"The Naughty List", 2010 Edition

Hi!

Remember me?

I'm the guy who used to post new entries to this blog everyday......and then a funny thing happened. It's called "Christmas". From Thanksgiving until about 9PM last night (Happy Belated "Festivus", BTW) I've been running a 30 day sprint, trying to get things done before The Big Day. And finally, when I got up this morning, I looked around....and EVERYTHING IS FINALLY DONE!

Free at last! Now I know many of my fellow bloggers have been keeping up with current events, politics, and pop culture while I was making myself hysterical for the past three weeks. So why go through a rehash of everything that's been said already? Those guys know what they're talking about....I'm just a wise guy from Jersey.....no, not THAT kind of "wise guy".....maybe I should say "smart ass" instead.


But I will touch upon some of the people who deserve coal in they're stocking this Christmas.....there is a list, you know. Trust me. It does exist. I found this video on the internet that proves it.

Elf - Naughty List | Movies & TV | SPIKE.com

Walter Hobbs is not alone, Buddy.....and as for New York, we'll I'll talk about that later.

But first.....here's a list of those who've made Santa's Naughty List. Some should remain on it for years.

(1). Senator Mitch McConnell- The Republican minority leader from Kentucky has earned this description from MSNBC's Chris Matthews; ".....a character from Charles Dickens.". It's hard to tell what he's for, and much easier to talk about those things he's against, like the START treaty, the repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell", The Dream Act, the bill for medical aid for the 9/11 first responders.....oh yeah, he is FOR the giving of billions of dollars in tax breaks to billionaires when the money could be used to aid municipalities around the nation on the brink of default.

(2). Senator John McCain- probably the biggest political sellout of the early 21st century. The Republican who ran for the presidency on the motto "Country First" opposes START, was a leading voice to kill the repeal of DADT, has swung way right on immigration issues, and called the Zadroga 9/11 First Responder's bill "fooling around" in a speech on the floor of the US Senate. The once proud maverick has morphed into The Angry Old Man of the Senate

3). Governor Chris Christie- the guy blows a $400 million government grant to education, then tries to blame the Obama Administration for the New Jersey delegation's error, and when that doesn't work he throws his education chief under the bus. His personal war on the teacher's union has led to referring to New Jersey students as "drug mules", carrying information from teacher union leadership home with them, and his allying himself with conservative gonzo filmmaker James O'Keefe. There's a lot more to say about this guy, but time is limited. The governor, who's personal style reminds me of Billy Martin at his worst, is finally starting to have some veneer wear off of his once somewhat (by GOP standards in New Jersey) lofty status. Recent polls have shown his job approval dropping 5% in the past month, while disapproval in New Jersey shot up to 48%.

4). Sarah Palin- much can be said why she belongs on the naughty list. But this year it's because Santa is afraid the former half term governor of Alaska will shoot one of his reindeer.

5). BP- It's not cool to pollute our waters....and even worse when some of our political leaders, like Texas Congressman Joe Barton apologized to BP's CEO when President Obama took the company to task for the Gulf Oil Spill of 2010.

6). Oh yeah....Joe Barton. You're on the list, too.

7). The New York Giants. You guys were beating the Eagles by 21 points (31-10) with less than eight minutes to play.....and lost 38-31! C'mon, man! All of you belong on the list after that one.

8). The NCAA- the governing body of college sports has decided to punish five Ohio State football players for selling personal items, trophies, and awards by suspending them for the first five games of the 2011 season. OK, the "student athletes" bypassed the rules laid down by the NCAA. But all five players remain eligible to play in next week's Sugar Bowl game. So when is a suspension not a suspension? When it impacts the showcase of a BCS bowl, and the big bucks a BCS game generates. Shame on you, NCAA.

9). LeBron James- to paraphrase Michael in GODFATHER II, "You broke our hearts, Fredo......I mean, LeBron". So speaketh the hurting sports fans of the city of Cleveland. But this video says it better than I ever could.


And finally.....

10). Rex and Michelle Ryan- the head coach of the New York Jets and his wife have been making some news lately......is it naughty?


Actually...it's not THAT naughty. Maybe even kind of nice.

