“Doctor” Glenn Beck’s so-called Restoring Honor rally falls into the category of “no harm, no foul.” Playing the role of Martin Luther King in white face, Beck and his featured speaker, Sarah Palin, steered clear of politics Saturday by supporting God, the military, America and mom’s apple pie.

Crowd estimates ranged from 75,000 to half the population of the United States, depending on the politics of the people making the estimate. An airborne crowd count commissioned by CBS News settled on a figure of 87,000. But we all know about the liberal leaning network. After all, its chief anchor, Katie Couric, asked Governor Palin all those slanted questions about the newspapers and magazines she read, and the most important U.S. Supreme Court decisions. What did Ms. Couric think she was doing, judging a beauty queen pageant. Obviously, the CBS estimate was wrong.

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162-20014993-503544.html?tag=stack

A Washington Post columnist described the turnout as the whitest crowd ever assembled on the mall at the Lincoln Memorial. But again, the damn liberal media will say anything—even going so far as to report facts. Tea Partiers, Beck supporters and my right-wing family members are sure to point out that there were a few black faces at the rally. But in a crowd of 87,000, there were probably a few space aliens. Or at least people who believed they were from different planets, or after a few minutes of conversation about President Obama, judged to be from outer space.

The “few” African Americans attending the rally included a niece of Martin Luther King—a “white sheep” of the King family, perhaps. Having her speak was a blatant attempt to excuse Beck’s despicable decision to hold the event on the date of Martin Luther King’s ”I have a dream” speech 47 years earlier. Beck, a self-proclaimed historian, claims the choice of the date was an accident. But he modestly declares the accident was the work of God. Thus, with the acquiescence of the Lord, “Martin Luther Beck” tried to appropriate the civil rights crusade of Dr. King. For Beck to align himself with King is an insult to the memory and sacrifice of the civil rights leader during a volatile time his American history.  

I have to give credit, though to the former rock and roll disc jockey. He has gigantic cojones. Too bad his brain doesn’t match. He has aptly described himself as a “rodeo clown,” saying in effect that people who believe his rants need to have their heads examined. Hopefully, ambulance chasing psychiatrists took him at his word and passed out business cards during the rally.

Although Glenn Beck pissed off a lot of people simply by being Glenn Beck, he caused no great harm over the weekend. Indeed, he may have inspired a few people to go to church on Sunday. But being Glenn, he couldn’t rest on his laurels. In a Fox “News” interview following the rally, he offered his views on President Obama’s Christianity. He described Obama’s beliefs as “liberation” theology—the oppressor against the victim. I thought the New Testament was about liberation from Old Testament oppressiveness. But what do I know? I’m a Presbyterian.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/08/29/AR2010082903889.html?hpid=topnews

Admittedly, I don’t possess the high fallutin background of Glenn Beck, who holds a distinguished honorary Doctorate in Humanities from the late Jerry Falwell’s prestigious Liberty University—one of the nation’s beacons of bigotry. And I have to also keep in mind that “Doctor” Beck is the President of his own university (by the way, I haven’t seen the pre-season football ranking of Beck University’s football team).

However, one aspect of  ”Doctor” Beck’s résumé makes me curious about his mental machinations. As a Mormon, why would he question the Christianity of another believer. I have nothing against the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. The denomination engages in noble outreach. However, its doctrine has regularly been criticized by mainline religious leaders who question its Christian roots. LDS was founded in 1830 in upstate New York by Joseph Smith, an early abolitionist of slavery, as well as a polygamist. And throughout the church’s history, Mormons have been identified with plural marriage, a practice that was abandoned many years ago. Polygamy is now limited to small Mormon splinter groups. 

The Mother Church, however, has been criticized for its views on civil rights. Until 1978,  blacks were prohibited from entering the priesthood or even participating in LDS ceremonies. More recently, the church was sharply criticized for secret funding the campaign in support of California’s Proposition 8, the controversial measure banning gay marriage. Because of the church’s sensitivity to public perceptions and misconceptions, it seems odd that Beck questions Obama’s faith. But Beck is odd and apparently never read the Biblical verse, Judge not lest ye be judged.

What a waste a time writing about Beck. I need more self-control. Actually, I intended to skip the subject of Beck’s weekend rally entirely. But since the mainstream media tends to forget that he is nothing more than an ex-disc jockey, who struck gold by exploiting the anxieties of people too lazy to do their own thinking, I figured that I—a failed disc jockey and former mediocre talk show host—should at least remind readers of his credentials. Or lack thereof.

