Tulsi Gabbard For President

Tulsi Gabbard for President

The recent "Tulsi works for Putin" schtick can be understood best as a fight between old media and new media.  A classic power fight between wheezing old talking heads, their younger clones, and new media power brokers will show where the new election lines are drawn.  Newsflash: Tulsi will win.

Hillary Clinton is running a '90s media smear campaign that really worked for her and her husband in the past - the way past.  Clinton whispers her vengeful stories to stooges on cable tv and foolish New York Time op ed writers.  Feeling safe, they repeat them without fearing real consequences.

Old Media and The Clinton Playbook

Why not?  It is the same playbook Clinton used in her failed 2016 election campaign:

1. court mass media, 
2. take voters for granted, 
3. rely on proxies to say nasty things for you, 
4. insult and dismiss half of the electorate. 

It didn't work last time, but as Clinton apparently never took responsibility for her role in her own defeat, she blindly uses the same approach again.

Court Mass Media

The '90s media landscape was exclusively mass media, so a strategy targeting those influencers was smart.  Prescient was Bill Clinton's focus on alternate paths to voter attention, like talk shows. It was how he got around the universal dismissal of him as a serious candidate by the "serious" political press after his sex scandals.  

But this approach is outdated.  There are thousands of information sources for voters now.  The personal relationship approach will not control political watchers because there are simply too many thinkers in the political space.  The rah-rah for the "weapons of mass destruction" leading to the Gulf War and Russiagate undermined credibility for mass media outlets anyway, and people look to other voices to trust.

Take Voters for Granted

Hillary Clinton neglected Michigan and other rust belt states during the 2016 Presidential election.  She dismissed HALF OF AMERICA as "deplorables."  Not very persuasive.  Clinton took the voters of the rust belt for granted because of their union affiliation, not learning the lesson that Reagan taught:  people make up their own minds.

In the frame of this Tulsi Gabbard dialogue, Clinton assumes that the support of the media "elites" will lead to the sheeplike support of Americans.

Rely on Proxies To Say Nasty Things For You

Bakari Sellers accused Tulsi Gabbard of treason on CNN.  This charge has been supported by Hillary Clinton by getting other people to repeat the accusation.

Tulsi Gabbard shows her understanding of modern media when she pins the "Russian asset" smear directly on Hillary Clinton.  Clinton is used to dodging the stench of a shit show by getting others to say her insults.  Part of that tactic was the pretense of cable t.v. hosts that she didn't really say it at all, but that somebody else did.  Now, Tulsi Gabbard's voice can appeal directly to voters, much like Bill Clinton did in playing the saxophone on late night television.

Insult and Dismiss Half of the Electorate

"Deplorables."  

Clinton also insults everyone in the military by implying that one of them would betray their country with treason.

In this message struggle with Tulsi Gabbard, Clinton is dismissing anyone under the age of 50.  Younger voters don't believe that the New York Times is always right.  They don't have t.v.'s or watch cable "news."

The Tulsi Gabbard Winning Strategy

Tulsi Gabbard takes a sniper shot approach to a crowded Presidential candidate field.  One by one, she takes out a frontrunner.  It worked for Trump, and it is working for her.  

Tusli Gabbard is an underestimated candidate.  She won't be the Democratic nominee, but she will beat out almost everybody else that is running.  Her best weapon are her deadly barbs that really stick.  Ask Kamala "I put people in prison for doing what I did" Harris.  Gabbard is better at this tactic than even Trump.  

Tulsi Gabbard knows how the current information ecosystem works. When she hits something, it reverberates.  All the Clinton machine can do is get their flying monkeys on cable television and op-ed pages to repeat what she tells them to say.  Too bad they are no longer influencers like in the '90s.  

Tulsi Gabbard will beat the Democratic Party machine because its relevance and power are sliding out from under them.  They are using a playbook of a bygone day.  What is supposed to be a kill shot will only show everybody their irrelevance.

The Democratic Party relies on big donors, reporter relationships and endorsements.  Stronger tools have been forged, and they are about to find out the hard way.

As I like to say to people I hate:  "I wish you the best of luck."

