4463 replies to this topic

[Mr. Roboto]

Gawd help us all...

[Its Cousin]

Gawd help us all...

 

Yes, I think a bit of Scripture is appropriate on this day...

 

Luke 23:34 Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do. And they parted his raiment, and cast lots.

[Timothy]

[Mr. Roboto]

Twitter has me rolling today...

 

[Timothy]

that kid makes me think of the Omen movie!

[freedom78]

Twitter has me rolling today...

 

 

Actually, he looks a little like and makes the same faces as the kid playing Satan in Salem. 

 

 

So...anyone go ahead and suicide it out over night? 

[Mr. Roboto]

Well at least something good happened yesterday, a Neo Nazi fuck got punched in the face live on TV. So we have that. 

 

[freedom78]

I"m not sure we need even that level of political violence.  However, I do support hit getting punched, if only for the haircut.

[freedom78]

Trump Press Secretary Slams Media Over Inauguration Crowd Size Coverage

by Phil Helsel

 

President Donald Trump's press secretary on Saturday slammed what he called inaccurate tweets and reporting that suggested the size of the crowd at Trump's inauguration was smaller than at past occasions.

 

Sean Spicer in his first briefing since the inauguration also warned "we're going to hold the press accountable" and suggested Trump doesn't need the media.

"As long as he serves as the messenger for this incredible movement he will take his message directly to the American people, where his focus will always be," Spicer said.

 

Spicer, who did not take questions from reporters, claimed some photos were "intentionally framed in a way, in one particular tweet, to minimize the enormous support that had gathered on the National Mall," without naming an example.

 

"These attempts to lessen the enthusiasm of the inauguration are shameful and wrong," Spicer said.

 

A widely-distributed image from above showed big gaps in the crowd on the National Mall on Inauguration Day. Spicer said white floor coverings to protect the grass "had the effect of highlighting any areas where people were not standing, while in years past the grass eliminated this visual." He also said security measures prevented crowds from quickly accessing the Mall.

This pair of photos shows a view of the crowd on the National Mall at the inaugurations of President Barack Obama, above, on Jan. 20, 2009, and President Donald Trump, below, on Jan. 20, 2017. The photo above and the screengrab from video below were both shot shortly before noon from the top of the Washington Monument. AP

 

Spicer claimed of Trump's inauguration, "this was the largest audience to ever witness an inauguration, period, both in person and around the globe." He did not provide any evidence.

The Associated Press published a photo and image from video shot from the top of the Washington Monument during Trump's Friday inauguration and Obama's 2009 inauguration — both captured from the monument shortly before noon during each event — that appear very different.

 

An estimated 1.8 million people gathered to watch Obama, the nation's first African-American president, be inaugurated in 2009. Spicer cited the fact that the National Park Service doesn't release crowd estimates in disputing reports. The Park Service stopped the practice after the Million Man March in 1995.

 

In the U.S., Nielsen estimates 31 million viewers watched TV coverage of Trump's inauguration, but that's less than Barack Obama's and Ronald Reagan's first inaugurations, The Associated Press reported.

The Park Service said the coverings are translucent decking to protect the National Mall turf, part of a five-year, $40 million project that was completed in 2016.

Spicer said "This was the first time in our nation's history that floor coverings have been used to protect the grass on the Mall."

 

The Park Service said they have been used during other events at the Mall since 2011. Photos show the panels were used on parts of the Mall for Obama's 2013 inauguration.

 

Ari Fleischer, White House press secretary under President George W. Bush, suggested in a Tweet that the strong push back against the crowd size reporting was coming from the top.

"This is called a statement you're told to make by the President. And you know the President is watching," Fleischer said on Twitter.

 

In a Saturday visit to the Central Intelligence Agency headquarters in Langley, Virginia, Trump also complained about reports on the crowd size and called the media "dishonest."

http://www.nbcnews.c...wd-size-n710351

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This is a small thing, but I find it remarkably reminiscent of something you'd expect from a dictator.  People didn't show up, plain and simply, but that doesn't fit with the narrative, so we have the press secretary simply lying and arguing that the media is making it all up, which is preposterous.  Again, a small thing in relation to actual policies, but it shows the remarkable authoritarian nature of this presidency, which can't accept when truth doesn't fit their narrative.  The emperor has no clothes and we all know it.

