Zero Symbolism

Deaf, Blind and Soulless

noreply@blogger.com (J. S. Day) — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 07:44:00 +0000

No matter how many times we change our representation and exercise our rights as voters the ruling elite in Washington DC ignore voter demands and stifle all change. No matter how clear we state our grievance, that the system as it stands dooms the people to economic hardship, Congress and the White House refuse to seriously address the problem, and business continues as though nothing at all has transpired. When will our so-called leaders get the message, from all of us, that change is not about rhetoric, it's about action? This year? Right after the next election? That sounds so familiar. One must wonder about the holdup, and not just the holdup in which the wealthiest portion of our country took money from the rest of us to stay at the top.

When will elections stop being contests to see who can most magnificently deceive the voters into believing action will be taken and start being milestones of reform? The answer could be revealed to be never and it would surprise so few. What percentage of struggling voters does it take for the struggle to become the number one issue and not a statistic at the end of a pointer? 50 percent? 65%? Does the term "all of us" mean anything to politicians, or have they become so blinded by power that words have lost all meaning? All equates to "in totality," but that would be technically incorrect, as there is that little percentage that owns almost everything.

Most politicians aren't even part of the 1%. Some are like pets of the obscenely rich. When it gets cold outside the fat cats can yawn at the windows, at us, as we clamor to be let into the system that is now based on exclusion and predation rather than inclusion and benefaction. If they start to become self aware, corporate headquarters can always dispense tasty treats and scratch their backs. Meanwhile, we might as well fall for the trick where the door is held open briefly but is only a trap. Sometimes we get hit on top of the head with an anvil, other times a skillet hidden in the snow brains the hasty.

Wait! There's a telegram! It's from Acme! It says, "You're too late to duck." Boof! A sledgehammer to the solar plexus just knocked the wind out of somebody. When will we ever learn? If only it was as easy to recover in real life as it is in the cartoons. In real life we freeze to death in the cold. The safe bet is those protests will end soon. It gets cold outside, without homes, without jobs. without real hope. Actually, it gets cold anyway, but you get my drift.

On the Plutocracy Panic

noreply@blogger.com (J. S. Day) — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 05:21:00 +0000

In his New York Times op/ed Paul Krugman detailed the whining and the screeching of the GOP political elite as they flail about knowing that Occupy Wall Street has got their number. He pointed out one of the funnier reactions:

My favorite, however, is Senator Rand Paul, who for some reason worries that the protesters will start seizing iPads, because they believe rich people don’t deserve to have them.

It's only funny if one suspends for a moment the knowledge that Senator Paul is serious. Rand Paul likely does believe that the protesters may commence physical assaults, or robbery, as he is describing, and humor does not mesh with that notion.

Pretending, for a moment, that Senator Paul made his remarks out of a sense of good sportsmanship, then let us by all means play along. It's time to seize iPads. For poor people those devices aren't as useful as knee pads, but since we wouldn't be getting elbow pads at the same time anyway, to greatly lessen the discomfort of taking it from the wealthy on all fours, we might as well settle for the Apple gadgets. Some of us have no use for knee pads alone, anyway. Those of us who don't lend our mouths to the whims of the 1% for the sake of lining our pockets won't be able to stop the reaming, but we sure as hell don't have to be on our knees. We are forced to bend to pick our lives up from the dirt every time the top tier reaps too many digits of capital from derivatives, but we aren't obliged to pay lip service to the lofty aristocrats who bought representatives of the people body and soul. We owe no obeisance.

Senator Rand Paul should probably guard against the watchful eye of real conscience instead of feigning concern for items he likely doesn't even use. Every moment Eric Cantor barks complaints about all the complaints, another moment that could have been spent drafting real compromise and real solutions has passed by and disappeared. His party's warfare against civil liberties, common sense and decency in government obligations has been far more like true combat than the last ditch effort of everyday folk to save the dying American dream.

There can be no class warfare against the 1% at the top. Not only aren't there enough of them to count as a class, but there is no way to wage such a struggle. The infinitely privileged have purchased all the seats to the event, and the chairs sit empty. They have written all the rules requisite for participation, and refuse to even let them be read. They put a fence around the battlefield, and unless you're THIS tall you can't even get in. The warfare was over before it became a concept.

Krugman has a keen way of stating the painfully obvious. It would be a great Christmas present to wake up one year and find a piece by Krugman that lights up the room and the reader's thoughts. What a present if Krugman focused on the unbearable surplus of jobs, the overflowing ranks of the middle class, the staggering optimism of the masses and the undying spirit of friendship between the wealthy and the wealthier in this nation, and the other three people about to be empowered enough to reach that state as well. I can dream. I have hope, and it's not something from a speech. Of course I'm not stupid either, I just like to believe we as a people can pull off the impossible, if we 100% set our minds to it.

A Ported Portion a'Sunday

noreply@blogger.com (J. S. Day) — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 04:46:00 +0000

Coming Soon

Chapter 17: Smudge on a Clean Slate

October 12, 2011

NY Times article pointed out by Matthew Yglesias says that the Pearson Foundation has been funding international trips for education commissioners for what they call strictly educational purposes - to give the commissioners ideas for improving their schools from schooling models in other countries. The Pearson Foundation may have a generous streak a mile wide in its charter, but they surely want to sell books. At the very least they are counting on the recipients of their good will to drum up positive word of mouth for their company. It's a shame that the microscope for this sort of practice has to be on an educational company considering the vast world of lobbying sleaze out there. Possible that Pearson Foundation's travel agent got scooped by one of their competitors- En garde! Have at thee with this negative publicity!
The largest European hacker club, the Chaos Computer Club, claims to have discovered and analyzed a piece of malware written and used by German police. It's the typical Big Brother program for a totally invasive breach of privacy. The German government spyware intercepts data used on Internet telephony. It has no protections against being hijacked however, and can easily be used by a third party to have it do whatever they like: turn on and use webcams, or connected microphones, and easily capture screenshots of browsing and emails. German officials voiced denial. They couldn't be proud that not only does the malware have morally and legally corrupt implications, it's a shoddy piece of work as well, since anyone can use it
Not long ago Ars Technica ran a story enunciating a heap of very bad things about RSS, but the specifics weren't quite as large as the story. At the end the biggest definite negative was that RSS interrupts normal work flow. Updating feeds draw your attention away from a task at hand, and it can take up to fifteen minutes to fully resume the interrupted state of complete attentiveness. There was a brief section concerning the feeling that one is shirking work when confronted with the number of unread items at the top of an RSS reader, a number which never, ever goes down at any rate even close to the speed at which it goes up. The sense of an unmet obligation nags at the edges of one's awareness, and that can cause a slowdown in normal productivity.

