The latest rumor is apparently of a deal that keeps the government open and below the debt limit until mid-January. Is it just me, or is a government shutdown in January likely to be even longer? The shutdown may not be popular, but January is closer to the start of primary season, there’s nothing that Republican Congressmen fear more than a primary challenge, and the best way to lose the affection of the GOP base is to compromise. The best way to win a GOP primary is to say that you refused to compromise with the Democrats. If I were a Democratic elected official, I’d much rather try to negotiate something with Republicans now than in primary season.
I don’t buy this for two reasons. Pedantic reason: “primary season”, at least around here, can be as late as Summer. The second, more important reason is that the Members of Congress in question are like impalas on the savannah: twitchy, always looking over their shoulder, and ready to bolt to the right at a moment’s notice upon the barest scent of tea.
Take Tom Reed, NY-23, who I wrote about yesterday. You’d think that Tom, who lives in a R+3 district, won his last election by 2 points over a relatively unknown challenger who he outspent by 2:1, and is facing a much more credible challenge this cycle, would move towards the center. Nope. Even though he’s basically a fairly moderate Republican, he voted against funding the government. His challenger, Martha Robertson, is already all over local media touting Tom’s vote. She is going to hang that “No” around his fucking neck and make him eat it for dinner, but Tom still votes and talks like a teahadi. That’s because he barely averted a primary challenge in the 2010 cycle by challenging the petitions of the comically incompetent tea-swilling moron who read the constitution one night and decided that Tom was a danger to her life, liberty, pursuit of happiness, and precious bodily fluids.
So if you want to understand why Tom is getting ready for a government shutdown, try to enter the mindset of an impala on the savannah. He knows there’s a dangerous pride of lions getting ready to hunt him down, but his immediate concern is the cheetah stalking him on the right. Chances are the lions will get him in the end, but he’s pretty goddam sure the cheetah’s going to try first, so that’s his immediate concern.
MattF
Good metaphor– the cheetah is faster but caught in an evolutionary bottleneck. As far as the politics goes, I think it really all depends on Orange John, sad but true. It may be that Boehner will have to keep falling on his sword to protect Representatives like Reed from the TP– in that case, we’re all pretty screwed.
Woodrowfan
great line! But aren’t tea-bozos too slow, at least mentally, to be cheetahs? Maybe hyenas? Hyenas are creepy enough..
NonyNony
Okay so is the part that you disagree with the part where the shutdown in January will run even longer, the part where there will be a shutdown in January at all, or the part where the claim is made that it would be easier to deal with them now rather than in January?
Because as it stands, if one of these guys was ready to shut the government down now because he almost faced a primary challenge last time from a teabagger, I think it’s pretty likely that a January shutdown will be on the menu for him. And, I suspect, for a lot of others.
(The only question is whether Boehner goes along with it again or not. If he doesn’t go along there’s no shutdown.)
maximiliano furtive, formerly known as dr. bloor
I reject your premise: Cheetahs are agile, noble creatures with the capacity for tactical thinking.
Elizabelle
Preliminary check of Martha Robertson’s website: it is very hard to find out she is a Democrat, although you can guess that with her priorities.
Had to google her name and party affiliation.
I was not sure if she might be a moderate GOP, trying to take Tom Reed out within his own party.
...now I try to be amused
Move your metaphor to the Amazon and the Tea Partiers become piranhas. They make up for their lack of size with swarming and sheer viciousness.
NonyNony
@MattF:
Boehner did EXACTLY the wrong thing to protect those reps from the TP. What would have protected them is if Boehner had, before the shutdown started, brought up a clean CR that would pass with Dem votes and safe Republican votes. Then the folks being threatened by the TP from the right could have demagoguged against it, railed against it, rended their garments and dressed themselves in sackcloth – whatever they wanted to save their sorry butts.
Instead he shut the government down. Leading the constitutents in those districts to suddenly wake up and realize that their Republican representative in Congress was denying them the services that they are used to, even though they didn’t really think he was a crazyperson. The shutdown forced politics on people who are typically apolitical. Not a smooth move – making people realize that what politicians do actually impacts their lives is how you transform someone from apolitical to political.
