Monday, February 28, 2011
I Can't Believe I Still Have To Raise Money For This Shit
That was a line, roughly, from Lewis Black at a Planned Parenthood fundraiser years back. It does seem like Groundhog Day for so many issues. I know that some issues will endlessly be contentious because, you know, people disagree about stuff, but it's the endless battles on issues which aren't really up for debate, except in the sense that facts are pitted against fiction, which drive me crazy.
Hack Gap
Heard a few minutes of an NPR discussion program this morning, the introduction to their segment on the protests in Wisconsin. It's good that they are covering it at all, but while I didn't listen to it, the announced guest list was fairly typical of these things. The first was a historian of social movements. The second was some hack from Cato. This is fairly typical, with the liberalish side of things* being presented by someone non-political, who is then "balanced" by a movement conservative.
*Not having listened it may not have been liberalish at all, but obviously person A needed to be balanced by the right wing hack, according to the powers that be.
*Not having listened it may not have been liberalish at all, but obviously person A needed to be balanced by the right wing hack, according to the powers that be.
The Republic Will Survive $200/Barrel Oil
I'm someone who is more sanguine than most that high oil prices won't be economic Armageddon. Obviously now would be a particular bad time for oil prices to shoot up, as the economy already sucks, but longer run I don't see it as an economy killer. It will be a negative hit, and production and transportation patterns would change, but I don't think it will fundamentally alter existence.
The Internet Is This Fascinating New Thing Young People Use
I continue to be amazed that even now The Internets are written about as some sort of symbol of contemporary younger people. The internet is basically just a normal part of life now, not some fresh new hip thing the kids are getting into.
Sadists
Above all, the GOP Daddies and the Very Serious People know that Other People must suffer. Why? ARGLEBARGLE.
At Least Their Intellectuals Are Actually Intellectuals
While our "intellectuals" are mostly hack political pundits who don't know anything about anything and never really did. Still, yes, more expertise and less wanking is needed.
Faith Based Economics
It doesn't matter how many "reports" from "economists" get released making the obvious point that cutting spending=cutting jobs, the Real Americans in the Tea Party and those who understand them and speak for them, the Villagers, know that cutting spending is the right thing to do. Because arglebargle!
Also, Zombie Unicorns
As Matt says, the Very Serious People will use any excuse to tighten monetary policy. Being wrong about everything and having your disastrous policies lead to 9%+ unemployment never hurts your reputation.
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Oscars
I'm only 1/10 on seeing this year's best picture nominees, so it's all meaningless to me. I'll watch, anyway, as it's one of those shared cultural experiences which help keep us together just a little bit. Hopefully the one movie I did see does not win, as that would reflect rather poorly on the other 9.
Let's Make The Whole Place Uninhabitable
I knew the major natural gas find in Pennsylvania would lead to destruction and misery. I know people are in it for the money, but I'm also convinced some people just like to trash the place.
Afternoon Thread
It's going to be interesting to see what happens in Madison, WI this afternoon. 100,000 people showed up yesterday, 30,000 more than last week. This doesn't look like it is going away.
Switching Bastards
It'd be one thing if Lieberman and McCain had been on the teevee a couple of months ago denouncing Gaddafi, and a couple of years ago denouncing Bush's normalization of relations with him, but any excuse for a war I guess.
Sunday Bobbleheads
This Week has Governors Brewer, Patrick, Hickenlooper, and Haley.
Face the Nation has Chris Christie, the greatest man ever born.
Meet the Press has Scott Walker, Haley Barbour, John McCain, Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, and Richard Trumka
Document the atrocities!
Face the Nation has Chris Christie, the greatest man ever born.
Meet the Press has Scott Walker, Haley Barbour, John McCain, Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, and Richard Trumka
Document the atrocities!
Saturday, February 26, 2011
And Not Just Baseball
Pierce:
And it is further evidence that, for all the huffing and blowing about large-and-small-market teams, and about "competitive imbalance" and all that rot, the primary reason that a franchise in a self-regulating, government-sanctioned monopoly gets in financial trouble is because its owners are either a) cheap, b) greedy, or c) dumb as a freaking socket wrench.
Maybe Somebody Should Connect The Dots
So the Irish government bailed out the banksters, cut public spending, and their economy is in the shit.
Unemployment is up to 13.8 percent (it was as low as 4.2 percent as recently as 2005); public spending has been savagely and repeatedly cut since 2008; the deficit has risen to 14.3 percent; and current predictions suggest that 100,000 people will emigrate in the next several years, from a population of 4.3 million. The bill from the struggling banks may, in the end, total upward of $135 billion 100 billion euros, in an economy with a G.D.P. of $220 billion 160 billion euros.
Reminder
If my twitter stream is any evidence, I think some people need to be reminded that many tactics in support of the public workers unions in Wisconsin are illegal under the Taft-Hartley Act:
Myself included. I had either forgotten, or have always been unaware, how strictly the US regulates "union" activity, until I was reminded by a friend yesterday.
The Taft–Hartley Act prohibited jurisdictional strikes, wildcat strikes, solidarity or political strikes, secondary boycotts, secondary or "common situs" picketing, closed shops, and monetary donations by unions to federal political campaigns.
Myself included. I had either forgotten, or have always been unaware, how strictly the US regulates "union" activity, until I was reminded by a friend yesterday.
Friday, February 25, 2011
Vanquishing a Food Desert
Nice story of neighborhood activists beating back The Donald to get a much-needed supermarket.
For long-time Germantown resident and Northwest activist Irv Ackelsberg, the Brown's ShopRite will serve as a reminder of the neighborhood's triumph over Donald Trump.
Several years ago, the famed business mogul had his sights set on part of the Tastykake site for a $300 million-plus casino. But residents from Nicetown-Tioga, Allegheny West, East Falls and Germantown banded together under the banner of the Multi-Community Alliance to make sure that project never got off the ground.
"About six years ago, people from the surrounding communities joined together to say 'we don't want no casino we want a supermarket'," said Ackelsberg. "So we owe a lot of appreciation to Brown Shop-Rite, but we also owe a little appreciation to ourselves for having hung in there and done the right thing."
Another Week For Lex Luthor
LaHood gives him another week to play Hamlet over the Florida SUPERTRAIN.
Insanity
It's as if they think that when there are problems that the government can attempt to devise solutions.
MADRID — Spain announced Friday a series of energy saving measures, including a lower speed limit and cuts to train ticket prices, in response to the rise in world oil prices due to unrest in the Middle East.
And George Soros Probably Sponsored His Career
Fresh off telling us which Jews were naughty and which Jews were nice, Beck has now decided that Charlie Sheen's expression of anti-Semitic remarks probably means he's part of the progressive movement.
Still waiting for my invitation to a Vegas hookers and blow party with Charlie.
Still waiting for my invitation to a Vegas hookers and blow party with Charlie.
Parks
I don't really have a good sense of Rock Creek Park, but it's an opportunity to explain my mild anti-urban park bias which I've expressed before. Urban parks should accommodate people. They shouldn't simply be a random chunk of inaccessible wilderness plunked into urban landscape. They shouldn't simply be vacant lots, placeholders to stop or stall development. They should be easily accessible. Larger parks should have services that people require, including commercial establishments. People need bathrooms. They need food and water. I'm not saying you stick a strip mall in the middle of them, just that there should be a recognition that people and families actually need stuff, and that stuff should be close by. If there's enough space and the terrain is appropriate, there should be recreational sports fields. The point is that the parks should be about human activity, and not simply be nature portraits.
50 Little Hoovers
It's only going to get worse.
Deeper spending cuts by state and local governments slowed U.S. economic growth in the final three months of last year. The government's revised estimate for the October-December quarter illustrates how growing state budget crises could hold back the economic recovery.
The Commerce Department reported Friday that economic growth increased at an annual rate of 2.8 percent in the final quarter of last year. That was down from the initial estimate of 3.2 percent.
Morning
First Draft has a video of the over 10,000 messages taped to the walls outside Governor Walker's office. I guess they don't count cause they're from Democrats, or outside agitators, or something. Kind of sad.