Speaking of RSS, the front page link to Ars' RSS feeds is broken right now, which is why this story emerged here. This while Ars tries to sell personalized RSS feeds. 2011. Personalized RSS feed. 2D dating. Anti-depressant sales up. Topics relative to each other.
Right wing conservative talk about the end of the era of constant scientific progress means little as the progress rolls on. New chips: 20 times faster than DDR2, less volatile due to decreased electrical demand, more stable than NAND flash memory. Out soon.

Mozilla Firefox will be updated silently. Users will have to understand that consent for update is given when they begin using Firefox. User input actually drove the decision. People have wearied of constant update announcements regarding their browser. The move to silent upgrades won't happen until 2012.

Newsflash: Science Has Failed

noreply@blogger.com (J. S. Day) — Sun, 09 Oct 2011 19:37:00 +0000

Andrew Sullivan pays homage to some opinions found in the National Review Online, a piece written by Peter Thiel. Thiel hypothesizes that technological breakthroughs have come to an end and that our economic outlook has shifted accordingly. Facts have muffled the pomp and circumstance surrounding a move to green technology. The glorification of solar energy, environmentally friendly solutions to energy problems and all things green is a portrait of loss. The movement has failed. Futuristic agriculture isn't solving hunger. According to Thiel we have reached the end of progress and buzz now surrounds negative news rather than a slowdown in positive news. Economic news has returned to strictly economic trends as scientific discussion fades into obscurity.

"National Review Online" article, negativity, overweight Fertile Crescent descended marginally taboo sexual deviant - all factors that point to a yawn inducing Sunday afternoon non-news event. The Luddites in the GOP got an early Christmas present. It's an article saying their dreams have come true, that the development of new technology has ceased. Never mind Thiel created the story just to be contrary. Scientists, programmers, engineers and businessmen have never been hotter to make breakthroughs happen than they are right now, which is a constant state of deep seated yearning to make history and have a name that lives forever. Thiel, however, should be commended for bringing peace to some troubled oldsters afraid of a mandatory conversion kit that would sodomize their Studebakers, having them run on squeezed out Church's chicken napkins instead of good old fashioned liver friendly gasoline (gasoline is just for drinkin' now that cars run on stove drippings!).

I wrote what follows, but I respect Andrew Sullivan immensely. His posting of the material without a countering argument got on my nerves. This ad hominem response was uncalled for, and not my style.
Andrew Sullivan probably wanted to share a story about how long he gazed wistfully at a picture of Peter Thiel wearing a baby blue polyester sport coat in a speaking engagement for The League of Thermodynamics Deniers. It's difficult for Sullivan to be honest on a normal human level, however, so he brought us the uplifting words that our forward motion as a scientific culture has halted. So we are to go back to basket weaving in between gathering berries for the life prolonging paste our women will pound out. Hey, at least it wasn't Sullivan's NRO article.

The Value Voters Summit straw poll contained an error in one of the multiple choice questions. The question asked which issue was the most important to the voter in deciding who to support. One of the answers was "Protecting one man one women marriage." Rick Perry gained the assistance of Robert Jeffress in spotlighting Mitt Romney's cultist religious beliefs, that church physically linked to the Utah badlands and canyon country and forever associated with polygamy in the minds of any who have learned about the sect. "One man one women marriage:" Legalizing polygamy once again could be part of a hidden agenda at Mitt Romney headquarters, where jealousy fans the flames of anti-Chinese sentiment. Romney: "So many Chinese women, so only one marriage, so not available."

Saturday Cross Over

noreply@blogger.com (J. S. Day) — Sat, 08 Oct 2011 18:27:00 +0000

Emerging Saturday theme: "This is not what it is."
Alexandra Petrie refers to Occupy Wall Street protesters as these people, criticizes everything she can, refers to them as "us" and "we." She attempts to ride the coattails of the movement for any success she can get while at the same time demonstrating the incredible wit with which she can dispatch the ignorance of the protesters to futility.
Her column picks at every dangling thread of Occupy Wall Street using language that pretends she empathizes, or is even a part of the movement, Ms. Petrie, how hip art thou?

In Mitt Romney's campaign platform dealing with foreign affairs, the plan proposed with regard to China is not to build an anti-Chinese coalition, but rather "to strengthen cooperation among countries with which we share a concern about" that country. As Daniel Larison points out, Romney proposes to do all the same things as Obama with less tact and more antagonistically. It's not anti-Chinese, it's pro-weapons buildup, to be used against China, in case.

Laura Ingraham refers to herself as being together with the rest of us "who yearned for history" in the election of a black man to the presidency. Right after that she goes on to discuss how Herman Cain would really be the first black President, because Obama is mixed race. Ms. Ingraham has worked out the race thing for everyone, and we should be thankful. We might have thought Barack Obama was a black man if it weren't for her. What a classy dame.

These re the things that are what they are, not that aren't what they are, even if the author tells us that they are most definitely not what they are. Then there are industry shills masquerading as pundits who don't even bother to pretend they aren't what they are. Neil Stevens speaks out against Net Neutrality without any backing argument. He should have just said, "I'm against everything I am paid to be against. Down with the FCC and the law, especially Net Neutrality, because.. down with Net Neutrality!" Here's a gem, however: Obama himself is manipulating numbers on behalf of the FCC in order to steal from normal Americans. I knew it!

