Are New Black Barbies Black Enough? Check It Out …

Barbie is back … in black?

Yes, there is a new Barbie to behold and she is a black version who has met with some mixed opinions thus far.

While some applaud Mattel for making the effort to sort of again diversify its doll offerings, not all people are excited about what the new black Barbie brings to the table of diversity.

“I love the black Barbie. It’s about time,” Jua Simpson said on CNN’s iReport, a user-generated news community. “But the hair is still a step backwards, since most of our hair is not straight and light brown.”

It’s not surprising that criticism would come out since it has long been an issue for a lot of black women who long have had to endure significant self esteem issues with the images on television and in magazines of what is considered to be attractive in women.

But, as you might expect, not everyone sees it that way. The creative mind behind this project is pleased with the early results.

“They mean so much to me because they did come from a positive place,” Stacy McBride-Irby, who created the dolls, said in the CNN report. “My daughter loves the dolls. I’ve had dads thank me for creating this line of dolls that represent their little girls. These dolls are for girls all over the world.”

People should learn to appreciate this Barbie (for her positives and her negatives alike). Sure, she may not be the perfect representation for black women, but she is a nice and positive step. McBride-Irby should be commended for her work with this project and, while everyone may not be 100 percent satisfied, there is plenty to smile about with the new Barbie.

Check out the original story on the CNN Web site:
http://www.cnn.com/2009/LIVING/10/21/black.barbies.irpt/index.html

Fox News Attacks White House Communications Director Anita Dunn

Fox News now is on the attack against White House communications director Anita Dunn who made some strong comments about the right-wing leaning of the conservative network. Dunn was on the money in her comments about Fox News and the network now is using its platform to smear Dunn and try to portray her as a communist or socialist by linking her to Mao, the man behind the communist movement shaping China. This is evidence that Fox News is not a legitimate news organization. A true and legitimate organization does not use valuable real estate on its Web site to attack the communications director of the White House in retaliation for comments she made about the network when questioned.

This is from Fox News (using its position as a “news” organization to attack Dunn):

What Americans want is a robust competition of ideas, and they ought to be willing to go out there and mix it up with some strong conservatives on Fox, just as there are strong conservatives on CNN like Bill Bennett.”

Bennett expressed outrage that Dunn told an audience of high school students this year that Mao Tse-tung, the founder of communist China, was one of “my favorite political philosophers.”

“Having the spokesman do this, attack Fox, who says that Mao Zedong is one of the most influential figures in her life, was not…a small thing; it’s a big thing,” Bennett said on CNN. “When she stands up, in a speech to high school kids, says she’s deeply influenced by Mao Zedong, that — I mean, that is crazy.”

This article is retaliation (specifically the mention of Mao) and irresponsible journalism.

Notice how Fox tries to (like a low-life pimp) use some pundits from CNN (for its own nefarious purposes) to try and attack Dunn (and thus attack the administration and thus attack President Obama). Irresponsible Fox News is using CNN to try and legitimize its attacks on Anita Dunn>the administration>The White House>President Obama.

The White House should not stand by and take these attacks from Fox News.

This is not a risky strategy for the administration because Fox News has been all-hostile-all-the-time against the administration of President Barack Obama and because Fox News is widely viewed as the public relations firm of the Republican Party.

The Red Scare now is en vogue again.

Some of us will never learn from our history.

Some In The U.S. Ignore, Don’t Understand, Or Don’t Care About Olympic Spirit … Unless Their Party Has Presidency

None of these conservatives would have been cheering if the United States of America had lost a chance to host the 2016 Olympics … if John McCain had won the presidency. I suspect there might have been some politics from a few on the left, but I don’t see any way that people on the left would have been cheerleading as our nation, the United States of America, lost an opportunity to host the Olympic Games of 2016. The official U.S. bid, which would have hosted the game in Chicago, failed … much to the stunning joy of so many on the right wing of the political spectrum.

Roland Martin, a popular CNN contributor, wrote a column about the events surrounding the U.S. losing the chance to host the Olympic Games.

Wrote Martin:

I can recall crying along with millions of Americans when our hockey team beat the Russians and won the hockey gold in 1980. Where were those games? Lake Placid, New York. Euphoria spread all across the nation, not only because we beat the mighty Russians, but also because it took place on American soil.

