Nothing To Fear But Rush Himself (And Glenn Beck... And Sarah And The Mean Girls...)

Ken Maguire of the Times (no relation, probably) tells us about the First Tolerator's problem with visiting a Sikh temple in India:

WASHINGTON — Sikhs in the United States expressed their frustration Thursday that President Obama would skip a tentatively planned visit to their holiest site in India, while advocacy groups called on the White House to reconsider.

Mr. Obama was expected to visit the Golden Temple in Amritsar, India, next month, but there were questions about how he would cover his head. Sikh tradition requires that men tie a piece of cloth on their heads before entering the spiritual center. The president, who is Christian, has fought the perception that he is Muslim. Sikhs are regularly mistaken for Muslims.

“There’s a xenophobic trend in this country, where some people are calling him Muslim,” said Jasjit Singh, associate director of the Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund, a Washington-based civil rights group. “If he gives in to this trend then effectively he’s emboldening them.”

Wow.  For the benefit of the few, the proud, the remaining Obama supporters, let's flash back to that glorious summer of 2008:

When Mr. Wenner [for a Rolling Stone interview] asked how Mr. Obama might respond to harsh attacks from Republicans, suggesting that Democrats have “cowered” in the past, Mr. Obama replied, “Yeah, I don’t do cowering.”

Well, he's cowering now.  My suggestion - Obama ought to cover his head by fashioning a hat out of his birth certificate.

The temple looks spectacular, by the way.  The television people must be gnashing their teeth over the lost visuals.

SOONER AND BETTER: Tunku Varadarajan of the Daily Beast was excellent yesterday:

Above all, what does this decision to avoid Amritsar tell us about how this White House feels about Americans? Does it feel that ordinary Americans will pillory their president for having associated himself with "ragheads" in Amritsar? Is this a variant of that elite condescension for ordinary folks who are "bitter," and who "cling to guns and religion"?

That Obama can't find a way to explain the symbolism of a little square of cloth on his head—placed there by enthusiastic, welcoming Indian hosts who wish him and America well—suggests that he has lost confidence in his own intellect, his own charisma, his own eloquence. A man once celebrated for his promise of change now allows a state visit to be shaped by his fear of the blogosphere—and by his fear of abuse that might come at him from an ignorant subset of the American population. Let's just call it the pygmification of a president, and lament the gutlessness of this White House.

I object.  In fact, I strenuously object.  It is not that Obama is gripped by fear; it is that we are too gripped by fear to appreciate his genius.

Obama needs to sack up and Sikh up. 

LOWER THE BAR: Could Obama look this bad?  No way!

Comments

[Clarice]

Heh! Now, first thing in the morning it's a lot easier to get my head around this than that penny post.

[Jack is Back!]

Why not ask Juan Williams to do a body double for BHO and visit the temple on his behest?

Also, isn't this the same temple where the lady approached Rajiv Gandhi and blew him up with a suicide belt?

[Thomas Collins]

Concerning xenophobic trends, I think that xenophobia would be reduced if our POTUS stopped bloviating about foreign donations funding attacks against Dems.

[otter]

God he is a genius, in the 'that word you're using' vein, Way to diss a ally, you mook

[Danube of Thought]

What the hell--put the thing on and deliver a deep bow to the head Sikh. We need to restore our image abroad...

[Cecil Turner]

Almost completely OT, strategy page has a short article on recently revised Iraq war casualties:

It appears that there were some 100,000-120,000 Iraqi deaths during the war, with a quarter or more of them hostiles (terrorists and others opposing the new Iraqi government or foreign troops.) The fact that over 90 percent of the dead were adult males is also an indication of warfare, not just random killing. Most of the women and children killed were the result of car or truck bombs in crowded places, or kids playing near where a roadside bomb was planted.

Makes quite a contrast with the Lancet er, propaganda, which was approaching a million with the initial 100,000 caused mostly by airstrikes.

[Jack is Back!]

You know, I would never want Maureen Dowd's job. It must be hell to wake up every morning, and like the movie Groundhog Day, find yourself repeating the same inane drivel for a column. From Tom's other thread I linked to her column and I thought it was all about Marilyn Monroe and her relationship with Arthur Miller (you know, out of her league intellectually). But no, it was all about how stupid Palin, Angle, Bachman and those other mean republican girls are and getting away with stealing all of Barry's aura. According to Rush she is living her heartache and vengeance from her breakup with a mean-spirited liberal boyfriend.

