TALK ABOUT BOASTING OF "HAVING FRIENDS IN HIGH PLACES," AND THEN SOME: RawStory.com hath the following about someone in a (presumed) position of confidence and trust within the State of Florida's welfare agency not only boasting of connexions with Governor Crist--but also caught accessing kinderporn via the Information Stuporbahn:

Floridians were shocked last week when police announced that the spokesman for the state's Department of Children and Families had been arrested and charged with peddling child pornography. But buried in news accounts of the case was a curious detail: the official in question had listed the state's current Republican Governor, Charlie Crist, as a reference when he applied for his post in 2005.

Gov. Crist returned to the news as the nation awaited the outcome of the Republican presidential primary in Florida. The Sunshine State's governor's endorsement of Sen. John McCain late in the campaign may have helped push McCain across the finish line to take the state's 57 delegates. Crist's endorsement also contributed to ending the campaign of Rudy Giuliani, who had heavily courted the governor's thumbs up.

Just after the Florida electoral contest, Tampa Bay police announced the arrest of Al Zimmerman, the spokesman for the state's Department of Children and Families. Zimmerman, a former TV reporter, was charged with 8 child pornography counts after taking photos of two underage boys performing sexual acts. Some evidence indicates that he may have met one of the boys on the job, and that he may have had additional victims. He could face up to 120 years in jail.

While the news prompted state officials to say they were reviewing the personnel files of state employees for red flags, Zimmerman appeared to have come highly recommended when he was appointed to his post in 2005. Among the five references he listed, one of them was Crist, then the state Attorney General under Gov. Jeb Bush.

Crist's office has implied that the governor had little direct connection to Zimmerman, and that the listing of top state officials as references was a routine matter.

An AP report noted that the governor, "does not recall authorizing a recommendation for Zimmerman, but added that he often is asked to give them, spokeswoman Erin Isaac said Sunday."

But according to some earlier accounts, Crist was directly aware of Zimmerman and his work as on-air talent for a Tampa-area TV station.

"A spokeswoman for the governor said Crist knew Zimmerman through his reporting job in Tampa Bay but does not remember being asked to be one of his references," according to a Sunday report in the Palm Beach Post.

Regardless of how well Zimmerman and Crist knew one another, state officials made it clear that Crist was never formally contacted prior to the spokesman's hiring in 2005.

Prior to his appointment as a spokesman for the Florida Department of Children and Families, Zimmerman appears to have had a colorful past. News reports indicated that he faced an outstanding warrant in Texas for theft. Additionally, he was arrested on DUI charges in Georgia in the 1990s. In 2003, he was arrested for passing a bad check in Florida, but the case was dropped.

As a reporter, Zimmerman also made waves. According to the Tampa Tribune, a report that Zimmerman completed called "Perverts in the Park" provoked controversy when it aired in Texas in 1996. The TV report focused on a public restroom in a park in San Antonio where gay men met for trysts. And when the news item was broadcast, Zimmerman forgot to digitally blur explicit sexual images recorded with a hidden camera.

It also appears that Zimmerman may have contemplated a career in online pornography as far back as the 1990s. News reports indicate that he and his brother bought the URL, "boxersorbriefs.com," but never began using it.

While Zimmerman appears to have engaged in illicit activity online, he also created a public trail that might have exposed him to controversy had it been uncovered prior to the his arrest. On his MySpace profile, Zimmerman describes himself as not only a "Government Employee," but also as a "Swinger." He remarks that he's looking for "Someone who hates to cuddle afterwards," as well as, "a friend that likes to pay for everything."

The profile furthermore lists Zimmerman as straight, but a friend joked in his comments section that he was gay, prompting another friend to remark, "if we all stopped commenting on everyone's sexual persuasion, maybe the press wouldn't have anything to report."

So much for the GOP being the supposed defenders of family values, so making this one reason more why you shouldn't vote Republican come November.

And, for that matter--if you're already a card-carrying member of the GOP--why you should consider resigning from same posthaste.

*************

DR. JAMES "FOCUS ON THE FAMILY" DOBSON'S "ENDORSEMENT" OF GOP PRESIDENTIAL WANNABE MIKE HUCKABEE as G-d's Chosen Presidential Candidate (or so he thinks) seems, methinks, to border on sheer desperation trying to save any shard of hope for the Huckabee Presidential campaign trying to appeal to a broader audience than the poor, undereducated and easily-influenced as make up the Religiopolitical Right's biggest base of support, financial as much as moral.

Not to mention setting himself up as what the British would call an "aunt sally"--an easily target for attack satirical by the ilk of David Letterman, Jay Leno and Triomf die Beweldig Komies Hond--if the following item from People For the American Way's Right Wing Watch blog can be trusted @ par:

There was an article in Time last week wondering if James Dobson's political clout was fading.  Citing shrinking contributions, revenue, distribution, and audiences, the article suggested that Dobson was reluctant to "back a candidate so early in the game [because] backing a losing horse could devalue the worth of any future Dobson anointment.

