The Stonecipher Report

Chicago Sun-Times Columnist Steinberg Keeping a Watch on Bizarro IL Senate Candidate Andy Martin, Too…

New "Gay" Smear Ad Against Rep. Kirk the Latest (Non-Surprising) Shocking Behavior From the "Chumbolone" GOP IL Senate Non-Contender

Posted By: Michael Sweeney

Dec. 31, 2009

Readers of The Stonecipher Report – and especially listeners to our radio show (on WHPK-FM and www.whpk.org) – know the twisted fascination that Tyler and I have for out-there, perennial candidate Andy Martin, who is currently running (at about a 2% polling rate, according to the most recent numbers I’ve seen) for the Republican nomination for the 2010 IL Senate seat.

It began for us when Martin responded (as seen in the comments section at the end of this post) with some semi-non-cogent, left-field comments to a post I did about the "main" two competitors for that race, Rep. Mark Kirk and suburban businessman Patrick Hughes (and even grouping those two together is more than somewhat misleading – Kirk is WAAAAAAY ahead of Hughes and is all-but-certain to win the GOP nomination to compete to fill the old Obama seat that the political corpse of Roland Burris is currently occupying).

Loser and Winner of the Week…

A Big Thumbs-Down For Idiot TN Mayor Wiseman...and Another Thumbs-Up For FL Rep. Grayson

Posted By: Michael Sweeney

Dec. 10, 2009

Just a quick post to mention – and link to more details about – a definite Loser and Winner of the Week (not that we’ll be doing so EVERY week – just when it suits us and fits nicely outside of any other regular pieces)…

As we covered on Monday’s radio show (with a nice background bed of Beck’s classic first hit song), The Stonecipher Report "Loser of the Week" is Arlington, Tennessee Mayor Russell (inappropriate last name) Wiseman…who embarrassed himself and showed off his idiocy a few days back by decrying President Obama (excuse me, our "muslim president," as he called him) on his Facebook page over the scheduling of the important Afghanistan troop surge speech pre-empting the about 8 millionth televised showing of "A Charlie Brown Christmas" on network TV…

“Red” vs. “Blue” – How Did the US Get to This Point (and Where Do We Go From Here)?

Posted By: Michael Sweeney

Nov. 23, 2009

Tyler and I discussed this topic pretty deeply and long on today’s radio show…inspired (at least in part) by the "And, in the News…" e-mail issue I sent out to my subscribers earlier today. (The twice-weekly newsletter is completely FREE…AND your e-mail address is NEVER revealed or used for any other purpose; contact me at m_l_sweeney@hotmail.com to begin receiving these issues – hey, I’m already up to issue #199!)

…So – why is the "Blue" state vs. "Red" state divide so deep (and particularly thorny) in the US right now? And where will all of this schismatic separation likely lead us? I think it’s a very complicated, multiple-variable division…and it looks fairly hard to bind or solve anytime in the near future. After our on-air conversation on this subject today, I realize that Tyler has also thought about this subject…and that he has identified one of the contributing factors I chose as his believed primary cause of this current condition afflicting our country. I strongly hope that he expands upon this and explains his theory of the ever-widening "Blue" / "Red" philosophical gulf in a subsequent post out here – or perhaps even in a reply comment to this piece (which would be posted below)…

Sarah Palin WROTE a Book? We Doubt That She Actually Even READ It…

Posted By: Michael Sweeney

Nov. 17, 2009

With the Sarah Palin book hitting bookstores today, I thought I’d share my subscription-e-mail column – from the free "And, in the News…" updates I send out twice a week – on the topic from Monday. So, it is included below…and, FYI, another couple of good, appropriate, and variously analytical pieces on the media blur of Miss Wasilla and her pretend-authored book are one by Max Blumenthal on The Nation Magazine’s website and The Atlantic’s Andrew Sullivan (the gay neo-con who experienced an Obama awakening – and was quite the Palin critic – in ’08) live-blogging his reactions, rebuttals, and disputing of basic truths during Palin’s appearance on "The Oprah Winfrey Show." Some good stuff... 

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And, in the News...#197

November 16, 2009

Political Soap Box: First, "My Pet Goat," Now "Going Rogue" -- Uh, Republicans Don't Seem to Have Much Luck With Books, Do They?

Even though the piece-of-crap, rewriting-history, quickie book Sarah Palin agreed to claim she wrote -- the idiotically-titled "Going Rogue" (I mean, what does she think she is, some sort of freakin' conservative pirate?) -- has not officially hit bookstore shelves yet (it is due out widely [today]), plenty of political insiders have grabbed their early copies of it and are lashing out at its contents AND the alleged author, the former Miss Wasilla and early-quitting previous Governor of the so-so State of Alaska...

The Sun has Not Yet Risen in Chicago and the Right is Already Talking Trash About President Obama's Nobel Peace Prize

Posted by: Tyler Rippeteau

Oct. 9, 2009

Screw the Olympics, how 'bout a Nobel Peace Prize for our president?

Yup, didn't see this one coming, but about an hour ago President Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize.