I can't imagine she gets paid to put out this 4th grade drivel.

[Captain Hate]

“Yeah, I don’t do cowering.”

Yeah, you just surreptitiously give people the finger. Big difference, genius. Man up and cover your smelly head.

[I R A Darth Aggie]

So slap a boonie hat on your noggin, cinch up the chin strap, and find someone to bow to.

Man up, dude!

[daddy]

From the Canadian paper that earlier ran the story of Mark Steyn being disallowed to give a speech on Free Speech in New London Ontario, we get ">http://fullcomment.nationalpost.com/2010/10/21/a-common-cause-for-muslims-and-jews-free-speech/"> this Canadian journalist tut-tutting we Americans for Freedom of speech intolerance while he tries to equate the firing of Rick Sanchez for his Jew comments with the firing of Juan Williams and his Islam comments. By the time this meme rolls around to the New York Times they'll probably somehow ad in "Christian" Tim McVeigh and have a "Peoples of the Book" trifecta.

[DebinNC]

Gibbs' excuse that the temple visit wasn't "finalized" proves it was originally okayed. The BBC quotes temple authorities saying Obama could wear "a cap". This is another unforced error Obama, thankfully, seems incapable of avoiding.

[otter]

Kay is usually not this clueless, it must be catching from Frum, a case of category error

[daddy]

OT,

But in the book I'm currently reading, according to Bishop Usher (1581-1656) he says Narciso shares a Birthdate with somebody else pretty important---Mother Earth.

According to that Irish Bishop, having added up the begats and the begatted and the begatters from the Bible and then the Romans and the medievil guys etc, you carry the one, add 3, translate it to Grenwich Mean Time, and voila, the World began at 9 am on October 22nd, 4004 BC. Woo Hoo! Happy Birthday Momma.

Narciso, per chance do you know what hour you popped out?

[Rob Crawford]

Obama won't visit a Sikh temple because that would anger the Muslims.

[Janet the tea-vangelist!]

I bet you're right Rob!

[Dave (in MA)]

If all he needs to do is cover his head with cloth...
http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRbCybminKlC3ZH41DTBEn8uyepD7aildk_DmFzxwDmAi4t5qk&t=1&usg=__oSAofECR6wyycpLTqPLj04ScW-E=>

[MarkO]

WWODD?

What would Obama's daddy do?

[matt]

The Golden Temple in Amritsar has a unique program that has been in effect for longer than I can remember. Anyone who shows up gets fed; it's a simple vegetarian Indian meal, but it a part of the Sikh tradition of serving the poor of all faiths.

I would think our president might want to highlight a program such as this in tough times.All working together, charity, you know, those antiquated Christian/Buddhist/Muslim/Jewish/Hindu themes....

On another note, Dear Leader came out at a Dem fundraiser in Palo Alto last night and lamented the loss of America's "Can Do" spirit.

That's right, in Silicon Valley. The man who has singly done more to torpedo innovation and material progress in the "Land of Opportunity" as it was known for 150 years had the balls to say that in the middle of Silicon Valley.

"President who dashes expactations mourns dashed expectations" sums up the idiocy. LUN

[matt]

and expectations too.

[Captain Hate]

Bush was very popular in India so obviously they're all bitter and unenlightened clingers.

[Captain Hate]

Could Obama look this bad?

I was expecting to see that thing that sung "God Bless America" in SF last night; but that was just fine also.

[David, infamous sockpuppet]

Frank J has the definitive takedown on this:

You want proof Obama is really a Muslim? Simple. What would be the easiest way for him to disprove he’s a Muslim? That’s right: Publicly eat a big handful of bacon. But he hasn’t done that. Now, any normal person if ever given any excuse to eat a big handful of bacon would be all over that, so why hasn’t Obama done that constantly? The only logical reason I can think of is that he’s secretly a Muslim.

And there you go, proof positive he IS a secretly a Muslim.

David

[Threadkiller]

--"Well, he's cowering now. My suggestion - Obama ought to cover his head by fashioning a hat out of his birth certificate."--

Heh!

I still think he should wear something more relevant to his birth allegiance.

">http://www.englishmonarchs.co.uk/images/jewels/imperial_state_crown.jpg">

[Extraneus]

Obama won't visit a Sikh temple because that would anger the Muslims.

Love it, Rob. People need to understand this.

[Extraneus]

Rush makes a good point.

