Laura Ingraham "pwns" Matt Lauer

In this instance, I'm choosing to focus on the negative aspects of what I see in a news clip.  I see a little champion, Laura Ingraham, rocking and socking a talking head like toy robots in a ring.  Matt Lauer can easily brush it off though: he has enough protective padding from all the cutesy adoration he's stuffed himself with from years of being up in front of his smiling street props with placards.  First, watch this video.

Add this clip right up there in the annals of our "bad, and other" journalistic history, from yellow journalism to Fairness Doctrination to FCC Diversity Czar-ing.  If you ever needed an introduction to the shameful, utterly biased state of leftist journalists in sheeps' clothing, Matt Lauer shows he's just towing the company line of Journalism Inc., albeit he's one of the most prominent representatives of his network NBC - his naked culpability at the end of the interview is palpable, his cutesyness is peeling.

I think an intelligent audience needs to ask an important follow-on question:  Is there no longer an expectation that our free media impart "neutrality" in its approach to reporting?  Clear the logical slate:  I'm not talking about extremes, such as "How do we differentiate between good and evil?" or so on and so forth down the spectrum of American norms, nor do I mean we scrutinize this as simply left vs. right (which it may be).

However, videos like this can easily be thrown onto the heap of evidence suggesting that a level of caution is necessary for casual - ALL - information consumers, lest we run away believing the overwhelming message transmitted from the mainstream media that the sway and direction of popular conservative thought in America is destructive.

Lauer: "Laura, let's face it, the negative comments go both ways."

Ingraham: "Yeah, but you guys only report it if it comes from the supposed right-wing.

Plain, completely shameless bias from national news.  Not any bias of a good kind, anyway. 

From the Media Research Center

(Begin quote)

Conservative talk show hostess Laura Ingraham during a Monday appearance on The Today Show, charged Matt Lauer of bias after a setup piece rhetorically asked if Palin gets “people too riled up?”
Ingraham responded, “How do you go from Sarah Palin giving a speech to saying did she rile up the people too much and then talk about death threats? I think that kind of reporting, really is what drives people crazy about the dinosaur media.”

When Lauer asked if there was too much “vitriol” and “intimidation” from both sides, Ingraham refused to back down, charging that MSNBC is the one stoking that vitriol. “We have people on your cable channel saying really hateful things about conservative commentators and politicians.
(End quote)

P.S., Don't be so damn glib, Matt.

Cagey's listening to

FIVE STARS: New contender for video of the year: Liberalism is a Mental Disorder rap by The Infidel - playing on a continuous loop at Cagey's Inner Sanctum. 

The Infidel's bio: LINK

Brilliant artist, looking forward to hearing much more from this lyrical mastermind.

Time to set the record straight, call BS when I see it


Shed light on the half wits who want us defeated
All because of an illness too hard to eradicate
It’s Liberalism, the mental disorder a sad state
Of mind, impervious to common sense and reason
To them, nothing is out of line everything is in season


Right or wrong makes no difference to them
If it feels good do it so I have to keep my distance from them
Cus they’re out of the mainstream but they say that I am
Because I love my country and the God of Abraham


Damn, sham after sham they pull to get the prize
They come equipped with the wool to cover your eyes
Then infiltrate the schools, courts and churches
Undermining American values while filling their purses
Cus it takes money to fool the masses
So I wrote this in the form of conservative X-ray glasses
[Chorus] Far from reason, common sense and intellect
Proper mindset total lack of respect for vets
And Christ ain’t nice, totally out of order
Liberalism, the mental disorder

Why did I buy these?

I have some Bumblebee brand "fancy" smoked clams in the pantry. 

Clam chowder from scratch?  Kind of doubt it. 

Clam dip?  Could be likely, but would that be, "like," a spinach, artichoke, black olive and clam dip?

I remember what I'm doing with the rest of the crab in the freezer; I was merrily getting to the bottom of the container making crab melts along the way.  Don't remember the original intended purpose of that either, but it was rare, and it was impressive.

If anybody has a clue on what I was preparing to make with any of these, I wish they would please let me know.  I can never remember. 

