What's it all about then?
Monday, June 30, 2014
What's It All About Then
For years some of us crazy dirty hippies have been trying to tell people that it isn't about abortion, it's about women not being punished for unapproved fucking. The Lords of Slate and others told us we were crazy, that if only Teh Left could admit that abortion was icky then Teh Right would support all kinds of awesome measures to help ensure that the wimmenz would not have unwanted pregnancies, and we could all get together and have a toast like tipandronnie used to do and live happily ever after.
What's it all about then?
What's it all about then?
All Blowed Up Sir
It was a couple of laptops ago so I can't remember which model it was, but I had one which would occasionally go into a weird overheating mode when charging so that it was like nuclear hot when you touched it. Never blew up, fortunately.
Afternoon Thread
Here's Echidne on the Hobby Lobby case. And this from the decision itself:
h/t Gummo
Well, yeah, dumbass.
Edited to remove bogus returns.
Writing for the majority, Justice Samuel Alito argued that contesting
Hobby Lobby’s claim that contraception is the same thing as abortion — an idea that has been refuted time and again by medical providers and associations — “in effect tells the plaintiffs that their beliefs are
flawed.”
h/t Gummo
Well, yeah, dumbass.
Edited to remove bogus returns.
Religious Freedum
As an atheist/agnostic/whatever I've long understand that my religious beliefs are pretty far down the list of beliefs which are likely to actually have court/legal protection when the moment comes. I'm not playing victim here, just making the point that Samuel Alito made clear today: some religions are more equal than other, and some religious beliefs are more equal than others. Because religious freedom.
What's It All About Then
Supreme Court affirms that sincerely held religious beliefs are limited to the disapproval of unapproved fucking by women.
As we've been saying for some time.
This decision concerns only the contraceptive mandate and should not be understood to mean that all insurance mandates, that is for blood transfusions or vaccinations, necessarily fail if they conflict with an employer's religious beliefs.
As we've been saying for some time.
Supremo Hell Morning
The question isn't whether the rulings will be bad. The question isn't whether the rulings will be horrible. It's "how horrible."
...get your smarter commentary elsewhere, but Harris decision not as bad as expected.
...get your smarter commentary elsewhere, but Harris decision not as bad as expected.
What's The Matter With
Krgthulu's in my intertubes stealing my unwritten columns.
Two years ago Kansas embarked on a remarkable fiscal experiment: It sharply slashed income taxes without any clear idea of what would replace the lost revenue. Sam Brownback, the governor, proposed the legislation — in percentage terms, the largest tax cut in one year any state has ever enacted — in close consultation with the economist Arthur Laffer. And Mr. Brownback predicted that the cuts would jump-start an economic boom — “Look out, Texas,” he proclaimed.
But Kansas isn’t booming — in fact, its economy is lagging both neighboring states and America as a whole. Meanwhile, the state’s budget has plunged deep into deficit, provoking a Moody’s downgrade of its debt.
Sunday, June 29, 2014
Iraq Was Going Great Until That Darn Obama Came Along
Via The New York Times
WASHINGTON — Just weeks before Blackwater guards fatally shot 17 civilians at Baghdad’s Nisour Square in 2007, the State Department began investigating the security contractor's operations in Iraq. But the inquiry was abandoned after Blackwater's top manager there issued a threat: "that he could kill" the government’s chief investigator and “no one could or would do anything about it as we were in Iraq,” according to department reports
.....
The shooting was a watershed moment in the American occupation of Iraq, and was a factor in Iraq’s refusal the next year to agree to a treaty allowing United States troops to stay in the country beyond 2011.
Some
The Economist gets weird things wrong too frequently.
Not the most important thing, but "some" should be replaced with "all."
In fact, he argues, other levels of government are going to have to find the money required. This is starting to happen. Some states add their own petrol taxes to the federal government’s one.
Not the most important thing, but "some" should be replaced with "all."
California Drinking
If El Niño doesn't show up to save the world there could be serious trouble.
Not too long ago in this season of California’s massive and extended drought, climate experts saw a small glimmer of hope on the horizon: Predictions for a wet El Niño season coming in the winter that would bring badly needed rain and relief to a parched state.
Now that glimmer is fading fast, and the drought has gotten even worse
Or We Could Spend That Money Helping People
If we just deport a few more people CIR will happen I'm sure.
Maybe we can cut food stamps some more to pay for it, because everything has to be paid for!
The Obama administration, in a dramatic escalation of its border control strategy, will seek $2 billion in emergency funds to help stem an influx of Central American women and children entering the country illegally and new measures to more quickly deport those already here, the White House confirmed Saturday.
Maybe we can cut food stamps some more to pay for it, because everything has to be paid for!
Saturday, June 28, 2014
Meh
Maybe there's a bunch of expressed outrage in the 'T' part of the state that I'm just not aware of, but after same sex marriage was legalized in PA there's been practically no noise about it that I've heard. Almost like it doesn't really matter.
(Of course it matters to the people who have greater equal rights, now, but it doesn't matter to the rest of us.)
(Of course it matters to the people who have greater equal rights, now, but it doesn't matter to the rest of us.)
Why We Can't Have Nice Things
Basically.
In Philly a the resumption of service on a reinstated trolley line was held up for a year, after all of the construction had been completed, because residents were upset to lose a dozen or so parking spots that had never been legal spots in the first place.
The parking issue is especially maddening in Philadelphia, because in most neighborhoods (there are exceptions) resident parking really isn't a problem unless you think always having an open space on your block is what you're entitled to. There's parking and if you live in a neighborhood you've figured out where to find it. Sure now and then you might have a bit of trouble, but it isn't a problem.
A bus rapid transit project for Geary Boulevard has been in planning since the passage of a local ballot measure authorized funding in 2003, yet eleven years later construction hasn’t even begun as a handful of people in the neighborhood fought for years to preserve each and every parking space.
In Philly a the resumption of service on a reinstated trolley line was held up for a year, after all of the construction had been completed, because residents were upset to lose a dozen or so parking spots that had never been legal spots in the first place.
The parking issue is especially maddening in Philadelphia, because in most neighborhoods (there are exceptions) resident parking really isn't a problem unless you think always having an open space on your block is what you're entitled to. There's parking and if you live in a neighborhood you've figured out where to find it. Sure now and then you might have a bit of trouble, but it isn't a problem.