Any Democrats who think that Hillary should have been president - and that things wouldn't be falling apart for Democrats like they are now if she was - should stay home on November 2nd. The alternative would only help prop up Obama going into 2012, while an utter humiliating defeat for Democrats will help Hillary.

Democrats should take this to heart.

[Jim Rhoads a/k/a vnjagvet]

Re the article linked in Matt's 11:45 post.

That was a brilliant article Matt. In the 80's, I owned a manufacturing business that tried to compete with companies pursuing the sourcing offshore strategy. We lost our shirts and there are now no more manufacturers of that product in the US. Result to the consumer: all you can buy now in the product line is schlock.

Matt's article helps me understand what happened. Although I kind of knew, before I read it, I couldn't articulate the problem. Matt did.

[Thomas Collins]

Happy birthday, narciso.

[matt]

feliz compleanos, narciso!!!

[Frau Dankbar]

Thanks, matt, for putting it in writing.

[Ranger]

Interesting developments in the Geert Wilders' trial. http://pajamasmedia.com/blog/breaking-judges-in-geert-wilders-free-speech-case-removed-from-trial/>A panel of judges has dismissed the three judge panel that were prosiding over the case. It seemed very strange from the outset that a senior judge had ordered prosecutors to file charges in the first place. Now it is looking like a judicial lynching was set up from the beginning.

This looks to be a clear example of how the ruling class in modern western societies seek to maintain their power against the wishes of the general public. Rather than silencing their opposition though, I have a feeling it will only boost Wilders' party in any future elections.

[Frau Taschentuch]

Will ashes do as a head covering? How about the baseball cap of his favorite team? How about a handkerchief "Gumby"? I'm sure his brain hurts.

[JM Hanes]

Purely for my own gratification, I've been refreshing Juan William's column on NPR. There are now 2,500 comments.

[JM Hanes]

"Will ashes do as a head covering?

I don't think there's a big enough sackcloth for his ego.

[Frau Taschentuch]

A picture of the Gumby administration and Congressional leaders.
LUN

[Frau Taschentuch]

Happy birthday,narciso. Many, many more celebrations with love and knishes.

[MarkO]

If you retained any doubt at all that Juan's firing was only about being on Fox, read here where the suggestion is that if he had chosen to stay with NPR and leave Fox, he would not have lost his job.

But NPR's own ombudsman, Alicia Shepherd says Williams should not have been outright fired. NPR's blog reports:

Rather than terminating news analyst Juan Williams' contract, "probably the better thing for NPR to have done is to have said 'Juan the situation is not working,' " NPR ombudsman Alicia Shepherd just said on Talk of the Nation.

Then, she continued, Williams could have been given a choice: If he wanted to stay at NPR, he would have to stop doing commentary on Fox News Channel. Or, if he preferred to continue with Fox, he and NPR could part ways.

I love unwitting confession.

[Jim Rhoads a/k/a vnjagvet]

Good catch Mark.

[Extraneus]

How will they argue against being de-funded by the new Congress? With the claim that they're a necessary, unbiased voice of moderation in an otherwise partisan world?

On principle, PBS might just get axed as well.

[Clarice]

Anytime an employer keeps offering different reasons for a termination and esp if he then suggests the fired employee should speak to his psychiatrist, he's opening up himself wide for a discrimination lawsuit. There's nothing to stop Juan from doing that you know. NPR is not a public entity with some tort immunity. At the moment it receives only 16% of its funding directly from the federal govt. Sometime after Jan I see that number dropping precipitously. That and the settlement with Juan should more than offset the Soros buyout.

[centralcal]

From Politico:

While Sen. Jim DeMint’s office confirmed last night he’d be introducing legislation to defund NPR in the Senate, such legislation already exists in the House. Price’s office sends this note: “As part of the RSC’s Sunset Caucus initiative, Rep. Doug Lamborn (R-CO) introduced legislation last June to end the taxpayer subsidies to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting – some of whose public funding is funneled to NPR.”

Corporation for Public Broadcasting sends funds to both NPR and PBS.

[Danube of Thought]

VPN is the taxpayer-funded head of the snake, and that's where the chopping should be done. There has long since ceased to be any rationale for this outfit to exist.

Let NPR and PBS compete in the marketplace, like Air America.

[Danube of Thought]

*CPB*(ipad again)

[Janet the tea-vangelist!]

