IP
It has always been common for retailers of a stripe to cluster together (think music instrument vendors and diamond merchants in midtown). There are several mega-projects in the development stage around the city. Why not hold one condition of project approval to be the inclusion of a street with, say, half the retail space reserved at affordable rents for booksellers? Rent control for bookstores.
Disservice animals
Service dogs transform the lives of many thousands of people with disabilities.
Why would you undermine that essential service by ordering fake collars and harnesses from mail-order companies just so your little shit-su doesn't have to wait outside for five minutes while you get your grande double-shot soy green tea latte with no sweetener?
Unintended Consequence, type 3: Perverse result
The State Department needs to be careful in its reaction to the Crimean situation. We don't want to box ourselves into having to oppose the secession of Texas on principle.
What's at stake
"The torture was widespread, vicious and conducted in secret 'black sites' around the globe. This is what is being lost in the Beltway power struggle between Sen Feinstein and the CIA. Lives have been ruined; some in US detention died violent deaths at the hands of their captors. In the grim American gulag at Guantanamo Bay, hunger-striking prisoners charged with no crime, some of whom have been cleared for release for more than a decade, are subjected to vicious force-feeding and torture techniques that date back to the Spanish Inquisition.
"Let's hope Feinstein's indignation is not quickly salved, and that the Intelligence Committee's oversight of the sprawling US intelligence agencies is invigorated, with real teeth. NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden weighed in from political asylum in Russia, saying, 'We're seeing another "Merkel Effect", where an elected official does not care at all that the rights of millions of ordinary citizens are violated by our spies, but suddenly it's a scandal when a politician finds out the same thing happens to them." -- Amy Goodman in The Guardian (UK) March 13, 2014
"Let's hope Feinstein's indignation is not quickly salved, and that the Intelligence Committee's oversight of the sprawling US intelligence agencies is invigorated, with real teeth. NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden weighed in from political asylum in Russia, saying, 'We're seeing another "Merkel Effect", where an elected official does not care at all that the rights of millions of ordinary citizens are violated by our spies, but suddenly it's a scandal when a politician finds out the same thing happens to them." -- Amy Goodman in The Guardian (UK) March 13, 2014
Barbarism in Louisiana
Glenn Ford, a black man wrongfully convicted of murder by an all-white jury in Louisiana in 1984, a man who has spent the last 30 years on death row for a crime he did not commit following a trial filled with constitutional violations, is on the verge of being set free. Once that happens (and it could happen as soon as tomorrow after a hearing in the case) he will become one of the longest-serving death row inmates in modern American history to be exonerated and released.
Ford’s dogged lawyers and enlightened parish prosecutors in Shreveport both filed motions late last week informing a state trial judge that the time has come now to vacate Ford’s murder conviction and death sentence. Why? Because prosecutors now say that they learned, late last year, of “credible evidence” that Ford “was neither present at, nor a participant in, the robbery and murder” of the victim in his case, a man named Isadore Rozeman. -- Andrew Cohen (The Atlantic)“After 30 years, Louisiana’s longest-serving death row prisoner will get his freedom soon. Glenn Ford is living proof of just how flawed our justice system truly is. We are moved that Mr. Ford, an African American man convicted by an all-white jury, will be able to leave death row a survivor. We are more determined than ever to put an end to the death penalty, once and for all.” -- Thenjiwe Tameika McHarris, Amnesty International USA Senior Campaigner
The rest of the story:
✓ Death Penalty (Amnesty International)
✓ A case involving a black man convicted by an all-white jury in Louisiana decades ago may be reopened: Freedom After 30 Years on Death Row by Andrew Cohen (The Atlantic)
Third Parties Can Win
"When the major parties agree, as they often do in supporting, say, corporate-style education reform, a third party can promote ideas and issues that would be otherwise neglected. In Oregon, for example, the [Working Families Party] worked with local student groups to put forward a plan for rethinking college funding. They found a WFP-backed Democrat to sponsor it, and the measure wound up passing unanimously in the state legislature. The party is now working on a bill that would
create a state bank to invest Oregon’s public money at home instead of with Wall Street and provide cheaper loans to state residents. Such proposals are unlikely to come from the major parties, which each receive massive campaign contributions from big banks, even at the state level.
"Around the country, the party also backs familiar proposals like paid sick leave and an increase in the minimum wage. Though these initiatives didn’t originate with the WFP, the party’s 15 years of clout has given it enough leverage in the states where it works to demand politicians take a position. Elected officials who have had or want the WFP’s backing— which means on-the-ground support come election time as well as a stamp of progressive approval—have an incentive to back its policies.
