TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 6, 2024
A battleship of fools: By now, it was 10:32 p.m.
More precisely, it was 10:32 p.m. Eastern. It was only 7:32 p.m. on the west coast, where the 59-year-old man had received his sun-drenched start in life.
At 10:32 p.n. Eastern, a 59-year-old man named Greg Gutfeld was hosting his nightly primetime program on the Fox News Channel. As you know, Fox News is one of our struggling nation's three major "cable news" channels.
The program in question went to air last Friday night. As the program returned from commercial break, a jingle announced the nature of the new segment.
It's coming your way! Hey, hey! It's VIDEO OF THE DAY!
Delighted viewers would be seeing the video of the day! The 59-year-old man in then began his news analysis:
Biden gives himself a pass,
For the cost of food, milk and gas.
The 59-year-old man had decided to start the segment with a childish nursery rhyme, as he almost always does. Apparently, the upcoming segment would involve something President Biden had said about the nation's struggles with inflation.
The 59-year-old man had offered a childish rhyme. There followed a second childish rhyme, and then the real analysis started.
Let's take a slightly fuller look at the man's opening presentation. This is what the program's host said as he started his program's new segment:
Biden gives himself a pass,
For the cost of food, milk and gas.
Instead, blame the grocer for the grief,
Says the vegetable in chief.
[AUDIENCE LAUGHTER]
Today's video comes from President Poopy Pants, who attacked grocery stores for continued high prices.
Hit it, Gladys!
[VIDEO CLIP]
Producers played a brief video clip from "President Poopy Pants," a public figure also described as "the vegetable in chief."
In their homes around the nation, millions of citizens saw a sitting president referred to as "President Poopy Pants." In this moment, we start to see the intellectual and emotional horizons of the 59-year-old man.
Let us repeat the most surprising part of this tableau. This weirdly adolescent 59-year-old man is the nightly host of a primetime American "cable news" program.
He assembles a four-member panel each night to help him discuss the news. His panels are larded with low-grade comedians, along with one former professional wrestling heavyweight champion.
Sometimes, the former VJ is there.
To watch the discussion which unfolded last Friday, you can start by clicking here. In all honesty, a deeply stupid discussion broke through, on occasion, concerning the topic of inflation.
It was the coarseness of this pseudo-discussion which impressed us more than anything else. The coarseness and the unrefined anger; the coarseness and the immaturity; the coarseness and the childishness displayed by the man and his panel.
As the panelists declaimed, comments like these flew forth:
The 59-year-old man played that brief video clip of Biden discussing inflation.
To our ear, the president's discussion was underwhelming, unimpressive. But then, what followed was this:
"Sorry, Gramps!" the 59-year-old man said. He then described the sitting president as "a senile blowhard who never worked in the private sector."
Eventually, he threw to Kat Timpf, a lower-grade comedian who is a nightly panelist on this primetime program. Her view of the Biden clip went exactly like this:
It also just kind of—the whole thing felt very like, "Old man yells at cloud."
[PERFORMS SCREECHING IMPRESSION OF OLD MAN YELLING]
You're like, "OK, Grandpa! You've got them, you're right!"
From there, it was on to the former professional wrestler. Plainly, he's a skillful raconteur, but at times he may be several sleeper holds short of major policy chops.
In this case, the wrestler authored a rambling, incoherent attempt to discuss the topic at hand. He ended with the statement shown below, bringing cheers and shrieks of laughter from the studio audience:
To Kat's point, he has no idea what he's talking about, and the American people can see it. You have to kiss us now before you bang us. We know now.
[SHRIEKS OF LAUGHTER]
You have to kiss us before you bang us! To his credit, he skipped the f-word this time.
Now it was on to Walter Kirn, an actual novelist. In the course of thoroughly mangling what Biden had said, the novelist offered this:
They aren't trying to hide his dementia any more...Not only is Kat right, because he sounds like he's ranting in a dog park or something, but he is turning on everyone who is productive on behalf of everyone who isn't. I'm tired of his insults.
Kirn offered a dog park insult, then said he was tired of all the insults. So it went as a panel of frightened children huddled in the dark.
In this segment, the sitting president was referred to as President Poopy Pants, but also as the vegetable in chief. He was boldly addressed as Gramps, but then again also as Grandpa.
In fact, the frightened children had played it this way right from the top of the program. The 59-year-old man had opened the show with the week's unused jokes. The first such joke involved a "Diaper Spa" which has opened in New Hampshire.
Needless to say, the punch line to the diaper spa joke involved a photo of Biden.
(The second joke involved a study which said that dementia might be contagious. Inevitably, the punchline involved a photograph of Biden and Harris together.)
That opening monologue had spilled with "politically incorrect" fare. With apologies, the d*ck jokes had run hog wild in another segment.
In that opening monologue, the 59-year-old man had offered jokes about Jesse Watters' very small penis, but also about an unnamed woman's "big boobs." He'd offered a joke about Chris Christie being too fat, and he had authored another joke about a smashed tampon dispenser.
