please let this be true

Could it be that America’s favorite formerly bow-tied libertarian is throwing his hat into the presidential ring?  That’s the buzz from the Libertarian party convention in Denver now in progress — that Tucker Carlson is considering saving the party from the disaster of a Bob Barr candidacy.  Or something like that.  It should come as no surprise that I am in favor of Tucker Carlson seeking some kind of political office, since I was one of the first to suggest such a thing.  Ok, sure, I only requested a VP slot for him, but I was wrong then. As one of the few who watched his show on MSNBC, I am well aware of his limitations, but I think they can be overcome.

Say what you want about the bow-ties (now gone) and about Tucker’s occasional abrasiveness with stupid people.  He is the guy who has always been for smaller government and opposed to freedom-hating laws, unlike some of my fellow Republicans who only pay lip service to conservative/libertarian ideas like this.  Those who say that Tucker Carlson is any kind of shill for the establishment media aren’t really paying attention.  Bottom line:  I like the guy.  A lot.  If I’m going to cheer for any lost cause third-party candidate, he’s my candidate.  We can be guaranteed a fun ride no matter which Republican or Democrat we end up with in November as long as Tucker is in the race — and that’s what I’m rooting for.

things tucker carlson is right about

“With regard to the costs, single payer health care such as the Canadian system is the most expensive form of insurance in the world. Repeated studies show that in the provinces of Canada, the taxes have been increased disproportionately to pay for the bloated administration of the system. Government-provided health care costs all Canadian 21 cents of every dollar they earn. That means Canadians earning $35,000 in 1999 dollars are paying $7,350 for the government system.”

–from Socialized Medicine Resurrexit–by jeffery miles

on friday’s real time with bill maher, maher and the panel were discussing socialized medicine, and tucker carlson said that health care costs would be more expensive in a country where health care is subsidized by the government. he’s right on this. the above article is a good starting point to debunk the myth that socialized medicine is a cure-all for the american health care system. it even suggests that the health care crisis we think we have in this country is overstated, and makes a convincing case to support that argument. the article is a bit dated, but it is still on point.

while i’m not going to argue that our health care system is without flaws, i believe that it works better than the one in canada. the following articles make the case better than i could. some canadians’ personal experiences with that system may be positive. that’s entirely possible. i just think that canadians could do better than they are now with government-subsidized health care. read now.

A Hard Lesson About Socialized Medicine
Canadians Dissatisfied With Socialized Medicine
Socialized Medicine Leaves a Bad Taste in Patients’ Mouths
Socialized medicine in U.S. is inevitable! –Neil Boortz weighs in!

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bowties and the alleged link to the VRWC

just as some of us would make negative judgments about tongue rings and tattoos, there are those who would go nuts over a simple knotted piece of fabric. what does this craziness come from? i really can’t say. bowties are not a pre-requisite to join the VRWC. kim jong il wears ’em. no one ever accused him of right-wing conservatism. the argument for the other side is quite convincing, however — when you include george will, winston churchill, and the son of chief justice nominee john roberts as representatives of that side.

there’s more to this than dislike for the bowtie in tucker carlson’s case. i believe that both liberals and conservatives are wrong about him. liberals lose their minds when discussing tucker, but i really don’t think they have him figured out. conservatives don’t either, and this annoys them. conservatives generally gravitate toward the predictable…and that’s the last word that would describe tucker’s views on anything.

that’s precisely why I love him. he is irrepressible, unpredictable, and totally contrarian. it also should be noted that he has great hair. i may be the only tucker carlson apologist in the entire blogosphere that doesn’t write creepy fan fic about him. to those people…just stop it.

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kanye west said WHAT?

will somebody please buy kanye west a clue? i really don’t know what all these bush haters will do when they don’t have our current president to kick around anymore. rev. al sharpton defended west’s remarks on msnbc to tucker carlson. tucker went somewhat ballistic on the reverend, and good for him. what did west say during the concert/telethon for katrina relief?

kanye west said that george bush doesn’t care about black people. he went into this rant about iraq and that our lack of a quick response to katrina was the result of our iraq policy. wow. of course, this is not a new allegation. it’s been all over the press. there will be plenty of time to pass out blame for the aftermath of katrina. but to say that bush doesn’t care about black people? there is no proof of this, and he makes a fool of himself by that allegation.

nbc and the red cross have both distanced themselves from this statement, as they should. read their statements on michelle malkin’s blog. in the re-broadcast on msnbc, it also appears that west’s remarks were edited.

it’s a good thing for celebrities, athletes, and musicians to use their considerable influence to assist in the katrina fundraising effort. however, we need to stop taking them seriously when they start ranting about politics. i’m not talking about shutting them up, although it might be tempting. i’m talking about tuning them out. listen to their music and watch their movies if you can’t help yourself. just don’t ever allow the vapid, self-absorbed, know-nothing airheads to influence how YOU think. from this vicious critique i exempt everyone at the concert except kanye west…

i just can’t bring myself to condemn the remarks made by new orleans mayor ray nagin. (warning — rough language) they are absolutely inflammatory, but they are produced as a result of frustration with the process. this is totally understandable. his whole city was destroyed. what the heck do you expect him to say? even the media is getting frustrated with the whole situation there. shep smith and geraldo rivera of fox news lost control on air with the ineffectiveness of the system. give them all a pass. they have a closer look at the suffering than we do.