"'Power has both an ideological element and a straight political muscle element,' says [WFP co-founder Dan] Cantor. 'Can you actually deliver the energy, ideas, troops, money, tactics, morale, volunteers that are needed in any given fight? The fight might be an issue campaign or an electoral campaign. What I think is quite delightful about Working Families is we do both.'”
The rest of the story:
With new strategies, the Working Families Party is shaking up the two-party system: The Third Party That’s Winning by Sarah Jaffe (In These Times)
 |
| The Working Families Party's Sauda Baraka |
"Around the country, the party also backs familiar proposals like paid sick leave and an increase in the minimum wage. Though these initiatives didn’t originate with the WFP, the party’s 15 years of clout has given it enough leverage in the states where it works to demand politicians take a position. Elected officials who have had or want the WFP’s backing— which means on-the-ground support come election time as well as a stamp of progressive approval—have an incentive to back its policies.
"'Power has both an ideological element and a straight political muscle element,' says [WFP co-founder Dan] Cantor. 'Can you actually deliver the energy, ideas, troops, money, tactics, morale, volunteers that are needed in any given fight? The fight might be an issue campaign or an electoral campaign. What I think is quite delightful about Working Families is we do both.'”
The rest of the story:
With new strategies, the Working Families Party is shaking up the two-party system: The Third Party That’s Winning by Sarah Jaffe (In These Times)
Bernie Sanders for President!
I'm taken to task as impractical, unfairly I think, for suggesting Bernie Sanders and Bill Moyers should be president and vice-president.
But I was being practical.
If I was being idealistic, I'd have suggested Noam Chomsky and Ralph Nader for those jobs.
But I was being practical.
If I was being idealistic, I'd have suggested Noam Chomsky and Ralph Nader for those jobs.
Snews
The State Department reported Thursday that an increasing number of governments are suppressing political opponents and restricting freedom of assembly. Somehow it did so without mentioning the United States' huge gulag of minor drug offenders, capital punishment, routine solitary confinement, declining press freedom, the war on whistle blowers, political prisoners and mass deportations. Can you say hypocrisy?
Climate change.
Australia is going to burn to cinder. All those little island nations are going to be Atlantisized.
We've got gobs of land. Let's give them space to relocate.
The population of Australia would fit comfortably in Kansas. The entire nation of Kiribati could disappear into Queens or Brooklyn without a trace.
The first generation would work hard, vastly increase the number of neighborhood retailers and food shops, and send all their kids to college. And the second generation would move to Manhattan or L.A. or the Bay Area and become programmers, artists and stand-up comedians.
Win-win.
We've got gobs of land. Let's give them space to relocate.
The population of Australia would fit comfortably in Kansas. The entire nation of Kiribati could disappear into Queens or Brooklyn without a trace.
The first generation would work hard, vastly increase the number of neighborhood retailers and food shops, and send all their kids to college. And the second generation would move to Manhattan or L.A. or the Bay Area and become programmers, artists and stand-up comedians.
Win-win.
Third party? Now? How about now? No? Maybe now?
The arguments for a People's Party become ever more compelling. Clinging to the faith that the Democrats any more than the Republicans will dismantle the corporate-security state is like believing in angels.
In a new book, Ralph Nader reminds us that the militarization of American diplomacy began with Bill Clinton and that Obama has doubled down on the excesses of George Bush and Dick Cheney. In Unstoppable, Nader demands an end to “unconstitutional wars and unchecked militarism.” Barack Obama, he writes, “has extended the Bush doctrine by declaring his unilateral right, as secret prosecutor, judge, jury, and executioner, to destroy anybody, anywhere in the world, including American citizens, suspected to be engaged in alleged terrorist activities, all this vaguely and loosely defined as anti-U.S. security," extending the illegal reach of wars of choice, invasions, incursions, and drone attacks, without regard for international law or national boundaries.
For the average citizen, the growth of corporate power bolstered by the security apparatus has been matched by a corresponding decline in quality of life. Enough is enough. Building new organizations, like a third party, and restoring old ones, like the Labor Movement, to challenge the status quo will not be easy. But without that effort, our national decline, now in its fifth decade. will continue until it is irreversible.
Unstoppable: The Emerging Left-Right Alliance to Dismantle the Corporate State by Ralph Nader (Amazon Kindle).
