Friday is the day for fun, slightly less politically oriented commentaries around here. After the week - or really, the election season - we've all had around here, we could definitely do with a dose of unity and positivity. Yet that message hasn't seemed to have gotten through to everyone. While the President has communicated he's willing to compromise and work WITH Republicans, Republican congressional leadership seems to be telling Obama to... do offensive things to himself. We thought it might be good to take one more last look at the real message from last weekend's "Rally for Sanity and/or Fear" with Jon Stewart.
Our staff who were at the rally had a lot of fun - and saw a lot of crazy signs. More importantly, we think Mr. Stewart's message is even more important now than it was before the election.
All of us agree with most of what Jon Stewart said in his closing speech. So we've clipped out what we think are the most important parts, and we'll let his message take you into this weekend.
"We live now in hard times - but NOT end times. We can have animus, and not be enemies. Unfortunately, one of our main tools in delineating the two broke.
This country's 24-hour, political pundit perpetual panic conflictinator did not cause our problems, but its existence makes solving them that much harder. The press can hold its magnifying glass up to our problems, bringing them into focus, illuminating issues heretofore unseen. Or they can use that magnifying glass to light ants on fire, and then perhaps host a week of shows on the dangerous, unexpected flaming ants epidemic. If we amplify everything, we hear nothing....
The press is our immune system. If it overreacts to everything, we actually get sicker... yet - I feel good. Strangely, calmly, good. Because the image of Americans that is reflected back to us by our political and media process is false...
We hear every damned day about how fragile our country is, on the brink of catastrophe, torn by polarizing hate, and how it's a shame that we can't work together to get things done. The truth is, we do! We work together to get things done - Every. Damned. Day! The only place we don't is here [Congress] or on cable TV! But Americans don't live here, or on cable TV. Where we live, our values and principles form the foundation that sustains us while we get things done--not the barriers that prevent us from getting things done.
[Like cars going into the Holland Tunnel]... this is us. Every one of [those cars] is filled with individuals of strong belief and principles they hold dear--often principles and beliefs in direct opposition to their fellow travelers'. And yet, these millions of cars must somehow find a way to squeeze, one by one, into a mile-long, 30-foot-wide tunnel, carved underneath a mighty river.
And they do it, concession by concession: you go, then I'll go. You go, then I'll go... [It works] Because we know, instinctively, as a people, that if we are to get through the darkness and back into the light, we have to work together. And the truth is there will always be darkness. And sometimes, the light at the end of the tunnel isn't the promised land.
Sometimes, it's just New Jersey. But we do it anyway, together."
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Monday, November 1, 2010
Final Thoughts on Decision 2010: The Tea Party Is Over
Over the next two days, we're going to attempt to boil down our thoughts on this year's election into two commentaries. Today, we're focusing more on those on the political right.
For all the hoopla, media coverage, and intensity - whether manufactured by folks like Karl Rove and Dick Armey, or occasionally genuine - the usefulness of the Tea Party to the Republican Party power structure is rapidly nearing its end.
We're not saying Republicans will fail tomorrow. We have no doubt that they'll pick up a measurable amount of congressional seats in this election. It's a mid-term election; the opposition almost always wins more seats than the party that has been in power. That many media outlets have been attempting to spin this as something new is dishonest, but sadly unsurprising.
What some pundits and political insiders - including the Republican leadership - are beginning to admit is something that we predicted would happen. The seats that these new members of Congress, new Governors, and others occupy won't be nearly as powerful as the most fervent far-right Tea Party supporters wish they were - and the change the Tea Partiers are hoping for is about as likely to occur as all of mankind being able to suddenly fly like birds. If you think most of the political amateurs who might win tomorrow are real fiscal conservatives, what you've been drinking is more likely kool-aid than tea.
Those wealthy individuals, corporations, and even foreign governments, who spent literally billions on this year's campaigns didn't just throw their money at politics because they were tired of buying things they didn't need. They were attempting to secure a permanent stranglehold on power. There is no way those same rich people are going to simply let political neophytes kick down the doors of their carefully constructed private world.
