Sorry I've been away! Read this by The New York Times > Arts > Frank Rich
I don't always agree with FR, but this has some good insights.
Thursday, December 02, 2004
Thursday, November 18, 2004
Fresh (Mad) Cow!
Get your prions here! America has just found its second case of Mad Cow Disease. But, Dear Consumer, do not be alarmed. Your government is taking care of you!
That's right, thanks to Republicans, we have:
-Less testing of meat for BSE (Mad Cow)
-Less testing for E. Coli
-Little or no label of meat origins
-Legislation in favor of giant meat processors that slaughter 400 000 lbs of semi-fresh cow per day
-Legislation to keep those slaughterhouses moving fast so that more and more workers can be maimed
-Legislation favor union-busting activities
That's right, even though farmers and ranchers are overwhelmingly in favor of telling you the origins of their fine products, ConAgra, IBP, etc., are getting their way. But, Dear Consumer, you voted for Bush! What he knows so well is that even people whose brain begins to turn into a sponge, who lose coordination and cannot walk, who go into convulsions and turn catatonic in the months preceeding their inevitable death, well, these people will vote Republican because, perhaps, having a spongy brain makes that more, not less, likely.
You think that last statement is underhanded, don't you? You are right. My apologies to anyone with Mad Cow Disease who voted Democrat. Please contact me, if you are still alive.
That's right, thanks to Republicans, we have:
-Less testing of meat for BSE (Mad Cow)
-Less testing for E. Coli
-Little or no label of meat origins
-Legislation in favor of giant meat processors that slaughter 400 000 lbs of semi-fresh cow per day
-Legislation to keep those slaughterhouses moving fast so that more and more workers can be maimed
-Legislation favor union-busting activities
That's right, even though farmers and ranchers are overwhelmingly in favor of telling you the origins of their fine products, ConAgra, IBP, etc., are getting their way. But, Dear Consumer, you voted for Bush! What he knows so well is that even people whose brain begins to turn into a sponge, who lose coordination and cannot walk, who go into convulsions and turn catatonic in the months preceeding their inevitable death, well, these people will vote Republican because, perhaps, having a spongy brain makes that more, not less, likely.
You think that last statement is underhanded, don't you? You are right. My apologies to anyone with Mad Cow Disease who voted Democrat. Please contact me, if you are still alive.
Moral Values
Working at an institution that has a strong religious tradition, even if it is no longer affiliated to any religious entity, has become important to me, especially since we are formerly Quaker. Say what you will about it, the Society of Friends is commited to a global view of moral values. Got an email from a former student today for this meeting in Pasadena. GO!
Go, even if you are not a member of Quaker church, or any church for that matter.
Here's the email I got:
American Friends Service Committee
980 N. Fair Oaks Avenue
Pasadena 91103
Map
In this past election, we saw "morality" redefined to be little more than opposition to abortion and gay marriage.
But, what about war's cost to civilians and society? What about taxes being cut for the wealthy while poor and working poor people were forced out of social programs that support basic needs? What about the pollution of our environment? What about spreading fear against GLBT and immigrants? What about the death penalty?These are moral values and we cannot allow morality to be defined to not include them.
Please join faith-based and other activists for a meeting to design a strategy for speaking the truth about our broader agenda and definition of morality through the media, our places of worship and other organizing.Sign up online to attend, or to receive information on future events.
AFSC office is wheelchair accessible.
For more information contact Steven Gibson at (626) 791-1978 ext. 130, sgibson@afsc.org, or Jochen Strack (626) 791-1978 ext. 138, jstrack@afsc.org.
Sponsors:
Interfaith Communities United for Justice and Peace
American Friends Service Committee
Go, even if you are not a member of Quaker church, or any church for that matter.
Here's the email I got:
American Friends Service Committee
980 N. Fair Oaks Avenue
Pasadena 91103
Map
In this past election, we saw "morality" redefined to be little more than opposition to abortion and gay marriage.
But, what about war's cost to civilians and society? What about taxes being cut for the wealthy while poor and working poor people were forced out of social programs that support basic needs? What about the pollution of our environment? What about spreading fear against GLBT and immigrants? What about the death penalty?These are moral values and we cannot allow morality to be defined to not include them.
Please join faith-based and other activists for a meeting to design a strategy for speaking the truth about our broader agenda and definition of morality through the media, our places of worship and other organizing.Sign up online to attend, or to receive information on future events.
AFSC office is wheelchair accessible.
For more information contact Steven Gibson at (626) 791-1978 ext. 130, sgibson@afsc.org, or Jochen Strack (626) 791-1978 ext. 138, jstrack@afsc.org.
Sponsors:
Interfaith Communities United for Justice and Peace
American Friends Service Committee
Today: Cyclopsis...
I only heard a story about the ravages of depleted uranium (DU) today. It noted the increase of children in Baghdad born with no ears, without eyes, and, yes, some are born with one eye in the middle of their forehead. Of course, government lawyers, like Gonzales, are poised to fight establishing any link between DU and the increased rates of deformities or leukemia at birth. This is exactly what they have done with Gulf War Syndrome, also thought to be related to DU. While the ultra hard DU warhead penetrates enemy tanks with ease and immediately kills those near the explosion, the particles released by the impact kill indescriminately.