We’ll see how it plays out, but the TPers would have been better off with Boehner holding a vote so that they could keep the shutdown talk as “background bullshit from DC” instead of “OMG they’re doing something that actually impacts my life.” (Plus it turned into a great advertisement of all the things that government spending does for us on a daily basis, which really isn’t part of the TP core message either.)
rikyrah
ok, don’t say that you weren’t warned.
Do not have a drink in your hand when reading this post.
Have an excuse ready for when your co-workers ask why you are laughing hysterically.
I laughed so hard that I got a laugh stomach cramp.
……………………………….
Whose Wise Baby is This? (And Foolery From My Readers)
[ 55 ] October 16, 2013 | Luvvie
I’ve said this before but babies are cute by default because they’re so little and small things lean towards cute. And some babies are born cute AND looking like they’ve been here before. You’ve seen those mini humans. They just look like they hold a wisdom of the years and these are the kids you gotta give strong names to. Names like Rufus, Jebediah, Orelius or Bertha. You can’t name babies who’ve been here before stuff like Jessica, Zach or Timmy. Nope. They need to be called Wilbur or Clementine from jump!
I came across a picture of this baby a while ago and I immediately wanted to get off is lawn, because I was sure he was gonna chase me off it.
Elizabelle
Here it is, buried 3/4 way down her “About Martha” panel — had to use the find function for democrat:
It’s in the 11th of 14 paragraphs on the page.
I think that’s sad.
Is party affiliation that much of a problem in western NY state?
dedc79
Along the same lines, this story out of Oregon:
rikyrah
The Plum Line
Did Barack Obama do John Boehner a big favor?
By Greg Sargent
October 17 at 1:53 pm
President Obama gave brief remarks this morning in which he stressed that it’s time to get back to normal governing, now that the crisis has been temporarily resolved. Obama twice stressed that economic growth must be a leading goal, and noted the deficit is “falling fast,” signaling a set of guiding priorities that — if followed in coming negotiations — will hearten liberals. He also said this:
……………………………………………….
Beyond this, though, it’s worth asking whether, by holding the line until Republicans had no choice but to capitulate on the debt limit, Barack Obama actually did John Boehner a long term favor of sorts.
Most observers think John Boehner genuinely wants to get to some kind of long term budget deal. If true, he plainly has been hampered by pressure from the right not to even enter into negotiations that risk resulting in a compromise Tea Partyers would find unacceptable. Before yesterday’s outcome, conservatives explicitly were insisting that GOP leaders must not enter into any talks unless they could wield the threat of harm to the country to get something for nothing. Remember, Ted Cruz angered fellow Republicans when he refused to enter into normal budget talks unless Dems agreed in advance not to make raising the debt ceiling even tangentially related to the talks, effectively reserving it as an extortion tool later.
Belafon
@rikyrah: Whenever the Doctor regenerates as a toddler, they can get this kid.
rikyrah
Labor puts Dems on notice: Don’t touch Medicare and Social Security benefits
By Greg Sargent
October 17 at 4:52 pm
With the crisis chatter in Washington now turning to speculation about the coming budget talks and the possibility of a “grand bargain” to replace the sequester, liberals and unions are getting increasingly nervous that Congressional Dems will give up entitlement benefits cuts in exchange for, well, whatever is on offer from Republicans, which isn’t at all clear.
In an interview, Damon Silvers, the policy director of the AFL-CIO, laid down a hard line, putting Dems on notice that any agreement that cuts entitlement benefits — even in a deal that includes GOP concessions on tax hikes — is a nonstarter. Silvers strongly suggested labor would withhold support in 2014 from any Dem lawmaker who supports such a deal.
“We are opposed to Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid benefits cuts. Period,” Silvers told me. “There will be no cover for members of either party who vote for such a thing.”
Silvers said the AFL-CIO also opposes the entitlements cuts in the President’s budget, such as Chained CPI and a form of Medicare means testing. It’s unclear how, or whether, those will figure in what Dems bring to the table in the budget talks, which are mandated by the deal just reached to end the crisis.
“Chained CPI is like the vampire of American politics,” Silvers said. “It keeps being shot through the heart and it keeps reviving. The reason it keeps coming back is because it has billionaires behind it.”
Aimai
@rikyrah: that was wonderful. And the comments were perfectly poetic and funny at the same time, like you could dance to them. Or msybe i just think that because i was listening to bossa nova at the time.
rikyrah
Blog
October 17, 2013 11:03 AM
What Lesson Was Learned?