Thursday, February 24, 2011
They Come Home
I certainly think there's a place for the "serious Republican" in the Republican primary field. Republican primary voters seem to flirt with the crazy and then come back to the favored choice of the Powers That Be. I mean, obviously McCain is kinda crazy, but he did play the role of the serious candidate, and somehow he managed to come from basically last place to win. And then Sarah.
The Fucking Mayor
Not the most important thing in the world, but I for one am hoping that Rahm Emanuel, as mayor, no longer shields the public from his supposed potty mouth. Let Rahm be Rahm.
Jobs
The Villagers have moved on, of course, but we still have a wee unemployment problem in this country.
I guess I could write this post every day.
I guess I could write this post every day.
Lessons
Someone with a tiny scrap of empathy, who avoided having his life destroyed by a college drug bust, would learn the lesson that...maybe people shouldn't have their lives destroyed by college drug busts. But, no, not Republicans.
The American Riot
I understand it a bit, but I'm still quite fascinated with the unique role the price of gas has in our country. Within some range, people don't seem to notice the price bounce around all that much, but once it creeps up a bit more you get the sense that the riot is just around the corner.
Sick Day
Having neck issues which aren't exactly compatible with being hunched over computer all day, so...light posting today.
Plutocracy
Kevin Drum covers a lot of ground, very lucidly in this Mother Jones article.
There are also some really good charts.
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Kick Their Ass And Take Their Gas
With oil prices up again we can ponder the impact of what, say, $7/gallon gas would have on this country economically, politically, and otherwise.
Just Saying Out Loud What They All Think
It isn't exactly a huge secret that conservatives want to completely destroy public education in this country. But generally the polite fiction that this isn't true is maintained.
I Do Not Think That Word Means What You Think It Means
Clinton statement on passage of DOMA:
Throughout my life I have strenuously opposed discrimination of any kind, including discrimination against gay and lesbian Americans. I am signing into law H.R. 3396, a bill relating to same-gender marriage, but it is important to note what this legislation does and does not do.
I have long opposed governmental recognition of same-gender marriages and this legislation is consistent with that position. The Act confirms the right of each state to determine its own policy with respect to same gender marriage and clarifies for purposes of federal law the operative meaning of the terms "marriage" and "spouse".
This legislation does not reach beyond those two provisions. It has no effect on any current federal, state or local anti-discrimination law and does not constrain the right of Congress or any state or locality to enact anti-discrimination laws. I therefore would take this opportunity to urge Congress to pass the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, an act which would extend employment discrimination protections to gays and lesbians in the workplace. This year the Senate considered this legislation contemporaneously with the Act I sign today and failed to pass it by a single vote. I hope that in its next Session Congress will pass it expeditiously.
I also want to make clear to all that the enactment of this legislation should not, despite the fierce and at times divisive rhetoric surrounding it, be understood to provide an excuse for discrimination, violence or intimidation against any person on the basis of sexual orientation. Discrimination, violence and intimidation for that reason, as well as others, violate the principle of equal protection under the law and have no place in American society.
Change
I get that after a relatively long period of populations declines, cities started to really focus on how to entice suburbanites into visiting/working in the city, but in cities, like DC, that have been rebounding it's really time to stop focusing on speeding people in and out of the city as fast as possible.
The Good News
National Journal informs me on the twitter machine that the Obama administration is going to stop defending the constitutionality of DOMA.
The Period Police
None of these people actually gives a shit about real live babies, it's all just about control. They don't believe women should have autonomy, and they'll do anything they can to limit it.
These Are Not Good People
So Walker was scheming to trick Dems into returning. Since he's a GOP Daddy this will be praised as 'bold.'
The US Is Not Manhattan But Manhattan Exists
Yes it's true that wiring up rural America for quality broadband is expensive, and this can explain some of the difference between internet infrastructure quality between places like the US and South Korea, but it's also the case that there are plenty of parts of the country which are quite dense...and we still have shitty broadband in those places.
I Get Emails
I get PR emails from ABC about daily, usually about some guest on Good Morning America, though occasionally just links to Steph's blog or similar. I'm just going to pluck the names of US political figures that appear in the subject line, in reverse chronological order.
Rand Paul (R)
David Wu (D)
Scott Walker (R)
WI State Senator Miller (D)
Michele Bachman (R)
Clinton (D)
Bloomberg (Can't Remember)
Rumsfeld
McCain (R)
Romney (R)
Michelle Obama
John McCain (R)
Obama (D)
Michelle Obama (D)
GOP War Horses (R)
Clinton (D)
Christie (R)
Pawlenty (R)
Rand Paul (R)
Biden (D)
Attorney General (D)
Schumer (D)
Palin (R)
Palin (R)
Palin (R)
Palin (R)
Weiner (D)
Petraeus (?)
Petraeus (?)
...adding, I don't have major point here, just paints an interesting picture.
Rand Paul (R)
David Wu (D)
Scott Walker (R)
WI State Senator Miller (D)
Michele Bachman (R)
Clinton (D)
Bloomberg (Can't Remember)
Rumsfeld
McCain (R)
Romney (R)
Michelle Obama
John McCain (R)
Obama (D)
Michelle Obama (D)
GOP War Horses (R)
Clinton (D)
Christie (R)
Pawlenty (R)
Rand Paul (R)
Biden (D)
Attorney General (D)
Schumer (D)
Palin (R)
Palin (R)
Palin (R)
Palin (R)
Weiner (D)
Petraeus (?)
Petraeus (?)
...adding, I don't have major point here, just paints an interesting picture.
Perfect Storm
I've written before that the phenomenon of people desperately wanting tremendous catastrophe to happen is quite interesting and isn't limited to people on the right. Basically I think they want the ultimate proof that they were fucking right, about whatever it is they think they're right about.
Modern Driving
So awesome.
Bridges says she has spoken with a number of drivers who have survived run-ins with trains in other parts of the state and most say they were distracted by things like cell phones and even texting while driving.
"We had one man say, 'I saw the train but my GPS said turn left now and I turned into the train,'" she said.
Good Morning
Great video, shot by Scout, of the happenings in Madison, WI. For all your WI news, First Draft rawks.
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Shift
I'm sure scholars will have a more complete and more nuanced view, but I think the fact that the extremely liberal Hollywood finally put a couple of gay characters on the teevee (and actual gay Reality Show people) probably helped quite a bit. Might be forgetting something, but think it was a long time between Billy Crystal on Soap and it being a sort of regular, if still not exactly widespread, thing.
I Was So Much Older Then
I think it really started to change fast right about the time I left college, but definitely at that time the cultural norm was that the fun ends after college*, that it was time to get serious, settle down, get married, start cranking out the kids, etc. I don't think this was a good or bad state of affairs - though I think the cultural and peer pressure about it was bad - but nor do I think having a bit of time to bumble through your twenties is a bad state of affairs.
*Yes I know not everyone goes to college, was talking about the view from a certain socioeconomic perspective.
*Yes I know not everyone goes to college, was talking about the view from a certain socioeconomic perspective.
Gas Prices
On the other hand, significant increases in the price due to rising oil prices, unlike tiny increases in the gas tax, will be painful for people. Using my 500 gallon/yr example below, an increase of $1 is $500/yr. Doing the very complicated math, that means a $2 increase would be $1000/yr. The rest I leave to you as an exercise.
It's Different This Time
Yes we're used to Republicans advocating for policies which hurt the most vulnerable, but their active attempts to completely destroy their state economies are something new.
THREE CENTS
Contrary to popular myth, roads in this country don't come anywhere near "paying for themselves" in the sense that they're financed by various user fees. I don't have a problem with that as there's no particular reason certain publicly provided goods should be paid for only by those who use them and others shouldn't (there are arguments to be made of course, but I'll leave that for the margin of this blog post), but I do have a problem with the myth as people think roads are somehow "free" while mass transit systems are draining the public coffers. And it also makes for an electorate which tends to freak out when someone suggests raising the gas tax, even though gas tax increase proposals are generally so small that they're dwarfed by weekly volatility of retail gas prices.
3 cent increase in the gas tax, at 10,000 miles driven annually in 20MPG car = $15/year.
3 cent increase in the gas tax, at 10,000 miles driven annually in 20MPG car = $15/year.
