Despite the deep divide between some religious leaders and government officials over contraceptives, the latest New York Times/CBS News poll found most voters support the new federal directive that health insurance plans provide coverage for birth control. – New York Times/CBS Poll
Liz Trotta on Fox News Channel is a perfect bookend to the stupidity being spewed by Rick Santorum. Watch the video above.
If you want to know why this country is in the shape it is today, Rick Santorum’s rhetoric provides the backdrop, which Fox News Channel is sucking up with a straw. On other shows he’s treated with deference instead of being laughed off the set for being obsessed with sex other people are having.
That the Republican Party is serving up the latest extremist fare with a straight face is why there are a lot of “former” Republicans changing to Independent.
Rick Santorum is coming for the 99% of women, age 15-44, who rely on contraception (according to the Guttmacher Institute).
“One of the things I will talk about that no President has talked about before is I think the dangers of contraception in this country, the whole sexual libertine idea. Many in the Christian faith have said, “Well, that’s okay. Contraception’s okay.”
It’s not okay because it’s a license to do things in the sexual realm that is counter to how things are supposed to be. They’re supposed to be within marriage, they are supposed to be for purposes that are, yes, conjugal, but also [inaudible], but also procreative. That’s the perfect way that a sexual union should happen. We take any part of that out, we diminish the act. And if you can take one part out that’s not for purposes of procreation, that’s not one of the reasons, then you diminish this very special bond between men and women, so why can’t you take other parts of that out? And all of a sudden, it becomes deconstructed to the point where it’s simply pleasure. And that’s certainly a part of it—and it’s an important part of it, don’t get me wrong—but there’s a lot of things we do for pleasure, and this is special, and it needs to be seen as special.
Again, I know most Presidents don’t talk about those things, and maybe people don’t want us to talk about those things, but I think it’s important that you are who you are. I’m not running for preacher. I’m not running for pastor, but these are important public policy issues. These how profound impact on the health of our society.
If you’re not appalled by the statements on sexuality by Rick Santorum you are also part of America’s problem.
Why are pundits on TV giving Rick Santorum anything but the laugh out loud treatment? Our media has to respect this man? Who decided statements like this one are worthy of respect, let alone seriousness?
All this happens as TIME magazine offers an American cover on animal friendships, while their overseas covers Italy’s new prime minister and whether he can make the difference in Europe. Americans wouldn’t possibly be interested in the financial crisis and what’s happening in Europe, let alone buy a magazine who covers it.
It’s why we get someone like Lawrence O’Donnell doing an entire hour about Whitney Houston’s death, while Piers Morgan does day after day of tick tock on it. It’s a tragedy and she was a music icon, but let’s not pretend she was something she wasn’t. An hour on substance abuse and the demise of African American performers might be more appropriate, which O’Donnell did at least mention.
What we could use an hour on is the dumbing of America and the absurd notion being pushed that Obama’s contraceptive mandate is about the Catholic Church’s religious freedom, and why pundits find this more important than the fact that the First Amendment swings both ways, protecting the individual from religious institutions [this section has been edited for clarity].
Instead we get treated to Joe Scarborough equating the federal government mandating female deacons for the Southern Baptist church as an equivalency to Obama’s contraceptive mandate.
There’s a reason Americans are uninformed. It’s also why parts of America are becoming more conservative, why Fox News Network has more viewers who are misinformed, while MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” gives TIME magazine’s managing editor Rick Stengel an entire segment to roll out his “animal friendships,” a cover only for Americans, drivel every week.
Stewart is on these stories, as well as Santorum’s insulting slur against female soldiers. It’s the reason Stewart’s trusted and so popular with young people who cannot take the gibberish adults are being fed on the cable talk fest faux news entertainment shows. On FNC, MSNBC, CNN viewers get treated like children. On Stewart they are not, especially where sex and American life is concerned.