Friday, June 27, 2014
Available Tools
I've been trying to think about how to make this suggestion without seeming to trivialize the issues involved. My general view is that mockery is an underutilized tool by The Left, though we've gotten a bit better at that in recent years. We really should be pointing and laughing more, and one reason we haven't is the fear of alienating voters that aren't going to vote for "us" anyway.
I do tend to think that there are legitimate first amendment issues associated with abortion clinic "buffer zones," though the fact that such judicial first amendment concerns are limited to abortion clinic buffer zones highlights that such concerns are ultimately bullshit (apply concept broadly, or not at all).
Anyway, what I'm getting at is... maybe counter-protesting should bring on the funny. "This guy has a tiny penis -->" t-shirts. Gay men's a capella choirs serenading them. That sort of thing.
The point is that comedy is a good tool, and what a typical anti-abortion protester nut hates most is the idea that his authoritah is being undermined. Point and laugh and they might just scamper away.
Obviously the problem is turning these spaces into bigger circuses than they already are. I don't want to do that. There are women trying to get needed medical care who don't need any of this shit, from the left or the right.
Still...they hate to be laughed at.
I do tend to think that there are legitimate first amendment issues associated with abortion clinic "buffer zones," though the fact that such judicial first amendment concerns are limited to abortion clinic buffer zones highlights that such concerns are ultimately bullshit (apply concept broadly, or not at all).
Anyway, what I'm getting at is... maybe counter-protesting should bring on the funny. "This guy has a tiny penis -->" t-shirts. Gay men's a capella choirs serenading them. That sort of thing.
The point is that comedy is a good tool, and what a typical anti-abortion protester nut hates most is the idea that his authoritah is being undermined. Point and laugh and they might just scamper away.
Obviously the problem is turning these spaces into bigger circuses than they already are. I don't want to do that. There are women trying to get needed medical care who don't need any of this shit, from the left or the right.
Still...they hate to be laughed at.
Nice Work
Roads, even the nonexistent ones, aren't free.
US 460 Mobility Partners received more than $250 million in payments from the state and Route 460 Funding Corp. of Virginia on the project before Gov. Terry McAuliffe shut it down in March. The governor cited the failure to obtain environmental permits from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers before construction could begin. The state spent an additional $41 million for procurement, engineering and environmental studies.
To this day, not a single shovel of dirt had been turned for construction of the roadway.
Will We Have Another New Pope?
For some reason it had escaped my notice that Francis was that old and that not well.
Benedict was oddly "sold" in part on the idea that he'd be dead soon. I'm not being a jerk about that, it really was the rhetoric at the time.
Benedict was oddly "sold" in part on the idea that he'd be dead soon. I'm not being a jerk about that, it really was the rhetoric at the time.
Nobody Could Have Predicted
I'm sure eventually the "maybe these drones aren't such a good idea guys" notion will become conventional wisdom, but the hippies were right for the wrong reasons blah blah blah.
Remember one of the "reasons" we went to war in Iraq?
Remember one of the "reasons" we went to war in Iraq?
Punching Up, Down, and Sideways
This actually isn't about anything in particular, but one constant learning process when you have a moderately popular sucky blog (meaning, a microphone that is not a huge one) is about knowing when you're punching down. I've become much more sensitive to the issue over the years - though I don't always get it right! - as not punching down seems to be a pretty good way to avoid being an asshole.
I'm A Well Behaved Pedestrian
Yah like everybody I can be the occasional idiot and do something stupid, but I'm usually pretty conscious of what I'm doing. When the light's mine and I'm in the crosswalk, don't hit me bro. That's my time.
Public Service in the 21st Century
One of the central tenets of our centrist technocratic leaders is that the real public policy experts are those who have risen through merit and diligence to become highly comped executives in key private sector firms. It's asking a lot, though, to ask them to give up their well-paid (and well-earned!) positions among the one percent to accept a government position. But today, there's no need for sacrifice.
Many large corporations with a strong incentive to influence public policy award bonuses and other incentive pay to executives if they take jobs within the government. CitiGroup, for instance, provides an executive contract that awards additional retirement pay upon leaving to take a “full time high level position with the U.S. government or regulatory body.” Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan Chase, the Blackstone Group, Fannie Mae, Northern Trust, and Northrop Grumman are among the other firms that offer financial rewards upon retirement for government service.(h/t Gaius Publius)
Thursday, June 26, 2014
I Believe The Problem Is Right There In That Paragraph
Perhaps you can see it, too, dear reader.
I guess the similar AirTrain at Newark airport works well enough, but...can't you get just a little bit closer?
In a unanimous vote, the county's Metropolitan Transportation Authority board of directors agreed to proceed with further study of a proposed $200-million light-rail station a mile and a half east of LAX's central terminal area. The station would connect Metro's Crenshaw Line, now being built, to a proposed aerial, monorail-like system that will carry passengers to their terminals.
I guess the similar AirTrain at Newark airport works well enough, but...can't you get just a little bit closer?
Arming And Training Has Worked Great So Far
So, onward!
If only we'd armed and trained an army in Iraq!
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama is asking Congress for $500 million to train and arm vetted members of the Syrian opposition, as the U.S. grapples for a way to stem a civil war that has also fueled the al-Qaida inspired insurgency in neighboring Iraq.
If only we'd armed and trained an army in Iraq!
Raw or Fried
Agree that there are other options with oysters. Favorite thing I've tried is hot smoking them a bit on the grill with some of adobo sauce. Cook them for just a little while, but not too long.
Rollin' Coal
There's something weirdly anachronistic about these bizarre displays of dick waving "masculinity." Will we live in a 70s trucker/biker movie in perpetuity?
Wednesday, June 25, 2014
Wanker of the Day
Jonah Goldberg.
that's some 180 proof wanking.
...adding that a repurposed Catch-22 quote seems to be appropriate here:
that's some 180 proof wanking.
...adding that a repurposed Catch-22 quote seems to be appropriate here:
Some men are born mediocre, some men achieve mediocrity, and some men have mediocrity thrust upon them. With Jonah Goldberg it had been all three.
