February 5, 2010

"Just turn off the... blogs," says Obama.

Ha. We're bothering the President of the United States.

89 comments:

Ron said...

they cut out when he said "...except Althouse."

wv:bacon (!)

bagoh20 said...

Yea, I'm sure they are all psyched for another round of townhall meetings. That was fun last time, boss.

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

What can you say?.. considering not even the Supremes are safe.

Automatic_Wing said...

They can't turn off the blogs. They might miss an important Action Alert from Kos.

Jason (the commenter) said...

Remember what happened to Palin when she was unable to answer Katie Couric's question about her media consumption? Obama wants all the Democrats to be able to give the same answer she did!

Anonymous said...

So...

In 2008 he feeds the media beautiful ideals of Hope and Peace and Prosperity. The media and blogs recycle those notions and get him elected to the Presidency.

Then, in 2010, he implores those in his party to ignore the media??

DOES NOT COMPUTE!

MAKES NO SENSE!

wv: "nonsella" - what Obama is now

Wince said...

A crowd of people turned away
but I just had to look
Having read the book

I'd love to turn you on

KCFleming said...

People have been turning off CNN and MSNBC for years.

1775OGG said...

But, "they" have no fact checkers, no editors keeping the story line straight, they don't have all that overhead associated with MSM newspapers. How can "they" be trusted then?

Yep, that's Obama's line and he's stuck with it.

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

Oh No not the MSM too.. are they fat cats too?

I'm Full of Soup said...

Obama said.."Just turn off the TV -- MSNBC, blogs -- and just go talk to folks out there,.."

Is that what Obama does himself or just what he tells others to do? Were there "folks" at the National Prayer Thing or at the State Dinner that was crashed or at the NCAA game where Obama popped into the announcer's booth?

Obama is sounding more and more like the captain of the Titanic.

Peter V. Bella said...

...just go talk to the folks out there...

Hee, hee, they already tried that. Those laughable town hall meetings, where the folks were pissed off and told them so.

Now he is telling them to go back out and get screamed at again. Ya gotta love this guy. He does not listen. The folks out here are mad at him and his Party. Actually they are mad at everyone.

He must be a sadist, reveling in the pain inflicted on the Senators by the electorate.

Peter V. Bella said...

Obama is going to ruin the Superbowl by talking to the folks- THROUGH THE MEDIA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Brick glass house.

I really think he, and he alone, wants to be the media idol. He is above the party, above the legislature, above the SCOTUS, and above the people.

No wonder his campaign staff named him the Black Jesus.






For you anal retentive, obsessive compulsive, persnickety, pesky, pain in the ass morons who need a citation- Read Game Change.

I know, I know, it is a real book. It is not wikistikidikimikilikipedia.




wv:mather= the Beaver

dick said...

Interesting that he claims he did not get out there enough. From my POV he spent most of the year out there and no time governing and doing his job. He should not have left all the governing to Reid and Pelosi and should really have been doing what he was elected to do.

I guess he is just hoping the people won't be watching the news and finding out what he is up to. That way maybe he can sneak his program through.

Bad advice all around in my view.

traditionalguy said...

Fish and house guests both stink after three days. In Obama's case he stinks after three straight days on TV giving speeches he does not believe in himself. The propagandists are hoping people just see his sincere smiling face everywhere all the time and never listen to the crap he is shoveling. Therefore no blog posts and comment are allowed. They cause analysis of the double and tripple speak he is shoveling so sincerely.

Anonymous said...

"Just turn off the... Obama," respond the blogs.

Mark said...

What this boils down to is "pay no attention to those who may be paying attention to the man behind the curtain."

BJM said...

"Tea Partiers are not a fringe phenomenon...Tea Party activists can elect few people but Tea Party supporters can elect many more and winning without at least some of the Tea Party sympathetic vote is, at the present moment, a tall order."

Can you hear us now Mr. President?

Revenant said...

