Marian's Blog

BBC snubs Cynthia McKinney: U.S. third-party candidates

The election may be over yet BBC has forever altered my perception of it as a relatively balanced source of international news. I was watching BBC TV News last Monday evening, Nov 3, as the announcer chirpily announced there actually were other candidates in the U.S. election. Surprise! He proceeded to name and show photos, first Ralph Nader (independent), ex-Republican, now Libertarian Bob Barr (a U.S. Afrodescendant who seems to self-identify as "white"), and the third candidate? I was pretty well waiting for the newsreader to note Cynthia McKinney, the U.S. Green Party candidate. Was I wrong. Instead the Beeb names... Gene Amondson. Gene Amondson?? Have you heard of Gene Amondson? Has he, like Cynthia McKinney, been a six-term (or even a one-term) member of the U.S. Congress? I don't recall BBC bothering to mention Mr. Amondson's party affiliation (perhaps more obscure than his name, if that's possible). And so Tuesday, election day, I looked it up on the Net. Apparently he belongs to the "Prohibition Party." Prohibition? I thought that failed in the 1930s. Thanks to BBC News, Cynthia McKinney out, Gene Amondson in. Here's a deeper, bitter irony: Cynthia McKinney bears a British surname; like almost all Black Americans, probably linked to slavery. She carries a family name of British origin and yet, so uncharacteristically, the BBC had not even the slightest desire to acknowledge her, let alone brag about her, on the basis of UK ties to this U.S. presidential candidate and her almost certain British slave-trade family history. How sad; how racist.

News that Richard Pryor has died

It may be true that Black American comedian, Richard Pryor, has died, but his energy - his genius - are with us forever. I remember one of his comedy albums of the 1970s. I will never forget his monologue about people from another country whom the US government (and certain private interests) was 'transplanting' to the USA. In this case it was Vietnamese people. "They [the American interests responsible] are teaching them to say [the "n"-word]," Pryor declared. It was frighteningly believable and yet somehow hilarious, after a manner. And I'm sure it was not far from the truth, either then or now. Travel well, Richard Pryor. Thank you for the laughs - and the thoughts. [From Reuters news service via Australia's National Nine News: "Richard Pryor took a brutal look at racial attitudes in the United States and fashioned it into a comedy career. His chaotic personal life also provided material for a stand-up act that was as profound as it was profane. Born Dec. 1, 1940, and raised in his grandmother's brothel in Peoria, Illinois, Pryor served in the U.S. Army before heading to New York to pursue comedy in the early 1960s. The former class clown played it safe at first but later moved on to controversial subjects with a routine that was more like Lenny Bruce than Bill Cosby. His comedy albums, which included "Bicentennial [the "n" word]," "Is It Something I Said," and "That [the "n" word]'s Crazy," won five Grammys. He reportedly decided to quit using the word [the "n" word] after a 1980 trip to Zimbabwe, writing in his autobiography: "There are no [the "n" word]s here. The people here, they still have their self-respect, their pride." ..."]

Bush library 'destroyed by flood'

Got this from Democrats Abroad who got it by way of Ruth who got it heaven knows where: Dateline Crawford, Texas --
"A tragic flood this morning destroyed the personal library of President George W. Bush. The flood began in the presidential
bathroom where both of the books were kept. Both of his books have been lost. A presidential spokesman said the president was devastated, as he had almost finished coloring the second one. The White House tried to call FEMA but there was no answer."

Hugo Chavez - Pat Robertson's 'counsel' - Shocking shocker from Borowitz report

Thank heaven for Andy Borowitz. At least someone can explain Pat Robertson's odd behaviour: "Televangelist Breaks Second Commandment in Two Days": "One day after Pat Robertson called for the U.S. to assassinate Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, the televangelist raised the ante again today, urging the U.S. to covet President Chavez' wife. In so doing, Mr. Robertson appeared to contradict two of The Ten Commandments in as many days, having flouted "Thou shat not kill" on Monday. Speaking on the television program he hosts, "The 700 Club," Mr. Robertson lashed out at the Venezuelan strongman once more, telling his audience, "It's high time that the United States coveted Hugo Chavez' wife." Warming to his topic, the opinionated preacher added, "And while we're at it, we should covet his house, his manservant, his maidservant, his ox and his ass, for that matter." Mr. Robertson indicated that all of the coveting he referred to would not require a war, arguing that it could be all done through the use of covert operatives within Venezuela. "We could send some special ops guys down there, and bang-bang, covet all of that stuff," Mr. Robertson told his audience. Speaking to reporters after the program, Mr. Robertson was unrepentant about having broken two of the Ten Commandments in two days, telling them, "I fully intend to obey the other eight, and eight out of ten ain't bad." But the televangelist seemed to waver from that position slightly, telling reporters that the U.S. should "bear false witness against Hugo Chavez and dishonor Hugo Chavez's mother and father." Elsewhere, one day after the Princeton Review named the University of Wisconsin the nation's top party school, UW said that it was "too hammered" to comment.

