PSA_ No Newts in 2012

It is possible that at this very moment as we are blogging to you live from the Salt Lake City Library on 210 East 400 South Street (not really where we are at, but I hear it is one of the best public libraries in the country), that Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich is stumping at the Golden Corral in Rock Hill, SC, where Fred Thompson stumped four years ago (this part is actually true).

Hopefully, like Thompson, Gingrich will be defeated by a more moderate Republican. Though it seems like current front runner Mitt Romney may be too mainstream for the gunsGodncountry folks in the Palmetto State.

In the Sunday, Jan. 15th edition of the comic strip "Doonesbury," Garry Trudeau cited the following actual quote from Gingrich in reference to the Democratic Party: "As great a threat to America as Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union."

At age 69, Gingrich is the second oldest candidate in the field of what is now four candidates behind Ron Paul, who is 76. Interestingly enough, Gingrich, who became House Speaker in 1994 when he was in the House of Representatives as a Congressman from Georgia, was also a House Minority Whip as was former Vice President Dick Cheney, who is also out of favor with 99.9 percent of us on the center-left.

Today's "Washington Post" reports that in response to a comment from a man who is or was a Marine at a rally in Florence, SC, which said that 'I would like to see someone bloody Obama's nose,' Gingrich had the gumption and indignity to respond something to effect of: 'I don't want to just bloody his nose, I want to knock him out.'

In the current issue of the liberal magazine "The Nation," Ben Adler, who is covering the GOP race for the publication from places like Charleston, SC, on the campaign trial, said that the pit-bull tactics of Gingrich actually seemed to be helping him appeal to arch conservatives who might well want to hit people in my political spectrum over the head with a bowling trophy (my words, not Adler's).

Stephen Colbert, who is originally from Charleston, has even gotten into the Republican race discussion as the late night tv political comic told residents from his native state to vote for Herman Cain to throw a curve-ball into the race.

South Carolina allows Democrats and independents to vote in the Republican primary. Conservative radio show host Rush Limbaugh pulled a similar stunt four years ago when he encouraged right wingers to vote for Hillary Clinton in the Indiana primary to help prevent Barack Obama from winning the nomination; an effort which 'worked' in the short run, but in the end, Obama still won the nomination and if, of course, now president.

The South Carolina Democratic Party has actually told its members not to vote in the Republican primary as by doing so they will get a steady stream of campaign literature and phone calls for Republican candidates.

As for the reason, why we are highly opposed to Gingrich getting the GOP nomination, it is just mere political differences, but the venom and vitriol that he would bring into the Oval Office.

Many people from both parties as well as independents complain that it is agonizing to watch Democrats and Republicans not get anything accomplished on The Hill. Though no one person is to blame entirely, the conquer and divide mentality that Gingrich brought to the forefront of American politics when he became House Speaker in 1994 still remains in effect to this very day.

Quote of the Day- James Baldwin

During this month of August, we will be quoting from famous literary and creative radicals on Mondays, or whenever we can.

Today, we start with the late great poet/novelist/playwright James Baldwin who was also a civil rights activist for blacks and gays.

The liberal journal "The Nation" recently published quotes from famous people who have contributed articles and columns to the magazine over its long history. And, it was from a July 11th, 1966 issue of "The Nation" in which Baldwin made this provocative comment:

"The law is meant to be my servant and not my master, still less my torturer and my murderer."

SIDEBAR: We want to wish our Muslim friends a happy Ramadan season, an occasion which is alas soiled because of the political unrest in Syria which once again escalated on Monday. Many groups, such as the Divan Cultural Center, in Cary (Raleigh), NC, are holding special iftar dinners for the holiday.

If you are a Muslim living in the Washington, DC, area, (or just enjoy mutton) and you happen to have lots of capital wealth and enjoy very fine dinning, then we can recommend the Poste Brassiere at the Hotel Monaco on Eight Street, NW. According to "The Washingtonian" magazine, the restaurant offers roast lamb for $70. The restaurant also apparently requires a one-week in advance reservation.

Status Update_ Underdog Versus Palinzilla

I had a surreal last night/this morning, in which I was the late '60s cartoon hero Underdog and I was saving New York City from Palinzilla, a 90-foot fire breathing robot that looked exactly like Sarah Palin.

While I fully sympathize with "Washington Post" columnist Dana Milbank, who has said there should be a moratorium on mentioning Palinzilla's name, I could not resist sharing this story.

In the dream, I gave her one simple whack across the nose and her circuits exploded causing her to malfunction and retreat back to the Hudson Bay. It was ironically sort of like a version of 'David and Goliath.'

Of course, some feminists may argue that my Underdog engaged in domestic violence, but my response would be: "Hey, someone had to save the universe from Palinzilla." Obviously, I do not condone domestic violence in any form and as it is since Palinzilla was a robot, I could argue Underdog was not hitting a woman because androids don't have genders!

SIDEBAR: Everyone in the world seems to be talking about the riots in Egypt today. On the left, "The Nation" has articles titled like "Fire in the Streets of Cairo: Will the Army Hold?" and "Egypt's K-Street Connections."

While on the right, John McCormack has an analysis of President Barack Obama's statement on Egypt in "The Weekly Standard." While I did not have time to actually read the article, I would presume given the magazine's politics, which are actually more restrained than some of their counterparts, that it was critical of Obama.

And, for those of us on the center-left, there is always the ever-reliable "The New Republic" in which Heather Hurlburt has an article about the five things every American should know about the riots which threaten Hosni Mubarak's 30-year reign as the president of Egypt. I was a bit humored and horrified to see that the article actually featured a photograph from a riot in Turkey, which is my late father's country!