Choking on a Gingrich

Ross Douthat, resident preppie of The New York Times op-ed pages, regales us this morning with a tale of choking on his cocktail(s) and hors d'oeuvre back when Newt Gingrich crashed and burned during his penultimate presidential campaign. (Ross has to make sure we know that he is a member of the Beltway media elite, and that they sometimes chuckle at parties with their mouths full, just like the rest of us). In his best pseudo-intellectual fashion, Ross now proclaims The Second Coming of Newt.

Nan Socolow, in turn, gagged on a Douthat, but managed to turn out this comment anyway:

Gingrich Redux!  The Second Coming of Newt Gingrich!  So there you were, Mr. Douthat, swilling martinis, scarfing pricey canapes high on the hog at a Washington DC GOP cocktail party.  And everyone was giggling at the prospect of Newt's return to the Republican cosmos?  And then there were the polls - media-hyped with the intensity that has typified our bizarro political mondo of today - and Newt got a BUMP in the polls (I see a python swallowing a big pig, that kind of bump)!  So what?  This Poll Bump was preceded by all the other bumps - Trump, Christie, Palin, Pawlenty, Santorum, Bachmann, Perry, Paul, Cain, all gone down in flames, all toast now. 

And you announce that Newtie is framing 2012 in manichean terms.  Why treat us to the polysyllabic word "manichean" instead of saying that Newt's present GOP ethos is just the early Iranian struggle between the Power of Good (the Tea Party?) and the Power of Evil (Guess who?).  Manichean doesn't cut the mustard. 

Alas, despite his demeanor as a handsome Big Cheese, Romney is unelectable. All the other Right Wing contenders are crashing and burning and soon Romney will be the Cheese standing alone.  And you think Newt Gingrich is electable?  If his bump is anything more than the usual pig in a python of GOP politics I'll eat my flipflops.

Newtie is the perfect Cerberus, the dog with big heads guarding the Underworld of the Extreme Right and not allowing anyone to escape.  And as for Gingrich's chances of winning the Presidency (or even the nomination next summer), with his checkered background and gynormous blots on his copybook - several wives, several religions, his essential narcissism and Tiffany line of credit, his chances are slim to none.  As Porky Pig used to laugh and stutter at the end of Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies cartoons - "e-be-dee, e-be-dee, th- th- that's all folks!"



Newterus at the Right-Wing Gates (graphic by Kat Garcia)



The Outing of the Oligarchs

Shrillionaire Mayor Michael Bloomberg has finally dropped all pretense of being a public servant, serving at the pleasure of the public. This arrogant King of the Plutocrats, who defied term limits by buying his way into a previously illegal third term, has broken the law once again.


He is deliberately ignoring a court order* which allows the Occupy campers back into Zuccotti Park, along with their tents, their tarps, their books -- and their power. Michael Bloomberg should be impeached, recalled, sued, criminally charged, in no particular order, separately or concurrently. While we're waiting for the justice that most assuredly will come, this craven smarmy little man deserves all the invective we can hurl his way, all the shame we can pile upon this smirking personification of  egotistical self-serving entitlement. At his press conference this morning, in which he took sole responsibility for evicting Occupy, Bloomberg claimed he'd heard rumors of the court order, but had yet to verify its existence.


He lied. He ignored the court order, because he considers himself above the law.  At the time of the 8 a.m. news event, he had already been served with papers.


New York City Public Advocate Bill di Blasio called Bloomberg's actions provocative and legally questionable. 


Zuccotti Park, of course, is only the latest in what seems like a lightning-quick falling of the dominoes of Occupy encampments throughout the country. If you think this is part of a coordinated effort, you are right. Oakland Mayor Jean Quan has admitted as much in a BBC interview, saying she recently participated in a conference call with 18 other mayors to plan anti-Occupy strategy.  Was this week of preplanned violent crackdowns also coordinated with the president's convenient absence from the country? The mayors and their police chiefs even had identical talking points. How often have you heard the words "health and safety concerns" from officials' mouths this week?  Along with the NIMBY defense: of course they have a right to protest!  Just not here, there or anywhere. Public space for the public?  Hah!

