My dear Wormwood,

Congratulations. You are well on your way to success with your patient. We were not terribly sure about him to begin with, but the picture is now clear. Oh, how clever his essay was, imitating my best advice to you. It made me mad as Hell that the Enemy probably loved it. That is something to be avoided at all costs. If you keep up this good work, I’ll adjust the temperature down there to broil.

Your affectionate uncle,

Screwtape

A magazine called Commentary Magazine owned by a company called Commentary Inc. that doesn’t allow comments on its blog.

Wiener went over the top but it was deserved. This is how you respond to the Republinot’s implementation of bi-partisanship.

So “Bush’s greatest moment in his presidency” was the day he ran around the country like a terrified little bunny? That sounds about right.

The right really are all greedy, selfish, power mad sociopaths.

Petey is one of those guys that would trample old ladies and children if someone yelled ‘Fire!’ in the church basement during bingo with his butt-buddy in pseudo-ethics, Gamblin’ Bill Bennett. He would then justify it by saying God had a plan and wanted him to live.

Or, in a word, douchebag.

TOOL reference…For. The. Win.

we wont give pause until the blood is flowing…

In my humble opinion, Weiner did not go “over the top”.

I want Dems to quit being afraid to show an offensive posture, something that would go a long way to killing the meme that Dems are weak on defense, and maybe, actually, help get done what needs to be done.

Anything less from Weiner and I would think we had lost, as an American society.

Love Weiner and Grayson, two that Dems should be looking up to. Instead, mostly from the others, all we get is weak tea.

Perhaps it is time for Americans to consider passion in what they do, rather than just spreadsheet cubicle crap.

Feature, not a bug.

Yeah. Not having a conscience is very liberating in many (very scary) ways.

Fine — that’s standard-issue mendacity.

Yeah, well, so is quoting a “poll” that shows the deficit as outpolling the economy as a concern of voters. Pretty much every other poll has shown exactly the opposite. Which is, of course, why he picked this one.

No, he did not go over the top. He reacted with the appropriate amount of outrage that was necessary.

It’s just the kind of civilized discourse and thoughtful engagement with the issues that the public is thirsting for.

Actually, that’s what a lot of us have been thirsting for: seeing a Democrat act like he actually believed in his principles.

(Apologies for the blogwhoring, but I really enjoyed seeing Weiner do that.)

Exactly right.

But remember the last time a prominent progressive D was seen as going over the top because he felt passionate about something. Remember how the first to pounce on Howard Dean after the “scream” were the D pundits like Maureen Dowd, who couldn’t get enough chuckles out of the embarrassing sight of a D who felt strongly about something. It was time to cut that fucker down, because if there’s one thing the wimpy, whiny mainstream lefties don’t like, it’s passion and compassion of any sort. Heck, that attitude has gotten so bad, even Kos couldn’t help but snipe hard and nasty at Kucinich when he declared that he wasn’t going to vote for the watered-down health insurance bailout package with no public option. More Weiner, more Grayson, more Kucinich would be just what the D’s need if they’re to maintain any semblance of relevance — particularly when they’re relegated to minority party this fall (as they rightly should be — if you can’t do anything useful with a solid majority, you really deserve to have it taken away from you).

Word.

Noun. Verb. 9/11. Is there any occasion when the Ds or the Rs won’t shamelessly exploit it?

Learn to swim!

No, he did not go over the top. He reacted with the appropriate amount of outrage that was necessary.

Please sir, may I have some more?

isn’t that the entire basis of Ayn Rand’s philosophy?

well,you are of course correcto!

The right wing’s fascist prickishness knows no bounds.

Weiner went over the top? Really? Has anyone actually SEEN British Parliament on C-SPAN? As Robin Williams brilliantly said, “It’s like Congress with a two-drink minimum.”

The “Shorter” version.

That’s why they call it libertarianism.

Yes! Followed by millions of dumbfounded dipshits…

plus Bill Hicks. Also.

Good Times.

