Manuel Wolff's web log

Wed, 29 Dec 2004 21:41:57 GMT

year end top 10 lists.

Tue, 28 Dec 2004 22:04:46 GMT

First, we have the "Top 10 Outrageous Statements of 2004" (thanks to PacoPax for making me aware of this link) http://mediamatters.org/items/200412230005

Here are the Top Ten most outrageous statements we have heard this year from members of the media. From anti-Semitic comments and attacks on women, gays, and lesbians to reprehensible acceptance of the Abu Ghraib prisoner torture, these statements are acutely representative of the conservative hate speech we found in the news media:

* Rush Limbaugh on the Abu Ghraib photos: "I'm talking about people having a good time, these people, you ever heard of emotional release? You ever heard of need to blow some steam off?"
* Ann Coulter: "[Senator John] Kerry will improve the economy in the emergency services and body bag industry."
* Tony Blankley called philanthropist George Soros "a Jew who figured out a way to survive the Holocaust."
* Michael Savage: "When you hear 'human rights,' think gays. ... [T]hink only one thing: someone who wants to rape your son."
* Oliver North: "Every terrorist out there is hoping John Kerry is the next president of the United States."
* Pat Robertson on gays and lesbians: "[S]elf-absorbed hedonists ... that want to impose their particular sexuality on the rest of America."
* Pat Buchanan: "[H]omosexuality is an affliction, like alcoholism."
* Bill O'Reilly to Jewish caller: "[I]f you are really offended, you gotta go to Israel."
* Bill Cunningham (Clear Channel radio host who appeared as a guest on The Sean Hannity Show): The election is over because "Elizabeth Edwards has now sung."
* Jerry Falwell: "And we're going to invite PETA [to "wild game night"] as our special guest, P-E-T-A -- People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. We want you to come, we're going to give you a top seat there, so you can sit there and suffer. This is one of my special groups, another one's the ACLU, another is the NOW -- the National Order of Witches [sic]. We've got -- I've got a lot of special groups."

Thanks to Mike o'Keefe for showing the 11 most moronic stories this year, brought to you by www.morons.org:

This year was so stupid, in fact, that the dial goes to 11.

11 Having gotten just about as much mileage out of push polls about black babies as he could, Karl Rove's brain child this election season was the now infamous "Swift Boat Veterans for Truth," a teflon-coated organization which leveled dubious, unsubstantiated and outright false claims against Democrat candidate for president John Kerry. Instead of a forum about real issues affecting the lives of real people, the electoral discourse degraded into yet another smear campaign.

10 Nobody in the United States of America had ever seen a woman's breast prior to this year's Superbowl Halftime Show. On the other hand, everyone's been hearing about Viagra™, Cialis™, and Levitra™ since birth. So we shouldn't really have been surprised at the horror and outrage at the 70 or 80 pixels we saw of Janet Jackson's boob when boob Justin Timberlake uncovered it at the end of their song combined with the general indifference to commercials warning us about erections lasting longer than four hours (*wink*) during a violent and often-bloody sport.

9 Speaking of boobs, the coalitions, associations and councils who supposedly "defend marriage" and support "traditional values" didn't bat an eyelash at the well-publicized marriage of Britney Spears to her childhood friend Jason Alexander, which lasted almost a whole weekend. Yeah, homosexuals are the real threat to the "sanctity" of "traditional marriage," guys.

8 Though Jimmy Swaggart is no foe to New Orleans hookers, he does feel a certain passion toward gay men. He told his audience during a sermon that if a gay man looked at him "like that" he would commit a homocide, killing the gay man, then he would "tell God he died," Cain-style. Swaggart later said he was only joking. Ha ha ha!

7 We all heard the warnings before the Iraq war that Saddam Hussein might supply terrorists with weapons to attack the United States. Unsatisfied with progress in that area, we decided to take matters into our own hands, losing 380 tons of explosives that had been secure at the beginning of the war. Though the government and various right-wing apologists initially tried to explain the loss by saying the explosives weren't there when the war began, video footage from a television station in Minnesota quickly put an end to that discussion. Then shortly after that, the "liberal" media put an end to all discussion. We haven't heard about those 380 tons of explosives since. And presumably we haven't seen them either. ( Or did we?)

6 What could be more controversial than the suggestion that a Christian denomination might consider allowing gays and people of color attend its worship services? CBS and NBC couldn't think of anything more shocking and refused to air advertisements from the United Church of Christ. The ads in question depicted bouncers outside a church turning away various undesirables with the tagline, "Jesus didn't turn people away. Neither do we." Though they refused to air the spots, we hear plans are underway for a shocking new reality show, "Queer Eye for the Jesus Guy."

