Lost in Translation: Alhurra—America’s Troubled Effort to Win Middle East Hearts and Minds
“An Arab-language television network and radio station, founded by the Bush administration to promote a positive image of the United States, has aired anti-American and anti-Israeli viewpoints, has showcased pro-Iranian policies and recently gave air time to a militant who called for the death of American soldiers in Iraq.” Since this appears to have happened because of incompetence and not in the name of fairness, that’s a big oops!
Jun 25, 2008 in Politicks | Comment
I'm Voting Republican
Via Derek's Rantings and Musings
Jun 19, 2008 in Politicks | Comment
Happy May Day
May 1, 2008 in Politicks | Comment (2)
A Message from Management
“Attention, Fellow White People: There seems to be some cultural panic initiated by the recent Rev. Wright controversy.” A reminder re: the Obama candidacy and race in America.
Mar 29, 2008 in Politicks | Comment
EBay's retiring chief may run for California governor
“Whitman has talked with top Republicans about the possibility of a run for California governor in 2010, according to three operatives who have had discussions with her… A source close to her said she had been talking with Republicans around the state and had become “fascinated” by politics in her work as a fundraiser for GOP presidential hopeful Mitt Romney…”
Jan 25, 2008 in Politicks | Comment
Minimanual of the Urban Guerrilla
“The urban guerrilla is a person who fights the military dictatorship with weapons, using unconventional methods. A revolutionary and an ardent patriot, he is a fighter for his country’s liberation, a friend of the people and of freedom. The area in which the urban guerrilla operates is in the large Brazilian cities.”
Jan 20, 2008 in Politicks | Comment
Alive! John McCain's Resurrection
I’d like to see McCain take the nomination. I don’t agree with all of his positions, but he strikes me as a man of deep principle, and one who’s very consistent with that principle (he was exceptionally bad at betraying that principle last year, when he tried to do it to buy the nomination). That, anyway, is a sight better than Romney or Giuliani. Romney is in big trouble, which is good news. Huckabee wouldn’t be bad; while I’d rather see a Democrat win, a Republican of principle is better than a Bush clone.
Jan 4, 2008 in Politicks | Comment
A talk with the world power
The Glamour interview with Benazir Bhutto. Glamour? Never occurred to me that they would be the kind of magazine to run this kind of a piece. Actually asked some tough questions. “your husband, who had the unforgettable nickname Mr. Ten Percent…”
Via Blonde Justice
Dec 28, 2007 in Politicks | Comment
I waterboard!
So much talk of waterboarding, so much controversy. But what is it really?… Torture, or not? To determine the answer, I knew I had to try it… I figure I would be a good test subject. I am incredibly fit and training for a 100 mile endurance run…I once held my breath for 4 minutes and two seconds…It took me ten minutes to recover my senses once I tried this. I was shuddering in a corner, convinced I narrowly escaped killing myself.”
Dec 28, 2007 in Politicks | Comment
Oil Prices
“To illustrate, an average clunker across Europe… is probably worth less than $5,000 to buy. Refueling it for a year at 20 mpg, which is where the European fleet was on performance 10 years ago requires an average of 600+ gallons. As a result the average used car owner will pay more than $5,000 for car energy supply for one year - more than the car is worth.” This should provide some very interesting market opportunities for auto companies.
Dec 1, 2007 in Politicks | Comment
Anti-Bush Sign Has Bridge World in an Uproar
A US Bridge team wins a tournament in Singapore, and, on the podium, holds up a last-minute hand-lettered sign that says “We did not vote for Bush”… and gets banned from the game for a year? That’s just nutty.
Via Indefensible
Nov 26, 2007 in Politicks | Comment
Conflict Termination: How to End—and Not to End—Insurgencies
“Concern over the trajectory of the on-going American military commitment in Iraq and Afghanistan has combined with memories of Vietnam and its aftermath to fuel interest in conflict termination, the process by which wars are ended. While we have paid a great deal of attention to how wars get started—and even more attention on how to fight wars—we tend not to talk very much about how a war should end.” A lot of examples of what goes wrong if you just abandon a conflict.
Via Blog Them Out of the Stone Age
Nov 20, 2007 in Politicks | Comment
What Does Iraq Cost? Even More Than You Think.
Economist Tyler Cowan — sort of a libertarian — talks about the cost of the war in Iraq, both in terms of what we’re spending and what we’ve foregone. Quite the list. I’d actually missed the news that the war cost more than $1 trillion, however. I need to pay closer attention!
Nov 19, 2007 in Politicks | Comment
Bishops issue guidelines for Catholic voters
“Catholic voters who back candidates because of their support for abortion or other “assaults on human life” would be “guilty of formal cooperation in grave evil,” according to a statement adopted Wednesday by U.S. Catholic bishops.” I actually think it’s great the Church is challenging the contradictions in the beliefs of many Catholics. How it’ll turn out, I don’t know.
Nov 15, 2007 in Politicks | Comment
Church finances are made public
Westboro Baptist — the church that pickets the funerals of dead soldiers, arguing that our servicemembers died because America doesn’t hate gays enough — argues that it doesn’t have enough assets to pay the $10mm judgment against it. Well, if you can’t pay the fine, don’t do the crime! I’m sure that the family of Lance Cpl. Matthew Snyder would be happy to get a slice of the defendants’ paychecks every two weeks.
Nov 15, 2007 in PoliticksPoliticks | Comment
Fort Hunt's Quiet Men Break Silence on WWII
“The group of World War II veterans… lamented the chasm between the way they conducted interrogations during the war and the harsh measures used today in questioning terrorism suspects.” Yes, but the threat to the Homeland wasn’t as critical then as it is now, or so they tell us.
Via Intel Dump
Oct 11, 2007 in Politicks | Comment
Thinking about this war
“This is the first war that’s a marketing war…The best way to counter an ideavirus, any ideavirus, is not by challenging the medium in which it spreads. It didn’t stop pirate radio or salacious TV shows or online porn. What has always worked the best is countering one ideavirus with another one… If you want moderate ideas to spread in a community, promote the people who are spreading those ideas. Make them heroes. Amplify their message and help it spread.”
Sep 14, 2007 in Politicks | Comment
Terrorist organization logos
Misses a lot of organizations, but not a bad list. What really stands out is how many of these are truly awful. Most Palestinian organizations have logos that are too similar; most Arabic-speaking organizations have extremely complex logos that have nothing to grab a hold of, nothing that reaches out and sticks in your mind; and the Puerto Ricans have a logo that looks like something for a racing team.