Half life: 4.5 Billion years.
So, of course, the Sun will swell and die, and so will the human race before any of these particles loose their radioactive properties. I am assuming that will be the moment people in this administration will look up from Hell and admit they were wrong for the first time.
Here is a link These images are horrendous.
Of course, I could put images like these on street signs and I would be called an unpatriotic SOB by the very pro-lifers that supported Bush.
Meanwhile, back at the ranch, W is clearing brush....clearing brush...clearing brush. It is beautiful to see the hypocrisy, the lies, the smirk, the demeanor. Save these babies, George.
Half life: 4.5 Billion years.
So, of course, the Sun will swell and die, and so will the human race before any of these particles loose their radioactive properties. I am assuming that will be the moment people in this administration will look up from Hell and admit they were wrong for the first time.
Here is a link These images are horrendous.
Of course, I could put images like these on street signs and I would be called an unpatriotic SOB by the very pro-lifers that supported Bush.
Meanwhile, back at the ranch, W is clearing brush....clearing brush...clearing brush. It is beautiful to see the hypocrisy, the lies, the smirk, the demeanor. Save these babies, George.
Wednesday, November 17, 2004
Jacques Chirac
Those savvy French......Je ne suis pas sûr que ce soit dans la nature de nos amis américains, en ce moment, de rendre systématiquement des faveurs." C'est aussi ce que pensent aujourd'hui la majorité des Britanniques.
Translation: I am not sure that, presently, it is in the nature of our American friends to systematically return favors.
Translation of the translation: Cher Tony [Blair], I think you have been royally screwed and will get nothing for it. Of course, I could have told you that. In fact, I did. Not that I am rubbing it in, I have my own problems. Colin was a good chap, wasn't he. We'll miss him...
etc., etc.
Translation: I am not sure that, presently, it is in the nature of our American friends to systematically return favors.
Translation of the translation: Cher Tony [Blair], I think you have been royally screwed and will get nothing for it. Of course, I could have told you that. In fact, I did. Not that I am rubbing it in, I have my own problems. Colin was a good chap, wasn't he. We'll miss him...
etc., etc.
Why Dems are running scared
There is something too cerebral to all this talk about Dems "standing" their ground. Though I have to say that I strongly believe Dems should be more fervent in their critiques of the Right and more deeply rooted in their own political philosophy, I have to remind myself everyday that there are serious financial circumstances involved in political life.
This article in The Hill says it all, though it doesn't speak broadly to the issue, only hints at it in its title "Dems fear lobbying blacklist"
...Several Democratic aides said that a midsize Washington lobbying firm, the Alpine Group, declined last week to hire a Daschle staffer with whom the group had been in long-standing discussions about a possible job. They said the Daschle aide, who The Hill agreed not to name, believed he would get the job based on conversations with the firm about three months before the election.
According to one Senate aide familiar with the situation, the firm told the Daschle aide, “This is a cold town for Democrats. It’s especially cold for Daschle’s staff.” Asked whether DeLay or any of his associates had specifically conveyed a message to the firm, the Senate aide said, “The implication was that DeLay had put the word out that Daschle staff should not be hired.”
Now, I think Washington had a LOT of problems when a certain bonhomie reigned, when Senate rules of engagement actually reflected certain polite beliefs. But in some ways, those days also meant survival of those who disagreed with you and survival of their ideas. Those days are gone, and they are gone for the political underclass as well.
The Repubs are remaking the town in their own image. It is scary.
No wonder Democrats seem so timid. They are afraid for their livelihood.
This article in The Hill says it all, though it doesn't speak broadly to the issue, only hints at it in its title "Dems fear lobbying blacklist"
...Several Democratic aides said that a midsize Washington lobbying firm, the Alpine Group, declined last week to hire a Daschle staffer with whom the group had been in long-standing discussions about a possible job. They said the Daschle aide, who The Hill agreed not to name, believed he would get the job based on conversations with the firm about three months before the election.
According to one Senate aide familiar with the situation, the firm told the Daschle aide, “This is a cold town for Democrats. It’s especially cold for Daschle’s staff.” Asked whether DeLay or any of his associates had specifically conveyed a message to the firm, the Senate aide said, “The implication was that DeLay had put the word out that Daschle staff should not be hired.”
Now, I think Washington had a LOT of problems when a certain bonhomie reigned, when Senate rules of engagement actually reflected certain polite beliefs. But in some ways, those days also meant survival of those who disagreed with you and survival of their ideas. Those days are gone, and they are gone for the political underclass as well.
The Repubs are remaking the town in their own image. It is scary.
No wonder Democrats seem so timid. They are afraid for their livelihood.
How to Be an Opposition Party
Great comments by Matt Stoller in How to Be an Opposition Party.
Quote:
Currently, the pitiful candidate Kerry is busy setting himself up for 2008 by shitting on the base operatives striving to have every vote count. This is a mistake. When you are in opposition, every ally is important, and you do not sacrifice allies to stay in game, because you are not in the game. Kerry and many Senate Democrats do not understand this. They are not players anymore.
