Flooding The Memory Hole

Fresh from their triumphant non-coverage of Obama's inappropriate "shout-out" to Dr. Joe Medicine Crow before addressing the nation about the Fort Hood shooting, the MSM (and especially the NY Times) can now not-cover Obama's comical, culturally insensitive bowing handshake to the Japanese emperor.

There have been exceptions, of course - NBC News Chicago, Fox News, and the Boston Globe picked up on the shout-out.  ABC News is pushing the bow on Jake Tapper's blog, as is the LA Times on Andrew Malcolm's blog.

LABEL AND IGNORE:  The Times nods to the bow:

Mr. Obama drew some fire from conservative American bloggers who accused him of going too far to reassure Asian leaders: they complained that he should not have bowed to Emperor Akihito of Japan when he went to the emperor’s residence for lunch.

“During his meetings and his speech in Tokyo, the president observed protocol and enhanced the status of American interests in Japan and across Asia,” said an administration official traveling with the president, who spoke on the condition of anonymity according to protocol. “Those who suggest otherwise are way off base and only looking to score political points.”

Well, it is just partisan right wing hacks, so ignore them.  Evidently Jake Tapper of ABC News is now an honorary "conservative American blogger", and we are delighted to welcome him aboard. 

As to the Times cheerful reliance on "Administration officials" while ignoring outside experts, the behavior of other world leaders, and their own past coverage of Bill Clinton's excellent Asian adventures, well, they are just liberal hacks so ignore them.

The Politico presented a longer version of the same Admin apologia:

“I think that those who try to politicize those things are just way, way, way off base,” the official said. “He observes protocol. But I don’t think anybody who was in Japan – who saw his speech and the reaction to it, certainly those who witnesses his bilateral meetings there – would say anything other than that he enhanced both the position and the status of the U.S., relative to Japan. It was a good, positive visit at an important time, because there’s a lot going on in Japan.”

I certainly agree that the Japanese are far too polite to criticize a visiting President.  But as to the bow being favorably received, well, it was swept under the rug in the Japan Times Online:

Visiting U.S. President Barack Obama met with Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko over lunch on Saturday.

The Emperor and Empress greeted Obama with handshakes at the entrance to the residence in the Imperial Palace before the three had lunch with only an interpreter attending, according to the Imperial Household Agency.

The Kyodo News also went with the whitewash, running a photo of Obama giving a slight bow to the Empress.

News On Japan says that "The emperor and empress greeted Obama with handshakes", which is supported by a photo, but they include a link to a Japanese news video that shows the full bow.

Whitewash it is, then!

Well.  Obama has a trillion in Treasuries to sell.  He is probably figuring that if he bends over now he can persuade the Japaneses to bend... oh, never mind.

Comments

[anduril]

A bit, well, maybe a lot, OT, but via Mickey Kaus is this really interesting comparison of California and Texas from City Journal: The Big-Spending, High-Taxing, Lousy-Services Paradigm. If the title doesn't tell you where the article's going, the last sentence will:

"Under the coming bailout, the new 49ers—Americans in the other 49 states, that is—will be extended the privilege of paying California’s taxes. At least they won’t have to put up with its public services."

[Sue]

Rick,

Interpret the puppet's dance using "Would Bomber Bill approve?" and his actions become more understandable.

That is why I was asking about the movie last night. The person was doing things that he was ordered to do which made him look stupid but he had no choice because I think it involved a kidnapping. Anyway, that is what I was trying to remember because Obama seems to be doing things that make him look stupid (more stupid than we think he is anyway). What if Ayers is making him dance? That is why I am so angry at the media. They have allowed him access to the most powerful position in the world with absolutely no vetting. Which leaves me lots of room to make shit up.

[Mustang0302]

AP - Chicago Board of Education President Michael Scott committed suicide:

Scott was a longtime Chicago leader. In August, Scott said he'd been subpoenaed to testify before a federal grand jury investigating allegations of politically influenced admissions to top schools.

[Mustang0302]

More on Scott:

One thing is for sure, Michael Scott, as Chicago Public Schools Board President has had a lot of bad things circling around him that could have led to foul play or a tragic decision.

[Mustang0302]

Oh, carp.

[Porchlight]

off?

[Porchlight]

Scott was also an Olympics committee member and was supposedly buying up a lot of Chicago property prior to the Olympics bid. He and Jarrett are connected from way back (surprise!!!).

