-
07 Nov 2009 22:41
"Splashdown Pilot Sullenberger to Lead Rose Parade"--headline, Associated Press, Nov. 5
491 comments
280 comments
265 comments
Opinion: Hello, Tipping Point218 comments
House Passes Health-Care Reform Bill in Historic Vote215 comments
-
07 Nov 2009 05:35
- NOVEMBER 6, 2009
Duck This Quackery
Unemployment tops 10%. Let's wreck health care!
Unemployment has hit double digits for the first time in more than a quarter-century, USA Today reports. The rate reached 10.2% in October, and President Obama says he's very, very concerned:
On Monday, Obama said the economy is starting to recover, but jobs are always a lagging indicator. He called higher employment "my administration's overriding focus."
"Having brought the economy back from the brink, the question is how are we going to make sure that people are getting back to work and able to support their families," Obama said. "It's not going to happen overnight, but we will not rest until we are succeeding in generating the jobs that this economy needs."
Well, they're not resting anyway. John Cassidy of The New Yorker explains what they are doing:
The U.S. government is making a costly and open-ended commitment to help provide health coverage for the vast majority of its citizens. I support this commitment, and I think the federal government's spending priorities should be altered to make it happen. But let's not pretend that it isn't a big deal, or that it will be self-financing, or that it will work out exactly as planned. It won't.
Many Democratic insiders know all this, or most of it. What is really unfolding, I suspect, is the scenario that many conservatives feared. The Obama Administration, like the Bush Administration before it (and many other Administrations before that) is creating a new entitlement program, which, once established, will be virtually impossible to rescind. At some point in the future, the fiscal consequences of the reform will have to be dealt with in a more meaningful way, but by then the principle of (near) universal coverage will be well established. Even a twenty-first-century Ronald Reagan will have great difficult overturning it.
That takes me back to where I began. Both in terms of the political calculus of the Democratic Party, and in terms of making the United States a more equitable society, expanding health-care coverage now and worrying later about its long-term consequences is an eminently defensible strategy. Putting on my amateur historian's cap, I might even claim that some subterfuge is historically necessary to get great reforms enacted. But as an economics reporter and commentator, I feel obliged to put on my green eyeshade and count the dollars.
So, to sum up, in the name of an abstraction ("making the United States a more equitable society") and because it fits their "political calculus," Obama and Nancy Pelosi are planning to impose upon the country a massively expensive burden that can never be lifted. And they're lying to us about it ("some subterfuge is historically necessary").
Cassidy is for ObamaCare. Imagine what he'd say if he were against it.
Thousands of Americans gathered outside the Capitol yesterday to protest this impending monstrosity, and for their trouble they earned mockery from New York Times reporter David Herszenhorn:
It's a generally older crowd, many in their 50s and 60s, predominantly, white, and many self-identified as Christians. They are fiercely conservative and deeply skeptical of the government, many of them adamantly opposed to abortion rights. . . .
Mr. Hershberger, like many of the demonstrators, repeated some of the most common conservative and Republican talking points heard repeatedly on Fox News. . . .
Ms. Garloch, like many in the crowd who while visibly angry. [sic] could not articulate the main problems in the health care system or how they should be solved.
Some of the same people warning of too much government spending also complained that Medicare does not provide sufficient coverage.
Well, that settles it, then. If you can't "articulate the main problems in the health care system or how they should be solved," shut up and let Dr. Obama and Nurse Pelosi give you your medicine.
It is far from an original observation that with unemployment at 10% and the voters just having rebuked their party, it requires amazing hubris and insensitivity for the president and the Democratic leadership to push ahead with this. But the situation is not necessarily hopeless. There may be enough Democrats with enough sense to put a stop to this.
"There are going to be a lot more tensions between the White House and Congress," Rep. Jim Cooper (D., Tenn.), tells the Los Angeles Times. "They've been under the surface so far--and they're going to come out in the open." In time for the vote, one hopes--for their sake and the country's.
Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D., W.Va.) tells the Washington Post: "The question is, do people think we're tending to the things they care about?" It's a rhetorical question: The Post adds that Rockefeller "said there was palpable concern among his colleagues Wednesday that the main agenda items Democrats are pursuing--health care and climate change--resonate very little with voters focused on finding or keeping jobs."
Sen. Rockefeller, you're playing our song. The country is counting on dissident Democrats to dissonate from their ideologically addled leadership. Andrew Jackson is supposed to have said that one man with courage makes a majority. A handful of Democrats who haven't taken leave of their senses have it in their power to save the country from a disaster--and maybe to preserve their own party's majorities in Congress.
An Example of That 'Subterfuge'Nicholas Kristof of the New York Times has a column purporting to debunk the claim that America's health-care system is the best in the world. But if you scratch the surface, you find that he is misleading his readers. Here's Kristof's claim:
Yet another study, cited in a recent report by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Urban Institute, looked at how well 19 developed countries succeeded in avoiding "preventable deaths," such as those where a disease could be cured or forestalled. What Senator [Richard] Shelby called "the best health care system" ranked in last place.
But if you look at the report, on pages 3-4, you find this:
Among 19 countries included in a recent study of amenable mortality, the United States had the highest rate of deaths from conditions that could have been prevented or treated successfully. The extent to which differences across countries in the prevalence of particular conditions may explain the poor U.S. showing in the recent study is unknown, although studies in which it was possible to adjust for such differences found that the greatest part of regional differences in mortality for certain conditions were explained by differences in disease prevalence.
A recent study comparing the United States and 10 European countries found that the United States had a much higher prevalence of nine of 10 conditions, including cancer, heart disease, and stroke, in its population over age 50.
In other words, Americans are more likely to die of these diseases because they're more likely to get them, not because they are likely to get inferior treatment.
Longtime readers will recall that we caught Kristof playing similar games with statistics back in January 2005, when he claimed that the U.S. infant-mortality rate was worse than communist Cuba's and much worse than European rates. We pointed out that a central reason U.S. rates are high is that American physicians make heroic efforts to save extremely premature infants, who nonetheless have a mortality rate in excess of 50%. In other countries, these babies are simply discarded and not even counted in the statistics.
Almost five years later, Kristof acknowledges his error--sort of: "We rank 37th in infant mortality (partly because of many premature births)," he writes. He still presents the infant-mortality rate as if it were evidence that America's medical care is inferior, when in fact it is evidence that it is superior. This time there is no question that he knows better.
Back in 2005, we observed that Kristof "seems to think it's cute to cast America in a negative light." That hasn't changed. Here are the two closing paragraphs of yesterday's column:
In several columns, I've noted indignantly that we have worse health statistics than Slovenia. For example, I noted that an American child is twice as likely to die in its first year as a Slovenian child. The tone--worse than Slovenia!--gravely offended Slovenians. They resent having their fine universal health coverage compared with the notoriously dysfunctional American system.
As far as I can tell, every Slovenian has written to me. Twice. So, to all you Slovenians, I apologize profusely for the invidious comparison of our health systems. Yet I still don't see anything wrong with us Americans aspiring for health care every bit as good as yours.
Kristof is really good when he writes earnest, reported columns about Third World human-rights horrors. When he tries to play Maureen Dowd and ventures into comedy at America's expense, however, he just stinks up the place.
Massacre at Fort HoodThe death toll stands at 13 in yesterday's mass shooting at Fort Hood, Texas. The suspect, Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, was shot by police and initially reported dead, but is now said to be in stable condition. An Army psychiatrist, he was scheduled to be deployed to Afghanistan, The Wall Street Journal reports. A Houston Chronicle report suggests the military missed warning signs:
Federal law enforcement officials told the Associated Press that Hasan had come to their attention at least six months ago because of Internet postings that discussed suicide bombings and other threats.
One of the Web posts that authorities reviewed is a blog that equates suicide bombers with a soldier throwing himself on a grenade to save the lives of his comrades.
"To say that this soldier committed suicide is inappropriate. Its more appropriate to say he is a brave hero that sacrificed his life for a more noble cause," said the Internet posting. "Scholars have paralled (sic) this to suicide bombers whose intention, by sacrificing their lives, is to help save Muslims by killing enemy soldiers."
The officials say Hasan appeared to have made the postings, but they are still trying to confirm that he was the author. They say an official investigation was not opened.
Brent Baker of Newsbusters.org faults the TV news networks for initially playing down that Hasan is Muslim:
Neither the CBS Evening News nor NBC Nightly News, in their East coast feeds Thursday night, noted the Muslim religious beliefs of the mass killer at the Fort Hood Army base in Texas, but ABC anchor Charles Gibson wasn't cowed by political correctness as he teased World News, "Fort Hood tragedy: An Army officer, a Muslim convert, is the suspect in a shooting spree . . ." Introducing his first story, Gibson referred to how Major Nidal Malik Hasan "an army officer, a Muslim, opened fire with handguns . . ." (With a range of frequency, during late afternoon/early evening coverage, CNN, FNC and MSNBC all identified Hasan as a Muslim.)
Cryptically, ABC's senior foreign affairs correspondent, Martha Raddatz, concluded a story on reaction at Fort Hood: "As for the suspect, Nadal Hasan, as one officer's wife told me, 'I wish his name was Smith.' " So, a concern this will lead to groundless fear of Muslims?
We'd say it's not unreasonable to be concerned that the massacre will feed anti-Muslim bigotry. But there's another way of taking "I wish his name was Smith." When the story first broke, it was reported that Hasan was dead and two other suspects were in custody. That suggested a conspiracy and immediately set us to worrying that al Qaeda had infiltrated the U.S. military.
We were very relieved when it emerged that the two other "suspects" had been cleared and released. This appears to have been not a coordinated terror attack but a case of what Daniel Pipes aptly terms "sudden jihad syndrome." If the alleged gunman had been named Smith--or, for that matter, Russell--our fears of al Qaeda infiltration would have been similarly allayed.
The Fort Hood massacre is feeding prejudice not only against Muslims but against the military--the latter a prejudice journalists do not particularly care to avoid. This is from
The incident raised new questions about the toll that six years of continuous fighting in Iraq and nearly eight years of fighting in Afghanistan have taken on the U.S. military and on individual soldiers, many of whom have been on several combat tours.
Reuters doesn't stipulate what these "new questions" are or who is asking them. In any case, the assertion is a non sequitur. Hasan has never been on a combat tour.
My Pet CrowOur friend Robert George of the New York Post, writing for an NBC News Web site, makes an important point about President Obama's lack of comportment in the aftermath of the Fort Hood massacre:
After news broke out of the shooting at the Fort Hood Army post in Texas, the nation watched in horror as the toll of dead and injured climbed. The White House was notified immediately and by late afternoon, word went out that the president would speak about the incident prior to a previously scheduled appearance. At about 5 p.m., cable stations went to the president. The situation called for not only his trademark eloquence, but also grace and perspective.