Kevin Brennan and Ian Welsh, two brilliant Canadians who have a deep interest in American politics, lay this out. In Learn How to Lose, Kevin shows that there is a right way to lose that scores you points in later elections, and a wrong way to lose that just fosters the perception of ineffectiveness. In The Bright Red Line, Ian talks about the battles that need to be fought and filibustered, the things upon which we cannot compromise or we lose the American polity for a generation.
In other words, being an effective opposition is about resisting structural changes that tilt the playing field away from you while allowing the governing party to enact policies you do not agree with, all the while proposing clear alternatives and publicizing them. Meanwhile, at the state and local level, governing well is essential to showcase how effective the Democratic alternative really is. At the federal level, though, we have no power, so we can be honest, like Al Sharpton in the primaries. Imagine that, a party of Sharptonian rhetoric.
Quote:
Currently, the pitiful candidate Kerry is busy setting himself up for 2008 by shitting on the base operatives striving to have every vote count. This is a mistake. When you are in opposition, every ally is important, and you do not sacrifice allies to stay in game, because you are not in the game. Kerry and many Senate Democrats do not understand this. They are not players anymore.
Kevin Brennan and Ian Welsh, two brilliant Canadians who have a deep interest in American politics, lay this out. In Learn How to Lose, Kevin shows that there is a right way to lose that scores you points in later elections, and a wrong way to lose that just fosters the perception of ineffectiveness. In The Bright Red Line, Ian talks about the battles that need to be fought and filibustered, the things upon which we cannot compromise or we lose the American polity for a generation.
In other words, being an effective opposition is about resisting structural changes that tilt the playing field away from you while allowing the governing party to enact policies you do not agree with, all the while proposing clear alternatives and publicizing them. Meanwhile, at the state and local level, governing well is essential to showcase how effective the Democratic alternative really is. At the federal level, though, we have no power, so we can be honest, like Al Sharpton in the primaries. Imagine that, a party of Sharptonian rhetoric.
Messaging The Mossad, clearing brush...
As America begins to straddle one-party rule and one-party ruled government institutions , Steve Clemons gives us a glimpse of the model: Isreal's Mossad. Sharon executed his purge. Now Bush is doing his.
As I said yesterday, the world is becoming our West Bank. Now we are becoming Israel, and more than just metaphorically. I am pro-Israel, but I am 100 percent anti-Sharon and anti- theocracy.
Clearing brush, clearing brush, clearing brush...
As I said yesterday, the world is becoming our West Bank. Now we are becoming Israel, and more than just metaphorically. I am pro-Israel, but I am 100 percent anti-Sharon and anti- theocracy.
Clearing brush, clearing brush, clearing brush...
Tuesday, November 16, 2004
Fallujah in Pictures, Clearing Brush, Pharma-gov
As I'm going through the day's news, trying to forget them long enough to plan class, to grade some papers, to find some distance from everything that is going on, I inevitably fall on something like this: Fallujah in Pictures
Look at it. Think about it.
I don't know what's going to happen. I can't pretend to. But we are making enemies faster than we are making friends and, unless the Bushites get lucky and the Iraq election leads to a request for America to leave, we're in Iraq for a long time to come. Regardless, we have given the Muslim world ammunition for decades. Welcome to America's West Bank. I guess everybody knows that.
Meanwhile, back at the homestead, Holy George, is purging the ranks of the CIA. Like Homeland Security, he's setting it up to be a publicity apparatus, a research institution whose findings are guaranteed to be 100% in line with administration doctrine, or should I say dogma. This is ritual. This is like clearing brush. What are these darn weeds doing here? That's not the landscape I'm after. By golly, this here needs to be a golf course where I can drive the ball 250 yards without any water obstacles. That is my right. That is my priviledge. Serve me. Watch this drive.
Yes, clearing weeds.
It dawns on me that the administration is actually modeling itself not on the energy companies (though that is true to a certain extent as well), but on the drug companies. They do their own self-serving research, they spend luxuriously on advertisement and sell a lifestyle that finds its potency in a balance of fear (of death, of illness, of impotence) and often ambiguous results riddled with side-effects. Think Vioxx.
But hey, these manly men are tough right? They've got hard-ons that would make a mule blush. WEll, that's what they would like you to think. I think they are first-class sissies, policy hacks, and, unfortunately, politicians.
I'm depressed today.
Howard Dean for Chair.
Signing off.
Look at it. Think about it.
I don't know what's going to happen. I can't pretend to. But we are making enemies faster than we are making friends and, unless the Bushites get lucky and the Iraq election leads to a request for America to leave, we're in Iraq for a long time to come. Regardless, we have given the Muslim world ammunition for decades. Welcome to America's West Bank. I guess everybody knows that.
Meanwhile, back at the homestead, Holy George, is purging the ranks of the CIA. Like Homeland Security, he's setting it up to be a publicity apparatus, a research institution whose findings are guaranteed to be 100% in line with administration doctrine, or should I say dogma. This is ritual. This is like clearing brush. What are these darn weeds doing here? That's not the landscape I'm after. By golly, this here needs to be a golf course where I can drive the ball 250 yards without any water obstacles. That is my right. That is my priviledge. Serve me. Watch this drive.