Dishonesty is beginning to ramp up. Attacks lacking context but long on criticism are on the uptick. It's a big election year coming. For many of these writers the facts aren't nearly as important as influence. But don't ask them. They'll answer that the facts are not what they "look more like." How does one do look more like? It doesn't make sense, correct? Neither do a lot of Republican statements as of late.
Encountered graphs and charts showing just how royally we, the 99% of the people who own the tiniest fraction of wealth, have been getting screwed for decades. It would be easy to cart them over here with a little of the old copypasta action, and that may still happen later. For now here's a link to the very depressing numbers and the glaring reality of how the wealthy have been sticking it to us.

I've forgotten to port from Symbols a few times. Gotta work on that.

Slowww

noreply@blogger.com (J. S. Day) — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 23:38:00 +0000

"I hired Sarah Palin because she was hot and got ratings." No, that quote has nothing to do with Senator John McCain, but anyone who knows their civics would already know that. In McCain's case it was why she was chosen. The quote is from Roger Ailes, Fox News Chairman, who actually hired her.

Regardless of what one may think about the former Alaska Governor. she understands money. She understands that money is something she receives for saying things and looking good. Considering what she has to say, looking good has more to do with the money than the quality of her opinions. One can only wonder if contemplation of the aging process and its detrimental effects on appearance worries Mrs. Palin. I won't tell her about it if you don't. [2:48 P.M.]

Senator Jeff Merkley on attending an Occupy Wall Street protest in Portland: "It's worth exploring." They aren't all bad. Still, don't expect to see him.

Weigh-in: Neo-Feudalism, Baby Factory X

noreply@blogger.com (J. S. Day) — Tue, 04 Oct 2011 23:36:00 +0000

Members of the U.S. House of Representatives Republican Goon Squad have locked Title X in their crosshairs and desire to slash funding for federal family planning grants that include birth control and preventive health care. A typical Title X patient costs about $257 a year; a birth averages $12,613. The Catholic and ultra-conservative line on birth control is that it should never be used. House Republicans can deny that religious beliefs have anything to do with their intentions, and instead can shake their fists at an imaginary leviathan government they insist needs to be smaller and less functional. To recap, in order to save money the GOP thinks patients should get pregnant and hand the country $3.4 billion a year in costs instead of having family planning for a fraction of the cost. Like everything else from the Party of No, it makes perfect sense to drunkards and Alzheimer's victims in the severe stages (so beloved because of dearly departed Great Leader, Bedtime for Bonzo's Reagan, The Man). - 6:30 P.M.

[Here's to adult abstinence among single couples - a dinosaur belief. How will the woman get the man married if she puts out early? Do you want your daughter single and sexually active? Some of you understand this... This is failed humor, and in poor taste at that. Some of us feel that way about the old fashioned beliefs described - no sex until marriage. Some of us are offended that they are old fashioned now. The thing is, the religious subjugation of women has been a minority practice my entire life, in my little part of the world.

Since I threw up this waste of space Mitt Romney checked with a woman's husband to see if it was okay to put his arm around her -- same school of belief. A woman is less than a free individual in the conservative religious world. A married woman belongs to her husband. Daughters reach adulthood and escape parental ownership, but never lose dad's guardianship. This is a non-issue, thankfully, so there's nothing to defuse or continue explaining.]
By far one urgent complaint among working class people here in the United States involves the evaporation of the middle class. In places like Norfolk-Virginia Beach, so desirable a place to live to so many, six and seven day work weeks are common. The critical problem is that generations of workers do not have anything left over after rent, utilities, transportation expenses and food. Many men and women are faced with either working without earning any long term gains of any kind, or leaving the place where they live in favor of a location where rent and other costs are significantly cheaper.

The situation in modern America in many ways resembles a very real neo-feudalism ruled by corporations. Families are separated due to inescapable economic facts. The working class spends a large portion of their lives as slaves due to numbers that have been shrunk down until they fit individuals like a glove: One person can survive on this dollar figure, therefore they equal this number in value. Included in that survival... survival only. Proactive wellness and stability only exist for those people lucky enough to live in the economic tiers above workaday.
From the arena of ideas surrounding Occupy Wall Street a member of the Daily Kos community voiced that which is required to stop the nation's unemployment crisis: A massive government jobs program with a $5 trillion dollar budget. That could first be seen at the link as part of a graphic that addresses specifics in providing populist solutions regarding Wall Street and the out of control profiteering in the finance industry. Also on tap - instead of even contemplating a return to the already inadequate Glass-Steagall style regulations, nationalize the banking industry and entirely eliminate earnings from speculation on subprime mortgages and the high risk credit industry.

Pensador continued to call for prosecution of the people who walked away with millions and tens of millions of dollars during the government bailout, and further back. There was a nod to shutting down the incessant broken record calling for public austerity measures that real people do not actually want. It's too bad Occupy Wall Street did not write something similar to what this Kossack did and then release that, instead of the statement that did come out.

Gone with the Win

noreply@blogger.com (J. S. Day) — Tue, 04 Oct 2011 02:26:00 +0000

Hank Williams Jr. destroyed too many brain cells during his long life. He had to be taken off the air for comparing the President of the United States to Hitler. The comparison just doesn't make any sense. A month ago a comparison to Nero would have been so much more rational, and it's batshit insane. One could still make a reach, consider the jobs bill a violin and struggle to make that comparison work, except the jobs bill won't soothe a savage beast and the political cacophony is horribly displeasing to the ear compared to a well played violin. It will do one thing: Create jobs. "I'm not crazy, you're the one who's crazy -- institutionalized."
Cynicism does not translate into print or your author's written opinions on GOP policy regarding federal action on the economy would drip with metal melting acid. House Majority Leader Eric Cantor rejected Obama's jobs bill outright with the expected, usual and customary pointless Republican obstructionism. Cantor takes his party line in insisting our government must not spend money to help the people who are hurting so badly because of unemployment and monetary hardship. The Obama Administration has promised to push back by courting voters to a Democratic victory. The Democrats had the entire government handed to them on a silver platter in 2008 and failed to act decisively and strongly enough to prevent back-to-back recessions. Maybe, just maybe, with a second term mandate and a massive GOP meltdown voters will get what they voted for. One can always dream that cows jump over the moon.
Some people like to hunt. Rick Perry has an affinity for hunting. He joined a hunting camp in West Texas. Perry paid for the right to hunt at Camp Niggerhead. No doubt the hunting camp provides access to world class game, because Mr. Perry joined even though it was called Camp Niggerhead. It could have been worse. It could have been named Camp Niggerdick or Camp Niggerass, or any number of other combinations of the word nigger and something else offensive, something as offensive as Rick Perry.

