Nobody Asked Me, But...

1) There's a cryptic message from Ayatollah Khameni when he urges an huge turnout in the Iranian elections this weekend. I'm not sure, but I sense a subtle backhand to Ahmadinejad there. My gut tells me that a smaller turnout guarantees his re-election and the bigger the turnout, the less likely he'll secure a victory.

 

On the other hand, there are 3000 candidates on the ballot, all conservatives (in fact, it would be a Limbaugh dream), so there will be vote-splitting all over the place. On the other other hand, the 3000 basically align into two factions: Ahmadinejad's and the Supreme Council's.

 

2) And in a related story, President Obama intends to tell Israeli president Benjamin Netanyahu that he wants a permanent solution to the Iranian nuclear question, and to reassure Bibi that America stands by Israel's shoulder.

 

3) Yoga championships? How does that work? No. Really. Isn't a yoga championship a little like having competitve reading championships?

 

4) I'm going to ignore Rush Limbaugh's outburst as the pathetic cry of a man ignored, but his anatognist, Sandra Fluke, deserves a pat on the back for how she's handling him.

 

5) Wow, how hard are things on the Koch brothers? They're suing to get the Cato Institute back! I guess they think it's too liberal...

 

6) Quelle honte!

 

7) Finally! A reason to attend the Auto Show besides the hot models displaying their...cars.

 

8) Oh yea. This is going to cause a ruckus. Bad move, Planned Parenthood. You had everyone's sympathy after the Susan Komen debacle, and even had the conservatives shutting the hell up.

 

9) This cannot be good. Or maybe...it is. But too little, too late.

 

10) Finally, The truth is out there. Now go find it.

My Thoughts On Breitbart

Andrew Breitbart is dead.

 

I'm not going to bore you with "say something nice," because I can't.

 

I wanted to. I wanted to find something to hang a hat on to be magnanimous. I wanted to think about his wife and kids.

 

And then I thought, "Shirley Sherrod had a family. A family she worked hard to support at a job that paid a decent wage and offered nice benefits to make up for the fact that she was not allowed to ask for a raise or more vacation or any of the countless hundreds of things people in the private sector can get."

 

And then I got mad. And madder. Fuck him, and fuck his wife, who supported and enabled him to become a cartoon character to the world who showed no one, NO ONE, he disagreed with an ounce of sympathy, concern or compassion.

 

She's Orson Bean's daughter, fer crissake. She could easily afford to move out and divorce the creep, but chose to remain and, more important, not intervene when Andy decided he wanted to draw another cartoon.

 

Breitbart asked for no sympathy in life and gave none. It is only fitting, then, that I show nothing but contempt for him, his family and the slope-shouldered morons who are "shedding a tear" for a man who tore up his life too soon because he couldn't be bothered to listen to the first rules of kindergarten: Play nice, and share.

 

It's one thing to be a selfish, pompous asshole who's first and only thought is himself. As one myself, I'm cool with that, But when you start extending discharity and contumely to people who are less fortunate than you, you don't deserve accolades and eulogies but contempt and condemnation.

 

You know who I do feel compassion and sympathy for? Keith Olbermann, who still had a slew of Breitbart send-ups tucked away on a hard drive at the Current Studios, who will now never get the chance to show them and make us laugh with him at Breitbart. That's who.

 

Breitbart is dead. Hell just got a lot nastier.

Whistle Past The Graceyard Much?

 

That cheerleader uniform don't fit so good, David Graham...

But Austerity Works!

 

An object lesson for Obama's second term and his critics.

Syriasly Evil

 

President Bashar Assad of Syria deployed additional forces around Homs in an attempt to flush out the rebels holed up there.

 

It appears to have worked.

 

So despite the Arab League's condemnation, and with only the tacit support of Iran, Assad has managed to stave off, at least for a little while, an overthrow.

 

This is going to get bloody, and soon.

Paging James Bond!

 

It appears that access codes to the International Space Station were kept, unencrypted (although I'm not sure it would make a difference) on a laptop that was stolen last year.

 

Now, this is kind of silly: first, unencrypted? Really? So some guy sitting in his underwear in his den could, say, point the ISS in the other direction? And apparently, unencrypted laptops seem to be the norm at NASA, which ought to put paid to the notion that NASA is strictly a DoD department.

 

Worse, what if...and this seems a pretty likely scenario now...the laptop was stolen just to gain access to the ISS? After all, a notable exclusion to the program is China (Russia, Japan, Canada, and Europe are the principal partners...and who the hell thought it was a good idea to leave the only nation with any money off the team?)

 

Hmmmmmmmmmmmm....

All Over But The Shouting, Of Which There Will Be Plenty

 

With his narrow win in Michigan, Mitt Romney has all but sewed up the Republican nomination. Intrade puts the odds at 85-15 for a Republican ticket headed by Romney now. Nate Silver isn't quite so optimistic and points out any number of scenarios where Mitt could actually lose the nomination but they're based on machinations that will make your brain sore.

 

So, Quo vadis, Mitt? Where are you going? You're already handicapped in the general by a nasty, brutish primary that has had more negative advertising (SuperPACS included) than most general elections, and will likely not end anytime soon.

 

Your first major step will likely be to decide on a running mate. I believe he already has: Ron Paul.

 

Let's face some facts: Paul is a serial campaigner, and serial campaigners have a habit of becoming laughingstocks-- Adlai Stevenson springs to mind. And Paul is getting old. He'd be in his 80s in 2016. This really is his last chance. Since he's not going to win the nomination, and should he somehow win the Libertarian or Green nominations, he'd likely be off the ballot in any number of states, his last best hope rests in the GOP, and accepting the Veep nomination.

