Monday Open Thread
Welcome to your Monday open thread. It’s another Monday, everyone’s favorite day of the week. What’s on your mind today? Share your thoughts below.
DougJ at Balloon Juice finds the “Worst Argument Ever” against health care reform. It comes from the NYT’s Russ Douthat.
I’ve been trying to stay off the Chunky Bobo tip, but I read this earlier today and was so struck by the awfulness of the argument that I can’t stop thinking about it:
This is true on all the great issues of the day. No matter how many lives may be saved or lost because of health care policy, no lives will be saved forever, and every gain will be an infinitely modest hedge against the wasting power of disease and death. No matter the wisdom of our politicians or the sagacity of their economic advisors, no policy course can guarantee universal wealth or permanent economic growth. And no matter the temperature of our discourse, the state of our gun laws, or the quality of our mental health care, nothing human beings do can prevent the occasional madman from shooting up a crowded parking lot.
So we just fucking give up? We can’t all live forever so why does it matter what kind of health care we have?
This kind of reasoning is truly beneath contempt. When Erick Erickson writes that Obamacare will lead to death panels, I think he’s an idiot but maybe I should think, hey, at least we’re on the same side in terms of thinking that it would be very bad if people were being arbitrarily put to death…unlike Douthat who seems to think, eh, we all die anyway so why get upset?
Well, it is creative. You know that saying “technically true but collectively complete nonsense?” That sentiment applies here.
How many things does Clarence Thomas have to do to get impeached? He lied during his confirmation hearing. He also “forgot” to report his wife’s income in his disclosures. His wife, you know, benefited from unlimited donations resulting from the Citizens United decision with her Tea Party group.
Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas failed to report his wife’s income from a conservative think tank on financial disclosure forms for at least five years, the watchdog group Common Cause said Friday.
Between 2003 and 2007, Virginia Thomas, a longtime conservative activist, earned $686,589 from the Heritage Foundation, according to a Common Cause review of the foundation’s IRS records. Thomas failed to note the income in his Supreme Court financial disclosure forms for those years, instead checking a box labeled “none” where “spousal noninvestment income” would be disclosed.
Will Thomas just ignore this like he does all criticism or will he have to answer?
Tags: Open Thread
If Thomas was appointed by a Democrat, the House would have started the impeachment process. But since he was appointed by Bush I, this will be the last that we hear about it.
In other news, did you see the Moscow airport bombing?
Am in Midway, and everyone is rivited to the Yvonne going wall-to-wall with Rahm. Emmanuel being kicked off the ballot for mayor…..
He will just pop a hairy can of coke and smile:)
I can’t imagine they are kicking him off the ballot over residency while he was serving the country in DC. I don’t admire or respect him but surely the court should recognize his service to the country as just that. He was away from home serving, not a voluntary resident of DC.
Speaking of Erik Erickson, you can watch him on CNN giving SOTU analysis. I got the following links from memeorandum this morning:
mediamatters.org – CNN’s Erick Erickson Suggests “Mass Bloodshed” May Be Necessary If Roe Isn’t Overturned
And a discussion ensuing from the recemt arrest of the late-term abortion monster Gosnell with a Wilmington clinic and some monsterous female employees from DE:
http://www.lawyersgunsmoneyblog.com/2011/01/once-you-get-your-position-sorted-out-perhaps-we-can-talk
The wingnuts don’t get it…
“Does she actually address the evidence that the parade of regulations anti-choicers will use the Gosnell case as a pretext to argue for make the late-term abortions and unscrupulous providers she decries more likely? Nope. Does she have an explanation for why Gosnell operated not in a state with relatively equitable and pro-reproductive freedom policies (such as New York or Washington) but in Pennsylvania, long a national “leader” in passing arbitrary abortion regulations that make it harder for poor women to obtain safe pre-viability abortions without accomplishing anything worth accomplishing?”
It’s interesting that most states recognize the fact that if you’re called to Federal service (and I would think that serving as the Chief of Staff to the President would qualify) doesn’t take away your residency, unless you actually change it (like getting a driver’s license and registering to vote). If he paid Illinois state income taxes, my guess is that the state Supreme Court will restore him to the ballot.
Serving the country in DC? How about serving in the US military instead of Israel’s military? Lets start there. Is he a patriotic american! no!
Rahm is the Man Without A Country, doomed to wander the interstates with a 1-800 cell phone number, spurned by his beloved Chicago and forever searching for a home.
