C’mon!
Published by Mike Stark December 15th, 2006 in UncategorizedNow renegades are the people with their own philosophies
They change the course of history
Everyday people like you and me
We’re the renegades we’re the people
With our own philosophies
We change the course of history
Everyday people like you and me
C’mon
“Renegades of Funk“, Rage Against the Machine
So I met with my lawyer a couple of days ago. I asked him if I could talk about the things that happened last Halloween (the day of the tackle) and then a few days later out at Weyers Caves Airport (on the day of the dive). He said it’s fine for me to talk about those events.
I don’t have a lot to say about the legal machinations because as of right now, there are none. We’re still weighing our options. Hopefully I’ll have news on that front shortly after the new year.
But…
With permission to talk about the events, I thought I’d write a little retrospective about what I think the lessons are. The idea came to me this morning after I dropped my wife and baby off. I had a mix cd in the stereo - one I hadn’t listened to in ages. “Renegades of Funk” came on and sprung the idea for this blog post.
Because still, almost two months later, I can scarcely believe it.
Everyday people like you and me…
We change the course of history
It is amazing enough that George Allen is no longer the junior Senator from Virginia, but to think that this seat is the one the flipped control of the Senate from Republicans to Democrats is simply mid-blowing.
The election turned on fewer than 4,000 votes. Webb won by fewer than 8,000, which means if 4,000 voted the other way, we’d still be facing another six years of George Allen and at least two more years of a Republican controlled Senate.
Now I’m not sure how much the events on 10/31 or 11/5 had to do with the outcome. I wouldn’t be surprised if the contemptible bullying flipped a few thousand votes. Maybe enough to change the election result, maybe not.
But I know for sure that August 29, 2006 changed history. That was the day I asked the then Senator Allen if he ever used the n-word. He flat out denied it. Even after being pressed - ”Never in your life?” I asked - Allen said, “No”. Big mistake.
Within three weeks the rest of the press caught up with me. Starting with a report from Salon Magazine and continuing for weeks after, it seemed that every day another former classmate or associate came forward to say, oh yes, indeed, the young George Allen used the n-word - and he used it like he owned it. He was a proud racist.
Anyway… I don’t want to make this post about Allen’s racism. We’ve beaten that dead horse for all it’s worth.
I wanted to write about how easy all of this was.
Everyday people like you and me…
I still can’t believe it. I showed up for a publicly announced lunch. I paid $20. I shook his hand while I stood in the buffet line waiting for food. I sat politely and quietly in a room while he gave a speech. When the speech finished, my knee started to shake a little bit, but I knew this was an opportunity that I had to take. I couldn’t spend the twenty bucks and come away with nothing - my wife woulda killed me. So I approached him and reintroduced myself. And then I asked the question that, in a very real way, well…
We change the course of history
Allen probably spent $30,000,000 on his losing campaign. I spent, maybe, $40 on gas, coffee and the lunch bill.
Don’t take this the wrong way - I take nothing from the many thousands of people that worked on Webb’s campaign - or Tester’s or McCaskill’s or Menendez’s or Casey’s or Brown’s. Each and every effort was vital. Instead, I’m trying to point out that 95% of life is showing up. Sometimes you get lucky, but you never do if you stay home to watch Chris Matthews push the corporate agenda on MSNBC.
So yeah, once again - jump in the mix. Because you know, it’s…
Everyday people like you and me…
We change the course of history
23 Responses to “C’mon!”
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George Allen lost solely as a result of the drop in his approval rating after the youtube “macaca” film was shown on national TV. Period.
“George Allen lost solely as a result of the drop in his approval rating after the youtube “macaca” film was shown on national TV. Period.”
Wow. Since you said “Period.” you must be right. I guess all those n-word stories had no effect on turnout in Northern Virginia…
Mike, you made a difference, however you had a lot of help from the Washington Post and MSNBC. Chris Mathews overcovered “Macaca” for sixty days straight. I still thought Allen would win up to the last minute.
At the risk of sucking up to the host, I say Mike thanks for serving in the Marines. I disagree with you politically and I thought you were over-the-top in the wrestling incident but thus far I believe you value freedom of speech. I wanted Allen to win, however I respect Webb’s military service as well as his son’s.
