• Putin is afraid of loud, uppity girls. I doubt the ex-KGB leader will do it, but they should be pardoned from the politicized charges of hooliganism. The so-called compromise was two years of prison time. This should not stand.
• While Akin is in the race, I endorse Claire McCaskill as I'll pick a moderate Democrat over blatantly stupid. Even a conservative firebrand like Ann Coulter wants him to step aside, questioning his patriotism if he decides to stick it out. Who would replace Akin? Not sure, but the clock is ticking.
[UPDATE]
The deadline has passed and Akin has not withdrawn.
[/UPDATE]
• Speaking of ridiculous rape statements, I give you George Galloway:
I mean not everybody needs to be asked prior to each insertion. Some people believe that when you go to bed with somebody, take off your clothes, and have sex with them and then fall asleep, you're already in the sex game with them.
It might be really bad manners not to have tapped her on the shoulder and said, "do you mind if I do it again?". It might be really sordid and bad sexual etiquette, but whatever else it is, it is not rape or you bankrupt the term rape of all meaning.
And there's Whoopi Goldberg's defense of Roman Polanski's ass-f**king a 13-year old girl:
"I know it wasn't rape-rape. It was something else but I don't believe it was rape-rape. He went to jail and and when they let him out he was like, 'You know what, this guy's going to give me a hundred years in jail. I'm not staying.' So that's why he left."
Later in the programme she added: "We're a different kind of society, we see things differently ... would I want my 14-year-old having sex with somebody? Not necessarily, no."
And there's onetime Texas gubernatorial candidate Clayton Williams:
Mr. Williams made the remark on Saturday while preparing for a cattle roundup at his West Texas ranch. He compared the cold, foggy weather spoiling the event to a rape, telling ranch hands, campaign workers and reporters around a campfire, ''If it's inevitable, just relax and enjoy it.''
Ann Richards won a close race (h/t Reason. BTW, I didn't include ex-CNN anchor Bernard Shaw's question to Dukakis from the debate because, although offensive, it does not excuse rape.)
• Under the category of "I Thought She Was Already Dead", Phyllis Diller dead.
• Also dead is Tony Scott, brother of Ridley, after jumping off a bridge.
• Janet Napolitano's woman-caused disaster? A few more juicy bits here.
• More religious intolerance in Pakistan. Even though she is 11 years old and reportedly has Down's Syndrome, and even though the evidence is sketchy at best, the girl was charged with blasphemy, which is punishable by death.
• Robin Wright might say that we should just be concerned with Salafists, not Islamists, but I question her thesis when it comes to AfPak.
• To be Fair & Balanced about it, radical Israeli settlers are increasingly employing terrorist tactics. A long, but important story.
• While the topic is Israel, I agree with Jonah on the Sea of Galilee skinny-dipping "scandal". This is a nothingburger happy meal and a complete waste of FBI time and resources. Holy schnikeys. People on a political junket drank alcohol and went swimming in a big lake in the middle of August. However, the Politico story obscures the real reason for FBI involvement, which is corruption allegations against Staten Island Congressman Michael Grimm.
• Another long, but important story of C.J. Chivers' embedding with a Syrian rebel group. Excellent reporting.
• Blogger vindication. A person isn't liable for writing truthfully about someone else. Seems like a good rule-of-thumb for the Forvm.
• Six policies that economists can agree with.
One: Eliminate the mortgage tax deduction, which lets homeowners deduct the interest they pay on their mortgages. Gone. After all, big houses get bigger tax breaks, driving up prices for everyone. Why distort the housing market and subsidize people buying expensive houses?
Two: End the tax deduction companies get for providing health-care to employees. Neither employees nor employers pay taxes on workplace health insurance benefits. That encourages fancier insurance coverage, driving up usage and, therefore, health costs overall. Eliminating the deduction will drive up costs for people with workplace healthcare, but makes the health-care market fairer.
Three: Eliminate the corporate income tax. Completely. If companies reinvest the money into their businesses, that's good. Don't tax companies in an effort to tax rich people.
Four: Eliminate all income and payroll taxes. All of them. For everyone. Taxes discourage whatever you're taxing, but we like income, so why tax it? Payroll taxes discourage creating jobs. Not such a good idea. Instead, impose a consumption tax, designed to be progressive to protect lower-income households.
Five: Tax carbon emissions. Yes, that means higher gasoline prices. It's a kind of consumption tax, and can be structured to make sure it doesn't disproportionately harm lower-income Americans. More, it's taxing something that's bad, which gives people an incentive to stop polluting.
Six: Legalize marijuana. Stop spending so much trying to put pot users and dealers in jail — it costs a lot of money to catch them, prosecute them, and then put them up in jail. Criminalizing drugs also drives drug prices up, making gang leaders rich.
I'm not on board with #4. I'd rather see a blend of income and consumption taxes.
• A turn-of-the-20th-century ecological disaster is being reversed.
Scientists are on the brink of engineering a blight-resistant American chestnut tree, renewing hope for a comeback of a long-celebrated species that is valued by business for its sturdy hardwood.
For the first time, techniques used to genetically engineer sturdier farm crops are being tapped to bring back a devastated native species—one that once numbered in the billions and covered much of the East Coast. Entire forests were laid to waste by an Asian fungus introduced around 1900, and healthy chestnuts now exist only in a smattering of places in the American West, where the blight didn't reach.
Now, chestnut trees whose lives began as smudges on a Petri dish are growing in upstate New York, their genes infused with a wheat DNA that appears to kill the fungus that attacks the tree's trunk and limbs. Unlike chestnuts in nature, these trees haven't succumbed so far to the blight—even when scientists directly infect them with it.
[...]
Returning the chestnut to American forests in large numbers could depend on help from the mining and timber industry. Federal law requires mining companies to restore land they strip through means that include forestation. Chestnuts thrive in the loose, sandy soils left after mining.
The chestnut foundation is working with mining and energy companies such as Alpha Natural Resources Inc., Peabody Energy Corp., and American Electric Power Co. to plant the chestnuts, said the foundation's chief scientist, Fred Hebard. The nuts are expensive, but industry has pledged to plant more of them when the prices fall, said Patrick Angel, senior forester for the U.S. Office of Surface Mining, which oversees the restoration of mine lands.
Wood companies including MeadWestvaco Corp., Arborgen Inc., and Georgia-Pacific Corp. also have donated land to plant Restoration Chestnuts, Mr. Hebard said.
Interesting that evil, land-raping corporations may very well have a substantive impact on the restoration of a major plant species.
• Speaking of the environment, several conservative groups are banding together to propose solutions.
Leading members of the Christian Coalition and the Young Republicans on Monday will launch nationwide the Young Conservatives for Energy Reform, a grassroots group aimed at engaging Republicans on the goals of cutting oil use, backing alternative energy and clean-air regulations, and fighting climate change.
The announcement comes less than a month after the rollout of a new conservative-run campaign and think tank, the Energy and Enterprise Institute, aimed at winning Republicans over to the idea of using the tax code to cut carbon pollution and fossil fuel use.
It may not be much, but it's something. Better than EPA overreach.
• Speaking of the environment, China's cities suck on multiple levels.
• Also sucking is the economy of the Iranian de facto police state.
Two-and-a-half decades on, Iran again gives the impression of a country at war even if, for the moment, the guns are silent. Prices of basic food, clothes and electronic goods have soared as a result of international sanctions and a plummeting currency; the rial has more than halved in value over the past year. Nobody believes the official figure of 24% for the annual rate of inflation. Civil servants have been reduced to moonlighting in menial jobs to make up for their shrinking buying power.
The solidarity of the 1980s is conspicuous by its absence. Last month a limited sale of subsidised chicken prompted mini-riots. To engage a taxi-driver in conversation in the capital, Tehran, is to invite a tearful jeremiad against life’s iniquities. Even the fasting month of Ramadan, the traditional time for restraint and pious introspection, seems often to be abused as people smoke or munch openly in violation of official propaganda. “How can I fast for 18 hours a day,” asks a bazaar trader, “when my nerves are shot to bits?”
The country’s leaders have belatedly acknowledged that their insistence that Iran must enrich its uranium in defiance of the West is causing pain. The supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has called for an “economy of resistance” based on self-reliance. If meat is not available, says one Friday prayer leader, people should make do with traditional egg soup.
