She also quotes Oscar Wilde: “The public have an insatiable curiosity to know everything. Except what is worth knowing.”Hire her, some progressive institution. She has chops.
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Well Played, Ma'am
Grace under pressure.
We Should Respect You... Because?
Just what do you have to do before CNN stops treating you as a Very Serious Person?
If you're a conservative, anyway.
If you're a conservative, anyway.
Autocar Skeptic
I'm generally a technology skeptics, not in the "get off my lawn" sense as I'm happy to be wrong, but in the "not sure this is really going to work" sense. Happy for us to all download ourselves into our robot bodies in the future, just don't think it's very likely.
And I'm really not too positive about the potential for self-driving cars. I'm sure building a system from the ground up (infrastructure, vehicles) would be basically doable right now, but the real promise is that it can be grafted onto our existing road infrastructure and operate with the current fleet of mostly not self-driving cars.
And I'm really not too positive about the potential for self-driving cars. I'm sure building a system from the ground up (infrastructure, vehicles) would be basically doable right now, but the real promise is that it can be grafted onto our existing road infrastructure and operate with the current fleet of mostly not self-driving cars.
The Worst People In The World
Once the wingnut harassment machines cranks up, you realize they have no boundaries.
I forget the precise details lost as they are in the mists of blog time, but there was one time years ago when the screeching wingnuts behaved like assholes, digging up and publicizing personal information. Then they decided we should all agree that such behavior was bad, and we should all sign up for some online Dignitude/Civilitude pact which was something along the lines of "you shouldn't mess with people like that unless wingnuts think they really deserve it."
I forget the precise details lost as they are in the mists of blog time, but there was one time years ago when the screeching wingnuts behaved like assholes, digging up and publicizing personal information. Then they decided we should all agree that such behavior was bad, and we should all sign up for some online Dignitude/Civilitude pact which was something along the lines of "you shouldn't mess with people like that unless wingnuts think they really deserve it."
Walking (?????????)
Sarah Goodyear has more on the topic of the post below.
There is no shortage of big houses with big yards near highway interchanges in this country. There is a shortage of affordable housing in walkable neighborhoods with good access to transit.
There is no shortage of big houses with big yards near highway interchanges in this country. There is a shortage of affordable housing in walkable neighborhoods with good access to transit.
They've Figured Out The Cunning Plan
What continues to amaze me is (assuming they're being honest) people a) fail to realize that government already plays a massive role in telling people what they can and cannot build on private property and b) really seem to believe that very small changes to existing policies which will likely have precisely zero impact on their current house/neighborhood are, in fact, part of a cunning plan by people like me to force them to live in Manhattan.
Or Maybe They Don't Have Any Money
I'm not against the idea that the last few years have caused a wee shift in peoples' preferences for owning housing, but there are also simpler explanations.
I'm sure people have, quite sensibly, reevaluated homeownership due to the Kafkaesque nightmare it's become for millions of people. I'm also sure that unemployment is at 9%.
Though there had been hopes in the industry that prices were troughing and ready to turn higher, the latest trends show little hope in sight until later this year or early in 2012, he added.
"Everybody's now keeping their fingers crossed for 2012 and wondering wheter people just don't want to own homes anymore," he said.
I'm sure people have, quite sensibly, reevaluated homeownership due to the Kafkaesque nightmare it's become for millions of people. I'm also sure that unemployment is at 9%.
Default
If the big European powers want to bail out their banks, they're free to do so. They lent money voluntarily to Greece, or acquired their bonds, because they thought it was a good deal. Turns out they were wrong, and Greece can't afford to pay them back without causing mass suffering in their country. Oops, guess the banksters screwed up again. Of course, for some reason, they never pay for their stupid decisions.
Monday, May 30, 2011
Monday Night
Apparently Palin went to Gettysburg. Whose side is she on?
I have no idea where the Republican freak show is heading.
I have no idea where the Republican freak show is heading.
Calculations
One can't read minds and distinguish between pure political calculations and ideology, though I tend to think they overlap frequently, but apparently the political risk of "the wrong people (aside from rich assholes) getting help and a ballooning federal payroll" was seen as a bigger deal than the political risk of "massive long term unemployment." I'm sure it's in part because they downplayed the risk of the latter, but...it's, uh, May 2011? The January '09 projection argued that if the stimulus passed, then unemployment would be about 6.8% now. Without it, about 8%. It's 9% now.
And There Was Much Rejoicing Throughout The Land
Finally my local transit authority will offer real time bus location information.
There Could Be Jobs
Krgthulu:
As I see it, policy makers are sinking into a condition of learned helplessness on the jobs issue: the more they fail to do anything about the problem, the more they convince themselves that there’s nothing they could do. And those of us who know better should be doing all we can to break that vicious circle.
Sunday, May 29, 2011
How About The Keys To The Acropolis
Give us everything that isn't nailed down, much of what is, completely destroy your economy, and maybe, just maybe, we'll do you the favor of bailing out our banksters.
European leaders are negotiating a deal that would lead to unprecedented outside intervention in the Greek economy, including international involvement in tax collection and privatisation of state assets, in exchange for new bail-out loans for Athens.
People involved in the talks said the package would also include incentives for private holders of Greek debt voluntarily to extend Athens’ repayment schedule, as well as another round of austerity measures.
Lots Of Innocent People Inevitably Die In War
I know that sounds like an obvious point, but apparently it isn't.
Freak Show
Yes I do my best to ignore she who will never run for nor win the nomination nor become president, but her latest is weird even by her usual standards.
Pure Genius
Or, you know, not.
The musicians will branch out into light classics and film scores, exchange white tie and tails for something less "stuffy," and perform in an environment that is more theatrical and accompanied by extras such as digital program notes and after-concert events.
Sunday Bobbleheads
This Week has Mitch Daniels and Tim Pawlenty.
Meet the Press has Mitch McConnell and Chuck Schumer.
Face the Nation has Cantor, Wasserman Schultz, and Governor Jay Nixon.
Document the atrocities!
Meet the Press has Mitch McConnell and Chuck Schumer.
Face the Nation has Cantor, Wasserman Schultz, and Governor Jay Nixon.
Document the atrocities!
Saturday, May 28, 2011
Friday, May 27, 2011
Trike Force: Assemble!
I loved this:
(Which is apparently still abandoned since the last Eschalanche...)
A series of messages forwarded to The Daily Caller show a top aide to former Alaska Gov. and possible presidential candidate Sarah Palin mocking top political figures and even her boss’s own daughter, Bristol Palin.Somebody's about to feel the wrath of Operation Leper!
Red State Editor-in-Chief and CNN contributor Erick Erickson is “a total douchebag,” wrote Palin speechwriter and domestic policy adviser Rebecca Mansour in a May 22, 2010, message. “Greasy dumb ass with a talent for self-promotion.
(Which is apparently still abandoned since the last Eschalanche...)
16 Months Since The Pivot
It's been about 16 months since the White House geniuses started talking about deficits instead of stimulus or jobs, leading us into the insane conversation we're having now.
Next job report comes out one week from today. Last one had unemployment at 9.0%.
Next job report comes out one week from today. Last one had unemployment at 9.0%.
Are They Learning?
If Dems cut Medicare at all they will have destroyed their entire 2012 campaign narrative.
Maybe The Inside Game Isn't The Best Way To Do This
Maybe some powerful people should get on the teevee and explain to everyone just how important gutting Medicare is to Republicans.
Nice Deal
I imagine that even I could make a few bucks in the Great Casino if the Fed was handing me giant sacks of cash at basically zero interest.
But the Fed isn't doing that for you or me.
But the Fed isn't doing that for you or me.
Black Men Have All The Advantages
Is it possible that there was a moment or two in Barack Obama's political career that being black was advantageous? Sure. But you have to weight that against the other 10 trillion moments in his life/career when it, you know, wasn't.
Sell Them
I think the existence of parking in all of its forms is an under appreciated problem in urban areas (I'm not saying there should be no parking, just that its presence is also a problem to think about), but I'm much more on board with developers who sell their parking spots to tenants rather than city councils that simply mandate parking.
"Oases Of Technocratic Sanity"
If only the wogs would let the Very Serious People in well-tailored suits run things...
