When center-left parties act like center-right parties, their voters don't turn out.
A closer look at the SPD's worst election showing since World War II reveals that the party lost the biggest share of its votes -- around 2.1 million -- because of voters who participated in 2005 but didn't bother going to the polls this time around. The polling firm Infratest dimap reached this conclusion in an analysis conducted on behalf of German public broadcaster ARD. It seems there was deep-seated bitterness among SPD supporters that what was once the party of common people and high expectations had now, together with the CDU, pushed through raising Germany's retirement age from 65 to 67. That insult came on top of a previous injury in the form of the deeply unpopular Hartz IV program of welfare reforms introduced by the SPD under former Chancellor Gerhard Schröder.
A further 1.1 million voters apparently switched allegiance to the Left Party for the same reason, and 860,000 went to the Greens, which are both considered to belong to the left-wing camp in Germany's political landscape. Even more alarming for the SPD, however, are the losses to the opposition. The CDU won over 870,000 voters once loyal to the SPD, and even the FDP grabbed a good half million former SPD votes -- a clear sign that the Social Democrats had, as part of the grand coalition, lost a large part of its political identity. [...]
A look at young voters reveals especially clearly just how drastically the SPD has lost its appeal during four years of the grand coalition. In the past, the SPD was still sexy. Among young voters, the largest segment supported the Social Democrats at the 2005 election. The feeling used to be that if you were young and wanted to make the world better, then you believed in the SPD.
That only served to make the disappointment greater -- both disappointment among young voters at the SPD and disappointment within the SPD at the result. Only 17 percent of voters between the ages of 18 and 24 supported the Social Democrats this time around, 21 percent less than in 2005. Among 25- to 34-year-olds, the party's standing dropped by 16 percent. Instead, young voters went for the CDU. With a 25 percent share of the vote among voters aged between 18 and 24, the Christian Democrats did the best of any party, and hardly any worse than their own results in the last election. [...]
On top of the beating the party took from young and female voters comes the withdrawal of support from another core group -- the working class. The Social Democrats lost 13 percent among blue-collar workers. Among white-collar workers, it was a whopping 16 percent.
But don't expect the Max Baucus Democrats to pay attention any time soon.
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Germany has a racist far right wing party!
That's hardly surprising. What is? Its target: Polish immigration.
Senator Baucus?
Whose side are you on? An ad that should hurt mightily in Montana. It would hurt more if Baucus wasn't up for re-election till 2014.
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Sad
Poor Michael Jackson. Betrayed even by his rabbi. Roger Friedman's punchline is devastating:
And yet, Shmuley is back. He will flog his short, unheralded relationship to Michael Jackson for as long as the public — or TV bookers– can bear it. The real kicker: that his publicist sent out press releases yesterday, on Yom Kippur, offering copies of the book and excerpts. While every other rabbi in the world was praying, Shmuley Boteach was busy marketing Michael Jackson for profit. Buyer beware.
And yet, Shmuley is back. He will flog his short, unheralded relationship to Michael Jackson for as long as the public — or TV bookers– can bear it. The real kicker: that his publicist sent out press releases yesterday, on Yom Kippur, offering copies of the book and excerpts. While every other rabbi in the world was praying, Shmuley Boteach was busy marketing Michael Jackson for profit. Buyer beware.
How do you know you're a superduperstar?
When Newsweek complains that your "36-track double CD" greatest hits set (your third), excluded too many hits. I say the exclusion of the Evita songs is a plus. And though it's hard to figure out the logic of the sequencing (particularly on Disc 2), it's got to be satisfying that the collection starts, credibly, not with "Holiday" but "Hung Up." Good for her.
And although Mariah Carey may hold the title for #1 singles, Madonna's overall statistics are ultimately more impressive.
Madonna is ranked by the Recording Industry Association of America as the best-selling female rock artist of the 20th century and the second top-selling female artist in the United States with 63 million RIAA-certified albums; she has sold over 200 million albums worldwide. In 2007, Guinness World Records listed her as the world's most successful female recording artist of all time....
Madonna has also received acclaim as a role model for businesswomen in her industry, "achieving the kind of financial control that women had long fought for within the industry" generating over $1.2 billion dollars in sales within the first decade of her career.
Wha? Billion? First decade?!
Unlike Mariah or the newly resurgent Crack is Whack Whitney, Madonna's tours are visionary productions. And most important, she enjoys critical respectability. You won't find any anthologies on Mariah any time soon. And while it's true you won't find any on Aretha either, that's because no one has yet found a way to write about her intelligently. None of which is to say that Mariah's bubblegum doesn't have its own honored albeit small place.
According to Rolling Stone, Madonna "remains one of the greatest pop acts of all time".[209] She is also "the world's highest earning female singer on earth". Madonna's 2008 Sticky & Sweet Tour became the highest grossing concert tour by a solo artist. In the United Kingdom, she is the most successful female in the singles chart history and has more number one singles than any other female solo artist. In 2008, she surpassed Elvis Presley as the artist with most top ten hits in the history of Billboard Hot 100. In 2007, Madonna was listed by VH1 as eighth in the Greatest Women of Rock & Roll. On March 10, 2008, she was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
And although Mariah Carey may hold the title for #1 singles, Madonna's overall statistics are ultimately more impressive.
Madonna is ranked by the Recording Industry Association of America as the best-selling female rock artist of the 20th century and the second top-selling female artist in the United States with 63 million RIAA-certified albums; she has sold over 200 million albums worldwide. In 2007, Guinness World Records listed her as the world's most successful female recording artist of all time....
Madonna has also received acclaim as a role model for businesswomen in her industry, "achieving the kind of financial control that women had long fought for within the industry" generating over $1.2 billion dollars in sales within the first decade of her career.
Wha? Billion? First decade?!
Unlike Mariah or the newly resurgent Crack is Whack Whitney, Madonna's tours are visionary productions. And most important, she enjoys critical respectability. You won't find any anthologies on Mariah any time soon. And while it's true you won't find any on Aretha either, that's because no one has yet found a way to write about her intelligently. None of which is to say that Mariah's bubblegum doesn't have its own honored albeit small place.
According to Rolling Stone, Madonna "remains one of the greatest pop acts of all time".[209] She is also "the world's highest earning female singer on earth". Madonna's 2008 Sticky & Sweet Tour became the highest grossing concert tour by a solo artist. In the United Kingdom, she is the most successful female in the singles chart history and has more number one singles than any other female solo artist. In 2008, she surpassed Elvis Presley as the artist with most top ten hits in the history of Billboard Hot 100. In 2007, Madonna was listed by VH1 as eighth in the Greatest Women of Rock & Roll. On March 10, 2008, she was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
The porn police go after the NSF
I don't doubt that the employee downtime, so to speak, costs taxpayers. But probably not as much as the hours wasted by Chuck "I don't want Iowa farmers to have health care" Grassley's congressional staffers and government detectives investigating workplace internet usage. Pathetic all round.
Monday, September 28, 2009
Now that is one hottt mayor
After you get your laughs, there's a lot to unpack here. The pictures were apparently found on the mayor's personal computer by a repairman. How it slipped into other people's hands is a mystery. This country desperately needs federal laws protecting the privacy of computer data. Violators should face federal prosecution. Computers contain far more personal information than, say, video rentals. And yet the latter actually are protected by federal law. Had such laws been in existence, these photos might not have been leaked.
That said, the Democratic mayor supported Republican Ken Blackwell in the governor's race last time around. Blackwell was best known as a Christianist homophobe... and as the secretary of state who assisted his white masters in fixing the 2004 presidential election by disenfranchising African Americans.
With an election looming, I wonder whether the African American community's raging homophobia is what will sink the sexy mayor in the end. Oh no, I said, "in the end!"
And the man has political enemies to spare:
After reading his nine-minute statement, Brewer left the headquarters' parking lot without taking questions. Soon after, Brewer's supporters and detractors began arguing with each other about Brewer's effectiveness as mayor.
Former East Cleveland Mayor Saratha Goggins, whom Brewer defeated four years ago, pulled up to the parking lot and joined the fracas. She, too, said she knew of the pictures for years.
"It's him, alive and well," she told reporters. "Because the guy got demon eyes. You can't put them on a woman."
Chickens coming to roost never did make me sad, they've always made me glad.
That said, the Democratic mayor supported Republican Ken Blackwell in the governor's race last time around. Blackwell was best known as a Christianist homophobe... and as the secretary of state who assisted his white masters in fixing the 2004 presidential election by disenfranchising African Americans.
With an election looming, I wonder whether the African American community's raging homophobia is what will sink the sexy mayor in the end. Oh no, I said, "in the end!"
And the man has political enemies to spare:
After reading his nine-minute statement, Brewer left the headquarters' parking lot without taking questions. Soon after, Brewer's supporters and detractors began arguing with each other about Brewer's effectiveness as mayor.
Former East Cleveland Mayor Saratha Goggins, whom Brewer defeated four years ago, pulled up to the parking lot and joined the fracas. She, too, said she knew of the pictures for years.
"It's him, alive and well," she told reporters. "Because the guy got demon eyes. You can't put them on a woman."
Chickens coming to roost never did make me sad, they've always made me glad.
Right wing Catholics
Republicans first, Americans second, Catholics third. Most Catholic priests around the world (and, increasingly, conservative insiders in the Vatican itself) would laugh at the carefully chosen quotes on blogs like these, but these guys somehow believe that the Pope should take his cues from First Things, Ronald Reagan, Rush and Bill Donohue, about whom South Park still has the last word. Hippitus Hoppitus reus domine.
Polanski arrested
If he had only converted a decade earlier, John Paul II might have given him his own religious order. Shocking developments on the Maciel case via Mexican daily La Jornada:
The litigant, who has as his assistant one Joaquín Aguilar -- a victim of sexual abuse committed by ex-priest Nicholas Aguilar -- said that he is confident that there is sufficient proof to demonstrate that even the late Pope John Paul II, along with the Legion, knew of the existence of Maciel's three other children, now adults, who were legally recognized by their father but whose names will be kept confidential....
[T]he late priest's three children contacted José Bonilla to represent them; after which they furnished him with a series of documents that verify their relationship to Maciel: photographs showing that they had met with John Paul II, all kinds of letters, and recordings of high-level leaders in the Legion of Christ discussing this issue.
A clip from the documentary Vows of Silence here. The question posed about John Paul II in the documentary was "Was he duped or was he at fault?" That question is beginning to be answered. Santo subito!
The litigant, who has as his assistant one Joaquín Aguilar -- a victim of sexual abuse committed by ex-priest Nicholas Aguilar -- said that he is confident that there is sufficient proof to demonstrate that even the late Pope John Paul II, along with the Legion, knew of the existence of Maciel's three other children, now adults, who were legally recognized by their father but whose names will be kept confidential....
[T]he late priest's three children contacted José Bonilla to represent them; after which they furnished him with a series of documents that verify their relationship to Maciel: photographs showing that they had met with John Paul II, all kinds of letters, and recordings of high-level leaders in the Legion of Christ discussing this issue.
A clip from the documentary Vows of Silence here. The question posed about John Paul II in the documentary was "Was he duped or was he at fault?" That question is beginning to be answered. Santo subito!
Coakley, Capuano or Khazei
The founder of City Year is an interesting possibility, but it's remote enough not to worry about. These are pygmies vying for a giant's seat. The bottom line is that Kerry and Kennedy are true progressives. That's pretty hard to say about anyone else in the state's congressional delegation except for Frank, and he isn't running. A sad state of affairs for America's pre-eminent liberal state.
Sunday, September 27, 2009
The definition of class
Silvio, who called Obama "tanned" again, before a worshipful, Germanolombardic crowd. But you have to admire the hubris:
At the weekend rally in Milan, Mr Berlusconi told supporters of his People of Freedom party that his government had scored a number of successes since being elected last year, claiming that he had acted swiftly to tackle the effects of the global economic crisis and ensure that Italy had a more solid banking system than many other countries.
"And we have introduced a new element into Italian politics: morality," said Mr Berlusconi, whose estranged wife, Veronica Lario, 53, has suggested that he is obsessed with chasing glamorous actresses and showgirls young enough to be his grand daughters.
At the weekend rally in Milan, Mr Berlusconi told supporters of his People of Freedom party that his government had scored a number of successes since being elected last year, claiming that he had acted swiftly to tackle the effects of the global economic crisis and ensure that Italy had a more solid banking system than many other countries.
"And we have introduced a new element into Italian politics: morality," said Mr Berlusconi, whose estranged wife, Veronica Lario, 53, has suggested that he is obsessed with chasing glamorous actresses and showgirls young enough to be his grand daughters.
Who would I have voted for in German elections?
Maybe, just maybe, the Pirate Party, which got 2% of the vote.
The party opposes the dismantlement of civil rights in telephony and on the Internet, in particular the European data retention policies and Germany's new Internet censorship law called Zugangserschwerungsgesetz. It also opposes artificial monopolies and various measures of surveillance of citizens.
The party favors the civil right to information privacy and reforms of copyright, education, computer science and genetic patents.
It promotes in particular an enhanced transparency of government by implementing open source governance and providing for APIs to allow for electronic inspection and control of government operations by the citizen.
Yes, it got only 2% of the total vote, but close to 9% of the youth vote. And if younger voters hadn't tuned out the entire election, the Pirate Party could have reached 3%. Sadly, the threshold for parliamentary representation is 5% (and yes, in Germany, that's a mighty good rule to have).
The party opposes the dismantlement of civil rights in telephony and on the Internet, in particular the European data retention policies and Germany's new Internet censorship law called Zugangserschwerungsgesetz. It also opposes artificial monopolies and various measures of surveillance of citizens.
The party favors the civil right to information privacy and reforms of copyright, education, computer science and genetic patents.