And besides, I didn’t want to disappoint right-wing family members. They believe I dislike the mad “doctor,” which is not even close to being true. How could I not love a guy who gives me so much material to fill the blog?

My memoir, Odyssey of a Derelict Gunslinger, is available at amazon.com and independent bookstores. It offers much more than $19.99 worth of laughs. The book is an account of my illustrious (I choose the adjectives) career.

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162-20014993-503544.html?tag=stack

I live in a red state, red town and a red golf community—a neighborhood so Republican that if votes for Democrats reach double digits in our precinct, an investigation of ballot box stuffing in launched.

My place abode is the choice of a golf addict. But as a result of age, summer heat and a shrinking retirement fund, I have begun my journey on the road to recovery. I plan to only play a “social round” now and then, hoping that the feel of a golf club in my hands will not trigger the addiction. However, based on the painful consequences of experimenting with “social drinking” before I got sober four decades ago, I’m probably overly optimistic about this attempt at controlled golfing.

Actually, I will miss playing regular rounds with Republican friends. Like most golfers, they are good guys—simply misguided in their politics. And I can understand why. They have obviously fallen under the influence of Fox “News.” I find evidence of Fox’s influence on the three days a week that I workout at our fitness center. When I arrive, the television set is invariably tuned to the Republican propaganda network. Being a nice guy, I don’t reach for the remote to change channels. Besides, some of the Fox fans lifting weights are younger, bigger and stronger than me. 

So I get a peek at Fox droppings. Like passing the proverbial highway accident, I can’t help but look at the screen. Sometimes, its pretty sickening, even though my gag reflex was conditioned years ago as an on-the-scene blood and guts radio reporter who once stumbled on a severed leg while walking toward a car crash.

This morning my stomach was challenged by Fox contributor Michelle Malkin. I can only surmise by her ranting that momma Malkin was traumatized by a gang of liberal Democrats during pregancy. Daughter Michelle has never met a Democrat she liked. But what the hell? It’s a free country. Therefore, I ?respect? her freedom to distort, as well as Fox’s entitlement to exploit viewers under the banner of presenting “fair and balanced” news coverage.  

What I can’t figure out is why seemingly intelligent people bother to watch. The seem to be choosing ignorance over reality. After all, my neighborhood is not populated by dummies. Most are smart enough to have succeeded in business and the professions. Some read newspapers. I have deduced this because on alternate days my wife and I walk a couple of miles through the community and see local papers in a few driveways. Not many. I guess the subscribers are the folks that raise our precinct vote for Democrats to ten.

My Louisiana neighborhood is not much different than most southern upscale communities (I hate that term because it demeans my redneckedness, a word I made up to compete with Sarah Palin’s contribution to the dictionary for the dumb).

Indeed, prior to returning to Louisiana after a decade as CNN’s senior muckraker, I lived in a gated Georgia golf community where I first began the quest to extend my life span a few minutes by regularly visiting a fitness center. It was my introduction to an early morning dose of Fox “News.” 

I quickly learned that neighbors considered Fox reliable. In fact, many believed former disc jockey Rush Limbaugh was a fountain of political wisdom. Glenn Beck had not yet been released from his straight-jacket.   

Although they were politically misguided, I became so comfortable with the Republican friends in my Georgia neighborhood that I nervously came out of the closet. Despite my trepidation that I would be shunned and/or banished from the community, I was accepted just like a regular person—maybe as a curiosity since I may have been the only Democrat some of my acquaintances ever encountered at close range.

My heroic declaration of tilting left prompted others with similar political views to invite me to a local meeting of Democrats. We secretly gathered in the booth of a Waffle House and shared stories about hiding copies of the New York Times and other subversive material from Republicans. Based on my acceptance, I was able to assure these new friends there was no longer a need to wear paper sacks over their heads if exposed.

Today is the Republican primary run-off in Georgia and I’m certain the lonely Democrats I left behind are rooting for Sarah Palin to influence the outcome. She campaigned in Georgia yesterday for the state’s former Secretary of State Karen Handel, who is the Tea Party supported candidate. Handel holds a narrow lead over former Congressman Nathan Deal. A victory by Handel is expected to ease the way for former Governor Roy Barnes to return to office. The two-term Democrat faces a tougher battle against Deal, who has the support of nutty Newt Gingrich.

If Barnes does eventually win, I may have to piss off neighbors by grabbing the TV remote at the Fitness Center and changing stations. Regardless of past conditioning, I don’t think my gag reflex is strong enough to withstand the spin Fox “News” will put on the election. 

My memoir, Odyssey of a Derelict Gunslinger, is available at amazon.com and independent bookstores. It offers much more than $19.99 worth of laughs. The book is an account of my illustrious (I choose the adjectives) career.

