Friday, September 30, 2011

From the "Meaningful miscellany" file.

Stuff that I meant to expand on but haven't and probably won't, but want to share anyway…

LA Times, via Gordon...
There is a reason theocracies are found at the bottom of the world's economic and opportunity ladder. Successful public policy cannot be based purely on doctrines established before we knew the Earth orbited the sun.
John Aravosis...
If Perry is such a supporter of Israel, ask him if Jews are going to hell. Then we'll talk.
Roy Edroso
I'm not averse to bread and circuses, but the bread is running out and our circuses really suck.

Labels: , , , , , , ,

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Signs of the times...

A Wall Street occupier, via Juan Cole...

Labels: , , , ,

Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Good question…

…for Eric Cantor, from Joan McCarter...
So, how about this? How about you offset the FEMA disaster aid to your district out of your PAC, Mr. Cantor?
How 'bout that?

Labels: , , , , , ,

Monday, September 26, 2011

From the "Credit where it's due" file.

Can't really argue with Mitt Romney this time. From the latest GOP debate...
"There are a lot of reasons not to elect me. There are a lot of reasons not to elect other people on the stage."
A whole heckuva lot.

Labels: , , , ,

Sunday, September 25, 2011

From the "Since you asked..." file.

Joan Walsh is curious...

Are white liberals abandoning the president?
Since you asked, not this one.

Perhaps I'm alone. I doubt it.

(It's always nice when your intuition is confirmed. Always.)

Labels: , , , ,

Saturday, September 24, 2011

If it quacks like a duck…

From Bill Kristol's GOP debate review, via Rumproast
Early on, we received this missive from a bright young conservative: “I’m watching my first GOP debate…and WE SOUND LIKE CRAZY PEOPLE!!!!”
Yep, pretty bright for a conservative. Now, when he or she figures out that they sound like what they are, well, we'll have us a brand new bright young liberal.

Labels: , , , , ,

Chart of the day.

Via Laura Clawson ...



It's become plainly, and painfully, obvious where the money went. The challenge is to get some of it back. The Buffett Rule seems like a good, if modest, place to start.

Labels: , , ,

The hits just keep comin'.

A random selection...
Merle Haggard & The Strangers - Sing Me Back Home
Justin Townes Earle - Close Up The Honky Tonks
Bobby Vinton - Blue Velvet
Porter Wagoner - Midnight
Taj Mahal - Ain't Gwine Whistle Dixie (Any Mo')
Dionne Warwick - Walk On By
Eric Clapton - San Francisco Bay Blues
The Beach Boys - Then I Kissed Her
The Commodores - Easy
Bonnie Raitt - Not The Only One

Labels: ,

Thursday, September 22, 2011

At long last…

…the President reports for duty...
There’s a lot of people saying, “this is class warfare.” Well, if saying that billionaires should pay the same share in taxes as a plumber or a teacher is class warfare, then you know what? I’m a warrior for the middle class.
Welcome aboard, Sir.

Labels: , , , ,

Nice catch.

Tina Dupuy keeps track so we don't have to...
...the first deadline to get on the ballot is Oct. 31 (that's for Florida) and Sarah Palin told Hannity this week she'll make a decision if she's running by Nov. Which says it all really.
Among the things it says is we really don't have to keep track of her at all.

But we will.

She'll insist, and we can't seem to resist.

Nice to know it don't matter none, though...

Labels: , , , ,

Yes, it is.

digby on T*-Party intransigence over the CR - over the budget in general, really...
(* for, it becomes ever more apparent, Treason.)
You have people who are not only willing to shoot hostages, they are itching to do it. It's a problem.
There is, of course, a solution...

Labels: , , , ,

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Good question...

...via Michael Hood at Blatherwatch on the day after DADT...


Labels: , , ,

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Since I live to serve…

…and since the questions just keep coming, one more time, this one from CNN
Has Obama lost the Jewish vote?
Since you asked, not this one.

Labels: , , , , ,

Monday, September 19, 2011

From the "Since you asked…" file.

Heather Taylor-Miesle of the NRDC Action Fund inquires...
Should Candidates Who Don’t Believe in Science Be Disqualified from Serving as President?
Since you asked, yes.

Labels: , , , ,

...two hundred years too late.




Arrr!

