Friday, May 09, 2008
FactCheck.org: That Chain E-mail Your Friend Sent to You Is (Likely) Bogus. Seriously.
FactCheck.org: That Chain E-mail Your Friend Sent to You Is (Likely) Bogus. Seriously.
Interesting article. Keep the link stashed away and return it to anyone who sends you one of those chain e-mails about this or that presidential candidate.
posted by Sal Towse at 10:31 AM|
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Interesting article. Keep the link stashed away and return it to anyone who sends you one of those chain e-mails about this or that presidential candidate.
posted by Sal Towse at 10:31 AM|
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Thursday, May 08, 2008
The sixth mistake? "working, hardworking Americans, white Americans"
AP article: Clinton presses on, urges supporters to ignore calls to quit
In an interview with USA Today published Thursday, Clinton noted that the coalition of voters who have supported her in the Democratic nominating contest had eluded Obama and would pose problems for him in the general election.
"Senator Obama's support among working, hardworking Americans, white Americans, is weakening again ... there's a pattern here," Clinton was quoted as saying.
***
Some of us working, hardworking Americans, white Americans are wondering whether anyone has sent a search party out looking for her marbles.
Washington Post Behind The Numbers blog: Clinton's Broader Base?
Update: YouTube clip of the interview's salient point [Thx! Archer!]
posted by Sal Towse at 9:35 PM||
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In an interview with USA Today published Thursday, Clinton noted that the coalition of voters who have supported her in the Democratic nominating contest had eluded Obama and would pose problems for him in the general election.
"Senator Obama's support among working, hardworking Americans, white Americans, is weakening again ... there's a pattern here," Clinton was quoted as saying.
***
Some of us working, hardworking Americans, white Americans are wondering whether anyone has sent a search party out looking for her marbles.
Washington Post Behind The Numbers blog: Clinton's Broader Base?
Update: YouTube clip of the interview's salient point [Thx! Archer!]
Labels: politics
posted by Sal Towse at 9:35 PM|
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The Five Mistakes Clinton Made - TIME
Now, granted, there's many a slip twixt the cup and the lip. It ain't over 'til the fat lady sings. MISSION ACCOMPLISHED wasn't. ...
But I found this article interesting. Some of the points I'd heard before. The Ickes-Penn story I heard for the first time today.
The Five Mistakes Clinton Made - TIME
by Karen Tumulty
For all her talk about "full speed on to the White House," there was an unmistakably elegiac tone [Note: Tumulty is not the only person to use this adjective to describe Hillary's speech] to Hillary Clinton's primary-night speech in Indianapolis. And if one needed further confirmation that the undaunted, never-say-die Clintons realize their bid might be at an end, all it took was a look at the wistful faces of the husband and the daughter who stood behind the candidate as she talked of all the people she has met in a journey "that has been a blessing for me."
It was also a journey she had begun with what appeared to be insurmountable advantages, which evaporated one by one as the campaign dragged on far longer than anyone could have anticipated. She made at least five big mistakes, each of which compounded the others:
[...]
posted by Sal Towse at 9:22 PM||
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But I found this article interesting. Some of the points I'd heard before. The Ickes-Penn story I heard for the first time today.
The Five Mistakes Clinton Made - TIME
by Karen Tumulty
For all her talk about "full speed on to the White House," there was an unmistakably elegiac tone [Note: Tumulty is not the only person to use this adjective to describe Hillary's speech] to Hillary Clinton's primary-night speech in Indianapolis. And if one needed further confirmation that the undaunted, never-say-die Clintons realize their bid might be at an end, all it took was a look at the wistful faces of the husband and the daughter who stood behind the candidate as she talked of all the people she has met in a journey "that has been a blessing for me."
It was also a journey she had begun with what appeared to be insurmountable advantages, which evaporated one by one as the campaign dragged on far longer than anyone could have anticipated. She made at least five big mistakes, each of which compounded the others:
[...]
Labels: politics
posted by Sal Towse at 9:22 PM|
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Thursday, April 24, 2008
Why Hillary Makes My Wife Scream
Chapter 1. Specimens of the American Vulgate
Chapter 1. Specimens of the American Vulgate. 1. The Declaration of Independence in American.
Mencken, H.L. 1921.
[The following is my own translation, but I have had the aid of suggestions from various other scholars. It must be obvious that more than one section of the original is now quite unintelligible to the average American of the sort using the Common Speech. What would he make, for example, of such a sentence as this one: "He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their public records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures"? Or of this: "He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected, whereby the legislative powers, incapable of annihilation, have returned to the people at large for their exercise." Such Johnsonian periods are quite beyond his comprehension, and no doubt the fact is at least partly to blame for the neglect upon which the Declaration has fallen in recent years. When, during the Wilson-Palmer saturnalia of oppressions, specialists in liberty began protesting that the Declaration plainly gave the people the right to alter the goverment under which they lived and even to abolish it altogether, they encountered the utmost incredulity. On more than one occasion, in fact, such an exegete was tarred and feathered by the shocked members of the American Legion, even after the Declaration had been read to them. What ailed them was that they could not understand its eighteenth century English. I make the suggestion that its circulation among such patriotic men, translated into the language they use every day, would serve to prevent, or, at all events, to diminish that sort of terrorism.]
When things get so balled up that the people of a country have to cut loose from some other country, and go it on their own hook, without asking no permission from nobody, excepting maybe God Almighty, then they ought to let everybody know why they done it, so that everybody can see they are on the level, and not trying to put nothing over on nobody.
All we got to say on this proposition is this: first, you and me is as good as anybody else, and maybe a damn sight better; second, nobody ain’t got no right to take away none of our rights; third, every man has got a right to live, to come and go as he pleases, and to have a good time however he likes, so long as he don’t interfere with nobody else. That any government that don’t give a man these rights ain’t worth a damn; also, people ought to choose the kind of goverment they want themselves, and nobody else ought to have no say in the matter.