November 15, 2011: A day of infamy. The day when the bankers and the corporations and the puppet politicians finally came out of the closet and proclaimed their fascism. The day when Democracy was officially flouted by the New Security State. The day when the Gestapo conducted a raid and even declared the airspace above the scene of their outrageous brutality their own private property, and announced that freedom of the press is subject to their whim.


And the whole world is watching.  

*Update, 5:23 pm:  A judge has now ruled that occupiers may return to the park, minus their tents and tarps and other means of survival. Police Commissioner Ray Kelly was on TV just now, barely able to contain the glee under his dour exterior, vowing that the protesters will no longer even be permitted to lie down in the park. How they enforce this unilaterally-enacted law should be interesting. It's also fascinating how many mainstream media outlets are now proclaiming the entire OWS movement DOA. These people haven't a clue. 

Like every other strong arm tactic displayed by the police, this one will only make the movement stronger. It's not about the geographical location, pundits. The overwhelming anger, and the newfound solidarity among different kinds of people who have found a commonality in suffering, are here to stay. Call us protesters without borders.

Bloomberg Demonstrates His Mayorly Manliness

Not to be outdone by the lesser mayors, Multibillionaire Michael Bloomberg sent the NYPD storm troopers to Zuccotti Park in the wee hours to clear out the Occupy camp in a surprise raid.  About 100 people were arrested.  Read the Times, and then read the comments.  This is not over. More later......


Update: For better coverage, read the hometown paper for constant updates/liveblog. Beware of  the right-wing opinion bilge starting to bubble up. Or just laugh at it.

Here is The Gothamist's excellent reporting, including a story of how the NYPD suppressed coverage and harrassed journalists.

 And great coverage, as usual, from DemocracyNow!

And even more (thanks DreamsAmelia for sending the links):

http://www.livestream.com/globalrevolution

http://www.occupystream.com/

http://www.livestream.com/occupywallstnyc

Desperate Housewives for Barry

Were you as taken by surprise as I was to find this email from Michelle Obama in your inbox today? What? You mean you didn't get one? Well, permit me to share the sanctimony:

Karen --



As I have traveled across the country, I have had the privilege of meeting incredible women from all walks of life. From young women paying their own way through college, to moms working the extra shift to keep food on the table, to women struggling to make ends meet during retirement. We talk about their bills, their children -- how they're constantly striving to strike that balance between work and family. And no matter what kind of challenges they're facing, they don't complain. They just work harder.

(Actually, Michelle, my friends and I complain all the time, because there is a hell of a lot to bitch about. You mean we should all just shut up and take on that third minimum wage, no-benefit job? Since your hubby cut home heating assistance for this winter, I guess a lot of us will be too cold and tired to complain. You may think quiet desperation is a virtue. But sometimes it's healthier to scream... and protest). 

This is what we do as women. We persevere. Because no matter our ages, backgrounds, or stations in life, we are determined to leave a better world for our children and give them opportunities we never even dreamed of.

 (Thank you for acknowledging that I care about my children as much as you care about yours, despite my lowly station in life. Due in part to your husband's policies -- including failure to regulate Wall Street, or to prosecute even one banker -- that better world is turning out to be a nightmare for them and for us. One in five children now lives in poverty, yet your husband thinks we should share the sacrifice with corporate jet owners. You're right: we are leaving them a world we couldn't have imagined when we gave birth to them).

 Women have always been the heart of the Obama organization. We make up nearly half of the American workforce and are the majority of students in America's colleges and universities. We're the primary caregivers for our children and seniors. We're the heads of households and workplaces across the country.

(Is that why your husband fought so tepidly in nominating Elizabeth Warren to be head of her own  Consumer Protection Agency?  Oh, never mind: Timmy Geithner threw a tantrum. Read "Confidence Men" by Ron Suskind if you want to really find out about the women in the O-rganization. More like they were stabbed in the heart by the Oval Office Boys Club.)

And right now, it's time for us all to dig deep, step up, and keep building this campaign together: person by person, discussion by discussion.

(Dig deep into our knock-off handbags to come up with a few tattered bucks, you mean?  Step up and take off our slippers, you mean?)

