Oh How The Mighty Have Fallwell

Jerry Fallwell has died at age 73.

In a totally unrelated development, Gehenna Garden and Patio Supplies in rustic Lake O’ Fire reports a sudden jump in the sales of charcoal briquettes.

Posted by scott on Tuesday, May 15th, 2007 at 2:24 pm.

27 Responses to “Oh How The Mighty Have Fallwell”

think Heather Duke said it best:
I think Heather Duke said it best:
I prayed for the death of Heather Chandler many times and I felt bad everytime I did it but I kept doing it anyway. Now I know you understood everything. Praise Jesus, Hallelujah.

Left by Ann Althouse's Right Breast on May 15th, 2007

How’d he die? Did he suffocate from keeping his head up his ass too long?
Gosh that was mean. If this how I act when Falwell dies, what am I gonna be like when Fred Phelps kicks?
I scare me.

Left by Bill S on May 15th, 2007

Never liked the bigot. Won’t miss him. Next.

Left by Gappy on May 15th, 2007

HAPPY HAPPY JOY JOY HAPPY HAPPY JOY JOY HAPPY HAPPY JOY JOY HAPPY HAPPY JOY JOY HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY JOY JOY JOYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!! (tink-ta-dah-dink-dink-da-dink!)
http://anntichristscoulter.blogspot.com/2007/05/happy-happy-joy-joy-happy-happy-joy-joy.html
And Bill, if/when that evil craven harpie Fred Phelps ever kicks (I’m flabbergasted and shocked that anything as evil as Falwell COULD die, so I fear that Phelps will outlive both of us!!!) — we are SOOOOOO throwing a coast-to-coast kegger!!!
BYOB, but I’ll make the hors d’oeuvre.

Left by Anntichrist S. Coulter on May 15th, 2007

Why in the FUCK is my comment awaiting moderation?!?!?!?!?!?!

Left by Anntichrist S. Coulter on May 15th, 2007

Okay, so the first one is in moderation, but the second one goes straight the fuck up?!?!??!!?
You cannot censor nor sedate this level of schadenfreude!!!

Left by Anntichrist S. Coulter on May 15th, 2007

I live in Virginia and this afternoon the flowers bloomed brighter, the sky was bluer and a sense of peace and tranquility fell on the land. G-d is good.

Left by Alison on May 15th, 2007

As he approaches the light, the sound of..wait, is that heavenly trumpets? No, it’s a very loud extended medley of “Invocation And Ritual Dance Of The Young Pumpkin”, “What is the Ugliest Part of Your Body”, and various selections from “Thingfish”, being performed by Frank Zappa, who’s been waiting 14 years for this moment.

Left by trashfire on May 15th, 2007

Here’s hoping Phelps is next. I kinda wanna see how Bill handles it. I don’t drink anymore, but I’ll still buy the first round.

Left by D. Sidhe on May 15th, 2007

Well, huzzah and all that, but…

Here’s hoping Phelps is next.

Not me! Phelps has no real power in this country; he is, in fact, widely reviled. Me, I want either Pat Robertson or SpongeDob Stickypants to be the next to drop, ‘cos I hate them just as much, and they have actual followers who aren’t related to them by blood.

Left by Marq on May 16th, 2007

Marq, I think Robertson and the Dobler will probably kick off around the same time. I wonder if the demise of these who came up in the swell of conservatism in the early eighties will bring a renaissance once they kick off.
Its just beginning, oh what a lovely day.

Left by kate on May 16th, 2007

I say that we start a televangelist death pool.
I’ve got Robertson and Oral Roberts, with (okay, it’s a long-shot, but the odds are great if I win!) Benny Hinn for the trifecta.
Oh, sure, sure, Swaggart would’ve been the easy/obvious pick, considering how pickled his liver really is (his cousin Jerry Lee was originally the “preacher” in the family, Jimmy started-out as the pie-anner player in a whorehouse!), but there’s a lot to be said for being “too fuckin’ MEAN to die”!

Left by Anntichrist S. Coulter on May 16th, 2007

Right said, Trashfire. And as he enters the Pearly Gates, Zappa breaks loose with “Falwell is an asshole” to the tune of “Swaggart is an asshole” ….

Left by Henry Crun on May 16th, 2007

Marq, I’ll concede that Phelps doesn’t have any influence politically. But, socially, he was a repugnant human being. He took joy in the deaths of others, and, for the last 15 years, has disrupted hundreds of funerals, mocking the suffering and grief of the people in attendance. How many people had to put up with his crap over the years? Some people become a nuisance by vandelizing property. This guy was vandelizing people internally. So yes, I’ll be overjoyed when he becomes worm food.
But you’re right-Robertson and Dobson are much worse. They won’t be worm food-they’ll be WORM VOMIT. Which means when they die, they’ll become a higher being than they were when they were alive.
As for Falwell, I’ve got mixed emotions. On the one hand, I feel like dancing around my living room. On the other hand, I just can’t decide what song to pick. “Celebration”? “Walking On Sunshine”? So I need a little help. I welcome any suggestion for an awesome “mix disc” of tune I can dance to on this occasion.

Left by Bill S on May 16th, 2007

er…”suggestionS” and “tuneS”.

Left by Bill S on May 16th, 2007

Phelps has no real power in this country
Agreed. Plus he makes the religious right look SOOOOO bad. He’s definitely more useful to progressives alive than he would be as a corpse, tempting as the idea might sound initially.

