SmithAntics

I’m just gonna toss this out so I can get it off my chest. It could be my emotions and frustrations getting the better of me. Maybe one of you can set me straight.

Kerry is fucking up big time.

He is courting defeat with his risk-averse and ineffectual campaign.

He's so afraid of getting the Howard Dean treatment from the right wing media that he flat-out refuses to get even remotely tough on Bush. He is allowing the criminals in the White House and their surrogates to define him as a flip-flopping, medal-grabbing, liberal joke.

He is a prisoner of his own timidity, and we’re gonna pay dearly for it.

We are in the midst of a national emergency that is gearing up for another FOUR YEAR TERM, and our guy is afraid to take the gloves off against an administration whose criminal record is like a ball on a tee, ready to be blasted out of the park.

He is saying nothing. He is invisible.

Try to imagine how you’ll feel about Kerry if he loses this thing.

That’s how I feel about him right now.

Help me out here.

The Movie

Un-f***ing-believable

These infantile Republican morons mock a genuine war hero while supporting a coward who went AWOL from the cushy National Guard post his daddy arranged for him. What a sad fucking joke.

I hate these people.

In keeping with the “Cowardice of George W. Bush” theme, here’s a scathing assessment of Bush’s wussbag actions on 9/11. The crazy thing is that this statement comes from CNN right wing hack, Tucker Carlson:

The attacks initially made me sorry I voted for him. For most of that day, as my wife and children stayed inside our house listening to the roar of fighter jets overhead, and black smoke from the Pentagon hovered above our neighborhood, Bush failed to return to Washington. My family sat unprotected a few miles from the scene of a terrorist attack; Bush hid in a bunker on some faraway military base.

It infuriated me, as did the subsequent excuses from White House spokesman. There was a risk in coming back, they said. There was a risk in coming back, they said. Of course there was. That's the point: Leaders must take risks, sometimes physical ones. Bush should have elbowed his Secret Service detail out of the way and returned in a display of fearlessness to his nation's capital. I found it distressingly revealing that he didn't.

Me too, Tucker.

Via Altercation

I got a young man named George W. Bush in the National Guard when I was Lt. Gov. of Texas and I’m not necessarily proud of that. But I did it. And I got a lot of other people into the National Guard because I thought that was what people should do, when you're in office you helped a lot of rich people. And I walked through the Vietnam Memorial the other day and I looked at the names of the people that died in Vietnam and I became more ashamed of myself than I have ever been because it was the worst thing that I did was that I helped a lot of wealthy supporters and a lot of people who had family names of importance get into the National Guard and I’m very sorry about that and I’m very ashamed and I apologize to you as voters of Texas.

--Ben Barnes, the former Speaker of the House in Texas

Funny, the mainstream media don't seem to want to touch this.

They’d rather amplify a Republican-funded slime operation against a decorated war hero -- who also happens to be the Democratic presidential nominee.

Go fuckin' figure.

Where to begin?

Israel has a mole inside the Pentagon—specifically in the office of neocon nutjob Douglas Feith. That sounds kinda serious; I wonder if the bobbleheads will give this story as much play as they gave the Swift Boat liars, whom they’ve been drooling over all week.

Ditto that bobblehead question in regards to the latest chapter in the young Dumbya was a coward with connections saga.

And how much of a scumbag is Bob Dole? I thought he had become a kinder, gentler, fuzzy-wuzzy Republican in his twilight.

Silly me.

I'm outta here for the week. I’ve turned Smithantics over to the new kids on the blog. Give ‘em a warm welcome by commenting on their posts. Be nice!

I may be checking in from the desert hell that’ll be my home for the next several days, but I doubt I’ll have the time to post much.

Oh, and please tell me you have a speedy connection, cuz you need to see this new Kerry ad.

Take that, Bush, you sniveling little coward!

'til next time....

I’m guessing that anyone reading this post has a friend, colleague, or family member who is pro-Bush. I ask you to please forward my letter to the Bush supporter(s) in your life.

Here's a direct link to this post.

