I guess censorship is selective too many or is that hypocrisy is money in the bank?

I guess censorship is selective too many or is that hypocrisy is money in the bank?

It’s not that unusual for people to cry foul to censorship or freedom of the press/speech for a journalist’s renderings, of course, it’s someone they may disagree with and what their soapbox may be about. Take for instance today when I read that the conservative Daily Caller website blogger Mickey Kaus had quit/resigned from the website over a disagreement over his latest rambling.

It’s typical in today’s world for writer/journalist/blogger to clean their desktop in creative disagreement but according to Kaus, his departure was over censorship more than anything by the hands of Daily Caller’s editor-in- chief (sans bowtie) Tucker Carlson.

You can attack everyone but the hand that feeds you.


Kaus’ latest blog was in response towards FOX’s lack of opposition on immigration and amnesty airtime so that FOX can run more stories on ISIS and terrorism ad nauseam. The blog had been posted momentarily at Daily Caller until it was wiped clean from the website. Kaus contacted Carlson who had told him that yes, indeed his blog was deleted from the website because “We can’t trash Fox on the site. I work there.”

Rule #1 of partisan writing; never attack/question your ally.

Rule #2 of partisan writing; expect censorship when attacking/questioning your ally.

Rule #3 of partisan writing; its only censorship or freedom of speech/press when the opposition does so.

Here I thought the chest thumping attack against censorship or freedom of the press/speech in partisan media only went against liberal media and was protected by the “all in” conservatives like Carlson.

Silly me.

However, I’m going to give the benefit of the doubt for the moment only because of at this time Carlson has yet to provide his defense of what transpired, yet I will admit I’m leaning towards Kaus recollection of the eraser.

But I currently have been enjoying the about face by many that mock the liberal media for their abusive censorship and rally around “Freedom of Speech” talk, yet only defend Daily Caller on their action.

I guess censorship is selective too many.

But after reading what happened to Kaus, for some odd strange reason, I find humor in how readers/followers take sides on who and why censorship or freedom of the press/speech is ok, depending on the source. Many agree Carlson had every right to delete Kaus’ blog because it painted his employer in a bad light.

Now had this happened to someone in liberal media, you can bet your star spangled booty there would be applause for their stance in mocking their employer. Well only after they got fired/resigned then they would be “contracted” to speak their will on Conservative programs.

Case in point: Sharyl Attkisson

Nowadays, Attkisson has been a regular in conservative media for multiple reasons such as her soap box stance against her once employers and the Obama Administration’s hijacking/bugging her computer. But prior to that she was working for the Washington Times and CBS.

Absolutely it’s immoral if the government did hijack/hack/bug Attkisson’s computer, but all in the name of the knee jerk reaction known as the Patriotic Act one must wonder how far in legality did they go. Yes, we’ve seen the video of her laptop deleting just written words to claim someone other than she were doing it.

I do like the government’s explanation that her “backspace” button was stuck as to the deletion.

Oops I must correct myself. The Washington Times is the conservative paper. It’s The Washington Post that’s considered the liberal rag. I always get them confused. Well it’s their fault for not being original in name!

Anyway, so she worked at CBS from 1995 to 2014 when she decided to “leave for other endeavors” yet immediately stepped onto her soap box to lambast Mainstream Media bias and the Liberal Agenda. Coincidentally, she was in the midst of writing a book on the topic as well.

Great timing?

I still find it humorous on how so many defended Attkisson on how her departure from CBS and her allegations of Media Bias had many up in arms, yet keep forgetting she took a paycheck from CBS for close to 20 years.

Hypocritical much? I’m pretty sure her bank account could answer that question.

Others too have moved Left to Right in the journalistic resumes and once hated are now applauded as truth tellers. Attkisson is not the only person to slam CBS for their bias, just the latest. Bernie Goldberg did so in 2003, it’s just the partisan divide widen every day in the “Left Said/Right Said” media ratings battle.

This is not an attack on conservative media as the majority of my favorites reading comes from that side of the divide. Yet I find the hypocrisy of someone such as Carlson who trumpets the Constitution and freedom of speech/press so much to flip as he did in hypocritical manner.

Then again, Carlson hasn’t been the same since ditching his trademark bowtie during his final days at MSNBC years back.

That’s it, slap the political tap on some Vergina Lager and pay the tab dammit.

CHEERS!

The Partisan Line Of Hollywood Doesn't Care About Your Politics

It's true when you think about everyday life that it’s in our nature to be a critic. We criticize our employer, fellow co-workers, the waitress and the barista. Yet we are bigger critics of our favorite sports team or the latest partisan parting shot given on the news channel that you never change and of course during award shows.

