Open thread

Today is working up to be one of biggest traffic days ever on AMERICAblog, with almost 210,000 visitors today (and another 15,000 expected until midnight). We had, I believe, over 300,000 on election day. We of course have Prince's shadow phallus and Snickers' homophobia to thank. Kind of sad in a way that with all the issues we report on, it took Prince to go R-rated and Snickers to joke about gay-bashing for traffic to soar. Read More......

What a surprise, the Washington Times is caught lying again - this time while trying to slur Pelosi

ThinkProgress has the goods. In a nutshell, the Moonie cult paper, beloved by Republicans, the same paper that got it wrong accusing Barack Obama of attending a Madrassa (he didn't), claimed that Pelosi wanted a miltary jet or some such ridiculous thing. Well guess what - they got it wrong, and CNN today, and others, repeated the lies. Read More......

I just got a call from Snickers' parent company

UPDATE: Note to Snickers. Our readers report that the ad just ran on both Spike TV and Comedy Central.

Masterfoods, Mars and Snickers parent company (or something), called to let me know that while humor is highly subjective, and their target market for the ads did give them positive feedback (that would be the neanderthal gay-bashing fans of Snickers?), they did not intend to offend anyone and will not be airing any of the four ads ever again, nor will they be airing the commentary from the NFL players responding to the ads. This includes not airing the ads during the Daytona 500, which they had earlier said they planned to do.

I'm still waiting for them to email their official statement, but this is good. They recognized their mistake, well, at least implicitly, and have done the right thing. Still, Snickers just told millions of Americans that being gay is bad and then associated anti-gay prejudice with violence, so it would still be nice if Snickers could find a way to correct the intolerant message they sent to millions of Americans.

Question: Did anyone grab copies of the various ad versions on Snickers' Web site? I don't mean the ad that ran on TV, we have that - I mean the 3 other versions of the ad that were on the site. I need those. Please contact me if you have them. Read More......

Republicans filibuster any discussion on Iraq in Senate today

UPDATE: Lieberman defected and voted with the Republicans to filibuster any discussion of Iraq in the Senate. Susan Collins (R-ME) and Norm Coleman (R-MN) switched sides and voted with the Dems - interesting that both of them are up for re-election in 2008. And even more interesting that both won in 2002 by running alongside Bush and the war. And as an aside, Senator Reid is reported as voting for the filibuster, but that's just a procedural thing - he voted against it, then switched his vote at the end because it gives him the ability to make additional motions that can be useful in the future - i.e., don't sweat it, he voted against the filibuster.



Amazing. They don't even want to talk about Iraq. As the Republican Senate leader said earlier today:

Mr. McConnell: "Mr. President, let me just say there are many members on my side who would argue that we shouldn't be having this debate this week at all." [Congressional Record, 2/5/07]

They don't even want the Senate to talk about Iraq, let alone do anything to stand up to George Bush.

Were trying to get the vote tally now. More from the Washington Post. Read More......

Snickers pulls anti-gay Superbowl ad Web site

The site is gone. It was at this Web address:
http://www.snickerssatisfies.com/mechanics

Now the SnickersSatisfies site, and the "mechines" sub-site, is gone. It redirects you to the main Snickers site which no longer displays any link to the homophobic, violent ads or ad commentary from NFL players.

That's great. But it would be nice if Snickers and Mars would actually issue a statement and tell us what's going on. Read More......

Ralph Nader may throw the election again in 2008

It's time to defund any organization still affiliated with Ralph Nader. He got Bush elected in 2000, probably got Bush re-elected in 2004, and now hopes to get another Republican elected president in 2008.

Nader's vote total exceeded Bush's margin over Gore in Florida (as did those of several other third party candidates) and in New Hampshire.... Nader's vote total in Florida was 97,488 where the final certified vote count had a margin of 537.

And now he's thinking of running again in 2008.

Tell me, what more could Ralph Nader do to help destroy our country? What more could Ralph Nader do to help ensure bad government and corporate excess - issues he claims he cares about - than helping elect a Republican president AGAIN (well, again AGAIN)? Nader has done more to hurt the very causes he espouses than anyone. Seriously, exactly how has Ralph "Spoiler" Nader's attacks on the Democratic party helped move the party more towards Nader's point of view? How has his tough love helped make the party a better place? How has Nader's empowerment of George Bush and Dick Cheney, twice, helped end corporate welfare? It hasn't. All Nader has accomplished has been throwing the elections to the Republicans, and their corporate buddies, without accomplishing any change at all in the party itself.