My right wing views are censored on some other sites and I have been banned from other left-wing blog sites when I attempt to post. So far you have let most of my posts stand. I respect that.
I believe you realize that (you want to be President one day) you still have to win the debate with ideas, words and humor. Not censorship and outshouting your opponent as others attempt to do.
the take down was covered almost as much as macaca, and had to have an effect on the election
mike was the first to bring up racism in this contest….allen then stuck his foot in his mouth time and time again
but mike gets mucho kudos for having the balls to put himself up there
one man or woman can make a difference
hey dixie:
thanks for the decent words. sometimes politics gets in the way of uttering such sentiments, so it’s refreshing when you see it.
the way I see things is that I’m a front-line combatant in the war of ideas. I do my best to attack and humiliate propogandists and fools. I go looking for the fight. And if I’m gonna look for a fight, the last thing I’m gonna do is shut out the opponents. That’s what O’Reilly, Limbaugh and Wilkow do and it’s cowardly.
I’ve seen other sites moderate comments and shut out trolls. for this site, though, I made the decision from day one that I’d only rarely rein the combat in. The only posts I’ve deleted are those that I thought were gratuitously racist, violent or anti-semetic. I delete that garbage for two reasons: 1) stupid crap like that really doesn’t add anything at all to the conversation. Going back to the combat metaphor, it’s as if somebody farted in the trenches. Why keep it around if you can light a match? and 2) it’s my site and what I allow is, in some minor way, a reflection upon me, at least to the extent that I’ve seen in the media when idiots try to attribute comments to the blogger.
So yeah, I set limits, but they aren’t that stringent.
And what can I say? If you don’t mind the abuse, self-flagellate all you want
Did you catch what Rage Against the Machine was all about?
It has to start somewhere
It has to start somehow
No better place then here
No better time then NOW
Same thing The Matrix movies were all about.
Same thing Star Wars was about.
Same thing V For Vendetta was about.
Same thing Rocky was about.
Same thing Superman the Movie I was about. Truth, Justice, and the _______ way.
The Little Guy rising up against Tyranny.
Mike…did you catch the 109th congress roundup on the Daily Show? They did an “Animal House” parody of the “what happened to” ending of the movie with the departing republican leadership. TDS showed the “macaca” tape of Allen, frose frame and the subtitle read;
George Allen:
Went on to marry a macacan
Divorced the macacan last year;
Currently dating a Jew.
They showed Santorum and subtitled,
Made millions bottling and selling the frothy substance that bears his name.
They showed Katherine Harris and subtitled,
Still haunts the nightmares of little children.
THey have the clip at crooksandliars.com if you are interested.
BTW, Great job! - Jeff
Mike - you are an inspiration to many of us. Howard Stern still plays the audio clip of you calling Bill “I’m going to call Fox Security” O’Lielly quite often.
I absolutely believe that your actions had an impact on helping Macaca get defeated.
Wishing you and your family a nice holiday.
As I said above, it was the youtube “macaca” incident that caused Sh*t For Brains - er, I mean George Allen, to lose the election.
It seems that Salon.com agrees with me, as they have named Sidarth their person of the year.
It was Sidarth’s “macaca” tape that caused Allen to lose. Stated differently, If the public had not seen the macaca tape, then Allen would still be in office today. It was that tape that had so much influence on the public’s perception of Allen, and enabled people to see first hand how abusive Allen really is.
I know you want all the glory Mike, but it is Sidarth and his humility that influenced the race.
Anon,
Face it….G. Felix stepped in shit four or five times, including the “macaca” incident. They include denial of using the “n” word, which was raised by Mike early in the campaign cycle, the Macaca incident, which lasted almost three weeks in the news cycle because of flubbed damage control by Allen and his staff, the “How dare you call me a jew” debate incident, followed by “Yes, I actually am part Jewish, but not in the bad way because mom made great porkchops” flip-flop, the silly press release attempting to make a tempest in a teapot out of selective excerpts from Webb’s fictional novels, and then the campaign reaction to the assault incident involving Mike carried through election day.