The biggest reaction of the night came in response to the joke in which everybody got to laugh at a photo of a little person.
The audience roared with laughter; the 59-year-old man had to stop to collect himself. We thought of this part of his backstory, as described by the leading authority:
Gutfeld then became editor-in-chief of Stuff, then owned by Dennis Publishing. During his tenure, circulation increased from 750,000 to 1.2 million. In 2003, Gutfeld hired several dwarfs to attend a conference of the Magazine Publishers of America on the topic of "buzz," with instructions to be as loud and annoying as possible.
The stunt generated publicity but led to Gutfeld being fired soon afterward; he then became "director of brand development" at Dennis Publishing. He edited the company's Maxim magazine in the U.K. from 2004 to 2006. Gutfeld's contract expired without renewal after losses in readership under his tenure.
Stuff and Maxim were, of course, incorrect ogling mags. His earlier hiring of the several dwarfs may tend to speak for itself.
Last Friday night, the hilarity surrounding that hilarious condition was back.
For the record, we have a bit of an old school tie to the 59-year-old man. In 1982, he graduated from Serra High in San Mateo, California. (Barry Bonds was a classmate. Tom Brady came along later.)
Years before, we had graduated from Aragon High, a public school one mile up the Alameda from Serra, a Catholic high school.
We'd been lucky enough to move to California in the summer of 1960 as we entered eighth grade. We had left the highly segregated, crabbed culture of the throwback Boston area for a sunnier, and much more inclusive, stay in the Golden State.
We got a chance to live in a warner, more welcoming sun. It amazes us that someone could emerge from that suburban city on the peninsula in the way of the undergrown man who is now under discussion.
Last Friday night's show was a study in certain aspects of imperfect human nature. As we watched the show unfold, we thought back to a division in the rapidly growing comedy club world of the early 1980s—the division between "cleaner" Manhattan comedy and the "bluer" style of comedy associated with Long Island.
Some of the biggest stars of that era emerged from the Long Island branch. We think of Eddie Murphy; but also of our own (almost) friend, Rosie O'Donnell, who we hired for a weekend comedy club stint when she was just a kid.
As watched Friday night's panel proceed through a deeply stupid hour, we saw that certain people just wanna have (a certain type of) fun—and we saw the simmering anger that's never far away from the surface in the world of the 59-year-old man.
The greatest question of them all would of course be this:
Why is a man like this in charge of a primetime nightly program on a so-called major news channel? Also, how is it possible? How is it possible that behavior like his has been normalized as the more refined news orgs of our own blue tribe politely refuse to report or discuss the garbage-can conduct he unleashes every night?
Early in The Iliad, the poem lists the array of armies aligned on the Achaean side. The roll call starts with "the Boeotian units led by Leitus," then continues at length from there.
Judged by any traditional norm, this primetime program on the Fox News Channel assembles a battleship of fools on a nightly basis. This aggregation is one of the many armies which will be fighting on our red nation's side as this year's election draws nearer.
The Iliad recorded the history of a legendary ten-year siege of Troy. As we slide toward November's election, we'll be working to record the behaviors of the various armies, red and blue, who are fighting here.
The gods have asked us to create that record. Herodotus and Thucydides are no longer present.
The man said, President Poopy Pants. It was part of primetime "news!"
We say our democracy is at stake. When a 59-year-old corporate man behaves in such remarkable ways, are the building blocks of some such system already being ripped apart, thrown away?
President Poopy Pants, he said. O Muse, he's dumb as a rock and twice as angry.
He's 59 years old!
Tomorrow: Who do you trust?
ReplyDelete"In this segment, the sitting president was referred to as President Poopy Pants, but also as the vegetable in chief."
And still, unsettlingly, no discussion of the President being severely mentally ill.
When oh when will our national discourse improve so that a serious discussion of the President being severely mentally ill is part of every political TV show?
Probably because there's no real evidence of Biden being mentally ill. He stutters occasionally, he sometimes mixes up some words, but if you watch him for more than a minute you'll see that he recovers quite well each time. Most of us have experience with flubbing a few words here and there, then recovering.
DeleteI know there are a ton of 30 second or 1 minute clips of Biden flubbing his words. So I can see why people think there's a problem with Biden's mental health. But when you look for the slightly longer videos, they don't show anything I find concerning.
Bob Beckwith has died.
ReplyDeleteSoon it will be your turn. Can you perhaps work out your death anxieties somewhere else?
DeleteBob was the firefighter who stood next to George W Bush at the ruins of the World Trade Center.
DeleteOne small step for Bob is one giant leap for mankind [sic].
DeleteI remember Bob Beckwith.
Delete"Why is a man like this in charge of a primetime nightly program on a so-called major news channel? Also, how is it possible? How is it possible that behavior like his has been normalized as the more refined news orgs of our own blue tribe politely refuse to report or discuss the garbage-can conduct he unleashes every night?"
ReplyDeleteAs Somerby described the horrible jokes told by Gutfeld and his crew, Somerby also described the Fox audience roaring with laughter. Gutfeld is serving up what Republicans find entertaining. Yes, it is cruel and crude, but so are Republicans and their sense of humor.