Today, we are officially launching Women for Obama -- and I am incredibly honored to be serving as its chair. This is a special group dedicated to growing this campaign from the ground up. Because we know better than anyone that movements for real and lasting change have got to start at the grassroots -- and they're sustained by the relationships we develop with one another. Together, that's what we're going to do -- build relationships with supporters, new and old, and grow this campaign -- one woman at a time.

(Tear me out at the roots, Michelle. The only movement with the power to effect real and lasting  change is the Occupy Movement. The only thing "moving" in the Obama Campaign is all the Wall Street money --  from their bloated profits to his billion dollar war chest.  Better rename your effort One Woman (you) for a One-Time Obama.  He two-timed the rest of us, Michelle!)

I wanted to ask you myself if you would join us. The stories of the incredible women I meet serve as a constant reminder of why we're all here: because American families all around the country are facing very real problems. They're balancing mortgage payments and utilities bills with full-time jobs and raising children. They're struggling to make ends meet while still trying to put money aside to send their kids to college one day.

(Oh puh-leeze!  Let me try to wrap my head around that last paragraph. "We are all here because families are facing very real problems". Does that mean a} You and your husband exist only to to solve our problems; or b} We all exist in order to have problems.  Love the balanced comparisons, though. Very centristy. It is indeed hard to juggle mortgage payments with jobs when millions of us have already lost both homes and jobs. And your husband did little to enforce HAMP and is doing zilch to stop foreclosure fraud. We struggle to make ends meet, and can't afford shoes, but you think we can still manage to put money away in a college fund? Michelle! You really need to get out more.)

Barack understands these issues because he's lived them. He was raised by a single mother who struggled to put herself through school and pay the bills. When she needed help, Barack's grandmother stepped in, waking up every morning before dawn to take a bus to her job at a bank. And even though she worked hard and was good at what she did, she ultimately hit a glass ceiling and was passed over for promotions time and again because she was a woman.

(Barack had a pretty good childhood, despite the mythology. He went to private school from fifth grade on, for one thing. He had a strong extended family support system. Read "A Singular Woman" by Janny Scott as an antidote to "Dreams from My Father". What kind of narcissist writes a memoir at the age of 33 anyway?)

So Barack knows what it means when a family struggles. He knows what it means when someone doesn't have a chance to fulfill their potential. And today, as a father, he knows what it means to want your daughters to grow up with no limits on their dreams.That's why, since taking office, he's worked tirelessly to make sure every child and every family gets a fair shake.

 (Please give just one example of how your husband was thwarted in reaching his potential. This is a guy who had tons of help along the way. He was hand-picked by Wall Street to be their guy! That's why, since he took office, he has made several offers to slash Social Security, and sold out the public option in health care reform behind closed doors -- then continued to pretend it was "still on the table". He had worked tirelessly, all right: to make sure corporations get a fair shake while perfecting the art of the soaring populist speech.)

The historic health reform he passed is making sure every American family gets the quality and affordable care they need to stay healthy. The crucial investments he's made in our students and workers -- raising the standards in our public schools and building out job-training programs at community colleges -- are investments in our country's economic future. And the very first bill he signed into law -- the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act -- will help make it easier for women to get equal pay for equal work, because he knows that women's success in this economy is the key to families' success in this economy.

 (Obama Campaign Talking Points #1,2 &3: Lilly Ledbetter, Lilly Ledbetter, Lilly Ledbetter.  What about the time the White House sacked Shirley Sherrod without cause because of a filthy Andrew Breitbart video? And more people than ever remain uninsured -- 50 million of us. The private insurance parasites have raised premiums to unaffordable levels and posted record profits.  

But we have so much more to do. And, as women and supporters of this campaign, we need to keep showing up -- and we need to keep fighting the good fight.So I'm asking you to join me, and women all across the country who support this movement. I'm asking you to say you're ready to work.

(The only movement we're ready to join is the Occupy Movement. Won't you join us, Mrs Obama? Oh, and we're more than ready to work: for a living wage.... all 20% of the chronically unemployed and underemployed of us. Is Barack going to pay his campaign workers, or are the ladies expected to work for free?)

Join Women for Obama, and help us grow this organization.Thank you for being a part of this.

