Tuesday, June 30, 2009
'Pink palace'
Sounds like a good idea for the Common.
Update -- I was referring to the concept. Not necessarily the building.
Sounds like a good idea for the Common.
Update -- I was referring to the concept. Not necessarily the building.
'Mitt Romney says publicly ...'
I don’t believe a word that comes out of his mouth.
Update -- David has updated his 2012 Republican presidential rankings. Mitt ranks 5th. Surprisingly, Sarah Palin is 16th. You would think there are more than enough nuts in the GOP to push her into the top 5.. ... BTW: I realize I was a little harsh on Mitt in the original post. Let me amend it to say I don't believe 85 percent of what comes out of his mouth. OK, maybe 90 percent. Somewhere around there.
I don’t believe a word that comes out of his mouth.
Update -- David has updated his 2012 Republican presidential rankings. Mitt ranks 5th. Surprisingly, Sarah Palin is 16th. You would think there are more than enough nuts in the GOP to push her into the top 5.. ... BTW: I realize I was a little harsh on Mitt in the original post. Let me amend it to say I don't believe 85 percent of what comes out of his mouth. OK, maybe 90 percent. Somewhere around there.
Is there a doctor in the house?
All these injured firefighters simultaneously experiencing their very own ‘moment of personal weakness.’ … It’s hard to believe they could be so brazen. They're pulling off a scam right before our eyes. But decades-old habits die hard. … Can we also have some serious reforms of an obviously abused ‘disability’ system? Will any Dem legislative leader step forward this morning to demand change? Or is that asking too much from Dem lawmakers who obviously didn’t want reforms in the first place?
All these injured firefighters simultaneously experiencing their very own ‘moment of personal weakness.’ … It’s hard to believe they could be so brazen. They're pulling off a scam right before our eyes. But decades-old habits die hard. … Can we also have some serious reforms of an obviously abused ‘disability’ system? Will any Dem legislative leader step forward this morning to demand change? Or is that asking too much from Dem lawmakers who obviously didn’t want reforms in the first place?
Sunday, June 28, 2009
'Slovenly corruption'
Best political piece of the week, via BMG, though it gives Sal way too much credit for his alleged 'enlightened' side. He knew how the Hack-Progressive Alliance worked. ... Hack-from-the-past Franny Joyce has resurfaced. Hub Blog has the sense Franny would have gotten his little pension bump had it not been for the recent negative attention surrounding pensions. It's how the slovenly corrupt system worked for decades without a peep from certain quarters. ...
Best political piece of the week, via BMG, though it gives Sal way too much credit for his alleged 'enlightened' side. He knew how the Hack-Progressive Alliance worked. ... Hack-from-the-past Franny Joyce has resurfaced. Hub Blog has the sense Franny would have gotten his little pension bump had it not been for the recent negative attention surrounding pensions. It's how the slovenly corrupt system worked for decades without a peep from certain quarters. ...
'The risk of alienating centrist Democrats'
The only thing that can help Republicans in the short-term are divisions within the Democratic party. Liberal activists are doing their best to oblige. ... Says one Democratic strategist on targeting moderate Democrats on health care: "These are friends of ours. I would much rather see a quiet call placed by [Obama chief of staff] Rahm Emanuel saying this isn't helpful. Instead, we try to decimate them?" ... But what if they're not viewed as friends? What if the liberal-wing of the party is merely a mirror-image of the Limbaugh-wing of the GOP, seeking ideological purity and dismissing the moderate middle? ... All of this is over the single-payer clause we all know is the wedge the left is using to obtain an entire single-payer system.
The only thing that can help Republicans in the short-term are divisions within the Democratic party. Liberal activists are doing their best to oblige. ... Says one Democratic strategist on targeting moderate Democrats on health care: "These are friends of ours. I would much rather see a quiet call placed by [Obama chief of staff] Rahm Emanuel saying this isn't helpful. Instead, we try to decimate them?" ... But what if they're not viewed as friends? What if the liberal-wing of the party is merely a mirror-image of the Limbaugh-wing of the GOP, seeking ideological purity and dismissing the moderate middle? ... All of this is over the single-payer clause we all know is the wedge the left is using to obtain an entire single-payer system.
'He was a black Dorian Gray'
Wesley Morris pens a hard-to-beat piece on what Michael Jackson meant to blacks. He glosses over the child-molestation charges. Eugene Robinson doesn't. But Wesley makes clear the logic of why so much else was seemingly overlooked. It's a great piece. It also shows why insensitivity toward Jackson's death touches a nerve that shouldn't be trifled with. ...
Wesley Morris pens a hard-to-beat piece on what Michael Jackson meant to blacks. He glosses over the child-molestation charges. Eugene Robinson doesn't. But Wesley makes clear the logic of why so much else was seemingly overlooked. It's a great piece. It also shows why insensitivity toward Jackson's death touches a nerve that shouldn't be trifled with. ...
Friday, June 26, 2009
Michael, Elvis and Howard
Hug Blog was going to draw a comparison between Michael Jackson and Elvis Presley. But Dan beat me to it and says it better than I ever could. ...
Hub Blog's delayed-reaction Michael-Elvis comparison came to me while listening to radio reports of Jackson's death. One announcer asked a guest whether Michael's weird late-life antics would overshadow his earlier musical accomplishments. The guest never gave a straight answer, and I thought, "Ah, c'mon. Just say it. He's going to be remembered for both." ... Of course there are two types of late-life-reclusive-celebrity-nut categories: the Howard Hughes variety and the Elvis Presley variety. Howard had some impressive accomplishments before losing it. But they weren't great accomplishments. He's remembered almost exclusively as an eccentric nut. The same can't be said about Presley -- or Jackson. They produced music that gave millions of people genuine joy. No one can take that away from them. But it's undeniable their lives ended in tragic wrecks. Jackson even married into the Presley family, drawing the eerie comparisons tighter.
