Let the Market Decide; The Government Shouldn't Pick Winners and Losers!

"The Government is not a good Venture Capitalist"

Jon Stewart compares the Administration's business record to Bain's. And calls out the hypocrisy of this stupid, stupid conservative talking point. (second video)

!!!!

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart	- Thurs 11p / 10c
Picking Winners & Losers
www.thedailyshow.com
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from October 2012: http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/thu-october-25-2012/picking-winners---losers
Bain record: 22% failure; Government: 8%

"It is not the ROLE OF GOVERNMENT to pick winners and losers". Jon takes it down.

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
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from: American Pickers - The Daily Show with Jon Stewart - 10/25/12 - Video Clip | Comedy Central - http://bit.ly/TozDRJ

Just to finish off the great first segment of this 10/25 episode... here's what Jon says next about "Rape babies are god's gift" ... and punctures the cynical reasons why Republicans have tried to distance themselves from him.

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart

From: Republican Candidate Said What About Rape Now? - The Daily Show with Jon Stewart - 10/25/12 - Video Clip | Comedy Central - http://bit.ly/ToA3r2

Time to End the Culture War. Time to Elect Women.

Great response and counter-argument to the Republican assault on health care, women's bodies and reproductive freedoms. 1 very quick minute--Watch it!!!

More links on these issues in these blog posts:
-Abortion

• Contraception, ACA, Religion and the ACORNification of Planned Parenthood 
• Push Back: GOP overreaches on Family Planning, Workers' Rights 
• See also: The Culture Wars

And here are some good images after the flip:

Too Much Santorum

...so I'll make his own special blog post (divorcing him from the original "Conservatives 2012" post)

ON GAYS

• Gays "Make God Want to Vomit": Meet Santorum's Honorary Florida Chairman | Mother Jones (1/21/2012)  
• Rick Santorum Says He Will Overturn The Supreme Court If Same-Sex Marriage Is Ruled Legal (VIDEO) | Addicting Info (2/13/2012) 
• Rick Santorum: Same Sex Relationships Don't 'Benefit Society' (2/5/2012) 
• Santorum: 'I'll Die' to Stop Same Sex Marriages | Video Café - Crooks & Liars (10/21/2011)

go ahead, google santorum

 ON ABORTION

• Rick Santorum and James Dobson Push 'Death Panels' Myth, Nostalgic for Time When Abortion was a Crime | Right Wing Watch (2/6/2012)
• Santorum Longs For Good Old Days Of 'Shadow Abortions' When Women Obtained Back-Alley Procedures | ThinkProgressn(2/6/2012)   
• Santorum: Rape Victims Must ‘Make The Best Out Of A Bad Situation’ | The New Civil Rights Movement (1/23/2012) (see video at end of post, too)
• Santorum: Our Abortion Was Different | Our Silver Blog (4/15/2011) 

Spotlight on the Senatorfold

Looks like Scott Brown is becoming more and more like Mitt Romney--his positions change whenever it is convenient.  Thought he was a moderate?  Maybe he was.  Well he's not any more.

The senator, who probably hasn't looked at the bill he supports, simply didn't believe it. Brown kept arguing that the Blunt Amendment is only about religious freedom. He's wrong. 

The Republican proposal aims to allow all private-sector employers to deny any health services that businesses might find morally objectionable. Do you work for a grocery store owner who opposes contraception? You're out of luck. How about an accounting firm that doesn't like HIV tests? Too bad. Are you an employee at a factory that finds cervical cancer screenings offensive? Good luck to you.

--The Maddow Blog - Scott Brown stumbles on policy basics  

---
We know he loves attention!

Excellent analysis of the political and media game that Scott Brown has been playing--one in which he says the "moderate" thing, even tho it belies his conservative votes, and in so doing gathers credit from the media and thus successfully paints himself as a palateable "independent", electable/voteable by the MA voter.  This time, it's about Planned Parenthood and Title X funding, but there's a pattern with his votes on unemployment, wall street regulation and on and on.  Worth a full read but here's an excerpt:

The Culture Wars

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

(i'm copying / moving a lot of contraception/abortion stuff into the Acornification thread - check there)


Maddow has been excellent on this topic, so a category just for  her

• Maddow and Michael Steele on whether culture war still exists (Jan 28 2011)

