From Branya to Dungeons and Dragons

I guess I'm not going to be able to leave the Dungeons and Dragons theme alone today. There's an awesome blog at Threat Level about the continuing McCain campaign attacks on the game and bloggers. Please feel free to write more gems like this:

McN00b

by lol and I'm a Republican

I think he'd be the kid who's gotta trick out his level three fighter with "naturally rolled" 18's in all his stats, bracers of AC 2, ring and cloak of protection +5 each (which he "found" when he was level 1), and of course the n00b three-pack of girdle of storm giant strength, gauntlets of ogre power, and hammer of thunerbolts. Anything to make sure he beats the Terrorists of Elemental Evil.

or this:

Paladin McCain!

by John G.

This aging 20th level paladin charges around the kingdom (stomping on any hapless peasants who get in his way) declaring what a great war hero he was despite being captured by orcs many years before. He distrusts wizards, non-humans and especially those beings from other planes of existance. He plans to lead all those of good alignment on the Prime Material Plane into a neverending war against the infernal forces of the Abyss but most sensible people say this is a very bad idea.

or this:

McKane the Necrotician

by frankXchange

Strength (8), Dexterity (4), Constitution (never heard of it), Wisdom (5), Charisma (10). Able to summon support from legions of the undead (or nearly dead), especially in Florida. He himself cannot melee well in debates or interviews, and naps often. He is allied with media giants, who use their breath to create great fogs of irrelevant commentary and debate. His Dark Lords of the Campaign can generate misleading issues and summon armies of zombies by waving a flag.

Thank you so much to the readers of Threat Level.
This is going to be a good day (unless another war starts or some other respected person dies).
What do you think, DMG?

David Brooks Wuvs John McCain

The sick feeling I got after reading today's David Brooks column still has not subsided. I am normally very understanding about latent homosexuality, but this just grossed me out too much. Mr. Brooks loves John McCain. Here's a little sample:

This sort of behavior has been part of McCain’s long-running rebellion against the stupidity of modern partisanship. In a thousand ways, he has tried to preserve some sense of self-respect in a sea of pandering pomposity. He’s done it through self-mockery, by talking endlessly about his own embarrassing lapses and by keeping up a running patter on the absurdity all around. He’s done it by breaking frequently from his own party to cut serious deals with people like Ted Kennedy and Russ Feingold. He’s done it with his own frantic and freewheeling style...

The column is labeled as opinion. It should come with an adult content warning as well, so no children stumble into Brooks perverted world on accident. Eww.

Danger, Will Robinson

John McCain is a loose gun. He is a Senator gone puppet, who has overstepped his authority and common sense on Russia and Georgia. McCain's condescension goes beyond his belief that he somehow deserves to be President, because he's a rich white man. He is already berating foreign nations, and promising perpetual warfare. This may give the neocons "war orgasms," but even if I were a warmonger, I'd have to say our military is desperately understaffed.

Neocons know better than to institute the draft again right now, because that would be their party's death knell. That problem would be bypassed if McCain could convince the frightened citizens of this nation that Russia desires to end our "freedoms." It's not plausible, but the plan doesn't rely on logic or knowledge. It depends on the GOP's ability to exploit the fears of a horribly underinformed populace.

Do I fear Russia? Not so much. My greatest fear is a McCain presidency. The fledgling proto-fascistic near monarchy only needs a few things to happen to kill our democracy forever. If it goes down that way, none of my protests will make any difference. This will be America, land of the led, not land of the free.

Vets Understand McCain

The story about John McCain privatizing veteran health care, while at the same time rationing VA benefits to only combat related health concerns, won't seem to fade quietly into the night. Two days ago I wrote briefly about it. I never even mentioned plastic cards or privatization, but I got the sentiment across at least. The war hero who got shot down over Vietnam is a sell out to the ideology of "draft-dodging coward" George Bush.

