2011 archive
Nothing To Do, Nowhere To Go 0
Mixed, but, for all practical purposes, status quo ante.
(snip)
Today’s data showed the four-week moving average, a less volatile measure than the weekly figures, rose to 395,750 last week from 395,250, which was a seven-month low.
The number of people continuing to receive jobless benefits climbed by 35,000 in the week ended Nov. 19 to 3.74 million.
We Need Single Payer 0
Walmart enhances its business model of moving jobs abroad and abusing employees, this time by cutting back on health benefits for employees:
In the video, one of the employees says of Walmart, “They don’t see us suffering.”
Like that would make a difference.
Ten Who Dared 0
At SeattlePI, Barbara Sehr honors Thanksgiving by nominating the turkeys of the year. A nugget:
7. Newt Gingrich — The Tiffanies’ of Republican family values, he is a mentor to other misogynists like Herman Cain for making the world safe for dirty old lechers. His marital advice is as solid as his duplicitous advice to the President to do exactly the opposite of what he says. If he should make it to the White House, count on a child labor sweatshop in the basement.
Follow the link for the full ballot.
Freedom to Film 0
More like this:
(snip)
“Law enforcement personnel need to understand that they do not operate secretly when performing their duties in public places,” ACLU of Virginia Dunn Fellow Thomas Okuda Fitzpatrick said. “They can and should be observed by all of us, and they can be filmed. We hope this case will send a message to police across the state that everyone has a First Amendment right to take pictures in public places-including pictures of the police.”
Details at the link.
Update from the Foreclosure-Based Economy 0
The harsh truth is that the real estate bubble was a bubble.
It’s popped, not deflated. And it’s not coming back.
The number of local homeowners who were “underwater” on their loans rose 1 percent to 84,443 from June to September, according to CoreLogic, a Santa Ana, Calif.-based company that tracks mortgages nationwide.
For homeowners who aren’t in jeopardy of falling behind on payments, being underwater means they are tied to their homes – unable to sell without paying their lender the difference or negotiating a short sale.
Like the Tulip Bubble, all gone. The banksters are left with the money, having been made whole for their venality business “missteps” by the Fed; and the homeowners, left with wilted tulips.
Bombing far-away lands with strange-sounding names may be an effective distraction, but it ain’t fixing anything.
QOTD 0
Indira Gandhi, from the Quotemaster (subscribe here):
Anger is never without an argument, but seldom with a good one.
Facebook Frolics 0
Facebook settles charges of abusing user data, without, of course, admitting any wrongdoing. As part of the settlement,
In other news, pigs, wings.
Stray Thought 0
It’s checks and balances when you get what you want, bureaucracy when you don’t.
The Voter Fraud Fraud 0
Tennessee brings back the poll tax in sheep’s clothing.
Remember that the purpose of the poll tax was not to collect money; it was to keep poor folks from voting.
Support the Troops, Bankster Style 0
Selfishness has side-effects.
From the website:
Keith and Pat Garofalo, economic policy editor for ThinkProgress.org, discuss the latest report from the Treasury Department’s Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, revealing that 10 of the top U.S. lenders may have illegally foreclosed on up to 5,000 active duty service members.
Make TWUUG Your LUG 0
Learn about the wonderful world of free and open source.
What: Monthly TWUUG Meeting.
Who: Everyone in TideWater/Hampton Roads with interest in any/all flavors of Unix/Linux. There are no dues or signup requirements. All are welcome.
Where: Lake Taylor Transitional Care Hospital in Norfolk Training Room. See directions below. (Wireless and wired internet connection available.)
When: 7:30 PM till whenever (usually 9:30ish) on Thursday, December 1.
Directions:
Lake Taylor Hospital
1309 Kempsville Road
Norfolk, Va. 23502 (Map)
Pre-Meeting Dinner at 6:00 PM (separate checks)
Uno Chicago Grill
Virginia Beach Blvd. & Military Highway (Janaf Shopping Center). (Map)
A Picture is Worth, Fox News Dept. 0
Megan Kelly on Fox News:
The pepper the cops are using on the Occupiers is like a derivative of real pepper. It’s a food product essentially.
Via BartCop.
A Newt Is a Small Lizard 0
Mike Littwin considers the rise of the Gingrinch. A snippet:
That became headline news because to be a Republican moderate these days on immigration means you don’t want to turn the entire country into Alabama.
Gingrich said only what everyone knows — that we’re not going to round up 11 million to 12 million illegal immigrants and deport them. Therefore, there needs to be a path toward legalizing those with real roots here.
Follow the link for the rest. It’s worth the three minutes.
Letting Lying Liars Lie 0
Dick Polman discusses the inability of the press to call out lies, trying to figure out why they won’t state the obvious.
A nugget (emphasis added):
In other words, Romney’s key clip was demonstrably false. But that’s not how it was generally reported.
A CNN tweet: “Democrats say new Romney ad distorts Obama’s words.” There it is, the doctrine of false equivalence/balance. Romney makes a charge, “Democrats say” something in rebuttal, and all charges are equal. This is what Wicker used to complain about. He said that, all too often, the press takes refuge in “statements delivered by official spokesmen,” without weighing the facts to determine whether one side is more credible than the other.
When I was a young ‘un, being “objective” meant trying to separate true from false.