Login HereMy favorite of the bunch of "my pal John" pieces? This one:
-- John McCain: Grill Master Supreme (Balt.Sun), which includes this fine bit of journalistic digging:
...McCain says he loves to grill because it’s social and people can sit out on the deck, sipping wine and chatting with him as he does the cooking.
"I have so much nervous energy, it keeps me moving," said McCain, dressed in jeans, running shoes, a sweatshirt and baseball cap as he used tongs to flip the ribs....
But the real secret to his success, he said, is that he cooks the meat over a low heat, allowing the bone to get hot and help cook from the inside out. The 12 racks of ribs he cooked on Sunday took as long as an hour and a half until McCain deemed them ready for consumption. (They were excellent, all agreed.)
In case you were wondering, we are gearing up for the general election season wherein McCain's credentials as "fun guy to have a beer with" are already being trotted out in the ever popular "damn, he throws a good kegger" press suck-up contest. Digby caught an amusing aside in a WaPo piece on the BBQ:
Oh, and btw, one question I really would like to have answered. Does McCain go anywhere without his faithful hound by his side?
Wearing a pair of jeans and a sweat shirt with a family photo printed on it, McCain pointed out a hawk's nest on the property he's owned for 24 years, and explained how his bone-down slow-cook grilling technique virtually eliminates the fat from his ribs. (Several reporters, skeptical by trade, remained unconvinced.) McCain's springer spaniel, Sam, hovered near the tong-wielding senator, gnawing on a rib McCain had taken off the grill. McCain's friend Sen. Lindsay Graham also gnawed on a rib, albeit with more delicacy.
Anyone else getting that delicate poodle-boy feel there with Huckleberry?
Here's a clue press corps: this wasn't a siesta from the campaign trail, it was a staged "we're so confident, we cook ribs" show for the masses, and a cheap ploy to get some free press coverage for a campaign in real money trouble with the FEC. It was also an attempt to buy your affection cheaply, and you fell for it.
Jeebus, didn't we get enough of this bullshit and phony show from the W crowd to last us several lifetimes? Wake the hell up, and read some Sun Tzu and Machiavelli while you are at it, you pack of slavering, rib-chawing, puff piece pals: McCain is not your friend, he just wants to use you for a while until he doesn't need you any longer. You are friends with benefits -- except the benefits are only for him...he's just not that into you, unless there is something in it for him.
Want more McCain BBQ? Because there is a plethora of reportage on it this morning:
-- Relaxed McCain Welcomes Press To Arizona Cabin ( AZRep)
-- At McCain's Retreat, Ribs With A Side Of Chi (WaPo)
-- McCain Stands On The Other End Of A Press Grilling (WaPo)
-- Chicken Hawk: McCain Meets Grill (Boston Globe)
-- Back In Arizona, McCain Tends Grill (WSJ)
-- McCain Shows Off His BBQ Skills (CBS News)
-- Here's the Beef (Natl. Journal -- Hotline)
-- No News, Just Ribs At McCain BBQ (CNN)
-- Sunday At The Ranch With John: McCain Works His "Base" At BBQ (Newsweek)
Welcome to the first wave of McCain coverage for the general election. Feel the grill...stay for the slavering.
(YouTube of latest ad from VoteVets.org.)
NOTE: A reminder that Scott Horton will be here at 3 pm ET/noon PT to talk about the Siegelman case and politicization of the DOJ for our First Monday series. Hope you can join us for a live chat with Scott!
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My first EPU:
Morning Astral, how are you doing today?
Mornin’ Christy!
From the headline only without reading the link, Newsweek at least has some small measure of honesty in this.
Which doesn’t say much for Newsweek or any of the others as I’m sure they don’t see the irony or problem.
Feeding pork to a dog?
F**king idiot.
Ouch! That video really hurts!
How long before wingnuts start crying that John McCain is being swiftboated?
Do click thru the Digby link. She really nails the WaPo on this.
Awesome nod to Sex in the City there at the end, Christy. :) Couldn’t agree more, too.
Christy!
Did you get a new computer? There was some talk about converting you to a Mac user yesterday! (Nooooooo!!!)
The AP Reporter asks, “May I get you a pillow, Senator?”