When Carl Lewis and Mary Lou Retton dominated the 1984 Olympic Games, we all beamed with pride because they represented the United States on American soil in Los Angeles, California.

And when Michael Johnson stormed around the track to obliterate the world record in the 200-meter dash (since broken by Jamaica’s Usain Bolt), we relished the win as he took a victory lap around the stadium in Atlanta, Georgia.

Americans love home field advantage, and we always desire to show the rest of the world what we are made of.

Many of these hate-driven conservatives cheering the defeat of the U.S., have disgraced an Olympic spirit they could not possibly understand or know – unless one of their own is president.

It has been much easier for them to cheer against the country, bash our president and trash the great city of Chicago.

CNN:
http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/10/03/martin.olympics.defeat/index.html

Tim Wise Asks When Are Republican Leaders Going To Stand Up To Extremists

Author and speaker Tim Wise, billed by CNN’s Don Lemon as an anti-racism activist, calls out mainstream Republicans for not standing up to the lunatics (like Glenn Beck and Rush Limbaugh) who have hijacked the party and taken it to the heights of bigotry, intolerance and (in some cases or to some extent at least) racism. These protests that have come up since President Obama stepped into the White House have been intriguing to me and to a lot of other people who wonder where these “patriots” were when George W. Bush was in office and freedoms were taking a hit, wars were being started, deficits were mounting and lives were being lost. Wise, truly a dynamic and well-researched speaker, had an interesting conversation with Lemon about the topic of race as related to several current issues in this country.

Here is what Crooks and Liars had as a transcript from the show:

LEMON: OK. So we are going to continue our discussion now over the health care rallies and the tone of what’s going on in the country. Tim Wise joins us. He’s frequent here on the show. The author of “Between Barack and a Hard Place” and among the most prominent anti- racist activist in the country. Thank you, sir. Always good to see you.

TIM WISE, AUTHOR “BETWEEN Barack AND A HARD PLACE”: You, too.

LEMON: You heard the chairman from Florida say no, it is not race.

WISE: I did.

LEMON: It does a disservice. You heard David Sirota say it is the elephant in the room.

WISE: Right. Well like I said in the show before, it is the background noise of a lot of the opposition, not all of it but a lot of it. You know, when you have someone like Glenn Beck saying as he did about a month ago that the health care debate isn’t really about that. It is just reparations for black people, where you have Rush Limbaugh yesterday on the air saying first that community service is the first step towards fascism, which is bizarre even for him.

And then almost immediately after that saying one of the problems with America is too much multiculturalism. You wouldn’t say that unless you are trying to stoke white racial resentment. And so when you say those things, I want to know when are Republican leaders going to condemn that kind of rhetoric because that is where race is being interjected. It is interjected by us, it’s interested by the leading talk show hosts in this country.

LEMON: I mean, but is it knowingly or is it maybe unwittingly they’re doing it and maybe they don’t realize they are doing it.

WISE: Well, two things, it may be either or but it doesn’t matter. I mean, racism needs to be evaluated based on outcome. If you do something which has a predictable consequence, you have to be accountable for that consequence. So for example, when Glenn Beck lied and said that Van Jones was involved in the Los Angeles riots which was not true. That is a very clear, as David said, dog whistle politic moment.

You’re saying that because you know that the L.A. riots are viewed as this racialized rebellion and it scares white folks to death. So you say that about this man. It isn’t true. Glenn Beck had to know that wasn’t true. That is a way to scare white folks. Where race comes in, it is old fashion but it’s white racial resentment that they are trying to whip up.

LEMON: But you know, it is very – it is smart if you want to get your message out. So listen, as we’ve been saying, it’s the elephant in the room. Let’s talk about this Congressman Wilson thing.

WISE: Yes.

LEMON: One person wrote me on Twitter and said I think (INAUDIBLE) if it is not racism then I don’t know what it is, self-indulgence, selfishness, egotism or all the traits pure lack of thought. And then one person says I’m with Ron Reagan and Bill Maher. If Obama’s skin color was closer to his mom’s, talking about Joe Wilson, he would not have shouted out. And I have to tell you -

WISE: I believe that.

