2012 archive
Misdirection Plays, Mountaintop Removal Department 2
This is really too stupid for words.
But not at all surprising, given Republicans’ pervy preoccupation with sex.
The Trumper Theory 0
Rex Huppke sounds the alarm.
I don’t mean to alarm anyone, but I have uncovered something terrifying.
The Trump International Hotel & Tower in Chicago may be more than just an innocent monument to opulence. I have reason to believe that under the leadership of a former British spy, the mirrored skyscraper is being used to breed a race of warrior rhinoceroses that Donald Trump will use to take over the world.
I know this is hard to believe, but you must listen to me. I have done the research and found conclusive evidence that Trump Tower is a Trojan horse, and I’m prepared to tell the story that the Trump-stream media do not want you to hear.
Follow the link. I can’t think of a wisecrack that does his logic justice.
Running Government Like a Business 0
Margeret Carlson wonders why Mitt the Flip, professional pol, flips off his time as governor of Massachusetts.
Read the rest, in which she discusses what the Flipper doesn’t: his record as a governor.
Facebook Frolics 0
It’s too late to protest. You have already been assimilated.
All the News that Fits 0
The only thing that keeps this bit from being funnier is its eerie similarity to your local news:
Do Nothings 0
Truman was right.
Jubilation T. Cornball 0
I wish I could have had to opportunity to be celebrated for 60 years of being supported by the state.
Didn’t we fight a war over being rid of this?
Mr. Feastingonroadkill has his own take on the situation.
Via Raw Story.
The Austerity Myth 0
In the Guardian, Ha-Joon Chang muses on why it is so strong (emphasis added):
So, if the whole history of capitalism, and not just the experiences of the last few years, shows that the supposed remedies for today’s economic crisis are not going to work, what are our political and economic leaders doing? Perhaps they are insane – if we follow Albert Einstein’s definition of insanity as “doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results”. But the more likely explanation is that, by pushing these policies against all evidence, our leaders are really telling us that they want to preserve – or even intensify, in areas like welfare policy – the economic system that has served them so well in the past three decades.
It is notable that the one thing the “haves” by and large are not suggesting is that they make a bigger contribution to the “have nots.”
Austerity clearly is good for others, not for themselves.
Read the rest.
The Jobbing of America 0
Dick Polman examines the scam. A nugget (emphasis added):
When the American Jobs Act was first proposed, independent economists – including Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Analytics and a top ’08 McCain adviser – said that Obama’s measure would create as many as two million new jobs. Forget it, folks. There was no way the Republicans would ever let that happen. They’re invested in rooting for misery, and working with Obama to put people back to work would mess with their electoral master plan.
Their top priority is not to forge bipartisan deals that would create jobs. On the contrary, Senate GOP leader Mitch McConnell articulated their top priority several years ago: “The single most important thing we want to achieve is for President Obama to be a one-term president.” Why ease Americans’ job misery if it means that Obama might win a second term? Better to do nothing, and bank on the likelihood that most voters won’t remember the Republican intransigence that took place one year before the election.
Read the rest.
Droning On 0
On the Media considers why the disconnect between US reporting and international reporting on the Drone Wars, particularly the lack of domestic coverage of civilian deaths (emphasis added).
I love the “if I hit you, you must be guilty” reasoning.
Follow the link to read the transcript or listen to the story.
Endless War 0
Excerpt:
It’s consistent with their belief that every single problem in the world can be solved if we invade . . . .
This notion that we can kill . . . our way to security is fundamentally flawed.
Stray Thought 0
I had forgotten just how bloody annoying Windows is.
Then I set up a computer for a friend . . . .
Light Bloggery 0
Real Life.
Prize Patrol 0
New Jersey inspects boardwalk games (shooting galleries, dart and ball toss and the like) to make sure they are on the up-and-up.
One question: Who ever expected them to be on the up-and-up?