Crazy Right Women, John McCain Homophobe, Vatican Money Laundering

Michelle Goldberg
Stephen Walt
Rami Khouri

"Although the United States is still an attractive society in many respects, one doesn't get the sense that others are dazzled by how competent we are." - Stephen Walt

"Folks, it seems that Al Qaeda's number two man has released yet another tape where he criticizes the entire Pakistan government, calls them incompetent and corrupt, and demands they be thrown out of office. So, it sounds like we have a Tea Party over there, too." – Jay Leno

"Sarah Palin tweeted a warning to Christine O'Donnell that the national media is seeking her destruction. That is ridiculous. If the media wanted to destroy her, they would just douse her with water." – Craig Ferguson

"I like Christine O'Donnell. She's good-looking and she's hilarious. I haven't had this much fun since Cheney was in office." – Craig Ferguson

Michelle Goldberg fleshes out the argument that women have always dominated in right wing politics. She also points out the contradiction of women, who accept the subservient role women have in a conservative traditional family values paradigm, yet use their involvement in politics as a feminist empowerment to break free of that traditional role. Sarah Palin extolls traditional family values, yet her family is anything but traditional. And in the case of the latest tea party darling, Christine O'Donnell: "What’s interesting about O’Donnell is that she heightens the contradictions inherent in right-wing women’s activism to an almost absurd degree. It’s not just that she’s an anti-gay activist with a lesbian sister. She’s also a family-values champion who is single, childless, and sharing a house with a man, Christian rock singer David Hust. She cut her teeth working for an organization that railed against government attempts to foster gender equality, and argued that wives should “graciously submit” to their husbands. Then she took a job at the Intercollegiate Studies Institute, and, feeling herself trapped in a culture that mandated female submission, sued under Title XII of the Civil Rights Act for $6.9 million." You go, girl...

One of the strangest women to enter the political fray is Ariana Huffington. She began her career plagerising someone else's doctoral dissertation and turning it into a book on Pablo Picasso. Then, she entered into a loveless marriage of convenience with Michael Huffington, who was gay. They looked around the nation for a vulnerable GOP Congressional seat, determined that it was in Santa Barbara, then moved there so that Michael could enter the race for that seat. His attempt at carpet-bagging failed, he then came out of the closet and complained about how hard it was cruising at Republican conventions. They divorced, Ariana got lots of money that she never could have made on her own, and she then declared that she was really a liberal and founded the Huffington Post, where she can pontificate to her hearts content, and use it to get invited on the political talk shows. Also, none of her editors or employees will answer my emails when I ask them to include my blog on their Denver area news page, even though I am listed on the Denver Post blogs page where they obtained all of their links in the first place. But I'm not bitter about it...

I'm wondering where we are going as a society. Social fights are breaking out over subjects I thought we had taken care of years ago. Evidently, I was mistaken. Last night, the GOP filibustered bringing the defense appropriations bill onto the floor of the senate because a bunch of old men are homophobic.
They are of a generation of men that were against too much education, having coloreds as friends, and afraid to have their c**ks sucked by queers. I saw the incredibly closeted Jeff Sessions running around in front of his seat, all worked up at the thought of admitting we have gays who are patriotic and want to serve their country. Which is weird and hypocritical, because I've heard many of Jeff's colleagues say what a little c**ks**ker he is...

Afterwards, I watched John McCain throw a tantrum in front of two reporters as if he were a five year old. Here is the transcript of his outburst, taken from Think Progress Wonk Room:

MCCAIN: We do not go out and seek. Regulations are, we do not go out and seek to find out if someone’s sexual orientation. We do not!


ELEVELD: But senator, that’s not...


MCCAIN: That is the fact! That is the fact. Now ma’am, I know the military very well, and I know what’s being done. And what is being done is that they are not seeking out people who are gay. And I don’t care what you say, I know it’s a fact.


ELEVELD: It’s not what I say.


MCCAIN: I dont’ care what you say! And I don’t care what others say. I’ve seen it in action. I’ve seen it in action. I have sons in the military, I know the military very well. So they’re not telling you the truth.