The NYR reporter intejects, “No - allow me to get it, Senator. And may I refresh your pinot noir while I’m at it?”
“Those are the best ribs I’ve ever had,” remarks the Washington Post reporter, smiling at McCain…
What a great commercial!
More of that kind of stuff, and it’s not gonna matter what the Conglomerate Media does.
Excellent video!
Using his own words against him.
Once ya go Mac, ya never go back.
Christy:
I love it when you talk like that!
My laptop, which is still under warranty, is being shipped out today (hopefully…if the materials arrive from the manufacturer via UPS that have to be included with it) for repair.
But I did end up getting a new computer that will arrive here some time this week. And yes…I got a new iMac — a desktop that I’ll be doing most of my writing on, with the soon-to-be-repaired dinged up laptop as my travel back-up.
The media like the Republicans have this in common. They develop a narrative and stick to like glue. The media love McCain. Therefore they will always love McCain regardless of the facts. He will always be the straightshooter and the maverick. So called liberals like Mark Shields will be trotted out from time to time to show how widespread the
goofinessadmiration is. I called the media pod people earlier today. This is just another example of that.Is Lindsdey Graham getting groomed to be the first out of the closet gay vice-president? Now that would be a strong argument: tough for us liberals to pick between the first black/woman president (depending on who ultimately prevails) when the Rs have an (for all intents and purposes) openly gay VP candidate. How’s that for a winning strategy?
The Stains of McCain fall mainly into the Insane.
You got an iMac? Woohoo!
We have three.
:)
Hi Christy,
Were you really expecting this kind of coverage?
Congrats! I hope you like your new Mac!
Christy,
Great post. Went for coffee and didn’t see your hello. I’m well, and honored, thank you.
Wonder if they had an quail wings at the BBQ?
Sad, but true, Hugh. Because it’s easier to repeat something someone already told you to think than to stop and think for yourself, I suppose…
wow, you have an iMac?
I am still chuckling over Marcy and Jane’s coblogging of a hearing a while back with Marcy describing Jane’s “settling in” process and ending with a “mac people, ya know?” still cracks me up.
I’m bipartisan on the pc platform front. I’ve used and like both. ;)
BTW- something I wrote over at WaPo yesterday:
__________
That retroactive immunity seems likely to be conferred indicates perhaps the extent to which the Bu’ush administration and the telecoms have culled blackmail dirt via their warrantless secret spying on a sufficient number of legislators to force the issue. Ya think? Makes ya wonder, even if you’re not fond of tinfoil haberdashery.
__________
Is that one rumination too far?
My 7th grade granddaughter writes better than the examples you’ve shown and the best grade she gets are B-. Perhaps I should ask her teacher to grade our 3.1 Estate, marked down from 4th Estate for pandering.
See, as a not-Hillary supporter I don’t get why others didn’t take the same wide stance regarding Hillary getting a huge amount of free press over her THREE ACT play on SNL:
ACT I - scene depicts a poor and abused Hillary v. very pampered Obama.
ACT II - bash media and Obama with the poor abused Hillary and pampered Obama act of ACT 1 as seen on SNL, in the last and final debate.
ACT III - use the staged poor Hillary of ACT I of national TV show SNL as a weapon at every campaign stop, getting enormous amounts of free national airtime and publicity and sympathy and dollars and a chance to take another cheap shot at Obama.
- Then, appear again suddenly, and victorious! In a grand finale on SNL, again claiming false victories out of a totally staged and fake Plan as seen in ACT’s I and II.
On Broadway they might say ”BRAVO”!
In Politics it’s ”MISSION ACCOMPLISHED”
Yep — it looks lovely on the Mac website, and the bells and whistles with it should keep it from crashing when I have 30-odd research windows open at the same time. (which will be nice, frankly) We went out yesterday and got a new desk/table at Ikea for it because our old family-heirloom roll-top desk was not going to work — the desk isn’t big enough to make a workable surface for the screen and keyboard.
Mr. ReddHedd was teasing me because I ended up getting what is really a dining room table for my work desk — but it’s perfect, and going right in front of the birdfeeder windows in the sunroom. Just in time for Spring…
Vote Linux!
Well, it’s on order anyway. Unfortunately, we live nowhere near an Apple store, but it is being built and shipped to me as I type. Woo hoo!