By Ed Kilgore
So if the end of the fiscal crisis represents, as Ross Douthat calls it, a “Teachable Moment” for the GOP, what would that lesson, exactly, be? It mostly appears to be about strategy and tactics, not goals or ideology (or “principles” as ideologues like to say in their endless efforts to ascribe dishonesty and gutlessness to dissidents).
Even for Douthat, who clearly wants the memory of the Tea Folk (or to use his term, “populist”) failure in this incident to be seared into the collective memory of Republicans, it’s mostly about the how rather than the what and the why:
…………………………
The problem was “the stunt,” not the violent antipathy towards a pale version of universal health coverage or the conviction that the New Deal/Great Society legacy is fatal to America or the belief that nearly half the country is composed of satanic blood-suckers and baby-killers.
……………………
But don’t confuse that strategic argument with any broader sense that conservatives or Republicans should rethink their entire militant opposition to the Affordable Care Act. No, it just means recognizing that getting rid of this law—as opposed to obstructing it and making sure the number of people benefitting from it is as small as possible—must await the kind of victory in 2016 that eluded the party last year.
Don’t get me wrong here: there’s great value to the nation in convincing one of our two major political parties to respect the results of elections and eschew wildly disruptive legislative strategies and tactics. But even if that “lesson was learned,” and the jury’s still out on that proposition, it’s not the same as a serious reconsideration of today’s radical conservatism, which may well emerge from this incident as strong as ever.
http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/political-animal-a/2013_10/what_lesson_was_learned047377.php
Napoleon
@MattF:
Just curious, what is the cheetah’s evolutionary bottleneck?
RP
Why wouldn’t a shutdown in January work to the Dems advantage? If the republicans support it because they’re afraid of a tea party challenge, it’s one more thing to hang around their neck during the general election. And if the lose to the tea partier, all the better.
Gian
just a side note, flipped to MSNBC this morning while waiting for local traffic and weather.
they had a gra[hic up with “vulnerable republicans”
with my Democratic rep (Mark Takano) on the graphic with an (r) after his name…
this is his web site http://www.marktakano.com/
Is it really that hard to list republicans in trouble when you list republicans in trouble?
Elizabelle
From dpm’s Buffalo News link:
Maybe we can send some Balloon Juice contributions Mrs. Robertson’s way.
The “respected” Rothenberg Report lists this as one of the top five races to watch in the Mid Atlantic. District reapportioned and more competitive now for Democrats; poorly financed 28-year old Dem lost by 4 points last time.
Elizabelle
@rikyrah:
That is one blase baby.
Samuel L Jackson got nothing on that little one.
MattF
@Napoleon: The cheatin’ cheetah:
http://evolution.berkeley.edu/evolibrary/news/070701_cheetah
Pretty interesting science. Some primary references at the bottom of the page.
Napoleon
@MattF:
Thanks – I love that stuff!
gelfling545
I sort of understand the problem of the less radical Republicans – if they don’t subscribe to the Tea Party line they’ll be primarried by a real wacko. Still, if you’re going to have to talk & vote just like the wacko to stay in office, people might as well vote for the actual wacko. Knowing you’re doing the wrong thing & doing it anyway is not much of an improvement over a true believer. The only benefit is to the candidate him/herself who won’t have to look for honest work for the next couple of years. Actual legislative benefit to the country is nil.
Suffern ACE
@Napoleon: yeah, there are lots of impalas, but also lots of predators who eat the cheeta’s prey. Actually, I think the impalas are us plebes, and the cheetas are so called moderate republicans being chased to exhaustion by a bunch of hyenas. Meanwhile the lions are the billionaire financial backers and the Dems are water buffalo. It’s a complex Eco system.
Ash Can
@rikyrah: What a great link to start the morning with. Thanks for that!
Comrade Mary
@Napoleon: Oddly enough The Current on the CBC just played a feature on cheetah preservation.
Mark S.
Fat Cat Republican Donors Wonder If Funding Dipshit Teabaggers Is A Wise Investment
Ben Cisco
Just had to see that again, awesome.
gelfling545
@Elizabelle: I have noticed that a lot of the political campaign signs in the suburbs surrounding my city show no indication of political party. Trying to avoid guilt by association, I guess.