Our Sociopathic Overlords
For decades I've been reading that the biggest problem facing the greatest nation in the world is that the poor and middle class just have it too damn good. I can only conclude that our fake meritocracy has elevated people to positions of power and influence whose source of pleasure comes entirely from their perceived misery of others. This is a problem.
A Nation Of Middlemen
I actually don't know what (or if) the US should be doing to boost manufacturing in this country, but I do know that the dream that we'd all work in Finance, Insurance, and Real Estate and this would put us on the path to riches was a wee bit flawed.
Monday, February 21, 2011
Childlike Silliness
A wingnut presents this as an argument against Canadian-style health care.
Yet how beautiful it is that in Canada, “the Doctor” just provides services, the patient just receives those services – as much as he or she needs – and the Doctor apparently doesn’t need to be paid. Or at least the patient doesn’t have to worry about it, right? Isn’t that the way it goes in Canada? Somehow, because of the magic of government, Doctors and nurses and everyone “at the hospital” in Canada just simply perform their jobs, patients just simply “get” what they need, and everybody’s happy. And Canadians don’t have to face that devastating threat of long-term medical bills.
They're Just Bad People
I think people too much assign financial motivations to the bad things that right wingers do. Pete Peterson has spent a lot of money trying to make sure granny's in the poor house, and I highly doubt he's ever going to profit off of this venture. I'm sure the Koch brothers might make a buck here and there, but mostly they're just pursuing their agenda because they think it's right that working people know their proper place. It's conservative "philanthropy."
Our Dumb Discourse
NYT:
Not sure how many BILLIONS we're talking about, but, you know, that's a couple Months In Afghanistan. More than that, in a "recessionary era," the Feds should be pending BILLIONS on useful public works projects like, you know, ones which prevent catastrophic loss of life and infrastructure.
Lake Isabella Dam is just one acute example of a widespread problem: Of the nation’s 85,000 dams, more than 4,400 are considered susceptible to failure, according to the Association of State Dam Safety Officials. But repairing all those dams would cost billions of dollars, and it is far from clear who would provide all the money in a recessionary era.
Not sure how many BILLIONS we're talking about, but, you know, that's a couple Months In Afghanistan. More than that, in a "recessionary era," the Feds should be pending BILLIONS on useful public works projects like, you know, ones which prevent catastrophic loss of life and infrastructure.
15-Year-Old Gamers In Their Pajamas
I'm sure the emphasis of the internet will keep evolving, but what apparently won't evolve is the mainstream press's view of "the internet" as somehow being about young people. For years and years after the rise of political blogging, the press kept writing about it as if it was something that young people were into. As I wrote many times, I certainly wished I could take credit for getting a bunch of college kids interested in politics, but the fact is that people who read this site have always been pretty old. Basically the mainstream media types just wanted to infantalize bloggers as part of their mission of painting us as Very Unserious People.
System Fail
I'm getting grumpier and grumpier these days, as I ponder how it is that sociopaths rule the country.
St. Fetus
Years ago Eric Alterman, I think, had a good line, something like "I don't know why they want poor women to work more and rich women to work less." The basic point is that conservatives think it's really important that poor single mothers work - unclear how their precious children are taken care of - and that rich married women stay at home. More generally, I just don't know how conservatives expect children to be raised well in homes experiencing severe poverty, no matter how well-intentioned the parent(s) is/are. It's almost as if they don't care...
And, yes, this point has been made 12 billion times before.
And, yes, this point has been made 12 billion times before.
Most Of Us Need No Reminders
But there are plenty of people who don't quite understand that anti-choice leaders - though not all self-described anti-choice individuals - are driven by a deep and profound hatred of women.
It's All In The Public Interest
So it isn't just about union busting, it's also about giving away the power plants to your rich friends.
Rave Reviews
I'm never quite sure if Villagers are just unable to distinguish "the GOP operatives and other Villagers we talk to" from "the people" or if they truly believe (perhaps correctly) that they are just the only people who matter.
Sunday, February 20, 2011
Banskter Madness
The moment it became in the servicer's interest to foreclose whenever possible - legally or not - the system was fucked.
Sunday Bobbleheads
Face the Nation has Chris Van Hollen and Paul Ryan.
This Week has Hillary Clinton.
Meet the Press has Susan Rice, Dick Durbin, and Lindsey Graham.
Document the atrocities!
This Week has Hillary Clinton.
Meet the Press has Susan Rice, Dick Durbin, and Lindsey Graham.
Document the atrocities!
Morning Thread
by Molly Ivors
First Draft is doing a kickass job in Wisconsin.
Watch Athenae eviscerate Joke Line! Who once knew this janitor that he totally swears was a millionaire!
Watch Scout get weepy!
Watch Doc defend his parents! Parasites on the public teat who work unpaid overtime to run a school play! Those monsters!
Oh, hell. Just watch. They're all braving the weather again today.
First Draft is doing a kickass job in Wisconsin.
Watch Athenae eviscerate Joke Line! Who once knew this janitor that he totally swears was a millionaire!
Watch Scout get weepy!
Watch Doc defend his parents! Parasites on the public teat who work unpaid overtime to run a school play! Those monsters!
Oh, hell. Just watch. They're all braving the weather again today.
Saturday, February 19, 2011
Infill
We're not doing much extending here either, but regarding this:
Stations on all of our rail lines are quite close together. If anything I'd say there are too many stations. I think localities should change their zoning laws to allow for more infill development around those stations, but we don't actually have a shortage of stations.
It is too bad, however, that apart from the West Dublin/Pleasanton Station, BART has no infill stations planned. Nor is it alone on this matter: Cities with extensive commuter rail and subway networks in the United States, including New York, Chicago, and Philadelphia, have been more interested on extending their lines out into the suburbs than filling them in. One notable exception is Boston, where four new stations are planned to be added to the Fairmount line to add to the transit options for people living in underserved neighborhoods south of downtown.
Stations on all of our rail lines are quite close together. If anything I'd say there are too many stations. I think localities should change their zoning laws to allow for more infill development around those stations, but we don't actually have a shortage of stations.
If Everybody Is Guilty Then Nobody Is
The lesson to be learned is just make sure everybody's in on the scam. One would think that the people in charge could be held responsible, but as we've learned the people in charge are never responsible.
Grand Bargains
Villagers love the idea of a couple octogenarian senators - one conservative Republican, one conservative Democrat - hashing things out in some back room in the middle of the night, forging some "compromise" which can be quickly rushed through Congress without anyone having to put their fingerprints on it. They believe there are "tough choices" which involve additional misery for the most desperate and vulnerable, and that the voters can't be trusted to support those choices. So we must have the grand bargain, the compromise blessed by everyone who matters without worrying the beautiful minds of voters.
Friday, February 18, 2011
The Worst Person In The World
Perhaps literally.
SCRANTON, Pa. - A former juvenile court judge was convicted Friday of racketeering in a case that accused him of sending youth offenders to for-profit detention centers in exchange for millions of dollars in illicit payments from the builder and owner of the lockups.
...
The judge, known for his harsh and autocratic courtroom demeanor, filled the beds of the private lockups with children as young as 10. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court dismissed thousands of juvenile convictions issued by Ciavarella, saying he ran his courtroom with "complete disregard for the constitutional rights of the juveniles," including the right to legal counsel and the right to intelligently enter a plea.
Learning To Fly
To me the most obviously insane part is giving up the future revenue stream from spare parts manufacturing.
Because It Pisses Off Atrios
I really am starting to believe that Republicans make policy decisions by asking themselves, "What would piss off Atrios?"
Rewarding Good Behavior
I haven't done much fundraising for awhile, but consider supporting the Wisconsin Senate Dems.
Hey! Something Good
Not sure how "letting gay people die" was ever considered to be a "conscience" issue, but good for the Obama administration for getting rid of most of the conscience clause crap.
Fiscally Responsible
If Governor Walker wins, Madison will lose $45 million in federal funds for their bus system.
(ht reader r)
(ht reader r)
Let's Just Try To Lose More Elections
If Democrats really believe "cutting spending" will impress people as it kills the economy then they're beyond help.
Nobody cares about spending. Nobody cares about the deficit.
