Political Theatre category archive
Flint-Hearted 0
Click to see the original image.
Aside:
What happened in Flint is what happens when you “run the government like a business.”
The business model of choice amongst those who would “run the government like a business” is invariably Enron.
Afterthought:
The cartoonist left out “racism.”
This is America.
Never leave out “racism.”
Levying the Syntax 0
I am no Miss Grundy, but I am a proponent of using acceptable grammar.
Grammar is the rules of the road for communication. It is wise to drive on the correct side of the road; it careen from unwise lane to lane is to.
The Law’s Belay 0
Daniel Ruth talks temper tantrum. A snippet:
Then we become a banana republic of whining crybabies.
The Republican Establishment* 0
Noz suggests that there is no there, there.
_______________
*Whatever that is, outside of the Fox News bubble . . . .
Is It an Implosion or an Explosion? 2
Brian Greenspun, publisher of the Las Vegas Sun and ex-Republican, marvels at the trajectory of the party that he once supported as it comes apart at the seams. Here’s a bit:
In its place appeared a mishmash of disparate groups that came together in such a way as to assure the party of Abraham Lincoln . . . would collapse of its own weight.
(snip)
By that I mean that the politics of 2016 have exposed the fault lines among the evangelicals, libertarians, statists, economic conservatives, xenophobes and all kinds of supremacists. The folks who kept the party of Lincoln burning bright for so many decades have all but disappeared or, at least, been marginalized as “the establishment.”
The Galt and the Lamers 0
When you start with wrong assumptions, you invariably reach wrong conclusions.
The “Online Commenters’ Campaign” 2
Peter St. Onge once dismissed Trumpery. As he considers how wrong he was, he struggles to understand its appeal and finds inspiration in what happens in newspapers’ online comment sections, where unleashing ugly is ubiquitous.
Racism and bigotry, I believe, play a larger role than he seems to imply in this short piece. White folks like me often fail to perceive the pervasiveness of racism in this society. We forget ignore that racism doesn’t necessarily wear a hood and announce its presence; it also wears formal evening dress and sips its cognac most delicately in the parlor, while speaking in dulcet tones of the opera and the art exhibit.
Nevertheless, I think he does accurately describe part of the elephant (I’ll leave it to you to determine which part). Follow the link and give it a read.
The Scalias of Justice 0
The Booman looks askance at those who are protesting that President Obama should have nominated a woman or a minority or even a minority woman for the vacancy on the Supreme Court and that nominating Merrick Garland was somehow a misstep. A nugget:
Secondly, racial animus and religious bigotry are not what is driving the Republican strategy of obstruction here. They actually like Merrick Garland despite him not being a follower of Jesus Christ. What picking a candidate the Republicans like has done is highlight that this isn’t about anything other than power politics. And that’s precisely what makes their position so indefensible. After all, progressives aren’t solely disappointed that Merrick Garland is an “old white dude;” they’re primarily disappointed that he’s seen as a moderate, centrist judge. Had Obama picked Leondra Kruger or Jane Kelly instead, their ideology would have been the main subject of debate rather than the tactic of total obstruction.
From the standpoint of the politics of the nomination–and there’s always politics involved in a Supreme Court nomination, sometimes moreso than others, and this is definitely a moreso time–nominating Merrick Garland was a brilliant move. It highlights Republican intransigence by putting the party in the position of having to choose whether to betray one of its own.
Follow the link for the rest of the Booman’s analysis.
Profiles in Cowardice 0
Shaun Mullen tries to make sense of the Trumping of the Republican Party and finds himself with a case of the vapors. In a depressing spiral universe, he suggests that each side, Trump and the Republican establishment (whatever that is) is worse than the other. Here’s a bit:
Do please read the rest.
Primary Dolors, Reprise 0
In a column written before yesterday’s primaries but accurately anticipating the outcome as regards Little Marco, Daniel Ruth looks for lessons in the demise of the Rubio campaign and finds a few. Here’s one:
As we inch closer to Tuesday, here’s what we’ve learned.
We’ve learned that not all nasty, backstabbing, relentless negative advertising campaigns are equal.
Follow the link for more.