So thanks, Ralph, but no thanks. We really liked you before you went crazy. Read More......

Largest gay rights group slams Mars over homophobic Snickers Superbowl ad; demands it and other homophobic ads be pulled from Web site

From the Human Rights Campaign, the largest gay and lesbian civil rights group in the US:

Human Rights Campaign Condemns Violent and Homophobic Marketing Campaign by Mars, Inc.,

HRC Urges Ads Be Pulled from Campaign

WASHINGTON – The Human Rights Campaign, the nation's largest gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender civil rights organization, is calling on the makers of Snickers, and its parent company Mars Inc., to pull the ad campaign launched yesterday during the Superbowl. The ad features two presumably straight men who accidentally engage in a kiss and then try to distance themselves from any perception of being gay by “doing something manly.”

Three alternate endings to the commercial spot are posted on the Snickers website, one of which includes the two men violently attacking one another – which sends a dangerous message to the public condoning violence against gay Americans.

HRC President Joe Solmonese issued the following statement:

“The makers of Snickers and its parent company at Mars should know better. If they have any questions about why the ad isn’t funny, we can help put them in touch with any number of GLBT Americans who have suffered hate crimes.”

Two other video clips posted on the Snickers website feature players from the Bears and the Colts watching the ads and responding to the two men kissing.

Solmonese continued:

“This type of jeering from professional sports figures at the sight of two men kissing fuels the kind of anti-gay bullying that haunts countless gay and lesbian school children on playgrounds all across the country. Eighty-four percent of GLBT students report being verbally harassed at school, and this type of ad only reinforces that.”

“Is Snickers suggesting that people who eat their candy bars are cavemen? It’s an odd market to court, particularly after the Isaiah Washington flap a couple weeks ago, which clearly showed that there’s a strong distaste out there for people who portray themselves as anti-gay or holding on to old prejudices and stereotypes.”

“Mars and Snickers need to pull the ‘Wrench’ ad and the footage of the NFL players out of their campaign immediately.”

The Human Rights Campaign is America’s largest civil rights organization working to achieve gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender equality. By inspiring and engaging all Americans, HRC strives to end discrimination against GLBT citizens and realize a nation that achieves fundamental fairness and equality for all.

UPDATE: GLAAD has just now (7:57pm Eastern) issued a press release about this matter.

GLAAD, MATTHEW SHEPARD FOUNDATION CONDEMN ANTI-GAY SNICKERS® CAMPAIGN

Web Site for Mars, Inc., Ad Campaign Displays Videos Promoting
Prejudice, Violence

Los Angeles, Monday, February 5, 2007 -- The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) and the Matthew Shepard Foundation today strongly condemned elements of an ad campaign launched by Snickers ® – a brand of Mars, Inc.'s Masterfoods USA, and the official chocolate bar sponsor of the National Football League (NFL) – that includes a Web site featuring video of NFL athletes reacting with prejudice and disgust to depictions of two men kissing.

"That Snickers, Mars and the NFL would promote and endorse this kind of prejudice is simply inexcusable," said GLAAD President Neil G. Giuliano.

The campaign, created by TBWA\Chiat\Day New York, was launched during CBS' February 4 Super Bowl® telecast with an ad that showed two mechanics eating from opposite ends of a Snickers candy bar and, after their mouths touch, ripping out their chest hair in a desperate attempt "do something manly."

In early January, TBWA\Chiat\Day New York asked GLAAD to review and provide analysis on a Snickers spot. GLAAD agreed. The next day, the agency abruptly withdrew their request without having shown GLAAD the ad.

Mars' campaign Web site (www.snickerssatisfies.com) shows alternate endings for the ad -- among them, a version called "Wrench" where, instead of ripping out their own chest hair, one man grabs a wrench and uses it to bash the other, who responds by slamming the hood of the car down on his head. Mars is asking visitors to vote on this and three other endings -- including the one aired on the Super Bowl telecast -- to determine which version will air during the broadcast of the Daytona 500 on Sunday, February 18 on Fox.
- more -

GLAAD, Matthew Shepard Foundation Condemn Anti-Gay Snickers® Campaign
Page 2


The site also shows five NFL players, two from the Indianapolis Colts and three from the Chicago Bears, reacting to the several versions of the ad. The players' reactions range from general amusement (Bears quarterback Rex Grossman and Colts wide receiver Marvin Harrison) to non-verbal disgust (Bears wide receiver Muhsin Muhammad) to overt expressions of prejudice (Bears tight end Desmond Clark and Colts linebacker Cato June).