[... Chapter 1. Specimens of the American Vulgate. 1. The Declaration of Independence in American. Mencken, H.L. 1921. ]
[via Archer]
posted by Sal Towse at 9:56 AM||
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Mencken, H.L. 1921.
[The following is my own translation, but I have had the aid of suggestions from various other scholars. It must be obvious that more than one section of the original is now quite unintelligible to the average American of the sort using the Common Speech. What would he make, for example, of such a sentence as this one: "He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their public records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures"? Or of this: "He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected, whereby the legislative powers, incapable of annihilation, have returned to the people at large for their exercise." Such Johnsonian periods are quite beyond his comprehension, and no doubt the fact is at least partly to blame for the neglect upon which the Declaration has fallen in recent years. When, during the Wilson-Palmer saturnalia of oppressions, specialists in liberty began protesting that the Declaration plainly gave the people the right to alter the goverment under which they lived and even to abolish it altogether, they encountered the utmost incredulity. On more than one occasion, in fact, such an exegete was tarred and feathered by the shocked members of the American Legion, even after the Declaration had been read to them. What ailed them was that they could not understand its eighteenth century English. I make the suggestion that its circulation among such patriotic men, translated into the language they use every day, would serve to prevent, or, at all events, to diminish that sort of terrorism.]
When things get so balled up that the people of a country have to cut loose from some other country, and go it on their own hook, without asking no permission from nobody, excepting maybe God Almighty, then they ought to let everybody know why they done it, so that everybody can see they are on the level, and not trying to put nothing over on nobody.
All we got to say on this proposition is this: first, you and me is as good as anybody else, and maybe a damn sight better; second, nobody ain’t got no right to take away none of our rights; third, every man has got a right to live, to come and go as he pleases, and to have a good time however he likes, so long as he don’t interfere with nobody else. That any government that don’t give a man these rights ain’t worth a damn; also, people ought to choose the kind of goverment they want themselves, and nobody else ought to have no say in the matter.
[... Chapter 1. Specimens of the American Vulgate. 1. The Declaration of Independence in American. Mencken, H.L. 1921. ]
[via Archer]
posted by Sal Towse at 9:56 AM|
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Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Michelle Obama on The Colbert Report
How I spent my Sunday with Obama and the Mayhill Fowler Agenda
I was starting to hear whispers in the blogosphere about Mayhill Fowler and the bzzz she created with her column on Huffington Post on Friday covering a comment Obama had made at a fundraiser five days before. (Five DAYS?!?? How's that for the immediacy of blogging, eh?)
Comments on the HuffPo posts about the uproar questioned her motives, her allegiances (was she really a closet Hillary supporter?) and her purpose in following Obama's campaign.
A Google search for /"mayhill fowler" -huffington/ brought me to this pro-Obama blogger post on the Obama site, a supporter who was at the Sunday event, someone who could at last put things in context.
Sandy's Blog: How I spent my Sunday with Obama and the Mayhill Fowler Agenda
Odd. The only Mayhill Fowler that Zabasearch.com shows in Oakland was born in 1974, six years after HuffPo's Mayhill Fowler graduated college. I assume that Mayhill Fowler is an offspring of the Mayhill Fowler on HuffPo. How come the sixty-one-year-old Mayhill doesn't show up with Zabasearch? Her husband does.
Update:Another blogger who was there chimes in: David Coleman: I Was There: What Obama Really Said About Pennsylvania
and
2004 Charlie Rose clip (up on YouTube) that shows Obama talking the same sort of talk only instead of the sound bite, there's a full discussion:
clip and full interview.
posted by Sal Towse at 12:18 PM||
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Comments on the HuffPo posts about the uproar questioned her motives, her allegiances (was she really a closet Hillary supporter?) and her purpose in following Obama's campaign.
A Google search for /"mayhill fowler" -huffington/ brought me to this pro-Obama blogger post on the Obama site, a supporter who was at the Sunday event, someone who could at last put things in context.
Sandy's Blog: How I spent my Sunday with Obama and the Mayhill Fowler Agenda
Odd. The only Mayhill Fowler that Zabasearch.com shows in Oakland was born in 1974, six years after HuffPo's Mayhill Fowler graduated college. I assume that Mayhill Fowler is an offspring of the Mayhill Fowler on HuffPo. How come the sixty-one-year-old Mayhill doesn't show up with Zabasearch? Her husband does.
Update:Another blogger who was there chimes in: David Coleman: I Was There: What Obama Really Said About Pennsylvania
and
2004 Charlie Rose clip (up on YouTube) that shows Obama talking the same sort of talk only instead of the sound bite, there's a full discussion:
clip and full interview.
Labels: politics
posted by Sal Towse at 12:18 PM|
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Saturday, April 05, 2008
LawyerWorldLand: WHAT IS RACIST? ABUSING THE TERM
Have I mentioned that Archer is back? Yeah, he was all of six weeks into his "Adios to the Web" retirement when he came back.
Why hadn't I noticed? Well, to tell the truth, I haven't been keeping up with my Bloglines gang and he'd only been back for two weeks when we left for most of March. Then March slipped into April and here we are.
If I hadn't kept Archer on my Bloglines list (even after he said farewell on Jan 2, 2008), I never would've known he was back. But I did, and when I checked the Bloglines list an hour or so ago, there he was! New content! Outstanding! Happy day. Archer's jumble of sense, nonsense, blatant lies, and outrageously gross humor is intact.
For those of youse others on the list, I may need a while to catch up. I mean some folks have a hundred posts I haven't read yet and even HCC has a backlog.
A belated welcome back, Archer. Good to see you.
posted by Sal Towse at 3:56 PM||
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Why hadn't I noticed? Well, to tell the truth, I haven't been keeping up with my Bloglines gang and he'd only been back for two weeks when we left for most of March. Then March slipped into April and here we are.
If I hadn't kept Archer on my Bloglines list (even after he said farewell on Jan 2, 2008), I never would've known he was back. But I did, and when I checked the Bloglines list an hour or so ago, there he was! New content! Outstanding! Happy day. Archer's jumble of sense, nonsense, blatant lies, and outrageously gross humor is intact.