LEMON: I have to tell you, for the first time – last night I was watching “Real Time” with Bill Maher and I was like finally someone is talking about this. Finally is talking about this.

WISE: Right.

LEMON: Do you think that Joe Wilson would have done that to a president who was of another color?

WISE: No, I don’t.

LEMON: He may have done the same thing if it was a woman president.

WISE: I don’t know but I know here is a guy who is an avowed neo confederate who says Strom Thurman and (INAUDIBLE) segregation was his hero. There is some racial stuff going on, I hate to say it, with this congress person and it makes me wonder with that kind of background. It makes me wonder.

LEMON: But isn’t it – what is behind – I think that the thing that we are not getting to is what allows him to be – to feel that is OK to say it.

WISE: Right.

LEMON: Isn’t that what it is?

WISE: I think it is what David was talking about.There is a large segment of the American population, particularly a sizable amount of white folks, frankly, and in the Republican Party who do not view him as legitimate, the Berger phenomenon. Let’s be honest. If this man’s name was Oshanasi or O’Malley and I made a birth certificate that said he was born in County Court Ireland in 1961, nobody would care or believe it. But if you say he is from Africa, he has an African daddy. He is from Kenya. People will believe that.

They want to point him as a foreign outsider out to destroy America. And that kind of over the top rhetoric isn’t just about political disagreement, it is about an attack on his identity and his American- ness. Because some people simply can’t accept that we are not the only folks in this country, we are not the standard anymore for what an American is. It is a multiculture nation.

LEMON: I hear African-Americans all the time are used to when talking about President Bush and they would say not my president. That is not right, either.

WISE: Oh, it is not right. It’s not right. You know, I was at rallies where occasionally people had signs that would compare President Bush to Hitler. But you know, what, it wasn’t the leading spokespeople on the left doing that. It wasn’t our talk show hosts, it wasn’t our authors and our columnists and our commentators, it was folks on the streets. It is not right. But it is not equivalent. That is coming from the very top of the conservative mouthpiece community.

LEMON: Hey, listen, I got to go. Do you think this is good for us so because now we can examine and talk about it? It is out there.

WISE: Oh, I think so. It is bringing some things out of the woodwork. If we address it honestly, we can move forward but if we continue to stay in denial I don’t think we will.

LEMON: Denial, it is not just a river, right? Thank you. Tim Wise, it’s always good to have you on. Appreciate it.

Wise has helped shed light on these tea-bagger protests. Looking at some of the vile and disgusting racism we’ve seen from the images of these events you see anger from the far right (beyond the normal political partisanship). As Wise points out, there were nuts saying negative things about President Bush, but such sentiments were not coming from people in such prominent right-wing positions (like Glenn Beck, Lou Dobbs, Pat Buchanan, Sean Hannity and others) of influence or organizations of influence (like Fox News). These are people with tremendous platforms and loud megaphones. These idiotic statements are, in essence, endorsed by high-profile conservatives and, in some cases, high-profile Republican politicians (who have, as an example, helped keep the birther issue alive by not denouncing it).

As a side note: Republicans who have stood up to Limbaugh have usually come back on their knees to beg for Rush’s forgiveness.

Perhaps normal Republicans are paralyzed by fear.

CNN’s Howard Kurtz Properly Points Out Dishonesty Of Glenn Beck, Hidden Agenda

Fox News far-right talk show host Glenn Beck has been trashing a man named Van Jones. Media Matters for America has a clip of CNN’s Howard Kurtz posted on its Web site. In the clip, Kurtz points out, however, that Beck is being irresponsible and abusing his platform by not admitting his own hidden agenda in his attack of Jones. Beck has been targeted for boycott by a group (ColorOfChange) that Jones once was affiliated with as co-founder. Beck has been angry about the success of the ColorOfChange boycott and has used his anger to attack Van Jonesand attack President Obama (by attacking Jones and trying to portray him as a black radical). Not to demean Jones, but he serves in a position few people would have much interest in if not for the efforts of Beck who is attempting to again use racial politics to (1) save himself, (2) attack President Obama and (3) portray himself as being attacked by black radicals to appeal to his mostly conservative audience. Beck’s efforts are probably meeting with success since he knows what appeals to his audience at Fox News and on the radio.

