Blind People Open Carrying in Iowa

This is not from The Onion. USA Today reports that Iowa will allow people who are legally blind to acquire gun public carrying permits. Jane Hudson, executive director of Disability Rights Iowa, made this rather laughable comment.

"The fact that you can't drive a car doesn't mean you can't go to a shooting range and see a target," Hudson said.

Iowa is going to give permits to people that are legally blind. The fact that these people can't see a target is a good reason not to let them carry a firearm in public. It is sad and unfortunate that these people are blind. Their unfortunate disability doesn't make allowing blind people open carrying a good idea.

You can thank the NRA for blind people carrying a gun in public. Dom Raso posted video advocating open carry for blind people. The NRA took down the video after it was mocked on the internet. The Young Turks has part of the video.

Ben Carson Crazy Talk on Iraq

Ben Carson is a huckster with no interest in ever becoming President. Carson went on Fox News saying that troops should be sent to Iraq. Carson said no troops should be prosecuted for any war crimes in Iraq.

CARSON: Our military needs to know that they’re not gonna be prosecuted when they come back, because somebody has, said “You did something that was politically incorrect.” There is no such thing as a politically correct war. We need to grow up, we need to mature. If you’re gonna have rules for war, you should just have a rule that says no war. Other than that, we have to win. Our life depends on it.

I would ask if Carson would swear on a Bible if he would not prosecute soldiers that kill their commanding officers or if soldiers raped minors. Carson would shake like a leaf if he was asked that question. I know this when Carson backtracked on domestic abuse when confronted by Bill O'Reilly. Carson actually defended NFL player Ray Rice punching out his wife. Who seriously does that if he wants to be President?

Carson, who earlier this week said people should stop “demonizing” Rice, told O’Reilly that he did not feel he should go unpunished for hitting Palmer, who later married him.

“What I’m saying is, for someone to do something like that who has everything going for them, it means that there’s some real deep psychological issues,” he explained.

“No doubt about it,” O’Reilly said. “I hope that Mr. Rice gets the treatment he needs — but again, I want to send the message that I do believe this is a plague, this violence against women all over the world.”

“No question,” Carson said, seemingly backtracking. “It’s a big problem.”

Notice Rice back peddling at the end. Carson is going to be a train wreck in the presidential debate. One thing for sure is Ben Carson has no respect for the rule of law.

Rep. Joe Walsh on Fundraising & the Big Banks

Former Republican Rep. Joe Walsh talks about the vicious of constantly having to raise money for the next campaign cycle. Walsh admits to Cenk Uygur that the big banks bought off the tea party Republicans.

This is the first time I have ever heard Walsh sound reasonable. It is amazing what no longer being in Congress does to a person's perspective.

Headline of the Day

This is from Media Matters.

O'Reilly: Media Covering Malaysian Airliner Because It "Doesn't Want To Cover Important Stories Like The IRS And Benghazi"

O'Reilly has been on this rant that that networks are refusing to cover real news by covering the missing Malaysian airliner. O'Reilly shouldn't talk. O'Reilly works for a network that reported Noah's Ark has been found. This happened when Fox News host Bill Hemmer was covering the Malaysian airliner story. I thought O'Reilly said Fox News wasn't wasting time covering this story.

Young Turks Rips Alex Sink

I'm glad I'm not the only one who feel this way about Alex Sink. She is a horrible politician.

Paul Ryan's Brown Bag Story at CPAC

Rep. Paul Ryan spoke at CPAC and made this bizarre statement.

He then told an anecdote he said was relayed to him by Eloise Anderson, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker's (R) Department of Children and Families secretary.

"She once met a young boy from a very poor family, and every day at school, he would get a free lunch from a government program," Ryan said.

"He told Eloise he didn’t want a free lunch. He wanted his own lunch, one in a brown-paper bag just like the other kids," he continued. "He wanted one, he said, because he knew a kid with a brown-paper bag had someone who cared for him. This is what the left does not understand."

I previously wrote before about a 60 Minutes piece on homeless children in Florida suffering with hunger. These children need a free lunch. Ryan offers these children no solutions.

The Wire reports Ryan's story may not have happened. Ryan's story is very similar to a scene in author Laura Schroff's book An Invisible Thread." Here is the excerpt.

This reminds me of when Ryan showed up to a soup kitchen unannounced and washed already clean dishes for a photo-op.

I agree with Cenk Uygur in the second video. Ryan is a fraud.

Krystal Ball On Why Hillary Clinton Shouldn't Run

The transcript of Ball's commentary.

