Daily Archives: 5 March 2010

McCarthyism rises zombie-like from the grave

1954. The hearings against the Army that brought down Joseph McCarthy’s reputation and his self-aggrandizing campaign against Communism in the U.S. (I couldn’t find online video or audio of the “I have evidence in these papers!” speech–the papers were blank–that catapulted McCarthy to infamy.)

2010. The words and actions against the Department of Justice (a favorite Joe McCarthy target) that may bring down Liz Cheney’s reputation as anything except a self-aggrandizing campaigner against terrorism. It’s ironic that she is targeting the DoJ and its lawyers she claims are “sympathetic to terrorists”. It is as if she’s reading out of McCarthy’s playbook. (Keep America Safe is a sock puppet for Cheney’s political interest.

No one ever credited Cheney (or McCarthy) with an overabundance of smart. Her apple didn’t fall far from her father’s tree.

I’m glad you asked

In case anyone’s interested in the links I run down the right side of my site page, here’s a brief description of the less obvious ones:

AURAL DELIGHTS: the last streaming show I have listened to from Hearts of Space. HoS is the best radio show on the airwaves these days, and their streaming service is worth every damned penny I’ve spent on it. Go support Stephen Hill and his crew in Sausalito.

SCENT OF THE DAY: the Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab perfume blend I’m wearing. Beth Moriarty and the BPAL crew make products that are sublimely wonderful, and production descriptions that are every bit as wonderful.

MORONS ON PARADE: The latest in a long line of liars, thieves, murderers, and other public figures that deserve little more than a smack with a big stick. (They’re lucky that heads spitted upon pikes lining the roadways have fallen out of fashion.)

A FUN FACT: Odd little nuggets of truth that I find every so often, mixed with a selection from that fathomless room in my mind that collects completely useless bits of trivia. (I do make some effort to determine the truth value.)

COMICS WONKINESS: Webcomics that I read regularly and think others might like. They are often injected with thoughtfulness, or interesting art. If we’re lucky, both.

If you hover your cursor over the links I put up, you can read my feeble witticisms and personal comments.

Just so you know.

You s-s-s-said it, P-p-orky!

(Hint: the clip was animated in 1939–note the 48 stars in the flag.)

In 1954 the political wingnut combination of the privileged white Daughters of the American Revolution, the Catholic storm troopers fraternal service organization Knights of Columbus, and closet Jehovah’s Witness President Dwight D. Eisenhower pushed Congress to violate the separation of church and state by inserting “under God” into the Pledge.

Fun fact: the original salute to the flag was not placing the right hand over the heart. It was the Bellamy Salute:

I think we all know why *this* changed.

(Thanks to Phil at Skepticmoney for this one.)