Sunday Discussion Group

This may be a bit esoteric for a discussion-group topic — indeed, it’s possible none of you will like this at all — but I hoped to expand a bit on a subject that came up the other day. In trying to diagnose what, if anything, ails our democracy, a number of political scientists and […]

From one Bush gang to another

As it turns out, it’s probably a good thing Bush is reading Hamlet (or at least pretending to), because as Maureen Dowd noted today, there’s a Shakespearean drama being played out behind the scenes. Increasingly, the current president seems to be blaming Bush pere “for policies that led to 9/11 and the rise of Osama […]

The ‘half-Jewish cowboy from Phoenix’

You know the [tag]Republican Party[/tag] has shifted to the far-right when [tag]Barry Goldwater[/tag] starts to sound like a [tag]liberal[/tag]. An interview in this Sunday’s New York Times Magazine with C.C. Goldwater reveals that her HBO film to be aired Sept. 18 paints her late grandfather, Sen. Barry Goldwater, “as a kind of liberal,” with testimonials […]

The ‘Oscars of Idiocy’

My friends at the World Stupidity Awards emailed this week to let me know about their fourth annual event, with winners to be announced on Sept. 20. There are quite a few noteworthy categories and nominees, but I had a few favorites. * Stupidest Man Of The Year — Donald Thompson (District Judge – a.k.a. […]

This Week in God

First up from the God machine this week is a Baptist church that is filled with the Christian spirit — just as long as church officials approve of your racial background. Fellowship Baptist Church in Saltillo, Mississippi, voted out a 12-year-old boy who “asked Jesus to live in his heart” at the church two weeks […]

Sweet home Alabama: Where everyone’s a right-winger

Guest Post by Morbo Read the following party platform planks and take a guess at who wrote them: 1. Pass a constitutional amendment confirming that all life is a gift from God and should be protected; and that life begins at conception 2. Require public schools to offer Bible Literacy as part of their curriculum […]

Degrading gay bondage group sex invades Quality Inn

Guest Post by Morbo Apparently, some people, when they check in to hotels, view pornographic movies in their rooms. I know, I’m shocked too. People like to watch porn? You could have knocked me over with a feather boa! You’ll be happy to know that Focus on the Family is going to put a stop […]

The real ideologues who want a party purge

I’ll describe the scenario, you guess the race: a well-funded incumbent faces a primary challenge that strikes a chord with the party base. The party establishment rallies to the incumbent lawmaker’s aid, while the upstart challenger gets support from partisan activists and a nationally-known organization, which commits extensive resources to the campaign. In the end, […]

GOP slips as the party ‘friendly to religion’

After several months of Republicans hoping to prove their piety, a new report from the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life, a non-partisan organization, showed that the GOP’s efforts didn’t work — and maybe even did more harm than good. A new poll shows that fewer Americans view the Republican Party as “friendly to […]

‘Sean?’

I’ve made a conscious effort to ignore Ann [tag]Coulter[/tag] more, but if you haven’t seen her appearance last night on Hannity & Colmes, you missed a real gem. C&L and TP have the video. Sitting in for Alan [tag]Colmes[/tag] was guest host Kirsten Powers who did an exemplary job, not only on the substance, but […]