Postings and memes flooded social media shortly after the announcement of the Stephen Hawking movie The Theory of Everything had won Best Pic instead of American Sniper. Many began protesting that they would not be watching future televised Oscar awards or even going to the movies unless it’s a “Conservative” themed movie to prove “Liberal Hollywood” that they were wrong in their choosing or the choice was due to Hollywood’s anti-American/anti-Military love affair.


Everyone’s gotta have a reason to bitch.

So I pose a few questions to these new found entertainment critics; what exactly makes a movie conservative and secondly is it not “Liberal" Hollywood that is funding and distributing these conservative movies to begin with?

Obviously “Liberal" Hollywood hasn’t shunned those thespians and directors that consider themselves to be on the Conservative political fringe because if they did so then many of Clint Eastwood, Vince Vaughn, Adam Sadler, and Gary Sinise movies wouldn’t have been bank rolled as they’ve been.

But it’s always fun to have an enemy to criticize.

So what is the definition of a conservative movie? Well there really isn’t one, at least not one that I have been able to find. Yes, one can say “anything that gives moral value in God, Country, Military and Family or with Patriotic theme.” But I find that pretty lame in answer because one can describe any movie in that perception even though the movie is quite liberal in reality.

Take for instance the movie My Own Private Idaho from 1991. Rotten Tomatoes describes the movie as “a young street hustler named Mike who suffers from narcolepsy, whose search for the mother who abandoned him leads him across the Northwestern U.S. and even Italy. Mike is joined by Scott Favor, the bisexual son of the mayor of Portland, Oregon with whom Mike falls in love.”

So to some, that would be the liberal version, however Conservapedia’s version is a bit different with “Two good friends learn to pull themselves up by their bootstraps and make it in the business world.”

WTF? How does one movie go from one extreme to another in description?

OK, if that one doesn’t scratch your head, how about another movie from 1991 with Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter’s Dead.

Again, I’ll use the description from Conerviapedia with “Five siblings are left alone for the summer, with no money after their elderly babysitter passes away. They realize the importance of hard work, as well the responsibilities of being an adult, and the negative effects of drugs.”

Have these people not seen this movie?

To be fair, I’ll keep with Rotten Tomatoes’ description of “With their mother setting out for an Australian vacation, a family of five children, look forward to a summer full of fun and freedom. However, their hopes are dashed when a crotchety old woman is hired to babysit them. When the sitter drops dead, 17-year-old Sue Ellen ends up conning her way into a high-powered business job in order to support her siblings and preserve their summer of unsupervised freedom.”

Got that? The older daughter lies on her resume, cons her way into a fashion design company to support her sibling. Not to mention when supporting her siblings, she steals from the petty cash drawer to buy food, one sibling of which gets stoned in his room with his buddies all day until ¾ of the way thru the movie when he decides to grow up to impress a girl.

We can go on and on with this silliness by looking at the Liberal Pocahontas and its feminism/ environmentalist theme and compare it to The Bee Movie’s environmental destructive ways and rewards of hard work description and skip the thought of bestiality when the bee and human fall in love.

Wait, is it considered bestiality to fall in love with a bee?

Even the “Blues Brothers” is considered Conservative because part of the story has Jake and Elwood trying to raise money for an orphanage and their infamous “Mission from God” motto. No mention that Jake was just pardoned from jail and immediately falls back into pre-jail character by lying, cheating and stealing to get that money or complete disregard for authority.

I can understand when reading that a movie like 1984’s Red Dawn is a conservative movie with Americans fighting back after a surprise attack by Russian and Cuban communist army on US soil. Yet I’m surprised someone didn’t yell foul at Red Dawn as a possible liberal smack on President Reagan as the fictional attack happened during his tenure in the White House, as many did for the made for TV nuclear war movie The Day After.

But when reading articles about how conservative movies gross more than liberal movies one must read carefully, as some of those articles do not list which movies they are talking about.

I stumbled on a Feb 10, 2015 article by Diane Howard, PhD of the Austin Movie Examiner titled “Study reveals moviegoers prefer movies with strong conservative values.”

Ok, you got my attention, whatcha’ got for results?

Per Ms. Howard, “In fact, movies with strong conservative values and content in 2014 made more than three times as much money last year as movies with strong liberal, leftist, or statist values and content, averaging $71.49 million per movie versus $22.48 million per movie.”

Interesting, but what movies are we talking about?
Well the list includes: "THE HUNGER GAMES: MOCKINGJAY – PART 1, " "CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE WINTER SOLDIER," "THE LEGO MOVIE,""BIG HERO 6, " "MR. PEABODY & SHERMAN," " UNBROKEN," " AMERICAN SNIPER," "SELMA", "DIVERGENT," "AMERICA: WHAT WOULD THE WORLD BE LIKE WITHOUT HER," " PERSECUTED, " "TRANSFORMERS:" "AGE OF EXTINCTION," "THE GRAND SEDUCTION," " MILLION DOLLAR ARM," "CHEF," "JERSEY BOYS," " THE GIVER," "ATLAS SHRUGGED: WHO IS JOHN GALT?," " PENGUINS OF MADAGASCAR," "JACK RYAN: SHADOW RECRUIT,"THE HORNET’S NEST," "DOLPHIN TALE 2," "KORENGAL," "GODZILLA," "FURY," "ROSEWATER," "THE EXPENDABLES 3," and "THE MONUMENTS MEN."

