Reason Morning Links: Desperate Housewives and Jihad, China's Protest Prize, a Primary Challenge for Obama?

• Scientists give chilly reception to NASA's claim of arsenic bacteria.
• Hackers attack Mastercard in retaliation for company's freeze on Wikileaks donations.
• Left talks of a primary challenge to Obama.
• Wikileaks cables: Satellite transmissions of U.S. TV shows do more to dissuade jihadists than government propaganda.
• Texas Court of Criminal Appeals halts hearing on constitutionality of the death penalty.
• China counters Nobel award with its own "peace prize".

Comments

[John]

"Left talks of a primary challenge to Obama."

To accomplish what? Give the Republicans both elected branches of government in 2012? Good luck explaining to black community why a bunch of white liberals sank the first black President.

[Mike M.]

I have to give some kudos to Obama when it is due; he is showing a capacity to compromise a little that I didn't think he had in him.

The Professional Left can drop dead and go to hell; they're the scum of the earth.

[John]

Yes they can and yes they are. And if Obama wants to govern like Clinton did, I will give him credit for it. Fuck the left.

[cynical]

To fuck the rich. Apparently fucking the rich is more important to the left than helping the poor. Would it be inaccurate to paint progressivism as a hate movement?

[Kristen]

You just blew my mind, dude

[.]

Nope!

[Tulpa]

I wouldn't be surprised if Obama decides voluntarily not to run again.

At this point, that's the best case scenario for the Dems.

[MNG]

There will not be a major primary challenge to Obama. The Dems are not going to alienate the black vote anymore than the GOP would alienate the religious vote. Additionally sitting Prez's have so much institutional advantages and he will position himself as better than whoever the GOP puts forward and the left will as usual unite against whoever that is more than in support for Obama...

[Tim]

It makes perfect sense but politics is full of people with no sense.

[MNG]

He's going to catch hell, but maybe it will benefit him. Perhaps it is the first step towards Clinton-esque "triangulation."

I hope not.

I'm guess I'm glad the tax cuts will be extended to the wealthy so they can keep creating all those jobs they've been pumping out under that exact same rate the past few years!

[gaijin]

You mean the 6 million created or saved? Oh wait, only government can perform that miracle.

[Tim]

Have you ever been hiredby a poor person?

[wylie]

Sure, but then they were all like, "I can't afford to pay you.", and that's when me and my monocle were like "Outtie5000."

[Wesley]

Have you ever been hiredby a poor person?

Once. In high school, my brother-in-law's brother hired me for a tree cutting business. Hardest work I've done in my life, and he always had excuse why he couldn't pay me on payday. I didn't stay long. I always got paid, but often late.

(And he's an entrepreneur who has a successful electrician business now, so he didn't stay poor.)

[Yonemoto]

I once hired a poor(er) person when I was unemployed. Contracted out $400 to consult on revamping my website. I didn't have unemployment checks, though, because my previous job was as a "outside contractor", which was basically a tax cheat so that my employer didn't have to pay payroll taxes for me. Did I mention that 80% of the income for that employer was off of government research grants? (I happened to be paid off of a private research foundation but all the grad students were "independent contractors").

So, yeah. Inflate, stimulate, and make it harder for little people to save and create jobs for littler people.

[cynical]

Heh, I did the "independent contractor" thing for a while, until my boss got his shit together and got a payroll service.

[John]

Like the left united behind Carter? Or the right behind Bush I? All it takes to mount a good primary challenge is a hardcore group of supporters who want to vote to make a point. Eugene McCarthy never had more than a small minority in the Democratic Party. People forget he never won anything. He just did well enough to cause Johnson to say to hell with it. Russ Feigngold or any of about fifteen people could get that right now. And there is the whole trust fund left out there who could fund him. And they would set themselves up as a permanent lefty hero. Feigngold is out of a job and probably won't ever get another one in politics. Why not if you are him?

A primary challenge would almost certainly not win. But it totally could be launched. Don't underestimate people's desire to tilt at windmills and vote to make a statement and feel good about themselves.

[Timon19]

Russ Feigngold

That is an excellent Freudian.