Marc
@NonyNony:
I take your point, but I’m not sure this kind of rational calculus applies to Republican pols anymore.
Are there any safe Republican seats left? The ones who live in the solid red districts are the most vulnerable to a tea party challenge; the few who live in moderate districts might get a little more slack from their constituents, but if they do lose a primary then their seat is lost to the Democrats in the general (e.g. Mike Castle). So who are the safe Republicans who would stick their necks out and vote for a clean CR?
Hawes
Not to mention the scent of cheetos from Red State.
dpm (dread pirate mistermix)
@Elizabelle: The reason she’s not going out front as a Democrat is because she’s trying to sell herself to persuadable Republicans. A Western New York Republican, by today’s standards of the party, is essentially a moderate Democrat. They’re probably pro-choice or at least not a hot-button pro-lifer, somewhat tolerant or pro gay rights, expect a fair amount of government services, want good schools, etc. Martha is following the Eric Massa gameplan: she’s introducing herself to the district as a person first and a Democrat second. Massa, btw, was quite progressive and won in a much tougher district.
Reed is also a weak candidate. He’s never been tested in a real race, he’s slow on his feet and his profession is debt collector.
Ash Can
As for the OP, @NonyNony:
I haz the same confuzzled. I happen to agree that trying to get deals done now rather than in January, or probably any other time, is a fool’s errand because, as dph says, all of these House GOPers are skittish, at all times. As it stands, though, dph’s second point sounds more like it’s supporting what Thoreau has written about reps than taking issue with it.
Roxy
In the jungle the mighty jungle the lion sleeps tonight….
kerFuFFler
@Elizabelle:
Yeah, sadly it is. This district is largely rural and there is no way a really lefty democrat will win here, but a very moderate, pragmatic one can. So while I might prefer someone more progressive, I am happy to work to get Robertson elected. Not supporting her because she is not progressive enough would be like voting for Nader and ensuring a GOP or Tea Party win.
dpm (dread pirate mistermix)
@NonyNony:
I disagree that it will be harder to deal with them in January than it was last time, because of primary challenges. My take is that the fear of a primary challenge is baked in to the reasoning of “moderate” Republicans like Reed and he’s going to do whatever he thinks is necessary to avoid one, well into next year. The fact that the fundraising email he sent out yesterday takes for granted that there’s going to be another shutdown is pretty clear evidence that he’s going to shoot for one. The question is whether the leadership thinks it’s better for the caucus as a whole to force another shutdown or use some other form of extortion. I don’t know the answer to that.
Gex
@Mark S.: Usually Wall Street is pretty insistent on keeping inflation really low. Did they not realize that Citizens United would cause inflation in the buying of GOP candidates market?
When they were the biggest contributors to campaigns they had more power. I guess they didn’t realize that they and the tycoons are not playing on the same side. Be careful what you wish for…
Cris (without an H)
I was surprised Steve Daines (R-MT) voted in favor of reopening*. Kos suspects it’s to protect his upcoming Senate run.
But the local public radio interviewed him, so I figured I could hear it from the horse’s mouth. But I couldn’t make it all the way through. It was such a load of talking point word-and-bullcrap salad that didn’t actually address the questions — and the questions were pretty good! So, if anybody else wants to listen and see if Daines has anything worthwhile to say, be my guest.
*autocorrect suggestion: “repenting”. Heh.
balconesfault
@Mark S.: Huh … so some wealthy donors might be realizing something that many of us well-off liberals realized long ago – there are a lot worse things in the world than tax increases.
Cris (without an H)
I was surprised Steve Daines (R-MT) voted in favor of reopening*. Kos suspects it’s to protect his upcoming Senate run.
But the local public radio interviewed him, so I figured I could hear it from the horse’s mouth. But I couldn’t make it all the way through. It was such a load of talking point word-and-bullcrap salad that didn’t actually address the questions — and the questions were pretty good! So, if anybody else wants to listen and see if Daines has anything worthwhile to say, be my guest.
*autocorrect suggestion: “repenting”. Heh.
Elizabelle
@dpm (dread pirate mistermix):
@kerFuFFler:
Thank you. Points taken.
I see that in some local races in Virginia.
“Democrat” is all over the place here with the gubernatorial race since the Republican brand is so soiled.
