The glass is half empty

This is more than a little disturbing. According to Rasmussen, only 53% of Americans believe capitalism is better than socialism.

Let me repeat that: Only 53% of Americans believe capitalism is better than socialism.

Only 53% of American adults believe capitalism is better than socialism.

The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey found that 20% disagree and say socialism is better. Twenty-seven percent (27%) are not sure which is better.

Adults under 30 are essentially evenly divided: 37% prefer capitalism, 33% socialism, and 30% are undecided. Thirty-somethings are a bit more supportive of the free-enterprise approach with 49% for capitalism and 26% for socialism. Adults over 40 strongly favor capitalism, and just 13% of those older Americans believe socialism is better.

At the risk of sounding kooky, I don't think there can be any doubt that the indoctrination via watered-down and politically-correct curricula in our government schools, undeniable liberal media bias, Hollywood pop culture that celebrates general pinko-ness, and an overall dumbing down of the electorate have all contributed to this frightening reality.

The foundations, traditions and institutions of this country have been aggressively deconstructed for so long now that it's actually working. The light of the shining city on the hill is fading.

America's sunset is upon us. Well, it was good while it lasted anyway.

The day the world went away

Because I'm a sucker for dystopian stories about free people struggling against tyranny — in whatever form it takes.

And because it just looks like it's going to be freaking good:

It's a good thing I was already a "24" fan

...and casting decisions don't keep me from watching it.

A few Janeane Garofalo words of wisdom from Ecorazzi:

E: What are three things you’d like to really see Obama change in this country?

JG: I’d like to see him be a proud liberal and say it. You know what I mean? There’s no shame in being a liberal – it’s something to be very proud of. He should say it – cause he is one – and he should be proud to be one. And since it is clear and has been clear since Reagan that the republicans, the “conservatives” will NEVER play ball…NEVER…fu%$ um.

Their policies have destroyed us and most of the world – that’s a fact not an opinion. Their policies of deregulation, pre-emptive strikes, unmitigated support for Israel to the detriment of the Israelis, Palestinian’s, Americans, the British. Every single policy that “conservative republicans” have put forth since Reagan has destroyed us. And we affect most of the world, so why do they still get a say? That’s what blows my mind. It’s almost like self-flagellation or masochism in some way. We keep going to that portion. They are NEVER going to compromise. The thing is that the more you give in to something like that, the more they take advantage.

The reason a person is a conservative republican is because something is wrong with them. Again, that’s science – that’s neuroscience. You cannot be well adjusted, open-minded, pluralistic, enlightened and be a republican. It’s counter-intuitive. And they revel in their anti-intellectualism. They revel in their cruelty.

I don’t know if you heard me talking to Jenny a while ago, but I was saying that first you have to be an asshole and then comes the conservatism. You gotta be a dick to cleave onto their ideology.

E: This might be an appropriate time to segue into Sarah Palin. I would love to know what you think about Palin.

JG: Probably what most people think about Sarah Palin. She’s small-minded and mean-spirited. It has nothing to do with gender — I don’t give a shit about her gender — she is what the Republican Party has become: obstructionist, contrarians, small-minded, all of these things. She just happens to be attractive. There’s definitely something wrong with her. She’s lacking in so many areas. Of course she’s successful with a segment of the country because she represents that lesser segment of the country. It’s people’s lesser nature – their human frailty. You know whatever’s wrong with them is what she is about.

E: I think it’s safe to say she’s done some pretty nutty things.

JG: It’s not even nutty. It really is neuroscience. I truly believe that it has something to do with their limbic brain. I really believe that some people’s limbic brain dominates more than others. Our limbic brain controls all our emotions and it causes us to be irrational. Our limbic brain goes into action when we’re ecstatic, frightened, when we’re having sex. I really believe that if a neuroscientist examined the brain of somebody who identified as a conservative, they would find it’s wired differently.