It promotes in particular an enhanced transparency of government by implementing open source governance and providing for APIs to allow for electronic inspection and control of government operations by the citizen.
Yes, it got only 2% of the total vote, but close to 9% of the youth vote. And if younger voters hadn't tuned out the entire election, the Pirate Party could have reached 3%. Sadly, the threshold for parliamentary representation is 5% (and yes, in Germany, that's a mighty good rule to have).
Frank Rich
Sidney Lumet's brilliant Network (here's a link to the whole movie [?!]) presaged it: a new world in which the entertainment division oversaw the evening news. Fast forward two decades: Entertainment Tonight and the National Enquirer covered Monicagate far better than most of America's top dailies.
Today the news portion of the half hour evening news is down to about seven minutes, the rest being Dateline-style reports on vegetables that lower cholesterol and that little boy in Kansas who just knew he could.
So what do consensual incest, Mackenzie Phillips, Oprah, Whitney, Tom Delay and cocaine have in common? The hugely detested Alessandra Stanley makes an attempt.
Today the news portion of the half hour evening news is down to about seven minutes, the rest being Dateline-style reports on vegetables that lower cholesterol and that little boy in Kansas who just knew he could.
So what do consensual incest, Mackenzie Phillips, Oprah, Whitney, Tom Delay and cocaine have in common? The hugely detested Alessandra Stanley makes an attempt.
With USB 3.0 about to drop
And now comes word that Apple may have leapfrogged ahead of the competition. Light Peak looks like it could be big.
Light Peak uses optical rather than electrical signaling to achieve an initial throughput of 10Gbps ("you could transfer a full-length Blu-Ray movie in less than 30 seconds" Intel says). That's similar to high-end optical Fibre Channel or HDMI, and ten times faster than Gigibit Ethernet, more than twenty times faster than USB 2.0, and three times faster than eSATA/SATA 300. Within a decade, Intel expects to achieve speeds of 100 Gbps.
Unlike bulky copper cables (like HDMI), Light Peak achieves its speeds over fibre optic strands the size of a human hair. And unlike existing ports focused on solving a specific problem, such as USB for simple peripherals, DisplayPort for video, SATA for disk drives, and Ethernet for networking, Light Peak can handle multiple protocols over a single cable.
Replacing nearly all of the external ports on existing notebooks or mobile devices with Light Peak would enable a new generation of industrial designs without sacrificing features, as the MacBook Air had to do to achieve its thin outline. It would also enable users to run a single cable to an external display to provide video, audio, touch input, and peripheral expansion that included blazing network performance and high speed disk access.
Light Peak uses optical rather than electrical signaling to achieve an initial throughput of 10Gbps ("you could transfer a full-length Blu-Ray movie in less than 30 seconds" Intel says). That's similar to high-end optical Fibre Channel or HDMI, and ten times faster than Gigibit Ethernet, more than twenty times faster than USB 2.0, and three times faster than eSATA/SATA 300. Within a decade, Intel expects to achieve speeds of 100 Gbps.
Unlike bulky copper cables (like HDMI), Light Peak achieves its speeds over fibre optic strands the size of a human hair. And unlike existing ports focused on solving a specific problem, such as USB for simple peripherals, DisplayPort for video, SATA for disk drives, and Ethernet for networking, Light Peak can handle multiple protocols over a single cable.
Replacing nearly all of the external ports on existing notebooks or mobile devices with Light Peak would enable a new generation of industrial designs without sacrificing features, as the MacBook Air had to do to achieve its thin outline. It would also enable users to run a single cable to an external display to provide video, audio, touch input, and peripheral expansion that included blazing network performance and high speed disk access.
CDU+FD coalition appears to have won in Germany
Yet another big setback for the left in Europe. This despite a global downturn that was triggered by banks. Remarkable. If there's a silver lining, it's that Angela Merkel is better than her party, and that Bavaria's troglodytic CSU had its worst showing in 50 years. That should strengthen Chancellor Merkel's hand dealing with the boorish old men in her own party.
Worth noting: it looks like the CDU actually did worse than it did last time around. Angela Merkel's ability to put together a government is predicated on the huge success of the Free Democrats, who seem to have gone from 10% to an astonishing 15%. The FDP has become an essentially a pro-business party with a libertarian sheen, which makes that 50% increase all the more remarkable given last year's history.
Turnout was fell from about 78 to 71 percent. I wonder whether the no shows were predominantly left sympathizers. Or perhaps they were Germans fleein from pablum like this from the Kanzlerin's victory speech:
Ich möchte die Bundeskanzlerin aller Deutschen sein, damit es unserem Land besser geht. ... Unser Anspruch heißt: Wir wollen Volkspartei bleiben, auch im 21. Jahrhundert.
Worth noting: it looks like the CDU actually did worse than it did last time around. Angela Merkel's ability to put together a government is predicated on the huge success of the Free Democrats, who seem to have gone from 10% to an astonishing 15%. The FDP has become an essentially a pro-business party with a libertarian sheen, which makes that 50% increase all the more remarkable given last year's history.
Turnout was fell from about 78 to 71 percent. I wonder whether the no shows were predominantly left sympathizers. Or perhaps they were Germans fleein from pablum like this from the Kanzlerin's victory speech:
Ich möchte die Bundeskanzlerin aller Deutschen sein, damit es unserem Land besser geht. ... Unser Anspruch heißt: Wir wollen Volkspartei bleiben, auch im 21. Jahrhundert.
Saturday, September 26, 2009
Television is safe for now
Jay Leno's Nielsens have been disastrous. Says Nikki Finke at deadline.com:
Yeah, this was a GREAT idea, Jeff Zucker. Once again, just like last season, NBC ranked fourth in primetime Monday, dead last among all the broadcast networks, with a weak 2-hour Heroes premiere that fell 46% from last year's opener. At 10 PM, The Jay Leno Show attracted only 5.7 million viewers, but most importantly fell to 1.8 (for 3rd position, since Fox doesn't program at 10 PM). It had recorded a low of only 2.0 last week during its debut. Nor can NBC save face by boasting about Jay's demographics since he skews older. As I noted at the time, it was ridiculous for NBC to be crowing about Leno's "highest-rated" numbers last week when it was only up against repeats. Facing competition this week, the show folded like a house of cards. Which sums up Zucker's running of the broadcast network, doesn't it? I can't imagine why any advertiser would choose Leno over CSI: Miami at 10 PM. The experiment failed.
Yeah, this was a GREAT idea, Jeff Zucker. Once again, just like last season, NBC ranked fourth in primetime Monday, dead last among all the broadcast networks, with a weak 2-hour Heroes premiere that fell 46% from last year's opener. At 10 PM, The Jay Leno Show attracted only 5.7 million viewers, but most importantly fell to 1.8 (for 3rd position, since Fox doesn't program at 10 PM). It had recorded a low of only 2.0 last week during its debut. Nor can NBC save face by boasting about Jay's demographics since he skews older. As I noted at the time, it was ridiculous for NBC to be crowing about Leno's "highest-rated" numbers last week when it was only up against repeats. Facing competition this week, the show folded like a house of cards. Which sums up Zucker's running of the broadcast network, doesn't it? I can't imagine why any advertiser would choose Leno over CSI: Miami at 10 PM. The experiment failed.
Today's Southern plantation owners
Are today's health insurance companies? Not as farfetched as you might imgine.
An earthquake
Heard throughout the polling world. Nate Silver tests Strategic Vision's results against an expected uniform distribution of trailing digits and makes an astonishing accusation: that the Republican polling outfit has outright invented its results over the last several years.
So Toby Keith, Ray Charles and Willie Nelson were in a room...
With Kris Kristofferson.
The rest is history.
After getting through that story, you deserve to watch what would happen just minutes later.
The rest is history.
After getting through that story, you deserve to watch what would happen just minutes later.
Friday, September 25, 2009
Sly Stone on YouTube
Sly Stone is cool in the 2000's, even when he's incomprehensible, semi-vegetative, on what appears to be oxygen, and sporting a mohawk. And this is how cool he was at the peak of his powers, as is this. One can just imagine a young Prince watching his TV, shaking his head in wonder.
A documentary on the music legend, appropriately enough entitled Higher, is scheduled to be released in 2010. This is a preview.
A documentary on the music legend, appropriately enough entitled Higher, is scheduled to be released in 2010. This is a preview.
Jimmy Ruffin
His brother David was arguably the greatest pure singer who ever recorded for Motown. But Jimmy outlived him. Now residing in London, he is still solid.
Debbie Stabenow
Striking a blow for decency.
Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) argued that insurers must be required to cover basic maternity care. (In several states there are no such requirements.)
"I don't need maternity care," Kyl said. "So requiring that on my insurance policy is something that I don't need and will make the policy more expensive."
Stabenow interrupted: "I think your mom probably did."
Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) argued that insurers must be required to cover basic maternity care. (In several states there are no such requirements.)
"I don't need maternity care," Kyl said. "So requiring that on my insurance policy is something that I don't need and will make the policy more expensive."
Stabenow interrupted: "I think your mom probably did."
If I only had a brain
The estimable Down With Tyranny simply devastating takedown of the Times' Alessandra Stanley.
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Latimer
The new book looks to be the that rarest of creatures: a political memoir that's worth reading. The inside-the-Beltway crowd is agog at the young author's temerity and equally stunned that Cheney and Rumseld weren't targets. Now comes even better news: Latimer is ghostwriting Rummy's memoirs. So a far dishier part two must be in the works. Dick Cheney, an insider among insiders, a man who gamed Washington politics better than anyone in thirty years, is having his revenge in oh, so many ways. Reading these anecdotes, one can almost hear his creepy chuckle. The wily neocon oilman is still on top.
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
An all star video
Against the public option. "Insurance company executives have a right to the American dream," indeed.
Monday, September 21, 2009
Boris Yeltsin
Best president ever. Via TPM, from USA Today's piece on the new Taylor Branch book.
He also relayed how Boris Yeltsin's late-night drinking during a visit to Washington in 1995 nearly created an international incident. The Russian president was staying at Blair House, the government guest quarters. Late at night, Clinton told Branch, Secret Service agents found Yeltsin clad only in his underwear, standing alone on Pennsylvania Avenue and trying to hail a cab. He wanted a pizza, he told them, his words slurring.
The next night, Yeltsin eluded security forces again when he climbed down back stairs to the Blair House basement. A building guard took Yeltsin for a drunken intruder until Russian and U.S. agents arrived on the scene and rescued him.
He also relayed how Boris Yeltsin's late-night drinking during a visit to Washington in 1995 nearly created an international incident. The Russian president was staying at Blair House, the government guest quarters. Late at night, Clinton told Branch, Secret Service agents found Yeltsin clad only in his underwear, standing alone on Pennsylvania Avenue and trying to hail a cab. He wanted a pizza, he told them, his words slurring.
The next night, Yeltsin eluded security forces again when he climbed down back stairs to the Blair House basement. A building guard took Yeltsin for a drunken intruder until Russian and U.S. agents arrived on the scene and rescued him.
Sunday, September 20, 2009
Last words
Not the famous kind. Reader G. points us to this collection, from Texas death row inmates.
Say what you will about Mariah Carey
But these statistics are staggering.
[On] April 2, 2008, "Touch My Body", her first single from the album, became Carey's eighteenth number-one single on the Hot 100, pushing her past Elvis Presley into second place for the most number-one singles among all artists in the rock era, according to Billboard magazine's revised methodology. Carey is now second only to The Beatles, who have twenty number-one singles.
Carey's singles have collectively topped the charts for seventy-nine weeks, which places her just behind Presley, who topped the charts for a combined eighty weeks. [...]
She is ranked as the best-selling female artist of the U.S. Nielsen SoundScan era (third-best-selling artist overall),[9] with shipments of over 62.5 million albums in the U.S. and has sold more than 200 million albums worldwide.
[On] April 2, 2008, "Touch My Body", her first single from the album, became Carey's eighteenth number-one single on the Hot 100, pushing her past Elvis Presley into second place for the most number-one singles among all artists in the rock era, according to Billboard magazine's revised methodology. Carey is now second only to The Beatles, who have twenty number-one singles.
Carey's singles have collectively topped the charts for seventy-nine weeks, which places her just behind Presley, who topped the charts for a combined eighty weeks. [...]
She is ranked as the best-selling female artist of the U.S. Nielsen SoundScan era (third-best-selling artist overall),[9] with shipments of over 62.5 million albums in the U.S. and has sold more than 200 million albums worldwide.
Saturday, September 19, 2009
What people are talking about
At the World Economic Forum in Asia:
Martin Wolf, chief economics commentator for the Financial Times, struck an even more alarmist note, saying there is a one-in-three chance of an all-out crisis for the U.S. dollar.
“The US is going to default through inflation,” he declared, likening the prospect to President Richard Nixon’s decision in 1971 to unilaterally pull out of the Bretton Woods system of fixed exchange rates, which some analysts argue was a de facto default on U.S. debts.
“The Chinese will find it was indeed a very serious mistake to put all these assets into US reserves,” Wolf said, referring to the massive store of U.S. Treasury bonds in China’s foreign reserves.
But Wolf added that the Chinese had partly themselves to blame for the situation.
“Nobody asked China to accumulate these reserves. Nobody asked them to pursue the exchange rate policy that led them to accumulate these reserves. On the contrary, they’ve constantly been asked to stop it.”
Oki Matsumoto, chief executive of financial services company Monex Group Japan, mounted a defense of the dollar, noting that though the U.S. only accounts for around a third of the global economy, it represents 60% of global financial assets. “You can’t change that in a day. It takes time,” he said.
But Matsumoto also agreed with a suggestion by CNBC moderator Geoff Cutmore that part of the dollar’s strength is due to its status as the main currency for black-market transactions. “You can’t buy weapons, for example, by using SDRs,” Matsumoto said.