Blind Squirrel
I'm not one who thinks the "tea party" people are really anti-crony capitalism generally, but we should embrace it when they do find a nut.
The Myth Of Self Defense
A gun in the home for the purposes of self defense is either safe and useless (unloaded, locked up), or much more likely to kill someone due to an "accident" than actually be used for self defense. People who open carry just like to show off their external death penises, and people who concealed carry just have vigilante fantasies.
That's Not Good
Shrinkage.
The Commerce Department said on Wednesday gross domestic product fell at a 2.9 percent annual rate, the economy's worst performance in five years, instead of the 1.0 percent pace it had reported last month.
Tuesday, June 24, 2014
Everybody Does It
It's late and I'm too lazy to research, but my memory of this stuff is that one member of Congress was like "HOLY SHIT THERE'S SOME CONGRESSIONAL INSIDER TRADING GOING ON" which was so bizarrely corrupt as to seem unpossible... which quickly shifted to "HOLY SHIT EVERYBODY AND THEIR COUSIN IS DOING THIS SHIT."
Been surprised it never got more coverage. My guess is that, you know, the cousins are doing it too, if you know who I mean.
Been surprised it never got more coverage. My guess is that, you know, the cousins are doing it too, if you know who I mean.
Memories of 2003
Though Carell puts up a bigger fight than most of the "liberals" who were allowed on teevee then.
Make It Free
If it's worth bothering to collect fares, it's worth having someone actually working at the subway station. If not, just make the fare at non-busy stations free overnight. Having the train drivers collect fares is ridiculous.
Mercenaries
There's a place for mercenaries in politics. It's fine to have one complete asshole in the room who wants to win at any cost, all principles be damned. I always thought Robert Gibbs was that guy, and now we know.
Though sadly not the only one.
Though sadly not the only one.
Dear Everybody
If you're inclined to refer to everybody under the age of 45 or so as a "hipster" it just means that you're old.
If They're Doing It
Conservatives have really convinced themselves that all of the local chapters* of the New Black Panther party commit massive vote fraud, so they feel the need to respond in kind.
*There really only are 5 guys in Philly.
*There really only are 5 guys in Philly.
The Man Who Won't Be Mayor
People love to hate on developers, and politicians exploit that, but supposed affordable housing advocate Clarke does his best to increase the costs of building housing.
Buckets Of Shit
The commenter who suggests organizing sewage dumping as civil disobedience has the right idea.
Morning surprise
Did you know that Frank Zappa was once a guest on The Steve Allen Show? I didn't. (More surprises here.)
Morning Thread
The Halifax Examiner. Interesting update on the counselor suspected of a hit and run and then only being charged with illegal lane change. She's contesting the ticket, but has managed to put off the hearing for months and months. While this is a city counselor in Halifax, it could be a congresscritter or state representative anywhere in the U.S., or the world for that matter. The laws are for little people.
Monday, June 23, 2014
Shh.
Our technocratic elite not only hates democracy, but also free trade. TISA:
Via Dave Johnson who discussed this last night with Avedon.
The cover sheet records that the draft text will not be declassified until 5 years after the TISA comes into force or the negotiations are otherwise closed. Presumably this also applies to other documents aside from the final text. This exceeds the 4 years in the super-secretive Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA)! It also contradicts the hard-won transparency at the WTO, which has published documents relating to negotiations online for a number of years.
Secrecy during the negotiation of a binding and enforceable commercial treaty is objectionable and undemocratic, and invites poorly informed and biased decisions. Secrecy after the fact is patently designed to prevent the governments from being held accountable by their legislatures and citizens.
Via Dave Johnson who discussed this last night with Avedon.
There Are No Inflation Risks
I think more people need to make the point regularly (even Krgthulu!) that the lack of inflation risks isn't simply because we don't have any actual inflation, it's because if there's one thing the major central banks know how to do - and are biased in favor of doing - it's killing inflation. If we do wake up and discover that we've had sustained inflation at, say, the unimaginable level of 3% for several months, ushering in the Zombie Apocalypse, our great and glorious central banks will actually step on the brakes. Genuine inflation risk isn't about a few months of too high inflation (which we should have but that's another discussion), it's about "irresponsible" central banks that will keep stepping on the gas even as hyperinflation is destroying the world. But that isn't going to happen and no one with half a brain really believes it's going to happen. Are those who fret about inflation evil or stupid? I have no idea, but...
We'll Know Better Next Time
While all reasonably sensible people have concluded the Iraq war was a hellish mistake, too many of those people have decided that therefore all your "mainstream" journalist institutions have concluded that too. They're aching to bring the band back together for a little more of that awesome awesome war.
2nd Best
Maybe the primary divide between non-asshole economists is between those who believe we live in a mostly first best world and those who believe we mostly live in a second best world.
It's pretty obvious the latter is true, but that doesn't mean that the policy implications are clear.
It's pretty obvious the latter is true, but that doesn't mean that the policy implications are clear.
But All That Training
My memory's a bit hazy at this point, but I remember that after we spent about 5 years needing to stay in Iraq to finish the important job of painting schools, we stayed about 5 more years in order to finish training their military. That's a lot of training!
Oh well.
Oh well.
The 300 U.S. advisers authorized to assist the Iraqi security forces will find an army in crisis mode, so lacking in equipment and shaken by desertions that it may not be able to win back significant chunks of territory from al-Qaeda renegades for months or even years, analysts and officials say.
Sunday, June 22, 2014
Nothing A Few Hundred Million More In Tax Breaks Can't Fix
Or a hurricane. Whatevs.
Woinski said he imagines another scenario for the $2.4 billion Revel that would have left Atlantic City better off, ultimately.
"The best thing that could have happened to that property is Hurricane Sandy, instead of nailing Seaside Heights, would have nailed that property. That thing should have wound up in the ocean instead of the roller coaster," Woinski said.
Sunday Afternoon
Farmers market, Montreal bagel brunch complete with Bloody Cesars.
Because it's Sunday, Sunday.
Because it's Sunday, Sunday.
Saturday, June 21, 2014
Taxi Regulation (Exciting!!!)
I'm not a superfan of the various regulation skirting companies such as Uber, but their success does signal that in many cities taxi regulation isn't done well. While I do think that some supply restriction is necessary to maintain a market for regulated hailable cabs, medallions should not be as valuable as they are.
