JD Talley: ‘John Stossel’s Politically Incorrect Guide to Politics’

Source:JD Talley- U.S. Senator John McCain (Republican, Arizona) campaigning for President in 2008.

“John Stossel’s Politically Incorrect Guide to Politics”  

From JD Talley

We can blame American politicians all we want for our problems in government and society as a whole, but we should at least first know how our politicians get their jobs before we decide to blame them or not. And I’ll give you a few clues which will hopefully give you an idea where our politicians come from: 

Our politicians don’t fall from trees.

Our politicians don’t go down to some central office and volunteer to serve in public office and then are just given the job like they’re applying for charity work or something.

Our politicians don’t wake up one morning and find themselves as U.S. Senator’s or Representative’s, Governor’s, etc or inherit the jobs that they now have.

If you really don’t know where our politicians come from, I’ll tell you anyway: they come from the communities that they are supposed to represent and decide to run for office and are elected by the people that they’re supposed to represent and then sent to that office.

The great political satirist George Carlin once had a comedy monologue called: “Maybe It’s Not The Politicians Who Suck” and his point was all the politicians are doing is what they were elected to do. Yes, you can blame politicians for being dishonest and crooked, incompetent even, but if they keep getting reelected, isn’t there someone else to blame for that?

Politics and government is just like just about everything else in life, because it gets down to personal responsibility. If you don’t like the politicians who are supposed to represent you, maybe you should look at your own too feet and see if you have any self-inflicted wounds there. Or perhaps run for office yourself or do what Ronald Reagan said and vote with your feet. But don’t complain about crooked politicians, if you keep voting for them or don’t bother to run for office yourself, or don’t even bother to vote.  

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Reason Magazine: 'Bikini Banners and Freakin Cops Cracking Down on Curse Words! The Nanny of The Month For June 2012'

Source:Reason Magazine- nanny of the month for June, 2012. 

"June's busybodies want to shield your eyes from bikinis and remind you that they're not above ripping your garden out (even if you are complying with city codes).

But top dishonors go to the police chief who admitted on camera that his officers had "more important things to do," but still championed a measure that fines folks for swearing in public.

Presenting Reason.tv's Nanny of the Month for June 2012: Middleborough, Massachusetts Police Chief Bruce Gates!"

Source:Reason Magazine

Here’s more evidence that we overpay our politicians and don’t give them enough work to do. That they would actually take time, taxpayers time that is to look for new ways to restrict how the people who pay their salaries in how they live their own lives. That they would look for new ways to protect people from themselves. That individual freedom is too risky and some people might not know what to do with it and since they can’t take all of our freedom way from us and turn America into an authoritarian state, they look for new ways.

Nanny statists have to be clever and look for new ways to do this, without officially at least taking all of our freedom from us. Even risk violating the first amendment of the U.S. Constitution to do so. Which is what they are doing in Massachusetts by putting new limits on what people can say in public, the target of course of this being curse words. 

New Jersey trying to install crackdowns on what women can wear in public, meaning certain bikinis at their beaches. All they are doing there is just giving more men reason not to vacation in New Jersey. But they would be welcomed along with their women to come down to nearby Delaware and Maryland, where they wouldn’t have those restrictions.

These are just examples of what a nanny state looks like where the state takes it upon themselves to protect people from themselves. It ranges from speech, to what people can wear and say in public, to what they can eat, drink and smoke, to what they watch on TV, or listen to on the radio. All in an effort of course to protect people from themselves and to prevent us the people from doing things that they either don’t like, like cursing and certain forms of entertainment, which of course so-called Christian-Conservatives of course hate and see these things as a threat to our national morality and even national security.

When I hear those arguments, I think they must be high on something they believe should be illegal for everyone else. Or hate speech that today’s so-called Progressives (Neo-Communists, in actuality) hate, because they are worried that it may offend people they care about who are too sensitive to deal with it by themselves in an adult way and need the State to protect them. 

