Grey Gardens
In composing Sunday’s Stinque Book Club entry, we were faced with a quandary: What is there to say about professional cretin Dick Morris that hasn’t been said already?
We chose a reader review about Mom listening to an audiobook version filling the presumably lonely rooms of a presumably large house as inspiration: What kind of world do you have to live in for that kind of fetid monologue to fill the air? How thoroughly divorced from reality do you have to be to accept that as anything approaching fact?
We toyed with declaring a significant proportion of Americans to be clinically psychotic, before settling on the observation that the Wingnut Establishment does a much more professional job of turning its audience into cultists than Charles Manson.
And then, Sunday evening, we read this in the Paper of Record:
Many on the news side of Fox have wondered whether [Glenn Beck’s] chronic outrageousness — he suggested that the president has “a deep-seated hatred for white people” — have made it difficult for Fox to hang onto its credibility as a news network.
Near as we can determine, this sentence was not written ironically.
Which leads us to wonder: In what alternate universe does Fox News have any credibility as a news network? In which strand of String Theory does Fox News have any intent to be a news network? Does the New York Times also accept unconditionally the journalistic integrity of WorldNetDaily?
We are sadly left with our original conclusion: A significant proportion of Americans are clinically psychotic. Including a significant proportion of American journalists.
The Fading Power of Beck’s Alarms [NYT]
I think it’s because in large part the NYT is run by a bunch of clueless rich kids who never set foot outside Manhattan.
They made Judy Judy Judy Miller a star.
They made Judy Miller a star because the Bush admin was pressuring our free press to sell their lies.
The NYT should have told Bush to kick rocks but being the typical liberal weenies they are they succumbed to the bully.
And look at the fuss over Wikileaks.
@Snorri Haraldsson: The truth hurts.
Good poll this week, nojo.
@mellbell: Appropriate given this post. The comments on the NYT article from the Beckheads confirm Nojo’s thesis.
there are american journalists?
@ManchuCandidate: It was funny when Brian Williams said that the media story of the year was that the NYT discovered Brooklyn – ’cause IT’S TRUE.
@Capt Howdy: I think there is still very good work being done. Papers like the Times have always confused themselves with Olympus. All the News That Fits, We Print. The Times of London has the same habit. What’s different in the UK is that there are still several papers to choose between, not just one. And if you think the political reporting at the Times is bad you should try the arts pages where incompetence meets ignorance head-on.
But in happier news, OMG!! WTF!!!111!!. Noje scores home run with his penetrating expose of high-fat slaughterhouse porn!! Yay!! Crooks and Liars, bitchez!! Blog roundup. Woo hooo. Noje wins teh tubez!!!1 Let’s all just sing As If I’ve Never Been Away quietly to ourselves and think of the big guy working to make a difference.
@Right Reverend Benedick: Check out Sister Rosetta’s guitar playing on that C&L page. She can rock! Note to guitar porn fans: is that a Gibson SG she’s playing?
DEVELOPING HARD: TPM reports that Flying Fourteen offer to meet with Scott Walker at the border. Just like every spy-exchange sequence in every Cold War movie ever made.
Is half the country mad(insane)? High fluoride ? Chlorine?, Decaying lead water pipes? Mercury in the tuna patty melts? Perhaps syphilitic insanity (which could explain the author of the Revolting book in previous post ).
But honestly, what explains the growing numbers in this country intent upon destroying everything? It’s madness!
@chicago bureau: Do you think they’ll wear outfits like these?
T/J: No, this is not a name that Thomas Pynchon made up — there is an American warship named the USS Ponce. See http://www.economist.com/blogs/johnson/2011/03/british_and_american?fsrc=scn/fb/wl/mc/ussponce. OK, Benedick, let ‘er rip.
I want a hat like that.
@Dodgerblue:
Hee. Unfortunate warship names include:
From the inappropriate: Nuclear Missile Submarine George Washington Carver (a noted pacifist.)
to hilarious, HMS Cockchafer
@ManchuCandidate: Excellent. One can envision “joint” operations with the Cockchafer and the Ponce.
@Dodgerblue:
A quick search found some more.
The RN commissioned the “Flower” Class corvettes for convoy duty in the North Atlantic. Of all the services, only the RN kept the flower names like:
HMS Buttercup
HMS Begonia
etc
@Dodgerblue: I’m working on the advisability of including a balloon and don’t have time for fucking Brits and their “Aren’t Americans funny,” routine. Note to Economist ponce/poove: giggling like schoolgirls does not qualify as wit. And yes, of course Americans are funny with all their funny ways, and yes their backsides are enormous and they can’t spell for toffee, but at least they’re not the fucking FRANCH.
@Capt Howdy: I have it in teal and surprise pink.
@ManchuCandidate: Are we talking about the Queen’s navy here? And no HMS Pansy? That doesn’t seem right. One has visited Portsmouth.
@Right Reverend Benedick:
It’s a staple of Canada City Culture.
@Right Reverend Benedick:
Was, but it was changed for some reason.
@ManchuCandidate: Pity. They could have had Kenneth Williams launch it. This is an interesting clip. In it you will see just how the British held out against Hitler. What we mean by varda the bona homme. And as a bonus you will get to see the transitioning Joan Rivers. And various oiks and layabouts pretending to the glib show-biz sophistication of Americans and failing miserably.
BTW. Has anyone else noticed that however a thread starts out it seems to always end up gay? Why is that?
@Dodgerblue: Speaking of Pynchon, I really am enjoying Mason & Dixon.
@Right Reverend Benedick: I’m not good at following directions. http://www.celebritybeautybuzz.com/index.php/2009/02/gabrielle-reeces-favorite-skin-treatment/
@Right Reverend Benedick: Oh, that’s me. Sorry.
@karen marie has her eyes tight shut: You are a way better person than I. I gave up on that book about 100 pages in.
@Dodgerblue: Shouldn’t she be bouncing?
@Right Reverend Benedick: How could a post with the title “Grey Gardens” NOT turn to gayocity?
@Tommmcatt is with Karin Marie on This One: What was I thinking? It’s Ian J’s favorite show.
@Tommmcatt is with Karin Marie on This One: Did I miss a Camp aspect? I thought it was just Kennedy Crazy Ladies.
@nojo: Who are worshiped as gods by various drag queens.
@Right Reverend Benedick: He knows the Little Edie role by heart.
@Tommmcatt is with Karin Marie on This One: I could be mistaken but I think he played it in Chicago.
@nojo: Here you go, big guy. We’re doing our best.
@Tommmcatt is with Karin Marie on This One: Ah. I’ll update my Subculture Files.
Here is the guy who is bouncing her: http://www.h2oaudio.com/lairdhamilton.php .
I thought about all you straight-guy Stinquers this weekend while I was working on campus on a group project and–tah dah!–they were holding the regional College Women’s Volleyball Tournament. Talk about jigglevision!
@¡Andrew!: Oh, and the volleyball gals are tall, too. It’s all good.
@¡Andrew!:
Beach volleyball is mesmerizing.
When I played co-ed Beach Volleyball, it took a lot of iron discipline to not stare.
@ManchuCandidate: Where are the beaches of Canada City? Newfoundland? Wouldn’t the girls be wearing some clothes?
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