That is, if you're into that kind of stuff.

I wonder if they exchange argle socks for Christmas?

If The Republicans Take The House- JOE BARTON WILL CHAIR COMMITTEE TO REPEAL HEALTHCARE REFORM

Hey kids!

Do you remember long, long ago, when there was this hole in the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico, caused when an oil platform owned by BP....(wasn't it called the "Deepwater Horizon?).....burned down and which resulted in millions of barrels of crude oil spilling into the Gulf from April 22 to July 15, 2010? And do you remember the hundreds of millions of dollars lost by the tourist industry, and by the shrimpers, the fishermen, and hotels and restaurants the five state Gulf region? And how about the severe damage done to the fragile ecosystem of the Gulf, the extent of which is still not known nor will it be for years to come.

There was greed, thee was negligence, there was inaction, there was recklessness....there was BP, primarily responsible for the greatest ecological disaster in American history.

And then there was the sight of Rep. Joe Barton (TX- 6th District, R) apologizing to BP CEO Tony Hayward in a Congressional hearing in June, saying that the President of the United States was trying to shakedown BP.




Shortly after this apology to Tony Hayward, Joe Barton was forced to to apologize for his apology by the Republican leadership. You'd think after this completely mindless display by Barton that he'd become a pariah, and forced to take a "timeout", or get to the end of the line....no way.

Joe Barton remains the ranking minority member on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, and all indications are that if the Republicans gain control of the House it's Barton who would become chairman of the committee.

That's right, the man who defended BP after the Gulf Oil spill will be chairing a committee that is responsible for overseeing oil regulations and sale, and other commerce in the United States.

And in his role as chairman of this committee, one of the things at the top of his (and the Republican's) agenda would be to repeal the Health Care Bill of 2010., the law that is derisively called "Obamacare" by the Right Wing and their minions. The repeal of the Health Care Bill is a cornerstone of the GOP's new gimmick, it's Pledge To America....and Joe Barton, will be leading the fight to undue reforms that have been needed in this country since the end of the Second World War.



We've already seen that Barton would (and does) carry water for Big Oil, and his uncompromising opposition to healthcare reform further paints a picture of man who claims to be of the people, but really isn't.

More of Joe Barton's Greatest Hits......

On the repeal of energy efficiency standards (passed during the Bush Administration).

Barton among conservative congressmen who threatened to withhold funding to PBS when international versions SESAME STREET introduced an HIV positive character. They didn't want any such characters on the American version.

Barton on his opposition to the "speculative" Climate Change Bill.


You want a rerun of the Bush years?

Stay home on election day, and you could get it.

Deepwater Horizon Disaster; Day 87; Oil Flow Cut Off (So Far)

On the 87th day of the crisis and with possibly 184 million gallons spilled into the Gulf of Mexico, BP has been able to cap the breach on the well leaking crude as a result of the explosion of the Deepwater Horizon platform in April.

The next 48 hours are critical to see how if this cap will hold, and all involved, and those in the affected regions, have their fingers crossed.

To paraphrase Winston Churchill, this is not the end, nor the beginning of the end, but possibly the end of the beginning.

Say a prayer.

READ MORE....from Comcast.net, the AP, and Colleen Long and Harry R. Weber

Bill Maher- NEW RULES For June 11, 2010

REAL TIME with Bill Maher (HBO 10pm Eastern) is going on break until September....but before going Bill left us with some New Rules regarding McDonalds, Katy Perry and Lady Gaga, the Former Half Term Governor of Alaska, and the oil industry.

Panelists include Oliver Stone, Bill Frist, Rachel Maddow,and Jon Meacham.

