Re: continuing proofs America is wacko [3]

by Eldorion Sun May 01, 2016 4:45 am

Obama had another really good Press Correspondents' Dinner speech -- some really good zingers in there, to be sure - but Larry Wilmore fucking killed it. It was like Stephen Colbert's 2006 speech with the jokes going over poorly not because they were bad (they were in fact hilarious) but just because he pulled absolutely no punches and made everyone feel massively uncomfortable. For an event that is as inherently hobnobby and self-congratulatory as this, it's pretty amazing to see.

Edit: the next President definitely has huge shoes to fill when it comes to jokes at the Dinner though. Don't wanna undersell Obama's speech, but there's a limit to how subversive he can (or is willing to) be. Whereas Wilmore came out swinging with drone strike jokes in the first two minutes. Watching the Correspondents' Association President's reactions especially was Laughing

by halfwise Sun May 01, 2016 6:54 pm

I thought Obama's speech was brilliant - gently wry, expertly delivered.

Off to watch Wilmore's speech now.

by halfwise Sun May 01, 2016 7:11 pm

Best two jokes from Larry Wilmore's speech:

Obama's hair is so white it tried to punch me at a Trump rally.

A big shout-out to the print media. You have to shout because they're all over 70.

by Eldorion Sun May 01, 2016 7:20 pm

I enjoyed the John Boehner cameo.

by halfwise Sun May 01, 2016 7:28 pm

Having watched both of them, (and so rarely getting a chance to see Obama deliver comedy), I actually think Obama is the more accomplished comedian. His jokes were not as barbed as Wilmore's, but I think his delivery and timing are much better.

by Mrs Figg Sun May 01, 2016 7:29 pm

Obama is one cool dude.

by Pettytyrant101 Sun May 01, 2016 8:52 pm

{{{damn fine speech- he is a very good orator, it always been a strength and he has got even better at it over the years}}}

by malickfan Sun May 01, 2016 9:00 pm

Pettytyrant101 wrote:{{{damn fine speech- he is a very good orator, it always been a strength and he has got even better at it over the years}}}

I haven't agreed with everything Obama has done by any means, but he's a great speaker and interviewee.

Maybe he should move into doing audiobooks when he leaves office.

'The Lord of The Rings: Read by Barrack Hussein Obama'

Nod

by Bluebottle Sun May 01, 2016 9:01 pm

by Bluebottle Sun May 01, 2016 9:05 pm

by malickfan Sun May 01, 2016 9:13 pm

Bluebottle wrote:

continuing proofs America is wacko [3] - Page 17 Yd4DHXM

by Bluebottle Sun May 01, 2016 9:18 pm

Yup, that sums Obama and Trump up rather well. Razz

by halfwise Sun May 01, 2016 11:54 pm

John Oliver helps heal the pain left by the absence of Jon Stewart.

Bluebottle wrote:

by chris63 Mon May 09, 2016 10:39 am

by Pettytyrant101 Mon May 09, 2016 11:40 am

{{{Could be there a while! Laughing

}}}}

by Bluebottle Fri May 20, 2016 11:17 pm

I think the relevant phrase is #boom Very Happy

by David H Tue May 24, 2016 7:57 pm

This story has made headlines in The Guardian, Der Spiegel, and Le Monde a day ago, but so far it seems no major US news service has picked the up story .... Suspect

http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/may/22/how-pentagon-punished-nsa-whistleblowers

by halfwise Tue May 24, 2016 8:27 pm

Those sad stories need to be spread around more. I would hope at least the Washington Post would show some spine.

by David H Tue May 24, 2016 9:54 pm

So I checked the Washington Post. Found this buried at the bottom of an editorial whining about the WP's lack of access to interviews:

Meanwhile, on press rights generally, the Obama administration hasn’t walked its talk. It has set new records for stonewalling or rejecting Freedom of Information requests. And it has used an obscure federal act to prosecute leakers. It continued the punishing treatment of a National Security Agency whistleblower, Thomas Drake (dismaying new details have emerged recently in book excerpts by John Crane, a former Pentagon investigator), and threatened to send the New York Times investigative reporter, James Risen, to jail for his good-faith insistence on protecting his confidential source.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/obama-promised-transparency-but-his-administration-is-one-of-the-most-secretive/2016/05/24/5a46caba-21c1-11e6-9e7f-57890b612299_story.html

by Eldorion Tue May 24, 2016 10:53 pm

This is one of the issues where it doesn't seem like there's much of a difference between the two parties. Don't get me wrong, I'm glad Obama isn't starting ground invasions as flippantly as the Bush Administration did, but that's more a difference of tactics than disagreeing with the foundational assumptions made early in the War on Terror (or earlier).

by halfwise Tue May 24, 2016 11:42 pm

Oh, Obama quickly lined up with Bush once he was in office. That's why it's so strange the GOP has stonewalled him so much. He's very much a moderate, but they've treated him like a flaming liberal. I really have to assume subtle racism in this case.

But that was off topic. I've been rather disappointed in the lack of openness in the Obama administration. And I have to sheepishly admit that if Bush had been using drones the way Obama has been (probably would have if the technology was there) I'd have been raising holy heck about morals and such rather than just suffering a nagging discomfort. So I can't really call foul in the unequal treatment department without being a hypocrite.

by David H Wed May 25, 2016 12:31 am

halfwise wrote:Oh, Obama quickly lined up with Bush once he was in office. That's why it's so strange the GOP has stonewalled him so much. He's very much a moderate, but they've treated him like a flaming liberal. I really have to assume subtle racism in this case.

But that was off topic. I've been rather disappointed in the lack of openness in the Obama administration. And I have to sheepishly admit that if Bush had been using drones the way Obama has been (probably would have if the technology was there) I'd have been raising holy heck about morals and such rather than just suffering a nagging discomfort. So I can't really call foul in the unequal treatment department without being a hypocrite.

Sorry Halfy, but I just gotta ask since you drew the equivalency yourself....

If the GOP partisan double standard is enough to justify an assumption of racism, is the same true of your own partisanship? scratch

by halfwise Wed May 25, 2016 1:21 am

Could be. If assuming that a black man put in a position of power with a huge spotlight on him may be more likely than a white man to carefully think through his motivations before using questionable violence, then it's either a sort of racism or a reality-based evaluation of the situation.

by Eldorion Wed May 25, 2016 6:29 am

Interesting article in The Atlantic that reminded me of a couple of different discussions we've had on here lately.

http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2016/05/donald-trump-is-coming/483578/

I'm inclined to think that the problem is less the Imperial Presidency and more the erosion of civil liberties in general. Like, I'm a fan of separation of powers and am sympathetic to the argument that the pendulum has swung too far in favor of the President, though I think Congress bears some responsibility for letting this happen. But I don't find it acceptable for any branch of government or any combination thereof to have the power to assassinate American citizens (not even ones who have taken up arms, in some cases), or of indefinite detention, torture, mass surveillance to the extent that it has grown, etc.

by halfwise Wed May 25, 2016 11:27 am

Good article.

More and more, we're counting on having angels in office and making ourselves vulnerable to devils ..... And now, Trump is coming.

Sends shivers down the spine, it does.