Obamania, For Real
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the peaceful, orderly transfer of power which has been going on in the United States for over two and a quarter centuries.
That bloodiest-of-all-American-conflicts Civil War they had sure was peaceful and orderly, too!
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Orderly, bring a stretcher!
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I think Leonard always had his tongue in his cheek a bit with that song.
Yes - very much in the vein of "I'm the little Jew who wrote the Bible."
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Orderly, bring a stretcher!
lol.
I noticed Leonard Cohen changed his lyrics from " democracy is coming" to "has come to the USA" which I felt was his way of acknowledging the inauguration whilst in our country seeing that he was 'ere annat. He also said that we had a peaceful country but I am sure some could argue otherwise, so... what? I'll just say, what Sacha or Danielle said for now.
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Oh No - Shades of the opening of the Olympics at the Inauguration.
The somber, elegiac tones before President Obama’s oath of office at the inauguration on Tuesday came from the instruments of Yo-Yo Ma, Itzhak Perlman and two colleagues. But what the millions on the National Mall and watching on television heard was in fact a recording, made two days earlier by the quartet and matched tone for tone by the musicians playing along.
And Garrison Keillor had his spontaneous moment as the crowds were departing.
But the great moment came later, as the mob flowed slowly across the grounds. I heard loud cheers behind me and there on the giant screen was the Former Occupant and Mrs. Bush saying goodbye to the Obamas in the parking lot behind the Capitol, the Marine helicopter behind them.
The crowd stopped and stared, a little stunned at the reality of it.
They saw it on a screen in front of the Capitol and it was actually happening on the other side. The Bushes went up the stairs, turned, waved and disappeared into the cabin, and people started to cheer in earnest. When the blades started turning, the cheering got louder, and when the chopper lifted up above the Capitol and we saw it in the sky heading for the airport, a million jubilant people waved and hollered for all they were worth. It was the most genuine, spontaneous, universal moment of the day. It was like watching the ice go out on the river. -
Anybody know (OK it'll be almost everybody right?) how to lik to the latest Mark Fiore animation? I can email the thing to - whoever-
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Anybody know (OK it'll be almost everybody right?) how to lik to the latest Mark Fiore animation?
I think this may be the permalink.
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Many thanks for the link giovanni! Mark Fiore's animations reminded me, through 8 long years, that the US of A was waaay way better than the Shrubya's lot tried to reduce it to-
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Not sure whether this has been posted already (and apologies if it already has), but the Gaurdian has a brief profile of Obama's chief speechwriter, who is only 27. Granted, it's not a very extensive article but it makes a few interesting observations about how the Obama and him collaborate on each speech.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/jan/20/barack-obama-inauguration-us-speech
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With organizations like Fox, I do believe John Stewart has plenty to keep The Daily Show alive and well. A quick flick over last night to see if just possibly there could be some acceptance of the new President ,but, as expected, some batshit expert woman being interviewed for her opinion. I mean, what is that channel for? Back to John Stewart, his show is still a great watch, I was happy to see last night. Got the impression it could be used for a checklist in the Whitehouse.
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Given that Stewart's main meat is the way the media portray politicians, I think he'll do just fine with Obama
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Unless Faux News goes away, I'd say he has a job for life..
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Unless Faux News goes away, I'd say he has a job for life..
True. I meant to post on this earlier but.....
Did anyone else do a comparison of the reporting on the inauguration between Fox and CNN? Astounding but entirely unsurprising. If that is possible. CNN was, almost like watching the second coming while on Fox it was the end of days. -
Unless Faux News goes away, I'd say he has a job for life.
True, but you wonder whether the show might need an overhaul, rather like the one it had in 2000, when it brought in a lot of new writers (including the original guys behind__the Onion__) and switched from a rather facile sketch show to the politically-orientated format it has now.
It remains to be seen how much juice he can get out of the current format, or whether they need to take a different tack. Mind you, I think their post-inaugruation episodes have been pretty solid so far, even if you can feel the political ground moving underneath their feet.
On another note, does anyone else think that Stewart's interviewing skills have improved immensely over the years? I really reckon there would be something to be said for beefing that part of that show up, even if it would change both the tone and possibly even its format. Certainly, he's a very gracious with people of all political stripes, in the way he allows it to be an exchange of opinions rather than a shouting match. Perhaps the main flaw with the interviews is (by Stewart's own admission) he feels like he has to be funny all the time, whereas there are occasions where he could just let it flow a bit better. But they're always watchable.
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Btw, for those wishing to geek out, Super Obama World is strangely addictive.
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Mind you, I think their post-inaugruation episodes have been pretty solid so far, even if you can feel the political ground moving underneath their feet.
I thought Friday's (Thursday their time) show was weak, relatively to the past few weeks.
I think the political stuff will take some shaking out, but come a year or so, it will be less of a focus, but still there.
