October 17, 2003
TURN TO MARGO
“Who we gunna turn to, John? Who we gunna turn to?” asks Margo Kingston, driven to new levels of eloquence by George W. Bush’s happy description of Australia as a “sheriff”. Cue the madness:
Democracy has no place in the world of Bush, supreme commander and Howard, sheriff. The world as fashioned by Bush - Howard as echo chamber - is too dangerous for democracy. They're creating a world in which they wield absolute power. In America, George's thugs are making sure of that by rigging the voting system with the help of his big corporate mates. In Australia, Howard's put Senate reform on the table and is trying to crush skeptical media voices by handing control of what's left of Murdoch and Packer's competition to the big two.
In America, the Democrats and many, many Americans are fighting back hard, led by Democrat presidential candidates General Wesley Clark and Howard Dean, both trenchant critics of Bush's war.
Yes indeed, that Wesley Clark sure is trenchant. And here’s Margo from a couple of days ago:
How low can Bush go? As Simon Crean refuses to ask Howard the big questions on Iraq and presses Labor MPs to give Bush a standing ovation next week - for what, exactly? - Bush's regime hawkes pro-war form letters to his long-suffering troops in Iraq and sends them to home town newspapers.
The power of the net exposed Bush's latest fraud on the American people and their soldiers after US newspaper The Olympian received identical letters from two soldiers and a news service searched the net for more and contacted confused soldiers and their families.
She’s only a week or so late on this. Pretty good for Margo. But how does she figure Bush is to blame for the letters controversy, if it can be so described? And who is “Hawkes”, the shadowy figure mentioned in the first paragraph?
Posted by Tim Blair at October 17, 2003 05:28 AMYep. The Dems are fighting back so hard that Republicans took over 60% of the vote in a recent election called in the most reliably liberal state in the country.
This intense hatred of Bush that compells people to write such ridiculous drivel ("shoving the Constitution through the shredder!" and "trampling democracy!") has reached the point where it is pathological. I guess people figure if they just put it in writing, it will make it true. Jonah Goldberg wrote a great put-up-or-shut-up article about this a few weeks ago. I think I will forward a copy to Ms. Kingston.
Posted by: Emily at October 17, 2003 at 05:47 AMThese people border on insanity. I think they've been reading too much Chomsky, although of course any Chomsky is too much. They're a walking conspiracy theory in search of any random dots they can connect between Bush and Hitler. Next we'll here that Bush's two cajones make him twice as bad as Hitler, who is rumored to only have had the one.
Posted by: George Turner at October 17, 2003 at 05:50 AMMargo is likely thinking of this recent article in the Independant, which claims that the software companies cheated in Georgia to elect Republicans
http://news.independent.co.uk/world/americas/story.jsp?story=452972
Not that they have any actual proof or anything.
Posted by: Jeremy at October 17, 2003 at 05:55 AMI'm so all over this topic.
Iraqi News
Something On My Shoe
More on Form Letters
More on Form Letters
These troopers are doing an amazing job. And, for the lefties, if this is all a Bush plot, howcome only 12 letters got printed? There are 140,000 troops in Iraq; you'd think the evil Rove could send out 140,000 letters...
Posted by: Chuck at October 17, 2003 at 06:56 AMMargo's comments make sense if you only get your news from the slanted pages of teh NY Times op section. A small insullar little world that is leading many of the far left into madness and dillusion.
Posted by: ruprecht at October 17, 2003 at 07:55 AM"In America, George's thugs are making sure of that by rigging the voting system with the help of his big corporate mates."
I'm tired of these assertions with no proof. IF the voting system has been tampered with, provide the proof. I guarantee you Pres. Bush will be impeached for having any involvement with this.
I could make outlandish claims with no proof: The California counties that Arnold lost had votes tampered with. For every vote cast for Arnold, 2 were automatically generated for Bustamante. In those counties many voters were non-citizens.
Posted by: Chris Josephson at October 17, 2003 at 09:10 AMHawkes? Doesn't he hold a beer sculling record somewhere?
Posted by: taspundit at October 17, 2003 at 09:28 AMThere are 140,000 troops in Iraq; you'd think the evil Rove could send out 140,000 letters...