5 Seeking to boost rolls at protestant churches, Colorado Springs Catholic Bishop Michael Sheridan ordered all Catholics under his command to vote his way or be denied the sacraments. Though he didn't come right out and say it, the clear message was that a vote for John Kerry was a vote for your own eternal damnation. No word on whether Catholic priests who molest children would be denied communion.

4 Undeterred by the requirements imposed by science as to what constitutes a true scientific theory, and unconcerned about diluting their own religious beliefs down into almost nothing, this year we saw a push for teaching the myth of "Intelligent Design" as though it were a legitimate scientific theory on the origin of life. "Intelligent Design," could also be known as "Creationism-Lite," for it's essentially creationism where the part of "God" is played by one "I.M. Designer." The myth seems to be spreading although not without resistance.

3 Though recovering drug addict Rush Limbaugh said they were just "blowing off steam," most sane, rational Americans were appalled by the wanton abuse of Iraqi prisoners. Unlike the story of 380 tons of explosives going missing (see above), this story won't go away so easily, with new allegations of abuse surfacing periodically.

2 "Liberal Media" giant Sinclair, desperate to show us its "liberal" bias refused to air an episode of Nightline, deciding that its tribute to fallen military personnel was a liberal political stunt. One of the most dull episodes of Nightline ever, that night the names of the then-only-523 killed troops were read. Later in the year, liberal elite Sinclair Media ordered its stations to air an anti-Kerry propaganda film just nights before the election, though it later backed off one notch, electing to air a "documentary" about election propaganda instead, which drew heavily on an anti-Kerry propaganda film.

1 US President George W Bush dropped all pretenses of being something other than a religious fundamentalist and called for a Constitutional amendment against gays. The proposed Federal Marriage Amendment, which if passed would have become the only standing amendment to limit the freedom of citizens (rather than to guarantee it), ultimately died in Congress. The "uniter, not a divider" President won't be deterred by inability to get the House and Senate, both of which are controlled by his own party, to pass a proposed admendment, and he's promised to make this a priority during his second term. Who is this man uniting, anyway?

And lastly, the Misinformer of the year: http://mediamatters.org/items/200412230006

Without further ado:

1. O'Reilly falsely claimed Bush didn't oppose 9-11 Commission. O'Reilly defended President George W. Bush from a Kerry-Edwards '04 TV ad highlighting Bush's opposition to creation of the 9-11 Commission by denying that Bush had ever opposed the commission. In fact, Bush did oppose the creation of the 9-11 Commission. (10/21/04)
2. O'Reilly falsely claimed Iraq had ricin. O'Reilly responded to a caller to his radio show by defending the Iraq war: "They did have ricin up there in the north -- so why are you discounting that so much?" In fact, the Duelfer report (the final report of the Iraqi Survey Group, led by Charles A. Duelfer, which conducted the search for weapons in Iraq following the U.S.-led invasion) indicates that Iraq did not have ricin. (10/19/04)
3. O'Reilly repeated discredited claims on Iraq-Al Qaeda link. O'Reilly interrupted a former Clinton administration official who tried to correct the record on O'Reilly's claim that terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi constitutes a direct link between Al Qaeda and Saddam Hussein's Iraq. He also allowed a conservative guest to repeat without challenge other discredited claims about Iraq's supposed involvement in terrorism -- claims O'Reilly has himself cited in the past. (9/27/04)
4. O'Reilly fabricated "Paris Business Review" as source for success of French boycott. O'Reilly falsely claimed "they've lost billions of dollars in France according to 'The Paris Business Review'" due to an American boycott he advocated of French imports. Media Matters for America found no evidence of a publication named "The Paris Business Review." (4/27/04)
5. O'Reilly cited phony stats to argue that taxes on rich are excessive. O'Reilly tried to "blow off" the argument that wealthy Americans ought to pay more taxes by citing phony statistics about the tax burden the rich currently bear. (6/30/04)
6. O'Reilly confused on elementary economics. O'Reilly told a caller on his radio show, "We [the United States] have a trade deficit with everybody, because everybody wants our stuff, and we're not wild about snails" -- indicating that he doesn't know the definition of "trade deficit" and implying that the United States runs a trade surplus with France. In fact, in the first four months of 2004, the United States had a $3 billion trade deficit with France. (6/10/04)
7. O'Reilly doctored quotation to suggest Soros wished his own father dead. During his smear campaign against progressive financier, philanthropist, and political activist George Soros, O'Reilly doctored a 1995 quotation by Soros to make it seem as if Soros wished his own father dead. (6/1/04)
8. O'Reilly questioned if Kennedy would show up to Democratic convention ... as Kennedy spoke behind him. O'Reilly teased an upcoming segment of The O'Reilly Factor, broadcast live from the Democratic National Convention, by saying of convention speaker Senator Edward Kennedy: "When we come back, we'll let you listen to Ted Kennedy for a while, if he shows up." In fact, Kennedy had already shown up and had been speaking for several minutes, as O'Reilly need only have turned around to see. (7/27/04)
9. O'Reilly disparaged Democrats with trifecta of voter falsehoods. In a discussion about what went wrong for Democrats in the November 2 election, O'Reilly claimed that Democrats "lost votes from four years ago"; that "18- to 24[-year-old]s didn't go" to the polls; and that "[c]ommitted Republicans didn't carry the day for the president; independents did." All three claims are false. (11/4/04)
10. O'Reilly on the radio: Three lies, one broadcast. Lie No. 1: Bush tax cuts didn't create the budget deficit. Lie No. 2: "Socialistic" French, Germans, and Canadian governments tax at 80 percent. Lie No. 3: Canadian, British, and French media are "government-controlled," but Italian media is free. (7/7/04)

