From the GREAT STATE OF MAINE…
Four. Not three. Not five. Not ten. I said four.
Make a note to give Bill Murray FDR a wink and a toast this Sunday. On January 6, 1941, Roosevelt gave his famous "Four Freedoms" State of the Union speech. (You can read it and hear it via the FDR Library). While the oft-cited quartet---of speech, of religion, from want and from fear---is timeless, so too is this part of his address, which basically is the progressive playbook. Here's what the dirty effing Hyde Park Hippie bleated:
"The basic things expected by our people of their political and economic systems are simple. They are:
Equality of opportunity for youth and for others.
January 6, 1941
Jobs for those who can work.
Security for those who need it.
The ending of special privilege for the few.
The preservation of civil liberties for all.
The enjoyment of the fruits of scientific progress in a wider and constantly rising standard of living.
These are the simple, the basic things that must never be lost sight of in the turmoil and unbelievable complexity of our modern world. The inner and abiding strength of our economic and political systems is dependent upon the degree to which they fulfill these expectations.
Many subjects connected with our social economy call for immediate improvement. As examples: We should bring more citizens under the coverage of old-age pensions and unemployment insurance. We should widen the opportunities for adequate medical care. We should plan a better system by which persons deserving or needing gainful employment may obtain it."
We hear Eleanor loved it so much she gave her husband the first presidential fist-bump on record. (Sorry, Michelle.)
C'mon down and ice skate in the kiddie pool. Your west coast-friendly edition of Cheers and Jeers starts below the fold... [Swoosh!!] RIGHTNOW! [Gong!!]
Cheers and Jeers for Friday, January 4, 2013
Note: Grumbling about global warming will cease until warming actually occurs. ---Maine Frozen Toes Prevention Committee
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By the Numbers:
Days 'til Inauguration Day and Martin Luther King, Jr. Day: 17
Days 'til the Isthmus Beer and Cheese Festival in Madison, Wisconsin: 15
Estimated U.S. Population growth in 2012: 2.3 million (0.75%)
Current U.S. population: 313.9 million
(Source: Census Bureau)
Number of women in the 113th Congress: 101
Number of women in the Senate, a record: 20
Number of state delegations to Congress besides the current one from New Hampshire that have been all-female: 0
(Source: MSNBC)
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Puppy Pic of the Day: Farewell, Patti Page…
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CHEERS and JEERS to maintaining altitude…but only 10 feet off the ground. Fresh jobs numbers today from the Bureau of People Who Piss Off Jack Welch. take a look:
The bad news: the rate at which people are unemployed is still stuck at 7.8 percent. The good news: one of them is still Mitt Romney.
CHEERS to belonging to a club that would have me as a member. I got my DNC membership card in the mail this week! #0939123246---Woodrow Wilson's old number! It entitles me to hold it while I breathe, to jimmy locks, and to arrest people for any reason whatsoever. Plus, now I can add it to the hundred other DNC membership cards I've gotten over the past 12 months and use them to make a replica of the White House. I'd like to thank each and every dead tree that made it all possible.
CHEERS to angry birds. The cops may be able to arrest your sorry ass if you're peacefully protesting income inequality and war and sin and pestilence (not necessarily in that order), but apparently they can't touch you if you communicate your displeasure with them through a time-honored gesture:
In a decision that may unsettle many law enforcement officers, a U.S. appeals court ruled Thursday that a federal judge erred in dismissing a civil rights lawsuit filed against police by a Montgomery County man who claims he was wrongfully arrested after giving the middle finger to a cop six years ago.
The Second Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals said the "ancient gesture of insult" was not enough for police to stop the vehicle in which the man was a passenger and that the federal lawsuit, which alleges wrongful arrest and malicious prosecution, should go to trial.
This case is significant for two very important reasons: 1) Civil liberties and 2) It gives me a legitimate reason to post a middle finger salute in C&J on account of it's journalism:
Take note, Pulitzer committee. I worked damn hard to Google that.
CHEERS to 84,904 square miles of madcap fun. Happy 117th Birthday to Utah---aka the "Beehive Hairdo State"---which entered the Union on January 4th, 1896. The state animal is the Rocky Mountain Elk. The state bird is, oddly, the California Sea Gull. The state fossil: Orrin Hatch.
CHEERS to home vegetation. I'm thinking of collapsing on the couch tomorrow and not moving for at least 24 hours. Y'know, like any other Saturday in our house. Some TV ideas: the most notable new DVD release this week is the time-travel actioner Looper, and I also recommend Seth MacFarlane's hilarious Ted if you haven't seen it. The NFL post-season schedule is here---I'll be rooting for the team that goes on to get beat by the Patriots in the Super Bowl. On 60 Minutes: the state of the newspaper industry and the hairy legs of the Barcelona soccer team. Oh, and Downton Abbey makes its hoity-toity return Sunday night.
