Monday, July 14, 2008

2006 New Yorker cover that generated a firestorm of controversy


From February 2006 -- Bush and Cheney are depicted as lovers in an homage to Brokeback Mountain.

We all remember the maelstrom of controversy that arose from this fateful cover.

Update: Rants and Refinements reminds us of "the controversy":

Ulriksen’s cover for the February 27, 2006 edition of The New Yorker won the 2006 American Society of Magazine Editors award for Best News Magazine Cover.

Linked by: American Thinker and TigerHawk. Thanks! Hat tip: Ben

Sunday, July 13, 2008

Uproar over 'Barack as terrorist' New Yorker cover


Bumped and updated to include uproarious comments from outraged progressives and amused conservatives. See Update VI for liberals' live-blogged panic attacks.

The Politico's Jonathan Martin says "Ya can't make it up":

The New Yorker says it’s satire.... [Sunday Afternoon, Obama was asked] “The upcoming issue of the New Yorker, the July 21st issue, has a picture of you, depicting you and your wife on the cover. Have you seen it? If not, I can show it to you on my computer. It shows your wife Michelle with an Afro and an AK 47 and the two of you doing the fist bump with you in a sort of turban-type thing on top. I wondered if you’ve seen it or if you want to see it or if you have a response to it?”

...I’m sure Senator Obama is oh-so appreciative for The New Yorker’s help.

It would've been even better had Rezko, Wright, Ayers, Dohrn, Farrakhan, Khalidi and Said been depicted.

As for the much-ballyhooed "politics of fear" charge, exactly who is culpable now?

Update: Commenting at Politico, Midas notes:

... and they're in the oval office, burning the US flag, no less. I find it funny how much of this kind of 'fear' crap the left has put out in the name of saying "watch out, the right is gonna use fear!". Holy crap, people, the 'right' hasn't done any of this stuff, and McCain won't tolerate anyone on his team saying anything remotely controversial. I've never seen a more blatant display of 'projection' than what is going on with the 'left' in this regard. Fearmongers, indeed...

Update II: A Politico follow-up by Mike Allen:

...The Obama campaign quickly condemned the rendering.

Spokesman Bill Burton said in a statement: "The New Yorker may think, as one of their staff explained to us, that their cover is a satirical lampoon of the caricature Senator Obama's right-wing critics have tried to create. But most readers will see it as tasteless and offensive. And we agree." [Ed: There are some of us who think it's frickin' hilarious.]

McCain spokesman Tucker Bounds quickly e-mailed: “We completely agree with the Obama campaign, it’s tasteless and offensive.”

...Howard Kurtz of The Washington Post said Sunday on his CNN media show “Reliable Sources” that the cover is arguably "incendiary... I talked to the editor of The New Yorker, David Remnick, who tells me this is a satire, that they are making fun of all the rumors,” Kurtz added.

Clarence Page of the Chicago Tribune defended it as “quite within the normal realms of journalism,” adding that “it's just lampooning all the crazy ignorance out there.”

Update III: More hilarity at the Politico:

Was this a painting or did the New Yorker just take a picture of the two at their home?

Posted By: JD | July 13, 2008 at 06:47 PM

Has anyone seen how George Bush is portrayed on the cover of, say, Der Spiegel? It's nice to see ridiculous caricatures at the expense of the Left.

Posted By: Jim | July 13, 2008 at 06:47 PM

I understand that this cover is supposed to be satirizing the Right. So why is the Obama campaign spokesman saying it's tasteless and offensive? Doesn't he "get it"?

Posted By: Karl | July 13, 2008 at 06:50 PM

What, and Republicans have never been satirized before? You guys are such whiners! Why is this cartoon more offensive than the dozens of others I've seen on this site of Bush, McCain, Obama, AND Clinton?

Posted By: sydney | July 13, 2008 at 06:50 PM

The ONLY thing that's offensive is that the leftwing media suggests that the ONLY reason anyone would not vote for Obama is because they're racist. When the reality is that he has ABSOLUTELY NO EXPERIENCE for the job, whatsoever. It's infuriating and will bring even more conservatives out to vote against him.

Posted By: rinosaurusrex | July 13, 2008 at 06:51 PM

Come on! Bush did it. No, it was Cheney. No, no.. it was Hillary. No, that's not right.. it was Rush. Ummm... no, it was the vast right wing conspiracy bored that Hillary is out. No, that can't be. Hmmmmm... who can we blame this on anyway? All the targets are used up!