But my Nanny of the Month for June, 2012 is New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who is now the Mayor of the Nanny City thanks to his efforts to protect New Yorker’s from themselves, as it relates to junk food, soft drinks, marijuana, and even pornography. And represents why the term nanny is even involved in American politics and why we have the term nanny state. Government’s that want to protect their people from themselves.  

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Reason Magazine: Nick Gillespie- Interviewing Joseph Campbell: 'Walter Cronkite Wasn't the Most Trusted Man in America'

Source:Reason Magazine- Author Joseph Campbell, talking to Reason Magazine about CBS News anchorman Walter Cronkite.

Source:FreeState Now

"It's safe to say that Walter Cronkite was not the most trusted man in America, and it's safe to say he was not even the most trusted man among newsmen," says American University Professor Joseph Campbell, author of "Getting it Wrong".

Campbell says the 1972 survey that gave Cronkite the title of "Most Trusted Man" compared Cronkite with prominent politicians of the time, not newscasters, and so he "inevitably came out on top." He says CBS then used the survey results to promote the network.

"It was a way to tout Walter Cronkite as a source to go to for election coverage among the three networks," says Campbell.

Campbell sat down with ReasonTV's Nick Gillespie to discuss Cronkite and other myths propelled by the media." 

From Reason Magazine 

Whether Walter Cronkite was the most trusted man in America or not, who knows. Walter Cronkite was the most trusted news anchor in America. Which was more important and easier to judge. He had this saying at the end of the CBS Evening News: “And that’s he way it is." And people believed that, we don’t have that today where a lot of our media is determined by which side of the aisle controls that organization.

The three national network newscasts, on NBC, ABC and CBS, as well as PBS, which people tend to forget or not even be aware of, still report the news based on what they report: “This is what we found and these are the facts in the story, as best we can determine." And I believe they still carry out the Cronkite legacy. (As I would call it that way) Where most of the rest of the news operations, except for C-SPAN and CNN as well, cover the news from a slant from either the right or left.

Opinion news mix in let's call them targeted facts, they’ll give you half the story if that and the rest of it will be commentary. And most of the people they interview share their view of the news and what that means and they’ll interview them to back up their perspective. And when they interview someone from the other side, they do it to contradict that person. With Walter Cronkite and with the PBS NewsHour, you get: “These are the facts” their reporters are reporters whose job it is to find out what’s going on in the country and around the World.

The network news divisions will interview analysts, a lot of times people without political slants who are there to explain what the facts mean. Which is much different from Fox News that’s in the business to give right-wingers a voice in the country and be the spokespeople for the Republican Party. Except for Shepard Smith and Chris Wallace, where you get real reporting and real interviews.

And with MSNBC, especially in the prime time, but you can go back to 3PM with Martin Bashir, what you get from them is voices of the so-called progressive movement. They go after Republicans, as well as Democrats when they believe they aren’t what they call progressive enough.

One of the problems with today’s news and why someone like Walter Cronkite wouldn’t be nearly as relevant, if even successful, is that today news is not only mixed in with commentary, but with also entertainment.

People much rather know what Kim Kardashian wore at the last event she went to. Or about Paris Hilton’s latest run in with the law, and not how well the economy grew in the third quarter or April’s jobs numbers. So hard news is a lot harder to sell today with news organizations under the pressure to report everything, not just what’s important. 

ESPN: 'The Fallen Champ- The Untold Story of Mike Tyson'

Source:ESPN- ESPN Classic showing this documentary.

"The Untold Story of Mike Tyson: "The Fallen Champ"......Great Documentary. Mike Tyson The Fallen Champ the untold story documentary, boxing fight knockout documentary compilation highlight. Fedor David Haye, Manny Pacquiao, Floyd Mayweather, James Toney, Roy Jones, Bernard Hopkins, Juan Manuel Marquez, HBO 24 episode, Vladimir Klitschko Klitchko, Vitali Muhammad Ali, George Foreman, Lennox Lewis, Amir Khan, Carl Froch. Video tribute Joe Louis Frazier, Julio Cesar Chavez, Gene Tunney, Rocky Marciano, Larry Holmes, Jack Dempsey, Johnson."  