How slanted is the premise of an article about DoD perception management?

http://www.aolnews.com/nation/article/defense-secretary-robert-gates-orders-review-of-pentagon-information-operations/19412792 by Sharon Weinberger, AOL News contributor

WASHINGTON (March 30) -- "Some eight years ago, a furor broke out over then-Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld's plans to open an office dedicated to influencing foreign audiences. The Office of Strategic Influence was quickly shuttered after publicity of its existence led to accusations that it was a propaganda arm of the Pentagon."
"But the Pentagon's efforts to influence foreign public opinion are again being scrutinized as part of a new review. Defense Secretary Robert Gates last week ordered the two-week review of the military's information operations -- a term used to describe media and information campaigns targeted at foreign audiences but also sometimes referred to as propaganda."

Interesting metacritical dilemma that the author writes from the standpoint of trying to influence you that the DoD is trying to propagandize others.

Cagey's listening to

Dated video, but sonically spurs the imagination.  Those Coast-to-Coast producers really have access to a huge repertoire of cosmic synth and other wild songs.

Potpourri

Gentle reader, a few collected notes that I've not felt like putting into long form.  Cheers.

SELF

~Grateful for the encouraging calls from my mentors and friends, they seem to come just when needed, everytime I start to dip a little bit. Each one is a sign of growth, a notch in the belt, and a blessing.  The full range of topics comes out - from news reports of dancing girls in buses (the so-called "Skank Tank" roaming somewhere near CENTCOM proper), to very personal recollections of the outbreak of war, and its unseen heroes.

-> Task request: Finish digesting the New Princeton Encyclopedia of Poetry and Poetics to help refresh and enrich my perspectives of literature, music & lyrics.  It's a phone book - there's no way I'm going to upload all that knowledge, but it's a healthy diversion.  I've converted the spare bedroom into my ready room, it'll find a good home from there and outside of my bookcase, it's primed for action.

~Valuable repost for you:  Managing Oneself, by Peter Drucker.

~Today's going to be a good day for creativity, one of my favorite words was just featured on dictionary.com

Sylvan
-adjective
a.of, pertaining to, or inhabiting the woods.
b.consisting of or abounding in woods or trees; wooded; woody: a shady, sylvan glade.
c.made of trees, branches, boughs, etc.

Another interesting find came from Wikipedia:
Metonymy and synecdoche


One example of a single sentence that displays synecdoche, metaphor, and metonymy is: "Fifty keels ploughed the deep," where "keels" is the synecdoche as it names the whole (the ship) after a particular part (of the ship); "ploughed" is the metaphor as it substitutes the concept of ploughing a field for moving through the ocean; and "the deep" is the metonym, as "depth" is an attribute associated with the ocean.
~Grateful for my favorite tree, the weeping willow, whose little cutting alone sprang roots and leaves in my window.  Amazing.

~Star Hustler is geek chic.  Loved him ever since my paper route days - 3a.m., you're the only one awake and watching, the truck drives, the bundles crash with a thud, and you're putting on your sneakers in front of the bluish hues from the screen.

~Got the chance to drive on the legendary Route 66 driving west out of D.C. last weekend, it's been far too long off the open road.

~Made the exciting discovery of a lean-to in the tiny woods around my house. Every kid should have a little fort out in the brush and scrub that's only accessible by a tiny hidden path.

POLITICS

~Story of a true daughter of freedom, Star Parker.

"Parker said the war on poverty has really been a war waged by liberals on four fronts -- "war on the family, the war on thought, the war on tradition and a war on religion."
"The poverty that we see today is directly related to people having children outside of marriage and then not working to support those children," she said.

~Annelise Anderson writes in the National Review about the great communicator:

"The triumph of free markets and democracy over totalitarianism is the great political story of the 20th century, and Ronald Reagan was one of its most visible authors. The man who emerges from these writings is different from the public figure we all know. It was often said about Reagan that 'what you see is what you get,' and in a way this is true — he was open and honest and believed what he said. He spoke from the heart."

~Quote of the day, found in the fora:

Internet jackass: "The term 'illegal' is a media/hate word that doesn't reflect the complexities of the individual cases of undocumented aliens, nor does it have any bearing on the legal or societal merits of allowing any particular individual to stay or deciding to deport them. But by all means, stick with your one label fits all approach to other people. It works for lots of ignorant bigots every day."
The tongue-in-cheek response: "Kind of like 'racist' is a word used by the morally weak to automatically trump all rational dialogue.  Kind of like the word 'homophobe' is a label to tear down morally straight people.  Kind of like 'teabagger' is applied to a group of people that aren't fans of being taxed to death (but you are?).  Tired of heterophobes like that guy."

