tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-142232702012-01-28T18:49:53.835-08:00Captain Future's Dreaming Up DailyWhile Downward Bound: Hope in a Darkening Age...
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"THE END OF ALL INTELLIGENT ANALYSIS IS TO CLEAR THE WAY FOR SYNTHESIS."--H.G. Wells. "It's not dark yet, but it's getting there."--Bob Dylan.Captain Futurenoreply@blogger.comBlogger4020125This is an XML content feed. It is intended to be viewed in a newsreader or syndicated to another site, subject to copyright and fair use.tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14223270.post-5331401408088241032012-01-28T00:48:00.000-08:002012-01-28T18:49:53.879-08:002012-01-28T18:49:53.879-08:00Circus Weekend: Mr. Inevitable Returns!Once again by popular demand in the center ring of the GOPer circus here in downtown Florida for only four more days: he goes up, he goes down, but he's back (maybe): MR. INEVITABLE!
Yes, circus fans, Mr. Inevitable is back! A new and even fiercer fusillade of fire from da Establishment, which these days apparently includes not only Bob Dole but Drudge and talk radio (except for Rush) against Captain Futurenoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14223270.post-81544836752195738342012-01-26T00:18:00.000-08:002012-01-26T00:18:07.853-08:002012-01-26T00:18:07.853-08:00Light Show
The latest solar storm did its worst on Wednesday, with apparently little effect other than creating some spectacular northern lights, as here in Norway, in a photo by scanpix.Captain Futurenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14223270.post-59751255438206275432012-01-26T00:12:00.000-08:002012-01-26T02:37:12.537-08:002012-01-26T02:37:12.537-08:00State of the State of the UnionOn Wednesday, the conventional pundit wisdom (cpw) changed a little on the State of the Union, as available evidence came in that non-pundits liked it. (Even Andrew Sullivan reconsidered and recanted some.)
For example, the results of a CBS News poll: 91% of viewers surveyed approved of the policies President Obama proposed and discussed. The pool for the poll was 45% Dems, 25% Rs, the rest Captain Futurenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14223270.post-63532028750716253172012-01-25T02:34:00.000-08:002012-01-25T02:35:44.662-08:002012-01-25T02:35:44.662-08:00
One of the most moving moments at the Capitol was President Obama embracing Gabrielle Gifford before his speech. As the L.A. Times story notes, it was both a welcome back to Giffords, and, for now at least, a farewell, as she leaves Congress to concentrate on her recovery from gunshot wounds.
It wasn't the only notable embrace. The other was Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg, who Captain Futurenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14223270.post-39846051383112136512012-01-25T02:27:00.000-08:002012-01-25T22:52:43.063-08:002012-01-25T22:52:43.063-08:00Build to Last
The theme of President Obama's third State of the Union address could be characterized in various ways, but to me it was about building--not winning, but building the future.
" Think about the America within our reach: A country that leads the world in educating its people. An America that attracts a new generation of high-tech manufacturing and high-paying jobs. A future where we’re in Captain Futurenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14223270.post-79950763578188845382012-01-24T00:56:00.000-08:002012-01-24T00:56:02.941-08:002012-01-24T00:56:02.941-08:00Courage and Consequences
This is the Gabby Giffords video in which she announced that she's leaving Congress. If you haven't seen all two and a half minutes of it, it's worth your time on so many levels. Giffords will be at President Obama's State of the Union address tonight.Captain Futurenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14223270.post-30377851491012690492012-01-24T00:47:00.000-08:002012-01-24T02:04:11.095-08:002012-01-24T02:04:11.095-08:00War and the American Electorate
Before the State of the Union and its focus on the economy, I wanted to say something about foreign policy issues, and particularly the issue of war and peace. The GOPer debates are showing clearly that their candidates (except for Ron St. Paul) are clueless Cheny clones, pandering to a delusional and perhaps illusional base. The candidates' generally warmongering attitudes could very well Captain Futurenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14223270.post-78107851684041547372012-01-24T00:45:00.000-08:002012-01-24T03:41:36.752-08:002012-01-24T03:41:36.752-08:00The Circus Comes to DisneyworldlandApparently "The Word" of the circus debate in Florida Monday was Romney's: "self-deportation." Several live bloggers excused themselves saying they were self-deporting. At Kos there were other tweeted glosses: solution to economic problems: self-employment. Solution to the GOP debates: self-immolation. Self-deportation is what Romney does with his money, to the Caymans.