Again, I say it’s all in the eye of the audience, because three are documentaries, another is a Canadian movie, four are animation, and one is Ayn Rand’s Atlas Shrugged Part 3 a movie that barely grossed $500,000 after its September 2014 release.

And for all the push by Conservative Poli-Talkers of Ayn Rand’s Atlas Shrugged (all three parts),” ticket sales only totaled $7.9 million compared to its close to $20 million budget. Grant it, Atlas Shrugged is one of those books that is so descriptive that trying to get it all on film, let alone a three part series, does not do it justice.

But notice anything strange about the list provided by Ms. Howard? It’s very liberal in creation.

For instance Rosewater was written and directed by Jon Stewart of The Daily Show fame. He even took time on his show to mock those that believe in "Liberal" Hollywood hates conservatives, because if it were true then he should’ve won his category. Yes, the majority of the films listed are filled by liberal actors, liberal production companies and liberal directors. So technically, these profitable conservative movies are brought to you by "Liberal" Hollywood.

Enjoy!

Many believe the most popular is the instant winner and if this holds true than The Hunger Games: Mocking jay Part 1 should have received the trophy with a total gross over $336 million dollars by year’s end.

Yes, yes I know it was reported on March 9, 2015 that American Sniper became 2014’s highest grossing film with $337 million, but those numbers were released two weeks after the Oscar Awards.

The argument over which movie is what in political theme is just plain mind numbing.

It’s easy to point at a documentary in political theme; lord knows we’ve had our fill from Michael Moore and Denish D’ Souza. My view of these films is plain nauseating in that they start off well by the 35-40 minute mark torpedo themselves in outlandish accusations. I will say, I enjoy the Conservative documentary just a bit more, but then again, I despise anything by Michael Moore so it’s considered a “push” on the betting line.

One can go round for round about who’s a liberal/conservative actor as well, but just remember, all the love affair people have for Bradley Cooper’s portrayal of Chris Kyle in American Sniper, he’s still an Obama supporter in real life.

That’s it, Slap the tap on some Colorado Idiot and turn on the Three Stooges for some political reality.

CHEERS!

Open Letter to MSNBC's Phil Griffin: Time to burn 30 Rock

I admit I used to enjoy watching MSNBC, well up until 2011 as I tired of the extreme Left turn the network had taken and the stale reporting that ensued. So I am not surprised when The Wrap released an article the other day talking about possible shakeups at MSNBC by News Honcho Phil Griffin.

This will make the 3rd shakeup since 2013 to stop the miserable free fall of what used to a decent media outlet. Rescheduling, firing, re-hosting and blah blah trying to save what once was reporting into a giant Left Wing partisanship infomercial.

It's not that the ratings are dismissal, heck MSNBC and CNN run close in numbers. However, their combined rating numbers still fall a million and change short of rival FOX. Who am I kidding; thanks to the folks at Zap2it.com, MSNBC and CNN's ratings from 5pm-11pm barely break the average 600k viewer mark, while the average FOX rating sits around 2 million.

Many like to believe the decline began some time ago with the ouster of Keith Olbermann. I was never a fan of Olbermann, even when he sat over at ESPN. I found his feat of "the most intelligent man in the room" a constant almost rip-off of comedian Dennis Miller onomasticon allusion of theatrical words rather vexing to the mind.

Yet Olbermann gave the peacock their own version of an overbearing odious muckraking blowhard that worked in the ratings battle. Yet egos come forth and someone's ass has to hit the pavement. As egotistical as Olbermann was, he was their cash cow for Liberal reporting.

Olbermann has been gone for some time now and the numbers have yet to go up. Only during the campaign season have the ratings gone up, the rest of the time they’ve dipped and become stagnant. Which leads me to think of what is truly wrong over at the 30 Rock nest?

For me the answer is quick; too many partisan personalities reporting the Left view of the political pendulum and not enough hours in the day to actually report a full story. Plus the personalities that squat behind the desk, well they're unlikeable.

I could use 3/4 of this blog to grade the entire Monday thru Friday MSNBC line up, but that would only be disingenuous to my blogging mantra of "never write more than one can read during the average crap (thank you Michael Gold)."

(Personal note- I’ve been told that’s an average of 8 minutes)

It's safe to say Morning Joe is a sure bet of staying its present course, even after getting beat by CNN's New Day in the recent ratings release. I still have a soft spot for this show as it goes against the norm of the "tabloidy" morning shows on other networks with its roundtable political talk. Mika's liberalism works with Joe's conservatism even as many see Joe as a sellout to the network's game plan and lost his way.

