The Great Grigsby

How a Real-Life Superhero Looks

Tue, 07 May 2013 20:34:00 -0600

Please stop making fun of the guy in Cleveland who saved those girls/women because he doesn’t *look* the way you think a hero should look. You are helping to reinforce that looks-matter-more-than-what’s-inside crap. He saved three girls’/women’s lives!!! He is responsible for rescuing them from kidnapping. Can we please focus on something that is clearly fifty times more important in this world than his teeth and the texture of his hair?

People who agree with me keep asking in confusion why this making fun of him is so rampant. My guess (because I think like a social psychologist) is that it is because heroes are supposed to be clean-cut, well-off, slightly-nerdy, white guys like Superman, Batman, Spiderman, and Ironman. Even The Hulk as Bruce Banner fits this stereotype. Whenever we’re faced with something that defies well-internalized stereotypes, we belittle and ridicule it. (This is the same phenomenon at work when women have the same assertive, take-charge attitude that men are typically expected to have in the workplace. People who have internalized double-standards and stereotypes about how men and women are “supposed” to act will often belittle and ridicule her for being “bossy,” “bitchy,” “overbearing,” and other negative adjectives when they consider the exact same behavior by men to be a good thing.)

We have a real-life, Black, poor Superhero who doesn’t look like the ones in the Marvel movies. Get over it.

Women Get to Choose to Have Sex Too.

Tue, 07 May 2013 20:25:29 -0600

I wrote this Sunday in a Facebook status:

Saw this thing in my news feed addressed to women telling us that if we want to be a wife we should not give every man we meet “husband benefits.”

I have several issues with this typical, sexist example of slut shaming:

1. It assumes every woman’s goal is to be some man’s wife.
2. It says nothing about how men who want to be a husband shouldn’t give every woman he meets “wife benefits.”
3. It puts down women for making the choice to have sex with whom they want and when they want.
4. It puts the onus on women to prevent premarital sex while completely excusing males.

Shake my head. This is why so many men freak out when they are faced with having to deal with all of the things that go along with women’s equality. We socialize them to think like this. And we even (unfortunately) tell them that God is into this subjetive treatment of women.

And we wonder why we have a huge rape culture problem.

Then today, Jezebel published this article essentially getting at the same thing:

http://jezebel.com/female-purity-is-bullshit-493278191

Anyone who is into slut-shaming, get over yourselves. We can make our own choices just fine without your input, thanks.

Same day the stock market sets new record, conservative group floats impeaching Obama for "wrecking the stock market"

Tue, 07 May 2013 20:21:20 -0600

Same day the stock market sets new record, conservative group floats impeaching Obama for "wrecking the stock market":

think-progress:

Because, yeah.

matchbookmag: our checklist of 50 classics for every Matchbook...

Sun, 21 Apr 2013 19:21:00 -0600

matchbookmag:

our checklist of 50 classics for every Matchbook girl’s closet from our premier issue!

The New Deal Was a Good Thing

Tue, 18 Dec 2012 10:40:32 -0700

Someone decided to argue that the New Deal did not bring any relief to the Great Depression. Now, most of the problem here is in proving a negative. It is pretty problematic to try to prove that unemployment would have been worse if not for the Works Progress Administration (WPA)? It is the same problem in getting people to understand that the 2009 “stimulus” (American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, or ARRA) helped keep things from being worse than they would have otherwise been.

But there were some simpler things wrong with his argument and his sources for backing it up (they were US News article entitled “Did the New Deal Work? and blog post entitled “New Deal Was Bad for America). While the first was a nice source, he seemed not to fully get the meaning of the data presented and that it does not prove his point. The second is just not a great source.

Here are my arguments:

The New Deal was having a positive effect on the economy until 1937, when opponents started preaching austerity. Austerity had a negative effect and caused the economy to plunge again (much like it has been doing in Europe for the last four years). Then WW2 which caused the government to need to stop the austerity in order to spend for the war and to raise taxes in order to pay for the war caused it to pick up again.

The economy encompasses far more than the unemployment rate. The economy has to do with the entire exchange of goods and services and money in the country. The percentage of people working is not a measure of the economy. It is a separate variable that has an effect on the economy and that is itself affected by the economy, but it is not itself a measure of the economy.

There is also an important economic fact to keep in mind. The unemployment rate, while it does tell us something about how well individual average Americans are doing in the country at that moment in time, it is a lagging indicator of how the economy as a whole is doing. So when the economy plunges it takes a few months for the unemployment rate to follow suit and reach bottom (which makes perfect common sense when you think about it. Individual companies and employers don’t immediately lay off everyone they are going to have to lay off the moment the economy tanks). It also is a lagging indicator on the way back up. When the economy recovers and starts doing better, businesses and employers do not immediately rehire again. Historically, it has taken anywhere from just under a year to a few years for the unemployment rate to follow the more immediate measures and indicators of economic performance.

