Perhaps Republicans Believe That Only A Blowhard With Multiple Bankruptcies Knows What It Takes To Game The System In Their Favor

Everyone was getting angry with Village Idiot David Gergen last week. I don't understand why. Whenever he's on TV yammering away his hackneyed conservative blather I just picture him running around the woods with Kissinger and Dubya in their birthday suits after all the women are shuttled back to Frisco at 3pm and they can all start urinating in peace.

WEST

Florida freak Allen West was bragging all over Washington last week-- to anyone who bothered to listen to the blowhard freshman-- how he wouldn't vote for Boehner's with Obama on the spending resolution to keep the government afloat. He claimed

$39 billion in cuts is insufficient. Asked whether he was pleased with the agreement on policy riders, West responded, "It's all about the money."

West, a freshman who is popular with the Tea Party, said he is a firm "no" on the measure, which will be voted on next week.

And yet, when last night came, there was West, teabaggers be damned, voting with the 208 Republicans and 140 Democrats in favor of the compromise, having abandoned the 28 Republican radicals he usually likes being seen hanging around-- Bachmann, King, Broun, Gohmert, Amash and fellow Floridians Connie Mack and Steve Southerland-- who all voted NO.

TRUMP

Everyone I know insists Donald Trump is just making noises like he's running for president (of the United States... of America) in order to get some viewers for his tired TV sitcom-- an elaborate Newt or Palin-worthy publicity stunt. But I'm not so sure. Is it beyond the realm of consideration that Trump is just holding the Republican Party and it's credulous, bumpkin base up to ridicule? I mean even Trump couldn't possibly believe the nonsense that's been pouring out of his mouth lately. Yesterday's Brattleboro Reformer summed it up nicely in a feature, Trump in 2012:

In an indication of how lacking the Republican field of presidential nominees for 2012 is, blow-dry, flip-top Donald Trump recently placed second (tied with former Governor Mike Huckabee) behind Mitt Romney in a poll conducted by the Wall Street Journal.

Trump also placed second to Romney in the latest survey of New Hampshire Republican primary voters.
We’d like to say we are astounded by that poll result, but there’s really no way to predict what those whacky Granite State Republicans are going to do from one moment to the next.

On the Today Show, Trump said people connect with him because "I happen to be smart. I happen to have a lot of common sense."

He also said "I built a great company. I would run a great, great country. This country would be great again."

OK, let’s step back for a second and consider something.

In 1991, Trump filed business bankruptcy and almost had to file for personal bankruptcy. A year later he had to once again declare bankruptcy.

We’re not done yet.

In 2004, he filed for bankruptcy protection and restructured his debt and in 2009 he filed for a Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

Maybe that’s how he plans to fix the nation’s financial woes-- file bankruptcy.

What Trump has proved about his intelligence is he knows how to game the system and walk away unscathed.

Trump is also favored over all Republican contenders by Tea Party supporters, according to a recent NBC/WSJ poll.

When asked if he considers himself a member of the Tea Party, Trump said, "I think so."

He's also looking for any jingoists he can dig up beyond the teabagger set.

"Unless we get the oil, I have no interest in Libya," says Trump.

Here's a candidate who is willing to go on CNN and say-- of COURSE it's about the oil! You don't get involved in a place like Libya to help a bunch of rebels you don't really know:

"We don't know who's being slaughtered," says Trump. "We cannot be the policemen for the world."

Yes we can't be the world's policeman.

He prefers the Genghis Khan model:

"In the old days when you had a war, when you won the war, you won. If they had oil, if they had diamonds, if they had gold - What's going to happen in Iraq is absolutely amazing, two minutes after we leave, Iran is going to take over the great oil fields of Iraq. If I'm president at the time, Iran is not taking over the Iraqi oil fields, we will."

The Trump Doctrine. Don't just occupy Iraq-- colonize it.

I bet he'd also be the first president who instead of pardoning the Thanksgiving turkey, would just chop its head of right there on the South Lawn.

Didn't Palin already stage some kind event like that?

America's Worst Airline

That would be Delta and their timing, as always, was impeccable as they sent out announcements about private jet travel being "within reach" for a mere $43,900... just as the Republicans and Obama slashed up another segment of what was left of the social safety net:

Hello Mr. Klein,

Now is the perfect time to try the flexibility and convenience of private jet travel.

Experience Delta Private Jets with the 10-hour Fleet Membership Card-- starting at $43,900* in the light jet category-- and enjoy guaranteed availability and fully-refundable hours that never expire, along with a heritage of service and safety.

