2020 archive
Like as Not 0
As my two or three regular readers know, I am no fan of Hillary Clinton.
I thought her run against Barrack Obama for the 2008 nomination was characterized by rather distasteful tactics, but I also thought she redeemed herself with a steady and responsible performance as Secretary of State in the Obama administration.
I supported her for the Presidency in 2016, even though I did not particularly “like” her (whatever that means), because it was clear to me that she was the only sane choice (as current events are making more and more clear), because I try to vote with my head and am willing to vote for someone I do not “like,” if I think he or she is the competent choice.
For Pete’s sake, elections are not about “likes” (and certainly not about who you would like to have a beer with, if you drink beer, rather than ambrosia Scotch). They are about competence and policy.
Over at Progress Pond, Martin Longman makes a good case that the “likeability” factor may have been much more important in the 2016 election than one would–er–like.
“An Armed Society Is a Polite Society” 0
Make the scene with politeness.
After the shooting, police say surveillance footage from the home showed Wingler altering the scene instead of helping his son.
The report goes on to say parent has been charged with at least two counts.
Lies and Lying Liars, Going Viral Dept. 0
Leonard Pitts, Jr., looks inside the bubble.
Break Time 0
Off to Drink Liberally.
Facebook Frolics, Going Viral Dept. 0
At Science 2.0, Hank Campbell warns us that Facebook is not a good place to study epidemiology.
Follow the link for his evidence.
The New Gilded Age 0
Did you know that cheerleading competitions are controlled by a monopoly?
Listen to Harry Shearer’s interview of Matt Stoller, author of Goliath.
(If you’re impatient, know that it opens with the cheerleading story.)
The Bush that Is Beaten Around 0
When someone argues that Confederate Monuments symbolize history, ask him or her to clarify what precisely is the history that they symbolize.
“Activist Judges” 0
They are not the judges you have been told they are.
Misdirection Play, Going Viral Dept. 0
Sam comments–well, more accurately, casts scorn–on a Fox News attempt to market the notion that the coronavirus and precautions against it are parts of a plot to bring down Donald Trump.
Meanwhile, life doesn’t go on.
Afterthought:
The sad and frightening thing is that persons who spend their days hermetically sealed inside the Fox News/AM talk radio bubble will likely be susceptible to this–at least until they self-quarantine.