She's In: Real Desperate Housewife and Obama Bundler Eva Longoria

The Democratic Machine vs OWS

I don't think we have to worry too much any more about the Democratic Party co-opting OWS. The elite of the DNC have pretty much shut up about it.  Emails from MoveOn.org, trumpeting solidarity with the movement and trying to fund-raise off its back, no longer appear in my inbox. If you're paying any attention at all to the Democratic leaks out of the SuperCommittee, you're finding out that they're bending over backwards, offering cuts in Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid -- even permanent extension of the Bush tax cuts -- in exchange for some loopy closings of corporate tax loopholes. I say loopy, because it's crazy to assume these little proposed wrist-slaps to the one percent will be permanent.  Lobbyists are already champing at the bit in salivating anticipation of ripping those loopholes apart at the seams the minute they're sewn shut with their cheap thread. But cuts in "entitlements" are forever. Poor people don't have a lobby. Yet.


That's the story under the Beltway Bubbledome: willful ignorance of the Occupy movement and the will of the majority, other than from the usual populist diehards like Bernie Sanders and Dennis Kucinich. But at the local level, in the cities, the encampments are under direct siege by..... Democratic mayors. And so, writes Paul Rosenberg in an excellent piece, it's about time we "Occupy the Democratic Party", too. Oakland Mayor Jean Quan has been the most egregious in instigating violence against the protesters. But, writes Rosenberg:

"... Oakland is hardly alone when it comes to Democratic mayors ordering mass arrests of Occupiers for exercising their First Amendment rights. In fact, aside from New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg - a Republican turned independent - most of the mayors involved have been Democrats. Boston's Mayor Tom Menino had 141 people arrested on October 11. Under Chicago Mayor Rahm Emmanuel, roughly 300 Occupy supporters have been arrested in a series of attempts to set up a stable base camp. In Atlanta, 52 protesters were arrested on October 26 under orders of Mayor Kasim Reed, who said the “last straw” came when a man carrying an AK-47 joined the demonstrators. But the man was rejected by the Occupiers, and what he did was legal under Georgia law. Besides, no Tea Party demonstration was ever shut down because someone there was carrying an assault weapon."



Occupy Oakland Crackdown

 Part of the reason for Democratic reactions ranging from indifference to downright hostility, Rosenberg continues, are the dire economic straits most big cities are finding themselves in. Austerity is the rule. Babysitting the Occupy camps costs money.... money that no longer comes in from property taxes on homes that have been foreclosed, nor from Washington. Another factor is that so many cities have sold or leased themselves to private interests to make ends meet. The parking meters of Chicago, for example, have been rented out to the Kingdom of Dubai under a 75-year lease.


Just last night, Occupy St. Louis was forcibly shut down (by a Democratic mayor named Slay) at the urging of the private elite interests of the one percent.


The Republicans, of course, are simply, desperately off-the-wall, over-the-top nuts when it comes to trashing OWS. Americans for Prosperity, the Koch Brothers front group, had a kniption fit when protesters gathered around their hilariously named "Defending the American Dream" summit last weekend.  Tim Phillips, AFP spokesman, breathlessly sent out emails reporting the attacks of the rabble against the besieged One Percent:

"During our "Tribute to Ronald Reagan" dinner on Friday night, the protesters with Occupy Wall Street stormed the convention center trying to take away our 1st Amendment rights!!!....

Their violence, vile language, and disrespect for fellow Americans was outrageous. One of our activists who is wheel-chair bound was denied use of the ramp to depart the center.  A 78 year old grandmother from Michigan was assaulted and knocked down.  The 7 year old child of one of our AFP Foundation activists was cursed and jostled..... They (OWS) possess a vehement hatred of free enterprise and capitalism.  They openly call for socialism.  We know that free enterprise has lifted more Americans out of the muck and mire of poverty and despair than any economic system in world history.  They call for violence, break the law, and disrespect fellow Americans.  We respect the law and work to peacefully support sound policy for our nation."

Of course, this isn't true.* As a matter of fact, one of the OWS protesters was hit by a car driven by a convention attendee. The only people paying attention to the Andrew Breitbarts and the right wing any more are the minority die-hard right-wingers themselves. They no longer control the narrative, despite the implicit acquiescence of the conservative Democrats.  OWS is on the ascendant.  The pendulum is swinging back in the right direction --- or, should I say, in the left direction.


