Jack & Jill Politics

An ineractive chart for where your tax dollars come from and go.
http://www.ritholtz.com/blog/2009/11/fed-tax-se...

AFTERNOON OPEN THREAD IS UP

Thank you for all the recipes.

I disagree with the definition of "right wing populism" in the article as simplistic yet bombastic. Some people just do not like others telling them what to do, even if it is for "their own good". The article is also condescending and elitist.

I think your defense of these people is simplistic. Niewert lays out an especially vivid direct line between the KKK resurgence of the Twenties, the Nazi sympathizers of the Thirties, the militia movement of the Nineties, and the current Tea Party movement. There are too many common elements for anyone to honestly deny.

Whereas today's Progressivism tells everyone "you are rich enough, the government will tax the rich and give you everything else you think you need."

That's because"It's not fair someone else got rich while you only worked for $10 per hour."

"You are rich enough"? Even if that were true (which it isn't), it still makes the white populist nationalists...suckers.

Pecan Caramel Cheesecake
Ingredients
24oz Creme Cheese
3 eggs
1 Teaspoon of Vanilla
1 cup sugar
1 cup Crushed Graham Crackers
4 oz of melted butter
I can of Condensed Sweet Milk
1 cup of Pecans
First boil the can of milk for 3 hours let cool
Then mix the butter with the crushed crackers then press into a 9 inch springform pan.You can use a cake pan but spray it with non stick coating and after baking the cheesecake freeze it so the cake can come out easily.
When the milk is cooled mix the the cheesecake.
Put the creme cheese in a mixing bowl, add 1 egg at a time till its incorporated repeat with the remaining eggs.Then add the sugar,vanilla and half of the can of the condensed milk mix till smooth.
Put the cake in a preheated 275 degree oven and bake for about an 1 1/2 to 2 hours.To prevent cracks in the cake put a pan of water on the oven floor.
After the cake has a little jiggle in the middle turn the oven off and crack the oven door till the cake is completely cool.
With the remaining condensed milk frost the cake and put the pecans on top.
Cut the cake with a hot thin knife or you can cut it with a piece of thread.
Enjoy

OK to recipes! This is the one I got a request to make for tomorrow. It really is so good that even the "church ladies" ask me for the recipe (i take that as the highest compliment, because i can't hold a candle to most of what they cook). It's worth the little extra time it takes. . .

WORLD'S BEST GREEN BEAN CASSEROLE
Serves 8 in small-ish servings for a big dinner

PREP, COOK, DRAIN & DRY the GREEN BEANS
2 quarts water
1 tablespoon table salt (salt is key to the flavor so don't skimp; if you don't have table salt, use twice as much as the relatively 'less salty' kosher salt or sea salt)
1 pound fresh green beans, ends snapped, snapped into bite-size pieces

Bring the water to boil in a large pot or Dutch oven. While it comes to a boil, prep the beans. Fill a large bowl with ice water. Add the salt and beans to the boiling water. Cover and cook for 6 minutes or until crisp-tender and still bright green. (Be sure to cook the beans to your desired level of doneness; from here on, they will reheat but won't cook more.) Drain beans in a colander, then plunge into ice water to stop the cooking. Drain a bit in the colander again. Place a double layer of paper towels on a baking sheet, arrange beans in single layer to dry, top with a double layer of towels and pat to dry. Let continue to dry while finishing. (Don't skip the drying process as it really makes a difference.)

COOK the MUSHROOMS & MAKE the SAUCE
8 ounces baby portabella or white mushrooms
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 tablespoon fresh garlic, minced
1 teaspoon kosher salt or to taste
Generous grind of fresh pepper or to taste
1 1/2 tablespoons flour
3/4 cup chicken stock
1 tablespoon dry sherry (I use the nonalcoholic kind from grocery store)
3/4 cup half & half or heavy cream (don't use fat-free half-n-half, it won't thicken)
Salt & pepper to taste

Clean the mushrooms; Break the mushroom tops into pieces. Melt the butter in a skillet til shimmery. To save a pan, use the pot used for cooking the beans. Add the mushrooms, garlic, salt and pepper. Stirring often, cook til mushrooms begin to soften and exude their liquid, about 6 minutes. Stir in flour and cook a minute. A tablespoon at a time at first, add the chicken stock and sherry; bring to a simmer. Add the half & half, simmer til sauce thickens, about 10 - 15 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasonings. Stir in the cooked beans til they're evenly distributed throughout the sauce.

MAKE the TOPPING
1 slice good whole grain bread or 1/2 cup bread crumbs
1-2 tablespoon butter, melted
1/2 a 2.8 ounce can of French fried onions
1/8 teaspoon table salt
1/16 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Mix the bread crumbs, onions, salt and black pepper. Add butter and toss.

TO BAKE RIGHT AWAY Preheat oven to 425F. Transfer hot bean mixture to a greased quiche pan or baking dish. Top beans with topping and bake uncovered for 15 minutes.

A middle school security guard pepper-sprayed a disabled special ed student in the eyes after removing the child's glasses, his trustee says in a class action complaint. The trustee says the "physically slight" 14-year-old boy functions "at the level of a 5 year old." and the school violated state law, which allows pepper spray only in self-defense.

The trustee says the boy, a dependent of the state, was upset about missing a field trip. She says the security guard forced him to the ground, asked if he "wanted some of this," and then sprayed him in the eyes.

She sued the Highline School District in King County Court.

The litigation guardian claims a substitute teacher could not find a permission slip for the child, "C.M.," so he became agitated.

"While C.M. was restrained to the chair, the school security officer got out his 'OC' pepper spray and asked C.M. if he 'wanted some of this?!'," according to the complaint. "The school security officer then proceeded to force C.M. to the ground, warned other school personnel to leave the area, removed C.M.'s eyeglasses, and then sprayed the pepper spray at close range into C.M.'s eyes and face."

School Pepper Sprayed Disabled Child

---

SMH

They are getting pretty reckless with pepper spray and tasers.

