The Noah Diaries 2011 (1): Even Tolstoy would surely admit that 2011 wasn't the best of times

Gov't cutbacks save lives!, Speaker Boehner,
tragic day in Tucson, Tea Party racism, and more

"It was the best of times. It was the worst of times." Does
former RNC Chair Mike Steele know his Tolstoy or what?

by Noah

This year I decided to keep a ragged little journal of random thoughts or observances about the day’s events. I present some of them to you. Some are just recaps of a year’s events. Some are something more.


1/3/11 -- Government cutbacks save lives!

Believe it! 26-year-old New Yorker Vangelis Kapatos attempted suicide by jumping from his ninth-floor window. Fortunately for Vangelis and his family, service cutbacks, exacerbated by the December 26th blizzard, resulted in New York’s trash not being picked up for a week. The black bags of trash piled up on the sidewalk below cushioned his dive. Made a mess of the garbage, though. Rats rejoiced, as did the stray cats that followed the rats to the pile. Kapatos rested at Bellvue Hospital in stable condition.

12 months later: It all makes me wonder about Mayor Mike Bloomberg, though. He claims to have his own private army but he can’t get the trash picked up.


1/3/11 -- A tale of two bozos, candidates for the Republican National Committee chair

When asked what his favorite book is, then-current RNC Chairman Michael Steele answered War and Peace, then proceeded to quote it, or so he thought. Said Steele, “It was the best of times. It was the worst of times.” Maybe he should have quit while he was ahead and dispensed with the quote.

It gets better, though. One of his competitors for the gig, Ann Wagner, when asked the same question, answered, “My kitchen table.” Sigh. There’s just no communicating with some people. If she had said “my medicine cabinet," I might have understood. Ann Wagner is the former U.S. ambassador to Luxembourg.


1/5/11 -- Rep. John Boehner is elected speaker of the House, and it's a media lovefest

No mention of the fact that he passed out tobacco bribes right on the House floor before a vote on tobacco legislation. Gives a speech of platitudes. “We can agree without being disagreeable.” Promises to “end business as usual" . . . blah, blah, blah. He cries, of course, but doesn't reach for a flask under his jacket at all. Nice suit. Orange leather face. The guy looks so pickled that all he needs to do when he wants a drink is gently bite his tongue and out will come fresh-squeezed martinis. Already too late for that. Campaign promises already out the window. What else is new? “Where are the (snow)jobs?”


1/8/11 -- Tragic day in Tucson

OK, we already knew that Arizona was a state full of crazies and hate-filled neanderthals, but more than that, it strikes me that 34 people in this country are killed by guns every day, and the party that talks so loudly about being pro-life is the one that goes overboard when it comes to making it easy for any mental defective or political loon to have at least one gun -- and to them, the more the better. Today was a particularly bad day. The Republican Culture of Death continues to infest us.

I and others note that the wacko with the gun was stopped in mid-attack, not by another gun, but by a 61-year-old woman who wrestled his second clip away from him. If Repugs had their way, she would have been home baking cookies and wouldn’t have been allowed to go to meet her congressperson, because she wouldn’t even have the right to vote. It’s not in the Constitution, you know. As it was, thanks to Repugs, the shooter wasn’t restricted to ten-bullet clips. More bullets per clip equals more wounded and dead per incident. Thanks, Republicans!

12 months later: So interesting that the media pretty much failed to mention that the shooter had spent a lot of time ranting about the government , the Constitution, etc. Hmmm. Where have I heard that before? Why so silent?


1/13/11 –- Using a violent incident to promote gun purchases, if not even more violence

The state of Texas proves that loons need representation too, as Rep. Louis Gohmert (the bestiality guy) declares that he wants to introduce a bill to allow representatives to pack a rod on the floor of Congress. Just using a violent incident (Tucson) to exploit gun purchasing.

Meanwhile Arizona Rep. Trent Franks sez, “You know, I wish there had been one more person with a gun there that day.” Well, there was, and he almost shot the wrong guy. “I almost shot the guy holding the gun,” said Joe Zamudio.

Rush Limbaugh plays the victim when people point out a local billboard that promotes his show calling him a “straight-shooter.” The victim? Really, Rush? Show us your wounds. Are you doing your show from a hospital bed? Then he goes on to weirdly distance himself from the whole episode by saying, “I haven’t been to Tucson in 20 years,” and then whines that President Obama “calls me a racist.” Real stream-of-consciousness stuff from one of our great contemporary minds.

When it comes to playing the victim, though, the winner and still champion is none other than Sarah “The Quitter” Palin, professional victim. She puts crosshairs on Gabby Giffords, who gets shot, and then Palin whines about “blood libels.” You couldn’t make this stuff up.

And let’s not forget Rep. Michele Bachmann wanting people “armed and dangerous.” Is it any wonder these things happen? The only question is, when is the next one?


1/13/11 -- Tea Party racism? Who knew?

It seems that Arizona (there goes that state again!) District 20 Republican Chairman Anthony Miller, an African-American, felt the need to resign after receiving death threats from Tea Party activists. “I wasn’t going to resign but decided to quit after what happened last Saturday.”

It seems at least one Republican sees a connection between the recent rhetoric of extremists and the violence in Tucson.

Meanwhile Mark DeMoss, an evangelist running a national Civility Project, threw up his hands due to threatening e-mails. It’s a case of “we don’t want none of your damn civility crap”:

The worst e-mails I received were from conservatives with just unbelievable language about communists, and some words I wouldn’t care to use in this interview . . . . Too many conservatives can see no redeeming value in any liberal or Democrat.

DeMoss added that the same might go for the other side but he hasn’t had any such experiences.

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History in the making:
Selections from THE NOAH DIARIES 2011

Tomorrow: (2) "If ballots don't work, bullets will." Plus: Sarah Palin shoots from the hip, Keith Olbermann gets the boot, Bernie Sanders challenges the oligarchy, and more (1/14-25/11)

FOR A COMPLETE LISTING OF THE SERIES, CLICK HERE

And don't forget 2010's Year in Review series and 2009's "12 Days of Christmas Scorn"!

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