And it would be helpful, knowing this, to reread your own article from usnews.com: “Just how rapid that trend was, though, depends on whom you ask. Except for a downturn in 1938 (historians still debate its origin), the economy and unemployment did improve after the onset of the New Deal. The country’s real gross domestic product fell from $865 billion in 1929 to $635 billion in 1933 but rebounded to $1 trillion by 1940. The only hiccup was a decline from $911 billion in 1937 to $879 billion in 1938. But the percentage of jobless Americans remained in the double digits until the onset of World War II.” also “‘Recovery was just one piece of the New Deal,’ Rauchway says. ‘Relief was another piece, and by all accounts it worked pretty well. It kept people from starving.’ He also notes that a decline in the relief programs was correlated with the downturn in 1938.”

I’m not even going to spend time arguing with the second link. It is basically an opinion piece of a random blogger that makes the same analysis errors I already addressed. It ignores the trends in data before 1937 austerity measures and between those measures and WWII which show a more complete picture of how the economy reacted to specific measures and uses the lagging indicator of unemployment rate, not the more appropriate GDP to measure economic performance. Basically, it presents data in a way to reinforce his opinion and ignores the data that is the better measure and the more detailed trends that would contradict that person’s opinion. It could be a well-meaning person not understanding enough about economics to understand the problems with his/her analysis of the data and choice of data to analyze, so I’m not saying that it was meant to deceive, just that it is flawed.

United States versus Australia

Tue, 18 Dec 2012 09:55:00 -0700

Someone challenged me and a friend of mine on comparing Australia’s gun regulations favorably with the United States’ almost complete lack of them by pointing out the shooting at Monasah University in 2002. While the Monasah University shooting was a tragedy where five people were injured and two were killed, it only goes to further prove the point, not contradict it. Here is part of my response to that person.

“A few things:

…

2. The Monash University shooting in 2002 actually would not fit the criteria of a mass shooting. While he was able to injure 5 people, only 2 died. Part of the reason the number of fatalities was much lower than what would constitute a mass shooting is because of their gun control laws after 1996. They banned weapons that can shoot dozens of rounds per second. The practical effect of that is that less people get injured and killed before a gunman is stopped.

3. Here is a great article from the Injury Prevention journal that discusses the first 10 years of the gun ban in Australia - http://injuryprevention.bmj.com/content/12/6/365.full

4. As for how I got 62 here in the U.S.: Simple. Using this criteria for what constitutes a mass shooting - lone gunman kills at least 4 people (not including himself) during a single incident in a public place - we have had 56 (but in 30 years, not 15, so I was wrong on that part). If you add in spree killings, where it meets all of the above except there were multiple locations there are 6 more. Unfortunately, we have had 7 just in the year 2012.

Here is a list:

1. Aug 20, 1982 - welding shop in Miami, FL

2. Jun 29, 1984 - night club in Dallas, TX

3. Jul 18, 1984 - McDonald’s in San Ysidro, CA

4. Aug 20, 1986 - post office in Edmond, OK

5. Apr 23, 1987 - spree killing in shopping malls in Palm Bay, FL

6. Feb 16, 1988 - software company in Sunnyvale, CA

7. Jan 17, 1989 - elementary school’s schoolyard in Stockton, CA

8. Sep 14, 1989 - printing company in Louisville, KY

9. Jun 18, 1990 - General Motors in Jacksonville, FL

10. Oct 16, 1991 - cafeteria in Kileen, TX

11. Nov 1, 1991 - University of Iowa in Iowa city, IA

12. Nov 14, 1991 - post office in Royal Oak, MI

13. May 1, 1992 - high school in Olivehurst, CA

14. Oct. 15, 1992 - child-support office in Watkins Glenn, NY

15. Jul 1, 1993 - office building in San Francisco, CA

16. Aug 6, 1993 - restaurant in Fayetteville, NC

17. Dec 7, 1993 - public transit train in Garden City, NY

18. Dec 14, 1993 - Chuck E. Cheese’s Aurora, CO

19. Jun 20, 1994 - air force base in Spokane, WA

20. Apr 3, 1995 - refinery inspection business in Corpus Christi, TX

21. Feb 9, 1996 - city park employee trailer in Fort Lauderdale, FL

22. Sep 15, 1997 - engine electronic systems company in Aiken, SC

23. Dec 18, 1997 - maintenance yard in Orange, CA

24. Mar 6, 1998 - state lottery office in Newington, CT

25. Mar 24, 1998 - middle school in Jonesboro, AR

26. May 21, 1998 - high school in Springfield, OR

27. Apr 20, 1999 - high school in Littleton, CO

28. Jul 29, 1999 - spree killing in day trading firms in Atlanta, GA

29. Sep 15, 1999 - church in Fort Worth, TX

30. Nov 2, 1999 - Xerox office in Honolulu, HI

31. Dec 30, 1999 - hotel in Tampa, FL

32. Dec 26, 2000 - consulting firm in Wakefield, MA

33. Feb 5, 2001 - Navistar trucks in Melrose Park, IL

34. Jul 8, 2003 - Lockheed Martin in Meridian, MS

35. Dec 8, 2004 - concert in Columbus, OH

36. Mar 12, 2005 - church in Brookfield, WI

37. Mar 21, 2005 - high school in Red Lake, MN

38. Jan 30, 2006 - post office in Goleta, CA

39. Mar 25, 2006 - party in Seattle (Capitol Hill), WA

40. Oct 2, 2006 - Amish schoolhouse in Bart Township, PA

41. Feb 12, 2007 - shopping center in Salt Lake City, UT

42. Apr 16, 2007 - Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, VA

43. Oct 7, 2007 - party in Crandon, WI

44. Dec 5, 2007 - mall in Omaha, NE

45. Feb 7, 2008 - city hall in Kirkwood, MO (I lived there, in Clayton, MO when this one happened)

46. Feb. 14, 2008 - Northern Illinois University in DeKalb, IL (my younger cousin worked there at that time. That week in 2008 was a scary one for me.)

47. Jun 25, 2008 - plastics factory in Henderson, KY

48. Mar 29, 2009 - nursing home in Carthage, NC

49. Apr 3, 2009 - immigrant center in Binghamton, NY

50. Nov 5, 2009 - army base in Fort Hood, TX

51. Nov 29, 2009 - coffee shop in Parkland, WA

52. Aug 3, 2010 - beer distributor in Manchester, CT

53. Jan 8, 2001 - Safeway parking lot in Tucson, AZ

54. Sep 6, 2011 - IHOP in Carson City, NV

55. Oct 14, 2011 - hair salon in Seal Beach, CA

56. Feb 22, 2012 - spa and sauna in Norcross, GA

57. Apr 2, 2012 - Oikos University in Oakland, CA

58. May 20, 2012 - cafe in Seattle, WA

59. July 20, 2012 - movie theater in Aurora, CO

60. Aug 5, 2012 - Sikh temple in Oak Creek, WI

61. Sep 27, 2012 - sign company in Minneapolis, MN

62. Dec. 14, 2012 - first grade classrooms in Newtown, CT

5. And that’s not including shootings with less than 4 victims like with Monash University. If you include shootings in public places with less than 4 killed, we had several just this week. Mall in OR, school in CT, hospital in AL, Excalibur Hotel in Vegas and a mall in CA in less than 5 days. We have a serious problem on our hands, unfortunately.

barackobama: “Since I’ve been President, this is the fourth...

Tue, 18 Dec 2012 07:23:28 -0700

barackobama:

“Since I’ve been President, this is the fourth time we have come together to comfort a grieving community torn apart by a mass shooting. The fourth time we’ve hugged survivors. The fourth time we’ve consoled the families of victims. And in between, there have been an endless series of deadly shootings across the country, almost daily reports of victims, many of them children, in small towns and big cities all across America—victims whose—much of the time, their only fault was being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

“We can’t tolerate this anymore. These tragedies must end. And to end them, we must change. We will be told that the causes of such violence are complex, and that is true. No single law—no set of laws can eliminate evil from the world, or prevent every senseless act of violence in our society.

“But that can’t be an excuse for inaction. Surely, we can do better than this. If there is even one step we can take to save another child, or another parent, or another town, from the grief that has visited Tucson, and Aurora, and Oak Creek, and Newtown, and communities from Columbine to Blacksburg before that—then surely we have an obligation to try.”

— President Obama at yesterday’s vigil in Newtown, Connecticut

motherjones: “The ideologies of my past career are no longer...

Tue, 18 Dec 2012 07:21:27 -0700

motherjones:

“The ideologies of my past career are no longer relevant to the future that I want, to the future that I demand for my children,” Scarborough said in his eight-minute monologue on the tragedy.

Don't Make the Mistake of Blaming God Allegedly Not Being in Public Schools

Tue, 18 Dec 2012 04:53:00 -0700

Just in case you are tempted to blame this tragedy on God not being in schools, let me stop you there for just a minute and point out a few things. I don’t want you to say something that will embarrass you because you misunderstand things.