But instead of a somber chief executive offering reassuring words and expressions of sympathy and compassion, viewers saw a wildly disconnected and inappropriately light president making introductory remarks. At the event, a Tribal Nations Conference hosted by the Department of Interior's Bureau of Indian affairs, the president thanked various staffers and offered a "shout-out" to "Dr. Joe Medicine Crow--that Congressional Medal of Honor winner." Three minutes in, the president spoke about the shooting, in measured and appropriate terms. Who is advising him?
Anyone at home aware of the major news story of the previous hours had to have been stunned. An incident like this requires a scrapping of the early light banter.
Video is here. It's of a piece with Obama's obsessive focus on health care at a time when voters are worried about unemployment: the latest evidence that the president's vaunted "cool" under pressure reflects indifference, not mastery.
Bushism of the Day, or Is Our Children Being?"I know that in the past people are concerned, 'Are we going to have our young people being taught to the test?' That's the last thing we want."--President Obama, Nov. 4
Life Imitates the Movies
- Chance the Gardener: "As long as the roots are not severed, all is well. And all will be well in the garden."--dialogue from "Being There," 1979
- "Kerry: Dems May Pull Carrots if GOP Won't Bite"--headline, NationalJournal.com
Metaphor Alert"The bottom line: the Obama team picked the wrong horse, found itself in a diplomatic dead end, found a mechanism to abandon its failed gambit, and now supports election."--Jennifer Rubin, Commentary Web site, Nov. 5
Not That There's Anything Wrong With That!"White House: Crist Loved Obama Stimulation"--headline, WTVJ-TV (Miami), Nov. 5
C'mon, Hoffman, Concede Already"Dark Horse Challenges Dark Matter to Explain Missing Matter"--headline, Space.com, Nov. 5
None of the Floats Will Be as Impressive as His"Splashdown Piliot Sullenberger to Lead Rose Parade"--headline, Associated Press, Nov. 5
That's Got to Violate the Eighth Amendment"Texas Executes Killer in Beating, Shooting Death"--headline, FoxNews.com, Nov. 5
Even 20 Years After the Berlin Wall Fell"Germany Still Looking for Freedom From David Hasselhoff"--headline, Der Spiegel, Nov. 5
This Is What You Call an Impatient Patient"Dead Doctor No Excuse for Lapse in Patient Care"--headline, Rapid City (S.D.) Journal, Nov. 4
That's Some Fine Detective Work"Deputy: 'Explosive Diarrhea' Story Didn't Add Up"--headline, WBBH-TV Web site (Fort Myers, Fla.), Nov. 4
A 275,000-Pack-a-Day Habit"14 People Charged With illegally Purchasing 77M Cigarettes"--headline, FoxNews.com, Nov. 6
Boat Shreds Inflatable Bears--Now "Three Bears Shred Inflatable Boat Leaving Hunters Stranded"--headline, Anchorage Daily News, Nov. 4
Too Much Information"Dow Closes Above 10,000 as Cisco Pleases"--headline, MarketWatch.com, Nov. 5
Look Out Below!"Baltic Retail Sales Plummet"--headline, Baltic Times (Riga, Latvia), Nov. 5
Someone Set Up Us the Bomb"Tiny Tech Sparks Cell Signal Find"--headline, BBC Web site, Nov. 5
- "Bitters Pill to Take! Acute Angostura Shortage Shakes Cocktail Trade"--headline, Guardian
- " 'Bobbitt' Case: I Cut Off Dad's Penis and Burned It, but I Didn't Want Him to Die, Queens Woman Says"--headline, Daily News (New York), Nov. 5
- "Woman Forced to Wear Diapers to Work"--headline, Philadelphia Daily News
- "Adopt Me: Prince Charles Looking for Someone to Love"--headline, El Paso Times, Nov. 6
"Cops Seek Thieves"--headline, Alberni Valley (British Columbia) News, Nov. 5
- "Sleep Apnea Therapy Improves Golf Game"--headline, American College of Chest Physicians press release, Nov. 5
- "Kate Hudson's Right--All Men Want Is Sex, Subs"--headline, Boston Herald
- "Expert: Open Window, Not Phone, if Vehicle Is Under Water"--headline, Canadian Press, Nov. 6
Bottom Stories of the Day
- "Texas Officials Decline to Outlaw Water Spinach"--headline, Austin American-Statesman, Nov. 6
- "Australia's Poultry, Egg Research Secure"--headline, Poultry International, November issue
- "Dinkins Takes Obama to Task for Not Supporting Thompson"--headline, New York Post
- "General Assembly Urges Gaza Investigations"--headline,
- "ZOA Praises Sen. Brownback's Bill to Remove Presidential Waiver From Law Calling for U.S. Embassy in Israel to Be Moved to Jerusalem"--headline, Zionist Organization of America press release, Nov. 5
Educational SchadenfreudeIt's a longtime sport of journalists and other critics: citing surveys finding that American schoolchildren are ignorant of basic historical facts. But it turns out that kids in at least one English-speaking land are even more ignorant than Americans, as the Herald of Glasgow, Scotland, reports:
One in 20 UK schoolchildren thought Adolf Hitler was a coach of the German football team, according to a survey.
As if it isn't bad enough they can't identify Hitler, they don't even know that there's no football in Germany!
(Carol Muller helps compile Best of the Web Today. Thanks to Lori Cohen, Mark Van Der Molen, Dan Kelly, Kevin Walker, Alex Wong, Mark Brown, Rich O'Connor, Amanda Brickell, Chris Scibelli, Daniel Mullen, John Perry, C.E. Dobkin, R. Dawson, Ed Lasky, Mordecai Bobrowsky, James Foster, Taylor Dinerman, David Shapero, Richard Belzer, Fred Furia, Peter D'Souza, Rob Slocum, Dan O'Shea, July Linett, James Linville, Monty Krieger, Charles Thomas, Bruce Goldman, Lewis Sckolnick, Michele Schiesser, Edward Tannen, Bill Stafford, Keith Rasmussen, Jim Orheim, Michael Ellard, Robert Butchko, Jarrett Skorup, John Williamson, Israel Pickholtz, Brae Tilton, Kyle Kyllan, Mark Finkelstein, Jason Shanker, Joel Donelson, Jeremy Weaver, Dennis Paine, Alan Jones, Erik Andresen, Daniel Foty, Kathleen Sullivan, Neil Brodie, Evan Slatis, Dennis Ainger, William Brotherton and Gregg Geil. If you have a tip, write us at
Opinion: What the Pelosi Health-Care Bill Really Says321 comments
297 comments
291 comments
Grim Milestone as Jobless Rate Tops 10%251 comments
Hash Browns, Then 4 Minutes of Chaos237 comments
-
Berliners Rebuilt Lives as Wall Crumbled
-
Making the Cut Over 40
-
Picking a Merry Mix of Syrahs
-
ETFs Causing Bubble in Emerging Markets?
-
The First Down, Ever
-
Bluffing at the Highest Levels
-
A New York School Standout
-
Struggle and Triumph
-
Carrey, Disney Play Scrooge in 'Carol'
-
Where Joe Montana Kicks Back
-
Berliners Rebuilt Lives as Wall Crumbled
-
Making the Cut Over 40
-
Picking a Merry Mix of Syrahs
-
ETFs Causing Bubble in Emerging Markets?
-
The First Down, Ever
-
Bluffing at the Highest Levels
-
A New York School Standout
-
Struggle and Triumph
-
Carrey, Disney Play Scrooge in 'Carol'
-
Where Joe Montana Kicks Back
-
06 Nov 2009 07:11
-
Japanese Baseball's Best Day Ever
-
Mexicans Fight Back Amid Violence
-
Trash Loses Luster in Nevada
-
Bodyguard Was Pope's 'Guardian Angel'
-
How to Write a Great Novel
-
Three Best Ways to Reduce Tech Costs
-
Twelve Miles of Inspiration
-
Museums Hope to Give Haight New Life
-
Coincidental Obscenity Deemed Extremely Dubious
-
-
05 Nov 2009 15:30
- NOVEMBER 5, 2009
Pelosi's Suicide Pact
A death panel for the Democratic majority.
Homer NodsIn yesterday's lead item, we erred in stating that Norma Desmond is in the White House. That is to say, the setup for that punch line turned out to be based on false information. reports that White House press secretary Robert Gibbs did not say President Obama had watched an HBO special on his campaign instead of election returns Tuesday night.
Pelosi's Suicide PactThe voters be damned: That seems to be Speaker Nancy Pelosi's attitude in the wake of big Democratic losses on Tuesday. "House Democratic leaders, undeterred by delays in the Senate or this week's Republican electoral triumphs, plan to call a vote Saturday on the most sweeping overhaul of U.S. health-care policy in four decades," Bloomberg reports:
The House will move on the $1.05 trillion legislation that would cover 36 million uninsured people and create a government plan to compete with private insurers even after the election of Republican governors in New Jersey and Virginia. President Barack Obama will go to Capitol Hill tomorrow to meet with House Democrats, as they seek the 218 votes they need to pass the bill, a Democratic leadership aide said.
Politico reports that "leaders expect a close vote, with a one-or two-vote margin, and no Rs." They plan to pass this monstrosity without bipartisan support and with the bare minimum of support from their own party. "Pelosi has reportedly told fellow Democrats that she's prepared to lose seats in 2010 if that's what it takes to pass ObamaCare," The Wall Street Journal reports. Is she mad?
No, not really. Or we should say only ideologically, in that she loves the monstrous idea of socialized medicine. Given that, though, her actions make perfect sense in terms of practical politics. After all, this is likely to be the high-water mark for liberal Democrats. They're likely to lose House seats next year anyway, and there's no guarantee President Obama will be re-elected. At 69, Pelosi stands a good chance of facing a death panel before she leads a majority of this size again.
Besides, her seat is in no jeopardy. She comes from a safe ultraliberal district. The same is true of the Democratic committee chairmen, who had to be able to win re-election even in lean years like 1994. According to Wikipedia, no member of the left-wing Congressional Progressive Caucus has lost re-election in a general election (Rep. Cynthia McKinney of Georgia lost a primary to another CPC member).
So Pelosi will probably still be speaker a year from now, even if her caucus is diminished. In the worst-case scenario, she'll be minority leader, with hopes of returning to the speakership on the strength of President Obama's re-election coattails. This is a small price to pay for the privilege of seizing control of Americans' health care.
To prevail, however, she will still need to persuade some Democrats who do not share her fervor for socialized medicine to risk their jobs for it. As Politico reports:
Election Day losses in Virginia and New Jersey have congressional Democrats focused like never before on jobs---their own.
While the White House and party leaders are urging calm, Democratic incumbents from red states and Republican-leaning districts are anything but; Tuesday's statehouse defeats have left them acutely aware that their votes on health care reform and other major Obama initiatives could be career-enders in 2010 or beyond.
