For What It's Worth

Why is Science Important?

2009-07-19T10:10:00.001-07:00

... or catch the clip on YouTube after the click.

Which One Wins?

2009-07-15T10:54:00.001-07:00

One evening a Cherokee elder told his grandson about a battle that goes on inside every person.

"My son, the battle is between two wolves. One is Evil. It is anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority and ego. The other is God. It is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion, and faith."

The grandson pondered a moment and then asked: "Which wolf wins?"

The grandfather replied, "The one you feed."

Could it be what they call "projection" in psychology?

2009-07-11T13:21:00.007-07:00

For a long time the far right has accused liberals of conspiring to establish a world government. I've been a liberal (or progressive) for a long time and I can attest to the fact that people on the left are simply not that unified or organized. (As Will Rogers was fond of saying, "I'm not a member of any organized political party. I'm a Democrat.")

However, the same cannot be said for those on the right:

Ensign's "C Street House" Owned By Group Touting Plans For Christian World Control

Most recently covered by MSNBC's Rachel Maddow (1, 2), Washington D.C.'s "C Street House" has over the past two weeks become the center of a media firestorm. Along with GOP Senator Tom Coburn, sex-scandal embroiled GOP leaders Senator John Ensign and South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford have been tied to the row house, assessed to be worth 1.84 million dollars, which is registered as a church and provides Washington politicians with substantially lower than market rate rent. Coburn and Ensign have lived at the C Street house, while Sanford has participated in its Bible study group.

According to the Washington Post the house is owned by Youth With a Mission D.C. Youth With a Mission is one of the most extensive Christian fundamentalist para-church organizations on Earth, and YWAM founder leader Loren Cunningham has publicly outlined a vision for Christian world-control.

... read the rest after the click.

Fairly Unbalanced

2009-07-09T19:24:00.001-07:00

... or pick up on the clip on YouTube after the click.

Smooth Criminal - Saudi Style

2009-07-02T12:55:00.001-07:00

... or catch the clip after the click

Competition?

2009-06-29T09:56:00.005-07:00

There are those who suggest a public health care option would eliminate competition. Frankly, if health insurance companies were in the business of competing to provide quality health care, it would be a good argument. Unfortunately, insurance companies are not in that business. They are in the business of competing for profits and profits come from providing selective health care. Selection is made at two points in the process. First, insurance companies seek to insure those least likely to need health care. Second, insurance companies have active profit protection programs based on claims denial. The more claims for health care they can deny, the more profitable they are. Health insurance companies see no value in providing health care where it's needed. Only the people who pay the premiums see value there.

Interestingly enough, the same people who claim that a public option would kill competition also claim that the government is incapable of providing effective and efficient health care coverage. If that's true, then what are they worried about. the current system of competition will certainly out-compete an ineffective, inefficient government supported system. No one will take the government sponsored health care option ... right?

Asking people who know ...

2009-06-23T11:38:00.005-07:00

KOUROSS ESMAELI: What is interesting about the criticisms that are coming from the right is that it’s been coming primarily from Senator John McCain. The Iranians know Senator John McCain as the man who sang “Bomb, bomb Iran” during the elections of last year. The man holds no credibility as far as supporting Iranians or seeming like he’s got the best interests of the Iranians at heart. And that, for Iranians and for this issue, that discredits him altogether and discredits this whole attack on President Obama.

President Obama’s stand, I think, has been the most sensible, and it’s amazing that the President of the United States is taking such a sensible stand. And that — everyone I’ve talked to in Iran has said the same thing, that we do not need any symbol of Western, especially American, interference in Iran’s internal politics. And the fact that America does not have diplomatic relations with Iran really ties its hand, as far as how far he can go in really supporting Iran. So the only thing they can do is to just scream as loud as they can, which will be immediately used by the Iranian authorities.

... get the whole story after the click.

My comment: It's interesting how the people with the least credibility on a topic are often the loudest voices. McCain said during the campaign that the economy was not his strong suit ... then he proved it. He claimed foreign affairs was his strength yet his approach is that of a fighter pilot as opposed to a global strategist. Why do these people get air time after they've been discredited time and time again?

Virtually every interview I've heard with Iranians states unequivocally the the American right is not being helpful ... yet Republicans persist in trying to make political points here at home at the expense of our national interests.