"Don't TAZE ME BRO." LOL this is classic

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QkkLUP-gm4Q

This is outrageous. People need to start going to jail for lengthy terms, in order to discourage this type of behavior. There needs to be resources for security guards and resource officers to properly do their jobs, but these jobs need to be occupied by personnel that have the capacity to not abuse the power given to them. Along with the proper civil penalties due this young man, this person needs to be punished criminally also, and to say that he shouldn't be allowed to work in this capacity anymore is a given.

I will posting some recipes for your Thanksgiving dinner.Here is the first one
Turducken (a chicken in a duck in a turkey)
The Turducken will need to cook for approximately 9 hours at 225 degrees F so begin preparation well in advance. The fowls can be deboned the day before and kept refrigerated overnight. Save the turkey carcass for making stock and some duck skin to render fat. We sometimes make the sausage stuffing the night before and store it in the refrigerator, but it helps to warm it in the microwave before final assembly.

Basic Needs:
16-20 lb whole turkey
4-5 lb whole duckling
3-4 lb whole chicken (or use a larger chicken and place the duckling inside it)
corn bread dressing
sausage stuffing
large roasting pan and rack
cotton string
large needle and cotton thread
Debone the birds:


Sharpen those knives! Maximize your work area so you have plenty of room and light. Use the kitchen table if there's not enough counter space. If it is your first time deboning a fowl, it is advisable to practice first on the chicken rather than the turkey since mistakes will be hidden inside the bigger birds.

Rinse the turkey and remove the neck and any giblets. Place the turkey, breast side down, on a clean flat surface. Cut through the skin along the length of the spine. Using the tip of a knife and starting from the neck end, gently separate meat from rib cage on one side. Toward neck end, cut through the meat to expose the shoulder blade; cut meat away from and around the bone, severing bone at the joint to remove shoulder blade. Disjoint wing between second and third joints. Leave the wing bones and keep the wing attached to the meat.

Continue separating meat from frame, heading toward the thighbone and being careful to keep the "oyster" (pocket of meat on back) attached to skin, rather than leaving it with the bone. Cut through ball-and-socket joint to release the thighbone from the carcass (bird will be open on one side, exposing bones left to deal with). Keep the leg attached to the meat.

Repeat boning procedure on the other side of the bird. Carefully remove the carcass and use it to make stock. Stock is needed for making stuffing and more stock is needed for gravy. To make stock, put the turkey carcass in a large pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil, then simmer on low heat overnight.

You should end up with a flat boneless (except for wings and legs) turkey with the skin intact in one large piece. Put the boned turkey in a large dish or bowl and cover with plastic wrap to keep it from drying out. Place it in the refrigerator.

Repeat the deboning process on the duckling and the chicken, but debone both stumps of wings and leg drumsticks. Cut through flesh at the thinnest point and trim around these bones with a knife until they can be removed. (Since they have little meat, we usually cut off the entire wings and add them to the stock pot.) Both the chicken and duck will be stuffed inside the turkey and need not be kept "perfectly" intact.

Trim excess skin and fat from the birds. Ducks, in particular, have a lot of excess fatty skin that should be saved to render fat to be used later for making gravy. We usually completely remove the skin from the chicken, but keep some duck skin which adds flavor.

Prepare seasoning mix and set aside:
2 tablespoons salt
2 tablespoons paprika
1 tablespoon black pepper
1-2 teaspoons dried thyme

Sausage stuffing:
Melt butter in large skillet over high heat. Add 3 cups onions and 1-1/2 cups celery. Saute until onions are dark brown but not burned, about 10 to 12 minutes. Add 2 lbs sausage (we prefer spicy Italian sausage) to the skillet and cook about 5 minutes or until the meat is browned, stirring frequently. Add paprika (3 tbsp.) and minced garlic (3 tbsp.) and cook approximately 3 minutes over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Stir in 3 cups of stock and bring to simmer. Continue cooking until water evaporates and oil rises to top, about 10 minutes. Stir in 2-3 cups toasted bread crumbs and mix well. Add more bread crumbs if mixture is too moist.

Prepare a similar amount of another stuffing such as corn bread stuffing.

Assembly:

At least 10 to 11 hours before dinner, assemble the Turducken.

Spread the turkey, skin down, on flat surface, exposing as much meat as possible. Rub 3 tablespoons of seasoning mix evenly on meat. Spread sausage stuffing over the turkey in an even layer approximately 3/4 inch thick.

Place duck, skin down, on top of stuffing. Season exposed duck meat with about 1 tbsp. of seasoning mix. Spread corn bread stuffing in an even layer (about 1/2 inch thick) over the duck.

Arrange the chicken, skin down, evenly on top of corn bread stuffing. Season chicken meat with seasoning mix. Spread remainder of sausage and/or corn bread stuffing on top of chicken. The assemblage will look something like this.

With another person's help, carefully lift the sides of the layered birds, folding the sides of the turkey together. Have a helper hold the bird while sewing the opening down the back of the turkey together using cotton thread. The bird may not close perfectly, and a strip of cheese cloth can be used to help close the "crack" in the back of the turkey so stuffing will not leak out when the bird is turned over.

Since the turducken has no skeleton, it must be trussed up or it may fall apart in cooking. Tie 4-5 pieces of cotton string around the bird, widthwise to act as skeletal support. Turn the bird over and place in a roasting rack inside a large roasting pan so it is oriented breast side up and looks like a "normal" turkey. Tie the legs together just above the tip bones.

Cooking:
Heat oven to 225 degrees F. Temperature control is critical since the turducken is so massive that it has to be cooked slowly at a low temperature to prevent burning the outside before the interior is cooked. Using an oven thermometer is highly recommended. We place 2-3 oven thermometers at different locations within the oven to monitor oven temperature. We also use a meat thermometer inside the bird to measure its internal temperature.

Place the bird in the center of the oven and bake until a meat thermometer inserted through to center reads 165 degrees, approximately 9 hours, though cooking times will vary depending on the size of the birds and amount of stuffing used. Rely on temperature and not time cooked for doneness.

There will be no need to baste, but accumulated drippings may need to be removed from the pan every few hours so that the lower portion does not deep fry in the hot oil. Save pan drippings for gravy. Remove the turducken from the oven and let cool in the pan for an hour before serving. Make gravy according to your favorite recipe.

