Month: May 2011
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2012 isn’t 1992
Some think that 2012 will be like 1992. However, that analogy is problematic.
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Economist Who Advises Nevada On Budget Files Bankrtupcy
I believe this is what you call irony: The economist who helps predict how much money state government can expect to fund its budget has declared personal bankruptcy, telling the Sun he didn’t foresee his own financial meltdown. John M. Restrepo, chairman of the five-member State Economic Forum, filed for bankruptcy protection in November, citing…
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Herman Cain: Elect Me, Then I’ll Tell You What I Think About Foreign Policy
Call it a rookie mistake if you like, but Herman Cain’s response to questions about national security policy is, honestly, just bizarre: GOP presidential hopeful Herman Cain said Sunday he doesn’t have a plan for the war on terror and won’t share his thoughts with voters until he gets into the White House. “The right…
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The Real Reason The Rapture Didn’t Happen
There were some technical issues: Rest at the link
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Internet Commenters Are Us?
Amy Myers, the sophomore who challenged Michele Bachmann to a debate on the Constitution, has been the target of vile comments on the Internet.
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Congress Credit Application Denied
“Our records indicate that your annual income for the 2011 taxable year was $2,170,000,000,000. You have requested a credit limit of $17,000,000,000,000. These figures exceed the American Public’s guidelines for credit issuance”
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Red Bull’s Billionaire Maniac
Business Week has a fascinating profile of Dietrich Mateschitz, whom they dub “Red Bull’s Billionaire Maniac.”
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Mitch Daniels Won’t Run in 2012
Mitch Daniels, the candidate of George Will and a host of mainstream Republicans hoping for something better in 2012, has announced he will not be running for president in 2012.
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2011 Nebula Award Winners
For the first time in a while, I haven’t already read the winning novel. And just when my To Be Read stack had gotten to a manageable size…. The full list, courtesy the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America: Winning Novel: Blackout/All Clear by Connie Willis (Spectra) Also Nominated: The Native Star by M.K. Hobson…
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Obama Administration Tells Congress War Powers Act Doesn’t Apply To Libya Mission
The Obama Administration is offering an odd explanation for why it doesn’t need to comply with the War Powers Act.
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Why Would Any Sane Person Run For President?
Yea you get to live in a nice house for a few years if you win, but why would any normal human being put themselves through a campaign for President?
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Herman Cain Announces Candidacy For President
Outside of the conservative wing of the GOP, I think it’s fair to say that most Americans have no idea who Herman Cain is, which is something he’ll have to deal with now that he’s officially running for President: Herman Cain – talk radio host, businessman, and favorite of tea party groups – announced his…
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Prosser Wins Recount In Wisconsin Supreme Court Race
Not surprisingly, Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice David Prosser remains at the top of the race after a statewide recount: With the weeks-long recount complete, unofficial numbers confirm that state Supreme Court Justice David Prosser narrowly defeated Assistant Attorney General JoAnne Kloppenburg in the April 5 election. But the battle may not be over yet, as…
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Graphic of the (End of) Day(s)
From the home page of Family Radio: My question: will it say “-01” tomorrow?
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High School Student Who Challenged Bachmann Receives Online Threats
Well isn’t this, sadly, predictable: CHERRY HILL, N.J. — A New Jersey teenager says she’s received threats since challenging U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann to a debate over the Constitution. Ann Myers challenged the tea party favorite in a letter dated April 29. After it started getting media attention last weekend, commenters on tea party websites…
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Republicans 2012: Who Else Might Run?
With the customary hand-wringing over the low quality of the presidential field well underway, the corollary pining for other candidates to join the race is starting.
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A Nations of Immigrants with a Dumb Immigration Policy
Canada is much friendlier than the United States with regard to immigration.
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Rapture is Bunk
The Rapture has no biblical foundation and was made up by a 15-year-old girl in 1830.
