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Want More Jobs Outsourced Overseas? Romney’s Your Man!
Mitt Romney Waves Goodbye To American Jobs
Last week The Washington Post published an article about Mitt Romney’s years at Bain Capital. In short, it destroyed Romney’s oft repeated claim that, as the result of his private sector business experience, he knows how to create jobs. Indeed, the article shows that while running Bain Capital, Mitt Romney invested in companies which contributed to a vast outsourcing of American jobs to foreign countries.
The article spotlighted the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filing of six companies and reported that Computer Software, Inc. outsourced its call centers to Europe and Japan, Stream International Inc. shipped its call center operations to Asia and Europe, Modus Media Inc. outsourced jobs to Australia, Europe and Asia, GT Bicycle Inc. shifted manufacturing to China, SMTC moved jobs to Ireland and Mexico and McKinsey Global Institute reported that it shifted about $20 billion of its information technology work out of the United States.
This revelation of the extent to which Romney’s Bain Capital contributed to American job losses is very bad news for the campaign which states that his private sector experience proves he knows how to create jobs in America (or as Romney says, “Amercia“). On the contrary, it reinforces the undeniable fact that during his only stint as an elected executive in the public sector (as Governor of Massachusetts) his state was ranked a lowly 47th in the nation in job creation during an economic boom.
The Romney campaign is now in “full damage control” mode. It unsuccessfully attempted to counter the job outsourcing news last weekend. First, spokesperson Andrea Saul said, “This is a fundamentally flawed story that does not differentiate between domestic outsourcing versus offshoring nor versus work done overseas to support U.S. exports. Mitt Romney spent 25 years in the real world economy so he understands why jobs come and they go.” The campaign also sent spokesperson Ed Gillespie out to the Sunday morning talking head shows. While appearing on CNN’s “State of the Union”, Gillespie referred to The Washington Post articles as “a breathless headline over a baseless story.” Gillespie also unsuccessfully attempted to imply that Bain Capital did not “offshore” jobs overseas, but “outsourced” them to other places within the United States. He said, “I think the reporter confused the notion of outsourcing — which happens all the time when you don’t do all of your services in house, you go outside — to moving jobs offshore.”
Neither Saul nor Gillespie however, explicitly stated that Bain Capital did not control or invest in companies which sent jobs overseas. Indeed, The Waashington Post article specifically states that the 6 companies which were the subject of the article shipped jobs to China, Australia, Ireland and India.
Looks like the Romney campaign still has a lot of “splainin’ to do!
Please remember to click on the song link below to familiarize yourselves with the tune and to have more fun singing along with today’s song parody.
“Baby, You’re A Rich Man” song link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S8ZnI-ZO8Eo
ROMNEY, YOU’RE A RICH MAN
(sung to the Beatles song “Baby, You’re A Rich Man”)
How does Mitt feel to be
One of the “beautiful people”?
Now we all know just who you are
Privileged and G.O.P.
And now you are Donald Trump’s star
That’s some stupidity
How does Mitt feel to be
One of the “beautiful people”?
So striking with perfect hair
Rolling in lots of dough
Mitt loves tax codes that are not fair
His tax rate is so low
Romney, you’re a rich man
Romney, you’re a rich man
Romney, you’re a rich man too
Mitt keeps all your money in an offshore bank, that’s what you do
What a thing to do
Romney, you’re a rich man
Romney, you’re a rich man
Romney, you’re a rich man too
How does Mitt feel to be
One of the “beautiful people”?
Inheritance from Daddy
Nothing to do with gays
Layoffs with jobs sent overseas
Happy it is that way
Romney, you’re a rich man
Romney, you’re a rich man
Romney, you’re a rich man too
Mitt keeps all his money in an offshore bank, that’s what you do
What a thing to do
Romney
Romney, you’re a rich man
Romney, you’re a rich man
Romney, you’re a rich man too…
Scott Brown Is Afraid To Admit He Is A Republican
ABC News points out a curious fact:
“If you watch or listen to an ad for Senator Scott Brown in Massachusetts, chances are you’ll hear at least one of the following terms; bipartisanship, compromise, Red Sox.