In a new book, Ralph Nader reminds us that the militarization of American diplomacy began with Bill Clinton and that Obama has doubled down on the excesses of George Bush and Dick Cheney. In Unstoppable, Nader demands an end to “unconstitutional wars and unchecked militarism.” Barack Obama, he writes, “has extended the Bush doctrine by declaring his unilateral right, as secret prosecutor, judge, jury, and executioner, to destroy anybody, anywhere in the world, including American citizens, suspected to be engaged in alleged terrorist activities, all this vaguely and loosely defined as anti-U.S. security," extending the illegal reach of wars of choice, invasions, incursions, and drone attacks, without regard for international law or national boundaries.
For the average citizen, the growth of corporate power bolstered by the security apparatus has been matched by a corresponding decline in quality of life. Enough is enough. Building new organizations, like a third party, and restoring old ones, like the Labor Movement, to challenge the status quo will not be easy. But without that effort, our national decline, now in its fifth decade. will continue until it is irreversible.
Unstoppable: The Emerging Left-Right Alliance to Dismantle the Corporate State by Ralph Nader (Amazon Kindle).
Tipping point?
A lot of Americans aren't just fearful; they are hopeless.
And while our circumstances do appear dire, there are several things worth remembering. One is that we can't predict future, so really we have no certainty that our nation's reversal of the last four decades will continue. Another thing to keep in mind is that when change does happen, it's often quick and unexpected.
We know that there are activists around the world working to make the place healthier and fairer; it's possible that their labors will come to nothing, that global capitalism and climate change will put an end to our little Enlightenment experiment.
But what if the failures of capitalism and the efforts to create alternatives are each reaching critical mass? What if change is going to come?
When you get involved in your community to build democratized economies, you are part of the global transformation: There's a Broad Consensus Among Activists Across the Country — Is Social Change Around the Corner? by Kevin Zeese, Margaret Flowers (AlterNet).
And while our circumstances do appear dire, there are several things worth remembering. One is that we can't predict future, so really we have no certainty that our nation's reversal of the last four decades will continue. Another thing to keep in mind is that when change does happen, it's often quick and unexpected.
We know that there are activists around the world working to make the place healthier and fairer; it's possible that their labors will come to nothing, that global capitalism and climate change will put an end to our little Enlightenment experiment.
But what if the failures of capitalism and the efforts to create alternatives are each reaching critical mass? What if change is going to come?
When you get involved in your community to build democratized economies, you are part of the global transformation: There's a Broad Consensus Among Activists Across the Country — Is Social Change Around the Corner? by Kevin Zeese, Margaret Flowers (AlterNet).
Just Do It
Devo "inspired us by demonstrating that art is all about conception, execution comes last." - Bob Lefsetz
Yes, You Will Be Able to Print Food with Your 3-D Printer
Interviewer: "... I know you have the necklace here made from 3D printer, and you have the purse over there. What other things down the road do you think 3D printing can really help with?"
ing: "The area that I'm very excited about is certainly metal to produce materials that are lighter and stronger and more flexible. Ceramic -- anything that you use ceramic to do can all be changed into 3D printing. It's exciting.
"And medical and bioscience, like one of the companies I'm involved with as advisor is printing meat and leather with slaughterhouses. So if one cow can feed an entire nation, we can produce high-quality protein to developing countries without having this unsustainable way of raising cows."
Interviewer: "How does that work? It still sounds like science fiction."
Ping: "Those will take longer. It's already possible today to print ground meat, but it's not quite there yet to print the consistency of steak or chicken or pork. But there are lots of hamburger patties and dumpling fillings, right?...The way it works is it uses stem-cell tissue engineering and in-vitro technology to print the structure of those natural meats and then let it grow. It's very exciting." -- from an interview with Ping Fu, author of Bend, Not Break - A Life in Two Worlds.
ing: "The area that I'm very excited about is certainly metal to produce materials that are lighter and stronger and more flexible. Ceramic -- anything that you use ceramic to do can all be changed into 3D printing. It's exciting.
"And medical and bioscience, like one of the companies I'm involved with as advisor is printing meat and leather with slaughterhouses. So if one cow can feed an entire nation, we can produce high-quality protein to developing countries without having this unsustainable way of raising cows."
Interviewer: "How does that work? It still sounds like science fiction."
