Poor Barack, who allows Wall Street Banksters to loot trillions from our treasury.

Poor Barack, who trashes habeus corpus ...

Poor Barack, who is "inventing a brand new "sovereign immunity" claim that not even the Bush administration espoused."

Poor Barack, who won't investigate the crimes of the Bush Administration.

AND On the other hand ...

Right wing NUT JOBS and a sycophantic corporate media ...

Sorry Mr Parry, two abominations do not make an absolution.

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I agree with the above post. Sure, the right wing lunatics are raving, but Obama's undoing will be his own actions. He'd better think long and hard about the progressive sentiments that got him elected and the consequences of betraying it in favor of neocon and pro-Wall Street positions.

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is that he wants to see Republicans in Congress as reasonably sane human beings capable of logic and reason in the face of dire national crisis. However, the sooner he realizes that the GOP isn't about saving America from itself, but about regaining the upper hand at all costs, the better it will be for us all. There's no reasoning with blood thirsty lunatics, try as he might. Once this rather obvious fact sinks in, I believe the tide will turn. Congressional Republicans aren't about to give an inch... as we have thus far witnessed. So much for "bipartisanship." The two sides of the aisle are so fundamentally at odds with one another in terms of ideology that it may not be possible to meld the two into a comprehensive whole. I say, leave them to their own devices and get on with the business at hand. They've made their intentions clear.

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A Vote of Confidence Amendment will enable American voters to dismiss any elected official.


FREE AMERICA

REVOLUTIONARY (DIRECT) DEMOCRACY

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Wake up, brothers and sisters, we have far more in common than the few wedge issues that are constantly promoted to keep us divided.

A national strike will return the country to the people and restore the constitution and our republic.

It's time to remove the money party from power and reboot our democracy.

The truth shall set us free. Love is the only way forward.

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This faux news is the last ditch attempt of those in control to remain in control. Give the people some credit. These scare articles are EXACTLY WHAT THEY WANT. I mean really, how pathetic they look shilling for Rupert.

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What the fuss is all about has completely eluded me and my hearing has also become impaired, since I clearly heard on radio that the recession is over, we have turned the corner and everything is going to be just fine again! I am sure that my hearing has become impaired since my gut feel is that this is not true! But I guess if Obama says so it must be!

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The nightly news shows continue to show the Obama Administration in a good light; Fox shows Obama as running the nation in the ground and possibly threatening national security. MSNBC is a cheering section of Obama and the conventional Democratic leadership in Congress.

Only occasionally is a true socialist view heard or a true libertarian view. Where are the Ron Paul or Bob Barr critics of the GOP/Democratic love of large military and intelligence establishments. Where are the critics of the continuing occupation of Iraq and the escalation in Afghanistan? Obama is pulling a Bush in Iraq, and getting away with it with media complicity. Media would never have let Bush proclaim a 'withdrawal' that inculdes long terms war with smaller force.

Moreover the conflicts of interest in Obama's economic team are outrageous. The Media gives them a pass, and Congress a pass even though no demands for resignations are heard.

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Yes, this could also be a disinformation article or 5th columnist tack - its very adroitly written with a certain calm, deliberate intuition that things are going to go this way - the comment that struck me most was the following - "There have been times, living in America of late, when it seemed I was back in the Communist Moscow"....the key word here is of course,communist - what ever pundits say and payrolled journalists write or paid show mouthers say, Obama is simply a paid and controlled replacement of GW for those that own the political game and the money of the world. The facists who are equally the commies are those that have bored a hole into the American system and are parasitically milking it out until it dries out.

Meanwhile the Chinese are on the borders waiting to take over the role orchestrated by the same entity that is currently raping the American public and for that matter world governments and the great declining natural rescources thereof-

It is only a matter of time before this world rape will end in the death of the body thus overly consummed and the consequent disappearance of both the victim and its parasite.

Meanwhile the stage on which all this is enacted will keep us from seeing the ever rapid decline of the ecological support line this natural world offers as the infirmity of homo sapien deludes it to realise its total folly.

This is not the whole story but the outline but what is more important is that it is the beginning of the end.

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These people are desperate. In a way it's kind of funny. But in a very real way, it's as disturbing as can be. What is happening here is that we have a cabal of right wing extremists who are trying to whip up their half-witted constituency to violence and anarchy.

Why did they wait until an African American Democrat was in the White House to launch "Operation Tea Bag"? Why didn't they pull this stunt off when Reagan was in the White House? Taxes were actually higher then.

Here's the funniest thing of all: The overwhelming majority of the dittoheads who were out in force yesterday are actually having their taxes lowered by the current administration.

Assholes.

THE RANT

Tom Degan
Goshen, NY

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Let's face it, the president has to come up with a power play to fight back.

How about a rerun of the John Adams' Alien and Sedition Act?

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Since the Right seem unaware that 20 years of incontinent slander of Democrats has resulted in more Democrats than ever, I say let them blather on.

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Alright, if Obama's gonna play sissy and keep giving the GOP everything they want and he's doing a hell of a job doing it, then he deserves to lose. But then again, it was the corporate media that elevated Obama and helped him and his supporters use the race card against Hillary and Mccain and he'll probably do it again in 2012. The progressives in the media would have a lot to truly boast about Obama instead of painfully defending his kissing up to the corporate/military interests if only Obama were actually a progressive and not a fucking GOP lite ! Sometimes I think GOP-lites would be perfect target practices. LOL !

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these pathetic right/left/blue/red teabaggin' poledancing media-driven distracting mother fuckers will tell you and show you anything to keep your hands off the wheel.

A coup was committed in the Country WE Love in broad daylight w/out 1 shot being fired - just ask Al Gore and if you don't believe him how about an old school imigrant who came up through Ford Motor;Lee Iacocca?

Waterboard Silverstein, the floodgates open, connect the dots and see a stolen election, 9/11 Iraq/Afgn theft and now a media-driven redistribution of wealth for One goverment/One currency.

Stop lying to yourselves WE need each other and that scares the shit OUT of them!!
Don't play into it.

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it is hard to escape the conclusion that today’s U.S. news media represents a danger to the Republic.

No. It might represent a danger to President Obama's agenda, but that's not synonymous with the republic. What would be a danger to the republic would be to ignore the First Amendment protections on freedom of the press.

The right-wing media still pull the reigns in DC

And I believe the word you are looking for here is reins. Sheesh.

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Yes, indeed, it is "rein" and not "reign" unless you are referring to the (it is to be hoped, very temporary) "reign" of Usurper King Barry Soetoro.

Oh.. and to what "conservative media" do you refer, other than the excessively moderate conservatives at Fox?

How many of the media of any stripe have even raised their collective consciousness to make us aware that there are still MANY extant challenges to the legality of Mr Soetoro's presence in the White House (save, perhaps, as a dog-minder)?

IMNAAHO, you folk need to find some remedy for your cranio-rectal inversion characterized by baseless fears that Mr. Soetoro might someday acknowledge the US Constitution, and subsequently take up new residence in Leavenworth Federal Penitentiary, an appropriate location for frauds.

The hysteria of the "progressives" (read "regressive retards") is largely unfounded.

Yeah, it's a "troll", but otherwise the articles of your semiliterate writers wouldn't be worth reading.