For those of youse others on the list, I may need a while to catch up. I mean some folks have a hundred posts I haven't read yet and even HCC has a backlog.
A belated welcome back, Archer. Good to see you.
posted by Sal Towse at 3:56 PM|
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Friday, February 22, 2008
For want of an accent mark ...
A headzup to everyone writing in the blogosphere, in newspapers and in magazines: what César and Dolores and the UFW were all about was "ˇSí, se puede!" not "Si se puede."
Sure, the two phrases sound the same, but the first means, "Yes, we can!" (or more accurately, 'Yes, it's possible' or 'Yes, it can be done.') and the second, "If we can ..."
Big difference.
(I kept, and never used, a freebie notepad the UFW sent me -- along with a solicitation for a donation, natch -- because they used "Si" instead of "Sí" in the tagline on the notepad. And don't try to tell me that the accent mark has become superfluous in the twenty-first century. I ain't buying it. ...)
Thus ends the Spanish I lesson for the afternoon.
posted by Sal Towse at 3:49 PM||
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Sure, the two phrases sound the same, but the first means, "Yes, we can!" (or more accurately, 'Yes, it's possible' or 'Yes, it can be done.') and the second, "If we can ..."
Big difference.
(I kept, and never used, a freebie notepad the UFW sent me -- along with a solicitation for a donation, natch -- because they used "Si" instead of "Sí" in the tagline on the notepad. And don't try to tell me that the accent mark has become superfluous in the twenty-first century. I ain't buying it. ...)
Thus ends the Spanish I lesson for the afternoon.
Labels: culture, life, politics
posted by Sal Towse at 3:49 PM|
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Wednesday, February 20, 2008
Just words ...
Plagiarized?
The Agitator by Ryan Lizza: Barack Obama's unlikely political education.
Post Date Monday, March 19, 2007.
sez Obama: Sometimes the tendency in community organizing of the sort done by Alinsky was to downplay the power of words and of ideas when in fact ideas and words are pretty powerful. 'We hold these truths to be self-evident, all men are created equal.' Those are just words. 'I have a dream.' Just words. But they help move things.
Obama to Patrick to Obama and a hissy fit from those folks who don't think words and oratory count for anything without Substance [PDF]
(that's Substance with a capital S)
The March 2007 TNR article is interesting above and beyond the fact that Obama's "just words" echoes Patrick and predates Obama's alleged "plagiarism" of Patrick's speech.
Read the TNR article in full. It gives a =very= interesting insight into Obama's background.
You know what's really weird? I don't know Alinsky from Adam, but I first saw his name this morning in re Hillary's senior thesis at Wellesley which was allzabout Alinsky. Turns out Obama was allzabout Alinsky in his work on the southside of Chicago.
Oh, where is Kevin Bacon when you need him?
posted by Sal Towse at 6:59 PM||
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The Agitator by Ryan Lizza: Barack Obama's unlikely political education.
Post Date Monday, March 19, 2007.
sez Obama: Sometimes the tendency in community organizing of the sort done by Alinsky was to downplay the power of words and of ideas when in fact ideas and words are pretty powerful. 'We hold these truths to be self-evident, all men are created equal.' Those are just words. 'I have a dream.' Just words. But they help move things.
Obama to Patrick to Obama and a hissy fit from those folks who don't think words and oratory count for anything without Substance [PDF]
(that's Substance with a capital S)
The March 2007 TNR article is interesting above and beyond the fact that Obama's "just words" echoes Patrick and predates Obama's alleged "plagiarism" of Patrick's speech.
Read the TNR article in full. It gives a =very= interesting insight into Obama's background.
You know what's really weird? I don't know Alinsky from Adam, but I first saw his name this morning in re Hillary's senior thesis at Wellesley which was allzabout Alinsky. Turns out Obama was allzabout Alinsky in his work on the southside of Chicago.
Oh, where is Kevin Bacon when you need him?
Labels: politics
posted by Sal Towse at 6:59 PM|
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Monday, February 11, 2008
"Can Mrs. Clinton Lose?" -- Peggy Noonan
If Hillary Clinton loses, does she know how to lose? What will that be, if she loses? Will she just say, "I concede" and go on vacation at a friend's house on an island, and then go back to the Senate and wait?
Is it possible she could be so normal? Politicians lose battles, it's part of what they do, win and lose. But she does not know how to lose. Can she lose with grace? But she does grace the way George W. Bush does nuance.
[continue ..."Can Mrs. Clinton Lose?" -- Peggy Noonan]
posted by Sal Towse at 11:18 AM||
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Is it possible she could be so normal? Politicians lose battles, it's part of what they do, win and lose. But she does not know how to lose. Can she lose with grace? But she does grace the way George W. Bush does nuance.
[continue ..."Can Mrs. Clinton Lose?" -- Peggy Noonan]
posted by Sal Towse at 11:18 AM|
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Thursday, February 07, 2008
Michelle Obama - Be Not Afraid
Wednesday, February 06, 2008
ABC News: Don't Tell Mama, Clinton-ites for Obama
ABC News: Don't Tell Mama, Clinton-ites for Obama
Interesting. ...
posted by Sal Towse at 10:40 PM||
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Interesting. ...
posted by Sal Towse at 10:40 PM|
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Sunday, February 03, 2008
Obama - Yes, we can.
Liked this. 4:30m video. "Obama. Yes, we can" from Dipdive.com
Forwarded on to me by the younger younger Guy. Thanks.
posted by Sal Towse at 12:07 PM||
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Forwarded on to me by the younger younger Guy. Thanks.
Labels: people, politics, video
posted by Sal Towse at 12:07 PM|
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Friday, February 01, 2008
Noonan's take on Ted Kennedy, the Clintons, and Barack Obama (oh, and those pesky Republicans too ...)
A Rebellion and an Awkward Embrace
By PEGGY NOONAN
February 1, 2008 / Wall Street Journal
In the most exciting and confounding election cycle of my lifetime, Rudy Giuliani, the Prince of the City, is out because he was about to lose New York, John Edwards is out, the Clintons are fighting for their historical reputations, and the stalwart conservative New York Post has come out strong and stinging for Barack Obama. If you had asked me in December if I would write that sentence in February, I would have said: Um, no.