Morning
So it seems the Republicans have released an exciting new plan to cut taxes on rich people.
This is a very shocking development.
This is a very shocking development.
Safe?
UPDATE: I got the explanation utterly wrong. Thanks to Marcy for emailing me a correction.
To judge by the hysterical statements issuing from elected officials—not to mention the breathless press coverage—you’d think the three little-used Patriot Act provisions set to expire unless reauthorized today are like the doomsday timer from the TV show Lost: Fail just once to keep pushing the reset button and some unspecified catastrophe is sure to result! Under the headline “Patriot Act Battle Could Hinder Investigators,” the New York Times quotes an alarmed anonymous official calling it “unprecedented” and warning that “no one could predict what the consequences of a temporary lapse might be.” The Washington Post agrees with the need for reform, but editorializes that “[at] this late hour, it is most important to ensure that the provisions do not lapse.” The Hill uncritically quotes Senate leaders’ assertion that any lapse “would cause a major disruption to the ability of law enforcement officials to fight terrorism.”
This is not just wrong, it is rolling-on-the-floor-laughing ridiculous. A lapse of these provisions for a few days—or a few weeks—would have no significant effect. First, they’re all covered by a grandfather clause. And contrary to what the New York Times implies, that doesn’t just mean that orders or warrants already issued under these authorities remain in effect.
There was some speculation in the twitter, Marcy Wheeler, among the speculators, that one reason people got worked up about Rand Paul leaving us without the Patriot Act for seven hours or so
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Serials
Obviously I'm just a stupid blogger and people in Hollywood really understand the money, but I've been puzzled for awhile why no one has bothered to try to introduce a modern serial concept in theaters. On the teevee they manage (for some shows) to produce 13-20 50 minute episodes with reasonably high production values on teevee budgets. You'd think they could manage 2 1:45 minute movies, released every six months or so, on a bigger but non-blockbuster movie budget. I guess my question is why produce one blockbuster giant budget Batman movie every 4 years when you could release 2 per year. These would be smaller movies in terms of action and special effects, but given the ability to save costs in other ways (reusing sets, marketing, etc) they wouldn't have to be that much smaller.
Probably all a dumb idea, just curious why it hasn't been tried.
Probably all a dumb idea, just curious why it hasn't been tried.
Playing for Keeps
One sadly obvious thing is that whatever happens with the DSK trial, the alleged victim is not going to have a good life going forward.
Needy Boys Who Have Family Issues
Heckuva job.
Italian media says he's HIV positive.
(GENOA) — The latest sex-abuse case to rock the Catholic Church is unfolding in the archdiocese of an influential Italian Cardinal who has been working with Pope Benedict XVI on reforms to respond to prior scandals of pedophile priests.
Father Riccardo Seppia, a 51-year-old parish priest in the village of Sastri Ponente, near Genoa, was arrested last Friday, May 13, on pedophilia and drug charges. Investigators say that in tapped mobile-phone conversations, Seppia asked a Moroccan drug dealer to arrange sexual encounters with young and vulnerable boys. "I do not want 16-year-old boys but younger. Fourteen-year-olds are O.K. Look for needy boys who have family issues," he allegedly said. Genoa Archbishop Angelo Bagnasco, who is the head of the Italian Bishops Conference, had been working with Benedict to establish a tough new worldwide policy, released this week, on how bishops should handle accusations of priestly sex abuse.
Italian media says he's HIV positive.
If They Had Any Clue
I honestly am starting to realize that our Galtian Overlords don't understand that the vast majority of senior citizens depend on Social Security to maintain anything resembling their pre-retirement life. And this is the generation in which some of them actually have decent defined benefit pensions. Also, too, Medicare to fucking stay alive.
Everyone Agrees Deficits Are Bad
Not really, of course. Actual smart people know we should be running massively higher deficits than we are at the moment. But, in Washington, we all agree that 'too big' deficits are bad things. I think this is part of the explanation for why political journalists obsess about the subject. Since everyone agrees, it becomes uncontroversial subject, and so political journalists can, in a sense, take a side on the subject. Because it isn't actually taking a side, to them anyway. So you can go on NPR, or whatever, and say "deficits are a big problem" without any distancing or one the one handing.
Panchito
I really try to leave the horrors of campaign 2000 behind, but they keep sucking me back in.
Delusions
I get that some democrats are just bad people and want to slash Social Security and Medicare, but I also think some are genuinely deluded and think that if they can only come to some "deal" they can put the issue behind us forevermore. It's like the Lord Saletans of the world who thought that if only abortion rights supporters would agree that abortion was "icky" and make it that much harder for poor women to get abortions, then anti-choice people would agree that contraception was okay and then we'd all get along. They'll never stop trying to go after the giant pot of money that is Social Security. They'll never stop trying to funnel more of your end-of-life money to big corporations.
Our Bastards
You know we've broken up with our former BFFs when the press starts to refer to their governments as "regimes." But, yes, we (US and UK) made nice with Libya a few years back. Suddenly they were our buddies again.
Lots of bastards are our buddies. When suddenly for whatever reason these bastards are declared the latest Hitler of the week, the right response isn't to suddenly be shocked that we were canoodling with our BFFs, the right response is to ask why the hell were we buddies in the first place. It wasn't a secret. And an even better response, going forward, is to seriously question why we're buddies with so many bastards.
Lots of bastards are our buddies. When suddenly for whatever reason these bastards are declared the latest Hitler of the week, the right response isn't to suddenly be shocked that we were canoodling with our BFFs, the right response is to ask why the hell were we buddies in the first place. It wasn't a secret. And an even better response, going forward, is to seriously question why we're buddies with so many bastards.
Jews Are Bad People Who Don't Do What I Think They Should Do
Dwayne Hoover's robot Jews aren't behaving as God told him they are supposed to behave.
They're All Dwayne Hoover
Everyone else is just a robot, a prop in their lives. And if millions need to die so that the drama can come to the satisfactory conclusion, so that the main (and only real) character can have his teachable moment, so be it.
The Worst People In The World
I still get annoyed with liberal types who seem to live for those days when people like Joe Scarborough say something semi-reasonable. He's your basic conservative Republican, one who isn't happy unless old people and poor people are suffering. This is the greatest country in the world, but we're too poor to provide health care for seniors apparently.
Holy Hate Women, Batman
Scarlett Johnannson makes a Planned Parenthood PSA...
And this is the response -- no shit:
Least convincing disclaimer ever, BTW.
Via.
And this is the response -- no shit:
Least convincing disclaimer ever, BTW.
Via.
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
The Dead Already Pay For Medicaid
Merits of Kevin's proposal aside, it's important to note that states already come after your estate if Medcaid pays for your nursing home. I'm not fully aware of how the details vary from state to state, but...
Nothing Changes
Republicans aren't exactly all that secretive about their grand plans for our glorious nation. Sure they usually speak in code a bit so not all voters will get it, but the point of having smart political journalists is that those journalists should be smart enough to understand what they're really saying. So, yes, if given their way Republicans would destroy Medicare. They would hand your social security money over to the banksters.
But for years our smart political journalists have covered for them.
But for years our smart political journalists have covered for them.
So You Want To Be A Hero
This clip reminds me of something which 9/11 brought out in all the keyboard kommandos. They wanted to be the guy who said "Let's Roll!" They wanted to be the firefighter running into the World Trade Center. They wanted to be the guy who ran down and enlisted except...uh, well, ur, not sure why, but...look over there!
But every day provides opportunities for small acts of heroism. Just go help someone who needs it.
Cutting Medicaid
In case the next round in the grand bargain follies settles on drastic Medicaid cuts, well here's what we're cutting.
Keep in mind that Medicaid pays for 40 percent of all births and that children comprise half its beneficiaries. But the real cost drivers are older Americans. Medicaid provides financing for 60 percent of nursing-home residents and pays 43 percent of America’s long-term care bill.
How About You Start
It's always great when Great White Father Tom Friedman tells others what the best way to try to enact change is. But, hey, ok, I'll bite. Why doesn't millionaire pundit Tom Friedman start? Why doesn't he print up a sign, grab an olive branch, and start marching, every Friday, from the West Bank into Jerusalem. Maybe some people will join him. Certainly Charlie Rose will do a feature on it, drawing some international attention. Maybe a movement will be born! Do it Tom!
