Lousy conduct by not-so-great people!

TUESDAY, JULY 11, 2017

How to talk pork to the people:
Long ago and far away, we walked around Baltimore with a friend who was on his way to Vietnam.

Because he later became well-known, we won't mention his name. But his wife, Tipper, was also there that day. Along with our mutual friend, Name Withheld, we walked around Baltimore on a cold, oncoming winter day in late 1970, chating about this and that.

(They'd all driven up from D.C.)

Our friend's father had just been defeated in a campaign for his fourth term in the Senate. It was a famously scurrilous campaign, with this senator's opposition to the war playing a prominent role in his defeat.

By the campaign's final week, our friend told us that day, his father knew he was going to lose. He told our friend that he wanted him to come out with him for a few final days of campaigning.

"I want you to see me talk po'k to the people one more time," our friend quoted his father saying.

(That was "po'k," pronounced as "poke," the written word being "pork.")

Talking pork to the people! The father had grown up hardscrabble, rural and poor; he knew about regular people. When you watch the stars of cable TV, you're looking at people who don't.

Don't know, and manifestly don't care.

If you watch CNN or MSNBC today, you'll be watching the "lock them up" crowd on the two "lock them up" channels. Pundits on these cable channels are eager to see Trump and them thrown in jail.

In truth, this is the only play still available to our terrible horrible team. It's our only play because we and our big cable stars don't know, and manifestly don't care, about the lives of most regular people.

Last fall, we managed to lose a White House election to the most disordered person who ever sought the office. We arranged for our defeat in a hundred thousand ways.

(One of our professors kept telling us there was zero way Trump could win. Rachel kept making Kornacki go through his carnival barker routine, propped up nightly before "the big board," gesticulating in the stupidified ways the channel's consultants required. On a nightly basis, this promise of victory made us feel good. And so we kept watching that space!)

Today, we refuse to think about who and what we actually are. Instead, we're trying to get The Others locked up. It's the last way we can avoid ourselves, can avoid who and what we are.

On CNN and MSNBC, our demagogues were hard at work last night. As of now, this is the story we're selling:

It was OK when the Clinton campaign got campaign help from Ukraine. It was treason when the Trump campaign got campaign help from someone from Russia.

Everyone can memorize the talking-points used to support that position. For now, we'll only say this:

Absent further revelations, good luck selling that particular po'k to a wide swath of the people.

Watching cable last night, we pretty much hit the wall. Internally, we could feel it. We finally gave up the ghost.

At long last, we finally saw Cooper as an insipid shill, full stop. We finally saw Maddow as the weird demagogue she actually is. Full stop, plain and simple.

(We'd base that on her opening segments from Thursday, Friday and Monday nights. Demagoguery all the way down, and so many varieties!)

Today, Brian Williams, who tilted so hard against Clinton/Gore, just can't stop his silly peacocking in the other direction.
That said, none of these people seem to have the slightest interest in the lives of regular people.

We hope you understand that fact. It seems to us we're in for a very long, very rough, deeply stupidified ride.

We're being deeply divided and conquered. Entities who support that division are these:

1) Vladimir Putin
2) The very hardest of the very, very hard hard right.

Remaining unaddressed in all the excitement: Five thousand dollars per person per year! If we might quote Elisabeth Rosenthal:

"Where is all that money going?"

Your big cable stars won't ask!

35 comments:

  1. Who could have guessed that the corporate-owned media is nothing more than the propaganda arm of corporations?
    Life is hard when you're too stupid to figure this out.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hard corporate media law:

      We will use the public airwaves to talk trivia 99% of the time.

      When we are forced to talk about an issue of vital importance to average Americans (such as healthcare) we will leave out vital facts and generally try to turn the discussion into a pile of confusing gibberish.

      Why do we do this? Because we ask ourselves this question: How does a healthier, more enlightened public help our bottom line? The answer is--not at all. In fact, it puts it at risk. An intelligent public would realize that we are simply greedy useless parasites who produce nothing but harm. They would immediately get rid of us.

      Delete
  2. Sadly we're getting the government Rachel and Brian deserve.

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  3. Donald Trump wasn’t the only presidential candidate whose campaign was boosted by officials of a former Soviet bloc country.