At the closing of the panel, Cutmore polled the audience, asking how many had changed their view on the outlook for the Chinese yuan against the dollar based on what they heard. Very few hands were raised. Cutmore then asked who in the audience had made up their minds over the course of the discussion to invest in gold, and a large number of hands went up.
“God help us then,” Cutmore said, ending the session.
Martin Wolf, chief economics commentator for the Financial Times, struck an even more alarmist note, saying there is a one-in-three chance of an all-out crisis for the U.S. dollar.
“The US is going to default through inflation,” he declared, likening the prospect to President Richard Nixon’s decision in 1971 to unilaterally pull out of the Bretton Woods system of fixed exchange rates, which some analysts argue was a de facto default on U.S. debts.
“The Chinese will find it was indeed a very serious mistake to put all these assets into US reserves,” Wolf said, referring to the massive store of U.S. Treasury bonds in China’s foreign reserves.
But Wolf added that the Chinese had partly themselves to blame for the situation.
“Nobody asked China to accumulate these reserves. Nobody asked them to pursue the exchange rate policy that led them to accumulate these reserves. On the contrary, they’ve constantly been asked to stop it.”
Oki Matsumoto, chief executive of financial services company Monex Group Japan, mounted a defense of the dollar, noting that though the U.S. only accounts for around a third of the global economy, it represents 60% of global financial assets. “You can’t change that in a day. It takes time,” he said.
But Matsumoto also agreed with a suggestion by CNBC moderator Geoff Cutmore that part of the dollar’s strength is due to its status as the main currency for black-market transactions. “You can’t buy weapons, for example, by using SDRs,” Matsumoto said.
At the closing of the panel, Cutmore polled the audience, asking how many had changed their view on the outlook for the Chinese yuan against the dollar based on what they heard. Very few hands were raised. Cutmore then asked who in the audience had made up their minds over the course of the discussion to invest in gold, and a large number of hands went up.
“God help us then,” Cutmore said, ending the session.
Friday, September 18, 2009
Is Obama trying to kill immigration reform?
This would surely galvanize Republican opposition to it:
President Obama said this week that his health care plan won't cover illegal immigrants, but argued that's all the more reason to legalize them and ensure they eventually do get coverage.
He also staked out a position that anyone in the country legally should be covered - a major break with the 1996 welfare reform bill, which limited most federal public assistance programs only to citizens and longtime immigrants.
"Even though I do not believe we can extend coverage to those who are here illegally, I also don't simply believe we can simply ignore the fact that our immigration system is broken," Mr. Obama said Wednesday evening in a speech to the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute. "That's why I strongly support making sure folks who are here legally have access to affordable, quality health insurance under this plan, just like everybody else.
Mr. Obama added, "If anything, this debate underscores the necessity of passing comprehensive immigration reform and resolving the issue of 12 million undocumented people living and working in this country once and for all."
Senator Lincoln must have blanched, but she'll probably be voted out of office in 2010 regardless.
A nasty, racist fight over immigration reform with a resurgent GOP in 2011 could be very helpful to Obama's re-election efforts, particularly given how key the Southwest will be for him.
President Obama said this week that his health care plan won't cover illegal immigrants, but argued that's all the more reason to legalize them and ensure they eventually do get coverage.
He also staked out a position that anyone in the country legally should be covered - a major break with the 1996 welfare reform bill, which limited most federal public assistance programs only to citizens and longtime immigrants.
"Even though I do not believe we can extend coverage to those who are here illegally, I also don't simply believe we can simply ignore the fact that our immigration system is broken," Mr. Obama said Wednesday evening in a speech to the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute. "That's why I strongly support making sure folks who are here legally have access to affordable, quality health insurance under this plan, just like everybody else.
Mr. Obama added, "If anything, this debate underscores the necessity of passing comprehensive immigration reform and resolving the issue of 12 million undocumented people living and working in this country once and for all."
Senator Lincoln must have blanched, but she'll probably be voted out of office in 2010 regardless.
A nasty, racist fight over immigration reform with a resurgent GOP in 2011 could be very helpful to Obama's re-election efforts, particularly given how key the Southwest will be for him.
Still more Glenn Beck controversy
This story is not going away, folks. Meanwhile, a rumor debunker was himself debunked.
China’s growth rate: 14.9%
In the second quarter. The rate in the United States? One percent.
[W]ith more economic planning than the United States, China has been able to disburse its stimulus much faster, turning it into new rail lines and highways.
China’s finance ministry announced in late June that half the $173 billion in central government spending had already been allocated to specific projects. The White House said in early July that a quarter of the spending authority and tax cuts in the $789 billion American stimulus had been allocated or used.
But even more key to China’s recovery, economists say, are two other government efforts that are paying big dividends: looser lending and export supports.
The state-controlled banking system here — which breezed through the global financial crisis with minimal losses as American financial institutions reeled — unleashed $1.2 trillion in extra lending to Chinese consumers and businesses in the first seven months of this year. That money is financing everything from a boom in car sales, up 82 percent in August from a year earlier, to frenzied factory construction.
Beijing also has given huge tax breaks and other assistance to exporters. They include placing broad restrictions on imports and intervening heavily in currency markets to hold down the value of the renminbi, to keep Chinese exports competitive even in a weakened global economy.
Every single one of those ideas belongs to the hard left in the United States. As usual, the continual need to placate Republicans has done enormous damage to our economy.
[W]ith more economic planning than the United States, China has been able to disburse its stimulus much faster, turning it into new rail lines and highways.
China’s finance ministry announced in late June that half the $173 billion in central government spending had already been allocated to specific projects. The White House said in early July that a quarter of the spending authority and tax cuts in the $789 billion American stimulus had been allocated or used.
But even more key to China’s recovery, economists say, are two other government efforts that are paying big dividends: looser lending and export supports.
The state-controlled banking system here — which breezed through the global financial crisis with minimal losses as American financial institutions reeled — unleashed $1.2 trillion in extra lending to Chinese consumers and businesses in the first seven months of this year. That money is financing everything from a boom in car sales, up 82 percent in August from a year earlier, to frenzied factory construction.
Beijing also has given huge tax breaks and other assistance to exporters. They include placing broad restrictions on imports and intervening heavily in currency markets to hold down the value of the renminbi, to keep Chinese exports competitive even in a weakened global economy.
Every single one of those ideas belongs to the hard left in the United States. As usual, the continual need to placate Republicans has done enormous damage to our economy.
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Hooray for Sonia
Going, along with Ruth Bader Ginsburg, where the Court ought to.
During arguments in a campaign-finance case, the court's majority conservatives seemed persuaded that corporations have broad First Amendment rights and that recent precedents upholding limits on corporate political spending should be overruled.
But Justice Sotomayor suggested the majority might have it all wrong -- and that instead the court should reconsider the 19th century rulings that first afforded corporations the same rights flesh-and-blood people have.
Judges "created corporations as persons, gave birth to corporations as persons," she said. "There could be an argument made that that was the court's error to start with...[imbuing] a creature of state law with human characteristics." [...]
Even conservatives sometimes have been skeptical of corporate rights. Then-Associate Justice William Rehnquist dissented in 1979 from a decision voiding Massachusetts's restriction of corporate political spending on referendums. Since corporations receive special legal and tax benefits, "it might reasonably be concluded that those properties, so beneficial in the economic sphere, pose special dangers in the political sphere," he wrote.
On today's court, the direction Justice Sotomayor suggested is unlikely to prevail. During arguments, the court's conservative justices seem to view corporate political spending as beneficial to the democratic process. "Corporations have lots of knowledge about environment, transportation issues, and you are silencing them during the election," Justice Anthony Kennedy said during arguments last week.
But Justice Sotomayor may have found a like mind in Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. "A corporation, after all, is not endowed by its creator with inalienable rights," Justice Ginsburg said, evoking the Declaration of Independence.
During arguments in a campaign-finance case, the court's majority conservatives seemed persuaded that corporations have broad First Amendment rights and that recent precedents upholding limits on corporate political spending should be overruled.
But Justice Sotomayor suggested the majority might have it all wrong -- and that instead the court should reconsider the 19th century rulings that first afforded corporations the same rights flesh-and-blood people have.
Judges "created corporations as persons, gave birth to corporations as persons," she said. "There could be an argument made that that was the court's error to start with...[imbuing] a creature of state law with human characteristics." [...]
Even conservatives sometimes have been skeptical of corporate rights. Then-Associate Justice William Rehnquist dissented in 1979 from a decision voiding Massachusetts's restriction of corporate political spending on referendums. Since corporations receive special legal and tax benefits, "it might reasonably be concluded that those properties, so beneficial in the economic sphere, pose special dangers in the political sphere," he wrote.
On today's court, the direction Justice Sotomayor suggested is unlikely to prevail. During arguments, the court's conservative justices seem to view corporate political spending as beneficial to the democratic process. "Corporations have lots of knowledge about environment, transportation issues, and you are silencing them during the election," Justice Anthony Kennedy said during arguments last week.
But Justice Sotomayor may have found a like mind in Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. "A corporation, after all, is not endowed by its creator with inalienable rights," Justice Ginsburg said, evoking the Declaration of Independence.
And via Ta-Nehisi Coates...
Tom Schaller in the Times on South Carolina.
Thomas Jefferson removed condemnations of slavery from the Declaration of Independence to appease South Carolinian slaveholders. State loyalists helped the British recapture the state in 1780 from the patriots. By 1828, state icon and Vice President John C. Calhoun was advocating state “nullification” of federal powers.
In 1860, South Carolina became the first state to secede — and even threatened to secede from the Confederacy because the other southern states refused to re-open the slave trade. In 1856, on the Senate floor Congressman Preston Brooks bloodied an abolitionist senator with a cane.
Well into the 20th century, South Carolina’s black citizens observed the Fourth of July mostly alone; the vast majority of whites preferred instead to celebrate Confederate Memorial Day. In 1920, the state legislature rejected the women’s suffrage amendment, finally ratifying it a half century later.
That is deep.
The rest of the United States, and the world, would be better off if the Southern states were made independent. They could celebrate Confederate Day or whatever else, and the rest of us won't have to subsidize their military bases and corrupt, racist state governments. They could fight their own wars in the Middle East or wherever else, which we could be separate from. We could share a currency, but at least the more decent parts of the country would no longer have to cater to their elected officials. And as our politics slowly became more civilized over half a century or so, maybe oil-rich Canada might consider joining up with us, thus civilizing our politics even more.
Thomas Jefferson removed condemnations of slavery from the Declaration of Independence to appease South Carolinian slaveholders. State loyalists helped the British recapture the state in 1780 from the patriots. By 1828, state icon and Vice President John C. Calhoun was advocating state “nullification” of federal powers.
In 1860, South Carolina became the first state to secede — and even threatened to secede from the Confederacy because the other southern states refused to re-open the slave trade. In 1856, on the Senate floor Congressman Preston Brooks bloodied an abolitionist senator with a cane.
Well into the 20th century, South Carolina’s black citizens observed the Fourth of July mostly alone; the vast majority of whites preferred instead to celebrate Confederate Memorial Day. In 1920, the state legislature rejected the women’s suffrage amendment, finally ratifying it a half century later.
That is deep.
The rest of the United States, and the world, would be better off if the Southern states were made independent. They could celebrate Confederate Day or whatever else, and the rest of us won't have to subsidize their military bases and corrupt, racist state governments. They could fight their own wars in the Middle East or wherever else, which we could be separate from. We could share a currency, but at least the more decent parts of the country would no longer have to cater to their elected officials. And as our politics slowly became more civilized over half a century or so, maybe oil-rich Canada might consider joining up with us, thus civilizing our politics even more.
Thank you, Ta-Nehisi Coates
The best piece about David Brooks, ever, from one of the three must-read blogs over at the Atlantic.
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
No wonder Republicans are bringing guns
They think God wants him gone:
My home state of New Jersey is one crazy place, according to the new survey of the state by Public Policy Polling (D)....
[O]ne out of every three New Jersey conservatives think that Obama could be the anti-Christ. To be precise, 18% of self-identified conservatives affirmatively say that Obama is the anti-Christ, with 17% not sure. Among the self-identified Republican label, it's 14% who say Obama has the number 666 hidden underneath his hair, plus 15% who aren't sure.
But oh it gets even worse on some other questions -- among both the right and the left.
It turns out that 33% of New Jersey Republicans say that Obama was not born in the United States, plus 19% in the Birther-Curious undecided category.
My home state of New Jersey is one crazy place, according to the new survey of the state by Public Policy Polling (D)....
[O]ne out of every three New Jersey conservatives think that Obama could be the anti-Christ. To be precise, 18% of self-identified conservatives affirmatively say that Obama is the anti-Christ, with 17% not sure. Among the self-identified Republican label, it's 14% who say Obama has the number 666 hidden underneath his hair, plus 15% who aren't sure.
But oh it gets even worse on some other questions -- among both the right and the left.
It turns out that 33% of New Jersey Republicans say that Obama was not born in the United States, plus 19% in the Birther-Curious undecided category.
A terrific read
An excerpt from what looks like the first readable, entertaining, dishy book about life at the White House during the Bush Administration.
Thank you, Jimmy Carter
For For telling the truth about the teabaggers, and the racism that underlies their activities.
Key quotes:
"I think an overwhelming portion of the intensely demonstrated animosity toward President Barack Obama is based on the fact that he is a black man, that he's African American," Carter said. "I live in the South, and I've seen the South come a long way, and I've seen the rest of the country that shared the South's attitude toward minority groups at that time, particularly African Americans"
Continued Carter, who is famously from Georgia: "And that racism inclination still exists. And I think it's bubbled up to the surface because of the belief among many white people, not just in the South but around the country, that African-Americans are not qualified to lead this great country. It's an abominable circumstance, and it grieves me and concerns me very deeply."
