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Showing posts from 2014

Diggaprediction: Enjoy The Debates

  It’s that time of the year when the prognosticators start sharing their 2015 predictions with the rest of us mere mortals.   Yes the omnipotent and omnipresent soothsayers with unprecedented data at their disposal will make political, economic, sports, entertainment, geopolitical, and even weather predictions.   Some will go bold like a 30% correction in the stock market, some will play it safe saying the San Francisco Giants will contend, some will go specific “Jeb Bush will be the front runner at the end of the year”, and some will go vague “President Obama and Congress will disagree.” So here we go with the Diggapredictions for the insane, unstable, and those generally in need of help: Fox News, MSNBC, and CNN will focus solely on ratings at the expense of quality news coverage.   In the run up to the 2016 presidential election these networks will reach new heights of polarized political prose like cheerleaders.   The love triangle between Joe Scarborough, Chris Chri

A Festivus Tradition: Airing the Grievances

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“I got a lot of problems with you people! And now you're gonna hear about it! ” Rudy Giuliani: You’ve gone from America’s Mayor to a political hack who ends up on the wrong end of PolitiFact Truth-O-Meter more than Michelle Bachmann.   But telling Fox News that President Obama has said “everybody should hate the police”, is a sign of either an irrational mind or a political ignoramus. Steve Kornacki: Please get some adult eyeglasses to replace the elementary school ones you’re still wearing. Phil Simms, Jim Nantz, and Joe Buck: Seinfeld was a show about nothing which equals the substance of your play-by-play and analysis. MSNBC, CNN, and FoxNews: In your quest for ratings you gave us sensationalism, demographic ass-kissing, political pandering, you've created an appreciation for Al Jazeera and the BBC. Elizabeth Lauten: Another political hack who thought it would be a good idea to attack Malia and Sasha to try and score some political points. NYPD Union

Getting some stuff off my chest

Some things to get off my chest and out of the mental inbox: Mike Rogers (MI-R) was one of the first to call out President Obama on his vacation to Hawaii.  “Saying ‘aloha’ and getting on the plane to Hawaii is not the answer.  I don’t think that’s enough. North Korea attacked, then threatened violence.” That’s rich from a leading member of the 113 th Congress, a body that was in session for a total of 133 days in 2014.  Rogers needs to worry about his own ineptness and politicized bullshit and less about the guy who HAS kept America safe. And then there’s Rosie O’Donnell who was selling artwork on her website claiming to be images of Gazan children, when in reality they were images from Syria.  O’Donnell initially defended her decision to sell the artwork on her website, then due to public pressure subsequently removed them.  O’Donnell is entitled to her own opinion, but she isn’t entitled to her own facts. Which brings me to The View, featuring O’Donnell, Rosie Perez

Digg's Top 15, errr 16, top songs of 2014

Top 15 new songs for 2014.  You will not find Taylor Swift, Robin Thicke, or any Hip Hop on this list. 15) Tie: Angel of Small Death and the Codeine Scene (Hozier) & Cardiac Arrest (Bad Suns) 14) Fire (Gavin DeGraw) 13) Dark Sunglasses (Chrissie Hynde) 12) I Wanna Get Better (Bleachers) 11) Tell The World (Eric Hutchinson) 10) California [Cast Iron Soul] (Jamestown Revival) 9) You Haunt Me (Sir Sly) 8) Back Home (Andy Grammer) 7) Shut Up and Dance (WALK THE MOON) 6) New York Morning (Elbow) 5) Don’t Look Back (Augustines) 4) Drive-in Movies (Ray LaMontagne) 3) Let’s Get Drunk and Get It On (Old 97’s) 2) Ghost (Jeremy Messersmith) 1) Red Eyes (The War on Drugs) You're all I've got to wait You're running in the dark when I come to my sense Well you can see it through the darkness coming my way Well we won't get lost inside again babe https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1LmX5c7HoUw https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aJdx3BO

Pictures Worth A Thousand Words

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You are entitled to your own opinion, but you are not entitled to your own facts.  I call the Obama presidency successful while Bush…err not so much. The hit Brandon Browner delivered to Ladarius Green was brutal, but of the NFL is serious about protecting players, it would mandate teams use the safest helmet and equipment available.  Until then, it’s nothing but lip service and window dressing.  "I respect Derrick Rose and all of our players for voicing their personal views on important issues but my preference would be for players to abide by our on court attire rules." NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said.  Yes Mr. Silver, your contract with Adidas is more important than crucial social commentary, necessary activism, and personal expression. Sovereign nation extremists point guns at U.S. Marshalls, but 12 year old Tamir Rice with a pellet gun is the real public threat. Conservatives like to call themselves the law and order Americans e

It’s politics stupid.

Why did President Obama suddenly change course on immigration and “go it alone”?  Politics of course.  The next election is still two years away, but the campaign and debate season starts long before the election and now he has put Republicans on the defensive again.  Although the President’s record on immigration has been checkered with increased deportations and lack of progress on immigration reform, he has kept the Democrats as the preferred choice of Hispanics.  The dreams of Reagan and H.W. Bush to champion immigration reform and make the Republican Party, the party of immigrants, especially Hispanics, have turned into nightmares thanks to the overly nativist ultraconservative wing that influences the GOP. Reagan once quipped " Latinos  are Republicans. They just don't know it yet."   Perhaps today the more applicable quote is “Republicans are doomed.  They just don’t know it yet.” In addition to keeping the Hispanic electorate away from the Republicans, the ev

Midterm Elections: Where Are The Voters?

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  As we come up on the midterm elections on Tuesday, the electorate is bombarded by television and radio ads and if you drive anywhere on Scottsdale’s Scottsdale Road the ubiquitous campaign signs blight the otherwise beautiful Sonoran landscape.   Even in the Arizona Voter’s Guide, where the candidates are given an opportunity to state why they deserve your vote, half the candidates (almost exclusively the Republican candidates) use the space to attack their opponents.   And the relentless television ads wouldn’t be so bad if there were at least some variety.   Unfortunately, the political ad selection playlist is as limited as Sirius-XM or Top 40 channels when it comes to playing something other than Taylor Swift. So the electorate is already numb thanks to the relentless campaign advertisements, almost all of them negative, life is full of distractions and priorities and the time to research the candidates and ballot issues is often the first thing to get cut.   The biggest th