Occasionally I love reccomending some good blue-collar keep yer spirits up music. I’ve seen other Libs and Progs and Pinkoes of all fantastic varieties do it and it’s nice and healthy for us. It helps give us a spiritual cortex to fall back on when times get difficult. And like others have introduced me to some really great music I had never heard of before, sometimes I like throw in my contribution with a blog.

This is not one of those blogs. Prepare to witness one of the most hypermarketted, mind-numbingly shallow  musical bowel explosions this side of Vanilla Ice and Billy Ray “inbreed-em-ifya-got-em” Cyrus.

Take a deep breath and let’s get freaky now let’s get fucking freaky now…

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Why is he yelling at that poor girl? lol… apologies for having shown that to all… but wtf is this video about? so first there are lesbians at a party getting drunk and making out and that other guy starts yelling at the other girl, calling her a liar… by god, man… check out how many millions of hits this has…

The Global Monoculture is headed down a deep and ugly path.

If there are aliens, I hope they know well enough to stay the fuck away from the sneakered virus known as human. Until we wisen up.. can someone plz explain to me wtf is going on with this video?

Munch the Porons,
–Your Rumble Hev

According to TPM,

..we can’t help but feel there’s a longer-term agenda behind the ex-AG’s recent media tour. Call it the self-rehabilitation of Alberto Gonzales…….

…he’s just kind of … there — apparently in an effort to establish a presence as a respectable and respected former public official, whose views might be solicited on the issues of the day. And, in so doing, to shed his image as a dim-witted Bush crony under whose “leadership” a major government department ran aground.

Could Gonzo also have more banal motives? When we heard from him recently, he was blaming the slow economy for his struggle to find a job. And it sounds like that struggle continues. We asked Robert Bork Jr., who serves as a spokesman for Gonzo, whether the ex-AG had found employment yet. “He’s pretty busy doing a number of different things,” Bork told us.

Um, remember this guy authorized some of the most brutal shit on the planet. That this fool and John Yoo aren’t in shackles is a damn shame.

One Love, One Struggle,

–The Rev

Had to come back from the grave for this one… Check it out here…

enjoy

saw this and thought i’d share a little food for thought…

hmmm…

One Love, One Struggle,

–Reverend Manny

So you know how the RightWingNuts have been whining about the burdensome tax system? (you know, the one that was implemented by the  Bush Administration?) And you know how they’re blaming Obama for it? And you know how some Republican Politicos have actually turned down federal stimulus funding? Just to prove a point?

Well this piece of shit takes the cake. I’m sorry. There’s no other way for me to put it. Mike Kilburn is a piece of shit.

So he’s decided that Warren County (over in Ohio) will be the only county in the state not to accept money to help with transportation costs.

“I’ll let Warren County go broke before taking any of Obama’s filthy money,” Commissioner Mike Kilburn said.

ODOT spokesman Scott Varner said the money was specifically for transit improvements in rural areas to improve transportation for disabled people, seniors and others needing access to health care and educational opportunities.

“I’m tired of paying for people who don’t have,” Kilburn said. “As Reagan said, ‘Government is not the answer, it’s the problem.’”

Wow… Mr. Kilburn. You, my non-friend, are a heartless fuckwad. I hope you never fall victim to anyone like you.

One Love, One Hustle,
–The Amsterdam-bound Reverend

(btw, have been having an absolute nightmare typingn into any other txt window besides the body windown. I click to type on tags or excerpt, and instead, I’m still typing on my blog entry window. anybody having the same problem? did I miss an update?

Check the link, cuz they won’t let me embed.

Dream on, homies.

Another great piece from Scott Horton of the Daily Beast

Spanish prosecutors will seek criminal charges against Alberto Gonzales and five high-ranking Bush administration officials for sanctioning torture at Guantánamo.

