Reason Morning Links: Paybacks, Parliament, and Penguins

- Unemployment climbs higher. But not to worry: More stimulus is on the way!

- Obama starts his push for health care "reform," including a new government-run insurance option. Struggling private insurers have a proposal of their own: Washington should force everyone to buy their product.

- The White House will allow some banks to pay back some forms of federal aid, with the announcement coming "as soon as today," according to the Washington Post. The paper adds that "few banks have expressed eagerness for the government to end the other forms of support, creating concern that these programs will be habit-forming and more difficult to terminate."

- The Tories have trounced Labour in England's latest elections. The European parliament seems to be turning rightwards as well.

- Gay pride comes to China -- and gay adoption comes to the penguin community.

Comments

[SugarFree]

Lonewacko Preview

At first he was just happy to masturbate over the news coverage, but now he's got something to really be angry about.

I wonder if we'll get to see him leading the protests in Sacramento... What tough questions will he ask at the hospital press conference?

[..]

Few care.

[MNG]

"Gay pride comes to China -- and gay adoption comes to the penguin community"

But is there gay penguin pride in China? Well? I thought not!

Homosexual agenda my ass!

(hey, someone had to get the thread rolling)

[Ben Kenobi]

Higher unemployment? I thought the stimulus package was going to create magical jobs covered in fairy dust for everyone.

[John Amyers]

Wow, now that sounds like a really cool place to be doesnt it.

RT
http://www.anonymity.2ya.com

[Mike M.]

It's pretty amusing and ironic to see the very same Europeans who so lustily cheered Obama's election as though it heralded peace on earth forever, moving further and further away from international socialist leftism themselves.

It makes me think that they don't truly believe all their own B.S. and just get off on delivering us smug, sanctimonious lectures.

[MNG]

So finally the French socialists think they have to come up with a new pitch? About time. First, don't run a silly girl as your head person. Second, and most importantly, be more LIKE A BOSS!

Treat the right like a giant fish.

[Fascitis Necrotizante]

Treat the right like a giant fish.

Wait, what?

[Kreel Sarloo]

"It's pretty amusing and ironic to see the very same Europeans who so lustily cheered Obama's election..."

Actually, it's not "the...same Europeans" att all.

There is a wide gulf between the Euro "man on the street" or "joe six-pack" and the elites that rule him. Public opinion on issues like the death penalty to abortion to gay rights are quite different from what is seen in public policy. And don't even think about examining European attitudes on race too closely.

Everything from the proportional representation system (which does anything but provide propoertional representation) to their parliamentary systems conspire to make European countries extremely prone to rule by party elites who wield power far out of proportion to their actual popullar mandate.

of course Europeans are used to being ruled by their betters and any dissatisfaction that might arise is mitigated by the maintenance of generous welfare schemes.

But like voters everywhere Eurotrash are fickle. When the economy goes south the incumbents are like ly to go south as well.

That's all that's happening here.

[Allen]

Funny how just as the economy is looking like it's moving into a recovery phase, the politicians are making a lot of noise about ramping up stimulus spending. I can imagine during the course of the next year we'll see a lot about unemployment going from 9.7% (or whatever it may reach) down to 8% (or whatever it may fall to) with a lot of politicians pointing to the "ramped up" stimulus spending that occurred at the same time. They'll point to the stimulus money and claim they were part of it even though somehow all that gov't spending resulted in Japan's 1990s been called the lost decade and that all those 3rd world countries that have done it are, well, still 3rd world countries.

[Kreel Sarloo]

Of course with the incumbents gone don't expect much of a change. It takes a massive welfare state to keep the plebs placated.

The only change will be the cronies raking in the spoils from most European countries notorious "partnership" between government, business and labor.

[kinnath]

The mailman comes; the dog barks; the mailman goes away; the dog has complete confidence that he has prevented yet another intursion today.

[Tom Walls]

I'm just happy about the success of the UK IP (a self-described "libertarian" party - see the Google result display for "UKIP") as well as the surprise one-seat win by the Pirate Party in Sweden.

[R C Dean]

Funny how just as the economy is looking like it's moving into a recovery phase,

You're kidding, right?

I'm puzzled here by the unemployment spin. On the one hand, the Obama administration was telling us a few months ago that unemployment was projected to peak at around 8%. Then we hear that the unemployment for May was projected to increase by over 500,000, when a lower increase brought us to a rate of 9.4%.

How can a lower than expected increase in May bring us to a rate far higher than was projected in February?

[robc]

RC,

You left out March and April. 🙂

Maybe the May numbers were lower than the April projection.