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"Reigns" again instead of "Reins," Alternet?
I understand no one wants to make a mistake, that twice in a month indicates some diabolical anti-spelling conspiracy, but just admit that America is a nation of non-spellers. The "it's" where there should be "its" are enough to substantiate this, from professors, authors, scientists and regular gasbag nobodies.
So does that make me speller/grammar king? Hell, no. I've made some whoppers, and I is edumacated. Yet I admit - I was not educated in the American school of higher ed system. I learned the nature of truth from the almighty American library system, and from untenured folks. I also understand what the nature of self-reference is, which is that even in the Web, nobody responds to anyone, we just interrogate ourselves. Thank you, and have a good drive to the unemployment office.

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The way I see this, it is us (We the People) versus the government. I do not see this as a way to disrupt Obama. The Tea party I went to in Lansing included people from all parties, Democrats, Republicans etc. The press and the extreme left are trying to make this a right wing nut job case. It all boils down to the fact that we want our tax dollars spent wisely, not just borrow and spend. We cannot spend our way out of the mess we are in. Bush was never known for wise business decisions before he became president, now Obama seems to be following his lead. We need someone in office that makes good solid wise decisions on our future.

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Obama has proven himself a fraud by not ending the Iraq war or even making a half-assed attempt. Why do the Alternet articles like to take it up the ass from Obama? Stockholm syndrome?

I suppose I should not be surprised. Some Republicans make a pathetic attempt to defend Bush, so I should expect some pathetic Democrats to try to defend Obama who can't do anything right. Sure he looks better than Bush at the moment but the hopeless liar about Iraq still has three more years to go.

Alternet should have known Obama was a vote whore from the start and I have to wonder how long they will delude themselves for. I mean just how bad does Obama have to get before they'll catch on to the obvious facts?

I voted Bush in 2000. But two months later after it was obvious he was a flippin' retard and a party traitor (like traitor Obama) I wasn't so stupid as to not regret it and dump "my party" immediately and permanently.

We have no President Obama. We have Traitor Obama and he should be addressed as such.

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Looking at photos of tea parties across the nation I noticed some thing missing----it was a black face. That brought me to the conclusion that the rallies were an expression of anger not against government policies but an African American being elected president. It is shameful and proof that Racism is alive and kicking.

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He is the recipient of what the left wing media did to Bush, only far less personal.

Ouch!

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I wouldn't say "right" or "left" wing media: I'd say an establishment media that jealously fawns over and guards its access to power.

But it is true that the right wing has its share of bully boys, and they are not to be underestimated. After all, people laughed at Hitler and the Nazis too -- and then found themselves in concentration camps -- or worse.

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Gov't, Industry, Religion and Mass Media- all Tools created by humanity to aid in the developement and maintence of civiliation have comes our nemesis.
Our gov't has been owned and operated by the Corps and their Blind faith followers for about 3 decades- and the media has played their town criers and inquistionist. This was 'foreseen' by our founders, because they had already lived through the feudalistic cast system of Trickle Down and Religious Fervor. the exact reason for Seperation of Church & State, FREE Market and FREE press."For and By the people" did not merely mean our form of Gov't, but access to the Market place. No such access exists anymore- no real competition because Conglomerates Multinationals have killed off real Small Business competition. If you ain't on the Stock market Toteboard- ya ain't shit.
What is so amazing is the Religious Right hasn't figured out how they have been used like whores to push Corp Agendas. Those 'donations' given to combat Abortions, aren't for 'moral' reasons, but to assure the Commodity of Labor continues to get cheaper- 'Supply side Economics'. And thus Gay marriage poses two problems for Corps- one the loss of 'production' and the added cost of 'survivorship'.they not only want you to produce future indentured slaves (workers & consumers), but do not want to be saddled with any more entitlement costs required by marriage certificates. They not only don't want to pay out penisions and annuities to surviving Homosexual spouses, they don't want to pay them out to Hetero spouses either.Why do you think they are after the Union Retirees?
Apparently double digit Billions in Profits is not enough to guarnatee ever increasing Comp pakgs for their top brass
Then theres the Schizophrenic Media. Who can blame them they are like beaten performing dogs- never knowing which way the Corps are going to expect them to Jump. Rush is so confused he's just talked Shit about Duty & performance of the Navy Seals.that's gonna go over Well with Miltiary Families and supporters. The 'Left'media provided Rush that ammunition.Lefties- you are aiding the script production for the Right, Again! Kid comes into my house with a gun and he ends up dead- who's fault is that?
These Teabagging parties were the epitome of the ignorance. Instead of protesting the Capitols, they should have been protesting the corps. Why were they not only Wall Street, on the lawns of the Pharms or Oil corps or big Agri Business? I am far more pissed about the cost of Products then I am about taxes. At least with taxes kids may still have ateacher tomorrow, Our cities may have cops & firefighters, a bridge may be repaired BEFORE it collapses. When Exxon brings in 45+Billion in Profits while I was paying $4.00/gal last yr- that's whos' Ripping me off Blind!Along with the Speculators who manipulated the pricing in advance of any non existent shortage concerns.
You whacked out 'end of Dayers' are looking toward the Horizon for literally 4 horsemen to come over the hill.Sweethearts they have already ridden up behind you with Logo'ed Tunics and shields.the heart of the Beast lies within Unfettered Corp powers and influence- Get them out of our Gov't, Our Religions and our Media.Take Essential commodities off the Stock market- relegate them to betting on Iphones and Blackberry sales, jack Daniels vs Jim Beam-Shit that has not detrimental effects on Human existence if the prices go up.
I'm a Smoker- I have NO Problem paying more in sales tax, since I know that money will go to the healthcare of a child.Taxes Aint' the Fucking Problem!By the way it won't be the smoking meat eating folks who will be laying the biggest healthcare burden on younger generations- It will the be alzheimers patients who's hearts won't stop.Best thing we can do for our kids (and the planet)- die in a timely manner

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Ironic isn't it that the American Right Wing should follow so closely in the footsteps of the erstwhile National Socialists of Germany. These proto-neocons, the "Industrialists", bankers and nationalists that got Germany into the disaster that was their WW1 experience and the even more disastrous treaty at the end of the war, were determined to see the new Weimar Republic fail. They resisted every move the democratic government attempted and aided by the extreme economic crisis eventually brought down the Republic and ushered in the National Socialist Party (Nazis) and Hitler. We must find a way to educate the American people to the fact that the Right Wing with their corporate backers are the fascists and must be feared.

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Or maybe the author is just as clueless as he appears.

For every Keith Olbermann or Rachel Maddow or Paul Krugman or Frank Rich, there are dozens of Larry Kudlows, Sean Hannitys, Bill O’Reillys, Joe Scarboroughs and Charles Krauthammers who take openly right-wing or neoconservative positions — or the likes of Lou Dobbs, John King and Wolf Blitzer, who reflect Republican-oriented or neocon views out of personal commitment or careerist caution.

And who's on first, bud?

When Maddow can make her ridicule of a Republican initiative go viral, while O'Reilly gets his ass handed to him by his bosses for his extremism, I think the "dozens" of bit players in the game see the handwriting on the wall. In fact, everyone does but the revisionist who wrote this staggering piece of news.

Fat Ass and Beck vs. Stewart and Maddow, two commercial-free falls out of three--anyone want in?