Left by Realist on May 16th, 2007

Maybe. But in the meantime, he’s hurting people who are already in pain, and I’m a bleeding heart. He’ll hurt fewer people when he’s gone. I’m willing to trade any political benefit for that.
Bill is exactly right–he vandalizes people internally.

Left by D. Sidhe on May 16th, 2007

So many people are glad he’s dead. I’m not. I wish the fucker had never been born.
And in the Phelps vs. Dobson vs. Robertson vs. Swaggart vs. Benny Hinn vs. Kirk Cameron, I say we run it like American Idol. We vote which one we want to go next.
Bill S. and your choice of music – I personally would go with Arthur Brown’s “Fire” from the late 60s. Sort of appropriate:
And now in memory of Jerry Falwell
I am the god of hell fire and I bring you:
Fire, I’ll take you to burn.
Fire, I’ll take you to learn.
I’ll see you burn!
You fought hard and you saved and learned,
but all of it’s going to burn.
And your mind, your tiny mind,
you know you’ve really been so blind.
Now ‘s your time burn your mind.
You’re falling far too far behind.
Oh no, oh no, oh no, you gonna burn!
Fire, to destroy all you’ve done.
Fire, to end all you’ve become.
I’ll feel you burn!
You’ve been living like a little girl,
in the middle of your little world.
And your mind, your tiny mind,
you know you’ve really been so blind.
Now ‘s your time burn your mind,
you’re falling far too far behind.

Left by tomg on May 16th, 2007

I am admittedly torn, however, at the discovery that Phelps will be picketing Falwell’s funeral for an insufficiently anti-fag ministry.

Left by D. Sidhe on May 16th, 2007

I am admittedly torn, however, at the discovery that Phelps will be picketing Falwell’s funeral for an insufficiently anti-fag ministry.

[beoing!]
?!?!?!?
Link, please?

Left by Marq on May 17th, 2007

Yeah, but in Phelps’ case, what that means is, Falwell didn’t openly advocate the death penalty for homosexuals. He just said they deserved to get AIDS. To Freddie, that makes him a softie.

Left by Bill S on May 17th, 2007

Or advocate the death penalty for people who don’t advocate the death penalty for gays. I know. It’s all very vile, and I kinda hope they get to be roomies in hell.

Left by D. Sidhe on May 17th, 2007

TomG, I can’t imagine a more appropriate themesong for Falwell’s funeral. Absofuckinglutely perfect. Love that song.
And no, we can’t “vote them off of the island,” the police tend to hassle me when I do that in real life. I just want a nice, plain, borderline-legal football pool to bet on who’s gonna be next. And somebody PLEASE explain to me why in the fuck that Oral Roberts hasn’t DIED YET??!!?!?!?!

Left by Anntichrist S. Coulter on May 17th, 2007

http://pandagon.net/2007/05/16/the-phelps-clan-falwell-and-yolanda-king/
That may screw up the frame, if so, I’m sorry but I haven’t the energy to put together a link thing.

Left by D. Sidhe on May 17th, 2007

Link, please?
Straight from the horse’s ass:
http://www.godhatesamerica.com/
W.D.

Left by Weird Dave on May 17th, 2007

that’s a good question, Annti. I’d have thought when he said God would “call him home” if he didn’t get any money, people would have said, “It’s a deal.” and quit sending it. Who’d pay to keep that fuckwit alive?

Left by Bill S on May 17th, 2007

Y’know, correct me if I’m senile, but I could almost *swear* that he never hit the eight-million mark, and YET the senile thieving cocksucker (and I do *not* mean that in a good way, obviously) IS STILL POLLUTING MY PLANET?!??!
Can we sue his “god” for breach of contract? Imagine the punitive damages ALONE!!!

Left by Anntichrist S. Coulter on May 17th, 2007

Quote Of The Day

Comes from Robert at Lawyers, Guns and Money:

The British decision to defend the Falklands must rank somewhere between the defensive line of the 1985 Chicago Bears and the rise of Wham! in factors contributing to the collapse of Soviet power.

Meanwhile, LGM also takes a gander at that iconic and/or ironic photo of John “Hey, I Wear Body Armor When I Shop For Sansabelt Slacks At Dad ‘N’ Lad!” McCain sauntering through an Iraqi marketplace, marveling at how safe it is, except for the slight danger that he might become hoarse from shouting over the sound of hovering Blackhawk helicopters and Apache gunships:

Scott concludes: A red rubber nose would really complete this outfit.

But I dunno…Kinda seems like gilding the lily.

Posted by scott on Tuesday, April 3rd, 2007 at 2:05 pm.

7 Responses to “Quote Of The Day”

Perfect. Although maybe you could’ve inserted his/Krusty’s head in his flat, cowardly ass to be just a wee tad more descriptive.
Other than that, loved it.

Left by Anntichrist S. Coulter on April 3rd, 2007

They ought to have put McCain in a straightjacket, not a vest. Or perhaps Alzhiemers has claimed him for its own. (PS: The original quote from Shakespeare is “Painting the Lily”

Left by Kathy on April 4th, 2007

After getting back to the US and seeing how much money Mitt Romney raised, maybe McCain’s now wishing he’d visited a different “Green Zone”? If he seriously thinks he can win by riding the coattails of a lame duck President with a 29% approval rating, Putin must have slipped something into his drink in Munich back in February.