The six defendants—in addition to Gonzales, Federal Appeals Court Judge and former Assistant Attorney General Jay Bybee, University of California law professor and former Deputy Assistant Attorney General John Yoo, former Defense Department general counsel and current Chevron lawyer William J. Haynes II, Vice President Cheney’s former chief of staff David Addington, and former Undersecretary of Defense Douglas J. Feith—are accused of having given the green light to the torture and mistreatment of prisoners held in U.S. detention in “the war on terror.” The case arises in the context of a pending proceeding before the court involving terrorism charges against five Spaniards formerly held at Guantánamo. A group of human-rights lawyers originally filed a criminal complaint asking the court to look at the possibility of charges against the six American lawyers. Baltasar Garzón Real, the investigating judge, accepted the complaint and referred it to Spanish prosecutors for a view as to whether they would accept the case and press it forward. “The evidence provided was more than sufficient to justify a more comprehensive investigation,” one of the lawyers associated with the prosecution stated..

Rock on Mr. Horton. While most of the American media is either ignoring or downplaying this story (complicity much?) Mr. Horton continues to do a terrific job of keeping track of Human Rights Law.

So… now can we start talking about prosecuting the Bush Administration here, you know… in the United States?….

One Love, One Hustle,
–Reverend Manny and the Atahualpa Funk Police

Saw this was one of the leading articles on the NYTimes this morning. Apparently, the Obama Administration has issued a new policy concerning Cuba, loosening up restriction on family travel, remittaces, and telecommunications. Here is the full piece in the NY Times.

WASHINGTON — In abandoning longstanding restrictions on the ability of Cuban-Americans to visit and send money to family members on the island, President Obama demonstrated Monday that he was willing to open the door toward greater engagement with Cuba — but at this point, only a crack.

The announcement represents the most significant shift in United States policy toward Cuba in decades, and it is a reversal of the hard line taken by President George W. Bush. It comes as Mr. Obama is preparing to meet later this week in Trinidad and Tobago with Latin American leaders, who want him to normalize relations with Cuba and its leader, Raúl Castro.

America’s policy towards Cuba may be one of the best proofs as to the staleness of our political system (right up there with immigration policy, drug policy and economic vudu policy). Much like the rest, Obama has taken a small step forward. Is it enough of a step forward? Probably not. But we’re definitely a little closer to our goals.

One Love,

—Reverend Manny

ps. apologies on the extended absence… I’ve had some fairly dramatic stuff go on these last few weeks (and months)… it looks like i’ll have a few investors for a small “thing” i’m starting, so that’s been eating at my time… with most of the hardcore planning now under my belt, i should have a bit more time for the netroots (and i do miss y’all so terribly)… just wanted to say thanks to my fantastic blogroll, which has done such a wonderful job of staying on top of the netroots… may our movement grow in wisdom and strength every day….

enjoy

Robot meets Christianity

You can tell the Conservative Genius Patrol has been burning the midnight oil recently. The CPAC conference was a hearty multi-day belly full of laughs for instance. And as always it was keenly instructive as to what fare they will offer in the coming political season. This year, even above the rabble of the grouphate, one word echoed louder than all… Socialism. The big bad boogidy man.

Lemme share a quick something with you. I cheat a little when it comes to understanding the right. I’m totally fessing up. I get tons of webzines and newsletters and even some listservs–all with a Conservative bend. It’s very helpful in understanding the strategy behind the tactics. Oh boy… the Washington Times, the Freepers, those methed-out fools at Human Events… they have their tactic for this political season. Obama’s a socialist. He’s turning America into the USSA.

“Get it? Cuz Obama’s Socialist? It’s like a combination of the USSR and USA. DERP!! I made a funny with my thought brain!”

Long term, I’m beginning to think this strategy will ultimately backfire on them.

Short term, the goal of this strategy is to taint not only Obama , but wider Progressive Principles as Socialist. Logically, this makes little sense. What “socialism” means has become very  nebulous. Countries like Sweden, Norway, France, Spain, Germany, Ecuador and Canada all offer examples of “Socialistic” trends–but none can be called socialist. Secondly, and more clearly, Obama’s barely a Progressive, how in the hell could he be a Socialist?

But this is logic, and much like the Bolsheviks (and the Bushevicks) taught us, logic has little to do with the intended gutteral impact of retrograde propaganda. Think about it. “Abortion is MURDER!!” that one’s pretty good… three words, very bolshevik, lots of imagery, and clearly related to a legal issue that is guaranteed to get some sanctimonious suit filler elected… “Support our TROOPS!” as a response to questioning bush… that one’s really good too… it implies that if i don’t agree with you, I’d like the people defending my country to die… that’s very bolshevik…very effective…

So “USSA” and “Comrade Obama” all fit very nicely into the Conservative product line. It’s short. It’s simple. It generates powerful gutteral emotion and is a helluva election day motivator.

