Let's talk about what Sarah Silverman said. Here's my set of observations:
1. Silverman was not calling all Bernie people ridiculous, only the "Bernie or bust" people — only those who are so dedicated to a lost dream that they won't see the clear task at hand and do what needs to be done.
2. Silverman was ad libbing, not following a script. She and Al Franken had been told to stretch it, because for some reason the next person — it turned out to be Paul Simon — was not yet ready to take the stage. So we got something actually spontaneous. That's refreshing. Interestingly, it's something Donald Trump does all the time: Come out with unscripted expressions of his reaction to what's happening in the room right now. The attention to Silverman's remark gives some insight into why Trump has had such an effect on so many people.
3. Silverman's remark also hit people in an emotional place, I believe. Maybe not for everyone or quite in the same way, but what I think happened was: She assumed authority as the woman who can tell you what you need to be to measure up socially. If you've been caring about social acceptance and being part of the group — and maybe you've been feeding off of a communal feeling of being in the Bernie crowd — you're suddenly taken aback and warned that you could lose your inclusion. The people who matter think you are an embarrassment and you might find yourself, once again, on the outside. The meaning in life that you found with the Bernie people could be lost if you don't shape up and act the way The Lady says you must act.
4. The downside of her remark is this: The Bernie people — some/many of them — had been having a deep personal experience of awakening into and living in idealism. Something amazing and spiritually rewarding seemed to be happening to them. A wide world of potential seemed to be opening up. And now they are brought up short as Sarah tells them what felt real to them is just a childish thing that needs to be put aside. Join the real world, you starry eyed fools. So all that idealism, what was it? Were we chumps to believe? Were we exploited all along for our propensity to believe? And now you insist that we believe something else? Why? If we were a bubble and you popped the bubble, what are we now? Nothing! And Sarah's beautiful face morphs into the face of the witch who's been horrifying us all this time and she's laughing at us...
5. As noted at #2, the need for the stretching occurred because Paul Simon wasn't coming out on cue. Why would an old performer — one with much experience at live shows — have difficulty getting out there? Look at him and ask yourself what went wrong:
Maybe he didn't want to do it. He was for Bernie. He gave his beautiful song "America" to Bernie to use in the best (save one) political ad I've ever seen. Maybe Paul was close to being Bernie-or-bust and was busting back stage. But it wandered out eventually and struggled through that song that's not really written for his voice, but for Art's. Maybe he didn't want to lay himself down as a bridge — a bridge to Hillary. That's not the lofty spiritual destination over the bridge in that song. How, after all these years can he give that song to her? What a pale, debased repeat of giving "America" to Bernie! Ah, poor Paul! How dreary and sad the song sounded. Nothing like the exquisite inspiration of "America" given to Bernie. In the comments, coupe had said: "Bernie's not an idiot. He has millions of dollars in outstanding campaign bills to pay off. He's going to say whatever is necessary to get the DNC and Clinton to pay them off." And Meade wrote this parody of Paul Simon's "America":
"Let's not be suckers, we’ll marry extortions together6. Proofreading, I'm surprised to see I wrote "it wandered out eventually." Ah, poor Paul! Drained of his soul! Ah, poor Bernie people, drained of their soul! Your soul was just something The Party was using until it became an inconvenient encumbrance. Shed it now. You look ridiculous.
I’ve got some emails right here in my bag"
So you'll pay all of my campaign debts and I'll buy your Wall Street lies
And we'll walk off and sell out America
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166 comments:
It was a great first night for the Dem convention. Very uplifting and filled humor.
The Republicsn convention was just a hatefest.
That's more air time than either of them earned during their entire careers at SNL.
And wasn't Sarah there when the women were in charge?
Things Sarah Silverman said:
The blank list is perfect.
2. Get your mind right you ridiculous plebes.
That's just what the DNC did, but on a larger scale
All hail the media airbrush!
"Thank god they can fix this in post."
As in "post-production" editing.
The success to funny ration is off the charts for these two.
See you next Tuesday, Sarah.
"The success to funny ration is off the charts for these two."
I'm convinced the Peter Principle of being promoted to your level of incompetence applies to entertainment more so than management.
I'm more interested in hearing what she said off-stage after her "I have so much I WANT to say ..." [purse lips painfully]
"The meaning in life that you found with the Bernie people could be lost if you don't shape up and act the way The Lady says you must act." The Lady? Comedian-as-schoolmarm telling you to sit down and be quiet? Are you trying to create sympathy for the Bernie Bros or something?
It is interesting to see how Dems corral their sheep. "Lock Her Up" T-shirts notwithstanding, they are better at it. They are rationally focused on the only thing that matters to them: power.
“She assumed authority as the woman who can tell you what you need to be to measure up socially. If you've been caring about social acceptance and being part of the group — and maybe you've been feeding off of a communal feeling of being in the Bernie crowd — you're suddenly taken aback and warned that you could lose your inclusion. The people who matter think you are an embarrassment and you might find yourself, once again, on the outside. The meaning in life that you found with the Bernie people could be lost if you don't shape up and act the way The Lady says you must act.”
Yep. Do what we tell you or you’re kicked out of in the “in” group. That’s the go-to move for the Dems. That’s the bullying.
In other news, Trump is about fear and the Democrats are about inclusion!
What must really burn their asses is that Trump is genuinely humorous and funny.
For a self-professed Bernie fan (as Silverman claimed to be) she sure didn't seem to be talking in a way that would convince Bernie holdouts. I could understand something along the lines of "I have my reservations about Clinton, including her being influenced by big money and centrist background, and like many of you I'm disappointed that our preferred candidate didn't win. But now we have a choice this fall, and if you care about the things Bernie cares about your choice is very clear--Hillary would do much more for us while Trump would set us back." Angry Bernie fans might grimace, down a shot of wheatgrass or whatever the swampies like, but ultimately figure they could live with Clinton but not with Trump.
Instead, she came across like a full-on Hillary shill. If Hillary was so "overqualified" then why was she for Bernie in the first place? Clearly something made Bernie preferable to Hillary, and Silverman does not even acknowledge that, and thus could not speak to the Bernie holdouts.