[Citizen Nothing]

It'd be nice to have an honest-to-goodness liberal in the primaries, making waves from the left on civil liberties.

[John]

If Feingold would actually run on that, it would be interesting to see Obama have to defend that stuff. But I doubt that would happen. Feingold will run the usual class and culture warfare bullshit and just make Obama sound like a reasonable guy again.

[Citizen Nothing]

I've got it: A grass-roots movement on the left that agrees to put contentious economic/class warfare issues aside for the moment to find common ground on issues of civil liberties.
Call it the Poppy Tea Party.

[John Edwards]

Two Americas, bitches! Rich people suck!

Now, where's my groundskeeper?

[J sub D]

Tell that to Gerald Ford. A serious primary challenge can sink a re-election bid in a competitive race.

[Tulpa]

Additionally sitting Prez's have so much institutional advantages and he will position himself as better than whoever the GOP puts forward and the left will as usual unite against whoever that is more than in support for Obama...

Lyndon. Baines. Johnson.

[Brett L]

"Scientists give chilly reception to NASA's claim of arsenic bacteria."

The science is settled! That paper was peer-reviewed! (At least, Science claims to be a peer-reviewed journal.)

[MNG]

I agree anyone who thinks the science of anything is settled by a single peer reviewed publication is goofy.

Good thing I don't know many people who would say such a thing.

[Brett L]

Whatever you do, don't mention hockey sticks.

[MNG]

My point is the "science is settled" claim rests on many, many peer reviewed articles from various journals rather than a single one.

[Brett L]

I'm having a little fun with you... and pointing out that peer review is usually focussed on making sure the arithmetic is right, not on approving laboratory or analytical technique.

[Bronwyn]

Not any peer review I've performed or been subjected to, but of course I'm an n of 1, so YMMV.

[Yonemoto]

they didn't even do that on this paper!

[waffles]

Where's the birth certificate!?

[generic Brand]

GERMIST!!!

[MNG]

"Texas Court of Criminal Appeals halts hearing on constitutionality of the death penalty."

Texas is not going to dump the death penalty. It's a cultural marker for the state, like the Alamo.

[Brett L]

And prison rodeos. No homo.

[MNG]

Prison rodeos and the death penalty, why not combine them?

Two mammals enter, one mammal leaves.

[Citizen Nothing]

I want a cut of the pay-per-view revenues. Where do I invest?

[John]

http://theothermccain.com/2010.....el-as-if-i'm-in-a-surreal-swedish-movie-being-threatened-by-bizarre-trolls/

Stacy McCain on the Assange charges and the lefty blogsphere's dilemma over Asange's cult status as an anti-American foreign policy hero and his crimes against "feminism". Worth reading.

[RyanXXX]

Anyone who says it's "good news" that Assange is being denied bail isn't worth reading or trusting. And what's his problem with Naomi Wolf? She's as good and interesting a female writer as there is around.

[RyanXXX]

Not to mention he hopes Assange is extradited to the U.S.

So he can be imprisoned/tortured presumably?

[db]

Don't forget SpaceX to attempt first private orbital flight in about 6 minutes from now.

[Brett L]

Crap. Mission abort at 2:50. Will be at least 2nd window today.

[db]

Wups. aborted at 0904:57. Not sure why yet.

[MNG]

"Not sure why yet."

Come on, the traditional libertarian response is to look for any government connection and blame that for the failure or delay. Try harder.

[db]

Unlike in your paradigm, where nothing is certain and it only matters where the blame sticks longest, whatever caused this abort is rooted in an objective reality and therefore can be discovered and corrected.

This is where you fail. Libertarianism doesn't need to go looking for government failures--they are quite apparent as the logical consequences of certain foundational principles. We only wish we could convince people of this before the failures happen.

[Pro Libertate]

It would be great if the second test launch of the Falcon 9 and the first with the Dragon spacecraft goes as planned. In fact, it would be friggin' awesome.

[A_is_A]

Drink!

[J sub D]

Unlike the typical government response which would be launch anyway, we've got a schedule to ... OOPS!

Well, we can always get another teacher.

