Friday, June 19, 2009

Sarah vs. Letterman


In the Age of Obama, many conservatives are consoling themselves with this thought: Conservatism wins on the issues. Polls show majorities of Americans want less government and fewer and lower taxes; they want leaders who will stand up to our enemies; they are skeptical about the science of global warming; they want public policy to show respect for human life at all stages, and, yes, most Americans still believe marriage should remain between a man and a woman.


A Gallup poll this week showed 40 percent of Americans interviewed describe their political views as conservative, while just 21 percent self identify as liberal. Though conservative values remain popular among Americans overall, they have never been embraced by the popular culture. Hollywood, the music industry, sports and the fashion world are all overwhelmingly liberal. In these sectors of American society, conservative positions almost always lose.

These realities make the recent Sarah Palin-David Letterman dust-up quite interesting. For decades conservatives have engaged the popular culture at their peril. Whenever conservatives pushed back against the excesses of the pop culture, they risked getting labeled bigoted, ignorant or, worst of all, prudish. But Sarah Palin has proved that conservatives can fight the pop culture and win. That’s because while many Americans consume the entertainment of people like David Letterman, they embrace the values of people like Sarah Palin.


The controversy surrounds comments made more than a week ago by the "Late Show" host. Letterman joked that Palin, who was in New York City to attend an autism event, had bought makeup from Bloomingdale’s to update her “slutty flight attendant” look. He later added that Palin had attended a New York Yankees baseball game, and that during the seventh inning stretch Palin’s daughter had been “knocked up” by Yankees’ libidinous third baseman Alex Rodriguez. Letterman claims he was referring to Palin’s 18-year-old daughter, Bristol, but only Palin’s 14-year-old daughter, Willow, attended the game with her mother. So Letterman ended up joking about statutory rape.


Initially, Letterman did not apologize. While jokes that sexualize kids are “crude, sexist, perverted,” as Palin stated in response to Letterman, they have sadly become a comedic staple. Watch the most popular comedians and you’ll find many jokes are intended to humiliate, demean and tear down. Throw in some disgusting sexual references and you have a perfect recipe for big laughs in today’s popular culture. And if the target of the comedian’s demeaning sexual jokes is a conservative politician, so much the better. There is an obvious double standard. What would have happened had Letterman made the same joke about Barack Obama and his family? We know. Letterman would have been forced into early retirement, and perhaps prosecuted under some “hate crimes” statute.


Letterman then offered a snarky non-apology apology in which he insisted he had meant to suggest that Bristol, not Willow, had been “knocked up” by A-Rod. While there is a significant legal difference, only according to our cultural elites could the addition of four years transform a beyond-the-pale insinuation into an acceptable punch-line. The target of his cruel insinuations remained a young girl who, through no fault of her own, is the daughter of a political figure.Finally, after a week, Letterman offered something closer to a legitimate apology, which Palin graciously accepted.


I doubt Letterman would have apologized had he not been forced to do so. But his jokes caused a huge backlash among his viewers, some of whom formed a campaign to urge CBS to fire him. Viewers were so irate that one "Late Show" advertiser pulled its sponsorship. Letterman was slammed by women’s groups across the ideological spectrum. Even the National Organization for Women denounced him for “snicker[ing] about men having sex with teenage girls (or women) less than half their age…”Despite the strong backlash, some conservatives argued that Palin was wrong to call out Letterman for his outrageous remarks. One commentator predicted that critiques of Letterman would lead to a form of censorship, while a former GOP advisor said going after Letterman made Republicans look small, and insisted the entire episode was a “win-win for Letterman.” Letterman has enjoyed a temporary ratings boost, but there’s deeper meaning in the incident.


The cultural left lampoons Palin because her values and life are completely foreign to them. They find it bizarre that she hunts, prays and says things like “you betcha.’” They can’t fathom that she brought a child with Down syndrome to term and that she didn’t pressure her daughter into aborting an unexpected pregnancy. Letterman may not know anyone who would vote for Palin or a family that looks like hers. But his Palin joke backfired in part because scores of millions of Americans are living lives that more closely resemble Palin’s life than Letterman’s. Like Palin, they pray in churches, hunt and fish and raise imperfect families with unconditional love. They are more than uneasy about the culture’s sexualization of children and its infantilization of adults.


The cultural left mocks Palin’s values, but its taunts often fail to gain traction, because Palin’s politics and principles are much more main-stream than those of her critics. Sarah Palin is a false target for the popular culture. It can’t resist the temptation to ridicule and lampoon her, but she offers too much common sense and inspiration to make for good jokes. In the Age of Obama, pop culture elites may be excused for their over-the-top bashing of conservatives. Liberals have always controlled the popular culture, and now they control government too. They probably assume most of the country has shifted leftward and come round to their view of the world. But it hasn’t. Just ask David Letterman.