Judging by his latest round of news-making, one has to wonder if Dobson has intentionally set out to make himself the object of ridicule and irrelevance.  A few weeks ago, it was noted that Focus on the Family Action's post-South Carolina primary political analysis was conspicuously flattering toward Mitt Romney, and while all involved denied that it could be construed as an endorsement, it was pretty obvious that Romney was their candidate of choice.

Then Dobson suddenly emerged from his headquarters in Colorado Springs after Super Tuesday to tell the world that his conscience would not allow him to support John McCain and that he was seeking a million voters to pledge to do the same, seemingly with the aim of mobilizing support behind Romney.

But Dobson's efforts came too late, and Romney dropped out, leaving only McCain and Mike Huckabee.  And so Dobson, being ever-bold and principled, has decided to endorse the only remaining candidate he hasn't publicly repudiated:

I am endorsing Gov. Mike Huckabee for President of the United States today. My decision comes in the wake of my statement on Super Tuesday that I could not vote for Sen. John McCain, even if he goes on to win the Republican nomination.  His record on the institution of the family and other conservative issues makes his candidacy a matter of conscience and concern for me.

That left two pro-family candidates whom I could support, but I was reluctant to choose between them. However, the decision by Gov. Mitt Romney to put his campaign "on hold" changes the political landscape.  The remaining candidate for whom I could vote is Gov. Huckabee.  His unwavering positions on the social issues, notably the institution of marriage, the importance of faith and the sanctity of human life, resonate deeply with me and with many others. That is why I will support Gov. Huckabee through the remaining primaries, and will vote for him in the general election if he should get the nomination. Obviously, the governor faces an uphill struggle, given the delegates already committed to Sen. McCain.  Nevertheless, I believe he is our best remaining choice for President of the United States.

Nothing reeks of desperation more than announcing a halfhearted endorsement in the middle of the night when it is obvious that you are only supporting the candidate because you hate his opponent.

Dobson's primary purpose in deciding to throw in with Huckabee only after the cause was lost is presumably to give himself cover for not voting for McCain in the general election. After all, if the one GOP candidate who truly holds "unwavering positions" on the importance of faith, marriage, and the sanctity of human life can't win the Republican nomination, then what choice does Dobson have but to stand by his principles and refuse to support the party's candidate?

Of course, considering that Huckabee's "unwavering positions on the social issues" on which Dobson has built his entire career have been the centerpiece of his campaign, you'd think he would have endorsed him months ago … which is exactly what Huckabee has been saying all along. Had he done so, perhaps Huckabee wouldn't be facing the kind of "uphill struggle" he faces now which makes it increasingly unlikely that he'll actually be the nominee.

But doing that would have required taking a stand on principle when it actually mattered and supporting the one candidate who epitomizes the values Dobson claims to represent instead of hedging his bets and trying to shape the race through subtle signals, un-endorsements, and craven, late-night political calculations.

No wonder Mike Huckabee is as desperate as he wants to be to recast the Presidential role as one of a superdivine "Prophet, Seer and Revelator," with consequences likely to rival those of Japan when the Emperor was seen as a superdivine himself.

Raising questions as well as to whether this presumed superdivinity would require achieving the supposed aura thereof with the likes of narcotic, hallucinogenic or otherwise habit-forming drugs--and the steps the Administration would be pressed to take to avoid attracting unwelcome suspicions.

TALK ABOUT IRONY GALORE:

Your Correspondent makes note of this item from Crooks and Liars about the so-called "Westboro Baptist Church" picketing a Mike Huckabee Presidential rally in Topeka yesterday--and I say "irony galore" inasmuch as Rev. Fred Phelps and Mike Huckabee share a common thread of homophobia pro Deo et patria.

As in harbouring discredited beliefs about homosexuals being no better than sufferers from a Serious Mental Aberration which explains their leading an Immoral, Depraved or Perverted Lifestyle to be seen as no better than a Clear and Present Moral Danger to the United States and Its Antient and Pecuilar Soverignty and Soverign Identity.

=============

RECOMMENDED READING ALONG MUCH THESE SAME LINES: Omar Sacribey's essay in the February number of The Progressive entitled "The Religion Card," which discusses the GOP's fondness for using the G-d and Country card to whip up Islamophobic feelings among the Park & Flush Trailer Park/Fox Noise crowd.

(The article, sadly, is not available on their website; hence, you'll need to go to such newsagents willing to take the risk in stocking what The Oxycontin Cow and his droogs call "subversive literature" such as The Progressive. Or, failing that, your Public Biblio.)

*************

PERPETUATING DISCREDITED PSEUDOSCIENECE AS AN ARTICLE OF FAITH for "winning of hearts and minds" among the poor, undereducated and easily-influenced seems to be stock-in-trade for Fox Noise.