If Only There Were Shovel Ready Projects
Much public infrastructure is hitting the end of its lifespan.
Oh well. bygones.
Oh well. bygones.
Justice
The bit which always mystifies me is that if you convict the wrong people then the actual perp is still free. For some reason "we" don't seem to care about this very much.
Not A Drop To Drink
We keep edging up against regional water crises which then manage to fix themselves. I can't comprehend what will happen when one actually happens.
Friday, June 20, 2014
The Greatest Television Show Ever Created
Hopefully!
Lost alum Naveen Andrews, Daryl Hannah and Stargate Universe‘s Brian J. Smith are among the 14-memeber international cast of Sense8, Netflix‘s 10-episode sci-fi drama series from the Wachowskis and J. Michael Straczynski. Also cast in the show, expected to debut next year, are British actors Tuppence Middleton, who appears in Wachowskis’ upcoming film Jupiter Ascending; British actors Aml Ameen (Harry’s Law, Lee Daniels’ The Butler) and Freema Agyeman (Doctor Who, Torchwood), Indian actress Tena Desae, South Korean actress Doona Bae, German actor Max Riemelt, Mexican actors Alfonso Herrera and Erendira Ibarra as well as Jamie Clayton, Miguel Silvestri and Terrence Mann.
Friday Crass Commercialism
I haven't seen the Doogie version on Broadway, but I have seen it a couple of times on stage and, also, too, the movie. Hedwig is a great musical.
T-Mac
Being much better than one would have expected.
I met Terry once. I was having lunch with Begala and Carville at the Palm and he just kind of wandered in. True story.
I met Terry once. I was having lunch with Begala and Carville at the Palm and he just kind of wandered in. True story.
There Are No Shovel Ready Projects
If only there was some way to spend money on useful things.
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) — A water main break in South Philadelphia early Friday morning damaged at least one home and created a traffic headache.
The fire department received a call at about 5:40 a.m. about a ruptured water main break at 2nd Street and Oregon Avenue.
Christie's Other Boondoggle
Malls and casinos. Welcome to the 21st century!!!
There was no sign of a restart to construction activity at the American Dream site Thursday, six weeks after Governor Christie came to the Meadowlands Sports Complex to trumpet the signing of a project labor agreement with North Jersey workers.
The developers say among the next work to be done is finally changing the exterior. The much-mocked multi-color display will become a muted white and gray.
But the project’s developers and state officials say the long-stalled rebirth of the shopping and entertainment attraction remains on target for a fall 2016 opening – and work will be visible at the site soon.
What Would Make You Say A Thing Like That
Oh.
Gerson joined the Bush campaign before 2000 as a speechwriter and went on to head the White House speechwriting team.
Thursday, June 19, 2014
The Purpose Of The Signs
I do not think the first part of your statement is in accordance with part the second.
I do wish local businesses would actually survey their customers about how they actually arrive to their establishments. My guess - could be wrong! - is that they'd be surprised.
"The sign depicted in the photograph is not an official street sign," said Streets Department spokesperson June Cantor, after examining an image of the sign. "We do not have, nor do we post 'no bike parking signs.' No other government authority is authorized to post such a sign."
D'Angelo's manager Michelle DiMatteo said her restaurant put the signs up.
"The purpose of the signs is so people can walk up and down the street," she said. "Bikes would sometimes get in the way of our valet and people parking their cars."
I do wish local businesses would actually survey their customers about how they actually arrive to their establishments. My guess - could be wrong! - is that they'd be surprised.
Heckuva Job
Oh well.
I accept that we're always going to have some degree of crony capitalism, that we're always going to have some level of a corruption tax. But couldn't we light money on fire for nice and useful things occasionally?
Their business model is "taking your money." That isn't enough, so they have to take taxpayer money, too.
Atlantic City's Revel Casino Hotel warned its staff Thursday that it will shut down this summer if a buyer can't be found for the struggling casino.
I accept that we're always going to have some degree of crony capitalism, that we're always going to have some level of a corruption tax. But couldn't we light money on fire for nice and useful things occasionally?
The state’s Economic Development Authority granted $261 million in tax incentives to help jump start stalled construction of the project in February 2011. Christie signed legislation at the Revel construction site that created a state tourism district in the city, boosted marketing of the resorts and eased regulations on casino operators.
Their business model is "taking your money." That isn't enough, so they have to take taxpayer money, too.
Progress
Hopefully the mayor signs it, or that the votes are there to override the veto.
Nobody should go to jail for illegal drug consumption. Coerced rehab, maybe, but no jail.
Philadelphia City Council Wednesday passed a veto-proof bill that makes possession of small amounts of marijuana punishable by a $25 fine.
Nobody should go to jail for illegal drug consumption. Coerced rehab, maybe, but no jail.
Well Then
I suppose this is news.
Prosecutors say Wisconsin Gov. Walker at center of 'criminal scheme' over campaign fundraising.
Lede
Well okay then.
It was such a lovely little war.
The sudden collapse of Iraqi forces in the face of lightly armed insurgents has catalyzed an emotional debate within the U.S. military about a war that, just a few years ago, seemed on the brink of going down in history as a success.
It was such a lovely little war.
Morning Thread
One of our pals has launched his own news site, The Halifax Examiner. Even though I don't live anywhere near Halifax, I subscribed because the issues covered are the same whether they occur in Philadelphia, Seattle or Halifax. From juicing the numbers as to how much revenue a convention center will generate to how a contract for a sewer plant is awarded, it's almost as if they are all using the same playbook. It seems no one else in the main stream press is covering these stories and they have a direct impact on our quality of life. I look forward to seeing how this develops. Good luck!
Wednesday, June 18, 2014
Bombworthy
Much of elite opinion about foreign "interventions" seems to be centered on "well just bomb something!!!" as if it's a magic cure for... heck, who knows what. I don't even know how we decide whose side we're on anymore, the assholes we put in power or the assholes that aren't happy with the assholes we put in power.
Strangely, it isn't that simple. Whocouldaknowed!
Strangely, it isn't that simple. Whocouldaknowed!
