Disqus - Latest Comments for joegandelman

Re: Sean Hannity Apologizes to Jon Stewart Who….(Etc.)

JeffersonDavis — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 21:34:43 -0000

Joe,

In Austin's defense, I attended all of the Tea Parties in my area. Not ONCE did any of us refer to ourselves as "Tea Baggers" or to our event as "Tea Bag Parties". Not once.

Just because ANY media outlet calls it that, does not make it right. And contrary to your probable believe, the make up of the crowd at the Tea Parties was approximately 1/3 democrat. SHOCKING!! The media, and no doubt you, presumed it was a massive neocon/GOP effort. That may have been the case for many of the participants, but for me (A social-conservative moderate Democrat) it was not. It was a frustration with Congress, the Bush/Obama bailouts, multi-Trillion dollar heathcare, and impending debt that we cannot afford to pass to the children.

I know this has all been said before. But as long as conservatives and liberals alike continue to miscategorize the impetus behind the Tea Parties, or belittle their meaning, here I'll be on the soapbox.

Re: Sean Hannity Apologizes to Jon Stewart Who….(Etc.)

Doriancito — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 12:33:19 -0000

Way to go, Joe!

The question was: "The issue is Stewart's bit: was it good, lousey? Out of line? "

My answer/opinion: Stewart was magnificent!

Guys and gals, please express your opinion about Jon Stewart, but please don't kill the messenger...again

Re: Sean Hannity Apologizes to Jon Stewart Who….(Etc.)

AustinRoth — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 12:29:53 -0000

Fine, don't comment, but I find it very difficult to believe that someone as well read as you are on current events is not aware of how the terms 'tea bag' and 'tea-baggers' have been turned into a derogatory term for the tea protests. And you quoted and then used that derogatory term yourself on your very last post preceding this one, which is why I thought it relevant.

And of course Stewart's bit was funny. He is our most consistent political and observational humorist, and I rank him up there the very best, on par with H.L Mencken and possibly even Twain.

Re: Sean Hannity Apologizes to Jon Stewart Who….(Etc.)

joegandelman — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 12:13:16 -0000

Austin: Your comment above is NOT appreciated. This is so typical of how internet blogging works. When the first protests started in fact some general medias (not just msnbc) called them tea bag protests because bags being sent out in protest. If I used that phrase in other posts you COULD have simply sent me a polite email and I would have changed it. Most of my blog posts are done on days when I am in meetings, performing at venues or driving or flying huge distances. For instance, I am out the door in about two minutes. But rather than contact me you decide to put on the internet that I am 'slurring": the protesters, as if I'm sitting around rubbing my hands with glee. This couild have been corrected in other posts if I had gotten a simple email and I frankly can't tell you how i phrased it since I do these quickly. I generally won't respond to this kind of thing but you put this here as a comment and I can't let it stand. I think we should both move on but in the future kindly email me if you have concern before you write thing that are in fact inaccurate. I don't demonize YOU in your comments that you've left on other issues and I would be highly appreciative if you avoid doing it to me. The issue is Stewart's bit: was it good, lousey? Out of line? Could Hannity be correct and therefore could Stewart be taking a cheap shot? But as usual blog comments somehow have to evolve (or devolve) in going after the person who wrote something that someone doesn't like. We both should move on but I will say this again: had you contacted me by email when a given post ran it would take about a second to change it.

And, in FACT, it is stil being used and not just by the left. Check out Google News and Google Web. You'll see some on the left using "tea bag protest" and some that are not ideological sites using it. On this post above, I didn't use it because I was aware this WAS a controversy and the intent of some who use it is political. If you saw it other posts, I just did it on auto pilot and you COULD have sent me an email pointing it out -- an email not in attack mode.
http://news.google.com/news?hl=en&source=hp&q=t...
http://www.google.com/webhp?hl=en&ned=us&tab=nw...

I won't be commenting on this in the future.

Re: Ex-Miss USA Carrie Prejean Flips Out On CNN’s Larry King

joegandelman — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 13:32:40 -0000

You put in the comment as this was corrected.

