Wednesday, March 30, 2005

Too Good To Pass Up

Poaching from Kevin Drum, we couldn't resist this one from Mark Kleiman:
I see Nat Hentoff and Jesse Jackson have joined the feed-Terri forces, which already included Ralph Nader, Randall Terry, Rush Limbaugh, Bo Gritz, Sean Hannity, and James Dobson. Now if we can just get Alexander Cockburn and Al Sharpton to join in, we'll have a left-right coalition embodying the very cream of the nation's loudmouth dimwitted self-promoting busybodies.

Note to Hentoff: "brain dead" means "dead." No one thinks that Terri Schiavo is "brain dead." The fact that William Frist can tell if someone is brain dead gives him no qualification to judge whether Terri Schiavo has permanently lost all cognitive function, even if he had in fact either examined her or viewed her medical records.



Sweet...

Monday, March 28, 2005

Enemies: They're Right Next To You

One of the things that has always fascinated me is the concept of cognitive dissonance, and the effects it has on the mind. For a quick definition let's go to Webster's (Unabridged, Thank You); "anxiety that results from simultaneously holding contradictory or otherwise incompatible attitudes, beliefs, or the like, as when one likes a person but disapproves strongly of one of his or her habits".

Now when we're talking about someone you may like, and an entire nation of people, we're looking at a multitudes of scale, to say the least.

All of us gain knowledge of the world around us from many different sources. The news sources you watch and read, the people that you talk to whose attitudes you share and respect, your parents, the things you see with your own eyes, all these things make up the filter through which you see the world. If this filter is dramatically skewed one way or another, it can either be helpful or very dangerous, but it all depends on your approach. If you come at things with the attitude that you know some things about the subject, and can add to the discourse with tact and a polite disposition, we can all discuss those points and come to some rational conclusions, even if in the end we don't agree. If, on the other hand, you rush into the room ranting, pointing your finger at everyone, and hurling unfounded accusations, where do we go from there? There's no discussion to be had at all:

Treason: Liberal Treachery from the Cold War to the War on Terrorism
By Ann Coulter

Deliver Us from Evil: Defeating Terrorism, Despotism, and Liberalism
By Sean Hannity

So, if I'm a Liberal, I've already been accused of treachery, despotism, terrorism, and well, being evil. That's some conversation starter, and these are two best-selling authors, not obscure shut-ins.

We as Americans have always had our differences, but we've always been able to come to some consensus, as fragile as those conditions may provide, for the greater good for all. But now that this type of rhetoric has been introduced into our dialogue, it pits one American against another. No need to seek out the enemy, he's sitting right next to you in the coffee shop.

As American power wanes in the new century, this line of thinking will extend abroad, and we will see much more of this. There will be no end to the number of enemies on America's doorstep, and probably even more made-up ones like Saddam Hussein.

Let's go to David Frum and Richard Perle, from their book An End to Evil: How To Win The War On Terror:

  • Why the United States risks its security if it submits to the authority of the United Nations
  • Why France and Saudi Arabia have to be treated as adversaries, not allies, in the war on terror
  • Why the United States must take decisive action against Iran--now
  • What to do in North Korea if negotiations fail
  • Why everything you read in the newspapers about the Israeli-Arab dispute is wrong
  • How our government must be changed if we are to fight the war on terror to victory--not just stalemate
  • Where the next great terror threat is coming from--and what we can do to protect ourselves
Their book calls for unending war. War for the sake of just letting everyone else in the world know, including Americans, that their is no compromise. The prevailing attitude on the Right is that there is no one to talk to, no one to negotiate with, no one to share and exchange ideas with, they are all enemies. That includes all of our long-time allies, and our so-called current enemies. Isn't it pretty clear what the prescription is for North Korea if negotiations fail? Why bother, we have lots of weapons.

Leadership requires one of man's most innate qualities: empathy. If we as a people cannot see ourselves as others see us, even just for a moment, then why do some people in our country automatically assume that "they" are against us? No matter internal ot external? Filter Installed. Condition Permanent.

Thursday, March 24, 2005

Pay No Mind To The Freakshow Careening By

In a book released last year titled "The End Of Faith: Religion, Terror, and the Future of Reason", Sam Harris writes:

"While moderation in religion may seem a reasonable position to stake out, in light of all we have (and have not) learned about the universe, it offers no bulwark against religious extremism and religious violence. From the perspective of those seeking to live by the letter of the texts, the religious moderate is nothing more than a failed fundamentalist. He is, in all likelihood, going to wind up in hell with the rest of the unbelievers. The problem that religious moderation poses for all of us is that it does not permit anything very critical to be said about religious literalism."