What Did You Expect When You Elected A Supervillain
I normally resist the temptation to blame "stupid voters" for their leaders, but man, Floridians, what were you thinking...
Anyone Have A Plan B?
Failure to turn the economy around is a profound moral failure by our elites. They know how to fix things. They have chosen not to.
Papa Johns Is The Best Crappy Pizza
I agree about that.
But putting on my economist hat for a second, the question of whether decreasing costs of/improvements in electronic communication reduce the economic forces which bring us together comes down to whether electronic communications are substitutes for or complements to face-to-face interactions. My sense is they are to a great degree complements.
But putting on my economist hat for a second, the question of whether decreasing costs of/improvements in electronic communication reduce the economic forces which bring us together comes down to whether electronic communications are substitutes for or complements to face-to-face interactions. My sense is they are to a great degree complements.
Also, Too, People Should Stop Talking
I'll always remember a conference I went to in the earlier days of the internet when someone not very tuned in got up, quite disturbed, and asked the question, "You mean people can say anything they want on there?"
Yes, yes they can.
Yes, yes they can.
Default
Refreshing to see some a bit of truth in the financial press. The Greek bailout was never a bailout of Greece, but a bailout of banks, and Greece should wise up and default.
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
Non-Valet Parking Transportation Options
The damn bar is right by the intersection of the Route 15 trolley and the El.
SEPTA Pro Tip
My local transit authority is pretty easy to navigate for regular riders, especially passholders, but can be a giant pain for people unfamiliar with it. There are no more ticket machines for the regional rail system, token machines are not at the majority of subway stations, many rail stations don't have open ticket counters, and the fare system isn't very easy to figure out.
But they do one thing mostly right, and that's the independence pass. If you're a suburbanite who occasionally rides into the city to spend the day, buy a few and stash them somewhere. For the price of a zone 3 round trip train ticket ($11) you can ride unlimited everything (other than a Trenton surcharge) for the day.
But they do one thing mostly right, and that's the independence pass. If you're a suburbanite who occasionally rides into the city to spend the day, buy a few and stash them somewhere. For the price of a zone 3 round trip train ticket ($11) you can ride unlimited everything (other than a Trenton surcharge) for the day.
True Freedom
The first commenter on this article neatly expresses how a lot of people see the world.
As I've tried to get across many times, a lot of people have experienced development which is too-dense-but-not-quite-dense-enough and without sufficient alternative transit options. In this world, our friend True Freedom is correct. But if you have alternative transit, and you have sufficient population for walkable neighborhoods with retail and other amenities, then it stops being the case that more people exacerbate the problem. More people don't have to equal more traffic and more congestion. The problem isn't too many people, it's too many cars.
True Freedom at 4:27 PM May 16, 2011
I'd like to see us quit building high density condos and cramming more and more people into each of our little cities. This only exacerbates the problem.. more traffic, more congestion, more pollution..
As I've tried to get across many times, a lot of people have experienced development which is too-dense-but-not-quite-dense-enough and without sufficient alternative transit options. In this world, our friend True Freedom is correct. But if you have alternative transit, and you have sufficient population for walkable neighborhoods with retail and other amenities, then it stops being the case that more people exacerbate the problem. More people don't have to equal more traffic and more congestion. The problem isn't too many people, it's too many cars.
Remorse
Sadly the only real option people have when things suck is to vote the current bastards out. They did it in the UK, they'll do it in Spain, etc. I doubt most people voting on that basis expect that conservatives will be better, though the LibDems basically said fuck you to all the people who voted for them, but I don't blame people for chucking Labour out or, frankly, the House Dems in 2010.
Perhaps if there was political party which would campaign on making peoples' lives better, instead of actively rooting for more suffering, this dynamic would change.
Perhaps if there was political party which would campaign on making peoples' lives better, instead of actively rooting for more suffering, this dynamic would change.
Sow, Reap
I don't think there's a Senate dem who has encouraged the austerity need narrative more than Claire McCaskill. Sadly it's her constituents who will be doing the reaping.
More BoBo
I will say that I approve of the more honest open contempt for the electorate BoBo's been expressing lately rather than the usual "only millionaire DC pundits have the ability to speak for the masses" that we used to get.
Duh
As I've been saying for months...
And you know, even if there's a grand bargain to turn granny into pauper, and everyone pinky swears not to use it as a campaign issue, outsider groups and challengers will.
Democrats would do themselves a favor if they paid close attention to this report from Ben Smith, which says that Republicans will respond to the Dem offensive on Medicare by going hard at Dems from the left:
And you know, even if there's a grand bargain to turn granny into pauper, and everyone pinky swears not to use it as a campaign issue, outsider groups and challengers will.
Fibblety Fi Larglebarglery Bloop Bloop
Newt Gingrich informs us that his bold tax cutting plan will raise revenue, while other politicians want to raise taxes because they like more revenue, unlike him.
No this makes no sense. Yes it's what Republicans have been telling us for decades. No, no one in the press ever notices the contradiction.
No this makes no sense. Yes it's what Republicans have been telling us for decades. No, no one in the press ever notices the contradiction.
Pink Pork
Restaurants have been increasingly serving less cooked pork over the years, and now they have the USDA blessing to do so. Having grown up believing that anything less than charred pork will result in instant trichinosis and death it took some getting used to, but there are actually only around a dozen cases per year.
"Functioning Political Culture"
Glenn's right that one little paragraph sums up nicely the views of Brooks and many others. It isn't just a conservative thing, either, though I think decades of mostly Republican executive branches has made the club a Republican one.
It's no exaggeration to say that impeachment happened in large part because Clinton was the outsider who "trashed the place." Trashing the place just meant a minor reorganization of the pecking order. Suddenly Lee Hamilton was a tiny bit more important than James Baker, that kind of thing.
It's no exaggeration to say that impeachment happened in large part because Clinton was the outsider who "trashed the place." Trashing the place just meant a minor reorganization of the pecking order. Suddenly Lee Hamilton was a tiny bit more important than James Baker, that kind of thing.
With What Army
I'm sure defiance of the law will make him even more Brave and Bold!
The New Jersey Supreme Court ruled this morning that the state must boost funding for the 31 poor districts known as former Abbotts in the coming fiscal year.
...
In recent weeks, the governor has also said he might defy any court order to spend more on schools this year, and criticized judges for intruding on elected leaders’ authority to set budgets.
But He's Fiscally Responsible!
Obviously I don't there's necessarily anything wrong with borrowing to pay for infrastructure, but Republican governors in New Jersey have a history of forcing other people to pick up the tab as the press gives them glowing press about how moderate and responsible they are.
Fleeting
The weird thing to me about all the Republican crushes that our right wing and supposedly not right wing media figures get is how fleeting they usually are. I think basically every Republican with a pulse, and a few without, has, at some point in time, been pushed as the Great White Hope, a Rising Star, a Likely Contender, blah blah blah.
Good Morning
Between Ahrnold and Dominique Strauss-Kahn I'm getting the feeling we haven't come such a long way, baby.
Oh, and the German story of the insurance company supplying hookers at a party thrown for its top salesman. There may be more work to be done.
Oh, and the German story of the insurance company supplying hookers at a party thrown for its top salesman. There may be more work to be done.
Monday, May 23, 2011
Herd
Fortunately we've been in yur cities increasing yur property values, so you probably can't afford to move there.
Joking aside...I get that a 25% increase in gas prices is a real hit for a lot of people, but... I also find it weird that so many people don't notice that gas actually costs money until it goes up a bit. That $6 commute a few months ago was... $4.50.
Joking aside...I get that a 25% increase in gas prices is a real hit for a lot of people, but... I also find it weird that so many people don't notice that gas actually costs money until it goes up a bit. That $6 commute a few months ago was... $4.50.
David Brooks Giving A Seminar In Aspen
Apparently my invitation to participate was lost in the mail, along with a bag of cash from Peterson.