Hey I just reread this post and caught the irony of mentioning Scott Horton’s (true journalist) appearance here at FDL (true journalism hot spot) at the end of the list of lapdogs.
You have a gift!
I bet you’ll dig the right-mouse click look up in dictionary and spelling check.
Bush’s economic policies are working –just like the surge. McCain would be way proud of this if he understood anything about the economy which he says he doesn’t.
http://www.smartmoney.com/bn/s.....0303102018
The woman in the AD, having spent a year in Iraq still cannot pronounce the freaking name of the country…. it is no wonder the rest of the world thinks we are bloody stupid
A correct pronunciation would lead to only one conclusion:
She a mooslim.
Well…not living near an Apple store is a mixed blessing. My daughter has an iPod (of course) and the battery died. I have just a little hesitation walking up to a customer service counter that’s called the “genius bar”. It’s just too Steve Jobs for me. But the good part was the iPod was under full warranty and they just handed her a new one!
dos
(not DOS)
A Mac! wonderful a real computer for a change g*
I also use a dining room table for a desk, plenty of space for spreading out papers and stuff. He’s just envious that you have the nicer desk now.
*g*
you funny!
They need to get with the program. How’s this for a campaign motto?
Want the Draft Again?
Elect John McCain!
freedos!
We have a rotating job at the university, where for a semester, a faculty member has to deal with updating, rebooting and debugging the 20 computers available for student use in labs and the library. I had that job a couple of years ago.
Average number of maintenance calls for the pc’s with windows - 2.3 times per WEEK.
Average number of maintenance calls for the macs - 1.4 times per SEMESTER.
Time to kick that domestic spying apparatus into high gear. The Earth Liberation Front is burning down McMansions.
Time to start tapping calls to the Sierra Club.
-G
Nah she din’t have no freakin head scarf she can’t be no freakin moooslam
We need a list…of the reporters at the BBQ and their editors to whom we can spotlight this post and comments.
Yep, lapdogs for BBQ John, we’re lookin’ at you…and you ain’t lookin’ pretty.
Hope to be back for the Horton visit.
Enjoy the new computer set-up, Christy…my dining room table is my workdesk these days.
“On both days, McCain stood over not one, but two gas grills,…”
Holy crap! Two grills! TWO!
All Hail St. McBarbecuer-in-Chief!
:) hey, i like the open source policy!
Going round in circles?
No serious BBQer would ever use propane.
What’s new about McCain dispensing pork?
Real men use napalm
Well, didn’t I read that Obama got a lot of good PR from doing SNL a couple of weeks ago?
So he can go on there but she can’t is that your point?
The simpler explanation is that a significant portion of the Democratic Senators and Representatives disagree with us and fight against us. Perhaps a majority.
You would think we learned our lesson in how we pick a president. ‘Who you would like to share a beer with’ is no criteria. Sadly, I think that may account for Obama’s popularity as well.
Love the commercial. Will that get some nationwide airplay during the Generals? I sure hope so.
I’ve worked in “the media” covering Presidential campaigns and it always pissed me off how chummy some “journalists” would get with the people they covered. Of course, you can be friendly and cordial, but it becomes a problem when they start hanging out socially. Many of those “journalists” get all glee club and giddy when a person of power lets them hang around for an hour, as if they’re important people now and can make mommy proud, never realizing they’re being manipulated.
Kind of like this nonsense:
http://blogs.chron.com/whiteho.....l#comments
(our favorite AP regurgitator Nedra Pickler makes an appearance in the photo series)
It started becoming very disheartening to me as someone who thinks good journalism is a fundamental element of our entire system we call America (eventually got out of that biz). This McCain’t coverage is a perfect example of what it leads to.
tw3k, I left you something, end of last thread.
Great post, Christy.
Collectively, our “independent” journalists are a cheap date.
thanks.
Actually, I had charcoal in mind.
Napalm would lend a Sunoco Special 93 flavor to the ribs.
I knew I had been spending too much time at FDL last June when I was in the bookstores with tables full of books on “Grilling” and I thought they were exposes on Gitmo and extraordinary rendition!
McCain is to BBQ
as Chee-knee is to “hunting”
Hopefully, the people will come to see the corporate press for what it is: a business.