The name was changed after Perry proudly joined the racist hunting club. It wouldn't do to have a membership in a hunting camp that still contained the word nigger in the name even after he joined. Oddly, though Perry is now a member and though the name would have fit perfectly, the name of the camp was not changed to Camp Detestable Rich White Scumbag.

Hundreds of protesters trapped on a bridge by "security forces" were handcuffed and carted away over the weekend. The scene was not from Egypt, nor did it have anything to do with the Arab Spring. It was a continued protest in New York set off by the out of control finance industry and the very wealthy who make money off of money itself. A big slice of the United States population is now made up of people disillusioned by the failure of the American dream and the complete lack of real action by their elected representatives, especially President Obama who many people considered a great source of hope in the midst of financial woe.

Occupy Wall Street released a statement which outlined grievances very effectively, and proved they could make a statement. They made a statement, but they provided no solutions, no course of action. The protests are laudable. They are also highly reactionary. A lack of a message of positive radical change in the statement unfortunately undermines the impact of the live action. If action only solved problems what is becoming seen as a movement would be much more successful.

Think Progress compared the protests to the original Boston Tea Party, a comparison that very accurately describes what the political Tea Party has failed to achieve. If a revolution were only possible with our current choices in the political arena the protests would be scuttling a real enemy. As it stands they are little more than a symbol of frustration.

Teh Gay: Mo' Dangerous than Terrorism

noreply@blogger.com (J. S. Day) — Thu, 15 Sep 2011 14:55:00 +0000

Republican Representative Sally Kern describes homosexuality as more dangerous than terrorism because "we have to deal with it every day." Curiously she makes no mention of lesbianism. This begs the question what danger is actually posed by same gender relations. Reproductively speaking, eventually, if the nation's tiniest minority somehow grew about ten thousand percent, our species would have difficulty surviving due to lack of childbirth. I think Rep. Kern is more referring to personal dangers, however. There's a real danger large numbers of men may consider going over to the opposite team before exploring that bat infested, cobwebbed region Kern is apparently desperate to have some attention paid to.

You can feel lack of sexual satisfaction just grating in all of Kern's bitchy remarks. Poor thing. This is why gigolos should be legal. If somebody has to make such a sacrifice they deserve to be compensated, well compensated. *__*

A Tee and Tea

noreply@blogger.com (J. S. Day) — Wed, 14 Sep 2011 23:36:00 +0000

A major report from the University of Michigan and backed by Microsoft determined that two major phone service carriers are using huge amounts of your bandwidth and battery life to investigate your communications. Deep packet inspection takes place regularly. You have no privacy because of some fanatics with razor blades ten years ago. Slow transmissions, degraded battery life, poor connections, all these things are a result of telcoms spying on customers. It has not stopped. You're still getting screwed.

Obama Starts Fighting

noreply@blogger.com (J. S. Day) — Wed, 07 Sep 2011 02:12:00 +0000

President Obama called out Republicans by name while discussing jobs. I am deeply gladdened. The man I supported for the presidency in 2008 struck me as somebody who would not back down when people's livelihoods are at stake. President Obama has finally begun to retreat from the highly honorable bipartisanship that marked this term and face the realities of the opposition party's catastrophic financial policies. GOP austerity and cuts have already stabbed the economy in the back. It was time the gloves came off. This is a morale booster.

The Truth About the Postal Service

noreply@blogger.com (J. S. Day) — Wed, 07 Sep 2011 01:39:00 +0000

Almost yearly politicians paint the United States Postal Service in drab, funereal colors and describe it as a sick institution in need of drastic measures to be saved. That is not true. The service has a prefunding requirement that makes it seem in trouble, but "without Congress’s prefunding requirement, the USPS would have zero debt, billions in spare cash, and a $15 billion line of credit."

In 2006 the Bush Administration enacted the PAEA law that allows Congress to skim around $5 billion a year from the institution. The Postal Service has a $42.5 billion trust fund and has overpaid in the neighborhood of $50-75 billion into its Civil Service retirement fund. A report from the USPS itself says that a cash shortfall would not cause service interruptions.

The right wing talking points on this subject allows them to carry out their agenda of crippling labor causes, spreading misinformation for election year gains and still reaping cash rewards for the lies. I worked for the United States Postal Service. It's run like a very tight ship, and would function very well without the false emergency that began at the hands of political masterminds. This crisis is concocted.

The GOP very successfully prevented our entire facility from receiving benefits, although that year and the year before the USPS turned a massive profit. That was before electronic mail and competition really ramped up, but the situation isn't the dire disaster referred to. Not that much has changed. The USPS is still a vehicle for Republican Party propaganda, and would function very well without these talking points we hear so often.

Little Comment

noreply@blogger.com (J. S. Day) — Sun, 04 Sep 2011 17:11:00 +0000

I make the following remarks in view of the huge protests by Israeli citizens over the cost of living and their economic status. When times become so difficult people on a scale of millions, one quarter million to one million people in Israel, easily in the hundreds of millions globally, demonstrate against poverty and economic conditions, we here should take note. Maybe your part of the United States doesn't have economic difficulties, and everyone is comfy cozy. Everywhere I go there is hardship. The news shows just how bad things can get, and just how far people are willing to go to get a fair shake. Maybe one day we can truly say our nation is above such problems, but right now quite frankly it is not.

While some of us who care deeply can find little reason to continue exposing the hordes of fanatic Republicans, their idols continue spewing misinformation to millions of people everyday. Rush Limbaugh went on roaring about Americans who do not pay income taxes this week to his brainwashed fans, not mentioning the wide variety of other taxes the poor can not avoid. He failed to note the wealthiest entities and many of the wealthiest people avoid income tax altogether as well, and can avoid the other taxes. Exxon-Mobil deducts taxes they pay to other governments from their income tax to the United States, and they wind up paying nothing. It boggles the mind to consider that Limbaugh fans actually consider the poverty stricken of this nation more beholden to the Federal Treasury than multi-billion dollar corporations.