On another note--leaving glaring usage errors in a headline doesn't do a single thing for a writer's credibility. If you can't use the spell and grammar check in a word-processor, why should I have any faith that your critical thinking isn't just as lazy?

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Yesterday on Thom Hartmann's show he talked with Alex Jones (infowars.com),and Mr. Jones said that Obama is the closer for the One World Order. It was supposed to have been Bush, but he screwed it up and the people turned against him because of all his fuck-ups. It was quite interesting to learn of the military shutting down a highway in Tennessee (this is against the law). I certainly never heard this on the news. When contacted before it happened by a reporter, the Governor said that it wasn't true and could not be done because it would be illegal. Then on Monday, the news reported that it did happen on the weekend. Hartmann said that he is becoming very concerned about a lot of the things Obama is doing. In fact, Hartmann said that other than a few of the things (like global warming not being real), he has to agtee with two-thirds of what Alex Jones has to say.

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i am sorry but very little of use comes thru the bood tube anyway ... television broadcast television needs to be put to rest.

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We need to pressure Obama to the left as much as we can but also defend him against David Duke and Glen Beck psychos with big bucks or little brains standing next to them. The article is a real contribution to what we need to be discussing.

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Part of the problem in seeking bi-partisanship is the USA form of government which, thankfully, no other democracy in the world uses. Having lived under a parliamentary form of government for seven years (New Zealand), when a party is elected to lead the government, it is expected to RUN the government. The party runs everything without seeking the approval of the party that just lost the election. If the policies put in place loses the support of the party and the electorate, a new election is called for to either affirm the direction government is taking or to throw the rascals out.

Our attempt at faux bi-partisanship forces compromises of principle by the party now in power instead of telling the opposition that the voters have decided it's our turn to run the government. Interestingly, it seems it's always the Republicans that mouth bi-partisanship pieties while in actuality telling the Democrats to go to hell: my way or the highway, whether in or out of power.

Like many citizens who are fed up with Republican obstructionism, here's my message to Obama and the Democrats: Grow a new pair and tell the Republicans publicly to either get with OUR program or just go to hell, and the electorate can judge us on what we do instead of appeasing the obstructionists. The times we are in are too perilous to cave in to the wizards who created this mess, either by commission or omission, just to win a few points with the enablers.

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Aren't the Dems The Lesser Evil?

The Democrats are not the "lesser evil;" they are an auxiliary subdivision of the same evil. To understand the political system, one must step back and regard its operation as an integrated whole. The system can't be properly understood if one's study of it begins with an uncritical acceptance of the 2-party system, and the conventional characterizations of the two parties. (Indeed, the fact that society encourages one to view it in this latter way, is perhaps a warning that this perspective should not be trusted.)

Any given piece of reactionary legislation is invariably supported by a higher percentage of Republicans than Democrats. Does this show that the Democrats are "less evil?" If one focuses on the noble efforts of the few outspoken dissenters, it's easy to feel that the Democrats are somewhat less evil. But in the larger picture, Democrats invariably submit to what Republicans more ardently promulgate, & the entire range of official opinion thereby shifts to the right. Thus the overall function of Democrats is not so much to fight, as to quasi-passively participate in this ever-rightward-moving process. Just as the Harlem Globetrotters need their Washington Generals to make their basketball games properly entertaining, Republicans need the Democrats for effective staging of the political show.

The Democrats are permitted to exist because their vague hint of eventual progressive change keeps large numbers of people from bolting the political system altogether. Emma Goldman once said, "If voting made a difference, it would be illegal." Similarly, if the Democrats potentially threatened any sort of serious change, they would be banned. The fact that they are fully accepted by the corporations and political establishment tells us at once that their ultimate function must be wholly in line with the interests of those ruling groups.

Doesn't the presence of the Dennis Kuciniches et al "prove" that the Democrats are progressive? No. The "Kuciniches" are indeed significantly different from the Hillary types -- but there are compelling reasons not to get too excited about them, either. First, they are used by the party as a "Left decoration," simply to keep potential left defectors in tow. Secondly, the party power brokers will NEVER in a million years let the Kucinich faction have any real power.

In other words, the very modestly-sized progressive Dem faction is cynically used as a marketing tool by the national party. They are dangled before your eyes to make you think that the Dems are the "lesser evil" (since the Republicans offer no such Left decorations). The existence of a few decent Dems makes no real difference in the overall alignment of the party, and they will never be internally influential. They are a distraction.

The argument is often advanced by progressives that they might be able to "take over" the Dem Party just as the Republican Party was supposedly "taken over" by the Religious Right and neoconservatives. This is wishful thinking, and ignores the actual history and character of both parties.

For the Democratic Party to even begin to serve as a vehicle for opposing the absolute rule of capital, it would at a minimum have to be capable of acknowledging the conflict that exists between the interests of capital and the rest of the population; and of expressing a principled determination to take the side of the population in this conflict.

A party whose controlling elements are millionaires, lobbyists, fund-raisers, careerist apparatchiks, consultants, and corporate lawyers; that has stood by prostrate and helpless (when not actively collaborating) in the face of stolen elections, illegal wars, torture, CIA concentration camps, lies as state policy, and one assault on the Bill of Rights after the next, is not likely to take that position.

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Fancy that. A group of people trying to destroy a president, and some facet of the media giving them a forum for that! Will the horrors never cease.

I guess the left and the the right don't so much draw apart from each other as bend back in a circle until they meet. You can't tell Glenn Beck's ravings from 2/3 of you here. Some of his or your quotes, you don't even have to change a word. Some, change the word "socialist" to "corporatist" and you have close to mirror images. You are alike, tone, revved-up emotion, deranged-sounding loner fringe whose wigged-out posts don't seem to bother the rest of you, doommongering, apocalyptic predictions: you're peas in a pod.

When does it all have to come true? And why do you never have to say what your Messiah will do? Who would his cabinet be? What world crisis would he (or she) have solved in the first 3 months of his or her presidency? All of them? You certainly all sound like it.

What's the deadline? When one of your postmodern visions doesn't happen according to your gleeful-sounding predictions, you just abandon it and move on to the next one. But how about putting in reasonable timetables (Obama will screw this facet of our lives by THIS point in time) and then we'll all give or take a few weeks or months, and then you have to say, DAMN, we were wrong again.

And you have to start saying what Nader the Savior will do. Start, please, with his cabinet. Who would it consist of? What would he have done by now? How do you know? How would he handle congress? And if you mention Ron Paul, have you looked up his writings on abortion, and how do you rectify these rants with being so-called left?

Finally, face it. If you're "progressive" rule one is you don't get to tell anyone else what they are or aren't. Once you start defining, you are looking very similar to some very bad characters. Or do you think you are going to enter politics and never, ever be criticized or even examined, because you get to do it but never be on the receiving end? Sure looks like it.

To not be compared with Glenn Beck and his ilk, you can't use his language or have common voices here that sound crazier.

Oh, and while I'm at it, why do you get to mock Obama's middle name constantly, obviously without knowing Nader's family history, family names, and refusal to reveal middle name? Why do you get to exalt him yet consign to doom all military people? Did any of you even know he was an Arab-American who served in the Army? Or is Messiah good enough?

