Come for the politics, stay for the snark.
by DougJ| 101 Comments
This post is in: Open Threads, Good News For Conservatives
BJ regular SiubhanDuinne will be in Nasvhille next week and wants to know if there’s any BJers in the area who would be up for a get-together. Let us know in the thread. Also, any recommendations for things to do in Nashville.
If that’s not enough to seed the thread, opinions on the movie Nashville are welcome too (great Altman movie or greatest Altman movie?).
This post is in: Republican Stupidity, Clown Shoes
For some reason, the GOP allowed the cameras to roll at their retreat during a question time session with President Obama, and he spent the next hour and a half depantsing them. Pretty funny stuff:
Link (the embed killed this site for a while and is now not working)
If Mike Pence really is regarded as one of the deep thinkers for the GOP, I’m beginning to understand why they refused to admit Terri Schiavo was brain-dead.
This post is in: Television
I’m currently watching Season one of Mad Men, a show I never really tried to watch int the past, but now that I have some time, I am giving it a go. While I can see the appeal of the show and why it wins so many awards, I am hard pressed to find anyone I like. They seem, to a person, to be dark, cynical, and deeply ugly human beings. If this is really what the time period was like, and many say it is, it is not hard to understand the emergence of Nixonian politics, and you could probably name the ad firm Goldman Sachs ad no one would notice.
So far, it is like American Psycho with less charm and without the blow.
This post is in: Science & Technology
Guess I am going to break down and buy a reader. Is kindle the way to go? Or are there others you would recommend?
by DougJ| 213 Comments
This post is in: Politics, Good News For Conservatives
Politico and Ambinder are both very positive about Obama’s smack-down of Republicans earlier today.
On a more optimistic note, Halperin appears outraged by it.
I adhere to Plouffe’s axiom: if Halperin and Politico say you’re winning, you’re losing.
Update. Obama really is good at this stuff. It doesn’t come across as staged (like it might have with Gore or Kerry) or pissy (like it might with Democrats in Congress). It comes across as patient, sane adult talking to crazy children. Which is exactly what it is.
Update. Chuck Todd hates it, probably a good sign.
by John Cole| 85 Comments
This post is in: Open Threads
Rehab was fun because it was the first sign I may be moving in the right direction. No infections, sutures are still in place, and I got some new bandages. They were surprised to hear I am running the ice machine 24/7- apparently most people do not like it that much, but happy I am as it will apparently help the healing.
Funny thing, it was me and three middle-aged women- two with shoulder injuries and one with a hip injury. All three shoulder injuries involved dogs and ice, but the hip injury was caused when the woman was tripped down the stairs by her cat.
Obvious moral- dogs will hurt you, but cats kill.
by DougJ| 92 Comments
This post is in: General Stupidity, Good News For Conservatives
Daniel Larison takes the long view on Republican obstructionism:
Is the GOP in a worse position than a year ago? On the surface, no, it isn’t. Once we get past the surface, however, the same stagnant, intellectually bankrupt, unimaginative party that brought our country to its current predicament is still there and has not changed in any meaningful way in the last three years. Why would it? The party’s leaders have no clue, its pundits are reveling in the luxury of opposition, and its rank-and-file has been whipped into such a state of agitation over their own impotence that they cannot see that they are led by people who will ignore and abuse them the moment they are no longer needed to win elections. It may seem that the GOP has derailed the majority’s agenda, but in reality it is the GOP that went off the rails long ago and has yet to begin to recover.
I think this is about right.
Obviously, it’s a cliche for a liberal like me to obsess about fucked up how Republicans are these days. But isn’t it right that the nihilism (I think Sullivan is right to used this word) of the Republican party is the most striking feature of contemporary politics? Seems to me you’ve got a capable, if reasonably mistake prone, White House, a Democratic majority that is about as disciplined as Democrats usually are (not very), and then a Republican minority whose cynicism and/or delusion are historic.
Do you think that’s accurate?
Update. Getting a lot of comments like these — anyone got a link?
If you all missed it, be sure to watch Obama’s Q&A with the House Republicans today. Wow.
Update. Here’s a link to video. Here’s a transcript.
Update. Jobs bill:
In an effort to spur job creation, President Obama unveiled Friday a $33 billion package of tax breaks aimed at encouraging businesses to hire workers and give employees raises.
The proposal would provide a $5,000 tax credit for each worker hired in 2010 and subsidize wage increases by reimbursing Social Security tax increases for businesses that expand their payrolls.
The tax breaks would be capped at $500,000 a business, meaning that they would mostly benefit small firms, according to senior administration officials who briefed reporters on the plan. The tax break on pay increases would apply only to workers making $106,800 or less.