Dear Bush Supporter:

Thanks for reading. I hope you’ll join me in saving your country by defeating George W. Bush in November. I ask for a few minutes of your time. I'll be glad to extend the same courtesy to you if you'd like to respond. I'm angry that you're supporting Bush and that you seek four more years of what I believe to be the worst administration in this country's history. That anger is evident in the text below. I hope you'll read it anyway.

Swift Boat Liars

Let’s start with the so-called "Swift Boat Veterans for Truth." This is the organization that is claiming that John Kerry lied about his service in Vietnam and is “unfit for command”?

They are full of crap.

Professional investigative journalism has blown these cranks out of the water for exactly what they are: a front for the Bush campaign funded by mega-rich Bush-connected Texas Republicans.

The latest and most definitive takedown of these liars is contained in the impeccably sourced article linked here.

If you do not wish to register for the New York Times, here are some clips from the aforementioned article (if you don't care about the Swift Boat Veterans, please skip to the next section):

After weeks of taking fire over veterans' accusations that he had lied about his Vietnam service record to win medals and build a political career, Senator John Kerry shot back yesterday, calling those statements categorically false and branding the people behind them tools of the Bush campaign.

His decision to take on the group directly was a measure of how the group that calls itself Swift Boat Veterans for Truth has catapulted itself to the forefront of the presidential campaign. It has advanced its cause in a book, in a television advertisement and on cable news and talk radio shows, all in an attempt to discredit Mr. Kerry's war record, a pillar of his campaign.

How the group came into existence is a story of how veterans with longstanding anger about Mr. Kerry's antiwar statements in the early 1970's allied themselves with Texas Republicans.

Mr. Kerry called them "a front for the Bush campaign" - a charge the campaign denied.

A series of interviews and a review of documents show a web of connections to the Bush family, high-profile Texas political figures and President Bush's chief political aide, Karl Rove.

Records show that the group received the bulk of its initial financing from two men with ties to the president and his family - one a longtime political associate of Mr. Rove's, the other a trustee of the foundation for Mr. Bush's father's presidential library. A Texas publicist who once helped prepare Mr. Bush's father for his debate when he was running for vice president provided them with strategic advice. And the group's television commercial was produced by the same team that made the devastating ad mocking Michael S. Dukakis in an oversized tank helmet when he and Mr. Bush's father faced off in the 1988 presidential election.

[snip]

Several of those now declaring Mr. Kerry "unfit" had lavished praise on him, some as recently as last year.

In an unpublished interview in March 2003 with Mr. Kerry's authorized biographer, Douglas Brinkley, provided by Mr. Brinkley to The New York Times, Roy F. Hoffmann, a retired rear admiral and a leader of the group, allowed that he had disagreed with Mr. Kerry's antiwar positions but said, "I am not going to say anything negative about him." He added, "He's a good man."

In a profile of the candidate that ran in The Boston Globe in June 2003, Mr. Hoffmann approvingly recalled the actions that led to Mr. Kerry's Silver Star: "It took guts, and I admire that."

George Elliott, one of the Vietnam veterans in the group, flew from his home in Delaware to Boston in 1996 to stand up for Mr. Kerry during a tough re-election fight, declaring at a news conference that the action that won Mr. Kerry a Silver Star was "an act of courage." At that same event, Adrian L. Lonsdale, another Vietnam veteran now speaking out against Mr. Kerry, supported him with a statement about the "bravado and courage of the young officers that ran the Swift boats."

"Senator Kerry was no exception," Mr. Lonsdale told the reporters and cameras assembled at the Charlestown Navy Yard. "He was among the finest of those Swift boat drivers."

Those comments echoed the official record. In an evaluation of Mr. Kerry in 1969, Mr. Elliott, who was one of his commanders, ranked him as "not exceeded" in 11 categories, including moral courage, judgment and decisiveness, and "one of the top few" - the second-highest distinction - in the remaining five. In written comments, he called Mr. Kerry "unsurpassed," "beyond reproach" and "the acknowledged leader in his peer group."