From Ibhof 

"When FALLEN CHAMP first appeared in 1993, director Barbara Kopple won both the Emmy and DGA award, but the film has rarely been screened since then. Now with the upcoming release of James Toback’s film TYSON, the time is right to look back on Kopple’s achievement at covering the subject from multiple perspectives.

Here’s what Ken Tucker of Entertainment Weekly had to say about the film at the time of its release...  

Source:Stranger Than Fiction- Former World Heavyweight Boxing Champion Mike Tyson.

From Stranger Than Fiction

When I think of sports tragedies, I think of baseball players like Darryl Strawberry, Jose Cansesco, Pete Rose, Dwight Gooden, Denny McClain, etc. And In Strawberry and Cansesco's case, both five-tool players who had all the ability to be First Ballot Hall of Famers, but who weren't very disciplined off the field. And both had drug problems as well as injury problems, which had something to do with their lack of discipline as men. In Pete Rose's case, had an incredible great career, because of what he accomplished on the field by that alone, is a First Ballot Hall of Famer.

In Denny McClain's case, the former Detroit Tigers pitcher, who is a former Cy Young Award Winner, in 1968 who won thirty games in a season, who was on course to being a First Ballot Hall of Famer, but again had drug and gambling issues and his career was cut short. Because of trouble he got into outside of baseball. 

Dwight Gooden's case, probably the best National League pitcher of the 1980s. A former Cy Young Award winner as well. Again on course to becoming a First Ballot Hall of Famer, but again addicted to cocaine that kept him out of baseball for a period.

When I think of boxers who had tragic endings to their careers, who never lived up to their potential, I think of one boxer: Iron Mike Tyson, who dominated the heavyweight division in the late 1980s and that says a lot there. 

Iron Mike wins the World Heavyweight Championship in 1986 and was dominant that year, as well as 87, 88 and 89, but loses his World Championship by 1990, to a journeyman, but talented boxer in James Buster Douglas, but never showed the discipline to be a great boxer. Who wins the World Championship by beating Mike Tyson in February, 1990, but loses his championship by November, 1990 to Evander Holyfield. And his career was basically over by then. Mike Tyson, by far the most dominant heavyweight of this 3-4 year period, but loses his championship to an unknown undisciplined boxer in 1990. Who loses the championship just nine months later.

And of course Mike Tyson makes an attempt at a comeback in 1991, with a couple of solid fights against Razor Rudduck. Wins both of them, setting up a potential fight with Evander Holyfield, by 1992. But was no longer the dominant boxer that he was a couple years ago, even though he's only in his mid 20s at this point. But of course that fight never happens because of Iron Mike's rape case in 1992. Where at the very least, Mike is guilty of poor judgement and shouldn't of put himself in that position to begin with. Which makes Mike Tyson's career, what could've been, which is how he'll go down, instead of what a great career he had. 

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Richard Mourdock: 'Accidentally Releases Response to ACA Supreme Court Decision'

Source:Daily Mail-  U.S. Senate candidate Richard Mourdock (Republican, Indiana) who gives new meaning to the nickname Tricky Dick.

Source:FreeState Now

“Politicians are often criticised for using canned responses and working in soundbites.

One senatorial candidate in Indiana will have a tough time rebuking those claims, however, after he accidentally released four video responses to the impending Supreme Court decision on President Obama’s health care plan.

Richard Mourdock accidentally posted four different taped responses to the various possible outcomes for the Supreme Court decision which will be released on Thursday.

One senatorial candidate in Indiana will have a tough time rebuking those claims, however, after he accidentally released four video responses to the impending Supreme Court decision on President Obama’s health care plan.

Richard Mourdock accidentally posted four different taped responses to the various possible outcomes for the Supreme Court decision which will be released on Thursday.”  

