Quick!
Bill Quick has a lot of interesting things to say today. Go, QUICKly.
Big Media Lacks — A Lot
I found this interesting. Jay Rosen and a bunch of other well known bloggers met with some of the bosses of big media to discuss the future of web development and cultural change. Here’s part of the story:
Big Media does not know how to innovate.
What capacity for product development do news organizations show? Zip. How are they on nurturing innovation? Terrible. Is there an entreprenurial spirit in newsrooms? No. Do smart young people ever come in and overturn everything? Never. Do these firms attract designers and geeks who are gifted with technology? They don’t, because they don’t do anything challenging enough. They don’t innovate, or pay well. So they can’t compete.
Air America Advocates Violence Against Blogger
As if they didn’t have enough problems already (bad ratings, lack of revenue, terrible hosts), liberal radio network Air America now advocates violence against those who disagree with their political positions.
Host Mike Malloy told his listeners last night that Blogs for Bush writer Mark Noonan should be beat up, a lot. The audio has been captured, and you can listen to it here.
MORE: With Love, From Daily Kos
It’s Miller Time
As you’ve no doubt learned by now, recently jailed New York Times reporter Judith Miller was release late yesterday. I haven’t spent a lot of time on the Plame issue, mostly because I just wasn’t all that interested, and also because there were plenty of other bloggers covering it. There’s no sense in me picking the whole thing up now, so I’ll direct you to the people who have been following the complicated twists and turns of this story.
Blogs: Tom Maguire | Power Line | John Podhoretz | Needlenose | Patterico | Murry Waas | The Volokh Conspiracy | Hullabaloo | Anonymousliberal | Roger Ailes | Billmon | The Next Hurrah | Michelle Malkin | Captain’s Quarters | Outside The Beltway | Joe Gandelman | Running Scared | ScrappleFace |
MSM: Editor & Publisher | WaPo | Huffington Post | AP | WSJ | LA Times | The DAOU Report | Breitbart.com |
Quote of the Day
As for Mrs. Clinton, her vote shows her to be an extremist, to the left even of the Democratic Party. As New York’s other senator might say, she has drifted far outside the mainstream and is headed for an iceberg, and if she doesn’t stop rearranging the deck chairs before she finds herself in the fishbowl of a presidential campaign, she will have to row and wade frantically just to avoid sinking into the quicksand of a watery grave.
James Taranto, regarding Hillary Clinton voting against the confirmation of Chief Justice John Roberts.
The Statements Speak for Themselves
Read any one of these quotes and you’ll agree — Cindy Sheehan is off her rocker.
“I don’t understand” the “Gold Star Moms who still support [Bush] and his war,” and “I . . . pray for these ‘continue the murder and mayhem’ moms to see the light.” [From her online diary, Aug. 27, 2005]
Saddam Hussein and Donald Rumsfeld are “kindred spirits.” [Online diary, Aug. 24, 2005]
Her son “was killed for lies and for a . . . Neo-Con agenda to benefit Israel.” [From an e-mail to “Nightline,” March 15, 2005]
The president and “his destructive Neo-con cabal” are “the biggest terrorist outfit in the world.” [From her essay, June 6, 2005]
“We are waging a nuclear war in Iraq right now. That country is contaminated. It will be contaminated for practically eternity now.” [San Francisco State University speech, April 27, 2005]
The Bush administration is “a bunch of f—ing hypocrites.” [San Francisco State University speech, April 27, 2005]
“If George Bush believes his rhetoric and his bulls–t, that this is a war for freedom and democracy, that he is spreading freedom and democracy, does he think every person he kills makes Iraq more free?” [San Francisco State University speech, April 27, 2005]
Bush “needs to sign up his two little party-animal girls. They need to go to this war.” [San Francisco State University speech, April 27, 2005]
” . . . [W]e have to impeach everybody from George Bush down to the person who picks up dog s–t in Washington. . . . ” [San Francisco State University speech, April 27, 2005]
Via Larry Elder
Like (Spoiled) Buttah
Would even Linda Richman buy this CD? The thought of it gives me shpilkes in my genecktegessoink.