One term you might not hear: Republican.
That’s because for Brown, the Republican incumbent in the closely watched Massachusetts Senate race, his party identity could put him at an inherent disadvantage in the solidly blue Bay State.
As of February 2012, the voter enrollment figures from the Massachusetts Secretary of State showed that out of the total 4-million-plus registered voters, just 466,431 were registered Republicans — about 11 percent. Registered Democrats outnumber them by three to one — 1,475,879 are listed by the secretary’s office, an inherent advantage for Democratic challenger Elizabeth Warren.”
Truth be told, it is a bit strange that the clothing-challenged Brown mentions the Boston Red Sox either. After all, when Brown was a state representative, he not only pushed to remove the team from the beloved historical Fenway Park, but he also proposed moving the team completely out of Boston to land in Foxborough, MA which happens to be owned by one of his supporters. The Boston Globe writes,
“As a state legislator, he pressed to have the Sox move to Foxborough, the town adjacent to his own town of Wrentham. In a letter dated January, 2001, Brown asked Patriots owner Robert Kraft to consider using property around his football stadium to build a new ballpark.”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nqeH4BeUOCc
But we digress.
Scott Brown’s attempts to fool Massachusetts voters into believing that he is not a Big Bank-loving Republican will prove to be difficult. After all, the nudist was named as one of “Wall Streets’ Favorite Congressmen” by the ultra-conservative Forbes magazine. Also, 11 of Browns top 20 campaign donors are Wall Street banks and private equity firms (in contrast, his opponent Elizabeth Warren has no Wall Street entities as her top donors). Furthermore, Brown watered down the new Dodd-Frank Financial Regulation Law in such a way that it was unable to prevent the risky trading which nearly caused collapse of Goldman Sachs a few months ago and which could have plunged our nation’s economy back into recession.
Brown’s reluctance to admit that he is a Republican is understandable of course. After all, the GOP has been waging a War on Women’s Rights, trying to maintain tax advantages for the wealthy which hurt the working/middle class, injecting religion into nearly every governmental function and trying to fire policemen, firemen and teachers en masse. Wouldn’t it just be easier for Scott Brown to mimic Arlen Specter and just switch parties?
Come on over Scott, the Democratic Party is housed in a very large tent!
I’M DOWN (ON SCOTT BROWN)
(sung to the Beatles song “I’m Down”)
Scott’s tellin’ lies thinking I can’t see
That nude guy is so blind he can’t see
I’m down (I’m really down)
I’m down (Down on Scott Brown)
I’m down (I’m really down)
Watch as I laugh at that nude Scott Brown
(Watch as I laugh) When we vote him down
We’ll all sing when he’s voted away
Brown’s short fling will be over in days
I’m down (I’m really down)
I’m down (Down on Scott Brown)
I’m down (I’m really down)
Watch as I laugh at that nude Scott Brown
(Watch as I laugh) When we vote him down
Once he’s dethroned, he’ll be all by himself
Scott will moan: “They wanted someone else!”
I’m down (I’m really down)
Let’s vote him down (Vote down Scott Brown)
Scott Brown (He’s goin’ down)
Watch as I laugh at that nude Scott Brown
(Watch as I laugh) When we vote him down
(Wow! Scott’s goin’ down!)
Whoo, baaby!