Re: Rush Limbaugh To Be Miss America Pageant Judge

twitter-17738656 — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 19:28:38 -0000

I see this is supposed to be an Internet hub for moderates. Could you please give me a link to someone who is actually moderate who posts here? Cause for my money the demonizing of Rush Limbaugh, who doesn't demonize anyone (he criticizes, and strongly, lots of people but he rarely calls anyone who hasn't actually killed someone else evil) For my money, if you think conservatives are not acceptable in polite society, you aren't really a moderate.

Re: Rush Limbaugh To Be Miss America Pageant Judge

joegandelman — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 12:06:07 -0000

I would LOVE to run a link providing you can send me some info about Perez Hilton's hugely popular cable or radio talk show and about how some think (rightfully or wrongfully) PH is the de facto head of a political party or an ideological movement. I can't tell you how much I love it on the internet when you write a post and someone comes back and tries to change the subject from the post by going on the attack by throwing out a comment that seems like it was written by a writer from The Onion. You're welcome to address the subject of this post and Limbaugh being a host or demanding to see links I ran about Michael Moore, Pee Wee Hermany or Woody Woodpecker. I won't be in comments all day so ENJOY. But the subject here -- I THINK -- is how the pageant used to be a family event, a unifying event that everyone watched, how changes in attitudes have reduced its audience, how it seeks to get it back (I neglected to add how it has run the final event as part of a reality series), and how Limbaugh has his many fans but is anathema to many Americans because of the way he treats those with whom he disagrees with such contempt. You can challenge me all you want on Perez Hilton or throw in Chris Matthews. It ain't the same thing. See ya.

Re: Dancing With The Stars Will No Longer Feature The Dancing Feet of Tom DeLay

joegandelman — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 23:32:19 -0000

Why I'm so happy you loved it. I will be sure to run more of these. Your snark aside, in fact, every single post on a website or blog doesn't have to be a deadly serious political analysis. Since the site started we have run some features, reviews, cartoons, videos, things on comedy and an occasional fun piece. Sorry you didn't like it but you will see more posts that aren't the usual breathless issue posts that all blogs are running these days. If anything, websites need to run more foreign news and features,offbeat features, humor. So thanks for the comments. I'll make sure I put more of a lot of these up since you enjoyed it so much.

Re: Newsmax Calls for a Military Coup in U.S.

CStanley — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 11:58:17 -0000

I truly don't understand this.

If I read it correctly, you acknowledge that some leftist bloggers and talk show hosts questioned the legitimacy of GWB's presidency. But since the mainstream Democrats did not, and Al Gore eventually conceded, you didn't find it a turn off that the fringe left refused to accept the legitimacy of GWB as POTUS.

Similarly, you acknowledge that the mainstream of the GOP is not now questioning the legitimacy of Obama's presidency, and although you didn't mention it, I think it goes without saying that John McCain has never questioned the legitimacy of his loss.

So why is it now such a turnoff that you don't think that the voters who might be dissatisfied with Obama's presidency or with the Dem led Congress can't possibly consider voting GOP as a counterbalance, since some fringe of the GOP is doing exactly what some fringe Dems did during the last administration?

Re: Newsmax Calls for a Military Coup in U.S.

joegandelman — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 11:37:32 -0000

I just got back from a trip where I drove 1200 miles since Sunday. Kathy beat me to it on this one. I don't have time today for comments but I need to add this:

An even bigger issue that I see emerging here is that on several fronts SOME conservative Republicans basically have the narrative: unless you elected a conservative Republican who agrees with US the government is evil, the President is illegitimate, etc., our country is threatened.