People have been turning off CNN and MSNBC for years

Meow!

Unknown said...

Funny how the Constitutional Law Prof In Chief (Obama The Usurper(we all know Ann is the real CLPIC)) doesn't seem to get that First Amendment thing.

Revenant said...

There's no first amendment violation in urging people to not watch the news.

Peter V. Bella said...

educter,
The Democrats only believe the First Amendment applies to them, and them alone.

It does not apply to the people. Rep. Jan Schakowski referred to protesters as deplorable, despicable, and disgusting.

Harry Reid threatened Disney over some stupid film depicting Clinton in a bad light.

Look at Illinois. Talk about the constitution. Durbin is trying to get the Democratic Lt. Governor Candidate to resign because of accusations that are five years old. The man was never convicted of a crime. The candidate even brought them himself out back in march. He won the election, now the Dems want him out.

There is no constitution.

Peter V. Bella said...

I meant to say there is no constitution unless the Democrats saythere is.

chuck said...

I meant to say there is no constitution unless the Democrats say there is.

I think the left generally regards laws as instruments of coercion serving to make folks do what they are "supposed" to do. For that reason the laws can be adjusted to get the desired result because that is why the law exists in the first place.

Contrary to that, it seems to me that the English tradition is that laws regulate relations between equal individuals. Consequently they can't be laws of convenience because equality would be lost if the rules could be changed on a whim.

ricpic said...

Oh that pesky freedom.

Tora said...

I have been wanting to say this for a while... The acorn does not fall far from the tree... one reads about his dad and the hard time his dad had in adjusting to "life"...I think BO is having just as hard a time in working through issues of real life and coming out balanced...instead he appears to have some issues that he is still "beating out" in his personal life and we all get partake in that... a marriage and family therapist would have a ton of fun with this... He learned something though...to play it cool and fool people and he might be able to get his agenda past people...trouble is, we all see it eventually...one can not hide forever.

thanks for listening....

AllenS said...

Will Obama defenders, former law student and garage mahal turn off this blog? I don't think so.

Michael said...

Professor Marvel there behind the curtain cranking away did not want the curtain parted. Can you blame him?

Ritmo Re-Animated said...

Will Obama defenders, former law student and garage mahal turn off this blog? I don't think so.

Probably not. But if they're smart, they'll realize that there's no point in reading what people, who never listen to anything, have to say.

Ritmo Re-Animated said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Ritmo Re-Animated said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Franco said...

It's actually not bad advice for Democrat lawmakers. He used the word "echo-chamber" and it's been their downfall.

chuckR said...

Shorter O

"Will no one rid me of these meddlesome priests?"

Mick said...

The fourth estate has already thrown away it's reposibility to inform and investigate. They serve as a Propaganda machine for this illegitimate administration. The Blogs are the only place that correctly report that this President is a Usurper. His father was never a Citizen, and therefore Obama2 is not a Natural Born Citizen (it doesn't matter where he was born).

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

The president can't stop saying "Shut up".

Free speech - so pesky, so in-the-way of the socialist agenda.

Mark O said...

I haven't checked any sources or even Googled this, but Obama's statement (and his attack on Fox) seems to me to be the only case of a President calling on the citizens to simply ignore certain sources of information. It is a sort of soft prior restaint. What's next?

tim maguire said...

It's time to retire "echo chamber." It once was a useful term, but now is just an all purpose insult intended to short-circuit uncomfortable discussion.

JAL said...

There's no first amendment violation in urging people to not watch the news.

There is certainly a common sense violation in urging people not to watch / listen / read or otherwise educate themselves.

But this was directed at his former Senate colleagues -- not the general public. What to take away from this?

His directive was to get out there and talk to people. Good enough.

But as recent history has shown us, Congress critters did not fare well last summer. They got scolded. A lot.

They are anxious about their jobs ... and he tells them to stop watching news (which they do to see if they are mentioned or pictured, actually) and interact with their constituents.