Funny, isn’t it. When Dean did that, he was running to be the nominee against George W(ar President) Bush, who had a solid Republican majority in Congress, and it was so easy to paint Dean as a crazed, emotional liberal, as compared to the sensible, serious conservatives of the Republican Party.

Now, Republicans have the legacy of George W(all Street Meltdown) Bush hanging around their necks, and the batshit crazy extremists of the Tea Party to disavow in the general, lest they scare away the “independents.” They have lunatics like Michelle Bachmann, Louie Gohmert, Virginia Foxx, Rand Paul, and Sharron Angle running around saying incredibly stupid things and outright advocating secession, armed rebellion, or worse.

Calling Weiner “over the top” or crazed because he was venting over Republicans blocking health care for the 9/11 responders, for chrissakes, is not going to be a winning strategy this time, methinks, no matter how much the Village Idiots try to spin it that way.

Oh, fuck them so very, very much.

Remember back when we were all New Yorkers? (I mean, of course, the rest of you. I always was.) Bush flew in and necked with a firefighter on a pile of dead folks and told us he was going to rebuild us?

Then OMB head Mitch fucking “future of the Republican Party” Daniels said Psych! and told us we were moneygrubbers trying to get money out of honest taxpayers? EPA head Christie fucking “future of the Republican Party” Whitman told us their testing said it was safe to breathe downtown when it didn’t say any such thing?

Then they came back at election time and our Republican mayor shut us down like a fucking prison camp so they could get their picture taken where all the dead bodies were like they were a fucking mission accomplished banner?

Funny. I do.

I love my congressman. Also, fuck them so very, very much.

the dean scream was a rat fuck surpassing even breitbart’s worst, carried out by the corporate media without even a hint of shame. he was knifed early and efficiently just like they like it.

I wish Anthony Weiner was my representative. He and Grayson seem to be the only ones in Congress that have balls bigger than a pinhead.

Good ole corporatist shill hack propoganda.

Yeah, yeah: Dems don’t have enough cojones to do war, and Dems are all such dfh’s that they don’t know what’s best for our great nation (of greedy pig-faced rotten elitists).

From the Dean “scream” that never really was a scream to something like this minor outburst from Weiner (who seems to have a heart and a brain and some balls), the Liebrul media’s gotta rush to dis dis dis ‘em, and sure, if our laughingly identified “liberal” pundits get a few kicks in while the Dems are down: why hoooray for our side!! (that side being the side of bread which everyone butters, ya know).

Why anyone would expect Republicans to assist 9/11 first responders with comminazi health care nine years after the Republican photo op event indicates magical thinking. Ain’t gonna happen, much like real health care for returning vets is more magical thinking.

Remember “Support the Troops”?? No, I didn’t think so. And you won’t hear that much anymore, even if ReThugs are in a majority in Congress. Why would the mega-rich elite ever pay returning vets for their service? Commies!! They volunteered, didn’t they? Get over yourselves and get a job, ya lazy slacker losers!

Oh when will they ever learn…???

Yep. I’m so fucking tired of dems being feckless pussies. The whole lot of them, with the exception of Grayson and Weiner, are worthless sacks of shit, bought-and-paid-for corporate whores. And the repubs are plain crazy, so what are we to do?

Oh, for fucks sake. Over the top? Seriously? Why don’t you go and clutch your pearls, dear. It’s this habit of being easily offended and running from conflict that is going to be the demise of the dems. We’re seen as big fucking wimps who won’t fight for our principles. I’m so fucking tired of this bullshit. Over the top indeed

“It also shows Republicans with a double-digit lead on the generic Congressional ballot, which is something I can’t recall having occurred before.”

Funny, the Gallup poll has the Democrats with a six-point lead on the generic ballot.

I agree. It heartens me to have new Dems like Wiener, Grayson, Franken (my senator!), and Sherrod Brown who are willing to get passionate and say things that aren’t necessarily ‘civil’. I think there is room for reasoned dialogue, and there is room for passionate anger. In this case, Weiner was entirely justified in blasting King for his cowardly and feckless position. And, Weiner was pretty damn hot while doing it.