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   Twenty years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, Gnter Grass still thinks reunification was a bad idea.
 Forty years of writing from Taylor Branch, James Fallows, Katherine Boo, Marjorie Williams, Joshua Micah Marshall, and more.
 With help from Washington, the for-profit college industry is loading up millions of low-income students with debt they'll never pay off.
 The best recent memoir from republican Washington is a hoax. That should tell you something.
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June 17, 2009
ALWAYS PLAYING THE VICTIM... It's never been clear to me why Republicans present themselves as members of the "tough" and "strong" party. Given all the time they spend feeling sorry for themselves, the GOP seems to send the opposite message. Rep. John Culberson (R-Tex.), for example, is annoyed about the number of amendments considered in the House to appropriation bills. He's so annoyed, in fact, that he's tweeting about the similarities between House Republicans and Iranian demonstrators.
I see. Iranian dissidents are protesting a presidential election that may have been stolen from them by an oppressive regime, only to face threats and violence. At least eight Iranians have already been killed. They're using Twitter to shine a light on developments in a country that's cracking down on free press and free speech. House Republicans, meanwhile, want more amendments considered on appropriations bills. I can't believe I didn't notice the "repressive" similarities. It's not just Culberson. Rep. Pete Hoekstra (R-Mich.), who's gearing up for a gubernatorial campaign in Michigan, had a similar tweet.
Remember, these guys aren't kidding. This isn't satire, and it's not sarcasm. These House Republicans see Iranian demonstrators being beaten for standing up for their rights, and they think they're in a comparable situation. The GOP is made up of oppressed victims, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is the Ayatollah Khamenei. The Hill's Eric Zimmermann noted, "...I think protesters in Iran, who are using Twitter to compensate for a crackdown on foreign media, would take issue with the comparison." Seems like a safe bet. —Steve Benen 4:15 PM Permalink | Trackbacks | Comments (27)Comments
Republicans are such wussy whiners. "We aren't allowed to do whatever we want! That's not fair!" *snivel**whimper* The Democrats need some parenting lessons: stop giving in to the brats and send them to their room. Posted by: Shade Tail on June 17, 2009 at 4:31 PM | PERMALINKO rly? Guess that means we can drop them off in downtown Tehran and they won't notice the difference. It's much safer than Detroit dontyewknow. Posted by: The Answer WAS Orange on June 17, 2009 at 4:34 PM | PERMALINKThe GOP is made up of oppressed victims ...who would drop bombs on the people they "empathize" with. What a country! Posted by: Danp on June 17, 2009 at 4:41 PM | PERMALINKWhat does Atrios call them? WATBs? Posted by: Michael Carpet on June 17, 2009 at 4:45 PM | PERMALINKThe Republicans and other right wing groups got this from the early Christians who were always claiming to be oppressed under the Romans even as they became the official language of the empire and shut down all the centers of learning across the western world. Every since then, their cry has been the same "We're oppressed." "Save us! They want to kill our religion." etc etc etc. Now the Republicans are trying the same tactic which is rather the Whigs claiming they were oppressed because people stopped voting for them. Posted by: Kurt on June 17, 2009 at 4:56 PM | PERMALINKa big eddie murphy "heh heh heh heh heh..." to that texas nimrod. what a maroon. i'd love to see him try to cope with real life for even a week... Posted by: neill on June 17, 2009 at 5:00 PM | PERMALINKUmm... aren't the Republicans the one's who want to use the "Nuclear Option" as soon as possible in Iran? If Twitter had been around when Iranians were demonstrating against OUR Shah of Iran, I bet the Republicans would have demanded that Twitter shut down their servers, not keep them up and running. Posted by: Mike on June 17, 2009 at 5:08 PM | PERMALINKAlways posing as the "victim" has worked very well for the Palestinians, so we should