When you think you've had enough of this life, hold on: … [Read more...] about Everybody Hurts
The Congressional Sausage Grinder (cont’d)
If you haven't gotten around to reading Matt Taibbi's fun and informative Rolling Stone profile, The Crying Shame of John Boehner, I recommend it. But not for this passage which appears to contradict the sentiment I was pointing to the other day: The fact that Boehner supported TARP and No Child Left Behind and mega-handouts to the pharmaceutical industry and a range of other … [Read more...] about The Congressional Sausage Grinder (cont’d)
On Aging
It’s a cold, drizzly Saturday afternoon here in Austin, Texas. Perfect for doing some “deep” thinking. Perfect for looking back at all the years that have gone by. And along comes an e-mail that puts it all in perspective. It did it for me---hopefully it will do the same for you. Enjoy! Graceful Aging The only time in our lives when we like to get old … [Read more...] about On Aging
Get Something On Him…Anything!
The partisan scramble continues. (You'd think there would be enough POLICY DIFFERENCES for people to focus on but I'm ohhhhhhh so 20th century.) … [Read more...] about Get Something On Him…Anything!
Is Sarah Palin Ready for Prime Time?
Forgive me, father, for I have sinned by saying nasty things about Sarah Palin. My excuse is the same as Flip Wilson's favorite character, Geraldine, who said the devil made her do it. On Monday, Palin will be interviewed and asked to explain herself for her latest social network tidbit that tweaked a few liberals the wrong way. Something about blood letting: hers by … [Read more...] about Is Sarah Palin Ready for Prime Time?
Rhetorical Civility
This copyrighted cartoon is licensed to run on TMV. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited. All rights reserved. … [Read more...] about Rhetorical Civility
The Tunisian Revolution
(Editor's Note: This was written yesterday and events are quickly unfolding even as you read this.) Events in Tunisia are unfolding extremely fast. President Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali is on his way out of the country in response to days of protests that have brought the country to a virtual standstill. Arabic media outlets are now reporting that Ben Ali is either on a plane, … [Read more...] about The Tunisian Revolution
BREAKING: Tunisian President Flees the Country; Prime Minister Steps Up
A popular uprising in Tunisia that, although largely ignored in the United States, has been causing street protests and violent public clashes with government authorities for about a month now, culminated yesterday in Tunisia's president (Zine El Abidine Ben Ali) fleeing the country. Tunisia's prime minister, Mohammed Ghannouchi, has taken over as interim president. Although … [Read more...] about BREAKING: Tunisian President Flees the Country; Prime Minister Steps Up
And Now A Special Segment of American Idol With a SPECIAL CONTESTANT
A special contestant (?): That was, of course, Carl "Alfalfa" Switzer, the original Alfalfa from The Little Rascals who had such a sad life (he died after being shot in the late 1950s). Here's a special You Tube tribute to him: And here's the same song segment in the original black and white version. It's a wonderful number -- and I always feel so sad when I think of … [Read more...] about And Now A Special Segment of American Idol With a SPECIAL CONTESTANT
Mexicans Uniquely Alarmed by Arizona Shooting Attack: Excelsior, Mexico
For Mexicans, the assassination attempt against Congresswoman Gillian Giffords is a very harsh blow. Columnist Ana Paula Ordorica of Mexico's Excelsior writes in Part: Giffords has been a lawmaker that has repudiated Arizona's state's controversial law SB 1070. She is an advocate of realistic immigration rules that would allow a path to legalization, with the goal of … [Read more...] about Mexicans Uniquely Alarmed by Arizona Shooting Attack: Excelsior, Mexico
Don’t Worry Be Happy – NOT!
What politician is going to be able to standup in front of the American people and tell them the truth?” Heinberg asks. “Every politician is going to want to promise more economic growth and blame the lack of growth on the other political party…. The whole political system starts to get more and more polarized and more and more radical until it just comes apart at the … [Read more...] about Don’t Worry Be Happy – NOT!
Star Wars Survivor
Carrie Fisher defies genetics. How did this witty, wonderfully talented, albeit seriously troubled, woman emerge from the union of a lecherous moron and, to put it kindly, a bubbly but intellectually challenged Barbie doll? Fisher tries to explain in the scathingly revealing and very funny one-woman show, "Wishful Drinking" on HBO. If you don't subscribe, manipulate a friend … [Read more...] about Star Wars Survivor
What If Everything You Knew About Projected Global Warming Was Wrong?
One of the dirty secrets in the climate change community is that the IPCC consensus is widely seen as the lower bound of likely warming because the models do not incorporate the slower and much more powerful positive feedbacks such as increased methane release from permafrost and bogs. In the years since it was released, every study that has looked at the issue has concluded … [Read more...] about What If Everything You Knew About Projected Global Warming Was Wrong?
Need A Laugh? Check Out The Latest CPI Numbers
I used to go to comedy clubs when I needed a laugh. Now I just wait for official numbers from the government to be released, and the wonderfully funny interpretation of these numbers by economists and happy talkers in the financial press, and what I'm hearing after today's CPI (Consumer Price Index) release is an even bigger hoot than usual. The CPI rose 0.5 percent in … [Read more...] about Need A Laugh? Check Out The Latest CPI Numbers
Two Spaces After A Period Is Wrong! Wrong! Wrong!
If you haven't already found reason enough to condemn Julian Assange, Farhad Manjoo offers up another: Here's a fellow who's been using computers since at least the mid-1980s, a guy whose globetrotting tech-wizardry has come to symbolize all that's revolutionary about the digital age. Yet when he sits down to type, Julian Assange reverts to an antiquated habit that would not … [Read more...] about Two Spaces After A Period Is Wrong! Wrong! Wrong!
Health Care Repeal Vote Is Sheer Gimmickry
Next week House leaders plan an up and down vote to kill the health reform act which is a Republican version of political buffoonery. It is a case of the inmates running the asylum, a gimmick the last Democratic House proved to absurd limits. The last figure I saw reported by the Hill news outfit said 293 bills were stalled on Feb. 10 in the Senate. My guess is the final … [Read more...] about Health Care Repeal Vote Is Sheer Gimmickry
Opening Our Eyes
This copyrighted cartoon is licensed to run on TMV. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited. All rights reserved. … [Read more...] about Opening Our Eyes
Air Raid (REPOSTED): Why Conservative Talk Radio Succeeds More Than Liberal Talk
EDITOR's NOTE: This post was mistakenly deleted so it is being reposted. Air Raid by Peter Funt During a recent radio interview I was asked why it is that conservative broadcasters are so much more successful than their progressive, or liberal, counterparts. The question was particularly intriguing considering its source: the host of a progressive radio show in … [Read more...] about Air Raid (REPOSTED): Why Conservative Talk Radio Succeeds More Than Liberal Talk
Post Inadvertently Deleted
We will repost the Guest Voice post Air Raid which was inadvertently deleted. … [Read more...] about Post Inadvertently Deleted
Aftermath of a Healing Moment
Michelle Obama sat silently, a First Lady holding hands with an astronaut, two middle-aged people in the grip of grief and hope, as the President made his speech. Now she adds words of her own in an open letter to parents, citing "questions my daughters have asked...the same ones that many of your children will have" and urging them to talk about the goodness of the victims, … [Read more...] about Aftermath of a Healing Moment