Garling Gauge

Ron Paul Driving Sean Hannity Crazy

Debate polls drive Sean Hannity crazy.

With Rep. Ron Paul consistently topping online Republican presidential debate polls and the latest FOX GOP debate cell-phone poll (where it was impossible to vote twice), Sean Hannity is irked to say the least.

Sean Hannity really doesn’t like Ron Paul.

The crux of Hannity’s dislike appears to stems from Paul citing government sources that indicate U.S. foreign policy as a major contributor to Middle East anger against America, and thus, is partially to blame for the 9/11, 2001 attacks.

How Hannity does not understand this simple notion defies explanation.

Well, perhaps it doesn’t. Hannity appears to view the world through an emotionally defensive lens. While Paul’s arguments tend to be rooted in history, government reports, and logic, Hannity counters those claims with an ‘us vs. them’ mentality, believing the United States is incapable of wrong so long as we’re under threat of attack.

The 9/11 attacks were murderous and evil, and it is important to understand why people would take such an action. Anyone who’s even seen a police drama on television understands that murder investigators seek to understand the motive.

For Hannity, the United States of America is an innocent victim.

For Paul, the United States of America needs to understand and be responsible for its own actions.

Fox News commentator Sean Hannity sounds like a child arguing with his parents for getting in trouble for his own bad behavior.

In his own words, Sean Hannity has proved himself to be naive, ill-informed, and ridiculous. It’s sad that someone with as large of a microphone (and ego) could wrap himself in such a large a shroud of ignorance, shunning logic, history, and rationality. Hannity argues emotion against reason, nationalism over global responsibility.

Throughout history every great world power has weakened and been succeeded by another. Those believing in their own superiority and taking a defensive stance against the world have fallen faster. With America’s formidable preeminence in the world, we should not lean on our missiles and fears to maintain our position. Now is the time for reflection, to recognize our misdoings, rectify wrongs, build bridges with countries that have harbored hostilities, and expand our global alliances. There is no better time than while we hold this lofty position.

Wielding the world’s greatest arsenal while playing the victim is pathetic.

The people of the United States are not responsible for the evil attacks on September 11, 2001, but we are responsible for our government cultivating and fomenting an environment that breeds hostility towards this nation. We reap what we sow.

Ron Paul and many Democrats see this. Sean Hannity refuses to.

Arrogance is a powerful weapon of self-destruction.

America needs a president with a mature perspective that can bring out the true strength of this nation, not a person who plays towards our fears and emotional insecurities. Sean Hannity wants a daddy, America needs a leader.

Results from FOX GOP debate

Military personnel contribute to Ron Paul over all other presidential candidates

Sean Hannity vs. Ron Paul Supporters

Sean Hannity says CIA reports and 9/11 Commission Report are a conspiracies:

Hannity: Mitzy, hi.

Mitzy: Hi Mr. Hannity. I was calling to let you know that I agree completely with everything you’ve said regarding amnesty today and the rule of law. However that only makes me all the more confused as to why it is you’re smearing Ron Paul and trying to silence him.

Hannity: I’m not trying to silence Ron Paul I put him on Hannity and Colmes after the debate the other night. I just had a disagreement. I find his remarks offensive. I find him totally and completely outrageous and wrong. I think he’s ill-informed. Look here’s what he said:

Paul [recording]: They’re attacking us because we’ve been over there. We’ve been bombing Iraq for ten years.

Hannity: I’m sorry I find his analysis naive, ill-informed, and frankly ridiculous. I’m not trying to silence him, I put him on TV that night.

Mitzy: Well his comments come directly from the CIA’s own comments and the 9/11 commission report.

Hannity: Listen, listen, go believe whatever conspiracy you want. I’m not going to sit here and waste time on the air arguing with you. You believe that…let me tell you something. You got to understand this enemy is coming here. They’ve dedicated their lives to destroying us. And if you don’t get that and Ron Paul doesn’t get that I just gently disagree.

After 2nd Republican debate

Mike Huckabee plays to emotions, Ron Paul plays to common sense.
Summary: Paul: Let’s fix our mistake. Huckabee: It’s dishonorable to fix our mistake

Paul with Hannity after FOX GOP Debate

Ron Paul and a younger version of Sean Hannity

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Categories: Ron Paul, 2008 Election, Politics, Republicans

• Ron Paul Hurt By Chuck Hagel Drop Out
• Elizabeth Kucinich on Ron Paul & Dennis Kucinich as Running Mates
• The Odd Couple: Bill Maher + Tucker Carlson Back Ron Paul for GOP
• Another Ignorant President?
• Strippers for Ron Paul, Adult Entertainment for Hillary
• Eschewing the Anti-Ostrich
• Ask Hannity to apologize for lying here.