Noonan's column continues ...
posted by Sal Towse at 7:00 PM||
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By PEGGY NOONAN
February 1, 2008 / Wall Street Journal
In the most exciting and confounding election cycle of my lifetime, Rudy Giuliani, the Prince of the City, is out because he was about to lose New York, John Edwards is out, the Clintons are fighting for their historical reputations, and the stalwart conservative New York Post has come out strong and stinging for Barack Obama. If you had asked me in December if I would write that sentence in February, I would have said: Um, no.
Noonan's column continues ...
Labels: news, people, politics, writing
posted by Sal Towse at 7:00 PM|
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Tuesday, January 22, 2008
What a waste. How much did this cost?
We received our primary absentee voter ballots in the mail ten days or more ago. The ballots were the "unaffiliated" or whatever it is non-partisan ballots.
Well, we'd both requested to vote in the Democratic primary. What's up with this? So we waited. And waited. And finally called the Registrar at the end of last week to ask what's up and were told "Oh. The Democratic absentee ballots are just getting mailed."
OK. So this means we got one ballot for the propositions and one ballot for the primary. That doesn't make much sense but whatever ...
Today we got our Democratic absentee ballots in the mail ... along with a note that our previous ballots have been canceled and won't be counted and we should tear them up and dispose of them.
Turns out the sharp as a tack folks down at the Registrar sent out who-knows-how-manyunaffiliated non-partisan ballots to decline-to-state absentee voters who'd requested Democratic primary ballots. They then had to enter all the barcodes for the ballots that had been sent in error so that the system won't count them, write up a nice note, print up the extra ballot work and ... send out Democratic ballots to those voters.
How much is this flub going to cost?
And whose watch did it happen on?
Enquiring minds ...
posted by Sal Towse at 2:02 PM||
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Well, we'd both requested to vote in the Democratic primary. What's up with this? So we waited. And waited. And finally called the Registrar at the end of last week to ask what's up and were told "Oh. The Democratic absentee ballots are just getting mailed."
OK. So this means we got one ballot for the propositions and one ballot for the primary. That doesn't make much sense but whatever ...
Today we got our Democratic absentee ballots in the mail ... along with a note that our previous ballots have been canceled and won't be counted and we should tear them up and dispose of them.
Turns out the sharp as a tack folks down at the Registrar sent out who-knows-how-many
How much is this flub going to cost?
And whose watch did it happen on?
Enquiring minds ...
Labels: life, politics, San Francisco
posted by Sal Towse at 2:02 PM|
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Monday, January 21, 2008
Letter from Birmingham Jail
In honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. and his Day, I reprise a view from the Hill.
Read the post and the Letter from Birmingham Jail. (the "letter" on the blog post is 404).
posted by Sal Towse at 7:38 PM||
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Read the post and the Letter from Birmingham Jail. (the "letter" on the blog post is 404).
Labels: biography, history, people, politics
posted by Sal Towse at 7:38 PM|
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Sunday, January 06, 2008
Dirty Tricks? Who would've guessed? (the Democratic campaign)
I was trolling through political blogs and sites today for commentary on the political debates last night.
There in a comments tail, some someone posted an AP article that slammed Obama, followed by a paean to Clinton.
ASSOCIATED PRESS-Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama has lot of explaining to do.
He voted against requiring medical care for aborted fetuses who survive. He supported allowing retired police officers to carry concealed weapons, but opposed allowing people to use banned handguns to defend against intruders in their homes. And the list of sensitive topics goes on. With only a slim, two-year record in the U.S. Senate, Obama doesn't have many controversial congressional votes which political opponents can frame into attack ads. But his eight years as an Illinois state senator are sprinkled with potentially explosive land mines, such as his abortion and gun control votes. recent land purchase from a political supporter who is facing charges in an unrelated kickback scheme involving investment firms seeking state business. Abortion opponents see Obama's vote on medical care for aborted fetuses as a refusal to protect the helpless. Some have even accused him of supporting infanticide.
[End excerpt. No indication that the article wasn't quoted in full. ...]
I checked out the AP reference. The reference isn't a current reference but a reference to a Ryan Keith article from January 2007. This is how it reads:
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. -- Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama may have a lot of explaining to do.
He voted against requiring medical care for aborted fetuses who survive. He supported allowing retired police officers to carry concealed weapons, but opposed allowing people to use banned handguns to defend against intruders in their homes. And the list of sensitive topics goes on.
With only a slim, two-year record in the U.S. Senate, Obama doesn't have many controversial congressional votes which political opponents can frame into attack ads. But his eight years as an Illinois state senator are sprinkled with potentially explosive land mines, such as his abortion and gun control votes.
Obama _ who filed papers this week creating an exploratory committee to seek the 2008 Democratic nomination _ may also find himself fielding questions about his actions outside public office, from his acknowledgment of cocaine use in his youth to a more recent land purchase from a political supporter who is facing charges in an unrelated kickback scheme involving investment firms seeking state business.
Obama was known in the Illinois Capitol as a consistently liberal senator who reflected the views of voters in his Chicago district. He helped reform the state death penalty system and create tax breaks for the poor while developing a reputation as someone who would work with critics to build consensus.
He had a 100 percent rating from the Illinois Planned Parenthood Council for his support of abortion rights, family planning services and health insurance coverage for female contraceptives. [...]
Notice the slight changes? Notice where the AP quote in the comments tail stops?
Should you care? It's only dirty tricks.
If you pop / Obama "lot of explaining"/ into Google, you'll find a variety of people quoting the excerpted AP article in the comments tails at various news and blog sites.
Dirty tricks? We have
and on ...
Come on Cary Sherry Lansing Davey dyck ... Clean up your act. Either Clinton approves of what you're doing (wouldn't be a surprise) or you're an overly ambitious volunteer.