[db]

From spaceflightnow.com:

SpaceX says there was a false abort due to an issue with the ordnance interrupter ground feedback position in the terminal countdown. The issues is resolved and the launch team is setting up for another attempt at 10:43 a.m. EST (1543 GMT).

[Brett L]

She's up and on station! Unlike the 3 month delay in the space shuttle launch.

[CavMedic]

Desperate Housewives may dissuade Arab youth from Jihad, but it makes me more likely to want to suicide bomb the set.

[Jerry]

WikiLeaks cables: Saudi princes throw parties boasting drink, drugs and sex.

[John]

If we were half as smart as we think we are, we would have co-opted Bin Ladin back in the 1980s and just let him kill the whole fucking lot.

[RyanXXX]

And let him use his mujehedin to drive Saddam out of Kuwait, saving ourselves the subsequent grief.

[J sub D]

Thank Odin for wikileaks. I'd never have guessed in a million years that the House of Saud is filled with libertine hypocrites without them.

Putin being a tyrannical prick was the real eye opener.

[johnl]

Still not as big a shock as the touchy Canadians.

[Bronwyn]

And this surprises whom?

[John]

http://nalert.blogspot.com/201.....ct-of.html

Wis. Governor-Elect raises prospect of union decertification to balance budget
The Milwaukee Journal reports:

Governor-elect Scott Walker raised the possibility of decertifying state employee unions on Tuesday as one of his administration's options to control rising labor costs and eliminate the state's budget deficit.

"Anything from the decertify all the way through modifications of the current laws in place," Walker said at a luncheon sponsored by the Milwaukee Press Club at the Newsroom Pub.

Walker's comments were an escalation of aggressive posture with state employee unions, even before he takes office on Jan. 3.

He said the state could save $154 million this fiscal year's shortfall in the budget by cutting worker benefits.

[Spoonman.]

Well that'll make some people shit themselves in rage.

[A_is_A]

Wow. Vivid imagery. "PPPPPPPPPPPUUUUUUUUUU"

[.]

Well that'll make some people shit themselves in rage.

I've heard of people "blowing their tops" - but blasting their asses? 😉

[Draco]

That's awesome. I want to go further. I support making public unions illegal. If you want to work for the government, you don't get to set the terms, or even bargain for terms collectively. The people will set the terms. Take them or leave them. Just like the military.

[J sub D]

You can't deny public employees freedom of association.

OTOH, you can prohibit government officials from engaging in collective bargaining.

Reagan and PATCO proved that, faced with dismissal, most of the overpayed, underworked, unionized government employees will come crawling back to the government teat with their curlicued tails between their legs.

[Tulpa]

And then Congress passes a law removing highway funding from any state that decertifies its unions.

[James Ard]

Primary, Shmimary. At this rate he'll have keeled over from a heart attack by the summer.

[John]

I didn't watch the press conference yesterday. But I heard he didn't look exactly presidential. I thought David Brooks told us how erudite he was and how superior his temperament was to McCain?

[James Ard]

It looked to me like he was about to blow a gasket. The anger was dripping off his frown.

[Brett L]

As Iowahawk is fond of lampooning, Christopher Buckley liked the cut of Obama's jib as well. In fact, I think I need quotation marks around "cut of Obama's jib" because that's where the meme started.

[John]

Iowahawk destroyed Buckley. What a clown idiot son Buckley is. His defense of voting for Obama read like something out of Iowahawk entitled "upper class twit explains his voting patterns". It was comical. "He is a Harvard man". "Obama is erudite." "He has written books".

[Johnny Longtorso]

Warren Buffett, Robber Baron?

Time: Has Environmentalism Lost Its Spiritual Core?

[cynical]

Don't worry, Time, environmentalism will always be a religion at heart.

[BakedPenguin]

Warren Buffet is a rent-seeking cocksucker? Say it ain't so.

[MNG]

Wiki Reveals Gaddafi Is Strange, In Other News Sky is Blue

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/new.....eader.html

"Col Gaddafi, 68, suffers from severe phobias, enjoys flamenco dancing and horse-racing, acts on his whims and irritates friends and enemies alike"

The sad part is the part about the British ambassador worried about the Libyans being upset with them if they don't release the Lockerbie bomber. This nation used to rule the frigging world, and now look at them.