[snip]

The book outlining the veterans' charges, "Unfit for Command: Swift Boat Veterans Speak Out Against Kerry," has also come under fire. It is published by Regnery, a conservative company that has published numerous books critical of Democrats, and written by Mr. O'Neill and Jerome R. Corsi, who was identified on the book jacket as a Harvard Ph.D. and the author of many books and articles. But Mr. Corsi also acknowledged that he has been a contributor of anti-Catholic, anti-Muslim and anti-Semitic comments to a right-wing Web site. He said he regretted those comments.

The group's arguments have foundered on other contradictions. In the television commercial, Dr. Louis Letson looks into the camera and declares, "I know John Kerry is lying about his first Purple Heart because I treated him for that injury." Dr. Letson does not dispute the wound - a piece of shrapnel above Mr. Kerry's left elbow - but he and others in the group argue that it was minor and self-inflicted.

Yet Dr. Letson's name does not appear on any of the medical records for Mr. Kerry. Under "person administering treatment" for the injury, the form is signed by a medic, J. C. Carreon, who died several years ago. Dr. Letson said it was common for medics to treat sailors with the kind of injury that Mr. Kerry had and to fill out paperwork when doctors did the treatment.

Asked in an interview if there was any way to confirm he had treated Mr. Kerry, Dr. Letson said, "I guess you'll have to take my word for it."

Please do read the entire article, as it clearly demonstrates the “Swift Boat Veterans for Truth” are anything but truthful. Their charges are riddled with contradictions and flat-out lies.

Here’s the bottom line:

John Kerry volunteered to go where the bullets were flying. For his heroic service in Vietnam, he received the silver and bronze stars and three purple hearts from the United States Navy.

George W. Bush used family connections to get a cushy post in the Texas Air National Guard, a post he deserted for a year. His administration has yet to provide evidence to dispute this claim. They claim the records that prove he served were destroyed in a tragic microfilm accident. Don't believe me? Click here.

If you believe the Swift Boat Veterans are even remotely legitimate, I challenge you to read the entire article and then present to me your evidence that they are not a Republican-sponsored smear operation. My email address is stevendsmith1@juno.com.

The Media is not Liberal

This brings me to my next point. The Swift Boat liars, the Rush Limbaughs, the Sean Hannitys, the William Safires, the Bill O’Reillys, and the Ann Coulters of this world are not a part of the “debate.” We are under no obligation to listen to them in an effort to be "balanced" and to look at "both sides” of the issue.

These people are right-wing propagandist hacks who have been thoroughly discredited by scholarship and authentic professional journalism. Shame on you if you take these lying smear artists seriously. I know you made it out of grade school, and I know that at some point in your life you were taught the basic rudiments of critical thought and the most minimal standards of evidence.

Just because a person is on television or has a newspaper column doesn’t make them authoritative on the issues of which they speak or even remotely truthful. Quite to the contrary, the corporate media favors right-wing hackism. Bill O’Reilly, Paula Zhan, and Joe Scarborough didn’t get gleaming studios and prime-time slots on FOX, CNN, and MSNBC because they follow the rigorous evidentiary standards of journalism. They got that stuff because they tow the line of the corporate-owned conservative media that serves the most corporatized administration in history.

The idea that the mainstream media is liberal so defies logic and the evidence that it warrants nothing but laughter. The myth of the liberal media has been shattered by basic obervation and media criticism scholarship.

Remember scholarship? Remember what you learned in high school? In college?

Did your English or history teachers let you get away with sloppy, half-assed innuendo, distortions, and lies? Of course they didn’t. And you shouldn’t let your media get away with it either. Stop taking horseshit at face value. You’re smarter than that. I know you are.

Bush and Conservatism

Conservatism is a legitimate political philosophy. It absolutely has a place in American politics. Though I happen to disagree with most of the tenets of conservatism, I am perfectly willing to have a reasoned debate about the relative merits of conservatism and liberalism. Which brings me to my next point.

Bush is not a conservative.

