Category: government
thoughtless, reckless and morally adrift Republican administration
55 of 57 employees of Slate magazine will vote for Obama:
Today, Slate’s staff and contributors reveal how they’re voting in next week’s presidential election. This continues a tradition we began in 2000 and repeated in 2004. It will come as little surprise to many of our readers—and certainly as no surprise to Sarah “Media Elite” Palin—that Barack Obama won Slate in a landslide. In capturing 55 of our 57 votes, with 1 to McCain and 1 to Libertarian Bob Barr, Obama won an even bigger Slate majority than Al Gore in 2000 (29 of 37 votes) or John Kerry in 2004 (46 of 52 votes). Incidentally, this is a voluntary project: Our staff and contributors can reveal how they voted, but they are not required to.
Obama Carries the Great State of Slate … Why we’re telling you how we’re voting.
Anyone who looks at the American election objectively has to conclude that the Republican party deserves to lose. They’ve done a terrible, terrible job for the past 8yrs.
Bruce Springstein agrees:
Performing solo with an acoustic guitar and harmonica, the rock star led the crowd in singing Woody Guthrie’s “This Land Is Your Land.”
Afterward, he strummed his guitar as he denounced the “thoughtless, reckless and morally adrift administration” of President Bush, and called America “a repository for people’s hopes” around the world.
“It remains a house of dreams, and a thousand George Bushes and a thousand Dick Cheneys will never be able to tear that house down,” he said, calling the Iraq war, Hurricane Katrina and the economic crisis their legacy.
“From the beginning, there’s been something in Sen. Obama that’s called upon our better angels,” Springsteen said. “And I suspect it’s because he’s had a life where he’s had to so often call upon his better angels. And we’re going to need all the angels we can get on the hard road ahead. So Sen. Obama, help us rebuild our house.”
Springsteen went on to sing “The Rising,” the song that plays at Obama rallies when the candidate walks onstage. The singer then introduced Obama and his family.
Obama does not necessarily deserve to win.
But John McCain deserves to lose.
fight AIDS, not Global Warming
A long and slightly dated presentation to the 2005 TED conference …
EconomistStatistician Bjorn Lomborg makes a persuasive case for prioritizing the world’s biggest problems, asking “If we had $50 billion to spend over the next four years to do good in the world, where should we spend it?”His recommendations – based on the findings of the 2004 Copenhagen Consensus – controversially place global warming at the bottom of the list (and AIDS prevention at the top). Lomborg was named one of the 100 Most Influential People by Time magazine after the publication of his controversial book, The Skeptical Environmentalist which challenged widely-held beliefs that the environment is getting worse. … (Recorded February 2005 in Monterey, CA. Duration: 17:27)
Sure you can spend $3 trillion on an occupation of Iraq. But is that the BEST way to spend tax dollars when you are running a deficit?
Lomborg talks common sense.
John McCain is simply evil
I read an article in the admittedly left-leaning Rolling Stone magazine called MAKE-BELIEVE MAVERICK:
A closer look at the life and career of John McCain reveals a disturbing record of recklessness and dishonesty
If even half of what’s written in this scathing article is true, it would be a disaster to have this guy in charge of anything.
… Few politicians have so actively, or successfully, crafted their own myth of greatness. In McCain’s version of his life, he is a prodigal son who, steeled by his brutal internment in Vietnam, learned to put “country first.” Remade by the Keating Five scandal that nearly wrecked his career, the story goes, McCain re-emerged as a “reformer” and a “maverick,” righteously eschewing anything that “might even tangentially be construed as a less than proper use of my office.”
It’s a myth McCain has cultivated throughout his decades in Washington. But during the course of this year’s campaign, the mask has slipped. “Let’s face it,” says Larry Wilkerson, a retired Army colonel who served as chief of staff to Secretary of State Colin Powell. “John McCain made his reputation on the fact that he doesn’t bend his principles for politics. That’s just not true.” …
It’s on newsstands now.
John Cleese on Sarah Palin …
“Monty Python Could Have Written This.”
(via Boing Boing)
to vote … or not to vote
Though I keep checking the tick box on my income tax form, I still don’t seem to be registered as a voter.
A special trip with copies of utitility bills, etc. might be needed for me to weigh in on the Canadian election.
Here’s how the polls stand:
Though I threatened the conservative M.P. in my riding to support someone else, the offending legislation I was railing against has been, for now, dropped.
