Keith Olbermann. What a smart guy regarding HCR.

[Cleita]

He promoted these free health care clinics in the states of hold out Blue Dog democrats just when they are up for reelection, first in NOLA and then in Little Rock, Arkansas. Both Senators Mary Landrieu and Blanche Lincoln changed their votes to yea yesterday, I think because of it. It leads me to believe that there is a way to train these Blue Dogs not to vote against legislation the Democrats are trying to pass until they can be voted out office. What do we want next and how do we get them to do it this time? How about some real teeth in defunding these wars that we need to get out of? How do we do it?

[Cleita]

1. Okay,

I'm fed up with the unrec brigade, so for every unrec I get, I'm pushing this post to the top of the page.

[csziggy]

2. I've gotten so that I Rec just about every post unless I really, really object to the OP

Just to offset the Unrecs.

[Cleita]

7. Sounds like a good idea.

I think I will do too.

[harmonicon]

27. they should make the rec/unrec number invisible...

because I've gotten so that I will never read a thread if one of the first 4 replies is not an actual response to the post, but instead some "rec"/"unrec" nonsense. Then, unless the post is REALLY interesting, I unrecommend it. The feature is not there to show what you do and don't agree with, but to bring things up for wider discussion as important topics. Frivolous posts - especially by the OP - as the first response are not worthy of wider discussion.

[Myrina]

31. +10

:applause: Rec/unrec isn't supposed to be a popularity contest, its supposed to bring important, meaty, worth-discussion items to above the fold. People here don't get that and take an 'unrec' of their latest 'guess what I had for dinner' thread as a personal insult.

Kindergarten. I swear. :wtf:

[Cleita]

42. BS.

There's a group of trolls that unrec everything they don't agree with. It's especially noticeable in every thread to do with health care. I don't care who unrecs until the administrators fix this, but I will move any post to the top of the page that I notice this is going on and I will rec any unrecs where I can because too many informative posts are being unrec'd in this way. So if you are among those responsible, be forewarned.

[Myrina]

61. i'm scared.

:eyes: Didn't know we weren't allowed to register our opinions here anymore. Thought this was supposed to be a board of liberal, intelligent grown ups, not 5th graders with massive insecurity complexes.


:wtf:

[thesquanderer]

40. purpose of unrecs

re: "The feature is not there to show what you do and don't agree with, but to bring things up for wider discussion as important topics."

Yes. Unfortunately, there's no rule about that (and no way to enforce one if there were). I've noticed that many (perhaps most) people who Unrec do it because they disagree with the post. As a result, controversial but interesting posts often end up near the bottom of the popularity list, because they end up having about as many Unrecs as Recs (or more). The stuff that gets to the top now is more often stuff that everyone agrees with... the uncontroversial stuff. It's made the "greatest" list more boring, as it has become more filled with cheerleading and preaching to the choir.

[Cleita]

43. Exactly, and although it was meant to get stupid posts off the greatest page

back when the trolls were rec'ing instead to be disruptive, it's not working as intended. I think unrecs should be sent to the mods first with a short reason for the unrec and if it's a good reason the mod can implement it, but I'm not an administrator and this would give the mods more work to do so I will leave it up to them and just do what I'm doing now.

[Myrina]

62. ... that's exactly what I said, and I got told 'BS'. Go figure.

:eyes: Honestly.

[ElboRuum]

54. Geez...

Every thread that starts out with a post like this ends up on the top of the greatest page. The unrec'ers don't have a pot to piss in so I wouldn't get all crazy when you see them. It all tends to work itself out.

[bobbolink]

58. Careful.... you'll get a warning from the mods for speaking against this abominable feature.

[Nikki Stone1]

60. .

.

[Jane Austin]

3. K&R

Because holding Blue Dogs accountable is important.

[CatWoman]

4. nother K&R

:kick:

[AlbertCat]

55. Because holding Blue Dogs accountable is important.

Of course Ms Landreau weaseled a huge wad of cash for her state out of her vote. We will have little to no way of knowing how much of that will actually go toward where it's supposed to go, I bet. And she thinks that bringing health care to her state won't make her popular? Too long down the road....she needs instant gratification!

[Shagbark Hickory]

5. I'd hope the next big topic is energy & jobs (green ones) As for...

how to get Keith O, who is a hero by the way, for saving lives, to use his powers to help is beyond me. I'm still trying to wrap my mind around how there are people in this world who don't want free healthcare. Or any healthcare.