Former presidential candidate Mr. Gary Bauer is president of American Values and chairman of the Campaign for Working Families.

Thursday, June 18, 2009

July 4th Blowout



On the 4th of July this year we will celebrate our countries 232nd anniversary.

...Also on the agenda will be a widespread celebration of tea party goers expressing their constitutional right of free assembly to protest the excessive spending and power grubbing of Barack Obama.

Not to be outdone N. Korean leader Kim Jong Il will be sending some fireworks our way as well as reported on 'Mail Online World News:

"North Korea may launch a long-range ballistic missile towards Hawaii on American Independence Day, according to Japanese intelligence officials."

We warned you America, we are severely compromised with this wreckless pea brained President at the helm of our once great country.

As further evidence of Obama's administration melting down:
  • Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton expects to have surgery soon to repair a broken elbow she suffered in a fall in the State Department garage.
  • Norfolk-based group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals wants the flyswatter-in-chief to try taking a more humane attitude the next time he's bedeviled by a fly in the White House.
  • Former President George W. Bush fired a salvo at President Obama on Wednesday, asserting his administration's interrogation policies were within the law, declaring the private sector -- not government -- will fix the economy and rejecting the nationalization of health care.
  • On Wednesday, several FNC shows recounted the latest developments in the case of President Obama's suspicious, and possibly illegal, firing of former inspector general Gerald Walpin, after an investigation headed by Walpin found Obama friend and Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson guilty of misusing over $800,000 in funding intended for the AmeriCorps program. Glenn Beck and Sean Hannity pointed to apparent inconsistencies in the story so far.

I have been predicting this loss of popularity effect that we are now seeing the beginnings of for Mr. Obama. The next step is that liberal rags and NBC will begin to acknowledge that people are complaining about some of Mr. Obama's policies and try to act concerned enough to stay in business. After that we will hear out right criticisms from Congress Dems who are worried about their chances of re-election, and will begin slamming Obama's spending propsals. Healthcare will tank (again).

So get out there on the 4th of July and shoot off some fireworks, shoot off your mouth and stand up for the Constitution of the United States.

I leave you with this irrelevant fact...

If you have three quarters, four dimes, and four pennies, you have $1.19.You also have the largest amount of money in coins without being able to make change for a dollar. (And you won't be able to make change for a dollar after Obama gets done with you for sure)

Tuesday, June 16, 2009

Pottersville?


At the end of President Bush's 8 years in office banks and investment firms started defaulting and heading for destruction, along with our 401K's etc.. This has been proven to have been caused by the government mandated risky loans instituted in 1994 by then president Bill Clinton. No more arguments, the Dem's caused the crisis.


President Bush initiated an unprecedented 700 billion dollar bailout of the banks. The stated purpose of the bailout funds was to buy up the toxic loans from the banks (all the freddie and fanny loans that got sold to other investment firms and banks.)


Here we are 6 months down the road and what have we got?


  • 1.4 trillion dollars in debt (which Obama erroneously attributes to Bush)

  • Toxic loans are still on the books at the banks

  • The government is controlling CEO's, Base pay of executives, and bonus amounts

  • Obama bought GM by screwing the secured debt holders and illegally putting the unsecured debt holders at the front of the line. (did I mention that those unsecured debt holders were the union that brought GM down and helped get Obama elected)

  • Obama now wants to finance government health care and bulldoze Flint MI.

  • Unemployment, which 'could rise to 8.5% if we don't sign this stimulus into law now' is now at 9.4% and rising.

  • TARP funds are being returned to the government to avoid being controlled by them

  • People aren't spending money (which is the biggest problem we have now)

  • Obama is trying to get his hands on every vein of free enterprise to own and control it.

Now folks, what we should have done immediately is to give huge tax breaks to businesses for a temporary time like 3 years, so that companies could survive the down turn. People may have lost houses and declared bankruptcy but they would be OK. Now they lose everything and Obama takes more and makes us all dependant on the Federal Governments generosity.


I just have one question. Who do you trust more with money?


1. Do you want to take your chance with Baily savings and loan?


2. Would you rather settle down in 'Pottersville' (It's a Wonderful life)

Monday, June 15, 2009

Reunion


"So I said to him, "Barack, I know Abe Lincoln, and you ain't no Abe Lincoln.

  • "You cannot help the poor by destroying the rich.
  • You cannot strengthen the weak by weakening the strong.
  • You cannot bring about prosperity by discouraging thrift.
  • You cannot lift the wage earner up by pulling the wage payer down.
  • You cannot further the brotherhood of man by inciting class hatred.
  • You cannot build character and courage by taking away people's initiative and independence.
  • You cannot help people permanently by doing for them, what they could and should do for themselves."

.....Abraham Lincoln


by David W. Andersen