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Friday, January 28, 2022

Open Thread – Political Clouds

Here are two interesting and very different word clouds. The first is from President Obama’s state of the union address.

The second is from the official Republican response delivered by Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels.

The more often a word is repeated in the speech, the larger the word will appear in the cloud.

h/t The Maddow Blog

Comments

comments

Comments
72 Responses to “Open Thread – Political Clouds”
  1. Zyxomma says:

    There are some excellent comments at the Maddow blog (and, of course, some Obama-bashing trolls, without which no left-wing blog is ever complete).

  2. Baker's Dozen says:

    I noticed 2 words I consider important that show up in the blue cloud, but not in the red:

    Values and Women.

    Republicans: The party of no values and no women.

  3. leenie17 says:

    I turned off Daniels’ response to the SOTU as soon as he lied about the Keystone XL.

    “cancels a perfectly safe pipeline that would employ tens of thousands”

    Wrong on both counts!

    • Baker's Dozen says:

      Our last dog didn’t lie as much as these Republicans.

      Not that Democrats don’t, too. But I think at least most Democrats are at least embarrassed when one does.

      • leenie17 says:

        And the dog probably at least had the grace to look sheepish when caught! Republicans just swagger some more and double down on the lies.

  4. Mo says:

    Today’s Relevant Required Reading [perfect for coffee break!]:

    Ta-Nehisi Coates cleans up the icky Ron Paul mess on aisle three:

    http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/print/2012/01/compensation/251804/

    “I have come to a fairly recent regard for Lincoln. He rose from utter frontier poverty, through self-education and hard work, to the presidency and the upper reaches of American letters. His path was harsh. His wife was mentally ill. His son died in office. He was derided in newspapers as ugly, stupid, a gorilla and white trash. For his patience, endurance, temperance and industry in the face of so many troubles, Lincoln was awarded a shot to the head.

    Now in some sectors of the country for which Lincoln died, patriotism means waving the flag of his murderer. The party he founded supports this odious flag-waving and now gives us a candidate who would stand before that same flag and peddle comfortable fictions. What hope is there when those who talk of patriotism brandish the talisman of bloody treason?”

    • OMG says:

      That was excellent…thank you.

    • Baker's Dozen says:

      In that study of how Republicans and Democrats seem to be wired differently, I think they should also test their critical thinking skills.

      Ron Paul is a two dimensional thinker running with a bunch of other two dimensional thinkers. The one dimensional “thinkers” have dropped out.

      In general, we have a great higher education system. However, there is something seriously wrong when so many can graduate without the ability to actually think through a problem or do some historical research.

    • Lacy Lady says:

      Sometimes I think they want to start another Civil War.

  5. OMG says:

    Oh No! Sarah’s new hero is not all that he says that he is. That’s right folks…and I’m sorry if this comes as a shock. Newt is not the just-like-Reagan that he pretends to be.

    Sarah’s first hero, as we know, is herself, but after that she lists others who she really doesn’t know much about but likes to pretend that she does because her fans eat it up. One such hero is Ronald Reagan. She liked to drop his name to make people believe that she was ‘Reagan in a skirt’.

    Just like Palin, Newt Gingrich worships himself and has also been been dropping the name of Ronald Reagan so much so that you’d think he bought some kind of franchise. He loves to tout his undying commitment to Reagan policies and brags about his leadership alongside the man. But Newt has been found out. Just like Palin, he is a fraud and has used the name of a dead President to make it seem as if they had some kind of connection; as if he is the second coming of Ronald Reagan. Well, well, well…it seems that his Reagan claims (along with most of what he says) is a lie. Not only was he not close to President Reagan, but he was one of Reagan’s biggest critics!

    Take a look: http://politico-junkie.blogspot.com/2012/01/yikes-gingrich-was-not-as-close-to.html

    What ever will Mrs. Palin do now?!

  6. Lacy Lady says:

    For something a little different—-I found this site today. Maybe not as interesting as the “Eagles nest”, but fun.

    http://www.bear.org

  7. UgaVic says:

    Read an interesting article about what different people respond to when it comes to their ourlook…

    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/23/conservatives-liberals-do_n_1223095.html?ref=science&icid=maing-grid10%7Chtmlws-main-bb%7Cdl19%7Csec1_lnk3%26pLid%3D129644

    Hopefully the head guys of various parties are really looking into this…I would sure look at turning this around to make it work for you and start converting others to your point of view…using this!!