Yes, clearing weeds.
It dawns on me that the administration is actually modeling itself not on the energy companies (though that is true to a certain extent as well), but on the drug companies. They do their own self-serving research, they spend luxuriously on advertisement and sell a lifestyle that finds its potency in a balance of fear (of death, of illness, of impotence) and often ambiguous results riddled with side-effects. Think Vioxx.
But hey, these manly men are tough right? They've got hard-ons that would make a mule blush. WEll, that's what they would like you to think. I think they are first-class sissies, policy hacks, and, unfortunately, politicians.
I'm depressed today.
Howard Dean for Chair.
Signing off.
Friday, November 12, 2004
King James Speak
I've been keeping up with Bob Jones's letter to the president, the one the Josh Marshall keeps coming back to.
My own take on this, besides the scary thought that Bush might actually think like this rather than just be playing the role of someone who thinks like this, is that the whole Red-Blue divide is increasingly an aesthetic and linguistic choice.
As I read Bob Jones's [Jones', if you prefer] letter, I can help but to keep coming back to the language:
Dear Prez:
The media tells us that you have received the largest number of popular votes of any president in America's history. Congratulations!
In your re-election, God has graciously granted America—though she doesn't deserve it—a reprieve from the agenda of paganism. You have been given a mandate. We the people expect your voice to be like the clear and certain sound of a trumpet. Because you seek the Lord daily, we who know the Lord will follow that kind of voice eagerly.
Don't equivocate. Put your agenda on the front burner and let it boil. You owe the liberals nothing. They despise you because they despise your Christ. Honor the Lord, and He will honor you.
Had your opponent won, I would have still given thanks, because the Bible says I must (I Thessalonians 5:18). It would have been hard, but because the Lord lifts up whom He will and pulls down whom He will, I would have done it. It is easy to rejoice today, because Christ has allowed you to be His servant in this nation for another presidential term. Undoubtedly, you will have opportunity to appoint many conservative judges and exercise forceful leadership with the Congress in passing legislation that is defined by biblical norm regarding the family, sexuality, sanctity of life, religious freedom, freedom of speech, and limited government. You have four years—a brief time only—to leave an imprint for righteousness upon this nation that brings with it the blessings of Almighty God.
Christ said, “If any man serve me, let him follow me; and where I am, there shall also my servant be: if any man serve me, him will my father honour” (John 12:26).
The student body, faculty, and staff at Bob Jones University commit ourselves to pray for you—that you would do right and honor the Savior. Pull out all the stops and make a difference. If you have weaklings around you who do not share your biblical values, shed yourself of them. Conservative Americans would love to see one president who doesn't care whether he is liked, but cares infinitely that he does right.
Best wishes. Sincerely your friend,
Bob Jones III
President
This whole "king-james" speak reeks of the Old Testament to me.
What's funny, is that the evangelicals that I know, use this phraseology all the time in their normal speaking. Last year we had a family of missionaries staying in our house. I spare you the whole story: very nice people, 26 years old, 4 young boys, living in beat-up RV until they moved to Madgascar to setup a charity school to teach english AS IT IS SPOKEN IN THE KING JAMES VERSION of the bible. Yes, they actually consciously or unconsciously adopted the same rhetorical figures. On some level, it sounded absurd. It was absurd. On the other, it was chilling.
The problem is not that we're going back linguistically to the late Middle Ages/Early-Modern period--I don't beleive in linguistic progress, only linguistic change. The problem is that we're going back to the the same friggin' mentalities of that enlightened time. The linguistic codes mirror this and seem to be a trait of recognition among the "beleivers."
The world is getting stranger. Teaching King James's English is both a symptom of these groups' subjugation (mental, linguistic...) to thier cause and a trope for recognizing the knowing.
Amen.
Andy
My own take on this, besides the scary thought that Bush might actually think like this rather than just be playing the role of someone who thinks like this, is that the whole Red-Blue divide is increasingly an aesthetic and linguistic choice.
As I read Bob Jones's [Jones', if you prefer] letter, I can help but to keep coming back to the language:
Dear Prez:
The media tells us that you have received the largest number of popular votes of any president in America's history. Congratulations!
In your re-election, God has graciously granted America—though she doesn't deserve it—a reprieve from the agenda of paganism. You have been given a mandate. We the people expect your voice to be like the clear and certain sound of a trumpet. Because you seek the Lord daily, we who know the Lord will follow that kind of voice eagerly.
Don't equivocate. Put your agenda on the front burner and let it boil. You owe the liberals nothing. They despise you because they despise your Christ. Honor the Lord, and He will honor you.
Had your opponent won, I would have still given thanks, because the Bible says I must (I Thessalonians 5:18). It would have been hard, but because the Lord lifts up whom He will and pulls down whom He will, I would have done it. It is easy to rejoice today, because Christ has allowed you to be His servant in this nation for another presidential term. Undoubtedly, you will have opportunity to appoint many conservative judges and exercise forceful leadership with the Congress in passing legislation that is defined by biblical norm regarding the family, sexuality, sanctity of life, religious freedom, freedom of speech, and limited government. You have four years—a brief time only—to leave an imprint for righteousness upon this nation that brings with it the blessings of Almighty God.