[John]

I think he sounds like kind of a fun guy.

[Timon19]

It wasn't just that the Libyans would be upset. According to the BBC last night, the Libyans were essentially threatening the UK with all manner of drastic actions, economic as well as terror-related, if they didn't release al-Megrahi.

[Timon19]

I wonder if the White House thinks I have mishandled classified data by listening to reports of the Wikileaks?

[John]

Yes. That is why they shut off the government networks from the site. The information is still technically classified which makes viewing it on an unclass computer a security violation.

[MNG]

That's even worse. They used to rule the world at the end of a gun barrel and they are afraid of Libya?

Let's make sure we don't fall so far...

[SugarFree]

Considering the international manhunt we've urged for an Australian albino that is publishing what amounts to State Dept gossip in terms that repeatedly attempt to brand him a "terrorist," I think it be hard not to see that America is gathering speed on the slide down into history's dustbin.

[Tim]

HEY! That guy was charged with "Sex by Surprise"! Which, come to think of it, sounds more like a menu item from the Moonlight Bunny Ranch.

[Benchwarmer]

All the Brit's with real balls came to America.

I wonder where America's balls will go.

[Wind Rider]

Probably why plans to go to the moon were scuttled.

[cynical]

You know, as much as the label gets tossed at Assange, any dictator with an army of female bodyguards is pretty much the definition of "Bond villain".

[MNG]

What kind of political idiot is Obama? This kind. For years people have urged him to push a payroll tax cut. He didn't. Then as part of this big compromise he throws that in. Out of the blue, and he and the Dems will get no credit, most people will be fairly oblivious about it. I said when he was nominated that the skill set* and strategies useful in winning elections in Chicago would not be helpful in running the nation...

*includes massive corruption

[Wind Rider]

He's busy demonstrating that even massive corruption requires a modicum of 'skill' - so he even fails in that area.

[Draco]

Left talks of a primary challenge to Obama

This whole kerfuffle is so amusing. These must be the same lefties that thought "W" was a "right wing" President. Now they are actually complaining about a compromise that Obama clearly won - the Republicans completely underplayed their hand. They should have gotten far, far more than a 2 year extension of the Bush rates for what they also agreed to.

The left is truly living in a fantasy world. (The idea that W was "a far right conservative" is as fantastical as any of their other ideas).

[John]

I think the Republicans wanted it to be for only two years because they want to torture Obama with the issue again right before the next election. If Obama would have been smart, he would have made it for four years so the issue was settled for the rest of his term and forgotten by the election.

[MNG]

See, I heard the opposite, that what Obama wanted was to make the GOP vote on extending tax cuts for rich people right before 2012. Do you think this is a popular position? The polls I've seen don't indicate that...

[John]

"Do you think this is a popular position?"

Yes. If taxing the rich was a popular position, Nancy Pelosi would still be speaker.

[Tim]

Touche!

[James Ard]

While redistribution may poll well, until people actually think about it and figure out it's theft.

[Tulpa]

If the economy is doing well at that point, it probably won't be a big issue. It didn't hurt Bush in 2004, for instance.

If the economy is still bad, Obama's fucked regardless.

[0x90]

Disagree. The base is hating him now -- extend for four years, and he doesn't have that lever in oh-twelve. When the time comes, and the economy is even worse, he'll tout the numbers, i.e. show in 'real terms' (i.e. observed in '12 vs. projected in '08) much the two-year extension of 'tax cuts for the rich' he was 'forced' into has hurt the little people. I assume that to be the strategy behind the 'compromise' anyway.

Either way, I don't think it looks good for him. He's supposed to be R-light, but as he notes, you think you would get any kind of HCR with an R? If he's managed to get that, and people are still calling him useless, he's pretty much shot, unless the Rs decide to nominate Bob Dole.

[robc]

unless the Rs decide to nominate Bob Dole.

Its his turn.

[Pro Libertate]

I've got to say that I liked Dole a lot better after he left politics. Strange.

[generic Brand]

Viagra Dole or Pepsi Dole?

[Pro Libertate]

Banana Dole.

