John Harrison (Benedict Cumberbatch) in custody

Certain corners of the right wing are apoplectic about director J.J. Abrams' just released blockbuster, Star Trek Into Darkness, claiming it condones an appeasing, liberal spin on the Bush Administration's War on Terror.

Here's the set-up: (some spoilers ahead) After a terrorist attack in London, vengeful star fleet commander Admiral Marcus (Peter Weller) lusts to wage war not only against the perpetrator of the attack, John Harrison (Benedict Cumberbatch), but also against the Klingons, who, while belligerent, were in no way responsible.  9/11? Check. The Iraq War? Check. Dick Cheney? Double check.

Simon Pegg, who plays Scotty in the film, broke it down this way:

There is a parallel with the terrorist activities of Osama bin Laden and the decision to attack Iraq. Iraq had nothing proven to do with 9/11, and yet [President] Bush used that as an excuse to start a war with those people. You can always see the Klingons as like Iraq and John Harrison the proxy for Osama bin Laden."

Admiral Marcus certainly seems like a stand-in for former Vice President Cheney. "Absolutely," Pegg laughs. "He's definitely a Republican."

Observed Pop Matters:

Star Trek Into Darkness is immersed in a series of lessons regarding the war on terror: the dark side is still the dark side, violence breeds violence, we make our own demons.

Not surprisingly, the conservatives at PJ Media pounced, saying:

In case you missed any of the signals scattered throughout the movie, Abrams’ writers tell you exactly what to think about the War on Terror in the closing seconds. One of the leads argues in the end that there will always be those who will wish to do us harm — but that to stop them we risk awakening evil in ourselves. Sure, and Guantanamo must be closed immediately, right, fellas? Amusing as it is to realize that Hollywood is well to the left of even Barack Obama — and that this is just the beginning of the age of disguised cinematic attacks on The One from the left — the moral equivalence argument simply won’t wash in a country that welcomes and celebrates immigrants like the Tsarnaev brothers, only to be savagely attacked in return. Sorry, Hollywood, we’re not just like them. We’re better.

"We're better." Yeah, that attitude will solve everything. Bring it on, Klingons.

FWIW, my takeaway from Star Trek Into Darkness was the same message as all the Star Trek stories: there is no Them, there are only increasingly complex manifestations of Us.

No doubt about it: Pat Robertson's still got it. On yesterday's 700 club, a viewer asked for guidance on how to forgive her husband, who had cheated on her.  Right Wing Watch reports that the reverend offered her this advice (with our annotations):

“Stop talking about the cheating! (1) He cheated on you, well, he’s a man. (2) So what you do is begin to focus on why you married him in the first place, on what he does good. (3) Does he provide a home for you to live in, does he provide food for you to eat, does he provide clothes for you to wear, is he nice to the children, do you have a happy family, does he take your kids to sporting events, does he go out and watch their Little League games, does he share with you stuff that’s going on (4)…is he handsome? (5) Start focusing on those things and essentially fall in love with him all over again. (6) 

"I recommend you reach out and touch him, touch his face—touch his face—hold his hand, look into his eyes, talk to him, (7) you’re praying oh God, teach me to not hate him when he was with that stripper in that hotel room 10 years ago (8) and I’ll never forgive him kind of thing please –so what are you focusing on? You’re focusing on the thing that makes you mad. (9) Stop that. (10) Start focusing on the good stuff. He must have something good or you wouldn’t have married him. (11)

"So give him honor instead of worrying about it. (12) But recognize also, like it or not, males have a tendency to wander a little bit (13) and what you want to do is make a home so wonderful that he doesn’t want to wander. (14)  Think of the temptations that are out there, the internet is FILLED with pornography,(15) the magazines are filled with salacious pictures of women (16) Anywhere you turn around there’s some solicitation to the senses to entice a man. (17)

"What you have to do is say, ‘My husband was captured and I want to get him free.(18 )But reach out and think of the good stuff. Begin to thank God that you have a marriage that is together (19) and that you live in America (20) and good things are happening.” (21) 

Annotations after the jump.

1. Blah, blah, cheated on me, blah, blah. Got it, thanks.

2. It's right there in the owner's manual, page 371, "Men, inevitable cheating habits of"

3. ...besides cheating on you

4. If you're nodding yes, than your husband has obviously accrued generous cheating time interest from your joint goodwill savings account.

