The Good Stuff

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Sat 27 Dec 2008 23:12

RNC chair ’shocked and appalled’ by Obama parody

Posted by: T2M
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By NATASHA T. METZLER, The Asshole Press

WASHINGTON — The chairman of the Republican National Committee said Saturday he was "shocked and appalled" that one of his potential successors had sent committee members a CD this Christmas featuring a 2007 song called "Barack the Magic Negro."

In the wake of RNC Chairman Robert M. "Mike" Duncan’s admonishment, former Tennessee GOP leader Chip Saltsman said that party leaders should stand up to criticism over sending out the song on a CD. He earlier defended the song as one of several "lighthearted political parodies" that have aired on Rush Limbaugh’s radio show.

Saltsman, who managed former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee’s presidential campaign, is seeking the RNC chairmanship.

A spokesman for President-elect Barack Obama, Ben LaBolt, declined to comment on the matter.

The ditty by conservative comedian Paul Shanklin refers to a March 2007 opinion piece in the Los Angeles Times by David Ehrenstein headlined "Obama the ‘Magic Negro.’" In the article, Ehrenstein argued that voting for Obama helped white voters alleviate guilt over racial wrongs in the past.

Shanklin’s parody is sung to the music of "Puff, the Magic Dragon." Among other Shanklin tunes on the 41-track CD that Saltsman sent with a Christmas message: "I Can Talk Like a Coal Miner’s Daughter," "Love Client #9" and "Down on the Farm with Al Gore."

"The 2008 election was a wake-up call for Republicans to reach out and bring more people into our party," Duncan said in a statement. "I am shocked and appalled that anyone would think this is appropriate as it clearly does not move us in the right direction."

In a statement that followed Duncan’s, Saltsman said: "Liberal Democrats and their allies in the media didn’t utter a word about David Ehrenstein’s irresponsible column in the Los Angeles Times last March. But now, of course, they’re shocked and appalled by its parody on the ‘Rush Limbaugh Show.’

"I firmly believe that we must welcome all Americans into our party and that the road to Republican resurgence begins with unity, not division. But I know that our party leaders should stand up against the media’s double standards and refuse to pander to their desire for scandal," he said.

The Hill, a Capitol Hill newspaper that published a story about the CD on Friday, reported that Saltsman said members of the GOP committee have "the good humor and good sense" to see Shanklin’s tunes as "lighthearted political parodies."

 

Sat 27 Dec 2008 03:43

Vilseck tank confirmed as ‘Cobra King’

Posted by: T2M
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 boggess5.jpg
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By Jennifer H. Svan, Stars and Stripes

A World War II-era M4 Sherman tank on display at Rose Barracks in Vilseck, Germany has been confirmed to be the “Cobra King,” the first tank to reach besieged American troops defending Bastogne from the Germans’ counterattack during the Battle of the Bulge.

U.S. Army Europe officials announced the discovery Friday in a news release timed to coincide with the Dec. 26, 1944, anniversary of the Company C, 37th Tank Battalion’s famous arrival in Bastogne.

The tank was identified by matching serial and registration numbers, a project worked jointly by historians with U.S. Army Europe and the U.S. Army’s Patton Museum of Cavalry and Armor in Ft. Knox, Ky.

Officially designated as an M4A3E2 Assault Tank, the Sherman “Jumbo” was built in mid-1944 at the Detroit Tank Arsenal. Only 254 of the tanks were built. Because of the short run, and because they were on a built-up hull, all 254 tanks were issued serial numbers in sequential order, according to Army officials.

When U.S. Army registration numbers were assigned to the vehicles, they too were issued in sequential order, allowing historians to confirm a direct match with the two sets of numbers, according to the Army release.

Some photographs of the antiquated tank can be found online.

In what appears to be an old black and white photo from World War II posted on the photo-sharing Web site Flickr, the tank is marked with large letters “First in Bastogne,” under which the smaller words “Cobra King” are legible.

The five men in the photo aren’t identified.

According to the Army’s release, “Cobra King” was under the command of 1st Lt. Charles P. Boggess, commander of Company C, 37th Tank Battalion.

Other crew members were Pvt. Hubert S. Smith, driver; Cpl. Milton Dickerman, gunner; Pvt. Harold Hafner, bow machine gunner; and loader Pvt. James G. Murphy.

“We have not yet determined if any of these men still survive …” Army officials said in the release.

Army historians recognize the “Cobra King” as a significant piece of World War II history for its role in the Battle of the Bugle, the powerful German counterattack in December 1944 in Belgium’s Ardennes forest. In a last-ditch effort, Hitler unsuccessfully tried to divide Allied forces in an attempt to bring about a negotiated peace in Germany’s favor.

In his 1946 narrative “Bastogne: The First Eight Days,” then-Col. S.L.A. Marshall wrote: “ …at 1650 First Lieutenant Charles P. Boggess, commanding officer of Company C, 37th Tank Battalion, drove the first vehicle from the 4th Armored Division to within the lines of the 326th Airborne Engineer Battalion, 101st Division, of the Bastogne forces. This was the beginning. The German encirclement was now finally broken, though some days would pass before the American lines to the south were again firm and several weeks of fighting would ensue before the siege of Bastogne was finally lifted.”

The tank is expected to go on display at the National Museum of the U.S. Army, scheduled to open in 2013 outside of Washington, D.C.

 

Fri 26 Dec 2008 14:02

Aisle 16:Dog Shoplifts Bone from Store on Christmas

Posted by: Malcontent
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Somethin’ stinks about this whole story. The alleged wild dog looks clean and well fed. No one in the store appears to be too concerned that there is an unaccompanied dog in the store and the wild dog seemed pretty familiar with the store. One would think that a wild dog would sniff out a t-bone steak first instead of heading to the canned dog food aisle to grab a rawhide bone. While it’s a cute story, I think we’ve been had.

 

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