Especially when it comes to contempt for homeless veterans (blaming their homelessness on such things as "alcoholism" and "mental illness" unlikely to have been aggravated by combat, "not watching Fox News" on a regular basis and suchlike Mickey Mouse) and the poor in general, to cite recent examples exposed to air and sunshine by the Fox Attacks project @ Brave New Films.

As a matter of fact, repeated studies of poverty and its effects on the poor will show for a fact that "moral weakness" has nothing to do with why the poor are in such circumstances, or are otherwise thus reduced; on the contrary, it's socioeconomic factors more than anything, combined with lack of access to decent education, lack of salable and realistic job skills (and, in some cases, race), that all conspire to prevent the poor from any viable hope of empowerment, no matter how hard the Neocon/Fascisti propaganda line suggests otherwise. Just do a Google to see for yourself.

*************

OVERHEARD ON THE BBC WORLD SERVICE (VIA XM SATELLITE RADIO) by Your Correspondent this morning in a report explaining why the Khurdish regions of northern Iraq have managed to remain socioeconomically stable and free of the sectarian violence aggravated by the ur-RAHOWA Against International Terrorism predominating around Baghdad and areas to the south:

An interesting allegory explaining the basic differences between the three dominant Muslim sects in Iraq:

• Sunnis look all the more @ the past and fear the future;
• Shi'as look all the more towards the future and look back in anger; and
• Khurds fear both past and future, preferring instead a "let's live for today" approach to the situation.

Never mind where the central government's Oil and Energy Ministry in Baghdad has expressed reservations @ the Khurdish regional government's negotiating separate oil and gas exploration concessions without consulting Baghdad beforehand ... let alone continuing fragile discussions over the status of Diyala, which Khurdish Muslims consider as sacred as all Muslims regard Mecca and Medina.

*************

BEFORE YOU CONSIDER GETTING LASIK CORRECTIVE EYE SURGERY TO IMPROVE YOUR VISION and throw away the glasses in the end, you might want to reconsider when you hear where several who undertook Lasik eye surgery wound up suffering episodes of depression resulting in suicide or suicidal tendencies.

The which are prompting the FDA to open enquiries into the likelihood of such an interconnexion--enquiries which His Fraudulency's Great Within will likely suspend under mysterious circumstances as involve the ur-RAHOWA Against International Terrorism (the fact of which isn't openly made clear, alas!).

*************

SHAVING BRUSHES
SOON YOU'LL
SEE THEM
ON THE SHELF
IN SOME MUSEUM
BURMA-SHAVE

THUS WENT AN EARLY BURMA-SHAVE SIGN IN VERSE as explained the advantage of its brushless formula being much better than the old-school badger-bristle shaving brush.

I mention this as insight to Polaroid's announcement that it will stop manufacturing its instant-picture films within measurable distance, closing its three remaining plants (in Massachusetts, Mexico and the Netherlands) and giving all 450 employed between them their cards, having ended manufacture of the cameras just last year.

Changing technology trends, in particular digital photography, are cited as the reason for the end of instant-photography production which Polaroid introduced to the world 60 years ago this year.

(Polaroid will produce digital-photography cameras, and is looking for someone who would be willing to continue manufacture of the iconic instant-photography film under licence to meet the needs of their fans.)

*************

MEANWHILE, BACK HERE IN THE MINNWISSIPPI, it looks as if Your Correspondent is about to see some seriously cold weather towards the overnight hours on top of some snow as just fell while he prepared this item for this blog.

Which could wind up being blown broadcast all over the place by sunset and well into the overnight hours, along with sharply cold weather that could mean a number of church-service cancellations in rural areas especially.

And it was only a week ago today that Sun Prairie Jimmy didn't see his shadow, meaning spring will be all the more imminent if the related legend is to be believed!      

FROM TIME TO TIME, YOU MAY HEAR ON THE NEWS ABOUT RESTAURANTS in major Chinese cities being raided, and subsequently shut down by, police for being too popular--as in sneaking in opium seeds, pods and paste into their dishes just to keep diners coming back for more, and then some.

As witness suspiciously long lines outside certain restaurants @ the expense of others in certain trendy districts just waiting for tables, even well into the night.

I bring this up because it seems, based on the experience of Your Correspondent, that Nestlé may be making their Toll House Ultimates White Chocolate Chunk with Macadamia Nuts rather irresistable to exercise temperance and moderation, giving new meaning, methinks, to the global slogan of the Swiss-based foods conglomerate: "Good food. Good life."

(Basically, Toll House Ultimates are sheets of refrigerated cookie dough pre-scored so that you break the cookies apart, place them on a baking sheet, and bake. They're in the refrigerated section of your local supermarket.)

OK: On a couple of recent occasions, after buying packets of said Toll House Ultimates White Chocolate Chunk with Macadamia Nuts, and preparing such according to directions, Your Correspondent could not help but get carried away on the finished product, consuming the lion's share within an hour or so of their coming out of the oven ... and finishing them off within 24 hours.

And I wonder why that could be.