To serve cut bird in half. Carve crosswise so each slice reveals all 3 meats and stuffings. Will make 15 to 25 servings.

needing a little silly this morning. . . white house turkey pardon live at 11:25am
http://www.whitehouse.gov/live/

10 RULES FOR THANKSGIVING DINNER AT MY HOUSE

1. Don't get in line asking questions about the food. "Who made the
potato salad? Is it egg in there? Are the greens fresh? Is the meat
in the greens turkey or pork? Who made the macaroni and cheese? What
kind of pie is that? Who made it? Ask one more question and I will
punch you in your mouth, knocking out all your fronts so you won't be
able to eat anything.

2. If you can't walk or are missing any limbs, sit your ass down until
someone makes your plate for you. Dinner time is not the time for you to
be independent. Nibble on them damn pecans and walnuts to hold you over
until someone makes you a plate.

3. If you have kids under the age of twelve, I will escort their
little asses to the basement and bring their food down to them. They
are not gonna tear my damn house up this year. Tell them that they are
not allowed upstairs until it's time for Uncle Butchie to start telling
family stories about their mommas and papas. If they come upstairs for
any reason except for that they are bleeding to death, I will break a
foot off in their asses!

4. There is going to be one prayer for Thanksgiving dinner! JUST ONE!
We do not care that you are thankful that your 13 year old daughter gave
birth to a healthy baby or your nephew just got out of jail. Save that
talk for somebody who gives a damn. The time limit for the prayer is one
minute. If you are still talking after that one minute is up, you will
feel something hard come across your lips and they will be swollen for
approximately 20 minutes.

5. Finish everything on your plate before you go up for seconds! If
you don't, you will be cursed out and asked to stay your greedy ass home
next year!

6. BRING YOUR OWN TUPPERWARE!! Don't let me catch you fixing yourself
a plate in my good Tupperware knowing damn well that I will never see it
again! Furthermore, if you didn't bring anything over, don't let me
catch you making a plate period or it will be a misunderstanding.

7. What you came with is what you should leave with!! Do not leave my
house with anything that doesn't belong to you. EVERYBODY WILL BE
SUBJECTED TO A BODY SEARCH COMING AND GOING OUT OF MY DOMAIN!!!

8. Do not leave your kids so you can go hopping from house to house.
This is not a DAYCARE CENTER! There will be a kid-parent roll call every
ten minutes. Any parent that is not present at the time of roll call,
your child will be put outside until you come and get him or her. After
24 hours, I will call DHS on your ignorant ass!!

9. BOOK YOUR HOTEL ROOM BEFORE YOU COME INTO TOWN!! There will be no
sleeping over at my house! You are to come and eat dinner and take your
ass home or to your hotel room. EVERYBODY GETS KICK THE HELL OUT AT
11:00 pm. You will get a 15 minute warning bell ring.

10. Last but not least! ONE PLATE PER PERSON!! This is not a soup kitchen. I am not trying to feed your family until Christmas dinner! You will be supervised when you fix your plate. Anything over the appropriate amount will be charged to you before you leave. There will be a cash register at the door. Thanks to Cousin Alfred and his greedy ass family, we now have a credit card machine! So VISA and MASTERCARD are now being accepted. NO FOOD STAMPS OR ACCESS CARDS YET!

One question and a couple of observatios

You take Mastercard and Visa from folks whom have to be bodysearched, take your tupperware, want to leave you w/ Bebe's kids and want more than one plate. WHY?

LMAO

This is the best I've ever seen:-)!!!

LOL - Laughed until my eyes watered.

ROTFLMFBAO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hi guys,

I'm currently at work. I working in the anaerobic chamber in the lab where I work. Check this video out to see what I doing, it's always interesting to those who aren't aware how we do what we do in micro:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Su1UxY-in0

Anyway, in today's installment of "the apple doesn't fall far from the tree", I heard on the radio this morning that one of the things Brad and Angelina "argue" over is actually Barack Obama. It seems that Brad is a huge Obama supporter, and Angie doesn't like Obama, cause his policies are too "socialistic". Hmmmm, I guess Angie is more like dear old dad, than we thought.

Thanks for posting. Your desk is way cooler than mine!

I still don't understand the Jen/Brad/Ang interest. Ang being crazy cannot be a big surprise to anyone.

Huh, Jenn's not looking too bad right about now, is she?

Price War Brews Between Amazon and Wal-Mart
By BRAD STONE and STEPHANIE ROSENBLOOM
Published: November 23, 2009

Ali had Frazier. Coke has Pepsi. The Yankees have the Red Sox.

Now Wal-Mart, the mightiest retail giant in history, may have met its own worthy adversary: Amazon.com.

In what is emerging as one of the main story lines of the 2009 post-recession shopping season, the two heavyweight retailers are waging an online price war that is spreading through product areas like books, movies, toys and electronics.

The tussle began last month as a relatively trivial but highly public back-and-forth over which company had the lowest prices on the most anticipated new books and DVDs this fall. By last week, it had spread to select video game consoles, mobile phones, even to the humble Easy-Bake Oven, a 45-year-old toy from Hasbro that usually heats up small cakes, not tensions between billion-dollar corporations.

Last Wednesday, Wal-Mart dropped the price of the oven to $17, from $28, as part of its “Black Friday” deals. Later the same day, Amazon cut its price, which had also been $28, to $18.

“It’s not about the prices of books and movies anymore. There is a bigger battle being fought,” said Fiona Dias, executive vice president at GSI Commerce, which manages the Web sites of large retailers. “The price-sniping by Wal-Mart is part of a greater strategic plan. They are just not going to cede their business to Amazon.”

Retailers are already fighting for every dollar consumers spend this holiday season. Sales are not expected to drop as much as they did last season, but the National Retail Federation, an industry group, predicts that they will decline 1 percent, to $437.6 billion.

Of course, Wal-Mart and Amazon are fundamentally different companies, and for now, at least, Amazon poses little immediate threat to the behemoth from Bentonville, Ark.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/24/business/24sh...

I hope they put Goodyear tires on sale.

My hope would be that people would look past Walmart's prices and see their failure to offer their employees opportunities to work viable jobs that would allow them to support families with living wages and quality health care. Their low prices are very expensive to the overall health of the working man.