not be surprised that the Republicans are following their lead. Considering how gun-buying crazy they are going, I fully expect the Wingnuts to announce their own intifada against America. Posted by: Mike on June 17, 2009 at 5:21 PM | PERMALINKThis isn't satire Sure it is! Just not for them. Someone remind them that Elections. Have. Outcomes. Posted by: eadie on June 17, 2009 at 5:39 PM | PERMALINKPerhaps if us Americans had shown the same courage and resolve in 2000 that the Iranian people are demonstrating now, we wouldn't be in the mess we're in now. Posted by: FrankBel on June 17, 2009 at 6:03 PM | PERMALINKReally, pretty much the entire Republican congressional caucus, are dicks --- with the possible exceptions of the dwindling number of moderates like Snowe and Collins, and those like Steve King and Michele Bachaloon, who are insane. Posted by: David Bailey on June 17, 2009 at 7:39 PM | PERMALINKHoekstra spawned a twitter mockery mob: http://petehisameme.wordpress.com/ Posted by: Lynnia on June 17, 2009 at 7:43 PM | PERMALINK> These House Republicans see Iranian demonstrators being beaten If they want to play that role, fine. I'm game. Hand me that truncheon over there, please. No, not that one, the one next to it. Yes, that one. Thanks. Morans. Posted by: Andy on June 17, 2009 at 8:16 PM | PERMALINKRep. John Culberson (R-Tex.): "Oppressed minorities includeHouseRepubs: We are using social media to expose repression such as last night's D clampdown shutting off amends" "I was dreaming like a Texan girl -- a girl who thinks she's got the right to everything, a girl who thinks she should have something extreme ..." "Oppressed minorities includeHouseRepubs: We are using social media to expose repression such as last night's D clampdown shutting off amends" Yes, if only the House and Senate GOP had other means of communication (like oh I don't know, a pro-Republican cable news network, conservative web sites, talk radio, and newspapers), then they could get their message out to many more Americans. Rep. Pete Hoekstra (R-Mich.), who's gearing up for a gubernatorial campaign in Michigan, had a similar tweet. "Iranian twitter activity similar to what we did in House last year when Republicans were shut down in the House." Oh yes, very 'similar', you asinine twit! I recall it now. You Repigs were getting arrested by the hundreds and shot down in the streets. You were on the verge of shaking the foundation of your country's political and social landscape. You frigg'in idiot!! Posted by: In what respect, Charlie? on June 17, 2009 at 10:06 PM | PERMALINKLike I said on my blog, they really see themselves as Revolutionaries! They are modern day warrior tough men fighting evildoers and making the world safe for democracy. There's nothing anyone can say or do that will convince them otherwise. Posted by: Chris on June 17, 2009 at 10:27 PM | PERMALINKThe Iranian people are to be applauded and given moral support because they are openly protesting a rigged, stolen election. Where were the American people in 2000? The election was rigged, stolen and even the Supreme Court participated in the "nonviolent" crackdown. And then Justice Scalia had the gall to say "get over it". We are still paying the price for that fraudulent election. Posted by: Richard Cadena on June 17, 2009 at 10:46 PM | PERMALINKI've been posting about this rhetorical tactic for a long while now. While it was and has been used by the Christian Religion for centuries, it's not specific to it. "Victimization" was most effectively employed by Goebbels in his propaganda to convince the average German that Jews were oppressing them. Becoming a 'victim' in this way enables normally moral and ethical people to retaliate against their perceived 'oppressors'in ways they normally wouldn't (through violence or crime). Posted by: JWK on June 17, 2009 at 11:02 PM | PERMALINKGreat site. Good info. Posted by: tramadol online no prescription cod on July 24, 2009 at 1:41 AM | PERMALINKI want to say - thank you for this! Posted by: is tramadol an opioid urine test on July 24, 2009 at 2:19 PM | PERMALINKExcellent site. It was pleasant to me. Posted by: buy cheap tramadol on July 24, 2009 at 11:44 PM | PERMALINKExcellent site. It was pleasant to me. 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