Some good reading on Abscam, and the Church Committee, whether you were around in the '70s or not:
http://america.aljazeera.com/articles/2013/11/30/the-real-life-fbistingbehindamericanhustle.html
http://www.salon.com/2013/12/14/abscam_the_nsa_and_the_70s_the_real_american_hustle/
― eclectic husbandry (Dr Morbius), Wednesday, 18 December 2013 16:01 (ten years ago) link
advocacy groups are pushing GOP leaders to make big demands
the leopards have not changed their spots
― Aimless, Wednesday, 18 December 2013 18:56 (ten years ago) link
Good times in the press corps
― Multiple Miggs (dandydonweiner), Thursday, 19 December 2013 11:33 (ten years ago) link
Blah blah blah, DC is fake, Kentucky is real ....la dee dah...zzzzz
― curmudgeon, Thursday, 19 December 2013 14:47 (ten years ago) link
Marcy Wheeler: NSA review group a whitewash.
― the objections to Drake from non-REAL HIPHOP people (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Thursday, 19 December 2013 15:08 (ten years ago) link
Probably you can't have a group of complete outsiders tell the national security teams how to run their business, unless you want a bunch of idealistic, utopian bullshit hopes-n-dreams recommendations.
― Multiple Miggs (dandydonweiner), Thursday, 19 December 2013 15:39 (ten years ago) link
Full employment. A higher inflation target to make monetary policy work better in these times, alongside government spending to ensure the Federal Reserve can do its job. Paired with a much more active role for the government in public investment.
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/18/opinion/edsall-is-the-safety-net-just-masking-tape.html?hp&rref=opinion&_r=0&pagewanted=all
― reggie (qualmsley), Thursday, 19 December 2013 16:12 (ten years ago) link
i want to marry Mike Konczal btw
― creating an ilHOOSion usic sight and sound (BIG HOOS aka the steendriver), Thursday, 19 December 2013 16:50 (ten years ago) link
ps dean baker & jared bernstein's short book getting back to full employment hits a lot of these points and is awesome and free to download at CEPR
― creating an ilHOOSion usic sight and sound (BIG HOOS aka the steendriver), Thursday, 19 December 2013 16:52 (ten years ago) link
― Multiple Miggs (dandydonweiner), Thursday, December 19, 2013 3:39 PM (
The Guardian article makes clear you can't even have a few suggestions from former insiders considered.
― curmudgeon, Thursday, 19 December 2013 17:04 (ten years ago) link
konczal is awesome and so is that latest baker freebie (http://www.cepr.net/index.php/publications/books/getting-back-to-full-employment-a-better-bargain-for-working-people). the other freebie of baker's i read rules too (http://www.cepr.net/index.php/publications/books/the-end-of-loser-liberalism). i suppose baker's been too correct about scamerica for years now ever to be influential with the assholes who run the show, but it's good to know there are people consistently calling bullshit on those assholes
― reggie (qualmsley), Thursday, 19 December 2013 17:09 (ten years ago) link
well and it amazed me that the other night i went to a thing where he was shilling the book and it was *packed*, i was like "wow this is a room full of people in expensive suits with gray hair who get it, i didn't know that was a thing"
― creating an ilHOOSion usic sight and sound (BIG HOOS aka the steendriver), Thursday, 19 December 2013 17:58 (ten years ago) link
that is awesome to hear. for spotting the housing bubble way ahead of time, dean baker should be chairman of the fed or at least secretary of the treasury afaic
― reggie (qualmsley), Thursday, 19 December 2013 18:30 (ten years ago) link
sorry dude, rip
http://washingtonexaminer.com/article/2540989
― napgenius (goole), Thursday, 19 December 2013 22:47 (ten years ago) link
i
what
― creating an ilHOOSion usic sight and sound (BIG HOOS aka the steendriver), Friday, 20 December 2013 07:43 (ten years ago) link
that's some great journalism there. that guy should be very proud of himself. not creepy at all.
― the "Weird Al" Yankovic of country music (stevie), Friday, 20 December 2013 10:22 (ten years ago) link
non-celebrities who volunteer to participate in public service ads are the worst
― Aimless, Friday, 20 December 2013 17:14 (ten years ago) link
http://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/conservatives-freak-over-pajama-boy
― curmudgeon, Friday, 20 December 2013 17:24 (ten years ago) link
The conservatives are making this attack bcz they understand the role of symbols and irrational emotional reactions in politics. This is what reactionaries excel at.
