Category: Politics

The Manliness Gap? Scottish Men Selected As World’s Most Manly

This week, Atlantic Magazine ran a story on Rick Perry, Manly Man — a piece exploring how Perry is known to emphasize his manliness — both physically and verbally. The magazine considers how well the macho image will play across the political spectrum. However, that may be the least of the problems for the Perry camp. Word has now reached our shores of the selection of the Scots, not the Americans, as the world’s most manly specimens. Now, I take nothing from the Scots. It takes a lot of guts to wear kilts in a cold, wet climate. However, the world’s manliest? Followed close by the English? I fully expect this to become a major issue in the presidential election: the manliest gap.
Continue reading “The Manliness Gap? Scottish Men Selected As World’s Most Manly”

Todd Palin: Of Course Sarah Quit For The Money

There is an interesting video of Todd Palin out in the last few days that finally admits what many have long argued: Sarah Palin quit the Alaskan governorship to cash in on her celebrity status. When a woman confronted Todd about his wife not finishing her term, he responds “What would you do” with “thousands and thousands of dollars a day?” He notes that the had “all this debt” and made the obvious choice.
Continue reading “Todd Palin: Of Course Sarah Quit For The Money”

The Unofficial Turley Blog Job Creation Plan


Respectfully Submitted by Lawrence Rafferty-Guest Blogger

We have heard both sides of the aisle claim that they have the next big idea to bring jobs back to Main Street. Recently President Obama, according to an article from former Labor Secretary Robert Reich, has claimed that he will be submitting a Jobs Bill to Congress when they return from their 5 week summer hiatus.  Continue reading “The Unofficial Turley Blog Job Creation Plan”

Who’s Really Who on the Blogs?

Submitted by: Mike Spindell, guest blogger

Many years now at this site there have been side debates raging about false identities, used by people who are being paid to disrupt our discussions by making comments aimed at sidetracking issues. OpEdNews, a site run by Rob Kall, which I subscribe to sends me daily updates of articles of interest. Yesterday I received this intriguing article from Thom Hartmann’s podcast. It is an interview with Lee Fong from ThinkProgress on just this subject. Check out this link and see what you think.

http://www.opednews.com/articles/Caught-Fake-conservative-by-Thom-Hartmann-110820-341.html
Continue reading “Who’s Really Who on the Blogs?”

Securities and Exchange Commission Accused of Shredding Investigation Documents for Nearly Twenty Years

Submitted by Elaine Magliaro, Guest Blogger

Senator Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) has asked the Securities and Exchange Commission to respond to allegations made by a whistleblower that the agency had destroyed files from preliminary investigations of financial firms—including Goldman Sachs, SAC Capital Advisors, Deutsche Bank, AIG, and Bernie Madoff Investment Securities.

A Bloomberg article reported that Grassley’s request was prompted by a letter that he received from SEC attorney Darcy Flynn claiming that the SEC had “destroyed documents including materials related to Goldman Sachs’ trades of American International Group Inc. (AIG) credit- default swaps in 2009, insider-trading probes of Deutsche Bank AG (DBK), Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. (LEHMQ) and SAC Capital Advisors LP, and investigations of possible financial fraud at Wells Fargo & Co. (WFC) and Bank of America Corp. (BAC) in 2007 and 2008.”

Continue reading “Securities and Exchange Commission Accused of Shredding Investigation Documents for Nearly Twenty Years”

Jobless in Georgia

Submitted by: Mike Spindell, guest blogger

 While we the privileged, who have time for such things, argue about law, politics, and society from our individual perspectives, we can easily forget that the results of these arguments affect real people in their lives. In the present American discourse, curt slogans and political bombast rule the airwaves and the Internet. The consequences of arguments won and lost are often subsumed by the anger of the debate itself. I personally feel a great empathy for those people ground down by the decisions and actions of those with financial power who have influence on executive and legislative power. The result of this empathy is anger at what I see is the blindness of our corporate and political leaders towards the lives of average people and the deafness of those same leaders to the cries for help all around them. Continue reading “Jobless in Georgia”

Obamas Take Separate Planes So First Lady Can Get A Few More Hours of Vacation in Martha’s Vineyard?