Two things about this: 1. Someone like me has voted for Republicans over the years and used to be one. I cannot say how absolutely turned off I am by this kind of rhetoric. I start tuning out those who indulge in it because it is as extremist to me as the far left that I opposed during the Vietnam War was during the 60s. 2. Conservatives who use the Unless You Elected Our People It's Not Democracy rhetoric are setting themselves up for a very difficult time the next time the election cycle changes and they get a conservative Republican in the White House. American democracy has always functioned by Americans who are on the losing side accepting the legitimacy of those who won. And before I hear about all Democrats saying that Bush didn't really win, Al Gore accepted the election results and the Democratic mainstream did not make that an issue for 8 years. There were other issues and some leftist bloggers and talk show hosts raised it. But most Democrats accepted the legitimacy of the government. It can't be accurately stated now that MOST Republicans are calling Obama illegitmate or a threat to America as we know it. But this fringe is a huge turn off; if this rhetoric wasn't so extremist the GOP would probably have more people voting for it in 2010 who are disappointed with Obama (in terms of what he has done and hasn't done). But these are voters who will differ from Obama on policy and will not want to cast votes for people who seem agreeing with those who are politically foaming at the mouth.

This is NOT the Republican mainstream But it is a total turn off. Some people hold their nose and vote for the party that they feel stinks less. The Democrats now seem to be heading in a direction where they will be at war with each other over the public option. This segment of conservatives who are painting Obama as a Marxist, Nazi, Socialist...are not helping the image of conservatism, except among those who eagerly contribute to infomercials to fund groups that want to pursue the birther issue.

A realistic chance of a coup? Highly unlikely.

Newsmax has its sources but as a longtime professional journalist who worked not just here but overseas I will say what any reporter can tell you: there are LOTS of sources you can use. But because you have a source doesn't mean that source represents a consensus.

A reporter or columnist can say "sources say" or "analysts say" but how many sources is that against a context of available sources? And are they talking to sources who already agree with them?

Military coup? This is kind of like a Code Pink on the right but with bigger paranoia issues. You read this and can just hear The Twlight Zone theme.

FOOTNOTE: I've read Newxmax for years and even subscribed to its magazine for a while. I don't link to it and its reporting. I consider it on the same line as a lot of the Matt Drudge EXCLUSIVE REPORTS! that have occasionally shown up, prove to be inaccurate, and just vanish from the DR without a correction or follow up. I know of at least one more conservative blogger who years ago said the same thing.

NOW if they do an article that later shows up in MAINSTREAM MEDIA reporting, then I'll link to it. I figure the mainstream media will pursue it if it is valid. I know some bloggers will denounce that attitude since the mainstream media is untrustworthy (unless you link to it in about 85 percent of your posts, quote its news stories and opinion columns and make its content the basis on which you do your blog...THEN you trust it when you need it), but if AP or the WaPO wrote about rumblings about a coup..THEN I'd run it. I'll leave the Story That'll Bust This Town Wide Open to others.

Again, I was going to do a post on this with my point above on sources and the image this is creating that some conservatives cannot accept election results, yet will fully expect Americans who don't agree with them to accept it when their candidates win (which they will at some future stage since political history is cyclical)

I think this piece Kathy linked to is more significant because it is one more indication of how Obama is being painted as a danger to American that "real" patriots see as such. Troubling to say the least.

Re: ABC Denies It Ever Said Yesterday’s Protest Rally Had 1 Million People

vey9 — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 11:04:36 -0000

He's an expert at everything. Just like Dr. Frist (remember him?), the heart and lung surgeon ex-Senator who made a long distance diagnosis of Terri Schiavo saying that all the neurologist doctors on the scene were wrong.

Never let facts get in the way of "experts" like these two.

Re: ABC Denies It Ever Said Yesterday’s Protest Rally Had 1 Million People

joegandelman — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 10:37:30 -0000

Make sure you contact the AP and other news organzations and let them know you can estimate a crowd better than the police or any agency by looking at a photo. You could make a fortune since no one has ever had that talent. Congradulations! CORRECTION: I'm sure Glenn and Rush and Sean have that talent, too. I'm sure we'll see and hear it on display on Monday. Also, be sure to contact Rupert Murdoch since hsi Wall Street Journal and Sky News both got it wrong.

Re: Newest Hero To Some: Rep. Joe Wilson Who Yelled “You Lie” At Obama

superdestroyer — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 07:30:24 -0000

Joe,

I guess as the Democratic Party become the one relevant political party and progressives in the U.S feel the need to defend every half-lie, deception, or vagueness that the Democratic bucket will get heavier and heavier. I guess when it becomes between demanding accountability or defending Democratic lies, we know what side Joe is now on.