Sarah Silverman can be very funny, puncturing balloons. Some examples:
I didn't lose my virginity until I was twenty-six. Nineteen vaginally, but twenty-six what my boyfriend calls "the real way".
A couple nights ago, I was licking jelly off my boyfriend's penis. And I thought, "Oh my God — I'm turning into my mother!"
I want to get an abortion. But my boyfriend and I are having trouble conceiving.
The Holocaust would never have happened if black people lived in Germany in the 1930s and 40s … well, it wouldn't have happened to Jews.
I learned that people in wheelchairs are allowed to have marathons … which, to me, seems like cheating, but what are you gonna say?
The best time to have a baby is when you're a black teenager.
What I find interesting is that she then sides politically with the most Politically Correct people around. What would Hillary say if asked about the above quotes? That it is acceptable humor if a Progressive person says it? Of course the answer to that is "Yes", but what does SHE see in her political companions?
Sadly, it all probably boils down to Abortion. Most things do, it seems.
Anyway, an example of hers, coming into conflict with the Hierarchy of PC:
I got jury duty … and I didn't want to go, so my friend said, "You should write something really really racist on the form when you return it. Like, you should put 'I hate chinks'." And I said, "I'm not going to put that on there just to get out of jury duty. I don't want people to think that about me." So instead I wrote, "I love chinks." And who doesn't?
The Conan O'Brien Show (11 July 2001) In the original joke, Silverman had said "niggers" instead of "chinks", the network asked her to change it from the first to the latter. The network and O'Brien then apologized for airing this statement, Silverman did not, stating that it was plainly satirizing the racist thought process...
I am Laslo.
Juxtapose my last comment with Althouse's theory of Inclusion in the post for best effect.
I am Laslo.
Onwards and forwards, so to speak. Let's get on with the defeating of Trump, leave all the bitter hate thing to the Republicans, that's not our style. Most Democrats and liberals realize what is at stake here. America never stopped being great and we don't need or want some Putin puppet megalomaniac oligarch defining our country through his eyes and for his own purposes, then trying to "fix" it. No thanks.
Bernie's not an idiot. He has millions of dollars in outstanding campaign bills to pay off. He's going to say whatever is necessary to get the DNC and Clinton to pay them off.
The Dems are developing optics here.
The home audience saw the Dems night-time lineup of Booker, Michelle, Warren, and Sanders, and will compare it to Scotty Baio, Guiliani, and the pathetic General Flynn. And its only the first night!
Hillary's ads will quote people with names like Kasich, Perry, and Bush, not Sarah Silverman.
It is chuckle-inducing to see our hostess sweating gumdrops to keep the readership bathed in her irrelevant "commentary."
Althouse's approach to political analysis reminds the sentient reader of a small child with pedantic tendencies. Her vast ignorance of the significance what happens before her eyes is breathtaking, and barely to be believed.
Bernie who? Bye, bye Grumpy, don't let the door hit you on the way out.
Silverman's expression at 1:15 sums up the moment. "Well, that didn't work. So much for stretch."
Bernie's peeps want an ideal. They see themselves as an important part in solution to the destruction of the US Middle-class. They thought they mattered. They fixed the Gay Bigotry problem. They fixed the women barriers to equality problem. But now no one wants their input.
Baa baa black sheep. They are not allowed to touch any power in Hillary' s entitled Baby Boomer Alinskyite Fiefdom. It all is pre-pledged to World Banks and oligarchs of the world monetary flows that ignore boundaries of silly old democratic nation states.
They are the perfect Trump supporters, if they will wake up and see clearly what is happening to them.
I wouldn't vote for Bernie for anything under any circumstances, so I am most definitely not a Bernie stalwart. Even so, Sarah's "You're being ridiculous" made me want to angrily flip her off. (Mature, I know.)
If you're a strong Bernie supporter, you probably deeply believe much of the following: That big money is destroying our politics and our country; that the electoral system is rigged against those who challenge the status quo; that Wall Street bears responsibility for the immiseration of the middle class and the poor; and that we have been enmeshing ourselves in unnecessary wars that cause untold damage to us and the rest of the world, with Iraq being Exhibit A.
And now Sarah is going to tell me that if I don't fall in line behind Hillary --- whose money-hoovering puts the competition to shame, for whom the DNC blew off all pretense of neutrality to push into office; who is beholden to Wall Street in unparalleled fashion; and who supported the Iraq war (and NAFTA, and mandatory sentencing, I could go on) --- I'm being "ridiculous?"
Fuck you, Sarah Silverman.
"What I find interesting is that she then sides politically with the most Politically Correct people around. What would Hillary say if asked about the above quotes? That it is acceptable humor if a Progressive person says it? Of course the answer to that is "Yes", but what does SHE see in her political companions?"
Political cover. If she's an avowed leftist, people will excuse the "shock" statements in her jokes, because they'll assume the jokes are ironic. If she were a right winger, people would assume the jokes reveal underlying bigotry.
There are limits, of course--no one can drop an "n" word unless you're black, because the "n" word means hate. Except it's okay for black people, because blacks obviously cannot hate other blacks unless they're Republican. And while you may think "if it's ok for blacks to say it because it's the context that matters, maybe a white guy can say it if they aren't actually racist" then you'd be wrong again, because reasons.
"And now Sarah is going to tell me that if I don't fall in line behind Hillary --- whose money-hoovering puts the competition to shame, for whom the DNC blew off all pretense of neutrality to push into office; who is beholden to Wall Street in unparalleled fashion; and who supported the Iraq war (and NAFTA, and mandatory sentencing, I could go on) --- I'm being "ridiculous?""
Pretty much. She makes no attempt to even justify why a Sandersian should come on board.
Brando, she appeared to be frustrated with the continuous chanting and while she could've used some humor in chastising the Bernie followers, maybe someone does have to tell them they are being ridiculous.