However, it works the headlines longer than the other shows that give only minutes so they can get the videos of ski jumping cats and toddler diaper marathons airtime.

Following the coattails of MJ is now the extended time and renamed The Rundown. Telemundo's talented Jose Diaz-Balart now reads the teleprompter and again does very well, even if the ratings don't show. But the rest of the network needs pink slips.

Normally the hours of 11am-5pm, TV becomes a void of game shows, soap operas and cooking shows. So news becomes nonexistent for many as the day wanders till roughly 500p when the kids are home and dinner is burning in the oven.

It all begins with Ed Shultz and ends to Rachel Maddow, if there were no more proof of Leftie in the House comedy I can’t find it with the 30 Rock cast.

Actually I shouldn't place Ed Shultz amongst this group but I have to as he's always good for a "Stroke" moment when his face is boiling red and one must wonder if he’ll spontaneously combust live on the air.

But MSNBC really shot itself in the foot, well actually both feet, when contracting Al Sharpton to host his own program. This is the biggest Left card played by MSNBC and it's choking them. The hiring of Al Sharpton is a slap in the face of many. Yes I have issues with Al Sharpton in more ways than one. He's the Liberal version of Donald Trump; a publicity whore with bad hair, always looking for a way to get their name in anything.

But to follow one egotistical personality with another is too much even for the most Liberal of minds to handle. Yes, I’m talking about Chris Matthews

What happened to this guy? He was once considered one of the best politicos on the air. I believe he was once considered a replacement for late (and great) Tim Russert’s Meet the Press chair. Yet Matthews has become the ugliest cheerleader of the Left and President Obama. If Hillary gets the nod, well if the bathroom door is locked, don't knock you don't want to interrupt Chris's "me time.”

Mr. Griffin, if you want to give the viewers good entertainment, why not combine Sharpton and Matthews for a comedy hour, as neither have been taken seriously for some time now.

But, here comes the biggest issue with MSNBC, the hours of 8p-10p, or as I call it “The Monologue Hours.”

Chris Hayes and Rachel Maddow, twins born from different mothers who feel it's best to have a 10 minute monologue before the actual story are presented. And that story normally last 2 minutes, but by the time they breathe from their monologues the story has become mute as one either has changed the channel or fallen asleep.

Grant it, their resumes are impressive, but the on air personality makes one feel like they were just scolded like a puppy for peeing on the floor or sat through an insurance lecture.

Putting Chris Hayes against Bill O’Reilly is like putting a Mini Pinscher and a Rottweiler in the ring. Lots of slobbering and whining with expected results of an ass whopping.

FOX wasn’t losing a ratings battle with Hannity against Maddow, but the genius of moving Hannity to 10p and inserting Megyn Kelly into the 9pm slot, well it only deepened the ratings bruises already dealt.

I’m not in belief FOX is the greatest Media network either, as one can get lost with all the busy graphic nonsense. It’s close to information overload with news scrolls, guest credentials, flashy headers and of course the host barking into the screen while trying to read their teleprompter.

One can see a change in colors of sort with the peacock, as they are slowly turning their away from Obama presidency and looking towards 2016. They have to admit, their best ratings are during the election cycle. But without a Democratic political clown car to chase, they are left with this dirty stalker style reporting of 2016 GOP hopeful Jeb Bush.

Yes there are other GOP’ers lining up, but as FOX is only targeting Hillary Clinton, MSNBC has to cover some sort of opposition. Merely mentioning other candidates doesn’t quench the Liberal palette like a Bush namesake quite does.

Of course, this leaves me to think what will FOX and MSNBC do without a Clinton/Bush 2016 run?

Yes, yes, from 2000 thru 2008 it was easy to point at Fox News and call it the safe haven for the GOP to find hugs, kisses and pats on the butt style questions. If it was MSNBC's intentions to follow that notion with a Liberal feel, well it worked and failed at the same time, which is not easy to do so congrats on that.

I doubt Mr. Griffin will read this little bit of dribble, but if he truly wants to make the peacock fly, it’s time to drop the partisan garbage by dumping the hacks behind the desk and get back to true reporting.

OK that’s it, slap the tap on some Anzus and here's hoping MSNBC doesn't sign Rosie O'Donnell to a contract because we're gonna need a bigger clown car.

CHEERS!

Ma Mamma We’re All “Frenchie” Now (Well for a few days at least)

Ma Mamma We’re All “Frenchie” Now (Well for a few days at least)

Since the deadly terrorists attack on the French cartoon magazine Charlie Hebdo, the world has come together in solidarity for France, well Parisians at least, in their disdain for Muslim terrorism. Wait let’s be clear, Radical Jihadists who have perverted a religion into a misguided belief for their political gain.