"I should be nervous," said Rep. Parker Griffith, a freshman Democrat from Huntsville, Ala.
Griffith said the Democratic rank and file is "very, very sensitive" to the fact that issues being pushed by party leaders "have the potential to cost some of our front-line members their seats."
The June vote for Cap'n Trade was just 219-212, with 8 Republicans voting "aye." If no GOP members back ObamaCare, Pelosi will need fewer defections this time around. And if, as Politico predicts, the margin really is a single vote or two, any marginal Democrat who votes "yes" will bear responsibility for foisting this on his constituents.
It may be that Pelosi is savvy enough not to try to push this through without being certain enough of her members are willing to sign her suicide pact. Or perhaps this is a desperation move, since the chances of passing ObamaCare would only diminish as the election results sink in. Or both--Pelosi may have the votes and be acting out of desperation.
Of course, even if the House passes this thing, it still has to get past the Senate. Majority Leader Harry Reid has got to be the least happy man in Washington. Unlike Pelosi, he does not have a safe seat. In fact, liberal electoral maven Nate Silver ranks Reid as the most vulnerable Senate incumbent up next year.
The reports that Reid "signaled Tuesday that Congress may fail to meet a year-end deadline for passing health-care legislation, leaving the measure's fate to the uncertainties of the 2010 election season." Another Associated Press report notes that far-left groups like MoveOn.org are threatening to campaign against moderate Democrats if they oppose ObamaCare:
The group said Tuesday it was launching radio ads aimed at moderates [Blanche] Lincoln and Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., accusing each of "siding with insurance companies." It was also mailing sharply worded brochures to tens of thousands of households in Arkansas, Louisiana, Nebraska, North Dakota and even Maine--home of moderate GOP Sen. Olympia Snowe--urging recipients to pressure their senators. . . .
Conflict between ideological groups and moderate lawmakers is not uncommon in either party.
Yet the intensity of the progressive arm-twisting--and the resentment it is stirring among targeted senators--reflect the stakes as Congress tackles the top domestic priority of President Barack Obama and the Democratic Party.
Even if Pelosi gets her way, there's reason to hope the Senate will be the death panel for ObamaCare.
The 'Bush Legacy' PresidentThis Reuters headline is the most damning commentary about President Obama since the ridiculous Nobel Peace Prize: "One Year On, Obama Cites Struggle With Bush Legacy":
A year after his historic election, President Barack Obama sought to remind Americans on Wednesday the biggest problems he is grappling with--from the economy to the war in Afghanistan--are the legacy of his predecessor, George W. Bush. . . .
He used the preamble of his speech to insist his administration had indeed had important successes and also to remind Americans of the litany of daunting challenges he inherited when he took office in January.
"One year ago, Americans all across this country went to the polls and cast ballots for the future they wanted to see," Obama said.
But he said his administration was also confronted with a "financial crisis that threatened to plunge our economy into a Great Depression, the worst that we've seen in generations."
"We had record deficits, two wars, frayed alliances around the world," Obama added.
He said his administration had acted swiftly to save the economy from "imminent collapse."
"While we still have a long way to go, we have made meaningful progress toward achieving that goal," he said.
"Nine months into his term, Obama's Republican critics have accused him of overplaying the 'blame card' against Bush," Reuters reports. But even Joe Conason, as loyal a Democrat as you will find, acknowledged yesterday on "Lou Dobbs Tonight": "You can't spend your term as president complaining about the last guy. That's not going to get you very far. You need to perform."
Conason, it must be emphasized, is in complete agreement with Obama on the awfulness of the "last guy." And we come to bury the Bush legacy, not to praise it. But imagine a corporate turnaround artist hired to revive a company after terrible mismanagement by its erstwhile CEO. A year after taking the job, he gives a presentation to the board on the subject of what a bad job the ex-CEO did.
At this early date, it would be absurd to suggest that Obama is a failed president. Yet he seems obsessed with making excuses for failure. We doubt anyone but the most hard-core partisan is buying the excuse. If there was one clear message from the Republicans' strong showing on Election Day, it is that Americans have moved beyond George W. Bush. Keeping the Bush legacy alive does not seem like a good re-election strategy for Obama.
A Scapegoat AlternativeA Sunday Associated Press dispatch from Camden, N.J., gives us a mischievous idea:
In a final campaign swing on behalf of the only governor seeking re-election this fall, President Barack Obama on Sunday pitched Democratic Gov. Jon Corzine's bid as a key component for the White House to make good on its political promises.
Once he realizes the Bush well has run dry, maybe the president can blame Corzine's loss for his failure to make good on his promises.
Bushism of the Day"I carry with me a personal conviction that nothing can be allowed to interfere with our determination and our resolve and our conviction."--Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in Cairo, quoted by Bloomberg, Nov. 5
Godzilla vs. MuhammadRoland Emmerich has a new disaster movie coming out titled "2012." No, it's not about President Obama's re-election campaign, although the film does depict the destruction of the White House, along with other landmarks, including the Sistine Chapel, St. Peter's Basilica and the Christ the Redeemer statue in Rio de Janeiro. But there's one notable omission from the list, SciFiWire.com reports:
Emmerich was thinking of something even more explosive: the Kaaba, the cube-shaped building at the heart of Mecca, the focus of prayers and the Islamic pilgrimage called the Hajj; it is one of Islam's holiest sites.
Really?
"Well, I wanted to do that, I have to admit," Emmerich says. "But my co-writer Harald said I will not have a fatwa on my head because of a movie. And he was right. . . . We have to all . . . in the Western world . . . think about this. You can actually . . . let . . . Christian symbols fall apart, but if you would do this with [an] Arab symbol, you would have . . . a fatwa, and that sounds a little bit like what the state of this world is. So it's just something which I kind of didn't [think] was [an] important element, anyway, in the film, so I kind of left it out."
Presumably he means a Muslim symbol, not an "Arab" one. In any case, this prompted an outraged response from the Catholic League's Bill Donohue:
When we got word recently that the movie "2012" depicts the Vatican being blown up, along with the famous statue from Rio, Christ the Redeemer, we were unmoved. Why? Because this occurs during the end of the world in a massive destruction. This kind of sensationalism, we reasoned, is standard fare for director Roland Emmerich: he is the guru of the "blow 'em up" genre of movies. But now we've learned that while Catholics get theirs, Muslims are spared. Out of fear, of course.
Emmerich is more than a coward--he is a liar who has it out for Catholics. Last year, he was quoted saying, "I would like to erase all nations and religions." Not true. He is quite content to live with Islam, even though he readily admits it is a religion of terror. . . .
So why was the Sistine Chapel designated for destruction? "We have to show how this gets destroyed. . . . I am against organized religion." Emmerich lies again. He is not against Islam.
After bragging that the movie shows the Sistine Chapel falling on people's heads, Emmerich explains the moral of the story: "Never pray in front of a big church. Pray by yourself." He lies again: Muslims who want to pray in front of a mosque are safe. That's because, as Emmerich sees it, they're known to kill those who offend their religion.
Every time I say Hollywood hates Christianity, especially Catholicism, my critics cringe. But they never offer evidence that I'm wrong.
We like Bill Donohue, but this makes no sense whatsoever. He begins by saying that he has no objection in principle to a disaster movie's depicting the destruction of Catholic holy sites. But he concludes that Emmerich "has it out for Catholics" and "hates Christianity" because he doesn't give Muslim sites the same treatment.
But Emmerich makes it quite clear that this was not because of any particular antipathy toward Christianity or amity toward Islam but because of fear that fake violence against Mecca would be met with real violence against him. Such threats are a serious problem, but the fear they instill should not be mistaken for genuine respect. Two cheers for Catholicism for responding to critics and even bigots in a civilized way. If Donohue stops playing the victim, we'll make it three cheers.
Great Moments in Socialized MedicineEuropeans like to think of America as racked by street crime, and also as neglecting its citizens' medical needs. But this story from London's Daily Telegraph suggests there may be an element of projection in this stereotype:
Nearly 170,000 violent incidents take place in England's NHS hospitals each year, data obtained under the Freedom of Information Act has revealed.
Labour's laws on 24-hour drinking are being blamed for alcohol-fuelled violence in accident and emergency departments in particular.
There have been several murders and rapes at hospitals in recent years and thousands of attacks annually involve the use of knives and other weapons.
Almost one in four attacks results in injury, yet only a fraction of them are ever reported to the police.
The statistics reveal the dangers that doctors, nurses, paramedics, patients and visitors face in our hospitals on a daily basis.
Some hospital A & E [accident and emergency] departments have been described as "war zones" on a typical Friday or Saturday night.
Meanwhile, the reports that "the decision to designate patients as 'do not resuscitate' is falling to junior doctors in one in five cases, a report has revealed":
Usually a consultant should make the final decision--after talking to the family--in cases where elderly patients are not expected to survive.
But senior doctors were involved in dealing with just one in three patients admitted to hospital shortly before dying, says the report from the National Confidential Enquiry into Patient Outcome and Death. . . .
The findings come amid continuing controversy over elderly patients near the end of their lives being assigned to "death pathway" schemes.
Experts claim doctors and nurses need more training in how to care for people who are dying, because wrong diagnoses can result in withdrawal of food and fluids when they might otherwise have survived.
Then again, according to former Enron adviser Paul Krugman, "In Britain, the government itself runs the hospitals and employs the doctors. We've all heard scare stories about how that works in practice; these stories are false."
