It remains the case that the Romney-Ryan ticket, as fleshed out in recent days, is running on the following:So for all you folks out there trying to put the deficit anvil around Obama's neck, what do you think about the Romney/Ryan plan? I mean really. What do you think? I know. You know I know and now you know you know, too.
What about those policy promises suggests to deficit hawks that Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan will shrink the deficit? Meanwhile, the GOP ticket promises to eliminate tax deductions but won't specify which ones. Naturally, the deductions that cost the most are correspondingly popular with voters. How is it that deficit hawks fail to appreciate the fact that the most likely parts of the Romney-Ryan agenda to pass are the tax cuts, increases in military spending, and the restoration of $700 billion plus to Medicare, while the least likely to pass are the elimination of tax deductions?
- Zero cuts to the military budget. "If I'm president and Paul Ryan's vice president we will not cut our military budget," Mitt Romney said. He's also talked repeatedly about increasing defense spending.
- Zero tax increases on investment, savings, or the middle class, and a broad income-tax rate cut.
- Zero cuts to Medicare for the entirety of two terms in office.
- War with Iran if it keeps pursuing a nuclear program.
Wednesday, September 05, 2012
Crushing the Deficit
The Atlantic has been crushing it this year, easily my favorite publication right now. Here's an article that really lays out Romney/Ryan and their plans for our already bloated deficit:
The Class (hey, where'd it go?)
The Charlotte Observer recently had an interesting column about the middle class:
I added the bold. We need a vibrant middle class to maintain a healthy economy. Will more tax breaks for the Top 1% , plus cutbacks for the poor & middle class fix this? Please. You know. You all know you know. Well, I know you know, anyway.....
It’s all vanishing. If we stay on this trajectory, a majority of residents will not be middle class. (As defined by Pew, the middle class is a household that makes between 67 percent and 200 percent of the national median income.)
Some of Pew’s findings:
• Just 51 percent of adults were in the middle class in 2011 – down from 61 percent in 1971.
• The middle class’s median wealth dropped 28 percent in the decade since 2000, and its median income fell 5 percent.
• The middle class’s share of the nation’s household income has dropped from 62 percent in 1971 to 45 percent now. The lower-income group has stayed about the same, and the upper class has increased its share, from 29 percent to 46 percent.
“The notion that we are a society with a large middle class, with lots of economic and social mobility and a belief that each generation does better than the next – these are among the core tenets of what it means to be an American,” Pew’s Paul Taylor told the Los Angeles Times. “But that’s not necessarily the case anymore.”
I added the bold. We need a vibrant middle class to maintain a healthy economy. Will more tax breaks for the Top 1% , plus cutbacks for the poor & middle class fix this? Please. You know. You all know you know. Well, I know you know, anyway.....
I'll SEAL This Leak, and Raise You Another
For all the folks clamoring about the military "secrets" coming out of the White House (Obama is a good leader!.... we can't have that!), where are you in complaining about the Navy SEAL that is releasing this book?
I look forward to hearing the right wing complain about this, just like they did when the White House was releasing "secrets".
"Rear Adm. Sean Pybus told his force Tuesday that "hawking details about a mission" and selling other information about SEAL training and operations puts the force and their families at risk.
"For an elite force that should be humble and disciplined for life, we are certainly not appearing to be so," Pybus wrote in a letter to the roughly 8,000 troops under his command. "We owe our chain of command much better than this.""
I look forward to hearing the right wing complain about this, just like they did when the White House was releasing "secrets".
Thursday, August 30, 2012
Huckabee Invokes the Bono
Oh no he di'n'. Mike Huckabee invoked the name of the Bono at the tumultuous conclusion of his "sermon of negativity" to the masses gathered in Tampa last night. Bono, one, if not the only non-partisan figure in Washington, had his good name and extra-ordinary words dragged through the mud last night by the increasingly hostile Huckabee. This was a breach of their "friendship" and I'll be interested to see if Bono has something to say about it. I'll try to link the video later, but for now, enjoy the text from Bono's friend, and notice how he never ends the "quote" from Bono. Ass-hat. To turn Bono's "extra-ordinary" quote into a political attack on Obama is an outrage!!
"Sometimes, we're so close to the picture, we can't really see it
clearly. I've worked with Bono for the past few years in the ONE
campaign to fight AIDS and hunger and disease around the world.
"Sometimes, we're so close to the picture, we can't really see it
clearly. I've worked with Bono for the past few years in the ONE
campaign to fight AIDS and hunger and disease around the world.
He's an Irishman and a great humanitarian who told me of his admiration for America. He said we're more than a country; we're an idea.