Posted By: samuel | July 13, 2008 at 06:55 PM

Just a hit job by the Likud-loving Jews of this country who care more about Israel than the US.

Posted By: le commentor | July 13, 2008 at 07:12 PM

I could care less if Obama is pictured as a Muslim. Picture him instead as the most inexperienced candidate for the Presidency since William Jennings Bryan, the most liberal since the last Democrat to run, and the least knowledgable about everything from foreign affairs to tax policy. And this is what the Democrats intend to foist on us? Who are they kidding? Bring back Al Gore and John Kerry - at least they were just losers, not dangerous losers who are naive beyond imagination.

Posted By: James Marsden | July 13, 2008 at 07:15 PM

Now, imagive if it were a picture of McCain in an angry rage while rolling around in a wheel chair with an IV hooked up to him, you upset Obama supporters would all be laughing your tails off, right? Face it... you're hypocrits.

Posted By: Hermann | July 13, 2008 at 07:18 PM

What a filthy, disgusting cover! Sounds like this is the work of Karl Rove and his protoges' who have just gone to work for McCain... [Ed: the close ties between Karl Rove and the New York art & literature scene are well-documented.] ...We are cancelling our subscriptions! We will never read another copy as long as we live.

Posted By: lyn | July 13, 2008 at 07:18 PM

Update IV: A montage of hilarious progressive satire, the responses to which included nary a complaint.

Pot, meet kettle.

Update V: Cover artist Barry Blitt defends his work (entitled "The Politics of Fear"):

I think the idea that the Obamas are branded as unpatriotic [let alone as terrorists] in certain sectors is preposterous. It seemed to me that depicting the concept would show it as the fear-mongering ridiculousness that it is.

Care for a heaping helping of "Fairness Doctrine"?

Update VI: Liberal Progressive blog reaction ranges from hysterical outrage to full-blown, liveblogged panic attacks.

The ill-named AmericaBlog: "A liberal media that bends over so far backwards to be "fair" that it becomes just as bad as FOX News."

RawStory: "'This is as offensive a caricature as any magazine could publish,' one high-profile Obama backer told ABC News, 'and I suspect that other Obama supporters like me are also thinking about not subscribing to or buying a magazine that trafficks (sic) in such trash.'."

Daily Kos: "The New Yorker Obama cover: OMFG, WTF? ...There's no other ulterior motive to publish cartoons like this right? ...This is disgusting. Might be worth cancelling a subscription or two."

New Republic Blogs (Isaac Chotiner): "No one would have even noticed it--certainly no one in the right-wing nut-o-sphere--if they'd just kept their mouths shut. Now we're going to get all this protest-too-much commentary..."

Taylor Marsh: "What's missing is Sean Hannity placing the flag into the fireplace."

Polimom: "I mean… an Afro-wearing, AK47-slingin’, boot-stompin’ Michelle fist bumpin’ a Muslim Barack in the Oval Office? With Osama AND a burning American flag? Couldn’t the artist jam any more paranoia into one cartoon?"

Blue Girl, Red State: "No, It's Not Satire--it's a Smear ...this isn't even remotely funny."


Linked by: Michelle Malkin, Instapundit, American Thinker, American Digest, Memeorandum and Texas Scribbler. Thanks! Hat tip: NJDhockeyfan.

Chris Matthews gains obscure, 8th-tier blog a "Top 15" Award


Pookie -- who does a masterful job editing content for the Wide Awakes, GOPachy and Qube TV (among others) -- notifies us that a recent cartoon won a top 15 award for the month.

It's actually pretty hard to win a monthly award as there are usually over 1,100 political cartoons posted per month... and the competition includes true geniuses like Ramirez, Trever and Asmussen.

I added the ribbon to the winning cartoon. Thanks, Pookie, for the award and the heads up!

This could be just a tad over the top, automotively speaking


C&D has official photos and stats on the '09 Mercedes-Benz SL65 AMG "Black Series" -- a tricked out version of the already ludicrously fast SL65 AMG.

The new series claims 661 horsepower. Top speed is electronically limited to around 199 mph.

Torque output is unchanged at 738 pound-feet, although Mercedes says the engine is detuned from 885, likely to keep the heavy-duty five-speed automatic transmission alive. The Black Series’ transmission, however, adds a fourth transmission setting, M2 manual mode, which shifts a claimed 25 percent quicker than M1 mode. As before, there are also Comfort and Sport settings for the automatic modes.