If they did, and did listen, he could kiss most of anything else he has on his spendgenda good-bye.

What to think? Is he being disengenuous here?

I fax letters to my Senators. One of them has NEVER EVER acknowledged recipt of my request she vote to represent my needs / wants / desires as a constituent. (I doubt I'll ever hear from her as my last warm correspondance to her office told her to start looking for a lobbying job now, as she'll be so gone in 2014. And useless before then.)

At least I used to get patronizing double talk from John Edwards.

Obama laments elsewhere that he hasn't communicated clearly. (After how many TV appearances, interviews, and 165+ trips on Air Force 1?)

Congress really does need to listen and understand this:

THEY WORK FOR US

It'a about self government, not European style non royal ruling.

The message is loud and clear: Stop. What. You. Are. Doing.

Ritmo Re-Animated said...

Oh, ok guys. And what if he cautioned you against watching al Jazeera? Would that also be a way to put the kibosh on your 1st amendment rights? You know, a lot of people consider al Jazeera a great source for unbiased news and opinion on what's happening in the Middle East. And yet, others might consider it biased for not being sympathetic to an American perspective - despite how useful it might be to American interests to get an unbiased take on how what we do goes over around the world...

Is there no end to the knee-jerking solipsism here?

AllenS said...

Ritmo, I don't think that Obama wants you to comment here.

mariner said...

Ritmo Brasileiro:
But if they're smart, they'll realize that there's no point in reading what people, who never listen to anything, have to say.

If they were smart, they wouldn't be Obama defenders.

Ritmo Re-Animated said...

First this:

If they were smart, they wouldn't be Obama defenders.

Hahahahaahahahahahahahhahahahaaha. Etc.

And: You will fight until the bitter end, Allen "S"., won't you now?

Obama cleaned up the Reptiblicans in Maryland and I'm sure neither he nor his party would object to my sweeping up the floor with the inarticulate likes of you, either.

Alex said...

Am I delusional or did Ritmo just compare Althouse to Al-Jazeera? No doubt he's in that moonbat fringe that equates Israelis to Nazis as well.

1775OGG said...

Here's one little point: It's unfair to compare Obama with Hitler; Hitler loved his adopted country!

Otherwise, Hitler was a dirty rotten bastard but Obama's Momma was merely under 18 years of age.

wv: calit, boy!

Alex said...

Ritmo - "Reptiblicans"???? Do you honestly think you are going to win hearts & minds with that venom?

Ritmo Re-Animated said...

Yeah, you're delusional Alex.

And your "hearts & minds" are too small to be won over. I've long since given up on the idea that most people here will listen to either reason or a heartfelt appeal to anything that Sarah Palin and her staff haven't approved beforehand. There are a few exceptions here and there, but you're not one of them and neither are the majority of those that sit in this here peanut gallery.

MochaLite said...

Personally, I read the blogs and turn off Obama!

RebeccaH said...

President Obama just has a problem with that internet, talk radio, free speech thingy, doesn't he?

Fen said...

Poor Ritmo. He's SO enlightened and sophisticated and intelligent. But he just cant reach us ignorant rubes.

Hey, could you give us your lecture on AGW again? That was hysterical.

Ritmo Re-Animated said...

Why should I lament your ignorance, FEN? You obviously don't. You're probably proud of it!

I just think it's hilarious that one of me can pummel five of you into the ground at once. That, and the pride you take in your idiocy. Yep, that's pretty funny too.

Number Six said...

"The presidency is not something that lends itself to on-the-job training.”
–Joe Biden, on Barack Obama - 2007

Tom Spaulding said...

Gitmo Brazilwax- You came here to win hearts and minds, you failed. Bye.

Ritmo Re-Animated said...

Nope. Wrong, Tom SpoolDick. I came to point out where you fucked up. I succeeded. You failed.

You want some milk with your cookies?

Ritmo Re-Animated said...