― Aimless, Friday, 20 December 2013 17:31 (ten years ago) link
Sarah Palin and the Duck Dynasty guy are palling around now
― curmudgeon, Friday, 20 December 2013 18:56 (ten years ago) link
glad they found each other
― Ornate Coleman (Moodles), Friday, 20 December 2013 19:17 (ten years ago) link
Is this better or worse than another week of black Santa/black Jesus?
― An Android Pug of Some Kind? (kingfish), Friday, 20 December 2013 19:25 (ten years ago) link
These things give us a chance to go ha ha; but meanwhile the budget stays at a level near what Paul Ryan wanted, unemployment insurance has not been extended, and the President rejected a proposed NSA change
― curmudgeon, Friday, 20 December 2013 19:50 (ten years ago) link
less entertaining than ha ha
― eclectic husbandry (Dr Morbius), Friday, 20 December 2013 20:07 (ten years ago) link
less ha ha than eat shit plebes
― reggie (qualmsley), Friday, 20 December 2013 20:14 (ten years ago) link
more samantha powers interventionism - http://bit.ly/1etlQpL
― balls, Friday, 20 December 2013 20:19 (ten years ago) link
so why does the US obliterate so many Afghan/Yemeni weddings?
http://www.salon.com/2013/12/20/american_medias_deplorable_record_on_drone_war_coverage_partner/
"Fifteen Yemenis on their way to a wedding were killed by a US drone. But it wasn't a gay wedding, so Obama's off the hook." - DP
― eclectic husbandry (Dr Morbius), Friday, 20 December 2013 21:21 (ten years ago) link
They hate us for our freedom. We hate them for their nuptials.
― Aimless, Friday, 20 December 2013 21:24 (ten years ago) link
http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/newsdesk/2013/12/a-sharp-progressive-joins-the-doj.html
this is excellent news, especially if it means obama is warming her up for a long-overdue appointment to the federal bench. i saw her speak at my school when i was an undergrad -- really smart and interesting lady
― k3vin k., Saturday, 21 December 2013 02:22 (ten years ago) link
https://pic.twitter.com/UQ9cvGAONY
― balls, Sunday, 22 December 2013 02:08 (ten years ago) link
the intellectualizer in me wants to say that this stockman race will be interesting in showing just how strong The Crazy is vs an established (and very conservative!) pol in the gop, and how the rest of the party handles it.
but that's bullshit really it's just kind of entertaining.
― napgenius (goole), Sunday, 22 December 2013 02:21 (ten years ago) link
This McCain feature in Sunday's NYT magazine is a treat.
― Beatrix Kiddo (Raymond Cummings), Tuesday, 24 December 2013 12:33 (ten years ago) link
http://mobile.nytimes.com/2013/12/22/magazine/john-mccain.html?hpw=&rref=magazine
― Beatrix Kiddo (Raymond Cummings), Tuesday, 24 December 2013 12:35 (ten years ago) link
I couldn't believe an editor got away with assigning a cover out of it though
― the objections to Drake from non-REAL HIPHOP people (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Tuesday, 24 December 2013 12:38 (ten years ago) link
I saw the cover and thought do I really want to read more about McCain, and skipped it. So it really has stuff in it worth reading?
― curmudgeon, Tuesday, 24 December 2013 16:28 (ten years ago) link
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/edward-snowden-after-months-of-nsa-revelations-says-his-missions-accomplished/2013/12/23/49fc36de-6c1c-11e3-a523-fe73f0ff6b8d_story.html?hpid=z1
http://www.washingtonpost.com/todays_paper/updates/
Washington Post newsprint headline for their top of page A1 interview: Edward Snowden: 'I already won'
― curmudgeon, Tuesday, 24 December 2013 16:33 (ten years ago) link
charles pierce is killing it
http://www.esquire.com/blogs/politics/Christmas_In_Two_Nations_Part_One
fuck you, republicans
http://www.esquire.com/blogs/politics/christmas-serial-part-2-122413
eat shit, "conservatives"
http://www.esquire.com/blogs/politics/christmas-serial-part-3-122413
― reggie (qualmsley), Tuesday, 24 December 2013 20:17 (ten years ago) link
charles pierce is forever awesome.