When the rest of you normal people wake up, you'll see the news, but this is one of the advantages to being a bartender with a crazy schedule.  I'm still awake, and I'm probably one of the few bloggers in America near my computer and TV screen at this hour.  It's about 4:45 AM here in Chicago.

Amazingly, Barack Obama's Wikipedia page has already been updated, despite the fact that this announcement was made just minutes ago.

Not so shocking is the instant criticism from the right.  Joe Scarborough is already yacking about how the Nobel Prize is no longer prestigious, that it is given to people who hate America, that Marisa Tomei did more to win an Academy Award for "My Cousin Vinny" than Barack Obama has done to win the prize, that if anyone should have gotten it, it is Ronald Reagan and that maybe, just maybe, President Obama would be worthy of this not-so-prestigious award in three or four years, but certainly not now.

That's probably an early look at the anti-Obama, anti-Nobel Prize rhetoric that is certain to come from the right.  Any guesses as to which nutty right-winger makes the most insane comment about this?  Click here or check out the right-hand column to vote in our poll.

Well, might as well stay up and watch us bomb the moon at this point.

One Year On – My First Anniversary at The Stonecipher Report

Posted By: Michael Sweeney

Aug. 27, 2009

Hey, not to be TOO self-congratulatory, but yesterday marked the one-year anniversary of the first appearance of my work here on The Stonecipher Report!

Much has gone on since I responded to head honcho Tyler "Ripp Stonecipher" Rippeteau’s ad (on Craigslist) seeking local political writers for his site…I am now his site’s semi-official "Political Director" (a la the much admired wonk coverage of the ’08 election for NBC and MSNBC by Chuck Todd) and Tyler’s co-host of The Stonecipher Report radio show (available on Chicago’s WHPK, 88.5 FM or online via whpk.org) (plug, plug!) – as well as a friend now to the all-around good guy who runs this site.

Anderson Cooper is Baffled by Palin's Spokesperson

Posted by: Tyler Rippeteau

July 6, 2009

It has to be tough defending the most incompetent politician America has ever seen, but wow, this is a terrible defense of her.  It starts getting real entertaining when Anderson actually scratches his head while seeming to be completely confused by the nonsensical ramblings of Palin spokesperson, Meg Stapleton.  Oh, and also, note that Ms. Stapleton also completely misuses the word literally around 3:30 - good stuff, as always from the Palin camp:

…And Don’t Let the Lower 48 Hit Ya on Yer Ass on Yer Way Out!

Posted By: Michael Sweeney

July 5, 2009

What a delightful 233rd birthday gift for the (lately) at-times tired, wheezing, what-the-hell-comes-next? United States of America (however, still the best idea AND reality of a nation in the history of the world) (see, ya RW nutjobs – we Libs absolutely love our country, too…just – generally – more intelligently and less blindly…): The resignation of Sarah Palin as Governor of Alaska…and, therefore, the END – no question about it, whatsoever – of her effective political career.

See ya later, ya QUITTER!!! Ya bitter little quitter!

Must-Miss-TV! The GOP Plans Sudden Response to Obama-ABC Healthcare Broadcast

Posted By: Michael Sweeney

June 19, 2009

Note: This piece is cross-posted at Eyes on Obama

An interesting bit of news hit the web last night (and – no, no – it WASN’T the speculation over whether GOP Sen. John Ensign of Nevada was outing his own affair with a staffer to either A) Derail a blackmail attempt or B) Empty his closet of skeletons prior to a 2012 Presidential run):

(CNN) — National Republicans — miffed over ABC News' decision to broadcast a primetime special featuring President Obama making the case for his healthcare proposal — are looking to raise $100,000 to hit the airwaves with their own healthcare reform proposal…

"ABC News will be promoting Obamacare at virtually every opportunity, from ‘Good Morning America’ to ‘Nightline,’ and reach from ABC News' Web sites all the way to the White House's East Room," Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele writes in an e-mail titled "URGENT" to supporters Thursday…

Roger Ebert Takes Bill-O to Task – Again

Posted By: Michael Sweeney

June 18, 2009

Hey, all you readers, browsers, and even redirected radio (or on-line) listeners – welcome to The Stonecipher Report. Now, we know that we’ve perhaps not been as up-to-date with frequent posts lately as we were earlier in the year…but, rest assured that both Tyler Rippeteau – the site’s Head Honcho – and I – its Political Director – apologize for the bit of the late-spring slowdown the site may have experienced. And we pledge to pick things back up with more frequent new material – sometimes even multiple times per day. (Watch for an upcoming message from Tyler about this, as well…)

To help launch this period of frantic semi-"rebirth," first of all, I’d like to wish a very Happy Birthday (here on June 18th) to one of my journalistic, writing, and political philosophy heroes, Roger Ebert. He – along with the exactly-same-aged Paul McCartney – turns 67 today. And here’s hoping that all holds together for the award-winning film critic from the Chicago Sun-Times and that he gets to perhaps even equal his late, great Chicago-liberal-voice mentor Studs Terkel’s final age, and reach into his late 90s. (I can actually picture Roger replying to that, "Oh my gosh, no – that would probably be TOO damned old…")