The picture of W on Drudge now is good. He is a good looking man.

[Extraneus]

I bet Air America's ex-sponsors are chomping at the bit.

Oh, wait. There weren't any of those.

[Dave (in MA)]

Frau,

How about the baseball cap of his favorite team?

I thought I already made that suggestion. (@11:42)

[Captain Hate]

I love unwitting confession.

Those dimwits can't help stepping in it; they're like the George Costanzas of the world in that the right thing to do is the opposite of whatever they're naturally inclined to do. Do the Repubs have to declare that as a campaign ad?

[centralcal]

KLO at The Corner reports:

A little more on the House Republicans’ plans: Eric Cantor spokesman Brad Dayspring tells NRO that “We are going to conduct a full audit to trace avenues that federal dollars go to NPR. At a minimum we would include preventing the flow of taxpayer dollars to NPR through the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.”

His “at minimum” hints at the vast array of ways NPR is nourished by federal taxpayers. They get money from the Department of Education and the Department of Commerce and the National Endowment of the Arts, for examples, as anyone can see peaking into their annual reports.

[Clarice]

Just in case...

JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) -- A spokesman for Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski says she will "absolutely" caucus with Republicans if she's re-elected. She's running her write-in campaign as a Republican.

[Captain Hate]

CC, iirc Stephen Hayes did an article in the Weekly Standard on one of PBS's biggest leeches other than Tavis Smiley, Bill Moyers. The interlocking agencies that he was associated with looked like it was out of some accounting book by Kafka.

[centralcal]

Someone on TV last night (can't remember who) suggested that if NPR/PBS were no longer taxpayer/government funded, that a lot of big corporations might not continue to donate big sums either.

[Clarice]

NPR receives about 16% of its funding directly from govt sources, per wiki, cc.

It's a lot less than it used to be and a lot more than it will be.

Newsweek:
For Democrats hoping to pull off the electoral equivalent of an interception at the goal line with one second left in the game, the primaries were a rude awakening—not because of who won, but because of who voted. To prevent a Republican takeover of one or both houses of Congress, Democrats need to mobilize most of the millions of voters who put Barack Obama in the White House. But of the 33.8 million people who voted in the primaries this year, most were Republicans, with a vote advantage of 3.8 million. The last time Republican turnout in midterm primaries exceeded Democratic turnout was 1930. And the last time a smaller fraction of age-eligible Democrats (8.2 percent) turned out for midterm primaries was…never: 2010 beat the previous record-low year of 2006, when only 9 percent of Democrats came out to choose their party’s midterm standard bearers. Those numbers, from American University’s Center for the Study of the American Electorate, bode ill for Democrats’ hopes.

[Thomas Collins]

End federal funding for NPR? Must be some bigoted right wing wacko white guy who is a militia member. See LUN (via Instapundit).

[Janet the tea-vangelist!]

Here is a funny video that suits the Dems "in a ditch" meme. THey promise "cake"...they are exposed...the cake is ruined...& the only ones in a ditch are themselves!
Maybe..pushing the likeness a little too far.
Anyway, funny 38 second video via glasater.

[Rick Ballard]

"bode ill for Democrats’ hdopes"

Truth through editing.

[Rob Crawford]

Here is a funny video that suits the Dems "in a ditch" meme. THey promise "cake"...they are exposed...the cake is ruined...& the only ones in a ditch are themselves!

Wait. Are you saying the cake is a lie? Or that someone left a cake out in the rain?

I'm so confused!

[Frau Taschentuch]

Yes, you did, Mark. You came up with Barry's *real* team. I was thinking of his pretend favorite baseball team. (Which i... The Bali Bombers?)

What I relish about the bad numbers for the Dems is that they have done it to themselves. It took the combined efforts of the media and monied supporters to demonize Dubya and the Republicans. Harry and Nancy have self-demonized!

[Thomas Collins]

How could Kentucky voters consider voting for Paul, Nevada voters for Angle, or Delaware voters for O'Donnell? Aren't they aware of the majesty of the world's greatest deliberative body, and the requirement that its members speak carefully and don't make outrageous claims? See LUN for a shining example of the nuanced nature of how a US Senator should speak.

[Frau Taschentuch]

Anyone else see the cartoon at the Daily Caller?
"Pledge now at the fifty dollar level, and we will fire Mara Liasson, too!"