BTW: Rolling Stone ranks Michael Jackson 35th on its list of rock 'immortals.' I don't know. He deserves to be higher. Probably in the top 25. At least put him above Prince, for heaven's sake.
Update -- Hub Blog has gotten the first angry email -- from an Elvis fan complaining there was a big difference between the Elvis and Michael wrecks. He's right. Elvis's wreck ultimately just harmed himself. Michael's wreck was truly sordid. But their lives both ended in wrecks -- and you can't separate their achievements from those sad endings. That's all I was driving at.
Update II -- From Armchair Gen. Savin Hill:
Update III -- Another reader told me he'd rank Michael Jackson in the top 10. I'm not so sure. But look who's currently ranked above Jackson. The Ramones, Nirvana, Prince, the Clash. I like them all. But Jackson was clearly bigger than them.
Hug Blog was going to draw a comparison between Michael Jackson and Elvis Presley. But Dan beat me to it and says it better than I ever could. ...
Hub Blog's delayed-reaction Michael-Elvis comparison came to me while listening to radio reports of Jackson's death. One announcer asked a guest whether Michael's weird late-life antics would overshadow his earlier musical accomplishments. The guest never gave a straight answer, and I thought, "Ah, c'mon. Just say it. He's going to be remembered for both." ... Of course there are two types of late-life-reclusive-celebrity-nut categories: the Howard Hughes variety and the Elvis Presley variety. Howard had some impressive accomplishments before losing it. But they weren't great accomplishments. He's remembered almost exclusively as an eccentric nut. The same can't be said about Presley -- or Jackson. They produced music that gave millions of people genuine joy. No one can take that away from them. But it's undeniable their lives ended in tragic wrecks. Jackson even married into the Presley family, drawing the eerie comparisons tighter.
BTW: Rolling Stone ranks Michael Jackson 35th on its list of rock 'immortals.' I don't know. He deserves to be higher. Probably in the top 25. At least put him above Prince, for heaven's sake.
Update -- Hub Blog has gotten the first angry email -- from an Elvis fan complaining there was a big difference between the Elvis and Michael wrecks. He's right. Elvis's wreck ultimately just harmed himself. Michael's wreck was truly sordid. But their lives both ended in wrecks -- and you can't separate their achievements from those sad endings. That's all I was driving at.
Update II -- From Armchair Gen. Savin Hill:
I heard there was big news yesterday about something. No doubt I have solved the riddle - someone came up with the world's greatest invention.Finally, some good news.
Update III -- Another reader told me he'd rank Michael Jackson in the top 10. I'm not so sure. But look who's currently ranked above Jackson. The Ramones, Nirvana, Prince, the Clash. I like them all. But Jackson was clearly bigger than them.
'An act of political suicide'
Michael thinks Mark Sanford's confession was both authentic and a deliberate act of political suicide. He's probably right. But I'm not sure Sanford is really 'destroying one life so he can begin another.' He didn't follow his heart. He called off the affair. He's returned to his old life. He's clinging to office. Etc., etc., etc. Not exactly the type of authenticity that evokes a lot of sympathy and admiration. ... Mickey elaborates on his 'fast scandal' theory.
Michael thinks Mark Sanford's confession was both authentic and a deliberate act of political suicide. He's probably right. But I'm not sure Sanford is really 'destroying one life so he can begin another.' He didn't follow his heart. He called off the affair. He's returned to his old life. He's clinging to office. Etc., etc., etc. Not exactly the type of authenticity that evokes a lot of sympathy and admiration. ... Mickey elaborates on his 'fast scandal' theory.
Thursday, June 25, 2009
'The Past Does Not Repeat Itself, but It Rhymes'
An interesting take on the financial crisis by a Japanese economist whose nation underwent similar upheavals last decade. Bottom line: The damage this time around has been more widespread, but its duration has been shorter.
An interesting take on the financial crisis by a Japanese economist whose nation underwent similar upheavals last decade. Bottom line: The damage this time around has been more widespread, but its duration has been shorter.
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
'S.C. Gov. Sanford admits affair'
The nation needed a good sex scandal. The John Ensign affair just didn't cut it. ...
Update -- Adam, via R.D. Sahl, makes a great local-angle catch: Wilbur Mills and the "Argentine Firecracker," live at Boston's Pilgrim Theater. ... So the hunt is on for the latest Argentine Firecracker.
Update II -- Dan: 'Another good day for Mitt.' ... So that makes two local angles.
Update III - 6.25.09 -- I plead guilty (seriously): ‘The disturbing glee at Mark Sanford’s downfall.’
The nation needed a good sex scandal. The John Ensign affair just didn't cut it. ...
Update -- Adam, via R.D. Sahl, makes a great local-angle catch: Wilbur Mills and the "Argentine Firecracker," live at Boston's Pilgrim Theater. ... So the hunt is on for the latest Argentine Firecracker.
Update II -- Dan: 'Another good day for Mitt.' ... So that makes two local angles.
Update III - 6.25.09 -- I plead guilty (seriously): ‘The disturbing glee at Mark Sanford’s downfall.’
'The sobering lessons of health reform in Massachusetts'
Writing at Slate, UMass professor Darshak Sanghavi isn't impressed with the state's universal health-care plan or the current direction of the national health-care debate. Sanghavi:
Writing at Slate, UMass professor Darshak Sanghavi isn't impressed with the state's universal health-care plan or the current direction of the national health-care debate. Sanghavi:
The expensive Massachusetts plan is not well-designed to systematically improve anyone's health. Instead, it's a superficial effort to clear the uninsured from the books and then clumsily limit further costs by discouraging care.
'Sparring with fellow Democrats'
I love it. … The question is not who to root for. The question is who to root against. The Legislature can easily break the sales-tax/ethics-bill standoff if it wanted. But it’s never really wanted reforms – and that's precisely what's becoming more and more apparent with each passing day. The governor will probably have to accept a compromise in the end. But it'll be fun to watch Dem legislators squirm until then.