The Roller Coaster Of Polls

As a person who loves college sports, I have an understanding as to why people are so mesmerized by the concept of polls and rankings and other things of that nature.

But, then again, sometimes I simply don’t get it.

I’ve always been amused by people who track poll after poll after poll after poll looking for even the slightest change to write stories and commentaries about the shifting winds of change.

Yes, one minute you’re high and the other minute you’re low.

I bring this up after reading a story by CNN:

NEW YORK (CNN) — Over the course of this summer, President Obama’s approval ratings have plummeted among independent voters — the largest and fastest-growing segment of the American electorate.

In May, 66 percent of independents approved of Obama’s job performance, according to the Gallup Poll.

By August, Gallup showed the president was supported by 49 percent of independents, a collapse during the health care debate that reflects independents’ dislike of deficit spending, the growth of big government and one-party control of Washington.

It’s a particular problem for Obama because post-honeymoon perceptions are hardening in ways that are counter to his core campaign promise to bridge partisan divides.

People get so caught up in poll hype. President Obama has tried to push through an ambitious agenda early in his presidency while also trying to turn around an economy that was nosediving not all that long ago (something a good number of people seem to have forgotten).

President Obama has tried to do a lot very early in his presidency (maybe too much too soon). But going through the emotional roller coaster with these polls just seems plain silly some of the time (maybe most of the time).

Non-Whites Tend To Reject Fox News

Reading a story published by the Washington Independent confirms what will likely not be a big shock to a whole lot of people who follow much of what is going on with cable news these days. Fox News performs well as it draws nearly all Republicans/conservatives to its right-leaning broadcasts. Left-leaning MSNBC, as one might expect, runs strong with liberals. CNN tends to be more popular with those who consider themselves independent. I would imagine CNN also gets some conservatives and some liberals who want a bit of a break from the more partisan approach to news that is popular on Fox News and MSNBC.

But, the Washington Independent article opens up a different kind of argument as it discusses who are the viewers who gravitate toward Fox News. Those who appreciate Fox News most tend to be white, Southern and Republican.

The biggest swing region in the poll? The South. In Southern states, 46 percent of viewers say that Fox News is “extremely reliable” or “reliable.” Only 6 percent of them say that of MSNBC, compared to 26 percent who say it of CNN, a huge shift from the days when CNN was derided as the “Communist/Clinton News Network.” And non-white viewers really don’t like Fox. Only 5 percent of African-Americans, 11 percent of Hispanics, and 8 percent of other minorities consider the network reliable, while a majority of every one of those groups trusts CNN and sizable pluralities trust MSNBC.

Interestingly, this research sows that only five percent of blacks, 11 percent of Latinos and eight percent of other minorities consider Fox News “reliable” with respect to its coverage and commentary. Frankly, it surprises me that the number is even that high for Fox News.

Drew Sharp Was Anything But With Michael Vick Column In Detroit Free Press

Detroit Free Press columnist Drew Sharp is a smart man who understands how the media game is played. As a columnist, Sharp and numerous others across this country look for ways to distinguish themselves from a crowded group of competitors hungering for the same thing: a major national platform. Over the years, Sharp has found his angle: He is angry, he takes on the challenge of writing about controversial topics and he goes against the grain with columns that are almost always negative and bashing athletes, coaches, owners and even fans.

This all brings me to Sharp’s column about Michael Vick that was published on Saturday by the Detroit Free Press. I briefly pondered a rebuttal of sorts on Saturday, but something held me back (not exactly sure what it was). But, I changed my mind when I saw CNN’s Howard Kurtz provide Sharp with a platform on the Sunday morning CNN show “Reliable Sources.” Drew went on and, in essence, parroted most of the same lines he had written about in his column about Vick (that included a small taste of the controversial situation that now involves Louisville men’s college basketball coach Rick Pitino.

Here are a couple of excerpts followed by my thoughts:

Philly threw Michael Vick a Milk Bone. Here’s hoping he chokes on it.