Ouch.

~A good parent to the rescue:  "Had a 'date night' with his daughter (15yo) to show her how a real man (gentleman) with class and manners treats a date with respect. Not that her mother and I are ready for her to start dating, just to teach an impressionable young lady the minimum standards she should accept. However, our daughter took the opportunity to attempt to persuade me to let her start dating!!! My daughter: the negotiator!" 

POP CULTURE

~On 24:  Fan of Kiefer but haven't watched much of the show. Saw they're maybe making a movie. One of my best friends tried to get me into it, but nowadays I watch mainly movies and a show that starts with "L."
Beyond the first two seaons, was the theme mostly that they had to prevent a terrorist from carrying out some task within a given time frame? Thus, the whole clock thing. It was funny that on Simpsons and South Park, virtually identical '24' spoofs came out at the same time.  Also, did they choose our usual "politically correct terrorists" e.g. Kiefer vs. Irish Republican Army, Kiefer vs. former Soviet republics trying to sell a nuke... were any of the bad guys "post 2001 era bad guys" or not? Just curious for the sake of my own pop culture osmosis.
P.S.: Funny how Lost came into play around the same time Survivor had so much momentum - i.e. both going with the stuck on deserted island theme.

~The Simpsons program is abundantly, erm, liberal, which is really no secret.  It's a show that should've been put to pasture long ago.   I watched a gag on the "Stealing First Base" ep with a montage of kissing from popular movies...  I thought, "Please don't.  Please don't," and - yep, men kissing. 

IRONIC AND SAD DEPT.

~Tulsa Chicken Hut new marketing promo: "I'd step over a dead body for a three-piece bucket!" - Marv

~"Commentate." Why do folks in & around sports insist on using this word? There is such a thing as a "commentator," but no such thing as the verb "commentate."  The word they're looking for is "comment," which is quite sufficient.

Cagey 80s sing-along

So why your eyelids are closed,
Inside a case of rust
And did you have to change
All your poet's fire into frozen dust

Article: Generation of Whiners...

by Cal Thomas

Article here.

"Many in the current generation - the whining generation - tell us not to think highly of America. We are all one world now. Fighting for one's beliefs and the American way of life is now considered more evil than the evil our fighting men and women have opposed over the generations. Standing for anything is regarded as racist, sexist, homophobic, xenophobic, judgmental, imposing morality and a violation of chrch-state separation.

So, we fall for everything."

Cagey's listening to

Cagey 80s sing-along

[Chorus] Ritual ideas relativity

Only buildings no people prophecy

Timeslide place to hide nudge reality

Foresight minds wide magic imagery

Mandatory viewing on the American form of government!

hope you'll watch and enjoy this video.  Many are confused on the important differences between democracy and the republic.

-Cagey

http://www.wimp.com/thegovernment/

A quick narrative on things

"In performances devoid of outward drama that nevertheless convey deep emotion, Vega sings in a distinctive, clear vibrato-less voice that has been described as "a cool, dry sandpaper-brushed near-whisper" and as "plaintive but disarmingly powerful."

Suzanne Vega concert was everything I expected - even though who knows, there may be little difference between hearing an amplified voice or radio voice rather than the naked soundwave, I was able to reach a rare emotional state as the notes washed over me. Whoa, I'm not a die-hard fan, I've just liked her Solitude Standing and remember humming Luka while pedaling around the block as an 80s kid. And as the 80s were the renaissance of sorts of the modern era, I was obliged to go to reap some benefits of pedaling the creative mind.

As her last, she sang Tom's Diner a cappella, a nice surprise. Queen and the Soldier had the most reactions from the seats. I am reminded of an editorial (NPR?) that she is one of the last major artists in contemporary memory that seem to truly draw from deep introspection and show utter lyrical brilliance.