That last sentence is a better description for all to use. Sadly many will not.

But how long will this “world solidarity” last? Well if calculations are correct, I give it another four days and that’s because the Media will grip onto another story to report on with 24/7 coverage. Maybe a story linking Havenese dog owners to secret communist sleeper cells in the US waiting for the "bark" to awaken them.

But I think I figured out the true meaning behind this sudden “solidarity.” It’s 2015, a new year, a new battle to get behind for a few weeks.

Think about it. How quickly did the unity of people against Boko Haram vanish shortly after the kidnapping of 200 school girls? Here and gone in three weeks. And take note, while the eyes were on Paris last week, Boko Haram murdered over 2,000 people in a week’s time and very little mention in Media to account. It wasn’t until Monday Jan 12 (almost 7 days after Charlie Hebdo) did I hear this reported in FOX and CNN.

How about today? Are we all united with Germany after a bombing attempt on German paper Hamburger Morgenpost on Jan 13 for reprinting the latest Charlie Hebdo cartoon?

Yet many are too busy bashing President Obama and higher administration in Media and Social Networks for not attending the French solidarity march. Yes, it annoys me that only the American Ambassador to France, Jane Hartley was in attendance amongst the masses. But then again, it’s part of her job description to be the face of the US when any event happens in that current residence.

No, that’s not an excuse for President Obama, but hell he could’ve called on Presidents Clinton or Bush 43 to see if they could attend. For crying out loud, even Jimmy Carter would’ve jumped at the chance for media exposure! Yet he was in NYC waiting to for his appearance on the Daily Show.


People need to understand that our freedoms are ours and not for everyone else.

There's been a long dislike for France from the US going all the way back to Madison! Our longest living ally in the World, who helped fund our Revolution and we mock them in a routine basis that makes one wonder, “Why the hell do they even talk to us?”

I mean they gave us the Statue of Liberty. Well only after Egypt rejected it and we had to fundraise about 3/4 of the money to erect Lady Liberty, but dammit they gave it to us.

When the US was talking about invading Iraq in 2003 over possible imminent threats, France was vehemently opposed to such action (along with Germany). So what do we do? We play a name change game. That's right, Senator Bob Ney had the three Congressional cafeterias French fries renamed "Freedom fries." Many restaurants followed the action, more as a PR stunt to gain business.


So childish. Why not just write on the bathroom wall “for a good time call the French Embassy at 555…..”

But where was the solidarity march after 9/11? Phone calls from world leaders to the White House were made and only one visited two weeks afterwards, French President Chirac.

People around the World laid wreaths at American Embassies after 9/11 and held mini rallies from Moscow to Beijing as they did shortly after the Charlie Hedbo attack.

Did Americans lay wreaths at French Embassies after last Tuesday's attack? Nope, not even a baguette for a pigeon to steal.

What about more recent attacks in the US, was there a solidarity march after the Boston Marathon? Nope, just a bunch of phone calls and press releases from Moscow to Paris to Rio announcing their solidarity with the US. As a matter of fact it took British PM Cameron 4 weeks to visit the US and visit the Marathon Memorial.

So is Obama off the hook if he plans a trip within the next few weeks to visit France?

As a little side note, those Foreign leaders that arrived and "marched" among the people only walked a small few steps due to security reasons. And shouldn't people have anger against the French for telling Israeli PM Benny Netanyahu to stay home and not partake in the march?

Benny crashed the party anyway. Gotta love the guy, he flips everyone off, not just one for telling him what to do.

Yes, it’s wrong that in Paris and around France they allow pockets of “No Go Zones” for ethnic communities to tend to themselves. No police or military presence, no one other than that ethnic race allowed in. But when you keep a people penned into an area and not expect a form of radicalism to spawn, well that’s a major issue. You allow them to police themselves, kinda like a Radical Jihadist Neighborhood Watch program (please no George Zimmermann jokes).

That's it, slap the tap on the Old Numbskull Ale in solidarity to all the open political tabs in DC. Because we know Congress ain't gonna pay the bill

Cheers!

Bahumbug! Take your "War on Christmas" and kiss my mistletoe

As the Thanksgiving holiday approaches, I have to admit I loathe this time of year. No, not because of family traveling from afar or all day football or even Thanksgiving itself, nope I loathe the day after.

Ha, you probably thought I was talking about “Black Friday,” but that has little to do with it.

Nope, I loathe this time of year because it begins the “War on Christmas” brouhaha in the Media.

"Don't say Happy Holidays it’s Merry Christmas” is the mantra spread in memes on social media in never ending posts. TV Journalists thump their desks against guests that oppose saying anything "Christmas" in message while throwing hi-fives and gulping down eggnog with those that shout repeated Amens.