People like her and myself who were Bernie fans need to get over the hurt and get on with it, see the bigger picture and recognize the danger a Trump presidency. I hope we get former Bernie people out in the public eye that have what it takes to get through to the liberal base that we are now down to one choice and we need to make the best of it. Even Bernie himself knows what he must do to ensure there is no Trump in the White House. I read in a poll in WaPo saying that 90% of Bernie fans will vote for Clinton, which is good, I think by November it will be even better.
Note to self: never spend another penny on a Paul Simon product or even listen to his music again. Just add him to the list.
Shorter Sarah: *look into my eyes*
Ignore the corruption... Ignore the corruption.... Ignore the corruption.
Simon's performance showed how much he needed Garfunkle. Stick to the guitar old man, hire a singer. A progressive singer.
Elizabeth Warren was pretty clear as to why we need to support Clinton now, Warren is a strong progressive an very trustworthy person. There will be many others as the weeks go by before November. And Trump will be blabbering all that time, which is always a good thing for us. Who knows what else will happen before November regarding Trump's Russia connection. There are investigative reporters and the FBI investing this and where there's smoke there's often fire. We'll see.
She assumed authority as the woman who can tell you what you need to be to measure up socially.
The that's-not-funny effect, otherwise known as acting like a woman.
To compare the conventions:
Cruz: "Vote your conscience."
DNC: "Get in line!"
And who is Sarah Silverman? Actress? Singer? Talking head?
Pro tip: don't reach for the gasoline when the fire starts to burn out of control
coupe said...
"Bernie's not an idiot. He has millions of dollars in outstanding campaign bills to pay off. He's going to say whatever is necessary to get the DNC and Clinton to pay them off."
“Let's not be suckers, we’ll marry extortions together
I’ve got some emails right here in my bag”
So you'll pay all of my campaign debts and I'll buy your Wall Street lies
And we'll walk off and sell out America
"Cruz: "Vote your conscience."
DNC: "Get in line!""
Cruz slyly tells the peeps to vote their conscience, Warren boldly tells the peeps what is at stake and to be intelligent to do the right thing in order to defeat Trump. Warren tells us liberals to vote with your brain, not your butthurt.
Srah Silverman is the edgier version of Maureen Dowd, with more cussing, but just as coherent a message. That message is usually: PAY ATTENTION TO ME! I'M STILL RELEVANT!
And who is Sarah Silverman? Actress? Singer? Talking head?
Ask Joe Franklin.
Will Trump will sell off America....to Russia?
This was the low point of an otherwise good night for the Dems (okay, Simon's singing sucked.)
Silverman's comment came off as "Your betters know what's good for you"
And in a rare bit of insight Franken repeatedly referred to when he "used to be funny".
That store that gave out the free stuff went bankrupt, but we are opening a new one over here. Just fill out this form and check that box right there.
Will Trump will sell off America....to Russia?
If he does the DNC Conventioneers will approve.
Evidence.
"It is chuckle-inducing to see our hostess sweating gumdrops to keep the readership bathed in her irrelevant "commentary."
Althouse's approach to political analysis reminds the sentient reader of a small child with pedantic tendencies. Her vast ignorance of the significance what happens before her eyes is breathtaking, and barely to be believed."
Again, Althouse is catering/cowtowing to her 90/10 con majority daily. Supply and demand er she knows where her bread is buttered.
It's that basic.
Cruel neutrality is a slightly amusing concept
>
And the hatred of Hillary/Dem's in this environment means Althouse doesn't even have to try ie she has them at hello.
Speaking to the choir ...
"Will Trump will sell off America....to Russia?"
Perhaps, but at least he won't sell off America's uranium to Russia. The Clinton's already did.
Jeez, Paul Simon looks like he was pulled through a keyhole feet first!
I wonder if it was a health issue that made him late? He's not a young man anymore.
Let's not be suckers, we’ll marry extortions together
I’ve got some emails right here in my bag"
So you'll pay all of my campaign debts and I'll buy your Wall Street lies
And we'll walk off and sell out America
Meade, you're a poet & ya don't know it!
Sarah Silverman sitting on a toilet never gets old.
1. That guy is a Senator?
2. Why the conehead hairstyle?
"Brando, she appeared to be frustrated with the continuous chanting and while she could've used some humor in chastising the Bernie followers, maybe someone does have to tell them they are being ridiculous."
Has she considered that it's not so very ridiculous? It's the same thing with Team Trump and their enablers--there's a large cohort of people in this country (spanning Right and Left) that is sickened with these choices, and the requests to "get in line" because "our nominee is so clearly the better choice" isn't so clear when you're talking about nominees that really challenge the bounds of acceptability.
I'm not saying the case cannot be made--some have made it well. But Silverman is just sneering at those who opposed Clinton for very justifiable reasons, and may not want the knowledge that their votes helped her restart the criminal enterprise that is almost sure to come.
I disagreed with everything that Bernie espoused. However, Bernie seemed to be a principled man who had a compass that he was following. Even though his principles are stupid IMO, I admired him for following them. I think this principled...Don Quixote... aura is what attracted the Berni-bots to his cause.
NOW....we see that he really has no principles. That he is willing to sell his supporters down the river in order to get what he personally wants and needs. $$$$. To sell out to Hillary and the DNC who actively stabbed him in the back and work to be everything that he is, or was saying he was opposed to is the ultimate betrayal of his supporters.
Of course they feel used, disrespected, abused, stupid and more. Their guy has NO principles. Their guy treated them like so much used Kleenex. Soiled and tossed aside while Bernie sucks up the the establishment. Even I who disliked his stances feel disappointing in him. Don Quixote...sold out to the Wicked Witch and now has become just another stooge in her horde of zombie supporters.
Fooled again. Useful idiots.
The Dems certainly have the cash, or the career control in the entertainment industry, to pull any number of performers into their orbit. He who pays the piper calls the tune, and rarely likes it when someone does something unanticipated.
This is probably a big reason for cultural sclerosis. Peter Thiel doesnt go there, but the same degeneration is working in art as in tech. Worse, in some ways, as what is popular is getting much less complex, sophisticated.
edit. Work to be everything he is NOT.