Christ said, “If any man serve me, let him follow me; and where I am, there shall also my servant be: if any man serve me, him will my father honour” (John 12:26).
The student body, faculty, and staff at Bob Jones University commit ourselves to pray for you—that you would do right and honor the Savior. Pull out all the stops and make a difference. If you have weaklings around you who do not share your biblical values, shed yourself of them. Conservative Americans would love to see one president who doesn't care whether he is liked, but cares infinitely that he does right.
Best wishes. Sincerely your friend,
Bob Jones III
President
This whole "king-james" speak reeks of the Old Testament to me.
What's funny, is that the evangelicals that I know, use this phraseology all the time in their normal speaking. Last year we had a family of missionaries staying in our house. I spare you the whole story: very nice people, 26 years old, 4 young boys, living in beat-up RV until they moved to Madgascar to setup a charity school to teach english AS IT IS SPOKEN IN THE KING JAMES VERSION of the bible. Yes, they actually consciously or unconsciously adopted the same rhetorical figures. On some level, it sounded absurd. It was absurd. On the other, it was chilling.
The problem is not that we're going back linguistically to the late Middle Ages/Early-Modern period--I don't beleive in linguistic progress, only linguistic change. The problem is that we're going back to the the same friggin' mentalities of that enlightened time. The linguistic codes mirror this and seem to be a trait of recognition among the "beleivers."
The world is getting stranger. Teaching King James's English is both a symptom of these groups' subjugation (mental, linguistic...) to thier cause and a trope for recognizing the knowing.
Amen.
Andy
Wednesday, November 10, 2004
Ivory Coast...
La Côte d'Ivoire is going to hell in a handbasket. Not many resources, but a vital rail line into Burkina Faso's gold and magnesium. I don't think this will make the administration's radar, so the French will maintain a foothold.
Tuesday, November 09, 2004
Oh, Thank you, mighty Howler
The Daily Howler
It is time for some class "warfare" of the reality-based type.... From The Daily Howler.
CONTEMPTUOUS VALUES: Many readers—many readers—sent us the Tax Foundation tables which show which states are federal free-loaders. And yes, the “red states”—the states whose denizens love to preach that bracing self-reliance—routinely take in more federal money than they submit in taxes. Meanwhile, who subsidizes these free-loading states? Who else? “Contemptuous” “elitists” from northeastern blue states, whose troubling values red-staters love to ponder! In 2003, for example, blue-state New Jersey received only 57 cents in federal spending for every dollar submitted in taxes. But then, the top ten states whose pockets are picked include eight which are nominally blue:
1) New Jersey: 57 cents
2) New Hampshire: 64 cents
3) Connecticut: 65 cents
4) Minnesota: 70 cents
5) Nevada: 70 cents
6) Illinois: 73 cents
7) California: 78 cents
8) Massachusetts: 78 cents
9) New York: 80 cents
10) Colorado: 80 cents
Eight of the ten donor states are “blue,” including Massachusetts, New York, California and Illinois—home base to the contemptuous elitists whom red-states denizens love to scold. Throughout the campaign, George Bush mocked the troubling values of liberal Massachusetts voters—people who send big bags of money to support Bush’s red-state supporters.
Is this a silly, pointless critique? In some ways, yes, as one e-mailer claimed in a semi-spot-on analysis:
E-MAIL: Here is the source of those tax numbers. I have to say that, while I generally agree with you and am also a bit tired of the whining, your prejudices are showing here. Most of the "red states" (other than those in the Midwest) have extractive economies and many are in effect internal colonies. Their current poverty is historically constructed by these facts and the relative prosperity of the “blue states” has created and
is dependent on their continued poverty (the existing economic development of the blue states in effect inhibits the red states from developing). The relationship here is essentially the same as the relations between the first world and the third world. There is a general correlation here between relative prosperity (even within red and blue states) and voting patterns. I think what the red states have in common is economic deprivation and a sense (justified) of a lack of control over their future. Unfortunately, they have wrongly identified "liberals" as the cause of their problems—in part because, as Thomas Franks points out, we have stopped talking about economic and class issues while still pushing for minority and gender enfranchisement.
Keep up the good work, but try to have a little sympathy for the unlovely lot of those red staters (if not for their infernal and unseemly whining).
But the mailer misconstrues our incomparable fairness. It’s that infernal whining we have specifically criticized—and the bogus attempt to blame “elitist liberals” as the source of red-staters’ problems. We’re not economists, and the e-mailer surely knows more than we do about red-state status as internal colonies. But, as Michael Lind discusses in Made In Texas, Southern red states became “internal colonies” with “extractive economies” because of the choices and values of Southern elites—the same Southern elites who feed their boo-hooing red-state voters their phony grievances against “contemptuous eastern liberals.” Historically, Texas elites helped make Texas an “extractive economy,” and blubbering Texans need to be told that, even as they stick their hands deep into northeastern pockets.