If a heart or mind is too small to be won over, that doesn't mean it can be scolded for lying and advocating bad ideas.

Anonymous said...

Since when does the Chicago Way include whinging like a bunch of pussyboys?

Capone is turning over in his grave listening to these bunch of crybabies.

Maybe Obama can send Michelle over here to rough you up, Ann.

Tom Spaulding said...

Is that your voice of reason you're using? Hard to tell with your kind.

1775OGG said...

Florida, please stop with your threats, we've got Ritmo and isn't that bad enough? Or, are you going to "improve" the Chicago Way?

wv: gigarike is a male pimp!

Automatic_Wing said...

Reptiblicans?

Does that mean this guy is one of us?

Hmmm, very promising. Our plan for world domination could be farther along than I thought.

BJM said...

I don't think Ritmo's subtext means what he thinks it means.

Tom Spaulding said...

Maybe it's his subtext that's heartfelt?

algie said...

Just Say No

Do not heed what they all have to say
For I've shown you only the true way
Take my advice
And all will be nice
Just trust me and you'll be OK

....uuuu..'o^o'..nn!n....algie
Illegitimi nOn carborundum

Henry said...

I for one, follow the President's TV advice. As for blogs ... I only read Althouse for the art.

Anonymous said...

Ritmo is stupid.
I win! I win!
HAHAHAHAHAHAHHA!

Ritmo Re-Animated said...

It depends on whether you're able to tell the difference between defining something and blurring something, BJM.

As I said, 5 of you to take on one of me!

Other than that, what Henry said.

P.S. Maguro, although I don't lump you in with the crude, witless gnats who swarm about - or a talking gecko on a TV commercial for that matter - I only use the term you mentioned as a way of pointing out that certain social and intellectual functions are useful, even if forbidden to lower vertebrates - or the political factions which would try to emulate them.

Roger J. said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Roger J. said...

Given Mr Obama's declining approval numbers, I rather doubt blogs have anything to do with it.

Now I happen to like blogs because they give me a chance to read opposing opinions--thats a good thing, IMO. I think ultimately we are better off because of them than not. I do tend to be a JS Mill liberal in terms of free speech. But thats an whole other issue.

brahma said...

Imagine if he had said to Thomas Paine's readers "just turn off the ... presses". That is what he's asking for, for the same reason King George III would have if he could have. To quiesce the rabble. Ain't happenin' here now either.

Jeff Faria said...

"The acorn does not fall far from the tree... "

ACORN's not all that far from Obama, either.

Fen said...

Ritmo: I just think it's hilarious that one of me can pummel five of you into the ground at once.

How lame. Chest thumping over something you've NEVER done.

Last I recall, you made some rather moronic statements re SCOTUS and had to hide out for a few days.


Of coruse, you think Obama "kicked ass" at the GOP meet in Maryland. That says it all.

Kirby Olson said...

Didn't the Chinese turn off the blogs?

Leon said...

It's as if an Army of Davids is threatening the government's Culture of Corruption and the MSM's monopoly on information.

Ritmo Re-Animated said...

Here's an example of just how full of shit FEN is:

At 9:58 AM on 1/23/2010, I posted the following comment:

My flight out of town for the weekend leaves around 2. Suffice it to say, I will not be stopped at the gate with prescription bottles filled with little blue pills and marked under the prescriber's name, as L-i-m-b-a-u-g-h was.

Then, at 10:28 on the same day, I posted this comment:

Anyway, I'll return to look at the response late Sunday. Have a good weekend, everyone!

I returned from out of town Monday afternoon, 2 days later, and found a comment posted on my blog by Trooper York, informing me of this nasty little post uploaded by Althouse at 10:53 AM.

If you open up the link, you'll notice that I responded to it, 2 days later, after I read the post that Trooper informed me of.