This only reaffirms why I ceased being a sports fan a long time ago. It wasn’t worth the duplicity. There should always be a more honorable aim than winning at any cost. Vick’s getting a second NFL life is but another example of our society’s morality of convenience.

If that makes me a “hater,” so be it. At least I know I’m not a hypocrite.

I’m hoping that those who staunchly preached a second chance for Vick will exhibit the same compassion when the next 29-year-old black man leaves federal prison following an almost two-year sentence but can’t run a 40-yard dash in 4.4 time, chuck a football 70 yards or sell a $100 jersey.

Yes, Drew … you are a “hater” as you put it, but that is besides the point.

In general, our society is in favor of second chances for a good number of people who run afoul of the law. I would imagine every day people are released from prisons and get second chances. I highly doubt people like Drew Sharp know or care about many of these people and I doubt even more Drew Sharp would take an opportunity to write about the average person who comes out of prison and is given a second chance. If Michael Vick or some other person emerged from prison and went to work at a fast food restaurant or as a custodian, I doubt Drew Sharp would care, talk about the morality of convenience or winning at all costs. But, the fact that Vick is expected to again achieve fame and financial riches bothers people like Drew Sharp and many others who want to continue to gleefully pile on and further demonize Vick who has paid his price (his debt to society if you will) for his role in heinous crimes against animals.

CNN’s Lou Dobbs Has It Mixed Up

Media Matters for America quotes CNN right-wing commentator Lou Dobbs saying the following:

DOBBS: It’s just killing the left wing in this country that they can’t force CNN to fire me.

No, it’s killing CNN that it doesn’t have the guts to bring under control a right-wing, hysteria-fueling nutjob from spreading garbage on its airwaves.

Fox News Watch Has Turned Into Garbage … Reliable Sources Heading In That Direction

“Fox News Watch,” a poor imitation of CNN’s “Reliable Sources” (which has its problems too from time to time), has fallen off the deep end and into a pit of more right-wing propaganda. The show has degenerated into mostly a group of right-wing talking heads coming on and whining about the “liberal media” while turning a blind eye to bias and anything else negative that comes from the right. Listen to the clip as the far-right and oftentimes irrational Jim Pinkerton (who reportedly left the show to go work for Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee before returning) brings race into the issue and then tries to marginalize President Obama by referring to his background as a community organizer (as if that is some kind of a negative label). He then sprinkles a little sugar on it to try and soften it.

I discovered this story at Think Progress:

JANE HALL: That’s true but you can scare people to the point — I mean, I think there’s a difference between…

RICH LOWRY: Who is scaring people about the drug companies and the insurance industry?

HALL: I mean, you have people shouting down U.S. congressmen.

LOWRY: There is scare tactics on both sides.

HALL: If someone hanged an effigy and — and a congressmen having to be escorted to his car, that is not civil discourse.

JIM PINKERTON: Here’s scare tactics.Scare tactics is Rachel Maddow taking the first ten minutes of every show this week to denounce them and call them names and talk about Astroturf. By contrast, Senator Claire McCaskill, Democrat from Missouri, said in her Twitter account, listen, I think this is just real people. That’s the choice. The real terrorism going on is MSNBC and the liberal media.

HALL: Oh, that is so upside down.

PINKERTON: They’re playing liberal snob to white working-class Americans.

This is from a panelist on a show that is supposed to be analyzing the media?

Pinkerton is a far-right nut who struggles to see any good coming from the other side. he uses the line with “liberal snob” and “white working-class Americans” to scare people about this black president. You don’t expect Pinkerton to be challenged much for this on Fox News.

On “Reliable Sources,” Sunday (Aug. 9), host Howard Kurtz provided a platform to S.E. Cupp, a right-wing blogger who repeatedly talked about the “liberal media” as Kurtz hardly challenged his biased guest for spewing right-wing talking points.

I have a fundamental problem with media watchdog shows like ”Reliable Sources” and “Fox News Watch” bringing on biased talking heads. Isn’t it a contradiction to have a show supposedly analysing the media by discussing and debating media-related issues (including issues related to bias) with biased panelists?

Even if you “balance” your panel, you still provide a platform to political ideology (left wingers and right wingers) on shows that are supposed to be designed to hold the media accountable.

