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09 Jan 2012 12:36

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Politics: Rick Santorum and the culture wars: How he’s standing out

  • So why has he struck such a chord among GOP voters and progressives alike? Why have videos exposing his racial biases and anti-gay attitudes gone viral and inspired hashtags? It’s simple: Even in a recession, social issues like sex and race are extremely resonant. And Santorum is the only candidate talking about them.
  • Good Magazine Associate Editor Nona Willis Aronowitz • Opining on exactly why Rick Santorum made a comeback in an era where his brand of social conservatism was starting to look old-hat. Essentially, because he’s the only person seriously discussing these issues, he stands out. But it goes further, Aronowitz notes: “The Santorum hubbub is a reminder that the issues we hold dear — issues of sex and race and civil rights — are absolutely recession-proof.” (Related: This Patch video, in which a heckler asks Santorum if he would abort a gay baby. Ah, campaign trail politics. Thanks John Ness for that tip.) source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

09 Feb 2011 11:19

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Politics: Hey, everyone excited for CPAC yet?! WHOO!!! FAMILY VALUES!

  • 10,000 righties descend upon DC Thursday
  • coming Most of the GOPerazi, including Haley Barbour, Mitch Daniels, Newt Gingrich, Tim Pawlenty, Ron Paul, Mitt Romney and John Thune. Oh yeah, gay-rights-pushing GOProud will be there, too.
  • skipping Sarah Palin and Mike Huckabee. Oh, and some groups –the Family Research Council and the Heritage Foundation – are boycotting because GOProud will be there. Will Ryan Sorba make it? source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

06 Sep 2010 11:28

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Biz: The Washington Times, the victim of a family disagreement?

  • one day, the money stopped flowing. The Washington Times, the once-prominent conservative newspaper funded by the Unification Church, lost a key money flow one week in July 2009, leading to massive layoffs and a precipitous decline of the paper. It turns out that it was caught in the middle of a huge family struggle between its owners, the Moonies. Some numbers:
  • $2billion lost by the Moonie-run paper since it was founded
  • 87,000 the newspaper’s already-declining circulation two years ago
  • 40,000 the newspaper’s circulation now; it’s had major cutbacks of late
  • » The family strife: The Washington Times is at the center of a power struggle between the family of Unification Church leader Rev. Sun Myung Moon, who’s 89 years old and isn’t long for this world. Other Moon-run businesses aren’t doing so hot either. Moon’s son, Preston, who isn’t as doggedly conservative as his dad was (he was, for example, against the Iraq War), apparently steered the paper in a direction one of his brothers didn’t like, causing the church’s money to stop flowing to the paper. They couldn’t pay key bills, including those for internet access and staffer health insurance. Now the paper may return to into the senior Moon’s hands in a $1-plus-debt buyback, but the final result isn’t so clear. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

28 Aug 2010 13:47

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Politics: Glenn Beck did it: “Restoring Honor” is filled to the brim with people

  • Something beyond imagination is happening. America today begins to turn back to God. For too long, this country has wandered in darkness.
  • Glenn Beck • During a speech he made at the Restoring Honor thang, which has drawn a small handful of people. Beyond our personal issues with the quote, mainly because we personally prefer nonreligious Humanism, the scope of what Beck has put together is pretty impressive. “We are humbled that you are here,” he said. “The reflecting pool holds about 200,000 people. This field back here holds about 250- to 300,000 people. They are not only full here, they’re full in that field, they’re full behind me, and they are now across the street approaching the Washington Monument.” So yeah, this thing was kind of a hit. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 19 Comments • Permalink

17 Aug 2010 00:36

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Politics: Is the root of the “Ground Zero Mosque” story Pamela Gellar?

  • She was one of the first bloggers to tackle it. Who’s Pamela Gellar? She’s a conservative blogger (owner of “Atlas Shrugs“) who is strongly anti-Jihad (not anti-Islam) in her political stances, and just today called President Obama an “antisemite president.” (In the past, she once suggested Malcolm X was Obama’s dad. No, really.) Now, we’re not super-familiar with her work, but Salon is making this claim that the whole negative vibe against the Park51 center started with her, and eventually was picked up by the New York Post. It worked like a virus from there, eventually wending its way all the way to Barack Obama, who certainly stepped in it. Can we go back to fighting about health care yet? source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 1 Comment • Permalink

07 Aug 2010 14:53

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Politics: Dear AlterNet: Good job uncovering that Digg conspiracy

  • Digg’s prone to this kinda thingLook, there’s a reason why Digg is last year’s social media model. This, honestly, is why. It’s too easy to influence the results via collusion. And while AlterNet obviously leans left, the level of research into the story definitely leaves no doubt of a massive right-wing conspiracy to influence what gets on the front page of Digg. As they point out, this is actually a scandal, whereas the Journolist thing had the hype of a scandal but wasn’t anywhere near this bad.
  • The influence game Look, we have no real interest in Digg. We think human aggregation is more interesting than thumbs. But we have to say – in the game of influence, there’s a big difference between having an opinion and forcing an agenda. The journalists on Journolist? Their big crime was having an opinion. The guys at DiggPatriot? They forced an agenda and acted like they did nothing wrong. Which one is worse? It seems obvious now, doesn’t it? source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 2 Comments • Permalink

05 Jul 2010 12:53

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Politics: “Yup, I’m a racist”: Mind-bending conservative shirt hurts brain

  • So, let’s get this straight: A bunch of conservatives are frustrated with being called racist because of their ideologies. So, what do they do? They create a shirt with the phrase, “Yup, I’m a racist” emblazoned on it. Because that’s not stupid or controversial. Look, this kind of rage-filled idiocy gets us nowhere. So why push it at all? source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 6 Comments • Permalink
 

06 Jun 2010 20:46

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Politics: Can the bizarro hippies win big states like California or Nevada?

  • We are 14 months old as an organization. We’re not quite as effective as we want to be all over, but by the 2012 election we will be a force to contend with.
  • Central Valley, Calif. bizarro hippie coordinator Steve Brandau • Regarding the mediocre showing of his state’s bizarro hippie Senate candidate, Chuck DeVore, who will likely finish far behind Carly “demon sheep” Fiorina in Tuesday’s Republican primary. A win by Fiorina, who inexplicably has the support of the Republican establishment, could symbolize the level of success the bizarro hippie movement will actually have in the long run. In Nevada, however, it appears bizarro hippie favorite Sharron Angle might pull an upset. So, who knows? Maybe they might be able to turn this thang into a national movement. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

20 May 2010 10:48

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Politics: Rand Paul’s honesty on the Civil Rights Act bites a little hard

  • Could Rand Paul saying that businesses shouldn’t have to serve black people be misconstrued as racism? One could argue, in fact, that you could take the “mis” off the front of that. Remember – this guy is probably going to be a Senator. There’s a lot to take from this clip, but our favorite bit is Maddow asking this pointed question: “But isn’t being in favor of civil rights but against the Civil Rights Act a little like saying you’re against high cholesterol but you’re in favor of fried cheese?” Paul is just being honest, but man, it makes Paul look BAD. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

18 May 2010 20:49

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U.S.: Bizarro Hippie Rand Paul makes it look easy in Ky. primary

  • Somebody won really big tonight. Rand Paul was the “great hippie hope” or something, and most of the big news outlets barely even waited until after 8 p.m. to announce his victory in the Kentucky Republican primary. To liberals who want to throw stones at him, remember this: He’s still better than Jim “hold off unemployment benefits” Bunning. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 2 Comments • Permalink
 
 
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