At the labor barbecue for Lieberman this week we brought the Kiss float, which drove slowly up and down the street in Joe Lieberman’s eyeline as he spoke. Lieberman never announces his public appearances, and as a result attendence is spotty and he never gets the full press value he could out of them — and I firmly believe it is out of fear of the Kiss Float.
Anyway, shortly after Joe showed up so did the cops. The heroic Spazeboy went running across the street to bear witness to whatever happened to CTKeith (whose father is in intensive care right now and who is in all of our thoughts and prayers tonight).
The cop was sputtering with rage but I don’t think he liked the idea of that camera at all, and while Union bosses may have been fawning over Lieberman, Spazeboy reminds us that the rank-and-file weren’t exactly happy when the decision was made to endorse him (a classic moment Spazeboy also caught on tape ).
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rootz !
Wow! That was a quick EPU over there! Here is the post I did there on this evening’s get together. No appearance by the float because, being made of paper mache, and the place under a tropical storm watch, it just would have been too great a risk to take.
>>>>>>>>>>
HI Everyone!
I just got back from our CT FDL get-together, and for once in my life I was one of the cool kids.
Great setting on the water (although under a tropical storm warning!)Jane was a most gracious host. Lots of photos and video being taken so you’ll be able to see who we are.
And the PRESS! There was a guy from GQ, Jennifer Media who wrote that great PAC piece in the NY Times this AM, 2 guys from — get this — the BBC! And, Tim Tagaris from the Lamont Campaign. Deb made the long trek from Danbury, and there are two people I now know by their real names, but forget their FDL aliases. (I HATE it when that happens)
And, Spazeboy was there, too!
It was great to meet Maura, our hero who actually asked Lieberman a question as a constituent, and CT Bob, who has the potential to be a really dangerous pot-stirrer.
More of a “Oh, you’re Kirby, you’re Deb, you’re Maura!” We talked about what we do in real life and why we are so passionate about changing the country…..one step at a time.
One person, who was very involved with the Dean campaign, as I was, said, “We’ve won already. FDL would not be a force if not for Dean people.” And, he’s so right.
Remember, it took the right years to build the infrastructure they have today. We are not far behind.
Good excitement about the new poll numbers, but still a lot of work to do. Confident, but not cocky.
And, the sentiment on Bill Clinton’s visit is that he is the one who will sit Joe down and tell him that an independent candidacy is not an option. Fight the primary, but if you lose, just go away quietly. The most sensible take on it I’ve heard or read today.
I’m sure Jane will weigh in with more info and photos will go up, but a grand, low-key visit was wonderful for everyone — but Mr. Kirby and I have to get up early for work in the AM.
Fitz!
I am SO sorry I could not be there — thanks for the update!!
Bad Boys, Bad Boys…
ROTFLMAO!
Jane, has The Kiss Float gotten much attention from the media?
Sad, too, to have missed the get-together.
So I have to ask: was the Kiss float’s dramatic photogenicity always intended as strategery to force Lieberman’s events underground? Or was that a happy side-effect?
If it was even a nascent thought in someone’s head while it was being made, I must bow down in unworthiness.
Hey Christy – the AP (via the NYT) is dissing you:
“Many writers saw a sexist aspect to Bush’s back rub. ”This isn’t a Sigma Chi kegger, it’s the G-8 Summit,” wrote blogger Christy Hardin Smith on Firedoglake.com.
(Bush was actually in Delta Kappa Epsilon. Another Web 2.0 truism: Blogs are not always friendly with the facts.)”
The nerve – why are they taking potshots at you? – hehheh
I guess they need to put those nasty bloggers in their place!
http://www.nytimes.com/aponlin…..uTube.html
Anyway – the AP is linking to you!
Huh? Christy didn’t say Bush was in Sigma Chi. Jesus. I so wish Merkel would have decked Bush.
Isn’t it more than a bit odd to have both a sitting Republican president and a former Democratic president supporting a soon-to-be third-party candidate for the U.S. Senate?
beverly @8
(Bush was actually in Delta Kappa Epsilon. Another Web 2.0 truism: Blogs are not always friendly with the facts.)”
