In a rare episode in American politics the leader of the Chicago gang in the White House got caught using the F___ word and a derogatory characterization of America's special needs children, "retarded", and was immediately called on the carpet by Sarah Palin.
Damage control by the White House was swift as they already had practice at covering up such derogatory blasphemy since President Obama had earlier stepped on his tongue when making fun of the Special Olympics.
Why is it that the liberal community remained silent on the Emanuel lip slip when special needs is a cause of concern to liberals? There is a hypocritical silence by the liberals when anyone in the Obama administration mocks liberal causes but Sarah Palin came to their rescue blasting Emanuel and calling for his firing as a leader of the American government.
Emanuel was quoted in the Wall Street Journal last week making the comment in an August meeting with some liberal activists who were threatening to run TV ads against conservative Democrats hesitant to embrace President Obama's approach to health care reform.
After the Journal story was published, Emanuel called Special Olympics Chairman and CEO Timothy Shriver to apologize. The Special Olympics announced Tuesday evening that members of the disabilities rights community will meet Wednesday afternoon with White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel, after the fiery Chicagoan admitted to having referred to some liberal activists as "f---ing retarded."
The Special Olympics said in a statement: "The meeting will be a face-to-face discussion with Rahm Emanuel about the suffering and pain of people with intellectual disabilities that is perpetuated by the use of the terms 'retard' and 'retarded' as well as the damage that can be done by the casual use of the R-word – even if it is not directed toward people with intellectual disabilities."
This was a well rehearsed performance of damage control at the White House since Shriver seems to be the designated Democratic cover for big mouths. His father started the Special Olympics program and Timothy continues the family commitment. A relative of the Kennedys, his father was once vice presidential candidate for the Democrats. Oh yes, and Special Olympics CEO Shriver is a contributor to the Obama campaign.
Last March Obama got in hot water when he appeared on the Jay Leno show and when asked about the bowling alley in the White House, Obama joked to Jay that his average score of 129 "was like the Special Olympics or something."
Special Olympics Chairman Timothy Shriver, who said Obama called him that time from Air Force One to apologize for the comment, talked about it on ABC's "Good Morning America" March 20.
"He expressed his disappointment and he apologized in a way that was very moving. He expressed that he did not intend to humiliate this population," Shriver said, adding that Obama said he would like to have some Special Olympic athletes visit the White House to bowl or play basketball.
Shriver added that despite the apology, "I think it's important to see that words hurt and words do matter. And these words that in some respect can be seem as humiliating or a put-down to people with special needs do cause pain and they do result in stereotypes."
Perhaps the incidents would be a little more sincere if a Democratic campaign contributor had not been the first and only call by the President and Chief of Staff. There are a lot of special needs children, 40 million families are affected, and there are a lot of good organizations besides the Special Olympics.
However, managing damage control for the tasteless jokes and stinging rebukes by White House staff, not to mention the periodic blunders by Vice President Biden, is about the only sign of leadership and taking responsibility by this White House. If only they applied the same leadership to running the government.
Today the Oscar nominations were announced and there were a few surprises but not many. Since picking the winners, in other words reading the minds of the Academy voters, is an inexact science I have decided to make it even harder because I will be the first member of the entertainment media to pick the winners without seeing a single nominated movie.
The interesting nominations, the movies Avatar directed by James Cameron and The Hurt Locker directed by Kathryn Bieglow pits an ex-husband and wife, Cameron and Bieglow against each other. One was a $200 million blockbuster and the other an independent costing a few million.