The Tom and Katie show

Am I the only person who wants to know WHY Tom Cruise keeps grabbing that girl by the back of her neck? "Spirit Fingers" (I'm guessing SF is a "Western" blogger) based in Hong Kong has at least one blog entry on the TOM AND KATIE Show: "I Loved This Woman." [even if I did snap her neck]

Was he afraid she might turn her head?

Quandary... What's this?

This website... Is it politics? Or humour?

My "Like Letter" to George Lopez

I just want George Lopez to know that from the first time I saw him doing stand up on national TV in the 1980s I knew he was loco in the very best way, and I fell in deep "like" & respect for him. George Lopez is intelligent, funny and yes, folks, he does bite. But mostly it heals. I love his website; it's warm and interesting and easy to read. You really see something in there about the vato. I also didn't miss the fact he has War's anthem Lowrider as musical theme of his site. I love that too. I didn't mention G-Lo has a new book, WHY ARE YOU CRYING? There's an excerpt here. And I didn't know he had a kidney condition and had a transplant. Wow. I'm so glad he's better and helping others and back to cracking jokes and diciendo la verdad. We love you, George; we are proud of you.

Es un chulitito, verdad? G. Lopez is a cutie

Make Me Laugh: That 'flight to Pepsi Cola' - or why Americans should Never be allowed to travel

Whoever compiled these must have more. Here are 'compelling' "reasons" why [a few] "Americans should never be allowed to travel."

Have Ya Seen Michael Moore's "Canadian Bacon"? (1995)

Tonight we watched Michael Moore's 1994 film, Canadian Bacon. It's hilarious. And scary. Have you seen it? It's political satire and, considering it was made in 1994 and released the following year, it seems darned prophetic. I can only 'wonder' why this film doesn't seem to have been screened much internationally... I think this article is by a guy named Don Kaye.

<>

"In Michael Moore's political satire, the U.S. President (Alan Alda) decides to wage a Cold War against Canada in an attempt to reverse his slipping popularity, and, as a result, he drives a small group of incensed Canadians to take matters into their own hands. Alda is the first president in years not to lead his country into war, which naturally means that his approval rating is dangerously low. The sure-fire way to boost his popularity is to start a war and demonstrate American superiority. Unfortunately, as his advisors point out, the U.S. has run out of enemies. That is, until Alda's National Security Advisor Stuart Smiley (Kevin Pollak) happens to catch a segment on the news about a brawl at a Canadian hockey game that began when local American sheriff Bud Boomer (John Candy) made a [negative] remark about Canadian beer. ..."

Make me laugh - this news just in...

Not intending to be irreverent or anything like that, but this just in from Magpie blog who got it from heaven-knows-where via corrente.blogspot.com:

(Washington, DC, March 25, 2005) Lawyers for George H.W. and Barbara Bush took the case of their son, George W. Bush, to federal court today in an attempt to force doctors to remove the feeding tube that ties him to his guardian, Karl Rove. The tube was inserted many years ago when doctors realized that Mr. Bush could not function in an acceptable manner in society, or make decisions, even bad ones, without it... The rest is here. Via corrente.blogspot.com.

Also ...  This story just in:  Two prominent neurologists who have asked to remain anonymous have examined CNN behind closed doors and determined that the network is irreversibly brain-dead, as flooded with cerebral fluid as the hull of the S.S. Poseidon. It still retains some primitive reflexes and signs of animation, but a brain-scan revealed the sort of minimal activity usually associated with punch-drunk prizefighters condemned to a flophouse cot, or a broken toaster. "CNN barely has two brain cells left to rub together," one doctor said, lacing up his tennis shoes for a quick getaway. Via Suburban Guerrilla.