Frankly, hosts of these shows need to work harder to find objective panelists or cancel the shows.

How Much Of A Nose Dive Can Lou Dobbs’ Ratings At CNN Take?

CNN’s conservative host Lou Dobbs, who is severely damaging the credibility of CNN as a true and honest-to-goodness news organization, may be taking a hit in the ratings according to The New York Observer. This is no surprise. Dobbs has been so one-side and so pig-headed in pushing this birther non-story, that he is behaving more like a Fox News operative placed at CNN to destroy it from within. In many ways, Dobbs’ obsession with the birther story fits his conservative xenophobic pattern (his other obsession is barking endlessly about illegal immigration).

From The New York Observer:

To wit: According to The Observer’s analysis of Nielsen data, in recent weeks, as criticism of Mr. Dobbs has continued to go up, his ratings at CNN have continued to go down.

Mr. Dobbs’ first began reporting on Obama birth certificate conspiracy theories on the night of Wednesday, July 15. In the roughly two weeks since then, from July 15 through July 28, Mr. Dobbs’ 7 p.m. show on CNN has averaged 653,000 total viewers and 157,000 in the 25-54 demo.

By contrast, during the first two weeks of the month (July 1 to July 14) Mr. Dobbs averaged 771,000 total viewers and 218,000 in the 25-54 demo. In other words, Mr. Dobbs’ audience has decreased 15 percent in total viewers and 27 percent in the demo since the start of the controversy.

Arguably, interest in cable news has slumped across the board since early July when attention over Michael Jackson’s death was still at a fever pitch.

But, that said, Mr. Dobbs’ ratings over the past two weeks, during the height of the “birthers” controversy, are also down significantly compared to his overall numbers during the second quarter of 2009 when he averaged 769,000 total viewers and 222,000 in the 25-54 demo.

In summary, if Mr. Dobbs’ affinity for “birthers” is a ratings ploy, it’s a pretty ineffective one.

But, how far can a man’s ratings truly nose dive if he already is at the bottom of the barrel?

It’s a relatively short fall for Lou Dobbs.

Officer Apologizes For Racial Slur Against Henry Louis Gates Jr.

It seems Boston Police Department Officer Justin Barrett has come out and issued an apology for a nasty e-mail in which he calls Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. a “banana-eating jungle monkey.” Yeah, apparently he did in fact write that message. You can see Barrett’s apology below. Now, who knows what the record of Barrett is with regard to such poor conduct (if, in fact, he does have a prior history). His record may be squeaky clean (outside of this substantial stain). I don’t know that Barrett should necessarily be fired, but if he is not relieved of his duties … his margin for error should be pretty small.

Here is an excerpt from a story published online by CNN:

A Boston police officer who sent a mass e-mail referring to Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. as a “banana-eating jungle monkey” has apologized, saying he’s not a racist.

Officer Justin Barrett told a Boston television station on Wednesday night that he was sorry for the e-mail.

“I regret that I used such words,” Barrett told CNN affiliate WCVB-TV. “I have so many friends of every type of culture and race you can name. I am not a racist.”

Barrett was placed on administrative leave after the e-mail surfaced, and he might lose his job as a result.

In a news conference held Thursday morning, Boston Police Commissioner Edward Davis denounced the e-mail.

“We have a relationship to maintain with the community,” he said. “Police officers certainly have First Amendment rights, but they can’t cross the line. I believe this crosses the line.”

Remember all of that talk about us being post-racial … I guess we’re not there yet and maybe not even close as we’ve seen with some of the far-right anger directed at our nation’s first black president.

CNN:
http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/07/30/gates.police.apology/index.html

Lou Dobbs To CNN: Who’s Your Daddy?

This whole birther flap between conservative mouthpiece Lou Dobbs and his CNN superiors is beginning to reflect an episode of the Maury Povich Show. Lou Dobbs would be sitting in one chair, CNN President Jon Klein is sitting in another chair and Maury is in a third.

The script is all too familiar:

“When it comes to who is in charge at CNN … JON KLEIN … YOU ARE NOT THE FATHER.”

Media Matters for America:
http://mediamatters.org/press/releases/200907240039

I’m going to go out on a limb and question whether Lou Dobbs’ dance skills are up to par, but he is the daddy at CNN.

