Gingrich, Pelosi, Cheney, and Limbaugh to Star in Remake of Three Musketeers

Havoc Studios announced that its $150 million remake of the classic Alexandra Dumas novel, the three musketeers, will have an all-star cast. Newt Gingrich will play Athos, Dick Cheney will play Aramis, and Rush Limbaugh will play Porthos. The studio was excited that Karl Rove would be the dynamic and exciting young d'Artagnan. Nancy Pelosi will take time off from her duties as speaker of the house to play the important role of Milady de Winter, wife of Athos, reuniting her with her longtime close friend, Newt Gingrich. A major coup for the studio was the casting of Bill Clinton as Cardinal Richelieu. All other members of the cast greeted Clinton's towering presence as the Cardinal with unanimous acclaim.

The Olympic fencing teams from Russia, Poland, and hungry will act as the soldiers for the King and the Cardinal instead of the usual bunch of klutzes who get cut to pieces by the musketeers. This will ensure dynamic and exciting fencing scenes throughout the movie. Gingrich, Cheney, Limbaugh and Rove said they were excited about having the opportunity to clash sabers with Olympic caliber fencers.

The Impeachable Republican Party Impeaching Republicans

The Republican Party appears to the developing a case of impeachmentitis. While Newt Gingrich fired off a salvo calling for Nancy Pelosi to resign, other efforts by Republicans were underway to impeach elective officials. In this instance, the targets of the impeachment progress were other Republicans. According to the Huffington Post, "One of the members in the spotlight is Assemblyman Anthony Adams, whose alleged indiscretion was simple: the budget he supported called for a statewide vote on raising income and sales taxes and car registration fees. In other words, in the eyes of his fellow party members, he had voted for a tax increase."


Even Governor Schwarzenegger has been the target of a recall effort launched to replace him. However, because of the number of signatures needed to oust the governor there is a likelihood of this happening. This process has left Republican operatives and insiders shaking their head in wonderment. The Huffington Post quoted Karen Henretty, a prominent Republican strategist, as saying, "What's happening with Republicans in California is the very definition of a circular firing scored."

With Republicans losing seats in the Senate, the House of Representatives, and governorships throughout the nation, it would seem the GOP can ill afford to kill off its own. However, it would be foolish to make any assumptions about what the Republicans will do next. Fortunately for the Republican Party, Senator Specter left on his own in a drumroll court-martial wasn't necessary.

Newt Gingrich Shames Nancy Pelosi

In an open letter, Newt Gingrich shamed Nancy Pelosi for her recent statements about the CIA and what she knew about enhanced interrogation techniques. In fact, he stated that she should step down as speaker of the house. A careful reading of newts letter provides insights to his thinking, which indicates that they were politically motivated rather than based on a rational of valuation of facts.

The article is a long piece of torturous and ill thought out logic. Some of the best parts are quoted below and speak for themselves. I have made comments about his statements.

"The person who is number two in line to be commander in chief can't have contempt for the men and women who protect our nation. America can't afford it."

Speaker Pelosi's contempt is for the CIA, not for the men and women in the armed forces. The number of people in this country who have contempt for the CIA numbers in the tens of millions. Newt, if you ever get to be president, and heaven help this nation if you do, it would be a mistake to rely on the CIA to make critical decisions.

"It Isn't about Politics. It's about National Security."

Newt, are you serious? If a politician says anything, by definition it's about politics.

"But Speaker Pelosi did not confine the question to the reliability of memory. Instead, she made the allegation last week that the CIA intentionally misled her - misled Congress - and not just once, but routinely."

Again, Newt are you serious? The CIA has a long tradition of misleading Congress and the American people. Start with the Bay of Pigs and the list would cover several pages. Spying is about deceitfulness and the deceivers frequently forget that there comes a time to tell the truth.
"If Nancy Pelosi believe that water boarding was justified in 2002 - just like Porter Gross, President Bush, Vice President Cheney and CIA Director Tenet - the a policy of selectively using enhanced interrogation techniques in carefully circumscribed ways in order to prevent future attacks - in other word the Bush Administration Policy - is vindicated."