*Update/Clarification: I found this undoctored video of the event in question. No actual video exists of the elderly woman being pushed down the stairs, only the aftermath.** The usual Breitbart-ish splice and dice versions are, of course, making the rounds in Right Wing Cyberspace. What is not true, by the way, is Tim Phillips's characterization of OWS, as well as the claim that unfettered capitalism has raised Americans "out of the muck and mire of poverty and despair." Quite the opposite: deregulation of the big banks led directly to the crash and the overnight loss of trillions of dollars of household wealth, the greatest income disparity in history, 20 percent defacto unemployment and one in five people "officially" poor.

** Update on update: Reader Ned has found more videos of the pushing incident. See comments.

For Veterans Day and OWS, A New Bonus Army

With unemployment among veterans far above the national average at 12% and fully one third of Iraq and Afghanistan vets saying the wars just weren't worth it, it comes as no surprise that our returning service men and women are being drawn to the various Occupy encampments throughout the country.

For many of them, the camps offer some solace for the pain that no VA benefits or PSTD counseling sessions can assuage. But tragically, one troubled vet has committed suicide at the OccupyBurlington site.  Police said the 35-year-old man shot himself in the head inside a tent at the Vermont encampment Thursday and died later in a hospital. 

According to the Veterans Administration, one service member commits suicide every 80 minutes. And according to the Center for a New American Security (CNAS, a neoliberal think tank) the statistics are even more horrifying when you consider that although only one percent of Americans have served in the military, former service members represent a staggering 20 percent of all suicides in the United States.

CNAS, which gets much of its funding from defense contractors and other war profiteers, last month released a study on military suicides, which I found a little jarring for a couple of reasons.  It was a tad on the self-serving side. For example, researchers working for this Military Industrial Complex NGO are quick to point out that about a third of military suicides are not related directly to deployment.  In other words, a third of the victims were emotionally troubled before even joining up.  That begs the question of how well recruits are screened: obviously, not very.  Additionally, about half of military suicides are committed using "private" rather than government-issued firearms. Phew, what a relief. And another thing: the Defense Industry does not want the reputation of its recruits sullied by the term "commit" suicide. It is politically incorrect, and it might prevent people at risk from getting help, say the study's authors.

And in big bold print they are quick to add: " Leaders in the armed services and VA deserve recognition for their actions to reduce the rate of suicide among service members and veterans, but face persistent obstacles".  So hooray for the DOD and don't blame the MIC, which truly deeply cares.  And don't blame Leon Panetta, who plans on cutting the defense budget by reducing health and pension benefits for veterans in order to save military bases and funding for Drone missiles. From The New York Times:

 

"In what he described as the most sensitive of the potential cuts facing an all-volunteer force, Mr. Panetta said the Pentagon was considering raising fees for the military’s health insurance program, Tricare. Today, military retirees and families, who are guaranteed Tricare for life, pay only $460 a year in fees — far below what they would pay if they worked for a private employer — although a modest increase for new enrollees began last month.

.... Mr. Panetta provided no details of potential reductions in military retirement pay for those who enlist in the future, but said he would consider supporting the creation of a binding commission to review such pay. He also indicated that he might support a change that would increase retirement spending, by offering some retirement pay to those who had served less than 20 years. Currently only those who have served at least 20 years receive retirement pay, which is 50 percent of their final annual base pay, for life."

Just in time for Veterans Day, the Senate did finally pass a smidgen of the president's Jobs Bill last night, giving a tax break to businesses hiring returning troops and funding a job retraining program for older vets. Patty Murray (D-WA) who serves on the Superduper Secret Supercommittee tasked with ripping open the social safety net in order to placate the quivering unconfident Markets, was very proud of this burst of bipartisanship. And well should she be.  She, along with the Center for a New American Security, is a big recipient of Defense Industry largesse. Gushed Murray: “It’s no secret that the House and Senate are divided on any number of economic and political issues facing average Americans right now. But . . . our veterans are the one issue that we should never be divided on.”

