Rush’s blind spot

Steve Kornacki on the dangers of Rush Limbaugh getting carried away with Obama’s polling woes:: 

Salon

Does Rush not remember that Republicans were gloating in 1994 about how independents and even some Democrats were abandoning Clinton just like they’re gloating about Obama today? And just like Democrats in 1982 and 1983 were crowing that independents and even some Republicans were fleeing Reagan?

The Clinton and Reagan comebacks provide very important lessons for those who would write Obama off right now — and for those who would read the GOP’s bright 2010 prospects as much more than a predictable reaction to double-digit unemployment and single-party control of the White House and Congress.  (I wrote much more about the parallels between ‘82, ‘94 and the present day — and why they portend well for Obama’s ‘12 prospects — here.)

Johnson Fail

I know, I hardly ever post these days. To be honest there is very little worth commenting on, and there are now so many politics blogs that everything I might say has probably been said anyway.

This David Nutt bullshit, however, will not pass without comment.

Labour faces a mauling at the ballot box. But rather than sticking two-fingers up at the wanking Red-Top press, and making a stand against anti-science bull-crap populism, they have done what they always do. They’ve capitulated in the fear that some over-paid shitface blowhard at The Daily Fail will have a pop.

Man-up, for Christ’s sake.

I have long criticised this government’s kowtowing to the tabloid media. Indeed, I ranted about it on a recent podcast. New Labour’s slavish pandering to Murdoch and Dacre is the single most irritating aspect of the last 11 years.

David Nutt is a scientist. He doesn’t give a shit about what Richard Littlecock thinks. He was sacked because his advice was at odds with the brain-dead policies of this government. He’s right, the government is wrong.

Alan Johnson, a man whose credibility is shrinking faster than my cock in an ice-cold plunge pool, has sold out reason and truth because one of his advisors had the balls to challenge him. He’s a coward.

Johnson wrote that he no longer had confidence in Nutt, and asked that he consider his position. In other words: Do one, butt-pipe. I’d ask the same of Johnson and co. if the alternative (i.e. Slippery Dave and his gang of blue-suited weirdoes) weren’t so fucking creepy.

Anyways, that’s enough from me. Have a Happy Halloween and don’t forget to check the bog for Critters. Laters.

Latest Wikio Stats

Dan, over at Wikio, has again kindly forwarded me the latest rankings.

Interesting movers include Labourlist’s breakthrough into the top-five, and Labourhome also getting a top-ten spot. So regardless of Gordo’s toxicity, Labour is still alive and kicking*.

This is actually the main blog list, but the mix is pretty politics-centric anyway.

1 Iain Dale’s Diary 2 Guy Fawkes’ blog 3 Liberal Conspiracy 4 ConservativeHome’s ToryDiary 5 Labourlist 6 politicalbetting.com 7 Liberal Democrat Voice 8 Labourhome 9 Harry’s Place 10 Dizzy Thinks 11 imran.ali 12 Blah! Blah! Technology 13 The Devil’s Kitchen 14 Old Holborn 15 Bloggerheads 16 Bad Science 17 John Redwood’s Diary 18 Chicken Yoghurt 19 Telegraph Blogs – Daniel Hannan 20 normblog 21 Tory Bear 22 Stumbling and Mumbling 23 Mr Eugenides 24 Archbishop Cranmer 25 Tim Worstall 26 Tom Harris MP 27 Craig Murray 28 Next Left 29 The Wardman Wire 30 Obnoxio The Clown Ranking by Wikio.

*Mind you, take away the thousands of Tories with nothing better to do than troll Labourlist, and the thing probably wouldn’t make the top 30, never mind top-5.

Rightwing nutjob Beck, advocates secession.

So you thought Fox News’ resident mentalist, Glenn Beck, couldn’t get more unhinged.

You were wrong. So very wrong.

You know the Republicans are going down the toilet faster than an aerodynamically sculptured turd, don’t you? Heh. Good.

McBride, that irrelevant muppet and the faux outrage he caused

This really is much ado about nothing — it’s no different to the expenses nonsense. They’re all at it. It’s what they do. They fiddle and they scheme, and one or two, might actually do some work once in a while.

Politicians like to claim that they’re morally superior to us, or that they’re in the know about things we’ll never comprehend, but in reality they’re like the rest of us: a mix of shirkers, workers, liars, pervs, twats and smart-arses (have I missed anyone?). MPs are no different to that bunch of goons and loons you work with. No better, and probably no worse. It’s the anthropology, stupid.

Guido’s desperate to make this a big deal because it feeds his gargantuan ego. Is it really news that politicos scheme against one-another? No, don’t be so daft you silly hypocritical gonad.

If the political blogosphere really is going to be the antidote to the MSM, rather than its desperate echo-chamber, we really have to be better than this.

Next!

I’ve already linked to it, but…

…if you have any passing affection for the English language, you HAVE to read Gill’s latest review in The Sunday Times. Gill sculpts his words with all the genius of Michelangelo and the bile of a spurned lover ::

…I bet she was livid for getting turfed off an aeroplane, having to be told off by a customer anger facilitator and spending another four hours in an airport, all for calling some big bloke in a uniform an arsehole. If she’d known, at least she could have called him a suppurating sphincter-faced poxed toothpick-pricked moronic dribbling lackey loser of an arsehole.

Never has a Murdoch coin been better spent, than on Gill’s salary. Fact.

Everyone must see this

Charlie Brooker ponders MSM coverage of mass shootings ::

via. via.

The irregular quote of the day

Richard Herring on the death of Jade Goody ::

It is of course terribly sad and tragic and unfair that she has died, yet the hysterical and hypocritical reaction of the press which once or twice in the past have pretty much called for her piggy head to be stuck up on a spike, is something to behold.

On one hand it is ludicrous to compare her to Princess Diana and yet on the other there is probably no more apt parallel. They were both vilified by the media that they openly courted and both might end up practically canonised in death.

Amen.

Barclays memos online

The controversial Barclays memos, which the bank has blocked The Guardian from publishing, have been submitted to WikiLeaks – the anonymous online document database.

The documents expose Barclays “tax-avoidance” measures – scamming tax-payers out of over £1bn.

Today Barclays secured the continuation of the gag order, including a provision which stops the paper from pointing its readers in the direction of the Wikileaks page.

Sunny is requesting that bloggers step and in and link to the memos, making a mockery of Barclays’ attempts to block public knowledge of their alleged deception. Click here to view.

She’s not gone yet, OK!

I know, it’s hardly good form to pile in on the embattled Northern and Shell publishing group, what with the Dumblane story still rumbling…

But I have to pass comment on this week’s copy of OK! Magazine.

THIS week in our special tribute issue we’ve got world exclusive words from Jade Goody and unseen pictures as the brave star clings to life…

Is today’s celebrity culture so sickeningly turbo-charged, that we have “tribute issues” before people have even had the chance to die?

Hell in a handcart people, hell in a handcart.

(hat-tip Akela)