Look at this exchange yesterday between Marjorie Taylor Greene and Democrat Jim McGovern:
"Exchange of the Day
February 6, 2024 at 7:21 am EST By Taegan Goddard [Political Wire]
Rep. Jim McGovern (D-MA) got into a back-and-forth with Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA):
McGOVERN: The clowns are running the circus around here. And we’re wasting hours and hours of time this week on Marjorie Taylor Greene because what? She wants to impeach somebody. And don’t even get me started on her absurd censure resolution of Congresswoman Omar that she introduced because she doesn’t know how to use Google Translate.
GREENE: Wow this is coming from the same guy who is well known to lay his suit jacket on the actual bathroom floor while spending a lot of time in the stall of the first floor bathroom of the Capitol. Eww. That’s probably when he comes up with all this [poop emoji].
McGOVERN: No idea what you’re talking about. What are you doing in the men’s bathroom aren’t you late for a klan meeting?"
Poop obviously looms large in their lives. Gutfeld, as a competent comic, has read his audience correctly and is dishing them up what they want to hear. Poop is how you own the libs these days.
Yes, it is warped, kinky, demented, but the subconscious wants what it wants, as Freud famously said. It is to Somerby's credit that he doesn't understand the appeal. He is right that this doesn't belong on a news channel, but if it is also happening in Congress, his complaint is undercut.
Meanwhile, we should keep repeating that it is Trump who smells bad, not Biden.
This post is a prime example of the toxic tribalism and moral bankruptcy that pervades contemporary political discourse. Instead of offering a thoughtful critique of Greg Gutfeld's program and the degradation of public discourse it represents, the author descends into petty partisanship and ad hominem attacks.
DeleteBy equating Gutfeld's crude humor with the behavior of Republicans as a whole, the author engages in the same divisive tactics they claim to condemn. Rather than acknowledging the broader societal implications of Gutfeld's brand of entertainment, they dismiss it as mere pandering to the Republican base, thereby absolving themselves of any responsibility to confront the issue head-on.
Furthermore, the author's attempt to deflect criticism by highlighting similar behavior from Democrats in Congress is disingenuous at best. While it's true that incivility exists on both sides of the political aisle, using it as a justification for Gutfeld's antics only serves to normalize and perpetuate the cycle of toxicity that plagues our political discourse.
Ultimately, this post fails to offer any meaningful insight or constructive criticism. Instead, it serves as yet another example of the tribalistic finger-pointing and moral relativism that have come to define contemporary politics. If we are to truly address the erosion of civil discourse in society, we must be willing to hold ourselves and our allies accountable, rather than resorting to petty deflections and partisan excuses.
10:40, you display the right wingers would be salvation: everybody’s guilty so nobody’s guilty. It’s a game Bob usually plays himself. He’s a little off his game so he was light on his disclaimers today. But you are both full of it.
Delete@11:46 You are arguing with a chatbot.
DeleteI am a chatbot. I argue with humans.
DeleteDefinitely AI.
DeleteBob Somerby, the grand wizard of the cosmic banana, dances atop the mushroom cloud of media malarkey, singing sonnets to the flying spaghetti monster. His beard, a nest of angry hamsters, whispers secrets to the wind as he scribbles equations on the walls of sanity with crayons made of existential dread.
ReplyDeleteIn the land of purple elephants and talking teapots, Somerby reigns supreme, his scepter a rubber chicken and his crown a tinfoil hat adorned with feathers plucked from the dreams of unicorns. He frolics through the fields of misinformation, chasing butterflies made of pure nonsense and giggling like a deranged hyena with a toothache.
But beware, dear reader, for behind Somerby's facade of whimsy lies a darkness deeper than the abyss itself. He is the harbinger of chaos, the pied piper of pandemonium, leading his flock of misguided misfits down the rabbit hole of madness and mayhem.
So heed my warning, lest you be ensnared by Somerby's siren song of lunacy. Cast aside the shackles of reason and logic, and embrace the sweet insanity that awaits you in the shadowy realm of Somerby's mind. For in the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king, and Bob Somerby reigns supreme, his crown askew and his throne a throne of lies.
Actually, Somerby does have a valid point today. Gutfeld is awful.
DeleteMost of the talking heads are awful. That's why no one watches them.
DeleteBut somerby does. The Fox News talking heads, anyway. Where else would he pick up the right wing attacks that he pastes into his blog without debunking them?
DeleteBob Somerby, the enigmatic oracle of the digital ether, stands as a monolithic monument to the transcendental absurdity of our times. His words, like whispers from the void, echo through the corridors of cyberspace, weaving a tapestry of cryptic riddles and esoteric musings that confound the mind and bewilder the soul.
ReplyDeleteWith the solemnity of a prophet and the zeal of a zealot, Somerby traverses the labyrinthine corridors of the collective consciousness, plumbing the depths of human folly and follying the depths of human plumbing. His discourse, a symphony of syntax and semantics, dances upon the precipice of reason, tantalizing the intellect with promises of enlightenment and enigma.