It is time for some class "warfare" of the reality-based type.... From The Daily Howler.
CONTEMPTUOUS VALUES: Many readers—many readers—sent us the Tax Foundation tables which show which states are federal free-loaders. And yes, the “red states”—the states whose denizens love to preach that bracing self-reliance—routinely take in more federal money than they submit in taxes. Meanwhile, who subsidizes these free-loading states? Who else? “Contemptuous” “elitists” from northeastern blue states, whose troubling values red-staters love to ponder! In 2003, for example, blue-state New Jersey received only 57 cents in federal spending for every dollar submitted in taxes. But then, the top ten states whose pockets are picked include eight which are nominally blue:
1) New Jersey: 57 cents
2) New Hampshire: 64 cents
3) Connecticut: 65 cents
4) Minnesota: 70 cents
5) Nevada: 70 cents
6) Illinois: 73 cents
7) California: 78 cents
8) Massachusetts: 78 cents
9) New York: 80 cents
10) Colorado: 80 cents
Eight of the ten donor states are “blue,” including Massachusetts, New York, California and Illinois—home base to the contemptuous elitists whom red-states denizens love to scold. Throughout the campaign, George Bush mocked the troubling values of liberal Massachusetts voters—people who send big bags of money to support Bush’s red-state supporters.
Is this a silly, pointless critique? In some ways, yes, as one e-mailer claimed in a semi-spot-on analysis:
E-MAIL: Here is the source of those tax numbers. I have to say that, while I generally agree with you and am also a bit tired of the whining, your prejudices are showing here. Most of the "red states" (other than those in the Midwest) have extractive economies and many are in effect internal colonies. Their current poverty is historically constructed by these facts and the relative prosperity of the “blue states” has created and
is dependent on their continued poverty (the existing economic development of the blue states in effect inhibits the red states from developing). The relationship here is essentially the same as the relations between the first world and the third world. There is a general correlation here between relative prosperity (even within red and blue states) and voting patterns. I think what the red states have in common is economic deprivation and a sense (justified) of a lack of control over their future. Unfortunately, they have wrongly identified "liberals" as the cause of their problems—in part because, as Thomas Franks points out, we have stopped talking about economic and class issues while still pushing for minority and gender enfranchisement.
Keep up the good work, but try to have a little sympathy for the unlovely lot of those red staters (if not for their infernal and unseemly whining).
But the mailer misconstrues our incomparable fairness. It’s that infernal whining we have specifically criticized—and the bogus attempt to blame “elitist liberals” as the source of red-staters’ problems. We’re not economists, and the e-mailer surely knows more than we do about red-state status as internal colonies. But, as Michael Lind discusses in Made In Texas, Southern red states became “internal colonies” with “extractive economies” because of the choices and values of Southern elites—the same Southern elites who feed their boo-hooing red-state voters their phony grievances against “contemptuous eastern liberals.” Historically, Texas elites helped make Texas an “extractive economy,” and blubbering Texans need to be told that, even as they stick their hands deep into northeastern pockets.
Eschaton
Atrios puts up some interesting Ohio numbers....
Highland Heights: 1385
Mayfield Village: 1385
Seven Hills: 2147
Broadview Height: 2540
Berea: 3146
Olmstead Falls: 3146
North Royalton: 4009
Maple Heights: 4744
Brook Park: 5295
Oakwood Village: 5460
Euclid: 5724
South Euclid: 5724
Cleveland Heights: 6007
East Cleveland: 6007
Garfield Heights: 6170
Lakewood: 6226
Middlebury Heights:
Parma: 7284
Bedford: 8553
Bedford Heights: 8553
Warrensville Heights: 8553
Bay Village: 9948
Fairview Park: 9948
North Olmstead: 9948
Rocky River: 9948
Westlake: 9948
Cleveland: 49324
http://haloscan.com/tb/atrios/110003866197985353
Highland Heights: 1385
Mayfield Village: 1385
Seven Hills: 2147
Broadview Height: 2540
Berea: 3146
Olmstead Falls: 3146
North Royalton: 4009
Maple Heights: 4744
Brook Park: 5295
Oakwood Village: 5460
Euclid: 5724
South Euclid: 5724
Cleveland Heights: 6007
East Cleveland: 6007
Garfield Heights: 6170
Lakewood: 6226
Middlebury Heights:
Parma: 7284
Bedford: 8553
Bedford Heights: 8553
Warrensville Heights: 8553
Bay Village: 9948
Fairview Park: 9948
North Olmstead: 9948
Rocky River: 9948
Westlake: 9948
Cleveland: 49324
http://haloscan.com/tb/atrios/110003866197985353
Jeffersonians unite
If--and it's a big 'if'--we are going to really talk about injection religion even deeper into our PUBLIC lives, well, listen to
Gary Hart
"If we are to insert 'faith' into the public dialogue more directly and assertively, let's not be selective. Let's go all the way. Let's not just define 'faith' in terms of the law and judgment; let's define it also in terms of love, caring, forgiveness. Compassionate conservatives can believe social ills should be addressed by charity and the private sector; liberals can believe that the government has a role to play in correcting social injustice. But both can agree that human need, poverty, homelessness, illiteracy and sickness must be addressed. Liberals are not against religion. They are against hypocrisy, exclusion and judgmentalism. They resist the notion that one side or the other possesses 'the truth' to the exclusion of others. There is a great difference between Cotton Mather and John Wesley.