Mythbusting Right-Wing Domestic Terrorism

2009-06-21T17:59:00.003-07:00

1. These are just "lone wolf" psychos who are acting alone. You can't hold anybody else responsible for what crazy people decide to do.

True and false. But mostly false.

2. These terrorists are really left-wingers, not right-wingers. Because everybody knows that fascism is a phenomenon that only occurs on the left.

False does not even begin to cover the absurdity of this claim.

3. Public right-wing groups like Operation Rescue or the Minutemen don't advocate violence, so these acts have absolutely nothing to do with them.

False. ... these groups may not engage in violence themselves, but they do provide the narrative and worldview that convinces people that terrorism is the only available means of getting what they want

4. This is just a minority movement that isn't really capable of changing anything. We don't really need to worry about it.

False. And evidence of tremendous denial.

5. It's not fair to hold right-wing media talking heads responsible for the things their listeners might do.

Riiight.

6. All that crazy stuff you hear on the right -- you can find the left wing saying things just as bad. They're equally culpable for how bad it all its.

False. There is no equivalency whatsoever to be drawn here.

7. "Dial it down?" Don't you mean that you want to use the power of government to forcibly shut up right-wing hate talkers?

False. There are a few folks in Congress who tried to gin up support for some kind of legislation -- but progressives should resist this impulse, and denounce it as the shameless grandstanding that it is. We believe in the First Amendment. And if we compromise it now, we're no better than the Bush-era conservatives who were so eager to shred the Constitution when they felt threatened. We are better than that -- or should be.

8. But what you're suggesting is censorship! You're trying to censor free speech!

Oh, please.

9. What about that guy who shot the recruiters in Arkansas -- isn't that proof that the left wing is just as bad as the right?

False. I mean: really, really false.

... read the full demythification after the click

Since when is a 63 percent approval rating a bad thing?

2009-06-21T05:53:00.003-07:00

from Media Matters for Amerca

It's generally accepted that the news media obsess over horse-race political coverage at the expense of serious examinations of important issues. Media critics on the left, right, and in the middle tend to agree that there is too much focus on polling and not enough on policy, while many reporters seem proud of their focus on the game rather than the stakes. (Politico is, after all, called "Politico," not "Policy-o," and features blogs "on Politics," "on Hill intrigue," "on Gossip," and "on Campaigns" -- but not "on Policy." ABC News' senior White House correspondent calls his blog "Political Punch." And so on.)

The media's obsessive focus on politics does not, however, mean their political assessments are of a high quality. Remember David Broder's prediction that Hurricane Katrina would spark a recovery in George W. Bush's political standing? Or Matt Lauer's suggestion that Bush's poor approval ratings were a political blessing for the GOP? Chuck Todd's statement that if Democrats won control of Congress in November of 2006, Bush's approval rating would be above 50 by the following July? Katie Couric's suggestion that the Bush White House was "breathing a sigh of relief" in response to a poll in which Bush had an all-time low approval rating? Howard Fineman's late-2005 argument that Democrats, not Republicans, had reason to be gloomy about their electoral prospects? Calling the media's coverage of politics and policy "horse-race journalism" is an insult to horse-race journalism -- the Daily Racing Form isn't in the habit of advising readers to bet on the filly with the broken leg.

Not only does the media's keen interest in politics frequently fail to result in politically astute observations, there is also considerable evidence that they tend to overrate the Republicans' political skills -- and the public's predisposition to prefer the GOP.

... so read the rest after the click.

Bill Maher Noticed Something

2009-06-20T11:14:00.001-07:00

Maher: Now people talk a lot about a third political party in America. We don't need a third party. We need a first party. You go to the polls and your choices are the guy who voted for the first Wall Street bailout, or the guy who voted for the next ten. This week we're hearing that a public option for health care is unlikely because it doesn't have the support of enough Democrats. Even Ted Kennedy's plan, Ted Kennedy, yeah, leaves thirty seven million uninsured.

This is because we don't have a left and a right party in this country any more. We have a center right party, and a crazy party. And over the last thirty odd years, Democrats have moved to the right, and the right has moved into a mental hospital.

My comment: Yup!

Thought for the day

2009-06-18T12:25:00.000-07:00

from Quotes of the Day

"I've gone into hundreds of [fortune-teller's] parlors, and have been told thousands of things, but nobody ever told me I was a policewoman getting ready to arrest her."

