Jon does cut to the chase doesn't he? Thank goodness for Jon Stewart! He says what we all wish we could say to Bush.

I LURVED this piece! Stephen Colbert has the balls to call this particular piece of unadulterated graft exactly what it is. My only complaint is, Why no mention of Dick Cheney's CONTINUING to be paid on his Halliburton contract WHILE he's Vice-pResident? If this isn't the smoking gun quid pro quo that should get his ass impeached, then "corruption" has no meaning . . .

i believe steven colbert is now the "senior" senior correspondent

a welcome antidote to jay leno, that's for sure.

jay's swung so far right so fast since 9/11 he's about to turn into butter. but then he's always been fairly opportunistic, and when he smelled a bit of jingo on the wind, he jumped on for the hayride without hesitating.

and meanwhile dave is missing. they SAY it's health problems...

The story is, Jon got a warning from Viacom after the Alterman interview last week. So we had two painful days where I thought he'd sold out, interviewing an unknown from the Heritage Foundation and such. If so, he has now, rather loudly and elegantly, told them to go f--- themselves in their f---ing corporate offices. Yay Jon! The only national non-propaganda news source in the US.

i have to say tuesday nights daily show held a gem for me when jon stewart, interviewing jim kelly of time magazine, said 'my heart fell when i saw them bombing baghdad on tv. i mean, im not...i think saddam is...whatever, but i remember when i looked out the window and i thought the world was crumbling.'

the daily show. youll laugh, youll cry...best newssource since the onion

When Stewart misses it is major stench. Just 2 wks ago spotlighting NO-War and anti-WarLies protest people he put the defining focus upon some young women's contribution of absurdist theatre. The heavy MOCKing that tried to paint a whole protest group of millions
so dismissable, juvenile jerks and not the least typical.

Guests seem selected mainly by corporate sponsors.
That brought surprise to see Eric Alterman with his zinging truth and his book "What 'Liberal' Media". But couldn't make up for that
sleazy try at putting over _WAR must be smart_
look at these frivolous demonstrators.

When Stewart misses it is major stench. Just 2 wks ago spotlighting NO-War and anti-WarLies protest people he put the defining focus upon some young women's contribution of absurdist theatre. The heavy MOCKing that tried to paint a whole protest group of millions
so dismissable, juvenile jerks; but are not the least typical.

Guests seem selected mainly by corporate sponsors.
That brought surprise to see Eric Alterman with his zinging truth and his book "What 'Liberal' Media". But couldn't make up for that
sleazy try at putting over _WAR must be smart_
look at these frivolous demonstrators.

This bit is online at http://www.comedycentral.com/timewasters/dl_general.jhtml?show=ds

This is the gang that stole a presidential election. Remember? The Halliburton stuff is just petty theft for them, like pocketing candy bars at 7-11 after knocking over a bank.

Does anybody know when the Haliburton contract was let? under which government agency? how much money (exactly)? did other companies bid? under what type of process? or was this secret? Is this a first--a government contract let in less than a week?!?

Don't you people freaking realize you are getting this info from COMEDY CENTRAL i.e. they don't care if what they say is right or true, just as long as it's funny as hell.

I never plan on returning to this sight again, I'll just leave you and your Haliburton Circle jerk alone now.

Hey Kyle, don't let the door slam your ass on the way out!

The Daily Show is a spoonful of sugar that makes the medicine more palatable. The truly sad thing is that a comedy show is more insightful than any of the tripe factories that pass for news shows these days.

A friend of mine once claimed that he could say anything to anyone as long as he was smiling. Seems pretty true.

BTW ... BushCo & Halliburton --like all blood sucking vampires -- got spooked when the spotlight turned on their nasty little deal. At least for one part of the reconstruction bidding, they have bowed out of the race:
Yahoo Bizness News

Note that they might still be a subcontractor, haha.

The Daily Show and South Park can both get away with espousing views that Viacom probably isn't happy with. Why? Well, it's funny--but, more importantly, it gets good ratings. And, while Viacom may or may profit in the long run from crushing anti-globalism and pushing war hucksterism, there's an obvious, immediate profit in selling ads on Comedy Central.

So, as long as the Daily Show and South Park are the network's most (only?) successful shows, they'll get pretty wide latitude. Just as NBC lets SNL get away with a lot more in their successful years than in the early 80s disaster or the post-Sandler crash (just ask Charles Rocket and Norm MacDonald).

I think that even Jon Stewart's occasional blasts at the left (especially the anti-globalism youth movement and eastern European protestors) have more to do with himself and his writers than with Viacom: they want to be objective (they see themselves as on the side of truth, not the left; that they're apparently the same side so often must be coincidence), and they're genuinely baffled by some of what they see. Puppet shows as a form of protest make for easy humor (and remember, they're comedians first), but I think that they also find it troubling that they're on the same side as these incomprehensible goofballs.

It's like Chris Rock, who, when asked who he'd like to see as President, simply replied, "Wouldn't it be cool is Ralph Nader had a little charisma?" They both want to find people who are right who are also likeable.