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/30/61523325_28d27c1f73.jpg
http://images.salon.com/news/feature/2007/06/02/ron_paul/story.jpg

FOX GOP Debate ‘Firsts’ 9/5/7

Huffingtonpost.com image

Thompson skips debate but gets the first question

The Republicans really must be desperate for former Sen. Fred Thompson. The first question to the GOP presidential candidates was about Fred Thompson not choosing to participate in the FOX GOP debate.

John McCain on Fred Thompson not participating in the debate:

“Maybe we’re up past his bedtime.”

Great and ironic line from the elder McCain.

FOX GOP DEBATE FIRSTS

• First to put down Democrats: Giuliani
• First to get a laugh from the audience: McCain
• First to go over alloted response time: Giuliani
• First to suggest FedEx & UPS should be outsourced to control border security: Huckabee
• First to attack the other Republican presidential candidates: Tancredo (Looking more like Gravel every debate)
• 9:20 EST
• First to go over alloted response time twice: Giuliani
• First to wear an ugly tie: Wendell Goler (FOX NEWS)
• First to sport an afro at a Republican presidential debate: Brownback
• First to mention ‘family values’: Brownback
• First to say Sen. Larry Craig should resign: Hunter
• First to mention his dad: Hunter
• First to get a question about abortion: Romney (no surprise there)
• QUOTE: “One of the things I accomplished as the Mayor of New York was the impossible”: Giuliani
• First to say a host was quoting him incorrectly: Paul
• 9:33 EST
• Best line of the night thus far, in response to the question if gay marriage be illegal: “Absolutely not. We’re the State of live free or die and people should be able to marry the person they love.” –Wendy, Young’s Restaurant patron
• First to decline an opportunity to confront an opponent: McCain (refusing to back up statements against Giuliani)
• QUOTE: “I know conflict, I know war”: McCain
• QUOTE: “I’m not running on what I did on September 11″: Giuliani
• First to say the word ‘apple’: Giuliani
• First to go over his alloted response time thrice: Giuliani
• First to get Hillary Clinton mentioned in a question to him and not take an opportunity to bash her: Romney
• First to argue with another candidate: McCain (telling Romney the ‘Surge’ is working, not apparently working, but is working)
• First to say the word ‘honor’: McCain
• 9:45 EST
• First to elicit equally strong boos and cheers: Paul
• First to talk about himself as a child: Huckabee
• First to compare McCain and ‘honor’: Huckabee
• First to say we broke Iraq: Huckabee
• First candidates to have a real debate: Paul & Huckabee

Summary: Paul: Let’s fix our mistake. Huckabee: It’s dishonorable to fix our mistake

• First to say ‘Hallelujah’: Hunter
• First to say ‘victory’: Hunter
• First to say the war is with ‘radical Islam’ and not in Iraq: Tancredo
• First to say he didn’t believe the obvious that the 9/11 attacks had to do with U.S. troops being in Saudi Arabia: Tancredo
• First to think it: Giuliani
• First to get called out for saying something offensive by a Young’s Restaurant patron: Romney (comparing his son’s patriotism in getting him elected to U.S. military troops)
• 10:00 EST
• First to say the most important civil liberty is the right to be kept alive: Romney
• First to say water boarding isn’t torture: Tancredo

• First to say ‘liberal media’: Giuliani
• First to mention honey glazed chicken: Hunter
• First to say no one has ever been murdered in Guantanamo: Hunter (wth?)
• First to mention a hay field: Brownback
• First to remind the Garling Gauge of ‘Droopy Dog’: McCain

• First to say ‘taxed to the max’: Brownback
• First to say the word ‘23′: Giuliani
• First to mention former Sen. John Edwards: Romney
• First to say the average American is more afraid of an IRS audit than getting mugged: Huckabee
• First to get laughed about by other candidates: Paul
• First to be uncertain if a question was directed towards him: Giuliani
• First to be accused by a Young’s Restaurant patron of not having family values: Giuliani
• First to say people are writing books about him: Giuliani
• 10:24 EST
• First to mention the Air Force: Paul
• First to say the word ‘button’: Tancredo
• First to completely fumble a question about Iran: Tancredo (sounding like Miss S.C. Teen USA)

What Tancredo sounded like

• First to say ‘Allah’: Brownback
• First to quote another candidate: Giuliani (quoting McCain)
• First to mention Ronald Reagan: Giuliani (1.5 hours into the debate. Amazing!)
• First to say good Democrats love America: Romney (name a Democrat that doesn’t)

End Debate

• First to be interviewed by Sean Hannity: Giuliani
• First place debate winner in the FOX News cell phone poll: Paul

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• More Debate Firsts.
• More on 2008 Election, Politics

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http://tinyurl.com/2mc46x
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/huff-wires/20070905/republicans-debate/

Fox News Shunned Again, Now By Angelina Jolie

Angelina Jolie bans FOX News Channel from movie premiere

Fox News has been shunned again, this time by Angelina Jolie. In Roger Friedman’s June 14, 2007 article on FOXNews.com, Angelina Jolie’s Freedom of Press, on Her Terms, Friedman writes that Jolie is hypocritical in banning Fox News from the premiere of her new movie concerning the freedom of the press.