"Sarah Silverman sitting on a toilet never gets old."
The Toilet of Doiran Gray?
(up next on Comments Taken Out of Context Theater)
@Unknown,
Onwards and forwards, so to speak. Let's get on with the defeating of Trump, leave all the bitter hate thing to the Republicans, that's not our style. Most Democrats and liberals realize what is at stake here. America never stopped being great and we don't need or want some Putin puppet megalomaniac oligarch defining our country through his eyes and for his own purposes, then trying to "fix" it. No thanks.
I see your king-size tube of Ana-Lube must have arrived from Amazon this morning.
"Warren is a strong progressive an very trustworthy person."
Ahhh, is "trustworthy" the term you have been instructed to use? Is it just to be wrapped around the foolish husk of Warren the talking points - trustworthy Indian or are you supposed to interject it into any discussion of a Democrat?
It is to laugh.
Meanwhile, the Russians still are not the authors of the e-mails.
Unknown,
"Warren is a strong progressive an very trustworthy person."
Well, yeah, Natïve Americans always are!!
"Your soul was just something The Party was using until it became an inconvenient encumbrance."
All within the Party, nothing outside the Party, nothing against the Party. (I know Mussolini said "State" but to the Democrats it's all the same thing.
"are you supposed to interject it into any discussion of a Democrat?"
Every religion has a liturgy.
I like Sarah Silverman far more than Lena Dunham. If she should use gratuitous nudity to advance her career, I would be supportive of such a choice.....,.If the Bernie supporters are being ridiculous, why does she not ridicule them? There's a fair amount of comedy gold in them thar hills. Ditto with Hillary and DWS and the fat mothers of sex offenders. There's so much that is ridiculous about various Dem politicians, their causes, and their supporters that pass unremarked. You can not tilt so far before you fall over.
"NOW....we see that he really has no principles. That he is willing to sell his supporters down the river in order to get what he personally wants and needs. $$$$. To sell out to Hillary and the DNC who actively stabbed him in the back and work to be everything that he is, or was saying he was opposed to is the ultimate betrayal of his supporters."
So you're talking about a typical presidential campaign where the vanquished who say nasty things about the winner and disagree re: many issues in the end get up on stage for that kumbaya moment.
One exception, 2016/Trump. Indeed, when you piss off your opponents soooo bad w/childish personal attacks on their families, etc. shocking when they don't show their support.
>
Bottom line, it's a dog and pony show every (4) years for both parties as this is the animal American politics has become. And the increased media attention only heightens the hypocrisy.
Winning is everything and the Dems gasp! have now become better at the process than the discombobulated Reps.
Reality!
@Paddy,
Every religion has a liturgy
"Domine, labia mea aperies,
and did you know, he plans to sell the whole country to Putin!"
It was a great first night for the Dem convention. Very uplifting and filled humor.
Noted "erudite intellectual" here sucker for any bullshit uttered by Dems.
leave all the bitter hate thing to the Republicans, that's not our style.
Bitter hate is the only agent keeping the Dems together.
I love this whole "We're totally unified --- ignore all of that non-unity stuff you saw earlier. Not really us" bit of cognitive dissonance.
The home audience saw the Dems night-time lineup of Booker, Michelle, Warren, and Sanders, and will compare it to Scotty Baio, Guiliani, and the pathetic General Flynn. And its only the first night!
They will compare it and say "Where in the hell did we go so wrong? Elizabeth Fucking Warren? Who the fuck wants to listen to Fauxcahontas? And Booker? Can we find a creepier, empty-headed dimbulb than him?"
Hillary's ads will quote people with names like Kasich, Perry, and Bush, not Sarah Silverman.
Trump's ads will quote Comey, the mom of somebody she left to die in Libya, and news stories of the refugee crisis in Europe that SHE caused.
Pretty much. She makes no attempt to even justify why a Sandersian should come on board.
Nor did Sanders, mind you. He sold out all of his "principles" for planks on the Dem platform. People can lambaste Cruz, but he didn't utterly beclown himself at the Convention by pretending that the issues Trump has suddenly don't exist as Bernie did with Hillary.
People like her and myself who were Bernie fans need to get over the hurt and get on with it, see the bigger picture and recognize the danger a Trump presidency.
Given that you've uttered not one negative word about Hillary then, outside of sexism, why did you support Bernie AT ALL?
You're not even the tiniest bit upset that the DNC rigged the system against the guy you claimed to support and had the media help them in the effort. Not even the TINIEST bit upset. Seems odd.
Would that modern politicians were as honest as Mussolini. Well, a few are. Erdogan and Putin for instance. There is no mask there.
And for what its worth those two have just made a little Hitler-Stalin pact between themselves. Whither NATO?
Nothing of this substance today, and I doubt it will come up this week.
So you're talking about a typical presidential campaign where the vanquished who say nasty things about the winner and disagree re: many issues in the end get up on stage for that kumbaya moment.
When your campaign is about how bad Wall Street and big money is and you then back, happily, THE Wall Street/Big Money candidate --- you sold the fuck out. Hard.
...assuming you had principles, which for a progressive, is an assumption one should hesitate in making.
At BEST, he's the biggest sell out I've ever seen.
Most of all it was condescending and arrogant. Especially or those have got cheated by the DNC. Oh, and the millions of people who gave Bernie $27.
@damiskesc,
At BEST, he's the biggest sell out I've ever seen.
And let's not forget that timely little book deal.
The terms of the book deal were not disclosed in the report
See? This is my surprised face.
The Dems don't even care to try & hide the corruption anymore.
Musicians are notable for their failed marriages, rehab stays, and early deaths. Why should anyone want to solicit their wisdom or political support? The fact that so many rock stars are opposed to Donald Trump is a point in his favor.
Interesting the more Althouse cons attack Bernie, the more I like him.
Again, the yin and yang ie why Dems/Reps are who they are.
A+B=C
Reps hate Hillary.
Bernie now supports Hillary.
Reps hate Bernie!
ie Bernie has determined Hillary is a much better choice than egomaniacal/narcissistic me, me, me Trump. Go figure!