"I am outraged that Mars, the NFL and these players would promote such an anti-gay message. This campaign encourages the same type of hate that lead to the death of my son Matthew. It essentially gives ‘permission’ to our society to verbally or physically harass individuals who are gay, lesbian or bi-sexual," said Judy Shepard, Executive Director of the Matthew Shepard Foundation. "In particular, I am dismayed that these players, who are role models to our young people, would participate in perpetuating such discrimination and prejudice."

The Mars/Snickers Web site bears the logos of the NFL and PLAYERS, INC (National Football League Players Incorporated).

"Mars, Inc., needs to apologize for the deplorable actions of its Snickers brand, immediately pull the "Wrench" ad and the offensive NFL players clips from its Web site, and hold those within the company and at its ad agency publicly accountable for promoting anti-gay prejudice and violence," GLAAD's Giuliano said. "We want to sit down with both Mars and the NFL to address our concerns and give them an opportunity to raise public awareness about the destructive impact of these kinds of anti-gay images and comments."

About GLAAD
The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) is dedicated to promoting and ensuring fair, accurate and inclusive representation of people and events in the media as a means of eliminating homophobia and discrimination based on gender identity and sexual orientation. For more information, please visit www.glaad.org .

About The Matthew Shepard Foundation
The Matthew Shepard Foundation was founded by Dennis and Judy Shepard in memory of their 21-year old son, Matthew, who was murdered in an anti-gay hate crime in Wyoming in October 1998. Created to honor Matthew in a manner that was appropriate to his dreams, beliefs and aspirations, the Foundation seeks to "Replace Hate with Understanding, Compassion & Acceptance" through its varied education, outreach and advocacy programs. For more information, please visit www.MatthewShepard.org

Read More......

Bush budget seeks $2 trillion in tax cuts

He's insane. Read More......

Mars family, owner of anti-gay Snickers franchise, are top billionaire Republican activists

UPDATE: We're getting 20,000 visitors an hour as a result of this story. Please do all you can to help spread the word about this.

Some of you mentioned that the Mars family, which owns Snickers and M&Ms; and lots of other candy brands, isn't just the family that produced the series of violent homophobic ads yesterday, they're also one of the Republicans' top billionaire activist families.

Looking up the Mars family on FecInfo, we found over $10,000 in donations from a Jacqueline Badger Mars, of The Plains, Virginia, to Republican causes, including John McCain's exploratory committee for president. Jacqueline Badger Mars is also the name of one of the Mars daughters - she's worth $10 billion or so - and the Mars corportation just happens to be based in Northern Virginian which is where The Plains, Virginia is located as well. Thus, I think it's safe to conclude that this is the same woman.

And lest you think the Mars family keeps their Republican largesse to helping candidates, they were also one of the top billionaire Republican families funding the lobbying effort to repeal the Estate Tax. That means that you Democratic Hill offices out there, if you'd like to weigh in on this controversy, it's a two-fer - you can defend civil rights and bash a leading Republican activist donor family. Read More......

Snickers Superbowl Web site promotes violence against gays and lesbians. Bears & Colts players react in disgust, on camera, to gays.

UPDATE: Snickers pulled the Web site containing the homophobic ads and commentary. Still no word from Snickers about the entire affair.

UDPATE: The largest gay civil rights group has called on Mars to remove the offensive content.

UPDATE: The Mars family, that produced the violently homophobic ads, is one of the top billionaire Republican activist families in the country. More here.

TAKE ACTION: Contact Snickers here.

If you thought the Snickers ad during last night's Superbowl was somewhat homophobic, you ain't seen nothin' yet. My good friend Andy Towle alerted me this morning to the fact that the Snickers' Web site outright endorses violence against gays.

A bit of background. The ad in question showed a mechanic eating a Snickers bar. Hi co-mechanic is so desirous of the Snickers that he starts eating it from the other end of the same bar that's already in the other guy's mouth. The two butch guys eat their way down the bar, like the dogs eating the same string of pasta in the Disney movie - until they're accidentally kissing. The guys, naturally, recoil in disgust - then, oddly, start ripping out their chest hair with their hands. Yeah it's homophobic, but it's also kind of funny, though a bit weird, so I was going to let it go. Well...