*** REMINDER: MEDIA ADVISORY***
Nation’s Lawmakers and Budget Experts to Convene at Fiscal Summit in Washington on May 25 to Discuss Elements of Potential Fiscal Bargain
Participants in Peter G. Peterson Foundation’s 2nd Annual Fiscal Summit to Include President Bill Clinton, Members of Congress, National Economic Council Director Gene Sperling, Governor Mitch Daniels, National Fiscal Commission Co-Chair Alan Simpson and Member David Cote, New York Times Columnist David Brooks and The Atlantic Business and Economics Editor Megan McArdle
McCain Won
I've said this about Mittens, but it's even more true for Huntsman who still has a chance to take a step back from the wingnuttery path. McCain won the primary by positioning himself as the serious elder statesman. For a long time it looked like he wouldn't win, but then Republican primary voters decided the rest of them were unelectable goofballs and so they came home to McCain. Despite the crazy base, the "serious" candidate often wins the Republican primary.
Because Of The Press
It doesn't matter how responsible Republicans are for deficits or if their fake plans actually don't do anything except cut taxes for rich people, the press will always paint the GOP as "fiscally responsible" and "deficit hawks." It's one of those DC things that just is. Do not question!
Earth Tones
I look forward to the numerous articles about Pawlenty's lack of authenticity as he turned his back on his mullet-American roots when he decided the national stage was for him.
Wee Suggestion: Sternly Worded Letters Won't Do The Trick
Hopefully the California AG is genuinely open to locking people up.
California Atty. Gen. Kamala Harris, saying that years of unscrupulous lending still haunts the state, is creating a 25-person task force to target mortgage fraud of any size — from small operations that preyed on troubled borrowers to corporations that sold risky loans as safe investments.
Or You Could Put It Somewhere By An Interstate Where There's Lots Of Cheap Land
I get that part of the casino business model is doing everything you can to make sure that once people check in they don't check out for awhile, and so keeping a casino somewhat isolated from its surroundings makes sense. But then what doesn't make sense is putting the damn thing in the middle of a dense city.
Tea Partiers Like Medicare Too
I'm sure some of them get pretty excited about SMASHSMASHSMASHING government but they're not a young bunch and they, you know, also want their Medicare. And as Digby reminds us, and I will keep reminding us as few in DC seemed to have notice, all the GOP freshmen ran on... defending Medicare from Kenyan Muslim Socialism.
The Advantage Of Incompetent Pundits
I suppose we can thank them for encouraging Republicans to double down on their stupidity.
Still what's infuriating about our Villagers as that they truly think they speak for the great unwashed, the True Americans in the Heartland who don't know what arugula is and have never heard of green tea. Yet it doesn't occur to them that destroying Medicare (and, yes, getting rid of Medicare and replacing it with Magic Ponies called Medicare is destroying Medicare) would be, you know, unpopular.
Still what's infuriating about our Villagers as that they truly think they speak for the great unwashed, the True Americans in the Heartland who don't know what arugula is and have never heard of green tea. Yet it doesn't occur to them that destroying Medicare (and, yes, getting rid of Medicare and replacing it with Magic Ponies called Medicare is destroying Medicare) would be, you know, unpopular.
Running For President Is Hard Work
Except for maybe a few cracks about lazy Fred Thompson, to me this seems to be an underappreciated reason for why people might want not to do it. It's a pain in the ass.
And you know what's also a lot of work? Being president.
And you know what's also a lot of work? Being president.
I'm So Old I Can Remember The Celtic Tiger
Remember that? Low corporate tax rates, high economic growth, running a budget surplus? A model for us all? Well, until the banksters destroyed the economy and the government gave them all the taxpayer money for a do over. But, no, in the official version the problem is budget deficits.
Maybe it's time for the rapture. We're too stupid to survive this place anyway.
Maybe it's time for the rapture. We're too stupid to survive this place anyway.
Perhaps If You Send Them A Sternly Worded Letter
Or give them endless bags of money to light on fire? Either one might work.
Sunday, May 22, 2011
Sunday Bobbleheads
Face the Nation has President Gingrich.
This Week has King Abdullah II and George Mitchell.
Meet the Press has Paul Ryan and Chris Van Hollen.
Document the atrocities!
This Week has King Abdullah II and George Mitchell.
Meet the Press has Paul Ryan and Chris Van Hollen.
Document the atrocities!
The World as We Know It
Shorter Fred Clark's take on the world not ending: shoot for humane, or at least remember, we're only human.
I can live with that. I boil it down to "don't be a dick, except online, if you must," but horseshoes & hand grenades, etc.
I can live with that. I boil it down to "don't be a dick, except online, if you must," but horseshoes & hand grenades, etc.
Saturday, May 21, 2011
Saturday Rapture Blogging
Nice day in the urban hellhole, so it might appear that I've been raptured.
Where Are They All Going To Go
I think these proposed residential parking permit increases are too small to make any kind of difference, but when people in my urban hellhole start complaining about the lack of parking I went to tell them to just do the math. There's room, maybe, for one on street parking spot per building. Most buildings on my block are single family homes, but a couple are divided into apartments. There just isn't room for multiple vehicles per building, and of course nonresidents get to park (enforced 2 hour parking) as well.
Friday, May 20, 2011
Our Galtian Overlords
Bloomberg edition.
But it was the way he referred to the parents who have continued to support these schools — which overwhelmingly serve poor, minority and immigrant students, including many who live in homeless shelters — that caused the anger.
“They never had a formal education, and they don’t understand the value of education,” Mr. Bloomberg said on the program, which is broadcast on WOR-AM (710).
He went on to observe: “The old Norman Rockwell family is gone.”
There Were Current Bus Driver Job Listings
I actually wasn't advocating for paying bus drivers an "above market" wage, I was suggesting that given that there were open job listings (and there still are!) and that all of the people complaining that $50K/year was an absurdly largely amount weren't rushing out to apply for those plum jobs suggested that maybe $50K/year (with some seniority) wasn't actually an absurdly high salary for someone to drive a bus through the urban hellhole at all hours of the day. In other words, I was suggesting that the compensation package probably wasn't too far off what you'd need to hire competent people to do a dangerous and stressful job. Being a competent bus driver in Philly requires a pretty big skill set, including the ability to not lose your shit on a regular basis.
But could you find cheaper bus drivers? Maybe. There are lots of jobs where you could theoretically find a body to do the "job" at minimum wage, but who wouldn't, over time, really have minimum competency. A lot of these are jobs which basically need workers to give a shit about what they're doing, they don't have constant managerial oversight, high turnover is problematic, and where mistakes can be a big deal. Like, say, a bus driver.
In the 90s there was a wee scandal in Rhode Island when it was revealed that the airport security screeners (at the luggage x-ray machines and metal detectors) were making minimum wage. That was, what, $5.10 an hour then? Obviously they managed to hire bodies to basically perform those jobs. At some level those jobs aren't particularly hard, and don't require immense skills. But you can see the problem with hiring people who don't much give a shit (and at minimum wage who does) about those jobs. Yes you can find someone to pretend to stare at the x-ray screen as bags go by for minimum wage, but...
...and, yes, the rough economic concept is "efficiency wages"
But could you find cheaper bus drivers? Maybe. There are lots of jobs where you could theoretically find a body to do the "job" at minimum wage, but who wouldn't, over time, really have minimum competency. A lot of these are jobs which basically need workers to give a shit about what they're doing, they don't have constant managerial oversight, high turnover is problematic, and where mistakes can be a big deal. Like, say, a bus driver.
In the 90s there was a wee scandal in Rhode Island when it was revealed that the airport security screeners (at the luggage x-ray machines and metal detectors) were making minimum wage. That was, what, $5.10 an hour then? Obviously they managed to hire bodies to basically perform those jobs. At some level those jobs aren't particularly hard, and don't require immense skills. But you can see the problem with hiring people who don't much give a shit (and at minimum wage who does) about those jobs. Yes you can find someone to pretend to stare at the x-ray screen as bags go by for minimum wage, but...
...and, yes, the rough economic concept is "efficiency wages"
Constrain Yourself
Hopefully the embrace of Medicare politics will make it that much more likely that the Dems will actually embrace... Medicare.
The Great Thing About BRT Is...
That you can start with awesome proposals that are expensive and then whittle them away until you're left with...a bus system. I'm not against them, it's just that it's very easy to shave a few million here, and then a few million more there, by, for example, reducing the amount of dedicated lanes the system has.