Has anybody encountered a similar set of circumstances? Feel free to leave them in the comments section.

=============

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMER: The preceding was based solely on the personal experiences of Your Correspondent with the product in question, and was not in any way influenced or paid for by Nestlé USA, Inc., or Société des Produits Nestlé, S.A., Vevey, Switzerland.

*************

WHAT THE GOP'S "DIRTY TRICKS" OPERATIVES MUST SECRETLY BE ENJOYING OF LATE in readiness for Indecision 2008:

News footage (including such per YouTube) of post-election rioting and ultraviolence across Kenya following recently-disputed elections as have reduced same to a state of chaos and disorder, including the firebombing of a church into which 50 innocent people sought refuge, all of whom were burned to deaths.

In particular the sort where Kenyan police officers and paramilitaries acted the role of agents provocateur to whip up all the more mayhem, as civil-rights watchdogs are alleging.

The desire of all this? None other than looking for a few good mentally-disturbed types and others weird and/or unwholesome who can be stupid enough to act as agents provocateur for election-related "rioting" or "terrorist acts" for no useful purpose other than to maintain a "natural monopoly" on power, invoking Divine Right and Majesty all along.

Offering those dumb enough to play the roles "redemption for value," as it were--and expecting them to remain all the more dumb enough so as not to give the Secret History thereof away, along with substantial amounts of cash and liquor.

So when will the GOP formally start distancing itself from, and disassociating themselves with, the Elmer Gantry Institute of Religiopolitical Theology? And can we expect them to do so in good and sincere faith?

Or what stands in the way otherwise?

NOW THAT MITT ROMNEY HAS GIVEN UP ON HIS GOP PRESIDENTIAL ASPIRATIONS FOR THE TIME BEING, many political commentators and pundits are suggesting that John McCain could be all the more likely to take the GOP Presidential nod this summer up in the Twin Cities.

Unless, however, Mike Huckabee (who sees the Presidential role as being, in effect, a superdivine "Prophet, Seer and Revelator" acting as intermediary for Divine Revelation from G-d A-mighty, regarded as the One True Leader of the American Nation and People) manages to pull a few fast ones in the upcoming round of primaries and caucuses, especially among the Elmer Gantry crowd.

Who, for the most part, tend to be from the ranks of the poor, undereducated or homeschooled and easily-influenced (especially where emotional disorders come into play, not to mention the overzealous influence of the Low Church stylee upon the Religiopolitical Right's base of support).

As for the so-called "Ron Paul Revolution," his racist and neo-Nazi message packaged as one of "freedom, peace and prosperity" doesn't exactly sit well with voters, so explaining Paul's near-bottom standings in primaries and caucuses to date notwithstanding his desire to keep up the campaign (yet all the while wanting to avoid a third-party or otherwise independent bid).

=============

WHICH COULD ONLY MEAN THAT INDECISION 2008'S "WINNING OF HEARTS AND MINDS" PHASE can only get all the nastier, and then some.

Witness remarks made by Democratic Presidential wannabe Barack Obama in the wake of Super Tuesday about the GOP preparing to dish out all manner of dirt on whoever manages to win the Democratic Presidential nomination. As in "swift-boating," more than likely.

Fortunately, though, the good people @ Brave New Films have fired the opening salvos with two sites (both mit Video) revealing the "real" John McCain for what he is. Just go to The Real McCain and/or Less Jobs, More Wars and see for yourself--especially if you're still the kind of Zealot and/or True Believer in John McCain's campaign.

Whether you'll wind up reconsidering in the end, only the Fates know for sure.

*************

ANTI-GOVERNMENT ZEALOTS AND TRUE BELIEVERS IN THE XTREME (AND THEN SOME) are no doubt going to be dancing in the streets over the news of a massacree @ last night's City Council meeting in the St. Louis suburb of Kirkwood as saw five city officials martyred and two (including the mayor) wounded seriously and now in a serious condition in hospital.

The assain, a small-time contractor of colour by name of Charles "Cookie" Thornton, was himself shot by police before the massacree got all the more out of control.

That last fact right there should be of especial interest to such specimens of anti-government Zealotry and True Belief whose articles of faith include "patriotic" racism and bigotry.

*************

SPOT THE INHERENT IRONY IN THE FOLLOWING:

Certain specimens of conservative Zealotry and True Belief (especially so those in a "winning of hearts and minds" vein) have been known to invoke the name and depravity of Venezuelan quasi-dictator Hugo Chavez in attacking real or suspected Liberals or Progressives and their articles of faith--especially if the aim is one of questioning, Joe McCarthy-stylee, the loyalty and True Patriot Love (or supposed lack thereof) among Liberals and Progressives.

(As if said True Patriot Love was conditional on maintaining a hard-wired, "stay-the-course" complacency vis-a-vis the Greater Conservative Agenda and its articles of faith requiring, in effect, an unyielding and @ once deliberate brand of stupidity which can be excused as "goodthought"--orthodoxy per Orwellian Newspeak--and can be appealed to as required.)