what the hell is this?

Thu, 16 Dec 2004 22:22:58 GMT

http://www.taiwankiss.com/board1/data/89162.html

Mon, 29 Nov 2004 12:47:51 GMT

Signs of isolation

Sun, 28 Nov 2004 01:28:47 GMT

http://www.cnn.com/2004/EDUCATION/11/26/exchange.students.ap/index.html

I find this very tragic.

Tornado during a football game

Sat, 27 Nov 2004 14:08:41 GMT

incredible clip: http://diverseen.net/index.php?subaction=showfull&id=1101455804&archive=&start_from=&ucat=1&

in the news...

Wed, 24 Nov 2004 13:22:43 GMT

Who forgot to zip his fly?

Mon, 22 Nov 2004 12:14:54 GMT

You Are the Individualist

4

You are sensitive and intuitive, with others and yourself.

You are creative and dreamy... plus dramatic and unpredictable.

You're emotionally honest, real, and easily hurt.

Totally expressive, others always know exactly how you feel.

What number are you?

Sun, 21 Nov 2004 14:36:17 GMT

wow.

Sat, 20 Nov 2004 14:25:28 GMT

http://www.dubyamovie.com/large.html

Sat, 20 Nov 2004 12:50:34 GMT

"As democracy is perfected, the office of president represents, more and more closely, the inner soul of the people. On some great and glorious day the plain folks of the land will reach their heart's desire at last and the White House will be adorned by a downright moron." — H. L. Mencken

Fri, 19 Nov 2004 15:27:30 GMT

Don't know what to think of this:

http://www.filmstripinternational.com/

Thu, 18 Nov 2004 13:18:39 GMT

Tue, 16 Nov 2004 16:42:29 GMT

You know which wines go best with which foods, and
you can make New York City's finest sommalier
feel like a kid at a keg party. You wanna take
that Emeril guy and beat him with a stick, but
really - you've got more class than that.
What people love: You know the best restaurants and
what their specialties are.
What people hate: Every waiter in town wants to
mangle your pretentious ass.

What Kind of Elitist Are You?
brought to you by Quizilla

Mon, 15 Nov 2004 10:04:26 GMT

Fuzzy Math

Sun, 14 Nov 2004 17:04:52 GMT

Tue, 09 Nov 2004 10:35:32 GMT

Sun, 07 Nov 2004 13:17:02 GMT

There he is again.

Sat, 06 Nov 2004 12:52:40 GMT

I'm back!

It was great on the cruise ship. Sometimes stress, sometimes crap, a lot of times silly, but all in all a great job. And I'm going again in January. This time to the Caribbean.

And then I'll make one photo per day of the color of the water, because each day it is different, and each day it is beautiful.

I will now go unpack, repir my kitchen, save my money, try to find my money, sleep, buy food, get used again to having to buy food, find my barber, and and and....

Mon, 30 Aug 2004 10:24:54 GMT

Here's another thing I don't get:

about the MTV music awards:

There may have been plenty of sex appeal, but little shock appeal on hand, even though MTV was ready, using a several-second tape delay for the first time. (The audio delay, used for years, was in heavy use during the hip-hop medley, which featured Lil Jon, Petey Pablo and Fat Joe.)

How can one have an audio delay without a video delay?

Wouldn't that mean I hear several seconds later what I see?

Mon, 30 Aug 2004 10:22:23 GMT

from CNN:

New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Gov. George Pataki have welcomed Republican National Convention delegates to the Big Apple. "For the next four days, the eyes of the world really will be focused on New York City," Bloomberg said. "This is a unique opportunity for New York to show the world just how far we've come since 9/11."