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More Throwing Israel under the Bus
"We must give up Arab neighborhoods in Jerusalem and return to the core of the territory that is the State of Israel prior to 1967, with minor corrections dictated by the reality created since then,”—Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, 2008 (source). It seems to me that some folks need to get a little perspective. (Thanks…
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Michele Bachmann: If We Don’t Completely Support Israel, God Will Curse Us
Apparently, Michele Bachmann bases her foreign policy views on obscure quotes from a book written 5,000 years ago: At a Republican Jewish Coalition event in Los Angeles last week, Rep. Michele Bachmann offered a candid view of her positions on Israel: Support for Israel is handed down by God and if the United States pulls…
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China Giving Pakistan 50 Fighter Jets
Just in case you didn’t think there was already reason enough to be concerned about Pakistan, here’s about 50 more: ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — China has agreed to immediately provide 50 JF-17 fighter jets to Pakistan, a major outcome of a visit by Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani to Beijing this week, Pakistani officials said Thursday.…
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Don’t Blame Obama For The Death Of The War Powers Act
It has now been 60 days since American involvement in Libya commenced. Congress has failed to act, and that’s their fault.
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Coffee, Is There Anything It Can’t Do?
According to a new study, daily coffee intake reduces the risk of prostate cancer: If that’s java in your cup, drink up. A new study says that men who are heavy coffee drinkers are at lower risk for prostate cancer. As part of the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study, Harvard scientists followed 47,911 men who periodically…
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Syrian Forces Kill 17 During Friday Protests
One day after President Obama said that he had the choice of leading a transition to democracy or getting out of the way, Syrian President Bashar Assad’s security forces gunned down 17 protesters who had taken to the streets in defiance of a government order: BEIRUT, Lebanon — Thousands of Syrians defied a ferocious crackdown…
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Sarah Palin Says She Has “The Fire In The Belly”
At the very least, Sarah Palin wants people to think that she’s considering running for President: Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin (R) hasn’t decided whether to run for president, but she insisted Thursday she has the “fire in my belly” to do it. Fox News’s Greta van Susteren asked Palin, who has provided few hints…
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T-Paw to Announce
So reports the AP: APNewsBreak: Aide: Pawlenty running for president. Former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, a laid-back Midwestern Republican who governed a Democratic-leaning state, is running for president and will declare his candidacy on Monday in the leadoff caucus state of Iowa, an adviser told The Associated Press. The adviser, who disclosed the plans on…
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Newt Gingrich’s Ringtone: Dancing Queen
This is amusing: Ames, Ia. – Presidential candidate Newt Gingrich briefly stopped a campaign event here to shut off his phone as his ringtone sounded ABBA’s “Dancing Queen.” The song is from the musical “Mamma Mia.” Gingrich said later that he is a big fan of the movie version, starring Meryl Streep, and that his…
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Gallup Poll Finds Majority Support For Same-Sex Marriage
We’ve reached a turning point in the debate over same-sex marriage.
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Why 2012 Republican Field is So Weak
The Republican candidates of 2012 are so weak because of GOP losses in 2004 and 2006 Senate and gubernatorial races.
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Amazon Now Sells More E-Books Than Print Books
The death of the print book continues apace: As further proof of how digital media dominate today’s entertainment, Amazon announced Thursday that its customers now buy more e-books for its Kindle device than all print books — hardcover and paperback — combined. Given that people seem to spend more and more of their time peering…
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Tim Pawlenty Doesn’t Know Why He Wants To Be President
Why do you want to be President? It’s a simple question, one you think a Presidential candidate would have a quick, soundbite type answer to, but Tim Pawlenty couldn’t come up with one when the question was posed to him: And when I ask Pawlenty, during a second interview in Des Moines, Iowa, exactly when…
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Daniels To Decide On POTUS Run By End Of May
It looks like the GOP won’t have to wait on Mitch Daniels for much longer: Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels (R) will decide whether or not to make a 2012 presidential run by the end of the month, according an Indiana GOP strategist. The two-term governor has indicated this week that his public mulling can’t continue…
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Will You Be Raptured?