In fact, Iran is much richer than it was in the war years of the 1980s. On paper at least, it earned a plentiful $120 billion from oil revenues in the financial year ending in March 2011. Some of the lucre has gone to finance the pro-poor subsidies beloved of the president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, but big sums have also found their way into the pockets of senior clerics, former Revolutionary Guard commanders and well-connected businessmen at the heart of the economic elite. Porsche says it sold more cars in Tehran in 2011 than in any other city in the Middle East.
• The Obama administration supports racial preferences in Texas, "...even though the University of Texas at Austin was able to achieve substantial racial and ethnic diversity without using race—by giving a preference to low-income students and automatically admitting students in the top 10 percent of their high school..." This is yet another example of Obama uncourageousness, given his unwillingness to break from party orthodoxy. No change.
• David Brooks on which candidate will better stem the growth of Medicare costs. I agree.
• On this I agree with Summers. A federal government at 20% of GDP may have worked in the past, but not today. This is why I do not support the Romney tax plan. If elected--which I doubt will happen--I predict that his tax plan and his proposal to repeal Obamacare will go nowhere, so my only hope is that he does not spend much time on either one.
• The engine of the EU economy is slowing. And after all of the above, so am I.
Awww. . .
(#287603). . .the usual collection of moonbat scum are offended that Condi Rice and someone inconsiderate enough to be a billionaire are the first beneficiaries of Augusta National changing its membership rules. Hat tip to Billy Payne for offending just the right people with this.
The universe may well have been created without a point--that doesn't imply that we can't give it one.
I guess Moore and Rice aren't legitimate women
(#287606)We'll see how long my comment there lasts.
EDIT: Well, I got my answer. After about 15 minutes, it was quietly deleted as if it never existed. Intellectually dishonest hacks.
Government is merely a servant – merely a temporary servant; it cannot be its prerogative to determine what is right and what is wrong, and decide who is a patriot and who isn’t. Its function is to obey orders, not originate them.
MSE might be amused
(#287607)A friend and I won third place in the D&D 4e tournament at Gen Con over the weekend. (perhaps the worlds largest gaming convention) We were teamed up with 3 people we'd never met before who were good players and better people. An incredible experience all around.
--- I will not be pushed, filed, stamped, indexed, briefed, debriefed, or numbered. My life is my own.
That is pretty awesome. That
(#287658)That is pretty awesome. That sort of tournament takes cajones to join. I think of this video when I read about role playing tournaments.
I give up. Every time I want to embed a youtube video it takes me 30 minutes and I still can't do it. Here's the link you sorry SOBs.
http://youtu.be/V2XGp5ix8HE
Switch to plain text
(#287660)..using the link below the comment box, then paste the embed link
"Something I think most liberals don't understand is exactly how stupid many conservative leaders are." - Matt Yglesias
Thanks professor, now I can't
(#287661)Thanks professor, now I can't fix my post. Big time helpful!
A mysterious benefactor has smiled upon you nt
(#287662).
I blame it all on the Internet
Congratulations!
(#287659)Never actually did the tournament thing myself, but it takes first rate cooperation for a group to do that well, particularly when most of the people don't know each other.
I never did get around to writing a review of 4E, but I've enjoyed what I've played of it--Steve Peterson was running an online campaign for me that has taken us through the heroic part of the "Scales of War" adventure path (he's been too busy for the last year for us to get back to it, but I hope we'll have time to continue with the paragon part of the path sometime reasonably soon).
The universe may well have been created without a point--that doesn't imply that we can't give it one.
I never really enjoyed my attempts at 4e
(#287667)but I wonder how much of that was having gone from a really good DM to a few mediocre DMs with me just ascribing the change in quality from the change from 3.5 to 4e.
Still, I prefer my games story-centric rather than analog Warcraft, and 4e goes way too far in the latter direction.
3.5 vs. 4e
(#287683)The 3.5 (and pathfinder) versus 4e flame wars raged on at Gen Con. I play in a very story heavy 4e campaign that has been around for over 3 years with a top notch DM, so my experience isn't typical.
Calling 4e a computer game isn't really accurate. It can have as much or as little plot as the group wants. Most people play 4e as a tactical war game, but it's not required and you can have a very thin plot in 3.5 just as easily.
--- I will not be pushed, filed, stamped, indexed, briefed, debriefed, or numbered. My life is my own.
Roleplaying Is Always An Option
(#287684)Even in games that have minimal or no ironclad numbers, roleplaying only exists to the extent that the GM encourages it and the players are willing to provide it.
The universe may well have been created without a point--that doesn't imply that we can't give it one.
very true
(#287687)Differing expectations around the amount of actual roleplaying and how seriously people take it can be a significant source of tension and conflict for an RPG group.
From what I can tell, the big dislike of 4e comes from two places:
I really like tactical games and have always been a war gamer as well as an RPG player. I started using battle maps for RPGs in college with AD&D and rolemaster, and have trouble playing an RPG without at least a sketch of the battle at a minimum.
--- I will not be pushed, filed, stamped, indexed, briefed, debriefed, or numbered. My life is my own.
I've got mixed feelings on the tactical aspect of it
(#287691)I've found that the battle mat could clear things up as to who was where--and thus obviating the disputes between a player and DM over the feasibility of an action--but that it can end up taking control of the game.
But then I definitely fall into the camp of the folks who go into a game expecting roleplaying. Indeed, it's why I actually found White Wolf to be the system that I most enjoyed before all the goths grew up and got jobs.
having an accurate view of the battlefield is important to me
(#287737)I can sort of see your point about the map taking over the game, but it always annoys me to ask the DM if I can do something and have them make an entirely arbitrary decision based on how they feel about it. The universe has rules, characters and monsters are in an actual place. The map takes all the guess work and subjectivity out of that. The movement and location rules are pretty explicit in 4e and there are never any disagreements about positioning.
When we play tested 5th Ed without a map we constantly had to ask where everything was in relationship to each other. It was very annoying and detracted a lot from the game.
--- I will not be pushed, filed, stamped, indexed, briefed, debriefed, or numbered. My life is my own.
I wonder, though, if the attempt to make 4e
(#287690)so very tactical tends to drive those who prefer more story and role-playing to Pathfinder or other systems. 3.5 could be baroque, but it was so simulationist in its orientation that you could create a really detailed picture of a fully fleshed out character with experiences, skills, etc.
you're right about that
(#287701)Much of the discussion at Gen Con was around just that. I play tested D&D next, (5th ed I guess) and it has a very old school AD&D feel. We didn't even play with a battle map, I'm sure they did that to emphasize the plain RPG nature of the new version.
My 4e char is fully fleshed out and her personality reflects her skills and experiences. To a certain extent, adding role playing elements in 4e is the job of the DM. If your char has specific background or experiences that will affect a skill check, then the DM should give you a bonus to the DC.
I have never played the pencil and paper versions of 3, or 3.5 only the computer variants. With all the complex rules and calculations required for combat and skills, I always felt it was better suited to have the computer keep track of it all. I love the streamlined system that 4e uses as it gets itself out of the way of combat and storytelling, but it's very much a matter of to each his own.
--- I will not be pushed, filed, stamped, indexed, briefed, debriefed, or numbered. My life is my own.
Paragon is a lot of fun, you start to get pretty powerful
(#287693)My regular campaign has been going on for over 3 years and we started at level 1 and have made it to 16 so far. It's fun to develop your character and work your powers and paragon path into a coherent story. My character is an acrobatic rogue that is very stealthy. She charges around the battlefield and hits like a Mack truck, though she's a bit of a glass cannon. I've developed a bunch of back story that explains why she is the way she is, and it often impacts her actions in battle and straight role play scenarios. I'm also working on an epic destiny story line which I'll need to have fleshed out by the time we hit level 21.
--- I will not be pushed, filed, stamped, indexed, briefed, debriefed, or numbered. My life is my own.
I'm Running A Whole Party. . .