ELEVELD: Senator, just to make sure...


MCCAIN: Just to make sure. We do not go out and seek out and find out....


ELEVELD: Private emails are not being searched? Private emails are not being searched?


MCCAIN: ...See if someone is gay or not. We do not go out and see whether someone is gay or not.


ELEVELD: There are documented cases...


MCCAIN: They do not, they do not, they do not. You can say that they are, you can say [inaudible] it’s not true!... Yea, I’d like to see...


GEIDNER: It is the case of Mike Almy, Senators.


MCCAIN: Bring them to our office. It is not the policy, it is not the policy, it is not the policy.


GEIDNER: But it is the case that it’s happening, Senator.


MCCAIN: It is not the policy, it is not the policy, it is not the policy You can say that it is the policy, sir if you choose to. It is not the policy. I would be glad to get that to you in writing.

Well, if Arizonians are going to elect Jan Brewer, they might as well re-elect John McCain, but only if we make them give all of their press conferences together. Then, we'd never be able to figure out what they are saying, it would be like a Monty Python skit! But seriously folks, what kind of twisted national debate will we have once all of these tea party folks get elected? Can you imagine Michele Bachmann, Sarah Palin, Sharron Angle, and Christine O"Donnell all in front of the cameras, and you ask them a serious question... Put their answers together, and you'll swear that you might have been dosed with LSD; what a long, strange trip its going to be... I remember saying twenty years ago how much better of we would be if women ran our institutions. Now, I take it all back.


A total embarrassment and meltdown in international relations is starting for India, who is supposed to host the next Commonwealth Games, starting next week. Athletes were supposed to arrive on Thursday, but that may not happen, and the games may be canceled, because construction of the facilities has not finished, and what has been finished is of shoddy construction. This morning a pedestrian bridge leading to the main sports arena fell apart into three pieces, injuring over 44 workers: "India’s failure to complete the work for the games, which are to begin Oct. 3 and last for two weeks, has become a major embarrassment for the country instead of a showcase for its rising economic might. The unspoken comparison to India’s rival China, which won widespread acclaim from its preparations for the 2008 Summer Olympics, are a further source of humiliation."

Work was supposed to have been finished a couple of years ago, and the athletes facilities have been rushed, with shortcuts being taken. Most of the toilets don't work, and the head of the games organization may cancel them once he has seen them later this afternoon, stay tuned. Who knows why things got out of hand? Lack of funds? Funds siphoned of to officials? They spent the money on nuclear technology instead of toilets that worked? Chinese construction workers were used and they can only build subpar construction? Your conspiracy theory is as good as mine... Plus, after Sunday's drive-by shooting at a Taiwan tourist bus that killed two, there are doubts that the Indian security force can keep everyone safe, and an incident worse than Mumbai could happen... Things could only get worse if our Army Core of Engineers went to work on it, then it would be guaranteed to fail like the levees in New Orleans...

Italy has frozen $30 million in bank transactions by the Vatican Bank, for possible fraud or money laundering. Boy, it must suck to be a Catholic right now. It's part of stricter policies enforced by the Bank of Italy, that a client bank must tell them what each large transaction is for, and the Vatican either refused or forgot to provide the information, which has launched an investigation. A former Italian bank went down in flames a few years ago after it was connected to a criminal syndicate.

Over a third of the world's economy is fueled by the selling of illegal drugs, counterfeit legal drugs, and the laundering of money through the financial system. The major banks make a lot of money charging to pass large amounts of money through their banks to smaller accounts. Yes, that includes all of Wall Street and every major, respected bank in the world. Criminal gangs no longer need to use seedy CIA fronts and similarly suspicious companies to move millions of dollars around the world, now that the big boys are more than glad to take their place. Business as usual, even for the Pope. So, in our times, abuse of children and money laundering have become spiritual pursuits... I didn't realize that when members of the Vatican referred to a higher power, they meant the head of the Mexican drug cartels...