Plunging Towards Gomorrah
Posts tagged New York Times
Book “Smarts”
Jun 14th
As we move closer to November expect the Left’s sophomoric attacks on the Tea Party to continue. It appears that the Tea Party will be the whipping boy for liberals too stupid to understand it’s their policies that are the problem, not the homophobic and racist Tea Party. Take, for example, this recent op-ed in the New York Times by J.M. Bernstein. Bernstein channels his real world experience as a Distinguished Professor of Philosophy at the New School for Social Research (please note that none of the words in his “distinguished” title have any meaning in the real world in which 99.9 percent of us live).
It is not for the sake of acquiring political power that Tea Party activists demonstrate, rally and organize; rather, Lilla argues, the appeal is to “individual opinion, individual autonomy, and individual choice, all in the service of neutralizing, not using, political power.” He calls Tea Party activists a “libertarian mob” since they proclaim the belief “that they can do everything themselves if they are only left alone.” Lilla cites as examples the growth in home schooling, and, amidst a mounting distrust in doctors and conventional medicine, growing numbers of parents refusing to have their children vaccinated, not to mention our resurgent passion for self-diagnosis, self-medication and home therapies.
It makes sense that among Bernstein’s irrational fears would be home schooling. His career is philosophy and education; a career that thrives on the indoctination of others into his belief system. Bernstein would likely die if he had to work hard for a week day. Not that there’s anything wrong with philosophy, but he has no clue about politics or the concerns of the average American.
People of the Bernstein political/ideological persuasion are incapable of recognizing what’s going on in American politics. The President can do no wrong and liberal policies are never to blame. Instead, the only time liberals get trounced at the polls it’s because of angry lynch mobs. Where were these angry mobs in 2008 and 2006? Or did racists simply quit going to the polls for two elections?
Obama needs more time to write a book about what to do next.
Where does J.M. Bernstein learn about the Tea Party? His op-ed quotes Mark Lilla frequently. Who is Mark Lilla? Lilla is an expert on the Tea Party because he’s a frequent contributor to the New York Review of Books, the New Republic, and the New York Times. Plus, he’s a professor of the Humanities at Columbia University. Oh, the humanity!
I won’t lose much sleep over the sophist chattering classes of “higher education.” This class of people has been out of touch for decades. The problem is these are the type of people Obama surrounded with himself for decades (a.k.a., an ongoing “college seminar”). If Obama was only writing books and hanging out with anarchists at the local vegan organic coffee shop commune that would be perfectly fine, but these people have no business running a grocery store lemonade stand, let alone a country.
Al Gore Has Become Irelevent
Feb 28th
It was only a matter of time before Al Gore climbed out of his hole. Gore has an op-ed today in the New York Times and he’s still beating the dead horse he’s been riding for decades. The Vice President who cried wolf has been warning us for decades about global warming. Nothing alarming has happened to the climate in that time except the coverage of the climate. Anyway, it appears Gore has changed his talking points on climategate since his last ill-informed statement back in December
Unfortunately, the reality of the danger we are courting has not been changed by the discovery of at least two mistakes in the thousands of pages of careful scientific work over the last 22 years by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
The careful scientific work by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change? The sheer fact that the IPCC exists is an example of “governmental bias.” Is it really shocking that an entire panel created to study climate change found climate change? When “big oil” funds a scientific study the results are ignored by the alarmists. Alarmists have kindly ignored the big bucks being made thanks to climate change. For the past decade the climage change business has been booming. Al Gore has a financial stake in climate change and the mastermind of the 2007 IPCC report Dr Rajendra Pachauri is making money as well.
It was in this newspaper that we first revealed how Pachauri has earned millions of pounds for his Delhi-based research institute Teri, and further details are still emerging of how he has parlayed his position into a worldwide business empire, including 17 lucrative contracts from the EU alone. But we should not expect the truth to break in too suddenly on this mass of vested interests. Too many people have too much at stake to allow the faith in man-made global warming, which has sustained them so long and which is today making so many of them rich, to be abandoned.
The truth is finally starting to come on this sad tale. Al Gore has always been a political opportunist. Gore’s name on the Nobel Peace Prize disgraced the award long before Obama made it official. Gore’s Oscar for An Inconvenient Truth may go down in history as one of Hollywood’s most ignorant moments of all time (that’s saying something). In a way this is the worst thing that ever could happen to Gore. Losing the election was painful, but Gore has always cared deeply about what others think of him. As the fraud and bad science add up on the theory of man-made global so does the ridicule for Al Gore.
Gore is now remembered for two things he invented. Everyone knows Al Gore didn’t event the internet, but for many Gore is the face of the Global Warming swindle. Maybe I’m wrong. I’ve been wrong about Al Gore before, but something tells me the gig is up.
Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission
Feb 17th
I’m sad that I even have to waste time on this topic. A few weeks ago the Supreme Court struck down a provision of the McCain-Feingold Act that violates the First Amendment of the Constitution. While the story has been the outrage from the left and independents about the ruling (thanks in part to the horrible coverage in the press) the real story should be there are four justices on the Supreme Court who don’t understand Freedom of Speech. The ruling by the Supreme Court didn’t go far enough in protecting Free Speech as far as I’m concerned. Rodney Smith has an op-ed in the Washington Times that agrees with my position.
In Federalist 10, James Madison states that special interest groups will always exist and that we need to get use to them. He argues that “Liberty is to faction, what air is to fire. Human life is sustained by air. So is fire.” The elimination of air to eliminate the threat of fire would also mean the end of human life. Likewise, freedom is essential to both special interests and to vigorous political debate. Withdraw freedom from special interest and you destroy political life itself. This is exactly what campaign finance reform has done.
If tomorrow I decide to make a movie about a political candidate and it’s funded by a major film studio what business does the Federal Government have in telling me it’s not allowed? It may be unseemly to some that a corporation funds my movie but unseemly doesn’t rise to the point of restricting the First Amendment. The most frustrating part of this issue is there isn’t anyone adequately explaining why this decision was a victory for the First Amendment. It’s certainly not President Obama, who shamefully attacked the Supreme Court during the State of the Union. Obviously, the President either doesn’t understand or would rather score cheap populist points than tell the truth.
Why are corporations such as The New York Times, The Washington Post, and FOX News exempt from campaign finance laws? The editorial content of these news outlets is very political and is absolutely not objective. The reason these corporations are exempt is the same reason why campaign finance reform is unconstitutional. That’s what is so shocking to me about this issue. The four liberal members of the Supreme Court are okay with some corporations and some citizens being denied the Bill of Rights.
Real Problems: Lonely College Girls
Feb 7th
Carpe Diem does a good job discussing feminist hypocrisy in regards to gender equality in higher education; however it’s the article he links to in the New York Times that is classic. Imagine if the New York Times wrote an article like this about the lack of women on campus.
Leaving aside complaints about “affirmative action for boys,” less attention has been focused on the social ramifications. Thanks to simple laws of supply and demand, it is often the women who must assert themselves romantically or be left alone on Valentine’s Day, staring down a George Clooney movie over a half-empty pizza box.
I’m sorry if I’m completely unconcerned about the average college female’s prospects for landing a date on Valentine’s Day. In a world full of problems this isn’t one. It seems as if the average college male of the 1950s survived not having a lot of women around. I know this is a surprising observation but the goal of college is to secure an eduction.
Krugman the Hypocrite
Feb 5th
Paul Krugman is such a sad fellow. His partisan rants in the New York Times make “progressives” feel good about their terrible economic practices. They think to themselves, “Krugman is an economist and he agrees with us, so we must be doing something right.”
Now Krugman is upset at Republicans for moaning about deficits. It seems he’s not very concerned about the growing debt:
Many economists take a much calmer view of budget deficits than anything you’ll see on TV. Nor do investors seem unduly concerned: U.S. government bonds continue to find ready buyers, even at historically low interest rates
That’s all well and good. Those crazy Republicans are just trying to scare the public like they did about Iraq. I wonder what Krugman thought about deficits during the Bush administration? Oh, I don’t have to wonder, Google enables me to search myself. Here’s Krugman’s take on deficits in 2003:
Still, do deficits matter? Some economists worry, with good reason, about their long-run effect on economic growth. But I worry most about America’s fiscal credibility.
You see, a government that has a reputation for sound finance and honest budgets can get away with running temporary deficits; if it lacks such a reputation, it can’t. Right now the U.S. government is running deficits bigger, as a share of GDP, than those that plunged Argentina into crisis. The reason we don’t face a comparable crisis is that markets, extrapolating from our responsible past, trust us to get our house in order.
Well Mr. Krugman, which one is it? American fiscal credibility is much worse in 2010 than it was in 2003, but now he’s completely changed his attitude. It seems Krugman is only concerned with deficits when a Republican is in charge. Krugman’s observations aren’t from an economics standpoint, but they represent the views of a bitter hypocritical liberal quite well.
Does Krugman even bother to read his own drivel?
The Partisan Economist: Paul Krugman
Nov 30th
I deeply respect what Paul Krugman accomplished as an economist. His work in new trade theory earned a Nobel Prize in economics. However, he has become so partisan in his editorials that he is quickly diminishing his reputation. He was on This Week with George Snuffleupagus… I mean Stephanopoulos… and he claimed that in the climate change debate “there is tremendously more money in being a skeptic than there is in being a supporter.” This ridiculous statement earned Krugman the Watts Up With That? quote of the week. I guess we can give Krugman a break since it appears climate change is not his area of expertise.
