June, 2009 archive
The Hypocrisy of Bigotry 0
Sauce for the goose is not sauce for the gander.
Bob Herbert considers the wingnut reaction to the Sotomayor nomination:
Are we supposed to not notice that these are the tribunes of a party that rose to power on the filthy waves of racial demagoguery. I don’t remember hearing their voices or the voices of their intellectual heroes when the Republican Party, as part of its Southern strategy, aggressively courted the bigots who fled the Democratic Party because the Democrats had become insufficiently hostile to blacks.
Where were the howls of outrage at this strategy that was articulated by Lee Atwater as follows: “By 1968, you can’t say ‘nigger’ — that hurts you. Backfires. So you say stuff like forced busing, states’ rights, and all that stuff.”
“Yes. They Did Mean It.” 0
Frank Schaeffer discusses those who would claim that words of hate do not lead to deeds of hate.
Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy
Via Air America.
Image Manipulation in Linux 0
Meet the GIMP, like Clarissa, explains it all.
By the way, the GIMP is cross-platform. You can get it for Window$ also, as well as for other platforms.
Thanks to the Outlaws for introducing me to it.
“I’ll Take Two, with Extra Bunkum” 0
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Hold the pickle, hold the lettuce,
Scientific facts don’t upset us . . . .
Without approval of the parent company, a franchisee has it his own way:
(snip)
Memphis Flyer readers have been contacting the paper since the story first appeared to say that they have noticed other restaurants across Tennessee displaying the same sign. It appears that they are all owned by a company called the Mirabile Investment Corporation (MIC) that owns more than 40 Burger Kings across Tennessee, Arkansas and Mississippi, as well as a handful of Popeyes and All In One franchises.
Hypocrisy Is an Unconscious Thing 0
Words can be powerful things.
No one gets up in the morning and says, “Oh, gee, I think I’m going to do something hypocritical today.”
The hypocrite does not–cannot–see his hypocrisy.
He merely lives it, in a pedestrian, banal, and unself-conscious way.
There will be many empty words of regret from those, like this one among many, who helped suborn the nutcase in Kansas City (and other nutcases) to murder, while wrapping themselves in the self-righteous mantle of their hate-full-ness.
Sane people will point out that the words of hate that the anti-abortion forces (“baby-killers,” “murderers,” “Nazis”) routinely use as part of their campaign have helped push the nutcases over the line to murder.
Wasted words.
Rationality does not work with those who have none. And those who profit from hate care not the effects of their words.
Twits on Twitter 0
Advertising, advertising everywhere, nor any thought to think.
Advertising, advertising everywhere, and Twitter use will shrink.
“It is such free, great advertising,” she said of the microblogging service. “People who don’t use it are at a disadvantage, especially with the younger crowd.”
(snip)
But businesses around Charlotte – ranging from Fortune 500 powerhouses such as Duke Energy to restaurants such as Matt’s Chicago Dog – are joining the social networking site.
Via McClatchy.
Protecting the Snake Oil Biz 0
Sure, you could argue that snake oil probably doesn’t do any harm. Whoops.
But let’s keep selling it anyway.
(snip)
Today, just as the bankers anticipated, a battle over derivatives has been joined, in what promises to be a replay of a confrontation in Washington that Wall Street won a decade ago. Since then, derivatives trading has become one of the most profitable businesses for the nation’s big banks.
Get your credit default swaps and derivatives here:
Historical US Immigration Patterns 0
Track them from 1880 to the present at the New York Times’s Interactive Immigration Explorer.
The Legal Perspective 0
Dick Polman:
Consider, for instance, the infamous Plessey v. Ferguson case. It all started in 1890, when the state of Louisiana passed a law requiring segregated train cars.
(snip)
Let’s look at the ruling. First, this passage: “A (state law) which implies merely a legal distinction between the white and colored races – a distinction which is founded in the color of the two races, and which must always exist so long as white men are distinguished from the other race by color – has no tendency to destroy the legal equality of the two races.”
Now, this passage: “We (reject) the assumption that the enforced separation of the races stamps the colored race with a badge of inferiority. If this be so, it is…solely because the colored race chooses to put that construction on it.”
Sounds to me like those white male judges were partly influenced by their life experiences in a white supremacist era.”
In summary, you could say that the old white guys of the Republican Party are in Danae-al (click the image for a larger view):
More Danae-al here.
Uncheneyed Melody 0
Putting the lie to the “bad apples” theory:
The seeds of Abu Ghraib’s rotten fruit were sown by civilians at the highest levels of our government.
Listen closely at about 3:50 into the clip. (If the video fails to load, follow this link for more details):
Via TMPMuckraker.
Legacy: Mourning in America Dept. 0
The Laffable Curve:
On the latter point: traditionally, the U.S. government ran significant budget deficits only in times of war or economic emergency. Federal debt as a percentage of G.D.P. fell steadily from the end of World War II until 1980. But indebtedness began rising under Reagan; it fell again in the Clinton years, but resumed its rise under the Bush administration, leaving us ill prepared for the emergency now upon us.
The increase in public debt was, however, dwarfed by the rise in private debt, made possible by financial deregulation. The change in America’s financial rules was Reagan’s biggest legacy. And it’s the gift that keeps on taking.
But, remember, the rich got richer. All the social issue stuff was a cover for making that happen.
Not that I’m cynical or anything. No, I’m just observant.
Separate, but Related, Stray Thoughts 0
Self-righteousness is a cardinal sin.
A self-righteous fruitcake with a gun is a very dangerous thing.
Anyone who thinks abortion is an easy or casual decision has never known anyone who had one.
Those who commit acts of hate in the name of the God of love do blaspheme.