Bachmann stylings courtesy of Tildology

Let’s play a game called “Who really said this totally stupid crazy thing, Sheen or Bachmann?” Ready, get set, go!

1. “It is our children who are the prize for the gay community! They are specifically targeting our children!”
2. “This is like a sober acid trip.”
3. [Written in 2001, during the administration of Republican president George W. Bush] “A new national curriculum is used that embraces a socialist, globalist world view, loyalty to all government and not America.”
4. “We win so radically in our underwear.”
5. “We are headed down the lane to economic Marxism!”
6. “I have cleansed myself. I closed my eyes and in a nanosecond, I cured myself. It’s the work of sissies.”

Think you’ve got ‘em figured out? Good.

Answers are as follows: 1. Bachmann, 2. Sheen, 3. Bachmann, 4. Sheen, 5. Bachmann, 6. Sheen.

Now, see if you can tell me this: Which one is a Hollywood actor whose foibles harm few outside of that person and that person’s immediate circle, and which one is an elected member of Congress who was picked by John Boehner to serve on the House Intelligence Committee?

Exactly.

The funniest part of this exercise (and by “funny” I mean “downright infuriating”): The “serious” media’s not afraid to point out, in so many words, that Charlie Sheen is “erratic” (Washington Post Express and Los Angeles Times), among other things, and does not shy away from publishing people’s harshest criticisms of his behavior. Yet the most insane things that Bachmann says are all too often hidden away or reported without comment, much less anyone pointing just how wrong, not to mention crazy, they are.

This is, of course, why FDL is here.

This is probably going to be the only time today that you see Charlie Sheen’s name anywhere on this website. We have better stories to pursue: stories like Emptywheel’s on the Pentagon’s apparent emulation of World War II Germany and using prison labor to put together its most sensitive aircraft parts; or Jeff Kaye’s expert analysis of the horrific treatment Bradley Manning is enduring; David Dayen’s prodigious coverage and laser-accurate readings of so many situations here and around the globe; and of course providing a forum for reader-crafted articles like this one from Greenpeace’s Philip Radford on how Peter King freaks out in bigoted fashion against Muslims while openly hugging a real terror threat, that of a poison gas disaster in New York City, to his bosom. Furthermore, when FDL does talk about celebrities and the entertainment industry, as Lisa Derrick does over at La Figa, it’s not just an exercise of pointing and giggling at the latest hot mess that’s being overhyped as a way to distract the public from other issues: We delve into the stories behind the stories, and catch what the corporate media misses.

All this is by way of me saying: If you like what we do, and would like to be even more involved with FDL than you likely are already (and if you’re reading my post on a fine Saturday morning when you could be out snowmobiling or waterskiing or whatever you might be doing on a fine Saturday morning where you live, you are indeed a dedicated firepup), why not consider taking it to the next level?

Just as the MyFDL diaries provide an expanded way for readers to leave their mark, getting a Firedoglake membership goes a step beyond, allowing you, the reader, greater input and greater involvement. As little as $45 a year gets you access to behind-the-scenes chats and opportunities to help plan FDL’s direction.

Come on in and join us! The water’s fine.