James Howard Kunstler: The tragedy of suburbia

It is probably too dreary today to watch this TED TALK again, but perhaps not. "The immersive ugliness of our everyday environment in America is entropy made visible." Oil company subsidies, Zimmerman, Romney, our desperate County Sheriffs and teabag zealots clawing for meaning in the brutalist wasteland of talk radio and Walmart parking lots - the thing that ties all of our modern psychopathies together is our shitty architecture.

Two Experts Say: Not George Zimmerman Crying For Help

A leading expert in the field of forensic voice identification sought to answer that question by analyzing the recordings for the Orlando Sentinel. His result: It was not George Zimmerman who called for help. Every claim Zimmerman has made about what happened that night with Trayvon Martin is now discredited. George Zimmerman needs to be arrested now.

Arizona Criminalizes On-Line Flame Wars

You read that right. Arizona H.B. 2549 would make it a crime to be lewd or annoying on the Internets. This bill is on the Governor's desk for signature. And isn't interesting that these wingnuts have found one more bit of the Constitution that they want to undermine?

Stand Your Ground Law, Meet The Bar Scene

I am sure almost every woman has a story to tell, here is one of mine... I was 25 and having drinks with friends at Harpoon Hannah's (yeah, I know.). A man approached our table and asked me to dance. I thanked him for the offer, but declined. I even offered an excuse, "I'm hanging out with friends tonight. I haven't seen them in a while, but thank you." Frankly, my "no, thank you" should have been enough, but I get that approaching a stranger and asking them to dance can be difficult, so I always tried to be kind. Can anyone guess what happened next?

What If Buying A Gun Required The Same Restrictions As Getting An Abortion?

Why don't gun buyers have to follow the same rules women are forced to follow? Wait 48 hours after applying. View on ultrasound of a body with a bullet in it. Listen to the heartbeat of someone as they die of a gunshot wound. Get a lecture from a surgeon on what it is like to operate on a gunshot wound. After all that, if a person still wants a gun, he or she can buy one. Why should buying a gun be any easier than having an abortion?"

Delaware Political Weekly: March 24-30, 2012

The scuttlebutt in Dover is that Judy Travis, who ran against Rep. Bryon Short in the 7th Rep District in 2010, is planning to primary Cathy Cloutier for the 5th Senatorial District seat. Chris Counihan has already filed for the D's, and is a strong candidate, having garnered 45% against Cloutier in a previous run. Travis has had her eye on elective office at least since she was passed over to run for Wayne Smith's vacated rep seat back in 2007. You remember. The newly reelected Smith left office to become the President and lobbyist for the Delaware Healthcare Association. Smith handpicked his next-door-neighbor over Travis to run for the seat. His neighbor lost to Bryon Short. Twice. But, I digress. For those who think that Cloutier would be a shoo-in in a primary, just remember that Cloutier also ran on the Working Families Party line in 2010. That's the line offered by Brian McGlinchey and other labor guys. Don't think that would endear her to Rethug primary voters, and I wouldn't be totally shocked to see Charles 'Bouvier de Flandres' Copeland do to Cathy what he's doing to Priscilla Rakestraw. Continue to banish moderates from the Party. Needless to say, were this scenario to occur, the R calculus for taking over the Senate would have to be, um, recalculated.

Celia Covers Newt

You can read it if you want. The usual Celia tid bits are present. For example, did you know that Steve Forbes beat party anointed, Bob Dole in Delaware because Forbes showed up? Celia knows it. She says it all the time. "Good Morning Ma'am, Welcome to WalMart." "Did you know that Steve Forbes beat party anointed, Bob Dole in Delaware because Forbes showed up here? Uh huh... Sherman Tribbit had a cat named Dusty!!"

Thursday Open Thread [3.29.12]

I am going to miss the Republican primary polls when this clown show ends. First Read: "With Mitt Romney holding a sizable delegate lead and with more prominent Republicans (George H.W. Bush and Marco Rubio) formally endorsing the former Massachusetts governor, Tuesday's GOP primary in Wisconsin is shaping up to be Rick Santorum's last chance -- in math and perception. If Romney wins Wisconsin, Santorum can't stop him from getting to the magic number of 1,114 delegates, according to our math."