Bob Herbert
Dana Millbank
"There's no such thing as a wrong note as long as you're singing." - Pete Seeger
"You outlasted the bastards." - Bruce Springsteen
"You outlasted the bastards." - Bruce Springsteen
"They say President Obama will most likely pick a woman. And I think that's probably true, because today, Clarence Thomas was seen renting porn." --Bill Maher
Jack Kemp, who was well liked by many, passed away. He was, as Bob Herbert notes in the NY Times, noted for two main ideas contributed to the Republican Party. The first, that the GOP needs to be more accepting of diverse people and opinions, was ignored, while: "The bad idea, advanced by Kemp with fanatical energy and devotion, was supply-side economics — “voodoo economics,” as George H.W. Bush so famously and rightly derided it. Supply-siders saw tax cuts as the answer to every prayer. Cut taxes, they argued, and watch the economy take off like a rocket.
What they never spelled out for the electorate was that most of the tax cuts would go to the rich, that the rich would harvest most of the money from the increased economic activity, and that the radically reduced tax revenue would send government budget deficits streaking toward the moon.
Kemp professed not to be worried about the deficits. He seemed to have believed that somehow everything would work out. The ultramilitants to his right, people even further out in their orthodoxy than Kemp, were delighted by the deficits. They wanted to “starve the beast,” reduce the government’s revenues to the point where elected officials would have no choice but to cut programs and services that benefited people who were not rich. Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid were primary targets.
“Our goal,” said Grover Norquist, “is to shrink government down to the size where we can drown it in the bathtub.” Mr Norquist, is a long time associate of Jack Abramoff, the founder of the Taxpayer's Union, and enamored by the writings and philosophy of Karl Marx, which he still tries to fit into his ultra-conservative philosophy and writings... Go figure... To this day many bloggers write reams extolling the virtues of Arthur Laffer's discredited economic theories.
Which brings us back around to the subject of lobbyists and earmarks. My personal solution to this is to outlaw all lobbyists, and it then could be legal to shoot them. That way, you don't have to take your friends deer-hunting, just stalk the corridors of Washington or Denver for a lobbyist...I'm glad that others are finally getting mad over the bribery that comes from accepting earmarks. According to the San Antonio Express-News: "Washington lobbying became a $3.2 billion industry last year.
And some of the biggest spenders yielded $295.2 billion from the federal government’s Troubled Asset Relief Program. According to a new report from the Federal Election Commission, PACs alone contributed $412.8 million to federal candidates during the 2008 election cycle.
But some lawmakers continue to claim all that money going to Washington creates no influence with the people who make decisions about the money coming from Capitol Hill. Reps. Paul Hodes, D-N.H., and Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz., have introduced legislation that would take some of the ambiguity out of the traditional Washington political money game.
Their worthwhile measure would prevent members of Congress from accepting contributions from any entity, its lobbyists and employees for which they have requested earmarks." Damn, I guess its ok to solve it the legal way...
What they never spelled out for the electorate was that most of the tax cuts would go to the rich, that the rich would harvest most of the money from the increased economic activity, and that the radically reduced tax revenue would send government budget deficits streaking toward the moon.
Kemp professed not to be worried about the deficits. He seemed to have believed that somehow everything would work out. The ultramilitants to his right, people even further out in their orthodoxy than Kemp, were delighted by the deficits. They wanted to “starve the beast,” reduce the government’s revenues to the point where elected officials would have no choice but to cut programs and services that benefited people who were not rich. Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid were primary targets.
“Our goal,” said Grover Norquist, “is to shrink government down to the size where we can drown it in the bathtub.” Mr Norquist, is a long time associate of Jack Abramoff, the founder of the Taxpayer's Union, and enamored by the writings and philosophy of Karl Marx, which he still tries to fit into his ultra-conservative philosophy and writings... Go figure... To this day many bloggers write reams extolling the virtues of Arthur Laffer's discredited economic theories.
A lot is being printed and argued over Arlen Spector's switch to the Democratic Party. It's also a good argument for term limits in all states, as he should have retired 35 years ago. This includes other Senators like Orrin Hatch and John Murtha, who is currently under investigation for abusing his position overseeing the Defense Department's spending as chairman of the House Appropriations defense subcommittee...
Which brings us back around to the subject of lobbyists and earmarks. My personal solution to this is to outlaw all lobbyists, and it then could be legal to shoot them. That way, you don't have to take your friends deer-hunting, just stalk the corridors of Washington or Denver for a lobbyist...I'm glad that others are finally getting mad over the bribery that comes from accepting earmarks. According to the San Antonio Express-News: "Washington lobbying became a $3.2 billion industry last year.
And some of the biggest spenders yielded $295.2 billion from the federal government’s Troubled Asset Relief Program. According to a new report from the Federal Election Commission, PACs alone contributed $412.8 million to federal candidates during the 2008 election cycle.