And maybe Stewart and friends also feel that when the other side is so blatantly, obviously wrong, the good guys can afford a little ribbing. It's not as if anyone's going to say, "Well, a few of those anti-war protestors are silly, so I guess it's OK to risk our soldiers' lives, kill thousands of civilians, isolate America from the world, and increase the risk of terrorism so the vice-president's company can make a buck."

As pointed out, The Daily Show is a comedy show, and shouldn't be used as a primary news source, although I'm personaly guilty of that. I do think I've got a pretty good filter on what they're making up, though.

A couple of points, though: Jon and Steven are just some of a team of writers that come up with this stuff.

But what really worries me isn't that he makes light of things like silly protestors (those people are demeaning the movements all by themselves), but that by making me laugh at all the horrible, horrible news out there, they make it that much easier to swallow... and that's not always a good thing.

The Daily Show – May 6, 2003

JON STEWART:

William Bennett’s admission and subsequent defense of his gambling [habit] is the subject of tonight’s “Whaaaa?”

(laughter)

So how is William Bennett apologizing for what some might call the hypocrisy of telling others how to lead virtuous lives while having a small degenerate gambling problem? Is he holding a prayer breakfast, going on Black Entertainment Television or uh…perhaps a prayer brunch?

(laughter)

No. Bennett chose the strategy of unapologetic indignation, even telling Newsweek of his habit: “I don’t put my family at risk. I don’t owe anyone anything. I play fairly high stakes. I adhere to the law. I don’t play the milk money.” And he wasn’t lying, as a look inside his refrigerator proves.

(picture of an empty refrigerator with only a container of milk in it)

(laughter)

So let me say this. Kudos to William Bennett for not apologizing for his human frailty to morality policemen like uh…William Bennett.

(laughter & applause)

Yes! In standing up to the William Bennetts of the world, William Bennett sends a powerful message! He’s saying, “I, William Bennett will not be Bennetted!”

(laughter)

You know and by the way, do you think it’s easy traveling the country reminding people that you and your conservative brethren know what is the best and most virtuous way for them to live? It’s not fun! A lot of the cities he goes to barely have OTBs, let alone a full-fledged casino!

(laughter)

I mean, this man has to gamble! His high moral…principles bar him from any other form of entertainment. [If] he turns on the TV or radio, evil things might come out – like Eminem.

(laughter)

He listens to the radio, Eminem [comes on].

(Jon impersonates Bennett by plugging his ears and making his voice very squeaky and high-pitched)

“Oh no, I’m going to hell!”

(laughter & applause)

He’s got no other option than gambling. As the Lord once said unto…let’s say Noah.

(laughter)

“Build an arc, Noah! Bring two of every kind of animal and I shall reward your piety by presenting you with a riverboat gambling license.”

(laughter & applause)

“Yea, indeed, I give you two-to-one odds that you won’t make it through the Valley of the…thing of Death.”

(laughter)

So kudos to William Bennett – for teaching us that we should never ever listen to people like William Bennett.

(laughter & applause)

Thank you.

(laughter & applause)

By the way, of course nothing will ever happen to William Bennett because, as you know, there is no comeuppance for people like him.

(laughter)

Comedy Central is very funny, but its pretty sad if the majority opinion here is that this is actually news. Somebody is pissed because Leno isn't being a good liberal and Letterman won't pick up your fight. Must be a right wing conspiracy!! Did you ever think that maybe people on the other end of the political spectrum actually don't have any network sponsored comedians? They do exist, but there aren't any getting a TV show of their own.

Its actually funny to listen to people whining about Halliburton. I notice that Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer didn't complain. Maybe it wasn't a Bush/Cheney thing as much as it was a Feinstein/Boxer thing? How did two companies in San Francisco get the majority of the contracts in Iraq? That's at least as good a conspiracy theory to lose your mind over.

When the NLRB is stocked with union lawyers from a president who got tens and tens of millions from union bosses, there is no news whatsoever. When Halliburton gets another of hundreds of government contracts it has gotten from the last 4 presidents, its a conspiracy and Cheney is somehow profitting from it. Somebody has to be the voice of reason in these threads or it just becomes an X-files episode.

And if any of you people actually watch South Park you would know that the writers are actually libertarians, not liberals. Liberals don't call other liberals long haired hippie freaks or make fun of Christopher Reeves.

Jon is the best! He is keeping me sane during the reign of bush--SNL has become an idiotic, vapid vaudville act - even weekend update stinks-the writing is servile and insipid.

Jon Stewart calls the Daily Show "fake" all the time, but the truth is he was even hailed by the New York Times for bringing up the Halliburton scandal before any "real" news source and lesser-known facts like Bush's destruction of Yellow Stone by allowing Snowmobiles inside the park.

The Daily Show never dubs over or doctors photos and soundbites unless it's for an obvious bit. I see the Daily Show as bullet-point information source about policies and actions the administration is taking and unlike the unbiased news really telling the us how Bush's policies affect the middle and lower class American, and I don't see anything wrong with that.

Like Michael Moore (although there is some controversy surrounding him as well), he researches and brings out the outrageous truth in a humorous manner.

Hey I really like your site.

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