Malkin has a post on it with some links: Chicago Developer/Olympics Bid Pusher Found Dead

[Mustang0302]

43 comments to go. My apologies, folks.

[Sue]

1

[Charlie (Colorado)]

Change to Google Chrome. It;'s faster, and the italics fix works.

[Porchlight]

Mustang, it happens to the best of us. They don't show up anymore in IE fwiw...

[Sara (Pal2Pal)]

WSJ Palin review:

That said, "Going Rogue" is more a personal memoir than a political one. More than half the book is about Mrs. Palin's life before the 2008 campaign. She discusses her coming of age in the "new frontier" state of Alaska; her personal faith journey; her experiences with marriage and motherhood, including two miscarriages, a special-needs child and a pregnant teenage daughter; and the free-market convictions that have guided her political career. As a politician, she comes across as a prodigious worker capable of mastering complicated issues—not least the energy policies that matter so much to Alaska's economy—and of building bridges to Democrats.

...But of course it is for details of the McCain campaign that many readers will pick up "Going Rogue," and Mrs. Palin will not disappoint them. She describes in particular how campaign aides muzzled her and mismanaged her family. If anything, she is too gentle on the staffers who kept her out of the loop and under wraps. She is certainly too gentle on the man at the top of the ticket who let them get away with it. She has hardly a critical word to say about John McCain, whose appearances in the book are surprisingly few.

The mistakes started on day one. The McCain communications team had not compiled the usual press-briefing guides, she writes, with the result that the national media had "zero information" on her or her record in Alaska. Moreover, her "family, friends, and political associates were under strict instructions not to talk to the media." She wasn't even allowed to speak to her home-state press, which was very friendly. When one of her aides asked McCain headquarters for permission for her to go to the rear of the campaign plane to talk to reporters, the response was swift: "No! Absolutely not—block her if she tries to go back."

...Speaking of which, "Going Rogue" offers little guidance on the big question: Is Mrs. Palin preparing to run for the presidency? The final chapter, "The Way Forward," is a mere 13 pages and reads like a stump speech. It consists mostly of generalities on conservative values, fiscal restraint and the need for a strong defense. But the quotation from her father with which she introduces the chapter perhaps offers a clue to her future plans: "Sarah's not retreating; she's reloading!"

[Sara (Pal2Pal)]

WSJ Palin review:

That said, "Going Rogue" is more a personal memoir than a political one. More than half the book is about Mrs. Palin's life before the 2008 campaign. She discusses her coming of age in the "new frontier" state of Alaska; her personal faith journey; her experiences with marriage and motherhood, including two miscarriages, a special-needs child and a pregnant teenage daughter; and the free-market convictions that have guided her political career. As a politician, she comes across as a prodigious worker capable of mastering complicated issues—not least the energy policies that matter so much to Alaska's economy—and of building bridges to Democrats.

...But of course it is for details of the McCain campaign that many readers will pick up "Going Rogue," and Mrs. Palin will not disappoint them. She describes in particular how campaign aides muzzled her and mismanaged her family. If anything, she is too gentle on the staffers who kept her out of the loop and under wraps. She is certainly too gentle on the man at the top of the ticket who let them get away with it. She has hardly a critical word to say about John McCain, whose appearances in the book are surprisingly few.

The mistakes started on day one. The McCain communications team had not compiled the usual press-briefing guides, she writes, with the result that the national media had "zero information" on her or her record in Alaska. Moreover, her "family, friends, and political associates were under strict instructions not to talk to the media." She wasn't even allowed to speak to her home-state press, which was very friendly. When one of her aides asked McCain headquarters for permission for her to go to the rear of the campaign plane to talk to reporters, the response was swift: "No! Absolutely not—block her if she tries to go back."

...Speaking of which, "Going Rogue" offers little guidance on the big question: Is Mrs. Palin preparing to run for the presidency? The final chapter, "The Way Forward," is a mere 13 pages and reads like a stump speech. It consists mostly of generalities on conservative values, fiscal restraint and the need for a strong defense. But the quotation from her father with which she introduces the chapter perhaps offers a clue to her future plans: "Sarah's not retreating; she's reloading!"

[Tom Bowler]

Rick & Sue,

Interpret the puppet's dance using "Would Bomber Bill approve?" and his actions become more understandable.

I guess I have to agree that's a valid perspective on Obama. I can picture him doing things sort of mindlessly to please the people who have guided him in his rise -- things that just make him look stupid.

