voice. Almost all European leaders are willing to forget about China’s nasty deeds and policies when it comes to generating trade agreements and deals.
On the other side China is getting more and more protectionist about it’s own economy and building barriers to make it harder for any foreign country to do business.
China is closely tied to the USA – it’s biggest market and debtor. The Chinese hold huge amounts of American debt, plus they sit an a huge cash reserve themselves. This binds those two giant closer together – more than each of them wants to.
Since a Black Person is President Gun sales have literally exploded in the USA.
The usual suspects (NRA, Fox News, Right Wing Nuts, etc.) are afraid that the Negro might take away their guns or they might be another ban on sales of Assault guns (you know those toys which the free citizens of Iraq use to kill each other).
Anyone how Obama was chastised for saying that some people just cling to their Guns & Religion? That’s exactly happening right now.
That is pure satire …
These people are cowards: they can’t face Democracy without a Gun. It’s pure paranoia, not the true involvement of active citizens in the Democratic process. Instead of being well informed and political active they rather trust in violence instead of votes.
Their mindset is stuck somewhere around 1775.
BBC News: Somali Pirates Q&A
The American’s have successfully rescued one of their own. Hurray! But the battle isn’t over – far from it
Sure, more military ships certainly makes the business of piracy harder for the Somalis, but it doesn’t solve the underlying problem: poverty in a failed state.
Somalia has been plagued by civil war for a long time, it doesn’t have a stable economy nor government.
Just like in Afghanistan and Darfur the world community didn’t care or didn’t do much to stop the rot.
But this is the 21st century and even people in shitty places can buy disrupt the sensitive flow of goods.
Rebuilding Somalia will be equally nasty then pacifying Afghanistan. But ignoring the problem or bombing these people won’t make the pirates or poverty go away.
I am a huge fan of good Infographics – or Infopr0n as I call it. The great Blog "The Toilet Paper" has recently posted an excellent series of visuals about American Tax Payer’s Dollars at work. I love that this series is not just a dumb series of figures, but it also makes you think and look closer. It also reflects perfectly that it takes the money of many (taxpayers) to make a country work.
Excellent work!
It was a very symbolic meeting from a historical point of view. Obama represents for me not only the US of A, but "brown people" of all developing nation: India, Brazil, Iran, South Africa, Indonesia etc.
So far the world’s power has been in the hands of White People. It’s time for more colour and new blood …
Consumerism sometimes produces strange products, I don’t see a large market for this thing here in Europe.
More and more dirty details about the Bush Government surface: military dictatorship, eavesdropping on a grand scale, war crimes, Cheney assassination squads …
More and more government workers and military are brave enough to come forward and confess their deeds and orders from the Bush Government.
Let’s see if America has the stomach for it’s own rule of law and honesty?
Excellent commentary on America and Consumerism in general, but I think I still need to buy a Snuggie myself.
New Scientist: Porn in the USA: Conservatives are biggest consumers
Yeah, the usual games with Hypocrites. Those who are the most outraged, are the biggest consumers.
Apart from being a never ending source for sarcasm, pain and humor we won’t miss ya …
Time to clear a lot of brush in Texas.
Politicians and the Internet – not necessarily a love affair. Look at Saudi Arabia, China and many other depressing nations. Even democratic countries like South Korea politicians hate the Internet and try to suppress freedom of speech and grassroots movement via the net.
Many American Millenials and Webaddicts love to praise their toys as the transformative element that pushed Obama ahead.
But the numbers simply don’t add up: Obama has a massive 144,000 followers on Twitter. This sounds pretty impressive for a generation that measures it’s self-esteem by it’s friend counts on Facebook and MySpace.
But compare 144,000 Twitter followers to staggering 231,229,580 people in voting age in the USA. Even compared to the meager voter turnout of 132,618,580 people it’s a joke. Most of them have never heard of Twitter or own an account on Facebook. Many won’t even own an computer.
Sure many of Obama’s political ads and related videos got millions of views on YouTube, but these figures reflect a global audience – not just an American one.
Obama’s real victory was not on the Internets, but based on good old fashioned neighborhood help. His foot soldiers knocked on many doors and inspired others to vote for him.
The Internet and all it’s gimmicks certainly helped a lot organizing the effort, but the battleground was still this odd thing called reality.
Mousetivism is a great thing, but not as effective as it’s followers claim.
Public Negro #1
It’s done: Bush out, the dynamic black dude sworn in and ready to rock the world. The Obama-Mania at it’s zenith.
But the backlash is already waiting for America and it will be ugly …
America still is the biggest Hyperpower, but thanks to Dick and George it has lost most of it’s international gravitas. I expect Obama to be very busy trying to fix the biggest problems without really changing much in his first year in office.
I just hope that he won’t punished for his visions and attitude like Jimmy Carter was. Remember: President Carter installed a Solar Panel on the White House – and el Doofus Ronald Reagan had it removed.
Change is needed – now more then thirty years ago.
President Bush is now on his way out – but still the world is not save. There still could be a final act of stupidity that will cause the world or the American people some serious trouble?
And what about all the turkeys we haven’t heard of? I am pretty sure that after January the 20th a great many people will come forward and tell us nasty things that have happened under the rule of Mad King George and Dart Cheney.
