ThinkFast: October 17, 2008
ThinkFast: October 17, 2008
Yesterday, the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights released its scorecard for the 110th Congress, assessing how lawmakers voted on civil rights issues. Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) received a civil rights score of 22 percent; Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) received a 100 percent.
The EPA and OSHA have some of “the most restrictive policies in the federal government on releasing scientific information to the press and public,” according to a report card issued today by the Union of Concerned Scientists. The report card, which was based on surveys filled out by 739 researchers, gave the EPA a “D” and OSHA a “F.” The CDC was the only agency to receive an “A.”
“Autumn temperatures in the Arctic are at record levels, the Arctic Ocean is getting warmer and less salty as sea ice melts, and reindeer herds appear to be declining,” a new report compiled by 46 scientists in 10 countries finds.
“It’s politically fashionable to rant against government spending and demand fiscal responsibility,” Nobel-prize winning economist Paul Krugman writes. “But right now, increased government spending is just what the doctor ordered, and concerns about the budget deficit should be put on hold.” He suggests increased investment in infrastructure, extended unemployment benefits, and emergency aid to state/local governments.
18 days to go: John McCain holds rallies in Miami and Melbourne, Florida, and Sarah Palin is in West Chester, OH, and Noblesville, IN. Barack Obama holds a rally in Roanoke, VA. Joe Biden campaigns in Mesilla, NM, and Henderson, NV.
Oil prices dropped below $70 a barrel for the first time in 14 months.“The decline in oil prices came after a government report showed domestic crude oil stockpiles rose more than expected as Americans use less oil, in part because they are driving less.”
Maj. Gen. Jeffrey Schlosser, a top general in charge of U.S. ground troops in Afghanistan, told 60 Minutes this week that “the enemy has increased by up to 30 percent in the last year and he is seeking re-enforcements.” “I’ll tell you that they are doing more complex activities which concerns me greatly,” Schlosser told CBS News correspondent Lara Logan.
Gov. Sarah Palin’s (R-AK) office is charging news organizations $15 million for her e-mails. When the AP asked for state e-mails sent to Todd Palin, the governor’s office “said it would take up to six hours of a programmer’s time to assemble the e-mail of just a single state employee, then another two hours for ’security’ checks, and finally five hours to search the e-mail for whatever word or topic the requestor is seeking.”
Sen. Ted Stevens (R-AK) took the stand yesterday and “immediately denied charges that he lied on financial disclosure forms to conceal gifts and extensive home renovations he received from a business executive.” Stevens’s trial may conclude this afternoon, “with closing arguments scheduled for Monday.”
And finally: On Monday, politics and Gossip Girl finally came together. During the show, rich Manhattan socialites Serena van der Woodsen and Blair Waldorf visited Yale and reminisced over the time that Blair tackled Sen. Chuck Schumer’s (D-NY) daughter at a football game because she was wearing a Harvard sweatshirt. Schumer wasn’t watching the show but was reportedly impressed. “It took a couple tries to explain to him the significance, but then he thought it was, like, totally awesome,” said the senator’s spokesman.
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Gov. Sarah Palin’s (R-AK) office is charging news organizations $15 million for her e-mails.
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And Cheney is sitting there thinking, “now, why didn’t I think of that?”
October 17th, 2008 at 9:12 amI’m not going to rest easy until this election is over. Sure seems the repugs are setting themselves up to
October 17th, 2008 at 9:22 amstealwin this election any way they can.“The decline in oil prices came after a government report showed domestic crude oil stockpiles rose more than expected as Americans use less oil, in part because they are driving less.”
Now the truth be told. We are usually told the price of gas goes up because of something tangible like refineries off-line, weather-related issues, etc. Now we know the truth. They simply charge what they think they can get. When they can’t get $4.00 a gallon because we are driving less and their profits are being affected, they lower the price.
I really do hope that Obama puts some limits on oil companies such as all the oil we produce in the USA stays in the USA and if it looks like price gouging is going on, investigate it!
October 17th, 2008 at 9:28 amMaj. Gen. Jeffrey Schlosser, a top general in charge of U.S. ground troops in Afghanistan, told 60 Minutes this week that “the enemy has increased by up to 30 percent in the last year and he is seeking re-enforcements.”
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Any bets on how long it will take for somebody to blame this on the Democratic “control” of Congress?
October 17th, 2008 at 9:30 amRegarding Afghanistan, Bush has screwed up our military to the point where there are no troops to send there. You will notice that he isn’t bringing troops home from Iraq so that he can free up troops to send to Afghanistan. Oh well, once Obama starts bringing our troops home, we will then have troops to send there.