Most people only look at low prices they could give a crap about company employees. People will overlook anything to satisfy their desire. M. Jordan is one of the most celebrated human beings on Earth and some asian kid is making Jordans for 5 cents an hour.

On ‘The Biggest Loser,’ Health Can Take Back Seat
By EDWARD WYATT
Published: November 24, 2009

LOS ANGELES — When more than 40 former contestants from “The Biggest Loser” gather Wednesday for a reunion television special, the winner of the program’s first season, Ryan C. Benson, who lost 122 of his 330-pound starting weight, will be absent. Mr. Benson is now back above 300 pounds but he thinks he has been shunned by the show because he publicly admitted that he dropped some of the weight by fasting and dehydrating himself to the point that he was urinating blood.

Now in its eighth season, “The Biggest Loser” is one of NBC’s most-watched prime-time programs besides football, drawing an estimated 10 million viewers each week, according to Nielsen. It has clearly tapped into the American obsession with losing weight, as more than 200,000 people a year submit audition videotapes or attend open casting calls for the program.

It also has spawned a licensed merchandise business that will generate an estimated $100 million this year.

The series also highlights the difference between the pursuit of engaging television and the sometimes frenzied efforts of contestants to win, perhaps at the risk of their own health. Doctors, nutritionists and physiologists not affiliated with “The Biggest Loser” express doubt about the program’s regimen of severe caloric restriction and up to six hours a day of strenuous exercise, which cause contestants to sometimes lose more than 15 pounds a week.

At least one other contestant has confessed to using dangerous weight-loss techniques, including self-induced dehydration. On the first episode of the current season, two contestants were sent to the hospital, one by airlift after collapsing from heat stroke during a one-mile race.

New contestants are entering the show more out of shape. Each of the last two seasons has broken the record for the heaviest contestant ever, at 454 and 476 pounds.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/25/business/medi...

Toyota to Replace 3.8 Million Gas Pedals
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: November 25, 2009

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Toyota Motor Corporation said Wednesday that it would replace accelerator pedals on 3.8 million recalled vehicles in the United States to address problems with the pedals becoming jammed in the floor mat.

As a temporary step, Toyota will have dealers shorten the length of the gas pedals beginning in January while the company develops replacement pedals, the Transportation Department and Toyota said. New pedals will be available beginning in April, and some vehicles will have brake override systems installed as a precaution.

Toyota, the world’s largest automaker, announced the recall in late September and told owners to remove the driver’s side floor mats to prevent the gas pedal from potentially becoming jammed.

“The safety of our owners and the public is our utmost concern and Toyota has and will continue to thoroughly investigate and take appropriate measures to address any defect trends that are identified,” Toyota said in a statement.

Popular vehicles like the Toyota Camry, the top-selling passenger car in America, and the Toyota Prius, the best-selling gas-electric hybrid, are part of the recall. It includes the 2007-10 model year Camry, 2005-10 Toyota Avalon, 2004-09 Prius, 2005-10 Toyota Tacoma, 2007-10 Toyota Tundra, 2007-10 Lexus ES350 and 2006-10 Lexus IS250/350.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/26/business/26to...

These types of stories are ignored by a populace that refuses to believe foreign automakers experience defects and recalls just as American car makers do.

From the Hospital to Bankruptcy Court
By KEVIN SACK
Published: November 24, 2009

NASHVILLE — Some of the debtors sitting forlornly in this city’s old stone bankruptcy court have lost a job or gotten divorced. Others have been summoned to face their creditors because they spent mindlessly beyond their means. But all too often these days, they are there merely because they, or their children, got sick.

Wes and Katie Covington, from Smyrna, Tenn., were already in debt from a round of fertility treatments when complications with her pregnancy and surgery on his knee left them with unmanageable bills. For Christine L. Phillips of Nashville, it was a $10,000 trip to the emergency room after a car wreck, on the heels of costly operations to remove a cyst and repair a damaged nerve.

Jodie and Charlie Mullins of Dickson, Tenn., were making ends meet on his patrolman’s salary until she developed debilitating back pain that required spinal surgery and forced her to quit nursing school. As with many medical bankruptcies, they had health insurance but their policy had a $3,000 deductible and, to their surprise, covered only 80 percent of their costs.

“I always promised myself that if I ever got in trouble, I’d work two jobs to get out of it,” said Mr. Mullins, a 16-year veteran of the Dickson police force. “But it gets to the point where two or three or four jobs wouldn’t take care of it. The bills just were out of sight.”

Although statistics are elusive, there is a general sense among bankruptcy lawyers and court officials, in Nashville as elsewhere, that the share of personal bankruptcies caused by illness is growing.

In the campaign to broaden support for the overhaul of American health care, few arguments have packed as much rhetorical punch as the there-but-for-the-grace-of-God notion that average families, through no fault of their own, are going bankrupt because of medical debt.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/25/health/policy...

Style | Dining And Wine
Closer to the Bone

Urban food lovers learn how to hunt, butcher and cook venison in a class called "Deer Hunting for Locavores" taught in Charlottesville, Va.

http://video.nytimes.com/video/2009/11/24/dinin...

Well that's one way to deal with the overpopulation of deer in our area

Happy Hunting. I'd much prefer your gun to my bumper/windshield

Remember if you follow the deer you just might get lucky and find some buds
Hunting for deer, finding the weed
http://trueslant.com/scottbowen/2009...ding-the...

Crist's Plan For FL-Sen: Throw A Little Gas On The Fire
Evan McMorris-Santoro | November 24, 2009, 5:50PM
Gov. Charlie Crist asked for a fight. And now he's getting one. Yesterday, Crist asked Marco Rubio's Republican supporters to explain why they're so "angry."

Today, came the predictable response:

"Charlie Crist is demonstrating an alarming contempt for the very Republican voters whose support he seeks," Rubio spokesperson Alex Burgos said. "Crist is clearly frustrated about his self-made credibility crisis and his endorsement of a stimulus policy that has failed to create the jobs he promised, but these are not acceptable excuses for him to lash out at Republicans."