The Deepwater Horizon Disaster; President Obama's Interview With Matt Lauer and Opinion

President Obama is interviewed by Matt Lauer for The Today Show in the video below. He responds to critics, and tells Lauer of his intent to kick "the right person's ass" who is responsible for generating this crisis.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Opinion

"PERCEPTION IS REALITY" ....... Jonathan Alter, Newsweek contributor, frequent commentator on MSNBC, and author of a newly published book about Year One of the Obama Presidency called The Promise, was a guest recently on Real Time with Bill Maher. The conversation turned to how Mr. Obama was handling the situation in the Gulf with the oil spill from the sinking of the Deepwater Horizon platform, and the criticism he was receiving for his response in the days after the crisis began. Though the administration did about as much as humanly possible to respond to a situation without precedent, Mr. Obama's personal reaction and demeanor was the subject of scrutiny and more than a little criticism. His style seemed to many to be detached and aloof when many Americans felt anger and wanted to vent. Alter told the following story from more than 60 years ago.

President Franklin D. Roosevelt's funeral procession snaked through the streets of Washington DC. There were two men standing together in the throngs on onlookers; the two were total strangers. As the caisson carrying Roosevelt's body passed by, one man fell to the pavement, overcome with tears. The second man helped the first man up. "Are you alright?" the second man asked the first man. The first man responded that he was OK, but felt heartsick at the death of Roosevelt. "Did you know Mr. Roosevelt?", the second man asked. The first man looked at the second man and said, "No, I never even met the President......but he knew me".

Maybe that was the essence of Franklin Roosevelt's greatness. He connected to the little guy, even though he was a wealthy patrician from New York's Old Dutch aristocracy. FDR was a a handsome youngish dilettante when tragedy struck, and he contracted polio, leaving him crippled for the rest of his life. But his illness made him more human, and his personal struggles gave him a connection to the struggles of Everyman. He WAS the Great Communicator forty years before Ronald Reagan, and a the man who steered America through the two greatest crises of the 20th century.

I voted for Barack Obama, and I've contributed to his presidential campaign, and I've been a supporter of policies. I want him to succeed, and I'll chide anyone who cheerleads for his failure, because it would be a failure for all of us as a nation.

Mr. Obama is cool, calm, and collected; it was part of his appeal as a candidate. He was jovial and rational, while at times his opponent seemed to become unglued.

But I must say.....I am among those who wished to see more anger from Obama the President in reaction to the disaster in the Gulf. I wanted to see Vince Lomabrdi in someone's face; we got understated Tom Landry seemingly, quietly analyzing and sorting it out....and initially trusting the perpetrator of this mess, BP, to find away to stop the leak and clean it up.

Clearly no matter what Mr. Obama does he'll be attacked by the usual gasbags on the right; there's no news there. But when James Carville, Keith Olbermann, Rachel Maddow, Howard Fineman, Maureen Dowd and others from the left or centrist media chime in about Obama's lack of emotion in the wake of this crisis that must be cause for concern. And the revelation that the President has not contacted BP CEO Tony Hayward is, at the very least, a real headscratcher. It's not often fair to compare the styles of one President versus another, but questions need to be asked how leaders of the past may have responded to this crisis. Imagine the reaction of a Lyndon Baines Johnson to an oil spill of this magnitude threatening our shores and rendering hundreds of square miles of marshlands and open waters lifeless. Johnson once called Robert Kennedy, whom he had no love for, a "piss ant". If he would say that to a man who later served (briefly) as his Attorney General, LBJ would have taken Hayward to task, and in all likelihood very forcefully. I wouldn't rule out LBJ threatening personally to shoot Tony Hayward on sight because of his low balls and "misstatements"....and I'm sure thousands of Louisiana residents would have looked the other way, and would have never seen a thing.

Now I'm not advocating violence to anyone (ie, Tony Hayward) regarding his words and "actions" in this crisis....but I really believe most Americans would have really wanted to see Barack Obama get into a room with the guy and ask him when the BS is going to stop; low balling the amount of the spill, the effectiveness of a top kill, the effectiveness of a bottom kill, how the cap is working, and of course, the strain this has put on Hayward who complained about getting "his life back".

Mr. Obama....a lot of us are cheering you on, and want you to succeed. But some of us want you to get mad as hell....and its OK to show it.....and make sure that those responsible for this disaster are going to pay with some serious jail time. Lives were lost, hundreds of other lives have been thrown in turmoil, and a precious resource has been infected and may be terminally ill. In natural history we have seen extinction due to comets, ice ages, droughts, famine and pestilence.

But the pending extinction in the Gulf is simply the result of human greed.