“You wanna live in a Gulag-state like the communists?”
“–FUCK NO… jesus christ.. “
“Then we gotta get Comrade Hussein Obamer outta office”

See the efficiency?

So the soul-less part of me understands why the Conservatives would take this approach. The facts of the issue matter little to political manipulators. They don’t want to govern well… they simply want to govern. What matters more than good ideas is how much your ideas move people so that you can attain power. Socialism… boy that’s a scary one… that’s the big bad boogey man himself

But I don’t think they know what they’re getting themselves into.

Let’s think of someone like Beulahman, someone on my blogroll who recently talked about the healthcare burden. He pays damn near 25 thousand dollars a year for health insurance. He rus his own business, generates money into the economy, thus not only generating taxes but also increasing the general pool from which taxes can be taken from. From the general tax money, folks like me, you and B’man get water pipes, electric wires, broadband expansions, satelite feeds from tv stations and cel phone service, police and fire services, safety regulations, new technologies, highways, etc… why? Because myself, B’man, you and all your friends that work… we each decided to pool together  our money for things that we clearly need.

Here’s the big fat fucking funny part. So we have this pool of OUR money, right? And we made a list of all the things we really really really need… guess what we didn’t put on that list of things we really really need? OUR HEALTH!! Ha.

Wow. Pretty silly, huh. Downright foolish, you might even say. But in response to the argument I just made, a Conservative would reply with… “you’re a socialist!”

Here’s the dangerous gambit they’re running into, though.

I’m really fucking pissed off that Buelahman has to pay 25thousand dollars a year just to make sure he has medical attention in CASE something happens. It angers the shit out of me that we can give banks trillions, but over the course of ten years, B’man will shell out a quarter mill of his hard-earned money for healthcare. I think we could do healthcare for about half our current cost (which is world average) if we centralized and organized alot of redundant departments that clutter the medical industry. I think Bman should be paying no more than say 5 thousand a year for health insurance. And if you think that makes me a socialist… idk…

Let me go a bit more personal. My nana, my grandmother, turned 81 recently. Since she was born in northern Moldova, she has survived multiple famines, the soviet invasion, the German Invasion, the Iron Guard, american carpet bombings.. all before her twenties. She then survived Nicolae Causescu and numerous other famines, purges and earthquakes. In 1989, the country overthrew Ceausescu (with aid from the West)… and she survived that revolution as well as the economic crash that ensued. Since then she has lived with my family in the States.

One could see her on purely economic terms. For twenty years she helped raise and feed four children, freeing my mother up to work (usually more than one job). With years of sacrifice, and the additional income, my family managed to buy a small house. Economically, in the scope of “the american dream”, she had a huge hand in helping my  family accomplish this small economic feat–an economic feat that generated money into the economy at an increased rate due to her presence.

But there’s more to it than that. You’re telling me that if she breaks her leg, my mom has to spend her life savings on the medical bill? Dude, medical costs are the leading cause of bankrupcy in America–not shitty mortgages.

And if I don’t want my mom to sell her house to pay a medical bill–I’m a socialist? Idk, man…

And the same goes for Progressive Ideals on corporate responsibility, environmental awareness, personal liberties and meritocracy.

The more you tell me corporate responsibility is socialist… the more you tell me civil liberties are socialist… the more likely I am to eventually believe that I am a bit more socialist than I thought.

So to my “patriotic” friends on the right… beware. This is not the 50’s. The Red Scare has worn off much of its luster, as have your worn out trickle-down theories. The more you tell peopl basic human rights and human decency is socialist… the less evil and vile the word sounds. They hope to scare people away from the left, but in the long run I think they may just be creating a deeper pool of leftist strength.

Oh Conservatives. You dumb bastards. People have real problems right now–and you offer rhetoric? How shallow, how callous, how utterly inhumane.

Conservatism is an ideology. My grandmother is a human being. Your ideology will not pay her medical bills. Perhaps mine will.

One Love, One Struggle,
–Reverend Manny and the Twilight Empire