Snickers has set up a Web site where you can view the ad that aired last night, and you can watch recorded-live-on-video reactions of real Bears and Colts players watching and reacting to the ad, and you can even watch the ad with 3 additional endings not shown on TV. You then vote on the three endings and the most popular one will air during the Daytona 500.



Why is this a problem?

1. Because the reactions of the Bears and Colts players to two guys kissing is outright disgust - you can watch the reactions by clicking under the "extras" button at the bottom of the site. "That ain't right," one player says. A second player crinkles his face into absolute disgust as the guy's kiss. The interviews with the players reacting to the gay kiss continue on and on. These are role models for kids, and they're telling America's kids, and rather scary adults, that two guys kissing "ain't right."



2. Then you really need to watch the endings of the OTHER three commercials that Snickers shot, the commercials they're considering airing during the Daytona 500.

Ad 2 (Ad 1 is the original ad that aired): "Love Boat." After the guys kiss, a third guy walks up, effeminately brushes his hair out of his eyes, and says, "Is there room for three on this Love Boat?" as if he's gay.



Ad 3: "Motor Oil." After the guys kiss, they say "I think we just accidentally kissed - quick, do something manly," and proceed to drink motor oil and I think anti-freeze - they guzzle it down, screaming at the top of their lungs, making them sick to their stomachs. The ad is vaguely violent - better to die than be gay.



Ad 4: "Wrench" (these are the actual names Snickers gave the ads). The two guys accidentally kiss, they say to each other again "quick, do something manly," and one guy proceeds to pick up a huge oversized wrench and violently attack the other guy, while the second takes the first and throws him under the hood of the car, slamming it down on his head. Yes, the appropriate reaction to a guy kissing you is to beat the crap out of the guy who kissed you. Maybe Snickers should rename this ad "Matthew Shepard."

Here the guy gets attacked with the wrench:



And here the guy gets his head smashed by the car hood.

The entire thing is absolutely sickening. And while I can appreciate that Snickers didn't overtly think that promoting violence against gays and lesbians is "funny," they knew what they were doing. They were gay-bashing for fun. And they didn't just cross the line - they left the line in the dust.

One final point. Why is the NFL logo on the bottom of the Snickers homophobic Web site? Why - because the NFL gave its permission for its logo to be on this Web site promoting violence against gays. And the Bears and the Colts gave their permission for their players to be filmed reacting in horror to gay people. Something which is rather ironic, but not surprising, consider the Colts are already in hot water for using their brand to fundraise for homophobic hate groups.

What's next?

1. Mars Incorporated, the parent of Snickers, is in McLean, Virginia. That would be about a ten minute drive from where Joe and I live. I see some major "Snickers kills" protests coming soon at Snickers headquarters.

2. I give it one hour before the major gay groups weigh in and accuse Snickers of promoting violence against gay men and lesbians.

3. Then it will probably be the end of the afternoon, or maybe tomorrow, when members of Congress start writing letters to the head of Snickers, demanding he address the company's call to violence. If you're in a Hill office, please consider doing this - and feel free to contact me for more information. I'd recommend a press release and a letter to the Mars president.

4. By the end of today, but more likely tomorrow, we'll start seeing articles in the press about Snickers associating its brand with violence against gays.

5. And the Mars boycott will probably be called for by some independent activist by tomorrow, I think. And once that happens, it's out of our hands because there isn't much of anything Mars can do to negotiate with independent actors who will smear the company, permanently, online (remember folks, once something hits the Internet, it's in Google forever).

I've called the head of corporate public relations for Mars and am waiting to hear back. I've also talked with the lead press guy for the Human Rights Campaign, the largest gay civil rights group in the country, and they're not very happy, to put it lightly.

As the guy who launched the first-ever successful boycott of a TV show (StopDrLaura.com), I'm going to suggest to Mars that they had better nip this in the bud quickly, or they're not going to know what hit them. Read More......

AT&T; doesn't give a damn about your privacy

Guess what phone compay has sided with the Department of Homeland Security in an attempt make it easier for people to steal your phone records?

Why, that would be AT&T.; Anybody surprised?

From the beginning of the phone privacy scandal that began a year ago when AMERICAblog bought General Wesley Clark's phone records, AT&T;/Cingular could not have been less helpful. They denied the problem even existed - as compared to Verizon, which coudln't have been more helpful to pro-privacy advocates - and now suddenly AT&T; wants to water down the regulations that ensure the problem doesn't reoccur. Gee, AT&T;, if the problem doesn't exist then why are you worried about the regs?