― Daniel, Esq 2, Wednesday, 25 December 2013 01:28 (ten years ago) link
Except when he sneers at popular country music in a haughty manner and comes across as snotty as the Republicans he criticizes.
― curmudgeon, Wednesday, 25 December 2013 06:02 (ten years ago) link
http://abcnews.go.com/m/story?id=21409580
Dude quits his Town Councilman position to run for Senate, writes resignation letter in Klingon.
Also, is running on the Constitution Party ticket, which makes this all that much more perfect.
― An Android Pug of Some Kind? (kingfish), Friday, 3 January 2014 17:27 (ten years ago) link
Thought it was mandatory to know both Klingon and Vulcan to oint hat party? ~also Esperanto~
― hatcat marnell (suzy), Friday, 3 January 2014 18:35 (ten years ago) link
^join that party
Ooh, think my laptop battery is expanding, tres amusant, Apple....
got dayum
― j., Friday, 3 January 2014 21:39 (ten years ago) link
check out driftglass.blogspot.comCharlie Pierce steals megastuff from there
― I got the glares, the mutterings, the snarls (President Keyes), Saturday, 4 January 2014 04:26 (ten years ago) link
While almost all working Americans will pay into Social Security through their paychecks throughout the year, the 900 wealthiest people in the country won’t. That’s because the highest-earning 0.0001 percent of the U.S. — many of them corporate CEOs — made $117,000 in the first two days of the year, which is the maximum annual income that is subject to Social Security taxes under federal law.
It’s tough to say for certain who will be a part of this group in 2014, since the most recent available data on Americans’ earnings is from 2012. In that year, 894 individuals nationwide made enough to qualify for membership in this club, according to the Los Angeles Times. Economist Teresa Ghilarducci came up with the calculation, and points out that Forbes data on top earners enables analysts and the public to see some of the members of this group. There were nearly 70 corporate CEOs who made enough to qualify in 2012, including the top officers at companies like Philip Morris, NewsCorp, Starbucks, ComCast, and Pfizer.
They get to live the year free from Social Security taxes because the law says that only the first $117,000 earned in a year can be taxed to fund the retirement program that kept more than 15 million people out of poverty in 2011. Democrats have pushed to raise the cap in recent years from $106,800 in 2009 to the current level. Eliminating the cap entirely could make the program solvent for the next 75 years without cutting a dime from anyone’s benefits — and doing so wouldn’t touch the earnings of 94.2 percent of all American workers.
http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2014/01/03/3118281/rich-social-security-taxes/
― Ian from Etobicoke (Phil D.), Saturday, 4 January 2014 14:59 (ten years ago) link
http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/political-animal-a/2014_01/jesse_myerson_throws_down_five048479.php
It’s called “Five Economic Reforms Millennials Should Be Fighting For.” Myerson’s reforms are the following:
1. Guaranteed Work for Everybody2. Social Security for All3. Take Back The Land4. Make Everything Owned by Everybody5. A Public Bank in Every StateAll right, settle down, these proposals are hardly as far-out as they may sound on first hearing. Number one is a public works program, number two is a universal basic income, the third is a land value tax, the fourth is collectivizing wealth ownership by having the government buy up private sector assets and paying a dividend to all citizens (Alaska has a program similar to this in place), and the fifth is pretty much what it says: i.e., a public bank that doesn’t rip off its customers or rape the country.
As Digby points out, the wingnuts are having a meltdown over Myerson’s article
― curmudgeon, Monday, 6 January 2014 15:24 (ten years ago) link
"disorderly conduct," myerson's podcast with alexis goldstein, is fuckin awesome and highly recommended.
― i like HOOS but this took the cake off my table (BIG HOOS aka the steendriver), Monday, 6 January 2014 15:47 (ten years ago) link
(alexis goldstein, Wall Street IT nerd turned OWS talking head)
― i like HOOS but this took the cake off my table (BIG HOOS aka the steendriver), Monday, 6 January 2014 15:48 (ten years ago) link
Ohhhhh good good good I needed a new podcast! Excellent. I love Alexis Goldstein.
― Horreur! What are this disassociated lumps of (in orbit), Monday, 6 January 2014 15:57 (ten years ago) link
she asked my mic advice for the show! i was flattered. they only do a show like once a month tho, i wish they were on more often.
― i like HOOS but this took the cake off my table (BIG HOOS aka the steendriver), Monday, 6 January 2014 16:02 (ten years ago) link