Otherwise most of theCaptain Futurenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14223270.post-82864358338469697332012-01-23T13:29:00.000-08:002012-01-24T00:57:56.823-08:002012-01-24T00:57:56.823-08:00Stormy Weather
There's rage on the sun, and it's resulting in the strongest solar storm heading this way since 2005. Scientists don't expect electrical problems on Earth as a result, though that's still a possibility. But it could affect us in other ways. Does this for example explain raging Casino Newt Gingrich? Maybe. But Andrew Sullivan writes what I've been trying to say:
"This now is the party of Captain Futurenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14223270.post-66135656613263579502012-01-22T18:19:00.000-08:002012-01-23T23:20:59.135-08:002012-01-23T23:20:59.135-08:00A True Bright StarGabby Giffords with husband, space shuttle astronaut Mark Kelley
Gabrielle Giffords announced on Sunday that she is giving up her seat in Congress in order to concentrate on her recovery from the assassination attempt last year in Arizona. It is a reminder that however miraculous her recovery so far, such violence has enduring consequences. It is a measure of our political decadence that the Captain Futurenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14223270.post-59874946268861636542012-01-22T00:47:00.000-08:002012-01-22T00:49:48.671-08:002012-01-22T00:49:48.671-08:00Aye of Newt , the Casino CandidateGingles cleaned Romney's clock in the South Carolina GOPer primary. He got more than 40% of the vote to Romney's 29%. Sanctimonious got 17%, Ron St. Paul 13%.
The rejection of Romney was led by Tevangelicals who didn't vote for a Mormon--this was clear from exit polls. They coalesced around Gingles' rage rather than Sanctimonious' sanctimony.
Pundit and political pols are split on whether SCCaptain Futurenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14223270.post-51413288830137983652012-01-21T00:31:00.000-08:002012-01-21T00:33:20.960-08:002012-01-21T00:33:20.960-08:00Let's Stay TogetherWith so much attention on the GOPer circus, President Obama has mostly been governing, making tough decisions. But he's also been doing the PR part of being President, like supporting tourism in Florida and the Gulf Coast, and praising the Apollo Theatre. Where, incidentally, he sang.
Not much, but well. A few phrases from an Al Green song, which maybe should be the campaign theme song: Let'sCaptain Futurenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14223270.post-89522916373807638272012-01-21T00:11:00.000-08:002012-01-21T00:11:27.265-08:002012-01-21T00:11:27.265-08:00Step Right Up to the...Well, Not the Greatest ExactlyIt's South Carolina primary day, and everybody is expecting a Gingrich victory, especially Gingrich. Depending on the ground game and voter turnout, it could defy the polls that show his lead growing, but the Romney campaign is whispering that they expect to lose, and his Romneyness is suggesting that he expects to be going up against Gingles right up to the convention.
The Romney campaign Captain Futurenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14223270.post-51467904002122901762012-01-20T16:02:00.000-08:002012-01-20T16:05:00.378-08:002012-01-20T16:05:00.378-08:00Reality CheckHereabouts the rains have come. Our rainy season started Wednesday with a slowly building storm that's in its third day on Friday, with about four inches of rain total so far. The forecast is the traditional solid gray for the forseeable future, with quiet periods between storms (next one is Sunday.) So while this is a relief mentally, the disappearance of sunshine is its usual emotional drag.Captain Futurenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14223270.post-77594554644114232412012-01-20T00:05:00.000-08:002012-01-20T01:03:49.661-08:002012-01-20T01:03:49.661-08:00Aye of Newt, and Dead-Blogging the Live BloggersOkay, Circus Boy is officially my GOPer campaign coverage persona. For one thing, everything Circus Boy warned you about on Wednesday rocked the GOPer world on Thursday:
Iowa announced (sort of) that Senator Sanctimonious won Iowa (sort of)-- not Romney.
Gingrich's second wife made headlines with her interview hours before it actually aired.
After all the public promptings, Cowboy Rick quit Captain Futurenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14223270.post-31263786209258074122012-01-19T00:49:00.000-08:002012-01-19T01:05:54.116-08:002012-01-19T01:05:54.116-08:00The Oil Sands of Time
President Obama accepted State Department advice and killed the Keystone oil sands project, as officially announced Wednesday. The oil sands of time were running out, thanks to the GOPer congressionals' deadline, so it's bye bye pipeline.
Bill McKibben commented: "this isn’t just the right call, it’s the brave call. The knock on Barack Obama from many quarters has been that he’s too Captain Futurenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14223270.post-18943027872925953852012-01-19T00:41:00.000-08:002012-01-20T16:06:58.679-08:002012-01-20T16:06:58.679-08:00Coming AttractionsI'm starting to feel like Circus Boy (yeah, that's Mickey Dolenz before he became a Monkee. He starred in the Circus Boy TV show in the 50s.) I'm enjoying this circus too much.