From the article:

• Jolie told Paramount Pictures publicists to ban FOX News Channel and all FOX News affiliates from covering the ‘Mighty Heart’ premiere on the red carpet. It was only with the intervention of mortified Paramount staff that an FNC camera crew was allowed to be present.

From the perspective of Fox News, Friedman’s commentary is understandable.

From a broader perspective, Friedman just doesn’t get it.

The reputation of Fox News as a legitimate source of news is eroding. Elected by a majority of Americans, Democrats refuse to participate in a presidential debate on the Fox Television Network even when sponsored by the Congressional Black Caucus.

Just before writing this post, typing in the terms fox news bias on Google elicited the following: Results 1 - 10 of about 1,220,000 shamefully beating out the other major cable news channels, CNN and MSNBC.

The shunning of Fox News is not a new occurrence. In 2004 Robert Greenwald created the documentary film, Outfoxed: Rupert Murdoch’s War on Journalism. [website, Wikipedia entry]

Outfoxed trailer

Obvious to most, Fox News clearly has a history of bias. Roger Friedman ends his silly article in the following way:

• It’s a little unclear how Mariane Pearl, whom Jolie plays in “A Mighty Heart,” feels about her portrayer’s position on freedom of press for some, but not all. On Wednesday, I spoke to Jeff Julliard, the editorial director of Reporters Without Borders in Paris.

• “Paparazzi should be allowed to do their job,” he said, adding that he condemned Jolie’s banning of FOX News and actions taken on her behalf in Namibia.

[Plaudits to Fox for actually talking to someone in France (I thought they wrote them off)]

Perhaps Jeff Julliard is right. If Fox News changed its name to Fox Paparazzi or Fox Entertainment, people might believe the channel is true to what it projects.

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Shunned By Democrats, Egomania Envelops Fox News

Shunned By Democrats, Egomania Envelops Fox News

Colmes, Hannity, Hewitt, & Russert decry those standing on principle

Appearing on the June 13, 2007 Fox News show Hannity and Colmes, radio talk show host Hugh Hewitt claimed that “the Democratic party is the anti-free speech party” because they won’t debate on the Fox News channel.

Wow.

To the thoughtful and reflective, Republican logic is often a bit baffling as one can never tell if their pundits are being forthright in their statements or fabricating outlandish spin. Often what they say is so out there that it is difficult to believe they are telling the truth, and if they are, it is difficult to believe that people actually think that way.

Saldy, Tim Russert, moderator of Meet the Press also appeared with Hannity and Colmes that day falsely suggesting that Democrats were scared to participate with Fox News, as opposed to refusing to on principle. “It’s a TV show” he said, “If you can’t handle TV questions, how you gonna stand up to Iran and North Korea and the rest of the world?”

Did the Bush administration refuse to talk to Iran because they “can’t handle” it?

In amusement Alan Colmes said, “That’s right. How you gonna stand up to Al Qaeda and the terrorists if you can’t face little Sean Hannity or little Alan Colmes?”

Russert responded with an Amen.

(roll your eyes in disgust if you have to)

Turning down the opportunity to reach a massive audience, Democratic presidential candidates are securing their base of support by standing up to the overtly bias Fox News channel on principle.

Anyone believing the top tier Democrat presidential candidates refuse to entertain Fox News for any reason other than principle and politics are laughably full of themselves.

Right now, Fox News just isn’t that important. Egomaniacs? Yes. Important? No.

Don’t fret little Foxes, you can book them on your shows after the Primary.

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Democratic Party Logo

Noel Shepard & Demonstrative Republican Hate

Dennis Miller on Fox News ‘1/2 Hour News Hour’, June 10, 2007

Dennis Miller exposes the true Republican heart

Noel Shepard of NewsBusters and American Thinker shame drove home the power of Republican hate in his June 11, 2007 blog entry, Dennis Miller Tears Sen. Harry Reid Apart on FCN’s ‘1/2 Hour News Hour’.

Aside from straining readers’ eyes with the obnoxious title length, Noel Shepard’s blog entry cheers and salutes some of the most vitriol, libelous, and childishly hateful remarks made on television.

While the sophomoric remarks of Dennis Miller are certainly beyond reproach, Noel Shepard’s condoning and disseminating the rebuke of Sen. Harry Reid demonstrates that Dennis Miller is not alone in his opinion.

This exposes the heart of Republican nature: To hate what they disagree with.

Liberals are often assailed for their strong language when disagreeing with Republicans–the Bush administration in particular–but never have I heard such spewing partisan venom on either side of the aisle. Let’s see if Republicans denounce Dennis Miller (don’t hold your breath).