Nobody cares about spending. Nobody cares about the deficit.
Organize, Organize, Organize
Whatever happens with round 1 in Wisconsin, let's hope the people remain united for rounds 2, 3, 4, ...
Our Parasite Overlords
Some days I realize they won't be happy until everybody but them and their friends are homeless.
Morning Thread
by Molly Ivors
First, happy birthday to our gracious host!
Let's all celebrate by becoming Badgers for the day!
UPDATE: We got you a present! A kicky chapeau!
UPDATE 2:
I am so geeky that I was totally excited that the Wisconsin legislators first landed in Rockford IL.
First, happy birthday to our gracious host!
Let's all celebrate by becoming Badgers for the day!
UPDATE: We got you a present! A kicky chapeau!
UPDATE 2:
I am so geeky that I was totally excited that the Wisconsin legislators first landed in Rockford IL.
Dead of Night
Hey, remember how for the past couple of years the Republicans routinely and shamelessly and without precedent used a parliamentary gimmick to enforce a non-Constitutional supermajority in the United States Senate?
Keep in mind those shenanigans whenever you're told that the Wisconsin State Senate Democrats are opposed to "democracy."
Keep in mind those shenanigans whenever you're told that the Wisconsin State Senate Democrats are opposed to "democracy."
Thursday, February 17, 2011
Lines In Sand
Good.
I just got off the phone with Wisconsin State Senator Chris Larson, one of the Democrats who has left the capitol in order to stall the GOP's plan to rolll back the bargaining rights of public employees. Speaking to me by cell phone from an undisclosed location, Larson said he and his fellow Democrats would not return until the GOP takes its assault on organizing rights "off the table."
Nice Work
I'm quite sure someone qualified would be willing to manage it for a lot less.
DAVID: Well, Dylan, I think this is a very revealing move. You know, Aristotle taught us the tyrants first surround themselves with bodyguards who will go after anybody who challenges what they do. We shouldn’t forget that historical lesson. You know, the pensions they want to go after, they’re not very big in Wisconsin. I just calculated the numbers. The average Wisconsin state employee gets $24,500 a year. That’s not a very big pension. The state pension plan, 15% of the money going into it each year is being paid out to Wall Street to manage the money. That’s a really huge high percentage to pay out to Wall Street to manage the money. And what I think is going on here is this is the state as we began where public employee unions were first by law allowed, and if this governor can break these unions then you’re going to see this happen all across the country and further drive down wages. And if you can drive down wages in the public sector, it means private employers can drive down wages in the private sector.
Grand Bargains Are Also Complete Bullshit
Because Congress can pass a new law at any time. Yes I get that given various veto points there's a bit of inertia, but I assume after destroying the economy some future saner Congress might switch gears. I'm ever the optimist.
Screwing The Poor
Land use which requires people to surround themselves in an expensive two ton box in order to function in the economy dooms the poor.
A Is A
I long ago stopped taking Team Libertarian seriously, and by that I mean members of the Libertarian-Industrial Complex, not small-l civil libertarians. But to explain in it in the way that even their 3-year-old brains can maybe understand, any modern society is going to have a lot of old people. Many of them won't be able work to earn an income to support themselves, and some of them won't have enough savings either. Some of these people maybe were "irresponsible" during their working life, and some of them might be destitute because of medical bills. Some of them might have just lived a bit longer than they expected to. But regardless, the question is what does society do to deal with this inevitable chunk of the population. One answer is, of course, let them freeze to death on the streets, though that isn't my preferred choice. Alternatively, I suppose, we could put them on the SUPERTRAIN to Galt's Gulch.
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
More Shows
I actually like the "just play more shows" model of keeping market (as opposed to face value) prices down. I assume a big expense, both financial and personal, of touring is the "moving around" part and if bands with significant followings want to keep their performances accessible to more fans, while driving out the scalpers, then driving down the market price by simply increasing the number of available tickets by having multiple shows in locations with demand seems to be win-win.
I remember when Bruce Springsteen sold out 6 shows at the local arena way back when, though I don't know at what price. Also, too, I'm so old I remember when camping out in line for tickets was a normal activity.
I remember when Bruce Springsteen sold out 6 shows at the local arena way back when, though I don't know at what price. Also, too, I'm so old I remember when camping out in line for tickets was a normal activity.
The Bait And Switch
What you can do with "means testing" of Social Security is start talking about how Bill Gates and Tiger Woods don't really need Social Security. And that's (likely to be) true! But there aren't many people like that in the world. Well, then, okay, maybe you can say people with $250,000+ in other income in their retirement years don't need their Social Security. Ok, well, I don't really agree with that, but there aren't very many of those people either. This doesn't save you money. The only way to really save money is to dip into the benefits of people who were making 70,000-100K during their working years (adjusted over time), whose benefits already are means tested. So, basically, what we're talking about is benefit cuts for people who were upper middle class, but not UPPER middle class, during their working years. And those benefits just aren't very generous to begin with.
Inflation Target
Yes the big lesson from the last few years in terms of macroeconomic policy is that an inflation target of 2% is too low, should be increased to 4% or even more.
No Mouse Muscle?
Given the obvious benefits to Empire Disney, I'm a bit surprised they didn't throw their weight around with Governor Luthor.
...adding, I more meant that I'm surprised their muscle didn't work.
...adding, I more meant that I'm surprised their muscle didn't work.
I'll Take It
LaHood:
We are extremely disappointed by Governor Rick Scott’s decision to walk away from the job creating and economic development benefits of high speed rail in Florida. We worked with the governor to make sure we eliminated all financial risk for the state, instead requiring private businesses competing for the project to assume cost overruns and operating expenses. It is projects like these that will help America out-build our global competitors and lay the foundation needed to win the future. This project could have supported thousands of good-paying jobs for Floridians and helped grow Florida businesses, all while alleviating congestion on Florida’s highways. Nevertheless, there is overwhelming demand for high speed rail in other states that are enthusiastic to receive Florida’s funding and the economic benefits it can deliver, such as manufacturing and construction jobs, as well as private development along its corridors.
State Of Fiscal Collapse
Aside from the general lamentable movement away from affordable public higher education, it will really suck for tenured professors who have their positions eliminated.
Only Fools and Frenchmen
It's impossible to describe just how dumb our discourse was in the run-up to the Iraq war, and this was the post-9/11 era when everything was supposed to get oh so responsible and serious.
We could laugh if the consequences weren't so serious.
We could laugh if the consequences weren't so serious.
Nuisance Revenues
Whatever the merits of any particular regulation, local enforcement authorities should be in the business of forcing compliance, not issuing fines for minor infractions to boost city coffers. The fine should be the threat issued along with a sternly worded letter asking for compliance, not a random punishment for well-intentioned business owners unaware that they're doing anything wrong.
We Could Use It
I'm starting to think the conservative governors, recognizing that their governing mandate is to piss off liberals, just read this humble blog to get their ideas. Lex Luthor says no to $2.8 billion in supertrain money. Good luck Florida!
Dramatic Growth?
It is of course a big change for a city that has just stabilized population after shrinking for 5 decades or so, but I hardly think +4,000 residents per year for the next 25 years is "dramatic." Still, it does mean that policymakers need to start thinking about differently then they were in the decline era.
Thugland Express
I suppose it's somewhat comforting that the comments on newspaper articles are the same all over the country. I don't care if people hate cities or mass transit, I'm just amused at their interest! I don't spend my days commenting on suburban newspaper sites.
"Savings"
Anyone who wants to cut the Women, Infant, and Child nutrition program is not interested in saving money.
WIC saves about $45,000 for every $100 spent.
In other words, it will cost us hundreds of millions of dollars to "save" one hundred million dollars.
Oh, yes, and it will also kill lots of babies.
Signed,
Not Atrios
WIC saves about $45,000 for every $100 spent.
In other words, it will cost us hundreds of millions of dollars to "save" one hundred million dollars.
Oh, yes, and it will also kill lots of babies.
Signed,
Not Atrios
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
There's No Money In Means Testing
You just can't save any money worth the additional administrative burden by depriving a few rich people of their Social Security and Medicare benefits. There aren't that many rich people! Now, those not many rich people make a hell of a lot of money so you can raise revenue by increasing tax rates on them, but it isn't worth bothering going after their Social Security checks.