    • mike from iowa says:

      I ain’t perxactly the head of a party,but, when the study said rwnj react to negatives more strongly than libs it re-inforces the notion that rwnj are the party of no. Libs at least make an attempt to see each side of issues. Rethugs-eeh,not so much. In the “it’s none of my business category” I read that many salmon canners were opting out of a gov’t program. Not sure what program was for sure,sounded like soybean check-off where producers are charged a penny for each bushel sold and that goes into research and marketing strategies. Wuz just curious if you were opting out or even part of the program.

      • UgaVic says:

        Have not heard anything about the opting out. The one main one for Alaska salmon is ASMI tax which we can’t opt out (the fishermen actually pay for it).

        I have hard that a number of salmon processors are not participating in one of the food aid programs, after pushing to get canned salmon and herring into it, as the return for both products is now high enough they don’t need it to help ‘move’ the fish.

        Sad as both of these are good protein sources and can ulitmately make for a larger market…not that wild salmon needs lots of that. We could soon be like halibut, lobster and a few others where the price is out of reach of many.

        There might be other programs I am not aware of but I think that is it.

        • mike from iowa says:

          Muchas gracias,Senor. If I find the article again,I’ll glean more info from it.

    • Baker's Dozen says:

      Hmmmm. Then I wonder why the Read States tend to be in the midwest and south? Does the environment contribute to their behavior? Are people with that biology more likely to be in agriculture or in Big Oil?

      I know the Republicans that I know personally are all less happy than all of the Democrats I know, no matter how difficult or easy their lives have been. The Republicans also talk a lot more about fear, and that seems to be a huge motivator for them. That is my very scientific study.

      • mike from iowa says:

        Has alot to do with the so called bible belt,which,coincidently enough, is the exact same shape as tornado alley. That would tend to frighten the bejeebers out of me on both fronts. And I am a registered Independent. If a tornado wants me bad enough,I will go on to my next life and irritate rwnj.

      • leenie17 says:

        Maybe all the heat and humidity in the South gives lots of folks a rash and makes them cranky?

      • Baker's Dozen says:

        My dad is the son of an oil man. He was raised by a racist and a bigot. He became an oil field worker himself, and then ended up in the infantry in WWII. Later, he worked on the oil leases his dad owned. Everyone in that family was narrow minded and angry and upset.

        Then, Dad moved to the San Francisco Bay Area, went to college and became a teacher, and moved to a much more politically diverse area. He is, at 90, an ardent liberal. The rest of his family hate Obama.

        I’m not so sure it’s biology as conditioning.

        • mike from iowa says:

          eveyone says you get more conservative as you get older. Mayhaps if you live long enough,the pendulum swings back the other way again. Good for Dad.

          • Baker's Dozen says:

            Dad’s every bit as liberal as he’s ever been. As a matter of fact, I think he’s more liberal since he retired about 10 years ago. He has more time to read and think.

            And I have gotten, on most things, more and more liberal.

            I think they should do a study on visible aging. I want to know which party has the youngest looking members for their age? And I want to see a happiness index also too.

            And, Mike, are you hip, yet? 🙂

          • leenie17 says:

            BD – It would be interesting to compare the facial wrinkle patterns on conservatives and liberals.

            Conservatives would probably have more wrinkles center forehead and around the mouth (from frowning), while liberals would probably have more crows feet (from smiling).

            Ya think? 🙂 (<—– see!)

          • Baker's Dozen says:

            Perhaps so. Altho this ultra liberal Green party girl don’t have no wrinkles–much to the joy of her daughters who hope that I’m forecasting a bit of their future. And it’s not due to lack of laughter. Mr. Dozen (or “Doz” to his friends) keeps me in stitches. His closest rivals on that score are Jon Stewart (soft T) Colbert (hard T) and the Republican wannabees.

            I think we’d find Democrats, with their generally sunnier outlook, would have fewer wrinkles all around!