(#287699). . .and I have the baby Paragon characters ready to run, occasionally tweaking them as they keep adding rules:
--half-elf Inspiring Warlord built with a few extra character points per house rules as the lead character, solid at both healing and buffing--going Kord for the paragon path;
--dwarf laser cleric with a Wisdom based at will melee attack that hits hard, along with tons of debuffing attacks and those nice continuing healing dailies/utilities--Radiant Servant paragon path ;
--deva wizard orb user, multiclassed to cleric, going Divine Oracle in paragon. Awesome crowd control;
--halfling brutual scoundrel rogue who hit hard in heroic and is going Daggermaster in paragon, with a big crit dagger to increase the fun;
--dragonborn fighter, because you need one and he looks the part. Going Dreadnought in paragon.
The universe may well have been created without a point--that doesn't imply that we can't give it one.
I stopped playing at around 14 or so
(#287713)I ran a cleric in a group of 5 others. We made a lot of moohlah ridding a town of dragon infestation somewhere around level 20 and then went into shipbuilding in a big way. Amassed a large fleet of self designed warships and and siege engines and took to building something akin to the athenian empire. We triggered a massive regional conflict and got slowly ground away. About half way through we turned immortal which was a bit meh and girls and drink (i.r.l.) did for the rest.
This was the D&D basic - expert - companion - ? - Immortal boxes.
I also used to do a bit of Car Wars, which was a hoot.
If it was an incredible experience
(#287663)maybe you should go into more detail describing it?
I blame it all on the Internet
I figured I'd gauge interest before nerding out completely
(#287676)This version of D&D is as much a tactical war game as RPG, so it's very important to play the tournament to the objectives and not get distracted by the monsters. The scenario for the first round of the tournament was an evil wizard was trying to obtain 4 powerful artifacts so he could open a planar gate and assist the evil goddess Lolth. We were given pre-generated 22nd level epic characters. Given this plot, there were 5 encounters which each needed to be completed in 45 minutes. In the first 4 our party was set against the evil wizards monks who were set to collect the artifacts from an array of monsters. For each artifact they collected, the evil wizard gained more power for the final 5th encounter of the initial round.
The 4 scenarios were very different, both in terrain and monsters. Each contained 4 monks and some other monsters. We had a choice and did them in the following order:
We realized that killing monsters was a very secondary concern and that preventing the monks from getting the artifacts and staying alive were much more important. All encounters had a hard time limit of 45 minutes, and players needed to leave via a gate otherwise they could not continue. The strategy was to get the item if possible, kill the monks if we couldn't get the item and bail through the gate if it looked too dangerous. Most other parties didn't keep their focus and lost numerous party members from fighting too long.
What made the experience so amazing is that our party gelled immediately and were in sync from the beginning. We were all experienced players in our 30's and 40's and very quickly came to consensus on any questions. One player had played in several tournaments and naturally became the party leader. The time constraints on each encounter lent an incredible sense of urgency and we got our last party member out of the throne room with only seconds to spare. We successfully prevented the wizard from getting 2 of the artifacts. We got to the evil wizard with our party intact and beat on him pretty good, but we ran out of time before we could kill him. It was good enough to advance to the championship round.
The championship round was a brutal 2 and half hour encounter. We had to close gates with seals and monsters came out of the open gates each turn. We failed some of our gate closure rolls and it very quickly spiraled out of control with monsters everywhere. We were all killed in the end, but we closed 3 gates and lasted about 2h 15m which was good enough for 3rd. I would absolutely play with those guys again.
--- I will not be pushed, filed, stamped, indexed, briefed, debriefed, or numbered. My life is my own.
OK ...
(#287702)not trying to make work for you here, but maybe you could add to your comment for those of us who have no experience whatsoever. You know, write it as if you were talking to a 5 year old.
I blame it all on the Internet
heh, I guess I assumed some knowlege of RPG's
(#287712)D&D is a pencil and paper based role playing game (RPG) that uses an elaborate set of rules based on die rolls to determine success. Additional die roles determine damage from attacks. Your character has a set of powers and skills that you can use, and you describe your actions to the game judge (Dungeon Master or DM) who tells the story and plays all the moves for the monsters. Characters are awarded experience after each encounter and when you accumulate enough, you gain a level and get new powers.
This version of D&D requires the use of a battle map (1" squares) and mini figures to determine where everyone is, where they can move and who is affected by area powers. Every character and monster is assigned a figure. The size of the figure denotes how big the monster really is. These are some encounters from our regular game.
For the tournament, 5 players are each assigned a character. Characters each have a class (Fighter, wizard, rogue, etc.) which determines their role and what powers they can have. In a regular game you decide what you want to play and what powers to take when your character increases in level and gains in power. In the tournament this is all decided in advance (pregenerated characters) so all teams are working with the same powers and items. During play each person describes their action in order, and the DM plays the monsters. Players are responsible for keeping track of how much damage they take and what powers they have used. The DM keeps track for all the monsters. They also need to keep track of status effects such as dazed, poisoned, blind and the like.
Typically, a successful party will have a character from each role, the tournament party was set up as follows:
Class - Role - Disc.
Sorcerer - Striker - Deals damage to monsters mostly from long rage
Barbarian - Striker/Defender - Keeps monsters busy and from attacking other party members as well as dealing damage (usually known as a tank in other games)
Bard - Leader - Provides healing and positive effects for the party (makes it easier to hit and damage monsters)
Bladsinger (Wizard) - Controller - affects large groups of monsters and prevents them from acting or attacking the party
Vampire/Rogue - Striker - Stealthy and deals damage at short range
This was a fairly well balanced party with characters from each role. It is critical that the characters work together and plan out their moves so they are mutually supporting. Working with people and characters you don't know well is hard. I know I made several tactical mistakes because I forgot my character (sorcerer) could do certain things and forgot to apply some power effects.
The fact that our party was on the same page after chatting for just a few minutes made working together much easier. Groups that can't agree quickly or disagree about the course of action will have a much harder time.
--- I will not be pushed, filed, stamped, indexed, briefed, debriefed, or numbered. My life is my own.
Thanks
(#287835)that sounds incredibly elaborate and time consuming, and it appears that the Dungeon Master can either make or break a game depending entirely on his own whims.
I blame it all on the Internet
I used to play
(#287837)as a kid to early teen. Love the game still, but we pretty much threw a lot of the rules out the window for the sake of fun.
I just can't understand how you "win" at D&D in a tournament. It's like winning a movie or book. I don't get it, unless you make it a boring game of statistics and body-counts.
The Designer Sets Goals And Assigns Points To Them
(#287838)In this case, the monsters were obstacles to achieving the main goals of the scenario rather than primary goals themselves (or so I gather), so a strategy devoted to fending them off while the real goals were accomplished worked well, even though in the end they ended up dying when the monsters got too tough to hold off.
The universe may well have been created without a point--that doesn't imply that we can't give it one.
I can see that
(#287839)but it kind of sounds like a complicated sort of whack-a-mole. To each his own.
The "six policies" are BS
(#287614)they cherry picked six economists and pretend that they represent the entire profession.
No sane economist is advocating the elimination of the individual income tax, the payroll tax and the corporate income tax. As for the rest, good luck. Even popular items on that list (like legalizing marijuana) have a huge uphill battle.
Oh, and Brooks column is the scribbling of an idiot. If the last 30 years have shown anything, it's that Republicans get their tax cuts for the wealthy up front, and get around to cutting spending only when a Dem is in office.
I blame it all on the Internet
Five economists,
(#287616)not six. Whether they're cherry-picked, interesting that you would impugn NPR's integrity. Hard left and hard right come full circle.
As for Brooks, he was chumped by Obama when it came to fiscal matters, so it's understandable that he's not convinced that the president is serious about cuts. I guess this one is just more scribbling of an idiot.
Government is merely a servant – merely a temporary servant; it cannot be its prerogative to determine what is right and what is wrong, and decide who is a patriot and who isn’t. Its function is to obey orders, not originate them.
Even a blind pig etc.
(#287621)I have no problem impugning the authors integrity and NPRs for publishing it. I'm not a slave to ideology.
I blame it all on the Internet
Photo of the day
(#287618)Government is merely a servant – merely a temporary servant; it cannot be its prerogative to determine what is right and what is wrong, and decide who is a patriot and who isn’t. Its function is to obey orders, not originate them.
I lol'd
(#287623)But only once.
The Constitution does not vest in Congress the authority to protect society from every bad act that might befall it. -- Clarence Thomas
Obama uses a Teleprompter!
(#287628)No president has ever used one before! It means he can't talk without one!
(But I'll grant you it's a pretty funny picture.)