Or better yet, travel with the long term assurance offered by the Air Elite Jet Card, which includes simplified "all-in" hourly pricing that includes taxes and fuel and locked-in rates for up to two years. With the Air Elite Jet Card, you'll have the option to use the funds for both private and commercial travel. And you will also receive SkyMiles® Diamond Medallion® status and 20% savings on full-fare First or BusinessElite® tickets on Delta flights.

Learn how you can start enjoying the many benefits of private jet travel by visiting DeltaPrivateJets.com or calling 1-877-541-3548.

* Does not include taxes of approximately $3,400 if all flights are domestic; taxes are lower for international flights. Membership fee does not include a variable Fuel Component Adjustment ranging from approximately $690 per hour for a Light Jet to $1,170 per hour for a Large Jet as of April 1, 2011.

Don't ask me why they sent this to me. In a former life I was president of a division of Warner Bros. There were 4 private jets at my disposal. I think I was the only divisional president who never ordered one. I thought it was sinful when the cost could go towards promoting our artists' music instead. I always thought it was a decadent excess and I was even embarrassed to ride with other people on their private jets.

Bastard Fairies

Let's elevate the discussion. Our old friends the Bastard Fairies are on hiatus, Yellow Thunder Woman did the very unbarstardly thing of getting pregnant, and is now super happy and settled back on the reservation. In the meantime Robin has been busy launching a new band called Well Hung Heart and he sent along the first video yesterday, "This Is Not Love," which you may like as much as I do:

If We Really Are What We Eat, It's Only A Matter Of Time Before We're All Mutants

Yummy American farm girl

Historically, George W. Bush had 3 of the most brazen shills of AgriBusiness as consecutive Secretaries of Agriculture: Ann Veneman, Mike Johanns and Ed Schafer. Each was charged with doing everything Big Ag Business wanted that would keep the money flowing GOP-wise. [Since 1990 Agribusiness has "donated" $350,366,008 in federal elections, almost twice as much to Republicans as to Democrats.] Obama's Agriculture Secretary, conservative former DLC chair and former Iowa governor, Tom Vilsack, seems to be driven by almost identical instincts. If you were concerned about the radiation reported in Tokyo's drinking water, you might also be concerned about the dangers of genetically engineered crops inexorably taking over American agriculture-- and the role of the USDA in this tragedy. Organic farmers and consumers have fought back but, except for a little window dressing here and there, Vilsack rules his fiefdom the same way Veneman, Johanns and Schafer did. Biotech triumphant in the march towards turning the human race into mutants for the sake of short term corporate profits-- kind of like the nuclear energy industry.

Vilsack has been making promises-- with fingers crossed behind his back-- to protect the interests of farmers and consumers who aren't interested in being part of a species-wide genetic experiment and prefer eating real food, "promising something revolutionary: finding a way for organic farms to coexist alongside the modified plants."

But in recent weeks, the administration has announced a trio of decisions that have clouded the future of organics and boosted the position of genetically engineered (GE) crops. Vilsack approved genetically modified alfalfa and a modified corn to be made into ethanol, and he gave limited approval to GE sugar beets.

The announcements were applauded by GE industry executives, who describe their genetically modified organisms as the farming of the future. But organics supporters were furious, saying their hopes that the Obama administration would protect their interests were dashed.

“It was boom, boom boom,” said Walter Robb, co-chief executive of Whole Foods Markets, a major player in organics. “These were deeply disappointing. They were such one-sided decisions.”

To a growing cadre of consumers who pay attention to how their food is produced, the agriculture wars are nothing short of operatic, pitting technology against tradition in a struggle underscored by politics and profits.

“Each side is so passionate,” Vilsack said in a recent interview. “And each side is convinced that it’s right.”

The two sides are not clashing over the ethics or safety of genetic engineering, in which plants are modified in the laboratory with genes from another organism to make them more pest-resistant or to produce other traits. Instead, the argument is over the potential for contamination: pollen and seeds from GE crops can drift across fields to nearby organic plants. That has triggered fears that organic crops could be overtaken by modified crops. Contamination can cost organic growers-- some overseas markets, for example, have rejected organic products when tests showed they carried even trace amounts of GE material.

Organics supporters also say that, as the number of genetically engineered crops grows, so does the risk. And some conventional farmers who don’t use GE seeds are also concerned about their crops. USDA has approved 81 GE crops-- it has never denied a proposal-- and 22 applications are pending.

“It’s really about the right to farm and the right to choose,” Robb said. “You shouldn’t farm in a way that affects the way others farm.”

