As 2008 comes to a close, Bill O'Reilly had another successful year as king of the cable-news mountain. But he really brings out the superiority complex in liberals and leftists. On Alternet, writer John Dolan attempts to review his latest book, but mostly congratulates himself that he's interested in thought and discussion, unlike those moronic O'Reilly fans. He starts with outrage at O'Reilly's claims about Hurricane Katrina victims:
"If I had lived in New Orleans, I would have gotten in my car and driven the hell out of there as soon as the national weather service gave warning." In case the reader missed the point, Bill says that the dead in New Orleans were "either too dumb, too lazy, too mentally challenged, or too unlucky to have provided themselves with basic protections."
Stupid and callous as that may sound, it's the sort of proclamation that helped O'Reilly "succeed in life." In fact, this sort of non sequitur is the most powerful rhetorical device in O'Reilly's part of the ideological spectrum.
Story Continues Below Ad ↓O'Reilly's real function is to say out loud, on television, this sort of thing -- and get away with it. His fans don't argue; they hate argument or discussion on principle. They simply glory in the fact that O'Reilly and Rush Limbaugh have found a way to blurt out their long-nursed spite on national TV and get away with it -- in fact, "succeed in life" by doing it. So, the raw boasting that characterizes this book is something that O'Reilly's nameless fans can share, knowing that O'Reilly's success, such as it is, represents the fact that their long-choked spite has at last found its voice.
A liberal can certainly argue it sounds callous to suggest that the smart thing to do with a major hurricane bearing down on your home is obey the evacuation order, and it sounds callous to "blame the victim" for failing to heed the warning. But a liberal doesn't seem to understand that this assertion comes in response to an avalanche of liberal news media stories and editorials blaming the hurricane victim's problems on everyone else, while the talk of a failure to evacuate goes unspoken like it was a dirty word.
Most noticeably, liberals fail to understand -- or pretend to fail to understand -- that conservatism is not a philosophy of "spite" or negativity, properly argued. Liberals have a nasty habit of thinking that since conservatives are anti-liberal, they oppose goodness, love, harmony, and sunlight. They deny that conservatism has any ideals or anything positive to say. Dolan thinks the Fox News-watching conservative only believes that everyone should shut up:
O'Reilly's notorious catchphrase, "Shut up!" isn't by any means a mere eruption of bad temper; it's his ideology. His version of conservatism, which he calls "traditionalism," emphasizes silent obedience....That's the key to O'Reilly and his audience: they don't want to know, they don't want to argue, they want you to shut up: "We in America waste far too much time endlessly discussing stupid stuff." When these people meet something new, they run away like the sullen cowards they are.
That doesn't even merit comment. How can a writer like this claim to dislike O'Reilly's boasting at his enemies, and then write sentences about his enemies being sullen cowards who run away? Dolan ends his "book review" on a bizarre note. He finds much more convincing "Irish Catholic moralism" in Bill Maher than in Bill O'Reilly as he praised the courage of the 9/11 attackers:
The only consolation I could find, wincing at every sentimental story here, is the thought of another media player raised in the New York Irish-Catholic tradition who set a far better example of moralizing: Bill Maher paying a huge price for saying, after 9/11, that the hijackers, whatever else they were, were not "cowards." That's Irish Catholic moralism at its best: quixotic, personally disastrous, unpopular, rigorous, and undeniably true. If we must embrace some version of these lame ethnic stereotypes, I'll take Maher's any day as an example of what a "no spin zone" should look like.
It doesn't occur to Dolan that Maher cannot represent the Irish Catholic, since he is one of the country's most egregious haters of the Catholic Church. It certainly doesn't occur to Dolan that the reason Maher's comments were "personally disastrous" is because a true moralist would never argue there's any fraction of "courage" in murdering thousands of innocent people, regardless of your desire to disparage American pilots as comparative cowards bombing people from the sky.
—Tim Graham is Director of Media Analysis at the Media Research Center.