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Proverbs 26: 11 As a dog eats its own vomit, so fools recycle silliness. 12 See that man who thinks he's so smart? You can expect far more from a fool than from him. These folks have lost ground as the self-decided "masters of the universe" and Pres. Obama is like a big ol' can of RAID. How's that? If they want to use racist references, they need to call him the Maintenance Man: Pest Control Division. They come crawling out the woodworks and everyone who's been trying to touch their teflon-coated behinds are now trying to step on them because they've hidden in the cracks getting fat off people's ignorance for so long. Their days are numbered as those who "lord it over" the regular folk and this is the only way they know how to react: Like frenzied cockroaches. Our President opened a lot of eyes around the world; eyes that had been closed and sorrowful and with no hope because they didn't think they had control. He put this nation back in the People's hands. We can let him down if we dare because that will only put them right back where they were--laughing all the way to the bank at their "smarts" and mastery to fool, trick and deceive others with their cigar-smoking survival of the fittest 'Trading Places' joker's mentalities. Eyes and doors that they thought they had under control got up and got wise to their ways and they hate his guts for helping folk to see.So, when they talk about Obama, it's not personal. It's got nothing to do with him. Obama is code for the 75% of the voting public that elected him president. They're talking about US, the rest of the USA is what they want to see fail. They'd rather that happen than be proven wrong because they always believed they were oh so right about everything until God started showing us what they really are inside. It is that ugliness that God has brought to the surface of their souls for the world to see. Understand something, Obama and his family will be fine whether this nation sinks or swims. He's set for life and so are his wife and kids. AND the dog. What they want is to see this country go down the tubes so that they can make idiots of the rest of us and go back to "business as usual." Obama doesn't need America, America needs him. Let's not "vote and run." Stand tall: The election was only the beginning and we need some Big Feet to carry on: There's only one thing you can do with cockroaches when a certain President flushes them out and finally has them on the run. Get them before they go into hiding again waiting for the next Populist Roast.

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This is all the more reason for independent, web-based media like Alternet. Although the Main Stream, Corporate Controlled Media went on and on about the staged, phony "Tea Parties", my take on this is that everyday people reacted to these "reports" with a collective yawn.

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The media's playbook and that of the military are one and the same. They can destroy individuals and they can destroy countries. Saddam Hussein's Iraq was badgered by sanctions and incessant fly overs by the military. The continued harassment would weaken the country and make the planned invasion all the more easy. That invasion would occur after 9/11 of course. And, similary with domestic politics as well. They badgered Clinton with baseless accusations in order to weaken his presidency and his popularity with the people. And, so it is with Barack Obama. The president's crime? The main one is that he is not a Republican. That is the easy part of course. His other crime? Well, that is related to the first. Democrats are the enemy of the establishment because they maintain values which might potentially weaken the power of those who really control events. And, who are the main allies in the attack? The media of course. They are the soldiers on the front lines of the attack. They have already started of course. It is sad to watch really, knowing what fate lies ahead for Mr. Obama. It is rather like watching a bullfight where the swords begin to get stuck into the formidable beast. The beast of course is the president. And, the media is the matador. President Obama may even appear strong and enduring. But, by the time his fate is completed he will be a tragic figure complete with a thousand swords sticking out from every part of his body. The blood will run thick and the death is assured.

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Remeber that? Coverage of every jerk across the country with a tea bag hanging form his ear makes me wonder why Anti War protests were completely and deliberately ignored. Well no, it really doesn't. This event(?) is gettng alot of coverage in contrast to those of us who objected to Bush's War which so far has not ended well. Don't the 'teabaggers' realize that they are paying for the decisions of their Great Decider? This is all about a bill that after eight years has finally come due. The guy who ran up the tab is gone. Why not go to the new Bush residence and cover the neighborhood with teabags. We elected a president because there ain't no tooth fairy. It's hard to believe that so many are caving in so soon. Thanks, ANNA

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Yes, the right wing media is destroying Obama. I said a couple months ago, that the "big" left had better start getting its story straight about why Obama can't get his act together and it's nice to see that they're following my advice.

You DO realize that "Glen Beck" is not an satisfactory answer to "why isn't anything changing?" ?

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That is what politics is all about, destroying your opponents. Politics is a zero-sum, winner-takes-all game, therefore destroying the opposition is necessary to win. The Democrats did it to George Bush. Toughen up!
Stop being a cry-baby!

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There is no difference between the "mainstream" media and the "right wing" media. Who owns NBC, ABC, and CBS ? Their corporate owners share the same values and goals as Murdoch. Democrats need to grow a set of "tea bags" and recognize they won for a reason in 2008. If they slink to the middle, they'll lose very soon. It is time we caught up to the rest of the world in how we deal with issues such as health care. Deregulation and blind worship of the market has put us on the brink of economic collapse. As we can see there are people in this country that would rather see us fail than admit they have been wrong about the relationship between corporations, government, and the citizenry.

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The first is obvious. Sore Losers Conservatives who forgot how badly they treated liberals when they were in power. They can dish out abuse but can't take it and will try to sink America before accepting anyone else's ideas might work. There ideas failed when they had control and they want to go back to the past and do it all over again!

The second are all those who now want to second guess every decision made by Obama and are impatient and want everything fixed instantly and for no money down.

Bush dug a deep hole. We don't have enough to fill it all at once.

Why not be involved instead of complaining. http://www.joethevoter.org

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The dimes worth of differance between Democrats and Republicans? Republicans straight up tell us they don't care about the bottom 98% of wealth holders, while the Democrats lie and tell us they do. When the rubber meets the road, they both serve the same people: Themsleves.

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If you went around the country and randomly asked people what channel fox came on there cable, more people would give you the channel for fox sports than fox news. Limbaugh's audience has been estimated between 10 and 30 million weekly. Even assuming the high end, how can the other 270 million people in the US survive without Rush? I would not over estimate the power of the media in people’s lives unless it is the weather. Obama is going to be president for four years and there is nothing anyone can do to change that barring assassination, because with the Dem’s majority impeachment is out of the question. So in four years we will throw the bum out or not, which depends more on how we feel than political noise. The noise on either side is just entertainment for half the population, the other half does not vote. Beware the ides of the third party they do not vote but they are twice as big as any other party.

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The Obamabots are running scared that their boy Barry Obama is continuing Dubya's screw-the-working-class agenda that they have to invent some stupid conspiracy theory of blame so that Barry won't take the fall. Sorry Obamabots but either get your man to pre-2005 version or prepare for a LANDSLIDE DEFEAT. Obama had one last chance to prove his change and hope for the better but so far he's blowing it and hard !

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I'd love to call the media cowardly but let's be upfront. The media are often bought out by true corporatists who want only to manipulate public opinion for profit. There are the "we have no shame whatsoever" media outlets, lots of fig leaf corporatist outlets, there are PBS and NPR programs that run paid advertisements for the coal and oil industries and then put on two conservative talking points robots to "debate" each other, there are "liberal" newspapers who frequently get their chain yanked by their corporate advertisers, and finally there are a few pop guns out there who tell a semblance of truth.

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sure bought out all the under cover wing nuts and the just plain whack jobs that make up what is left of the repubs and the right wing lurkers. Alternet is doing a great service publishing this informative article. The vicious lies laid out here in the comments are an example of how just right on the article is.

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First off let's get off the left vs. right paradigm for awhile and realize that at the bottom of this mess is a media that just plain doesn't do its job and a banking/finance cartel that has both sides bought and paid for.