Infill
While I certainly dream of new supertrains all over the place, it's also the case that in my urban hellhole and elsewhere we haven't made the most of the existing transit network. There are a lot of stations which lack the appropriate density. Some of that is due to urban blight which can hopefully be more easily remedied as the city population declines end, and some of that is due to bad land use rules, but hopefully we get more like this.
Priorities
If the deficit was actually something anybody cared about, they'd be interested in raising revenue. You don't have to raise tax rates to raise revenue, you just have to increase the number of goddamn jobs.
Deep Thought
I guess if our elites don't talk about joblessness or foreclosures they don't really exist.
Grand Bargains Are Anti-Democratic
The point of "grand bargains" between the parties isn't to get something done, the point is to get something done in a way which leaves no one for voters to blame. It's accountability free legislating. Villagers love this, because they hate this whole voting thing and just want Bob Kerrey and Alan Greenspan to rule by fiat in order to make the poor and middle class suffer as much as possible without any resistance, but it means the rest of us are out of luck.
That Olive Complexion
One thing that's important to remember is that while many of our overlords are hateful bigots, it's also the case that many of them are extremely stupid hateful bigots.
Keep The Government Out Of My Social Security
I think it would be politically insane to cut any Social Security benefits, particularly benefits for current recipients, but Matt's right that it makes no sense to let a right-leaning part of the electorate join in with the Villagers to demand that other people suffer without any consequences to themselves.
Controversy
No, when people just make stuff up there is no controversy. Frequently there is a "controversy" however.
Monday, February 14, 2011
Minor Mystery
I suppose this question be asked from either side, but I've been wondering for awhile why places like Arizona have completely freaked the fuck out about the MESSICAN INVASION while my little urban hellhole, not without a history of racial animus and tension, seems to have barely noticed. South Philly has a large and growing Mexican population and oddly it barely registers. I get that border states have some additional issues, and I'm not saying the scale is precisely the same, but at least at the quite local level hardly anyone is bitching about the existential threat of illegal immigration (no idea what proportion of immigrants here are legal vs. illegal).
Could We Get Some Help With This At Home?
Because I imagine we need it.
The State Department plans to finance programs like circumvention services, which enable users to evade Internet firewalls, and training for human rights workers on how to secure their e-mail from surveillance or wipe incriminating data from cellphones if they are detained by the police.
Though the policy has been on the drawing board for months, it has new urgency in light of the turmoil in the Arab world, because it will be part of a larger debate over how the United States weighs its alliances with entrenched leaders against the young people inspired by the events in Tunisia and Egypt.
What They Want
Republicans don't want to cut spending, as at best they don't really give a crap about spending, and most likely love most spending except for programs liberals have an affinity for. They want Dems to take responsibility for unpopular spending cuts so they can run against them.
And Along Those Lines
It isn't unsurprising that a "chief political correspondent" misses the actual political story.
Conduits
After all of these years I still remains surprised that main journalists see their role as passing on, and adding credibility to by doing so, the statements of people in power. That doesn't make them, you know, necessary.
Getting Around
For too long mass transit was simply seen as a substitute for highway travel, merely a means of getting from A (home) to B (work) and back again, probably with a park-n-ride lot involved, instead of as a means for getting around more generally. DC is lucky that their metro system didn't end up like BART, which really is mostly a commuter system, but instead acts as a reasonable if incomplete way for people to travel around DC.
We're A Different Kind Of Crazy!
The truth is that while once upon a time I could draw clear distinctions between Ron Paul crazy and the other brand of conservative Republican crazy, they're increasingly indistinguishable.
Sunday, February 13, 2011
Sunday Bobbleheads
Face the Nation has John McCain giving us informed analysis of the situation in Egypt.
This Week has Ehud Barak, New Gingrich, and Tim Pawlenty giving us informed analysis of the situation in Egypt.
Meet the Press has Boehner, Schilling, and Atlanta's Mayor Reed giving us informed analysis of the situation in Egypt.
Remarkably, no national Democrats will appear.
Document the atrocities!
This Week has Ehud Barak, New Gingrich, and Tim Pawlenty giving us informed analysis of the situation in Egypt.
Meet the Press has Boehner, Schilling, and Atlanta's Mayor Reed giving us informed analysis of the situation in Egypt.
Remarkably, no national Democrats will appear.
Document the atrocities!
Biofuels
It was really scary that time when Duncan cut that dude for bringing up Issue X. Thank Christ cooler heads prevailed and we were able to turn the conversation to parking laws, Yes videos, & municipal zoning codes. Good times...
Saturday, February 12, 2011
Things That Google Alerts Me To
I find this criticism to be rather odd. The reason why I occasionally talk about why I'm not talking about something is because if there's some major event going on, and I don't have anything to say about it, commenters and emailers see something conspiratorial or sinister in it when it's just the case that I'm doing my best not to add to the pile of uninformed commentary on the subject. You can turn to whatever Sunday show John McCain will be on tomorrow for that. More than that, I don't actually talk about foreign policy issues very often. Sure I spent a lot of time on the Iraq issue, but I hardly ever wrote anything about Iraq because I never claimed to know a damn thing about Iraq. What I did write about was the fact that a bunch of lying madmen, aided by our obsequious press, were taking us into war on false pretenses and a lot of people were going to die for reasons we still haven't quite figured out (Cue people emailing me with the word oil in the subject. Yes, oil, but not just oil.). I'm never proud of being insufficiently knowledgeable about a subject, but I can't know everything and sometimes my attentions are elsewhere.
Watching TV
Second season loses it a bit, but otherwise the whole Friday Night Lights series is worth watching, for those of you who like that kind of thing.
Gonna Have To Tap A Godfearing Christian
Nobody cares about the rights of minorities or hippies, so the only way any of this will change is if there's some scandal about some nice white Christian patriot getting his phone tapped by the government.
...adding, I'm not surprised by this. I hope/hoped (perhaps naively, perhaps not) that the Obama administration would not abuse power so badly, but I didn't expect them to try to curtail their theoretical power.
...adding, I'm not surprised by this. I hope/hoped (perhaps naively, perhaps not) that the Obama administration would not abuse power so badly, but I didn't expect them to try to curtail their theoretical power.
Sometimes Things Don't Happen
And critics of people like me accuse of us of fearmongering making stuff up.
The White House last month considered offering specific benefit cuts and tax increases to shore up Social Security's finances, but ultimately decided to back off.
Officials weighed suggesting that Congress raise the ceiling on wages subject to the Social Security payroll tax and allow benefits to rise more slowly than under current law, according to three people familiar with the deliberations. The hope was to engage Republicans in talks.
But aides decided against putting forward the ideas, sure to be unpopular, without a clear signal from Republicans that they were ready to talk.
Friday, February 11, 2011
Part 1 Of 3 (no, really)
A confused nation will soon learn of the centrality of the rail system to the modern economy.
If anybody actually watches it, of course.
If anybody actually watches it, of course.
Never Happens
I've mentioned this before, but my new pet peeve is the regular plot in lawyer and doctor shows in which a relatively minor ethical transgressions cause everyone to panic about likely disbarment/license losing. If these were real concerns, things like this would not happen.
Playing For Keeps
For a few years there I had the naive hope that maybe things were moving in a better direction.
MADISON, Wis. —
Gov. Scott Walker says the Wisconsin National Guard is prepared to respond wherever is necessary in the wake of his announcement that he wants to take away nearly all collective bargaining rights from state employees.
Walker said Friday that he hasn't called the Guard into action, but he has briefed them and other state agencies in preparation of any problems that could result in a disruption of state services, like staffing at prisons.
So They Didn't Really Mean It?
I actually think George Bush believed in the whole "freedomanddemocracy" thing, though I'm not sure his understanding of that concept bore any relationship to the way most of us understand it. But the fact that the press bought that bullshit from the administration for years, despite it being obviously ridiculous, was maddening.
At Least We're Not The Brits
I certainly don't agree with everything the Obama administration has done with respect to the economy, though my objection is much more on the politics than the policy (better politics might have given us better policy), but over the Atlantic they seem to be fully committed to destroying the place.