The Republican attitude isn't new at all, and is not surprising, just ghastly. They holler about poor people being what's wrong with our country and our economy. Poor people are the result of what's wrong, and not vice versa. Not paying taxes is a horrible thing. It means deep despair and lack of funds almost all the time. How this could be described as some sort of tactic is just completely deranged. No, wait, it's a normal GOP talking point.

It feels very strange to comment more about LSU football than current events and political ideology, but doing so is less disturbing to local morale. While the current administration has worked wonders in a Great Society sense, job creation and economic expansion have nosedived, and Obama's bipartisan idealism is like flypaper for optimistic thoughts. Just to imagine it drains positivity.

The whole point of the community reform movement of 2008 was not to extend federal assistance programs ala Great Society and welfare, but instead level the playing field for jobs and earning with robust progressive reforms. Those hopes died when Obama's centrist post-partisan comments turned out to be his character defining statements, and so too did I cease to loudly advocate for aggressive socioeconomic reform. Instead, for now, I am advocating that LSU be forthwith ranked #1 in college football.

As the next election year looms there will be much time in the spring and summer to rally voters to once again seek more effective leadership, to stop the bipartisan fiasco. Intelligent, viable reforms have absolutely nothing to do with leftist ideology and everything to do with common sense and social survival for a mass percentage of United States citizens. Many of our people are confronted with never making it out of the lower middle class, or watching their portion of the middle class disappear altogether. Leveling accusations with terms hinged on the right side or the left side oversimplifies the discussion for the sake of stifling high level dialog. It is what is to be expected next year. Nothing good on a vast scale happens without work and struggle, and accomplishing what needs to be done to make our country's economic stage fair is a great goal indeed. Duck calls will not affect the outcome of this debate...

I am anxious to hear the President's new job initiative due out next week. The GOP Tea Party movement has managed to curb spending until the economy came to a standstill again, so the damage has to be countered. We take one step forward and two steps back when the public forgets about "trickle down economics" and how badly working people had it under that system. The Midterm election was just as disastrous as expected. The jobs initiative could at the very least help staunch the bleeding.

Bubbles in the Water

noreply@blogger.com (J. S. Day) — Tue, 23 Aug 2011 00:07:00 +0000

Like a diver overcome by nervousness and one too many caffeine free cappucinos the night before the big meet, the economy went off of the diving board and flopped onto its belly. An unpredictable splash swamped some of the shallow end of the pool, the safe place for careful money where some investors just recently went back in the water. It could have been worse. The economy could have taken a nose dive that ended in a concussion at the bottom, and lots of blood in the water.

Many will suffer no consequences from a lapse back into recession. The headlines mean nothing to those whose investments are varied enough that their tactical losses are buoyed by long term gains. Some very savvy business minded people will see this news and get on their marks to invest at low prices. Then there are the average working Americans whose livelihoods are indirectly and negatively impacted by troubled economic news. When companies lose money cuts can be expected, cuts to the workforce, to the salaries of those who keep their jobs, to benefits, and anything else that will keep stockholders on board by saving the bottom line.

There are still reasons to look on the bright side. The bad news could have come before this year's spring commencements, when new college graduates expand the workforce. Those who got jobs before the new downswing are very lucky. New hires are safer than long term employees. Keeping them and sacrificing older workers makes good financial sense for many companies. Younger workers are cheaper, and often less informed and willing to work for less.

Bad economic news is good news for the opposition party in Washington. The current administration will not have the luxury of going into the election year riding a tide of optimism and glowing success stories. Republicans will see a lot of gains, and Democrats will have a bitter struggle to hold on. The way this works politically, at least on paper, may as well have been choreographed in advanced.

Progressive economists and political analysts, almost across the board, saw this coming since before Bush ever left office. The bailout, even with all of the zeros that were involved, really wasn't big enough to effect the sort of change that needed to take place. Matthew Yglesias and Paul Krugman, specifically, alluded to the financial quicksand Japan found itself in during the later part of the twentieth century. The Japanese economy faced one bubble and burst after another because the government response to the initial problem, as massive as it was, simply wasn't enough to stabilize the overall downward trend. Their problems went on for fifty years. As many were saying during the TARP fiasco, we could either get it right the first time or play a game of chopping off hydra heads for a very long time.

This news of recession has a great big silver lining, for a lot of people. Some of the races in the coming election year that looked relatively safe for the incumbent Democrat will be hotly contested. The Democratic National Committee will have to spend money on races that were projected to be held with very low advertising and campaigning cost. The slimiest part of politics revolves around finding benefits in bad news, and this fits the bill to a tee. The summer vacation period has come to an end, and Republicans just got an early Christmas present.

Al Qaeda

noreply@blogger.com (J. S. Day) — Sun, 24 Jul 2011 18:51:00 +0000

The State Library of Louisiana is closed on Fridays, permanently. This is an underhanded attack on library freedom, a kick in the pants when least expected. The bastion of public computing with an awesome view of the river has been compromised. The public has been told it's because of budget cuts. That is obvious code for "sneak attack on library hours." Al Qaeda is not involved.

Hmm...

noreply@blogger.com (J. S. Day) — Sun, 24 Jul 2011 14:52:00 +0000

It is confirmed. We get old. Committee weighing benefits of studying whether or not women get old as well.

Current Abortion Trend

noreply@blogger.com (J. S. Day) — Sat, 23 Jul 2011 05:29:00 +0000

Doctors know that in most cases the foetus begins feeling pain somewhere between 20 and 25 weeks into the pregnancy. A review in England, conducted by an Oxford-Cambridge assembly of doctors, called the Royal College of Obstetrics and Gynecology, gave some breathing room to the morality of second trimester abortions, but only the first few weeks of it. It reported that links between peripheral nerves and the cortex do not develop until after 25 weeks. I can only conclude that abortions performed after 25 weeks come with a very high moral price attached, if the life of the mother is not in dire jeopardy.