Oh Scott, you’re soon going down (He’s goin’ down)
I guess your down (He’s really down)
We’re down on Scott Brown (He’s goin’ down)
Scott! Brown! (He’s goin’ down)
Let’s hang him upside down
Oh yeh, yeh, yeh, yeh, yeh, he’s down (He’s really down)
Scott baby you’re down (He’s really down)
Let’s hang him upside down (Let’s watch him frown)
Ooh, that Brown (He’s such a clown)
Scott baby you’re down, yeh
Scott baby you’re down, yeh
Scottie, you’re down (You’re really down)
Scott baby you’re down (You’re goin’ down)
Oh, Scottie, Scottie, Scottie! (You’re goin’ down)
Oh, Scottie you’re down (You’re goin’ down)
You’re down, down, down, down, down, down, down, down, yeh, whoa!!!
Tuesday Morning Coffee (or Tea) – 97
Just a few newsworthy items (and comments thereon) that have been making their way through the political universe this past week but may have escaped your attention. Please ponder and maybe chuckle a bit before enjoying a wonderful day during this unofficial first workday of summer!
BREAKING NEWS: This week’s episode of “Creepy Old Fat Men” stars conservative radio shock jock Rush Limbaugh. Media Matters reports that last week the drug-addicted Limbaugh told a 14 year old girl who called into the program that she is a “Rush babe”. He then said, “See, folks, this program has no boundaries. We have people from all three sexes, we have people from all religions, we have people from all genders, all demographics, all ages. A 14-year-old Rush babe.” Ewww! After listening to Limbaugh, you feel like you need a shower.
THIS JUST IN: Want to know how to lose the Latino vote? Just ask Mitt Romney. Talking Points Memo reports that Romney addressed a luncheon hosted by the Latino Coalition Wednesday. Immigration was not mentioned once, either in the address or in a pre-screened Q&A session. Romney’s lack of any reference to immigration on Wednesday was especially glaring given that the Latino Coalition has strongly advocated for comprehensive immigration reforms in recent years. The the latest polls show Romney trailing with Latinos by the same disastrous margins that brought down John McCain.
BREAKING NEWS: Speaking of Mitt Romney, he was given a foreign policy spanking last week by none other than GOP foreign policy heavyweight Colin Powell. In reference to Romney’s labeling of Russia as the United States’ “No. 1 geopolitical foe, the former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said on MSNBC’s Morning Joe, “Come on, Mitt, think. That isn’t the case.” MSNBC reports that Powell added, “Let’s not go creating enemies where none need exist… let’s not hyperbolize the situation.”
THIS JUST IN: Speaking of Colin Powell, did you realize that last week he endorsed gay marriage? The Hill reports that he said, “As I’ve thought about gay marriage, I know a lot of friends who are individually gay but are in partnerships with loved ones. And they are [as] stable a family as my family is. And they raise children. And so I don’t see any reason not to say that they should be able to get married under the laws of their state or the laws of the country, however that turns out — it seems to be the laws of the state,” during an appearance on CNN’s “The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer.” Good for you, Mr. Powell!
BREAKING NEWS: Remember Newt Gingrich? before running for President he liked to brag that his business ventures pulled in more than $110 million over the past decade. Well, a funny thing happened on the way to Newt’s quitting the presidential race. Reuters reports that “the vestiges of this empire are mired in debt, as is Gingrich’s campaign fund” and they “are going bankrupt.” Gingrich, you might recall, told the American people he knew how to get the nation out of debt. Not so much.
THIS JUST IN: Speaking of Newt Gingrich, remember when the philanderer’s personal financial disclosure campaign filing revealed he had a line of credit of up to $1 million with the store, in addition to a revolving charge account at the high-end Tiffany & Co. jewelry store? Well, perhaps Gingrich’s recent financial collapse has also had a negative effect on the tony jeweler. Tiffany & Co. cut its outlook for both sales and profit for the year, citing a slowdown in demand for its jewelry. As the result of that announcement, its shares fell more than 8 percent in premarket trading.
BREAKING NEWS: Best quote of the week: at an event in Iowa, President Obama said “Governor Romney came to Des Moines last week and warned of a prairie fire of debt, but he left out some facts. His speech was more like a cow pie of distortion.”