The web lets citizen journalists do the heavy lifting, without the hefty paycheck. Lovely.
The good news is that young people are far more likely to get their news online than middle-aged or old people, who are far more likely to get theirs from television.
It all works out, IMO. Our democracy thrives as media proliferate and diversify.
http://newsprism.wordpress.com
Jane how can we keep our Mac virus immunity strong. I have never owned a
PC and don’t know how to cope. Is smallpox coming to the original Mac
population??
No such thing as professional distance in DC any more…
hi Christy..from Paris once again…
was in London earlier, and will be back in Minneapolis tomorrow night, so you won’t be getting these annoying messages from me from the other side of the pond for a while…*G*
Welcome over to the side of the Light! I’ve bought a couple of Macs through the net over the years and usually received them within a couple of days of ordering.
One point some folks may have been trying to make subtly is that most Macs are “single button”. But most all functions done in “right click” in PC world can be done by clicking and holding in Mac world.
Soon, you’ll be asking yourself why it took you so long! ;})
I have a confession about the whole McCain campaign — it scares the hell out of me. Now, this isn’t because I think Diebold will be instrumental in attempting to leverage this mummified old corpse into the oval office (it will, I have no doubt); no, it was something more base, but I finally figured out what it was.
It was that weird, omnipresent specter of Cindy McCain, always hanging out behind him and whispering in his ear at odd moments when he seemed to stumble over the “straight talk” he was attempting to remember.
And, I finally figured out why she bothers me so much. I used to think she was like some beta copy of a Stepford wife, but it is more insidious, actually, from my own childhood. She reminds me of the animated spider character that Debby Reynolds made so popular from Charlotte’s Web. That damn spider scared the hell out of me as a kid. Sure, they drew her eyes wide and blinky but that scene where she captures a fly and pounces on it in a flash always stayed with me. She told the pig, “If it bothers you, I’ll put it away and eat it later.” And that was all well and good but, as a junior science geek I knew what that meant was, “I’ll hide away the struggling body and suck it dry, leaving a dessicated corpse later.”
It still sends shivers up my spine, kinda like Cindy McCain.
You can link your moniker to your website in the sites’ account settings.
lol! that’s funny. I liked that story.
I’d love to see that Astral. I know there are a number of scholarly insightful reasons that are given as to why Dean lost soon in the primary last time around, (I don’t remember some of them but their were a lot more than “the yell” which is the type of thing the MSM loves to hone in on–that financing wasn’t helped by the DNC originally–and I guess reasons that the book guest who worked on his campaign doing internet things for him would know–I don’t have time to look them up.
Dean would have made a terrific President and having Dean as an active constructive Vice President instead of the monster that gobbles all things constitutional that Cheney evolved rapidly into would be excellent.
But how do you know Dean is even interested in the job?
Amen !!! I’m figuring out our new Mac as I write this. I’m basically computer challenged and use them as typewriters/big libraries. So, I was nervous about learning a whole new system.
It’s so user friendly there is no ” new system “.It’s awesome !
You were in Paris last night and you went to London for part of the night and the morning? I forget the time difference and only stayed in London for a few hours?
It’s a good idea to purchase the Apple Care even though it’s pricy.
That friggin’ Dana Bash from CNN kept reporting from the RibFest yesterday in Sedona. How’d she get a gig speaking in front of a camera for chrissakes? Ditto for the other bubblehead Mary Snow. Do they have speech impediments or what?!?
I would say Obama appeals to those who are tired of Washington. These folks may view McCain and Clinton as establishment candidates. IMHO, none of these three candidates are progressive, so we have a long fight ahead of us. Obviously though, McCain would be a disaster.
I don’t know. I’ve never purchased it but haven’t had any problems that would have been covered anyway.
Or I could just have been lucky.
ITA with your analysis.
If you were a pc user and have your first mac, David Pogue has a book that is good to help you get the most out of the mac coming from the pc if you even need it. There are tons of Mac how to sites on the web just like for Windows.
Switching to the Mac: The Missing Manual, Leopard Edition (Missing Manual) (Paperback)
Check him out at http://www.davidpogue.com/
Hey Biodun!
It’s the “Lion” side of March here in Mpls right now. I’d stay on that side of the pond as long as possible if I were you.