Nancy: Tom Ridge is the culprit. He ended the monitoring of clinics during his term. Rendell should have restored the funding. It always comes down to money! Ridge also shut down the monitoring of group homes all over PA, when there were hundreds of cases of abuse and neglect all over the State.
@Libgeek “If Thomas was appointed by a Democrat, the House would have started the impeachment process”….. immediately after his confirmation.
It is news now when Obama keeps his campaign promises.
Now I’m supposed to be cheered because Obama is doing what I voted for him to do. *golf clap*
Republicans are disappointed. They wanted to cut Social Security and pin it on Obama. Now they have to take the rap all by themselves.
Of course, Obama is always open to cutting a deal with Republicans, so you never know. It ain’t over till it’s over.
i wanna know what everyone would be saying if we had no HCR, no banking regulation, still had DADT…etc etc etc… but at least Obama pandered to the left rather than trying to be the president of all americans.
would you be saying “well, the insurance cartels will still be able to make money off of letting people die, but at least Obama is entrenched in his ideals…. just like GWB!!!”
Obama: “With respect to the bottom line, in terms of what my core principles are, yeah look, I’ve got a bunch of lines in the sand. “
Anon, yup, it goes back to Ridge and shows that fast eddie was too busy securing himself some backroom kickback to put his agencies on the right track again. Ed Rendell is now in the middle of the controversy over Comcast and MSNBC’s firing of Keith Olbermann because his former staffer is now a top executive there and MSNBC is bringing Ed on board.
More on the merger:’
How Comcast sealed the NBCU deal
January 23, 2011|By Bob Fernandez, Inquirer Staff Writer
http://articles.philly.com/2011-01-23/business/27044733_1_nbcu-deal-comcast-shareholder-largest-cable-distributor
I read the 45-page ‘Opinion’ and ‘Dissent’ for the Rahm Emanual ruling. Both sides make compelling arguments; however, according to the actual law and how it dilineates between one’s right to ‘vote’ in their previous residence and one’s right to be a ‘candidate,’ the law is very clear.
The majority got this decision right. The minority opionion does not once challenge the “reside in” for “one year” prior provision at all. The dissenting view makes a lot of Argument Ad Nauseam appeals and establishes that Rahm and family where from, planned to move back to and are residents of said district. However, that same minority opinion does not get past the simple and exacting words of: must ‘reside in’ for at least one year prior to requirement. It ignores the obvious.
I doubt the appeal will be overturned. However, the timeliness of this decion (and appeal) is paramount and thus must be resolved forthwith.
I am tired of hearing Obama is “moving toward the center.”
Obama has not moved toward the center. He has moved away from the center in a rightward direction.
open thread chuckle:
http://editorialcartoonists.com/cartoon/display.cfm/88730/
Republican David – watch out! – but everyone else over on DP ought to be just fine…just sayin’…
Van Jones, Anita Dunn, Desiree Rogers, Orzag, Rahm, Summers, Romer, Gibbs, Volker, Olbermann, and now Browner …Keep ’em coming.
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/44/2011/01/carol-browner-to-quit-obama-ad.html
The Birthers just HATE and can’t debate, where is there proof you might asked? Up where the sun don’t shine, HA, HA, show some proof birthers or people will continue to see you as dumb, stupid or racist, maybe all three. Can you blame them?
A video of the massacre revealed that Judge Roll literally laid his life down to save another. The judge was shot in the back as he knocked down and then shielded congressional aide Ron Barber from more of the bullets fired by Loughner. According to a sheriff’s department employee who viewed the video, Judge Roll placed himself over Barber while Loughner continued firing.
Stepping out of politics for a sec,
Congrats to Delawarian, Dana Herbet…. WINNER of the Next Great Baker. For those of you who dont watch Cake Boss, it is a show about a loud Italian family from Hoboken who makes AWESOME cakes. Recently they had a “next best” competition for a new hire in the bakery. The winner is from Bear. Small state Delaware is, im sure someone here knows him, or knows someone who knows him, so lets hear it for one of our own!.
(btw, i have been to the bakery in Hoboken and the stuff is even better than it looks on the magic picture box)
man… i was thinking of hiring him for my wedding cake. looks like that’s out the window. I bet his prices go through the roof.
good for him though, he does really nice work.
aww c’mon. i bet he stays true to his roots.