They couldn't hit an elephant at this dist...
-- General John B. Sedgwick, 1864
On Akin
(#287624)I'm going to go out on a limb and say that if Akin would have said that before the primary, he still would have won.
I'm sorry to say it Mr. Dog, but Akin and his ilk run the party. His comments are very uncomfortably close to being the mainstream Republican position. If you want a center-right political party, we already have one. It's called the Democratic Party.
The Constitution does not vest in Congress the authority to protect society from every bad act that might befall it. -- Clarence Thomas
He might still win the general
(#287638)the polls so far show a tie. He was up around 8 points, so even after a major blunder he's still tied with McCaskill.
I blame it all on the Internet
It takes a while for this kinda stuff
(#287717)To sink in. Plus Missourians need to see the McCaskill ads featuring Mitt
endorsing herdenouncing Akin."I don't want us to descend into a nation of bloggers." - Steve Jobs
Sigh.
(#287715)If only you guys would quit wasting my money on poor people, middle-class-to-middle-class transfers and farm subsidies. (Not that the other guys are much better.)
"Unfortunately the universe doesn't agree with me. We'll see which one of us is still standing when this is over." -- Eliezer Yudkowsky
I am curious
(#287629)About how tax breaks have encouraged fancier health-care plans. My company sure isn't adding any bells and whistles. We're given placebos and given the option to die if we don't feel better. And that's the expensive plan.
They couldn't hit an elephant at this dist...
-- General John B. Sedgwick, 1864
If there wasn't a tax break
(#287631)They wouldn't offer insurance at all. Anything is fancier than nothing.
The Constitution does not vest in Congress the authority to protect society from every bad act that might befall it. -- Clarence Thomas
Key word
(#287633)is "fancier." And they probably would have offered the plans w/o a tax break. They were originally meant as incentives to attract employees.
They couldn't hit an elephant at this dist...
-- General John B. Sedgwick, 1864
I'd have to see some proof
(#287634)The reason why I get insurance through my employer is that they subsidize it to the tune of 70%. If that was 0%, I'd rather have the money, TYVM. I trust most people would as well.
The Constitution does not vest in Congress the authority to protect society from every bad act that might befall it. -- Clarence Thomas
Not me
(#287637)If it meant wading into the private market as it stands now.
They couldn't hit an elephant at this dist...
-- General John B. Sedgwick, 1864
The employer tax exclusion...
(#287645)...is another example of the perverse incentives in our tax code. Ezra explains as well as anyone.
I can tell you this. In calendar year 2012, our health plan became decidedly more expensive in the form of higher deductions, higher premiums, higher copays and a higher percentage of medical services paid by us. The only reason I can think of for this massive change in a single year is the passage of Obamacare.
Government is merely a servant – merely a temporary servant; it cannot be its prerogative to determine what is right and what is wrong, and decide who is a patriot and who isn’t. Its function is to obey orders, not originate them.
When I first joined my company
(#287648)Health insurance was free. This was 23 years ago. Now it's nearly $400 a month, but that has been in the works for some time. Maximum out of pocket for the family: $22,000.
Also, we have to take annual physicals and we get dinged if we don't meet certain goals, such as perfect health. The company used to bribe us with about $1500 if we went to our spouse's plan; now they penalize us the same amount if we don't. But this has been going on long before the Affordable Care Act.
On another note, I'm figuring I'm paying about $10,000 a year on health care, if you include my insurance, my HCA, and my Medicare taxes. That's for three people. I don't think it's outrageous, but it ain't cheap, either.
They couldn't hit an elephant at this dist...
-- General John B. Sedgwick, 1864
Obamacare hasn't kicked in yet
(#287649)health care inflation, however, is still barreling along.
I blame it all on the Internet
Insurers and employers are anticipating future effects...
(#287671)...of the law. They're adapting as private companies do. I have friends who are MDs and they're seeing it firsthand. Clinics aren't just waiting around, sitting on their hands, until the full effects of the law are implemented.
Government is merely a servant – merely a temporary servant; it cannot be its prerogative to determine what is right and what is wrong, and decide who is a patriot and who isn’t. Its function is to obey orders, not originate them.
Yes it's dumb
(#287665)But it's what we have until we get universal coverage.
Our (HSA) plan increased the deductible and out of pocket max, but the premiums actually went down.
The massive change in a single year could be because you have a co-worker who was seriously ill. Ours went up significantly when one of our folks had huge medical expenses. She was fired (for unrelated reasons) and the next year everything went down.
Your belief that evil Obama did it sounds like a post hoc ergo propter hoc rationalization. Unless you have some proof, I'd say "most likely not" unless you had one of those Cadillac plans everyone was on about.
The Constitution does not vest in Congress the authority to protect society from every bad act that might befall it. -- Clarence Thomas
Nothing changed
(#287670)My wife works for a school district that employs thousands and her union (yes, half the adults in the BD household are unionized) have negotiated stellar health plans for its employees (it may have even been one of those Cadillac plans). Until this year. The difference isn't even close. We're paying way more out-of-pocket in premiums for similar benefits, almost $4,000 more for the year. Our co-pays are $10 higher. Instead of full reimbursement, we're on the hook for 20% of the cost to providers up to $1,500 per person ($2,500 for the family). Because of its size, I just don't ascribe the increase to health care inflation or an ill worker or three. What really changed? A massive new healthcare law.
Government is merely a servant – merely a temporary servant; it cannot be its prerogative to determine what is right and what is wrong, and decide who is a patriot and who isn’t. Its function is to obey orders, not originate them.
Maybe
(#287689)all that anti-union rhetoric from Republicans is finally having an effect. Success!
I blame it all on the Internet
Premiums on this end went up a lot last year
(#287666)but this next year they're not going up any (except for smokers). Co-pay and deductible are the same still. The apologetic e-mail from HR last year that mentioned the huge bump in premiums said that premiums hadn't gone up for employees in a long time but that they had for the university blah blah blah. So basically it's the same sort of escalating premiums that we've been having for the last several decades.
Actually...
(#287685)The rate of growth has slowed substantially in every category. Attributable to Obamacare?
"I don't want us to descend into a nation of bloggers." - Steve Jobs
Actually, I'd attribute it to....
(#287714)....Stein's Law more than anything else.
"Unfortunately the universe doesn't agree with me. We'll see which one of us is still standing when this is over." -- Eliezer Yudkowsky
To be clear...
(#287716)I wouldn't attribute the change to Obamacare, at least not predominantly. But since BD can only think of one possible controlling variable for the upward trajectory...
"I don't want us to descend into a nation of bloggers." - Steve Jobs
Obviously
(#287768)..that's because you have succumbed to partisanship. While BD is able to maintain the kind of clear minded impartiality essential to resolving these matters.
"Something I think most liberals don't understand is exactly how stupid many conservative leaders are." - Matt Yglesias
Keep it to the comment, not commenter.
(#287772)Consider it a warning.
In the medical community, death is known as Chuck Norris Syndrome.
8-10 secs
(#287777)at terminal velocity. Saw a girl in Poland once take one down to the limit, somewhere under 500'. I'll bet that was the longest 8-10 secs of her life trying to drag that reserve handle out.
Lighten up.
"Something I think most liberals don't understand is exactly how stupid many conservative leaders are." - Matt Yglesias
Roses are red,
(#287786)violets are blue,
and yellow is the color,
of the card I give to you:
For both comments.
I am not a pessimist. I am an incompetent optimist.
Long Sequence of "BUT WHY???" Comments In 3, 2, 1. . . -nt-
(#287787).
The universe may well have been created without a point--that doesn't imply that we can't give it one.
But why - are you even commenting on it? nt
(#287788).
I blame it all on the Internet
In Hopes Of Preventing It
(#287791)Why are you commenting on the fact that I'm commenting on it? Has the honor of an 18th century dictionary been sullied somehow?
The universe may well have been created without a point--that doesn't imply that we can't give it one.
Looks more like stirring the pot to me nt
(#287794).
I blame it all on the Internet
I don't pretend to know anything about Stine's law
(#287751)I just enforce it. ;-)
The Constitution does not vest in Congress the authority to protect society from every bad act that might befall it. -- Clarence Thomas
Way cool about the chestnut
(#287632)You can still find chestnut fence posts around here. It would be great to see a revival of the chestnut.