As you are no doubt already aware, a Christian preacher based in San Diego is predicting that the world will end at 6pm on Saturday, May 21st (not sure how he got the timing down so precise, but there you have it). As a public service, here’s a handy flowchart to help you determine if…
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Jon Huntsman’s New Hampshire Debut
Jon Huntsman made his first stop in New Hampshire as he explores a presidential bid. So far, so good.
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Willie Nelson Endorses Gary Johnson – No, Dennis Kucinich – For President
Willie Nelson is torn between Gary Johnson and Dennis Kucinich.
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It’s Okay To Be Takei
George Takei has a deal to offer Tennesseans in the event that the “Don’t Say Gay” bill passes in the Legislature. More info here.
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Sarah Palin: The “Lamestream Media” Is Responsible For Newt Gingrich’s Gaffes
Sarah Palin made some rather odd comments last night about the whole Newt Gingrich/Ryan Plan kerfuffle: Newt Gingrich’s misstep this week was actually a double fault in Sarah Palin’s eyes. Not only did he attack his own party’s proposal to reshape Medicare, but he did so by appearing on the oh-so-dreaded “lamestream media.” Palin offered…
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Dominique Strauss-Kahn Gets Bail
A judge granted Dominique Strauss-Kahn bail on Thursday, allowing the former managing director of the International Monetary Fund to be freed from Rikers Island to stay in a Manhattan apartment while his sexual assault case is pending.
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Newt Gingrich Stars In New DNC Ad On Medicare
Well, we knew this was inevitable:
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Obama’s Reference To Israel’s 1967 Borders Creates Faux Controversy
It’s been barely four hours since the President’s Middle East policy speech at the State Department and already the fake controversy has developed: Buried in his blithering, blathering, self-congratulatory, hectoring speech on the Middle East today, Barack Hussein Obama dropped this diplomatic nuclear bomb: So while the core issues of the conflict must be negotiated,…
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President Obama Wades Back Into The Middle East Quicksand
Once again, an American President thinks he can bring peace to the Middle East.
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Demagoguery Alert: New Ad Shows Paul Ryan Killing Grandma
This, an ad from some group calling itself The Agenda Project, is what American politics has come to: This is considered a rational debate on fiscal policy in this country. Pretty damn sad. H/T: Hot Air
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Tom Coburn: Budget Deal Must Include Tax Increases
In a must-read Washington Post op-ed calling out his fellow Senators for failing to act on a budget deal, Oklahoma Senator Tom Coburn crosses a Republican Rubicon: The public rightly prefers spending cuts over revenue increases, but numerous polls indicate the vast majority of Americans would support the only type of plan that would ever…
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Mitch Daniels In 2009: GOP Should Stress Issues That Unite, Not Issues That Divide
Part of a speech that Mitch Daniels made in 2009 is setting off a firestorm among some conservative bloggers.
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When Fiction Presages Reality: Musings on Gingrich
Newt is looking a bit toasty to me (not that that is a surprising position to take).
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Best. News Article. Ever.
Via several sources on Twitter Update: As noted in the comments, Snopes says that the final paragraph may be untrue. But, I think it’s the fact that it could be true that it gets a chuckle.
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OBL’s Last Message
Via the BBC: Osama Bin Laden: Al-Qaeda releases posthumous message Plus some speculation on Osama’s replacement: Speculation is mounting that al-Qaeda has appointed a former Egyptian army colonel, Saif al-Adel, as temporary leader to replace Bin Laden. Adel was once Bin Laden’s security chief, and is suspected of involvement in the 1998 US embassy bombings…
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Mitch McConnell Will Not Urge Senate Republicans To Support Ryan Plan
The latest example of the extent to which Senate Republicans do not wish to associate themselves with the Ryan Plan comes in the news the Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell will not try to persuade his caucus members to support the plan when it comes up for a vote: Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.)…
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Loud Cell Phone Talker Arrested
A loud woman who was yapping loudly for hours on an AmTrak quiet car has been arrested after getting belligerent.