It is clear now that we have two economies: one for a thin slice of educated elite and one for everyone else. That is the moment we are in now. So I ask you, does Hillary Clinton sound to you like the right person for this moment?

In a time when corporations have hijacked our politics enabling them to reap all the profit without feeling any compunction to do right by their workers, is someone who sat on the rabidly anti-union board of Walmart for six years the right person to restore worker’s rights?

In a time when we are still reeling from a global financial disaster brought on by foolhardy bank deregulation, is someone who recently took $400,000 to give two speeches at Goldman Sachs the person we need to wrest control of the asylum back from the banking inmates?

Keep in mind that at those paid speeches, Clinton wasn’t giving tough love to these masters of the universe. On the contrary, she said that “the banker-bashing…was unproductive and indeed foolish.” Of course, it was her husband, former President Bill Clinton, who did much of the deregulating that got us into trouble including ending the Glass-Steagall prohibitions on mixing traditional banking with speculative investment banking.

More to the point though, in a time when we badly need to be inspired, rallied, and made to believe that America can once again be true to the American dream, we desperately need someone who is mission driven. We need someone who is clearly passionate, who is living and breathing and feeling in their bones the plight of the worker and the middle class, and who is unafraid to stand up to the Wall Street titans. That person is not Hillary Clinton. It is Elizabeth Warren.

Hysterically, Bill O'Reilly defends Clinton from Ball. O'Reilly's reason is that Clinton would help the corporations that hide tax money overseas.

The Young Turks Need To Correct Their Story On Ginger Lee

Ben Mankiewicz of The Young Turks mocked Ginger Lee in a Young Turks segment during the height of the Anthony Weiner scandal. Mankiewicz cklaimed that Ginger Lee was looking for a payday. Mankiewicz kept asking during the segment why Ginger Lee would hire Gloria Allred. Mankiewicz kept asking "what wrong" happened to Ginger Lee. Mankiewicz was extremely snarky during the segment.

I asked Mankiewicz on Twitter if he was so curious why didn't he do the due diligence as a journalist and Ginger Lee himself.

.@BenMank77 Perhaps this video clip will help you remember. http://t.co/pwdVzgli8C You could have asked @gingerlee why she hired Alfred.

— Michael Hussey (@pushingrope) December 19, 2013

I expressed a long-term problem I have with The Young Turks.

.@BenMank77 I worked with Tina Dupuy. So we have a connection. What kills me about TYT is you never reseaech anything. Contact @gingerlee.

— Michael Hussey (@pushingrope) December 19, 2013

Politically, I agree with The Young Turks on 95 percent of political issues. I can't take The Young Turks seriously because they perform a lazy form of journalism.

Ginger Lee chimed in and explained why she hired Allred.

@pushingrope @BenMank77 That moment that you need Gloria is when people are camping in front of your home for days at a time. When you're

— Ginger (@gingerlee) December 19, 2013

@pushingrope @BenMank77 having a nervous breakdown because you want to be left alone because there were NEVER any pics, sexts, or ANYTHING.

— Ginger (@gingerlee) December 19, 2013

That is a good reason to hire Allred. Nancy Pelosi was discussing a House investigation into Weiner. If Ginger Lee is called to testify she would most certainly need an attorney.

Ginger Lee answers Mankiewicz's question about a big payday.

@pushingrope @BenMank77 And I never made a single dime. No interviews on Inside Edition. No ABC, NBC, CNN. NONE. I didn't get a 'payday'.

— Ginger (@gingerlee) December 19, 2013

Ginger Lee is making a living in real estate and selling antiques at flea markets. Ginger Lee has very expensive medical bills due to lupus. She hasn't gone back to porn and a bad foot has kept her from stripping. Ginger Lee is hardly raking in the money.

One thing to note about the Twitter exchange is Mankiewicz never answered the question about why he didn't contact Ginger Lee. If Mankiewicz wanted to know why she hired Allred he could have asked her. I got quotes from Ginger Lee for a post written on this blog. She isn't hard to get in contact with.

I think Mankiewicz and the team at The Young Turks mean well and are passionate progressives. However, they are not journalists.

Bill O'Reilly: the Pen is Mightier Than Military Service

The Daily Show can't top this. This is the funniest thing I have seen in ages.

Bill O'Reilly was during his usual War on Christmas nonsense. The Military Religious Freedom Foundation successfully lobbied to have two nativity scenes removed from Guantanamo Bay. Mikey Weinstein pointed out to O'Reilly that complaints about the religious displays came from active members of the military. O'Reilly then went ballistic by comparing himself to combat veterans.

