Yesterday was slow day for news, as the media are fixated on Iowa, but I worked on a holiday graphic for Sunday. I’m current with replies. Today I will be doing the work needed to ready my record keeping for 2012.
Jig Zone Puzzle:
Today it took me 3:42 (average 6:01). To do it, click here. How did you do?
Short Takes:
From Common Dreams: Two veteran Democratic congressmen — Toledo’s Marcy Kaptur and Dennis Kucinich of Cleveland — will square off in a 2012 primary race for the newly redrawn 9th Congressional District.
Both filed petitions Wednesday in Cleveland to challenge each other in a district that snakes from Toledo to Cleveland.
The representatives were matched against each other by the Republican-dominated Ohio General Assembly, which approved the new congressional district map.
What a tragedy. We cannot afford the loss of either. This would not have happened had people on the left in Ohio had not stayed home and/or voted for 3rd parties in 2010.
From Baltimore Sun: With the Iowa caucuses just days away, the Republican crack-up threatens the future of the Grand Old Party more profoundly than at any time since the GOP’s eclipse in 1932. That’s bad for America.
The crack-up isn’t just Romney-the-smooth versus Gingrich-the-bomb-thrower. Not just House Speaker John Boehner, who keeps making agreements he can’t keep, versus House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, who keeps making trouble he can’t control. And not just the GOP establishment versus the tea partiers.
The underlying conflict lies deep in the nature and structure of the Republican Party. And its roots are very old.
This article by Robert Reich is well worth the read. Click through.
From Crooks and Liars: There has been a thread of common wisdom which says the DOJ is turning a blind eye to police brutality, most recently with regard to the excessive force shown to Occupy protesters around the country.
In fact, the opposite appears to be true.
At least 17 police departments are under investigation for civil rights violations.
Cartoon:
12 Responses to “Open Thread–12/30/2011”
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Tom quit beating up on people who sat out 2010 because whether you agree or not, that was their right.
I mean look Wyden got elected by people not staying home and he partnered with perhaps the most or second most dangerous man in the house. You’d, with the size of your audience do a better service informing people on how to get informed on how to get people in compliance with the new “You can’t vote anymore laws” in the different states so they can legally register new voters. Every year a whole new crop of 18 year old young adults mature to their majority and if we don’t find out what we need to do to get them registered and legal to vote then they will HAVE to stay home.
When Levin comes up for re-election because he wrote the rendition amendment to the DAA, if he has no primary challenger, I in good conscience will have to leave that line blank. i will not vote against my conscience and he took away in less than 1000 words all Americans civil rights if they are merely accused of being suspected of being associated with terrorists. He never campaigned in 2010 on that NATIONAL piece of bullshit and he was a Democrat now he is just a member of the pieceofcrap party. Sold his soul for what, to protect Israel even more than we already do?
Damn right about that TMW!
Mark, isn’t it? I agree with you that the kids hitting the age of majority have to be educated in how to prepare for voting ie be compliant with their state’s laws, but they also have to be educated in how to think about the issues etc. And it’s not just kids — how about seniors who have moved from one state to another? Immigrants that may be citizens now but face language barriers? Getting the information on how to register, in my view, shouldn’t be that hard other than there are 50 states to consider and there can be changes that catch people at the last minute. I suppose this is easy for me to say, I live in a country with 10 provinces and 3 territories. I think the big thing will be in having volunteers that can assist kids if they don’t understand. Do you remember the article about the Florida teacher who was being fined $1,000 because she was explaining to her seniors how to register and assisting them? But the Republican/Teabagger Governor John Scott wants to limit the young voters and others, although I don’t think he actually articulated it that way, so he brought in legislation that says no one can assist anyother to register to vote. That kind of programme should be mandatory in highschool. I think that is where the biggest effort will be needed.
We face low turn out elections in Canada too, but registering is easy and because our federal elections are administratively controlled by Elections Canada, we don’t have different laws in each Province. In our case, I think it is more apathy and we need to make a concerted effort to engage eachother in politics and the issues on a non-confrontational basis. I think that probably holds for the US also. In the US it wouldn’t hurt to shorten the election time so that people don’t become sick of all the stuff they hear and finally tune it out.
Mark, it’s not about beating up on the folks who didn’t vote in 2010. It’s about hammering home the effects of it on the people who think staying home in 2012 is a good idea.
About Wyden, I wrote an extensive reply the last time you brought it up. Did you miss that?
In Oregon, we vote by mail. Every election I buy an extra book of stamps for people in my building who cannot afford them. Once we are registered the first time, we stay registered as long as we keep voting. Every election I help people register the first time. There are people in my building who cannot read. I read their ballots to them and show them where to mark what they want, even if I disagree with them. I think informing people on getting in compliance needs to be done on a local level, because every state has its own unique rules.
What a depressing end to a depressing year! I had to do the puzzle – too cute – but alas it’s all part of my masochistic vein – I won’t even tell you how long it took – it always takes me nearly twice as long as “average” – love doing them – at first I attributed it to my stupid computer – and while there is truth to that – I have to confess when it comes to these puzzles I’m “challenged” – I think my mother dropped me on my head as an infant!
PS – had to share the article with my Seattle son – thanks! (he’ll never show at an OWS) – but may be a bit empathetic –
Lee, I hear you on the puzzle — most of the time it takes me longer. A few times I’ve been under the average, but mostly over, sometimes even double. But that’s ok. I like doing them. Cheer up! Look at those baby blues from today’s puzzle!
Lee. the important thing is that you enjoy doing them.
I found this Pew Research Poll interesting on how political labels are viewed – as Positively or Negatively
I saw that Nameless. Wonderful!
The Republican Crack-up — Me thinks that the greed of Republican/Teabagger politicians and their corporate puppet masters is the biggest reason for the crack-up. And they don’t seem to have a common focus other than to get rid of Mr Obama.
Robert Reich from his blog — Not a day goes by without Republicans decrying the budget deficit. But the biggest single reason for the yawning deficit is big money’s corruption of Washington. One of the deficit’s biggest drivers — Medicare – would be lower if Medicare could use its bargaining leverage to get drug companies to reduce their prices. Why hasn’t it happened? Big Pharma won’t allow it. Medicare’s administrative costs are only 3 percent, far below the 10 percent average administrative costs of private insurers. So why not tame rising healthcare costs for all Americans by allowing any family to opt in? That was the idea behind the “public option.” Health insurers stopped it in its tracks.
DOJ — It is good that they are looking at the violence and abuse of power that unearthed itself during OWS. But I think it is also important, especially now, that they look at all the voter supression going on in the states. I know that they just overturned South Carolina’s law, but there is more to do and not enough time to do it in.
Cartoon — Good cartoon. I don’t know how this man can look himself in the mirror every morning knowing how much he hates gays for one. Almost makes you wonder if he considered himself gay at one point and was bullied so badly that he has become the bully/
I think it’s also their willingness to do anything, no matter how devastating to the country, to make Obama look bad. More and more Americans are seeing through it..
It’s closer to 30% administrative costs, until the ACA enforces a 20-25% cap tomorrow.
I agree.
Thanks!
3:46 Close, but not quite.