Yesterday in Las Vegas McCain attended an event for DAV, Disabled American Veterans. He spent the time attacking Barack Obama instead of focusing on veterans issues. Only 1 in 14 of the veterans interviewed after the event voiced full support for the Republican Presidential Candidate. The words of Duke Hendershot, a former marine, a double amputee and an active combat Vietnam veteran, resonate soundly on the impression McCain gave a lot of the veterans in attendance. Hendershot (condensed):

John just isn’t the same as he used to be. He’s not his own man. A lot of that has to do with how he’s wanted this job so bad for so long that he’s tied himself to President Bush... a draft dodging coward... He should have been talking about veterans issues, not his opponent.

Ouch. That can not bode well for the Arizona Senator.

That a former war hero whose entire political career started because of his military service could lose support with veterans paints a grim picture of just how far McCain has fallen from his days as a maverick. Most, if not all, of McCain's speeches give the impression that he believes it is his God given right to be President of the United States. He addresses every demographic he speaks to as though their support is simply understood. He also uses every speaking engagement to deride his opponent, apparently thinking that every audience he addresses shares his love for mean spirited rants and his loathing of Barack Obama.

VetVoice discussed the event and McCain today. There are far more veterans disenchanted with John McCain than I would have imagined. As more and more veterans find out exactly where they stand in John McCain's world, his support among them is fading fast. In the words of Tammy Duckworth:

John McCain has said that improving veterans' health care would be his top domestic priority as President, yet he has repeatedly voted against increased funding for veterans health care. And now he offers up an plastic card option that will lead to privatization of veterans health care. No one knows how to help and heal veterans like veterans -- had I ended up in a regular hospital after returning from Iraq, I would lost my arm. McCain's plan will only hurt the VA and our veterans more than they are already hurting.

I will do my best to keep this story alive. There are veterans who don't watch the news because it's just too depressing to learn what has been done to our nation and our constitution. I can understand why some people would not want to know anymore. Hopefully, for those people, there will be concerned friends and loved ones to tell them. As long as the story doesn't go away, McCain will continue losing support from a group he definitely takes for granted.

Sleaze and Electoral Votes

Today Michael Carmichael wrote about problems the Democratic Party has encountered in August in the past. I love history, and I immediately liked most of the article. I thought the idea of Colin Powell as Vice President was interesting, although I question the logic that dictates how much Powell would bring to the ticket. I am not qualified to judge Carmichael's statements, however.

Unfortunately Carmichael also discussed the daily polls of popular voting in the article. He referred to the General Election campaign as a "dead even horse race." This struck me as irresponsible, and not just because today's polls have Obama coming in at five to six points ahead of Mr. Wrinkly. More significantly I just read an article seconds before called “Electoral Math Charts Updated” by Chris Weigant. Electoral votes, the ones that count, show Obama with a major lead right now. ChrisWeigant.com provides daily updates on this.

Weigant provides detailed analysis of the ongoing struggle for electoral votes, as well as graphs, charts and those colored maps people like so much. In none of those things does McCain approach Obama's lead in the election. It's slightly closer right now than in the recent past, and much closer than before the FISA vote. But it's still not close. This is not an even horse race, and that may very well explain the series of desperate attack ads coming from McCain's camp.

Obama supporters, myself included, have been nervous at the injection of Karl Rove's sleazy tactics into the election. Mr. Rove proved in the past that his approach to winning can bypass all reason and logic simply through the use of lies and the exploitation of fear. Steve Schmidt has his work cut out for him using those tactics, because John McCain is, well, difficult to sell (to put it nicely). If left unchecked the attack ads could probably sway many undecided voters. Biased news reporting contributes to the effectiveness of attack ads, and an examination of where Americans get their news is even more telling.

The following is a breakdown of a Pew Research Center study conducted for the People and the Press project:


That says a lot about the breakdown the type of information Americans base their decisions on. While approximately 40% of Americans who follow the news got their information from newspapers, the combined weight of broadcasting journalism dwarfs that number. Also, in every Pew study like it, print journalism declines. Internet news readership continues to increase, but that number mostly reflects people who follow the news for business and their jobs rather than because of their politics. In fact, in another study released just last year, the level of ignorance among residents of the United States has barely changed in 18 years. The chart:


Those numbers have a lot to do with the failure of Americans to care about current events, but it also says a lot about the quality of the news they receive. It's easier to get stories about an enormous overfed cat, or a random car chase, than it is to get the facts about what is happening in our nation and abroad.