Well we know how accurately reporting the facts is of critical importance to the MSM. They are just doing their civic duty, and correcting the public record!
kirby @ 7:31 pm (#2) – Does the BBC realize Lamont’s campaign isn’t just about the Iraq War yet?
Glad to see you’re not taking the poll too seriously. It’s a statistical dead heat at the moment. With two weeks to go there’s time to make that a real lead, but it’s not there yet.
Oh, how indeed the mighty have fallen.
The President of the US manhandles the German head of state, and their comment is “tut, tut, the blogs had W’s fraternity wrong.”
This, THIS is the state of journalism in the United States.
John Peter Zenger is spinning in his grave.
beverly @ 7:46 pm (#8) – Yes, when using sarcasm it’s always important to get the superfluous details correct. Glad the AP is on that. Wish they’d get their own facts straight more often.
Well, it seems to me that the AP’s comment is an invitation to FDL to point out any inadvertant errors of fact that the AP publishes.
The Kiss Float vs The Man
Best. Post. Title. Ever.
I bet George W. Bush has been to a Sigma Chi party…
ummm… Ms. Merkel is head of government (Chancellor) — President Horst Kohler is head of state …
Spazeboy,
Most excellent You Tube production! LOL
The NEW media ; ) heh heh
imman- you are up late!!!! Have you made your list and checked it twice for VacationLand? M
“The President of the US manhandles the German head of state, and their comment is “tut, tut, the blogs had W’s fraternity wrong.”
This, THIS is the state of journalism in the United States.“
Reminds me of the old SNL skit, my first conscience memory of media criticism…
“Peter Graves: Hello! I’m Peter Graves. Welcome to the world of “Discover”. This is Dr. Charles Claproth, Professor of Physics here at New York University.
Dr. Charles Claproth: [ listlessly ] Hello.
Peter Graves: Doctor, what are we looking at? [ points to a suspended model in front of them ]
Dr. Charles Claproth: Peter, this is a model of a water molecule.
Peter Graves: And what is a molecule?
Dr. Charles Claproth: A molecule is the smallest portion of a substance which still retains the characteristics of that substance.
Peter Graves: Aaalll right, so, this model is not actual size, then?
Dr. Charles Claproth: No Peter, it is not. Molecules are very small.
Peter Graves: About how small are they, Doctor?
Dr. Charles Claproth: Well, there are as many molecules in a teaspoon of water, as there are teaspoons of water in the Atlantic Ocean.
> Peter Graves: Aaalll right, so molecules are very, very small, then.
Dr. Charles Claproth: Yes.
Peter Graves: But you said they were just, very small.
Dr. Charles Claproth: Yes.
Peter Graves: So, you were wrong.
It all goes back to Animal House…and Bush thinking he was some proto Blutarski or maybe Otter. When in reality he’s the smarmy Marmalarde… and VeeP “Dean Wurmer” is pulling his strings.
DKE always did have Sig Chi envy anyway.
Wow.
Major, major catch by the AP. This’ll really hurt the credibility of blogtopia, and especially the credibility of that red-headed former prosecutor at firedoglake. I hope the AP gives its weekly “$500 journamalizm award” to the keen-eyed cub reporter who caught Christy LYING about the Preznit’s fraternity….
NOT.
Cujo – just commented over in EPU zone but …
The BBC coverage is part of a major documentary series being filmed by James Rogan on the role of political bloggers. James is very smart and understands the wider context of the Lamont campaign … and we are lucky to have someone of his expertise, impartiality and insight leading the project. (plus he’s a really neat guy!)
M, I have been checking my list for days and still have days to go before I sleep. :~)
Grant is packed and riding in the briefcase.
I NEED A VACATION!!!
I’d like to know what exactly the cop was yelling at the driver about.
Thanks for the correction, *ilson. My mistake.
Nim, I’d laugh if I weren’t so hacked off at the abysmal standards of journalism in this country.
Probably doesn’t help that I just reposted my Lapdogs review over on The Next Agenda, so it’s all fresh in my mind.
