Greg Sargent of TPM
debunks a thinly substantiated WSJ story asserting that support for net neutrality is eroding and Obama, who has
expressed strong support for net neutrality, is softening or backing off on his position. Not so, says Obama
spokesperson Nick Shapiro. This steadfastness of support was verified in a way increasingly unusual among news
organizations:
...
The Journal story (which was strongly disputed by Google and many others) also suggests, based on scant
evidence, that Obama's position may have softened. But the paper didn't appear to contact the Obama team for any
comment.
So we did. Asked if the Obama camp had shifted its stance in any way on net neutrality or softened its
commitment to it, Shapiro answered: "No." Even limited public declarations (such as this one) from the Obama
transition team about the incoming administration's priorities have been few and far between.
...
Contacting the transition team itself: how... quaint! Kudos to Sargent and TPM for this bit of much-needed
journalistic "quaintness." And of course, praise to Obama for sticking by the principle of content neutrality
so fundamental to the value of the Internet to a free and open society.
As if Bush's surprise trip to Iraq were not stupid enough already, an Iraqi reporter threw his shoes at Bush,
first one, then the other, before anyone could stop him:
Bush dodged both shoes and appeared unharmed, making suitably stupid jokes about the size of the shoes.
One report has it that Dana Perino was slightly injured in the scuffle afterward, being hit in the eye with a
microphone, but I have no details on that.
I know Bush prefers a hands-on, macho approach to his wars... faking carrier landings, risking his very own
'nads against an improperly configured flight suit, etc. But isn't this just a bit ridiculous? Couldn't he
have said the exact same things on camera back home in the Oval Office? I know Bush's own head, as hard as a
rock, was never in any danger, but Ms. Perino has always been a bit soft in the head... you'd have to be, to
take that job in the first place... and in my opinion it was inappropriate of Bush to risk her safety.
Also... any bets on whether reporters at Bush's next presser in DC will be required to go barefoot?
In this economy, the bargain pays off! Fox News DC reporters scored lots of McCain info for a deep discount
simply by shelling out $20 a piece for a pair of used Blackberrys at the McCain-Palin campaign headquarters'
fire sale held Thursday at the campaign offices in Arlington, VA.
Trisha Thompson and Rick Yarborough of Fox DC report:
When we charged them up in the newsroom, we found one of the $20 Blackberry phones contained more than 50
phone numbers for people connected with the McCain-Palin campaign, as well as hundreds of emails from early
September until a few days after election night...The emails contain an insider's look at how grassroots
operations work, full of scheduling questions and rallying cries for support. But most of the numbers were
private cell phones for campaign leaders, politicians, lobbyists and journalists.
...
Got it? Before you sell any data-bearing device... wipe it. When I dispose of an old computer, I actually go to
the extreme of removing the HD and keeping it. I don't know whether this is possible with a BlackBerry or not,
but if it is not, it is better simply to keep it. A BlackBerry, like a HD, takes up very little space in a lock
box in a bank. How much is your data worth to you? to your clients? to your competitors?
Honestly... McCain's campaign people were embarrassingly sloppy. I look forward to reading their innermost
thoughts in those emails.
"Aha!" says Tabitha... "Samantha's finally asleep, so I can climb into Steve's lap without being pestered by
that young twerp..."
Both ladies love the "leopard skin" mat: its exterior is fuzzy, but its filling is rough and makes crinkling
noises. Often, both Tabitha and Samantha occupy it at the same time.
That's what Christy Hardin Smith calls the recent goings-on at Gitmo as the Bush administration draws to a
close, in her post
Potemkin Justice: BushCo Stage-Managing Gitmo To Tie Obama’s Hands?
This is a must-read if you're interested in justice and due process. It appears there's not much of either at
Gitmo at the moment. Christy talks with ACLU director Anthony Romero and has a lot of observations:
...
There are open questions on whether guilty pleas can be accepted from some pro se defendants -- especially those
previously subjected to torture, and if plea acceptance could mean potential death penalty sentence due to
mental competency concerns. So do trial proceedings go forward -- or not?
There is a political undercurrent as well.