Yes, Rick Santorum, people have sex for pleasure. Because of this we need contraception far past the age a woman can conceive. It’s how American women and men live.
Like Donald Trump, Herman Cain, Sarah Palin and Newt Gingrich, Rick Santorum is just the latest Republican unfit for the presidency. But considering most of American media isn’t fit to cover a serious presidential election, we’ve got the situation we deserve.
I wonder if Rick can really win MI in 2 weeks? 538 thinks its likely. The media is to blame for alot in thsi cuntry oh like Bush Jr getting away with murder. Santorum would be a far mro epotent candidate in the general if he didnt have these insane social views.
If he didn’t have these views he wouldn’t be Rick Santorum!
Art;
Those are polls reflecting Republicans only. Sure Santorum can win a Republican Primary with the evangelical crowd. The two polls taken in MIchigan between Obama and Romney show Obama trouncing Romney. I’m sure that when they poll Obama v Santurom, Obama will have an even bigger lead.
http://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/2012/president/mi/michigan_romney_vs_obama-1811.html
“If you’re not appalled by the statements on sexuality by Rick Santorum you are also part of America’s problem.”
Among so many other things this imbecilic assmonkey says that are each one alone PLENTY of reason never to let him near any sort of power again.
“Santorum would be a far mro epotent candidate in the general if he didnt have these insane social views.”
BWAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!! That’s like saying Jeffry Dahmer would have been a GREAT Chef if he hadn’t had that one little choice of meat to use fixation!!
Watching Republican pundits across the cable news entertainment shows give these guys cover is something else.
I’ve heard from more people who intensely dislike Obama & who weren’t going to vote for him ready to do so today. Santorum & the misinformation from Republican are THE best GOTV team Obama has going for them.
Given that an Oklahoma state Senator introduced a bill banning human fetuses in food productoin, he should have called that insanely hilarious bill the ‘The Jeffrey Dahmer Bill’.
It’s not the idiocy of the media but the idiocy of the media consumers. To me, this is all 11th dimensional chess by Mr. Obama. I never thought that he was particularly good at politics, but the re-emergence of social issues rather than fiscal issues has changed my mind. Sure Mitt Romney sucks as a candidate, boring, momon, etc… but he knows business and finance. He can make a credible cas that he is better suited to turning around the US economy. However, on social issues, he is milquetoast.
An election, focused primarily on the economy, is not a great propositon for Mr. Obama, the economy sucks and it is unlikely to get much better by election day. So, in my opinion, Mr. Obama is vulnerable if the election is a referendum on the economy. Where Mr. Obama is particularly strong, and where Republicans are weak, is on the social issues, abortion, gay marriage, etc… So, it plays to Mr. Obama’s strength to refocus the Republicans on social issues during the primary, where the base, deeply conservative and mostly out of touch with the rest of the country on social issues, carries the most weight and could put a candidate into the general election who has no shot at winning.
So, when George Stephanopoulos asked Mr. Romney about contraception during the debate, everyone scratched their heads, contraception was not an issue on anyone’s radar at that time. Now, it seems to be the main issue. A tinfoil hat type might have wondered about the safety of George’s wife and children at the time of the debate and whether or not they coincidentally just returned from an unplanned vacation the next day.
So, the economy is shit, there are no jobs and Europe is about to go down the toilet dragging the world down with it, buy we’re consumed with whether or not the 800 or so poor women should receive free contraceptive care from the church sponsored health organizations where they work? You’re kidding right, that is the most important issue? Waves of job losses, but look, over there, 15 poor minority women have to pay for their own contraceptive care. Pathetic.
Actually, what is most pathetic, is how easily it works.
“So, the economy is shit, there are no jobs and Europe is about to go down the toilet dragging the world down with it, buy we’re consumed with whether or not the 800 or so poor women should receive free contraceptive care from the church sponsored health organizations where they work? You’re kidding right, that is the most important issue? Waves of job losses, but look, over there, 15 poor minority women have to pay for their own contraceptive care. Pathetic.”