Editor at Large
Comments Policy
Sounds like an instructor
December 31, 2008 - 07:31 ET by moderncommentaries83Sounds like an instructor I had, who basically said the millions of people who watch O'Reilly are merely waiting for his orders, and follow him blindly. No consideration that many of them - like me - look at the conservative argument and find it more logical, more correct, and more common sensical than liberalism.
No...we have to be sheeple. Just like when people told me I was "brainwashed" for converting.
As opposed to, you know, liberals, who follow Obama and the DNC blindly but somehow are "thinking for themselves." Because we all know the definition of "thinking for themselves" means toeing the liberal line on every issue.
Aut viam inveniam aut faciam
Personally I don't like BOR
December 31, 2008 - 07:41 ET by AgnosticPersonally I don't like BOR show either. I also am not a fan of Rush but that is more because of his format than his content. But neither of them allows hatred on their show and they are heads and shoulders above almost every show willing to label themselves as liberals I have ever seen or heard at maintaining civility; actually for the most part Colmes radio show wasn't horrible - I just didn't agree with him.
I'm afraid this gentleman has no idea what a true display of courage would look like. Giving your life is not courage it is cowardly. Courage is to stand up for what you believe in and fight to live and make things better for you and your family. Courage is taking care of those around you and making the world better by being a better person. Courage is not insulting people that you do not know, will never meet and arrogantly dismissing them as not worthy of your arrogant concern. Neither is courage giving up your life in a defined effort of killing people who are innocent of any offence to your person and are not enlisted in battle against you.
It is my opinion that John Dolan is arrogant and cowardly. He condemns BOR for speaking to his audience while he does the same. Okay that makes him arrogant, cowardly and a hypocrite.
A person may be won over with logic and reason but the masses must be bought with spectacle and platitudes. - 2008 Elections
BOR
December 31, 2008 - 10:00 ET by SemusVery good
I agree with almost everything you've said. I don't think lumping Rush
Limbaugh and Bill O'Reilly together is fair, to Rush that is. Both can
be insufferable but I think Rush Limbaugh is more intelligent if not a
little bombastic but that's his schtick as it is O'Reilly's,
however I think Bill O'Reilly sometimes shows emotion instead of
intelligence. I agree with most of Rush's and O'Reilly's conclusions,
when I hear them that is, but Limbaugh seems to be more logical. Bill
O'Reilly on the other hand, doesn't use logic to often, or at least not
completely. He combines high emotion and a sort of fuzzy thinking, and
his message if there one is sometimes lost or nonexistent. Sometimes I will agree with Bill O'Reilly that something or other is morally this or that, but that wasn't the argument more importantly it won't win an argument. In debate he traps himself and worse he doesn't realize it. They both have high opinions of themselves one I think rightfully and the other wrongfully. But maybe I shouldn't comment because I really don't listen to either one very much and I wouldn't know if either are courageous. They're probably braver then I am though.
As far as courage and these murdering Muslims, I don't think they are
really courageous but I don't think they are cowards either, they're
fanatics, very scary people, who should be killed or at least isolated
at every opportunity
Dolan; I believe him to be either a "useful idiot" or a
dishonest hard left idealogue. In any case I'm sure he thinks of
himself as courageous, maybe he is. But more importantly I don't think
he's very original. It's telling that he has a high opinion of Bill
Maher
Great last line
"A person may be won over with logic and reason but the masses must
be bought with spectacle and platitudes. - 2008 Elections."I agree with
that 100%.
O'Reilly misleads millions on important issues...
December 31, 2008 - 07:48 ET by PopularTechI really liked Bill O'Reilly but once he started with the populist rhetoric on economic issues I couldn't listen to him anymore. He flat out is wrong on too many important economic issues.