 

Now, this is not as crazy as it might seem at first blush and strategically, it's a pretty smart move for Romney. For one thing, Paul is about the only Republican who actually attracts young voters into the Republican fold. He has certified Teabagger status, and can draw fire away from Romney and force Obama to run against both men (deploying the otherwise useless Joe Biden, who's probably drooling at the prospects of smacking Ron Paul around.)

 

For Paul, the logic is simple: his largest most attentive national audience ever, from the convention right down to the concession speech, he will have national news coverage of the kind he has never and will not ever get. For a man with an overinflated sense of self-worth like Paul, this has to be a real attractive prospect.

 

For Romney, the attraction is obvious: money.

 

You heard me. Ron Paul's direct fundraising machine is unparalleled in the Republican party, and rivaled only by Barack Obama's. Too, his superPAC is not far behind Romney's in fund raising. Both of these components will be vital in any general election campaign as Obama will have am huge advantage as incumbent. A popular incumbent. A popular incumbent riding the coattails of a robust recovery.

 

These guys need money like a wino needs Ripple.

 

Note something else: Ron Paul running on the national ticket in 2012 probably opens a door wide for his son, Senator Rand Paul, to run in 2016 or 2020.

 

I'm thinking the former, but he may be persuaded out by Chris Christie partisans.

 

For his part, Romney really has few options. Rick Santorum is one, to be sure, since after this campaign, he's toast. About all he could realistically run for would be governor of Pennsylvania and I doubt Pennsylvanians will want him. Gingrich will never accept the Veep nod-- he'll probably just write another book-- and if you look around, there are precious few Republicans who would sacrifice their chances in 2016 to jump on board a crashing plane.

 

He could call on Mitch Daniels, who is about the only Republican who hasn't shamed himself this year, even though his SOTU rebuttal left a lot to be desired. Marco Rubio would only add another Mormon to the ticket with the added bonus of a "birther" problem.

 

For my money, Paul is the smartest gamble Romney can make here, and as I recall, Mormons are allowed to gamble.

Not Pulling His Weight

 

Chris Christie doesn't help Romney take New Jersey even if he runs as Veep.

BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH

Where did they conduct this poll? Arkham Asylum?

 

Thus proving Rassmussen is not a reliable polling organization.

Sense of Snowe

Some good news for Democrats in this year where Senate seats will be contested hotly across the nation: a sure-fire Republican re-election is going to be up for grabs as Olympia Snowe of Maine is retiring.

 

First, we owe her a debt of gratitude for her independence when it came to healthcare reform. Snowe is one of those Republicans that are a throwback to a time when two parties could actually compromise on things. As much as I dislike Republicans and as many other things she's done have annoyed me, I have to respect that about her. This is a nation of E Pluribus Unum, not Duo Partes Regula.

 

Already, the ramifications of this decision are rumbling down the corridors of Maine's political establishments, as both Democratic Congressmen (Maine being a sparsely populated state) and the Republican state Senate Leader have hinted they may run for Snowe's vacancy.

 

Let me throw a name out there that could settle the whole uncertainty and give the Democrats an easy win in Maine: Ask Stephen King.

 

Don't laugh: he was on Team Obama early in 2008, and has come out strongly in support of education.

 

And he's anti-war (at least these past couple of wars.)

 

Thoughts?

To No One's Great Surprise

 

Mitt Romney pulled a double last night, ekeing out a victory in Michigan while swamping Santorum in a frothy heady victory in Arizona.

 

This re-establishes, temporarily, his status as heir-apparent to the Republican punching bag for Obama.

 

I mean, nomination.

 

Santorum had a double digit lead at one point, and despite heavy turnout by Democrats supporting Santorum (over 10%) in this open primary, he lost Michigan by a not-uncomfortable margin, when all was said and done.

 

This probably came two days too late. I don't know who's handling Santorum's press, but they need to be fired. Santorum should have been on FOX Sunday or one of the other talking head shows, expressing this, and since you can't fire the candidate, someone needs a sword to fall on. This was without a doubt the single stupidest irrelevant and clumsy things Santorum has said, hands down.

 

When he talks dogwhistles to his base, that's one thing and as stupid as it seems to you and me, it works for them so at least there's a rationale for whipping strawmen.

 

But Rick is Catholic. He's speaking to other Catholics ahead of a primary in a state that is filled with Reagan Democrats and their progeny. These are folks who were loyal Democrats from FDR on down, and who hold JFK up as a martyred saint, a throwback to a time when it was OK (for them) to be a Democrat . JFK was the first Catholic, only Catholic President.

 

Insult Kennedy, you insult their parents and grandparents. In a religion that places value on ancestry as much as Catholicism does, the last thing you want to do is make that kind of linkage, particular with such a visceral image as vomiting.

 

How Romney doesn't have this nomination sewed up already is beyond me. He's left an awful lot of money on the table, as they say in poker. He can't close the deal, and Super Tuesday is next week. He has the funding and the organization to do surprisingly well, but his own tone-deafness has allowed Gingrich and Santorum to hang around.

 

If they pull a few upsets out of the hat, it could be all over for Mitt, altho he'll never know it. He's too stupid to fall down.

Thought For The Day

 

Today is Leap Day, the quadriennal occasion where we give our employers a free day of work.