But because some tubthumping bullshitter by the name of "FEN" said so, I'm supposed to believe that I hadn't left out of town for two days (because I never leave town just to have fun, but only because I happened to predict that Althouse was going to decide to slime me), Althouse hadn't decided to take advantage of a congenial announcement I had made to that effect, and that my decision to post on the very same thread as to whether or not I was allowed to defend myself was just part of an elaborate scheme.

Now, I don't know about you, but perhaps FEN is never away from his keyboard. Perhaps he doesn't get to enjoy days off from work, traveling, or any of the other amenities that a good number of folks get to enjoy. Maybe he doesn't trust that someone wouldn't be so insecure as to have to wait for his absence to say anything critical about him. But I did and I daresay a whole lot of people who aren't so tightly coiled into a twisted shell of resentment might actually, you know, be able to relate to that.

Of course, the alternative is that I knew in advance Althouse was going to unfairly post something about me, and decided to play along in part of an elaborately concocted hoax, informing everyone here of a weekend vacation that I actually wasn't going on, just so that I could play along with it - and then somehow decided, 2 days later, that I would respond anyway. But only someone as stupid and insecure as FEN would believe something like that.

Or maybe he believes in time travel. Maybe I posted those comments about my impending travel plans after the fact, just to give Althouse the cover she needed.

FEN either can't read, or believes that I wouldn't respond to a thread about me immediately after it is posted, but would two days later. I think that says something about FEN's inability to stick up for himself. It says nothing about me.

Whatever. FEN tries his hand at Sherlock Holmes analysis but unfortunately lacks the detective's mind, and instead has the brainpower of something between a jellyfish and a nematode.

As for the fall-out of Obama's presence at the Rept's Maryland retreat, the comments I linked to say it all. And if that doesn't say enough for some, the fact that FOX broke away from continuing to cover it live should say the rest.

Trooper York said...

Hey I just wanted to give you a chance to defend yourself. I don't like it when people pile on. You can take care of yourself just fine.

Anyway, that's kind of old news now. Let's concerntrate on more important things!

Just sayn'

Ritmo Re-Animated said...

It is way old news.

Thanks as always for the wise words and for defending against group-think pile-on. I just can't understand why someone would deny (as Fen has consistently done) that I might ever decide to take a break, leave out of town, go on vacation, whatnot. Why does he keep hammering on with this goofy theory that I made up the fact that I was out of town? God forbid that I would actually not prioritize reading the Althouse blog for a day or two!!!

And besides, how could one thoroughly enjoy a vacation in Brazil without obsessively feeling a constant need to check in on fish-eye lens photos of a plate of pancakes in a rustic cafe in Madison, WI?

We all need to listen to Trooper more.

Ritmo Re-Animated said...

Wow. Thanks for the pic. I hadn't seen a version of it blown up to those, er, proportions. Maybe a fish-eye lens effect on that photo wouldn't be so bad...

Trooper York said...

Dude, nobody would ever give that the fish eye.

Trooper York said...

And funny enough I found it on a blog. You know one of those things that turns Obama off.

What is he on the down low or something.

Not that there's anything wrong with that.

Ritmo Re-Animated said...

I must have had a "reverse" fish-eye effect in mind, then!

I think one time Palladian said something about Obama having a transvestite for a wife.

Not that there's anything wrong with that.

I like what I've come to know about Michelle Obama. But that one was pretty funny.

Trooper York said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Trooper York said...

Well I don't know if she is or she isn't but it is affecting whether or not she is going to get the Traveling First Ladies Underpants!

Fen said...

Ritmo: Why does he keep hammering on with this goofy theory that I made up the fact that I was out of town?

Because its true. You bravely ran away, after making a fool of yourself re SCOTUS. I know you made up the "trip" due to the simple fact that you have ZERO integrity.

And wth? Am i under your skin little troll? Post another 6 paragraphs explaining why you're not a feeb. This is fun.

Ritmo Re-Animated said...

So in other words, you have no evidence for anything you say. Which leaves you with the integrity of... a lunatic.

