Apparently MSNBC chose to play the same footage of five Blackwater contractors walking across the street fifty-four times in fifteen minutes. That is correct: 54 in 15. That would be 3.6 plays per minutes, or one play every 16 2/3 seconds.
The most frustrating part of this for me is that I know this happens all the time. Watching TV news is unbearable because the repetition and simplification is so drastic and blatant. This is really not okay.
December 10, 2008
What is the Republican Party to do? (Part 47)
If you remember my superboring lecture way back in the day, I compared the left-right spectrum of politics to ice cream stands along a beach.
Looking at the senate, let's start from the left. First off, there's a lot of Democrats. Secondly, there's quite a spectrum of them. There's your Schumers and Kennedys, sure, but there are also Landrieus and Byrds. So let's imagine that the Democrats start at the far left (say point 0) and extend halfway over (point 50).
The Republicans? Well, there's not very many, as you know, and you may also know that the Republican senators who lost were pretty moderate. The ones left are much more often the DeMints and the Chamblisses of the world. So if you start at the far right (point 100) and extend left, you'd probably only go, say, 30 points over (to point 70).
This leaves a 20-pt gap (again, everything is obviously quite arbitrary) from points 50-70 that is up for grabs. I'm not sure if I've presented this in a manner that makes any sense, but if so, you'll see that the Republicans have the option of moving to the right (and into obscurity) or taking up some of that middle, at least for now. If they don't move at least in the short run, there's gonna be a long night in store for them in November 2010.
Looking at the senate, let's start from the left. First off, there's a lot of Democrats. Secondly, there's quite a spectrum of them. There's your Schumers and Kennedys, sure, but there are also Landrieus and Byrds. So let's imagine that the Democrats start at the far left (say point 0) and extend halfway over (point 50).
The Republicans? Well, there's not very many, as you know, and you may also know that the Republican senators who lost were pretty moderate. The ones left are much more often the DeMints and the Chamblisses of the world. So if you start at the far right (point 100) and extend left, you'd probably only go, say, 30 points over (to point 70).
This leaves a 20-pt gap (again, everything is obviously quite arbitrary) from points 50-70 that is up for grabs. I'm not sure if I've presented this in a manner that makes any sense, but if so, you'll see that the Republicans have the option of moving to the right (and into obscurity) or taking up some of that middle, at least for now. If they don't move at least in the short run, there's gonna be a long night in store for them in November 2010.
Joe the Annoyer
He may still be getting publicity for the wrong reasons, but at least he is lowering his own credibility in the process.
Corruption in Government: What to Do?
Why did this all happen? In my opinion, the answer is simple.
As governor of a state like Illinois, I'm sure you frequently meet with some of the most powerful people in the country. And some of the richest. And you probably help a lot of those rich people become richer (not necessarily in corrupt ways). Yet the governor of Illinois makes a salary of $150,000, more or less. And what was he trying to get? In real terms, not very much: a position with a salary of $300,000 (and other stuff, sure, but really not that much - not a $120M no-bid contract anyway).
In one of my econ classes we studied Singapore or Hong Kong or somewhere like that, wherein government employees were given huge salary increases. The result? There was more competition for government jobs so better individuals ended up getting the positions. Also, since salaries were already high, the temptation for corruption was less because (1) it took more money to even be worth it and (2) the fear of losing one's job made it even less likely the person would want to engage in corrupt activites.
So my counter-intuitive solution is to pay these guys more. Because if one of the most powerful people in the state is only making $150,000, what else should we expect to happen?
Also, by the way, Blagojevich is under no legal pressure to resign his seat, and could even appoint a senate replacement today, should he desire.
As governor of a state like Illinois, I'm sure you frequently meet with some of the most powerful people in the country. And some of the richest. And you probably help a lot of those rich people become richer (not necessarily in corrupt ways). Yet the governor of Illinois makes a salary of $150,000, more or less. And what was he trying to get? In real terms, not very much: a position with a salary of $300,000 (and other stuff, sure, but really not that much - not a $120M no-bid contract anyway).
In one of my econ classes we studied Singapore or Hong Kong or somewhere like that, wherein government employees were given huge salary increases. The result? There was more competition for government jobs so better individuals ended up getting the positions. Also, since salaries were already high, the temptation for corruption was less because (1) it took more money to even be worth it and (2) the fear of losing one's job made it even less likely the person would want to engage in corrupt activites.
So my counter-intuitive solution is to pay these guys more. Because if one of the most powerful people in the state is only making $150,000, what else should we expect to happen?
