" ... a lot of the information that we accept as true, and will pass on to others as true, is dependent upon our own self-interests. Anyone who claims otherwise is expert at deluding themselves or is knowingly lying ..."

Remember, the media is only as liberal as its conservative corporate owners allow it to be. Enlightened self-interest that helps you meet your Wall Street numbers ...

Mr. Obama meets Mr. LieberMcCain

This is the most interesting political news I've heard since McCain kept confusing sunnis and shiites while fact-finding in Iraq. (He likely thinks Obama should visit the Big Sandbox more often so he could be confused, too.)

Seems Sen. Obama met Sen. ol' Joe Lieberman on the Senate floor the other and pulled him aside, having heard what the erstwhile independent has been running around saying about the Democratic nominees and supporting Republican 100-year-warrior McCain.

Joe, of course, is the two-faced politician who ran halfheatedly with Gore a few years back, but recently has been hanging out with GOP while caucusing with Democrats to main some sembalance of power in the Senate.

He's also endorsed McCain, raising the possibility of a Zell Miller-like diatribite again the party's candidate, since Joe seems to think opposing ill-planned wars in Iraq means you support I'm-a-dinner-jacket and a new holocaust.

Man, I would have loved to hear that talk:

Obama: Hey Joe, got a sec?

Joe: well, um, not really I have an interview planned with fox news about your.. well, I mean

Obama: Over here Joe. Now.

To which they proceed to a quiet corner while Joe -- shaking with the fear of an old white guy faced with a young black man -- fidgets nervously.

Joe: OK, no one can hear. You can yell. I know you're not happy. But understand, liberals won't give me money any more. I have to court cons.

Obama: Oh, I'm not going to yell.

Joe: Then what?

Obama: Simple. Come November, we're going to hang GW Bush's legacy from the rafters with this tragic, ill-run war. We're going to hang McCain right beside it. Watch your step or you'll be hanging up there, too.
We're taking the White House. We'll have a much bigger margin in the Senate. The GOP will have rent space if it wants a place on Capitol Hill. You get that?

Joe: Well, um, I am an independent, not a Republican.

Obama: Right. And come next year, we won't need you to hold a majority. Majority leadress Clinton may hang with you now, but she plays the power gain. When you're irrelevant, she won't even have a junior aide return your calls. Your committee seats, your caucus seats. Gone. So if you aren't careful, there's an office on the senate subway deep underground with 'independent' and your name on it.

Joe: Well then, I might just switch to the GOP, then.

Obama: Yea? You think your state's democrats will help you then? Do you think your GOP buddies will help you when they're barely hanging on.

Joe: Well um, OK.

Obama: OK what?

Joe: OK... sir.

---

read about it here: http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalpunch/2008/06/obama-confronts.html

It's official: hopeful change vs. grumpy mcsame

first off, poor Hillary Clinton. The sad spectacle of failing to step aside with grace after Obama's clear win, while trying to win a spot as his vice president, just shows how desperate she is to rescue the tarnished clinton legacy.

I can only assume she's convinced she has to leverage such a bid at risk to the party and the country, because otherwise, she's not going to get it. And she shouldn't. She's an amazing woman and a tough campaigner -- but no presidential candidate would saddle themselves with a vice presidential spouse so desperate for the spotlight.

That said, the speeches last night made the race quite clear. McCain proclaims change, but he's voted with Bush 95% of the time, and he's reversed himself on the difference that counted most. He opposed the Bush tax cuts as budget busters too weighted to the rich; he was right. Now he wants to extend them.

And after three decades in Congress, during which the country built up a huge pile of debt, he can hardly portray himself as an agent of change. He's either been part of the problem or ineffectual at solving problems.

And really, he comes across as Bob Dole in 1996. He got the bid because the other GOPers lost, and he deserves it, and if you don't like it, screw you. He's too old and too tired to try to court voters.

Sure, I wish Obama had a couple more terms in Congress than he does. But if we waited for two terms under McBush, he'd also have any more problems to solve.

What do Rush Limbaugh and Osama bin Laden have in common?

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080531/ap_on_re_mi_ea/al_qaida_s_women

'nuff said ... well, I can't help but speculate: Does this mean that Al Qaida is against gay marriage, too? Maybe Bush should rethink this "war on terror" thing. He could use an expansion of the Republican conservative base ...

Stupid People

If your main claim to political fame is that you are the candidate of choice for the least-educated state in the nation, isn't that a sign from the universe that it's time to quit, for the good of the country?

Sorry Hill, party's over, you're going home alone

Poor Hillary Clinton. She's a good hearted woman. And after working hard to become one of the hard working, gun toting plan folks, it must be tough to have to tell the nation they just won't vote for a black guy.

Truth is, of course, that's not her at all. She may have moved to Arkansas to help Bill politically, but she was damn sure not going back when he left office.

No, as I've written before, the real problem is that Hillary at heart will always be that smart college girl in the thick glasses desperate in need to a man to complete her. That's she ended up with Bill, the slick-talking philanderer who she knew could be a great man one day. And stuck with him when he humiliated her publicly. More than once. And even sent her out to lie for him.

It would have been a problem as president, I think. Suppose Putin took the little lady out fishin' and doffed his shirt. Or some slick republican in the Senate sweet-talked her out of the budget.

We've avoided that, but now we have a different problem. The party's over. She is not going to be the nominee. But she's sticking things out in hopes we decide we like her, we really like her.

We do Hill, but the party's over. You're going home alone. Sorry, that's just the way it is.

Gas tax holidays in the sun

Policy has finally intruded on the 'who's your spiritual daddy' debate that is our presidential race.

Hillary Clinton boldly said 'me too' to John McCain's idea of a gas tax holiday starting in less than a month, which would give us all two extra dimes to rub together per gallon. At least, until Big Oil raises prices another two dimes.

Barack Obama, meanwhile, once again decided to treat American voters like adults. Chump change and pandering. And I'm sure it'll end this debate just as it ended the Rev. Wright debate.

And y'know, maybe it shouldn't, In DC or New York or out here on the West Coast, where salaries are larger and distances shorter, none of this seems like much.

But out in the vast heart of American where people make average American salaries of 40K or 50K, people are seriously being hurt by gas prices. If you live in Billings, you can't hop a bus to the next town for pocket change. They need help now.

So when Obama dismisses this as pandering, and says to Americans they'll have to wait until a new president is elected and takes office and gets his stuff together and can enact a new long-term energy policy, and then let's wait for that to take effect...

He risks being labeled out of touch or, dare I say it, elitist. And dismissed because we all know Washington will never do something real or effective.

Of course, the real pandering here is that candidates Clinton and McCain talk about this holiday starting very soon. But senators Clinton and McCain haven't even filed a bill. No doubt the candidates will blame the senators for failing to act, and call for change....