Carter made the remarks in Atlanta. He was interviewed in connection with his 85th birthday; the network plans to air more from the interview later.
The 39th president also predicted that Obama will be able to "triumph over the racist attitude that is the basis for the negative environment that we see so vividly demonstrated in public affairs in recent days."
Key quotes:
"I think an overwhelming portion of the intensely demonstrated animosity toward President Barack Obama is based on the fact that he is a black man, that he's African American," Carter said. "I live in the South, and I've seen the South come a long way, and I've seen the rest of the country that shared the South's attitude toward minority groups at that time, particularly African Americans"
Continued Carter, who is famously from Georgia: "And that racism inclination still exists. And I think it's bubbled up to the surface because of the belief among many white people, not just in the South but around the country, that African-Americans are not qualified to lead this great country. It's an abominable circumstance, and it grieves me and concerns me very deeply."
Carter made the remarks in Atlanta. He was interviewed in connection with his 85th birthday; the network plans to air more from the interview later.
The 39th president also predicted that Obama will be able to "triumph over the racist attitude that is the basis for the negative environment that we see so vividly demonstrated in public affairs in recent days."
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Hard to believe
Buju Banton is a Jamaican singer who is better known in America as a gaybasher than artist. So it's kind of hard to believe that his tour through New England continues, unimpeded. Maybe it's time to protest.
Don't miss the lyrics in question. More info at the Cancel Buju site.
Don't miss the lyrics in question. More info at the Cancel Buju site.
The President's health care rally in Minneapolis
A man who was just released from jail on assault charges brought two handguns to it. He wasn't arrested.
It is a felony for anyone convicted of assault (even misdemeanor assault) to possess a firearm in Minnesota. [...]
Thanks to our fabulous Tim Pawlenty, Minnesota has been a conceal-carry state since 2003, which basically requires a county sheriff to issue a permit to carry a concealed handgun, with certain exceptions.
Hendrickson has a concealed carry permit. However, according to the conceal-carry law (MN statute 624.714), the sheriff is not required to issue a permit if the person is prohibited from carrying a firearm under other Minnesota statutes, including MN statute 624.713. And that law prohibits anyone from carrying a firearm in Minnesota if they have ever been convicted of a violent crime. (Minnesota statute 624.712 defines violent crime to include all forms of assault.)
Furthermore, according to 624.713,
Now here's the interesting thing: Hendrickson was stopped on the street by Minneapolis police, and by the Secret Service, and questioned, at the rally on Saturday. But he was not arrested.
It is a felony for anyone convicted of assault (even misdemeanor assault) to possess a firearm in Minnesota. [...]
Thanks to our fabulous Tim Pawlenty, Minnesota has been a conceal-carry state since 2003, which basically requires a county sheriff to issue a permit to carry a concealed handgun, with certain exceptions.
Hendrickson has a concealed carry permit. However, according to the conceal-carry law (MN statute 624.714), the sheriff is not required to issue a permit if the person is prohibited from carrying a firearm under other Minnesota statutes, including MN statute 624.713. And that law prohibits anyone from carrying a firearm in Minnesota if they have ever been convicted of a violent crime. (Minnesota statute 624.712 defines violent crime to include all forms of assault.)
Furthermore, according to 624.713,
A person named in subdivision 1, clause (2) [i.e., has committed a violent crime], who possesses any type of firearm is guilty of a felony and may be sentenced to imprisonment for not more than 15 years or to payment of a fine of not more than $30,000, or both.
Now here's the interesting thing: Hendrickson was stopped on the street by Minneapolis police, and by the Secret Service, and questioned, at the rally on Saturday. But he was not arrested.
"I whupped Gary Bauer's ass in 2000.""
What George W. Bush thought of movement conservatives. His disdain for them only makes his hypocrisy and all-round sliminess that much greater.
Monday, September 14, 2009
Sometimes
It doesn't pay to miss Oprah.
After years of silence, Whitney Houston finally revealed the drama, drugs and disrespect that defined her relationship with ex-husband Bobby Brown in an interview with Oprah Winfrey.
"He spit on me," Houston told Winfrey. "He spit on me. He actually spit on me. And my daughter was coming down the stairs and she saw that."
The first of her highly publicized, two-part tell-all airs today on the 24th season premiere of "The Oprah Winfrey Show." Houston hasn't done a major TV interview since 2002, when she talked to ABC's Diane Sawyer.
"I took the phone and I hit him over the head with it," Houston said. [...]
Emotional abuse, according to Houston, ran rampant. While Brown and Houston launched into a "passionate, loving ... crazy relationship" soon after meeting in 1989 and marrying in 1992, as her career exploded with the film and soundtrack for "The Bodyguard," he started acting out, she said. They eventually separated in 2006 and divorced the following year.
"I think somewhere inside, something happens to a man, when a woman has that much control," she told Winfrey. [...]
She also shed light on their actual substance abuse issues: marijuana laced with cocaine was their substance of choice, and they "would have ounces" of cocaine available at all times.
"You put [cocaine] in your marijuana, you lace it, you smoke it," she told Winfrey.
Video: here and here.
After years of silence, Whitney Houston finally revealed the drama, drugs and disrespect that defined her relationship with ex-husband Bobby Brown in an interview with Oprah Winfrey.
"He spit on me," Houston told Winfrey. "He spit on me. He actually spit on me. And my daughter was coming down the stairs and she saw that."
The first of her highly publicized, two-part tell-all airs today on the 24th season premiere of "The Oprah Winfrey Show." Houston hasn't done a major TV interview since 2002, when she talked to ABC's Diane Sawyer.
"I took the phone and I hit him over the head with it," Houston said. [...]
Emotional abuse, according to Houston, ran rampant. While Brown and Houston launched into a "passionate, loving ... crazy relationship" soon after meeting in 1989 and marrying in 1992, as her career exploded with the film and soundtrack for "The Bodyguard," he started acting out, she said. They eventually separated in 2006 and divorced the following year.
"I think somewhere inside, something happens to a man, when a woman has that much control," she told Winfrey. [...]
She also shed light on their actual substance abuse issues: marijuana laced with cocaine was their substance of choice, and they "would have ounces" of cocaine available at all times.
"You put [cocaine] in your marijuana, you lace it, you smoke it," she told Winfrey.
Video: here and here.
Obama: Kanye a "Jackass"
True, albeit a rather talented one. And let's not forget: he wasn't as wrong in interrupting the acceptance speech as he was right in saying George W. Bush didn't care about black people.
Finally, ABC News screwed up majorly by tweeting a section of an interview that was off the record. Very, very uncool.
Finally, ABC News screwed up majorly by tweeting a section of an interview that was off the record. Very, very uncool.
I guess it's only not OK
When Serena does it:
The usually unflappable Federer argued with chair umpire Jake Garner during a changeover, using a profanity and saying, "Don't tell me to be quiet, OK? When I want to talk, I talk."
UPDATE: A more accurate quote:
In an uncharacteristic display, Federer argued with chair umpire Jake Garner during a changeover in the U.S. Open final Monday. He said his opponent, Juan Martin del Potro, was given too much time to challenge a line call.
"I wasn't allowed to challenge after 2 seconds. The guy takes, like, 10," Federer said.
Then the 15-time major champion used a profanity in addressing Garner: "Don't tell me to be quiet, OK? When I want to talk, I talk. I don't give a ... what he said."
CBS microphones picked up the exchange during its live broadcast of the match.
"It's regrettable, of course," CBS spokeswoman LeslieAnne Wade said. "But it's a part of the live coverage of sports events."
The usually unflappable Federer argued with chair umpire Jake Garner during a changeover, using a profanity and saying, "Don't tell me to be quiet, OK? When I want to talk, I talk."
UPDATE: A more accurate quote:
In an uncharacteristic display, Federer argued with chair umpire Jake Garner during a changeover in the U.S. Open final Monday. He said his opponent, Juan Martin del Potro, was given too much time to challenge a line call.
"I wasn't allowed to challenge after 2 seconds. The guy takes, like, 10," Federer said.
Then the 15-time major champion used a profanity in addressing Garner: "Don't tell me to be quiet, OK? When I want to talk, I talk. I don't give a ... what he said."
CBS microphones picked up the exchange during its live broadcast of the match.
"It's regrettable, of course," CBS spokeswoman LeslieAnne Wade said. "But it's a part of the live coverage of sports events."
Making an ass out of you and me
It always seems safe to assume Federer will win if he's playing a final against someone not named Rafael Nadal. Go figure. He's behind in the fifth set right now at Flushing Meadows against 6'6 Juan Martín del Potro of Argentina.
UPDATE: Del Potro wins. Not even old enough to drink in New York, the giant tears up thanking the three people in his friends' box. He's lucky he had the chance (6:15); at least twice, creaky old Dick Enberg ignored the well raised champion's mild requests to say a few words in Spanish. The nice people at Lexus, after all, had to give him a car. The U.S. Open is the only grand slam event in which the awards ceremony is ruined by some corporate idiot giving the player a check. And then we wonder why the rest of the world thinks America has no class.
UPDATE: Del Potro wins. Not even old enough to drink in New York, the giant tears up thanking the three people in his friends' box. He's lucky he had the chance (6:15); at least twice, creaky old Dick Enberg ignored the well raised champion's mild requests to say a few words in Spanish. The nice people at Lexus, after all, had to give him a car. The U.S. Open is the only grand slam event in which the awards ceremony is ruined by some corporate idiot giving the player a check. And then we wonder why the rest of the world thinks America has no class.
Still more teabag parade posters
Hardly surprisng at this stage. This is what the GOP has become: the party of the Confederacy, plus its northern enablers.
Il Mulino in Greenwich Village
Focusing on the cuisine of the Abruzzi region, Il Mulino is among New York’s very best Italian restaurants. There’s no big secret here, just the best ingredients (veal and shellfish are standouts) prepared with gutsy, garlicky, spicy sauces. Il Mulino is Old World in every way, from the solicitous but somewhat gruff service to the unfortunately cavalier attitude towards reservations (the phone is rarely answered and dinner reservations are typically honored late). Pace yourself, lest you fill up on the free snacks that arrive before the meal.
Lunchtime for two presidents.
Lunchtime for two presidents.
Sunday, September 13, 2009
Journey or Barry Manilow?
I went with Journey, but it's arguable. Barry Manilow is winning a closely contested vote. As for George Michael vs. Abba, I was more or less indifferent. To my shock, Abba is losing. Big. Then there's Britney vs. Backstreet. It's kind of unfair to pit two Max Martin creations against one another, but I went with Britney. Another Shock: Backstreet is ahead. Phish vs. Ace of Base: this seems to be the weakest quarterfinal matchup. Again, indifferent. No surprise here: Phish's obsessed, bearded, unwashed fans bombarded Entertainment Weekly to create the most lopsided victory of the four matchups.
Already out of contention: Neil Diamond (lost to Barry), Hall and Oates (Journey), Meat Loaf (Backstreet), Mariah Carey (Phish), Phil Collins (a first round loser to George Michael), and Celine Dion (a shocking loss to Ace of Base after a first round victory over Will Smith).
Already out of contention: Neil Diamond (lost to Barry), Hall and Oates (Journey), Meat Loaf (Backstreet), Mariah Carey (Phish), Phil Collins (a first round loser to George Michael), and Celine Dion (a shocking loss to Ace of Base after a first round victory over Will Smith).
Finally, a decent Michael Jackson tribute
Madonna's words at the opening of the MTV VIdeo Music Awards.
UPDATE: A brief but excellent summary of the evening from, of all places, the New York Times.
UPDATE #2: Video.
UPDATE: A brief but excellent summary of the evening from, of all places, the New York Times.
UPDATE #2: Video.
Republican Catholic conference
Asks Rick Santorum to run for President. If you don't know who he is, just Google him!
Speaking to a room full of prominent US Catholic leaders Friday night, Senator Rick Santorum was challenged to run for the Republican Presidential nominaion. Responding to a room already thick with applause, Santorum revealed that he was indeed "thinking about it" but asked for prayers and detailed his thinking on the matter.
His remarks came after his address to the closing dinner of the 12th annual Catholic Leadership Conference - an invite-only gathering of Catholic leaders from academia, law, media, medicine, and politics, as well as leaders of movements within the Church such as pro-life, pro-family and evangelization. Posing the challenge was long-time legal, political, and media activist Keith Fournier.
Fortunately for everyone, Iowa is tied for 26th among states with the highest percentage of Catholics. Within the the huge Christianist subset of GOP caucusgoers, the percentage may be even lower... particularly if Huckabee and Palin are in the mix. Just ask Sam Brownback.
Speaking to a room full of prominent US Catholic leaders Friday night, Senator Rick Santorum was challenged to run for the Republican Presidential nominaion. Responding to a room already thick with applause, Santorum revealed that he was indeed "thinking about it" but asked for prayers and detailed his thinking on the matter.
His remarks came after his address to the closing dinner of the 12th annual Catholic Leadership Conference - an invite-only gathering of Catholic leaders from academia, law, media, medicine, and politics, as well as leaders of movements within the Church such as pro-life, pro-family and evangelization. Posing the challenge was long-time legal, political, and media activist Keith Fournier.
Fortunately for everyone, Iowa is tied for 26th among states with the highest percentage of Catholics. Within the the huge Christianist subset of GOP caucusgoers, the percentage may be even lower... particularly if Huckabee and Palin are in the mix. Just ask Sam Brownback.
Banned in America
A film on Darwin fails to find a U.S. distributor because it is deemed "too controversial for the American audience."