How much is kabuki from the Bush Administration to rush closure to protect secrets and legacies? What about the
concomitant rush toward martyrdom by high profile detainees, milking Bush failures for worldwide PR value before
things are potentially change[d] under a new administration?
...
Christy also examines the
BBC's interview
with Col. Darrel Vandeveld, the Gitmo prosecutor who resigned over what he considered fundamental justice issues
in the military tribunals. Her post contains too many useful links to reproduce them all here.
Stella's brother came through his marathon operation OK. And it's snowing outside, in Houston, of all places.
Needless to say, we're feeling rather festive. So here's a seasonal view from the vicinity of our carport:
OK, so the snow isn't much by most people's standards. And it isn't cold enough to stick. But it makes us feel
as if we have at least some investment in the season Winter, which in many years is simply absent from our sky
even as it is present in our calendar.
To add to the seasonal picture, here are decorations put up by a neighbor, right around the corner from the snow
scene:
Again, unspectacular... but homey and seasonal. Finally, one of our maintenance guys (call him Alan Claus)
clowns around in an appropriate hat, jingling appropriate sleigh bells (full-sized ones) in his hand, in front
of his appropriately red sleigh truck, which has an appropriate layer of snow atop it:
Happy Holidays, y'all, including even those of you who are offended by the use of the nonspecific "Happy
Holidays!"
I just got a call from Stella, who just got a call from her sister-in-law in Georgia: one of Stella's brothers
is in very serious surgery at the moment, and the news so far is not good. The surgery will last several more
hours, according to the most recent news available to me. If you're the praying sort, say one for Stella's
brother. If not, keep him in your positive thoughts. There's every reason to think that he can make it
through. Hope for the best...
I'm off to join Stella in a few minutes. I'm not sure when I'll be back to the blog, but I'll try to post
something in the comment thread as soon as I know more details.
Today: Rain showers likely before noon, then rain showers likely, possibly mixed with snow and sleet.
Mostly cloudy, with a high near 46. North wind between 10 and 15 mph, with gusts as high as 25 mph. Chance of
precipitation is 70%.
At the moment, it's 36°F and nothing is falling, not even the temperature. But subjectively, it's
already really cold by Houston standards. I'll let you know when we're ready for Santa.
Joe the Plumber: McCain "Appalled Me," Made Me Feel "Dirty"
The Huffington Post | December 9, 2008 05:35 PM
Politico reports that Joe Wurzelbacher isn't a huge fan of the man who made him famous. He told conservative
radio host Glenn Beck that he felt "dirty" after "being on the campaign trail and seeing some of the things that
take place."
"I honestly felt even more dirty after I had been on the campaign trail and seen some things that take place. It
was scary, man," Wurzelbacher said. He told Beck he asked McCain "some pretty direct questions" about the
bailout, and wasn't pleased with the response. "They appalled me, absolutely. You know, I was angry. In fact, I
wanted to get off the bus after I talked to him.
...
Well, Joe, it's OK if you want to feel dirty. Just don't touch-a-touch-a-touch-a-touch me...
Blagojevich Charged With Selling Obama's Senate Seat, Plotting To Purge Trib
By Zachary Roth - December 9, 2008, 10:12AM
From a statement from US Attorney Pat Fitzgerald...
Blagojevich was intercepted on court-authorized wiretaps during the last month conspiring to sell or trade
Illinois' U.S. Senate seat vacated by President-elect Barack Obama for financial and other personal benefits
for himself and his wife.
It's also alleged that Blagojevich wanted to purge Chicago Tribune editorial board and in return help them sell
Wrigley Field.
...
[short excerpt from Fitzgerald's statement follows]
...
A 76-page FBI affidavit alleges that Blagojevich was intercepted on court-authorized wiretaps during the last
month conspiring to sell or trade Illinois' U.S. Senate seat vacated by President-elect Barack Obama for
financial and other personal benefits for himself and his wife. At various times, in exchange for the Senate
appointment, Blagojevich discussed obtaining:
a substantial salary for himself at a either a non-profit foundation or an organization affiliated with labor
unions;
placing his wife on paid corporate boards where he speculated she might garner as much as $150,000 a year;
promises of campaign funds - including cash up front; and
a cabinet post or ambassadorship for himself.