Lou Dobbs Making A Mockery Of CNN’s Reputation

Is CNN truly “the most trusted name in news” or is that just some kind of fancy slogan that is strong on the surface, but weak in substance? Now, compared to Fox News, CNN clearly is far more trusted as a credible news outlet, but Lou Dobbs’ obsession with the birther story involving President Obama eats away at the networks credibility, as pointed out by Media Matters for America. The conservative commentator has abused his high-profile CNN platform to launch what seems to be a bitter obsession to attack President Obama with one of the dumbest issues ever to be pursued against a POTUS.

Dobbs had shaky credibility prior to the manufactured birther issue, but his credibility is falling harder than Sarah Palin’s approval ratings.

More and more people are picking up on the campaign of political hate being waged by Lou Dobbs (a known conservative who has done virtually nothing but attack President Obama). But, now people are beginning to take notice of this abuse of platform and CNN’s reputation is on the line.

How will the network respond to a rogue anchor waging a nutty personal battle?

CNN’s One-Sided Commentary In Gates-Police Flap Misses A Few Points

Point out racial profiling is not about bashing police officers. In the wake of the unfortunate incident that left Harvard University professor Henry Louis Gates ridiculously arrested, some have used it as a way to bash the police while others have used it as a way to portray police as being unfairly persecuted while minimizing the very painful impact of racial profiling.

This article published by CNN makes some fair points (it appears to be a probably well-intended defense of the police while attempting to be somewhat fair to professor Gates), and certainly is a defense of police and the work that police do, but misses the mark on some key points (perhaps for partisan political reasons):

• President Obama confessed his bias when he admitted that he was a friend of Gates as the question was asked at the press conference;
• President Obama admitted that he had not gotten all of the facts, but did offer his opinion on what he had learned about what happened to his friend;
• As a follow-up, President Obama said that he wished cooler heads had prevailed; and
• Racial profiling is not touched on in the article until the very last paragraph and is there kind of glossed over.

I’m not here to bash policeman, but I do agree with the president that (in this particular case) cooler heads should have prevailed and the officer should have appreciated the situation (and how it was perceived by Gates who was in his own home) and walked away after he established that Gates was rightfully in his house and safe.

Actually, this cop sounds like a decent guy. Gates sounds like a decent guy. Decent guys make mistakes, but it’s unfortunate it has ended up the way it has.

This was an overreaction by the police officer which prompted an overreaction by the professor. In a way, this officer may have made the situation more dangerous and high profile by his conduct.

The title of the article is “Obama’s rush to judgment

CNN’s Roland Martin Calls Out Crazies Over Birth Certificate Nonsense

The stupidity of these nuts on the far right calling attention to President Obama’s birth certificate and whether or not he was born in the United States of America is so nutty.

If you buy into the conspiracy you should close your eyes and think about just how many people would have to be involved in a conspiracy of this magnitude (including a Hawaii newspaper which would have had to have had a sort of an amazing clairvoyance to fake this birth announcement knowing Barack Obama was going to become the first black president of the United States almost 50 years down the line).

Birth announcement from the Honolulu Advertiser:

Also, here is the birth certificate of Barack Obama that the birther nuts can’t seem to find and won’t accept:

The left, in all honesty, should be thankful for nuts like this who show their extremism in the most idiotic ways to give Americans a contrast.

Here is part of Martin’s column:

The YouTube video of an out-of-control woman yelling and screaming at Republican Congressman Mike Castle’s town hall meeting in Delaware, demanding to see the birth certificate of President Barack Obama, is utterly hilarious.

To watch others cheer her insanity, and then boo the congressman who says the president is an American, shows you that we have a serious problem with mental illness in this country.

The nut jobs that continue to promote this story are wacky, right-wing radio and TV talk shows hosts and no-credibility bloggers. They have latched onto this story like bloodsucking leeches, and actually want us to believe this story has legs.

Last week, in a suit filed by perennial presidential loser, Alan Keyes, they even tried to claim a court victory after a federal district judge in California asked to listen to the merits of their case. I’m sure he simply wanted to see for himself how delusional they are.

