McCain Offers Prizes for Spam Comments

Sen. John McCain's campaign is urging supporters to spam blogs and forums with official talking points, according to the Washington Post. If you do a good job, you can even win prizes.

"That, in essence, is the McCain campaign's pitch to supporters to join its new online effort, one that combines the features of 'AstroTurf' campaigning with the sort of customer-loyalty programs offered by airlines, hotel chains, restaurants and the occasional daily newspaper."

"People who sign up for McCain's program receive reward points each time they place a favorable comment on one of the listed Web sites

And you don't even have to write the first original line:

On McCain's Web site, visitors are invited to "Spread the Word" about the presumptive Republican nominee by sending campaign-supplied comments to blogs and Web sites under the visitor's screen name. The site offers sample comments ("John McCain has a comprehensive economic plan . . .") and a list of dozens of suggested destinations, conveniently broken down into "conservative," "liberal," "moderate" and "other" categories. Just cut and paste.

We'll feel right at home around here! Maybe our resident GOP talking points heroes can get better compensation now?

Friday is a good day for quotes. I have a couple you might enjoy courtesy of TPM and contributors.

Franklin Delano Roosevelt's 9th year inaugural address:

If any of our enemies, from Europe or from Asia, attempt long-range raids by "suicide" squadrons of bombing planes, they will do so only in the hope of terrorizing our people and disrupting our morale. Our people are not afraid of that. We know that we may have to pay a heavy price for freedom. We will pay this price with a will. Whatever the price, it is a thousand times worth it. No matter what our enemies, in their desperation, may attempt to do to us- we will say, as the people of London have said, "We can take it." And what's more we can give it back and we will give it back--with compound interest.

John Kennedy's inaugural address:

And so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you - ask what you can do for your country.

My fellow citizens of the world: ask not what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man.

Finally, whether you are citizens of America or citizens of the world, ask of us the same high standards of strength and sacrifice which we ask of you. With a good conscience our only sure reward, with history the final judge of our deeds, let us go forth to lead the land we love, asking His blessing and His help, but knowing that here on earth God's work must truly be our own.

Have a wonderful weekend and be careful out there!

We've heard recently about the wisdom of John McCain. Here's a compilation, in his own words, using video clips, exhibiting that wisdom. Now you can decide for yourself about his wisdom. Link...

McCain argues that flip-flops are an example of a political leader who can't be trusted -- so he might as well drop out of the race.

Someone's keeping track. No, it's not Fox News or Rush. Currently 61 flip-flops and still counting. That doesn't include multiple flips on the same subject. I had to find out after a vigorous discussion in a thread below. Now you'll know too.

Now, how about them 'crocs?

For your Memorial Day weekend snarky goodness enjoyment, let me present you Michael Berube's latest:

The organization, "Repentant Villagers," announced today that it would be issuing formal apologies to hundreds of liberal bloggers, including Duncan Black, Jane Hamsher, Markos Moulitsas Zuniga, Glenn Greenwald, and "Digby," acknowledging that the progressive blogosphere was right about Lieberman after all. "No one could have anticipated the breach of the party," said Jonathan Chait, senior editor of the New Republic. "But Lieberman's recent op-ed, calling the Democratic Party insufficiently pro-American, is just sheer barking lunacy. I could never have seen this coming two years ago when I was calling Lieberman's critics 'a pack of crazed, ignorant ideological cannibals,' and I'm deeply sorry. It looks like I turned out to be the truly ignorant one in the end."

Click over and enjoy the whole delicious thing and have a safe and happy unofficial start of summer weekend!

"At the beginning of the 21st century, the typical American suburb is just about the safest place that has ever existed in the history of the world - yet it's full of terrified people.

Statistics have little power in the face of a media environment in which extraordinarily rare events, such as strangers kidnapping children, are presented as commonplace by profit-hungry "news" outlets, for whom the bottom line is that fear sells.

Politicians realize this too. The ongoing overreaction to the 9/11 terrorist attacks is only the most vivid example of how our leaders cynically exploit our fears by making wildly exaggerated claims, such as that Islamic terrorism poses an "existential threat" to America."

It was inevitable, wasn't it?
Someone would code a tall tale generator for Hillary.
Hit refresh for a new one.
And remember, this is all in fun, no need to get too stirred up, just laugh and relax.

This morning at 8:00 AM the Flying Spaghetti Monster was put up on the Cumberland County Courthouse Lawn.

It came to me in a sign....build a statue of the Flying Spaghetti Monster and put it on the courthouse lawn in Crossville Tennessee so that others can share in its beautiful image and learn about Its story.
Link...

Well its' been pretty quiet around here with Bubba away vacationing (a well deserved one I'm sure) so I'm gonna attempt to entertain y'all.

Here's something that made me laugh (even though I probably shouldn't have) and wanted to share it. Click over and watch the video clip if you want, it's only very mildly NSFW (it came from a local TV station).

Woman Pissed Bout New Butt Implants
This news anchor can't hold it together when reporting a story about woman who is not happy about her recent butt implants. And after seeing what they look like, I would be pissed too.

Boy am I glad I didn't have that procedure done! :-)

Both Dick Cheney and John McCain made "unannounced" visits to Iraq, neither for "political purposes."

Vice President Dick Cheney made an unannounced trip Monday to Baghdad, where he plans to push Iraqi political leaders toward opening the country’s vast oil fields to international companies, a senior Bush administration official said.

Mr. Cheney, who arrived in the Iraqi capital with his wife and daughter in the morning, is to meet with top officials including the Iraqi prime minister, Nuri Kamal al-Maliki, a Shiite, and the Iraqi president, Jalal Talabani, a Kurd.

The vice president plans, among other things, to push Iraqi officials to pass petroleum legislation that would help bring international oil companies to Iraq, according to a pool report of comments by a senior administration official who was flying with Mr. Cheney.

The official described the petroleum issue as being about Iraqi leaders “figuring out how they really begin to exploit” the country’s resources, according to the pool report.Vice President Dick Cheney made an unannounced trip Monday to Baghdad, where he plans to push Iraqi political leaders toward opening the country’s vast oil fields to international companies, a senior Bush administration official said.

Mr. Cheney, who arrived in the Iraqi capital with his wife and daughter in the morning, is to meet with top officials including the Iraqi prime minister, Nuri Kamal al-Maliki, a Shiite, and the Iraqi president, Jalal Talabani, a Kurd.

The vice president plans, among other things, to push Iraqi officials to pass petroleum legislation that would help bring international oil companies to Iraq, according to a pool report of comments by a senior administration official who was flying with Mr. Cheney.

The official described the petroleum issue as being about Iraqi leaders “figuring out how they really begin to exploit” the country’s resources, according to the pool report.

Well, we know where the sentiments of his mechanical heart lie.
Oil, baby!
And Fox News told me the trip was to promote peace in the Middle East. That may be so in regards to Cheney not getting his Exxon's way means there'll be more war.

And then there's the presumptive GOP presidential nominee's trip to consider.
McCain will NOT be going to "stroll freely through a Baghdad market", heavily protected by the US military on this trip due to "security considerations."
Hell, they won't even announce his schedule!
More evidence the surge is working and we need to occupy our 51st state for 100 more years, or until we drain all our oil from underneath their sand.

So what if the glories of deregulation are about to exhibit the magnificence of free market capitalism at it's finest (socialist Fed Reserve bailouts and all) 'cause you didn't need that 401k retirement money anyways.
(Good thing we went ahead privatized Social Security, eh Bush?)

Can't think about that right now, we've got a war to fight. Don't laugh Iran, you're next!