(Buyer’s remorse over Transvaginal Bob McDonnell and the crazy ass state legislature; McDonnell family’s corruption — which embroiled Cooch too; the government shutdown, major threat to Northern Virginia and Hampton Roads economies and tourism throughout our beautiful state).
Plus, Cuccinelli is undiluted Tea Party, with added medieval family values.
Have fun with the comments to this Washington Post article about the Duggar hyperbreeding reality show clan’s appearances on behalf of Cooch.
Johnnybuck
@gelfling545: Sounds a lot like the Blue Dog strategy. It won’t work.
Frankensteinbeck
Yet again, it will all turn on Boehner. I still have no clue what he wants or what drives him. He was willing to go through with a shutdown this time, but not a default. The Teabaggers learned nothing. It’s hard to guess what the coward caucus learned. I can tell you they did not like seeing their poll numbers plummet during the shutdown. Now they’re terrified of the right and the left.
EDIT @MattF:
Female preference for a single mate is a theory hatched way back when it had to support the prejudice that human women are inherently less sexual than men and only men are interested in having affairs. It really does not hold up to scrutiny. The evidence and the theory suggests that female cheating is also a widely viable evolutionary tactic.
liberal
I think Americans for Democratic Action gave his 2012 voting record a “0”. (I’m not sure cuz the district is labeled 29; maybe things were redistricted?)
It definitely gave Peter King a 0%. And he was one of the less crazy ones this go around, right?
We have to get it in our heads that (afaict) the so-called “moderates” aren’t moderate in any historical sense. They’re right-wing, perhaps even far-right, and not center-right. It’s only against far-far-far-right-wing nutjobs that they look moderate.
liberal
@Frankensteinbeck:
My impression: female cheating is extremely widespread historically. Interestingly, though, AFAICT the evidence is that “wild type” humans don’t practice monogamy, but usually polygamy. (Polyandry could happen, but is usually very rare.)
LeftCoastTom
@dpm (dread pirate mistermix):
Oh, this is even better, a pro-default “debt collector”!
RSR
SO the GOPper is trying to align with the No Labels crowd? Such a steaming pile of BS that whole third way movement is.
Hold his feet to the fire.
NorthLeft12
Every time I read through this blog and others about US politics I am dumbfounded by the asshattery and flat out stupidity of a number of your elected officials.
I mean, it would be laughable if your country wasn’t such a big effing deal to my country [Canada] and the rest of the world.Then it is just plain sad.
Can anyone explain how so many of them get elected?
MattF
@Frankensteinbeck: I’m not a biologist, but Google confirms that cats are naturally polyamorous– not a big surprise considering all the cat metaphors for sexual activity.
Higgs Boson's Mate (Crystal Set)
The only question regarding the next round of government funding is whether the other 182 GOP Reps are going to again don the clown shoes to placate the 50 Tea Party nihilists in their midst.
My guess? Big black rubber shoes and red putty noses would not be out of place under Republican Christmas Trees.
MattF
@NorthLeft12: The only real barrier to getting into politics in the US is money. So, you get what you pay for, unfortunately.
Frankensteinbeck
@liberal:
Evidence suggests that when humans have the power to fool around, they fool around – male and female. Applying evolutionary theory to humans is presumptuous and disastrously small-minded. It never works. The crude ‘this is the rough guide expected for a species in our situation’ rule would be that males pair bond by preference to ensure some high-survival children, but also look for any opportunity to mate, period. Females have a very strong preference for pair bonding with the best supporter possible (child rearing skill as well as wealth and power) but should try to mate with the most physically attractive (healthy genes) males they can if they can do so without threatening the pair bond. Don’t put any stock in that prediction. Human diversity and individuality swamps any rule, and evolutionary theory is so complex it may not even be true, but that’s what we’d predict for a generic animal in our position. Of course, there also are no generic animals.
EDIT – I guess what I’m trying to say is, even evolutionary theory doesn’t say human females are From Venus and naturally want only a monogamous marriage and only men like unmarried sexytimes.
max
The only question regarding the next round of government funding is whether the other 182 GOP Reps are going to again don the clown shoes to placate the 50 Tea Party nihilists in their midst.
Yes. Yes, they will. They *might* not shut down, although one must presume they will until they don’t.
max
[‘Hey, they think they won the standoff!’]