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I just watched Jon's first ever show again, for fun. He looks about four years old and his bits are much more clearly 'scripted' than they are now. Notable: his first guest was a not-at-all debilitated Michael J. Fox (sad), and the long-departed Beth Littleford did a rather hilarious interview with some former Munchkins from The Wizard of Oz.
I'm thinking that there's always going to be something ridiculous to riff on.
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I thought Friday's (Thursday their time) show was weak, relatively to the past few weeks.
I think the political stuff will take some shaking out, but come a year or so, it will be less of a focus, but still there.
The trouble is, to a degree, they've had relatively little to work with over the last couple of weeks on the homefront, pomp and circumstance aside (granted, they tentatively dipped their toes into the Israel/Palestine issue, but it's a thorny one to wrest any comedy out of, that's for sure).
But you're right, I think- and one way for them to change the show would be to enhance the interview segments of it, as the guests, no matter their political leanings are usually good value, and Stewart can occasionally ask some good, probing questions amidst the gags. Then again, the risk there would be that by tipping the balance too far in that direction they become Just Another Talk Show. So it's going to be a new learning process, that's for sure. They're well aware the Dick Cheney/GWB impersonations just won't do it anymore.
@ Danielle- you're right, Stewart looks ridiculously young in those early episodes. And it was "only" eight years ago. Proof positive that the Bush Administration took years off his life!
Re: Michael J Fox. Yeah, it is sad to see him like he is now- I've always thought he was a really likeable screen presence.
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Oops, okay, it's been 10 years, rather than eight, since Stewart's first show, but still, the point stands...:)
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And sorry to jack this thread back into real news, but anyone else find this faintly disquieting?
A former Raytheon lobbyist nominated to be deputy defense secretary despite President Barack Obama's ban on hiring lobbyists will sell his stock in the military contracting firm.
However, William J. Lynn won't be forced to step back from decisions related to his former employer, the Pentagon said Friday.
Instead, Lynn's dealings at the Defense Department will be subject to ethics reviews for one year, said Pentagon spokesman Geoff Morrell.
The Obama administration's decision ended around an executive order that the president signed Jan. 20. His "revolving door" ban, part of Obama's "ethics commitments," ordered officials who had been lobbyists for up to two years prior to their hiring to recuse themselves from decisions involving their former employers.
Under the ban, former lobbyists could not "participate in any particular matter" they had been involved in as a lobbyist or "participate in the specific issue area in which that particular matter falls."
But Lynn avoided a total recusal under the decision announced by Pentagon officials Friday.
On Thursday, the administration delivered to the Senate Armed Services Committee a waiver to Obama's "ethics pledge" for federal employees, exempting Lynn from two specific sections: a two-year prohibition on employees from participating in decisions related to their former employers and a more specific section banning individuals from taking jobs in the agencies they recently lobbied.
"I understand that Mr. Lynn will otherwise comply with the remainder of the pledge and with all pre-existing government ethics rules," the waiver states.
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Defense Secretary Robert Gates, who requested Lynn as his deputy, did not want Lynn to have to recuse himself outright from all decisions involving Raytheon because it would severely limit his ability to do his job, Morrell said.
Raytheon is one of the military's top contractors, doing $18.3 billion in U.S. government business in 2007.
As a lobbyist, Lynn worked on matters with far reach across the Pentagon, including contracting policy, the military's use of space, missile defense, munitions and artillery, sensors and radars and advanced technology programs.
Yes, it's not putting a Senate seat on E-Bay or keeping a pile of unmarked bills behind the ice cream in the freezer. But really... not a good look.
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Yes, it's not putting a Senate seat on E-Bay or keeping a pile of unmarked bills behind the ice cream in the freezer. But really... not a good look.
And therein lies the problem with the military-industrial complex, IMHO. He may very well be the best man for the job, precisely because of his experience.
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Hmm, not obvious, but I was agreeing with you, Craig.
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And therein lies the problem with the military-industrial complex, IMHO. He may very well be the best man for the job, precisely because of his experience.
But that's the problem with influence-peddling, period and full stop. Do people retain the services of Chen & Palmer -- the closest thing we have to a K Street law firm here -- because the folks with their names above the door know a thing or two about the law? Yes, but it also doesn't hurt they're awesomely well-connected and hire people with equally impressive address books. The same reason why so many hacks end up on "the dark side" of PR -- access is power.
It's entirely plausible that Lynn is the "best man" for the job, but the real test of any ethics regime is whether you stick it when it is inconvenient.
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On Thursday, the administration delivered to the Senate Armed Services Committee a waiver to Obama's "ethics pledge" for federal employees
Boy, that didn't take long for principle to be undermined. Ta, Craig.
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Boy, that didn't take long for principle to be undermined. Ta, Craig.
Then again, the Senate Armed Services Committee chairman Carl Levin could grow a spine and say he won't support Lynn's nomination with the waiver attached. But I won't hold my breath waiting...
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