It's that simple.

Deepwater Horizon Disaster; "Nyuk! Nyuk... Nuke! Nuke!"

"Imagine the Three Stooges with nukes"......Professor Michie Kaku on using a nuclear weapon to seal off the oil leak in the Gulf.

BP claims to be "encouraged" by it's latest effort to cap the massive oil leak caused by the sunken Deepwater Horizon drilling platform, as President Obama makes another visit to check on the progress- or lack there of- by the oil giant in the worst environmental disaster in US history.

Previously BP was encouraged by their effort to "top kill" the leak, before admitting failure last week. The latest plan, "cut and cap", will not stop the leak, only contain it until relief wells can be drilled. The United States government has handed BP a bill of $69 million for cost incurred so far....but obviously a price tag cannot be put on catastrophe of this magnitude.

Last night on COUNTDOWN Keith Olbermann hosted Prof. Michie Kaku of City College of New York, and discussed the idea of "nuking" the well to seal it.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Great idea....radioactive oil and tar balls washing up on America's beaches from Texas to Cape Cod. Did the guys who thought of this idea ever hear of Chernobyl?

The Deepwater Horizon Disaster Day 39- President Obama Returns To The Gulf Coast

"You will not be abandoned. You will not be left behind. We are on your side and we will see this through.
I am the president and the buck stops with me."

Today President Barack Obama returned to the Gulf Coast to inspect the efforts to stop the oil leak that has spilled millions of gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico. The President has taken much criticism, some from members of his own party, about his seeming detachment from the dire situation in the Gulf. With his appearance today, Mr. Obama tried to reassure the public that he is in charge, and in the words of BP CEO Tony Hayward...

"We are working for the government. The government is running it (the effort to stop the leak)."

For a full account from Reuters, click here.

Below, video from The Associated Press and from ITN.

The Deepwater Horizon Disaster Day 39- From HBO's "TREME"- John Goodman's YouTube Rant

It was a memorable scene for fans of HBO's new series Treme, which takes place in New Orleans in the months after Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans and the Gulf Coast in 2005. Creighton Bernette (played by John Goodman) is a college professor/author and die-hard citizen of New Orleans who becomes frustrated at the pace of government and public response to the devastation of the city and life he loves. Creighton discovers that newfangled YouTube from his teenage daughter, and decides to air his grievances on all those who say New Orleans should be abandoned or left to implode on its own.

What follows is probably something many people in the region want to say about those who seek to minimize the impact the Deepwater Horizon spill on the Gulf Coast region, or to all those who choose to look the other way.

WARNING!!!! If you're easily offended, skip the video.



If the series survives for the next five years, perhaps Creighton should do a followup for 2010.

The Deepwater Horizon Disaster, Day 38; President Obama- " I Take Responsibility"

This afternoon President Obama defended the administration's response to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, calling it an "unprecedented disaster" in a press conference held in the East Room of the White House.

Mr. Obama also said the following....

"I take responsibility. It is my job to make sure that everything is done to shut this down."

Below, the President in his own words regarding the situation.






For the related Associated Press story of the press conference, click here.

Deepwater Horizon Disaster; Time For The Feds To Take Over, Part II- Olbermann

"They (sources in Louisiana) think the White House just doesn't 'get it'"....Howard Fineman

Last night on MSNBC's COUNTDOWN, Keith Olbermann and Howard Fineman discuss the response of the Obama Administration to the failure of BP to stop the Deepwater Horizon's oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico, BP's use of toxic dispersants to break up the slicks, and try to answer the question....who's really in charge?

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

A word to the Obama Administration....if you lose Olbermann, you'll lose progressive America, and a good chunk of the Dems and independents who supported this president.

Deepwater Horizon Fiasco; "And May Those Responsible Spend Eternity Keeping Company With The Devil"

(Could Oil From The Deepwater Horizon Disaster Reach Europe Via The Gulfstream?)

Opinion

I'll admit right up front that I really needed a break from blogging about political issues for awhile now. I'd like to think it's about the spring and the chance to get out and do things. But there's more to it than that. I tossed and turned until about 3:00am before finally drifting off to a very unrestful sleep for a few hours. I have this feeling of helplessness....it deepens every time I put on the news and see the latest about the Deepwater Horizon disaster in the Gulf of Mexico. The situation alternately angers and saddens me.