They couldn't hit an elephant at this dist...
-- General John B. Sedgwick, 1864
Pussy riot
(#287650)So where's the rock 'n' roll outrage for Pussy Riot? Where's all the usual suspects -- Bono, Bruce, Christ, anyone -- when real rock and roll rebels need help? Geez.
They couldn't hit an elephant at this dist...
-- General John B. Sedgwick, 1864
Weird
(#287674)Facekinis worn by Chinese beachgoers. Anyone there heard of sunscreen?
Government is merely a servant – merely a temporary servant; it cannot be its prerogative to determine what is right and what is wrong, and decide who is a patriot and who isn’t. Its function is to obey orders, not originate them.
I'm in China
(#287679)I'll ask a facekini wearer if I see one.
Answer: Because Romney's positions are barely different
(#287675)Question: Why aren't we debating the Afghan war in this presidential election?
Romney on Afghanistan here.
Government is merely a servant – merely a temporary servant; it cannot be its prerogative to determine what is right and what is wrong, and decide who is a patriot and who isn’t. Its function is to obey orders, not originate them.
Yes, even Republicans realize it's a loser issue
(#287789)everyone wants out, and within a few years we will be.
I blame it all on the Internet
the biggest outrage since Ida Lupino received top billing
(#287688)This is the biggest outrage since Ida Lupino received top billing over Bogart in 'High Sierra.' Before visiting Obama, before Obama visits him, newly elected Islamist President Morsi of Egypt is visiting Teheran. And then he's off to Beijing.
"Panetta came back to Washington greatly pleased that the Egyptian military leadership, which has been the anchor sheet of the US regional strategy and the custodian of the US' interests in Egypt, and Morsi were not only getting alone fine but they even had a common agenda.
The rest is history. Within days or weeks of Panetta's optimism, Morsi unceremoniously sent the military back to the barracks from the corridors of political power. Washington had no choice but to put a brave face on it, almost spreading a canard that Morsi consulted the Obama administration before cracking down on the Egyptian military.
However, in the weekend, the truth is out. The US may be facing across a huge setback to its robust efforts to influence Morsi's presidency. The letter that Burns carried a month ago apparently contained an invitation from Obama to Morsi to visit Washington.
And Morsi is instead travelling to China and Iran.
This was announced on the Egyptian president's official website on Sunday. Morsi is apparently combining the visits to China and Iran. It seems he will pay a three-day visit to China next Monday at the invitation of President Hu Jintao and from Beijing he proposes to travel to Tehran on Thursday to attend the summit meeting of the Non-Aligned Movement. "
http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/NH21Ak02.html
A very decent set of stories you present here Bird Dog, but this one is big. It's the political equivalent of a skyscraper free-falling into its own foundations. How could you have missed it?
You will kill 10 of our men, and we will kill 1 of yours, and in the end it will be you who tire of it. - Ho Chi Minh
Please, somebody tell me this is a parody
(#287726)I just can't tell anymore.
I blame it all on the Internet
Someone at NRO
(#287729)Is getting some very good drugs.
"I've been on food stamps and welfare. Anybody help me out? No!" Craig T. Nelson (6/2/2009)
Really excellent.
(#287733)Why not be honest and have a real caste system, with Brahmins and outcastes like we do?
literally anything can become right or wrong if the dominant class of the moment so wills it
We have two castes
(#287734)Those striving to climb the ladder and those who have climbed the ladder and now want to pull the ladder up behind them.
"Something I think most liberals don't understand is exactly how stupid many conservative leaders are." - Matt Yglesias
Twere ever thus.
(#287735)Perhaps the past couple of centuries were a brief, radical interregnum - in a historical sense that is. The Hierarchy Fights Back.
literally anything can become right or wrong if the dominant class of the moment so wills it
Sadly True, But then, People Could Take My Advice..(Robespierre)
(#287738)...and drag the Hierarchy out their front doors by their glided collars and slaughter them in their well manicured front yards.
My earlier though on Charles Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte, and The Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Napoleon, was pretty much this...he should never have been allowed to go into Exile, only to return to win election...The first French President, (1848) and last Emperor (1851), but should have been killed instead.
On the other hand, many of the accomplishments of the 2nd Empire I do agree with...so...
Robespierre or Danton? The end of Robespierre is....illistrative or just interesting, you decide.
As the night went on, the forces of the Commune deserted the Hôtel de Ville and, at around two in the morning, those of the Convention under the command of Barras arrived there. In order to avoid capture, Augustin Robespierre threw himself out of a window, only to break both of his legs; Couthon was found lying at the bottom of a staircase; Le Bas committed suicide; another radical shot himself in the head. Robespierre tried to kill himself with a pistol but managed only to shatter his lower jaw,[54] although some eye-witnesses[55] claimed that Robespierre was shot by Charles-André Merda.
For the remainder of the night, Robespierre was moved to a table in the room of the Committee of Public Safety where he awaited execution. He lay on the table bleeding abundantly until a doctor was brought in to attempt to stop the bleeding from his jaw. Robespierre's last recorded words may have been "Merci, monsieur," to a man that had given him a handkerchief for the blood on his face and clothing.[56] Later, Robespierre was held in the same containment chamber where Marie Antoinette, the wife of King Louis XVI, had been held.
The next day, 28 July 1794, Robespierre was guillotined without trial in the Place de la Révolution. His brother Augustin, Couthon, Saint-Just, Hanriot and twelve other followers, among them the cobbler Simon, were also executed. When clearing Robespierre's neck the executioner tore off the bandage that was holding his shattered jaw in place, producing an agonised scream until the fall of the blade silenced him.
the head is dead
(#287740)I heard that during that time French doctors determined that the head of a guillotined man remains alive for about 6 seconds. The doctors found that the severed head will respond to its name being called, eyes poked, tongue pulled etc. After 6 seconds, the head is dead.
You will kill 10 of our men, and we will kill 1 of yours, and in the end it will be you who tire of it. - Ho Chi Minh
Trav, it's...
(#287763)....endearing when you go all Terror-ist on us like that. But as per above, Barras and co (or protégés, as the case may be) always win in the end.
Bernard Guerrero, Commissar For The People
"Unfortunately the universe doesn't agree with me. We'll see which one of us is still standing when this is over." -- Eliezer Yudkowsky
Yeah but a lot of the nobles end up dead
(#287764)while things get sorted out.
Not to mention some of the Guerreros nt
(#287765).
I blame it all on the Internet
Don't I know it!
(#287780)Reason One why communists should be shot on site, IMHO. Unless I happen to be related to 'em, of course.
"Unfortunately the universe doesn't agree with me. We'll see which one of us is still standing when this is over." -- Eliezer Yudkowsky
In the nuclear era...
(#287741)...with climate change, genetic technology, globalization, etc., I believe that Tribal Chieftains might not be the best possible type of person for the job.
These people play by rules optimized for small groups of vulnerable social mammals with no ability to shape their environment, much less lead every other species in their habitat to extinction.
Clearly this kind of wiring is still relevant and powerful in local politics. But it is a very poor match to long-term problems and solutions on a global scale. Technology does not really allow us the ability to indulge in the luxury of being led by tribal chiefs.
I am not a pessimist. I am an incompetent optimist.
Plenty of pointy-headed intellectuals support Tribal Chieftains
(#287771)Niall Ferguson, for example. They can't all be fools, or deluded, or bought. They might even have valid arguments. Seeing the strength of the inclination of human societies to move towards caste-based arguments, even the best, most egalitarian-seeking and most advanced ones such as yours (that word again!), it might not be true that the egalitarian viewpoint is necessarily right. Highly intelligent and tough-minded people, such as on this blog, for example, do not find the egalitarian argument persuasive - MSE, BD, Bernard, vinteuil etc. These lot aren't fools, deluded, or bought.
In general, I'm on your side (more or less), but it is necessary to be aware that Tribal Chieftains carry sufficient weight to win elections and influence events; whether we can afford the luxury, or not is another question entirely. Hope for the best, plan for the next best, in other words.
literally anything can become right or wrong if the dominant class of the moment so wills it
"Highly intelligent and tough-minded people"
(#287774)who would be peasants (at best) in the types of systems that they advocate.
