I just got back from a "live" show he did in Texas and broadcast to 350 theatres across the country.  Did anyone else go?  

He is awesome, if you like conservative, common sense, and the 2nd Amendment...................

Why is common sense so uncommon in politicians?  

Yeah, the last thing we need is a president that cries all the time. Seriously...Glenn Beck cries more than any man ever should. It seems every time I see him on TV, that he's blubbering on about something.

Common sense makes some peoples heads hurt.

I saw him speak at the Louisville KY NRA Annual meeting this past May.  He was impressive to say the least, NO B.S., to the point, my kinda guy!!!

Quoted: Yeah, the last thing we need is a president that cries all the time. Seriously...Glenn Beck cries more than any man ever should. It seems every time I see him on TV, that he's blubbering on about something.

Your right, I've never seen Hillary cry, lets write her in!!!

Glen Beck is phony.

He's a hardcore Romney supporter and was encouraging people to vote for Hillary Clinton if John McCain got the Republican nomination. He's getting rich telling you what you want to hear and selling tickets, advertising and books.

Quoted: Glen Beck is phony. He's a hardcore Romney supporter and was encouraging people to vote for Hillary Clinton if John McCain got the Republican nomination. He's getting rich telling you what you want to hear and selling tickets, advertising and books.

+1

Don't be fooled, folks.  His radio show was pretty funny to listen to, tho.

Quoted: He's a hardcore Romney supporter

Doesnt surprise me since they are both LDS.

I, however, hear far more good from him than anyone else I've ever in my life listened to.

He just makes sense.

Quoted: He just makes sense.

Agreed.

Quoted: Glen Beck is phony. He's a hardcore Romney supporter and was encouraging people to vote for Hillary Clinton if John McCain got the Republican nomination. He's getting rich telling you what you want to hear and selling tickets, advertising and books.

I thought that was Ann Coulter???  Damn Motown, how long is that list of yours?

Beck's a charlatan.

Voting for a president based upon the possibility of future entertainment value.. yeah, that's common sense all right.

ETA: My impression of the guy is that he's full of himself (in a "Shooter McGavin" kind of way) and that he's a whiney little cream puff of a man who probably gets a peculiar kick out of purchasing neck ties.

You folks objecting really have some great points!  

+1 for Beck

Quoted: You folks objecting really have some great points!   +1 for Beck

I never said he didn't have political potential.

He's obviously got a head on his shoulders. He does his homework, prepares himself and puts on a good act. He's one of those people that's willing to question their own assertions and search for a deeper truth. However virtuous, it's sort of an exhibitionist behavior in that bringing these realizations to light in the manner he does, is like saying "look how humble I'm being".

My guts tell me he's all about the show biz. His biography is all about the show biz.

He might make a good advisor though

Quoted: Glen Beck is phony. He's a hardcore Romney supporter and was encouraging people to vote for Hillary Clinton if John McCain got the Republican nomination. He's getting rich telling you what you want to hear and selling tickets, advertising and books.

How's that make him phony? There's a very good possibility that when it's all said and done that Hillary is the more conservative candidate compared to McCain. Beck's like a lot of us true Conservatives, when it gets to the point that the best we can come up with is McCain then we might as well have outright socialists in power.

Quoted: Quoted: Glen Beck is phony. He's a hardcore Romney supporter and was encouraging people to vote for Hillary Clinton if John McCain got the Republican nomination. He's getting rich telling you what you want to hear and selling tickets, advertising and books. How's that make him phony? There's a very good possibility that when it's all said and done that Hillary is the more conservative candidate compared to McCain. Beck's like a lot of us true Conservatives, when it gets to the point that the best we can come up with is McCain then we might as well have outright socialists in power.

I think you must have slept through the 90s.  Hillary?  More Conservative than John McCain?  Give me a break.  McCain might be a closet Democrat, but Hillary is a (not quite) closet Communist.

Quoted: Glen Beck is phony. He's a hardcore Romney supporter and was encouraging people to vote for Hillary Clinton if John McCain got the Republican nomination. He's getting rich telling you what you want to hear and selling tickets, advertising and books.

Absolutely correct. Can't stand him; makes me cringe. I honestly believe he has mental issues as well.

Quoted: Quoted: Glen Beck is phony. He's a hardcore Romney supporter and was encouraging people to vote for Hillary Clinton if John McCain got the Republican nomination. He's getting rich telling you what you want to hear and selling tickets, advertising and books. Absolutely correct. Can't stand him; makes me cringe. I honestly believe he has mental issues as well.