THIS JUST IN: This weeks episode of “Republicans Eating Their Young” features George F. Will. Thinkprogress writes, “During an appearance on ABC’s This Week, columnist George Will slammed Romney for sharing a stage with the self-promoting businessman. Describing Trump as a ”bloviating ignoramus,” Will said, “I do not understand the cost benefit here. The costs are clear. The benefit — what voter is gonna vote for him [Romney] because he is seen with Donald Trump? The cost of appearing with this bloviating ignoramus is obvious it seems to me…Donald Trump is redundant evidence that if your net worth is high enough, your IQ can be very low and you can still intrude into American politics. Again, I don’t understand the benefit. What is Romney seeking? ”
BREAKING NEWS: This weeks episode of “Republicans Eating Their Young- Part Two” features Meghan McCain. The Senator’s daughter wrote a column in The Daily Beast this week in which she called out Republicans for their hate speech. She said, “Last week, I went on Al Sharpton’s MSNBC show PoliticsNation to talk about extremism in the Republican Party. As a socially liberal Republican, this happens to be a topic I know a lot about. On the show, I told Sharpton that many Republicans treat me like a freak, especially the extreme-right members of my party. I went on to say that I don’t understand the appeal of extreme bloggers such as Michelle Malkin and the late Andrew Breitbart. That’s all I said, but it only took a few hours before my comments were posted out of context on a variety of blogs that suggested I was viciously attacking Breitbart. My Twitter feed exploded with insults, including the suggestion that I should kill myself.”
Please remember to click on the song link below to not only familiarize yourselves with the tune of today’s song parody about the Meghan McCain /Michelle Malkin rivalry, but also so that you will have more fun singing along.
We Can Work It Out song link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zn_ZdX6nQvw
THEY CAN’T WORK IT OUT
(sung to The Beatles song “We Can Work It Out”)
Try to see Malkin’s way
All she does is keep on squawking till she can’t go on
Try to see McCain’s way
Just a kid foregoing all the love of neocons
They can’t work it out
They can’t work it out
All Meghan is saying
Neocons were wrong and moved way too far to the right
But Michelle is saying
McCain’s a kid that must learn to hate with lips locked tight
They can’t work it out
They can’t work it out
No one shall abort for it’s a crime
Keep fussing and fighting, my friends
G.O.P. group thought by Fox is fine
Broadcast from six till after ten
But to see Malkin’s way
So easy to tell that the far right is so damn wrong
She can’t see McCain’s way
And the chance that the right will fall apart before too long
They can’t work it out
They can’t work it out
Sight is very short in Malkin time
Nonplussing and fighting with friends
McCain’s only thought, not worth a dime
But she still “tweets” time and again
They should hit the highway
They emit a smell that is both ripe and very strong
Passing through a doorway
That will hit them in the ass as we shout out, “So Long!”
They can’t work it out
They can’t work it out
Happy Mothers’ Day to the Motherly Rocketeers!
Lynnrockets would like to wish a Happy Mothers’ Day to those Rocketeers who happen to also be mothers. Regardless of whether you are a muli-job juggling working mother or a nanny/maid assisted one-percenter like Ann Romney, this is your day. Get out there and enjoy it!
For those of you like me who have lost their dear mom, keep your fondest memories of her in your thoughts today. Doing so will make it feel like she is sharing the day with you.
Happy Mothers’ Day!
Thursday Night Music Byte
The Rutles
The Rutles (also known as the Prefab Four) are a band that are known for their visual and aural pastiches and parodies of The Beatles. Originally created by Eric Idle and Neil Innes as a fictional band to be featured as part of various 1970s television programming, the group evolved into a real band that recorded and toured, and released two UK chart hits.
Initially created for Idle’s programme Rutland Weekend Television, The Rutles gained international fame after being the focus of the 1978 mockumentary television film, All You Need Is Cash (often referred to as just The Rutles). The film was written by Idle, who directed it with Gary Weis. It featured 20 songs written by Innes, which he performed with three musicians as “The Rutles”. A soundtrack album in 1978 was followed in 1996 by Archaeology, spoofing the Beatles’ Anthology series.