"I covered four wars with the pen!" O'Reilly ranted.

"You’re an aggressive bully and an arrogant idiot, Weinstein retorted.

WEINSTEIN: When you’re in the military, it’s not like working at Fox or at Costco. It is an incredibly tribal, adversarial, communal and ritualistic place. There are Department of Defense directives, instructions and regulations in place that absolutely make this clear that this was wrong.

O’REILLY: It was a cowardly decision by the base commander… because this is a depiction of a secular holiday that was signed into law. That’s what it was. And if somebody’s offended by it, I want to know why. And your guys don’t have the courage to stand up and tell me. That’s the fact.

WEINSTEIN: Bill, please don’t call our members of the military cowards. The majority of them were Christians. Because if you want to start getting ad hominem, at least they joined the military and they’re prepared to fight. …They understand what their rights are. And your Christian personal rights will always be trumped by the civil rights of your fellow Americans.

O’REILLY: You know what? Mr. Weinstein, you just - and with all due respect to your parents – are just a bloviator. You don’t answer the questions and I’ll tell you what: I covered four wars with the pen! (He defiantly held up his pen)

WEINSTEIN: You’re an aggressive bully and an arrogant idiot!

O’REILLY: …Cut him off, he’s a jerk. I covered four wars with a pen, OK, Mr. Weinstein? So don’t impugn my courage ever again. You’re a weasel.

I know that O'Reilly covered The Granada war for ABC News. Whether he ever actually got near combat is another question. O'Reilly certainly didn't go into the field for Fox News or Inside Edition. There are no media reports of O'Reilly facing the same kind of near death experiences covering combat that Lara Logan had to endure. O'Reilly is full of it.

No Love For John Boehner

Pandering to the tea party and not standing up to Ted Cruz has not paid off for House Speaker John Boehner. A new CNN poll shows Boehner's unfavorable rating hitting 55 percent. Members of Congress usually don't poll well under the best circumstances. However, this is painful for Boehner.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi saw their unfavorable ratings go down. Reid had an unfavorable rating of 45 percent in September. This month Reid unfavorable rating went down to 40 percent. Pelosi's unfavorable rating went from 51 percent in September to 47 percent in October.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell weathered the government shutdown better than Boehner. McConnell's unfavorable rating went from 39 percent to 42 percent. McConnell is up for re-election in 2014. He is probably grateful he didn't have as high a public profile in the shutdown as Boehner.

The CNN poll shows the Republican Party with an unfavorable rating of 64 percent. The tea party has an unfavorable rating of 56 percent. Ted Cruz and the tea party is sinking the Republican brand. What is problematic for the Republican establishment is Sen. Ted Cruz promising another government shutdown.

“I would do anything, and I will continue to do anything I can, to stop the train wreck that is Obamacare,” Cruz said when asked by ABC News’ Jon Karl whether he would rule out another shutdown. “The test that matters Jon, is are we doing anything for all the people that are getting hurt from Obamacare?”

Quote of the Day: Bill O'Reilly Edition

"Last night during my discussion with James Carville about the Martin Luther King commemoration, I said that there were no Republican speakers invited. Wrong, I was wrong. Some Republicans were asked to speak. They declined, and that was a mistake. They should have spoken. Now, the mistake, entirely on me. I simply assumed that since all the speakers were liberal Democrats, Republicans were excluded. So here’s the tip of the day. Always check out the facts before you make a definitive statement. And when you make a mistake, admit it. By the way, I’m sorry that I made that mistake. It’s very annoying because I know you guys watch The Factor for accuracy."

Bill O'Reilly

I couldn't stop laughing at this Bill O'Reilly quote. O'Reilly is famous for his lack of fact-checking. I seriously doubt people watch O'Reilly's show for "accuracy."

The Onion Mocks CNN's Miley Cyrus Coverage

CNN has been providing gavel to gavel coverage of Miley Cyrus's MTV VMA performance. The Onion has decided to parody CNN's dedication to garbage news stories.

It’s a good question. And the answer is pretty simple. It was an attempt to get you to click on CNN.com so that we could drive up our web traffic, which in turn would allow us to increase our advertising revenue.