[Cleita]

9. Yes, particularly since some of those green jobs are being contracted

to China and other foreign countries instead of being created here.

[mod mom]

6. I hope he reads the comments regarding Bill Clinton's dissing of his clinics.

Overwhelming support of Keith's actions & generosity.

[Cleita]

8. What's wrong with Bill these days?

It's like he drank the koolaid.

[DefenseLawyer]

10. These days?

Bill Clinton was a successful President but he has never been a progressive. I would expect him to straddle the fence and take a centrist view, it's what he has done his entire career.

[Cleita]

12. Yes, but this isn't even about that.

It's about someone who is promoting charity. Most conservatives like charity because it's not socialism or paid for through by the government. Those clinics were strictly run on donations from the private sector and they did point out the lack of health care in those states those senators were from. I know this must have been Olberman's intention and kudos to him. Also, Clinton as once governor of Arkansas should have known better. Who better than him to know the extent of poverty in his state?

[tblue]

14. Obama, too, I am so sorry to say.

[Jane Austin]

18. Obama criticized Olbermann?

When?

[pattmarty]

36. Define successful president.

[DefenseLawyer]

41. A budget surplus

and relative peace. Not perfect, but certainly left the country better off than he found it. I'll call that success, even if I could never bring myself to vote for him.

[pattmarty]

44. Well, that's really weird isn't it? Two times you "could never bring.......

.........myself to vote for him". Ok genius, you gave me ONE, now give me two more.

[DefenseLawyer]

46. Let me be clear.

I lived in Indiana, a state that Mr. Clinton had zero chance of winning either time, so I could afford to cast a meaningless "protest" vote against my party for not nominating a liberal. Had my vote counted for anything I most certainly would have voted for Mr. Clinton. And I gave you two, a balanced budget and relative peace. Number 3: he was not named George Herbert Walker Bush.

[pattmarty]

48. So, living in Indiana ANYWAY, you DIDN'T vote for Clinton.......................

..................because it wouldn't have mattered ANYWAY, so you STILL voted for BUSH????????? OK, I get it, you're a Republicrat???????????

[DefenseLawyer]

51. Whoa whoa easy there.

I have never voted for a Republican in my life, for anything. There are other people on the ballot you know. Have you ever actually voted? I'm closer to a communist than I am a "Republicrat". Nice work trying to get a rise out of me. I hope it's making your day go faster.

[bobbolink]

59. Have you EVER heard of ....um, INDEPENDENTS?

NO?

Then before you ream someone out, I strongly suggest you read up on politics a bit more.

SHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEESH!

[howmad1]

52. Just think, If Bubba woulda kept his pecker in his pants........

......this would have been be a whole different country.

[kenny blankenship]

20. Drank the koolaid - or is he on the gravy train?

As an ex-Pres he doesn't have to be discreet about it anymore - not that he was ever any good at being discreet.

[pattmarty]

35. There is nothing "wrong" with him these days. He is what he always..........

.............has been: A conservative Democrat. The definition of a conservative Dem is they are EXACTLY the same as the old Republican party of the 50's & 60's. I was recently watching a program on C span (don't remember exactly what program) and one of the panelists said a thing that really hit home with me. He said that the last liberal president was Richard Nixon. You know what? It's fucking true in a really weird kind of way. Stop and think about it for a minute, after Nixon we had Carter (definitely a conservative Dem), then st ronnie, daddy Bush, Clinton and then "W". I really was sick to my stomach after thinking about it and realizing that yeah, Nixon was actually more "liberal" than ANY president since. Makes me really want to get the fuck outa this country. "America, a two party Fascist state".

[AlbertCat]

56. they are EXACTLY the same as the old Republican party of the 50's & 60's.

They don't want blacks to have equal rights??????
They think the government is full of commies?????

[pattmarty]

57. Evidently you either not old enough or too stupid to remember........

.........the "old" Republican party of Rockefeller, Romney (the old man) and Dirksen. They were for sure pro-business and not a party that would represent me, but those 3 guys at least were not racist or paranoids. AND without those TWO THINGS you stated, funny that they look the same, don't they?

[Bette Noir]

38. Mr. Clinton is entirely made of resentment.

He dislikes any idea he didn't think up, himself.