Labels:

Sunday, September 18, 2011

In case you haven't been keeping track…

…Steve Benen looked it up...
* American job creation is better now than when Bush left office.
* American economic growth is better now than when Bush left office.
* Al Qaeda is dramatically weaker now than when Bush left office.
* The American automotive industry is vastly stronger now than when Bush left office.
* The struggle for equality of the LGBT community is vastly better now than when Bush left office.
* The U.S. health care system is better and more accessible than when Bush left office.
* The federal budget deficit is better now than when Bush left office.
* The major Wall Street indexes and corporate profits are better now than when Bush left office.
* International respect for the United States is better now than when Bush left office.
Feel better now?

Labels: , , , , , , , ,

Saturday, September 17, 2011

Good morning.

A musical interlude while I get ready for work and the Husky-Huskers game...
Otis Gibbs - Where Only The Graves Are Real
Dolly Parton - Jolene
Spanky & Our Gang - Lazy Day
John Prine - Illegal Smile
Alex Chilton - The Oogum Boogum Song
The Beautiful South - Another Night With The Boys
Greg Trooper - This I'd Do
New Riders Of The Purple Sage - Important Exportin' Man
Barbara Lewis - Hello Stranger
Mott The Hoople - All The Way From Memphis
...and a public service announcement - if you don't know Greg Trooper's music, get to know Greg Trooper's music.

Labels: , ,

Thursday, September 15, 2011

I'm gonna steal this someday…

…when the appropriate occasion occurs, and I'll probably forget where I got it by then, so I'd better give Rumproast credit now...
As long as I have a period key on my laptop, This. Shall. Not. Stand.
Worth a Heh™ and a half.

Labels: , ,

From the "Why I'm a Democrat" file.

House Republicans voted to gut the NLRB with their Outsourcers Bill Of Rights.

On the other hand
Harry Reid does not plan to bring the bill to a vote in the Senate.
That's one reason why, and damn near reason enough on its own.

Labels: , , , ,

Wednesday, September 14, 2011

Iron-clad evidence…

…that Cook County Judge Raul Vega belongs on the federal bench, and a guarantee he'll never be confirmed, all in one story...
A judge in Chicago issued a preliminary ruling Wednesday against U.S. Rep. Joe Walsh (R-Ill.) in the Tea Party favorite’s child-support dispute with his ex-wife, ordering Walsh to explain why he appears to be $100,000 behind on his child-support payments.

Cook County Circuit Judge Raul Vega also wanted to know why Walsh wasn’t in court for the hearing — the McHenry Republican’s ex-wife, Laura Walsh was — and said he expects him to show up at the next hearing, in November.

Walsh’s new attorney, Janet Boyle, asked Vega “for what purpose” he wanted the congressman in court.

Vega gave her a puzzled look.

To which Boyle responded: “Mr. Walsh is a U.S. congressman.”

“Well, he’s no different than anyone else,” the judge said.
Ms. Boyle might have detected the judge's answer within her own rejoinder. It's "Mr. Walsh," not "Lord Walsh."

Kudos to a judge who understands the Constitutional principle of equality before the law. You'd think it'd be a standard lesson in law school, though.

Labels: , , , , , ,

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

From the "Don't let the door hit ya'" file.

Occasional Democrat Brian Sonntag is giving up his 20 year tenure as State Auditor.

There's only one, so we'll have to look for more Democrats elsewhere, but this is a fine opportunity to work on the better Democrats part of the equation.

The line forms to the left, hopefully...

Labels: , , , ,

Worth repeating.

Repeatedly. Brad DeLong...
Nobody has any business working for, contributing to, or voting for any candidate of this Republican Party in any general election. Nobody. Nobody at all.
Ever.

Amen.

Labels: , , , , ,

Sunday, September 11, 2011

As always...

Labels: ,

Saturday, September 10, 2011

Bumpersnicker of the day.

Via Fixer ...

Labels: , , ,

Today's tuneage...

...at random, as usual...
T. Rex - Mambo Sun
John Prine - I Just Want To Dance With You
The Shadows - Apache
Willie Nelson - Three Days
George Thorogood & the Destroyers - One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer
Dry Branch Fire Squad - Hard Times
Bob & Earle - Harlem Shuffle
Edie Brickell - What I Am
Rosanne Cash & Bruce Springsteen - Sea Of Heartache
The Texas Tornados - Mendocino
Effectively eclectic this week, I think.

Labels: ,

Friday, September 09, 2011

From the "If only…" file.

Laura Clawson...
If corporate tax cuts created jobs, the United States would have something like 102% employment.
Or so...

Labels: , , , ,

Thursday, September 08, 2011

From the "Me neither" file.

John Cole...
I honestly don’t know why anyone wants Obama’s job.
Me neither. Sometimes, in fact, I think that the desire for the job should be an automatic disqualification.