I blame it all on the Internet
Heh Bernard mentioned Barras, but
(#287775)he would probably prefer to be Carnot.
literally anything can become right or wrong if the dominant class of the moment so wills it
Once the pitchforks come out choices are over nt
(#287776).
I blame it all on the Internet
Surely you jest!
(#287779)Barras is but one example of the number of different ways one can play the game.
"Unfortunately the universe doesn't agree with me. We'll see which one of us is still standing when this is over." -- Eliezer Yudkowsky
Hell of a family. - nt
(#287778).
"Unfortunately the universe doesn't agree with me. We'll see which one of us is still standing when this is over." -- Eliezer Yudkowsky
Re Robespierre...It Was The Irony of Him Leading the Terror
(#287783)....and then, he himself...surcoming to an end without trial before his own creation, condemned by radicals for being too radical and then being killed by the Radicals before Radical Robespierre could move on them.
The lessons of history are not lost on me.
And yet, the grip of the church had to be broken in France, as had to be the Power of the Bishops and the Monasteries by Henry the VIII in England, as feudalism was finally ripped out root and branch by the Russian Revolution.
China likewise and Indochine too, the latter being a creation of the 2nd French Empire of Louis Napoleon...the landed aristocracy necessarily stripped of their holdings so that something new can see the sun and grow in their place. The US of A can only be thankful for the two Roosevelts, Teddy for breaking up the Trusts, and Franklin for saving Capitalism from itself.
I sense critical times ahead for the United States...we will see who will, or will fail, to rise to the occasion.
Best Wishes, Traveller
Oh, but you miss my reasoning...
(#287785)I am not egalitarian for the sake of it. I believe in hierarchy. Some people are more capable than others. Some much more so. Nothing wrong if their social rank reflects it, assuming they are capable of good things.
I just happen to think that the sensibilities and character of a tribal chieftain are incredibly mismatched to the leadership needs of humanity in a hyper technological, dense, and connected world.
We need leaders. And our leaders need to be more capable human beings than the average. But they also need to be well informed, and they need to understand science and nature, among other things.
Human societies do have a tendency to move towards castes, but the plain fact is that the species cannot long endure by refusing to adapt to the reality it has created. We are so incredibly removed from the conditions we evolved under, that this should be obvious.
In his energy plan, Romney isn't even pretending to care about climate change. Even in a year of record drought and polar melting, even when bush at least made some verbal concessions, and made some money available for R&D. How disconnected from reality do you need to be in order to plan to move backwards from bush on this?
Tribal chieftains can be delusional, and are extremely dangerous when that is the case.
I am not a pessimist. I am an incompetent optimist.
Leaders Have to Lead...Not Follow the Weaving-Weeping Will....
(#287790)..of the masses that...as I think about it, research will clearly show is mindless, (as in mindless mob)...and this is my complaint against Obama...though maybe with 4 more years he will feel secure enough in himself to...lead the hot crazy to cool water...even against their wishes.
He could earn a heap of respect from everyone.
I do see his current play as rational....it's not my way, but long-term, which is your concern, winning again is...essential for him to put long term solutions in place.
Best Wishes, Traveller
Pictures from Mars
(#287746)Pictures from Mars
"I’m to believe that North Korea is so dangerously unhinged that they would attack without warning – yet so meek and easily cowed that they will sit quietly and not retaliate when we start bombing them."
Major Kong
Movie from Mars
(#287747)I blame it all on the Internet
It is Almost Like a Miracle Hank and Brut..Mankinds Seems So....
(#287748)...so stupid so often in so many ways...and then you show me this.
Well...Thanks.
Traveller
I'd like to see rovers
(#287766)on Enceladus, Europa and Titan. Maybe submarines on the first two. They're so cheap compared to our excellent adventures in the Mideast and west asia.
I blame it all on the Internet
Mars again?
(#287749)Come on, we did that one last week. We all know what it looks like - sort of sandy and rocky. How about something new for a change?
Mars my a$$!
(#287750)Those are pictures of Mrs Cuddly's flower garden.
In the medical community, death is known as Chuck Norris Syndrome.
Are you in Texas now? nt
(#287753).
I blame it all on the Internet
I am in North Carolina.
(#287767)But my wife could make the Congo look like that. You simply do not understand the destructive power my wife wields over plants. She's never known shade, she sits under a tree and it runs away. Fake plastic office plants have withered in her presence. I once brought some juniper home for planting, it killed itself on my front porch while I was getting a shovel. She is the only entity on the planet that can stop grass from growing in cracks in concrete.
In the medical community, death is known as Chuck Norris Syndrome.
If I have to travel to Wilmington
(#287773)I may have to make a little road trip to see all this for myself.
I blame it all on the Internet
That is So Funny Darth...Kudos, Move up on Stage!...nt
(#287784)Traveller
get out the doilies
(#287755)There's interesting news from the middle east here:
"President Mursi will visit the US on September 23 after his visit to China,"
http://www.gulf-daily-news.com/NewsDetails.aspx?storyid=336465
Sorry to paste a link to a rag-head rag like "The Gulf Daily News" I know how you take offense and all but the CNN hasn't seen fit to cover the story.
I thought this was noteworthy:
"The US was a close ally of Egypt under ousted President Hosni Mubarak and gives $1.3 billion in military aid a year to Egypt, plus other assistance."
Contrast with a Reuters (non arab, yay) story on Mubarak's last visit to Washington just over 3 years ago:
"Egypt is a staunch regional ally of the United States, which has provided it with billions of dollars of military and other aid since it became the first Arab state to sign a peace deal with Israel in 1979."
http://www.reuters.com/article/2009/08/18/idUSN17394589
Did you get it? No? First sentence from today "was a close ally" and second sentence "is a staunch regional ally". Is, was, the only thing that hasn't changed under Obama is the billions you yankee shlubs are shelling out to em.
You will kill 10 of our men, and we will kill 1 of yours, and in the end it will be you who tire of it. - Ho Chi Minh
Cheaper than the alternative
(#287757).
"Something I think most liberals don't understand is exactly how stupid many conservative leaders are." - Matt Yglesias
Any number of other countries
(#287760)would be happy to promise to not attack Israel, at a fraction of the cost. Has anyone asked Hizbollah? Could be surprisingly affordable, you never know. The Iranians only put up $350M per year.
PS in case the FBI monitors this site, that was a joke. We shouldn't be paying anybody over there.
Not to worry
(#287762)I don't see any libertarian presidents carefully constructed political philosophy crashing into the practical realities of actually governing any time soon.
"Something I think most liberals don't understand is exactly how stupid many conservative leaders are." - Matt Yglesias
a mink's coat and french poodle for every man, woman and child
(#287807)Those payments are little more than buying into stalemate, and haven't advanced peace a jot.
Meanwhile, with that kind of money, over all those years, we're talking about a minx coat and a french poodle for every man, woman and child in America. And an above ground swimming pool in every yard - talk about lost opportunity costs.
You will kill 10 of our men, and we will kill 1 of yours, and in the end it will be you who tire of it. - Ho Chi Minh
The Post Where I Defend Derek Jeter And Nuke Skip Bayless
(#287769)This might be the breaking point where a lot of people decide they've had enough of the witch hunt--I've been hard on Jeter over the years for being overrated and a prima donna, but there's no evidence he's cheating, and--given the probable effects of PEDs on his favorite piece of anatomy--I'd say that he's even less likely to be doing so than the "typical" player of his career performance and time of life. Unless Harry Reid's imaginary friend comes through with a positive drug test for Jeter, I'm all for letting loose the hounds on the loathsome Mr. Bayless.
The thing to remember about Skip Bayless is that when they were casting "Rocky Balboa" and needed someone to play a reporter who would mock and belittle the career of said Rocky Balboa in a story world where *Rocky actually did everything he was shown as doing in the first five movies in the series*, they picked Skip Bayless, and I'd guess that they didn't hesitate at all, because he really *is* that bleeping stupid in real life, and they knew he'd be convincing at it in the movie.
The universe may well have been created without a point--that doesn't imply that we can't give it one.
Reading The Tea Leaves
(#287796)Lance Armstrong dropping challenge to USADA, will have Tour De France titles stripped.