All in all, it was a terribly run campaign, and it was stupid of Allen to try to use coded language to pander to voters the Kentucky border region, thinking it could be hidden from the NoVA voters, who would be turned off by the “good ole boy supports segregation and states rights and celebrates confederate heritage” nod-and-a-wink tactic. It flopped.
Sixty days prior to the election, Allen enjoyed a 16 point lead over Webb. “Macaca” probably cancelled as many as 10 of those points out. The other 6 resulted in a combination of errors combined with a stellar performance by Webb in his first campaign for public office.
You need to remember….this race ended with a 1/2 point spread…less than 6,000 votes out of 2.2 million for the entire state of Virginia….that means a flip of just over 3,000 people decided the race. Absent any one of the factors listed above, Allen would have probably pulled it off.
No one person is solely responsible for Felix’s metioric fall, but then again, the absence of any one person involved could have changed the landscape…Whether you like it or not, PAH-LEEZE…at least be honest…let’s give proper credit where credit is due….Considering the closeness of the race, Mike did play a significant part in the outcome. You are just too dense or too hurt by the outcome to recognize it.
Hey Anon,
I’d say Mike had an effect. Statistically Allen’s polls became increasingly volatile (towards the downside) in the days following Mike’s “chats” with him, although it’s difficult to attribute that volatility to any one specific cause.
But this misses the point, Anon.
I don’t think Mike is trying to claim “glory”, as you put it. He’s trying to say that any effort can make a difference. And even if it’s a small difference, it can be the difference between winning and losing.
Frank nails it. Mike is an inspiration, no matter what your politics (and I’m much more libertarian leaning than, I think, he is) - he demonstrates that one can make a difference in an increasingly voter-hostile, only money can buy power world.
I don’t think you can give all of the credit to only one person. We had no shot of winning this election until people like Sidarth and Mike Stark put their efforts into the race. Also, having a great candidate like Jim Webb doesn’t hurt either.
As for Rage Against the Machine, they are my favorite band of all time. Three of the band’s members are now in a band called “Audioslave.” Although they’re not as political, they’re still pretty good. For those interested, I would recommend listening to their song “Wide Awake,” which deals with the aftermath of hurricane Katrina.
Jeff: yeah - somebody sent me the link to the C&L - I love it when they use the word “santorum” properly…
and yeah, everyone else that understood what I was trying to say in this post, thanks for helping me out. Of course I’m not claiming credit for Webb’s victory - I’m saying that I was a part of it. Of course Siddharth’s video had a bigger impact than anything I did - hell, I probably wouldn’t have asked the n-word question if he hadn’t used the macaca slur a coupla weeks previous…
anyway, my last final is Thursday. I might try to make a call or two over the winter break, so stay tuned…
Mike - thanks so much for all of your courage. The Macaca incident could be solely credited for Webb’s victory if it had been more of a landslide.
However, given the closeness of the race, whatever votes you helped turn over made all the difference.
Hey Mike — you’re every anti-wingnut’s hero! I hope that guy who tackled you gets sued.
Media in American Culture dealing with FASCISM:
V for Vendetta
Equilibrium
Star Wars - The (American) Empire
Apocolyse Now - Francis Ford Copolla
System of a Down - “We Don’t Live in a FASCIST Nation”
*** Pistols - “God Save the Queen from this FASCIST REGIME”
Pink Floyd - The Wall
Rage Against the Machine
Genesis/ Disturbed - Land of Confusion
The Doors - Jim Morrison
John Lennon - Revolution / Xmas (War is Over)
1984 Orwell
Fahrenheit 451
Brave New World
Batman: Dark Knight Strikes Again by Frank Miller.
prisonplanet.com
whatreallyhappened.com
Project for the New American Century
14 Points of FASCISM:
Powerful and Continuing Nationalism
Fascist regimes tend to make constant use of patriotic mottos, slogans, symbols, songs, and other paraphernalia. Flags are seen everywhere, as are flag symbols on clothing and in public displays.
Disdain for the Recognition of Human Rights
Because of fear of enemies and the need for security, the people in fascist regimes are persuaded that human rights can be ignored in certain cases because of “need.” The people tend to look the other way or even approve of torture, summary executions, assassinations, long incarcerations of prisoners, etc.