In Case You Missed the Rally for Sanity...

Here's Jon Stewart's speech. More people, you will happy to note, are interested in sanity than in screaming slogans that they don't really mean anyway. You know, like ending government health care (Medicare).

James Sikes and the Toyota Media Machine

One tactic to gain control of public opinion is to flood the search engines with your side of events. It helps if you have Internet sites that are large with many links to them, i.e., a lot of weight in the Google search engine algorithm. Like Toyota.

A concerted media campaign is underway to discredit James Sikes' claims of a runaway Toyota. Let's take a look at what popped up for the search term "James Sikes" over the last 24 hours and landed on the first page of Google results for "James Sikes."

Prius Chat Forums are saying that James Sikes' claims "are more fiction than fact." The home page is covered with stories accusing James Sikes of lying, deliberately trying to wear down his brakes to overheat them, and videos purporting to show James Sikes had to be lying. This web page is a an orchestrated effort of a team of people to get a message out into the public: don't believe James Sikes. There are articles, graphics, several videos professionally done, online chat groups, listservs, and even more. It had to take at least twenty people to put this message together on that web page. And the messages are all the same.

Toyotapedia.com has an article calling James Sikes' runaway Toyota story a hoax complete with a Fox news clip.

Of course others have joined in attacking Mr. Sikes, well before the NTSB has finished their review. Not that they are so impartial in the Toyota matter anyway.

What Reporters Will Never Admit...

News reporters will never admit the truth of the following:

That people care more about their dog than who the President is,

That people want to look at porn more than any newspaper or web page,

That people actually look at porn more than any newspaper or web page,

Pornography dominates Internet content, not their discoveries and thoughts, and certainly not unrelated e-commerce,

Reporters are supposed to write interesting stories that get people to look at advertisements and then buy the stuff advertised.

I have heard many whining complaints about the amount of coverage President Obama's family gets for its choice of dog. There's a secret in there. That's what people care most about. The dog. And news coverage of the First Dog is an attempt to get some of those people to actually watch the news, and consequently see the advertisements and buy the products advertised.

So you can be a purist and want only real news, or you can build a well-watched show. Producers are opting for the latter.




Andrew Wilkow, Barack Obama, Bill Kristol, Charles Krauthammer, David Brooks, Democratic Party, George F. Will, Gitmo, Goerge W. Bush, Guantanamo, John Gibson, Jon Stewart, Lawrence Kudlow, Mark Levin, Michelle Obama, Mike Church, Peggy Noonan, President Bush, President Obama, Rachel Maddow, Republican Party, Rich Lowry, Rupaul, Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Media News, Columnist James Brady Dies, James Brady, James Brady Dies, James Brady Page Six Creator Dies, Page Six Creator Dies, Media News, Limbaugh Obama Comments, Mike Pence, Norah O'Donnell, Rush Limbaugh, Charles Grassley, National Science Foundation, Online Porn, Porn, Stephen Colbert, Video

Imagine - A Note to Bailout Bimbos

Imagine a radical shift in the U.S. economy such that everything is paid for up front. That businesses have cash on hand for payroll, people have the money before they buy a car, and no one uses credit.

I understand the wails of the financial industry: our economy does run on credit. Maybe that's the problem. Maybe we need to shift our mind sets to saving first.

Something I've noticed about saving for something before you buy it: you don't want to pay as much. Even if you have the full amount that you might have borrowed.

We are in for a tough transition, folks.

And the Bailout Bimbos are Paulson and Bernanke for thinking the United States Congress would just hand them $700 billion dollars without accountability.

AOL Time Warner and What's Wrong With America

Yes, I'm still going on about this. AOL Shopping had a pictorial warning older women not to dress too sexily. Cougar, indeed. My initial anger has given way to deeper thoughts 'on this crisis.' (Don't you love that phrase? Will anybody give me $700 billion dollars now?)

Patriotic American electrons are being manipulated, in the form of the Internet, to tell women that they have to buy certain clothes. It's all part of the media machine telling the public to consume, consume, consume.

Remember after September 11? We were not advised to enlist, nor to become a paramedic, but to buy, buy, buy. We have built a culture and an economy based on relentless consumerism. What a surprise it didn't last.

