Friday, January 14, 2011

More Sanity From the Right

Both of these stolen from Salon.

A bullet scarred billboard:

And a clip that reminds me, at least, of Jason or Freddie Krueger or something that goes bump in the night:

Also note the reflection of teleprompters that have been inserted by the lamestream media to make Sarah Reagan look Obamaesque.

And since I’m pillaging Salon here’s an interesting article from Peter Kramer who’s a professor of psychiatry at Brown. I don’t believe the right is directly responsible for Jared Loughner. Maybe there are some who do. I do believe there are those on the Right who have created a poisonous atmosphere with conspiracy theories, slurs and veiled (and not so veiled) threats.

Respected colleagues and columnists have been quick to say no. Shall we give Fox News, Glenn Beck, Sarah Palin and the others a quick pass? It is true that the biology of mental illness has its own imperative. But along with most other people, I do imagine that in a general sense social forces can mute, inflame or redirect impulses. That's what the time in the clinical office is about, in part: the use of interpersonal influence to moderate or channel emotions. Much political speech has the same aim.

The work that I do makes me suspect that creating a hysterical political environment has its costs. Many writers have commented on the corrosive effects of casual references to violence, along with the demonization of public figures and the glorification of gun ownership. I want to add a further consideration, implicit in the others, but worth separating out: tolerance, in the public sphere, for paranoia itself.

Tuesday, January 4, 2011

Eat the Rich

Apparently the socialists took over on New Year’s Day. Things are looking good for William Ayers primary challenge against President Obama.

Most Americans think the United States should raise taxes for the rich to balance the budget, according to a 60 Minutes/Vanity Fair poll released on Monday.

In addition to asking those who, like Paris Hilton, have pulled themselves up by their bootstraps to become wealthy these turncoats are suggesting surrender to our enemies.

The next most popular way -- chosen by 20 percent -- was to cut defense spending.

At least the right and the left can probably find common ground on this opinion.

Asked which part of the world they would fix first, the largest proportion of respondents -- 36 percent -- chose Washington, compared with 23 percent who picked the Middle East and 14 percent who chose Haiti.

 

Ayers/Chomsky 2012