-- New York City detective

Top 10 Reasons Sarah Palin's "Outrage" is Misplaced and A Little Late...

2009-06-17T08:09:00.001-07:00

by Shannyn Moore

10) Last September, a skit on Saturday Night Live suggested incest in the Palin family. "What about the husband?" asked a mock Times reporter. "You know he's doing those daughters. I mean, come on. It's Alaska!" No outrage. Sarah Palin appeared on the show one month later in late October.

9) Days after the announcement of Bristol's pregnancy, Conan O'Brien joked, "It's true, John McCain's running mate, Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, has revealed that her 17-year-old daughter is pregnant. Palin said, 'We should never have introduced her to John Edwards.'" Where was the outrage? Was Conan promoting infidelity with an underage girl?

8 ) From two different Tonight Shows: "Governor Palin announced over the weekend that her 17-year-old unmarried daughter is five months pregnant. Oh, boy, you thought John Edwards was in trouble before, now he's really done it!" AND..."All the Republicans are heaping praise on Governor Palin. Fred Thompson said, as an actor, he could see them making a movie about Sarah Palin and her family. Didn't they already make that movie? I think it was called 'Knocked Up!'"--Jay Leno

... read the rest of the Top Ten after the click.

Dear AMA: I Quit!

2009-06-11T13:14:00.002-07:00

Dr. Chris McCoy
Policy Chair for the National Physicians Alliance

Dear American Medical Association,

I recently had the opportunity to read your response to the Senate Finance Committee proposal [pdf] for health care reform, and it is clear to me that I cannot remain a member in your organization. Please remove my name from your membership rolls, effective immediately.

In reading the response, I was frustrated and disheartened by the fact that you couldn't get through the second paragraph before bringing up the issue of physician reimbursement. This merely highlights how the AMA represents a physician-centered and self-interested perspective rather than honoring the altruistic nature of my profession. As a physician, I advocate first for what is best for my patients and believe that as a physician, as long as I continue to maintain the trust and integrity of the profession, I will earn the respect of my community. The appropriate financial compensation for my endeavors will follow in kind.

... read the whole letter to the AMA after the click.

Twenty Economic Models Explained

2009-06-10T05:47:00.004-07:00

(forwarded from a friend in the UK)

SOCIALISM
You have 2 cows.
You give one to your neighbour.

COMMUNISM
You have 2 cows.
The State takes both and gives you some milk.

FASCISM
You have 2 cows.
The State takes both and sells you some milk.

NAZISM
You have 2 cows.
The State takes both and shoots you.

BUREAUCRATISM
You have 2 cows.
The State takes both, shoots one, milks the other, and then throws the milk away.

TRADITIONAL CAPITALISM
You have two cows.
You sell one and buy a bull.
Your herd multiplies, and the economy grows.
You sell them and retire on the income.

SURREALISM
You have two giraffes.
The government requires you to take harmonica lessons.

AN AMERICAN CORPORATION
You have two cows.
You sell one, and force the other to produce the milk of four cows.
Later, you hire a consultant to analyse why the cow has dropped dead.

A FRENCH CORPORATION
You have two cows.
You go on strike, organize a riot, and block the roads, because you want three cows.

A JAPANESE CORPORATION
You have two cows.
You redesign them so they are one-tenth the size of an ordinary cow and produce twenty times the milk.
You then create a clever cow cartoon image called ‘Cowkimon’ and market it worldwide.

A GERMAN CORPORATION
You have two cows.
You re-engineer them so they live for 100 years, eat once a month, and milk themselves.

AN ITALIAN CORPORATION
You have two cows, but you don’t know where they are.
You decide to have lunch.

A RUSSIAN CORPORATION
You have two cows.
You count them and learn you have five cows.
You count them again and learn you have 42 cows. You count them again and learn you have 2 cows.
You stop counting cows and open another bottle of vodka.

A SWISS CORPORATION
You have 5000 cows. None of them belong to you.
You charge the owners for storing them.

A CHINESE CORPORATION
You have two cows.
You have 300 people milking them.
You claim that you have full employment, and high bovine productivity.
You arrest the newsman who reported the real situation.

AN INDIAN CORPORATION
You have two cows.
You worship them.