It’s an all about "me" society and all must conform to whether or not what I say. Did you catch that, I said "whether or not" because not only is this so-called "War" about keeping the word "Christmas" in the fold but it's also a "War" to keep it away. But the major issue is that many of us have been programmed with something called mannerism and feel obliged to always give greetings and salutations to whomever we speak to.

Damn you grandparents!

But there are a few ways to end this "War," it's very obvious and easy to begin; name tags and religious segregation.

Maybe people should start wearing name tags during the month of December that states their religious preference. “Hello I’m Jewish” or “Yes I’m Atheist” should become the norm so no one gets offended because then everyone knows the correct greeting!

Or maybe Wal-Mart should segregate checkout lines. Aisles 1-10 for Christians, 11-21 for Jews, 22-30 for Muslims, and what's left for everyone else. Of course we already know the obvious flaw with this. No, not the division of segregated checkouts lines but that it doesn’t matter what time of day it is, Wal-Mart only has 6 out of 30 checkout aisles open at one time!

This all leads to another issue that pops up during the "25 Day War on Christmas" ratings grab in Media; Religion in Public schools.

I don’t have any issue with kids getting together during their free/study halls or lunch to discuss their religious belief among themselves, as long as it stays there. Too me, they are not bothering anyone or causing a disturbance.

However, if you want your child to learn or participate in religious rituals or education, then send them to the proper religious educational setting as a public school setting is not appropriate. But many cannot afford the expense of religious schools, so off to public schools they go and the parents try to transform that school towards their way, because who cares what other religions of children there are, it’s about my child and that’s what matters.

I’ve always believed that during the month of December, in Civics or History class, it would be interesting to educate students on the different types of religion and what/if they celebrate a holiday around this time. Well as I’ve grown older I realize what a crazy idea that was because the word “INDOCTRINATION” screams from the rafters.

Which leads me to the state of Maryland where a story of the Maryland father who is currently banned from his daughter's high school because he objected the teaching of Islam in her World History class.

Mr. Kevin Wood was upset about an essay assignment on Mohammed, Mecca and the 5 Pillars that was assigned to his daughter. Mr. Woods stated that "our kids can't study Christianity in public schools but we can force feed our kids Islam" and requested his daughter be removed from the La Plata High School class while Islam was topic. The school administration denied the request because it is a requirement towards graduation.

Complete the course or fail.

Mr. Wood was then served with a "No Trespass" notification for language that constituted a want to disrupt school activities. Yet most of the Media ended the story with the "No Trespass" as dramatic pause and with the La Plata HS kids being forced to learn (and possible sympathetic towards) Islam. If one actually researched a little further they might have found out that in this World History course not only touched on Islam when learning about the Middle East, but also Hinduism & Buddhism when the subject changes to India and China as well as Christianity during the Renaissance Era.

Not to also mentioned is that Mr. Wood's daughter would spend the rest of the World History course in the Library while the topic of the Middle East is taught and still fulfilling her requirement of writing the essay.

Now there must be something in the Maryland drinking water as another school district made the news concerning religion and the public school system that had Social Media posts exploding with rage.

The other week, the Muslim community requested that the Montgomery County school district recognize their religious observance on the school calendar along with the current religious observance of other religions. They weren’t asking for a day/week off, just recognition on the calendar. So instead of recognizing their religion, the school board instead decided to lump everyone together into one big “Winter Break and Spring Break.” Yes all Jewish, Christian, and Atheists will now be joined on “Winter Break and Spring Break” with the Muslim student population.

Of course outrage ensued, because everyone knows Christmas break is for Christians only! Right?

Let me get this correct, no one lost any days off for the “break” but the outrage is over sharing the holiday break with Muslims and a name change from “Christmas” to “Winter” and "Easter" to "Spring?" Holy Bejesus, where’s the nearest protest/boycott of the Montgomery County school district?! What there wasn’t one?

Well that fell like a big Yule log thud.

What's funny is that this past summer, parents and students in the Montgomery County school district did lead a protest against the School Board's decision. But that was a decision to change the start of the school day from 7:25am to 8:15am.

But let’s look where the real “War on Christmas” should be laid, Capitalism.

Why not blame Coca-Cola for pushing Santa Claus in advertising back in 1931 along with Macy's?

How many people, regardless of religion, take part in all those awesome Christmas sales throughout the month? Because last time I checked, Joseph wasn’t working at the Bethlehem Manger Donkey Emporium pushing low mileage/low interest rates with balloons and a hot dog machine that faithful night in December!

No the "War on Christmas" is fought in the Mall corridors. It doesn't matter ones religious belief while rummaging through sales racks at Victoria Secret for pre-teen Tiffany or for naughty mom herself. That is until someone sales clerk excitedly and accidently mutters the wrong greeting of "Happy Holiday" to have the Christmas cheer drop and the cry of "It's Christmas" screamed at to the talk show radio host.

