point

There’s a good piece by David Sirota that’s highlighted on this site and is making the syndication rounds right now in which he takes aim at the dumbing-down of America as a nation; specifically, he ties it to what may eventually be remembered as the most inadvertently prescient not-very-good movie in history: Idiocracy .

When a stage magician makes a flourish, causing a puff of smoke and a flash of light to appear, there’s a reason for it. It is called “misdirection.” It is meant to dazzle the audience with a shiny object, so that they don’t notice what is going on elsewhere on the stage, or perhaps even in the magician’s other hand. It is an effective technique, so effective that it is the basis for most stage magic tricks.

“I don’t want our schools turned over to some socialist movement.” It is now official; those looking for the latest GOP conspiracy theory, the latest mighty mental meltdown of the base, eagerly barked out by even the supposed leaders and purported respectable figures of the party, stroked and teased by conservative wings of the press that seem to have no pressing substance to deal with, anymore, compared to these small trinkets of insanity — those looking for that latest race-tinged, conspiracy-riddled drama need look no farther. We have it.

Gov. Palin is not quite done with David Letterman. Or the President. Or anyone. So she has taken to the Internets to finish what she started… And just in case you didn’t like my Sarah Palin, you should definitely check out Sara Benincasa at YouTube and her Webby-nominated Palin series. I refuse to stand up for any of the Palins at this point, but the comedy sisterhood? Yes. Besides, Sara clearly did this before I did and not mentioning it would be really bitchy of me. And this is my last angry sketch. People are really going to think I’m some bitter, angry shrew!