Ironically, though, many of these same hyperconservative Zealots and True Believers in question are more than likely anti-Semites of the highest order, howbeit preferring to keep their anti-Semitism below radar (and deliberately), especially if and when "outed." As if that weren't enough, the Anti-Defamation League has come out with a blistering new report (read it and weep, boys and girls) suggesting that the Chavez regime is playing up anti-Semitic canards and patsies as part of its greater political agenda of "popular socialism," not to mention associating with radical Islamists, especially so such known to associate with International Terrorism, and others weird and/or unwholesome.

Witness these specimens of anti-Semitism from the very lips of Chavez himself, via the ADL's press release announcing the report's release:

• "Israel was committing genocide in Lebanon and its leaders should be held responsible and should be judged by an international tribunal … The Israelis criticize Hitler but have done something worse." – August 25, 2006.
• "This fascism is something similar to what Hitler did: bombard cities, kill innocent children, women and men, and destroy the infrastructure of people." – July 26, 2006
• "… The world is for all of us, then, but it so happens that a minority, the descendents of the same ones that crucified Christ, the descendants of the same ones that kicked Bolivar out of here and also crucified him in their own way over there in Santa Marta, in Colombia.  A minority has taken possession of all the wealth in the world …" -- December, 24, 2005.

Other specimens of anti-Semitic propaganda from the Chavez regime's propaganda documented by the ADL as are worthy of note:

• "Those who are upset with Ahmadinejad's visit to Venezuela are the gangsters of the local Jewish mafia; the terrorists who control the Confederations of Israelite Associations (CAIV) and other criminal organizations of similar reputation."  -- Los Papeles de Mandinga, September 19, 2006
• "It was to be expected.  The profound humanistic conviction and moral solidarity of Commander Chavez for denouncing the atrocities that are systematically committed by the state of Israel against Arab people have bothered the cancers of the inferno – international imperialism and Zionism." – Diario Vea, September 14, 2006
• "Zionists, the destructive sect of radical Jews, are again impregnating the Jewish community with its animosity towards humanity.  The genocide they executed in Palestine and Lebanon is similar to the Holocaust which the Nazis executed against them, and they will undergo another Holocaust because of the global hatred they are accumulating."  -- Diario Vea, July 4, 2006.

Besides, liberalism and Progressivism hold dear among their articles of faith a firm belief in diversity, tolerance and multiculturalism, in effect seeing anti-Semitism as one with racism, bigotry, intolerance, xenophobia and jingoism--i.e., intolerable, anathema and un-American.

Given this evidence, what have you to say now, ye who invoke Hugo Chavez as a bête noire to question the loyalty and patriotism of Liberals and Progressives, let alone perhaps being closet anti-Semites yourselves?

And have you any evidence to suggest that these remarks may probably be what you would call "forgeries"?

Until you can provide a logical answer, remember: You only have yourselves to blame for where you are now, so don't come crying to me. 

IN THE PREVIOUS BLOG OF YOUR CORRESPONDENT, by name and stylee of the daily phosdex, he responded to a number of "spam" e-mails promoting adult websites using in their Subject lines various adjectives to describe the women supposedly featured, among them:

• "æsthetic"
• "elegant"
• "lovely"
• "comely"
• "scenic"
• "rustic"
• "natural"

by making note of an adjudication from the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) of Great Britain involving an infomercial for what turned out being an unencrypted adult channel trading as Babestar, featuring sexually-explicit material by way of premium-rate sex-call lines between Land's End and John O'Groats.

(Of particular concern was the rather frank and smarty language and tone of presentation, its frequent use of sexually-provocative scenes, its airing unencrypted and, by extension, such likely to appeal to children and Others Easily Influenced.)

In any case, ASA referred Babestar to Ofcom, the British equivalent of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), for approriate action.

Soon afterwards, Babestar's owners tried to pull a fast one on Ofcom by returning to air as Babestar+--again, presenting sexually-provocative content unencrypted, late @ night, between Land's End and John O'Groats. (And, as was the case with the original Babestar, being listed in the Electronic Programme Guide's Adult section).

Again, ASA took exception, and referred Babestar+ to Ofcom.

In any case, Ofcom imposed a substantial penalty on Babestar for breaches of the relevant codes relating to adult programming of a sexually-provocative nature and the need to protect children and the vulnerable from moral harm caused by such programmes.

WELLLLLLL--!!!!!!!

Ofcom subsequently conducted an investigation of so-called "babe" channels airing unencrypted across England's Green and Pleasant Land, where it turns out that Babestar was just the tip of a much larger iceberg, so to speak.

As summarised in Ofcom Broadcasting Bulletin #95:

Due to Ofcom’s serious concerns about levels of compliance in the ‘adult’ sector, by both ‘babe-style’ channels and free-to-air content on encrypted channels, Ofcom is considering amendments to the Code so as to require that all material transmitted in the adult section of the EPG is protected by a mandatory PIN. Any such proposals would be subject to a full public consultation.