If you're going to throw out mental issues - might as well bring up McCain....If the election came down to Beck, McCain, or Obama - I'd prefer to see Glen Beck in - even if he is just an entertainer......McCain is a skuzzy RINO. Lesser of two evils *perhaps*. Doesn't say much for the modern GOP though.

I would vote for him over the two we have on the ticket right now.

Yeah, Glenn Beck is real conservative!!1

Look at his candidate of choice!

Videos Romney tries to out liberal Ted Kennedy Log cabin republicans support Romney's fight against conservatism Romney supports tough gun control Romney Flustered On Guns "Weapons of unusual lethality" Mitt Romney supports restrictions on weapons deemed dangerous to law enforcement and the public Romney speaks about "global warming" Mitt Romney: Energy independence can reduce warming gasses "These guns are not made for recreation or self-defense. They are instruments of destruction with the sole purpose of hunting down and killing people" -Mitt Romney "We do have tough gun laws in Massachusetts, I support them, I won't chip away at them. I believe they help protect us and provide for our safety." -Mitt Romney "I also, like the president, would have signed the assault weapon ban that came to his desk." -Mitt Romney January 24, 2008 Ok to ban lethal weapons that threaten police Q: Are you still for the Brady Bill? A: The Brady Bill has changed over time, and, of course, technology has changed over time. I would have supported the original assault weapon ban. I signed an assault weapon ban in Massachusetts governor because it provided for a relaxation of licensing requirements for gun owners in Massachusetts, which was a big plus. And so both the pro-gun and the anti-gun lobby came together with a bill, and I signed that. And if there is determined to be, from time to time, a weapon of such lethality that it poses a grave risk to our law enforcement personnel, that's something I would consider signing. There's nothing of that nature that's being proposed today in Washington. But I would look at weapons that pose extraordinary lethality. Source: Meet the Press: 2007 "Meet the Candidates" series Dec 16, 2007 Supports Second Amendment rights but also assault weapon ban Q: As governor you signed into law one of the toughest restrictions on assault weapons in the country. A: Let's get the record straight. First of all, there's no question that I support 2nd Amendment rights, but I also support an assault weapon ban. Look, I've been governor in a pretty tough state. You've heard of blue states. In the toughest of blue states, I made the toughest decisions and did what was right for America. I have conservative values. Source: 2007 Republican Debate in South Carolina May 15, 2007 Will support assault weapons bill and Brady Bill The candidate reiterated his support for an assault weapons ban contained in Congress' crime bill, and the Brady law which imposes a five-day waiting period on handgun purchases. `I don't think (the waiting period) will have a massive effect on crime but I think it will have a positive effect,' Romney said. Source: Joe Battenfeld in Boston Herald Aug 1, 1994 Amnesty issue January 8, 2008 What Mitt Romney has said about an immigration reform plan, once pushed by rival John McCain and backed by President Bush, that would have given many illegal immigrants in the United States a possible path to citizenship if they paid a fine and back taxes and met other requirements. Nov. 2005 Globe interview "That's very different than amnesty, where you literally say, 'OK, everybody here gets to stay.' It's saying you could work your way into becoming a legal resident of the country by working here without taking benefits and then applying and then paying a fine." Romney did not specifically endorse McCain's bill, saying he had not yet formulated a full position on immigration, but called the efforts by McCain and Bush "reasonable proposals."