A recent decision by the U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals struck down the Federal Communication Comission’s broadcast indecency policy. The ruling stated that FCC standards covering offensive language are “unconstitutionally vague.”

If the decision is eventually upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court, it could open the door for CNN to finally do something innovative. Take for example all the boring talking heads on the network. Instead of restrained debate when Republicans and Democrats face-off, the language could be more reflective of how political opponents really feel. Something along the lines of former Vice President Dick Cheney’s advice to Democratic Senator Patrick Leahy of Vermont, “Go f–k yourself.”

HBO’s success with programs such as The Sopranos is evidence that real life language attracts viewers. And take it from me, a reporter who spent a good portion of my career covering organized crime, that is the language of mobsters. But since CNN is desperate to regain lost viewers, let’s not rely on dirty words as an attraction. Instead of blondes in short skirts, “Take it off.”

I know this seems stupid. However, my old employer is getting close to cornering the market on stupid decisions—the foremost being its effort to incrementally sink to the level of Fox “News.” The departure of Campbell Brown as a prime time anchor is indicative of CNN’s failure to sustain its legitimacy as a reliable news gathering organization. Replacing her in the time slot is a show co-anchored by a horny former New York Governor and a conservative newspaper columnist. The program should be titled, Crossfire: Part Two. For readers with short memories Crossfire was a long-running CNN screaming match between liberals and conservatives.

Before I express contempt for the new show prior to its debut, I must concede that it has potential if the network takes full advantage of Eliot Spitzer’s more perverse talents. He can book a few of his paramours from the little black book he used while serving as Governor. Please, though, avoid demonstrations of past behavior. I don’t want to see a guy prancing around wearing only black socks as was his habit in Washington D.C. hotel suites.

Hopefully, co-host Kathleen Parker will keep his libido in check. Despite her credentials as a conservative pundit, she is an outspoken feminist. Actually, her politics seem more moderate than conservative—a view that I’m certain is held by Sarah Palin. During the 2oo8 Presidential campaign, Parker wrote many unkind words about the former Governor of Alaska, such as this excerpt from a column following the infamous Katie Couric interview.

Like so many women, I’ve been pulling for Palin, wishing her the best, hoping she will perform brilliantly. I’ve also noticed that I watch her interviews with the held breath of an anxious parent, my finger poised over the mute button in case it gets too painful. Unfortunately, it often does. My cringe reflex is exhausted.

Palin filibusters. She repeats words, filling space with deadwood. Cut the verbiage and there’s not much content there. Here’s but one example of many from her interviews with Sean Hannity: “Well, there is a danger in allowing some obsessive partisanship to get into the issue that we’re talking about today. And that’s something that John McCain, too, his track record, proving that he can work both sides of the aisle, he can surpass the partisanship that must be surpassed to deal with an issue like this.”
(Note: The interview proves that Palin was never a prophet)

When Couric pointed to polls showing that the financial crisis had boosted Obama’s numbers, Palin blustered wordily: “I’m not looking at poll numbers. What I think Americans at the end of the day are going to be able to go back and look at track records and see who’s more apt to be talking about solutions and wishing for and hoping for solutions for some opportunity to change, and who’s actually done it?”

If BS were currency, Palin could bail out Wall Street herself.

The Eliot Spitzer/Kathleen Parker show begins in mid-September. I wish CNN luck in bringing back viewers. But media critics are pretty much unanimous in verdicts that the network is taking steps backward, rather than forward—especially with the pending announcement that tabloid personality Piers Morgan will replace Larry King, who is leaving one step ahead of the arrival of a hearse.

As New Yorker media critic Nancy Franklin pointed out this week, there are no easy answers to CNN’s dilemma of competing with right and left-wing lunatics like Glenn Beck, Sean Hannity and Keith Olberman. And as smart as Spitzer is by his own admission, he is probably 25 IQ points behind fellow liberal Rachel Maddow.

http://www.newyorker.com/arts/critics/television/2010/08/02/100802crte_television_franklin?currentPage=all

I would like to think that CNN’s future is in its past. The New Yorker article reminded me of my ten years with the network when legitimate news stories were dominate. But those days may be long gone.

So I say to CNN, lets see some skin. It will help my IRA.

My memoir, Odyssey of a Derelict Gunslinger, is available at amazon.com and independent bookstores. It offers much more than $19.99 worth of laughs. The book is an account of my illustrious (I choose the adjectives) career.