5.  Oh he's handsome? Then disregard the whole food, clothes, and Little League bit.

6. Only without the trust part this time. See owner's manual, page 371

7. After securing him to a chair with duct tape.

8. One stripper in one hotel room 10 years ago? Come on, who hasn't done that?

9. And it's angry women that got us into this mess in the first place.

10. The discipline starts right now, missy!

11. Remember, your judgment is on trial here, not his.

12. Get those expectations nice and low and poof! let the healing begin!

13. Page 371 ibid.

14. His cheating = a referendum on your homemaking skills

15. What are men supposed to do? NOT click on it? Porn is like a cicada invasion of the mind.

16. Analysts estimate that the Charlize Theron Dior ads induced 55,637 husbands to cheat last year alone.

17. It's almost like corporations deliberately use sexual images just to SELL things.

18. Note: Before embarking on this rescue mission, it's important that both of you agree on the definitions of "captured" and "free."

19. Think of it as getting by with a lower happiness minimum wage, instead of the artificially inflated one you're getting now. 

20. Home to such heroic marriage role models as David Vitter Mark Sanford and John Ensign.

21.  There's no place like home, there's no place like home...

In the aftermath of yesterday's second line shooting in New Orleans came this report from the Gambit:

Among the injured was Gambit correspondent Deborah Cotton, who covers second line, Mardi Gras Indian and Social Aid & Pleasure Club culture for the paper under the name "BIg Red" Cotton. Cotton was hit directly by gunfire and taken to intensive care for surgery. She is in guarded but stable condition tonight, according to doctors. This morning, Cotton had tweeted, "A very Happy Mother's Day to all! See U at the 2nd line today w/ @TBC_BrassBand."

In the above video, (from May of last year) Ms. Cotton talks about the terrible toll street violence has taken in New Orleans.

"I believe that it can be prevented We are just not being smart and strategic about how to address this in a systematic way. ...It's not being diminished at all. Every six months someone you know, a friend of someone or a family member of someone you know is murdered. After a while it begins to really tear at you internally. I feel that we're at the point where we can not NOT fix this any more."  

As targets of conservative apoplexy go, few are juicier than the high school musical hit "Glee."  In addition to the usual anti-gay rhetoric hurled at the show, Right Wing Watch unearthed a creative new talking point from Culture and Media Institute columnist Andrew Collins.  

Pity William McKinley. Our 25^th president was a Civil War hero who successfully prosecuted the Spanish-American War and presided over a booming economy. For his trouble, he was assassinated. Adding insult to injury, he’s the namesake of The World’s Gayest High school.  It’s no secret that “Glee” frequently and flamboyantly pushes a gay agenda. So many characters play for the other team it's hard to believe that there’ll be any future generations of McKinley High students to mock the Bible and cheer on transgendered performers. But as this season prepares to wrap up this week, things are heating up on "Glee." Last week’s episode featured a particularly large dose of gay.

Just to recap, Mr. Collins worries that the fictional high school depicted on "Glee" will corrupt future generations of real life students because its "particularly large dose of gay" is an insult to the high school's namesake, 19th century President William McKinley. Got it.

Sadly, we have no way of knowing President McKinley's views regarding "Glee" and The World's Gayest High School named for him but our 25th president (R-Ohio) did make these public pronouncements:

Let us ever remember that our interest is in concord, not in conflict; and that our real eminence rests in the victories of peace, not those of war.

The mission of the United States is one of benevolent assimilation.

The free man cannot long be an ignorant man.

So, President William McKinley, proto-Gleek?

Our humble thanks to all who participated in our latest Infoxication headline challenge concerning President Obama and his recent golf outing with three Senators. Amidst the many, many excellent golf-centric submissions, here are a few that jumped out:

Obama damages lawn on local country club property---cccatty

Senate Republicans continue to demonstrate skill in dealing with Obama--dragoon21b

Obama loses three Senators in tar sands trap.--Marty in Kansas City

Chambliss: "I got 100% of what I wanted."--TheRealChris

With GOP victory in golf and Sanford win in SC, Democrats are at a complete loss.--JoeAverage 2285031