Via Kottke
Sep 13, 2007 in Politicks | Comment
So You Think You Can Be President?
“Our system for choosing presidents doesn’t work very well. Voters are woefully uninformed on the most basic of issues and many end up voting on whim… Our current institutions for providing information are lousy. Debates, for example, are boring, the politicians don’t answer the questions and most importantly the voters don’t know what a good answer is. Thus what we need is a way of conveying information to uninformed, unsophisticated voters in a way that is entertaining yet produces information about politicians that is correlated with real skills. I suggest a game show, So You Think You Can Be President?”
Sep 13, 2007 in Politicks | Comment
Study finds left-wing brain, right-wing brain
“Exploring the neurobiology of politics, scientists have found that liberals tolerate ambiguity and conflict better than conservatives because of how their brains work… The latest study found those traits are not confined to political situations but also influence everyday decisions.” Elegant-sounding experiment, assuming that the literature suggests that this kind of experiment has generalizable results.
Sep 10, 2007 in Politicks | Comment
L.A. County registrar to retire
“Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder Conny McCormack announced Tuesday that she would retire at the end of the year, saying she was tired of battling state officials over the future of electronic voting machines.” Good riddance — we don’t need yet another person trying to put a fast one over on voters by putting in machines that allow individual votes to be tracked, sold, or simply changed after voting is complete.
Aug 29, 2007 in Politicks | Comment
Vote for the best 2008 presidential campaign logo
Frankly, I think the voting must be on the basis of who likes who the best, because Ron Paul’s pedestrian logo gets tons of votes while the brilliant Obama and McCain logos are massively underappreciated. If only more campaigns had the original logos their original ideas demanded. Oh, right.
Aug 27, 2007 in Politicks | Comment
Where’s Waldo? Where's W?
“If we can bail out Chrysler, why can’t we support the American homeowner?” I’m not sure I agree, but a strong argument.
Aug 24, 2007 in Politicks | Comment
Budget siphons gas sales tax revenues from mass transit
“The budget takes $1.3 billion of the sales tax on gasoline revenues away from local transportation agencies to balance the general fund budget. The cuts could imperil a variety of transit projects, most notably the Exposition Line light rail from downtown L.A. to the Westside…” Gosh, I’m sure glad I voted for that bond for that specific purpose so that specific things could happen with my money! Wait, isn’t this like stealing?
Aug 23, 2007 in Politicks | Comment
E-Voting Ballots Not Secret; Vendors Don’t See Problem
“Two Ohio researchers have discovered that some of the state’s e-voting machines put a timestamp on each ballot… If you know the order of sign-ins, and you can put the ballots in order by timestamp, you’ll be able to connect them most of the time.” Guess what, polling places often keep a record of the order of sign-ins!
Aug 21, 2007 in Politicks | Comment
Here's a guy we should've listened to about what to do in Iraq
Via abu muqawama
Aug 15, 2007 in Politicks | Comment
Enough is Enough
“So when is enough, enough? Now is the time, long overdue in fact, to admit that for the rich, for the mega-rich of this country, that enough is never enough, and it is therefore incumbent upon government to rectify today’s imbalances.” When the CEO of bond trading uber-powerhouse PIMCO, and Warren Buffett both sound like Joe Hill, one can only hope change is coming!
Aug 3, 2007 in PoliticksPoliticks | Comment
Your formerly-legal photos could become illegal
Sheila Kuehl, who’s usually not all that bad, is trying to get a new law passed that “make California’s right of publicity retroactive back to 1915, so that any celebrity who died a resident of California over the past almost-100 years would have a right of publicity that would pass automatically to his or her residuary beneficiaries. That means that, even if your use of a photo of a California celebrity was legal when you licensed it last year, that past usage may now suddenly become illegal…” What’s with these retroactive laws? Unjust-o-rama!
Via Photoattorney
Jul 26, 2007 in Politicks | Comment
Al Gore's $100 Million Makeover
Interesting when a politician decides he can do more by using the markets and by becoming active in non-profits than by being a politician. Even more interesting that both Clinton and Gore are moving in this direction. Most interesting is how much money Gore has made and how quickly. Good for him, I think?
Jul 18, 2007 in Politicks | Comment (3)
The French Lesson In Health Care
France has a mix of private and public funding, without rationed care, and with better statistics than the American model. Downsides include a system that runs at a deficit and low physician salaries. Something to think about, maybe?
Jul 14, 2007 in Politicks | Comment (4)
Why are Immigrants' Incarceration Rates so Low? Evidence on Selective Immigration, Deterrence, and Deportation
“[I]mmigrants have much lower institutionalization (incarceration) rates than the native born - on the order of one-fifth the rate of natives… We examine whether the improvement in immigrants’ relative incarceration rates over the last three decades is linked to increased deportation, immigrant self-selection, or deterrence. Our evidence suggests that deportation does not drive the results. Rather, the process of migration selects individuals who either have lower criminal propensities or are more responsive to deterrent effects than the average native.”
Via Paul Kedrosky's Infectious Greed
Jul 13, 2007 in Politicks | Comment
Libby's sentence not unusually long
“Three-fourths of the 198 defendants sentenced in federal court last year for obstruction of justice — one of four crimes Libby was found guilty of in March — got some prison time. According to federal data, the average sentence defendants received for that charge alone was 70 months.” The only reason Bush could possibly have commuted Libby’s sentence is to keep him from talking.
Jul 5, 2007 in Politicks | Comment
A President Besieged and Isolated, Yet at Ease
Half of this article talks about how upbeat Bush continually is; the other half reveals him in vulnerable moments, asking probing questions, wondering about his legacy. I actually feel sympathetic.
Via Kottke
Jul 2, 2007 in Politicks | Comment
[More] or (Less)
“One reason that the litter campaign of the 1960s worked so well is that ‘not littering’ didn’t require doing less, it just required enough self control to hold on to your garbage for an hour or two. The achilles heel of the movement to limit carbon is the word ‘limit…’ As a marketer, my best advice is this: let’s figure out how to turn this into a battle to do more, not less.” And that’s more on a personal, not global level.
May 24, 2007 in Politicks | Comment
Lawmakers Find $21 a Week Doesn't Buy a Lot of Groceries
“[Rep. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio)] and three other members of Congress have pledged to live for one week on $21 worth of food, the amount the average food stamp recipient receives in federal assistance. That’s $3 a day or $1 a meal.” Darned right that doesn’t go far, especially now that food prices eat deeper into wallets.