ROMNEYCARE AT A GLANCE This is Romney's health care plan of which he claims authorship and credit. The plan guarantees Planned Parenthood a seat at the decision-making table. The plan provides taxpayer-funded abortions for a copay of $50. The plan penalizes individuals not buying health insurance coverage and small businesses not offering health insurance to their employees. Romney Is Quick To Take Credit For Massachusetts' Health Care Plan "I love it. It's a fabulous program." (GOP Primary Debate, Reagan Library, Simi Valley, CA, MSNBC, 5/3/2007) "But I helped write it and I knew it well..." (GOP Primary Debate, Reagan Library, Simi Valley, CA, MSNBC, 5/3/2007) KEY ASPECTS OF ROMNEY'S MASSACHUSETTS HEALTH CARE PLAN... (1) Guarantees Planned Parenthood A Seat At The Table.   Romney's legislation created an advisory board and guarantees, by law, that Planned Parenthood has a seat at the table.  Romney's plan established a MassHealth payment policy advisory board, and one member of the Board must be from Planned Parenthood.  No pro-life organization is represented. (Chapter 58 Section 3 (q) Section 16M (a), http://www.mass.gov/legis/laws/seslaw06/sl060058.htm ) (2) Provides Taxpayer-Funded Abortions .  Abortions are covered in the Commonwealth Care program that Romney created as Governor.  Under the program, abortions are available for a copay of $50. (Menu of Health Care Services: http://www.mass.gov/Qhic/docs/cc_benefits1220_pt234.pdf ) Romney used his line-item veto authority to strike eight sections of the bill that he found objectionable, including the expansion of dental benefits to Medicaid recipients.  Yet, he did not strike Planned Parenthood's guaranteed Board representation and he did nothing to prohibit taxpayer-funded abortions as part of his plan. ("Romney's Health Care Vetoes," Associated Press, 4/12/06) (3) Punitive Toward Small Businesses. Small Businesses are fined $295-per-employee if they do not provide health insurance coverage to employees. (Steve LeBlanc, "Mass Lawmakers Ok Mandatory Health Bill," Associated Press, 4/5/06) (4) Punitive Toward Individuals. Individuals not obtaining health insurance coverage lose their personal state tax exemption in 2007, which will cost them an estimated $219 in higher taxes.  In 2008, uncovered individuals are assessed a fine equal to 50-percent of the cost of a standard insurance policy, which could be as much as $2,000.  (Michael Tanner, "No Miracle In Massachusetts," Cato Institute, 6/6/06; Steve LeBlanc, "Timing Of Health Care Law's Penalties Could Pose Risk For Romney, MA," Associated Press, 11/9/07; William C. Symonds, "In Massachusetts, Health Care for All?" Business Week, 4/4/06 ) Link

Romney names 4 women to bench Seen as response to call for diversity By Russell Nichols and Kathleen Burge, Globe Staff  |  April 27, 2006 Clarification: A story in yesterday's City & Region section about Governor Mitt Romney's nomination of four women for judgeships stated that 40 percent of former governor Paul Cellucci's judicial appointments from 1997 through 2000 were women. During his final months in office, in 2001, Cellucci made another 14 judicial appointments, two of them women. Including the 2001 numbers, 31 percent of Cellucci's judicial appointments were women. Governor Mitt Romney, under pressure to name more women to the bench, yesterday nominated three current or former prosecutors and a top official from the Menino administration in what aides boasted is the largest number of female candidates ever brought forward at once. Kathe M. Tuttman of Andover and Merita A. Hopkins of Boston were nominated as associate justices of the Superior Court; Tracy L. Lyons of Marblehead as associate justice of the Brighton division of the Boston Municipal Court; and Therese M. Wright of West Barnstable as associate justice of the Edgartown District Court. Until yesterday, just 13 of Romney's 43 recommendations for the judiciary were women, sparking criticism from groups that said he should appoint more. Recently, Romney has pushed to appoint more female and minority judges, and last month he put the spotlight on the Judicial Nominating Commission, the state panel that screens potential judges, for failing to forward more candidates to his office. ''The governor felt he wasn't getting enough female and minority candidates," said Romney spokesman Eric Fehrnstrom. ''The governor is interested in making sure that appointments to the bench, to the extent possible, reflect the diversity of the community at large." If yesterday's recommendations are approved by the Governor's Council, 36 percent of his judicial appointments will have been women. That rate is less than the previous governor. Forty percent of Paul Cellucci's appointments to the bench from 1997 to 2000 were women. Romney nominated six women to the bench in 2005. He has recommended six so far this year, including the four put forward yesterday. ''That's a step in the right direction," said Pamela Berman, the former president of the Women's Bar Association and a current partner at a Boston-based law firm. ''We've been actively trying to encourage women to apply. We hope he continues this trend." Tuttman, who has worked as an Essex County prosecutor since 1989, prosecuted Patrick S. McMullen, the Salisbury man convicted last year of raping, beating, and holding hostage his wife and six children for six years. She also prosecuted Eugene McCollom, who pleaded guilty last year to beheading a prostitute and burying her body parts on a Nahant beach. Lyons was a prosecutor for nearly 15 years, including chief of the sexual assault unit in the Suffolk district attorney's office. She prosecuted Terrance Copeland, the man who eventually pleaded guilty to numerous charges in the kidnap and rape of four teenage girls near the Ashmont MBTA station in 2001 and 2002. In 2003, Lyons opened her own office as a general practitioner in civil and criminal cases. Wright, who now works in the appellate division of the Plymouth district attorney's office, has argued before the state Supreme Judicial Court in rape and drug cases. Before she was chief of staff to Mayor Thomas M. Menino, Hopkins was corporation counsel for the city and responsible for the direction of the city's Legal Department. She also specialized in white-collar crime and drug prosecutions as a prosecutor in the state district and superior courts with the Middlesex district attorney's office. Tuttman and Hopkins are registered Democrats. Lyons is a Republican. Wright is registered as unaffiliated with any political party. An official from the Massachusetts Republican Party said yesterday that the affiliations of the nominees have no bearing on their abilities. ''They all have prosecutorial experience," said Matt Wylie, the party's executive director. ''We can count on them to be law-and-order judges. Patronage has no place in hiring and appointments." Romney has argued that political views don't matter when it comes to enforcing the law. The legal community celebrated the governor's new rules for the Judicial Nominating Commission, including a ''blind" first phase of the selection process that removes names from applications to ensure that candidates are judged on merits alone.