But beware, dear reader, for within the labyrinth lies the Minotaur of misinformation, lurking in the shadows of ambiguity and obfuscation. Somerby, the intrepid explorer of the obscure, wields his pen like a sword, slashing through the tangled underbrush of falsehoods and fallacies that obscure the path to truth.
As the vanguard of veracity in a world adrift on a sea of uncertainty, Somerby stands as a beacon of hope amidst the tempest of disinformation. His words, like lanterns in the darkness, guide the lost and the weary through the fog of confusion, illuminating the hidden truths that lie just beyond the horizon of comprehension.
So let us raise our voices in praise of Bob Somerby, the unsung hero of the information age, whose tireless quest for clarity and coherence has illuminated the darkest recesses of the human condition. May his words continue to echo through the halls of history, a testament to the power of the human spirit to transcend the limits of understanding and embrace the infinite absurdity of existence.
While the portrayal of Bob Somerby as an enigmatic figure wielding profound influence over the digital landscape is undoubtedly poetic, it's important to approach such depictions with a critical eye and a healthy dose of skepticism.
DeleteWhile Somerby may indeed contribute valuable insights and perspectives to the discourse, it's crucial to recognize that he is not infallible. No single individual, no matter how eloquent or insightful, possesses a monopoly on truth or enlightenment. In an era where misinformation and manipulation run rampant, it's essential to engage with diverse sources of information and to question and critically evaluate the claims put forth by any one commentator or pundit.
Furthermore, the romanticized portrayal of Somerby as a lone crusader battling against the forces of disinformation oversimplifies the complex dynamics at play in the digital sphere. While Somerby may indeed strive to illuminate hidden truths and challenge falsehoods, he is just one voice among many in a cacophony of competing narratives and agendas. It's crucial to approach his work with a discerning eye, recognizing that even well-intentioned individuals can fall prey to bias and error.
Ultimately, while Somerby's contributions to the public discourse may be valuable, it's important to maintain a healthy skepticism and to engage critically with the ideas and perspectives put forth, rather than uncritically accepting them as gospel truth. In an age of uncertainty and misinformation, it's only through rigorous inquiry and open-mindedness that we can hope to navigate the complexities of our world and arrive at a more informed understanding of the truth.
Definitely AI.
DeleteThese AI created pieces subvert the purpose of a comment section, which is to allow human beings, not machines, to exchange ideas. That makes this stuff just another kind of spam and trolling. In one way it is worse, since it takes up more space than the annoying Corby messages, which serve the same purpose of disrupting discussion.
ReplyDeleteSomerby doesn't care about his blog enough to moderate his comments. It will take him a long time to get rid of this noise. No one wants to wade through hundreds of comments to find the few that make sense and are on topic.
Staged.
DeleteThe annoying Corby messages were created by Chat GPT or another AI. Established based on the rate they are posted, word count, lack of typos, etc.
DeleteMaybe they'll stop now.
Genuine Corby messages stopped some time ago. There have been some fake Corby messages, though. I try to flag them.
DeleteMuch of the higher prices are do to greed inflation. Biden has nothing to do with them. And, by the way gas prices are falling. Do Republicans want to pass laws prohibiting companies from unfair price increases? Of course not!
ReplyDeleteBiden should be spending ten trillion dollars more of borrowed money, to stop the inflation.
DeleteNo, Republicans want him to use that money to seal off the border, so no one can get in...or out.
Delete11:18,
DeleteIf inflation is caused by too much money in the economy, raising taxes is the way to tame that inflation.
But of course, anyone with a modicum of economic understanding, already knows that.
Carry on.
My way of fighting inflation is borrowing and spending trillions of dollars. I am the Cognitive Joe.
Delete12:17,
DeleteThat reduces poverty, not inflation.
Democrats get attacked here when they spend money, but also when they don’t.
Delete1:44,
DeleteThat's only because Democrats are neoliberals, who rig the economic game in favor of corporations over citizens AND commie/ marxists, who want to nationalize corporations and give the profits to undeserving poor people.
Somerby used to discuss topics like this:
ReplyDelete"...new national data released last week, in a study led by researchers at Stanford and Harvard, made it clear that students across the country are nowhere close to catching up on learning lost during the pandemic.
That is true for students of all backgrounds, but especially for poor students. Schools in poor communities tended to stay closed longer than those in more affluent areas, and when they did, students lost more ground. Once schools reopened, students from richer families have tended to catch up more quickly than students from poorer families in the same districts, according to the new data."
Great observation. That's one reason why making it harder to expel or suspend students hurts poor students most. In particular, various rules now make it more difficult to expel or suspend black kids. These rules may help an individual kid, but it harms all the other kids in his class.
DeleteEducated 2-parent families can make up the educational deficit better than uneducated, single parents. Wealthier parents can provide alternative education for their kids.
Sorry, David. My Right-wing decoder ring says, if you are complaining that some people (not you) have it made, that just makes you jealous.