May 17, 2007 in Breaking NewsBreaking News | Comment
Why don't we have politicians like this in the US?
(You really need to listen to the whole thing)
Via Clublife
May 9, 2007 in Politicks | Comment
General Batiste: "Protect America, Not George Bush"
From the folks who brought you the great body armor ad and stop the escalation
May 9, 2007 in Politicks | Comment
Command of the Air
Italian General Giulio Douhet’s Command of the Air was tremendously influential in military theory during the lead-up to the Second World War. Completely discredited by actual events (it was written by an Italian), it’s fallen out of print, but the US Air Force has it available for free online.
Via Airminded
Apr 16, 2007 in Politicks | Comment
CEO Pay, Stock Prices, Corporate Profits, Worker Pay, and Inflation, 1990-2005
Explains why we all feel so broke and work so hard all the time.
Apr 16, 2007 in BizBiz | Comment
Pew Survey Finds Most Knowledgeable Americans Watch 'Daily Show' and 'Colbert'-- and Visit Newspaper Sites
Suck it, red states!
Apr 16, 2007 in Politicks | Comment (1)
1987 chemical attack still haunts Iran
Hmm, could a big part of the reason that Iran wants nukes be that Iraq used chemical weapons against Iran during the Iran-Iraq war, Iran complained to the UN, and the international community took no action? That’s certainly not a good way to teach Iran that they should pay attention to international treaties against WMDs — or suggest to them that there are actually consequences for the use of WMDs.
Mar 19, 2007 in Politicks | Comment
iRack
I don’t watch MadTV anymore, but it looks like they’re doing well lately… skewering Steve Jobs and George Bush in one skit is a solid accomplishment!
Mar 16, 2007 in Politicks | Comment
Terribly Exciting
It’s always great when conservatives recognize that the class war perpetrated by the rich upon the poor and endorsed, unthinkingly, by the great conservative masses, over the last 20 years, was, in fact, absurd, anticapitalist, and antidemocratic. Yay Ben Stein, I always liked him
Via Kottke
Mar 15, 2007 in Politicks | Comment (1)
Green River boy to represent Utah at National Spelling Bee - while parents deported to India
The kid’s at the National Spelling Bee for the second year in a row, while his parents — who apparently were in the US legally until their status was changed by new laws after 9/11 — are in New Delhi. His parents are described as having owned and operated two chain hotels. Yep, let’s send hard-working Americans who are clearly raising their kids right home, just because they’re (at a guess) Muslim. Great plan.
Via Obscure Store
Mar 12, 2007 in PoliticksPoliticks | Comment
The Secret Diary of Hillary Clinton
Can’t believe I missed this… brilliant. Almost inspires me to start my own fake blog. But on who?
Via Fake Steve Jobs
Mar 5, 2007 in Politicks | Comment (1)
How the world really shapes up
“Rather than defining each country by size, these computer-generated modified maps - or cartograms - redraw the globe with each country’s size proportionate to its strengths, or weaknesses, in a whole series of categories.” Not an uncommon technique but well-executed here.
Via Daring Fireball
Mar 5, 2007 in Politicks | Comment
Daylight Saving Time Updates
This “let’s randomly change when Daylight Savings time happens” thing is asinine. I can’t believe I have to spend effort on it. Stupid politicians.
Mar 4, 2007 in PoliticksPoliticks | Comment
Colorado to use inmates to fill migrant shortage
Inmates get paid $0.60/day for work — so we’re basically using slave labor to work our fields. Question: are we becoming more like China faster than China is becoming more like us? If so, does that mean they win?
Mar 1, 2007 in Breaking NewsBreaking NewsBreaking News | Comment (2)
Bush pushes tax breaks for health insurance
“The key to getting a tax cut will be to keep the cost of the policy below the size of the new deduction. The prospect of a tax cut would serve as a huge incentive for people to spend less on health insurance.” Good, because what we really need to save money is health care that covers less, not health care that is more cost-effective.
Feb 25, 2007 in Politicks | Comment
Framing the issues: UC Berkeley professor George Lakoff tells how conservatives use language to dominate politics
“[B]y dictating the terms of national debate, conservatives have put progressives firmly on the defensive.” Yes! It’s a marketing problem! Ironically, the GOP in the US is doing what the terrorists are doing internationally… making us all use their language and respond to their ideas. In both cases, we need to take the offensive.
Feb 16, 2007 in Politicks | Comment
Why I'm happy my health insurance costs $12,268/yr
Speak it, sister. Incidentally, how could group coverage go up that much? The whole point of a group is that it manages risk, so rates shouldn’t get out of control. This, folks, is crazy
Feb 14, 2007 in PoliticksPoliticks | Comment
Healthcare reform calls get louder
“The proposal was short of specifics but had four broad themes: universal health coverage by 2012, better preventive care and disease management; more efficient healthcare delivery, and cost-sharing by workers, employers and governments.” The only thing that Wal-Mart and the SEIU have heretofore agreed upon is “oxygen is a good thing,” so having them together on this suggests that this idea is similarly obvious.
Feb 8, 2007 in Politicks | Comment (1)
Promoting growth and social progress: An interview with the president of Chile
“In our opinion, there is no incompatibility between growth and a more equal distribution of wealth. Indeed, we are convinced there is a virtuous relationship between the two. International experience shows that extreme inequality is not just unfair and a source of social tension but also reduces the dynamism of the economy. Countries lose the main motor of growth—the capacity to innovate and to take risks—and populism arises.” Can we elect this woman president too?
Feb 6, 2007 in Politicks | Comment (1)
Game over on global warming?
“The United States accounts for nearly a quarter of the carbon dioxide released each year, according to government statistics. China, in second at about 15%, is gaining fast. If the rest of the world returned to the Stone Age, carbon concentrations would still rise.” All we can do now is mitigate the effects, not remove them altogether. The scary thing is, this report is what a bunch of scientists can all agree on, so it’s pretty conservative.
Feb 5, 2007 in Politicks | Comment
A cost curve for greenhouse gas reduction
Upshot: using only proven tech, can reduce emissions by 26 gigatons/year for a cost of €40/ton. That adds up to as little as 0.6% of global GDP, which has got to be less than the current costs of pollution, to say nothing of the costs of having our coastal cities washed away or tropical heat destroying the Mediterranean crop mix.