Hell, he’s not even the president. Dick Cheney is the president. Let's be serious.

George W. Bush is game show host. He is the figurehead for a group of hard-core right-wing ideologues who have taken control of your government. My party failed to stop this from happening.

But back to conservatism.

What is conservative about turning record surpluses into record deficits and tanking the economy?

What is conservative about losing millions of jobs?

What is conservative about outsourcing millions of jobs overseas?

And please spare me the “9/11 changed everything” crap. Nine-eleven happened nearly three years ago.

Stop it.

The administration and its extremist allies have hijacked our grief over that enormous tragedy and shamefully exploited it for their own political purposes. Nine-eleven is the day that justifies everything for them. It is a cover for their disastrous policies.

And you know it.

(You're angry, or maybe you're laughing. Hang in there.)

Reaganite-Bushite trickle-down economics do not work. Supply-side is a fraud. It is a ruse played by ultra-rich politicians to shower tax breaks on their ultra-rich friends. The Republican party has one overarching goal: to move income upwards into the coffers of the tiniest, wealthiest minority. They shamelessly use a national tragedy cover this policy.

Surely you can recognize that. C'mon now. Let's get real.

The economy has sucked ass since Bush came into office. Is this Clinton's fault?

If memory serves, Clinton presided over the one of the greatest peace-time expansions of the U.S. economy in history. What happened to the historic surplus that the Clinton economy created? It was squandered by the fiscally reckless Republicans. That's what happened.

Be serious. Okay? Bush and the Republicans have been a disaster for the economy. Don't hang this on 9/11. As a great president (Clinton) once said: "That dog don't hunt."

If you are not rich, George W. Bush is not your friend. George W. Bush is not an ally of the middle class, as he dishonestly claims to be. Unless you’re making over 200K a year, Bush and his cronies don’t give a rat’s ass about you. In fact, his economic policies are designed to hurt you. Just ask any economist that is not on the adminisration payroll. Why in God’s name would you support someone who is acting against your economic interests? Why?

Because he pretends to clear brush and string barbed wire on his fake ranch?

Because he is portrayed as a "straight shooter"? (He's not, he's a documented serial liar).

Because he prays (or claims to)?

Because he plays dress-up on an aircraft carrier?

Because he claims he's God's quarterback?

Your smarter than this. Wise the hell up. Your kids are going to pay tomorrow for Bush’s handouts to his rich friends today.

Is this okay with you?

Iraq

Onto to the war on Iraq.

You know god damn well that this thing is a disaster. My God, what a mess. Our kids are dying over there and getting their limbs blown off for a flat out lie.

Holy crap, is this really happening?

Nearly 950 American troops dead and over 6,000 wounded.

6,000 wounded!

6,000 without arms.

Without legs.

Or eyes.

Nearly 1,000 dead.

Mostly poor kids.

We aren't allowed to see their coffins. Bush wants them invisible.

Nearly 7,000 shattered American families.

Are you okay with this?

Do you believe this is a just war?

Would you die for this cause?

I ask again.

Would you die for this cause?

I don’t think you would.

Let’s get real.

Dick Cheney and a secretive group of hawks in the Pentagon cooked the intelligence to lead this country into a war against a weak, tin-horn dictatorship that posed no threat to you or me, but happened to be sitting atop one of the richest oil stashes on the planet.

This war is part money grab, part flexing of American military power. Any serious person who has done the most cursory homework can see this. A twelve-year-old can figure this out. Again, the journalism, the scholarship, and the multiple testimonies from former senior administration officials and policy experts corroborate this. Do you think all these people are lying?

Do you think the Republicans who oppose the war are lying?

How much bullshit are you willing to take? Really, how much?

The corrupt thugs who are trespassing in your White House used the tragedy of 9/11 to make their decade-long dream of taking over Iraq a reality. This war is a cash bonanza for the administration and its cronies.

Are you going to tell me with a straight face that there is no connection between the lucrative no-bid Iraq contracts Halliburton has received and the fact that vice president Dick Cheney was the CEO of Halliburton from 1995—2000?