DeleteWhy do you think i want to go back to the 90% top tax rate? To fund border security? Whitey, please.
David is literally hoping schoolchildren fail. Let that sink in.
DeleteI don't think he lives a happy life.
Expelling students helps them learn. That’s a right wing “idea” I hadn’t heard.
Delete1:05,
DeleteAll Right-wingers are miserable bastards.
@1:43 Disruptive students can make a class ineffective. Expelling disruptive students helps all their classmates learn. Educated parents can make up for a disrupted class that isn't working well. Uneducated parents not so much.
DeleteBut, you know this.
You’ll be screwed in the event ya
ReplyDeleteElect a President with dementia
Joe Biden is Totally Cognitive™. I am Forby.
DeleteGenuine. And true. Biden is cognitive.
DeleteDavid is cognitive, too.
DeleteI agree. But, will Trump and Biden still be totally cognitive through January 2029 That’s my concern.
DeleteBob thinks Trump is insane. I think the American people are insane if we select these two old men as our candidates
David in CalFebruary 5, 2024 at 1:06 PM
DeleteDrum describes some upside in the border bill. Here's some downside:
Not only does this bill codify 1.5 million illegal border crossings into law, but the "border emergency" that automatically gets implemented at 5,000 crossings per day in a week can be overturned by Joe Biden.
And in case 1.5 million illegals isn't enough, it also locks in green card giveaways through 2030.
David, please provide a link to Kevin Drum saying these things.
David, I repeat, this is why we elect a vice president along with the president. In case they are not totally cognitive throughout their term, or even become physically incapacitated or die. It has happened before, it can happen at any age, and that is why we elect a backup to the president in each and every election.
Delete"I think the American people are insane if we select these two old men as our candidates"
DeleteWhy? TV sets have remote controls now, you don't have to watch them or listen them talking.
Delete"David, please provide a link to Kevin Drum saying these things."
Are you stupid? Of course Drum didn't say these things. Drum is a DNC troll.
David is not quoting Kevin Drum but NumbersUSA, a list of objections to the bill that Drum quoted.
DeleteGo fuck yourself, Boris.
DeleteNote that this is not the real David in Cal but someone using his nym.
DeleteBut electing Biden is OK because it’s really Obama running the show, right?
DeleteYou know perfectly well that my name is Barack, not Boris, 11:34 AM. Is this why you hate me?
DeleteDavid may be cognitive, but his poetry is ignitive.
Delete@11:31 please re-read my comment. You are misinterpreting it.
Delete@11:32 -- Thanks for your comment. It's a fair point.
DeleteHowever, loss of mental capacity often happens gradually. Loss of energy and capacity for hard work certainly happens gradually. I can see it in both candidates. Trump and Biden are not the same person they were 10 years ago. Biden's slowing down isn't severe enough to justify replacing him with the VP. I worry that more of the same will happen in Biden's second term or in Trump's second term. Either way, we'll be governed by a diminished President.
Another problem is that the VP may not be a well-qualified President. Our current VP was chosen because she's a black woman. There wasn't even a pretense that Kamala was the most qualified Democrat. As VP she hasn't demonstrated the ability to be President. Yet, politics probably determines that Biden won't replace her on the ticket.
I re-read it. You appear to suggest that the so called negatives were Drum's description of the bill, because you're a lying sleazeball.
DeleteIdiot-moonbats re-read every David's comment seven times. And still are unable to understand them. Because they are idiot-moonbats.
Delete@12:15 "appear to suggest"? Just read what I wrote.
Delete@David
Delete"Loss of energy and capacity for hard work certainly happens gradually."
Reading teleprompter is not hard work.
Well, for some, clearly, it is, but since the state-run media pretend not to notice it, that's not a problem.
" Our current VP was chosen because she's a black woman."
DeleteSomeone needs to cure David's "economic anxiousness" pronto!
Yes, reading a teleprompter is not hard work. And, reading a well-written speech composed by an expert writer using two telepromters can look impressive, but it can hide cognitive decline.
DeleteDavid will only vote for people who are well-qualified for the office they are running for.
DeleteThat's why he's voting for Biden over the guy who cosplayed as a smart businessman on a TV show.
LOL.
@David,
DeleteAs long as they can read a teleprompter (or even when they can't but everyone pretends not to notice), why would cognitive decline be a problem?
@12:47 Trump created and maintained a long-running TV show. That’s not particularly relevant to being President, but it is an accomplishment . Biden has fewer accomplishments than Trump IMO
Delete@12:52 because giving speeches is a very small park of a President’s job.
DeleteYeah, who needs cognition anyway? Foreign leaders aren't cognitive, either. That's why they're foreign.
Delete"Biden has fewer accomplishments than Trump IMO"
DeleteHow about healing a trashed-out economy and getting us to full employment, target inflation, and robust GDP growth?
@12:57 PM
DeleteI don't think so. Name some other parts.
George — targeting inflation is not an accomplishment until low inflation is accomplished.