Identification of Enemies/Scapegoats as a Unifying Cause
The people are rallied into a unifying patriotic frenzy over the need to eliminate a perceived common threat or foe: racial, ethnic or religious minorities; liberals; communists; socialists, terrorists, etc.
Supremacy of the Military
Even when there are widespread domestic problems, the military is given a disproportionate amount of government funding, and the domestic agenda is neglected. Soldiers and military service are glamorized.
Rampant Sexism
The governments of fascist nations tend to be almost exclusively male-dominated. Under fascist regimes, traditional gender roles are made more rigid. Opposition to abortion is high, as is homophobia and anti-gay legislation and national policy.
Controlled Mass Media
Sometimes the media is directly controlled by the government, but in other cases, the media is indirectly controlled by government regulation, or sympathetic media spokespeople and executives. Censorship, especially in war time, is very common.
Obsession with National Security
Fear is used as a motivational tool by the government over the masses.
Religion and Government are Intertwined
Governments in fascist nations tend to use the most common religion in the nation as a tool to manipulate public opinion. Religious rhetoric and terminology is common from government leaders, even when the major tenets of the religion are diametrically opposed to the government’s policies or actions.
Corporate Power is Protected
The industrial and business aristocracy of a fascist nation often are the ones who put the government leaders into power, creating a mutually beneficial business/government relationship and power elite.
Labor Power is Suppressed
Because the organizing power of labor is the only real threat to a fascist government, labor unions are either eliminated entirely, or are severely suppressed.
Disdain for Intellectuals and the Arts
Fascist nations tend to promote and tolerate open hostility to higher education, and academia. It is not uncommon for professors and other academics to be censored or even arrested. Free expression in the arts is openly attacked, and governments often refuse to fund the arts.
Obsession with Crime and Punishment
Under fascist regimes, the police are given almost limitless power to enforce laws. The people are often willing to overlook police abuses and even forego civil liberties in the name of patriotism. There is often a national police force with virtually unlimited power in fascist nations.
Rampant Cronyism and Corruption
Fascist regimes almost always are governed by groups of friends and associates who appoint each other to government positions and use governmental power and authority to protect their friends from accountability. It is not uncommon in fascist regimes for national resources and even treasures to be appropriated or even outright stolen by government leaders.
Fraudulent Elections
Sometimes elections in fascist nations are a complete sham. Other times elections are manipulated by smear campaigns against or even assassination of opposition candidates, use of legislation to control voting numbers or political district boundaries, and manipulation of the media. Fascist nations also typically use their judiciaries to manipulate or control elections.
Just a nitpick about the song ‘Renegades of Funk’ It was originally done by Afrikka Bumbaata and recorded by R.A.T.M. as a cover. Good version, imo. But yeah, man “Everyday people like you and me” There should be a footnote or at least mention of your ballsy questioning of George Allen. Kudos and I hope all goes well.
A few more references to American FASCISM:
A Scanner Darkly
Easy Rider
Network - 70’s
Queensryche - Empire
Living Colour - Cult of Personality
Metallica - One
Tyranny of the Majority - Toqueville
Marvel’s CIVIL WAR series (out now!) - I wonder why!!
DMZ (out now!)
FASCIST REGIMES IN AMERICA
Bush/Cheney
NIXON
Lyndon B. Johnston
McKinley
McCarthy
Lincoln
Salem Witch Trials
After all these years I have finally understood what these movies and songs were about. Fascism would NEVER happen in America! Wink wink.
“Hey, Teachers. Leave them kids alone.” - Another Brick in the Wall
So… which pill will you be taking Neo? The blue or the red?
hey mike,
i heard your exchange with the heil one today…when are you gonna post it?
Hey Mike
Heard you today. Ha ha! Loved it. Brave, brave Sean. “The only host that will let you on the air anymore.” What a dingus! Keep crying about the dems having no plans in the war on terror, the war in Iraq, securing our borders…blah, blah, blah. What did your lords do about these issues for the last 5 years?
I meant yesterday….duh.