    Ukrainian government officials tried to help Hillary Clinton and undermine Trump by publicly questioning his fitness for office. They also disseminated documents implicating a top Trump aide in corruption and suggested they were investigating the matter, only to back away after the election. And they helped Clinton’s allies research damaging information on Trump and his advisers, a Politico investigation found.

    A Ukrainian-American operative who was consulting for the Democratic National Committee met with top officials in the Ukrainian Embassy in Washington in an effort to expose ties between Trump, top campaign aide Paul Manafort and Russia, according to people with direct knowledge of the situation.

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    Replies
    1. What a ridiculous example of false equivalency, even by troll standards.

      Delete
    2. This is Republican disinformation.

      Delete
  4. Based on a sample of 1, my close liberal friend Steve, the Democratic talking points are working. Steve is all excited that the Trump team committed treason, or something close to it when Donald, Jr. met with a Russian lawyer. My less gullible liberal wife disagrees with Steve, but she does believe that this meeting of Trump, Jr. was wrong and is surely worth investigating.

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    Replies
    1. Comrade DinC is always full of his opinions. They are always ever so humble opinions.
      David in CalJune 20, 2017 at 4:20 PM


      IMHO they will never find evidence of collusion between Russia and Trump people. First of all, it's inherently unlikely. Second, the Obama Administration spent months looking for such evidence and never found any.



      Well, now what will Comrade DinC say? I know, I know. Just a little harmless treason for a good cause, right traitor?

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    2. The Treason is real. The impeachment and conviction for it are the phony parts. There's another tax break for the rich to be had, and those who accused me of hating America for not supporting the Iraq War (the greatest waste of government spending in at least a century), aren't going to let a little thing like the administration's treason get in the way of that.

      Delete
    3. mm,
      Those goalposts aren't going to move themselves.

      Delete
  5. Talking "po'k," to the tiny handful of remaining Somerby readers:

    Today Somerby writes:

    " On CNN and MSNBC, our demagogues were hard at work last night. As of now, this is the story we're selling:

    It was OK when the Clinton campaign got campaign help from Ukraine. It was treason when the Trump campaign got campaign help from someone from Russia."

    Tell me if it is not the height of demagoguery from the Man of Imaginary Analysts to say "On CNN and MSNBC," are selling "It was OK when the Clinton campaign got campaign help from Ukraine."

    Does Bob link to a single instance showing CNN and MSNBC have done this? Did Bob himself ever cover any press coverage which idicated Ukaraine did assist C;inton?

    Did Bob offer any assistane where MSNBC or CNN said "It was treason when the Trump campaign got campaign help from someone from Russia." Or is he demagogueing by calling "selling" the fact they both aired live comments of an elected member of Congress suggesting what D. Trump Jr. did was treason?"

    Bob is a pathetic hypocrite.

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    Replies
    1. Dick Cheney is on record as describing it as an act of war.

      Ispo facto, treason by the trump family mob .

      Delete
  6. Somerby is well said and correct. Our cable stars are overpaid, lazy elitists who don't give a damn about the people, hence, their only game is scandal.

    If nothing else we, progressives, don't have much in the way of effective advocates on cable.

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    Replies
    1. Why would we? The megaphones on cable are for the corporations, not us.

      Delete
  7. Loser conservative white Bob rails against a free press to defend his god Trump. Pathetic.

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    Replies
    1. "the most disordered person who ever sought the office"

      Delete
  8. Somerby says: "We arranged for our defeat in a hundred thousand "

    No, we didn't. We arranged our victory and Hillary won the popular vote by over 3 million. We did not arrange for Russia to hack the election, set loose bots on Facebook, collude with Trump, hack Podesta and share info with Assange and WikiLeaks, and we did not set Comey loose to attack Clinton in the final days. None of us did any of that.

    Why does Somerby keep insisting that this was a fair election? It was stolen. Stealing an election like this is a crime and Trump and his kin will go to jail for it. Unfortunately, Clinton will not become president despite being elected, so this situation will remain a tragedy for the nation.

    Is Bob weeping? I don't think so. That makes him a special kind of scum.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Podesta emails, hm. Were they hacked - or leaked? Big difference. However, they ended up proving that the DNC is corrupt, didn't they.

      Keep on defending boy. But it won't do any good. And stop the popular vote nonsense. The Pres is elected by the Electoral college. Until you change that, who really gives a fig about the popular vote.

      Makes you a sort of ignorant scum.