While the author of this article appears to understand the power of the Bush "dynasty" and their rise to power through the selling of their souls to the devil, his support for the Clinton's is surprisingly naive. Clinton was, at least indirectly, responsible for deaths in Arkansas through his support of the CIA drug running bases into Central America. Fundamentally Clinton is just as corrupt as G.H. Bush and because he's much smarter than G.W. he's actually a nastier person.

The whole group owes their rise to prominence to the Rockefeller-backed CFR and as long as these people are our only choices for high-level elected officials, nothing will change. Where does Obama sit in this mess? So far it doesn't look very pretty!

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When the going gets tough the tough get going. It's time for the president to demand loyalty to his Democratic policies from his party and Congressional members. It is also time to go to the American people and tell them the truth about Republican obstruction and to ask them for help in fighting it. He must use all of the power at his disposal to get his agenda through Congress, all of it. He musn't be stimied because the people expect great things from him and he has to deliver, nothing watered down, everything that he promised. It is also time to consider going after the rightwing talking heads if they go too far. When you are accused of murder it is too far (Clinton). If he can at least secure his own party's loyalty he has a chance of living up to Americans' expectations of him. He must also answer criticism with criticism. Everytime he is smeared for doing something to help the economy or to attempt to right the tax imbalance he must tell the people why he is required to do so, that is because the incompetent Bush Administration and the Republican Congress destroyed the economy. Hammer that home everyday.

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Others have written long oratories about this article. Such is really not needed, as it is clearly so off base that it rises to the level of being insulting to America's intelligence to put forth such blatant lies. Has this guy been living on another planet, left of the sun? The Washington press core, far from being on the right, is sooo liberal and anti-conservative; it would take either a bonehead, or a red dripping ideological nut case like Robert Parry to actually believe it. The liberal media were instrumental in getting Obama elected president. The New York Times, Boston Globe, Washington Post, the LA Times, Newsweek, NBC, CBS and on and on being controlled by the right? Is he nuts?

This guy is smoking some awfully powerful stuff! The media had been insulting and down right disrespectful to a US president for most of Bush's presidency. MSNBC admitted wasting in their shorts for Obama to the point where even their bosses removed Keith Olbermann and Chris Matthews from election night coverage for being so unfair and biased. Parry says there are dozens of right wing media pundits for every Olbermann, Mathews, Rachel Maddow, Berry Rich, Paul Krugman, etc, but didn't identify them. Why? Because he couldn't. He is just a liar! Gobbels would be proud of him.

The Bush service papers were outright frauds, and Gore's "twenty foot sea rise" is a fraud! Gore is making millions off his "global warming" tirades. "Cap and Trade" carbon emissions tax will make him and others even richer, while hurting every American citizen, the poorest among us the most.

Obama will destroy his presidency himself if his huge spending results in either hyperinflation or in a Great Depression, or in both. But if the economy does improve to a point where people have an abundance of good private sector productive jobs (as opposed to costly make work government, mostly non-wealth producing, jobs), and people recover at least a significant portion of their financial losses (IRA's, 401K's, etc.), I can guarantee you that no effort from the political right will unseat him. Even an increasingly despised Democrat controlled congress (Pelosi, Schumer, Reed, etc) will not pull him down. He controls his own destiny and legacy.

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I'm sick and tired of this nonsense. 69 million people voted for Obama. 59 voted for McCain. To paraphrase Anton Scalia: Get the fuck over it. It wasn't even a stolen squeaker election like 2000 or a small margin mandate like in 2004. We had to sit through eight years of policies we didn't agree with that tore out our nations very foundations because you voted for the two biggest criminals in the nation. NOW after all the lawlessness and incompetence NOW you finally want to speak out because your team isn't running things anymore?

If they want to secede, let 'em secede. Let 'em move down to Texas and become the Republic of Jesusland, I don't give a damn. Let 'em make English the official language and have mandatory Baptist prayer in every science class and a crooked politician leading every church. Let them restrict freedom of expression to only state sanctioned church approved speech. Let 'em burn books and block the internet. Let 'em smoke and drink and have whatever the hell guns they want. Then they can fight about which version of Christianity is right amongst themselves instead of bothering the rest of us all the time. Build a freaking wall around them and let them eat each other.

However, they don't get any more Federal Funding, we take back anything Federal funding has given them and when someone comes to invade their asses or a hurricane decides to level southeastern Texas they get no help at all. You can take Alaska with you too, so long as the Alaskans pay back the money the Federal government put into them as well, including the initial purchase of the land from Russia.

All you little right wing pantywaists sat idle while George W. Bush was shredding the Constitution and sending your sons and daughters off to die in a foreign hell hole to pad Dick Cheney's stock portfolio because you're a bunch of cowardly punk bitches who didn't want to look 'unpatriotic'.

When you abandon the core philosophies of your nation just because it's politically expedient for your Party then you are no patriot at all you're a partisan. The only thing you cared about was securing political power for your own team at the expense of everybody else.

You Teabagging assholes are the ones that ruined this country in the first damned place, now you're interfering with every effort to try to clean up your mess. Our founder would be spinning in their graves if they could see the slap to the face that you have given to their principles.

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While dismissing the claims that the differences between Republicans and Democrats are small an inconsequential, this article leaps the same agenda of trying to raise inconsequential things to a higher level of importance. While most of us might not want a President persecuted for his extra-marital affairs, its an issue very low on the list of priorities. Most of all we don't want it discussed anymore. There are too many things more important to ever see this discussed anymore.

We want the corporate control over government ended. We want the restoration of democracy and republic and the end of media control of our political affairs. We want healthcare, housing, education, as well as transportation, communication, energy and banking networks that work. We want a military used to defend us and not only used to rob the World's resources on behalf of a few well-placed corporate oligarchs.

The media is clearly up to something. But I don't think it is so much trying to destroy Obama as protect fascism. Obama has endorsed, promoted, continued and escalated some of Bush's most fascistic policies. By calling Obama fascist, Beck is more likely trying to cause a reflex in liberals to defend Obama and overlook the fascism.

This Republican/Democratic dance has gone on for decades but now all of the sudden with Bush, huge sweeping changes are implemented moving us toward fascism like we've never seen before. While normally there's a counter-balance when the Democrats win power, now we only see rhetoric without action. Obama is clearly continuing Bush's most fascist policies. I don't see Obama and Beck at odds, but rather working together (whether they're aware of it or not). We need to acknowledge that yes Obama is a fascist. Bush is a fascist, Clinton is a fascist, Reagan is a fascist and so on. And we need to be clear that fascism is not what we want, but instead a return to constitutional democracy. Most of all we need reform of news media and election campaigns immediately that insulates both from the corporate stranglehold that has grown throughout the last century.

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Let's give the 20% of the population who support the war criminals, Bush and Cheney, their own country (or fascist "republic", if you prefer).

We will name the "conservative's" new "fatherland" Fascistan, or my personal favorite, Dumbfuckistan.

Their flag will consist of an enormous blue elephant with a big, stinky brown elephant dropping near its hindquarters.

That said, their pledge of Allegiance will read:

"I pledge allegiance to flag of the fascist Republic of Dumbfuckistan, and to the fascist republic for which it stands, one nation united by militarism, greed and stupidity with liberty and justice for none."