Update -- Legislative leaders just blinked. I was hoping they'd squirm for a few more days.
I love it. … The question is not who to root for. The question is who to root against. The Legislature can easily break the sales-tax/ethics-bill standoff if it wanted. But it’s never really wanted reforms – and that's precisely what's becoming more and more apparent with each passing day. The governor will probably have to accept a compromise in the end. But it'll be fun to watch Dem legislators squirm until then.
Update -- Legislative leaders just blinked. I was hoping they'd squirm for a few more days.
'Three elements of the revolutionary process'
David Ignatius is my new turn-to guy on Iraq matters. He's more confident than me that regime change is coming in the long run. I tend to see the crisis as a cross between the Hungarian Revolution and Tiananmen Square. The former took decades to work out in favor of Hungarians. The latter still hasn't played out. I hope I'm wrong. ... Tom Friedman bemoans 'worthless chatter' about Obama's response to Iran. Like this or this? One questions Obama's commitment to democracy. The other draws relativist parallels between recent events in America and Iran. Juan disappoints this morning.
David Ignatius is my new turn-to guy on Iraq matters. He's more confident than me that regime change is coming in the long run. I tend to see the crisis as a cross between the Hungarian Revolution and Tiananmen Square. The former took decades to work out in favor of Hungarians. The latter still hasn't played out. I hope I'm wrong. ... Tom Friedman bemoans 'worthless chatter' about Obama's response to Iran. Like this or this? One questions Obama's commitment to democracy. The other draws relativist parallels between recent events in America and Iran. Juan disappoints this morning.
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
'Dreadful architecture'
The glass-and-steel crowd had a field day nearly destroying Brussels. ... It's odd hearing a prominent French architect praising American cities and urban planning. European cities are clearly more beautiful and livable than American cities. But Europeans owe that largely to past generations. Their post-war modern architectural record sucks almost as much as ours. Brussels, with its own West End horror stories, is Exhibit A. ... Hub Blog is not advocating a retro-red-bricks approach toward architecture. Christian de Portzamparc, the French artichitect who admires Manhattan (and I assume Boston), wants to mesh the best of the old and new together so that they complement each other. It's not easy. Look at the new Intercontinental glass-and-steel monstrosity along Boston's waterfront. Steve Bailey once said the hotel was more appropriate for Houston than Boston. He was right. It doesn't fit. But, hey, at least it complied with the BRA's glass-and-steel materials dictate -- just as the designers in Brussels probably complied with their own bureaucratic dictates.
The glass-and-steel crowd had a field day nearly destroying Brussels. ... It's odd hearing a prominent French architect praising American cities and urban planning. European cities are clearly more beautiful and livable than American cities. But Europeans owe that largely to past generations. Their post-war modern architectural record sucks almost as much as ours. Brussels, with its own West End horror stories, is Exhibit A. ... Hub Blog is not advocating a retro-red-bricks approach toward architecture. Christian de Portzamparc, the French artichitect who admires Manhattan (and I assume Boston), wants to mesh the best of the old and new together so that they complement each other. It's not easy. Look at the new Intercontinental glass-and-steel monstrosity along Boston's waterfront. Steve Bailey once said the hotel was more appropriate for Houston than Boston. He was right. It doesn't fit. But, hey, at least it complied with the BRA's glass-and-steel materials dictate -- just as the designers in Brussels probably complied with their own bureaucratic dictates.
Tolls, pensions and other items
Some quick notes on various issues and items:
-- Hub Blog is as glad as anyone that reforms are finally being passed on Beacon Hill and elsewhere. But I'm with Rick Holmes: I'm not that impressed. Some reforms keep tolls in place. Other reforms are merely bringing pension practices into compliance with existing law. Etc., etc. The bottom line: Lawmakes are only passing what they consider to be the absolute minimum reforms needed to appease voters and save their Democratic majority. Their hearts are not into this. The Big Dig Culture is still alive and well, waiting out the current anti-State House storm.
-- No more worries? That’s when I start worrying. But the Sox do look good these days. ... And, no, Dice-K wasn't worth it. But that problem is temporarily behind us.
-- Here's an article that correctly uses "triple-deckers" and "three deckers" interchangeably, a subject touched upon here during a past furor over the loss of yet another local institution.
-- Outraged Liberal's pithy summary of Sal's defense strategy: "Ignore the facts and attack the law." ... Isn't there an old-fashioned bribery law that they can use against Sal now that his defense strategy is all but conceding the facts? Jim Braude was harping on this point last night.
Some quick notes on various issues and items:
-- Hub Blog is as glad as anyone that reforms are finally being passed on Beacon Hill and elsewhere. But I'm with Rick Holmes: I'm not that impressed. Some reforms keep tolls in place. Other reforms are merely bringing pension practices into compliance with existing law. Etc., etc. The bottom line: Lawmakes are only passing what they consider to be the absolute minimum reforms needed to appease voters and save their Democratic majority. Their hearts are not into this. The Big Dig Culture is still alive and well, waiting out the current anti-State House storm.
-- No more worries? That’s when I start worrying. But the Sox do look good these days. ... And, no, Dice-K wasn't worth it. But that problem is temporarily behind us.
-- Here's an article that correctly uses "triple-deckers" and "three deckers" interchangeably, a subject touched upon here during a past furor over the loss of yet another local institution.
-- Outraged Liberal's pithy summary of Sal's defense strategy: "Ignore the facts and attack the law." ... Isn't there an old-fashioned bribery law that they can use against Sal now that his defense strategy is all but conceding the facts? Jim Braude was harping on this point last night.