Let's assume that nancy pelosi believe that water boarding was justified in 2002. How Does That Vindicate the Bush Administration Policy? Wrong is wrong, and evil is evil, no matter who supports it. If Nancy Pelosi stated she supported the Inquisition, would that make it right?

"She's made America less secure by sending a signal to the men and women defending our country that they can count on their leaders to defend them."

The Bush administration made America less secure by starting an ill-conceived, and ultimately fruitless, war with Iraq and failing to finish the war in Afghanistan. It's hard to imagine it's all Nancy Pelosi's fault. But a man with Newt Gingrich's insight and intelligence couldn't be wrong.

With the Nations Banks still at risk, the automakers still on the brink of insolvency, and a host of other problems facing this nation, it's good to know that Newt Gingrich stands tall watching out for the good of the American people.

Salt Lake City Liberals and Gay Marriage

It is a truism to say that we live in changing times. but there are times when the changes are greater than others, and now is clearly one of them. A black man sits in the White House, Wall Street companies that had survived the great depression no longer exist, and Utah is moving toward support for gay marriage. An article in the Washington Post stated that a recent survey showed that 49% of Americans favored gay marriage, an all-time high. Clearly, the winds of time or changing on this issue.

In an article in Slate magazine Christopher Cox wrote the following.

"What's the matter with Utah? The most Republican state in the nation is drifting to the left. In the last few months, Gov. Jon Huntsman, a Republican and a practicing Mormon, has come out in favor of civil unions for gays and repeated his support for
government action on global warming. Meanwhile, the Republican-controlled
state legislature has liberalized Utah's notoriously arcane alcohol laws. The
punishment for this apostasy has been record-high approval ratings—for both governor and legislature."

In 1963 Bob Dylan wrote the following words.

"Come gather 'round people

Wherever you roam

And admit that the waters

Around you have grown

And accept it that soon

You'll be drenched to the bone.

If your time to youIs worth savin'

Then you better start swimmin'

Or you'll sink like a stone

For the times they are a-changin'."

For those of us old enough to remember those days, the words are as appropriate now as they were then. For those of you not familiar with them, think about what is happening in the world. Much of the rancor and verbal confrontation that takes place in the country stems from the fact that enormous social and economic changes are taking place. Ideally, we would have a spirited debate about them, but the nature of these changes are such that core values of life are at stake and the strongest of emotions rise easily to the top.

There are also those that make a living stirring up emotions and anger. I refer you to my last post. The potential changes to the health care system are enormous as are changes in how we produce energy. But I don't think the fundamental nature of the society will change. Obama was very clear when he stated that he didn't want to run automobile companies and he didn't want to run the banks. The problem with resisting, or postponing, change is that when it finally occurs it is greater than what you fought against 10 years ago. The UAW is finding this out the hard way. Many evangelical churches are rethinking what the church's mission should be. Heavy church involvement in politics is often counterproductive.

Lastly, I think many people are simply overwhelmed by the nature of the economic crisis and all the changes that they are currently experiencing and future changes they are told to worry about. While the political pendulum will eventually swing back towards the middle, society always evolves in new directions, even if in a glacial manner. Unlike Michael Fox in the movies, we can't go back to the past.

Hate and Anger among Right-Wing Conservative Media

Each day right wing conservative media people such as Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Bill O'Reilly, Glenn Beck, Ann Coulter, and Laura Ingraham, et al. spew forth a steady dose of anger, hatred, vindictiveness, and misinformation. O'Reilly and Beck would object to being labeled as right wing conservatives, but if they talk like a ducks, squawk like ducks, then their ducks. Feelings, as opposed to facts, are often the basis of what these people say. Americans who share the same viewpoint as these media personages get there endorphins pumped by listening to them. For the rest of us, they represent a black bile that promotes divisiveness, discourages cooperation, and contributes to the negative mood of the country.

