1) Ghostbusters: Walter Peck, the spiteful EPA guy who shuts down the containment grid, played by William Atherton (The Bad Idea Man)

2) Jaws: Mayor Larry Vaughn, who keeps the beach open, played by Murray Hamilton (The Ostrich)

3) Aliens: Carter Burke, the corporate weasel played by Paul Reiser (The Opportunist)

4) Sling Blade: Doyle Hargraves played by Dwight Yoakam (The Bully)

5) The Matrix: Cypher played by Joe Pantoliano (The Randian)

You bet Teddy. I’m going to bed. G’nite y’all.

- Tom

I mostly lurk on FDL, but do comment once in a while. There are many great writers and activists here and I enjoy reading all of their posts. I do make it a point to see what Glenn Smith writes each week. I try to catch book salons once in a while too, when I remember to check for them.

- Tom

Nice thought-provoking piece Glenn. I can only add that the conjoined twin to ignorance is arrogance. And arrogance is built into the hierarchical structure of authoritarianism.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/social/TomR/this-american-life-mike-daisey_b_1363506_142407639.html

…it’s important to remember that ignorance is not some baseline human quality. It is manufactured. The confidence men in charge of most of the globe find it far easier to deceive the stupid and the gullible.

Yes.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/social/TomR/us-poverty_b_1347157_141968109.html

I’ve wondered if kicking those below in the hierarchy is how authoritarian followers feed their self-esteem.

- Tom

What are your thoughts about the fact that most conservatives get their television news from one source whereas independents and liberals get their news from several sources? What role does this play?

Thank you Rick and Corey for this book salon!

Corey, do you think many conservatives get their sense of self-esteem by feeling like they are better off than others who have it worse than them? Is this what drives them to make sure government isn’t dedicated to helping those they consider lower than themselves?

Also, what differences do you see between authoritarian conservative leaders and their followers?

Thank you for this book salon. Great topic!

What disturbs me is the ability to market hysteria, so that what was once considered radical behavior by those in power becomes normalized. Then when citizens demand that the rule of law or Constitution be adhered to, that gets framed as a radical request.

In past examples through our country’s history, how were citizens able to turn the framing back to right-side up again? Is there a pattern to the conditions in which the powerful give in? Or is power simply reclaimed by the citizens?

Of course good branding without a solid structural foundation creates its own problems. Since what the word “progressive” really means is still somewhat vague, many organizations and politicians have started co-opting the title.

Including the DLC-driven Progressive Policy Institute who “reject[s] the left’s demands for a government health-care monopoly.”

We need to counteract these DLCers-in-Progressive-Clothes by proudly proclaiming OUR progressive values. These guys love their nuke energy:

The Fukushima incident has stoked nuclear dread around the world and led some to conclude that nuclear power is too risky. Perhaps the most dramatic shift in public attitudes has been in Germany, where a conservative-led government recently unveiled a plan to close down all the country’s nuclear power plants by 2022.

Americans, however, should not endorse this knee-jerk anti-nuclear policy. For the foreseeable future, nuclear power will remain a vital part of a balanced and realistic national energy portfolio. Moreover, as champions of reason and science, U.S. progressives have a responsibility to avoid panicky overreactions and instead undertake a clear-eyed assessment of the actual risks of nuclear energy.

We have a battle for the progressive brand that must not be lost to those watering it down under the guise of being corporatist “practical.”

- Tom

Reminds me of Glenn Beck’s attack on empathy.

Lewis Black defends empathy from Beck (probably his funniest, smartest clip so far):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KZ0mdxXw8Ac

- Tom

Progressives are simply holding Obama accountable, like he asked us to:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bW63JVqyAQI

He sounds nothing like candidate Obama from 2008:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n3O_ZoCyCbQ

This is about accountability, not purity.

- Tom

The Captains of Industry will be pleased. Let’s hear it for the Spelunker in Chief:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A85xpFFxd9Y

Especially, consider all that Bush accomplished with his “mandate.” How soon we forget…

Recommended reading:

http://www.salon.com/news/politics/democratic_party/index.html?story=/news/david_sirota/2011/08/15/powerless_democrats_fable

So what you’re saying is they will have a “grand bargain,” just not one with significant tax increases for the wealthy.

If they truly couldn’t come to an Grand Appeasement Bargain, is there some mechanism that would force tax increases?

- Tom

For some reason I was thinking this would be Baucus’s last term anyway, so he can cash in and become a lobbyist. Anything to this notion?

Now we get to watch this like a slow motion accident. Maybe we should send cans of catfood to their senate offices. Harry Reid too.

- Tom

“The first rule in my book is that we have to stick by the liberal principles of the Democratic Party. We are not going to get anywhere by trimming or appeasing. And we don’t need to try it.

The rights and the welfare of millions of Americans are involved in the pledges made in the Democratic platform of 1948 and in the program of this administration. And those rights and interests must not be betrayed.”

- President Harry S. Truman, 1952