Increase The Gas Tax
For years it's been conventional wisdom that such a thing was unpossible, but no one is actually going to notice a 12 cent increase in the tax given current gas prices and general degree of fluctuation of those prices.
Combat Pay
I'm not Hillary Clinton's #1 fan, but it must be nice to have the luxury of getting paid lots of money to criticize her about all of the things which don't matter at all.
Morning Thread
Don't forget, capturing the guy responsible for Benghazi is nothing but a distraction from BENGHAZI.
Tuesday, June 17, 2014
Tuesday Crass Commercialism
Just in case any of you have yet to read the greatest book ever written.
While you might be tempted to mock it, remember that this argument has never before been made in such detail or with such care.
While you might be tempted to mock it, remember that this argument has never before been made in such detail or with such care.
Traditional
In 1900, the population of North Carolina was 1/3 black, roughly the same as the non-white population in 2010.
So, yeah, tradition.
So, yeah, tradition.
Afternoon Thread
That adorable way my cat digs his claws into my arm when I try to move it to type this.
Bubbles
That you can be a (presumably intelligent well-educated) Catholic in this country and not be extremely frightened of state impositions of religion is truly weird to me.
Times have changed, but for a long time this wasn't exactly a country that was especially tolerant of that flavor of Christianity.
Times have changed, but for a long time this wasn't exactly a country that was especially tolerant of that flavor of Christianity.
Long Distance Runaround
My recent undisclosed location was Montreal. I'd strangely never been to Canadia before and wanted to prove to myself that it actually existed. Took the train from NYC. It's cheap though not incredibly fast. About 11 hours including customs. The google tells me that it'd be about a 6 hour drive, though I imagine you'd have to add on some border time for that trip too. Trains are different than the NE corridor ones in that there is massive amounts of leg room (NE corridor trains are already much improved over airline leg room). No expert on that stretch of rail, but I'd guess relatively inexpensive improvements could get that down to 9 hours fairly easily.
What'd He Do Wrong?
Not saying he didn't do anything wrong, but quite often when I read "tax dodging using foreign entities" type cases I don't actually get what the difference is between the stuff people get prosecuted for and the stuff they don't.
What is "spending enough money on lawyers and accountants?"
What is "spending enough money on lawyers and accountants?"
Enforce it
Before we have any more fresh progressive wanking about campaign reform, could we just remember that the Tillman Act of 1907 is still on the books?
Monday, June 16, 2014
Ammosexuals
Don't worry guys, we're liberals. We don't judge your sexual attraction to your guns, as long as anything that happens is consensual.
Steering
We still have a big presence in Iraq, just not a big combat presence. Just how does an increased combat presence go about steering "Iraqi politics in a more constructive direction."
Something something freedom democracy something something wanker.
Something something freedom democracy something something wanker.
Sunday, June 15, 2014
Emerald City
Perhaps not the most important thing, but there will never be any real acknowledgment of just how much money was spent for Dick Cheney's Potemkin Empire.
"the largest staff of any United States Embassy."
"the largest staff of any United States Embassy."
ERBIL, Iraq — The American Embassy in Baghdad plans to evacuate a substantial number of its personnel this week in the face of a militant advance that rapidly swept from the north toward the capital, the State Department announced on Sunday.
The embassy, a beige fortress on the banks of the Tigris River within the heavily-secured Green Zone, where Iraqi government buildings are also located, has the largest staff of any United States Embassy.
"the largest staff of any United States Embassy."
"the largest staff of any United States Embassy."
So You Say You Want A Revolution
Let me just echo the fact that when The College Kids Today attempt to exercise the one bit of power they potentially have - influencing the actions of college administrators - they're generally mocked and derided. Divestment campaigns and improved sourcing policies might not save the world - they might not even be particularly helpful! - but they're the one way students can actually draw attention an issue and have a clearly defined and potentially achievable goal.
It's always tempting to say The Left and The Kids are doing it wrong. So start your own damn revolution.
It's always tempting to say The Left and The Kids are doing it wrong. So start your own damn revolution.
Shorter Tony Blair
Nothing bad that is happening is my our fault. Going forward, only we can fix things. The next six months are critical.
Maybe An Exploding Cigar?
Or a trail of Reeses Pieces?
Let's ground the plane of another country's leader. Just, you know, because.
“I spoke to them approximately four hours on the 10th of June,” Lon Snowden said. Later, the FBI offered to send the elder Snowden to Moscow as part of an effort to deliver a scripted pitch to his son to turn himself in and return home. A former officer in the Coast Guard, Lon Snowden was initially cooperative with the bureau but became angered as his son was depicted by U.S. officials as a traitor.
“I came to know that they were not functioning in good faith” and turned down the trip, Snowden said.
Let's ground the plane of another country's leader. Just, you know, because.
In interviews, U.S. officials acknowledged that they had no specific intelligence that Snowden would be on Morales’s plane. But the Bolivian leader’s remark was enough to set in motion a plan to enlist France, Spain, Italy and Portugal to block the Bolivian president’s flight home.
Saturday, June 14, 2014
Hot
It is a dry heat.
Sixty years ago, when Phoenix was just embarking on its career of manic growth, nighttime lows never crept above ninety. Today such temperatures are a commonplace, and the vigil has begun for the first night that doesn’t dip below 100.
Progress
For decades, our elite newspapers have often defined "economic progress" as "implementing the right sorts of policies" rather than "economic growth" or "reducing unemployment." Growth and unemployment numbers are not hard to find on the internets these days, yet somehow they're frequently irrelevant..
Strike
Commuter rail system on strike in the urban hellhole. Here's the rail that is running (everything except the regional rail, that is). Norristown high speed line (previously route 100) is the useful Main Line/Norristown option that nobody seems to be aware of.
Buses are still running, also, too.
Buses are still running, also, too.
Friday, June 13, 2014
My Deep Thoughts On Soccer
Bad officiating matters too much. Move the penalty kick spot back 3 meters and generally make it more like hockey. Do a bad thing and you are out for 5 minutes.
My Rule
If your willingness to spend money to help people by bombing them isn't roughly matched by your willingness to spend money to resettle desperate refugees, then I'm not especially interested in hearing your bomb bomb plan.
Corollary: I'll never have to take seriously a bomb bomb plan again.