As far as The Speech goes, what John said.

Labels: , , , ,

Wednesday, September 07, 2011

I didn't have to watch tonight to say…

what digby said.
Ok, I've seen enough of Rick Perry to know that he's a uniquely vicious and ignorant piece of work who cannot be trusted with the executive branch.
Heck, I didn't have to see him twice to say that.

Labels: , , , , ,

Tuesday, September 06, 2011

From the "You know who 'they' are..." file.

They say that figures don't lie, but liars figure. I figure that Mitt Romney's a liar.

You already knew that? Figures...

Labels: , ,

Thank goodness…

McConnell to Obama: You're no Margaret Thatcher
At least Barry's got that going for him.

Labels: , , ,

Monday, September 05, 2011

Signs of the times.

Via Blue Gal at Crooks & Liars

Labels: , , ,

Heh™.

Kaili Joy Gray...
To say that Michele Bachmann is profoundly stupid would be unfair, only because her name really should never appear in the same sentence as the word "profound."

Labels: , , , ,

Happy Labor Day!


As usual, I'll celebrate it by laboring. If you've got the day off and find yourself in the Shoreline area, drop down the hill to the perfect tavern and say howdy.

Labels: , , , ,

Sunday, September 04, 2011

Dollar of the day.

Via Robert's Daily Dose...


Labels: , ,

Friday, September 02, 2011

From the "Goofus & Gallant" file.

Representative Gallant and his cousin Senator Gallant are members of the bi-partisan group of legislators who, in a spirit of shared sacrifice, have voluntarily taken the 3% pay cut the budget has imposed on most state workers.

Representative Goofus? That would be Spokane Republican John Ahern, who says...
...he doesn’t plan to ask for a pay cut, but he is donating 3 percent or more to charities, ranging from his church and the Boy Scouts to organizations that oppose abortion like Teen-Aid.

“This way I know exactly where the money is going,” Ahern said. If he took a pay cut, the money would stay in the state’s general fund, and go to state programs or agencies he doesn’t support....
It's hard to catalog how many things are wrong with this. The lack of civic spirit and responsibility in a public official is distressing. Ahern clearly doesn't grasp what it means to be a part of a community in a democratic system, let alone a member of the government.

It's his choice, of course, whether or not to participate in the pay cut. Legislators aren't among the highest paid state employees, and a 3% cut would represent a varying level of hardship, since some are less dependent on their state salaries than others. That doesn't appear to be an issue for Rep. Ahern, though, if he sincerely intends to give away his 3% to the charities of his choice.

The state workers have no such options, of course. Their cut goes to the general fund, to be spent on the general welfare. In Washington, the greatest part of the budget is our K-12 schools system. Is that the program doesn't support? Some part goes to our colleges and universities. Is that where Rep. Ahern balks?

Or is it medical care for poor children? Food support for hungry families? Job training? Care for the elderly and disabled? Disaster relief and emergency response? Cops? Courts? Jails?

Maybe it's legislative staff and pay? No, I think that's a program Ahern's just fine with.

Rather than let his 3% go to the priorities that have been determined by a democratic process by representatives elected by a vote of the people, Ahern chooses to invest in his private priorities, priorities which, coincidentally, would largely be unlawful recipients of the state money he's spending - money that includes my taxes and that 3% contribution from all of those state employees - if the cash weren't first laundered through his payroll account before being spent on programs and agencies I don't support.

If he wants to keep the cash, fine. It's his business. So is how he spends it.

If he thinks taking the money out of the budget to invest in his own pet projects offers cover for his hypocrisy and civic irresponsibility, or that there's some equivalence with the sacrifice demanded of state workers, though, he's wrong. A public official with so little regard for the public interest would be better off keeping his mouth shut about it.

Labels: , , , , , ,

Thursday, September 01, 2011

What Thers said...

...in a distinctly non-family friendly way.


Labels: , ,

From the "Since you asked…" file.

Rick Santorum answers a Piers Morgan question with a question...
"...are you suggesting that the Bible and that the Catholic Church is bigoted?"
I can't speak for Morgan, but since you asked, Ricky, if he wasn't, I am.

The Bible, the Church and you.

(And kudos to Morgan for posing the question that prompted the post.)

Labels: , , , ,

Ya' think?

Hunter...
I'm no expert on political negotiations, but it seems at some point perhaps the administration might start thinking that this Boehner fellow might be a wee bit untrustworthy.
So it seems...

Labels: , , ,