Rewarding A Bit Of Sanity With A Link
It's refreshing when there's a bit of sanity in business/finance oriented publications.
Instead, she wants Greece to move faster on reforms in exchange for any more aid.
Of course, moving faster on reforms, just means moving faster to the bottom, since the austerity measures taken so far have only made the situation worse on the debt/deficit front.
Of course, all this makes her a fine candidate for the IMF position -- where she's tipped as the likely favorite -- since this has been their philosophy forever, with horrible results.
I Remember When
Right after Obama was elected people thought there was a pretty good chance of EFCA passing. I'm not putting that one on Obama, just saying that even with the biggest majority Dems are likely to have, well, ever, they didn't do crap for labor.
Getting Everything Wrong
Nobody could have predicted rich out of touch assholes would get everything wrong. First, it's New York. Not everybody drives. Second, if you charge $35 for a parking spot people are going to look for cheaper options, even in New York. Third, a big fuck you from the kids whose ball field you took away. Fourth, stop handing taxpayer money to rich assholes, especially if those rich assholes are building unnecessary parking garages in New york City.
You Go Drive A Bus
Given all the austerity that's floating around I get that it's perhaps not the right moment, but whenever I hear about how good municipal workers have it I want to tell people to go apply for those goddamn jobs. When my local transit authority went on strike all the local yahoos were bitching about the fact that bus drivers, after some seniority, were paid FIFTY THOUSAND DOLLARS. As I pointed out at the time, there were lovely bus driver job listings on the web page and if anybody thinks they have an awesome deal they can go apply for the jobs. Now apparently THIRTY EIGHT THOUSAND DOLLARS is too much.
Good Morning
Scout Prime is doing bravura work covering the Wisconsin Legislature on twitter and over at First Draft. Always worth a visit.
Peepsicles
This is probably true.
I’ve noted before that many ice cream trucks that sell to kids around the neighborhoods of America are driven and owned by Muslims, some of them illegal aliens. It’s an all cash business, and the cash can’t be traced, can be hidden from the IRS, and can be laundered “back home” to terrorist operations, etc. But, now, there’s another caveat about Muslim ice cream trucks. They could be seeking to sell your kids urine popsicles and unsanitary ice cream.The fiendish Musselmen are very fiendish. Fiendishly so!
Sheesh
You people talk too much.
nytnestcam on livestream.com. Broadcast Live Free
Emulate Violet and her eyss.
Take a snooze.
Thursday, May 19, 2011
Inappropriate Land Use
There's parcel in center city which has been a community garden for years. It was slated to be developed a few years ago, though that didn't happen. Now it seems development might happen again. Good. I think it's great if people turn empty lots into community gardens. Imperfectly maintained community gardens are much better than not at all maintained empty lots. But this parcel is at the corner of two main streets and sits on top of a subway stop. It should be developed, and I'm glad much of the local internet seems to agree.
Bail
The internet tells me Strauss-Kahn got bail and home detention. I hope that includes passport confiscation. But, anyway, that's fine, the only reasons to deny people bail are if they're a danger or flight risk. Certainly the latter is possible, so the right steps should be put in place to prevent it.
Even Small Differences In Incentives Can Lead to Greater Disparities In Outcomes
That is, take an economist's view of the world in which people borrow money to make investments in 'human capital' aka 'law school.' They make that decision based on expected future returns on that investment (increased future salary stream). Even if there's only a small amount of bias against women in the system (not making that claim, just saying 'even if'), such that for a given amount of investment and effort a woman's compensation will be lower than that for an equivalent male, this means that fewer women will find it worthwhile to go to law school, and those women who do will subsequently have an incentive to not work as hard because the returns on their efforts will be lower.
The world is more complicated than this, of course, and the above should not be read as saying "women lawyers don't try as hard." But to some degree people respond to incentives, and if you're going to have to work 25% harder than the guy next to you to achieve the same compensation you might say fuck it and spend your time in other ways.
The world is more complicated than this, of course, and the above should not be read as saying "women lawyers don't try as hard." But to some degree people respond to incentives, and if you're going to have to work 25% harder than the guy next to you to achieve the same compensation you might say fuck it and spend your time in other ways.
The Only One Who Understands How This Game Is Played
Is Nancy Pelosi.
A problem with Medicare is that we all want to cut it in the sense of having it be less costly, though people like me want to cut it without reducing the quality of Medicare from the perspective of senior citizens. That's more about reforming our health care system generally than reforming Medicare, but as we saw in the last election even as Republicans want to destroy Medicare (and, yes, Villagers, they do), they can run as its defenders by criticizing all spending cuts even if they, in theory, don't reduce the quality of the program.
A problem with Medicare is that we all want to cut it in the sense of having it be less costly, though people like me want to cut it without reducing the quality of Medicare from the perspective of senior citizens. That's more about reforming our health care system generally than reforming Medicare, but as we saw in the last election even as Republicans want to destroy Medicare (and, yes, Villagers, they do), they can run as its defenders by criticizing all spending cuts even if they, in theory, don't reduce the quality of the program.
There Are Two Kinds Of People In The World
Sort of kidding, but roughly I do think that you can differentiate between those of us who understand that no matter how hard we've worked, how talented we are, how much of the spirit of Galt pumps through our veins, that luck plays an immense role in whatever success we manage to achieve, and those who think that it's all them.
Beach Attire
It's a bit to do with the age of Facebook, though I think it actually started before that, but it's been interesting to watch how unearthing pictures of people doing perfectly normal things - wearing a bathing suit, holding a glass of wine - can be used to drum up controversy and suggest scandal.
Economy
There are so many economic data releases, and they're all a bit noisy, so you can see good or bad news if you want. Still I think a reasonable distillation of it all is that even if the light at the end of the tunnel is just around the corner - though it may not be - it's a long goddamn tunnel. The unemployment rate is too damn high.
Elite Fail
Reasonable people can disagree about what precisely the government can/should be doing about the jobs situation, but if you're concerned about the budget deficit you should be concerned about jobs. More jobs = more revenue = lower deficit. And you don't even have to make granny suffer or produce fewer freedom bombs.
When Conservatives Ruled The Universe
Yes I remember those times well, when conservatives took a brief break from tying everything "bad" to liberalism and instead started to claim that everything "good" was conservative, including, oddly, hedonism. Whiskey! Sexy!
Waiver
One of the key elements to the Democrats' PPACA health care bill was setting a limit on "medical-loss ratios." One of the problems with the US private insurance system is the fraction of premiums paid that is used to pay for health care, rather than marketing, dividends and executive compensation, not to mention private jets serving lunch on gold-rimmed plates. Stock market participants tracked this number closely, rewarding companies with low values, which were frequently in the high 50s. This is in contrast to, say, Medicare, which is in the high 90s.
Under the PPACA, insurers are required to spend at least 80% of the premiums received on actual medical care. Of course, anyone looking at this would expect the insurance/HMO companies to redefine administrative and other expenses as "medical," but still it was something.
However, there was a provision for a waiver of this requirement in states where for one reason or another it couldn't be attained. 12 states plus Guam have applied for such a waiver. Maine, New Hampshire and Nevada have received their waivers so far.
65% for the Pine Tree State. 72% for the Live Free or Die crowd and 75% for the Silver State.
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
Keller's Internet Used To Be Called The Intern
I don't think there's nothing to the "leave bits of your memory in the cloud" issue but I also imagine someone like Bill Keller fails to realize just how tremendous it is to be able to punch up the answer to most questions whenever we want. I bet that working for a well-funded large newspaper with a lot of resources, that's long been true for him. He had easy access to reference materials, including computer databases, that most of the rest of us didn't, and an eager intern to do the busy work.
Own Goal
And, of course, it's complete absurd that the Democrats are going to do the Republican's dirty work for them. Ryan offered them a gift. All they have to do is say the Republicans are going to destroy Medicare every day until the election. But, no, they're going to submit their own plan to gut Medicare.
Geniuses.
Geniuses.
What's Dick Durbin's Problem?