Now, I'm looking at a blue ticket stub, no. 4856138 from Saturday night. The Manny Pacquiao bout - I'm finally watching the showdown with a champion who has won titles in seven different weight classes and he increasingly commands the world's attention. The announcer reads his monumental "resume" in two very long minutes, the challenger's 20 seconds pale in comparison. Thoughts I tie together are the appreciation I have for the Philippines, the history of the campaign in the Pacific, the proud Americans of Philippine descent I've met in the service, a brief visit to the country.  Now I'm in a Filipino bar across the street (we have many in the area) and everyone's going nuts - it's not fancy, it was a small seafood marketeer two years ago, but the crowd is filled to capacity.  There are plenty of well-heeled fans, or those caught up in the event,  and no kidding, even a limo in my little neighborhood - WAY non-sequitur.  There is so much emotion wrapped into this welterweight fighter, I come to realize THIS IS living history and this fact unites we small-bar-filling spectators.  He threw a record number of jabs in the first round - some 120 or so.  Stuff is only adding to his legend.  Even though this Clottey fight was somewhat disappointing, the crowd packed in the little bar is electric, and even though boxing is brutal, it's a hell of a lot more elegant than the savage mixed martial-arts craze.

He prays before a bout, doesn't talk trash, cares about his country.  The most attractive thing about Manny is his humility. 
~~~ 
Anyway, right now I'm most appreciative of the opportunity to "think in neutral": daffodils have sprung in the backyard, my weeping willow is amazingly growing from only a clipping on my windowsill, I'm a year older and I'm finally shaking off some of the cold from fall and winter...  in this transition I'm also spending a bit more time brushing up on literary evaluation as the need to make meaning returns to view -  Not in a journal, but in living.  It's good to know that the more we read, the more our mental discipline grows.  Like gaining momentum in writing papers as the night goes on,  I'm also finding focused introspection is getting easier and less nerve-wracking.

One consumer's observation

I was looking at a bunch of deep discount bachelor meals today (Lean Cuisine, etc.) and then I saw "Hungry Man" in the cooler - the slogan "It's good to be full." Then I got kind of disgusted with all the Lean Cuisines I had thrown in the cart.

Cagey's listening to

Black

Here's to the barbers...

Culture is the social transmission of norms, values, and ideas. The barber is a crossroads of oral tradition, and therefore close to my heart. At the barber, I can always close my eyes and truly relax in the chair.

Two days ago, on one t.v., "Gunsmoke" is playing, cowboys are having a shootout somewhere in the desert. On the other t.v., a b-ball game concludes dramatically in the final tenths of a second by a half-court shot.

A former barber (Sherri) rubbed my shoulders in the chair, sent me off with a hug and candy. VIPs used to come through, the wall is riddled with signed portraits hanging slightly askew, Sanford & Son used to come on, Joe would talk for hours, I read Field & Stream magazine.

A much earlier barber of mine, one 80-something barber in middle-America, Charlie, opened up at 6 a.m. everyday regardless his age, charged only $6, and kept a loaded .357 Magnum in his drawer.

One outside Baltimore comes to mind, a twenty-something's dream complete with pool tables and boxing matches. Me as always, the only minority in the room.

One with leather chairs, some with ashtrays in the seats, memories of Hank Ketcham writing about Dennis the Menance getting a free barber school cut.

Thank you barbers, for keeping it real.

Quote of the day

Xai: "You americans are too used to being awarded $1 million for burning yourself with your own hot coffee. The stupid lawsuit culture is only destroying the economy of america as it is a non-productive industry."

"All lawsuit payments are covered by insurance companies, insurance companies charge higher premiums to cover payouts, companies paying premiums work this into expenses and charge accordingly higher prices to consumers, consumers pay higher prices to ultimately cover payouts. The lawyers profit, insurance companies profit, even the companies with the insurance can profit and the only people who end up paying are the american public. and they are paying for nothing. nothing is produced for anyone."

Federal Judge: Teacher Has Constitutional Right to Display Patriotic Banners that Mention “God” in Classroom

Source: Thomas Moore Law Center

ANN ARBOR, MI – California Federal District Court Judge Roger T. Benitez ruled late this past Friday that the Poway Unified School District in San Diego, CA, violated math teacher Bradley Johnson’s constitutional rights when it ordered him to remove two patriotic banners from the walls of his classroom because they “over-emphasized” God. [Decision attached]

The Thomas More Law Center, a national public interest law firm based in Ann Arbor, Michigan, filed the federal lawsuit on Johnson’s behalf, after the school district ordered him to take down his banners in January 2007.

The two banners are approximately seven feet wide and two feet tall and contain phrases that highlight our Nation’s history and religious heritage.