Saturday, June 20, 2009
Now that’s a museum
The New Acropolis Museum in Athens. Not to be confused with the proposed Boston Museum. …
At first, I didn’t like the design of the Boston Museum, but it’s grown on me. I still don’t think, though, the museum has clarified its proposed mission. The flying Bobby Orr exhibit looks like something out of a glorified truck-stop museum. The new museum, if it’s ever built, needs to be much more serious, tapping into the region’s rich history (not just the city’s history) and dispensing with the heavy ‘innovation’ jargon that confuses and even confines its mission. (Absolutely nothing wrong with a strong emphasis on the innovations of Alexander Graham Bell and other New Englanders. But there’s an overemphasis on ‘innovation.’) Ideally, the new museum would incorporate some of the artifacts at the new Commonwealth Museum, especially its copy of the Declaration of Independence. The Commonwealth Museum is on the right track, figuratively, of what a new museum could showcase, but it’s off the beaten path, literally, out on Columbia Point. Why are so many of Boston’s museums located away from the core downtown? … Of course I can see major turf wars breaking out, in typical Boston fashion, if there was ever a major push for a more centralized museum of history. The Secretary of State, Massachusetts Historical Society, Harvard, Museum of Fine Arts, the new museum board and others all have interests to protect. A collaborative effort is possible – but unlikely.
The New Acropolis Museum in Athens. Not to be confused with the proposed Boston Museum. …
At first, I didn’t like the design of the Boston Museum, but it’s grown on me. I still don’t think, though, the museum has clarified its proposed mission. The flying Bobby Orr exhibit looks like something out of a glorified truck-stop museum. The new museum, if it’s ever built, needs to be much more serious, tapping into the region’s rich history (not just the city’s history) and dispensing with the heavy ‘innovation’ jargon that confuses and even confines its mission. (Absolutely nothing wrong with a strong emphasis on the innovations of Alexander Graham Bell and other New Englanders. But there’s an overemphasis on ‘innovation.’) Ideally, the new museum would incorporate some of the artifacts at the new Commonwealth Museum, especially its copy of the Declaration of Independence. The Commonwealth Museum is on the right track, figuratively, of what a new museum could showcase, but it’s off the beaten path, literally, out on Columbia Point. Why are so many of Boston’s museums located away from the core downtown? … Of course I can see major turf wars breaking out, in typical Boston fashion, if there was ever a major push for a more centralized museum of history. The Secretary of State, Massachusetts Historical Society, Harvard, Museum of Fine Arts, the new museum board and others all have interests to protect. A collaborative effort is possible – but unlikely.
Thursday, June 18, 2009
'Mourning the martyr'
Juan Cole, this week's go-to-guy for insights on Iran, thinks Obama is handling the situation relatively well. Note how protesters are appealing to the religious sentiments of fellow Iranians. The last thing they need is to be seen as stooges for Western leaders.
Juan Cole, this week's go-to-guy for insights on Iran, thinks Obama is handling the situation relatively well. Note how protesters are appealing to the religious sentiments of fellow Iranians. The last thing they need is to be seen as stooges for Western leaders.
'Dressed in flip-flops, shorts ...'
Compare this story with this op-ed. ... Such stirring and convincing words from Sen. Hart. ... Personally, I would have finished staining my father's deck if I had yesterday off. The Comcast bills would have waited. ...
Compare this story with this op-ed. ... Such stirring and convincing words from Sen. Hart. ... Personally, I would have finished staining my father's deck if I had yesterday off. The Comcast bills would have waited. ...
'Because the insurance industry has been so gullible'
Shooting missiles toward Hawaii and running global insurance scams. All in a day’s work for North Korea. … I really hope they didn’t collect on life insurance policies. … We’ll probably find out Pyongyang issued counterfeit credit-default swaps that were gleefully snapped up by AIG. … I, for one, am now betting on North Korea winning the World Cup.
Shooting missiles toward Hawaii and running global insurance scams. All in a day’s work for North Korea. … I really hope they didn’t collect on life insurance policies. … We’ll probably find out Pyongyang issued counterfeit credit-default swaps that were gleefully snapped up by AIG. … I, for one, am now betting on North Korea winning the World Cup.
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
'The Flowering of New England'
The Globe's excellent 100 Top New England books has prompted me to update my own less ambitious Boston Reading List. I've finally gone out and purchased Van Wyck Brooks's The Flowering of New England (not on the Globe list as far as I could quickly tell) and Cleveland Amory's The Proper Bostonians. ... By coincidence, I just recently reread Michael Patrick MacDonald's All Souls, a book I've previously read in fits and starts, thus leaving me with that odd feeling I had never really read it. It's going up soon on Hub Blog's coveted list. I'm sure MacDonald will be thrilled by the high literary honor. ... Dan has more on local books. BTW: I have absolutely no problem with 'Moby Dick' and 'Make Way for Ducklings' at the top of the New England literary heap. How could you argue against them?
The Globe's excellent 100 Top New England books has prompted me to update my own less ambitious Boston Reading List. I've finally gone out and purchased Van Wyck Brooks's The Flowering of New England (not on the Globe list as far as I could quickly tell) and Cleveland Amory's The Proper Bostonians. ... By coincidence, I just recently reread Michael Patrick MacDonald's All Souls, a book I've previously read in fits and starts, thus leaving me with that odd feeling I had never really read it. It's going up soon on Hub Blog's coveted list. I'm sure MacDonald will be thrilled by the high literary honor. ... Dan has more on local books. BTW: I have absolutely no problem with 'Moby Dick' and 'Make Way for Ducklings' at the top of the New England literary heap. How could you argue against them?
'Do it'
Do what? Jonah never makes it clear. He cites JFK’s stirring words about defending democracy in context of Obama’s quiet approach toward Iran – and then he distances himself from JFK’s stirring words. He says he doesn’t want to bomb or invade Iran. But he doesn’t really say what the president should do or say about Iran. The best I can tell is he wants more … stirring words. … I’ll believe Jonah is committed to a consistent foreign policy of morality when he starts regularly dedicating entire columns to injustices in other nations across the world. … As far as I can tell, the president is handling the situation just about right. Tough words didn’t stop Iran’s support of terrorism or development of nuclear bombs under the previous administration. They won’t now.