That Record Didn't Stand for Long
- "Possibly the Saddest Thing Ever: Rat Stuck in Sidewalk"--headline, Gothamist.com, Oct. 23
- "6-Year-Old Girl With Brain Cancer Hid Love Notes for Her Parents to Find After Her Death"--headline, Neatorama.com, Nov. 4
We Blame Global Warming"Chinese Scientists in Hot Water Over Icy Weather"--headline, Taipei Times, Nov. 5
We Blame Larry David"Beatle Ringo Starr's Face Seen in Water Droplet on Lotus Leaf"--headline, Daily Telegraph (London), Nov. 4
Once They Always Got Their Man, Now No Match for a Girl "RCMP Defends Taser Use on Girl, 16"--headline, CBC.ca, Nov. 4
At Least He Didn't Get Severance Pay"Man Stabbed Self to Keep Job"--headline, The Smoking Gun, Nov. 3
'Not Tonight, Honey, I Have Rhinitis'
"Woman Is Allergic to Her Husband's Sperm"--headline, ABCNews.com, Nov. 4Not Much of a Bowler, Is He?"Heineman Right to Spare Vulnerable"--headline, Lincoln (Neb.) Journal Star, Nov. 3
Chesterfield, This Is Savonarola"Chair Named at Charter Meeting"--headline, Tallahassee Democrat, Nov. 4
Beware of Pentagon Eyes"Pentagon Eyes Crash Analysis on 1,300 Satellites"--headline, Reuters, Nov. 3
So Much for the War on Drugs
"Family Doctors Group Loses Members Over Coke Deal"--headline, Associated Press, Nov. 5Pants With No Man Unrelated to Man With No Pants--Now That Would Be News
"Man With No Pants Unrelated to Pants With No Man: Police"--headline, CanWest News Service, Nov. 5- "Fla. Baby Found Alive in Box Under Sitter's Bed"--headline, Associated Press, Nov. 5
- "Baby Neutron Star Found Inside Supernova Remnant"--headline, Wired.com, Nov. 4
- "World First as Swine Flu Found in US Cat"--headline, Agence France-Presse, Nov. 4
- "Hilton, Goats, Sprinklers, Lawyers All Enter Into TRA Discussion"--headline, Billings (Mont.) Gazette
- "The Men Who Stare at Goats: The Power of Psychic Spying"--headline,
- "St. Pat's Conquers Perkins County"--headline, North Platte (Neb.) Bulletin, Nov. 4
- "Who's Taken My Fur Coat? Vets Baffled by Bald Bears With Mystery Condition"--headline, Daily Mail (London), Nov. 5
- "Torrance's Bikini Espresso Closes; Owner Unhappy With Regulations"--headline, Daily Breeze (Torrance, Calif.), Nov. 4
- "Police: Lone Star Rally Bikers Behaved"--headline, KHOU-TV Web site (Houston), Nov. 5
- "Olbermann, Hannity Get Along at World Series"--headline, TVNewser.com, Nov. 5
News of the Tautological
- "Pentagon Expected to Request More War Funding"--headline, New York Times, Nov. 5
- "Families Are in Danger During a Divorce"--headline, Florida Times-Union (Jacksonville), Nov. 5
- "Reading too much into Tuesday's off-off-year election results would be a mistake, but reading too little into them would be wrong as well."--Eugene Robinson, Washington Post Web site, Nov. 3
Breaking News From 1865
"Citizens Not for Sale"--headline, Boston Herald, Nov. 4Breaking News From 1992
"Obama's Honeymoon Is Over"--headline, U.S. News & World Report, Nov. 4- "People With Pensions Sleep Better After Retirement"--headline, Reuters, Nov. 4
- "Guzzling Food Makes You Fat"--headline, Daily Telegraph (London), Nov. 4
- "News Bits: iPhone Users Are Lousy Dates, Study Says"--headline, Constentinople.com, Nov. 5
Bottom Story of the Day
- "No Tsunami From 5.3 Quake off Oregon Coast"--headline, Associated Press, Nov. 4
- "Leaf Pickup Continues for City Streets"--headline, , Nov. 4
- "Metro Nashville Schools Fail to Make Gains"--headline, Tennessean, Nov. 4
- "AARP Backs House Health Reform Bill"--headline, Associated Press, Nov. 5
The Curse, Reversed
We're more of a football fan, but still, as a New Yorker we feel as if things have returned to normal. The New York Yankees last night won Game 6 of the World Series to defeat the Philadelphia Female Horses. It's the first championship for the Yanks since 2000. Of course, just weeks after that series, Hillary Clinton became a senator from New York state, a position in which she served until early this year, when she left to be Barack Obama's low-profile secretary of state.Turns out we were right: Mrs. Clinton cursed the Yankees. Though reader Jorge Souss has another theory:
Since the Yankees won their first pennant (1921), every Democratic president except Lyndon Johnson has presided over two or more Yankee world championships. And during the past 50 years, the Yankees have won eight World Series in the 20 years in which a Democrat occupied the White House and have not won a single championship in the 30 years in which a Republican was president. During the past half century, the Yankees have won 40% of the time when a Democrat is president and 0% of the time when a Republican is president.
So it should not have surprised you that the Yankees have not won a World Series since October 2000. As Democrats reminded us every time something wasn't exactly as we wanted between 2001 and 2009, "It's Bush's fault!" I believe that you owe Secretary Clinton an apology. And when the Yankees defeated the Phillies, Arlen Specter had nothing to do with it. President Obama won it for the Yankees merely by showing up (as he did with the Nobel Prize).
C'mon, what could the party in the White House possibly have to do with the Yankees? That's just superstition!
(Carol Muller helps compile Best of the Web Today. Thanks to Chas. Hamilton, Jackson Williams, Don Stewart, David Gerstman, Rod Pennington, Ronald Morris, Bruce Goldman, Joe Perez, Daniel Goldstein, Paul Gross, Howard Portnoy, Chris Stetsko, Dan O'Shea, Marc Lanman, Glenn Taubman, Jeff Johnson, Kenneth Kruger, Jeff Dudas, Mark King, Merv Benson, Daniel Mullen, Robert Godwin, Kyle Kyllan, Nick Kasoff, Dan Draney, Steven Stratton, Paul Strada, Nathan Alexander, Joel McLemore, Neil Brodie, Paul Nunes, William Schultz, Bob Walsh, John Sanders, Mordecai Bobrowsky, Geoff Hazel, Moses Lambert, Terry Holmes, Kelly Fogarty, Steven Knerr, Michele Schiesser, Doug Jeffreys, P.J. Moriarity, Rob Slocum, Jack Archer, Ray Burnham, Paul DiGiovanni, Donald Walker, John Williamson, Gerald McOscar and Alan Levy . If you have a tip, write us at
452 comments
Opinion: Tuesday's Suburban Vote Swing283 comments
264 comments
231 comments
Maine Rejects Same-Sex Marriage183 comments
-
04 Nov 2009 23:17
- NOVEMBER 4, 2009
President Norma Desmond
The analogy would be perfect if only that HBO documentary had been a silent film!
(Best of the Tube Tonight: We're scheduled to appear this evening on CNN's "Lou Dobbs Tonight" as part of a political roundtable. The hourlong program starts at 7 p.m. ET, with a repeat showing at 4 a.m. ET, and the roundtable will be in the second half-hour.)
"As if hoping to avoid the outcome," FoxNews.com reports in a postelection roundup, "the White House issued a statement after the GOP win in Virginia saying the president was not watching election returns and would not be making any remarks on the results."
He's president of the United States, after all. What are mere governors' races to him? He just doesn't care. True, he doesn't not care enough to refrain from putting out a statement letting you know how little he cares. So he cares a little. He's only human; it hurts to lose. But he's got it in perspective. He's focusing on himself right now.
Man, is he ever focusing on himself! NewsBusters.org reports on what he was doing last night when he was ignoring the election returns:
During the 10AM ET hour of America's Newsroom on Fox News Channel, fill-in co-host Martha Maccallum told viewers what President Obama watched on election night while Democrats suffered big losses in New Jersey and Virginia: "Robert Gibbs said, well, he was actually watching, you know, the HBO special about his year-long campaign and how it all went."
Good Lord, we've gone and put Norma Desmond in the White House. He is big. It's the elections that got small.
It's AliveYesterday's results ought to teach Democrats a lesson about the dangers of political hubris. After Barack Obama's election as president a year ago, liberals and Democrats proclaimed a new era and pronounced the Republican Party dead. By now everyone ought to be able to agree at least that the GOP has a pulse.
It was the first good election night for Republicans in five years, and it wasn't just that Bob McDonnell trounced Creigh (rhymes with "twee") Deeds in Virginia and Chris Christie decisively beat Gov. Jon Corzine in New Jersey. And it's true that the Democrat won that special House election in upstate New York, about which more later. But as the Washington Examiner's Michael Barone notes, "affluent suburban voters moved sharply toward Republicans in 2009" after having been crucial to Obama's victory a year earlier:
Bergen County, New Jersey, a 56%-42% Corzine constituency in 2005, came within a point or two of voting for Christie, and in Virginia McDonnell carried 51%-49% Fairfax County--Republican for years but recently in cultural issues and with an increasing immigrant population Democratic (60%-39% Obama in 2008).
In addition, Westchester County, New York, voted 58%-42% for a Republican county execctive [sic] after voting almost exactly the opposite way, in a race involving the same two candidates, four years before. The Philadelphia suburban counties, increasingly Democratic in 1996, 2000, 2004 and 2008, voted Republican in a partisan race for the Supreme Court in 2009.
From the 1996 election up through and including 2008, affluent counties in the East, Midwest and West have trended Democratic, largely through distaste for the religious and cultural conservatives whom voters there have seen (not without reason) as dominant in the Republican party. Now, with the specter of higher tax rates and a vastly expanded public sector, they may be--possibly--headed in the other direction. An interesting trend to watch.
In another New York suburb, Nassau County, Republicans captured a majority in the county legislature and might have upset the incumbent Democratic county executive, reports B.D. Gallof on the Puffington Host.
New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and Virginia are all states Obama won. The president campaigned hard for Corzine, whereas Deeds, whose loss was a fait accompli before the polls opened, had distanced himself from Obama. The White House was hoping for a Corzine victory and planned to spin it as an endorsement of the president. But Corzine managed just 45% of the vote in a heavily Democratic state (Obama carried it with 57%). This is hardly the vote of confidence the White House was looking for.
The Virginia results may prove even costlier to the White House in the short term. As Barone notes, McDonnell won with big margins in four Democratic House districts, three of which switched parties last year. "The 2009 election results are certainly not going to make it easy for Speaker Nancy Pelosi to round up the needed 218 votes for Democrats' health care bills," Barone notes. In the long run, this may all be politically beneficial for Obama, just as the Democrats' losses in 1993 and 1994 forced Bill Clinton to moderate his agenda and probably made him a stronger candidate for re-election.
Another lesson the president would be well-advised to learn is that George W. Bush is history. His legacy no longer weighs down Republicans, and complaining about it will no longer buoy Democrats. The sooner Obama stops whining about the "mess" he "inherited" and starts taking his job seriously, the better for his political prospects--and for the country.
The Lieberman FactorDemocrats had one big win last night, as the Associated Press notes:
Democrat Bill Owens captured a GOP-held vacant 23rd Congressional District seat in New York in a race that highlighted fissures in the Republican Party and illustrated hurdles the GOP could face in capitalizing on any voter discontent with Obama and Democrats next fall.
Wait, did it highlight fissures and illustrate hurdles, or did it illustrate fissures and highlight hurdles? Enquiring minds want to know. The conventional explanation for this result will be that Doug Hoffman, the de facto Republican in the race, was too conservative for the district and that the GOP would have been better off sticking with its formal nominee, liberal Dede Scozzafava, who this weekend dropped out and endorsed Owens.
This is not implausible, but we're not so sure. The situation in New York's 23rd is anomalous and reminds us of Joe Lieberman's re-election victory as an independent in 2006--that year's only major defeat of a Democratic nominee (Ned Lamont, who had beaten Lieberman in a primary), but not one that turned out to signal any peril for Democrats.