>
As always, elections come down to choices and "we" aren't electing a Pope.
Keep hope alive!
How's this for butthurt and vindictiveness?
http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2016/07/24/trump0724/
"Donald Trump said he would fund efforts to defeat Texas Senator Ted Cruz and Ohio Governor John Kasich, primary rivals who refused to endorse him in his race against Democrat Hillary Clinton for the presidency.
Speaking on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Mr. Trump said he would put up $10 million to $20 million against his party rivals and a third Republican who he wouldn’t name.
“What’s on my mind is beating Hillary Clinton,” he said. “With that being said, yeah, I’ll probably do a super PAC, you know, when they run against Kasich, for $10 million to $20 million, against Ted Cruz.”"
Simon may have changed his song to appease the Bernie crowd at the last minute. A song about persevering in dark times may not have been his first choice. And he may also be hinting how dark the DNC has become.
Let us be comrades we'll partner our self-interest to the collective
I've got a little red book here in my bag
So we bought a vape inhaler and organic breast-milk pies
And walked off...to look for Utopia
Proofreading, I'm surprised to see I wrote "it wandered out eventually."
Shakespeare sometimes used the word it instead of he.
For example, in As You Like It, Oliver disparaged his youngest brother Orlando:
It is the stubbornest young fellow in France -- full of ambition, an envious emulator of every man's good parts, a secret and villainous contriver against me, his natural brother.
Scholar George Lyman Kittredge comments:
["It" is] used in speaking of a person in a familiar way -- sometimes with affection, sometimes (as here) with scorn.
At some point, it may be a question, based on historical precedent, of
"Who lost Turkey?"
Much like "Who lost Iran?" in 1980.
Or "Who lost China?" in the 1950s.
But US politics has gotten far too stupid I think. Those were opportunistic attacks on substantial issues, but these days few are prepared to address substantial issues, even opportunistically - well, Trump does, some of them, which is one thing that distinguishes him. There is no substantial response from the other side. I am concluding (granted its been many years coming) that there is no longer any substance on the other side, it is rhetoric and power pure and simple. The local trolls arent simply trolls, they just are empty vessels. There can be no non-trolls. There is nothing at all in them but rhetoric.
Thiel is right on far more than technology, and as many others note, art. Simple thought is dying out.
Things missing from the DNC convention: American Flags. Any mention of ISIS or terrorism. Things shown at DNC: comedians telling you how and what to think.
No American flags at one of the major party conventions. And...just when Michelle Obama finally was proud of her country. Togetherness!
Bernie would have been a better and stronger candidate against Trump than Hillary. Or at least the former Bernie who had principles and was leading a mini revolution against the corporate cronyism establishment types. He had strong committed followers and even some cross over appeal to the Libertarians and others who are sick and tired of the corruptocrats being in charge.
That Bernie, evidently was just an illusion and a delusion.
Now, the Democrats are stuck with the least appealing candidate EVAH and one who is corrupt to to core as well as her sex abusing lying husband. Bernie would have been better. Not that I wanted Bernie. I'm actually glad that he has shown his true colors.
I sort of feel sorry for the true believers who thought that they had a candidate whom they would be able to back and who would carry their torch for them. Now they know that they were just tools and were used. On the other hand....perhaps this will be a wake up call to them that blind idealism is always a stupid thing to have.
"At BEST, he's the biggest sell out I've ever seen."
Scott Walker plays the part of "sell out" well too. Lips to Trump's butt, it was a sight to see.
I feel sorry for the NeverTumper delegates who were sold out by the RNC, not even letting them have a recorded vote. Shutting down their voices of opposition.
It took a little time to talk Paul down..and out of playing this:
Hello darkness, my old friend
I've come to talk with you again
Because a vision softly creeping
Left its seeds while I was sleeping
And the vision that was planted in my brain
Still remains within the sound of silence..
If only they had rolled out a mirror so Franken could trans out in a wig+pantsuit and update the Stuart Smalley bit as Hillary.
"the least appealing candidate EVAH"
No, that would be Trump.
"Maybe he didn't want to lay himself down" He didn't want to but he did. Because in the end they all want to. Any prog will lay himself down for the cause. It's all the faith they have left.
It's no secret that people on the left tend to be swept up and guided by emotionality far more than people on the right. People on the left tend to want to believe in people, to create myths and legends around them and put them up on a pedestal. Lefties love creating heroes.
That's not to say that people on the right don't also do that. There have been plenty of very passionate Trump supporters. There's plenty of people on the right who absolutely idolize Reagan. But lefties definitely are far more likely to be guided by their hearts rather than their brains.
The problem with hero worship is that heroes are just human beings and human beings are flawed, often deeply so. Bernie Sanders became a legend in a lot of people's minds. Well it turns out he's not some folk hero, he's just a cranky old Socialist from Vermont who needs money.
So now you have this snarky comedian who is trying to reason with a crowd of very disappointed and angry people? Their hero has just been unmasked as a fraud and she's now asking them to vote for Hillary Clinton, a person whose many flaws and sins have been put on display over and over, and new flaws continue to be revealed. It's a hard sell for sure.
It seems to me that these super passionate people are far more likely to choose not to vote at all, out of spite, rather than vote for the thing that they were railing against.
UnknownInga:
Please make a single unalloyed positive comment in support of Hillary Clinton. It must be positive in its own right.
"had been having a deep personal experience of awakening into and living in idealism."
I watched briefly while Bernie was speaking. All the closeups of people with tears streaming down their faces. I just can not relate to people being that wrapped up emotionally with a political candidate. It really does seem as if politics has filled the void that religion once did.
Althouse writes: "And Sarah's beautiful face morphs into the face of the witch who's been horrifying us all this time and she's laughing at us..."
I wonder if in another place this comment might be (mis)construed as anti-semitic? The long-standing association between Jewish women and witches being what it is.
In the movie "morphing" is what the crystal ball is all about. Clara Blandick's (Auntie Em's") face morphs into Margaret Hamilton's (WWotW's); Wholesomeness dissolves into evil.