1. Oil prices are determined by the market NOT private oil companies:
Give me a break - Oil Prices (Video) (5min) (John Stossel, 20/20)
The Foolish Factor (Cato Institute)
The O'Reilly Fiction (Human Events)
Neil Cavuto Schools Bill O'Reilly on Economics (Video) (7min)
- 95% of the world's known oil and gas reserves are controlled by national oil companies (Forbes)
- Only 16% of U.S. oil imports come from the Middle East (EIA)
- The largest supplier of oil to the U.S. is Canada (EIA)
- The second largest supplier of oil to the U.S. is Mexico (EIA)
2. The Financial Crisis and the Bailouts:
Understanding the financial crisis (Video) (8min)
Don't Blame Capitalism (Peter Schiff, The Washington Post)
There's No Pain-Free Cure for Recession (Peter Schiff, The Wall Street Journal)
Economic Depressions: Their Cause and Cure (Murray N. Rothbard, Ph.D. Professor Emeritus of Economics)
3. Global Warming has nothing to do with Pollution:
Carbon Dioxide (CO2) is Not Pollution
Will someone please tell Bill to stop saying he is against pollution as if that has anything remotely to do with the debate, it is absolutely maddening.
what else
December 31, 2008 - 07:59 ET by AJBIf a naturally, life sustaining compound such as CO2 is pollution, then is oxygen pollution too? What about di-hydrogen-monoxide? That one is a KNOWN killer, causing thousands of deaths each year. Lets all get together and ban di-hydrogen-monoxide.We can FEEL better that we're DOING something!
now that's funny, I don't care who you are...
December 31, 2008 - 08:27 ET by Ron_servativeI have a feeling you saw the piece where they petitioned people on that very same chemical compound.
How it's an industrial solvent, used in manufacturing, and as you pointed out people die every year by simply inhaling the stuff.
Sad part? They got a bunch of signatures...
you got it...
December 31, 2008 - 09:39 ET by AJBIn liquid form, it erodes the hardest substances, when in the solid form is very slippery causing numerous car crashes, when in the gasseous form causes terrible burns, is a by product of some types of combustion... yep. That's the one. Let's call it pollution and move on.
In case the reader missed
December 31, 2008 - 08:56 ET by PeskyDaneIn case the reader missed the point, Bill says that the dead in New Orleans were "either too dumb, too lazy, too mentally challenged, or too unlucky to have provided themselves with basic protections."
OK, so from which angle is this wrong? The elephant in the room is that we all saw people just waiting around to "rescued."
My wife asked, "Why don't they just follow the reporters at the end of the day? They all look like they're well fed and dry. Where are they staying?"
Always Follow the Reporters
December 31, 2008 - 09:20 ET by Gothampc"My wife asked, "Why don't they just follow the reporters at the end of the day?"
They did. Except they chose to follow Geraldo Rivera.
Gotham: Very good!
December 31, 2008 - 10:31 ET by BDGotham:
Very good! Geraldo drives me nuts.
O'Reilly is essentially correct in his view on this issue. In the inner city of most large metroplitan communities we have bred a class of welfare addicted citizens who are not only in-desirious of self reliance, they are INCAPABLE of self reliance.
I have said it before, but the best example is my hometown in North Dakota which flooded when the dikes burst in 1997, then the central business district burned to the water line when a fire borke out in a major building. The fire gutted most of the historic district in a few hours while the fire fighters were incapable of getting to the buildings through the neck deep water with ice floes in it.
In the case of New Orleans, the populous looked upon a lesser yet similar disaster as at best an opportunity to loot the stores in the CBD. At worst, they just KNEW someone would come along and rescue them because that is what Welfare addicts are raised to naturally assume.
In North Dakota on the other hand, the evacuation was ordlerly, and conducted by the citizens who had spent wearying days sand bagging the dikes to unprecedented levels. These tired residents ensured that their neighbors were evacuated and all of the residents of the Old Folks home right next to the ruptured dike were similarly evacuated. No one was left behind - including the pets.
Welfare kills.
Good morning, BD
December 31, 2008 - 10:48 ET by BlondeFor your viewing pleasure, Geraldo takes a fall being stupid pre-hurricane.
As everyone here knows, I live in hurricane alley, and BOR is spot-on in his assessment of NO. Their (admittedly now old) idea of hurricane preparation was to ostrich it....put head firmly in sand and hope! We saw how well that worked out. Nothing new needs to be said about School Bus Nagin, et. al.