Also, by the way, Blagojevich is under no legal pressure to resign his seat, and could even appoint a senate replacement today, should he desire.
Better version of our gameshow...
Well, I think this may be the death knell of Bush, Kennedy, or Other, our fantastic quiz show. Who (Allegedly) Said It? asks contestants to who said each phrase, Rod Blagojevich or Tony Soprano. Well done, Beast.
December 09, 2008
Stimulus/Rebate
I've heard from a number of source, not the first of which is this one, the following bailout proposal. Since the $350B left to spend in the bailout package is approximately equal to two months of federal government income, just have a two month holiday on all taxes of all forms.
This sounds totally reasonable, but the same way a flat-dollar rebate (though there were adjustments to fix this) is extremely progressive, this tax holiday would be extremely regressive. Many poor Americans pay no tax at all (and I suppose the shut off valve for taxes wouldn't take away earned income tax credits ...) and of course those who pay the most in taxes would see the most benefit. So of course conservatives are all over this but don't be fooled - it's a (thinly) veiled regression of the tax code.
This sounds totally reasonable, but the same way a flat-dollar rebate (though there were adjustments to fix this) is extremely progressive, this tax holiday would be extremely regressive. Many poor Americans pay no tax at all (and I suppose the shut off valve for taxes wouldn't take away earned income tax credits ...) and of course those who pay the most in taxes would see the most benefit. So of course conservatives are all over this but don't be fooled - it's a (thinly) veiled regression of the tax code.
My turn
OK, if Bart gets to post cute animals (which I haven't looked at yet) then, even at the risk of being that crazy guy who likes cats, I'm taking a turn, too.
These are my two cats, Pax (the tigerish one) and Rex (the pantherish one). They're both in the 8-9 month range. I swear this wasn't my intention; I needed pictures off my camera for a project, but as I was going through them (277 of 'em) I couldn't help but appreciate these few.
These are my two cats, Pax (the tigerish one) and Rex (the pantherish one). They're both in the 8-9 month range. I swear this wasn't my intention; I needed pictures off my camera for a project, but as I was going through them (277 of 'em) I couldn't help but appreciate these few.
Corruption, Part II
Rod Blagojevich, governor of Illinoise, has been arrested this morning for getting financially friendly with potential Obama Senate replacements.
Democrat Pat Quinn is temporarily in charge of the gubernatorial responsibilities.
Democrat Pat Quinn is temporarily in charge of the gubernatorial responsibilities.
Liberal Media? Perhaps so ...
It makes sense right? The media should totally follow the story of a guy if he's in Congress, making laws on behalf of his constituents, and ends up clearly guilty of accepting bribes, yet nonetheless manages to stay extremely close in his reelection bid, only to finally be declared the loser of the razor-thin election roughly a month after the fact? It's totally fair that the media follows that story, right?
Well, the media has not been doing it's job in following around Bill "Cold Hard Cash" Jefferson. Jefferson, or BCHCJ as I call him for short (not really), was finally defeated in his re-election bid in Louisiana's 2nd district. To speak to the relevance of his defeat, the Democrat was defeated in this heavily black district by none other than Vietnamese Republican (don't laugh) Anh "Joseph" Cao.
I know the bribery aspects of his story are older, but I have no idea why this guy got almost no coverage when Ted Stevens was all over the news. I guess Senators have roughly 4.35 times as much power as Representatives (though Stevens got more than 4.35 times as much coverage) and I suppose the whole 60-seat thing really drove the narrative on the Senate election this year. Either way, even very involved people I know don't know about BCHCJ, so I think the story was underreported. Either way, he lost, so hurrah to that!
Well, the media has not been doing it's job in following around Bill "Cold Hard Cash" Jefferson. Jefferson, or BCHCJ as I call him for short (not really), was finally defeated in his re-election bid in Louisiana's 2nd district. To speak to the relevance of his defeat, the Democrat was defeated in this heavily black district by none other than Vietnamese Republican (don't laugh) Anh "Joseph" Cao.
I know the bribery aspects of his story are older, but I have no idea why this guy got almost no coverage when Ted Stevens was all over the news. I guess Senators have roughly 4.35 times as much power as Representatives (though Stevens got more than 4.35 times as much coverage) and I suppose the whole 60-seat thing really drove the narrative on the Senate election this year. Either way, even very involved people I know don't know about BCHCJ, so I think the story was underreported. Either way, he lost, so hurrah to that!