He reminded me that we are an exceptional nation with an extraordinary history who owes it to the generations coming after us to leave them an extraordinary legacy.
If we don't change the direction of our nation now, our bequest will be nothing but an extraordinary shame.
But we can do better.
President Obama is out of gas; Americans are out of patience, and our great Republic is almost out of time."
Wednesday, August 29, 2012
Bias Exists, Admit It
Interesting article with studies about bias from the Christian Science Monitor:
I thought these lyrics fit pretty well with the topic of bias, and hey, you can't go wrong with U2 circa 1982, am I right?
I was talking, I was talking to myself
Somebody else talk, talk, talking.
I couldn't hear a word, a word he said.
He was my brother
I said there was no other way out of here
Be my brother (Brother)
Got to get out, got to get out.
I was walking, I was walking into walls
And back again
I just keep walking
I walk up to a window to see myself
And my reflection
When I thought about it
My direction
Going nowhere, going nowhere.
No-one, no-one is blinder
Than he who will not see.
No-one, no-one is blinder
Than me.
I was talking, I was talking in my sleep
I can't stop talk, talk, talking
I'm talking to you, it's up to you
Be my brother
There is no other way out of here
Be my brother
Got to get out, got to get out
Got to get out of here.
"When Barack Obama became president, there was talk of a post-racial society, one blind to color. But the only thing we’re blind to is how instinctively biased we all are. If we can learn to see that blindness, there’s a chance we can learn to see more clearly."
I thought these lyrics fit pretty well with the topic of bias, and hey, you can't go wrong with U2 circa 1982, am I right?
I was talking, I was talking to myself
Somebody else talk, talk, talking.
I couldn't hear a word, a word he said.
He was my brother
I said there was no other way out of here
Be my brother (Brother)
Got to get out, got to get out.
I was walking, I was walking into walls
And back again
I just keep walking
I walk up to a window to see myself
And my reflection
When I thought about it
My direction
Going nowhere, going nowhere.
No-one, no-one is blinder
Than he who will not see.
No-one, no-one is blinder
Than me.
I was talking, I was talking in my sleep
I can't stop talk, talk, talking
I'm talking to you, it's up to you
Be my brother
There is no other way out of here
Be my brother
Got to get out, got to get out
Got to get out of here.
Friday, August 24, 2012
No Time To Lose
Here's a link to play this sweet oldie from Carla Thomas... contains some Steve Cropper guitar that is simply perfect, love it!
Click the play button and a new window will open, you can hear the whole thing:
Click the play button and a new window will open, you can hear the whole thing:
Amazon link to better sounding mp3:
Tuesday, August 21, 2012
Ruby Johnson, OMG!
As a longtime Steve Cropper fan (well, I'm 43 and don't remember life
before "Dock of the Bay"), I am always amazed by the hidden jewels that
keep turning up, but I just discovered this CD, and it's G-O-L-D, I tell
ya! Unlike most collections, it sounds like a cohesive 60 minute
album, with the best band on the planet letting Ruby Johnson shine, by
playing in their restrained and perfect style.
Tuesday, July 24, 2012
Sunday, July 22, 2012
"He's Not a Good Fit"
That's what she said. Ba-dump!
“Handshakes, pats on the back, congratulations all around,” Johnson said.
Minutes before the 4:30 p.m. board meeting, Rogers came to Johnson’s office and the two chatted before Rogers said, “We can’t be late for your election.”
The board met by conference call for 20 minutes and approved its new officials, with Johnson and Rogers listening in the same room.
The board then went into executive session, excusing Rogers and Johnson, who prepared to head back to Raleigh.
Several minutes later Johnson got an email from Duke’s lead director, Ann Maynard Gray, telling him to stay. During the executive session Gray introduced a motion: Johnson is not a good fit for Duke, should be removed, and replaced by Rogers, who had been Duke CEO since 2006.
Gray said she knew this would be a shock and expressed her apologies, McKee said. The five former Progress board members began enumerating Johnson’s attributes and qualifications and asked the board to reconsider, McKee said. For one hour, McKee said, Gray kept repeating: He’s not a good fit.
None of the other nine legacy Duke board members spoke.
“There were no answers,” McKee said. “It felt like a lifetime.”
The vote was 10 to 5, with the Duke members siding against the ex-Progress members."
http://www.midtownraleighnews.com/2012/07/21/14553/johnson-duke-board-had-change.html
UPDATE: More info and shenanigans over here.
“Handshakes, pats on the back, congratulations all around,” Johnson said.