Having said that, tho, BOR can be just as wrong about anything as he was right about Katrina and NO. Not to mention stubborn as a mule in his stupidity. His tirades against the evil oil companies when gas prices were north of $4 were ridiculous. He wrongly argues legal points with the very bright lawyer, Megyn Kelly....I love these segments because Megyn gives better than BOR, and makes him look the fool.
Anyway, Happy New Year BD....thanks for another opportunity to post Geraldo where he clearly belongs, on his butt up to his eyeballs in filthy water.
Morning Blonde - and Happy
December 31, 2008 - 11:15 ET by BDMorning Blonde - and Happy New Years Eve to you.
I am sitting at home with my daughter on leave awaiting the new year.
I agree with you reference BOR. BOR cannot seem to understand that the motor fuel market is EXTREMELY efficient. Virtually every gallon of gasoline produced is purchased and consumed in some fashion. THis efficiency can cause huge swings in pricing when even small changes in consumption occurs.
One of the things he rails about is how the retail pricing of gasoline cannot keep up with the fluctuations in barrel pricing. What BOR fails to appreciate is that the retail pricing is based on credit purchase of the commodity. In other words, imagine I own a mini-mart where I sell gasoline and have purchased 3000 gallons of gasoline at $3.50 on credit. I Intend to sell that gasoline for $4.00 a gallon to pay it back and make, pay for labor, and make a marginal 10% profit.
If, while I still have that 3000 gallons in my tanks the wholesale price at the refiner drops to $2 a gallon, I still have to pay back my creditors and make a profit thus my keeping the fuel cost at $4 until that stockpile is at least exhausted.
My competitors in the immediate area are likewise doing the same, and will attempt to maximize profit even IF they get cheaper gas at my expense. THey will undersell my price by just a few cents to make them the efficient marketer.
I WISH someone would bring up this aspect the next time BOR goes into his rant. Cavuto has never brought this up, raher he prefers to stay at the wholesale level. probably because he has not gone to the lower level of the retail marketing.
Reference his arguments with Kelly, I am of two minds. She is hopelessly tied to being a lawyer and cannot apparently see the logic beyond the law.
While Kelly is technically correct, usually, in her legal opinions. THe issue goes BEYOND what is legal to what is right and wrong - which is not covered by the law. Usually, BOR will make an assertion based on right and wrong, which will cause Kelly to make an assertion on legality. It is like talking about the differences between tomatoes and ice hockey.
Sadly, many lawyers fall into this trap, particularly defense lawyers....
BOR & the price of gas
December 31, 2008 - 11:28 ET by BlondeAll true about fuel...once upon a time I did accounting work for a retail oil company (small and local), but the wholesaler at the Port faxed the price at least three times a day! So the price of fuel at the retail level is even more sensitive than a daily wholesale spot price, and it's probably down to hourly at this point.
As for Kelly, of course she's tied to her training, as are we all. But bottom line, BOR argues with her as a liberal...what he'd like things to be, rather than what they are. Of course, that doesn't mean the law isn't wrong, but it is what it is.
I must give kudos to BOR for pushing Jessica's law. Looking at some of BOR's legal arguments from that perspective, he was able to actually impact and change existing law, which is perhaps why he argues so vehemently when he finds himself on the "wrong" side of the law.
Random thoughts on a lovely day.
I have a friend
December 31, 2008 - 13:05 ET by ahusserwho owns a gas station. Sometimes he told me he gets caught with expensive gas in the ground and the guy next door undercuts his prices he also said that he can sometimes average down his costs/prices so he wont lose money. It seems to me prices would be all over the map (they were) because gas stations have different amounts and prices of gas in their tanks.
Change: When the winds of change blow hard enough, the most trivial of things can become deadly projectiles. From a Poster
Yep, that is correct, as his
December 31, 2008 - 13:41 ET by BDYep, that is correct, as his stock depletes he is able to lose LESS money if he drops his price. But I doubt he is able to do so with a full inventory of high priced fuel.
In case the reader missed.