From the Daily Mail 

“Richard Mourdock Accidentally Releases Responses to ACA Supreme Court Decision” 

Source:Talking Points Memo- U.S. Senate candidate Richard Mourdock (Republican, Indiana) giving new meaning to the nickname Tricky Dick.

From Talking Points Memo 

Without Maine and Indiana, as a Democrat I would be worried about Senate Democrats chances of retaining control of the U.S. Senate, just because of the numbers. 23-33 Senators that are up for reelection are Democrats, tight presidential election mostly likely either way. But thanks to the Tea Party and the GOP nominating Tea Party candidates to replace safe Republican Senators (as far as them being able to get reelected in Maine and Indiana) Senator Olympia Snowe not bothering to run for reelection in Maine, because of fears of a Tea Party challenger in the primary. (Thanks Tea Party! A lifetime of Christmas cards are in the mail for you)

And Richard Mourdock a Tea Party candidate knocking out Senator Richard Lugar in Indiana, instead of Senate Republicans having to pick up 3-4 seats to take the majority depending on the presidential election, its more like 5-6, because they will lose Maine to either a Democrat or a Democratic leaning Independent.

Indiana which is a swing state to begin with, will now have a Tea Party candidate, going up against a Centrist Democrat. Far-Right or Far-Left candidates don’t get elected statewide in Indiana. This is not Mississippi where it’s common for people to believe that gays are responsible for 9/11, or Barack Obama is a Socialist-Muslim, illegal immigrant, from Kenya. Hoosiers tend to be Independent and centrist, and of sound mind.

Just to cover this video: let’s call him Dick Murdock, because I like how that sounds, instead of Richard Mourdock. It makes him sound like a TV private detective or a pornographer. Which could cost him votes in today’s Ozzie and Harriet Theocratic Republican Party that’s been sleeping in a cave since 1955. And hasn’t figured out yet that it’s actually 2012. But not only will Indiana have a Far-Right Republican to consider, that believes Americans aren’t qualified to determine who represents them in the US Senate, but someone who apparently believes he sees visions and can see the future before it happens.

Dr. Dick supports a Constitutional Amendment that would take our vote for Senate away from us and give that vote to State Legislatures, while speaking about the importance of the U.S. Constitution. A Constitution that he wants to amend for U.S. Senate. But a Far-Right Senate candidate that’s also a physic and just had a vision that the Supreme Court will rule that part of the Affordable Care Act is constitutional and only throw out parts of it.

I’ve never had the opportunity to vote for or against a physic before. To tell you the truth a physic would have more than a leg up on his or her colleagues that they would serve with. They could say: “Look, we shouldn’t do that, I had a vision that wouldn’t work. And it would be horrible for the country.” They could also say: “You should vote for this bill because I had a vision that this bill would be great for the country.” And the physic would be correct, because they can see into the future. But the truth is the Supreme Court won’t officially rule on the Affordable Care Act until next week. 

Talking Points Memo: The FOX Report- Chris Wallace: 'Calls Presidential Interruption by Neil Munro Outrageous'

Source:Talking Points Memo- Shepard Smith & Chris Wallace: two actual FNC journalists. 

Source:FreeState Now

"Chris Wallace Calls Interruption By Daily Caller Reporter 'Outrageous"

From Talking Points Memo 

There use to be a day in American journalism when reporters were reporters and commentators were commentators. Reporters would write facts that they found and share them with who they worked for and their audience. Commentators and columnists would write about what they thought of the news that was reported and what that meant. In today’s media it’s a little harder to tell the difference between news and commentary. Even though the Washington Post, New York Times and Wall Street Journal still do a very job of reporting.

Even though these three news giants clearly slant in one direction or another, when it comes to their editorials, but you can tell the differences between their reporters and their editorialists. With today’s online partisan media, with “news organizations” clearly slant in one direction or the other. Talking Points Memo on the left and The Daily Caller on the right, who don’t hide from their partisan leanings, but they do it to the point that most of their stories, benefit their side of the aisle ideologically.