In your posting: the right-profile contrast between Sarah Silverman's elegant jawline and next graphic of Margret Hamilton's (presumably prosthetically augmented) sinister one seems just as ripe for "reads too much into everything" crowd.
I mean if we can find nazi salutes in waves to the bleachers, why shouldn't you expect some to make this leap.
Categorically, I do not ascribe any anti-semitism to this, however, I would expect others to.
Walker hasn't spent months discussing how corrupt trump is and how corrosive money and Wall St are.
You failed here.
Paul Simon was horrible. The arrogant SOB always claims that the fame of Simon and Garfunkle was due to him, yet here he is, and He can't sing the song w/o him. Typical smug arrogant liberal.
Love the rumor that Ted Cruz is supposed to speak at the DNC. False of course, but emblematic of the 2016 election.
Things missing from the DNC convention: American Flags. Any mention of ISIS or terrorism.
If Paul had sang Boy In The Bubble, at least there'd be a mention of terrorism.
It was a slow day
And the sun was beating
On the soldiers by the side of the road
There was a bright light
A shattering of shop windows
The bomb in the baby carriage
Was wired to the radio
Comparing the conventions...
DNC: Wall-to-wall heavy hitters!
RNC...Who Are These People?
Trump is the perfect Republican, and the GOP brand will be trashed for 30 years by the time he gets through with it.
3-1/2 more months of fun for the slobbering fools of the GOP NASCAR/WWE/PGA crowd. Then, it's the dustbin, and public shame.
I look forward to President Clinton's appointment in January of Supreme Court Justice Obama as Scalia's replacement. It will be delicious, and the Trumpers will blame it on Mitch McConnell.
When I see Silverman, the only thought I have is whether she's still fucking Matt Damon.
What a skank ----a perfect Democrat spokesman.
Heavy hitters?
Who?
It actually would have been quite funny if Sarah Silverman's face had morphed into Hillary Clinton's when she started telling the Berniebots that they were being ridiculous.
bbkibgfish:
Please make a single positive comment about Hillary Clinton. The comment should stand on its own as positive.
http://fox6now.com/2016/06/27/gov-walker-says-he-hasnt-been-asked-by-trump-to-speak-at-convention-not-sure-he-would-if-he-was/
"PEWAUKEE -- Governor Scott Walker says he hasn't been invited to speak at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland in July -- but he's not exactly jumping up to volunteer. Walker is one of many Republicans concerned about Donald Trump.
Walker on Monday, July 27th, ( should be June27, their error) on a business tour in Pewaukee, said he isn't sure he would speak at the convention even if Trump asked him to."
Was Walker afraid of Trump doing to him what he's doing to Kasich and Cruz?
It's 2016. If his wife wins, Bill won't have to settle for an Oval Office blowjob from a chubby white girl while Hillary's away spending her frequent flyer miles, he'll be asking for anal - from a black chick.
UnknownInga:
Please make a single positive comment about Hillary Clinton. The comment should stand on its own as positive.
coupe said... [hush][hide comment]
Bernie's not an idiot. He has millions of dollars in outstanding campaign bills to pay off. He's going to say whatever is necessary to get the DNC and Clinton to pay them off.
2/3rds correct.
I liked Sarah Silverman when she was younger and thought she was funny. She's getting a little age on her now and in just a few years, it will be hard to imagine that she was ever sexually attractive. The bee hive hair style or whatever it was didn't help her looks either.
A female comedian telling the 'Bernie Bros' that they need to stop being unserious and get behind the woman candidate.
Would the result be different to the 'Bernie Bros' if it was a hip male comedian they admired that was to get the message across -- Louis CK, for instance?
Optics and Audibles.
I am Laslo.
"He wasn't sure if he was going to speak" is damning.
Turns out Sanders was not the Chosen One sent to redeem America from Not Being Progressive.
Who knew?
@walter :-)
Simon is beyond his safe usage date as are the ideas of the Democratic Party. Rotten, you might say.
"If you've been caring about social acceptance and being part of the group — and maybe you've been feeding off of a communal feeling of being in the Bernie crowd — you're suddenly taken aback and warned that you could lose your inclusion. The people who matter think you are an embarrassment and you might find yourself, once again, on the outside. The meaning in life that you found with the Bernie people could be lost if you don't shape up and act the way The Lady says you must act."
It's a fashion statement all the way down. They were carrying Soviet flags outside the convention hall, and if the stories are correct, few or no American flags inside. Too unfashionable.
Soviet flags! What amazing ignorance.
If there's one thing that leftists know, it's this: people like being lectured to!
It's why they're so good at it.
Please make a single positive comment about Hillary Clinton
I am positive that Hillary Clinton is an evil, corrupt liar.
Bernie brothers, I get it: you were SO into him, so into him. It was like dating an amazing girl, a girl more amazing than you ever imagined you would ever meet, an amazing girl who could do AMAZING things in bed. You never had it like that before, never. Then you got dumped…
How could this happen? It was going so well -- you REALLY connected, you felt it in your bones. It happened because rides like that NEVER last. And that sucks. It sucks bad. Those memories: how could anyone else ever compete? Is anyone else going to put their heels behind their ears quite like that…?
But it's over, my Friend. She's gone, and she won't be coming back. She's decided to return to the flock, and -- well -- you can't help but feel a little foolish along with your anger and hurt. I mean, you could've seen it coming, it WAS pretty obvious that she wasn't going to make the Long Run. But you pretended and you hoped, and now you're alone on your couch, eating Cheetos and playing video games while you pretend you're not thinking of her: we've all been there…
But there is another girl, and she kinda sorta has the same qualities. Don't get me wrong: she's not as hot, not nearly as sexy, not as warm, not as inspiring, her grating laugh might drive you mad sometimes, but she IS there. And now you're there. And it's late, and there ain't anyone else around.
You get what I'm saying, guys?
It's an old song, done by a fucking dope-addled hippie in the ass-wipe Seventies, but that doesn't mean it ain't true:" If you can't be with the one you love, love the one you're with…"
I am Laslo.