Gov. Charlie Crist (R) is playing with fire with the new strategy, which takes direct aim at the conservatives who have been calling Crist out since the summer. Democrats and the Republicans trying to defeat him say he's going to get burned. But Crist's new rhetoric might be just what it takes for him to be the phoenix in the race.

After trying to first ignore Rubio and then later appease Rubio's supporters by backing off his past support for President Obama's economic stimulus, Crist has now turned to face his conservative opponents head on, claiming they're the problem with the Republican Party, not him.

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2009/11/cris...

"There's another group happy to see Crist engage Rubio's supporters head-on: supporters of Kendrick Meek, the likely Democratic nominee. The Meek campaign has been waiting patiently for Crist to battle Rubio over conservative bona fides, a battle which they say will alienate the independents and conservative Democrats that have backed Crist and in the past."

I don't know how this strategy will work, but I've been telling folks that Charlie's not going to give up this Senate Seat without the fight of his life.

Perino: No Terrorists Attacked America On Bush's Watch
Ben Frumin | November 25, 2009, 8:31AM

Former Bush press secretary Dana Perino made a rather odd claim on Sean Hannity's Fox News show last night. Talking about how we ought to label the deadly shooting at Fort Hood -- and implying that the Obama administration was shying away from calling it a terrorist attack out of political concerns -- Perino said no terrorists attacked the U.S. while President Bush was in office.

We did not have a terrorist attack on our country during president Bush's term. I hope they're not looking at this politically. I do think that we owe it to the American people to call it what it is.

Perino's claim went unchallenged -- no one on screen mentioned the 9/11 attacks.

http://tpmlivewire.talkingpointsmemo.com/2009/1...

It's scary to think morons like this ran the country for 8 years. You know what's even scarier?

People voted for them. TWICE

WTF? I mean really, W. T. F.?

Soooooo, if there were NO terrorist attacks in the United States under George W. Bush's watch, why did we attack Iraq and Afghanistan?

Straight up.

I wish to God someone would call out their blatant lies. It's one thing to lie about something people would have to do some research on, but to tell lies that EVERYONE knows are lies...GTFO with that shit.

Oh, and Palin's also making blatant lies (I know, what else is new?). Now she's saying President Obama hasn't acknowleged the sacrifices our men and women in uniform have made.

Seriously, Sarah? Really? So I guess when we saw the President thank our troops in YOUR homestate last week on TV, I guess we were just imagining things, right?

Unbelievable!! The GOP really lives in an alternate universe.

They make their own reality.

Blowing Very Hard
Josh Marshall | November 24, 2009, 10:02PM

With so much happening in the world, I hadn't given too much thought to Lou Dobbs' sudden departure from CNN. But taking stock of it now I had not considered the boon it is for people in the political mockery business -- and that's not nothing in these uncertain economic times.

Dobbs isn't just considering running for political office. He's considering a run for the White House in 2012. Thing is, though, that's a ways off. And he can't just sit around chilling for two and a half years. So ... well, let's hear how a spokesman for Lou puts it. "I think Lou is realistically saying, that's a long way off, but if he did run for office there'd have to be an intermediary step, such as the Menendez seat," Dobbs's spokesman Robert L. Dilenschneider told The New York Times.

So, yes, Dobbs may run for the presidency. But as a warm up, as it were, he might run for senate against Menendez.

Admittedly, Dobbs v. Menendez would have some iconic oomph in the Dobbs Universe, with the whole white guy taking a job back from a Hispanic angle. But there is the problem of Menendez being up for reelection in 2012 rather than 2010. So I'm not sure how that's an intermediate step for running against Obama in 2012. Or maybe I just don't understand the math.

In any case, please don't tell me I'm the only one who remembers Dobbs and Space.com. In case you don't, this isn't the first time Dobbs left CNN. He left in 1999 to found and run internet start-up Space.com. Alas, like so many boom era ventures, Space.com had a fiery reentry when the dot.com market collapsed. And Dobbs was back at CNN a year or so later.

All of which tells me that the night is still young. If this politics thing doesn't work out, Dobbs could be back at CNN by 2011.


http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/2009/...

Rahm Orders Health Care Article Be Must-Read For Staffers
Christina Bellantoni | November 24, 2009, 11:35AM

When President Obama likes a magazine article, White House staffers had better read it.

Obama's must-read is Ron Brownstein's Saturday blog post "A Milestone in the Health Care Journey" at the Atlantic's political Web site.

Politico noted today that Obama found the article, which lauds Max Baucus' approach to health care, a good summary of the cost controls in the health care bill.

An administration official tells TPMDC that White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel assigned the article as homework during a recent meeting.

According to the official, Emanuel told senior staffers "not to come back to the next day's meeting if they hadn't read the article."

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2009/11/rahm...

ARTICLE IN QUESTION

http://politics.theatlantic.com/2009/11/a_miles...

Something is serioulsy wrong w/ this. I can not find out when the changes take place and when do the cost controls mentioned take place. Knowing w/ certainity that the bill starts to take place in either 2013 or 14, does anything happen before then?

since MSNBC keeps it resident racist employed, why is this such a big deal on CNN?

CNN Keeps Castellanos, Dems Hit Back
Brian Beutler | November 24, 2009, 1:53PM

CNN will retain the services of Alex Castellanos, despite his new role as unpaid flack for the RNC (his official title will be Senior Communications Adviser).

"CNN has political strategists that provide unpaid advice to both sides of the aisle, and Alex will remain as a CNN contributor," a CNN spokesperson emails. "CNN will continue to be vigilant in disclosing contributor affiliations and their profiles."

Castellanos' consulting firms have produced ads for the Chamber of Commerce and America's Health Insurance Plans as part of the groups' ongoing efforts to defeat key Obama agenda items like climate change legislation and health care reform.

And now, Democrats have latched on to the development both to criticize CNN for allowing such a partisan figure to appear on the network as a news analyst, and to attack the Republican party for its closeness to industry.

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2009/11/cnn-...

Preach!

It's amazing that the guy who called Hillary Clinton a "white bitch" on national TV is now being tasked with preventing Steele from making gaffes.

He called her that for real? Wow.