December 31, 2008 - 11:13 ET by mdgilesTwo things have always stood out to me a Hurricane Katrina;
One is a picture of New Orleans school busses sitting in neat rows in a flooded bus depot. I still cannot fathom why they weren't used to evacuate those threatened by the storm who didn't have their own mode of transportation.
The other is an interview conducted with one of the people in the Superdome. Someone had died, about ten feet away from him. And the man being interviewed was complaining about how; leaving the man just lying there wasn't right, and someone should do something about it. Of course my first thought was; why don't you do something about it? It was his display of a completely dependent mindset that grated on my last nerve.
As the Gipper was fond of saying
December 31, 2008 - 07:56 ET by theduck6"Weeell...there you go again!" introducing logic and fact into an argument with a liberal. Personally I find most conservative voices, especially in the voice and TV media, are a little too strident for my taste. Too in your face and louder than necessary. I chalk it up to feeling they must kick it up a notch to be heard over the predominant liberal media or some focus group saying that's what people want to hear. (Gosh, I hope not) I really like people like Mary Matlin and he ilk. ( No I can't explain her taste in spouses either) They know their stuff and they quietly and completely cut anyone they debate to ribbons with the aforementioned logic and fact. Not that they're aren't blowhards on the left, they abound aplenty. One is stealing a Senate seat in Minn. as we speak.
When did the RNC get neutered?
Bill's okay I guess
December 31, 2008 - 07:58 ET by sentforth5But his hand-holding of Emperor Obummer was sickening.I guess the check cleared.
Amos 8:11 Put some meat on dem bones!
First off, I'm no huge fan
December 31, 2008 - 08:11 ET by Jack BauerFirst off, I'm no huge fan of the pompous Bill. He has his points, and his irritants.
However I have to comment on this:
Now the Dolan oaf "analysing" this statement calls that a non sequitur.
To those not totally familiar with the term "non sequitur" (such as the author, apparently), it means: a conclusion that does not logically follow from the previous argument or statement.
So let's just Fisk John Dolan.
He thinks it is "illogical" to flee an area where you have been given notice that a huge natural disater is heading your way.
Presubably he believes in waiting for government help -- now there's a real non sequitur, if ever there was one.
And you can see how well THAT turned out.
I was under the impression
December 31, 2008 - 09:02 ET by sherylsimsI was under the impression that those who didn't flee (some of them anyway) didn't do so because they were too poor to own a car. Then I heard about a whole fleet of school busses that ended up underwater because there had been no plan to use them to evacuate the people. (Something I also heard at the time blamed on Bush) These people who were waiting for their nanny to come pick them up (and bring them food and water) were just acting as they had been trained to do by their democratic governmental "caretakers."
That is correct, they
December 31, 2008 - 10:43 ET by BDThat is correct, they WANTED someone else to come get them. Self reliance not something we have bred into them after several generations of welfare.
It is well established that their were paths out from the domed sports stadiums that the people were staying in. People could have walked several miles to safety - but this would have required physical exertion on their part.
Instead, they waited without food, nor water for a couple days for someone else to come get them and carry them to safety.
I have a fantasy that those who waited would have been evacuated to a central point near Lafayette where R Lee Ermey of "Full Metal Jacket" fame would have been awaiting each bus to castigate the "residents" as they de-bussed.
"Private Pyle, why did you make me come get your sorry ass? WHy are you cradling that HDTV still in the box? Do you have a receipt for that Private Pyle." Etc.
But no one will perform that useful role in our society, particualrly the press who have sided with the welfare kitties because it makes the administratin look bad....
How else will they learn?
Correct, sheryl
December 31, 2008 - 10:52 ET by BlondeAnd this year, as the hurricane was bearing down on New Orleans, I recall a woman screaming at the top of her lungs because she had to wait to be evacuated! The government bus wasn't fast enough for her taste.
Here in Florida, we evacuate, but I don't ever recall having anyone other than the medically-needy picked up and evacuated. You need to get out, fine, do it yourself....as it should be.