I will be denounced as naive for observing that content is being skewed to sell things. It began so long ago.

But after the financial collapse on Wall Street, hasn't the message filtered down to AOL Time Warner web site staff? Americans can no longer buy-buy-buy. In fact, we will have to stop buying whether we want to or not.

Dress Like A Cougar!! - AOL Shopping Bad Advice

AOL Shopping has a whole pictorial dedicated to How Not To Dress for older women, accusing older women of being "cougars" for sexy dressing. Its admonitions failed - I want to be a cougar. I now want a velour track suit. I never wanted one before. I want to wear excessive gold jewelry and have big hair - all cougar-like signs, apparently.

Oh, and by the way, what's wrong with being a cougar? I'm supposed to hide my sexuality now? To sell clothes?

This is all power-based. As the ultimate glass ceiling is being battered during our Presidential election season, the media machine AOL/Time Warner backlash is against older women expressing self-confidence and power. It's a shame-based strategy. The message is "you will be held up to ridicule if you express your sensuality, even if you do reach the impossible size six. So nothing you do is good enough. Here, buy this."

What a pleasant way to control older women! Like the age-old technique of telling women how fat they are unless they buy your clothes/shampoo/cigarettes, AOL Shopping has a list of items older women shouldn't wear. And how convenient! There are links to things you can buy to wear instead.

This AOL pictorial has made me turn a corner - watch out Juicy! And you, too, Miss Twenty-Something.

Pakistani Prez Admires Palin, i.e. The Role of Flirting in Diplomacy

A recent widower, his wife assassinated, the new President of Pakistan apparantly is an admirer of Gov. Palin.

"You are more gorgeous than you are on [television]," he told Palin after she declared that she was honored to meet him. "Now I know why the whole of America is crazy about you," Zardari added, flashing his trademark teeth-baring smile. (From TIME magazine. Click on title of post to see full article.)

It seems Pakistani feminists are outraged. But really, is it so bad? He was flirting with a potential U.S. leader. So what? As women enter the field of world leadership, isn't flirtation part of the communication repertoire? I think it should be.

I can see my husband saying something like this. He says things like this to every woman that moves, especially the old ones. And they love it. "O-o-ohh!" they squeal with delight, clap their hands, and even jump up and down. When we shop in upper northwest DC, he goes up to obvious 40-something women with babies and says, "the au pairs are getting younger and younger every year" and - without fail - they giggle and say "I'm the mother!"

So a little flirting to grease the wheels of international relationships isn't a bad thing at all. Didn't Thatcher and Pinochet have a little thing going on like that? Maybe not the best example, but you get the point.

Palin Campaign's Not Answering That Question Anymore

Sorry cheesecake. Here in America, that won't stop us from asking about Troopergate. And we can make you answer the questions.

Imagine the audacity of announcing that from now on, you aren't going to address questions you don't like. Recently, I've read a book on the history of U.S. elections and nowhere does any candidate tell the press that they aren't answering any more questions on a particular scandal.

Now, I have no surprise that Gov. Palin asked that books be banned from her local library and then fired the librarian when she refused.

What does this announcement on acceptable questions say about Sarah Palin's commitment to democracy, as opposed to order? She seems to feel that she can dictate the line of discourse. I have never actually heard that before.

Imagine Ronald Reagan telling the press corps, "No more of this arms-for-hostages stuff. I won't answer your questions." Or if Nixon said, "No more wiretap questions."

Governor Palin, running for office must be difficult for you outside of the cocoon you have always known. The presumptions you must have to really believe you can tell the U.S. media what questions will be allowed and which won't - wow. It doesn't say good things about freedom of press in Alaska. And it doesn't say good things about you.

Bruce Ivins: Sorority stalker! Anthrax killer!

Now reports are coming out that Bruce Ivins, the scientist driven to suicide by an impending arrest as the Anthrax killer, was obsessed with a sorority.

Way to go, FBI leakers, way to go. And shame on the media for going along with it, once again.