On Bill Moyers & Company (link): Anthony Leiserowitz, director of the Yale Project on Climate Change Communication, on what Obama should say about climate change during his Satte of the Union. Here are your links to Up! With Chris Hayes (Oliver Stone is on tomorrow, which should be interesting) and Melissa Harris-Perry. And here's your Sunday morning lineup. For shits and giggles, let's see how many righties and lefties they've booked this weekend (numbers won’t match up perfectly because middle-of-the-roaders won’t be counted):
Meet the Press: Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY Jelly Ha Ha Ha); the comedy stylings of Simpson & Bowles; roundtable with Maine's new Senator Angus King ("The Mustache of Independence"), Newt Gingrich, Chuck Todd, Rep. Xavier Becerra (D-CA), Carly Fiorina (R-Demon Sheep Country) and E.J. Dionne. Righty/Leftie Index: 5/3
Mitch McConnell will be
on three Sunday shows.
This Week: Mitch McConnell; Sen. Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND); Reps. Joaquín Castro (D-TX) and Tom Cotton (R-AR); roundtable with George Will, Greta Van Susteren (again: why does ABC have a Fox News host on when it never works the other way around???), Gwen Ifill, Robert Reich, and ABC's Jonathan Karl who is my new hero because he re-tweeted one of my tweets today!!!! Righty/Leftie Index: 4/3
Face the Nation: Mitch McConnell; Nancy Pelosi; Incoming Sens. Jeff Flake (R-AZ) and Chris Murphy (D-CT); former Reps. Rick Nolan (D-MN), Matt Salmon (R-AZ) and Mike Kelly (R-PA). Righty/Leftie Index: 4/3
CNN's State of the Union: Sens. Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Lindsey Graham (R-Fussyville); Senator Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND) and Rep. Richard Hudson (R-NC); roundtable with Neera Tanden from the Center for American Progress, right-leaning economist Stephen Moore, CNN's Dana Bash and Jackie Calmes (NYT). Righty/Leftie Index: 2/2
Fox GOP Talking Points Sunday: Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX); Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH) vs. Rep. Chris Van Hollen, (D-MD); roundtable with Brit Hume, Bill Kristol, Charles Lane and Nina Easton. Righty/Leftie Index: 4/1
Final tally: 19 righties and 12 lefties. Or, as I call it: intellectual parity.
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Five years ago in C&J: January 4, 2008
CHEERS to the biggest winner. Last night's Iowa Caucus was a major test for an African-American who was unproven on the national stage of American presidential politics. Many dismissed the campaign as a fool's errand. Others crowed about the unstoppable Clinton juggernaut. But in the end, the voters spoke loud and clear: "You're damn right Oprah matters." The skinny guy with the funny name she was stumpin' for did okay, too.
JEERS to idle hands. Oh, here's another thing President Bush will be remembered for: a sucky record on jobs. The latest "unambiguously negative" numbers: only 18,000 jobs created in December and an increase in the unemployment rate. Not that this'll help much, but this crisp five-dollar bill is yours if you'll come over and shovel the sidewalk.
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And just one more…
JEERS to fulfilling our expectations. Like clockwork, the annual New Year's greeting for the 99% arrives via Boehner Post:
Dear Americans Who Are Not Rich Enough,
Can't afford health care? Screw you.
Natural disaster destroyed your home, hope and dreams? Tough.
Want the food you eat to be safe? How quaint.
Want Social Security to be preserved? Good luck.
In foreclosure hell? La la la we can't hear you!
Concerned about the environment? Crybaby.
Want stronger unions? Fat chance, commie.
Unemployment benefits running out? Quit whining.
Muslim? Latino? Foreigners!
Gay? Degenerate!
Black? Moocher blah person!
Looking for fresh new ideas? Move to Scandinavia.
Think you can count on us to stimulate job growth? Hell no you can't!
Reproductive freedom? We own your hoo-hah, darlin'.
Don’t want the government to default on its debt? Too bad!
Wish we'd put America's interests above our party's? Keep dreaming.
Hate, Hugs and Freedom Fries,
Your Republican House Majority
Celebrating Our Third Consecutive Year of Partying Like It's 1899
Why, I do believe they're getting soft in their old age.
Have a great weekend. Floor's open...What are you cheering and jeering about today?
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