More Serena
By Tennis' Tom Perrotta:
Williams had every right to be angry, because this was an awful, foolish, atrocious, silly call. Clijsters had played so well, so intelligently, and she didn't need any help earning a match point. The small crowd assembled inside Arthur Ashe Stadium endured a day of rain, as did fans watching on television at home. Lots of money—and a lot more pride—was on the line, and as replays showed, this was hardly an egregious foot fault, if it was even a foot fault at all. There's a difference between being a conscientious official and being officious, and this lineswoman certainly crossed that line. She inserted herself into a match that should have been decided—frankly, that was moments away from being decided—by two first-rate athletes. People pay to see athletes, not a lineswoman.
When Williams and the officials convened at the net, there was a suggestion that Williams had said she would kill the lineswoman. Williams looked stunned by the accusation and those words were not audible in replays I watched. Was she angry? You bet. Was she threatening? That's a loaded word, and one that needs to be used carefully. Does anyone really believe that Williams would actually shove a ball down a lineswoman's throat? I don't. I can understand how the woman was a bit nervous at the time, and certainly embarrassed. But threatened? Sorry, I can't see it. This was still a tennis match, not a heavyweight fight.
Williams had every right to be angry, because this was an awful, foolish, atrocious, silly call. Clijsters had played so well, so intelligently, and she didn't need any help earning a match point. The small crowd assembled inside Arthur Ashe Stadium endured a day of rain, as did fans watching on television at home. Lots of money—and a lot more pride—was on the line, and as replays showed, this was hardly an egregious foot fault, if it was even a foot fault at all. There's a difference between being a conscientious official and being officious, and this lineswoman certainly crossed that line. She inserted herself into a match that should have been decided—frankly, that was moments away from being decided—by two first-rate athletes. People pay to see athletes, not a lineswoman.
When Williams and the officials convened at the net, there was a suggestion that Williams had said she would kill the lineswoman. Williams looked stunned by the accusation and those words were not audible in replays I watched. Was she angry? You bet. Was she threatening? That's a loaded word, and one that needs to be used carefully. Does anyone really believe that Williams would actually shove a ball down a lineswoman's throat? I don't. I can understand how the woman was a bit nervous at the time, and certainly embarrassed. But threatened? Sorry, I can't see it. This was still a tennis match, not a heavyweight fight.
The craziest night game in tennis history
Serena did cuss out the lineswoman. But it's not even clear that Serena foot faulted. They should have replayed the second serve and penalized her for unsportsmanlike conduct, taking the game to 15-40. She would, odds are, have lost match point on second serve, (though she has pulled out of worse situations many, many times).
What happened instead was a disaster in every way for a lily white sport, most of whose American fans were probably cheering the white Belgian (who by all accounts is a sweetheart) over their own countrywoman, the #1 female player in the world.
This was the second time in their careers that Williams and Clijsters had been involved in a controversial match. Williams met Clijsters in the 2001 final of a tournament in Indian Wells, Calif. The crowd booed Williams and cheered Clijsters heartily, in apparent response to what had transpired in the semifinal; Venus Williams had defaulted because of an injury right before the sisters were to go on court. Williams has said that she heard some fans yell racial epithets.
Williams won that match in three sets. But she and her sister Venus have not played in Indian Wells since.
What happened instead was a disaster in every way for a lily white sport, most of whose American fans were probably cheering the white Belgian (who by all accounts is a sweetheart) over their own countrywoman, the #1 female player in the world.
This was the second time in their careers that Williams and Clijsters had been involved in a controversial match. Williams met Clijsters in the 2001 final of a tournament in Indian Wells, Calif. The crowd booed Williams and cheered Clijsters heartily, in apparent response to what had transpired in the semifinal; Venus Williams had defaulted because of an injury right before the sisters were to go on court. Williams has said that she heard some fans yell racial epithets.
Williams won that match in three sets. But she and her sister Venus have not played in Indian Wells since.
It's an all star cast
Justin Timberlake, Susan Sarandon, Andy Samberg, and Patricia Clarkson. The resultant Mother's Day tribute? Perhaps not what you might have expected.
"You lie, boy!"
Maureen Dowd on the party of the Confederacy.
The congressman, we learned, belonged to the Sons of Confederate Veterans, led a 2000 campaign to keep the Confederate flag waving above South Carolina’s state Capitol and denounced as a “smear” the true claim of a black woman that she was the daughter of Strom Thurmond, the ’48 segregationist candidate for president. Wilson clearly did not like being lectured and even rebuked by the brainy black president presiding over the majestic chamber.
I’ve been loath to admit that the shrieking lunacy of the summer — the frantic efforts to paint our first black president as the Other, a foreigner, socialist, fascist, Marxist, racist, Commie, Nazi; a cad who would snuff old people; a snake who would indoctrinate kids — had much to do with race.
I tended to agree with some Obama advisers that Democratic presidents typically have provoked a frothing response from paranoids — from Father Coughlin against F.D.R. to Joe McCarthy against Truman to the John Birchers against J.F.K. and the vast right-wing conspiracy against Bill Clinton.
But Wilson’s shocking disrespect for the office of the president — no Democrat ever shouted “liar” at W. when he was hawking a fake case for war in Iraq — convinced me: Some people just can’t believe a black man is president and will never accept it. [...]
Barry Obama of the post-’60s Hawaiian ’hood did not live through the major racial struggles in American history. Maybe he had a problem relating to his white basketball coach or catching a cab in New York, but he never got beaten up for being black.
Now he’s at the center of a period of racial turbulence sparked by his ascension. Even if he and the coterie of white male advisers around him don’t choose to openly acknowledge it, this president is the ultimate civil rights figure — a black man whose legitimacy is constantly challenged by a loco fringe.
For two centuries, the South has feared a takeover by blacks or the feds. In Obama, they have both. [...]
A good many people in South Carolina really reject the notion that we’re part of the union,” said Don Fowler, the former Democratic Party chief who teaches politics at the University of South Carolina. He observed that when slavery was destroyed by outside forces and segregation was undone by civil rights leaders and Congress, it bred xenophobia. [...]
It may be President Obama’s very air of elegance and erudition that raises hackles in some. “My father used to say to me, ‘Boy, don’t get above your raising,’ ” Fowler said. “Some people are prejudiced anyway, and then they look at his education and mannerisms and get more angry at him.”
Clyburn had a warning for Obama advisers who want to forgive Wilson, ignore the ignorant outbursts and move on: “They’re going to have to develop ways in this White House to deal with things and not let them fester out there. Otherwise, they’ll see numbers moving in the wrong direction.”
The congressman, we learned, belonged to the Sons of Confederate Veterans, led a 2000 campaign to keep the Confederate flag waving above South Carolina’s state Capitol and denounced as a “smear” the true claim of a black woman that she was the daughter of Strom Thurmond, the ’48 segregationist candidate for president. Wilson clearly did not like being lectured and even rebuked by the brainy black president presiding over the majestic chamber.
I’ve been loath to admit that the shrieking lunacy of the summer — the frantic efforts to paint our first black president as the Other, a foreigner, socialist, fascist, Marxist, racist, Commie, Nazi; a cad who would snuff old people; a snake who would indoctrinate kids — had much to do with race.
I tended to agree with some Obama advisers that Democratic presidents typically have provoked a frothing response from paranoids — from Father Coughlin against F.D.R. to Joe McCarthy against Truman to the John Birchers against J.F.K. and the vast right-wing conspiracy against Bill Clinton.
But Wilson’s shocking disrespect for the office of the president — no Democrat ever shouted “liar” at W. when he was hawking a fake case for war in Iraq — convinced me: Some people just can’t believe a black man is president and will never accept it. [...]
Barry Obama of the post-’60s Hawaiian ’hood did not live through the major racial struggles in American history. Maybe he had a problem relating to his white basketball coach or catching a cab in New York, but he never got beaten up for being black.
Now he’s at the center of a period of racial turbulence sparked by his ascension. Even if he and the coterie of white male advisers around him don’t choose to openly acknowledge it, this president is the ultimate civil rights figure — a black man whose legitimacy is constantly challenged by a loco fringe.
For two centuries, the South has feared a takeover by blacks or the feds. In Obama, they have both. [...]
A good many people in South Carolina really reject the notion that we’re part of the union,” said Don Fowler, the former Democratic Party chief who teaches politics at the University of South Carolina. He observed that when slavery was destroyed by outside forces and segregation was undone by civil rights leaders and Congress, it bred xenophobia. [...]
It may be President Obama’s very air of elegance and erudition that raises hackles in some. “My father used to say to me, ‘Boy, don’t get above your raising,’ ” Fowler said. “Some people are prejudiced anyway, and then they look at his education and mannerisms and get more angry at him.”
Clyburn had a warning for Obama advisers who want to forgive Wilson, ignore the ignorant outbursts and move on: “They’re going to have to develop ways in this White House to deal with things and not let them fester out there. Otherwise, they’ll see numbers moving in the wrong direction.”
Saturday, September 12, 2009
"A dangerous kind of hate"
The Washington Post's Colbert King on Republicans who pray for the death of the President.
Anderson is not the only man of the cloth to wish widowhood upon Michelle Obama. In June, the Rev. Wiley Drake of First Southern Baptist Church in Buena Park, Calif., said he was praying for the president's death.
Anderson, however, was explicit in his wish. "I'd like him to die of natural causes. I don't want him to be a martyr; we don't need another holiday. I'd like to see him die, like Ted Kennedy, of brain cancer." [...]
There's something loose in the land, an ugliness and hatred directed toward Barack Obama, the nation's first African American president, that takes the breath away. The thread of resentment is woven through conservative commentary, right-wing radio and cable TV shows, all the way to Capitol Hill. [...]
The day after Anderson's "I Hate Barack Obama" sermon, Chris Broughton, a member of Anderson's congregation, appeared at Obama's speech in Arizona with an AR-15 and a pistol -- not to harm the president, Broughton said, but to exercise his constitutional right to have weapons.
Then there are the walking time bombs. [...]
Okay, now let me have it: "King, you're generalizing, making a big story out of small, isolated examples. People like Anderson, Broughton and Drake, and shooters Poplawski and Sodini, are kooks, representing no one but themselves. Most people who oppose Obama don't want him dead. They wish him and his family no physical harm." I won't argue with that.
What I will say, however, is that a lot of malicious words have been thrown around about Obama since his election: words that inflame and that inspire the kind of hatred spewed from those two Arizona and California pulpits.
Right-wing ranters don't regard the president as a political opponent. Barack Obama, in their minds, is the enemy. He is, to them, dangerous and harmful to the country.
Do the Andersons and Drakes have a right to say they hate Obama and want him to die? Yes. Did Poplawski and Sodini have a right to trash the "liberal" press and expound their racist views? You bet.
Still, the depth of the hostility is extraordinary.
From a right-wing talk show host who opposed allowing students to see the president's education speech: "Make September 8 Parentally Approved Skip Day. You are your child's moral tutor, not that shady lawyer from Chicago." And from a parent's e-mail to a Florida TV station's Web site: "This is exactly how Hitler rose to power in Germany, by preaching to those most vulnerable members of society."
Smears? Paranoia? It's all sweet music to the ears of Lee Harvey Oswald wannabes.
If the president of the United States ever needed heartfelt prayers, it's now.
Anderson is not the only man of the cloth to wish widowhood upon Michelle Obama. In June, the Rev. Wiley Drake of First Southern Baptist Church in Buena Park, Calif., said he was praying for the president's death.
Anderson, however, was explicit in his wish. "I'd like him to die of natural causes. I don't want him to be a martyr; we don't need another holiday. I'd like to see him die, like Ted Kennedy, of brain cancer." [...]
There's something loose in the land, an ugliness and hatred directed toward Barack Obama, the nation's first African American president, that takes the breath away. The thread of resentment is woven through conservative commentary, right-wing radio and cable TV shows, all the way to Capitol Hill. [...]
The day after Anderson's "I Hate Barack Obama" sermon, Chris Broughton, a member of Anderson's congregation, appeared at Obama's speech in Arizona with an AR-15 and a pistol -- not to harm the president, Broughton said, but to exercise his constitutional right to have weapons.
Then there are the walking time bombs. [...]
Okay, now let me have it: "King, you're generalizing, making a big story out of small, isolated examples. People like Anderson, Broughton and Drake, and shooters Poplawski and Sodini, are kooks, representing no one but themselves. Most people who oppose Obama don't want him dead. They wish him and his family no physical harm." I won't argue with that.
What I will say, however, is that a lot of malicious words have been thrown around about Obama since his election: words that inflame and that inspire the kind of hatred spewed from those two Arizona and California pulpits.
Right-wing ranters don't regard the president as a political opponent. Barack Obama, in their minds, is the enemy. He is, to them, dangerous and harmful to the country.
Do the Andersons and Drakes have a right to say they hate Obama and want him to die? Yes. Did Poplawski and Sodini have a right to trash the "liberal" press and expound their racist views? You bet.
Still, the depth of the hostility is extraordinary.
From a right-wing talk show host who opposed allowing students to see the president's education speech: "Make September 8 Parentally Approved Skip Day. You are your child's moral tutor, not that shady lawyer from Chicago." And from a parent's e-mail to a Florida TV station's Web site: "This is exactly how Hitler rose to power in Germany, by preaching to those most vulnerable members of society."
Smears? Paranoia? It's all sweet music to the ears of Lee Harvey Oswald wannabes.
If the president of the United States ever needed heartfelt prayers, it's now.
The Newt Gingrich Porn and Free Enterprise Award
His 527 group has just named Allison Vivas of Pink Media Entrepreneur of the Year.
What a President can do
The results of a focus group run by a respectable Democratic pollster explain why and just how Obama's speech was a game changer.
Obama may be a brilliant speaker, but it's worth remembering that Axelrod isn't a pollster but a marketer. Looks like the President's right hand man struck gold.
Obama may be a brilliant speaker, but it's worth remembering that Axelrod isn't a pollster but a marketer. Looks like the President's right hand man struck gold.