Romney jurist picks not tilted to GOP Independents, Democrats get call By Raphael Lewis, Globe Staff  |  July 25, 2005 (Correction: Because of a reporting error, a Page One story about Governor Mitt Romney's judicial nominations July 25 inaccurately described the political party affiliation of the chair of the Judicial Nominating Commission, Christopher D. Moore. He is unenrolled.) Governor Mitt Romney, who touts his conservative credentials to out-of-state Republicans, has passed over GOP lawyers for three-quarters of the 36 judicial vacancies he has faced, instead tapping registered Democrats or independents -- including two gay lawyers who have supported expanded same-sex rights, a Globe review of the nominations has found. Of the 36 people Romney named to be judges or clerk magistrates, 23 are either registered Democrats or unenrolled voters who have made multiple contributions to Democratic politicians or who voted in Democratic primaries, state and local records show. In all, he has nominated nine registered Republicans, 13 unenrolled voters, and 14 registered Democrats. With increased attention on judicial nominees after President Bush's nomination of John G. Roberts Jr. to the US Supreme Court, Romney said Friday that he has not paid a moment's notice to his nominees' political leanings or sexual orientation -- or to the impact his choices might have on a future presidential run. He said he has focused on two factors: their legal experience and whether the nominees would be tough on crime. He said most of the nominees have prosecutorial experience. ''People on both sides of the aisle want to put the bad guys away," Romney said. Romney, who is considering a run for the Republican nomination for president in 2008, has cast himself to GOP audiences as a lonely Republican voice in an overwhelmingly Democratic state. But his judicial appointments led one out-of-state activist to suggest the choices might hurt Romney among Republican voters. Observers in the Bay State legal community, meanwhile, said they see a contradiction between Romney's judicial choices and his conservative rhetoric, including his stated opposition to same-sex marriage. ''I've long since given up trying to figure out what makes Mitt Romney tick," said Joyce Kauffman, former cochairwoman of the Massachusetts Lesbian and Gay Bar Association. The governor said that, so far, he has had few chances to appoint judges to the highest state courts, where his criteria would change to include ''strict construction, judicial philosophy." ''With regards to those at the district court and clerk magistrate level, their political views aren't really going to come into play unless their views indicate they will be soft on crime, because in that case, apply elsewhere," Romney said. The Globe's review found that several of his choices for the bench in Massachusetts have strong ties to the state's dominant Democratic Party. He tapped a former Democratic Suffolk County sheriff, the sister of Boston's City Council president, a top official under Democratic Secretary of State William F. Galvin who once ran for the House seat of Republican leader Bradley H. Jones Jr., and a former intern for Democratic US Representative Joseph P. Kennedy who switched his party affiliation to the GOP two weeks before his nomination. Romney, despite his opposition to same-sex marriage, in May selected for a district court judgeship Stephen S. Abany, a former board member of the Massachusetts Lesbian and Gay Bar Association who organized the group's opposition to a 1999 bill to outlaw same-sex marriage. Just two days before the nomination, Romney was lamenting the liberal tilt of the state's bench, telling Fox News that ''our courts have a record here in Massachusetts, don't they, of being a little blue and being Kerry-like." Another Romney choice for the bench is Marianne C. Hinkle, a registered Democrat who worked as an aide to Governor Michael S. Dukakis in the late 1970s and prosecuted John C. Salvi III in the 1994 Brookline abortion clinic shootings. Hinkle, in her application for the bench, describes herself as a longtime active member of Dignity/USA, a group that advocates for expanded gay rights in the Catholic Church and society generally. Romney won praise in the legal community when he replaced regional judicial nominating committees that were viewed as politically tainted with a centralized Judicial Nominating Commission. The commission considers applicants using a ''blind" first phase of the selection process that removes names from applications in an attempt to ensure the candidates will be judged on their merits. In addition, all of Romney's nominees have been submitted to a Joint Bar Committee on Judicial Nominations, which rates candidates as qualified, well-qualified, or unqualified -- and each has been found to be either qualified or well-qualified. After