Ping: "Those will take longer. It's already possible today to print ground meat, but it's not quite there yet to print the consistency of steak or chicken or pork. But there are lots of hamburger patties and dumpling fillings, right?...The way it works is it uses stem-cell tissue engineering and in-vitro technology to print the structure of those natural meats and then let it grow. It's very exciting." -- from an interview with Ping Fu, author of Bend, Not Break - A Life in Two Worlds.
It didn't take
It hasn't escaped notice that the folks at The Nation don't carry on so much anymore about how Nick Clegg once upon a time interned there.
$15.15 or Fight!
As with affordable health care (and countless other matters), the job of moderate Democrats is to release the build up of pressure for real change (such as universal affordable health care insurance aka single-payer aka Medicare for All) by promoting incremental improvements. The president tonight will call for raising the minimum wage to $10.10 an hour. Context: Sen. Elizabeth Warren recently cited a study that suggested the federal minimum wage would be nearly $22 an hour today if it had kept up with increased rates in worker productivity. Progressives should be chary of embracing the president's proposal, because, as with health care reform, we have one shot at getting it right. $10.10 will lock millions of American workers in poverty forever, even if, as is unlikely, future increases are tied to the cost of living. Restaurant workers were on the money in calling for a $15 minimum in actions this year, but that won't fly politically. The president's $10.10 needs to be answered with something more just. Instead of $10.10, how about $15.15?
The real state of the union:
From Business Insider:
1. New income generated since 2009 that has gone to the top 1 percent: 95 percent
2. Financial wealth controlled by the bottom 60 percent of all Americans: 2.3 percent
3. Record combined wealth of the top 400 richest Americans: $2,000,000,000,000
4. Real decline in median middle-class incomes since 1999: $5,000
5. Percentage of Hispanic and African-American children living in poverty, respectively: 33.8 percent; 36.7 percent
6. Amount that food stamps will be cut in 2014: $5 billion
7. Federal minimum wage: $7.25
8. What the minimum wage would be if it had kept pace with gains in worker productivity since 1968: $21.72
9. Number of U.S. workers laboring at or below minimum wage: 3.6 million – the near equivalent of the population of Los Angeles.
10.Stealth taxpayer subsidy to the fast-food industry, paid out as safety-net benefits to McWorkers earning poverty wages: $7 billion
11. Global carbon dioxide levels measured in parts per million: 397
12. Maximum concentration of the greenhouse gas that scientists deem sustainable: 350
13. Years since the turn of this century that have ranked among the warmest 15 on record: All 13
14. Rank of 2013 on that list of the warmest years on record: Number Four
15. U.S. defense spending as of 2012: $682 billion
16. Dollar amount by which that surpassed our nearest plausible military rival, China: $516 billion
17. Federal deficit last year: $680 billion
18. Number of Americans disenfranchised from voting for felony convictions: 5.9 million
19. Share of those disenfranchised voters who are African-American: 37 percent
20. Number of Americans arrested annually for marijuana possession: 658,000
21. Total incarcerated U.S. population: 2.3 million
22. Total population on probation/parole: 4.8 million
23. States that could be entirely filled by all of the Americans under correctional supervision: Nevada and Kentucky
24. Official unemployment rate: 6.7 percent
25. Alternate rate including Americans who've given up looking for work, or have only been able to secure part-time employment: 13.1 percent
26. Number of jobs the United States is still down from 2008 employment peak: 1.69 million
27. Number of Americans who were cut off from long-term unemployment benefits at the turn of the year: 1.3 million
1. New income generated since 2009 that has gone to the top 1 percent: 95 percent
2. Financial wealth controlled by the bottom 60 percent of all Americans: 2.3 percent
3. Record combined wealth of the top 400 richest Americans: $2,000,000,000,000
4. Real decline in median middle-class incomes since 1999: $5,000
5. Percentage of Hispanic and African-American children living in poverty, respectively: 33.8 percent; 36.7 percent
6. Amount that food stamps will be cut in 2014: $5 billion
7. Federal minimum wage: $7.25
8. What the minimum wage would be if it had kept pace with gains in worker productivity since 1968: $21.72
9. Number of U.S. workers laboring at or below minimum wage: 3.6 million – the near equivalent of the population of Los Angeles.