What an idiot. I'm sure Burundi gives a crap about where the republican national convention is held.

Tue, 24 Aug 2004 09:54:57 GMT

United States Grammar School Interim Report to Parents
May 25, 2004
By Nancy Greggs

Dear Mr. and Mrs. G.H.W. Bush,

Once again, it is that time of year when we update the parents of our students on their child's progress, and we regret to inform you that your son, Georgie, is not doing as well as we'd hoped and expected when he embarked on his four-year program at our school.

As you are well aware, Georgie was installed as class president at the start of the school year, despite the fact that the majority of his fellow students did not vote for him. We foresaw problems immediately, but were assured by several school board members (who, as we understand it, are friends of your family) that this would not result in any real difficulty. Unfortunately, they have been proven wrong.

In the area of scholastic achievement, despite our best efforts, Georgie is still reading and speaking at a grade level far below our usual standards. At this point, we are not sure if his failure to learn is due to laziness and a lack of ability to apply himself to his studies, or if he simply lacks the intellectual capacity to improve in these areas.

His oral presentations to the class are particularly troubling; it is apparent that Georgie has not read the necessary materials, and he often simply fabricates facts to hide this shortcoming. In oral exams, he tends to repeat the same answers over and over, e.g. "The economy is good; jobs are on their way," indicating a profound failure to keep up with the Current Events portion of the curriculum.

Georgie also tends to fabricate elaborate stories about himself - which, admittedly, can sometimes be very amusing. During a school celebration last May, he delighted his fellow students by coming to class in a little "flight suit" (just like the grown-ups wear!), and had everyone in stitches with his story about the family dog having eaten his report card from military pre-school!

On the whole, however, Georgie does not play well with other children. His "leadership" in the classroom continues to divide many students, one against the other. Other study groups, such as our French and German-language classes, are no longer willing to cooperate with Georgie's group, even though they have traditionally done so in the past.

Your son also displays a lack of taking responsibility for his failings, and seems unable to appreciate the consequences of his actions. Although he was provided with the best textbooks on the subjects of the Economy, Job Creation, The Environment, et cetera, these books were damaged or completely destroyed within a matter of months. Georgie insists that he "inherited" these books in poor condition, despite all evidence to the contrary. (In fact, these same textbooks were previously used by one of our very best students, who actually returned them in better condition than he found them!)

During his first few weeks with us, Georgie quickly became part of a group of other "problem students." Despite warnings, he has consistently befriended children whom we consider to be "bad elements," such as Little Kenny Lay and a foreign-exchange student named Chalabi. Both of these youngsters have been expelled from other schools due to their involvement in cheating other students out of their lunch money. We feel that these kinds of relationships can only lead to no good, and hope that you will advise your child accordingly.

Georgie often displays aggressive behaviour in the schoolyard, and recently assaulted a student in another school district, completely unprovoked. When asked about this incident, Georgie insisted that the other child was armed and dangerous. When investigation into the matter proved otherwise, Georgie changed his story several times: he was just trying to "democratize" the other child, the other child's school was harboring gang members, and so on. Quite frankly, his story on this topic has so changed from week to week, we simply can't trust his word at all anymore.

Georgie's friends, while not great in number, are very loyal, but tend to be over-protective. If any of the other students point out Georgie's failing grades, these friends simply shout them down and tell them not to speak at all. When Georgie was summoned to the principal's office several weeks ago, he insisted that his "best friend" come with him. We feel that it is in Georgie's best interest to learn to stand up for himself; failure to do so could seriously damage his ability to handle a leadership role in his adult years.

As you are aware, final exams will be held in November, and Georgie's past performance leads us to conclude that he will not be able to achieve the grades necessary to continue on with another four-year term at our institution.

Yours Truly,

Ms. J.Q. Public, Assistant Principal

from the 1969 Yale yearbook

Mon, 23 Aug 2004 09:25:57 GMT

Thu, 19 Aug 2004 16:24:30 GMT

Sat, 10 Jul 2004 12:24:13 GMT

from CNN:

Hours after a scathing Senate report slammed prewar U.S. intelligence efforts, President Bush defended his decision to invade Iraq. Bush told a Republican gathering in Pennsylvania that the United States was "right to go into Iraq. America is safer today because we did."

Like, uhm ... safer in what way?

2 days ago you guys warned of a new terror threat, to top the news about Edwards VP nomination, and now it's safer today? Safer than what?

Safer than before? No way. Safer than Iraq? well yeah, that's what he meant!

They went into Iraq to make the US safer than Iraq!

And how is that done?

By making Iraq unsafer, of course!

Brilliant!