Romney nominates the candidate, the pick must be approved by the Governor's Council, where Democrats hold eight of nine seats. Some observers said the long list of Democrats among Romney's court picks suggests that the governor has at least one eye toward the political landscape of the state, where registered Democrats outnumber Republicans nearly 4 to 1. ''He's tried to have a process devoid of politics, [but] he also has to get his nominees approved by the Governor's Council, and that is not a bipartisan body," said Jones, of Reading. ''The biggest problem in trying to reform the system to make it devoid of politics is that not everyone else buys into that model." Romney, asked if he has engaged in any horse-trading with Democratic politicians, said: ''So far I have not ever given any weight whatsoever to whether I think someone can make it through the Governor's Council. I send them individuals who I feel are highly qualified and have the right judicial temperament related to crime and punishment." Romney has faced criticism from Governor's Councilors and some bar associations for failing to nominate more women, minorities, and defense attorneys to the bench. Seeking to counter such attacks, Romney's appointee to the chairmanship of the Judicial Nominating Commission, Boston lawyer Christopher D. Moore, has reached out to minority and women's bar associations to encourage members to apply. He's done the same with the state lesbian and gay bar association, which also has a seat on Romney's joint bar committee. ''This is one of my real goals, to continue this track record of reaching out by making full use of these organizations," said Moore. ''Since becoming the chairman, it's almost a universally held view that these organizations are the best forums for demystifying the process." Whitney J. Brown, a registered Democrat with ''no connections" whom Romney nominated earlier this month for a clerk magistrate position in Gardner District Court, said she was shocked to even get an interview for the position, let alone the nomination. ''Everyone said to me, 'Good luck, you're not going to get anywhere,' " Brown said. Still, there is evidence to suggest that Romney is making sure his fellow Republicans and conservatives get a piece of the action. For one thing, Romney's choice to chair the Judicial Nomination Commission, Moore, is a Republican and member of the Federalist Society, a conservative legal group that fights ''judicial activism" and promotes the legal system as the preeminent venue for protecting ''traditional values." Romney also named to the commission Greer Tan Swiston, a software engineer and failed Republican candidate for state representative in 2004 with no legal training. Peter Vickery, one of the Democrats on the Governor's Council, says he believes Romney and Moore would seek far more conservative jurists if a vacancy were to pop up on the Supreme Judicial Court, which delivered the gay marriage decision that Romney has routinely blasted. Some of Romney's nominees do have stellar Republican or conservative bona fides. For example, Romney's pick for Peabody clerk magistrate, Kevin L. Finnegan, is a former two-term Republican state representative. Another choice was Bruce R. Henry, the son-in-law of former SJC Justice Joseph Nolan -- whom Romney wanted to represent his administration in seeking a stay of the court's gay marriage ruling. David L. Yas, editor of Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly, a trade publication, said the perception among most Bay State lawyers is that Romney's administration, when it comes to screening out politics from the process, is not much different from past governors. ''People feel the process has made some improvements, but in the legal community, there is still a sentiment that politics still plays a role," Yas said. Some in the bar say Romney has been slow to solve the dispute over pay raises for public defenders, and some lawyers resent his cries of judicial activism in the wake of the SJC's same-sex marriage ruling of November 2003. ''Those in the legal community take the independence of the judiciary very seriously, and when he derisively calls them unaccountable and activist, that gets the legal community steamed," Yas said. ''He hasn't exactly expressed great confidence or pride in our legal system." Rick Beltram, chairman of the Spartanburg County, S.C., Republican Party that hosted a Romney fund-raiser in February, said South Carolina's Republican presidential primary voters may think twice about supporting a Massachusetts governor whose judicial picks had been ''actively lobbying for gay marriage." ''That could be a problem," Beltram said. At the same time, Beltram said he suspects Romney's judicial choices reflect ''smart politics," given that Republicans constitute just 13 percent of Massachusetts registered voters.