Of course I hope - and mostly expect - all grand bargains to die, but if you come to the table with $400 billion in cuts and the other side proposes 25-30% more in cuts it doesn't sound like the other side actually being all that unreasonable. The real issue is coming to the table with a compromise position as your opening offer, but for reasons I have yet to understand that seems to be the preferred way of doing things, along with putting evil knownothings in charge of coming up with your compromise position.
The Focus Did Shift To The Deficit
I'm quite happy bashing the media, as usual, but I think they're getting a bit of a bum rap. They're covering the deficit in large part because both major political parties are mostly talking about the deficit. If some charismatic politician with the ability to get people to point some cameras at him spent more time talking about jobs and coming up with policies for jobs and talking about those the media would be talking about that too.
Sure, generally, the media cover whatever it is that Republicans are talking about that week. This has been true as long as I can remember, with a bit of an exception for the first year of the Obama administration. And I don't think they should let politicians dictate what important issues are. However, when only stupid liberal bloggers seem to care about jobs...
Sure, generally, the media cover whatever it is that Republicans are talking about that week. This has been true as long as I can remember, with a bit of an exception for the first year of the Obama administration. And I don't think they should let politicians dictate what important issues are. However, when only stupid liberal bloggers seem to care about jobs...
And They're Fluoridating The Water
The lightbulb wingnuttery has been a minor but constant sideshow. They do get obsessed with the weirdest stuff.
Incompetent Managers Love To Smash Things
I'm not sure why that is, but it's something I see regularly.
Class Trumps Everything
I think class is a messier concept in the US than most places, so messy that we mostly lack the appropriate vocabulary to even discuss it. But it's clear that the elite have an allegiance to each other that trumps everything else.
Not precisely related, but I'm reminded of the greatest David Broder quote ever (regarding Bill Clinton):
Not precisely related, but I'm reminded of the greatest David Broder quote ever (regarding Bill Clinton):
He came in here and he trashed the place and it's not his place.
The Right Is Now The Old Caricature Of The Left
Back when I first started paying attention to politics, Joe Klein types would paint this picture of the Democratic party as some hodge podge of identity politics groups each demanding unquestioning fealty to its ideological demands. How this was squared with the Democratic party of TipAndRonnieGoOutforDrinks I really have no idea, but that was how the press talked about it. You know, it's how we get recyled bullshit THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY WOULDN'T LET BOB CASEY SPEAK AT THE CONVENTION BECAUSE HE WAS ANTI-CHOICE stories decades later. That THE LEFT demands complete ideological purity has been an article of faith for as long as I can remember.
But it is increasingly true of the Right, that there is a growing list of views and beliefs which one must adhere to.
But it is increasingly true of the Right, that there is a growing list of views and beliefs which one must adhere to.
Snookered?
Brad has a more charitable view of people than I do. I think most, and especially Rivlin, were willing participants. Plans that screw the elderly but add up are just as pernicious as plans which screw the elderly but don't add up.
Joe Klein Would Agree
I'm kidding, but hippies seem to be the cause of all the problems in the world.
Good morning
Have a slice of code from my blogroll:
Echidne Of The Snakes
First Draft
Corrente
Rising Hegemon
NTodd
Cab Drollery
Hullabaloo
Southern Beale
The Kenosha Kid
Signed,
Not Atrios
Echidne Of The Snakes
First Draft
Corrente
Rising Hegemon
NTodd
Cab Drollery
Hullabaloo
Southern Beale
The Kenosha Kid
Signed,
Not Atrios
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
My Friend Serge Bought A Painting
Seeing Art tomorrow, from which my mangled pseudonym was derived. First saw this production.
RIP David Dukes, and Stacy Keach was truly brilliant.
RIP David Dukes, and Stacy Keach was truly brilliant.
And We Only Get To Comment #2
Slutty slut slut slut slut slut deserved it.
This 32-year old maid has a 16-year old daughter.
So... was this maid just 15 when she got pregnant. Not really consistent with a high moral view.
Too Many Spots On The Ballot
I voted today in the city Dem primary, which is basically the only election that matters. I'll just make the obvious perennial point that we shouldn't be voting for all of those judges, etc. No idea who they are, no realistic expectation that sufficient numbers of citizens can devote enough time to figure it out. And that's even aside from the general why on Earth do we elect judges question.
Jared Bernstein Has A Blog
Bernstein just left as Biden's economic adviser and was presumably the most liberal guy in the room at the White House generally. He writes:
Falsehoods and misinformation are of course a problem, but another problem is the range of acceptable views that our press will cover, which creeps a little more rightward every year.
How could you leave a job like that?
It’s not, as some accounts suggested, because ideas that I was associated with, like more stimulus, are off the table. I’m not happy about that and, in fact, I believe that if we were to make policy based purely on the economics, more stimulus would be at the top of the list. Excess capacity in the private sector, most importantly in the job market, is still the biggest problem we face, and given the cost of capital right now, the best way to both reduce unemployment and the short-run deficit is to grow faster.
So if it were up to me, I’d step a bit more on the fiscal accelerator. But that’s not why I left.
I left because I was frustrated. Not with what was going on inside the White House, but with what is going on outside.
The national debate over economic policy is way off track and the stakes are as high as can be. In every important area of economic and social policy—health care, fiscal policy (deficits, debt, taxes), public investment, retirement security, climate change, education, job growth, income distribution—there’s so much misinformation, so many false assertions, that it is impossible for anyone paying attention to evaluate the choices with which they’re faced.
Falsehoods and misinformation are of course a problem, but another problem is the range of acceptable views that our press will cover, which creeps a little more rightward every year.
The Voices In His Head
I'm one who thinks a temporary debt default would be a less severe Armageddon than some, but the man with the plan in which the magic asterisks have magic asterisks is just loopy here.
Holders of US government debt would be willing to miss payments "for a day or two or three or four" if it put the US in a stronger position to pay them later on, Rep. Paul Ryan told CNBC Tuesday.
"That's what I'm hearing from most people," said the Wisconsin Republican, chairman of the House Budget Committee. "What is more important is that you're putting the government in a materially better position to be able to pay their bonds later on."
The Fix
The last 20 email subject lines from Chris Cillizza.
How Mitch Daniels is winning by waiting
Why Paul Ryan didn't run
Morning Fix: Mitt Romney sends a money message
Afternoon Fix: John Huntsman gets Mike Huckabee S.C. backer
What Trump can teach the GOP field
Donald Trump won't run in 2012.
Morning fix: Nancy Pelosi vs Paul Ryan in Upstate New York
Monday Fix column: Winners and losers from the Huckabee announcement
Afternoon fix: Chris Christie praises Mitt Romney
Live Fix chat: Herb Kohl, Newt Gingrich and man vs squirrel
Mike Huckabee's "very important announcement"
Herk [sic] Kohl makes retirement official
Fast Fix: A Mormon president? (VIDEO)
Herb Kohl to retire
What Ron Paul and "Friday Night Lights" have in common
Morning Fix: The most eventful week of the 2012 Republican primary race
"Worst Week in Washington Winner" is... John Ensign
Mitt Romney's authenticity appeal on health care
What we already know about Mitt Romney's health care speech
Just Be Glad You Found The Condoms
I'm sure some parents will invoke the inevitable "you're not a parent you can't understand," but if you find your 16-year-old with a box of condoms you should be thrilled, not alarmed. Having sex at that age is pretty much normal. Not universal, but, you know, common. Not out of the ordinary. As a parent your concern should be about 1) pregnancy, 2) disease, and 3) potential for various emotional and physical traumas. #3 you can't do all that much about, and can happen whether or not your kid is intending to have sex, so that leaves #1 and #2 which...condoms hopefully take care of.
Because There's No Teen Sex In The Suburbs
I'll never stop being amused by how we portray our geography.
Reasonably sure the burbs generally offer a lot more spaces for the necessary moment of privacy.
Single father George only wants the best for his 16-year-old daughter, Tessa. So when he finds a box of condoms on her nightstand, he moves them out of their apartment in New York City to a house in the suburbs.
Reasonably sure the burbs generally offer a lot more spaces for the necessary moment of privacy.
Matt Drudge Ruled Their World
It was interesting when Villagers declared that Matt Drudge ruled their world, without really thinking too hard about what it meant to admit that a right wing activist controlled them. But that Drudge was a right winger was something they always liked to gloss over.
