With election day nearing, I’m breaking my no-Politico link rule because I find Ben Smith’s blog to be a very good source of election information, if you can avoid all the stuff about Sarah Palin’s Facebook page and Twitter feed. Here’s an interesting tidbit he got from a Democratic source about outside spending in Senate …
C.R.E.A.M.
Open Thread: New Movie Release
Any of you New Yorkers looking for something to see this weekend? Anybody already seen this documentary, at a festival? Opinions? From Andrew O’Hehir’s Salon review/interview with filmmaker Charles Ferguson: “Inside Job” offers a lucid and devastating history of how the crash happened, who caused it and how they got away with it. Furthermore, Ferguson …
“Are There No Orphanages?”
Mistermix’s post on Philosopher-King Gingrich’s latest GOP talking point about “food stamps” reminded me that some of you probably don’t remember back in 1994, when Newt was actually holding political office and talking up orphanages: … Orphanages were not the subject of Gingrich’s speech, but they were not a throwaway either. The notion reappeared in …
No Truckling to Trickling
The most unlikely people are outing themselves as DFHs. Steven Pearlstein, business columnist for the Washington Post, dissects “The costs of rising economic inequality“: … If you asked Americans how much of the nation’s pretax income goes to the top 10 percent of households, it is unlikely they would come anywhere close to 50 percent, …
His brilliant career
Via CrookedTimber, a rather remarkable article on how many prominent economists will say anything for a buck. The “undeniably brilliant” Larry Summers: Over the past decade, Summers continued to advocate financial deregulation, both as president of Harvard and as a University Professor after being forced out of the presidency. During this time, Summers became wealthy …
Open Thread: Kuhleefurneeya Dreamin’
Hat tip to commentor Martin for sharing the Rancho Santa Fe solution to overstretched fire services: Firefighter Sam Crays was in the San Diego community of Rancho Santa Fe, where the median home price is $2.4 million, spraying retardant as a wildfire spread to nearby brush… __ Crays doesn’t work for a local fire department …
Season of the witch
Greg Sargent has a great summary of what’s going on as we head towards election day. A few themes: shitloads of anonymous right-wing money, just the way Jesus and George Washington intended, Dem generics are looking better but their attempts to make it about W are failing, and Christine O’Donnell has an ad where she …