But I think his policies are not mindless. They are all aimed at increasing the reach of government and increasing the control that the left has over government.

[Sara (Pal2Pal)]

Oh dear, I'm so sorry. I've never done that before. Ugh!

[Sara (Pal2Pal)]

Via Gateway Pundit:

The communist Chinese banned their ObaMoa gear before the president’s visit. Fortunately, the ObaMao T-shirts can still be found in Washington DC shops…

…Just blocks from the US Capital.

CNN reporters were even detained by police after showing an Obama-Communist T-shirt on the air.
CNN’s In the Field blog reported:

[Charlie (Colorado)]

Sara, it's like pilots making wheels-up landings: there are two groups.

The ones who HAVE done it, and the ones who WILL.

[Sue]

Tom Bowler,

I haven't fleshed out my conspiracy theory to the point of it making sense, but it isn't that they are controlling how Obama handles his policy decisions...yet...those are Obama's (Axelrod/Rahm). It is more of the you will bow to the king of Saud or I'll tell everyone I wrote your book. You will wear mama jeans to throw out the pitch or I will release copies of the checks where daddy paid your college tuition. You will bow to the emperor or I will explain how you visited Pakistan on an Indonesian passport. I'm still working on this...so keep it between us. 'kay?

[Sue]

Tom Bowler,

I haven't fleshed out my conspiracy theory to the point of it making sense, but it isn't that they are controlling how Obama handles his policy decisions...yet...those are Obama's (Axelrod/Rahm). It is more of the you will bow to the king of Saud or I'll tell everyone I wrote your book. You will wear mama jeans to throw out the pitch or I will release copies of the checks where daddy paid your college tuition. You will bow to the emperor or I will explain how you visited Pakistan on an Indonesian passport. I'm still working on this...so keep it between us. 'kay?

[Sue]

Look at it this way...the more double posts the faster we get to the next page. ::grin::

[Sue]

My favorite so far is the one where they are forcing Michelle to wear the hideous belts.

[Mustang0302]

Hear, hear, Sue.

[Mustang0302]

Hear, hear, Sue.

[Sue]

::grin::

[Charlie (Colorado)]

I think if they were really running things from behind the scenes, Obama would be noticeably smarter.

[Sue]

I don't think they are running things. They are toying with him for now.

[Tom Bowler]

'Kay, Sue. Let me know when you've got it polished up. I just can't past the notion that Obama is just your garden variety idiot when it comes to protocol. Gee, I feel terrible saying that. My hope is that your theory, when fully developed, will help me get over my uncharitable attitude. I'll check in from time to time to see how you're doing with it.

[Sara (Pal2Pal)]

Did anyone else see the news that defeated Gov. Corsine of NJ is being tapped to head Bank of America?

[glasater]

CNBC has been reporting that news for a time Sara but Charlie Gasparino has some doubts on that front:)

[Sue]

Let me know when you've got it polished up.

Unless it is admitted by Obama on the front pages of the NYTs, I suspect this is as far as my theory will go. I just can't figure out why he would go back and do something he had his press secretary lie about the last time he did it.

[Rick Ballard]

"But I think his policies are not mindless."

TB,

They certainly aren't but they're not "his" either. I agree with your conclusion that he is a statist (closing the circle from communist to fascist) but he could no more formulate a policy than he could fly. He doesn't even have a "team" capable of formulating a coherent policy. The Progressive (read "commie") Caucus of the (D)irty Socialist wing of the Democrat party has been charged with developing "policy" in the form of socialist grab bag legislation.

Watch for particularly stupid moves against personal political interest to see him jerked by puppet strings. The grovel before the IOC at the behest of Chicago thieves is the most glaring example. That wasn't Ayers - it was the Emil Jones/Tony Rezco Basic Corruption Team at work.

[Kevin B]

Obama knows he's a complete fraud as a President, totally out of his depth but lacking the humility to admit it. When he's put under pressure he gets nervous and does stupid things on the spur of the moment.

He got hammered for his lack of respect for Elizabeth II so when he met Abdullah he decided to bow on the spur of the moment. That got him dissed on Fox so when he met Hirohito he, (again on the spur of the moment), decided "I'll show them".

He's a dumb, nervous kid and the most powerful man in the world.

[Charlie (Colorado)]

Akihito. Hirohito was his dad, called Showa now.