Streisand, Gibb Reunite After 25 Years
Barbra Streisand and Barry Gibb hadn’t worked together in 25 years. But Gibb still knew the best way to express what Streisand was thinking — especially when it came to the war in Iraq.
The result was “Stranger in a Strange Land,” written by Gibb for Streisand’s new album, “Guilty Pleasures.”
“I loved the first stanza, because to me this war is kind of senseless, and I don’t know why we’re there,” Streisand told The Associated Press.
“Just the sadness of, we’re there, but don’t want to have those people in harm’s way, and yet we do have to support (the troops). It’s kind of painful, and I had always imagined just seeing footage of the troops, it’s like history repeating itself — here we are again. That was the meaning to me.”
Coming to a bargain bin at a Wal-Mart near you, “Guilty Pleasures” – Babs at her looniest, from Moonbat Records.
Oh dear, now I’m a little verklempt. Talk amongst yourselves. I’ll give you a topic – a Progressive Moderate is neither progressive nor moderate. Discuss!
“Be Lame or Get Game”
This was called ‘Basket Weaving 101’ when I was in school.
50 Percent
That’s about as close as I’ll come to agreeing with Kevin Drum.
WHISPERING CAMPAIGN….Is every single liberal blog in the world planning to post a sniggering, wink-wink-nudge-nudge mention that David Dreier is rumored to be gay? Pardon me while I throw up.
And spare me the drivel about the “principled” case for outing gay politicians. I’m not buying, and there’s nothing principled going on here in any case. It’s just childish nonsense that perpetuates the notion that there’s something sordid about being gay. Conservatives were wrong to conduct a decade long witch hunt against Bill Clinton’s sex life, and liberals are wrong to join in when the shoe is on the other foot.
I’m with Kevin on the childishness of liberals who ‘on principal’ put a full-court press on conservatives whom they believe to be hypocrites.
But on the “witch hunt against Bill Clinton’s sex life” comment, I’m afraid he simply restates a tired lefty talking point.
The impeachment of Bill Clinton was about perjury, not sex.
The Senate Hearts Blanco
When ex-FEMA chief Michael Brown testified before the House select committee last Tuesday, he was questioned directly and sharply (and appropriately as far as I’m concerned) by committee members about the lame job he did in the days following Hurricane Katrina. So, one would expect that an appearance by Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco would be met with the equal criticism.
Think again.
Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Babineaux Blanco, blamed by the former leader of the Federal Emergency Management Agency and New Orleans Mayor C. Ray Nagin for many of the city’s post-hurricane problems, was given no questions about her response to Hurricane Katrina when she appeared before a Senate committee to plead for more federal money.
She asked not to be questioned about it and the senators agreed.
Why? If we’re going to get down to brass tax on this and attempt to correct ourselves for future events, we should be calling a spade a spade. Reveal the deficiencies and work to provide solutions.
What? Were these guys afraid of offending or embarrassing the Governor?
Republican senators at yesterday’s hearing by the Finance Committee — Charles E. Grassley of Iowa, Orrin G. Hatch of Utah, Trent Lott of Mississippi, Olympia J. Snow of Maine, Jon Kyl of Arizona, Craig Thomas of Wyoming, Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania, Bill Frist of Tennessee, Gordon H. Smith of Oregon, Jim Bunning of Kentucky and Michael D. Crapo of Idaho — agreed to Mrs. Blanco’s request not to discuss her performance after the hurricane.
Instead, she devoted her appearance to pleading for help to rebuild businesses and creating jobs in Louisiana. She said Hurricanes Katrina and Rita had wiped out a third of the state’s economy.
Is there some new rule in effect now? How is it that an individual who is called to testify before a Senate committee is afforded the privilege of being able to pick the questions they’re asked?
Sheesh! Why are these guys being so wimpy when it comes to Blanco, whom in many ways exhibited as much ineptness as Michael Brown? He leaves his post bloodied and she walks out of the room with billions of dollars.