Left by trashfire on April 4th, 2007

Consumed with survival as I have been as of late and refusing the din of television, I am a bit out of touch with politics right now. And after a morning’s read of the local rag and gander at a blog here and there I always conclude that they (republicans) couldn’t get dumber, then I’m shown otherwise. Oh I fear for the populace that eats this shit up and see every more clearly how easily tyrannies actually do flourish.

Left by kate on April 4th, 2007

I wonder if McCain actually went to Jane Fonda’s house to find out how to properly piss upon the corpses of the servicemen and women who have been sacrificed to this hegemony clusterfuck, or if he just decided to wing it on his own…
And yes, if not Alzheimer’s, then he’s definitely in perfect condition for a stroke or several dozen TIAs. Maybe the “jaw cancer” chemo finally ate through his sinus cavities and gnawed away at McFonda’s brain.

Left by Anntichrist S. Coulter on April 4th, 2007

Meanwhile, LGM also takes a gander at that iconic and/or ironic photo of John “Hey, I Wear Body Armor When I Shop For Sansabelt Slacks At Dad ‘N’ Lad!” McCain sauntering through an Iraqi marketplace
¿Who?
Oh, joo must mean ¡The Frog-Faced Stranger Who Will Lead Us To The Magic Kingdom!
so.

Left by ¡El Gato Negro! on April 5th, 2007

Now if we could only clone about 10,000 John McCains and spread them out through Iraq…all would be well.

Left by edward on April 7th, 2007

Good-Bye, Gerald Ford

I think the following anecdote illustrates Gerald Ford’s legacy:

After former president George Bush has moved out of the house across the street from the Simpsons (due to a running feud he had with Homer and Bart), Homer learns that the house has been bought by former president Ford. Homer doesn’t know how to feel about this turn of events until Mr. Ford approaches him with an offer. It goes a little something like this:

Gerald Ford: Say, Homer, do you like football?
Homer: Do I ever!
Ford: Do you like nachos?
Homer: Yes, Mr. Ford.
Ford: Well, why don’t you come over and watch the game and we’ll have nachos, and then some beer.
(Homer and Ford cross the street together.)
Homer: Jerry, I think you and I are going to get along just—
(They both trip in Ford’s driveway)
Homer & Ford: D’oh!

That’s the Gerald Ford we will remember: the one played by Chevy Chase on SNL.  Anyway, he’s drinking beer and watching football in heaven now, possibly.

Posted by s.z. on Wednesday, December 27th, 2006 at 2:14 am.

31 Responses to “Good-Bye, Gerald Ford”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=an0iMbtCOiw

Left by JF on December 27th, 2006

the last decent Republican in America. RIP

Left by merlallen on December 27th, 2006

I have the video of the Simpsons clip on my blog.

Left by actor212 on December 27th, 2006

Someone once pointed out that though he did trip down those stairs that one time, he got back up right afterwards, which is not something anyone could have done, especially at his age.

Left by Hysterical Woman on December 27th, 2006

Exactly. Now there’s a guy I would have liked to have a beer with, a real regular guy. Not like the prep school, Ivy league fake cowboy occupying the White House today.

Left by Gus on December 27th, 2006

That “real regular guy” was the guy who gave Rummy and Cheney their first chance to define and practice the policies of today’s Administration. He was duplicitous in pardoning Nixon, and his appointment choices contributed to the disaster that is GWB’s administration.

Left by Janefinch on December 27th, 2006

Ford graduated Yale law.

Left by Harry Cheddar on December 27th, 2006

He was duplicitous in pardoning Nixon
No kidding. All the talk I keep hearing today about how “decent” Ford was makes me want to puke. Gerald Ford was the spiritual father of today’s Republican party with their complete disregard for the law as well as for anyone who isn’t either on their side or one of their contributors. I can’t say I’m the least bit sorry to see him gone.

Left by Realist on December 27th, 2006

Just occurred to me that if Laura Bush talked today as freely as Betty Ford did back then, she’d be tarred and feathered. (Instead Laura is permanently sedated: I know that glassy stare.)
Good ol’ Betty brought breast cancer and rehab into the national lexicon. I don’t have a clip of Warren Zevon singing “Detox Mansion,” but this one’s for you, Betty!

Left by Mrs. Tarquin Biscuitbarrel on December 27th, 2006

If he was so duplicitous in pardoning Nixon (regardless of how you felt about that man), then why did he receive the JFK Profile in Courage award from Caroline and (more important) Teddy?
I didn’t like that he did it, either, but I believe that he saw a higher purpose in getting past Watergate and moving ahead. Nixon didn’t kill anyone, didn’t lie us into a war, hell, didn’t even lie about a blow job in the Oval Office.
He cheated in electioneering and got caught and had to resign for it. It may not have seemed like it at the time, but the Bushies have done one thing for sure, and that’s make Watergate look tame.

