South Pol

"To make a point no one should have to make: earlier this year, a deranged Army sergeant named John..."

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 16:34:00 -0500

“To make a point no one should have to make: earlier this year, a deranged Army sergeant named John Russell opened fire near a combat stress clinic — sound familiar? — at Baghdad’s Camp Liberty and killed five of his fellow soldiers. No one speculated about any religious motivations. No one suggested he was part of an enemy “infiltration,” or suggested that U.S. troops have been “brainwashed.” Everyone understood that Russell was a deranged lunatic, not an advance scout for a conspiracy to subvert the military internally. It’s funny how double standards work. Actually, no. It’s disgusting.”

- Spencer Ackerman, The Washington Independent (via thesmarttart) (via robot-heart-politics)

Capitol Hill Tea Party Seeks To 'Drive The Liberals Crazy' With Pledge Of Allegiance

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 13:54:05 -0500

Capitol Hill Tea Party Seeks To 'Drive The Liberals Crazy' With Pledge Of Allegiance:

fuddmain:

Nooooo! Not that! UNCLE! UNCLE!

These kooks should hope we pass healthcare reform, so they can get the lithium they so desperately need.

Yeah, that is totally what is driving me crazy, alright. All that disgusting patriotism.

How to play stimulus with a blue dog

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 13:25:01 -0500

Robert Reich

Public approval of Obama’s handling of the economy has slipped to 46 percent in an Oct. 30-Nov. 1 CNN poll, from 59 percent in March. Remember, Obama was elected in part because the public didn’t have confidence in McCain’s ability to manage the economy. In exit polls last November, almost two-thirds of voters listed the economy as the nation’s top issue. If the job numbers don’t start moving in the right direction, not only will Obama’s poll ratings continue to drop but congressional Dems will all be in trouble. That should be Obama’s selling point to the Blue Dogs. He should tell them the economy needs a bigger stimulus in order to show improved job numbers by the mid-term elections. And he should make sure they understand that they’re more politically endangered next November if the the job numbers aren’t moving in the right direction by then than if they vote for a larger stimulus now.

Michele Bachmann Announces The Super Bowl Of Freedom

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 10:36:11 -0500

Michele Bachmann Announces The Super Bowl Of Freedom:

“PLEASE MAKE SURE YOUR BOSS DOES NOT TERM THIS EVENT A ‘RALLY’” — Brendan Buck, Communications Director of the Republican Study Committee

azspot: The story so far, in one picture “World...

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 11:09:52 -0500

azspot:

The story so far, in one picture

“World industrial production in the Great Depression and now.”

"The emerging favorite Republican tactic for killing reform measures without actually admitting that..."

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 17:51:35 -0500

“The emerging favorite Republican tactic for killing reform measures without actually admitting that they want to kill reform is to complain that Democrats are “rushing things.” They’re not against reform, they just want enough time to do it right.”

- Kevin Drum, who adds “Unless, of course, the subject is Afghanistan. Then it’s ‘dithering’ and ‘playing Hamlet.’

Half of US kids will get food stamps, study says (w/ Video)

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 17:45:03 -0500

Half of US kids will get food stamps, study says (w/ Video):

(via crazynutjob)

Do we find this acceptable?

"We live in a system that entrusts to 435 representatives, 100 senators and one president the power..."

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 14:24:23 -0500

“We live in a system that entrusts to 435 representatives, 100 senators and one president the power of life and death. I think that’s most visible to people in war. But it’s equally true when you talk about health care. The stakes here are unbelievably large, and we as progressives have to make sure that the calculations that people are making in Washington are not calculations about their re-election changes or about what lobbyists will think about their vote or about how it’s going to affect the polls. We have to make sure that people in Washington actually vote for life and health and the well-being of America. We have an opportunity that comes along almost never. Certainly no more than once in a generation. We have 60 members of the Senate. We have 59% of the House. We occupy the White House. And what people want in the end is not feigned bipartisanship or feigned collegiality. What people want in the end is a better life for themselves. And if we progressives actually deliver better health care, better education, better jobs to America.”

- Alan Grayson

I was with him to this point. Thin he hit a tin note, saying “Then we have the opportunity to rule America for the next generation,” i.e. makes Orrin Hatch’s point.

Americans don’t like to be told they somebody is going to “rule” them. We rule ourselves, buddy.

Or, we tell ourselves that.

"Obama’s favorability-unfavorability rating in the South is 28-67, while it is 68-23 in the rest of..."

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 13:48:00 -0500

“Obama’s favorability-unfavorability rating in the South is 28-67, while it is 68-23 in the rest of the country.”

- The Rigidity of the Mason-Dixon Line (via azspot)

The War of Northern Aggression has never ended.

(via buffleheadcabin)

(via robot-heart-politics)

I dunno. The South seems to be the outlier for every single one of the entities polled.

Even the GOP has a 30-47 rating there, compared with 14-71(!) nationally.

retropolitics: nevver: Monday Matticchio “The biblical...