There is also the disturbing tendency to insert theocratic principles into the vision of America's role in the world. There is evil in the world. Nowhere in our Constitution or founding documents is there support for the proposition that the United States was given a special dispensation to eliminate it. Surely Saddam Hussein was an evil dictator. But there are quite a few of those still around and no one is advocating eliminating them. Neither Washington, Adams, Madison nor Jefferson saw America as the world's avenging angel. Any notion of going abroad seeking demons to destroy concerned them above all else. Mr. Bush's venture into crusaderism frightened not only Muslims, it also frightened a very large number of Americans with a sense of their own history."
Gary Hart
"If we are to insert 'faith' into the public dialogue more directly and assertively, let's not be selective. Let's go all the way. Let's not just define 'faith' in terms of the law and judgment; let's define it also in terms of love, caring, forgiveness. Compassionate conservatives can believe social ills should be addressed by charity and the private sector; liberals can believe that the government has a role to play in correcting social injustice. But both can agree that human need, poverty, homelessness, illiteracy and sickness must be addressed. Liberals are not against religion. They are against hypocrisy, exclusion and judgmentalism. They resist the notion that one side or the other possesses 'the truth' to the exclusion of others. There is a great difference between Cotton Mather and John Wesley.
There is also the disturbing tendency to insert theocratic principles into the vision of America's role in the world. There is evil in the world. Nowhere in our Constitution or founding documents is there support for the proposition that the United States was given a special dispensation to eliminate it. Surely Saddam Hussein was an evil dictator. But there are quite a few of those still around and no one is advocating eliminating them. Neither Washington, Adams, Madison nor Jefferson saw America as the world's avenging angel. Any notion of going abroad seeking demons to destroy concerned them above all else. Mr. Bush's venture into crusaderism frightened not only Muslims, it also frightened a very large number of Americans with a sense of their own history."
CIA, Inauguration
It was announced today that the security level for this year's inauguration is going to be the very highest possible. Read: we will do everything to exclude protesters from the scene. Of course, it is highly likely for the networks to oblige. What interest does GE have in curbing the president's enthusiasm?
None.
What are we going to do about this inauguration? Hopefully nothing since, in some ways, I don't think we should protest. It takes our eye off the ball--namely, the Senate and Congress, whose members will be attempting hijinks previously unseen in Washington now that they seem to beleive they have a "mandate."
None.
What are we going to do about this inauguration? Hopefully nothing since, in some ways, I don't think we should protest. It takes our eye off the ball--namely, the Senate and Congress, whose members will be attempting hijinks previously unseen in Washington now that they seem to beleive they have a "mandate."
Le Monde.fr : Mais o? sont pass?s les votes d?mocrates de Floride ?
Le Monde is asking about missing votes in FLA according to the GAO Heres the article...
Fallujah
1.
Well, we're attacking Fallujah, which is what we should have done a long time ago. Or, if the invasion had been done properly, perhaps we wouldn't have to be doing it at all... But, hey, it'll make for some exciting TV! Blood, explosions, RUmsfeld. It'll be great, I promise. Just watch your LOCAL news and see how much they talk about it.
Let's not be too coy. We're there and be have to do it now....
2.
I'm feeling a bit depressed today as I look across the Democratic board and see the same old actors doing the same old thing. We're not going to win unless there is a major shake up/shake down of the self-loving, pandering folks.
More later.
Well, we're attacking Fallujah, which is what we should have done a long time ago. Or, if the invasion had been done properly, perhaps we wouldn't have to be doing it at all... But, hey, it'll make for some exciting TV! Blood, explosions, RUmsfeld. It'll be great, I promise. Just watch your LOCAL news and see how much they talk about it.
Let's not be too coy. We're there and be have to do it now....
2.
I'm feeling a bit depressed today as I look across the Democratic board and see the same old actors doing the same old thing. We're not going to win unless there is a major shake up/shake down of the self-loving, pandering folks.
More later.
Sunday, November 07, 2004
As I thought on Wednesday without even
looking at the results. Things are not as bad as they may seem for Dems. Yes, the national party is, as it has been, in need of inspiration, new blood, etc. I firmly believe however that there is a liberal message and that it is getting out that the bottom of the ticket. The problem is the communication alleys between top and bottom. We have got to quit playing the Republican's game and create a coherent elevator message for the party. Unfortunately, I'm talking about branding it. We need persistent messages sent out, we need them starting yesterday. We must attack Frist and co.
MyDD (Chris Bowers) looks at all the stats and sums it up nicely:
"Democrats also made state legislature gains in Michigan and Ohio, and in both cases are now within only three seats of taking at least one of the two branches of the legislature. Vermont saw notable Democrats gains in the state legislature as well. Finally, Republicans wrested the Missouri and Indiana governorships from Demcorats, while Democrats wrested the Montana and New Hampshire governorships from Republicans.
