Saturday Open Thread [5.2.15]

Saturday Open Thread [5.2.15]

Pope Francis is set to release his first Papal Encyclical and it will be on climate change. The Pope is recognizing that climate change is real, it is caused by humans and it needs to be addressed now. Conservatives are losing their minds -- this Pope has immense moral credibility -- and the Heartland Institute is so upset that they are trying to get a meeting with the Pope to make him an offer he can't refuse, presumably. Seriously, the hubris of these people to think that a man with the world's greatest minds at his fingertips could find the Heartland Institute's propaganda compelling. This Pope is not a clueless American conservative.
(Late) Friday Open Thread [5.1.15]

(Late) Friday Open Thread [5.1.15]

And what the heck is going on in Rehoboth Beach? Dogfish Head Brewing and Eats has plans to revitalize their space and the zoning board in Rehoboth turned down their variance. Because they would invite too many people to that part of downtown Rehoboth, even though the plans call for fewer restaurant seats than they have now. And one of the Zoning Board members invited Dogfish Head to move to another town. That's some economic development plan, right there.
Thursday Open Thread [4.30.15]

Thursday Open Thread [4.30.15]

“I respect the courts, but the Supreme Court is only that — the supreme of the courts. It is not the supreme being. It cannot overrule God.” — Mike Huckabee, quoted by CNN, on the pending same-sex marriage ruling. Mike, the Supreme Court is the last word on constitutional rights bestowed upon American citizens by the Constitution and its Amendments. The case before the Supreme Court right now concerns the constitutional right of individuals to marry, which is currently being denied by a number of states. The case before the Supreme Court does not concern any rights bestowed in the Bible, or by heavenly decree. Mike, I am concerned about your intelligence. You seem to confuse man made law and Biblical law all the time. Indeed, I almost think you think they are, or should be, one and the same, much like Church and Government should be one and the same. Thankfully, much smarter people than you established a separation between Church and State many centuries ago during the Founding of our great nation.

It Can. It Did. It Will.

Yes, white people were arrested too during riots. And yes, some of them were held for two days without hearing or charges, only to be released with no charges. I am including this picture here and in the thumbnail on the front page of the site because sometimes, oh shit, most of the time, the privileged white people among us, including myself, cannot really and totally connect to a story unless we think it can happen to us. It can. It did. It will. Police Brutality is not just a problem for the black community. It is a problem for us all. From Facebook.....
Have Republicans simply gone completely bananas?

Have Republicans simply gone completely bananas?

The evidence points to - yes. Not from The Onion:
Texas Republican Gov. Greg Abbott on Tuesday asked the State Guard to monitor a U.S. military training exercise dubbed “Jade Helm 15″ amid suspicions that the war simulation is really a hostile military takeover.
My sense is that as the Democratic Party has become ever more conservative and indistinguishable from moderate Republicans over the years, there is a desperation among Republican partisans to distinguish themselves as LEGIT conservatives in ways that would have been viewed as coo-coo a mere 5 years ago.
Paul Krugman Takes Tom Carper to the Woodshed

Paul Krugman Takes Tom Carper to the Woodshed

It is rare, in the history of economic thought, for debates to get resolved this decisively. The austerian ideology that dominated elite discourse five years ago has collapsed, to the point where hardly anyone still believes it.
Hardly anyone, that is, except the Tom Carper and John Carney. When Tom Carper and John Carney say that there is a "budget crisis" and that "austerity" is needed to grow the economy, they are lying. Yes. It is that simple.
Wednesday Open Thread [4.29.15]

Wednesday Open Thread [4.29.15]

The Los Angeles Times reports that Hillary Clinton will call for far-reaching reforms in the criminal justice system that would “end the era of mass incarceration,”
“The speech will mark the unveiling of Clinton’s first major policy proposal as a presidential hopeful, coming as candidates are under pressure to confront the unrest in Baltimore. The city erupted in rioting Monday night, following the funeral of Freddie Gray, an African American man who was mortally injured while in police custody.”
Man, this Hillary campaign is really trying to win me over big time (and she is succeeding).