Under normal circumstances, political parties work out their divisions in primaries, then unite behind the victorious candidate for the general election. In both the Lieberman-Lamont and Owens-Hoffman races, this process failed--and it did so because of unusual provisions of state election law.
Lamont beat Lieberman in a particularly bitter primary. In most states, that would have been the end of it. Since there was no serious Republican in the race, Lamont would be in the U.S. Senate. But Connecticut allows an unsuccessful primary candidate to get on the general-election ballot as an independent. Abandoned by his party, Lieberman did just that--and thus he was able to re-enact the primary with a more congenial electorate.
In New York's 23rd District, there was no primary. Party bosses met behind closed doors to pick Scozzafava, who turned out to be unacceptable to many Republican voters. New York is unusual in its practice of electoral "fusion," which ensures several minor parties of a spot on the ballot. Hoffman got the nomination of the Conservative Party and in effect waged a primary battle with Scozzafava--one that did not end until three days before the election.
Republicans ended up divided because they had no time to reunify after a nasty battle they hadn't expected. Scozzafava, presumably (and understandably) bitter after being chosen and then discarded by her party, threw her support behind Owens, the Democrat. The problem for the Republicans isn't that they were divided between "conservatives" and "moderates"; such divisions are an essential part of the two-party system. The problem is that because of New York's screwy election procedures, the resolution of those divisions was too late and too messy to help them on Election Day.
Soft-Selling Failure A couple of interesting pre-election pieces illustrate what is actually a problem for President Obama--although he may not perceive it as such, which is part of the problem. Journalists, sympathetic and even protective toward the president, describe his failures and shortcomings in very soft terms, which may mask the reality that they're describing failures and shortcomings.
The New York Times visits Iowa, a swing state (carried narrowly by Al Gore in 2000 and George W. Bush in 2004) where Obama won by a nearly 10% margin, and finds lots of disappointed voters. But note this "nut graf":
One year after winning the election, Mr. Obama has seen his pledge to transcend partisanship in Washington give way to the hardened realities of office. A campaign for the history books, filled with a sky-high sense of possibility for Mr. Obama not just among legions of loyal Democrats but also among converts from outside the party, has descended to an unfamiliar plateau for a president whose political rise was as rapid as it was charmed.
In the Times's telling Obama is completely passive: He hasn't failed to live up to his promise, he "has seen" it "give way" as his campaign "has descended."
A Washington Post analysis of Obama's foreign policy outlines what one might call the Acorn Doctrine:
President Obama is applying the same tools to international diplomacy that he once used as a community organizer on Chicago's South Side, constructing appeals to shared interests and attempting to bring the government's conduct in line with its ideals.
Obama's approach to the world as a community of nations, more alike than different in outlook and interest, has elevated America's standing abroad and won him the Nobel Peace Prize. But on the farthest-reaching U.S. foreign policy challenges, he is struggling to translate his own popularity into American influence, even with allies that have celebrated his break from the Bush administration's emphasis on military strength, unilateral action and personal chemistry.
Another way of putting this is that Obama, who accomplished nothing as a "community organizer," is now accomplishing nothing as commander in chief--a job in which a lack of accomplishment can be dangerous to the country, its troops and its civilians.
As we can see from these examples, it's not as if the press isn't willing to criticize Obama. But they're so nice about it, we wonder if he'll get the message.
Obama Leads by Example"Karzai Promises Reform--but Without Specifics"--headline, Associated Press, Nov. 3
Close Enough for Government Work"President Barack Obama's economic recovery program saved 935 jobs at the Southwest Georgia Community Action Council, an impressive success story for the stimulus plan," the Associated Press reports.
Hey, great news! Just one little problem: "Only 508 people work there." The story continues:
The Georgia nonprofit's inflated job count is among persisting errors in the government's latest effort to measure the effect of the $787 billion stimulus plan despite White House promises last week that the new data would undergo an "extensive review" to root out errors discovered in an earlier report.
About two-thirds of the 14,506 jobs claimed to be saved under one federal office, the Administration for Children and Families at Health and Human Services, actually weren't saved at all, according to a review of the latest data by The Associated Press. Instead, that figure includes more than 9,300 existing employees in hundreds of local agencies who received pay raises and benefits and whose jobs weren't saved.
You read that right: Civil servants got pay raises, and the Obama administration claims credit for "saving" their jobs:
Officials defended the practice of counting raises as saved jobs.
"If I give you a raise, it is going to save a portion of your job," HHS spokesman Luis Rosero said.
Aren't you excited to think that these people may soon be in charge of your health care?
Biden Can't Seem to Catch a Break"VP Robbed by Masked Man"--headline, Star Press (Muncie, Ind.), Nov. 4
We Blame George W. Bush"Chinese Syphilis Outbreak Blamed on Economic Boom"--headline, Associated Press, Nov. 3
The Lonesome Life of a Scientist"Scientists Find Fiddler Crabs Will Exchange Favours for Sex"--headline, News.com.au, Nov. 5
The Owner Must Have a Great Mechanic"SUV Smashes Into Eastside Tavern, Runs"--headline, Indianapolis Star, Nov. 4
The Beet Goes On
"Hunt for Undamaged Beets Continues"--headline, Billings (Mont.) Gazette, Nov. 4Don't You Wish You'd Studied Philosophy Instead of Getting Your Real Estate License?
"Land Is Worth Less Than Thought"--headline, Hawaii Tribune-Herald (Hilo), Nov. 3Step 1: Eat Undercooked Pork
"How to Be a Good Host"--headline, Chicago Tribune, Nov. 1- "Oldest Known Spider's Web Found in Amber"--headline, Journal of the Geological Society
- "Bulgarian Archaeologists Find Silver Treasure in Thracian Tomb"--headline, Novinite.com
- "Barack Obama Recruits Sarah Jessica Parker to Arts Panel"--headline, (London), Nov. 3
- "Judge Says Some People Like to Photograph Sex; He Was 23, She Was 14"--headline, Associated Press
- "Times: Leftover Candy Eaten by Adults at Work"--headline, New York Observer
Breaking News From 1993
"Republican Christie Captures NJ Governor's Seat"--headline, Associated Press, Nov. 3- "Want to Lose Weight? Putting Tomatoes in Your Sandwich Will Make You Feel Full"--headline, (London), Nov. 4
- "Lie Back, No Need to Think: Insemination Aided by Position"--headline, Time.com
- "Having More Than 3 Cats Now Requires a License"--headline, Worcester (Mass.) Telegram & Gazette
- "Don't Want Your Nonnative Pet? Turn It In Saturday, No Questions Asked"--headline, Tampa Tribune, Nov. 3
- "Brush Fires Threatening Homes in California"--headline, FoxNews.com, Nov. 3
- "Phila. Judge Candidates Win Uncontested Spots"--headline, Philadelphia Inquirer, Nov. 3
- "Debate Still Rages Over Who Won the Cold War"--headline, Voice of America Web site, Nov. 3
- "Ted Danson: Rush Limbaugh, Religious Right 'Really Piss Me Off' "--headline, NewsBusters.org, Nov. 3
Vial Antibodies
If you want a swine flu shot in Canada, you may be out of luck, Toronto's Globe and Mail reports:Bulk shipments of the main component of the H1N1 vaccine made at a Quebec plant are being exported to other countries, as Canadians line up for hours for the scarce influenza shots.
GlaxoSmithKline, which has the sole contract to supply Canada's flu vaccine, says it can produce more antigen than it can expeditiously put into vials for Canadians, and has been exporting excess amounts overseas.
This reminds us of the time a restaurant was unable to fill our order for an elephant ear sandwich on rye because it had run out of rye bread.
(Carol Muller helps compile Best of the Web Today. Thanks to Alex Hoyt, Chas. Hamilton, David Wesolowicz, Michael Segal, Bruce Goldman, Abe Beyda, Aaron Spetner, Michele Schiesser, Lewis Scholnick, Mark Van Der Molen, Mordecai Bobrowsky, Bill Palmer, Elliot Ganz, Rod Pennington, Karen Sellenberg, Doug Miller, Richard Belzer, Steven Stratton, James Paternoster, Peter Prange, Evan Slatis, Don Stewart, Steve Ginnings, Thomas Dillon, Bart Borkosky, Doug Black, Dan Tracy, Peter Krupa, Ed Elverud, Ray Burnham, Tim Willis, MIchael Ellard, Peter Huntsman, Paul Gross, John Leo, Steven Perry, Ross Firestone, Thomas Mayer and Daniel Mullen . If you have a tip, write us at
Opinion: Glenn Beck's Hotline to Nowhere372 comments
362 comments
Republicans Win in Key States270 comments
236 comments
Opinion: Obama and the Liberal Paradigm213 comments
-
Pot Gangs Infiltrate Indian Reservations
-
J.P. Morgan: Banker, Gym, Publisher
-
Shapewear Has Some Bent out of Shape
-
Where Hollywood Takes Flight
-
Last Hurrah for Travel Deals?
-
Famous Fashion Label: the Sequel
-
In Jazz, as in Life, Choices
-
Where Snipers Meet to Compete
-
Twelve Miles of Inspiration
-
Inside Obama's Campaign
-
Boeing CEO Faces Turbulence
-
Sounding an Alarm on Oil
-
Credit Cards: Break Up, or Make Up?
-
How Tough Times Yield Model Children
-
Pot Gangs Infiltrate Indian Reservations
-
J.P. Morgan: Banker, Gym, Publisher
-
Shapewear Has Some Bent out of Shape
-
Where Hollywood Takes Flight
-
Last Hurrah for Travel Deals?
-
Famous Fashion Label: the Sequel
-
In Jazz, as in Life, Choices
-
Where Snipers Meet to Compete
-
Twelve Miles of Inspiration
-
Inside Obama's Campaign
-
Boeing CEO Faces Turbulence
-
Sounding an Alarm on Oil
-
Credit Cards: Break Up, or Make Up?
-
How Tough Times Yield Model Children
-
04 Nov 2009 06:29
- NOVEMBER 3, 2009
Greatest Hits of the '90s
The media reprise the "Republican civil war" theme.
The trouble never ends for the Grand Old Party, as the New York Times reports:
A string of defections by prominent Republicans who endorsed Democratic candidates, the biggest in decades, has exposed an ideological rupture in the Republican Party and demonstrated how difficult it has become for the major parties to enforce discipline.
While it is not clear how much effect the endorsements will have on this year's state and Federal races, the fissure exposed by the desertions points to trouble ahead for Republicans. . . .
If the campaign events are any indication, even if the Republicans make major gains next Tuesday, the party may have a hard time smoothing over differences between its conservative and moderate wings. . . .