Due to the serious nature of the Code and Licence breaches recorded in this Bulletin concerning ‘babe-style’ channels, Ofcom considered whether some of these matters should be referred to the Content Sanctions Committee for consideration of a statutory sanction. However, Ofcom has monitored the output of ‘babe’ channels in recent months and noted some significant improvements in compliance after the watershed (e.g. there was less or no very crude or explicit language or visual content). In view of the remedial action taken by relevant broadcasters to improve compliance, we decided against referring these matters to the Committee. Nevertheless, any breach of a similar nature by a broadcaster of a ‘babe’ channel in future is likely to result in further regulatory action.

Of particular concern to Ofcom was the use of such "babe" channels as no better than programme-length commercials for related premium-rate chat lines. Again, from Broadcasting Bulletin 95 (emphasis supplied):

In some of the Findings related to ‘babe-style’ channels in this Bulletin, the broadcasters failed on a number of occasions to justify the promotion of PRS within programmes. Where there is sufficient justification to promote a PRS within a programme (i.e. it contributes to editorial or meets the definition of programme-related material), broadcasters should remember that the rules on undue prominence will apply to the promotion. Programmes should not primarily be vehicles for broadcasters to promote PRS.

The channels in question were each described by Ofcom as being

a free-to-air unencrypted channel shown in the adult section of the Sky EPG. It broadcasts programmes based on interactive ‘adult’ chat services: viewers are invited to contact on-screen presenters (“babes”) via premium rate telephony services (“PRS”). Female presenters dress provocatively in underwear and encourage viewers to contact them.

As for trying to explain editorial justification for promoting premium-rate chat lines within the context of otherwise sexually-suggestive programming, Ofcom's summary of the charges against one of the channels in question, Get Lucky TV, best explains why such a patsy won't wash between Land's End and John O'Groats:

[T]he broadcaster (Get Lucky) did not demonstrate that the off-screen text service was directly derived from the programme and allowed the viewer to “benefit fully from, or interact with”, the programme.

In relation to the service offering viewers the opportunity to talk to an off-screen ‘babe’, while this service may have been thematically similar to the service that offered viewers the opportunity to contact on-screen presenters, this in itself is not sufficient to categorise the service as programme-related. The broadcaster did not provide sufficient information to establish to Ofcom’s satisfaction that the off-screen service was in fact “directly derived” from the programme as required by the definition of PRM.

The promotions for the off-screen text and chat services within the programme were therefore unacceptable.

[***]

The promotion of PRM within programmes should be driven by the needs of the audience e.g. it should be sufficient to tell viewers about the availability of material but should not be primarily a ‘sell’ for the service. In this case, the service was promoted frequently by means of on-screen text throughout the programme. In Ofcom’s opinion, the level of promotion went beyond what was reasonably justified to inform viewers about the availability of the service and appeared to be commercially motivated.

[***]

In conclusion, the broadcaster failed to adequately demonstrate that the following services contributed to the editorial of the programme or met the definition of PRM:

• the off-screen chat service;
• the private text service; and
• the service that allowed viewers to submit photos to the channel.

Additionally, the promotion of the services that provided viewers with photos of presenters was unduly prominent.

So: Is this the end ... or is this the end of the beginning? Stay tuned. 

FOR ALL THE PLATITUDES AND BROMIDES FOX NOISE WANTS THE POOR, UNDEREDUCATED AND EASILY-INFLUENCED that they consider "right-thinking Americans" to believe about the American socioeconomic situation being much better than things appear to be (think "reject all evidence of eyes and ears"), Your Correspondent hath it that panhaldlers working outside a Wally World in Coos Bay, Oregon are earning as much as $300/diem.

Which, it turns out, is the weekly pay of an average clerk inside the same Wally World.

Police, fortunately, understand that said beggers aren't causing much trouble on the part of shoppers--even if their proceeds wind up going to a bottle or two of Night Train.

Such, no doubt, must be the state of the "morally superior" American socioeconomic paradigm which His Fraudulency's Great Within may have only begun undermining all the more by justifying a "stay-the-course" policy on keeping "temporary" tax cuts "complete, final and binding" to create jobs as are likely to exist but on paper or, @ best, as "make-work/fake-work" such.

And Fox Noise still expects the Lower Classes to see capitalism as their Great White Father "ennobling" and "empowering" ...

(But then again, kids, don't try this game in your hometown--even if your parents force you into doing so, even to the point of giving "advice" about faking some class of misfortune likely to be discredited within measurable distance.)