Do what? Jonah never makes it clear. He cites JFK’s stirring words about defending democracy in context of Obama’s quiet approach toward Iran – and then he distances himself from JFK’s stirring words. He says he doesn’t want to bomb or invade Iran. But he doesn’t really say what the president should do or say about Iran. The best I can tell is he wants more … stirring words. … I’ll believe Jonah is committed to a consistent foreign policy of morality when he starts regularly dedicating entire columns to injustices in other nations across the world. … As far as I can tell, the president is handling the situation just about right. Tough words didn’t stop Iran’s support of terrorism or development of nuclear bombs under the previous administration. They won’t now.
Sunday, June 14, 2009
'I know it's only June 12th'
The Red Sox Nation equivalent of 72 virgins and all the dates you can eat in heaven. … The Phillies series isn't spoiling the illusion. ... Naturally, I'm a pessimist at heart and have a sinking feeling we're witnessing an early-season version of this past year's Bruins and Celts. But I'll take the early-season fun. ...
The Red Sox Nation equivalent of 72 virgins and all the dates you can eat in heaven. … The Phillies series isn't spoiling the illusion. ... Naturally, I'm a pessimist at heart and have a sinking feeling we're witnessing an early-season version of this past year's Bruins and Celts. But I'll take the early-season fun. ...
‘A Yankee Rebellion?'
The folks at MIT Press, catching on that Hub Blog is a sucker for local history, gave me a heads up on an article about Shay's Rebellion. The piece is good. I haven't listened to the podcast though. ...
The folks at MIT Press, catching on that Hub Blog is a sucker for local history, gave me a heads up on an article about Shay's Rebellion. The piece is good. I haven't listened to the podcast though. ...
'For decades,' Part II
Jeff on our please-sir-may-I-have-another-one voters in Massachusetts. ... Yet another stone is turned over and look what squirms underneath. At least they didn't allow him to double dip. ...
Jeff on our please-sir-may-I-have-another-one voters in Massachusetts. ... Yet another stone is turned over and look what squirms underneath. At least they didn't allow him to double dip. ...
'The gravitational pull of the midterm elections'
Let's hope deficits become an issue in 2010. Robert Reich:
Let's hope deficits become an issue in 2010. Robert Reich:
If they (Republicans) can get their act together and come up with something that is halfway respectable, and if the public begins to lose patience by Election Day, Democrats could have some real problems. ... And those problems, of course, could possibly extend through 2012.Granted, Republicans getting their 'act together' with 'halfway respectable' ideas is asking a lot these days. But David Ignatius spells out why deficits should be an issue for everyone:
Financial markets are always in oscillation, to be sure, anticipating the next crisis even as they are recovering from the last one. But we appear to be approaching one of those inflection points where policies that were essential in one phase of the cycle become dangerous in the next.Obama can easily defend his first-year fiscal policies. He was facing a first-class emergency. But the deficits afterward are all his if he doesn't act on them.
Friday, June 12, 2009
'The Things We Think and Do Not Say'
Reader No. 1 on the federal deficits:
Reader No. 1 on the federal deficits:
I liked this Megan McArdle post in the Atlantic. She explictly directs the political discussion away from morality (not that morality isn't important, but we sure as heck haven't had a consensus on it for almost a half-century now) and goes to the facts, emphasis added below by yours truly.Hub Blog also liked the post -- as well as this one (in general). Throw out the deficit numbers for Bush's last year and Obama's first year (the latter, I believe, includes last year's $700 billion bailout package that wasn't put on Bush's books). OK, let's be generous and throw out Obama's second-year projections because of the recession. But look at the estimates well beyond that. Budget deficits re-exploded under Bush. But Obama has to take ownership of future deficits. It's one of the reasons why I think he's pushing to spend the rest of the stimulus money ASAP. He has only about a year or less of recession-excuse spending before realilty smacks him and the nation in the face. The Chinese and Russians are already balking at paying for our deficits. There isn't much time or room to act.
"The problem with the budget deficit is not any particular program, or even any particular tax cuts. It is not that George Bush or Obama is a bad person who does bad things. The problem with the budget deficit is that, unlike the deficits George Bush ran, the deficits projected under Obama (and beyond) are actually large enough to potentially precipitate a fiscal crisis. If our interest rates suddenly spiked up, perhaps because lenders were worried about the size of our budget deficits, we'd find ourselves in the kind of nasty fiscal jam that regularly plagues third-world countries. The difference is, no one has enough money to bail us out.
"Obama is the one who will have to prevent this. Yet instead of plans, we're getting fairy numbers from the OMB. That's worrying, and it's sure not George W. Bush's fault. His OMB liked to inflate the deficit projections, so that they could take credit for a mostly imaginary reduction."
The political dimension of everyday conversation has gone very quiet in my experience. I wonder if many of the intelligent people who voted for our President now find themselves in the position of Jerry Maguire's great manifesto: "The Things We Think and Do Not Say." May they follow this article's lead...
'For decades'
Passage of pension reforms is undeniably good news. It's a rare reform victory in Massachusetts. But it's that rarity -- and the way foot-dragging lawmakers were forced to grudgingly pass reforms -- that mutes celebrations. The pension abuses have indeed been going on "for decades." They were not just recently revealed. The reforms were only passed after massive political pressure was brought to bear following the indictment of the third straight House speaker. There are other "egregious" pension loopholes that need closing. There's more to do. ... But, yes, I'm happy some very solid reforms have passed -- and Gov. Patrick deserves to take a bow. I just want to see a lot more evidence that lawmakers collectively "get it."