[EJM]

? The Tories have trounced Labour in England's latest elections. The European parliament seems to be turning rightwards as well.

Much more from, yes, DPA (here and here)--including about the success of Sweden's "Pirate Party".

[Atanarjuat]

Obviously a plot by the IllegalMexicans to get into this country. As soon as the kid is healed, she and the parent will start working under the table while drawing welfare.

[J sub D]

Anyone who witnessed Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Finals already suspected that Penguins are gay.

[Kanye West]

I AM NOT A GAY PENGUIN!

[Bill]

How economically free-market are parties of the European right, though? Many times the parties of the European right are just as socialistic as the parties of the left, but just pander to a different base e.g. Germany's Christian Democrats, the nominally conservative party of that country.

[Brandon]

The UK's BNP winning two seats, and the success of other "far right" parties elsewhere, will probably lead to even tighter restrictions on so-called hate speech in Europe.

[MaterialMonkee]

"How economically free-market are parties of the European right, though?"

The EPP (Berlosconi, Comrade Sarko et al)are not at all right wing, They're big into bailouts, subsidies and are anti-free trade

The EPP also federalists. The continental "old europe" EU right are pretty much like Democrats slightly more socially authoritarian in some cases.

Actually for all their sins the Labour UK party are economically far to the right of most of the EPP

Some of the Liberal Block are Basically Libertarians in the American Sense (The Denmark Liberal Alliance for example)

Dave Cameron and some "new europe" countries like The Czech Republic are starting a new block that will apparently be economically right and anti-federalist

after the results this weekend that block has a good position

[robc]

Okay, are the federalists federalist in the 18th century American federalist v anti-federalist way or federalist in the 21st century American small-government federalist way?

The terms confuse me sometimes.

[R C Dean]

The terms confuse me sometimes.

You'd almost think it was intentional.

Almost.

[MaterialMonkee]

"federalist"

as in against "states" rights as Yanks say
They support Brussels power individual over countries governments

hmmm

just seen this its 200 years since Geo-libertarian godlike genius Tom Paine died

Brendan O Neil from Spiked has an article on the Beeb

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/8089115.stm

Slow day at work today, too much of a hangover from election night so more web browsin than usual!

[Art-P.O.G. (Internet Tough Guy]

Slow day at work today, too much of a hangover from election night so more web browsin than usual!

So David Brent's cool with you being all on the internet at work?

[ed]

Two males raising offspring are necessarily gay? Maybe the penguins are just good friends. I think a better indicator is how tidy they are, and whether they own any Liza Minnelli records.

[Cabeza de Vaca]

The article MaterialMonkee linked to was really good. It even had as quote by KMW, but the best part was reading the comment section. I had no idea that there are still Brits who are pissed off about losing the American revolution.

"Let's face it! It was not a revolution, it was an English civil war in the 13 English colonies, fought by greedy landowners who would not pay there tax and wanted more land. Thomas Paine and all the others like Washington were traitors to England and ultimately Britain. All of them should have been put in prison or hanged for treason. That's why they will forever be remembered as being traitors! If you don't pay your tax today you get put in prison.
David Johns, Manchester"

[EJM]

FWIW, euronews may have a better results/overview section.

[SugarFree]

Cabeza de Vaca,

A tax-loving Brit should be happy with the US at this point. If the American Revolution was a tax revolt, then the situation we are in now should prove that the rebellion was ultimately quite futile.

[robc]

"federalist"

as in against "states" rights as Yanks say
They support Brussels power individual over countries governments

Okay, that would be 18th century American federalism. Their opponents were the anti-federalists.

Today, federalists are generally those that support states "rights"

[robc]

the situation we are in now should prove that the rebellion was ultimately quite futile.

Let this be a lesson for the Europeans. Listen to your anti-federalists.

[MaterialMonkee]

"So David Brent's cool with you being all on the internet at work?"

haha

work in research, which is a very good job option for the work shy 🙂

[Brandybuck]

The article says that gay sex is normal in the animal world. I know it exists, but this is the first I've heard that it was normal. I know that male dogs will try to mount anything vaguely resembling your Aunt Tillie's leg, but I've never heard of a male dog submitting to it. Any references? I don't think this is as common as the German zookeeper is trying to imply.

[ed]

Brandybuck,

It's only a story because same-sex marriage amongst humans is now a story. However, I'd still like to know why the zookeeper thinks the penguins are gay. Because they adopted the orphan chick? Or because they're having actual gay sex? Lots of animals groom and care for and tend to one another. Such behavior doesn't make them "gay." There's a subtle political motive at work here.