A BRITISH CORPORATION
You have two cows.
Both are mad.

AN IRAQI CORPORATION
Everyone thinks you have lots of cows.
You tell them that you have none.
No-one believes you, so they bomb the crap out of you and invade your country.
You still have no cows, but at least you are now a Democracy.

AN AUSTRALIAN CORPORATION
You have two cows.
Business seems pretty good.
You close the office and go for a few beers to celebrate.

A NEW ZEALAND CORPORATION
You have two cows.
The one on the left looks very attractive.

ROYAL BANK OF SCOTLAND VENTURE CAPITALISM
You have two cows.
You sell three of them to your publicly listed company, using letters of credit opened by your brother-in-law at the bank, then execute debt/equity swap with an associated general offer so that you get all four cows back, with a tax exemption for five cows.
The milk rights of the six cows are transferred via an intermediary to a Cayman Island Company secretly owned by the majority shareholder who sells the rights to all seven cows back to your listed company.
The annual report says the company owns eight cows, with an option on one more.
You sell one cow to buy a new president of the United States, leaving you with nine cows.
No balance sheet provided with the release.
The public then buys your bull.

My comment: The right wing of the American political spectrum appears to believe the Royal Bank of Scotland models is the best. In the US it's known as "UNRESTRICTED, UNREGULATED, FREE MARKET, REAGAN CAPITALISM". It works just fine until someone looked under the hood!

The Bush Hangover: Guantanamo Undercuts Our Protests of North Korea

2009-06-09T12:29:00.003-07:00

by Mitchell Bard

I woke up this morning to the chilling news that two American journalists had been sentenced to 12 years of hard labor by a North Korean court for the "crimes" of illegally entering the country and committing "hostile acts." We can only hope that the reclusive, bizarre and barbaric leader of North Korea, Kim Jong-il (or those working for him), is putting on a show to get the attention of the rest of the world, and the two Current TV reporters, Laura Ling and Euna Lee, will be allowed to return home soon.

The two journalists have clearly committed no crimes (as such a term would be understood in any rational section of the world), and the international community has to stand against the heinous actions of the North Korean government. Clearly, the United States should be at the head of such international action.

But today, I also read about Lakhdar Boumediene, and the truly disturbing story of what happened to him after the 9/11 attacks. An Algerian man living with his wife and two children in Sarajevo, Bosnia, he was working for the Red Crescent in October 2001 when he was arrested and charged with conspiring to blow up the American and British embassies in the city. An investigation revealed no evidence of his involvement in any plot, so a Bosnian judge ordered him released, but the Bush administration intervened, and in January 2002 he was shackled and flown to Guantanamo Bay.

... read the rest after the click.

My comment: How can we take the moral high-ground? How can we set an example for the rest of the world? How can we condemn North Korea in a way that doesn't sound hollow and hypocritical? Who have we become? How are we different?

A Question For Dick Cheney:

2009-06-08T16:29:00.002-07:00

Should We Now Waterboard Tiller's Murderer?

from Chris Wright / HuffPo

I have a question for former Vice President Dick Cheney, who has been staunchly defending the Bush administration's use of waterboarding and other torture against prisoners in our care. My question: Should Scott Roeder, accused murderer of abortion doctor George Tiller, now be waterboarded? Roeder has just gone on the record stating that further violence is coming, in "many similar events planned around the country as long as abortion remains legal." In other words, Roeder is claiming the now-infamous "ticking time bomb" scenario of what can only be termed domestic terrorism. So, Mr. Cheney, doesn't this mean (following your own "logic") that Roeder should immediately be waterboarded to tell us what he knows? Anything less, by your standards, would be hypocritically picking and choosing which terrorists get a pass, and which don't.

... read the rest on Huffington Post after the click.

Is IOS affecting you?

2009-06-08T08:07:00.001-07:00

The very information meant to inform us is actually making us STUPID! It's affecting millions of business people.

Is IOS affecting you?

... or catch the clip on YouTube after the click.

If you don't know Mr. Fish ....