Anti-abortion activist murdered
By a pro-choicer who got irritated at the signs the victim displayed "all week."
The GOP has made an alliance with groups like Operation Rescue, which inspired the murder of a doctor just months ago. Pro-lifers are pleased at the chilling effect this has had on abortion providers in this country.
The omnipresence of guns and the politician approved homicide of doctors is already a sign of a pretty sick society. And it was only a matter of time for turnabout, as Glenn Beck seems to be learning.
Given its approval of Operation Rescue's use of these tactics, the GOP ought to be comfortable with the chilling effect this murder might have on members of Operation Rescue. Maybe it's time to use Bush-era data collection and surveillance laws, never repealed, against domestic terrorists of all stripes.
The GOP has made an alliance with groups like Operation Rescue, which inspired the murder of a doctor just months ago. Pro-lifers are pleased at the chilling effect this has had on abortion providers in this country.
The omnipresence of guns and the politician approved homicide of doctors is already a sign of a pretty sick society. And it was only a matter of time for turnabout, as Glenn Beck seems to be learning.
Given its approval of Operation Rescue's use of these tactics, the GOP ought to be comfortable with the chilling effect this murder might have on members of Operation Rescue. Maybe it's time to use Bush-era data collection and surveillance laws, never repealed, against domestic terrorists of all stripes.
Friday, September 11, 2009
Reprimand for Joe Wilson
I would have tended to agree with Nancy Pelosi that it wasn't worth it. But the disingenuousness of the congressman raising money off his insult to the President while pretending to have apologized is a problem. At the very least, a second public apology in the well of the House would make his hypocrisy manifest and cut down on his fundraising.
Meanwhile, shouldn't the retired National Guard colonel have his military benefits rescinded? Surely he won't miss the government run healthcare he benefits from every day.
Meanwhile, shouldn't the retired National Guard colonel have his military benefits rescinded? Surely he won't miss the government run healthcare he benefits from every day.
Shocking rumors about Glenn Beck
Details here.
UPDATE 1: More shocking evidence. Beck so far has not been able to produce a police report falsifying the claim, something which this website was able to do quite easily.
The crimes are very serious, and many sites are now writing about them. If they were to be proven, Glenn Beck would have to go away for a long time. Let us hope for his and the Republican Party's sake that they are false.
UPDATE #2: This is no longer a rumor, folks: The case is going to court. A very important part of the case may end up being the website, glennbeckrapedandmurderedayounggirlin1990.com.
UPDATE #3: It's important for everyone to remember that Glenn Beck is INNOCENT until proven guilty. True, he may want to take your civil rights away, especially if you aren't white. But still, he is entitled to them.. Let us not rush to judgment here. Let us permit the law to take its course.
UPDATE: #4: Beck has retained counsel in this matter.
UPDATE #5: This just looks worse and worse. A police report has been posted.
UPDATE 1: More shocking evidence. Beck so far has not been able to produce a police report falsifying the claim, something which this website was able to do quite easily.
The crimes are very serious, and many sites are now writing about them. If they were to be proven, Glenn Beck would have to go away for a long time. Let us hope for his and the Republican Party's sake that they are false.
UPDATE #2: This is no longer a rumor, folks: The case is going to court. A very important part of the case may end up being the website, glennbeckrapedandmurderedayounggirlin1990.com.
UPDATE #3: It's important for everyone to remember that Glenn Beck is INNOCENT until proven guilty. True, he may want to take your civil rights away, especially if you aren't white. But still, he is entitled to them.. Let us not rush to judgment here. Let us permit the law to take its course.
UPDATE: #4: Beck has retained counsel in this matter.
UPDATE #5: This just looks worse and worse. A police report has been posted.
Melanie Oudin
Did anyone write stories like these about the Williams sisters when they were 17 and far more successful? I wonder.
A commenter
Ron King at southernstudies.org on Joe Wilson's white supremacist ties.
I am poor and disabled. I got no insurance and not much hope. all this & I live in texas. must of pisssed somebody off somewhere. a local elected official told me the world would end all cuz obama was elected. they ain't gonna be happy til our president is dead. it's hate feedin' on hate. it's all they seem to know as far as Dem's and especially where our president is concerned. I am going to give a little money to joe wilson's opponent. Best way to deal with trash like this is to throw it out.
I am poor and disabled. I got no insurance and not much hope. all this & I live in texas. must of pisssed somebody off somewhere. a local elected official told me the world would end all cuz obama was elected. they ain't gonna be happy til our president is dead. it's hate feedin' on hate. it's all they seem to know as far as Dem's and especially where our president is concerned. I am going to give a little money to joe wilson's opponent. Best way to deal with trash like this is to throw it out.
Joe Wilson
Getting health care passed is a lot more important. But since Joe Wilson is actually a pretty accurate reflection of what the GOP actually represents in the Deep South, here's a bit more about his other political affiliations. It should go without saying that an aspiring politician wouldn't join these groups if it wasn't politically advantageous to do so.
This is an organization that, as the SPLC has detailed assiduously, has been taken over in the past decade by radical neo-Confederates who favor secession and defend slavery as a benign institution. Leading the takeover is a radical racist named Kirk Lyons, who's been an important legal figure on the far right for some years. [...]
Now, add this to the fact that Joe Wilson, as a state legislator, was one of only seven Republicans to go against their own party and vote to keep the Dixie Rebel flag flying over the South Carolina capitol.
Joe also has been a member of the Columbia World Affairs Council, Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Sinclair Lodge 154, Jamil Temple, Woodmen of the World, Sons of Confederate Veterans, ....
This is an organization that, as the SPLC has detailed assiduously, has been taken over in the past decade by radical neo-Confederates who favor secession and defend slavery as a benign institution. Leading the takeover is a radical racist named Kirk Lyons, who's been an important legal figure on the far right for some years. [...]
Now, add this to the fact that Joe Wilson, as a state legislator, was one of only seven Republicans to go against their own party and vote to keep the Dixie Rebel flag flying over the South Carolina capitol.
Caster Semenya: hermaphrodite
Or, as Gambling 911 says ever so tastefully about the South African runner, "She's a man, baby!"
The early word
Is that the speech may have caused significant movement in the President's approval rating. Let's hope the trend sticks.
Thatcher to Gorby, 1989
Keep East Germany!
[Thatcher:] The reunification of Germany is not in the interests of Britain and Western Europe. It might look different from public pronouncements, in official communiqué at Nato meetings, but it is not worth paying ones attention to it. We do not want a united Germany. This would have led to a change to post-war borders and we can not allow that because such development would undermine the stability of the whole international situation and could endanger our security.
In the same way, a destabilisation of Eastern Europe and breakdown of the Warsaw Pact are also not in our interests. Of course, internal changes are happening in all Eastern European countries, somewhere they are deeper than in others. However, we would prefer if those processes were entirely internal, we would not interfere in them or push the de-communisation of Eastern Europe. I can say that the President of the United States is of the same position. He sent me a telegram to Tokyo in which he asked me directly to tell you that the United States would not do anything that might put at risk the security of the Soviet Union or perceived by the Soviet society as danger. I am fulfilling his request.
[Thatcher:] The reunification of Germany is not in the interests of Britain and Western Europe. It might look different from public pronouncements, in official communiqué at Nato meetings, but it is not worth paying ones attention to it. We do not want a united Germany. This would have led to a change to post-war borders and we can not allow that because such development would undermine the stability of the whole international situation and could endanger our security.
In the same way, a destabilisation of Eastern Europe and breakdown of the Warsaw Pact are also not in our interests. Of course, internal changes are happening in all Eastern European countries, somewhere they are deeper than in others. However, we would prefer if those processes were entirely internal, we would not interfere in them or push the de-communisation of Eastern Europe. I can say that the President of the United States is of the same position. He sent me a telegram to Tokyo in which he asked me directly to tell you that the United States would not do anything that might put at risk the security of the Soviet Union or perceived by the Soviet society as danger. I am fulfilling his request.
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Camille Paglia
Stops watching TV, tuning, instead into talk radio. Exposed only to the thought of the radical fringe, it's hardly a surprise to hear her wondering at the isolation of the left. If only she understood politics, public opinion and public policy as well as she does Christine McVie.
Diaper-clad senator coasting to re-election
Key fact: New Orleans' population is 25% smaller. Which is a reminder of just how huge a gift Katrina was to the GOP.
Southerners don't like health care reform
Could we write in an opt-out provision? States that don't want to participate can opt out. As this blog never tires in pointing out, the Confederacy is comprised of the poorest states in the union; some of them already take in nearly two dollars in federal aid for every dollar they pay in taxes. California, on the other hand, receives just 80 cents or so for every dollar it pays. How about restoring some fairness? Let's let the South opt out of medicare and health care reform. State and property taxes could be lowered in the more civilized parts of the country, and everyone would have access to health care.
Eugene Robinson
Yup:
One of President Obama’s goals in his speech Wednesday night – unacknowledged, perhaps, but central – must have been to make the intransigient Republican opposition to health-care reform look rude, petty, disingenuous, counterproductive and fundamentally dishonest. My verdict: Mission accomplished, thanks to lots of Republican help.
One of President Obama’s goals in his speech Wednesday night – unacknowledged, perhaps, but central – must have been to make the intransigient Republican opposition to health-care reform look rude, petty, disingenuous, counterproductive and fundamentally dishonest. My verdict: Mission accomplished, thanks to lots of Republican help.
The R-word
Richard Cohen finally raises the issue of racism among Republican members of the U.S. House of Representatives.
But when the fringe starts pushing into the center, then attention must be paid. In general, the Republicans in the House treated Obama disrespectfully, and some of them treated him with contempt. When opposition to a piece of legislation turns swiftly into disdain for the man -- when policy becomes personal -- a columnist is permitted to wonder why. He is permitted, furthermore, to wonder if some of Obama’s more hateful critics are not expressing a repressed bigotry -- the feeling that the man up on the dais cannot really be the president of the United States. After all, he does not look like one.
It would be an awful thing if genuine criticism was labeled racist and therefore muffled. But the disrespect shown Obama seems so disproportionate to the issue -- health-care reform -- that I just have to wonder. Wilson later apologized for his outburst, but he cannot take it back. It was, as has been said of another incident, a teachable moment. I hope he and other Republicans learn from it.
But when the fringe starts pushing into the center, then attention must be paid. In general, the Republicans in the House treated Obama disrespectfully, and some of them treated him with contempt. When opposition to a piece of legislation turns swiftly into disdain for the man -- when policy becomes personal -- a columnist is permitted to wonder why. He is permitted, furthermore, to wonder if some of Obama’s more hateful critics are not expressing a repressed bigotry -- the feeling that the man up on the dais cannot really be the president of the United States. After all, he does not look like one.
It would be an awful thing if genuine criticism was labeled racist and therefore muffled. But the disrespect shown Obama seems so disproportionate to the issue -- health-care reform -- that I just have to wonder. Wilson later apologized for his outburst, but he cannot take it back. It was, as has been said of another incident, a teachable moment. I hope he and other Republicans learn from it.
Another thought on last night
Obama now becomes a real threat to the GOP. That will inflame the rage of the party's gun toting terrorist supporters, making them an even greater threat to him.
Krugman on the public option
Note the third point:
But what is one to make of the practical, political argument from the likes of Ezra Klein, who argue that any public plan actually included in legislation probably wouldn’t make that much difference, and that reform is worth having even without such a plan?
There are three reasons to be suspicious of that argument.
The first is that I suspect that Ezra and others understate the extent to which even a public plan with limited bargaining power will help hold down overall costs. Private insurers do pay providers more than Medicare does — but that’s only part of the reason Medicare has lower costs. There’s also the huge overhead of the private insurers, much of which involves marketing and attempts to cherry-pick clients — and even with community rating, some of that will still go on. A public plan would probably be able to attract clients with much less of that.
Second, a public plan would probably provide the only real competition in many markets.
Third — and this is where I am getting a very bad feeling about the idea of throwing in the towel on the public option — is the politics. Remember, to make reform work we have to have an individual mandate. And everything I see says that there will be a major backlash against the idea of forcing people to buy insurance from the existing companies. That backlash was part of what got Obama the nomination! Having the public option offers a defense against that backlash.
What worries me is not so much that the backlash would stop reform from passing, as that it would store up trouble for the not-too-distant future. Imagine that reform passes, but that premiums shoot up (or even keep rising at the rates of the past decade.) Then you could all too easily have many people blaming Obama et al for forcing them into this increasingly unaffordable system. A trigger might fix this — but the funny thing about such triggers is that they almost never get pulled.
Let me add a sort of larger point: aside from the essentially circular political arguments — centrist Democrats insisting that the public option must be dropped to get the votes of centrist Democrats — the argument against the public option boils down to the fact that it’s bad because it is, horrors, a government program. And sooner or later Democrats have to take a stand against Reaganism — against the presumption that if the government does it, it’s bad.
But what is one to make of the practical, political argument from the likes of Ezra Klein, who argue that any public plan actually included in legislation probably wouldn’t make that much difference, and that reform is worth having even without such a plan?
There are three reasons to be suspicious of that argument.
The first is that I suspect that Ezra and others understate the extent to which even a public plan with limited bargaining power will help hold down overall costs. Private insurers do pay providers more than Medicare does — but that’s only part of the reason Medicare has lower costs. There’s also the huge overhead of the private insurers, much of which involves marketing and attempts to cherry-pick clients — and even with community rating, some of that will still go on. A public plan would probably be able to attract clients with much less of that.
Second, a public plan would probably provide the only real competition in many markets.
Third — and this is where I am getting a very bad feeling about the idea of throwing in the towel on the public option — is the politics. Remember, to make reform work we have to have an individual mandate. And everything I see says that there will be a major backlash against the idea of forcing people to buy insurance from the existing companies. That backlash was part of what got Obama the nomination! Having the public option offers a defense against that backlash.