CNN:
http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/07/22/martin.obama.birth/index.html

Rick Sanchez Calls Out Moronic Birthers On CNN

The nut cases are out and making baseless and idiotic charges about President Barack Obama not being born in the United States of America in spite of overwhelming evidence.

These people are morons.

This has a smell of racism.

News Hounds Documents Bill O’Reilly And Bernard Goldberg’s Attacks On Michael Jackson And Black People

Conservatives Bill O’Reilly and Bernard Goldberg were on Fox News jumping all over the black people while slamming Michael Jackson (after his death) … it was kind of an all-you-can-eat buffet of hate for the two men. News Hounds has documented so much of the angry comments from Goldberg (nothing like a clearly-biased media critic) including defending Rep. Peter King’s reprehensible comments, bringing up the unproven child molestation charges against Michael Jackson to invoking the name O.J. Simpson to smear black people, in general, and Michael Jackson, specifically.

Here is one excerpt from the News Hounds blog:

Then Goldberg added, “What makes this thing with Michael Jackson so sad… is that it’s not enough for the elites to simply… honor him as a great American entertainer. They have to make him a black hero.”

So what, exactly is wrong with that? And what gives Goldberg the right to decide who should be a hero for anyone else? Sure, there are very troubling aspects of Michael Jackson’s life, especially in his later years, but over his 40+ year career, there was lots to admire. It wasn’t just African Americans who thought so. Who could listen to Brooke Shields’ heartfelt eulogy and not feel that there was plenty to love in Jackson’s character?

On the other hand, Goldberg, who, unlike Shields, did not seem to know Jackson, sneered, “A black hero of a man who bleached his skin to the point that at the end he was as white as you and me? It’s one thing to honor him as an entertainer. But as a civil rights hero? That just strikes me as ridiculous.” The truth is, Jackson wassomething of a civil rights here. As Rev. Al Sharpton explained, Jackson fans “grew up from being teenage comfortable fans of Michael to being 40 years old and being comfortable to vote for a person of color to be the president of the United States of America.” Also, Jackson broke an extremely important color barrier when his videos were played on MTV.

But “fair and balanced” O’Reilly did not point out those positive aspects of Jackson’s career. Instead, he allowed Goldberg to further and gratuitously malign the black community as he said, “Then again, to many black people, if you remember the reaction after he was acquitted, O.J. Simpson was a hero.”

“Here’s the sad part, Bill. Race in this country is the wound that never seems to heal,” Goldberg added. Yeah, and we can guess at whose feet Goldberg lays most of the blame.

The anger coming from Goldberg is the elephant in the room.

Here are a few takes I will leave you with:

I doubt many people are thinking of Rep. King as racist. He may or may not be racist, but he clearly is a crass jackass with little class.

Lastly, I will leave you with this from the same News Hounds blog:

Palin was, in fact, up next in the discussion. But unlike Jackson, Palin’s bizarre behavior was not to be mentioned, much less criticized. O’Reilly complained about “the glee” that CNN’s Rick Sanchez, whom he referred to as “that clown,” supposedly exhibited by asking reporter Candy Crowley whether Palin might have resigned from the governorship because she’s pregnant again. Maybe I missed it but I didn’t see any glee from Sanchez. But whatever it was, it paled in comparison to the kinds of attacks on Jackson made by Goldberg and O’Reilly right on that very show.

“You don’t have to express every thought that pops into your head and certainly not on national television,” Goldberg said, by way of “friendly advice” to Sanchez. Goldberg then ran through his list of “legitimate” kinds of speculation over Palin’s resignation: whether she quit to run for president or to make money in the private sector. “But it is not legitimate speculation to wonder out loud… if she’s pregnant.”

The reason I am citing this is because it is classic O’Reilly. Notice he singled out Rick Sanchez of CNN? In classic O’Reilly fashion, if you call him out he will use his platform to get you back at some point (if not repeatedly). If you recall, Sanchez lit into O’Reilly for lying about CNN’s coverage of the death of Pvt. William Long. Even when O’Reilly apologized for his falsehood he attacked Sanchez and is back on the attack again.

This was another case of paybacks from O’Reilly, who again abuses his Fox News platform to wage his personal battles against many who dare criticize him.