I also attended BECK 08 in PRNJ and there were only a few seats empty.  The most normal crowd I have ever seen at this particular movie theater.  It was great and he said what a lot of people think on this board.  Guess that does make him crazy.

Quoted: I also attended BECK 08 in PRNJ and there were only a few seats empty.  The most normal crowd I have ever seen at this particular movie theater.  It was great and he said what a lot of people think on this board.  Guess that does make him crazy.

He's not crazy (at least I don't think so)
He's certainly someone that can identify and articulate his values.
Normal people can relate to that. Those who share the same values he expresses would be naturally compelled to listen.

I think he derives a bit of a thrill from that and it's what underlies his enthusiasm as an entertainer.. and wrong with that?

However, we the people are not simply an audience.

Quoted: I would vote for him over the two we have on the ticket right now.

Without hesitating

I seriously don't think the United Stated needs another professional entertainment celebrity in office.. especially the oval office.

I don't think we need another lawyer or a hero either.

I just wish there was someone in the running that was willing and capable of doing the job that's gotta get done and represent.

To me, Glen Beck represents show biz.. he's been in it since he was thirteen.

This isn't a fuckin' show.

For anyone that thinks the U.S. ought to be run by some radio or TV show personality, I think the U.S. (as we know it) might already be in it's last season.

Quoted: Glen Beck is phony. He's a hardcore Romney supporter and was encouraging people to vote for Hillary Clinton if John McCain got the Republican nomination. He's getting rich telling you what you want to hear and selling tickets, advertising and books.

This.

A completely different caliber of person is what we need..

Someone that actually kicks some serious ass (not acts like it in front of a camera).
I don't necessarily mean kicking ass in the literal sense but someone who actually gets up every day and takes care of business - come what may.

Someone that is known to help out their friends by actually pitching in, does things for their community out of respect and duty not bragging rights.

We need someone that knows when to keep their mouth shut and to listen.
We need someone who can to ask the important questions, read between the lines, reason and deduce.
We need someone that doesn't freak out and drop the ball when the going gets tough -yet knows their limits well enough not to let that get in the way.

We don't need someone that just likes to talk about the value of these things.. but rather someone who doesn't have the time to because they're out there doing them.

To the bat signal!



I dunno. The line up we have just sucks.

I like the guy.  He's smart and entertaining.  I listen to his radio show pretty frequently (I toggle between him and Boortz depending on the subject of the day).  Would I want him POTUS?  No way!  I would rather him have a cabinet position and have Rush Limbaugh in the White House.

Quoted: To the bat signal!

Glen Beck for president?! He's a stooge.

It's easy to say whatever it is your target audience wants to hear. He doesn't have to worry about actually DOING anything, OR getting elected.

Tight Groups!

Quoted: Glen Beck Obama for president?! He's a stooge. It's easy to say whatever it is your target audience wants to hear. He doesn't have to worry about actually DOING anything, OR getting elected.

Other than the Romney issue, I don't understand all the hate here for Glen Beck?

Quoted: Quoted: Glen Beck Obama for president?! He's a stooge. It's easy to say whatever it is your target audience wants to hear. He doesn't have to worry about actually DOING anything, OR getting elected. Other than the Romney issue, I don't understand all the hate here for Glen Beck?

Me either.  Then again I don't understand a lot of stuff that goes around here lately.

Quoted: Quoted: You folks objecting really have some great points!   +1 for Beck I never said he didn't have political potential. He's obviously got a head on his shoulders. He does his homework, prepares himself and puts on a good act. He's one of those people that's willing to question their own assertions and search for a deeper truth. However virtuous, it's sort of an exhibitionist behavior in that bringing these realizations to light in the manner he does, is like saying "look how humble I'm being". My guts tell me he's all about the show biz. His biography is all about the show biz. He might make a good advisor though

Well last I noticed you pretty much have to be in the publics eye when running for office.

I get the impression that Beck never swims in the deep end of the pool.

Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: You folks objecting really have some great points!   +1 for Beck I never said he didn't have political potential. He's obviously got a head on his shoulders. He does his homework, prepares himself and puts on a good act. He's one of those people that's willing to question their own assertions and search for a deeper truth. However virtuous, it's sort of an exhibitionist behavior in that bringing these realizations to light in the manner he does, is like saying "look how humble I'm being". My guts tell me he's all about the show biz. His biography is all about the show biz. He might make a good advisor though Well last I noticed you pretty much have to be in the publics eye when running for office.

Making a living in the business of entertainment is different than a career public service.. That's just one aspect of my overall objection to celebrities in office (it's not a case against Beck I'm trying to make). Don't play straw man with me and pick a single point of mine out.

ETA: in general I just think celebrity personalities are too self absorbed in THEIR own interests and not that of the people around them and that is a GENERALIZATION but, were I to be picking someone to watch over the chicken coop, I wouldn't take my chances with the sly fox. Ug. I'm done with this. My pops and I went around about this silly stuff the other day and I just can't take it anymore but I couldn't help it either.

Quoted: For anyone that thinks the U.S. ought to be run by some radio or TV show personality, I think the U.S. (as we know it) might already be in it's last season.