Hey everybody!
The kiss float (for neurophius @ 6) has gotten some media attention–footage that I recorded was even used on the 700 Club! (I definitely should ad “as seen on the 700 Club” to my next batch of Spazeboy business cards)
I’ve got great news that just came in while I was at the party: New Britain’s Democratic Town Committee (my town, the town that gave the highest number of votes to Lamont at the convention) had a meeting tonight and unanimously endorsed both Ned Lamont and John DeStefano in their respective primary races.
I’m damn proud to be a Line B Democrat tonight!
I’ve also got some pics, but took the night off from video–though our own CTBob was on the scene with his massive mini-DV camcorder.
And I hope everyone enjoys the video above. I’m so glad Jane used it for a post. It’s almost as inspired as my other semi-humorous video.
As promised to everyone I met tonight–your names have been forgotten. Please please please keep in touch, esp. if you’re from CT. Together we will make this into the bluest state in the union.
Reed Blames McCain for Loss
The buzz is that Ralph Reed blames Sen. John McCain for his loss in last night’s primary.
Rich Lowry: “Here’s the view of what happened from the Reed camp: Once the Abramoff stuff exploded, it was going to be a very tough road for Reed. Glen Bolger did a poll for the campaign in January showing that it was possible for Reed to win, but his negatives were very high and he would have to squeak by. Reed had a choice to make, and decided to stay in the race and try to make it happen. In the end, soft Republicans appear to have broken very strongly against him in the suburbs. There may have been some cross-over Democratic votes in the open primary, but that alone can’t account for a 54-46% loss. Reed’s connection to the Abramoff stuff had broken back in the summer of 2004, (ME: Broke Back Summer hehehe) so it couldn’t have been predicted that it would be such a huge deal even now. But it was. The Reed camp blames John McCain for playing payback for his 2000 primary defeat with a campaign of leaks, and the press, of course, was happy to pile on.”
http://politicalwire.com/archi….._loss.html
ccmask
Great. Now maybe Reed will devote his life to the mission of making sure John McCain does not become president.
Reed vs. McCain
Texas Death Match : Loser Leaves Town!
(And little Norquist has chosen sides)
And to think I was a little disappointed not to have ol’ Ralphie to kick around any more.
Guess every cloud does have a silver lining, after all.
Go, Ralphie. Sic that mean ol’ Senator!!!
re ccmask @ 29:
“soft Republicans” ?????
So if you are a Republican, and you object to corruption in your public officials, you are a soft Republican? The Republican Party may be closer to the brink than even we like to dream . . .
Is a soft Republican the same thing as a weak winger?
wrt “This isn’t a Sigma Chi kegger, it’s the G-8 Summit,’’ wrote blogger Christy Hardin Smith on Firedoglake.com.
Although I can’t speak for Christy, I am sure if she meant to nail down the fraternity she would have looked it up. If I say that Joe’s kiss to W was wetter than a mother-in-law kiss, I am not necessarily using the mother-in-law as a term possesive of the president. It more of a comparison. And that is how I read that line.
G’night dogs!!
Watched a show on the Discovery Channel about sociopaths his evening, “Most Evil.” One point emphasized was the cold-bloodedness. Lack of emotional reaction among killers as they describe their victims.
Then we turned to the Daily Show and Stewart showed the clip of Bush…”30,000″ describing Iraqi deaths so far. All the emotion of describing how many steaks he’d had cut for the next barbeque.
Chilling
ccmask — mother-in-law kisses are only wet in movies of a certain ilk.
imman- if you are still up– yeah, that Grant kid can be really a pain- wants to be taken every where. But, in VacationLand, he did give me a few new ideas- and that was because I was mostly ignoring his ceaseless demands amidst the water and the clear air- so, he had to come up with something especially good to get my attention! He knew he was competing with delicious crab rolls, and more.
Mmmmm, crab rolls! In just 48 hours I will be eating crab rolls in Maine!!