We here in San Diego had to
December 31, 2008 - 11:01 ET by sherylsimsWe here in San Diego had to evacuate last year for some wildfires and everyone went to the stadium. I remember reading afterwards because of how well everyone was treated there (restaurants came and set up food donation stations, and people dropped off cases of water, and the whole community helped out. I even heard that people were getting massages, but I think that might have been a lie) But I read afterwards that rather than commend the good job on the fact that we were prepared and had those dirty rotten capitalists giving of time and resources, it was that because we were mostly WHITE was why we had a better evacuation facility. Oh and also, nobody got raped in the bathrooms or robbed while they were sleeping. But that was also because we were white I guess.
I heard
December 31, 2008 - 11:12 ET by Blondethe same thing happened in Iowa last summer during the floods.
Go figure.
I personally cannot stand
December 31, 2008 - 08:56 ET by mrbucketI personally cannot stand Bill O'Reilly. He's got all the integrity of lime Jello. His only redeeming virtue is to make Smarmy idiots like Dolan foam at the mouth.
Conservatism came before O'Reilly and Limbaugh, and hopefully will outlive them both unless the current crop of Republican Party betters keep !@#$ing up.
I'm wondering...
December 31, 2008 - 09:14 ET by godfodderIf I went to San Francisco and suicide-bombed a crowded gay bar, do you think Bill Maher or this Dolan idiot would be impressed by my "bravery"? If I went over to Maher's house and shot his helpless wife and kids, then shot myself, would he be impressed by my "courage"?
A despicable, violent, sick action does not suddenly become an act of "courage" just because the perp kills himself at the end of it! That just heightens the hatefulness, the sickness, and the futility of the whole event. The recent Santa Claus killer guy is not in any way <i>admirable</i> because he decided to off himself!!!!
You are correct, it is
December 31, 2008 - 10:45 ET by BDYou are correct, it is hardly bravery when the miscreant fully believes he is going to a better place filled with virginal delights.
BO'R
December 31, 2008 - 09:15 ET by GothampcUnfortunately Bill suffers from the same disease as Barbara Walters: both are rich, but pretend to be middle class. They live in a bubble and sometimes that affects their viewpoint.
On one show, Bill was making a comment about WalMart. The comment wasn't the usual liberal hate mantra, but it wasn't flattering. Bill ended the segment by saying "Well I've never shopped there so I don't know". I shouted at my tv, "Well then shut up if you've never shopped there." His producers should have pointed out to him that WalMart provides really low prices for people living paycheck to paycheck and it also provides jobs to those who don't have advanced degrees. If Bill is "always looking out for the little guy" like he says, then he should know something about WalMart.
I happen to like Bill, and
December 31, 2008 - 10:21 ET by Dan The Man 2I happen to like Bill, and watch his show regularly. I don’t think he is all that conservative but merely brought up in a time when morals and ethics were still in vogue. He seems at least to this southern boy have some New Yark liberal tendencies mixed in with good old fashioned common sense. And this mix really comes through in his rant about big oil. But he is fun to watch and entertaining at times. I usually play games and watch him, so I only pay him attention when it is interesting.
I could not stand his BO interviews as he seemed condescending. On Louisiana and the Big Easy, living 25+ years on the Gulf Coast I can see how the people believed they would ride it out. I will disclose that I was one of those surfers you see on TV surfing during a hurricane. I don’t blame those idiots for staying but do blame them for playing the victim.
And there are still people staying in those government provided trailers. If ya cant stand the heat then get out of the kitchen, but don’t stand there and whine because you lost it all. Get up and start anew. We have lost the American spirit.
Nuke em til they glow then shoot em in the dark.
Saying "shutup" not great, but preferable to the KO Circle Jerk
December 31, 2008 - 10:32 ET by krendlerHey, at least O'Reilly has the integrity and strength of conviction to actually debate those with opposing viewpoints.
Contrast that to the ex-sportscaster on MS-NBC who surrounds himself with like-minded yes-men EVERY evening. What was the hysterical explanation Olbermann gave for that? Something about the discussion getting too contentious if both sides are represented? So Keithy's solution is to just have liberals like himself on, nodding in agreement with everything he says. Guess John Dolan doesn't care to comment on what that says about K.O.'s audience.