This isn't just hyperbole. Republican leaders of nearly every stripe have made it clear that their goals, once elected, aren't to help small businesses, or generate jobs for millions of unemployed workers. Their goal is political revenge. They've successfully ducked the issue of where they're going to make the massive budget cuts they've promised. They've "conveniently" not locked themselves into eliminating earmarks. They certainly won't be shrinking the size of government by eliminating government jobs, by cutting military bases in their districts, or attacking Social Security. They won't be able to roll back many, if any, of the provisions of the Health Care Insurance Reform. And they haven't said anything about re-instituting better regulation of Wall Street or campaign finance.
What Republican leaders have made clear is that they have only one goal: getting back into power, at any cost - then keeping it at any cost. This year, that included feeding their political appetites with the assistance of crazies on the far right. But now it's time to dispose of the Tea Bags, like they always do at their exclusive clubs when the main course is over.
All that will be left for true fiscal conservatives after this political meal are the post-election suckers.
For all the hoopla, media coverage, and intensity - whether manufactured by folks like Karl Rove and Dick Armey, or occasionally genuine - the usefulness of the Tea Party to the Republican Party power structure is rapidly nearing its end.
We're not saying Republicans will fail tomorrow. We have no doubt that they'll pick up a measurable amount of congressional seats in this election. It's a mid-term election; the opposition almost always wins more seats than the party that has been in power. That many media outlets have been attempting to spin this as something new is dishonest, but sadly unsurprising.
What some pundits and political insiders - including the Republican leadership - are beginning to admit is something that we predicted would happen. The seats that these new members of Congress, new Governors, and others occupy won't be nearly as powerful as the most fervent far-right Tea Party supporters wish they were - and the change the Tea Partiers are hoping for is about as likely to occur as all of mankind being able to suddenly fly like birds. If you think most of the political amateurs who might win tomorrow are real fiscal conservatives, what you've been drinking is more likely kool-aid than tea.
Those wealthy individuals, corporations, and even foreign governments, who spent literally billions on this year's campaigns didn't just throw their money at politics because they were tired of buying things they didn't need. They were attempting to secure a permanent stranglehold on power. There is no way those same rich people are going to simply let political neophytes kick down the doors of their carefully constructed private world.
This isn't just hyperbole. Republican leaders of nearly every stripe have made it clear that their goals, once elected, aren't to help small businesses, or generate jobs for millions of unemployed workers. Their goal is political revenge. They've successfully ducked the issue of where they're going to make the massive budget cuts they've promised. They've "conveniently" not locked themselves into eliminating earmarks. They certainly won't be shrinking the size of government by eliminating government jobs, by cutting military bases in their districts, or attacking Social Security. They won't be able to roll back many, if any, of the provisions of the Health Care Insurance Reform. And they haven't said anything about re-instituting better regulation of Wall Street or campaign finance.
What Republican leaders have made clear is that they have only one goal: getting back into power, at any cost - then keeping it at any cost. This year, that included feeding their political appetites with the assistance of crazies on the far right. But now it's time to dispose of the Tea Bags, like they always do at their exclusive clubs when the main course is over.
All that will be left for true fiscal conservatives after this political meal are the post-election suckers.
Friday, October 29, 2010
Friday Funday: Something Worth Watching
Normally on Fridays, we tend to turn away from politics and other more serious topics, and we aim for a tone that's just a bit lighter.
Since the midterm election is coming up next Tuesday, we thought we'd compromise, somewhat, and focus on events that are both political - and a bit lighter.
Today, that means focusing on Jon Stewart's event in Washington, DC.
In case you were unaware, the third major political rally of this year is happening this weekend in Washington, DC, the semi-satirical "Rally To Restore Sanity." The first major political rally of this year was Glenn Beck's event, at the end of August. It was an event filled with angry Republicans and Tea Party members, many of whom were disappointed when Mr. Beck made the rally less overtly political than he'd led them to believe it would be.