Can you say “war-profiteering”?

Is there anything more politically immoral than war-profiteering? Think about this for a second. They sent kids to die so defense, oil, and construction companies can get richer.

Stop being so god damn stubborn. I know you hate liberals, but your country is in trouble. It's time to fix things.

This administration blew up Iraq so they could use your money to pay their friends to rebuild it and harvest its resources. Our kids are over there with targets on their backs and dying horrible, ripping deaths and suffering gruesome injuries so George Bush and Dick Cheney’s friends can get rich. Is this okay with you?

I really want to know. Is this okay with you?

Why the hell are we in Iraq? Seriously. Why?

Is bombing the crap out of the heart of the Arab world an effective way to wage a war against Arab terrorism?

Where are the weapons of mass destruction that were the pretext for this war?

Don't talk to me about "liberation." That's bullshit and you know it.

And no, the "whole world" did not think Sadaam had WMD or was a threat. That is a cheap-ass Jedi mind trick being pushed by the administration and its lapdogs in the mainstream media. Bush launched this war against the will of the international community and half the population of this country.

The invasion of Iraq was and is a White House operation. And now that it's a complete disaster, and all the "candy and flowers" the grateful Iraqis are tossing are blowing the shit out of our troops, these cowardly bastards are trying to get the world to share the responsibility for their mess.

No sale.

Bush lied and now we're in this mess. It's his war. Kids are dying.

Your money is sinking in Iraq, and there's no end in sight.

Where is the accountablity?

Clinton lied about a blowjob and you wanted him crucified. Why isn't Bush held to the same standard of truth?

Why are military moms hosting bake sales to raise money for body armor for their sons and daughters who are fighting Dick Cheney’s war on Iraq?

Why is Bush slashing combat pay and veterans benefits? I thought he was a friend to the troops. He wrapped himself in the American flag and told me so.

Is an effective war on terror one that tortures Iraqi citizens in Sadaam Hussein’s prisons? Is this consistent with the teachings of Jesus Christ, who Bush claims is his guide? Is this consistent with American values?

Is this liberation?

What's happening in Afghanistan? An American tax-payer-funded disaster, that's what's happening. It's not on the news. Do some homework.

Where is Osama bin Laden? Remember him? He’s the guy that murdered 3,000 Americans on 9/11. When was the last time you heard George W. Bush utter his name?

And is it okay that John Ashcroft is trampling on your Constitution so he can spy on you?

Is that what America is about?

Have you read the basic elements of the PATRIOT Act? Or do you just take the word of your government that it's a "necessary tool" in the war on terror?

Have you read the Bill of Rights?

Is it okay that the Bush administration is trashing your environment—your water, your air, your national parks and treasures—so his cronies in the most polluting industries can get even richer? Is this good for our kids?

Is it okay that "Homeland Security" is largely a hoax, a PR stunt? Your police, fire, and other crucial first-responder services are getting screwed by Bush.

Let me know if your cool with this.

And do you really think that Dick Cheney is acting in this country’s best interest?

In your best interest?

C'mon.... Dick Cheney?

This guy is a villain straight out of a comic book. You can see this. I know you can. Open your eyes. Look at Dick Cheney's history of corruption, cronyism, and obsessive government secrecy.

It's not pretty.

Is your contempt for liberals and liberalism so deep that you are willing to let a group of oil-soaked extremist thugs take this country to hell?

Can you not recognize a rat when it’s right in front of you?

I think you can.

Give Kerry a Look

Read the Kerry/Edwards plan for America . These are good guys, good Americans. You’ll see. What have you got to lose? Just read the dang thing.

Your country is in danger. Help save it.

Defend America.

Defeat Bush.

Vote Kerry.

You can do this and still be a good conservative.

Thanks for reading.

Steve

Just ask Amy.

Steely Dan reference for you kiddies.

Anyway, Kevin Drum has a good round up of the upcoming films that BushCo will be giving the "thumbs down."

And I read yesterday that F911 will be released on DVD and video in early October. Yippie!

