A righteous rant — Dylan Ratigan on Wall Street & jobs

Thanks to Digby for putting this rant from Dylan Ratigan on our to-do lists. If you haven't seen it, take a minute and watch.

It's not one of those canned Rick Santelli–type ravings — though Ratigan, despite his CNBC background, is a nice inverse–Santelli politically. This is even better.

Ratigan brings on a talking points pro — Rep. Kevin Brady from Texas' 8th Congressional District (if you click that link, note the proximity to Louisiana and the Gulf). Why Brady came on is anyone's guess, but if his job was to carry John Boehner's water, he did it. Dylan really lays into him though.



Apropos of Ratigan's point — that the bankers are draining the economy of money, not creating it — the dots to this post by Chris in Paris connect themselves.

One thing to note — watch how robotic the Republican is, how on-message. But it's not just discipline — the message is actually a well-aimed gun, nicely calibrated to achieve its effect. Brady makes no sense whatsoever; but he knows he doesn't have to. He knows which piece of the lizard brain he triggers in the weekend BBQ crowd.

And even though the logic of the message is crap, he speaks his crap with confidence, a smile, and head held high. (In my mind, he went golfing afterward, and they bought him drinks.)

Those of you who are planners — the Pattons among us — time to be thinking seriously. We can start with the next four elections, as a group. Contests in 2010, 2012, 2014 and 2016 each present special problems. If this were a board game, how would you play it?

There are three pieces on the board — Money-enabled Republicans, Money-neutered Dems, and us. We're not without resources, methods, or candidates. How does the Progressive Patton get his tanks to Berlin? I'm certain there's a way.

GP