More often than not in television, smart producers save on-air personalities from stupid gaffes. Such was not the case this week on the Greta Van Sustern show. The Fox “News” talk show host is an attorney smart enough to realize that a facelift was required for her to succeed on TV. I’m not saying she was ugly. Just ordinary—a condition that plagued me, especially in the latter years of my CNN career when droopy jowls began getting in the way of my shoulders. Unfortunately, my facelift failed to bring me fame and fortune.

But enough about me. Let’s cut to the chase and Fox’s monumental goof of mistaking Shirley Sherrod for U.S. Representative Maxine Waters, the California Congresswoman under investigation for an ethics violation. 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/08/03/greta-van-susteren-sick-o_n_668829.html

The inability of Fox “News” to distinguish between Sherrod and Waters seems symbolic. It is a symptom of the networks underlying attitude toward African-Americans, and President Obama in particular. Time and again, Fox anchors, talk show personalities and pundits have been guilty of subtle racism. And in some instances—hello, Glenn Beck—not so subtle racist comments. During lulls in parroting Republican propaganda, the network acts as an outlet for misinformation spread by right-wing blogger Andrew Breitbart, the source of the out-of-context video that set off a storm surrounding Shirley Sherrod.

Fox denies using the video prior to her resignation as the top USDA official in her native state of Georgia. The edited video distorted an inspirational story she told of helping a white farmer. It was changed to a story of revenge. Displaying a level of stupidty equal to that of Glenn Beck, a Department of Agriculture official in Washington demanded Sherrod’s resignation.

Fox’s denial of jumping the gun on the story is almost true. The video did not air before the resignation, although its existence was disclosed on Fox.com and aired on the Bill O’Reilly show, which was taped earlier in the day. In effect, the over-reaction of the Obama Adminstration saved Fox from itself.

The good fortune of the network in escaping Andrew Breitbart’s racism does not change the past. Breitbart is the same guy who produced altered video that pushed the black activist organization, ACORN, into bankruptcy. And a crazy woman who hosts an afternoon talk show on Fox has been obsessed with the failure of the U.S. Department of Justice to collect a judgment against dirt poor Black Panthers in an uncontested civil case involving voter intimidation.

President Obama’s former pastor in Chicago, the Reverend Jeremiah Wright, and an obscure administration ”czar” named Van Jones have also been on the Fox hit list. Jones quit his enviromental czaring job after a couple of minor indiscretions in the 1990’s caused Glenn Beck several weeks of insane wild-eyed drooling. The Reverand Wright got the Fox “News” treatment because of irrational sermons that suggested he was slipping into dementia.

With Fox’s history, its too bad that Greta Van Sustern is victimized by people who can’t tell one African American from another. I could understand Sarah Palin making such a mistake. In Wasilla, Alaska, she rarely saw a black face. Although I only encountered Van Sustern a couple of times when she worked for CNN, my impression was she did not make stupid mistakes.

And speaking of stupidity, I can’t pass up the opportunity to mention Sharron Angle—the Nevada Tea Party heroine, who was supposed to send U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid into retirement. Instead, she seems determined to get him re-elected. Reid’s rescue is aided by Angle’s mouth. Everytime she opens it near a TV camera, he is assured of more votes. 

For example, Angle claims that people collecting unemployment are “spoiled,” supports phasing out Social Security and recently refused to answer questions at a news conference she called. But the topper came during a friendly Fox interview when Angle stated that reporters should only ask questions she wanted to answer and report news that she endorsed.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/08/03/angle-the-press-should-as_n_668521.html

Unlike Greta Van Sustern, Angle can’t blame  blunders on technicians, stupid aides or advisors. All by herself, she has mastered dumbness.

My memoir, Odyssey of a Derelict Gunslinger, is available at amazon.com and independent bookstores. It offers much more than $19.99 worth of laughs. The book is an account of my illustrious (I choose the adjectives) career.

Since the founding of Alcoholics Anonymous 75 years ago and the beginning of Alanon for spouses and families of alcoholics shortly thereafter, the “anonymous” label has been attached to a multitude of 12-step recovery programs. Spin-offs are designed to deal with an array chemical, physical and emotional problems—gambling, sex, eating disorders, addictions to illegal and/or prescription drugs, and an array of struggles that part of the human condition.

Regardless of the ailments, the underlying principles of all the different 12-step programs are pretty much the same. The steps put into practice a value system that is unknown to many—the basics of which include universal tenets of faith, trust, honesty, courage and humility. In AA lingo, incorporating the principles in one’s life leads to a “spiritual awakening.” Not to be confused with a sudden epiphany that is often described as a ”spiritual experience.” Twelve step programs gradually bring about a level of self-honesty. That is why so-called tea partiers need to form a recovery program called, ”Deniers Anonymous.”