[Dave (in MA)]

Like that Renaissance man Tim Robbins said a few years back, http://biggovernment.com/dbroes/2010/10/22/union-fires-stage-hand-for-wearing-bush-hat-and-shirt/>there's a chill wind blowing in this nation.

[Neo]

The Chicago Tribune reports:

The former president [Bush] said his greatest failure in office was not passing Social Security reform.

This is a single sentence that is not a quote.

The Huffinton Post turns it into:

George W. Bush Reveals His Biggest Failure Was Not Privatizing Social Security

Pathetic

[Clarice]

TV, that's the beauty of it. The media hacks think we've forgotten how moronic the incumbents are.

[Porchlight]

Someone on TV last night (can't remember who) suggested that if NPR/PBS were no longer taxpayer/government funded, that a lot of big corporations might not continue to donate big sums either.

Reminds me of Fannie Mae derivatives - remove the implicit government guarantee and nobody wants any part of it.

[centralcal]

I have always loved accents, some more than others. Indians with their slightly high pitched British accents are a favorite, because their pronunciation is usually so crisp and clean, plus they can "editorialize" simply by changing their vocal pitch.

So, while reading this from an Indian news source, I hear the Indian accent:

Obama will take the help of a teleprompter to deliver his address to the 780-odd members of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, sources said.

Parliament authorities said this will be the first time that such a facility will be arranged in the Central Hall.

Obama’s reliance on the teleprompter is unusual--not only because he is famous for his oratory, but because no other president has used one so consistently and at so many events, large and small.

[Porchlight]

Heh, centralcal. I expect much discussion of TOTUS when 2012 starts heating up.

[centralcal]

Porch: not only the implicit government guarantee - but also the sense of pressure to give, and the hope of something in return.

[Jane (sit on the couch or save your country)]

Hey guys, it's been a hell of a week here with a happy ending. I feel about my hometown the same way I feel about my JOM community - same kind of spirit, and wonderful people. You can read about it here.

[jimmyk]

As one of many examples of how clueless the left is about NPR and the MSM in general, the "Crooks & Liars" blog critices both Williams and Liasson for cozying up to Fox News, saying "they've deeply marred NPR's hitherto-sterling reputation as a reliable source of accurate and unbiased news."

That seems to be said in all seriousness. Maybe they mean that the stark contrast with Fox's fair and balanced coverage reveals to the 47 people on the Upper West Side who didn't already know it that NPR's "hitherto-sterling reputation" was about as well-deserved as that of John Edwards as a family man and devoted husband.

LUN

[Clarice]

Jane, that's so lovely. It brings tears to my eyes.

[Jane (sit on the couch or save your country)]

WE almost lost her Clarice. I'm only "Auntee Jane" and I just don't know how you deal with that.

[Clarice]

Most people can't,Jane. I've interviewed people who went through experiences more horrible than one could imagine and the only ones who could not really recapture a love of life were those whose children were murdered. The loss of a child is the most terrible loss of all to bear.

[centralcal]

Ditto what Clarice said.

[Porchlight]

I'm so glad everything is better, Jane. What a great town you have there! Hope you all enjoy a well-deserved restful weekend.

[Frau Taschentuch]

Jane, did you share your thoughts with the local news? Any town would love to hear such a report. Isn't it a blessing to think of a person without a "D" or "R" for each?

[Jane]

Frau,

I told Amy today that she needs to take out a full page ad in the paper and I'll pay for half. What a difference something like that makes.

[Janet the tea-vangelist!]

Glad everything is okay...what a blessing you are in their lives Jane. I've never felt as helpless as when my kids were really sick.

[Americanus Ignoramus]

"“There’s a xenophobic trend in this country, where some people are calling him Muslim,” said Jasjit Singh"

Just after 9/11 some knucklehead (can we speculate which party affiliation?) killed a Sikh, because everyone knows only Muslims wear turbans.

So goes the mis-identification of Obama as a Muslim, wherein anyone with a muslim name, by default, must be a muslim.

Some folks criticize the US school system for the precipitous drop in general knowledge, but I think Tea Party Central likes things just the way they are.

[matt]

glad it all worked out Jane. I wish we had more of that spirit in small towns and large.

[Americanus Ignoramus]

"The former president [Bush] said his greatest failure in office was not passing Social Security reform."

Uh, dismantling SS has been the aim of Republicans since it's inception. You can use the word 'reform' or 'dismantle' but the intent is the same.

Or is there someone here who wishes to voice support for keeping SS whole?