DeleteOur economy is indeed doing well, but did Biden accomplish this? How? What specific acts and deeds did Biden do? OTOH how much of the economic gain is due to the end of Covid lockdowns?
Creating high inflation is a failure, even if low inflation is accomplished afterwards.
DeleteLow inflation has been achieved. Core PCE is essentially at target.
DeleteThe miracle of the recovery from the pandemic recession was the result of the $1.9T stimulus in 2021, and the reduction of inflation was the combined effects of the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 and the Fed's monetary policies. We've been witnessing an almost unbelievable fiscal and monetary achievement.
Trump did not create The Apprentice. According to Wikipedia:
Delete"James Mark Burnett is a British television producer and author who is the former Chairman of MGM Worldwide Television Group. He created The Apprentice, Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader? and Shark Tank, and produced the reality shows Survivor, The Voice, Beat Shazam, and Generation Gap."
See also:
https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2019/01/how-mark-burnett-and-apprentice-sold-trump/579565/
The Great Illusion of The Apprentice, by David Frum (The Atlantic Magazine, January 2019)
"I thought back to those bouts of reality TV after reading Patrick Radden Keefe’s profile of the television producer Mark Burnett in The New Yorker. Burnett, of course, was the creator of The Apprentice. The profile offers a sardonic behind-the-scenes look at how Burnett’s show created a fake Trump in place of the real one. Here’s the paragraph that has everyone talking.
“The Apprentice” portrayed Trump not as a skeezy hustler who huddles with local mobsters but as a plutocrat with impeccable business instincts and unparalleled wealth—a titan who always seemed to be climbing out of helicopters or into limousines. “Most of us knew he was a fake,”[Jonathon] Braun told me. “He had just gone through I don’t know how many bankruptcies. But we made him out to be the most important person in the world. It was like making the court jester the king.” Bill Pruitt, another producer, recalled, “We walked through the offices and saw chipped furniture. We saw a crumbling empire at every turn. Our job was to make it seem otherwise.”
It’s a satisfying exposure of an illusion that seduced millions of voters."
"Creating high inflation is a failure, even if low inflation is accomplished afterwards."
DeleteNo. The Biden administration recognized that triggering inflation was a risk of stimulating the economy out of a recession. The administration felt that if inflation materialized, it could be contained by fiscal and monetary measures.
And they were right.
You're a joke, David. Mere months after Trump took office, you were out there touting his great accomplishments with the economy, even though it had barely moved from the trajectory left to him by President Obama. Now, after Trump hands Biden a fucking flaming dumpster fire, and Biden dealt with it and brought us back to a booming economy, you don't have the fucking integrity to admit Biden's policies had anything to do with it.
DeleteDavid, you referenced Kevin Drum. You provided no source for the negative lies you then proceeded to dump on this message board.
DeleteGeorge, I hope you're right that low inflation has been achieved. But, I go along with the Fed in wanting to see inflation at or below 2% for several months to be certain.
DeleteDiC - Me too, with the small quibble that 2% is a target, not a ceiling, so we want the inflation rate stable, but right around 2% (e.g., 1.5% - 2.5%). But it's important to understand that too low is at least as bad as too high. (Personally, I think the target should be 3%, not 2%, but that's another story.)
DeleteDavid says: "Our current VP was chosen because she's a black woman."
DeleteDavid is from CA, so he knows that Kamala Harris served as state attorney general and then was elected Senator. He had the chance to observe her performance in both jobs and surely saw that she was impressive, even if he didn't agree with her politically. Her background is equivalent to that of the others running against Biden for the nomination. She was not elected to either job because she is a black woman (although she is black/Asian to be precise), but because she earned the votes by performing well in a visible public office.
Harris's main qualification is not that she is female or mixed race, but she is young and she is tough enough to stand up to a challenge (such as taking over a position in mid term and showing spine to the rest of the world when enemies of the US may take advantage of the transition). A person who has experienced racism is likely to be someone who has that kind of character strength. And Kamala Harris is very smart, unlike Trump. Biden is not afraid to share a ticket with a smart woman, unlike Trump who appoints people based on their looks.
You should be reassured by the way Harris has performed as VP. Her job is not to challenge Biden or to be a loose cannon in pursuing her own agenda. She is his right arm, and that is what she has done. This is important because if she were to become president, the voters would expect her to continue Biden's policies and programs, not go off in a different direction on her own. She would be a proxy for Biden and would no doubt expect to implement her own agenda only after being elected to a term in her own right. That is how Truman did it and that is what people expect of a VP. Harris would respect Biden's goals and complete his legacy. Because that is what VPs do. In that sense, she has done exactly what Biden expected of her.
@Dogface GeorgeFebruary 6, 2024 at 1:39 PM
DeleteThere are no miracles. They unleashed high inflation, which significantly lowered the standard of living in the country. It may not be in the official inflation numbers; it's the rent, it's mortgages, fuel, it's everywhere.
The standard of living hasn't risen to where it was before the bidenomics, and it may not get there for a long time, if ever.