Anyone besides me notice that Iraq has dropped off the face of the map in the news?
October 17th, 2008 at 9:30 amWhen the AP asked for state e-mails sent to Todd Palin, the governor’s office “said it would take up to six hours of a programmer’s time to assemble the e-mail of just a single state employee, then another two hours for ’security’ checks, and finally five hours to search the e-mail for whatever word or topic the requester is seeking.”
And this adds up to 15 million how? Are these employees being paid a million dollars an hour? What a crock. It’s time for a judge to order Palin to release the e-mails.
October 17th, 2008 at 9:33 amSen. Ted Stevens (R-AK) took the stand yesterday and “immediately denied charges that he lied on financial disclosure forms to conceal gifts and extensive home renovations he received from a business executive.”
So what was his excuse, that he just didn’t notice that his contractor didn’t send him bills for $200,000 of work?
October 17th, 2008 at 9:34 amActually I don’t see how Obama gets 100 per cent on civil rights given his vote on the FISA amendment (?). IMHO that should knock off 15% (I’m ‘weighting’).
October 17th, 2008 at 9:36 amOn the other hand, what the hell have I done for civil rights? Apart from not being an a-hole, nothing really.
Did anyone else but me notice that last night at the fundraiser, McCain seemed incapable of actually laughing? The most I saw was his grimace-smile and a few grunts. Anyone watching Obama (who was cracking up at McCain’s routine) and McCain last night can’t help but contrast their demeanor. It’s like McCain doesn’t try to be likeable.
October 17th, 2008 at 9:36 am“It’s politically fashionable to rant against government spending and demand fiscal responsibility,” Nobel-prize winning economist Paul Krugman writes.
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It has been politically fashionable for virtually every Republican candidate for President during my lifetime to make this a cornerstone of his campaign — usually peppered with phrases like “wasteful Washington spending”. But it’s all hot air (the only President in recent memory who truly did something about fiscal responsibility was a Democrat — Bill Clinton).
Still, that doesn’t stop the process. Candidates still trumpet it and the populace still eats it up. It’s like throwing a chew toy to a dog.
October 17th, 2008 at 9:37 amBe sure to fill up the day before election..day after, gas will break your bank account.
October 17th, 2008 at 9:41 amFIVE FU(KING HOURS TO FIND A “WORD OR TOPIC” IN EMAILS? HAVE THESE IDIOTS NEVER HEARD OF SEARCH FILTERS?
Perhaps things like this are why McCain’s staffers are flipping out right now about Palin.
October 17th, 2008 at 9:42 am$15M for a public email search?
It sounds to me like the Governor is running an incredibly inefficient Administration.
How much is her Admin charging the taxpayers of Alaska to run their affairs? Sounds like way too much.
This should be a campaign issue.
October 17th, 2008 at 9:43 amGov. Sarah Palin’s (R-AK) office is charging news organizations $15 million for her e-mails. When the AP asked for state e-mails sent to Todd Palin, the governor’s office “said it would take up to six hours of a programmer’s time to assemble the e-mail of just a single state employee, then another two hours for ’security’ checks, and finally five hours to search the e-mail for whatever word or topic the requestor is seeking.”
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Wow. I don’t even know where to start with this.
I mean, I understand the logic behind charging a reasonable amount for FOIA requests. It does deter all but the most determined crackpots from demanding that every government agency search all their records for evidence of alien abductions and mind-control rays and stuff. I get that.
But under the Federal FOIA law media are exempt from all fees except photocopying, and the fees for private citizens and commercial entities are usually around $25/hour for search and $50/hour for review, as reimbursement for employee time spent doing the research.
So I’d really like to know who in the Alaska state government is charging $1.15 million for their clerical work…
October 17th, 2008 at 9:44 amActually no. His excuse is he’s a Republican, a member of the party of ‘family values,’ ‘fiscal responsibility,’ and ‘honor,’ so therefore he couldn’t possibly have committed a crime.
If this was a Democratic Senator however…
October 17th, 2008 at 9:44 amClusterTim:
October 17th, 2008 at 9:44 amThe privacy center wishes to remain private, so can you please give it a rest?
Inefficient, wasteful, and ILLEGAL. She actually used taxpayer money to go on trips to religious events.
http://www.newsweek.com/id/163438
October 17th, 2008 at 9:45 amNobel-prize winning economist Paul Krugman
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I don’t know about you folks, but I do like the sound of that.
Nobel-prize winning economist Paul Krugman.
Congrats, Paul – you deserve it!
October 17th, 2008 at 9:46 amIt’s like McCain doesn’t try to be likeable.