Feb 2, 2007 in Politicks | Comment
A scorching future
“Imagine a world in which the best sparkling wines come from Surrey in southern England, not Champagne. A world where Monterey Bay is home to California’s best Cabernet Sauvignons and Sweden produces world-class Rieslings… A growing number of climatologists are warning that by the turn of the next century, such a radically altered wine map could be the new reality. They say man-made greenhouse gases warming the planet are expected to shift viticultural regions toward the poles, cooler coastal zones and higher elevations.”
Jan 24, 2007 in FoodFood | Comment
Bush to Urge New Tax Plan for Health Care Coverage
Basically, they’ll fund tax breaks for uninsured people to buy their own insurance by taxing people who get insurance from work, thus decreasing the income of many people and adding a substantial tax burden to middle- and working-class individuals. At least it’s not a capital gains tax. Seriously, is there anything good about this plan?
Jan 21, 2007 in Politicks | Comment (2)
Official Attacks Top Law Firms Over Detainees
Pentagon official encourages businesses not to retain the services of law firms who represent Guantanamó prisoners. Bush Administration, meet the basic concepts behind the American Constitution and hundreds of years of our legal tradition. Or not.
Via The Legal Reader
Jan 15, 2007 in Politicks | Comment
Plan to ensure health coverage could raise costs
“Health plans could face sharply rising expenses if they were inundated with customers who were generally in poorer health than their current enrollees. The health plans could respond by raising premiums or leaving the market, as they have in other states that require insurers to sell coverage to everyone.” The flip side of universal insurance. How bad will it be? Apparently it’s pretty bad in some states — “in New Jersey, where everyone is guaranteed access to health coverage, premiums for individual insurance are three times higher than in California.”
Jan 9, 2007 in Politicks | Comment (1)
Health insurers deny policies in some jobs
If you take the #1-selling medicine in the US, Lipitor, then you can’t get individual coverage from most companies in California. Same with Lamisil, even if you got your Athlete’s Foot because you were working out and staying healthy. Don’t do good, either — firefighters can’t get individual coverage. Seems like even the smallest risks are now a reason to deny coverage. That’s a perversion of what insurance is supposed to do, a bad thing for society, and a suggestion that we ought to just switch to a single-payer system.
Jan 8, 2007 in Politicks | Comment
U.S. puts squeeze on Iran's oil fields
Remarkably, our new sanctions are actually hurting Iran — hurting them big time, and permanently. The downside is that Iran appears to have legitimate need for nuclear power now. Probably not an outcome we considered, but I actually suspect that few, if any, people would have predicted that would be Iran’s solution to their problems.
Jan 7, 2007 in Politicks | Comment
Knowing the Enemy
The New Yorker subheads this as “Can social scientists redefine the ‘war on terror’?” but I would actually say something more like “Did we learn anything from the Cold War or Vietnam that could be applied to the War on Terror? Maybe so! Also, social scientists know a lot about a bunch of other COIN activities that we can learn from too.” But that’s too long.
Jan 5, 2007 in Politicks | Comment
The Other Born-Again President?
Remarkably, Gerald Ford was an evangelical Christian. “Ford never had any regrets about the pardon or his refusal to name Jesus as his running mate. His oldest son Jack told him, ‘You know, when you come so close, it’s really hard to lose. But at the same time, if you can’t lose as graciously as you plan to win, then you shouldn’t have been in the thing in the first place.’”
Jan 2, 2007 in Politicks | Comment
The Bill of Wrongs
“The 10 most outrageous civil liberties violations of 2006.” What really bothers me is not that these violations took place — which is certainly bothersome — but that they weren’t really evil mastermind evil. They were more “you’re really trying to get away with this?” evil… except somehow they did get away with it!
Dec 31, 2006 in Politicks | Comment
Pork No Longer Paves the Road to Re-election
A lot of the biggest pork-barrel politicans lost in November. Are Americans more interested in good leadership and solving problems than bringing $236-million bridges to nowhere next door? Perhaps so! That would be a good thing.
Dec 25, 2006 in Politicks | Comment
Lawmaker affirms Muslim remarks
“‘I fear,’” he wrote, ‘that in the next century we will have many more Muslims in the United States if we do not adopt the strict immigration policies that I believe are necessary to preserve the values and beliefs traditional to the United States of America.’” Those values include, apparently, overt racism (a stalwart belief of the über-American Republican Party, may I say).
Dec 22, 2006 in PoliticksPoliticks | Comment
Refocusing the Impeachment Movement on Administration Officials Below the President and Vice-President
John Dean, who has substantial experience with impeachment, suggests that it’s politically impossible to impeach W and Cheney, but that it may be fairly easy to impeach low- and mid-ranking operatives who, for instance, penned memos in support of using torture in interrogations. Impeaching these people would have no effect now but would prevent them from holding any Federal office, including probably Cabinet positions, keeping them out of government forever. Thus we could keep ourselves from having to deal with a Rumsfeld-like situation in the future. Seems simple and sound to me!
Dec 18, 2006 in Politicks | Comment
Nest egg to goose egg in no time
The problem with the switch from defined-benefit to defined-contribution plans is that, rather than spreading out the risk, it concentrates individual risk in individual retirees, those who are least able to insure themselves against that risk and least prepared to mitigate it.
Dec 17, 2006 in Politicks | Comment
Return fire from the right
It’s tough, because the Iraq Study Group Report apparently says that stratetgies advocated by the neocons can’t work. But the response is inappropriate; personal attacks aren’t a strong strategy, especially when that known leftist James Baker is on the panel. It’s time for neocons to make a coherent, logical defense of their position, and put aside the Ann Coulter-style tools.
Dec 8, 2006 in Politicks | Comment
Gender pay gap narrows -- for unexpected reasons
“Women are closing in on men when it comes to wages, but not for the reasons anticipated — or hoped for — when gender pay equity became a rallying cry in the 1970s. Data show that the pay gap has been narrowing not because women have made great strides, labor experts say, but because men’s wages are eroding.” Yay tax cuts!
Dec 3, 2006 in Breaking NewsBreaking News | Comment
Congressman faulted for Quran at oath
Keith Ellison, a Muslim Congressman-elect, wants to take his oath of office on a Quran. “[In an article h]eadlined, ‘America, Not Keith Ellison, decides what book a congressman takes his oath on,’ [columnist Dennis] Prager argued that using the Quran for the ceremony ‘undermines American civilization.’” A reasonable individual might, in contrast, conclude that the purpose of the oath on the Bible is to ensure that the oath-taker considers their oath to be a great and terrible covenant that can never be broken.