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 13:00:43 -0500

retropolitics:

nevver:

Monday Matticchio

“The biblical account of Noah’s Ark and the Universal Flood is perhaps the most implausible story for fundamentalists to defend. Where, for example, while loading his ark, did Noah find penguins and polar bears in Palestine?” -Judith Hayes, In God We Trust: But Which One?

Looks like Judith Hayes has some reading to do.

Orrin Hatch: Healthcare reform threatens survival of two-party system

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 12:52:00 -0500

Orrin Hatch: Healthcare reform threatens survival of two-party system:

The healthcare reform proposals before Congress threaten the existence of the two-party system, Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) alleged Monday morning.

Hatch asserted that the health bills, which he believes represent a “step-by-step approach to socialized medicine,” will lead to Americans’ dependence on Democrats for their health and other issues. “

And if they get there, of course, you’re going to have a very rough time having a two-party system in this country, because almost everybody’s going to say, ‘All we ever were, all we ever are, all we ever hope to be depends on the Democratic Party,’ ” Hatch said during an interview with the conservative CNSNews.com.

Orrin Hatch says that if health reform passes the GOP won’t win another election? I’d use that quote on some fundraising literature if I were the DNC.

11:59:30 Republicans set to introduce actual alternative Health Care bill

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 12:48:12 -0500

11:59:30 Republicans set to introduce actual alternative Health Care bill:

jasencomstock:

Mr. Boehner said Sunday the Republican bill would extend health-insurance coverage to “millions” of Americans but wouldn’t try to match the scope of the House Democratic bill unveiled last week. The Democratic legislation, if passed, is estimated to expand coverage to more than 30 million Americans now without insurance. Its estimated gross cost is $1.055 trillion over 10 years.

[…]

He said the bill wouldn’t raise taxes, nor mandate that individuals and businesses purchase insurance, as the Democratic legislation does.

Costs $1.055T, I wonder how they want to pay for it?

Cut taxes!

Sharif University Student to Khamenei: Why Can’t Anyone Criticize You?

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 12:40:51 -0500

Sharif University Student to Khamenei: Why Can’t Anyone Criticize You?:

This is great.

Ezra Klein has some charts for you today.

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 11:31:00 -0500

Ezra Klein has some charts for you today.

think4yourself: suitep: Obama planting a commemorative tree on...

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 17:52:42 -0400

think4yourself:

suitep:

Obama planting a commemorative tree on the North Lawn of the White House in Washington, DC, October 28, 2009.

The tree replaces one planted by former US President George W. Bush in the same spot in April 2008 that failed to take root.

(via)

That’s a socialist shovel.

New strategy from the right: fake dog poop

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 17:38:57 -0400

New strategy from the right: fake dog poop:

RedState’s Erick Erickson launches a campaign to send joke poop to a Democratic congressman.

GOP has tired of delivering only figurative turds, and has taken the next step.

CBO: Insurance provided by the public option will be more expensive than a private plan

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 17:19:00 -0400

CBO: Insurance provided by the public option will be more expensive than a private plan:

spiegelman:

Sigh.

This is why the robust public option (i.e. the one tied to medicare rates) was always the incarnation that made the most sense. As this writer says:

If it’s just a separate, but unequal insurance plan for people who need a lot of medical care, and won’t put downward pressure on premiums in the private market, what’s the point?

A deeper look inside the health insurance industry from This American Life

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 16:54:00 -0400

A deeper look inside the health insurance industry from This American Life:

I recommend this episode/podcast/program. Act Two is a very lucid presentation of the principal reasons we have the very strange and inefficient health care system we have (centered on employer-based insurance).

The final part is a more nuanced look at why insurance companies make the decisions they do (hint: it’s actually not because they are evil).

Excellent stuff.

Deal Reached in Honduras to Restore Ousted President

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 16:07:28 -0400

Deal Reached in Honduras to Restore Ousted President:

A lingering political crisis in Honduras seemed to be nearing an end on Friday after the de facto government agreed to a deal, pending legislative approval, that would allow Manuel Zelaya, the deposed president, to return to office.

The government of Roberto Micheletti, which had refused to let Mr. Zelaya return, signed an agreement with Mr. Zelaya’s negotiators late Thursday that would pave the way for the Honduran Congress to restore the ousted president and allow him to serve out the remaining three months of his term. If Congress agrees, control of the army would shift to the electoral court, and the presidential election set for Nov. 29 would be recognized by both sides. Neither Mr. Zelaya nor Mr. Micheletti will be candidates.

Surprisingly little about this on my dashboard today. And by surprisingly little, I mean “nothing.”

ABC News Poll: More Americans Prefer Public Option to Bipartisan Bill

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 15:36:00 -0400

ABC News Poll: More Americans Prefer Public Option to Bipartisan Bill :

Unfortunately it’s the same 51% who prefer their congresspets to have vertebrae, so this doesn’t make for a pretty venn diagram I can use to get 112 reblogs.

Plus I’ve already used up all my photoshop skills for the day.