[Mr. Roboto]

 

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This is a small thing, but I find it remarkably reminiscent of something you'd expect from a dictator.  People didn't show up, plain and simply, but that doesn't fit with the narrative, so we have the press secretary simply lying and arguing that the media is making it all up, which is preposterous.  Again, a small thing in relation to actual policies, but it shows the remarkable authoritarian nature of this presidency, which can't accept when truth doesn't fit their narrative.  The emperor has no clothes and we all know it.

 

 

 

It's along the lines of bringing all his gang to his press conference to laugh and cheer. I thought that was weird and dictatorish. 

 

Edit: I guess they had a special press conference to address media "lying about the crowd sizes." Jeez. 

[Its Cousin]

These motherfuckers are using the tactics of the Soviets, Maoists, and the ones that are still used by North Korea, today-- spew the most blatant absurd bullshit expecting everyone to believe it.

 

Sad thing is, a lot of the Trumptards do believe it.

[PERM BANNED]

Eh, it's incredibly petty and I'm worried what kind of access the press will have. But you can't fault Trump for being upset the media always casts him fiom the negative side. I'm not saying Trump doesn't do a lot of shit that is infantile, but look at this:

http://ew.com/tv/201...ration-ratings/

They could do a story about how Trump was the most watched inauguration across all media platforms. Or they Trump's inauguration was only second to Obama's in 2009. But they choose to run 2 photo comparing the amount of people on the mall. That being said, Obama got a noble prize just for being elected. He was the first black president. Of course there was going to be an unseen frenzy of support rallying behind his election, it was historic for so many reasons and the excitement behind him was tangible. No one will top Obama's 2009 inauguration anytime soon.

I have no problem with the press secretary keeping the press respectful and honest, but he shouldn't be berating them and passing off obvious bullshit.

[Mr. Roboto]

[freedom78]

Eh, it's incredibly petty and I'm worried what kind of access the press will have. But you can't fault Trump for being upset the media always casts him fiom the negative side. I'm not saying Trump doesn't do a lot of shit that is infantile, but look at this:

http://ew.com/tv/201...ration-ratings/

They could do a story about how Trump was the most watched inauguration across all media platforms. Or they Trump's inauguration was only second to Obama's in 2009. But they choose to run 2 photo comparing the amount of people on the mall. That being said, Obama got a noble prize just for being elected. He was the first black president. Of course there was going to be an unseen frenzy of support rallying behind his election, it was historic for so many reasons and the excitement behind him was tangible. No one will top Obama's 2009 inauguration anytime soon.

I have no problem with the press secretary keeping the press respectful and honest, but he shouldn't be berating them and passing off obvious bullshit.

 

I don't mind checking the media at times, but they really weren't all that dishonest.  MSNBC was discussing it, first and foremost, because Trump said he'd have record numbers turn out.  Checking politicians' statements is the news media's job, so that's totally fair game.  They also correctly noted that Obama's candidacy was historic and could also benefit from his inauguration being in an urban area, where huge numbers of racial minorities could turn out without making the sorts of travel arrangements that you or I would have to.  All that feels pretty "fair and balanced" to me.

 

But as I said, this is a minor issue.  In four years, I won't be judging Trump on crowd size.  I'm more concerned with it from a propaganda perspective, where they make crazy statements and then argue the truth of them, where they won't take questions from CNN because it's "fake news" (while a dude from Breitbart sits in the West Wing...).  Pushing aside certain media...that feels Putin-esque.  Ostracizing certain media is a significant first step toward favoring other media outlets, who them benefit from that favoritism and need the access...quickly becoming state media, which I think you and I would both strongly oppose.  As much as I think the press does a shitty job at times, that's less a commentary on traditional news media and more a commentary on the talking heads, opinion media that seems to have come to power.  But I wouldn't put the WHPC into that category.

[Timothy]