Either way you're doing no favors.
posted by Sal Towse at 3:16 PM||
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There in a comments tail, some someone posted an AP article that slammed Obama, followed by a paean to Clinton.
ASSOCIATED PRESS-Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama has lot of explaining to do.
He voted against requiring medical care for aborted fetuses who survive. He supported allowing retired police officers to carry concealed weapons, but opposed allowing people to use banned handguns to defend against intruders in their homes. And the list of sensitive topics goes on. With only a slim, two-year record in the U.S. Senate, Obama doesn't have many controversial congressional votes which political opponents can frame into attack ads. But his eight years as an Illinois state senator are sprinkled with potentially explosive land mines, such as his abortion and gun control votes. recent land purchase from a political supporter who is facing charges in an unrelated kickback scheme involving investment firms seeking state business. Abortion opponents see Obama's vote on medical care for aborted fetuses as a refusal to protect the helpless. Some have even accused him of supporting infanticide.
[End excerpt. No indication that the article wasn't quoted in full. ...]
I checked out the AP reference. The reference isn't a current reference but a reference to a Ryan Keith article from January 2007. This is how it reads:
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. -- Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama may have a lot of explaining to do.
He voted against requiring medical care for aborted fetuses who survive. He supported allowing retired police officers to carry concealed weapons, but opposed allowing people to use banned handguns to defend against intruders in their homes. And the list of sensitive topics goes on.
With only a slim, two-year record in the U.S. Senate, Obama doesn't have many controversial congressional votes which political opponents can frame into attack ads. But his eight years as an Illinois state senator are sprinkled with potentially explosive land mines, such as his abortion and gun control votes.
Obama _ who filed papers this week creating an exploratory committee to seek the 2008 Democratic nomination _ may also find himself fielding questions about his actions outside public office, from his acknowledgment of cocaine use in his youth to a more recent land purchase from a political supporter who is facing charges in an unrelated kickback scheme involving investment firms seeking state business.
Obama was known in the Illinois Capitol as a consistently liberal senator who reflected the views of voters in his Chicago district. He helped reform the state death penalty system and create tax breaks for the poor while developing a reputation as someone who would work with critics to build consensus.
He had a 100 percent rating from the Illinois Planned Parenthood Council for his support of abortion rights, family planning services and health insurance coverage for female contraceptives. [...]
Notice the slight changes? Notice where the AP quote in the comments tail stops?
Should you care? It's only dirty tricks.
If you pop / Obama "lot of explaining"/ into Google, you'll find a variety of people quoting the excerpted AP article in the comments tails at various news and blog sites.
Dirty tricks? We have
- Davey (Chicago Tribune and Baltimore Sun)
- obama flip flopper (CNN)
- Sherry Lansing (ed. sure)(Boston Globe)
- jonnie62 (politico.com)
- Cary (The Atlantic)
- dyck21005 (WashingtonPost)
and on ...
Come on Cary Sherry Lansing Davey dyck ... Clean up your act. Either Clinton approves of what you're doing (wouldn't be a surprise) or you're an overly ambitious volunteer.
Either way you're doing no favors.
posted by Sal Towse at 3:16 PM|
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Sunday, December 16, 2007
Greenspan sees early signs of U.S. stagflation
Greenspan must really miss not having everyone hang on his every word now that he's not Fed Chair and Bernanke's doing what Bernanke thinks needs doing to offset the subprime meltdown that's happening (and all the dominos falling after) because of decisions made on Greenspan's watch.
Doesn't seem to be a week go by when I don't see "Greenspan says" "Greenspan sees" headlines.
Who really cares what Greenspan sees or says. He's outta there.
What's Bernanke going to do is the question.
Greenspan sees early signs of U.S. stagflation
posted by Sal Towse at 9:48 AM||
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Doesn't seem to be a week go by when I don't see "Greenspan says" "Greenspan sees" headlines.
Who really cares what Greenspan sees or says. He's outta there.
What's Bernanke going to do is the question.
Greenspan sees early signs of U.S. stagflation
posted by Sal Towse at 9:48 AM|
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Monday, November 19, 2007
San Francisco election results are in!
Department of Elections: Election Summary
100% of votes counted. Results posted 17 Nov 2007. Only ELEVEN DAYS to count the votes!
35.77% voter turnout. Yay, us! (Really, people. That's pathetic.)
Mayor: Gavin Newsom with 73.66% of the vote. Next highest vote getter: Quintin Mecke with 6.33% of the vote. Least highest vote getter: Michael Powers (who?) with .36% of the vote.
(Just kidding ... "Michael Powers, 42, owns the Power Exchange sex club, which welcomes gays, lesbians, heterosexual couples, and bondage and domination devotees - demonstrating, he says in his official campaign statement, "my capacity to embrace every kind of alternative lifestyle and manage multiple environments housed in one totally law-abiding and successful business." That record of embracing tolerance, he said, "guarantees that I will listen to all San Franciscans." [ref: SFGate])
No write-ins at all for mayor. 1.51% write-in for DA. Kamala Harris got the other 98.49% of the vote.
MEASURE
A - passed (55.49) - Transit Reform, Parking Regulation and Emissions Reduction
B - passed (71.21) - Limiting Hold-Over Service on Charter-Created Boards and Commissions
C - passed (68.19) - Requiring Public Hearings on Proposed Measures
D - passed (74.48) - Renewing Library Preservation Fund (Yay! Libraries! They scored even better than Gavin!)
E - failed (51.39) - Requiring Mayor to Appear Monthly at a Board of Supervisors Meeting
F - passed (51.53) - Amending Retirement Benefits for Police Dept. Employees who were Airport Police Officers
G - passed (55.39) - Establishing Golden Gate Park Stables Matching Fund
H - failed (66.95) - Donald Fisher's effort: Regulating Parking Spaces
I - passed (59.14) - Establishing Office Small Business as City Dept. and Creating Small Business Assistance Center
J - passed (62.26) - Adopting a Policy to Offer Free City-Wide Wireless High-Speed Internet Network
K - passed (61.84) - Adopting a Policy to Restrict Advertising on Street Furniture and City Buildings
Can't remember the specifics about the different measures? October 2007 Urbanist newsletter from SPUR has great and gory details on the different measures that were up for vote. [PDF]
posted by Sal Towse at 5:06 PM||
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100% of votes counted. Results posted 17 Nov 2007. Only ELEVEN DAYS to count the votes!
