Never seen this sketch of 'W' before. Kinda says it all.

[trof]

It's from this book review article:
Idiot America: How Stupidity Became a Virtue in the Land of the Free
By Charles P. Pierce.
Doubleday, 293 pages., $26

The pastor from Pennsylvania put it best. On the eve of a trial to determine the legality of a local school board’s decision to teach intelligent design alongside evolutionary theory, the Rev. Ray Mummert, a leader of the anti-Darwin brigade, made national headlines with a statement that cut straight to the heart of America’s culture wars.

“We’ve been attacked,” he protested, “by the intelligent, educated segment of our culture.”
In an increasingly divided nation, where one is asked to take sides on every issue from the creation of the universe to the first lady’s triceps, it was perhaps inevitable that people should be required to make a stand on the subject of being smart.

http://www.observer.com/2009/06/the-dunce-confederacy/

[Egalitarian Thug]

1. See H.L. Mencken. K&R n/t

[trof]

5. I'm a big Mencken fan.

[happyslug]

14. I am not, great writer, but a true conservative.

Mencken was pro-German during WWI, pro-Nazi before WWII (His pro-German sympathies were so while known his newspaper refused to carry his Columns while we were at WAR with Germany). He would have gladly joined the DLC (Democratic Leadership Council, the Conservative moment within the Democratic Party) and opposed the progressive movement within the Democratic Party (Mencken opposed both William Jennings Bryan AND Franklin Roosevelt and hated the New Deal).

Mecken was anti-labor, anti-integration, fully supported the right of the state to keep the races apart and separated.

Mecken even switched sides during the Scopes Monkey Trial, supporting the Right of the State to Convict Scopes for NOT following state law to opposing that position once he found that Bryan was to be one the prosecution team. The reason for the switch? He hated Bryan and the Progressive movement within the Democratic party so much that he could NOT accept that they could be right as to anything. Thus Mencken switch sides and made so many attacks that it colors our view of that trial to or Bryan, his day.

As to the Scopes trial Mencken is the source of several misunderstanding of the Scopes trail:
First was the opposition within the City of Dayton to Scopes, that was not the case, Scopes was the winning Football Coach and was offered to retain his position but he received a better offer elsewhere.
Second, Mencken gave his readers the impression that his newspaper payment of the fine was what kept Scopes out of jail, ignoring the fact the City of Dayton had told Scopes they would pay the fine before he agreed to admit he add taught human evolution (The trial itself was an attempt by the City of Dayton to bring in people to improve business, thus the City had to convince Scopes to admit that he taught the theory of Human evolution before they could even charge him). Mencken ignored that Bryan had also offered to pay the fine, offered made directly to Scopes by Bryan at the dinner to welcome Bryan to the City of Dayton (Yes Scopes was an guest at both Dinners, the first for Bryan and the Prosecutors, and the second dinner for the Defense team).
Third, That the City of Dayton only had a welcoming dinner for Bryan, when they was two dinners, one for the Prosecutors team, one for the Defense team. Scopes attended BOTH dinners.
Fourth, that Scopes had spent time in jail, when in fact the arrest, charge in front of a Judge, the Posting of the Bond, had been pre-arranged prior to the warrant ever being requested. Thus Scopes NEVER spent any time in Jail.

This is the main problem with Mencken, he ignores facts that he disagree with it or otherwise goes against what he wants to be. The Scopes trial is just the best place where you can see it in action. Mencken has some great one liners often repeated in DU, but you can claim the same for Hitler or Stalin. You have to take Mencken as a whole, he was a DLCer decades before the DLC was formed.

Sorry I went into this rant, but Mencken one liners are NOT enough to make me a fan of Mencken. If you are on DU, you have to reject Mencken, for he is a DLCer.

[Egalitarian Thug]

15. "If you are on DU, you have to reject Mencken, for he is a DLCer."

How about this one, FDR? He was made Governor of NY by the banks, he was the very model of a patrician, and his greatest accomplishment prior to WWII was to preserve the very system that had nearly destroyed this nation so that it could rise and destroy it again.

A good idea or an accurate observation is good or accurate no matter where it comes from.

Mencken was an asshole of such monumental proportion that it could only be eclipsed by his ego, but that doesn't negate his talents. If it did, who would be left to do anything great?

And of course, as the name should say, I am vehemently opposed to the DLC or whatever they are calling themselves today.

[man4allcats]

11. Your Mencken reference is perfect.

For those who may have missed it (which is probably no one on this board):

“As democracy is perfected, the office of president represents, more and more closely, the inner soul of the people. On some great and glorious day the plain folks of the land will reach their heart's desire at last and the White House will be adorned by a downright moron.”
― H.L. Mencken

[CaliforniaPeggy]

2. I see the pastor's problem. He clearly says it:

“We’ve been attacked,” he protested, “by the intelligent, educated segment of our culture.”

He put his finger right on it.

[lastlib]

3. And he brought noodles to the gunfight......

[orpupilofnature57]

4. Shrub was an icon for the Asinine

Ronnie too.

[Egalitarian Thug]

7. Reagan for America. What could be a more fitting representation of America than a half-wit,

absolutely devoid of principle, that knows only how to look good and deliver a speech?

[calimary]

19. No kidding. Half-wits for freedumb!

[UTUSN]

6. R#14 & K n/t

[Bette Noir]

8. We're supposed to take sides on the first lady's triceps?

I'm for 'em! There's a woman who should always go sleeveless. Best arms I've seen on any woman in... ever.

[MH1]

9. "Idiot America" is an excellent book. I highly recommend it.

That quote by the numskull in PA really nails the fundamental issue between liberals and conservatives in this country.

[seattleblah]

10. When they don't have jobs...

and we have to work so hard, who are the idiots here? Sometimes I feel like a fool for working so hard.

[fightthegoodfightnow]

12. I say let Santorum embrace stupidity.

He's good at it.

[TahitiNut]

13. Welcome to Dumbfuckistan.

[Wind Dancer]

18. LOL!

It's so sad but your comment was extremely funny.

[bvar22]

16. Doesn't really matter anymore.

Bush-the-Lesser has been airbrushed OUT of our National Portrait,
and edited out of the National dialog.
He isn't mentioned anymore by:
*The Republican Party

*The Democratic Party

*The Media

"W" has been flushed down the Memory Hole.
.
.
.
.
George WHO?


It is like he never existed.
"They" protect their own.



You will know them by their WORKS,
not by their excuses.
[font size=5 color=green]Solidarity99![/font][font size=2 color=green]
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[HughBeaumont]

17. This is how Mitt gets to repeat this lie over and over again:

"More Americans have lost their jobs under Barack Obama than any president in modern history"

That assumes Bewsh and his shite economic policies that we're still paying for never existed, a "term" means "starting January 21st, 2009" and President Obama merely threw the nation's money at a coincidental anomaly.

And no one calls him on it and no one cares. He's simply allowed to repeat this same lie over and over again because our Crack Fourth Estate lets him.

[grantcart]

20. Clinging to their 'facts and logic' and their 'ability to persuade'

They are taking our children away from us.

[Flatpicker]

21. Every day

I'm reminded that Mike Judge was a true Nostradamus.

Part of controlling a people is to limit their access to education. Keep them dumb and productive for the ruling class.