From inception, Tea Party members and its candidates have been in a state of denial in responding to any and all criticism. The most recent instance of self-deception is the refusal to acknowledge the NAACP’s claim that the loosely formed organization have been invaded by racists, bigots and hate groups. The denials must be coming from blind and deaf spokespersons. How could they miss an inflammatory road sign in Iowa comparing the President to Hitler and Lenin, or fail to see placards at rallies that are clearly racist, or not accept the word of credible sources that epithets were directed at black congressmen as they walked through a crowd of Tea Party demonstrators? That is the equivalent of my years of denial that alcoholism caused my drunken episodes, delirum tremens, nights in jail, an emotionally abused broken family and eventually led me a failed skid-row audition. 

Vice President Biden refused yesterday to label the Tea Party as racist. And I agree. However, that does not mean the absence of racism among many of its members—a subtle form of which is sometimes more sinister than outward bigotry. Indeed, it is often difficult for people—me included—to detect underlying prejudices. Our failure to see deep-rooted personal bias is troublesome for African Americans. At least they know where they stand with the Klan mentality.

Deniers Anonymous would be particularly helpful for Tea Party candidates, some of whom have denied saying or believing they made statements in radio, television and newspaper interviews. Sharron Angle is an exception. The Republican candidate for the U.S. Senate in Nevada simply avoids mainstream media interviews. She answers only to God, Fox “News” and right-wing reporters in her home state. God apparently is not satisfied with her answers. Senate Majority leader Harry Reid has been resurrected from the graveyard of politically dead incumbents.

Meantime, God has smiled down on Democrats in Kentucky by delivering a Tea Party-supported candidate whose mouth has gotten him in so much trouble that he is no longer a a sure-fire Republican successor to slightly deranged incumbent Jim Bunning. Dr. Rand Paul stumbled in the race coming out of the gate by making 1960’s era comments about civil rights. Like Sharron Angle, he now avoids interviews that could expose him as under-qualified to occupy Bunning’s Senate seat—a level of incompetence that is probably impossible to achieve. Nonetheless, Dr. Paul’s gaffes have made the Kentucky race competitive. Given his explanations that previous statements are not a real reflection of his position on civil rights, Deniers Anonymous would be helpful in allowing Paul to get in touch with his true views.

Former Presidential candidate Ross Perot is the best example of my own experience of encountering political candidates living in a state of denial. Odyssey of a Derelict Gunslinger provides all of the gritty details. If interested, buy the book and be entertained by my journey to a vast fantasy land. In short, my one hour in-depth confrontation with Perot during the 1992 Presidential campaign was his final sit-down interview with an investigative reporter .

I had flashbacks of the Perot debacle sixteen years later while watching Katie Couric interview Sarah Palin—another political figure who defines accountability as being a personal attack. She has become a role model for refusing to do interviews with anyone but the Fox “News” bunch and their ilk. She and all her cohorts at the Republican propaganda networks are excellent candidates for Deniers Anonymous. Especially Glenn Beck.

In AA, we sometimes classify a category of alcoholics as “low bottom drunks.” Having spent time with my feet planted in a gutter, I fit the label. Glenn Beck is a low bottom denier. In the face of overwhelming evidence to the contrary, he consistently denies his racially charged and anti-semitic rants. Washington Post poltical reporter Dana Milbank wrote a column last week that provided astonishing statistics about Beck’s hate-filled lunacy and his influence as a self-proclaimed leader of the Tea Party movement.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/07/16/AR2010071602855.html?hpid=opinionsbox1

If the day comes that someone decides to start a Deniers Anonymous program, Glenn Beck should be among the first recruits. He should have some vague knowledge of recovery based on his past disclosure that he joined AA many years ago. I presume he is still sober today. Outwardly, though, he does not fulfill AA’s promise of restoring its members to sanity. 

That is not surprising. Anyone listening to Beck can easily discern that he knows nothing about the principles that form the basis of 12-step recovery.

My memoir, Odyssey of a Derelict Gunslinger, is available at amazon.com and independent bookstores. It offers much more than $19.99 worth of laughs. The book is an account of my illustrious (I choose the adjectives) career.

After the NCAAP adopted a resolution this week calling on the so-called Tea Party to quit giving aid and comfort to racists and hate groups, Sarah Palin immediately came to the defense of the movement. Bigots? What bigots?

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/washington/2010/07/naacp-tea-party-sarah-palin.html

I am not surprised by Palin’s reaction. As Mayor of a town in which only one resident in 50 was a person of color and serving as Governor of a state with an African American population of less than four percent, she probably believes that a single black face in a crowd of a thousand represents diversity. 