Left by actor212 on December 27th, 2006

For some reason fox decided that they needed to interrupt House in order to tell us about Mr. Ford’s death.
I mean, I guess it was a rerun, but still, how much information do we need right then? I mean, you can pretty much sum up the whole thing in four words, and I don’t see why people couldn’t just wait the forty minutes until the nightly news to find out whatever other details.
Incidentally, while summing up Mr. Ford’s life, the Fox guy said smething to the effect of “While criticised at the time, Ford’s decision to pardon Nixon was later seen as a successful effort to bring the nation past the emnities of the Nixon years.”
I was like, “Who? Who, exactly, is glad that Nixon was pardoned?”
I mean, I guess some pundit dickheads probably bring out that exact line, but in terms of ordinary citizens who lived throught the Nixon years, who thinks pardoning the guy was a good idea?
Yeesh.

Left by Christopher on December 27th, 2006

Oh, and actor212 feels that way, a little bit.
I didn’t mean to call you a dickhead; you hadn’t posted yet when I said that.
I will, however, say that whenever I hear talk about moving past things like Watergate, I always think of that line from Monty Python and the Holy Grail, right after Lancelot has murdered most of a wedding party:
“This is supposed to be a happy occasion! Let’s not bicker and argue over who killed who!”

Left by Christopher on December 27th, 2006

Lots of folks (myself included)thought Ford was a bumbling idiot at the time. The present occupant of the White House makes Ford look pretty good, huh? If Dubya had taken over in ’74, he would have decreed a paid Federal holiday in honor of Nixon, pardoned GGLiddy and made him national security advisor, built US troops in Vietnam back up to Tet offensive levels, and sent the 82nd Airborne into Riyadh on the second day of the oil embargo just for kicks.

Left by trashfire on December 27th, 2006

All I know is, the guy who drew my blood today was really broken up about Ford. Wistfully quoting Ben Stein.
I’m a coward. I didn’t argue. But, you know, he had a needle sticking in me.

Left by D. Sidhe on December 27th, 2006

It’s not fair to blame Ford for the actions of Cheney and Rummy thirty years after they served in his administration.
Gerry became president under the worst circumstances, but managed to serve with honor. Hell, he’s the only honorable Republican president in my lifetime! Rest in peace President Ford.

Left by Pen Brynisa on December 27th, 2006

I think Ford’s pardoning of Nixon was an outrage, but I believe Ford’s intentions were honorable and I don’t think he could have foreseen the consequences. That people like Tom Delay, Karl Rove and GWB could end up in control of our government was, in those days, Orwellian (still is!). I think he was a good man who had to deal with more than he could handle. Like Mrs. TBB, I admired Betty Ford for her courage and her sponsorship of addiction services and breast cancer research.

Left by BeginningToWonder on December 27th, 2006

When Ford pardoned Nixon, I was off-the-wall furious. I was also a 24 year-old, politically active (and a conscientious objector still cleaning up a few legal problems). When I heard Ford’s rationale years later when he apparently had no agenda, I could still hope Nixon rotted in hell( assuming hell exists which I don’t),but it made sense. Reminded me of a few of my conservative uncles. Really decent guys, but, I think, wrong.
Pardoning Nixon was, in my view, not a good idea. It was, though, a necessary idea. I think it can be argued that the pardoning of Richard Nixon by Ford at least indirectly allowed for ( or at least made more palatable to the public ) Jimmy Carter’s amnesty of draft resisters. I’ll take a resister’s freedom over Nixon’s incarceration any day.

Left by tomg on December 27th, 2006

fwiw, the guy who lowered the flag to half-mast at the gas station across the street from my work tripped over a paint stripe in the parking lot on his way back inside

Left by preznit giv me turkee on December 27th, 2006

just started a book called 31 days by Barry Werth about the first (suprise) 31 days of Fords Presidency. Not enough into it yet to know if it’s any good but I loved the liner note ” The Crisis that gave us the government we have today”
I hope GRF rests in peace and my sympathies go out to his family.

Left by pidomon on December 27th, 2006

First of all, a big-ass AYYYY-MENNN!!!!!! to Janefinch & Realist — THANK YOU for blowing the smoke off of this circlejerking memorial bonfire a’la CBS, CNN, et al.
I cannot argue with Mrs. Biscuitbarrel (and so rarely find reason to do so), but this lionization of a pretty ineffectual human being (i.e., NOT Betty) seems pretty pointless, as in, another P.R. blowjob to prop-up the failing regime that is dragging us all (well, all of us who aren’t billionaires, anyway) into the worst Depression that this planet will have ever seen.
It’s not about Gerry. It’s about the P.R., kids. I won’t argue with the kind and utterly classy words of Jimmy Carter about Gerald Ford, but honestly, I think that S.Z.’s Homerian eulogy is probably the nicest thing that anybody could really say about a guy who was generally a puppet and who did what he was told, every day of his life, to the end of his “presidency.”
Y’know what I remember from election night, 1976? Aside from the whooping and hollering around the household to see a Southerner AND a Baptist (back when baptists were human beings, instead of the barely-veiled klansmen of today) WIN — I remember thinking, as a 6-year-old, how sorry I felt for the other guy, he looked so sad. I mean, he’d ALWAYS looked sad, but he just looked so… pitiful. That’s my permanent impression of Gerald Ford. Sad.
But to all of you who say, “How could Ford have foreseen the evils that Rummy, Cheney, et al, would perpetrate today” — Easy:
POPPY BUSH WAS SO FAR UP INTO FORD’S COLON THAT HE COULD READ BY THE LIGHT COMING IN THROUGH GERRY’S NOSTRILS.
All pretty well documented. They all suckled at the same Goldwater-tinged teat. Just like those old photos of Rummy with Sadaam… The trail is still there, and it smells like horseshit and money.