I've vacationed before... and left direction of my blog to Trooper. How often do you suppose I go on vacations, Fen?

What is wrong with you? Would you like to know who I met with? Would you like plane ticket receipts? Are you curious what I did or where I went? It was a nice trip, and I have fond memories from it. Would you care to know about them? Would you like to know what I'm doing this coming weekend, and with whom? And what we're doing? Would you like to ask them if the weekend in question existed?

You are an idiot, with a pretty small existence to think I would make all this up simply to cover up for a silly blog post. Do you honestly think that all I have to do in life is to wait around and see what is posted on this blog?

You are reflecting your own smallness, Fen. It's not pretty. Your life must be pretty pathetic to assume all the things you're assuming. You're right that you're getting under my skin, but will only continue to do so until I am forced to come to the sad conclusion that your own life really is as empty as you must imagine mine to be.

And you're really getting there.

Why don't you tell me what your own plans for this weekend consist of, Fen? Do you have any? I mean, you say a lot of stupid things, and I don't blame them on what must apparently be your own lack of a life.

Perhaps I should, though.

Ritmo Re-Animated said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Joe said...

At least Obama is being fairly consistent in his war on the freedom of speech. Why not go to the next step and get rid of that pesky "petition the government" shit?

PD Quig said...

Any presidential history buffs know whether this is the first president to be abandoned by both parents and whose parents both fled the United States? This whole watching Obama work out his childhood abandonment issues through the office of the president of the United States is pretty cool. Maybe he'll do a reality show afterwards? I mean, since President of the World is not yet an available title and he's going to have quite a few years left on his odometer when he finally gets booted out the door.

Nagarajan Sivakumar said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Nagarajan Sivakumar said...

I think it may be time to turn off Ritmo.. nice way to hijack the thread about Obama "champ".

And what is it with all this self congratulating, chest
thumping, "I can wipe you all out" tone ?

You are a liberal partisan hack,Ritmo.I have viewed comments of other lefties on this site and even though i may disagree with them, they are able to put forth their views without being unnecessarily pompous and trash talking their way like you do.

You think that you cannot possibly win the hearts and minds of people who have a different perspective of life and politics just because you have convinced yourself that only you are right and your opponents are misguided at best and evil at worst.

This is the exact attitude that produced Lenin,Stalin,Mao and extracted the lives of millions of innocent victims.

Jonah Goldberg was on to something when he talked about liberal fascists. Liberals like Ritmo find it hard to even see that there are genuine differences in ideas, political thought and immediately attribute ill will to their opponents.

Just turn off the blogs, congressscritters- and listen to Obama. now that should do wonders.

The Ghost said...

Ritmo ...

seems you have thrown down the gauntlet for a debate ...

you pick the subject ... you pick the site (yours or mine) to post both sides take on the subject ... multiple posts from each of us on each subject ...

I would suggest limiting each response to <500 words to ensure a good back and forth ...

When do you want to start ?

Towering Barbarian said...

Actually, I myself think Mr. Obama deserves praise for this. Think about it.

Does anyone think Nancy Pelosi is literate? o_O

Does anyone think Howard Dean is really literate? O_o

Does anyone think Al Gore is literate? o_O

Does anyone think Harry Reid is literate? O_o

For that matter does anyone still think that Mr. Obama himself can be literate when he uses phrases like "*turn off*...the blogs" as though blogs were broadcast shows instead of written journals? :P

No, no! Mr. Obama is clearly looking out for the best interests of his little fluffyheaded supporters when he tells them to stay away from reading and from current events since quite clearly they are incapable of dealing with anything more advanced than "Barney the Dinosaur". Excusing them from adult pastimes as he has just done will doubtless serve to increase the overall literacy level of the voting public as a whole since the cretins who still support him will doubtless not be able to pollute the polls with their votes if they don't know who's running and in doing so is at the same time preventing them from spraining their poor liberal brains with information that might cause them to have an independent thought in their head! ^_~