But some lawmakers continue to claim all that money going to Washington creates no influence with the people who make decisions about the money coming from Capitol Hill. Reps. Paul Hodes, D-N.H., and Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz., have introduced legislation that would take some of the ambiguity out of the traditional Washington political money game.
Their worthwhile measure would prevent members of Congress from accepting contributions from any entity, its lobbyists and employees for which they have requested earmarks." Damn, I guess its ok to solve it the legal way...
Joe Klein is one of the best writers we have. In today's Swampland, he posts: "The NY Times has an excellent piece this morning, in which this summer's Af/Pak fighting season is previewed...from the Taliban point of view. The story is, essentially, an interview with an alleged Taliban strategist, who seems not only credible but remarkably well-informed about U.S. tactics and intentions. And, once again, the Taliban's strategic advantage is plain: they don't have to worry about the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan. Indeed, they have a different map than we do.
Our map divides Afghanistan and Pakistan along the Durand Line, the imaginary boundary imposed by Sir Mortimer Durand in 1893. But neither the Afghans nor the Pashtuns accept that. The Afghans believe that the Durand line--which follows geographic markers, like rivers and the mountain lines, rather than tribal realities--was a 100-year fix that expired in 1993 and, according to one Afghan website, see a map that looks like this. But that isn't quite accurate, either. The real Pashtunistan includes the Pakistani North West Frontier province and tribal areas plus much of Afghanistan's south and east, including the cities of Kabul, Jalalabad and Kandahar.
The Taliban are, in effect, the Pashtun Liberation Army. They don't see the same border that we--or the Pakistanis--do. Their motivation is, in part, religious, but very largely nationalist--and traditionally xenophobic. They don't like outsiders, whether they are Americans, Punjabis (who control the Pakistan military) or Tajiks (Afghanistan's Northern Alliance). They have made common cause with the "Arabs"--Al Qaeda--because of religious affinity and the existence of common enemies (namely us).
I have not yet heard one credible account of how the U.S. addresses this problem. But I imagine that a plausible solution would ultimately involve the following: We recognize the Pashtun reality, in some form, and the Pashtuns, in turn, decouple themselves from, and kick out, Al Qaeda. That seems quite impossible, of course, given the alternative reality we've inherited from the British--Afghan and Pakistani statehood along a ridiculous and untenable line. The only way this situation is resolved, however, is if some way can be found to make those competing realities mesh." He is talking, of course, about the Talibans that recently settled in the Swat Valley, who are ethnic Pashtuns, and threatening to take over all of Pakistan.
Our map divides Afghanistan and Pakistan along the Durand Line, the imaginary boundary imposed by Sir Mortimer Durand in 1893. But neither the Afghans nor the Pashtuns accept that. The Afghans believe that the Durand line--which follows geographic markers, like rivers and the mountain lines, rather than tribal realities--was a 100-year fix that expired in 1993 and, according to one Afghan website, see a map that looks like this. But that isn't quite accurate, either. The real Pashtunistan includes the Pakistani North West Frontier province and tribal areas plus much of Afghanistan's south and east, including the cities of Kabul, Jalalabad and Kandahar.
The Taliban are, in effect, the Pashtun Liberation Army. They don't see the same border that we--or the Pakistanis--do. Their motivation is, in part, religious, but very largely nationalist--and traditionally xenophobic. They don't like outsiders, whether they are Americans, Punjabis (who control the Pakistan military) or Tajiks (Afghanistan's Northern Alliance). They have made common cause with the "Arabs"--Al Qaeda--because of religious affinity and the existence of common enemies (namely us).
I have not yet heard one credible account of how the U.S. addresses this problem. But I imagine that a plausible solution would ultimately involve the following: We recognize the Pashtun reality, in some form, and the Pashtuns, in turn, decouple themselves from, and kick out, Al Qaeda. That seems quite impossible, of course, given the alternative reality we've inherited from the British--Afghan and Pakistani statehood along a ridiculous and untenable line. The only way this situation is resolved, however, is if some way can be found to make those competing realities mesh." He is talking, of course, about the Talibans that recently settled in the Swat Valley, who are ethnic Pashtuns, and threatening to take over all of Pakistan.
The US is scrambling for solutions beyond being ready to extricate Pakistan's nuclear arsenal at a moment's notice. We are talking to as many leaders as we can, but it looks like the old ethnic borders will soon replace the current ones on the maps. Afghakistan...