Saul Loeb, AFP/Getty Images

Sen. Bob Corker and President Obama on the links yesterday

In yet another of his let's-talk-this-over-like-regular-guys outreach missions, President Obama  played golf yesterday at Joint Base Andrews with Republican Senator Bob Corker of Tennessee, Democratic Senator Mark Udall of Colorado and Republican Senator Saxby Chambliss of Georgia. Chambliss stole the show by draining a hole-in-one on the par-three 11th hole. (If you're scoring at home, that ace propelled Team Chambliss/Corker to victory over Team Obama/Udall.) Most headlines were like these:

Obama Plays Golf With Two GOP Senators, Obama's Golf Outreach Turns into Senatorial Hole-In-One, Fore! Obama Takes Schmooze Offensive to the Fairway, Obama's Latest Senate Outreach: Monday Golf Date

Meanwhile, Fox Nation recast the event in their own inimitable way: Infoxication accomplished!

Which reminds me: the President's tee time adventures seem like a prime opportunity to buff up our own Fox Nation headline writing chops. Something like?

Obama Confronts GOP Senators With Iron Clubs

Now it's your turn. Send us your best Fox Nation style headlines about the President's golfing foursome in the comments and we'll post samplings of your collective genius tomorrow. Enjoy!

Lil Bub

The narrative fiction entries at this year’s Tribeca Film Festival were stellar as always —particularly Thomas Haden Church’s masterful performance  in Whitewash, Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy’s romantic fireworks in Before Midnight and the fantastic crowd-pleasing Laotian epic, The Rocket.

That said, it was the documentaries that really stuck with me. Here are five great films about five wildly different topics that you should put on your must-see list:

Lil Bub & Friendz

What would happen to worldwide productivity if we could redirect all the hours people spent surfing the online adventures of Lil Bub, Grumpy Cat and Nyan cat?  "Lil Bub & Friendz" is an irresistible look at  the web felines that have colonized our pop culture while also asking what it means to be famous in the weird isolation of cyberspace. Hilarious with a lingering whiff of how-did-this-happen?

McConkey

The super-stoked (and ultimately tragic) story of the hyper-adrenalized life of skier, BASE jumper, and extreme sport demi-god Shane McConkey. An insanely entertaining case study of what it means to reach for the next frontier...and the price one must pay to get there. Moral: Seize the day (or be seized).

Red Obsession

Even if you don’t know your Chateau Lafite from your Chateau Margaux, you don’t have to be an oenophile to love this movie about the legendary wines of Burgundy and the acquisitive madness they inspire. "Red Obsession" is an elegant satire of taste, art, the bizarre vagaries of the marketplace and the incredible lengths some people will go to validate their sudden wealth. Delicious.

"Oxyana"

Oxyana  

A devastating examination of the rampant spread of Oxycodone addiction in the green hills of West Virginia. Just try to contain your anger at Big Pharma while watching this. Heartbreaking and essential.

And finally...

I Got Somethin’ To Tell You

Moms Mabley

All hail director Whoopi Goldberg for giving groundbreaking comedy genius Moms Mabley the props she has so long deserved , but seldom received. Bill Cosby, Eddie Murphy, Kathy Griffin, Harry Belafonte, Sidney Poitier and more weigh in on a woman whose fingerprints can be seen all over today's comedy landscape, whether young comedians know it or not. And even better? Here’s a documentary about comedy that is actually funny. Aspiring paradigm-destroyers, gather round. Class is in session.

Here's an intriguing snapshot of just who trusts whom nowadays: The Institute of Politics at Harvard surveyed 3,103 18- to 29-year-olds and asked them this: How often do you trust  (insert entrenched authority paradigm here) to do the right thing? (all of the time/most of the time).

The survey found America's next generation of decision makers saying they trust the federal government to do the right thing a whopping 22% of the time, Congress 18% of the time, Wall Street 12% of the time and the media (ahem) 11% of the time.

Candidates running in the next few election cycles? Ignore these numbers at your peril.