By chance, do you happen to read the best media criticism site on the planet?

(I guess I’m blogging again. Like Al Pacino said in 'The Godfather Part III': “Every time I try to get out, they keep pulling me back in!")

One of the few recent bright spots in these dark times was the massive success of Fahrenheit 9-11. Well, here’s more good tidings. The man behind the BushCo curtain will soon receive the star treatment. I’m sure he can’t wait

If you have a speedy connection, you can watch the trailer here.

Now when does Cheney premier on the silver screen?

What a relief!

In an effort to spice things up around here, I'm gonna open up Smithantics to some other posters. Stay tuned.

A vertebrate Democrat has been identified in Iowa.

Harkin Calls Cheney a 'Coward' and Criticizes 'Backdoor Draft'

Associated Press (clip)

...Harkin also shot back at Cheney, who said in a visit to Iowa on Tuesday that presidential candidate John Kerry lacks a basic understanding of the war on terrorism and cannot make America safer.

"When I hear this coming from Dick Cheney, who was a coward, who would not serve during the Vietnam War, it makes my blood boil," Harkin said. "Those of us who served and those of us who went in the military don't like it when someone like a Dick Cheney comes out and he wants to be tough. Yeah, he'll be tough. He'll be tough with somebody else's blood, somebody else's kids. But not when it was his turn to go."

Kerry—dude— you should hang with Harkin.

NOTE: Posting has been light lately because, frankly, I’m burned out on the negativity, and I’m sure many of you are as well. Barring major events, I’m gonna lay low for a spell (maybe a few days, maybe a couple weeks).

Let’s face it, the battle lines are drawn. This country is clearly divided between the thinking people, the utter imbeciles who have drunk the BushCo Kool-Aid, and those who just don’t give a crap. The media is gamed for BushCo. I feel like I’ve pretty much run this thesis into the ground here.

Bring on November.

Lying hacks

Guess they forgot to check their sources.

Unbelievable.

I would have been through posting about these asswads if they weren’t succeeding.

If you’ve been reading the blogs, you’ll know that there have been some very interesting developments in independent counsel Patrick Fitzgerald’s investigation into who in the White House blew the cover of CIA officer Valerie Plame. I won’t go into the details here, but Kevin Drum has a good roundup of the recent happenings.

The Plame case has bordered on personal obsession for me since the investigation began. Surely if it were revealed that, in an act of pure political revenge, a senior member of the administration exposed an undercover a CIA operative —especially one that was working on WMD nonproliferation—then this would surpass Watergate as the most notorious presidential scandal ever. BushCo would go down in flames. Right?

Wrong.

This administration seems to be impervious to any Watergate-level scandal. I’m still watching the Plame case with great interest, but why should I believe that any revelation of BushCo criminality will bring the appropriate consequences? The past three-plus years have demonstrated that these guys are bullet-proof, thanks in no small part to the media poodles who cover for their asses 24/7. Fucking madness.

I posted my frustration on Democratic Underground. The discussion thread is here if you’re interested.

Walmart bad.

If you are not a regular reader of Mark Morford, you ought to be spanked.

Make sure to sign up for his Morning Fix.

Does Atrios read Smithantics? Could it be?

I'm getting very nervous.

And judging by the content of the "news," that's exactly how BushCo wants me.

Worse than Plame?

Kos thinks so.

Oh yeah, and did I mention I’m about to pop a vein over this.

Deep breath.

I came “acrossed” this during a conversation with my mom and sister about commonly mispronounced words and phrases. My mom—who I mentioned earlier hates how Bush pronounces “nuclear” as “nookular”— just loved it, so I thought I’d share.

One of my personal pet peeves is the mispronunciation of “escape” as “ecscape.” Drives me batshit.

There are plenty of other maddening mispronunciations on the list.

Man, I thought these cranks were thoroughly discredited months ago.

They're back for another spanking, eh?

Good.

The PDF version can be downloaded here.

As the kids say, sweeeeet.