PS: It hasn’t been posted on Regret The Error yet……..which reports on corrections and honesty in the media.
http://www.regrettheerror.com/
So AP thinks that getting the Fratboy-in-Chief’s Greek-letter-society right is more important than pointing out that he has the mental maturity of a child and is an embarrassment to most of the people in this country? Can we say missing the point of the post?
Shrub = nekulturny
spazeboy–
Are you still around? I was wondering, why was The Kiss Float on the 700 club? Are they endorsing Lieberman?
“So AP thinks that getting the Fratboy-in-Chief’s Greek-letter-society right is more important than pointing out that he has the mental maturity of a child and is an embarrassment to most of the people in this country? Can we say missing the point of the post?“
Of course they don’t think his fraternity is more important (even though, rhetorically and factually, it wasn’t asserted in the original piece or even relevant). They just can’t pass up an opportunity to bash their perceived arch-enemies, the boys and girls with blogs.
I don’t think the MSM has disputed the essential fact of Christy’s post, which is that Bush made a world-class ass of himself.
PJ: In the same story as the Sigma Chi, it mentioned Bush saying shi_ . Yet, they neglected to add this: (Another Web 2.0 truism: Blogs are more likely to call out the President on major messups.)
Good God. Don’t they teach metaphors where they went to school?
Cripes.
neurophius @ 43
The kiss float was on the 700 club because David Brody came to CT to profile the race…the report was expected to be tilted heavily toward Joe, but was surprisingly even-handed, almost pro-Ned.
Since I had footage, and was willing to share it for free, they used it and credited it onscreen to “www.spazeboy.net”
I whored myself out to the xian right for a URL mention.
Anyway, the 700 club report is here at YouTube
G’nite all, I’ve got work in the morning!
Joe Lieberman is a Soft Republican.
You would think the AP would know an analogy when they see one – that grade school stuff. If it were irony I would understand cause irony is complicated, requiring years of study to understand, let alone master.
Druther a soft pretzel, me.
Las Vegas outlaws feeding homeless
Ordinance bans feeding the indigent in parks; ACLU calls it ‘mind-boggling.’
http://rawstory.com/showoutart…..89438.html
Pigeons, sure; but people? If they kept the homeless in cages at a petting zoo, why not, cause your never supposed to feed the animals at the zoo. And if they put them in a zoo, then they wouldn’t be homeless. So that must be the plan.
I feel better now that I see they’re ultimate goal is really to house the homeless.
And now for the good news: From the AP Website:
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS STATEMENT OF NEWS VALUES
AND PRINCIPLES
http://www.ap.org/pages/about/…..12905.html
It means we must be fair. Whenever we portray someone in a negative light, we must make a real effort to obtain a response from that person. When mistakes are made, they must be corrected – fully, quickly and ungrudgingly.
The policies set forth in these pages are central to the AP’s mission; any failure to abide by them is subject to review, and could result in disciplinary action, ranging from admonishment to dismissal, depending on the gravity of the infraction.
I guess they’ll be hearing from Redd.
Too bad they didn’t look up the aluminum tubes bit way back……
Hmmmm. I wasn’t aware that the float received some police harrassment. I know the video is fun to watch, but I take a VERY dim view of cops abusing their authority and power. Unless that pick-up truck was in violation of some traffic law, the stupid cop had NO business pulling them over. This type of crap, if left unchecked, could spread and be used again.
The solution? Mass email the Chief of Police of that town, along with email to the mayor and every single city council member. Attach the video. And, inform them that the NEXT time one of their cops VIOLATES THE FEDERAL CIVIL RIGHTS OF A CITIZEN, they’ll find themselves defending a federal civil rights lawsuit in federal court so fast their heads will spin. It WILL get their attention.
And not because the council “agrees” with the violation. It’s all about money. If that little town gets sued, that little town winds up spending a boat-load of money in legal fees defending the lawsuit. And then the taxpayers ask “why”? Why did you people on the council allow such an idiot cop to run amok and cost us so much money? It can be a very effective tool.
I’m just not at all amused by some bullshit cop interfering with peaceful and lawful political expression. That little town needs to catch a ration of shit over this.