Passage of pension reforms is undeniably good news. It's a rare reform victory in Massachusetts. But it's that rarity -- and the way foot-dragging lawmakers were forced to grudgingly pass reforms -- that mutes celebrations. The pension abuses have indeed been going on "for decades." They were not just recently revealed. The reforms were only passed after massive political pressure was brought to bear following the indictment of the third straight House speaker. There are other "egregious" pension loopholes that need closing. There's more to do. ... But, yes, I'm happy some very solid reforms have passed -- and Gov. Patrick deserves to take a bow. I just want to see a lot more evidence that lawmakers collectively "get it."
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
'Don’t talk to me about ethical background in Albany'
Something you don't see in Massachusetts: real partisan competition. The latest in New York's ongoing soap opera:
Something you don't see in Massachusetts: real partisan competition. The latest in New York's ongoing soap opera:
The revolt has thrown Albany into an almost surreal scene of confusion; on Tuesday, both Mr. Smith and the Republican Senate leader, Dean G. Skelos, were claiming to be the majority leader. Democrats locked the doors of the Senate chamber, preventing Republicans from gathering there, and refused to turn over the keys, prompting Republicans to threaten to hold a legislative session in the park outside.
Monday, June 08, 2009
'What it is about Massachusetts that creates ...'
Shelly goes down the Sonny McDonough, Saturday Evening Post, Massachusetts Crime Commission and Ward Commission memory lane, concluding we've travelled far and not so far when it comes to our political culture. ... David has a roundup of the contemporary political culture.
Shelly goes down the Sonny McDonough, Saturday Evening Post, Massachusetts Crime Commission and Ward Commission memory lane, concluding we've travelled far and not so far when it comes to our political culture. ... David has a roundup of the contemporary political culture.
'The ultimate term limit is the vote'
Did the governor just say what I think he said? He might have meant it in the context of opposing term limits (which wouldn’t be a surprise) – or he might have meant it in the context of putting pressure on fellow Dems via the voting booth (which would be a very welcome surprise/threat). Either way, he’s talking consequences for those with a “D” after their names on ballots. …
Did the governor just say what I think he said? He might have meant it in the context of opposing term limits (which wouldn’t be a surprise) – or he might have meant it in the context of putting pressure on fellow Dems via the voting booth (which would be a very welcome surprise/threat). Either way, he’s talking consequences for those with a “D” after their names on ballots. …
Sunday, June 07, 2009
Hot Dog Diplomacy
Hot dog diplomacy. Ping-pong diplomacy. Hey, if they work, they work. No harm trying.
Hot dog diplomacy. Ping-pong diplomacy. Hey, if they work, they work. No harm trying.
'Didn’t really know my teammates'
Reading this piece about how baseball players really don’t know each other, I thought of this SI cover story on Bryce Harper. The kid is either going to grow up to be great or totally screwed up -- or an A-Rod combination of both. Only 16, he’s already being compared to Tiger Woods, LeBron James and Wayne Gretzky. How's that for ego development at a tender age?
Update -- It'd be a damn miracle if he turned out like Tiger.
Reading this piece about how baseball players really don’t know each other, I thought of this SI cover story on Bryce Harper. The kid is either going to grow up to be great or totally screwed up -- or an A-Rod combination of both. Only 16, he’s already being compared to Tiger Woods, LeBron James and Wayne Gretzky. How's that for ego development at a tender age?
Update -- It'd be a damn miracle if he turned out like Tiger.
'It's not just Sal'
Democrats are in shock – shock! – by the events of this past week. … Cahill is on a sound-bite roll these days:
Update -- Outraged Liberal has more on Tim.
Democrats are in shock – shock! – by the events of this past week. … Cahill is on a sound-bite roll these days:
"There does seem to be sort of a Groundhog Day approach to this," Cahill said. "You look up and the same thing seems to be repeating itself again. You just say to yourself, 'When are people going to learn?' . . . I think back to Dianne Wilkerson and how dirty things felt for about a week, and then it kind of passed."Margery: "The hell with the ‘whites of their eyes’ - just shoot." Howie reviews different species that deserve a special place in their own Museum of Natural State House History. ... Jimmy, get away from that hackasaurus badbackus! ... But they're stuffed, ma! ... No they're not!
Update -- Outraged Liberal has more on Tim.
Saturday, June 06, 2009
'The incredibly inaccurate efficient market theory'
Reader No. 1 sends in two truly 'thoughtful and thought provoking' articles: "Joe Nocera on Jeremy Grantham on the inefficiencies of efficient markets. Holman Jenkins in Policy Review on why the current response to such inefficiencies is likely to make matters worse." ... By coincidence, Eric Rosengren, head of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, yesterday was also touching on what we've learned about the markets:
Reader No. 1 sends in two truly 'thoughtful and thought provoking' articles: "Joe Nocera on Jeremy Grantham on the inefficiencies of efficient markets. Holman Jenkins in Policy Review on why the current response to such inefficiencies is likely to make matters worse." ... By coincidence, Eric Rosengren, head of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, yesterday was also touching on what we've learned about the markets:
Before the crisis, economists didn’t have as firm a grasp as they thought on the connection between financial markets and the general economy, Rosengren said.Though I disagree with some of Jenkins's anti-government points (and blame), he's right to caution about the Obama administration's optimistic assumptions about running auto companies and a health-care system, etc. When it comes to the markets, a lot of humility is in order.
“The financial links to the real economy are, in my view, only crudely incorporated into most macroeconomic modeling,” said Rosegren in prepared remarks.
“Indeed, most forecasters did not recognize we were in a recession in the spring of 2008,” even though economists now pin the start of the recession to December 2007, he said.
'A sort of State House farm system'
Fred Bayles's Exhibit A: Nearly 20 percent of legislators started out as legislative aides. ... Tim Cahill on Democrats: "I think the party is exclusionary. The party forces you to make deals, and those haunt you in the end." ... Hmmm. What deals? Too many to recount, I suppose.