So--Mr. Armstrong can almost certainly financially afford to continue challenging the accusations against him, without resorting to the amateurish antics of Melky Cabrera. . .so why isn't he, regardless of his guilt or innocence? Is it a Pete Rose type situation where he will be able to point to the lack of a formal completed process of determination of guilt against him in order to salvage what is left of his reputation, or is there something more complex going on here?
The universe may well have been created without a point--that doesn't imply that we can't give it one.
The Can be a Long Term Win for Armstrong...Look, He Says...
(#287798)...and has said in his statement last night, I'm done with this nonsense...I'm fighting Cancer, I have better more important things to deal with.
And he lays low, he is a good role model, he follows what he promised last night and never ever speaks about this again...and raises tons of money for cancer research.
He's good....he can stay on the Red Carpet...the rules for Landis were always different, he was never a celebrity the way Mr. Armstrong was and is...(which no double fuels the craziness of Landis, Hamiton, and LeMond, since they never attained the stardom that Mr. Armstrong did, and will, I suspect, successfully hide behind now.)
Of course, between you and I this really means that the USADA has the goods on him, they have Lance dead to rights....So he leaves the Game for a more Important One...
Smart, very long term strategy....if you can't win, shake up the board, (in war or life)
Best Wishes, Traveller
Lance Rides into the Future with Nike and Anheuser-Busch....
(#287842)...having his back.
As I indicated to Scott, if executed properly, this was the only way for Lance to come out of this...surviving. He seems to be doing this well...
NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- Nike and Anheuser-Busch are sticking with Lance Armstrong, even as the embattled cycling champ is at risk of losing his unprecedented seven Tour de France titles due to doping allegations.
Best Wishes, Traveller
If Lance had been content to stay retired
(#287846)he probably could have avoided all of this. I guess his ego wouldn't let him though and his blood tests from his attempted TdF comebacks in 2009 and 2010 were the final straw.
Doubtful
(#287848)Given that they are going back more than a decade--and that Jeff Novitzky is a power-obsessed little thug who is smarting from his losses to Bonds and Clemens--I suspect he and they would have found a way to get this scalp one way or another.
Open institutional arrogance has hurt the national and international drug testing institutions for decades--in dealing with Marion Jones and Butch Reynolds, the early cases in the 1970s where Americans got busted for asthma medication while the East German women were all but peeing standing up at poolside and were let be (and later when the meticulous documentation created by the East German government was ignored after the fall of the Berlin Wall). If the US and the rest of the world community loses respect for the institutions, they will fail no matter what scientific horsepower they can assemble to use against the cheaters.
The universe may well have been created without a point--that doesn't imply that we can't give it one.
I thought you understood this by now
(#287861)but Jeff Novitzky is entirely separate from USADA. Yeah some of the older evidence from the government investigation was handed over to USADA and they were going to use it but none of that was actual blood tests. The blood tests were from 2009 and 2010 and by themselves were probably enough to give LA a lifetime ban from further competition.
Just because he appeared to have gotten away with it for a decade doesn't give him a license to continue doing it. Testing has gotten much better since his 7 TdF victories. It's shown up in a marked decline in overall performances and that's to the credit of the doping control agencies.
Just to be clear -- Novitzky could have put Armstrong in jail but he couldn't strip his titles or impose a ban. USADA could strip the titles and impose a ban but couldn't jail him. USADA probably got pissed off by the arrogance with 2009 and 2010 and decided to nail him as hard as they could even for the older stuff which would have been based on testimony only.
Very Important11
(#287781)Ann Romney, in an interview, told a reporter that she and Mitt donate 10% of their income to LDS as required to remain in the best standing with LDS according to teachings.
Later, Mitt tells us people that he simply cannot release his tax returns in other years because it is really impossible to black the portions one can find out about how much he donates to LDS because that stuff is veeery personal and you just don't release that kind of info to people that aren't Romney's God and Romney's church.
Good times.
And the Daily Show will be in Tampa for the GOP's POTUS nominee semi-finals this upcoming week.
"I’m to believe that North Korea is so dangerously unhinged that they would attack without warning – yet so meek and easily cowed that they will sit quietly and not retaliate when we start bombing them."
Major Kong
He's probably scamming the church
(#287782)or the government (taxes) or possibly both. No way he's going to release those returns.
People are digging through the Bain document dump
"Something I think most liberals don't understand is exactly how stupid many conservative leaders are." - Matt Yglesias
cough cough hypocrites cough cough
(#287792)Dealing with private equity firms and relaxing environmental regulations is only bad when Republicans do it.
The universe may well have been created without a point--that doesn't imply that we can't give it one.
Wah?
(#287793)I missed where people were claiming private equity kidnaps young ones and sacrifices their blood for treasure.
"I’m to believe that North Korea is so dangerously unhinged that they would attack without warning – yet so meek and easily cowed that they will sit quietly and not retaliate when we start bombing them."
Major Kong
People Who Should Be Long-Term Cellmates
(#287795)Anders Behring Breivik, Mark David Chapman, and Christopher Scarver. I'm sure they'd get along just fine, in the eternal spirit of international cooperation--maybe they could all take up metalworking as a pastime.
The universe may well have been created without a point--that doesn't imply that we can't give it one.
You Are Bad (in a good way)...lol...for the Suggestion...nt
(#287797)Travelelr
If you're a mass-murderer, the best place to live is Norway
(#287805)21 years in prison for murdering 77 in a shooting spree. That's just over 99 days per life taken, if they decide that he's not dangerous at the end of his sentence.
Government is merely a servant – merely a temporary servant; it cannot be its prerogative to determine what is right and what is wrong, and decide who is a patriot and who isn’t. Its function is to obey orders, not originate them.
They've got it figured out
(#287843)Criminal law should be about reforming the person who committed the crime instead of trying to get revenge.
Revenge is the province of civil law. That guy should have to work until the day he dies, with every penny going to the families of his victims.
The Constitution does not vest in Congress the authority to protect society from every bad act that might befall it. -- Clarence Thomas
That Ignores The Role Of Incapacitation
(#287847)If he kills other people while incarcerated, can they add more time on the sentence, or is the enlightened reaction just to say "oops?" I engaged in some gallows humor last night about Christopher Scarver (who, of course, was notorious for beating Jeffrey Dahmer and another murderer to death in prison), but aside from the really, really neat fact that those men are no longer using oxygen, the fact that Scarver was able to do that and suffer basically no consequences for that is a failure of Wisconsin's no death penalty system that an honest opponent of capital punishment should address--it just as easily could have been two people who didn't richly deserve to die who ended up as Scarver's victims, and it still would have been a case of unpunishable murder in duplicate.
The universe may well have been created without a point--that doesn't imply that we can't give it one.
Like Robert Chase
(#287850)I'm against the death penalty in principle. The government is made of men and men are faulty. No one should be put to death for a crime they did not commit.
But then again, if I get to decide who lives and who dies, I'd probably put Robespierre to shame. There are a *lot* of people on the planet who do not deserve to breath my air.
The Constitution does not vest in Congress the authority to protect society from every bad act that might befall it. -- Clarence Thomas
Cops occasionally miss their targets and shoot civilians
(#287919)We don't say that as a consequence of that police officers shouldn't carry live rounds.
It's debatable -nt
(#287920).
Reform, yes
(#287864)But shouldn't criminal law also be about punishment? Seems like 99 days in jail per murder is a little light on the punishment side of the equation.
Government is merely a servant – merely a temporary servant; it cannot be its prerogative to determine what is right and what is wrong, and decide who is a patriot and who isn’t. Its function is to obey orders, not originate them.
No
(#287884)Punishment / revenge belongs in civil law.
Ideally the criminal would be released when he is no longer likely to continue to be a threat to society, and it would be done on a case-by-case basis, but that'll never fly (or work).
Whatshisface's job is to realize the error in his ways, become a well-adjusted citizen, and pay back the victims' families. Putting him in prison for the rest of his life or killing him does, at best, one of those things.
The Constitution does not vest in Congress the authority to protect society from every bad act that might befall it. -- Clarence Thomas
You're Still Overlooking Incapacitation
(#287891)The more dangerous the crime, the less acceptable it is to let someone proven willing to commit it out for another shot at it. If the death penalty is off the table, ironclad life without parole--possibly in solitary confinement--needs to be there instead. If we want to squeeze some sort of work out of them as well, we can always offer something that can be safely done inside a sealed cell.
The universe may well have been created without a point--that doesn't imply that we can't give it one.