I remember when the left promised to not make the mistakes of the Republicans and hold the Obama Administration accountable for what the Obama administration said and did. I guess that was a lie too.

Re: Newest Hero To Some: Rep. Joe Wilson Who Yelled “You Lie” At Obama

AustinRoth — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 04:56:01 -0000

Nor did I imply you did Joe.

I am the one saying he has brought shame on the GOP as a party IF the leadership fails to condemn his outburst. At least for now, that does seem to be happening.

Re: Newest Hero To Some: Rep. Joe Wilson Who Yelled “You Lie” At Obama

joegandelman — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 04:49:01 -0000

Note that in my post I NEVER day say all Republicans or all conservatives (I
myself voted for Ronald Reagan and was a Republican before I became an
independent voter).. Not all Republicans condone what is going on now. I
know many thoughtful Republicans and they are aghast at some of what they
see unfolding because it's ruining the image of a party for which they
worked so hard. Some are now former Republicans and independent voters
because of this.

Re: Newest Hero To Some: Rep. Joe Wilson Who Yelled “You Lie” At Obama

joegandelman — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 04:42:43 -0000

Leonidas also make sure you immediately inform the New York Times about their huge error in their story that just was posted on the web. Here is the link and the section you need to tell them is flat out wrong:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/10/us/politics/1...
Other Democrats said they did not want to dwell on the outburst or allow it to overshadow what they saw as an effective address by the president. But they also said it bolstered their contention that some Republicans were not interested in constructive dialogue, and they noted that Democratic plans specifically barred coverage for illegal immigrants.

It's very important that you set Newsweek, The Politico and the Times straight that their reporting is incorrect and that they run retractions. As I noted, Glenn and Sean and Rush will have the facts tomorrow, I'm sure, just as surely as tree roots will fall from the sky.

Re: Newest Hero To Some: Rep. Joe Wilson Who Yelled “You Lie” At Obama

AustinRoth — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 04:41:07 -0000

Joe - we haven't agreed on a lot for a while, but I wholeheartedly agree that Wilson has brought shame on himself, and until and unless strong condemnation is forthcoming from Republican leasdership, upon the GOP as well.

Ignore any aspect of the 'was what he said factually correct' angle. It was as disrespectful an act of contempt towards the office of the Presidency and of Congress as a body as I have can remember in my life.

While there is strong partisan feelings in Washington and the country today, and has been historically in the past as well, I am unaware of any previous incident of this nature toward the President during a joint session.

Re: Newest Hero To Some: Rep. Joe Wilson Who Yelled “You Lie” At Obama

joegandelman — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 04:21:38 -0000

Make sure you foward your links also about Wilson being correct to The Politico and Newsweek and other non-blog, non-ideological publications so they can run corrections. I see that some other mainstream news organizations are also reporting what these two have reported, and someone needs to set them all straight. I'm sure Glenn Beck will deliver an accurate account of all of this tomorrow, too. Be sure to post the iPod link in comments so we can all be enlightened.

Re: Book Review: I’m Hosting as Fast as I Can

joegandelman — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 11:49:20 -0000

I don't know what it was about AVF's former and talented host Bob Saget that grated on me so much when he was the host. I could not watch that show for more than a few minutes without turning it off. Perhaps its because as a fan of classic and even corny humor Saget didn't do that well. In interviews, Saget didn't seem to feel totally proud of his gig there. In any event, TB is a JOY to watch. He seems geniuinely funny in any venue - not forced, not egotistical. Just funny and pleasant. As an entertainer, when I watch him I always hope some of his likability and ease rubs off on me and that I come across as well as he does. Many people don't realize that there is a real gold mine in many show biz bios, since people don't usually just appear on the national scene but usually have to work years before they get their "big break" and others may work under the radar and be busy and never get that break. I view him as the perfect emcee who could have succeeded in any ear in show biz. And, no, I never met him or Saget. Saget is said to be a superb comedy club performer and is respected by many pros for his work in that and other venues.