Belafon
@NorthLeft12:
1. We don’t require everyone to vote.
2. We don’t require people to prove they have an idea of how the government works in order to participate/vote.
3. We’re Exceptional(tm)! What I mean by this is the philosophy that drives a lot of these nuts is that we’d be better off if everyone had a gun.
I don’t know about other countries, but the fact that you can get elected saying “government can’t do anything right, let me go prove it” drives me nuts.
Higgs Boson's Mate (Crystal Set)
@NorthLeft12:
To expand a bit on MattF’s point, the greater part of the money used to flow from donors through the party leadership. Citizens United enabled donors with their own agendas to directly help or hinder candidates without having to go through the party leaders. Those leaders’ ability to bring their caucus to heel has been greatly diminished. Add to that the fact that the Republicans had just completed the gerrymandering of safe seats for themselves in a number of congressional districts when the Tea Party reared up and you have a perfect mechanism for electing just about anything with an R after its name to Congress.
feebog
The AFL-CIO needs to STFU about entitlement reforms. How is their threat about not supporting Dems who vote for ANY budget with ANY reforms different from the Teabagger’s threats to primary RINOs? I don’t want to see any changes in Medicare or Social Security, but just zip it right now and let’s at least get to conference first.
Belafon
@Frankensteinbeck: You’re not looking at human evolution, you are looking at person evolution. Person evolution doesn’t follow human evolution any more than the squirrel that got ran over contributes to squirrel evolution. You’re scale is all wrong. Humans haven’t been around for all that long, but the evidence says that we have evolved.
People are unique, just like everyone else.
gelfling545
@rikyrah: First, I believe that being put in a position where he had “no choice” may have saved Boehner’s political bacon. Secondly, if he has any sense, even it it’s only self preservation, he will definitely not want to go through this again and can only hope that his caucus remember that Cruz handed them an anchor when they were drowning. A long term deal would have made his life much easier. Now there’s danger of a replay closer to mid-term elections and this has been demonstrated to be much more dangerous to the GOP.
Higgs Boson's Mate (Crystal Set)
@feebog:
If “reforms” meant changing entitlement programs in order to improve them you’d be right. “Reform” has now become a euphemism for “cut.”
Robert Sneddon
@NorthLeft12: Heredity and inbreeding. For a nation birthed from its supposed objection to kings and princes they sure choose a lot of dimwit sons and daughters, nephews and nieces to rule them. In the news yesterday, the new US ambassador to Japan was announced, a lady named Caroline Kennedy. Guess who her parents were — I’ll give you three chances since there are so many Kennedys in the US political sphere for no particular reason other than their name and competence be damned.
Paul in KY
@Napoleon: They are quite inbred now & also their body plan/size doesn’t allow them to defend their catch from most other predators (hyenas, lions, leopards, etc.) when prey is scarce.
Their current body morphology seems set up for when there is super-abudant prey, thus other predators would not steal their meals due to them having lots of easily obtainable dinners themselves.
Cheetahs will probably be extinct in the wild within a couple hundred years.
dr. luba
@dedc79: What a prescient Tehadi. “Unhinge” indeed. Although I think he meant it in a good way.
Waldo
@gelfling545: I agree. As much as he dreads a Teatard rebellion, Boner surely understands that another shutdown/debt ceiling fiasco will likely cost him his gavel in November anyway.
rk
@Gian:
I read that as “venerable republicans”
? Martin
Well, primary challenges are the excuse, but my rep voted to default and he’s retiring at the end of this term. Rohrabacher next door is in a relatively safe district with no risk for a challenger from the right, and he voted for default as well.
These people really are neo-confederates.
Roxy
Didn’t this recent deal include something along the lines that Obama can override Congress to keep the money flowing?
Elizabelle
@Robert Sneddon:
I don’t like the hereditary nature American politics is taking, but I think Caroline Kennedy is an excellent choice as ambassador to Japan.
Aside from being the daughter of a president, she has written some excellent books on citizens and the law: one on the bill of rights, one on right to privacy.
She’s not Jenna Bush Hager.
And we generally send fairly prominent people as ambassador: Mike Mansfield, Walter Mondale, Howard Baker.
Appears CK will be first female ambassador.
