lies and the lying liars who tell them, redux
now playing: earth, wind, and fire, "got to get you into my life"
ok, first order of business...i think i've discussed previously my contempt for the means by which the word "liberal" has been somehow transformed into a slur over the years. those of us who fall under that banner made it easy for those who would turn it into a vilification by trying to be all things to all people and distance ourselves from the "label".
we preach tolerance of race, tolerance of sex, tolerance of religious bent, tolerance of physical and mental handicaps under the guise of "political correctness"...but all of a sudden there's a modicum of shame attached to this label.
it pisses me off. 'nuff said.
however, in the most recent misuse of the label by the wingnuts on the right, they can't even get their facts straight.
those of you following the election have by now no doubt heard the rights' charge that kerry and edwards posess the first and fourth most liberal voting records in the senate. this tidbit of information is attibuted to the national review, a non-partisan legislative watchdog group...they've been only too happy to dole out credit for the statistic - but they haven't been very forthcoming about how they managed to squeeze these numbers out.
the numbers they cultivated to arrive at this statistic were taken from a period in 2003 that found both senators on the campaign trail and not present for votes.
as we all learned during the OJ trial, you can buy any result you want.
if you're interested, here are the top ten most liberal voting records in the senate...courtesy of (you guessed it) the national review:
National Journal: Most liberal senators, lifetime voting
1. Mark Dayton, D-Minn.
2. Paul Sarbanes, D-Md.
3. Jack Reed, D-R.I.
4. Jon Corzine, D-N.J.
5. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass.
6. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif.
7. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa
8. Richard Durbin, D-Ill.
9. Frank Lautenberg, D-N.J.
10. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt
believe none of what you hear, and only half of what you see...
ok, first order of business...i think i've discussed previously my contempt for the means by which the word "liberal" has been somehow transformed into a slur over the years. those of us who fall under that banner made it easy for those who would turn it into a vilification by trying to be all things to all people and distance ourselves from the "label".
we preach tolerance of race, tolerance of sex, tolerance of religious bent, tolerance of physical and mental handicaps under the guise of "political correctness"...but all of a sudden there's a modicum of shame attached to this label.
it pisses me off. 'nuff said.
however, in the most recent misuse of the label by the wingnuts on the right, they can't even get their facts straight.
those of you following the election have by now no doubt heard the rights' charge that kerry and edwards posess the first and fourth most liberal voting records in the senate. this tidbit of information is attibuted to the national review, a non-partisan legislative watchdog group...they've been only too happy to dole out credit for the statistic - but they haven't been very forthcoming about how they managed to squeeze these numbers out.
the numbers they cultivated to arrive at this statistic were taken from a period in 2003 that found both senators on the campaign trail and not present for votes.
as we all learned during the OJ trial, you can buy any result you want.
if you're interested, here are the top ten most liberal voting records in the senate...courtesy of (you guessed it) the national review:
National Journal: Most liberal senators, lifetime voting
1. Mark Dayton, D-Minn.
2. Paul Sarbanes, D-Md.
3. Jack Reed, D-R.I.
4. Jon Corzine, D-N.J.
5. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass.
6. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif.
7. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa
8. Richard Durbin, D-Ill.
9. Frank Lautenberg, D-N.J.
10. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt
believe none of what you hear, and only half of what you see...
posted by tom at 18:00
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