I wish that was the only problem with Krugman. Last week he wrote an article about the Tobin tax that was odd. It’s odd because for someone who is supposedly an intellectual giant in economics, he’s completely naïve when it comes to tax evasion. Greg Mankiw was left scratching his head after reading Krugman’s claim that financial transactions will not be moved if there’s a Tobin tax.
This is the danger of extreme partisanship, especially in regard to economics. Krugman is basically just endorsing whatever stupid new plan the Democrats come up with. From an economics perspective the Democrats don’t have many bright ideas right now. For Krugman I guess he’s decided to sheath the sword and just deal with the fallout. As long as the Democrats keep dreaming up new ways to tax productive people investors are going to quit investing. Until investors have confidence again the economy is going to stall. It seems like Krugman would understand this simple concept, but it appears he can’t see through his political blinders.
thankful for climate change fraud
Nov 26th
There are plenty of things to be thankful for this year. One of my favorites is the climategate scandal. I’ve been writing about this topic for years. The theory of climate change is a religion to some people. How else can one justify the behavior of these scientists? Make no mistake; this scandal damages the theory. Michael Mann isn’t some fringe scientist (not be confused with the brilliant movie director who can make even 18th Century America seem like Miami in 1984). This particular Michael Mann invented the infamous hockey stick graph that turned out to be garbage. However, the initial findings were huge news, but once it was proven to be a fraud the press ignored it. The New York Times, which is partly wrapped up in this mess, wants to ignore it. How about a congressional investigation? The American taxpayer is giving money to these clowns. The press may want to ignore this but the truth is out. There is no alarming warming. There’s no alarming climate change.
the american left: fear and self-loathing
Aug 30th
Today I was reading the horrible story in the New York Times about prison rape in Iran. It’s been a problem for a long time and largely ignored by the state of Iran. This isn’t very surprising; Iran turns a blind eye toward a lot of human rights violations. The Times discusses how young women are raped prior to execution so they “don’t go to heaven.” It’s a very disgusting practice.
At the end of the story are the usual comments, and that’s where the self-loathing begins.
Those who try to picture America as high on the horse of morality are fools that are being led blind by their low instincts, not civility. Let’s stop trying to diabolize others, when here, we are worst that all the Arabs put together. Their capacity to do evil is not as big as ours, ergo, evil didn’t meet evil until it met us. — Fathertime4
Why do some members of the left hate the United States so much? This story has nothing to do with the United States but most of the comments are from leftists complaining about the United States. If the United States is so horrible why are these clowns in favor of larger government?
Guess what, the U.S. is not the becon on the hill in terms of human rights or democracy anymore. We advocate prisoner rape, torture, and hold suspects indefintely without due process or the right to challenge evidence against them. The becon on the hill torch has been passed to progressive northern European nations (Canada?). Human rights must apply to all if they are to apply to anyone. The biggest shame for me is the fact that we have to explain away our endorsement of abuse. — James
The United States advocates prisoner rape and torture? I guess if this is a person’s worldview I could understand why someone would hate the U.S. It’s a ridiculous statement by any stretch of the imagination. These self-loathers all need to take a class on and in reality. This isn’t a perfect world and there are no perfect countries. Liberals have perfected the the faux parallel. Governor Mark Sanford is a scumbag who cheated on his wife, so he shouldn’t be in public office. President Clinton is absolved because Thomas Jefferson slept with his slave. Senator Helms was a terrible politician because he was from North Carolina and he must be racist. Senator Kennedy was a saint, and if you want to talk about manslaughter don’t forget Laura Bush. Oh yeah, Senator McCain lied about being a POW.
Why haven’t liberals used this same standard for the country they live in? The United States isn’t perfect, but neither are the Germans, Japanese, French, English, and Italians. The sin of slavery didn’t start in the United States. Racism isn’t just an American problem. What is the model nation for these liberals? The closest I can come to is My Little Pony Land, but the land would end up decimated in a long and bloody war when the ponies were forced to live under the rule of a bunch of left-wing Utopian wackoes.
more bad polls from cbs/new york times
Mar 1st
I had hoped that the New York Times would quit writing stories based on their polls after their dismal record during the election. So count me unimpressed when a CBS/NYT poll comes out and says Ailing G.O.P. Risks Losing a Generation. This is story built on a liberal narrative. What is the truth? Well, thankfully there is a reliable poll that tracks the Generic Congressional Ballot. This poll is worth watching over the next two years as the nation approaches the mid-term elections.
Rasmussen’s track record the past four years is amazing. On election day the Democrats enjoyed a six point lead 47-41. According to the last poll by Rasmussen it’s only four points 41-37. On the 15th of February it was only a two point lead. The New York Times headline is misleading. The real news is that voters have moved Republican since the election. Meanwhile Obama’s approval rating sits at 58%. I can guarantee what the headline would be if a Republican’s approval rating dropped ten points in one month… “President Approval Drops Sharply.” I won’t hold my breath.