[Sara (Pal2Pal)]

I think our whole discussion here is for naught. It is time to admit that we have an administration so poorly educated, so inept, so much in a bubble they don't have a clue how dumb they really are. Don't believe me, read this:

Via Say Anything:

Did someone put ACORN in charge of counting up the stimulus jobs?  It sure looks this way according to this story (originally broken by a couple of bloggers).

Here’s a stimulus success story: In Arizona’s 9th Congressional District, 30 jobs have been saved or created with just $761,420 in federal stimulus spending. At least that’s what the website set up by the Obama Administration to track the $787 billion stimulus says.

There’s one problem, though: There is no 9th Congressional District in Arizona; the state has only eight Congressional Districts.

There’s no 86th Congressional District in Arizona either, but the government’s recovery.gov Web site says $34 million in stimulus money has been spent there.

In fact, Recovery.gov lists hundreds of millions spent and hundreds of jobs created in Congressional districts that don’t exist.

[Charlie (Colorado)]

In fact, Recovery.gov lists hundreds of millions spent and hundreds of jobs created in Congressional districts that don’t exist.

I wonder how many votes they counted?

[Sara (Pal2Pal)]

Like Jane, I'm watching Oprah for the first time.

[PD]

Just got a notice from Amazon that they've shipped my copy of Sarah's book. I took at look at their site and I see Going Rogue is back up to #1.

I see as well that there are 245 hold requests for it at the city library system.

[Ann]

Sara:

I won't give anything away but:

Those are some ugly gold shoes, Oprah!

[Thomas Collins]

So the Stimulus worked! New Congressional Districts with plenty of jobs were created out of thin air! :-))

[Extraneus]

Won't give anything away? Is there a liveblogging embargo?

[Janet]

via HotAir - 59% of GOP voters say Palin shares their values LUN

[Janet]

Sara - great link. Here is more on the made-up districts @ Ace. LUN

"Obama's creating jobs like wildfire in those "bonus seven states" he once alluded to."

[anduril]

Sorry if someone else linked this already--this is a video linked at Drudge: World Shakes Hands... Obama Bows.... It's really rather cleverly done.

BTW, I like the italics here.

[Melinda Romanoff]

Michael Scott's body was in the river on my normal route to the office, had I not gone another way this AM.

Third political suicide in a month.

[Extraneus]

Good one, anduril.

[PD]

Third political suicide in a month.

What's usual for Chicago?

[centralcal]

Ann: I am at work, not able to watch Oprah, but I saw the ugly gold shoes in a still photo.

Speaking of photo's: What's up with Oprah's arm tightly around Sarah's back - large paw on her midriff, pulling her into her big bazoom and doing the same thing to Sarah's daughter on her other side?

I don't have a link because the picture was on FNC's front page and they change that frequently, so no since linking.

[Extraneus]

Hoffman unconcedes NY-23. (Sorry if this is double-posted.)

[matt]

Charlie;

It wouldn't have been the full on prostration. C'mon....

[Porchlight]

Wow, Extraneus, that's pretty big news.

[PaulL]

If you want to see something interesting, Google the word cacodicy.

I found it in today's light reading of Epictetus: Philosopher-Therapist, by Iason Xenakis.

[Extraneus]

He only needs 65% of the absentee ballots if he hasn't lawyered up effectively. So far, no Republican ever has, except for Bush, and Hoffman has the disadvantage of not having run as a Republican. So yes, it must be a "long shot."

Does anyone have anything to say about the Oprah show? Did Sarah not do well?

[anduril]

Interesting take: I saw it suggested that Obama panics in the presence of "royalty" and instinctively checks to see whether or not his fly is zipped. Covers his panic as a bow.

[Ann]

Hey, cc!

[Extraneus]

Maybe that's the belt look Michelle's going for?

[centralcal]

That's the one Ann. Am I the only one to find the photo a bit awkward? Sarah and her daughter are all mushed up into her breasts - from the looks of it, uncomfortably so.

[bgates]

Third in a month, Mel? The last one I heard of was Christopher Kelly in September. Who else?

[Sara (Pal2Pal)]

I thought Sarah did just fine. And contrary to what the Anchoress says, I did not think she sounded the least defensive. She was very personable and I think Oprah likes her.

[Ann]

Is there a liveblogging embargo?

Ex:
Sorry, about that, I just didn't want to ruin it for Sara on the west coast.

I thought she did okay. I cringed a few times.

When asked about Levi she started off saying that national t.v. is not the place to air grievances yet went on to air them anyway calling Levi "Ricky Hollywood".