Update -- This deal? Dropping pension reform in return for not having a budget savaged? ... It's how the one-party Legislature works. ...
Fred Bayles's Exhibit A: Nearly 20 percent of legislators started out as legislative aides. ... Tim Cahill on Democrats: "I think the party is exclusionary. The party forces you to make deals, and those haunt you in the end." ... Hmmm. What deals? Too many to recount, I suppose.
Update -- This deal? Dropping pension reform in return for not having a budget savaged? ... It's how the one-party Legislature works. ...
'Reverse the curse'
Some use it as a battle cry to win a World Series. Some use it in a very different context. ...
Some use it as a battle cry to win a World Series. Some use it in a very different context. ...
Friday, June 05, 2009
'Why not start with Medicare?'
Excellent points about the alleged benefits of a single-payer health care system. Why is there 30 percent waste in Medicare? Why isn't the government doing something about it now? Why would a future 'single-payer' system work better at containing costs when a current single-payer system has failed at containing costs? ... Of course what some are really after is a future nationalization of the health care system -- as if it's a magic wand that would immediately reduce price pressures via brute government force.
Excellent points about the alleged benefits of a single-payer health care system. Why is there 30 percent waste in Medicare? Why isn't the government doing something about it now? Why would a future 'single-payer' system work better at containing costs when a current single-payer system has failed at containing costs? ... Of course what some are really after is a future nationalization of the health care system -- as if it's a magic wand that would immediately reduce price pressures via brute government force.
'The problem with bailouts'
The crux of the problem: “(P)ublic-sector intervention usually errs on the side of the status quo.” … Like this? … Politicians aren't really interested in economic efficiencies. They're interested in political efficiencies. The mother of all political efficiencies in the GM bailout is protecting the UAW.
The crux of the problem: “(P)ublic-sector intervention usually errs on the side of the status quo.” … Like this? … Politicians aren't really interested in economic efficiencies. They're interested in political efficiencies. The mother of all political efficiencies in the GM bailout is protecting the UAW.
'A system that is essentially legal corruption'
Lawmakers slam the door on open discussion of reforms. Jill Stein, co-chairwoman of the Green-Rainbow Party, sums it up: "You can’t have a good democracy behind closed doors where money is flowing freely. ... We have a system that is essentially legal corruption." ... I’ll take the Green-Rainbow Party at this point. Wouldn’t you? Anything else is an improvement. I'll draw the line at Stalinist and John Birch candidates, though. ...
... Turns out the Patrick administration not only ignored the red flares, alarm bells and barking watchdogs. It also ignored the Austin Powers emergency nuclear-reactor siren system. It doesn't mean the administration is corrupt. It means their go-along-to-get-along instincts prevailed -- which is the source of the problem on Beacon Hill. ... Deval is going to need all the help he can get. ... Flustered Tom.
Lawmakers slam the door on open discussion of reforms. Jill Stein, co-chairwoman of the Green-Rainbow Party, sums it up: "You can’t have a good democracy behind closed doors where money is flowing freely. ... We have a system that is essentially legal corruption." ... I’ll take the Green-Rainbow Party at this point. Wouldn’t you? Anything else is an improvement. I'll draw the line at Stalinist and John Birch candidates, though. ...
... Turns out the Patrick administration not only ignored the red flares, alarm bells and barking watchdogs. It also ignored the Austin Powers emergency nuclear-reactor siren system. It doesn't mean the administration is corrupt. It means their go-along-to-get-along instincts prevailed -- which is the source of the problem on Beacon Hill. ... Deval is going to need all the help he can get. ... Flustered Tom.
Thursday, June 04, 2009
'Backed to the wall by an angry electorate …'
... And lawmakers still won't kill two hack holidays. Can you imagine the fierce behind-the-scenes resistance to pension reforms by these scheming clowns? ...
... This piece cuts close to the heart of the Hack-Progressive Alliance, i.e. progressives' toleration of a certain level of hackerama in return for hacks delivering the liberal goods. But it doesn't quite rise to classic Hack-Progressive Alliance levels. Within a month of Deval taking office, Sal was apparently all over the new adminstration about the Cognos contract. There was some go-along-to-get-along sentiment within the administration but also some resistance to go-along-to-get-along. The latter buckled in the end -- as it usually does when legislative leaders start whining about 'cooperation' and 'legislative prerogatives.' Still, the administration can be cut a little slack because it was new at the time. ... No excuse, though, for the appointment of James A. Aloisi, a cynical sop to the permanent bureaucracy if there ever was one. ... Forget the Ethics Commission. It's irrelevant. It always has been. It always will be. There are only two forces that can keep the Legislature in line: the voters and the U.S. attorney's office. The former, unfortunately, have been asleep at the switch for years.
Update -- Patrick acknowledges he talked to Sal about software contracts. I don't know. This is pushing it. How many red flares, alarm bells and barking watch dogs do you need? ... Yeah, it's perfectly normal for a speaker of the House to take an active interest in a software contract. ... Well, they did report it to the IG. ...
... And lawmakers still won't kill two hack holidays. Can you imagine the fierce behind-the-scenes resistance to pension reforms by these scheming clowns? ...
... This piece cuts close to the heart of the Hack-Progressive Alliance, i.e. progressives' toleration of a certain level of hackerama in return for hacks delivering the liberal goods. But it doesn't quite rise to classic Hack-Progressive Alliance levels. Within a month of Deval taking office, Sal was apparently all over the new adminstration about the Cognos contract. There was some go-along-to-get-along sentiment within the administration but also some resistance to go-along-to-get-along. The latter buckled in the end -- as it usually does when legislative leaders start whining about 'cooperation' and 'legislative prerogatives.' Still, the administration can be cut a little slack because it was new at the time. ... No excuse, though, for the appointment of James A. Aloisi, a cynical sop to the permanent bureaucracy if there ever was one. ... Forget the Ethics Commission. It's irrelevant. It always has been. It always will be. There are only two forces that can keep the Legislature in line: the voters and the U.S. attorney's office. The former, unfortunately, have been asleep at the switch for years.