Dennis Miller speaks for himself, but Fox News airing it along with Noel Shepard’s commentary speak for the conservative masses, demonstrating that others share and rally around this type of hate.

Perhaps the ability to hate lies in the heart of everyone, but it’s worn on the sleeve of the Republican Party.

It is no surprise that Noel Shepard writes for NewsBusters. Here is a description taken from their webpage:

In August of 2005, with the guidance of Matthew and Greg Sheffield, the creators of RatherBiased.com, the MRC launched the NewsBusters blog to provide immediate exposure of liberal media bias, insightful analysis, constructive criticism and timely corrections to news media reporting.

Yes, you read that right. The website created to expose media bias was started by the creators of a website called “RatherBiased.com“. Go figure.

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Conservative Children’s Books Combat Evil

The New Witch Hunt: Eric Jackson vs. The Rainbow Fish

Broadcast on Fox News, June 8, 2007, conservative publisher and president of World Ahead Media, Eric M. Jackson asserted that there is a “liberal bias” in children’s books. The poor sap. In particular he noted that the popular award-winning children’s book The Rainbow Fish by Marcus Pfister promotes socialism.

Really? The fish book? Eric Jackson truly believes that children will deduce socialism is the moral of the story? Not perhaps, oh you know…sharing?

Sigh.

Let me get this straight. Conservatives see a liberal bias in higher education, the mainstream media, entertainment, and now children’s books?

If true, then conservatives are out of step with those with the most knowledge, the professionals observing and documenting our world, those in tune with what we enjoy, and authors teaching our children important lessons in life.

That leaves conservatives in the margins of those with lesser education, a skewed perception of the world, a failure to delight others, and bad parenting. Nice company there.

Back to the fish.

Wikipedia describes The Rainbow Fish plot in the following way:

The story revolves around the Rainbow Fish, who, because he is covered in beautiful shiny scales, feels that he is better than all the other fish and therefore will not play with them. When one small fish asks the Rainbow Fish for one of his scales, he refuses. The other fish refuse to talk to him after this and so, desperate, the Rainbow Fish visits the wise female octopus, who advises him to give away his scales to the other fish.

When he once again encounters the small fish, the Rainbow Fish gives him one of his precious scales and is soon surrounded by other fish requesting scales. Eventually, the Rainbow Fish has only one shiny scale left, but he is no longer vain. He spends his days playing happily with the other fish.

Oh wait, that’s right, Wikipedia–the free online encyclopedia that allows anyone to edit it thus forcing users to arrive at a consensus–ALSO has a liberal slant, demonstrated by the need for a Conservapedia.

Sigh again.

One of the formative lessons people are taught is to share. Those who interpret this book as promoting socialism over sharing have a craven view of egalitarianism and life’s early lessons. If anyone needed a second childhood it would be Eric Jackson.

Oh by the way, here is the World Ahead Publishing mission as described on their website:

Our mission is to publish provocative and entertaining books for general audiences that make the case that capitalism and free markets are critical for preserving liberty and combating the spread of evil.

Yes, you read that right, they publish children’s books with a decisive conservative slant in an attempt to combat evil.

And the witch hunt continues.

Stay vigilant conservatives! The Very Hungry Caterpillar could be gnawing away at your ‘American Values’ next.

See also: Doug Giles and the Twelfth Commandment

• Read The Rainbow Fish for yourself
• Look inside the book
• Cover image from Amazo
• The Very Hungry Caterpillar image
• http://www.freedigitalphotos.net

Fox News Uses Racial Slur Against Former Democrat

Brit Hume calls John Glenn a ‘Spearchucker’

Speaking on Fox News Sunday, Brit Hume, Fox News Washington Managing Editor, called departed Senator John Glenn (D-Ohio) “a partisan spearchucker”.

Mr. Hume used the racial epithet in reference to the beloved Senator and astronaut while speaking about the false start of a 1997 campaign finance investigation, then chaired by potential 2008 Republican presidential candidate Fred Thompson.

The other panelists–Nina Easton of Fortune Magazine, Juan Williams of National Public Radio, Bill Kristol of the Weekly Standard, and moderator Chris Wallace–let the comment slip by without a word.

The Urban Dictionary defines a spear chucker in the following way:

http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=spear+chucker

1. A derogatory phrase for a black male used in reference to his primitive abilities to hunt animals with a long sharpened object.

2. A n*****.

That type of language has no place on television or in a civil debate. Without apology, Fox News rears its bigoted head once again.

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See also

Crooks and Liars post

April 7, 1997 National Review article by Rich Lowry concerning the federal investigation and Fred Thompson. Interesting quote snippet:

“Thompson, the hulking 54-year-old former actor who looks the part of a President and wants to play one in real life…”