Minutes before the 4:30 p.m. board meeting, Rogers came to Johnson’s office and the two chatted before Rogers said, “We can’t be late for your election.”
The board met by conference call for 20 minutes and approved its new officials, with Johnson and Rogers listening in the same room.
The board then went into executive session, excusing Rogers and Johnson, who prepared to head back to Raleigh.
Several minutes later Johnson got an email from Duke’s lead director, Ann Maynard Gray, telling him to stay. During the executive session Gray introduced a motion: Johnson is not a good fit for Duke, should be removed, and replaced by Rogers, who had been Duke CEO since 2006.
Gray said she knew this would be a shock and expressed her apologies, McKee said. The five former Progress board members began enumerating Johnson’s attributes and qualifications and asked the board to reconsider, McKee said. For one hour, McKee said, Gray kept repeating: He’s not a good fit.
None of the other nine legacy Duke board members spoke.
“There were no answers,” McKee said. “It felt like a lifetime.”
The vote was 10 to 5, with the Duke members siding against the ex-Progress members."
http://www.midtownraleighnews.com/2012/07/21/14553/johnson-duke-board-had-change.html
UPDATE: More info and shenanigans over here.
Saturday, July 21, 2012
The Biggest Balls of Them All...
...Belong to Ann Maynard Gray.
She gets nailed on the Churchill quote, but by the end she seems to be daring the commission to regulate Duke.
I thought you might be interested in this story: Duke directors: Johnson raised doubts from the outset, http://m.newsobserver.com/observer/db_111683/contentdetail.htm?contentguid=9eudnIey
Update: Though Finley nails Gray on the Churchill quote, and they mentioned it in the N & O, but stories on Forbes and the Chicago Tribune leave out the damning retort, and act like Gray made a legitimate point.
"Gray revealed that concerns about Johnson arose the first time Duke’s corporate board met Johnson in November 2010, two months before the merger was announced.
“He did describe himself as an individual who liked to learn but not be taught,” Maynard said, who joined Duke’s board in 1997. “That comment stayed with me and I saw some reflections of that going forward.
“It was the first flag,” she said.
Finley pounced on Gray and demanded to know if Gray was aware that the comment she attributed to Johnson is a direct quote from Winston Churchill, one of the most admired leaders of the 20th century.
“No, I did not,” Gray replied softly.
Still, Gray warned the commission that the investigation will make it harder to integrate the two workforces.
“Are you implying,” Finley retorted, “that we need to bug out and get out of the way and let you get on with your business?”
Gray replied: “When it’s over it will be very constructive.”
She gets nailed on the Churchill quote, but by the end she seems to be daring the commission to regulate Duke.
I thought you might be interested in this story: Duke directors: Johnson raised doubts from the outset, http://m.newsobserver.com/observer/db_111683/contentdetail.htm?contentguid=9eudnIey
Update: Though Finley nails Gray on the Churchill quote, and they mentioned it in the N & O, but stories on Forbes and the Chicago Tribune leave out the damning retort, and act like Gray made a legitimate point.
"Gray revealed that concerns about Johnson arose the first time Duke’s corporate board met Johnson in November 2010, two months before the merger was announced.
“He did describe himself as an individual who liked to learn but not be taught,” Maynard said, who joined Duke’s board in 1997. “That comment stayed with me and I saw some reflections of that going forward.
“It was the first flag,” she said.
Finley pounced on Gray and demanded to know if Gray was aware that the comment she attributed to Johnson is a direct quote from Winston Churchill, one of the most admired leaders of the 20th century.
“No, I did not,” Gray replied softly.
Still, Gray warned the commission that the investigation will make it harder to integrate the two workforces.
“Are you implying,” Finley retorted, “that we need to bug out and get out of the way and let you get on with your business?”
Gray replied: “When it’s over it will be very constructive.”
Thursday, July 12, 2012
Lotto Fever!
Ah, the sweet lottery is so good to us, what could go wrong? Looks like this Kangaroo cashier gamed the system and had his wife win a cool $1 Million Dollars! My favorite part,
"The lottery is seeking recovery of the prize money paid to Fields."
Nice work. The lottery pays off again!
"The lottery is seeking recovery of the prize money paid to Fields."
Nice work. The lottery pays off again!
Tuesday, July 10, 2012
Saturday, July 07, 2012
Power Problems
And the Duke Energy/Progress Energy merger of monopolies is off to a roaring start.
NC attorney general, utilities commission to investigate Duke Energy, http://m.newsobserver.com/observer/db_111683/contentdetail.htm?contentguid=qXCQzoDd
Who would have thought they were playing hardball?
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