It's All About Us
I'm not sure what the point of this Gerson column is, other than to reassure himself that, no matter what happens, we'll always have the biggest dick.
Thursday, February 10, 2011
The Little Things
I'm no great expert on our freight rail network, but the reason we have a Soviet-style rail network in much of the country is that the freight companies control the tracks. So the question becomes what kind of relatively small improvements - adding electrification, double and triple tracking in segments to allow for more passing, rerouting the freight by adding new segments, etc... - can lead to significant significant improvements in average speed and reliability. This is basically the point of most of the Obama adminsitration's "High Speed Rail" plan, which mostly isn't high speed rail in the sense that TGV, the Eurostar, or the AVE are, but instead "high speed" in the sense of making the improvements to get top speeds up to 110 MPH and average speeds up to... well, something hopefully significantly higher than they are. In other words, it's about restoring the quality of some rail routes that we had in 1920.
Don't Know Nothing About Nothing
There are some subjects I know a few things about and can at least pretend to opine adequately, and there are some subjects I don't know much about but have a reasonable sense of people who do know about that subject and can use them as my filter.
On Egypt, I got nothin'.
On Egypt, I got nothin'.
Urban Hellholes Are Illegal
Hard to get zoning adjustments.
My emphasis.
First, not-in-my-back-yard resistance to apartment and condo projects is alive and well. Second, in Charlotte almost all never-before-developed land, including farms, was zoned decades ago for single-family subdivisions.
That encourages developers to avoid the cost and hassle of a rezoning and build single-family neighborhoods instead of the mixed-used and higher-density projects the city is trying to attract. It's suburban growth on auto-pilot.
My emphasis.
Actual Facts
This is the kind of thing that only Dean Baker and crazy liberal bloggers ever point out, but the fact is that even if we do absolutely nothing to Social Security, and down the road it can't afford to pay fully scheduled benefits, the benefits it will be able to afford (after cutting scheduled benefits to meet its budget) will still be higher than the benefits it pays out today.
Late Night On The Subway
Something I think politicians and planners in urban hellholes for the most part really fail to realize is that reducing the number of cars in your city, and everything that comes with them (parking), is a key way to make your city a nice walkable environment. Obviously massive disincentives for car ownership/use in the absence of any other options will just drive (hah!) people out of your city, but if you've managed to build a fairly extensive subway system which functions reasonably both as intra-city transit and as a suburban commuter system, as Washington's Metro system does, then you do have other options, such as making car use/ownership less necessary by extending service hours. Also, we fret a lot about drunk driving in this country, then we allow bars to stay open hours after most transit service is cut to a minimum. I wish my urban hellhole kept the subway open for another couple of hours (not that I'm ever out that late), at least on weekends, and it would be a shame if Metro in DC were to kill their late service.
My local transit authority did at least start running some later commuter trains on weekends. A few of the trolley lines do actually run all night as do several bus lines.
At least we're making progress in the war on curb cuts.
My local transit authority did at least start running some later commuter trains on weekends. A few of the trolley lines do actually run all night as do several bus lines.
At least we're making progress in the war on curb cuts.
Subdivided
And along those lines, it's basically impossible to build legally a true granny flat, with a 2nd kitchen and separate entrance, anywhere. Some mega-mcmansions are built with servant kitchens, but for most development it's illegal. It's possible the reality of the aging boomer demographic will put some pressure on politicians to change this in some places, but I doubt it.
...adding, yes, in older towns and urban areas there are plenty of existing granny flats, though even in these places it may be difficult to build new ones, and it appears Portland's cool with them.
...adding, yes, in older towns and urban areas there are plenty of existing granny flats, though even in these places it may be difficult to build new ones, and it appears Portland's cool with them.
Golf Cart Nirvana
Unsurprisingly, like Paul I'm a bit puzzled by the general cultural belief that a pastoral sun belt golf course retirement community is some sort of retirement ideal. Obviously tastes vary. Some people like golf, some people really want to escape the cold. But living in a place with decent taxis (and taxi appropriate distances), a decent bus system, and amenities like food and supermarket delivery can allow people to maintain their autonomy long past the time when driving ceases to be such a good idea.
And, yes, I know that prices matter. I get that quality urban hellhole living is in relatively limited supply. But I'm not talking what people choose to do - their choices are constrained by incomes and prices - but the general cultural belief.
And, yes, I know that prices matter. I get that quality urban hellhole living is in relatively limited supply. But I'm not talking what people choose to do - their choices are constrained by incomes and prices - but the general cultural belief.
Soviet-Style Train System
Today in wingnuttery.
Los Angeles – Vice President Joe Biden Tuesday proposed that the US government infuse $53 billion into a national high-speed rail network. The announcement was met immediately by deep skepticism from two House Republicans that could be crucial to the plan's success, raising questions about whether it can clear Capitol Hill.
House Transportation Committee Chair Rep. John Mica (R) of Florida said previous administration grants to high-speed rail projects were a failure, producing "snail speed trains to nowhere." He called Amtrak a "Soviet-style train system" and said it "hijacked" nearly all the administration's rail projects.
I'm reasonably sure the "previous administration grants" have produced approximately nothing which have affected current train service because these things take time. As for "Soviet-style train system," I actually know nothing about Soviet inter-city rail, but the Moscow subway is supposed to be pretty good.
Wingnut Fact Production
You can imagine how this happened. Jonah Goldberg imagines that the New York Times must have said something nice about Mussolini, because the NYT is liberal, the NYT in 1923 is exactly the same as the NYT now, and liberals love Hitler and Franco and Mussolini. Research assistant fires up the Lexis-Nexis, snippity snips the first quote he finds, produces a new wingnut fact (not to be confused with actual facts), and heads home early for appletinis.
Wednesday, February 09, 2011
Stupid Rules
Bars can have as many drink specials as they want, but there are limits on how much time they call "happy hour."
Truce
I would be quite happy for politicians to support gay marriage, shut the fuck up about "family values," and have the press mostly return to ignoring marital infidelities when possible.
What's Up With All The SUPERTRAINS
A reader writes in to ask just why I'm a fan of intercity rail. Well, the truth is if I had an extra $50 billion of other peoples' money to blow on big transit projects I would prioritize intra-city transit systems instead of inter-city ones, especially if I could use the powers of my benevolent dictatorship to fix stupid land use laws around stations and corridors. We've spent and continue to spend a lot of money to build a world where mobility requires that individuals spend a hell of a lot of money to surround themselves with a few thousand pounds of metal. And, no, roads don't pay for themselves. Then we require them to spend more money on insurance because there's a decent chance they're going to maim someone. I think this state of affairs is especially bad for teenagers, the elderly, and the poor, all of whom are incredibly disadvantaged by lack of mobility options. This fact was made very apparent to me after visiting a less developed country with little quality mass transit, where lack of access to a car clearly shut people off from participating fully in the economy. The price of real estate in nice walkable urban areas demonstrates that there is a shortage of those places, and those places can't exist in areas which require one car per driving age person. In many existing urban areas like my hellhole, highway capacity into the city is unlikely to increase, well, ever, so improving transit service into the city is the only way to add transportation capacity.
As for inter-city rail, I certainly support it too on the grounds that driving long distances and flying really suck. Flying sucks more than it used to for various reasons, and it is unlikely to suck less anytime soon. Having to travel to the airport, arrive early, deal with the various indignities and potential delays, the discomfort of airline cabins, extra time at the other end waiting for baggage, the need, most places, to throw down a large sum for a cab ride or car rental, to then travel a fairly long distance to the city center, all make for an extended unpleasant experience. Good trains are fast and smooth, easily competitive with air travel up to 400 miles or so, even if they aren't truly super supertrains. The ride is more comfortable. You can get up and walk around, pay a visit to the bar car. Doing some sort of work while riding is much more of a realistic option than it is on plane. As is a quality nap.
But having said that, building new long distance train systems from scratch is expensive. Right of ways are very difficult to assemble, and existing ones are generally owned by freight rail companies. We do have this existing massive freeway system, for better or for worse, and inter-city bus travel is decent and improving in many places. If I ran the zoo I'd of course build the trains everywhere, but since I don't my preference is to try to free more people from expensive car dependency and the need for car ownership, while also hoping that relatively inexpensive upgrades to the existing inter-city system can go a long way.