1. God has not been removed from public schools. This common myth is a severely inaccurate misunderstanding of the law. Students are perfectly free to pray, read their holy books and have their own religious beliefs and practices. The law prevents THE SCHOOL from forcing any religion upon students because not all students have the same religious beliefs and this is to keep a school from forcing upon YOUR child or grandchild religious beliefs or practices you might disagree with. The purpose of school is to teach academic subjects and that should remain its purpose. If you would like to instill your children with a belief in God that is like your own beliefs, you should be glad the school is not allowed to get into religious teachings that might contradict your own. Instead of thinking like a person whose religion is in the majority think about how you’d feel if it were in the minority. Think about how the percentage of our population who believes as you do is waning. As the beliefs of the American population changes, this will come to protect you as much as it does the current religious minorities. And all who call themselves Christians do not have the same beliefs. Trust me. I went to a Christian school where they had different beliefs than my Christian father. You want to be the only one deciding on your child’s religious education more than you realize.

2. This was the point of why our founding fathers came here. They disagreed with the religious teachings of the country from which they came, but their was a mixture of religion and government there. They fled here for religious freedom to worship as they saw fit. For us Christians who have read our Bibles, this story should sound very familiar to us. If it doesn’t sound familiar to you, I would recommend you turn to the first three chapters of Daniel and read them. In the case of the school issue, the children are like Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego and the school would be Nebuchadnezzar. Even the Bible supports the separation of Church and State.

“Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar’s; and unto God the things that are God’s.”

-Matthew 22:21

3. That person whose name I won’t mention who is responsible for Friday’s tragedy was home schooled. I do not mention this to say that home-schooling is evil or bad or anything like that. I just mention it because, if a person tries to blame the erroneous belief that God is not in public schools it is relevant to recognize that neither was the perpetrator of Friday’s atrocity.

"With complete disregard for his personal safety, Second Lieutenant Inouye crawled up the treacherous slope to within five yards of the nearest machine gun and hurled two grenades, destroying the emplacement. Before the enemy could retaliate, he stood up and neutralized a second machine gun nest. Although wounded by a sniper’s bullet, he continued to engage other hostile positions at close range until an exploding grenade shattered his right arm. Despite the intense pain, he refused evacuation and continued to direct his platoon until enemy resistance was broken and his men were again deployed in defensive positions."

Tue, 18 Dec 2012 04:25:13 -0700

"With complete disregard for his personal safety, Second Lieutenant Inouye crawled up the treacherous slope to within five yards of the nearest machine gun and hurled two grenades, destroying the emplacement. Before the enemy could retaliate, he stood up and neutralized a second machine gun nest. Although wounded by a sniper’s bullet, he continued to engage other hostile positions at close range until an exploding grenade shattered his right arm. Despite the intense pain, he refused evacuation and continued to direct his platoon until enemy resistance was broken and his men were again deployed in defensive positions.":

motherjones:

R.I.P. Sen. Daniel Inouye.

Dear law-abiding, gun advocates:

Tue, 18 Dec 2012 04:21:00 -0700

I know you are a law-abiding citizen who uses your guns responsibly. The problem is not you. We all recognize that. We are not saying you are bad or wrong or responsible. We are not suggesting that you would do something like this.

Please, let us get past our initial, automatic, defensive feelings of being blamed and persecuted. This is about the safety of society as a whole.

We often give up our total freedom to do whatever we want or whatever comes into our heads that we’d like to do in the name of safety for society as a whole. We have speed limits and seatbelt laws and drunk driving laws and laws against teen drinking and smoking that are all infringement upon our rights. We all spent years taking off our shoes at airports. We all understand and accept that we do sometimes limit the ability for all of us to do anything and everything we want in the pursuit of safety as a society. That is part of what being a part of a society is about.

Instead of automatic defensiveness about how you are not the bad guy and you are not wrong - which is not the argument of gun control advocates at all - please take a moment to remove yourself from the picture. Frankly, it isn’t about you at all. It is about all of the people who have lost their lives whose death we could have prevented and all of the people who will lose their lives whose deaths we could still prevent.

And I know we, as a nation love denying that the gun is part of the problem, but evidence does not back up that position. Gun deaths do decline with effective gun control. Gun “control” is probably too loaded a term for us to use anymore because people misinterpret it to mean “no guns.” I’m not suggesting we be like Japan (though it should be noted that it is a scandal there if the gun deaths in a year number in the double digits in a calendar year, while ours get into the tens of thousands in a year). Not many gun control advocates are saying that is the way we should go. We are asking for a middle ground “safer guns” laws if you prefer that to “gun control.” Do you honestly use assault weapons to hunt? Do you honestly use more than 30 rounds per second for hunting? We are asking for safer guns. Gun restrictions that mean that, even when guns get into the hands of someone who uses them to hurt the innocent, we do not have quite so many people dying.