Update -- Patrick acknowledges he talked to Sal about software contracts. I don't know. This is pushing it. How many red flares, alarm bells and barking watch dogs do you need? ... Yeah, it's perfectly normal for a speaker of the House to take an active interest in a software contract. ... Well, they did report it to the IG. ...
Wednesday, June 03, 2009
The Legislature is the problem, Part II
BMG hosted a good debate yesterday and this morning on the Hack-Progressive Alliance. The debate could resume this afternoon here. ... P.S. - A more detailed description of the Hack-Progressive Alliance can be found here.
Update -- Oh, now they're talking about reforms. But you know it'll be about 'ethics,' i.e. beat up on lobbyists and anyone and everything else except procurement, pensions, patronage, earmarks, vacation and sick time, union coddling and other nuts-and-bolts issues. ... Note Spellman's quote about his January Sal vote. ... Fun quote from BMG link above:
BMG hosted a good debate yesterday and this morning on the Hack-Progressive Alliance. The debate could resume this afternoon here. ... P.S. - A more detailed description of the Hack-Progressive Alliance can be found here.
Update -- Oh, now they're talking about reforms. But you know it'll be about 'ethics,' i.e. beat up on lobbyists and anyone and everything else except procurement, pensions, patronage, earmarks, vacation and sick time, union coddling and other nuts-and-bolts issues. ... Note Spellman's quote about his January Sal vote. ... Fun quote from BMG link above:
I'm sure Dimasi checked with the ethics office and it was OK to get a $5000 a month kickback from Cognos. And all would have been fine in this state, but the feds had to come in and muck it all up.
'Painful'
Mickey takes a look at the 'painful' sacrifices the UAW made to get a 17 percent-plus stake in GM -- a stake you and I are paying for. ... One of these days I'm going to be on the receiving end of one of these bailouts.
Mickey takes a look at the 'painful' sacrifices the UAW made to get a 17 percent-plus stake in GM -- a stake you and I are paying for. ... One of these days I'm going to be on the receiving end of one of these bailouts.
The Legislature is the problem
Hub Blog hopes the public is finally making a connection between the Sal scandal and 50-plus years of one-party rule on Beacon Hill. Governors have come and gone over the decades. But the one-party Legislature has always remained. ... Think of the behind-the-scenes wranglings of Sal and Dianne etc. Now think of the behind-the-scenes wranglings by reform opponents. This is the legislative culture in Massachusetts. They're so incestuously embedded with each other that they even share, refer to and partner with the same damn criminal-defense lawyers.
Hub Blog hopes the public is finally making a connection between the Sal scandal and 50-plus years of one-party rule on Beacon Hill. Governors have come and gone over the decades. But the one-party Legislature has always remained. ... Think of the behind-the-scenes wranglings of Sal and Dianne etc. Now think of the behind-the-scenes wranglings by reform opponents. This is the legislative culture in Massachusetts. They're so incestuously embedded with each other that they even share, refer to and partner with the same damn criminal-defense lawyers.
Cloak and dagger Cheney
He loved this stuff. Secret meetings with Congress. Secure undisclosed hideouts. Emergency presidential succession plans. Similar to devoted Civil War reenactors donning their gray-and-blue uniforms each weekend, Cheney loved the world of embossed West Wing briefing folders, Marine helicopters, CIA updates via secure communications and other trappings of the national-security apparatus. Other politicians devote themselves to agricultural, banking, judiciary, environment or commerce matters. Not Dick Cheney. Nothing in his upbringing indicated a life largely dedicated to national security. He dodged the draft. He never served in an intelligence service (that we know of). But over the years he became convinced he was so versed in national-security matters that he could travel to Capitol Hill to personally brief lawmakers on interrogation programs, even though he never ran a damn interrogation program. ... He loved this stuff. ... Now back to my all-time favorite-military-books list.
He loved this stuff. Secret meetings with Congress. Secure undisclosed hideouts. Emergency presidential succession plans. Similar to devoted Civil War reenactors donning their gray-and-blue uniforms each weekend, Cheney loved the world of embossed West Wing briefing folders, Marine helicopters, CIA updates via secure communications and other trappings of the national-security apparatus. Other politicians devote themselves to agricultural, banking, judiciary, environment or commerce matters. Not Dick Cheney. Nothing in his upbringing indicated a life largely dedicated to national security. He dodged the draft. He never served in an intelligence service (that we know of). But over the years he became convinced he was so versed in national-security matters that he could travel to Capitol Hill to personally brief lawmakers on interrogation programs, even though he never ran a damn interrogation program. ... He loved this stuff. ... Now back to my all-time favorite-military-books list.
Monday, June 01, 2009
'Just obnoxious'
Dan and Kev are on top of the latest public-pension absurdity, not to be confused with the hack-holidays absurdity. ...
Dan and Kev are on top of the latest public-pension absurdity, not to be confused with the hack-holidays absurdity. ...
'A not-quite graduate of Yale Law School'
A 31-year-old 'who has never set foot in an automoble assemply plant' is at the forefront of the West Wing's GM plans. ... I think we've found our 'very excited' source. ... Reminds me of the earnest young Bushies dispatched to Iraq to rebuild a nation.
A 31-year-old 'who has never set foot in an automoble assemply plant' is at the forefront of the West Wing's GM plans. ... I think we've found our 'very excited' source. ... Reminds me of the earnest young Bushies dispatched to Iraq to rebuild a nation.
'To hiss ...'
Like Republicans forever taking shots at FDR, Democrats forever will be taking shots at Reagan. … Maybe hissing is a better word.
Like Republicans forever taking shots at FDR, Democrats forever will be taking shots at Reagan. … Maybe hissing is a better word.