What worries me is not so much that the backlash would stop reform from passing, as that it would store up trouble for the not-too-distant future. Imagine that reform passes, but that premiums shoot up (or even keep rising at the rates of the past decade.) Then you could all too easily have many people blaming Obama et al for forcing them into this increasingly unaffordable system. A trigger might fix this — but the funny thing about such triggers is that they almost never get pulled.
Let me add a sort of larger point: aside from the essentially circular political arguments — centrist Democrats insisting that the public option must be dropped to get the votes of centrist Democrats — the argument against the public option boils down to the fact that it’s bad because it is, horrors, a government program. And sooner or later Democrats have to take a stand against Reaganism — against the presumption that if the government does it, it’s bad.
Ewwww
The GOP family values Assemblyman's comments on the live mic... unexpurgated. Not for the fainthearted.
21 million saw the President
On the three networks. That's less than a tenth of the population, though no doubt a greater part of the voting population. Fox did not carry it. The numbers will increase substantially with cable viewership. I suspect, in the end, that they won't compare to Obama's first press conference, which drew nearly 50 million viewers.
Heidi DeJong Barsuglia
The young energy lobbyist denies the ol' spank and screw with the now former California GOP assemblyman (he resigned just hours ago). There's a picture of her too, in case you are interested.
Even more striking: her company, Sempra Energy has also issued a statement.
Even more striking: her company, Sempra Energy has also issued a statement.
Senator Facus' committee writeup
This bears very, very close watching.
Here’s where Maggie Mahar comes in. In her Health Beat blog yesterday, Mahar probed what she called “a gift to the for-profit insurance companies.” Turns out that Baucus and committee would require companies to insure even the very sickest, but would allow them to charge rates that are five times higher if they are older. For weeks, we have been noting that age rating is a proxy for medical underwriting, and that insurers would get their pound of flesh one way or another.
Mahar points out that the Baucus plan will not require people to have coverage if they can’t afford it and don’t qualify for subsidies. Massachusetts does the same thing under its health reform law. Fine—no penalty. But what about coverage for all those people in their fifties and early sixties, who need insurance at a time when ailments tend to surface? Most likely a good number won’t buy it because it’s too pricey.
Here’s where Maggie Mahar comes in. In her Health Beat blog yesterday, Mahar probed what she called “a gift to the for-profit insurance companies.” Turns out that Baucus and committee would require companies to insure even the very sickest, but would allow them to charge rates that are five times higher if they are older. For weeks, we have been noting that age rating is a proxy for medical underwriting, and that insurers would get their pound of flesh one way or another.
Mahar points out that the Baucus plan will not require people to have coverage if they can’t afford it and don’t qualify for subsidies. Massachusetts does the same thing under its health reform law. Fine—no penalty. But what about coverage for all those people in their fifties and early sixties, who need insurance at a time when ailments tend to surface? Most likely a good number won’t buy it because it’s too pricey.
Some final thoughts
1. The President had to rebrand health care reform. I think this speech went a long ways towards that goal, leaving Republicans with fewer talking points. All I heard most of them say was that it cost too much.
2. He tackled the Mediscare tactics head on by saying that the program was safe. Not only is it safe but the infamous donut hole will be removed, an important yet virtually unknown fact. He could have emphasized it a bit more, given how much he has hemorrhaged among white seniors. Also, and this bears very frequent repeating, it's pretty ironic to hear Republicans pretending to protect Medicare when they tried to get rid of portions of it only months ago.
3. He has almost certainly united the base of the Democratic Party behind him, if not his plan. That means progressive Democrats will find it a lot harder to vote against a version that doesn't include a public option.
4. He explained, to some degree, what reform could mean for Americans who are already insured.
5. His has reclaimed his position as the reasonable center of American politics, while still giving progressive Democrats a smidgen of substanceless red meat that will still please them. That is hard to do.
6. He remained positive and centrist. He reinforced his own brand just at the moment when a lot of people, including myself, would have gone angry, populist and scapegoating. That may not result in the best bill, but it might result in a bill. And that, in the end, is what presidents are judged on.
7. It is possible now, for the first time. to imagine a very different 2010 scenario. Democrats can run against Republicans for opposing the bill that removed the donut hole for seniors, for voting against removing pre-existing conditions. If Obama gets his bill, the electoral climate may change in a big way. And because power trumps the truth on K Street, Wall Street and in the mainstream media, the success may spiral upwards into more ambitious legislation. Now, that may be improbable. But if you asked me five hours ago, I would have said it was impossible.
Tonight, Barack Obama became a president. Let's hope this new version is here to stay.
2. He tackled the Mediscare tactics head on by saying that the program was safe. Not only is it safe but the infamous donut hole will be removed, an important yet virtually unknown fact. He could have emphasized it a bit more, given how much he has hemorrhaged among white seniors. Also, and this bears very frequent repeating, it's pretty ironic to hear Republicans pretending to protect Medicare when they tried to get rid of portions of it only months ago.
3. He has almost certainly united the base of the Democratic Party behind him, if not his plan. That means progressive Democrats will find it a lot harder to vote against a version that doesn't include a public option.
4. He explained, to some degree, what reform could mean for Americans who are already insured.
5. His has reclaimed his position as the reasonable center of American politics, while still giving progressive Democrats a smidgen of substanceless red meat that will still please them. That is hard to do.
6. He remained positive and centrist. He reinforced his own brand just at the moment when a lot of people, including myself, would have gone angry, populist and scapegoating. That may not result in the best bill, but it might result in a bill. And that, in the end, is what presidents are judged on.
7. It is possible now, for the first time. to imagine a very different 2010 scenario. Democrats can run against Republicans for opposing the bill that removed the donut hole for seniors, for voting against removing pre-existing conditions. If Obama gets his bill, the electoral climate may change in a big way. And because power trumps the truth on K Street, Wall Street and in the mainstream media, the success may spiral upwards into more ambitious legislation. Now, that may be improbable. But if you asked me five hours ago, I would have said it was impossible.
Tonight, Barack Obama became a president. Let's hope this new version is here to stay.
Wednesday, September 09, 2009
The bizarre Asian skin whitener market
Finally, a backlash. Closer to home, Michael Jackson presumably ended their appeal forever.
Road to 60 senators
And to 2012. A list of the guests in the First Lady's box tonight. Key states for 2012: Indiana, Colorado, Wisconsin. Key states for 60 votes on health care: Arkansas, Maine, North Dakota.
Andrew Sullivan
On tonight's speech:
8.43 pm. His description of the public option - that it can provide more efficient treatment because it doesn't need to make large profits and because it will have less overhead - is the best framing I've heard.
9 pm. Am I the only one to find these final themes very Catholic?
9.02 pm. This is Burke and Smith:
It is a defense of limited but strong government. It is not anti-conservative.
9:04 pm: A masterful speech, somehow a blend of governance and also campaigning. He has Clinton's mastery of policy detail with Bush's under-rated ability to give a great speech. But above all, it is a reprise of the core reason for his candidacy and presidency: to get past the abstractions of ideology and the easy scorn of the cable circus and the cynicism that has thereby infected this country's ability to tackle pressing problems. This was why he was elected, and we should not be swayed by the old Washington and the old ideologies and the old politics. He stands at the center urging a small shift to more government because the times demand it.
And he makes sense. And this was not a cautious speech; it was a reasoned but courageous speech. He has put his presidency on the line for this. And that is a hard thing to do.
8.43 pm. His description of the public option - that it can provide more efficient treatment because it doesn't need to make large profits and because it will have less overhead - is the best framing I've heard.
9 pm. Am I the only one to find these final themes very Catholic?
9.02 pm. This is Burke and Smith:
[Our predecessors] knew that when any government measure, no matter how carefully crafted or beneficial, is subject to scorn; when any efforts to help people in need are attacked as un-American; when facts and reason are thrown overboard and only timidity passes for wisdom, and we can no longer even engage in a civil conversation with each other over the things that truly matter – that at that point we don’t merely lose our capacity to solve big challenges. We lose something essential about ourselves.
It is a defense of limited but strong government. It is not anti-conservative.
9:04 pm: A masterful speech, somehow a blend of governance and also campaigning. He has Clinton's mastery of policy detail with Bush's under-rated ability to give a great speech. But above all, it is a reprise of the core reason for his candidacy and presidency: to get past the abstractions of ideology and the easy scorn of the cable circus and the cynicism that has thereby infected this country's ability to tackle pressing problems. This was why he was elected, and we should not be swayed by the old Washington and the old ideologies and the old politics. He stands at the center urging a small shift to more government because the times demand it.
And he makes sense. And this was not a cautious speech; it was a reasoned but courageous speech. He has put his presidency on the line for this. And that is a hard thing to do.
CNN instapoll
Before speech: 53% approved of the President's plan, 36% opposed.
After speech: 67% favor, 29% oppose.
A necessary caveat about self-selection: Fox viewers probably watched cartoons instead.
After speech: 67% favor, 29% oppose.
A necessary caveat about self-selection: Fox viewers probably watched cartoons instead.
E.J. Dionne
As for Republicans, there was an invitation to share credit for a historic reform and a potpourri of ideas that had originated with GOP legislators, including his 2008 rival, Sen. John McCain.
But for all of the details, the most striking aspect of the address may have been its call to battle: The days of taking incoming fire without any return volleys are over.
"I will not waste time with those who have made the calculation that it's better politics to kill this plan than improve it," he declared. "If you misrepresent what's in the plan, we will call you out. And I will not accept the status quo as a solution. Not this time. Not now."
It seemed as if a politician who had been channeling the detached and cerebral Adlai Stevenson had discovered a new role model in the fighting Harry Truman. For the cause of health-care reform, it was about time.
But for all of the details, the most striking aspect of the address may have been its call to battle: The days of taking incoming fire without any return volleys are over.
"I will not waste time with those who have made the calculation that it's better politics to kill this plan than improve it," he declared. "If you misrepresent what's in the plan, we will call you out. And I will not accept the status quo as a solution. Not this time. Not now."
It seemed as if a politician who had been channeling the detached and cerebral Adlai Stevenson had discovered a new role model in the fighting Harry Truman. For the cause of health-care reform, it was about time.
I love Ellen as much as anyone
OK, not really, but I like her well enough. But is there any reason whatsoever for her to replace train wreck extraordinaire Paula Abdul on American Idol? Even if you loathe Paula, you can't deny her résumé: two #1 hits and a long career as a top choreographer. She was absolutely qualified to comment on performance, even if she never could sing and was frequently stoned/drunk out of her gourd. And as we all know, it was the latter that made Idol good television, particularly on the many nights that lacked a single good performance. Ellen is nice but totally wrong for the job. Neil Patrick Harris would have been way better.
CNN 10 pm
Health care speech? What health care speech? Come on, Anderson Cooper got to play dress up war reporter with a bunch of hot, sweaty troops... in uniforms!
Ted Kennedy's letter to Obama
Dear Mr. President,
I wanted to write a few final words to you to express my gratitude for your repeated personal kindnesses to me - and one last time, to salute your leadership in giving our country back its future and its truth.
On a personal level, you and Michelle reached out to Vicki, to our family and me in so many different ways. You helped to make these difficult months a happy time in my life.
You also made it a time of hope for me and for our country.
When I thought of all the years, all the battles, and all the memories of my long public life, I felt confident in these closing days that while I will not be there when it happens, you will be the President who at long last signs into law the health care reform that is the great unfinished business of our society. For me, this cause stretched across decades; it has been disappointed, but never finally defeated. It was the cause of my life. And in the past year, the prospect of victory sustained me-and the work of achieving it summoned my energy and determination.
There will be struggles - there always have been - and they are already underway again. But as we moved forward in these months, I learned that you will not yield to calls to retreat - that you will stay with the cause until it is won. I saw your conviction that the time is now and witnessed your unwavering commitment and understanding that health care is a decisive issue for our future prosperity. But you have also reminded all of us that it concerns more than material things; that what we face is above all a moral issue; that at stake are not just the details of policy, but fundamental principles of social justice and the character of our country.
And so because of your vision and resolve, I came to believe that soon, very soon, affordable health coverage will be available to all, in an America where the state of a family's health will never again depend on the amount of a family's wealth. And while I will not see the victory, I was able to look forward and know that we will - yes, we will - fulfill the promise of health care in America as a right and not a privilege.
In closing, let me say again how proud I was to be part of your campaign- and proud as well to play a part in the early months of a new era of high purpose and achievement. I entered public life with a young President who inspired a generation and the world. It gives me great hope that as I leave, another young President inspires another generation and once more on America's behalf inspires the entire world.
So, I wrote this to thank you one last time as a friend- and to stand with you one last time for change and the America we can become.
At the Denver Convention where you were nominated, I said the dream lives on.
And I finished this letter with unshakable faith that the dream will be fulfilled for this generation, and preserved and enlarged for generations to come.
With deep respect and abiding affection,
[Ted]
I wanted to write a few final words to you to express my gratitude for your repeated personal kindnesses to me - and one last time, to salute your leadership in giving our country back its future and its truth.
On a personal level, you and Michelle reached out to Vicki, to our family and me in so many different ways. You helped to make these difficult months a happy time in my life.
You also made it a time of hope for me and for our country.
When I thought of all the years, all the battles, and all the memories of my long public life, I felt confident in these closing days that while I will not be there when it happens, you will be the President who at long last signs into law the health care reform that is the great unfinished business of our society. For me, this cause stretched across decades; it has been disappointed, but never finally defeated. It was the cause of my life. And in the past year, the prospect of victory sustained me-and the work of achieving it summoned my energy and determination.