Regarding Katrina, O'Reilly's absolutley right. Those dopes in NO were told several days in advance that there was a very good chance the city was going be submerged. Rather than going somewhere not too far away that WOULDN'T be underwater, they made the decision to stay. And upon finding themselves surrounded by water the day after the hurricane, they started screaming for bad, racist George Bush to come and get them out - now that the job of extracting them was a few orders of magnitude more difficult.
Those idiots in N.O. had DECADES to make preparations. They chose to do NOTHING...and that's exactly what they did in the days leading up to Katrina.
And you never hear any of these 2nd guessers in the media say what the fed gov should have done differently, especially BEFORE the hurricane hit. Soledad Airhead O'Brien just sat that there reporting "Yep. And there they go. Filing into the Superdome" beforehand. Not a single word about "why isn't Bush doing more??" Only afterwards, it became all Bush's fault.
Speaking of Liberal BS
December 31, 2008 - 13:26 ET by ahusserI was watching 'Live Free or Die Hard', IMO a pretty decent if not credible action flick, when during an exchange between cop John McClain (Bruce Willis) and hacker Matt Farrell (Justin Long) McClain says something to the effect that the proper authorities can and should handle the 'crisis' when Farrell blurts out very stridently if not hysterically "It took FEMA five days to get water to the superdome". I guess punctuating how ineffectual the 'authorities' are. Now how do you fight that BS propaganda which in retrospect is in almost every contemporary movie.
Change: When the winds of change blow hard enough, the most trivial of things can become deadly projectiles. From a Poster
Keeping in mind...
December 31, 2008 - 10:41 ET by Doc_NavyLet's keep in mind exactly who we are talking about here. Dolan represents that very same type of people who blamed Bush for the hurricane in the first place. Like he had some little PSP like remote control device, and targetted New Orleans because of it's African-American population. THEN they blamed Bush for the lack of response to the disaster. The intimation being that Bush should have activated FEMA before the hurricane hit. Isn't that a little like calling in the National Guard to rescue a bear stuck on telephone pole before calling the local Animal Control Office?
Last time I checked, it was incumbent on local and State officials to start the response first, and that response isn't mandated until after the first 72 hours. (I live in NW Florida and there are hurricane response posters EVERYWHERE. They ~ALL~ say, "The first 72 is on you".)
I also seem to remember that the Mayor of New Orleans had something to do with the poor response to help those that stayed, yet, this too was somehow Bush's fault.
Finally, as a side note... wasn't there a tidal wave of vandalism and looting done by the very folks who DID stay after they were told to leave? Isn't complaining about the slow responsiveness of "Free Aid", all the while you are smash and grabbing eveything in sight kinda hypocritical? Oh, and what about all the fraud cases that are choking the system of "Victims" who took advantage of FEMA aid by conning unwarrented and extra "ATM Cards" for that free disaster money the Federal Government gave out?
Once again the liberal penchant for redefining "personal responsibility" as "Social/Governmental Obligation", and "Criminal Conduct" as "Subjective, Justifiable Activity" has reared it's ugly head.
That and everything bad is Bush's fault.
Doc
Just a tidbit
December 31, 2008 - 10:53 ET by littlemissmuffinSome of the Katrina victims were sent to the hospital where our daughter is a nurse. When they got off the bus, some of them actually said:
"Where's my drugs? Where's my money?"
Also, does anyone remember that the then-governor of Louisiana refused to let the Red Cross in? Red Cross went to Miss instead.
Remembering little Caylee Anthony (2005-2008). May justice be served.
Katrina and the Black perspective
December 31, 2008 - 10:49 ET by Retired Geek"To their eternal shame, Democrats used the tragedy caused by Hurricane Katrina for their own partisan political gain.
While criticizing President Bush, Democrats turned a blind eye to the failures of the Democrats running the city of New Orleans and the state of Louisiana.