Corporate greed and lack of concern about its customers, thy name is AT&T.; And the fact that the Bush administration is concerned that the new regs might actually stop them from illegally spying on your phone records without the necessary court order, well that's just icing on the cake.

AT&T; should be ashamed of itself. Perhaps a class action lawsuit might get their attention. Or maybe we just play our strong suit - find every piece of legislation that concerns AT&T;, at the state and federal level, and screw them. I doubt AT&T; would want attorneys general and secretaries of state in all 50 states denouncing the company's lack of respect for its customers' privacy.

We need congressional intervention, now. Read More......

For GOP Senators elected in 2002 on Bush's pro-war platform, it's a different world in 2008

Political irony. The crop of Republican Senators running for re-election in 2008 are the same Senators who rode to victory on the pro-Iraq wave that Bush and Rove created in 2002. How times have changed. That same crowd of GOP Senators includes Norm Coleman from Minnesota, John Sununu from New Hampshire, Susan Collins from Maine and Gordon Smith from Oregon. They couldn't have tied themselves any closer to Bush for years. They never challenged him. Never questioned him. They don't even want to debate the war in the Senate this week. The war that helped get them elected in 2002 is their worst political nightmare as the Washington Post explains:

The historic showdown to begin today represents the first bipartisan confrontation between Congress and the White House over the Iraq war since the invasion nearly four years ago. While the resolution will test the mettle of every member of the chamber, none will be challenged more than Sununu and the 19 other Senate Republicans facing reelection in 2008 -- many from states where voters are angry with Bush's war policy and want the troops to begin heading home.

Democrats won control of the Senate and House in November largely because of widespread opposition to the war, and the issue remains dangerous for the GOP heading into the 2008 campaign. Senate Republicans are torn between home-state voters eager for them to take a stand against a conflict that has claimed more than 3,000 U.S. troops and has cost hundreds of billions of dollars, and Bush and other Republican leaders who warn that passage of the resolution would undermine chances of a successful conclusion to the war.

What a choice: Their very unpopular president or their very angry constituents. The GOP members of Congress usually chooses Bush -- and this week, most of them will do that again. Read More......

Monday Morning Open Thread

The Iraq debate starts in the Senate this week...but watch the Republicans do everything they can to stop that debate. The GOP has prevented any oversight of Iraq for the past five years. Amd, look where that's gotten us.

Let get it started. Read More......

Should stores be responsible for packaging?

The Independent has been running a campaign on the subject of wasteful packaging as it relates to the global problem of pollution and global warming. At home it never ceases to amaze me how much packaging goes into the recycling bags each week. The problem that I have with it is that so much of it is unnecessary, not to mention the issue of what happens next since we are now reading reports of "recycling" material being shipped off to China and the developing world. Besides the actual waste of the post-purchase packaging, The Independent has been addressing the problem of the actual production of the packaging and its contribution to global warming. I can't say that I find this specific approach practical (leaving packaging at the store after checkout) but it's good to see the debate.

What about in the US? Are people discussing this or showing any interest? Perhaps with space being more precious and costs being higher it receives more attention over here but with the US being such a major contributor to global warming, hopefully it is also being debated over there. Read More......

The deadly asylum policy for Afghanistan and Iraq

Because the US and UK are in Afghanistan and Iraq "liberating", accepting political asylum seekers is being refused to those who are trying to escape the bloody mess that has been created because to accept them would be to accept the failures of our policies. Often these people have been caught in the crossfire of political and sectarian feuds, as was the case of Abdullah Tokhi who was refused asylum only to be sent back to Afghanistan where he was publicly "executed" on the street.

Mr Tokhi and his family had long feared this would happen. He repeatedly pleaded while seeking asylum in Britain that his life was in danger in a sectarian and political blood feud back home . But the Home Secretary at the time decided that Afghanistan was now a safe place thanks to the intervention of Britain and the US, and Mr Tokhi was sent back to his home, and his death, after the appeal process failed.

The murder of Mr Tokhi, 35, was one of many that happen every week in this country, six years after "liberation". But this was one death that could have been prevented if the officials in London who turned down his plea for refuge had acknowledged what is really going on, instead of sticking ridgidly to the official position that the rule of law prevails in Afghanistan.

The deadly results of our failed efforts continue. Read More......