Weekend Leftovers

       Didn't post but I did read a few things this weekend. These are the highlights and lowlights.
     Bernie Sanders on the Corporate Takeover of America
     Chris Lehman on the State of Books in America, not lamenting the disappearance of bookstores but the sad state of modern fiction.
     Another article on the forgotten candidate Buddy Roemer
     I have yet to see an unbiased article on the Texas Redistricting plan, this article masquerades as one
     A Huntsman staffer on how they got beat by Romney
     I think he did this one just to scare all the white people who insist they are not prejudiced: Why We Need a Malcolm X Day.

Stat Geek Politics

     I am a born stat geek. I was the kid when told to go out and play would write baseball standings in the dirt for an hour before going off to find a game somewhere. We now have a new version of stat geeks taking over the political columns and I personally love reading them. My two favorites are Nate Silver and Sean Trende. One leans Democrat the other Republican. Both tend to let the stats talk more than their heart. This gives you a better feel for what is really happening than the obvious party hacks that so often fill commentary sites. Today is a good example of both what they right and how even numbers can change quickly this year. Nate on Romney's Prevent Defense and Sean on Rick Perry's Ill-fated Campaign. Both are a different way to look at politics but very compelling.

Brian

Yesterday's Leftovers

     More bashing of the Republicans for not having quality candidates.
     Middle Class is Moving Forward, not Backward is proof that if you cherry pick your numbers you can prove anything you want.
     My man Nate Silver on the perils of not researching you pollsters.
     And finally Jerry Holbert with the belly laugh of the day.
     

   

Yesterday's Leftovers

      Kind of a mixed bag yesteday.
     More piling on Romney from the Right and the Left, and then there is this question Isn't a Bainful Turnaround What America Needs? Which was so earnest that I am not sure it isn't satire.
     Nice look at new Egyptian politics from Thomas Friedman,
     New angle at the same old soapbox for Mr. Reich

Read Away

Brian

Yesterday's Leftovers

     Krugman explains that governments are not corporations. I still say his blog is better.
     Now even the Lifestyle guys are piling on Mitt Romney.
     Miracle of miracle Krauthammer with an article worth reading on Ron Paul's Achievement.
     Another article on GOP Racism.
     Nice rebuttal article on how democratic the nomination process really is.

     Joni Mitchell gets the final word today.

Brian

Honorable Mention

    Why Bain attacks will stick to Romney is a good article and Creative Destruction is a long version of one of these attacks.
     Nice look at Obama's new military policy.
     Huffington joining the disconnect whine. She does it better than most.
     Good article on class mobility in the U.S.
     Paul Rieckhoff tell why the troops aren't props

Honorable Mention

      Articles from yesterday wroth mentioning. Exposing the GOP's perfidy is Race and the GOP. Bloomberg with a little wall street history in How Wall Street Turned a Crisis into a Cartel. Finally Dylan Ratigan with a nice rant against money in politics. so it's top ten list, still read like a rant.

More Proof We Live in a Police State

      First we have Torturing Tourists With Food Products which sound a lot more innocent than it is, as it is about a man being tortured with pepper spray.
     Then we have the final story of Ava who was put down with little reason because the Sheriff didn't like her.

Rough Country,

Brian

Political Burnout

      You ever have the feeling that people just aren't really thinking about politics at all? I do and apparently so do the guys over at Brutish & Short. I actually do a version where I punch up all these articles into my browser, read them and think I didn't learn a damn new thing. Good to know I am not alone.

Brian

Quit Commuting

      The title of the article is Your Car Commute Helps Cause Tornadoes. This is  a quick little article that gives you a good reason to start working from home or buy a motorcycle for the summer. If you want to find out why climate change is bad try this article in the Guardian.

Brian

Four From Iowa

     Four different articles about Iowa with three different conclusions. Huh? Weirdly enough the best look I saw was from Huffington Post blogger Ari Melber who like all these articles tried to big picture it but had some distance. Jay Cost had the usual charts and cool facts and is always worth reading. Dana Milbank didn't admit to there being a winner at all and could have used some of Jay's cool charts. Finally the Washington Examiner felt Obama was the winner. Still confused, me too. Next week New Hampshire without Bachmann and maybe minus Perry.

Brian

Yesterday's Leftovers

     Paul Krugman explains debt but those in denial will still not understand.
     This is a news story but State Targeting Employers Who Don't Play by the Rules
makes it seem that California is trying to help the good guys against the cheats, which is a good idea for the State.

Overating Conservatives Logic

     Nice article from Brutish & Short An Argument for Renewable Energy that Even Conservatives Can Bet Behind but he is working from the belief that today's conservatives use logic for anything. He is sorely overrating them.

Why George Will is Still Readable.

     Just when I thing Mr. Will has sold out and gone over to the dark side he comes out with a well written and thoughtful article. The 9th Circuits Proper Call on Bone Marrow Donations is one of those articles that makes him worth peeking at regularly.

Brian

Politicians Profiting in this Economy

      The actual article title is Economic Downturn Took a Detour at Capitol Hill but my title is more honest. They continue to profit as we continue to loose. Need to find a way to get the money out of politics.

Brian

Hanukkah Some Miracle

     David Frum with good article on the origins of Hanukkah and how it is similar to today's situation for Israel.

Yesterday's Leftovers

     A Christmas poem from 2009 on health care bill

Also Jay Cost  is back and making sense as he tries to make sure Republican enthusiasm stays whipped up.

Brian

Yesterday's Leftovers

     Nice article from Gary Hart on setting up for a successful primary run. Is it still relevant? Time will tell.

     Walter Shapiro looks at Brokered Conventions, Last Minute Combacks, and Other Crazy Ways the GOP Could end up With a Nominee, what he doesn't tell us is how this will affect the presidential election itself which is actually bonus points for him.

Brian

The Malfunction Minuet

       I like The Malfunction Minuet not as much for the story which is typical of this Senate but for some the references like this one to Point Counterpoint (also known as Jane you ignorant slut) which accurately depicts what has been happening for the last three years in the Senate.

     Chesty is so embarrassed he just can't look.

Yesterday's Leftovers

      A partisan piece that hits a few good points Why Conservatives Can't Fix Poverty was worth reading.

     Another example of how the pencil pushers just can't help themselves The Insidious Fine Print in the Spending Bill shows how the game hasn't changed despite the new blood from 2010.