But back to Occupy. Much to the chagrin of the political elites, it is changing the conversation from the almighty deficit to income disparity and corporate greed. And veterans are getting the attention they deserve, not because of MIC policy papers and a few crumbs from politicians, but because of the vibrant force they are bringing to the OWS movement.  "At Occupy Camps, Veterans Bring the War Home" is the title of a piece in The Atlantic written by Tina Dupuy:

"It was a surprise to meet Iraq war vets at these protests. There are only, after all, around a million Americans who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan in what was once dubbed the War on Terror.
Their presence became national news when Iraq vet and former Marine Scott Olsen's skull was fractured by a non-lethal round fired by police in Oakland in late-October. A week later in New York, around 30 vets held a solidarity march from Zuccotti Park to the Stock Exchange. They had a rally at the park afterward where Bordeleau spoke. 'This is the first major movement for social change we've seen in this country since the '70s,' he said to me.
At Occupy DC, a painting of Scott Olsen in uniform is draped on the side of a tent. He's become a symbol of the Occupation Movement -- he fought overseas only to be injured when exercising his "freedom" of peaceful assembly at home. His name has become a shorthand to talk about why so many vets are at Occupy Wall Street.
'There's a reason Scott Olsen got shot in the head,' says Patterson, looking down at his chain-restaurant hot cocoa. "Because he was out front.'"

To mark Veterans Day, OWS is holding a rally and concert featuring Joan Baez today in Foley Square in New York. It's being called "Honor the Dead and Fight Like Hell for the Living."

War Against Women

New York Times columnist Gail Collins has a running shtick of always including the story about how Mitt Romney once strapped his dog to the roof of his car during a family vacation. Today was no exception, as she lambasted the freak show that purported to be the umpteenth Republican presidential debate.

And here is part of what The Times moderators saw fit to publish from reader-commenter Richard Luettgen of New Jersey:

But you continue to misinform the public about Seamus, the dog that has achieved immortality by allegedly being strapped to the roof of Mitt's car during a family jaunt to Canada. The only dogs that Mitt ever strapped to the roof of a car were Herman Cain's old girlfriends.

It's posted at Number 15 and as of this writing has six reader recommendations, probably from six conservative men (including its own author).* It's just one small ugly part of the backlash against the victims of Herman Cain's predatory paws. And it's not just coming from men. New York Daily News columnist Andrea Tantoros says that women are hurting "the sisterhood" by coming forward to complain. In an article headlined Ladies: Time to Man Up!, she writes:

Let me be clear: I’m not saying that Cain isn’t guilty of sexual misconduct that took place when he was the head of the National Restaurant Association in the late 1990s. But this scandal should have every woman asking: At what point do women need to take some responsibility?.... Whining that an off-color comment or a clumsy attempt at a date is abuse undermines real charges of assault, not to mention real issues that this country should be focused on during an election season, like a nuclear Iran, our toxic debt and a sputtering domestic economy.

Tantoros even manages to get a dig in at the OWS Zuccotti Park women. "Rather than go to the authorities," she sniffs, "women have reportedly been told to not take complaints to the police so that the incidents can be handled 'internally,' whatever that means. But the National Organization for Women doesn’t seem to be making a big stink about that."

Even female reporters confronting Cain on his behavior are getting abused. CNBC anchor Maria Bartiromo was booed by the audience at last night's Republican debate when she questioned him. (and she's not exactly an anti-greed liberal). And this morning, the right-wing American Thinker crowed: "Weak Field Spanks CNBC Liberals."  

Even worse: in the corporate journalistic spirit of telling both sides of a story, Cain's criminal defense attorney was given a platform in the New York Times to warn women to "think twice" before coming forward. "I'm not here to scare anyone off," Lin Wood smarmily told The Times. "I've been brought in to bring an element of fairness to the accusations being brought." 

In the spirit of independent blogging, I will add that to its credit, The Times also rehashed all the conservative slime from the likes of Rush Limbaugh and even included a few quotes from the victims.  All in the spirit of fairness and accuracy, of course.

* Update: Enough readers have flagged and/or complained about this offensive remark to have it removed from the comments thread. Trust the readers to do the right thing. Hurray for the spirit of interactive journalistic democracy! One small step against misogyny -- one giant leap for human decency.