In a week where we had a shooting in a mall in Oregon, another in a school in Connecticut, another in a hospital in Alabama, another in the Excalibur Hotel in Vegas, and yet another in a mall in Southern California. In a week where in the span of 5 days we had at minimum five shootings in very public places - public places of the type that you and your children visit every day - can we please stop being so much about ourselves and our own rights to own whatever we want and think about how stubbornness about that hurts the people who keep dying every day? Can we think about how that right might not trump the right of 20 first grade babies to live? Yes, people will find other ways to try to harm people, but, frankly, those other ways are a lot less deadly and end up harming less people and often with less fatal consequences. Friday there was another event in China. Nine children were injured. Those poor children should not have been targeted either, but, unlike in Connecticut, those babies are still alive. So yes, “people kill people,” but certain types of guns and certain types of ammunition (hollow-points, I’m looking at you!) help them kill more, help them be better at it, and help them do it faster.

And please, as the media focuses on the twenty-six people who died in the school, let us all keep in mind there was a twenty-seventh. The first person to die in this tragedy saw the world just like you. She was an NRA member who knew how to use her guns and who was a law-abiding individual. She had hers to practice at gun ranges. She wasn’t doing anything wrong and was responsibly exercising her gun rights. Friday morning, before the rest of the horror of that day unfolded, that responsible gun owner was killed with her own weapon.

And she is not alone. Owning a gun makes it more likely that the owner or a person who lives with the owner - including children in the home - will either have THAT gun used against them or will be injured by it. In contrast to our typical American mindset that having a gun makes you and your household safer, it actually does the exact opposite. It provides a false sense of security while actually increasing risk of danger. So my concern is just as much for you.

Rob Delaney: I love Levon Helm and America

Sun, 16 Dec 2012 03:51:18 -0700

Rob Delaney: I love Levon Helm and America:

robdelaney:

Levon Helm, drummer and singer of The Band, passed away from throat cancer last week. The outpouring of love directed his way over the last week, from every corner of the world, was remarkable. His family did an interesting thing too; they told the world before he died that he was in his final…

This post from Rob Delaney is AWE. SOME.

Biden was really attractive as a young guy! Happy 70th...

Tue, 20 Nov 2012 14:18:00 -0700

Biden was really attractive as a young guy! Happy 70th VP!!!

zooley:

sweet jesus young joe biden was cute

Updated Senate and House Predictions

Sun, 04 Nov 2012 01:05:23 -0600

There was a period for most of August, where it was not only possible, but more probable than not, the Republicans would win the majority in the Senate.

Then Congressman Todd Akin went on the Jaco Report and took care of that by explaining about “legitimate rape.” He made it probable that Dems would hold the Senate.

Then there was Mitt Romney’s attack on the the statement put out by the U. S. embassy in Egypt while the embassy in Egypt and the Consulate in Libya were still being attacked. It was followed very soon by his 47% comment. Romney’s missteps hurt not only his own race, but all of the down-ballot races (i.e. Senate and House) races as well.

Then, the Sept 25 deadline for Akin to get out passed. Now stuck with him in Missouri as their only chance to beat Claire McCaskill, all of the people who had denounced him before started defending him and pumping money into his campaign trying to salvage that race. This had the unfortunate consequence of demonstrating that all of their denials of support and feigned horror back in August wasn’t the least bit genuine.

Then Oct 23 came and Richard Mourdock chose, for some incomprehensible reason, to mimic Todd Akin (and Paul Ryan, but Ryan’s remark went largely unnoticed). Now there is a bipartisan poll released that has Mourdock losing badly. I’m afraid to credit it. It seems just impossible that this election season could end with Democrats picking up Dick Lugar’s Senate seat. It won’t make much difference in the control of the Senate (it still will be Dems controlling the Senate but Republicans having enough to filibuster as I predicted a week and a half ago), but it makes for an extremely interesting turn of events!