...There’s also a new intercooler that AMG says reduces intake charge temperatures by 30 percent, and an upgraded cooling system to keep the engine from melting itself... AMG expects the car to cover the 0-to-62-mph sprint in 3.9 seconds, although we’ve gotten 3.8 out of an SL65...

Expected sticker price? If you have to ask...

Energy Policy Timeline: a Helpful Guide


1995 -- Oil at $18 a barrel: Democratic President Bill Clinton vetoes oil exploration in ANWR.

1998 -- Oil at $20 a barrel: Democratic President Clinton issues executive order banning offshore oil and gas drilling.

2001 -- Oil at $28 a barrel: Democrats Bonior, Stupak and Kaptur lead efforts to block Great Lakes oil exploration and drilling in Gulf.

2005 -- Oil at $45 a barrel: Democrat Rahm Emmanuel blocks BP's refinery expansion plans.

2006 -- Oil at $70 a barrel: Democrats block oil exploration in ANWR.

2006 -- Oil at $75 a barrel: Democrats block US companies from drilling off the coasts of the U.S.

2006 -- Oil at $75 a barrel: Democrat Pelosi helps block access to Gulf of Mexico 'natural gas' trove.

2008 -- Oil at $145 a barrel: Judge appointed by Democrat Bill Clinton blocks oil drilling in Michigan.

Last week House Speaker Nancy Pelosi claimed that "Drilling is a hoax! It's an absolute hoax!" And Democrat Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid helpfully added:

The one thing we fail to talk about is those costs that you don’t see on the bottom line. That is coal makes us sick, oil makes us sick; it’s global warming. It’s ruining our country, it’s ruining our world.

Back in the real world, our entire economy runs on fossil fuels.

It will take decades to make the transition to clean technologies, for which the free-market incentives are immense.

The United States is the only country on the planet that intentionally withholds access to its own treasure trove of oil and natural gas.

Historically, the energy policy differences between the two parties are clear:

• For ANWR Exploration -- GOP: 91%; Democrats: 14%.

• For Coal-to-Liquid -- GOP: 97%; Democrats: 22%.

• For Oil Shale Exploration -- GOP: 90%; Democrats: 14%.

• For Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Exploration -- GOP: 81%; Democrats: 17%.

• For Refinery Increased Capacity -- GOP: 97%; Democrats: 4%.

Writing at Gateway Pundit, commenter Nahanni offers an excellent suggestion.

...I would like to recommended an investment opportunity for all of you. It might prove very lucrative in the coming months. Invest in companies that make torches, pitchforks, baseball bats and rope. I am beginning to think there might be a great demand for them.

Vote accordingly in 2008.


More: John Hinderaker. Cartoons by: Ramirez (hat tip: The Anchoress). Chart: Bespoke Investment Group.

Barack Obama: Change that works (for him).


07-18-07: "My assessment is that the surge has not worked."

11-11-07: "I would end this war and I would have our troops out within 16 months."

03-19-08: "I will immediately begin to remove our troops."

Everyone now knows the Surge is working.

Rep. John Murtha: "I think the Surge is working."

Sen. Hillary Clinton: "We've begun to change tactics in Iraq, and in some areas... it's working."

So Obama's advisors want to rewrite his record.

Obama Communications Director Robert Gibbs: "The security situation has improved, just as everyone admitted it would if we would put more troops on the ground!"

Obama Senior Strategist David Axelrod: "He never disputed that if... that if... uh, uh... you throw a... a... surge of American soldiers in an area, that you can... uh... make a difference."

01-10-07: "I am not persuaded... that... 20,000 additional troops in Iraq... uh... is gonna solve the sectarian violence there, in fact, I think it'll do the reverse."

So what does Barack Obama believe today?

07-03-08: Reporter: "...does that mean you will not change the 16-month [withdrawal] timetable?"

Obama: "Eh... uh... I... uh..."

Barack Obama: Change that works (for him).

* * *

Judgment to lead? Barack Obama doesn't appear to have the judgment to follow.

Linked by: Flopping Aces. Thanks! Original video: Obama's Iraq problem: Change that works (for him)"

Saturday, July 12, 2008

With approval at 9%, Democrats decide to touch off bank run


Believing Congress' approval rate might hit double digits, Senator Chuck "The Camera Hunter" Schumer decided to bill taxpayers tens of billions of dollars by starting a bank run.

The run on the bank came after a critical letter about the bank from Senator Charles E. Schumer, Democrat of New York. Federal regulators said on Friday that Mr. Schumer’s letter had prompted the collapse by causing the run and scaring away potential acquirers.

