The General finds the person responsible for the mess in Iraq.

The "blame the American people" crowd is gathering...

Josh Marshall:

Let's first take note that the 'blame the American people for Bush's screw-ups' meme has definitely hit the big time. It's not Bush who bit off more than he could chew or did something incredibly stupid or screwed things up in a way that defies all imagining. Bush's 'error' here is not realizing in advance that the American people would betray him as he was marching into history. The 'tragedy' is that Bush "bit off more than the American people were willing to chew." That just takes my breath away...read on

Glenn takes us through it...

One of the benefits of contributing to C&L is the amount of time I spend researching using non-American media. The difference in coverage is stark. With that in mind, the talking points of the American mainstream media become pretty easy to recognize. John Tirman gives us a good synopsis:

Alternet:

While the news media have finally started to grapple with the colossal amount of killing, a number of misunderstandings persist. Some are willful deceptions. Let's look at a few of them:

1. The U.S. is a buffer against more violence.

2. The killers do it to influence U.S. politics.

3. The "Lancet" numbers are bogus.

4. Syria and Iran are behind the violence.

5. The "Go Big" strategy of the Pentagon could work.

6. Foreign fighters, especially jihadis, are fueling the violence.

7. If we do not defeat the violent actors there, they will follow us here.

8. The violence is about Sunni-Shia mutual loathing; a pox on both their houses.

9. The war is an Iraqi affair, and the best we can do now is train them to enforce security.

10. Trust the same people who caused or endorsed the war to tell us what to do next.

Read the full article here

Nicole Belle: "After my head exploded from the sheer idiocy of having to type that headline, it occured to me that generations from now, we will be able to view video clips like this one as evidence of the implosion of the conservative movement to oblivion."

Culture Warrior Bill O'Reilly has been milking Danny Devito's appearance on 'The View' for all it's (not) worth. For a second consecutive day -- and what will carry on to next week when BillO will "analyze Barbara Walters' body language" -- the falafel King harped on Devito's "deep-seated hatred" for President Bush and how "the left wing media" is giving him a free pass. The worst part comes when FOX shill Bernard Goldberg compares 'The View' to a meeting of the KKK, saying that Devito felt right at home with the left-wing audience (who somehow equate to radical racists?) Golberg made clear that he's "never been to one", though.

Download | play WMP | Download | play MOV

I don't know which FOX interview O'Reilly was talking about but Devito is clearly not "cold sober" in this one. I think he was just being stupid after a night out with Clooney. It's not like he was joking about poisoning Supreme Court justices or anything.

I swear, that was from a study. Sometimes, the jokes just write themselves.

This Modern World:

Anyone who's spent any time reading right wing blogs already understood this to be true:

Lohse, a social work master's student at Southern Connecticut State University, says he has proven what many progressives have probably suspected for years: a direct link between mental illness and support for President Bush.

Lohse says his study is no joke. The thesis draws on a survey of 69 psychiatric outpatients in three Connecticut locations during the 2004 presidential election. Lohse's study, backed by SCSU Psychology professor Jaak Rakfeldt and statistician Misty Ginacola, found a correlation between the severity of a person's psychosis and their preferences for president: The more psychotic the voter, the more likely they were to vote for Bush.

Continue reading »

The media is fixated on everything Nancy does and they haven't taken power yet. Now, the proud GOP issues this threat:

Looks like the Republicans in the House aren’t planning to play nice-nice with the Democrats after all. The emerging House Republican plan on how to address the new Democratic majority is turning toward an aggressive effort to portray Speaker-elect Nancy Pelosi and her team as out of touch and liberal.

“Come January, we’ll take her head off every day,” said a top GOP aide involved in the planning....read on

Raw Story:

In the name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful

O, Almighty God, bestow upon humanity the perfect human being promised to all by You, and make us among his followers.

Noble Americans,

Were we not faced with the activities of the US administration in this part of the world and the negative ramifications of those activities on the daily lives of our peoples, coupled with the many wars and calamities caused by the US administration as well as the tragic consequences of US interference in other countries;

Were the American people not God-fearing, truth-loving, and justice-seeking, while the US administration actively conceals the truth and impedes any objective portrayal of current realities;

And if we did not share a common responsibility to promote and protect freedom and human dignity and integrity;

Then, there would have been little urgency to have a dialogue with you.

While Divine providence has placed Iran and the United States geographically far apart, we should be cognizant that human values and our common human spirit, which proclaim the dignity and exalted worth of all human beings, have brought our two great nations of Iran and the United States closer together.

Read full text here

Digby:

Blaming the American people is an excellent political strategy, however, and I hope these conservatives keep it up. There's nothing that betrayed voters like more than to be called stupid, cowardly and traitorous. (I know I've been enjoying it for the last couple of decades.) I'm sure all those independents and moderates who now see through Bush and the Republicans are going to love it too. It really clarifies your thinking.

This isn't the 1970's. They aren't going to get away with blaming the cowardly public this time. There are no hippies to hate ---- just millions of average, taxpaying, middle class Americans who know damned well when they've been lied to. And if they don't, there are many of us out here who will remind them...read on