That's it, slap the tap on some Nutcracker Ale and watch out for that pale of coal, you might get a visit from the EPA.

CHEERS!

Return of the Keystone Pipeline debate- Beware of politicians shaking babies and kissing hands

So the return of the argument over the Keystone pipeline has begun. Isn’t rather strange how the fight was the rage throughout the summer of 2012 but turned into a whisper after the 2012 election season and then return with a roar 4-6 weeks prior to the 2014 Mid-term election? Yet with all the information and misinformation it’s purely more political than economical reasoning, well temporarily reasoning that is.


We've been told that the oil in them there pipes coming from Canada to the Texas/Louisiana refineries will be sold in the US and bring down oil prices by many politicians and partisan talking heads alike, yet Keystone has never stated this.

It has been stated by those same politicians and talking heads that the oil, if not routed thru the US, would be routed across Canada to the Pacific Coast and be shipped to Asia. So where's the destination for the oil if it runs thru the US?

Answer: Europe and Latin America.

Not to mention oil prices have been dropping steadily as of late and there’s no guarantee over saturation in the market would drop the value any faster. Remember, it’s the Speculators on Wall Street and other investment areas that determine the price, because that current price is set on futures.

We've also been informed that anywhere between1k-100k jobs will be created "over" two years in the US due to the Keystone pipeline. As of today, the US State Dept states that the number is estimated around 42k jobs "for" two years, with those jobs heading towards construction positions alone. After completion of the pipeline, it will only need between 50-100 employees to secure and maintain once the oil begins to flow.

There's a difference between the words "over" and "for" because many determine "over" as permanent, yet "for" means temporary. So the 42K jobs are “for” temporary sporadic jobs, again which is good for those in the 6 States able to receive the employment opportunities due to the pipeline. But when those jobs leave, how will the politicians and media handle the job loss numbers? Who will they blame for the loss in employment when pointing fingers begins in time for the 2016 election?

Now those 42K temporary sporadic jobs are "guesstimated" to generate anywhere between $3B-3.5B over the two year timeframe to the economy. That's great for those 6 States involved in the pipeline, however remember its temporary money and those politicians will need to "bank" that money for future, not spend if they have not done so already.

Of that $3B-$3.5B in economic generation, we're told not only will that money go back into the local communities in consumption from food to gas to other needs, but also in materials needed on the pipeline construction itself. However what is forgotten is that many materials have already been bought and have been sitting idle while politicians in those States and the Federal government fought/kicked/cried while shaking babies and kissing hands. Of those materials previously bought, the majority were not bought in the US yet shipped from China and other countries. Why?

Simply because it was cost effective to buy foreign materials then to buy domestic, which has been an argument for loss in manufacturing since the mid-70’s.

In the time I begin this rant (roughly 20 minutes ago), the US House has voted to move forward with the current legislation on the Keystone pipeline. It’s purely political and the best example is that of Louisiana’s Mary Landrieu trying to save her Senate seat.

Ms. Landrieu suffers from reverse John Kerry Syndrome. You know this decease as once being for something before being against it. Well Ms Landrieu’s symptoms are reversed; being against something before being for it. She’s hoping the people of the great state of Louisiana will have forgotten her past and only remember her words today. We’ll have to wait for the results of the election run-off against challenger Bill Cassidy to see if the memories of Louisianans is long or short term.

The Keystone pipeline economics truly only favor that of 6 States: Montana, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, and Louisiana. Public opinion by one and all shall either be decided on the temporary injection of cash or the future notion of "wait and see" for the next political campaign ad?

That's it, slap your political tab and be careful of politicians shaking babies, kissing hands and pinching asses.

CHEERS!

The Lesser Of Two Evils Enjoys The Spoils In Election Day Victory

The day after Election Day is always somber as voters and candidates alike either lick their wounds or toasting the sunrise to a new day. But many are happy about the end of the wave of political ads that have consumed us these past few months.

But the tsunami of a GOP victory came with less force and was more splash then crash.

The dramatic shock and awe by Media outlets was absurd considering for the past 6 weeks we've been told time and time again that the GOP would extend their majority in the House and win the Senate majority by at least 5. So why all the gloating and tears by punditry? This was not a David slaying a political Goliath but more like the 3 Little Pigs as the Democratic Wolf tried to blow everything and couldn't.

And no that's not a mistype, I mean "blow everything" in pornographic term.

Somewhere this post election day, I can vision Karl Rove prancing around in his boxers at his mansion blaring at the highest levels LL Cool J's "Mama Said Knock You Out http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vimZj8HW0Kg"

“Don't call it a comeback
I been here for years
Rockin my peers and puttin suckas in fear
Makin the tears rain down like a MON-soon”

Once again, I say you can't call it a tsunami, monsoon or avalanche afterwards when this Midterm wasn't about President Obama, nor do I believe "O's" policies either. No the results were clear this was more about gridlock and lesser of two evils in resulted victory.