“The senator made comments in his letter questioning the viability of the institution,” John M. Reich, director of the Office of Thrift Supervision, said in a phone call with reporters. “When a member of the United States Senate makes such a statement, it frightens depositors.”

In the days after Mr. Schumer’s letter was released on June 26, IndyMac customers withdrew an average of $100 million a day from the bank, or a total of $1.3 billion, the government said. Before Mr. Schumer’s letter, the bank had been receiving net inflows of money from depositors, Mr. Reich said.

Always willing to accept responsibility, the Democratic Senator denied he had anything -- anything at all -- to do with the bank run.

Mr. Schumer quickly fired back [stating,] "If OTS had done its job as regulator and not let IndyMac's poor and loose lending practices continue, we wouldn't be where we are today," Sen. Schumer said. "Instead of pointing false fingers of blame, OTS should start doing its job to prevent future IndyMacs."

Shw-w-w-w-w-w-weeeeeeeeen! Err, that was supposed to be a "tape rewind" noise (you know how hard it is to do sound effects in the blogosphere).

Anyhow, let's just use super-secret advanced technology to find out what really happened.

6/27/08 Los Angeles Times: Sen. Schumer calls for scrutiny of IndyMac's financial health:

"I am concerned that IndyMac's financial deterioration poses significant risks to both taxpayers and borrowers," Schumer wrote. The bank "could face a failure if prescriptive measures are not taken quickly."

6/27/08 Insurance News Net: Senator Asks Regulators To Probe The Financial Health of IndyMac :

[Schumer, the] chairman of the congressional Joint Economic Committee asked U.S. regulators Thursday to scrutinize the financial health of Pasadena-based IndyMac Bancorp Inc. and suggested that the mortgage lender might be on the brink of failure.

7/1/08 Forbes: IndyMac reassures customers after Schumer letter:

IndyMac Bancorp Inc. said it is working with regulators to "further improve" its safety and soundness after a senator's letter last week raised concerns that the bank could collapse... The Pasadena, Calif.-based mortgage lender said Monday that the letter, by Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., gave "the wrong impression" on several issues.

Depositors withdrew about $100 million from the bank in the wake of Schumer's letter, company spokesman Grove Nichols said in a prepared statement. The withdrawals are equivalent to one-half of 1 percent of the bank's deposits, he said.

7/1/08 Housing Wire: IndyMac: Mini Bank Run, Thanks to Schumer:

“As a result of Sen. Schumer making his letters public and the resulting press coverage, we did experience elevated customer inquiries and withdrawals in our branch network last Friday and on Saturday of roughly $100 million, about ½ of 1% of total deposits,” the bank said.

7/2/08 Housing Wire: Consumer Group Targets IndyMac Over Alt-A Mortgages:

As if IndyMac Bancorp Inc. didn’t have enough problems of the real variety right now — trying to find sources of capital among them, as bank losses tied to Alt-A mortgages mount — the Center for Responsible Lending on Monday took aim at what many expect to be the next target for consumer groups’ ire, now that Countrywide Financial is no more.

The CRL’s latest report, “Indymac: What Went Wrong?”, claims that the thrift “put itself in a hole by engaging in unsound and abusive lending during the nation’s mortgage boom.” The report was released on the heels of a leaked letter from Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY) to bank regulators last week that questioned the bank’s financial footing amid growing losses.

7/2/08 Mainstreet: Is Your California Bank Financially Safe?

* * *

Just how much has the Democratic Congress cost taxpayers? No more than usual, I suppose.


Linked by: Parkway Rest Stop. Thanks!

Tony Snow, Rest In Peace


Tony Snow, 53, passed away last night after a protracted and courageous fight against cancer.

Michelle Malkin, Doug Powers, Gateway Pundit, Hot Air, Gina Cobb, Macsmind, The Corner and BizzyBlog have the tributes.

Update: True to form, the Associated Press (Douglass Daniel, in this case) couldn't resist taking one last swing at Snow.

With a quick-from-the-lip repartee, broadcaster's good looks and a relentlessly bright outlook — if not always a command of the facts — he became a popular figure around the country to the delight of his White House bosses...

Critics suggested that Snow was turning the traditionally informational daily briefing into a personality-driven media event short on facts and long on confrontation...

Stay classy, Democrats:

• Daily Kos: "When a bad guy dies, we should rejoice, not sing his praises of wish him anything by scorn"
• Huffington Post: "Comments are closed for this entry"
• Pish Posh: "Another one bites the dust"
• Yak Milk: "Tony Snow Was A Hatchet Man For Fox News’ Fascism"

Stay classy.

