Life of Brian--1979
I've been having many heated discussions of late with my husband and friends who are trying to make sense of the political climate these days. Many of them didn't think things could get worse than jingoism and dishonesty of the Bush/Cheney years. I don't think any of them thought that more than a year into the Obama presidency that things like the 1964 Civil Rights Act and 1968 Fair Housing Act would be considered less than settled matters. Or that thinking that the world's superpower should be able to offer health care to its citizens would make one a Maoist/Stalinist/Communist, despite the fact that most Americans want it too. Or that suddenly the existence of undocumented workers has become so intolerable that we must address them with huge fences, detention camps, moats and all other matter of law enforcement, despite the fact that there have always been an underclass of undocumented workers and not one person has proposed focusing energy on reducing demand by going after the employers of said workers.
What I came away with from all these conversations is that the dialogue in this country is fundamentally dishonest, just as these members of the People's Front of Judea are. I mean, honestly, apart from the sanitation, medicine, education, wine, public order, irrigation, roads, the fresh water system and public health, what have the Romans ever done for us? Change PFJ to "Tea Party" and change Romans to "government" and you've got an idea of the intellectual dishonesty rampant.
Ironically, we've been saved a whole lot of intellectual dishonesty this Sunday because Republican Senate candidate Rand Paul agreed with the unilateral assessment that he just wasn't ready for prime time and backed out of his Meet the Press booking. Instead, we're treated to Democratic Senate candidate Joe Sestak (along with John Cornyn, who is dishonest enough to state that "misspeaking" is only a "game-changer" when you're a Democrat). Party Chairmen Michael "Everybody hates you" Steele and Tim Kaine face off on both Fox News Sunday and This Week. And everyone's favorite half-governor, Sarah Palin, is on Fox News Sunday too. There's sure to be nothing but intellectual dishonesty there.
ABC's "This Week" - Democratic National Committee Chairman Tim Kaine; Michael Steele, chairman of the Republican National Committee.
CBS' "Face the Nation" - White House press secretary Robert Gibbs; Rep. Joe Sestak, D-Pa., the Democratic nominee for a Senate seat in Pennsylvania; Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn.
NBC's "Meet the Press" - Sestak; Sens. John Cornyn, R-Texas, and Robert Menendez, D-N.J.
NBC's "The Chris Matthews Show" - Panel: Norah O'Donnell, Howard Fineman, Jonathan Alter, Kathleen Parker. Topics: How Can Barack Obama Run Against Washington This Year? Rand Paul's Civil Rights Problem
CNN's "State of the Union" - Govs. Ed Rendell, D-Pa., and Tim Pawlenty, R-Minn.; Robert Dudley, BP's managing director; Adm. Thad Allen, commandant of the Coast Guard.
CNN's "Fareed Zakaria GPS" - Russia, Georgia, Vladimir Putin.
"Fox News Sunday" - Former Gov. Sarah Palin, R-Alaska; Kaine; Steele; Virginia Thomas, founder of Liberty Central and wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas.
So, what's catching your eye this morning?
