Posts Tagged ‘obama administration’

Billy has a fair question and I’m going to answer it now

Posted: May 12, 2010 by datechguy in opinion/news
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I was approving comments today and a fellow named Billy asked what I think is a very fair question:

If “Kagan has to stand or fall on her record,” why has every single one of your posts about her been related to her sexual orientation?

It’s a good point worth answering, particularly since I’ve claimed that it has non bearing on her qualifications for the court.

First Two people I like, Robert Stacy McCain and Cynthia Yockey wrote stories on the issue. I thought that Cynthia’s was particularly good and I found it a good reason to link to them. I must not be alone in that opinion since she has been invited on two radio shows since her PJ media piece.

Second: Frankly the Elena Kagan nomination story is… well boring. Very important mind you, will affect the country for decades but boring nonetheless. You have a liberal president with a 59-41 Senate nominating a supreme court nominee. Barring a revelation that she was working secretly for the Taliban there is a greater chance of this president naming me to replace her in the solicitor general’s office than there is of her being defeated. If the Senate was closer it might be different but with these numbers, until the hearing it is just a giant yawner.

Third: We have been told over and over again that republicans and conservatives are “homophobic” and the democratic party is the one place that is welcoming for gays, yet during the course of the year this administration has stuck their finger in the eyes of Gay groups on more than one occasion. Thus how the administration handles the first “Gay” nominee to the court is significant.

Fourth: The reactions themselves have been telling. The suggestion that she is a lesbian is being treated by Democrats and the administration as a slur. This totally contradicts the image the democrats have of themselves as Gay friendly. It is that phoniness that is the only interesting story at this point, at least until the hearing start, then you never know.

Finally: It gave me a chance to quote Andrew Sullivan. For reasons that will be clear in just under three weeks I wanted an excuse to link to and quote Sullivan. This story provided it.

I hope this is an adequate answer to your question.

Apparently that was the plan…

Posted: May 12, 2010 by datechguy in media, opinion/news
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Gay rights groups are apparently hitting the WSJ over the softball picture.

Pat Buchanan talked about what playing softball meant, I guess I AM a naif, I’ve never ever heard of Softball=lesbian. This is Massachusetts, Baseball and the Red Sox are practically the 8th sacrament.

Oh and Joe agrees with me, I like the batting stance.

I’m looking at the gay rights groups response over that photo, left and right, I say the various groups were waiting for a chance to be “out-raged”

On the left you hear it:

“Personally I think the newspaper, which happens to have the largest circulation of any in the U.S., might as well have gone with a headline that said, ‘Lesbian or switch-hitter?'” grumbled the Dallas Voice’s John Wright.

On the right they are using the photo to hit the administration

“I fully expect the White House to push back and claim Kagan never played softball and that it’s a smear to insinuate she did,” emailed a founder of the conservative gay group GOProud, Chris Barron.

The response of the WSJ was classic and Morning Joe read it:

“If you turn the photo upside down, reverse the pixilation and simultaneously listen to Abbey Road backwards, while reading Roland Barthes, you will indeed find a very subtle hidden message,” said Journal spokeswoman Ashley Huston.

I don’t know what the Journal pays Ashley but she deserves a bonus, that was awesome.

I still never heard a thing about the Softball stuff, I’ll have to take Pat’s word for it, but then again I didn’t see the Spongebob connection either until a gay friend told me either.

Of course there is this report from Dan Riehl

I must be naif

Posted: May 11, 2010 by datechguy in media, opinion/news
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…but I’ve never heard playing softball being a sign of being a lesbian.

If that is the case then there are a bunch of lesbian leagues in Massachusetts that a bunch of guys are playing on.

But between the politico article and Sullivan’s latest I must conclude that this is all about making it a cause, suddenly we have to support her because those nasty conservatives are making hay of her orientation. That way the White House can be only reluctantly dragged into the conversation.

It would be a good plan, except for the fact that the American Media have lost the ability to con the American People that they once had. Kagan has to stand or fall on her record.

She will likely stand.

Update: I actually like the picture in question it is a good baseball stance and there is nothing more American than a person at the plate.

Hey I tease the Morning Joe folks a lot…

Posted: May 7, 2010 by datechguy in media, opinion/news, war
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…but getting involved in a Navy Seal event was really cool:

The Navy SEAL Warrior Fund began the day at the New York Stock Exchange, where Vice Admiral Joseph Maguire, USN, rang The Opening Bell at the NYSE. VADM Maguire is the deputy director for Strategic Operational Planning at the National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC). Ms. Tracy Tapper, surviving spouse of SOC David Tapper (Killed In Action, Afghanistan, August, 2003) and LT Jason Redman (Wounded In Action, Iraq, September, 2007), accompanied VADM Maguire.

Emotions ran high as dinner hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski of the MSNBC Morning Joe Show emceed the evening events and celebrated the heroes in the audience. Not only did they offer uplifting and inspiring comments about the Navy SEALs and their service to this country, but also offered insights as to the impact the Navy SEAL Warrior Fund has on the families and dependents of Navy SEALs. They both thanked the New York City Police Department Honor Guard for presenting colors prior to the start of the dinner.

One of the reason why I like this crew (Joe, Mike, Barnicle and Willie) is they are the most “normal” of the morning people. They could fit in at any local diner around here.

And the timing is pretty good too because:

A Virginia military jury found a Navy SEAL not guilty Thursday on all charges he punched an Iraqi suspected in the 2004 killings of four U.S. contractors in Fallujah.

“I’m really happy right now,” Matthew McCabe, the Navy SEAL, told Fox News shortly after hearing the outcome of the court martial. “It’s an amazing feeling. I’m on cloud nine right now.”

That makes 3 for 3 acquittals for the seals on this. The administration’s decision to go after these guys was in my opinion disgraceful and political.

Glenn put it best:

They were betting on Navy SEALs wimping out. How smart was that? And now we know to regard future charges with skepticism.

Of course the administration thought so, how many actual Navy Seals or serving soldiers do they actually know outside of formal events?

I’ll bet Joe, Mika and particularly Barnicle could have told them these guys wouldn’t fold.

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