December 2011
Clarification on an Earlier Post
I wrote a brief comment in this earlier post about a recent essay by Glenn Greenwald. I got some pushback for pointing to abortion as a “comparatively minor issue.” Obviously, I will never need an abortion, and so it is easy for me to not care about it, I was told.
I reject this completely; I think abortion rights are an important issue, and I feel strongly about it. I may be male,...
President Obama Signs Indefinite Detention Bill... →
Fuck this guy.
So... You've Been Indefinitely Detained! Helpful... →
Progressives and the Ron Paul fallacies →
Far and away Glenn Greenwald’s best essay of the year. I love the first part, where he dissects the way partisan considerations frequently force people to absurdly (and seemingly without any self-awareness) change their view on whether a particular policy or aspect of a candidate is good or bad. He nails the frustration of someone like me, who has no allegiance to either party any farther...
Economic recovery: Why good things are about to... →
This is perhaps the strangest attempt at optimism I’ve ever seen. Matthew Yglesias argues that the economic environment is going to slowly but surely improve from here on out, so that by the end of a lost decade or so, we should be back to good times. Great.
This Modern World » Year in Review →
Matt Stoller: Why Ron Paul Challenges Liberals →
The "Mainstream" And Ron Paul →
Despite pit bull ban, man reunited with service... →
Some good news in that case I posted a few days ago.
The Dumbest Idea In The World: Maximizing... →
Software bug fingered as cause of Aussie A330... →
Well, I really wish I had not read this.
Cleavage Overload! →
Vote Obama – if you want a centrist Republican for... →
“His view of government is almost entirely anti-progressive and problematic in a...”
– On Ron Paul and Progressivism | FDL News Desk
Springtime for Toxics →
Daily Kos: Montanans Launch Recall of Senators Who... →
Bravo, Montana.
“The president has the power to veto the bill and, initially, his aides had...”
– Obama’s abysmal record on civil liberties | Mehdi Hasan | Comment is free | The Guardian
I voted for Obama for one reason, for one fucking reason. And he’s been way worse than the guy I wanted to throw out of office over that reason.
Not-Obama 2012 all the way.
Siobhan Reynolds, RIP →
If you have any medical conditions that have chronic pain as a side-effect, or if you might some day (and who among us isn’t in that position), you should be very interested in what this woman was fighting for. Very sad.
Tests Cast Doubt on F.A.A. Restrictions on Kindle... →
Just how bullshitty is “no electronics during takeoff and landing?” Soooooooooooooooooo bullshitty.
But everyone already knew that.
Blind dog, lost last month and thought dead, makes... →
Sport Utility Vehicles: An Endangered Species? →
Some encouraging news.
Man At Bar Ribs Cop 'Aw, You Suck At Darts,' Cop... →
Obama Issues Signing Statement on Budget Bill →
This article is in standard NYT style, which is to say, an article about how Obama has been a complete liar about signing statements and gone back on just about everything he said he would do, disguised as a boring article about his issuing a signing statement.
Lee County Deputies Tied Suspect to a Chair,... →
For Christmas, Your Government Will Explain Why... →
A Christmas Message From America's Rich →
Matt Taibbi in Rolling Stone
Louis CK: Live at the Beacon Theater →
His site doesn’t seem to have a permalink to the relevant article, so I am talking here about his December 21, 2011 post, where he announces that his special has made $1M in 12 days, and he is giving away about half of it to charities and bonuses for colleagues.
New EPA mercury rules are a bona fide Big Deal →
Note that these rules are expected to prevent 17,000 premature deaths a year due to the health problems these pollutants cause, and they will cost a few billion dollars to implement. Compare that to the TSA, which costs many times more, and prevents zero deaths every year.
Disabled Chicago cop denied pit bull service dog... →
Clean them out.
Jurors Can Say No →
Prosecutors are apparently trying to convict a guy for telling people about jury nullification outside of a courthouse. I wonder how they will try to get this bullshit conviction without the jury learning about jury nullification in the process.
Karl Rove Concedes House GOP Blew It On Payroll... →
You probably haven’t been following this stupid bullshit about the payroll tax cut, but basically, the Republicans are so eager to deny whatever Obama wants, that they refused to pass a 2 month payroll tax holiday extension that is going to cause paychecks across the country to be smaller in January, even though both the President and the Senate had approved it.
What I find interesting...
Does Airport Security Really Make Us Safer? →
Be sure to read the article for the surprising answer to this question!