Thus, I propose that we give the "conservatives" Florida, Alabama, Georgia and Mississippi. Next, we'll erect a huge security fence around the new fascist "republic" and deport all of the "conservative" varmints--every last one of them. The penalty for any Republican who attempts to re-enter the United States is death.

Thus, all we need to do at this point is make the provisions necessary to round up the 57 million "conservative" idiots who vote Republican and deport them.

Problem solved.

:P

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It's a little like spitting into the wind.

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keeping the ironically named "Patriot Act" in place, by rehashing Bush baby's defense for warrantless wire tapping, sending more troops to look for "Bin Laden" in Afghanistan, laughing at people proposing he legalizes marijuana, maintaining drug prohibiton in general, etc. is enough that no so-called cowardly corporate media is going to need any help in making this guy look like what he is; A wolf in sheep's clothing as bad as Bush but with a somewhat better vocabulary.

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I have often posted about this. I have also posted this site before and I am doing so again because it is relevant:
www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Echo_chamber
You might find this interesting:
www.btinternet.com/~nlpWESSEX/Documents/coupreaganbush.htm
Some of the info on the second sight actually made it to the MSM and promptly disappeared from the news. Reporters that persisted on pursuing it were discredited or destroyed, at least professionally-and in some cases literally.

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There's no such thing as "left/right" media- only elite vs. the masses, the elite own all the print and broadcast media- this is psy-op crap designed to continue to divide a populace that is quickly crossing that divide and realizing we've all been lied to and screwed over by both major political parties.
Can't have people working together, no sir.
Next, they'll shut down the Internet and refuse to print newspapers because of the environmental cost, leaving us nothing but TV and radio networks all owned and run by Murdoch, who is pulling off his "libertarian,tea party/glenn beck" brand, at least in his view.

The best way to kill a movement is to capture it in the media and have the media define it, brand it, and stomp on it.

Anyone see this?
http:// www.youtube.com/ watch?v=Dd2 tg8gxCDU& feature= player_embedded

This sucks.

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I used to depend on Alternet and other not-paid-for-by-the-corporate-shills to give me the important stories mainstream media didn't want to touch. I loved reading the thoughtful and passionate posts from those of my same mindset and be energized to be more active in politics.

Now it's just one big old depress-blame-fest. The people who voted for Obama are pissed off because he's not moving fast enough to clean the mess that eight years of GW left behind. Yes, so what he signed an Executive Order to close Gitmo. So what he's made the execs at AIG give back those bloated bonuses. So what he's fired the CEO of GM for incompetence. So what he's working his ass off trying to get our troops out of Iraq. He's not doing "the right thing" their speed.

The ones who didn't vote for Obama are too busy being self-righteously smug, even though the man has only been in office less than three months. Already he's been vilified on both sides as being the anti-Christ and that he's going to bring about some so-called 'New World Order'. Hell, even Bush as bad as he was, got a free pass for nearly eight years.

Ironically when both factions aren't busy trying to tear each other down, they're harping on the "right wing wackos" like Limbaugh, Hannity and Beck.

No action, just a whole lot of bullshit.

That "tea party" yesterday should have been US instead of the Limbot contingent. That should have been organized by LIBERALS, hosted by LIBERALS and attended by LIBERALS. Unlike those who were in attendance, had we hosted such an event, it would have been a hell of a lot less lily-white and full of people who aren't into throwing so-called "irresponsble" people out of their houses (i.e. foreclosures and sub-prime lending).

Say what you want about the "god, family and country" contingent. They actually can be mobilized to DO something and make their voices heard. They may be racist, sexist, homophobic, nationalist and any other "ist" I can think of, but the one thing in their favor is that they don't sit around the blogosphere waxing poetic while doing nothing.

Maybe we should be taking a tip from the "right wing" blabbermouths and get mobilized in the streets.

Nah, you'd rather whine. Me, I'm just gonna be like the 80's band Triumph and "fight the good fight every moment".

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Partisanship is not helpful at this time. "Oh but it's the right-wingers who are partisan" yeea think about what you just said there...
We all must unite under shared meanings. Enough false left/right paradigm. Just stop thinking with these conceptual tools, they offer more confusion than clarity.

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The plan is to get America into such a hole that we have nothing left to lose. Sort of like Germany in the 1930's. Then when we strike out at the world and try to take over there will be no resistance here. Long live the 4th Reich.

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A little test on which political bent the mainstream media actually exercises. Ask yourself the question "Did they generally write favorable comments about yesterday's Tea Parties, or did they generally disapprove and mock them"? Bingo! Other then Fox News, the comments were generally negative, and sometimes actually insulting. Is this too hard to comprehend? The mainstream media and network TV are politically left sympathizers. Listen and read---and comprehend. This is why I so aggressively oppose Robert Parry's propaganda.

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I was delighted to see the Tens of thousands who showed up for the rallies. I talked to several Reagan Democrats who stated they were fed up with tax and spend policies. I was not surprised when the drive by media down played the events. However I believe a clear message was sent that is why the left wing extremist are livid and afraid of us terrible right-wing terrorist especially the three year olds there!

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but republicans (nazis) are scum.

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"Democratic hesitancy on these matters then enflames the Left, which expresses its outrage through its own small media....

This is a funny assertion considering over 75% of all USA media types admit to their own left leaning bias and voting for the Democrat. Also funny considering how bastions of the left media (NY Slimes, Wash comPost, et al) spent 8 years doing their level best to destroy Bush.

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The Reich wing media is still in charge as an appendage of the Rethug party. We can never rid ourselves of these parasites.

They have systematically dismantled the Obama presidency and are well on their way to destroying it with their lies and propaganda in furthering their own sick/destructive agenda. They make it look like they are the majority and that the majority of people in this country are behind them...ie their stupid tead parties funded by Fox, corporate lobbyists...morons were protesting their own protections...

If they're so disgusted, tell the people who caused this economic crisis, the rethug party, their rethug legislators, corporate bullies, fox news, bankers, wall street.

Forget about tea bags, the best way to protest would be to return your stimulus checks, your income tax refunds, your unemployment checks, give up your Medicaid for your kids, school lunch programs, your welfare checks and food stamps. Get off the systems you are protesting against so they can benefit those of us who do appreciate someone trying to help us who have been destroyed by the Rethug party and their policies.
I'm tired of hearing your bitching.

Granted Obama has appointed many questionable people to his cabinet, many straight off Wall Street which was a HUGE politically costly mistake. Turning his back on war crimes is another HUGE costly mistake.

Bailing out Wall Street and the banks is the biggest politically costly mistake because it will not stop layoffs...it only makes certain they'll be a lot more of them.

Consumers should have been bailed out instead. As long as ordinary people can't afford to buy anything, as long as we don't buy anything, the economy will NEVER recover. Buying stimulates demand in the marketplace, no demand means job losses as companies and factories continue to close due to lack of revenue. THAT MEANS NORE JOB LOSSES and more homelessness. That means more hunger, disease, more crime in desperation, etc etc. It will affect everyone of you...stop bitching and do something constructive to stop the cycle. Protest the monsters who created this and are benefitting from your losses...legislators who can do something about it.

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Let the right wing nutballs twist their nads into a pretzel all they want. The reality is, form a progressive POV, Obama's doing just fine destroying his chances for the future and his extant presidency by revealing the shameful opportunism of his hope-change scam, hiring the billionaire shitheads who clusterfucked us all, for ordering the murder of three Somali teens, for adhering to the owning-class kool aid when we need timely realistic solutions... the list goes on.