Yes, in essence. It went like this:

Discussing Sen. Hillary Clinton's comments regarding sexism in the media's coverage of her presidential campaign, CNN's Jeffrey Toobin referred to a New York Times column that "talked about some of the humor in the campaign, and the punch line was a line that was -- that Hillary Clinton was a 'white bitch.' " CNN political contributor Alex Castellanos asserted, "And some women, by the way, are named that and it's accurate."

Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Buying/Selling - 11/24/2009
Buying: Thanksgiving being the best holiday.
Selling: Republicans arguing that we tortured KSM so therefore we can't bring him to civilian court because the case will be tossed out. So what the hell do we do with him? Allowing them to be uncharged keeps their platform alive. Trying them, convicting them, and putting them in jail for the rest of their lives, never to be heard from again, is the worst thing to happen to a 'cause'. It is why Iran is rounding up and jailing dissidents. But stowing them away, you stifle the opposition. Convicting and jailing these terrorists is the worst thing that can happen to them, as the world will forget about them. Obama knows this.

http://www.politicalinaction.com/2009/11/buying...

Wednesday, November 25, 2009
Obama's Approval Rating.....
It dropped below 50% because his Republican support went from 18% to 10%. His Democratic and Independent numbers actually went up.

posted by Brian Francis at

http://www.politicalinaction.com/2009/11/obamas...

numbers schumbers. It's his first year. I don't care if his numbers are -50% it doesn't make a difference because Presidents believe they can do whatever they want because "they have time to rebound." The numbers are because of the unemployment rate anyway.

His independent numbers went up? I think we'd all better get ready to shield ourselves from all the spittle, snot and tears flying from the people who will sob, "That's a LIE!!!" :)

From NY Times: Obama will probably announce 25,000 to 30,000 troop increase for Afghanistan next week.

AM: We wont join in a treaty banning landmines; we also refused to participate in the "Racism" conference in Dubai, and did everything we could to sabotage the "global warming" conference a few weeks ago. But to point out that there's an emerging pattern coming from this administration earns you the title of a hater. Oh, well. At least Michelle looks amazing....amazing indeed.


U.S. will not join treaty banning landmines

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Barack Obama has no plans to join a global treaty banning landmines because a policy review found the United States could not meet its security commitments without them, the State Department said on Tuesday.

"This administration undertook a policy review and we decided that our land mine policy remains in effect," spokesman Ian Kelly told a briefing five days before a review conference in Cartegena, Colombia on the 10-year-old Mine Ban Treaty.

"We determined that we would not be able to meet our national defense needs nor our security commitments to our friends and allies if we signed this convention," he said.

It was the first time the administration had publicly disclosed the decision.
The treaty bans the use, stockpiling, production or transfer of antipersonnel mines. It has been endorsed by 156 countries, but the United States, Russia, China and India have not adopted it.

U.S. Senator Patrick Leahy, a leading advocate for the treaty, called the decision "a default of U.S. leadership."

"It is a lost opportunity for the United States to show leadership instead of joining with China and Russia and impeding progress," Leahy, a Vermont Democrat, said in a statement.

Landmines are known to have caused 5,197 casualties last year, a third of them children, according to the Nobel Prize-winning International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL), which links some 1,000 activist groups.

The United States generally abides by the provisions of the treaty. It has not used antipersonnel mines since the 1991 Gulf War, has not exported any since 1992 and has not produced them since 1997, Steve Goose, director of the Arms Division of Human Rights Watch, told a briefing on Monday.

The review conference next Sunday is expected to draw more than 1,000 delegates representing more than 100 countries, including ministers and heads of state.

It will look at the progress of a broadly popular treaty that has helped cut land mine casualties around the world and provided relief to victims.
Kelly said the United States would send humanitarian mine relief experts from the State Department, Defense Department, U.S. Agency for International Development and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to observe the conference.

"As a global provider of security, we have an interest in the discussions there," Kelly said. "But we will be there as an observer, obviously, because we haven't signed the convention, nor do we plan to sign the convention."

U.S. SENDING OBSERVERS
It is the first time the United States has sent observers to a gathering of states that have accepted the treaty, a move that was welcomed by anti-land mine campaigners.

"The very fact that they are showing up we take as a positive sign of movement on this issue within the Obama administration," Goose said.

"We hope they're not coming empty-handed," he added. "We very much want them to come and say that they intend to join this convention. Even if they can't give a timeline, we want them to say they intend to join at some point in time."

Anti-mine campaigners said a declaration of intent was important because the Bush administration reversed U.S. policy on accepting the convention and said it would never join.

While Kelly's comment indicated no shift in administration policy, Jeff Abramson, deputy director of the nonpartisan Arms Control Association, said the United States was expected to make a statement at the conference that might shed more light on the decision.

He said it would be disappointing if such a statement shut the door to continuing a review of U.S. policy.

Kelly said the United States was the world's single largest financial supporter of humanitarian mine action, having provided more than $1.5 billion since 1993 to support mine clearance and destruction of conventional weapons.

In contravention of the treaty, however, the United States stockpiles some 10 million antipersonnel mines and retains the option to use them.
But using mines would pose big problems for Washington, Goose said, because most of its allies including all but one NATO country, are parties to the treaty and are pledged not to help other countries use the weapons.
(Editing by Sandra Maler and Alan Elsner)

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/us_usa_arms_landmines

Barack Obama should just order the military to find a way to keep our security commitments without them. Just do it, no excuses. We have some of the most creative minds in the world here and it is a failure of our imagination and belief in our innovative abilities that he cannot order those in charge of defense to find a way.

Why would he do something like that? He would be tying his hands for further conflicts which are inevitable. Landmines may be needed.

Of course, those landmines are not being planted in your neighborhood. By the way, what gives you (and your government) the right to put landmines in someone else's country?

Yea, I made a big gripe about the dishonest way the Obama administration side stepped the World Conference against Racism a while back. Also, Naomi Klein wrote about the US's and Obama's negative influence at the climate negotiations in Bangkok which you are referring to

http://www.thenation.com/doc/20091102/klein

Yesterday Democracynow reported on how civilians are killed in the continued the drone attacks in Pakistan and the shady dealings that Blackwater has in the region. This is all happening under Obama's watch and can lead to an escalated undeclared war in Pakistan. Couple this with the alledgedly 30,000 - 40,000 troops Obama plans to to send to Afghanistan to do God knows what, and you can see we're in some serious trouble.