But the worst feeling I have about this cataclysm, as Cynthia Tucker calls the massive oil spill, is not only the long term effects it will have on the Gulf Coast, but the potential it has for entering the Gulf Stream and fouling the beaches and waters of Florida, including the Keys, and then getting caught up in the current in a deadly move up the Atlantic Coast.

Key West. Islamorada. Marathon. Key Largo. Miami Beach. Fort Lauderdale The Palm Beaches. Vero Beach. Jacksonville, and then unto the Georgia coast and beyond. Ecological systems and coral reefs that had survived for thousands of years may soon be gone. The people who make their living from fishing and tourism will have their lives turned upside down. And the goo could keep moving North, to the Carolinas, Virginia, New Jersey and Long Island, and to the treasure that is Cape Cod.

And what's to say the oil doesn't eventually wash up on the shores of Europe? And don't say "it can't happen". Never have so many been so wrong about so much so very often as in dealing with this mess.

I feel angry. I feel sick, and I feel helpless. So many things that I found wonderful about life, those things have no price tag because they are a gift from God, will be taken from me, and from the millions of others who loved them. And it didn't have to happen.

The disaster came about because of greed, laziness, and incompetence on many levels.

This afternoon I had a Charlton Heston- Planet of the Apes moment while watching the news that the oil had begun to enter the Gulfstream.

They've finally done it....DAMN THEM. DAMN THEM TO HELL.

"Them" being BP...TRANSOCEAN....HALLIBURTON....and The Department of the Interior's MINERALS MANAGEMENT SERVICE, a "regulatory agency" that's been in bed with Big Oil for far too long.

Also....those pols in the oil states who use oil company donations like a freakin' ATM, get packed....you're going to hell too.

And while you're on the way to "that hot place", take the rest of those "drill baby drill" politicians and the pinheads who cheered them on at rallies with you.

Hasta la vista, baby!

There....I feel better now.

It won't mean a damn thing in the Great Scheme.....but nothing any of us says or does seems to matter anyway, does it?

But at least a little bit of my anger has been vented.

The sadness? That's another story.

Deepwater Horizon Fiasco; "It's The Other Guy's Fault"

On Day Two of Congressional hearings with principles involved in the blowout of the Deepwater Horizon well in the Gulf of Mexico and the subsequent oil spill that is polluting the waters and threatening the shorelines of the Gulf States, we've managed to learn one thing; it was the fault of the guy sitting to the other guy's right.

So said the representatives of the companies involved in this environmental and economic disaster. Except for the the guy at the end of the table- he started blaming the guys on his left. The representatives and speakers at the hearing included Lamar McKay of British Petroleum (BP), Tim Probert of Halliburton, and Steven Newman of Transocean.

And the situation gets even more interesting because the Swiss rig was flagged not by the United States or Great Britain or Switzerland (offshore drilling in Switzerland?), but by the Marshall Islands, which has less stringent safety standards than do the US or the UK.

Click here for an in depth report from the Los Angeles Times.

Below, videos from Keith Olbermann of COUNTDOWN and from Rachel Maddow, both on MSNBC>

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

For an account of Day One of the Congressional hearings on the oil spill, click here.

Blue Jersey:: Virginia Offshore Oil Lease Sale Suspended

Above, Virginia Beach, VA


Finally!

Some semblance of sanity. Today the the Obama administration suspended plans to allow future oil and gas leases off the cost of Virginia. This comes in the wake of the environmental catastrophe in the Gulf of Mexico with a massive oil spill caused by the explosion of BP's Deepwater Horizon.



READ MORE....from Blue Jersey

The High Cost of "Drill Baby Drill", Part III- What If?

Commentary

The lack of humility before nature that's being displayed here, uh... staggers me. Dr. Ian Malcolm (Jeff Goldblum) in Jurassic Park.