Resurrecting Abortion Restrictions

• Irked by abortion bill, Va. senator adds rectal exams for men | HamptonRoads.com | PilotOnline.com (1/30/2012) 
• Big gov! Red tape! Bureaucratic nightmares!
• For abortion providers, sonogram law a complication | Emily Ramshaw - TheMonitor.com (1/29/2012)  
• New Restrictions On Abortion Almost Tied Record Last Year : Shots - Health Blog : NPR (1/19/2012)
• Mainstreaming Anti Contraception, Economist, 3/2011 
• "Will Women Fight Back?" Bos Phoenix, 3/2011
• Limiting rape exceptions for abortion ONLY for "Forcible Rape" (MoJo on Republican legislation intro'd Jan 2011)
• (by the way, the New England Journal of Medicine has a new report (Jan 2011) saying abortions do not cause mental health risks. Duh)
• (Update: that "forcible rape" language has been taken out after intense public pressure)
• Another update: 2/9: language still in there! 
• "the Protect Life Act" would allow Doctors to refuse to save mother's life if it'll kill the fetus (Alternet, 2/2011)
• Mother Jones 2/8/2011
• "Senate Showdown Over Abortion" 2/9/2011 Motherjones

[ More  "Keeping Track of the 112th Congress" in separate blog entry]
Big Government / Libertarians and Abortion

• Gunfire Deaths in Children vs Pro-Life: A Political Double Standard « Art on Issues (1/31/2012)
• Rand Paul: I Have Less Choice In Toilets Than Women Have In Abortions (VIDEO) | TPMDC (3/2011)

Feb 8, 2011 (on Teaparty blocking vote 1 on Patriot act extension):

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Women, Mothers, Motherhood, Contraception

• Legal or Not, Abortion Rates Compare - NYTimes.com (2007)- http://goo.gl/3rb2r -- Worldwide abortion rates same, regardless of prohibitions.
• A comprehensive global study of abortion has concluded that abortion rates are similar in countries where it is legal and those where it is not, suggesting that outlawing the procedure does little to deter women seeking it.
• Moreover, the researchers found that abortion was safe in countries where it was legal, but dangerous in countries where it was outlawed and performed clandestinely. Globally, abortion accounts for 13 percent of women’s deaths during pregnancy and childbirth, and there are 31 abortions for every 100 live births, the study said.
• Just the Facts: Churches and the Contraceptive Coverage Mandate | Truthout (2/2/2012) 
• Why New Birth Control Benefits are the Right Choice and Why Religious Conservatives Have it Wrong | Sex & Relationships (1/29/2012) | AlterNet 
• Facts on Unintended Pregnancy in the United States (Jan. 2012) - Guttmacher Institute 
• Law Fuels Contraception Controversy on Catholic Campuses - NYTimes.com (1/28/2012) 
• Mother Jones Graph: Abortion rates tend to be lower in subregions that have liberal abortion laws (1/23/2012) 
• The Rev. Chuck Currie: "Observe the Roe v. Wade Anniversary by Staying Vigilant and Taking Action" (1/22/2012) 
• Who gets abortions in the US? (YouTube/it's not who you think), Guttmacher Inst., May 2011
• Teen Moms Look for Support, But Find Only Shame - COLORLINES 5/2011
• Gail Collins, Behind the Abortion Wars (= war on contraception), Apr 2011 

RELIGION

• Catholic Church: Eaten Alive by Hypocrisy « Tales of the Imperium - Alternet - (3/9/2010) 
• Contraceptive Use Is the Norm Among Religious Women (4/13/2012) (98% of Catholic women use non-rhythmmethod contraception)
• Blahblahblah... First, They Came for the Catholics -  Michelle Malkin - Townhall Conservative (2/1/2012) 
• VM -- The Religious Exemption to Mandated Insurance Coverage of Contraception, Feb 2012 ... Virtual Mentor - American Medical Association - 
• Catholic Leaders Challenge Gingrich and Santorum on Divisive Rhetoric Around Race and Poverty | Faith in Public Life (1/19/2012) 

'FAMILY VALUES'

• Truly interesting piece because it comes from conservative/"small gov"-er Ross Douthat: The Cratchit Tax Credit - NYTimes.com (12/24/2011)

"Sanctity of Marriage"

• What Gingrich's Open Marriage Debate Hissy Fit Says About GOP Family Values - Politicus (1/20/2012)
• Congrats to Rush Limbaugh on his fourth traditional marriage - Salon.com (1/20/2012)