You mean like Reagan?

Quoted: Quoted: For anyone that thinks the U.S. ought to be run by some radio or TV show personality, I think the U.S. (as we know it) might already be in it's last season. Ahem, Reagan?

I grew up with Edward Teller as a kid. Teller invented Star Wars and the H-bomb. He was my hero not Reagan.

ETA. I'm not kickin' Reagan. He was a nice guy with a great personality.. eh.

He sounds interesting, I'll look him up. But I didn't realize you were talking about heroes.

Quoted: He sounds interesting, I'll look him up. But I didn't realize you were talking about heroes.

I'm not. And I'm still not going after any strawmen either. I am trying my best to make a sound point, though I digress into anecdote.

There's a reason I make a comparison between someone who I think can do a job even though I don't like everything about them and a reason I think someone can't do a job even though I think they're basically ok.

When I was kid, Teller was kind of a hero to me. Anymore, I look back at him as a profound contributor to the world as we know it. He was a very politically minded scientist, he was willing to face the possibilities of being wrong given the stakes at the time and trusted his instincts beyond what he was able to calculate. Gleaning something of his life story, I came to understand a little bit about the subjectivity of his decision-making processes and realized that he was probably 'right' in his many of his pursuits.

I could care less about 'heroes'. It's about the merit of deed, personal accountability to ones counterparts (whether social, occupational, civic or other) and the capacity to take action out of consideration for the position to which one has been appointed, commissioned, elected or born into for that matter.. That's just common decency as far as I'm concerned.

To me, he basically fueled the white house for YEARS with ideas about how this thing (the cold war) was going down.. Eventually it did. The Soviets were stretched too thin.. and in a lot of ways, it was Teller that got them running. He raised the bar, bringing the ultimate  weapon to modern warfare and effectively initiated a real need for the the space race. The guy was hardcore. He knew we would win out because of who we are and the things we believ(ed) in. Mutually assured destruction was almost certain in battle, but the strategy of standing behind a shield was an impressive notion that, regardless of its controversial nature, the presentation of the concept of this as a defense, aided us in maintaining a somewhat hegemonic status in the general world view. Europe and Asia did not feel as threatened by us. The Soviets were not in the business of building rapport and as the wall came down I imagine they did not think it would be this way. It has taken some time for them to begin to think their ways out of the fragmentation and economic turmoil. I don't think they'll fall for that one again though (mostly because I don't think they will reunite).

Enough about some guy I knew as a kid (though he did have a huge impact on me).
He did things - actual things. He was not all talk. He was not a pretend scientist or even a make believe activist. He pulled some stuff off trying to sell the concept of SDI to Reagan and managed to get them to start making a good show of it. I don't think he believed it would do much more than get the Soviets ramped up and spun out. It was like some sort of mental jujitsu, using the news coming out of the White House as an indirect energy weapon to cause the Communists to scramble and disintegrate. They'll still continue sputter for a while back in Moscow because it's not 'over'. He was a serious person, almost spooky but thoughtful enough to clear things up.

I'm not going to split hairs over philosophies and get into the normative or the 'is-ness' of being but it appears somewhat cut and dry to me when it comes to seeing what someone is 'made of' and what they're 'about' especially when the significant determining factors are related to the subjects of one's contention.

Putting my disposition about celebrities aside for a moment to take a look at Glenn Beck, I would judge him to be a man of mentionable intellect however, what he has used it for is to expound upon his beliefs through broadcast and publishing. He is an entrepreneur and entertainer and rightfully entitled to the proceeds of sharing his expression. If I asked him whether he considered being elected as President to be a successful achievement and he answered yes, then I would ask him another question to determine the nature of this beneficial situation as he sees it. I would be foolish to think that I know what he would say, but I have a few guesses. I don't think a man of such prominence (I'll qualify that by saying that I mean how he came to be in the position he is in) can grasp the visceral dimensions of sacrifice beyond it's dramatic or theatrical quality. He has a 'need to succeed', perhaps at any cost and it is that which makes me think he is a potential risk. I'm not calling him a liar or a sneak or anything derogatory at all I just think he's a risk. I think anyone like that is for that sort of work.