Given that atmosphere of ignorance, Democratic leaders need to fight the threat from Karl Rove, Steve Schmidt and Terry Nelson, among other sleazy names making up the McCain campaign. Almost nothing has been said on behalf of Senator Obama by people outside of his campaign during the showing of the attack ads. One would like to think that prominent Congressional Democrats would leap into the fray to defend our party's candidate. They and their districts stand to gain far more from Barack's election than the army of Internet writers who do speak up in his defense every day. What have we heard from almost all of them? Dead silence. Perhaps I missed something, and Barack is on the outs with Congressional Democrats. I thought that person was a rat of a man named Joe Lieberman, but maybe it was really our candidate. That's what it seems like when Obama gets attacked repeatedly, and our Congressmen do not rush to defend him.

Maybe, instead, Democratic leaders succumbed to the attack ads and now believe Barack is an Islamic extremist. F*** knows. I refuse to be overly worried. For one thing, the electoral votes still point to a blue victory in November. More importantly, in the words of Michael Goldfarb, I can “rant at the ethos” to my heart's content. It probably won't change anything, though. Michael Goldfarb will still be an arrogant prick. Karl Rove will still be a criminal who has faced no accountability whatsoever. John McCain will still prove he is not worthy to lead this nation. And Barack Obama will still face stupid attack ads that sway the weakest minded American voters. Such is life.

Troll Cattle Call

I missed my calling as an Internet writer. Instead of voicing human rights concerns I could be tearing down other people's work with John McCain approved talking points. Instead of fighting against the destruction of our nation by corporate greed, I could be working toward the ultimate goal of getting one of John McCain's autographed books. I could probably sell it for literally dozens of quarters, too. What could I have been thinking when I decided to write about serious issues rather than prostitute myself out to the McCain campaign as a troll?

My frustration originates with an article in the Washington Post by Paul Farhi. The article details how the McCain campaign needs the help of everyday folks, like myself, to help spread big batches of manure. The strategy comes in the wake of John McCain's complete meltdown on the issues, and relative inability to speak for himself in any meaningful fashion. Now we, the people, can do all of his lying for him! I can't tell you how excited I am.

In case you don't have the motivation required to check this story out for yourself, I now present the details in all their glory. The plan:

On McCain's Web site, visitors are invited to "Spread the Word" about the presumptive Republican nominee by sending campaign-supplied comments to blogs and Web sites under the visitor's screen name. The site offers sample comments ("John McCain has a comprehensive economic plan . . .") and a list of dozens of suggested destinations, conveniently broken down into "conservative," "liberal," "moderate" and "other" categories. Just cut and paste.

That sounds like fun. Surely nobody will take the suggestion and run around liberal sites flaming like headless chickens, or troll those locations with barely controlled hatred and resentment. The McCain campaign is all about integrity, and surely would never encourage such behavior. However, if participants post the positive, approved comments, then they get prizes!

Prizes include: books autographed by McCain, preferred seating at campaign events, even a ride with the candidate on his bus. Reward points leading to the Big Prize Giveaway are subject to McCain Webmaster approval (an entity which may not exist). Program not available to: African Americans, Latinos, women, the gays, Democrats, artists, musicians, environmentalists, human rights advocates, peace activists, honest judges, honest attorneys, honest politicians, or anybody else who isn't a member of the White Upper Class.

(Thanks to HuffPo, WaPo and Paul Farhi)

The Surge: An Answer to Every Problem

John McCain has become so enamored of the surge in Iraq, which he has trademarked and owns exclusive rights to (and which did not lead to the Anbar Awakening), that it is now his answer to everything. Last week he proposed a surge in our cities to keep the population under control. He honestly believes that America needs armed government thugs on every corner. Now he proposes an “Economic Surge.” John McCain says, “We'll fight those pesky market indicators with our own, better equipped market indicators. We will bring war to every aspect of life in the United States. We're going to have a Straight Surge to fight the Gays. We're going to have a Religious Surge to fight every person who believes in the wrong things. By God, we will definitely have a White Surge to combat the uppity Illinois Senator. And thanks to Viagra, I will have a surge in my pants too.” (paraphrased)

The Brainwashed Party

John McCain rebuffed the brainwashed lunatics in his party on Tuesday, admitting that inflating your tires actually does increase gas mileage and save money. After all the work his campaign did to smear Obama's good idea, the Arizona Senator betrayed their principles of ignorance in one short town hall telephone call to Pennsylvania voters (McCain has telephone town halls? He is phoning in the campaign after all...). McFail restated the absolutely false claim that inflating tires wouldn't save more money than more offshore drilling, so hope that he will continue to spew nonsense is not lost.