Twitter has killed Drudge's influence, mostly, and for that we can be grateful.
Twitter has killed Drudge's influence, mostly, and for that we can be grateful.
Zombie Unicorns
It is certainly possible that inflation is just around the corner and bond yields are about to explode, but the important point is that "THE MARKET," despite all the caterwauling on CNBC, shows no evidence of this.
Error In The Timeline
Thinking back, the weird thing to me is that the California recall happened post-9/11. It isn't that I truly believed our media would get Oh So Serious after that horrible day, but it really was the sort of freak show event that characterized the 90s.
“It's not a tumor”
Who could have anticipated? The man known as The Gropinator made a baby with a member of the Household staff.
Monday, May 16, 2011
Look Forward, Silly
At this point I think the ongoing mortgage servicer fraud is the more pressing issue, but I'll take it...
hopefully he's hooker free
The New York attorney general has requested information and documents in recent weeks from three major Wall Street banks about their mortgage securities operations during the credit boom, indicating the existence of a new investigation into practices that contributed to billions in mortgage losses.
hopefully he's hooker free
The Other Way To Do It
Of course we know Republicans don't actually care about deficit reduction. Most of them don't much care about spending cuts, though some do. They care about tax cuts for rich people and how best to achieve that. Still if we actually care about the deficit the best way to start to fix it is for...incomes, and therefore tax revenues, to be higher.
Actual Reagan is irrelevant, it's the mythical Reagan inside their heads that's important. And he, magically, tells them exactly what they want to hear.
Nothing's Happening Here
Congress is basically doing nothing, all of the action is behind closed doors with the rest of us trying to read the tea leaves emanating from various leaks from various people.
Uh-Oh. Newt's Been Reading My Blog.
He's figured out my cunning plan to force you to live in skyscrapers.
Poll Test
I think they're a horrible idea for a variety of reasons, though I do think honestly administered poll tests (not that they would be) wouldn't necessarily have all that big of an impact on the racial distribution of people who could actually vote.
Misleading
The Villagers have declared that the Democrats are not allowed to tell the truth about Republican plans.
How about we replace their "employer provided health insurance" with a voucher and see if they think it's the same thing then.
How about we replace their "employer provided health insurance" with a voucher and see if they think it's the same thing then.
Sex Scandal
The title of the web page of this news story is "Sex Scandal - Strauss-Kahn Lawyers See Alibi in Sex Case: Report."
I don't know if the guy is guilty, but rape isn't a "sex scandal."
And as for this:
It doesn't exactly contradict what the police are claiming.
I don't know if the guy is guilty, but rape isn't a "sex scandal."
And as for this:
RMC said the lawyers had pieced together Strauss-Kahn's movements and found that he left the hotel at midday, after paying his bill and handing in his key, then went to eat with his daughter and took a taxi to the airport.
It doesn't exactly contradict what the police are claiming.
Police said a 32-year-old cleaning woman accused Mr. Strauss-Kahn of sexually assaulting her in the Sofitel Hotel near Times Square. The alleged victim, a native of Guinea and mother of two, said she entered room 2806, a $3,000-a-night luxury suite, around 12 p.m. on Saturday to clean it, thinking it was empty, according to a law-enforcement official with knowledge of the case.
...
Mr. Strauss-Kahn checked out of the Sofitel at 12:28 p.m., police said. But it was his call from JFK airport to the hotel in search of his phone at 3:40 p.m. that identified his whereabouts. Police were then able to locate him and escort him from the plane. Later in the night, Mr. Strauss-Kahn was formally charged with sexual assault and attempted rape, the department later said in a statement. On Sunday, the woman picked the IMF chief out of a lineup at a Manhattan police station, the official said.
Eek!
Sorry about letting the thread get so long, I was distracted. If you want, you can listen to this:
Dahlia Lithwick spoke with Culture of Truth on Virtually Speaking Sundays.
Signed,
Not Atrios
Dahlia Lithwick spoke with Culture of Truth on Virtually Speaking Sundays.
Signed,
Not Atrios
Sunday, May 15, 2011
Fukushima
I wonder if there, as here, the narrative of nobody could have predicted/nothing else could have been done will win the day.
Doing It Wrong
Can't know of course, but I'm pretty sure orchestra concerts at the Mann, where lawn seats are free or cheap depending on the year, and you can bring a picnic and a bottle of wine and sit out under the stars, are the biggest way that the orchestra manages to attract new younger fans. Which is why, of course, they're only doing 3 concerts this summer. And it's one thing to do a bit of lighter fare when you have a dozen or so concerts, but it's pretty much all light fare this year.
Hecuvka job, Orchestra Galtian Overlords.
Hecuvka job, Orchestra Galtian Overlords.
Poor Mason
I'm actually reasonably sure Sorkin does understand marginal rates, but it's also the case that people who writes about this stuff frequently fail to explain it to readers in a way which seems to be designed to deliberately mislead. I'm not sure if poor Mason understands, but at his implicit hourly wage he can work about 5 more annual hours to keep his take home income constant.
...and as Jay points out in the comments over there, with basic deductions poor Mason isn't going to face any tax increase at all.
...and as Jay points out in the comments over there, with basic deductions poor Mason isn't going to face any tax increase at all.
I Don't Want To Look At My Damn Bill
As dirty fucking hippies predicted, because we've been through this before with telephone deregulation, electricity "competition" will lead to companies engaging in dubious practices to bilk you out of your money. Electricity isn't like gas or a bottle of milk. You use it most of the time without having any sense of the per unit cost (both per kilowatt hours and how many kilowatt hours your teevee users), you just know roughly what your bill "should" be based on past experience. This is just one more pain in the ass for people who have enough pains in the asses to deal with.
And I've stuck with the original electric company, as when the armies of aggressive door-to-door salesmen were hired to try to get people to switch it was pretty clear how this would play out.
And I've stuck with the original electric company, as when the armies of aggressive door-to-door salesmen were hired to try to get people to switch it was pretty clear how this would play out.
Sunday Bobbleheads
Meet the Press has President Newt Gingrich.
This Week has Governor Haley and Sheila Bair.
Face the Nation has John Boehner.
Anything missing?
This Week has Governor Haley and Sheila Bair.
Face the Nation has John Boehner.
Anything missing?
Saturday, May 14, 2011
Our Galtian Overlords
Innocent until proven...
A law enforcement official said Dominique Strauss-Kahn, head of the International Monetary Fund, was taken into police custody after being removed from an airplane at Kennedy Airport.
According to the official, Mr. Strauss-Kahn allegedly forced a cleaning woman onto his bed and sexually assaulted her at around 1 p.m. Saturday inside his room at the Sofitel Hotel near Times Square.
Things That Never Occurred To Me
Because, you know, it was completely obvious that the entire blogger system was down.
I Bet They Just Happened To Be Friends Of His
I don't think there's anything about liberalism which suggests that horse racing tracks should be state owned, but nor is there anything (supposedly) conservative about transferring state ownership into private hands without any bidding process. Just a "deal."
Friday, May 13, 2011
That's Always What Bipartisanship Has Been About
Except for proclamations stating that bad guys are "bad" and puppies are "good," bipartisanship has always been about the two parties giving themselves cover to screw voters. And, yes, it makes Fred Hiatt all tingly.
I Read The News Today Oh Boy
But then could not blog about it, so the world was denied my witty and trenchant observations.
Trump is an asshole.
America's most famous senator, Herb Kohl, is retiring. Harold Ford spotted in Madison wearing a cheesehead hat.
Jim Cramer is an asshole.
Trump is an asshole.
America's most famous senator, Herb Kohl, is retiring. Harold Ford spotted in Madison wearing a cheesehead hat.
Jim Cramer is an asshole.
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
The Important News
CNN went from "Trump Questions Bin Laden Raid" to "Palin's (bristol) Changing Face."
Kids Today
Not being around them much I don't have any strong sense, but I think it's reasonable to think that the internet, and then mobile internet, are really the first major socially disruptive technological advances since cheapish machines which made household chores a bit less onerous. Or maybe The Pill. Anyway, just musing on the existence of actual real generational divide. Kids entering college basically have no memory of life before the internets.
Run, Newt, Run!