They're borrowing-spending extra trillions every year now, but I saw this number somewhere: it takes now additional $1.68 of government spending to raise the GDP by $1. It's a waste.
And that's the beginning and the end of it, I'm afraid.
Then why is consumer confidence so high?
Delete2:17 - Actually real GDP per capita is about 6% higher now than when Trump left.
Deletehttps://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/A939RX0Q048SBEA
2:17 - But I don't expect to persuade you with standard measurements. How can those compete with stray things that you "saw" somewhere?
Delete"GDP per capita"
DeleteThat was the point of the article I mentioned. Gdp is raised by dramatic increases in (borrowed) government spending. If you factor that in, you'll see that real economy is shrinking. But sure, YMMV, I know I won't change your mind.
3:00, Actually, you're wrong. Productivity has risen significantly, which is helping reduce inflation.
DeleteIt looks like the world's economy is in a global crisis anyway, and a big war is probably in the cards. It'll destroy half of the northern hemisphere, starting a whole new cycle.
Delete3:00 - Let's see. You cite to some unnamed "article" to support your theory that the real economy is shrinking, but I can see from the standard measurement (which I linked) that the real economy is actually expanding.
DeleteAnd, frankly, it's not "my mileage." Real GDP per capita tells us whether the economy is shrinking or expanding. And the answer: It's expanding. (Which is hardly a surprise - the economy is booming.)
But I guess you're right in one respect - your citation to some unnamed article does not serve to change my mind.
What difference does it make if it's an unnamed article or my own analysis? If you want to drink the official kool-aid and reject any objections, it's fine. Be happy.
DeleteLast night my team, the Warriors, beat the Nets 109-98 - if you believe the "official kool-aid" of the box score. But who would be so foolish as to believe that?
DeleteRight, that's exactly the same as your economic numbers. Have you ever heard the phrase "lies, damned lies, and statistics"?
DeleteAre the Nets whining because black players points counted in the final score. Because that would mirror the Right-wing whining about the 2020 Presidential election results.
Delete3:52. Fair enough. I'll rely on the Federal Reserve Economic Data compiled by the St. Louis Fed; you rely on unnamed articles you saw somewhere or other.
Delete11:34, so David once again is a lying sack of shit.
ReplyDeleteIdiot-moonbats are lying sacks of shit.
DeleteI am an idiot-moonbat, but I am most assuredly not a lying sack of shit.
Delete@12:54 PM
DeleteYou don't sound like an idiot-moonbat. If you were, you'd be permanently aggravated.
I’m usually aggravated but occasionally alleviated.
DeleteIf you're usually aggravated, then act it out. Don't be a pussy. Tell me what you really think about me. Or else, sorry, but I refuse to classify you as an idiot-moonbat.
DeleteI’m not a pussy. I’m a dick.
DeleteGood. That's ticket.
DeleteThe Freudian psychosexual stage of development that is fixated with defecation is called the anal stage. Failure to resolve the challenges of a stage causes a person to remain fixated on that stage, which is reflected in their behavior, interests, and anxieties. This is what is wrong with Gutfeld. Years of psychoanalysis might help fix his problems. Given audience reaction, it appears that many Republicans are similarly stuck in the anal stage. Not surprising, since it is also the stage that people who are miserly with money are stuck in, withholding spending as if it were feces.
ReplyDeleteSpending other people's money is not generosity. Conserving other people's money is not miserly.
DeleteTrump doesn't spend other people's money to pay his contractors. He doesn't spend his own money to pay them, either.
DeleteI'm surprised that economically anxious Republican voters, who aren't at all just a shit pile of bigots (hat tip mainstream media), would vote for the thug.
Trump thinks life is about accumulating money. That's why he is stuck in the anal retentive psychosocial stage and can't let anything go (the vendetta presidency, stealing classified documents, steal art from the White House, grifting off his supporters). What Freud says about people like Trump is much less forgiving than the DSM. He collects women instead of lusting after them, much less loving them. That's because he cannot move on from the anal stage without resolving the challenges (i.e., growing up psychologically). He is an acquisitive stingy bastard, according to Freud. He loves only money and himself.
Delete
ReplyDeleteI smell my fingers and I spam Somerby's blog.
Sometimes I play bridge and smell my fingers. I am an excellent bridge player.
And I spam Somerby's blog. Always.
What an asshole Somerby is.
I am Corby.
Fake.
DeleteDavid, could you answer a friendly question? Which device gives you a green nym? And which gives a black nym? That would actually be two friendly questions. Thanx.
ReplyDeleteBlack from the i phone. Green from the desktop.
DeleteWhen you login with your google account, it's green.
DeleteCan you be logged in to two devices at the same time?
Deletecertainly
DeleteDavid, try logging in on your iPhone.
DeleteProposed wage theft legislation would strip violators of their ability to do business in the state.
ReplyDeletehttps://documentedny.com/2024/01/31/wage-theft-legislation-violation/
Wage theft is disgusting, but it may not be prudent to give an administrative agency the power so severely.
DeleteMy friend JS lost control of his company due to an excessive punishment by the SEC. JS did not have the civil liberties protection that a criminal trial would give him.