Not since the nomination of Barry Goldwater in 1964 sent many Republicans scurrying to rally around Lyndon B. Johnson have so many prominent party members bitterly turned on the party's candidates. And that was in a Presidential contest. Just as in 1964, they are shifting in one direction: away from conservative Republicans.
"They're frightened about the movement of their party to a more right-wing conservative agenda," said Fred Steeper, a Republican pollster in Detroit.
Although most experts agree that one person's endorsement does not usually sway voters in numbers large enough to turn around an election immediately, candidates can seize on such events to show that things are turning their way. That seems to be happening in the closing days of the campaign, with Democrats using the endorsements as a sign of movement for their candidates.
And the article was published a week before Election Day, so it doesn't even mention former Republican Dede Scozzafava's decision to back Democrat Bill Owens in that upstate New York House race.
Actually, make that 783 weeks before Election Day. To be precise, the article appeared Nov. 1, 1994, a week before the big Republican sweep. And it does bring back memories. One of "the two most publicized cases" was Mayor Rudy Giuliani's endorsement of Gov. Mario Cuomo. Remember that? Giuliani is now campaigning for Conservative Party nominee Doug Hoffman in that House race, the Washington Examiner reports.
Another highlight is Teresa Heinz, whose husband, Sen. John Heinz of Pennsylvania. died in a 1991 plane crash. Although she "stopped short of endorsing the incumbent Democrat, Senator Harris Wofford," she did have nasty things to say about his Republican challenger, Rick Santorum. Mrs. Heinz, of course, almost became a Democratic first lady, except that she made the mistake of marrying John Kerry, the haughty, French-looking Massachusetts Democrat who by the way served in Vietnam, instead of Barack Obama.
Both Santorum and George Pataki, who challenged Cuomo, won a week later. So did Govs. Terry Branstad of Iowa and John Engler of Michigan, along with Rod Grams, a Senate candidate from Minnesota. The only losers among the candidates the Times cited were Michael Huffington and Oliver North, running for Senate seats in California and Virginia, respectively. And North was up against the biggest of guns: the Reagans: "He lied to my husband and lied about my husband," Nancy Reagan said.
Plus ça change. The Associated Press's Liz Sidoti--filing on Nov. 2, 2009--has a version of the same story:
For Republicans, an election win of any size Tuesday would be a blessing. But victories in Virginia, New Jersey or elsewhere won't erase enormous obstacles the party faces heading into a 2010 midterm election year when control of Congress and statehouses from coast to coast will be up for grabs. . . .
Even if political winds start blowing harder behind them and even if they can capitalize on Democratic missteps, Republicans still will have a long way to go over the next year because of their party's own fundamental problems--divisions over the path forward, the lack of a national leader and a shrinking base in a changing nation.
The GOP would overcome none of those hurdles should Republican Bob McDonnell win the Virginia governor's race, Chris Christie emerge victorious in the New Jersey governor's contest, or conservative Doug Hoffman triumph in a hotly contested special congressional election in upstate New York.
In fact, 2009 seems to have underscored what may be the biggest impediment for Republicans--the war within their base.
Now of course there is some truth to this. The Republicans have their divisions (although so do the Democrats), the big midterm election is still a year off, and what happened in 1994 won't necessarily happen in 2010. Still, it's nice to know that there are some things you can count on: When Republicans look set to do well at the polls, journalists will look hard for the downside. And at those moments--but only at those moments--the mainstream media will be the Republican establishment's strongest champions.
Two Papers in One! Virginia is one of two states that elect statewide officials a year after presidential elections, and in the governor's race, Republican Bob McDonnell looks to win big over Democrat Creigh Deeds. (We're not sure whether Creigh rhymes with "gay" or "brie.") The Washington Post, Northern Virginia's biggest paper despite being published out of state, endorsed Deeds, in part citing McDonnell's views on social issues:
We worry that Mr. McDonnell's Virginia would be one where abortion rights would be curtailed; where homosexuals would be treated as second-class citizens; where information about birth control would be hidden; and where the line between church and state could get awfully porous. That is a prescription for yesterday's Virginia, not tomorrow's.
The Post also endorses the Democrat for state attorney general, in part because the Republican, Kenneth Cuccinelli, is "a provocative hard-liner":
Given his sometimes bizarre and incendiary ideas, we worry that Mr. Cuccinelli would drive qualified and nonpartisan lawyers away, transform the attorney general's office into a staging ground for his pet peeves and causes, and make it an object of ridicule in a state where it has enjoyed a long run of respect.
What the Post doesn't tell you is the name of the attorney general under which the office "enjoyed a long run of respect" between January 2006 and February of this year: Bob McDonnell.
Let Me Go? But I Don't Want to Go!"As President Barack Obama's deadline to close Guantánamo looms, some occupants of the notorious detention centre would rather prolong their stay than be sent to maximum security prisons on the US mainland, according to camp officials," reports London's Daily Telegraph:
Despite its reputation, the regime at the Pentagon facility on Cuba's southern coast offers privileges that would not be enjoyed at the federal "supermax" prison at Florence, Colorado, the likely alternative for the most dangerous al-Qaeda suspects.
Sensitive to criticism that the detention centre was not meeting international standards, the Pentagon has gradually improved living conditions at Guantánamo.
Adm Thomas Copeman, the commander, now confidently describes it as a "model detention facility" in terms of environment.
Actually, we're pretty sure we heard a phrase like "model detention facility" when we visited Guantanamo back in 2006, and the terrorists there were already being treated quite nicely. Although this column does not strongly oppose cruelty to terrorists, we think they should stay at Guantanamo for legal reasons and also to prevent their coming in contact with the general prison population.
Still, you have to wonder what the Obama administration is up to with all this. Are they putting out word that Guantanamo isn't so bad in hope of not looking as bad when they fail to keep the president's promise to empty it? Or are they really surprised to learn that the stories of abuse were mere fantasies?
"X Factor judge Simon Cowell showed his more generous side [yesterday] when he gave £100,000 [about $160,000] to help save the life of a cancer-stricken youngster," reports London's Daily Mail:
The pop Svengali donated the money for 18-month-old Sophie Atay--from Birtley, Gateshead--to fly to the US for pioneering treatment at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Hospital in New York.
He acted after learning the youngster's family launched a last-ditch appeal for £500,000 to pay for the treatment last week after they were told Sophie was suffering from a rare form of neuroblastoma and needed treatment within days.
Alexandra Burke, last year's X Factor winner, broke the news to Sophie's mum Karine, 33, on the telephone today that Simon had now dipped into his own pocket to top up the total to the necessary amount.
Wait, we're confused! Why does a little English girl have to come all the way to the U.S. to get medical care, and why does this Cowell fellow have to pay for it? We thought Britain had free medical care!
But wait, another story reports on what happens to older people who get cancer in Britain:
Alarming research is showing that elderly cancer patients are missing out on the breakthroughs in chemotherapy and surgery that have dramatically improved the outcome of younger patients.
In fact, up to 15,000 elderly people with cancer in the UK are dying prematurely every year when compared to the rest of Europe and the U.S., according to a report published by the North West Cancer Intelligence Service (NWCIS) which compiles cancer statistics. . . .
A major concern is that the NHS Cancer Plan, introduced in 2000 to improve cancer survival in the UK, has a cut-off point at 70. This results in hospitals having less interest in the elderly. "Yet half of all those diagnosed with cancer are over 70," says Dr Tony Moran, NWCIS research director. "It's an area that has been grossly neglected. . . ."
Yet according to
A Republic, if You Can Keep It"King: One Year After Obama's Victory"--headline, CNN.com, Nov. 1
Sounds as if Someone Needs a Little Talk About the Facts of Life"First Lady: People Ask My Mom, 'What Did You Do to Create Michelle Obama?' "--headline Washington Examiner, Nov. 2
Papaya Queen?"Papaya Receives Sex Change Operation"--headline, LaboratoryEquipment.com, Nov. 3
So Much for the War on Drugs"Giant Crack in Africa Will Create a New Ocean"--headline, LiveScience.com, Nov. 2
- "Secret Worcestershire Sauce Recipe Found"--headline, (London), Nov. 2
- " 'Ultra-Primitive' Particles Found in Comet Dust"--headline, Carnegie Institution press release, Nov. 2
Someone Set Up Us the Bomb"Kate Moss No Guarantee Topshop Beats U.S. Curse on U.K. Chains"--headline, Bloomberg, Nov. 2
- "Swine Flu Fears Lead to Girl-on-Girl Brawl on D Train"--headline, WNBC-TV Web site (New York), Nov. 3
- "Web Could Run Out of Addresses Next Year, Warn Web Experts"--headline, Daily Telegraph (London), Nov. 2
- "Fists Fly at Washington Post"--headline,
- "Turkeys Running Amuck in Bass River"--headline, Cape Cod Today (Hyannis, Mass.), Nov. 2
News of the Tautological
- "Youth Orchestra Develops Young Musicians"--headline, Reno Gazette-Journal, Nov. 2
- "Without Hope You're Hopeless"--headline, NewMediaJournal.us, Nov. 3
- "PETS Q&A: Amputation a Viable Option for Dogs"--headline, Star Press (Muncie, Ind.), Nov. 3
- "Low Sex Drive? Testosterone Gel Could Help--or Not"--headline, Pioneer Press (St. Paul, Minn.), Nov. 3
- "Feeling Grumpy 'Is Good for You' "--headline, BBC Web site, Nov. 3
- "Oops . . . How to Destroy Five Million Roubles of Vodka and Cognac in Just Five Seconds, by Warehouse Forklift Driver"--headline, Daily Mail (London), Nov. 2
- "Part of Kate Gosselin Still Loves Jon"--headline, People.com, Nov. 3
- "Man Pronounced Dead at Hospital"--headline, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Nov. 2
- "Bill Clinton Says He Never Wanted to Leave Presidency"--headline, , Nov. 3
- "Canadians Still 'Distrust' United States: Poll"--headline, Agence France-Presse, Nov. 2
My Cross-Country, Right or WrongWe had thought the "birthers" were just a bunch of right-wing nuts, but that was before CNBC's Darren Rovell weighed in. Rovell writes a blog called Sports Biz for the network's Web site, and he isn't satisfied that an American won the New York City Marathon:
Meb Keflezighi, . . . is technically American by virtue of him [sic] becoming a citizen in 1998, but the fact that he's not American-born takes away from the magnitude of the achievement the headline implies.
Nationality in running counts. It's why many identify Kenya as the land of the long distance champions.
"Many" also identify Kenya as the land of Barack Obama's birth, but they are insane. Rovell continues:
Keflezighi's country of origin is Eritrea, a small country in Africa. He is an American citizen thanks to taking a test and living in our country.
Nothing against Keflezighi, but he's like a ringer who you hire to work a couple hours at your office so that you can win the executive softball league.