Here are my picks:
Best Picture - The Hurt Locker
Best Picture nominees
Avatar The Blind Side District 9 An Education The Hurt Locker Inglourious Basterds Precious A Serious Man Up Up in the Air
Best Director - Kathryn Bieglow
Best Director nominees
James Cameron: Avatar Kathryn Bigelow: The Hurt Locker Quentin Tarantino: Inglourious Basterds Lee Daniels - Precious Jason Reitman: Up in the Air
Best Actor - Jeff Bridges - Crazy Heart
Best Actor nominees
Jeff Bridges: Crazy Heart George Clooney: Up in the Air Colin Firth: A Single Man Morgan Freeman: Invictus Jeremy Renner: The Hurt Locker
Best Actress - Sandra Bullock - The Blind Side
Best Actress nomiees
Sandra Bullock: The Blind Side Helen Mirran: The Last Station Carey Mulligan: An Education Gabourey Sidibe: Precious Meryl Streep: Julie & Julia
Best Supporting Actor - Christoph Waltz - Inglourious Basterds
Best Supporting Actor nominees
Matt Damon: Invictus Woody Harrelson: The Messenger Christopher Plummer: The Last Station Stanley Tucci: The Lovely Bones Christoph Waltz: Inglourious Basterds
Best Supporting Actress - Mo’Nique - Preciuos
Best Supporting Actress nominees
Penelope Cruz: Nine Vera Farmiga: Up in the Air Maggie Gyllenhaal: Crazy Heart Anna Kendrick: Up in the Air Mo’Nique: Precious
You always know when the president or congress are trying to pull a fast one on the public. There are two tactics that indicate a major deception is underway. One is if they release information Friday night, after the work week, after the news deadlines, after the people are out for the evening, and when the top reporters have the night off. A second is if they send a herd of babbling politicians and spokespeople out to blanket the news media to super-pitch a new idea, policy, strategy or something to the public.
My common sense rule is if they need to send out the pitchmen then something in the deal smells. If an idea can't stand on it's own merit, if it needs a constant explanation from politicians, if the public just can't get it, then something must be wrong with it. You've heard Obama and his White House gang lament over and over how health care is too complicated for the public, they didn't understand it enough, or they were misled by misinformation from the opposing side.
In Iowa vernacular, that is defined as hogwash. For those of you not growing up in Iowa the definition of hogwash is a noun 1. refuse given to hogs; swill, 2. any worthless stuff, 3. meaningless or insincere talk, writing, etc.; nonsense; bunk.
The Obama budget is a masterpiece in worthless junk and probably doesn't even make a good doorstop. Let me cut through the crap and give you a capsule overview. The Obama budget is the death knell of our nation as we know it.
The assumptions are from the same prognosticators who told us a year ago the unemployment rate would remain below 8%. The same voodoo high priests who told us the Obama stimulus bill would actually stimulate something. The same fortune tellers who said the bank, insurance, auto and Wall Street bailouts were in the public interest.
Near as I can tell the Obama budget may or may not say the nation will be bankrupt in about 10 years. It might say record setting deficit spending, all Bush's fault mind you, will set a record about every six months and the national debt will most likely have to be updated every day. Here is what it looks like updated in real time. Copy and paste the following link for a real scare.
http://www.usdebtclock.org/#
While entitlement programs like Social Security and Medicare make up much of the budget there will be no proposals to reduce the cost, eliminate fraud and reduce overhead unless we agree to spend another trillion dollars on health care. If they know we have $5 billion in legal fees for paying off attorneys and another $500 million a year in fraud why not get rid of the problems?
There will be no revenue streams for new money for the government yet we could become energy independent and make money for the government if we drilled for oil and natural gas reserves and encouraged new, more efficient ways to extract them from our land, not foreign countries.
While we have incentives for new energy systems in cars, which work but the car will cost about $60,000 -$100,000, there are no incentives for car companies to make the current internal combustion engine more efficient. We already know the current oil powered engine can be 80% more efficient, thus extending the life of available oil reserves by possibly over 100 years. That would make it long after the current deficit crisis is over and we would continue to have tax revenues from oil. If Obama gets us to convert to non-oil sources how will he make up the billions more in lost tax revenue? Under the Obama cap and trade program the private, Wall Street investors will make the money, not the government. Gored by Gore again.
Anyway, it is great to hear so many Administration non-economists and professional apologists hit the airways and be interviewed by a news media with less expertise, understanding or comprehension of the disastrous consequences of increasing deficits and national debt. White House aides Axelrod or Gibbs being interviewed by a news media White House correspondent is like asking Julia Child for help with football strategy. And anyone in their right mind even thinking of interviewing VP Joe Biden, the godfather of the credit card industry, on the fairness of Obamanomics is, well, insane. Just ask MSNBC.