While I do not recall a great deal of grumbling from conservatives about George Bush’s long vacations, I have to agree with the criticism of the First Family taking two separate planes to their vacation on Martha’s Vineyard — apparently to give the First Lady a few hours head start on the vacation. At a time of tremendous economic sacrifice, it seems pretty insensitive to take separate planes and motorcades at a cost of an estimated $100,000.
Continue reading “Obamas Take Separate Planes So First Lady Can Get A Few More Hours of Vacation in Martha’s Vineyard?”

Rick Perry: Earth “Pretty Old” and Evolution “Got Some Gaps”

Gov. Rick Perry was asked directly about his view on creationism and the religious dogma regarding the age of the Earth. His response was truly Bushesque, saying that the Earth is “pretty old” and evolution “got some gaps.” He wants both evolution and creationism taught side by side as equal “theories” in public schools.
Continue reading “Rick Perry: Earth “Pretty Old” and Evolution “Got Some Gaps””

Auditors Conclude That $6.6 Billion Simply Disappeared From Planes Filled With Cash To Iraq

For years, the media has reported billions of dollars stolen or missing in Iraq and Afghanistan. The Karzai family in particular has been singled out in allegations of such pilfering as well as an array of other crimes such as drug dealing. Now, auditors have found that $6.6 billion has simply disappeared — cash sent by the plane load to Iraq.
Continue reading “Auditors Conclude That $6.6 Billion Simply Disappeared From Planes Filled With Cash To Iraq”

Spanish Police Attack Young People On Street In Preparation For Arrival Of Pope

Judging from this video, the Spanish have retained a Francoesque approach to dealing with the public and the concept of free assembly. The attacks on these young people appear entirely unprovoked. The police are preparing for the arrival of the Pope.
Continue reading “Spanish Police Attack Young People On Street In Preparation For Arrival Of Pope”

Reach Out And Touch Someone: AT&T Purchases Hundreds of Books By Gov. Rick Perry To Hand Out Free To State Legislators

While it has been generally panned as superficial and little more than expanded soundbites, Gov. Rick Perry’s Fed Up! Our Fight to Save America From Washington clearly has one big fan: AT&T. AT&T purchased hundreds of the books to hand out free.
Continue reading “Reach Out And Touch Someone: AT&T Purchases Hundreds of Books By Gov. Rick Perry To Hand Out Free To State Legislators”

“Casket Cartel” Takes Monks To Court

Louisiana regulators have decided to appeal a ruling in favor of casket-making monks that found a state law unconstitutional in giving funeral directors exclusive rights to sell caskets. The law has been criticized as a case of a powerful lobby getting politicians to snuff out their competition. Louisiana legislators caved into demands for the protective measures, but Judge Stanwood R. Duval, of the U.S. District Court in New Orleans found that the legislation did not even satisfy the low rational basis test. The regulators are now appealing to the Fifth Circuit.

Continue reading ““Casket Cartel” Takes Monks To Court”

Is The Media Actively Erasing Ron Paul From Election Coverage?

While some on our blog (including many regulars who I respect) disagree, I have never hidden my respect for Ron Paul. I have occasional lunches with Paul who is one of the brightest and most engaging minds in Congress. This segment by John Stewart does a great job in addressing the concerted effort to ignore Paul despite his almost winning the recent Iowa straw poll. Even “XXX” got more attention by Associated Press.
Continue reading “Is The Media Actively Erasing Ron Paul From Election Coverage?”

American Taliban: Meet John Benefiel

Sarah Palin had Thomas Muthee and John McCain had John Hagee and Rod Parsely and Barack Obama had Jeremiah Wright. For Rick Perry, his bizarre religious ally may be John Benefiel, the head of the Heartland Apostolic Reformation Network. Benefiel was one of the official organizers of Perry’s controversial The Response prayer rally. In this YouTube clip, Benefiel calls the Statue of Liberty a “demonic idol.”

Continue reading “American Taliban: Meet John Benefiel”