Via Fark
Dec 2, 2006 in Politicks | Comment
Surprise: Oil Woes In Iran
“As domestic energy consumption skyrockets, Iran is struggling to produce enough oil and gas for export. Unless Tehran overhauls its policies, its primary source of revenue and the basis of its geopolitical muscle could start to wane. Within a decade, says Saad Rahim, an analyst at Washington consultancy PFC Energy, ‘Iran’s net crude exports could fall to zero.’” Hmm, could this be why Iran wants to develop nuclear power… so it can get rich exporting 100% of its hydrocarbons to the West, and be on top of a power source for the future?
Dec 1, 2006 in Politicks | Comment (1)
In Class Warfare, Guess Which Class Is Winning
“[Warren] Buffett, with immense income from dividends and capital gains, paid far, far less as a fraction of his income than the secretaries or the clerks or anyone else in his office… ‘There’s class warfare, all right,’ Mr. Buffett said, ‘but it’s my class, the rich class, that’s making war, and we’re winning.’” And the reporter? Former Nixon apparatchik Ben Stein.
Via Kottke
Nov 29, 2006 in Politicks | Comment (4)
Insurers learn to pinpoint risks -- and avoid them
Insurers are using better technology and better data to exclude high-risk individuals from their pools. Will this lead to an end to risk pooling altogether, and a world in which we all essentially pay our own costs? Part of the great The New Deal series at the LA Times, which chronicles how economic security is disappearing for many average Americans, as risks business, government, or the broader market used to bear are shifted to individuals.
Nov 28, 2006 in Politicks | Comment (4)
Gates pushed for bombing of Sandinistas
“Robert M. Gates, President Bush’s nominee to lead the Pentagon, advocated a bombing campaign against Nicaragua in 1984 in order to “bring down” the leftist government, according to a declassified memo released by a nonprofit research group.” That is a nutty position to hold; I hope he’s become more moderate now. Actually, I hope there are consequences for past actions and that he’s not confirmed, but this seems to be a mostly consequence-free administration.
Nov 25, 2006 in Politicks | Comment
Good-bye to All That
“I can therefore now declare what perhaps has oft been thought but never, at least not often enough, expressed. Notwithstanding conservatives’ belief that they, in contrast to their partisan opponents, have thought deeply about the challenges facing the United States, it is they who have become unserious.” I love it when a conservative flips.
Via Kung Fu Monkey
Nov 24, 2006 in Politicks | Comment
How to Talk to a Climate Skeptic
“…a complete listing of the articles in “How to Talk to a Climate Skeptic,” a series by Coby Beck containing responses to the most common skeptical arguments on global warming.” Some of the arguments are weak but most are good.
Nov 8, 2006 in Politicks | Comment
Stocks surge on eve of election
“What’s more, a common refrain is that many investors would be happy with political gridlock in Washington, assuming a Democratic victory in the House would lead to a standoff with President Bush on new policy initiatives. The idea is that the economy would be best off just left alone. Wall Street ‘loves gridlock better than they love Republicans,’ said Thomas Steffanci, investment chief at Glencrest Investment Advisors in Claremont.” See, doing nothing’s better than screwing it up!
Nov 7, 2006 in BizBiz | Comment
Lower pump prices fuel political conspiracy theories
Not only is it the obvious conspiracy theory, it might be true! ‘New York Global Securities analyst Philip Miller wrote recently that the last three major oil price drops coincided with Senate hearings on energy prices “and expectations surrounding the upcoming U.S. midterm elections.’ Once the election is over, his report said, ‘the price of oil will rise to a point that tests the will of the new Congress.’”
Nov 6, 2006 in Politicks | Comment
War simulation in 1999 pointed out Iraq invasion problems
“A series of secret U.S. war games in 1999 showed that an invasion and post-war administration of Iraq would require 400,000 troops, nearly three times the number there now.” Oops.
Nov 4, 2006 in Politicks | Comment
Neo Culpa
“As Iraq slips further into chaos, the war’s neoconservative boosters have turned sharply on the Bush administration, charging that their grand designs have been undermined by White House incompetence. In a series of exclusive interviews, Richard Perle, Kenneth Adelman, David Frum, and others play the blame game with shocking frankness. Target No. 1: the president himself.”
Nov 4, 2006 in Politicks | Comment
A black Republican runs against the tide in Maryland Senate race
“Racial tensions in Maryland’s Democratic Party have been brewing since earlier this year, when Cardin beat back a primary challenge from former congressman and NAACP leader Kweisi Mfume by a margin of 44% to 41%. Democratic leaders say that Cardin won because he raised more money than Mfume. But Ronald Walters, a professor at the University of Maryland who studies African American politics, said the party leadership rallied early around Cardin, which hampered Mfume’s ability to raise cash.” And thus Michael Steele is competitive in what should be a solidly blue seat. I’m disappointed that a good man like Cardin would be caught up in this, and disappointed because of my profound respect for Mfume’s character and effectiveness; he would’ve been a great Senator.
Nov 1, 2006 in Politicks | Comment (3)
Electronic Voting Machines
“Now don’t get me wrong — there’s a 100% chance that the voting machines will get hacked and all future elections will be rigged. But that doesn’t mean we’ll get a worse government. It probably means that the choice of the next American president will be taken out of the hands of deep-pocket, autofellating, corporate shitbags and put it into the hands of some teenager in Finland. How is that not an improvement?”
Oct 31, 2006 in BlogsturbationBlogsturbation | Comment
Jefferson's Wall of Separation Letter
“Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between man & his god, that he owes account to none other for his faith or his worship, that the legitimate powers of government reach actions only, and not opinions, I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof, thus building a wall of separation between church and state.” Well said.
Via Kung Fu Monkey
Oct 31, 2006 in Politicks | Comment
George W. Bush Speechwriter
Write your own!
Oct 28, 2006 in Politicks | Comment
Bush's family profits from 'No Child' act
“A company headed by President Bush’s brother [S&L fraudster Neil] and partly owned by his parents is benefiting from Republican connections and federal dollars targeted for economically disadvantaged students under the No Child Left Behind Act.” The product, which may not meet NCLB requirements — it doesn’t include math or reading curricula — is advertised as “eliminat[ing] the need for lesson planning.” 75% of sales are in Texas, where I am quite confident the Bushes know exactly who to call to make the sale in individual school districts around the state.