[many other allegations listed here]
Later on November 5, Blagojevich said to Advisor A, "I've got this thing and it's [expletive] golden, and, uh,
uh, I'm just not giving it up for [expletive] nothing. I'm not gonna do it. And, and I can always use it. I can
parachute me there," the affidavit states.
...
Jeebus.
There are many additional allegations, and many, many [expletive]s out of Blagojevich. If there's any good news,
it's that available evidence shows that Obama is not complicit in Blagojevich's alleged actions. If Blagojevich
did all that he is alleged to have done, he's going to be facing a good long sentence. Maybe he can share a
cell with "Dollar Bill" Jefferson.
Back at Junk Value, Recyclables Are Piling Up
By MATT RICHTEL and KATE GALBRAITH
Published: December 7, 2008
Trash has crashed.
The economic downturn has decimated the market for recycled materials like cardboard, plastic, newspaper and
metals. Across the country, this junk is accumulating by the ton in the yards and warehouses of recycling
contractors, which are unable to find buyers or are unwilling to sell at rock-bottom prices.
Ordinarily the material would be turned into products like car parts, book covers and boxes for electronics. But
with the slump in the scrap market, a trickle is starting to head for landfills instead of a second life.
“It’s awful,” said Briana Sternberg, education and outreach coordinator for Sedona Recycles, a nonprofit group
in Arizona that recently stopped taking certain types of cardboard, like old cereal, rice and pasta boxes. There
is no market for these, and the organization’s quarter-acre yard is already packed fence to fence.
...
As if things weren't bad enough already, soon we're going to be living in trash. Oops... what if that's
literally true?
Rep. "Dollar Bill" Jefferson (D-LA) has lost his seat in tonight's Louisiana elections to Republican candidate
Joseph Cao, giving the Dems their own case of Ted Stevens Syndrome -- that is, a safe and well-entrenched
incumbent, who holds a seat that ought to be an easy win for his party, going down to defeat on a corruption
scandal.
Jefferson, of course, is the New Orleans Congressman who is currently under a multi-count federal indictment on
corruption charges, in a bizarre case that involved, among other things, $90,000 in cash being found in his
freezer back in 2006. That scandal wasn't enough for him to lose re-election in 2006, but the indictment that
has come down since then appears to have done it.
...
Good riddance. I am intolerant... I hope we are all intolerant... of corruption by members of any party.
There's another object lesson here. Apparently, Jefferson lost mainly because his base just did not turn out,
and the Republican's base did. I mean, who would vote for Jefferson? (Actually, he got about 47 percent of the
vote. You have to wonder about those people. Shades of Ted Stevens!) Historically, the district is solidly
Democratic. With Jefferson gone, an honest Democratic candidate should be electable next time.
I borrowed this sign photo from
Nicole Belle of Crooks and Liars,
who posted it in reference to the Claire Boothe Luce Policy Institute's "Conservative Babe" calendar. If you
want a link to that, you'll have to get it from Nicole... I ain't postin' it.
I have spent the past couple of wee hours (a time of day in which I try hard never to do anything but sleep)
reviewing my medical insurance claims and payments for the period May through November. (As I am self-employed
when I am employed at all, I am also self-insured.) The results are discouraging, to say the least.
Total payment on all claims in that seven-month period of time amounts to approximately two months' premiums.
At one point, the insurer, having already awarded an amount for a claim, later went back and took back a couple
hundred dollars, based on "new information" received. They didn't bother to say what the information was.
But that's not all. I received a notice at the end of November that my premium will be raised on Jan. 1, from
approximately twice my monthly rent to approximately 2½ times my rent. This is the second such large
increase in six months. Even before this increase, my medical insurance exceeded all my other expenses...
combined. And it still doesn't cover all my medical bills.
Based on the company's current rate of denial of my claims, coupled with the frequency with which they have
raised my premium by substantial amounts, I estimate that if I continued this policy, presuming I have
comparable or moderately increased or even doubled medical expenses over the five years until I reach Medicare
age, I could lose literally tens of thousands of dollars, perhaps even $100,000. Yes, I understand that one
major hospitalization could change the arithmetic... but it would have to be really, really bad to change the
conclusion.