I work in an oufit that uses many mac’s and our tech-heads say to get it. I sold one of mine and it was even transferable.
I had the free year of coverage on my Ipod and it stopped working and I walked in to the Apple Store and they just handed me a brand new one on the spot, so when it ran out I got that for about $40. I don’t know how much they are for a Mac but I assume they would be worth it.
I just bought a Mac Book and it was $238
McCain and Lindsay Graham, now there’s an interesting couple.
As a strong Edwards supporter who didn’t know Obama and wanted to like Hillary, I’ve had a very tough time making up my mind. The best take I’ve heard was something someone said here (Raven, maybe?-sorry if I’m wrong) a few weeks ago-the best argument for Obama is we have nothing to lose, and possibly much to gain.
Nice choice on the iMac Christy. It’s my next Mac. I’ve used them on client sites and they just are great.
The term chicken hawk in the Boston Globe article title is kind of interesting since it’s been used to describe a man who like boys.
When it comes to replacement, this is the smartest decision a consumer could make. Unlike many extended warranties offered by companies like Best Buy, Circuit City, and even Dell, if your product should be fully replaced with a brand-new model, your previously purchased extended warranty does not carry over to your new product. Instead you are left with the 1 year manufacturer’s warranty. Applecare replacements always carry the previously purchased warranty. Your product can be replaced and repaired as many times as necessary to deliver a fully working product.
Lastly, remember that as with most Apple products, you can obtain an educational discount for Applecare service. It usually ranges about 15% for most products.
If you’re considering an Apple hardware purchase, then Applecare is a must.
well. lookie who’s back…*g*
Funny you should ask that because I have it on personal authority. At DemocracyFest last year wearing my “Gore/Dean 08″ T shirt and I met him in the hallway of the hotel. His face lit up like the Christmas tree at RockyCenterFella when he saw it, and with a big ol grin he said “Hey, I REALLY like that shirt!”
Also I’m an old Deaniac, and when I’ve seen Dean on the TV it’s easy to see he’s itchin’ for a fight. You can see it in his eyes. He’s game.
sweet! I think that’s totally cool :)
Act IV: Appear on The Daily Show on CC the night before the do-or-die primaries…
BC
You’re probably right, and their attitudes are likely leavened with telecom money. But, ya gotta wonder about a subtle blackmail factor.
Astral, I would be ALL OVER Dean as a VP. Hell yes.
After having Windows, and I’m a Windows freek which imediately usually opens you up to ridicule, you’ll probably love the new Mac.
There is a good book written by David Pogue who writes the lead new gadget article for the NY Times Circuits section
Switching to the Mac: The Missing Manual, Leopard Edition (Missing Manual) (Paperback)
Pogue’s Posts
http://www.davidpogue.com/
hey there…incoming Thursday I think…will go out overnight Wednesday morning–buddy..
Of course, If Dean WERE tapped as VP, expect to see footage of the “Scream” 24/7.
Well, I see this thread has devolved into a puff piece on Mac.
The CNN headline says “No News, Just Ribs At McCain BBQ”. So then why is it reported as news? I know Style editors love puff pieces and so do politicians so we can “get to know” our leaders. But lately things are getting ridiculous-what with the “women are dumb” and the “McCain’s a war hero but a regular guy” stories.
Sorry, I’m just a little grouchy today.
I love Dean.
Considering the price of a Mac if you were to have a significant hdw problem or problems although they make pretty good boxes (unless you say had a hard drive failure and could pick up a new hard drive at a decent price)that would probably be very worth having.
Dean was a very good internist before he ever touched politics and it ticked me off to see people playing the “yell” over and over again and trying to characterize him and brand him with it as if he were a mushbrained idiot. If you ever hear him speak, or watch him on the tube going after McCain or anyone else, you pick up how bright he is.
I know — the irony of that headline alone made me write this today. That and the society page flavor of the Baltimore Sun piece. Blergh.
OT-breaking news-a mass shooting at a West Palm Beach, FL, Wendy’s. 4 dead. All thoughts and best wishes to those injured and their families.
The view from the helicopter shows the Wendy’s, and a billboard displaying the words “Gun Show”.
Did you see Dean on Late Edition? It looked as if he wanted to rip McCain’s fool head off. It was beautiful.