Bob Somerby has been documenting how we on the Democratic side have come to applaud that we once claimed to despise - unthinking stupidity in the Media. While my feeling on what Keith Olbermann has become (in essence an O'Reilly for the Left), Somerby discussed a few days ago one of the most outrageous pieces of offensive nonsense seen in some time from persons not named Rush or Bill O:

The ability and willingness of so many to engage in pointless discussion of Rush Limbaugh and other silly people gives me the impression that the seriousness of our dire economic situation has not really sunk in to the Media and others. One example is this passage from E.J. Dionne's column today:

Paradoxically, perhaps, [Obama would] rather have citizens thinking about taxes and collapsing banks than about abortion.

They already are of course. But many are mostly thinking about jobs and paying the bills (not "taxes" which is more of a Beltway obsession). It is fascinating to watch the Media stop and cover every detail of this silly Limbaugh stuff. None of this matters politically. What matters politically is if the economy turns around. If it does, Obama and Democrats will dominate. If it does not, Republicans will make a comeback. If it is politics that interest you, then you should be thinking about one thing - will the economy turn around?

Speaking for me only

It always bothers me that people pretend not to understand interest group politics. The Left will call the anti-choice movement reactionaries and the Right will call civil liberties activists the "loony Left." It simply makes no sense. I actually admire anyone who fights hard for what they believe in. And if I agree with them, I hope I stand on the barricades with them.

The normally mild mannered Kevin Drum decides to potshot Cuban Americans who support the embargo (I vehemently disagree with the embargo as I have for my entire adult life). Kevin asks:

Andrew Sullivan has no intellectual right to write these words about how the Beltway Establishment cowered before the Bush Administration:

[M]uch of official Washington carried on as normal - and those of us who actually stood up and opposed this were regarded as "hysterics". Something is rotten in a country where this can happen with such impunity - and when, even now, highly regarded and respected journalists and commentators simply move on or roll their eyes or sigh world-weary sighs.

Andrew Sullivan invented the New McCarthyism, as David Talbot demonstrated in 2001:

Update: Shorter version: It was a complete trainwreck. Blogger Reality Steve had it right. Here's a pretty good recap of the finale. Show Host Chris Harrison tries to justify Jason's actions and how ABC decided to portray it.

***

Yes, I'm still following the twists and turns on ABC's The Bachelor and Jason Mesnick's seemingly never-ending search for a wife. And I'm still talking to Jesse Csincsak, my favorite contestant and the final, but not everlasting choice of Bachelorette Deanna Pappas last season. (My earlier interviews of Jesse are here and here.)

[More...]

The word is out on what ABC calls the most stunning, shocking, dramatic and emotional finale ever for ABC's The Bachelor, airing Monday night. This season's star is Jason Mesnick from Kirkland, Washington who lives with his brother and four year old son. He almost got picked last season by bachelorette Deanna Pappas, but Deanna picked Colorado Snowboarder Jesse Csinscak (my favorite) instead. Then Deanna dumped Jesse. You can read my last interview of Jesse here and you can see Deanna make a inconsequential comeback on Jason's show Monday.

The internets have been on fire about the finale for a month now. Tonight, it seems, there's no more debate, the ending is in the bag and those who were in attendance for the taping of the final aftershow today, which will air March 3,have leaked the details, despite being warned they would face a $5 million penalty for doing so. [More...]

Paul Krugman coined the memorable phrase "GOP Says World Is Flat; Dems Disagree" as an example of what "journalism" is today - "He Said, She Said" emptiness. Fred Hiatt, unsurprisingly, confirms this view today:

[T]he Sierra Club, the League of Conservation Voters, Friends of the Earth, and Media Matters for America sent a joint letter to the Post reiterating the call for some form of correction or clarification . . . “George Will is entitled to his own opinions, but he is not entitled to his own facts,” the letter concluded. . . . But the Post’s position remains the same.

[More...]

Theda Skopcol:

In such marked contrast to the timid triangulation of Clinton, Obama offers a strong, positive statement of the role of U.S. government in national development, past and for the future. Government does not "substitute" for business or individual action, but it is an essential "catalyst."

CDS is a strange thing. From Obama's speech:

As soon as I took office, I asked this Congress to send me a recovery plan by Presidents Day that would put people back to work and put money in their pockets, not because I believe in bigger government -- I don't -- not because I'm not mindful of the massive debt we've inherited -- I am. . . .

More . . .

George Lakoff is back selling his particular brand of "political discourse." He has always claimed Obama as a disciple (no one told Obama I think.) Lakoff's thinking is not exactly harmful but it is cloying. In a dkos diary, he writes:

[T]here will be a vision of America—a moral vision and a view of unity that the pundits often miss. What they miss is the Obama Code. For the sake of unity, the President tends to express his moral vision indirectly. . . . [Obama] connects with his audience using what cognitive scientists call the “cognitive unconscious.” Speaking naturally, he lets his deepest ideas simply structure what he is saying.

(Emphasis supplied.) Um, ok. I especially like the whole "express[ing] his moral vision indirectly" thing. Not the Straight Talk Express I take it. Anyway, this is all hooey. Obama did not invent the Post Partisan Unity Schtick though he is an especially fine practitioner of it. He is no Gladstone that's for sure. But the idea of seeking "unity" by ignoring actual policy is a particularly absurd Lakoffian conceit. Lakoff writes:

By now we all know CNBC's Rick Santelli is a buffoon. And NBC is the network for buffoons. But even NBC should take action for this:

CNBC’s Rick Santelli appeared on at least two radio programs today to promote his “rant” against President Obama’s housing program. On G. Gordon Liddy’s radio program, Santelli called attention to White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs’s response to his tirade. He cropped a quote from Gibbs to suggest the White House was pursuing a campaign of intimidation against him[.]

To put it bluntly, Santelli is lying. Let's repeat that - an NBC "reporter" is going on right wing radio shows and lying. This merits action by NBC. More . . .

Andrew Sullivan:

Now we see the real struggle for the soul of this administration. Obama wants to tackle the insolvency of the big three entitlement programs: Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security. These three programs, especially Medicare, will destroy the fiscal future, unless we pare them back now. . . . The GOP will have to accept some tax hikes and the Dems will have to accept some entitlement cuts.

Paul Krugman:

What makes the projections you actually see so scary is the assumption that “excess cost growth” in health care will continue — that is, health spending per person will continue to rise at close to 2 percent faster than GDP per capita. . . . So if excess cost growth in health care can be brought under control, the entitlement problem is manageable. If not, even savage cuts in Social Security will make little difference.

(Emphasis supplied.) Who you gonna trust on this, Krugman or a Sully the Don Luskin fan? I'll go with Krugman.Speaking for me only

The Oscars are beginning. Here's a thread for your reactions and comments. I won't be live-blogging, just updating periodically.

Update 6:40pm: Best opening in years...since Billy Crystal. Hugh Jackman is incredible. The audience agreed, a standing ovation. I'm totally impressed.

Update 6:50pm: These Oscars are not your father's Oldmosbile. The presentation of best supporting actress was so moving and personal, it was just beautiful to watch. Hollywood needs a recession more often, it's truly brought out their creative inspiration. And congrats to Penelope Cruz. As I said in the red carpet thread, I loved Vicki Christina Barelona, she was terrific (as was Javier Bardem and the other two women.) Further updates as warranted below.