There is only thing to say about the

Republican Presidential commercial debate held on June 13th in New Hampshire:I think the GOP overpaid for the commercial debate time!

There is no doubt that was not a real debate, but yes, an actual commercial for the Republican Tea Party. They were not attempting to provide Americans a chance to pick a Republican candidate but instead providing a forum by which several Republicans (whether they've actually announced their candidacy or not) could get their - for the most part - UNITED message out, on a major news network, and without having to use their campaign dollars to do it.

BTW: I say "for the most part" because Ron Paul was the only Republican old enough and ornery enough to tell the Tea Party to fuck off when it comes to some of his views, such as gay marriage. In his world, the government has no right to impose its (meaning the Republican Right) views on marriage on him and he would never impose his views of marriage on others. Like Lawrence O'Donnell, I agree that the longest Mr. Paul remains in the race, at least some truths will get out there.

So back to the debate:

In a word, it was bullshit.

Gosh, it feels good to write, 'bullshit' and know that no one can censor me by bleeping out the 'shit' part like they do on TV. *rolls eyes*

Some of the clues to its being nothing more than a commercial could be the chosen location; St. Anselm College - a private (as in CHARTER) catholic school. Why is that proof? Well, it's well known that one of the Tea Party Republican Party's big pushes is privatizing our education system (in other words, Charter schools). And truth be disclosed, they'd consider it a double win if all those Charter schools were Christian schools (okay, we know that's ludicrous but Right wing religious zealots can always dream...and they do)


Another clue was in Tim Pawlenty. A good many people, including the left wingers (of which I'm one, but one who isn't in agreement) saw Pawlenty's pale, lackluster response to why he didn't use "Obamy Care"  during the debate - as he'd bravely done the previous Sunday - as a "Just in case" move (as in, "...just in case Romney wins the nomination and then I could be his VP candidate") but come on, it wasn't a real debate, therefore, the gloves were on all night. If you play the debate (highlight 'debate' for a link to a video of the evening) over and over again, you'll see there's very little in-fighting, very few disagreements - but loads of head nodding and the usual repetitive, pedantic Tea Party Republican rhetoric regarding everything from "Obama Care" (they'll all repeal it); the National Deficit (they'll all cut taxes in spite of the fact that we're at the lowest tax rates since the 50's); and yes, each in their own way (a way that sounded oddly similar) would put DADT back into effect. They're also all in favor of more tax cuts for the rich, and all believe this will fix the deficit (in spite of overwhelming evidence to the contrary). As for the lone female, well, it was obvious that Michelle Bachman received the much-wanted, winning tea bag back stage, because she's the one who won the right to say this brilliant *rolls eyes* statement:  

"Every time the liberals get into office, they pass an omnibus bill of big spending projects. What we need to do is pass the mother of all repeal bills, but it's the repeal bill that will get a job killing regulations. And I would begin with the EPA, because there is no other agency like the EPA. It should really be renamed the job-killing organization of America."

Oh, yeah, Michelle, damn that EPA and its stopping pollution by actually investigating huge corporations who have been poisoning us for years. *rolls eyes again - something I did throughout the commercial debate*.

So Michelle, what were you really saying? Were you saying that health be damned, environment be damned, cancer be damned in children, because thanks to the EPA, big business sent their business to third world countries where they can do ANYTHING they want in order to get their products made? Were you saying that now, those businesses can pay as little as they want to their slaves employees and pollute to their heart's content? And all because of the evil EPA? Is that what you meant? Did you really mean that God forbid those businesses should stay here and CLEAN UP THEIR ACT and then do their business in a responsible manner? Sure, of course, why do the responsible thing? Instead, we'll just kill the EPA instead.

"Go Michelle," she said without any enthusiasm whatsoever. "Go soak your head in an educational bucket," she added with great enthusiasm.

As you can see, there's a good reason why Michelle is the chairman of the Tea Party Caucus in the House of Representatives.


In conclusion, any real discussion of who won or lost that particular debate is simply wasted words because no one wins or loses in a commercial - it's only later, like January, 2013, when we're watching either a Democrat or Republican taking the oath of office, that we'll know if this commercial worked.

Republican Americans, it's up to you now. Are you going to allow the rich, right wing control your representatives to the point that they don't dare speak up and stand for their real politics? Are you going to continue to vote against your own best interests because you love the rhetoric, or are you going to stand up and say "NO" to the Tea Party, a movement that's nothing more than a facade which uses all the right words but in reality (as the residents of Wisconsin and other states with new Republican Governors), intends to send us all back to a time before people CARED about each other.

WeinerGate: There is no double standard - there is only one standard

Just finished watching The Rachel Maddow Show - always watch her, idolize her and would dearly love to be her BFF. *g*  Tonight, however, I found myself wishing I could sit with her and suggest she might be so focused on the refusal of the Republican Party to react appropriately when faced with their sexual scandals (like calling for resignations?) that she's viewing it as a 'double standard' - and thus wrong - when the Democratic Party calls for Congressman Anthony Weiner's resignation.

Rachel, Rachel, Rachel, my dear wishful BFF, maybe instead of asking why the Democrats are reacting correctly regarding Weiner's actions, you should be asking why the Republicans aren't doing the same with their own scandals. Wouldn't that be the better road to take? For all of us?