As for the remaining races, assuming Donnelly wins in Indiana:

1. There are 30 Democratic Senators who are not up for re-election this year.

2. Most polls have Maria Cantwell (WA) with about at 20 point lead over her challenger. So the Dems have 31.

3. Diane Feinstein (CA) has a similar lead over her challenger. that brings the Dems to 32.

4. Amy Klobuchar (MN) is leading her challenger by 30 points. That brings the Dems to 33.

5. Kirsten Gillibrand (NY) is ahead of Wendy Long by a jaw-dropping 40 points. That brings the Dems to 34.

6. Independent Bernie Sanders is certain to win Vermont. Since he caucuses with the Dems, that brings them to 35.

7. Ben Cardin is ahead of both challengers in Maryland by about 30 points. That brings the Dems to 36.

8. Sheldon Whitehouse is leading the Rhode Island race by more than 20 points. The Dems reach 37 with his win.

9. Bob Menendez is up by about 20 points in New Jersey’s Senate race. His win would bring the Dems to 38 in the Senate.

10. Tom Carper is heavily favored to win in Delaware. FiveThirtyEight has his chances of winning at 99.8% percent. The Dems reach 39.

11. Some polls have Joe Manchin winning West Virginia by as much as 40 points. That brings the Dems to 40.

12. The Dems need only 11 more to hold the Senate, and this is where things get less certain.

13. It is fairly certain that Martin Heinrich (NM) and Debbie Stabenow (MI) will win. This brings Democrats to 42 in the Senate.

14. It is more certain than not that Claire McCaskill will win Missouri thanks to Todd Akin in order to bump Democrats up to 43.

15. It is also probable that Sherrod Brown (OH), Bob Casey (PA), Maize Hirono (HI), Chris Murphy (CT) and Elizabeth Warren (MA) are headed for victory. They boost the Democrats up to 48.

16. It looks like Independent Angus King is sure to win Maine, and it is assumed that he will caucus with the Democrats. If he does, the Dems are up to 49.

17. It looks like Bill Nelson has pulled ahead in Florida now enough to have a more comfortable lead and is now likely to defeat Connie Mack IV, bringing the Dems to 50.

18. At this point, with all of the more solid and lean Democrat races counted, the Democrats are very close to a majority. They already have a majority if President Obama wins (then Joe Biden would be President of the Senate and the tie-braker) or they need one more seat if Mitt Romney wins. It is highly probable they will get more than enough.

19. Though Tim Kaine (VA), Tammy Baldwin (WI) are statistically tied on polls reported by Real Clear Politics, Five Thirty Eight has both of them with more than a 77% chance of winning. Either one would bring Dems a majority even if mitt Romney wins.

20. If Joe Donnelly also pulls off the amazing feat of defeating Richard Mourdock (and now it looks like he just might), Dems could have as many as 53 seats when it looked like they would lose the Senate just two months ago.

I can’t wait until Tuesday night!

Gary Clark Jr. "Blak and Blu"

Tue, 30 Oct 2012 13:37:00 -0600

Politics is not my only obsession. There are a few. (I have a love for/addiction to sugar that might be unparalleled) but the one I’ve been thinking about a lot this morning is music.

On iTunes, I ran across this new album that Alicia Keys recommended to her fans. I decided to take a listen. It was… interesting.

Now don’t get me wrong. It is good music. It is worth buying the songs you like on it. As an album, though, it completely lacks focus.

My one friend who is a fellow music junkie asked me “Is it good.” It is hard to answer her because the quality of the music is overshadowed by its diversity.

It is a tad bit all over the place in musical style. “eclectic” is an understatement. It’s like he couldn’t decide what genre he wanted his album to be, so he put them all on there! It’s good… but it is really, really, really, eclectic. It bounces around from one musical style to the next from song to song. I rarely found two songs that were from the same genre.
It is like he took the whole Ben-Haper-diverse-genres thing to an extreme and I’m not sure whether it works as one album. But since we are in the age of MP3s and shuffle mode where people rarely listen to one album at a time in order, it might not be a bad thing. If you try to listen to the album all at once, it feels kind of ADD and at times I was thinking “Jeez! Focus!” It wasn’t because the music itself was bad, just because he did not even remotely pick a genre for it.

I’m not even sure whether I recommend it or not. It is such a new experience to know how I feel about an album (for instance I definitely think you should give Tristan Prettyman’s new one a try, but her ex-fiance, Jason Mraz disappointed on his latest offering - with the exception of “I Won’t give Up (Demo) - which is a nice bit of musical karma). But with Gary Clark Jr., I don’t know what to think.

Some L.A. Times music critic uses the beautiful description that it is “every shade of the blues.” That is true, I guess. However, it is a bit jarring to hear the smooth imitation of Smokey Robinson on “Please Come Home” and the Black Keys wannabe “Ain’t Messing Round” and the piano-heavy “Travis County” (which sounds like the love child of a classic Jerry Lee Lewis tune and Amos Lee’s “Truth”) all on the same album. And that is not the extent of Clark’s influences. I hear influences from classic country music to Lenny Kravitz to early neo-soul to hip-hop.

