Saturday, November 05, 2011

Bill Maher on the unspoken motto of the Republican party: ‘Who needs the government when you have Jesus?’”

Courtesy of Mediaite:

“Knowing things is seen as an affront to the all-knowing. And there’s nothing they hate more than secular eggheads trying to fix problems like poverty and health care. Honestly, doesn’t a lot of the tea party philosophy boil down to ‘Who needs the government when you have Jesus?’”

Awesome segment!

I really liked the entire show, even Bill Engvall, who I ma not a fan of usually.

Last week's show was a little disappointing so I was not expecting much, but I was pleasantly surprised by the fascinating discussion and some truly hilarious one liners, from both Bill and the panel.

Rep. Darrell Issa was the only fly in the ointment, trying desperately to blame Obama for everything while still trying to pull that smiley nice guy shit. But the real surprise for me was Alex Wagner, who is rapidly becoming one of my favorite pundits on MSNBC, and who is so cute and smart I don't know if I am more knocked out by her beautiful smile or her rapier like wit.

I understand that she is soon to get her own show and I have little doubt it will soon become one of my favorites.

16 comments:

  1. Anonymous1:01 PM

    Uh oh. You mean the left will have a commentator who is gorgeous AND smart? The Foxtards will not be pleased (she must be gay, huh?)

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  2. It was a good show... I wish someone would figure out how to make Darrel Issa disappear. He consistently proves to be the most useless plate on the shelf... Alex Wagner is a REAL sharp lady, and yes she's developing her own show on MSNBC. Wish more info was available on her background. She did work for Politics Daily and The Fader, but I can't find much more... Sharp wit thou, and will soon be swinging the long blades at clowns like Issa every day.... Har... Har... Har....

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  3. Anonymous2:01 PM

    I've also been impressed with Alex Wagner during her appearances on other MSNBC shows. She's smart, knows her stuff, and is sweet and charming enough to make people who don't follow much politics interested enough to listen.

    Just goes to show that Rachel Maddow knows how to pick the right kind of guests!

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  4. Anonymous2:08 PM

    Maher never fails to make me laugh. Only wish he had not chickened out of having Joe McGinniss on his show.

    Anyone know if Joe is still giving interviews promoting The Rogue? His last Blog post was on October 23rd. He was usually in the habit of frequently updating his blog and giving a heads up as to where his next appearance would be. Hope all is well with him.

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  5. I think the Tea Party philosophy is really:
    You don't need government because I have Jesus.

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  6. Anonymous3:13 PM

    Liberal ignorance on govt interference is unsettling. It's not that people are against govt services, though private industry is proven to run more efficiently. it's that there is little incentive to create business here in the states (or there could be more). I blame US for electing ignorant Presidents with no professional credentials and members of congress who are lazier than my stoner cousin in Oregon.

    Rick Scott is doing great thins in FL and ie looking at surplus.

    With all this said, at least people are not too discouraged. New businesses are still popping up like crazy. Americans are nothing if not resilient people which makes complainers THAT MUCH MORE RIDICULOUS.

    It's called think outside the box and WORK people. Get out of those smelly tents and lift a damn finger.
    I sympathize with the elderly and disabled.

    THAT IS IT.

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  7. Anon@3:13, you conservatives like to say that private industry is more efficient than government, but the facts don't bear that out. Many government programs run pretty well. Many are either poorly designed or in the grip of a crappy manager, or have had their funding cut to the point that they can't do what they need to do. Many businesses run pretty well. Many are either poorly designed or in the grip of a crappy manager, or are being sucked dry by corrupt upper management that looks only at profits, not assets. That's the reality you just can't accept.

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  8. Anonymous4:23 PM

    The Issa guy is creepy!!! Causing lots of trouble in Congress too - don't trust him as far as I can throw him!!

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  9. Marleycat4:28 PM

    Anonymous@3:13pm sounds like Lou Sarah, just back from FLA, and her hook up with that other most hated, incompetent, and ignorant Governor Rick Scott. Sarah, Rick, and Jan Brewer are all vying to win the Whose the Stupidest, Worst Governor EVER Contest - and Lou Sarah is in the lead!