[Kristen]

True story: back when Dole was running against whatisface, a very wealthy, very high-powered Turkish CEO tried to launch a boycott of Dole fruit products because of Bob Dole's anti-Turkish opinions. Until someone told him that Bob Dole had nothing to do with Dole fruit.

[TrickyVic]

Bob Dole says it's Bob Dole's turn.

[johnl]

BHO thinks soaking the rich is a popular idea. Everybody he knows loves it.

[MNG]

" a compromise that Obama clearly won"

What did Obama get? He lost on every aspect except getting it temporary (the GOP has said all along they would likely go ahead with unemployment extension they just wanted it paid for).

[Draco]

Well, since there is no reason at all ever to increase tax rates above the Bush levels (except to raise them on the lower end of the scale, since 40% of households pay no income tax at all thanks to "the conservative" George W. Bush), 2 years is absurd. They should have made the top rate permanent.

Also, the reinstatement of the estate tax. which is an absolutely indefensible horror, at any level. Really, only an actual Marxist could ever support the idea of an estate tax - especially given that all of the income to build that estate was already taxed.

[J sub D]

... since 40% of households pay no income tax at all

Bullshit. Even ignoring the emploer's contribution, J sub jr.* (professional busboy) pays 7.65% income tax on every fucking dollar he earns. Calling it FICA, thus not an "income tax" is disingenuos at best.

* Fictitious person, real story. I'm childless.

[J sub D]

Rather than "Bullshit" I should have used "I call shenanigans" because I'm not really angry at Draco (yet).

[Draco]

I was speaking technically, of course. I'm sure you realize that I know all about FICA, the distinction between a payroll tax and an income tax, etc.

It is my firmly held opinion that when 40% of households have no skin in the actual "federal income tax" (form 1040) game, you only need to convince another 11% to "soak the rich" and you've got permanent socialism.

[Mike M.]

I think that the discussed compromise includes a one year reduction in the payroll tax for everyone.

Needless to say, this isn't going to do much for the solvency of our big welfare programs. Unless there are serious spending cuts in the next budget, the deficit is going to be enormous once again.

[Ska]

Yes, there is a 2% reduction in FICA for all wage earners, with no income limitation. If you are a wage earner that hits the FICA max, you will pay $2,136 less in FICA taxes.

The employer share remains at the same 6.2%. There has been no mention of whether self-employed individuals will pay a reduced amount of self-employment tax.

[generic Brand]

True story indeed. I work for a university and instead of paying social security taxes with my FICA I pay into an independent 401k for myself. This while making $10 an hour. So instead of a meager $760 check after 2 weeks of work I get an even more meager $700 check. All for a job that I don't intend to have for more than a few years at most. Just give me my damn money now!!!

[Wind Rider]

Oh, look, a J.G. Wentworth spambot!

[EscapedWestOfTheBigMuddy]

::concerning FICA being a "income tax" or not::

You're right in a way, J sub D, but also wrong. Right because these taxes are indexed to income and come out all unseen if you don't read you stub.

But wrong in the sense that they are ever on he table when a politician talks about "income tax reform". Especially a "liberal" politician (because these programs are part of the [adjective] Deal, and are therefore automatically Good For The Middle Class (tm)).

The fact that Jr. Faces a near 15% off the top tax rate is not only off the table, but never to be mentioned.

[Tulpa]

Really, only an actual Marxist could ever support the idea of an estate tax - especially given that all of the income to build that estate was already taxed.

It's a user fee for the state's support in distributing one's assets in accordance with the will. If the state didn't make a special effort enforce your will, your assets could just be taken on a first-come first-served basis without violating any law, as their status would revert to "unowned" upon your death.

And the double-taxation ship sailed long ago with payroll taxes, sales taxes, etc.

[R C Dean]

What did Obama get?

Mrs. Suderman has an interesting chart up over at her blog, comparing the extension of the Republican tax "cuts" in the compromise to the Democrat ones. The Dem items amount to mo' money.

So:

(a) He got quite a bit.
(b) All that garble about how we can't afford to extend tax cuts for the rich was exposed as a blatant lie.