(Weirdly, “Face the Nation’s” Bob Schieffer’s younger brother was GWBush ambassador. They’d been business partners.)
liberal
@Frankensteinbeck:
I’d have to disagree. I think the point is that blindly applying evolutionary theory to any organism is a mistake. But once we make that observation, it’s just as reasonable to apply it to humans as to any other animal.
There’s nothing in “correctly” applied evolutionary theory that dictates a male or female of a given species will cheat. It depends on the history of the species. Plus this kind of theory, as science goes, is pretty nebulous anyway. So one has to be very careful.
I guess I’m saying I don’t disagree with you per se…it depends on what one means by evolutionary theory. If one means “the most absurd caricature of evolutionary psychology,” then yes, it’s probably ridiculous. But that doesn’t mean that all such science is bad.
muricafukyea
STFU muckymux. The ink isn’t even dry on this resolution and you are already masturbating about the next deadline in January. You clearly love this shit which makes you a turd. Why not talk about something just as annoying but not as worn out right now like if Hillary is going to run.
Which reminds me. You were also the one wanking on endlessly about “I think Palin is going to run in 2012” loooonnng after everyone else packed up and moved on.
So fucking annoying.
liberal
@Paul in KY:
We’ll be lucky if humans aren’t extinct in a couple hundred years. Our amazing technical progress since the agricultural revolution has not been matched by any progress in wisdom.
liberal
@balconesfault:
When they start primarying these nutjobs from the left, I’ll believe it.
Robert Sneddon
@Elizabelle: Japan is a major trading partner with the US and it hosts assorted major US military bases but at the same time it is insular, quite xenophobic to the point of being institutionally racist and certainly patriarchal in both its politics and culture. They also don’t speak English.
On the other hand Ambassador Kennedy has written a couple of books about US culture. I can see how that would make her a good choice to represent the US to such an important nation, and I suppose the name Kennedy helped a little.
Just for comparison, here’s a link to the bio of the current British ambassador in Japan, Tim Hitchens. Perhaps it’s just that Britain regards talking to the world outside its own borders more seriously than the USA does.
? Martin
@Elizabelle:
Actually, you want some fame in the ambassador slots, if they’re qualified. It really does benefit the specific job they’re doing. One of the few places where a bit of royalty is beneficial to the electorate.
smedley the uncertain
@Elizabelle: Yes it is. As an Independent redistricted to Reeds district, I can say our county is a mixed bag. Most Republicans are generally moderate but have a distinct but unspecific antipathy toward President Obama; and because we are a depressed area, some blue collar voters resent the “handouts” to the poor. That said, Rep Brian Higgins (D) in our original district was thought to be OK. He reached out to the AG community and businesses. County legislators are pretty evenly split .
Paul in KY
@liberal: Pretty hard to kill off 7 billion humans (IMO).
Robert Sneddon
@? Martin: Fame might be nice but competence provides a better return on the political and financial investment involved in maintaining an embassy abroad. The American tendency to treat well-borns as automatically superior beings and to defer and bend the knee to them in all things is, I think, a major part of the troubles your otherwise sensible nation has been enduring over the past fifty years or so, maybe longer.
Matt McIrvin
@rikyrah: He looks like Peter Lorre.
Matt McIrvin
@Belafon:
Though if we did, I guarantee you this requirement would be abused in horrifying ways to do the opposite of its surface intent.
Maybe we ought to have Australia-style mandatory voting, though. At the very least it would make mandatory not-voting very difficult to swing.
Matt McIrvin
@NorthLeft12: At least 50% of US political pathology is in some way a direct outgrowth of the slaver compromises, the Civil War, and the subsequent reintegration of secessionists and their toxic ideas into our political culture.
And I don’t just mean in the South, either; the attitudes have metastasized all over. In many ways the Confederates won the long game, and we are still working our way out of the resulting hole.
That’s the short answer I would give.
Matt McIrvin
…and most of the other 50% comes from the Cold War.
A Humble Lurker
@Matt McIrvin:
Could you maybe say the Cold War was kind of a proxy confederate skirmish? Just another way to channel hatred and fear of ‘the other’ plus their paranoid fear of retribution.
Matt McIrvin
@A Humble Lurker: They definitely dovetailed, at least, in the early phases of the conservative movement, and the post-September-2001 conservative wave was an echo of that. But both the Cold War and the War on Terror also pulled in liberals who could never really get the Confederate-derived strain of conservatism.