And rarely do partisan publications report something that’s negative towards their side of the aisle. Which is why I believe if you are going to follow one of these partisan news organizations”, I suggest you follow them on both sides. Because many times, you’ll only get one side of the story from one of these groups. But follow both of them and you may get the full story, or at least half of it. Some of these “news organizations” are so partisan to the point that they’ll send their columnists and analysts to press conferences, as if they are reporters and not commentators, to ask questions that are intended to benefit or hurt the person that’s giving the press conference.

David Corn does this for the so-called progressive Mother Jones Magazine and Neal Munro does this for the right-wing The Daily Caller. But Neil Munro took it to a different level today at President Obama’s press conference on immigration reform. Where he literally heckled the President, interrupting him as he was giving his speech. Its one thing to not like a President, as Mr. Munro clearly doesn’t, or be against him or even feel that the President is not worthy of the office and feel disrespect for him. But it’s another to disrespect the office, which is what Neil Munro was doing today.

I have no problem with aggressive journalism as its called today, as long as its intended to report facts. And not designed to make the case for one side of an argument or another. But it’s another thing, just to be rude and classless and not just disrespect the person that’s holding the office, but disrespect the office itself. Which is what Neil Munro did today and proved that the right-wing is more than just against President Obama on philosophically. 

HBO Docs: The Weight of The Nation (2012)

Source:HBO Docs- From HBO's documentary Weight of The Nation. 

Source:FreeState Now  

"To win, we have to lose. The four-part HBO Documentary Films series, The Weight of The Nation explores the obesity epidemic in America." 

From HBO Docs

I’m all for cutting our healthcare costs, but doing it in a way that encourages personal responsibility and protects individual freedom. Two reasons why I’m against the NYC soda ban (which is an example of the Nanny State on steroids) it fails both tests, personal responsibility and individual freedom. Because of instead of leaving it up to the people to decide how to take care of themselves, it essentially outlaws a bad habit. Doesn’t eliminate it, just outlaws it. Two different things.

When you outlaw something, you are telling people what you can’t do, whatever it is you are outlawing. Doesn’t mean it goes away, it just means whatever has been outlawed, is now illegal. New Yorkers will still drink those large sodas, but take their tax dollars outside of New York City. 

But when you eliminate something, well guess what happens (I’m speaking basic English here) it goes away, because you eliminated it. So-called Progressives (Neo-Communists, in actuality) have this notion, that you can automatically eliminate bad behavior, by outlawing it, through prohibition. They’ve tried this with alcohol, organized gambling and now caffeine and sugar. Guess what, those things still continue , just done in different places or done illegally.

As a Liberal I believe in individual freedom, as long as you are not hurting innocent people with your freedom. As well as personal responsibility, that is to say we all make choices in life, for good and bad and have to deal with the consequences of our decisions. 

If someone wants to drink soda pop all day, eat nothing but junk food and doesn’t exercise, that’s on them as an adult. But that I and others who don’t make those bad choices and take better care of ourselves, shouldn’t be stuck with cost of John and Jane or whoever who made poor choices with their health.

People who make good decisions with their lives, should be rewarded for them and that people who make poor choices, should be held accountable for their poor decisions. Including the health costs of those bad decisions. Thats what comes from living in a liberal society and not a Nanny State. 

We’ll never have a health care system, where people who can’t afford health care, won’t get it, at least at the emergency room. Americans will always get health care, at least in emergencies. The question is how is it paid for. As much as Libertarians may want so-called free health care to go away. 

But what we can do is force people who have chosen to live unhealthy, a choice they didn’t have to make, to pay for their bad decisions up front. It’s very simple, you tax people for living unhealthy, not prohibiting it, so they can pay up front for the health care that they are going to need later on. As a result of their bad decision-making and you reward people for living healthy. Thats one good way to control our health care costs.