We’ve seen some controversies this year with war reenacting. There’s Nazi reenacting; the much more ubiquitous cult of Civil War reenacting. But in addition to touching controversy, these wars seem to fall into a relatively narrow span of time. Is there any Vietnam War reenacting? Or thinking more broadly as to time — any time Punic War reenacting in Tunisia or Italy? Agincourt? Siege of Vienna? Crimean War? I guess suspect there might be some Napoleonic War reenacting.
In all seriousness, I’m curious which eras of conflict do draw a reenacting crowd and which ones it occurs to no one ever to relive. My hunch is that the phenomenon covers a relatively narrow band of time in which regularized uniforms and small arms played key roles. But this is pure speculation. Who can enlighten me?
Sharron Angle tells Latino students she’s really concerned about the Canadian border too.
Yesterday we noted the NBC News report that South Florida Tea Party fav (FL-22) Allen West has been chumming up to “the Outlaws”, a motorcycle gang tied to murder, arson, drug running and various other pastimes.
Now in an interview with The Hotline West responds that the whole thing is a nonstarter because if Lisa Myers had done “her research, she’d know that the Outlaws do not accept blacks, Jews or gays.”
So even if they kill people and run drugs, they won’t let blacks like Allen West join them in doing it. So end of story.
Earlier this afternoon I noted this boffo, over-the-top ad Jack Conway just debuted against Rand Paul, calling Paul’s religiosity into question. And it’s hit a nerve. Rand’s campaign has hit back claiming “Jack Conway stepped way over the line and released a shameful and despicable ad that questions Dr. Paul’s Christian faith.” Paul himself declared: “I am a pro-life Christian, and I have never written or spoken anything that would indicate otherwise.”
The claims contained in Conway’s ad are somewhere between cartoonish, outrageous and hard to refute. (It’s not easy to explain how you can be a devotee of Ayn Rand and a “pro-life Christian.”) But watching the ad you get the distinct sense that Jack Conway has not reconciled himself to losing this race. Read More
Pentagon sends memo to members of the Armed Forces telling them to stay in the closet a bit longer, notwithstanding the court yelling stopping enforcement of DADT. Read the memo here.
Jack Conway’s trailing Rand Paul down in Kentucky. But he’s not out of it yet. And there are some signs he’s starting to turn the corner. (The current TPM Poll Average is Paul 46.9%, Conway 41.7%.) But this ad … man, this ad. Whew. To be clear, I’m not saying it won’t, or couldn’t, be effective. But it registered for me as somewhere between a hokey Tea Party ad and an SNL spoof. It takes off on the ‘Aqua Buddha’ controversy.
Video below the fold. Just watch. Read More
Forget paying rent with campaign money. Now she can buy the whole house. Christine O’Donnell’s campaign raises $3.8 million in one month.
Okay, first we had a Tea Partier who was coven-curious. Then we had one in Ohio who likes dressing up in an SS uniform and going out in the forest and pretending he’s a Nazi named Reinhardt. Now NBC has found another one down in South Florida who’s been hanging out with a motorcycle gang called the Outlaws who are involved in drug running, arson and murder. But hey, who’s judging.
And unlike Christine O’Donnell and Rich Iott, this guy, Allen West, has a pretty good shot at winning.
If the Dems can just surface a couple dozen more of these stories in October, we could be looking at Speaker Pelosi next year.
On the other hand, drug-running biker gangs are in the Constitution.
Want a heads up on what’s coming down the pike on the voter suppression front for November 2nd.
Our Ryan J. Reilly looks at the “voter integrity” seminars the Republican National Lawyers Association is holding around the country.
State insurance commissioners crack down on insurance companies who say they’re going to stop offering kids-only insurance policies in response to the new regulations included in Health Care Reform law.