December 08, 2008
Dulling the pain of being broke...
There's an article in Times blogs today about Prohibition. To tell you the truth, it's not actually that interesting, but one thing did make me think: Along with the amendment's unpopularity by '33, another factor contributing to its reversal was the revenue it would generate, in its sales and large tax, to bolster the depressed economy. This has always been one of the most convincing arguments I've heard for legalization of marijuana (not that I need to be convinced, obviously, I mean one of the most compelling things to tell people who do): legalize it, tax the shit out of it, and inject an amount of money that I can't even fathom (because I'm bad at math) into the (legal) economy. Given our current economic conditions, no time like the present...
(btw, if you guys are, I'm very interested in having a conversation about drug policy in general...)
(btw, if you guys are, I'm very interested in having a conversation about drug policy in general...)
The Democratic Senate Majority, Prisoner's Dilemma Style
Nate's got a particularly good article on how it's possible for 58 seats to be better than 59.
(In response to the article: of course, the moderate Republicans in question could work out deals with each other ahead of the vote)
(In response to the article: of course, the moderate Republicans in question could work out deals with each other ahead of the vote)
OK, so now the back-patting is legit
Anybody ever heard of this magazine anyway?
(And, for the record, I called MN-Senate for Coleman, a result that is currently trading at 69% on Intrade)
(And, for the record, I called MN-Senate for Coleman, a result that is currently trading at 69% on Intrade)
Football History
So, probably only Bart will be interested in this, but I'm working on putting an Excel spreadsheet together with a win-loss record for each team throughout its history. Long story short, Cleveland is officially regarded as being one team throughout its history. As part of the deal to move the Browns to Baltimore, Art Modell agreed to let the city keep the team's "history," so Baltimore is regarded as a 1996 expansion team and Cleveland is regarded as a 1946 expansion team that suspended operations from 1996-1998. I'd have never guessed.
Ugh
I know you're sad to see Tom Brady out this season, but at least you don't have the Rams. We've got two touchdowns in our last five games. We're also 2-0 this season when scoring 17 pts.
No Comment
It just seems so wrong.
Eh, let's double down while we're at it.
Dammit, I just realized this was my 200th post.
Eh, let's double down while we're at it.
Dammit, I just realized this was my 200th post.
"At Least He Kept Us Safe"
In this group, it's hard to imagine many missed the Peggy Noonan article last week, lobbing a Hail Mary attempt to hold on to something positive about the Bush Administration, and citing the fact that there were absolutely no terrorist attacks at all period totally zero not a single one during Bush's presidency, unlike lazy-ass Bill Clinton, who let the USS Cole (is that a book? Why am I italicizing it?) get blown up by al-Qaeda.
Anyway, of course I threw up a little in my mouth reading the original article, but I think this summary is a little more interesting than what I would have written.
(Oh, and if I hear Bill O'Reilly or Peggy Noonan make one more comment about how we should have had more regulation before the collapse I'll lose it completely)
Anyway, of course I threw up a little in my mouth reading the original article, but I think this summary is a little more interesting than what I would have written.
(Oh, and if I hear Bill O'Reilly or Peggy Noonan make one more comment about how we should have had more regulation before the collapse I'll lose it completely)
Bush's Final Days
Despite everybody being all Hopey and Changey, don't forget that one of the worst presidents in American history is still in the oval office, and for the first time since 9/11 has, in some ways, a sympathetic image, not to mention the fact that no one is watching.
Here's a mediocre but interesting "by the numbers" on his presidency.
(What struck me most was FOIA requests vs. FOIA processors over time)
The same site is also keeping a watch on his 11th hour activites.
Here's a mediocre but interesting "by the numbers" on his presidency.
(What struck me most was FOIA requests vs. FOIA processors over time)
The same site is also keeping a watch on his 11th hour activites.
December 07, 2008
An exception for servants...
Bush's new neighborhood did not allow non-whites to live there until 2000. Fantastic way to continue the legacy of a terrible presidency.
The train Nazi (Not the Nazi train)
Here's a pretty entertaining article by Christopher Buckley about how it feels to have public enforcer responsibilities fall to you. Damn free-rider problem.
I also recommend everyone check out at least a book or two of Buckley's, as the tend to be fluffy fiction with some fun laughs along the way. Thank You For Smoking is the best of his book that I have read.
I also recommend everyone check out at least a book or two of Buckley's, as the tend to be fluffy fiction with some fun laughs along the way. Thank You For Smoking is the best of his book that I have read.
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