Serious trouble would be allowing the TAliban unfettered access to Afghan civilians.

Amazon Offers Three Free MP3s of Your Choosing. Get it while it lasts!!
Enjoy

http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.htm...cId=1000...

I'm always checking Amazon. They are always offering great deals on DRM free mp3s. And their free songs stay free unlike certain other folks who shall not be named.

I need to start downloading from them. I have a Zune and a month ago I started having problems downloading music. Zune will take your points but claim you already downloaded the song. It's not just me, and I don't know what Microsoft is doing to solve the problem. I got a Zune so I could enjoy listening to the radio; I'm not that big on downloading music, but when I download I want to get what I paid for.

Zune claims it's a problem with the DRM songs but I've tried to download DRM-free songs and they won't load either.

I just got my 3 free MP3s from Amazon and they uploaded to the Zune, no problem.

I got a 404 on that link. This one worked for me:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html/ref=dm_tw...

yes!

HI!!

Had to take a couple weeks off to get away from the stupid.Then the family got the flu except me because I got the vaccine so it was miserable around the house.
But I am back just got to read the old threads to get up to speed.

Hurry up. Can't wait for your take on D running for office.

HOLD UP.wait a minute. wtf?

I know I've been working hard as of late but how did I miss that?!

Please. You're joking right?!

GTFO Its Thanksgiving not April Fools.I like D but he must be stopped with his backwards ass thinking.His photo kissing Karl Rove's ass have to be seen by the voters.

He must be counting on Pat Robertson & Co. to redraw the 3rd district to include more teabagging white people because that's the ONLY way he'll even begin to win.

But something tells me they're going to leave the 3rd district largely as it is, because if they re-draw the 3rd and the 7th district ends up absorbing the Richmond (read: black) portion of the 3rd, Eric Cantor might be kissing his seat goodbye.

hey DJ!!!

Two Michigan State University players kicked off the football team:
http://www.freep.com/article/20091124/SPORTS07/...

This is a MAJOR football program.Nobody gets kicked off of their team unless it's a SERIOUS infraction, considering what they let athletes get away with on these teams.

Of all the issues being considered by the Supreme Court this winter, none is more emotionally charged than life sentences for teenagers. The justices must decide whether sending minors to prison without any possibility of parole is a "cruel and unusual punishment" prohibited by the Eighth Amendment to the Constitution. It is a narrow point of law, but the purpose of America's penal system is in the dock.

No other country locks up its children like the United States does. An Amnesty International report found just seven prisoners in Israel, four in South Africa and one in Tanzania serving life terms for crimes they committed before they were legally considered to be adults. There are 2225 such inmates in ­American jails - each one a stark reminder that in the desire to be tough on crime, faith in rehabilitation has been lost.

On Trial: System That Locks Children up for Life Without Hope of Freedom

I am thinking back to some of the local children (under age 18) who have killed people. 1) killed a cop who was trying to take him home to his mother, 2) killed a man and cut his head off, 3) nearly blasted the head off of a grade school girl using a .357 magnum, 4) killed a man sniper style just for fun, 5) drove to a high school in his old mans Lexus suv and open fire on a group of students, killing one.
and the list goes on and on.....

The 11 year old sniper went to Juvie hall, got out at age 20, got a free apartment, money to go to a community college, and some nice clothes. Got arrested for selling drugs out of the trunk of his (free) car and is back in jail.

faith in rehabilitation? maybe

Almost one for one for each one of those stories, I can present a Juan Rayford, or a Joe Sullivan and Terrance Graham.

The larger issue for me is the undermining of the Public Defender's office, routine bypasssing Juvenile Justice System, plead deals, zealous prosecutors, and politicians with financial ties to the Prison Industrial Complex.

Thats why I said "maybe". 1:1 (50%) - its upto our society to determine if that is acceptable.

thanks morphus

Washington Wizards owner Abe Pollin has died after a long battle with a rare brain disease that impairs movement and balance, at the age of 85. Pollin’s death was announced by his company, Washington Sports & Entertainment. The son of Russian immigrants Pollin parlayed success in housing developments to bring major league hockey and basketball teams to the Nation’s Capital in the 1970s. Pollin bought the Baltimore Bullets in 1964 and moved the team to the D.C. area in 1973. Pollin’s philanthropic efforts boosted many of the capital’s poorer areas and presence in downtown DC.

Wizards owner and philanthropist Abe Pollin, dead at 85

Come on if I make it to 85 and I die that's natural causes. RIP Polin. Never heard of him but seems like he did a lot of good things.

RIP, Mr. Pollin

The Washington Post will shutter its bureaus in New York, Chicago and Los Angeles at the end of 2009. Reporters in those bureaus are being offered new positions in Washington, according to a memo to staff from Executive Editor Marcus Brauchli that was obtained by Politico.

“At a time of limited resources and increased competitive pressure, it's necessary to concentrate our journalistic firepower on our central mission of covering Washington and the news, trends and ideas that shape both the region and the country’s politics, policies and government,” Brauchli wrote.

'Washington Post' to Close Three Major Bureaus

The writing is on the wall with these newspapers. It's sad the a lot of people are going to use their jobs but it's over for them. Just like the dinosaurs.
The only papers that I think are going to make it are the WSJ and USA today.

Why I did I post this like I was on drugs? Let me try this again.

The writing is on the wall with these newspapers. It's sad that a lot of people are going to lose their jobs but it's over for them. Just like the dinosaurs.
The only papers that I think are going to make it are the WSJ and USA today.

TRANSLATION: WE BROKE.

It is an old tradition, a White House dinner governed by ritual and protocol that happens to be this city’s hottest social event. But at their first state dinner on Tuesday night, President Obama and his wife, Michelle, made sure to infuse the glittering gala with distinctive touches.

They hired a new florist, Laura Dowling, who bedecked the tented outdoor dining room with locally grown, sustainably harvested magnolia branches and ivy. They selected a guest chef, Marcus Samuelsson of Aquavit in New York, an American citizen who was born in Ethiopia, reared in Sweden and cooks up melting pots of flavors and cuisines.

