In his New York Times blog, “The Caucus,” Jeff Zeleny takes a look at the Political Fallout From the Supreme Court Ruling and dishes up a bowl of thin gruel for his mostly anguished readers. Remember Mirror, Mirror, the bearded Spock episode in the original Star Trek, the one about an alternative reality where your evil twin Skippy exists in a separate, malevolent universe?
Well, really, that’s what it’s like to scroll through Jeff’s story and especially the readers’ comments. Here’s how he starts:
Even before their Massachusetts victory this week, Republicans already enjoyed a multitude of advantages in this year’s midterm elections. The Supreme Court has likely just delivered one more: money. Today’s ruling upends the nation’s campaign finance laws, allowing corporations and labor unions to spend freely on behalf of political candidates…
Am I remembering it wrong, or didn’t Democrats rake in tons of corporate dough themselves last time around? And, not to belabor the Star Trek metaphor, in what parallel or non-parallel universe have labor unions ever spent freely on behalf of Republicans?
More from Jeff: “Republicans, of course, hailed the ruling as a victory for the First Amendment.”
That’s a real nice touch, Jeff, the way you make hailing a First Amendment victory sound so distasteful! He quotes approving Republicans and dismayed Democrats, and ends with a Doomsday prediction from Russ Feingold:
The American people will pay dearly for this decision when, more than ever, their voices are drowned out by corporate spending in our federal elections. In the coming weeks, I will work with my colleagues to pass legislation restoring as many of the critical restraints on corporate control of our elections as possible.
But that’s just the beginning of the fun. I used to live in a small town, with its own local weekly, and a friend called its lengthy letters to the editor section “a bulletin board for nuts.” I was once more reminded of that description when I clicked on the “Readers’ Comments” reacting to Zeleny’s blog. Think of this species of Times readers as a herd of would-be Keith Olbermanns, from Keith’s insistence on reasoned discourse to his gift for nuanced thought, and of the “Caucus” comments section as their own private padded cells at MSNBC.
Exhibit A, Janet, Salt Lake City, Utah:
‘This decision is the product of insane minds.
Exhibit B, Antiqueye from San Antonio:
This is just one more step toward the institutionalization of the propaganda state under which we live.
Exhibit C, Jim O’Connor from Roswell, GA:
Just another indication of how far the extreme right in this country will go to prevent another Election ’08 result from ever happening again. Praise the lord!! The leadership of the country will be resstored to old, po’d white guys again.
Exhibit D, GF, from NY, NY:
So now it really is Slave Owners versus the Slaves. Thanks to all who voted against their own interests in Massachusetts.
Exhibit E, James from Brooklyn:
Time for a revolution. Enough of this.
Exhibit F, KernelPanic from Cape Cod:
What’s next for Roberts et al? Reconfirming the Dred Scott decision?
Exhibit G, democrazy from Boston:
Possible solution: Require any and all corporate donations to be taxed at 100%, the proceeds of which would then be handed to the opponent of the candidate receiving the original donation. Problem solved. You can’t stop them from speaking, but you can tax that speech.
Exhibit H, David from New York:
One of the major problems is that this not only opens the floodgates of simple purchased advocacy but gives even further amplification to the onslaught of vicious lies that form the essence of the right wing message. This is not only the final nail in the coffin of our former democrary but endangers the nature and perception of reality itself. The only hope is that the human spirit has throughout history managed to overcome such vile movements, but always with a high price.
The high court has done more than just squander the esteem in which it was once held. It has now attacked the social compact under which American society has operated… The Right is going beyond attacking the Great Society or the New Deal. They are now attacking the very regulations which kept this country from going Socialist 100 years ago.
Exhibit J, Susan G., from St. Louis, who seems totally unaware of the entire Tea Party phenomenon (not to mention Tuesday’s election!) — not entirely surprising, if she gets her news exclusively from The Paper of Record:
I keep looking for an “I’m mad-as-hell-and-I’m-not-going-to-take-it” movement by citizens (the purpose served, in the distant past, by elections), but nothing seems to have a lasting effect.
Then there’s Exhibit K, Bill, from MA, who has an even tinnier ear for irony:
There is no silver lining in this decision, unless it produces the long-overdue pro-democracy movement we need to save our liberty and freedom of corporate control. I’m not optimistic.
In fact, only one Times reader, Indy 08 from Delaware, has a proposal that a rational conservative might endorse (a variant of which I myself proposed over a decade ago — that all congressmen should suit up like race car drivers with their campaign donors patched on their uniforms for clear viewing):
Corporations may as well brand the Congressmen for product placement, Nike will have exclusive rights to the Senate, Exxon for the house. All Senators can only wear Nike suits on the floor and only drink coke, signed and sealed. Our government is up for sale.
Again, all for it — as long as we get to see Reid and Pelosi plastered with ACORN AND SEIU decals.