"Hyper-partisan, painfully ignorant, pathologically dishonest, chronically unethical, intellectually unconscious, and jaw-droppingly stupid." Yes, once in a while these words apply uncannily to the radical liberals over at Daily Kos, but today, they're proof of why the blog commands so much influence in the political sphere despite their occasional flubs. Blogger "Angry Mouse" has given Palin what reads as one of the most ringing, brutally honest endorsements for her 2012 presidential campaign to come out so far. (more...)

A new poll by CBS News and the New York Times reports that the wording of the polling question has a lot to do with how Americans support the somewhat controversial issue. When asked if how one feels about "gays in the military" 51% answered "strongly favor." When asked about "homosexuals in the military," only 34% answered "strongly favor." Oh America. What are we going to do with you? (more...)

polls John McCain may have done his best to stow old Bush administration personalities away for his presidential campaign, but Fox News is reporting that a new poll shows former vice president Dick Cheney is actually a fairly popular choice among Republican voters to run for president in 2012. In a poll that was probably taken about a year too soon, 10% of a pool of 2,003 Republicans supported a Cheney presidential run. (more...)

video

After his jokes about the Palin women spawned a movement to get him fired, you'd think David Letterman would have developed a teensy bit of sensitivity about sex and gender issues. Apparently not. A bit from his Tuesday night show, in which a stagehand flees the set in horrified disgust at transgender Obama appointee Amanda Simpson, has Human Rights Campaign calling Dave out and calling for an apology.

Here's the clip:

The clip is offensive on a number of levels, not the least of which is that, as HRC's letter states, “the punch line in your skit has been used as a defense in nearly every hate crime perpetrated against transgender people that has come to trial.”

The Advocate notes a defense of Letterman:

Some argue his skit was actually making fun of the narrow-minded, stereotypical response to learning a friend or colleague is trans.

Maybe so, but in a world where transphobia is still much more acceptable than other forms of discrimination (try Googling "Mann Coulter"), where gags about guys being "duped" by "trannies" are still a comedy staple, you'd really have to hang a lantern on that kind of satire.

The Letterman bit is part of a larger problem, though, one that is neatly symbolized by the fact that my computer's spellcheck function doesn't recognize the word "transgender." It's a complicated issue. Transpeople are routinely thrown under the bus when it comes to legislation, having to fight extra-hard to be included with the LGB part of LGBT.

Last year, I wrote a story that detailed some of those efforts. The stories of the people I met are compelling, and underscore the importance of calling out this kind of ignorance. Transpanic very often leads to violence, and jokes like these contribute to that.

Most critics of Letterman's joke also miss the next layer of subtext, the implication that Amanda Simpson is promiscuous. Surely, such a joke would have raised eyebrows had it been directed at some other female public servant, like Sarah Palin, for instance.

I finally got around to watching the now-famous (thanks to Drudge) video of Democratic Montana Senator Max Baucus' tirade on the Senate floor, which the right has touted as evidence of the Senator's intoxication. That's a pretty serious accusation, and one that would normally require better corroboration than this. Jason Linkins at HuffPo points out that Baucus is a fluent speaker of Mumblican, and has the video to prove it.

In my search for another explanation, I discovered an alternate theory that actually springs from the left: Baucus' speech has been affected by a head injury.

video A number of conservative websites are claiming that Senator Max Baucus (D-Montana) was guilty of orating under the influence on the Senate floor. A newly viral video depicts Baucus speaking on the Senate floor, while making irregular gesticulations, odd pauses and slurring of words. Some are claiming that the recent torrid pace brought about by the Health Care vote has exhausted the Senate body, and is the reason behind this, and other odd behavior. (more...)

Unless you live in a lead-encased cave, you've heard all about the punch that decked Snooki, the tiniest cast member of MTV's controversial new reality show, Jersey Shore. After showing the punch in previews for episode 3, MTV high-mindedly redacted the blow from the actual episode, and ran a PSA-style disclaimer at the end of the show.

poll 2009 was a remarkably troubled year for magazine publishing -- filled with lay-offs, declining ad revenue, and serious questions about the viability of the medium as a whole. Yet, in this sea of bad news, a few titles were able to eke out some positive attention and influence over the field -- thanks, in part, to the vision and leadership of their editors. In our first end-of-year media poll, we ask our loyal, smart, and attractive users to share their thoughts on who had the biggest year in various media categories. Our first category: Magazine Editors. (more...)

Poll!

"This story is organic to the characters and it's handled in a responsible way."