Truce
One of the weirdest conceits in DC, for politicians and its pundits, is the idea that there's some grand compromise to be reached on issues that people care deeply about which will take the issue off the table forever so that tipandronnie can go have some drinks after work. Abortion is the most obvious one of these, but it's there for other issues too. Voters care about these issues. The politicians in this Congress are not the same as the politicians in the last Congress. There is no enduring truce on any issue.
110 MPH Is Pretty Good
Truly high speed rail in some places would be great, but we shouldn't forget that 110MPH is pretty damn good, at least if that means you can get the average speed of a route up to about 90MPH or so. 90MPH gets you 270 miles in 3 hours (i can haz math).
Well Let's Just Give It A Few More Years Then
Because of all the progress.
General David Petraeus, the top U.S. and NATO commander in Afghanistan, says he is excepting a brutal fight in the spring when Taliban insurgents try to return from their winter safe havens to areas already cleared by the international forces.
"When you have 110,000 more of us than we had a year ago, we're obviously in many, many more places," he said in an interview with NATO TV. "We have taken away areas that matter to the Taliban and they have to fight back."
The Excitement Of The Great Casino
I keep my eye on a lot of the various financial market sites, and many have the habit of touting every 1-2% point swing in the price of, well, anything, as ZOMG SOMETHING'S HAPPENING. There area lot of stocks, a lot of stock markets, a lot of commodity prices, a lot of exchange rates. Some of them are inevitably going to have moderately large price swings on any given day.
Being A Senator Isn't Very Much Fun
Jim Webb emails me (and everyone else on his list) to tell me he isn't running for re-election.
Obviously I don't fully know his reasons, but one thing I've learned is that being a senator probably isn't very much fun, at least for most people. To do your job minimally requires a lot of work. You oversee multiple offices of largely underpaid staffers, many of whom are doing the mostly pointless work of handling constituent correspondence to maintain the illusion that Your Senator Is Listening To You. It's the Senate, so if you care about getting things done you're inevitably going to be very frustrated. Especially if you live far away, there's a damn-if-you-damned-if-you-don't issue about where you live. If you move your family to DC you've moved out of the state you're supposed to represent. If you don't move your family to DC you have to travel hundreds or thousands of miles to see them. Your schedule is complicated and your life is basically run by your scheduler. It's a very high profile position, which means having a private life is almost impossible. At least House members can go about their business in relative anonymity if they want to. And of course there's all that fundraising.
To actually enjoy the job you have to get some enjoyment out of the semi-corrupt aspects of the job such as the fundraising, hanging out with lobbyists, the general thrill of everyone kissing your ass, etc.
Obviously I don't fully know his reasons, but one thing I've learned is that being a senator probably isn't very much fun, at least for most people. To do your job minimally requires a lot of work. You oversee multiple offices of largely underpaid staffers, many of whom are doing the mostly pointless work of handling constituent correspondence to maintain the illusion that Your Senator Is Listening To You. It's the Senate, so if you care about getting things done you're inevitably going to be very frustrated. Especially if you live far away, there's a damn-if-you-damned-if-you-don't issue about where you live. If you move your family to DC you've moved out of the state you're supposed to represent. If you don't move your family to DC you have to travel hundreds or thousands of miles to see them. Your schedule is complicated and your life is basically run by your scheduler. It's a very high profile position, which means having a private life is almost impossible. At least House members can go about their business in relative anonymity if they want to. And of course there's all that fundraising.
To actually enjoy the job you have to get some enjoyment out of the semi-corrupt aspects of the job such as the fundraising, hanging out with lobbyists, the general thrill of everyone kissing your ass, etc.
The Wage Is Too Damn Low
Another in a seemingly neverending series of articles on the difficulties of finding qualified applicants who are willing to work for cheap.
Team Kristol/Team Beck
The entire conservative "movement" is so absurd. It'd be great if we could just point and laugh and be done with it, but aside from being absurd they run most things. Oh well.
Actually Not A Bold Prediction
And I have no idea how anyone thinks there can be significant economic recovery while this is happening.
Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz said another 2 million foreclosures are expected in the U.S. this year, adding to the 7 million that have occurred since the economic crisis of 2008.
“U.S. foreclosures are continuing apace,” Stiglitz told a conference near Port Louis, the capital of Mauritius, today. “A quarter of U.S. homes are underwater.”
Morning Thread
by Molly Ivors
Christ on a cracker, is there anything this woman won't do for money?
Look out, everyone, Madame Dimbulb DuFarge is coming!
Christ on a cracker, is there anything this woman won't do for money?
"ChristinePAC can investigate and counter attack leftwing groups, many funded with one million dollars or more from billionaire leftist George Soros," she wrote in an email, obtained by Talking Points Memo.
She didn't specify which groups she'd seek to investigate.
Soliciting contributions from a fan-base she built last year as the GOP's nominee to the US Senate from Delaware, O'Donnell used the Sarah Palin-like tactic of pitting them and her on one side and the"liberal media" on the other.
"The Left keeps after me because they consider strong, Republican women a danger to their status quo," she wrote. "...If I stand alone, though, I'm no match for the liberal media and the political establishment. But, with us standing together to fight, they don't have a chance!"
Look out, everyone, Madame Dimbulb DuFarge is coming!
Tuesday, February 08, 2011
Bipartisanship
The dirty little secret of the Villagers is that they don't always like bipartisanship. It isn't just about people from both sides coming together, it's about the Consensus Of Wise Old Men Of Washington being confirmed by consensus vote of the Wise Old Men Of Congress.
Strange Things Are Afoot
Patriot Act extension vote in House (required 2/3 because of how they tried to jam it through) failed according to the internets.
Wee Bit Of Advice
Consider not having butt enhancement surgery in an airport hotel.
Actually, consider not having it at all.
Actually, consider not having it at all.
Doing It Wrong
Elite Republicans like their lunatics, including lunatic elite Republicans, to be well-mannered and to wear nice suits. It makes it more difficult for people to notice that the dangerous gibberish they're spouting is in fact dangerous gibberish.
Democratic Party Suicide Act
I do wish someone would inform the Dems that they lost this past election in large part because Republicans scared old people about Medicare cuts. They'll have no trouble doing it again with Social Security, even if they mostly sign on to cutting it.
SUPERTRAINS
Don't exactly expect the assholes in Congress to run with this, but we'll see.
The Obama administration announced plans today to spend $53 billion over six years to develop a national and intercity high-speed passenger rail network, creating jobs in turn.
President Obama will include an initial $8 billion investment in the budget plan he will release next week, Vice President Joe Biden said today at 30th Street Station.
Simpler
Because we're stupid, once you inject "underage sex" into the conversation, and manage to hold someone at fault for that in any way even illogically, you've won. Rose's position was literally that the Planned Parenthood workers should've pulled out their guns and arrested criminal and potentially violent "pimps." No this does not make sense, but it didn't have to.
Hellholes
Big urban hellholes get all of the attention, but it's the small-medium size ones that are really in pain.
The new statistics, part of a push to realign state standards with college performance, show that only 23 percent of students in New York City graduated ready for college or careers in 2009, not counting special-education students. That is well under half the current graduation rate of 64 percent, a number often promoted by Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg as evidence that his education policies are working.
But New York City is still doing better than the state’s other large urban districts. In Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse and Yonkers, less than 17 percent of students met the proposed standards, including just 5 percent in Rochester.
Steve, Just Admit It...
Uh, Steve, in the Laff-a-Lympics race for the Crazy, there just ain't a whole lot of daylight between Glenn Beck and William Kristol. Just saying.
Monday, February 07, 2011
Late Night
Rock on.
There are the commenters who think their every utterance profound
And emailers who demand the discussion does go round and round
Along with tweets of anguish from those who barely try
And the PR spam from flunkies whose methods are awry
With the endless whines of bloggers who are pissed that they've been dissed
They'd none of them be missed, they'll none of them be missed.
He's got them on a list, he's got them on a list
And they'd none of them be missed, they'll none of them be missed.