I'm not the only one. I wonder if anybody at MSNBC will be able to sleep tonight. There are several potentially big stories that could break in the next day or two that together or separately could turn the GOPer Captain Futurenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14223270.post-68689811836727595812012-01-18T00:39:00.000-08:002012-01-18T02:41:01.025-08:002012-01-18T02:41:01.025-08:00Today's FixA number of prominent web sites including wikipedia are down today or otherwise limited to focus awareness on a couple of bills in Congress that threaten to turn over significant control of the Internet to corporate interests.
While I fully support these sites, I do worry about you twitchy readers out there with less to read. So as a public service for desperate net dependent addicts who Captain Futurenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14223270.post-63449297831779527462012-01-17T00:02:00.000-08:002012-01-17T05:33:26.889-08:002012-01-17T05:33:26.889-08:00Circus NewsI'm sorry, I just can't resist.
Monday began with Jon Huntsman dropping out of the race (because he was polling behind Steven Colbert, according to Rachel) and endorsing Romney. This led to several video compilations of all the nasty stuff Huntsman said about Romney, especially about how he has no beliefs and can't beat Obama.
Rachel gleefully catalogued the ongoing fight within the EvangelicalCaptain Futurenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14223270.post-56081458416539235372012-01-16T23:48:00.000-08:002012-01-18T02:22:25.485-08:002012-01-18T02:22:25.485-08:00MLK Day in RetrospectMartin Luther King is in that middle area of figures considered "great" enough to have a holiday: he was too long ago to be real to most people, and he's not yet a figure so remote that he's going to be used to sell used cars or shill for a sale on his Day, as are the figures of Washington and Lincoln. But when GOPers who stoked the suspicion and hate that enveloped him in a penumbra of violenceCaptain Futurenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14223270.post-89166190837662851022012-01-16T03:40:00.000-08:002012-01-16T03:40:36.099-08:002012-01-16T03:40:36.099-08:00The Dreaming Up Daily Quote
"Our problem today is that we have allowed the internal to become lost in the external. We have allowed the means by which we live to outdistance the ends for which we live...Enlarged material powers spell enlarged peril if there is not proportionate growth of the soul."
Martin Luther King, Jr.
Nobel Peace Prize Acceptance AddressCaptain Futurenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14223270.post-6067337362086449332012-01-15T18:32:00.000-08:002012-01-15T22:10:44.115-08:002012-01-15T22:10:44.115-08:00Weekend UpdateGod apparently took Saturday off, allowing his Saints to lose, and sending Tim Tebow and the Denver Broncos straight to hell, which in their case was New England. He split the difference on Sunday, teaching some humility to the defending champion Packers but allowing the overrated Ravens another week of hubris. Next week it's the Niners vs. the NY Giants, and the Patriots vs. the Ravens. God'sCaptain Futurenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14223270.post-27952305658766871352012-01-13T03:37:00.000-08:002012-01-13T05:12:11.260-08:002012-01-13T05:12:11.260-08:00Got Envy?
It's possible that Thursday will become known as the day that the starkest possible battle lines of the 2012 were drawn. With Romney insisting that any questioning of the justice or the damaging economic and social effects of income inequality amounts to nothing but envy. With Gingrich and Perry continuing their attacks on Romney's record as ceo of Bain, and its record of job killing, Captain Futurenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14223270.post-66224251538859543352012-01-13T03:13:00.000-08:002012-01-13T03:13:05.416-08:002012-01-13T03:13:05.416-08:00
It's spectacle at this point, but maybe pretty meaningful. The official GOPer freakout over the Gingrich/Cowboy Rick attacks on Romney's predatory business practices has to be seen to be believed. In this case, TPM's 100 seconds is worth 1000 words. Captain Futurenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14223270.post-29399211803392894512012-01-11T00:23:00.000-08:002012-01-11T04:20:51.259-08:002012-01-11T04:20:51.259-08:00Clowns Go SouthNewt Romney gets to be head clown this week. That's the outcome of the New Hampshire GOPer primary, which notably was badly attended by GOPer voters. Romney finished close enough to 40% and Huntsman's surge didn't materialize to north of 20%, with Ron St. Paul getting a solid quarter of the vote to come in second. Much if not most of his votes came from self-declared Independents.
What it allCaptain Futurenoreply@blogger.com0