#MorningNewsDump October 30, 2012

Tue, 30 Oct 2012 04:00:00 -0600

Tuesday’s #MorningNewsDump is entirely about Superstorm Sandy:

1. NBC Nightly News 10/29 New Jersey Shore

2. NBC Nightly News 10/29 Lower Manhattan

3. Maddow 10/29 Report on rescue operations and conditions from Superstorm Sandy

4. Maddow 10/20 Meteorologist explains Superstorm Sandy

5. The Lede Blog 10/29 State-by-state guide to Sandy

6. Guardian US 10/30 Sandy hits NY (pictures)

7. Guardian US 10/30 report on Superstorm Sandy

8. NY Times 10/30 report on Superstorm Sandy

9. Cliff View Pilot 10/30 Reminders of Katrina with People on roofs awaiting rescue

10. Reuters 10/30 fire in Queens destroys dozens of homes

#MorningNewsDump October 29, 2012

Mon, 29 Oct 2012 04:00:00 -0600

Happy World Stroke Day!

Because I am a stroke survivor, this is a big deal for me. Please learn about your own risk. It can happen to anyone at any age (I had barely turned 23). Also find out how to use FAST to identify a potential stroke.

Monday’s #MorningNewsDump is a huge one that is a continuation of the topic from Friday.

1. Friday we were here.

2. Andrea Mitchell (reporter and wife of Alan Greenspan) on Mitt Romney’s response.

Now, beyond the real scandal of Romney hoping for another Iranian hostage crisis to take political advantage of and jumping on this as his Iranian hostage c

risis, Romney has made three allegations against the President:

A. That the President/Administration apologizes for the U.S. and in this instance the Administration put out a statement in response to the attacks on the embassy apologizing for the U.S.

B. That the President took 14 days to call it terror and misled the American public about what it was:

C. That they asked for more security in Libya and The President denied them more security and that is why Ambassador Chris Stevens and the other three people died.

Let’s look at the problems with each of these one at a time.

A. First, let’s look at the accusation that the President/Administration apologizes for the U.S. and in this instance the Administration put out a statement in response to the attacks on the embassy apologizing for the U.S.

1. Remember, on Friday, we saw that the statement preceded the attacks on the embassy by 5 or 6 hours. So it is nonsense to call the statement a response to the attacks. In fact, they were trying to head off protests as noted by Andrea Mitchell above.

2. On Friday, we also noted the statement was put out by the embassy without pre-approval from Washington and that Washington disavowed the statement when they learned about it and removed it from online.

3. The whole “Obama apologizes for America” narrative itself has been repeatedly debunked, even by the Washington Post.

B. Next let’s look at the accusation that That the President took 14 days to call it terror and misled the American public about what it was:

1. Friday’s news dump included a video from 9/12 of the President in the Rose Garden referring to it as an act of terror.

2. Intelligence Briefings officials were given during first weeks were contradictory.

3. The people who were unclear were other Administration officials saying what conflicting reports told them, and frankly, people don’t instantly know who is responsible for attacks like this and why

4. The e-mails that are supposed to be so scandalous aren’t scandalous at all. I mean really not scandalous.

C. Finally, there’s the accusation that they asked for more security in Libya and The President denied them more security and that is why Ambassador Chris Stevens and the other three people died.

1. This one might be the most ridiculous of all.

2. Libya is an entire country that has more than one city. You think I’m joking, but this is apparently something people have either forgotten or completely chosen to ignore:
here and here and here and here

3. Benghazi is 400 miles from Tripoli.

4. Then there’s the fact that mid-level people at the State Department, not the White House deal with approvals of security for diplomatic officials. The President, Vice President and rarely even the Secretary of State ever hear about security requests.

5. Also, the main responsibility for security for diplomatic officials is that of the host nation, not us. So that would be Libya’s responsibility. We just provide extra when necessary and available.

6. And there’s that slight problem with the fact that funding for the extra security that we do provide in addition to that of the host nation was cut by the Republicans in Congress, and almost all of them voted to do so, including Romney’s VP candidate, Paul Ryan, and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton warned them this was a huge problem.

None of this has stopped Romney from trying to make this his Iranian Hostage Crisis. And some of his surrogates happily comply with helping him.

And the sad thing is, if you think about it a step or two past the surface, it is REALLY bad for Romney and the idea that embassy attacks are unique to President Obama ignores the seven embassy attacks under President Bush.

Senate and House Predictions

Sat, 27 Oct 2012 05:00:00 -0600

So, it’s certain that, even if Mourdock wins in Indiana (despite the whole Todd Akin moment he had) the Senate is staying Democratic.

1. Democrats have 37 seats that are either not up for re-election or such safe seats there is pretty much no way they’ll lose them.