10.Stealth taxpayer subsidy to the fast-food industry, paid out as safety-net benefits to McWorkers earning poverty wages: $7 billion
11. Global carbon dioxide levels measured in parts per million: 397
12. Maximum concentration of the greenhouse gas that scientists deem sustainable: 350
13. Years since the turn of this century that have ranked among the warmest 15 on record: All 13
14. Rank of 2013 on that list of the warmest years on record: Number Four
15. U.S. defense spending as of 2012: $682 billion
16. Dollar amount by which that surpassed our nearest plausible military rival, China: $516 billion
17. Federal deficit last year: $680 billion
18. Number of Americans disenfranchised from voting for felony convictions: 5.9 million
19. Share of those disenfranchised voters who are African-American: 37 percent
20. Number of Americans arrested annually for marijuana possession: 658,000
21. Total incarcerated U.S. population: 2.3 million
22. Total population on probation/parole: 4.8 million
23. States that could be entirely filled by all of the Americans under correctional supervision: Nevada and Kentucky
24. Official unemployment rate: 6.7 percent
25. Alternate rate including Americans who've given up looking for work, or have only been able to secure part-time employment: 13.1 percent
26. Number of jobs the United States is still down from 2008 employment peak: 1.69 million
27. Number of Americans who were cut off from long-term unemployment benefits at the turn of the year: 1.3 million
Remember.
The mainstream obits for Pete Seeger are as irritating as the ones for Nelson Mandela and as the encomia for Martin Luther King on his feast day. These men were radicals. Anyone of them would have been happy to pull the plug on capitalism. Oligarchs try to control the future by controlling the past. Don't let them.
Search me
Google "Nuclear accidents?"
Nuclear accidents - Walmart.com - Save Money. Live better.
"war machine?"
war machine - Walmart.com - Save Money. Live better.
"Hillary Clinton?"
Hillary Clinton - Walmart.com - Save Money. Live better.
"Toe cheese?"
Toe Cheese - Walmart.com - Save Money. Live better. Shop for Toe Cheese at Walmart.com and save. Buy great products at a great price.
Nuclear accidents - Walmart.com - Save Money. Live better.
"war machine?"
war machine - Walmart.com - Save Money. Live better.
"Hillary Clinton?"
Hillary Clinton - Walmart.com - Save Money. Live better.
"Toe cheese?"
Toe Cheese - Walmart.com - Save Money. Live better. Shop for Toe Cheese at Walmart.com and save. Buy great products at a great price.
Anals of the 4th Estate
Here's how the media is handling the atomic wedgie murder according to TheWire):
Avoiding the issue:
Man Arrested In Murder Of Stepfather In McLoud -- News9
Murder arrest: Stepson jailed in death of stepfather in McLoud -- The Shawnee News-Star
Saying what happened, but being classy:
Authorities: Okla. Man Suffocated With Underwear -- Associated Press
Using passive voice:
Oklahoma man dies from atomic wedgie -- NY Daily News
Putting 'atomic wedgie' in 'quotes' for 'distance':
Police: 'Atomic wedgie' led to man's death -- KOCO
Police: Man Killed Stepfather With ‘Atomic Wedgie’ Days Before Christmas -- CBS Houston
Oklahoman given 'atomic wedgie' died from suffocation, trauma to head -- NewsOK
Oklahoma man charged with 'atomic wedgie' murder of stepfather -- Reuters
Talking it to death:
Atomic Wedgie Murder: Denver St. Clair Choked From Underwear Around His Head; Stepson Brad Lee Davis Charged In Killing [PHOTO] - International Business Times
Going for it:
'This was more than just a fight': Ex-Marine, 33, 'kills stepfather by ATOMIC WEDGIE' -- Daily Mail
En français:
Oklahoma: un homme meurt asphyxié par son propre sous-vêtement -- Le Journal de Québec
Avoiding the issue:
Man Arrested In Murder Of Stepfather In McLoud -- News9
Murder arrest: Stepson jailed in death of stepfather in McLoud -- The Shawnee News-Star
Saying what happened, but being classy:
Authorities: Okla. Man Suffocated With Underwear -- Associated Press
Using passive voice:
Oklahoma man dies from atomic wedgie -- NY Daily News
Putting 'atomic wedgie' in 'quotes' for 'distance':
Police: 'Atomic wedgie' led to man's death -- KOCO
Police: Man Killed Stepfather With ‘Atomic Wedgie’ Days Before Christmas -- CBS Houston
Oklahoman given 'atomic wedgie' died from suffocation, trauma to head -- NewsOK
Oklahoma man charged with 'atomic wedgie' murder of stepfather -- Reuters
Talking it to death:
Atomic Wedgie Murder: Denver St. Clair Choked From Underwear Around His Head; Stepson Brad Lee Davis Charged In Killing [PHOTO] - International Business Times
Going for it:
'This was more than just a fight': Ex-Marine, 33, 'kills stepfather by ATOMIC WEDGIE' -- Daily Mail
En français:
Oklahoma: un homme meurt asphyxié par son propre sous-vêtement -- Le Journal de Québec
All Mart
Search for almost anything today, and your likely to get a link to Wal-Mart. Nuclear accidents? "Nuclear accidents - Walmart.com - Save Money. Live better." war machine? "war machine - Walmart.com - Save Money. Live better." Hillary Clinton? "Hillary Clinton - Walmart.com - Save Money. Live better." Toe cheese? "Toe Cheese - Walmart.com - Save Money. Live better. Shop for Toe Cheese at Walmart.com and save. Buy great products at a great price."