Oh how I hope all the other lil repugnantklaner/teabaggin imbecilic ass monkeys maintain this level of misogynistic hate spewing.
“we’re consumed with whether or not the 800 or so poor women”
Yeah, women are just dirt…their rights don’t count. There are MORE importanrt things then women and their rights…to ass monkeys like you.
If you’re not appalled by the statements on sexuality by Rick Santorum you are also part of America’s problem.
No, I am not “appalled” by rhetoric……if I was, no doubt I would currently be under treatment for CFS after reading your posts for a few weeks. If I am a “problem” for America in your mind, sorry if I don’t lose any sleep over it. I don’t respond to preaching from either Santorum or you.
You are bothered by Santorum trying to nose around in your bedroom…..I am bothered by Obama reaching into my pocket…….that’s what you get when you live amongst 300 million people.
As for campaign rhetoric, Obama did well in 2008 by sticking to delivering an ideologically skewed message. Santorum (as did other R conservatives before him in this cycle) does well by sticking to an ideologically skewed message.
In theory, Romney should be able to run just right of Obama and hit the perfect electoral sweep sweetspot. The problem is articulating a message that forms an intersecting Venn diagram of the non-ideological population and the ideological population. I am coming to the conclusion he is not up to the task. What I find “appalling” is that is really all that is needed to be a winning politician these days. Just tell ‘em what they want to hear.
“You are bothered by Santorum trying to nose around in your bedroom…..I am bothered by Obama reaching into my pocket…….that’s what you get when you live amongst 300 million people.”
Well unless you’re part of the 1% that terrible President Obama just kinda kicked thew repugnantklaner/teabagger’s butts on the middle class tax cut didn’t he? So you object to middle and lower class folks actually getting to keep MORE money in their pockets?
“As for campaign rhetoric, Obama did well in 2008 by sticking to delivering an ideologically skewed message. Santorum (as did other R conservatives before him in this cycle) does well by sticking to an ideologically skewed message.”
BWAHAHAHAHAHA! PLEASE let these imbecilic UBERChristofacist ass monkeys stick to their “an ideologically skewed message.” PLEASE!!!!
“In theory, Romney should be able to run just right of Obama and hit the perfect electoral sweep sweetspot.” Oh Jeebus CRISPIES onna popcicle stick…you get funnyer and funnyer!!
While the neo-fascists like Santorum complain about the authoritarinism of the Obama administration, they have no problem imposing it themselves once political power is reached.
Has Rick Santorum ever read the Kinsey Report? I haven’t either, but from one analyst I’ve gotten the impression that Kinsey discovered what should be easily evident: human sexuality is just as complex as the human mind itself. It turns out there is not, as George Carlin once said, a “man-on-top, woman-on-bottom, get-it-over-with-quick type of sex.” Considering myself fairly “normal” (whatever that is), it seems Mr. Santorum is a lot more interested in sex than I am. Perhaps he might promise to cover the legs of any piano in the White House, as was the Victorian custom.
It’s nonsense; a red herring to what truly ails the nation. Our economy collapsed after decades of wilful destruction of the middle class, and the societal consequences are like the frog in water slowly reaching the boiling point. This tripe DOES let Obama and his close circle of incompetents off the hook. Both parties have developed a “let them eat cake” approach to public policy, yet see no danger for themselves or the other members of their (yes, I’ll say it) class.
Instead, we will debate the evils of anything that interferes with the creation of human conception. That includes the dangers of contraception itself, the dangers of masturbation, and, let’s be honest, the duplicitous act of menstruation being committed by millions of women every day.
Does anyone not see the irony of John F. Kennedy in 1960 addressing his Catholicism? In that he made it clear that his oath as president superceded any religious beliefs or training? And now we have a Santorum doing the exact opposite?
In my youth I avoided mind-altering drugs like LSD. But now? Maybe it would help me understand our current politics better.