[0x90]

He only lost in terms of potentiality, MNG. In snapshot, he achieved a net a gain: a) taxes (on the rich -- the middle class was not in play in any scenario) were not reduced, b) and he got the Rs to budge on UE. For the life of me, I don't know why his base equates a failure to raise taxes as a real loss; it's status quo at worst, and with the UE concession factored in, a definite win. Assuming their real goal to be 'smaller government', the Rs got hoodwinked and they don't seem to know it.

[cynical]

Given that they're both extensions of temporary changes, UE is as much status quo as upper bracket tax cuts or copyright terms or the doc fix.

[Old Mexican]

Re: MNG,

What did Obama get?

He got to call the Repubs "Hostage Takers." That's a big deal.

[Old Mexican]

Re: MNG,

What did Obama get?

He got to call the Repubs "Hostage Takers." That's a big deal.

[Old Mexican]

Scientists give chilly reception to NASA's claim of arsenic bacteria.>

... Because the NASA scientists forgot to add the necessary and proper "Due To Climate Change" subtitle on their paper. THEN the scientists would have gone ga-ga on it.

[Old Mexican]

Wikileaks cables: Satellite transmissions of U.S. TV shows do more to dissuade jihadists than government propaganda.

Reruns of "Married... With Children" makes then feel enough pity for Americans.

[SugarFree]

Barf.

(Apologies to barfman.)

[Old Mexican]

There's no worse curse for a recently-dead person than having a self-serving asshole do your eulogy.

[Warty]

When a mother dies, the first thought I have is: How much time did she get to spend with her children?

Insincerity or lie? And is there really a difference?

[Citizen Nothing]

I'm still hoping for a prodigal-son style turn-around from Weigel.

"You can call me a dreamer...
(But I'm probably the only one)"

[Wind Rider]

If there's anything to pity Liz Edwards over, it's that after being used by the shitbag lying asshole she hitched her wagon to to in life, she's now being used by all the shitbag 'concern trolls' to demonstrate their 'civility' after she's completed the circle of life. Which doesn't include me, as her achievement of 'ultimate life reward' status doesn't really change my opinion of her as a particularly nasty piece of work, with a huge responsibility in advancing the aforementioned lying shitbag to a position where he almost was a heartbeat away from the presidency. Oh, and please don't act shocked and tell me she didn't know, and wasn't doing so for her own self interests.

[Old Mexican]

Left talks of a primary challenge to Obama.

A very fructiferous talk, no doubt, as America is clearly a leftist-leaning country and furthermore . . . What are you guys laughing at????

[John]

the Left just wants Obama to fail.

[Jihadist]

such a challenge would seem to have about as much chance of success as, say, a reality show about David Hasselhoff.

A reality show about David Hasselhoff?

Tell me more!

[Old Mexican]

Well, he has two very cute daughters, and you can almost see the facelift scars around his face, like so many staplemarks...

[Confucius say...]

Go to bed with itchy butt wake up with stinky finger.

[SugarFree]

Woman bites off husband's tongue after he kisses her while she's on the toilet.

But don't you dare laugh! Jezebel doesn't approve of laughter! But we're not "humorless" feminists!

[Warty]

C0vetous
12/07/10

Mental illness consumed my failed marriage too.....I'm just glad it didn't consume any of my bits in the process.

There's a divorced Jezebite? Huh.

[Finchy]

If I ever get married, I am going to make my husband promise to never kiss me while I'm on the toilet. It seems reasonable to react violently to that kind of situation.

"Reasonable"? I'm guessing you won't have to worry about that first clause.

[CaptainSmartass]

Next time my wife tries to kiss me on the toilet I'm going to push her through a wall, then subpoena that posted on Jezebel to testify in my defense. I'm sure she'd be OK with doing that, right?

[generic Brand]

Should we be worried that you're always posting from the Jezebel website? Or is it strictly edutainment?

[SugarFree]

I do it for the lulz.

[Wind Rider]

Good thing you're not doing it for the money.

[Warty]

The cable claimed it was easy for would-be partygoers to find a patron out of more than 10,000 princes in the kingdom. Some are "royal highnesses" with direct descent from King Abdul Aziz, while others are "highnesses" from less direct branches.