Left by Anntichrist S. Coulter on December 28th, 2006

is it just me, or are these state funerals becoming more and more ostentatious and overblown? Reagan’s was insanely so, and it’s looking like Ford’s is gonna be a “Rove special.” What kind of funeral doya think Carter or Clinton would merit should either of them, Cthulhu forbid, pass away? Not nearly so fancy, I’ll wager.
Here’s something I’m curious about: a number of weeks ago, Ford was getting very close to passing the record held by Ronnie Raygun as the ex-president who lived to the oldest age. Does anyone know if he succeeded in becoming the oldest living president (before he passed away)? I’m just hoping that Jerry beat Ronnie one last time (in ’76, I was a little Hitler Youth proto-Young Republican, but even I couldn’t understand why an actor was trying to unseat President Ford. As I hit puberty, and became more aware of my sexuality, it also became increasingly apparent the the GOP wasn’t a queer’s friend. Ironically, it was the late, unlamented Ronnie Raygun who started me on my path permanently away from the Republicans).

Left by Marq on December 28th, 2006

Does anyone know if he succeeded in becoming the oldest living president (before he passed away)?
yep, both lived to be 93, but Ford was older at his time of death

Left by preznit giv me turkee on December 28th, 2006

Christopher,
No sweat, I’ve been called worse.

Left by actor212 on December 28th, 2006

Presidential pop-quiz: Which U.S. President lived the longest after leaving office? (Not which one died at the oldest age)
Answer: Herbert Hoover. Left office in March 1933, died 31 years later in October 1964. Ford outlived his own administration by not-quite-30 years.

Left by The Sanity Inspector on December 28th, 2006

Marq, you are flat-out right about the Leninization of Republican presidential funerals. Reagan’s pre-deification at the National Cathedral hopelessly clogged traffic in and out of my neighborhood–and we’re already used to dozens of tour buses illegally parked there, belching fumes for hours on end.
And then, of course, the press went into sobbing, revisionist overdrive. What a mess. Reagan’s death also cleared the way for his neglected-since-birth son Michael to become a second-tier wingnut pundit, moving up from the horse latitudes he inhabited while Dad was still alive. See what we have to look forward to when Bush 41 snuffs it?
On the other hand, we can’t count on 41 to crump first. Perhaps a snack accident will end 43′s junta during the ample pretzel-related opportunities provided by all of the football bowl games: Rose, Fiesta, Cotton, Orange, and Sugar bowls, PCS Championship Bowl, and then the NFL’s Super Bowl.*
_________________
*Bowl names provided by the eldest Biscuitbarrel lad, who’s watching the Independence Bowl while waiting for dinner to be ready. “What was Ford thinking with those ‘Whip Inflation Now’ buttons? They were so lame!” he comments, adding, “I can’t imagine what the blogosphere would say if W. came up with ‘Whip Gas Dependence Now’ buttons. Are you writing this down?? Make sure you refer to me as your ‘skeptical’ son, ‘kay?”
‘Kay.

Left by Mrs. Tarquin Biscuitbarrel on December 28th, 2006

I wholeheartedly agree with janefinch, Annti and the others here pointing out the less savory aspects of Ford’s public life. The concept of the imperial presidency was birthed during the Ford administration. It was Ford who fired Colby for being a little too forthcoming with the Church Commission about the activities of the CIA. It was he who appointed Bush, Sr. director, to re-establish the agency’s illegal traditions.
It was Ford who gave Indonesia the green light for their genocidal invasion of East Timor.
On another board someone quoted Ford’s statement about the re-establishment of the rule of law after Watergate “our long national nightmare is over”, and I thought, no that’s about when it got its second wind. It has yet to end. The Heritage Foundation and the other fascist think tanks, Bush, Sr.’s spook cabal, Team B, and the reconstituted Committee on the Present Danger, which later morphed into the PNAC, all had their start around that time. It wasn’t all Ford, by any means, but he was very much one of the bootblacks of the ruling elite.

Left by bidziliba on December 28th, 2006

bidziliba: It was Ford who fired Colby for being a little too forthcoming with the Church Commission about the activities of the CIA. It was he who appointed Bush, Sr. director, to re-establish the agency’s illegal traditions.
I always admired Betty, and her husband seemed to be a good, decent man in his personal life, but nonetheless he furthered the oligarchical agenda of the modern Repugnican party whenever he could. And his legacy appears to be Rumsfeld and Cheney.

Left by Tehanu on December 29th, 2006

Ford’s statement about the re-establishment of the rule of law after Watergate
‘We had to destroy the rule of law in order to save it.’

Left by Realist on December 29th, 2006

I’ve always heard Ford’s pardoning of Nixon helped the nation heal after Watergate, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone really explain why or how it helped the nation heal. Granted, I was but a mere dirty gleem in my old man’s eye when all that went down, so I don’t know how the national vibe really was, it just seems odd to me that the American people didn’t want Nixon hung by his toes and beaten like an old rug. Or, on the other hand, didn’t want to see the honorable man from San Clemente completely vindicated by the courts. Especially after the yowling for blood during the Clinton impeachment. Nixon broke the law of the land and decided the laws do not, repeat NOT, apply to the man charged to enforce them…and got away with it, more or less.
He didn’t get to be president anymore, but that’s about it. I have no strong feelings one way or another for Ford – and in this case, I can only see a loyal party man doing his duty for the party, regardless of supposed duties to others like the American people – but I honestly don’t see how the Nixon pardon is anything but a gross abuse of power to protect an even grosser abuse of power, an overall gaming of the system to favor only the men who make the rules.
Makes me wonder why, ya know?