Therefore, I am joining (perhaps temporarily) the ranks of the medically uninsured in America.
According to an August, 2008
U.S. News
article, "The percentage of Americans without health insurance was 15.3 percent in 2007, down from 15.8 percent
in 2006. The number of uninsured dropped from 47 million in 2006 to 45.7 million in 2007."
The decrease in the number of uninsured Americans is apparently due to an increase in the number of children
insured by government programs, mostly state-level... and not in Texas. Adults, especially adults in Texas, are
not so fortunate.
As you may well imagine, I am not happy about this. On the recommendation of a couple I know who are both
self-employed professionals, I have joined AARP, and am examining the medical insurance possibilities there.
I'll let you know how it comes out. Meanwhile, pray nothing terrible happens to me in the period (short, I hope)
in which I have no insurance.
As noted before, and repeated here to annoy the bloody hell out of right-wing free-market nut-cases, this would
not be happening to me if I had been born French.
I don't have any good new kitty pics, so here, have an old one. This one shows Samantha back in January,
practicing for pre-election polls by posing as if she had just done a "dead cat bounce" ...
Alan Colmes To Leave "Hannity & Colmes," Will Not Be Replaced
Update: While the blogosphere has been buzzing with suggestions for who should replace Alan Colmes, who is
relinquishing his role as one half of Fox News' 9PM duo, Colmes' co-host will be moving forward with the
program solo, reports the New York Times' Brian Stelter:
The longtime police chief of a small Western Massachusetts town was one of three people indicted today on
involuntary manslaughter charges for the death of an 8-year-old boy who fatally shot himself with a machine gun
at a weapons exposition in Westfield.
Pelham Police Chief Edward B. Fleury owns COP Firearms & Training, a gun dealership that cosponsored the Machine
Gun Shoot on Oct. 26 at the Westfield Sportsman's Club. Christopher Bizilj died while firing a 9mm Micro Uzi
that recoiled and fatally shot him in the head.
...
Fleury was well-known in Pelham for his personal zeal for gun safety. He regularly visited the schools to teach
the National Rifle Association's "Eddie Eagle Gun Safety Program" to children as young as 5 and 6. He also
taught gun safety courses for adults.
...
Sigh.
This is not about your right to keep and bear arms: yes, you have that right. It's not even about whether
children should be educated in matters of basic firearm safety: yes, they should, especially if they live in
households where guns are kept, and the nature of the training should be based on the children's age.
No, this is about the insanity of allowing or even encouraging a small child to fire a high-powered automatic
weapon, even under close adult supervision. It sounds as if these people did everything right except for one
important detail: they handed the boy a dangerous weapon they surely knew he might not be able to control.
Just to be clear on the main point: while this was not an intentional killing, it was not an accident, either.
From the outset, there was a reasonable probability of this outcome. It was negligent of the adults involved to
allow it to come to this.
I can't help being reminded of the tragedy a few years ago in which a child attempted to become the youngest
person to solo in a small airplane. The mentality that allowed that to happen is the same as we saw in this
case. Why can't people get it through their thick skulls: some activities are so dangerous that they require a
certain minimal maturity to pursue. Children simply must wait to engage in those activities.
Chris Bell
faces a runoff in Texas Senate District 17 on December 16 against a Republican opponent. How did this come
about? This is from memory, but I think this is how it happened: Bell drew a "Democratic" opponent at the last
possible minute in the general election, leaving him with slightly less than a majority of the total votes. A
Republican judge ruled that the other "Democrat" was allowed to run. And our Republican governor... remember,
he has good hair... picked that dog-awful date for the runoff. So... SD17 residents, be sure to celebrate
Beethoven's birthday by voting for Chris Bell for Texas Senate.
UPDATE:
early voting is Dec. 8-12. Locations are NOT the usual early voting locations.
Check
Harris Votes!
for info, or if that site is fucked, as it is right at the moment, phone the Harris County Clerk's
hotline at (713) 755-6965. Good luck... the Clerk is a GOPer.
Protecting Financial Capital, Neglecting Human Capital
Robert Reich
says that's what we're doing by allowing education funding to plunge. Here's a short excerpt from his
conclusion:
...