What's most hilarious about this is that even if Keflezighi isn't a natural-born citizen, it doesn't matter. You don't have to be in order to win the marathon. You don't even have to be over 35. Rovell has managed to mix up the constitutional requirements for the presidency with the qualifications for a footrace.
(Carol Muller helps compile Best of the Web Today. Thanks to Glenn Bialik, Mike Waters, Ross Firestone, Chris Overstreet, Mark King, Ron Hemphill, Michele Schiesser, Dan Draney, Mark Van Der Molen, John Sanders, Yehuda Spetner, Joel Griffith, Eric Gray, Kyle Kyllan, John Williamson, Bruce Goldman, Joe Perez, Roger Denk, Craig Smith, Doug Black, Bob Grinsell, Mike Phillips, John DeVita, Steve Zautke, Paul Gross and Scott Campion. If you have a tip, write us at
736 comments
315 comments
Arabs See U.S. Tilt to Israel267 comments
Opinion: Major Congressional Reforms Demand Bipartisan Support232 comments
Republicans Are Poised for Gains in Key Elections
-
Hotel Venture Runs Into Ugly Reality
-
Something to Watch Over You
-
Ditching the Plug-In Phone Charger
-
Christie's Modern Art Sale Falls Short
-
Psychoanalyzing Twitter
-
Intellectual Shaped Modern Anthropology
-
Preventing Rollovers in SUVs
-
Putting 'Green' Technology Into Bricks
-
Inside Leonardo's Notebook
-
The Conductor Reflects
-
DeCarava's Finest Stories Were Self-Assigned
-
Home Flu Cures: Bad Medicine?
-
The Aerial Hunt for Poultry Manure
-
Relocating While Caring for an Ill Parent
-
Moonlighting in a Creative Field
-
Hotel Venture Runs Into Ugly Reality
-
Something to Watch Over You
-
Ditching the Plug-In Phone Charger
-
Christie's Modern Art Sale Falls Short
-
Psychoanalyzing Twitter
-
Intellectual Shaped Modern Anthropology
-
Preventing Rollovers in SUVs
-
Putting 'Green' Technology Into Bricks
-
Inside Leonardo's Notebook
-
The Conductor Reflects
-
DeCarava's Finest Stories Were Self-Assigned
-
Home Flu Cures: Bad Medicine?
-
The Aerial Hunt for Poultry Manure
-
Relocating While Caring for an Ill Parent
-
Moonlighting in a Creative Field
-
03 Nov 2009 10:51
reports. On Saturday, she dropped out of the race, and on Sunday, she endorsed Democrat Bill Owens.
So how is it that the AP's Valerie Bauman credits Scozzafava with "a more inclusive approach" than those of the candidates who actually seemed to be persuading people to vote for them? That's actually partly explained in the paragraph quoted above. "Her support of abortion rights and same-sex marriage" apparently were central to what made her "inclusive" in Bauman's view. In practice, that support alienated people who disagreed on those subjects, but it seems Bauman doesn't consider those people worth including. The AP itself may be aspiring for a more selective appeal.
Subscriber ContentRead Preview
714 comments
236 comments
169 comments
Opinion: Revolt in New York152 comments
-
Economists Reach for New Paradigm
-
Scientist Became China's 'Rocket King'
-
Subscriber ContentRead Preview
When Bad Banks Sink Good Ones
-
Company Finds Gold in Torch Relay
-
02 Nov 2009 17:44
- NOVEMBER 2, 2009
DeDe (D.)
The "inclusive" candidate had only a very selective appeal.
It looks as if we were right on Wednesday when we suggested that the Democrats had written off Dede Scozzafava, the Republican nominee for a special election to a New York state congressional seat tomorrow, and were waging a two-man race against the Conservative, Doug Hoffman. It was a busy weekend for Scozzafava, as the Washington Post reports. On Saturday, she dropped out of the race, and on Sunday, she endorsed Democrat Bill Owens
The Associated Press, reporting Saturday on Scozzafava's withdrawal from the campaign, described the larger implications this way:
Some have called the race a test of the GOP's future: whether traditional conservative ideology would lead the way forward or if a more inclusive approach would draw more people back to the party. Hoffman and his backers said Scozzafava was too liberal to truly represent the Republican party, specifically noting her support of abortion rights and same-sex marriage.
There's a scene in the 1984 rock mockumentary "This Is Spinal Tap" in which the band's manager is asked about its dwindling audience, and he says that "their appeal is becoming more selective." Before Scozzafava withdrew, her appeal was rapidly becoming more selective, with her poll numbers almost down to 11.
Of course in the artistic and commercial worlds, it is quite common to seek out a selective audience. But electoral politics is inevitably a form of mass marketing: A candidate wins not by carving out a niche but by getting more votes than anyone else. Call it being "inclusive."
So how is it that the AP's Valeria Bauman credits Scozzafava with "a more inclusive approach" than those of the candidates who actually seemed to be persuading people to vote for them? That's actually partly explained in the paragraph quoted above. "Her support of abortion rights and same-sex marriage" apparently were central to what made her "inclusive" in Bauman's view. In practice, that support alienated people who disagreed on those subjects, but it seems Bauman doesn't consider those people worth including. The AP itself may be aspiring for a more selective appeal.
And Bauman isn't the only reporter to editorialize against Scozzafava's conservative detractors. The phrase: "too moderate" turns up four times in stories about Scozzafava on the New York Times Web site, three times in Times stories and once in an AP dispatch. All describe the reason that conservatives supposedly bucked Scozzafava--but all are the reporters' words. We'd be surprised if any actual conservative put the complaint in these terms.
To be sure, the question here is not whether conservatives would agree with the characterization of their views but whether it is accurate and fair. Let the following datum inform your evaluation of this question: A Factiva search shows that in the 2006 Connecticut Senate campaign, neither the Times nor the AP ever described Joe Lieberman's Democratic opponents as deserting him because he was "too moderate."
With reporters busy editorializing against conservative Republicans, liberal editorialists are forced to step things up to hold onto their own selective appeal. The Times's Frank Rich, a onetime drama critic who seems to have lost the sense that it's possible to be overly dramatic, describes the contretemps as "a riotous and bloody national G.O.P. civil war" and "a G.O.P. killing field." He claims that "the right has devolved into a wacky, paranoid cult that is as eager to eat its own as it is to destroy [President] Obama." He says that conservatives "would gladly see the Republican Party die on the cross," want to send Scozzafava "to the guillotine," and are committing "a double-barreled suicide." Also, they "are re-enacting Stalinism in full purge mode."
Oh, and they are exhibiting "seething rage . . . and a Freudian tendency to mimic the excesses of political foes." Frank also twice uses antigay slurs to describe tea-party protesters.
Sorry Frank, but you're way too moderate for us.
Is Global Warmism Real?This item asks not if global warming is real but if global warmism is real. That is, does anyone actually believe all the alarmist talk we've been hearing for upward of two decades now?
We were prompted to ponder this by an article in Der Spiegel, which suggests that next month's Copenhagen conference on "climate change" is likely to be a bust:
[Germany's Chancellor] Angela Merkel is blocking aid commitments for climate protection and risking the failure of a global deal in Copenhagen. The chancellor is squandering an opportunity to demonstrate European leadership and show Barack Obama what it really means to be a "citizen of the world."
She was once celebrated as the "Climate Chancellor" and seen as an important campaigner for the environment on the international political stage. Now it appears that it is Angela Merkel, of all people, who is dealing a death blow to international climate deals--by navigating a shortsighted course within the European Union.
Merkel, it seems has "enraged environmentalists" by opposing massive transfer payments from European Union nations to Third World countries for "environmental projects":
Such funds should help to cover the additional costs of setting up renewable energy forms, more efficient technologies and green infrastructures in developing countries. Only in that way can it be guaranteed that the most environmentally nondestructive technologies are implemented globally, to put a halt on catastrophic climate change, its advocates say. The talk is of €20 billion ($30 billion) starting immediately, then €50 billion from 2016 and €100 billion annually from 2020. This extra burden should be covered by the US, the EU and Japan.
Merkel's decision to block a concrete financial pledge will not exactly boost enthusiasm in other parts of the world--rather it will dampen it. When delays are created by the Europeans, who always pride themselves on being frontrunners in climate protection, then the US and China can get away with not making any progress.
Everyone always talks about the weather, but no one ever does anything about it! Politicians consistently act as if they don't take seriously the warnings about impending climate "catastrophe." It's possible that they do believe the warnings but are politically constrained from doing what it would supposedly take to avert it. But if they are so constrained, it is because voters act as if they don't take the warnings seriously.
Maybe it's all just a massive political failure, as a result of which we'll all roast to death in a few years. Stranger things have happened. Then again, maybe this is an emperor's-new-clothes situation in which people who aren't actually fooled by the underlying claim are convinced nonetheless that it's not respectable to let anyone know.
Great Moments in Socialized Medicine"Patients who do not get the treatment that they need from the NHS within 18 weeks are to be given the legal right to free private care," reports London's Times:
The Cabinet agreed this week that the legislation, placing maximum waiting times on the statute book for the first time, should be rushed through Parliament before the next election.
Cancer patients, in particular, will receive funding for private treatment if they have not seen an NHS specialist within two weeks of GP referral.
Downing Street says that the two legal rights, which will be unveiled in next month's Queen's Speech, are designed to entrench the dramatic reduction of NHS waiting lists over recent years.
Hmm, so the British medical system has waiting lists. It also has death panels, another Times story suggests:
A father whose son was born with a rare neuromuscular condition will go to the High Court today to try to stop a hospital withdrawing support that keeps the child alive.
Doctors treating the one-year-old boy say that his quality of life is so poor that it would not be in his best interests to keep him alive. They say that they are supported in their action by the baby's mother. The couple are separated.
The child, known for legal reasons as Baby RB, was born with congenital myasthenic syndrome, a muscle condition that severely limits movement and the ability to breathe independently. He has been in hospital since birth.
If the hospital doctors succeed in their application it will be the first time that a British court has gone against the wishes of a parent and ruled that life support can be discontinued or withdrawn from a child who does not have brain damage.
And the Independent, a left-wing London paper, reports that "NHS whistleblowers are routinely gagged in order to cover up dangerous and even dishonest practices that could attract bad publicity and damage a hospital's reputation":
Some local NHS bodies are spending millions of taxpayers' money to pay off and silence whistleblowers with "super gags" to stop them going public with patient safety incidents. Experts warn that patients' lives are being endangered by the use of intimidatory tactics to force out whistleblowers and deter other professionals from coming forward.
On the other hand, according to former Enron adviser Paul Krugman, "In Britain, the government itself runs the hospitals and employs the doctors. We've all heard scare stories about how that works in practice; these stories are false." That's a relief!