Yeah, I’m supposed to be at the spa—not surfing Atrios’s blog. But I just had to share that the world’s most popular lefty blogger is—like yours truly—a Rush fan. Apparently many of the Atrios faithful are fans as well, as evidenced by the comments. Go figure.

Note: Dirk, Lerxst, and Pratt are nicknames for Neil, Alex, and Geddy (i.e., Rush)

Look, I made you waste ten seconds!

p.s. Atrios is loaded with info today. Hands down, he is the best blogger out there.

Land of opulent resorts, sparkling swimming pools, world-class golf courses, and hordes of white, obscenely rich, sunbaked, leathery Republicans.

I feel right at home.

Oh, but there are some black and brown folks here, too. They are are referred to as "the help."

It's very quaint.

My sister and I are down here visiting mom--who it should be stressed is not an obscenely rich, leathery Republican. Quite to the contrary, my very liberal mother HATES Bush with every fiber. She still can't believe we have a president who says "nookular."

Neither can I.

Anyway, I'm reading the paper and watching the "news," but in the interest of spending quality time with mom, I'm gonna resist surfing and blogging.

Not that there's not a ton of stuff to talk about. It appears that we're now in 24/7 butt-cheek-clenching terror alert mode. So what if the terror information is three years old. MSGOP told me not to listen to that crazy Howard Dean, and I 'aint gonna.

I'm going swimming.

Maybe later I'll get into it with some BushCo-suckling prune.

Have a great weekend!

The clown act that is attempting to pass itself off as news and political commentary these days is just beyond belief.

And it’s not just FOX. It’s everywhere. Have you watched cable or network news programming lately? Have you compared which stories are making the front page of the newspaper and which ones are being banished to a sidebar on page A-12? Each day brings a new lowering of journalistic standards. Right wing propaganda masking as news. The lies of omission. Infuriating.

The health and survival of a democracy is predicated on an electorate that is supplied with the most unvarnished and unbiased information possible. This is what journalism is supposed to strive for. But today we are so far from that standard I don’t see how we’ll ever make it back. Careerism, imitation, and subservience to the corporate master have trumped journalistic integrity. Republican talking points are being passed off as objective commentary and analysis. It is literally getting worse everyday.

Why, just the other night I learned on cable news that "there is a school of thought that believes the more one sees of John Kerry, the less one likes him."

Of course, FOX pioneered what I call the "unattributable attribution"-- now a staple of hack journalism (see the subtitle of this blog).

"There is a school of thought that believes Senator Kerry is sympathetic to the goals of international terrorism."

"Some say only President Bush can right the economy."

"Some believe Teresa Heinz Kerry is an elitist Eurosnob and a closet socialist."

Luckily for us, there are a still a few honest journalists working in the mass media today. New York Times op-ed writer and world-renowned economist Paul Krugman is one such professional, and he wrote a good column on the deeply biased coverage of the Democratic National Convention (If you are not registered for the online version of the NYT, it takes only a few seconds, and I highly recommend it). The media criticism sites he mentions in the beginning of the column (The Daily Howler, Media Matters, and Campaign Desk) are all linked on this blog. These sites provide plenty of examples of the disease of which I speak. Please give them a look.

Again, make sure to check out Krugman’s column.

It was a banner day—literally—for Smithantics, as I experienced the rare opportunity of riding shotgun with the mysterious Freeway Blogger on his announced visit to Sacramento.

My daylong apprenticeship was exhilarating, scary, exhausting, and rewarding as hell. The Freeway Blogger is a serious revolutionary -- in the most American sense of the word. The man will not rest until freeway blogging becomes a national phenomenon. Of course, he can always count on the Dawn Patrol to keep the revolution alive in Sacramento.

Here's some images from the day--including rare shots of the Freeway Blogger in action!

Showtime

Doin' the Deed

Doin' the Deed II

Bonzai!

The Truth

Who?

FYI

The Bridge

It’s Not Too Late

The signs we hung were viewed by tens of thousands. They cost almost nothing to make. You wanna have a blast while exercising your right of free speech? Join the freewayblogging revolution!