February 08, 2010
From John Murtha to Norm Dicks
Pennsylvania's longest serving member of the US House has died. His death opens up the chairmanship of the Defense Appropriations subcommittee, which will presumably fall to Norm Dicks of Washington. The make-up of his district is a reminder of the fact that members tend to gravitate to committees where they can ship money home. Given this, complaints about government spending and deficits seem a little odd, no?
The Health Care Bill Is Already Filled With Republican Ideas
As Ezra Klein notes here. I don't know what this nonsense thing is that the president is going to hold on the 26th. It's as if the White House and the press are totally ignoring the existence of something called 2009 - months upon months of Republicans not showing the slightest interest in joining Democrats on this issue, no matter how often the Democrats caved to a position favored by Republicans.
February 07, 2010
Sarah Palin's US/Israeli Flag Pin
Hmmm, wouldn't she consider another politician who was wearing the flag of a foreign country to be un-American?
Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Gingerbread
So I've got this season 3 episode on and I'm thinking it wouldn't be a bad thing to screen in Politics and Film as a way to get into, say, the Global War on Terrorism.
So Far I Haven't Shot the TV
But watching Meet the Press, it's tempting. First David Gregory was playing The Queen of Hearts - demanding to know the sentencing for an accused terrorist before he's actually been tried. Then who does he trot out to talk about the economy? Alan Greenspan and Hank Paulson! Yes, nothing like a fair and balanced panel of people who held top jobs during the Bush years which saw the economy crash to talk about how we should be saved ... from the mess they created. But of course Gregory would never question these Republican solons about what they did that got us here. No, he wants to ask them questions like - we need to cut taxes, right, right? The stock market has been down for two weeks - has Obama brought on a financial apocalypse? What if home prices collapse again (he gives no data that that will occur, but still) - will the world end? Mr. Paulson, I'm incredulous you had nice things to say about President Obama - do you still have a positive thought about him? Isn't the deficit just awful? Isn't it just awful that those Bush tax cuts for the wealthy are going to expire (it's hilarious he asks this right after his despondency over the deficit)?
And all three of these rich white guys are Peyton Manning fans. I'm shocked.
February 06, 2010
February 04, 2010
Illinois - Political and Judicial Follies
The highest court in Illinois just declared the state's med-mal caps unconstitutional - and the decision has led to some justice-on-justice snark and posturing (though not quite as delicious as the recent tidal wave of derision unleashed on PA's newest Supreme Court Justice by some of her colleagues).
In other news, Illinois Democrats may soon rethink their decision to nominate Scott Cohen for lt. gov., and no, the Republicans still don't know who their nominee for governor is.February 02, 2010
Winslow Homer Is Off the Derby Trail
A stress fracture has knocked my favorite for the Kentucky Derby out of racing for the next few months. He becomes the latest of a string of prominent Rick Porter-owned thoroughbreds to have injury problems.
The Oscar Nominations 2010 - The Surprises
As usual most of the nominees were expected but ... The Blind Side for Best Picture? DIstrict 9 for screenplay? Peru's entry in Best Foreign Film? Maggie Gyllenhaal and Penelope Cruz for Best Supporting Actress? Those were some of the things I did not expect. Things that pleased me include Jeremy Renner's nomination for Best Actor and Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince being nominated for cinematography. Things that sadden me include the lack of attention to (500) Days of Summer. As far as the overall numbers - with 9 nominations for Avatar and 9 nominations for The Hurt Locker it would seem that the race for Best Picture and Best Director is still coming down to a battle between those two films, with a split between them being perhaps the likeliest outcome.
Nominees are listed here.
February 01, 2010
The Employment Non-Discrimination Act? Never Going to Happen
That's how we should read this story, right? We've had/got the largest Democratic majorities we are likely to have for many years to come. A couple of Republicans are actually co-sponsors. But still there aren't 60 Democratic votes in favor of it in the Senate. So how about the HRC (and reporters like this one for that matter) do something useful and expose which Democrats are opposing the bill? I'd guess that that set includes Ben Nelson and Robert Byrd - but it'd be nice if supposed activist organizations actually informed their communities so they could take action against whoever it happens to be.
WV's US House Races - Challenges to the Democrats
What a difference a day makes. Big things are brewing as filing closes. State Sen. Mike Oliverio will challenge long-time incumbent Alan Mollohan in the Democratic primary in District 1. And former Supreme Court Justice (and Don Blankenship's Riviera buddy) Spike Maynard is switching parties to run against Mr. Rahall as a Republican down South in District 3. Delegate Barbara Evans Fleischauer will run for Oliverio's seat in the State Senate. I hope someone good filed to run for her Mon County seat.
January 31, 2010
Gomorra
So I finally saw Matteo Garrone's much-lauded film about a variety of people caught up in the world of the Camorra, and I have to say this is one of those cases where near-universal praise seems warranted. It's a great piece of work that paints very well just how broadly and deeply the world of organized crime touches so many otherwise disparite people.
January 27, 2010
The State of the Union 2010
As the president began speaking I switched from CBS to NBC - after 10 minutes of inane commentary from Bob Scheiffer and Jan Crawford I couldn't take any more.
It's 9:41 - still no mention of health care? Wtf?
I'm not sure I really get the math on his college tuition proposal.
All in all I'd say it was a strong speech - but the social scientist in me knows that it's not likely to make much of a difference to what goes on in DC.
Gov. McDonnell opens the Republican response with a joke that seems to imply entertainment/sports news is more important than debating public policy - that says so much about the Republican party of today. Oh and now he's praising the slave-holding Jefferson who thought the future of the country should be making us a farming nation. How can you doubt this guy's judgment on economic policy? And apparently government is bad - basically, "I've got mine - the rest of you can suck it."
Republcian policy proposals - they aren't long! Read our pamphlets or look on line for our pithy slogans. They'll solve all your health care problems.
Off-shore oil drilling is the bomb!
We love the troops even more than Democrats! We love war in Afghanistan! We hate law! Errr, we hate laws that apply to terrorist suspects. Scott Brown is the the kindest, bravest, warmest, most wonderful human being I've ever known in my life.
Innocent human life must be protected (unless it looks like it might be a terrorist?).
God god god god god god god.
Link Science
What, you mean those guidelines are more stupid than they sound?
Gentle giants need warm weather to survive.
Timmeh! Way to miss the message.
Send good vibes to fellow townie John Cole.
God hates shrimp. For good reason.
Reproductive coercion, yet another mechanism of control.
Too depressing? How about some kitchen hacks? No? Bizarre emergency room visit causes?
January 26, 2010
People Who Died
Jim Carroll was just one of the people who died in 2009.
This video was made by a friend of the blog, and his flying monkey assistants. Baltar's writing a review of the shows, with links to downloads of the live shows. More soon.