Re: Quote of the Day: Where Is America’s Partisan Political Ugliness Heading?

joegandelman — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 16:38:14 -0000

TYRONE ET. AL: I'm offline for most of the day and need to copy this so I can paste this when I need it (about three times a week).

1. Polls show that moderates, independents and centrists are not monolithic. 2. When someone from the left or right (and sometimes they believe only they are the center) about a post or a site not being moderate or centrist it usually means there is a post or idea they don't agree with or don't like so that means the other person can't be moderate. 3. This mantra that starts up (it happens on posts we have that may be more to the center right, center left or flat out center) is usually a diversionary flourish: rather than address the issue in the post, someone decides to try and turn it into a debate about the writer or a website (not just TMV). In fact, the issues are the issues in this post and over 100 comments show that most people are debating the issues or raising new ones related to the post. That is what we love to see in comments..

4. TMV has a ton of writers and we also run guest voices from the right or left (READ the description of the site at the top). And if some people don't like us running a viewpoint or giving an honest take, then that's life. But we will continue to give our honest take on events. Turning threads into discussions about whether a post fits someone who veers left or right's opinion of what a real moderate is (i.e. how THEY view something) is really not what comments are all about -- and doesn't reflect the reality of polls that show that, yes, moderates, centrists and independent voters do not all vote alike and to be a moderate does not mean you talk or sound like a CSPAN host.

But the bottom line is that when that starts up it's a sign that someone has either run out of arguments or is trying to put a writer on the defensive. It's quite old, a cliche by now and will not impact us offering our honest takes on events and running a variety of content and Guest Voices on TMV.

Re: Sarah Palin’s Imagery Management Is About To Get Harder

joegandelman — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 13:39:33 -0000

In answer to the comment above, it gets kind of old whenever anyone on the right or left doesn't like a post that they start on the tired rant about you can't be a moderate site if you don't offer just THEIR viewpoint. In fact, if you check on www.memeorandum.com you'll find a lot of blogs on all sides are linking to this Vanity Fair piece and commenting on it. You also seem to be not noticing our posts by Michael Reagan and some other conservative writers, but it wouldn't make any difference. You don't like the content of this Vanity Fair article and therefore we are like Daily Kos for running this post. However, if you think TMV is like Daily Kos then you need to revisit Kos (we link to Michelle Malkin, Hot Air, Daily Kos and all kinds of sites and have run Guest Voices by writers and bloggers of different viewpoints). Also, if you check the polls you will see that moderates, centrists and independent voters are not monolithic. No poll shows 100 percent agreement. Sorry you don't like us posting things that you don't agree with which automatically makes us a clone of liberal sites you don't like but this is indeed the way we have done it and the way we will continue to do it. Read our description of the site at the top. We try to offer a variety of viewpoints and some readers who aren't into name calling have even sent them to us and we've run them to get another take on issues that may not be in agreement with a post or posts.

Re: Rhetoric Is Now Dangerously Beneath Contempt

CStanley — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 14:41:00 -0000

Joe, just to clarify- I completely agree that you do seem to link to sites like RCP and to some of the sources that they quote, and I didn't mean to imply otherwise.

I was responding to a couple of frequent TMV commenters here who were making assertions about RCP that I found incredibly inaccurate. I assume, since you do in fact use RCP as a source, that you'd agree with me on the inaccuracy of their statements.

Now, I probably shouldn't have gone in the direction of bringing TMV into it at all. and for that I apologize. The reason I did was because I do sometimes find myself scratching my head as to where people get their ideas, and why they seem to be viewing our political world from such an angle (and yeah, I know, we all think that we're the reasonable ones and everyone else is a partisan whacko...but still...) I think it's a big problem that people won't even look at other sites that might be examining the news and opinion from one side or the other- even if that site is not into the kind of inflammatory and propagandistic type of stuff which shannonlee alleged was the case for RCP (and it's simply NOT.)