35.77% voter turnout. Yay, us! (Really, people. That's pathetic.)
Mayor: Gavin Newsom with 73.66% of the vote. Next highest vote getter: Quintin Mecke with 6.33% of the vote. Least highest vote getter: Michael Powers (who?) with .36% of the vote.
(Just kidding ... "Michael Powers, 42, owns the Power Exchange sex club, which welcomes gays, lesbians, heterosexual couples, and bondage and domination devotees - demonstrating, he says in his official campaign statement, "my capacity to embrace every kind of alternative lifestyle and manage multiple environments housed in one totally law-abiding and successful business." That record of embracing tolerance, he said, "guarantees that I will listen to all San Franciscans." [ref: SFGate])
No write-ins at all for mayor. 1.51% write-in for DA. Kamala Harris got the other 98.49% of the vote.
MEASURE
A - passed (55.49) - Transit Reform, Parking Regulation and Emissions Reduction
B - passed (71.21) - Limiting Hold-Over Service on Charter-Created Boards and Commissions
C - passed (68.19) - Requiring Public Hearings on Proposed Measures
D - passed (74.48) - Renewing Library Preservation Fund (Yay! Libraries! They scored even better than Gavin!)
E - failed (51.39) - Requiring Mayor to Appear Monthly at a Board of Supervisors Meeting
F - passed (51.53) - Amending Retirement Benefits for Police Dept. Employees who were Airport Police Officers
G - passed (55.39) - Establishing Golden Gate Park Stables Matching Fund
H - failed (66.95) - Donald Fisher's effort: Regulating Parking Spaces
I - passed (59.14) - Establishing Office Small Business as City Dept. and Creating Small Business Assistance Center
J - passed (62.26) - Adopting a Policy to Offer Free City-Wide Wireless High-Speed Internet Network
K - passed (61.84) - Adopting a Policy to Restrict Advertising on Street Furniture and City Buildings
Can't remember the specifics about the different measures? October 2007 Urbanist newsletter from SPUR has great and gory details on the different measures that were up for vote. [PDF]
Labels: libraries, politics, San Francisco
posted by Sal Towse at 5:06 PM|
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Sunday, November 18, 2007
Cypresses redux
Another shot of the post-pruning cypresses.
Click on the picture to get a better look. Some of the parrots were back yesterday to check out the pruned trees. They stayed longer than they usually do before heading off.
Labels: causes, environmentalism, life, politics, San Francisco, Telegraph Hill
posted by Sal Towse at 9:50 AM|
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Thursday, November 15, 2007
The cypress grove on Telegraph Hill before, during, after.
As promised, befores and afters.
BEFORE: (18 Jul 2004)
[note: added another before: Dec 2003]
I rummaged through my photo bins to find photos of the trees as they were. These two show the north and south ends of the cypress grove on 18Jul2004. Imagine, if you will, a large clump of green between what these two photographs show.
I obviously didn't take a lot of shots of the trees standing alone.
DURING: (October 2004)
Later that year, in October, a large chunk of tree came down.
In October 2005, another tree was taken out before Mark threw himself between the trees and the tree cutters and successfully halted the project.
We all know the result: a Landmark Tree ordinance. After much negotiation, in February 2007 the City agreed to indemnify the remaining trees' owner from any liability arising from the fact he wasn't allowed to take the "rotten" (his description) trees down.
The City also agreed "to hire a special arborist who has the skill to delicately prune the trees and preserve them for at least three years -- long enough for new ones to grow to shelter the parrots. The two trees are all that remain from what was once a larger grove." [n.b. Three years to grow trees this tall? Really?]
The Northeast San Francisco Conservancy (president: Nancy Shanahan) pledged $5,000 to the City to cover the cost of pruning and care.
BEFORE: (December 2003)
AFTER: (15 Nov 2007)
What can we see that's different? (Gee, this is like those picture puzzles: find six ways this picture is different from the ones above.)
In 2004, the cypress grove obstructed the view of most of the green building you can now see to the northeast of the trees. We can now see the tennis courts on top of the Bay Club.
The trees in 2004 were considerably taller than the trees that remain. We have an uninterrupted view of Treasure Island instead of having trees obstructing our views of the northernmost third of the island. We can also see more of Teatro Zinzanni -- those tents down at Pier 29 -- and twice as much of the rooftop of the condo building to the north of the green building.
I'd taken this shot to show the tidal bore on a very boring day, but it also shows what our view of Treasure Island was in May 2004. That's a whole lot o' tree that's been taken down in the last three years.
I have mixed feelings about all this. I love trees. I miss the green stuff -- I much prefer green stuff to views of the neighbors' roofs -- but I think there was far more agitation over the poor parrots and this privately-owned cypress grove than there needed to be. I think the City spent more time and effort -- when they don't seem to have time to worry about some critical problems -- than the situation warranted. I know Mark loves the parrots and I know he made them famous with his book. If someone had said we should spare the trees, if at all possible, because they're right outside Mark's door and he wants to have the parrots right there, well, I could understand that, but that's not how all the agitation and public spin came down before the City set about changing rules, trimming trees and indemnifying the owner.
"The parrots are fine," I tell worried friends who have read the tales of woe and crisis and parrots. This bit of greenery is not what it was, but the parrots still flock to trees on Telegraph Hill. We still hear them yackyackyack yackyackyack yackyackyackyacking. They still amuse the tourists and scare the cat.
May the flock prosper and increase.
posted by Sal Towse at 3:48 PM||
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BEFORE: (18 Jul 2004)
[note: added another before: Dec 2003]
I rummaged through my photo bins to find photos of the trees as they were. These two show the north and south ends of the cypress grove on 18Jul2004. Imagine, if you will, a large clump of green between what these two photographs show.