One banner with red, white, and blue stripes hung on the wall for twenty-five years and displayed the famous patriotic phrases: “In God We Trust, ” “One Nation Under God, ” “God Bless America, ” and “God Shed His Grace on Thee.”

The second banner, which had been displayed for seventeen years, contained an excerpt from the Declaration of Independence: “All Men Are Created Equal, They Are Endowed By Their Creator.” One school official justified the ban by claiming a Muslim student might be offended by the slogans.

That school officials banned Johnson’s patriotic displays while permitting other teachers to display personal posters and banners promoting partisan political issues such as gay rights and environmental causes, including global warming, played a crucial role in the Judge’s decision.

These displays included: a 35 to 40 foot string of Tibetan prayer flags with images of Buddha; a poster with the lyrics from John Lennon’s song “Imagine, ” which starts off, Imagine there’s no Heaven; a poster with Hindu leader Mahatma Gandhi’s “7 Social Sins;” a poster of Muslim leader Malcolm X, and a poster of Buddhist leader Dali Lama.

Judge Benitez’s 32-page opinion was strongly worded and critical of the Poway school districts aversion to mentioning God: “The school district officials apparently fear their students are incapable of dealing with diverse viewpoints that include God’s place in American history and culture. . . . That God places prominently in our Nation’s history does not create an Establishment Clause violation requiring curettage and disinfectant for Johnson’s public high school classroom walls. It is a matter of historical fact that our institutions and government actors have in past and present times given place to a supreme God.”

Richard Thompson, President and Chief Counsel for the Law Center, commented, “Many school officials exhibit hostility towards our nation’s Christian heritage. Yet, these same officials see no problem in actively promoting atheism or other religions under the guise of cultural diversity and tolerance. Hopefully, Judge Benitez’s decision will help put an end to this double standard. It is the responsibility of our public schools to educate students on the crucial role Christianity played in our Nation’s founding.”

In his ruling, Judge Benitez acknowledged that public schools provide students with a healthy exposure to diverse ideas and opinions. He then went on to rule, “Fostering diversity, however, does not mean bleaching out historical religious expression or mainstream morality. By squelching only Johnson’s patriotic and religious classroom banners, while permitting other diverse religious and anti-religious classroom displays, the school district does a disservice to the students of Westview High School and the federal and state constitutions do not permit this one-sided censorship.”

In response to the school district’s claim that Johnson’s patriotic banners might make a Muslim student uncomfortable, Judge Benitez stated, “An imaginary Islamic student is not entitled to a heckler’s veto on a teacher’s passive, popular or unpopular expression about God’s place in the history of the United States.” And the judge flatly rejected the school district’s argument that Tibetan prayer flags were permissible because they were decorative, describing the argument as “a transparent pretext.”

Judge Benitez concluded that Johnson was entitled to a declaration that the school district violated his individual rights protected by the First and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution, and Article I, §§ 2 and 4 of the California Constitution. He ordered the school district to pay nominal damages and Johnson’s attorney’s fees and costs. And he ordered the school district “to permit Johnson to immediately re-display, in his assigned classroom, the two banners at issue in this case.” Johnson returned the displays to his classroom that same day.

Robert Muise, the Thomas More Law Center Senior Trial Counsel handling the case, commented, “Judge Benitez’s strong opinion sends a clear message to school districts across the country that hostility toward our Nation’s religious heritage is contrary to our constitution. Indeed, it was refreshing to read an opinion that does justice to our Nation’s history, rather than rewrite it.”

The Thomas More Law Center defends and promotes America’s Christian heritage and moral values, including the religious freedom of Christians, time-honored family values, and the sanctity of human life. It supports a strong national defense and an independent and sovereign United States of America. The Law Center accomplishes its mission through litigation, education, and related activities. It does not charge for its services. The Law Center is supported by contributions from individuals, corporations and foundations, and is recognized by the IRS as a section 501(c)3 organization. You may reach the Thomas More Law Center at (734) 827-2001 (734) 827-2001 or visit our website at http://www.thomasmore.org.


http://www.thomasmore.org/downloads/sb_thomasmore/Johnson-PowayOrderGrantingSummaryJudgment.pdf

Cagey's listening to

Silent House
by The Fixx



...The song: http://new.music.yahoo.com/fixx/tracks/silent-house--1385098
...The lyrics: http://www.byrneweb.com/Fixx/Lyrics/silent_house.html


Image: The Fixx, Stand or Fall video, NME.com