Yesterday Paris Hilton took McCain to school on energy policy, and how to act presidential. I fully endorse her to replace him as the Republican Presidential Candidate. There is no doubt in my mind that she is more qualified. Her smiles usually look genuine, instead of the hideous lockjaw death grin John McCain plasters on his face at bizarre moments. Many foreign leaders would probably do anything she told them to do in exchange for a dinner date. Peace in the Middle East would finally become possible, after Israeli and Palestinian officials shared a couple of rounds of Dom Perignon with her in the White House. Karl Rove won't like the idea, presumably because fart-blossom considers girls icky, but a lot of Americans would be all for it.

Speaking of Paris Hilton and beautiful women, once hot Cindy McCrazy-pills yesterday entered the Miss Buffalo Chip Beauty Pageant. Apparently John McCain feels quite comfortable with the idea of his C-Word competing in a contest known for nudity and simulated acts of fellatio. It's understandable that after showing those ads with beautiful young ladies in them McCain would want to show off his own “trophy.” The sad part about this isn't that he apparently urged Cindy to do it, it's that he thought she stood a chance to win. Even if she studied Paris and spent weeks trying to emulate her, C-Word could never hold a candle to the younger women out there. Of course Cindy could just buy the entire event and take the trophy home with her anyway, and then parade around with it while Oxy numbs her true feelings about John.

Bizarre stories from the McCain campaign abound, but the candidate is still trying to present some of his "ideas" on governing our nation. His health care philosophy really should be relabeled his sickness philosophy. John McCain proposes rationing veterans' health care, so that they could be treated only for health problems suffered during combat. The time he spent in Hanoi must have scrambled McFail's brains. The Senator evidently believes that veterans who support him could never be convinced to do otherwise. Perhaps he should attend a couple of meetings with veterans organizations, and then slap every attendee directly in the face. That would sting less than rationing their health care, and would be far less deadly.

None of these things come as much of a surprise. Any candidate willing to compare his opponent to the antichrist has no class, honor, integrity or intelligence. For weeks now I assumed those things about John McCain. With the latest attack ads he is so proud of, however, I no longer have to assume. John McCain is a sleazy sellout with no real plans (aside from continuing to rape our nation), no guts and no clue. If any reader out there knows somebody wavering in their choice for the presidency, please take the time to show them the truth. They generally can't get it from the television, so the role of readers and writers has become even more important this election than in the past. Our role is so much more important because, as our nation races down the Bush path to doom, there may not be many chances left to reverse course after this election.

The Devil Went Down to Georgia

In this instance Barack Obama plays the unlikely role of Charlie Daniels, and John McCain could very well be the fiddle playing devil who just can't win the bet. That's right, the Obama campaign smelled something on the breeze down in Georgia, and decided to make it a battleground. Jeanne Cummings at Politico detailed some of the reasoning and expenses as related to the campaign in that southern state.

McCain talking mouthpiece Tucker Bounds said he can't understand Obama's strategy, but normal people like myself see it quite clearly. Barack destroyed Hillary in Georgia's Democratic Primary. McCain narrowly took second place among his competitors there, losing to Mike Huckabee and barely defeating Mitt Romney. Clearly John "The Human Glowworm" McCain didn't even appeal to Republican voters in the Peach State. The Obama campaign doesn't have to turn the state blue. All they have to do is get more voters to show up one time, this November. A less than enthusiastic voter base for John McCain could amount to an Obama win, regardless of state politics.