I had such hopes that a smart guy would help... but with smarts like his, who needs stoopid?

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I was at the Sacramento TEA PARTY. I am a Democrat and this gathering was not mostly Republican at all. If any one says that, they are a LIAR.

Why we were all there was to protest the TRILLIONS in debt that OBAMA HAS SADDLED US WITH and the expansion of the FEDERAL and STATE government.

Only an IDIOT or COMMUNITY ORGANIZER would believe that you can grow the FEDERAL and STATE GOVERNMENTS when we are in a downward economic cycle.

OBAMA is out of his PAY GRADE and needs a CUP OF TEA; he is a DAMN FOOL (aka CARTER the SEQUEOL).

???HELLO OBAMMA???

???HELLO, ANYBODY HOME???

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Is it that the craziest mother fucking Americans get so much time on the idiot box? Or was that question rhetorical?

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It really does not matter if the media is considered right wing or left wing.. they long ago decided that Warhol was right ~ 15 minutes of fame because that is the amount of time people in the US are supposed to be able to focus on an issue until the next shiny thing comes along.

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I noticed with Dish Network you get Fox cable with the basic package but Msnbc is only available with premium. That is not free speech. Free speech can only come with balance. Someone should test that in the courts. Also the progressive media needs to back off a little on Obama. They instead need to be pounding on about the lies of the right wing media. We had better get squarely behind Obama, and help to lead him now, or we are writing the script for our own defeat, and we have no one to blame but ourselves if there is a resurgence of those bastard Republicans.

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What did you expect...........bi-partisan cooperation? That's a myth and the only ones who buy it are the naive.

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Here's only a 'tiny' part of the PORK that the DEMS want to shove down the publics throat ...

* $3.8 million for Old Tiger Stadium Conservancy AT Detroit;
* $1.9 million for Pleasure Beach water taxi service AT Connecticut;
* $1.8 million PIG odor and manure management research AT Ames, Iowa;
* $380,000 for a recreation and fairgrounds in Kotzebue, Alaska;
* $143,000 for the Greater New Haven Labor History Association AT Connecticut;
* $95,000 for Canton Symphony Orchestra Association AT Ohio; and
* $71,000 for Dance Theater Etcetera AT Brooklyn for their Tolerance through Arts initiative.

*250 million for NEW FURNITURE at homeland security (which homeland security probably doesn't need and doesn't want BUT is stuck with until the USA PUBLIC realizes PUBLIC must force WASH DC SLUGS to stop bailout and stimulus line by line)
MILLIONS for abortions in FOREIGN countries which the USA has no business subsidizing

*Citizens Against Government Waste is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to eliminating waste, fraud, abuse, and mismanagement in government.

* MILLIONS for a new water PARK. Even though DISNEY is shutting down some of their places because of RECESSION. however STIMULUS WANTS to throw money down drain for NEW PARK SOMEPLACE ELSE.

* HERE DEMS voted DEMS a cola of 550.22 per month WHILE deciding the PUBLIC can LIVE on 63.00 per month and HIGHER TAXES.

This is part of what the t-parties are about.

want to know what the ACLU thinks how 'STUPID' they view Americans. Here is what one of the Founders of the ACLU says Americans will never "knowingly" accept Socialism, but DISGUISED under "liberalism" Americans will accept every fragment; and one day wake up in a Socialist Nation and "wonder" how it all happened to them.

don't believe it?? here's the quote Norman THOMAS one of the Founders of the ACLU says QUOTE Americans will never "knowingly" accept Socialism, but under "liberalism" Americans will accept every fragment; and one day wake up in a Socialist Nation and "wonder" how it all happened.
What we need to investigate is how the DEMOCRATS and ACLU think that they can continue to count on Americans being as stupid as the ACLU thinks Americans are. So they can further their Soc/glob/marx/fac/comm agenda.

it is important to SEEK legislative and LEGAL means to kick out STIMULUS and BAILOUT. the momentary re-bound in market is a TEMPORARY re-inflation bubble that GEIGHTNER AND DEMS have created and WHEN it bursts it will be WORSE than the FIRST.

On another NOTE.... To the present it's only one of the 1 % group of people attempting to destroy our Nation's economic systems.

WHY??? It was said to a WASH DC VIP---that the reason the Socialists think they will win this time and are doing this is because ACLU and their DEMS SLUGS -- they don't think American's are " smart enough" to care to let their fingers do the walking to protect their lands, their CONSTITUTION or their freedoms. The DEMS and ACLU don't think the 99% of American's will be 'smart enough" to CARE about their country, their homes, their small business enough to kick the WASH DC SLUGS out and send them packing by way of Balagovich for NOT doing what is right to protect PUBLIC freedoms and the free enterprise system (ie meaning small business/med business) and rights.

see The National Center for Public policy Research and Stoptheaclu.com and American Ctr for LAW and Justice and Civic Council Thomas Cromwell and Familysecuritymatters.org

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Here we have the DEMS always needing a bigger shovel for the level of UTOPIAN propaganda they want to throw at the UNSUSPECTING PUBLIC.

wanna? know the latest??? Michael moore made a progpaganda film where they attempt to bamboozle the PUBLIC by claiming CUBA'S healthcare is better than the USA ....and that the USA should go to the CUBAN model for healthcare.

WANNA KNOW??? what the reality is and whaaat they are really HIDING... the reality is in CUBA people have to BEG FROM TOURISTS for allergy inhalers and aspirin. You can bet if Americans are allowed to be bamboozled into Socialist healthcare DEMS will make SURE USA is WORSE OFF than CUBA.

According to the new stimulus if your child needs antibiotics and the GOV only wants to give them Asprin or NOTHING guess whaaat they will get ASPIRIN or NOTHING.

Whats worse.. if your/adult/child are X percent sick they ARE LEFT TO DIE.

Soc healthcare is MORE expensive AND gives NO HEALTHCARE. We are no scholar, but you don't need to be a scholar to SEE whaaat is wrong with the DEMS scenario.

DEMS LIED to claim our healthcare system is broken. SOCIALIST HEALTHCARE is MORE EXPENSIVE and gives NO HEALTHCARE.

PEOPLE, OUR MARKET BASED HEALTHCARE SYSTEM IS ONE OF THE BEST IN THE WORLD. Why, sure it's not perfect. BUT THE SHORTCOMINGS it faces such as high cost of drugs and insurance---are in part THE results of the inroads the SOCIALISTS AND LIBERALS have already made into our market based health care system.

THE REAL SOLUTION TO fixing HEALTHCARE ISN'T to make UNCLE SAME/DEMS your doctor ....BUT to GIVE YOU THE PUBLIC MORE CHOICE.

ALLOWING the DEMS socialize healthcare not only would prove expensive but DEADLY. Think about it?? DEMS WANT TO SPEND MORE MONEY BUT DENY PUBLIC the meds and services it needs while GOV POCKETS THE CASH TO SPEND ON PORK.

don't ALLOW yourselves to be put off seek LEGISLATIVE and LEGAL ACTION TO KICK STIMULUS OUT AND BAILOUT. go see --The National Center for Public policy Research and American center for law and justice

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Wow, the good old neocon tactic of overwhelming 'em by a whole lot of crazy shouting is alive and well, I see. This comments section may be AlterNet's worst yet.