Newt is now officially pretending to run for president. I admit I didn't think he'd take it this far.
Everything I Know About WWI I Learned From Blackadder
Not really, though I don't know much of anything about how the war was perceived outside of Britain, but yes I thought this was basically the CW about the war.
Whiners
LEAVE REPUBLICANS ALOOOOOONE.
They always whine when Democrats actually point out how much they suck, and then Fred Hiatt or someone else on his crayon scribble page tut-tuts the Dems for playing politics with politics. Or something.
Still it occurs to me that there hasn't been a grand coordinated hissy fit for awhile. Lindsey Graham losing his touch?
They always whine when Democrats actually point out how much they suck, and then Fred Hiatt or someone else on his crayon scribble page tut-tuts the Dems for playing politics with politics. Or something.
Still it occurs to me that there hasn't been a grand coordinated hissy fit for awhile. Lindsey Graham losing his touch?
Back To The 90s
Things are a bit different now, but I think back in the 90s you had to be really tuned in to know just how stupid and insane the political journalism was then. And all journalistic sins from that era have been wiped clean.
Dozens of Stories
Of course the big story was always that, at the height of Monica madness, the press covered up for Newt.
Disgraced Former Speaker
No, I don't think that 8 years from now Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards will be compared to de Gaulle by Matt Bai in the pages of the New York Times.
Everywhere
Pretty cheap, too.
A foundation bankrolled by Libertarian businessman Charles G. Koch has pledged $1.5 million for positions in Florida State University's economics department. In return, his representatives get to screen and sign off on any hires for a new program promoting "political economy and free enterprise."
Traditionally, university donors have little official input into choosing the person who fills a chair they've funded. The power of university faculty and officials to choose professors without outside interference is considered a hallmark of academic freedom.
Under the agreement with the Charles G. Koch Charitable Foundation, however, faculty only retain the illusion of control. The contract specifies that an advisory committee appointed by Koch decides which candidates should be considered. The foundation can also withdraw its funding if it's not happy with the faculty's choice or if the hires don't meet "objectives" set by Koch during annual evaluations.
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
There Are Not Enough Rich People
There's no point to adding administrative burden to Medicare other programs in order to take away the benefits for rich people because you aren't actually going to gain any money by pulling back their benefits. It isn't worth the effort.
It is the case, however, that those not many rich have a fuckload of money. If you want the government to benefit from that fact you increase their taxes.
It is the case, however, that those not many rich have a fuckload of money. If you want the government to benefit from that fact you increase their taxes.
While He Doesn't Say It...
What we should really be talking about is increasing Social Security benefits, not cutting them.
Also, too, good politics.
Also, too, good politics.
Make Some Noise
Fairly regularly I see some explicit or implicit criticisms of people like me for freaking out about a particular issue such as Social Security. The basic issue is something like "You said Obama was going to cut Social Security and he didn't!" Well, I never said Obama, or Democrats, were going to cut Social Security, just that they're leaving the possibility on the table. And I think not cutting Social Security is rather important, so when the possibility is raised I'm going to freak out about it. I don't know if this blog or any activism at all is good for anything, but the point of freaking out and making noise about a possible policy option is to send a message that people like me... are going to freak out about such things. Maybe that freaking out serves no purpose, in which case I don't know why people care at all beyond the basic "somebody on the internet is wrong" dynamic, or maybe, just maybe, it manages to play some small role in convincing lawmakers to do their damage elsewhere.
Shut It Moochers
What's true of the Washington Post is true of the Philadelphia Orchestra is true of many institutions I'm aware of. The people in charge suck, and they respond by extracting all the value and screwing the workers.
Fuck War
Indeed.
I'm not sure exactly when I started seeing myself as a pacifist. It's one of those words which to Very Serious People means "you like it when the bully punches you in the face don't you dirty fucking hippie!" But what I've learned over the increasingly many years of my life is that the existence of just about any war in which the US is involved means that the Very Serious People, with all the power they have, fucked up completely. Even if that war is, in some sense, "necessary," it still means that the people who run this place screwed up and at the very least should resign in shame before sending people off to kill and be killed. But they don't. They go on Meet the Press to talk about how awesome they are.
I'm not sure exactly when I started seeing myself as a pacifist. It's one of those words which to Very Serious People means "you like it when the bully punches you in the face don't you dirty fucking hippie!" But what I've learned over the increasingly many years of my life is that the existence of just about any war in which the US is involved means that the Very Serious People, with all the power they have, fucked up completely. Even if that war is, in some sense, "necessary," it still means that the people who run this place screwed up and at the very least should resign in shame before sending people off to kill and be killed. But they don't. They go on Meet the Press to talk about how awesome they are.
The Worst People In The World
Breibart isn't the first conservative to devote himself to the all-important cause of shining the light on the serious problem of racist African-Americans.
The Game
Republicans always offered conservative means to achieve more liberal goals as a way of thwarting any way of achieving those goals. They'd always be enabled by ThirdWayNoLabelsDLCTNR wankers who would praise them as Very Serious Policy Thinkers. So, carbon tax becomes cap and trade, and then cap and trade becomes... just like Hitler!
Cunning Plan
What Boehner wants is for Democrats to own unpopular spending cuts. And with the McCaskills and Conrads of the Senate, he'll likely succeed.
Oops
Naughty naughty.
The husband of Republican Sen. Olympia Snowe, former Maine Gov. John McKernan, is the chairman of a large for-profit college company being sued by the Department of Justice for allegedly improperly paying recruiters based on how many students they sign up to enroll.
The lawsuit is gaining attention in Washington as Snowe prepares to run for a fourth-term in the Senate next year.
The Justice Department joined a whistleblower lawsuit, filed by former employees of Education Management Corp., that also includes 11 states and the District of Columbia, though not the state of Maine. The company does not have a location in Maine.
Basically, Abortion Has Been Outlawed in S. Dakota
Kudos to Amanda Marcotte for staying on top of this story.
My question, as always, is how do these people get elected. Over and over again.
My question, as always, is how do these people get elected. Over and over again.
Monday, May 09, 2011
Really Bad Senators
The great thing about Republicans is that they can simultaneously run for and against Medicare, all with the aid of awful Democrats like Claire McCaskill.
....more from MoveOn.org.
A plan to cap U.S. government spending that’s gaining support in the Senate could require deep cuts to Medicare and Medicaid that parallel those proposed in House Republican Paul Ryan’s budget.
The Senate proposal by Republican Bob Corker of Tennessee and Democrat Claire McCaskill of Missouri aims to save $7.6 trillion over 10 years by capping federal spending at 20.6 percent of gross domestic product within a decade, down from 24.3 percent now.
....more from MoveOn.org.
On TeeVee
I'll pose a related question. When will advertisers realize that women watch sports? At least here in the urban hellhole the wimmenfolk seem to quite like that baseball thing, judging by the number of them decked out in team gear watching at the stadium, in bars, etc. The advertising is almost all squarely aimed at your 1982 frat boy archetype, except with a bit more disposable income, plus penis and gout pills.
It's Your Fault, Assholes
As Krugman says, the Very Serious People fucked everything up. I'm sure there will be a BoBo column along shortly that tells us that unless we're nicer to our Galtian Overlords and submit to more beatings, their feefees will be hurt and they'll head to the Gulch.
Please just go already.
Please just go already.
A Little More Super
Currently the Acela does the Philly-NYC run in 1:12. I'm not quite sure I believe the funded improvements (thanks Lex!) will bring that down below an hour, but I suppose it's close enough. Though absent the ARC tunnel (screw you Christie!) or similar, there's still a serious capacity constraint crossing the river into NYC.
...adding that I've only taken the Acela once to NYC. The "normal" service can be as quick as 1:19, but most trains take between 1:25-1:30.
...adding that I've only taken the Acela once to NYC. The "normal" service can be as quick as 1:19, but most trains take between 1:25-1:30.
People Riding Trains
It's true that much of the country doesn't have inter-city rail, and even in places that do have it the frequency and reliability are not exactly awesome, but it isn't true that the NE corridor (much less the mid-Atlantic bit) is the only place with decent service. The wikipedia tells me that 2.6 million people rode on the SLO-San Diego line in 2010.