They invited local students to witness the arrival of the guests of honor, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh of India and his wife, Gursharan Kaur, and presented a mélange of musical entertainment, including the National Symphony Orchestra; Jennifer Hudson, the singer and actress; Kurt Elling, the jazz musician from Chicago; and A. R. Rahman, the Indian composer who wrote the score to the movie “Slumdog Millionaire.”

And at the tables, the meatless menu included a mix of Indian and American favorites, including some African-American standards. Collard greens and curried prawns, chickpeas and okra, nan and cornbread were served to the 320 guests — including some well-known Republicans and prominent Indian-Americans — who started off with arugula from the White House garden and finished up with pumpkin pie tart. (After a tasting at the White House on Sunday, the Obamas gave the dishes their stamp of approval, Mr. Samuelsson said.)

And don’t forget the dinner plates. For an administration that publicly prizes bipartisanship, what could be finer than an eclectic mix of Clinton and Bush china?

“He wants to set a tone that’s different,” Vishakha N. Desai, a dinner guest and the Indian-born president of the Asia Society, said of the president. “Obama’s celebrating not just his African-American heritage, but the cultural diversity of America. And that’s a powerful message to send to the world.”

Modern Flourishes as Obamas Host State Dinner

I must ask...has anyone ventured to see what Robin Givhan wrote this morning?

BWA HA HA HA HA HA

Givhan's article was bitchy, IMO:

She tells of how the fictional White House State Dinners were grand, perfect productions, then says there were so many ways for the Obama State Dinner to go wrong, including the rain and the fact the dinner was held in a tent, yet nothing went wrong for them.

She tells the reader it was the first time for many of the guests to appear at a State Dinner and it showed because they were awkward (Jindal), early (Nesbitt & wife) and rushed past the cameras.

She tells of how Desiree Rogers wore the Comme de Garcons gown (sucking up) and pointed out how the deputy press secretary wore the same sari at her wedding in May.

She claims Nancy Pelosi was "enraged" at being asked if her gown was by Armani, and says the question went unanswered except for a "withering glare."

---I saw Nancy Pelosi come in and I didn't see any "enragement" or "withering glares." She came in, smiled and left with her husband.

She makes sure to point out the Indian press didn't like the idea of a tent but had to admit it was beautiful and name dropped and made sure to point out that Alfre Woodard and Blair Underwood INSISTED they weren't an item even though they came together. (The press box was trying HARD to force Underwood/Woodard to admit they were an item. I guess Givhan couldn't resist one last dig).

She made sure to let the reader know that the fancy people call service plates "chargers"...even though the average suburban reader already knows a service plate is called a charger...it's not like BED BATH & BEYOND doesn't have sales for chargers every month in their cardboard coupon.

She pointed out the flower arrangements were romantic, not stately.

She pointed out that Marcus Samuelsson specializes in Swiss cuisine and basically said that fact was out of place with everything else. (Town says: Maybe the Obamas went to Aquavit one time and liked his cooking?)

She mentioned the guy who wrote the Slumdog Millionnaire song had a remix with the Pussycat Dolls but they weren't invited. (Town says: Why in the hell would the PUSSYCAT DOLLS be invited to gyrate in front of the Indian Prime Minister? I'm waiting for her to wonder why BEYONCE wasn't invited)

Then she ends the article complaining that regular people weren't invited to the State Dinner, for all the Obamas' talk about the White House being the People's House and inviting regular folks to the White House.

Basically her article can be summed up as "This was a Bollywood night and you weren't invited to it."

She really thought the composer of "Slumdog Millionaire" should have been invited?

He WAS invited (to perform), but he did a remix of the song with the Pussycat Dolls and she sniped that THEY hadn't been invited.

And THIS is why Givhan will be getting NO invites from the White House..EVAH

More on the Nancy Pelosi/Robin Givhan dustup from Politico:

Note to fashion reporters: Don't ask Nancy Pelosi what she's wearing.

At Tuesday's state dinner, Washington Post's Robin Givhan approached the House Speaker and, according to a pool report, asked, "Is your gown Armani?"

"Pelosi shot her a disapproving stare and rolled her eyes a bit," says the pool report. She also refused to answer Givhan's follow up question, "What was that look?!"

Are we supposed to believe that Robin Givhan, who can pick out a Comme de Garcons dress on Desiree Rogers as she walked past the press box, did not know whether Nancy Pelosi's dress was an Armani or not?

If this lady can remember that the deputy press secretary wore last night's sari to her wedding back in May, and can pick out right off the bat who everyone else wore, whycome she didn't know Pelosi's dress was Armani or not? I'd bet a Krispy Kreme donut Givhan DID know the maker of Pelosi's dress, and Pelosi knew Givhan knew it too which is why she gave Givhan the BITCH PLEASE look.

I saw the same pic of Pelosi that you did....she was smiling and happy to be there.

Givhan's article was flowery, then with what appears as a regret admits the event appeared to go off without a hitch. Of course, there were a couple digs:

The parade of VIPs had the sweet but awkward quality of teens dressing up for prom: posing for pictures, rushing along (Louisiana's Republican Gov. Bobby Jindal, Kalpen Modi), afraid of making any mistakes of etiquette. The most curious and unexpected sighting: Tareq and Michaele Salahi. The notorious Fauquier County vineyard socialites, who are filming "Real Housewives of D.C.," swanned in, even though their names did not appear on the official guest list.

[...]

So this country's bigwigs and top honchos mingled with diplomats and visiting dignitaries. Despite the Obamas' pledge of a White House open to more than the triple-A-list, however, no one named Average Joe was on the official guest list.

TRANSLATION: WHY I HAD TO STAND IN THE PRESS BOX?

Dudes, this is what we should expect from a couple that is attractive and well educated!!!

*puts his hand over his heart, Fred Sanford style*

Why do you do this to me?

No lie...that first picture...those eyes...cheekbones...pursed lips...

They really do have to stop putting those pictures up. It's torture...Lord, Lord.

LOL

calm down now LOL

Michelle = Beautiful!!

Hasn't she evolved!