I obviously didn't take a lot of shots of the trees standing alone.
DURING: (October 2004)
Later that year, in October, a large chunk of tree came down.
In October 2005, another tree was taken out before Mark threw himself between the trees and the tree cutters and successfully halted the project.
We all know the result: a Landmark Tree ordinance. After much negotiation, in February 2007 the City agreed to indemnify the remaining trees' owner from any liability arising from the fact he wasn't allowed to take the "rotten" (his description) trees down.
The City also agreed "to hire a special arborist who has the skill to delicately prune the trees and preserve them for at least three years -- long enough for new ones to grow to shelter the parrots. The two trees are all that remain from what was once a larger grove." [n.b. Three years to grow trees this tall? Really?]
The Northeast San Francisco Conservancy (president: Nancy Shanahan) pledged $5,000 to the City to cover the cost of pruning and care.
BEFORE: (December 2003)
AFTER: (15 Nov 2007)
What can we see that's different? (Gee, this is like those picture puzzles: find six ways this picture is different from the ones above.)
In 2004, the cypress grove obstructed the view of most of the green building you can now see to the northeast of the trees. We can now see the tennis courts on top of the Bay Club.
The trees in 2004 were considerably taller than the trees that remain. We have an uninterrupted view of Treasure Island instead of having trees obstructing our views of the northernmost third of the island. We can also see more of Teatro Zinzanni -- those tents down at Pier 29 -- and twice as much of the rooftop of the condo building to the north of the green building.
I'd taken this shot to show the tidal bore on a very boring day, but it also shows what our view of Treasure Island was in May 2004. That's a whole lot o' tree that's been taken down in the last three years.
I have mixed feelings about all this. I love trees. I miss the green stuff -- I much prefer green stuff to views of the neighbors' roofs -- but I think there was far more agitation over the poor parrots and this privately-owned cypress grove than there needed to be. I think the City spent more time and effort -- when they don't seem to have time to worry about some critical problems -- than the situation warranted. I know Mark loves the parrots and I know he made them famous with his book. If someone had said we should spare the trees, if at all possible, because they're right outside Mark's door and he wants to have the parrots right there, well, I could understand that, but that's not how all the agitation and public spin came down before the City set about changing rules, trimming trees and indemnifying the owner.
"The parrots are fine," I tell worried friends who have read the tales of woe and crisis and parrots. This bit of greenery is not what it was, but the parrots still flock to trees on Telegraph Hill. We still hear them yackyackyack yackyackyack yackyackyackyacking. They still amuse the tourists and scare the cat.
May the flock prosper and increase.
Labels: causes, environmentalism, life, politics, San Francisco, Telegraph Hill
posted by Sal Towse at 3:48 PM|
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Transbay Blog
Eric, over at Transbay Blog, is running a series of informational posts on the Central Subway, which I've ranted about on occasion here and elsewhere.
Transbay Blog is one of the most focussed, least axe-grinding blogs covering "News and thoughts on public transportation and city planning in the San Francisco Bay Area." If such be your interests, check it out.
posted by Sal Towse at 1:44 PM||
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Transbay Blog is one of the most focussed, least axe-grinding blogs covering "News and thoughts on public transportation and city planning in the San Francisco Bay Area." If such be your interests, check it out.
Labels: blog, politics, San Francisco, SFMTA/Muni
posted by Sal Towse at 1:44 PM|
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Tuesday, November 13, 2007
Tree trimming ... and it isn't even Christmas!
Talk about a job I wouldn't want! I can't even stand at the edge of the roof without getting shaky knees.
Tree trimmers are trimming the trees down the hill from us, trees which caused such political uproar a year ago or so and resulted in new rules regarding tree cutting on private property. Siblings of the trees were taken out three years ago. These remaining trees are supposed to remain in place and be taken care of until they can't be maintained. The City's indemnified the owner from any lawsuits that might arise should the trees topple over or break a limb.
The guy up in the tree checks his knots frequently. He has an ally on the roof of the building just east of the trees and an ally on the ground, who is cutting the fallen branches with a chain saw. The guy in the tree has done most of his work with a tree saw on a long pole but just now switched to a chain saw.
Earlier today, the neighborhood e-mail list flashed with a "someone's cutting the cypresses" note, followed by a note from Mark Bittner that the cutting was all in order.
The neighbors are watching. The parrots are sitting on someone's railing to get a better view of what's going on because their usual tree perch doesn't have a good line of sight for the trees being trimmed.
When allz done, I'll post before and afters.
Update: Gone for the day. Ropes still in trees.
Labels: causes, environmentalism, life, politics, San Francisco, Telegraph Hill
posted by Sal Towse at 2:14 PM|
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Tuesday, November 06, 2007
What we see from the hill
His nibs said, look at ... that ... those vehicles going into Pier 29 ...
What is that all about?
Oh, OK.
Ballots were taken from polling places to Pier 29 for preliminary processing.
Weird.
Pier 29? Why there?
Fine. Those are the tail lights we're seeing.
posted by Sal Towse at 11:18 PM||
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What is that all about?
Oh, OK.
Ballots were taken from polling places to Pier 29 for preliminary processing.
Weird.
Pier 29? Why there?
Fine. Those are the tail lights we're seeing.
Labels: politics, San Francisco
posted by Sal Towse at 11:18 PM|
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Election results will begin pouring in at 8:30 p.m.
Final counts will be posted by
... oh, two weeks from now.
All the absentee ballots and those cast "early" at City Hall will be counted and released by 8:30 p.m. Those that were cast at the polls today? Well, there's this problem, see?
posted by Sal Towse at 6:19 PM||
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... oh, two weeks from now.
All the absentee ballots and those cast "early" at City Hall will be counted and released by 8:30 p.m. Those that were cast at the polls today? Well, there's this problem, see?
Labels: politics, San Francisco
posted by Sal Towse at 6:19 PM|
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Friday, November 02, 2007
Fan mail from Harold Hoogasian. Gmail thinks it's SPAM!