2. Stabenow (MI), Menendez (NJ), Cantwell (WA), Manchin (WV), Brown (OH) and Casey (PA) are definitely keeping their seats. That brings Dems to 43.

3. Hirono (HI), Heinrich (NM), Warren (MA), are going to win those seats currently held by someone else bringing the Dems to 46.

4. King (ME) is going to win and is probably going to caucus with the Dems (he’s an independent). So that brings the Dems to 47.

5. It is looking more likely than not that Nelson (FL) and McCaskill (MO) will hold on to their seats bringing the Dems to 49.

6. Tommy Thompson has helped Tammy Baldwin out so much it is fairly certain she’s going to win in Wisconsin (that’s 50).

7. Chris Murphy is probably going to beat Linda McMahon for Joe Lieberman’s seat in Connecticut. That’s 51 and a majority even if we no longer have Joe Biden as VP and President of the Senate (and it’s fairly likely we will).

8. Tim Kaine is looking likely to win Virginia for 52.

(Republicans are likely to win AZ, MT, NE, NV, ND meaning they’ll still have the ability to filibuster like they’ve been doing these past two years and keep things from being done).

So whether Mourdock wins or loses, it is safe to say we’ll have a Democratic Senate, Harry Reid will still be in charge, but Republicans will have more than the 41 they need to filibuster.

There aren’t enough tossup races to even make it possible the Dems win back the House. There are 228 solid and leaning Republican districts in the US. only 218 is needed for a majority. Unless there are major demographic changes over the next decade, it is unlikely the Dems can win back the House before the next redistricting in 2021 - though Pelosi is trying! Dems may gain more seats than they have right now, but the House is unlikely to flip back.

Why Continue to Support Barack Obama?

Wed, 05 Sep 2012 00:14:00 -0600

I am continually struck by how many American voters have almost no knowledge of the accomplishments of our President over the last four years.

1. Creating Manufacturing Jobs http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=Pj_9iLEMCec

2. Equal Pay http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=nP2wI7Oco6Y
3. Supporting Teachers http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=HS83FwneICs

4. Health Coverage for Young Americans http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=ODRMJGfLy_

5. Hate Crime Legislation http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HmaSY80rwW8&feature=relmfu

6. Lowering the Cost of Medicare Prescriptions http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BBVeT0aufng&feature=relmfu

7. Credit Card Reform http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=t2F4O1PnFF4

8. Community College Partnership http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=1b5LstPhfb4

9. Equality for LGBT
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=8tmCEE5cjIc

10. Women’s Health http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=AHLwSLYUQ-E

11. Extending Unemployment Insurance http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=I-IbsPL_IWc

12. Early Childhood Education http://www.vxv.com/video/atcRGmFOlPwk/health-reform-explained-video-health-reform-hits-main-street.html

13. Five million kids with pre-existing conditions can now get coverage thanks to President Obama and the Affordable Care Act (ACA/Obamacare) http://www.vxv.com/video/atcRGmFOlPwk/health-reform-explained-video-health-reform-hits-main-street.html

Not to mention student loan reform, efforts to help those facing foreclosure whose mortgages were with the government (the only ones he has control over), ending Don’t Ask Don’t Tell and a long list of other things he has done that people seem to not think of or not know about when they are so full of criticism without being based on fact. A lot has gotten done and that with the limitation of a record number of filibusters in the Senate from the GOP senators and with a House that appears to be intent on voting against every single proposal that might do something positive while voting for a record number of bills against women’s reproductive and breast health and voting 33 times to repeal health care reform. 33 votes on the same thing, but not one on the American Jobs Act that would help give states money to employ teachers, policemen, firemen, and build and maintain this nation’s crumblings roads and bridges while simultaneously employing construction workers (the hardest hit by the job losses). A President has only so much power. He does not make law by himself. He signs into law only those things that are passed by Congress. So is there room for criticism on things he didn’t do perfectly? Yes. Is there no reason for continued support of him? Of course not. There is a long list of reasons to continue to support him. It took 30 years of bad fiscal policy to get us into the mess that happened in 2007/2008. It does not get undone and fixed by waving a magic wand and becomes infinitely harder wth a Congress actively working against him for political gain.

Visit NBCNews.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy, world news, and news about the economy

If the video above listing even more accomplishments is not playing for you, it can be seen at MSNBC’s website here.

The list and links in this post are provided by I will vote for Barack Obama in 2012:

Michelle Obama's Speech at the D.N.C. - Video - The New York Times

Tue, 04 Sep 2012 23:26:36 -0600

Michelle Obama's Speech at the D.N.C. - Video - The New York Times:

Her speech was phenomenal!