Corollary: I'll never have to take seriously a bomb bomb plan again.
Thursday, June 12, 2014
Stand Up Stand Stand Stand Down
Some more expensive military expenditures should do the trick.
Six months, or maybe 1200...
As this week’s events unfolded, it was alarming to learn of the swift capitulation of thousands of Iraqi Army troops who surrendered their weapons to the enemy and disappeared. After disbanding Saddam Hussein’s army in 2003 after the invasion by coalition forces and dismantling the government, the United States spent years and many billions of dollars building a new Iraqi Army, apparently for naught. The militants have captured untold quantities of American-supplied weaponry, including helicopters, and looted an estimated $425 million from Mosul’s banks.
Six months, or maybe 1200...
Another Six Months Then?
Presidents McCain, Romney, Rubio, Tagg Romney, and Meghan McCain would never have let this happen.
Wednesday, June 11, 2014
Gonna Take That Ball And Go Home
Cantor will stop being Majority Leader on July 31, at which point the House can continue to carry out its important job of repeatedly voting to repeal Obamacare.
What's It All Mean
Probably not much, except that voters are willing to throw the bums out, Cantor isn't very likeable, nobody cares (or even knows) that you're Majority Leader unless you're bringing home some bacon, and Cantor's campaign wasted tons of money on shitty staff, ads, pollsters, and steak.
Tuesday, June 10, 2014
Voters Matter More Than The WaPo Editorial Board
The elderly vote, and they like their benefits. That neither political party has been pandering to them, except in the weird negative way of promising to screw the youngs has been just bizarre to me. It's a mystery to me how people are paid lots of money to tell candidates not to promise to give the elderly more and better benefits. I don't want politicians to lie, but even if they don't want to increase benefits it seems like the perfect pander!
How could any sensible politician be "reluctant to embrace the proposal"?
It’s true that many Democrats remain reluctant to embrace the proposal. But an increasing number of Dems — including Elizabeth Warren, Tom Harkin, Jeff Merkley and 70 members of the Congressional Progressive Caucus — believe it’s good politics to push for an expansion of a hugely popular program that has been central to the Democratic Party’s identity for many decades.
How could any sensible politician be "reluctant to embrace the proposal"?
Crazy Ideas
Someone's been smoking the wacky tabacky.
The new proposal is called the Retirement and Income Security Enhancements Act, or RAISE Act, and it would increase benefits specifically for groups who have seen their retirement security eroded by recent economic trends such as the transition to two-earner families, stagnating wages, declining savings, and the erosion of pensions. It would increase benefits for many divorced spouses, and widows and widowers, and would extend benefit eligibility for some children of retired, disabled or deceased workers – to be paid for by a two-percent payroll tax on earnings over $400,000, which is also designed to shore up the program’s long-term finances.
Nice Work
All stories about the PSD need to include the fact that it's controlled by the state, not the city.
Monday, June 09, 2014
Going Fishing
Traveling a bit for a few days starting tomorrow, so blogging might be a bit lazier than usual.
Even In The T
Yes Corbett's unpopularity has been a bit of a mystery to me. It's a bit education, a bit fracking, a bit that he's no good at going on the teevee and being appealing. Still that he's that unpopular is surprising.
Many months until November, however.
Many months until November, however.
Horrible
A useful reminder (below) that the people who have run our elite discourse for decades are horrible people. Even the ones who aren't horrible have enabled them by going on the teevee with them and saying things like "my dear friend George has a good point."
Suck on this, America!
Suck on this, America!
What Could Go Wrong
Absolutely nothing.
During the Obama administration, according to Pentagon data, police departments have received tens of thousands of machine guns; nearly 200,000 ammunition magazines; thousands of pieces of camouflage and night-vision equipment; and hundreds of silencers, armored cars and aircraft.
The equipment has been added to the armories of police departments that already look and act like military units. Police SWAT teams are now deployed tens of thousands of times each year, increasingly for routine jobs. Masked, heavily armed police officers in Louisiana raided a nightclub in 2006 as part of a liquor inspection. In Florida in 2010, officers in SWAT gear and with guns drawn carried out raids on barbershops that mostly led only to charges of “barbering without a license.”
Sunday, June 08, 2014
There Are No Shovel Ready Projects
I'm sure the water department could speed up their water infrastructure replacement schedule if they had a few more bucks.
Some projects do involve long planning processes. Replacing water pipes doesn't.
A break in a 36-inch water main spilled water down a North Philly street, damaging at least three properties and creating a large hole in the road while spewing water into the air.
Some projects do involve long planning processes. Replacing water pipes doesn't.
What's It All About Then
Pretty much what you'd expect from the external death penis crowd.
A 60-year-old Collin County woman, who asked not to be identified, said she was driving to a mall in March when she saw men with guns on a State Highway 121 overpass. She did not know they were Open Carry members, and she called Plano police.
Several weeks later, an Open Carry supporter posted her name and phone number on YouTube. She began to receive threatening texts and calls, she said.
“They were calling me names I haven’t heard since I was in middle school,” she said. “They were calling me a whore and all kinds of nasty names. … I think there’s some really crazy, unstable people out there.”
Shorter Frank Bruni
The only way to make up for screwing the millenials in their working years is to make sure to screw them in their retirement years, too.
Not gonna link, you can find it.
Not gonna link, you can find it.
One Thing Is Certain
When cities start being swallowed up, climate change denialists will still be on the teevee giving the other side.
"People right now are having trouble getting their arms around what needs to be done. And no one can fathom what it’s going to cost,” said City Councilwoman Theresa Whibley, who represents many pricey waterfront neighborhoods, including the Hague, where the plan calls for floodgates to block the surging tide.
“When we’re talking about floodgates and building bulkheads, then you’re talking about the big bucks that even the feds don’t have. And then you’re competing with New York, Miami — even Hampton.” Whibley paused. “I don’t sound very optimistic, do I?”
Saturday, June 07, 2014
The Kids Today
I suppose it'd be a lie to say I'm shocked, but my jaw still drops a bit at the number of commenters to this NYT article who are apparently unaware that tuition, in real terms, is more than double what it was 30 years ago. Yes, yes, you graduated college, sucked it up for a couple of years, never ever ever complained, and did ok! How dare the kids today own a dog which, like smartphones, are extreme luxuries!