And poor President Obama. He and his time will have to start the biggest cleanup in history.
Thank you America – you have restored some of my faith in your nation.
Now let’s hope President Obama can get you out of that huge mess that Bush guy has caused you.
The United States of America is tightly in the grip of Mediocrity. The so called “normal” people distrust anyone who is smarter or different from them. Especially all kind of elites are suspicious.
Sure: American politicians are as corrupt and incompetent as in any other country, but still that anti-intellectualism is scary.
It way too much reminds me of the anti-intellectual tendencies and hate rallies in the Third Reich and in George Orwell’s 1984.
Today’s world is highly complex and complicated. You need to be very smart to quickly adapt and understand all the related complex situations of our global society.
It’s not about bringing up five kids and going to Washington to bring “small town values” to the rotten city. It’s about being as shrewd and smart as Putin, Mugabe and Osama bin Laden.
Sarah Palin ain’t good enough. John McCain has the experience, but lacks the quickness and eloquence. Obama has not the experience, but he is smart and quick.
It is a shame: Obama should have wiped the floor with Grandpa McCain. Instead Obama was to stiff to get an advantage. Isn’t he supposed to such a brilliant speaker? Where was the passion? Where was his gut?!
A big chance missed to take the lead after McCain had such a bad week. He failed all week to show he is on top of current events like the banking crises.
So both have failed.
More? MSNBC article and videos
This is painful to watch. All I can say that these people are deluded and uninformed.
They only see what they want to see. And what do they want to see: the American Dream in action.
And what is the American Dream? We are #1! We are the chosen people (by the Lord)! And everybody can make it to the top (even idiots)!
Especially the last point of the American Delusion is the most important one. Modern American equality means that everybody is equally “low” – there is no more room for variety and differences. Brilliant people are immediately disliked and not “one of us”. The American voter insists on these “small town values” and a tight mental consensus. That is why they wanted a President they can have a beer with. And that is why they go for grandpa and the hockey mom, because they seem friendly, cuddly and very close to their own human potential.
People like Obama, John Kerry or Howard Dean seem too different, to challenging and alien to them.
Those old progressive Americans – the so called Founding Fathers – would scare these modern “real Americans” to death. The Founding Fathers where not “real” Christians, damn liberals and had tons of new ideas that were far ahead of their times mental and social consensus.
Why doesn’t the US media keep repeating that McCain’s health record has not been completely disclosed to the public? If his cancer come back he will be so sick that Sarah Palin has to take over.
Is this really the 21st century where all humans – no matter which sex or color – are treated as equals?
The good old sexist agenda is still with us – just in a different disguise – especially in the Presidential Elections in the US.
It’s seems like that an odd mutation of feminism, religion and sexism has created new barriers for women …
(This is an update to Those evil European Ideas? What does Mike Huckabee really know about Europe?)
Brett Dobbs has send me this clip from McCain from the fabulous Big Think Blog praising Europe. Thanks a lot.
But McCain hardly represents his whole party in this. He certainly formed his ties with many European Leaders in the past. But not many Americans have been in Europe as often as McCain.
Wow, the Huckabee moment just demonstrates perfectly WHY European think many Americans are rather ignorant and stupid.
Huckabee demonizes those “European ideas” which are just waiting to take over America and make Americans poor slave of these “ideas”.
We talk here about old European Communism and Socialism – and we also talk about modern “old” Europe.
Europeans overall enjoy better social systems, better health, better justice system (we don’t kill criminals here and our prisons are far more humane) and actually more civil liberties than Americans – and not just since Darth Cheney and his Chimp killed the last bits of the progressive side of America.
Europe also offers a higher social mobility and better pay. Most people here can afford a good life without working two or three jobs. Europe is certainly NOT perfect, but overall the middle class and the poor are better off here than in the US of A.
We have “the gays” serving in several European armies and we also allow them to marry like everybody else also in almost all European nations. So far God hasn’t killed or punished Europe with a Hurricane.
Now to the ignorant part: especially poor and uneducated Americans have been voting against those evil ideas like a universal health care system by letting the Republicans run the country. Indeed they have often voted in a rather dumb patriotic spirit against their own interests and better lifes.
After WWII we Europeans looked at progressive America to replace the old imperialistic and nationalistic Europe with a more united and progressive version. We learnt a lot from our American friends.
But it is extremely frustrating how a country holds itself back or perverts the very ideas we all admired: liberty, justice, democracy and compassion.
It’s time for America to renew itself – and maybe learn from others …
Yes, this is not going to John McCains VP, but your next president.
Since America is so much in love with old white males ruling the country – Muslim change from Kenia has to wait.
Mr McCain might be a tough guy, but he is 72 years old the job of being president will kill him sooner or later.
So my dear Americans your country will be run by a superbreeder and Über-mother that has even less experience than Obama.
But don’t despair: she is a fine Christian and Creationist.
Isn’t that what your country is looking for in a good President?
Interesting insight into the Arab point of view on the DNC, Joe Biden and Barack Obama.
45 Minutes
(the first five minutes are just applause and ass kissing)
It has momentum, it has spirit and it has character. Great speech for the troops and the media. Let’s see if the Americans are willing to elect this guy and change their great nation.
Let the muddy fight begin!