If Obama really wants to look tough, he should break a union.
Is Chris Matthews' mouth disconnected from his brain or is he just not a liberal?: "I think actions speak louder than words. And I got to tell you something. When Reagan broke the PATCO strike and fired them all for breaking their oaths, everybody in the world, including the people in Moscow, got the word…. It's one of the reasons we ended the Cold War, because they knew we had a strong president."
Parenthetically
Secretary of State John Kerry says the US will help Iraq with its Al-Qaeda problem, but not with "boots on the ground."
Because that would be a cliché.
What we don't get with pinpoint accuracy is reporting
When it looked like the US would carry out a military attack on Syria, CNN reporters stepped right into their roles as Pentagon flacks. Anchor Brooke Baldwin declared that US warships "can carry cruise missiles able to strike targets more than 1,000 miles away with pinpoint accuracy" (8/30/13). Correspondent Tom Foreman told viewers: "Cruise missiles are extraordinary weapons. They're very reliable. They have pinpoint accuracy" (9/2/13).
Attention, voters.
'Over and over again, America's seniors are being
told they must foot the bill for fiscal failures which
have already left them facing a weakened and
tenuous retirement. In Detroit, a bankruptcy judge
has ruled the city can cut pension payments to
thousands of retirees, despite a state law stating
otherwise. In Washington, the latest Congressional
budget deal targets retirees with $12 billion in
pension changes, including cutting pensions for
military personnel who retire in 2015 and requiring
new federal workers to contribute more to their
retirement. All of this couldn't come at a worse time.
Three decades of stagnant middle-class incomes,
disappearing pensions, limited ability to start and
maintain personal savings, and the failure of the
401K experiment lay the foundation for a retirement
crisis that could further threaten millions of older
Americans and their families.' -- Max Richtman,
President and CEO, National Committee to Preserve
Social Security and Medicare Social Security and Medicare
The country is going to pot
Cannabis prohibition has always been absurd, and over many decades it has caused grievous harm to many, many hundreds of thousands of Americans. Now that marijuana is legal, Colorado should move immediately to clear the record of anyone who would not be guilty of a crime under current law. And California, and any other precinct headed for legalization, should include amnesty and clean records in the legislation. In addition to the relief it would bring to many thousands of individual Californians and their families, amnesty would bring to an end the problem of overcrowding in California's prison system.
This is important.
Right wing idiocy is one thing, but when residents of usually fact-based precincts embrace ooga-booga science, it bodes ill for future progress.
Vaccines have had an immeasurable positive impact on our quality of life; here are some of the benefits they have produced.
Vaccines have had an immeasurable positive impact on our quality of life; here are some of the benefits they have produced.
L.A. Blues Again
What's the goal here?
I expect the planners convince themselves this is about safety: "The city of Los Angeles is cracking down on pedestrians who sneak across streets when the traffic signal says 'don’t walk.' But when you put a price on bad behavior, like being in a public street illegally, you see clearly what a city values. The cheapest parking ticket in Los Angeles is $58, and the one most commonly issued for parking in a prohibited zone is $73. Jaywalking—the term of art for a pedestrian crossing against the light—will cost you $197."
As long as the car is king, Los Angeles will never succeed as a walking and biking town.
In Los Angeles, Walking Illegally Is More Than Twice as Expensive as Parking Illegally by Tim Fernholz (Citylab)
Tidings
"Jingle Fart," a pétomaniacal version of "Jingle Bells" offered for free as a seasonal download on Amazon, is a sacrilege. On the other hand, "The Little Drummer Boy," if similarly arranged, would be no more gaseous than usual.