A second film, The Rutles 2: Can’t Buy Me Lunch, — modelled on the 2000 TV special The Beatles Revolution — was made in 2002 and released in the US on DVD in 2003.
The actual Beatles had differing reactions to the concept of The Rutles.
George Harrison was involved in the project from the beginning. Producer Gary Weis remembers:
“We were sitting around in Eric’s kitchen one day, planning a sequence that really ripped into the mythology and George looked up and said,
‘We were the Beatles, you know!’ Then he shook his head and said ‘Aw, never mind.’ I think he was the only one of the Beatles who really could see the irony of it all.”
George Harrison: “…the Rutles sort of liberated me from the Beatles in a way. It was the only thing I saw of those Beatles television shows they made. It was actually the best, funniest and most scathing. But at the same time, it was done with the most love.”
Harrison showed Innes and Idle the Beatles unreleased official documentary The Long and Winding Road, made by Neil Aspinall. (Aspinall’s documentary would be resurrected as The Beatles Anthology.)
- Ringo Starr liked the happier scenes in the film, but felt the scenes that mimicked sadder times hit too close.
- John Lennon loved the film so much that he refused to return the videotape and soundtrack he was given for approval. He told Innes, however, that ‘Get Up and Go’ was too close to The Beatles’ “Get Back” and to be careful not to be sued by Paul McCartney. The song was subsequently omitted from the 1978 vinyl LP soundtrack.
- McCartney, who had just released his own album, London Town, always answered, “No comment.” According to Innes: “He had a dinner at some awards thing at the same table as Eric one night and Eric said it was a little frosty.” Idle claimed McCartney changed his mind because his wife Linda thought it was funny.
All the group and Apple consented to use of the Beatles’ Shea Stadium concert footage, along with other “real” footage cut in with Rutle footage.
Please enjoy these two video clips of The Rutles. Pay close attention to all of the Beatles references.
Thursday Night Night Music Byte
Last week Ringo Starr released his 15th solo album since the break-up of the Beatles. The album is titled Y Not and it is receiving wonderful reviews. As usual, Ringo surrounds himself with lots of his musical friends on this disc including his brother-in-law Joe Walsh, Dave Stewart and longtime Roundheads member Steve Dudas on guitar, Benmont Tench of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers on keyboards, Don Was and Mike Bradford on bass. The album also features Starr’s engineer and co-producer Bruce Sugar on keyboards, as well as some special guests like Edgar Winter on horns and alto sax, and Joss Stone, Ben Harper and Richard Marx on vocals, Ann Marie Calhoun on violin and Tina Sugandh – aka Tina The Tabla Girl – on tabla and chanting. Starr’s songwriting collaborators on Y Not also include familiar and new names like Joe Walsh, Dave Stewart. Joss Stone, Glen Ballard, Richard Marx, Van Dyke Parks, Gary Nicholson plus Gary Wright and his former Roundhead band member, Gary Burr.
The most compelling of his pals to contribute to the album however, is Paul McCartney. McCartney contributes bass to the song “Peace Dream” and vocals on “Walk With You”. They sound like a couple of good buddies having fun being together. Please enjoy this video clip of “Walk With You”.
Wednesday Night Music Byte
The banned "Butcher" album cover.
The Beatles need no introduction. This is my favorite song of theirs being played in 1965 at Shea Stadium , Watch the boys truly enjoy themselves performing , “I’m Down”.
Monday Night Music Byte
Never mind the introduction, Let’s just watch the greatest band on earth, The Beatles, play their song “Rain” in 1966.