Still there are many who believe the elections is about liberty, bibles and guns over big brother, Islamic sympathy and gun bans. Oh that's so 2008 or was that 1996? Anyway, that mantra is dusty and needs to be shredded.

For too long now, we've seen Congressional gridlock, more so in the Senate then in House. So knowing the GOP only needed 5 to win in the Senate and a few more for added ease to stop the gridlock, it's easy math to see that having one Party control Congress as a whole only leaves "O" to fail, compromise or win with Executive Order.

Sour grapes by me? Nope. Inevitable course of action by voters? Yes

Applaud the GOP for their victory, but only for a short time as the post election day money shot being had by the GOP, partisan pundits, and constituency combined ends quickly as the focus now shifts to Presidential hopefuls,wanna-be and a whole lot less has-been candidates as we saw in 2012. And there's great reason why the 2016 Presidential Campaign leans heavily in the GOP favor. They built a great farm system.

Years past and to paraphrase a borrowed line from Syndicated radio show host Jerry Doyle, the GOP has always been "Too Right, Too White and Too Uptight." No, I’m not knocking the GOP’s victory, it was expected as they learned their lessons over the last for elections. They took the 2006 Congressional lose and became the minority and built a youthful & diligent (but sometimes stiff) political farm system that is showing time and patience pays dividends on Election Day. While the farm system was building, the old guard took the punches and laid the ground work for a piece by piece, election cycle by election cycle win.

OK they had some help from their Tea Party counterparts. Even though some of them were retreads of the GOP vying to get back into the political game.

Paul, Ryan, Christie, Kasich, and I’ll throw in a Halley are all viable and a few of those names, mainly Sen Randall Paul really need to think about their next move. In Sen Paul’s case, he has to choose; run for Senate or run for Pres because Kentucky law only permits one campaign.

Choose wisely Senator Paul, choose wisely.

Yes, politics is all about gamesmanship and little about pawns on the board. Those pawns being the voting populace. It's easy to watch your opponent trip and stumble as they refuse to repair a crumbling foundation.

While the GOP took time to recast, the Democrats faltered with an aging cast of characters that not even botox injections could hide the cracking on the façade.

Today is the time for the Democrats to begin their rebuild, but I fear they will stick to their game day roster and lose more then gain.

Congressional Democrats are fearful of change, especially in leadership. If they "Hope & Change" motto ever needed more dedication, it's now. But no, not with "O" and his current administration. He's there for another two years and watch the Congressional Democrats shy away with political lepercy.

I'm talking about removing the Pelosi, Clyburn, Hoyer and Reid leadership for younger names. Youth is needed, yet the broken old warhorses refuse to take a seat and see if youth can be king again somewhere in the US. Yes, put the old to pasture and let the kids begin anew.

But the Democratic farm system is of far too small population with little known names. You can't rebuild like that. Names like Debbie Wasserman-Shultz should be stricken from Media guides and replaced with those of Corey Booker and Julian Castro, not because of the racial demographics but because it's their time. As I stated earlier, the GOP learned this in 2006 when they finally loosened the political reigns on Rep Paul Ryan and he ran with it. Ran strong enough to become the 2012 VP nomination and possible 2016 Presidential contender.

Even though Pelosi and Reid are the party meal tickets when it comes to gathering donations, it is however time for them to relinquish their thrones for younger talented energentic politicians. It doesn’t matter if it’s a Gay Latino with a shy bladder, as long as they work the entire base and not a demographic. Yet this is the downfall for the Dems as they only truly work the individual demographic and not the whole thing

What I really want too know is, what happened to the "anti-establishment" crowd that have taken to Social Media and the interweb over the past few years?

Obviously that was all talk with little walk as many incumbents took to the victory podium on election night. For example, how did Kentucky's Sen. Mitch McConnell keep his seat when he had many adversaries on both sides of the aisle within his state? Check mark that win as the lesser of two evils by all accounts.

Yes, as the song goes “I been here for years” is true and the GOP seems to do best in Midterm elections and they’ve only got a year to make this work for them come 2016 if they want a punch-gut victory in Nov 2016.

So within the next year, a Majority held GOP Congress has much on its plate; Immigration reform, Tax reform, Welfare reform, reform of any program really except Obamacare. I do not see the GOP going after Obamacare for the 50th, 51st, or whatever time as many lost count.

But they have to choose their fights wisely, even though they have the Majority, they do not want to come off as drunk with power and still create gridlock within their party, which has been known to happen. Their Congressional actions can make/break a 2016 Presidential victory. It's theirs to lose, as there truly is no one within the Democrat stable worth putting a saddle on.

That's it, Slap your favorite politically brewed tap and remember just because the Media is peeing on your leg doesn't you shouldn't carry an umbrella, sometimes their aim is off.

CHEERS