Is having on the order of 10^4 princes normal for a country with a royal family? It seems...um...unsustainable.

Also, this is how I've always pictured Arab sheiks partying.

[Tim]

My magic eight ball tells me that Saudia Royalty is going the way of French royalty.

[wylie]

Economies of Scale, maybe?

[Warty]

For Pearl Harbor day, have some semi-topical Iron Maiden.

[robc]

Im thinking the US can save money and pay Skinemax to have it broadcast across the entire Middle East. Victory!!!

[SugarFree]

A dark narrative turn for Archie Comics.

Life With Archie: The Married Life, has been quietly ripping apart the fabric of life in Riverdale. The recession looms large and disease and infidelity intrude on longtime friendships and young marriages. Life With Archie is a spin-off published by Archie Comics, so it's not a rogue parody. But within just a few months, Riverdale has turned from a 20th-century middle-American paradise into a 21st-century middle-class hell.

[Tim]

Has Archie's latent and self hating homosexuality been revealed yet?

[J sub D]

Satellite broadcasts of the US TV shows Desperate Housewives and Late Show With David Letterman are doing more to persuade Saudi youth to reject violent jihad than hundreds of millions of dollars of US government propaganda, informants have told the American embassy in Jeddah.

Is anyone, other than those who earn a living spewing State Department propoganda, surprised by this?

*crickets chirping*

[SugarFree]

No Gossip Girl?

[dbcooper]

Big in China apparently.

[robc]

The Soviet Union fell before Cuba. They got blue jeans and Dallas reruns. Coincidence?

[The Gobbler]

I dated a Russian girl back in the 70's. The Beatles are what took down the Soviet Union. She said the government was powerless at stopping copies of their albums from entering the country. Lennon took down Lenin. BTW, today is the 30th anniversay of John Lennon's murder. I happend to be sitting in Central Park across the street from the Dakota apartments just five days earlier.

[R C Dean]

I suspect they are convincing Saudi youths not to persuade jihad by convincing them that America is on the brink of collapse anyway, so what's the point.

[Wind Rider]

Not so subtle psyops would explain the Hasselhoff reality show, in that case.

[Tim]

Letterman beats Leno, AGAIN!

[Kristen]

I resemble that remark!

[John]

I am told by people I know who live in the region, Arabs love "Big Love". A lot of them are polygamous and like to see a show that deals with issues that affect them. No kidding.

[Amakudari]

Also, Elizabeth Edwards died and 4chan seems to have successfully taken MasterCard down (for caving into pressure about Wikileaks).

Both moderately interesting.

[Amakudari]

In case anyone can't tell, I totally didn't read the post.

[robc]

Im not going to defend 4chan (shudder), but Mastercard says they stopped taking donations because wikileaks was engaged in illegal activity.

That hasnt been determined by the courts yet so how the fuck does Mastercard know this?

[robc]

Heck, even Senators are saying "while there might not be a law against this, there should be", so from where did Mastercard reach their decision?

[cynical]

I note that, despite major mainstream media outlets essentially being involved in the same illegal activity (ie, possessing classified documents and releasing information in some of them), Mastercard hasn't stopped payments to the Guardian or the NYT. It would be more honest to say they stopped payments to Wikileaks because it's politically unpopular.

[J sub D]

MasterCard, and stopped because of very real government pressure which always includes implied threats.

After we're done trying to trash their busines, let's go stone a rape victim.

[Slut Bunwalla]

Right, because there's NO indication that the US government has a problem with Wikileaks regardless of what the law says, is there? And absolutely no indication that the government will go after Wikileaks and anyone associated with them by whatever means possible. The government NEVER oversteps its boundaries.

[P Brooks]

Prosecutors have been "standing mute" at counsel tables during the hearing that began Monday and was expected to last two weeks.

Their strategy has been to refuse to take part in Fine's hearing, opting instead to plead their case to the appeals court.

So, if you're a District Attorney, holding your breath until you turn blue works.

[robc]

Fine was exceeding his authority by allowing evidence regarding flaws in past death penalty cases to decide issues in Green's case.

Judge Fine is following basic principles of law dating back to the Magna Carta. This is how courts are supposed to work, juries are judges of the law as well as the facts.