There was nothing, and I mean nothing, about that story that related to the important news of the day, the chronicling of significant human events, or the idea that journalism itself can be a force for positive change in the world. For Christ’s sake, there was an accompanying story with the headline “Miley’s Shocking Moves.” In fact, putting that story front and center was actually doing, if anything, a disservice to the public. And come to think of it, probably a disservice to the hundreds of thousands of people dying in Syria, those suffering from the current unrest in Egypt, or, hell, even people who just wanted to read about the 50th anniversary of Martin Luther King’s “I Have A Dream” speech.

I immediately checked Youtube and knew that the most pathetic excuse for a progressive news how would cover the Miley Cyrus non-news story to troll for Youtube traffic. I was not disappointed.

Can we stop pretending that the Young Turks is a serious progressive news show?

Obama Heckled By Manning Supporter

Code Pink heckled President Barack Obama with a plea to free "Free Bradley Manning." Manning now goes by the female first name of Chelsea . Unsurprisingly, the media has given little coverage of the Code Pink protest.

I'm glad the Young Turks are covering the Code Pink protest and Manning story. The problem is they do their usual uninformed job. What evidence does Michael Shure have that President Barack Obama secretly sympathizes but can't pardon him because he is president. Nice theory but no evidence. If anything, Obama's aggressiveness pursuing legal charges against former CIA operative John Kiriakou and Edward Snowden proof otherwise.

Robert Zimmerman Jr. Promotes Racism on CNN

“We have to grow from this. I want to know what makes people angry enough to attack someone the way that Trayvon Martin did. I want to know, if it is true, and I don’t know that it was true, that Trayvon Martin was looking to procure firearms, was growing marijuana plants, or was making lean, or whatever he was doing. I want to know that every minor, high schooler, that would be reaching out in some way for help—and they may feel it’s by procuring firearms or whatever they may be doing—that they have some kind of help."

Robert Zimmerman Jr., on CNN

Robert Zimmerman Jr. was asked on CNN how he could help heal the racial rift in America. Zimmerman responded by accusing Trayvon Martin of attempting to acquire a gun and grow marijuana. Zimmerman racially played-up Trayvon Martin as an angry thug. Zimmerman has no interest in racially healing America. Zimmerman used an opportunity to racial understanding to racially stereotype Trayvon Martin.

Shocking News: Jamie Dimon's Compensation Not On Line If Another Crash Happens

Last year, Rep. Barney Frank asked JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon if his compensation would be on the line if his bank suffered huge financial loses. Dimon ran away from that question as fast as he could. Dimon told Frank that he has no control of how much his board pays him. Keep in mind, that Dimon handpicks his board and is one of the most power men of Wall Street. Nope, no control whatsoever.

Jim Carrey's 'Cold Dead Hands'

Cold Dead Hand with Jim Carrey from Jim Carrey

Jim Carrey released a video on Funny Or Die making fun of the NRA and the late Charlton Heston. Carrey plays the roles of Charlton Heston, Sam Elliot and fictional country music singer Lonesome Earl. Carrey sings the song Cold Dead Hands on Hee Haw. Carrey's fictional country band has John Lennon, Gandhi and Abraham Lincoln as backing musicians. All threee famous figures were killed by guns. Carrey has taken to Twitter in recent months urging more gun control.

Unsurprisingly, Fox News flipped out after Carrey released the Cold Dead Hands video.

Stupid Florida Law

Lazaro Sopena lost his driver's licence when he changed his last name from Sopena to Dinh. He changed his last name when he got married to Hanh Dinh. Florida doesn't not allow a married man to change his last name to his wife's maiden name.

I'm glad this law his on the book. This is so much more important than crazy people getting guns.

Why We Need Campaign Finance Reform

So people like Dick Morris can't keep running their scams.

Tom Ricks Call Out Fox News

Former Washington Post national security reporter Tom Ricks goes on Fox News and publicly calls out the network for politicizing the Benghazi tragedy. The results are hysterical.

Side note: Fox News is really starting to crumble after Karl Rove's public meltdown.

Update: FNC executive VP of news Michael Clemente, ofFox News, claims Ricks apologized to them. Rick states that is not so.

“Please ask Mr. Clemente what the words of my supposed apology were. I’d be interested to know,” he said. “Frankly, I don’t remember any such apology.”

Fox News is doing damage control by falsely stating that Ricks begged for forgiveness. Judging by his appearance on Fox News, I don't think Ricks is concerned about pissing off the network.

Romney Tattoo Face Guy Eric Hartsburg

Here is a story on the Eric Hartsburg. He got the Romney logo tattooed on his face. Hartsburg sold a portion of his face to an anonymous Republican. The result is the tattoo of a losing presidential campaign. What a disaster.