The former Vice Presidential candidate obviously closes her eyes when racially charged placards are displayed. And since her reading is limited to glamour magazines and comic strips, she failed to see the Iowa tea partiers hate filled billboard showing President Obama flanked by Hitler and Lenin. But give the woman credit. She has pyschic powers. Although Palin was not present at the Washington rally when racial epithets were hurled at Congressman John Lewis, she labeled him a liar for making such a claim. Given Lewis standing as one of the most respected civil rights leaders in the nation’s history, I will take his word over the denials of a bunch of redneck bigots.

Anyway, today something new. Following the lead of television, I will occasionally post reruns of previous missives that remain relevant to recent events. I begin with a slightly edited February post titled, The Tea Party Klan…Oops, I Mean Clan.  

I apologize for the gaffe. My slip was intentional. Just wanted to piss off some of my right-wing relatives. I realize that Tea Partiers don’t dress in sheets and pillow cases, although a few wear the garb depicted in accounts of  the original Tea Party in  1773, when colonists in Boston revolted against British imposed taxes. Also let me quickly clarify that Tea Partiers don’t hang people. They only hang signs portraying President Obama as a modern day Hitler, complete with a mustache. 

Fortunately, the placards were not on display during a Tea Party convention at Opryland in Nashville, Tennessee. Nor were any black faces on display. At least as far as I could tell from watching CNN (I know, my former employer is supposed to be a liberal media outlet and would not show African-Americans, even if they were in attendance). It seems, however, that GOP National Chairman Michael Steele would have agreed to be a token black in a sea of white voters, who generally pull the Republican lever. But he had a “conflict.”

I recognize that most tea partiers are not blatant racists. But the movement has attracted a fringe element that undermines civility. Protest groups are a vital part of our nation’s history. They most often gain momentum when the country is in the throes of change and hard times. Indeed, the Ku Klux Klan was founded in 1865 in Pulaski, Tennessee by a small group of defeated Confederate soldiers, and subsequently became a force to deal with politically. Membership peaked at five-million. And despite a murderous and dispicable history, it had sufficient influence to force the 1924 Democratic Presidential Convention to abandon a party plank outlawing the KKK. Today, there are still hate-filled Klan lunatics who wrap themselves in sheets and scream epithets at blacks and other minorities. But the violence has subsided and the Klan’s main role is wearing regalia that amuses those of us with perverted senses of humor. 

More enduring from the standpoint of historial impact on the country is the Share Our Wealth Society, which was founded in 1934 during the depression era by the “Kingfish”—Huey P. Long. Prior to his assassination in 1935, he simultaneously served as U.S. Senator and Louisiana Governor. Relying on national radio broadcasts and a motto, Every Man a King, Long developed a following so large that historians credit him with forcing FDR to expand New Deal proposals out of fear that the Kingfish would  become a third-party candidate in 1936 Presidential election, thus handing over the White House to the GOP. In more contemporary times, off-brand populist movements have also played a role in shaping politics.

As CNN’s senior investigative correspondent in 1992, I was assigned to dig  into the background of Ross Perot—the declared, then undeclared and finally re-declared independent Presidential candidate. His rehearsed sound-bites garnered him eighteen percent of the vote. And according to many experts, cost George Herbert Bush a second term. The results of the election prompted Perot to create Reform Party USA. Its greatest success was electing Jesse Ventura as Governor of Minnesota in 1998.

By the time the party was formed, voters had already tired of Ross Perot’s repetitive blabbing. And I can understand why. In 1992, I spent a miserable hour with the little barking lap dog while gathering material for a segment that aired as part of  a CNN series titled, Democracy in America. In my on-camera interview with Perot, several questions deviated from his tightly scripted message. However, the questions were well-researched and considerably more substantive than Katie Couric asking Sara Palin what newspapers she read.

I thought Perot was going to throw me out of his office when I pointed out the many contradictions in his  manufactured myth of being horseback riding paperboy, who grew up to become a billionaire heroically rescuing his employees from an Iranian prison. Still, Perot was far more coherent than Sarah Palin. Ross could even put a noun, verb and object in a sentence.

Is Palin an inarticulate Perot? Darned if I know. Golly, gee, she just confuses the heck out of me. But there was a woman speaking at the Tea Party convention who claimed to be Sarah Palin. However, it could have been Tina Fey doing her dead-on Saturday Night Live impression.