Left by Matt T. on December 29th, 2006

The same rationale, that the country can’t handle a truthful inquiry and the subsequent legal ramifications, was used in the 30′s when congress was investigating the attempted coup against FDR; a little tidbit still largely absent from the history books. They identified the perpetrators, agents of the Morgan Bank and other financial and business interests, including more than likely the Brown Bros. Harriman Consortium, and Prescott Bush’s Union Bank, but no one was prosecuted nor held responsible. The fix was in, even then. The message was clear, if you’re sufficiently embedded with the elite, you can even get away with treason. Far from protecting the people and the country, this rigged system makes a mockery of our laws and traditions.
Had a few of these movers and shakers been tried, convicted and hanged, who knows what kind of salutary effect it may have had on subsequent US and world history. For one thing, the Third Reich would have lost some of its most staunch supporters overnight.

Left by bidziliba on December 30th, 2006

I thought then, and still do now, that pardoning Tricky Dick was a bad idea because (a) it meant Tricky got away with his misdeeds, and (b) we were then unable to lay bare all the dirty tricks of that administration. Having said that, I can at least understand the “let’s put it behind us” argument.
OTOH, there was and is no excuse or justification for this:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/untergeek/17881729/
A few years and one Turd Blossom later and we have all this “red states good, blue states evil” crap, and all that comes with it.

Left by David in NYC on January 2nd, 2007

January 23, 2006 by s.z.

Quick, Somebody Invent an 'Angry' Filter! From an Editor & Publisher piece ("Latest 'Wash Post' Ombud Column Draws Over 1,000 E-mails") about poor, beleagured ombudsman Deborah Howell (emphasis added): Interest in Washington Post Ombudsman Deborah Howell's recent flap over indicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff has apparently not died down as Howell received more than 1,000 e-mails Sunday after her latest column addressed the issue again. She said the profanity and offensive comments in the e-mails have gotten so bad she recently turned on an obscenity filter in her e-mail software to block them out. "It really got bad on Thursday, so the obscenity filter went up Thursday or Friday," she told E&P Monday. "I jacked it up to the aggressive level. It screens out obscenities. I didn't even know it was there--one of the techies told me about it." But the software defense mechanism didn't keep the hundreds of e-mails from getting through Sunday after Howell sought to respond again to reaction from her Jan. 15 column, which said Abramoff gave money to both political parties. She previously sought to clarify her comments in a Web posting on Jan. 19 that said she should have stated Abramoff "directed" contributions to both parties. That posting drew hundreds of angry or obscene comments to a Post blog, prompting Web editors to shut it down.Sunday, Howell followed with another column in the newspaper that assured readers she had no plans to quit and stated her distress at the name-calling and offensive remarks her writing had received. [...] But she acknowledged surprise at the response to the Abramoff issue, noting that she has also received a lot of support from friends and colleagues. "I have heard from a lot of people I hadn't heard from in years," she said. Clearly, what's need is a force field to keep out unpleasant communications, and to save Ombudsman Howell from having to read anything that expresses disagreement with her columns, or finds fault with how she's doing her job.   Or, maybe the Post should only allow supportive people (such as Howell's friends and colleagues) to read their paper.  That way, they don't have to deal with the nasty hoi polloi. 2:44:13 PM