Crazy Emergency
In April. Increasingly looking like miracle it didn't collapse while in use.
In an interview Friday, Allen said he was headed home from work, driving in the left southbound on I-495 shortly after 5 p.m. He looked left as he crossed the river and noticed the northbound lanes were about a foot higher than his.
"I drive over that bridge every day. I've been doing it for 25 years," Allen says in the 911 recording.
"I just noticed on my way home the median strip is separating, like, about a foot difference between the two jersey barriers, in between the center of the road. I tried to get a hold of DelDOT. That's why I'm so long calling you. I can't get a hold of anybody."
"Economists Are Worried"
If only some of them had recently been in positions of power where they could have made more decisions that helped people.
But in 2012, the New York Fed reported that for the first time in at least a decade, 30-year-old student borrowers were less likely to take out home mortgages than other young people. Among people around 30 years old, homeownership was plunging fastest for student debtors.
Economists are worried. Last month, former Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers said that student loan debt was taking the life out of the housing recovery, and the Nobel laureate Joseph Stiglitz called the rising debt “an educational crisis” that is “affecting our potential future growth.”
Friday, June 06, 2014
Why Is This Important To You
Unless the Supremos squash it all, odds are same sex marriage, or at least recognition of same sex marriage, will be the law of the land everywhere.
Without being too forgiving, I get that people oppose same sex marriage. I get that they might not want their churches to bless it, or that when given the chance they vote against it. I'm not saying I like these people, but, fine, they oppose it. They can do that.
I've just never understood why significant numbers of people actually have intensity on this issue, that they will make sure to vote, and to donate, and to support politicians that have the "right" opinion on it.
I get the anti-choice folks more. I don't think they're very consistent and certainly don't think they should get their way, but, fine, if you really believe an embryo is a "person" I get that abortion might upset you. But the anti-gay rights issues? You care...because?
Without being too forgiving, I get that people oppose same sex marriage. I get that they might not want their churches to bless it, or that when given the chance they vote against it. I'm not saying I like these people, but, fine, they oppose it. They can do that.
I've just never understood why significant numbers of people actually have intensity on this issue, that they will make sure to vote, and to donate, and to support politicians that have the "right" opinion on it.
I get the anti-choice folks more. I don't think they're very consistent and certainly don't think they should get their way, but, fine, if you really believe an embryo is a "person" I get that abortion might upset you. But the anti-gay rights issues? You care...because?
Recent Traditions
The RNC held their convention in NYC in ... 2004.
A Democratic convention in Brooklyn, arguably the most liberal redoubt of one of the country’s most liberal cities, would be a stark departure from the recent tradition of political parties hosting their conventions in swing states like Florida and Colorado, which can be critical to clinching a national campaign.
Just Make It Free
If overnight fare collection is costly and difficult, it probably isn't worth bothering with. Collect the fares at the main stations, and make boarding free everywhere else. It isn't that hard.
Where's My Party Invitation
There is a certain breed of youngish conservatives who seem to be motivated by the fear that somewhere liberals might be having more and better fun than they are. I'm not even claiming we do have more and better fun, but the mocking here seems to be that liberals might have a wide range of interests and things to talk about at a dinner party! hipsters!!!!
Nice Work
What was he really being paid for.
The Globe reported last Sunday that Brown received stock initially worth $1.3 million to join the advisory board of the firm, which has no revenue, no products, no trademarks, no patents, and only a “virtual office.” The stock has since declined by more than half.
Originally founded in 1995 to sell beauty products, Global Digital morphed into a wireless data company before repositioning itself last year as a weapons maker. Accountants who have looked at the company have said it was a risky investment.
Global Digital has announced a series of acquisitions that have not been completed. Among them was an announcement in March that it intended to buy Remington Arms Co. LLC, one of the world’s largest gun manufacturers, for more than $1 billion. That was greeted with derision by Remington and others in the industry. Global Digital has just four employees, and a market value of about $40 million
Morning Thread
Our good friend Echidne is having a fundraiser. If you afford a few sheckles, this would be a good place to spend them. Blogging is hard work and she's been covering stories I avoid like the plague.
She does it so we don't have to.
I only remember afterwards how much writing about something like the Santa Barbara butcher takes out of me. While the writing flows I just channel it, feeling cool, calm and collected (though the research before that stage is another story). But when it's all over, the price must be paid. Thank goddess for migraine medications.
She does it so we don't have to.
Thursday, June 05, 2014
Long Distance Vger
The new X-men movie is pretty good if you like that sort of thing. My bar for superhero movies is pretty low. As long as they're entertaining I'm pretty happy even if they aren't Fine Cinema. Sometimes I like the movies that the comic book nerds (not a pejorative) don't. Hope Stewart and McKellen made big bucks for a week's work!
Skinny Legs In Thrall
It's been a long time since I read a Robbins novel, and I enjoyed them when I did, but this is a pretty good take.
..adding, memory is that Skinny Legs and All is the novel where ratio of interesting observations to smugness is highest.
..adding, memory is that Skinny Legs and All is the novel where ratio of interesting observations to smugness is highest.
Bored Aristocrats
I forget who it was who used that term, I think in reference to Michael Kinsley. I'm not quite sure Mr. Colvin fits this description, but he probably will eventually. It's all just palace intrigue, and none of it, not even mass human suffering, really matters.
The Worst People In The World
I suppose it's healthy that I am still capable of being surprised, but a bit nuts too.
Wednesday, June 04, 2014
Jack Booted Thugs
It's weird how easy it was for people to reconcile "we need guns to protect us from the government thugs" with "cop killer is the worst song ever." Not endorsing killing cops, but the expressed idea in the song that sometimes cop killing might be appropriate, or at least wished, isn't any different from the general rhetoric from white guys with guns that their guns are there to be a defense against government tyranny. Maybe they just should've named the song "BATF AGENT KILLER" or "BLM AGENT KILLER."
Where Should I Put My Dirt?
The story doesn't say just why a contractor might have been dumping dirt there.
DOVER, Del. (AP) — State transportation officials said Wednesday that they believe a contractor is responsible for dumping a massive mound of dirt suspected of shifting the ground underneath an interstate highway bridge and forcing its closure.