Matters of stability and security are complex and shouldn't be brushed over. I hate when people try to put such things into summation with little aphorisms.. like they're trying out material for their next act. Shoot-from-the-hip mavericks who think their so clever and spry, sure to deal a massive blow to anyone that attempts to escape their succinct, air-tight logic. Sophistry, platitude and sarcasm is what seems to make the majority of these talk show types turn dials. That's what I can't stand -  people that are just full of hyperbolic bullshit. I understand that sometimes folks have to put on an act in order to elicit a response but if that's their their entire m.o., they should be an interrogator, an attorney or maybe playing one on TV.. I don't think I really know who Glenn Beck is. I can't tell. It's not that I don't care, but for someone that's in the public eye (ear or whatever) I don't get a sense of what goes through that guys mind when the day is done. Not anything that would change the world like some other people I've known that's for fucking sure. He's a light weight and I don't know if he's ever going to be a contender. I don't think he'd be prepared to back his stuff up at the Kremlin or in Beijing or even Tel Aviv. I don't give a shit how much he flaps his trap. It's all talk.. same with most all those radio windbags. Bla bla bla..

Why not a DMX/Oprah Ticket or Brad Pitt/Angelina Jolie.. Howard Stern and Don Imus? Henry Rollins and Gary Busey? Again, it's not a casting call. It's a presidential election, and I'm of the stance that people that haven't actually shown a commitment to representing the interests of their constituents in a bona fide manner are quite possibly out for their own.

I'm rambling.

People can go on about the Military Industrial Complex all they want and the amount of 'wasted' dollars. If we didn't push it like we did back then, and keep the Russians in check, things might be a LOT different.

ETA: Teller was no politician though. He was always to busy gettin er done. Interesting guy.

Still, it just comes down to looking past the rhetoric.
Action speaks louder than words.

The pressure is still on to this day.

Who will deal with the Chinese? Kundun?

Quoted: Other than the Romney issue, I don't understand all the hate here for Glen Beck?

I don't get it either.

I think people enjoy complaining and bitching about things then coming up with solutions to any problems.  Glenn Beck has common sense and is conservative.  If the arfcom doesn't like him, then I give up.  

Quoted: Quoted: Other than the Romney issue, I don't understand all the hate here for Glen Beck? I don't get it either. I think people enjoy complaining and bitching about things then coming up with solutions to any problems.  Glenn Beck has common sense and is conservative.  If the arfcom doesn't like him, then I give up.

I'd much sooner nominate someone with the analytical mind and even keel of C. Paul Robinson. He's well acquainted with affairs in Washington and abroad. Served as an ambassador before taking the role of director to the National Labs at Sandia. He's a person of tremendous integrity and influence. Though respected by his colleagues, for the most part, nobody knows him outside the circles of the Pentagon and the DOE but he's a hell of a guy.. He plays a really mean game of poker. Kinda funny in a Dr. Strangelove sort of way but he's got a handle on the facts and is intimately familiar with very real world threats and issues of concern. He's performed a difficult task, keeping things on track in the face of politically charged conditions.

His resume is on the State Department's web page.

Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: Other than the Romney issue, I don't understand all the hate here for Glen Beck? I don't get it either. I think people enjoy complaining and bitching about things then coming up with solutions to any problems.  Glenn Beck has common sense and is conservative.  If the arfcom doesn't like him, then I give up.   I'd much sooner nominate someone with the analytical mind and even keel of C. Paul Robinson. He's well acquainted with affairs in Washington and abroad. Served as an ambassador before taking the role of director to the National Labs at Sandia. He's a person of tremendous integrity and influence. Though respected by his colleagues, for the most part, nobody knows him outside the circles of the Pentagon and the DOE but he's a hell of a guy.. He plays a really mean game of poker. Kinda funny in a Dr. Strangelove sort of way but he's got a handle on the facts and is intimately familiar with very real world threats and issues of concern. He's performed a difficult task, keeping things on track in the face of politically charged conditions. His resume is on the State Department's web page.

Yup you're a strange one.

Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: Other than the Romney issue, I don't understand all the hate here for Glen Beck? I don't get it either. I think people enjoy complaining and bitching about things then coming up with solutions to any problems.  Glenn Beck has common sense and is conservative.  If the arfcom doesn't like him, then I give up.   I'd much sooner nominate someone with the analytical mind and even keel of C. Paul Robinson. He's well acquainted with affairs in Washington and abroad. Served as an ambassador before taking the role of director to the National Labs at Sandia. He's a person of tremendous integrity and influence. Though respected by his colleagues, for the most part, nobody knows him outside the circles of the Pentagon and the DOE but he's a hell of a guy.. He plays a really mean game of poker. Kinda funny in a Dr. Strangelove sort of way but he's got a handle on the facts and is intimately familiar with very real world threats and issues of concern. He's performed a difficult task, keeping things on track in the face of politically charged conditions. His resume is on the State Department's web page. Yup you're a strange one.

well, at least you don't think i'm serious.

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