So it isn't enough to harass the wrong scientist for years. It isn't enough to try to ruin his life through leaks in the investigation. Once his innocence is shown and actual damages are needing to be paid, the F.B.I. then does the same routine with another scientist.

It is interesting to note the evolution of the leaks. Right off the bat, the FBI knew they had pushed the guy too far. So they let loose with his alleged homicidal plans. But let's face it, there isn't real evidence to connect Bruce Ivins to the Anthrax killings, so the next piece of evidence to emerge was the DNA connection.

Funny thing about DNA. It's everywhere. DNA from your coworkers is all over your house. The presence of DNA in itself doesn't prove anything unless there is no other way for it to be there except that the person committed the crime. The FBI knows that. Most people don't.

And in leaking little tidbits to the media about DNA, the FBI is trying to justify its actions in harassing a man to death.

The latest salvo in the "Slaughter Ivins" campaign is to paint him as a weird sorority stalker. Again, there is no evidence. But who cares? The media is eating this up just like they did with the first innocent scientist.

Where is press responsibility in all this? It is not their role to eat up whatever is given them and spit it out at well-timed intervals. Reporters are supposed to ask questions and challenge assumptions. Why aren't they now?

There is NO EVIDENCE linking Bruce Ivins to being in Princeton the day those Anthrax letters were mailed. NONE. Let's not forget that while you are pounding the drums for yet another potentially innocent man.

Stephanopolous Wears Too Much Makeup

Dude, if I can see your eyeshadow and mascara, you are wearing too much. And if you are interviewing the Republican candidate for President and he says that al Qaeda was in Iraq prior to our invasion, it is something you should pick up on and pursue.

In fact, a glimpse of George Stephanopolous on This Week interviewing Senator John McCain was a study in contrasts.

The skin color: McCain looked like a regular guy on t.v. Stephanopolous looked like he sprayed food coloring on himself.

The teeth: McCain had normal teeth with the usual variations. Stephanopolous looked like his mouth was full of industrial chicklets, glued together so tightly that he wouldn't even be able to floss.

The eyes: McCain had regular, droopy eyelides. Appropriate for a man his age. Stephanopolous was wearing eye shadow and mascara. Bleh!

Next to John McCain, Stephanopolous looked like a pretend man. Call me an old-fashioned girl, but I like a little rough edge on my men. And a little spine in my reporters.

Note to Ari Fleischer

Ari Fleischer has it wrong. The criticism of the press corps for failing to properly investigate the claims made to justify this war is not limited to the uncomfortable questions they asked him while he was Press Secretary.

It is the failure to investigate and report.

So Mr. Fleischer was asked questions he found tough. So what. It probably would have been easier on him if he wasn't a part of the campaign of deception in the White House that talked people and countries into a war that wasn't justified.

Leaking the National Intelligence Estimate

The National Intelligence Estimate revealed that the Bush Administration knew since September that Iran has not had a nuclear weapons program for several years. The Bush Administration could not suppress this information because it knew that the moment it did, it would be leaked to the press.

Lamentations that in the old days such things would never happen were a source of mirth to many. When an Administration scapegoats an agency, what is it expecting? Loyalty? It's more like they were expecting stupidity. What happened the last time? Intelligence information was misused and the country was led into war with Iraq.

Poor President Bush. It seems those civil servants make a difference after all.

50% Good News In Russia

The Russian government has just ordered the Russian News Service to make half of what it says about Russia "positive." That means if a nuclear bomb was set off in Moscow, it would have to be balanced with how global warming is making the weather so nice.

Seriously, don't you see wildly ample opportunity for satire? I mean, "Today the sun shone. In other news, you won't have any electricity this winter." Of course any journalist tempted to do that would be gunned down like the rest of them.

God, Guns and Guts

Another American tragedy yesterday at Virginia Tech. And yet there is still more control over who can drive a car than there is over who can own a gun. A car is identified and traced through the VIN number.

And what is with the crazy pro-gun lobby? They issued a press release right after the shooting blaming a lack of guns for the incident. The idea being that if some students in the classroom had guns, and people in general knew that, then no one would enter a classroom with mass murder on their minds.