Rest in peace, Mr. Snow. It was not my privilege to know you, but my thoughts and prayers are with your family and friends.

I'm moving crap around...


Hey, kids, it's my semi-annual reorganization of the sidebar!


Obama & Rezko: the Comic Book


Results of Obama's "Community Organizing"


Barack & Hillary: The Secret Negotiations


Six degrees of Barack Obama


Trinity United Church Kids Activity Book


North Korean Motivational Posters


More things change, the more they stay the same


The Spy with Bulging Socks


The Clintons' favorite restaurant


Hillary's Own Stain and Body Remover


Read the Disclaimers before Voting


Berger to Host 9/11 Truther Special


I need some frickin' content management software.

Waffler-in-Chief


"Why can't I just eat my waffle?"

Don Surber and Gateway Pundit have more on the waffler-in-chief.

Image courtesy: The Famous JustADude. Hat tip: Larwyn.

Friday, July 11, 2008

Quite possibly the best cartoon of all time



Hat tip: Sean E.

Need a cool watch?


I don't know which watches are supposed to be cool, but I received an email from Bell & Ross (no relation) announcing their new "Gold Collection."

I think it looks slicker than a greased pig.

Obama unveils new ad campaign


There's an aspect of honesty in this print ad that's heretofore been missing from Senator Obama's campaign.

Idea: Fred Mertz

Make your own Obama poster


Make your own here.






Update: Rants & Refinements offers its own special take on an Obama poster.

Hat tips: Ace and Larwyn

Thursday, July 10, 2008

Barack Obama's Gaffe du Jour: Los Niños Must Learn Español


"You need to make sure your child can speak Spanish... It's embarrassing when Europeans come over here, they all speak English, they speak French, they speak German. And then we go over to Europe and all we can say is merci beaucoup, right?"

At The American Thinker, Ethel Fenig speaks as a child of immigrants...

...who made sure I learned to speak and write the language properly and who sacrificed their hard earned money so I could learn my heritage in private schools, I am more than slightly annoyed at those who insist that we learn the language of immigrants, illegal or not.

Then these immigrants further insist that their children be educated in the parental language in public schools--at taxpayer expense of course. Oh, they add, be sure these public institutions have personnel who speak our language--not the language of America--or we'll sue for discrimination.

Hannity actually made a decent point tonight (I'll alert the blogosphere): what language would the French be speaking had it not been for the blood and sacrifice of Americans?

Barack Obama's disastrous choice in advisers


A couple of months ago PrairiePundit caught this snippet in The New York Sun.

A foreign policy adviser to Senator Obama is scheduled to arrive in Syria today as the leader of a RAND Corp. delegation.

Zbigniew Brzezinski will travel to Damascus for meetings as part of a trip Syria's official Cham News agency described as an "important sign that the end of official dialogue between Washington and Damascus has not prevented dialogue with important American intellectuals and politicians."

It's also a sign that Barack Obama is following in Jimmy Carter's footsteps. Brzezinski, of course, was Carter's National Security Adviser.

Mr. Peabody, set the wayback machine to 1979.

The shallow machiavellanism of Brzezinski led him to the notion that Islam was not to be worried about because it was a "bulwark against Communism" and Muslims could help destroy the Soviet Union...

Brzezinski was not slightly wrong about Islam and about Iran -- he was totally, completely wrong.

And so, under his watch, the rise of Ayatollah Khomeini -- a man who Carter called a "man of God" -- began. Iran's radicalized government became the central breeding ground and exporter of a virulent, extremist brand of terrorism. Iran funded, trained and equipped Hezbollah, Hamas, Fatah and Ansar al-Islam, to name but a few.

Does Brzezinski have any regrets about his disastrous strategic choices?

Asked if he has regrets about [US policy to support radical Islamists to undermine Russia], he responds, “Regret what?

...What is most important to the history of the world? The Taliban or the collapse of the Soviet empire? Some stirred-up Muslims or the liberation of Central Europe and the end of the Cold War?” The interviewer then says, “Islamic fundamentalism represents a world menace today.” But Brzezinski responds, “Nonsense! It is said that the West had a global policy in regard to Islam. That is stupid. There isn’t a global Islam….

Even after 9/11, Brzezinski maintains that the Carter administration's strategy was sound.

Now he wants to extend his losing streak to an Obama administration facing a nuclear Iran. Perhaps that explains why the hairs on my neck are standing up.


Related: Set the Wayback Machine to 9/10/2001, Mr. Peabody! Hat tip: Larwyn