The black Democrat officials in New Orleans did not execute the emergency evacuation plan and allowed over 1,000 school buses and city transit buses to stay in parking lots and become ruined by the flood."
Frances Rice
Former Chair Black Republicans
Reired Army Colonel
Gifted Lawyer
continued remarks by Frances Rice
December 31, 2008 - 10:51 ET by Retired Geek------------------------------------------------
"Further, the Posse Comitatus Act passed by Congress in 1878 prevents a president from sending federal troops to a state without the governor’s consent.
The Democrat governor of Louisiana, a white woman, refused to cooperate with President Bush when the president asked for her consent to begin a mandatory evacuation four days before the storm.
The Democrats in the Louisiana homeland security office also refused to let the Red Cross bring truckloads of food, water and supplies to the Superdome.
Since 1980, Louisiana emergency personnel knew that the levees in New Orleans would not withstand a category 3 or 4 hurricane. Yet, the Democrats in Congress filibustered President Bush’s energy bill which was introduced in 2001 and contained $540 million for repairing the levees in New Orleans."
Frances Rice
Black Female Conservative
Retired Army Colonel
Gifted Lawyer
I go back and forth on O'Reilly
December 31, 2008 - 11:12 ET by StarAZI watched Dolbermann until he started in on Hillary with his intense orgasm face and I thought, "Why am I watching a sportscaster berate this woman?" Guiltily, I admit to catching Chris sometimes--like poking a sore tooth, I cannot quit him. I still want to know who the hell Chuck Todd is. But all told, I would rather watch O'Reilly BS with those blond women than watch almost anything else out there fronting as "news." I do think someone told Bill to notch it back on Junior, which is irritating. Hannity is OK--I like how he dances his hands, palms out.
Rush ,Bill and their views
December 31, 2008 - 11:33 ET by east tennessee johnWell, the critics better get their shots in now because the return of the "fairness" doctrine is immenent and they won't have them to kick around anymore. Is it true MSDNC is going to rerun their shows so we don't forget about Hoover, I mean Bush so the new FDR can run the upcoming "worker's paradise"?
ODR? (O'Reilly Derangement Syndrome)
December 31, 2008 - 13:57 ET by klchadwickI'm thinking that Dolan just might have ODR...O'Reilly Derangment Syndrome, along with just a little bit of a crush as well. After all, he can certainly bring up many instances in which Bill O. has spoken the controversial....yet I don't see any quotes from Bathtub Boy. The phrases 'shut the hell up', 'resign' and 'panoramic and murderous deceit' came from Olbermann, but of course he is a good lib.
wow, some really great posts
December 31, 2008 - 23:11 ET by thebutlerdiditwow, some really great posts here, I just wanted to add my 2 cents. As for Katrina, I have grown up in the South, spent a lot of time in NO and all the coastal towns. I was there when a hurricane was heading there in 79? I think it was Fredrick, but don't remember which. Anyway, I remember that no one took it seriously, and people were just out in the streets, like it was just another day. And I remember watching during Katrina. I saw the exact same attitude, and they knew this one was heading directly there, and was going to be a baddie. My favorite scene was a few hours before landfall they showed people having coffee in an outdoor cafe, just watching the waves. Also, Gov. Blanco and Mayor Nagin were both out of the area when the storm came. They got out of dodge. As for BOR, he is o.k., I am not a big fan, but I will watch bits and pieces of his show. And yes, this conservative will yell at him! As for Rush, he is one of those people, if you don't listen to him regularly for about a month or so, to begin with, you might not get him. He is definately not a blowhard, or a egomaniac. He likes to tweak lefties by doing that little shtick, and he is so not a racist. People that don't know the things he does, quietly, for charites, schools, the troops, just think he is all about himself. He and BOR are nothing alike, and Rush calls BOR Ted Baxter, well, he has once or twice. I have met Rush a couple of times, as I have posted here before, so I know how good of a person he truly is. I can't believe I'm on here on NY's Eve! If I didn't have the flu, I would be sooo outta here! Hope Everyone has a Wonderful New Year!!!!!!!!!