Shouldn't we be heaping praise on Democrats for standing by appropriate behavioral standards for government officials even while the Republicans rally 'round their people, refusing to call them out for their sexual (and often illegal) escapades? Isn't that the way to go rather than asking why the Democrats aren't supporting Weiner while Republicans support their idiots?

Without preaching about Family Values, without setting themselves up for a gigantic fall (God forbid President Obama should have any hidden, titillating jpegs in cyberspace after his brave response tonight), the Democratic Party managed to let us know that serving America as an elected official means  there are standards of behavior both within the framework of the job and  in their private lives.

That's a message we should be proud to see them send out.

PS: Rachel, I hope this doesn't kick me out of the chance of becoming your BFF. *g*

Now is the time for YOU to SPEAK OUT!

If you're interested in this party, in becoming a part of a true grass roots movement that isn't funded by secret, behind-the-scenes wealthy men with agendas that benefit no one but themselves and their friends, then please follow this blog and comment to this post. We only have until September to register if we're going to be a player in the 2012 elections!

Please read all the previous posts to help in understanding where this party is coming from and, below, a few example issues and where we stand on them.

Thank you!

Issues

1. Education:
I find the best way to tell America how the SOP feels about Education is to use Aaron Sorkin's words, as spoken by Sam Seaborn in an episode of the West Wing (don't laugh *g*):

"Education is the silver bullet. Education is everything. We don't need little changes, we need gigantic, monumental changes. Schools should be palaces. The competition for the best teachers should be fierce. They should be making six-figure salaries. Schools should be incredibly expensive for government and absolutely free of charge to its citizens, just like national defense...."

To further quote Sam: "That's my position. I just haven't figured out how to do it yet."

Figuring out how to do it would be part of our Party plan while also ensuring that Education is NEVER a disposable budget item nor will we support any plan to privatize Education (see #2 below).

2. The Role of Government In Our Lives:
The job of the Federal Government is to uphold the Constitution and protect those items/programs; those inalienable rights that are absolutely necessary to the People and thus should never be done for profit. Here are just three of those items to serve as examples:

Education (naturally, people should always have the right to attend private schools, but if we truly give the education of our children our full attention, the need for private schools would, for the most part, evaporate)
Healthcare (including Medicare, Social Security Disability, Social Security and Medicaid, etc.)
Defense

3. Homosexuality:
The SOP sees no difference between gays or straights and therefore would work hard to ensure that gays are afforded ALL the same rights and benefits of 'straights', including the right to marry.

4. Family Values:
The SOP recognizes that the definition of 'family' as a fluid thing, thus we can not - will not - permit 'family' to be pigeon-holed into a cookie cutter "one man, one woman" formula. The SOP will never support any legislation that attempts to define "a family" in such a limiting manner, let alone create laws around such a definition. By the same token, SOP understands that the family, however it may be represented, is the cornerstone for our future. SOP would support legislation that helps keep families together and aids in providing for them during trying times (disaster relief, extension of unemployment benefits during hard economic times, etc) - and no, this promise does NOT exclude single Americans, who, according to our definition, constitute a 'family' as well.

5. Gun Control:
The SOP will support (and write) legislation that creates a more responsible method of purchasing firearms. We believe in the 'right to bear arms' but also understand that our Founding Fathers could never have imagined a world where those arms would be automatic to the degree that one lone gunman could fire off a multitude of bullets in seconds - or literally spray bullets into an innocent group of people. They probably would have found no reason to own a semi-automatic unless in the military or law enforcement and would have been appalled at the easy manner in which assault weapons can be purchased and altered to be even more powerful.

The SOP supports changing the 'gun show' laws which, currently, allow the purchase of any weapon without a background check or even adequate ID. The rules for purchasing a weapon at a gun show should be the same as at a shop that sells guns.

We have the right to protect ourselves, of that, there is no doubt. But at some point, the SOP has to say STOP THE MADNESS.

6. Abortion:
Simply put, the SOP supports the right of women to choose. That said, we do have concerns regarding late term abortions unless the life of the woman is in danger. To be honest, this is an area of deep concern for many reasons, thus the SOP does not take it lightly. Even as we understand the complexity of this issue, we must, at this time, state that we will never support any legislation that prohibits doctors from performing abortions or women from having them. We will strongly support heavier penalties for those who would threaten, harass, stalk, or harm in any way, medical personnel or employees of clinics that perform abortions, or the women who use the clinics. We will also attempt to overturn current laws that refuse Federal funds to hospitals/clinics that perform abortions.
NOTE: The SOP uses the Mayo Clinic's article on the stages of pregnancy.

7. Campaign Reform:
One of the primary goals of the SOP will be to enact radical Campaign Reforms. We believe that money should NOT be the primary factor nor an issue in deciding who is elected. Therefore we will be supporting some rather radical changes. For instance, we do not believe corporations should have been granted 'person' status for the purpose of campaign contributions and will work to repeal that law.

8. Health Care Reform:
The SOP feels that the US is far behind other countries in providing the one thing every American should have access to: OUTSTANDING medical care no matter their economic status and whether it be pre-natal or in our senior years. Today, we're at the mercy of Health Care Providers and the Pharmaceutical companies whose only goal is profit.

Medicine is NOT a business, should not BE a business, because when the dollar enters the equation, the best interests of the patient exit.