Our humblest thanks for your enthusiastic response to the latest TRMS Writing Challenge.  Here is a random sampling of the many stellar answers to the question: what should be sold in George W. Bush's Presidential Library gift shop?:

• Heckuva Job Brownies --bd2346505
• Iraqi Reporter Action Figure complete with "Action Shoe" --Truckloadbear
• The Decider: a magic 8-ball that always comes up Yes --Carl Forde
• STRATEGERY!: A Game Of World Domination! For ages 3 and up --Strickland Sims- DiaNa

Piñatas of both the U.S. Constitution and the American Economy --John King 7989339

And for a Limited time only, on loan from John McCain, copies of Mitt Romney's taxes --Sarge GW

Ballot chad confetti --jhamje

Spreadsheet showing the shift from budget surplus to deficit during Bush's presidency ---ddb2023

Unused copy of "Fodor's Guide to New Orleans" --Donna Roger Sauer

Thank you cards... compliments of Halliburton --Victor Del Mar

An empty box labeled "Iraqi Weapons of Mass Destruction" --Kathleen Cecchin

How to paint by numbers. How to live in denial. How to fool a Nation. How to get richer by working with the Saudis. How not to look for terrorists --Jean Ouderkirk

George Jones, one of the great singers in any genre, ever, has died at age 81. A true American original, the hard living rebel known as The Possum could tap vast reservoirs of loneliness and regret in his songs. Writes the Washington Post: 

“With other country singers, it’s almost about what they hold back. With Jones, it’s almost a cry for help, pure emotion,” said country music historian Bob Allen, describing Mr. Jones’s singing style. “He could bring a palpable anguish to a song.”

Hurt never sounded so authentic, or so gorgeous. (Much more about the irreplaceable Mr. Jones here and here and here.)

President George W. Bush Bobblehead doll.

As we reported on last night's show, the George W. Bush Presidential Center opens for business May 1, the 10th anniversary of "Mission Accomplished." Good news! As befits a staunch free-market conservative, there is also a gift shop for those eager to collect a souvenir of President Bush's historic two-term presidency.  Among the many treasures there, one can purchase:

• Mountain biking cycling socks with the George W. Bush Presidential Center logo. $12.98
• President Bush Camp David Bomber Jacket. "This jacket is made of 100% Mil. Spec. goatskin. It follows the current Mil. Spec. US Navy pattern which Cockpit USA supplies to the Navy and Coast Guard units. " $549
• "In My Time" by Dick Cheney. "In his enlightening and provocative memoir—a stately page-turner with flashes of surprising humor, remarkable candor, and powerful resonance—former Vice President Dick Cheney takes readers through his experiences as family man, policymaker, businessman, and politician during years that shaped our collective history." $35.00

This is a nice start, but why are the American people not allowed to also purchase these?

• T-shirt 100% cotton. Made in America. It reads: "I don't know where he is. I just don't spend that much time on him, I'll be honest with you." $25.00
• Audiobook: "My Pet Goat" President George W. Bush reads the story of a girl's pet goat that eats everything in its path. $45.00
• Book bag, 100% cotton with strong handles and reinforced stitching: features Presidential Library Logo and the slogan, "Is Our Children Learning?"  $53.00

Now it's your turn. What items would you like to see sold at the George W. Bush Presidential Center? Please share your suggestions in the comments section, and we'll post a sampling of your collective genius on Monday. Enjoy!

Just two blocks from TRMS HQ in midtown Manhattan, one can admire this impressive array of billboards at Seventh Avenue and 48th Street.  "It's time the Liberal Media Stop Censoring the News!" we are told, and to drive the message home, there are three "see no evil,"  "hear no evil," "speak no evil" monkeys representing "liberal" media villains ABC and CBS and NBC. (Moral? Never trust a monkey without pants.) StopCensoringtheNews informs us:

“There's no question that the liberal media did everything they could to get Barack Obama reelected last year. We should all be disturbed by this fact. But particularly disturbing are the media's attempts to censor news they thought might embarrass Obama or slow down the Left's radical agenda.”

“The Media Research Center has documented numerous cases of the media suppressing stories like ‘Fast and Furious,’ Solyndra, Benghazi, and others...stories that would have been major news if there had been a conservative in the White House. It's time the American people stand against this lack of integrity and blatant abuse of power by the national media.”

If this latest First Amendment broadside seems like something cooked up by the conservative gadflies at News Busters and Brent Bozell at the Media Research Center, well spotted. Said Mr. Bozell.

“These billboards – located in the hub of the liberal media's nerve center – put them on notice. The American people are sick and tired of the establishment media’s collusion with the Obama administration, and won’t stand for a corrupt press willing to censor the news.”

Interestingly, the billboards show no lying, news-censoring monkeys to represent either CNN or Fox News, where Mr. Bozell is a frequent contributor, (or BBC or Al Jazeera for that matter). One assumes, these outlets, and possibly monkey pants, will be added later.