            However, I DID survey the crowd at SOTU address, and here are the “face clouds” I came up with:

            Republicans: 🙁 Democrats: 🙂 Bernie Sanders: 😀 SCOTUS: :-/ (They’re supposed to be neutral)

          • mike from iowa says:

            I am very hip. Today’s project is trying to relive the “60s” and free love with the Scotus decision that money=free. I’m hornswoggled by god as ever was trying to figure out if you would now have to pay for free love or just give charitable donations for it and why wouldn’t that be considered prostitution? Gotta do something since I’m not sleepy.

    • AK_South says:

      That’s a very interesting article! Thanks for posting it!

  8. mike from iowa says:

    I e-mailed Senator Grassley about voting against SOPA and got a long response from him,or his office today. He said he urged several rw members of the judiciary commitee to proceed with caution, He didn’t say anything about more taxcuts for the wealthy,but I’m sure they’re in there somewhere.

    • Lacy Lady says:

      I have written him on several issues, but the response I get back has nothing to do with what I talked about in my letters. I also wrote to him about voting against SOPA. He’s one farmer that needs to go back home and stay there.

      • Lacy Lady says:

        This is Grassley’s response to one of my letters which I just received today.

        Thank you for taking the time to contact me. As your Senator, it is important for me to hear from you.

        In your correspondence you expressed concerns with H.R. 3261, the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA). H.R. 3261 was introduced in the House of Representatives by Rep. Lamar Smith on October 26, 2011 and referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary. A hearing was held on SOPA on November 16, 2011, and the House Judiciary Committee started mark up of the bill in December but has not completed action.

        In your correspondence, you also expressed concerns with S. 968, the Preventing Real Online Threats to Economic Creativity and Theft of Intellectual Property Act of 2011 (PROTECT IP Act). This legislation aims to crack down on rogue foreign internet websites that are dedicated to the sale of infringing or counterfeit goods. The Senate Judiciary Committee passed S. 968 by voice vote on May 26, 2011. S.968 now needs to be considered on the Senate floor. Majority Leader Reid scheduled a vote to proceed to the bill for January 24, 2012, but this vote was postponed and it is not clear when it will be rescheduled.

        Protecting intellectual property rights is crucial to promoting innovation, creating jobs, and advancing economic growth. I strongly believe in property rights and the need to fight online infringement. However, I also do not want to do harm to the internet, the Constitution, or the ability of businesses to grow and innovate. I’m concerned about provisions in the bill that could adversely impact cybersecurity and the First Amendment, and result in abusive litigation. These are important issues that need to be fully fleshed out prior to floor consideration. I am committed to trying to resolve these issues and working with all sides to try to reach a balanced approach to combating online theft. I publically voiced my concerns that the legislative process should be slowed down to make sure that Congress works on a bill that protects intellectual property while maintaining the freedoms provided by the Constitution. In fact, I sent a letter with five other Judiciary Committee Republicans expressing concerns with the bill and urging more time to analyze, study and address these concerns in a responsible and deliberative manner.

        Rest assured, I will keep your views in mind as we proceed on this bill.

        Again, I appreciate your input. Please keep in touch!

        Sincerely,

        Chuck

        ***Please note that this account is not monitored for incoming mail. If you would like to reach me via email please visit my website at http://grassley.senate.gov/ and click on “Contact”. Thank you.***

        • mike from iowa says:

          Hey,you stole my e-mail line for line and word for word. They better pass that internet piracy bill pronto and put you out of business.(Just Kidding)

          • Lacy Lady says:

            Goes to show he sends a copy of the SAME letter to everyone.
            Now I have another bone to pick with Grassley.
            We got a letter today—Subject: Appanoose County Office Consolidation.
            USDA FSA—Farm Service Agency.
            Soooooo looks like we could loose the office we have had in Appanoose County for ??????? years and years.
            Once this FSA office is gone, it will NEVER come back to our country.
            Now we will have to write letters to Grassley, Harkin and Loebsack.
            There will be a meeting January 31st —–I would say the building will be packed.
            We will fight to keep our office in Appanoose County open and the great people who work there—-to keep their jobs.

  9. A Fan From Chicago says:

    Has anyone ever seen Mitch Daniels and Calvin Coolidge in the same room? They look exactly alike.

  10. Baker's Dozen says:

    I notice that the Republicans have big government, the President has small government. Hmmmm

    Also, too, the Republicans have small jobs and the President has big jobs.