Or if they did, they would use a hand grenade. Or they would shoot someone upon entry to the classroom and duck out the door waiting for someone to chase them with their gun. Or they would pull the fire alarm and shoot people from a hidden vantage point. Or they would throw tear gas into a classroom and kill people in the confusion. That in turn would cause some gun-wielding students to shoot back.

Do you think a person who plans a cowardly attack like the one at Virginia Tech is going to be dissuaded from doing so because he will be killed? Obviously not, since suicide seems to have been part of the plan from the beginning. Instead, a gun battle will ensue, with just as many people being killed.

People who wield guns need to be referred as cowards. The media language needs to change and so does our culture.

Unleashing David Hicks

When David Hicks settles into Australia again, he will have a story to tell. This Administration is not planning on shutting down Guantanamo Bay, ever. Not until they are forced to.

Of course, as part of the plea agreement, David Hicks is not supposed to talk to the media for a year. Hmmm. And if he does, what does the U.S. plan on doing about it? What could they do?

Aren't we going to have a Presidential election in a year? Someone was not thinking good that day.

Celebrities and Politics

NEWSFLASH: No one cares what you think, Madonna. The same goes for Jane Fonda or any other celebrity. Yes, they will climb over each other to get a photo with you. It doesn't mean a thing. Yes, reporters will score an easy story to write about you. They don't care, either.

Just shut up and smile, for God's sake.

Fashion, Anorexia and Media

Econo-Girl is going to tell a little story from her time in Saudi Arabia.

It was after the first Gulf War when Econo-Girl went to Saudi Arabia. There were no images of women's bodies anywhere. All pictures of women were ones where they were draped in black cloth.

At the time, Econo-Girl was obsessed with her weight. She had been on diets on and off since she was nine. "Am I fat?" was a constant worry.

That trip to Saudi Arabia was three weeks long and Econo-Girl gained about ten pounds while there.

The funny thing is, though, I felt thin as a whistle. No advertisements peered down on me showing me what I should look like. No air-brushed photos held an ideal not even pre-teen models could reach.

The experience taught me the power of imagery and advertising. So, yes Giselle, the fashion industry is part of the anorexia problem. Let's eat cheesecake and be merry!

Death Series - Fighting Radical Islam in a Democracy

Banning offensive speech doesn't work.

Australian authorities are outraged at DVDs one of the their citizens produced called "Death Series" where some young man who can't get attention any other way calls for extreme measures of violence against Jews and women. He (and Econo-Girl is not using his name deliberately) encourages parents to teach their children that martyrdom is the greatest thing they can achieve.

Econo-Girl is interested particularly in the approach of Australia in trying to contain this boy's ideas. They begin criminal prosecution against him for inciting terrorism. Religious leaders, including Islamic leaders, condemn his message.

Has it occurred to these leading Australians that their condemnation encourages people to support this boy's radical ideas?

Econo-Girl recommends making people aware of the message in the DVDs "Death Series" but don't mention the name of the "cleric" at all. Ask mainstream Islamic clerics to review the quality of the message in the DVDs and distribute that, not as parental outrage, but as a studied and academic criticism of its message. Outright banning is not the solution. Neither is criminal prosecution alone.

Outright banning of a DVD only appeals to the emotional adolescent who is the target of these rantings. Counter the message and the messenger. And don't promote the messenger by naming him. Recognize the need this boy is fulfilling and try to fill it in a constructive way. See the appeal of his DVD as a warning that the spiritual needs of some are not being met. And address them.

Applicable Al-Anon saying: If the dog is hungry, feed the dog.

Press Freedom and Violence

When Econo-Girl attended a conference held by the International Bar Association, she saw cultural differences in law firsthand.

As Americans, it is easy to be arrogant about the value of pure speech. We do not worry about our nation dissolving after an article is published. We do not have a history of killing our neighbors every twenty years or so.

Somalia has a very recent history of bloodshed. It is natural that they wouldn't want more. So the Somali government put a limit on freedom of speech - which was soon lifted. The global complaints the temporary suspension of four newspapers brought probably pushed their hand.

But again, Econo-Girl wants to point out that the media in general does not accept responsibility for its actions.