=============

STAYING WITH HIS FRAUDULENCY'S GREAT WITHIN FOR THE NONCE, Your Correspondent has to wonder whether they're working with super-secret "dirty tricks" operatives in the GOP to study the forthcoming Russian Parliamentary Elections (and how the Putin regime is dominating the whole for sole and corrupt benefit) for ways to cook up "terrorist acts" as could be seen to justify suspension of Indecision 2008 and impose Emergency Powers crossing into Fascism (and which His Fraudulency will claim came by way of Divine Order, in effect making him "Prophet, Seer and Revelator"--or so he thinks, aided and abetted by Al Cohol).

Especially so "terrorist acts" which turn out to have really been carried out by mentally-unstable agents provocateur recruited by highly-questionable means (and given safe harbour in Canada, say, in the end, along with a fat, conditional-upon-silence retainer, while official blame lies upon International Terrorism).

Back to the Russian elections in question: The Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) has cancelled all plans to send in observers to monitor same, citing what OSCE considered "unrealistic and unacceptable" demands by Russian electoral authorities. In effect, only opening the door for said elections being all the more corrupt, dishonest and @ risk of manipulation, perverting democracy and liberty in the end.

In the immortal words of Josiah Quincy, "liberty is not safe where the people are not watchful."

Hence, remember this freecall number: 1-866-OUR-VOTE.

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RYANAIR, EUROPE'S ANSWER TO SOUTHWEST AIRLINES (AS IT WERE), CAN'T KEEP ITS FILTHY PROBOSCIS out of where it doesn't quite belong, as if seeking all manner of free advertising for their cut-price airline.

Previously, Your Correspondent noted where Ryanair had been ordered to pay €60,000 in damages to the bride of French President Sarkozy for unauthorised use of her image in a newspaper advert.

Not to mention frequent complaints against Ryanair by the Advertising Standards Authority in Great Britain.

Now, an English court has put Ryanair all the deeper into Dutch: They've been ordered to pay the members of a calypso band the equivalent of US$7,800 for damages and humiliation suffered when a Ryanair flight attendant pointed a gun @ their heads to force them off the flight prior to takeoff after a nearby passenger complained of suspected "disorderly behaviour."

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SO MUCH FOR NATO'S "SUCCESSES" IN DEALING WITH TALIBAN INSURGENTS in the Afghani theatre of the ur-RAHOWA Against International Terrorism:

Afghani agricultural and police officials have issued a preliminary forecast suggesting that this year's Afghan opium poppy crop is set to equal last year's record harvest--and its potential value in opium gum produced.

Likewise with marijuana production, which can then be converted into hashish or hashish oil as added-value products for their cultivators.

Of course, you'll never guess who ultimately winds up profiting from the aforementioned. Never mind the obvious claim of Afghani farmers that the soil isn't all that ideal for cultivating anything else but opium poppies and/or marijuana.

(BTW, is NATO able to get access to agronomy specialists who can do soil analyses of Afghani agricultural areas as can actually confirm such an argument as above?)

CONSERVATIVE ARTICLES OF FAITH ON CULTURE BEING WHAT THEY ARE, Your Correspondent is wondering what exactly they would have in mind to answer what they're forever perceiving as "liberal propaganda messages" subtly being incorporated into most films and TV programmes these days.

Said messages only "leading viewers towards error," especially so the likes of children and vulnerable individuals.

One likely arena for such a "message" being pushed, howbeit subtly, of course: None other than "reality" TV, pure and simple, cheap and cheerful.

In particular, a "reality" series based on the producerist "back-to-the-land" ideal as sees small-town/rural America (and its "traditional values systems") being the last and only hope that "right-thinking" working-class white families have to save them from "loss of pride and honour" caused by the "unhealthy" presence of National Minorities and welfare cases in what few traditionally white working-class neighbourhoods remain in the major cities.

Save what sense of "Traditional Values" they expect to have out of their own hubris-laden arrogance and not much else.

Which, for the most part, involves scare tactics (and deliberate such, @ that) seeking to "resettle" working-class whites into rural communities otherwise @ "clear and present risk" of depopulation and inability to attract "real" industry and jobs (as in unskilled, labour-intensive Luddite models) based on free-market capitalism being the Great White Father.

Only it turns out that there's little in the way of shopping opportunities to be had where they're being resettled: Blame it on Wally World, the nearest such being a considerable drive away, and its predatory tactics packaged all the more as "defending" free-market capitalism as Great White Father.

Hence, when all is said and done, expect such "resettled" in the name of a warped "back-to-the-land" ideal being one with saving working-class "honour" turning into nothing more than Family Guy and South Park meet Survivor--in short, an outright farce reducing such thus "resettled" into quasi-pornographic objects of fun, thereby deflating any propaganda merit whatsoever.

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UNFORTUNATELY, WE "MORALLY SUPERIOR" AMERICANS HAVE NO MONOPOLY on complaints about TV programmes suspected of being obscene, indecent, tasteless, or otherwise unsuitable for children and other vulnerable persons--and the advertisers who sponsor them just to create the aura of American TV being purely FreeVee.