From 1653 England:
In 1653 Lilburne was on trial again and asked the jury to acquit him if it found the death penalty "unconscionably severe" in proportion to the crime he committed. The jury found Lilburne "Not guilty of any crime worthy of death".

[robc]

Also this (from wikipedia, so take with the appropriate boulder of salt):

Standard jury trial practice in the USA during the Founding Era and for several decades afterward was to argue all issues of law in the presence of the jury, so that the jury heard the same arguments the bench did in reaching his rulings on motions. This is evidenced by such decisions as the 1839 case Stettinius v. U.S., in which it was held that "The defense can argue law to the jury before the court gives instructions."[18] Later, judges began to demand the parties submit motions in writing, often before the jury was empaneled, to be argued and decided without the jury being present. This transition began with motions in limine, to exclude evidence, on which it was felt the jury should not hear the argument because they would be informed of the evidence to be excluded. Later that was expanded to include all legal argument, so that today, that earlier practice of arguing law before the jury has been largely forgotten, and judges even declare mistrials or overturn verdicts if legal argument is made to the jury.

[Troy]

Awwwwwww, these whiny pussies don't get to kill anyone, so they throw a tantrum.

[.]

The fucker in this particular case needs killin'.

[rhea]

The greed of immediate gratification, at the cost of the future, by this society and this government is wrong.
The truth should be known.
Do we not have a obligation to our children and their children rather than the immediate gratification of our greedy ways now!
http://www.pathtoasia.com/jobs/

[Quiet Desperation]

How did I miss out on the dark and gritty Archie? I read The Awesomer religiously!

Of course the slough of despond that is the depressing and disease ridden world of Funky Winkerbean beat them to the punch long ago.

And nothing can top the melon headed horrors of The Family Circus.

[P Brooks]

Speaking of "primary challenge to Obama"...

This morning, CNBC was providing a tongue bath credulous coverage to some dog-and-pony show being put on by Mayor Bloomberg. I watched for a few minutes as one of Bloomberg's minions went through a stage-setting exercise of extolling the Mayor's multitudinous achievements in improving the quality of life for New Yorkers. In the background was a construction site with large cranes and stuff, and I was consumed by curiosity as to whether it was Ratnerville; an excellent example of how Bloomberg makes New York better and more liveable for the little guy.

The whole thing felt like a poorly camouflaged launch of the Good Ship Bloomberg for President.

I had to turn it off, because I was about to puke.

[smartass sob]

I was consumed by curiosity as to whether it was Ratnerville;

Um, wouldn't Ratville be more appropriate? 🙂

[db]

So federal Judge Thomas Porteous has been convicted and removed from the bench by the Senate. In reading the USA Today's blurb:

In 1989, impeached federal judges Alcee Hastings and Walter Nixon were found guilty by the Senate and removed from office. Hastings, a Democrat, has been a member of Congress from Florida since 1993. Nixon practices law in Mississippi.

Why is it that when hackers are convicted of illegal cracking, e.g., Kevin Mitnick, their sentences frequently contain prohibitions from contact with computers or the Internet, but when legal professionals are convicted of professional crimes, there's a career in politics or sweetheart partnership in their future?

[generic Brand]

Or police officers who are fired (as rare as that is) are able to go into some other type of security/protection service.

[Virginia]

For someone living among bureaucrats, she really has no clue.

"I was completely surprised by the lack of support and almost venom that came through," Houghton told me. "Other businesses have contacted me and said they've had the same experience."

[Wind Rider]

The explaination is simple enough here, and should be obvious to Houghton -

"Why does a dog lick itself"

This applies to petty bureaucrats, as well.

[EscapedWestOfTheBigMuddy]

The thing that I noticed about the contretemps between he Big O and the leftward wing of his party is that Barry has started turning his ad hominem guns on his own people.

I've started a bag of popcorn: this could be fun.

[Tulpa]

Let's all thank the FBI: keeping us safe from people who have no means of planning, let alone mounting, a terrorist attack, and no particular degree of competency in doing so, but can be convinced to participate in one anyway with some effort.

[hmm]

I hear he had shaved ice in his freezer and was threatening snowballs.