You know all those big rules the Republicans keep breaking? Oh, like, the rules against torture and such? Well, maybe it will be the little ones that finally bring them down:
What would be the purpose of an inaugural ball if the Republicans couldn’t break a few laws there just to remind us that IOKIYAAR*? Here’s a felony committed last night at the Black Tie and Boots Ball and mentioned in passing in a Moonie Times article:
One table sold fat Cohiba cigars, and the men chomped away happily.
Cohibas — those would be, um, Cuban cigars. Prior to August 1, 2004, individual travelers licensed to travel to Cuba could bring back cigars but only for personal use. Now, even those travelers cannot bring back Cuban cigars. And, it’s illegal to resell in the United States Cuban cigars in the United States, even if imported legally under the old rules. Click here and here if you don’t believe me.
Tom Delay was on the guest list for the Black Tie and Boots Ball. We know he likes cigars. Ya think he was one of the chompers?
*It’s Okay If You Are A Republican
I should have pointed out in the post that what the Repugs was doing was not only against the law but also grossly hypocritical in view of their long-standing support of the Cuban sanctions program.
(Thanks for the link!)
They truly believe that laws are what you pass for others to follow. They believe because they are “in charge” the rules do not apply to them.
Power corrupts, absolute power corrupts, absolutely
Yeah, but they are beside the point — rather like counterfeit Rolex watches made in China and sold on the sidewalk. I truly doubt that fake Cohibas from the Dominican Republic were being sold. If you’re gonna smoke non-Cubans there are a million better choices.
The Cohiba brand is also made outside of Cuba – I think in the Dominican Republic or Honduras.
Many of the old Cuban brand-names are now being used on cigars made elsewhere. There is no intent to fake anyone out about where they come from. The country of origin is clearly indicated on them. The non-Cuban Cohiba is a very fine, quite expensive super-premium cigar that is probably better now than the Cubans. Many former Cuban cigar makers now produce cigars in the Dominican Republic and Honduras, having been lucky enough to have escaped Cuba. I’ve read that Cuban cigars in general are not what they used to be, which is an excellent illustration of the fact that there is nothing so good that a commie/leftist can’t screw it up, given the opportunity.
I hope you’ll all pardon me for having thrown cold water on your fevered fantasies of bringing down the Republicans over a cigar incident. If you wish to achieve victory over the Republicans, all you have to do is come up with better ideas than Capitalism in economics, and republican representative democracy in government. Until then, you will continue your headlong march towards the abyss, at the bottom of which you will find your permanent home – the dustbin of history.
Um, what exactly was the point of that last comment?
The original post was about hypocrisy, and Jeff, you poked a hole in it quite expertly by pointing out that the cigars are likely not from Cuba.
So, why did you have to ruin your point — like activists on both the left and right — by not leaving it to stand on it’s own and instead push into an ideological cat fight?
The original post was about the cigar smokers engaging in illegal behavior – “It Was Tax Evasion That Brought Down Al Capone”, the implication being that those involved routinely engage in much greater crimes. The comment about hypocrisy was only an afterthought by Clif. Although I usually enjoy a good “idealogical cat fight”, it was not my purpose to start one. My comment about the “dustbin” was just an honest and realistic prediction about the eventual fate of those whose focus, in an effort to prevail politically, is on an effort to damage the personal reputations of opponents, rather than to win in the arena of ideas. It is in that arena that left-wing ideology has been losing ground, I think it’s fair to say, since at least as far back as 1980, hence the focus on character assassination. As a libertarian, I am only interested in certain ideas prevailing over other ideas. I find petty partisan bickering tedious, and in light of that and of Clif’s juvenile use of the term “Repugs”, an “idealogical cat fight” would have elevated this discussion.
I have yet to see a Republican — one in power, anyway — who competes in the realm of ideas. I’d say that Republicans FAR outweigh Democrats in the fight to damage personal reputations. I’m shaking my head in disbelief at your comment. Did you sleep through the last two elections and the tactics of the right wing?
I see, Gene, that you have apparently conquered your aversion to ideological cat fighting.
Concerning the last two elections; no candidate was promising to abolish the dept of education, or HUD, or the IRS, or to reduce the size of gov’t in any way. So yes, I slept through the last two elections. I heard, though, that the leftists brought up Bush’s National Guard service as an issue again (for the third time – one Texas race, two national races), and even tried to pass off some forged documents (with the collusion of CBS News),immediately before the election. Given your sensitivity regarding these sorts of tactics, I would guess that it caused you some pain to see fellow leftists veering so precipitously off of the high road.
It does, as you say, cause me some pain to see what’s going on; but when one factors in the ridiculous behavior of the right wing in using personal destruction during the Clinton era, one might think that the left wing has just taken a cue from the other side.
I just wish both sides would stop this nonsense, but I’m afraid we have now entered a political world with two intractible sides; a new conflict that will last for a very, very long time — very like the conflict between the Israelis and the Palestinians. Because politics in this country has become like a religion, and trying to convince the adherent of one religion that the other religion is the correct one… well, it’s impossible and expends far too much energy.
That won’t stop me from continuing to point out the hypocrisy of politicians, though. And right now, that hypocrisy mostly comes from the right. Sorry.
(And as self-avowed libertarian, I wonder why you expend such energy to support the right?)