Absolutely God Damned right. For the past week or so, we've seen the fundamentalist fringies, including the House and Senate Majority Leaders, come flying out of the woodwork to foist their theocratic agenda on a poor family in Florida, and while we have seen some medical ethicists weighing in on TV here and there, where are the religious moderates? It could be that the media is passing right over them, but shouldn't some of them come out vociferously stating that these lunatics are bad for most people of faith, and our culture and country as well? Jeebus Christ, who lets their ten year old kid get carted off in handcuffs? Why don't we just start burning witches at the stake again?

Back to Sam:

"Imagine that we could revive a well-educated Christian of the fourteenth century. The man would prove to be a total ignoramus, except on matters of faith."


Like Tom DeLay?

"With each passing year, do our religious beliefs conserve more and more of the data of human experience? If religion addresses a genuine sphere human understanding and necessity, then it would be susceptible to progress; its doctrines should become more useful, rather than less. Progress in religion, as in other fields, would have to be a matter of present inquiry, not the mere reiteration of past doctrine."


We as humans have been whacking away at those texts for over 2000 years, how much more can we possibly squeeze out of them?

When people run around killing doctors, and phoning Florida legislators saying things like, "I'm a Christian, and I hope you will die in your own vomit.", and praying that they die a painful death from stomach cancer, we've got a problem here folks.

Let's go to the dictionary: "the systematic use of terror especially as a means of coercion". These people are terrorists, plain and simple, and until moderate, sane political and clerical leaders come out and officially denounce these freakish sideshows, they'll continue to heap their madness on us all and take our democracy and our country with them.

(thanks to Billmon for the link)

CBS has a new poll out today

Here

Two things that jumped out at me:

SHOULD CONGRESS AND THE PRESIDENT BE INVOLVED IN SCHIAVO MATTER?

Yes
13%
No
82%


WHY DO YOU THINK CONGRESS GOT INVOLVED?

They care about Terri Schiavo
13%
Trying to advance political agenda
74%

Those are overwhelming majorities. I'm still curious about the political fallout. Is anyone going to lose their House or Senate seat over this? Probably not, but it looks to me like some politicians' "Political Capital" funds are hemoraging cash at nasty rate.

Wednesday, March 23, 2005

Iron Padded Douche Bag

Monkee Pants: Got 'Em? Neither do we here at The Marble.

There's a good chance you'll need them if you ever get around to reading Molly Ivans and Lou Dubose, because they have the definitive stories about that leaking pustule that embodies modern Republican thinking; Tom DeLay.

All I can say is Good Luck to "Small Government". Whatever that is...

Reactive Mamby-Pambys

Democrats that is. Okay, to be fair that's a little harsh because it's tough to gauge just how Democrats should react to the Shiavo case, especially given our current media culture. It is important for Democrats to point out that this play by the Republican leadership is a huge, unprecedented leap into uncharted Constitutional waters, but just how forcefully? If they play that angle up too much the Democrats will get slammed by the usual suspects for being uncaring and unsympathetic to this woman's family. I think it's obvious that Limbaugh, Hannity, Coulter, O'Reilly, and the rest are salivating at the chance to show just how callous Democrats are when it comes to these right-to-life issues, and they would all gladly raise a mighty stinkfest if any one of the party leaders started crowing loudly about states rights and the rule of law. So on one point it may be better to lay low for a bit and let Tom DeLay stomp around like a mad idiot. Heck, at least the American public will get to know who the guy really is. Let's all hope the good folks down in Sugarland, TX. come to their senses and vote The Esteemed Gentleman From Texas out of the House for good.

On to another point, who saw this coming? Should the Democrats have an individual nested in Harry Reid's Senatorial War Room dedicated to wading through the slop and see these things before they enter the media whirlwind? Maybe, but we're already seeing fissures within the Republican party from this article in the New York Times:
G.O.P. Right Is Splintered on Schiavo Intervention

We should all breathe a small sigh of relief that the Senate was allowed to enter a voice vote rather than having an additional congressional sideshow like the one we saw in the House.

So, maybe the Democrats could've come out a little more forcefully, but given the down side of speaking up in this environment, it may be better to let the Republican Clown Show garner all the bright lights.

More Monkees please, they're smarter...

FuzzFinger Lit On Fire

I guess this would be the kick-off post. So, here goes: Monkees Bring Good Cheer. That's right. Look at a picture of a monkey, any monkey, and tell me you don't smile just a little. We'll be getting into much more substantive issues here, but let's go with that thought for now.

-FF