Dukakis, Perot, Clinton, Gore, Kerry

Politics · 2005/08/11 · 4 COMMENTS · Link

Turn Your AM Dial to the Left

I'm putting together a talk radio station lineup, in case I win the lottery and can bring liberal radio to Jacksonville. North Florida could use the variety -- I live within listening range of three stations that carry Rush Limbaugh live. I can only assume that the right wingers in this area are concerned that one or two stations might lose their towers to a hurricane or nuclear attack, so they've build some redundancies into the system.

My rules: All hosts have to air live, should run in their entirety, and be a liberal alternative to the conservatives hogging AM radio. Here's what I've got so far:

• 5 a.m. to 6 a.m.: Rachel Maddow
• 10 a.m. to Noon: Diane Rehm
• Noon to 3 p.m.: Al Franken
• 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.: Ed Schultz
• 10 p.m. to 1 a.m.: The Alan Colmes

I don't know what to do with 6 a.m. to 10 a.m., 6 p.m. to 10 p.m., or 1 a.m. to 5 a.m. Air America offers Jerry Springer in the morning, but I think I'd prefer three hours of dead air, and I've yet to hear a broadcast of Janeane Garofalo and Sam Seder's evening show that I liked. I may try again this evening to hear guest Duncan Black raise some hell.

There's nothing on in the middle of the night but George Noory, the creepy successor to Art Bell. Maybe I'll just broadcast live audio of Al Franken sleeping.

Radio · Politics · Jacksonville · 2005/08/11 · 10 COMMENTS · Link

AOL's web site redesign includes BlogZone, a blog digest similar to the Daou Report on Salon.Com.

I found it because of the traffic it's sending to the Cindy Sheehan interview broadcast by Alan Colmes.

2005/08/10 · 4 COMMENTS · Link

All Cheer the SuperJews

Jerry Springer has a fill-in host on Air America Radio, a Colorado talk show host named Jay Marvin who's vastly more listenable than the mumbly panderer.

Today, a caller told Marvin about a bit of sports trivia that floored me: A European soccer team goes by the monicker "the Jews," which inspires some horrible taunts by rival fans.

I dug up the details for a post today on SportsFilter:

Cheering on the SuperJews Wonder what it would be like if a sports team used a Jewish mascot? For years, fans of Ajax Amsterdam, Holland's most popular football team, have called themselves super-Joden (super Jews), wearing Star of David tattoos and flying Israeli flags at matches, but not because of their religion -- the team's home pitch is near Amsterdam's Jewish neighborhood. Says one Holocaust survivor: "When other teams' supporters chant 'Hamas, Hamas, the Jews to the gas', the Ajax fans are not hurt, because they're not real Jews. But my family was murdered in the gas chambers, so I am very insulted.'"

Sports · Politics · 2005/08/09 · 2 COMMENTS · Link

It seems a little dumb to care about such things, but I'd like to see Elizabeth Vargas or another talented female newscaster replace Peter Jennings on World News Tonight. We've ventured far enough into the 21st century to retire the idea that the voice of authority in this country comes in only one octave.

Journalism · Politics · Television · 2005/08/09 · 2 COMMENTS · Link

An Hour with Cindy Sheehan

Matt Drudge ran a newsflash today on Cindy Sheehan, the military mom whose 24-year-old son's death in Iraq spurred her to protest the war.

Sheehan made international news last week when she visited Crawford, Texas with members of Gold Star Families for Peace. She wanted to ask him "why did my son die?"

In June, Alan Colmes interviewed Sheehan on his syndicated radio show, which I've enclosed as a 50-minute podcast. She takes several calls from irate members of the public, including an incredible exchange with a mother who supports the war.

This morning, Drudge ran excerpts of a 2004 interview she gave her local newspaper, cherry-picking quotes that made her sound effusive in praise for the president after her son's April 2004 death.

The full story, which was brought back online today, contains a quote omitted by Drudge that makes her feelings more clear:

"We haven't been happy with the way the war has been handled," Cindy said. "The president has changed his reasons for being over there every time a reason is proven false or an objective reached."

Radio · Politics · 2005/08/08 · 41 COMMENTS · Link

Grading the War in Iraq

Frontpage Magazine, the right-wing publication founded by David Horowitz, has been conducting a symposium with several experts on how well the Iraq War is going.

The discussion, which presumably was staged via e-mail, began with several panelists taking umbrage at Steven Vincent, a war correspondent working in Basra, Iraq, because he gave the war a letter grade of B-minus and Iraqi quality of life an F:

Judging the conflict by Saddam's removal -- and thank Allah the monster is gone -- is setting a pretty low bar. I mean, let's face it: military-wise Iraq was not Nazi Germany or the Soviet Union. Then you have to factor in U.S failures, such as not sealing the borders or halting the looting -- not to mention the fact that American military tactics have widely alienated the very people we liberated. Something's not working right.

Frontpage managing editor Jamie Glazov berated Vincent for not giving the war an A:

You blame America that you can't leave your hotel. But Mr. Vincent, sorry, you can't leave your hotel because the terrorists are a threat to you. Blame the terrorists, not America. ...

An F to America for the quality of Iraqis' lives? The terrorists are waging war on the country and doing everything in their power to destroy the quality of life. We need to blame the terrorists for that, not the side that is sacrificing its young boys and girls to give Iraq liberty and to nurture and protect its growth. The premise here is the height of the pathology of anti-Americanism -- blaming America for what the terrorists are doing.

The symposium was abruptly cancelled when word arrived that Vincent had been kidnapped and executed in Basra.

His last exchange with Glazov:

Vincent: You can blame terrorists all you want for ruining Iraq, but at the end of the day, it's our responsibility to make things right -- or at least get Iraqis to do the job themselves. Oh, and Jamie? You damn well better feel sorry I can't leave my Basra hotel without Iraqi protection -- because last year I could. Six months after the January 30th elections, lawlessness in this city is on the rise, whether by Iranian agents, rogue policemen or opportunistic tribal gangs. Hmmm, considering the bang-up job the Brits are doing here, I think I'll lower my estimation of the war effort to a C+.

Glazov: Sheesh. Okay Steven, I'm almost afraid what will happen in the next round of this discussion.

Politics · 2005/08/06 · Comment · Link

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