"I look forward to President Clinton's appointment in January of Supreme Court Justice Obama."
Obama would turn it down. He has done ZERO legal scholarship. I guess the clerks could do all the heavy lifting, but wouldn't that be obvious in the opinions as clerks change? Obama's dream is to become the leader of Black Lives Matter. that is where his heart is.
RE: "It's an old song, done by a fucking dope-addled hippie in the ass-wipe Seventies, but that doesn't mean it ain't true:" If you can't be with the one you love, love the one you're with…""
THAT is the song that should've been played, not Paul Simon.
I am Laslo.
David said,
"Rotten you might say"
"Rotten" is now the word. Hillary Rotten... Clinton. Rotten... DNC. Something is Rotten... in the Democratic Party. And so on...
Silverman would have really made her mark in the Vagina Gown.
Comment by Once written, twice... blocked.
I just thought that was funny.
Because nothing succeeds like mocking the people you are trying to convince.
Laslo
But she makes her own clothes.
"Because nothing succeeds like mocking the people you are trying to convince."
There's a lot of that this year. What ever happened to "big tent" and winning people over? I get that all you need is 50% plus one (or more accurately, 270 electoral votes) but it makes more sense to hit on all fronts, and have the sort of popular support that may drive an agenda. It's no surprise that in the past several cycles of close elections we've seen more gridlock than in the old days.
Brando
Politicians loathe their constituents. It has never been more clear. Obama was the first president in my lifetime to be the president of only half the people and to more or less admit it proudly.
Can anyone remember any comedian ever making any joke about Debbie's hair? I think a riff about Debbie's bad hair day would be edgy and amusing. There's something about Debbie, and the products she puts in her hair. Go for it, Sarah.
"Warren is a strong progressive an(d) very trustworthy person."
Said Unknown. And Unknown means it - honest injun!
"... and have the sort of popular support that may drive an agenda."
Brando, it's pretty that you think so.
You mean like the stimulus, cash for clunkers, crony capitalism, and most of all Obamacare. When they had the votes, Pelosi/Reid rammed it down our throats. When they lost the votes, they turned it over to Obama's phone and pen. If this administration has taight us anything it's that the agenda drives the agenda and public consensus be damned.
You write some of the most reasonable comments found on this blog, but often their civics course idealism is totally unhinged from today's political realities.
Laslo,
Some have initiated a petition for Hil to step off. It's like those blues songs where the guy wants to kill the guy as if the big legged woman had nothing to do with it.
They lost their love to another woman. All that's left is a berning sensation.
William said...Can anyone remember any comedian ever making any joke about Debbie's hair?
--
No..but Obama said she's cute and has a great smile. Can't top that.
Maybe Paul was in the bathroom.
Did she tell any abortion jokes? Those always kill!
Until I read this post, I had never heard of Ms. Silverman. Is she on television a lot ?
"You mean like the stimulus, cash for clunkers, crony capitalism, and most of all Obamacare. When they had the votes, Pelosi/Reid rammed it down our throats. When they lost the votes, they turned it over to Obama's phone and pen. If this administration has taight us anything it's that the agenda drives the agenda and public consensus be damned.
You write some of the most reasonable comments found on this blog, but often their civics course idealism is totally unhinged from today's political realities."
Yes, but look at how that all went down--even with huge congressional majorities, these things passed by tight margins, hell the ACA was passed through reconciliation in draft form (explaining why so many court challenges went as far as they did). And now Obama has to play small ball with his pen--e.g., increasing the minimum wage, but only for some federal contractors while his allies would have liked it to cover all employers nationwide. Obama's strategy exposed the limits of pushing beyond your mandate, and the GOP as a result has the largest House majority since the '20s.
"Politicians loathe their constituents. It has never been more clear. Obama was the first president in my lifetime to be the president of only half the people and to more or less admit it proudly."
The admitting it is certainly new. I think a big chunk of his unpopularity is due to the sense he conveys that he really couldn't give a crap about those who disagree with him.
Walker on Monday, July 27th, ( should be June27, their error) on a business tour in Pewaukee, said he isn't sure he would speak at the convention even if Trump asked him to."
And this is supposed to be proof that Walker "sold out"? What???
Unknown - are you even capable of a coherent thought?
I see what you mean about the morphing face. Silverman is genuinely angry that these people dare to express their views. They are ridiculous, deserving of ridicule. Beautiful rich smug Sarah and ugly rich smug Al, who have access (access, I tell you!) are really miffed at being exposed to the chanting of the masses. The ridiculous masses. Let's ridicule them, Al!
"Liiiike aa barrge..in po-lluted..waters..."
Hey, Bernie people! When the State's court jesters speak, you better listen!
The GOP has a house majority that is of very little use because so much power has been handed to executive agencies. Passing laws is pointless if they have no effect, nor is there much left of a gatekeeping function. The President does not need to negotiate for any reason.
He doesnt need to get anything passed.
At best the Republicans have helped shelter the people in those areas where the bureaucracy hasnt managed to go. But in truth this shield can be bypassed by the judiciary, as we have seen over and over. It remains only because there are still a few aged judges from an earlier time.
Ask yourself - would there be ANY fracking if a few judges hadnt struck down the EPA at a few critical junctures?
And if so how would the economy be, today?
And what could any Congress have done about it?
“No more all of the above. No more bridge to the future. Sun and wind are now above natural gas,” said platform committee member Bill McKibben on Twitter after the panel agreed to end its support for “all of the above.”
Instead, the platform calls for having the nation run “entirely on clean energy by midcentury,” with a goal of “getting 50 percent of our electricity from clean energy sources within a decade.” The language is expected to be approved this week by delegates to the convention
--
Bats want their shit back.
Bernie is doing better for the party than Ted Cruz. But Trump then is the only one with the outsider connection anymore. Important in this election cycle. Bernie sold out. He wasn't a serious runner. Just he touched a nerve and was surprised by all the support. Probably why he has no problem dropping out and leaving the rigged Dem system where votes don't really matter as they are all suppressed. The dems will have the same issues next election.