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela (July 18, 1918 – December 5, 2013)
The guardians of the American empire once labeled this man a terrorist. Take their lamentations at his passing with a pinch of salt.
 |
| Photo: © Eli Weinberg |
Zinn Education Project: Nelson Mandela, Madiba.
End corporate whining
The campaigns to raise the minimum wage and to organize fast-food and grocery workers deserve support.
America's largest employer, Wal-Mart, for example, pays such low wages that its employees are the largest group of food stamp and Medicaid recipients. A report from Congressman Alan Grayson estimated that Wal-Mart employees receive $1,000/month on average in public assistance payments. Another example of how sorry Wal-Mart's wages are: This week a Wal-Mart in Ohio held a food drive for its own employees.
America's second-largest employer, McDonald's, tried to produce a budget showing how its employees could live on the minimum wage -- and failed. A study this year found that "52% of families of fast food workers receive assistance from a public program."
Don't believe corporate shills whining and puling that these profitable companies can't afford to pay a living wage (Canada, UK, New Zealand, Belgium, Australia, France, Netherlands, Ireland and Luxembourg all have higher minimum wage settings than the US -- some countries, like Sweden and Germany, that don't legislate wage minimums, encourage collective bargaining instead). Elizabeth Warren calculates that if the US minimum wage had kept pace with inflation it would now be $22/hr. The activists campaigning for an increase are asking for a $15/hr minimum. Meanwhile, the White House's embrace of a $9/hr minimum is shameful and pathetic, designed more to head off a meaningful increase than to solve the problem.
America's largest employer, Wal-Mart, for example, pays such low wages that its employees are the largest group of food stamp and Medicaid recipients. A report from Congressman Alan Grayson estimated that Wal-Mart employees receive $1,000/month on average in public assistance payments. Another example of how sorry Wal-Mart's wages are: This week a Wal-Mart in Ohio held a food drive for its own employees.
America's second-largest employer, McDonald's, tried to produce a budget showing how its employees could live on the minimum wage -- and failed. A study this year found that "52% of families of fast food workers receive assistance from a public program."
Don't believe corporate shills whining and puling that these profitable companies can't afford to pay a living wage (Canada, UK, New Zealand, Belgium, Australia, France, Netherlands, Ireland and Luxembourg all have higher minimum wage settings than the US -- some countries, like Sweden and Germany, that don't legislate wage minimums, encourage collective bargaining instead). Elizabeth Warren calculates that if the US minimum wage had kept pace with inflation it would now be $22/hr. The activists campaigning for an increase are asking for a $15/hr minimum. Meanwhile, the White House's embrace of a $9/hr minimum is shameful and pathetic, designed more to head off a meaningful increase than to solve the problem.
Impractical Proposal #2,567,043
If white men over 50 are so angry and bitter about not being employable that they're willing to ruin the country, how about this?
Draft them into the military and dispatch them to the 700 U.S. military garrisons around the world where they can keep busy shooting at people unlike themselves.
Bring home the able-bodied youth now in uniform, give them educations, and put them to work.
Good for everybody.
Win win.
Faux News
"Having failed electorally and failed in the courts, Republicans are hell-bent on destroying the Affordable Care Act in Americans' minds. A document circulated among House Republicans (revealed in today's NY Times) contains talking points to be repeated continuously: 'Because of Obamacare, I Lost My Insurance.' 'Obamacare Increases Health Care Costs.' 'The Exchanges May Not Be Secure, Putting Personal Information at Risk.' Fox News and right-wing radio amplify them. The mainstream media reports them as news.
"Admittedly, Obama played into their hands by botching the roll-out of the Act. But keep in mind the larger reality: Private for-profit insurers have wrecked the American healthcare system. Ours has been the only system in the world designed to avoid sick people. A single-payer system would have been preferable, and we'll eventually get there. But the Affordable Care Act at least sets minimum standards, requires insurers to take people with preexisting conditions, bars them from dropping coverage of people who get sick, and extends insurance to the poor and working class. These are huge accomplishments relative to where we've been. Initial problems with the website, and cancellations of some policies by insurance companies that can't meet the standards, are small potatoes." -- Robert Reich
Watch the feet not the mouth
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Sen. Brown to Neoliberals
The situation for seniors is only going to get worse, because the assault on pensions and wages is making it more and more difficult for a worker to save for the future. Why are we having a debate over how much we are going to hurt seniors? The debate should be over how we should structure a pension for seniors that will help them. Why would we play on their playing field? Democrats need to play offense here. Force Republicans to say what it is they really want to do. Republicans just don’t like social insurance. -- Senator Sherrod Brown (Washington Post, 2013-11-5)
Correction
The Times, keeping it real: "An earlier version of this post misidentified Boniface VIII as Boniface VII."