Let's face it, Obama's Treasury Secretary did not even know Goldman Sachs and a bevy of tainted banks would get $60 billion from AIG when the White House bailed them out. If they can't even keep track of $60 billion how can they know about trillions? Or did they really know about the $60 billion? Come to think of it, when Congress held the hearings spanking the little butts of the big banks for stealing all that money from us, why didn't anyone ask if the president knew about the deal?
This budget cannot even be financed, the deficit side that is, when China and Russia are the largest purchasers of our debt and the Obama administration has infuriated both of them with our haphazard approach to foreign policy.
As I study this maze of governmental gobbledygook it reminds me of the annual National Enquirer report on fortune tellers and psychics telling us everything that will happen in the next year as far as the enlightened ones are concerned. Our White House and Congress seemed to be filled with soothsaying enlightened ones and I say it is time to turn out the lights!
Finally, if I were an advocate of conspiracy theories I would say Obama, the Rothschild's very own Chosen One, has finally figured out a way to make America subservient to the New World Order as bankrupting our nation would make us hostages to the international shadow world ending a 200 year quest by the Illuminati to get control of the US Treasury.
I guess this is really what we should expect when we get a new administration with all that experience. But then conspiracy theories are not real, are they?
Politics is such an entertaining sport and all the more when the public and the real revolutionaries, those who think government should serve the people, not the politicians, join forces. This silly season we have already seen three cases where the president, congress, media, Democrats and Republicans have all blown it because they refuse to understand the people have a right to be heard.
New Jersey, Virginia and Massachusetts have all demonstrated that the experts, the pundits, the media and the politicians are clueless. I have written over and over that the Washington and Wall Street establishment have grossly under estimated the people, the anger of the people, and the will of the people to throw them out.
Cathe Chiomento, a faithful reader of the CPT and belle of Philly high society helps to keep me informed of the people's revolt against the crooks so I thank her for sending this video showing an advertisement run by Scott Brown during his greatly perplexing victory in Massachusetts, perplexing to those beltway bandits who have been robbing us blind.
The ad speaks for itself. The change America wanted is not Democrat or Republican, it is a change back to the core values that made America great. It is a call to arms of the people who are fed up with Washington, Wall Street, politicians and anyone else who no longer represent the people.
Let us hope the avalanche of dissent continues to sweep the choices of the back room politicians, fat cats, our capitol and our White House out of office so the voice of the people will be heard once again. We must save America before it is too late!!!
In a stunning turn of events Roger Ailes, the genius behind Fox News network and the Godfather of the conservative movement in America journeyed to the ABC This Week news round table Sunday, a program hosted by Barbara Walters of The View fame and keeper of the faith for liberals in America.
As you may recall, President Obama journeyed to the Lion's den just last week to meet with Republican lawmakers without Nancy Pelosi or the White House gang and his appearance caused quite a stir. We ran a story on the meeting last week.
This time it was Ailes who journeyed to the bowels of liberaldom to confront the enemies of reality, the masters of deception, the pyramids of the pariah and the fountain of negativity and nitpicking. Well, maybe that gives Barbara Wawa a bit too much credit since she seems to be shying away from awful controversy she began hosting the View with the wall of liberal defenders.
Still, she was able to draw the Big Bear Ailes from his mountaintop, she describes him as a friend, one of her millions I guess, and it was still a memorable experience. It was the Sunday after the President's State of the Union and the Ailes interview dominated the media Sunday which is just what Roger expects Fox to do. I'm sure the White House staff were disappointed that Ailes knocked the president out of the lead stories but Fox seems to make a habit of doing that.
Waiting for him at the table was The Huffington Post's Arianna Huffington, a more worthy protector of the liberal line could not be found. A few fireworks began to ignite when she interrogated Ailes but his legendary wit and brutal honesty were no match for the leftists.
She challenged him on having an extremist like Glenn Beck on Fox and Roger simply responded we are after the ratings and we are number one.