Silverman is a modern bigot in sheeps clothing. A bad bigot. I think that goes with the general shallowness that lots of money creates in the entertainment industry.
@buwaya put: "so much power has been handed to executive agencies. Passing laws is pointless if they have no effect, nor is there much left of a gatekeeping function. The President does not need to negotiate for any reason. He doesnt need to get anything passed." Apart from the need to stop Hill from becoming felon-in-chief, that is the most basic argument for Trump: a small chance to bring in better people to run the agencies, plus a small chance to get better judges to rein them in.
Mckibben is following the California program, which is crashing as we speak. Germany just gave up on it, as did Britain and Spain.
If you want to multiply your electric bills, and if the Democrats are stupid or evil enough to follow through on the platform, then thats what you can expect. The California ones were stupid and evil enough.
The whole DNC platform is the soft marxist notion of policies created by politically correctness. Correctness determined by the oppressed class de jour. If support for ISIS or open borders destroys traditional values and kills young non oppressed women in San Francisco then all is good. As long as the community organizing destruction occurs then all collateral damage can be overlooked and swept away by time. Hilary bleeds that thought process. As does Silverman. Trump has some humanity in him those other two don't.
"Maybe Paul was in the bathroom."
Just slip out the back, Jack
Make a new plan, Stan
There must be more than 50 ways to leave your Rodham, Sodom.
I'd prefer a hard Marxist program. At least they believed in electricity if not in liberty. The modern Marxists dont believe in either.
As Silverman ages, perhaps she can steam her vagina like Gwyneth Paltrow does. Honestly, the first I heard of this was moments ago on Instapundit. Modern technology marches on, improving life for ladies of a certain age I suppose.
All those coal miners can take up new careers as vagina steamers.
I dont think Laslo has kept up in this field.
Instead, the platform calls for having the nation run “entirely on clean energy by midcentury,” with a goal of “getting 50 percent of our electricity from clean energy sources within a decade.” The language is expected to be approved this week by delegates to the convention
Odds of that happening are 0%: party of science my ass.
"I dont think Laslo has kept up in this field."
Trust me -- he's busy playing catch up as we type. :-)
Why would anyone want to hear Paul sing BOTW? What a terrible idea.
I forsee a new special Mike Rowe episode of "Dirty Jobs".
Steamed clam with garlic and butter...
Taranto
"Earlier, Sarah Silverman had appeared with Sen. Al Franken in the dullest assemblage of former “Saturday Night Live” talent since Norm Macdonald dined alone."
"'Death to All But Metal" is an homage to Van Halen’s classic “Hot For Teacher” video and also features a cameo by smart mouth comedienne Sarah Silverman as the school principal." - http://www.knac.com/article.asp?ArticleID=6890
Sarah says yes to death to all "butt metal", not to "Death to All But Metal" as intended by Sir Michael Starr.
"no one can drop an "n" word unless you're black"
Exactly, which is why QT talked of "dead nagger storage" in Pulp Fiction.
buwaya puti said...
"...All those coal miners can take up new careers as vagina steamers.
I dont think Laslo has kept up in this field."
Meade said...
"Trust me -- he's busy playing catch up as we type. :-)"
Playing catch up?
I am disappointed in you gentleman.
Been there.
I am Laslo.
Laslo, I apologize.
Your command of your area of expertise is absolute.
"The part of the body devoted to the elimination of waste -- and sin is waste -- becomes clean again with anal bleaching: is this not a form of baptism?"
Born again asshole.
I loved Kevin Williamson's quote over at National Review:
"The Democrats deride the GOP as the party of tired, old, out-of-touch white men living in the past . . . and then introduce Paul Simon for one last warbling and off-key rendering of 'Bridge over Troubled Water.' "
Read more at: http://www.nationalreview.com/article/438352/hillary-clinton-donald-trump-celebrity-culture-has-conquered-politics
It was fun listening to the democrats rail against "wall street interests" and other financial bogeyman from the comfort of their "Wells Fargo Center". Yeah, I'm sure those oligarchs are shaking in their spats.
The people (those unwashed masses) have been shown the example of a Democratic leader that actually has principles and passion for the people who need him most and now they can't just forget about it. Whatever has gotten into them!
The American people don't care about no damn emails. Eh..wait..I knew it!..uh. Ok. Trump is Hitler!! Am I done here?
Simon wrote it, but Garfunkel sang it. This was a terrible performance.
"...Warren is an very trustworthy person." [9:15 AM] Her ideas are so good, they're mandatory. Very trustworthy? See:
"Most of their study replicates several earlier research publications. These are hardly mentioned. The writers make extravagant and false claims to originality and priority of research. There appear to be serious errors in their use of statistical bases which result in grossly mistaken functions and comparisons. Some of their conclusions cannot be obtained even from their flawed findings. The authors have made their raw data unavailable so that its accuracy cannot be independently checked. In my opinion, the authors have engaged in repeated instances of scientific misconduct." Professor Philip Shuchman about, among others, E. Warren. What say you about this, Unknown?
Went to a Mamas and Papas concert in June of 1966, Anaheim, CA. The opening act was oddly named and unknown to us: Simon and Garfunkel. S&G were a hard act to follow but The Mamas and Papas managed nicely. Paul was in much better voice back then but that was half a century ago (yikes).
"Warren is a strong progressive an very trustworthy person.
Honest Injun she is.
Obama as JOTSCOTUS? He apparently thinks a dead guy - a long-dead dead guy - can be slandered. That's an F on the question in both torts - even in California - and first amendment con law. He has also repeatedly violated what remains of the Constitution by lecturing us about what is or is not the correct interpretation - what is orthodox - in matters of religion, or what is claimed to be religion.
"leave all the bitter hate thing to the Republicans, that's not our style." - Unknown
You know what's pathetic? You actually believe that.
Jim at,
I don't think you need to insult our unknown friends with the vicious slander that they believe what they're saying.
No one could be that stupid except, one supposes, their target audience, which must be Democratic potential voters, whom they wish to keep on the farm/plantation.
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