[Parental material removed. An ethics procedure surrounding every detail of an approval does exist, and I will not make it public knowledge. What I can't do is control the actions of physicians. All I can do is advise them of what they should already know. Divinity will not be denied. To do so mires the soul and spirit. I would never be able to perform the procedure at any point beyond the development of the intracortical nerve bindings, unless it were to save the life of both the doctor and the woman. The setting of the procedure obscures identity, but some zealots never stop trying to break that boundary, or so I learned from protests at Delta Women's Clinic. A medical procedure does not amount to murder, and safeguards against it ever being such a thing exist, to the highest power. "Honor thy mother and thy father:" This commandment denies one of perpetual non-violence the ability to shirk service to humanity as a whole as a medical doctor. One's parents deserve their son's best, in every way, and humanity also deserves service from a man trained in performing surgical procedures. At a juxtaposition of every medical concept a simple snip could never amount to a fall from grace. There is no death from pride, only a titanic maneuver to impede the progress of the gifted by people who refused to acknowledge the beauty of divinely inspired works. They are the women who cast their stones without knowledge of circumstance and arrived at the scene of revelations wanting retribution and finding themselves in need of what they condemn. No doctor ever managed to practice without undergoing a trial by fire.]

Take a stance on abortion, candidates. Elections can not be avoided. I will be checking printed newspapers from multiple cities on a daily basis. My trap was sprung and found empty last election. This coming election the individuals responsible for the theft of the game will be brought to light. That game is the news, and names are very important, where the world of war and the world of peace hang in the balance.

United States Censorship

noreply@blogger.com (J. S. Day) — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 21:42:00 +0000

I never believed it existed. I still do not believe anyone would be ignorant to censor the free flow of information here in the United States. There is no justification for the censorship of written material by an adult. The only possible rationalization that could be used for such an action would be child safety, but the application of that rationale makes absolutely no sense in any place that is not visually pornographic. The burden of child safety in ideological matters does not rest with writers, artsist and musicians. The parents carry that burden. No child would ever be interested in political writing. No child would go looking for written content of a sexual nature. If any child were led to such material by one or more parents, then the parent or parents are responsible for what the child finds.

I once wrote one sentence about testifying before Congress on banned literature, and said that I might do so if I could get a printing press. I was toying with methods of becoming financially successful when I wrote that sentence. Additionally, I've never delved into obscenity beyond one sentence of one short piece of fiction. Glorifying that or attempting to capitalize on something of that nature is below someone of my character. I toyed with a method of becoming successful, not with the idea of distributing obscene material. I stand firmly with normal society against morally offensive material, and by that I mean offensive morally on a legal scale.

I am solidly against illegal drugs, although because of a lifetime as an adult with chronic severe pain and lack of real healthcare I have been forced in the past to turn to self medication. Mind over matter can apply to budgetary concerns. Applying mind over matter to conquering severe pain is absolutely ludicrous. Attempting to do so can cause permanent damage, worsen existing problems, and at extreme levels cause delirium. I regret having written flippantly about drugs a couple of years ago, but I really was taking a walk down memory lane. If there's anything left in my writing that even remotely encourages the use of illegal drugs it is only there because I failed to find the material and remove it.

As is obvious, I have written little that is pornographic and nothing considered socially deviant. One monthly issue of the classiest pornographic letters magazine includes more writing about varieties of heterosexuality than everything I've ever written. I've never written anything about homosexuality, because, even more obviously, I'm not. I did read homosexual material at the Parish Library in Baton Rouge once, long ago, out of curiosity.

This brings me to thoughts about United States obscenity laws. I have read about them, but i have no idea what they could be referring to. I've never encountered anything that would be considered offensive at an illegal level, and I hope that I do not. My greatest hope is to have a family of my own, having been denied the ability to do that once in the past because I could not be in two places at the same time. Does it shock anyone that I fully support the law in all these matters? If it does, that person does not know me.

That reminds me. From now on when I get robbed or burglarized I will no longer contend that the person must have committed the action because they were influenced by their environment. I may actually press charges for the first time. I've often wondered if my life would have been different if I had pressed charges against the first person who burglarized my apartment, on State Street, back in 1985.

Just some thoughts.

Lucian Freud Passed

noreply@blogger.com (J. S. Day) — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 20:23:00 +0000

The passage of the great artist Lucian Freud may not immediately rumble the foundations of the art world in the United States, but it is already being said that "Bristish art has lost one of its greats." The grandson of Sigmund Freud was known as a perfectionist. His career began during the neo-Romantic period of the art of Brittania. The inescapable logic concerning human behavior in psychoanalysis advanced by his grandfather, which Sigmund Freud's nephew, Edward Bernays, helped commercially apply to the stock market in the United States (according to to the documentary The Century of the Self, readily available at Google video), contributed to the beginning of the Great Depression in the United States. The impact of the Freud family on politics remained minimal because of the evening and broad distributive effect of social concept diffusion, some from their family may think thanfully. Like all great doctors, thinkers and artists their impact, however, can not be denied. Heartfelt condolences and hope for the future go out to Mr. Freud's friends, relatives and loved ones.

- Story discovered at Newcastle Herald. [Corrected: I absent mindedly reprinted an underhanded stab at the artist. I am angry with myself for not having been more attentive. Something so low on my part would never have taken place intentionally.]

Rep. Allen West Calls Out DNCC

noreply@blogger.com (J. S. Day) — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 02:21:00 +0000

(R-Fla) Representative Allen West, according to Ben Smith, crack Politico reporter, and Thers, owner of a waddling duck picture at Whiskeyfire, both brought attention to Florida Republican Representative Allen West for his thoughtful and well documented response to statements by Democratic National Committe Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz. Chairwoman Wasserman Schultz directed a laundry list of complaints against West: That his support of Cut, Cap and Balance legislation would cut Medicaid, increase cost for Medicare beneficiaries and hurt the poor people of South Florida through helping those least in need of help, the most wealthy.