I am not so sure about that. It could be equally true that is is trying very, very hard to be likeable . . . but he just isn’t likeable.
October 17th, 2008 at 9:47 amHatchet, Scalpel, or Plunger?
October 17th, 2008 at 9:52 amAnd Karl Rove is going “Doh!”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h4HrSQySus8
October 17th, 2008 at 9:55 amMcNuts public image is so disdainful that one would think he is trying to throw the election…get back at Bush/Rove trashing him in 2000? hmmmmm!
October 17th, 2008 at 9:56 amIt’s odd that McCain alleged that Obama never took a trip south of the border. I consider the motivation for doing so more important, and “a better chance at getting laid” while married with three kids isn’t the kind, worthy motivation I had in mind.
October 17th, 2008 at 9:58 amMcDepends looks real comfortable in that penguin suit ………..
Probably because he’s the same height as a penguin.
October 17th, 2008 at 9:58 amI think Krugman is 100% correct. Now granted I’m a doofus when it comes to economics but AFAIK this is just classic Keynesian economics adopted successfully all over the world to deal with the great depression in the 30s. McCains obsession with balancing the budget and his be all end all solution to cut spending would be a disaster.
Agree
October 17th, 2008 at 9:59 amtom Says:
It’s like McCain doesn’t try to be likeable.
I am not so sure about that. It could be equally true that is is trying very, very hard to be likeable . . . but he just isn’t likeable.
October 17th, 2008 at 9:47 am
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I dunno – I think he used to be. I remember him from old Daily Show interviews years ago being witty and charismatic and reasonable, back when he used his own brain and had his own platform.
But he’s different now. It’s like he’s been sucked into the Rovian machine and emerged as a neocon android – more machine than maverick now. I get the sense, watching him in the debates and stump speeches, that his heart’s not really in it. It’s like he’s saying what he’s been told to say by a committee of resarchers and pollsters and marketing execs, and he’s just going along with it cause he really really really wants to be President.
Just my opinion. Anyone else feel this way?
October 17th, 2008 at 9:59 amMcCain did pretty well when he was joking at the podium last night and Obama obviously found him funny as well.
October 17th, 2008 at 10:03 amWhen Obama was joking during his turn at the podium, McCain seemed to enjoy it, but he mostly appeared pained and uncomfortable, a genuine-looking smile was rare — Most of his smiles are more like grimaces.
Many of McCain’s long time friends and associates say he is a different man today in a negative sense — the Karl Rove effect?
October 17th, 2008 at 10:04 amSpin Fast
The White House vehemently rejected criticisms by the Union of Concerned Scientists regarding the restriction of public release of scientific information.
“The open discussion of scientific research would only be playing into the hands of terrorists” said one official.
“Imagine what Osama Bin Laden would do if he got his hands on the Large Hadron Collider, smuggled it across the Mexican border and fired it up in some Midwestern mall! It is only through the leadership of George Bush and the vigilance of TSA staff confiscating nail clippers and shampoo that we’ve been able to thwart such an attack in the last 8 years.
October 17th, 2008 at 10:04 amhussein toasterhead Says:
I dunno – I think he used to be. I remember him from old Daily Show interviews years ago being witty and charismatic and reasonable, back when he used his own brain and had his own platform.
But he’s different now. It’s like he’s been sucked into the Rovian machine and emerged as a neocon android – more machine than maverick now. I get the sense, watching him in the debates and stump speeches, that his heart’s not really in it. It’s like he’s saying what he’s been told to say by a committee of resarchers and pollsters and marketing execs, and he’s just going along with it cause he really really really wants to be President.
Just my opinion. Anyone else feel this way?
I think he was cheerful in the past because he was fat and rich and sat in a secure Senate seat. He’s cranky and unpleasant now because it’s all slipping away and it becomes increasingly more likely that he’s never going to sit in the Oval Office — at least not behind the desk.
October 17th, 2008 at 10:07 amI did an impromptu poll last night of all the jazz musicians on my record label that were in the studio.
Obama – 100%
McCain – 0%
(granted the poll sample was small, only 10 people)
GO OBAMA!
(click my name to hear the players that support Obama)
October 17th, 2008 at 10:07 amSnark Fast
Nobel-prize winning economist Paul Krugman thinks he’s the poo and a bag of chips after being ignored all this time, just because he won a Volvo and a household item named “Snurtvik” that he has to assemble with an Allen wrench.
October 17th, 2008 at 10:07 am5th Estate Says:
“Imagine what Osama Bin Laden would do if he got his hands on the Large Hadron Collider, smuggled it across the Mexican border and fired it up in some Midwestern mall!