It¹s our human capital that¹s in short supply. And without adequate public funding, the supply will shrink
further. Don't get me wrong: I¹m not saying funding is everything when it comes to education. Obviously,
accountability is critical. But without adequate funding we can¹t attract talented people into teaching, or keep
class sizes small enough to give kids a real chance to learn, or provide them with a well-rounded curriculum,
and ensure that every qualified young person can go to college.
So why are we bailing out Wall Street and not our nation¹s public schools and colleges? Partly because the
crisis in financial capital is immediate while our human capital crisis is unfolding gradually. Headlines scream
what's happening to our money but not to our kids.
...
Read the rest of his column. It may be that the worst crisis is happening silently, in slow motion.
Saxby Shameless, a truly shameless human being,
won re-election
to his Senate seat in yesterday's runoff. This is bad enough in itself, but it is worse because it ends any
possibility that Dems will have a 60-vote filibuster-proof majority in the Senate.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House won't display a Christmas tree ornament that calls for President Bush's
impeachment.
The ornament was made by Seattle artist Deborah Lawrence, who says she wanted to salute Rep. Jim McDermott, D-
Wash., a longtime Bush foe who backs impeachment.
The nine-inch ball, submitted to the White House this fall, is covered with swirly red and white stripes and
features a picture of McDermott. Tiny glued-on text salutes the impeachment resolution.
First lady Laura Bush asked members of Congress to pick artists to decorate ornaments for the tree. The
ornaments are supposed to feature something special about each congressional district.
Sally McDonough, a spokeswoman for Laura Bush, called the ornament inappropriate.
Inappropriate? Inappropriate??? I'll tell you what's inappropriate, what makes us want to see Bush
impeached! Um, actually, I don't have room for that much text on a nine-inch ball...
Glenn Greenwald
(yeah, I know, no fewer than one popup and one popunder must be dispatched to get to the article) discusses the
history of the "Pentagon's domestic propaganda program involving network 'military analysts,'" as revealed most
recently in retired Gen. Barry McCaffrey's actual financial conflict of interest while "analyzing"
for NBC News (i.e., propagandizing for the Pentagon) regarding Bush's wars.
People sometimes ask me how I can trust what I read on the blogs. I can only ask in turn how they can trust
what they see on broadcast and cable news networks. There is not a lot of proactive falsehood (except perhaps
on Fox News), but there are surely a lot of sins of omission. Not mentioning a commentator's financial
interest in a particular story or series of stories... and especially continuing to avoid talking about the
conflict of interest even after it has been reported in non-media news outlets (can you spell The Nation,
children? no? how about NYT?)... stretches the limits of an activity that still, rightly or wrongly, goes by the
name "journalism."
Apparently it's only a small step from ABC News's editing a presidential "damn" to "darn" in its online text
transcript, to NBC News's utter refusal to talk about the Pentagon's analysts-for-hire program over the past
few years. Comparing this with the blogs, certainly there is a lot of online material that is untrustworthy, but
I'm starting to ask the question: Is there anyone on the air we can trust?
(Apologies in advance, News Writer, but this had to be said.)
(Minor word order changes applied after initial posting.)
Military Suicide Prevention Through... Creationism?
Chris Rodda on Daily Kos
tells us about "Creationism: The Latest In Military Suicide Prevention". Yes, as a non-Christian, I am
deeply offended by the deliberate, systematic introduction of explicit presentations of a particular religion
into the Air Force's suicide prevention program at RAF Lakenheath, a U.S. air base in England. The USAF is no
place for religious indoctrination. This program is manifestly unconstitutional... be sure to scroll down and
look at the slides for the presentation... and must be terminated. If it is not, then we know that the Bush
government has abandoned even the least pretense of the separation of church and state, specifically in the one
arm of our government... the military... in which individual participants have the least freedom to reject
whatever is thrust upon them.
Once again, Jefferson must be spinning in his grave.
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Better the occasional faults of a government that lives
in a spirit of charity than the constant omissions of a
government frozen in the ice of its own indifference.
- FDR
I belong to the Democratic Party wing of the Democratic Party.
- Paul Wellstone
I am a Democrat without prefix, without suffix, and without apology.
- Sam Rayburn
I borrowed this sign photo from