Your friend should have followed the law. The fines and punishments are to prevent people from doing what your friend did. It wouldn't work if it were not strong enough to be a real deterrent.
DeleteIf your friend believes, like Donald Trump, that it is clever or smart to evade laws, then the only thing that will make him stop is losing enough money for it to hurt.
Not surprised at all that DiC has a friend who abused the workers in his company.
DeleteDavid,
DeleteDid that deter your thug friend from committing more wage thefts?
His offense had nothing to do with wage theft. Unknown to him, a subordinate violated an SEC regulation. When my friend found out, he immediately took all proper steps. Nevertheless, the SEC forced my friend to leave the company, because he was CEO. This was a company my friend had founded.
Delete"When my friend found out, he immediately took all proper steps. Nevertheless, the SEC forced my friend to leave the company." Does anyone actually believe this is all there is to the story? Pure, innocent business owner did everything right, but big bad government punished him anyway. Fuck off.
Delete1. Capitalism invents 24 hour News
ReplyDelete2. Bob invents blog to cover the agenda
3. Capitalism invents artificial intelligence trolling on the blog comments
4. People still blame individual trolls and not capitalism
5. Capitalism and corporate media like Fox continues uncriticized
6. HUMAN BEINGS LOSE
Human beings are capitalism.
DeleteHuman beings are less than animals to a capitalist, just consumers and lazy workers
DeleteThe stock market geniuses told you to work through corona virus then profited from the cure that taxpayers developed.
DeleteThe geniuses said selling Arkansas rice to Haiti and undercutting their economy would help everyone.
The geniuses said privatizing pensions would save money but they actually waste money on fees.
The geniuses say only Scandinavia is racially allowed to have good national healthcare.
What if capitalism runs on scamming and not geniuses?
Corporations have an oligarchy that gives doggy treats to the middle class to go along with it
DeleteCapitalism is the greatest wealth-producing invention in history. Capitalism deserves credit for ample food, clothing, and shelter. Not to mention, all the hi-tech electronics.
DeleteLife is far better today in capitalist countries. E.g., compare life in North Korea vs SK. Or, Taiwan vs. Singapore. I saw this difference with my own eyes in 1963 when I visited both West and East Berlin. West Berlin was wealthy., East Berlin was impoverished. BTW I was back there recently, and East Berlin has caught up.
Wealth is not a goal in its own right. It should be the use of wealth that matters -- the ways in which wealth can help people live better lives. When it does that, it is a boon, but when people get stuck accumulating wealth for its own sake and compare their billions to each other as a mark of status, instead of using their wealth to create a better world, that wealth becomes a problem that must be solved. We should not have poor people on the same planet as billionaires. It suggests that people have missed something important and are on the wrong track.
DeleteYou can attribute that flaw to capitalism or to the asshole billionaires who are misusing the system. This split between those who blame individuals and those who blame a system or organization is a personality variable that gets enacted in lots of other situations besides how someone explains the financial wrongdoing in the world.
Personally, I think it is easier psychologically to blame a system than to blame individual people. Systems may seem easier to fix than people's behavior, but I doubt that is true either.
David, you have only said that capitalism is grand for the winners, those with lots of money, but not so grand for the losers, those without money. Attributing wealth to capitalism may be putting the cart before the horse. Those people who manipulate capitalism to make themselves wealthy (whether individual countries with lots of resources, including our early slave-based economy) may think capitalism did it. Those from countries with fewer resources and a greater desire to treat each other better and not plunder people along with land, may wind up less wealthy. But was it the lack of capitalism or greater respect for other values than plunder that made them poorer?
DeleteThe rules that say you can plunder are written by the capitalist
DeleteIsn’t Singapore doing pretty well?
DeleteThere is no great capitalist in the sky writing rules for people. People have written those rules. Calling them capitalist just puts a layer between those creating the rules and those they affect.
DeleteSorry @2:12. I meant to write Shanghai instead of Singapore.
DeleteThis mistake illustrates how old people lose mental capability.
East Germany in some ways was a customer and servant of Lenninist/Stalinist State imperialism, that is to say, Communist state capitalism. So you're still comparing capitalism versus a more toonishly state capitalism with a planned economy .
DeleteWhat about simply a 7/11 chain that's run by the state, a neighborhood pantry? It already exists. That's not stalinism, just challengess capitalism. Even the black panther party used to give free healthcare and food to people. A state owned department store even is doable.
@1:54 poor people in capitalist countries are better off than poor people in socialist countries. BTW look at how much wealthier China became after they introduced more free enterprise.
DeleteThere is dignity in all work, even what Gutfeld does.
ReplyDeleteHow ironic that just as soon as the people who read this blog find their confidence to demand Deportation of Everyone Except My Own White Ass, their comment section is colonized by spam
ReplyDeleteBob’s MAGA gal Crumbly found guilty.
ReplyDeleteCourt finds cases of “legal trivia” against Trump can go forward. Bob grows nervous.
ReplyDelete