Even the Japanese, with a reputation for some rather raunchy shows on TV themselves, have been known to take issue with a number of TV shows themselves, if the following "WaiWai" item from the Mainichi Daily News of Tokyo can be accepted as credible (and besides, "WaiWai" is pretty much in the same league as the late Weekly World News, with the added angle of drawing upon the likes of Japan's trashier weekly magazines for source material):

Despite constant complaints about the filth and degradation on display in some of Japan's cruddiest TV shows, major corporations are still willing to funnel hundreds of millions of yen into the programs, according to Shukan Bunshun (12/13).

"Ratings are everything for us. The better a show rates, the more it can charge for advertising. Advertising revenue determines how well a network performs and how much employees get paid. At the moment, the going rate for a monthly advertising contract for a prime time TV show earning ratings of 15 percent or more is about ¥100 million," a major network insider tells Shukan Bunshun, adding that TV advertising is a ¥2 trillion business.

"Most sponsors could care what programs they're advertising with. All they're worried about is how many viewers from the key consumer market of women aged 20 to 34 that a show can pull in."

Parents of schoolchildren across Japan are regularly infuriated by a series of shows on TV.

Taking the cake is "London Hearts," a variety show hosted by comic duo London Boots that has for the past four years been voted by a national PTA association as the program they least want kids to watch.

"Before going on air, the show gathers 10 women performers in a studio, gives them themes like 'The Woman Most Likely to be Hated by Men' or 'The Woman Most Likely to Get Cheated On' and asks them to decide among themselves who they think will be the loser. When the show goes live, an audience of 100 is also asked to pick the loser from among the 10 women. The panelists are then left to battle it out over all the answers that are given," a TV script writer says.

Cartoon "Crayon Shin-chan," the story of a crude pre-school boy, is also a perennial target of parents.

"Shin-chan is just filthy. He shows no respect for his parents, makes fun of adults and whips his willy out at the drop of a hat. I remember reading the comic it is based on before I was married and thinking, 'Gee, if I have a kid like this, I'll throttle him,'" a 48-year-old woman says.

Another mom despises "Crayon Shin-chan" because of its influence.

"Kids only need to see him once and they start copying his behavior," the 35-year-old housewife says.

"Mecha Mecha Iketeiru," a show by another comedy twosome called Ninety Nine, is also loathed by respectable parents. The show features a wordplay game, with the losers punished, often with physical violence in the form of a group beating meted out for giving a wrong answer, an action many say inspires school bullying.

Sex is also a prime target of those upset by the idiot box. "Baka Dono Sama," a vehicle for comedian Ken Shimura, has been blasted for scenes implying he is sleeping with several women at the same time and for showing a woman naked from the waist up and referring to her as a "flesh cushion" even though it screens at the family time of 7 p.m.

"Ainori" is another program drawing criticism, with the reality show taking several young men and women in a drive around the world in a pink car with "Love Wagon" written on it and the performers instructed that the aim of the show is for them to eventually find someone working with them to pair off.

Networks aren't too fazed by the criticism.

"Our programs are made according to the network's ethical standards, loved by viewers and we trust the producers," a spokesman for TV Asahi, which runs both "London Hearts" and "Crayon Shin-Chan," tells Shukan Bunshun.

Advertisers aren't too concerned about what they're pumping their money into, either.

"We're aware that some of these programs are being criticized, but we'd rather not comment on the social responsibility aspect. We do not have concrete standards on the types of programs we will not advertise with," a spokesman for Unilever Japan tells Shukan Bunshun.

Softbank Mobile Corp. has a similar line.

"We have no particular guidelines about advertising, but place priority on the effect of the advertisement, which we judge by the ratings and the type of people watching the show. We're aware of the criticism, and we're certainly not ignoring it," a spokesman says.

Not all companies are like that, though. Health product manufacturer Unicharm Corp. and confectionary giant Lotte Co. both advertise during controversial shows criticized for their crude content, but have declined to be credited as sponsors. A Unicharm spokesman explains why.

"We decided in June last year to stop advertising on 'London Hearts.' We still run a spot advertisement, but don't want to be credited as a program sponsor," the spokesman says.

Lotte is even more specific.

"Because of all the criticism from places like PTAs and the like, we felt that we could invite misunderstanding, so declined the chance to be a credited sponsor," a PR representative says.

Hair product manufacturer Aderans Co., however, clearly doesn't care.

"We have absolutely nothing to do with the contents of the program," a spokesman for Aderans tells Shukan Bunshun. "Nor are we in any position to issue orders or make comments about the shows."

(Meanwhile, let's just hope some target of an American Family Association-directed boycott campaign pro Deo, patria et familia actually turns the tables on the AFA for once with legal action for Unlawful Interference in Interstate or Foreign Commerce, Criminal Syndicalism, Racketeering and Related Conspiracies.)

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AND ONE THING MORE: Are conservatives looking to have the now-discredited term "morons and idiots" applied to "chronic and habitual" welfare cases solely for the sake of further keeping the poor down, all the while excusing such as "patriotic"?