The Constitution guarantees the right wing conservative media people the right to spew forth their venom each day. The nature of the society in which we live allows them to distort, misinterpret, and sometimes lie about what is happening and why it is happening. These people are much better at tearing down and criticizing then they are at providing positive solutions. In fact, providing positive solutions would be counterproductive to their ability to draw an audience of angry, frustrated people. President Obama is routinely referred to as a socialist, or at least it is implied that he is. None of them could possibly hear the president when he stated that he had no wish to run auto companies or run banks, and that he had enough other issues to deal with. No, no, no, they mustn't let the truth interfere what they are saying.

Fox News, the kennel in which many of these people dwell, held a tea party protesting taxes and other things, which was about as successful as the previous administrations policies on most everything. Rush Limbaugh, who rants and raves and huffs and puffs like an overweight big bad Wolf, has reached the point where no one in the Republican Party dares challenge him. Glenn Beck hysterically preaches that it is 1938 again and that we are appeasing people who are about to destroy us. He even cries over the situation, but then later admits that it's all part of the show. Sean Hannity said, "That's what Mr. Obama said today, doing his best Dixie Chicks impression while his new world order tour traveled across Europe." Devilishly incisive Mr. Hannity is. Rush Limbaugh has said that he wants President Obama to fail. Of course, there's a little problem in that sentiment because if Obama fails, the country suffers. Small detail for Rush.

Last, but not least, is Ann Coulter whose model for political commentary is the spitting cobra. Her contribution to a more harmonious and peaceful world was her statement, "My only regret with Timothy McVeigh is he did not go to the New York Times Building." How charming. That's all folks.

Miley Cyrus in Trouble Again

Miley Cyrus can't seem to stay out of trouble. The headline on the Christian Post on April 28 is, "Miley Versus Jesus on Marriage." Poor Miley. All she did was make an assertion that Jesus loves gay people. She's just an ordinary 16-year-old teenager trying to make a few million dollars each year. I'm sure it never entered her mind that anyone would assert that she was "taking on Jesus" on the issue of marriage. The Christian Post said, "Today, the majority of America's daughters - even those in the Church - are being heavily influenced by Hollywood singers such as Miley Cyrus and Heidi Montag, both who say they are Christians, yet hold non-Christian views on marriage. Right now, their pro-homosexual ' marriage' values are reaching millions of young people through MTV and other media outlets."

What did Miley say? The following statements, which are accurate as far as I can determine, are taken from Miley's twitter conversation with Perez Hilton.

“Jesus loves you AND your partner and wants you to know how much he cares! thats like a daddy not loving his lil boy cuz hes gay and that is WRONG and very sad! like i said everyone deserves to be happy (sic).”

“i am a christian and i love you - gay or not. BECAUSE you are no different that
anyone else! we are all gods children!”

"ya thats lame! God’s greatest commandment is to love. And judging is not loving. That’s why Christians have such a bad rep. "

The Christian Post went on to cite numerous passages from the New Testament quoting Jesus in to show that Jesus does not support Miley's beliefs and assertions. Very interesting because Miley never made a statement explicitly in support of gay marriage. She focused on God loving everyone. How naive of her.

But what's the real issue here? It's hard to believe that the issue is about what a 16-year-old said on twitter. It seems to me that the Christian Post was using Miley as a convenient target to attack gay marriage. An article in the Christian Post after Iowa legalized gay marriages was much more subdued. Is the Christian Post really more concerned about what Miley Cyrus and young people through MTV are saying as opposed to the Supreme Court of the state of Iowa? Some might consider Miley's last statement ill considered. But it wasn't that long ago that Anita Bryant went to California to deny gay rights. That was ugly, not just a bad reputation.