October 17th, 2008 at 10:04 am
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Good luck with that – maybe he can get the damn thing to work without breaking its electromagnets.
October 17th, 2008 at 10:07 am#hussein toasterhead Says:
It’s like he’s saying what he’s been told to say by a committee of resarchers and pollsters and marketing execs, and he’s just going along with it cause he really really really wants to be President.
Just my opinion. Anyone else feel this way?
Yes, it’s like they sucked the life out of him. It is so sad that he sold his soul to obtain his life’s dream. That dream is to have “Here lies John Sydney McCain, 45th President of the United States” on his tombstone. It’s all ego.
October 17th, 2008 at 10:08 amIt seems to me that all the hoohah over ACORN with the FBI investigation is to set up the rationale for attacking Obama’s projected win as fraudulent. The repugs know that both of w’s wins were based on fraud, so they want to be able to attack Obama on the same grounds.
October 17th, 2008 at 10:09 amRantingTommy Says:
October 17th, 2008 at 10:07 am
Do you mind if I put one of your Youtube videos on the Zoo? It’s music night tonight.
October 17th, 2008 at 10:14 am<strongSpin Fast
It can now be revealed that Dick Cheney’s secretive Energy Task Force policies, the invasion of Iraq and the massive deregulation that fueled the sub prime mortgage market that led to the current economic collapse was in fact just an ingenuous scheme to reduce carbon emissions and combat Global Warming by forcing consumers to buy more fuel efficient cars and to drive less.
“We just wanted it to be a surprise” said a high-level government source.
October 17th, 2008 at 10:17 amEighteen short days for McIIIrd to hope the chymp blows the world up..
Intrade Obama 84.5% ~ McIIIrd 15.8 %
Place your bets, ladies and gentlemen!
October 17th, 2008 at 10:22 amBear Country ~ that would be their plan, so I’d like to see Mickey, Donald, Goofy and Daisy show up at the polling place and actually commit VOTER fraud, which of course is different than bogus registrations…
October 17th, 2008 at 10:24 amBearCountry Says:
It seems to me that all the hoohah over ACORN with the FBI investigation is to set up the rationale for attacking Obama’s projected win as fraudulent. The repugs know that both of w’s wins were based on fraud, so they want to be able to attack Obama on the same grounds.
Yeah this ACORN nonsense really stinks. The propaganda in full spin on Faux News and these phony investigations and leaks just weeks before the election
it was ridiculous to hear McCain bring it up in the debate claiming it was a threat to democracy while linking Obama to ACORN. McCain was basically insinuating Obama was part of a grand conspiracy to steal the election. The old man is desperate
October 17th, 2008 at 10:25 amclusterphuckTim; FLAGGED!
October 17th, 2008 at 10:29 amhussein toasterhead Says:
It’s like he’s saying what he’s been told to say by a committee of resarchers and pollsters and marketing execs, and he’s just going along with it cause he really really really wants to be President.
Just my opinion. Anyone else feel this way?
I agree 100%….well said.
October 17th, 2008 at 10:29 amdbadass; just flag the phucker.
October 17th, 2008 at 10:31 am#hussein toasterhead Says:
It’s like he’s saying what he’s been told to say by a committee of resarchers and pollsters and marketing execs, and he’s just going along with it cause he really really really wants to be President.
Just my opinion. Anyone else feel this way?
Bilbo Hussein Baggins Says:
Yes, it’s like they sucked the life out of him. It is so sad that he sold his soul to obtain his life’s dream. That dream is to have “Here lies John Sydney McCain, 45th President of the United States” on his tombstone. It’s all ego.
Well let’s see. McCain’s father and GF were admirals. His Navy record shows he had no aptitude for discipline or for being a pilot. He’s imagined himself a maverick yet he’s joined the very conservative GOP, his professional life has been subsidized by a rich wife and institutionalized government benefits and since he began campaigning he’s reversed every public policy position he’s ever ‘held’ at least twice. I’d say he’s always striven to prove himself according to others standards which he’s been obliged to adopt and the one thing he ‘owns’–his time as a POW–was also something of a failure in that he got shot down so quickly and spent most of the war as a prisoner.
October 17th, 2008 at 10:38 amThat’s a lot of baggage to cope with.
“I’ll show you politics in America. Here it is, right here. ‘I think the puppet on the right shares my beliefs.’ ‘I think the puppet on the left is more to my liking.’ ‘Hey, wait a minute, there’s one guy holding out both puppets!’
October 17th, 2008 at 10:38 am- Bill Hicks
I adore the late Bill Hicks and I identify with the argument, but I guarantee you that, if Al Gore were our President, we would, at the very least, not be in Iraq.