Look what dropped into my Gmail in-box this morning! Fan mail from Harold Hoogasian. Where he got the e-addr he used to send this is a question. The Gmail account mainly funnels everything @towse.com (except sal, sally, self, &c.) to a common address. So how did he get the master topsecrethushhushhush Gmail address?
Did I put it on my voter registration? If so, OH NO!
Herewith the nice note. I found it in my spam folder because Gmail automagically decided it fit the MO. [Update:Finagled a copy to insert with all the bells and whistles.] Here it is in all its glory!
=======================================
From: Harold <campaign@unplugthemachine.org>
Date: Nov 2, 2007 1:30 AM
Subject: HAROLD HOOGASIAN for MAYOR! I
To: harold@hoogasian.com
=======================================
Lovely, eh? Multiple colors to pick out names and phrases like "Adulterous, Drunken Golden Boy!" (in red, natch!), CAPS, bold lettering and different sized fonts.
Looks kookie and crankpot-ish.
If I were a suspicious sort, I'd think that someone who doesn't want Hoogasian for Mayor sent out this spam in an attempt to make him look like a foolish idiot. I hadn't realized he could act like such a juvenile.
Love those politics!
And if his database were any good, he'd know I voted ten days ago.
posted by Sal Towse at 11:48 AM||
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Did I put it on my voter registration? If so, OH NO!
Herewith the nice note. I found it in my spam folder because Gmail automagically decided it fit the MO. [Update:Finagled a copy to insert with all the bells and whistles.] Here it is in all its glory!
=======================================
From: Harold <campaign@unplugthemachine.org>
Date: Nov 2, 2007 1:30 AM
Subject: HAROLD HOOGASIAN for MAYOR! I
To: harold@hoogasian.com
Would you want Gavin Newsom to date your daughter or friend?
Would you socialize with someone who sleeps with a friend's wife?
Would you employ someone who can't plan a Halloween party in 364 days?
Would you vote for a candidate who refuses to debate his opponents?
I certainly wouldn't!
Does Delancey Street have an "outpatient" program? NO!
When Newsom admitted his substance problem, he disclosed that he would get "counseling" from Mimi Silbert (President of Delancey Street Foundation). The problem is that Delancey Street does not offer drop-in or outpatient counseling.
When John Burton was strung out on drugs and alcohol, he quit congress.
Gavin Newsom should have taken a hint from John Burton and resigned as Mayor.
Newsom's fling with his friend's wife was also a fling with an employee of the City.
How much is that going to cost the Taxpayers?
We know the Mayor is alleged to have paid the wronged husband,
But how much was paid to the Consort?
Is this the kind of judgment we want in a Chief Executive?
Cancelled Halloween cost
Lost wages, tips and income in the Castro!
Wages and overtime for 1000 police officers.
Another term as mayor is too much to pay.
The Halloween in the Castro is a tradition for over 30 years.
Calling it off for a questionable leader's re-election was an abuse of power.
If you think that we need a change,
Don't vote for an Adulterous, Drunken Golden Boy!
Don't chose corruption and waste!
A vote for Harold Hoogasian will clean up City Hall!
A vote for Harold Hoogasian will clean up our streets!
A vote for Harold Hoogasian will fix our Muni!
A vote for Harold Hoogasian will eliminate our Budget Mess!
A vote for Harold Hoogasian will bring back Halloween!
Mark Your Ranked Choice Ballot:
1st Choice: HAROLD HOOGASIAN
2nd Choice: HAROLD HOOGASIAN
3rd Choice: HAROLD HOOGASIAN
I need your VOTE to TAKE BACK our City!
Harold M. Hoogasian
Candidate for Mayor
About Harold Hoogasian
Harold Hoogasian is running for Mayor of San Francisco on a NO NONSENSE campaign. He is a life long resident of San Francisco with a 33 year track record of public service and activism with in The City. As the owner of several successful businesses including the floral business, Hoogasian Flowers, Harold has exhibited leadership and insight. In addition to these endeavors he is a former president of Rotary Club of San Francisco and has led several charitable works within The City. His campaign website is
www.unplugthemachine.org
www.unplugthemachine.org
| About Hoogasian for Mayor Hoogasian for Mayor is a committee formed to elect Harold Hoogasian to the Office of Mayor in The City and County of San Francisco. 615 Seventh Street (Headquarters) San Francisco, California 94103-5691 415-229-2710 (phone) and 415-229-2700 (fax) ID#1299909 |
If you don't want messages about this contested mayoral election,
reply to campaign@unplugthemachine with
subject "unsubscribe"
=======================================
Lovely, eh? Multiple colors to pick out names and phrases like "Adulterous, Drunken Golden Boy!" (in red, natch!), CAPS, bold lettering and different sized fonts.
Looks kookie and crankpot-ish.
If I were a suspicious sort, I'd think that someone who doesn't want Hoogasian for Mayor sent out this spam in an attempt to make him look like a foolish idiot. I hadn't realized he could act like such a juvenile.
Love those politics!
And if his database were any good, he'd know I voted ten days ago.
Labels: politics, San Francisco
posted by Sal Towse at 11:48 AM|
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Potrero Point power UPDATE
An update on the Potrero Point power proposal that I wrote about on Tuesday.
Tu Oct 30. Supervisors vote 8-3 in favor of new peakers. Symbolic vote only as the final vote to approve the contract with the folks who will build the new facility is the deal maker.
W Oct 31. San Francisco Public Utilities Commission votes unanimously in favor of the new peakers. SFPUC staff must finalize agreement with J-Power, the Japanese company that will build the facility.
Once the agreement is finalized and approved by the Board of Supervisors, work c
Tu Oct 30. Supervisors vote 8-3 in favor of new peakers. Symbolic vote only as the final vote to approve the contract with the folks who will build the new facility is the deal maker.
W Oct 31. San Francisco Public Utilities Commission votes unanimously in favor of the new peakers. SFPUC staff must finalize agreement with J-Power, the Japanese company that will build the facility.
Once the agreement is finalized and approved by the Board of Supervisors, work c