Rep. West "respectful" response: "... you are vile... despicable... a coward... shut the heck up..." followed by him throwing his pootie and plopping down. Ms. Wasserman Schultz was unharmed by the words. West's response may have been typical of the hot summer months, but there is a more likely explanation. From a letter written by the Florida Representative:

I am bringing your actions today to our Majority Leader and Majority Whip
and from this time forward, understand that I shall defend myself forthright
against your heinous characterless behavior……which dates back to the disgusting
protest you ordered at my campaign hqs, October 2010 in Deerfield Beach.

You have proven repeatedly that you are not a Lady, therefore, shall not
be afforded due respect from me!

The DNC Chairwoman's statements hinted at nothing remotely untoward or unprofessional. Representative West's response revealed embedded misogyny. It's difficult to determine why he reacted the way he did. The comments from Wasserman's Schultz were perceived by Representative West to be threatening in ways the text itself could not have included. Such an over reaction from a member of Congress tells of character issues. A deeper analysis of his stance can single out the thread of his thinking that results in the defensiveness.

That Representative West felt so threatened by a woman, and displayed aggression, indicates desire to quiet the feminine gender through masculine posturing. Such a revealed facet of character in the face of numeric debate goes directly to the root of his role as a community leader, and shows that is where he feels insecure. It is impossible that his role in the community itself is a weakness, or he would not be speaking from a position of strength on its behalf. It is the most essential basis of community leadership that reveals instability, his home life.

He showed misogyny, and that means there is a problem. The riddle is already solved. He's not young enough to have masculine insecurities. That only leaves his marital status in a realm of reducing possibilities - investments and finance can't be his weakness, that is his approach. Representative West is married, so that can't be a source of weakness. That leaves only one possibility. Allen West may be compensating for his own weakness of having been unfaithful to his wife.

Last night I was working on this and got shut out of the system. The conclusion does not follow at all from the evidence, except as the most analytically likely case. Such burdens of proving innocence have been placed before many people. All that is truly evident is that the Representative exhibited a marked aggressive response against a soft spoken chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee. There may have been racism on hs part. Maybe he just didn't like her, but his response would still be very problematic.

A personal problem betwen he and his spouse would be the least politically damaging thing for him, analytically. It never had to be acknowledged that some self-important theorist said somthing about it. It offered an easy way out. Maybe it's something more problematic. Maybe it's nothing at all. I just thought about it and wrote my analysis of his behavior. I have only the data you do. Obviously I can have no definitive proof of anything but that the story was very striking in its angle of factuality.

Sanest Person in D.C. to Vote

noreply@blogger.com (J. S. Day) — Wed, 20 Jul 2011 01:53:00 +0000

Michelle Bachmann has been judged, laughed at, ridiculed and condemned repeatedly in the past on web sites devoted to left wing campaigning and hype. Sometimes shown out of context in videos carrying such labels as "Bats*** Crazy Bachmann," other times pronounced unbalanced for her breathing during Congressional meetings, Representative Bachmann is no stranger to the ugly techniques employed by her opponents. At least one groups' website even used mux synchronization in a digital cut and splice hit job, a calculated effort to make her look bad. That isn't rare or complicated, it's just entirely dishonest.

During the 2008 election, one I covered just for fun and a sense of national involvement, although it was merely from the Internet angle, it seemed like harmless fun. Completely naïve about the motivation behind spin angles here, it wasn't until this year that ballpark figures on the amount of money involved with such attacks came into my focus. Because of private beliefs, money has always been precluded entirely from my creative matters. After the truth slammed home, translating headlines and captions such as the ones described above became very easy. Michelle Bachmann's sanity must be solid as a rock, and considering the angles used against her she must be kind, considerate and compassionate. That's the sort of person who would be most vulnerable from such bile.

The Republican from Minnesota has been campaigning in South Carolina. She missed an early vote today on a debt ceiling "cut, cap and balance" bill. The bill would raise the debt ceiling and at the same time require that a balanced budget amendment be passed by the entire Congress, which would restore budget balance for the first time since the 42nd President was in office.

Representative Bachmann initially refused to back the plan without requiring repeal of the healthcare reforms instituted by the last Congress. Doing such a thing has historially taken a minimum of ten years. It could, ideally, be accomplished in one senatorial term, but that would require a nearly unanimous Congress. She must maintain that stance on that issue, although hopeless at the moment, because it is expected by her constituents. Bachmann is a founding member of the Tea Party caucus, which demands cuts in federal spending during a time when taxpayers are suffering. To many hometown Minnesotans, in places such as Duluth, extravagances of congressional action and spending in D.C. have taken place during hard times, at the wrong time.

Results of tonight's legislative action will be available tomorrow. I'll follow up on coverage of the vote, which was preceded by a pledge from Senator (R-S.C.) Jim DeMint. The advocates of hands off government consider this a key issue, and as such it is a very big deal which is tremendously understated.

Sudan: Government, Stability, Resources

noreply@blogger.com (J. S. Day) — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 15:08:00 +0000

This morning on CSpan2 the Senate Foreign Relations Committee met with Princeton Lyman, the U.S. special envoy for Sudan. In a report to the distinguished Senators of the committee Mr. Lyman covered the condition of the government in that country, and detailed social and economic concerns of a nation that has seen recent instability. In the last half hour of the meeting the special envoy gelled the major points the United States would like to see addressed in Sudan. Senator John Kerry (D-M), Senator Tom Udall (D-New Mexico), Senator Dick Lugar (R-Indiana), Senator Johnny Isakson (R-Georgia) and Senator Chris Coons (D-Delaware) were in attendance and raised questions about the finer points of the situation in the two major regions of the African nation linked to the Nile River.

For those who have no idea what the government in Sudan currently resembles, Senator Lugar clarified the issue succinctly. The situation is very nearly typical of an Arab Spring government. The country has a disproportionately strong president, when compared to the power of the rest of the government, likely unwilling to relinquish any power or control. A standing military of 140,000 men is linked to President al-Bashir, but many of the members of that force lack education. At the same time food costs and shortages have resulted in mass social protests similar to the one witnessed in Tahrir Square in Egypt. Sudan produces oil, although not in great quantities, which brings a magnified international focus on the country's stability. That resource never stops being in demand, and conditions that impact the price raise the interest of consumer nations.