Vilsack tried bribing the organic industry with a promise that it wouldn't "count" against them being able to call their produce "organic" if it was polluted by genetically engineered crap and he held out the promise of buffer zones between the freak food and the real food. But AgriBusiness and their Republican and Blue Dog allies freaked out and threw tantrums that there would be any restrictions whatsoever of Big Business. Regardless of which party controls Congress, Agribusiness controls the House Agriculture Committee and they weren't having any of this organic bullshit. They told Vilsack in no uncertain terms and he acquiesced.

With Republicans and Blue Dogs howling on behalf of the Big Business Farming Industry-- and with a White House on the defensive and trying to bend over backwards to prove how pro-business it is-- it was "screw the dirty hippies" (again); Vilsack announced approval of GE alfalfa, sugar beets and corn. No limitations.



Or if cutting edge music isn't your thing... how about Lee Camp's cutting edge stand-up?

God Just Keeps The Bastard Fairies Around Because He's Strangely Amused By Them-- And Thank God For That

I don't know how many rock bands Bill O'Reilly has turned the world onto, but the Bastard Fairies had to have been the best of them (back in 2006). They've been part of the DWT beat since then and we have tried to keep everyone updated about their adventures in all that makes O'Reilly go tic-toc. Most recently it was about the new single, Dirty Sex Kill Kill and I'm happy to report today that the wonderful new EP, Man Made Monster came out last week. Not only does it include "Dirty Sex Kill Kill," the title track suggested a little slide show I figured we might all enjoy together. You can find out all about them at their website.

The Wait Is Over! The Bastard Fairies Are Back

If you've been hanging around for a while, you may remember that we first ran across the Bastard Fairies three years ago, almost to the day-- at least as a musical act. In terms of their parenting skills and fabulous critique of Republican Party propagandist Bill O'Reilly... well, it was way back in November of 2006 when this YouTube sensation debuted. The Bastard Fairies' new single, "Dirty Sex Kill Kill," comes out tomorrow, and you can get a free download at their website.

Any band that Bill O'Reilly calls "deeply disturbed" has got to be worth listening to. Yellow Thunder Woman and Robin Davey are very much worth listening to... and more. This song is the tragic tale of a man locked in a relationship with a crazy woman, something many of us have experienced firsthand. "She's slowly killing you" and "Get out, get out, while you still can" are probably lyrics most anyone can relate to, especially through this B-movie zombie romp:

WE'RE ALL GOING TO HELL-- OR SO SAY THE BASTARD FAIRIES

The song, "We're All Going to Hell" has been out a while but the video is brand new. As you know, the Mormons gave their Willard the win in Nevada today. The Fairies seem to give him precedence too.

Evangelicals in South Carolina, who are obsessed with Hell, are pretty much ignoring Romney there tonight, despite the fact that he spent more money in the backward state and spent more time there than any of the other candidates. He's fighting it out with ole Frederick of Hollywood for fourth place.

THE BASTARD FAIRIES PROVE IT'S STILL POSSIBLE TO GET MORE THAN WHAT YOU PAY FOR

War is bad and love is really good
Taking a stand starts in your neighborhood


Over 2 million people have heard the Bastard Fairies-- many without realizing they were hearing a band and watching accomplished filmmakers. And what's especially bizarre about that, is that the wildly popular YouTube video so many people saw was extremely polarizing-- with wingnuts starting a letter-writing campaign to take the singer's child away and with normal Americans absolutely falling in love. I'm talking about The Coolest 8 Year Old In The World Talks About O'Reilly.

The video drove reactionary kulture warrior O'Reilly bonkers and he invited Wendy Murphy, a child advocate, to come on his Fox-"News" show to help him slam it, calling it "an ultimate inhuman treatment of a child." O'Reilly claimed the little girl, who is obviously-- though not to him-- a talented actress, is "being raised by nuts" who are "abusing her emotionally."

The Bastard Fairies-- U.K. instrumentalist Robin Davey and Sioux princess/singer, Yellow Thunder Woman-- have recently completed their debut album, Memento Mori. They promptly offered their 12 tracks for free online. Over 50,000 full albums and another 200,000 tracks have been downloaded at their website-- all for free. They've also released a 2-disc hard copy, with 5 extra songs and a DVD that just shipped to stores.

The duo's bio is intriguing and their music is compelling. You're not likely to hear them on the radio-- not yet at least-- but songs like "Whatever", "A Venomous Tale" and "We're All Going To Hell" sound more like hits, in a lo-fi pop kind of way, than most of what I hear when I pass a radio. Not just more like hits, but more original, more interesting and more worth listening to more than once. The melodies are as sweet and disarming as the lyrics are unabashedly incisive, in a hi-art kind of way. May I suggest we all now take a listen to Whatever.