Sarah Palin reportedly asked for $100,000 to appear at the convention. Goodness gracious alive, that sure is a lot of money. I worry, I mean really, really, really worry that maybe Tina Fey was sub-contracted for $75,000, allowing Ms. Palin to pocket the remainder and spend the weekend in Alaska shooting moose.

Bizarre speculation. But not as bizarre as some of things I hear coming out of the mouths of Tea Party folks—such as questions about President Obama’s birthplace. Aside from the lunatics, I hope the Tea Party anger is being directed at both sides of the aisle. There are plenty of targets in Congress, regardless of  political persuation. Everybody I know, left, right and in the middle agrees with Tea Partiers that partisan gridlock must end.

And I know for certain that tea partiers did not exclude blacks from its convention in Nashville. Reliable sources have told me that several African-Americans were allowed to serve food and clean-up after the meals.

My memoir, Odyssey of a Derelict Gunslinger, is available at amazon.com and independent bookstores. It offers much more than $19.99 worth of laughs. The book is an account of my illustrious (I choose the adjectives) career.

The dumbing down of America continues. In 2008, I expected former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin to go away and devote her time to shooting wolves from helicopters. But like a persistent virus, her simple-minded populist solutions to complex problems spreads among a discontented segment of society, as well as opportunistic politicians and wild-eyed pundits on radio and television.

The latest victim of populism fever is Louisiana’s Bobby Jindal. For nearly three months, Governor “Smarty-Pants” has spent nearly every waking hour in close range of television cameras that are covering the unfolding oil spill tragedy on the Gulf Coast. No doubt, he should be a leader in the battle to save the environmental and economic future of south Louisiana. But somewhere along the way, he seems to have been infected with Sarah Palin disease. Jindal has taken the attitude that he doesn’t need the advice of no stinking scientists, environmentalists and biologists.

For an Ivy League educated Rhodes Scholar, Governor Smarty Pants insistence that he knows more than all the experts seems curious. A mark of intelligence is a willingness to listen. But apparently, the only thing Jindal hears is his soaring fabvorability polls—most recently at 74 percent.

The man who would like to be President could probably add a few more points to his popularity rating by shooting BP executives from helicopters. Come to think about it, though, Palin has already cornered the market on shooting unarmed creatures from above. Maybe Jindal can lure BP officials into the churches where he trolls for votes when not jumping in front of TV cameras. His prey would then have a fighting chance since the Governor’s signature is now on a bill allowing concealed weapons in church sanctuaries. I know there are certain restrictions, but who reads the small print.

Anyway, I’m digressing into silliness. Back to the more serious business of political exploitation of the oil spill disaster. Baton Rouge’s Sunday Advocate has a front page story that does not speak well of LSU scientists, nor the Jindal Administration. An LSU professor and advisor to the state Office of Coastal Protection and Restoration told the newspaper that he and panel members had the same concerns as the federal government about the Governor’s insistence of constructing sand berms and rock jetties to block the flow of oil into marsh lands.

http://www.2theadvocate.com/news/98183534.html

In effect, Louisiana’s coastal “protection” panel of experts remained publicly silent because of the political ramifications. In other words, don’t rock the populist boat of Governor Smarty Pants, even though they believed his plan would have hurt more than help protect the fragile marsh land.

Unrelated to the Gulf oil spill was another weekend news article offering insight about the Sarah Palin syndrome. A study by a bunch of academic pointy-heads concluded that when people accept misinformation as reality, actual facts will not change minds under most circumstances.

http://www.boston.com/news/science/articles/2010/07/11/how_facts_backfire/?page=full

I know the study was probably conducted by liberal elitists. Even so, how about the birthers? Nothing changes their minds. I wish they were an extreme example. Sadly, the viral e-mail that often arrives suggests otherwise. And as a matter of personal corroboration, I have right-wing friends and family members who spit in the face of facts that dispute beliefs and/or opinions that are patently ridiculous. To be fair, the hardcore left is just as hard-headed. Worse, though, are journalists who never allow facts to get in the way of a good story.

As far as I know, the only antidote to protect against the Sarah Palin virus is reading. But too many people gave up that habit long ago in favor of simply listening. And what they listen to is a carrier of the disease of ignorance.

My memoir, Odyssey of a Derelict Gunslinger, is available at amazon.com and independent bookstores. It offers much more than $19.99 worth of laughs. The book is an account of my illustrious (I choose the adjectives) career.

Since we are in an era of confessions, I guess its time for me to ‘fess up to my affair with Tipper Gore. Unlike the unsubstantiated claims of two South Carolina political operatives who claim to have been involved with GOP gubernatorial candidate, Nikki Haley, I have documentary evidence of my Tipper affair—an encounter that ended with deception.