Noun
Hate
1. intense hostility and aversion usually deriving from fear, anger, or sense of injury
2. extreme dislike or antipathy : loathing

It really is that easy

Sunday must-reads

A new feature, when there is time — or will. A round-up of the the best columns of the week, or recent times, or from whenever I feel like pulling them. Enjoy.

Mark Steyn — Obama, All at Sea

Charles Krauthammer — The Fierce Urgency of Pork

Victor Davis Hanson — Our Brave New World

Ike Brannon and Chris Edwards — Barack Obama's Keynesian Mistake

Monica Crowley — Change We Can Roll Our Eyes At

Wall Street Journal — The Stimulus Tragedy

Deroy Murdock — President Obama May Reverse Damage of Ghetto Culture

Marc Sheppard — Save The Children (From Global Warming Propaganda)

Fouad Ajami — Obama Reassures Despots

Charles Krauthammer — Obama's Unnecessary Apology

Lipstick on a pig part 2

It's been a really long day and since I get paid elsewhere, posting on this blog is low on the priority list. So, I don't even have the energy to get into Matt Damon tonight. But don't worry, I'll get to him.

After absorbing this 'lipstick on a pig' story all day I'm convinced it's another one of these fake controversies that get blown out of proportion. It's pretty much a non-story. But isn't that what political campaigns are now? 24-hour 'gotcha' games fueled by nothing-better-to-do media?

Look, Obama wasn't insulting Palin - at least not directly - and the McCain camp should've just let it go. In fact, they would have looked a lot better (and won even more favor than they're already getting lately) if Sarah Palin had come out today and said, "Look folks, he wasn't talking about me...let it go."

Nevertheless, Obama screwed up by using a word from one of the best lines in Palin's convention speech. (And if you watch the video clip, it's almost as if he knew it was a poor choice as it was coming out...kind of funny.) That was the mistake: Not that it was a sexist insult, but that he should've known it would remind people of the pit bull line.

Now, I will admit to being slightly amused at seeing a Democrat become the victim of the same 'gotcha' tactics that the press has used on the Right for years. I mean, how many times have they twisted something Rush Limbaugh (like him or not) has said in an effort to mute his credibility? (Intellectually honest people only need answer that question.)

Advice to both campaigns: When you're stumping at these rallies, you're already playing to a friendly crowd. Why waste time bashing the other candidate? You're preaching to the choir aren't you? Why not spend that time talking about your ideas and what you want to do? I mean, both camps have said they want to move past these 'negative partisan politics'.

Right?

Can I watch 'Halloween' in the same way again?

Jamie Jamie Jamie...I loved you in 'Halloween' and 'Trading Places', even more so in 'True Lies' (I think you know why.) How am I ever supposed to view these masterpieces in the same way again when you drop wisdom like this on us? [emphasis added]

I couldn't hold my own for one minute in a debate on any issue with someone like a Barack Obama or Joseph Biden and neither can Sarah Palin. When the call comes at 3AM I want a mind who was at the top of their class, who has gravitas and a real intellect. I want a leader who is a scholar who can hold the history of civilization in his head and will read and learn from the past as he charts the future.
— Jamie Lee Curtis, The Huffington Post, 9/3/08

Huh?

I know I shouldn't be surprised, I mean, it's Hollywood after all and you have to swear your undying hatred for evil Republicans when you join that club. But let me inform Ms. Curtis of something: The worry that you just described about "wanting a mind" who is at the "top of their class" and is ready to take that 3AM call? That concern? That worry? That horror? Well, that's exactly how many of us feel about your boy Barry.

But hey, it's a free country sister.

MTV: Employer of limey moonbats

I don't know who this guy is - and not that MTV has been relevant for about 10 years or so - but did you happen to see any of this? In a strange way, you kind of have to respect the balls of this bloke. I guess it's true, Barry really is running for President of The World.

Speaking of 'retards'...I wonder if there will be any protests of MTV by the same groups that protested 'Tropic Thunder'.