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  10. Anonymous5:36 PM

    Anon@313, you're absolutely off base about Fl. Gov. Rick Scott. I'm also from Florida and think you've been brainwashed by the Republicans and their lies. His approval rating is around 30 and he is one of the most unpopular governors i the county. He's playing politics with the budget and has decreased the states contribution towards education and leaving it with the locals. His aim is to create charter schools and see that public schools are abolished. This will only further separate the classes leaving the poorer families unable to afford education fortheir children.

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  11. Anonymous8:00 PM

    3:13

    long meandering stream of right wing talking points... blah blah blah

    THAT IS IT

    Really? That's all you got?

    What great "thins" is Rickie in Florida doing ie surpulus? And who is doing without for the surplus, business and industry?, or the seniors and disabled you show such "pity" for?

    Who spent the Clinton administration's record surplus and got us in debt in the first place? George W "I blame US for electing ignorant Presidents with no professional credentials and members of congress who are lazier than my stoner cousin in Oregon" Bush. That's who.


    What great "thins" is Congress doing to create jobs?

    The only finger those people in tents (Bristol, Levi and friends included) is the middle finger, at people like YOU.


    Put that in your cool aid and use a bib and sippy cup, you're overdue for your nap.

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  12. Anonymous8:07 PM

    Bill Maher is really rocking it with this one! Great post, I agree with all your points, Alex deserves her own show. Her wit, itellect, and ability to think on her feet is poetry in motion.

    Can we please "white out" Issa? The dude give me the creeps and shouldn't have a platform to sell his bullcrap.

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  13. The Tea Party and the GOP in general seem to know as much about Jesus as they know about the Constitution. They've tried to co-opt both to promote their fantasy of a nation of white Anglo-Saxon protestant gun-toting heterosexuals.

    Jesus used gentle, positive guidance for the most part, but there were a few things that made him angry, i.e., greedy, dishonest rich people, and hypocrites like the Pharisees who went to great lengths in public to show how religious they were.

    With his constant admonitions to sell all you have and give to the poor, take care of the needy and the sick, etc., Jesus would probably be called a socialist by the tea-baggers. His "turn the other cheek" philosophy would strike the gun-loving baggers as weak.

    Those conservatives and baggers who are most vocal about their "faith" like to lift Old Testament scriptures out of context and use them to bash gays, abortion care providers, and liberals in general.

    Maher is often funny, but he's narrow-minded about Christianity, lumping all of us together. That makes no more sense than thinking all Muslims are fundamentalist radicals.

    Doing a 180 now, I've also been wondering about Joe McGinniss. He indicated that he would open his blog to comments after his book tour, but lately he isn't even posting much. Hope to see more of him soon.

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  14. @Jude:
    You hate it when Bill Maher makes generalizations about Christians? Fine. But keep in mind all Christians claim to worship the same god. In all seriousness, why do you think are you right about God and they are wrong?

    And when Christians stop making false assumptions about atheists, let me know.

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  15. @Everyday Freethought

    I appreciate your comment, but you make a few assumptions. Sometimes I'm agnostic. The rest of the time I'm Catholic. Google Pascal's Wager if that doesn't make sense.

    Not all self-described Christians worship the same God. Some worship a Trinitarian God which others don't even acknowledge. Spend a few hours discussing theology with a Mormon, a Jehovah's Witness, and a Pentecostal Christian and you probably won't find the same deity at the center of their worship.

    I don't know what Christians assume about atheists, and I don't think you do either. Again, there's a wide range of attitudes and beliefs among those who call themselves Christian.

    I wouldn't presume to tell others what they should believe. I think it's a mistake for anyone to assume they have all the answers, whether Christian, Jew, Muslim, militant atheist, etc. The older I get, the more I realize I still have a lot to learn.

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  16. Beldar Absolutely Conehead3:46 PM

    The right wing has melded two awesome and despicable forces: the (mostly xtian) religious zealots who believe anything done in the name of Jeebus is a desirable and the oligarchs who believe anything done in the name of accumulating and defending wealth is desirable. Together they will happily destroy this country, absolutely confident in the absolute certainty that they are absolutely right about absolutely everything.

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