Investing in a broader stability and vigilant security in Sudan comes in as our primary concern there. First and foremost the drafting of a permanent constitution would establish equilibrium on a much wider scale. According to Princeton Lyman, the United States really seeks the delineation of two states within Sudan. The northern agricultural region and the oil producing southern region of the nation do not stand at odds with each other. Because of migration between the two areas and tense economic conditions quarrels have broken out between groups of people, and blame has been leveled at the government as so often happens. The highest end result of Sudan's constitutional reform as linked to our key issues would be establishing democratic representation for the two regions so that concerns can be met, and the clarification of the specific agencies within the government that would deal with regional concerns. Domestically critical among the tasks of a constitutional drafting authority would be founding permanent agencies for humanitarian and educational needs of the people and ongoing development of the country's resources in assured, timely progfressions.

The Sudanese military should be drawn away from the chief executive to a degree. A consolidation process placing the more highly educated and skilled men of the army in a centralized command chain would bleed away the influence of satellite generals. A merger of Sudan's militia with the main body would help eliminate any fringe discipline problems remaining after the restructure and shift of military leadership at every level. A move to educate and train the rank and file of the Sudanese military would round out the task of reshaping that structure.

Senator Kerry early on inquired about specifics of conflict and instability there, and brought specific focus to military and trade issues of the Sudanese government. One of the foremost concerns in the assistance of that nation remains debt relief, and, as he pointed out, that issue strongly needs to be addressed. Russia is the administrator of United States aid to that nation, and removing the current massive pressure of Sudan's debt was on the table to be addressed forthwith. Special envoy Lyman also optimistically pointed to undeveloped potential for Sudanese trade with the East African Union as a potential source of economic upswing aside from lifting some of the crushing debt burden.

To summarize extensivly, a military response to conflict in Sudan from the United States seems far removed from the picture, but does remain a final option. Adoption of a permanent constitution there will address our key issues of security and stability. Restructuring of the military, perhaps with light observation and advisement from trained United States personnel, would relieve threats close to the main structure of the government. Finally, development of food and economic resources and a look at debt relief for Sudan will do much to smooth out tensions that have been brewing there.

Self Taught Humility

noreply@blogger.com (J. S. Day) — Sun, 17 Jul 2011 01:56:00 +0000

After reacting with vigor to conditions in Louisiana following Hurricane Katrina, and campaigning strenuously in 2008 against the leadership in Washington responsible at the time, the trail of paper exclamations and exhortations grew spiritually troublesome. Evidence of overreacting could be found hither and yon. Assaults on the former administration's performance and the character of its people floated on hollow waves of empty celebration. Making up for that could not take place without personal sacrifice. Simply destroying the exuberant verbal reconnaisances and attacks did not meet the criteria of sacrifice demanded by the all seeing mirror that shows personal flaws from every conceivable angle.

To truly make amends I felt an overwhelming urge to pay tribute to former President G. W. Bush by following in his footsteps, at least in spirit. So I cheered. I cast off the chains of obstinence, foolhardy self-importance, and crushed that opulence founded in a house of cards. I cheered. The living world may never know the crushing defeat I lived through one morning as a failed cheerleader, for I will likely never find the words to convey the depth of the humbling experience. Repentant and at peace with myself at last, following the cheering incident, I gathered the remains of my tattered ego and curled into a fetal position. Thus began the healing process, and this confession brings it to a sound and mighty culmination. All is well once more. The great spirit stick in the sky has been appeased, for now.

Beyond the Horizon

noreply@blogger.com (J. S. Day) — Tue, 14 Jun 2011 19:11:00 +0000

An environmental quilt on display at the State Museum in the State Capitol complex of downtown Baton Rouge, Beyond the Horizon, will be on display through the end of June. Here's the release from the office of the Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana. Environmentalists Without Borders, an organization currently under the leadership of Penny Meaux Edwards, paid for Beyond the Horizon.

The quilt symbolizes the delicate ecosystem of Louisiana's wetlands and the magnificent nature of our wildlife areas. The quilt is of a pelican emerging from muddy Gulf of Mexico waters into beautiful sunlight. The theme calls to mind recent oil spills in the Gulf, but the theme of the exhibit is deeper. It also draws attention to the responsibility of state citizens to abstain from ecologically unfriendly principles. Thoughtfulness of action resounds in many dimensions. Oil and petroleum distillate runoffs, litter and garbage, these are things that hurt the beauty of our state. Care begins at home, and we should all care deeply. Tourism and our economy will thrive if everyone does their part.

The museum is open to the public free of admission Tuesday through Friday. The museum has wheelchair access. The quilt will tour other museums after that.

[Original state release document prepared by Jacques Berry]

Clean up on Ceiling Increase, Aisle Right

noreply@blogger.com (J. S. Day) — Tue, 31 May 2011 13:00:00 +0000

The first bill of six under consideration today in the United States House of Representatives deals with raising the debt ceiling. Only forty minutes of debate will be allowed for the bill, a 2/3 vote will be required for passage and no amendments may be attached. Looks like smooth sailing for the passage of that bill, except for the fact that it's doomed to fail.

The spotless bill, usually referred to as a "clean" bill, has no concessions or riders attached to it. That means the clean debt ceiling bill will not have cuts to Medicare or Medicaid, as Republicans have meekly and demurely asked for. It will also not contain the elimination of entire federal government departments. The Republicans sent a request for that in a note folded like an origami dove, the symbol of their peacefulness and desire to compromise.

None of the GOP's coyly suggested concessions have been included in the "spotless" debt ceiling bill (known as the "clean" debt ceiling bill). Republicans will be able to claim there's no desire on the part of Democrats to make major cuts.

Nobody is mentioning the attachment of a little paragraph at the bottom of the folded dove note, one that may have been rude and now baudy (it became baudy). It turns out Republican concession pleas may not be so sweet after all. Some of the cuts may be mean spirited and impolite.

Bottom Line:

Highly likely no debt ceiling increase today.
Creating civics confusion will help people learn more about civics better than no story at all.