When she asked how he could possibly have someone like, ugh, Sarah Palin as a network news commentator he replied I was the only network to have the only Democratic VP candidate, Geraldine Ferraro, on TV for ten years and now I am the only network to have the only Republican VP candidate on the air. We are Fair and Balanced.
Huffington huffed a few times but got none of the adoration she gets from all the liberal shows where she normally appears and the series of exchanges finally gave us a break from all the politicians polluting the airways.
I must say when she was challenging the Fox efforts to polarize the public Ailes calmly mentioned that her very own blog has used equally inflammatory language about him, she promptly claimed it was a comment from a reader, but a fact check showed it was in a Huffington story. Chalk another one up to Roger. Perhaps that is why Fox buries the liberal media in popularity.
Now if these peacekeeping efforts by Obama meeting the Republicans and Ailes meeting the liberals are a sign of things to come then there is an outside chance civility may return to the political scene. However, it is not something I would count on as it takes more than words to mend fences.
Besides, we have a long ways to go before we have thrown out all the rascals in politics and since they have no guilt over stretching the truth to defend their horrid records then tough talk may be the only way to get them out of office where they belong.
Just watched the Grammy awards and saw Beyonce win six (most by a female at one show in history) and Taylor Swift win four awards (including youngest female to ever win album of the year). It was a weird night with some pretty good performances. My favorites were Lady Gaga and Elton John, Pink sailing above the crowd in a quite pleasing performance, Green Day with the Cast of a new Musical performing their song 21 Guns, and Bon Jovi from New Jersey proving that the Jersey talent continues to run deep.
Perhaps the reason album sales in America have collapsed the last decade is because so many songs are so over-produced they simply engulf the listener in a wall of sound that makes the words impossible to understand and the instrumental mix a clutter of competing sounds. Maybe the lyrics are over-powered by the music because the story line is inferior. Crisp lyrics, strong arrangements, diverse orchestration and a mix that made you appreciate each of these factors made music much more enjoyable in the past.
In 2000 there were 785 million albums sold in America. In 2009 there were just 374 million sold, a loss of over 52% in record sales during the decade. Record labels say it is because of the Internet and theft from downloading but I believe it is because the record buying public thinks so much material is terrible they won't waste their money.
Back to the Grammy awards, the worst performance was by Taylor Swift, whose album Fearless was named Best Album of the Year. Her duet with Stevie Nicks was hard to listen to as the young pop princess again proved singing live is her Achilles heel. Don't take it from me, here is what the expert critics said.
Los Angeles Times - Ann Powers
The most telling statement of the night, in fact, came from comic Stephen Colbert, who told the crowd that the Grammys were "the highest honor that the music industry can bestow, other than your song being covered by the cast of 'Glee,' " the popular TV show about a high school choir. Today's most powerful songs often reach listeners as ads -- the specialty of the Peas -- in YouTube video tributes, as with Beyonce's "Single Ladies," which won song of the year, or in other "nonmusical" contexts.
And more than ever, today's biggest stars are those who embody powerful archetypes so well that a misplaced note or two may be kindly overlooked. That last situation applies to Taylor Swift, who continued her winning streak by taking home album of the year for "Fearless," a recording that has seemingly won every available prize in the last year. Swift, 20, is a songwriter; she thanked her record label for "letting me write every song on my album" while accepting one of her awards.
But as well-crafted as her platinum-selling tales of suburban high school life are, it's Swift's persona that really sells. This smart young woman comes across as a perky, living American Girl doll, and that appealing version of traditional young womanhood, not her music, is at the heart of her stardom.
Her singing certainly can't be credited. Appealing enough on record, it always seems to let her down live. Swift gave a strikingly bad vocal performance at Staples Center on Sunday, sounding tinny and rhythmically flat-footed as she shared the microphone with the distinctive Stevie Nicks. Swift's inability to match or support Nicks as they worked through a medley of each woman's hits stood in stark contrast to the evening's other pairings, particularly soul man Maxwell's sensitive response to Roberta Flack and Lady Gaga's bravado turn with Elton John.