When you look at Memeorandum, too, increasingly you see that left or left leaning blogs only link to certain stories while right or right leaning blogs only link to certain other stories. Everyone seems to be comfortable with reading what confirms their own preexisting biases instead of being willing to challenge their views.

As to your initial post- I really didn't comment on it at all, but was responding to a tangent that came up in the comments. I obviously (or in case it wasn't obvious) condemn any jokes that in any way insinuate assassination of any elected official.

Oh, and in case it sounds schizophrenic that I did make that comment about who TMV links to and what I'm saying here about your own linking habits, Joe, my initial comment was in regard to the blog as a whole. I've said before that my feeling about bias here has to do with certain bloggers, and the periods of time when certain people post prolifically while others who provide balance to them aren't posting as much. That's strictly my opinion- some people may agree, some may disagree- but what I'm getting at is that the blog as a whole doesn't always follow your lead (and I realize that it's impossible for a group blog to achieve that kind of consistency.)

Re: Rhetoric Is Now Dangerously Beneath Contempt

joegandelman — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 14:29:11 -0000

CStanley: I don't get involved in comments but must answer yours since it is inaccurate to say the LEAST. I personally link a LOT to RealClearPolitics AND RealClearWorld. In fact, I occassionallly do link to their content or particularly on foreign issues link to them, quote a bit from their post and do my own commentary. It is one of the sites I LINK TO MOST. Even if they had 200,000 articles on it, no matter how much I did or didn't link to it, it does not obscure THIS STORY and the issue it raises about the coarsening and rhetorical violence in American political discussion. It's inaccurate to so say the least. And if you emailed those folks they will confirm that TMV links to it a lot because it has such great content. This is NOT a "left" or "right" issue but there are some Americans (like me) who see not just a polarization but increasing comments in terms of violence and the fanning of hatreds that could end badly. What would have happened if a politician made a joke like this 10 years ago? Or 8? Or 20? Or 30? Or right after the murders of JFK, RFK, MML, Jr, the attempted assassination of Ford, Reagan? Their name would be mud and the bulk of voters of both parties would consider them a kook, at worst, and a politician who doesn't consider the weight of words at best. Again: a)not a right or left issue b)yes, we know and link to RCP a lot of TMV, have and do. I love the comments you and others leave on the site...but there is no way I can let THAT assertion stands. I raise theissue again: if THIS is where we are trending in what people think is "cute..witty" and appropriate to say give the country's problems with political murders, high school shootings, etc. then exactly where are we heading as the bar is lowered so far down that you see a Welcome To The South Pole sign? There ARE thinking people in both parties who wish a lot of people on BOTH SIDES who use this kind of rhetoric would just go away. Unfortunately, I am concluding that those who tolerate and enable it are in the majority in voting. And if you think we are polarized, now, how polarized will the country be if someone on the right or left is hurt by someone on the right or left who didn't quite get the joke part of the...alleged joke? (I'll be offline all day)
Again: discussion on this post is GREAT. I just had to clear it up on RCP and TMV

Re: An Outrageous Example of Cowboy Civility When Ankle-Bit by a Know-Nothing Heckler

joegandelman — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 08:38:15 -0000

FATHER TIME: On a previous post by Dr. E I asked to you refrain from leaving that comment. If you have something specific to the post you are welcome to leave it as always about the issue raised. We don't use that terminology. For the second rpt time I am asking you not to leave that kind of comment on TMV. Please read out commenting [policy at the top of the page. I will also look to see if I can find your email address to send you a copy of this. I thank you in advance for not leaving that kind of comment on TMV or anything else that violates our policy in the future. I know we all slip into old habits (including me), so I'll write this second time using it as that, but we do not welcome comments or commentors who leave comments such as that on TMV. Thanks in advance for helping us maintain our very basic, easy commenting standards.

Re: Health Care, The Real Miracle: We Are Still Here

joegandelman — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 14:15:52 -0000

Father Time: This is a request that you don't leave that kind of comment on TMV. We welcome your comments on posts and on issues but not that kind of comment. Also, every post on a blog doesn't really have to be a typical political post and certainly won't be on TMV.