Ghostman
I wonder…..if the Bush float had been kissing Pickles, would it have been stopped?
The occupation of Iraq is not a truck, it’s a series of toobz!
Is Journey’s ‘Don’t Stop’ blaring from The Kiss float or from the Lieberman mini-rally?
siun at 24:
The BBC coverage is part of a major documentary series being filmed by James Rogan on the role of political bloggers.
He was at YKos, right? I got to hang out with him when I tagged along with Aravosis and friends, and I agree, he’s very sharp.
That 700 Club piece on Lieberman-Lamont that Spazeboy links to above is actually not too bad (that is, if you skip Pat Robertson’s remarks at the end in which he proclaims Joe a “very nice guy” and reminisces about Joe calling him when he was on the way to have surgery. I doubt if Joe recommended that Pat take “a short ride” to another hospital…) If Spazeboy had not told me, and if not for Pat Robertson’s intro and wrap-up, I would not have known it was wingnutmedia.
It was hard to hear what he was saying, but the cop seemed to demand that the float drive on — that it oculd not park there or go so slowly as to block traffic. This may well have been a correct recitation of the law.
Why the cop seemed so pissed off is another question. I would have expected him to get a chuckle out of it.
DeKEs don’t have keggers. They go to Sigma Chi keggers and drink all the beer. As we used to say at Theta Xi, “DeKEs are fucked.”
Redshift – yep, James was at YKOS and his series is now backed by BBC as well as Sundance!
I got a chance to see him last week when I was in London – best part of my silly business trip!
You can see some of James’ film work at
http://www.parkvillage.co.uk – check the director’s showreels for some samples of his work.
Some cops are pissed off because they are pissed-off cops.
61: well, if the problem was that the truck was parked in a sort of “no-parking” area…then fair enough! As well as if the truck was driving too slow, or some such. If there WAS a traffic violation, then the cop was well within his rights….agreed.
Still, as you remarked, regardless of reason, I don’t understand why the cop seemed so agitated. It’s not like this was the reincarnation of “Bonnie & Clyde” out there! Oh well.
Ghostman
Rush Limbaugh is a soft peckerwood wing nut . . .
Are we EPU’d? My refresh button does not always open new posts.
neurophius – Not EPU’d as far as I can tell. Home page shows this as the latest post. Eerily quite around here though.
Where did everybody go?
Hmmm,maybe I need to restart my computer.
Or is FDL having problems?
OT – but sorta fitzrootsish heart stoppin’ if you haven’t yet heard.
- A tremendous victory for We the People this afternoon in a SF federal courtroom
- And a stunning defeat for WH, JUSTICE, DOD, and other asssorted boardrooms across the globe, including Co-Defendant ATT’s odd bedfellow/partners PBC (Pebble Beach Company) etc. et al.
Kudos to the fearless plaintiffs: Electronic Frontier Foundation and their fearless legal eagles and of course da judge!
Join in sending them some love – yikes – lost the linky – and so to bed – g/nite all.
Siun @ 63 — I am so jealous! I love London.
Re being quiet, it is 12:30 on the east coast.
That’s about all the fun I can pack into one day.
See you pups in the a.m. Wait, it is the a.m. :D
Hope?:
Excerpted from CNN:
http://www.cnn.com/2006/POLITI…..index.html
g’nite egregious!
LindaR – I was actually not a big London fan or not as much as I expected … but saw an amazing Modigliani show along with the fun of chatting with James. Mostly a very intense business trip this time …
So, I just submitted a new logo for the Blue America contribution page to the “council of elders” (read: jane, howie and Amato).
Let’s see how they like it!
:crosses fingers:
-Monk
I should have put this up earlier. Oh well.
Average price for regular gasoline 7/20/06 in 50 states plus DC
$3.00 16 states
$2.90 21 states
$2.80 14 states
National average $2.987
Cheapest average price: South Carolina $2.803
Most expensive average: Hawaii $3.386
Oil Prices:
Nymex Crude Future $74.10
Dated Brent Spot $73.17
WTI Cushing Spot $73.08
Gas prices are high and have been increasing slowly but steadily. Speculation in the oil markets over the effects of the crisis in Lebanon has cooled but could heat up quickly if the conflict should expand. Oil prices may be finding a new psychological bar at the $75 level where they rise and fall around it. It seems only a short time ago that $70 was considered a ceiling to be broken only by major spikes. No more.