Huffington Post left this direct Bush quote alone, because it is self-immolating.

""I have written a book. This will come as quite a shock to some. They didn't think I could read, much less write."

[Americanus Ignoramus]

" Alaska Democrats are threatening to sue the state, alleging election officials are trying to influence the outcome of the U.S. Senate race by illegally providing voters a list of write-in candidates.

Attorney Joe McKinnon says Democrats will consider their options, including seeking a restraining order, if the state doesn't end the practice.

Early voting has begun; election day is Nov. 2. This week state officials removed a write-in list from a voting booth in Homer after a complaint and segregated write-in votes there. But the director of the state Division of Elections says official write-in lists have been sent to polling places and that officials see providing the list -- to those who ask for it -- as meeting their obligation to provide voter assistance.

Democrats charge that the activity goes beyond that -- and violates the law.

McKinnon said state law is "clear and unambiguous" that election workers can provide instructions on how to cast a write-in-ballot but they cannot provide any information about a write-in candidate at the polling place or within 200 feet of any entrance to a polling place.

In other words, poll workers can absolutely help voters understand how to complete and cast a write-in ballot but can absolutely not tell them who to write in. In the letter [pdf] McKinnon quotes the Division of Elections’ own procedural handbook:

“The election board must not discuss write-in candidates with voters. If a voter asks how to vote for a write-in, refer the voter to the instructions on the poster in the voting booth or on the sample ballot.” State of Alaska Division of Elections Polling Place Election Procedures, Optical Scan Precincts, Rev. 7/30/09, p. 17. The Division’s own instructions require that a voter needing assistance be referred to the write-in poster and not any other materials. Indeed, your statute provides that “During the hours that the polls are open, an election board member may not discuss any political party, candidate, or issue while on duty.” AS 15.15.160.

The distinction suggested in your letter between electioneering and providing informative materials does not apply. Providing the voter with a list of write-in candidates falls clearly within the blanket prohibition embodied in 6 AAC 25.070(b). That prohibition is unambiguous: “Information regarding a write-in candidate may not be discussed, exhibited, or provided at the polling place, or within 200 feet of any entrance to the polling place.” Your reliance on 6AAC 25.070(d) is also misplaced. It only authorizes assistance to the voter in understanding how to cast a write-in vote, it does not allow the Division to offer suggestions to on who to vote for.

It would seem that the Division of Elections is stretching the definition of how they can help, by actually handing out pieces of paper with Murkowski's name listed. The state Dems describe one case.

Rob Sterling went today to the Chugiak Senior Center to cast his early vote. After showing his ID, getting his ballot, and going to his voting area, he asked an election worker, “How do you do a write-in?” The election worker took Sterling’s ballot, re-oriented it, pointed to the U.S. Senate write-in space, and said:

“Since it’s only you and me in here, what you do is fill in this oval here and write Lisa Murkowski’s name here.”

Then the election worker called over another election worker who provided Sterling with a sheet of paper with Lisa Murkowski’s name. Sterling, who is training to be a poll watcher, said, “I thought you weren’t allowed to do this.” To which both election workers replied, “We were told we could.”

Goal Thermometer
Any Alaskans out there voting early need to report any incidents like this to the Democratic party, or even the Republicans, though they're likely not to care as much, since there are plenty of Murkowski supporters in the party hierarchy. But the Dems are also going to need poll watchers to help look out for this, so any Alaskans who have the time to spare should definitely sign up to help poll watch.

The rest of us can pitch in $5 or $10 to McAdams campaign.

* Permalink ::
* Discuss (5 comments)

I thought there wasn't an American Taliban!
by kos
Fri Oct 22, 2010 at 02:00:04 PM PDT

Stop being mean! All Americans respect democracy!

Republican congressional candidate Stephen Broden stunned his party Thursday, saying he would not rule out violent overthrow of the government if elections did not produce a change in leadership.

In a rambling exchange during a TV interview, Broden, a South Dallas pastor, said a violent uprising "is not the first option," but it is "on the table." [...]

In the interview, Brad Watson, political reporter for WFAA-TV (Channel 8), asked Broden about a tea party event last year in Fort Worth in which he described the nation's government as tyrannical.

"We have a constitutional remedy," Broden said then. "And the Framers say if that don't work, revolution."