Even Better Than Cash-for-Clunkers"The White House said Friday that the federal stimulus package created or saved more than 14,000 jobs in Minnesota through the end of September, which is about 2,500 more jobs than state officials counted weeks ago," the Associated Press reports from St. Paul:
President Barack Obama's administration reported 14,315 Minnesota jobs in a release.
Preliminary state reports earlier this month attributed 11,800 jobs to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act--about half of them in public schools, colleges and universities and a tenth in public safety programs.
What the AP doesn't note is that most of these putative jobs were "created or saved" during a period when Minnesota was short a senator, owing to a months-long election dispute. Maybe the way to ensure economic recovery nationwide is to fire 50 senators, one from each state.
A Loan in the Dark The Los Angeles Times reports on California's latest effort to mismanage the state's finances:
Starting Sunday, cash-strapped California will dig deeper into the pocketbooks of wage earners--holding back 10% more than it already does in state income taxes just as the biggest shopping season of the year kicks into gear.
Technically, it's not a tax increase, even though it may feel like one when your next paycheck arrives. As part of a bundle of budget patches adopted in the summer, the state is taking more money now in withholding, even though workers' annual tax bills won't change.
Think of it as a forced, interest-free loan: You'll be repaid any extra withholding in April. Those who would receive a refund anyway will receive a larger one, and those who owe taxes will owe less.
Tax refunds are evil, because they fool people into thinking they're "getting" something from the government, when in fact all they're receiving is their own money, months late. If the private sector tried this--say, your insurance or power company "borrowed" money by tacking $20 on to your monthly bill and refunded it, without interest, the following year--it would be a pretty clear case of fraud.
Jones to J Street: We Will Bury YouJames Jones, the White House national security adviser, spoke recently to J Street, an anti-Israel lobbying group, and the New York Times reports a curious detail:
General Jones did not offer any new policy prescriptions but received prolonged standing applause when he told the crowd of more than 1,000, "You can be sure that this administration will be represented at all future J Street conferences."
Why did the J Streeters applaud Jones's prediction that their organization will not even outlast the administration?
Metaphor Alert"Speaker Pelosi is once again--as on cap and trade--asking her members to walk the plank, absent any evidence there are enough votes in the Senate to pass comparable legislation. In fact, the reason Pelosi is pulling the trigger now is that Reid failed in his effort to get the Senate up to the starting gate first (that was the point of last week's attempted 'doc fix'). So, the question is: Will her caucus follow Nancy off a cliff?"--William Kristol, The Weekly Standard Web site, Oct. 28
Homer NodsFormer New York Times fabulist Jayson Blair is to deliver a lecture on journalistic ethics at Washington and Lee University, not the College of William and Mary as we said in an item Friday (since corrected). William and Mary is the school with the male homecoming queen.
Life Imitates the Onion--I
- "Study: Many Americans Too Fat to Commit Suicide"--headline, Onion, June 8, 2007
- "Lawyer Says Florida Man Is Too Fat to Kill in New Jersey Murder Case"--headline, ABCNews.com, Oct. 30, 2009
Life Imitates the Onion--II
- "Elton John Wows Mother Theresa Funeral Crowd With 'The Bitch Is Back' "--headline, Onion, Sept. 16, 1997
- "Mother Theresa . . . was a fanatic and a fundamentalist and a fraud, and millions of people are much worse off because of her life, and it's a shame there is no hell for your bitch to go to."--Christopher Hitchens, quoted by the Discovery Institute Web site, Oct. 30, 2009
'Creep' Seems Unduly Harsh, but He's In, All Right "Europe Still Likes Obama, but Doubts Creep In"--headline, New York Times, Nov. 2
'The Falafel Is Amazing!'"Clinton Praises Israeli Concessions"--headline, Associated Press, Nov. 1
We Still Predict He'll Die"Revealed: Lockerbie Bomber Defies Doctors' Prediction of Death"--headline, Daily Telegraph (London), Oct. 31
Let It Snowe, Let It Snowe, Let It Snowe"No Repeat for Battle of Holiday Displays in Olympia"--headline, Seattle Times, Nov. 1
'Sir, Could I Talk to Mr. Gustafson?'"Future of Brainerd Car Dealer Unknown"--headline, St. Cloud (Minn.) Times, Oct. 31
The Lonesome Life of a Researcher"Researchers Spray Sex Chemicals to Fight Off Moths"--headline, FoxNews.com, Oct. 31
Almost as Exciting as Watching Paint Dry"Ariz. Watches Nation Switch to Standard Time"--headline, Arizona Republic, Oct. 31
Nothing Gets Past the Ohio Coroner's Office"Ohio Coroner's Office: 6 Bodies Found in Rapist's Home Are Homicide Victims"--headline, FoxNews.com, Nov. 2
That's Nothing--They Should've Been in New York Yesterday"Human Foot Found on Canadian Beach: Discovery of foot inside running shoe is seventh such find in British Columbia in past two years"--headline and subheadline, Guardian (London), Oct. 30
Pigeons Land Safely After Hitting Planes--Now That Would Be News
"Northwest Plane Lands Safely After Hitting Pigeons"--headline, FoxNews.com, Oct. 31"Officials Find Gator That Escaped at Show and Tell"--headline, Associated Press, Oct. 31
Someone Set Up Us the Bong
"Cannabis Row Drugs Adviser Sacked"--headline, BBC Web site, Oct. 30- "Animals Take Over Downtown Library"--headline, Free Lance-Star (Fredericksburg, Va.), Oct. 31
- "School Employee Accused of Forcing Student to Eat Pizza"--headline,cf13news.com (Central Florida), Nov. 1
- "Paralyzed by Gunshot, Roseville Cat Needs Help to Regain Movement"--headline, Sacramento Bee
- "Japanese Building Robot From 'Aliens' Movie"--headline, , Oct. 31
- "Alan Grayson: Fox News Is Stalking Me"--headline, , Oct. 30
- "The Unromantic Truth About Why We Kiss--to Spread Germs"--headline, Daily Mail (London), Nov. 1
Breaking News From 1999
"Clinton Pushes for Resumption of Talks Between Israel, Palestinians"--headline, , Nov. 1Breaking News From 7300001905
"7.3 Billion Years Later, Einstein's Theory Prevails"--headline, New York Times, Oct. 29- "Longer Toes and Shorter Legs Make You a Faster Runner"--headline, (London), Oct. 30
- "Psychic Computer Shows Your Thoughts on Screen"--headline, Sunday Times (London), Nov. 1
- "How a Simple Marshmallow Can Predict Your Future"--headline, Toronto Star, Nov. 2
- "Hold the Champagne--Happy Days Aren't Here Again"--headline, Michael Barone column (Creators Syndicate), Nov. 2
- "TV Camera Moved Back Slightly at World Series"--headline, Associated Press, Nov. 1
- "Newspaper Reluctantly Endorses Corzine"--headline, Associated Press, Nov. 1
- "Palestinians Accuse U.S. of Killing Peace Prospects"--headline, , Nov. 1
- "$900 Billion House Health-Care Reform Bill Likely to Cost More Than $900 Billion"--headline, Reason.com, Oct. 30
- "Canada Named One of the Most Peaceful Nations in the World"--headline, Canadian Press, Nov. 1
Be Evil
London's Daily Telegraph reports on, but fails to solve, a mystery:The town appears on Google Maps in the middle of fields close to the M58 motorway, just south of Ormskirk.
Its 'presence' means that online businesses that use data from the software have detected it and automatically treated it as a real town in the L39 postcode area.
An internet search for the town now brings up a series of home, job and dating listings for people and places "in Argleton," as well as websites which help people find its nearest chiropractor and even plan jogging or hiking routes through it. The businesses, people and services listed are real, but are actually based elsewhere in the same postcode area.
Google and the company that supplies its mapping data are unable to explain the presence of the phantom town and are investigating.
Tantalisingly, "Argle" echoes the word "Google," while the phantom town's name is also an anagram of "Not Real G," and "Not Large."
That may be tantalizing, but it's an obvious distraction. "Argleton" is also an anagram for "gel on rat," as in "Polymer gel in rat skull to assess the accuracy of a new rat stereotactic device for use with the Gamma Knife." Clearly Argleton is the site of a secret Google laboratory. We don't know what a Gamma Knife is, but we're sure it's evil.
(Carol Muller helps compile Best of the Web Today. Thanks to Michael Segal, Rod Pennington, Ray Samori, Robert Gessner, Abe Beyda, Eli Bear, Ethel Fenig, Daniel Mullen, Alan Jones, Bruce Goldman, Mark King, Lynn Johnson, Timothy Wilder, Jef Cobb, E.F. Forshaw, Steve Bartin, John Liljegren, Ryan Trainer, John Williamson, Kit Pollard, David Holman, Arlene Ross, Arthur Steinmetz, Barton Hinkle, Jared Silverman, Stefan Sharkansky, Mitchell Gossman, Kyle Kyllan, Ryan Serote, Gerald McOscar, Doug Jeffreys, Patrick Gonzalez, Michele Schiesser, Brian Warner, Thomas Carr, Evan Slatis, Ross Firestone, Sion Romaine and Norman Spector. If you have a tip, write us at
Democrats' Quiet Changes Pile Up
-
Subscriber ContentRead Preview
CIT Files for Bankruptcy
Opinion: The Worst Bill Ever
Opinion: Revolt in New York
706 comments
Opinion: The Worst Bill Ever197 comments
Obama: Economy Headed in 'Right Direction'167 comments
164 comments
162 comments
-
The Cruel Math of Big Losses
-
Cheap Jewelry Imports Vex Artisans
-
Myanmar Pipeline Project Advances
-
Disney's 'Princess' Is Return to Tradition
-
Landlords Offer Incentives to Stay
-
Late Moves Jumble N.Y. House Race
-
Lehman Art Auction Sells Out
-
American Wins New York Marathon
-
Tighter Belts Mean Thicker Waists
-
Good for Oregon, Bad for the Pac-10
-
The Cruel Math of Big Losses
-
Subscriber ContentRead Preview
Cheap Jewelry Imports Vex Artisans
-
Subscriber ContentRead Preview
Myanmar Pipeline Project Advances
-
Disney's 'Princess' Is Return to Tradition
-
Landlords Offer Incentives to Stay
-
Late Moves Jumble N.Y. House Race
-
Lehman Art Auction Sells Out
-
American Wins New York Marathon
-
Tighter Belts Mean Thicker Waists
-
Good for Oregon, Bad for the Pac-10
-
02 Nov 2009 01:33
-
While the President Golfs
OCT 27. 2009
594 comments
296 comments
Stimulus Created 640,000 Jobs, White House Says254 comments
The New Art of Alimony141 comments
Union Votes Down Ford Concessions140 comments
-
-
01 Nov 2009 11:08
Search the Site