Coot Time! Yes, it's time to let the old-timers have the floor -- because if we don't, you know they'll just throw their dentures at us until we do pay attention to them. 1.  First, we'll hear from our new favorite coot, Coach Dave Daubenmire, who says "Wake Up Pastor! Your Men Are Bored!" "A poll recently conducted by California-based Barna Research Group, found 85 percent of Christian men are not "spiritually challenged," according to a statement from Promise Keepers, a Colorado-based men's organization. [...] The nature of man is to fight. For thousands of years men have filled stadiums to watch gladiators battle. Whether it is a Roman Coliseum or a modern-day college football game, men turn out in droves to live vicariously through the warriors on the field. The battle is exhilarating, touching us in the deepest part of our maleness. Deep in his heart, any man worthy of his testosterone longs for the battle. Pastors, do you really want to know why men are not "spiritually challenged"? They have no battle. Well, based on Coach Dave's examples, I think the real problem is that the men don't have any battles during church that they can live through vicariously.  So, the solution would be to schedule some Roman Coliseum-style spectacles during services -- you know, a couple of Christians versus some ACLU lions or secularist gladiators.  Optimally, the Christians would be the pastor and a prominent Christian like Coach Dave, but to increase the sense of audience identification, two men from the congregation could be selected (either via a lottery, or based on their unsatisfactory donations to the collection plate).  Alternatively, the sermon would be replaced by a live football game, with professional players representing our congregation going up against a team fielded by the Methodists or such (Phyllis Schflafly could be a cheerleader). The Christian Super Bowl would decide which faith is the truest for that year. Or, we could send whiny, unchallenged men to Iraq -- there are plenty of battles there.  In any case, men are sick and tired of helping the orphans and widows and the poor -- they want to kick some ass for Jesus's sake, like men should.  Coach Dave give us the details: Longing to do something great for Christ, we have instead been given effeminate, nursery school duties. How many dishes do we have to wash? How much bread must we hand out to the needy? How many men’s breakfasts do we attend before we find that passion…that fire that ignites our heart? We love the Lord, and long to serve Him, but why is it the average Joe would rather attend an Ohio State football game than join our men’s group for a trip to the local nursing home? The Lion of the Tribe of Judah lives in us and is itching to roar. Unfortunately, the church is trying to domesticate us, trying to transform the Lion into a Lamb. Damn church, trying to make men serve their fellow man instead of killing them! But let's hear about Coach Dave's battle -- it should give men in our audience some vicarious thrills, as they hear how he went from effeminized girly-boy to proud, brave, testosterone-laden heckler of abortion rights protesters.  Five years ago I was an effeminized Christian man. A leader of men in the real world, I was a pew sitter in the church, expecting the pastor and the women to do the church business. Content to do dishes, pray for with my kids, and turn the other cheek, it took a blindside attack from the ACLU for me to awaken. Sued for having the audacity to pray with our football teams, I was unceremoniously drug kicking and screaming into the cultural war. For the first time in my life I was confronted with the question "How does a Christian man act?" With my back to the wall I was faced with the option to roll over or fight. I have been swinging away ever since.In 2002 we organized a group of lion-hearted Christians who were sick and tired of watching Americas foundation be destroyed. [...] We are in the game, and our Faith has come alive. While millions of Christians gathered in the safety of their church on Sunday April 25th, the Minutemen, and women, (www.minutemenunited.org) trekked to Washington D.C. to stand for life against those who were marching for death. Hundreds of thousands of pro-death marchers spewed venom and hatred at us as we proudly defended the unborn. "Hey buddy", we yelled at the effeminized men in the parade who marched dutifully behind their bossy women, "Real men raise babies, they don’t kill them." Seems pretty radical, eh? It was the most gratifying church service of my life! Yes, it's way more gratifying to heckle hen-pecked, effeminized men in an pro-choice march than it is to, say, feed the hungry, free the captives, or cure the sick -- that is, if you're a Christian man.  That's because men aren't supposed to be women, they're supposed to be warriors.  Or lions.  Here's the story of how Coach Dave found his church at Chicago's Lincoln Park Zoo. As we walked by the glassed-in, fake mountains so prevalent in zoos today I strained to get a look at the majestic lions. Certainly they were there, probably lying in the shade, waiting on some fresh meat from the zookeeper. To my dismay, no cats were to be seen. Suddenly, my daughter yelled, "Up here, Dad." I carried my sweat-soaked body a few paces, to the entrance of the building where the lions were housed. As we walked in, the coolness of the air conditioning offered an immediate relief from the scorching sun. Looking to my left, behind the glass, stood a majestic lion on the top of the miniature-golf-like mountain. With his fluffy mane proudly furled, the King of the Beasts walked down the path, stopped in front of our family, and looked us in the eye. I stood transfixed by this huge animal, feeling as if he had been waiting for me. "Finally", he must have been thinking, "someone who understands." Um, yeah.  That's what the lion was thinking when he looked at Coach Dave, and not "If it weren't for this glass, I'd rip out that human's throat, lap his blood, and then carry off his kid to eat at my leisure." He threw back his large head, shook his yoke-like mane, bared his teeth, and trumpeted a roar that shook the entire auditorium. "There is my church," the Lord said to my heart. The Lion of the Tribe of Judah, trapped in the air-conditioning, bored by life, waiting to be fed…..longing to roar. Yes, it's time to remove Coach Dave's church from the amenities of civilization, and send it back to the sweltering jungle where it can feed on gazelles and warthogs like nature intended.  At no time in American history has the need been greater for Christian men who are willing to roar. That's nice  Just be sure that Suzanne Fields doesn't mistake you for a tiger, because she always gets tigers confused with terrorists. 2.  Now, here's a message from Pat Buchanan, who has found a more manly replacement for Jesus, as he explains in the WorldNetDaily column "What would Jack Bauer do?" To Jack Bauer, as to Clint Eastwood's Detective "Dirty Harry" Callahan, vigilante justice is not only preferable to no justice at all, it is the best kind. Evil men should get what they deserve, without legal complications. Yeah, who needs all that stupid due process stuff!  