No, because Rove is a moron -- no, wait -- *Bush* is a moron. Rove's the genius -- no, wait - he works for Bush. Oh, that's right -- Rove's the Mad Hatter pulling the strings behind the curtain -- or something like that. I would never make a good L-Cubed; I can't keep the party line straight. Does this shine a light on the discrepancy you cite? Yeah, that's what I thought...
Posted by: Tongue Boy at October 17, 2003 at 10:00 AM"In America, George's thugs are making sure of that by rigging the voting system with the help of his big corporate mates."
Where do I sign up to be a "Thug for G"? Do I get a pair of low-riders? A cool tat? A Navigator? A corporate mate (preferably thongin' it)?
Posted by: Tongue Boy at October 17, 2003 at 10:04 AMHey Tim, if we are all really really good, can we please go back to the Margo-free zone? Please Please Please Please. Seriously, her writing is so bad it is doing my head in.
Posted by: Todd at October 17, 2003 at 04:04 PMAlways love it when Lefties start to prattle on about others lack of 'democracy'. If there's one thing that terrifies Lefties more than anything else it is democracy. Just imagine - all those non-elite untermenschen actually having a say in government! Being able to exercise their (deluded because they don't pick us) freedom of choice!
Quelle horreur!
The only thing Lefties hate more than a Righty is any member of the hoi-polloi.
I thought that Margo usually asserts that Howard has his head up Bush's arse. But if Bush is using Howard as an echo chamber.....?
Posted by: Greg at October 17, 2003 at 04:19 PMTwo thoughts came to mind:
Margo reads??
Margo reads The Olympian???
Those of us from adjacent counties are surprised to learn of this. That doubles their dedicated readership.
Posted by: timks at October 17, 2003 at 05:15 PMPeople like that only bleat so much because it's people like us who have the sugar, the power and the women. It's a good thing.
Posted by: JohnJo at October 17, 2003 at 06:45 PMCan these people (the Independent, Margot the Parrot) be sued for telling these outrageous lies, that are then picked up and repeated all over the world? If it were me they were lying about I'd be suing from here to hell and back.
Georgia undoubtedly went Republican because they were disgusted with certain Democrats, namely Jihad Cindy McKinney, who they kicked the hell out in last May's primaries.
If most Georgians told pollsters they were voting Democrat, big fucking deal. Americans also gave Bush I an 80 percent approval rate in 1991 and then kicked his ass outta the White House in 1992. Musta been Democratic voter fraud! Yeah! That's it.
These people are just incredible. Just incredible!
Posted by: Irene A at October 18, 2003 at 03:40 AMEmily,
Drivel is the first word I thought after reading Margo's latest.
Is it me, or how many others think Margo would be welcomed with open arms in North Korea. Kimmy would love her grasp of hyperbole.
Posted by: joe at October 18, 2003 at 06:07 AMCNN is based in Atlanta, GEORGIA, and not the Caucasus one. If the Wascally Wepublicans, dupes of the Big Corporations fixed elections in GEORGIA, I think I can safely say, we all would have HEARD about it.
Posted by: Jabba the Nutt at October 18, 2003 at 01:00 PMWhere would Tim be in his continuing crisis of confidence without the ever-handy Margo to farce at.
Like shooting fish in a barrell, 'specially when you're struggling for content.
Posted by: Miranda Divide at October 18, 2003 at 08:54 PMI thought the hate-Bush crowd would be on him like a rash for making the deputy sheriff label (made during the Clinton era) from a certain magazine into a real sheriff label.
The original comment referred to Australia dealing with problems in south-east Asia. If the full-blown sheriff comment is also interpreted in that context, then what would this mean? Hitting Mahatir with a clue-by-two?
Posted by: Andjam at October 19, 2003 at 07:00 PMRemember the umbrage, the outrage, the bluster of Howard and Downer when Keating called Mahathir a "recalcitrant"? Rememeber how those toadies demanded Keating apologise?
Remember how Man of Steel kept his steel trap shut in Bankok last week when even Dubya had the temerity to castigate the rancorous Mahathir?
Ah, such memories.