Incumbents
These are points not made often enough. Back in the dark ages when I still taught Econ 101, one thing I'd make a point of telling my students is that any time you hear business interests extolling the virtues of competition you can know with certainty that they are 100% full of shit. Incumbent businesses desire policies which reduce competition, not policies which increase it.
"Running"
I don't really think Palin will seriously run for president, but she will pretend to. Should be fun!
With A Cherry On Top
I'm not believer in the perfection of the economy as we have constructed it, but roughly speaking if businesses thought they could make profitable investments, they probably would be doing so. "Boosting aggregate demand" is a task the president should take on, but pleading with rich assholes to invest is pretty pointless.
Big Money
I've missed a couple of their recent movies, including True Grit (so far), but it's nice that the Coen Brothers are actually making real money for a change. I haven't loved all of their movies, but they're almost always at least in the "glad I saw it even if it wasn't awesome" category.
Now I just need to interest them in the biopic of a humble baby blue blogger.
Now I just need to interest them in the biopic of a humble baby blue blogger.
Corrupt
Obviously it isn't like taking bribes or something, but I do think powerful politicians should stay out of minor local issues they have personal concerns about instead of throwing their weight around in inappropriate ways.
Good News Of The Day
The twitter machine tells me Jane Harman is quitting Congress.
I'm sure all of the people who contributed to her last campaign feel great. Also, too, good riddance.
I'm sure all of the people who contributed to her last campaign feel great. Also, too, good riddance.
What The Hell Is Wrong With You People
I sort of understand conservatives on some issues that I don't agree with them about, but the opposition to contraception is insane. Yes I "get it" in the sense that I get that they just want women to be punished for having sex, but I also "get it" in the sense that I know very few of them have the large broods many of them would have if they themselves stuck to the no contraception rule.
Tunnel Hell
I have no idea how proposal B will fly when Governor Casino killed proposal A, but who knows.
Sunday, February 06, 2011
Greedy Players Force Impoverished Owners To Increase Ticket Prices
Not really, of course, but if the past is any guide I expect the owners to have much greater support in the media generally than will the players. The propaganda will be catapulted.
And liberals should care and side with labor, even if some of the players do make a lot of money. This is about how the pie gets split, and that matters even if it is a really big pie.
And liberals should care and side with labor, even if some of the players do make a lot of money. This is about how the pie gets split, and that matters even if it is a really big pie.
Things No One Believes
I've got nothing against the concept of bus rapid transit, but it will often lose the fight against the Jesus-blessed rights to on street parking and more lanes for drivers. People cite the flexibility of buses, given the existence of the street network, as a blessing, but it's also a curse.
I doubt many in LA are aware of this.
Lots of people use the mass transit system in LA that lots of other people are basically unaware of. It's interesting.
I doubt many in LA are aware of this.
Wilshire is L.A.'s densest business and residential corridor, and it's among the city's biggest traffic nightmares at rush hour, which is why devoting a lane in each direction to bus use only is a good idea. More people already travel by bus than by car along the route during peak hours, and a fast bus lane would lure even more out of their cars, reducing pollution and radically reducing commuting times for bus riders.
Lots of people use the mass transit system in LA that lots of other people are basically unaware of. It's interesting.
Sunday Bobbleheads
Meet the Press has John Kerry and Zombie James Baker.
Face the Nation has a bunch of people you've never heard of.
This Week is in Cairo.
Document the atrocities!
Face the Nation has a bunch of people you've never heard of.
This Week is in Cairo.
Document the atrocities!
Morning Thread
by Molly Ivors
Frank Rich explains it all to you.
Frank Rich explains it all to you.
Unable to watch Al Jazeera English, and ravenous for comprehensive and sophisticated 24/7 television coverage of the Middle East otherwise unavailable on television, millions of Americans last week tracked down the network’s Internet stream on their computers. Such was the work-around required by the censorship practiced by America’s corporate gatekeepers. You’d almost think these news-starved Americans were Iron Curtain citizens clandestinely trying to pull in the jammed Voice of America signal in the 1950s — or Egyptians desperately seeking Al Jazeera after Mubarak disrupted its signal last week.
The consequence of a decade’s worth of indiscriminate demonization of Arabs in America — and of the low quotient of comprehensive adult news coverage that might have helped counter it — is the steady rise in Islamophobia.
Saturday, February 05, 2011
Dumb And Dumber
Chris Christie goes to Illinois to rescue them from the tyranny of high taxes.
oh, wait...
Gov. Christie flew to Illinois on Friday, trying to sway corporate leaders to bring their business east.
His administration did not release details of the meetings, "in the interest of discretion," said Michael Drewniak, a spokesman for the governor.
oh, wait...
Christie, along with governors in Indiana and Wisconsin, has been trying to pry jobs from Illinois after Democratic Gov. Pat Quinn signed a record 67 percent tax increase Jan. 12.
Illinois raised its flat personal income tax rate to 5 percent from 3 percent, but that is below New Jersey's graduated rates for taxable incomes above $40,000, Quinn's press secretary, Brie Callahan, said in an interview last week. And while the Illinois corporate rate is increasing to 7 percent from 4.8 percent, that is still below New Jersey's 9 percent rate, she said.
Friday, February 04, 2011
A Cunning Plan
So who wants to be ho to my pimp. I'm thinking we can go to the banksters and ask for retirement planning or about the tax deductability of work uniforms and videotape the shocking results.
Doesn't Much Matter
No there's nothing there, but just you can get the media to run with any story about teen girls and sex and every party involved is in fault even if there's no fault that can actually be defined.
Parking Hell
While often people think I'm writing about giant skyscrapers when I use the word "urban," I'm really just mostly talking about development which is at least somewhat pedestrian friendly and not quite entirely car-centric. There are a lot of places in this country that started out as "nice suburbs" in the way that people envisioned them and then grew to be too-dense-but-not-quite-dense enough, in that they're pretty choked with traffic and lack the free infinite parking that people expect but which are not really walkable for most people. Often there's an unwillingness to go one way or another, to start throwing up parking garages at great expense or to start trying to maximize the potential benefits of density.
Modern Activism
I guess we can't beat the banksters' lobbyists, so we should spend all of our time trying to hurt their delicate feefees. Let the mocking begin!
7
Obviously the engineering issues are above my pay grade and I'm no expert on all thing New York, but there definitely would be some advantages to extending the 7 train to New Jersey.
It's the purple one, extension would be to the west under the Hudson. People from New Jersey would finally have one seat access to delicious Szechuan cuisine in Flushing.
It's the purple one, extension would be to the west under the Hudson. People from New Jersey would finally have one seat access to delicious Szechuan cuisine in Flushing.
The Big Mistake
Assholes Timmeh And Larreh.
Letting bankruptcy judges deal with this would have really solved all of these problems. They fucked up.
In the fall of 2008, Democrats saw a good opportunity to pass cramdown. The $700 billion TARP legislation was being considered, and lawmakers thought that with banks getting bailed out, the bill would be an ideal vehicle for also helping homeowners. But Obama, weeks away from his coming election, opposed that approach and instead pushed for a delay. He promised congressional Democrats that down the line he would “push hard to get cramdown into the law,” recalled Rep. Miller.
Four months later, the stimulus bill presented another potential vehicle for cramdown. But lawmakers say the White House again asked them to hold off, promising to push it later.
An attempt to include cramdown in a continuing resolution got the same response from the president.
“We would propose that this stuff be included and they kept punting,” said former Rep. Jim Marshall, a moderate Democrat from Georgia who had worked to sway other members of the moderate Blue Dog caucus [5] on the issue.
“We got the impression this was an issue [the White House] would not go to the mat for as they did with health care reform,” said Bill Hampel, chief economist for the Credit Union National Association, which opposed cramdown and participated in Senate negotiations on the issue.
Privately, administration officials were ambivalent about the idea. At a Democratic caucus meeting weeks before the House voted on a bill that included cramdown, Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner “was really dismissive as to the utility of it,” said Rep. Lofgren.
Larry Summers, then the president’s chief economic adviser, also expressed doubts in private meetings, she said. “He was not supportive of this.”
Letting bankruptcy judges deal with this would have really solved all of these problems. They fucked up.
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