If they allow me to vote, likely I’ll vote Conservative. They are the most fiscally responsible party. And we need fiscal responsibility right now.
There’s a panic mentality.
Economist magazine likes incumbent Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper. Here’s their article — a big shot in the arm for his party, sinking in the polls right now.
… the Toronto stock-exchange index tumbled another 401 points—making for a cumulative drop of 3942 points or 28.6% since September 1st—prices for oil and other commodities softened, and the Canadian dollar dropped. Outside the hotel, unionists belonging to the Canadian Auto Workers mounted a New Orleans-style funeral march, complete with brass band and a coffin to symbolise the 67,000 manufacturing jobs lost in the past year. …
Did Harper do enough to protect those stock holders?
… in relative terms, Canada is doing rather better than most other rich countries. Its banks have declared some losses from dabbling in American sub-prime mortgages. But they remain in “considerably better shape than their international peers”, according to Mark Carney, the governor of the Bank of Canada, the central bank. Banks continue to borrow and lend money. Late last month, Teck Cominco, a mining firm, managed to borrow $9.8 billion to take over Fording Canadian Coal.
The carnage on Wall Street has not threatened institutions, but it has rattled nerves. For most borrowers, credit has tightened. That has prompted Mr Carney to inject liquidity. On October 8th the Bank of Canada cut its benchmark interest rate by 50 basis points (to 2.5%) in a co-ordinated move with the other main central banks around the world.
The economy is still growing, albeit slowly. The growth is mainly in the resource-rich western provinces. The fall in commodity prices will certainly slow things down. The plunge in the oil price means that some of the $110 billion of projected investment in Alberta’s oil sands may be postponed. But Alberta’s government still ran a half-page ad in the New York Times earlier this month to try to lure American workers north. …
Canada is sitting pretty compared with the carnage in the USA.
But panic from those hurt by collateral damage from the USA may sink the Harper ship yet.
Economic fears ambush Stephen Harper’s hopes of a majority – Economist
In the end, it does not matter much. Liberals and Conservative are almost the same. Minority or Majority government. There are pros and cons to both.
Likely I won’t bother voting.
Economist magazine: economists like Obama
The Tuesday night McCain v Obama debate was focused on the economy.
McCain wisely stayed away from attacks Obama’s background and character. (In fact, he did not mention his loopy, loose canon V.P. candidate Sarah Palin even once.)
But which candidate has the best plan to “fix” the mess?
AS THE financial crisis pushes the economy back to the top of voters’ concerns, Barack Obama is starting to open up a clear lead over John McCain in the opinion polls. But among those who study economics for a living, Mr Obama’s lead is much more commanding. A survey of academic economists by The Economist finds the majority—at times by overwhelming margins—believe Mr Obama has the superior economic plan, a firmer grasp of economics and will appoint better economic advisers. …
Examining the candidates – Economist
(via wicked outdoorsy)
waiting for Perot
Whatever happened to Ross Perot?
The billionaire is a blogger at PerotCharts.com.
The United States faces large and growing budget deficits mostly due to an aging population and rising healthcare costs. Unless we solve the problems caused by entitlement spending, there will be little money left to do anything else in the future. Over time, our standard of living, our national security, our standing in the world and the value of our currency could all be threatened. …
Instead of running for President, Perot’s laid out his ideas online in a series of simple charts. Here’s a sample:
See his easy-to-follow presentation at PerotCharts.com/challenges
my apologies Sarah Palin
… She was animated and confident. She displayed an ability, for the first time since her convention speech, to repeat with a fair amount of credibility, the formulations that her handlers had given her. …
Klein: Palin Was Fine, But This Debate Was No Contest – Time
Watched part of the debate.
Sarah Palin was OK.
the upside of recession
Who should pay for the insane financial crisis in the States?
Those who profited from years of insanely escalating housing prices. And the cheap credit industry in the U.S.A.
… That won’t happen. Instead ALL American taxpayers will bail out Wall Street. This may or may not be a good investment. Time will tell.
Some feel there’s an upside of recession. Perhaps we can learn from the mistake of living beyond our means.
Will you suffer from a coming recession personally? Or could it help you improve your quality of life?
Here are the headings from an article: Get Recession Ready:
Get Your Car Recession Ready Tighten Your Belt in the Kitchen Travel Locally Squeeze Out The Last Drop Brown Bag It Quit Your Job Get Recession Ready: Seven Tips – Treehugger
It’s a good read. Reminds me of that classic treatise: Voluntary Simplicity.
Rick McCharles 