From the Watch the Feet Not the Mouth Desk:
"In his journey to the White House, Barack Obama made much hay railing against his predecessor’s supposedly go-it-alone mindset and penchant for foreign policy unilateralism. With memories still fresh of the
spectacular rupture between Washington and its traditional European allies over the Iraq war, Obama’s claim to be the 'anti-Bush' garnered him a euphoric welcome in Berlin in July 2008. Speaking before a massive crowd assembled in the 'Tiergarten' (speech text here; video here), he grandly vowed to 'remake the world once again,' this time in a way that allies would 'listen to each other, learn from each other and, most of all, trust each other.' A year later, this sort of rhetoric earned him the Nobel peace prize for single-handedly creating 'a new climate in international politics' and restoring multilateral diplomacy to 'a central position.'
The rest of the story:
U.S. Smart Power is Taking a Beating by David J. Karl (Foreign Policy blogs)
The rest of the story:
U.S. Smart Power is Taking a Beating by David J. Karl (Foreign Policy blogs)
For President: D. Warbucks vs S. McDuck
It's ridiculous to limit our choice for president to a handful of rich senators and governors. Independent organizations should be actively recruiting, training and promoting qualified candidates from business, labor, academia, NGOs and anywhere else they may lurk. As the last two presidents have demonstrated, being a governor or senator doesn't in any way assure that you're deserving of a promotion. There ought to be more to running for POTUS than that you have a few bucks and really, really want to.
And then there are the mice
Years of research is going down the drain because readings can't be made in timely fashion. And if you don't approve of lab research involving animals in the first place, this is doubly senseless. "The government shutdown is likely to mean an early death for thousands of mice used in research on diseases such as diabetes, cancer and Alzheimer's. Federal research centers including the National Institutes of Health will have to kill some mice to avoid overcrowding, researchers say. Others will die because it is impossible to maintain certain lines of genetically altered mice without constant monitoring by scientists. And most federal scientists have been banned from their own labs since Oct. 1." -- NPR
You can't make this stuff up:
Glenn Beck says he is pondering a move to Canada because of impending U.S. socialism.
Note to @BarackObama and @JohnKerry
Adherance to "international norms" means no more cluster bombs, no more landmines, no more it's-not-napalm, no more kids under arms, no more wars of choice, and no more death penalty.
Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more
Coming out of a classified briefing on Thursday, Rep. Carol Shea-Porter (D-N.H.) said that she was opposed to a strike on Syria "now more than ever." So much for the administration's "irrefutable" and "overwhelming" case for a bombing campaign.
The Times doesn't like Larry Summers any more than you do
"Mr. Summers has also shown an indifference to the effects of economic decisions on ordinary people — the opposite of what is needed in a Fed leader at a time of high unemployment. He advised the president to support a stimulus that other economists correctly warned was too small. He resisted bankruptcy relief for underwater homeowners that would have forced banks into mortgage modifications — even as the administration spared no expense to bail out the banks. Senators who have endorsed Ms. Yellen would do well to let Mr. Obama know, either publicly or through back channels, that their endorsement translates into a no vote for Mr. Summers."
The rest of the story:
The Federal Reserve Nomination by the New York Times Editorial Board (New York Times).
Good night. And good luck.
Today I was listening to All Things Considered and, as it closed and they read the interesting names of all the producers and editors and writers and engineers and others who make the show happen, I thought how respectful it is of NPR to give these folks the credit they deserve.
Turns out it was the last time. Another courtesy removed from our impoverished culture.
The rest of the story:
NPR And On-Air Credits: The End Of A Thank You by Jim Wildman (NPR)
Managing a scarce resource.
Or gouging citizens with with a hidden and regressive tax?
I'm walking on Ocean Ave this morning. A patron runs out of the Loews Hotel, heads for his car parked across the street. A meterperson (his vehicle blocking the bike path -- unnecessarily, since since no one is parked on either side of the offending car) is writing him a ticket. It's 9:02. No grace period. Just then, two cars blow through the red light at the pedestrian crossing, going fast.
What are the priorities here?
#eternaltruths
Sack dresses seem to be enjoying a revival among teenagers here on the West Coast.
"Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it." - George Santayana
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