Saturday Night Music Byte
William Everett “Billy” Preston (September 2, 1946 – June 6, 2006) was an American soul musician from Houston, Texas, raised mostly in Los Angeles, California. In addition to his successful, Grammy-winning career as a solo artist, Preston collaborated with some of the greatest names in the music industry, including the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Nat King Cole, Little Richard, Eric Burdon, Ray Charles, George Harrison, Elton John, Eric Clapton, Bob Dylan, Sam Cooke, King Curtis, Sammy Davis Jr., Sly Stone, Aretha Franklin, the Jackson 5, Quincy Jones, Mick Jagger, Richie Sambora, and Red Hot Chili Peppers. He played the Fender Rhodes electric piano and the Hammond organ on the Beatles’ Get Back sessions in 1969.
Preston along with Tony Sheridan are the only two non-Beatles to receive billing as an artist alongside the Beatles (as distinct from receiving credit as a session musician on album packaging) on an official Beatles record release. The label of the Get Back single credits the artists on the record as The Beatles with Billy Preston.
Signed to the Beatles’ Apple label, in 1969, Preston released the album That’s the Way God Planned It and a single of the same name (produced by George Harrison). His relationship with Harrison continued after the breakup of The Beatles; he was the first artist to record “My Sweet Lord”, in his album Encouraging Words (Harrison’s own version of the single hit number one in the U.S. and the UK and was the first number one by a former Beatle after they disbanded) and he was on several of Harrison’s 1970s solo albums. Preston also made notable contributions to The Concert for Bangladesh, the Harrison-organized charity concert, toured with Harrison on his 1974 tour of North America and, after Harrison’s death, The Concert for George. Preston also worked on solo recordings by two other ex-Beatles, John Lennon and Ringo Starr. Sadly, he passed away in 2006.
This video clip is a rousing rendition of That’s The Way God Planned It from the 1971 Concert For Bangladesh. Take note of George Harrison’s white suit and stylish hairdo.
Wednesday Night Music Byte
Oh, what the heck. Let’s go with some more solo Beatles stuff tonight. This time it is George Harrison and “This Song”.
“This Song” is the fourth track on George Harrison’s 1976 album Thirty Three & 1/3. It was written after the week Harrison spent in a New York courtroom, unsuccessfully trying to convince a judge that his 1970 song, “My Sweet Lord”, did not intentionally infringe the 1963 Chiffons hit, “He’s So Fine”. According to Harrison, the prosecution got ridiculously in-depth, breaking “My Sweet Lord” down into several melody lines, or “motifs”, as they referred to them. Apparently, the prosecution also drew up several charts with large musical notes on it to prove their point.
After he lost the case, Harrison wrote “This Song”, which released his frustration of the infringement case in the form of an uptempo, piano-driven boogie. It is fun to listen to as the lyrics describe that he has written this song without any influence from anything in the world so as not to be sued again. In short, Harrison pokes fun at the court for ruling that a Beatle would need to steal material from a relatively unknown band.
“This Song” was released as the leadoff single for Thirty Three & 1/3 and reached #25 on the American pop charts. It features Billy Preston on piano and organ, and Monty Python’s Eric Idle calling out the now-famous falsetto “Could be ‘Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch'”, “No, sounds more like ‘Rescue Me’!” interjection right before the instrumental break. The song also has a humorous music video (shown on the November 20, 1976 episode of Saturday Night Live), which features George in a courtroom along with a cast of many of his friends dressed up as the jury, bailiff, defense experts, etc. Drummer Jim Keltner appears as the judge and the Rolling Stones’s Ronnie Wood dressed as a ‘Pepperpot’ character mimics those aforementioned falsetto words.
Here is a video clip of “This Song” from the 1976 Saturday Night Live episode. Please note that when you click on the video clip you will be told that embedding is disabled and you will be instructed to click on the words, “Watch on YouTube“. Please do so.
Just for kicks, here is the Chiffons’ “He’s So Fine” followed by Harrison’s “My Sweet Lord” so that you can hear the similarities of the two songs.
Lynnrockets' Blast-Off 