Ghostman @ 9:07 pm (#65) – It looked and sounded like this was the second time the cop had talked to the driver. That might explain his agitation. Notice toward the video he appears to be gesturing with two fingers. I don’t think it was the peace sign ;-)
OT – I just got home from the FDL gathering in Branford. What an awesome night! And finally meeting Jane was amazing (I’m such a film-geek; I brought my DVD of NBK for her to autograph!) She’s absolutely as cool in person as she is here, except on FDL you don’t get to see the intelligent spark in her eyes or her warm smile when she talks!
We had a NY Times reporter, a freelancer for GQ(!), and a BBC documentary team (all cool people) there, along with a good sized group of the local bloggers. And dozens more folks from FDL whom I’ll try list tomorrow, when I’ll get the pictures up on my blog.
It’s nearly one AM here, and I’m fire dog tired! ‘night folks!
AP doesn’t get snark, eh? They do know, don’t they, that most bloggers don’t really believe that President Bush is genus/species in the chimp family. Don’t they? If not, should someone tell them?
wrt that AP story mentioned by beverly 7:46 pm:
(Bush was actually in Delta Kappa Epsilon. Another Web 2.0 truism: Blogs are not always friendly with the facts.)
Maybe not, but some bloggers do have a sense of humor. Come to think of it, whoever wrote that story can’t be that stupid. Sounds more like another John Solomon smear job. (Solomon being the guy who kept pushing the Harry Reid – boxing tickets stories for AP.)
WaPoO chatz Friday, questions accepted now!
VandeHei at 11 eastern:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/…..01580.html
Broder at Noon eastern:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/…..01265.html
i whored myself out to the xian right for a url mention.
where do i sign up? skippy loooovves jesus!
AP has to address a wide and diverse audience of newspapers without pissing too many of them off. Apparently it does not yet care whether it pisses bloggers off.
Can you prove he’s not?
neuro @84
/em Yoda voice “Oh but they will, young Jedi…they will.
Exactly, neuro, the AP is keeping its customers happy by dissing our own ReddHedd! All the papers who are their customers must be seeing the drop in circulation, and are probably blaming the bloggers for it, so the swipe at Blog 2.0 and “truthiness” will play well to them….
Okay we had a bit of disconnect with regard to posting order but we’re fixed now. I’ll see you at the General’s above…
Anne H: Watch for another round of “break up the evil liberal Ninth Circuit” court-bashing, now that the EFF case may be allowed to go forward.
OT – Julian Bond is all that – add in S. Colbert – hard to get better.
(Bush was actually in Delta Kappa Epsilon. Another Web 2.0 truism: Blogs are not always friendly with the facts.)
————————————————————
Whatever. The bottom line, no matter how you look at it, is that Bush took a beating this week. He had “the shit heard ’round the world”, the backrub, the stem-cell veto, and the NAACP. When Bush’s best story is his speech before the NAACP, you know he’s had a rough week. (It sounded like a good speech, btw. Unfortunately for Bush, it made me miss Clinton.) The “adopted embryo” photo-op was my favorite, just for the irony. If the right-wingers had gotten their way 30 years ago on IVF, none of those kids would’ve ever been conceived.
TeddySanFran says
July 20th, 2006 at 9:53 pm
Anne H: Watch for another round of “break up the evil liberal Ninth Circuit” court-bashing, now that the EFF case may be allowed to go forward.
————————————————————
I doubt it. I think another round of “break up the evil AT&T” is more likely. Loved the rationale, btw. My paraphrase: “You can’t claim it’s a secret if the President’s telling eveyone about it.”
I guess I will go report for duty at Late Nite.
Josh Marshall at TPM redeems himself after ‘jumping the flounder’ http://www.talkingpointsmemo.c…..php#009122