There will be struggles - there always have been - and they are already underway again. But as we moved forward in these months, I learned that you will not yield to calls to retreat - that you will stay with the cause until it is won. I saw your conviction that the time is now and witnessed your unwavering commitment and understanding that health care is a decisive issue for our future prosperity. But you have also reminded all of us that it concerns more than material things; that what we face is above all a moral issue; that at stake are not just the details of policy, but fundamental principles of social justice and the character of our country.
And so because of your vision and resolve, I came to believe that soon, very soon, affordable health coverage will be available to all, in an America where the state of a family's health will never again depend on the amount of a family's wealth. And while I will not see the victory, I was able to look forward and know that we will - yes, we will - fulfill the promise of health care in America as a right and not a privilege.
In closing, let me say again how proud I was to be part of your campaign- and proud as well to play a part in the early months of a new era of high purpose and achievement. I entered public life with a young President who inspired a generation and the world. It gives me great hope that as I leave, another young President inspires another generation and once more on America's behalf inspires the entire world.
So, I wrote this to thank you one last time as a friend- and to stand with you one last time for change and the America we can become.
At the Denver Convention where you were nominated, I said the dream lives on.
And I finished this letter with unshakable faith that the dream will be fulfilled for this generation, and preserved and enlarged for generations to come.
With deep respect and abiding affection,
[Ted]
Presidential speechmaking
When I listen to great, old presidential speeches like Kennedy's inaugural address, I often wonder whether they are still possible. Haven't we become too postmodern to accept soaring rhetoric and big words? I suspect the final segment of today's speech is the answer to both questions; writers with more literary training than myself will analyze it for the next few decades. This is likely the first contribution to the annals of great presidential speechmaking in at least two decades, and maybe in the four since LBJ's "We Shall Overcome" speech. Which, again, is ironic, given the incredible unambitiousness of the bill.
Liveblogging the President
8:11 POTUS is in the house.
8:18 We have pulled the economy back from the brink. A brilliant disarming of the opposition, to say he won't rest until jobs come back. Even Republicans have to pretend to stand up for jobs.
8:19 "I am determined to be the last." Not going to happen with this bill, even if it does pass. But it's a good line.
8:21 "These are middle class Americans." As a general rule, I think it's wise to use actual salaries, just to make it perfectly clear that Obama is not talking about homeless black folks.
8:23 "Nobody should be treated that way in the United States of America." Another good line.
8:24 "Our health care problem is our deficit problem." But why is he talking about Medicare? Are they going to take away my Medicare?
8:26 "Let's build on what works." He repositions himself as the moderate voice between the extreme left and the right. That's for the independents.
8:27 "Unyielding ideological camps." Knowing Obama, that means the public option is history. But it sets up "the time for games has passed."
8:28 "The plan I am announcing tonght." What, is it a new plan?
8:29 "Let me repeat this. Nothing in this plan requires you to change what you have." But that's the problem, isn't it. Seniors don't buy it.
8:31 Wow, Hillary's outfit is really, really, RED.
8:32 An "insurance exchange." Not very clear. But it sets up Congressional health care, and "it's time to give Americans the opportunity we give ourselves."
8:33 This was a good idea when Senator John McCain proposed it..." A horrified, crotchety John McCain is forced to stand up and attempt to smile.
8:35 Here comes the mandate.
8:36 Olympia Snowe is seated next to Orrin Hatch. Interesting.
8:37 The death panels. "It is a lie, plain and simple." Republicans sit.
8:40 A moment of extreme rudeness regarding illegal immigration. In Alabama, 90% of the insurance market is controlled by one company.
8:41 I don't want to put insurance companies out of business. "I just want to hold them accountable." That's a good line.
8:42 He sells the public option as one option in the insurance exchange. "The insurance companies don't like it." I don't think the idea of a public university is the right analogy, but if it works, great. The term "public insurance option" is really bad, incidentally. "I will not back down... We will provide you with a choice."
8:45 "I will not sign a plan that adds one dime to our deficits." Camera pans to Olympia Snowe, one of the key audiences for this speech.
8:47 Red meat. The Iraq War was not paid for.
8:49 Finally, the shout out to seniors. And an explanation that they can get more money for prescription drugs. And he turns it around. The people who oppose this plan wanted to turn Medicare into a privatized voucher plan. "That will not happen on my watch. I will protect Medicare." Excellent. This was very important. It would be good if he reiterated this elsewhere.
8:51 Wow. The GOP forced to stand up over medical malpractice.
8:59 A very moving segment on Ted Kennedy. Pelosi looks as sad as the Kennedy family.
9:01 This coda of bigthink is taking the speech to a completely different level. And it continues to position Obama as the centrist.
9:03 "We did not come here to fear the future. We came here to shape it." "I still believe we can do great things. That is our calling. And that is our character." The last ten minutes of this speech were extraordinary. One of the best speeches of his career. And how amazing that it was given in the service of such a small bill.
8:18 We have pulled the economy back from the brink. A brilliant disarming of the opposition, to say he won't rest until jobs come back. Even Republicans have to pretend to stand up for jobs.
8:19 "I am determined to be the last." Not going to happen with this bill, even if it does pass. But it's a good line.
8:21 "These are middle class Americans." As a general rule, I think it's wise to use actual salaries, just to make it perfectly clear that Obama is not talking about homeless black folks.
8:23 "Nobody should be treated that way in the United States of America." Another good line.
8:24 "Our health care problem is our deficit problem." But why is he talking about Medicare? Are they going to take away my Medicare?
8:26 "Let's build on what works." He repositions himself as the moderate voice between the extreme left and the right. That's for the independents.
8:27 "Unyielding ideological camps." Knowing Obama, that means the public option is history. But it sets up "the time for games has passed."
8:28 "The plan I am announcing tonght." What, is it a new plan?
8:29 "Let me repeat this. Nothing in this plan requires you to change what you have." But that's the problem, isn't it. Seniors don't buy it.
8:31 Wow, Hillary's outfit is really, really, RED.
8:32 An "insurance exchange." Not very clear. But it sets up Congressional health care, and "it's time to give Americans the opportunity we give ourselves."
8:33 This was a good idea when Senator John McCain proposed it..." A horrified, crotchety John McCain is forced to stand up and attempt to smile.
8:35 Here comes the mandate.
8:36 Olympia Snowe is seated next to Orrin Hatch. Interesting.
8:37 The death panels. "It is a lie, plain and simple." Republicans sit.
8:40 A moment of extreme rudeness regarding illegal immigration. In Alabama, 90% of the insurance market is controlled by one company.
8:41 I don't want to put insurance companies out of business. "I just want to hold them accountable." That's a good line.
8:42 He sells the public option as one option in the insurance exchange. "The insurance companies don't like it." I don't think the idea of a public university is the right analogy, but if it works, great. The term "public insurance option" is really bad, incidentally. "I will not back down... We will provide you with a choice."
8:45 "I will not sign a plan that adds one dime to our deficits." Camera pans to Olympia Snowe, one of the key audiences for this speech.
8:47 Red meat. The Iraq War was not paid for.
8:49 Finally, the shout out to seniors. And an explanation that they can get more money for prescription drugs. And he turns it around. The people who oppose this plan wanted to turn Medicare into a privatized voucher plan. "That will not happen on my watch. I will protect Medicare." Excellent. This was very important. It would be good if he reiterated this elsewhere.
8:51 Wow. The GOP forced to stand up over medical malpractice.
8:59 A very moving segment on Ted Kennedy. Pelosi looks as sad as the Kennedy family.
9:01 This coda of bigthink is taking the speech to a completely different level. And it continues to position Obama as the centrist.
9:03 "We did not come here to fear the future. We came here to shape it." "I still believe we can do great things. That is our calling. And that is our character." The last ten minutes of this speech were extraordinary. One of the best speeches of his career. And how amazing that it was given in the service of such a small bill.
Martha Coakley
She's best known for as the law and order DA in the Louise Woodward nanny trial. She has EMILY's List's endorsement because she's the only woman in the race, but she's hardly a progressive by Massachusetts standards. Her safe prosecutions of Big Dig insurers could have been accomplished by a Republican attorney general. She may lead in the polls, but she's no Ted Kennedy.
Family values Republican
Caught on tape... bragging about spanking and having sex with two married female lobbyists.
The California assemblyman received "a perfect 100% score... for time and time again voting to protect family values in California."
So it turns out lobbyists and Republican congressman don't just f**k the American people...
The California assemblyman received "a perfect 100% score... for time and time again voting to protect family values in California."
So it turns out lobbyists and Republican congressman don't just f**k the American people...
Alan Turing petition
Sign and read up. Don't miss the letter from the petition's originator: the Turing test inspired him to turn aside his discomfort with homosexuality and create the petition.
George Clooney in Venice
Streakers! Are we back in the 1970's? Unnecessary proof that it's possible to be gay and incredibly uncool. Unexpected proof that it's possible to be gay and more unfunny than Roberto Benigni.
Redheads
They can't handle pain, and that's why they fear going to the dentist. A very weird and most intriguing ADA study.
Tuesday, September 08, 2009
Andy Murray out of contention
With Nadal injured, Roddick and now Murray, out, nothing stands in the way of yet another win by the boring but gallant Roger Federer. Let us salute him.
Massa Chambliss
Obama should show "humility" to Congress. The party of Southern Heritage should make sure to leave the white hoods in their caucus room tomorrow evening. For appearances, they might also want to bring Clarence Thomas. And one can understand Republicans' fondness for him: there is someone who has always known his place.
We may love Conan
But he sure dropped the ball during the Bush years. Letterman, fortunately, picked it up. And even a magazine as mealymouthed as Time recognizes it.
Indeed, the Obama era has helped clarify an often overlooked dichotomy in late-night TV comedy: the divide between the political satirists (Stewart, Stephen Colbert, Letterman much of the time) and the topical jokesters (Leno, Conan O'Brien and Jimmy Fallon). O'Brien's middle-of-the-road, Carsonesque wisecracks in particular ("President Obama's approval ratings have slumped to an all-time low, which explains Obama's new Secret Service code name: NBC") are looking comparatively tame now that he's opposite the increasingly politicized Letterman — whose contempt for Bush-era politics comes through in his interviews as much as his gag lines. (It may not be a coincidence that Letterman is beating O'Brien in the ratings.) Letterman may have wimped out in apologizing for his Palin joke, but it's hard to imagine O'Brien even cracking a Palin joke worth apologizing for.
Speaking of which, it's not just a matter of good taste to wish a primtime failure on the craptastic Jay Leno. It turns out the future of everything decent on network television depends on it.
And yet it is also a radical experiment: a single show airing every weeknight during prime time on a major broadcast network, cheaper to produce for an entire week than a single hour of the pricey scripted dramas that usually hold such a time slot.
NBC says it's facing media reality, that big audiences are getting harder to find. That the network business model is drying up as viewers turn to cable, skip ads by recording shows on DVRs or watch online. That the major networks, which once gathered tens of millions of viewers and promulgated a homogeneous national culture, are now, essentially, just big cable channels. And that they — like the automakers whose commercials once lavishly floated them — must learn to get smaller or else end up like American Buggy Whip Inc.
If The Jay Leno Show succeeds — where succeeding means not getting more viewers than the competition but simply increasing NBC's profit margin — it suggests a TV future in which ambitious dramas become the stuff of boutique cable, while the broadcasters become a megaphone for live events and cheap nonfiction. "If the Leno Show works," says former NBC president Fred Silverman, "it will be the most significant thing to happen in broadcast television in the last decade."
It's a business model that says, essentially, the mainstream has shrunk, if it exists at all. [...] NBC is trying to adapt to a media future in which audiences choose from a thousand flavors by signing up with America's most successful purveyor of vanilla.
Indeed, the Obama era has helped clarify an often overlooked dichotomy in late-night TV comedy: the divide between the political satirists (Stewart, Stephen Colbert, Letterman much of the time) and the topical jokesters (Leno, Conan O'Brien and Jimmy Fallon). O'Brien's middle-of-the-road, Carsonesque wisecracks in particular ("President Obama's approval ratings have slumped to an all-time low, which explains Obama's new Secret Service code name: NBC") are looking comparatively tame now that he's opposite the increasingly politicized Letterman — whose contempt for Bush-era politics comes through in his interviews as much as his gag lines. (It may not be a coincidence that Letterman is beating O'Brien in the ratings.) Letterman may have wimped out in apologizing for his Palin joke, but it's hard to imagine O'Brien even cracking a Palin joke worth apologizing for.
Speaking of which, it's not just a matter of good taste to wish a primtime failure on the craptastic Jay Leno. It turns out the future of everything decent on network television depends on it.
And yet it is also a radical experiment: a single show airing every weeknight during prime time on a major broadcast network, cheaper to produce for an entire week than a single hour of the pricey scripted dramas that usually hold such a time slot.
NBC says it's facing media reality, that big audiences are getting harder to find. That the network business model is drying up as viewers turn to cable, skip ads by recording shows on DVRs or watch online. That the major networks, which once gathered tens of millions of viewers and promulgated a homogeneous national culture, are now, essentially, just big cable channels. And that they — like the automakers whose commercials once lavishly floated them — must learn to get smaller or else end up like American Buggy Whip Inc.
If The Jay Leno Show succeeds — where succeeding means not getting more viewers than the competition but simply increasing NBC's profit margin — it suggests a TV future in which ambitious dramas become the stuff of boutique cable, while the broadcasters become a megaphone for live events and cheap nonfiction. "If the Leno Show works," says former NBC president Fred Silverman, "it will be the most significant thing to happen in broadcast television in the last decade."
It's a business model that says, essentially, the mainstream has shrunk, if it exists at all. [...] NBC is trying to adapt to a media future in which audiences choose from a thousand flavors by signing up with America's most successful purveyor of vanilla.
Monday, September 07, 2009
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