Made Man
I never dug that deeply into Geithner's bio, but I certainly had thought before, "how exactly did he become president of the New York Fed?"
He's A Funny Guy
I wonder if the WaPo has an empathy extraction machine positioned at its office building.
I don't believe he felt any of the emotions he claimed to feel, he just wanted to write about the Richard Cohen character, an important role in the Washington Morality Play.
I don't believe he felt any of the emotions he claimed to feel, he just wanted to write about the Richard Cohen character, an important role in the Washington Morality Play.
Great White Father
Won't link to it, but little Tommy Friedman's column today made me want to burn everything down.
It Might Actually Benefit Them
I've been somewhat puzzled by Big Fast Food's continued, if perhaps muted, opposition to minimum wage increases. As with Wal-Mart and other big companies, I'd expect them to support it. Yes, they have to pay their loser workers more, which gives the bosses a sad, but if there are any legitimate concerns for minimum wage hikes like this it's that small local, more mom-n-pop type stores, might be driven out of business. Big companies can reduce costs elsewhere because they have market power that allows them to squeeze suppliers. A minimum wage increase might increase their relative advantage and reduce the competition a bit.
I don't think this is a reason to oppose a minimum wage hike, but I'm surprised big companies don't see it this way.
I don't think this is a reason to oppose a minimum wage hike, but I'm surprised big companies don't see it this way.
Parking Neutral
That it happened is great, but that it took so long and that probably the only way it actually got through was that it didn't reduce neighborhood parking by a single spot is kind of sad.
It isn't that I don't think neighborhood parking concerns are legitimate, it's that I don't think the parking above all crowd usually knows what it's doing. Though it finally changed, for years they loved curb cuts and garages on new development because they had "parking." Of course, they achieved this by by subtracting one public spot to create one private one. Forcing new tenants to purchase/rent spots just attracts the kind of household which will certainly have one - and likely more! - cars. Creating nice pedestrian spaces attracts...pedestrians!
If they knew what they were doing they'd get behind significantly increasing parking permit rates, at least for any household with more than one car. Though, I guess, a lot of these people are in the "4 car household" crowd. The problem.
It isn't that I don't think neighborhood parking concerns are legitimate, it's that I don't think the parking above all crowd usually knows what it's doing. Though it finally changed, for years they loved curb cuts and garages on new development because they had "parking." Of course, they achieved this by by subtracting one public spot to create one private one. Forcing new tenants to purchase/rent spots just attracts the kind of household which will certainly have one - and likely more! - cars. Creating nice pedestrian spaces attracts...pedestrians!
If they knew what they were doing they'd get behind significantly increasing parking permit rates, at least for any household with more than one car. Though, I guess, a lot of these people are in the "4 car household" crowd. The problem.
Tuesday, June 03, 2014
Indefinitely
I-495 bridge is closed indefinitely, though I don't know if that's days or months. It's basically a Wilmington bypass road. I-95 goes through Wilmington (strangely), when the route should probably follow the bypass road instead. I-95 is just weird. It is the main corridor, but it actually should bypass Wilmington and Philly, especially as it sort of ends north of Philadelphia, and is not attached in any way to the other part of I-95 which is most of the New Jersey Turnpike (it doesn't even have a connection to the PA Turnpike, even though they intersect, which has regularly confused travelers over the years).
Exciting
Don't think a bit of scaffolding is quite enough to guarantee that the project is really happening, but hopefully they do bring the Divine Lorraine back from the dead.
Where Am I Supposed To Live?
The weird genre of "gentrifiers against gentrification" is puzzling to me. Essentially it seems that relatively affluent (not rich, necessarily, but not poor) people who recently moved into urban neighborhoods decry the fact that other relatively affluent people are moving into those same neighborhoods.
I'm certainly not for urban policies which encourage displacement of the poor from certain areas, and it's horrible that public services which should be equitably provided tend to follow money, but where exactly am I supposed to be living? How long ago did I have to move here before I'm not a bad gentrifier?
The whole thing is baffling to me.
I'm certainly not for urban policies which encourage displacement of the poor from certain areas, and it's horrible that public services which should be equitably provided tend to follow money, but where exactly am I supposed to be living? How long ago did I have to move here before I'm not a bad gentrifier?
The whole thing is baffling to me.
That Sounds Like A Problem
Bridge engineering obviously isn't my thing, but..
DOVER, Del. (AP) — The emergency closing of an interstate bridge in Delaware because some support columns are tilted could mean major headaches Tuesday for motorists on the heavily traveled Interstate 95 corridor through the Mid-Atlantic region, officials say.
Monday, June 02, 2014
The Worst Person In The World
Matt Miller.
Back in the day we used to joke about "blogger ethics panels" because "real" journalists were obsessed with imposing standards on people who spouted off on the internet that didn't apply anywhere else in the universe. I don't know how many of them were just utterly blind to the conflicts of interest that existed in their worlds, or if they were just full of shit, but it was mildly entertaining.
Back in the day we used to joke about "blogger ethics panels" because "real" journalists were obsessed with imposing standards on people who spouted off on the internet that didn't apply anywhere else in the universe. I don't know how many of them were just utterly blind to the conflicts of interest that existed in their worlds, or if they were just full of shit, but it was mildly entertaining.
Gun Wielding Yahoos
I keep coming back to the obvious issue of...how would these yahoos react if they saw "strange" people carrying guns? Combine this and stand your ground laws and we all have a license to kill each other.
Not Feeding My Optimism
When we're all being driven around by our robot chauffeurs you can point to these posts and laugh, but this article about google cars doesn't make me more optimistic that they will really work. Obviously they do work in some sense, but it seems like the journey from 98% working to 100% working will be a rather difficult one.
Freedum
I'm not entirely sure why these guys wants scream "my penis is tiny" to the world. I guess we all have hobbies.
Sunday, June 01, 2014
Strange Timing
Katz and his business partner had just taken control of the papers from the previous third partner by winning their auction bid.
Lewis Katz, 72, co-owner of The Philadelphia Inquirer, The Daily News and Philly.com, died Saturday night in the crash of a private jet at a Massachusetts airfield.
7 years on
I can't help feeling we would have been much better off if Steve was still blogging all this time. I sure miss that guy.
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