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another idea for the ’08 election

republicans are sometimes devoid of imagination and occasionally democrats are too — so i have decided to help them think outside the box for once. forget giuliani, frist, santorum, or all those other pretenders. this ticket is guaranteed to generate a buzz around the country. i’m talking about those great americans and genuinely good guys…ben stein and tucker carlson. think about it.

why ben stein?

  • he understands economics as well as greenspan
  • he is the smartest man in america.
  • fiscal and social conservative
  • great public speaker unlike president bush
  • he could finally dump that chauvinistic pig idiot jimmy kimmel.

why not?

  • he’s too smart to run
  • he would have less time to entertain the country

why tucker carlson?

  • the bowties — parents trust bowties and a lot of parents vote
  • would not be above playing a musical instrument on MTV to attract the important 18-29 demographic
  • he gets along with liberals too
  • would absolutely steal the conservative chick vote

why not?

  • he would need more bowties.
  • no more “cutting room floor” segments
  • no more willie geist
  • no more “situation”
  • less time to spend learning about brad, jen, and paris hilton

let’s not restrict ourselves to the party anointed ones and do something different for once — stein/carlson ’08!

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something i just have to say

i was watching the situation last night and i have to say that the opening comments by tucker carlson and monica crowley totally mirrored my feelings on iraq at this point. it’s easy to be frustrated and confused about iraq when good news is not readily available. i believe the american people understand the importance of supporting our military men and women and their families. i think that we also want to support our commander-in-chief as well. many of us voted for him. after 9/11, we appreciated his strong message toward the terrorists, leaving no doubt that he was willing and able to hunt them down and destroy them.

progress has been made in iraq and in the war on terror. the president needs to show us this. this is not something karl rove can do. this is not a job for conservative talk radio, the mainstream media, or even conservative blogs. it’s the president’s job to give us a good reason to keep trusting him. i hope he can…because public support is necessary to win any war.

success in iraq in my view doesn’t mean making their government and laws exactly like ours. if we say that the iraqis should decide their own future (and we actually mean it), then unfortunately we have little control over what they do with that future. there are countries with a large muslim population, like the UK for example, that don’t allow Islam to dictate their foreign policy. we could argue, i suppose, about the internal effects of radical islam to the UK, but that’s a debate for another day.

the new iraq should value the rights of everybody, including women. that would be the best scenario, but i don’t know how much the US can insist on while still allowing for the autonomy of the iraqi leadership. should the US push for those rights? YES, and the UN could make itself useful for once and facilitate the negotiation process between the opposing parties on the iraqi constitution. if we don’t want the iraqi government to be considered a puppet of the united states, then we should allow them to make their own choices. after all, that is what makes them an independent, self-determining country.

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random thoughts on current events

here’s an unlikely pair teaming up in iowa — gov. vilsack of iowa and newt gingrich . gee…what’s newt doing in iowa? is he all of a sudden a fan of state fairs? 🙂

shocking news from the world of entertainment — deuce bigalow sequel fails to impress critics. here’s roger ebert’s scathing review . if you really value roger ebert’s view of all movies, read all the reviews here .

just wondering — when will america get over its fascination with bad movies and bad actors? i admit the application of the term is subjective. but we know them when we see them. speaking of bad actors…who missed pauly shore? anybody? even though he had a brief shining moment in encino man, his previous and future work should be fondly forgotten.

msnbc’s attractive and witty bow-tied pundit (otherwise known as tucker carlson) is taking some vicious licks from greenpeace , internet pollsters , and news wonks. rather unfair, if you ask me. i am, of course, totally objective and unbiased.

our favorite anti-war protester cindy sheehan plays hardball with chris matthews . draw your own conclusions.

do the republicans actually have any strong candidates to put up against the alleged democratic front-runner from new york? more on that later.

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tucker carlson is mad crazy

there are many crazy ideas out there today. luckily, most of these obviously do not affect meaningful change in society. that’s the beauty and ugliness of the first amendment — that we cannot be punished for saying something totally stupid in a public forum. many of our government bureaucrats abuse this privilege daily just to be on tv. but most of the time we ignore them…and this usually works.

some suggestions are difficult to ignore because they are so unbelievable. this is why i am taking a certain tv talking head to task on his views on acceptable behavior in schools. what is the purpose of a school? in case anyone has forgotten, it is to educate our young people and to prepare them to succeed in the real world. i would think that anything distracting from this purpose should not be excused or justified.

the idea that sex between a teacher and a student is understandable, especially in junior high, is simply absurd. kids that age, and even some older ones, shouldn’t be having sex at all. self-control is possible. more kids should be encouraged to practice it. teachers should be more focused on teaching kids math, science, and reading skills rather than their own “needs”. the book should be roundly chucked at any teacher who tries a stunt like that. there should be an official policy against it…including firing the offender. harsh? perhaps. deterrent? without a doubt.

if this is intended as a joke, it’s a bad one. tucker, please try a different script. this one’s not working for you.

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