That assumes some people can't be rehabilitated
(#287921)And I suppose some can't. Those people get to stay at the pleasure of the taxpayer in prison for the rest of their lives. I don't have a problem with that.
The Constitution does not vest in Congress the authority to protect society from every bad act that might befall it. -- Clarence Thomas
Sometimes there are...
(#287927)...crimes so evil that I'll happily forsake a man's reformation. The other word not mentioned here is deterrent, as in, if you go out and go on a killing spree at a kids' summer camp, you will never ever breathe air as a free man for the rest of your life. A person with a like mind as Breivik should have received that kind of message from Norwegians courts. Instead, their justice system said, go ahead and kill four score, it'll only cost you 20 years.
There are some crimes so evil that punishment and deterrence supercedes civil redemption, IMO. If he wants personal or spiritual redemption, he can do it while rotting in an 8 x 10 cell.
Government is merely a servant – merely a temporary servant; it cannot be its prerogative to determine what is right and what is wrong, and decide who is a patriot and who isn’t. Its function is to obey orders, not originate them.
Hmm
(#287928)I figure you'd be a "turn the other cheek" kind of guy. Oh well.
The Constitution does not vest in Congress the authority to protect society from every bad act that might befall it. -- Clarence Thomas
To a point
(#287942)I would also add that a mass murderer should feel some remorse, which is certainly not the case with Breivik.
Government is merely a servant – merely a temporary servant; it cannot be its prerogative to determine what is right and what is wrong, and decide who is a patriot and who isn’t. Its function is to obey orders, not originate them.
Or That The Risk Of Failed Rehabilitation. . .
(#287937). . .exceeds the harm of writing off a human being known to have been capable of committing a certain crime or crimes.
The universe may well have been created without a point--that doesn't imply that we can't give it one.
I think that's backwards
(#287918)There are lots of reasons offered for putting people in prison - rehabilitation and punishment, but also as MSE says incapacitation. There is also deterrence, messaging, and preempting private retaliation.
There are good reasons to not handle punishment privately or through civil action. First, to ensure proportionality; second, to bring things to an end in a single cycle of crime-punishment rather than an ongoing blood feud, either in the streets or in the courts.
On your last paragraph - if someone killed one of my family members, I'm really not interested in making money off it, much less having to cash the killer's check every month. Put the guy away and try to move on with life.
If you don't want to worry about the guy anymore
(#287922)Then don't file a civil case. You can move on at your leisure.
The Constitution does not vest in Congress the authority to protect society from every bad act that might befall it. -- Clarence Thomas
Romney has made a Birther joke
(#287831)and call me crazy Jon Huntsman, but the joke wasn't exactly mocking the Birthers it seems.
Funny guy.
"I’m to believe that North Korea is so dangerously unhinged that they would attack without warning – yet so meek and easily cowed that they will sit quietly and not retaliate when we start bombing them."
Major Kong
Coincidence? I think not!
(#287930)Government is merely a servant – merely a temporary servant; it cannot be its prerogative to determine what is right and what is wrong, and decide who is a patriot and who isn’t. Its function is to obey orders, not originate them.
Pretty cool
(#287932)Although Chuck Norris was born on March 10, 1940.
The Constitution does not vest in Congress the authority to protect society from every bad act that might befall it. -- Clarence Thomas
Yep
(#287936)He went to North High School in Torrance, CA--my dad was two years behind him there, as it happens.
The universe may well have been created without a point--that doesn't imply that we can't give it one.
Heh
(#287943)I almost wrote "too good to check". It was.
Government is merely a servant – merely a temporary servant; it cannot be its prerogative to determine what is right and what is wrong, and decide who is a patriot and who isn’t. Its function is to obey orders, not originate them.
Well it depends where you check
(#287946)2:1 says Conservapedia has it as described in your picture.
The Constitution does not vest in Congress the authority to protect society from every bad act that might befall it. -- Clarence Thomas
No guys. When Chuck Norris says he is born again
(#287954)he means it literally, so you both might be right.
In the medical community, death is known as Chuck Norris Syndrome.
Nah
(#287955)When the doctor smacked him on the ass, he retaliated with a roundhouse kick and the echo killed Hitler five years later. ]:-)
The universe may well have been created without a point--that doesn't imply that we can't give it one.
I forgot to mention
(#287931)I absolutely love George Galloway. He's a bit of a jerk, but he's a jerk in exactly the right way. For those of you who know me on Facebook, this quote shouldn't be unfamiliar:
The Constitution does not vest in Congress the authority to protect society from every bad act that might befall it. -- Clarence Thomas
Given His Comments Regarding Asshat Last Week. . .
(#287934). . .I suspect that Greek women in general have made a point of sleeping a bit less soundly since that visit.
The universe may well have been created without a point--that doesn't imply that we can't give it one.
Neil Armstrong RIP
(#287948)Sad news (in any case), but yet another reminder of the harsh hand of time:
Neil Armstrong, first human to set foot on the Moon, has died: aged 82.
First Rate Mind With Nerves Of Steel
(#287949)He will be missed.
There was a funny story in "The Right Stuff" about a plane trip that Armstrong and Chuck Yeager took together in the early 1960's--Wikipedia summarizes it thus:
Four days later, Armstrong was involved in a second incident, when he flew for the only time with Chuck Yeager. Their job, flying a T-33 Shooting Star, was to evaluate Smith Ranch Dry Lake for use as an emergency landing site for the X-15. In his autobiography, Yeager wrote that he knew the lake bed was unsuitable for landings after recent rains, but Armstrong insisted on flying out anyway. As they attempted a touch-and-go, the wheels became stuck and they had to wait for rescue. Armstrong tells a different version of events, where Yeager never tried to talk him out of it and they made a first successful landing on the east side of the lake. Then Yeager told him to try again, this time a bit slower. On the second landing, they became stuck and according to Armstrong, Yeager was in fits of laughter.
The universe may well have been created without a point--that doesn't imply that we can't give it one.
At the rate we're going
(#287952)it won't be too long until we're talking about the last surviving person to have walked on the moon. Not what we were expecting back in 1969.
Dat's So True...But this Was Expectations Abandoned...
(#287953)...I saw somewhere yesterday that one cannot have a technologically advancing society with a 20% effective tax rate...alas, I can't remember where I saw this analysis...but it rings true.
You can do fill-in science with minimum tax rates, you can't do...bold.
That latter thing is expensive, though I would argue that the pay-off is even larger than the cost.
Best Wishes, Traveller
Former Gov. Sandford gets engaged
(#287956)Good for him. I say that with all sincerity.
The Constitution does not vest in Congress the authority to protect society from every bad act that might befall it. -- Clarence Thomas
Plans That Weren't Thought Through
(#287957)We're talking about a Rays game here--thirty or forty people would actually be a substantial percentage of the "crowd" there--they'll be spotted rather quickly. I'd suggest handing a taser to every fan at the gate who has apparently taken a bath in the last week.
The universe may well have been created without a point--that doesn't imply that we can't give it one.
To Neil And Buzz
(#287958)With thanks from a grateful nation:
The universe may well have been created without a point--that doesn't imply that we can't give it one.
I don't know if it's possible to explain
(#287959)to people who weren't alive at the time the impact of this event. It was a huge deal for me as an 11 year old, I can only imagine what it was like for my father, born in the 1920s and used to coal stoves and ice men bringing ice for the cooler every other day; or even more for my grandfather, born in a Tuscan town in the time of oxcarts and (rarely seen) steam power. For him it was automobiles, airplanes and landing on the Moon in one lifetime. It really did seem that anything was possible
I blame it all on the Internet
Yep
(#287960)There's a reason that I view moon landing deniers as a lower level of miscreant than even the Truthers--and why I've taken such glee in posting the "Seventy plus year old Buzz Aldrin punches out a moon landing denier who was shouting insults in his face" and "Mythbusters conclusively demonstrates that moon landing deniers are deluded morons" videos (not today, though--Mr. Armstrong's passing demands a more reverent tone). The way it was handled may have led to a dead end and functional depression in the space program that has lasted to this day, but in and of itself it remains the most awesome peak of accomplishment of the human race--our achievements since then have increased exponentially in area but not in height.
The universe may well have been created without a point--that doesn't imply that we can't give it one.