In fact, who needs that stupid Constitution and all its blather about civil rights -- we just let Dirty George Bush do whatever it takes to keep us safe, even if it is illegal, and then we accept him as our personal savior. "24" satisfies the innate demand in all of us that, the law aside, evil should be punished and justice done. That the audience for "24" is so loyal and large should tell us something about America and our divisions over the war we are in. Yes, we should make most of our foreign policy decisions based on TV ratings. For weeks, Democrats and their media allies have been on Bush's case for using the National Security Agency to intercept, without warrant, phone calls and e-mails to terror suspects abroad. Before that, Bush was charged with using secret detention centers in Eastern Europe to interrogate suspects. Before that, the military was accused of abusing prisoners at Abu Ghraib, Guantanamo and Afghanistan. Before that, the Justice Department was charged with violating the civil rights of Jose Padilla and the Shoe-bomber. Bush thus stands accused of violating the Geneva Convention on treatment of prisoners of war, ignoring constitutional protections of U.S. citizens, and violating international agreements prohibiting torture and the "rendition" of prisoners to countries where torture is practiced.   And what lesson should we take from this?  No, not that the Bush administration is immoral and lawless, but that the American people have voted, via their TV viewing preferences, for Bush's policies over morals or laws. The left may be right on the law, but the people seem to be standing by Bush. Believing the character of this war, where the enemy's preferred tactic is to slaughter civilians with terror bombings, people seem to agree that we have to follow Jack Bauer's rules, not American Civil Liberties Union rules. The "ACLU rules" presumably being the Constitution. Yet one senses that Americans are conflicted. We want to think of ourselves as decent people who fight wars honorably. But we believe the enemies of 9-11 are so evil, so depraved, they forfeit the right to be treated honorably. And while we believe in constitutional rights, human rights, civil rights, Miranda warnings and all that, we also believe in winning our wars. For without victory in the war on terror, freedom may not survive. "Success alone justifies war," said Von Moltke, as Germany prepared to violate Belgium's neutrality to outflank France in 1914. Americans appear to believe that, too. Um, should we really be taking advice from dead German generals on the subject of violating international law in order to win wars, seeing as how they lost that one?  Now, Jack Bauer does not exist, and "24" is made-for-TV escapist entertainment. As we cheer or laugh out loud at his daring exploits, however, one wonders what liberal Democrats of the ACLU variety would do to a real-life Jack Bauer? My guess: Put him in Leavenworth for life. But President Palmer knew his value, because President Palmer knew the real world. I guess Pat's point is that a character in a TV show knows more about the real world than the liberal Democrats do.  Also, that Jack Bauer knows more about dealing with evil that Jesus does, so whenever a question comes up about whether lying, torture, breaking the law, murder, etc. are okay during a War on Terror, we should ask ourselves what Jack would do, and then act accordingly. 3.  Lastly we have Dr. Professor Mike S. Adams, our favorite middle-aged coot.  He once again uses his column to reply to one of his purported correspondents -- this time he tells Daisy "Why I don’t take feminists seriously."  Dear Daisy: First of all, let me tell you how thrilled I am to receive hate mail from a feminist named “Daisy.” I can’t think of many names – with the possible exceptions of Coco, Mercedes, and Jasmine – that could make you sound less like a feminist and more like a stripper in a club that offers two-dollar table dances. Apparently Dr. Mike knows all of the two-dollar lap dancers by name. Anyway, his reasons for not taking feminists seriously are:     1.  He thinks feminism achieved all its goals once women were allowed to vote, work outside the home, and wear shoes.      2.  Feminists say mean things about him behind his back.  (Or, as he put it, "Feminists are usually drawn together by an inability to deal with men. When they get together, whether in a small group or a large one, criticism of males tends to dominate the discourse.") Let me give you an example. A few days after I made an appearance on The O’Reilly Factor – to talk about race and class, not gender – two feminists gathered outside my office to criticize some pro-life bumper stickers that were posted on my door. One feminist stated that it must be difficult to have to come to work every day on the same floor with such a sexist professor. The other said they should keep their voices low because I might overhear them. Since I was actually in my office at the time (with the door shut) I did overhear them. Despite the fact that the conversation began with one feminist trying to sooth another, they soon worked themselves into a frenzy. The mere repetition of words such as “patriarchal,” phallocentric,” and “male-dominated” has an effect like the one described in George Orwell’s 1984. If you want to see the “two minutes hate” in practice just attend an annual “Take Back the Night” march or The Vagina Monologues. As you'll note, Dr. Mike's appearance on "The O'Reilly Factor" had nothing to do with the rest of the story -- but keep in mind that he was on TV, while the two women weren't, so they should never have complained about what a jerk he is. Oh, and Dr. Mike, you're so vain, you probably think this feminist movement is about you, don't you?      3.  A former secretary in his department once complained about her husband's erectile dysfunction within Dr. Mike's hearing, thus causing Dr. Mike's wienie to lose its starch.      4.  Feminists always lie -- as opposed to Dr. Mike, who always tells the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.  (See for example his column on Senator Julia Boseman, "If your brother is the father of your child?", in which he implies that Ms. Boseman conceived her child through hillbilly incest.)  Those are just a few reasons, Daisy. I eagerly await your response, so I can treat my readers to part two of the series. After all, these may be the best tips you get all year. Ha ha.  See, Daisy is just a two-dollar lap dancer, and so gets lousy tips from her clients, while Dr. Mike is a criminology professor at the University of North Carolina Wilmington, a regular columnist for Townhall.com, and a customer at clubs that offer two-dollar lap dancers -- so he is way better than her, and can patronize her because of her given name.  Those were our coots for today, but we'll let Grandpa Simpson have the last word.  Here he explains coot tactics:  We can’t bust heads like we used to, but we have our ways. One trick is to tell them stories that don’t go anywhere.  Like the time I caught the ferry over to Shelbyville.  I needed a new heel for my shoe, sooo I decided to go to Morganville, which is what they called Shelbyville in those days.  So I tied an onion to my belt, which was the style at the time. ... UPDATE: Bartholomew has a great piece about Coach Dave  and his victory over the ACLU.   And Jill at Feministe has more about Dr. Mike and his reasons for hating and fearing women feminists.  1:17:42 AM