The second, arguably larger rally, was the "One Nation" event, led by a combination of mostly liberal and progressive groups. While their rally was both more political and more diverse than Beck's event, the second rally still had a tinge of anger to it, primarily aimed towards those on the far right.
This weekend's rally is different, and we think possibly, more valuable to all of us.
At The Daily Felltoon, we often talk about serious subjects in our commentary. We try to do it in a relatively balanced way, that helps you, our audience, think about topics more deeply. Of course, Paul's cartoons are often the much-needed laugh that makes the serious subjects we all address seem not quite so ominous and scary. In that way, the entire Daily Felltoon newsletter ends up being somewhat like Mr. Stewart's "Daily Show".
The point that Mr. Stewart, and his fellow comedian, Mr. Colbert, are making this weekend with their mocking political rallies is actually one we discuss with each other, on a regular basis - and one we've mentioned here many times before.
No matter who wins next week - or next month, whenever they get done with the recounts - every American will still have something in common: we're all Americans. Most of us also want things in our country to get better, not just for ourselves, but for everyone else too. Things won't get that way if we're busy fighting with each, beating each other up, stomping on one another, or attempting to buy enough advertising to brainwash those who think differently than we do.
Americans voted for change, overwhelmingly two years ago - and most polls still think Americans want more change, not less. We want more jobs, better legislators, better schools, more just tax rates, and less debt than we have now. Even if things are better than when Mr. Obama took over, they're not good enough yet - and Americans want to change that.
As Jon Stewart - and we - point out daily, finding some humor amidst difficult subjects and discussing them sanely, even with those with whom we disagree, is a far better way to get through life than trying to bash in the skulls of those we disagree with.
For those of you enjoying the rally this weekend?
Have fun.
Since the midterm election is coming up next Tuesday, we thought we'd compromise, somewhat, and focus on events that are both political - and a bit lighter.
Today, that means focusing on Jon Stewart's event in Washington, DC.
In case you were unaware, the third major political rally of this year is happening this weekend in Washington, DC, the semi-satirical "Rally To Restore Sanity." The first major political rally of this year was Glenn Beck's event, at the end of August. It was an event filled with angry Republicans and Tea Party members, many of whom were disappointed when Mr. Beck made the rally less overtly political than he'd led them to believe it would be.
The second, arguably larger rally, was the "One Nation" event, led by a combination of mostly liberal and progressive groups. While their rally was both more political and more diverse than Beck's event, the second rally still had a tinge of anger to it, primarily aimed towards those on the far right.
This weekend's rally is different, and we think possibly, more valuable to all of us.
At The Daily Felltoon, we often talk about serious subjects in our commentary. We try to do it in a relatively balanced way, that helps you, our audience, think about topics more deeply. Of course, Paul's cartoons are often the much-needed laugh that makes the serious subjects we all address seem not quite so ominous and scary. In that way, the entire Daily Felltoon newsletter ends up being somewhat like Mr. Stewart's "Daily Show".
The point that Mr. Stewart, and his fellow comedian, Mr. Colbert, are making this weekend with their mocking political rallies is actually one we discuss with each other, on a regular basis - and one we've mentioned here many times before.
No matter who wins next week - or next month, whenever they get done with the recounts - every American will still have something in common: we're all Americans. Most of us also want things in our country to get better, not just for ourselves, but for everyone else too. Things won't get that way if we're busy fighting with each, beating each other up, stomping on one another, or attempting to buy enough advertising to brainwash those who think differently than we do.
Americans voted for change, overwhelmingly two years ago - and most polls still think Americans want more change, not less. We want more jobs, better legislators, better schools, more just tax rates, and less debt than we have now. Even if things are better than when Mr. Obama took over, they're not good enough yet - and Americans want to change that.
As Jon Stewart - and we - point out daily, finding some humor amidst difficult subjects and discussing them sanely, even with those with whom we disagree, is a far better way to get through life than trying to bash in the skulls of those we disagree with.
For those of you enjoying the rally this weekend?
Have fun.
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