I wanted to remind us all that it is no accident that Right-Wing Extremism has come to dominate the media. Here's an AlterNet article from 2005, describing the coordinated effort that began in the 70's to achieve it: http://www.alternet.org/mediaculture/21192/?page=entire. Basically, it has been a PsyOps campaign directed against the American people.

Have you noticed? Even Rachel Maddow and Keith Olbermann spend most of their time talking about the right-wing minority. Granted, it's fun to hear them cleverly mocked, but surely there were events of greater import on April 15th than this silly / seditious teabagging PR effort? Democracy Now is about the only media outlet that seems to focus on the rest of the news. But it's worrisome that even the more liberal end of the MSM is giving such an echo chamber to the sedition being voiced by the small minority of extremists, some in elected office -- calling for armed uprisings and secession is the kind of criminally harmful speech that falls way outside the protection of the First Amendment.

But a strange miracle seems to have happened, and you have to read the polls to know about it, because no sector of the media is willing to report it. We the people seem to have evolved magnificent bullshit detectors, like any other propagandized population. Of course, you'd never know it from watching TV or reading the comments section of AlterNet, or really any pundit product at all. But Obama has found his way around the "chattering class" -- as soon as the media started to spout its stream of "I don't get it, and I really resent that" jabber, he went straight back to the people.

A side observation: This comments section has really made me curious. It was clear from the torrent of canned memes that the "teabaggers" were doing the rabid-sheeple dance. But how is it that they all knew to flock to AlterNet to foam at the mouth about this piece? You can't tell me they are regular readers here! Who is orchestrating this latest manufactured mob? (Another venerable PsyOps tactic, BTW)

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The MSM, (‘mainstream’ media aka corporate media,) is not being “cowardly” ... They are being complicit, and doing so openly, simply because the American ‘citzens’ continue to “allow” them to be so.

For years, (the last eight in particular,) they have been slowly becoming just five corporations, wit a profit, and “power,” agenda that does not in any way include “the common good.”

“Cowardly”?  Try openly, blatantly, sneeringly, complicitly, guilty of being corporatists’ appeasers and collaborates.

But, hey... It’s just one American old hippie’s opinion.
 

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Anyone who pays attention to Broder and the rest of the corporate media is just plain uninformed and yes, stupid.
Read the European press, read some of the so called "alternate press," listen to "alternate radio." As for the right wingnut radio "personalities," I don't waste my time with them. When driving, if those wingnuts come on, I immediately switch stations - I'd rather listen to Cal Worthington or any used car dealer!
Did you vote in the last presidential election? Have you ever voted? Are you registered to vote?
FYI: I a 71 year old veteran of 28 years active duty. I've been voting since 1960 and haven't missed one yet!

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REPUBLICANS DO NOT CARE WHAT HAPPENS TO AMERICA. THEY CARE ABOUT MONEY, MONEY, POWER, CONTROL. THEY WON'T BE CONTENT UNTIL THEY HAVE ALL THE MONEY AND WE BECOME A FEUDAL GOVERNMENT WITH 90% OF CITIZENS SERFS. SMILE GREEDY REPUGS. OBAMA CARES ABOUT THIS COUNTRY AND THE MAJORITY LOVE HIM. THAT'S WHY THE RIGHT HATE HIM... THEY FEAR HIM.

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No independent media, no democracy, just plutocracy and what comes with it, class war.

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At what point does the right wing media machine cross the line between spin and betrayal?

There are limitations on free speech, such as libel and slander laws. One cannot yell, "Fire," in a crowded theater. These laws exist because of the real harm that such actions can cause.

The right wing media behaves as if it is an invading force that is belligerent toward the American people using distraction, deceit, slander, misrepresentation, and character assassination as it main weapons.

How many Americans understand that it is not philosophy, ideology, or morality that drives the right wing media; it is lust for power, specifically lust for control over the economy that drives them?

Proof that republicans hold only contempt for average Americans was the televised idiotic response by Bobby Jindal that carried the meme that "bad" republicans were in power, but now the "good" republicans wait in the wings to serve. By now most people understand that the only thing republicans serve is themselves. It is not America to which they feel patriotic; it is the coat tails of wealth and influence to which they are loyal.

The right wing is exactly what it claims its enemies are. When it complains about fascism it is because there are fascists among its ranks. When it wails on about the government targeting white supremicist and racist groups, it is because it targeted left wing groups. When the right wing cries out about Obama's investment in America plan, it is because it spent and borrowed the U.S. into a whole, while creating distrust of our financial system around the world. When it complains about a national service corps, it is because it implemented a plan to spy on the innocent and suspect alike for purposes other than national security.

The shocking idea about the right wing media is not that some people are willing to help undermine the Constitution, ignore the rule of law, and support a plutocratic type of governance over America's democratic republic; it is the reality that so many in the media are willing to betray their fellow Americans for a few dollars more.

When Sean Hannity was asked about the harm that the right wing rhetoric is doing to America, his response was, "It's only television." To put that in perspective consider that in Rwanda it was "only" radio that instigated the slaughter of a half-million people.

The right wing media machine is an enemy more powerful and threatening then any rag tag group of discontents living in the Middle East. It is powerful, merciless, and greedy to the degree where it is willing to sacrifice the lives of average Americans and even destroy the economy to remake America in its own image.

Americans must realize what the greatest threat to our freedom is, because it may already be too late. Only China, Russia, England, and North Korea equal the United States in surveillance of its own citizens without regard for their rights.

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Spelling has nothing to do with critical thinking DF! Spelling is memorization and has nothing to do with analaysis. Spelling is standardization like walmart--its fascism. Shakespeare didn't have standard spelling--do you doubt his creativity?

If you had bothered to read some other comments you would have seen that other retards already got out their grammar books. This a blog--not a thesis statement. Do you require people to spell accurately in a text message?

And another thing for all you 'conservative' DF waste-of-life Americans--there is no left wing media!! There never has been.

You don't want to pay taxes? Who's gonna pay to fix the potholes in the street? I suppose you would rather pay thousands of dollars to lousy health insurance companies(whose one and only purpose is to find ways to deny health coverage--they are a business Einstein's--they want to make money--not give you money)rather than have national health-care provided to you because its a goddammed human right. We live in a community under one flag, one nation--if we can die together we can certainly take care of each other when we get sick--otherwise we are not a nation--what you have is ANARCHY! And the corporations win everytime.

You can't be very smart if you'd rather pay thousands to insurance companies instead of a few extra dollars and cents to national healthcare. You already subsidize the rich and their murderous toys--you die and they live because they never ever defend their nation--they run away like bUsh! NOt that we've had to defend our nation or people since the Revolution and civil war (though in the CW we should have freed the slaves and let the south die--let them succeed and occupy them like IRaq--we should have made southern white plantation owners slaves for retribution. All the rest is bullshit--conquest. Americans dont die for freedom--they die for lies and Walmart!

Repubs and dems are the same--the republican agenda is the establishment--dems only serve to create the illusion of a democratic nation--when it is really a fascist one--the most fascist nation on earth that has ever existed!

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ANd I am aware that i should have written secede rather than succeed. So don't bother.

If all you can do is correct spelling than you obviously have nothing important to say, or think, which is why you believe the propaganda in the media and on that vaudville show--fox.

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