The McCain campaign seems to take a win there for granted. The condescending way John McCain has treated the Obama campaign all along amounts to drastic overconfidence, and that can be seen quite clearly when it comes to Georgia. The Republican candidate apparently believes that it is his God given right to win in all southern states because he's white. While he may win Georgia in the end, the lesson to be learned here is that Obama refuses to make it easy. If the Obama campaign exploits every weakness they perceive in their opponent's strategy, then the gap between the two candidates will widen, whether it be because of Georgia or Florida or Arizona.

Right-Out Arrives

Welcome, everyone, to my first entry at Right-Out. As a traditional writer who grew up writing on a typewriter, blogging took a little getting used to. I practiced at the Daily Kos before going solo here, and I owe the readers there my apologies for all the mistakes I made. I learned the importance of holding a post until after serious editing and consideration. I learned just how many Republicans read liberal blogs, and just how much they hate my work. I learned that a great number of liberals find the ideas of other liberals incredibly offensive, no matter how similar. Finally, I learned that I would be happier if I could write entry after entry, all day long, instead of just the one you are allowed there. So here I am, and thank you for reading.

I am writing this entry simply as an introduction. I expect few people to read it until my posts accumulate in the search engines, but I'd like it to be here once people start showing up. There's already enough information about me in my profile, so I won't rehash that. I would like to explain my derivation of the title Right-Out. The term, which I dreamed up (but which may already be in use somewhere for all I know), refers to several things, foremost of which would be the Irish nationalist phrase "Brits Out." The fact that I referenced it does not mean I support the IRA. I simply saw an opportunity to use it for myself in a different light, an anti-neocon catchphrase. Secondly, the term also refers to a saying in my part of the world, "I am right out on that." If you don't understand that, it means, "I don't like that idea." Thirdly, much like a blackout deprives people of the ability to see in the dark, a Right-Out deprives people of economic equality, civil liberties, humanitarian aid and justice. Fourthly, I will be outing any wingnuts disguised as normal human beings. Moving on...

Most of my entries will contain references to music being played in the background while I write. It's just something I do. Shamefully, I am currently writing this in silence. I plan to put on Ani Difranco in a few minutes though. Let me count the ways I love her music: Nope, I can't ennumerate that. I just love it.

Fernando Botero painted an exhibition entitled "Abu Ghraib" which has been touring the Western world for three years. This illustrates that regardless of the Bush regime's immunity to prosecution, or accountability of any kind, here in the United States, the rest of the world has not suspended judgment of the proto-fascist war criminals. I say thank the Lord for the 5.5 billion people who don't live in the United States, because from their hearts and minds will flow the true karmic justice the neocons will have to face one day. The men who committed so many atrocities rest comfortably in the idea that Jesus forgives all. I'm not sure which Sunday School they went to, because all is not always forgiven.

The tubes today are aflame with the news that their creator, Ted Stevens, really is a worthless, ignorant, corrupt politician after all. A Democratic Senator may emerge from Alaska as a result. Oh power of the crossed fingers, please don't fail us now. In a related story, Ted Stevens' mind contacted CNN in an effort to be reunited with his body. The call was dismissed as a prank, leaving Stevens walking around brainless as always. Meanwhile, Republican Senators are throwing Ted's money out the window like it was a rotten egg accidentally broken during Thanksgiving Dinner.

Politicization: The more I hear about it the more it sounds like a wicked sexually transmitted form of polio that our executive agencies contracted after being reamed by George "Chimpy" Boosh. I just thank my lucky stars I was considered the enemy from day one. It would have been a huge let down to be a moderate Republican with great skill at my profession, only to be fired or turned down for a job because of some mind-controlled neocon Barbie. Hopefully, Monica Goodling will be working at McDonald's before it's over with. I hope she was to work for a vociferous lesbian Latina who makes her clean toilets twice every shift. I forgot to mention monkey-on-a-string Stephen Johnson, who sold our environment down the river for Dur Busherr.

In closing I'd like to say, "Barack Obama!" Why? Because I still have hope that our nation can be saved, and because the other guy is John "I'm So Confused" McCain.

Note to commenters: I usually don't get comments until I write another piece, and I rarely respond to criticism or praise. I won't condemn or delete anyone's comment, no matter how hurtful their intent. I believe in free speech, I don't just use it for myself.