Oct 22, 2006 in Politicks | Comment
Baker: Time to Change Iraq Policy
“While it weighs alternatives, the 10-member commission headed by former Secretary of State James A. Baker III has agreed on one principle. ‘It’s not going to be “stay the course,”’ one participant said. ‘The bottom line is, [current U.S. policy] isn’t working… There’s got to be another way.’”
Oct 16, 2006 in Politicks | Comment
Lawyer is denied promotion
“The Navy lawyer who took the Guantánamo case of Osama bin Laden’s driver to the U.S. Supreme Court — and won — has been passed over for promotion by the Pentagon and must soon leave the military.” Shocker.
Oct 9, 2006 in Politicks | Comment
Bill O'Reilly Labels Foley a Democrat...
Apparently it’s persistent and widespread (note the screenshot also identifying Hastert as a Dem). Fox News, that doesn’t surprise me, but the AP? I figured that was where you’d find your “typical left-leaning” journalists
Oct 4, 2006 in Politicks | Comment
Secret Reports Dispute White House Optimism
Kissinger? Kissinger is really running this war? This is Vietnam II! Too bad we didn’t, ya know, put any of the lessons into play. Oh well, at least we haven’t tried strategic hamlets yet. One major complaint: what’s a Vietnam without a Madame Nhu?
Via Blurbomat
Oct 2, 2006 in Politicks | Comment
Women in Top Ranks Pull Up the Pay of Others
“Advocates for diversity… have long argued that opening the management door to women is not only the right thing to do but will lead to more equitable workplaces in general. Cohen’s study is the first empirical evidence that these advocates are right — but only when women get to very senior positions.” I’d love to see a longitudinal study that tells us if companies that promote more women are more likely to pay them fairly or if promoting more women leads to fairer pay practices, but this seems like a very strong argument for Affirmative Action.
Sep 24, 2006 in Politicks | Comment
GOP Mines Data for Every Tiny Bloc
“The GOP system — built around a database nicknamed Voter Vault — combines huge amounts of demographic, financial and other personal information on individual voters with the data-mining techniques used by direct-mail advertisers to deliver surgically targeted appeals to voters identified as likely to respond, including many who might be considered part of the Democratic base.” This technique is so blindingly obvious that I can’t believe everyone hasn’t been doing it for years. The Dems need to hire someone from a top CPG company to get them the same thing.
Sep 24, 2006 in Politicks | Comment (1)
Schaefer couldn't leave on his own
“In the end, Maryland Democrats wanted no more of William Donald Schaefer… When the votes were counted, Schaefer not only hadn’t won, he’d finished third out of three, behind winner Peter Franchot and runner-up Janet S. Owens.” This guy was probably the towering political figure of my youth, he saved my hometown and it’s hard to imagine him out of politics.
Sep 14, 2006 in Politicks | Comment
Remarkably Effective Political Ad
Perhaps simple, clear messages like this will be effective against the Republicans. But I fear that the Big Lie is always more powerful than the truth.
Via Auros
Sep 14, 2006 in Politicks | Comment
The War Tapes
“Straight from the front lines in Iraq, The War Tapes is the first war movie filmed by soldiers themselves.” Looks intriguing.
Sep 11, 2006 in Politicks | Comment
The Lebanese/Israeli conflict (when Jew-hatred stops being fun)
“I’m pretty sure that it is the first time in more than 1000 years that a non-governmental group of non-Jews has attacked a group of Jews and suffered in any way… A substantial subset of Lebanese citizens decides that they would like to kill Jews and that therefore it would be fun to launch some rockets into the residential neighborhoods of Israel. They expect to enjoy this activity for many months or years… What happened this time? The Jews, armed to the teeth, came over to where the rockets were being fired and made the place unlivable.” An alternative take from the below link.
A Defiant Hezbollah Rises From the Rubble
“Israel meant to break Hezbollah with its monthlong offensive, but instead the militant organization has been strengthened politically in Lebanon, analysts say. The movement has a fresh boost of popularity, at least for now, and a renewed sense that it is entitled to keep its armed militia outside the control of the Lebanese army, they say.”
War Is A Racket
By Marine Maj. Gen. Smedley Butler, two-time Medal of Honor winner and Republican candidate for Senate.
The Worst President in History?
NSA killed system that sifted phone data legally
Standing with Minimum Wage Earners Act of 2006
“…the [Federal minimum] wage… shall be automatically increased for the year involved by a percentage equal to the percentage by which the annual rate of pay for Members of Congress increased for such year…” Introduced by Sens. Clinton, Kennedy, Leahy, Jeffords, Harkin, and Obama. Now that’s something I’d vote for!
Work Out Your Aggression Against The Existing Political Climate
Act now, while it’s still legal! For extra fun, grab him with the mouse and fling him!
Counting Up What Indians Are Owed
“The dispute dates to 1887, when Congress made the Interior Department the trustee for 145 million acres of Indian lands. Indians were supposed to benefit, but the government gave most of the land to white settlers. Today, the department manages 10 million acres of trust land for individual Indians and 46 million acres for tribes. In 1996, the Indians sued to reconcile their historical accounts. The Indians, and Congress, demanded an audit. The Indians may be owed a century’s worth of grazing rents, oil and gas royalties and timber sales from the land, plus interest.”
Moussaoui Verdict Raises Questions
“Zacarias Moussaoui, the only person prosecuted so far in connection with the worst terrorist attack in American history, did not get the death penalty because some jurors concluded he had little to do with Sept. 11. Yet two key planners of the al-Qaida plot, Khalid Shaikh Mohammed and Ramzi Binalshibh, have not been charged, though they have been in U.S. custody for more than three years…Current and former intelligence officials have said that the CIA has used aggressive interrogation techniques on captured al-Qaida leaders. As a result, many legal experts say it may be too late to try Mohammed and Binalshibh in a regular court of law.”
Bush challenges hundreds of laws
“President Bush has quietly claimed the authority to disobey more than 750 laws enacted since he took office, asserting that he has the power to set aside any statute passed by Congress when it conflicts with his interpretation of the Constitution.”
The Bible Bench
“‘When judges have to look over their shoulders at special interests, fair and impartial justice is in real danger,’ says Bert Brandenburg, executive director of the Justice at Stake Campaign, a nonpartisan organization that tracks judicial elections. ‘When you step into court, you want the judge focused on your rights, not on political pressure and interest-group ultimatums.’”
Bush Impeachment - The Illinois State Legislature is Preparing to Drop a Bombshell
Apparently, according to US House rules, a resolution passed jointly by the legislature of a state can initiate federal impeachment hearings. Such bills have been introduced in Illinois and California, two “blue” states. One wonders if such bills could pass.