There is a difference between the parties that matters.
October 17th, 2008 at 10:45 amI would be totally HONORED!
Thank you very much!
October 17th, 2008 at 10:54 am666lattes Says:
Not to mention the budget deficit, the sub-prime crisis and our failing economy in general.
If they are the same then why does the right want to do away with social security and public education.
There are so many reasons that this is not a fair statement.
dems and republicans have different values…..see palens rally’s if you want to see one big difference.
October 17th, 2008 at 10:54 amWhen the AP asked for state e-mails sent to Todd Palin, the governor’s office “said it would take up to six hours of a programmer’s time to assemble the e-mail of just a single state employee, then another two hours for ’security’ checks, and finally five hours to search the e-mail for whatever word or topic the requestor is seeking.”
Total bollocks, of course!
It doesn’t take a “programmer” to filter for an individual’s e-mail. I takes an administrator a minute to initiate and then x amount of time for the hardware and software to do the rest–I’d estimate an hour of automated collation.
(A colleague of mine was the Lotus Notes Admin at the Operational HQ of KPMG in Montvale, NJ—1500 employees in the building complex and about 20,000 worldwide).
The real stumbling block is the ’security’ part. In effect Palin’s office is asking to be paid a hell of a lot of money to ensure that journalists get nothing of relevant interest.
October 17th, 2008 at 10:58 am” Government is the entertainment arm of the Military Industrial Complex.”- Frank Zappa
October 17th, 2008 at 11:06 amKEVKEV IN APACHE JUNCTION Says:
So why are you here, just to point out that it doesn’t matter who you vote for?
If that’s true then why vote, why participate at all??
Why even express your opinion if you truly think it doesn’t matter. Aren’t you putting yourself at risk?
October 17th, 2008 at 11:12 am5th Estate Says:
The real stumbling block is the ’security’ part. In effect Palin’s office is asking to be paid a hell of a lot of money to ensure that journalists get nothing of relevant interest.
October 17th, 2008 at 10:58 am
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No, it’s not. That’s actually a no-brainer, technically.
It’s illegal to send any sort of secret or top-secret classified information via government email to an outside party. In fact, it’s supposed to be processed on a completely separate and secure computer system that doesn’t interface with the Internet at all – only with other secure machines.
There’s also “sensitive but unclassified” information – stuff like personnel records and proprietary contract info – that can be processed on regular government computers. However, it’s still illegal for this information to be sent via email otside the agency.
So there should be no need for any security checks on Palin’s emails to her husband. If she sent anything secure or sensitive, she committed a crime.
October 17th, 2008 at 11:17 am“If Voting Changed Anything, They’d Make It Illegal”
October 17th, 2008 at 11:58 amEmma Goldman for President
KEVKEV IN APACHE JUNCTION Says:
A conservative is a man with two perfectly good legs that refuses to walk forward. FDR
Obama for president.
October 17th, 2008 at 12:13 pmKEVKEV IN APACHE JUNCTION Says:
Republicans are men of narrow vision, who are afraid of the future.
October 17th, 2008 at 12:21 pmJimmy Carter
Santa Claus Is Coming to Town
You better watch out
You better not cry
Better not pout
I’m telling you why
Santa Claus is coming to town
He’s making a list
And checking it twice;
Gonna find out Who’s naughty and nice
Santa Claus is coming to town
He sees you when you’re sleeping
He knows when you’re awake
He knows if you’ve been bad or good
So be good for goodness sake!
O! You better watch out!
You better not cry
Better not pout
I’m telling you why
Santa Claus is coming to town
Santa Claus is coming to town
written by J. Fred Coots and Haven Gillespie
October 17th, 2008 at 1:17 pm14 POINTS OF FASCISM
14. Fraudulent elections
Elections in the form of plebiscites or public opinion polls were usually bogus. When actual elections with candidates were held, they would usually be perverted by the power elite to get the desired result. Common methods included maintaining control of the election machinery, intimidating and disenfranchising opposition voters, destroying or disallowing legal votes, and, as a last resort, turning to a judiciary beholden to the power elite.
NOTE: The above 14 Points was written in 2004 by Dr. Laurence Britt, a political scientist. Dr. Britt studied the fascist regimes of: Hitler (Germany), Mussolini (Italy), Franco (Spain), Suharto (Indonesia), and Pinochet (Chile).
October 17th, 2008 at 1:21 pmGreat line from Obama.
October 17th, 2008 at 1:49 pmRantingTommy Says:
October 17th, 2008 at 10:54 am
Thanks! Make sure you stop by. :)
October 17th, 2008 at 1:55 pm