I found myself tossing and turning most of last night, but I finally did get to sleep. And at about 5:30 am on a Saturday I opened my eyes to rays of sunlight beginning to slice through the gaps on the side of my window shades. I could hear the sounds of birds chirping and Canada geese flying and honking overhead. It was way too early, but I got up and made some coffee.

And I had this thought; what if those were the last sounds of nature I would ever hear? What if there were no nesting birds, waterfowl, or other creatures to share the earth with? Mankind is supposed to be the steward of Planet Earth. And once again, we have failed miserably.

Last night on Real Time Bill Maher laid the blame for the Deep Water Horizon explosion and subsequent oil spill on those most responsible; on We The People.

Yes BP went ahead with the drilling off of the Louisiana coastline, and are ultimately at fault. It seems there was no contingency plan from BP in the event of disaster. In fact, it seems BP deemed a mishap like the catastrophe in the Gulf as unlikely, and even impossible.

"....unlikely that an accidental surface or subsurface oil spill would occur from the proposed activities."... an excerpt from BP's plan for the Deepwater Horizon well submitted to the Minerals Management Service

That's right....does anybody reading this remember the "unsinkable" Titanic?

But the bottom line is that we all failed....when an energy crisis first reared its head in the 1970's we panicked, we sat long gas lines, we paid more for gas, we watched prices stabilize and become plentiful....and then we went and bought bigger gas guzzlers. And we repeated the process every few years. We always talk a good game about a comprehensive energy plan for the 21st century, and then we do nothing.

We The People didn't demand enough of our leaders to get us off fossil fuels; and today four Gulf Coast states, their wildlife, their livelihoods, and their economies are all imperiled.

This morning I felt so ill about watching the news regarding the situation in the Gulf I couldn't watch anymore. So I put on HBO...and watched Jurassic Park for possibly the tenth time. And in that film from 1993 we saw the danger of what could happen when science and technology are used irresponsibly; there are repercussions that can be far reaching for years to come. Below, another quote from Jeff Goldblum as Dr. Ian Malcolm.

I'll tell you the problem with the scientific power that you're using here: it didn't require any discipline to attain it. You read what others had done and you took the next step. You didn't earn the knowledge for yourselves, so you don't take any responsibility... for it. You stood on the shoulders of geniuses to accomplish something as fast as you could and before you even knew what you had you patented it and packaged it and slapped it on a plastic lunchbox, and now....

Yesterday New Jersey Senators Frank Lautenberg and Bob Menendez, and Congressmen Frank Pallone (NJ-6) and Rush Holt (NJ-12) sent a letter to President Obama voicing their opposition to expanded offshore oil drilling in the Atlantic.

“In the wake of the tragic accident, loss of life, and pollution in the Gulf of Mexico from the Deepwater Horizon oil rig, we are even more steadfastly opposed to any offshore drilling that could imperil the environment or economy of coastal New Jersey,” wrote the Members of Congress. “While we appreciate the White House’s announcement that no additional offshore drilling will be authorized until a full investigation of the accident is complete, we urge you to go further and reverse your decision on proposed new offshore oil and gas drilling for the outer continental shelf.

“The spill, and the conduct of companies like BP, raises serious concerns about expanding drilling to areas like the Atlantic seaboard. This catastrophe demonstrates exactly why no new drilling should proceed in any U.S. waters, and certainly not in the Atlantic. This incident exposes the many deficiencies in worker safety, blow out avoidance technology, and oil spill clean-up plans for operations in the outer continental shelf. We simply are not prepared to make our pristine Jersey shoreline the next test case for the oil companies’ experiment in how to maximize profits and minimize regulations.”

The President has suspended authorization for any increased offshore drilling. It is my hope that this suspension is permanent.

There will be a Butterfly Effect from this spill that will touch the lives of all, from the shrimper in the Delta to your local Red Lobster or Joe's Crab Shack. And imagine the hit to the economies that depend on the casinos in Biloxi or spring break in the Florida Panhandle. Alaska still isn't totally back from the Exxon-Valdez disaster of 1988... and that was 22 years ago.

And of course, an ecosystem that took hundreds of thousands of years to develop will be no more.

Time to stop now. I want to enjoy this spring day...and the wonder of nature...while I still can.