If Past Is Prologue, George Bush Is Becoming An Increasingly Dangerous President
John Dean (yes, that John Dean) predicts an “October Surprise” from the President to lock up the midterm elections. I’m on board and suspect an attack on Iran.
Robert Scheer: Now Powell Tells Us
“On Monday, former Secretary of State Colin Powell told me that he and his department’s top experts never believed that Iraq posed an imminent nuclear threat, but that the president followed the misleading advice of Vice President Dick Cheney and the CIA in making the claim. Now he tells us.”
Bush Using Straw-Man Arguments in Speeches
“A specialist in presidential rhetoric, Wayne Fields of Washington University in St. Louis, views it as “a bizarre kind of double talk” that abuses the rules of legitimate discussion. ‘It’s such a phenomenal hole in the national debate that you can have arguments with nonexistent people,’ Fields said. ‘All politicians try to get away with this to a certain extent. What’s striking here is how much this administration rests on a foundation of this kind of stuff.’”
Feeling No Pain
“President Bush’s main purpose in visiting India seems to have been to promote nuclear proliferation. But he also had some kind words for outsourcing. And those words help explain something that I know deeply puzzles the administration’s political gurus: Mr. Bush’s dismal polling on economic issues.”
Internal Logs of Palm Beach Voting Machines Show 100,000 Errors
“The evidence indicates that someone accessed the computers after the [initial testing] and before the election, and that this access caused a change in the machine’s reporting functions, at least for date and time. Such access would take a high degree of inside access. It is not known whether any other changes were introduced into the voting machines at this time. “
Debt to Society Is Least of Costs for Ex-Convicts
“Beverly Dubois, a 49-year-old former park ranger in Washington State, spent nine months in jail for growing and selling marijuana. She still owes the state almost $1,900 for court costs and various fees. Until she pays up, the state has taken away her right to vote. Wilbert Rideau, 64, a convicted killer, spent 44 years in Louisiana prisons. Not long after he was released last year, he filed for bankruptcy in an effort to avoid the state’s attempts to collect $127,000 in court costs.”
Does the NRA really take safety seriously?
“If you’re thinking about getting into quail hunting, you should know one thing: You’re going to get “peppered.” It comes with the license. It hurts, but so do a lot of things in life. Only media elites run around trying to spread Neosporin on everyone who gets into a little hunting accident… Not only was Cheney’s accident a very serious business, but, by the standards of the sport, Cheney was at fault for not looking where he was firing and for being greedy. Quail are fast and fly low but they’re not al-Qaida. You can let them get away.”
Cheney Accident Triggers Jokes on Late-Night TV
“Vice President Dick Cheney was already the butt of jokes on the late-night TV circuit for his brooding public persona, ardent support for the war in Iraq and his powerful role in the Bush White House. Even his heart condition was the constant object of monologue material. But with news that the vice president accidentally shot and injured a friend while hunting on a Texas ranch over the weekend, Mr. Cheney is destined to become a late-night legend.”
President panders to anti-manimal lobby! Dr Moreau flees country in rage!
Confused when Bush said “Tonight I ask you to pass legislation to prohibit the most egregious abuses of medical research, human cloning in all its forms, creating or implanting embryos for experiments, creating human-animal hybrids…” Yeah, I was too. This tells exactly what that was about. Darned those scientists, trying to help people with horrible diseases.
Filmstrip International Presents American Civics II
Audio NSFW. But oh so true.
Bush Speech (Edited)
Brilliantly funny.
Rice: No aid to Hamas government
“The United States wants other nations to cut off aid to a Hamas-led Palestinian government, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said ahead of an international strategy session on Mideast peace prospects.” Ahh, that’s respect for democracy!
Bolivia leader halves his own pay
“The Bolivian new left-wing President, Evo Morales, has cut his salary by more than a half to a little over $1,800 per month.The decision means that the salaries of all Bolivian public sector employees will be reviewed, as no official can earn more than the president. Mr Morales said the money saved would be used to increase the numbers of doctors and teachers.” Maybe Congress should pay attention!
Me and my HSA
“With annual health care expenses (insurance premiums and routine costs) of about 1,100 dollars, thanks to Mr. Bush, I made money on my health care in year one - about a hundred bucks of tax advantage over what I paid out, plus another hundred bucks or so of interest. This is my reward for earning in the top 1% or so of George Bush’s America - I make a profit on something that bankrupts people who aren’t as fortunate. Note to self: avoid getting sick. Avoid getting old too. Now I don’t know what, or even if, George Bush thinks, but it seems to me that this is unfair, and borderline immoral.”
Researcher: Early Man Was Hunted by Birds
“A South African anthropologist said Thursday his research into the death nearly 2 million years ago of an ape-man shows human ancestors were hunted by birds.”
When race differs, identification is iffy
The old stereotype that people of a different race all look the same? Turns out it’s true.
Veteran John Murtha (D-PA)'s Statement on the Iraq War
“The war in Iraq is not going as advertised. It is a flawed policy wrapped in illusion. The American public is way ahead of us. The United States and coalition troops have done all they can in Iraq, but it is time for a change in direction. Our military is suffering. The future of our country is at risk. We cannot continue on the present course. It is evident that continued military action is not in the best interests of the United States of America, the Iraqi people or the Persian Gulf Region.”
Justice detained at Guantanamo
“When many of these prisoners arrived in American custody, they were initially relieved to be in the control of a country that valued justice and due process. Four years later, many just want to die. They starve themselves for long periods of time and attempt bloody suicides. The government responds by forcing tubes down their throats. People are trying to kill themselves to get out of custody, because they have no legal recourse. ‘They won’t let us live, but they won’t let us die,’ one of our clients explained. “
Robertson warns Pennsylvania voters of God's wrath
“Conservative Christian broadcaster Pat Robertson told citizens of a Pennsylvania town that they had rejected God by voting their school board out of office for supporting ‘intelligent design’ and warned them Thursday not to be surprised if disaster struck.” Not very Christian.
Voters Reject Schwarzenegger's Bid to Remake State Government
And all those bad propositions go down to defeat. The LA Times has suggestions as to why.
'Intelligent design' school board booted
“Voters came down hard Tuesday on school board members who backed a statement on intelligent design being read in biology class, ousting eight Republicans and replacing them with Democrats who want the concept stripped from the science curriculum.”