2009-06-08T07:40:00.002-07:00

An Offensive Mr. Fish Cartoon Fiesta

from Daryl Cagle's Cartoon Web Blog

I did a speaking tour of China last year and wherever I spoke the audience asked about censorship in America – they were convinced that censorship for us was no different than in China. I explained that cartoonists in America often complain about editors killing their cartoons, but that is different from China because in China it is the government that kills the cartoons – well, not exactly, the editors and cartoonists in China know where the limits are and choose not to cross those limits. The Chinese audience would ask, “isn’t it the same in America?” I’d explain that, yes, we know what the limits are, but American cartoonists are limited by good taste rather than point of view, and if we’re too offensive we know our cartoons won’t get printed. The Chinese would respond, “same here.” I was surprised that I was always explaining what seemed to my audience to be petty differences and the hypocrisy of an American “free press.”

Which brings me back to Mr. Fish, who doesn’t censor himself for taste at all. It works for the Village Voice and L.A. Weekly, but keeps Mr. Fish’s work from being seen by a general circulation audience. I appreciate Fish’s unwillingness to compromise, so I thought I would post a selection of some of my favorite, offensive Mr. Fish cartoons that I would never have drawn myself.

... get offended by Mr. Fish after the click.

A Short History of Health Care Reform in America

2009-06-07T15:15:00.003-07:00

... and a discussion of where it's going ...

... or catch the clip on YouTube after the click.

Harvard researchers link medical costs to personal bankruptcy

2009-06-05T16:27:00.003-07:00

-- even if people have health insurance

Medical problems caused 62% of all personal bankruptcies filed in the U.S. in 2007, according to a study by Harvard researchers. And in a finding that surprised even the researchers, 78% of those filers had medical insurance at the start of their illness, including 60.3% who had private coverage, not Medicare or Medicaid. Medically related bankruptcies have been rising steadily for decades. In 1981, only 8% of families filing for bankruptcy cited a serious medical problem as the reason, while a 2001 study of bankruptcies in five states by the same researchers found that illness or medical bills contributed to 50% of all filings.

... read the rest on C&L after the click.

My comment: Yes, the middle finger of the invisible hand of the market is making sure that only you get screwed.

President Obama Hits All the Right Notes in Cairo

2009-06-04T21:26:00.001-07:00

by Joseph Palermo on HuffPo

President Barack Obama's speech today in Cairo hit all of the right notes and was exactly what he needed to say after eight years of saber rattling, racist diatribes about "Crusades," and Biblical quotes affixed to "Worldwide Intelligence Updates." For years we've heard mouthpieces from the American Right uttering every offensive slur against Arabs and Muslims imaginable. Obama's contrast in tone as he addressed directly the world's 1.2 billion Muslims could not have been further from the toxic mixture of arrogance and incompetence that characterized the Bush-Cheney years.

... read the rest on Huffington Post after the click.

In Case You Missed it ... Dick (Uncut)

2009-06-04T16:28:00.001-07:00

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart

M - Th 11p / 10c

Dick (Uncut)

thedailyshow.com

Daily Show
Full Episodes

Political Humor

Economic Crisis

... or catch the clip on The Comedy Channel website after the click

Things aren't as bad as you think they are ...

2009-06-04T09:05:00.001-07:00

... or catch the clip on YouTube after the click.

How Health Care Stole Your Pay Raise

2009-06-03T14:41:00.003-07:00

This amazing graph bouncing around the web is the most striking example of why health care reform isn't just about reforming care. It's about reforming the economy. New bumper sticker: "Reform Health Care; Get a Raise!"

... get the rest on The Atlantic website after the click.

My comment: Health Care is probably the most vital economic issue we face today. Our current system forces virtually every company in the United States to pay some sort of employee health care insurance. That cost of doing business channels directly in to the price of every manufactured good made in the USA ... adding a substantial cost to American made products that our international competitors don't have to pay. It makes foreign made goods more competitive than American made goods. I would think that every American conservative would get that ... but it seems it's beyond their short sighted thought processes.

Christian Fundamentalist Terrorism

2009-05-31T14:06:00.000-07:00

from Shannyn Moore

It's shocking to write. But it's time to start calling it what it is.

When Jim D. Adkisson walked into the Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church with 76 rounds and a shot-gun, he killed 2 people and was charged with murder. His motive was "he hated the liberal movement" and was upset with "liberals in general as well as gays." He should have been charged with terrorism.

Today, George Tiller, the Wichita doctor was killed INSIDE the lobby of his Wichita church. Reformation Lutheran Church became a crime scene; fundamentalist terrorism.

... read the rest after the click.