Late night Jokes:
"Well, here's the latest. The White House says, as of now, it is not contained. It could continue to get worse. And they were just talking about Joe Biden." --Jay Leno
"As you know, Vice President Biden got in a little bit of trouble yesterday when he suggested that people should avoid commercial flights and subways if they want to stay healthy. Yeah. Today, President Obama recommended that Biden avoid microphones and TV cameras for the very same reason." --Jay Leno
"Well, there are now cases of swine flu in the United States, Canada and Mexico. So, see that? NAFTA does work." --Jay Leno
"I think a lot of people are really overreacting to this whole swine flu thing. Don't you? Come on. Like today at Disney World, they quarantined Sneezy. There was no cause for that." --Jay Leno
"A vacancy on the Supreme Court. This is something we haven't seen in awhile. Let's just hope the president is better at picking a justice than the justices were at picking a president." --Jay Leno
"Hey! Some happy news. As you may have heard, the White House has a brand-new puppy. I believe his name is Arlen Specter." --Jay Leno
"I'm sure you've heard, Senator Arlen Specter has switched to the Democratic party. Yeah, today, Obama told Republicans look, we'll give you Biden and call it even." --Jay Leno
"The Republicans say that Obama's pick for a replacement is completely unacceptable, and they will let us know why as soon as they find out who it is." --Bill Maher
"Conservatives, of course, are very nervous about this, for two reasons. One, David Souter was appointed by a Republican, and when he was on the court, became more and more liberal. And they say they will never again allow the appointment of someone who can learn.. --Bill Maher
And the other reason, of course, is because this week Arlen Specter has crossed the aisle. Now, maybe it's because he's 79, he just wants to be closer to the bathroom, but he's now a Democrat, so they have a filibuster-proof majority there in the Senate. Obama could pick anybody! 'I, Flava-Flav, do solemnly swear that I will administer...'" --Bill Maher
"Are you getting tired of swine flu hysteria? I think the media has done a hell of a job scaring the hell out of everybody in this country. I mean, planes have been diverted, people don't touch elevator buttons, proms have been canceled. At middle schools all across the country, students and teachers have been warned not to kiss during sex. And all for what? As of this morning, 331 confirmed cases worldwide. I've had more people than that in my Jacuzzi." --Bill Maher
"Researchers at Northwestern University said the worst-case scenario is that Swine Flu will infect 1,700 Americans over the next month. Best-case scenario? Turns you into a wolverine." --Bill Maher
"So, I guess the other big news you heard: Chrysler, bankrupt, finally. Yes, this is very bad news for Chrysler drivers. I mean, besides the fact they drive a Chrysler. ... Chrysler is partnering now with Fiat! They have a new slogan: 'Chrysler: It's supposed to make that noise'" --Bill Maher
Late night Jokes:
"Well, here's the latest. The White House says, as of now, it is not contained. It could continue to get worse. And they were just talking about Joe Biden." --Jay Leno
"As you know, Vice President Biden got in a little bit of trouble yesterday when he suggested that people should avoid commercial flights and subways if they want to stay healthy. Yeah. Today, President Obama recommended that Biden avoid microphones and TV cameras for the very same reason." --Jay Leno
"Well, there are now cases of swine flu in the United States, Canada and Mexico. So, see that? NAFTA does work." --Jay Leno
"I think a lot of people are really overreacting to this whole swine flu thing. Don't you? Come on. Like today at Disney World, they quarantined Sneezy. There was no cause for that." --Jay Leno
"A vacancy on the Supreme Court. This is something we haven't seen in awhile. Let's just hope the president is better at picking a justice than the justices were at picking a president." --Jay Leno
"Hey! Some happy news. As you may have heard, the White House has a brand-new puppy. I believe his name is Arlen Specter." --Jay Leno
"I'm sure you've heard, Senator Arlen Specter has switched to the Democratic party. Yeah, today, Obama told Republicans look, we'll give you Biden and call it even." --Jay Leno
"The Republicans say that Obama's pick for a replacement is completely unacceptable, and they will let us know why as soon as they find out who it is." --Bill Maher
"Conservatives, of course, are very nervous about this, for two reasons. One, David Souter was appointed by a Republican, and when he was on the court, became more and more liberal. And they say they will never again allow the appointment of someone who can learn.. --Bill Maher
And the other reason, of course, is because this week Arlen Specter has crossed the aisle. Now, maybe it's because he's 79, he just wants to be closer to the bathroom, but he's now a Democrat, so they have a filibuster-proof majority there in the Senate. Obama could pick anybody! 'I, Flava-Flav, do solemnly swear that I will administer...'" --Bill Maher
"Are you getting tired of swine flu hysteria? I think the media has done a hell of a job scaring the hell out of everybody in this country. I mean, planes have been diverted, people don't touch elevator buttons, proms have been canceled. At middle schools all across the country, students and teachers have been warned not to kiss during sex. And all for what? As of this morning, 331 confirmed cases worldwide. I've had more people than that in my Jacuzzi." --Bill Maher
"Researchers at Northwestern University said the worst-case scenario is that Swine Flu will infect 1,700 Americans over the next month. Best-case scenario? Turns you into a wolverine." --Bill Maher
"So, I guess the other big news you heard: Chrysler, bankrupt, finally. Yes, this is very bad news for Chrysler drivers. I mean, besides the fact they drive a Chrysler. ... Chrysler is partnering now with Fiat! They have a new slogan: 'Chrysler: It's supposed to make that noise'" --Bill Maher
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