She needs to tighten her answer about quitting as Alaska's governor. Quit saying lame duck.

The beginning of the interview set me off because Oprah asked her something like "Did you respect Obama for sticking up for your kids? I was screaming and I am sure Sarah wanted to. There was definitely something in the air between them. Hence the bear hug. She probably was trying to break a few ribs. Ha!

I can't wait to see what others thought.

[narciso]

The Thorn family had better odds than Chicago politicos. I thought she did well although Oprah's questions were repetitive
and a little condescending, the audience seemed to have a positive reaction. they showed footage of the family during Halloween, where Piper was dressed inArctic Cat, Todd was changing Trig.

[Melinda Romanoff]

I picked off a Trib headline on it and am wracking my brain to remember the third. It'll come to me. I seem to think it was a small fish, in the scheme of things, not so much for the family.

Circumstances surrounding this are a little funny, as in "What the...?" type of funny.

His land biz partners are a tad unusual too.

[Tom Bowler]

Watch for particularly stupid moves against personal political interest to see him jerked by puppet strings. The grovel before the IOC at the behest of Chicago thieves is the most glaring example. That wasn't Ayers - it was the Emil Jones/Tony Rezco Basic Corruption Team at work.

That makes a lot of sense, Rick.

[narciso]

The soft focus Oprah interview is OK, but I like her when she comes out fighting, in the LUN

[Dave (in MA)]

Am I the only one to find the photo a bit awkward? Sarah and her daughter are all mushed up into her breasts - from the looks of it, uncomfortably so.

Well, it's not as though they're getting jabbed by any sharp hip bones.

[anduril]

The nice thing about the video (linked above) is that it gives the lie to the remarkable number of liberal commenters claiming that Obama was simply "showing respect."

[matt]

speaking of Tony rezko, I wonder if Fitzgerald ever got anything out of him. It's been how many days, exactly since he was convicted?

[Melinda Romanoff]

matt-

Rezcko is still being held as "uncooperative", and unsentenced.

[Rick Ballard]

Matt,

I keep wondering if Fitzgerald is going to swap Rezko for the Obama/Burris Senate seat of iniquity. Then there's Blago...

[narciso]

Here's another example, from tomorrow's interview

[daddy]

Thinking about the spectacle of our bowing President and the follow-on posts of how to treat POW's I remembered something about a former Hanoi Hilton POW I'd heard of back during military training. He had used the servility of obsequious bowing to publicly embarrass his Vietnamese captors. A quick google led to this:

"Scott Blakeley’s Prisoner at War: The Survival of Commander Richard A. Stratton (1978) tells the fascinating story of Richard Stratton, a navy pilot who broke in torture and wrote bogus war crimes confessions. Stratton’s famous bow and his monotone confession pleased his captors at first, but embarrassed them later when they understood finally how and to what degree he disgraced them in public. Stratton knew that bowing was foreign to American culture. When he bowed not once but several times at an international press conference in Hanoi, he did so with full intent to destroy the event. The western press noticed immediately that his behavior was distinctly foreign to American culture in general, and asked again if the POWs in Hanoi were being "brainwashed" ? The North Vietnamese were then forced to respond to international scrutiny about their treatment of the Americans they held. As a result of Stratton’s bow, what looked like a propaganda victory for the North Vietnamese at first, was really an international resistance event and a vital turning point for the politics that affected the Vietnam War in general and the American POWs in Hanoi until 1973."

"Stratton Knew that bowing was foreign to American culture."
That's the point that Stratton's Hanoi cellmate, an outstanding man who by the was was my instructor, hammered home.

[Melinda Romanoff]

Here, my error, third suicide in two years.

Definitely not a month. LUN.

[Neo]

He was making up for MacArthur's refusal to bow to the Emperor's father (Hirohito) during the surrender ceremony on the USS Missouri.

Say what ?

Emperor Shōwa was never on the USS Missouri.

[bad]

The explanation for Oprah's awkward hug is easy and obvious. Notice Sarah and Bristol are slightly in front of Oprah, "disguising" her bulk. No one notices how enormous Oprah is!!!

Brilliant strategy....

[caro]

HA,bad,that's what I thought,too.

[clarice]

Daddy's joking,Neo--it's something Obama said to prove again his total ignorance of history.

[Neo]

After that bow in Tokyo, the President must have been "teabagging" by the time he got to Beijing.