      Leroy

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    2. "...who really gives a fig about the popular vote[?]"

      Trump does, you clueless moron.

      Delete
  9. Who knew Rachel Maddow's smugness, and not treason by a Presidential administration, would finally end the great American experiment?
    Bob Somerby. That's who.

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  10. Bob, OTOH, We the People knew Trump was going to win. How?

    Google searches: https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2017/jul/09/everybody-lies-how-google-reveals-darkest-secrets-seth-stephens-davidowitz

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  11. With this post, Bob has gone full Trump apologist. Not that he had far to go.

    First, Bob spends months attacking Maddow and the NYT and the WaPo over the Russia story, mostly nitpicking over minor issues.

    Now that a big break has occurred in the story (thanks to the news organizations that he routinely attacks), he goes into Trumptard mode -- Hillary and Ukraine ! Even if collusion is true, who cares !

    Bob should stop his frequent use of the phrase 'We liberals' and instead say 'We TrumpTards' from now on.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Transcript of Trumptard (no apology from Anonymous for offending anyone by using that formulation, naturally!) offering full apology for Trump:

      "He is the most disordered person who ever sought the office."

      Delete
    2. Bob may or may not believe Trump is the most disordered person who holds the office. What we do know is that Bob thinks it's far, far more important to attack anyone in the media who is criticizing Trump rather than to, you know, criticize Trump. When the NYTimes does solid investigative reporting, when Maddow actually does a good show pointing out the many lies and inconsistencies of the administration, Bob thinks it's absolutely crucial that he attack them and nitpick. And now resort to Trumpling talking points (Ukraine !).

      Trumptard is as Trumptard does. So I have no hesitation calling Bob a Trumptard. An apology is indeed justified -- from Bob for his numerous attacks on liberals.

      Delete
  12. Bob, you never go full Trumptard!

    I can't visit this blog any longer. After 14 years, I bid adieu. Before I go, fuck you Bob, you self righteous prick. Blasting cable hosts all day doesn't give you a spine. Standing up for your country does in the face of treason. I've seen more backbone from a chocolate éclair.

    Bye everyone, enjoy this Russian hooker peeing in your morning coffee.

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    Replies
    1. Look on the bright side:

      You went out with dignity!

      Delete
    2. Wait a minute. All this time, Bob Somerby was David in Cal?
      Nice plot twist to end your blog, Bob. Performance art at it's best. Kudos to you, sir.

      Delete
    3. Let me ask you a very important question: If you find yourself crammed into a crowded elevator and you suddenly realize a rather foul odor, do you:

      a) say nothing
      b) deny any involvement
      c) blame it on the person to your left
      d) claim complete responsibility, even if it wasn't yours

      If you chose d, then you should check out my favorite website, mrmethane.com. You will be most pleased. Thank you.

      Delete
    4. "I bid adieu".

      That'll be the day.

      Quit lying to yourself.

      Delete
    5. "Standing up for your country does in the face of treason."

      Who knew?!?!!

      If only more of us would stand up and "do in the face of treason!"

      But be fair! Many of us actually sit while doing.

      So go ahead, America: Sit down and "do in the face of treason" if that's your thing.

      Delete
  13. Readers may not know this but Bob Somerby was the 3rd roommate with Al Gore and Tommy Lee Jones at Harvard. Bob (as was I) was traumatized by the outrage against Gore by the liberal media in 2000. For many of us, given the consequence to the country (SCOTUS, Iraq, etc) was unforgivable.

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    1. That was 17 years ago. Now we have a President that is much worse than GWB -- a complete liar, infantile, megalomanical. Perhaps Bob should be more concerned about this President than to allow his hatred for the liberal media to turn him into a Trump apologist.

      And as I recollect, his particular hate object Maddow wasn't even on TV at that time.

      Delete
  14. I blame Bob Somerby for not hiring better "journalists" in the MSM.
    All Bob has to do is hire journalists who are better. 17 years of this ranting about it being liberals fault, yet Bob has hired zero competent journalists in the MSM. What are you waiting for, Bob?

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  15. 'Absent further revelations, good luck selling that particular po'k to a wide swath of the people.'

    Of course, if it were up to Bob, there would be no further revelations. Indeed, none of these revelations would have happened. The press's time this year would have been better spent flagellating itself over it's treatment of Al gore in 2000. After all, what happened 17 years back is far more important than what's happening today.

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