Watson asked if his definition of revolution included violent overthrow of the government. In a prolonged back-and-forth, Broden at first declined to explicitly address insurrection, saying the first way to deal with a repressive government is to "alter it or abolish it."

"If the government is not producing the results or has become destructive to the ends of our liberties, we have a right to get rid of that government and to get rid of it by any means necessary," Broden said, adding the nation was founded on a violent revolt against Britain's King George III.

Watson asked if violence would be in option in 2010, under the current government.

"The option is on the table. I don't think that we should remove anything from the table as it relates to our liberties and our freedoms," Broden said, without elaborating. "However, it is not the first option."

Well, as long as it's not the FIRST option

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/latestnews/stories/102210dnmetbroden.1b2338185.html

[MaryD]

Americanus Ignoramus, Grand Prize to you for best Screen Name EVAH.

[Americanus Ignoramus]

"Grand Prize to you for best Screen Name EVAH."

Thx. Thought you'd like it.

[Comanche Voter]

Obama doesn't do cowering--but he sure as hell does duck and cover, shuck and jive, and point the finger at the other fellow.

Cowering? Not so much.

[Captain Hate]

That seems to be said in all seriousness.

Libs lie to themselves all the time about NPR being "centrist"; maybe when they listen to a show called "All Things Considered" they really think that means they've looked at every viewpoint fairly. I'm not sure what they consider "far left", maybe Radio Pacifica.

[Melinda Romanoff]

Jane-

That's a wonderful town you live in.

I'm glad to hear that someone's coming home healthier.

Better than my day, Father/daughter funeral with much tears around (guilty, with my hands up) only to end the service with "Take Me Out To The Ball Game", which was just like the dad. Ends with laughter and everyone singing something fun.

And it was a "spill-over" service, the windows were opened for the people outside to hear.

Sad day, but I left feeling a bit cleansed.

Aren't small towns great, Jane?

[Janet the tea-vangelist!]

Libs lie to themselves all the time about NPR being "centrist";

That's true, my college friend on FB kept saying he was sick of hearing about media bias...that I should listen to NPR for unbiased news.

[otter]

Meanwhile, more of the Black Panther case, comes to light, in the LUN

[Porchlight]

Libs lie to themselves all the time about NPR being "centrist"

I think they honestly can't tell the difference. NPR lines up with their views, and they like to think of themselves as reasonable and moderate people, hence, they think NPR plays it right down the middle. "The fish can't feel the water" thesis.

[Extraneus]

Since Ahmadinejad is a "far-right conservative", like Rush Limbaugh (8th comment), it's easy to see why they feel NPR is centrist.

(I was about to type "think" instead of "feel", but that's hard to justify in their case.)

[Porchlight]

You can use the word 'reform' or 'dismantle' but the intent is the same.

Obama doesn't like it when you talk about his health care reform that way.

[Bush League]

"Or is there someone here who wishes to voice support for keeping SS whole?"

[Porchlight]

"Or is there someone here who wishes to voice support for keeping SS whole?"

We either have to find a way to pay for it (doubtful) or we'll have to reduce/elminate benefits at some point. See: France.

I know liberals think money grows on trees, but you'll have to face reality eventually.

[Extraneus]

Like anyone here doesn't care about SS paying off.

[Captain Hate]

It's always a leap of faith to assume what the Reichmaster troll considers "SS" to mean. If it means social security, "keeping it whole" is assuming a non-existent condition.

[Jane]

Melinda, so sorry to hear it. I just can't imagine... at least this week.

[otter]

Getting back to the subject of the thread, it is a remarkably stupid move that could only have come from the minds of McDonough and Donilon, it means the next time there is a Mumbai attack, the Indian Army will not be restrained against Pakistan

[Porchlight]

Good point Cap'n. I gave idiot the benefit of the doubt re: SS meaning Social Security.

[Captain Hate]

otter what did Pakistan think they were accomplishing in Mumbai; other than acting like the home-grown Indian rock-worshipers who continually irritate the other Indians until critical mass is reached and they get smacked down in a very well-deserved bloody way.

[Ignatz Ratzkywatzky]

--Mr. Obama was expected to visit the Golden Temple in Amritsar, India, next month, but there were questions about how he would cover his head.--

Doesn't John Kerry have a magic hat Barry could borrow?

[otter]

Yet another example that our suspicions were correct, about the Iraqi Resistance being proxies for foreign powers, in the LUN

[Captain Hate]

The chinless opthamologist really needs a Hellfire suppository.