If Fox News Had Been Around Throughout History
Ballot review
My friend’s cogent breakdown of the propositions on the upcoming ballot.
PROTEST!!!!
“A tuscon woman was recently raped and denied the morning after pill. and what happens after bullshit like that?! we PROTEST!!!” My friend’s story of sticking up for what’s right.
Protecting the Presidential Seal. No Joke.
“You might have thought that the White House had enough on its plate late last month, what with its search for a new Supreme Court nominee, the continuing war in Iraq and the C.I.A. leak investigation. But it found time to add another item to its agenda - stopping The Onion, the satirical newspaper, from using the presidential seal.”
Poll: Bush would lose an election if held this year
Recall Schwarzenegger
Despite the crappay FrontPage design, it’s for real!
Welcome to the Hackocracy
“The Bush era has taken government out of the hands of the hyper-qualified and given it back to the common man. This new breed may not have what the credentialists sneeringly call ‘relevant experience.’ Their alma maters may not always be ‘accredited.’ But they have something the intellectual snobs of yore never had: loyalty. If not loyalty to country, then at least loyalty to party and to the guy who got them the job. And their loyalty has been rewarded.”
Oct 9, 2005 in Politicks | Comment
The Harriet Miers Nomination: How It Shows President Bush Has Turned Full Circle
The author asserts that Meiers will be a fairly centrist, states-rights judge. Another commentary notes the diversity of backgrounds on the Court in the past, and a third excerpts from a Texas Monthly bio of Meiers when she took over the Texas Bar. I stand by my earlier assertion that Meiers is non-disastrous.
Oct 6, 2005 in Politicks | Comment
Nicknames given by Dubya
For your reference convenience. My favorites: Barbara Boxer is “Ali” and Dianne Feinstein is “Frazier”.
Oct 3, 2005 in Politicks | Comment
Intelligent design as an answer to all life's great conundrums
“How can pluripotent stem cells give rise to any type of cell in the body? Why is the genetic marker for Huntington’s disease characterized by an excess of trinucleotide repeats? What accounts for the phenomenon of spontaneous remission in some cancers? With intelligent design, we don’t ever need to find out. Years from now, we’ll all lie in our hospital beds while ID-trained doctors hold our hands and assure us that we are merely dying of God.”
Sep 29, 2005 in Politicks | Comment
Judge likes a party
“Australia’s new High Court judge is a grandmother who throws wild St Patrick’s Day parties, complete with drums, and once accidentally turned off a power station.” Not like in the US!
Sep 27, 2005 in Politicks | Comment
Recruits Sought for Porn Squad
“‘I guess this means we’ve won the war on terror,’ said one exasperated FBI agent, speaking on the condition of anonymity because poking fun at headquarters is not regarded as career-enhancing. ‘We must not need any more resources for espionage.’”
Sep 21, 2005 in Politicks | Comment
Pentagon Revises Nuclear Strike Plan
“The first example for potential nuclear weapon use listed in the draft is against an enemy that is using ‘or intending to use WMD’ against U.S. or allied, multinational military forces or civilian populations. Another scenario for a possible nuclear preemptive strike is in case of an ‘imminent attack from adversary biological weapons that only effects from nuclear weapons can safely destroy.’”
Sep 13, 2005 in Politicks | Comment
New Orleans Talking Blues
“When levees are flooded and hurricanes roar,
When the waters start seeping up under the door,
You’d expect the escape plans to include the poor
But this isn’t that kind of song.”
Sep 11, 2005 in Politicks | Comment
America's Battered Wife Syndrome
“As a friend of the family I can’t sit back and watch you do this to yourself without saying something. Consider this a long distance intervention. Your man is no good. He treats you like crap, lies to you, abuses you, bullies you, exploits you, takes your money. As a friend I want to tell you that you deserve better. You deserve a person that treats you with respect, cares about your welfare, and your children’s welfare, but that’s not George and it never will be. ” I was thinking of writing this! Dammit, I could’ve been famous!
Sep 10, 2005 in Politicks | Comment
How Reliable Is Brown's Resume?
“When President Bush nominated Michael Brown to head the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in 2003, Brown’s boss at the time, Joe Allbaugh, declared, ‘the President couldn’t have chosen a better man to help…prepare and protect the nation.’ … Now, an investigation by TIME has found discrepancies in his online legal profile and official bio, including a description of Brown released by the White House at the time of his nomination in 2001 to the job as deputy chief of FEMA.”
Sep 9, 2005 in Politicks | Comment
Privately run city schools cost more to improve
“Three Baltimore elementary schools run by the for-profit Edison company are making progress, but it’s costing more to run them than other city schools that have seen bigger jumps in test scores, according to a new Abell Foundation report… [Edison’s] administrative costs per pupil are nearly twice those of the city school system.”
Sep 9, 2005 in Politicks | Comment
FEMA Predicted Hurricane Disaster in 2001
From the Dec. 1, 2001 issue of the Houston Chronicle: “In the face of an approaching storm, scientists say, the city’s less-than-adequate evacuation routes would strand 250,000 people or more, and probably kill one of 10 left behind as the city drowned under 20 feet of water. Thousands of refugees could land in Houston.”
Sep 8, 2005 in Politicks | Comment
[Senator Mary] Landrieu [D-LA] Implores President to "Relieve Unmitigated Suffering;" End FEMA's "Abject Failures"
“But perhaps the greatest disappointment stands at the breached 17th Street levee. Touring this critical site yesterday with the President, I saw what I believed to be a real and significant effort to get a handle on a major cause of this catastrophe. Flying over this critical spot again this morning, less than 24 hours later, it became apparent that yesterday we witnessed a hastily prepared stage set for a Presidential photo opportunity; and the desperately needed resources we saw were this morning reduced to a single, lonely piece of equipment.”
Sep 7, 2005 in Politicks | Comment
Keith Olbermann Rants About New Orleans
Remarkably cogent. How did this man get on TV?
Sep 7, 2005 in Politicks | Comment
An open letter to the President
From the editors of the New Orleans Times-Picayune: “We’re angry, Mr. President, and we’ll be angry long after our beloved city and surrounding parishes have been pumped dry. Our people deserved rescuing. Many who could have been were not. That’s to the government’s shame.”
Sep 5, 2005 in Politicks | Comment
Hillary vs. the Xbox: Game over
“I’m writing to commend you for calling for a $90-million study on the effects of video games on children, and in particular the courageous stand you have taken in recent weeks against the notorious ‘Grand Theft Auto’ s