[OKNancy]

13. I thought Clinton criticized politicizing the event, not the

event itself. He said he didn't want it to be a political event.

[spiritual_gunfighter]

16. It was Clinton that politicized the event

by bringing that up in the first place. Not Olbermann.

[tblue]

15. What did Clinton say about the clinics?

[rudy23]

21. Clinton and the DLC didn't like getting schooled by Olbermann. They're not on our side.

Not on this issue.

[chill_wind]

11. K & R

[Cha]

17. Yes, that is the most savvy way to go

about it..thanks, KO.

[nashville_brook]

19. big honking k and r for a hand well played. thank you keith!

[Berry Cool]

22. K&R for KO

And don't forget, there's a big two-day clinic in Kansas City next month, meant to bring national attention to the issue.

[BrklynLiberal]

23. K&R

[Canuckistanian]

24. Any chance of getting a free clinic in Connecticut?

Or Billings, MO?

[Cleita]

25. Here's the website for the Free Clinics

http://www.freeclinics.us/index.php

Contact them. :-)

[Canuckistanian]

30. Oh, I don't need one - I'm a Canadian

I just mentioned Connecticut and Montana because that's where Lieberman and Baucus are from.

:hi:

[NewJeffCT]

29. They've had them here in CT

and, despite having a lower than average number of uninsured in CT, these clinics are very well attended.

[LaPera]

26. Cheers to Keith Olberman! - The man stood alone when everyone else was copying Fox news for ratings.

Olbermann saw the lies, the one-sided republican corporate media machine, decided to fight it, on a national cable news network...now others have followed...

It was/is extremely important to shame these paid-off so called "Democratic" senators, Landrieu & Lincoln & Ben Nelson as well as helping people who desperately needed medical attention.

Democratic ideology is about helping the people, the workers as well as the less fortunate to better lives, not caving in, nor worrying about getting re-elected as their top priority by doing whats right, not caving in to the money & the corporations.......that's the greedy, selfish, hateful, lying corporate republican's ideology.

Thank you Keith!!

As for Clinton he's not helping but hurting the cause for a strong public option, it seems that all the corporate ass kissing DLC mates don't want to see the public option become a reality.

I certainly do.

[Enthusiast]

28. If he doesn't stop

he'll end up on HBO. It is a real possibility.

[southern_belle]

32. k & r

[lxlxlxl]

33. I hope KO focuses on campaign finance reform. That's the primary barrier to the 'change' we need.

KO is a good guy. I'm so glad we have him on.

[Cleita]

45. Yes, thats an excellent suggestion and really should be on

top of the list of changes we need.

[BlueIdaho]

50. Amen!

As long a major corporations are given the right to lobby congress - their ability to control the process will stop any hope for real change.

This systemic bribery and corruption drowns out our voices.

[tilsammans]

34. K & R for KO!

:kick:

[Iwillnevergiveup]

37. K&R

I get so sick and tired of the labeling "centrist" or "moderate" Democrats. Call them what they are: REPUBLICANS!

[goodboy]

39. K/R

:kick:

[GreenTea]

47. I love Keith Olbermann - As well as his in-your-face exposing republicans lies & bullshit! politics

Olbermann is the one who really plays "Hardball" and kicks republican ass every night....

Fuck the wimpy assholes who don't like to hear Olbermann call out & laughingly expose the republican pigs each night on Countdown...They should be watching Fox news anyway...who cares what they think anyway they are just fucking moderates assholes...Who'll change again and vote for a republican someday.

[DumbBassRepublicans]

53. Olbermann for President

You are SO correct, GT...!!!
I don't know the last time I missed a "Countdown" show with KO.
He's UNREAL..!!! (FANTASTIC...!!!)
HE should run for president..!!
I'm embarrassed to admit that at one time, I thought he was a little too hard
on Lou Dobbs...!!
BOY, WAS I WRONG...!!!
If you're NOT a white, right-wing, gun-toting, nut case, Dobbs is
against you...!!!
F everybody that doesn't measure up to his standards...!!
And now, he is considering running for president..??!!
HA, HA, HA, HA, HA, HA, HA, HA...!!!
A male version of Sarah Palin...!!
WHERE DO THESE NUTS COME FROM...???!!!
KO is the one who should run for president...!!!
Maybe in 2016...!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
:)

[onestepforward]

49. K&R