    Republicans talked about themselves. the President talked about workers and people.

  11. Zyxomma says:

    Here’s where you can sign a petition for the mandatory labeling of genetically modified foods:

    http://justlabelit.org/

    These genetically modified organisms were released into our environment with NO safety testing. Transgenic food has shown absolutely no benefits to consumers, but is vastly profitable for Monsanto, Dow, Bayer, and the other malefactors which bought members of Congress to bring this Frankenfood to market. Apart from having negative health effects on humans, GMO crops are bringing about soil sterilization, which is a very bad thing. If you care about where your food comes from, and what’s in it, please sign the petition. Health and peace.

    • UgaVic says:

      Am going there to check out and join it…GMO is past scary on so many levels and really putting our food supply in danger!

  12. beaglemom says:

    I much prefer the blue cloud.

    • bubbles says:

      love the blue cloud and loved the speech last night. the President did very well i thought.
      on the other hand Mr Cain gave his take at the Tea Party Express response to the S.O.T.U. and judging from the applause there must been at least two hundred…uh no…at least two people there. from Addicting Information:
      “““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““
      On the slim chance that last years Tea Party’s response from failed 2012 presidential candidate and pretend human being, Michele Bachmann, wasn’t quite inadvertently hilarious enough for you, than prepare yourself for a sensual, late night ride on the Cain Train. Ladies drink free and players get all the vile, assburger pizza they want!
      “““““““““““““““““““““““““““““`
      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c6XOAvqAmB8&feature=player_embedded#!

      • Zyxomma says:

        I can’t sit through 13 minutes of Cain-insane, but thanks for posting. I’ll check it out another time. Or not.

        • bubbles says:

          i posted it. i did not last til the end. i was hoping another Pup would and tell me what all he said.
          there was things twirling and sparkling in my head.
          my blood pressure is not all it should be.

  13. BigPete says:

    The GOP cloud might as well be NO (the rich need tax-cuts).

  14. mike from iowa says:

    http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/01/23/us-stemcells-idUSTRE80M21R20120123 This will surely make the party that loves to play god howl like devil dogs from Hades(I think that is in Texas). Rethuglicans stomachs will turn sour and they will be completely unscrewed from reality.

    • beaglemom says:

      That’s astounding news. I hope the prognosis continues to be so good for these and other patients. My mother-in-law suffered from mac. degeneration. She was legally blind in one eye but the sight was saved in the other eye although a cataract then did its damage. I’m glad to see the stem-cell research bringing real results to real people.

  15. Irishgirl says:

    Positive vs negative!

  16. ks sunflower says:

    I think these word clouds are terrific visual reminders of what each side values. I, of course, love President Obama’s emphases. Mitch Daniel’s? – not so much.

    I am very proud of President Obama and progressive values.

  17. GoI3ig says:

    When I listened to the GOP response, it was like a rerun of Sarah Palin’s fantasy land. I guess they count on the fact that most people don’t follow politics on a daily basis, and will believe the right wing spin.

    I was especially wowed by Mitch calling the democrats the obstructionists who are unwilling to work with republicans. Priceless.

    • Buffalogal says:

      That’s just what I was thinking this morning. They are counting on ( and most likely rightly so ) that most people don’t follow politics or the back stories of the candidates. So many people rely on the bits and pieces that they catch on the morning or evening news as they are passing by the tv, and that’s what they use to form their opinion of state of affairs and who they might vote for.

      When I did a quick mental inventory of the people in my immediate circle, that’s exactly what ended up being the case. I couldn’t come up with more than 4 people that spend any time looking into the issues or reading about the candidates.

      The funny thing is that, at any gathering, the ones that do not do any research at all are the most vocal and aggressive and saying things like , ” You have no idea what you’re talking about !” .

      I’m looking into buying an island. I’ll be giving GPS info to those interested in joining me.

      • Lacy Lady says:

        And these UNinformed people Vote!!!!!!

        • Buffalogal says:

          Lacy – your point opens up a quandary for me. When I was 20ish , I was so uninformed, ignorant, clueless , etc. – and yet I voted. For the life of me, I have no idea at all who I voted for , back in the day. I wish I could go back in time so that I could re-cast my votes, basing them this time on actual facts.