In the early Fall of 1992, I knocked on the door of the Gore residence in a suburb of Washington D.C. Tipper was expecting my visit. Al was not there. He was off somewhere on the campaign trail. Though not eager, Tipper was willing and compliant. I realized that this was not her first time with a stranger. I doubt she even remembers me. Tipper was a celebrity—the wife of the future Vice President. I was a nobody.

She wanted to do it in the living room. And when we finished, she wanted to be certain the room was left undisturbed with no clues left behind of my presence. So we got to it—a quickie that turned out to be rather boring. After my camera crew and producer, moved furniture around in preparation for our interview, I asked the same questions she had routinely answered thoughout the campaign. Nothing startling, except we forgot the precise location of the furniture we moved around. Maybe we got it right. Maybe not. A minor deception. More deceptive was my parting remark. “I enjoyed meeting you, Tipper,” I said while suppressing a yawn.

Actually, the Washington interview was the second time I invaded the privacy of an Al Gore residence. In 1992, I was part of a CNN election team producing a series of documentaries titled Democracy in America. My initial assignment was to do an in-depth investigation of third party candidate Ross Perot. But when I and other journalists pried too deeply, it pissed off Perot to the point that he temporarily dropped out of the race. Hence, a plum assignment of digging into the Perot myth was transformed into the tedium of investigating the background of Senator “Blandness.”

In the course of the Gore reporting, I ended up roaming alone through the future V.P.’s Tennessee home. I had traveled to Tennessee to interview Al Gore’s father—former U.S. Senator Albert (folks didn’t call the old man “Al”) Gore. He had once aspired to be Vice President and we thought it would be a nice touch to show him watching a videotape of his son’s nomination at the Democratic National Convention. However, the Gore’s VCR was broken. As I write in Odyssey of a Derelict Gunslinger (I never miss an opportunity to plug the book, so get use to it), the senior Gore solved the problem. 

“We’ll go get Al’s,” he said. “Al” lived across the hollow about a quarter-mile as the crow flies.

Behind the wheel of his car, the eighty-five-year-old Gore was transformed into a NASCAR driver. We sped down the driveway, raced over a twisting road and zoomed past Secret Service agents at the gate of “Al’s” home with barely a wave. The elder Gore remained in the car, giving me free rein to roam the house in search of a VCR. Had I found porno tapes, marijuana or other incriminating items, it would have been CNN’s big campaign scoop. But the residence was as prosaic as the public perception of its owner.

Admittedly, I failed to conduct a thorough search. But I’m a trustworthy reporter. Which brings me to the subject of trust (what a smooth transition) and the furor about writer Joe McGinnis renting the house next door to Sarah Palin in Wasilla, Alaska. He is writing a book about the former Vice Presidential candidate.

Defending his decision to become a neighbor, McGinnis says “Trust me,” I won’t spy on the Palin’s. There are several people who laugh at his pledge. Foremost is Jeffery McDonald, the former Army Captain and medical doctor convicted in 1979 of murdering his wife and two children in their military home at Fort Bragg, North Carolina.

To aid McGinnis in the research of a book about the murders, the writer was given complete access during the trial to defense discussions and private material. McDonald expected the ensuing book, Fatal Vision, to provide evidence of his innocence. Instead, it depicted him as a sociopath and suggested he was fully capable of the murders. Outraged, McDonald accused McGinnis of fraud. The case was eventually settled out of court for $325,000. I have no opinion on the guilt or innocence of McDonald.

However, Boston civil liberties lawyer Harvey Silverglate made a convincing argument to me that McGinnis distorted many issues surrounding the McDonald case. Harvey—author of Three Felonies a Day, a recently published book exposing prosecutorial misconduct—is a longtime acquaintance and a source who I interviewed for stories in Boston, as well as at CNN. Several years ago, he handled an appeal of the McDonald verdict  and wanted me to do a CNN segment on the McDonald case and/or Joe McGinnis’ alleged distortions. I did a moderate amount of research. But the story had been over-reported at the time, so it ended up on my back-burner.

In recent days, the trustworthiness of McGinnis has again been questioned. Knowing Harvey’s political leanings, I’m certain he will not be offering advice to Sarah Palin. But she is wary of most journalists—the exception being those who walk with a Neanderthal tilt to the right.

Another confession. I never had an affair with Palin.

My memoir, Odyssey of a Derelict Gunslinger, is available at amazon.com and independent bookstores. It offers much more than $19.99 worth of laughs. The book is an account of my illustrious (I choose the adjectives) career.