Political Bloviation

I read this and puked a little in the back of my throat. Haven’t we had enough of the Bush boys already?
Elder Bush: Jeb Should Run For President (VIDEO).
On “Fox News Sunday,” former President George H. W. Bush said he’s ready for another Bush in the White House. He hopes his son Jeb runs for [...]

Panetta to Be Named C.I.A. Director - The Caucus Blog - NYTimes.com.
Seems like a strange choice to me, he’s has Congressional, budget and management experience, but no intelligence background to speak of. I would think they could have found a more experienced leader in the intelligenc community.

Bloomberg.com: Exclusive-Italian Pensions Sapped by Private Funds Bush Backed .
And just think, you too could be watching your retirement dwindle to nothing if Bush had his way and pushed through social security privatization.

Looks like Washington could use a comedian in the Senate:
Franken Looks Like a Winner, but Not Quite a Senator - washingtonpost.com.
He’s good enough, he’s smart enough, and, gosh darn it, he’s a U.S. senator?
Not yet, but recent developments in the unending recount in Minnesota’s Senate race have given entertainer Al Franken (D) a burst of [...]

Paul, you are scaring the crap out of me:
Op-Ed Columnist - Fighting Off Depression - NYTimes.com.
The fact is that recent economic numbers have been terrifying, not just in the United States but around the world. Manufacturing, in particular, is plunging everywhere. Banks aren’t lending; businesses and consumers aren’t spending. Let’s not mince words: This looks [...]

Time Warner Cable could lose all Viacom channels tonight.
I had a lovely conversation a hapless customer service rep at Brighthouse today about the warning crawling across the bottom of Viacom channels. I asked if my bill would be adjusted if I lost the Viacom channels. My 16 month old would be heart broken without Dora [...]

The obvious truth about text messaging: you’re getting ripped off - Engadget Mobile.
I saw the NY Times article that the Engadget Mobile post talks about. The shorter version is: Wireless Carriers, in an absence of regulations, have decided it’s profitable to, as a group, triple texting rates to force more revenue per subscriber.
Now, I’m really [...]

Op-Ed Columnist - Paul Krugman - Fifty Herbert Hoovers - NYTimes.com.
Krugman is concerned that state level spending cuts will counteract federal level stimulus.
But even as Washington tries to rescue the economy, the nation will be reeling from the actions of 50 Herbert Hoovers — state governors who are slashing spending in a time of recession, [...]

Editorial Observer - Four Decades After Milgram, We’re Still Willing to Inflict Pain - NYTimes.com.
Perhaps this explains the willingness to punish ordinary Iraqis for the sins of Saddam. We’ve long passed the point subject stopped responding. All because our authority figures told us it was the right thing to do, that our safety depended on [...]

Fake Hymens: Pics, Videos, Links, News.

FiveThirtyEight.com: Politics Done Right: Franken Claims to Have Lead of 35-50 Votes.
I didn’t think that Fraken would be able to do it, but it looks like he might pull out a win in Minnesota.

Makes you proud to know how well the bailout has been managed and that the millionaires who caused it will be able to buy themselves a new Porche on the taxpayer’s money this yer:
AP study finds $1.6B went to bailed-out bank execs - News Wires - CNBC.com.
Banks that have their hands out in Washington this [...]

Maybe they can spend time to develop a working business model instead of defending an obsolete model?
Music Industry to Abandon Mass Suits - WSJ.com
After years of suing thousands of people for allegedly stealing music via the Internet, the recording industry is set to drop its legal assault as it searches for more effective ways to [...]

McClatchy Washington Bureau | 12/18/2008 | Bush on economy moves: I didn’t want to be Herbert Hoover.
It’s a little late now you friggin’ moron.

Committing war crimes for the “right reasons” - Glenn Greenwald - Salon.com.
Glenn Greenwald weighs in on Ross Douthat’s post at the The Atlantic. Douthat believes that while Bush et al.  may have violated international laws, treaties and domestic laws against the torture of prisoners, but it was justified, and still is, by a real fear [...]

Press Release: Statement Regarding Madoff Investigation; 2008-297; Dec. 16, 2008.
They thoroughly failed to do their job for at least 9 years:
Since Commissioners were first informed of the Madoff investigation last week, the Commission has met multiple times on an emergency basis to seek answers to the question of how Mr. Madoff’s vast scheme remained undetected [...]

Frank Gaffney on the Iraq War: Yes, Americans did have to die, but he’s delighted we did what we did! | Crooks and Liars.
Sure we didn’t need to do it, but it was so god damned DELIGHTFUL!!!!!
Matthews: “You guys sold the war as a nuclear threat to the United States. You sold every trick you [...]

EzraKlein Archive | The American Prospect.
Ezra defends Andrew Sullivan by way of an actual real world example of interrogation techniques that work, as opposed to the Reuel Marc Gerecht fantasy created whole cloth from episodes of 24. Important points to note:

Torture and abuse at Gitmo and Abu Ghraib was a prime motivating factor in recruiting [...]

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Report Finds Meddling in Interior Dept. Actions - NYTimes.com.
The inspector general of the Interior Department has found that agency officials often interfered with scientific work in order to limit protections for species at risk of becoming extinct, reviving attention to years of disputes over the Bush administration’s science policies.
It’s not the least bit suprising. The [...]