"For me, genres have really become something that I don't think people focus on anymore," Swift said backstage. "Country music is my love. [But] when you're making music, I think the healthiest thing to do is remove titles or stereotypes from what you're trying to do. It's not country versus rap . . . it's not anything you don't make it. It's about trying to make an album you hope is good enough to win album of the year."
MLive.com - Jessica Nunez
Taylor Swift with Stevie Nicks Poor Stevie Nicks. She's long proved herself in the music world and delivered once again last night on a trio of Taylor Swift songs. But Swift, who won four Grammys including Album of the Year, proved once again that the stage is not her friend. Nicks' raspy voice combined with Swift's pitchy performance was almost cringe-worthy. Taylor Swift is cute and her songs are catchy, but it's just plain hard to watch her live.
Green Day
One of the better performances was by Green Day and the Cast of a new Broadway musical of their album American Idiot. Check it out. This punk band trio from California has matured and evolved into a versatile singer/songwriter group.
Susan Boyle missing in action
Snubbed by the Grammys but loved by the world is Susan Boyle of Scotland. Her debut album, I Dreamed A Dream, was beat out by Taylor Swift by 100,000 sales for best seller of 2009 but wait a minute, all is not as it seems. Taylor Swift released Fearless in November, 2008. Boyle released Dream on November 23, 2009. Swift's was on the market over a year and one month while Boyle's just five weeks and still they almost tied.
Does that seem fair? By the end of January Boyle had caught up to Swift and worldwide has sold an amazing 8 million copies, in just 9 weeks. Still she was snubbed with no Grammy nomination. What is it about this strange 48 year old from Scotland? I say Boyle is the Sarah Palin of the music industry, a fan favorite while being snubbed by the critics.
Ironically Boyle has no regrets about the Grammy snub and as a lifelong Catholic her goal this year is to appear before the Pope when he comes to Scotland this fall. Of course she will also be taking America by storm with her first world tour.
This is what Laura Ferrerro had to say about Boyle on the PopEater blog.
Scottish songstress Susan Boyle seems poised to conquer the world. The unassuming 'Britain's Got Talent' star has already sold more than 1.8 million copies of her debut album 'I Dreamed a Dream' in its first three weeks of release in the U.S. (not to mention the millions she's sold worldwide). She also set an impressive record for the best first-week sales of any woman since SoundScan started tracking in 1991. If Boyle continues to sell albums at this pace, she'll likely steal Taylor Swift's crown as top selling artist of 2009.
So what is it about this homespun 47-year-old charity worker who lives alone with her cat that has us running to our nearest record store to pick up her debut album? We at PopEater checked in with some renowned pop music critics to see what all the fuss is about.
It's Boyle's "every woman" quality that's so appealing believes Aidin Vaziri, San Francisco Chronicle's Pop Music Critic. "She's ordinary. She's like us. People can relate to her," he says. "When she got onstage to face Simon Cowell she brought a million office workers' daydreams to life. I think everyone who saw the ('Britain's Got Talent') video felt moved by it wanted to be part of the story and make sure it had a happy ending."
It's Boyle's "underdog" status combined with our obsession with reality show sagas that has us rooting for her says Gaylord Fields, Senior Editor of AOL Music. "Susan Boyle's story is a classic underdog tale -- yet one that played out in front of the entire world," said Fields. "It embodies a couple of popular reality-show trends in one: it's a music competition coupled with a makeover story, with a hint of medical program savant syndrome thrown in."
"Shows such as 'American Idol' and 'Britain's Got Talent' are as interested in a potential star's looks as much as their talent," said pop music critic Stephen Humphries. "Boyle managed to up-end all that. Dowdy and close to age 50, she seemed to have no right to be trying out for a market most interested in youth and sex appeal. But her voice trumped all that. I think the fact that Boyle isn't a particularly self-confident or precocious person only added to her underdog appeal."
Fields concurs that it is these personal attributes that make Boyle so relatable. "The juxtaposition of Boyle's one-in-a-million voice with her modest looks and her seeming simplicity and innocence add up to something unique -- and ultimately relatable," he says.