Do I need to go on? The pattern is clear. We have been thoroughly routed out of the South, but are making significant gains in virtually every other part of the country. We are well on our way toward building a new post-Dixiecrat, and entirely post-New Deal majority coalition. If we cling to some foolish believe that our problems in the South can be fixed by nominating a conservative Southern governor who talks faith, we might as well fold up our tents right now. It has taken us twenty years to come close to building a national majority since the fracturing of the Democrat-Dixiecrat coalition in the early 1980's, but we are finally close. For a long time we were propped up by the false impression that the Southern wing of the Democratic Party was not completely dead, but after Tuesday it is time to put that false hope out to pasture. I'm not saying we should not keep trying in the south, as I believe we should keep trying everywhere. However, it is time to stop believing that just having a southerner on the ticket, or talking a little faith is somehow going to turn our fortunes around in the region. For that matter, we should not even believe that doing these things would even make us competitive in the region anytime soon. The Blue-Gary divide in the country is once again rearing its ugly head, and the Mike Easley's, Wesley Clark's, Mary Landrieu's and Phil Bredesen's of the party are not going prevent that from happening.
MyDD :: Due Diligence of Politics, Election Forecast & the World Today
This is essentially what I said the other day. This is about belief in the system, in progress. If the Republicans have gotten this far it is because they have a core base of believers integrated into a cynical political machine. The democrats have never been nor will they ever be as cynical or as manipulative as the Repubs. The Dems have realists. Now these folks must coordinate with the believers--who are very different from the glossy-eyed Republican ones.
There is a realignment going on and we must catch this wave with our own coherent ideology that is based neither on hate nor exclusion, but belief in a better, fairer America. Forget gay marriage--propose civil unions for everybody. Talk about debt-relief--this makes more sense to most folks than tax-relief. Talk about good, well-paying jobs. Talk about health care. Talk about family, food, property. Talk about MORALITY--There has b een an increase in abortions since the Bushite coup of 2000. What does that mean? What does that say about this administrations dedication to family? I say that we must learn to hear and speak of a moral truth that goes beyond us while not preaching or sounding haughty, which has been the case for so many righteous Dems in the past.
The Dems are well-positioned for this, but will the national party learn or will it be an eat-your-child-power-grabbing party? Folks, we need some vision.
Andy
MyDD (Chris Bowers) looks at all the stats and sums it up nicely:
"Democrats also made state legislature gains in Michigan and Ohio, and in both cases are now within only three seats of taking at least one of the two branches of the legislature. Vermont saw notable Democrats gains in the state legislature as well. Finally, Republicans wrested the Missouri and Indiana governorships from Demcorats, while Democrats wrested the Montana and New Hampshire governorships from Republicans.
Do I need to go on? The pattern is clear. We have been thoroughly routed out of the South, but are making significant gains in virtually every other part of the country. We are well on our way toward building a new post-Dixiecrat, and entirely post-New Deal majority coalition. If we cling to some foolish believe that our problems in the South can be fixed by nominating a conservative Southern governor who talks faith, we might as well fold up our tents right now. It has taken us twenty years to come close to building a national majority since the fracturing of the Democrat-Dixiecrat coalition in the early 1980's, but we are finally close. For a long time we were propped up by the false impression that the Southern wing of the Democratic Party was not completely dead, but after Tuesday it is time to put that false hope out to pasture. I'm not saying we should not keep trying in the south, as I believe we should keep trying everywhere. However, it is time to stop believing that just having a southerner on the ticket, or talking a little faith is somehow going to turn our fortunes around in the region. For that matter, we should not even believe that doing these things would even make us competitive in the region anytime soon. The Blue-Gary divide in the country is once again rearing its ugly head, and the Mike Easley's, Wesley Clark's, Mary Landrieu's and Phil Bredesen's of the party are not going prevent that from happening.
MyDD :: Due Diligence of Politics, Election Forecast & the World Today
This is essentially what I said the other day. This is about belief in the system, in progress. If the Republicans have gotten this far it is because they have a core base of believers integrated into a cynical political machine. The democrats have never been nor will they ever be as cynical or as manipulative as the Repubs. The Dems have realists. Now these folks must coordinate with the believers--who are very different from the glossy-eyed Republican ones.
There is a realignment going on and we must catch this wave with our own coherent ideology that is based neither on hate nor exclusion, but belief in a better, fairer America. Forget gay marriage--propose civil unions for everybody. Talk about debt-relief--this makes more sense to most folks than tax-relief. Talk about good, well-paying jobs. Talk about health care. Talk about family, food, property. Talk about MORALITY--There has b een an increase in abortions since the Bushite coup of 2000. What does that mean? What does that say about this administrations dedication to family? I say that we must learn to hear and speak of a moral truth that goes beyond us while not preaching or sounding haughty, which has been the case for so many righteous Dems in the past.
The Dems are well-positioned for this, but will the national party learn or will it be an eat-your-child-power-grabbing party? Folks, we need some vision.
Andy
Friday, November 05, 2004
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