          I think we need debate classes and civics lessons added the curriculum for our schools. Non-partisan, open-minded and with a global perspective. It’d be interesting to see how elections panned out once those students came of voting age.

      • bubbles says:

        i will join you BufGal. are Kitties allowed?
        i feel like crying sometimes when people i call friends have no idea what the heck i am talking about. i understand that people have their lives to live and important things to accomplish but ‘fer cryin’ out loud’ this nation is at a crossroads! we are in an internal war against those who would destroy our society and those who wish to build a Nation and a People we can all be proud of. if “girlfriend” can find time to get a mani-pedi, can find time to hang in a bar chatting the night away; she can find the time to educate her ignorant self as to what’s at stake and to vote in her own best interest.
        Bufgal you know me. when i said as much to “girlfriend” her response was ” that’s your job Bubbles. you find out what’s what and tell me who to vote for and i ‘ll do it.” LOL!

        • Baker's Dozen says:

          She certainly could choose a worse person to listen to. Like my cousin.

        • Buffalogal says:

          Bubs – I get the same thing! It’s supposed to be my job to do the reading and researching and to pass along the info. Aaaand, I almost wouldn’t mind so much if they just wouldn’t argue with me once I pass it along. I say, Drink yer drink dammit and jot down the info. Don’t be given the researcher no guff !

          In 2008 I literally had to threaten a few friends with never speaking to them again if they dared to cast their ignorant vote for McCain. These were people that had nooooo idea about the issues, about Palin or about Obama. They simply thought Palin was “adorable” and that’s what they were basing their vote on. I remember coming on to Mudflats in a tizzy , just before the election and spouting off about it. I thought it would help but it ended up making me even crazier when some folks here came back with similar stories of their own. Friends and family were going to be voting for McCain only because they thought Palin was cute.

          Yes , Bubs. Bring kitties to the safe, non-crazy island. And puppies. And wine.

          • leenie17 says:

            And chocolate, too??? 🙂

            I worked very hard in 2008 to convince 2 of my co-workers that Palin was a complete nutjob as well as being completely incompetent. I succeeded in one case and THINK I succeeded in the other. They both admitted that they paid too little attention to politics and thought that Palin was feisty. I had a brief chat this afternoon with a contractor bidding on my roofing job and he also admitted he spent too little time finding out about the candidates. He did, however, say that he thought Obama was doing a pretty good job, especially considering what he was handed in January of 2009. I added in that he also wasn’t crazy, which put him way above the others! Do you think I perhaps should have been a tad more diplomatic? 😉

            And Bubbles – I think that “girlfriend” could not have chosen a better person to be her political advisor. Could be a whole new career for you!

          • Buffalogal says:

            Leenie ( couldn’t post this below your post ) – “feisty” was the other word I heard, over and over. Thanks for reminding me. I was trying to remember that one earlier. Palin was supposedly feisty and adorable and THAT was enough to make her electable.

            gak!!!!!

            and yes please. bring much chocolate. ( and again…. the wine )

          • mike from iowa says:

            Ms Quittybritches is certainly no-nonsense. She is 110% non-sense.

          • benlomond2 says:

            aw Buff……… you just want to be on an island so you don’t have to worry about Glory hopping over the fence and getting in trouble !!

          • Chris says:

            lol i like how you talked about non-partisan and open minded debates but you also threatened to end friendships if your friends dared to vote different than you. if your friends were still ignorant to the the issues but were choosing to vote for obama because he seemed like a nice guy or the ever popular “because hes black” (a great example of how everyone except white ppl are alowed to be racist) would you still demand, under threat of your friendship that they learn the issues before casting a vote? sounds alot like elitism to me.

          • bubbles says:

            hugs Bufgal and Leenie.

      • Zyxomma says:

        A tropical island? A temperate island? An arctic island? I’ll join you, but I need to know what kind of (organic) seeds to bring, so that we islanders are self-sufficient. I promise, no kudzu or other species that spread like a green plague.

        • Zyxomma says:

          This is in response to 1.1.2.2.4 by benlomond2 (there’s no reply button):

          Isn’t Glory justafarmer’s three-legged dog? Are you confused, or is it I?

    • Being willing to work with republicans, in their way of operating, means doing everything they want. That’s not my idea of “working with” someone. And I’m glad it’s not President Obama’s anymore either.